Faith as a family business
Is there really a God? How can I know absolutely? For sure? What a difference it would make if we could be certain beyond any doubt.
“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). How convenient for us. The bible defines faith for us. Faith is trusting in something you cannot explicitly prove.
This definition of faith involves intellectual assent and trust. Intellectual assent is believing something to be true, while trust is actually relying on the fact that the something is true.
A chair is often used to help illustrate this. Intellectual assent recognizes that a chair is a chair, and it is designed to support a person who sits on it. Trust is sitting in the chair.
Journalist Lee Strobel, an atheist, learned of his wife’s conversion to Christianity. He embarked on an extensive investigation into the historical and rational foundations of the Christian faith. He interviewed experts in various fields.
Finally he concluded that Christianity is historically and rationally worthy of belief. He became a Christian and a champion of the faith. He tells his story in The Case For Christ. A film adaptation followed the book.
A story is told about a father and son who were sculptors and had a shop where they sold their goods. While teaching his son about the art, the father passed on his work ethics and how to have faith in his work.
He told his son, “We are not selling as many sculptures as we want, but one day our work will reach the right people. From that day, there will be no looking back.” His son learned the complete art of sculpture while helping his father.
Other Sculptors in the area were struggling and closed their shops. They tried to advise the father, “Leave this work and look for any other source of income. You will never earn from this.”
But the father continued until one day a travelling businessman saw the sculptures shining like gold in the rays of the sun. He told the father, “These sculptures look great. They have high demand in other countries.”
They agreed to do business together and the business grew multi-fold. Having faith in our pursuits in life will lead to success.
My parents passed on the precious gift of the Christian faith to me and my siblings. My Christianity is like a family business going back beyond early twentieth century Russia. My grandparents learned the business that involved going to church every Sunday and a variety of family prayers for every day.
Other families in the area were not doing so well in the business of Christianity. Some closed up shop and stopped going to church every Sunday. Their children did not hear the wise words of their father promise that if you keep working at it, one day you will realize there is no looking back.
Have we got it then? Faith beyond any reasonable doubt? Eighty years in the “family business” makes me reasonably sure. Besides that, the family records are continuous through four generations of successfully passing on the hope and promise that make up Christian faith.
My job at this point, obviously, is to make sure my children and grandchildren trust in this family business and do not close up shop when times seem lean. Family records of the success of this “Faith” business can be found currently in the Communion of Saints. There is no looking back. Only forward.
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