| | THE THORN OF DOUBT
"O man of little faith, why did you doubt? -- Matthew 14:31
"...do not be faithless, but believing." -- John 20:27
. It has been suggested by some that Paul's thorn in the flesh was the
temptation to doubt and shirk his duties. It is extremely unlikely that doubt
was his thorn in the flesh. Paul believed, not just because of reliable
testimony, but because he had experienced a personal confrontation with the
risen Jesus on the road to Damascus. It was Paul who wrote, "I know whom I
have believed and I am sure that he is able to guard until that Day what has
been entrusted to me." (2 Tim. l:12)
. For many religious people, though, doubt is a terrible thorn in the
flesh. This nagging feeling within your heart can slowly torment you and
drive you to guilt and despair. Well did Henry Burke Robins put it:
Better a day of faith
Than a thousand years of doubt!
. Many, because of their doubts, feel hypocritical in continuing in
worship and service. Others, not wanting to feel hypocritical, give up before
they have given themselves adequate time for their doubts to be resolved.
. In trying to cope with doubts about the validity of the Christian faith,
about the inspiration of the Bible, about the nature of Jesus Christ, or
whatever, you should begin by first reminding yourself that doubt is a very
common experience. Martin Luther is supposed to have asked, "Who has not known
the awakening of a Monday morning covered by that black blanket of ultimate
doubt?" In Christian literature references to doubt are frequent. In the
Bible more than one character had periods of doubt. So before you go too far
into the valley of the shadow of doubt, you should remember that doubt is not
uncommon.
. Over the centuries men have often handled doubt by trying to make a
virtue of it. This is a common reaction. If you are plagued by some problem
and can not rid yourself of it, then one alternative is to make this problem
into a virtue in your own thinking. Read through this wide variety of quotes
and notice how men have often attempted to make a virtue out of doubt:
. "Who never doubted never half believed: Where doubt is, there truth is,
-- 'tis her shadow." -- P. J. Bailey
. "By doubting we come at the truth." -- Cicero
. "Doubt is the beginning, not the end, of wisdom." -- George Iles
. "The road to resolution lies by doubt." -- Francis Quarles
. "There lives more faith in honest doubt, Believe me, than in
half the creeds." -- Tennyson
. "To believe with certainty we must begin with doubting." --
Stanislaus
. "A skeptic is not one who doubts, but one who examines." --
Sainte-Beauve
. "How prone to doubt, how cautious are the wise!" -- Homer
. "An honest man can never surrender an honest doubt." --
Walter Malone
. "I say unto you: Cherish your doubts, for doubt is the handmaiden of
truth. Doubt is the servant of discovery; She is the key unto the door of
knowledge. Let no man fear for the truth, that doubt may consume her; Only
he that would shut out his doubts denieth the truth." -- Robert Weston
. There is certainly some truth in these affirmations. Doubt can lead to
truth, since it may spark inquiry. Inquiry, investigation, research, and
curiosity are all to be admired. Without them everyone would have a closed
mind and advances in knowledge and virtues would mostly cease. There is
something about the dogmatic, closed-mind attitude that upsets others. The
kind of attitude that says, "If God had intended for man to fly, he would have
given him wings," is the disposition that never leads to progress.
. Once this value of doubt has been affirmed, though, a word of caution is
in order. Doubt in and of itself is not a virtue. Unresolved doubt can lead
to drastic consequences, while resolved doubt can lead to good results. As
Jack Exum explains, "Doubt is neither right nor wrong - good or evil - truth
or error. While it holds great power for right or wrong, good or evil, truth
or error, within itself it is none of these things. It is uneasy, unsure,
unsettled." 1)
. The ideal in the New Testament is faith, not doubt. Jesus said, "Truly
I say to you, if you have faith and never doubt (diakrino)..." (Mt. 21:21).
Abraham is a good example because he did not doubt: "No distrust (diakrino)
made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith
as he gave glory to God" (Rom. 4:20). In discussing prayer James said, "But
let him ask in faith, with no doubting (diakrino), for he who doubts is like a
wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind" (Jam. 1:6).
