The Day My Faith Was Questioned

A few days ago, I felt like my faith in God was being tested, but I realized that it wasn't being tested so much as others were questioning it.

Christianity is a touchy subject. Although there are rights and wrongs regarding it, there are many who believe that the rules all changed when Jesus died for us on the cross, while others still hold firm to the Old Testament.



There are those who believe that once Jesus died on the cross, all of the old rules in the Old Testament got thrown out the window because Jesus said that he was the new Covenant.

   Jeremeiah 31:31-34 "Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the one that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the LORD.  But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. No longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,' for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity and I will remember their sin no more. 

The Bible goes on and speaks of the new covenant in both the Old and New Testament.

Matthew 26:26-28 Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, "Take, eat; this is my body." And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, "Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins." 

I'm not a theologian and I'm not going to tell you what you should believe.  This all happened after I saw a friend say on Facebook how he was keeping his kids home from school and going to a different place because he didn't want his kids to celebrate in the Halloween festivities.

That's ok, no problem. He's their dad and he has every right to do that. I know of other families who do the same thing. He believes that celebrating Halloween is asking for trouble and acknowledging that it's ok to sin. I understand that and I see why he believes that way.

As you've seen from my post the other day, I think it's fine to go trick-or-treating and many of my other Christian friends do the same. Some of them are even pastors. I won't speak for them, but to me, trick-or-treating is just a fun little thing to do. We don't place any emphasis on it as a holiday to bring back the dead or to worship the devil. In fact, that's the furthest thing in my mind.

My kids aren't allowed to dress demonically and be scary. If we are to be a vampire or a witch, we're just goofy. My kids don't even know that there is negative connotation to those things. Yes, we've watch Hocus Pocus, but they aren't rooting for the witches, they're rooting for the family. To us, it's just innocent play.

My friend didn't stop at saying that he was taking his kids to do something else. He went on to say (and I'm paraphrasing) "I don't know how Christian schools can be ok with celebrating Halloween. By doing anything with Halloween, you are participating and accepting the whole holiday."

My family and I had already went trick-or-treating days before and it felt like this was a personal attack. It felt like he was attacking the church who does trunk-or-treating.

We had some discussion and I thought that we were ok in the end. We agreed to disagree on some matters. Then something happened. Another person joined in on this conversation and shamed me and all of those others who partook in the conversation. That person said that we had little faith and that we needed to pray that it was strong like theirs.

That made my stomach lurch and my heart pound enough to make me sick to my stomach and angry! I wanted to say something right then and there, but decided it wasn't the time to say anything.

For once in my life, I practiced patience and not speaking with a loose tongue.

This is what I have to say about it, today:

John 14:5 Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

John 1:14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. 

John 3:16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.  

About a woman caught in adultery, John 8: 6-7 This they said, tempting him that they might have to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not.
7 So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him throw the first stone at her."

Luke 18:10-14 "Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: 'God, I thank you that I am not like other people-- robbers, evildoers, adulterers-- or even this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.'"
13. "But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, 'God, have mercy on me, a sinner.'"
14. "I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted."

Jesus was questioned and hated by the Pharisees because he did not look or behave like one. Instead, Jesus hung out with the sinners in order to show God's love and Mercy. We are called to be Christlike and Christ did extraordinary things. He dined with tax collectors and prostitutes.

  Mark 2:17 On hearing this, Jesus said to them, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."

Luke 23:34 Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing" and they divided up his clothes by casting lots.  

Many of what I written is up for interpretation and some of it can be used as arguments for other things, but this is what I believe: Christ died for my sins and he called me to go out and make disciples in his image. That image was love. He says to love thy neighbor and not hate thy enemy.

Trunk-or-treating is a way for the Church to evangelize to those who wouldn't partake in church otherwise. It's a chance to do what Jesus did and mingle with the sinners so that they may be saved.

Romans 8:15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoptions as sons, by whom we cry, "Abba! Father!"
Romans 8: 38-39 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all of creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. 

It's not up to someone else to tell me how big my faith is. The only person who will hold me accountable is God. Matthew 7:1 Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.

As Christians, perhaps our resources would be better spent going out and making disciples instead of telling each other what we are doing wrong.

I'm not angry anymore about what was said to me and the others. I don't believe it was done with malice and truly, I think their heart was in the right place, but better words could have been used. I forgive them and I hope that they can forgive me as well because I realize that I was still questioning what they believe when really, our end goal is to get into heaven and help save those who don't even know they need saving.

 I can let everything that was said really bum me out and feel bad about myself and my faith. I can hide under a rock and never speak about my faith again or do things because they may not be acceptable, but I realized something; No matter what someone says, my faith in God isn't small. My discipline may need some help, but my faith doesn't and shouldn't be questioned. I know who my Lord and Savior is and when it comes time to be judged, I hope that God will say, "Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful with a few things: I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share in your master's happiness." Then on that day, I will hear, "Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise."