Doubt, often regarded as the evil twin brother of faith, is a condition that frequently casts a long shadow over the believer’s life. Many grow up in the Church with the idea that “good Christians never doubt,” all the while struggling under the weight of crippling doubt themselves.

It is far too ordinary for the young Christian to hide their doubts, never wanting to raise their hand in the Sunday-school classroom for fear of looking foolish at best or being judged as one of little faith at worst. So, doubts are suppressed, buried deep within the psyche. Eventually, the young Christian finds themself stepping outside of their Christian bubble and into a secular environment where the dam of unanswered questions finally bursts, unable to withstand the pressures of postmodern and post-Christian culture.

For the Christian struggling with doubt, following Jesus can feel like reaching for the light while you sink into the depths of the ocean.

I would assert that this sad reality does not have to be the fate of our youth. Instead, we may turn to the Scriptures to see the straightforward reality that doubt need not be the end of robust faith, but rather, the beginning!

Throughout the pages of the Bible, we repeatedly see that God does not reject those who doubt; rather, He works in and through them despite their doubts.

Character Study: Doubting Thomas

Now there is no better character with which we could start our examination of this theme than the disciple known to many as “doubting Thomas.” Note that this nickname was not given to him by his mentor, Jesus, but rather by Christians in modernity. They identify him by his doubt, but the question we must ask is, “How does the Lord Jesus identify him?” and even further, “How does Jesus respond to those who doubt?”

The answer is found in the Gospel accounts. In the latter half of John chapter twenty, we find Thomas struggling with his doubts and discouragements. Earlier in the chapter, we observe the risen Jesus appearing to Mary Magdalene and ten of the remaining eleven disciples.

Thomas, however, is not present for these miraculous encounters. When the others joyfully tell him Jesus is alive, Thomas has a hard time believing this, having just witnessed his lord and master beaten and crucified on a Roman cross. Thomas responds to the others with a skepticism born out of deep grief, saying, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” (John 20:25).

A week later, Jesus directly responds to Thomas’ doubt. He appears before Thomas, saying, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”

It could be easy for us to focus merely on Jesus’ words at the end of the verse, “stop doubting and believe,” yet we must remember not to divorce the words of Christ from the actions of Christ. The passage’s focus is not on a God demanding His follower stop doubting. It is on a God willing to reveal Himself to a struggling doubter experiencing the dark night of the soul.

Philosopher Dallas Willard notes:

“Let’s remember that Jesus didn’t leave Thomas to suffer without the blessing of faith and confidence; he gave him the evidence he required. That is typical of Jesus’s approach to doubt; he responded to honest doubters in the way he knew best, the way that would help them to move from doubt to knowledge.”

In His actions, Jesus reveals a heart full of love for “doubting Thomas.” He does not storm into the room, demanding Thomas fall to his knees and repent from his foolishness. Instead, He shows up with evidence and relational experience. The result is Thomas declaring, “My Lord, and my God!” (John 20:28).

Pastor David D. Flowers writes:

“Jesus’ willingness to accommodate Thomas’ unbelief is a reminder that God can handle our doubt. And that the rationalist doesn’t need to see, touch, or run a lab test in order to believe in the resurrected Christ. Jesus told him, “You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who believe without seeing me” (Jn 20:29) This is not a plea to accept what goes against reason, but it is an invitation to discover a faith that goes beyond it. The example of Thomas is for the stubborn skeptic in us all.”

The Hall of Faith / The Hall of Doubt

We see in this story the willingness of Jesus to tear down relational walls between His followers and Himself, to bridge the gap between doubt and knowing. This theme is not unique to the New Testament.

Consider the famous “hall of faith” in Hebrews chapter eleven. Many revered characters are listed in this passage specifically for their faith. For example, we are told that by faith Noah built an ark, Abraham traveled to a distant land, Sarah had a son in old age, Moses left a life of royalty to lead God’s people to freedom, and Samson defeated the Philistines.

However, carefully examining the Hebrew Scriptures will reveal a dark mirror in the hall of faith. Nearly every character praised for their faith in Hebrews eleven also has moments of doubt recorded in Scripture.

By doubt, Noah becomes drunk and brings sin into his family. Abraham sleeps with a servant girl because he does not trust God to allow his aging wife to get pregnant. Sarah laughs when God says she will bear a child. Moses murders an Egyptian man and flees into the desert. Samson sacrifices his calling and strength for frivolous sex.

