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Doubt is something all Christians experience. When bad things happen to us, we wonder why God isn't there making it all better. When people ask us questions about God that we can't answer, doubt rears its ugly head. How do we overcome doubt and believe in what we can't see?
It’s first important to understand what causes a Christian to doubt God. Perhaps the primary cause is Satan. (Genesis 3:1-6) Just as God, Jesus and the angels work in a spiritual realm to draw us heavenward, Satan and his demons work to drag us away. One of their weapons is to plant seeds of doubt. When we doubt the existence of God, the power of God, the love of God or the Sacrifice of Christ, we give the enemy a foothold in our minds.
Once Satan has a foothold, he has an invitation to work away at our mind. We’ve given him permission to do so by agreeing with him that there is cause for doubt. At this point, we have a choice, to go on agreeing and be pulled away from God or to seek help in pulling out the weeds of doubt. We don’t give up our feelings of doubt right away; we rescind the invitation that we gave to Satan by our agreement with him. Once we decide to seek the truth, we regain control of our minds and can pursue those things that would reassure us in our faith.
Related to doubt, but not quite the same is the state of unbelief. Doubt says, “I don’t think that can happen.” Unbelief says, “No way that can happen.” Zacharias was an example of unbelief. The angel Gabriel appeared to him and told him that his wife would conceive, even though she was beyond childbearing years. (Luke 1:18-20) He refused to believe even with an angel standing in front of him! Unbelief is what doubt grows into. Somewhere within Zacharias was a preconceived notion that there are limits to what God can do. When confronted with a miracle, the seeds of doubt bloomed in Zacharias’ mind.
This point is important because we never know what God has planned for us. What if He comes to you with a miracle someday and you lose out because your seeds of doubt bloom into unbelief? We must always guard against doubt. All around us is testimony to the power of God. The intricately delicate world that is our habitat and the amazing bodies that we live in testify to a Creator everyday.
The world will try to tell you that the notion of a Creator is foolishness. (1 Corinthians 1:18 ) Some people will try to make you feel silly or even stupid for your faith. For all of us who are Christians, there was a reason why we chose to follow Christ. When others belittle us or avoid us because of our faith, it is important to remember why we chose Christ over the things of the world. James gives sound advice:
My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;
3 Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.
4 But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.
5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.
6 But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.
7 For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.
8 A double minded man is unstable in all his ways. (James 1:2-8)
Spiritual instability will cause the seeds of doubt to bloom. To combat this, we must be diligent students of Christ. Just like the disciples, we must follow Christ, learning His teachings and learning His ways if we are to ever become stable in our faith. How can anyone make a wise choice if he is uniformed? How can anyone make a decision about something she knows nothing about? Before you can doubt, you must first examine all the evidence. To do so, you must know the Word of God and the claims of Christ. To know these things, you must study and discuss the teachings, seeking clear interpretation from knowledgeable teachers. Only when we have done this can we fairly decide whether there is room for doubt. To do otherwise is to allow someone else to decide for you.
The Bible gives us instruction on how to deal with doubt. In Judges 6:36-40, Gideon put God to a test asking Him to show a sign. Gideon threw out a fleece on the ground and asked God to surround it with the morning’s dew but let the fleece remain dry. Gideon’s challenge was met and the fleece remained dry. When Christians ask God for a sign now, it’s called throwing out a fleece. You should be cautioned, though, not to test God frequently. He demands faith and putting Him to the test on everything is not evidence of faith.
Acts 17:11-12 encourages us to search the Scripture for answers. There is nothing new under the sun and God’s Word gives us instruction on everything. When you know the Word of God, then you have the knowledge to decide about its validity. The answer to any question is in the Word, you only need to know where to look. If you don’t know, a mature Christian can help you. Seek the help of those that can guide you to answers.
Prayer is the best way to get answers. When we reach out to God in prayer and take our doubts and concerns to Him, He gives us answers and guides us to help. Don’t try and hide your doubt from Him, question Him and seek answers. When the disciple, Thomas, heard of the risen Christ, he refused to believe until he touched the wounds of Christ himself. (John 20:25-31) When we ask Christ to let us see His wounds and prove His victory over death, He shows us in amazing ways. Don’t withhold anything when you speak with the Lord, He answers our sincere questions.
The brilliant mathematician Blaise Pascal (1632-1662) addressed the issue of doubt in a work of Christian apologetics. He came to the conclusion that while God could not be proved or disproved conclusively, that it was safer to wager on God’s existence. If, after death, the believer is wrong, he has lost nothing. However, if, after death, the non-believer discovers he is wrong, he pays for his error for eternity. This is known as Pascal’s Wager and it addresses the issue of doubt nicely. If all other attempts to overcome doubt fail, you are still safer to believe than to not believe.
(All Scripture KJV)
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