This post is a response to ‘An Open Letter to Christians.’ It’s part of our ‘Letters From an Unbeliever’ Series. This response is from our guest, Bryan L. Kinney, the father of my younger siblings. He passed away in March 2022.
I know this response may seem lengthy, but trust me, it could be much longer. I wanted to give a clear response and apologize for taking so long to answer.
So let me begin…
At some point in my journey that led me to the Word of God, I realized the only person whose ideology or opinions were in 100% agreement with myself was my own.
I had to realize I could be wrong, so I made the conscious decision to accept the possibility that the way I viewed reality might have to change. I decided to build a reality based upon the possibility there existed a being who truly makes this claim…
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:8-9”
Paradigm Shift
Now accepting this truth as valid requires a major paradigm shift. Because if such a being existed, then it would be prudent to alter my thinking accordingly and recognize that no matter what I believe to be right or wrong–this being might be smarter than me, wiser than me, and if he has my best interest at heart, may know what is best for me. The real problem I find with most people is they want a God who fits their version of reality. It’s as if they are saying:
“If God does not fit what I think is right, then I won’t believe he exists. And if anything contradicts what I think, I will use my intellect and creativity to explain it”.
So, once they decide what love is, they reject anything that contradicts it. Once they determine what good is, they reject anything that contradicts that. And once they determine what is real, they reject anything that rejects that belief–even if what they believe contradicts the evidence before them.
A classic example is the fanatical adherence of many to Darwinian evolution. Despite the overwhelming scientific evidence (especially in the information sciences) that debunk this theory, many people with all kinds of degrees and high IQs fanatically defend this theory as fact.
Why?
You see, many people do not want to deal with a being that causes them to submit and change what they have dictated as truth.
They will use their intellect and creativity to rationalize and reject anything that does not fit “their” truth. If the Creator himself does not agree with them, they will find a way to creatively rationalize what they want to believe or just outright reject what the Creator has said.
In essence, this is what is being said…
In my reality, it is wrong to select a group of people to become the protectors of God’s Word and call them the chosen people, so I will not accept a God that does not agree with my position. After all, I am smarter and have a greater sense of right and wrong than the Creator of the Reality in which I live.
It makes no sense to me that God, the Creator of the Universe, would create a being or beings that would rebel or do what I determine as evil acts. Therefore, I reject this so-called God and either refuse to believe he exists or better yet create my version of who and what God is…
Or, as the Word Of God describes this mentality..
“And, instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they worshiped idols made to look like mere people and birds and animals and reptiles”. Rom 1:23 (NLT)
“For they don’t understand God’s way of making people right with himself. Refusing to accept God’s way, they cling to their way of getting right with God by trying to keep the law”. Rom 10:3 (NLT)
Yes … There are legitimate questions that should be answered when it comes to accepting God. I do not believe in blind faith because if the God of the Bible did create this present reality and all that is contained within it, it is He who has declared that not only is His signature contained within it, but it is discoverable.
“By wisdom, the LORD founded the earth; by understanding, he created the heavens”. Prov 3:19 (NLT)
“For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God”. Rom 1:20
His signature has to be in the science, philosophies, morality, history, archeology, sociology, psychology, and throughout every fabric of this reality in which we live.