Despite all these moments of doubt, these flawed characters I have listed are celebrated for their faith. This reveals a core component of God’s heart: He is a God who can put up with our doubts. He is more than willing to work in and through us despite our tendency to doubt. He is not looking for perfect faith. Rather, He is looking for a willingness to believe, even if imperfectly. He desires to hear us say, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!” (Mark 9:24).

In his analysis of the thinking of Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard, philosophy professor Donald Palmer writes:

“Kierkegaard’s argument runs something like this: The negative is present in all consciousness. Doubt accentuates the negative, Belief chooses to cancel the negative. Every mental act is composed of doubt and belief, but it is belief that is the positive, it is belief that sustains thought and holds the world together.”

Indeed, every moment the Christian makes is composed of either doubt or belief. One may be a believer sitting in the Sunday sermon but turn into a doubter and functional atheist the moment he pulls up the balance on his bank account. Nevertheless, Jesus seems to invite us into each moment with the reassurance that He is there, walking with us through these moments of doubt.

Character Study: Peter

Another fantastic character study is the Apostle Peter. Interestingly, we give the title “the doubter” to Thomas, yet it is Peter who has not one but two moments of severe doubt recorded in the New Testament. At the sham trial of Jesus, Peter doubts the Lord’s ability to keep him safe, so when others nearby ask if he is a disciple of Christ, he denies three times that he even knows Jesus at all (Luke 22:54-62).

One of Peter’s greatest moments of faith is immediately followed by one of his greatest moments of doubt. By faith, he literally walks on water, stepping out of the boat to meet Jesus among the waves. By doubt, Peter sinks, noticing the severity of the storm and doubting the power of Christ to keep him afloat.

Matthew writes:

Jesus immediately reached out His hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” (Matthew 14:32).

Again, we must not divorce Jesus’ words from His actions. It was the power of Christ that allowed Peter to walk on water. It was the love of Christ that pulled him up when he sank. In Peter’s most significant moments of faith and doubt, the constant factor was Jesus being present with him. He does not allow Peter to sink into his doubts but instead pulls him upward and onward.

We see this further when at the end of John’s Gospel, Jesus restores Peter to ministry with a merciful breakfast on the beach. This posture towards doubters goes even beyond Thomas and Peter.

In a sermon on doubt, Pastor Evan Wickham says this:

“In Matthew 28:17 we see the reaction of his disciples “when they saw him, they worshiped him, but some doubted.” The resurrected Jesus is now physically standing before them and some are still in doubt! That is fascinating to me. It gets even better… in his very next statement, Jesus still commissions them!

To believers and doubters alike, he says, “go and make disciples.” On that Hilltop, alongside the risen Jesus, the believers and the doubters both belonged. This story provokes us to open up to the best news in the universe: we are all invited to belong to something bigger and more beautiful than we dare to dream.”

Conclusion

I genuinely believe that if we are to help the future generations of Christians, we must teach them not to suppress doubt but embrace it as an utterly regular part of the faith life and journey. A doubt held under the lordship of Christ is an invitation not to deconstruct one’s faith but to journey into deeper knowing as we “ask, seek, and knock.”

One can hold a theological doubt in tension with trusting that God is good and that in time, whether directly through His Spirit or the mentorship of Spirit-filled Christians, He will meet us right where we are at to “show us the holes in His hands.”

Whether we find ourselves walking on water or sinking into the waves of doubt, we can trust He is present, patient, and loving, hand outstretched, willing to pull us deeper into faith, and willing to put up with our doubts every step of the way.

It is when we understand and fully embrace this truth that I believe we can help Christians, both young and old, move beyond the shadow of a doubt.

If you enjoyed this article, Aaron has a sermon the article was based off of. Feel free to listen and share it with anyone you know who is struggling with doubt!

Back in June, I wrote an article on “Why Jordan Peterson Matters,” and why Christians should take notice. My article got pushback from some Christians who — though I’m not sure they thoroughly read it — incredulously questioned why CalvaryChapel.com would run an article on Peterson, or why a pastor (me) would encourage people to listen to or follow such an individual. If one read the article, they would know I didn’t do that. That said, the conversations and feedback I received, and something I’ve heard Peterson say several times, got me thinking. I hope it might do the same for you as well.

