Options

I have a coworker who, when he learned I was a Christian, explained to me how he thought that the Bible was nonsensical. I asked him, "Oh, so you've read it?" He admitted he hadn't. "Well," I replied, "you really ought to read a book before you critique it, shouldn't you?" He had the typical "Who can read that?" objection and I told him about free Bibles in modern languages to read, but I thought that was the end of that. You can imagine my surprise when he came back from lunch the next day and said, "I have some questions about this stuff in the Gospel of Matthew." He actually accepted the challenge!

He went on to read a lot of the Bible. He read the Gospels, Acts, Romans, Galatians. He went back to Genesis and read most of the historical books up through Chronicles. He actually enjoyed it. And he'd often come with questions and comments. He wondered what this passage meant or what was wrong with those stupid Israelites who turned their backs on God after He had done so much for them. In the end he admitted he'd been wrong. The Bible wasn't nonsensical. It really made a lot of sense. But, "Oh, give my life to Jesus? No, I don't think so."

This guy to this day won't give in. He's friendly (mostly) toward Christianity in general. He sees that there is sense to it. He has even changed many of his own opinions on truth because of our conversations. He's no longer, for instance, convinced that Evolution is true or that abortion is morally acceptable. But he still holds out.

Why is that? It struck me the other day. He still thinks of Christ as another guy, thinks of Christianity as another worldview. All worldviews being equal, he'd rather keep his own, thank you very much. It's just one among many. His own approach doesn't ask him to change, so he'll keep that one, but if you want to go down that path, good for you.

For me, however, it's not so easy. The weight of the evidence, the inevitability of the reasoning, and the inescapable logic of it all forms in my head an incontrovertible and solid truth that requires I either submit to it or die ... literally and eternally. It's not "an option" for me. It's like he's saying, "Well, sure, you might live in an oxygen atmosphere, but I prefer living underwater." It just can't be done. It's not an option I've chosen; it's the only possible reality.

How many of us are "stuck" like that? Like Saul's encounter with Christ on the road to Damascus, I no longer have the option of any other direction. Like the disciples when Jesus asked, "Who do you think I am?", I have nowhere else to go. I can pursue Christ or I can surrender all faith, all reason, all of life and die. Those are my options. How about you? How serious is this to you?