The Shortest Leap

In summary, what I have come to discover is this: whatever our belief system regarding life after death and spiritual matters in general, they all require us to take a leap of faith. Perhaps you are like me when I made this realization—I was tempted to just throw up my hands and say, “No one can know anything! Why even bother to evaluate truth claims? Why not just choose what works best for me?” Fortunately, I have discovered that you don’t have to conclude that spiritual truth is unknowable. As with scientific inquiry, you can use your reason to determine which worldview is closest to the truth based on the evidence that supports it or refutes it.

Even though God, if he exists, is unobservable, it is still possible to investigate whether he exists and what he is like by observing his effects. This is exactly how we study other unobservable phenomena. For example, we can’t see the molecules of gas that constitute a gentle breeze, but we can measure their effects on objects that we can see. Similarly, we can’t see the forces of gravity or magnetism, but we can see the effects that these forces have on visible materials.

Another example of unobservable phenomena are events that have already occurred. For this reason, historians, archaeologists, investigative journalists, attorneys, and forensic scientists also use rational induction as they seek to determine the truth about what happened in the past. They cannot rewind time and observe the original events, but they can study the effects of those events—eyewitness memories in recorded interviews and accounts, footprints and fingerprints, DNA evidence found at the scene, notes, letters and other documentary evidence, traces of dust, pollen, or other chemicals, and so forth—to reconstruct the past based on the weight of the evidence.

Consider a detective or crime scene investigator, fictional examples of which range from Sherlock Holmes in nineteenth-century London to Gil Grissom in the TV series “C.S.I.” These detectives are the ultimate, dispassionate rationalists. They would never allow the investigative team to accuse someone of a crime without a thorough, rational investigation. They can’t claim a person is guilty just because they have a “strong feeling” he or she did it, or because they grew up being taught that certain people commit certain crimes. Similarly, they can’t let a suspect go free because they wish him or her to be innocent.

With regards to spiritual claims, most people (including my younger self) base their decisions largely on emotions, rather than on rational evidence. They choose to disregard the claims of Christianity for many reasons: it seems too good to be true, or they don’t like the way Christians have acted throughout history, or because they believe they’re good enough to get into heaven, or because they want to live life without the “shackles” they believe Christianity will place on them.

But while emotions are an important element of one’s personal decision-making process, one should not rely upon them wholly for crucial decisions, especially those with potentially eternal consequences, like where we go, if anywhere, when we die. Moreover, one should judge Christianity for its teachings, rather than for the incorrect implementation of its teachings by error-prone humans over the course of history. As St. Augustine put it so succinctly: “Never judge a philosophy by its abuse.”

I like to think of the core tenets of Christianity (salvation by faith alone) as a beautiful treasure that has unfortunately been covered by barnacles over the centuries as a result of human pride and selfishness. Instead of recoiling at the ugly barnacles, it is better to first remove them to view the treasure beneath. At that point, you have a better vantage point and can determine a more accurate estimate of the value of the treasure.

My goal in this book is to help you evaluate the Christian faith with the same techniques used to investigate scientific phenomena and historical events. First and foremost, I wrote this book for those who know little about Christianity and are willing to learn more. At best, they aren’t sure why Christians believe what they do, or at worst, they are completely offended by the claims of Christianity (as I used to be). Secondly, this book is for Christians who want to learn how to share their faith with others, as well as for Christians who want to believe in Jesus more wholeheartedly. The ultimate goal of this book is to present evidence that demonstrates the truth of Christianity.

While only God can “open your eyes” to his truth,⁴ one way he does this is through rational evidence that breaks down roadblocks impeding your belief in Jesus. Please recognize that, whatever your current beliefs about the existence of God and the purpose of life, they are based on a leap of faith. It is my sincere hope and prayer that you will take the leap of faith to Jesus, which I sincerely believe requires the shortest leap.