In a recent interview on the PBS show “Firing Line with Margaret Hoover,” Peterson was asked a question, the gist of which he’s received many times before.

“I want to ask you about your personal faith. Christians who watch you have listened closely, over the last two years, about whether you self-identify as a Christian or not. … Why not take on this question of the existence of God?”

That is precisely the question that many Christians (and atheists for that matter) would like Peterson to give a concrete answer to. But his response, though not as clear-cut as they’d like, has been consistent for a very long time. And in the “Firing Line” interview, he gave a slightly amplified version.

“It isn’t obvious what belief means. People think that what they believe is what they say they believe. I don’t believe that. I believe that what people believe is what they act out. And so I said, ‘I act as if God exists.’ That’s a sufficient statement as far as I’m concerned. You know, what’s the old saying? ‘By their fruits, ye shall know them.’ Same idea, right? It’s a matter of action and a matter of commitment. It’s not a matter of me parading out my explicit statements about a metaphysical reality that’s virtually impossible to comprehend. You risk when you reduce, and I’m not willing to do that. And I’m not interested in providing people with easy answers.” (emphasis mine)

Don’t Reduce It to a Sound Bite

Immediately before giving that answer, Jordan said, “It’s not something to reduce to a sound bite, fundamentally.” I think there is a lot of truth to that. But that’s exactly what we often desire. We want the simple sound bite. The 240 character or less, tweetable proposition. Whether you’re a Christian or not, we like everything boiled down to broth, when in reality, these meaty issues require something far more substantial.

Unfortunately, our culture has been continuously digesting milk and not solid food for several generations. That is true among Christians, just as it is outside the church. In his 1985 book, Amusing Ourselves To Death, Neil Postman concluded that this was a product of broadcast television. It’s an issue that a preacher in the 1960s hit on when he said:

“And so it wasn’t long until it got to our generation where the whole plan of salvation was to give intellectual assent to a few statements of doctrine, and a person was considered a Christian because he could say, ‘uh-huh’ at four or five places that he was asked to. And if he knew where to say ‘uh-huh’ someone would pat him on the back, shake his hand, smile broadly and say, ‘Brother, you are saved.'”
— Paris Reidhead, Ten Shekels and a Shirt

Have we reduced it all that much? Thankfully, I’m finding that many of the people I interact with want more than mere one-liner propositional platitudes. I’m hopeful they’re not outliers.

More Than Mental Assent

Like it or not, Jordan Peterson’s answer is quite good: “I act as if God exists.” I took note of it the first time I heard him say it, and it has been stuck in my mind ever since.

As the Apostle Paul was testifying before Governor Felix in Acts 24, he said, “I have hope in God, which they themselves also accept, that there will be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and the unjust. This being so, I myself always strive to have a conscience without offense toward God and men.” Paul is effectively saying, “I act as if God exists.” He had hope in God, and in His promised resurrection, which caused Paul to live differently both before God (in whom he trusted) and man. Paul’s testimony is an echo of what James writes in his New Testament Letter.

“But someone will say, ‘You have faith, and I have works.’ Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect?” (James 2:18-22).

It is not enough merely to say “uh-huh” to the question, “Do you believe in God?” Belief cannot be a casual mental assent. It must become a conviction, resulting in action. Faith, if it has not works, is dead.

Actions Prove Our True Faith

On a few occasions, I’ve met with “believers” that are actively living in an adulterous relationship. They say they believe in God, but they act as if He were not there. The same is true for the Christian who perpetually looks at pornography. Or cheats on their taxes. Or lies to their spouse. Or lives a prayerless, thankless, anxious, hopeless life. It would be far better for one to act as if God exists than to simply say that they believe in His existence. Or better yet, say that you believe He exists, and let your actions say it too. Let’s not forget, it was Jesus who said, “Why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say?” Or the most frightening of Christ’s sayings: “Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'”

The devastating reality is that many professing believers are, unintentionally, practical atheists. Such practical atheism is one of the realities that make many atheists all-the-more steadfast in their unbelief. It strengthens their unbelief when you say you believe in God and live with little or no regard for His command or glory.

