When the Christian Life Seems Impossible

Episode 568 Show Notes

From the Show

Martin Luther wrote this about the Christian Life:

“The entire life of the faithful is a sort of exercise in hatred against sin in the flesh which murmurs against the Spirit and faith. The godly repeatedly feel terrors, then faith fights against the lack of trust and despair as well as against lust, anger, pride, revenge, etc. The battle continues in the godly as long as they live. In some more violently, in others, more gently. Hence, they have sorrow and hatred for sin combined with faith. Therefore, they cry out with Paul in Romans 7:24, ‘Wretched man that I am, who will liberate me from this body of death?’ The hearts of the godly are sadder over their sins and fear of death than they are joyful over the life and inexpressible grace given through Christ. Indeed, they struggle against this lack of trust and overcome it by faith. Yet this spirit of sadness always returns. Therefore, their life is always marked by continual repentance until death.”

–Adriel Sanchez

Questions in this Episode

1. What is the ministry of reconciliation in 2 Corinthians 5? Is it a specific kind of ministry or is it more broad than that?

2. I am an athlete and I am getting older in age and am wondering if the bible has anything to say about hormone therapy or other forms of supplementation?

3. When Jesus is tempted by Satan in the desert, his answers to Satan’s questions do not really seem like answers. Could you explain what Jesus’s answers mean?

4. I was wondering about why it’s so hard to live the Christian life? It is one thing when you first really submit your life to God, you’re walking with the Lord, and you’re seriously loving Him for the first time, but then you begin to feel mentally attacked and you feel discouraged. How do we live through those attacks? It’s hard to live like that. When you want to try to do what’s right– and I’m doing what’s right, I stay in the Word– but the discouragement keeps coming. How do you keep going?