Bible Study with the Cincotti’s – A Crisis of Faith – 08/24/2025
Today’s Bible Study, Authored by Arthur Cincotti.
Listen to our Bible Study Discussion at: A Crisis of Faith Audio Podcast
Or watch the Video Zoom Session of our Study on YouTube:
A Crisis of Faith
“We walk by faith and not by sight.” II Co. 5:7
“But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” Heb. 11:6
“For what does the Scripture say? ‘Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” Rm. 4:3
Often times we don’t really know what we are getting ourselves into on this faith journey. It probably started out rather nice; a rush of euphoria at an old-fashioned altar, a sudden deep sense that everything was going to be all right, that long sought after sense of belonging that gives each one of us value. I’ve often said that it would have been nice if God saved us and then killed us so that we wouldn’t have to endure the long process of sanctification, frequently ping ponging between the notion that we have some things figured out and the ugly reality that we don’t. This is the fine print in our confession of faith that we made on the day or our salvation. This is Christianity: crucify your flesh, and completely revamp your soul (mind, will and emotions). It would be challenging enough if that were all, but we also ticked off an adversary who is worse than Hitler, Stalin, the Joker, and Jason all rolled into one. Becoming a Christian and leaving the world is like trying to leave the mafia. They don’t like that. There is no exit plan other than death.
In so many ways we did die when we embraced Christ as our savior; Gal. 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me…” and Rm. 6:3, “Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?” and how about Col. 3:3, “For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”
This sounds pretty harsh. You don’t see this on many Church signs.
At the core of our faith journey must be a deep abiding trust in the goodness of God and in His determination to, “work all things together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” Rm. 8:28. The declaration of Ps. 52:1 is, “The goodness of God endures continually.” But we will have to endure many things that are not good by any definition. The war with the flesh, the world, and the devil, that we signed up for is ruthless at times. Remaining steadfast committed to Christ in the heat of battle is what fortifies our faith, and proves our love.
The “love” claim of Rm. 8:28 is corrupted because it is our love. God demonstrated His love for us at the cross. Jesus invites us into a reciprocal relationship when He says, “take up the cross and follow Me.” Mk. 10:21
All this is done in the realm of faith. No one gets a guided tour of heaven before making a decision for Christ like the retirement communities that you might see on line. We do get much in the way of description, but it is still necessary to take that by faith. Jesus taught much about the kingdom of God with parables to stir our longing, but also to demonstrate how contrary the kingdom is to the reality that we experience in the natural.
C. S Lewis said, “If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world.”
Without holding the truth of victory in tension with the truth of suffering we become unbalanced and set ourselves up for a crisis of faith. Much of the contemporary church emphasizes victory. It’s like a frat party before a college football game; lots of enthusiasm and bold declarations. I believe in the power of declaration, if we are declaring the character of God. The trouble is that our sense of good is compromised ever since we ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. As we strike out to figure it out we will inevitably hit a wall in the backdrop of inexplicable situations and circumstances.
Lewis writes extensively on the subject of suffering. He was steeped in it while the Nazi’s were dropping bombs all around him. He writes, “I suggest to you that it is because God loves us that He gives us the gift of suffering. Pain is God’s megaphone to rouse a deaf world. You see, we are like blocks of stone out of which the Sculptor carves the forms of men. The blows of His chisel, which hurt us so much are what make us perfect.” Often we are victims of the times that we live in. Ours is a cushy generation. A bad day for many of us is a long line at our favorite coffee shop. I don’t mean to make light of people who are really suffering right now, especially in some parts of the world. We have evidence that in such communities faith is vibrant.
Our aim is to cling to the unwavering character of God which was demonstrated in Christ; it’s not just abstract. A watershed moment for me came in the midst of a long financial crisis. In a counseling session with a friend, he unveiled a fundamental truth that I have clung to in the midst of many similar situations: If He never heals this situation, is He still worthy of your worship? The obvious answer is “YES!” but the temptation in our season of brokenness is to curse God and die, as Job’s wife suggested. There is no vindication in that. For one thing, how can you die if you are already dead? Perhaps you are not quite dead yet. Is the old man rising up and trying to crawl off the altar? This is the test of faith that we all must face to be convinced of its integrity. What do you think that Peter meant when he said, “In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” I Pet. 1:6-7.
As Jesus conveys in many of His parables the dynamics of the kingdom are contrary to the dynamics of the world systems; even, in direct opposition: love your enemies, bless and do not curse, the last shall be first and the first last, the greatest among you shall be the servant of all. These formulas have no place on the climb up the corporate ladder of success. Even worse, they often seem to invite suffering instead of repelling it. They certainly offer no antidote.
In his book, Soul Care, Rob Reimer emphasizes: “The issue of your value is not dependent upon your performance or whether you can control the outcomes of your life. The issue of your value was settled at the cross. This is what you must build your life on. Only when you stand on this foundation can your soul be healthy.”
Unfortunately, we are trained in the contrary from childhood. My parents say that they love me, and they give me stuff and fix every problem. The religious leaders of Israel, in Jesus’ time, thought the same about messiah; that He would fix every problem and give them stuff. The problem that they never considered was their separation from God because of sin. And He rectified that.
The crisis of faith ensues when we step off this foundation and begin redefining goodness around our subjective notions. This is rank creating God in our image; constantly shifting and subject to the frailties of the natural world. But Jesus actually demonstrated both His authority and His worthiness by conquering death, which came into the world because of sin. Rom 6:9 says, “knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him.” Or us, since our life is hidden with Him in God. We are safe. He is our strong tower. We believe this by faith.
Job 13:13-16, “Hold your peace with me, and let me speak
Then let come on me what may!
Why do I take my flesh in my teeth,
And put my life in my hands?
Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him.
Even so, I will defend my own ways before Him.
He also shall be my salvation,
For a hypocrite could not come before Him.”
Today’s Study is dedicated to Benajamin Szafran, a young boy in Arthur’s family who has been undergoing medical treatments for brain cancer. We humbly ask for prayers for Benjamin and the Szafran family.
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