Crisis of faith

Leestijd / Lesezeit / Reading time: 8 min

~doubt: uncertainty, lack of firmness of will or decision, indecisiveness: to call something into doubt, not believe

~faith: Trust that it is true. To have the conviction that something is true

Who Struggles with Doubt in Faith?

Multiple times per month we encounter people on the phone, visiting, or meeting who struggle with doubt in their faith. The questions they ask often go in this direction:

How do I know for sure that my faith is real, and that I’m not fooling myself?

or:

I believe in Jesus… but what if I later find out it still wasn’t enough?

And that doubt can be quite frightening, because it concerns your eternal future. We also notice that in conversations; that fear is real.

How Do You Know If Your Faith Is “Good Enough”?

But how does that work? How can you be sure your faith is sufficient? Often, we see that something is fundamentally wrong with the basis of one’s faith. How do we explain that… OK, here we go:

Sheep and the Shepherd

Let’s take a look at sheep (aren’t they adorable!)

The answer is simple: the shepherd chooses the sheep. Sheep are not smart, powerful, or strong enough to choose the shepherd. They don’t even know what a “shepherd” is, let alone find one. In other words, the shepherd chooses the sheep that will be in His flock.

In the Bible, we see this story about sheep multiple times. In the following example, we see people who do not believe in Christ and the biblical explanation for why they do not:

But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I have told you. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. (John 10:26–29 NASB)

Jesus Explains

In context, Jesus says something remarkable:

• Not: “you are not a sheep because you do not believe”
• But: “you do not believe because you are not a sheep”

The initiative is with God. He makes someone “His sheep.” It is His choice, His grace, to choose you to be in His flock. In Ephesians 2:8–9, we see this clearly described:

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, so that no one can boast. (Ephesians 2:8–9 NASB)

It is a gift from the Shepherd. Period. End of story. And if the shepherd has chosen to have you in His flock, we already saw the following:

And I give them eternal life; and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. (John 10:27–29 NASB)

No one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand.

The Order of God’s Choice

When we look carefully in the Bible, we see an order in choosing the “sheep.” This is what Jesus Himself says:

All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. And this is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day. And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. (John 6:37–40 NASB)

God chooses who He gives to Christ, and whoever He gives to Christ (in His flock) He will never cast out.

Rock solid. No doubt about it. Whoever comes into His flock stays in His flock.

The Misconception: “I Choose Christ”

As humans, we like to “have control” over things, and faith is no different. In church, you see this when someone makes a profession of faith or gets baptized. Then statements are made like:

I invited Christ into my heart.

Do you see what happens here? We just clearly saw that the shepherd chooses the sheep… and now suddenly we claim that you, as a sheep, invited Him? What?! Even if you wanted to, you couldn’t. If that is the basis of your faith—that it was your choice… (while you are just a sheep)—then I completely understand your doubt.

As long as we think we choose the shepherd (which biblically is incorrect), I absolutely understand why you have doubts about your faith.

Personal Example

Looking at my own life: if someone asked me in the past, “How did you come to Christ?” I always found it a very complicated question. Because I never felt I did anything to believe. I did not come to Christ. But in church, they kept asking, and I didn’t understand the question. (and I still don’t). My answer now is:

I did not come to Christ. God(!) sent me to Christ, and I listen to the voice of the Shepherd. I did nothing more; it is His grace that added me to His flock, not my own power or might.

How Do I Know I Have Been Chosen?

Then a very important question remains…

How do I know that God has chosen me to be in His flock?

Look, that’s a good question, because if He hasn’t chosen you, then you have a real problem. You cannot choose to be in the flock yourself; He must do it. So how can I be sure that He has done it?

Let me answer that question with another question: (not meant to be confrontational, keep reading!)

Why are you even reading this blog? What “crazy person” would want to read this (by now) long text? From a human perspective, it’s completely insane to want to read this, and even study it. Don’t you have anything better to do?

And there is your answer right away. From a human perspective, it makes no sense that you are studying this, wanting to know more about God, wanting to know more about who Christ is, what grace is, etc. From a human perspective, this quest for certainty is meaningless. So where does that supernatural drive come from? Not from yourself… so where does it come from? Who knocks, pounds, and beats so hard on your “door”? Who is the voice that prompts you to want to know more?

The Holy Spirit

God wants you in His flock. And once you are in His flock, as a sheep you want to do well! When you understand that He has chosen you, you are MEGA grateful and want to be close to Him every day, doing good for His glory, reflecting His image more and more. Then you feel an inextinguishable urge to know more about the Shepherd… and you read this very long blog. Where humanly speaking… you would have given up long ago. But no, you want to know more of Him. There is a voice inside you, wanting more, more, more.

And let that voice… be the confirmation that God has chosen you into His flock. To understand that, we look at two Bible verses:

But I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you will see Me no more; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged. But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. (John 16:7–13 NASB)

Sealed by the Spirit

That voice of the Holy Spirit, that quest of “how can I come even closer to Him,” “do even better,” is the proof that you are in His flock. In the Bible, this proof is literally seen as a seal:

Wanting to Live Holy as Proof

Your desire to become more holy, for the God who is Holy, is THE proof that you are included in His flock.

But just as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct; because it is written: Be holy, for I am holy. 1 Peter 1:15–16 NASB

So if you feel this doubt, know that the Shepherd has chosen you. Follow His voice, trust in His grace, and be holy as He is holy, more and more each day. That urge to know Him better, follow Him more, and reflect more of His holiness is no doubt. It is proof that you are one of His sheep, cherished and guided by the Shepherd.