What Is Faith Deconstruction?
Deconstruction of faith has become quite popular lately.
Unfortunately, many people use this approach to deal with questions or doubts about the Christian faith. Here are a few reasons why:
– They see the truth of scripture as subjective.
– Religious institutions have told them not to investigate questions or doubts.
– They choose to replace uncomfortable truths with what is popular and acceptable in culture.
By definition, “deconstruction” is a process of doubting, questioning, and ultimately rejecting certain aspects of the Christian faith.
Deconstruction becomes detrimental when the most crucial step is missed – reconstruction.
A simple pathway to reconstruction:
Most people hear some kind of take on the Bible, religion, church, or God and begin constructing their faith. Intentionally or not, their faith is forming with a specific order.
Real-life experiences can challenge faith’s construct resulting in disorder.
Disappointment in life, pain caused by someone you trust, abuse, loss of a loved one, the result of bad decisions, the fallout from divorce, seeing the evil in the world are all real-life examples that can disorder beliefs.
Additionally, success, money, promotion, power, and self-fulfillment can easily become a way to dismiss the truth of scripture and find truth in self. It’s why phrases like “live your truth” have become so popular, but unfortunately, those phrases can also disorder beliefs.
When what we believe gets disordered, we can either approach it as an opportunity to give up on faith or grow in faith.
Deconstruction only becomes a step towards growth when it leads to the most important step of reconstruction.
Reconstruction means rebuilding disordered faith through the combination of scripture, the Holy Spirit, and a humble heart. Human reasoning alone will not reorder faith.
The apostle Paul explains it this way, “But it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets” (1 Corinthians 2:10).
A simple Guide:
If you or someone you know is in the process of deconstruction, here is a first-timer’s guide to reading the Bible (click here for why scripture is so important).
– Start reading one chapter per day in the gospel of Matthew.
– Choose one verse from the chapter to reflect on.
– Write the verse down on paper.
– Answer the question, what did I learn about Jesus?
– Do this for all four gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John).
P.S.— To hear more about why what you believe about God and his word matters, click here to check out part 2 of our series, The Truth Will Set You Free.