"Faith, sir, is not a leap, but an intelligent choice based upon knowledge," I answered. Jesus said, 'Know the truth, and the truth shall make you free John 8:32.' You do not know enough to be a Christian.

"You admit that you have not even read the four Gospels. How can you expect to believe in Christ when you know virtually nothing about his character, teachings, nature, and mission?

"Would you marry a woman with whom you were only slightly acquainted? The believers relationship with Christ is compared in the Bible to marriage. The church is the bride, He is the Bridegroom. A successful marriage is based on trust or faith in another person. Just as a reasonable person would not marry someone without considering their character, family background, goals and basic beliefs so should you thoroughly examine the life of Christ as revealed in the Bible and I am convinced that you will see that He is worthy of a total commitment of your life."

This student had faith confused with credulity which is believing something without evidence or knowledge. Most people have blindly rejected Christianity without even knowing its fundamental teachings, let alone seriously thinking about rather or not its claims are true.

Jesus taught that we are to love God with our minds, which requires studying God. No wonder so few today really know God. They have not studied theology. Could we expect someone to know geometry, physics, chemistry, or history without studying these disciplines? Why should we expect men to know God without studying God, especially as he is revealed in the Bible?

The attitude of modern parents is that they are going to let their children make their own decisions on matters of faith. These same parents would never think of keeping their children away from school where they are introduced to various fields of knowledge, because they understand that if their children are not exposed to certain information they will never learn. Parents and teachers give children guidance about what they need to learn except when it comes to God. Then they are allowed to make their own decisions.

In colonial America school was optional, church was compulsory. Today we have the opposite situation, church is by choice and school is required. If parents do not compel their children to go to sunday school and church, or give their children religious instruction, what will the children conclude, but that religion is unimportant, and that faith is something unreasonable and divorced from knowledge?

Christianity does not demand blind faith, but commands all to think deeply and make an enlightened decision to believe and obey the Truth based upon historical facts.