The Deception of Belief
by Bobby Garner
March 15, 2001

B elief ¹ is the innocent ignorance ² with which a child develops in the womb, believing all, and trusting all. It is the complete absence of all doubt ³. In the mind ⁴ of a newborn, doubt rushes in immediately upon exposure to his new world, and doubt raises questions which need to be answered. A mother's tender love and care, is sufficient for the moment, but new questions continue in a never ending stream, and each one must have an answer. This is the normal process of discovery ⁵ as the cognitive ⁶ function of our minds as created in the image of our Creator God, (Genesis 1, 27) and it begins immediately at birth if not sooner, and is expected to last for a lifetime. True education ⁷ has the capacity to replace the belief of ignorance, while answering the questions and satisfying the doubt, with the result being true knowledge ⁸ of the kind and character defined at Proverbs chapter two, with the benefit as stated in verses 20 through 22. When all ignorance has finally been replaced by true knowledge, there is no room left for belief.

The scriptures encourage us to seek knowledge as though we are looking for hidden treasure. That implies some effort on our part as well as a certain discrimination ⁹ in order to test each new discovery with the objective being to determine it's true value, and the responsibility to reject all that fails to measure up to the one high standard of truth, regardless of it's appearance or other appealing virtue. Holding to such a high standard may cause some pain, but that is the price we must be willing to pay for the treasure of true knowledge, for we will not possess it otherwise.

So, what is that one true, high standard by which everything must finally be judged? In the words of the man Jesus, "I am the way, the truth and the life", and then, "...your word is truth", and, "All things came into existence through him" (that is, Jesus). Also, "After that God saw everything he had made and, look! it was very good". So, the life and teachings of Jesus, the written word of God, as well as his perfect creation are all suitable sources of true knowledge. Noah and Abraham are two well known examples of men who possessed minds trained with the kind of clear thinking ¹⁰ ability which is necessary in order to know God, and understand the unique relationship existing between God and man. This quality of knowledge and understanding is absolutely essential if we hope to have God's favor and be judged kindly by him according to his high standard of truth and moral justice. (John 1, 3: 14, 6: 17, 17: Genesis 1, 31)

Jesus showed us the way to acquire this high quality knowledge, and he taught us by example, and illustration. He said that we must become as little children. What does that mean? Humility of course, teachable, eager to know the truth. It certainly does not mean obediently believing, and it absolutely doesn't mean that we should remain in that condition, for a child that does not grow, is an unhealthy child who will not live to an old age. Rather, we need the clear, questioning, searching mind of a child, for that is the only effective method of mental training available to us, and the only means of acquiring the quality of knowledge and understanding capable of supporting prolonged life. All other inferior knowledge leads to an early, premature, and unnecessary death. It was this inferior knowledge which was offered to Eve in the Garden of Eden, and her acceptance of it condemned us all to an untimely death. But, the life, and more importantly, the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ, provides the means by which we may overcome the effects of death. It was Jesus' sacrifice which opened the way, but we will not be able to access it except by the exercise of the clear thinking ability of a child. (Matthew 18: 3)

For the great majority of humanity, belief has become the mask or standard by which all else is judged. Everything which fails to fit a particular framework of belief is refused. Truth is sacrificed on the alter of belief as a matter of routine without so much as a question. In the absence of questioning, new information is automatically rejected without thought, when it fails to filter through the mask of belief. When the thought process is not routinely called upon, and exercised, it becomes weak and ineffective when applied to anything which does not fit into the framework of the individuals belief system. As a result, the thought processes of such people are reduced to the equivalent of that of an animal which is unable to think. A person thus conditioned, acts as a trained animal when presented with anything new. he bleats for his master and anxiously listens for the sound of his voice. Such is the fallen condition of mankind.

This condition ebbs and flows throughout recorded history, but it has never been fully overcome except in the case of one man, Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God. There are few others who have even come close, Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Melchizedek, and Job are among them. These acted on their own initiative out of recognition and understanding of their position relative to the Creator. Some may wish to add Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, the Apostles and many others, but they must occupy the second tier for they were all prompted to a certain behavior because of God's promise to Abraham, of which they possessed accurate knowledge. Every individual human is endowed with the ability, to acquire this knowledge, but it will not come from sitting close to someone who has it, or listening to him speak. It requires a great deal of work on the individual level as previously stated.

