Sincerity and Skydiving
Sincerity does not guarantee accuracy.
December, 2016
Consider two men skydiving. Brimming with confidence and enthusiasm, they leap from a plane into empty air. Both are plummeting towards the earth, and the only thing standing between them and certain death are the contraptions strapped to their backs. The first man pulls a cord, and a parachute opens, slowing him down for a safe landing. The second man pulls a cord, and a life preserver inflates around his arms, leading to panic before the inevitable.
Whatever you think about the wisdom of skydiving, one thing these two men certainly had was sincerity. Assuming neither had a death wish, both were utterly confident in the object they were attached to. They were entirely convinced it would save them from disaster. Clearly, their sincerity had no meaningful impact on reality. The fact that both men were willing to jump from a plane wearing their gear proves only one thing: they truly believed this was a wise choice. That conviction didn't actually cause their confidence to become reality.
The connection between this example and our faith comes through clearly in the book of Hebrews. Hebrews 2:1–4 encourages the reader to "pay much closer attention" to the words of God. Reality will not accommodate our lack of effort: sincere or not, any time we follow error over truth, there will be consequences. This is as true in our spirituality as it is for a skydiver. Parachutes don't work simply because we really really want them to. They either work because they are a correctly-arranged piece of equipment, or they do not work. Our beliefs are not true simply because we really really want them to be. They are either aligned with truth, or they do not work.
This is a key point to keep in mind when discussing other religions or religious interpretations. The sincerity of a suicide bomber is not an indicator that his beliefs are true. It only signals that his belief is genuine. But, like the unfortunate man in our example, earnest belief can be earnestly misplaced. Faith is only as useful as what we put our faith in.
Biblically, faith is really "trust," so the value of our faith is entirely determined by who or what we are trusting in. The man who put his trust in a life jacket wasn't going to be saved from a 5,000-foot fall. He was going to be let down for choosing an object unworthy of his trust. In our scenario, it's not hard to imagine how the disaster could have been avoided. If the man had chosen to "pay much closer attention" to what he was wearing, he probably would have seen the error of his ways.
While the difference between a parachute and a life vest may be obvious, not all spiritual matters are so easily discerned. Fortunately, the book of Hebrews also offers us a powerful tool for knowing whether we are operating on mere sincerity, or actual truth. Hebrews 4:12 pictures the written word of God as a razor-sharp sword. Like a filet knife, it can separate even the deepest, tightest, most indistinguishable parts. This tool is given to us by God in order to know the difference between what "seems" spiritual, and what is actually of God.
This is why, at BibleRef, we strive to promote a deep, context-driven, humble approach to the Word of God. Gravity does not care if you're sincere: no parachute means no safe landing. Truth, likewise, is not influenced by our personal preferences or confusions. We have a responsibility to be diligent—to "pay much closer attention"—about the messages God has given us. Most critical of these is His perfect written Word, the Bible. We cannot be careless with Scripture and expect a good result, no matter how sincere we are.
Just ask the man skydiving in a life preserver.
-- Editor
