STUDENTS

LIVING AS A CHRISTIAN

If you don't ever go to church can you still be a Christian?
Yes. Similar to owning a car, you don't have to get it serviced. However, if you don't service the car it will eventually break and be no good to you. Similar to being a Christian, it's right that we meet with other Christians, pray together, worship and generally set aside everyday life to focus on God. In China, it is illegal to be a Christian - you can get killed for your belief. you would imagine therefore that Christians would keep a low profile and simply pray in their heads. Not so! There are underground churches, some behind hidden cupboards in barber shops etc. If church was so unimportant, then why do these people risk life & limb?
  So, you don't have to go to church to be a Christian, but seeing as we have the privilege of being able to go in this country, it's right that we do. The only thing that makes us a Christian is having a personal relationship with Jesus (and all the things that go with that). with an amazing relationship such as this, surely we would want to go to church anyway...! MA

How many times have you been to church?
Hundreds! Since I've lived in Braintree, there have been just half a dozen times when I've felt rough or not up to going. In hindsight, these would have been the most important times to go. Obviously holidays, visiting parents and days out will sometimes clash with a Sunday morning, but I will not deliberately class Sunday as a day to fill up with other things. My job requires me to speak at other churches at least once a month, but this is a 'win-win' situation - talking about the best job in the world will still being at church!
  I would say that if you're currently in a church that you find irrelevant or boring, it could be one of two things: 1) either it's you, in that you haven't asked God into your life, thus making prayer etc irrelevant. 2) it could be that the church you're in suits mum & dad or whoever, but it's not quite on your wavelength. there are ample churches in the District to suit every individual need/preference. I'm not saying you should go home and say "Matt says I need to go to another church!". What I am saying is noone would want you to go to a church that would slowly bore you to death when there is possibly the ideal church for you round the corner. I used to go to a fairly traditional church with Mum & Dad. They still attend this church with sister, but I have found that livelier churches appeal to me more. Therefore, the church I go to now has drums, electric guitars, saxophones, modern music (no hymns!) and an average age somewhere around the early twenties! this doesn't make it a 'better' church than I used to go, just more suited to my character. It's just like buying a car - there are plenty of models out there, enough to suit everyone! MA

If you think God is real, how can you prove it?
Is space real? Of course it is. Then explain to me how it is infinite, that it doesn't have an end. Is electricity real? Then why can't we see it? Sure, we can see the effects of it but it goes round the world twice in a second. What about wind (not the sort we get shortly following brussells sprouts!). We can see tidal waves, typhoons and great hairstyles, but wind is invisible, the result of various forces. So, although we haven't got our heads round these three examples, we still acknowledge they exist and for the latter two we see the effects on a daily basis.
  God is the same. I have never 'seen' God because He is not a human being. However, I believe I have seen the effects of His existence. Friends have become healed from unhealable conditions. Money has landed on my doorstep shortly after praying for it. Assemblies go extra-well after praying beforehand. These are effects of God, which show me that He is real. In addition to that, we have more proof that Jesus existed than Caesar, yet folk are comfortable with the fact that Caesar existed. Whenever I'm stuck with a question like this, I have my FAITH to carry me through. MA
I believe that God has answered so many of my prayers with supernatural answers that for me it proves that God is real! For example I felt that God wanted me to spend three years away from Essex doing youth work and train get lots of different training. The training alone cost £2000 and then as it was volunteer work I wouldn’t be paid and obviously I has to buy food and rent and clothes and lots of things to live! Throughout those three years God provided me with money either from people, some of which I didn’t know but felt God telling them to and just through the letterbox! How cool is that!
  Also I believe that I have a personal relationship with Him and that He answers me when and chats to me and so I’m either mad or God is definitely real. SJ

Why did you become a Christian?
I became a Christian because even though I had been brought up to believe in God I said in a prayer that I wanted God to be real to me and to come in to my heart and help me. I wanted God to be my best friend. I was two at the time and I believe that God answered my prayer and I became a Christian. I realised that I had done things wrong and that I needed God in my life. I believe what Jesus did on the cross made it able for me to have a friendship with God and I chose to have that friendship. God made Himself real to me because I asked Him to. SJ

