[This question is a follow up to “A Spirit Conflicted”)

     Is the Spirit some sort of energy force?  Can energy be spiritual?  I have sensed/felt a presence that enveloped all of me, yet I couldn’t define it as other than a sensed experience.  Later, I knew it was God (without a doubt).  The experience left me but not my mind.  Does God give us a conscience, and is it Him within us?

Sincerely,
A Lot On My Mind

Dear A Lot On My Mind,

God does give everyone a conscience, and it is a very common mistake to confuse the voice of your conscience for the voice of God.  Your conscience is that part of you that makes you feel good when you do what you believe is right, and it makes you feel bad when you do what you believe is wrong.  Sometimes, what you believe to be right is actually wrong or what you believe to be wrong is actually right. 
The Bible clearly teaches that we should attempt to learn and increase in knowledge, so we can better discern between good and evil (Heb 5:14).

You can’t trust your conscience as a direct communication with God because God is never wrong, but your conscience definitely can be!  For example, take the apostle Paul.  Paul said that he had a clear conscience… even though he had attempted to kill Christians (Acts 23:1).  The reason Paul could have a clean conscience after doing such reprehensible things is because when Paul did them, he did them in ignorance (1 Tim 1:13).  As soon as Paul realized that he was sinning, he changed.

The Holy Spirit isn’t an energy force that resides within us and speaks to us directly.  The Holy Spirit is an actual divine Being, just as much as Jesus and the Father.  Read “Father, Son, & Holy Spirit” for a detailed breakdown of who each member of the Godhead is.  The Bible is the tool God uses to bring us salvation (Rom 1:16).  God never says that we should expect to feel His presence in some sort of miraculous way.

     Why didn't God save His holy covenant for the Christians?

Sincerely,
Feeling Cheated

Dear Feeling Cheated,

Any covenant made with God is a “holy” covenant.  The word ‘holy’ means ‘special or set apart’, and the word ‘covenant’ means ‘agreement or contract’.  Any agreement that God makes with anyone is special because God is special!  God has had numerous holy covenants.  He made one with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden (Gen 2:16-17).  He made one with the earth when He set the rainbow in the sky (Gen 9:13-16).  He made one with Abraham when He promised to make Abraham into a mighty nation (Gen 15:18).  All of these are examples of holy covenants God has made over the centuries.

The last covenant God made was with Christians.  God made a promise to save us through Jesus Christ, and then He ratified that covenant with Jesus’ blood (Heb 13:20).  The Christian covenant is the greatest and most wonderful covenant God has ever made with mankind.

      I have the Holy Spirit within me.  A voice in my head tells me I am not worthy to have the Holy Spirit within me.  Is that Satan trying to beguile me as he did Adam and Eve?  I sense the spiritual presence of God in my mind.

How can I have His Holy Spirit and Satan at the same time?

Sincerely,
Of Two Minds

Dear Of Two Minds,

Christians do have the Holy Spirit dwell in them (Rom 8:9) – but not literally, so there is no way to “sense” the presence of God in our minds. The Holy Spirit dwells in Christians in the same metaphorical way that Christ dwells in Christians (Rom 8:10). The Holy Spirit and Jesus do not physically dwell inside Christians miraculously. They dwell within Christians in a figurative way because a Christian’s life follows the path the Holy Spirit and Christ set for them.

The Holy Spirit dwells in those that follow the Bible and put to death their previous sinful lifestyles (Rom 8:12-14). The Holy Spirit gave us the Bible, and when we follow it, we are led by the Spirit (read “What The Holy Spirit Does” for further details). Those who are led by the Spirit are sons of God, and the Spirit dwells in them (Rom 8:14-16).

If you would like more information on this topic, we have an entire series of sermons on the Holy Spirit that can be downloaded or viewed by clicking here.

What does the Bible mean when it mentions the saints judging angels?

Sincerely, Ruling The Skies

Dear Ruling The Skies,

Yes, Christians will judge angels – the same way the Queen of the South judges spiritually lazy people. The verse in question is 1 Cor 6:3. We have to keep in mind that there are many ways to bring judgment on others. In our case, we will bring judgment on others through our example. God uses people’s examples to condemn others in similar circumstances.

1. The Queen of the South condemns those who won’t seek the truth (Matt 12:42).
2. The citizens of Nineveh will condemn those who won’t repent of their sins after hearing the gospel (Matt 12:42).
3. Christians will condemn those who have excuses for why they didn’t serve God (1 Cor 6:2).

Angels that denied God and went to serve Satan (Rev 12:9) will have no excuse for not having served God. All Christians will stand as a living example and condemnation against the angels that chose to deny God and turn to evil.If we, having not seen God (Ex 33:20), can still serve Him… the angels who are ever before Him (Matt 18:10) are without excuse.

What is the difference between an elder and a deacon? Is a deacon just a mini elder or elder-in-training, or is it a different job completely?

Sincerely, Job Placement

Dear Job Placement,

Some deacons eventually become elders, but the roles are definitely different.Elders have the responsibility of watching out for the entire congregation (1 Pet 5:2).Elders are sometimes called ‘pastors’ because they shepherd the church like a pastor shepherds a flock of sheep (1 Pet 5:3).Elders will give an account to God for every soul in their congregation (Heb 13:17).The responsibility for the health of the congregation is upon their shoulders.

On the other hand, deacons only have the responsibility of being servants.The word ‘deacon’ means ‘servant’ in Greek.To be a deacon is to be a servant, plain and simple.Deacons serve the elders.The responsibilities of an elder are so great that they must delegate certain task or be overwhelmed.The idea of delegating responsibility is as old as Moses (Ex 18:13-18).Even the apostles recognized a time to delegate work, so that they could get everything done (Acts 6:1-4).Deacons are responsible for the assignments designated to them by the elders.

Having said all that, the qualifications to become a deacon (1 Tim 3:8-13) are only slightly less stringent than those to become an elder (1 Tim 3:1-7, Tit 1:6-9).If a man is qualified to be a deacon, there is a decent chance that he will someday be qualified to serve as an elder.This is not always true though.Some deacons do not make good elders, nor do all deacons desire the work of being an elder (1 Tim 3:1).