Liberty, Obligation, and COVID-19

Because of the covert, 19 pandemic. My daughter won't allow me to see my grandchildren if I attend church services. What should I do that just one of the questions will be answering on today's addition of core Christianity hi this is Bill Meyer along with Pastor Israel Sanchez and this is the radio program where we answer your questions about the Bible and the Christian life every day. You can call us right now with your question. At 833 the core that's 1-833-843-2673. You can also post your question on our Facebook, Instagram or twitter accounts and you can email us with your question at questions at core, Christianity.com hey Bill, I know that two of your children work for Chick-fil-A and I just wanted to ask you do you guys get the hook up with chicken sandwiches. You know every once in a while they bring a few extras home and sometimes the brownies to which are real nice. My wife, she's a huge Chick-fil-A fan. I feel like if if one of our kids worked at Chick-fil-A, they would be smuggling nuggets home every day you die. That's that's good self-control and on their part. So I understand you're a big fan of the frosted lemonades. Yes, I am actually about I go with be a spicy chicken sandwich and a frosted lemonade.

That's my that's my order. Okay you want to know about it all off off a menu item secret. Yeah, here's what you do when you go through if you want they will add an extra flavor to your frosted limited so you could say could you have strawberry to that and then at the bottom your frosted lemonade. You get these little strawberry chunks and some strawberry syrup and certain times of the euro bill even do mango so there you go. I think I just prefer the normal lemonade flight. Thanks for that. Okay so I know you probably have some Chick-fil-A owners or managers listening to the programs you want to say hi.

Don't yeah but if they want to shoot us a sponsor. I would love to you promote them. That kind of cow costume glare program know there are enough sort of clown cow passengers out there that I need even more and so yeah okay will thank you to our friends at AAA lifted to our first question of the day. This is from a one of our listeners who watches our live stream on YouTube and she says as a new Christian, I find myself ashamed of myself for turning my back on Christ. How does one return to the faith by overcoming the sense of shame and accept the love of Christ once again in my life.

A lot of believers really struggle with this and I think the first thing that you need to realize is that the love of Jesus is bigger than what you've done, no matter how many times you've you've turned your back on the Lord. I think that it's easy for us me more conscious of our own sins of the struggles that we have the things that we've done in the past, to feel like I'm beyond forgiveness or even if I have been forgiven.

I'm pretty worthless. That kind of a thing we have to rest in the fact that God didn't love us or pursue us because we are righteous or holy amine descriptors is the opposite was while we were still sinners that Christ died for us. As of the love of God for you is there. It was exhibited first and foremost in the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. What he did for you what he accomplished for you on the cross and that sacrificial death. Don't let your past keep you from laying hold of that love that I think of talking more people then then just you right now there are others listening who do you say to yourself that I can't come to Jesus right now because I'm so dirty I'm so broken he will reject me. That kind of the thing it and we allow our sins to keep us from the Savior but you need to remember that Jesus himself said I came to seek and save the lost in his blood, his salvation is stronger than your sin 11 passage I like to go to and I and Artie sort of quoted from it, but it's from the book of Romans is the apostle Paul in Romans chapter 5 it's so important for us to to grasp this because I think we oftentimes do think that God loves us because of our performance. Paul said in Romans chapter 5, beginning in verse six. Fault for while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person, though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die. But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since therefore we have been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God is a look. It wasn't when you were strong holy, righteous that God pursued you that he sent his son into the world to die for your sins. It was when we were the opposite of all those things. And if God's love for you, then prior to your conversion prior to believing in Jesus wasn't dependent upon your performance in his love for you now isn't dependent upon your performance and when you feel weighed down by shame by guilt because of what you've done like you're unlovable. You need to go to the cross because it's there that God showed you very clearly that he loves you. This is core Christianity with pastor Israel Sanchez so important to go back to the core truths of the gospel when we are feeling this way would like to know. Somehow we've turned our back on God or he turns his back on us there so I once had a pastor say to us regularly in his services. There's nothing we can do to make God love us more. And there's nothing we can do to make him love us less. He just loves us. Yeah I am a renegade. We talk about the love got me make the key thing there is.

