Will Dementia Keep Me From Christ?

Will dementia keep me from Christ? That's just one of the questions we'll be answering on today's edition of CORE Christianity. Well, hi, this is Bill Meyer, along with Pastor Adriel Sanchez, and this is the radio program where we answer your questions about the Bible and the Christian life every day. If you have a question, you can feel free to call us at 833-THE-CORE. You can also leave a voicemail if you get our voicemail system.

Again, that's 1-833-843-2673. You can also email us your question anytime at questionsatcorechristianity.com. First up today, let's go to Sonya calling in from Omaha, Nebraska. Sonya, what's your question for Adriel?

Hi. I've always been taught that we're waiting for the rapture. It could be any day now that everything that is supposed to take place has taken place, and we could be raptured today, even, and I've always been taught that. Do you believe the same thing?

Hey, Sonya, thank you for reaching out to us. When it comes to the coming of the Lord, I do believe that the Lord can return whenever he wants. And, you know, Paul told the Thessalonians, in 1 Thessalonians 5, verse 1, concerning the times and seasons, brothers, you have no need to have anything written to you, for you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying there is peace and security, then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape, but you are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief. For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness, so then let us not sleep as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk are drunk at night. But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation. For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. And so, why did I read that text?

Well, one, just to highlight the fact that Jesus comes as a thief in the night. Here, Paul is quoting from Jesus's discourse related to the second coming, also related to the destruction of Jerusalem at the end of Matthew's Gospel. Now here, he makes it clear that while Jesus can come at any time, Sonia, those who are in Christ, clothed in Christ by faith, the children of the day, children of the light, don't have to be afraid, but are called to live sober-minded, seeking the Lord, trusting in Him, full of faith, hope, and love. And so, may God help you to have that, and help me to have that as well in these days as we look to the Lord, waiting for Him. God bless. You're listening to Core Christianity with Pastor Adriel Sanchez. Let's go to Kimberly in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

Kimberly, what's your question for Adriel? Hi there. Can you hear me? Hi. I can hear you, Kimberly. Great. I'm so happy to hear from you guys.

I really enjoyed your show, or enjoy your show. Sometimes I miss it, but basically, a trusted pastor that I listen to on the radio, Christian station, basically said, you know, the thing is, as soon as you die, you go straight to Jesus. But there's many scriptures that kind of contradict that, kind of like about how we all rise from the grave and be together from the ones that died previously. And then, I'm just kind of, without elaborating a whole bunch, if you have some good scriptures so I can be accurate in my, you know, discipling for the Lord.

Yeah. Well, Kimberly, thank you for your encouragement. And I understand that, you know, the sort of timeline of events when we're thinking about the coming of the Lord, the resurrection of the dead, what happens to me when I die, it can be sort of confusing.

And so let me try to unpack it all for you. When we die, as believers, we do go to be with Jesus. Our bodies go down into the ground, our souls are perfected in holiness, and we immediately pass into glory, where we go to be with the Lord in heaven. Now, that period of time between, you know, when we die and go to heaven, and the final resurrection or final judgment, that period of time is what we call the intermediate state.

It's this sort of in-between time. It's not our final destination as believers, we'll be in heaven, but we're waiting for what you referenced, the resurrection of the body on the last day, the resurrection of the dead. Now, what are verses that really demonstrate that we do go to be with Jesus when we die? Well, you think of that text in 2 Corinthians 5, verse 8, where Paul said to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. But I also think of what he said in Philippians chapter 1, where he's writing about his relationship to the Philippian church and how he wants to stick around to help them out, but he feels that he's soon going to die and go and be with the Lord. But he says in verse 22, if I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose, I cannot tell.

I am hard-pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. And so Paul, he thought, when I die, I am going to go be with Jesus, and that's better than anything that this world has to offer. I'll be in heaven with the Lord and with all of the departed saints, those who believed in Jesus and died in him, waiting again for the resurrection, the intermediate state. So it's clear to me from scripture that we do, I mean, this pastor you were listening to was right.

