And you call upon the name of your god, and I will call upon the name of the LORD, and the God who answers by fire, he is God. 1 Kings 18:24
As a kid, growing up on Bible stories, I loved today’s story. In it, the righteous Elijah challenged the evil prophets of Baal to a cosmic contest. They would both offer a bull sacrifice to their respective gods and whoever answered with fire from heaven, would be the real God. The prophets of Baal called out and nothing happened. Then, when Elijah called out, fire from heaven rained down, consuming sacrifice, wood, and stone. It was a dramatic display of God’s power that proved beyond any doubt who the real God was.
As a kid, I imagined myself to be on the side of good, battling the forces of evil. I wanted to be like Elijah, calling down fire from heaven to prove God was real. Well, that never happened. Still though, as I grew older, I desired to prove God’s existence to those who disbelieved. This usually resulted in some argument in which I hoped to make such an airtight case for God that my opponent would suddenly give up their doubt and believe. I don’t argue much anymore. I do think that I should be able to defend my faith logically, but I have yet to argue anyone into heaven. Honestly, looking back, I can see that I was a bit of a jerk who just went looking for fights.
Now, I generally avoid arguments. When someone brings up some reason that the Bible isn’t true and that God doesn’t exist, I rarely have the perfect answer. I also realize that that person is set in his or her ways and not likely to be dissuaded by any logical argument I can produce.
Rather, my fire from heaven – my proof that God exists – is what he’s done in my life. There was a time when I didn’t have that, but now, I can point to the radical difference between a life of following me and a life of following God. My way has been misery. God’s way has been life. If someone wants the new life God offers, then I’m happy to point them in the right direction. If they’re not interested, then I’m not going to argue. I don’t think God intends for me to argue people into believing. Rather, my best evidence for God is the transformation that he’s wrought in my life. This is a bit scary though, as I’m still terribly flawed. What if others look at my life and say, “If that’s God’s work, I’m not interested”? So, daily, I must continue to abandon myself to follow God, allowing myself to be continually transformed, because his work in my life is my fire from heaven.