"Faith Is Not a Shot in the Dark"
Indiana Jones lifts his foot to step out into the chasm, and the audience holds their collective breath. His foot lands on something solid, and he walks across this path to find the Holy Grail. Was that a step of faith? Sure it was. He believed in his father; he believed in his father's research; and he believed in the diagram and the legend. Ample evidence existed for him to trust that it was all right to take that step. But such an action is far different from "the leap of faith" that some say is required for being a Christian. This theory says, "You can't really know that God is": "You can't really know that Jesus ever existed"; "Just believe because believing is better than not believing." No wonder some people view Christianity as unrealistic.
The Bible ought to be trusted because of its historical, scientific, and prophetic accuracy—or perhaps because of the loftiness of its message—or even because it answers the crucial questions of life in a straight-forward manner. Mankind ought to believe that Jesus is the Son of God because of what He did and what He taught—not just because it's nicer to believe than not believe. A college student who was searching for Truth once asked a Christian Campus worker how she could know the Bible was true. Her reply was, "Believe your beliefs and doubt your doubts." Such an answer is woefully inadequate in that it downplays the intellect and lacks substance.
Can you imagine Peter giving such a foolhardy explanation to the crowd on Pentecost? "You should believe that Jesus rose from the dead because it's better than not believing it." No. He taught them that the resurrection was believable because it was prophesied in the Scriptures (Acts 2:22-31). Furthermore, the apostles were eyewitnesses of it (Acts 2:32), and their ability to speak in foreign languages (the reason the people had gathered in the first place—Acts 2:1-21) was the result of Jesus' exaltation at the right hand of God (Acts 2:33).
Proof! Evidence! Substance! That's what Peter gave the crowd. Faith becomes grossly misused when its definition is demoted to "a leap in the dark." Christianity does not belong in the mystical realm of irrationality! It is the Almighty Who says, "Come now and let us reason together" (Isa. 1:18). He uses logic to persuade us of the Truth.
God created human beings on a higher level than animals; we possess the abilities to think and reason, to learn and grow. We possess mental and spiritual dimensions as well as physical ones—unless we repress that part of us. Thinking requires the use of the mind. Studying the Bible will nurture our souls.
When we step out in faith, it is not a leap. We do so because we trust the Father and have confidence in the Book. People ought to discuss the Bible on an intellectual basis. God does not object to looking before we leap—in fact, He encourages it.