There is a vast, fathomless chasm between belief and knowledge. Belief is the product of merely learning which is more closely related to programing than to education. Belief becomes a fast, cheep and effortless substitute for true knowledge, and it is found in all of man's institutions of religion ¹¹, education, and government, the principle sources of his social regulation. If you think your faith ¹² is not a religion, just challenge one or more of it's teachings in the light of new evidence and see how long you last. You will find that it's teachings are to be accepted on faith, and not questioned, until God speaks to one of it's leaders. This fraudulent ¹³ practice of faith and the concept of free individual thought are mutually exclusive, (both cannot be true) and being thus diametrically opposed, constitutes a contradiction, or paradox ¹⁴ which an honest person will accept as absolute, positive proof of the existence of an error in the process which produces it. What is wrong here, are we to exercise freedom of thought in our search for knowledge, or accept on blind faith, what so called leaders say? By contrast, the faith of Abraham, for example, was the natural result of his ability to think clearly and independently and understand his relationship to his God. All such people who exercise this freedom and natural God given ability will of necessity, arrive at the same undisputed conclusions as the previously cited examples indicate, and that is the truth, as opposed to the lies and deception ¹⁵ of government, religion and tradition.

The quality of belief in the mature adult is an unnatural phenomenon, and constitutes a learned behavior. The connection often made between mans behavior, and the action of a computer, is one of the products of this kind of learning. Mere learning is just as artificial as a programed computer, and the simulated intelligence is equally artificial. The mind simply programed by a learning experience, also has the same thinking capacity of a computer, and is equally unable to discover a previously unknown scientific principle, regardless of the complexity of the program. it will never generate an original thought which was unknown to the programer.

Until now, the mantra in most Christian churches, has been "just believe on the Lord, Jesus Christ, and ye shall be saved", and this admonition has been recommended without question or explanation. The thing which I seem to be at a loss to explain, is that I have no problem with any Bible scripture, but they are routinely used, or misused, to justify a personal belief, and that is the problem. Accepting Jesus is not an option, but a requirement. Exercising faith in him is necessary. Believing in him is evidence of faith and acceptance, but none of it can happen without knowledge of him. (and that was the weakness of the disciple Thomas) John 17: 3 So, when I speak of the need for knowledge, why do people get so upset? It's a rhetorical question, I know the answer.

Every deception requires a little truth, but when truth is misused , it produces ignorance, not knowledge. When people come into a church, and listen to a good sermon, and go down to the alter, and get "saved", emotions run very high, but no one has learned anything. The message is always along the same line. They speaks of this minute and this moment, and just bow your head where you are, while it may be argued that it is just a figure of speech, in reality it urges immediate action, and does not offer, nor does it require further knowledge. Those who respond to this approach are done a great disservice, by convincing them that they need not study and acquire accurate knowledge. Also, when the emphasis is on action, the impression created is that the required knowledge is secondary, or perhaps even, optional, so many who are helped in that way remain in their ignorance, the classic definition of one deceived.

In fact, it is essential that knowledge come first, then accurate knowledge has the power to motivate an honest person to take the necessary action. Those who have taken the action first, are not excused for their lack of knowledge, and without it there is no hope. "How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge?". Proverbs 1: 22 "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee,..." Hosea 4: 6, "Woe unto you, Lawyers! for ye have taken away the key of knowledge: ye entered not in yourselves, and them that were entering in ye hindered" Luke 11: 52, Truth is often an unpleasant thing, because it forces us to make difficult, usually painful choices. I personally find myself experiencing what the wise King Solomon stated at Ecclesiastes 1: 18, "For in much wisdom is much grief: and he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow." In spite of that fact, he explains the advantage which makes it worth while at 7: 12, "...but the excellency of knowledge is, that wisdom giveth life to them that have it". So, that is the basis for the choice to be made. Do we want life? Are we willing to make whatever sacrifices that it may require? Or, do we prefer the simplicity of believing, or accepting a good emotional message which causes us to feel good? I have experienced both, and for me the choice has been made for knowledge. If I am wise, or if I am foolish, Jehovah will decide. "The tongue of the wise useth knowledge aright: but the mouth of fools poureth out foolishness". The lips of the wise disperse knowledge: but the heart of the foolish doeth not so". "The heart of him that hath understanding seeketh knowledge: but the mouth of fools feedeth on foolishness". Proverbs 15: 2, 7 and 14

