LOUISVILLE, Ky. (SBTS) — Fallenness reminds Christians of their great dependence upon God, Randy Stinson said in a Feb. 4 chapel message at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.
“I think God takes our repetitive longings and just reminds us of our need for him,” said Stinson, Southern Seminary senior vice president for academic administration and provost.
Stinson’s message, “Why So Downcast?” explored how the psalmist’s turmoil in Psalm 42 led him to hope, and now that hope in light of the gospel points Christians to Jesus.
Like the panting deer, Stinson said that some people thirst and do not know where to go. “They don’t know that they need the living water,” he said. “So who will share with them the gospel?”
Stinson shared that in the midst of difficulties, human desires become amplified. It is in this time where either temptation and sin can take root, or where the gospel can remind believers that they have hope.
He and his wife, Danna, have been married since 1991. A father of eight, Stinson regularly uses family stories to illustrate his points. Stinson is also a recognized authority on the subject of biblical manhood and womanhood, a regular conference speaker on family leadership, and the co-author of A Guide to Biblical Manhood.
“When Satan tempts you to believe that no one understands, no one has ever felt this way, or felt it this deeply — Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior, he knows. He really does know,” Stinson said. “Now while Jesus certainly did not have a fallen nature like you and I, he in a perfect way did experience Psalm 42. He was mocked, abandoned, his enemies scoffed and enjoyed his pain and suffering, he was separated from God’s immediate presence.”
Stinson concluded his message with a reminder to Christians to put their hope in God.
“When your soul is cast down, when others take pleasure in your sorrow, when deep calls to deep, when you are wounded to your bones, put your hope in God and his great gospel,” Stinson said.
Audio and video of Stinson’s address are available online at sbts.edu/resources.