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 Various Scriptures

INTRODUCTION: Today we begin a new series called, “Lord, I Have a Problem.” In this series we will be looking at the various problems that we face and how God helps us with our problems through our new life in Jesus Christ.

We all have problems. The book of Job says: “Man is born to trouble as surely as sparks fly upward” (Job 5:7). And Christians are not exempt. If anybody ever told you, “Come to Jesus and all your problems will be over,” well, they told you wrong! Jesus said: “In this world you will have trouble [problems]. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).

We all have problems, but as Christians we also have Jesus, and that makes all the difference. Sure, you are still going to have trouble in this world, but Jesus has overcome the world, and that means Jesus can help you with your problems.

Jesus came not only to bring you forgiveness for your sins, but also to give you a whole new life. Jesus said in John 10: “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that you may have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10). God offers you new life through Jesus Christ, an abundant life, a life that is full and free. Jesus died not only to save you from your sins, but also to help you with your problems.

So, how does Jesus help you with your problems? We will answer that question in general today, and then in the coming weeks, we will look at a series of specific problems and how Jesus helps you with each of them.

I. Three main sources of our problems

First of all, let’s talk about the sources of our problems. There are three main sources of the problems we encounter in our lives. There are the problems that come from within me due to my own sin. There are the problems that come from outside me through trials and temptations. And thirdly, there are relational problems that come from conflict with others. So, let’s look at each of these in turn.

   A. My own sin (problems from within)

First, there are the problems I face in life because of my own sin. The Bible says: “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23). We are all sinners, and therefore we are all broken people inside. That brokenness is the cause of so many of the problems in our lives. Anger, envy, worry, depression, fear, pride—these are problems that all come from our brokenness within, a brokenness that Jesus came to heal as we will be seeing throughout this series.

   B. Trials and temptations (problems from without)

Next, there are the problems that come from outside me, that is the trials and temptations I face in life. Paul said in the book of Acts: “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God” (Acts 14:22).

The Bible tells us our three main enemies are the world, the flesh and the devil. The flesh is the broken part inside of me. The world and the devil are those outside forces that bring us so much trouble.

No one ever said it would be easy. We are fallen people living in a fallen world, and we can expect to face many difficulties in life. But once again, Jesus can help you with the trials and temptations of life, as we will see.

   C. Conflict with others (relational problems)

The third source of problems in our lives is conflict with others. These are the relational problems we experience at home or at school, at work or even at church. Once again this is the problem of one sinner butting up against another. The book of James describes it this way: “What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You want something but don’t get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight” (James 4:1-2).

We are broken people living in a broken world who experience broken relationships. No wonder we have so many problems!

II. Back to the beginning – it was not always this way

But it wasn’t always this way. If you go back to the beginning, back to the creation account in Genesis, we find that God originally created mankind without any problems.

   A. Adam and Eve were created morally pure (no sin)

First of all, Adam and Eve were created morally pure which means they had no sin. When God created Adam and Eve, we read in Genesis: “God saw all that he had made, and it was very good” (Gen. 1:31). The book of Ecclesiastes says: “God made mankind upright, but men have gone in search of many schemes” (Eccl. 7:29). Adam and Eve were created without any sin. They were not broken inside, and therefore they did not experience any of the problems that you and I experience because of the sin in our lives.

   B. They lived in a protected environment (no trials)

Secondly, they lived in a protected environment. The Bible tells us: “Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed” (Gen. 2:8). The Garden of Eden was a protected environment, which means they were protected from trials. There was no sickness, no suffering, no hunger, no pain—no hurricanes! They had no problems from within, and they had no problems from without. God created them morally pure, and he put them in a protected environment.

   C. They enjoyed perfect peace with God and each other (no conflict)

Not only that, but they also had no conflict. No conflict means no hate, no arguments, no fighting, no wars. They enjoyed perfect peace with God and each other. They had perfect peace with God. Genesis tells us how God would visit with them in the garden: “The man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day” (Gen. 3:8). And they had perfect peace with each other: “The man and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame” (Gen. 2:25).

So, Adam and Eve were created without any problems. They were morally pure, they lived in a protected environment, and they enjoyed perfect peace with God and each other. They had no sin, no trials and no conflict.

Can you imagine what it would be like to live in a world with no sin, no trials and no conflict? Can you imagine a life where none of us were broken inside, where there were no problems in the world around you, where you got along with everyone, and everyone got along with you? That’s what Adam and Eve had! And that’s what Adam and Eve lost when they were deceived and sinned against God in the garden.

But they didn’t just lose it for themselves. They lost it for all of us, and that’s why we all have problems today.

