As the 18th century Lord Chesterfield said: So having women as the witnesses was an invitation to Matthew's readers to disbelieve him if they wished.
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The line that the chief priests are going to take with the guards is that the disciples came and stole the body. From our perspective, it is not really all that plausible, because of what happened to those disciples: You'll do that for something you really believe, but you won't do it for a lie. However, rather than just ignoring the possibility that that might have happened, Matthew almost advertises it. It's almost as if he's saying, 'If you want a reason not to believe, here's one.
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Third, almost the last words Matthew writes are, 'Then the 11 disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshipped him; but some doubted. Why would Matthew write that? If even they didn't wholly believe, why should we?
The answer is that Matthew was not just presenting a bald, dry narrative of facts: He presents those disciples as doubters because that's what people do. It is not as though there was a first generation of spiritual superheroes who knew the truth because they'd seen it with their own eyes, and everyone else has to stumble along in their wake.
Being a Christian is now, and has always been, about faith, trust and hope.
Matthew's Easter: A gospel for doubters?
In the long run, we don't do ourselves any favours by pretending that Christianity is easy, or sensible, or obvious. When a skeptic would confront the pastor with an objection, Rogers would sometimes ask a question of his own: I have posed this same question to people at times. The responses given can be very interesting. An honest doubter will say, "yes", or in some way indicate that they are, indeed, trying to resolve the obstacles that lay between them and belief in God.
An honest doubter really does want an answer to his question. The response and heart condition of a dishonest doubter is different entirely. The dishonest doubter will respond negatively to questions like, "Are you asking this question in hopes of finding your way to God? If I answer your question would you be open to becoming a follower of Jesus Christ?
Sharing The Gospel With Doubters And Skeptics
The dishonest doubter may have a number of different motives for the issue s he is raising, but the search for truth is not one of them. Augustine of old could sympathize with anyone who has ever struggled to dialogue with a dishonest doubter. The dishonest doubter engages in conversation over spiritual issues, and as the Christian responds to the supposed "key issue" standing between the person and God, the information laid out is quickly dismissed.
Augustine wrote of such persons who, "…content, with the same skepticism, that these facts are not examples of what we seek to prove. The dishonest doubter is avoiding the reality of God and Christ by saying, a You haven't proved your case sufficiently for me; or, b You have proved your case or something like it , but this wasn't what I was really asking.
Redeemer Report - Redeemer Churches and Ministries
Thus, apologetics and Christian worldview ministry is not a mental exercise only. Dialoguing fruitfully about spiritual questions and objections does require tact and preparation, but also prayer. Regarding perennial demands for empirical proof about the claims of Christianity, I am reminded of the exchange between Abraham and the lost Rich Man recorded in Luke chapter The unbelieving rich man who found himself in hell asked Abraham to go and tell his family members about salvation. Abraham said that the people had ample revelation of God through Moses and the prophets.
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The Rich Man prophetically observed that a resurrection from the dead would be the highest proof: Abraham did not have quite as much faith in the skeptics of that rich man's family: Abraham had a keen understanding of human nature. When the will has been turned against God, no amount of evidence is enough.
Conversely, when a person is hungry for truth and is sincerely trying to work through an intellectual impasse, a solid answer is usually readily accepted. In light of I Peter 3: Honest or not, the doubter's response is between them and God. The Christian's role is to share truth, model Christian love, and we do these things prayerfully and carefully.
The twenty-first century Christian witness is following in a long line of apologists that goes back nearly two thousand years.