A number of years ago before I became a Minister, my wife and I had a big argument, we were very busy with the kids, we were financially stressed, then our car broke down while we were out of town. Yes, at that time I questioned God. Is it alright to question God?
Kids ask questions all the time, don’t they?
Here are some examples of kid’s questioning God:
How Come God Makes Storms With Lightening And Thunder?
Why Do Some People Die Before They Are Old?
Will My Pet Go To Heaven When It Dies?
Is there a McDonald’s in Heaven?
Why Is Hell Dark If They Have Fires?
How Can Jesus Fit In My Heart?
If God Made Spiders, Why Do People Squish Them?
Why Doesn’t God Just Zap The Bad People?
How Long Is Eternity?
Why Do They Call It Good Friday If That’s The Day Jesus Died?
How Did God Make Everyone Else After Adam And Eve?
Why Did Jesus Dress So Funny?
Why Can’t We Go To Heaven And Just See It And Then Come Back?
These are good questions aren’t they?
They are good questions because we adults know that kids are still trying to understand. Kids are usually sincere with their questioning.
I don’t think I will ever forget how God answered when I questioned Him. For some reason I had to stop and look up. At that moment I saw a beautiful blue sky, everything seemed like they stopped moving, and every color around me seemed so bright. Then, the thought of the earth freely suspended in the sky while it rotates and orbits the sun, and millions of other planets doing the same thing in order, made me bow my head in worship of God!
I probably would not be a minister today if God didn’t answer my question back then. There are no questions God can not handle. Like we adults understand the questions children asks, God understands all our sincere questions to Him and He will answer them.
Godly Abram in the Book of Genesis had questions about God. Let us learn from his questioning of God. Please open your Bibles and let us read Genesis Chapter 15…….
In v1, God encouraged Abram with God’s Own Word. God reminded Abram of the great promise to him.
But what do we note from v2-3? Abram questioned God! Abram was saying, “God, I appreciate your promises about having many descendants, but I don’t even have a child! And so, what you really meant was that my servant will receive the blessings.” Abram not only questioned God, Abram put words in God’s mouth.
Do we ever do that? We say after reading God’s Word, “God, you really don’t mean that do you? Can’t you see the situation I’m in? God, what you’re really trying to tell me is this (and we fill in the blanks with our own wisdom).” We must be careful of not taking God’s Word seriously! God means what He says! But does this mean we can not question God?
Abram questioned God. Did God get angry at Abram? We read in v4-5, God gently answered Abram’s question.
You see, Abram had a sincere question to God and so God answered. Psalm 66:16-20 tells us this, Come and listen, all you who fear God; let me tell you what he has done for me. I cried out to him with my mouth; his praise was on my tongue. If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened; but God has surely listened and heard my voice in prayer. Praise be to God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld his love from me!
God will answer those who are sincere about listening.
Now, Abram could have kept questioning God with the same question. Abram could have said, “God, you’re not telling me anything different! I still don’t have a child of my own! God, can’t you understand my situation?”
God of course knows everything! Jesus tells us that God knows every hair on our head; whether we are growing hair or losing them like me! I apologize for the glare when I bow my head down!
We read in v6 of Genesis 15; Abram believed the LORD, and God credited it to him as righteousness. The New Testament cites this passage at least 4 times!
The rest of Genesis 15 talks about another way God answers questions. In v7-21, God answers with a covenant. We will talk more about this next time.
Verse 6 of Genesis 15 is the main lesson for us today!
God speaks. We can question with sincere hearts.
God knows all and will give us the answers we need!
The important question is:
Will we truly believe what God says?
Here are some real questions atheists ask God about:
Why don’t you show yourself?
Why didn’t you make Eve from dust just like Adam?
Why do you make your followers suffer so much?
Why did you make sinful people?
Good questions! And if they are asked with sincere hearts, don’t you think God will answer them?
God does answer, doesn’t He? We have God’s Word, plain and simple! The problem is, people refuse to believe in what God says!
You know, many who believe in God still have questions. Here are some real questions people who believe in God would still ask:
How can you trust the Bible?
How can a loving God send people to Hell?
How can any rational person believe in the Trinity?
Don’t all religions lead to the same God?
Also good question aren’t they! And again if these questions are asked with sincere hearts, God will answer! And again, God has already answered all the questions we have with the Bible! The problem is the sincerity of our hearts when we read God’s Word!
How sincere are we in listening to God?
If we are really sincere with our hearts to God, we would pray to Him often, read the Bible daily, believe and do what God says!
Today is a great day to be sincere with God!
Jesus Christ said in the Gospel of John:
I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.
Jesus continued to say, I tell you the truth, he who believes has everlasting life. I am the bread of life. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.
We read in Romans 3:22-25, 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.
Do you want to be right with God for eternity? Accept the fact that you have sinned against God, believe that Jesus Christ died for all your sins, and live with Christ as your God. Do this today, for tomorrow may not come.
