In my experience, people don’t commit their lives to Christ for one of four reasons. I wonder if you agree. These four reasons are:
- the rational failure of God
- the moral failure of God
- the moral failure of the church
- the moral failure of self
The rational failure of God is the conviction that the very idea of God is logically absurd.
I have given reasons why belief in God is rationally credible in earlier blogs so I won’t repeat myself here. But permit me to say something that may appear back-to-front reasoning. It is this: If God exists, then it cannot be true that belief in him is irrational. It has to be rational. In fact, belief in God has to be the “last word” in rationality, because God (if he exists) is the last word in what is rationally true.
Personally, I believe there are very good reasons for taking the existence of God seriously. But I think it is important to understand that whilst people of faith know that what they believe is rational, they also know that their faith in God is more than rational. This makes logical sense. The truth about God is (and necessarily has to be) more than that which our rational brains can conceive if God is to be more than something our brains have conceived.
Let’s move on to the perceived moral failure of God—particularly in regards to suffering.
Suffering is a vexing subject and, for all of us, a deeply personal one. It is impossible to give quick, trite answers. I will therefore mention just two things. The first is that God shares your grief. He grieves with you because he loves you. The shortest verse in the Bible is: “Jesus wept.” He did so when he saw the grief of two sisters caused by the death of their brother Lazarus. God understands your grief… and shares it.
The second thing is this: If you have suffered from grief, abuse or injustice, know that God is angry. He hates it. That’s why he has set a time when the imperfections of this world will end, will be judged, and will be killed off. God’s eternal kingdom is God’s “end game,” and he wants you to be part of it. That’s the place where every tear will be wiped dry (Revelation 21:4) and all the things that once bewildered you will become clear… although I very much suspect that you won’t even remember your questions when you’re there!
Another reason for lack of belief is the moral failure of the church. Sadly, there is no shortage of examples here. I think it has to be said that the institutional expression of church has often been imperfect, evil, unfaithful and un-Christ-like. People with a lust for prestige and power have sought to use Christianity as weapon to further their ambitions. But alongside the fallible institutional church, there exists the “true church,” the church that embodies the grace and truth of Jesus. We see its beautiful influence on individuals, families, cities and nations.
None of us would dare say who belongs to which church—only God can do that. In reality, most Christians know themselves to be living in both the fallible church and the faithful church. We know this because the church is a reflection of us. We are both. That is why every single one of us needs God’s grace and forgiveness.
…Which brings us to the final reason for unbelief: The moral failure of self.
What I mean by “the moral failure of self” is the deliberate choice of someone to live autonomously from God so they can “do their own thing.” Note: this is a moral failure from God’s perspective, not from the perspective of the person who spurns God. They are usually very happy living life without reference to the meaning, purpose, forgiveness and protective constraints of God.
I have very little to say about this other than to urge you not to be one of them. The very worse thing God can do (and will do) is honour your decision to have nothing to do with him—eternally. And that would be a pity, for you were created to live forever with God in his kingdom.
God’s judgement is a reality, so please choose well.
