Practical Atheists

"Holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power." 2 Timothy 3:5

More than ten years ago I came across a statement by a Christian author that has only grown more true with time. He said that a large number of professing believers were "practical atheists," living and making decisions as though there was no God. Disregarding Him and His Word in how they approached life, and viewing all the structures and foundations of the world order as bigger and more real than His. That's a chilling statement. How closely do our lives conform to it? In what areas of our daily life are we too, "Practical atheists?"

His Word tells us that we're not to be conformed to the ways of the world, but to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. In this lies the root of our problem. Far too many who come to Him for salvation never allow Him to fully do His work of transformation. We hold on to our old, fallen ways of thinking and seeing this world, and more, His eternity. His ways, His life, His calling, and His Kingdom never become real to us. They may be an ideal, but they are too rarely a reality. We may take His name, but He has no real effect in our lives. We live by our natural senses and understanding. We may sing hymns and praise choruses extolling His virtues on a Sunday morning, but when we go out, we live by our own wits, and not by His Word and Presence. We truly are practical atheists.

It's not surprising to me that we hear of so many miraculous works of the Lord in what are commonly called "Third World Countries." In these places, death by disease, famine, war, and so on is a daily threat and presence. They are born into a world that is working against their survival. I've read that in Haiti, a child isn't even given a name until the age of 5 because the chances of it surviving till then are so narrow. For such, hearing the Good News of the Gospel really is life changing when they receive it. They believe. They believe that He is who He says He is, and can and will do all that He says He will do. They place no limitations on Him. They believe He is Almighty and they experience Him as such. They see miracles. Their lives are miracles. Why isn't it so with us? Is simple childlike faith just too simple for our rational western minds? We're at home in the natural. We can't comprehend the supernatural. Miraculous life makes no sense. His Word says that "My ways are not your ways," but we think our ways should be His.

We live in a culture that prides itself on its intellectual power. God, His Word, His Son, and His Holy Spirit are seen as myths from an earlier, unenlightened time. Science and human reason have been given preeminence. If it can't be explained by either or both, it can't be real. This is understandable in the lives of unbelievers, but how can it be so in those who call Him Lord? The truth is that though we may be able to believe in Him as a Savior, our minds, still held in captivity to a fallen world view, cannot grasp that He is all He has promised to be, and much more besides. We profess that life, but we deny the power of that life. We are, for all intents and purposes, practical atheists. Will we...will you, suffer it to stay that way?

Martin Smith of the band Delirious wrote a song titled "History Maker." In it is the lyric, "Is it true today that when people pray, We'll see dead men rise, And the blind set free? Yes its true, and I believe it. I'm living for you." He ends the song with this lyric, "I'm gonna be a history maker in this land. I'm gonna be a speaker of truth for all mankind. I'm gonna stand, I'm gonna run into Your arms. Into Your arms again." This sin-sick world needs no more practical atheists. It is desperate for spiritual history makers. I know which, in Him, I want to be. Which do you want to be?

Blessings,
Pastor O