Healthy plants have deep roots and strong pillars have solid foundations. If we are to be Christians who are deeply rooted in Christ and built on the solid Rock, then we need more than mere sound bites. One means that the Lord has used throughout church history to strengthen His people’s faith and witness is reading good books. This book review series is identifying books that can serve as shovels that help you dig deeper in your Christian life.
Book: Surviving Religion 101 – Letters to a Christian Student on Keeping the Faith in College - Michael J. Kruger
Here’s a reality we need to face: all believers struggle with doubt. Even with many good reasons to believe, there may be times when you wonder whether everything you believe is a lie. Such thoughts are weighty and can be painful to work through. This is further exacerbated by our current intellectual climate, where certainty is seen as a vice and doubt is presented as the ultimate virtue. On the flip side, some segments of Christianity heap scorn on anyone who doubts. You’re told to accept everything, no questions asked. In chapter 15 of Surviving Religion 101, Michael Kruger charts a balanced path that can leads us forward through our doubts.
1) No, There’s Nothing Wrong with You
Doubts do not necessarily mean you are a bad Christian. Just think of the soul-struggle of God-fearing Job! Whenever we question our beliefs, it is easy to think we have failed and let God down. We sigh, “If only we could be more like the great heroes of the faith!”
If that’s you, then you need to realize that your doubts may actually be a point of connection with our spiritual heroes. The great Reformer, Martin Luther, struggled intensely with serious doubts and despair. He experienced what older authors used to call “the dark night of the soul.” At times Luther doubted his own faith, questioned his calling, and wondered whether God had turned His back on him. As He worked through anxiety and bouts of depression, his friend Philip Melanchthon sometimes feared he was on the verge of death.
Or consider the great 19th century preacher, Charles Spurgeon. He once confessed: “On a sudden, the thought crossed my mind – which I abhorred but could not conquer – that there was no God, no Christ, no Heaven, no Hell, that all my prayers were but a farce, and that I might as well have whistled to the winds or spoken to the howling waves.”
Here’s the point: It’s normal to struggle with doubt in the Christian life. The issue is not whether you face doubt but how you respond to it.
2) Different Kinds of Doubt
Many Christians equate doubt with unbelief, and it leaves them feeling guilty for stubbornly refusing to believe. However, we need to realize that doubt is not the same as unbelief. Doubt is a form of wavering; it’s to be of “two minds” about something (Jam. 1:6). Left unchecked, doubt can lead to unbelief, and therefore, it can be quite serious (Matt. 21:21). But we need to see that God is very patient with those who struggle with doubts. Think of how Jesus persevered in love with His doubting disciples, particularly Thomas (John 20:27).
With this in mind, we can further identify two different kinds of doubt. First, Christians can experience doubts about the truth of Christianity. This is more intellectual in nature and might involve questioning things like the reliability of the Bible and the existence of God. This doubt can usually be addressed through using the many great resources that are available to gain a better understanding of the facts. This doesn’t mean people’s doubts are automatically “cured” by reading a few books, but they can supply solid answers to perplexing questions.
Second, we often use the word doubt to describe how we are struggling with some aspect of the Christian life. This might involve feeling like you don’t understand God, being confused by a particular doctrine, or wanting to know why God did (or did not do) something. It often entails doubts about ourselves: Am I really a Christian? Is God really for me? It frequently reveals itself as a form of struggle, anxiety, or fear. This kind of doubt is prevalent in the Bible, in particular in the psalms (Psalm 42-44).
It’s important to note that this kind of doubt is not necessarily sinful, but often part of life in a fallen world. Yet, we need to fight against this form of doubt as it can wreak havoc in the Christian life, resulting in despair, discouragement or depression. Further, it has a way of interweaving itself with the first kind of doubt, making the root cause hard to distinguish.
3) Tracing the Source of Doubt
Understanding why some Christians doubt more than others is complex, but here are a few of the main reasons that can help us map out a helpful response.
1st – Unanswered Questions: Some people’s doubts center on real unanswered intellectual questions about Christianity. This leaves them labouring through the Christian life with a weak, shaky faith. This book (and blog series) has begun addressing some of these questions. Sometimes a person says his doubts are primarily intellectual, when it is just a mask for the real cause of doubt that lies underneath.
