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Christianity is not based on ideas, a moral system, or philosophy.  It is based on an event in history, the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. If Jesus did indeed rise from the dead after three days, then His claims are true (Romans 1:4): “he was shown to be the Son of God when he was raised from the dead by the power of the Holy Spirit…” But, if the resurrection was a lie, a made up story, then Christianity crumbles.  Paul put it this way, “And if Christ has not been raised, then all our preaching is useless, and your faith is useless.  And we apostles would all be lying about God—for we have said that God raised Christ from the grave...”  (1 Corinthian 15:14-15, NLT) So, is there solid historical evidence t hat Jesus rose from the dead? Let’s look at the facts, and some of the theories that have tried to explain away the resurrection: 1. Maybe Jesus wasn't really dead (He revived, escaped the tomb, and snuck away)? FACT: Jesus was dead.  There w...

Maybe you heard somewhere that there is an “unpardonable sin” that even God cannot forgive, or won’t forgive.  Pretty much, if you do this one bad thing, that’s it.   Some, even Christians, are afraid they may have already committed this sin, whatever it is.   Where does this come from?    In Mark 3:28-30 Jesus faced a group of religious leaders who not only rejected Him as the Son of God, but claimed that the miracles He was performing were done by Satan’s power.  They rejected the witness of the Holy Spirit (John 16:8) that Jesus was the Son of God and Savior. The witness was clear, but they rejected it.  Jesus said about them, “I tell you the truth, all sin and blasphemy can be forgiven, but anyone who blasphemes the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven. This is a sin with eternal consequences.”  He told them this because they were saying, “He’s possessed by an evil spirit.” This still sounds a bit dicy.  What if late...

The Bible is clear that apart from Christ, you can't be saved. Jesus said, "No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6). But what about people who have never heard the gospel?  Maybe they live in some remote tribe or region where there are no missionaries.     God’s Word says, "They know the truth about God because he has made it obvious to them. For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God." (Romans 1:19-20, New Living Translation). Nature itself is a witness to the true God and Creator.  We can see what He has made.  There is no excuse for not knowing God as the Creator. Ideally the witness of God through His creation would lead a person to a true knowledge of Him.  But because we are all fallen and sinful, we inevitably twist that natural revelati...

Hebrews 9:27 says, “Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment.”  There is no coming back, reincarnation or Heaven Can Wait scenarios. Is this what the Bible teaches about heaven?   The Bible simply doesn’t mention a place like Purgatory—a place where, after a believer dies, they finish paying for any sins by suffering in torment, and finally they get to go to heaven.  In fact, in Scripture we see just the opposite—a believer goes immediately to heaven to be with Jesus.  When Jesus was crucified, two criminals were crucified next to Him. One of the criminals, as he was dying, believed that Jesus was the Son of God and Savior.  He cried out to Jesus, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom!” This man had lived a horrible life. He even admitted that he deserved to die for his crimes.   He certainly had no chance to go right any wrongs, or be baptized, or do penance.  But Jesus told him, “I tell ...

  This Disciple Foundations study is designed to be used anywhere, anytime, by anyone to help them grow spiritually as disciples of Jesus Christ. And it is a resource you can use to help others grow as disciples .  What you learn, you can turn around and share with someone else!  It can also be done in small groups, one-on-one, or even on your own. Each of the six Units can be done one per week, or extended longer if need be. There are two parts to this resource: Individual Studies:   Develop a firm grasp of disciple essentials, and identify next steps on your spiritual growth plan . Each of the six units in Disciple Foundations  are designed to help you to grow in  your relationship with Jesus Christ. If you are doing this with a small group, you'll get the most benefit by doing the individual study prior to your group meeting. It's broken into 5 short daily sections. Optinal links to more in depth articles for key words. There is a PDF print out version...

  What if there is something in my past that, looking back, I feel so ashamed of that now it’s hard for me to believe, or keep believing, that God has truly forgiven me? That is an issue that even sincere believers in Christ face sometimes.  It might be that even if you believe God has forgiven you in Christ and confessed that sin to Him, and stood on the promise of 1 John 1:9, still, you have a lingering guilt feeling any time you recall it. To deal with this feeling of guilt it is important to know what the source is.  A twinge of guilt from a long past action that you confessed already could be false guilt, and you might just need to keep reminding yourself that you are forgiven and that God will not bring it up again (More on that later).  However, there could be other reasons. Assuming you have read the teaching from Unit 2 on confession of sin, have you applied it? It’s also important to be honest with God about what our sin truly was.  Don’t...

