You often hear the expression “blind faith.” What is it? And is it even biblical to speak of doing something in blind faith?
According to the dictionary, blind faith refers to the “unquestionable belief in something, without proof or evidence” (https://usdictionary.com/idioms/blind-faith/)
The origin of that expression is unclear, but it has been suggested that it may be rooted in Jesus’ rebuke of Thomas, who, after His resurrection, famously doubts that what he sees is real: Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (John 20:29).
I got to thinking about this because I have been describing faith as a way of seeing things based on its definition in Hebrews 11:1 (Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen). Faith sees the unseen, spiritual world as our primary reality more so than our three-dimensional, tangible world.
God does not want our faith to be blind in the sense that we don’t want evidence for its existence. If that were the case, we could believe anything. He has given us the ability to evaluate things and use a certain amount of logic. With that in mind, we believe that God exists because we see evidence of that all around us in nature and in the historical records of the Bible.
However, He does want us to have blind faith in another sense. I see three meanings of blind faith for a Christian.
The first and most important is unquestioning trust in God as our Creator, Redeemer, Counselor, and Father. It assumes that His plans for us are perfect, that He will guide, protect, and provide for us, that He loves us, and that our place in heaven after we die is secured – even when we don’t fully understand why He is doing certain things or allowing certain circumstances in our lives.
The second meaning of blind faith is the decision not to see the things around us that may undermine our trust in God. Remember Peter wanting to walk to Jesus on water? As long as he kept his eyes on Jesus, he didn’t sink. As soon as he decided to look at the windswept waves, he sank. He shifted his trust from the effect of looking at Jesus to the effect of the wind and the waves. Keeping his eyes fixed on Jesus meant turning a blind eye to the elements. Fixing his eyes on the precariousness of his situation meant turning a blind eye to Jesus and immediately losing his trust that he could walk on water. This is very relevant to Jennifer and me right now. It is easy to start thinking about the difficulties of moving to Africa in our mid-sixties, having to find groceries, knowing where to go, and finding our way around in a developing country. When we see those problems, we become afraid. But when I fix my eyes on the promise He gave me in Isaiah 46:4, my fear turns to peace: Even to your old age I am he, and to gray hairs, I will carry you. I have made, and I will bear; I will carry and will save.
The third meaning is to not limit God by our expectations. Blind faith does not question how or when God will answer our pleas for help. Yet that is where our human nature and its insatiable desire for control can get in the way. We try to anticipate how God will answer our prayers. I don’t know about you, but my imagination plays tricks on me with that. When I ask God for something specific – big or small – I start fantasizing about Him answering it. My mind develops scenarios in which He does specific things to answer that prayer. For instance, when we began praying for the miraculous provision of funds to buy Eagles Wings, I began daydreaming of superwealthy people finding out about it and writing big checks. Perhaps it is the logical mind trying to predict or control the unknown. Or perhaps it is my control enthusiasm compensating for not being able to figure out how God will do this. Frankly, I don’t know. But I do know that God wants us to completely trust Him, not only for His ability to meet our needs but for how and when.
So, blind faith is wrong if it involves belief in baseless things. But it is necessary to fully believe that God is at work in our lives to become our all-in-all and that His ways are higher than our ways.
Ask yourself today: am I choosing to have unquestionable faith in God for all things – big and small? Am I turning a blind eye to the tribulations that undermine my faith and imagination that limits my faith in God doing things His way?
Perhaps it leads to this prayer of surrender: Help me have unquestionable faith in you!