If everything were easy in the Christian life we would not struggle with doubts.  It is when we are faced with some uncomfortable consequences of our faith that we begin to doubt it.  Some people begin to question the Christian faith because a friend betrays them.  Some people doubt because they want to do something they know the Bible describes as “wrong” and they need a way out.  Some people waver in their commitment when they are asked to do something difficult.

I struggle with doubt.  At times of discouragement, discomfort, or of extreme tiredness I have questioned the truthfulness of the Christian faith.  I have heard the skeptic say that Christianity is a crutch for insecure people.  It has been nothing of a crutch for me.  On the contrary, I have found that Christianity has exposed more of my insecurities than ever would have been exposed had I stayed in the secular world.  And yet, in the midst of the struggle I have found more joy than I thought imaginable trough a relationship with God.

How should we handle times like these?  If we don’t learn to press on in the midst of discouragement and doubt we will end up losing the joy available to us through God.  We will fail to honor God in our trust and obedience.  Some may quit a commitment or give up on a conviction.  This is the same as “burying our talent in the ground” (see Matthew 25:14-30) and keeps us from growing by experiencing new grace in new challenges.  Others may end up getting involved in a sin with many long term consequences.  These consequences drive us away from Christ and disqualify us from future usefulness.  So if we are going to love people and not end up in considerable sin, we must learn to handle doubt and discouragement.

I want to highlight two ways that we often deal with doubt that will not work on their own.  Finally I will highlight the one sure method that bring permanent hope for a Christian.

First, past experiences alone will not solve doubt.

It is unlikely that our past experiences of grace alone will be sufficient to keep us moving forward with confidence in dark times.  Though you may have experienced God working in your life in many and very powerful ways in the past, in dark times we will often lose our perspective of those events. 

Some people wonder if they have been living a lie.  Although God helped them in the past, they still may doubt that He will help us in the future.  The memory of God’s work in their lives, even their personal testimony, though it may be very powerful and helpful, by itself it is not enough to strengthen them when doubt and discouragement hit.

Second, hope of heaven alone will not solve doubt

A vision for the future can be helpful but ultimately it is not enough either.  Eternal life is ours through faith in Jesus Christ.  Everyone who believes in Christ has received a promise that he will go to heaven some day and live in an eternal and perfect world.  At times, this can be very helpful.  Why resist temptation?  We have a promise that we will live forever.  This world is not my home.  If I obey now, I will be rewarded later.

But when times of darkness hits heaven seems far away.  It is almost like that promise is for another person.  It is not for me, at least for right now.  We may also doubt if we can trust those promises.  How do we know they are true?  Finally, we wonder if heaven matters when we are faced with a trial or a temptation right now.  Our problems can seem so big that we need relief now and waiting for heaven is far too long.

The Solution to Doubt is in the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Our solution to doubt must be something objective rather than subjective.  Though the Bible points to both the past and the future as proper motivations for godly living, the central hope from the Bible comes from the resurrection of Jesus Christ – the central and objective event of history.

Consider the Apostle Paul as he dealt with this doubt and discouragment:

"But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain." - 1 Corinthians 15:13-14

The apostle Paul knows that there is no reason to be a Christian if Jesus Christ was not raised from the dead.  If Jesus was not resurrected then all of Paul’s life work was pointless.  Talk about disappointment!  How would you feel if you found out everything you devoted your life to was worthless?  When Paul writes these verses, I think he is shows us his own struggle as an apostle.  In all his preaching around the world he suffered great trials and tribulations.  Was all that suffering worth it?  It was worth it only if Jesus Christ was raised from the dead.  If he was raised from the dead, then the message of Christ is true.  And if the gospel message is true, then it is worth preaching and believing.

