Pessimism

Something followers of Christ should never be is pessimistic. Pessimism is wrong. Pessimism is doubt. Pessimism is unbelief. The presence of it in the church is disturbing. It has no place there. All of us who follow Christ should be optimist.

Many would claim otherwise, and that’s part of the problem. I don’t know how many times I’ve heard people say they’re not pessimist. They’re realist. How is this right for a Christian? If we truly believe in the love of Christ than being a realist is being an optimist.

“So Jesus answered and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ it will be done. And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.” Matthew 21:21-22

Reading these verses with pessimism is totally different than reading them with optimism. A pessimist looks at these verses, sighs, and thinks there’s no way to move a mountain. An optimist thinks they only need to have the faith in Christ to do it. This shows one of the primary reasons why pessimism doesn’t belong in the church. Pessimism is doubt. Optimism is faith. Nowhere does Jesus say, Paul write, or anything say lacking the faith to believe is okay. Nowhere does it say we are made to look at things around us, and decide it’s hopeless because we’re too smart to have hope. Instead we are to have faith.

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Hebrews 11:1

People of faith ought to be optimistic. Otherwise we really are just sinners in the hands of angry God. We should be optimistic because of the things not seen. Have faith. Have hope. Be optimistic.