So...
I was always interested in learning more about the Bible and in doing so, I hoped to get closer to God. When I got the chance, I followed a Bible study which thaught me the contectual interpretation. Ever since that study, I have lost my faith in steps. I just can't read the Bible without seeing all its flaws. I just can't talk to anybody about this in fear that I would take their faith away as well. However, I can't live in this insecure and godless way. Are there any of you who experienced the same? How did you overcome this?
You ask, "How do I overcome this?" Firstly keep in mind that, from the gist of your message and concerns, you are still seeking Jesus. And Jesus made a promise, "Seek and you shall find, Knock and the door will be opened for you."
You are correct in your assertion that the Bible/Scripture is difficult to understand. Keep in mind that Jesus meant his teachings to be simple, for simple uneducated people. In fact, he picked common uneducated fishermen as His apostles, and, except for Matthew they probably couldn't read or write.
So, my advice to you in your search for faith in Jesus is to keep things simple. Use common sense and reason things out. Here is something I wrote years ago.
Jesus Asked, “Who Do You Say That I Am?”
Jesus asked His Disciples an important question, “Who do men say that I Am?”
So, who was Jesus? Let’s take a look at His life and begin with a plain fact. Throughout all history, it would be hard to find any individual whose life has had a greater impact on the world than Jesus’.
A famous author, an atheist named, H.G. Wells said, “I am not a believer, but as an historian, I must confess that this penniless preacher from Nazareth is easily the most dominant person in all history.”
Jesus’ impact on the world is amazing when we recall that he lived 2,000 years ago in a small town and never travelled far from home as an adult. He never held political office, never wrote a book, never invented something, never discovered anything, never led an army into battle, and He never amassed great wealth. He never did any of the things that are considered to be historic.
We know almost nothing about His first 30 years on earth, and during the three short years of His public work, He spent most of His time in small villages. He avoided publicity, commanded His followers not to tell anyone of the miracles that He was said to have performed.
So how is it then that Jesus has become the most influential person in the history of the world? Christians see Him as their Savior, other religions regard Him as a holy man. Nations, Cultures, and religious traditions have been deeply influenced by the civilization that spread throughout the world in His Name. Even people of no religious faith have been deeply influenced by Jesus’ teachings.
So, what sets this man apart from the billions of others who have lived upon this earth?
Indeed, He is most remembered by eyewitnesses for being rejected by his own people, that He died naked, penniless, shamed, virtually alone, and in great agony. He appeared to be a spectacular failure. So why did He become a central point of history?
Jesus appears to be like some other religious figures, preaching love of neighbor and urging people to turn to God. But something separates Jesus from all the others.
Other religious leaders like Moses, Buddha, Mohammed, or Confucius had a message about God or about the right way of living. But the most they had to say about themselves was that they were prophets or wise teachers.
Unlike all these other religious figures Jesus made a far more radical claim. He claimed not only to be a messenger from God, but to be the actual Message, in short, His identity is the issue.
Jesus demanded the apostles make a decision and asked them, “Who do you say that I Am?”
Actually, the possible answers to this question are surprisingly limited. Let’s look at some of the non-Christian attempts to explain Jesus.
Many non-Christians see Jesus as merely being a good and wise man. Albert Einstein said, I am a Jew, but I am enthralled by the luminous figure of the Nazarene. He added, “No one can read the Gospels without feeling the actual presence of Jesus.”
And yet, we miss the point almost entirely if we treat Jesus merely as a good and wise man, because Jesus made claims that no mere man ever made.
When Jesus claimed to forgive sins, He was making the claim that it was He was the One who was offended by men’s sins. He was criticized for forgiving sins, because only God can forgive sins. And his critics were right, Only God can forgive sins, and Jesus never disputed that.
Jesus claimed that before Abraham was, I Am. Understand what Jesus claimed here. Jesus claimed to be, “I Am”, and I Am is the Name by which God revealed Himself to Moses. Jesus is claiming to be the same eternal God who spoke to Moses from the burning bush. The religious leaders understood perfectly what He was saying and they picked up stones and attempted to kill Him for blasphemy. (John 8:58)
Jesus guided by word and example, forgiving, loving and caring for others. But far more than showing us the way, Jesus claimed that He is the Way, and the Truth, and the Life; and that no one can come to the Father but by Me.
Jesus allowed Himself to be worshipped. After His resurrection, Jesus appeared to the Apostle Thomas, in the upper room and Thomas fell to the ground and worshipped Jesus praying to Jesus, My Lord and my God!” Being strict Jews, Jesus and the apostles worshipped only one God, but when Thomas fell down and worshipped Jesus as God, neither Jesus nor any of the other apostles corrected him.
Instead, Jesus accepted His worship, acknowledging that He is the one God of Israel. It is clear; none of Jesus disciples thought that Jesus was only a good and wise man.
If Jesus’ claims weren’t true, then Jesus was an egomaniac, and an evil man. But, if Jesus’ claims are true then He is certainly much more than a good and wise man.
Well then, maybe Jesus was just a great teacher? But if what Jesus said about Himself was true, then, He must be more than just a great teacher. Jesus taught that He is God and that we are not. He emphasized that He is from above and that we are from below, that we are sinners and that He is without sin, and that God is one. Jesus had a thoroughly Jewish concept of the God of Israel; and Jesus clearly stated a number of times, “I Am!”
Jesus surely claimed to be much more than a good man or a teacher. And, if He wasn’t who He claimed to be, then He was not a good man or a teacher of truth.
One atheist, who converted to Christianity, was the great protestant thinker and writer, C.S. Lewis. He said, “Jesus claimed to be God, so there are only two possibilities, either He is God or He is not God.” There are no other possibilities.
If Jesus is not God, then we are left with two options: He either knows that He is not God and is a liar, or he is a lunatic and mistakenly thinks that He is God.
If Jesus was a liar, His lies were about the most important things imaginable. For a man to lie about such claims to His friends and followers, He would have to been deeply evil.
Liars tell lies in the pursuit of some gain. So, if Jesus was a liar, for what purpose ? What does Jesus gain as a result of His lies? Earthly power? No, when men try to crown Him, He runs away. Status? No, He only wins the admiration of a small crowd of unimportant people; prostitutes, tax collectors, fishermen, and the undying hatred of men who are bent on His destruction.
Why would He lie when He is on trial for His life and is challenged to answer whether He is the Christ, the Son of God? He didn’t hesitate. He answered, I AM, (Mark 14:61) thereby inviting crucifixion, the most horrific death known to man. No liar, bent on earthly gain would do this.
So, if Jesus is not God and not a liar, we are left with only one other alternative; He was mistakenly insane. The trouble with this thought is that He is unlike any other lunatic whoever claimed to be God. There is nothing in Scripture to indicate that Jesus was insane. Study His interactions with His enemies or His warm conversations with His friends. No one ever thought that He was a deranged man, out of His wits.
So, if Jesus wasn’t a compulsive liar or insane, it begins to look as though there is difficulty in accounting for Jesus in any other way but the way that Peter did. When Jesus asked him, “Who do you say that I AM.” Peter answered Jesus’ question, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
And Jesus asks the same question to all people, throughout time, He asks the same question of you and me, “Who do you say that, I Am?”
So, think about it in understandable terms as that is a question that each of us needs to answer.
