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By Hank Walker | Pastor at Peach City Fellowship

Are you a practical atheist? This question challenges us to examine the consistency between our professed beliefs and our everyday actions. Christians, claim to have faith in God and His promises, yet their lives often reflect a different reality.

PRACTICAL ATHEISM means to live as if God does not exist, despite claiming to believe in Him. This inconsistency is not uncommon. Professing Christians attend church, read the Bible, and pray, but when faced with life’s challenges, they tend to retreat to worldly solutions rather than biblical ones. The avoidance of pain and pursuit of pleasure are the two impulses that drive human behavior; obsession with these temporal ends will eventually “out” the nominal (in-name-only) Christian.

The Bible admonishes us not to place our hope in worldly things. Jesus warns, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven…” (Matt. 6:19-20). Earthly possessions and temporal pursuits are fleeting; it is only one’s spiritual investments that yield eternal rewards.

Moreover, the Apostle John forewarns us, “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever” (1 John 2:15-17). The practical atheist shrugs such admonitions off; surely, they reason, “This is too impractical to be taken seriously!”

Finally, the Apostle Paul instructs true believers, “Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth” (Colossians 3:2). Genuine Christians are ever cultivating a mindset that prioritizes eternal perspectives over temporary concerns. This is an impossible feat for the carnally-minded person (even if he or she CLAIMS to be a Christian).

Christians, we are called to live out an authentic and biblically obedient faith. Jesus had an unsavory name for those who claim to know Him, but do not look, live, or love like Him: “You hypocrites!” Practical atheism is, indeed, a fool’s errand. Examine yourself. What are you?

Grace & peace, y’all.

Soli Deo Gloria