“For what if some did not believe? shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect? God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified in thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art judged.”
Romans 3:3-4
What happens if you don’t believe in God?
In this country, you end up on the receiving end of a lot of abuse. According to a University of Minnesota study, atheists are America’s least trusted group. Atheists rank below Muslims, recent immigrants, homosexuals and other groups as “sharing their vision of American society.” Americans are also least willing to let their children marry atheists. One participant in the survey summarized it well when he said, “atheists are one of the last groups remaining that it’s still socially acceptable to hate.”
I saw this played out in the responses to an opinion piece published by a local atheist. All of the responses except one were negative. The only one that even hinted at coming to the defense of the original author, responded to one of the critics more directly than actually defending the original article.
Christians aren’t alone in their knee-jerk reactions to atheists. Muslims threatened violence last year when a Danish magazine published a series of editorial cartoons they found offensive. Yet it is this very reaction that supports the atheist claim that those who believe in God are deluded hypocrites.
I am concerned that many Christians appear to be lazy spiritual thinkers. Many prefer dogma and “like-minded” congregations to controversy. They seem more willing to accept direction and ignore contradiction rather than ask hard questions. The result is a world that divides very neatly into believers and non-believers. Non-believers are viewed as threats to harmony rather than opportunities to hear from a different point of view. Instead of curious and respectful dialogs, unproductive self-serving monologs are the norm.
That’s why we see published claims that try to blame everything from increased violence in schools, to hard times in the auto industry, to foreign policy failures on increased secularism. This is the same sort of sloppy thinking that Hitler took advantage of during the rise of the Third Reich. Yes, they claimed to be Christians too. Rather than atheists, however, they chose Jews as the scapegoat.
When you boil it all down, it ends up being a plea for simple solutions. The thought is, if everyone shared my beliefs, we would be a more spiritual and moral nation. The reality is that we wouldn’t be better. You don’t have to spend much time in history books to prove this. When we had state sponsored religions in the colonies, we legally persecuted Wiccans, Quakers, and Catholics. When only white men had the vote, we conducted a genocidal war against native Americans and created a set of laws which institutionalized slavery. When we all moved to the suburbs and built new schools for our kids, African Americans couldn’t go to those schools. Tell me again why returning to these times of shared values is a good thing?
The real strength of this country is that we DON’T all share the same beliefs and can still figure out how to work together. The real strength is that you don’t have to believe in God, be white, speak English, or live in the suburbs in order to be a good citizen or a good neighbor.
At the end of the day, it isn’t whether we have God on our money or prayer in our schools. The Nazi’s had “God with us” on their uniforms, for goodness sake. The contribution of Christians to the future success of this country will depend on having God in our hearts. If God is in your heart, you will strive to see others as God sees them, with infinite love and inexhaustible patience. He did give us the opportunity to choose because He wanted us to enter His embrace under our own free will. If we want others to respect our choices, we are obligated to respect theirs. Those that reject Him will learn soon enough whether or not they have made a wise choice. God doesn’t need our help sorting that out for Him.
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It is the duty of the Christian to stand with others to protect them and to surely repect them and there faith, all the while by preaching the Gosple of the Christ by ACTIONS ALONE.
We never are able to lead others to Christ, Thats the job of the Holy Spirit we are just the conduit.
Good post
Rick
Rick,
Thanks for the post and the encouragement.
Why do you think there is this great need to attack those that don’t share your beliefs?
Jeff
As a person who is struggling with their faith I would like to thank you for your blog. I get upset when I read about christianity that seems to be about hate or a vengeful God. I don’t want to think the God I believe in would send a hurricane that wipes out New Orleans because of America’s sins or rewards believers with cash and good living. I appreciate the history reminder that illustrates that the times we live in now are no different than the past. I would like to think that the strides we’ve made in race relation and in how we treat the Earth are more important to God than the fact that we pay tribute to him on our money.
I know there are many Christians who feel under attack by our culture, our government, the Devil, etc. But I went to church Sunday in total freedom and safety. No one tried to stop me. No one barred the doors or stood on the corner with menacing looks or tried to interrupt the service. No one ridiculed me. If I am completely free to worship the way I choose, how could I, in this country, not allow the same freedom to everyone else?
As secularism grows I think the Christian church in America has to accept that it has not yet offered a vision or a path that everyone wants to follow. It has not made a convincing enough case against death by abortion. When we see how the Amish reacted to the gunman in one of their schools the rest of us have to admit we do not even practice very well what we preach.
Deb and Kevin,
Thanks for the beautiful and heartfelt responses.
Our country is really unique in the world. The Pew Center for global research released a study (http://pewglobal.org/reports/display.php?ReportID=167) which proves a direct predictable correlation between per capita income and relgiousity. Not surprisingly, citizens of poor nations are much more religious than citizens of wealthy nations. The one exception is the United States. We are two to three times as religious (60%) as our economic peers. Only the poorest countries of Africa, Indonesia, and South American are more religious.
