Trust God's Promises, Not Your Passions

Summary

Ultimately with R.C. Sproul

Episode: Trust God’s Promises, Not Your Passions

Date: February 16, 2026
Podcast: Ultimately with R.C. Sproul, hosted by Ligonier Ministries

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Overview

In this powerful episode, R.C. Sproul explores how Christians should anchor their assurance not in fleeting emotions or sensory experiences, but in the steadfast promises of God. Drawing from a deeply personal pastoral moment, Sproul reflects on the difference between trusting our unreliable feelings and relying on the unchanging truth of God's word, especially in moments of grief, failure, and uncertainty.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Pitfall of Sensual Christianity

• Definition: Sproul uses "sensual" not in a sexual sense, but to mean a faith built on feeling, moods, and emotional experience rather than on God's concrete promises.
• Personal Resolution: Sproul shares his own commitment:

  “I'm going to make a vow to stop being a sensual Christian. And from now on, I'm not going to trust in the presence of God based on what I feel.”
  (00:00)

2. A Pastoral Crisis and the Burden of Expectations

• Context: Early in his teaching career, Sproul was called to substitute preach at a church in crisis. The beloved pastor was terminally ill; the congregation faced despair.
• Sproul’s Prayer:

  “How I prayed my heart out that Saturday night. I said, Lord, these people need encouragement. They need a word from You that will lift them up from their despair.”
  (01:22)

3. Ministry Performance and Profound Self-Doubt

• Sermon Gone Awry: Despite earnest efforts and heartfelt prayers, Sproul feels he's delivered "one of the worst sermons" of his life:

  “You want to preach and you’re preaching and nothing’s working… it was horrible.”
  (01:52)

• Spiritual Isolation: He describes an overwhelming sense of divine absence:

  “I was overcome with a profound sense of the absence of God. It was awful.”
  (02:22)

• Tangible Reaction: Rather than staying to greet the congregation, he feels like running away in shame.

4. Congregational Response: God’s Presence Beyond Feeling

• Surprise Feedback: Contrary to Sproul’s perception, church members are deeply moved:

  “One person after another came out of that sanctuary thunderstruck…and said, ‘Thank you, Pastor. I’ve never known the presence of the Lord like I knew this morning.’”
  (02:45)

• Sproul’s Shock:

  “Were these people in the same service that I was?”
  (02:58)

• Memorable Moment: This paradoxical experience profoundly reoriented Sproul’s understanding about the reliability of feelings versus the reality of God’s promises.

5. The Vow: Trust God's Promises

• Takeaway Commitment:

  “I'm going to stop being a sensual Christian. And from now on, I'm not going to trust in the presence of God based on what I feel, but on what he promises. And he promises to be there. He promises to attend the preaching of the word—you live by that.”
  (03:07)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Sproul to his wife, Vesta:

  “I'm going to make a vow today, honey, that I'm going to stop being a sensual Christian.”
  (03:03)

• Anchor in God’s Promises:

  “He promises to be there. He promises to attend the preaching of the word that you give—live by that.”
  (03:12)

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• 00:00 — Sproul’s resolution: vows to shift from “sensual” to promise-based faith
• 00:35 — Personal story: preaching to a grieving congregation
• 01:22 — Sproul’s prayer for encouragement and God’s presence
• 01:52 — Sense of failure and emptiness after preaching
• 02:22 — Experience of the “absence of God”
• 02:45 — Unexpected and enthusiastic congregational response
• 03:03 — Discussion with wife, vow to trust God’s promises
• 03:12 — Theological reflection: What to live by as a Christian

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Summary

With honesty and vulnerability, R.C. Sproul illustrates how our spiritual perceptions can betray us, and how God’s promised presence is not dependent on our feelings. The episode urges listeners to shift their trust from subjective moods to the objective, unwavering truth of God’s word. Sproul’s story serves as a memorable, practical reminder: faith is grounded not in how we feel, but in the promises God has made and kept.

Transcript

[A]

I'm going to make a vow to stop being a sensual Christian. And from now on, I'm not going to trust in the presence of God based on what I feel. Experience I had years ago. When I first began Teaching back in 1965, I was a professor at a college. And on the weekends I would fill vacant pulpits. And there was a church across the border in Ohio where the minister became terminally ill and could no longer preach. And so for several months, I preached in that church for his people. And I got a call on a Saturday night and said, we just heard from the hospital, and it's likely that our pastor is not going to live through tomorrow. And I knew how much these people loved him and what a tremendous burden of pain and grief this was going to be upon them to learn of his imminent demise. And the next day, we were scheduled to have the Lord's Supper. And how I prayed my heart out that Saturday night. I said, lord, these people need encouragement. They need a word from youm that will lift them up from their despair that their eyes may be upon youn in the midst of this crisis. And the next day when I got into the church, I tried to preach my heart out. And everybody in this room who's ever preached a sermon knows what it's like to lay an egg. You know, you want to preach and you're preaching and nothing's working. I mean, it was horrible. One of the worst sermons I ever preached in my life. And then I led the congregation through the Lord's Supper, and I was overcome with a profound sense of the absence of God. It was awful. So that when I pronounced the benediction, instead of going back to the back of the church and greet people, I wanted to run out the door, find a hole to jump in and hide. I was so embarrassed because I knew I let them down. And guess what happened? I've never had a response like this, where one person after another came out of that sanctuary thunderstruck. And they grabbed my hand with both hands and said, thank you, Pastor. I've never known the presence of the Lord like I knew this morning. And one of them after another came out of that. I'm thinking, were these people in the same service that I was? And I said to Vesta on the way home, I'm going to make a vow today, honey, that I'm going to stop being a sensual Christian. And from now on, I'm not going to trust in the presence of God based on what I feel, but on what he promises. And he promises to be there. He promises to attend the preaching of the word that you give live by that.

[B]

Listening to Ultimately with RC Sproul, a podcast from Ligonier Ministries. If you enjoyed the show, please subscribe or leave a review in your favorite podcast app. For more information, visit ultimatelypodcast.com.