SIMPLY FAITH

–not SIMPLE FAITH

By Pastor Vinnie

The screech of his overused marker on the well-worn surface of the college classroom dry-erase board demanded my instant attention. He was red in the face, frustrated with me, from our long one on one debate. He was full of mindful intensity, as he looked me in the eye, slammed down his dry marker on the desk and shouted, “Vinnie, what is a matter with you? Why do you have the gall to think you can prove the existence, God? God can’t be proved! Furthermore, why would you want to? I thought you were the Christian here, not me! Isn’t your whole religion thing about faith, after all? Well, I have got news for you, if you have to prove something; you don’t have faith in it! Faith is all about believing in things not yet proved!

Wham! My Professor of “The History of Philosophy” just totally schooled me on the meaning of faith. The greatest lesson I ever learned about faith, was not in the religion department, but in the secular Philosophy department, and was not taught to me by a believer but by a boldly, self-professed atheist professor[1][2]. He was completely right. To this day I am in his debt for awakening my mind to the fallacy of seeking to prove the improvable; faith.

The dictionary patently describes faith as;

A belief that is not based on proof: He had faith that the hypothesis would be substantiated by fact.[3]

The validity of the matter is that, on a purely logical and judicious level, the nature of the relationship between faith and proof is when a hypothesis becomes proven, it is no longer a hypothesis but rather, it is a proven fact. A proven fact is no longer a matter of faith, but simply a matter of fact. The way to end faith in anything is just to prove it. Then, it stops being about faith and instantly becomes about just facts. And that is exactly, what will happen; I believe by faith,[4] when Christ parts the sky and returns in all His glory, every knee will bow[5], because there will no longer be room for disbelief in the sight of absolute fulfillment. That will be the very moment faith becomes fact!

However, our faith[6] is not blind faith. Blind faith, is faith that exists without any external points of reference. A textbook definition of blind faith might be along the lines of belief without true understanding or discrimination based on concepts that can’t exist outside of your own mindset. It is an ill-informed or ignorant faith, that is vacant of any level of critical thinking skills.

The Christian faith is not blind faith, as the Apostle Paul would have said, “Heaven forbid!” We have not put our faith in, as we are often accused of, a fictitious, “flying spaghetti monster”[7] of gods. Rather our faith is based in an evolving system of Abrahamic religious teachings of many millennia; spanning from the ancient polytheistic tribal origins of Abraham in Ur, the birthplace of all monotheism, to becoming the driving force in the forging Western society, as we now know it. As American philosopher Dallas Willard once pondered; if we ripped every reference of the Bible (or Abrahamic faith traditions) from the infrastructure of the history of Western Civilization would there even be anything but vague debris left to read?[8]

The Bible has over forty authors who wrote over a period of 1,600 years. Its authors were large of different education, occupations, and worldviews. They wrote under differing circumstances and on three different continents and one island[9]. There are whole schools of academic accredited fields of study that endow the biblical perspective in history, philosophy, linguistics, and archeology. While they don’t, unqualifiedly, prove our Faith, they indeed give well-textured evidence that more than neutralizes the accusation that it is “blind faith” to the sincere mind.

The book of Hebrews, sums up, precisely, the point my philosophy professor made to me;

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Hebrews 11:1

Faith is not blind. Faith is not a vapor. Faith is not a dream world. Faith is not a “Flying Spaghetti Monster.” Faith is a substance! And substance has matter with uniform properties; it has a degree of tangibility. That substance (ὑπόστασις) is linguistically from the Greek compound of ὑπό and ἵστημι. The preposition, ὑπό, means “under” and the word ἵστημι means “to stand, or “cause to stand.” The word ὑπόστασις reveals to us that faith is the “understanding” of things hoped for. In other words, it is the foundational element that causes our hope to “stand” as opposed to falling down. A good mental picture in your mind of what the word means would be a “pillar.” Although the pillar sits underneath the building, without it, the building would not stand. Similarly, faith is the pillar upon which our hope stands.[10] Many translations often put it more simply as “confidence.” Faith is an established pillar of confidence in things hoped for, even though they have not yet happened. We believe not blindly, but rather by looking at the evidence that God has planted throughout our lives. As Søren Kierkegaard, the Danish philosopher and that grandfather of Existentialism put it, “Leap of faith – yes, but only after reflection.”[11]

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” And it is reasonable to make that “Leap of faith” when we have built your case after reasonable reflection of the evidence of things still unfolding! This is the point Jesus makes when he says, “For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it?”[12] It is ok for faith to always be under construction and long as you count the evidence. It is not about proof; rather it is about hope in things that there is evidence of when you sit to count your cost.

Yes, we have academics, history, archeology, linguistics, ancient manuscript documents, and so forth, but the greatest evidence of the substance of faith is the life you and I choose to live! How is the invisible made visible in my life? How are my humility and meekness a living testimony of the Love of God for all peoples? How will I respond to a non-believer, whether a skeptic, a secular, agnostic, or atheist, or just a different breed of theist, when they openly disagree with me or accuse me of being a fool? If I profess the love of the living Savior who died for the world, rather than see it perish, then I, too, must have a spirit of love that meets the spirit of antagonism in those who, unreasonably, negate my reflective Leap of Faith. To put it another way, God can’t be alive in dead things like history, manuscripts, and archeological relics if He is not alive and kicking in the love and compassion of Believers.

