How Can I Restore the Joy of My Salvation If I Feel Numb to God?

How can I restore the joy of my salvation if I feel numb to God? That's just one of the questions we'll be answering on today's edition of CORE Christianity. Well, hi, I'm Bill Meyer, along with Pastor Adriel Sanchez. This is the radio program where we answer your questions about the Bible and the Christian life every day. Here's our phone number. It's 833-THE-CORE.

That's 1-833-843-2673. You can also feel free to leave us a voicemail anytime 24 hours a day. And of course, you can always email us your question at questionsatcorechristianity.com.

First up today, let's go to Jordan calling in from Independence, Missouri. Jordan, what's your question for Pastor Adriel? Yes, I believe that when we're saved, we receive the Holy Spirit. And I was taught that that is the same thing as the Holy Ghost being part of the Trinity. Recently, I have heard my pastor talking with another gentleman about if you have not been baptized in the Holy Ghost and speak in tongues, that you don't have the Holy Spirit. And I was kind of conflicted on that and wondered if I could give some clarification.

Yeah. Well, Jordan, yes, happy to provide some clarification for you. Every Christian, every believer has the Holy Spirit. The baptism of the Holy Spirit was something that was promised to the children of God. Two Jesus' disciples prior to His ascension into heaven, he tells them, you're going to be baptized in the Holy Spirit not many days from now in Acts chapter one. And then in Acts chapter two, it's all about the promise of the Spirit. Christ from heaven ascended into heaven, pours His Spirit out upon the church, and there you have the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Now, the question is, is that baptism of the Holy Spirit just for some people, or is it for all Christians? Because there are some, and it sounds like this is the position that the pastor of the church that you're at has, who teach you, you can be a Christian and have the Holy Spirit.

You can be sealed by the Spirit, but you still need to, at a later point in your Christian life, be baptized in the Holy Spirit. Well, I don't think that that's the biblical position, and I'll tell you why. I'll give you two passages, I think, that maybe you can bring to your pastor. Ephesians chapter one, verse 13, it confirms what you said earlier. This is Paul writing the Ephesians, and he says, in Jesus, you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in Him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit. That is, when you believed in Jesus, when you heard the gospel, when you believed in Him, you were at that moment sealed with the promised Holy Spirit. The same promised Holy Spirit that was given to the church in Acts 2, the promise of the Holy Spirit, is given to all those who believe, who embrace the gospel.

Here's another passage, I think, that you can go to when thinking about this. It's in 1 Corinthians chapter 12, verse 13. Paul says to the church in Corinth, in one spirit, we were all baptized into one body, Jews or Greeks, slaves or free, and all were made to drink of one spirit. So, everyone who's a Christian has been baptized in the Holy Spirit, if you will, sealed with the promised Holy Spirit. Now, we're called, as those who have been baptized in the Spirit, to be filled with the Spirit.

That's, I think, something that's distinct. You know, the disciples in Acts 2 are baptized in the Spirit, are filled further with the Spirit later on in places like Acts chapter 4, where they're praying for boldness. So, you're baptized in the Holy Spirit, but you and I can be more or less filled with the Holy Spirit, and the filling of the Holy Spirit comes through the word of Christ. As the word of Christ dwells in us richly, as we grow in our understanding of what the Bible teaches, we're filled with the Spirit, and the sign of the filling of the Spirit is not so much speaking in tongues, it's the fruit of the Spirit.

What Paul describes in Galatians 5, love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. You know, there are all sorts of people who say, I work wonders and I can speak in tongues. They don't have a lot of love, a lot of patience, a lot of the fruit of the Spirit. Now, of course, I'm not trying to paint with a broad brush there, because there are a lot of people who don't say that they do those miraculous things and lack the fruit of the Spirit. But if you want the sign of being filled with the Spirit, it's that, it's the fruit of the Holy Spirit. And so, I would say, with regard to the second part there where, you know, you overheard this conversation and there was a discussion about, you know, you have to speak in tongues in order to be filled with the Spirit, that's just not true at all. There's a question of whether or not God is giving these miraculous gifts ordinarily in the church today. I don't want to open up that can of worms right now, but we can do that maybe at another time.

