Ask Pastor John

Can God act as a Christian’s enemy through suffering? Pastor John explains how God’s painful providences do not conflict with his enduring love for his children.

Does suffering kill the sin within us? Pastor John argues from 1 Peter 4:1 that believers die to sin with Christ so we can live to his righteousness.

Loss can lead to despair over God’s plan for our lives. When we can’t perceive meaning in life, Pastor John counsels us to find comfort in God’s glorious purpose in Christ.

Does the Bible promise that believers will not be harmed for doing good? Pastor John explains the context of 1 Peter 3:13 and God’s sovereign wisdom in suffering.

Loving our spouses for better or worse includes loving them through their spiritual apathy. Pastor John gives ten encouragements for the weary.

When someone confronts you wrongly, should you apologize? Pastor John encourages humility and reconciliation without giving in to emotional manipulation.

Did Jesus preach the gospel before his death and resurrection? Pastor John calls us to a deeper understanding of God as Creator and King, and Jesus as Lord and Savior.

How can we witness to those who just want a quick fix? Pastor John presses home the shocking reality of eternity and the astounding love of Jesus.

Can a disabled mother model the Proverbs 31 woman? Pastor John describes the gift of a heart that hopes in God’s steadfast love.

Rigorous exposition isn’t at odds with engaging preaching. Pastor John encourages pastors to work for creativity when technical, abstract sermons feel easier.

Gathering with other Christians is a crucial way to encourage and be encouraged in Christ. But do we really need to gather every week?

Jesus endured unspeakable agony at the cross. Pastor John marvels at the force of his love sustained by expectant joy.

Is the Bible accessible only to readers with a high IQ? Pastor John reframes biblical maturity as a moral issue centered on our obedience, not our intellect.

Daily productivity requires often elusive focus and grit. Pastor John offers ten charges to live each day to the glory of God.

Did Jesus demean the Canaanite woman he called a dog? Pastor John explains how Jesus’s test revealed her great faith — and her adoption as one of God’s own.

Why should we follow Jesus when life seems easier without him? Pastor John responds to a man questioning the cost of daily obedience.

Deep suffering can drive us away from true hope and comfort. But our Father waits to gather us back to himself.

Does eternal punishment in hell bring God glory? Pastor John challenges the rejection of God’s judgment by pointing to his unmerited mercies and perfect righteousness.

Why does evangelism matter when God has chosen whom he will save? Pastor John unpacks and rejoices in our role as God’s instruments.

How can Christians avoid placing a relationship or hobby over a desire for God? Pastor John calls us to let earthly delights turn us Godward.

Are selfies a sign of the end times? Pastor John looks beyond smartphones and social media to our society’s desire for deep satisfaction.

Can past sins separate us from the love of God? Pastor John offers hope in God’s promised forgiveness for believers wrestling with crippling shame.

At Jesus’s last breath, a crowd of saints rose from their tombs in Jerusalem. Pastor John offers six reasons Matthew’s Gospel includes this event.

What’s the relationship between our good deeds and God’s reward? When he empowers us to obey him, he loves to celebrate the beauty of his grace.

How does God intend for us to deal with tragedy in the news? Pastor John offers six reasons why suffering should drive us to repentance and action.

How do we respond when an employer expects us to compromise the truth? Pastor John offers counsel for keeping an uncompromised faith in the workplace.

How can we fight anxiety through financial panic and stress? Pastor John offers five truths about God’s character to calm our hearts and minds.

How would we use our time if Christ were coming back tonight? Pastor John gives ten transforming ways to live while waiting for the second coming.

King Asa worshiped God almost all his days, but he drifted in his old age. So, how should we respond when sin corrupts good men?

Does past sexual sin ruin a future marriage? Pastor John counsels a confused young man to trust God’s redeeming love for repentant sexual sinners.

If God is sovereign, why should we pray? Pastor John encourages us to seek God with confidence in his power and plan for our lives.

How can the pastor of a growing church care for each member? Pastor John encourages shepherds to care tenderly for the flock and depend on God’s mercy.

