Does the Bible say that depression is of the devil?

Q: "Does the Bible say that all depression is of the devil? If a believer suffers from depression is it wrong to seek relief from this via counseling and/or medication?"

A: Good question! The short answer to your first question is “Yes” (but your question deserves a long answer) …in that Satan corrupted God's original design for us, through human sin. The Bible provides good insights. In the Garden of Eden, Satan tempted our original parents to distrust the Lord, which led them to disconnect from themselves, from each other, and most importantly, from God...and in that process their thoughts and beliefs became dark and twisted. That's the nature of sin, and that has become the life story of all humans since then (except Jesus). So in light of this, depression isn't a condition God intended for any of us to experience. But life in a fallen world includes many things that God did not want us to have to experience. So how do we face them?

While the Bible doesn't use the word “depression”, Elijah, David, Solomon, and even Paul described emotions and behaviors that might have been what today we call depression. Where does this depression come from? It's not always easy to say exactly where an individual's depression comes from. Is it personal sin, misplaced hope, overwhelming circumstances, a physical disease/chemical deficiency, or a spiritual attack?

Some of David’s psalms appear to be coming from a point of depression, and they are instructive. Some of his depression came certainly from his own personal sin:
In Psalm 32 he seems depressed until he confesses his sin to God.
In Psalm 38, he seems depressed and prays a prayer of contrition to God, who lifts the burden.
In Psalm 130, he may have been depressed and asked for forgiveness and mercy, and decided to wait on the Lord for relief from his suffering.

In Matthew 7, Jesus tells believers that they are not to worry—another significant root of depression. The Bible instructs us to live lives filled with joy and praise (Philippians 4:4; Romans 15:11). God intends for us to live joyful lives. This is not easy for someone suffering from depression, but it can be healed through prayer, confession, loving support of faithful friends, Bible study, forgiveness, and even through godly counseling. That said, it is important not to become absorbed in ourselves. The Christian life is turned outward, focused on Christ and others. It is very natural for a self-focused life to become depressed. Why? Because self is always a depressing subject!

As pastors, we see depression as being like a "check engine" warning light on the dashboard of a car. Depression can be a valuable signal to us that something is not quite right in our lives and needs attention. If we ignore that signal, depression can get stronger and stronger. Learning to respond correctly to depression is very important.

You also asked "If a believer suffers from depression is it wrong to seek relief from this via counseling and/or medication?" The simple answer is no, it's not wrong. Although depression is sometimes caused by sin, it can also be caused by overwhelming life circumstances, or physical issues which cannot be cured by "bucking up." Sometimes depression can be greatly alleviated by learning new ways to respond to difficult circumstances—and that's where good friends, pastors, or counselors can be very helpful. Clinical depression is a physical condition that might need to be diagnosed by a physician, therapist, or psychologist and perhaps treated with medication. The right medication can be profoundly helpful. However, one of the risks is that a prescription could “medicate” the real issues and give us a false sense of wellbeing without dealing with the root of the problem.

The first step towards healing should always be to “check the oil” and honestly ask ourselves if there is any un-confessed sin (ranging from ineffective attitudes and unwise behavior patterns, to simple disobedience, or even willful rebellion) in our lives that we need to honestly bring to God. If there is, then be quick to repent and receive the forgiveness that Jesus so freely offers!

A second step towards healing should be to ask ourselves if we have unconsciously placed our hope in the wrong place (i.e., anything other than God). The Bible teaches us that we may need to regularly remind ourselves about this. What is the chorus of the “soundtrack of our lives”? The psalmist repeatedly addressed his own soul, “Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.” (Psalm 42:5-6, 11; 43:5)
Then we can, like the Apostle Paul, repeatedly, “…take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one” (Ephesians 6:16) because if it is a spiritual attack it requires a spiritual response!

Finding the unique reason for a person's depression is important. If you are struggling with depression, we invite you to talk to a pastor about that. We absolutely believe that God is our healer, and that also in some cases, seeing a doctor for depression, is how He will heal us, and in such cases it is no different than seeing a doctor for a broken bone. We would be delighted to talk and pray with you, or even to give you a list of counselors who might be helpful.

Pastors Steve, Mark, & Greg

Does God answer the prayers of people who are not yet Christians?

Q: I was shocked to hear a 'radio minister' say God does not listen to prayers of people who have not accepted Him as their Lord and Savior. Please give me some direction on this. Thank you.

