It makes sense that our spiritual and invisible Creator would endow us, who live in the physical and visible world, with the ability to believe in what cannot be seen, proven, or does not yet exist. Last week’s article focused on the power of belief and how it inspires men to be faithful men, leading with courage, boldness, and vision. Such men make our world a better place.

This is the fifth article in The Five Big Questions of Life series. Previous articles in this series are always available at http://www.webbweekly.com.

Belief is a bridge that spans the distance between what we know and what we don’t know yet. We build bridges of belief every day that allow us to overcome obstacles and move forward. Without bridges of belief, our world would come to a screeching halt.

We have established the reasonableness of belief and its power for accomplishing good, but we must also be aware that building bridges of belief can be a risky venture. Here are two cautions for every bridge builder:

First, the further a bridge of belief travels from the rock of knowledge, the more difficult it is to build and maintain. It is a basic fact of engineering that long bridges require greater investment in strength and durability. Once built, they also require diligent maintenance. Long bridges are a lot of work and expense. The same is true for long bridges of belief.

Some people believe the Earth is flat, and they are free to build that very long bridge of belief. We know, however, that the world is not flat, so building a bridge of belief between what is known to what a flat-earther believes is going to require a very long span. A bridge that long consumes a lot of resources and collapses quickly under the weight of scrutiny.

Here’s an example that is a little less extreme, but no less important. You are about to purchase a home. Your realtor and your banker believe that you can afford the mortgage, taxes, and maintenance – as long as your income remains consistent and nothing goes wrong. Before signing the purchase documents, you will need to build quite a few bridges of belief to span many concerns:

Will our income keep up with inflation? Will we be able to afford major repairs if something fails? What if the housing market collapses and the value of the home drops by forty percent? What if we become pregnant and one of us wants to leave the workforce to be a stay-at-home parent? What if one of us gets sick or is laid off?

When it comes to mortgages, buyers sometimes build bridges of belief that are too long and unstable. At best, the result is constant anxiety and bondage to excessive payments and second jobs. At worst, it is financial collapse.

Second, bridges can be built to reach dangerous places. Just because a bridge can be built doesn’t mean it should be built.

William K. Clifford, a nineteenth-century British mathematician, wrote this observation on the topic of belief in his work, “The Ethics of Belief”: “It is wrong always, everywhere, and for anyone, to believe anything upon insufficient evidence.”
To defend his statement, Clifford writes about a ship owner who knew his vessel needed major repairs. The owner, however, believed the fair-weather forecast was accurate and the ship would remain intact. His belief contradicted what he already knew about his unworthy ship and unreliable weather forecasts. The bridge he built traveled too far from the rock of knowledge. A sudden storm hit, and the vulnerable ship broke apart and sank. The passengers who drowned paid the price for the owner’s irrational beliefs. His illustration drives home the point that belief without a basis in evidence can be dangerous.

Adolf Hitler was a visionary. He believed in the superiority of a mythical “Aryan” race – a belief that was purely speculative and had no basis in evidence. The bridge he built to reach his destination required selective breeding (eugenics) and the extermination of peoples he determined to have undesirable traits (genocide). The bridge he built reached a terrible destination later called The Holocaust. It was a bridge of belief that should never have been built. Be warned: belief is powerful, but without the guidance of a strong and accurate moral compass, belief can lead bridge-builders astray and cause immense suffering.

In Matthew 7:24-27, Jesus teaches the parable of the wise and foolish builders. One builder believed he could build a safe and stable house on sand. He was wrong. His bridge of belief traveled too far from the rock of knowledge. The result was catastrophic, “The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

You were made to believe, and you are free to believe whatever you want to believe. Be certain, however, that the bridges you build are strong and stable, and that they take the world you influence to worthy destinations.