Christ’s Attitude Toward Evidence

Many people today, including Christians, are denying evidence. A charismatic teacher, politician, or preacher can cause them to ignore scientific or biblical evidence and accept something untrue. What was Christ’s attitude toward evidence?

Jesus had a healthy respect for evidence and used it in His teaching. In Matthew 11:1-5, John the Baptist sent his disciples to Jesus to find out if He was who John had proclaimed Him to be. What Jesus did was to give these disciples evidence. “Go and show John the things which you hear and see.” When Thomas had trouble believing, what did Jesus do? Jesus told him to examine the evidence. “Put your finger here, see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe” (John 20:27). Christ’s attitude toward evidence was to use it regularly in His dealings with people. His miracles were evidence that motivated people to faith.

In the parables of Jesus, what do we see? There was no abstract, hard-to-understand theological gymnastics but everyday evidence that people knew about and could understand. The parables of the good Samaritan, the lost coin, the weeds, the yeast, the lost sheep, the fig tree, the sower, and the mustard seed are all examples of evidence that people could understand. What was the purpose of the miracles that Jesus and the apostles performed? Was it not evidence to show that they spoke for God? Compare that to the scammers such as Simon in Acts 8 and the seven sons of Sceva in Acts 19:11-16.

The “Does God Exist?” ministry deals with evidence. We are not interested in denominational theories or human doctrines. Instead, we must build our faith on evidence. By knowing the evidence, we can “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have” (1 Peter 3:15).

— John N. Clayton © 2021