Why Jesus Didn't Know the Day or the Hour of His Return

Why Jesus Doesn't Know the Day and Hour of His Return. 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. We'd love to hear from you. Our phone lines are open right now. We'll be taking calls for the next 25 minutes or so. Here's the number. It's 833-THE-CORE.

That's 1-833-843-2673. Now, we also have a YouTube channel, and you can watch Adriel live on YouTube right now and send him your question that way. Or, of course, you can email us at questionsatcorechristianity.com. First up today, let's go to Adriel in St. Louis. Adriel, what's your question for Adriel? How are you guys doing today?

Doing well. I have a question about Greek sororities and fraternities. Is it okay for Christians to join these different platforms, and is it considered a god if you do? You know, to consider worshiping a god, other than our god. Like, is it idolatry to join a sorority or fraternity? Exactly.

We might even add other kind of societies or groups. Great question. Well, look, let me just say, Bill, were you ever in one of these? No, but my son is. No comment. What I was going to say is I went to a small Christian college, actually.

We didn't have this, so this wasn't something that was available to me. And just to be quite honest, I don't know a ton about how they operate. And so, as with anything, you know, I think it's going to require really some investigation, and probably in particular looking into the specific fraternity or sorority. I know that sometimes there are things that are done that obviously wouldn't be honoring to the Lord. But if we're talking about, you know, an association of peers and people are helping each other out, and you're building friendships and bonds, I don't see anything wrong with that. And so, yeah, so I mean, when it steps into idolatry, I mean, I guess the question you're going to want to ask or an individual is going to want to ask, Adrian, is, am I doing things here as a part of this organization or group or fraternity or sorority or whatever it is? Am I doing things here that are compromising my faith in Jesus Christ, that are against God's Word? And so, when that's the case and we're choosing that instead of the Lord, then there is a kind of hard idolatry there, isn't there? We're choosing this thing over obedience to Christ. And maybe obedience to Christ means we have less friends and less popularity and less connections, whatever that may be.

And yet, as Christians, we always were called to choose obedience, the way of Christ instead. But not knowing enough about specific fraternities and sororities, I just wouldn't want to say, give a blanket statement and say, no, it's always bad. I imagine that there are really some great benefits as well. And I hope, Bill, your son is able to get those benefits and that he's also serving the Lord and walking with the Lord and building good lifelong friendships and relationships. I mean, what's your take so far, Bill, as he's joined this? Well, now that they've gotten rid of the golden calf, I mean, I'm pretty cool.

Nice. Actually, his fraternity does pray before meals and has a time of sharing. So it's not specifically a Christian fraternity, but I think it does have Christian roots. And so that's been encouraging to me. And he's also involved in a really good college ministry at his church as well.

And so I don't have any grave concerns other than some of those frat parties, which I don't think he really goes to. So there you go. All right. All right. Well, Adrian, thank you for that question. All right. This is Core Christianity with Pastor Adriel Sanchez.

Let's go to Larry calling in from Oregon. Larry, what's your question for Adriel? Yeah, Adriel, I called in last Friday regarding my church, who I differ in theology, they're Armenian, I'm Calvinist. And you told me to talk to the leaders.

Well, I had did that previously. And basically, we are just agreeing to disagree on theology. And I sent my pastor a video on total depravity. And he just said he doesn't believe in Reformed theology.

So I just want your advice on how I proceed with this church, whether to stay there, whether to continue to talk to the pastors, or what's your advice? Yeah. Hey, thanks.

Thanks for following up. And good for you, Larry. I'm glad to hear that you have been in communication with the pastor there. And it does seem to me like there's kind of a fork in the road here. Just to share a little bit of my own story, I mean, there came a point, shortly after college, actually, when I was in seminary still, my theology started to change. And I think mature, and I was learning things in Scripture, and I realized, okay, I don't think I see myself doing ministry in the church context that I'm in long term. And so I started having conversations with my pastor at the time who's just a wonderful man, a godly man. And we sort of came to the same conclusion.

Okay, you're not going to change my mind, and I'm not going to change your mind. But we can still love each other as brothers in Christ and affirm each other's relationship with the Lord. Of course, I think we both benefited from each other so much.

