Questions God Asks

The prophet Haggai admonishes Zerubbabel, the governor of Israel, and Joshua, the high priest, for prioritizing the construction of their own homes over the construction of the Lord's temple. The Israelite's response to discouragement is not unlike our own; when obstacles come into our path, giving in to those obstacles instead of resisting them creates a God-sized hole that we will try to fill with a multitude of things, such as materialism. God's dealing with the Israelite's in this passage is the same as His dealing with us: when we truly want to, God, in His grace, will help us get back on the right path to glorifying Him.

God draws attention to Israel's half-hearted devotion when He questions the priests offerings. Whole-hearted devotion does not mean the absence of sin, but it does mean the genuine active recognition of who God really is. Only when we recognize our half-heartedness and move towards God by entering into a relationship with Him and seeking fresh revelation from Him in His word will we be able to live our lives with whole-hearted devotion.

Viewing our past appropriately under God's grace is a difficult aspect of the Christian life, and it is in this area that God raises tension with Zerubbabel, Joshua, and the rest of Israel in Haggai 2. Nostalgically longing for the past devalues God's provision and person in the present and future, while shame about the past communicates a low view of God's grace and redemption. It is only with God's help that we can resist the desire to escape in nostalgia, focus and trust in Him in the present, and place our hope in His promises for the future

After eating the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge, Adam and Eve unsuccessfully seek to hide from God and themselves in the Garden of Eden. Their response to God's questioning their clothing indicates something common among all human beings: shame. This passage is the first of many to illustrate God's ability and desire to redeem all of mankind, as well as His desire to provide us with a way to approach Him that does not depend on our own righteousness. In learning how to "take off the old self and put on the new self," it is possible to be truly liberated from the real shame that influences much of our lives.

The first biblical account of sinful anger is described. God asks Cain, "Why are you angry?" Sinful anger is destructive and rooted in wrong beliefs. To experience increasing freedom in this area three things are necessary: 1) receive God's forgiveness; 2) cooperate practically with God to combat your anger; 3) identify and replace wrong beliefs with faith in God's provision.

In their fear, the disciples jump to conclusions when they are caught in a storm while on a boat with Jesus. After waking him up and accusing him of being apathetic toward them drowning, Jesus calms the storm and asks them, "Why are you afraid?" Sometimes our circumstances or just our minds can lead us to fear to the point where we forgo our faith. While God does not invalidate our fear, He provides us with a response to it that can lead us to real peace.

Jesus heals a paralyzed man at the well of Bethesda in Jerusalem, but not without first asking the man if he wished to get well. A closer examination of their conversation yields insight into Christ's ability to meet our spiritual as well as our material needs, how much we can be affected by our circumstances, and the real healing and restoration that God wishes to provide for us through the work of the Cross. We are able to experience true restoration only when we let go of our "survival strategies" and turn towards God, affirming in our hearts what He says is true of Himself and ourselves.

Despite the crowds and confusion, Jesus notices that someone touches his cloak as he and his disciples are walking to an official's house to heal his sick daughter. As Jesus interacts with the woman who touched His cloak, He teaches his disciples, the crowds, and us about his character, the power of faith in him, and how he responds to our requests. The object, not the strength, of our faith is what matters most.

Jesus speaks to a large following of people that formed in response to miracles that He had performed during His time in on this Earth, explaining to them the hardships that come with following Him. After a large group of people leave, Jesus calls the disciples attention to the fact that they too have the free will to leave or stay and follow Him despite the suffering that comes with that choice. As we follow Christ with our lives, we learn that in order to persevere we must: expect suffering, value quality over quantity (with respect to spiritual life and ministry), and encourage one another to develop our own freely chosen convictions.

By restoring sight to a blind man Jesus teaches his disciples about spiritual blindness. The cause of spiritual blindness is a hardened heart that can only be cured by Jesus. Jesus instructs his followers how to cooperate in curing their hardened hearts by denying self, taking up their cross and following Jesus.

When Jesus restores Bartimeaus' sight in Jericho, He not only provides Bartimaeus physical healing but also the sign that he offers humanity - salvation. In this passage, Jesus is described by Mark as the promised Messiah, one who is interested in the needs of individuals, and also inclined to bless. When we, like Bartimaeus, can identify answered prayers, pray specific prayers, and pray in faith, our relationship with God and understanding of His Will will be enhanced.

The identity of Jesus is something that was called into question during the years of his ministry on this Earth as well as in our present day. Our response to Jesus' question "Who do you say that I am?," affects the trajectory of our life on this Earth and the next, in the same way that the apostles' responses affected their own lives. When we decide in faith to recognize Jesus as the son of God, we obtain four key privileges: membership in Christ's church, victory over death, helping others to faith in Jesus, and an unchanging basis of spiritual truth and ethics.

When God commanded Elijah to tell King Ahab that there would be a drought in Israel, Elijah's faith was tested. When God commanded Elijah to gather the prophets of Baal and the people of Israel to Mt. Carmel, God provided in revealing Himself to all the people present and eradicating the prophets of Baal. But when Ahab's wife, Jezebel, ordered the death of all the prophets of God, Elijah was deeply disappointed. Such is the type of defeat we can feel in the midst of disappointing outcomes that arise during the Christian life. Fortunately a life serving God is not centered around outcomes, and God will help direct us away from the mindset if we are willing.

It is the natural tendency of man to measure himself by some standard, and when left to his own devices, that standard is usually other men. Jesus corrects Peter's comparison - Peter was comparing himself to the apostle John - by asking Peter "What is that to you?" Our ego-centrism leads us to move in a self-serving direction and to compare ourselves to the people around us. It is only when we take the focus off of ourselves and other people and place it on God that it will be possible for us to live in a manner that will glorify God.