Why Christian faith often produces an unshakable certainty
A new movie, Conclave, revolves around the secretive process of selecting a new pope. In the trailer to the film, Ralph Fiennes (Cardinal Lawrence) says, "There is one sin which I have come to fear above all others ... certainty. If there was only certainty, and no doubt, there would be no mystery. And therefore, no need for faith."
Unfortunately, this idea essentially summarizes how some people seem to view Christian faith. They gladly embrace doubt, while assuming that certainty is unattainable. For some reason, they elevate mystery above evidence. And they wrongly equate Christian certainty with spiritual arrogance, rather than viewing certainty as an attainable goal rooted in factual historical evidence.
Science, we are told, can be known, whereas Christianity can only be believed, but not known. As atheist Richard Dawkins put it: "Faith is the great cop-out, the great excuse to evade the need to think and evaluate evidence. Faith is belief in spite of, even perhaps because of, the lack of evidence."
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Imagine telling something so preposterous to Christ's apostles. These men experienced the Messiah's sinless life and embraced His powerful message. They spoke with their Lord and Savior after He rose from the dead, and they knew that the Old Testament Messianic prophecies were fulfilled in the Person they had walked with for three years. Christ's apostles placed their faith in Jesus based upon what they witnessed firsthand. Rather than being opposed to evidence as Dawkins suggests, Christian faith in the hearts of believers today actually rests upon historical events, eyewitness accounts and Gospel promises presented in Scripture.
Imagine sharing Dawkins' erroneous definition of "faith" with believers in Heaven today, who currently experience the absence of sickness and death, never-ending joy in a place of perfection, purity of heart and perpetual peace. The Apostle Paul, while still on Earth, "was caught up to Paradise. He heard inexpressible things, things that man is not permitted to tell" (2 Corinthians 12:4). It was the strongest evidence of Heaven that Paul could have been given.
And yet today, many people view Christian faith as a nebulous concept without real evidence to support its premises and promises. The fact of the matter is that nothing could be further from the truth. If you remain unaware of the evidence for Christianity, you really should read the hugely popular, Evidence that Demands a Verdict.
Millions of believers have discovered the truth and confidently stand on God's promises. Those who possess a closed mind, however, miss out on discovering what followers of Christ have come to learn about God's free gift of everlasting life in Heaven.
Alister McGrath is a Northern Irish theologian and a former atheist who came to know Christ. He said, "Atheism, I began to realize, rested on a less-than-satisfactory evidential basis. The arguments that had once seemed bold, decisive, and conclusive increasingly turned out to be circular, tentative and uncertain."
William Ramsey (1851-1939) was a Scottish archaeologist and New Testament scholar. "By his death in 1939 he had become the foremost authority of his day on the history of Asia Minor and a leading scholar in the study of the New Testament." He said, "Christianity did not originate in a lie; and we can and ought to demonstrate this as well as believe it."
When a person comes to faith in Christ, belief in Jesus as Savior often produces an unshakable certainty. The Apostle John offered sincere followers of Christ this assurance: "I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life" (1 John 5:13). Faith first, and certainty later. I refer to this knowledge as "sanctified reason." It is an assurance given to you by the Holy Spirit as you trust completely in the truthfulness of God's Word and rely fully upon the promises God offers in the Gospel.
Jesus said, "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life" (John 3:16).
In a 2017 CP op-ed titled, "Can Faith Lead to Abiding Certainty?" I wrote, "Human reason produces certainty that two plus two equals four. And sanctified reason produces certainty that Jesus died on the cross for my sins and will bring me to Heaven when I die." Evangelist D.L. Moody (1837-1899) stated it beautifully when he said, "Faith is the root. Assurance is the flower." Assurance is another word for certainty.
The Holy Spirit is the only person who can give you sanctified reason, as you humble yourself at the foot of the cross. Like all of us, you are a sinner who needs the Savior to wash away all of your sins. You can examine the evidence and then come to Christ, or you can remain lost in your sin forever.
While some people wrongly assume that arrogance is what leads a believer to be fully assured he is going to Heaven, it is the exact opposite. You see, arrogance actually exists within the person who is striving to be good enough to earn eternal life in Heaven. Humility, on the other hand, is present in the heart that trusts Christ alone for salvation, rather than relying upon good works to get into Heaven. I hope you understand the difference between salvation by grace through faith, (see Ephesians 2:8-9) as compared to "salvation by works," which results in no salvation at all (see Galatians 3:10-11).
Here is one more thought regarding certainty my friend: You are certainly going to spend eternity in either Heaven or Hell. (see Matthew 7:13-14; John 3:36; Luke 16:19-3; John 5:25-29; Matthew 13:47-50) Jesus would never have said so if it wasn't true! And thankfully, "God our Savior wants everyone to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth!" (1 Timothy 2:4).
Dan Delzell is the pastor of Redeemer Lutheran Church in Papillion, Nebraska.
