Some of us are difficult when it comes to being convinced something is true. Others of us believe anything we hear or read, regardless of the source. The best option is to be somewhere between those two extremes.
We absolutely should question virtually everything we see on social media. Anytime we read a news article online, we should first verify the URL (web address) is a legitimate site. There are numerous fake sites that portray themselves as being legitimate. They will even mimic a legitimate site in hopes of tricking us into believing they are the real thing.
On the other hand, we cannot be so thick skulled as to not believe everything we hear. When we know it is a legitimate source that is doing their best to report the truth, we must at least consider it. Regardless of the source, even people we trust, we must understand everyone has their own biases and may spin the news to reflect what they want it to reflect. Rare is the person who doesn’t. Yet, there are a few.
Jesus tells the story of a rich man who mistreated a beggar outside his gate. When Lazarus, the beggar, died, he went to heaven. Later, when the rich man dies, he goes to hell, being tormented for eternity. The rich man cries out to Father Abraham to send Lazarus with just a drop of water to cool his tongue. However, there is a great chasm between heaven and hell, and Lazarus could not do so.
The rich man then asks that Lazarus be sent to his father’s house and to tell his family about the differences between heaven and hell. Abraham says they have Moses and the prophets, but rich man says they don’t believe them, but, if a man returns from the dead, they will believe. Abraham’s reply is telling, both then and now, when he says they will not be convinced by a dead man returning to life.
Folks, Jesus is the dead man that returned to life; besides the people He raised from the dead when He walked this earth. Yet, there are people in this world today who continue to not believe in Him. Jesus’s telling of this story strikes to the heart of humanity. We want proof. We desire to see with our own eyes. Otherwise, we won’t believe.
The question we all should ask ourselves is, do we believe in the risen Christ? If our answer is yes, we then must ask ourselves, will we follow Him? If we choose to follow Him, we must do so with our entire being. There can be no half measures, no half stepping, nor can there be half-heartedness. Jesus wants full commitment—every moment of every day.
If we are disgruntled with the things we see going on in our world, we must first choose to change ourselves. Without choosing to give Jesus everything we have; we cannot begin to think we will change the world. Why? People follow actions far more than they follow words. We cannot say, “Do as I say.” We must be like Jesus and say, “Follow me.”
He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”
Marty Pressey 