“How do we know we’re right?” asked my nine-year-old from the back seat. He and I talk a lot in the car because Sir Ask-A-Lot has my undivided attention. The current topic was Jesus, so I knew where he was heading. He continued, “I mean, how do we know our God is real, and all those other ones aren’t?”
I never thought I’d be defending my faith while maneuvering through traffic. But I guess we’re supposed to be ready for the tough questions. My kid is always asking things that force me to examine my own beliefs. On the bright side, he keeps me on my spiritual toes.
At some point in our walks, we’re all going to be asked how we know our God is real. Whether it’s accompanied by the innocent gaze of our children or the hostile glare of a stranger, we will have to answer it. I knew in my son’s case and it went beyond a conversation about faith, he needed something more concrete.
I immediately thought about the apostle John. He had a similar problem in the first century church. A belief called Gnosticism surfaced which denied, among other things, the physical nature of Christ. They believed that Christ was spirit only and never became flesh. John addressed this in his first epistle. He reminded everyone that he and others had actually walked alongside the Savior.
He doesn’t mince words, in chapter one verse one he says they have “heard and seen [Jesus].” He goes on to say, “We saw Him with our own eyes and touched Him with our own hands.” Again in verse two, he says “we have seen Him.” And finally in verse three “we ourselves have actually seen and heard.”
John easily battled the false doctrine with a simple, “I was there; I know the truth.” Unfortunately, John wasn’t riding in the passenger seat as I talked with my son. But his principle was. I can’t tell my son that I’ve seen Jesus with my own eyes and touched Him with my own hands, but I can tell him that I’ve seen and heard His work in my life.
It’s important that we show our children and others that God is real. We do that by telling them all of the things He has done in our lives. I told my son “I know Jesus is real because …” and went on with stories from my experience. These stories were the foundation for other car worthy topics such as biblical history, faith and the inerrancy of scripture.
John continues in verse four, “We are writing these things so that you may fully share our joy.” By joy, he means fellowship with the Father and Jesus (vs. 3). Isn’t that our ultimate goal as parents, to have our children fully share our Joy? Hopefully by showing them how God is real in our lives, they will soon see how He is real in their lives.
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