A: Time to change radio stations! I only need to look to one story to answer this... that of Cornelius in Acts. Take a look at chapter 10. From the outset, in verse 2, we discover that he prays to God. In verse 4, an angel comes to him to tell him his prayers have been heard. He is told to send for Peter and here is what happened when Peter arrived:
“So Peter opened his mouth and said: "Truly I understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him." (Acts 10:34-35)

Keep in mind that Cornelius was not a man who had accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Peter subsequently told Cornelius about Jesus. Then the Holy Spirit fell on them and they believed.

When a person prays to God, He hears. The Old Testament has several examples (the people of Nineveh in Jonah 3:5-10, and Hagar in Gen 21-14-19 are two examples). In the New Testament, in addition to Cornelius, a Canaanite woman from Tyre/Sidon prayed that Jesus would deliver her daughter from a demon (Mark 7:24-30) and Jesus answered her prayer.

From testimonies people have shared with me (in addition to my wife's own testimony), one of the ways that God reveals Himself to those who don't know Him is by answered prayer.

Of course, God makes a number of statements about the believer’s prayer life and He does clarify the relationship of personal rightness before Him to his response (James 4:3; 1 Peter 3:7; and 1 John 5:14-5). God takes our prayers seriously—and so should we!

I hope that helps!

In Him,
Pastor Mark

Will I ever find a Christian man to marry?

Q: Marriage - I have been asking for a Christian guy to be my husband, then we can serve God together. Time flies and I am still single. Most of my bros and sis at church are married, even with kids. I spoke with a pastor and he told me to keep praying as God knows my heart. But what if God's plan is to have me stay single? Some non-christian guy approached me but how can I love someone that would not love my FATHER? Do you think if I will ever get to meet the right guy? I had a boyfriend (Christian also), I thought he was the one but he broke up with me. I now spend my days crying, what should I do? I have a feeling that God is hiding...

A: Your questions show a very real concern and express your desires and heart needs. Please understand that your desire to be married is a natural God-given heart-need and it is not wrong to long for marriage. I commend you for knowing and deciding that you should not/can not marry a non-believer. That decision would cause much heartache in the long run. I encourage you to be strong and courageous (Joshua 1:9) and keep your priorities clear. Wait for the Christian man God will bring to you.

You asked..."What if God’s plan is to have me stay single?” The Lord is always faithful. If for some specific reason God intends for you to be single...He won’t break your heart. You can trust Him because He loves you more that any one or any man ever can. (John 3:16) God will certainly show you His magnificent plan, purpose and desires for your life it you will seek Him with all of your heart. Your pastor at home gave you great advice when he said “keep praying as God knows your heart.” That is my advice also. Keep praying with a sincere heart and faith. Believe that God is faithful...because He is. Many times God is not saying “No” to us when we are waiting for something that our heart’s long for...but He is saying...”Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10) The word for “still” means...Let go; cease striving; relax. God may be saying to you...cease striving to make this happen and trust the timing to Me!

You asked...”what should I do?” My suggestion to you is...Do not be afraid or discouraged (Joshua 1:9b) I repeat, The Lord is always faithful. He will not disappoint you. He will work in your life and He will do marvelous things. Your job is to “trust in Him with all your heart and not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your path” (Proverbs 3:5-6)

What that means is this: Trusting Him with all your heart means...don’t try to make things happen. Don’t go out looking for a husband. It is God’s job to bring the husband to you that He has set apart for you.

• “Do not lean on your own understanding” means... You can’t figure this out on your own. When it seems so sad and hopeless to you; God is at work.
• “In all your ways acknowledge Him" means... declare that He is God and He is good. Give Him full & complete access to your heart and future. Trust in Him and not in what it “seems” to you. Give Him your sorrow, your disappointment, and your longing for a husband and tell Him that you will certainly trust Him and wait.
• “Let Him direct your path” means... Worship God fully and release your future in to His hands. If you let Him decide your path and future you will not miss out on anything. Be still before Him and know that He is God.

Lastly, I would encourage you to begin to pray the prayer from Colossians 1:9&10... "Fill me with the knowledge of Your will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. Help me live a life worthy of You, Oh Lord, to please You in every way; bearing fruit in good works and growing In You.”

If we pray to please the Lord with our lives and to be fruitful we will grow more like Jesus daily. That will prepare you to be a “good wife who will be prepared to bless and please her husband”. I encourage you to use these days to prepare your heart and life to become a gracious, godly, loving woman that honors and obeys the Lord and prepares her heart for all that God has planned for your future. And don't wait for a husband before you start serving the Lord!

May the Lord bless you and keep you constantly in His care,

Pastor Debi
Women's Ministry Pastor

How do you justify God being a God of compassion?

Q: How do you justify God being a God of compassion and mercy and love to somebody from an impoverished country who has never heard about the concept of God and has gone through immense suffering?

