When Do You Know a Christian Is a Fundamentalist?

You know that a Christian is a fundamentalist. That's just one of the questions will be answering on today's addition of core Christianity will hi, I'm Bill Meyer along with Pastor Israel Sanchez and this is a radio program where we answer your questions about the Bible and the Christian life every day.

Would love to hear from you and here's our phone number it's 833.core that's 1-833-843-2673. By the way, you can leave us a voicemail at that number 24 hours a day. You can also email us your question at questions at core, Christianity.com first up today let's go to Matt is calling in from Memphis, Tennessee. Matt what is your question for pastor atrial payment doing well thank you for calling with your question. Well we remember having felt forgiven for playing his way back to the beginning become a Christian later and did more knowledgeable about the cross and forgiveness. You know, step five. You compress everything to a confidant or clergy step mind prevents you from when you go out to make restitution and apologies can't really be totally honest in certain cases when it otherwise you be hurting them at their expense for your to free yourself from that guilt and ice cream. The practicality of it all. Over time, but just feel like it just wasn't being rigorously honest like. Sated be my essay. It's protected people by to go out bring it dredge up stuff like that be wrong, but just drills on biblical.

The only thing that I feel about the whole AA program which which to me is on biblical step mind on that second part not hurt people that make sense so you know I'm I'm not too familiar with with all of this.

The steps in and what each of them.

You know, tells you to do, but are you saying. Step nine is asking you to go to other people and share with them but not share everything and and you feel like you're having to hold back is that was going on right was stripped. Step five. You really get everything from your past with clergy or a spiritual advisor down when you go out to make amends to people like maybe you gotta pay some money back apologize for some bad behavior something like like adultery or something like that work. It would just destroy your family if you brought up something that may have happened way back in the past. Step nine sales might make America people. Such people wherever possible exit missed the part about except when to do so would injure them or others. So I find I follow that great but as I got really into the Bible.

Years later kills on biblical yeah okay I think I understand okay well so so peers and I was a one concession is key and so important and were called as Christians confess our sins, he sees in James five. You see this in first John chapter 1 and and and so them and that that's a part of. I think one receiving forgiveness is also part of the process of of healing. I we confess our sins, first and foremost to guide me not receive the deeds. I think also wise and good. Did is as you know you've done with with the pastor, but then the question is, what's my obligation to the people that I've hurt you when you go to them as well and and boy bring all of this stuff up essay there say they were talking but something else you were talking about an affair. Do I need to go and tell this person who I sinned against. In this way, we gone this question on the broadcast before AI I cheated on you all these years ago. All those years ago and I've never told you about it and oftentimes I think will avoid that because we say well you have confess to God and everything is is fine and good there at least say I think it is. I don't need to bring this up and and boy if I did, it would really hurt this person, but I tell people in that situation know you. You need to be honest, you do need to go to that person and ask for forgiveness for for having sinned against immediate states living essentially in a lie will you when you when your withholdings not it's not right is not honorable.

It's not respectful to in that situation Reno due to the spouse and so I got back I say look when when you've done something to see any against someone seriously, if you're able to go to them and and bring peace and and and and ultimately true peace comes through repentance and confession then then you should me. I think also the ugly moose examples of this and in Scripture you think of Zacchaeus. And in Luke chapter 19 and boy he had done a lot of things to hurt a lot of people. But Jesus I need to go make amends. You need to go in and pay back what you took any for them to go above and beyond that and so we do have examples of this in script and I when might not be good to to bring up those things are try to go to someone. Are there examples of that II did I do tend to think that there could be so let me let me save you know in a situation where maybe were talking about physical or sexual abuse and and a person is gone to prison for what they've done and and you know they they've they said. Gosh, I'm so sorry if I've asked for forgiveness, but I wouldn't say that person should go and try to revisit those things with the victim. I think that that would not be helpful or wise. I think there there there are situations where where we do need a little bit of extra wisdom, but I think generally speaking, as a rule we do as believers want to and need to go to the people that we sinned against and asked for forgiveness and do whatever we can to make things right and so met.

May God bless you in your life as you seek to do that with with the people around you. May God give you wisdom and may God bring healing in your relationships.

Thanks for calling the great question and major like I do have to mention the time you invited me over to your house you had that really good ice cream in your freezer and while I sorry I have some of it I wanted to get out there.

I just bill ahead. I wondered I've I've wondered all these years where what happened to that vanilla ice cream and now I know you're forgiven but you're not to be invited back. So just getting this is core Christianity with pastor Israel Sanchez and would love to hear from you. If you have a question about the Bible or the Christian life. You can leave us a voicemail 24 hours a day at 833 the core that's 1-833-843-2673 by way we want to invite you to join what we call our inner core. This is a group of people that believe so strongly in this program.

