At North Village Church, we are always talking about the importance of Jesus, but what about all those arguments for how Jesus is a waste of time?
In our new blog series, ‘How to Respond When Someone Says’, we are providing you with Biblical ways to respond when some argues against your Faith in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Part 5: How to respond when someone says: Why should I trust a belief system, when I can’t trust myself?
In our last discussion we explored the argument that the Bible is full of contradictions. In this discussion we will explore advantages and disadvantages of just trusting ourselves. After all, if we are going to trust anything in life, shouldn’t we trust in ourselves?
Why would I trust a belief system when I can trust myself?
- Aren’t we better educated today? We have access to more resources than any other point in history. Why would I need to trust anyone but myself?
- And, even if some people find following Jesus to be helpful, it doesn’t mean following Jesus is helpful to me. I am my own person.
- After all, can’t we do anything in life we put our mine to accomplish?
These are all great concerns, but:
- The culture of people in the United States are very vulnerable to the “belief in the self.” The people who came to this country as immigrants are people who took risks when others stayed behind. Every person who has genetic history in the United States has deeply embedded in them, “You can do it!”
- In the 1850’s Samuel Smiles published a book called, “Self-Help.”
- In 1904 Darwin published, “Origin of Species.”
- In 1936 Dale Carnegie published, “How to Win Friends and Influence People.”
- In 1937 Napoleon Hill published, “Think and Grow Rich.”
- In 1952 Norman Peale published, “The Power of Positive Thinking.”
- These were all best selling books that fuel the internal thoughts, “We can do it!” In the late 1900’s we saw a rise of motivational speakers like Tony Robbins, Oprah Winfrey, so that self-helpism is alive and well in our world today.
The problem of self-helpism is that it puts all the pressure on the person. When we are young it is inspirational to hear, “We can do anything we put our mind to accomplish!” It’s a great message for a young person to hear but what happens when that 5 foot kid wants to be in the NBA? Or that 120lb 15-year old wants to play on the offensive line for their high school football team? Or that student who isn’t good at math but wants to be an astronaut?
Sure, study hard. And yes, each person could be challenged to study harder but sometimes inspirational posters aren’t going to help. Sometimes life is going to deliver huge challenges and we are going to need something more robust to carry us through life other than, “Look within.”
The good news of Jesus isn’t that the answer comes from within but that the answer comes from without. He did create every person with special gifts and talents but we aren’t going to be able to unlock those gifts and talents until we place Jesus at the center of our life. When Jesus is at the center of our life we are going to be able to better understand where we are weak, where we are strong and how we might be able to use our gifts for His glory instead of our own.
Did this help?
Check out the rest of this 6 part series.
Perhaps you have some objections you would like to recommend. If so, please email those objections to [email protected].
North Village Church
This article was written by Pastor Michael Dennis, Lead Pastor at North Village Church; a non-denominational church in Austin, TX, established in 2009 and built around Jesus and Bible teaching.
Are you looking for a church in Austin? At North Village Church we put Jesus at the center of our church family. We worship together every Sunday at 10:30am, encourage Christ centered fellowship through groups, and host special events such as Bible studies and Theological Training, to ensure that we are rooted in in God’s Word. We also serve our local community in association with several Austin based organizations.
North Village Church is made up of professionals, married couples, singles, and families who are wanting to experience the life-transforming power of Jesus. If you are a family with children or teens, we can support you with either or both our Kids Ministry and Youth Ministry.
Check out our North Village Church calendar highlights such as our Christmas Eve Service in Austin and Easter Sunday Service.
You are welcome to contact us if you would like more information, please call (512)-623-9272 or email [email protected]
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