Lesson 36: Proof of God
We are told in the Book of Isaiah that without faith it impossible to please him. “He who would come to God must believe that he is and is a rewarder of those who seek him.” Christ said, “Blessed is he who having not seen yet believes.” When Moses lead the Jews out of captivity out of Egypt, God traveled with them, performed miracles among them, and spoke to them, yet the people were from time to time still dissatisfied. When he spoke to them on Mt. Sinai, he spoke to them in a voice so powerful that they begged him to stop. He commanded them not to worship idols, but a short time afterward they build a golden calf and worshipped it. During the ministry of Christ his disciples witnessed dozens of miracles, yet when they were on the lake and a storm threatened, they lost faith. We are no different, and if people were given the proof they ask for, God speaking to them or doing a miracle, it likely would make no difference in their lives. God has given us something much more important, which is his word; and satan would attempt to dissuade us from reading the Bible, which is why for so many people their happiness is dependent upon their circumstances. But Paul commands us to rejoice in the Lord always. We can do this if we realize that everything of value to us was created and is maintained by Christ. If we would draw close to the essence of that which is important to us we would draw close to Christ. We do this by being obedient to his commands, using Christ himself as our example for obedience. If we are obedient to him, we live in him and he lives in us.