Quest for Truth

I've recently joined in on some discussions regarding the essence of God, not just His existence. In other words, the people who I have been discussing with believe that God probably exists but His work and availability is left in doubt. They have mentioned such hot topics as Noah and the flood, evolutionary theory, and prayer and His ability/inability to answer them as the kinds of things that fuel their skepticism. While I am always eager to entertain this kind of debate, I must admit I am far from knowing the answers. Then, I being to ask myself, "If I can't answer these questions then how can I defend God?"

Peter wrote in I Peter 3:15 in the New Testament that followers of Christ should be ready to give a defense for the hope that is in them. That being said, there are some things, especially in the Bible, that just don't seem all that "provable." Norman Geisler has written extensively on many perceieved problems with the Bible and in his book When Critics Ask he addresses over 800 such "error claims" in the Bible. But before he launches into his book, he shares a little bit of wisdom with those who wish to defend their faith: "This is not to say that there are not difficulties in our Bible. There are. It is only to point out that there are not actual errors in the Scriptures. Why? Because the Bible is the Word of God, and God cannot err."

We owe it to ourselves to investigate difficulties in our faith when we encounter them, whether they are brought to us by others or we find them in our personal studies. The Bible is God's holy Word, free from error but not difficulty. There are some things that we will never be able to explain, yet the simplicity of the gospel message is one that even a child could understand. All difficulties aside, we would do well to point those around us in a quest for truth that can only be found in Jesus Christ.