I can't keep my faith in God.  I'm the only one at my school who believes in Him, and it's starting to feel stupid.  How can I keep my faith?

Sincerely,
Me, Myself, and I

Dear Me, Myself, and I,

The U.S. is struggling with losing its biblical ties, but it isn’t as bad as we perceive it to be.  Statistically, only about 4% of Americans categorize themselves as atheistic or agnostic.  That means that the vast majority of the United States believes in God.  Sadly, the voices most often heard in media, culture, and schools make it sound like only a fool would believe in God.

Ironically, the Bible says the opposite (Ps 53:1).  The responsibility that Christians have is to make the evidence of God’s existence clear in a culture that is opposed to God.  The evidence of God’s existence is staggering.  We recommend you read our articles “Does God Exist?” and “Who Wrote The Bible?” because both of those articles cover some of the evidence that will help you stand firm by your convictions – you might even share some of it with your brother.

Hang in there.  Elijah once felt like he was the only godly man left, and God told him there were 7,000 others in his small corner of the world who also were faithful (Rom 11:2-4).  Feeling like the last faithful person isn’t the same as actually being the last.

Something else to consider, it sounds like you could use a faithful congregation, so you don’t feel so alone.  The Bible says that is one of the purposes of the church (Heb 10:24-25).  Not all churches do this, but we would be happy to help you find a congregation near you that is faithful, gives Bible answers, and will help you to stand strong.  Just e-mail us at askyourpreacher@mvchurchofchrist.org.

Does God have a sense of humor?

Sincerely,
Chuckles

Dear Chuckles, 

God definitely has a sense of humor, but just as a child often struggles to see his parents’ funny bone because they are busy raising the child, we often miss God’s sense of humor because we are His children and the works of His hands (1 Jn 3:1).  One of the simplest proofs of God’s ability to find humor is that we are made in His image (Gen 1:27), and we are able to laugh.  Since man has a sense of humor, God must have one also.

Ps 59:8 talks about God laughing at those who think they can outwit Him, and Ps 2:4 says the same.  There are other things that point to God’s sense of humor.  When we look at the animals and created world, we see the invisible attributes of God (Rom 1:20).  God made the platypus – that animal is downright hilarious-looking!

Lastly, there are other anecdotes in the Bible that show God’s sense of humor: the way He destroys the false god, Dagon, in 1 Sam 5:1-5 or how the false exorcists were put to flight in Acts 19:13-16.

I asked the Lord to save me eight years ago.  I can still remember the relief I felt leaving the church that day.  But since that day, I have had many struggles.  I got with the wrong guy in college.  I drank, smoked, and had premarital sex.  I even went through a short period of doubting the Lord's existence.  I am back in church now and have changed my behavior, but I feel guilt every day for ever doubting in God.  I have asked Him to forgive.  I still worry about my salvation.  I had no doubts in the Lord when I asked Him to save me.  I really don't remember why I ever felt this way and am very ashamed of it.  My question is: am I still saved?  I have sinned so much and doubted Him since I asked to be saved.

Sincerely,
Left Wondering

Dear Left Wondering,

Before you ask the question, “Am I still saved?” – let’s take the time to make sure you properly sought God’s forgiveness the first time.  We highly recommend you read “What Must I Do To Be Saved” and thoroughly examine whether you properly obeyed God the first time around.  If you did – WONDERFUL.  If you didn’t… now is the time to do things right.

That being said, let’s address God’s willingness to forgive.  God says that He finds more joy in one sinner returning to Him than in ninety-nine who don’t need to repent (Lk 15:7).  God also says that there should be no limit to forgiveness when someone repents (Lk 17:4).  When we turn back to God, He promises to show us mercy and to remember our sins no more (Heb 8:12).  It is very normal for us to still feel guilt when we dwell upon our previous lives of rebellion against God, but we can’t let that guilt consume us.  God forgives us; therefore, we can turn that guilt into gratitude (Rom 6:17).

