Religion_Christianity_Basic

DOES GOODNESS LIVE IN YOU?

Trying to live a good life is an unending and tiring job. We struggle to keep our bad deeds in check. We strive to do good deeds. It takes our full concentration and all our energy. What's more, we don't live in a neutral world. This world has temptations, demands, and hassles. It drains what little energy we have left to live as we know we should live. Does God understand our struggle? Will He overlook our weaknesses? Or does God want us to experience a different kind of life--one where we have the power to do what is right?

God created the human race without any faults or weaknesses. Adam and Eve, the first human beings, were perfect and complete. They were good and desired to do what was right because the very essence of goodness lived in them. They had no trace of bad or evil in them. In fact, the Bible says, after God created human beings, He himself said that his creation was good. Goodness gave life and direction to people.

Why are we no longer the way God created us to be?

From the time of Adam, an enemy, Satan, has sought to destroy what God made. Satan tempted Adam and Eve to disobey God, and they fell to his temptation. When people disobeyed God, two things happened. First, evil entered them. Since that time, every person has had to struggle with evil or bad living inside of him. This bad nature was not part of God's original plan for his creation. Second, the good in people died when they disobeyed God. We understand what goodness is, but goodness has no life of its own. In fact, we have to put all our energy into doing good and keeping bad from coming from us. The bad in us takes over the good when we are tired or someone offends us. The good requires our effort to make it happen.

For example, a husband understands how he is to act around his wife. He knows he should love her and treat her well. Yet he fails to do the good he knows he should do. Likewise, parents try to be sensitive and understanding with their children, but their bad side seems to come out as they relate to each other. Even children do not need to learn to be bad. We can constantly correct them and teach them to be good. Despite our best efforts, they still do wrong things and seem to be slow in learning to be good.

What can you and I do to gain control of the bad in our lives? How can we bring life back to the good that is in us?

ATTEMPTS TO RESTORE LIFE

People suggest various ways to revive the good in our lives. Some say the key is knowledge. The more we instruct people, the more they will change for the better. But instead people use their knowledge and intelligence to get their own way or to manipulate people. Knowledge doesn't bring life to the good.

Others say discipline is the key. If we are more disciplined in our lives--in our thoughts, habits, exercise, and so forth--we will improve and do more good. Yet people closest to us know what kind of people we really are. Through discipline we might create a world in our minds, but we still live in this world. All too often exercise seems ineffective in bringing life to the good.

Religion is another option. Perhaps if we go to church, a mosque, or a synagogue, or if adopt a new religious perspective, then we will become better people. Unfortunately, what we usually gain from religion is another outlook on the world that will grow old, not the start of a new life within us.

Finally, some say, the law is the best choice for attaining good. If we have legislation that can regulate our behavior, particularly our moral behavior, then we will be better citizens and people. Yet more rules lead to oppression rather than to a desire to do right. Our human nature seeks to get around laws by finding exceptions for our behavior and justifying our actions. The law doesn't bring goodness to life within us.

Knowledge, discipline, religion, and the law can add much to our lives. All of these solutions try to curb bad behavior, but they will never revive the good in us. They are only influences from the outside. When we stop concentrating on controlling the bad within us, we succumb to its influences again.

Should we just be pleased with our attempts of being good some of the time?

Because it is so difficult to be good all the time, many people conclude that it is an impossible goal. They say we can only do many good deeds to make up for our bad deeds. It is as though our actions are placed on a scale. Our job is to make sure the good in our lives outweighs the bad. Life, then, becomes a test to see if we can do more good than bad.

God has created us for a purpose, not to test us. The Bible says he created us for good works. God made us to do good, not to test us to see if we would do more good than bad. True life is living a fully good life as God created us to have it. But the good must first come to life.

Rather than being like a set of scales, our lives are like a full glass. The glass is filled to the top with all the good works God desires us to do. When we do a good deed--the best good possible--we add nothing to the glass because we are only doing our duty, what God purposed for us to do.

