Do you ever feel a bit crazy for what you believe about Jesus?
We live in a time and place where people are more educated than ever. Over half of school leavers in Wellington pursue further study. During my time in government, I was often in awe of the intellectual firepower of my colleagues.
And yet so few of our fellow Wellingtonians believe in the God of the Bible. The idea that the world faces God’s condemnation because of sin… that we all need to be reconciled to God… that Jesus came to rescue us and he will return to judge the world – many people hear that and think it’s silly. Far-fetched. Like something we’ve outgrown as a society.
To be honest, this can be discouraging. It can even make me wonder, ‘Am I crazy?!’.
But Christians being thought of as crazy isn’t new. In Acts 26, the apostle Paul is sharing his story – how he encountered Jesus and now calls people to repent and receive forgiveness. Suddenly he’s interrupted by Festus, the Roman Governor:
“You are out of your mind, Paul!” he shouted. “Your great learning is driving you insane.”
I love Paul’s calm reply:
“I am not insane, most excellent Festus. What I am saying is true and reasonable.”
In other words, Christian faith is not anti-reason. It’s not anti-science. And it’s not nonsense. What we believe is both true and reasonable.
And the more I reflect on it, the more I think our faith makes sense of the world around us.
A world where things don’t seem to come from ‘nothing’.
A world that looks designed.
A world where the ‘human condition’ seems deeply broken and in need of a cure.
A world where we long for a happy ending at the end of every story.
Sadly, many who are considered ‘wise’ today don’t see it (though encouragingly more people are becoming interested in the Christian faith). In some ways, that shouldn’t surprise us. Isaiah speaks of the Lord saying: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate” (29:14). And Paul writes:
Do not deceive yourselves. If any of you think you are wise by the standards of this age, you should become “fools” so that you may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight (1 Cor 3:18-19).
But let’s keep praying – for our friends, our family, our colleagues and fellow students in Wellington. Pray they wouldn’t be led astray by their own ‘wisdom’. Pray their eyes would be opened to see Jesus for who he truly is – the way, the truth and the life.
And let’s also take heart. You aren’t crazy! Even if others think you are, one day you’ll be shown to be right. So keep going with confidence and boldness – serving the living and true God as you wait for the return of his glorious Son.
Grace and peace,
Tim