Is There a Simple Answer?

Q: I am into my second year of education at an Ivy League school and one of my professors teaches that God is already in everyone and we don’t have to receive Him, as preachers claim. This is counter to what I learned as a child but I can’t exactly explain to him what I believe. Is there a simple answer? — S.C.

A: Too many people think God is to be found by looking within their own minds and souls, and they often cite words of Jesus from Luke 17:21 “The kingdom of God is within you” in support of their claim.

Jesus was not teaching that God is within us and that all we need to do is look inward to find Him. Instead, Jesus was talking to people who believed that the Messiah would establish an earthly, political kingdom — and Jesus said that wasn’t His goal. “My kingdom is not of this world,” Jesus told Pilate (John 18:36). His goal instead was to rule in the hearts of people.

This is exactly what happens when we give our life to Christ. When we turn to Him in repentance and faith, He cleanses us of our sins, and He comes to live within us by His Holy Spirit. Once that happens, He begins to rule in our lives. In other words, He sets up His Kingdom — His rule — within us. Only then does God take up residence in our lives through His Son.

More and more each day, may your life clearly reflect Christ’s kingship over every area of your life! “God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory … which is Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27).

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(This column is based on the words and writings of the late Rev. Billy Graham.)

(c)2018 BILLY GRAHAM DISTRIBUTED BY TRIBUNE MEDIA SERVICES, INC.