I think really not reading it in our performances that you know were his creation and God loves his creation. Now he doesn't love sin and the Bible is absolutely clear that God hates sin, and there even passages in the Psalm to talk about God hating sinners and so you kinda have this tension where God loves us. He sent his son into the world and and you John 316. What what is the world consistent consist of sinners and yet he sent his son into the world to redeem sinners, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin is of God takes sin very seriously. You bill your talk about what would a pastor friend of yours used to say I had a pastor friend who would say another only two places where sin is taken seriously in the hell and on the cross is sin is very serious to God and yet he loves us so much that he sent his son into the world to deal with it and that's our that's our hope. That's what we that's we preach, that's what I preach is a pastor and it's so important for us to to lay hold of that hope and so give us a call if your question were were alive right now. 833-843-2673 you can talk to a pastor Israel any time, live with your question 833. The core is the number here's a question that came in from Patricia and this is a tough one. Israel, she says, how do you comfort someone whose teenage son died unexpectedly and the parent has no assurance of their sons salvation bill. I don't know if I've mentioned this on the program but one of the most difficult pastoral situations I've ever been in. It was actually when I was still interning. I wasn't even an ordained pastor yet and the church that I was interning at.

There was a phone call that we received from Children's Hospital in San Diego. The chaplain wasn't there at the time and there was a family that had just lost. Not a teenager, a little girl. She was about four years old. She just died and they wanted a pastor someone to come and pray with them and so I got the phone call as an intern because that the pastors on staff of the church were all occupied in and so I went to this hospital and I member walking in the room and the entire way there just praying and asking God please give me wisdom please give me the words to say please pour your mercy out on this family but but getting there and walking into this room and the parents there obviously devastated so many family members around the bed and in a little girl four years old. Her lifeless body and and what do you say in a situation like that I mean that there there aren't words that can communicate to the pain, the grief you one you pray and you more and having the Bible talks about weeping with those who weep. And so there was a lot of that there and and and yet I do think that you can go to the Lord in prayer you don't want to make assumptions and just give people a bunch of platitudes sometimes you know I think that that's what people do and that can be really unhelpful, but you can also point out God's sovereign power in the call for people to trust in that in the fact that God is good and that he's in control and there are two passages of Scripture that I would go to one passage that emphasizes God's care for all of his creation and thinking of of the book of Matthew in Matthew chapter 10 Jesus said these words and I think that this is just really a huge comfort and can be a huge comfort to us. We were facing situations like this. Matthew chapter 10 beginning in verse 28.

Listen to what our Lord Jesus said do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul.

Rather fear him who can destroy both full and body in hell are not two sparrows sold for a penny, and not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your father.

But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore you are of more value than many sparrows. See point people to God's care to his sovereign power to the fact that God is in control. Yes, even in these devastating situations. God is in control and he loves us and were of more value than the sparrows. He knew what was going to happen. He knew and we can cling to him is his or not making assumptions about an individual salvation but were saying that the Lord knows, and then I also think of of one other verse that I would go to and that's in the Psalms. This is a verse that I frequent. We go to and in situations like this, Psalm 139 and again it highlights the very same truth that God knows that he has an intimate knowledge of his people of their life and of their death. Psalm 139, beginning in verse 13 for you formed my inward parts you needed me together in my mother's womb.

I praise you for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works, my soul knows it very well.

My frame was not hidden from you when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth your eyes saw my unformed substance in your book were written every one of them. The days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.

And so I think the one thing that we can comfort people with those who have lost someone near and dear to them is the hope the knowledge one that God knows all things is in control and that God cares for us, cares for his creation and and clinging to that reality so that we don't feel like God was caught off guard, or think that God was caught off guard by the circumstance and of the Lord knows he's bigger than our suffering and that's why we can cling to him through it. I man this is core Christianity with pastor Israel Sanchez. Here's the phone number to call if you'd like to talk to pastor Israel 833-843-2673. That's 833.