How can we shift our prayers from rote repetition to an awareness of God’s larger purposes? Pastor John models praying Scripture back to God.

How can Christians act in obedience when they face a life-changing cost? Grace can sustain us through the painful consequences of following God.

How can we reconcile the pain we feel in this fallen world with God’s promise to keep us from all evil? Pastor John applies Psalm 121 to this life.

Even great evil serves God’s eternal purposes — yet God also gives us precious promises to comfort us in the midst of our pain and grief.

To redeem relationships, we need humility — but how do we get that kind of sacrificial heart? Looking to Christ and his cross strips away entitlement.

How can Christians tell the difference between true and false zeal for God’s name? Pastor John examines Jehu’s tragic history in 2 Kings.

Should pastors expose every fresh cultural outrage from the pulpit? Pastor John encourages pastors to condemn sin without being consumed.

When we face day-to-day pressure and stress, Jesus’s teaching steadies our hearts and minds. Pastor John offers eight truths to fight anxiety.

Is God’s pursuit of his glory and man’s pursuit of our joy a selfish transaction? Pastor John insists on keeping our joy in God connected to God himself.

Every recognition and reward we receive is a gift of God’s steadfast love, poured out so that we might magnify the glory of his undeserved grace.

How does Jesus’s silence before his accusers teach us how to suffer? Pastor John offers encouragement for Christians facing unjust treatment.

True freedom means our desires align with God’s; we want what he wants. Pastor John answers three questions from Galatians about Christian liberty.

What do we mean when we say God is sovereign? Pastor John traces God’s sovereignty throughout the Bible and draws out two big, soul-steadying truths.

We don’t need to wait for painful seasons to end before we feel joy again. By God’s grace, we can hold sorrow and joy in the very same heart.

If consciousness is part of the soul, what are the implications when the brain degrades and dies? Pastor John speaks to consciousness in both life and death.

How should Christians respond when an authority asks them to sin? Pastor John encourages believers to respect earthly institutions without compromising God’s word.

God’s children are set apart as saints, given the privilege of sharing in Christ’s moral beauty. Pastor John explains how God’s holiness draws us to him.

Christianity isn’t a fix for all suffering in this life — but it does offer unshakable joy in trials and immediate relief from the deepest of pains.

Do the souls of believers “sleep” in the grave after death, or do they go to be with the Lord? Pastor John explains the logic of the resurrection.

How can we show Christ’s love to a dying, unbelieving loved one? Pastor John shares ten ways believers can embody God’s love.

How should Christians steward pets? Pastor John offers guidance for enjoying animals without treating their companionship like human companionship.

Without Christ-exalting love, spiritual gifts serve as self-promotion — even when they produce powerful results.

How important are emotions in the Christian life? Pastor John looks to AI and suffering to clarify the essence of what makes us unique as human beings.

In Scripture, long periods of suffering and pain serve as a backdrop for God’s great kindness. Pastor John offers three reasons for long sorrows.

What does true freedom look like in the Christian life? Pastor John describes the apostle Paul’s burden for both single and married believers.

If sex outside of marriage doesn’t hurt anyone, why does Scripture call it sin? Pastor John unfolds the spiritual significance of sex from 1 Corinthians 6.

Should every sermon make a beeline to the cross? Pastor John traces the pattern of the New Testament from the death of Christ to the holiness of Christians.

Eternity with God can sound too good to be true — even impossible. Will heaven really never end? And if not, will we still be happy after a million years?

How should we respond when friends embrace worldly entertainment? Pastor John offers encouragement for when personal convictions lead to loneliness.

How do we present ourselves to God “as a living sacrifice”? Pastor John applies Romans 12:1–2 to believers’ daily lives.

Should all believers assume they are called to missions? Pastor John provides seven factors to direct a desire for ministry at home or abroad.

God’s sovereign grace is strong enough to overcome all human sin and rebellion — changing belief in Jesus from “will not” to “want to.”

Does the Bible teach that everything happens for a reason? Pastor John offers grounding from Romans 8 for God’s purpose in our suffering.

