Some things that we believe in make a big difference to our lives. They are relevant and they make a clear impact. If, for example, you believe that you can trust someone and that they love you, you might end up marrying them! That’s a big impact based on belief. Other beliefs, such as whether the earth is round or flat, won’t affect you too much, unless you go on a long journey!
The other consideration is that simply believing something, doesn’t make it true. You can have a sincere, but mistaken belief. What about belief in God? Does it make a practical difference?
That may be down to your idea of what God is like. If you think that God is a vague force in the universe; who started everything off, but is now absent, what’s the relevance? Yet, if God is personal and has any plan for us and communicates with us, then belief in that God should make a difference! But is God real – not just in my head?
Assume for a moment that we don’t have the Bible. The cosmos is definitely a thought provoker. When you think of the complexity and variety; that even one skin or plant cell is like a city with factories, transport systems and border controls. Even an amoeba is far from a ‘simple’ cell. Everything from the tiniest particle to the titanic dimensions of the solar system disclose a vastly intelligent mind and awesome power. Physicists are discovering that as knowledge grows, so also the realisation that there’s far more unknown to know. We would expect such immeasurability about God.
Nevertheless, as an intelligent Being, having created us with the ability to think and talk, you might expect him to clearly communicate with us. God has done even more than display his handiwork! The Bible asserts that even though God is greater than we can fully grasp, we were made to personally know him. The Bible is God’s unambiguous communication on the essentials. It is not a long-dictated transmission, but a God-orchestrated communiqué written by human writers. They recorded history, wrote letters, composed songs and reported eyewitness accounts. They heard and included some direct quotes.
Through the Bible we can know enough about God. It doesn’t yet explain all the mysteries, but it explains why the world is so broken. The Bible shows us that breaking God’s laws of love resulted in a sad and bad news world. It tells us that God not only created us, he still loves us. He came to earth as a human in the person of Jesus. In the supreme act of love, the God-Man suffered on the cross. He absorbed the guilt of our sin and the justice it deserved. He now offers us forgiveness and eternal restoration. When we stop ignoring him and choose to follow him, we enter into the wonder of knowing him as we were designed for. This belief certainly impacts our lives for good, forever!
This column first appeared in the Newark Advertiser in October 2025, and was written by Carl Meachem.