The Real Reason Most Skeptics Don't Consider the Claims of Christ

It would be wise when witnessing to skeptics of Christianity to remember that it is not usually intellectual objections alone that keep a person from seriously considering the claims of Christ. Many times, a major reason for their resistance is that they are enjoying a sinful lifestyle that they know will have to change if they are to become Jesus' disciples. Jesus said, "The light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light, and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed" (John 3:19-20). Lee Strobel, a former atheist, confesses, "I had a lot of motivation to find faults with Christianity when I was an atheist. I knew that my hard-drinking, immoral, and self-obsessed lifestyle would have to change if I ever became a follower of Jesus, and I wasn't sure I wanted to let go of that. After all, it was all I knew. Consequently, instead of trying to find the truth, I found myself attempting to fend off the truth with fabricated doubts and contrived objections." Knowing that this is commonly the case, I like to ask atheists and skeptics a gentle but pointed question, something like this, "Could it be that the real reason you reject believing in God (or believing the Bible, etc), is that there is something you enjoy doing that you know you'll have to give up if you were to believe?" Surprisingly, sometimes they confess that that is indeed part of the problem. Having that out in the open allows the Christian ambassador to fine-tune his approach and not waste time debating issues that are really just a smokescreen.