An Apathetic God?

I'd like to begin this blog with a basic observation.

Many in the religious world will tell you that as long as you believe in God you'll be okay.

Does this honestly make sense to you? The logical conclusion of that thought is that the Creator of the Universe doesn't care what we do, or how we act, as long as we believe in Him. That means that one can be a murderer and a rapist, and continue to commit those crimes with no remorse, and as long as one believes in God, they will go to Heaven. If that were true then why bother with any standard of behavior or law? The only benefit is having an easier life while we are still living. But it has no impact on the hereafter.

So the conclusion is either that God cares what we do or He doesn't. There's not really an in between.

Some might say that He only has problems with the really bad people. So who would that be? Adolf Hitler? Sure - he murdered millions. Saddam Hussein? Sure - he murdered tens of thousands. Jim Jones? Sure - he murdered hundreds. John Wayne Gacy? Sure - he murdered 33 men. So God condemns murderers and those people are wrong in His eyes. Or is what these people did okay?

What about the drug dealer selling outside the elementary school? Is God okay with that as long as the dealer believes in Him? What about the pimp? What about the guy who beats his wife within an inch of her life every Saturday night?

Do you see the difficulty here? Where do we draw the line? Does the statement, "As long as you believe in God you'll be okay" make any sense at all? The honest person will agree that it does not. You see, we all understand that true belief requires action based on those beliefs. The remorseless serial killer does not believe in God in the sense as defined by the Bible.

James 2:19 says,
"You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder."

So if belief in God is all that's required then the demons are saved. I think that most people would heartily avow that demons are not saved. But that is the logical conclusion if you hold to the idea that all you have to do is believe in God and you'll be fine.

Jesus had some pretty specific things to say about the definition of belief. In Matthew 7:21-27 He says,

"Not everyone who says to Me, `Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. "Many will say to Me on that day, `Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?' "And then I will declare to them, `I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.' "Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. "And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. "Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. "The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell--and great was its fall."

Jesus is pretty clear that belief in God must be coupled with the correct actions. According to this passage one must not only believe but also must, "...do the will of my Father who is in heaven..." Notice He also mentions in the verse about hearing the words and "acting" on them. And notice the actions must be based on what God says - not on the words of man.

So the concept of "as long as you believe in God you'll be okay" is clearly in error. It doesn't make sense from a purely human standpoint and it's certainly in opposition to what the Bible says.

There are many other Bible passages regarding the concept of belief and I encourage you to read them all. There are many online Bibles available and they will allow you to search for a specific word or phrase.

In His Service