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Frequently Asked Questions
Note:
Please click on a question to be directed to the relevant answer
below.
Q#1: I was miraculously changed when I was water
baptized/"gave my heart to Jesus Christ," therefore I must have
received salvation at that point.
Q#2: There are many scriptures which simply tell us to "believe"
on the name Jesus Christ and we shall be saved. I wholeheartedly
believe in Jesus, therefore I know that I am saved.
Q#3: You mention on your website that "mainstream" Christians
preach "watered down" and "compromising" doctrines. Please
explain.
Q#4: What does the bible mean when it
mentions that we are saved by faith/grace?
Q#5: Is there a heaven and a hell? What will happen when Jesus
Christ returns?
Q#6: Will John the Baptist be raised to be with Jesus Christ in
His kingdom, when He returns?
Q#7: If we are all supposed to be descendents of Adam and Eve,
where do all the different races come from?
Q#8: If the world was created in seven days, why do geologists
think the earth is billions of years old?
Answers
Q#1: I was miraculously changed when I was water baptized/"gave
my heart to Jesus Christ," therefore I must have received
salvation at that point.
A: It is
not scriptural to assume this. The disciples of John the Baptist
were powerfully changed when they were water baptized by John,
and showed forth fruits worthy of their repentance, yet John
clearly stated in Luke 3:16, "I indeed baptize you with water;
but one mightier than I cometh, the latchet of whose shoes I am
not worthy to unloose: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost
and with fire." Despite their wonderfully changed lives, it was
still necessary for John's disciples to heed Jesus' words and
follow His commandment to "tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem,
until ye be endued with power" (the promise of the Holy Ghost)
"from on high," (Luke 24:49).
Likewise, the people of Samaria responded joyfully to Philip's
words as he went there to preach Christ (Acts Chapter 8). People
were healed miraculously of all kinds of sicknesses, and "they
were baptized, both men and women," (Acts 8:12). However, it was
still
essential for them to receive the Holy Ghost anointing, and the
apostles at Jerusalem, recognizing this, sent Peter and John to
them to pray for them, "that they might receive the Holy Ghost:
(For as yet he was fallen upon none of them: only they were
baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus). Then laid they their
hands on them, and they received the Holy Ghost," (Acts
8:15-17).
Consider
also Matthew Levi, the tax collector, and how he "turned over a
new leaf" so to speak, after Jesus commanded Matthew to follow
him. Yet Jesus clearly stated in John 3:5-7, "Except a man be
born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the
kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and
that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I
said unto thee, Ye must be born again." Jesus told all of His
disciples in John 16:7, "It is expedient for you that I go away:
for if I go not away, the Comforter" (which Jesus clearly
explains, in John 14:26, is the Holy Ghost) "will not come unto
you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you."
The
first outpouring of the Holy Ghost (Spirit) occurred on the Day
of Pentecost in Jerusalem (Acts 2:1-4), as Jesus had prophesied,
after which Peter commanded to those who witnessed this event,
"Repent, and be baptized
every one of you
in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye
shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is
unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off,
even as many as the Lord our God shall call. And with many other
words did he testify and exhort, saying,
Save yourselves from this
untoward generation," (Acts 2:38-40).
Remember, Jesus said to Peter himself, prior to the Day of
Pentecost, "...when
thou art converted, strengthen the brethren," (Luke 22:32).
Peter, despite following Christ for three years, and sacrificing
his natural life for this; despite the many miracles he
performed by the power of the Lord; and despite his zeal and
passion, was not yet converted until he was born again on the
Day of Pentecost through the infilling of the power of the Holy
Spirit.
Q#2: There are many scriptures which simply tell us to "believe"
on the name Jesus Christ and we shall be saved. I wholeheartedly
believe in Jesus, therefore I know that I am saved.
A: The
assumption of salvation through simply "believing" has arisen
due to a misunderstanding of the context in which scripture was
written.
Whenever
"believing" in, or even the term "confessing," Jesus Christ is
mentioned in scripture, it is referring to believing/confessing
that Jesus
is
the Son of God;
the
Christ and promised Messiah of whom the prophets of old spoke.
