Conclusion: My Own Story The case for the resurrection is meticulous and painstaking. There is no smoking gun, since any of these pieces of evidence can be explained naturalistically, if not always entirely plausibly. What struck me in studying these facts, though, was that the evidence kept pointing in a certain direction which in itself is a statistically significant result. In admitting the possibility of a Supreme Being, the evidence and facts fall beautifully together to make a compelling case. Without admitting the possibility of a Supreme Being, the evidence makes no sense, and the possible explanations are strained to the point of breaking. This study turned my life around 180 degrees. I look at it like this: God is gracious enough to securely establish Himself, without completely forcing a decision. When I ask other Christians why they started to believe, usually it is a variation of "I felt that God loved me." This did not happen in my case: I did not trust emotions, and would never never have had a firm base from "feelings." For several years after I accepted Jesus, I felt about God like I might feel about a mitochondrion -- I completely believed in it although I had no personal experience. The Lord has slowly healed my emotions so that I do "feel" His presence now, rarely but really, and I am grateful He was and continues to be patient with me as I walk through this world.There are many unanswered and troubling questions in this world. Like others, I am troubled also, but I go back to first principles: 1. the resurrection happened: therefore Jesus' words, and the Bible, can be trusted. 2. God is perfect, He is Love, He is Holy, He is just. He is trustworthy. 3. I don't need to understand everything, although I can certainly question. But ultimately, I need to trust. The process isn't as easy as this sounds, but I am convinced it is correct. Although I am profoundly flawed, I wish for all I do in this life to be Soli Deo Gloria -- only for the glory of God. |