We've talked about that specifically, but let me just say this. Paul makes it absolutely clear that not everyone in the church, when the gift of tongues was being given in the apostolic age, not everyone in the church had that gift. He says very clearly in 1 Corinthians, again, chapter 12, verse 27, you are the body of Christ and individually members of it, and God is appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administrating, various kinds of tongues. And he asks the question, are all apostles, are all prophets, are all teachers, do all work miracles, do all possess gifts of healing, do all speak with tongues, do all interpret?

It's a rhetorical question. The answer is no, not everyone has the same gift, and that's what makes the body of Christ beautiful, is we're each bringing whatever gifts God has given to us, this diversity of gifts within the church, for the good of the body, for the building up, the edification of the body. And so someone who says, you know, you have to speak in tongues as a Christian, or you're not filled with the Holy Spirit, that's just not true for the reasons I mentioned. And appreciate your question. Jordan, may God bless you as you continue to dig into the scriptures. Jordan, thanks so much for listening to Core Christianity.

We appreciate you. By the way, if you have a question about the Bible, the Christian life, doctrine, theology, you can always email us. Our email address is questions at corechristianity.com, and you can leave a voicemail at 833-THE-CORE.

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Again, that's corechristianity.com forward slash inner core. Let's go back to the phones. David is on the line from Kansas City, Missouri. David, what's your question for Pastor Adriel?

Hi there. I just wanted to thank you, Pastor Adriel, for fielding my question. I called in a couple times before, and you're always very helpful.

Awesome, man. Thank you for that encouragement. So recently I got saved, and I believe that the Word of God is inerrant. There's no falseness in it whatsoever, so I know I must just not understand it. And Romans 10 9 says something along the lines of, confessing by your mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord will bring salvation. And then, I know there's like a seemingly kind of contradiction with Matthew chapter 7 verse 22-23, and I know I'm not looking at it right, but I don't know what exactly, you know, what the context is that I'm not understanding.

Yeah, really thankful that you gave us a call and happy to help clear this up, I think. So it seems to me like the contradiction or the seeming contradiction is, you know, Romans 10 verse 9 says, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, then you will be saved. And believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. But then in Matthew chapter 7, in verse 21, Jesus says, not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day, many will say to me, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and cast out demons in your name and do many mighty works in your name? And I will declare to them, I never knew you.

Depart from me, you workers of lawlessness. Now, specifically there in Matthew chapter 7 verses 21 through 23, Jesus is really calling out the religious teachers, the scribes and the Pharisees. And, you know, by extension others as well.

I don't think it's just them, but I think specifically in the context of this section of the Gospel of Matthew, it's them that Jesus has his targets on. And of course, we know that they didn't believe. Jesus said on another occasion, and I believe it's John chapter 6, this is the will of God that you believe in him whom he sent, that you believe in the one that the Father sent.

That is God's will. And these religious leaders for all of their prayers, for all of their external piety, didn't know Jesus. And Jesus says, I didn't know you either.

Not, you know, you accepted me into your heart, you believed, you were saved, and then I forgot about you kind of thing. I mean, these people never had a vital relationship with Jesus Christ. They were going through the motions, praying hypocritically, if you will. And actually a great example of this is just earlier in Matthew chapter 6 where Jesus, when he's talking about prayer, says, don't be like the hypocrites for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners that they may be seen by others.

Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. He's talking about hypocrites here, people who go through the motions, who say, Lord, Lord, but they actually don't believe. You see, it's one thing to say that Jesus is Lord, you know, to mouth the words. It's another thing to truly believe in the lordship of Christ, to really believe in the gospel of Christ.

And that's what these people for all of their piety, for all of their external religion did not do because the truth is we are saved by grace through faith. And that's, of course, what Paul is getting at in Romans chapter 10 as he's talking about the goodness of God through the gospel and how that gospel advances. He's going to go on there in verses 14 and following to talk about missionaries who are sent out to preach the gospel, to share that truth with those who need to hear it. And he says in verse 15, how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, how beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news, but they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us? So faith comes from hearing and hearing through the word of Christ. So there really is, David, no contradiction there.

