Ask Pastor John

If there is no forgiveness without shed blood, how could Jesus forgive sins apart from the sacrificial system and prior to his own death?

In an age of hate, Christians testify to God’s grace by praying for all kinds of people: high and low, white and black, Democrat and Republican, friend and enemy.

When God grants us a ministry, does his leading come to us through internal impulses, external affirmation, or some combination of the two?

Does Scripture ever command us to pray for unbelievers, or does it only command us to pray for the evangelists who speak to them?

Prayer is the easiest step of love, and it is also the most powerful. God can do far more for others in response to our prayers than we could ever do on our own.

God is honored when we do our jobs with technical excellence, and he is also honored when we give ourselves to the kinds of excellence that cannot be measured.

How can we require obedience of our children without provoking and discouraging them? Pastor John offers eight pitfalls for fathers.

Throughout Scripture, God warns that he will not hear the prayers of the disobedient. So do answered prayers depend on our holiness?

We will never plumb the depths of sin and grace merely from past experience. Only God’s word can tell us how lost and dead we were, and how found and alive we are.

In the early twentieth century, many Christian leaders lent their approval to the cause of Prohibition. Would Pastor John have done the same if he lived back then?

In Christ, God has chosen us from eternity, and called us in time, so that we would boast no longer in ourselves, but only in him and his great love.

Some teachers influence us so deeply that we find ourselves imitating them without trying. So how can we move past imitation to make biblical truth our own?

Paul says we all were dead apart from Christ, but he also says we died when we were united to Christ. In what sense, then, do dead men die?

Nothing but God can forever satisfy hearts that are made for God. And so, in great mercy, God loves us in a way that makes much of himself.

Christians can disagree over many doctrines and stay friends. But what should we do when a friend rejects a doctrine central to the gospel?

How might Christians process feelings of guilt over the death of a loved one? Pastor John offers counsel to a new widow struggling not to blame herself.

In Christ, God makes more of us than we could ever imagine. And he will go on doing so forever.

Does faith bring about the new birth, or does the new birth bring about faith? Pastor John offers three reasons why getting the order right matters.

Does God delight in his people based on Christ’s work alone, or does his delight also depend on our own holiness?

When God makes much of us, he does it for his sake, not ours. And that makes his love far greater than we could have imagined.

Some shame condemns and destroys, and some shame heals and restores. So how can we tell the difference between misplaced and well-placed shame?

In his letters, Paul speaks not only of teachings he delivered to the churches, but also of traditions he passed on. What kind of traditions does he have in mind?

Many nominal Christians go to church, believe God loves them, and yet are on their way to hell. So what marks the born again from those who only think they are?

In America, there are hundreds of thousands of frozen embryos, left over from in vitro fertilization. How might Christians weigh the decision to adopt one of them?

What kind of person does Romans 7:14–25 describe? Pastor John offers nine reasons to read Paul’s description as part of the Christian experience.

The church of Acts often gathered together to praise God and intercede for his people. So what might we lose if we pray only by ourselves?

God gave us a book about Jesus, not a video. So how might Christians think about dramatic portrayals of Jesus’s life in television or movies?

If God’s wrath comes against evil desires, and not only evil behaviors, why will his wrath not come against Christians, who still battle evil desires?

A lack of love for other people doesn’t show that we’re trying too hard to please ourselves — it shows that we’re far too easily pleased.

How can we turn our attention away from regrets, dreams, and other consuming thoughts so that we can set our minds on things that are above?

If two spouses agree that they do not want to have more children, would it be sinful to pursue permanent forms of birth control?

How do I follow God’s lead in my daily decisions? I know he’s my shepherd, and that he’s leading me, but how do I know if I am following him?

To be a Christian is not only to trust Christ and treasure Christ, but to be indwelt by Christ. And that new identity transforms all our relationships.

God still answers prayers for physical healing today. But how should Christians evaluate the claims of so-called healing ministries?

We know that Jesus has purchased both our forgiveness and our physical healing at the cross. But what kind of healing can we expect in this life?

If all our sins are forgiven — past, present, and future — does ongoing confession show that we doubt Christ’s finished work?

If our sinful flesh was crucified with Christ when we first believed, why do we keep sinning like we do?

How do we make sure the good we do is not done in vain? Listen to Pastor John’s answer more than thirty years ago, just weeks after becoming a pastor.

When we look around at our world of horrific suffering, how can we keep believing in an all-good, all-wise, totally sovereign God?

Some self-denial exalts self and feeds sin, and some self-denial exalts Christ and kills sin. So how can we practice the right kind?

Every Christian battles excessive and distorted desires. And in Christ, God gives every Christian daily forgiveness, hope, and strength to keep fighting.

At the cross, Paul says, God “disarmed the rulers and authorities.” So what weapons are no longer in Satan’s hands?

How can Christians pursue education without being taken captive by worldly thinking? Pastor John reflects on Paul’s warning against “philosophy” in Colossians 2:8.

In 1938, a small publishing ministry began distributing gospel tracts. Today, that ministry has spread millions of tracts, books, and Bibles all over the world.

Paul says that God has reconciled to himself “all things” in heaven and on earth. Does that mean even unbelievers and demons will be saved in the end?

How should Christians respond to divisions in the church? Don’t make light of them, for they are tragic. And don’t make death of them, for they are predicted.

Under God, musical worship can mobilize the church to finish the Great Commission. The gladness of Godward singing sends lovers of Christ to the nations.

Scripture includes stories of angels talking with humans through dreams and visions. So should Christians expect, and even pursue, conversations with angels today?

When God puts the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, giving us a spiritual sight of his fatherly care in Christ, we can’t help but cry, “Abba! Father!”

The freest people in this world are those most in love with the next. If our hope is safe in heaven, we can afford to take risks on earth.