That is a huge question and one that is asked by a lot of people. We really don’t know why God does some of the things He does…we just can’t comprehend His infinite mind or see the “big” picture. We can’t understand it because we’re limited in our thinking. Why does God let babies die? Why does God let earthquakes, tsunami’s or hurricanes kill hundreds of people? Why do some children have to be born with a disability? I honestly don’t know the answer to those questions.
But, I can tell you with one-hundred percent certainty that God is good. He can do no evil. He cannot sin. Not only is God good, He is good all the time. So, when God allows certain things to happen, it is in His good and perfect will. We may never understand it but we have to trust that God had a divine and righteous purpose for it.
Friday, 15 January 2010
Wednesday, 13 January 2010
Why do people get mad, sad and frustrated?
Mad, sad and frustrated ... let me just start by saying that those feelings aren’t necessarily bad! It’s what we do in response to those feelings that can be bad. Even Jesus got angry (remember when he overturned the money changer’s tables in the temple?) and he cried when Lazarus died, displaying sorrow or sadness. But, His was a righteous anger and there is nothing wrong with being sad or even frustrated. It’s how we respond to those emotions that makes the difference.
Because of the sin that came into this world, we sometimes let anger, sadness and frustration overwhelm us. We are weak beings that are born with a sin nature and sometimes that sin nature gets the best of us. It allows emotions like anger to explode into rage. It allows sadness to fester into depression. It allows frustration to manifest itself in to anger or sadness or, at its worst, hopelessness.
But, here’s the great news! Jesus died on the cross for those sins, yours and mine and of the whole world. By His blood we are saved. God knew we couldn’t do it on our own because of the sin that was brought into this world. So, he gave us a Savior. He gave us His one and only Son so that we would not perish but have eternal life. Because of our Lord, Jesus, we don’t have to lose hope, we don’t have to remain sad … if we truly believe He is who He says He is (and, believe me, He is!!!) then we can give all of our hurts and fears to Him and put our faith in Him.
Sometimes, we may not understand why things happen a certain way because it just doesn’t make sense to us. But, we have to lean on His promises. He promises never to leave you or forsake you. He promises that if you believe in His name and receive Him, you have the right to be called a child of God. And we have to trust Him. One of my favorite bible verses in Proverbs 3:5-6, which reads, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding but in all ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight.”
Because of the sin that came into this world, we sometimes let anger, sadness and frustration overwhelm us. We are weak beings that are born with a sin nature and sometimes that sin nature gets the best of us. It allows emotions like anger to explode into rage. It allows sadness to fester into depression. It allows frustration to manifest itself in to anger or sadness or, at its worst, hopelessness.
But, here’s the great news! Jesus died on the cross for those sins, yours and mine and of the whole world. By His blood we are saved. God knew we couldn’t do it on our own because of the sin that was brought into this world. So, he gave us a Savior. He gave us His one and only Son so that we would not perish but have eternal life. Because of our Lord, Jesus, we don’t have to lose hope, we don’t have to remain sad … if we truly believe He is who He says He is (and, believe me, He is!!!) then we can give all of our hurts and fears to Him and put our faith in Him.
Sometimes, we may not understand why things happen a certain way because it just doesn’t make sense to us. But, we have to lean on His promises. He promises never to leave you or forsake you. He promises that if you believe in His name and receive Him, you have the right to be called a child of God. And we have to trust Him. One of my favorite bible verses in Proverbs 3:5-6, which reads, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding but in all ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight.”
Tuesday, 12 January 2010
Why did Satan tempt Adam and Eve?
So, that is a really awesome question!!! We know the story of how Satan appeared as a serpent and tempted Eve and she took a bite of the apple from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. And the end result was that sin then entered the world. But, the big question is why it happened in the first place, right? Well, we also know why Satan did it…he wanted to rule Heaven and he felt that he could disrupt God’s unstoppable plan by bringing sin into the world. Satan has been battling God since the beginning and this was just another attack against God. But, what we really wonder is why did God allow it?
