Taking every thought captive for obedience to Christ (2 Cor. 10.5)

The Question
What does it mean when someone claims to be an atheist? (2)
As we bear witness to Jesus Christ, we’re likely to encounter people who, in one form or another, claim to be atheists.

This appears to be a growing trend, though not one that should disturb or trouble us, given that, for all the energy expended in atheism’s cause, the ranks of the persuaded are fairly meager – somewhere around 3% of American adults.

Nevertheless, we can expect to encounter the occasional atheist – or one who claims to be an atheist – and, when we do, we need to follow the example of Jesus, entering the atheist’s world to understand and serve in love. This we must do with patience and attentiveness, and by asking relevant questions.

We began exploring this question by considering four possibilities of what someone might mean who makes this claim:

1. He might be saying, “There is no God” or “I’m convinced there is no God.”
2. He might mean, “I don’t believe in God.”
3. He might be saying, more broadly, “I don’t believe in the idea of God.” That is, it’s not just that he doesn’t believe in some particular deity; he finds the very idea of deity and all unseen, spiritual, or supernatural reality untenable.
4. Finally, he might mean that he doesn’t believe that faith is a reliable approach to living. And we will want him to explain more fully what he means by “believe” or “faith,” just so we and he can be clear.

Let’s consider the first possibility of what someone might mean who claims to be an atheist.

Suppose we ask our friend, who claims to be an atheist, for a fuller definition of what he means by that, and he insists, “Well, I mean there is no God” or “I’m convinced there is no God.”
Either way, to make such a statement indicates a degree of certainty concerning a matter of great importance that should only be arrived at after careful consideration and much thought.

Our first line of response, therefore, if we really want to understand this claim, must be to explore the means whereby our friend has arrived at this conclusion. So we can ask, “That’s interesting: How have you come to this opinion?”

We can imagine a variety of responses, and we’ll want to listen carefully here as throughout our whole conversation. He may say that he has thought the matter through carefully, weighing the evidence available to him. Our atheist friend may have read some books, blogs, or articles on the subject, listened to a persuasive speaker, or taken a course on the “God question.” We want to find out which resources, speakers, or courses, and we will invite our friend to elaborate a bit on the particular arguments which have persuaded him to this conviction.

He may find it a bit difficult to recall these with any degree of specificity.

Alternately, our friend may reply by saying he has become convinced that God does not exist by observing the hypocritical, shallow, and unloving behavior of the people he knows who profess belief in God. On this issue we will not want to try to defend ourselves or our Christian brethren; rather, we can only agree with our friend that the poor behavior of many believers tends to discredit their profession.

Finally, it’s possible that our friend may reply to our question by saying, “I used to believe” or “I have tried believing in God, and it doesn’t work, not for me anyway.”

Thus far, we can see that we should not simply dismiss our friend’s opinion concerning the non-existence of God. He has thought about it, considered the lifestyles of those who claim to believe, and even tried believing in God himself; and on the basis of reason, evidence, and experience, he has arrived at his conviction.

We’ll want to explore a bit more fully the path which he has traveled to this point.

For reflection
1.  Do you know any people who claim to be atheists? Do you pray for them, and for opportunities to talk with them about this matter?

2.  At all times believers are to speak the truth in love and be gracious in their conversations (Eph. 4.15; Col. 4.6). How can we know when we’re beginning to drift from those requirements?

3.  How familiar are you with the reasons people give for not believing in God?

Have any of your Christian friends talked with someone claiming to be an atheist? See what you can find out, and what you can learn from them.

T. M. Moore

Stretch your vision of Christ and His Kingdom by ordering a copy of T. M.’s book, The Kingship of Jesus, from our online store (click here). You can download a free meditation on the glory of Jesus Christ exalted, Glorious Vision: 28 Days in the Throne Room of the Lord, by clicking here.

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