We do die and go to be with Jesus as Christians, but we're waiting for the final day, the resurrection of the body described in places like 1 Corinthians 15 and elsewhere. Thank you very much, and God bless you. Kimberly, thanks so much for listening to Core Christianity. By the way, if you have a question about the Bible or the Christian life doctrine, theology, you can leave us a voicemail 24 hours a day. We do our best to review our voicemails each day, or you can email us at questions at corechristianity.com. Let me mention our website as well. You can go there with all kinds of great resources and Bible studies that you can find some core guides, some core questions. That's corechristianity.com.

Let's go to Chris calling in from Omaha, Nebraska. Chris, what's your question for Adriel? Hi, I know that it's the Holy Spirit that saves and that we should pray for our unsaved loved ones.

My mother is elderly, and it's basically her time is running out. And when I read Bible verses to her, like, the Lord says, repent and believe, all who call on the name of the Lord will be saved. This is the gospel.

Jesus was buried, raised, died for our sins, buried, raised on the third day. I've read all of that to her. And she says to me, I was saved when I was 10. But growing up, she was in the bars in their later years, she was in the casinos, she doesn't go to church, she doesn't read the Bible. When I sometimes when I bring the Bible out, she finds things to do, oh, I gotta go find this, I gotta go find out like she avoids the subject. I feel like my mom's gonna step into eternity, thinking, oh, I got saved when I was 10.

When in reality, there was no born from above. And like I said, I know that the Holy Spirit is the one that does the work and I know I'm to pray. But I feel like time is running out. And is there anything that I can say? Because I've done a lot of Bible verses.

It's by grace, not by works. I mean, I've done, I've read a bunch of Bible verses to her. What, what can I do?

What can I say to her? Chris, I have some thoughts. The first thing I want to do is just is pray for you and pray for your mother, because as you said, you're right, it is a work of the Holy Spirit. And so let's go to the Lord right now and pray for your mom. Father, we want to lift Chris's mother up to you right now. And Lord, as she is getting older, and that question in my sister's mind, wanting her mom to know you, to love you, we pray that all of the verses, all of the conversations, Lord, that you would bring fruit from that, that your spirit would be at work in her heart and whatever the barriers are that are up, the blinders, Lord, so often we know that that's a real thing. We ask, Lord God, that through the gospel and through your word, you would remove those and that you would cause the light of your truth to shine upon this woman, that she would see, Lord Jesus, your love, your gospel, your grace, that she would see her sin also, but that instead of running from you, Lord, and being full of shame and hiding, Lord, because she doesn't feel worthy, that she would bring all of that to you and that she would experience your grace and your love.

Would you be with Chris as well, Lord? Give her wisdom. Give her confidence in you and your word.

Give her peace and be at work through these conversations. Lord God, we look to you. We cry out to you for these things in Jesus' name. Amen.

Amen. You know, it sounds to me, and of course I'm not there, but it sounds to me like maybe there's some shame, there's some guilt that she feels. Okay, I accepted Jesus when I was a little girl, but then I lived a lot of my life not following him. And so now, talking about the Lord and God's grace, you mentioned how she tries to avoid those conversations, you know, she'll leave the room or whatnot. I think really tackling that deeper question of the shame maybe that's there and saying, look, Mom, I know and you know, we know, you've said it, that for many years you didn't really want to walk with the Lord, but that doesn't mean you can't know and experience his grace and his mercy now. And Jesus calls you, he calls each of us, but he calls you to love him and to receive the grace that he has for you, even at this stage in your life. Our failures in the past, our blindness in the past, does not keep us, does not preclude us from being able to experience his grace and his mercy now. And if you hear his voice speaking to you through these scriptures, don't walk away from it. Don't push it away instead.

Let it in. Open your heart and of course we know that it's the Lord himself who is doing that work, the Lord himself who opens the heart. And so Chris, may God give you wisdom as you have those conversations. I think for, in some situations, you know, with parents, there can be, as I mentioned, that shame because they think, okay, here's my son or my daughter trying to talk to me about God.

