Questions and Answers.

God is so clear about how we are acceptable to Him. The Bible says, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life" (John 3:16). And many times Jesus talked about coming to give us eternal life. He stated this quite directly: "...it is my Father's will that all who see his Son and believe in him should have eternal life" (John 6:40).

If we could come to God through any religious figure (ie. Buddha, Allah, Mohammad, Hindu gods, etc.), or through any religious effort...then Jesus did not need to come to earth and die on a cross for our sins. But this was God's plan--God Himself paying for our sin, so that full forgiveness could be given to us. "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 6:23).

To believe in Jesus means life; to not believe in Him means remaining guilty from personal sin and under God's judgment. God offers forgiveness to any who will come to Him.

There are numerous places where Jesus made statements alluding to His deity. Here are just a few from the Gospel of John:
John 5:18
John 5:22-24
John 8:57-59
John 10:30-33
John 12:44-46
John 13:12-14
John 14:6

In John 10:30-33, notice the crowds' reaction to what Jesus says...

"I and the Father are one."
The Jews took up stones again to stone Him.
Jesus answered them, "I showed you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you stoning Me?"
The Jews answered Him, "For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy; and because You, being a man, make Yourself out to be God."

For more statements that Jesus made about Himself, please see:
John 6:32-35
John 8:12-14
John 10:7-11
John 11:21-27
Matthew 20:25-28
Mark 9:31-32
John 3:16-18
John 6:37-40

Jesus referred to the Old Testament as Scripture and quoted from it often. And we're told, "All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It straightens us out and teaches us to do what is right. It is God's way of preparing us in every way, fully equipped for every good thing God wants us to do" (2 Timothy 3:16,17 - New Living Translation).

"Trinity" is a term that is not found in the Bible but a word used to describe what is apparent about God in the Scriptures. The Bible clearly speaks of God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ), and God the Holy Spirit...and also clearly presents that there is only one God. Thus the term: "Tri" meaning three, and "Unity" meaning one, Tri+Unity = Trinity. It is a way of acknowledging what the Bible reveals to us about God, that God is yet three "Persons" who have the same essence of deity.

Some have tried to give human illustrations for the Trinity, such as H2O being water, ice and steam (all different forms, but all are H2O). Another illustration is an egg having a shell, egg yolk and egg white, but this egg illustration shows that there would be "parts" to God, which isn't the case.

God the Son (Jesus) is fully, completely God. God the Father is fully, completely God. And God the Holy Spirit is fully, completely God. Yet there is only one God. In our world, with our limited human experience, it's tough to understand the Trinity. But from the beginning we see God this way in Scripture. Notice the plural pronouns "us" and "our" in Genesis 1:26 -- Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground."

Though not a complete list, here is some other Scripture that shows God is one, in Trinity:

• "Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD is one!" (Deut. 6:4)
  
  
• "I am the LORD, and there is no other; Besides Me there is no God." (Isa. 45:5)
  
  
• There is no God but one. (1Cor. 8:4)
  
  
• And after being baptized, Jesus went up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove, and coming upon Him, and behold, a voice out of the heavens, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased." (Matt. 3:16-17)
  
  
• "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit." (Matt. 28:19)
  
  
• Jesus said: "I and the Father are one." (John 10:30)
  
  
• "He who has seen Me has seen the Father." (John 14:9)
  
  
• "He who beholds Me beholds the One who sent Me." (John 12:45)
  
  
• If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him. (Rom. 8:9)
  
  
• "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for that which has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit." (Matt. 1:20)
  
  
• And the angel answered and said to her [Mary], "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy offspring shall be called the Son of God." (Luke 1:35)
  
  
• [Jesus speaking to His disciples] "And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not behold Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you, and will be in you." ... "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him, and make Our abode with him." (John 14:16-17, 23)

The Holy Spirit is a real person who came to reside within Jesus Christ's true followers after Jesus rose from the dead and ascended to heaven (Acts 2). Jesus told His apostles...

"I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not behold Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you, and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you." (John 14:16-18)

The Holy Spirit is not a vague, ethereal shadow, nor an impersonal force. He is a person equal in every way with God the Father and God the Son. He is considered to be the third member of the Godhead. Jesus said to His apostles...