There is something special going on here, and I don’t think that it can be explained simply by heritage. It has a lot to do with the freedom that Deb talked about, but even that doesn’t fully explain why we don’t follow the pattern of every other free and wealthy nation.
The biggest threat to this nation of believers, in my opinion, is intolerance rather than apathy.
Jeff
I think that there has to be a happy medium. I believe that God works inside of everyone. So, I believe that it is possible to learn about God from people of other faiths or no faith at all. And I believe that it is important to respect others, regardless of belief.
But I also believe that it’s a bit disingenuous to just hold hands and say that everybody is right. There are very real and important differences among people of various faiths and perspectives. And I don’t necessarily believe that it is intolerance to recognize and maintain these differences.
Mike,
Thanks for your comment.
The whole concept of right is part of what gets in the way of this dialog. I shouldn’t have to be wrong for you to be right. We will all find out more about God soon enough.
My personal understanding is that eternal life IS the infinite process of knowing God and that EVERY individual perception of God reflects some aspect of who God is. So every faith tradition brings some unique insight about God to the table which every individual at some point or another is going to need to know in order to progress.
Perhaps another way to say this is that if you believe in one God, we all will ultimately converge in our understanding of who that one God is. During that process we will grow to appreciate every insight into God’s being.
That’s not to say that there aren’t important differences and that those differences don’t ultimately play themselves out in conflicts on the political stage. Resolving the conflict between Christian and Islamic fundamentalism is probably what historians will point to as the success or failure for this period of time.
Jeff
Regarding “right,” Mike is right when he says we can’t all hold hands and say everyone is right because the entire problem boils down to one thing….whether or not you believe the book you always quote in your blog. And, if you do, then how do you get around John 14:6 that quotes Jesus as saying, “No one comes to The Father except through Me.” And if He instructs us to “be my witnesses,” (as quoted in Acts 1:8) how can you assure someone else they are right if they DON’T believe Jesus is the way? My fear is that when the day that “it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment” (Hebrews 9:27) comes for me and I stand before the King of the Universe, I don’t think He will buy that I wanted to be tolerant and not offend anyone. I’ll take my chances with my belief that I am simply instructed to share the Gospel and then let others consider it and make up their own minds. Somehow I don’t have a doubt that it will fare much better than the “bow before my god or get your head cut off” concept.
Tom,
Thanks for joining in.
I’m happy to meet you where you stand.
Not particularly interested in tossing quotes back and forth, but here’s one to think about
“And they were offended in him. But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, save in his own country, and in his own house. And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.”
Matt 13:57-58
So even Jesus, the world’s greatest healer, required some consent from those he would have gladly healed.
God created us in His image and likeness a gave us the ability to choose because He wanted us to take this eternal journey back to Him of our own free will.
I believe what the Bible says about the Christ and God. The Christ is God’s idea come to man. To know God you have to experience and embrace the Christ. Whether that happens during this life or the next one isn’t really important in ther overall context of eternity. Those who do believe in God and the power of His Christ have that part of understanding God down.
The fact that you can experience that today is the remarkable gift that Jesus brought us. I respect your commitment to share that good news.
I’m still learning about Islam, so I’d rather not respond to your characterization of them as a “head chopping” religion. I do know a fair bit more about buddhism though. So that might work in this context.
Those who practice buddhism have a deep understanding of the the sanctity of all life. There are no buddhist wars. They also reject materialism and embrace spirituality as a fundamental requirement for growth in understanding. This is reflecting a much deeper understanding and commitment to God as the source of all peace than most Christians can claim. This from a group whose philosophy specifically excludes the worship of any particular God so that all who practice are free to develop their own understanding of who God is.
So when a buddhist enters God’s embrace, they may not know the Christ, but they may have led a more spiritual and peaceful life than many Christians. I can only image how joyful experiencing the Christ after a life dedicated to peaceful spirituality must be.
Who is right? As Buddha would say, I can’t answer that question for you.
Jeff
Hmmm, Re: your comment about “embracing Christ in this life or the next;” are you suggesting we have a second chance to accept Christ after we die? If so why would the Bible warn of judgement after we die? The way I read it your only chance to get to the Father is by believing in Christ BEFORE you die.
Regarding Buddhism, the Bible also warns that “good works” won’t get you to the Father. Also, “leading a more spiritual and peaceful life than many Christians” is, in my opinion, irrelevant. As I mentioned in my last post, the only way to the Father is through the Son. My opinion is that you can be the most peaceful and spiritual person in the world but won’t see the Father if you don’t accept and believe in the Son, that’s the prerequisite. I didn’t write it.
To me, it all comes down to whether or not you believe the Bible.
Don’t agree with you on most of your opinions, specifically politically, but I certainly appreciate your blog and visit regularly!
Tom,
I don’t expect everyone to agree with me, just be willing to discuss and honestly express their opinions. So you are always welcome.
The Bible makes every attempt to meet us where we are, just as it met the Jews 3000 years ago. They had to work through the concept of just one God before they could start to grasp the concept of a messiah. It took another 1000 years for just a small handful of Jews to be ready to deal with the concept that the Messiah was not going to be a political leader, but a spiritual savior. Why should that growth in understanding stop, just because the inspired authors are no longer around?