. Some of those who attempt to glorify doubt point in response to the
inherited faith many in the church hold. Two wrongs do not make one right, as
we have all heard. For someone to be raised in the church and accept their
parents' faith without ever examining the evidence for themselves is not
commendable. We should, as Peter commanded, "Always be prepared to make a
defense to any one who calls you to account for the hope that is in you" (1
Pet. 3:15). We should "test everything" (1 Thess. 5:21). 2) Like the Bereans
we should be in the habit of "examining the scriptures daily to see if these
things" are so (Acts 17:11). Christians who hold to an inherited faith are not
to be praised for this. Furthermore, this should not be seen as any kind of
justification of the opposite extreme of doubting everything.
. While laziness of mind on the part of some is wrong, an overly skeptical
mind prone to rebellion is also wrong. Some who doubt have not been fair to
themselves or the evidence. As Jack Paul explained, "Many a person, however,
who has doubts has them because of lack of information or misinformation."
There are many on the outside of the church who sneer at Christians in a
supercilious way, as though they were a group of dolts and dullards and
intellectually backward people who could believe all of this archaic nonsense
that is in the Bible.
. "Many a person who says, 'I don't believe the Bible,' has never read it.
Many a person who says, 'You can't expect me to believe the ideas of the
church,' has no idea what the church expects him to believe. And the tragedy
of our times is that many a person is rejecting Christianity not because of
what it is, but because of a misconception that he has as to what it is." 3)
Some find it easier to doubt than to go through the struggle of examining.
. The Bible never recommends the attitude, "Believe, but do not bother to
examine the evidence." Such a position is unscriptural and will only serve to
discredit the Christian faith with thoughtful and intelligent people. One
good example of this is the case of doubt in John the Baptist. The Bible
tells us, "Now when John heard in prison about the deeds of the Christ, he
sent word by his disciples and said to him, 'Are you he who is to come, or
shall we look for another?'" (Mt. 11:2-3). Such a statement is hard for many
to understand. This is the same John who baptized Jesus only after protesting
at first to him, "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?" (Mt.
3:14). This is the same John who had formerly said, "Behold, the Lamb of God,
who takes away the sin of the world!" when Jesus was approaching (Jn. 1:29).
. In light of this difficulty, many have tried to see in John's words
something other than doubt. Some say he did not really doubt, but he was only
trying to urge and prompt Jesus to hurry along with the establishment of the
kingdom and rescue him from jail. Other interpretations have been placed upon
John's words, "Are you he who is to come, or shall we look for another?" It
seems best, though, to see in his statement simply the doubt of a man who is
in despair in prison.
. The important lesson here is found in the response of Jesus. He replied
to John's disciples, "Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind
receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear,
and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them. And
blessed is he who takes no offense at me" (Mt. 11:4-6). Jesus did not rebuke
John's doubt for he knew it was honest and sincere doubt.
. "How did Jesus react to the doubtings of John?", Jack Exum asks. "Did
he ridicule, mock or laugh? Did He accuse John of losing his faith or his
sanity under the strain of prison life? Perhaps Jesus whispered to the
messengers and sent them out the back door. No, Jesus did none of these, but
to the contrary says in effect, 'If you doubt Me, come to Me'. After all, who
could be more weary than the heart troubled with questions and filled with
contradictions. Examine Christ, His life, and His word ... Come to the very
One around whom your questions are centered." 4)
. Examine the evidence. Search the scriptures. As Clark Pinnock
explains, "Faith is not the opposite of knowledge. The scandal of the gospel
is not its alleged immunity from proof. The gospel makes sense, not non-sense.
Its offense lies in its moral unmasking of the sinner, not in its supposed
uncertain truthfulness. The mind is not to be left at the threshold in
Christianity." 5)
. If you have not examined the historical foundations of Christianity,
then you have no right to doubt. If you do examine the evidence, most likely
you will say with Jack Paul, "You say it is hard to believe the Christian
interpretation. I say it is far easier to believe it than to believe the
atheist interpretation." As an illustration he discusses creation. "For
instance, I believe in the Christian interpretation and understanding of the
origin of the universe as given in the Bible. But the atheist has a belief at
that point, too. He says, 'I believe that all that exists, all the cosmos, is
a result of sheer chance. It all just happened. No plan behind anything, no
purpose.' You can look at it and see all the order, and beauty, and it all has
no meaning, only apparent meaning. But I can't believe that; I'm not gullible
enough to believe that." 6)
. Some, though, have examined the evidence and they still have doubts.