More often, though, we take from my glass and so fall short of God's purposes for our lives. This happens when we do a bad deed or pass by an opportunity to do a good work. It also happens when we do a good work only because it serves our ends or desires. For example, we can be kind to my spouse because we want to ask for something later. In these ways, we miss God's plan for us to be truly good. Thoughout our lives, we take from the glass and end up short of the good life God intended for us to have.

Our only hope to become a truly good person lies in God, the one who created us. How will God help us? What has he done to control the bad and give life to the good?

God has the power to recreate all the people in the world without evil. Instead of doing this, he respected and preserved his creation. He chose to use his power in another way to intervene in our lives. He would destroy the hold Satan has over people, and he would give us a new life so goodness can live again in us.

The battlefield between God and Satan is the world God created. God sent Jesus into this world to confront Satan and his works. Satan threw all his tricks at Jesus. Jesus was misunderstood and tortured by corrupt men. His reputation was destroyed by lies. Finally, Satan used an unjust government to kill Jesus for crimes he did not commit. Jesus willingly took on all this evil, but it never defeated him. He never once responded to evil with evil. He overcame evil with good.

To defeat Satan, Jesus deliberately experienced death, the ultimate weapon and evil of Satan, and overcame it. By coming back to life, Jesus showed that he was more powerful than the greatest evil at Satan's disposal. Jesus is the only person who has ever lived who conquered evil and death.

Jesus showed that he was greater than Satan. Jesus broke the powerful hold Satan has and has the power to give us life. He alone can make the good within us live again.

How does Jesus share his power over evil with us?

There was once a man who boasted that he was stronger than the prison and all the prison guards. Hearing of these boasts, the prison guards went to capture the man. But the man disappeared. Was he stronger than the prison guards or not?

A second man boasted that he was stronger than the prison and the prison guards. When the guards came for him, he came out and met them. They captured him, beat him severely, bound him, and then took him past all the prison cells to the farthest dungeon. There they locked him in, leaving guards at the door. The superintendent of the prison sat in his office with his buddies laughing at the man and his boasts.

But they did not laugh long. Soon they heard sounds from within the prison. The man had torn off his chains, pushed open the door, thrown aside the guards, and opened all the other prison cells one by one, calling, "Anyone who wants to leave this prison, follow me!"

Some of the prisoners were afraid. If they joined this man now and he was captured, they along with him would suffer even worse torture than before. But others said, "Look, they've already done to him the worst they can do, and he has shown that he is stronger than them. I'm following him out!"

Those who followed him closely all the way out of the prison found that he shared with them his power to open cell doors and defeat the guards on the way. Eventually, they followed him all the way to his Kingdom of Righteousness.

Jesus has promised to revive the good in every person who believes him and accepts him into his or her life. He is the prisoner who was beaten and yet escaped from the prison of evil. He calls us to follow him into a new life of goodness.

What happens when we follow Jesus?

When Jesus makes the good in us alive, we are free to make right choices. We have a desire to do good deeds that comes from the inside rather than just from the outside. We have new strength to do good. The Bible says we become completely new people. God is the source of our new life.

We still have a problem. The old, bad part of us continues to live within us. In heaven, God promises to remove the bad in us and restore us to the same condition as when he originally created us. Until then, we will have a struggle inside between the good and the bad.

We also face external pressures to compromise. The world in which we live is not neutral. Circumstances or other people try to influence us to compromise. For example, our coworkers may not want us to tell the boss that they are cheating on their time or taking things from work. They want us to do the same so we won't tell on them. Satan also opposes our new life. He wants to destroy us and will try to deceive us with lies.

How has God given us help for this struggle?

God has not left us to fend for ourselves. Not only has God revived the good in us through Jesus, but also he has more than adequately provided for us to live this new life. God has given us three very important elements to provide us with a full and meaningful new life: the Bible, his Holy Spirit, and a new community called the church.

The Bible is our guideline for living. It will counter the lies of Satan. In it we find not only God's law, which now is our delight and desire to follow, but also God's perspective on life and this world. The Bible is the Word of God, and it guides us in understanding the will of God. Without it we will lose perspective. Since we are not neutral, we need God's Word to influence our thoughts.

