The devil sometimes shoots fiery darts of doubt into our minds. He will try to get you to doubt everything from God’s existence to your salvation. But his fundamental objective is to cast doubt on the Word of God. An important thing to remember, though, is that there is a difference between the temptation to doubt and the sin of unbelief. It’s possible to be plagued by doubt and yet innocent of the sin of unbelief.
The great English preacher Charles Spurgeon was acutely familiar with this particular form of temptation. He said, “My peculiar temptation has been constant unbelief. I know that God’s promise is true. … Yet does this temptation incessantly assail me—‘Doubt Him. Distrust Him. He will leave you yet.’” Spurgeon, of course, resisted the temptation, but his statements indicate that he struggled constantly in this area.
Refuse To Give In
So once again I remind you that you are not sinning when you are oppressed by the temptation to doubt. Doubt only becomes sin when it is acted upon and allowed to control us. Satan tempted Eve to doubt God’s Word. However, it wasn’t until she submitted to his suggestions that she sinned. Just because you’re tempted to doubt doesn’t mean that you’ve sinned. You can refuse to give in to those suggestions.
When I was a young Christian, I had heard that certain scholars and theologians questioned the validity of some of the books of the Bible. At that point Satan sought to plant doubt in my mind concerning the Word of God. The thoughts went something like this: “These men are theologians who have studied the Bible for years. They know the Hebrew and the Greek. I know nothing. How can I possibly think I’m right and they’re wrong?” Does that sound familiar? Or maybe you’ve had an experience in which you’re reading your Bible and your mind is suddenly flooded with questions like: “Are you sure Jesus Christ even existed? Could those miracles really have happened? How could someone rise from the dead? What about all the other religions? Isn’t it a bit arrogant to think that Jesus is the only way to God?”
Our Compass
Satan will suggest these thoughts to you. He is always trying to undermine the Word of God. He tried it with Eve in the Garden, “Has God really said? …” (Genesis 3:1). He tried it with Jesus in the wilderness, “If You are the Son of God …” (Luke 4:3). You can be sure he’ll try it with you. The Word of God is both our compass and rudder to guide us through this stormy Christian life. If the devil can get us to doubt even the smallest truth, he can get us off course. If he can get us to doubt the greater truths, we can end up shipwrecked. That is his goal. Don’t give in to doubt. Recognize it as one of the devil’s tactics and stand firm on the Word of God.
Honest Questions
One last thing—don’t confuse honest questions with doubt. Consider the difference between Zacharias’ response to the angel Gabriel and Mary’s response (Luke 1:18, 34). Both seemingly asked the same question, “How shall this be?” It was not the question “How?” but rather the attitude with which the question was posed that differentiated the two. Zacharias asked in unbelief as if to say, “You’ve got to be kidding? No way!” Mary, on the other hand, was asking in what manner God would accomplish such a wonder. Her humble faith is evidenced in her final statement to Gabriel, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word” (Luke 1:38). Mary was not guilty of doubting God’s Word; she was submitting to His plan!
There is nothing wrong with asking questions. That’s how we learn. Honest questions can turn your temptations to doubt into opportunities to grow in your understanding of the Lord, His Word, and His ways. At the end of every honest question you will find that God is true, even as Paul boasts in Romans 3:4, “Let God be true but every man a liar.”