A: Hi Chad. I am literally writing this response from such a country. I am in Haiti where a group of us are working alongside Haitians to rebuild their country. The Haitians I am working with are joyfully confident in God, so I asked them this question. They wondered how anyone could not see the mercy and compassion of God, especially in the midst of human suffering. They see His provision daily. They recognize, correctly, that suffering is the result of man, not God. It started with the Fall and has been the continuing signature of man throughout the ages. Man’s inhumanity to man, beginning with small seeds of selfishness, culminates generation after generation in what we see today. And the sobering thing for me is that we each add to it.

Have you ever considered that God has already abundantly provided enough for all people? Isn’t there enough food produced, for instance, to feed the world? Aren’t there enough sources of clean water, and the technology to tap it, that no one should have to go without clean water? Doesn’t man have the gifts and resources, provided by God to alleviate much of the suffering you describe, and yet has not? God has provided. It is man who cannot find a way to work together to bring about what is needed to bless all people. And sin is the reason. And Jesus is the answer – eternally, in dealing with sin once for all – and temporally, when His Spirit is at work in His people to work against the forces of sin that overcome the world.

I am working alongside such people. Some are Americans who have put time aside in their lives to make a difference. Some are Haitians who are determined, with the limited resources and education they have, to make a difference. What binds us together is a God of compassion, mercy and justice who we want to serve to that end. How do I justify God being a God of compassion and mercy and love to somebody from an impoverished country who has never heard about the concept of God and has gone through immense suffering? I look around and see Him in action in spite of that very suffering.

Bondye Beni Ou (God bless you in Creole),
Pastor Mark

How can I benefit from reading Leviticus?

Q: Every year when my Bible reading plan leads me to books like Leviticus, I have a lot of trouble slogging through chapter after chapter of God's rules for His people -- particularly when none of it seems relevant to our lives today. Can you give me an idea of how I should approach these chapters and what I should get out of them?

A: Great question Ken! I am guessing that your experience is common to many of the Christians that actually read through that section of the Bible. I can think of a couple of things that might make your reading of Leviticus more profitable for you.

Leviticus is really all about worship and holiness. How could the Hebrew nation rightly worship God and respect God’s holiness? There were sacrifices established to enable a less than perfect people to approach (through the Levitical priesthood) a perfect God. There were laws to enable the people to live lovingly with their neighbors when they came into the land which God was giving to them. There were feasts for the community of faith to celebrate what God had done for them and what he would do for them in the future. While it is true that since we are not under the Mosaic covenant God made with the Israelite nation and as a result "these laws are no longer God’s command to us, they are God’s Word for us." (Fee & Stuart, How to Read the Bible for all its Worth) God still speaks to us through Leviticus today. As we endeavor to hear what he is saying to us sometimes it is helpful to read the text with some questions. Let me share some of them with you.

I find it is helpful in my study to remember that nothing God says is random or arbitrary, though looking back across the chasm of time, culture, language, and covenant, it may seem that way. Just because I don’t see the reason doesn’t mean there isn’t one! When reading, I would ask…

• What type of law I am reading about? I can see at least four major types of laws in Leviticus: Worship Laws, Anti-Idolatry Laws, Love-your-neighbor Laws, and Public Health Laws. Knowing these groupings will help me to see the purpose.
• Was this law limited or situational in its original application (“if…then”) or was it intended to establish a precedent (“do…”, or “do not…” laws)?
• What does this law teach me about the character of God?

As I have noted, much of Leviticus is focused on regulations regarding the types of sacrifices and the various feasts that would be celebrated in the course of the year. When reading about the sacrifices I would ask myself questions such as…

• Was this sacrifice designed to atone for sin or facilitate fellowship with God?
• How did Christ’s sacrifice on the cross fulfill these laws?
• What sacrificial provision was there for intentional sins?
• How is the New Covenant better than this? (Hebrews 9:23)

When reading about the feasts I would ask myself…

• What was the stated purpose for this feast?
• When and where was it to be celebrated?
• Is there another symbolic meaning behind this feast?
• How do I see Jesus interacting with this feast in the Gospels?

While we no longer have a functioning Levitical priesthood to relate to today, as followers of Jesus Christ by faith, we are all part of the holy and royal priesthood of believers (1 Peter 2).

• What can we learn about how to live as holy priests from the Levitical laws?
• The priest’s job was to represent a flawed people before a holy God, so how can we do that in light of our New Testament context? 
• How does this understanding inform our work as "ambassadors of Christ" and "ministers of reconciliation" (2 Cor. 5:11-21)

Ultimately this book speaks about the holy character of God…so, more than anything, that is what I want to have my eyes open to see, my mind open to understand, my hands open to obey, and my heart open to adore!

