Question #6: How and why is there hell?

6. How and why is there hell?

Hell was originally created for angels (like Satan) who rebelled against God. God says He will one day send these to eternal punishment there. But sadly, it will also be a place of punishment for people who reject God’s offer of salvation, choosing to live for themselves instead of their Maker. There are a number of folks who believe in heaven, but don’t believe in hell, but this is just wishful thinking on their part. How do we know there’s a heaven? Because the Bible tells us about it. But the Bible also tells us about hell, so it is just as real.

The clincher for me is this: Jesus believed in hell (Matt. 10:28; Mark 9:45; Luke 16:19-31), and so did his followers (Paul, James, John, etc.)(2 Thess. 1:8-9; James 3:6; 2 Pet. 2:4,9; Jude 1:7). If you’re going to claim that Jesus didn’t know what He was talking about when He mentions hell, well…you might as well throw out heaven and everything else in the Bible, right? But we dare not throw anything out. As terrible as it is to think about eternal punishment, it’s a reality. And that’s why we are so grateful to be saved (after all, that’s what we’re being “saved” from).

Tomorrow's question: What about out-of-body experiences?

Question #5: How do you know the Bible is true?

5. How do you know the Bible is true?

There’s a lot to this one, but we can rely on the Bible because of archeological evidence, fulfilled prophecy, historical accuracy, testimonies of those changed by it, etc. And quite frankly, it’s never been proven untrue! The Bible is so unique. It was written over many centuries by many different authors, yet it all holds together and tells one over-arching story of redemption. That’s because its ultimate Author is God Himself (2 Tim. 3:16). My pastor recently preached four great sermons on this very question. If you’re seriously wondering about the Bible (and two of your questions are on this subject), I think you’d enjoy these messages and gain a lot from them! (see sermons from December 7, 14, 28 and January 11).

Tomorrow's question: How and why is there hell?

Question #4: Why confess my sin? What sin?

4. Why confess my sin? What sin?

Sometimes we think, I never murdered anyone or robbed a store or cheated on my wife, so I’m not really a sinner. But the Bible tells us that we’ve ALL sinned (Isa. 53:6; Rom. 3:9-12; 3:23; 5:12). Sin is anything that is contrary to God’s will. That includes biggies like murder, theft and adultery, but it also includes smaller offenses like gossip, coarse joking, lying, pride, deceit, self-centeredness, law-breaking, rudeness, hurtful words…even after being saved, we still deal with sin (though once we have God’s Spirit in us, he will work to slowly “sanctify” us, making us more like Jesus). (1 John 1:8-10; James 2:10)

Tomorrow's question: How do you know the Bible is true?

Question #3: How do the biblical writers know what happened when they are writing 200 years later?

3. How do the biblical writers know what happened when they are writing 200 years later?

You may have heard from some biblical scholars that the books of the New Testament were written hundreds of years after the fact, but to be honest, these scholars have an agenda* to discredit the supernatural nature of the Scriptures and the God who gave them to us. The truth is, the Bible was written by eye-witnesses or those very close to the “action.” Not only that, but the authors were under the direction of God Himself (2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Pet. 1:20-21). The Bible is completely true and trustworthy.

*This agenda comes from mankind’s natural desire to run their own lives rather than submitting to God’s will. This desire leads to two false views. The first is “There is no God” so there is no one above me to tell me what to do. The second is “I am god” as in New Age beliefs or “I can control God” in which Bible readers pick and choose which scriptures are “true” thus making themselves the authority for truth rather than the Bible itself. So, even if you are an “educated Bible scholar,” if you want to remain in charge of your life you will find ways to discredit what the Bible is telling you to do!

4. Why confess my sin? What sin?

Question #2: Why can the priests hear God, but no one else can?

2. Why can the priests hear God, but no one else can?

In the Old Testament times the priests acted as sort of a go-between. They represented the people to God and God to the people. But this is one of the reasons Christ’s coming to earth was so pivotal. After Jesus returned to heaven, He sent the Holy Spirit to actually indwell all who are saved! This doctrine is called the “priesthood of all believers,” and it basically means we have direct access to God through Jesus. While the Catholic Church considers priests to be a kind of go-between (e.g. in the confession booth), I believe the Bible clearly tells us we don’t need a priest to interact with God (Eph. 3:12; 1 Tim. 2:5; Heb. 4:16; 10:19; 1 Pet. 2:9). God also speaks to all of us, so we can hear God…but He does it through the Bible. The Bible is His Words to us, and it’s all we need! (2 Pet. 1:3-4).

Tomorrow's question: How do the biblical writers know what happened when they are writing 200 years later?

Question #1: How can Jesus and God be the same?

1. How can Jesus and God be the same?

The Trinity is one of the great mysteries of God! It’s a paradox that reminds us that He is great beyond our comprehension, and it’s also just one of those things we won’t fully understand until we are in heaven. However, the Bible clearly teaches that there is only one God (Deut. 6:4; 2 Sam. 7:22; Is. 43:10; 44:8; Rom. 3:30; 1 Cor. 8:4), yet He reveals Himself in three co-equal Persons (Matt. 28:19; John 15:26; 1 Pet. 1:2). Jesus is indeed God because there are traits attributed to Him that are only true of God (John 8:58; 1 Cor. 8:6; Phil. 2:10-11; Col. 1:13-20). (For a good sermon on the Trinity, see Dewey’s message from July 13, 2008).

Tomorrow's question: Why can the priests hear God, but no one else can?

Questions about Christianity

First of all, if you're a regular reader, sorry I haven't posted in a week (especially since you've had to keep seeing a strange picture of an elf on the president's shoulder)! This week will be different, I promise!

A few days ago, a lady in our church dropped by my office. She has an out-of-state family member for whom she's been praying for a long time, and she recently had a good phone conversation with him. He asked her several questions about Christianity, and she came to me asking if I had any suggestions of scriptures to help her answer him. I thought they were good questions, and I think they reflect that the Holy Spirit is really working on his heart. Yesterday I took some time to write out some brief answers with some Scripture references, which will hopefully help my friend as she responds.

But what would you say if this same lady came to you asking for answers? I thought it might be fun to pose these questions to you and let you think about what your responses might be if you were in my position. Each day for the next week I'll give you one of the questions, along with the brief answer I gave. Feel free to respond with the "comments" link at the bottom of each post, if you'd like. But hopefully this will stimulate your mind and spirit a little this week!

Okay, there are eight questions, and here's the first--he starts with a toughy:
1. How can Jesus and God be the same?
Tune in tomorrow to see how I responded--what would you say?