Are Christians all-knowing?
Absolutely! I joke. Christians still make the same mistakes and behave as 'normal' people do. Being a Christian doesn't make you all-knowing.
No. Christians are normal people and we don’t have all the answers but we do have a lot of life’s answers in the Bible. The Bible is Gods guide book to life and has amazing answers and guide lines to life that even if your not a Christian or don’t believe, they are really helpful. Christians believe God Knows every thing and so we ask Him. Some times He tells us and other times He doesn’t, depending on what’s best for us. MA

How many Christians are in England?
It’s hard to know because people are becoming Christians all over the world. Being a Christian is having a personal friendship with God and believing that Jesus died for every thing we’ve done wrong and then putting Jesus first in our lives. There are definitely thousands and thousands because of the amount of people who say they are but as the number is ever growing its hard to say.  SJ
I will endeavour to find a more accurate number, but it is estimated to be in the thousands of millions! For example, there are around 170million christians in Red China...and it's illegal to be a Christian there! If that many are risking life & limb to be Christians, you can see how the total number can be so high. The question to ask though, is "WHY are people risking life & limb?" MA

How long have you believed in God?
I've believed in God all my life, mainly because my parents told me He was real when I was younger, similar to being told the Tooth Fairy's real! As I grew up, I started to believe in God for myself and discover He is VERY real. I made a conscious decision to follow God when I was in my early teens and since then have had amazing experiences which I believe can only be from God. I have many things in my life that are important to me, but none come close to the love I have for God - that's how real He is to me.
I have always believed in God. I became a Christian when I was 2. When I was 14 I decided to put all my trust in my boyfriend and not trust in God any more. God hadn’t done any thing wrong but I wanted to see what life was like with out God in it. For me it wasn’t good. Once you know something to be true no matter how you try, you cant forget or change that. God is real whether I wanted Him to be or not. By the time I was 18 I had learnt that know one can love me like God does and that I never want to push God out again! SJ

How do you know God is real?
Well, there have been many instances in my life where I have prayed and the prayer has been answered in an amazing way. Friends of mine have been healed from un-fixable conditions, money has landed on my doormat at the time I've prayed for it...and that's just the start. As well as the personal experiences I find it much easier to believe God made the world and everything in it, rather than think that we come from monkeys via evolution and the world just started by fluke! MA
 
If you pray for something, how does God help you?
I believe that God answers every prayer and that even the most little thing that is important to me is very important to God. I even pray that my hair will grow faster because I have wrecked it because I kept dying it. When I pray God helps me because a lot of things that are important to me I have no control over but I believe that God loves the people involved more that I could ever and that He wants what’s best any way! I also believe that God will leave the final decision to the individual but that He will do all He can do with out taking free will, which is more that I can do. Also God gives me peace about a situation if I ask Him and I also ask him for the right thing to do or say so he helps a lot! It says in the bible to ask God and leave it with him. If you don’t ask you don’t get!  SJ

What does the fish (icthus) sign stand for?
After Jesus had gone back to heaven the government at that time persecuted Christians. They would put them in the games against gladiators (like in the movie), and lions. Watching Christians die was made a sport and so as not to give away there identity they would draw half a fish sign in the ground and whoever drew the other half would be some one they could trust. The only people who knew about it at the time was other Christians and so you could have the sign as a indicator to who was a Christian. SJ

Do you think hunting is wrong?
I think that killing anything for fun is wrong. If the animal will wipe out another because of a rise in the food chain then that’s not cool either but nature has been designed so that there is a balance and I think people are not needed in most cases to help bring any breed under control. I think that if animals are killing off someone's livelihood then there are other ways of protecting your stock than hunting. SJ
It depends what you mean by the word 'hunting'. If you're referring to people who wear silly jackets, ride horses and get packs of dogs to tear foxes to pieces then most people would find hunting wrong. However, there are many other types of hunting. Fishing is a sport loved by many (including me), and also a form of catching food to survive. Anothe example is shooting rabbits in fields. I have a shotgun and catch countless rabbits to help local farmers make a living (one local farmer lost £50,000 of crop due to rabbits scoffing it in just a few weeks!). I can't deny there's an element of sport to what I do (as well as heck of a lot of skill), but all rabbits I shoot are killed instantly, and if they are disease-free they come home with me and go in the freezer. So, to answer the question, God has put us in charge of the Earth's animals and we have a divine right to look after them. However, I'm not a veggie so I like eating meat, and am also sympathetic to the need for 'pest control' where it is done tastefully and humanely. I gues it's up to our own consciences to establish what 'humanely' means. MA

