(Link: The Christian Post - Evangelist Challenges Atheists to Bible-Less Debate on ABC)

It seems to be a popular thing these days to see people attempting to “intellectually” debate the existence of God and/or “scientifically” disprove scientific theories such as Darwinist evolution.

In the above linked article, Ray Comfort and Kirk Cameron (of Growing Pains fame) from “Way of the Master” have decided to debate two atheists who put that “Blasphemy Challenge” on YouTube.

Personally, I think that they are making a HUGE mistake, and are setting themselves up for a huge fall: how can they possibly go into battle unarmed(without using the Word of God) ?

God does not need us to intellectually defend Him; nor is it effective (and I will go so far as to say it is impossible) to reach lost souls without God’s word. And to claim that they can argue the existence of God without relying upon faith, or needing Scripture to back them up? This is COMPLETELY unscriptural:

8 But what saith (the Word of God) it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach;

9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.

10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

11 For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.

12 For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him.

13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

14 How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?

15 And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!

16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report?

17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

(Romans 10:8-17)

The Bible itself contains God’s wisdom which alone will make men wise unto the salvation of souls:

“The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise.” (Proverbs 11:30)

When the rubber meets the road, it isn’t the mind or one’s intellect God is concerned with… in fact, He commands us to come to Him as simple children, trusting and believing in Him:

2 And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them,

3 And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.

4 Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

5 And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me.

(Matthew 18:2-5)

“But Jesus said, Allow the little children to come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven.” (Mathew 19:14, EMTV)

“But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6, KJV)

Indeed, Ray and Kirk have seemingly missed the boat… and like so many of those so-called “Creation Scientists” and “Intelligent Design” advocates who try to argue with inveterate, unrepentant atheist scientists who have dug in their heels and oppose the Gospel at every turn… they will be wasting their time.

Debating science and intellectualizing with atheists does not convert lost souls to Christ… preaching the Gospel and giving sinners a good testimony of the redeemed soul that trusts in Jesus is guaranteed by God’s Word to have the most impact:

“So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.” (Isaiah 55:11)

Now if Ray and Kirk would have chosen to go in “loaded for bear” with plenty of God’s Word, and not their own faulty, human thinking (Jeremiah 51:17)… I’d bet that at least one person in that audience would come that much closer to calling upon Jesus to save him and make the confession that will save his soul from the eternal fires of Hell.

Slightly related:

Ray Comfort asks - “here is something more sinister here than a few people not believing in God,” … “Why would so many be so bitter against Christianity in particular? Why aren’t they making videos that blaspheme Buddha or Mohammed or Ghandi?

My answer to that is that Jesus challenges people to give up trying to come to God on their own terms. There is something about realizing that one can’t make his own way to God, that simply infuriates people to no end. Interestingly enough, I’ve heard a devout Hindu man (a co-worker of mine) often swearing and using the Lord Jesus’s Name “in vain”, but to what end?

It is odd, when he could have easily sworn by Krishna or Brahma or any of the other 33 million gods he might deal with. Yet, is this not a testimony in itself, however subconscious - that Jesus Christ truly is the King of Kings, and the wicked hearts of men would refuse to have Him as their King?

Indeed! I know that before I was saved, one of the first choice words I would say when angered was the Lord’s Name - the same Name at which demons tremble, and before whom angels bow the knee and cover their eyes with their wings. What a brash, ignorant and irreverent thing for me, a being of mere dust, to do!

And yet, God is merciful, ever ready to forgive those who repent, and come to Him as children, through the Lord Jesus Christ, His only-begotten Son.

Jesus is Lord, and He wants to be your Lord, even at the price of His life given up on the cross.

Take care with that, that you do not tarry longer without Him or His blood to cleanse away sins, for the penalty for rejecting Him (unbelief) is certainly dire. (Luke 19:12,14,17)

(All scripture quotes are taken from the King James Version, except where indicated otherwise).