It’s important to remember that Satan is not God or the exact opposite of God. He is a created being, just like you and me. God created Satan. If God wanted to, He could defeat Satan with a simple thought, make him disappear forever and make all of us obedient to His will and be without sin. The problem then is that we’d all be like a bunch of robots, walking around chanting, “God is holy, holy, holy,” without giving it much thought.
God doesn’t want that. He wants us to love Him but He also gave us free choice to do so. He wants us to desire to have a relationship with Him and for us to recognize that we need Him. So, God allowed Satan to introduce sin into the world so that we would realize how badly we need a kind and loving God. When you seek out God and give yourself to Him despite Satan’s attempts to pull you away from God, it brings God great joy! Remember the parable of the Lost Sheep? God celebrates everytime a “lost” person finds Him. So, that’s why Satan tempted Adam and Eve…to try and stop God’s unstoppable plan by bringing sin into this world.
It’s important to remember that Satan is not God or the exact opposite of God. He is a created being, just like you and me. God created Satan. If God wanted to, He could defeat Satan with a simple thought, make him disappear forever and make all of us obedient to His will and be without sin. The problem then is that we’d all be like a bunch of robots, walking around chanting, “God is holy, holy, holy,” without giving it much thought.
God doesn’t want that. He wants us to love Him but He also gave us free choice to do so. He wants us to desire to have a relationship with Him and for us to recognize that we need Him. So, God allowed Satan to introduce sin into the world so that we would realize how badly we need a kind and loving God. When you seek out God and give yourself to Him despite Satan’s attempts to pull you away from God, it brings God great joy! Remember the parable of the Lost Sheep? God celebrates everytime a “lost” person finds Him. So, that’s why Satan tempted Adam and Eve…to try and stop God’s unstoppable plan by bringing sin into this world.
Saturday, 2 January 2010
Why do we bow our heads when we pray?
That is a great question! The reason we bow our heads when we pray is to show reverence (respect) for God. What this means is that we are trying to show God how much we love, look up to and admire Him. It’s a symbolic way to humble ourselves before our Lord, kind of like in the old days when knights used to bow to kings and queens.
Is it a requirement? Absolutely not. There is no “rule” written in the Bible that says we have to bow our heads when we pray to God. There are some people who kneel when they pray and there are some people who lay down on the floor facedown when they pray. These are all symbolic ways to show our humility before our Lord.
Some people close their eyes when they pray to avoid being distracted. Some people keep their eyes open and look up to the sky when they pray. Again there are no hard, concrete rules about praying. In fact, if we were to follow the Bible literally, we should always be praying to God without stopping. In 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 it says, “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.”
Now, if we were in constant prayer with God and had our heads continually bowed, we’d never be able to see where we were going! Just kidding. But, truthfully, I pray a lot in my car when I’m driving to work. I can promise you that my head isn’t bowed or my eyes aren’t closed! The point is to pray and to have that conversation with God continually. Prayer doesn’t always mean asking God for something either. It’s a way to acknowledge God and everything he’s done for you and your family or friends. It’s a way to let God know you’re thinking about Him! If you don’t know what to say, don’t worry. It’s a simple conversation between you and God. He won’t be offended if you can’t think of anything important to say; He just cares that you talk to Him.
If you are really stuck and don’t know what to say, follow what Jesus says about praying in Matthew 6:9-13 when He says, “This, then, is how you should pray: 'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.” Pretty cool, huh? You acknowledge how great God is, you pray that His will is done here on earth, you ask for the stuff you need (not want), you ask for forgiveness and ask for help in forgiving others and you ask for help against the evil one (the devil!). In that one short prayer, you’ve covered it all!!!
So, the most important thing is to pray daily. Talk to God because He loves hearing from you. Do you need to bow your head? The simple answer is no.
Is it a requirement? Absolutely not. There is no “rule” written in the Bible that says we have to bow our heads when we pray to God. There are some people who kneel when they pray and there are some people who lay down on the floor facedown when they pray. These are all symbolic ways to show our humility before our Lord.
