What is the difference between doubt and unbelief?
The biblical meaning of unbelief is refusing to believe in God and His Word. Unbelief is the complete opposite of faith.
It is also a sin and God considers it evil.
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“But whoever has doubts is condemned if they eat, because their eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.” (Romans 14:23)
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“Be careful then, dear brothers and sisters. Make sure that your own hearts are not evil and unbelieving, turning you away from the living God. (Hebrews 3:12 NLT)
Unbelief is evidence of an evil heart, and an evil heart departs from God. God finds it offensive because you are calling His nature and His promises into question.
Unbelief is calling Him a liar.
Is it wrong to have doubts then?
Is doubt and unbelief the same? No. Doubt is not believing but still sincerely looking for the truth.
Unbelief is stubbornly choosing not to believe. Doubt can give birth to unbelief if not dealt with, and unbelief when fully grown leads to spiritual rebellion.
Both Thomas and John the Baptist sought answers to their doubt, but once they had found their answers, they both believed. In fact, it made them stronger in that place of brokenness.
- Thomas doubted (John 20:24-29), yet stayed with the disciples, being willing to know the truth and wanting to have his doubt illuminated with the truth. Once Jesus showed him the truth, He recognised the Lord and believed.
- John the Baptist had a moment of doubt in Herod’s prison (Luke 7:18-23) and sent his disciples to Jesus to find out if He was the One who they were waiting for. Jesus provided the evidence to the disciples of John, instructing them to tell him what they had seen. Once John received this information, He believed.
Scottish Evangelist Henry Drummond:
“Christ never failed to distinguish between doubt and unbelief. Doubt is I can’t believe, unbelief is I will not believe. Doubt is honest, unbelief is stubbornness. Doubt is looking for the light, unbelief is content to stay in the darkness.”
Doubt that becomes illuminated with truth from scripture, becomes belief.
Jesus welcomes our honesty about doubt, just as he did not condemn Thomas or John the Baptist for doubting. He is gentle and willing to reveal truth to us so that we can move from doubt, to faith. But doubting can become a habit of our heart, which if we do not deal with it honestly and allow the word to illuminate our thinking, the doubt will give birth to unbelief. A stubborn attitude of the heart to not believe.
Samuel Coleridge, poet and theologian said: “Never be afraid to doubt – if you have the disposition to believe.”
Selwyn Hughes who wrote Everyday with Jesus said, “Doubts can be valuable if they motivate us to search long and hard for the answers.”
Doubts will attack us. In a broken world, doubts are normal. But we cannot allow them to master us and lay the foundation for unbelief to grow in our hearts.
Faith pleases God’s heart: “And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6)
And unbelief limits what God wants to do in your life. The people of Nazareth refused to believe in Jesus and missed out on what Jesus wanted to do in their town because of their “lack of faith”
“Then Jesus told them, “A prophet is honored everywhere except in his own hometown and among his relatives and his own family.” And because of their unbelief, he couldn’t do any miracles among them except to place his hands on a few sick people and heal them. And he was amazed at their unbelief.” (Mark 6:4-6)
Unbelief is stubbornly choosing not to believe. Doubt can give birth to a stronger faith if we seek for truth.
Thank you, Lord, that You don’t mind if I express doubt, but Your desire is not for me to stay in that mindset. Instead, I am to seek You out and Your truth in scripture, so that the truth can illuminate my mind, transforming it from doubt to belief and renewing my trust in You. Help me to be disciplined in weeding doubt out of my heart by making sure I am meditating on truth on a regular basis. Lord examine my heart and see if there is any doubt in my heart that I have not addressed. Help me to throw it off and continue to run the race that You have set before me.
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