And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 

“Speak to all the congregation of the people of Israel and say to them, 

   ‘You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy. 

Every one of you shall revere his mother and his father, and 

    you shall keep my Sabbaths: I am the Lord your God. 

Do not turn to idols or make for yourselves any gods of cast metal: 

   I am the Lord your God.’” (Leviticus 19:1-4)

I hope this helps to make your reading of Leviticus more eventful this year!

Is it OK to live together to save money for our wedding?

Q = I know most of what the word has to teach us about pre-marital sex, and for that reason, I have chosen to repent my sins and remain sexually pure for my future husband from that date on. What I'm struggling to understand is what God says about cohabitation. I certainly don't believe in it as a means to replace the commitment of marriage, nor are we using it as such. Is it wrong to live with the person I plan to marry for financial reasons so that we can afford to have a wedding? In this case I speak of my situation, where we are not engaging in pre-marital sex, nor sleeping in the same room. And by not engaging, I don't mean pushing the envelope. I know we are not supposed to do things that would lead others to believe we are being sinful, but are we really responsible for others' assumptions? If we are being true to God and ourselves, will our marriage not be blessed? Any guidance would be helpful and much appreciated!

A = Dear Anonymous, I am very glad that you have chosen to “repent…and remain sexually pure”! It seems as though you are really asking several sincere questions about a subject that could be very contentious in today’s culture. While striving to avoid the tyranny of legalism I will do my best to give you a loving answer to each of your questions from the more philosophical to the more personal:

1. "Are we really responsible for others' assumptions?" Mostly. We of course cannot control with certainty the assumptions that people make regarding our lives. However, our contribution to their conclusions is more manageable than you might think. Our words and our actions should be above reproach. As Christians we no longer are to live for our own agendas, but for that of Christ our Savior. The most common argument against the church in general is that it is a place filled with hypocrites (people who say one thing and do another). Why would we want to give ammunition to that claim? We are called to be different from our culture. It should be obvious to others that we are different. (See→ 1 Peter 3:15-16; Titus 2:7-8; 1 Timothy 3:7; 2 Timothy 2:15, 22; Matthew 5:13)
2. "If we are being true to God and ourselves, will our marriage not be blessed?" Mostly. Being true to God means trusting Him and following Him and there is great blessing that comes with such a lifestyle. However, that doesn’t mean there won’t be problems, storms, and crises to face. Following Christ doesn’t mean smooth sailing though life, but it does mean that you will get to the other side of the lake! You will never be alone, you will have His love, forgiveness, patience, compassion, and wisdom to draw on which is far better than any of us would do on our own. The part about being true “to ourselves” is really insignificant next to our integrity before God. Marriage is not something I would want to pursue without the active involvement of Jesus Christ! An even better question is, as we surrender our own plans to the greater task of following Christ wholeheartedly wherever He leads, is marriage to each other part of the blessing He offers us? In other words, instead of asking God to bless our plans, are we willing to allow Him to work out his plan for our blessing?
3. "Is it wrong to live with the person I plan to marry for financial reasons so that we can afford to have a wedding?" Mostly. Let me re-phrase your question in a more vulgar way to make a point, and then you make the call...“Is it wrong to sacrifice my reputation and my Christian testimony to pay for my dream wedding?”  While I am sure that you would not phrase it that way, nor desire for it to be true, I think that it is very likely what is happening. If I were the one meeting with you for pre-marital counseling, I would counsel you to separate until your wedding. Why? I would not want people who attend your wedding to get the idea that you are “just like everyone else” going through the religious motions but really none of what is being said here means anything to them. I would want to be able to perform your marriage ceremony with enthusiasm birthed in the knowledge that you are really serious about your convictions. I would love for your friends to ask you questions like “Why are you guys separating until your wedding?” and for you to have an opportunity to talk about what Jesus has done for you! Ultimately it is about our love for Christ and mission as ambassadors of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:14-15, 18-20; Ephesians 5:2-4) and about who is really God in our life. It can’t be self, it can’t be our future spouse, and it can’t be money if we claim to serve Jesus. As it is written, "No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.” (Matthew 5:24) But when we honor God in all that we do then we can have an amazing testimony to our friends.

I hope this article helps you sort things out. Many years ago I met with a couple in very much the same situation as you and they decided to do the counter-cultural thing and be different by putting Christ first and separating until their wedding. Their friends thought they were crazy at first, but actually respected them for their convictions. In fact several of their friends decided to follow their example as sincere Christ-followers. Now all these years later, their marriage is vibrant and they serve as ministry volunteers in their church. Again we are available to talk to you about all this in person if you would like.