Be Ready Always...
Here's the context for today's blog post....
This verse has been in my heart a lot in 2025. No conspiracy theories needed for this either, I truly believe there will come a time when Christians won't have access to a bible. AI, religious persecution, you name it...And right now, I don't know about you, but when I think of a verse, I still Google it to find it quickly.
Part of my personal goals for 2025 was to commit scripture to memory and this verse always reminds me....I need to keep my nose in the bible!
And it's been working, today has been a perfect example of how my scripture memory helped me bring up certain verses when I was confronted with some challenging questions.
Quick back story, I have a ton of offline friends that I grew up with in my age bracket. And we 'stay in touch' via Facebook. I know, I know...It's evil. But looking past that, I do share my faith all the time on 'the Book'. And a friend of mine who follows a different religion, decided to challenge me with some of the things I brought up.
1 Peter 3:15!
Now this was not a debate or argument or anything like this, he just brought up some questions that are valid. God encourages questions, see Isaiah chapter 1 verse 18 for confirmation on that. And any doctrine that is true, can be poked at and debated. So this is kind of how the conversation went:
His first concern was the Trinity.
This is a big division in not only other religions from the Abrahamic faiths, but even within Christianity. So I knew a long time ago, this would be brought up. Alas, I go by the bible alone, so all my doctrines must be proved by the scriptures. And even more, the bible speaks about needing 2 or 3 witnesses to back up your 'story', so here we go:
First witness - Genesis 1:26....'And God said let US make man in OUR image....' - The word God in the Hebrew is plural. And confirmed by the phrases that follow 'let US make man.....in OUR image'. So from the first chapter of the bible we see a triune God.
Second witness - 1 John 5:7...'For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.' - I mean, it doesn't get any clearer than this.
Yes, the word trinity does not appear in scripture. But neither does millennium , yet most of the people of the Book do agree on that. The word Godhead does appear multiple times, so while I get people 'upset' with the word trinity, I don't have to call God that to accept it.
Next issue he brought up was claiming Mohamed was the Comforter spoken of in John 14. The problem with this line of thinking is that anyone claiming this doesn't read the full chapter....
We see in verse 16 that another is coming called 'the Comforter'. But let's let the bible, explain the bible and see who the Comforter is.....
Scroll down a few verses to number 26 and voila, your answer....
"But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you."
What's funny about this verse, is that it also confirms the trinity, excuse me Godhead....Do you see it?
- The Comforter / Holy Ghost
- The Father sends....
- In Jesus' name
God is not the author of confusion. The entire bible literally explains itself and the answers are right there. You just need to know where to look.
Overall, the point of this blog post was to remind myself to keep being ready to give an answer for everything I believe. And I challenge anyone that claims Christ to do the same. The adversary is sly like a fox, he knows the bible better than we do, so we need to be ready.....Always!
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Let's all aim to be prepared, not only in what we know but also in our hearts, encouraging discussions that inspire and enlighten both ourselves and those around us.
Amen to that!
You've made a brief summary here that is worth reading through over and over again. Let's keep eating the Word more and more to stand prepared against arguments
Thanks for checking out the post!
I think the problem is that people misunderstand the Bible and that’s why they make mistakes when it comes to talking about trinity
Thanks for the explanation
That's why it's so important to stay in scripture, so that we are biblically literate!
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Meekness.....something the world (myself included) should exercise more.
Oh man, that's the truth! Humble ourselves daily, and stop letting the ego take control. Speaking from personal experience for SURE lol
I love your explanation and how you made it clear that God isn’t the one who confuses us about trinity but it is based on how we view what was written in the Bible
He's not the author of confusion. While we are taught to dig deep and not be surface readers of the bible, sometimes the plain truth is evident!
When 1 Peter 3:15 was written, there was no Bible. And most Christians at that time were illiterate. So, even if they had a Bible, they couldn't read it. That's why, when the apostles wrote letters to the churches, they always had someone with the necessary skill read the letter to the entire church.
I'm not saying this to claim we shouldn't read the Bible. Yes, read it. Understand it. Know it. But don't worship it.
The important thing is to keep what is written within its context--historical and literary. The author of 1 Peter was addressing the persecuted church. Some claim it was Gentiles, others that it was Jews, and still others that it was both. Ethnicity of the recipients is much less important than the fact that they were scattered throughout Asia Minor and being persecuted. He was encouraging them to, in the face of their persecution, to return evil for good. Turn the other cheek. Do not retaliate. Why? Because the best witness for Jesus Christ is the endurance of suffering, just as He endured suffering.
In other words ...
The practical application for us today is the same as it was for them. In the West, most of us need not fear our lives. But there is a general antagonism toward Christianity. In the politically charged atmosphere in which men and women of faith have been dragged, not altogether against their wills, this message is more apt now than ever. He didn't put us here to build a kingdom in His name. He's already done that. Our task is to simply live in that kingdom as strangers in the kingdoms of men. Humbly. Meekly. And read to defend the faith gently as the situation and opportunity afford.
Keep up the good work in the name of the Lord, @jongolson
Matthew 6:33 for sure. The kingdom of God is what my focus is (or at least as much as my carnal mind seems to allow lol)
I can see how some 'idolize' the bible, yet I do see how some don't take it as the Word of God. It's His message to us and allows us to learn of His character. So that's a big reason why I'm trying so much to keep my nose glued to it.
The devil is crafty, he'll use all kinds of devices and theories to keep us out of God's love message to us.