But it did. It sort of got to the point where it was like, okay, I'm going to be able to serve the Lord more faithfully somewhere else, where I'm more in agreement with the doctrine, with theology, especially for me at the time wanting to pursue a sense of call to the ministry. I know for my pastor as well, I mean, I wasn't trying to stir anything up, or take people with me, or convince other people, hey, you need to leave this church because it's a terrible place, or anything like that.

I just had nothing but affection and love for him. But also for him, I think he realized, okay, we don't want that to be the case. We don't want it to be the case where there's a disagreement, and that's leading to splintering and dissension. And so they ended up sending us to another church where we aligned more.

And it was sad, but we could celebrate as well. We could say, okay, the kingdom of God is bigger than just my local church. And even if we have some disagreements, we can really praise the Lord and celebrate that God has done good things in this relationship and say, man, may the Lord bless you as you go out.

And that's what they did for us. And so I guess what I would recommend is if you continue to have those conversations, and maybe it does get to the point where it's like, I need to be in a place where I'm more in alignment. I find myself here as I'm listening to the preaching being very critical and obviously disagreeing with what's being said.

Yeah, I mean, just for you too. It becomes really hard to be able to benefit from or continue to grow under the ministry of the word if you're approaching it with that mindset. And so you want to be somewhere where you're aligning more. And certainly, I mean, I would be in agreement with regard to the importance of the grace of God in salvation and some of those key doctrines that were coming out of the Protestant Reformation. So it sounds to me like having had those conversations, maybe it is time to prayerfully think about, okay, I need to go somewhere where I'm going to be in more alignment and I can serve freely. And I would say in that process, you know, extend charity, extend love.

Don't be divisive. Don't try to shake things up per se, but be respectful and honor the Lord in that transition. And so, hey, God bless you and give you continued wisdom.

And I hope that there is a solid church nearby you where you can get plugged in. Just a follow-up question for you, Adriel, for our friends that aren't familiar with Arminian theology. When Larry says that his pastor rejects the doctrine of total depravity, how would an Arminian view that?

Well, I guess it depends on, you know, who you asked specifically. But what we mean by total depravity is not that people are as bad as they could be, that everyone is just as bad as they can possibly be, but that every part of us has been affected by sin. Our minds, our bodies, our souls, sin has touched every single part of us so that we cannot save ourselves. Salvation is wholly the work of God. You can't pull yourself up by the bootstraps to save yourself. You know, sometimes people say, well, doesn't the Bible say God helps those who help themselves?

Actually, no, it doesn't. That's not in the Bible. But people oftentimes will just sort of say that. And so I think the emphasis is on the fact that we desperately need the grace of God.

We can't save ourselves. Now, of course, brothers and sisters who are more Arminian in their theology also believe that we need God's grace, but I think it's a matter of emphasis. You know, so whereas in some traditions you might be more of an emphasis on the grace of God.

It's like you're dead and you need to be raised to life. Other traditions might say, oh, it's sort of like this cooperation with grace. You know, you get a little bit of grace, you cooperate with that grace, and then you get a little bit more grace. And so it's more of a give and take type of a thing. And that's where sometimes the difference is, Bill.

Thanks for that explanation, Adriel. This is CORE Christianity. We'd love to hear from you if you have a question about the Bible or the Christian life. Our phone lines are open.

We're taking calls for the next 15 minutes or so. Here's the phone number. It's 833-THE-CORE.

That's 1-833-843-2673. We do get emails here at the CORE as well. You can send us your question at questionsatcorechristianity.com. And Adriel, we actually have an email from the Philippines from a listener named Hazel, and she says this, I'm a tattoo artist and I'd like to know how to approach tattooing someone who wants a representation of Jesus on their skin. Would this violate the second commandment or the prohibition against graven images?

Hazel, great question. We've gotten the tattoo question before, like are tattoos okay? Is it okay for a Christian to get a tattoo?

But never in this way, and so I appreciate the way that you've asked in this particular issue here. And really, it's a question about the second commandment. We're commanded in scripture not to make images of God and not to venerate those images. And for the history of the Christian church, especially early on, the earliest believers, they took this very seriously, in part because the pagan Roman empire was all about images and venerating images and burning incense to the images of the emperors and so forth.

And so the Christians just had this aversion to all of that. In fact, oftentimes the Christians were accused of atheism because they didn't have images, they didn't have idols that they worshiped. They would point to the Psalms like Psalm 115 and elsewhere. The Psalms talk about God being in the heavens. We don't make images of him.