III. How does Jesus help you with your problems?

We’ve talked about the three main sources of our problems. We have seen how things were completely different at creation. So now let’s talk about how Jesus helps you with your problems. There are three main ways Jesus helps you with your problems, and each of these three ways corresponds with the three main sources of your problems.

   A. You have a new nature (Jesus in you) – salvation

First of all, when you become a Christian, you have a new nature. 2 Corinthians 5 says: “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Cor. 5:17).

How does Jesus help you with the problems within you due to sin? He comes to dwell within you through the Holy Spirit. This is what salvation is all about. You are born again. You become a new person. You are forgiven and cleansed from your sins, and you are made new in Christ.

Before you accepted Christ you had a nature that naturally chose sin. But now you have a new nature with new desires. You still have to deal with indwelling sin, but there is a “new you” now. That’s why Paul says in Ephesians 4: “You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” (Eph. 4:22-24).

Suppose you lived in a certain house where whenever you were heading home, you always turned left at a certain intersection. Day in and day out, you come to that intersection, and you always turn left. Then one day you move to a new home where you need to turn right at the intersection instead of left.

You mean to turn right from now on, but at first you keep forgetting. You get to that intersection and the old habits creep in, and you keep turning left. But you don’t live there anymore, so you can’t stay left. You have a new home, and so every time you make that mistake, you eventually do a 180 and you go back to your new home. As time goes on, you find yourself making that mistake of turning left less and less, and you develop the new pattern of turning right each time. You have a new home, so everything changes.

That’s what it’s like in the Christian life. When you become a Christian, God gives you a new nature. You have a new address. You are no longer at home with the sin in your life. Sure, there are times when you come to that intersection and you still turn left, but you don’t live there anymore. So, you do a 180. You confess your sins, you repent of your sin, and you come running back to God. And over time you find yourself turning left less and less as the pattern of your new nature settles in (Chandler and Snetzer; Recovering Redemption).

The Bible calls this the fruit of the Spirit. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law” (Gal. 5:22-23). You can never make the changes you need to make on your own. But through the Holy Spirit, Jesus is changing you from the inside out.

How does Jesus help you with the problems that come from the sin within you? The answer to your problems within is Jesus in you. You have a new nature, and Jesus dwells within you through the Holy Spirit.

   B. You have a new helper (Jesus with you) – strength

Next, how does Jesus help you with the problems that come from outside you, the trials and temptations we face in life? If the answer to your problems within is Jesus in you, the answer to your problems from without is Jesus with you. You have a new nature to fight the problems from within, and you have a new helper to help you with the problems from without.

Jesus promised us in Matthew 28: “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matt. 28:20). In Isaiah 41 God says: “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand” (Isa. 41:10).

So, you have a new source of strength to help you with the trials and temptations of life, because Jesus is with you every step of the way. He will never leave you nor forsake you. He will strengthen and help you. He will uphold you with his right hand.

   C. You have a new intermediary (Jesus between you and others) – reconciliation

You have a new nature—that’s Jesus in you. You have a new helper—that’s Jesus with you. And you also have a new intermediary—Jesus between you and others. Jesus came not only to save us from our sin but also to bring reconciliation with each other. Ephesians 4:32 says: “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you” (Eph. 4:32). Ephesians 2:14 says: “For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility” (Eph. 2:14).

Whenever you are experiencing conflict with someone, you need to bring Jesus into the situation. You need to put Jesus between you and the other person and allow Christ to bring peace into the situation. Now of course unless both of you are doing that, there will not be peace. But you can do your part. And trust me, when you see Jesus between you and the other person, you will treat them a whole lot differently. It’s hard to be angry with someone when you have Jesus between you. It’s hard to be jealous of someone when you have Jesus between you. And it’s impossible to hate someone when you have Jesus between you.

Of course, the most important role Jesus plays as mediator is between us and God. 1 Timothy 2 says: “For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all men” (1 Tim. 2:5-6) We were at conflict with God because of our sin, and Jesus stepped into the gap. Jesus died on the cross for our sins and reconciled us to God the Father. He is indeed our peace.

CONCLUSION: We all have problems in life. But Jesus came to help you with your problems. What’s the answer to the problems that come from within you because of sin? You have a new nature—Jesus in you. What’s the answer to the problems that come from outside you, those trials and temptations you face in life? You have a new helper—Jesus with you. What’s the answer to your relational problems, the conflicts you face with others? You have a new intermediary—Jesus between you and others.

Over the next number of weeks, we are going to be looking at the specific problems we face in life and how Jesus helps us with those specific problems. We will be looking at the topics of anger, envy, worry, depression, fear, pride, self-image, addiction and abuse.

Psalm 34:19 says: “A righteous man may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all” (Ps. 34:19). Have you got problems? I’ve got good news for you! Jesus can help you with your problems.

© Ray Fowler

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