I mean, I think you have two different things that are being spoken of. You have in Matthew 7, the hypocrites who are going through the motions. You say, Lord, Lord, but they don't truly believe in Christ. They haven't received Christ. They reject the law of Christ, all those things. And then you have people in Romans chapter 10 who are making a true confession of faith, who are calling on the name of the Lord. And as a result, they're saved.

They received the grace of God. And I think the question for all of us is, do I believe in Jesus? When I think of the Christian faith, and I say I'm a Christian, is it just something that I say, this nominal reality, but I don't actually really know who Jesus is?

I don't have a personal relationship with him. I haven't really trusted in him for the forgiveness of my sins. Actually, I'm just continuing to live however I want and don't think any differently about it. There is, I think, a lot of people out there who are deceived, who reject Christ with their lives, even though they say, yeah, Jesus is Lord.

And so I think taking them to these passages and having these kinds of discussions is really important. And I praise the Lord, David, for you, and the fact that you recently have come to faith. And so I just want to take a moment right now to pray for you, brother, that the Lord would bless you and keep you and strengthen you in his word as you continue to pursue him. Father, I give you thanks from my brother, David, and for the family, Lord, that you allow each of us to be a part of through your son, Jesus Christ. I pray for David, Lord, that as he continues to dig into the scriptures, that you would give him discernment, that you would give him wisdom, that you would continue to build him up, Lord God, continue to build him up, Lord God, in his faith, that you would help him to be a blessing, Lord, in the church where you have called him to be, and that you would use him, Lord, mightily for your service. Thank you for him, Lord. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen.

Amen. David, thanks so much for your call. And we are so encouraged about your confession of faith and the fact that you're trusting Christ.

That is such great news. This is Core Christianity with Pastor Adriel Sanchez. You can email us your questions at questions at corechristianity.com.

That's questions at corechristianity.com. Here's one from Chad, and he says, Should we reflect on the gospel every day with the hopes of finding a daily renewal of joy and thanksgiving? What about the times when we're numb to it? Should we read scripture and meditate on it until we feel grateful? Or is it wrong to try to stir ourselves up by our thoughts in an attempt to feel something? I want to clarify that I don't think faith is only feelings, but isn't it a problem if we're going days without really being filled with joy and hope because of Christ? Yeah, I love this question. I love the way you put it. Is it wrong for us to try to stir up our hearts, if you will?

The answer to your question is no, that's not wrong at all. In fact, that's something that you see in scripture. In particular, you see this throughout the book of Psalms. You oftentimes have in the Psalms these Psalms of praise, where the Psalmist is praising God for what God had done, either his work of creation, sometimes just looking back to God as the creator of all things and just being overwhelmed with the majesty of God, but then also thinking about God's work of redemption. The Psalmist would stop and meditate upon how God had delivered his people throughout history, how God had delivered maybe the Psalmist even in a time of need. What we have is examples of individuals reminding themselves of God, who he is, his glory, what he's done, his mercy. I would say we should, we need to actually, because our hearts grow cold so often and because it's so easy for us to forget, we do need those daily reminders. We certainly need to be reminded of these things when we gather together for worship on Sunday, on the Lord's day. This is why church is so important, and I hope you're getting that in the local church.

But even beyond that, I think this is something that we should pursue and implement in our lives on a daily basis. I think just to give you an example of one of these Psalms, of what David said in Psalm 103, he's talking to himself here. I mean, just listen to the words. He says, Bless the Lord, O my soul. Oftentimes, with these Psalms of praise, there's an invocation to praise God, a call to praise God. And the Psalmist will say, Bless the Lord, you his angels, or bless the Lord his creation, or bless the Lord all you his people. He's calling the created order, the angels, the people of God to worship God. But here, David is calling. Who's he calling to praise God?

Himself. He's saying, Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me. Bless his holy name.

