July 11, 2025

“One Question”

To begin the sermon this past Sunday, I asked the question, “If you could ask God, ask Jesus, one question, what would it be?”  This was to introduce the text, because in fact, in the text, a Disciple asked Jesus a question, “Lord, teach us to pray.” (Luke 11:1) It was a great question. It was, in fact, the only thing that the Gospels tell us that the Disciples asked Jesus to teach them.

So, I have a question for you. Or, rather, I want to repeat the question, “If you could ask God, ask Jesus, one question, what would it be?”  What would you ask about?

How is it that you love with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength?

How can you really love your neighbor as yourself?

What does it mean to submit?

How do I forgive 70X7?

How do I keep the Sabbath?

How do I take up my cross daily? (What is my cross?)

I bet we could fill pages and pages with questions.

How do you pick one?

Well, what is bothering you the most? What is causing the most consternation inside you? What are you struggling with? What do you know you need to work on? There is your answer. It is your question. You get to ask.

Okay – so you have a question, and you ask: how do you get an answer? After all, I don’t see Jesus in front of me like the Disciples did. For the questions that trouble us, that need answering, there are several avenues to explore.

First, if there is a question in your heart, take that question to God in prayer. Keep asking God to open your heart and mind to His will and guidance in this matter. The Holy Spirit can speak to us directly. And we are told in scripture, “Ask and it will be given…”  By continually or repeatedly asking God for direction, it keeps the question fresh in our minds, and hopefully, our eyes open to other ways in which God might speak to us.

After beginning our prayer, or maybe alongside our prayer, we should turn to the textbook –  the Bible. This is God’s word. God has given us many answers to life’s questions in His word if we will take the time to seek them there. Some answers are obvious. Some need to be teased out. That is where the next help can come in.

Ask others to weigh in. Now, when you ask another, you want to ask someone you trust, who has a level of spiritual maturity. But engage others in your question. God will frequently speak through others if we listen.

A final source of help might be to do some research, depending on the particular question. If you have a question that has something to do with faith, there is a pretty good chance someone else has already had the same question and wrestled with it.  The internet can point you in different directions; there may be articles, devotionals, and books written on the matter that is on your mind. Of course, when you consider what someone else has determined, you must weigh carefully what is said; is it consistent with God’s word? Just because someone writes an article, or a book, or has a podcast, doesn’t mean they are right. But this can be a rich source to aid you in your quest for an answer.

The bottom line: when you have a question, go to God with it, and keep at it until there is an answer. Then, guess what? You can ask another question. And another…  One of Jesus’ titles was “Teacher,” or “Rabbi.”  You’ve got questions, Jesus has answers. They may not always be obvious or easy, but they are there. As teachers from my past said over and over, “The only bad (or dumb) question is the unasked question.”  If your questions are sincere, I believe that is true. So don’t be afraid of your questions or embarrassed by them. Bring them to the Lord; all of them. The one who is “The Way, the Truth, and the Life” is waiting to hear from you.

Grace, Mercy, and Peace,

Pastor Blaine