Bringing Our Questions to God in Pain

Summary

Preaching from Luke 23:8-9, where Herod questioned Jesus and received no answer, guest preacher Alex Kolyesnikov reflects on the place of questions in the life of faith. Questions are a natural part of being human, and the hardest of them is simply 'why?' - why this pain, why God seems silent. He shows that God is never offended by our questions: God Himself asked Adam where he was, Jesus cried out from the cross 'Why have You forsaken Me?', Paul pressed the Galatians with question after question, and Job brought God more than a hundred.

From this he offers three counsels for taking our questions to God. First, acknowledge His greatness even while we are hurting. Second, keep talking to Him and refuse to walk away, even when He stays silent. Third, never stop praising Him, because praise and unanswered questions can live side by side. He shares the painful story of his young daughter's near-fatal head injury and her lasting disabilities, and the hundreds of questions he still carries to God to this day.

His conclusion is tender and honest: do not bury your pain, and do not abandon God. If you must weep, weep in His presence, for there relief is found. We may never get our answers here, but one day, face to face with Him, every question will fall away because we will finally see what we so longed to understand.

Key Points

• God is not offended when we bring Him honest questions, even the painful 'why'.
• Scripture is full of questions - God asked Adam, Jesus cried out on the cross, and so did Paul and Job.
• In your questions, learn to acknowledge God's greatness even while you are in pain.
• Keep speaking to God and do not abandon Him simply because He stays silent.
• Praise and unanswered questions can coexist - never stop blessing His name.
• Pain is real, but His presence brings relief, so if you must weep, weep before Him.
• One day, face to face with God, every unanswered question will finally fall away.