These cases are harder to deal with than the former type. Often nothing can
be done to convince such a person of the truth, for they are blinded by their
own will and desire not to believe. Maybe it is for a desire to appear
worldly wise, or for a multitude of other reasons, but the evidence will not
convince everyone. This truth has been expressed well in a poem:
"Show me your God!" the doubter cries.
I point him to the smiling skies;
I show him all the woodland greens;
I show him peaceful sylvan scenes;
I show him winter snows and frost;
I show him waters tempest-tossed;
I show him hills rock-ribbed and strong;
I bid him hear the thrush's song;
I show him flowers in the close--
The lily, violet and rose;
I show him rivers, babbling streams;
I show him youthful hopes and dreams;
I show him maids with eager hearts;
I show him toilers in the marts;
I show him stars, the moon, the sun;
I show him deeds of kindness done;
I show him joy; I show him care,
And still he holds his doubting air,
And faithless goes his way, for he
Is blind of soul, and cannot see!7)
. If one examines the evidence for the Christian faith fairly and
honestly, he can remove his doubts and replace them with a strong faith.
Faith does not have to be intermingled with doubts. Faith in the Bible sense
of the term encompasses an element of knowledge and assurance. For example,
as one man was dying, he was asked about his speculations concerning the soul
and death. "Speculations!" the dying man exclaimed. "I know nothing about
speculations; I'm resting on certainties." He could say this, because faith
is not to be divorced from knowledge. Faith is a trust in the reliable
testimony of God who does not and can not lie (Rom. 10:17; Jn. 20:30-31; 2
Cor. 5:7; Heb. 11:1, 3, 7). Could we ask for anything more certain?
. More could be said, but this is not the place for a survey of Christian
evidences. If you are troubled with doubt, do some reading in Christian
evidences. Your minister or local bookstore can make some suggestions for
good reading. A professor once told me that a very common habit among young
ministers is to preach on Christian evidences, but as they grow older they
tend to do less and less of such preaching. The reason is that preachers have
a tendency to sometimes preach from their own problems. If a preacher is
troubled with doubts, he will read more in the field of Christian evidences
and thus preach more on this theme. Usually after a few years of such
studies, though, he has been convinced and his faith strengthened. He then
turns more to other areas of thought.
. This was true in the author's own life. I used to love to teach classes
or preach on prophecy, archeology, or some similar theme as an evidence of
Christianity. Now I preach less and less on these themes. It is not because
such studies were frustrating - quite to the contrary. The point is this - if
you have doubts, do not ignore them. Do not be afraid of asking for help with
your doubts. Remember that even a doubting Thomas could be quickly changed
into a worshipping disciple who cried out, "My Lord and my God!" (Jn. 20:28).
When (God knows) I'm tost about,
Either with despair or doubt;
Yet before the glass be out,
Sweet Spirit comfort me!8)
FOOTNOTES
CHAPTER 2 - THE THORN OF DOUBT - PAGES 13-21
1) Jack Exum, This Will Kill You! (Dallas, Texas: Exum Publications, n.d.), p.
38.
2) See John T. Willis, "Prove All Things," Firm Foundation, 30 June 1981, pp.
7, 12; and 7 July 1981, pp. 7, 11, for an extended discussion of the meaning
of this verse.
3) Jack F. Paul, "The Role of Doubt in Faith," Harding College Lectures 1971
(Austin, Texas: Firm Foundation Publishing House, 1971), pp. 154-55. Used by
permission.
4) Exum, This Will Kill You, p. 40.
5) Clark H. Pinnock, Set Forth Your Case (Chicago: Moody Press, 1967), p. 13.
6) Paul, "Role of Doubt," p. 156.
7) John Kendricks Bangs, "Blind."
8) Robert Herrick, "In the Hour of My Distress."
. The preceeding is a chapter from 'A Thorn in Your Flesh', a book by
Steve Williams, published by J. C. Choate Publications. This book can be
ordered from Choate Publications, Rt. 2, Box 156, Burton Drive, Winona,
Mississippi 38967. It is paperback, 100 pages, and costs only $3.00. Please
include 75 cents for postage and handling. All profits from this book go to a
mission literature fund for Asia where Choate has been working for over 25
years, primarily in India. The book has one chapter on Paul's thorn in the
flesh and then a discussion of various problems (thorns) people have today.
You may also order from the author c/o Robinson Church of Christ, 428 Chado,
Waco, TX 76706.
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