In this ministry that they support us on a monthly basis and we can't tell you how thankful we are for you folks were part of the inner core, yes, you've been encouraged by the broadcast would you partner with us the intercourse a $25 donation monthly donation and its one of the ways that we can be in the saddle together as believers seeking to get the word of the Lord out and encourage people your your gifts, help us to continue to keep this program going on the airwaves to produce material that is edifying and helpful for you, possibly a lot of the stuff that we that we produce. We give away for free and so your gifts, help us to do that and if you've been blessed by core Christianity. Would you please prayerfully consider joining the inner core. Would love to have you get involved and you can go to core Christianity.com/inner core. To learn more.

That's core Christianity.com/inner core all one word and again would love to get you on that. The list of wonderful people that support this program and send you a copy of Dr. Horton's book core Christianity go back to the phones.

Joseph is on the line from New York to support your question for Israel.

Hi, my question is if I'm truly born again and I can have some personal encounter with God or no.

I know the Lord listen to a lot of testimonies have certain great saying if you know him you'll know you know him. I personally can't say that and that I cried out for many years. I know what Romans 10 said 10 verse 9B since two birthday, and I believe those wholeheartedly. I just want to know impossible to have some sort of spiritual encounter with Christ or some sort of listing of a burden that I haven't had a thank you. Hey, Joseph.

May my heart goes out to you because I know what it is to be full of anxiety and fear and wonder, do I belong to Jesus.

I really know him. Do I really have a relationship with him have my sins really and truly been forgiven and you know you hear stories there people who say me when I when I got baptized when I asked Christ to come into my life. It was like just you know butterflies and and felt like I was levitating and I could just that I could feel the Holy Spirit that Kennedy and that's not to knock people's experiences and and even to deny the people can have these wonderful experiences, but the reality is that's not everyone's experience, Joseph, and so you don't have to feel like the odd man out because you haven't had a vision of Jesus are you know that the clouds haven't parted often times, one of our problems were thinking about assurance is were were looking in.

Have I had that experience. Do I have enough faith in my doing enough. Do I really believe here's what I think God wants you to do. Joseph is I think he wants you to look not in but out and up to Christ. It's the objectivity to the sureness of the gospel that Christ came into the world, died on a cross and rose again from the dead for our justification that's set in stone. That's real that's that's more real than anything else and who can have all sorts of feelings and experiences. This is this is history. This happened Jesus really rose from the dead, and in rising from the dead. He put away the sins of his people once for all this with the book of Hebrews says. And so our job as believers is to cling to that reality. When you're struggling when you're not sure fleet of the cross fleet what Christ has done.

Don't look in look to Christ and and I'm grateful to hear that you're digging into the word and that you you can read Romans 10 and in other passages of Scripture and say I believe those with all my heart, lift if you believe know that you have eternal life. This is what what John says in first John five and I'm writing these things do you believe in the name of the son of God, that you might know that you have eternal life is. This is the truth and so are there times in the Christian life in your life where you might, you know, have more feelings where where is my boy. You're in church or your reading the Scriptures and you have a strong sense of God's presence yeah that me that comes but it also goes and then there are there are many times where you know it's it's the discipline of continuing to seek the Lord continuing to get up for church continuing to pray and say Lord speak to me through your word, continuing to serve the Lord. That's what God calls us to. That's what God calls you to. And as you do that is you as you look to Jesus as you believe in him. Rest assured that he holds on to you Joseph God bless and thanks. Thank you for calling. I'm so glad that you answer that federal because I know that for many people they struggle with that same issue. I don't feel it.

I don't have the sense that other people talk about.

And yet, what's it all about the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross and that's we need to keep coming back to, regardless of our feelings or circumstances right yeah absolutely. I mean it in and you know as we meditate meditate on what Christ has done for us what God has done for us in Christ that our feelings that can come and then Ben will follow it, and frankly were continually seeking the Lord, and in trying to grow in our understanding of his love for us of the gospel, but it's it's just man resting in the concrete reality of God's work, not our works, not our feelings, not how good were doing today or how good we might be doing tomorrow. It's the objectivity of the gospel that gives us hope, amen, amen.

This is core Christianity with pastor Israel Sanchez, we do receive voicemails here and you can leave one for us anytime at 833. The core 1-833-843-2673 is a voicemail that came in from one of our listeners earlier this week. John your program calling him a little at backup you get that crazy fundamental people think Christianity or what. I don't think that's really the case at my opinion want to hear what your thoughts are yeah well one. Thanks for listening to the broadcast. John let me at one of the things I love about core Christianity, what were doing here is we we have an audience that is so broad I mean it's so cool to be able to answer questions from Christians from non-Christians from Christians who have been of different backgrounds different traditions different convictions.

The hope is to focus on the main thing right of the main thing being the gospel you you hear us talk about it over and over and over again, we believe, I believe more than anything else.

That's what we need to recover in our churches, and sometimes it will you will get questions that might be related to you know this stuff serve on the outskirts you know that not not not not core Christianity.