Do you think animal testing is wrong?
Like with everything, there is a balance. A lot of you reading this now probably wouldn't be here today if it hadn't been for animal testing, as life-saving drugs have all been tested on animals first. However, there are ways in which to do this and I condone any form of medical animal testing which makes an animal suffer unnecessarily or any longer than it needs to. I believe God has gifted medical staff to discover new drugs to make us better and these people will need to use various means in order to reach their goals. Therefore, I don't think God has an issue with us using animals in this way and it could be put on a par with us killing animals for foods (both instances exist to sustain life, and we are superior in the food chain).
With regards to animal testing for cosmetics, most of us would think that's sick! When I was at school in the mid-nineties, there was massive publicity to stop animal testing for cosmetic purposes. As a result, this doesn't happen as much...but it still happens. Saying that, if you girls put hairspray on and it ended up burning your scalp and made you permanently bald, I guess the first question you'd ask is "why on earth wasn't this tested on something first". But true, it could be done in test tubes, rather than a defenseless animal. Go online to find out more about it. MA
I don’t like it but I would rather that medicines were tested out on animals first as it could cause some ones mum or dad or a member of some ones family to die. I know that sounds unfair to the animals and I think that some animal testing is unnecessary and cruel. However if it was my mums life or a rabbits I would want my mum to live. SJ

What's the difference between being baptized/christened as a child and baptized as an adult?
A christening is a public ceremony where your parents or guardian/s say that they are giving you your name and are going to try and bring you up in a moral way. Adult baptism is a personal choice. You are baptised out of your own choice. It is symbolic and it is showing how you are leaving the way you used to live and are now choosing to live how God wants.  SJ

Has God ever given you a miracle before?
I believe God performs mini-miracles all the time. Sometimes I'm late for an assembly, there is tonnes of traffic, I have no petrol and I pray...the problems resolve themselves and I get to it in time! True, a lot of these things could be passed off as coincidence - but how many coincidences need to take place before people start believing in God? As for other people, I know folk who've had legs grow (they've been born with one leg shorter than the other, no chance of it sorting - and then it goes to how it should be immediately after being prayed for!), seen people jump out of wheelchairs and start dancing! MA

Are you allowed to swear?
No! My argument is this: we are praising God on a Sunday, praying during the week and living as a Christian. Then, with the same mouth we're using naff language. The odd word pops out from time to time, but I know it's wrong. It's interesting how I would never use bad words in front of my boss, or those I respect, yet I sometimes drop my guard around others. It just shows that I am capable of not swearing (and that I know it's wrong and offends people). At the end of the day, we need God to convict us about stuff like this (give us a conscience) - but we all know what's right and wrong...that's why the question was asked in the first place! As far as the biblical opinion of swearing, it says profanity is wrong anyway! MA
In the bible it says that every thing is allowed but not every thing is best. God wants what’s best for you and so Christians try not to swear. Swearing causes you to be more pent up and negative whilst praying when your frustrated helps to make you think that your doing something to help. However Christians are human and make mistakes and so some do. I personally try not to as I think that what comes out of your mouth shows what’s in your heart and I don’t want to focus on the bad things. I want to actively change the bad for the better! MA

Can Christians start their own church?
Yes. If you go to a church and don’t enjoy it because of the music or something then you can find one that more suits you. However the heart behind it must be the same. You go to church to worship God and if a church doesn’t do and stand up for what it says in the Bible then I wouldn’t go. I have been to churches that are more like clubs. Chuck on a record that you love and tell God you love Him that way! Its cool! I love dancing and so when I go clubbing I do the same thing. What makes a church is the people who go there. Church isn’t about the music or the building, it’s about God and what He’s done for us.  SJ
i Agree with Sarah, but you need to make sure that you're starting your own church for the right reasons. If it's out of rebellion or "We can do it better than anyone else", it'll probably last about 5 minutes! It's the sort of thing that needs to be done for the right reasons. I myself belong to a church that was started out from another. There were a variety of reason, the main two being the desire to focus on a specific area of Braintree and also to allow a certain style to develop that we had experienced before. That doesn't say the other church are wrong, nor are we wrong for leaving. It is a case of wanting to serve God while fulfilling what He has laid on our hearts. After all, we're all worshipping the same God, reading the same bible and going to the same Heaven! MA

