The Link Between Disobedience and Unbelief

This past Sunday, I taught from 1 Samuel 13.  The main point I sought to draw out was the connection between unbelief and disobedience in the life of Saul and in our lives.  We often don't think of our acts of disobedience to God as symptoms of residual unbelief in our hearts.  That just sounds too serious or too horrible to be true of us, but I believe it is true.  Below are the three points of reflection and application I made about this subject:

True faith or unbelief is often demonstrated in how we respond to hopeless situations. It is often in the difficulties of life- a broken relationship, financial hardship, health problems- that we see what is really going on in our hearts.  How we respond, either by obedience or disobedience to God, shows what is in our heart: trust or distrust of God’s sovereignty, wisdom and goodness.   Every time we choose to sin, unbelief is a factor. We are failing to believe that obedience to God gives superior joy compared to the empty promises of sin.

Disobedience to God is so serious because it is actually a sign of unbelief .  This is clear in 1 Samuel, but made even more explicit in Hebrews 11:24-26.  In this section, contained in "the hall of faith," Moses is held up as an example of faith.  He obeys God even though it means giving up an easy life for a life of difficulty and suffering.  The reason he does it is he believed God's promises.  The opposite is true too.  When we disobey God, it is a sign that we are not believing his promises are greater than the fleeting pleasures of sin.  This is important to remember when you are battling a particular sin or helping someone who is.  When a person is sinning with pornography or indulgent spending or out of control anger, the primary issue is not a lack of self-control (though that is an issue).  It goes deeper.  It is believing the false promises of sin over the joy producing promises of God.  It is living by sight and feeling instead of faith in what God has said.

We can have unbelief even in religious ritual.   Saul demonstrates his unbelief by offering sacrifices.  Just because we do a religious thing doesn't mean we are demonstrating true faith.  Faith is not simply external action (though it should affect our actions).  It comes from a heart that is truly seeking God.

It is scary to think unbelief still resides in our hearts.  You may wonder, does this mean I am an unbeliever? If what I have said is true (that every sin is a mark of remaining unbelief) then all Christians still have lingering unbelief because we all still sin.  The difference is those who truly know God realize they still have unbelief and cry out "Lord, I believe, help my unbelief" (Mark 9:20-24).  In other words, "I believe, but my faith is weak.  Help me believe you God."  Those who don't offer this cry to the Father should hear the warning of Hebrews 3:12, "Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God."