"All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." (Matt. 28:18-20)

God is Father, Son and Holy Spirit. And all the divine attributes ascribed to the Father and the Son are equally ascribed to the Holy Spirit. When a person becomes born again by believing and receiving Jesus Christ (John 1:12-13; John 3:3-21), God resides in that person through the Holy Spirit (1Cor. 3:16). The Holy Spirit has intellect (1Cor. 2:11), emotion (Rom. 15:30), and will (1Cor. 12:11).

A primary role of the Holy Spirit is that He bears "witness" of Jesus Christ (John 15:26, 16:14). He tells people's hearts about the truth of Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit also acts as a Christian's teacher (1Cor. 2:9-14). He reveals God's will and God's truth to a Christian. Jesus told His disciples...

"The Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you." (John 14:26)

"When He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come." (John 16:13)

The Holy Spirit was given to live inside those who believe in Jesus, in order to produce God's character in the life of a believer. In a way that we cannot do on our own, the Holy Spirit will build into our lives love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Gal. 5:22-23). Rather than trying to be loving, patient, kind, God asks us to rely on Him to produce these qualities in our lives. Thus Christians are told to walk in the Spirit (Gal. 5:25) and be filled with the Spirit (Eph. 5:18). And the Holy Spirit empowers Christians to perform ministerial duties that promote spiritual growth among Christians (Rom. 12; 1Cor. 12; Eph. 4).

The Holy Spirit also performs a function for non-Christians as well. He convicts people's hearts of God's truth concerning how sinful we are -- needing God's forgiveness; how righteous Jesus is -- He died in our place, for our sins; and God's eventual judgment of the world and those who do not know Him (John 16:8-11). The Holy Spirit tugs on our hearts and minds, asking us to repent and turn to God for forgiveness and a new life.

First of all, we all sin (Isaiah 53:6 "We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way" and Romans 3:23 "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God").

The fact that you recognize your sin and feel badly about it should give you encouragement for several reasons. For one thing, a lot of people sin and don't think there's anything wrong with it - yet God has opened your eyes to seeing how destructive it can be. But God does not want you to live with guilt. He wants you to know and fully experience His forgiveness.

God does not simply overlook our sin and say, "You're forgiven." God sees our sin but is ready to forgive us because Jesus fully took OUR sin on Himself and paid for our sin by His death on the cross. Our sin is serious and it cost Jesus incredible suffering. But from the moment we received Christ into our lives, His forgiveness is ours. We can't ever make up for our own sin or suffer enough for it - nor does God want us to. "But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us" Romans 5:8.

But what about when we struggle with an area and keep on sinning? Does God get so weary forgiving us that we, at some point, reach our limit?

Jesus was asked by the disciples how many times they needed to forgive someone. "Then Peter came and said to Him, ‘Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?' Jesus said to him, ‘I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven'" (Matthew 18:21,22). It's unlikely that Peter could keep track of whether he forgave a particular individual 490 times yet, so you see Jesus' point. You always forgive, because God always forgives us. God does not have a limit. He died for every one of your sins-those you've committed and those you will commit-past, present, and future sins.You need to begin looking at your sin the way God looks at it. And here is what He says in the Bible:

"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." 1John 1:9

"My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense--Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world." 1John 2:1,2

"As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us." Psalm 103:12

"You have put all my sins behind your back." Out of sight. God no longer "sees" me in light of my sins. He sees Jesus righteousness for me." Isaiah 38:17

"You will tread our sins underfoot and hurl our iniquities into the depths of the sea." Never to be found at sea. Not "dropped" into the sea, "hurled." Micah 7:19

"I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more." Sins are no longer "kept on file", record is blotted out, destroyed. God cannot "forget" like in human error, but He chooses to "not remember." Isaiah 43:25

"But where sin increased, grace increased all the more." Romans 5:20

"All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to Himself...in Christ God was reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them...For our sake He made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God." 2 Corinthians 5:18,19,21

"There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." Romans 8:1

"...since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." Romans 5:1

We are told that Satan is the "accuser of the brethren", meaning that Satan will try to convince us that God could never love us. We need to recognize those thoughts as lies and instead choose to believe what God says. What God says about us in His Word (the Bible) is truer than anything we could think or feel. Jesus said that those who build their lives on His word are those whose lives stand strong and secure, able to weather anything in life (see Matthew 7:24-27).

If you've asked God to forgive you and to come into your life -- you are forgiven!!! His word says so. Thank Him for His forgiveness and begin to rejoice in your secure relationship with Him. He is able to change areas of your life that don't line up with His desire for you. 1 Corinthians 1:9 says, "God is faithful, through whom you were called into fellowship with his Son, Christ Jesus our Lord."

