Last week, we were loudly informed: another high-profile person has walked away from the Christian faith. It is always shocking and unsettling for me to hear. Honestly, it is heartbreaking.

It seems the group includes people we wouldn’t suspect — mega church pastors, influential Christian authors, worship leaders, and now, this popular Christian band member.

The question is, “Why?”

How can people who have claimed Christ, have claimed to have trusted Him, and, more than that, have actually proclaimed Him to others now walk away?

In this latest case, the band member stated he grew up in a Christian home. His dad was even a pastor. He traveled singing songs about Jesus, leading others to worship. He even wrote the songs! Sounds ideal, right? Surely, he would have a foundation that would hold, right?

Evidently not.

“I am finding that I no longer believe in God.”

He describes the process: “It’s more like pulling on the threads of a sweater, and one day discovering there was no more sweater left.”

I do not personally know this band member. I can’t talk about his journey, his story, or his new conclusion. And, I do not have to. I know the reality of what happened. He was not tethered to the Anchor.

You might be saying, “Wow! What a jump! How can you possibly know that? How arrogant for you to say that.” I say it because I know the truth about the Anchor. It does hold. It does not unravel. It has never failed. And, closer scrutiny, even under great duress, always results in greater faith, not less. Sadly, for him, he was not tethered to the Anchor.

Let me explain.

“Experiencing Jesus” — A Rope Destined to Fail

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Today, we have lost confidence in the Bible. For a myriad of reasons, we do not trust it. Sure, it tells us of Jesus, salvation, and religious life, but those are abstract ideas. Those are subjective concepts, not things you can know or set in concrete, right? Facts — now those are knowable. Science — that is verifiable. But, faith? It falls under a different understanding altogether. Or, so Satan would like us to believe.

We are trained to say creation, the age of the earth, the fossil record — science will deal with them. Religion, however? It will address things like love or forgiveness. We keep them separate. It feels safe.

And, because we have separated our religious belief from truth, it becomes experiential. It’s all that’s left. Instead of something we know and trust, our faith in Jesus becomes something we feel and experience. So, when someone says, “Why do you believe in God?” or “How can you believe in that stuff?” instead of laying out the truth, we answer, “Because, I can feel Him,” or “I have experienced it.” Sound familiar?

That is our day. Instead of boldly standing on truth, suspect of the defensibility of God’s Word, we have become quick to embrace an experiential faith. Worship is an emotion. Faith is a feeling. And, God? He is an experience. Just look around and listen. It’s everywhere, and we’ve come to like it, until the real questions come.

What about the age of the earth and carbon dating?

What about evolution?

Why does your good God allow bad things to happen? Cancer? Crime? Racism?

What about ideas of morality? Homosexuality? Marriage? Abortion?

And, all of a sudden, the experiential, emotion-based idea of faith begins to “unravel like a sweater.” It is a rope that will not hold.

Be sure — if your faith is set upon experiences or feelings, it can change. In fact, it will, just as soon as those experiences and feelings do. However, when your faith is built on truth, in spite of your current situation or emotions, it will stand; it will endure.

When your faith is built on truth, in spite of your current situation or emotions, it will stand; it will endure. Share on X

So, as we mourn another eternal soul lost and looking for hope, disillusioned with what he thought was going to hold, may we commit to the truth of God’s Word. May we endeavor to grow in it, be proficient in our handling of it, and get to a place we can confidently defend it. Simply, the truth matters. Eternally so.

“Sanctify them in truth; Your word is truth” (John 17:17).

“Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15).

“…Always be ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you…” (1 Peter 3:15).