Faith and Reason

You know as well as I do that many (most?) people pit faith against reason. That is, they assume something like, "Faith is something you believe for no reason." Some go farther and claim that faith is when you believe in something that the evidence says isn't true. Not the absence of reason, but in the face of it. So imagine my surprise when I came across this interesting statement from the pen of Luke, the physician.

In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, until the day when He was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom He had chosen. He presented himself alive to them after His suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God." (Acts 1:1-3)

Get that? Luke doesn't base his arguments on "faith without reason". No "blind faith" here. He says that the reason he (and the rest) believe that Christ rose from the dead was because of "many proofs". In fact, that's the English Standard Version. The King James says "many infallible proofs." Young's Literal Translation uses "certain proofs". The New American Standard says "many convincing proofs." The word there is τεκμήριον -- tekmērion -- meaning a criterion of certainty, or, as Thayer's puts it, "indubitable evidence".

It's not like Luke was alone here. It was Jesus who pointed to the same argument. In John 10 He said, "The works that I do in My Father's name bear witness about Me." (John 10:25) He said, "If I am not doing the works of My Father, then do not believe Me; but if I do them, even though you do not believe Me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in Me and I am in the Father." (John 10:37-38) Later He said, "Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me, or else believe on account of the works themselves." (John 14:11) Jesus encouraged faith on the basis of His (reliable) words, but pointed to the evidence of His miraculous works as proof.

We might be tempted to think we live in a skeptical world. It is true, but it's not true that it is more skeptical than it was. The eyewitnesses to the resurrection of Lazarus went to the chief priests and Pharisees to report it and the response was "Let's kill Him!" (John 11:35) ... "and Lazarus" (John 12:10). We're not living in an exceptionally skeptical world. Those who observed the miraculous weren't swayed. But you, those who believe, don't let it dishearten you. They are skeptical, to be sure, but we have "convincing proof" on our side. Well, that and the Son of God. We know how that will come out. And we can be sure that The Lord is Risen indeed!