Some people close their eyes when they pray to avoid being distracted. Some people keep their eyes open and look up to the sky when they pray. Again there are no hard, concrete rules about praying. In fact, if we were to follow the Bible literally, we should always be praying to God without stopping. In 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 it says, “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.”
Now, if we were in constant prayer with God and had our heads continually bowed, we’d never be able to see where we were going! Just kidding. But, truthfully, I pray a lot in my car when I’m driving to work. I can promise you that my head isn’t bowed or my eyes aren’t closed! The point is to pray and to have that conversation with God continually. Prayer doesn’t always mean asking God for something either. It’s a way to acknowledge God and everything he’s done for you and your family or friends. It’s a way to let God know you’re thinking about Him! If you don’t know what to say, don’t worry. It’s a simple conversation between you and God. He won’t be offended if you can’t think of anything important to say; He just cares that you talk to Him.
If you are really stuck and don’t know what to say, follow what Jesus says about praying in Matthew 6:9-13 when He says, “This, then, is how you should pray: 'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.” Pretty cool, huh? You acknowledge how great God is, you pray that His will is done here on earth, you ask for the stuff you need (not want), you ask for forgiveness and ask for help in forgiving others and you ask for help against the evil one (the devil!). In that one short prayer, you’ve covered it all!!!
So, the most important thing is to pray daily. Talk to God because He loves hearing from you. Do you need to bow your head? The simple answer is no.
Thursday, 31 December 2009
Why do people have to die?
That is a very awesome question! And, to find the answer, we have to go all the way back to the first book of the Old Testament, the Book of Genesis. Here’s the deal, when God first created the earth and created Adam and Eve, they were in a perfect relationship with God and they had no fear of dying. Life was fairly simple back then with very few rules…except one BIG rule:
“And the LORD God commanded the man, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die." (Genesis 2:16-17)
Well, we all know what happened. Eve was tempted by the serpent and took a bite of the apple and then Adam took a bite of the apple and sin entered the world. And God was not happy about it. In fact, God puts a curse on the serpent and on Adam and Eve. To mankind God says this, “By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you are returned to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.” (Genesis 3:19)
Our perfect relationship with God was broken and we were condemned to die. Even the New Testament reaffirms this curse in Romans 6:23 when it states, “For the wages of sin is death…” BUT, and here’s the good news!!! The rest of that verse says, “…but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus.”
Even though our physical bodies will eventually die, we are promised eternal life in Heaven WITH JESUS by accepting God’s gift of grace and accepting Jesus as your Lord and Savior. Probably one of the most quoted and well-known Bible verses is John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son and whoever shall believe in Him shall not perish (die) but have eternal life.” But don’t forget the next line, which to me is just as important, “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.”
Even though every person will eventually die a physical death based on the sin that came into the world, those of us who are saved will have eternal life with Jesus in Heaven. While no one wants to die and we don’t want to see loved ones die, I want you to know that I am not scared of dying because I know where I am going. I just want to be able to stick around for a little while longer so that I can see my kids grow up, get married and maybe become a grandpa someday.
I want to tell you a funny story. A friend of mine’s grandmother loved Jesus so much and she knew, without a doubt, what awaited her when she died. So, when she was on her deathbed she was so happy that she was going to see Jesus soon that that’s all she could talk about. The she fell asleep, a little catnap so-to-speak, and then woke up. Here’s the funny part: She looked around the room, looked at my friend and actually said, “Oh, darn! Still here!” Can you believe that???
You know, even though he was sad when she eventually died, he knew that she was in heaven with his grandfather and with Jesus and it made him happy and gave him great comfort to know that she was there.
“And the LORD God commanded the man, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die." (Genesis 2:16-17)
Well, we all know what happened. Eve was tempted by the serpent and took a bite of the apple and then Adam took a bite of the apple and sin entered the world. And God was not happy about it. In fact, God puts a curse on the serpent and on Adam and Eve. To mankind God says this, “By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you are returned to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.” (Genesis 3:19)
Our perfect relationship with God was broken and we were condemned to die. Even the New Testament reaffirms this curse in Romans 6:23 when it states, “For the wages of sin is death…” BUT, and here’s the good news!!! The rest of that verse says, “…but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus.”
