When in Doubt
In 2018, I gave my life to Christ.
“Does that mean I no longer doubt? No.”
People may think when a person gives their life to Christ it means they no longer have moments of doubt and confusion. Personally, that couldn’t be further from the truth. Giving my life to Christ means I believe and put my faith in Christ.
“Does faith mean I believe when there is no evidence? No.”
I’ve heard people assume that “faith” means to believe without evidence, but biblical faith is defined in Hebrews 11:1 as “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” GotQuestions.com does a good job at defining biblical faith as “trusting in something you cannot explicitly prove.” Without going too far into the weeds, I have faith in Christ because there is evidence for Christianity and God. Not everyone accepts that evidence, but there is evidence, nonetheless.
“When I doubt, how do I maintain my faith?”
When I watch a debate or talk with someone and they present an issue or question I don’t have an answer for, it can plant a seed of doubt. Doubt not only for Christianity as the true religion, but if God even exists. When this happens, I like to fall back on a few points to stabilize myself before proceeding to research an answer:
- Something can’t come from nothing:
As a non-believer, I bought into the idea of the Big Bang Theory – space, time, and matter all originated from that big bang. The issue comes when we ask, “Where did the matter and energy for the Big Bang originate?” Each time I attempted to find an answer that didn’t involve a creator, it would fall short. Logically, “Nothing” can’t create matter and energy. Nothing can’t make something!
Realizing this is when I went from an atheist to an agnostic. Agnostic is when someone believes something [a creator] is the answer to the origin question.
- The creator would need to be immaterial since it made matter, it was outside of time since time started at creation, it was spaceless since space originated when matter and energy came into existence, etc.
- If a creator is immaterial, spaceless, and timeless, then that creator had to choose to create. This implies the creator is personal, since it chose to create something rather than do nothing.
- An apologist named Frank Turek does an excellent job breaking down this idea on his website CrossExamined.org
- Another author and theologian that does a good job at relating creation to the Big Bang is William Lane Craig at ReasonableFaith.org
From CrossExamined.org
That means the cause of the universe must be something beyond nature—something we would call supernatural. It also means that the supernatural cause of the universe must at least be:
- spaceless because it created space
- timeless because it created time
- immaterial because it created matter
- powerful because it created out of nothing
- intelligent because the creation event and the universe was precisely designed
- personal because it made a choice to convert a state of nothing into something (impersonal forces don’t make choices).
Those are the same attributes of the God of the Bible (which is one reason I believe in the God of the Bible and not a god of mythology like Zeus).
- Subjective vs Objective Morality:
When I took a step back, humbled myself, and thought about morals, I asked myself “Without God, ie. A Moral Giver, is a person’s morals just a matter of opinion?”
When I was a non-believer, I felt I was moral, and I felt my views were correct. When I was willing to be honest with myself, I started asking “why are my views correct?” It wasn’t until I allowed myself to question my beliefs that I made the leap from “God was just a creator” to “God is personal, caring, and has given us standards to live by.”
For example: I would say murder is wrong, but why is it wrong? I would answer “society says it is wrong.” With that answer, a person can ask “If that is true, why were Nazi’s wrong for murdering Jews, since their society said it was OK to do so?”
Next, I found myself asking “Why is my society the right one?” If one society says murder is wrong and one says it is OK, then it’s all subjective, all a matter of opinion, and not objective, a matter of fact.
Without God, who is the moral giver, or a standard above us, then our morals are subjective and just an opinion. If that is the case, whatever society is strongest sets the standard, and that standard is “right” only if they remain in power. Survival of the fittest only brings death, since our strength fades and is temporary just as everything else in this world.
The above briefly address these two points. They don’t prove Christianity is true, or necessarily point towards Jesus, but they provide a foundation that there is a creator, and that creator is personal by providing an objective moral standard.
I often revisit these two points when I have doubts. It is OK to doubt, but it’s not OK to stop with that doubt. Christianity can stand up to scrutiny, so don’t be afraid to explore those doubts and ask questions. Be willing to seek others and have fellowship for discussion. Be willing to humble yourself and be willing to seek the truth. As John 14:6 tells us, Jesus is “the way, the truth, and the life.” I believe the answers, when seeking truth, will point to Christ.
God bless.
- CrossExamined: https://crossexamined.org/big-bang-evidence-for-god/
- GotQuestions: https://www.gotquestions.org/definition-of-faith.html
- ReasonableFaith.org: https://www.reasonablefaith.org/media/reasonable-faith-podcast/creation-out-of-nothing