Question and answers to the christian faith
Who is Jesus?
He is the visible image of the invisible God. In Christ, the fullness of God lies in a human body.
Why did He die?
To reconcile man with God.
What is the significance of the Cross?
Jesus Christ, the Son of God bridged the gap between man and God. In effect, He made it possible “to all who believed Him and accepted Him…to become children of God. They are reborn! This is not a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan ¾this rebirth comes from God” [i]
What happened on the Cross?
Jesus bridged the gap between God and man. By dying on the cross, He took all the negative things about humanity upon Himself thus making it possible for us to stand before God, free from sin. But we have to reach out and believe that He did this.
I am a good person
I am sure you are but your ‘goodness’ is not good enough for God. God is holy and there is nothing we can do to earn His love. You can build a million orphanages, give billions away to charity and God will still be unmoved with your displays of philanthropy. He has already said, “Believe in Me and the works that I do.” Why are you trying to impress Someone that cannot be impressed?
I don’t believe in Adam and Eve. You cannot hold me responsible for something that happened thousands of years ago.
You may not believe in Adam and Eve but you are living the full effects of their disobedience i.e. sin. It is a human condition. You cannot get rid of this condition. Only Jesus can and He has. The only thing you have to do is to believe that He became Sin on the Cross so that you will be set free from the power of sin.
Someone once said, “The only thing certain in life is death.” I used to believe that but not any more. The only certainty is life is Jesus. Adam and Eve disobeyed God, spiritual death (separation from God) ensued and physical death came into the world. Both kinds of death were never part of God’s plan for mankind. Nonetheless, it happened and Jesus came to save our fallen derriere.
One man and woman cannot be responsible for all the races of the world
This is a subject matter that cannot be tackled fully in this arena. I would strongly encourage readers to go to www.christiananswers.net where science and faith meet.
Jesus is not the only way
There is only one Mediator between God and man; Christ Jesus. Sounds arrogant, bigoted and politically incorrect but it is true. I would rather see you huff and puff indignantly to heaven than being deluded into hell.
What if God does not exist?
He does and He has revealed Himself to us. Indeed, “From the time the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky and all that God made. They can clearly see his invisible qualities - His external power and divine nature. So they have no excuse whatsoever for not knowing God. Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship Him as God or even give Him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. The result was that their minds became dark and confused. Instead of believing what they knew was the truth about God, they deliberately chose to believe lies. So they worship the things that God made but not the Creator Himself [ii]””
Christians are hypocrites; I don’t like them
Jesus said, “Follow Me.”
What’s all this malarkey about three Gods then?
There is one God, however He is a triune God. That means He is God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Ghost. Christians call this the Godhead or the Trinity. All three Persons reflect the different characters and personalities of God. The Holy Ghost is the creative power of God. It is this power that raised Jesus from the dead. It is this same power that gives gifts and talents to Christians to enable them to function effectively on earth. Jesus is God revealed in human form. By coming to earth as a human, God identified with our human frailty and died to set us free from the power of sin. God is the Creator of heaven and earth. He is also known as God the Father.
The following illustration shows how all Three work together.
God says, “Turn on the light”. Jesus flicks the light switch, the Holy Ghost provides the current of power and the light comes on.
That, in a nutshell is how it works. God is the Master, Jesus is the activator and the Holy Ghost is the power supplier. All Three are One in All and All in One. They never work independently of each other. And another thing; the Holy Spirit is a Person not a force. God loves His personal relationships with us. A force is nothing more than a current; it lacks feeling and the capacity to form relationships.
What is sin?
Sin is rebellion against God. When Adam (the first human) disobeyed God, sin came into the world. As a result, sickness, disease, pain and all the worst things you can think of came into the world. Sin is an inherent spiritual human condition that has outward manifestations. A newborn baby is inherently sinful even if he/she has not displayed sinful qualities. However, this is does not mean that God holds babies responsible for their actions.
Who created God?
God is self-existent. He is the great “I AM.” This defies the law of creativity however; it illustrates how uncontainable God is. I would rather have a God that cannot be contained than one that is subject to, and limited by the rigours of this world.
If God is love why is there suffering in the world?
God is not responsible for the suffering in the world. When He created earth, He gave Adam (the first man) dominion. He told Adam to, “Multiply and fill the earth and subdue it” [iii].
God also told Adam not to eat a certain fruit in the garden they were placed in. Adam chose to disobey God and as a result sin came into world. Much of what is happening in the world is a direct consequence of sin. However, man has to take responsibility for the suffering in the world. God gave us a will. If we decide to continuously pollute the environment, we will suffer the climatic, chemical and physical consequences. If we decide that making nuclear weapons and arms would make us feel safer, then we will suffer the risk of exposure to these weapons and the knowledge that the weapons and arms will inevitably fall in the wrong hands. If we decide to use our God-given bodies as sexual experiments, then we will suffer the diseased consequences. If we decide to invade countries just because they are a different race, cannot defend themselves or are blessed with abundant resources, then we will suffer the consequences of war. If we ignore the message of the gospel of peace and declare war on nations and peoples just because we have a warped idea of what pleases God, then we will suffer the consequences of hate. Need I say more?
The Bible is a human construct
The Bible was written by men under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. In fact, the Bible is a written witness of God’s love for man and His desire to partner with/have a relationship with us.
The Bible has no place in the 21st century
The Bible says, “There is nothing new under the sun.” How true! Rape, murder, war, bestiality, genocide, and racism have existed since Adam’s disobedience thousands of years ago. We tend to think today’s problems evolved over a couple of centuries. However, that is not true. Technology and science have simply made today’s problems more evident. The only thing that has remained unchanged is the Bible. It tops the world’s bestseller list every year. So much so, it’s not even listed on the bestseller’s list anymore! Why? Because it works.
I just want to do my own thing
That’s fine but remember that, “It is destined that each person dies only once and after that comes judgement” [iv].
When you die, you will be judged according to your personal belief in Christ in light of the knowledge that you have of Him. There is an afterlife consisting of heaven and hell. Belief in Jesus is your passport to heaven. If you do not believe in Him you will separated from God forever (hell). Do not be fooled, hell is real and contrary to popular belief, it is not one long party. Believing in Jesus and the power of His resurrection is the only way to avoid eternal condemnation and live victoriously in this [earthly] life.
A loving God would not create hell
Hell was not created for humans. It was created for the devil and his cohorts. They chose to operate outside of God’s plan for them hence they were banished from heaven.
Who is the devil?
Why should I believe you?
Because I am living proof of the grace, the mercy and the love of God. Like the Apostle Paul, I can say with confidence, “I know whom I have believed
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