"For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins.  Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. " - 1 Corinthians 15:16-18

The central point of the gospel is how a man can be reconciled with God.  How does a person deal with guilt?  How does a person deal with his sin?  If Jesus is not raised from the dead, it would be a waste to seek forgiveness through Jesus Christ.  It would be a waste to seek meaning through Christianity.  Christianity entirely depends on the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

"If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied." - 1 Corinthians 15:19

If Jesus Christ was not resurrected from the dead then Christians are the biggest fools in the world.  We would have squandered our lives for a lie.  Or, at least it should be that way.  We need to ask ourselves some questions at this point.  Are our lives changed by the resurrection of Christ?  Is there something we do or are there decisions we have made simply because of the resurrection of Christ?

In dealing with doubt and discouragement, we need to be able to “preach the gospel to ourselves”.  This means we need to remind ourselves of biblical and historical truths.  The central fact we will always get back to is the resurrection.

How certain is the resurrection?  I once learned the acronym FEAT that gives the most important points in establishing the truth of the resurrection (credit goes to Hank Hanegraaff, the Bible Answer Man). 

First, F stands for FATAL TORMENT of Jesus Christ.  Jesus himself died on the cross.  He did not fake his death.  E stands for EMPTY TOMB.  Both followers and opponents of Jesus Christ admitted that the tomb was empty three days after his burial.  A stands for APPEARANCES.  After the tomb was found empty, Jesus appeared in a living, physical, and eating body.  He appeared to well over 500 people who could all testify to what they saw (1 Corinthians 15:3-8).  Finally, T stands for TRANSFORMED LIVES.  The lives of everyone who saw Jesus Christ risen from the dead died proclaiming that Jesus Christ that they saw Him alive again.  They were completely different people after the resurrection of Jesus.

Much more could be said on the resurrection of Jesus Christ.  If you are unsure about the resurrection of Jesus Christ, I can suggest some good books that will help you answer this question.

As I mentioned earlier the resurrection of Jesus Christ plays a vital part in dealing with discouragement and temptation.  We need to learn to speak to ourselves.  In the following conversation we will see how you can speak to yourself (GOSPEL) rather than listen to yourself with all your doubts (FLESH). 

In the example below, the person is tempted to steal a cookie.  You may want to put into the illustration for yourself some temptation that you are facing or a difficulty that you are experiencing.  You might want to substitute unhappiness in marriage, loneliness in singleness, a certain habitual sin, or unethical behavior.  It could be a discouragement or a doubt, or maybe a desire to quit something God has called you to.

·        FLESH:  Look at that cookie.  Don’t you want it?  So what if it isn’t yours.  Go ahead and take it.  It’s not that big of a deal.  No one will even notice it is missing.

·        GOSPEL: God calls me to obey him by not stealing the cookie.

·        FLESH: Why obey God if it makes you unhappy?  God wants you to be happy doesn’t he?  You know the cookie is good and will make you happy!

·        GOSPEL: Jesus tells me that this world is not my home.  My home is in heaven.  One day I will enter a place of happiness and peace.  This world does not give my life meaning.  Happiness is something that is rooted in having fellowship with God, not my circumstances.  The Bible tells me that in this world we will have troubles and trials.  God is using my unfulfilled desires to change me in the midst of my own sin (Romans 8:28-29).

·        FLESH: Yeah, but who can believe that?  I mean, Jesus said that so long ago.

·        GOSPEL: Well, the apostles saw who Jesus really was in his life.  They saw He was God in the flesh.  They even saw him rise from the dead. 

·        FLESH: But how do you know they were telling the truth?

·        GOSPEL: They were so certain about the things they saw that they died for this belief.  No one would suffer and die for something they knew was untrue.  This is true and the best explanation.  The disciples were transformed by the things they saw.  I will put my faith and confidence in God, that He will supply everything I need, even if I have to pass on the cookie for now.  What I don’t have now, God will provide for me, both now and in the future.

This conversation is pretty simple, but most of the time we make our decisions for simple reasons.  The simple and single reason that Christians will trust in the face of temptation and difficulty is that Jesus Christ rose from the dead.  As the Apostle Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:3-4, “For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.” 

May that be our testimony as we shine the light of the gospel message into the darkest of times.