It also implies that if one wholeheartedly believes/confesses
this, then s/he also accepts that
all
the words that Jesus spoke
are
from God; the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; the God who
created the heavens and the earth and all that is therein.
The
reason for the emphasis on "believing" and "confessing" in the
scriptures can be understood when you consider the time period
in which the New Testament was written. There was enormous
pressure from the Jews in particular to discredit Jesus as the
Son of God, the Christ and promised Messiah, thereby reducing
His words to those of a mere mortal man; a man of the house of
Joseph, a poor carpenter; a man of the insignificant town of
Nazareth. The Jews knew very well the prophesies relating to the
King to come, who would free Israel (God's chosen nation) once
and for all from her burdens, but the Jews were expecting this
promised Messiah to appear in splendor and glory, and to
triumphantly rescue them from their enemies (who were at the
time the Romans). The persona of Jesus in no way fit with their
imaginations, and they were unwilling to accept His words as
ordained, holy words, directly from the Father in heaven.
Those
few (few in proportion to the population; much like today) who
had eyes to see and ears to hear knew in their hearts that the
words that Jesus spoke were not His own, and they believed Him.
They confessed that Jesus was the Son of God. However, this in
no way
diminishes the clear instructions that Jesus laid out for His
followers. He not only gave them clear directives that were
necessary for their salvation (refer to Question #1 above), He
also spoke to them tirelessly of what was expected of them to
walk in His ways.
"Believing" and "confessing" Jesus was simply
the beginning
of His followers' path to salvation (being born again of water
and of the Holy Spirit), and then continuing in steadfastness
beyond this transforming experience, toward eternal life.
Q#3: You mention on your website that "mainstream" Christians
preach "watered down" and "compromising" doctrines. Please
explain.
A:
Firstly, it helps to emphasize that we do not choose God, but He
chooses us
to be one of His children (John 15:16, "Ye have not chosen me,
but I have chosen you..."). Secondly, the word, "Christian"
comes from the Biblical Greek foundation word, "Christos," which
means anointed or consecrated. So, one is not a "Christian" is
God's eyes until God has chosen
to anoint that person with the power of His Holy Ghost (Holy
Spirit). (Refer to Question #1 above for more information on
this). Thirdly, the disciples of Christ were not actually called
Christians by name until many years after the first outpouring
of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 11:26, "And the
disciples were called Christians first in Antioch"). Prior to
this, the disciples were simply referred to as "people of
the way,"
meaning the way of Jesus Christ.
Having
considered the above, let us now ponder a hypothetical
situation. Please bear in mind that the following "story" is
simply an illustration of a point; in no way is fact implied.
On the
Day of Pentecost there were 120 disciples of Christ gathered in
the upper room of a house, waiting as commanded by Jesus for the
promise of the Father (the Holy Ghost). They had already been
waiting for nine days, but it was not until the tenth day that
the anointing experience occurred, miraculously and powerfully
(Acts 2:4, "And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and
began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them
utterance").
Suppose,
however, that on the eight or ninth day, after the disciples had
been gathering daily, seeking the Lord diligently and fervently
in prayer, that two of the disciples (let us call them "One" and
"Two") began to discuss their zeal and passion. Perhaps they
encouraged one another that they were so "fired up," more than
ever before, that surely they must have this Holy Ghost that
Jesus had spoken of. Perhaps, so convinced by their emotions,
One and Two departed, eager to get on with spreading the good
news. With unshakable commitment, they traveled about the land,
preaching and teaching the words of Jesus Christ, and perhaps
even water baptizing repentant hearers.
Before
long, these two disciples had gathered unto themselves quite a
fellowship, all claiming to be following the ways of Jesus
Christ, the Messiah. Perhaps even certain of these followers
also departed to different areas and began to preach what they
had been taught by One and Two, causing other fellowships to
develop.
