why

Most religious institutions have pet beliefs that a lot of the parishioners don't even understand. As a Catholic boy I was told that if I ate meat on Fridays it was a mortal sin and I could go to hell! Nobody dared to question the priest concerning this tradition for fear of being anti-Catholic. Years later after converting to Christianity, I found out the reason for this religious law. In the seventeenth century a pope had a brother-in-law that was a fisherman and business wasn't too good. To this day some restaurants still serve a fish meal on Fridays.

Colossians 2:16 Don't let anyone condemn you for what you eat or drink, or for not celebrating certain holy days or new moon ceremonies or sabbaths.

We have two standards we can choose to obey, God's laws or man's doctrine. Choose God's, it's a much easier life. Every believer has the right and obligation to ask "why" does my church believe this? I see people around town that belong to some sect and they all wear the same costume with an old fashioned bonnet. Some day I will ask them why they dress the way they do. Does God require it? Does it get them closer to God? A lot of people are in bondage to some man's ideal because they didn't ask "why". Kathy Duplantis was asked to read a Scripture at the Catholic funeral of her friend. She chose a Scripture from the book of Mathew, but they wouldn't let her read it because only a priest can read from the Gospels.

Mathew 24:4 And Jesus answered, take heed that no man deceive you.

Deception is not a sure thing, it is not an absolute, it is a choice. Jesus said take heed, that means to pay attention, beware of what someone is trying to feed you. Just because someone is educated and experienced, it does not mean they are right. Most deceivers don't like being questioned because they cannot defend their rhetoric. One day a perspective believer came to our church and he watched people praising God with their arms in the air. After the service he came to me and asked me why the people did this, he had never seen it before. I opened my Bible to the first book of Timothy and read the verse where Paul said "when you pray lift up holy hands".

Acts 17:11 These men were more noble (open minded) they received the Word and searched the Scriptures to see if these things be so.

Whenever you are trying to persuade someone of a truth, show them in the Bible. No one can successfully argue against the Word but if you tell them what you think, they will argue all day long. A lot of people are convinced that man is responsible for global warming and they say it will wipe out most people. But God said in the book of Genesis that as long as the earth remains there will be hot and cold. These cultists will not accept God's Word, they make God out to be a liar. If I have to choose between science and God, I pick God, He cannot possibly lie. A lot of people claim to know better than God and people believe them because they don't ask "why".

Going to the Lord and asking Him "why" is not a failure of faith, it comes from a person who does not wish to be deceived. A lot of church people have a myriad of traditions that mean nothing to God, but they will fight you if you question them. Every Bible believing Christian should be able to use their Bible to answer any question of a potential believer. Have the courage to question what you believe and prove all things.