And even, you know, like Jesus said, a prophet is not without honor except in his own household. That can be hard to hear from your child, from your daughter. And so that's why, you know, going graciously, expressing your concern, but also, you know, having that big picture of the gospel and saying, the fact that you didn't walk with Jesus for all those years doesn't mean you can't experience and know his grace and love now. And as you said, it's not just saying a prayer when you're a little girl, accepting Jesus into your heart.

No, it's more than that. It's being able to bring your life to him and say, be merciful to me, God, for the fact that I didn't love you or walk with you for so long, and yet you still were good to me and kind to me, giving me life, breath, and all things to recognize that. And so may God again give you wisdom and bless you and bless your mother as well. God bless. This is Core Christianity with Pastor Adriel Sanchez. We want to say thank you to a very special group of people.

We call them our inner Core. These are folks that really believe in this ministry so much that they're willing to make a monthly gift, a monthly donation, to keep this program going. And if you were a regular listener, and maybe you've never given to a parachurch ministry before, we'd like to encourage you to prayerfully consider making a gift to Core Christianity.

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It really is such a blessing and a privilege to get to do this work and to partner with you. You can find out more by going to corechristianity.com forward slash inner Core. Again, that's corechristianity.com forward slash inner Core.

Well, we do receive emails here at the Core, and here's one that came in from one of our listeners. Interesting one. What is circumcision of the heart? Does circumcision of the heart apply to both males and females or only to males?

That's a great question. It applies to all of us, male and female. It has to do with the work that God does in our hearts, granting us new life. Technically, you know, we're talking about regeneration. That is, you know, when our hearts dead apart from Christ are made alive by the power of the Holy Spirit. And this is what the apostle Paul spoke of in Colossians chapter 2. He says in verse 11, In him also you were circumcised with the circumcision made without hands by putting off the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ. They're speaking of the death of Christ on the cross, having been buried with him in baptism. So there's this there's this correlation between circumcision under the old covenant and baptism in the New Testament that the new covenant sign of entrance into the visible church, having been buried with him in baptism in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God who raised him from the dead. And you who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.

He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame by triumphing over them in him. And so this experience, the experience of regeneration, the forgiveness of sins, entrance into the family of God through holy baptism, this is for men and women, for all people through Jesus Christ. And so it's great news. Thanks for that question.

It is good news. Thank you for that, Adriel. This is Core Christianity with Pastor Adriel Sanchez. You can email us your question anytime at questions at corechristianity.com. You can also leave us a voicemail at 833-THE-CORE. And here's a voicemail that came in from one of our listeners named Wayne.

The question has to do with Alzheimer's and dementia. Is there anything in scripture that pertains to that and how God handles the accountability of those that are so misfortunate to have that situation happen to them? Thank you.

Yeah. Wayne, God is gracious and kind. And in terms of the specifics about is there a verse that addresses Alzheimer's, I think I would approach this, you know, taking all of scripture and thinking about the fall and how the fall has affected us as human beings. Because of the fall, there is sin and there is sickness, cancer, Alzheimer, dementia. There are sicknesses of the mind. And I have to believe and do believe that God takes those things into account and that that reality that people experience, even that believers in Jesus Christ experience, doesn't sever them from God's gracious dealings and from his hand of mercy. And so I think that that's very important. We're thinking about this in the context of the world that we live in, the effects of the fall. And one of the concerns I know that many people have is, you know, when somebody has dementia, severe dementia, there are delusions. There are, I mean, sometimes there are outbursts and there's the loss of so much of who this person used to be, how we knew them.

And so, you know, what happens? How does the Lord treat us? Is this person still a believer?

