Every single person has come across somebody, or maybe said themselves, why they don’t believe in God. We have to admit, sometimes, these claims sound really legit. If you’re the believer, how do you answer statements like “I don’t believe in God because, if he really loved me, the world wouldn’t be so messed up.” Whether you make the statement or try to reply to the statement, it’s the same response…there doesn’t seem to be an answer. In this blog I’m going to try to give answers to what I consider the top 3 reasons why people don’t believe in God. Skeptical? Just keep reading.
If God exists, then why does he let bad things happen to people? Think about a time when you heard someone say something about God that wasn’t exactly friendly. Face it, God trash talk is everywhere. Not only that, but everywhere you go you can hear people giving reasons why God isn’t important. “I don’t need God in my life.” “I want to be in control.” “I don’t want to give my life over to something I can’t see, hear or feel.” “God isn’t real, so why would I trust him?” “If God is real, he must really be a hateful God, so I don’t want him in my life.” “Believing in God is stupid.” The list goes on and on and on. We bash God, but as soon as something bad happens, we whine and complain that God wasn’t there to stop it. Does that make any sense?
Imagine if you had a friend in trouble that you really cared about. But for some reason, this so called friend doesn’t want your help. They end up talking behind your back, teasing you, starting rumors, and making all kinds of accusations about you that aren’t even true. You’ve made it perfectly clear that you want to help, yet this person doesn’t cease to stop bad mouthing you. You can only go so far before you say “Fine! You don’t want my help, then go ahead, keep getting into trouble.” It’s the same exact thing. You can’t shut the door on God one day and then demand why he didn’t pull you out of a situation the next. For some reason we have this mental picture that God is this vengeful being up in the sky that will barge through walls whether we want him there or not. Totally. Wrong. God loves us more than we can ever imagine, but if we shut him out, he’s not going to break down the door and demand that we let him in. Otherwise the whole “free will” and “love” factor just goes out the window.
Okay, but if God is really all powerful, he would have known that this situation was going to hurt me. And if he really loved me, he would have stopped it. If the last point wasn’t enough, here’s another picture. There is a parent who has a child. This child is grown and fully capable of making their own decisions. They get into financial trouble, which then gets them into legal trouble. They start committing crimes and completely get on to a downward path. This hurts the parent, and they want to do everything in their power to get their child back on their feet and to start living a full life again. But pride and anger get in the way, and the kid wants nothing to do with them. “I don’t need you! I’m fine. I can do this on my own.” Of course, the parent doesn’t heed this. Their kid needs help, and they won’t stop until they get it. But eventually, the parent gives all they can and there’s nothing left that they can do. The child remains resentful and prideful. “Stay out of my life!” they say. “I said I don’t need you!” What is this parent left to do? Everyone would say, forget the kid. You did all you can and they don’t care. Let them learn the hard way. Does this mean the parent doesn’t love their child? Heck no. It’s just the opposite. They’re aware that their kid can make their own decisions, and they love them too much to force them to do something they don’t want to do, even if it means letting them suffer consequences. Like I said, God is not going to break down the door and force himself into a situation you blatantly told him you didn’t want him to be a part of. If we truly want God to interfere, we have to let him in and let him work his way. Not OUR way, HIS way. If that doesn’t appeal to you, then you don’t have to let him in. But just remember, if something goes wrong, it’s not God’s fault. He didn’t have anything to do with it.
I don’t want to trust a God that sends good people to hell. Okay, who ever said that God “sends” people to heaven or hell? God doesn’t send anyone anywhere. WE make that decision. Confused? Here’s one last scenario. You have never flown on an airplane, and you decide that you finally want to ride on one. You have two one-way options, Miami and Detroit. “Well, I don’t actually want to go to Miami or Detroit,” you tell the travel agent. “I just want to fly on the airplane.”
“Well, these are the only two options,” the agent says. “No matter what plane you fly on, you’re going to end up in one of these cities.”
“No I won’t,” you say. “I’m just going to stay on the plane.” The agent gets frustrated.
“Even if you’re on the plane, you’re STILL going to end up in one of these cities.”
You don’t pay attention to her and blindly buy one of the tickets. You end up choosing Miami. On the day of the flight, you get on the plane, fly, and of course, end up in Miami. You don’t move, and the flight attendant comes by and says you have to get off. You do and realize where you are, and are not happy. And because you have a one way ticket, there’s no going back.
So what do you do? Blame the pilot because he took you to Miami? Of course not! The pilot would say “I just fly the plane. YOU bought the ticket to come here. It was all your choice.” It kind of sounds weird to say you “buy a ticket” to heaven or hell. But when you think about it, that’s what it is. Choosing a life with Christ includes eternity in heaven. Rejecting him doesn’t mean God cuts the ties and sends you to hell. That is the LAST thing God wants. He wants to you be in heaven with him because he loves you like crazy. But he has no say in what you choose. It’s all up to you.
And that’s really what this all comes down to: your choice. Choosing to live a life with Christ isn’t just about securing a place in heaven, it’s about experiencing the most fulfilling life you could ever have. God isn’t about making you feel condemned and unworthy. He’s all about making you feel loved and valuable. That’s the real image of who God is. It’s your decision whether you want to be a part of that. God loves you regardless, but the real satisfaction can’t be gained until you decide to let him in.