He's the unseen, uncreated Lord of all things. And so I do think we shouldn't be making images of the Lord. And I think this is an area where, for you as well, you would not want to make an image of God if someone were to come up to you and say, hey, I really want this image of the God of the Father on my back or something like that, or of Christ. And I know that that's a popular tattoo to get, and so that might create a problem for you, but I think this is one of the areas where our faith in Jesus Christ should shape the way in which we work. And obviously it's an issue of conscience as well. It's more than just an issue of conscience, though. It's an issue of God's law and his word. And so my encouragement to you would be maybe it's an opportunity for you to share your faith in Jesus Christ and to talk about why you don't do that, and maybe offer another suggestion, something to get tattooed.

But you wouldn't want to go against God's word, and you certainly wouldn't want to go against your conscience either. And so thank you for reaching out all the way from the Philippines, and may the Lord bless you and provide for you in your life and even in your work, and I appreciate you sending us that email. Hazel, thanks so much for listening to CORE Christianity all the way across the Pacific Ocean.

That is so exciting. This is CORE Christianity with Pastor Adrian Sanchez, and as you know, if you follow the news and what's happening in our culture right now, we have a huge divide in our country on the issue of abortion. And we've actually created an excellent resource that we believe will help you develop a biblically informed view on the sanctity of human life. It's a 30-day devotional resource called Fearfully Made, and it's going to introduce you to a number of the scriptures that are relevant to this topic and equip you to have conversations with friends and family members who maybe disagree with you on this. Of course, this is such an important issue, and what a tragedy it is that we've devalued life so much in our society, and so we need to go back to the Word of God, and this resource is going to help you do that.

Again, it's called Fearfully Made, and you can get it at corechristianity.com forward slash offers, and it's free, by the way, so get ahold of it. Alright, and while you're at our website, check out some of our other free resources. We have a whole bunch of core guides, core questions, other devotionals, and of course, our core Bible studies on books from both the Old and the New Testament.

Just a chock full of great resources there at corechristianity.com, so check that out. Well, we'd love to hear from you. If you have a question about the Bible or the Christian life, our phone lines are open, and here's the number.

It's 833-THECORE. That's 1-833-843-2673. Love to hear from you. We also receive voicemails, and you can call us 24 hours a day and leave your question on our voicemail system.

Here's one that came in from one of our listeners named Marsha. Hi Pastor Adrian, Bill. My question is about Christ's omniscience. There are times when he uses his omniscience, such as in John 4, 17 to 18, when he is able to tell the Samaritan woman at the well that she has five husbands. Other times, such as in Matthew 24, 36, when he says that no one, including himself, knows when the final judgment will come. Only the Father knows.

Why is this? Thank you so much for answering my question, and God bless. Hey Marsha, thank you so much for asking that question, and it's a verse that has been talked about so much throughout the history of the Christian church. It's one of the verses that the ancient heretical group, the Arians, would point to in order to deny the divinity of Christ or the equality of Christ with the Father.

Of course, they taught that Jesus was a created being, that he wasn't of the same substance, consubstantial with the Father, and there are modern-day Arians now. You think of the Jehovah's Witnesses as well. They'll say, well, Jesus is divine, but he's not of the same substance. He's not equal to the Father, with the Father, in power and glory. He's the first created being, and they too, if they come knocking on your door, they might point to this verse in particular. And so throughout the history of the Christian church, apologists and pastors and theologians have had to respond to this argument. Now, of course, we believe and we confess on the basis of so many scriptures that Jesus is the eternal Son of God, that he never came into existence. He always was, and that he is, as I've already said, equal with the Father, in power and glory. This is the orthodox doctrine of the Trinity. And there are so many instances, even in the Gospels, where Jesus has this insight, this divine knowledge. Like with the woman at the well in John chapter 4, where Jesus knows things about her that he wouldn't just know by seeing her. And so how do we make sense, then, of the words there in Matthew 24, verse 36?

Concerning that day and hour, no one knows, not even the angels of heaven nor the Son, but the Father only. Now, let me tell you where, essentially, the church focused in answering this question, and it's in Jesus's state of humiliation through the Incarnation. We believe that the eternal Son of God assumed humanity, body and soul, for us and for our salvation. And in that humanity, he experienced things like sickness, suffering, hunger, sorrow.