It is because of this that over the last seven to 10 years, I’ve stopped asking people to “believe in Jesus,” but instead to “trust in Him.” That may seem like nuanced semantics to you, I assure you, it’s not. The meaning and value of the word “belief” has diminished in our modern vernacular. “Belief” seems now to connote something of a loose, intellectual acknowledgment of an idea. But “trust” implies a certitude of confidence and conviction, which compels dependence, hope and expectation. When I ask someone to trust in Christ, I’m asking them to entrust themselves to Him and to act in accordance with His resurrected existence.

The above original image is sourced to Christian Post.

In February 2017, an interviewer on Irish television asked Stephen Fry, “You walk up to the Pearly Gates and you are confronted by God. What would Stephen Fry say to Him, Her, or It?” Mr. Fry responded, “I think I’d say, ‘Bone cancer in children? What’s that about? How dare You? How dare You create such a world in which there is such misery that is not our fault? It’s not right. It’s utterly, utterly evil. Why should I respect a capricious, mean-minded, stupid God who creates a world that is so full of injustice and pain? Because the God who created the universe, if it was created by God, is quite clearly a maniac, utter maniac, totally selfish.”

Mr. Fry allows that God created the universe.

Does he really believe this? He hints that it may not be so. If there is no God, then for Mr. Fry to severely criticize and blame a non-existent being is a waste of time. We appeared out of nothing, hence there is no one to blame with wrongdoing. That’s the moral conclusion of evolution: There is no moral standard outside of what is to appeal to. What is, is right, simply because it is. Mr. Fry is wrong to waste hostility on nothing.
But Mr. Fry is morally outraged by God and blames Him for disease, suffering and death. Since he allows that God created the world and blames Him for what is wrong, this is why Mr. Fry is wrong.

If you allow that the universe was created by God, then you must admit that He made human beings.

You must admit that the first man and woman disobeyed God and incurred the penalty. God said they would die if they disobeyed Him. Since they did disobey of their own free will, Mr. Fry is wrong to blame God.

Should God have made robots who could not disobey? Then you can’t know the possibility of love, because for love to have meaning, there must be choice. God gives everyone a real choice.

Should God have said, “You chose wrong, therefore I am nullifying your choice.”? That removes freedom. We’re back to being robots. Where Mr. Fry is most wrong is his position that he knows better than God. Does he really know everything? Is he eternal? Is he perfect?
Before Mr. Fry appeals to a universal moral standard, he had better realize that a universal, moral standard applies to him as well. Does Mr. Fry act with complete moral purity? Does he steal? Does he tell lies? Does he love his fellow man in tangible, actual ways? Does he think about anyone other than himself? Has he caused hurt in others merely because he was acting in self-interest? Every person knows that they do immoral things. God says every man sinned and falls short of His glory. For Mr. Fry to know what is right but not apply it to himself is to know the truth but suppress it in unrighteousness. “It’s okay for me to do it, but it is wrong for everybody else.” This is wrong.

Mr. Fry can criticize God for bone cancer in children, but he himself is powerless to do anything productive to heal it.

Unlike Mr. Fry, God has done something about bone cancer in children. He sent His only Son to take the consequences of sin upon Himself, so that anyone who comes to Jesus Christ and asks can receive eternal life, forgiveness of sins and reconciliation with God. This offer even applies to Mr. Fry. God forgives those who hate Him without a cause if they come to Him through Jesus Christ. Jesus, who is the Son of God, denied Himself to save people who are far below Him. It is worthy to think of the suffering of others and relieve their suffering. Mr. Fry disregards this amazing compassion and self-denial. It is wrong to ignore Jesus Christ.

Mr. Fry does not offer any options for what would have been a better way. He is morally outraged but is content to severely criticize from his high, moral throne. But this is wrong. If a terrorist bombs a building built by an architect, do you say the architect doesn’t exist; and then blame the architect for the ruined building? But that is what he is doing.
If God doesn’t exist, Stephen Fry is wrong. If God exists, Stephen Fry is wrong.

I love the way Jesus used questions:

But who do you say that I am? (Luke 9:20)
Do you believe this? (John 11:26)
Do you not yet understand? (Mark 8:21)

When I was young, I’m certain I asked many questions. Children simply do. We are innately born seekers, longing to grasp what we do not yet understand.

Somewhere along the way, I stopped asking some of the good and necessary questions. I became so convinced I was right and bold in my “right thinking” that I lost patience with wandering thoughts.