Let us
consider then that the some of the disciples who stayed until
the tenth day heard about these other fellowships that had
sprung up in the land, and they went to visit them, the first
being the fellowship of One and Two. The disciples, recognizing
One and Two as they entered the fellowship gathering, asked them
why they had left so early; why they did not wait until the
tenth day when the Holy Ghost was poured out. One and Two
replied, "What do you mean the tenth day? We knew beyond doubt
that we had the Holy Ghost, and we didn't want to waste any
time, so we left to begin the work that we had been called to
do." The disciples explained the powerful and miraculous
anointing that they had all experienced on the tenth day, and
that One and Two, in their haste and driven by their flesh, had
missed out.
Now, One
and Two could have, at this point, humbled themselves and
realized their error and disobedience to Christ's command, but
they did not. Unwilling to admit to their fellowship members
that they had not been teaching the fullness of Christ's
salvation message, they rejected the disciples' loving rebuke,
and continued the same path of preaching.
Thus,
whilst the "people of the way" were spreading the good news in
truth, with the same powerful signs as they had originally
experienced (the infilling of the Holy Ghost with the evidence
of speaking in tongues) following the words that they spoke
(which proved that their words were truth), One and Two and
their followers went about literally spreading a lie. In effect,
two separate Christ based messages began; one true and one
false. And, the false path, because it was not founded on the
power of the Holy Ghost, quickly began to mutate into many
different doctrines.
This
story helps us to understand the difference between widespread
"Christianity," which incorporates many elements of Christ's
teaching, and the truth of the Biblical salvation message of
whom the "people of the way" were the original ambassadors.
Although a hypothetical story in detail, the essence of the
situation is very believable.
In 2
Corinthians 11:3-4, Paul urgently warns the church (fellowship)
at Corinth: "But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent
beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be
corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he that
cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if
ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or
another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear
with him," (meaning resist; hold oneself up against).
Paul
also wrote to the Galatians: "But though we, or an angel from
heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have
preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so
say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you
than that ye have received, let him be accursed. For do I now
persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet
pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ," (Galatians
1:8-10).
These
moving and matter-of-fact words from Paul are a lesson to all
self-proclaimed "Christians," to examine the doctrine(s) that
they have willing accepted into their lives in the light of the
fullness of the salvation message that Jesus revealed to his
disciples, and was confirmed to His obedient followers on the
Day of Pentecost.
Q#4: What does the bible mean when it mentions that we are
saved by faith/grace?
A: There are many who believe that to be saved by faith in
Christ means that we simply need to give our hearts to Jesus;
that we need to read and speak some sinner’s prayer, and, at
that moment, we are born again. They believe that there is power
in the “acceptance” of who Jesus is as their Lord and Savior;
that simply believing or having faith that Jesus died for their
sins, coupled with a change (sometimes) in personal behavior,
makes them ready to “go to heaven”.
The concept of what is truly meant by faith in Christ as our
Savior becomes clearer when we look at the time period in which
Jesus appeared on the scene. Thousands of years prior to this,
the Israelites had been given the contract of circumcision as
well as the Mosaic and Levitical laws to follow in order to be
in right standing with God. Jesus and His disciples, however,
came along and turned everything that they had known and grown
up with upside down. They were being told by these “people of
the way” that, if they became “born again”, they would longer be
required to have their sons circumcised and they would not be
bound by the letter of the law as such any more.
Many of the people struggled with this concept and, as we read
in Galatians 4:9, turned again to the “weak and beggarly
elements” that they were freed from. They had a difficult time
believing that, once they had been born again (John 3:5), they
could relax and have faith that they would obtain salvation
through Jesus as their Lord.
It is of absolute importance that we first understand what was
expected of anyone receiving the Gospel of Christ regarding
being born again. They were told that they needed to be born of
water and of the Spirit to enter into the kingdom of God, and
scripture clearly shows us that the infilling of the Spirit was
a tangible, powerful event (as explained in detail throughout
this website). It was after following these new
requirements for salvation that the concept of having faith in
Christ came into play.
Now that they had received the earnest (down payment) of the
Spirit, they were told to believe in this new relationship that
they had with God through His Son, Jesus Christ; that this was
all they needed to prepare them for salvation. They no longer
needed to make physical sacrifices of various animals for
various sins. They were no longer required to follow the
multitude of rules and regulations that accompanied adherence to
the law. They were now freed from all this by the blood of
Christ and through their born again experience (of having been
baptized by full immersion in water and anointed by God with the
Holy Ghost).
