How Do We Determine What We Believe?

Have you ever wondered how people decide what they believe? There are so many different viewpoints out there on virtually everything. How do people decide what to think and what to believe? The process that one takes in determining their belief system can actually tell you a lot about that person and how grounded they are in their beliefs.

There are four main ways that people determine what they believe. First, some people will study all the evidence on whatever topic they are wrestling with and let the facts and evidence determine what they believe. Second, some will follow whatever moves them emotionally. If it makes them feel good then it must be true. Third, other people will determine what they believe and then twist and distort the facts and evidence to fit their predetermined beliefs and ideas. Fourth, some people will just blindly accept whatever they are told. These people refuse to think for themselves…they are negligently ignorant. As a result they can’t defend what they believe, all they can do is regurgitate the information that have been fed. They confuse learned biblical knowledge with unconscious rote memorization.

What is difficult about this is the fact that people don’t realize they are doing this. It is not something that is done by making a conscious decision. It is usually only recognized by taking a step back and asking honest questions about your beliefs.

Many in Independent Fundamental Baptist circles decide what they believe and then try and prove that by twisting the truth of Scripture to fit their ideas. That is one reason they are so committed to topical preaching. In topical preaching you are able to determine what you think and then pick and choose Scripture to fit that preconceived idea. The loyalty is not to Scripture but to the pre-formulated ‘beliefs’. The pastors of these types of churches don’t want to be questioned because they have a hard time defending their viewpoints due to the fact that those viewpoints are not based on what truth dictates but on what they have decided they want to believe.

In many charismatic circles, beliefs are determined by emotion and feeling. In these groups, loyalty is to what feels right more so than to what Scripture says is right. The focus is on emotion rather than knowledge or truth. Scripture is twisted to draw an emotional response not a knowledge-based response. Pastors in these churches don’t want to be questioned because asking honest questions does not involve or require emotion. Without emotion their ‘beliefs’ won’t hold up.

The correct way to determine what you believe is by studying topics with an open mind. It is by searching for truth and letting that truth determine your beliefs, not by letting your beliefs determine truth. There is a big difference!