For further study: Proverbs 1: 20 -33, 5: 13, 8: 10, 9: 9, 10: 14, 14: 18, 15: 7, Isaiah 44: 25, 53:11, Jeremiah 3: 15, Malachi 2: 7

Footnotes:

---

1 Belief - a state or habit of mind in which trust or confidence is placed in some person or thing.. synonyms Belief, Faith, Credence, Credit: mean assent to the truth of something offered for acceptance. Assent - to agree to something, to concur. ^Return

2 Ignorant - destitute of knowledge or education. synonyms Ignorant, Illiterate, Unlettered, Untutored, Unlearned: mean not having knowledge. ^Return

3 Doubt - a: FEAR, b: SUSPECT 2 Doubt - uncertainty of belief or opinion. synonyms Uncertain, Indefinite, Indeterminate: mean lack of sureness, not certain to occur. ^Return

4 Mind - the element or complex of elements in an individual that feels, perceives, thinks, wills and especially reasons. No synonyms. ^Return

5 Discover - to make known or visible. synonyms Discover, Ascertain, Determine, Unearth, Learn: mean to find out what one did not previously know. ^Return

6 Cognition - to become acquainted with, know: the act or process of knowing including both awareness and judgment; also a product of this act. ^Return

7 Education - 2a: to develop mentally, morally, or aesthetically 3: to persuade or condition to feel, believe or act in a desired way. True education is that process which conforms to 2a, the first definition, while 3, the second definition describes the process of indoctrination in the ideology held by the educator. i.e. Brainwashing. It is the first definition which is implied here. ^Return

8 Knowledge - the fact or condition of knowing. synonyms Knowledge, Learning, Erudition, Scholarship: mean what is or can be known by an individual or mankind.. You can't have true knowledge of things which do not exist, and therefore not known. For example, knowledge of the details of a lie or someone's opinion may be accurate, but it is not true, genuine knowledge. ^Return

9 Discriminate - To distinguish between, to mark or perceive the distinguishing features. Discern - to recognize as separate and distinct. Discernment - the quality of being able to grasp and comprehend what is obscure. synonyms Discernment, Discriminate, Perception Penetration, Insight, Acumen: mean the power to see what is not evident to the average mind. ^Return

10 Clear- 1a: Bright, Luminous b: Cloudless c: free from mist, haze, or dust. 1 Thinking - the action of using ones mind to produce thoughts. 2 Thinking - marked by the use of the intellect. ^Return

11 Religion - 1 a: the service and worship of God or the supernatural. 2: a personal set or institutionalized system of religious attitudes, beliefs and practices. 3: scrupulous conformity 4: a cause, principle, or system of beliefs held to with ardor and faith. ^Return

12 Faith - belief in the traditional doctrines of a religion. That's Webster's definition, and the one we are referring to, the Bible defines the word most accurately, as "the assured expectation of things hoped for, the evident demonstration of realities though not beheld.". Hebrews 11: 1 This quality of faith has nothing to do with belief, but is based on solid evidence as the basis for accurate knowledge of the kind described in the second chapter of Proverbs. The quality of "assured expectation" is different from what you expect when you flip a light switch, because it is derived from ones knowledge of the nature of God and mans relationship to him, as being made in his image, which supplies the assurance, and it does not fail as a light switch will often do. The evident demonstration of realities which is the basis for faith ^Return

13 Fraudulent - characterized by, based on, or done by fraud. Fraud - a: Deceit, Trickery; specifically: intentional perversion of truth in order to induce another to part with something of value or to surrender a legal right. ^Return

14 Paradox - 2b: a self contradictory statement that at first seems true. c: an argument that apparently derives self contradictory conclusions by valid deduction from acceptable premises. ^Return

15 Deception - : the act of deceiving, the fact or condition of being deceived, or, something that deceives, TRICK. Synonyms, DECEPTION, FRAUD, DOUBLE-DEALING, SUBTERFUGE and TRICKERY mean the acts or practices of one who deliberately deceives. DECEPTION may or may not imply blame worthiness, since it may suggest cheating or merely tactical resource <magicians are masters of deception>. ^Return