Seven Questions Skeptics Ask
By Rusty Wright
Imagine the scene. You’re discussing your faith with a co-worker or neighbor, perhaps over lunch or coffee. You explain your beliefs but your friend has questions: How could a loving God allow evil and suffering? The Bible is full of contradictions. What about people who’ve never heard of Jesus?
How do you feel about these questions and objections? Anxious? Confused? Defensive? Combative?
Sensitively and appropriately answering questions that skeptics ask you can be an important part of helping them to consider Jesus. Peter told us, “In your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect” (1 Pet. 3:15, NIV).
This article looks at seven common questions skeptics ask and gives you some pointers on how to respond.
1. It doesn’t matter what you believe as long as you are sincere.
I once gave a speech arguing for this proposition. Later, I reconsidered. In the 1960s, many women took the drug thalidomide seeking easier pregnancies. Their intentions were good, but their actions often led to delivering deformed babies. Sincerely swallowing two white pills may cure your headache if the pills are aspirin. If they are roach poison, results will differ.
Ultimately faith is only as valid as its object. Jesus demonstrated by His life, death and resurrection that He is a worthy object for faith. Focus on Jesus. Bob Prall taught me to say, “I don’t have answers to every question. But if my conclusion about Jesus is wrong, I have a bigger problem. What do I do with the evidence for His resurrection, His deity and the prophecies He fulfilled? And what do I do with changed lives, including my own?” I don’t have complete answers to every concern you will encounter, but in what follows I’ll outline some short responses that might be useful.
2. Why is there evil and suffering?
Sigmund Freud called religion an illusion that humans invent to satisfy their security needs. To him, a benevolent, all-powerful God seemed incongruent with natural disasters and human evil. God, though sovereign, gave us freedom to follow Him or to disobey Him. Oxford scholar C.S. Lewis estimated that 80 percent of human suffering stems from human choice. Lewis called pain “God’s megaphone” that alerts us to our need for Him. This response does not answer all concerns (because God sometimes does intervene to thwart evil) but it suggests that the problem of evil is not as great an intellectual obstacle to belief as some imagine. Pain’s emotional barrier to belief, however, remains formidable. When I see God, items on my long list of questions for Him will include a painful and unwanted divorce, betrayal by trusted co-workers, and all sorts of disappointing human behavior and natural disasters. Yet in Jesus’ life, death and resurrection I have seen enough to trust Him when He says He “causes all things to work together for good to those who love God” (Rom. 8:28, NASB).
3. What about those who never hear of Jesus?
Moses said, "The secret things belong to the Lord” (Deut. 29:29). Some issues may remain mysteries. God’s perfect love and justice far exceed our own. Whatever He decides will be loving and fair. One can make a case that God will make the necessary information available to someone who wants to know Him. An example: Cornelius, a devout military official. The New Testament records that God assigned Peter to tell him about Jesus. A friend once told me that many asking this question seek a personal loophole, a way so they won’t need to believe in Christ. That statement angered me, but it also described me. Lewis in Mere Christianity wrote, “If you are worried about the people outside [of faith in Christ], the most unreasonable thing you can do is to remain outside yourself.” If Christianity is true, the most logical behavior for someone concerned about those without Christ’s message would be to trust Christ and go tell them about Him.
4.What about all the contradictions in the Bible?
Ask your questioner for specific examples of contradictions. Often people have none but rely on hearsay. If there is a specific example, consider these guidelines as you respond. Omission does not necessarily create contradiction. Luke, for example, writes of two angels at Jesus’ tomb after the resurrection. Matthew mentions “an angel.” Is this a contradiction? If Matthew stated that only one angel was present, the accounts would be dissonant. As it stands, they can be harmonized. Differing accounts aren’t necessarily contradictory. Matthew and Luke, for example, differ in their accounts of Jesus’ birth. Luke records Joseph and Mary starting in Nazareth, traveling to Bethlehem (Jesus’ birthplace) and returning to Nazareth. Matthew starts with Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem, relates the family’s journey to Egypt to escape King Herod’s rage, and recounts their travel to Nazareth after Herod’s death. The Gospels never claim to be exhaustive records. Biographers must be selective. The accounts seem complementary, not contradictory. Time precludes more complex examples here. But time and again, supposed biblical problems fade in light of logic, history and archaeology. The Bible’s track record under scrutiny argues for its trustworthiness.
5. Isn’t Christianity just a psychological crutch?
Bob Prall has often said, “If Christianity is a psychological crutch, then Jesus Christ came because there was an epidemic of broken legs.” Christianity claims to meet real human needs such as those for forgiveness, love, identity and self-acceptance. We might describe Jesus not as a crutch but an iron lung, essential for life itself. Christian faith and its benefits can be described in psychological terms but that does not negate its validity. “Does it work?” is not the same question as, “Is it true?” Evidence supports Christianity’s truthfulness, so we would expect it to work in individual lives, as millions attest. A caution: Don’t offer “proof” but rather evidences for faith. “Proof” can imply an airtight case, which you don’t have. Aim for certainty “beyond a reasonable doubt,” just as an attorney might in court. Don’t quarrel. Lovingly and intelligently present evidence to willing listeners, not to win arguments but to share good news. Be kind and gentle. Your life and friendship can communicate powerfully.
6. How can Jesus be the only way to God?
When I was in secondary school, a recent alumnus visited, saying he had found Christ at Harvard. I respected his character and tact and listened intently. But I could not stomach Jesus’ claim that “’I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me’” (John 14:6 NASB). That seemed way too narrow. Two years later, my spiritual and intellectual journey had changed my view. The logic that drew me (reluctantly) to his position involves three questions: If God exists, could there be only one way to reach Him? To be open-minded, I had to admit this possibility. Why consider Jesus as a candidate for that possible one way? He claimed it. His plan of rescuing humans—“by grace ... through faith ... not ... works” (Eph. 2:8-9) was distinct from those requiring works, as many other religions do. These two kinds of systems were mutually exclusive. Both could be false or either could be true, but both could not be true. Was Jesus’ plan true? Historical evidence for His resurrection, fulfilled prophecy and deity, and for the reliability of the New Testament convinced me I could trust His words.
7. I could never take the blind leap of faith that believing in Christ requires.
We exercise faith every day. Few of us comprehend everything about electricity or aerodynamics, but we have evidence of their validity. Whenever we use electric lights or airplanes, we exercise faith—not blind faith, but faith based on evidence. Christians act similarly. The evidence for Jesus is compelling, so one can trust Him on that basis. As you respond to inquirers, realize that many barriers to faith are emotional rather than merely intellectual. As a teenager, I was nearly expelled from secondary school for some problems I helped create. In my pain and anger I wondered, Why would God allow this to happen? I was mad at God! In retrospect, I realize I was blaming Him for my own bad choices. My personal anguish at the time kept me from seeing that. Your questioners may be turned off because Christians haven’t acted like Jesus. Maybe they’re angry at God because of personal illness, a broken relationship, a loved one’s death, or personal pain. Ask God for patience and love as you seek to blend grace with truth. He may use you to help skeptics become seekers and seekers become His children. I hope He does.
Rusty Wright is an award-winning author, journalist, and lecturer with Probe.org who has spoken on six continents. He partners with likeminded believers to help them reach their friends, coworkers and communities with the Gospel in culturally sensitive ways. Visit the ministry’s Web site at probe.org