Since my giant “discovery” of the Gospel this past year, I have been thinking a lot about salvation, and my logic is coming up short and creating a huge hole in the picture of God’s gift of salvation.  My thought process is fallen, and I know that just because it doesn’t make sense in my brain, that doesn’t mean it’s not the truth.  I tend to warp things in my head, and I wanted another perspective on this.

Problem: There are two scenarios for the creation of the human race.

1. God created us as imperfect and purposely inserted the flaw into our nature that allowed and allows us to choose sin.  This doesn’t seem like the correct scenario because there is no glory in “stacking the deck.”  There is no glory in fixing a problem that you created, and more over, the fact that He created the original problem would put us in a position of deserving to be fixed and deserving His salvation. This directly affects the Gospel.  It calls into question our responsibility for our actions.  For if we are not the cause of our sin, then we do in fact deserve God’s salvation, and it is terribly unjust for Him to deny salvation to so many.  This option directly contradicts everything I have learned about the character of God and unless my logic is unsound, can be ruled out.    (Although in Exodus, God clearly hardens Pharaohs heart and then punishes him.  This, to me, doesn’t fit into the ‘just’ characteristic…)
2. If we rule out the first scenario, that leaves the option that God did create us as perfect.  But how can perfection degenerate by itself?  Shouldn’t the definition of perfection include sustainability?  Even if we had the free will to choose, how could a perfect nature fail, give in to temptation, and choose to sin against God?

Sincerely,
Perfecting Perfect

Dear Perfecting Perfect,

‘Perfect’ means ‘complete’ or ‘having all the desirable and required elements’.  Perfect doesn’t mean that something can’t be broken or fail.  A car engine can be in perfect condition, and yet, if you don’t put oil in it – it will break.  A house can be perfectly constructed and still be destroyed by an earthquake.  When God made Adam and Eve, He made them without defect (Gen 1:31).  They were made exactly as He intended them – in His image (Gen 1:26).  Adam and Eve were designed with eternal souls and the ability to choose their own destiny.  They were perfectly designed with the free will to choose to love God or to choose to rebel against Him.  In fact, if mankind were designed so that it would be impossible for them to sin – they wouldn’t have free will.  God has given us the great gift of choice, and it is up to us what we do with it (Deu 30:19).

On a separate note, let’s address the issue of the Pharaoh’s heart being hardened.  It is true that Ex 4:21 says that God hardened Pharaoh’s heart, but Ex 8:15 says that Pharaoh hardened his own heart.  Both are true.  God hardened Pharaoh’s heart by sending Moses to take his slaves away, and Pharaoh chose to allow the plagues to anger and harden his heart instead of soften it.  God sent the events that affected Pharaoh’s heart, and Pharaoh chose how he would react to them.  Once again, we see God giving man the freedom to choose his own destiny.

Having preached for the first time as a commissioned minister, I received a check for the service. I believe I should endorse the check and give it back as a ‘first fruits’ offering. As I wish to continue on this path, do you concur?

Sincerely,
It’s Harvest Time

Dear It’s Harvest Time,

You don’t have to give the money back as a contribution, but it certainly would be a blessing to do so. Whenever we give to God, we are the ones that are blessed the most (Php 4:17), not necessarily physically – but spiritually. When we give to God, we store up treasures for ourselves in heaven (Matt 6:20). Give cheerfully (2 Cor 9:7) and deliberately (1 Cor 16:2).

On a separate note, what is a “commissioned minister”? Could you show us a verse in the Bible that talks about that? Who does the commissioning? We are concerned because that terminology smacks of denominationalism and man-made religious ideas. As you are embarking on a lifetime of preaching, we would hate for you to get wrapped up in the religious confusion that is so often found in today’s churches. You will be asserting yourself as a teacher… and a teacher incurs a stricter judgment (Jas 3:1). The Bible only speaks of ministers. “Commissioned ministers”, “lay ministers”, “youth ministers”, “outreach ministers”, etc. are all man-made titles that have been added as people overcomplicate and warp the Bible. We recommend you read “Preacher Interrogation” and interrogate yourself to see whether or not you are planting a preaching career on solid Biblical ground.