The Holy Spirit is God's Spirit who lives in us when we receive new life from Jesus. He tells the person who is alive in Christ what thoughts and actions are contrary to God's way. It is God who lives in this person, so he doesn't have to be afraid of Satan and his demons. When the person listens to the inner voice of the Holy Spirit, he will make right decisions and will be able to follow the will of God.

The church is the community of God's people. We belong to a new family, the family of God. This community of believers serves several purposes. The church models the new life in Christ. It also gives us examples of people who follow the Holy Spirit, even in situations where there might be a high price to pay for obedience. These examples are positive role models for the new person in Christ. The church provides encouragement and direction to live this new life as we struggle through life's perilous path.

If any of these three ingredients is missing, a person who is new in Christ may fall into traps laid by Satan. It will be almost impossible to resist the bad in this world without the help God has given us in the Bible, the Holy Spirit, and the church.

Does new life in Christ prepare us for the judgment day?

We often think that God will judge us according to the good or the bad we have done. However, what we do is a reflection of what lives in us. God will judge us according to whether or not we have new life from him. If we have this new life, God will remove the bad in us when judgment day comes. We will be as God originally created us to be, and he will bring us into heaven. If we do not have this new life from God, then the understanding we have of good will be removed, and we will be sent to hell, a place intended for Satan and his demons.

Do you have this new life in Christ? Do you want to be a truly good person?

More religion, knowledge, discipline, or laws will not give new life to a person. Satan's power needs to be broken, and a new life must enter into you. No prophet, guru, religion, or holy man can give you this new life or adequately protect you from Satan and his evil works.

The key to living a truly good life lies in what Jesus has done for you. He led a perfect life. He allowed the power of evil to destroy him and overcame its power by coming to life again. Now Jesus wants to give life to everyone who asks him for it. The Bible says, "But to all who received him, he gave the right to become children of God." All you need to do is to ask him for new life and trust him to give it to you. All those who believe him are reborn and become his children!

WHAT DO CHRISTIANS BELIEVE?

Seven Things About God

1. We believe there is Only One Unique God. It is written: (Deuteronomy 6:4) Hear, O Israel; The LORD our God [is] one LORD.

2. God is Creator of everything, this vast universe. All was created by His Word. He spoke it into being. It is written: (Genesis 1:3) And God said... and it was so. His Word is powerful.

3. How can we created beings know anything about God? How can we puny creatures know anything about His thoughts?

We can - but only because God Himself has chosen to reveal something about Himself to us. He is the God of Revelation. It is written: (Deuteronomy 29:29) The secret things belong to the LORD our God; but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law.

What has God revealed about Himself to us?

4. He is Holy - pure - absolutely no evil can exist in or with Him. He has nothing to do with any sin, or wrong thinking, or evil. It is written: (Habakkuk 3:11) Your eyes are too pure to look on evil; you cannot tolerate wrong.

5. He is Just - which means that all wrongdoing will be punished. Sometimes people are confused on this point. Justice is not the same as mercy. Justice means if you break the law, you pay the penalty.

God does not compromise His nature of Holiness. He punishes all wrong doing.

It is not as if God puts all our good deeds on one side of a scale, and all our bad deeds on the other side to see which is heavier. To use an example: If I were to murder your brother, would a judge be just who said, "It's OK. We can let him be free. He has done mostly good during his life." God does not close His eyes to wrong. He does not tolerate it.

But doesn't God know that we are all dust? That we are prone to make mistakes? There is no perfect man or woman. Yes, He knows. But does this mean that our mistakes don't matter to God? God is holy and just, so they matter greatly. If we understand this, then we realize that we are in a very bad situation.

If we are honest - which of us has never had a selfish or wrong thought? or never lied? Who can say that they have a pure heart before a Holy God?

And even if we were able to live without making mistakes now - what about the past? Does God have a poor memory? Does doing good erase doing wrong? No.

Each of us deserves God's judgment and Hellfire. It's not just a matter of saying a prayer, "I am sorry. I will try to do better next time." There would be no justice in that.

An example: If I drive through a red light and an officer stops me, is it any good saying, "But officer, I have been going through green lights the rest of my life!" If this argument wouldn't work with an officer, how much less with a Holy and Just God! It is written: (Romans 6:23) The payment of wrongdoing is death.

