Pascal's Wager
By
Michael Lane, Executive Director, Delve Christian Ministries
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"Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, is of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important." -C.S Lewis
We each must choose what we are going to do about the idea of God. We may worship Him or mock Him, but we cannot do nothing, for doing nothing is in itself a choice not to worship Him. If we are going to place a bet, so to speak, what are we really wagering? What are the risks, and what can we gain?
Seventeenth century philosopher and mathematician Blaise Pascal examined the four possible choices and outcomes, and his summary has become known as "Pascal's Wager". Here are the four possibilities, as he saw it.
1) If God Does Not Exist and You Ignore Him, You Gain Nothing
If there is no life after death and this life is all we have, then nothing really matters anyway. We can say that it makes sense to have a good time while we're here, but soon we will not be around to remember it. All that exists after an experience has passed are the memories and the ways in which that experience changed us. If there is no more "us" and no more memories, then the experiences of our lives have no more relevance than if they never happened. For example, if you attended a party last night but can remember none of it, what difference does it really make if it was dull or really exciting? Once a moment passes, it's meaningless unless the person lives on, changed and affected by that moment and it's memories.
People talk about leaving behind a legacy and this brings some comfort, but what comfort can it offer when you don't exist to enjoy it? Furthermore, the people who are enjoying that legacy will soon not exist either. Whether we had a good life or a truly great life will mean nothing when we compare it against an infinity of nothingness which greets our death.
2) If God Does Not Exist and You Worship Him, You Lose Nothing
Some people object to this idea and point out that at least they will not have wasted time in church, abiding by strict moral codes and holding back on things they really wanted to do. In reality, there is reason to believe that Christians live happier, fuller lives and this would be true even if God did not exist. But that is not the point. Even if it were true that you would have been much happier had you not spent time worshiping a God which did not exist, it will still all mean nothing once you die. Again, the difference between your "boring" life and your "great" life will be insignificant against the vast contrast of infinite nothingness you've become after you die.
3) If God Exists and You Ignore Him, You Risk Going To Hell
This is what we could consider the worst possible outcome. It's not certain that ignoring God will result in this; it's what many major religions assert but that doesn't make it true. Even if God exists, you might go to heaven anyway, or hell might not be so bad.
However, the possibility remains, no matter how small, that failing to worship God results in an very unpleasant eternal afterlife. When eternity is at stake, the consequences are infinitely serious, no matter how unlikely.
4) If God Exists and You Worship Him, You Might Go To Heaven
This is what we could consider the best possible outcome. Again, it's not a given. You may worship God and not do it right or not do it well enough and go to hell anyway. Heaven may not exist, or may not be a great place. It's only one possibility that worshiping God will secure this outcome. But like the previous wager, the stakes are enormous. Your entire infinite afterlife hangs in the balance.
5) Therefore, The Only Reasonable Bet is to Worship Him.
If we are going to compare what can be gained during our short life on earth against what can be gained or lost in eternity, then we have to place our bet on whatever gives us the best odds in an afterlife.
John Bevere explains it this way: If I told you that what you do in the next minute might affect you for the next hundred years, you would endure anything in that minute to potentially secure your place in the next century. You simply would not risk it. Your life on earth compared with an eternity in heaven or hell raises the stakes to an unimaginable level.
Of course, reality is not a gamble and God is much more than a mathematical equation. If we only worship God because we want to avoid hell, won't He see through to our motives and send us to hell anyway?
Mercifully, that's not how God works, for He knows that we can only initially reach for him for selfish reasons. The first time any of us calls out for God, we do so not because we love Him, but because we are scared, lonely or want to be saved. But then, the Spirit takes over and changes our heart. If we will be obedient in prayer, reading the scriptures and living for Jesus, no matter what our original motives were, in time we will truly love God and worship Him with a right heart. Loving God selflessly is the result, not the prerequisite of obedience. If we could only come to God with unselfish motives, we would all be lost.
If Pascal's wager causes us to see God as a "safe bet" then we can begin investigating Him and learning about Him, and we can begin to worship for no other than than we are scared of hell. In time, it will grow into something real. Pascal's wager can't save anyone, but it can draw attention to the seriousness and importance of the issues and the choices, and start us down the right path where God will meet us.
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