Bible Reading: Romans 1:16-17
I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes. Romans 1:16
Waldo strolled down the city sidewalk, lost in thought. He had decided he had run from God long enough. I can’t stand it anymore, he said to himself. I feel so much guilt. I’m so lonely. I think my life is missing something big. After walking for blocks, Waldo reached a church and walked in. He stood inside for a moment to let his eyes get used to the dark. “Will you be coming in?” someone asked. The voice startled Waldo. He turned and saw a little old gray-haired lady standing beside him.
“Yes,” Waldo answered. “I want to come in.”
“Then I’ll be needing your brains, please, sir,” the woman said.
“My brains?” Waldo was puzzled. Why would she need his brains?
“Haven’t you decided to become a Christian?” Waldo nodded yes. “Well, then,” she said, “you have to drop off your brains here at the door. You won’t be needing them anymore. Christians, you know, don’t ever think.”
No, there isn’t really a guy named Waldo who was forced to hand over his brain. But many people think that believing in Jesus is just for dumb people. That’s just not true. Getting to know God doesn’t mean you stop thinking. It means you use your mind to understand God’s great answers to the biggest questions of life.
The Bible does teach us some challenging facts: that God was born as a human … that healings and other miracles really happened back in the Bible … that Jesus rose from the dead. Those are some highly unusual happenings, and we’re right to test their truth. But plenty of bright people have read the Bible and concluded that it is absolutely true.
Once a very smart British trial lawyer, Frank Morison, tried to prove that our Christian faith wasn’t true. He started to write a book showing that Jesus never rose from the dead. He researched, looked at the facts he gathered from the Bible and from history, and worked hard at his task. Finally, all his smarts and research told him that Jesus had risen from the dead! He became a Christian.
Trusting in Jesus doesn’t require that you ditch your brains at the door. Actually, it demands that you use all of your smarts until you are fully convinced of your faith: “I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes” (Romans 1:16).
TALK: Do you think that you have to check your brains at the door when you become a Christian? Why or why not?
PRAY: God, use our minds to help us understand you and your good news.
ACT: Do you have a question about your faith that bugs you? Dig into the Bible today to find the answer!