Now 2000 years later, we still don’t have a very good grasp of what eternal life means. All we know is that there appears to be an event that we call death, and for all but a handful of people that event appears inevitable and unavoidable.
So everything the Bible says about life after death is in the context of the ability of the pre-technological authors to convey the divine glimpse they receieved of what eternal life is.
When you consider that the new testament writers believed in a flat earth, there was no concept of infinity at least in the ways that we understand it now, and very little exposure to insights from other faiths – what you’re left with requires a lot of interpretation.
Then beyond that, you’ve got the fact that we aren’t reading the original translations. If you are reading the KJ version, for example, you are reading english words that had a very different meaning 400 years ago than they do today. So what was intended when it was written is not necessarily what you are reading today. That’s why I believe that the Bible is best read with the same receptivity to inspiration that lead the original authors to write it in the first place.
So, when the Bible talks about judgement, you put your own spin on it to say that this must mean that right after I die, God decides in one event whether I’m good or bad and I either get rewarded or punished. But isn’t it just as likely that in the concept of infinity, judgement is an ongoing process of learning where we each have an opportunity to embrace new ideas about ourselves and God and give up old ideas that no longer work for us. Each time we gain an insight and lose a bias, we are rewarded with a new understanding of how much God loves us. Each time we fail and insist on clinging to our old comfortable ways of looking at things, we suffer to the extent that we have to keep working at it. That could be judgement too, but in the concept of an eternal life, everyone is striving to better understand God. The greater the understanding, the greater the blessing and the greater the glory. It is the noble work of eternity to attempt to understand infinity.
But what do I know?
Jeff
Hello again; haven’t had time to get back with you. By the way, nice closing line; wish I’d have thought of that one.
One more thought….
You said, “So, when the Bible talks about judgment, you put your own spin on it to say that this must mean that right after I die, God decides in one event whether I’m good or bad and I either get rewarded or punished.” I admit to not being a very educated man but I don’t know how you could spin Gospel writer Luke’s account (23:43) of Jesus’ personal assurance to the repentant thief on the cross beside Him that “today you will be with me in paradise” any further. Even in the final moments before death the thief qualified himself for Paradise (what I’m assuming (or spinning) is Heaven or eternity with the Father) by the simple act of believing in Jesus. This was not God’s account – that might qualify considering that to Him “a day is like a thousand years” – but the account of Luke, a man like you and me who recorded the first of the thre most important days in history (to the Christian). Not a whole lot of turnaround time for “an ongoing process of learning where we each have an opportunity to embrace new ideas about ourselves and God and give up old ideas that no longer work for us.”
Tom,
Welcome back.
I love the story of the thieves because it is so rich with insight, love, and forgiveness. The one criminal reflected the limited understanding of the Jews at the time and said if you are the Son of God, show that in a physical way by getting us all out of this dangerous situation. In other words, demonstrate the same power that Moses, Joshua, and David did when they were in trouble. The other criminal defended Jesus by saying that the criminals earned this punishment, but Jesus was innocent. Then he said something that certainly was inspired and heartfelt given the circumstances. He said “Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.”
The criminal somehow understood something about Jesus that His own disciples hadn’t grasped yet. After Jesus death, the disciples mourned and went into hiding because they felt it was all over and feared they were going to be next. This criminal knew that even though he and Jesus were going to die, something profound was about to happen. The fulfillment of the Messiah’s promise that the Jews understood to be political was actually unfolding before his eyes. That fulfillment was proof that life is eternal and death has no power over it.
Now on to the whole question of “Today”.
The punctuation in the translation of this passage in the King James Bible “Verily I say unto thee, To-day shalt thou be with me in paradise.” affects the meaning of this passage and is not in the original text. A literal translation of the Greek text comes out more like this, “”truly to-you I-say today with-me you-will-be in the paradise.” So it is possible that Luke was describing Jesus confirming to the criminal what the criminal already suspected in his heart. The criminal’s world had changed “today” because, as the criminal suspected, there IS a life after death for everyone, even someone who hadn’t lived a very good life. Jesus wasn’t saying particularly that at the end of the this particular day, they were going to be together. He was saying something much more profound and universal. He was saying that this criminal, and the other also, and everyone else through the Christ will embrace their Creator in eternal life.
In other words, in my reading, the criminal was humbly acknowledging Jesus as the Messiah and asking, “I know you are going to heaven, but what’s going to happen to me?” Jesus lovingly responded, “Don’t worry, death isn’t the end for you either and I’ll be there to help you figure it out.”
This is also consistent with another Bible verse where Jesus says that there are many mansions in his Father’s house. He told his disciples that he was going to prepare one particular one for them, which certainly implies that there are others for those who didn’t share the same understanding of God that these people gained through faith and inspiration.
Again, this is just my own understanding from what I’ve read and heard in my own heart.
I do appreciate the opportunity to share these thoughts with you.
Jeff