Do they still have Christ? And again, that's where I would say, I mean, God is gracious and merciful. And I think that that seed of faith is never extinguished, that the Lord still continues to hold on to his own, even through these terrible diseases. And that one day, as hard as it is for them to see and understand and remember and even comprehend, in this moment, in that moment of sickness, one day our minds will be restored. And that person in Christ who suffers from this particular disease, when they die, they enter into the presence of the Lord and they see things and know things clearly again as Jesus brings them in, as they're perfected in holiness. And again, at the resurrection, our bodies, our minds are restored as well. And so I have to believe, and as I said, I do believe that God handles it in that way, that it's not, you know, if Paul can say in Romans chapter eight, you know, what can sever us from the love of God? And then he basically mentions everything and all of creation is being incapable of doing that, you know, persecution, heaven, hell, the demons, sickness, nakedness, famine, sword, right? None of those things can separate us from the love of Christ. And I think that we can include there Alzheimer, Alzheimer's, cancer, dementia, as well, that Jesus holds on to his sheep, even his sheep who are suffering with those conditions.

Really good word. Thank you for that, Adriel. This is Core Christianity with Pastor Adriel Sanchez. Let's go to a voicemail that came in from one of our listeners. By the way, you can call us anytime and leave your voicemail question. We'd love to hear from you. 833-843-2673.

That's 833, the Core. Here's a voicemail from Diane. My question is, since the pandemic, we haven't attended church. And even before that, because my husband has looked for a new church where we live, and he believes he hasn't found one that teaches what we believe. So what is your opinion on a wife going to church without her husband? He believes that we have to stay together. And if he's not going to a church, then I'm not going. But I miss the fellowship and being part of the church body. Thank you.

Okay. Father, please be with Diane in this situation with her husband. I do pray that you would help them to find a church and to commit there and to grow in the fellowship under the ministry of your word. We know, Lord God, that there aren't any perfect churches this side of heaven. Your church is holy and pure. And in the new creation, there won't be any problems anymore. But now we know, Lord God, that your church suffers still, that we suffer still. And so I pray that that would not be a barrier for Diane or her husband, but that you would be with them, guiding them, and bringing peace in their household as they wrestle through this question in Jesus' name. Amen. I'm so sorry to hear. I mean, it sounds like you have not been in church for years.

I don't know how long prior to the pandemic you guys had stopped going. But it sounds like this is a serious issue. A couple of concerns. You mentioned that your husband said we haven't found any church that believes what we believe. And so I guess I would, if I could sit down with you, I would want to ask, well, what is it that you believe, maybe that's so distinct, that differs from all of the churches in your area that keeps you from wanting to fellowship with them? Is it that all the churches are wrong, or is it maybe that your husband has embraced a belief or an idea that is out of accord with what the church teaches or with what churches typically teach that maybe would be worth questioning?

And so this is where humility comes in. God calls us as Christians to be a part of his church when we're united to Jesus by faith, we're also united to his body. And so there are some people who say, I love God, but I can't stand his people, or I love Jesus, but I don't like the church.

They're opposed to any sort of organized gathering with other believers because they say, that's religion, I have a relationship with Jesus, but look, you can't have a relationship with Jesus and not be brought into a relationship with the church because we're baptized into the body of Christ. And so if you have a personal relationship with Jesus, but not with the local church, you have a defective relationship with Jesus. And I'll just say, and a lot of people don't understand that, they don't recognize that because we've minimized the importance of the body of Christ in our lives, but God calls us to be a part of local churches where we're growing together under the ministry of the word, not to control us, not to be heavy handed with us, but to grow into fellowship with the saints as believers.

We need that. And so with regard to your question, do I go even apart from my husband? I would say, you want to plead with him and say, this is something that we need, we desperately need, but it's also something that God calls you to. And so I think that there can come a point, there does come a point where you as a follower of Christ have to obey the Lord and want to obey the Lord, even if it means you're going to be in church on your own.

Now, I hope that that's not the case. And so may God bring peace in your family and bring you both around, and your husband around in particular, to sing the benefit of gathering with God's people and the necessity of being under the ministry of the word every week. Thanks for reaching out to us and may the Lord bless your family, Diane. God bless. 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.