thoughts on doubt

A pastor I respected while in seminary once said, “you’ve never truly believed until you have truly doubted.” At the time, I thought this was decent advice. Now, almost ten years later, I realize that this may not be good advice. What place does doubt have in Christianity or should it have a place at all? Doug Kelly, in his Systematic Theology book, describes the western rejection of God’s testimony of Himself in creation and conscience.  Doubt, Kelly explains, is a rejection of God’s testimony. On page 251 Kelly quotes T.F. Torrance, “Doubt rests upon a form of self-certainty” and “There is always a deep-seated element of false subjectivity in doubt”. This chapter helped me put together a string of thoughts on the subject.

 Ultimately doubt and skepticism hold self as their authority and not scripture. God’s word tells us in James 1:6, “But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.” One who treats scripture as a skeptic has no foundation and will be tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine. The one who holds the word of God as ultimate authority for faith and practice will stand on a secure foundation. We cannot trust our fallen intellect. Instead we must believe that we might truly know.  

colossians continued

Thursday night we continued our study through the book of Colossians. The Hymn of Christ, Colossians 1:15-20, was our particular passage of study and many commentators believe this was written by Paul to combat an early form of Gnosticism. This heresy denied the deity of Christ, but Paul uses this hymn to declare otherwise. 

This led us to discuss how heresies today have risen because of a misunderstanding of the true nature of Christ. Much of the misunderstanding occurs when humans think that words, which describe finite beings, also place the same limitations on an infinite being like God. For instance, when Paul says that Christ is the “firstborn of all creation” in Colossians 1:15 does he means that Christ cannot be God because he had a beginning? From the context of this passage we must understand that Paul’s meaning of firstborn is prominence and not physical birth. We also discussed the fact that Jesus being God also makes Him Lord, Creator and Sustainer. If this is true, it should give us hope for everyday living. When things do not go as planned do we remember that Jesus is creator and sustainer?  

Please join us as we study and journey together.

colossians

Last night we started our study in the book of Colossians. We centered discussion around verse four which speaks of genuine or true faith. Paul, the writer of Colossians, was thankful for the genuine faith that he heard of among the church in Colossea. How do we know their faith was genuine? Because love was the fruit of their faith. This can only be evidence of a supernatural work of the Spirit. How does this "genuine love" look? Philippians chapter 2 instructs us to look out for the needs of others, considering them as more important than ourselves. This is the difference between a Christ-centered love and a world-centered love. Are we doing good to others for our own gain? Is your faith genuine?

talking about the church

       Why is the Church necessary? This is the question that we pondered Thursday night at our College Bible study. The Church is necessary because it has been appointed by God to lead those outside the covenant into a right knowledge of God and His truth. However, our present culture, which has been influenced by the Enlightenment and Evolution, teaches that truth is something apart from God and through the unaided mind man can somehow determine who God is and what he requires. This is not a biblical view of man. Doug Kelly in his Systematic Theology rightly comments that, “those who seek to know God and his truth outside Israel and the Church are always doomed to failure.” God and his truth have always been revealed within a believing community as Jesus’ high priestly prayer demonstrates, “Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth. I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” May this truth exhort us to be more evangelistic. Since the church, as the Westminster Confession of faith says, is “God’s ordinary means of salvation,” we as members of that body must see the absolute necessity in carrying the knowledge of God and his truth to the lost. 

welcome

Last night’s study was very beneficial in aiding our understanding of Sanctification. "Sanctification" being the work of God’s free grace that renews the whole man after his image and enables him to die unto sin and live unto righteousness more and more each day. We discussed questions about Sanctification like “are there two types of Christians… those who are spiritual and those who are not?” We also discussed the theology behind a “let go and let God” mentality. There are two errors we have to avoid: (1) That we let go and let God. By “letting go” we are releasing ourselves from “working out our salvation with fear and trembling.” (2) The opinion that God’s favor can be earned by human works. To have a healthy balance we must remember that God is doing the work in us. However, we cannot forget our calling to mortify the deeds of the flesh, die to sin, and live in loving obedience unto God. Sanctification should drive us to humility rather than haughtiness. “Be killing sin or it will be killing you.” –John Owen

Looking forward to many, many more Thursday nights with the college students of this community.