When Christians encounter signs of the end times, how should we respond? Pastor John outlines a biblical approach to waiting well for Jesus’s return.

How can believers push past surface-level Bible reading to the reality behind the words? Pastor John offers five practices to enliven dry devotions.

Why do people reject God when creation proclaims his presence? Pastor John explains how truth becomes suppressed, both internally and externally.

How can those who have wandered far from God come back home to him? Pastor John offers hope in the face of deep failure.

How do Jesus’s teaching and example shape our leadership? Pastor John examines the traits of a godly leader in the home, church, or workplace.

What is God doing while we wait in a painful place? Pastor John shows how God uses waiting to produce a new security, a new song, and a new significance.

How can we find peace when struggling to see the goodness of our individual design? Pastor John illustrates God’s love and wisdom in his creation.

When does faithful lament become sinful complaint? Pastor John offers five statements on lament to help us cry out to God in great pain.

How do we cling to Christ when faced with the unknowns of aging? Pastor John encourages older Christians in the battle against bitterness and fear.

By nature, we are selfish and God-ignoring and God-belittling. But no matter how hard a heart may be, the sovereign God can still save.

Indwelling sin still pervades those who are in Christ. But God’s mercy is more than enough to meet, match, and master any guilt we bring to him.

How might pastors approach the many administrative needs of a congregation? Pastor John draws four helpful guidelines from Jethro’s counsel to Moses.

Why do Christians make such a big deal about sex? Pastor John shows what godly sexuality says about the God who made us and the Christ who redeemed us.

Why is Christianity the best religion? Pastor John offers four reasons, including the hope of the gospel and the uniqueness of the God-man.

How does God’s word guide our heart’s instruction in the night? Pastor John explains the ways God uses nighttime counsel to teach and lead us.

When does stewardship of the body cross over into self-glorification? Pastor John helps us test our motivations with three questions.

When we lift our hands in worship, are we displaying public faithfulness or public performance? Pastor John gives three ways to test our hearts.

How do we rejoice in God without neglecting to rejoice in our salvation? Pastor John clarifies how to rightly rejoice in God and his good gifts.

How does reading the Bible lead to life transformation? Pastor John offers three suggestions to experience more of the Spirit’s power.

How do we craft a personal mission statement? Pastor John helps us draw the details of our lives into God’s ultimate purpose.

How can we make New Year’s resolutions in a way that honors God? Pastor John explains the mystery of fulfilling resolves in the strength of another.

How can we root our joy in Jesus rather than in his gifts? Pastor John gives four strategies for loving God in and above every gift.

What does it feel like to meet the living God in the pages of Scripture? Pastor John gives us a glimpse into a profound encounter with God.

How do we avoid falling into spiritual complacency amid daily routines? Pastor John warns of the danger of viewing God as a nonfactor in everyday life.

How should we respond when we face accusations, especially if they seem unwarranted? Pastor John helps us bear all kinds of criticism with gutsy guilt.

How can we love our aging parents through the many challenges of caregiving? Pastor John shares counsel from Scripture and personal experience.

Why would a gospel-driven ministry define itself as Reformed? Because Reformed theology guards and glorifies the grace at the heart of the gospel.

How can trust regrow in the aftermath of adultery? Pastor John identifies two needed miracles for a marriage to survive and thrive again.

Can a Christian lose patience and not be in sin? Pastor John explains why patience and impatience may be more complicated than we think.

As we steward the body, our appearance might change for the better. How do we keep our focus on being a whole person, not just an attractive shape?

Satan wouldn’t exist if God didn’t keep him around — so why is he here? Pastor John explains four ways in which God is using Satan for his glory.

Differences in belief can feel bigger than they are — but sometimes they are truly big. What separates personal opinion from soul-damaging theology?

If God refuses to act “for our sake,” does that mean he refuses to do us good? Pastor John resolves a perplexity and holds forth lavish grace from Ezekiel 36.

Does Psalm 82 teach that human beings are gods? Pastor John describes the moment when Jesus quoted the psalm to escape an early death.