{"id":586,"date":"2010-08-27T06:21:10","date_gmt":"2010-08-27T06:21:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/omeoflittlefaith\/2010\/08\/rachelheldevans-salvation.html"},"modified":"2010-08-27T06:21:10","modified_gmt":"2010-08-27T06:21:10","slug":"rachelheldevans-salvation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/omeoflittlefaith\/2010\/08\/rachelheldevans-salvation.html","title":{"rendered":"Rachel Held Evans on Works-Based Salvation"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"RachelHeldEvans.jpg\"<\/span>I’m not sure that<\/b> Rachel Held Evans<\/a> needs a full introduction on this blog, other to say she’s the author of the excellent new book Evolving in Monkey Town<\/i><\/a> and was interviewed here a couple of months ago (Part 1<\/a>, Part 2<\/a>). Rachel and I share more than a publisher. We share a lot of readers and cover a lot of the same territory about doubt, uncertainty, and questions — from different, but hopefully complementary angles. <\/p>\n

I really appreciate her writing…in the book, on her blog<\/a>, and now here, with today’s “Voices of Doubt” contribution.<\/p>\n

————-<\/p>\n

For me, doubt comes and goes in waves.<\/b><\/p>\n

Triggered by some seemingly insignificant event–a news report, a Bible
\nstudy, an abandoned baby sparrow–it shows up like an unexpected guest
\nwith baggage in tow, and I never know how long it’s going to stay.<\/p>\n

Having grown up in the apologetics-driven evangelical subculture of
\nthe 80s and 90s, it took a few years for me to accept the fact that
\ndoubt will likely be a part my life for a while, that I can’t just
\nargue it away, Josh McDowell-style. I spent so much of my early
\ntwenties trying desperately to avoid doubt that I’d like to spend my
\nlate twenties learning how to live with it, and in a way that honors
\nthis God I believe in…most of the time.<\/p>\n

I hate to admit it, but the best advice I’ve received about doubt came
\nnot from a famous apologist or an esteemed theologian, but from my
\nFacebook wall, upon which my college friend David shared this advice:<\/p>\n

“Belief is always a risk, a gamble–an adventure, if you will. The line
\nbetween faith and doubt is the point of action. You don’t need
\ncertainty to obey, just the willingness to risk being wrong.”<\/p>\n

David’s comment earned something like 33 “likes,” which on Facebook is
\nthe equivalent of a Pulitzer.<\/p>\n

His point is indeed profound: Doubt leads to spiritual paralysis only
\nwhen it keeps us from taking the risk of obedience. <\/b>Rather than a sign
\nof weakness, obedience in the midst of uncertainty is the sign of true
\nfaith. It is the point at which we take the leap.<\/p>\n

A beautiful example of such obedience can be found in Mother Teresa,
\nwho would have turned 100 yesterday. It is a testimony to true
\nfaithfulness that the same woman who tirelessly welcomed the sick and
\npoor into her arms wrote in a letter to a friend<\/a>, “I call, I cling, I
\nwant–and there is no One to answer. Where is my Faith? …So many
\nunanswered questions live within me.”<\/p>\n

Mother Teresa took the ultimate risk. She committed her life to
\nserving a God who didn’t always feel close or fair or real. I suspect
\nthat there were many days when every part of her–body, mind,
\nspirit–felt like giving up. But she kept on loving when it didn’t come
\neasy, and that is what made her great. The saints among us are those
\nwho know that sometimes obedience precedes belief.<\/p>\n

Taking my cues from “Mama T,” I try to look for God in the least of
\nthese. I try to continue serving through my doubts. I try to worship
\nand pray and love other people even when it feels a little fake.<\/p>\n

What I’ve found is that going through the motions can be surprisingly
\nredemptive.<\/b> Often there is faith–or something quite like it–on the
\nother side. Over the years I’ve learned more from working alongside
\nwidows and orphans whose faith in the Gospel puts mine to shame than
\nfrom the piles of apologetics resources and theological books sent my
\nway.<\/p>\n

This is why I like to tease my fellow evangelicals by saying I believe
\nin “works-based salvation” (a comment that would typically earn some
\nserious “dislike” on Facebook).<\/p>\n

When I say that, I am of course not suggesting that we can somehow
\nearn God’s favor through acts of good behavior. I am simply suggesting
\nthat there is a sort of daily liberation that can be found in
\nobedience. Each good work has a way of loosening the chains of sin
\n(and doubt and fear) around my feet.<\/p>\n

Such obedience is hard, and it’s something that I fail at most of the
\ntime, but it’s something I’ve experienced in little fits and starts
\nalong the way, enough to know that it’s worth the risk.<\/p>\n

————-<\/p>\n

Amen.<\/b> <\/p>\n

Thank you, Rachel. You can follow Rachel on Twitter<\/a> and Facebook<\/a>, or join the always-interesting discussion at rachelheldevans.com<\/a><\/a>.<\/p>\n

Previous posts in the “Voices of Doubt” series…<\/b><\/p>\n

\u2022 Winn Collier: Doubt Better<\/a>
\u2022 Tyler Clark on Losing Fear, Losing Faith<\/a>
\u2022 Rob Stennett on the Genesis of Doubt<\/a>
\u2022 Adam Ellis on Hoping That It’s True<\/a>
\u2022 Nicole Wick on Breaking Up with God<\/a>
\u2022 Anna Broadway on Doubt and Marriage<\/a><\/div>\n

<\/div>\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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