#STRask

Will I Have to Give an Account for My Abortion When I Stand Before Jesus?

Questions about whether a woman who had an abortion as a teen and later became a believer will have to give an account to Jesus for it when she stands before him.

 

• I had an abortion as a teen and became a believer in my twenties. I am racked with guilt I still can’t get past in my forties. The Scriptures say we will all give an account of our actions. I lose sleep over the thought of standing before Jesus for this. I cry often. Will I be held accountable?

Are Our Physical Ailments Caused by Spiritual Warfare?

Questions about whether our physical ailments are caused by spiritual warfare, how much agency demons have in light of the fact that God sometimes sends them to do things, and how they can be both evil and under God’s command.

 

• What do you think about my pastor and his wife attributing any physical ailments they have to spiritual warfare?
• In light of the fact that God is sometimes said to have sent an evil spirit to do something, how much agency do demons have? How can they be both evil and under God’s command?

Can Evil Spirits Come into Our Lives Through Certain Music and Movies?

Questions about whether evil spirits can come into our lives through openings like certain music and movies and whether putting Bible verses under your pillow to stop nightmares is a legitimate form of spiritual warfare.

 

• What do you think about the idea that evil spirits can come into our lives through different openings like certain music and movies?
• My friend said her nightmares stopped after she wrote Bible verses on cards and placed them under her pillow. Is this over-spiritualization, or is this actual spiritual warfare?

If I’m Not Being Persecuted, Does That Mean I’m Not Living a Godly Life?

Questions about whether a lack of persecution means you’re not living a godly life, what to think about your faith if your suffering doesn’t bring you closer to God, whether we need to nurture the fruit of the Spirit, and characteristics that separate a disciple from a new convert.

 

• Second Timothy 3:12 says that “all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,” so if I’m not being persecuted, does that mean I’m not living a godly life?
• I often hear that people wouldn’t trade their suffering because of the closer relationship with God it produced, but my relationship with God didn’t improve after I had cancer, and I wish it had never happened. Should I be worried about my faith?
• Are the fruits of the Spirit automatically received, or do we get a seed of them that we’re supposed to nurture and grow to maturity?
• What characteristics separate a disciple from a new convert?

Why Would God’s Spirit Cause People to Loathe Themselves and Be Ashamed?

Questions about why Ezekiel 36:31–32 would say, contrary to Ezekiel 39:25–26, that putting God’s Spirit into people will cause them to loathe themselves and be ashamed and whether or not it’s biblical to say that the closer you are to God, the more sinful you feel.

 

• Why would Ezekiel 36:31–32 say that after God puts his Spirit in his people, they will loathe themselves and be ashamed for their sins when his Spirit is supposed to give us hope and joy in Christ as children of God, and doesn’t this contradict 39:25–26?
• Is it biblical to say that the closer you are to God, the more sinful you feel?

Why Should We Treat Everyone Respectfully?

Questions about why we should treat everyone respectfully, how to reconcile Jesus calling the Pharisees a brood of vipers with the instructions in 1 Peter 3:15 to treat people with gentleness and respect, and the charge that Christians have no evidence for God.

 

• How would you explain to a believer why we should treat everyone respectfully when Hitler shouldn’t have been treated respectfully?
• How do we reconcile Jesus calling the Pharisees a brood of vipers with 1 Peter 3:15, which says we should show gentleness and respect when defending the faith?
• Religion is synonymous with pretending to know things you do not know. No man has ever seen God. No Christian has any evidence for God. Yet you claim authority based on a book and an invisible God. Talk about ego. Wow!

How Would You Respond to the Current Mainstream View of the Historical Jesus?

Questions about how to respond to the current mainstream view of the historical Jesus and the allegations that Jesus just ripped off material from ancient religions that preceded him.

 

• How would you respond to the current mainstream view of the historical Jesus?
• How should I respond to the allegations that Jesus just ripped off material from ancient religions that preceded him?

How Do You Convince a Former Christian That Jesus Is God?

Questions about how to convince a former Christian that Jesus is God, whether Jesus’ human nature was created, and what the Bible means when it says Jesus is the firstborn.

 

• How do you convince a former Christian that Jesus is God?
• Is it wrong to describe Jesus’ human nature as created, and how should I respond to a Jehovah’s Witness who says that a firstborn, if not the first to be born, must be a member of the group he is preeminent over?

Do You Need to Forgive God?

Questions about whether we ever need to forgive God in order to heal our emotions, whether it’s unbiblical to tell someone he needs to forgive himself, why poor people were allowed to offer a flour sacrifice without blood, and whether it’s wrong to call out one another’s sins.

 

• Is it true that sometimes we need to forgive God in order to heal our emotions?
• Is it unbiblical advice to tell someone he needs to forgive himself?
• If there is no forgiveness without the shedding of blood, why were poor people allowed to offer flour as a sin offering in Leviticus 5?
• What would you say to a pastor who said we should let the Holy Spirit change people and not call out one another’s sins?

What Progressive Christian Teachings Should I Look Out For?

Questions about what progressive Christian teachings one should look out for and whether John 16:12–13 provides justification for the views of progressive Christians.

 

• I’ve been hearing about progressive Christianity and wondering what I should look for when it comes to unbiblical teaching.
• Some progressive Christians and churches cite John 16:12–13 as justification for their views. If that passage doesn’t mean what they say, what does it mean?