When you aren’t sure what you believe

One of my neighbors has a sign in their yard that is creating discussion among those of us who regularly walk past it. The sign represents what most of our culture now believes. Interestingly, it represents what a LOT of people in our churches also believe. 

It can be a frustration for some of us who teach biblical truth, which is “ancient” thinking. I spent some time thinking about the more current “belief” statements listed on the sign. Why are so many Christians these days struggling to fully believe the word of God? Why are so many doubting Scripture in light of popular beliefs? 

Are you sure you believe everything the Bible says is still true today?

R.C. Sproul was an American preacher who passed away in 2017. He was speaking about the struggles people have with their faith when he said, “The issue of faith is not so much whether we believe in God, but whether we believe the God we believe in.”

If you aren’t sure what you believe, consider asking yourself if you believe what your God has said. Do you still believe the Bible is pure truth? 

What did the neighborhood sign say?

The neighborhood sign identifies what most people believe in our country. The sign reflects the beliefs of the vast majority of those under forty. The sign reads:

WE BELIEVE:

BLACK LIVES MATTER

NO HUMAN IS ILLEGAL

LOVE IS LOVE

WOMEN’S RIGHTS ARE HUMAN RIGHTS

SCIENCE IS REAL

WATER IS LIFE

INJUSTICE ANYWHERE IS A THREAT TO JUSTICE EVERYWHERE

 

Every one of those beliefs sounds like something all people should believe. And that is the problem.

Why should anyone, especially a Christian, take issue with a sign like that? 

I thought a lot about that as I walked. The problem with signs like these is not that they speak lies. Instead, these signs speak only partial truth, usually for a political purpose. The danger of statements like these is they only reveal one layer of thinking. Partial truth is truth minus the consequences. 

What should Christians believe?

EVERY LIFE MATTERS TO GOD.  

John 3:16 begins with the words “For God so loved the world.” Every life matters to God, but in the same breath we must say, “Not every life is acceptable to God.” God gave his Son for everyone, but only some give their lives back to God. 

ALL HUMANS BREAK LAWS BY MAKING ILLEGAL CHOICES. 

Romans 3:23 is clear truth: “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Another great truth of Scripture is that human beings needed laws and ultimately needed a Savior because they couldn’t keep the laws that were given. 

GOD IS LOVE (1 John 4:8). 

God’s love is the only perfect love. Christians should believe that love is defined accurately by God because his character is love. If God’s laws label certain expressions of human love or lust as wrong, then it is the humans and their emotions that are wrong. 

WOMEN’S RIGHTS ARE HUMAN RIGHTS, BUT WOMEN DON’T HAVE THE RIGHT TO DO WRONG JUST BECAUSE IT’S THEIR PREFERENCE. 

Politically, this belief statement is a contradiction of the first. Do people really believe that every life matters? Do some lives matter more than others? God loves the world and all of us have rights, including the right to choose wrong. 

SCIENCE IS REAL IF THOSE WHO DEAL WITH CREATION ACKNOWLEDGE THE CREATOR. 

“In the beginning God . . . .” Nothing existed apart from what God created. Nothing exists today that God has not allowed. This world had a beginning and will have an end because God has ordained that. Science is a study of the creation but will never fully comprehend or explain the Creator. 

WATER IS ESSENTIAL TO HUMAN LIFE, BUT JESUS IS ESSENTIAL TO ETERNAL LIFE. 

He told the woman at the well, “But whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life” (John 4:14). 

INJUSTICE IS A THREAT. SO IS PARTIAL TRUTH. 

Our culture feels entitled to live according to personal values and beliefs, but our evening news is a good indicator of why people need higher standards than human standards. We all know John 3:16, but John 3:17 is equally important. This world will never be just; that’s why God sent his Son (John 3:16). Verse 17 says, “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.”

How can Christians bring unity to our divided culture?

Christians, myself included, need to focus on John 3:17 with an enormous sense of humility. If Jesus didn’t come to condemn the world, we shouldn’t condemn the world either. There was a lot of “condemnation” of that rainbow-colored “belief” sign in our neighbor’s yard. Instead, maybe we should be looking at the common ground. 

Almost all people want our culture to feel kinder, more compassionate, fairer, more educated, more understanding, and a LOT LESS divided. People want to feel safe and want their children to be safe at school. Almost all people are looking for more happiness, joy, and peace with one another.  

Most people would like the values of Christianity, even if they don’t acknowledge them as the values of Christ. Christians are the minority opinion now, but we have a lot in common with most people. Let’s start there and earn the privilege to invite them toward God’s standards of truth. Common ground is a good beginning. So often, Jesus started there. 

John Henry Newman spoke words of wisdom saying, “We can believe what we choose. We are answerable for what we choose to believe.” R. C. Sproul’s words are worth considering again: “The issue of faith is not so much whether we believe in God, but whether we believe the God we believe in.” 

When you aren’t sure what you believe, believe the God you believe in. He is sovereign because he is perfect. God isn’t as trendy right now as we would wish, but his ancient truth is also eternal. Trust that God’s word is full truth and provides the additional layer of consequence to the partial truth our culture is preaching.

