This post is a transcript of the above YouTube video, with minor alterations. Check out my channel for theology, woodworking, and more! Click HERE to subscribe.
In the world of American Christianity, there are two common paths I see kids taking nowadays.
The first is tradition. It’s comforting to stick to what you know and embrace the familiar. Many people copy their parents’ faith and don’t think too much of it. But others have noticed how apathetic so many modern churches are. They don’t want the same faith that their parents had. They want something bigger and grander. They want to return to the old ways, dig up old traditions and hold fast to them in what eventually becomes an aimless pursuit of religious nostalgia. This is where you’ll find a lot of dogmatic young people who are hard to get along with unless you subscribe to their specific ideas of “how things should be.”
The second path so many are taking is the deconstruction of their faith. The phrase has become ubiquitous in today’s culture. We’re seeing not only nominally Christian celebrities “deconstructing their faith,” but also openly Christian authors, speakers, and even pastors—very influential figures for our youth. It’s more popular than ever to question Christianity. American culture is getting more hostile to traditional Christian values as time goes on. It’s much more convenient for public figures to distance themselves from fundamental doctrines and stick to the hazy no-mans-land of progressive Christianity. They might claim they’re just “searching” or “finding what makes sense to them.” They still claim to be Christian, but they live in such a way that any self-respecting Christian of the last 2000 years couldn’t distinguish them from an unbeliever. This new culture of skepticism has grown like a cancer and spread on the back of political dogma to great effect among our youth.
So what’s the right answer? Should you reject modernity and embrace tradition or should you deconstruct your faith? I’m here to tell you there’s a better way. Don’t reject the old just because it’s old. Don’t embrace the new just because it’s new. Instead, pursue truth.
There can actually be great value in deconstructing your faith. It’s healthy to take a critical look at your own worldview. But that’s not where you should stop. Asking questions, challenging norms, and tearing down traditions is easy. The hard part is settling on what you actually do believe and sticking to it. After you’ve deconstructed your faith, what do you have left? Most people don’t have much of anything, and the void is quickly filled by worldliness and hedonism. Instead, reconstruct your faith. After removing the baseless traditions and inconsistencies, replace them with what’s true. That’s the sign of real maturity.
Here are four ways you can do just that.
1. Build up Truth From Valuable, Authoritative Sources
First, the Bible.
“If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
— John 8:31b-32 (ESV)
Become a student of the word of God and you will know truth and that truth will set you free. Be willing to hear out your Christian peers as well. Your interpretations of Scripture won’t always be correct. Join a Bible study at your church. Talk to your pastors about hard questions and be willing to listen. Read old books by credible theologians. There’s no shortage of resources available to you.
2. Be Willing to be Wrong
“With humility comes wisdom.”
— Proverbs 11:2b (CSB)
If you tossed away a doctrine in the process of deconstructing your faith that turns out to be true, have the humility to add it back. If you picked up something wrong, be willing to let go of it. Remember, you are not pursuing a specific framework. You are pursuing truth. Your goal is not to become a good Baptist, a good Presbyterian, a good pre-millennialist, or a good covenant theologist. Your goal is to become a good Christian who clings to truth above all else.
“He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”
— Micah 6:8 (ESV)
3. Walk the Walk
“Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams.”
— 1 Samuel 15:22 (ESV)
Now, we are saved by faith in Christ, and having good theology and sound traditions is important. But the life of a Christian will also produce good fruit at the end of the day, and that’s the hardest part. Be willing to live the “mundane” Christian life. You don’t have to restructure your church denomination, correct everyone’s ideas about the end times, or reclaim the political arena for Christian values in order to make a difference and obey Christ. Big goals are good to have, but steadfast living day by day is immediate, impactful, and essential.
“And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments.”
— 1 John 2:3 (ESV)
You can’t change the world if you don’t have your life together. So be the man or woman of God that you’re meant to be in the little things. Work your day job as unto the Lord, even if it’s frustrating. Forgive your parents, even if they don’t accept it. Share Christ with that coworker, even if it’s awkward. Give your resources and time to causes in your church, even if nobody notices. Lay down your pride in your marriage, even if it’s not reciprocated. These “little things” are not little at all. They are the real battleground for not only your heart, but the world. God has already won the battle and he’s the one who will get the credit for it. Walk in his victory and dare to claim it in your daily habits.
“If I have the gift of prophecy and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith so that I can move mountains but do not have love, I am nothing.”
— 1 Corinthians 13:2 (CSB)
4. Embrace Unity With Other Believers in a Local Church
“If anyone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.”
— 1 John 4:20 (ESV)
Church is not optional for the Christian. Walking through the forest may show you God’s glory, but it’s not enough to save you. Reading the Bible is what allows you to understand that glory and the path to salvation, that you may experience it beyond your short life here on earth. In the same way, following Christ in your own private life will yield good fruit, but it’s not enough for your soul. You need a church.
“And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”
— Hebrews 10:24-25 (ESV)
Membership in a church is what allows you to thrive in knowledge, holiness, and proper worship with other Christians. Paul talks at length about the importance and benefit of being united with a church:
Now as we have many parts in one body, and all the parts do not have the same function, in the same way we who are many are one body in Christ and individually members of one another.
According to the grace given to us, we have different gifts: If prophecy, use it according to the proportion of one’s faith; if service, use it in service; if teaching, in teaching; if exhorting, in exhortation; giving, with generosity; leading, with diligence; showing mercy, with cheerfulness.
Let love be without hypocrisy. Detest evil; cling to what is good. Love one another deeply as brothers and sisters. Take the lead in honoring one another. Do not lack diligence in zeal; be fervent in the Spirit; serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope; be patient in affliction; be persistent in prayer. Share with the saints in their needs; pursue hospitality… Rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep.
— Romans 12:4-13, 15
If you’re serious about following Christ, you won’t just feel obligated to attend a worship service once a week; you’ll seek out a church where you can serve and encourage others, eagerly offering your time, money, and talents for the benefit of the congregation. That means getting to know these people, praying for them regularly, meeting their needs, and being present with them to study the word and worship together.
“Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common.”
— Acts 4:32 (ESV)
Just as we should not expect to reach perfection in ourselves this side of eternity, we cannot expect to find “the perfect church.” It doesn’t exist. Every church is full of sinners and you are one of them. Don’t keep hopping around between churches. Pick one that preaches the word rightly, join it, and get involved. Don’t leave or become disillusioned if you encounter some drama, secondary theological disagreements, or different aesthetic preferences. Learning to live in unity and love with people who are not exactly like you is not only healthy, but necessary.
“As for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him, knowing that such a person is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned.”
— Titus 3:10-11 (ESV)
“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
— John 13:34-35 (ESV)
Surrounding yourself with other Christians and learning to live life together is the best thing you can do to reconstruct your faith. It will challenge you to be humble, encourage you towards obedience, and secure you in the truth.
“Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind.”
— 1 Peter 3:8 (ESV)
Let me know your thoughts in the comments below. Enter your email to keep in touch with me. Thanks for reading. Godspeed.
Veracity Quest 