Articles
DOES IT REALLY MATTER? (2)
DOES IT REALLY MATTER? (2)
Greg King
Some say it doesn’t matter what you believe. You can believe and practice what you want, and I can believe and practice what I want, and God is pleased. Is that what God’s word is saying? That could be very confusing to someone looking for the answers of what pleases God. Who determines what is right or wrong? What if I say something is wrong but you claim that it is right? What is the truth? It can’t be that God has left each of us to determine for ourselves what is pleasing to Him. His word says in Proverbs 14:12, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.” It also states in Jeremiah 10:23, “I know, O LORD, that the way of man is not in himself, that it is not in man who walks to direct his steps.” The only conclusion we can draw is that it does matter what we believe! Notice some things that would be true if it makes no difference what you believe in religion.
If it makes no difference what you believe:
1. Believing there is no God would be as good as believing in God.
"But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. (Heb. 11 :6).
2. Believing in error would be as good as believing in the truth.
"---if ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples; indeed, and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. " (John 8:31-32)
3. Believing a lie in religion would be as good as believing the truth.
“And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: that they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. " ( 2 Thess. 2: 11-12)
4. Believing a false teacher would be as good as believing a true teacher.
"Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world." (1 John 4:1)
5. Believing in someone else would be as good as believing in Christ.
"---if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins. " (John 8:24)
Hopefully these five things are sufficient in proving the point. Religious people who are religiously wrong need to be converted to Christ. Saul of Tarsus (Acts 9) needed to be converted to Christ even though he was a religious man. Cornelius (Acts 10) needed to be converted to Christ even though he was a religious man. It does make a difference what we believe in religion. The difference it makes determines our fellowship with God and where we will spend eternity.
We will all be judged by the word of God regardless of whether we have believed it or not. To be ready for the Judgment Day, we need to believe and obey the truth, which has been revealed to us in the scriptures.