The core let's go to Christina calling in from Nashville, Tennessee hi Christina, welcome the core Christianity Christina, what's your question, are you there. I think we lost Christina and heal all story about what were Ernie told her now word but ignoring her and her right on the line that God will wrap able down wondering what your take on that way I Gentile and I thought). There is something about it real or not. Interesting.

I wanted to hear your… Particular moment. Yeah you referring to Matthew chapter 15 beginning in verse 21 Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon, and behold a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, have mercy on me. Oh Lord, son of David, my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon, but he didn't answer her word. And his disciples came and begged him, saying, send her away for she is crying out after us and he answered I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel that Christine is what you referring to their that the priority of Jesus's mission there. As he came to the world, focusing on Israel there but she came and knelt before him, saying, Lord, help me, and he answered it is not right to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs and she said yes Lord it even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master's table and Jesus answered her, a woman, great is your faith be it done for you as you desire. And her daughter was healed instantaneously. This is a verse that gives people a lot of pause.

Why is Jesus speaking in this way to live this this particular woman, but one thing that he's he's highlighting here is the contrast between Israel which was rejecting him and he's going to the lost sheep of the house of Israel and their faithless, so many of them and John says at the beginning of his gospel. He came to his own and his own did not receive him, and yet here you have who a Canaanite woman of the Canaanites and in the Old Testament will sometimes referred to in this sort of negative way before the bad guys. They are only always at war with Israel and yet here's this woman who comes to Jesus, a Gentile, and she has faith and and she sort of stops. Jesus in his tracks and what's what's being focused on here is is one what we sometimes referred to as the Gentile inclusion. The fact that the Messiah they came for the Jews, the Jews rejected him and now what you essentially have is the nation's flocking into the kingdom of God. Beginning with people like this Canaanite woman that even by faith.

She too is being welcomed into the family of God and she is is accepted by the Lord, he heals her daughter and so it is one of those stories. I think that for us. Kind of in our context, we read we just think what what what is going on here, but we have to remember at that time in history all the things that were going on and for many of the Jews. Their assumption was the Messiah. Skinny Commies can establish our kingdom. He's going to make us great and the nations are going to come and bow down before us and Jesus is welcoming the nations that the Gentile nations even this Canaanite woman and and so I think we need to focus on is what Jesus focuses on there at the end of the text.

Her faith and her being commended for that faith and her request been granted by the Lord. Christina, thank you for that question you're listening to core Christianity with pastor Israel Sanchez and today we want to tell you about a very special resource that Israel has produced.

It's called seeing Jesus yeah and you know I hope Christina is still listening because one of the things that I highlight in seeing Jesus this this 34 week devotional that I've written is the fact that Jesus is the bridegroom and who does Jesus pursue as the bridegroom we get really clear picture of who he pursues in places like John chapter 4, where he goes to a well and meets a Samaritan woman, someone who in that day would've been identified by the religious leaders is as sort of an outcast. You know someone who would not have been commended by the Lord, are pursued by God. And yet Jesus pursues her and forgives her and welcomes her into his family and so one of the things that I that I do in seeing Jesus, and I think it would be a really helpful resource for you to check out as I focus on the stories in the Gospels that give us a glimpse into the ministry of Jesus things that we oftentimes miss, and so get a hold of seeing Jesus. I know that will encourage you in your walk with the Lord to sign up to receive a free copy of seeing Jesus just head over to core Christianity.com/Jesus. You can also call us at 833-843-2673 for help getting any one of our offers.

That's 833 the core by the way, if you go to our show notes page 4 today you can find more about that offer and any of the resources that are mentioned on today's program will here's an email we received from Lowell and Lowell says because of covert, 19 my daughter does not want me to attend church.

If I attend, I cannot see my grandchild.

