Thoughtful Reflections on Faith and Life
John 20:24-29 Introduction Did you or do you have a nickname that has been given to you by others? There are families that give everyone among them nickname, never calling them by their legal names. Sometimes nicknames are imposed in school, sometimes within a work setting, sometimes by friends and sometimes by enemies. You may … Read More “Was Thomas That Bad?” »
This is an interesting question to reflect on. You could say that I’m not certain how to respond. A good place to begin might be my own nature. I am a skeptic by nature. It was skepticism that caused me first to walk away from the church. It was skepticism that later caused me to … Read More “How Certain Do We Need to Be in Our Faith?” »
We have been hearing a lot about people struggling with doubt and even walking away from the faith. I remember as a youth pastor having one of the youth, who had seemed strong in his faith, come out as an “apatheist.” It was tough. How we react when someone comes to us to us with … Read More “What Not to Do and What to Do When Someone Doubts” »
There have been a number of recent stories about high profile Christians either announcing they have left the faith or that their faith is shaky. However, there are plenty of people that we have never heard of going through doubt all the time. What should we do if we experience doubt? I will admit that … Read More “What Should You Do If You Begin to Doubt?” »
I remember as a teenager listening to our minister say during the service that he had one time doubts about Christianity. It really shocked me. Pastors should be giants in the faith, never having a doubt about the smallest thing. The truth is that as long as pastors continue to be human they will continue … Read More “When Pastors Doubt” »
Some Christians think that doubt is the worst possible thing to happen to a believer. It is so bad that it must by buried deep down, never to see the light of day. I think that view of doubt is unfortunate. I see doubt as being a natural part of the faith experience. We see … Read More “What to Do When You Experience Doubt” »
If you were one of Jesus’ twelve apostles, how would you like to be remembered by history? Simon gets to be the Rock. James and John get to be the Sons of Thunder. Thomas? Thomas gets to be Doubting Thomas. I must confess that I have a soft spot for Thomas and I feel that … Read More “Redeeming Doubting Thomas” »
A sermon preached at Queen Street Baptist Church on Luke 7:18-28. Introduction Would you describe yourself as gullible or skeptical? I must confess that one of my guilty privileges is having fun with gullible people. I once convinced a lady that I had invented a solar-powered flashlight that unfortunately only worked in the daylight. I … Read More “Faith, Doubt and the Unexpected” »
I appreciated this short video by Bruxy Cavey on faith and doubt. I don’t believe experiencing and expressing doubts is something that will lead away from Jesus. I think it is more dangerous to have a culture where doubts are forbidden and condemned. A book that I really appreciated on this subject is John Ortberg’s … Read More “Can Faith and Doubt Coexist?” »
Many Christians believe all doubt is bad. I really like what Tim Keller shares in his introduction to The Reason for God. “A faith without some doubts is like a human body without any antibodies in it. People who blithely go through life too busy or indifferent to ask hard questions about why they believe … Read More “Tim Keller on Doubt” »