There is more substance of evidence in the life of an addict who finds sobriety in Christ, than in finding the foundation of an ancient wall in Jericho. There is more substance of evidence in the life of bigot or misogynist who, in Christ, learns to love all people as equals, than there are in five thousand New Testament manuscripts. There is more substance of evidence in the life a bully who becomes a defender of the weak, a protector of the innocent, and advocate of justice than there is in all the linguistic understanding of a biblical language scholar. And above all, there is more substance of evidence in the life for a Christian who firmly, yet still patiently, lovingly, and tolerantly shows deference to a mean-spirited or even malicious skeptic, than there is in the combined weight of all academia.

What mattered even more than being willing and able to learn lessons of Faith from my atheist professor, was my genuine reception of his correct assertion when he boldly called me out, when I was wrong. What I did, in the moments after the dry-erase marker got slammed into the desk may be the only “substance of faith” my professor ever sees, and is certainly the reason we remain friends to this day. How I live, how I struggle, my willingness to repent, admit wrong, grow, and treat those with respect and reasonable honor, while at the same time remaining firm and convicted of the confidence of my faith in the presence of those who have no respect or even  dignity for me at all, maybe the only “substance” of faith that they ever see.

May we be the “the evidence of things not seen,” to the millions in this world who have not yet seen what we now see.

Footnotes:

[1] The Professor in question remains a great friend to this day. So much so that my first book will include a dedication to him in the forward. We don’t agree about Religion but grew to respect each other as ethical and academic thinkers all the same. I owe most of my critical thinking skills to this man.

[2] He often vacillated between seeing himself as an Atheist or an Agnostic depending upon the nature of the conversation.

[3] www.dictionary.com/browse/faith second usage of the word.

[4] Yes, I added the phrase “by faith” to be both ironic and provocative.

[5] Philippians 2:10

[6] Namely, Christian faith.

[7] The flying spaghetti monster is often a favorite expression used to discredit Christians as unreasonable, ignorant, fairytale peddlers. It is a derogatory term that is served up with malice rather than intellectual discussion. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flying_Spaghetti_Monster

[8] I am paraphrasing his thought from his classic; The Divine Conspiracy.

[9] In His Word; Seminars Unlimited. Keen TX.

[10] Special thanks to Pastor Jonathan Martin, of Markham Woods Church in Longwood, FL and current Doctor of Ministry student, for helping me come up with a concise break down of the Greek word ὑπόστασις.

[11] https://goo.gl/bdVEWL

[12] Luke 14:28

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Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus

A Reflective Book Review

By Pastor Vinnie

If ever two religions grossly misunderstood each other, had bad communication, and held uneducated views about the other, it is certainly the case with Islam and Christianity. Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus, is the powerful, engaging, true-life story of a devout Muslim who sets out to defend Allah to infidel Christians and ends up completely converted to Jesus.

Click image to purchase at AMAZON.

This true-life story unfolds focusing on two young men, freshmen in College, who meet in Debate Club and forge an academically competitive friendship that flourishes, despite vastly opposing ideology and religious fervor. They end up connecting with each other’s life, goals, and dreams, in sincere ways that allow them both to overcome stereotypical assumptions about each other’s faith. This, in turn, gives way to a path for Jesus to shine forth from darkness to light. It is the story of how Jesus saved Nabeel Qureshi from very sincere faith in the religion of his upbringing to a deeper, burning desire to know Truth in both certainty and transformation, on a level that he’d become willing to trade everything to pursue it.

Nabeel’s friendship with David starts, casually, over studies, debate club, and typical college angst. But was fully forged by Nabeel’s sincere fear that his friend David, in the Judgment, would be found guilty of having not only rejected the Prophet Mohammad but of having worshiped three gods (Trinity) instead of one, Allah (God). It is actually, Nabeel’s evangelistic compulsion for the eternal fate of Christians, like David, that puts Nabeel on the path to Christ.

Nabeel, by college age, had become a powerful intellectual and apologist for Islam and was supported by the wisdom of his community and family in this pursuit. He was no novice, having already refuted and stumped many Christians about errors in their own understanding of their faith. David, however, was a simple, faithful Christian, who surprised Nabeel, by not being the typical, shallow Christian Nabeel is used to running into. David, not only reads his Bible, which Nabeel had rarely seen Christians truly do, but actually understands where the Bible came from, how it was written, collected, preserved, and translated. When Nabeel attempts to use typical accusations that the Bible is a corrupted, unreliable source of truth, David is ready to refute these challenges, not with anger or righteous annoyance, but with calm, collected, and sound historical truth; factual understanding of textual criticism, inexorable friendship and Christian compassion. This hooks Nabeel deeper and deeper into his search for truth.

