When you are a Christian experiencing doubt is a certainty, because Satan is roaring around like a lion seeking to destroy us from being where God wants us to be. Remember, Satan’s goal is to paralyze you and doubt is one of his favorite poisons for a Christian. The last thing he wants you to do is actively tell people that the bad things they have done, like telling a single lie, separate them from God because He is perfect, so they can’t go to Heaven, but only to Hell. The last thing Satan wants you to tell them is, God loves them so much that He came as Jesus to live a perfect life, so He could take all of their punishment, and die in their place, only to rise again from the dead. He for sure doesn't want you to say all anyone has to do is just believe God took all their sins away through Jesus, so they can go to Heaven (Eph 2:8-9, John 5:24).
Of course, the thought of this actually being true also creates doubt in Christians, like, “What type of monster would send people to the Hell forever?” “Why couldn’t God save everybody if He is so powerful?” “Why does Christianity have to be the only way?” “Why does God want to keep me from having a good time? There are quick answers to all of these. Are you ready?
God does not want anyone to go to Hell (2 Peter 3:9), He loves the whole world and wants everyone to go to Heaven (John 3:16). God is not a monster. What type of monster would die to save you from the bad things that you did that separate you from Him? He is the Savior from our sin (Romans 3:23). God gives everyone the ability to know what is right and wrong, if they keep making bad decisions, that gut check is less noticeable (Romans 1:20, Romans 1:24). If God made everyone go to Heaven without giving them a choice, then love could not exist. Think about it, if someone forced you to love them, is that really love? Of course not, love is a choice.
Christianity is the only way because it is the truth. Have you noticed that truth does not contradict itself? All the other religions say they are the only ones that are right, but they don’t have the evidence to back it up. Did you know that you could go to church for your entire life and not know how we got the Bible? This is a tragedy, because if people learned how we got the Bible, they would be like, “Case closed. There is no way anything else can be true.” So, let’s go into how we got the Bible, really quick, because it is so foundational.
The Bible was written down by 40 different authors, most of them never met each other, over a period of 1600 years, and it still tells the same story that lines up perfectly with archaeological data, history and psychology. Every other “Holy” book doesn’t match these same standards, and they teach that you have to do some type of work to earn forgiveness for the bad things you have done. You don’t even know if you have done enough until you die. But the Bible tells us, you can know if you are going to Heaven right now. Of course, you are on a website that will go into a whole lot more detail, but the point is, the Bible has to be true.
Ok, so this leaves us with the last question, “Why does God want to keep you from having a good time?” Catch this, God did not give us rules because He hates us, He gave us rules because He loves us and wants us to have the best time we can on earth. Think about this, would you want to put someone in charge of your bank account, when you know they don’t mind stealing? Or, would you want a known liar babysitting your children? The list goes on, and on. What God tells us not to do makes so much sense.
So why should we listen to God? Well, think of it this way. There is a miracle happening right now. As you are reading there are invisible sound waves vibrating onto your eardrum. On the other side of your eardrum, there are three little bones that line up and attach to your cochlea, which is a small snail shell looking structure that is filled with water and has thousands of hairs on it’s walls. As the water moves, these hairs act like piano keys and create electronic signals, so your brain can just begin to understand what I am saying right now. Do you see where this is going? It doesn’t make sense to think you have the authority to say what God can and cannot do, because you have no idea how your ear was created or how the parts run on their own. So of course, God knows what is best for us.
Is it ok to doubt? Yes, it is okay to doubt! Look at Hebrews 11, which is a famous Bible chapter that celebrates men and women of incredible faith. In this chapter, most of those mentioned that had incredible faith also suffered from doubt. Abraham doubted, Samson and Gideon doubted, so did Jacob and Isaac, and on and on we go. So, as a Christian you are definitely, 100%, going to experience moments of doubt!
Did you know, many Christians do not realize all you need is a mustard seed of faith, and Jesus says you then can move mountains (Matt. 17:20)? Jesus talked to a man with a mountain in His life that needed to be moved. Do you remember the story in the Bible where a father was pleading with Jesus to heal his son (Mark 9:24). Jesus said anything is possible for those who believe. The man cried out to Jesus, “I believe; help my unbelief!” His child was then healed.
Jesus didn’t refuse because the man wasn’t 100% certain. His core belief was enough! The man did act on his belief even though He battled with doubt. You can doubt God exists. You can doubt Jesus loves you. You can doubt your going to Heaven, but if you have that mustard seed, you are good to go. This is why, in so many Gospel passages, you see the word, “Believe,” that is not by accident. John 5:24 says: “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgement, but has passed out of death into life.” Believing that Jesus took your sins away is all you have to do. It's not by your work, it is always by His! That is why we worship Him as Lord and Savior!
So here are a few more questions for you, but this time you need to answer them. When you decided to give up on God, were you consistently praying, reading scripture and sharing your faith? During your time when you were close with God, and someone told you that Jesus was not real and didn’t love you, wouldn’t you look at the person like they were crazy? You just need to believe again, right now, and ask God to help you.
We love you, God loves you, and no matter what your list is, God will wash you clean again, just ask Him. Thank God for His Son that takes away the sins of the world! He did take all of your sin, and will continue to, and no amount of doubt will ever change that.
If this is not you, you were likely never a Christian to begin with. You already read the Gospel in the first couple paragraphs above, can you please believe right now? Also, there is so much on TrueLife.org to help you. Why don't you start with this video, click here.