Category: prayer

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How do I confront a Pastor about a message I strongly disagree with?

Our college pastor California said three things I disagree with and would like to get your perspective. These things are very important to me as the youth that hear his sermons i care for and want to make sure arent being mislead.

His statements…

1. if you skip a bible study, sunday church service or dont read your bible for a day then God doesnt hear your prayers that day.
the verse he used, -God detests the prayers of a person who IGNORES the LAW. (Proverbs 28:9 NLT)

2. God doesnt hear the prayers of a fallen away believer or a prayer for a fallen away believer.
-the verse he used, Then the Lord said to me, “Do not pray for these people “ANYMORE.” (Jeremiah 14:11 NLT)

3. God doesnt hear your prayers if you have a unconfessed sin of any kind
-the verse he used If I had not confessed the sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened. (Psalms 66:18 NLT)
(all other versions use cherished or regard, literal translations is if i had seen lawlessness… which leads me to believe that if i have a sin im not willing to forsake or try to justify God doesnt hear my prayers i.e. some one i know going to church and not willing to give up smoking weed after 2+years of accepting Christ then God doesnt hear that person.

i would like to hear what you think about the matter and what i should do about it i have calmly and respectfully confronted him alone only to be shut down and him backing up his views with out other scripture other than the book of Nahum saying God is a God that needs to be feared and revered…

Answer

David,

Your next step is to take your concerns to the Senior Pastor of your church.

God gives responsibility to pastors to shepherd His people which includes caring for them, feeding them, and protecting them. Acts 20:28-31, NIV, “Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. 29 I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. 30 Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. 31 So be on your guard!”

Ephesians 4:11-16 is also an important passage in regard to your concerns. It states additional responsibilities of pastors. “It was he (God) who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, 12 to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. 14 Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. 15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. 16 From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.”

Pastor Chris

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Am I allowed to read the Bible?

i have been told by my husband (we’re separated at this time) that because i am not saved, i am not allowed to read the bible and if i do read the bible it has to be kjv as that is the correct version to read.

in 1996, when i was 16, i was baptized and saved. but i don’t consider it being saved because my youth minister at that time came to me and stated that my mother would love to see me be saved. i really didn’t feel ready then but i went a head and did it anyways. i did feel better afterwards though. that great feeling one gets when the spirit touches them.

now today my husband is telling me that if i move back in i have to read from a kjv bible (problem is i can’t comperhend the kjv bible but can the niv and nkjv) he also stated that we would attend church. i have nothing against church but every one i have been to in my area i never felt good about and i feel i should go to a church that i feel good about not of what he (husband) wants.

my husband also tells me that because i read the bible and have not been saved that i am playing god and the church.

i haven’t stepped into a church for over a year and reason being is that i don’t feel that movement in that church. that spirit. another reason is that i have an anxiety disorder and it is hard for me to go places without having an attack.

i am confused on all of this. am i allowed to read the bible even though I don’t attend church and haven’t been saved since 96?

i also have been told by my husband that i am not allowed to talk to god because i am not saved and because of my sins. i feel that he is wrong. i talk to god all the time. i pray. i don’t think god would turn his back on that. or am i wrong?

and what version of the bible should i read from? my husband states that kjv is the only one i should read from and that all the other bibles are false.

Answer

Carla,

The Bible was written in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. Every translation is exactly that, a translation. A translator or a translation team seeks to take the words of one language and put them into the words of another language.

The King James Version is a good translation. The problem is that English has changed. We speak and write English differently than the translators of the KJV in the year 1611. It is good to read modern translations of the Bible and compare them to each other and to the King James version. I have several versions of the Bible in my study and read from all of them.

As to your comments about salvation, I refer you to the search feature of the Ask Pastor Chris website. Type in the word salvation and some articles I have written on that subject will come up for you to read and consider.

As to reading the Bible, YES, read it! The Bible is God’s word and He uses it in our lives. God’s promise is that His word will not return to Him “void” KJV or “empty” NIV (Isaiah 55:11). The complete verse reads, “so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it” (NIV).

The Bible tells us that the church is the body of Christ. Just as a human body will not function at its best without all of its parts, so the church does not function at its best without all of its parts (1 Corinthians 12). We are also encouraged to not give up “…meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching” (Hebrews 10:25, NIV).

Prayer is a privilege. When we pray we are share our heart with the Creator of the universe and He shares His heart with us! Prayer is like a conversation. Any good conversation requires listening and speaking. When we pray we reach out to God and we find that He is reaching back to us. YES, pray!

I want to encourage you and your husband to meet with a pastor or a Christian counselor for additional support as you face these issues. Focus on the Family is a reputable ministry you can contact to secure referrals for trustworthy biblical counselors in your area.

Further, I recommend these books for you and your husband:
Straight Talk to Men and Their Wives; What Wives Wish Their Husbands Knew About Women

What Wives Wish Their Husbands Knew About Women

What Husbands Wish Their Wives Knew About Men

God bless you!

Pastor Chris

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Why Doesn't God Speak To Us Audibly?

