#STRask

How Can I Showcase God’s Goodness When I’m Struggling in My Suffering?

Questions about how to showcase God’s goodness when we’re really struggling in our suffering, an explanation of God’s response at the end of the book of Job, and whether we should conclude from Job that it’s inappropriate to ask God why we’re suffering.

 

• How can we still glorify God and showcase his goodness when we’re really struggling in our suffering—exhausted, depressed, etc.?
• I understand Satan attacking Job and why God allowed it, but I’m puzzled by God’s response to Job at the end of the book.
• Should we conclude from Job that it’s inappropriate to ask God why we’re going through certain struggles and suffering?

Should I Pray for Protection for Persecuted Christians When God Might Want Them to Be Martyrs?

Questions about how to pray for persecuted Christians in light of the fact that God wills that some will be martyrs, and how persecuted Christians who are being threatened and beaten know if they should stay and preach the gospel or leave and protect their family.

 

• I have a hard time praying “Old Testament promises” for protection and deliverance for persecuted Christians since I know that, in some cases, God wills that there will be martyrs for Jesus. Any suggestions on how to pray?
• Why don’t Christians who are being persecuted, threatened, beaten, etc. relocate if they are able, especially if they have a family? How do they know if they should stay and preach the gospel or leave and protect their family?

When Is It Time to Walk Away from a Conversation?

Questions about how to discern when it’s time to walk away from a conversation, and how to cope with people charging you with being prideful and legalistic when you’re doing your best to be humble, fair, and gentle while sharing the gospel and defending the faith.

 

• How do you discern when it’s time to walk away from a conversation? If the person is hard-hearted, is it worth it to keep trying to sow seeds? When does it become “throwing pearls before swine”?
• I do my best to be humble, fair, and gentle when I share the gospel and defend the faith, but I’m still frequently accused of being prideful and legalistic, which is painful because I actually care very much about people’s souls. How do you cope with this when you have similar experiences?

“Jesus Had Two Dads, and He Turned Out Just Fine”

Questions about how to engage someone wearing a button that reads, “Jesus had two dads, and he turned out just fine,” and how to be kind and loving without compromising truth with someone in a Bible study who says her adult child goes by “they/them.”

 

• How would you engage someone wearing a button that reads, “Jesus had two dads, and he turned out just fine”?
• How can I be kind and loving without compromising biblical truth with a member of a Bible study group I lead who told me her adult child goes by “they/them”?

Do Christian Business Owners Have a Moral Responsibility to Provide a Livable Wage?

Questions about whether Christian business owners should provide a livable wage, whether doing a corporate sponsorship that promotes one’s business contradicts Matthew 6:3, and whether the parable of the rich fool refutes America’s approach to retirement.

 

• Do Christian business owners have a moral responsibility to provide a livable wage?
• Would doing a corporate sponsorship with an organization we have been working with and financially supporting contradict Jesus’ words in Matthew 6:3 about giving in secret since part of the motivation would be to promote our business?
• Is the parable of the rich fool in Luke 12:13–21 a direct refutation of America’s approach to retirement?

Should I Leave a Church That Refuses to Preach on Divisive Topics?

Questions about leaving a church with biblical theology because they refuse to preach on divisive topics, whether it’s okay to write an apologetics book under a pen name out of fear of repercussions, and how to reconcile Romans 13:1–5 with rulers who are unjust.

 

• Should I leave a church that has solid biblical theology but refuses to preach on divisive topics (LGBTQ, abortion, anything political, homosexuality, immigration, etc.) because they want to introduce those topics once the person is “comfortable”?
• As someone who works in the public sector in Canada, where speech is heavily policed, am I wrong to write my apologetics book under a pen name to protect my identity and family out of fear of repercussions?
• How do you reconcile Romans 13:1–5, which tells us not to resist authority, with rulers who are unjust?

Did Jesus Lie in Mark 5:39?

Questions about whether Jesus lied in Mark 5:39, proving that lying can’t be a sin, when he said, “The child has not died, but is asleep,” and what Jesus meant when he said we need to be “born of water and the Spirit” in John 3:5.

 

• Jesus never sinned. Jesus lied in Mark 5:39. Therefore, lying can’t be a sin.
• What did Jesus mean by “born of water and the Spirit” in John 3:5?

Is God “Divided Against Himself” When He Allows Evil?

Questions about whether the principle that a house divided against itself can’t stand would apply not only to Satan casting out demons but also to God allowing evil, whether or not God is the author of everything he permits for a purpose, and the primary sin of Eve.

 

• Wouldn’t the principle in Mark 3:24–25 that a house divided against itself can’t stand apply not only to Satan casting out demons but also to God allowing evil?
• If God is pleased, according to his wise and holy counsel, to permit something, having purposed it to his own glory, does that make him the author of that which he purposed?
• What was the primary sin of Eve? Was it coveting? Pride? Curiosity?

What Should I Say to My Single, Christian Friend Who Is Planning to Use IVF to Have a Baby?

Questions about giving a biblical perspective to a single friend who is a relatively new Christian and is planning to use IVF to have a baby, and whether or not it’s wrong to pray for a baby for a single Christian who wants to adopt.

 

• A Christian friend who is relatively new to the faith confided that she isn’t sure marriage is for her and is planning to use IVF to have a baby. How can I talk to her about this from a biblical perspective?
• Is it wrong to pray for a baby for my single, Christian friend who wants to adopt?

How Can I Tell My Patients They’re Giving Christianity a Negative Reputation?

Questions about whether there’s a gracious way to explain to manipulative and demanding patients that they’re giving Christianity a negative reputation, and how to deal with friends who send a lot of end-time prophecy videos that take Bible verses out of context.

 

• As a Christian nurse, is there a gracious way to explain to manipulative and demanding patients who claim to be Christians that they’re giving Christianity a negative reputation in my workplace?
• How do we deal with well-meaning Christian friends who constantly send end-times prophecy videos that take Bible verses out of context and who respond to objections to their claims with, “It might happen—we can’t put God in a box”?