I have been rediscovering the importance of asking the right questions.

While sharing dinner with friends, I flipped through one of their books and found this one: “When we say Jesus ‘paid the price’ for our sins, who did He pay it to? God? Satan? Someone or something else?”

I was stumped. Here is a phrase I have spoken, sung, shared, and used. At 32 years old, for the very first time I was asking myself: What in the world does it mean?

Sidebar: This is a legitimate and important question. I’m reading and exploring it, and the implications are massive. If you’d like to discuss it further, please contact me, and I will send you some of the books I’m now reading on the topic.

In exploring this question, I’ve discovered more of the grace and holiness of God. I’m learning more about His holy wrath, more about His healing love, more about the eternal nature of a God who, “In Christ was reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation” (2 Corinthians 5:19).

My personal walk with Christ will be richer for wrestling through this question. My proclamation of the Gospel will be more accurate because of the research it requires. My awe at the character of my God is deepened because of the right questions.

Equally, I sat earlier this week with a pastor in London I love and respect. He kindly said to me (about another issue):

“But Sarah, that’s the wrong question.”

I received it. As I reflected on that statement, it created a clear division between the kinds of questions we ask.

There are the good, honest, Christ-centered questions that draw us more into His Scriptures and presence.

Too often, I am guilty of asking the critical, cutting “prove me right” kind of questions. No one wins with these. Even if I do prove myself right, I’ve cut and damaged in the process. Many authors, speakers, and individuals are wrestling with hard questions, which is important. But I find too often, the kindness and redemptive grace of God are missing in these discussions.

I am the first to say that I have been guilty of the same. As I walk daily in a country that is far from God and with a culture that sees no need for His presence, I pray that the questions I ask would reveal only the beauty of His love. I pray that I would be faithful in asking the questions that lead to Christ and build up my brothers and sisters. Those are the ones worth asking, all eternity long.

For, “Have we not all one Father? Has not one God created us? Why then are we faithless to one another, profaning the covenant to our fathers?”-Malachi 2:10

I listen to podcasts. It’s a great way to maximize my time while doing other things like driving, working-out, and cleaning around the house.

While on a run recently, I was listening to the TED Talks podcast titled Believers and Doubters. It was supposed to be an intellectual discussion on the nature of belief and faith. One of the people interviewed was an atheist. I was provoked by something she said. One of the key components in the “epiphany,” that led to her unbelief, came about when she pondered why God is so “needy.” She told the interviewer, “Why would God care if people believed in Him or not? That was one of the many things I found so shocking reading the Bible, is first of all, how insecure God is. I mean God is so insecure He needs everyone to say, ‘You’re the Number One, and You’re the Number One over all the other gods and You’re the Top God.’ And it’s like—the most insecure character.”

I wonder where this woman ever got the idea, from reading the Bible, that God is “needy” or that He’s insecure and seeks to compensate for His low self-esteem by having people honor Him; because, that’s nowhere to be found in THE Bible. Methinks she conflates what she assumes God is like and what reality is like.

God wants us to believe in Him and translate that belief into practical loving, because He loves us and wants what’s best for us.

While God isn’t in the least needy, as this particular atheist states it, He does indeed care if people believe in Him; but not for HIS sake. He cares for theirs. What a person believes about God is THE most important thing about them; because, it is the bedrock of all other thinking and living. God wants us to believe in Him and translate that belief into practical loving, because He loves us and wants what’s best for us. Since He created us for His purposes and pleasure, life simply won’t work as it ought apart from our whole-hearted acquiescence to His will.

It’s long been satan’s (I refuse to capitalize his moniker) strategy to cast God’s will as onerous and hard; a burden to be endured. He insinuates that God’s holding out on us; that the “good life” awaits just on the other side of our decision to go our own way. Thus, telling Eve fulfillment and achieving her potential lay in doing what God warned not to. But it’s precisely BECAUSE God loves us that He tells us to do one thing, while not doing another. His commands aren’t aimed at diminishing life; they all aim at allowing us to flourish.

Jesus said, “I have come that you may have life, and that you may have it more abundantly.” However much life Jesus has brought us, there’s MORE, and Jesus came so that more would be appropriated by us. God wants us to flourish! And He wants it because He loves us and wants the best for us. But God doesn’t NEED us. Rather, we need Him.