Do you enjoy being a Christian - what is it like?
I love being a Christian because I know that whatever life chucks at me I have someone that will never leave me and will always be there for me. Being a Christian is not always easy because people and friends sometimes don’t understand and you also learn to put what God wants before what you want. It advises you in the Bible to:
1 Kings 22:5
He then continued, "But before you do anything, ask GOD for guidance."
  When you put what God has first it can sometimes feel like your missing out but God only wants to protect you and bring out the best for you.
Jeremiah 29:11
I know what I'm doing. I have it all planned out--plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for.
  I trust God more than anyone. No one would give their only child to die just so that I had the choice of being in a relationship with him if He didn’t want the very best for me! I’m like any person. I don’t only want what’s good, I want what’s best and I get that with God.

I'm sort of annoyed because I don't feel like a proper Christian because I haven't been Christened - what can I do?
Being Christened doesn't make you a Christian!! It's kind of cool to take your baby to church and thank God for them (the basics of a Christening), but it doesn't make you a Christian. I discovered recently that some church look at Christenings as announcing the baby has become a Christian. However, in closer examination I have discovered that this a minority. The way to become a Christian is not through our parents' faiths, but through our own. Until we're old enough and ugly enough, some of us have godparents (this is explained in another question), but it is not essential. The only thing that can make you a Christian is - YOU! If you are serious about wanting a relationship with God, pray and ask him into your life. You'll soon realise how it doesn't matter if we've been christened or not. When you're older and still going strong with god, you may decide to get baptized like Jesus did - again, this is explained in another question. Good question by the way!

Is it right to own computer games that kill people if you're a Christian?
This is an interesting debate, one that also covers the films we watch, the music we listen to etc. When something isn't spelt out in black & white in the bible, it is important to pray and ask God what He thinks. I believe God gives us convictions (a conscience about something), hence telling us if we should stop or not. With gambling, there is not a definite rule in the bible telling us to avoid it, although it does call us to be good stewards of our money. I believe God has told me not to do the lottery or bet on horses, because I may not know when to stop. However, that doesn't mean He has convicted every other Christian as well. With computer games, if you have a conscience about playing them (it may be that you do, hence the reason you asked the question) it may be worth praying to God and asking Him what you should do.
  I'm a film fanatic with over 200 DVDs to my name. Of those, a lot involve bombs, guns and gore. I find it cheap entertainment in the evenings and I understand that it is fantasy. However, I still have my boundaries that I feel God has laid out for me - by conviction, I do not possess any films involving ghosts or spirits. Similarly with computer games, I'm happy pretending to be a spy, infiltrating enemy bases and killing the bad guys - but I don't want to own any games containing ghosts etc. For others, it may be the things I possess that they have been convicted not to touch - hopefully you see where I'm coming from. If you feel slightly awkward about playing a certain game or watching a certain film, that's probably a mild conviction and it's worth avoiding.
  This is more a personal choice that a yes or no answer. My brother is 10 this Christmas and he is a Christian. He wanted to get a ps2 game called Final Fantasy XI. He wasn’t sure as it is about spirits and the Bible explains that they are not good. He decided to pray about it and felt God tell Him that it wasn’t a good idea to buy it. He chose not to. It says in the Bible that:
Matthew 6:22
"Your eyes are windows into your body. If you open your eyes wide in wonder and belief, your body fills up with light.
Matthew 6:23
If you live squinty-eyed in greed and distrust, your body is a dank cellar. If you pull the blinds on your windows, what a dark life you will have!
  I believe what you look at and take in affects you. I used to watch horror and very violent films all the time when I was growing up. When I was a few months older I saw some ones face get all smashed up in a fight and it didn’t even bother me because I saw it all the time on TV.  It should have bothered me as it was discussing but the more you watch something the more normal it is to you and it is also easier to become more involved in those things.

Do you always have to be on your best behaviour to be a Christian?
It is right that Christians do the best to set a good example at all times. If I was to get drunk at a friend's house or down the pub, that would be a terrible example because the Bible says it is wrong (Proverbs 23:19-21). Therefore it is right that we act in a way according to the Bible, rather than society.
Being a Christian isn’t hard work. You don’t have to change who you are. God’s character does that as you get closer to Him. The longer you hang around with someone the more like them you become. It’s the same thing with being a Christian. Having God in your life slowly changes you for the better. Experiences show you that God will provide all your needs and so you become more peaceful and less stressed. The more you find out how much God loves people the more you begin to love people and you become a better friend. It’s a win-win situation!

