Atheism Is a Faith? (What is Faith?)

What? Is atheism a faith? Sure seems like it. They have their share of fanatics like most any religion, and you know what? They even have their own churches. Seriously, guys? As for the question, the answer is no, it's not.

The Absence of Faith and the Faithlessness of Unbelief

Atheism is not a rebranding of faith, it's the absence of faith, and scripture affirms this. In 2 Thessalonians 3, the Apostle Paul asked the church for prayer, and one of the things that he asked them to pray for is deliverance from wicked and evil men who are faithless.

In this context, that doesn't mean just atheists, but anyone who does not follow Christ, to whom faith is offensive. Even polytheists are faithless, they worship gods of their own making because they do not have faith.

You could surely say that an atheist worships, they worship themselves. But if we're serious, a statement like, I don't have enough faith to be an atheist, is a misunderstanding of what faith really is.

The Biblical Definition of Faith

Hebrews 11 -1 reads, faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. So the biblical definition of faith is not a guess at something we can't see, it is knowing with absolute certainty the promises of God.

We can see in history that He's fulfilled His promises in the past, and He will do what He's promised for the future. So certain are we of His words that we are convicted to obey them. Here's something that goes against the common understanding, to not have faith is to actually refuse to think.

Faith, Wisdom, and Obedience to God

Psalm 92, 5 -6 reads, How great are your works, O Lord! Your thoughts are very deep. The stupid man cannot know, the fool cannot understand this. When the subject of faith comes up, avoid semantic arguments and direct others to the truth.

To live by faith is to know the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes. And that's when we understand the text.