Summit Point Church,
a Church in Independence, MO.
Do You Have Questions and
Doubts about God?
Many people today have a lot of questions but feel that Christians or "the church" will look down on them if they have doubts. There are two kinds of people who explore the God question.
The first group would consider themselves Agnostic. They believe there is some higher power, but who that is, they don't know. Many of their beliefs are assumptions or ideas taken from observation of the world, not grounded in theological teaching. They might think that all religions lead to the same God, you know, "same God, many roads."
The other group of people have some church experience but still have a lot of questions about God. They ask important questions like why does God allow suffering? How can we believe a book that is thousands of years old? Which church is the right or true church? Don't they all claim to be the one?
We see in Mark 9:23-24 that a man came to Jesus for help with an ill child. Jesus told the father to have faith and believe his son would be healed. The man's response is a lot like many people today; they have some faith in God, but need help overcoming their unbelief. That is what Reasonable Doubt is for: to help people like you become overcomers. The Truth is that seeking understanding and asking questions is how we learn. In fact, hundreds of years ago, people would have debates in the church to discuss and explore questions of faith.
Reasonable Doubt starts with the basic premise that people have real questions and want to be able to find real answers. What they do not want is to be judged for their questions or feel like someone is going to tell them their belief is dumb, wrong, or it will send them to hell. In fact, many people believe in Jesus; it is the church and the Bible they have a problem with.
How it Works:
Every Reasonable Doubt session includes these three things: food, a 20 to 30-minute talk on the Christian faith, and a small group discussion. Even though each of these elements will always be involved, every Reasonable Doubt is going to look a little different depending on your group and context.
Reasonable Doubt Schedule:
5 min – Meet and greet, welcome
40 min – Dinner
30 min – Video talk
45 min – Small group discussion
Please Note: During Small Group Discussion it is a time to talk and share your views in a nonjudgemental space.
Reasonable Doubt Outline:
The Reason For God Series
Week 1: Isn't the Bible a Myth?
Week 2: How Can You Say There is Only One Way to God?
Week 3: What Gives You the Right to Tell Me How to Live...
Week 4: Why Does God Allow Suffering?
Week 5: Why is the Church Responsible for Much Injustice?
Week 6: How Can God Send Good People to Hell?
Alpha Series
Week 7: Is There More to Life Than This?
Week 8: Who is Jesus?
Week 9: Why Did Jesus Die?
Week 10: How Can I Have Faith?
Week 11: Why and How Do I Pray?
Week 12: Why and How Should I Read the Bible?
Week 13: How Does God Guide Us?
Week 14: How Can I Resist Evil?
Week 15: Why and How Should I Tell Others?
Week 16: What About the Church?
