A Faith of Your Own

"Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true." Acts 17:11

One of the turning points in my faith, if not THE turning point, occurred when I heard a pastor on the radio say, "Don't take my word for it. I could be lying to you." He said this as as a follow up to an answer he just gave. I don't remember the question or the answer. However, this small statement has stuck with me for going on 20 years now. I was reminded of this statement recently while having a conversation on forgiveness. Another Christian and I were having lunch together when the subject of Lent came up. Naturally, the conversation quickly turned to forgiveness because one of the reasons people participate in Lent is because it is said to be a time of repentance. Therefore, during our conversation I said that I do not believe that a Christian needs to ask God to forgive their sins. Not surprisingly, my friend disagreed with this statement. I tried to explain my reasons for my statement, but that is when my friend uttered one of the most disheartening things I have ever heard. After I had given some references to scriptures I believe supported my position, my friend said, "I will have to ask my pastor about that." All I could say in response to this was, "Don't you know?" By this I was trying to determine if my friend had any biblical reason for why they didn't agree with me on forgiveness. Granted, someone may not want to get into that deep of a conversation about their faith. Plus, we all know the saying about not discussing religion or politics. But, to defer to a pastor in order to see what they think about what I said makes me believe that this person didn't come to their conclusions on their own, but were taught to believe a certain way and never questioned it or verified it through personal study of the scriptures. The Bible tells us to, "Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if someone asks about your Christian hope, always be ready to explain it. (1 Peter 3:15 NLT)." I don't know. I will have to look into that. Let me study that and get back to you. These are things you can say if you can't or don't want to engage in a conversation, but don't say that you have to ask your pastor, or anybody else for that matter. We must have a faith of our own based off of our own study and interaction with the Lord, not that of someone else! We must be ready to explain our hope.

The Bible tells us that the Bereans examined the scriptures daily to see if what Paul was teaching them was true. As far as we know, Paul didn't object to them doing this. We also don't read where the Bereans said they needed to check with their pastor or some "authority" in order to verify Paul's teaching. We are encouraged also to, "test the spirits to see whether they are from God (1 John 4:1)." The emphasis is on us and our own study of God's Word. Otherwise, we are risking not having a faith of our own, but of whoever it is we are trusting in. That only leads to being led astray. A few days later my friend says, "I spoke to my pastor about what you said." Honestly, I knew the answer before they opened their mouth. "What did he say?" I said. My friend says, "He says you're wrong." To which I replied, "Did he say why I was wrong?" The response: "I don't remember." Are you serious? While frustrating, it is not surprising. I have encountered many people in my life who claim to be Christians, but don't know much about the faith, are afraid to talk about it or just repeat what they've been told all their lives. Usually, when confronted about what they believe, they either get defensive, angry at you for questioning them, throw the, "that's just your interpretation" platitude at you, defer to a "higher authority" like a pastor, avoid the subject or just change the subject. Part of the reason I ask questions is because I want to learn also. Maybe I am wrong in my beliefs. But, how will I be challenged to question what it is I believe if you can't explain why you believe the way you do? In Mark 12:24, Jesus said, "Are you not in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God?" When you don't know the scriptures there is a high probability that you are in error. And if you don't know the Scriptures, what exactly is it that you are putting your trust in? What is it you put your faith in? You may say that your faith is in Jesus Christ, but when you don't know His word, even He may have to call you out like He did to the Sadducees. Otherwise, the only conclusion that can be made is that you are taking your pastor's word for it, even if he is lying to you.