Article 14 of 14 | Honest Questions
By Dr. Timothy Mann
Coming back to faith is not starting over; it is coming home. What was lost in the far country- the doubt, the hard-won honesty, the years themselves- does not disqualify anyone. In God's hands it becomes part of the story, and the story is not finished.
This is the second half, and the final article, in the Honest Questions series. Part one showed a father watching the road, whose welcome rested on his own character, not his son's worthiness. What follows closes the question, and the series: what does a person actually bring back with them, and does it disqualify them?
Coming Back Is Not Starting Over. It Is Coming Home.
Something holds many people back from returning to faith: the feeling that too much has happened, that there is too much distance, that returning to belief would require somehow undoing everything that came between then and now.
That is not what the parable describes. The son did not un-experience the far country. The years of waste and degradation were real. They happened. They left marks. The father's welcome did not erase the history. It redeemed it. The son came home as a man who had been through something, carrying the scars of where he had been, and found that the father's love was large enough to receive all of it.
Coming back to faith is not starting over. It is coming home. The God who knew a person before they walked away still knows them. The faith held as a child or a young person was real, even if it was incomplete. The doubt and the distance and the questions were real too. God is not asking anyone to pretend none of it happened. He is asking them to turn, to begin the journey home, and He will run to meet them with everything the rest of their life requires.
What does a person bring back with them? The questions developed while away. The hard-won honesty. The earned skepticism of easy answers. The depth that came from going through the far country. These are not liabilities. A faith rebuilt on the other side of genuine doubt and honest questioning is often far more solid than the faith held before leaving, because now the alternatives are known, and none of them satisfied what the soul was looking for.
The Apostle Paul was an enemy of the Christian faith before he became its greatest missionary. Augustine wasted his youth in every kind of excess before he became one of the greatest theologians in Christian history. John Newton, who wrote Amazing Grace, was a slave trader before he was saved. The far country does not disqualify anyone. In God's hands, it becomes part of the story. And the story is not finished.
Welcome Home
Can a person who used to believe come back? Yes. The door is not just open; the Father is watching the road. He sees a person long before they are close. And He runs.
No speech of apology needs to be finished before He receives someone. No one needs to be worthy. What is needed is to turn and begin the journey home. That is all. The rest, the robe, the ring, the sandals, the celebration, is His to give. And He gives it not grudgingly but with the joy of a father who has found what was lost.
This question closes out the Honest Questions series. Whatever question, doubt, wound, or wandering led a reader here, the hope of the series itself is worth holding onto. The God of the Christian faith is not afraid of hard questions. He does not demand that anyone have it all figured out before He receives them. He is a God who enters suffering, who provides grace that no achievement can earn, who rose from the dead to prove that nothing, not even death, has the last word.
APPLICATION & REFLECTION
For anyone ready to come home, the prayer is simple. Tell God honestly where you have been. Tell Him that Jesus Christ is His Son, that He died for your sins and rose again.
And tell Him you are coming home. He will meet you before you finish the sentence. Welcome home.
Who in your life has been standing at that same distance, wondering if the door is still open?
What would it cost you to tell them what this series has said?
We hope you enjoyed this series, "Honest Questions." If you missed the beginning of our series “Honest Questions” find the article links below:
Article 1: If God Is Good, Why Is There So Much Suffering? (Part 1)
Article 2: If God Is Good, Why Is There So Much Suffering? (Part 2)
Article 3: Has Science Disproved the Bible? (Part 1)
Article 4: Has Science Disproved the Bible? (Part 2)
Article 5: How Can a Loving God Send Anyone to Hell? (Part 1)
Article 6: How Can a Loving God Send Anyone to Hell? (Part 2)
Article 7: Isn't the Bible Just Written by Men? (Pt 1)
Article 8: Isn't the Bible Just Written by Men? (Pt 2)
Article 9: Why Would God Care About Me? (Pt 1)
Article 10: Why Would God Care About Me? (Pt 2)
Article 11: Can I Trust a God I Cannot See? (Pt 1)
Article 12: Can I Trust a God I Cannot See? (Pt 2)
Article 13: I Used to Believe. Can I Come Back? (Pt 1)
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FAQ
Q: Does past sin or doubt disqualify someone from returning to faith?
A: No. Paul persecuted the church before becoming its greatest missionary, Augustine lived in excess before becoming a foundational theologian, and John Newton, who wrote Amazing Grace, was a slave trader before his conversion. The far country becomes part of the story, not a disqualification.
Q: What does it look like to come back to God after walking away?
A: It begins with honesty: telling God where you have been, affirming that Jesus Christ died and rose again, and turning toward home. Scripture pictures God running to meet that turn before a person even finishes explaining themselves.