In conclusion, scriptures such as, “by grace ye are saved”
(Ephesians 2:5) and, “The just shall live by faith” (Galatians
3:11), can be easily misinterpreted and taken out of context if
not considered in light of the time period within which they
were written. Scriptures such as these were simply intended to
comfort and admonish those who were hesitant or reluctant to let
go of their Old Covenant traditions, especially those who were
trying to enforce certain elements of the law (such as
circumcision) upon the Gentiles (non-Israelites) who were born
again. The “ye” and “just” in the scriptures above refer to
those who had been born again and had thereby been baptized into
the Body of Christ. These words did not and do not refer to “we”
as society as a whole.
Q#5: Is there a heaven and a hell? What will happen when Jesus
Christ returns?
A: There
is not a "heaven" and a "hell" in the context that many man made
religions believe. That is, when you die, you don't, as is
commonly assumed, either "go to heaven" or "go to hell." When we
examine the Bible, we understand that God's plan for the future
is more complex than this, and even then, we only know in part
(1 Corinthians 13:12, "For now we see through a glass darkly;
but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know
even as also I am known").
This "age" (time period) is the time that God has established
for the building of the Body of Christ; the one Church, or "ekklesia"
in the Biblical Greek language, which means "a calling out." The
new age (being the New Covenant) began on the Day of Pentecost
with the first outpouring of the Holy Spirit, and it will
continue until Jesus returns to be united with these called
members of His Body:
I Thessalonians 4:16, "For the Lord himself shall descend from
heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with
the trump of God: and the dead
in Christ" (members of the Body of Christ) "shall rise
first: Then we which are alive" (in Christ) "and remain shall be
caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in
the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord." (Note that here
Paul is writing to the church at Thessalonica, whose members had
been baptized into the Body of Christ through water baptism and
the infilling of the Holy Spirit. Thus, it is incorrect to
assume that the words, "we which are alive and remain," refer to
mankind in general).
Matthew 24:27 & 30-31 & 37, "For as the lightning cometh out of
the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the
coming of the Son of man be...then shall appear the sign of the
Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth
mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of
heaven with power and great glory. And he shall send his angels
with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together
his elect from the four
winds, from one end of heaven to the other...But as the days of
Noe" (Noah) "were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man
be."
Jesus shall be united with His Body for a purpose. Revelation
20:6 describes that "they shall be priests of God and of Christ,
and shall reign with him a thousand years." (Note that no-one
knows if this figure is literal or not). Revelation 20:3
explains that Satan shall be bound during this time period "that
he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years
should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little
season."
The same chapter explains that those who are not raised to be
united with Christ upon His return will remain asleep until the
end of the age (time period) of freedom from evil influence:
"But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand
years were finished," (Revelation 20:5). The next verse is
interesting as it explains how blessed the members of the Body
of Christ will be to partake in the first resurrection (uniting
with Christ in His kingdom) for they will not be judged on the
day of judgment to come. Essentially, their judgment will come
when they are found worthy to be raised with Christ upon His
second coming: "Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the
first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power...,"
(Revelation 20:6).
Revelation Chapter 20 goes on to describe the battle that will
proceed Satan's release, and God's final destruction of evil.
Following this will come the day of judgment, when all others
(i.e. everyone other than those who will already be in the
kingdom) who have ever walked the earth will be brought to stand
before God to be judged according to the way they conducted
themselves while they lived. Those "others" who are judged
worthy will enter into the kingdom of God at this point:
Revelation 20:13, "And the sea gave up the dead which were in
it; and death which were in it; and death and hell delivered up
the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man
according to their works." (Note that there are different words
and meanings for "hell" in the Bible. In this scripture the
word, "hell," comes from the Greek word, "hades," which means
"grave").
Revelation 20:12, "And I saw the dead, small and great, stand
before God; and the books were opened: and another book was
opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out
of those things which were written in the books, according to
their works."
Following this, the scriptures describe the second death, where
death and hell (hades; grave) will be cast into the lake of
fire, along with all those whose names are not found to be
written in the book of life:
Revelation 20:14-15, "And death and hell were cast into the lake
of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found
written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire."