I've not been going to church so I can see him but then I think about Jesus saying that we are not worthy of him for not willing to give up relatives for him. Am I sitting by choosing visits with my grandson over church attendance and what a difficult situation to be a mute you hope that you never have to make a choice between your biological family and your spiritual family, your brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ.

And so, for this is a really difficult situation. A part of me thinks that you know I would first encourage you to just appeal to your daughter and and to focus on honey. Hopefully the church that you go to has taken precautions during this time that there there trying to make things safe so that when people gather together there. They're not getting sick a minute and and so if that's happening out I was a look what were trying to do everything that we can in order to be safe. It's it's hopefully no more dangerous to to gather together for church into it to worship the Lord and it would be to go to the store to get groceries. That kind of a thing and and so emphasizing that I don't know what your church is doing.

It could be that it. If they're not doing anything that her concern is, will maybe there's going to be an outbreak there and I don't want you bringing that into our home and that's I think that's a genuine a serious concern. We've had people in our congregation who have gotten sick with covert, 19 thankfully, none of them from from the church gathering. It's been something typically outside of the church and it's it's no joke. I mean this is a serious thing. But I also don't want to downplay what Jesus said and you referred to it that a couple of occasions.

Jesus highlights the importance of following him no matter what the cost is that I think of his words in Matthew chapter 10 beginning in verse 34. Our Lord said do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth.

I have not come to bring peace but a sword.

Five. Come to set a man against his father and a daughter against her mother and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law and a person's enemies will be those of his own household. Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.

Jesus said when we have to choose between obeying him and pleasing others, including our family. We should always choose him, and there is suffering involved their brother on them. That's part of suffering with Christ. I remember back in I think was the late 2008. Around their there was a young man who converted to Christianity was the son of one of the main leaders in Hamas and I knew about this because he was actually attending a church in San Diego where I lived at the time, and I knew that his pastor and and it was big news because you had the of the son of this Hamas leader who came to faith in Jesus Christ left his family behind and he was asked in an interview you how difficult this was for him to to leave his family behind me said something that just stuck with me said it was like taking the skin off your bones mix difficult for me. Let me to have to choose to be in a position where you feel like you have to choose between your biological family and whether or not you're going to a big I'm not want to minimize that brother but I also want to say listen with the Lord Jesus said to me our call is to follow Christ and and hopefully with the way things are heartrending, Lord willing.

Things are going to start opening up again in this this won't be an issue. Something you'll have to decide between but we are called to follow the Lord and to be faithful to the Lord and that that also means gathering together with the people of God. Now I know that this is been a crazy season with the pandemic and everything related and as I said, I hope that your church is taking the proper precautions and so I would pray and continue have conversations with your daughter and assure her that you guys are being safe so that you potentially could spend time with your grandchildren.

May the Lord bless you brother.

This is core Christianity with pastor Israel Sanchez. Let's go to Lonnie from grand Island, Nebraska Lonnie what your question for pastor. Israel say I really love your show ranking all the money I do really relate to me for some reason a little nervous, but I've been a believer most of my life since I was a little girl. My mom spelled out in me, and I mean I straight off and on for you now back and forth for years, but for some reason when I go to church. I feel like I'm still like I'm being convicted. I felt guilty, like I'm not doing enough or like the sermon I don't know I just feel like that I think will, maybe I should even go to church maybe I should just stay home and read my Bible. Are you my own thing because that bill is convicted of it when I go there will look one.

We were under the preaching of the word we are going to feel convicted times. That's really what the law of God does is God speaks to us through his word and there are times where as were hearing the word of God is immersing ourselves in the mirror and forcing all the areas where we fall short. And if that's all you're getting is sort of the law over and over and over again then you're going to feel really guilty a lot of the time. That's why it's so important Lonnie that you also here. The gospel the truth of the gospel. The truth of God's word, which is not what you need to do what Jesus has done for you to forgive use of the question that I have for you. Lonnie is are you hearing that message are you being reminded of what Jesus has done for you to forgive you for that.

You're not filled with shame over and over again, but that you're filled with the grace of God in Jesus.

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