2nd – Immoral Behaviour – One of the most common causes of people doubting their faith is that they are engaged in behavior that the Bible plainly forbids. Someone gets pulled into the wrong crowd and begins behaving in ways they know is wrong. This change in behavior is almost always followed by a change in belief. They begin saying things like, “I’m not sure I believe in God anymore.” This sounds like an intellectual objection, but in reality, its roots lie in their new lifestyle and their unwillingness to give it up. Here’s a key principle: Beliefs don’t only affect behaviour, but behaviour also affects beliefs. If we don’t obey God, it will be easier to doubt God.
3rd – Profound Suffering – This might be the most common cause of doubt. Our loved one dies, we face serious health problems, financial difficulty or broken relationships and it can lead to a crisis of faith. In the midst of such pain, it is easy to wonder whether God is real, whether Christianity actually ‘works,’ and whether life has any meaning at all.
4th – Irrational Worry – Some Christians doubt their faith because they doubt just about everything in life! Is this plane going to crash? Am I going to get fired from job? Did Jesus really rise from the dead? For those struggling with deep-seated anxiety, all these sorts of questions get jumbled together. These doubts aren’t so much intellectual, as emotional; and so, they can persist in spite of very good evidence.
4) Facing Our Doubts and Fears
Sitting back, hoping our doubts just go away, is not an option. Here are a few ways to proactively push back against them.
1st – Don’t Go It Alone – The number one rule for every scary movie – a rule that is often broken by the main character – is that you don’t wander off alone in the dark. On the contrary, you are safest when you are with others in the light. The same is true in the Christian life!
When facing doubts and fears, the last thing you want to do is isolate yourself and struggle alone. Sometimes we isolate because we don’t think others will understand, or we feel embarrassed. But we have to be honest about our struggles and bring them into the light. You need to be connected to a deep, strong group of believers who you can lean on and learn from as you walk through tough times. This is why being a member of a faithful church is so important.
2nd – Study Your Faith Deeply – Doing more study may be the last thing you want to hear, but if we are going to battle our doubts than we have to be committed to studying God’s Word. We need to regularly meditate on God’s Word as food for our soul. Further, we need to dive deeply into our Christian worldview so that we understand why we believe what we believe. Each of the causes of doubt mentioned above can at least in part be addressed through a deep study of knowing the goodness and sovereignty of God, the grace of the gospel, the wisdom of God’s laws, and the evidences for the faith.
Here’s the point: good theology matters! A believer with a solid theological foundation is able to handle difficult questions better than a person who has a shallow understanding of the Christian faith.
3rd – Get Wise Counsel – You need to lean on Christians who are wiser, older, and more mature. We are not the first Christians in the history of the church to wrestle with doubts. We need to learn from those who have gone before. Speak to your parents and pastor. They can help you or direct you to resources that can. Further, you can get wise input from a biblical counselor or from a Christian mentor.
4th – Doubt Your Doubts – When we doubt some truth of Christianity, we often don’t realize that we are doubting that truth because of some other belief we hold. So, when we find ourselves doubting, we can fight back by challenging the belief that replaces it.
5th – Grow from Your Doubts – While our doubts can seem like they’re destroying us, don’t forget that God may have other purposes for them (Rom 8:28). There’s a certain spiritual depth and strength that we will never reach without going through an intense season of struggle (1 Pet. 1:6-7; Jam. 1:2-4). When we push through such a season, we can find ourselves stronger on the other side.
Of course, in the middle of such doubts, it is not always easy to see what God’s ultimate purpose might be. One thing to remember is that God’s purposes are much broader than just ourselves (2 Cor. 1:3-4). For instances, it was during Martin Luther’s darkest season of doubting that he wrote his most famous hymn, “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God.” This hymn, born in a period of doubt and darkness, has strengthened millions of believers since.
While doubting can be painful, we must remember we are not alone, there are answers to our questions, and God has a good purpose for it all that will one day be revealed.
Surviving Religion 101 – Letters to a Christian Student on Keeping the Faith in College by Michael J. Kruger. Published by Crossway, Wheaton, Illinois, 2021. Softcover, 262 pages.