[Biblemat] S) BILL MAHER: THE ARROGANCE OF UNBELIEF

[J5827Sasser at wmconnect.com]

Brethren and Friends, Jim Sasser here.  Here is a study from my
files.  Use to the glory of God.

BILL MAHER: THE ARROGANCE OF UNBELIEF

     Bill Maher is an outrageous, outspoken, and controversial
comedian who, I understand, has a TV show on HBO called
Real Time.  He is a far-out atheist or agnostic who loves to
tak potshots at conservative politicians who claim to believe
in God or who hold to basic biblical values.  He favors legaliz-
ing marijuana and homosexual marriages, and is a strong 
advocate of abortion.  In a recent Larry King interview, he
fomented his disdain for Christians because of their "arrogan-
ce" -- an apparent reference to their staunch moral convict-
ions, and their condemnation and uncompromising opposit-
ion to alternative viewpoints and lifestyles.

     If taking a stand against fornication, drunkenness, prostit-
ution, lascivious strip clubs, vulgar speech, immodest and
suggestive clothing -- all the things Maher relishes and accep-
ts -- means we are arrogant in the eyes of the world, then we
must bear up under the charge and stand firm (Gal. 5:19-21).
But what struck me about Maher in the King interview was his
own "arrogance" -- the "arrogance of unbelief."  Maher was
ranting abut the "arrogance" of Christians who think they
know what's going to happen after death -- and then pontifica-
ted: I don't know what happens after death, so I know they
don't know.  Sounds rather pompous to me!

     Maybe, Mr. Maher, Christians know something that you
don't know.  Maybe they have considered historical events
that you haven't.  Maybe they have examined the evidence
for happenings that you have ignored.  And, in the process,
just maybe they have learned something that you know little
or nothing about.  I, for one example, refer to the empty tomb
where the body of Jesus was laid; a tomb that was sealed
and guarded by the officials of Rome at the request of the
Jews; a tomb that three days later held only the burial wrapp-
ings of the body that once lay there but now was gone.

     If Jesus' body, as Christians conclude, was raised from
the dead, then we know exactly what is to happen after death.
Jesus Who was raised and the witnesses who saw Him after
the resurrection tell us that "in Christ all shall be made alive"
(1 Cor. 15:22; Jno. 5:28,29).  If Mr. Maher claims Jesus wasn't
raised, then let him tell us what happened to the body.  Unbe-
lievers have been trying for centuries, and nothing they say
or argue makes as much sense as the first-century claim that
Jesus was raised form the dead.  Maybe, at least, an attempt
to explain this fact will have a humbling effect on this outspok-
en critic.

     Our belief that Jesus was raised form the dead, Mr. Maher
is based, in part, on the testimony of two of Jesus' disciples
who were there.  Matthew and John, disciples of Jesus, con-
temporary witnesses, saw the empty tomb and reported that
not only was it empty but that Jesus appeared alive to them
later that day (Matt. 27:62 - 28:10; Jno. 19:38 - 20:18).  Christ-
ians have read their testimony and know that this is what they both say.  
Maybe it is true.  And if it is true, then Christ-
ians know something that Maher does not know.

     What is the more remarkable is that these two witnesses,
along with other disciples, suffered threats, beatings, impris-
onments, and death for the testimony that Jesus was raised
from the dead.  Another disciple, Peter, joined them in this
report, and suffered with them.  And guess where he and they
told the story of this resurrection?  They told it in Jerusalem,
at the temple -- before the very officials who engineered the
crucifixion of Jesus, who saw that the tomb was sealed, and
who, if anyone, could have stopped the "rumor" by going to
the tomb and producing the dead body of Jesus (Acts 2:22-36
Rather remarkable, I'd say.

     The officials at Jerusalem never did dispute or seek to dis-
prove the resurrection.  They were the ones with political pow-
er who condemned the witnesses, threatened them, beat them, confined them to 
prison, killed them, and charged them
not to preach the resurrection in Jerusalem.  But the one thing they did not 
do was marshal evidence against their
claim (Acts 4:7,12).

     That's what Christians believe about the dead based on
the evidence and report of those who saw, talked with, and
heard Jesus for three years.  What if they are right?  If so,
then Christians know something that Bill Maher doesn't know
and, as a result, they do know what will happen after death.

     My point is not to convince Bill Maher that Jesus is com-
ingagain and that He will raise the dead for judgment.  My
point is that unbelievers, including Mr. Maher, are just as
"arrogant" as he claims some Christians to be.  And maybe
if they could humble themselves enough to examine the evi-
dence that Jesus was raised from the dead, they too would 
know what will happen to the dead.  Mr. Maher wouldn't be
the first infidel who examined the evidence and concluded 
that Jesus was raised from the dead.  Humility is the first step toward 
belief.      ----- L.A. Stauffer in Biblical Insights,
Vol. 6, No. 11, Nov. 2006.   </HTML>
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://www.biblematters.net/pipermail/biblemat/attachments/20070515/e019905c/attachment.html