No-one knows the criteria by which these "others" will be
judged. We do know that everyone who lived prior to the New
Testament age will be included in this judgment (because they
lived prior to the opportunity to be baptized into the Body of
Christ), and it is reasonable to expect (given solid scriptural
evidence) that the names of the mighty, faithful servants of the
Lord mentioned in the Old Testament (such as Moses, Abraham,
Isaac, Jacob, and Elijah) shall be found in the book of life:
Matthew 8:11, "And I say unto you, That many shall come from the
east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and
Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven."
Matthew 17:1-3, "And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James,
and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain
apart, And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine
as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light. And, behold,
there appeared unto them Moses and Elias" (Elijah) "talking with
him." (Note that this was simply a vision of a time to come;
this scripture does not imply that Moses and Elijah are
currently in the kingdom of heaven with Jesus).
However, it is critical to remember that
we are now living in the
New Testament age, and we are being given the remarkable
opportunity to be born again (by water baptism and the anointing
of the Holy Spirit) into the Body of Christ, and to continue in
the ways of Jesus until He returns for us. It would be foolish
of us, having been made aware of this salvation opportunity (and
expectation), to cast it aside, hoping to "take our chances" on
the day of judgment:
2 Peter 2:21, "For it had been better for them not to have known
the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to
turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them."
Q#6: Will John the Baptist be raised to be with Jesus Christ in
His kingdom, when He returns?
A: No. This is a common misconception. John the
Baptist was killed before the first outpouring of the Holy
Spirit on the Day of Pentecost.
The Day of Pentecost signified the beginning of the New
Testament (covenant/agreement) between God and mankind; the
beginning of the gathering of the Body of Christ, which is to be
raised to be united with Jesus in His kingdom when He returns.
All those who died prior to the beginning of the New Testament
will remain asleep (Revelation 20:5, "But the rest of the dead
lived not again until the thousand years were finished") until
they are raised to stand before God on the day of judgment which
is spoken of in Revelation Chapter 20. This includes John the
Baptist, and all the other mighty prophets and men and women of
faith in the scriptures.
Luke 7:28 clearly states, "Among those that are born of women
there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist: but he
that is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he." And,
Jesus was very forthright when he explained in John 3:5-7,
"Verily, verily" (truly, truly) "I say unto thee, Except a man
be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the
kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and
that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I
said unto thee, Ye must be born again."
Note: Whilst the
gospels are located in the New Testament section of the Bible,
the actual new covenant or agreement between God and mankind did
not take effect until the Day of Pentecost in Acts Chapter 2.
Please refer to Question #5 for more information.
Q#7: If we are all supposed to be descendents of Adam and
Eve, where do all the different races come from?
A: Contrary to popular belief, the Bible does not say that all
of mankind descended from Adam and Eve.
In Genesis 4:15-17, we read that Adam and Eve's son, Cain,
received from God protection against the people living outside
the Garden of Eden. The Bible continues to tell us that Cain
took a wife from among those people and raised children.
Scientists tell us that the Earth has been populated by people
of different races for millions of years. However, Bible
genealogy indicates that God started to communicate with mankind
(first with Adam and Eve) about 6000 years ago. Adam and Eve
were not the beginning of mankind; they were the start of God's
communication with His creation.
In conclusion, there is no good reason at all why science,
carbon dating and the Biblical record need to be at odds on the
issue of man's entry into the world. In fact, the two fit
together seamlessly.
Q#8: If the world was created in seven days, why do
geologists think the earth is billions of years old?
A: The scientists are probably right. It took a long time for
the earth to develop into the planet we know today. But that
does not mean that the Bible is wrong. If we carefully research
the scriptures, we find that the word "day" is translated from
the origin word "yom" which has several meanings. One of the
meanings is, "A period of time of unspecified duration." (Vines
Expository of Biblical Words; Thomas Nelson 1985).
So, the original Hebrew text would have read: Genesis 2:2, "And
on the seventh time period God ended his work..."
In conclusion, we know that the world was not made in seven
literal days, but during seven unspecified periods of time.
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