Isn't that beautiful? He's saying, Soul, bless God. Everything in me, bless God. And then he gives himself the reasons, you know, he needs to bless God. You know, bless God, O my soul. And then he says, Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

There it is right there. What is he doing? He's stirring up his affections, if you will. He's stirring up his heart. He's saying, Soul, bless God. And here's why you can bless God. And he begins to meditate on the things that God had done, the forgiveness of the Lord, the healing of the Lord.

And you know what? Each one of us can do that, too. You can look back on your life and remind yourselves of the ways that God has blessed you, delivered you, provided for you. But ultimately, you know how we do that? We do that by looking back to what God has done for us in his Son, Jesus, there on the cross.

Yeah, you know, oftentimes, you know, we forget. We don't grasp the immensity of the love of God, of the cost of our forgiveness. And so we meditate on it.

We meditate on the ocean of God's mercy, on the river of life that flowed from the heart of Christ for the forgiveness of our sins. And as we do through the scriptures, oftentimes what we find is that our soul does begin to bless the Lord. And so I want to encourage you to do that. Do that through the Psalms, reading the Psalms, you know, through reading the scriptures, the Gospels, however, you know, through singing, through praying. But it certainly is a good thing to do, and not just a good thing to do.

It's something that's so necessary for us because of how fickle our hearts are and how quickly they grow cold. We need to continually go back to the goodness of Christ for us in the Gospel. Some great counsel. Thanks so much for that, Adriel. This is Core Christianity with Pastor Adriel Sanchez. You can leave us a voicemail 24 hours a day with your question at 833-THE-CORE.

Here's a voicemail that came in from one of our listeners earlier this week. My question is, when a Christian has extra money, and they're not just making ends meet, Christians in general who ignore their command of generosity, will they get a conviction of guilt the rest of their life? That's my question. Yeah, well thank you for that question.

This is a stewardship question, really. And let me just say this. Well, Jesus said it, right? Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. What is it that we're investing in? Oftentimes, you know, the way we spend our money says a lot about us. It reveals something of our hearts to us, and that's precisely what Jesus said.

And Jesus had no problem talking about money and talking about possessions because he knew that for many people, I mean, this was one of the greatest idols. And because there's that sort of close relationship, it's almost like the way we spend our resources gives us a window into our hearts, into what it is that we really are passionate about, what we really love. And so in one sense, you know, it's helpful as a sort of diagnostic to think about, you know, what is my commitment to the gospel?

What is it that I'm committed to, passionate about? Now we don't want to give out of this sense of obligation. We don't want to give because, you know, it feels like somebody's twisting our arm. Paul says in 2 Corinthians that the Lord loves a cheerful giver. Now, sometimes early on, I think, when we're giving to things that are needed, it might be a little bit harder for us, you know, sort of, you know, releasing our grip, if you will. And so in situations like that, I would say, yeah, I mean, if there's a real issue there with greediness, which is a sin, by the way, you know, the love of money, right?

Like if there's a real issue there, well, then there needs to be repentance and there needs to be a serious change. But what God wants from us is He wants hearts that give generously and joyfully. And I think that as we grow in Christ, as we're discipled more and more, that that should be what's happening. We're growing also in our generosity. And so that's, I think, how we want to look at it.

You know, I wouldn't say, well, you know, this person just doesn't give at all. And so they're going to experience God's judgment. No, I think they're missing out.

You're missing out. I think with greediness, I mean, essentially what we're doing is we're robbing ourselves. And oftentimes we're also robbing the people around us, if you will, the people that God has called us to be generous to. And so we do want to take all of those things into consideration, search our hearts and think ultimately, again, about the words of Jesus. Brothers and sisters, where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Invest in God's kingdom and invest in God's people. Thanks for listening to CORE Christianity. To request your copy of today's special offer, visit us at corechristianity.com and click on offers in the menu bar or call us at 1-833-843-2673. That's 833, the CORE. When you contact us, please let us know how you've been encouraged by this program. And be sure to join us next time as we explore the truth of God's word together.