Even though our physical bodies will eventually die, we are promised eternal life in Heaven WITH JESUS by accepting God’s gift of grace and accepting Jesus as your Lord and Savior. Probably one of the most quoted and well-known Bible verses is John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son and whoever shall believe in Him shall not perish (die) but have eternal life.” But don’t forget the next line, which to me is just as important, “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.”
Even though every person will eventually die a physical death based on the sin that came into the world, those of us who are saved will have eternal life with Jesus in Heaven. While no one wants to die and we don’t want to see loved ones die, I want you to know that I am not scared of dying because I know where I am going. I just want to be able to stick around for a little while longer so that I can see my kids grow up, get married and maybe become a grandpa someday.
I want to tell you a funny story. A friend of mine’s grandmother loved Jesus so much and she knew, without a doubt, what awaited her when she died. So, when she was on her deathbed she was so happy that she was going to see Jesus soon that that’s all she could talk about. The she fell asleep, a little catnap so-to-speak, and then woke up. Here’s the funny part: She looked around the room, looked at my friend and actually said, “Oh, darn! Still here!” Can you believe that???
You know, even though he was sad when she eventually died, he knew that she was in heaven with his grandfather and with Jesus and it made him happy and gave him great comfort to know that she was there.
Thursday, 10 December 2009
What if you are in Hell and you pray about your sins? Will God take you to heaven from hell?
Wow, dude, that is an awesome question! Sadly, though, the Bible is quite clear on that and the truth is, no. Once you are in Hell, it is for all eternity.
Jesus actually talks more about Hell than He does about Heaven and the reason is because He does not want any of us to ever go there. Hell was not created by God for you and me. It is a place that was created for Satan and his demons. In Matthew 25:41, Jesus tells those who never came to Him, “Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.”
It is a terrible place…the Holy Bible can’t even adequately describe it. We do know that it is a place where even Satan is tormented day and night forever (Revelation 20:10). It is a place of total darkness, where you are completely alone and where you are in constant anguish from the searing flame with a thirst that cannot be quenched and where there will be a constant weeping and gnashing of teeth (Revelation 14:11, Mark 9:4, Jude 7, Matthew 22:13). If that scares you, that’s okay…it scares me too.
There are people, who are non-believers, who will say, “How can a loving God send people to a place like Hell?” The truth is God doesn’t send us to Hell. The non-belief in Him and sin, choosing the devil’s way, put people in Hell. Remember, God is holy and will not allow sin in His kingdom.
But, know this: God does not want anyone to perish! He wants all of us to come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9) More importantly, God sent His one and only Son to die for us so that we would not go to Hell. But, it’s not enough just to know that Jesus died for us. You must truly believe that He died for us and then confess Him that He is your Savior. Remember our A-B-C’s in the Bridge Illustration? You must Admit your sins, Believe that Jesus is who He says He is and Confess that He is your Savior.
Never forget how much God loves you!!! He loves you so much that while we were still sinners he sent His son to die for us! (Romans 5:8) And the reward is so great, too, because the Bible says that, “For God so loved the world that he gave His one and only Son that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His son into the world to condemn the world but to save the world through Him” (John 3:16-17)
Jesus actually talks more about Hell than He does about Heaven and the reason is because He does not want any of us to ever go there. Hell was not created by God for you and me. It is a place that was created for Satan and his demons. In Matthew 25:41, Jesus tells those who never came to Him, “Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.”
It is a terrible place…the Holy Bible can’t even adequately describe it. We do know that it is a place where even Satan is tormented day and night forever (Revelation 20:10). It is a place of total darkness, where you are completely alone and where you are in constant anguish from the searing flame with a thirst that cannot be quenched and where there will be a constant weeping and gnashing of teeth (Revelation 14:11, Mark 9:4, Jude 7, Matthew 22:13). If that scares you, that’s okay…it scares me too.
There are people, who are non-believers, who will say, “How can a loving God send people to a place like Hell?” The truth is God doesn’t send us to Hell. The non-belief in Him and sin, choosing the devil’s way, put people in Hell. Remember, God is holy and will not allow sin in His kingdom.