What is a godparent?
When you are christened or baptized as a child, your parents choose some folk to look out for you as you grow up. The idea is that they should pray for you, encourage you to go to church & read the Bible and help bring you up to understand what Christianity is all about.

Have you read the Bible all the way through?
Nope - I'm getting there! the Bible isn't a typical book with a start, middle and end. Instead it is a collection of many books - 66 in all. Each of these books were written by different people in different countries. In the Old Testament (before Jesus was born), the authors believe God gave them the words to write down, hence it being 'The Word of God'. There are explanations as to how the world started, stories of wars and kingdoms, and amazing events that God made possible. Some of the New Testament is like a diary, with folk writing about their experiences with Jesus when he walked the Earth. I find this quite amazing, as you have four different blokes (Matthew, Mark, Luke & John) talking about their lives with Jesus. None of them knew each other was writing these accounts, and yet they are all the same without confliction - amazing! The latter parts of the Bible talk about what Christians believe is going to happen in the future (this is covered in other questions).
I have but I can’t remember it all. I want to read the Bible as many times as I can because it is full of Gods promises and good advise. There are 66 books in all and something written in it may not mean anything to me one day but the next it could be really significant. I try to read a bit every day and then I ask God to help me to put what it says in to practice.

How can you have a relationship with God through Jesus?
I believe that God wants to have a personal relationship with everyone. Look at all the religions in the world. People genuinely want to reach God and get to know Him. The difference is that in other religions its on their own terms and with Christianity it on Gods. I believe that the only way to have a relationship with God is through Jesus because that’s what God said in the Bible and that we can’t do it on our own. God is pure and perfect and humans are obviously not. Every person has done something wrong and it’s those things that stand in the way of us having a relationship with God. Thankfully God loves us so, so much and wants us to be close to him so much that He came to earth in the form of Jesus and having done nothing wrong died so that we could have forgiveness if we ask for it.

Suffering (click here to go back)

Why doesn't God stop terrorism?
In a way I wish he would. God is a fair God and will one day judge everyone for what they have done. Those who have said sorry to God and become friends will have nothing to worry about but those who have done wrong and not said sorry will be in trouble. Because God is a fair God He treats every one equally.
 2 Corinthians 8:13
Our desire is not that others might be relieved while you are hard pressed, but that there might be equality.
  That doesn’t mean that terrorists will get off free but that God will sort them out when he sorts every one out. He can’t and wont take away their free will and choice because if He did that to them he would have to do that to every one. He doesn’t want robots he wants relationship. God made those people and the terrorists decided what type of people to be. God wants to give them the chance to change. He has to be fair. Unfortunately it means the innocent suffer, but God also promises to avenge.

If God is a loving God why doesn’t my Nan get better?
Only God knows the future.
 Jeremiah 29:11
I know what I'm doing. I have it all planned out--plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for.

What about volcanoes, earthquakes etc?
For me, this is relatively simple to answer (if not a little arrogant!). Volcanoes, earhtquakes etc have all been around way longer than us. We know now all the places in the world where volcanoes, devastating earthquakes etc occur, yet we still choose to live there. Picture the scene: A volcano erupts, the lava flows down the mountainside and wipes out a thousand villagers and their property. There is much sorrow, grief and hardship, but slowly the town reforms and starts again...in the same place. WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN? Der!

  As for it being 'God's Punishment' I don't believe this is the case, as God quite clearly states in Genesis that the Great Flood was the last time he would punish people on a large scale (the rainbow being the promise - remember that from your Primary School days?). So, although these are natural disasters I don't believe they're unavoidable. The tsunami that wiped out thousands on Boxing Day 2004 could have been avoided. The Indonesian officials turned down an earthquake early warning system months before that, if bought, would have saved all those lives (it was an earthquake miles out to sea that caused the tsunami - ample distance away for people to get to high ground).

  I don't have an answer for everything, but for me this is simple for me to comprehend.