  When we come to faith in Christ we may be surprised at how quickly some things begin to change.  Not only our outlook but often our character seems to shift and we begin to see some of the fruits of the Spirit develop:  love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness….  (Galatians 5:22-23). But then there is that last one, self-control .  Why did that have to be in the list?  Many sincere believers who have seen God change their character in other ways (love, joy, peace, patience…) struggle with a habit, often in the area of self-control, that they have not been able to break. Perhaps that’s you. It could be pornography, alcohol abuse, drug addiction, overeating, laziness, extramarital sex, or anything else that is our master instead of Christ.  All of these are sin.  Some of these have the potential to destroy our lives and truly hurt those around us. Then why are some of these things so hard to break? ...

  We don’t have the original handwritten documents of any of the books of the Bible.  The scrolls and parchments naturally wore out over time and would have to be copied to be preserved.  In many cases duplicates were encouraged to be made from the start so that more people be exposed to God’s Word.  So, if what we have today are copies of copies of copies wouldn’t it mean that our Bible today must be full of mistakes?  After all, we’ve all played that game “telephone” or “gossip”  where you whisper a phrase in someone’s ear, then it goes around the circle until finally the last person whispers it back to your own ear.  And it’s always very different!  Additionally, since we must  translate the Bible from the original Hebrew and Greek into English or other modern languages, how can we know we have God’s written Word today ? Let’s take this last question first.  We translate our modern English and other versions directly from...

  As disciples we know we are to love people where they are and encourage them to grow in their relationship with Jesus Christ . But what about if friends or even family whose influence is making it hard for you to follow Christ as you know you should.  Let’s start with friends or peers.  Living the new life, as a disciple of Christ means your old appetites and ways have also begun to change.  Perhaps some things you used to do with the “gang” you now know are not honoring to the Lord.  You see life differently too, with an eternal perspective, and all people as having infinite worth to our loving Creator.  That is going to change the way you joke, talk, and what you choose to do for entertainment.  And your friends probably won’t understand. Peter put it this way, “For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do—living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry.   They are surp...

  Every English Bible you pick up is a translation from the original languages, including the King James Version.  And the KJV was not even close to being the first English translation.  Wycliff made his translation in the 14th century. Today there are dozens of popular English versions:  New International Version, New American Standard Bible, English Standard Version, New Living Translation and many more. So, which should I use?  To answer, let’s look first at the differences.  Word for Word.   The goal of some translations is to be as consistently word for word from the original language into English as possible.  This can be great for accurate and study.  These versions are more revealing of the original words and sentence structure.  For example, the New American Standard tries to be consistent in using a single English word for a given Hebrew or Greek word.  So if you see the word “loving kindness” in the Old Tes...

Actually, one of the most remarkable things about the Bible is its unity .  It is sixty-six different books, written by forty different authors from different backgrounds over a 1,500 year span and yet it tells one continuous, unified story. But we sometimes hear that it has contradictions.  Web sites from skeptics dot the internet and suggests some.   But in each case when we actually open the Bible and read it like any other book or eyewitness accounts they evaporate one after the other. Take the so-called “two accounts of Creation” in Genesis 1 and 2.  This is a famous one that is often held up as a contradiction.   It goes like this:  “In Genesis 1 God created the animals first and then man and woman simultaneously, but in Genesis 2 animals are created after mankind.” But Genesis 1 is an overview of the entire six days of creation.  Genesis 2 zooms in on the creation of man, the sixth day alone, and specifically to the Garden of E...

  The Bible records many miracles, direct acts of God that are without natural cause.  They are not explainable by natural laws.  There is no natural “cause and effect” happening in a miracle.  That's what "supernatural" means, beyond nature. But hard science involves the observation of natural cause and effect and the ability to predict an outcome based on its findings.  It is entirely based on observing and drawing conclusions from the natural world. If we diagramed these two, we would have miracles in one circle and cause and effect in another with no overlap.   That does not mean that both do not or cannot coexist.  Science, by its very nature--limiting itself to natural causes, could not see a miracle right in front of it because there would be no natural cause to observe.  It’s the wrong tool.  It’s like using a microscope to study a distant star. Ethics and values lie outside the realm of hard science.  They are real...

