No Doubt

Is a crisis of faith good or bad?

Some time ago it was big news that Mother Teresa revealed she had a crisis of faith. Critics said, “See? How can God be real if someone like her doubts her faith?” But others nodded and thought, “She was a real person, just like me.”

The Fox News Channel recently showed the program “Escape from Hamas.” It chronicled the life of Yousef, a Muslim from Gaza.

Yousef’s father was one of the founders of Hamas, an anti-Israel terrorist group. After seeing the fear, hatred and torture of Muslims by other Muslims, Yousef had a crisis of faith.

When he compared the Bible with the Qur’an, Yousef was struck by Jesus’ command to “Love your enemies.” He said he knew then that Jesus was from God.

Yousef now lives in America. He has found peace with God and with his former enemies. And he is sure he has found the truth.

Now hold on just a minute. How can anyone know for sure they have the truth?

Unfortunately some people view certainty with suspicion. Since they have doubts about God, religion and faith, they think no one else can be sure of the truth. How sad.

What they fail to realize is that some people may have already gone through a crisis of faith. In many cases a crisis of faith leads to the truth. It did for me.

When I was a child, I lived by my parent’s faith. I knew God was real because I saw how he answered my parent’s prayers. But my faith was a second-hand faith.

As a high school student I began to explore my beliefs. In the Bible I found the answers to my questions. I learned God was faithful, not only to my parents, but to me, as well.

When it came time to choose a college, I prayed for guidance. And God answered my prayers in such a specific way that I had no doubt it was God!

After I got married, I can still remember my father’s advice to me as a new husband. He said, “It’s time you lost your parent’s faith and got your own.” And I knew exactly what he meant.

Until then I had taken excursions into faith, exploring it. But it was time for me to live it.

I learned that doubt and faith are not mutually exclusive. Convictions and strong beliefs arise through our doubts, not in spite of them. When doubts drive us to search for answers there is nothing quite so exhilarating as discovering the truth.

Jesus who said, “I am the truth” also said, “You will know the truth and the truth will set you free.” The truth about Jesus sets us free from sin, a guilty conscience and from our doubts.

Someone once said, “Feed your faith and your doubts will starve to death.” I like that.

Maybe you’re a skeptic. That’s OK. The Bible doesn’t condemn those who doubt.

When Jesus encountered “Doubting Thomas” after his resurrection, he didn’t belittle Thomas. Jesus invited him to come and examine the evidence. To see that it was really Jesus. Alive.

And he invites you to do the same. Listen to Jesus’ invitation to non-believers. Jesus said, “If anyone chooses to do God’s will, he will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own.”

Examine the evidence. Read the Gospel of John and the Acts of the Apostles. Look at the testimony of the eyewitnesses. Ask God to show you the truth and he will.

So is a crisis of faith good or bad? It’s a good thing if it leads you to the truth and to peace.

Listen to the Bible; it’s great for your soul!

Do It Yourself Religion

There are only two kinds of religion in the world: Jesus Saves and “Do It Yourself.”

All of the world’s religions, except one, are of the “Do It Yourself” variety. The down side to a DIY religion is that you can never be sure you will make it to paradise, nirvana, reincarnation or whatever it is you hope for.

Well hold it right there for just a minute. Are we without hope? How can a person be sure of what they will find on “the other side” after death?

Most religions offer a “maybe”—and that’s if you do everything you should just right. Interestingly, radical Islam tells its followers that there is one way they can be certain.

Walid Shofrat, a former Muslim PLO terrorist, describes it like this: “In the case of Islam, the way to assure yourself to go to Paradise is by dying yourself as an offer to God.”

Muslim suicide Jihadists believe that, by killing themselves, they are offering Allah their most precious gift: their soul. The problem is that no suicide Jihadist has ever come back from “the other side” to tell if they made it.

There is only one book and one person that offer the promise, proof and assurance of an eternal life in a true paradise called Heaven. The book is the Bible and the person is Jesus Christ.

In the fourteenth chapter of the New Testament Gospel of John, Jesus promises that he will prepare a place in Heaven for those who believe in him. He offers his word, as the Son of God, that he will take believers to be with him forever. Then he proved his power over death by one of the best-documented events in history, his resurrection.

Jesus Christ is the only one to ever bring himself back from “the other side” –and have many witnesses to prove it!

When man attempts to create a religion, it is always of the “Do It Yourself” variety. You must keep certain laws, observe sacraments, or do “penance” for your sin. In every case you die in uncertainty. There’s no assurance you “did it right” or proof you attain “paradise.”

God’s plan in the Bible is far different. His plan involves the perfect Son of God, Jesus, dying on the cross in our place for our sin. Then God offers forgiveness for sin and salvation from sin’s penalty as a free gift to those who accept it. It’s free to all with no strings attached.

Like a condemned prisoner on Death Row accepting a pardon, all you have to do is believe it’s true and put your trust in the one who pardons you. Sadly, some find that hard to do. They choose instead to believe that eternal life is “Do It Yourself.”

It goes against our pride and self-reliance to accept a gift as valuable as eternal life. That’s why God sent Jesus Christ into the world. The Bible says, “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”

When Christians announce that “Jesus Saves,” they are not trying to judge other religions. They are not being religious bigots full of hate and intolerance. It is simply a joyful announcement to other seekers that what they are seeking is found in Jesus Christ!

The truth of Christianity is that the assurance, joy and purpose of life--both life in the here and now and eternal life in the “by and by”--is found in Christ alone. And the best part of all is that it’s a free gift. No assembly required. It’s by faith alone. Faith in Jesus Christ.

Life has many choices. Religion has two: Jesus Saves or “Do It Yourself.” Think it over and then choose carefully because you will live with your choice for a very long time.

Listen to the Bible; it’s great for your soul!