3. Why You Reject the Gospel

You who are reading this may be a 'skeptic'. You may not believe that God created the whole universe and sent Jesus. You may think that the vicarious ministry of the cross and resurrection are religious illusions.

You may find it very difficult to believe the gospel that Jesus solved the problem of human sin and opened the 'way of salvation'. Or, you may want to believe this fact, but find it difficult to believe because it is filled with such illogical stories.

However, trying to confirm objective and rational 'reasons for faith' like you is neither blasphemous nor meaningless. Rather, faith obtained through such doubt and thorough verification can be much more rational and firm than blindly believing based on momentary emotions.

So, from now on, I want to examine your reasons for not believing the gospel one by one, from the perspective of a skeptic just like you. From now on, I want to thoroughly examine whether the gospel is a mere religious fantasy or an undeniable clear truth, albeit one that is difficult to accept at first.

3.1. Why You Reject the Gospel

There are various reasons why people cannot accept the gospel, but in summary, they can be largely divided as follows. The reason you cannot accept the gospel is probably mostly due to these reasons as well.

1. Does God exist? How can the existence of God be proven?

• Putting aside the Bible, Jesus, and God for now, is there any evidence that God exists in the first place?
• God's existence cannot be scientifically proven or confirmed, so on what basis do you claim that God exists?
• How can we verify and prove whether God exists or not?
• Even assuming God exists, how can we verify whether that God is the God described in the Bible, or one of the various gods mentioned in other religions, or a God of my own imagination?

2. Are the illogical and supernatural miracles really possible?

• The Bible describes numerous miracles and supernatural events. It records that Moses parted the Red Sea with a staff, Mary became pregnant as a virgin and gave birth to Jesus alone, Jesus turned plain water into wine, instantly healed countless incurable diseases, and fed 5,000 people with five loaves of bread and two fish. It even says that Jesus resurrected after dying on the cross and ascended to heaven.
• In addition, the Bible is filled with numerous miracles and all kinds of supernaturally incomprehensible events, so on what basis can we believe such things that seem to belong in a 'fantasy novel' are possible?

3. Questions about the nature and historicity of the Bible

• The basis of faith presented by those who believe in Jesus is the Bible, but isn't the Bible a 'historical fiction' or 'religious text' made up by people against the backdrop of ancient Israel 2,000 years ago?
• Why is the Bible not just a religious book but a historical book that records historical facts, and what is the evidence for that? Are the facts and contents recorded in the Bible historically and archaeologically valid?
• Other religions also have religious scriptures written long ago, with their own mythical and supernatural events described, so why should the Bible be believed as historical events while other religions should be regarded as mere 'myths'? If so, what is the basis for that claim?

4. Unscientific aspects of the origin and evolution of life

• Modern science explains the origin of life as follows: Amino acids, the components of life, were accidentally formed when electrical stimuli were applied to the primitive atmosphere as raw material, and these combined to produce primitive life forms. Through endless evolution, various organisms appeared, and humans are also products of this evolutionary process.

• The Bible says that God created the whole universe and made all living things, including humans, according to their kind, but isn't this completely contrary to objective and rational modern science? How can we resolve this contradiction?

5. Contradictions in God's attributes

• God is said to be just and overflowing with love, but if this is true, how can a loving God torture so many people in hell?
• If the reason people go to hell is because of human 'sin', isn't God the originator of 'sin' and 'evil'? If God had not created 'sin' and 'evil' in the first place, there would be no reason for people to go to hell, right?
• If God is just and cannot tolerate injustice, why does so much suffering and irrationality exist in this world? Why do terrible crimes, wars, natural disasters, and lawlessness never cease in the world? Why are there people who live honestly and righteously but live in misery, while there are people who commit all kinds of evil and injustice yet live comfortably and happily?

3.2. Reasonable Doubt

You do not have to clearly answer all of these questions in order to believe in Jesus. However, if these obstacles prevent you from believing in Jesus, you must overcome these obstacles in an objective and rational way.

From now on, let's check one by one whether these doubts are really valid. First, let's find out if God really exists.