Nabeel Qureshi

As a pastor, what I really love about this book is that the average Christian, or Muslim, reading it will quickly start to learn more correct understandings about the other person’s faith, as well as their own. Nabeel’s own testimony can’t help but give Christians an inside look at what being a Muslim really means, what they really believe and why. As a converted Christian, Nabeel can not only be forthright and honest about his former faith, but can give Christians deep insights into how traumatic it can be for a Muslim to come to terms with, not only, accepting their whole life’s foundation, all they have ever believed, may not be so, but even the mere fact that they entertain that question could mean losing their whole family and everyone they love and respect. There is so much misinformation about Islam, Muslims in general, and the Quran[1], out there in the Christian church, that many Christians have written off these people, or see them as some sort of monstrous threat. Yet Nabeel comes along to shows us, they are people just like us. They love God just like us, and they are only believing what they have been taught to believe about God; most often, just like us.

Nabeel Qureshi and David Wood in those early days.

David, on the other hand, a lay member of his church, and a young adult shows the excellence of understanding of the origins of the Bible, Christian history, and fundamental Christian theology that, untowardly, most pastors, let alone an untrained lay members, could not rival. David is able to masterfully lay it out in ways that speak to the seeker’s mind, while not ignoring the heart. For me, as a pastor, this book excites me; not just because of the powerful testimony of Nabeel, but because, in many ways, wrapped in the narrative of the story, is the single most basic teaching tool I know to teach the fundamentals of Islam and Christianity in a comparative model of understanding. This book will educate Christian and Muslim reader alike, about both their own faith and each other.

Nabeel, fought Christ the whole way through his journey to Truth. But, when he got to his wits’ end, he would pray and ask Allah to show him how to refute error, or to know the truth about Islam. Each time, “Allah” would lead him deeper into Christian truth. Eventually, Allah started sending Nabeel, clearer and clearer visions and dreams, that, even when decoded by his Muslim mother, was screaming at Nabeel: “Jesus is the only way to God. To be with God is to accept Jesus as the Savior from our sins. “ It was his prayers to Allah (which is the Aramaic word for God)[2][3][4][5] that eventually led Nabeel to the conclusion that he must take a stand, and publicly confess Jesus before men, or end up forever denying Him. But his Allah made it very clear to him that, to do so, would mean he’d be denied and cast out from his community, childhood faith, and worse of all, family; including his beloved mother and father. The cost of the cross was real, and Nabeel would not be spared the words of Christ, “If you come to me but will not leave your family, you cannot be my follower. You must love Me more than your father, mother, wife, children, brothers, and sisters—even more than your own life! Whoever will not carry the cross that is given to them when they follow me cannot be my follower.” Luke 14:26-27 ERV

Post Script:

Nabeel Qureshi and Family.

Nabeel Qureshi died, secure in Jesus, on September 16, 2017, at the young age of 34 from advanced- stage stomach cancer. Nabeel left behind a wife (Michelle Qureshi), and a daughter (Ayah Qureshi). But before going, Nabeel set the Muslim world and the Christian world on fire as an International Speaker on behalf of Christ to the Muslim world. He was a renowned apologetic author, and speaker in association with NQ Ministries, and RZIM. Nabeel’s body is at rest with Jesus, but his work roars on! Pray, please pray deeply, that Jesus keeps it shining as a treasured light to the Islamic world at large. Somewhere, out there, is a Muslim, scared and frightened, seeking the Truth; maybe even hiding a copy of Nabeel’s book under his pillow. Pray for conviction. Pray for courage.   Pray for the Truth of Jesus to shine on all Abraham’s Children.

 For, “Behold He comes, riding on the clouds,

Shining like the sun, at the trumpet’s call!

Lift your voice, it’s the year of Jubilee

For Out of Zion’s hill, salvation comes!”[6]

Footnotes:

[1] There is so much bad information flooding the church about the origins of Islam and most of it is spewed out of ignorance and even hatred. While the history of Islam is complex Nabeel’s book helps streamline it for the average person in the pews. However the first place Christians should look for the true origins if Islam is Genesis 21:8-21

[2] “The word Allah is used by Arabic speakers of all Abrahamic faiths (including Christianity and Judaism) as meaning “God.” However, according to Islam, Allah is God’s proper name, while Christians and Jews know Him as YHWH or Yahweh. When Arabic-speaking Christians use the word Allah, it is usually used in combination with the word al-Ab. Allah al-Ab means “God the Father,” and this usage is one way Arab Christians distinguish themselves from Muslims.” https://www.gotquestions.org/who-is-Allah.html

[3] “Etymologically, the name Allah is probably a contraction of the Arabic al-Ilāh, “the God.” The name’s origin can be traced to the earliest Semitic writings in which the word for god was il or el, the latter being used in the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament). Allāh is the standard Arabic word for God and is used by Arabic-speaking Christians and Jews as well as by Muslims regardless of their native tongue.” https://www.britannica.com/topic/Allah

[4] “Islam and Christianity”, Encyclopedia of Christianity (2001): Arabic-speaking Christians and Jews also refer to God as Allāh.

[5] https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/Allah

[6] Days of Elijah Lyrics- Songwriters: Francis Robert Mark

Days Of Elijah lyrics © Music Services, Inc

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