God is never afraid of the hard questions. He welcomes us asking the big ones. Read through the Psalms and see how the Bible gives space for those that even sound accusing (eg: Psalm 13:1, ‘How long, O LORD? Will you forget me for ever? How long will you hide your face from me?’). Like the Psalmist, our community asks Big questions: 

‘God, why don’t you make yourself clearer? 

‘God, why don’t you end evil?’ 

‘God, why is this world so broken?’ 

‘God, what happens when I die?’ 

The questions we ask are deep and important. God isn’t afraid of big questions and willingly answers. His answers aren’t simple or easy. As we hear answers, expect to invite others to join in lament and be ready to stand with them: 

‘Lament is rooted in what we believe. It is a prayer loaded with theology. Christians affirm that the world is broken, God is powerful, and he will be faithful. Therefore, lament stands in the gap between pain and promise.   

To cry is human, but to lament is Christian’.   

(Mark Vroegop ‘Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy’) 

As we ask big questions we must realise His answers will challenge and change us – because God wants what’s best for us. He answers, so we’ll learn to trust and follow Him. Expect to have more conversations and questions with your friends and family – that lead to hope.  

Knowing God answers, gives us confidence to be ‘inviters’ this month during our Big Questions for God sermon series. 

Sam Chan gives this advice to be a good inviter and take the awkwardness away (a little taster of the wisdom in our upcoming Equip course): 

1. Try to make your friends their friends. Many people today find the story of Jesus completely strange and unbelievable. […] We might think that it’s a matter the intellect—reason and data. But sociological studies indicate that the most important factor for determining what we see as plausible is actually social. We find it easier to believe something the more people around us believe it. And we find it less easy to believe in something when we don’t know anyone who believes it. […]  A better way is to try to help our non-Christian friends to become friends with our Christian friends. We need to bring our worlds together.  

2. Go to their things before inviting them to yours. If we never go along to the things our non-Christian friends invite us to, but then expect them to come to ours, we’re acting like Amway salesmen. It’s awkward and embarrassing and it’s unlikely to work.   

3. Prepare the way for the gospel with coffee and dinner. Australians are incredibly private people when it comes to their personal lives. They find it threatening to talk about serious things; they even find it difficult to go into a stranger’s house. They feel uncomfortable in private territory—both spiritual and physical. 

That means we Christians need to work at building up trust. For example, it’s going to feel awkward if we try to talk to them about the Gospel if we haven’t had them around for dinner. And they’re not going to be ready to come around for dinner until we’ve had them around for something more casual like coffee. But even coffee might seem a bit much for some people at the start. Maybe we need to try something that is a bit more casual and public, like a BBQ in the backyard for the neighbours or a cheap store-bought-pizza night. 

We have big questions. God has better answers!

In Him,

Mark Smith 
Senior Minister