I’ve often said, “If it isn’t fully true, it can’t be of God.” 

We know what to believe when we know Whom to believe.

Bible Hacks

It’s funny how words can evolve to take on different meanings. The word hack used to describe the sound of a person’s cough. Now we most often use the word to describe an idea that makes our life easier.

A lot of words have evolved and changed over time, and there will never be an end to new ideas. Maybe that is the most remarkable thing about the Bible. 

The Bible we study today contains the exact same Scripture that every other generation has studied. The prophet Isaiah lived in the eighth century BC and wrote, “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever” (Isaiah 40:8). Thousands of years have proven the truth of his statement. God’s unchanging word still stands. 

So how can I make studying the Bible, God’s forever truth, a bit easier? 

Here are a few Bible “hacks” I have used over the years. 

A few Bible hacks 

How to search your Bible easily

Take your Bible and divide the pages of Scripture in half. You should find yourself in Psalms or Proverbs. The first half of the pages will be the Old Testament history. The middle of the Bible is wisdom literature. 

Next, you can divide the back half of the pages into two equal sections. The first half contains the prophets and the back half will be the New Testament. (Hint: If you have a study Bible, you will have to adjust for the study pages at the back, but, generally speaking, this works.)

How to choose the best study Bible

Everyone needs a study Bible, but which study Bible version is best? 

Study from a version that has the study helps authored by a long list of scholars. No one person can know enough to be an expert in every book. Choose a version that has invited the best scholar(s) for each book to author the notes. Those notes will be less denominational and more focused on the original translation of the original manuscripts. 

Scripture will always mean what it has always meant. Buy the version that understands that perspective is the accurate goal for study.

How to believe the Bible 

The Bible makes many promises but many more “probably statements.”  

People often read a psalm or proverb as a promise, then feel let down when the verse seems untrue in their circumstances. Psalms and Proverbs are wisdom literature. Most of those Scriptures were written to remind us of what God is able to do, not what God has promised to do. 

I often use Proverbs 22:6 to illustrate this point: “Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.” That verse cannot be a promise because we know God created every child with a free will. Therefore, it is a “probably” verse because most kids who are raised to know and love God usually find their way back to the faith, even if they choose to stray.

How to know the Bible 

Google is great, but Psalm 119:11 is better: “I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.” 

One of the jobs of the Holy Spirit is to remind us of what God would say now because it is what God has already said. In our Google world, it seems easier to remember our phones than remember a verse of Scripture. But, we will make fewer mistakes if we store up what we need to remember. 

The best teachers and counselors will rarely pause mid-sentence to say, “Let me check Google and I’ll get back to you.”

How to live the Bible

The best hack I can suggest is to give up the notion that ease is our goal. 

There is no such hack. The easiest way to live out our faith is to be absolutely convinced that it isn’t easy

Never underestimate the value of knowing how much you need God’s help to live his ways. He knew it was difficult. That’s why God gave us his Holy Spirit. The best way to live a biblical lifestyle is to “keep in step” with God’s Spirit (Galatians 5:25). 

Suggested Bible resources

After thirty-plus years of ministry, I’ve discovered a few helps that I’m happy to share. There is an abundance of information, but I can help you wade through those waters. These are a few of my favorite Bible helps: 

Favorite study Bibles

I recommend the NIV Study Bible and the ESV Study Bible. Both have used great scholarship for the notes. That said, only the Scripture is the perfect word of God. The notes will always have a few imperfections.

Favorite shortcut  

I like to use a Bible promise book to search for a good passage about a subject. If I have to teach a class, speak to a group, or counsel a friend, a Bible promise book is a great way to begin. 

I look up a topic, then I often find a verse that leads me to a passage. I can then teach the verse in its context. Because what the verse meant is what it still means today.

Favorite Bible websites

I like BibleHub.com if I want to read a verse from several different versions. 

I like OpenBible.info if I want to see several verses from Scripture on a particular subject. 

I like BibleGateway.com for advanced study of a passage. 

Their commentary help is called BibleGatewayPlus and will cost you a few dollars each month, but it is handy and reliable help if you are a teacher or person who wants to dig a little deeper using a website. 

And although it might sound self-serving, you should know that those of us who write for Denison Ministries have a strict commitment to biblical accuracy.

Only God’s word is perfection, but a lot of dedicated Christians have worked hard to make it easier for us to know and live a life that God is able to direct and bless. I’m grateful for the countless teachers I have had throughout my life. I’m glad to offer all of you a few “hacks” for some easy help along the way. 

The best Bible hack 

I was teaching 1 Corinthians last week when I discovered what might be the best hack in the Bible. Paul wrote to the church and said, “And I will show you a still more excellent way” (1 Corinthians 12:31). Paul proceeded to give them 1 Corinthians 13, often called the “love chapter.” I’ll sum it up for all of us by saying the most excellent way to live our Christian lives is to love God like he loves us and to love others with the love God gives through us.  

Hack into God’s love and the rest of life will get a lot easier.  

Now, go find your Bibles and try that first hack. It really works, and you should be finding those Bible passages much faster in the near future.