The emotional irrelevancy of unbelief.

In a previous blog, I spoke about the absence of belief based on a scientific bias. In this blog however, I would like to briefly discuss unbelief based on emotional irrelevancy. There seems to be a popular trend in society that loves to claim that their unbelief is based on the fact that others, who believe in a particular religion, (i.e. Christianity) may not act worthy of the beliefs themselves. For instance, I saw a "supposed" quote once by Gandhi that read like this, "I would have become a Christian if I ever met a person who acted like one."
If one's own disbelief is based on someone else's actions, I would argue that the basis for the first individuals unbelief is in fact, a weak one. I, like many others, would love to see Christians acting more like Christ (myself included). However, if I decided to base my whole worldview on how others lived up to those particular beliefs, I would be a fool. For example, most hold onto the belief that the laws of our country, are for the betterment of society. (E.g. murder, robbery, assault, etc.) If I threw out the belief that those particular laws were good, based on the fact that people committed murder, robbery, and assault, you would immediately see the flaws in my unbelief.
People are immoral, no matter what beliefs they hold. If one does not live up to their beliefs, it is less due to the fact that their beliefs are false, and more due to the fact that their character is flawed. Truth, no matter what it is, does not change based on the actions of a particular group, or individual. If it did, I would suspect it not worthy to be called truth.

What makes me a christian?

Recently, I saw someone post a question on a discussion board. "What makes you a Christian?" So I did what any reasonable person would do. I asked myself that question. What does make me a Christian?

Is it believing in the Bible? That is a pretty vague question. There are numerous interpretations of the bible, on a vast amount of topics. A lot of mainstream interpretations I don't believe in. For example, some would say that the bible teaches that the earth is roughly about ten thousand years old. In my opinion, that is on the same grounds as believing that the earth is flat, or believing the holocaust never happened. Does it mean going to church? In the modern sense of the word, I morally feel conflicted going to "church". It is my conviction that church is an institution that feeds on peoples fears, to run a machine, that has been broken for a long time. Does it mean reading scripture, and praying continually? I don't line up with that either.

My mind seems to waiver day to day. Each day brings a new challenge, problem etc. There are some days that I am filled with so much intellectual doubt about my faith, that I live in a dark depressed corner in the back of my mind. So I ask myself again, what makes one a Christian?

Well, for starters, it can't be about me. It must be about what Christ does. I am an arrogant, unloving, selfish, doubtful man, that fails to no end. There must be something more than what I can offer to God (which is nothing). If its about what I understand, accomplish, or pursue, I fail. But in Christ I see victory. Victory that may not (and most times does not) look like what I think it should. So being a Christian can't be about what I do. It must be about what Christ does.

This inevitably brings us to the next question. If being a Christian isn't about me, but is about Christ, then what does Christ do? Philippians 2:13 says "for it is God who is at work in you, to both will and to work according to his good purpose." God is the author and finisher of your faith, (Heb 12:2) we are not.

We spend so much energy trying to do "Gods" work, when maybe we should spend more time walking in faith, allowing God to do the work in which he chooses. When I was younger, I was so anxious, I could barely keep down my meals. I was anxious, because I was terrified I wasn't walking according to God's will. I was terrified that I would make a wrong decision. I wish somebody would have come beside me, handed me a beer, and comforted me with those verses. The next 5 years of my life might have been different. How can we break away from God's will, when He is the author and finisher of our faith?

We give too much credit to ourselves, while we don't give enough credit to God fulfilling his promises. We identify ourselves with these things, (good works, church, Christianity, spirituality) when we should find our identity in who Christ is.

The Christian market is saturated with books, videos, etc, that promise to make you a better Christian. The people marketing these items promise that they have discovered the secret to the "successful Christian life". Why do we spend so much time, trying to live a "good Christian life"? My life is in Christ. He will do the work in me. No longer do I have to worry about my works. God asks us to walk in faith. Not in works. Galatians 3:1-3 says "O foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you, before whose eyes was Jesus Christ publicly portrayed as crucified? This is the only thing i want to find out from you: did you receive the spirit by the works of the law, or by hearing of faith? Are you so foolish, that having begun in the spirit, are you now being perfected in the flesh?" Philippians 1:6 says "being confident in this, that he who began the good work in you, is faithful to complete it until the day of Jesus Christ."

You may ask, "are we not called to do good works?" Ephesians 2:10 says "We are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." So first off, we are "His workmanship". Secondly, it states that God prepared good works for us beforehand, that we should walk in them. The meaning is in the details. God prepared the works. They are already set before us, by Him. As we walk in faith, the works will be accomplished. Because it is He who wills in us to work according to his good pleasure.

We are not called to be busybodies, frantically running to and fro, trying to be good Christians. We are called to rest in Christ, allowing Christ to work in us. God produces the fruit, in his timing, according to his will. So rest my friends. The work is complete. Christ has done it. We are free to rest assured, we are in Christ.

So what makes me a Christian? A better question is, Why do I care so much about being "a Christian". I am what I am.

A short, simple discussion, on a long, complex issue.

It amazes me what people will believe, in order to not believe in God. Constantly I see people jumping in a parade that shouts the rhetoric that the belief in God is illogical nonsense. Yet, when asked a better alternative, they have none. They may shout vague terms like "evolution". Yet they have no idea of the meaning of evolution. I believe it was Albert Einstein, who said "a little knowledge is a dangerous thing." People hear small amounts of information, and form their whole worldview on them.
I was watching a documentary that interviewed Richard Dawkins, professor of biology and best selling author of The God Delusion. When asked where life came from, of course he replied "through the evolutionary process." Which means that complex life forms evolved from simple life forms. Yet "simple life forms" are not very simple at all. Biologist know this better then anybody.
The probability of a single cell forming by random process is in the trillions.
When Dawkins was asked where the simple life forms came from, he responded that science does not know for sure. He then said that one of the theories is that a complex life form, which of course, went through an evolutionary process, came to Earth and planted it. This is the best explanation science can come up with?
One of the popular questions that people ask, to argue against god is, "who created God?". Does not the same problem lie with their theory?
People often make the mistake of believing that science is responsible for creating the scientist worldview, when the truth is, their worldview, is responsible for interpreting their science. Science, boomed in the 15th and 16th century because there was a group of men who believed the world would work under laws, because they believed in a law-giver.
So before you give up the belief in God in the name of science. Perhaps look at the other end of the argument.