Some Foolish Assumptions
An assumption is something we merely take for granted is true. We don’t prove it but assume it is true. In Gen 20:11, Abraham assumed that the people of Gerar would kill him if they thought Sarah was his wife. Hence, he lied about Sarah with the result that she nearly became another man’s concubine. The Israelite leaders assumed the Gibeonite story was true and, consequently, did not consult the Lord to see if it really was true (Josh 9:1-16). The religious leaders of Jesus’ day assumed that Jesus was not born in Bethlehem and, therefore, could not be the Messiah (Jn 7:41). All these assumptions were wrong and costly.
Many assume that God doesn’t exist. On what evidence do they base this? Over 100 facts about the fine-tuning of creation show that what exists was created by an intelligent being. In addition, no other explanation for the resurrection of Jesus is convincing. The odds of Jesus fulfilling 48 Old Testament prophecies (which He did) is 1 out of 10 with another 156 zeroes after it. A person has everything to lose by refusing to become a Christian with nothing to gain if they believe and Christianity, despite this overwhelming evidence, proves to be false. Yet, many assume they are smart to reject Christ. What an extraordinarily foolish wager! What an incredibly costly assumption! Assumptions are often made because we don’t want to change (Jn 3:19).
We must be careful about what we assume to be true. Assumptions, too readily made, can harm others and ourself. Maybe we would do better to not so quickly assume the worst about our spouse; to not assume our teenagers would stay celibate if given easy opportunities to have premarital sex; and to not assume that we need no further education or training because our current job will always be available and sufficient for our needs. Even these assumptions, though, are harmless compared to assuming that Christ is not the only Savior for human beings as He said He was.
Comforting others is costly but worth it.