Does it matter what I believe?
The answer to this question depends on whether or not you are concerned about the consequences of your belief
If you believe that the world is flat and do not mind the ridicule of other people, then it doesn’t matter. However, if you believe that you can cross busy roads without looking out for passing vehicles, that belief could lead to very serious consequences if adhered to. Continuing in that belief is likely to lead to behaviour causing your death and the death of others, in which case it does matter.
When we ask – does it matter what you believe, in the context of what is written in God’s Word, again it is important to examine the consequences of what we believe in order to decide whether it matters or not.
In the Christian world, there are all kinds of ideas about salvation and there are a tremendous variety of beliefs, all claiming to represent the true Christian faith. Some profess that it really does not matter what we believe as long as we believe in Jesus Christ. They feel that we are all going to be saved in the end. Is this what the Bible teaches?
Romans 1:16 states that “the Gospel is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth.” “That the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe” (Galatians 3:22).
The Lord spoke to a Samaritan woman by a well and stated that “the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth” (John 4:23-24).
If our beliefs are what determine whether we can be saved, and if only those whose beliefs are true will be saved, then it does matter what we believe. When the Bible states that Jesus Christ will return to the earth to rule as king, and that he will resurrect the dead, then heaven going and the immortal soul contradict Bible teachings and those beliefs are not based on the Bible.
Does it matter what you believe?
The answer to this vital question is truly a matter of life and death!