Dear Pastor Chris,

Sir, I often hear my Pastor and fellow brethren say they heard God speak to them. I have been a christian for almost two years but  have not heard this voice in my experience. Is it automatic to hear him once you become a Christian or does it take time to hear him so audibly?

~Andrew

 

Dear Andrew,
Yes, God definitely speaks to us. I am convinced that He is saying more to us than we usually hear.

Why don’t we hear God?

 1. Our lives are too busy. We get crowded in our schedules. We don’t make time for God.

2. We are not listening. When we do try to listen, we are easily distracted.

3. We are not sensitive to His “still small voice” His “gentle whisper” (1 Kings 19:2, KJV, NIV).

How do you listen to God? Set aside a place to meet with Him. Pray. Tell God that you are wanting to hear from Him. Tell Him that you are ready and available to do what He says. Open your Bible. Read a passage. Ask God to reveal the meaning of that passage to you. Compare that passage to other Bible verses on the same subject. Think about what you have just read. Meditate on it. Ask God to show you what these verses meant to the original hearers. Then ask Him what He wants you to do about what you just read. He will prompt your heart to take action on what He has shown you.

You asked about the audible voice of God. The Lord does not speak audibly to most people. He can of course, but it is not His usual way. He did speak audibly to some of the people we read about in the Bible; however, they were the exception. Most people in the days when the Bible was being written never heard the audible voice of God.

Do people sometimes hear the audible voice of God today? Yes. Sometimes.

Why doesn’t God speak audibly more often?

1. God doesn’t need to speak audibly for most of us because He has already done so in the writings of the Bible. The Bible is God’s Word. In the pages of the Bible we find the mind and heart of God. We meet Him there and His Spirit helps us understand what He wants us to know.

2. God doesn’t need to speak audibly because He has given us His best Word in the person of His Son, Jesus Christ. The Bible says in
John 1:1-2, 14, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning…

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” Jesus is the living Word of God. To know Jesus is to know God. To walk with Jesus is to experience God. Therefore, to study the life of Jesus is to discover what God is like, how He relates to us, and how He acts in history.

Read the Bible. Study it. God speaks through it. Listen.

 

~Pastor Chris

 

 

 

 

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How Do I Handle My Weakening Faith In God?

Dear Pastor,

 I tried to enlist into the Marines seven months ago, and they had sent my medical records up to b-med. I’ve been waiting for an answer for seven months. I have prayed every night to God to give me an answer so I know what to do with my life. I feel like my life has been on pause for  seven months. I cant date new girls nor go to school without an answer. I’ve lost faith after a while because I felt like God didn’t care enough to give me an answer. Im 25 and my whole life depends on this. I cant afford school or improve my life in the position im in. I just don’t know what to do. I’ve wanted to join the military since I was 12. I got rejected when I was 18 and now got a second chance at joining. I just want to know what God has planned for me…or am I expecting too much? I just wish God would openly talk to me and tell me what I want to know. I’ve been in this pain for along time wondering and hoping that this will come through for me. I feel I have no other choice but not to join to better my life, even though I want nothing more to join. God hasn’t answered me in seven months and its been a real faith killer. I became a believer two years ago and was on fire for God, but now I feel alone and empty. I figured it was my last hope to talk to you and get some sort of answer, rather then loose all faith and be empty again. Thank you for your time on reading this. I have much more detail in my life that has gone wrong and didnt tell you about it, just been struggling with many  things and figured I would work on one thing at a time, starting with this since it will make or break me.

~Mike

 

 

Dear Mike,

God has not left you. He is not ignoring you either. Sometimes God tests our faith.

Think about it this way, when you went to school you took tests. The purpose of those tests was not to fail you but to reveal how much you had learned. It is the same way with God. The Bible says in James 1:2-4, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”

God is developing your faith. In the meantime, attend church, read the Bible everyday, pray, and look for opportunities to serve others. Consider applying for other branches of the military. Maybe God wants you in the Coast Guard or the Army.

~Pastor Chris

 

 

 

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Why do we pray outloud?

Pastor Chris,
Why as Christians do we pray out loud when we know that Satan can hear what our prayers are when we pray out loud and not silently?
– D.L.

D.L.,
Let me direct you to two places in the Bible where people prayed out loud. The first passage is Luke 11:1-2. One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.” 2 He said to them, “When you pray, say: ‘Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come.’”

Here we see that Jesus Himself prayed out loud and encouraged His followers to do the same. Jesus tells them, “When you pray, say…” Since Jesus is our example in all things, we seek to do as He did.

Another passage that I want to call your attention to is Acts 4:23-24. On their release, Peter and John went back to their own people and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said to them. 24 When they heard this, they raised their voices together in prayer to God. “Sovereign Lord,” they said, “you made the heaven and the earth and the sea, and everything in them.” From these verses we see that the early disciples prayed out loud together.

My conclusion is this: since Jesus and the early disciples prayed out loud, they must not have cared whether Satan could hear their prayers or not. On a personal note, I have been encouraged again and again by the spoken prayers of others. To be with others when they are speaking to God is a marvelous thing, a strengthening thing. Silent prayer is good, but there is a place for spoken prayer, too.

— Pastor Chris