Heaven & Hell/Good vs Evil (click here to go back)

What happens to people when they are agnostic/atheist?
An agnostic is often compared with an atheist (which I will cover in a mo), but there is a difference. An agnostic is someone who is 'on the fence' - will not say there is a God, but will not say there isn't a God. Whenever I have entered a debate with an agnostic, they tend to lean nearer to the "God doesn't exist" side of the fence, but generally they keep their view neutral.
An atheist is someone who believes there is no God without a shadow of a doubt. The majority will stick to the evolution/Big Bang theory and not commit to any religious beliefs at all. An atheist would therefore say they have no faith, but in fact they have a tremendous amount of faith - to believe in no intervention throughout the whole of history takes a lot of faith!
As far as their future after death is concerned, they will be no different to anyone else. However, Christians believe that the only way to Heaven is by having a relationship with God through Jesus. We have the whole of our lifetimes to turn to God and believe in Him, but after that the Bible says it's time up - sounds harsh! Well, I believe God is a fair God and will therefore be kind to those that have not had a chance to know God (eg those in 3rd world countries with no food/water, let alone a church). However, those that have had ample chance will not have an excuse. It's horrid talking about Heaven & Hell to those that do not believe in God, but the truth of the matter is this - if you don't believe in God, it shouldn't really bother you....should it?

Does it make you a bad person if you worship the Devil?
The truth of the matter is this - GOD LOVES EVERYONE! The Bible says there is no sin greater than the other, and as such we are all equal in God's eyes. However, there is a huge difference between sinning, saying sorry to God & trying not to do it again and consciously disobeying what's in the bible and ignoring God. The former will get to Heaven, the latter will struggle!
If people worship the Devil, they know how very real the Devil is. As a result, they also know how very real God is! These people will experience very horrible things in their lifetimes that they may enjoy or be terrified by - all generated by the Devil. For folk that are involved in this will be extremely difficult to communicate with, but one ray of hope is this - they know God is real, and they're trying to fill an emptiness inside them. With this 'opening', it is possible for these people to stop and walk away from it all, and as Christians we need to pray that this will happen often. So, in answer to your question, God doesn't regard anyone as a BAD PERSON while they're on Earth, but should they get run over by a bus in the morning God's love will run out.

What is sin?
Sin is a posh word for when we do something wrong. The Bible explains what different sins could be, like the Ten Commandments for example (Exodus 20). Sin is what separates us from God and Heaven. However, because He came to Earth as Jesus, He will take our sins off us whenever we say sorry. Therefore, anyone who lives as a Christian but sins, if they say sorry and mean it, the Bible says God will wipe away the sin and we can start again. Although this is very handy, it is important we do not take this for granted, as we may get to a point where we no longer say sorry from our hearts. There's a great story in the Bible about a guy whose sins were washed away hours before he died, while on a cross next to Jesus (Luke 23:40-43).

My mum says that when everyone in the world believes in God, Jesus will come back to Earth. Is this true?
Half-true! The Bible states that Jesus will come back to Earth. However, it won't happen when everyone believes in God - it could happen tomorrow (although the Bible says a few things have to happen first). Check out Revelation, the last book in the Bible. It's a hefty read, but it's all explained there. Or, send us an email and we'll explain it in plain English!

Is it true that when you die your soul changes into another life form?
Good question. Christians believe that everyone has a soul, and that God takes control of the soul belonging to anyone who asks Him into their lives. When Christians snuff it, they believe that because God is 'in' their soul (this is the Holy Spirit part of God that is in the World today and works inside us), their soul will got Heaven. There is no physical attributes in Heaven - therefore, if you have been blind, disabled etc on Earth, it won't apply in Heaven! How cool is that?!?

What happened to Adam & Eve after they ate the fruit?
The Bible says that they were banished from the garden of Eden, and there was a separation between them and God. It wasn't until God returned as Jesus that all sin was forgiven (people had to sacrifice animals and perform various rituals until then to get forgiven). God described Adam & Eve as 'dead' once they ate the fruit - this meant spiritually dead, in that they were far from God. Will they be in heaven? Who knows, but they are the first people that messed up in the Bible...and not the first.

Why is there good & bad?

If you don't ask for forgiveness, will you not get to Heaven?

Can you come back from the dead?

Is is true that when you go into the booth at church, the priest takes away your sin?
Some churches are very passionate about going to their priest for confessing their sins and subsequently being forgiven. They also stipulate that depending on how bad they think the sin is, they need to perform so many prayers and actions in order to be forgiven. Without criticising this action, the Bible says the only person that can forgive our sins is God (via Jesus who died on the cross) - therefore, we don't need to confess to anyone else. Saying that, it's often healthy to have a mentor who you can be accountable to. This person exists as a mature Christian who you give permission to keep checking up on you. This way, you can have someone else to turn to if times get tough and you can both pray to God together for Him to forgive and start over. So, it is not true that the priest takes away the sin - only God can do that. But, it is quite good to be accountable to someone.