All the things that we experience, even down here to this ignorance that's being spoken of here. And so they've pointed to the mystery of the Incarnation, the fact that the Son of God assumed humanity, and that weakness of humanity as well, so that he might redeem it, he might redeem us. And so that's, I think, the answer that the church has given historically, and where I would point to as well. It's not that as God he's ignorant. No, as the eternal Son of God, he knows all things, and yet here, speaking in the context of his humiliation, his coming, that's how we're to understand this. The other thing I think that's just important to note, because it's easy to miss in that conversation in particular, is what Jesus is emphasizing here. He's pointing out the fact that, hey, we need to be watchful and ready for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, because we don't know when he's going to come. That's the emphasis here, and he points to the angels and even to himself in his humiliation in order to highlight the fact that, you know, you just don't know. If the angels don't know, you certainly don't know.

So, again, don't go making dates, and as some people have done in the past, but instead be vigilant, be watchful, because I come as a thief in the night. And so appreciate, once again, your question, may the Lord bless you, and what a wonder it is. I mean, if we think about the incarnation of our Lord, the very fact that God himself suffered and died in that humanity that he assumed, the word assumed, Jesus, that is a great mystery, but it's the very heart of our salvation. Great explanation. Thanks for that, Adriel. You're listening to Core Christianity with Pastor Adriel Sanchez. By the way, we're going to be recording a second episode of Core Christianity after this live program ends here in just a few minutes. So if you weren't able to get through with your question, you can still call us for the next 35 minutes or so. Here's the number. It's 833-THE-CORE. So if you've got a question about the Bible, the Christian life, doctrine, theology, give us a call.

833-843-2673. Let's go to Garrett calling in from Missouri. Garrett, what's your question for Adriel? Yeah, how do we know the calling of God on our life? Like, how do we know what he wants us to do?

Hey, Garrett, thank you for that question. Well, I mean, there's two ways of thinking about this in particular. First, Garrett, God has revealed to us in his word, his will for our lives. I mean, you just think of the law that God has given to us, what he's called us to, how he's called us to treat each other. Too often, I think today, we think God's will for my life is this great mystery that I'm supposed to just uncover and figure out, and I just don't know which way to go left or right. So that might be, you know, when we're talking about God's hidden will, what we're referring to, you know, what God has ordained from all eternity.

We don't know that, but we do know, and you do know, and you have at your fingertips God's revealed will for your life summarized in the law of God, but throughout Scripture. And so the first thing I would say is, for people who are wrestling with this, this is why it's so important for us to be immersed in the will of God, because God has spoken so clearly on a number of different, you know, levels to us in his word so that we might know and discern how we ought to live. And so when we think about a decision, for example, you know, do I go to this college or that college, or do I join this fraternity or that fraternity, as we were talking about on the broadcast earlier, this job or that job, I think we exercise biblical wisdom and ask questions. Okay, is this going to help me grow in obedience to the word of the Lord, or is this going to detract from my walk with Christ? Is this honoring to God, or is this not honoring to God?

Does this cause me to compromise my faith in Jesus Christ? In those situations, you know, we don't need a special voice from heaven. God has already spoken so clearly, and we're called to follow.

We're called to obey. Then with regard to, like, you know, just, you know, the unfolding of my life and, you know, what about those really specific things where it's, you know, it's not a matter of sin. It's not like if I choose this, I'm sinning, and if I choose this, I'm not sinning, and it's really clear. What about where there are two options that just seem like they both could be God's will for me? I think in those situations, it's prayer, it's a multitude of counselors, people who are around you, encouraging you, walking with you.

It's also just, you know, what opportunities are presenting themselves. Sometimes, you know, there are two doors, and you're just praying and saying, okay, Lord, are you going to close one of these doors providentially? And maybe God does, and so you know, okay, well, it looks like the other thing was what God intended for me. And so a lot of times, it's just through God's providence, through the counsel of others, through prayer, through circumstantial events that God unveils to us what we ought to do. But again, I think where we need to focus is to remember that the will of God isn't some great mystery that we need to climb into heaven to figure out. Here, God has spoken so clearly in His Word, and so we need to be saturated in the Scriptures so that we might exercise that biblical wisdom in being able to discern between good choices and bad choices, between the right decision and the wrong decision. And so may God fill you with His Spirit, surround you with solid counselors, and give you an understanding in the Holy Scripture so that as you make decisions for your own lives, you choose that which is good and pleasing to the Lord. That might be the harder thing, but it's God's will for you. God bless. God bless.