by jimwalton » Thu Dec 14, 2017 3:36 pm
“Why aren’t more people coming to Christ?” When sin came into the world, everything got ruined. EVERYTHING. And not just mildly, but through and through. Calvin called it “total depravity”: There is not a single cell of us that is God-oriented. We are totally wrecked. Romans 3 says there is none that seeks after God, there is not one who is righteous. Not one who does good. All have turned away; they have become “worthless’ (Rom. 3.12). Sin has infected the entire person (body, mind, emotions, and will).
What’s remarkable is that ANYONE comes to Christ. God has seen our condition, created a plan, plowed through all obstacles, sacrificed Himself, conquered death, issued the invitation, offered us forgiveness by grace, and given us the gift of faith. It’s miraculous (literally) that ANY of us come to Christ. And that’s the point. It’s a miracle of God.
“But why don’t more,” you ask, “since God does all this stuff as you just mentioned above?” Because people are enslaved to sin. Their minds are dark (Rom. 1.21; Eph. 4.18) and their hearts are hard. People are proud and stubborn, and even those that aren’t can’t think straight (in terms of who God is, what salvation is all about, etc.). We really really ruined ourselves. It’s the story of the Bible: we NEED God to get to God. We are DEAD (worthless) in our sins (Eph. 2.1). We have no resources to find our own way, to recognize anything, to move in God’s direction.
“Why is there so much a divide in beliefs these days?” We live in a very individualistic country where we have been taught for generations to walk to the beat of our own drum. That plays out very well in civics (well, sometimes it creates a lot of problems there, too), and can be helpful in theology (we can really think things through well), but is mostly detrimental to theology. Lots of people seem to think they can contrive their own understanding of the Bible instead of finding out what the proper understanding of the Bible is.
“Why am I struggling with this so much?” Here’s a question I don’t know the answer to. I don’t know what’s in your past or your present that has brought you to this place. For some people, though (since I’m not trying to make you feel guilty or if you have failed somewhere along the way), they are just more introspective, more questioning, less settled. I’m sort of that way myself. I don’t easily just “accept”stuff, I need to question, investigate, doubt, tug, question some more, wrestle, and maybe then I’ll come to a place of peace. I have actually come to that place of peace after long period of struggle. You are still on the way. It’s OK. It’s OK to question, to doubt, to ask, to investigate, and wrestle.
“When someone is struggling in their faith, what does God do—just wait?” Oh, no, not at all. God is always teaching, tugging, meddling, challenging, disciplining, testing, and drawing. God doesn’t want anyone to move away from Him, and He is perpetually active to move people to Himself. The Bible says God is an instigator, always tugging at our hearts.
Last bumped by Anonymous on Thu Dec 14, 2017 3:36 pm.