Pastor Steven Furtick on Doubting: 'Faith is Not the Absence of Doubt'

Veronica Neffinger | iBelieve Contributor | Updated: Jul 13, 2018

Pastor Steven Furtick on Doubting: 'Faith is Not the Absence of Doubt'

Steven Furtick, pastor of North Carolina megachurch Elevation Church, recently preached a message titled “The Benefit of the Doubt” in which he talks about the place of doubt in the Christian life.

According to Relevant, in the message Furtick particularly discusses having doubts when reading the Bible. Although doubt is often viewed negatively in the Christian life, Furtick shared that doubt is a part of life, and that, even though he is a pastor, he still struggles with doubt like everyone else.

“I have my doubts. I read that whom the Son sets free is free indeed but sometimes I feel bound by stuff. I have my doubts. Is that alright? Do you need to find another church now that you know that the dude with the mic has some doubts? …

I meet these people and they say things to me, because of my profession I guess, they make assumptions about me, because there’s a ‘Rev.’ in front of my name. They make assumptions about me that I don’t have real doubts.”

Furtick went on to share that just because someone has doubts doesn’t mean that his/her faith is not real or is in danger.

“For me, faith has never been the absence of doubt,” he said. “Faith is not the absence of doubt; it is the means to overcome it.”

He added that having questions and wrestling through things is healthy:

“If you don’t doubt [the Bible], you’re not reading it or you’re reading it with no intent to live it. See my doubt is the evidence of my growth. The closer I get, the more questions I have.”

To watch Furtick's whole sermon, see below:

 

Photo courtesy: Facebook/Steven Furtick

Publication date: July 13, 2018



Pastor Steven Furtick on Doubting: 'Faith is Not the Absence of Doubt'