  The same answer to the question, “How does biblical prayer differ from other religions” also answers this question. For the believer, prayer is about our relationship with God. It is not a ritual.   It does not earn us brownie points with God or impress Him.   It is not about conjuring up  a certain religious feeling -- we walk by faith not by feelings It is not a punishment to “work off sin.” Matthew 6:7-8 is again a key verse on this issue.  Jesus tells us, And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words.  “So do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him. Notice how relational Jesus’ description of prayer is.  Our heavenly Father knows what we need even before we begin to ask.  Jesus also flat out says, “Don’t do empty repetition” like the many pagan religions.  Tragically, the next verses in Matthew (vv. 9-1...

  You may be asking, what is prosperity theology, or the prosperity gospel?   It is the belief that God always wants us to be financially wealthy and physically healthy.   Proponents believe it is a divine right for all believers.  Along with that, it is often taught that mentally picturing something we want, such as a new car, then speaking positive words ( faith in their teaching) or donating money will actually be the means to move God to give it to us. Is that in the Bible?  This view stretches the definition of “sin” that Jesus came to atone for to include material poverty or physical sickness in this life .  It also teaches that we give in order to get material blessing.  They call it “seed” giving sometimes.  Usually the “seed” is given to the prosperity teacher! But this confuses promises about our one day reward in heaven with what God has called us to here on earth in the meanwhile.   How do we know?  The Bible...

  The good news is that God already knows what we really need, And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words.  Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him .  (Matthew 6:7-8) This verse tells us two things, first that God isn’t impressed with the length of our prayers, per se. Going on and on as “filler” or like a lawyer hoping you’ll cover all the loopholes is not necessary.  Why not?  Because, secondly, our wise and loving God already knows our situation and what we really need. But there is more.  The HolySpirit also intercedes for us because in many ways we don’t really know how we should pray about the outcome of things: In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for , but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.  And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the...

  Spiritual gifts are divinely given abilities for serving that the Holy Spirit gives each believer in Christ.  Why does God give them to us?  We use our gifts to serve together and build up one another in the church, not to call undue attention to ourselves, “Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good .” (1 Corinthians 12:7) How are these gifts given?  Regarding spiritual gifts Paul wrote to the Corinthian church that while our gifts differ, the same Holy Spirit imparts them to each believer: “All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines. ” (1 Corinthians 12:11) We do not choose our spiritual gifts, the Holy Spirit does, as He determines.   The God who made us and called us also enables us to serve as He sees fit.  Paul indicates in this chapter that all the Corinthian believers have spiritual gifts, not a special class of saints or just pastors.  T...

  The answer depends on what we mean by hear.  The Bible teaches that God is all-knowing and all-present, so yes, technically he hears every word and thought of everyone. But sometimes the Bible uses the word hear in regard to prayer to mean to answer it positively, with the yes we hoped for. So will God grant the prayers of someone who is not a believer?  Surprisingly the Scripture doesn’t nail that down one way or the other.  In fact, the Psalmist says of himself, “If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened” (Psalm 66:18).  This is why it is so important for a believer to moment by moment confess and turn from sin in their life. On the other hand,  in Acts 10:31 there is the story of the Roman centurion, Cornelius, who was told by an angel that “your prayer has been heard” though he was not yet a believer in Christ.  He had not yet heard the gospel, though he obviously he had put faith in the true God to the ext...

  For the believer, prayer is about our relationship with God. It is not a ritual.   It does not earn us brownie points with God or impress Him.   It is not about conjuring up  a certain religious feeling -- we walk by faith not by feelings It is not a punishment to “work off sin.” Matthew 6:7-8 is again a key verse on this issue.  Jesus tells us, And when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words.  “So do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him. Notice how relational Jesus’ description of prayer is.  Our heavenly Father knows what we need even before we begin to ask.  Jesus also flat out says, “Don’t do empty repetition” like the many pagan religions.  That is a key difference. Tragically, the next verses in Matthew (vv. 9-13), the Lord's Prayer, where Jesus gives us a model or outline of how to pray, is actua...

  Maybe you are still recovering from it, and trying to make sense of it. Or maybe you know someone who had a bad experience in a church and now they are soured against the church or anything religious.  Some call it being "church hurt."  What do you say to them? Here is a very brief article that is helpful on not excusing unloving behavior in a church and also helping someone move beyond it.  As it say, “Christians admittedly aren’t perfect, but that’s no excuse for failing to demonstrate Christ’s love.” On the other hand, sometimes people blame the church for things they shouldn’t.  For instance, I can’t actually blame a church for my not  growing spiritually.  That is each person’s responsibility.  The church didn’t “burn out” a person.  Again, that is on us.  Carey Nieuwhof lists 5 Things People Blame The Church For…But Shouldn’t .