Truth

I have recently been to Romania and it was an amazing trip. On the plane on the way home I got talking to a Hindu guy, a really nice chap called VJ. We commented that it was a shame that our society doesn't allow us to talk about eternal things, it is almost a taboo subject. We therefore put that aside and got into an interesting debate, one of the points I would like to bring up here....
VJ basically commented that we should live and let live, that saying I had the truth in Jesus Christ was simply to dogmatic, to exclusive and was in some way responsible for the intolerance we see in society. So many people, he said, think there view is the right one, what we need is to accept everyone, that the answer to life is what you make it yourself, each to their own.
I agreed with him that we should tolerate others, that we should accept everyone, however I pointed that his arguement was doing the very thing that he was arguing against. He was basically saying his view was the right one and others had it wrong. Unfortunately the thing with the truth is that it is always exclusive, by definition the number 2 cannot also be number 3 and 4. It can only be number 2, that is the truth, therefore this excludes all other numbers. The important thing is to establish that truth.
Every worldview that I have explored accept for one says that you have to reach a certain standard in order to be accepted. You have to be a good person in order to get to heaven, this then gives rise to pride which is really the cause of so many problems. You see if it is about attaining a certain grade, then either you are going to succeed at that (pride) or you are going to fail (failure). The result is the ones who succeed are your buddies and the ones who don't are your enemies, the good and the bad.
You see Christianity works on the basis that actually we have all failed to reach the perfect standard or required pass mark, therefore we are all equally as bad. However someone has sat the test for us and obtained perfect marks, given us the pass mark. Therefore it is not down to us, (removes pride) and allows us the freedom not to feel like a failure, to be completely humble, we have nothing to fight over. We also therefore don't have the need to turn to drugs, drink, work, money just to try and feel better about our failure, because we haven't failed.
Everyone holds to a truth, even if they say they hold to no truth then that is holding to something! The question we should ask is what is the truth, for Jesus said I am the way the truth and the life, no one comes to God except through him. Now either that is true or not, have you examined it for yourself? Please do, your life depends on it!! georgeosborn@avantiministries.com

If it works for you?

I get the opportunity to share some of my story in schools, prisons, events and it is a real honour. I don't get to do this because I am anyone special, far from it, I get to do it because I have had my life completely transformed by a living God. I have moved from the position of God being a possibility to having experienced him and seen him at work in my life.
I often get the response to this something like this, that's good for you mate, I'm pleased that has worked for you, whatever works I guess. I even read a newspaper article yesterday that advocated going to religion to help with mental health issues, stating if it works why not. This is so much of the culture that we live in, the message is truth is found within yourself, what works for one wont work for another, it is relative to each person.
This is so dangerous and so illogical when we use this theory on other areas of our lives, imagine me saying I don't think jumping out of this plane will mean I crash to the floor I will just float, another says you will sprout wings, another says you will softly hit the floor. Does what those people think or feel change the situation, the truth is that they will all hit the floor at breakneck speed. The thing you and I do before we jump out of that plane is find out what the truth is, we begin to understand gravity, that a parachute is probably the best method for reaching the ground safely. We conduct some tests, we watch others, we examine the evidence and we then feel certain we have it right, we excercise some faith to jump out of the plane.
This is logical, so we need to apply the same logic to our own lives. You see we are all in a plane and that plane is going to crash (death) we need to decide what method is best going to take us through this crash, we need to find that parachute. Some people are going to come to you and say so many different things, you need to weigh up the evidence, listen to the experience of others who are jumping or who have jumped, you need to find out the truth. There is only one method that will get you out of plane safely and that is to slow you down to such an extent that you don't hit the floor with a crash that kills you.
Jesus Christ is your parachute he is the one who came to rescue you, can I challenge you to start thinking about some of these questions;

Where did we come from?
Where do our morals come from?
Why is there so much suffering in the world?
Why is there so much order in created things?
Why was there so many predictions about Jesus Christ before he ever walked the earth?
Why was Jesus able to do so many miracles?
Why is there so much evidence for Jesus, in written form, in archeaology, in human experience?
Why is there something missing in our lives, this eternal hunger for something more?
Why has the Bible never been proved wrong in thousands of years yet so many other things, theories just come and go?

There are answers to these questions, the real question is do you want to hear them?
georgeosborn@avantiministries.com