12/4/12 Saul about 30
I
asked a man out walking his dog if he’d be willing to answer a few
questions. He gave a non-committal shrug
so I began to ask him about his spiritual beliefs. Saul doesn’t believe in God or any kind of
spiritual existence. He said he feels at
peace about this and has no interest in his soul continuing on after he
dies. He is open to the possibility that
God does exist and will hold him accountable, and believes that if this is true
he would be condemned for not believing in Him but told me he is willing to
take his chances. He came across as
completely indifferent to anything spiritual, yet he made no move to leave the
conversation. Instead he stood there
with sort of a smirk on his face, not really asking for my opinions but kind of
enjoying my attempts to convince him of God’s existence and our need to be in a
right relationship with Him. He didn’t
display anger toward God or those who claim to follow him, but something worse
– indifference. I tried every convincing
angle I could think of to show him the importance of belief in God in general
and faith In Jesus specifically, but he seemed to have a response to counter
every point I tried to make. In so many words, Saul dared God to judge him, and
he stood in judgment of Him for not doing more to reveal Himself to him. If I was to depend on my own efforts, I’d be
very discouraged at this. I couldn’t
convince Saul of anything. But God is
much more patient and wise than I could ever be, “not wanting anyone to perish,
but everyone to come to repentance.” (2
Peter 3:9) Even Saul acknowledged this,
saying “Maybe someday God will show Himself to me and my beliefs will be
totally different, but I don’t see it happening any time soon”. I think Saul really does care more than he
was willing to admit.
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