But, know this: God does not want anyone to perish! He wants all of us to come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9) More importantly, God sent His one and only Son to die for us so that we would not go to Hell. But, it’s not enough just to know that Jesus died for us. You must truly believe that He died for us and then confess Him that He is your Savior. Remember our A-B-C’s in the Bridge Illustration? You must Admit your sins, Believe that Jesus is who He says He is and Confess that He is your Savior.
Never forget how much God loves you!!! He loves you so much that while we were still sinners he sent His son to die for us! (Romans 5:8) And the reward is so great, too, because the Bible says that, “For God so loved the world that he gave His one and only Son that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His son into the world to condemn the world but to save the world through Him” (John 3:16-17)
Friday, 4 December 2009
How did Paul become a Christ-follower when he met Jesus because he killed Christians?
That is a very awesome question! In order to understand how Paul became a Christ-Follower, you should read the Book of Acts, which is in the New Testament. Chapter 9 deals with Paul’s conversion from being a Jewish leader to becoming a Christ-Follower. The very end of Chapter 7 and the beginning of Chapter 8 introduces us to Paul (Saul) and tells us who he is and the kind of person he is.
Paul started out persecuting Christians; in fact, he even killed them. Then, while on the way to Damascus to find more Christians and imprison them, Paul met the resurrected Christ. That meeting was so impactful that it changed Paul forever.
Now, it seems kinda weird that Jesus would pick Paul, who used to be known as Saul, out of all the people who lived during that time to become a Christ-Follower, doesn’t it? I mean, this guy was actually going around the country and persecuting Christians, beating them, imprisoning them and even killing them! Why Paul?!?!
Remember, Jesus is God. And, because He is God, He knows everything. Jesus knew that Paul would change. Jesus knew that Paul would be one of the greatest disciples of the word. Jesus knew that people who knew Saul of Tarsus would be amazed at his transformation into the Christ-Follower Paul and Jesus knew that Paul would do great things to further Christianity.
And, that’s exactly what Paul did! Paul started churches in places all throughout the region. Many of these places were unchurched and full of sin. Paul not only began churches, he wrote them letters to keep them strong in their faith. Many of those letters are parts of the New Testament. Many of the letters Paul wrote were while he was in prison!
That meeting on the road to Damascus with Christ changed Paul so much that he was willing to go to prison and even die for Jesus. In fact, Paul has no fear of dying because, as he says in 2 Timothy 4:7, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”
It’s really amazing how quickly Paul converted to Christianity. You should read Acts 9:1-20. It’s pretty short and really cool!
Paul started out persecuting Christians; in fact, he even killed them. Then, while on the way to Damascus to find more Christians and imprison them, Paul met the resurrected Christ. That meeting was so impactful that it changed Paul forever.
Now, it seems kinda weird that Jesus would pick Paul, who used to be known as Saul, out of all the people who lived during that time to become a Christ-Follower, doesn’t it? I mean, this guy was actually going around the country and persecuting Christians, beating them, imprisoning them and even killing them! Why Paul?!?!
Remember, Jesus is God. And, because He is God, He knows everything. Jesus knew that Paul would change. Jesus knew that Paul would be one of the greatest disciples of the word. Jesus knew that people who knew Saul of Tarsus would be amazed at his transformation into the Christ-Follower Paul and Jesus knew that Paul would do great things to further Christianity.
And, that’s exactly what Paul did! Paul started churches in places all throughout the region. Many of these places were unchurched and full of sin. Paul not only began churches, he wrote them letters to keep them strong in their faith. Many of those letters are parts of the New Testament. Many of the letters Paul wrote were while he was in prison!
That meeting on the road to Damascus with Christ changed Paul so much that he was willing to go to prison and even die for Jesus. In fact, Paul has no fear of dying because, as he says in 2 Timothy 4:7, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”
It’s really amazing how quickly Paul converted to Christianity. You should read Acts 9:1-20. It’s pretty short and really cool!
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