1.4 Evidence is part of sharing the gospel

Published by 1c15 on 4th November 20194th November 2019

People rarely accept that Jesus rose from the dead just because the Bible says so, if they genuinely seek to know the truth they ask tough questions. 1 Peter 3:15 is a verse that resonates with me personally as a former atheist.

“But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect”.

1 Peter 3:15

Most with whom you talk with will want evidence, and we have it, but the key is you can’t reason someone into becoming a Christian. God alone draws people to himself for salvation. If God’s not involved then the process will not take place. So why bother with evidence? In Matthew 28:19–20, the great commission states that God wants to use the human element in the process and uses our uniqueness to his joy.

For some, evidence will not matter but your experience and Jesus’ words directly will, for others it is all they want. God can use both ways. Paul adjusted his preaching to suit his audience (read more in Acts 17 to see as such). To the Jews he used the scriptures, to the philosophers of Athens he cited sources they would be familiar with.
Some say providing evidence takes away the faith factor. They should read the bible, say yes, if they say no they should read it again. It’s a noble idea but it’s rather naive.

• Your testimony+gospel is yes powerful.
• Your testimony+apologetics+gospel is surely powerful too.

The apostles did not limit themselves, they were prepared to answer tough questions, but these evidences don’t again cover for faith, faith is still absolutely necessary. For example, a tightrope walker displays his ability to balance on top of a barrel full of 15 stones worth of potatoes whilst rolling it across the tightrope above a canyon. He then asks the audience if he can do the same with a 15 stone or less human in the barrel. The audience say “of course”. He then asks for volunteers, but no one raises their hand. Believing is one thing, acting upon them is faith.

There are many reasons known for rejecting Christ, some because they just don’t like it (Thus not grasping the level of importance it brings), others for emotional reasons such as biblical claims. Others excuse themselves with intellectual objections such as the impossibility of the resurrection. But this could simply be a smokescreen for a deeper reason, such as they simply do not want to believe. Someone with a hidden agenda results in no evidence, testimony or scripture convincing them. But there are those who God is genuinely calling and they have a genuine interest and openness, even though they may appear outwardly hostile. For these a testimony or evidence is assurance that they are safe to trust in Christ.

Sources

• Special credit to the book Gary Habermas & Mike Licona: The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus Which is a primary resource of mine
• Paul quotes other sources — In 1 Corinthians 15:33 Paul quotes the Greek poet Menander (c. 342–291 B.C.) “Evil associations ruin upright morals”. Also see Acts 17:28, where Paul quotes from the Cretan poet Epimenides (c. 600 B.C.), “For in him we live and move and are” and the Cilician poet Aratus (c. 314–240 B.C.), “for we are indeed his offspring”. In Titus 1:12 he quotes the Cretan poet Epimenides (c. 600 B.C.), “Cretens are always liars, vile beasts, lazy gluttons.”
• Paul using different methods — In Paul’s 1st letter to the Corinthian church, he wrote “to the Jews I became as a Jew, so that I might win the Jew; to those who are under the law, as under the law though not being myself under the law, so that I might win those who are under the law; to those who are without law, as without law, though not being without the law of god but under the law of Christ, so that I might win those who are without law. To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak I have become all things to all men, so that I may by all means save some” (1 Corinthians 9:20–22)