“It doesn’t matter what you believe as long as you believe something.”

“What you believe will determine how you behave.”

These two statements are antithetical to one another.

I have heard the first statement all my life. Like “the man upstairs” and a few other popular views of God, this statement comes from the popular culture but not from Scripture. While I have heard religious leaders make statements very similar, it is impossible to find the statement or even the sentiment in Scripture.

Actually, you find the exact opposite. Your belief really matters because it determines your behavior. You will act upon your beliefs.

How do we know the second statement is true and the first statement is false.

First, the very nature of Scripture and the character of God speaks against the idea that it doesn’t matter what you believe. To know God is to know the sovereign Lord of the universe. The admonition to worship Him and Him alone is found throughout the Scripture. We worship Him in spirit and in truth. The truth of who God is demands we worship Him as He truly is.

Second, Paul’s letters point out the importance of what we believe. Each of his letters follows a familiar pattern. The first part of each letter begins with the importance of belief. Generally speaking, the first part of the letter contains doctrine with the second half encouraging right behavior.

Paul knew that what you believe determines how you behave. That is why the emphasis in America on teaching character is going so badly. Behavior follows belief. When you worship God you want to follow His ways. He calls us to love one another. He tells us to be kind, compassionate, tenderhearted. He calls us to forgive as we have been forgiven (Ephesians 5:31-32).

Finally, human experience tells us the importance of right belief. Think of the terrorists group known as ISIS (The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria). They rape women, behead children, and execute unarmed soldiers and civilians.

They do all of this in the name of their god. How can this be?

They believe that to rape an infidel woman (one who does not follow Islam) is not a crime. Since the woman is worthless, no crime or inhumanity has been committed. The treatment of women in much of the Islamic world is barbaric, including female genital circumcision and honor killings.

What you believe will determine what you hold dear.

If you worship the God of forgiveness, love, and compassion, you will tend toward that yourself.

For all these reasons, we must learn who God is and we must worship Him in spirit and in truth (John 4:23-24).

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