Is it true that when you die you're reincarnated?
Absolutely not! Some religions believe that when they die, that come back as another life form, dependant on how good you were in the past life. This is not true, everyone is unique and there will not be a rebirth of the same person ever again. God made us way back with Adam & Eve and we are the ancestors. Also, when sperm and egg are introduced there is electricity and shafts of light that even scientists can't explain...that's the God bit (the mummy and daddy can only do so much!!). When we snuff it, we spend eternity with God in Heaven. How cool is that?

When you become a Christian, does the Devil leave you alone?
No. In many ways, it can even get tougher. You see, when we're not Christians, the Devil doesn't need to give us as much grief because our eyes are blinkered from the truth. When we become Christians, our eyes are then opened and the devil will try his hardest to pull us away from it. Don't let this scare you though - God is then in your life and there's no way He will allow us to come to harm...provided we stick close to Him. If you feel pressure into doing stuff, or start acting in a way you know is wrong...give it to God - the devil will clear off pretty quick!

If God says we should love everyone, should we love the Devil?
Cracking question! The Bible says in order for us to be forgiven by God, we need to forgive those around us (Colossian 3). The only difference is that the Devil isn't a human being - he is an ex-angel and so is beyond the point of ever being forgiven. If we actually have that much love in us, then it would be best to use it on those around us instead.

Is the Devil called Satan?
There are many names that have been used for the Devil (some which cannot be repeated!). At the end of the day, it does not matter what name we use, as long as we remember it is the same person and he is to be avoided at all costs. When I say avoided, I mean watching how we act and making sure we sin as little as possible.

The Trinity (Father, Son & Holy Spirit) & technical questions (click here to go back)

What is the Trinity?
The 'Trinity' is another word to describe God. You see, Christians believe in ONE God but that He comes in THREE different forms. ONE God. THREE forms. Confused? Don't be. It's a bit like water. The scientific code for water is h2o, yet it comes in THREE forms - liquid (water), gas (steam) & solid (ice). The same is with God...there's the Father (who created the World), the Son (Jesus, who died on the cross for us) and the Holy Spirit (on Earth today, living in Christians and appearing through worship, prayer etc). Each of the three has its own jobs & responsibilities, listed in the Bible. Some think that God (the father, who created the world) has been around longer than the other two, but God is described as plural (more than one) right at the beginning in Genesis 1:26 (let US make man in OUR own image).

If God forgives people why is there a hell?
The Bible says that we've got the whole of our lifetime to give our lives to God. Once done, God will forgive EVERYTHING we've every done before, and will continue to forgive us provided we keep as far from sin as possible. Once our lives are over on Earth our time runs out. God will finally turn His back on anyone who has ignored Him all their lives. Sounds severe, but He has given us a fair chunk of time to change the outcome. Unfortunately we don't know how long we've got to live so if you believe God is real, it's best not to put off getting to know Him.

What came first - the chicken or the egg?
The Bible says God made animals on the last day, along with man. He would have made them already grown up enough to survive and have babies. Therefore, I reckon God made the chicken first, followed closely by the egg!

Some people say they have seen the Holy Spirit or some form of God - have you?
As mentioned in previous answers, the Holy Spirit is one of three parts of God - the part that Christians believe is on Earth today. When I say 'on Earth', I mean it's God's way of talking to us and communicating with us. When Christians pray and the prayer's answered, it is the Holy Spirit that answers. When Christians feel close to God in worship, it is the Holy Spirit moving inside them that provides those feelings. Hopefully this makes sense, that the Holy Spirit is God in a particular form.

What's the difference between Catholic & Protestant?

Who created God?
Christians believe God is outside time. This is what makes eternity in Heaven possible. And, just like we believe eternal life in Heaven is possible, so is there never being a beginning of time. True, it says "In the beginning" in the Bible, but this is just so we can get our head round it easily. If we imagine the whole of time being like a parade (score of people in a huge line), we can not see the beginning or end of it. And, it's as if God's hovering over the parade, able to look at any point He wants.
  Theology courses take up to 2 years to answer this question, but the point is this: Christians have FAITH - absolute truth that while a handful of questions can't be answered by Christians, there are countless issues that are covered!

