263 results for tag: Q & R

Q & R: God’s Mighty Sovereignty & Protection – Brad Jersak

QUESTION: I am enjoying reading A More Christlike God, but the chapter(s) on the God of will versus God of love have brought on some anxiety too. When we jettison the wrathful and angry images of a Calvinist God, do we also abandon his mighty sovereignty--his ability to watch over us and protect us? RESPONSE: What an important question! And such a mystery! For those who've not yet read A More Christlike God, our reader's question needs a little background. In the book, I lay out two ancient, ongoing and competing visions of God: The God of pure will: That image of God causes all things and governs every event, including ...

Q&R: “Do not resist an evil person” – Brad Jersak

Question: I was thinking about the passage where Jesus says not to resist someone who's trying to rob you and I was wondering what that meant. Suppose a delivery I was expecting doesn't come in, does that mean I shouldn't ask for a refund? My common sense says no but the passage seems on the surface to have a pretty straightforward interpretation to me. Response: Such a good question! And I think your common sense instincts are right. It's generally important to begin with Christ in his immediate context, which will then help us transpose his principles to our lives more easily. First, here's the text in Matthew 5 (NIV): 38&...

Doctrine & Revelation (the Book) – Brad Jersak

Question: I think I once heard you say something like, "At the council of (something), they concluded that Revelations should not be used for determining theology. It was to be used for worship, etc." Where can find resources to back up that statement?  Response: Not exactly, but something like that. The idea was the dogma (non-negotiable doctrine) of the ancient church was finalized before Revelation was formally included in the canon of the New Testament. In other words, since Revelation wasn't officially included as Scripture, it wasn't a building block of our creedal theology. That's not to say Revelation shouldn't be in the ...

Q & R with Greg Albrecht – Growing pains as we receive new insights

Question: Dear Greg,I'm writing because I feel you are one of the few people I can talk to about these matters. My wife and I have been reading and learning so much about the love of God.   But, we do so with two realities in mind:  1) As you know, we came out of an authoritarian and legalistic church, and of course what we learned about God at that religious address was so very wrong.  Since that time we have found fellowship with a far more spiritually healthy group, but now we are once again learning more … when we left that authoritarian and legalistic church, we went through much pain and the loss of many ...

Does God Forgive and Forget? Q&R with Greg Albrecht

  Q: While attending a Bible study one night in a church I used to attend the pastor stated, "when we ask forgiveness of God, he does forgive us but he never really does forget." He was "clarifying" Hebrews 10:17. The pastor said, "After all, he is God, he knows everything, it would be impossible for him to forget." I find myself angry at this minister even today and I haven't seen him in years. I believe God does forget—however in the back of my mind this minister's comments still haunt me. Please, tell me, does God forget or not?   A: I think I know what the minister may have meant. Part of what he may have been trying to say might be true, ...

Q&R: If God is non-violent, why is nature violent?

QUESTION:   "If God is non-violent ... then why is there evidence of violence in nature, i.e. between animals and also in weather, such as hurricanes/typhoons, volcanic eruptions, etc.?"   RESPONSE:   At the most basic level, I often boil things down to these ideas, which most folks can understand if we provide examples:   1. God created the conditions for life and love, which are the laws of nature and human freedom. This is very good. 2. But nature and humans also cause a lot of suffering. Nature and people can become violent of their own accord. 3. But in his great love for us, God became human to ...

Q & R: “Narrow Way, Narrow Gate” Brad Jersak

Q: If Christ has made possible the salvation of all, why does he say "the gate is narrow and few will find it?" R: Context is so important! Take a moment to ask yourself in which context you first heard this message. Whenever I have heard these words, composed by Jesus Christ himself, almost without exception, they were embedded in the context of an evangelistic sermon describing the way of salvation that leads to eternal life. In contrast, the way of destruction was identified as the road to hell.  In that context, Jesus' warning sounds unequivocal: 1. Only Christians go to heaven; 2. very few will become Christians; 3. therefore, only a ...

What Then Can We Learn? – Greg Albrecht

QUESTION: Does Jesus speak to us about being prepared in a physical sense like storing extra food away or buying silver or gold? My wife wants us to start doing this. She believes there are verses that speak to this.  Thanks for your response! RESPONSE: Some of the more contemporary Bible translations divide portions of chapters into subheads.  The New International Version (NIV) suggests “Do Not Worry” as the subhead for Matthew 6:25-34.  The New King James (NKJ)  suggests more verses in this last section of the sixth chapter of Matthew, with the subhead “Treasures on Earth” for Matthew 6:19-34.   ...

Q&R: Does God literally send blessings & curses? – Brad Jersak

QUESTION: I am currently on my fourth read of A More Christlike God and each time I read it, I am getting to know God more and more. Regarding your notion that wrath is a metaphor for God's consent, I wonder how to interpret God's blessings and curses, which God seemed to bring about directly. Can this be reconciled? RESPONSE:  Re: God's blessings and curses, I think a good way to approach that question would be to take a walk through the Bible as follows: 1. OLD COVENANT PROMISES: First, notice how the old covenant (Deut. 28 for example) seems to say that IF you are good, God will directly bless your crops with sun and rain, but if you disobey ...

Q&R with Brad Jersak “Is faith a requirement?”

Question: I’ve been on a journey today trying to process. Faith in Christ still requires me. There is something wrong with this wording or something wrong with my understanding. It can’t be dependent on me. How can it be that God has covered our side of the covenant, yet it is our faith that somehow magically leverages God into some action? “Your faith has healed you.” Then I have to ask, “Who is God, us or him if our faith is the working component? I get the need for participation. But what is the secret sauce to the inherent conflict of surrender and participation? How does one reconcile the two? Response: B...

