Why don't we see Jesus?

Wow! That’s an awesome question! If you remember the story of Jesus, He was crucified on a cross and died but then came back to life three days later. Then, after that, he hung out with His disciples for about another 40 days and then we read of an incredible thing that happens to Jesus. In the book of Acts, we read in Chapter 1 that Jesus gives instructions to his disciples but then, “After he said this, He was taken up before their very eyes and a cloud hid Him from their sight.” (Acts 1:9)

Jesus is literally taken up into the sky towards heaven! The disciples are amazed and watched as he was lifted into the sky. And as they stared at Jesus disappearing into the clouds, the Bible tells us that two men dressed in white suddenly appeared and stood next to them and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into Heaven will come back in the same way you have seen Him go into Heaven.” (Acts 1:10-11)

So, the reason we can’t see Jesus, right now, is because He is seated in Heaven at the right hand of God! Pretty cool, huh? The Bible tells us that, “Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:9-11)

But, don’t worry, someday Jesus will return and His return will be glorious! And the Bible tells us that everyone will see him; in fact, Jesus, Himself, tells us, “And all the peoples of the earth will ... see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of Heaven, with power and great glory.” (Matthew 24:30)

Why did Satan decide to betray God and rule in Hell?

Wow! That’s an awesome question! In order to understand who Satan is and how he came to be, we need to look at Old Testament scripture and, in particular, the Book of Ezekiel, Chapter 28. Remember that Satan was an angel named Lucifer. In fact, he was more than just an angel, he was an archangel and was literally God’s second-in-command.

 

But, pride entered Lucifer’s heart and he wanted to be like God. Ezekiel 28:17 reads, “Your heart became proud on account of your beauty and you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor.” So because he became wicked and corrupted and because he was filled with violence and sinned, Satan was kicked out of Heaven. God expelled him BUT God did not send Satan to rule in Hell … Satan was cast down to earth. Satan is not the ruler of Hell, he rules here on earth to those who do not have Christ in their hearts. Sadly, not only was Satan cast down, so were a third of the heavenly hosts (angels) who decided to follow Satan. They are no longer angels but are called demons. Between Satan and his demons, all sorts of bad things have happened here on earth and will continue to happen. It started for us in the Garden of Eden and continues on to this day and beyond.

 

Satan wants to stop God’s plan because he knows that, in the end, he will lose against God. But, God’s greatest victory over Satan is Jesus Christ. Because of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross and His resurrection on Easter Sunday, death has been defeated and we can be assured eternal life with God in Heaven.

 

Oh, by the way, Satan will eventually be condemned to Hell where he will “reign and rule” for all of eternity, but not for a while yet.

If Jesus took all sin into His heart and died, how did He go to Heaven?

Great question! The truth is Jesus never sinned. He (amazingly!) took the sins of the world upon himself as part of God’s plan to save us from being separated from Him forever.

 

Do you remember that in the Old Testament days, animals were sacrificed to pat the price for sin? The blood  of the sacrificed animals was traded to cover the sins of men. The animals never sinned, but were sacrificed in exchange for human sin.

 

Animal sacrifices, however, could never be enough to fully cover human sin. God’s plan required blood from a perfect, sinless person. This is because our perfect and holy God cannot be anywhere near sin. Of course, it was impossible to find a perfect and holy person since we all have sinned and fallen short of the perfection God requires. So, God sent His One and Only Son to be that perfect, sinless sacrifice in our place. 

 

Jesus took our place and endured the punishment that we all deserve, even though He had never sinned. Because of His sacrifice, God was able to us as if we were perfect and sinless like Jesus. And even though Jesus accepted all our sin onto Himself, He was still perfect and sinless! That is why Jesus was able to ascend into Heaven and is alive today at the right hand of God.

 

This is why we now can be sure of having eternal life with God in Heaven, because of Jesus’ sacrifice. Of course, we still have a part to do … though it’s actually pretty easy: You simply have to accept Jesus  as your Savior and accept His gift of grace!

 

What part of the world will the Antichrist come from?

Awesome question! And it is a question that Bible scholars have debated for years! The truth is no one is really sure. The Bible does not specifically say where the Antichrist will come from or what race he will be.  What we absolutely can say for certain is that someday he will come and be revealed to us all. 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4 clearly tells us, “Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God.”