Why do you have eggs at Easter?
Eggs are often regarded as a sign of 'new life'. Easter is a time used to remember Christ dying on the cross and, more importantly, coming back to life - a sign of new life. So that is why we have eggs at Easter (in a nutshell - get it?!). The rolling of eggs is quite an old tradition, used to remember the rolling back of Jesus' tomb entrance.

What do nuns & monks believe?
Nuns & monks do not have any exceptional beliefs to other Christians, but they typically abstain from marriage. This means they will devote their whole lives to God without the 'interruption' of marriage. I'm not saying that a husband or wife gets in the way of being a Christian - I'm married - but nuns & monks live a life of bare minimums (that's right, no DVD player) and as such stay away from getting married as well. Their basis for not getting married is by what a guy called Paul states in the Bible (1 Corinthians 7:8).

Can a Christian go out with a non-Christian?

Did Jesus definitely come back to life?
I believe He did! You see, the first four books of the New Testament are basically diaries - accounts written by some of Jesus' followers. Neither knew each other was writing these accounts, yet when they came together years later, they were identical! check out the following bible bits to see what they wrote about Jesus coming back to life: Matthew 28, Mark 16, Luke 24, John 20:10-21:25. It's quite a healthy read, but very exciting!

What exactly will happen on Judgement Day?

Who wrote the Bible?

FAITH
A lot of the time, my belief in God requires me to have FAITH. I usually take the initials and say the following:

Forsaking All I Trust Him

This means that whenever I come across a tricky, unanswerable situation, I remind myself that I can count on my fingers the times when I feel God hasn't been around - but couldn't begin to count the times when I feel God has been around! How cool is that?!?

(click here to go back)

.
.
Online Christians check-list
click here to go back to the top

The perfect one-stop MOT to make sure you're on track with God and He's getting the most out of you.

You may decide to come up with your own personal check-list, but this is a good starter. Every time you feel it's time for an MOT, run through this list from the top (don't miss any bits out!).

1. Are you praying?
When everything else could disappear, this is the one thing that noone can take from you! Similar to any other mate you may have, talking to God is the one way to build up your relationship. Thank him for stuff, ask Him for help is some areas (and watch him do it!) and generally chat with Him. If you're in a busy place, exam or with mates you can still do it in your head (if you're driving, don't shut your eyes please!).

2. Getting fed?
Spiritual food is the key to keeping us 'topped up' with God. Church, cell, bible study group, Enough Said? - whatever you can get hold of, use these opportunities to learn more about God and receive His Holy Spirit. If you don't got o church because of work or hobbies, perhaps it's a good idea to change your week around a bit. Failing that, join a cell/youth group that has regular, healthy bible studies, prayer and worship. some churches are not as lucky as others, in that they do not have a lot of people your age, or there aren't cells in place for anyone between the ages of 9 and 60! If this is the case, get in touch with us and we can speak to your church leader about the possiblity of you coming to a mid-week group nearby. Tonnes of young people do this in the area and they still attend their usual church. Getting fed works - and it feels great! Get Fed!

3. Walking the talk?
It's easy to go through the motions of praying, church and stuff. But the real test of your Christian life is outside church. How do you act around your mates? Are you hanging out with the right crowd? Do you laugh along with all the jokes, or distance yourself at the right times? What about sleepovers - do you all crash out in the same room, giys & girls? Is your lifestyle perhaps a little risque that God fits into the sidelines the rest of the week? If so, it needs to be sorted. Sure, you may be stopping yourself from going too far, but we know how many people forget to stop all the time don't we?
  Pretend Jesus is behind you the whole time - not judging you or having a beady eye, but as a mate, a best mate. Impress Him first. Who knows, it may get contagious and you could start an epidemic!

Well, those are three points to get you started. You may want to add extra pointers in-between (eg how do you act with a boy/girlfriend), this way it'll become your own personal check-list. Try it for a week and see the difference...!

.
Issues
click here to go back to the top

Once completed, this page will give invaluable advice & guidance for some real hot topics, including:

Love
Can you date a non-Christian?
How far is too far?
What exactly does the bible say about sex before marriage?

Materialism
Does money rule your life?
Can you survive without your x-box?
What is 'loaded' anyway?

Homosexuality
What does the bible say?

Every single one of these comments and answers are from the Bible and not personal opinions (unless otherwise stated). Therefore, if you have heard anything different to what is written below, please do get in touch with us.