Russell Haffner
In almost every aspect of life we put a high priority on evidence. We would not expect someone to be convicted in a legal trial if no evidence had been given. So, why is it when it comes to religious beliefs some are not interested in evidence? I have heard people say, “I feel it in my heart, so I know it is true." Proverbs 28:26 teaches us, "He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool: but whoso walketh wisely, he shall be delivered." Our feelings are not proof! In religious matters we should never say "I think we should do this or I think we should do that." We should say, "The Bible teaches we should do this or the Bible teaches we should do that." What we think (our opinions) do not determine truth. Proverbs 18:2 states, "A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion (ESV - see also 2 Corinthians 10:5)." We must make sure our reasoning is based on the Bible and not our own opinions or feelings.
We must never turn away from evidence as we pursue faith. Knowledge and evidence in no way oppose real Bible faith. Some have mistakenly defined faith as believing in something even if there is no proof. They think of it as "a leap in the dark." However, the Bible never defines true faith in such a way. Hebrews 11:1 explains, "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." God expects us to use reason. He created us as logical beings. Isaiah 1:18 says, "Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD... "
As we teach others we must be ready to defend the gospel with real evidence. Our creator has not left us without proof of His will. We must trust in His word which has been proven time and time again. God who cannot lie (Titus 1:2), has provided unto us all the information we need to live faithful lives (2 Peter 1:3). Our goal should be to stay true to the words of the Bible and dedicate ourselves to teaching only those things which can be proven to be true from the scriptures.
As a student of the school I commend you for your desire to learn more. I encourage you to carefully consider the evidence of the scriptures. This reminds us of what Paul said concerning the Bereans. He commended them because they "received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so" (Acts 17:11). He praised them because they were comparing the things he taught to God's word making sure he was teaching truth. Please do not put your trust in my words or the words of any man. We as men make mistakes, but God's word is always right!
Perhaps you have lost your password and don’t know how to proceed. In our records we do not retain the passwords of the students, but there are steps you can take to reset your password if it has been lost:
- From the homepage of the School, select the "LOGIN" button on the blue menu bar at the school website, which will take you to the bottom of the page to the login form.
- Choose the "Lost Password" link below the form.
- A new page asking for your email address will be presented. Simply enter the email address you used when setting up your account, click the reCAPTCHA checkbox and then click the "Get New Password" button.
- At this point an email will be sent to the email address you entered. In the email there will be a reset link to verify that you do indeed own the email address you entered.
- After clicking the reset link in your email, you will be given the opportunity to create a new password. The website will auto-populate the input field with a randomly generated set of characters, but you can type-in whatever you choose. Click the "Reset Password" button, then click on the WVBS Online Bible School logo to go to the main page and login using your new password. If you experience problems in resetting your password please let us know.