SPIRITUAL GUIDANCE:

Spiritual guidance is something that mankind inherently seeks. This search takes many different forms.

Some call it prayer, others meditation, and some seek to get in touch with their inner self. The Bible teaches that this intrinsic need to make contact with something greater than ourselves is actually a desire to find God.

There is within each of us a “God-shaped vacuum” that can be filled only by a personal relationship with Him. Mankind attempts to fill the spiritual vacuum with religion, good deeds, humanitarian concern and other things that will never fill their need for God Himself.

Jesus called the fulfillment of this need being “born again” in His message to a sincere and religious, but misguided man in John, chapter 3. The entire message of the Gospel is designed to give us the spiritual guidance we are seeking. Last week millions of people worldwide celebrated the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ from the dead.

The message of Jesus Christ is filled with the promise of guidance on earth now and in heaven someday. The wonderful thing about the promises of Easter are that they are empty! Their emptiness makes them true.

The empty promises of Easter include an empty cross and an empty tomb. The fact that both are empty gives us the confidence that we can place our faith in Christ. If he had not risen victoriously on that first Easter Sunday morning, we could not believe His promises; but because He did, we can trust all of His promises!

One of the promises Jesus made concerns His Resurrection and spiritual guidance. He said, “Because I live, ye shall live also.” His resurrection proves that He has the ability to guide us because He proved that He has power over both life and death. He guides us through His Word, through prayer and through the circumstances of life.

We can trust His guidance because we know that He loves us, understands us and has walked in our shoes. “For we have not a high priest that cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.” Hebrews, 4:15.

DWIGHT TOMLINSON is pastor of Liberty Baptist Church in Newport Beach