Q&R with Greg Albrecht – “Should we boycott the wedding?”

Recently I was asked to give my opinion about a married man, in the process of divorcing his wife, while dating a younger, unmarried woman. My immediate thought was the response of Jesus when he was asked by someone to get involved in a family about an inheritance. "Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?" (Luke 12:14). However, remembering that Jesus used the question as a way to discuss some of the more important spiritual issues surrounding it (see "The Parable of the Rich Fool"—Luke 12:15-21), I tried to respond in a similar way. The person who asked me the question said that the still-married man was "put under church ...

Q&R with Brad Jersak – “Son of perdition”?

A Christ-centered theology begins with the revelation of the Good Shepherd, who never gives up, and whose mercy never fails. Yes, there is such a thing as "lost." A lost coin, a lost sheep, and even a lost son... like Judas. We don't diminish that reality or how seriously destructive our lostness can become. But the Good News Jesus announced was that because of our heavenly Father's self-giving love and relentless pursuit, "lost" is not the last word. We hold out hope that even Judas (and therefore, even I) will testify at that end, "I once was lost, but now I'm found/was blind, but now I see."

Q&R with Brad Jersak – “Leave your gift at the altar” (Matthew 5:24)

Question: In Matthew 5:24, Jesus says, "Leave your gift at the altar." What does that mean in context? Does it mean we need to go and apologize to those we've hurt, or God won’t talk to us? Response: Let's begin with the context, as you suggested. This is a section of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) where he is citing the Law of Moses and explains how the spirit of the law goes deeper than external conformity to obvious rules against murder or adultery (for example). God's intent is to transform our hearts so that in following Jesus Christ, grace will weed out the roots of murder and adultery while they are still inward hatred or ...

What is Happening to the Church in North America? – Greg Albrecht

Question: What is happening to Christianity in North America? Magazines and television documentaries are filled with reports that people are no longer going to church – by the droves!  Why is this happening?  Is Christianity as we know it in danger of becoming obsolete? Response: A recent article in Economist (titled “Counting Christians”) ponders why American religion (the context of the article reveals the Economist actually meant North American Christianity) is in decline.   My history with this topic, following the dynamic I believe to be one of the biggest religious news stories of this early part of the ...

Q&R with Brad – “Can God feel anger even if he’s not an ‘Angry God'”?

Question: I listened to a recent podcast on your thoughts, breaking down the "angry God" worldview. You couched it in the language of "worshiping Molech," which was a sharp wake-up call to me, even though I have been moving away from the "Angry God" view for some time. It got me wondering about something and I am hoping that you might be able to provide some context for it. Even though God is not the "Angry God" of modern Evangelicalism ... is it still possible for God to have the emotion of anger? Case in point ... the cleansing of the temple. What do Jesus' actions in the temple reveal to us about the nature of the Father? ...

Q & R: Does John 10:35 Teach Inerrancy?

Question: I am wondering what Jesus meant when he said, “The Scriptures cannot be broken” in John 10:35. I have heard this bit of a verse used as proof of inerrancy. I would like to hear an explanation of the context of Jesus’ words, and especially how it relates to Psalm 82:6.  Response: Such an important question! Let’s begin with the phrase itself. The “Scriptures” to which Jesus refers are indeed the Psalms, part of the Jewish holy books of his day. And these Scriptures, he says, “cannot be luthenai.” That precise word is used in this form three times in the New Testament: Luke 13:16 — ...

Q & R: Greg Albrecht – The Bible and the Gospel

Question Some people tell me they don't believe the Bible because some old books were left out. I believe the Bible and tell them they have to listen to God's still small voice. What else can I tell them? Response My sense of this discussion is that it is focused on a topic upon which we may differ as Christians and still be brothers and sisters.  Of course there are those who might deny any of the Bible to be true and edifying, but then there are folks who deny the existence of God as well. The Bible and its original documents, transmission, preservation and translation is a huge conversation and a massive study and there are a variety of ...

Love or Fear? – Greg Albrecht

Question: 1 John 4:18, which tells us that love drives out fear, used to be my go- to verse for times when I was living in fear. Then a preacher told me that this verse means that one should not fear unless they are not "obeying" God. Now I just live in fear. Can you help me understand how 1 John 4:18 should be interpreted. Response: Your question is real and authentic.  Many people, if they are honest, live in fear.  In some respects, we all do to some level.  But a Christ-centered understanding of the gospel of Jesus Christ explains that fear is the motivational factor of all that is anti-Christ, and I use that term not in some ...

Did God the Father Forsake Jesus the Son on the Cross? – Greg Albrecht

Question: Thanks for all the great resources you provide. I’m trying to reconcile the what seems to Jesus to be a “forsaken-ness” or estrangement/alienation of God and Jesus on the cross. How are we to interpret the cross in light of this? Love you guys. Response: My sense of this much debated statement on the cross – “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46) – begins with a Christ-centered interpretation, which is the place where I try to start any question about a biblical passage. Jesus was and is God – (see John 1:1-3).  He was never not divine, and forever will be divine. In his ...

Q&R: When Jesus ‘Spews’ – Brad Jersak

Question: Some people in my life refer to the Bible verse about not being "lukewarm" in what feels like a really hurtful way. They leave me wondering if I am getting this faith thing right. Am I lukewarm? Will god spit me out? Is there perhaps a misunderstanding here? Can we read this in other ways that don't feel so discouraging, like either you're in or you're out? Response: That's such an important question. I recall the many times when it was used as a heavy-handed "clobber verse" used to contrive conviction and manipulate a response. It was a classic revivalist rhetorical technique. It might help if we start by reading it in ...