If you will, but I realize that people have these questions and and honestly I want to be able to minister to everybody meet anybody who calls in an end to address the questions that they haven't and the fears that they have in you sometimes let me just say this I I recognize this is a pastor. We can look at other people and the questions that they have in the fears that they have and just say what are you thinking really, that's your question or you're afraid of that. That's your concern and you know what they probably look at us with our fears and concerns and say the same thing. Really that's what you're concerned about. That's what you're most afraid of, and so we want to be compassionate to each other and patient with one another in answering these questions and looking to the Scriptures and seeking to come alongside of you know people who people who want to know the truth and and as I said you know not every question is, is getting to the vitals of the faith. Sometimes we get we get questions that that you know what were not talking about the gospel anymore talking about something else but we always want to take it back to the gospel and I hope that you've been encouraged by that as you do. Listening John and appreciate you continuing to support us something so much for your question for listing the core Christianity. What we do have a YouTube channel and you can watch a drill live in the studio on YouTube every day at 11:30 AM Pacific time.

So just translate that into your local time zone 11:30 AM Pacific's were on YouTube for a half-hour and you can also send us a question through the YouTube channel as well. Andrea has one about Genesis in a drama you've recently been preaching through the book of Genesis. She says does Genesis 322 through 24 reveal an inner dialogue among the persons of the Trinity.

Yeah. So let me just read the text Genesis 322 then the Lord God said, behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil. Now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the tree of life and eat and live forever. Therefore the Lord God sent him out from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken he drove out the man and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life it's that that plural. There us that sometimes he will say, will that be that the training the father the son and the Holy Spirit, you know, behold, man has become like one of us. You see this same language earlier in the book of Genesis in Genesis chapter 1 verse 26, God said, let us make man in our image, and, after our likeness, and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens, and so forth. Okay, this is been taken a few different ways that us here are some is a yeah I think this is a reference to the holy Trinity is the father the son and the Holy Spirit, there us. There our their Somerset will this is the sort of plural of Majesty, it's God speaking in the plural it now I I'm not in it, really. But I don't think that that's that's right is one of the ways this is been interpreted. Others have seen the us here as what's called the divine counsel that is God together with his heavenly counsel.

The angelic hosts and you do see I think. Examples of this in in Scripture and in different places.

In fact, even in that the text that you reference their Genesis 322 through 24. The cherubim are mentioned in the context, and in verse 24, where God put that the cherub in the cherubim there to guard the way to the tree of life is I'm I'm sympathetic to us being that the heavenly counsel God's divine counsel, but there are places in Scripture where I do think you have that that the persons of the holy Trinity speaking, if you will conversation that you see this in the Psalms. In particular, I think of Psalm chapter 2 just read it to the white of the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain. The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against his anointed, let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us. He who sits in the heavens laughs, the Lord holds them in derision.

He will speak to them in his wrath and terrify them in his fury, saying as for me, I have set my king on Zion, my holy hill. I will tell of the decree. The Lord said to me you are my son ship to people talking of you have the Lord setting his his king on his holy hill, the anointed one, and then you have the sun is speaking in verse seven the Lord said to me you are my son, today I have begotten you.

Ask of me and I will make the nations your heritage and the ends of the earth your possession, you shall break them with a rod of iron and – them – them in pieces like a potter's vessel seem to have examples in Scripture in the Old Testament, certainly in the New Testament as well, but in the Old Testament, even of the persons of the holy Trinity and their speech communicating speaking but I don't think that that text in Genesis 3 is one of them. Thank you for your question. This core Christianity with pastor Israel Sanchez. Let's go to voicemail. It came in from one of our listeners. This is from Frank in Romans chapter 3 verse 25 past over and that worked late and I wonder you know everybody, if you stand bad after that your sins against you. I like to know that you okay couple questions there so so with regard to Romans chapter 3 in verse 25. This is in the context of Paul talking about the doctrine of justification and the righteousness that God gives verse 21 he says now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law of the witnesses, a righteousness that that comes to us not through law keeping. Not through obedience to the law, although he says the law and the prophets bear witness to it, the Old Testament, the old covenant bore witness to this righteousness the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.

For there is no distinction for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God and are justified, that is made right in the sight of God their justified by his grace as a gift. You don't earn your justification. It's not through merit. It's through grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over the former sins. Now the former sins being the sins that happened prior to the death of Jesus Christ and one of the things it's being emphasized. There is how sin can't be forgiven. There is no forgiveness apart from Christ's. His work is sacrifice. Anyone who's ever forgiven or was ever forgiven and that in the history of humanity, but even prior to the death of Jesus Christ is saved by the efficacy and power of the blood of Jesus Christ. The bulls and goats of the old covenant.

Those were types and shadows pointing forward to the final once for all efficacious outpouring of blood that Jesus made for us and for our forgiveness. Thanks for listening core Christianity request your copy of today's special offer. Visit us at core, Christianity.com and click on offers in the menu or call us at 1-833-843-2673. That's 833 when you contact us. Please let us know how you been encouraged by this program and be sure to join us next time. As we explore the truth of God's word together