Would I Be a Christian If …
Jack Radcliffe
3/17/2010

If you’re a Christian reading this, ask yourself this question from the perspective of losing something that is spiritually significant to you: “Would I be a Christian if…?” For example, I’ve often asked myself if I would still be a Christian if I were no longer a pastor.

If you’re not a Christian, it’s likely you’ve made that choice because of something that is missing in the Christian faith. What if that something was there? What if Christians did a better job of representing Christ? What if there was proof that the Bible is true? What if there was no pain and suffering in the world? Would you believe in a loving God then? Go ahead and insert your own objection. Would you be a Christian if the obstacle in your way was no longer there?

We’re not alone when it comes to having difficulty believing because it seems we have an objection; either something is missing, or what is being asked violates our sensibilities. In Mark 8:11-13, a group of religious leaders needed a sign from heaven in order to believe that Jesus’ teaching was true. In Luke 8:22-25, Jesus disciples weren’t quite sure what to believe, even after Jesus calmed a storm and saved them. A disciple named Thomas had to touch the resurrected Jesus’ wounds in order to believe it was really him.

In Luke 18:18-30, we have what may be the most famous of all objections to following Jesus. A rich man asked what he needed to do to inherit eternal life. Everything in this man’s world revolved around money. He had built his life on it. Citing a common practice of a son inheriting his father’s estate when he died and recognizing that God is the giver of that treasure, eternal life, he honestly wanted to know what were the requirements for gaining it.

We expect Jesus to give an answer that helps this young man. Instead, he points out this man’s obstacle. He tells him he lacks something. Note that the something that is missing lies in the heart of the man. He has to sell all his possessions and give the money to the poor before becoming a follower of Jesus. The requirement to separate himself from that which gave him his identity (material things) and attach himself to the One who would redefine the purpose of his existence was more of an obstacle than he could overcome. This man might have become a Christ-follower if he had adopted a different set of values.

This gives us a fresh perspective on our struggles with the Christian faith. Often our arguments against it are intellectual, academic, or practical. We miss an opportunity to follow Christ because we can’t get over apparent conflicts in the Bible when, like the religious leaders, we demand the Bible be what it was never intended to be. Further, we may reject being a Christian because of the politics of the church or the way Christians behave on Sunday afternoons at the restaurant.

The reality is that if we became believers and joined the church, we might become just like them: people who identify themselves with Jesus Christ and the community of faith that often represents the holy in some very unholy ways, who base their lives on a seemingly fairy-tale book, who often say one thing and do another, and who can’t get along. We would be targets of criticism rather than dispensers of it, expecting the church to be something they’re not intended to be, something we’re far from—perfect. It looks like the real obstacles to faith might really be within us. What will we do about it?

The church has called Thomas “Doubting Thomas” because he didn’t believe he was in the presence of the risen Jesus. Yet it was out of doubt that Thomas took a step of faith and touched Jesus’ scars. Connecting with the evidence that Jesus died and was raised to life, fulfilling the promises he had hoped were true his entire life, turned Thomas into a believer. Deep inside, I believe each of us wants to believe in the promises of God. Overcoming the obstacle of doubt within us is a step of faith away. What do we have to lose?

Jack Radcliffe is a husband and father of four, a parent coach, a seminar presenter for Parenteen (www.parenteen.com), a ministry consultant with Youth Ministry Architects in Nashville, TN, and an adjunct professor at Martin Methodist College. He has an M.Div. from Ashland Theological Seminary in Ohio and a D.Min. in Practical Theology, Adolescent Development, and Culture from Fuller Theological Seminary.