Proclaiming the Gospel with Evidence
By Dr. Don Bierle
My early religious experience certainly is a factor contributing
to what FaithSearch International does today.
As an adolescent, I had many questions about God and faith,
but clearly understood that I shouldn't ask them. Asking
questions about God and faith was a sign of "doubt"—and
doubt was bad! So I "stuffed it" until I entered my
college and university years, when I became a skeptic. Actually,
I had received an unusually large amount of religious instruction,
but it was all about "what" to believe. I don't recall
anyone talking about "why" we can know it is true.
After all, some say, pure faith doesn't need reasons; in fact,
they contend, if we had reasons we wouldn't need faith!
 |
| Don Bierle’s 1963 college graduation
photo. He remained skeptical about faith until challenged
to investigate the evidence by graduate school colleagues.
Don began following Christ in 1966. |
God was good to bring some people into my early adult life
who accepted and even encouraged the "why" questions.
Fortunately, they were also able to provide satisfying answers.
After eighteen months of intense searching and dialogue, the
things of God made sense to me and I was on my knees with tears
of relief on my face as I confessed Him as Savior and Lord.
Fast forward forty years to the FaithSearch mission:
"To proclaim the Gospel with evidence to all peoples everywhere."
The phrase "Gospel with evidence" means that the
message we proclaim contains both the "what" and the
"why" of the Christian faith. Skepticism in the
world has increased since my early years, and it has become
more sophisticated. Virtually every adult audience I address
today includes parents who with tears share with me, "Our
son/daughter doesn't believe in Jesus or the Bible anymore."
The publication of The Da Vinci Code; the reported finding
of the alleged bones of Jesus and His family in a tomb in Jerusalem;
the publicity surrounding the Judas gospel; even the New Age
initiative of Oprah and friends—all are "in your face"
challenges to the historic Christian faith.
Fight Hard for the Faith
God has called me to lead the team at FaithSearch
so that individual Christians and the Church around the world
can be more obedient to God's admonition through the apostle
Peter (1 Peter 3:15): "Always be prepared to give an answer
to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that
you have." It's a command of Scripture to know and be
prepared to share the "why" of our faith! Furthermore,
the Lord's brother Jude urges us to "fight hard for the
faith which has been once and for all entrusted to the saints"
(Jude 3 JB). Someone has said that not everything needs defending.
I maintain that what no one demonstrates can be defended will
soon be abandoned. The history of Christianity in post- Christian
Europe demonstrates that all too well!
Therefore, the mission of FaithSearch—to proclaim
the Gospel with evidence—is important for at least two reasons:
- To establish credibility for the Bible and Jesus Christ
(the faith entrusted to the saints) so unbelievers may embrace
Him for salvation; and
- To prevent the attrition of faith, especially assisting
the sons and daughters of our Christian families to refute—or
to overcome—academically-induced skepticism.
What a rich heritage, awesome responsibility, and blessed privilege!
(More on this to come in our next
issue.)
< Back to HTML Table of Contents
>
