BK1110

Marrying someone isn't the same as befriending them. I'm not sure why that verse would preclude you from having friends who are male.

If no one at a church cares enough to attempt to pick you up and drive you to their church once a week, then that probably isn't a church you should be going to anyway. I would suggest looking up local churches and their websites. Find ones that show their profession of faith somewhere on the website and then call those and see if any member of the staff can do it, or if they can find a church member willing to do it. Just explain your situation and that you can't drive yourself or afford a taxi etc. You may be surprised at what you find.

Praying for you each day. It may be time to take more drastic measures to get a support network. Have you tried calling a local church and explaining your situation and just outright asking if someone can transport you to church?

There is absolutely a very real technology addiction problem now. It's not just you. I probably wouldn't have said anything, but just moved. Probably best if someone tries to befriend her first, otherwise they're just liable to come off as a busybody and be ignored. If it comes from someone who has built at least a bit of a relationship with her first then she might actually consider what's being said.

Here's one answer to consider https://www.gotquestions.org/Jacob-wrestling-with-God.html

Are you a true, dedicated Christian? The Bible is very clear that you should only marry someone who also is. A person cannot be a true, dedicated Christian and also be steeped in witchcraft and the like. IMO that is a deal-breaker just as it would be if she were a prostitute or some such.

Be kind at all times. Talk with her; ask her what she believes, if anything, about God now, and then share with her the basics of saving faith. Ask her if there are any things that holds her back from believing. Any objections; maybe they are scientific, philosophical moral, etc. Once you know where she's struggling, you can find the resources that will address her concerns. Regardless of where she is now and what she does or does not believe, Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis could be very beneficial. You can find a complete audio version of it on Youtube if you look for it.

A couple of observations: 1. Genesis doesn't indicate that the children it lists are the only ones that people had. Seth isn't necessarily Eve's third child. For all we know, he could be her fifth, or tenth, or thirtieth. We are only told he was born after Able was killed. 2. People at the time were still routinely living 500+ years, and there was not ready access to contraception of course. It's not hard to imagine that there were hundreds or even thousands of people alive by the time Cain killed Able. I'm not saying the Bible demands this interpretation, but I also don't think it demands the interpretation that there were four humans alive at the time, Cain killed one to make three, and thus it's weird that he's afraid of people who don't exist. There could have been multiple settlements with thousands of people in them by that time. The Bible is not clear on those details.

For one thing, keep in mind that real love is not just an emotion. Love is a choice to act on someone's behalf. "For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son..." Loving means acting on the object of the love's behalf, unselfishly. When you think of your boyfriends attitudes and actions, does he love you or does he love himself? Once you realize that he is loving himself and not you, you can begin to imagine what a life with him daily would be like. God is telling you not to cohabitate with them not just because it's sinful, but because he knows it will be even more damaging for you in the long run.

The Bible is very, extremely, repeatedly clear on this topic. Read Paul's various letters in the new testament. Over and over and over again he makes it clear that sex before marriage and with any other person other than your spouse is grave sin, damaging sin, and ultimately damning sin. There are so many great reasons to wait, so that you can exclusively experience that deep, giving, loving connection with just one person, attempting to out-do each other in love directed towards each other. But even aside from all of that, you simply have to make a choice; the Bible is clear about where the line is, and is clear that people who wantonly cross it will not be going to heaven. If you believe the Bible, your choice is clear. Might I recommend that you go to the Youtube channel "Dr. Sean McDowell" and just type in "wait for marriage" in the search bar for his channel. You will get many results, including a "Sex, Love, and Relationships" playlist. His videos and interviews should help you get a much clearer picture of not only God's will for your life and body, but also His reasons for it. And FWIW, I'm a guy and nearly 35, and I'm still a virgin. I hopefully await the day that God brings the right woman into my life that I can give all of myself to, so she can feel loved and blessed and special, doing my all in sex and in every other way to help her more fully appreciate the love of God. There are guys out there who value Biblical teaching on this. God will bring you the right one on his timing if you faithfully wait and allow God to be sovereign over this aspect of your life as well.

They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us. But you have been anointed by the Holy One, and you all have knowledge. -- 1 John 2:19-20 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned." -- John 15:1-6 More info https://www.gty.org/library/questions/QA145/what-kind-of-things-do-and-do-not-prove-the-genuineness-of-saving-faith

To the first point, I do not mean to say that it is meaningless to try to do good or that his good deeds had no value before one is saved, but only that they cannot save you, and compared to Christ they are rubbish, which Paul himself says. To the second point, indeed it is. But the point is that we don't stop there. If we do, if we say "now I'm saved so I can live however I want," we prove that we were not, in fact, saved at all.

It just so happens that my daily study, which I've just finished, was on that very passage I just quoted! Funny how that works. The title of the study video is "Philippians 3:11–14 // Can I Really Have Assurance?" on the DesiringGod channel on Youtube. You might want to give it a watch.

Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. -- Philippians 3:8-14 The context of this, if you read the rest of the passage that preceded it, Paul is talking about how he was a Jew of Jews, kept the law better than anyone, was a Pharisee, etc. If anyone was going to heaven based on works, it was him. But he counted all of that, all of those works that he had to his credit, as rubbish compared to Christ. That's a recognition that, no matter how good, no matter what works, it's all garbage without faith in Christ. Of course, he then immediately follow it up with verses about how he hasn't obtained it yet, and that he presses on (works harder) to obtain it! The key part is the "because Christ Jesus has made me his own." Instead of his works coming from a place of trying to save himself, they now come from a place of joy and gratitude that Christ has already saved him. But if someone is not really saved, they will not feel that joy, that gratitude. They will simply want to continue living in all their sins. They will have no desire to forget what lies behind and strain forward to what lies ahead, because they love what lies behind.

I would say it makes no more sense to stop pursuing protection from harm through the legal system than it does to stop pursuing it through calling the police, or to stop pursuing medical help through doctors. Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God's servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God's wrath on the wrongdoer. Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God's wrath but also for the sake of conscience. -- Romans 13:1-7 These are the things that you shall do: Speak the truth to one another; render in your gates judgments that are true and make for peace; do not devise evil in your hearts against one another, and love no false oath, for all these things I hate, declares the Lord. -- Zechariah 8:16-17 We are not commanded in any way to cut ourselves off from government, rulers, or authorities of the world, except in cases when they are blatantly ordering/requiring us to sin against God. In fact there are many passages which encourage us to be good and honest participants of the earthly governments and societies that we live in. I would continue to pursue protection and justice. I would not, of course, cease for even a day to pray about it, recognizing that God is the ultimate arbiter, and it may be his will to work his purpose through these people's injustice.

Nothing wrong with asking why. That's just a desire to understand God and his will more, not a doubting of him. Ask yourself; are you doubting God, or do you trust Him but just recognize that you don't fully understand and want to?

A child is much more accepting of things they cannot see, and that's what most people focus on. But I think it is as much, if not more, about the helplessness of children. The Greek word for children (paidion) in this passage often refers to the youngest of children. Think of toddlers; we must admit our utter dependence on Christ, just as toddlers are utterly dependent on their parents to provide for their every need. We cannot, to any degree, save ourselves, or offer anything worthy to God on our own.

There are also indications that many, many will turn to Christ and be martyred during the tribulation. I fully expect there to be hundreds of millions, and possibly billions, in heaven. But yes, even more in hell, tragically.

He can and does, but of course not with audible voices as in the past. Most people I've heard from have said it comes when they are in Bible study, and come upon a verse, and they feel very strongly that the Lord is telling them that the verse does or will apply to them in a specific way. Of course, yes, many people take it far too lightly, and you'll hear them say "God has laid it on my heart that _____________" with every single idea that pops into their heads.

I just finished reading "Beyond the Cosmos: The Transdimensionality of God" by Hugh Ross. The last chapter is about heaven and what it, and we, will be like. He also covers that topic in "Why the Universe Is the Way it Is." You might be interested to read them.

We know that God hates sin, but does not hate us as sinners. He, in fact, loves us powerfully and completely. Does that extend to fallen angels and other creatures that are not his image-bearers? I am not sure. But we are all sinners in many ways. We should hate sin, but not sinners, otherwise we would have to hate ourselves and many others that God loves. We should not hate what God loves. And how can such a hatred of sinners not spring from pride, us somehow allowing ourselves to feel that those sins which we are not enslaved to are somehow worse, somehow more worthy of our condemnation. This damages our ability to reach out with love and humility. Be glad that God' righteous justice will be done. But I'm not sure the end result of that should be gladness that other God-created beings will suffer torment for eternity.

You cannot lose salvation. You can, through actions, show that you never truly had salvation to begin with. Paul and other writers call us to confirm our salvation, not to not lose it. I have serious doubts that God is wanting you to give up the medications because he "didn't create me to be dependent on medications." It's true that we are to not be mastered by anything other than God, but extending that to a non-abusive relationship with medications that solve physical or mental issues that you have no control over is a stretch. If a person's heart cannot beat normally without a pacemaker, should they tear it from their chest?

All the time. Even the best Christian has to fight it every single day. Look at Paul: "For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, sold under sin. For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me." -- Romans 7:14-20 Hate sin. Fight sin. But when you fail, do not beat yourself up overly. I say overly because contrition and repentance are critical. But we can take them too far and allow them to make us doubt our faith and our salvation, which steals the joy of God's grace away from us. I would recommend you focus on Romans for a time. Really seek out good devotionals and commentary on it. And Paul's letters to the various churches as well. The Desiring God channel on Youtube has a lot of great devotionals (the Look at the Book series) and has a ton of them on Philippians and Ephesians especially.

I'm currently reading a book called "Beyond the Cosmos: The Transdimensionality of God" by Dr. Hugh Ross. It offers some great insight into many of the paradoxes of the Christian faith, predestination vs. free will being one of them. You might be interested in seeing what Dr. Ross has to say about the issue.

Don't listen to her. Migraines are a well-known medical condition. If you have truly received Christ as Lord and Savior, then the Holy Spirit dwells within you. No demon can come into you while He is there!