There is some speculation based on verses in the Book of Daniel and the Book of Revelation that the Antichrist will be from a revived Roman Empire. Others believe that the Antichrist will come from either Western or Eastern Europe (Well, gee whiz! That really narrows it down, doesn’t it???). And yet others believe he will come from the Middle East, possibly around Syria.

Again, we just don’t know. BUT, we do know one thing for certain: no matter where he is from: his reign is only for a short period of time during a time called the Tribulation. Then, he loses…BIGTIME! Christ will conquer him and all those who follow him. Hallelujah!!!

What does Easter have to do with bunnies?

I have checked my Bible from cover-to-cover and while I find references to lambs, sheep, goats, and vipers … I can find no story about a long-eared, cotton-tailed bunny! And, I’m almost certain real rabbits don’t lay eggs! 

The truth is that the Easter bunny, eggs, Easter baskets and fluffy, yellow chicks have absolutely nothing to do with the resurrection of Christ or the true meaning of Easter.
 
Many of these symbols were part of a pagan ritual, separate from any Christian celebration, from a time when various cultures worshipped gods and goddesses. Over time, they became incorporated with the celebration of Easter.

That's all folks!

How do I tell people about God but it not be awkward?

From my own experiences as well as from what others have said, once the Holy Spirit ("the Comforter" of John 14:1-4, 16) works through you, you become emboldened. This doesn't mean that you instantaneously become an amazing public speaker or someone who totally knows the Bible inside out and has all the answers, but you will find that there is no awkwardness when you have the confidence that the Holy Spirit gives you!

 

Here's the key to talking about God that makes it easy: tell people how God has worked in your life. You don’t have to be a Bible scholar, you don’t have to be some incredible public speaker, you don’t have to be perfect … you just have to be you and be able to relate how Jesus has worked in your life. No one can take that from you or tell you that you’re wrong. You don’t even have to have an amazing or extraordinary story!

 

God constantly used ordinary people throughout history and ordinary stories to relate to regular, ordinary people. It’s just a matter of telling someone how God changed you. The most powerful messages are sometimes the ones that are the most simple.

How can I gain self-control?

This is a very good question and one that shows incredible maturity on your part! So let’s talk about self-control. Sometimes in T.R.A.C.K. I talk about the “18-inch Chasm.” 18-inches is about the average distance between the brain and the heart. I've told the class that there are a lot of people who know Jesus intellectually but don’t really have a relationship with Him. In fact, there are many people who can quote Scripture, who go to church, who pray or who may even lead a small group and who truly can explain the Gospels of Jesus Christ and relate the story of Jesus’ birth, life, death and resurrection but they’ve never put their faith and complete trust in Jesus.

They have never translated that intellectual knowledge into true belief. That’s why I call it a “chasm.” By definition a chasm is a “deep cleft in the ground or a yawning fissure in the earth’s surface.” Picture the Grand Canyon. That is a chasm.

So, when I call it the “18-inch Chasm,” basically, even though it’s physically only about 18-inches between your brain and your heart, the fact that you know something to be true but don’t really believe it in your heart makes it a HUGE gap.

In fact, Jesus even warns those who say they know Jesus but fail to do His will that He will reject them! (Matthew 7:21-23)

So, how do we gain self-control? First, you have to believe in your heart that Jesus is who He says He is. Next, you have to accept Him as your Lord and Savior. Then, guess what happens? You get this Helper inside of you called the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the Third Person that God reveals Himself as and, when you accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior and make that decision to follow Him, God enters you as the Holy Spirit to help in those times of need.

Galatians 5:22 tells us that, “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” So, you gain self-control through the Spirit of God that is in you! Now, here’s the key: look at the order the fruit is listed. Do you notice anything that sticks out?

Self-control is listed last. You can’t have self-control until you have love for Jesus first. The natural result of loving Jesus and knowing He loves you leads to joy and that joy of knowing Jesus loves you leads to peace. And once you are at peace, you become patient, which leads to kindness. When you are patient and kind, it leads to goodness. Your goodness will lead to faithfulness to Jesus and to others, which makes you gentle and humble. That gentleness eventually leads to self-control. You can’t try and jump to self-control without having the other fruit of the Spirit first. It’s impossible.

So, you have to know God, not just intellectually, but in your heart. More importantly, you have to love God with all your heart, your mind and your strength. Then, God, in His power, will indwell you with the Holy Spirit and you will gain self-control through the “Fruit of the Spirit.”