There are several issues to discuss about this.

1. Self-control is a fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22) - as the Holy Spirit directs our lives and transforms us, it is His intention to build in us self-control. Becoming like Jesus is described as "sanctification" in the Bible - a progressive change where God builds holiness and His character in our lives.

2. Every Christian struggles with sin, and the sin that has our attention will likely change over time. It is important to let God point out sin in our lives, and allow Him to change it in His timing and His way. If we try to pick a sin and exert self-effort to overcome it, we will likely fail. It is God who changes us, and rather than our self-attempts, focusing on our will power or our determination...God would rather we focus on Him and His power. He wants us to trust Him to change us, rather than trusting in ourselves.

3. Paul struggled with covetousness, and describes this in Romans 7. The more he tried to obey the law, the more the law condemned him, because he couldn't do it. His conclusion? When he asks, "who will free me from this body of sin and death?" his answer is, "Jesus" and proceeds to explain in Romans 8.

4. Other verses that may be helpful:
1 John 1:7-2:2 - Some excerpts from that: "If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.... My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and He Himself is the propitiation for our sins..."

No one who is a Christian lives a perfect life, totally pleasing to God. But we are accepted by God due to Jesus' death on our behalf, and we stand forgiven and declared righteous in God's eyes because of Jesus' righteousness.

Romans 3:20-26 - "Therefore no one will be declared righteous in His sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin. But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented Him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in His blood. He did this to demonstrate His justice, because in His forbearance He had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished-- He did it to demonstrate His justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus."

God says that we are no longer under the law (the demands and expectations of God) based on performance. Instead, we are under His grace, because Jesus fulfilled the demands of the law, and by His grace welcomed us into a relationship with Him.

The basis for eternal life is our faith in Jesus, not our ability to overcome sin. Jesus died on the cross because of our sin. He offers us forgiveness based on what He has done. He offers us righteousness before Him, acceptance as a child of God because He bought our salvation.

Our focus now is to be in His Word, asking Him to build into our lives what we see in the Bible, relying on Him to do it in us. Don't get discouraged but continue to trust Him, continue to rest in His ability to change and free you from sin. Obey Him as He gives you a way of escape from temptation -- take the way of escape! (1 Corinthians 10:13), but know that the transforming power belongs to Him, not to us.

I think it's totally normal to go through seasons in our life. It makes sense to me that there are seasons. For example, seasons like a baby, a toddler, a teen, a middle aged, and a senior. Life progresses like that. Then in God's creation, we see seasons as well. Spring - full of new leaves and shoots, Summer - when the fruit is ripe and yummy, Autumn - when the leaves turn and trees start to produce the part of the trunk that makes it strong, and finally winter - when things seem hopeless and lifeless.

So, I think it's normal to have seasons in our walk with God...times when the 'closeness' just isn't there as much as it was before. I want to encourage you to consider this possibility. Of course, there are pat answers like "read your Bible more" or "just pray more", but they don't really answer much, do you think?

Maybe this is just a refining time in your life where you need to just follow God as best you know how, love Him, tell Him so and let the feelings come later. You can have a Christian walk even when you don't 'feel' close, know what I mean? You've given Him your life, you belong to Him and nothing can change that.

All your strong Christian friends will share similar experiences with you if they're honest. I know lots of believers who have had times like this.

Of course, there is always the possibility that there is sin in your life. You could take some time to really talk to God about that. Ask Him to show you if there is anything in your life that is short circuiting your communion with Him. But if He doesn't show you anything specific, then it's probably safe to say that it's not that. See Psalm 32:5 -"Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, 'I will confess my transgressions to the LORD'-- and you forgave the guilt of my sin."

I would spend time with people who encourage you in your faith. Tell them how you feel and ask them to pray for you. When you spend time with God, give Him the freedom to just love you - seek Him for HIM, not for the feeling of closeness that you desire. That is not bad by any means, but just be patient.

Spend time thinking about what's true of you because of Jesus. You are God's child. You are forgiven.

We know that "He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus" (Philippians 1:6), so we know He's working in you even if you can't see it or feel it!

Ask Him to help you trust and wait. You'll be okay. I hope that doesn't sound like a pat answer. I don't mean it to...I just know that even though this time may be a little scary, He is watching over you with a love that never ends (Jeremiah 31:3).