Decoding The Da Vinci Code (Part 1)

Someone wrote, “My heart cannot rejoice in what my mind rejects.”

So can’t I. For our Lord Jesus commanded us: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” (Matthew 22:37, NIV) That’s why we Christians must know not only what we believe but also why we believe. Sincerity is not enough. We could be sincerely wrong. We need to be sincerely right. Our faith is not blind but intelligent. Paul wrote, “I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed” (2 Timothy 1:12).

Last Thursday, I gave a talk to our Young Pro Fellowship on the bestselling suspense thriller, The Da Vinci Code. TIME magazine hailed it as “The Novel That Ate the World.” More than 25 million copies are already sold worldwide. The novel is also translated in 44 languages. It topped bestseller’s lists such as the New York Times, Wall Street Journal and Publishers’ Weekly. A movie version is in the making with Tom Hanks taking the lead. TIME also recently named author Dan Brown as one of the World’s 100 Most Influential People.

Now why so much ado about a work of fiction? For it is marketed as a fact-based exposé. The book claims that Jesus did not die on the cross (so it follows He did not resurrect). But He ended up marrying Mary Magdalene and had children. Their alleged descendants are now living in France. That’s baloney, of course! But you know how people tend to look at fiction as if it is the truth. And it attacks the very foundation of our faith, that is, the person and work of Jesus.

How do we respond as believers? We should not be afraid of the novel. I won’t forbid you from reading it but actually encourage you to do so. Why? People are reading it. They will be asking questions. We can actually use it as an icebreaker in sharing the Gospel. God opened a door for us!

The apostle Peter commanded us: “Honor Christ and let him be the Lord of your life. Always be ready to give an answer when someone asks you about your hope. Give a kind and respectful answer and keep your conscience clear. This way you will make people ashamed for saying bad things about your good conduct as a follower of Christ.” (1 Peter 3:15-16, Contemporary English Version) We honor God when we defend our faith.

That’s why I will expound on this topic in our next issues of Straight from the Pastor. Watch out for it!

MGC Speakers for August 2005

Comments

  1. Anonymous10:27 PM

    Kurik! OK ah, pareho tayo ng topic sa blog(http://armelandrada.blogs.friendster.com/my_blog/) I'm looking forward to read part 2.

    ReplyDelete

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