Fortunately for each one of us, this is not the end of the story.

6. God is Almighty - God can do anything He wants to. It is written: (Jeremiah 32:17) Ah Lord GOD! You have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm, nothing is too hard for you.

There are no limits - no bounds to His power.

God is consistent. God is not contradictory - He doesn't contradict His holiness or justice. He does not violate His law.

Let me ask a question: "How do you get to know someone?" You might be able to tell something about others from the way they look. But you can't know what they think, what's in their heart. We need to hear a person's words. Their words tell what is inside their heart, what they are thinking in their mind.

If I want to communicate my wishes to you, there are several ways of doing it. I might send you a letter, writing down my thoughts. You could read it. But you might have questions, or not understand something. A better way is to send my letter with a good friend, someone who knows me well. My friend would be able to explain something of what I am saying. Better yet, I telephone you, and you can talk with me directly. But best of all, I come to you in person, and we meet face to face.

God's Word spoke the universe into being. His Word is powerful beyond our comprehension. He wants us to know Him. God gave His written Word in the law. He sent the prophets to explain and clarify His Word. It is written: (Hebrews 1:1) In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways.

God is so powerful that nothing is impossible - if God wants to, His WORD can actually come to us, face to face. His Word can become a man.

7. God is LOVE - God loves us and wants us to know Him - so His Word became a man.

It is written: (John 1:1,14) In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God ... The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the Glory of the One and Only.

Jesus is the Word of God. The pure and Holy Word of God.

Remember Abraham and his son? (Genesis 22:1-14) Abraham wanted to obey and submit to God. He took his son to sacrifice him, and on the way his son asked, "The fire and wood are here, but where is the lamb for the offering?" Abraham answered, "God himself will provide the Lamb for the offering." Abraham laid his son on the altar for sacrifice and was about to slay him when God called to him, "Abraham! Do not lay a hand on the boy!" And Abraham looked up and saw a ram God momentously provided, caught by its horns, and sacrificed it instead. His son was ransomed.

The Bible calls Jesus the Lamb of God (John 1:29) when the prophet John declared, "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!" He ransomed us. In love, God's Word took the judgment we deserved upon Himself.

But He didn't stay dead - He could not - He rose victorious - and conquered death.

How can we know God?

How can we know God? It isn't easy - it takes humility.

It takes humility to recognize that we are dust, that we have unclean hearts, and our deeds deserve Hell.

It takes humility to receive what God has done: He washes us clean, makes us pure, and gives His Spirit to help us live lives of obedience.

There is great joy and freedom in knowing God - the One and Only God, the Creator, the One who Reveals Himself, who is Holy, Just, Almighty, and Loving.

He calls us not to be servants, but His children. Jesus says (John 15:15) I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead I have called you friends.

It is written: (John 1:12) To all who received Him, who believed in His name, He gave power to become children of God.

Outline of the Basic Christians Beliefs

Today the word is ambiguous. It conjures up in our minds a variety of thoughts and memories, different for each person. For some, it brings to mind certain historical events, such as the Crusades, the Spanish Inquisition, or the Salem Witch trials. Others may think of church, worshiping God, or go into heaven. For still others, it may be a reminder of the recent scandals among television evangelists. However it is that we perceive Christianity, our perceptions are based on our experience and knowledge of it. For many people, this experience may include hearing about it through the media (e.g. TV, newspapers), attending church, talking with friends and relatives, or observing people who call themselves "Christians". However, many people do not have any knowledge about Christianity from reading the Bible. Since this is considered by most everyone to be important to Christianity, gaining an understanding of what it says is helpful in forming a more complete view of Christianity. It is therefore my intention to present and discuss various topics that may not be known other than through the Bible.

I want to emphasize that for someone to better understand Christianity through a knowledge of the Bible, it does not matter whether or not that person considers the Bible to be true. Indeed, just as in gaining an understanding of any religion, it is only important to understand that its followers take their holy books to be true. Thus, the topics presented are meant to be informative, and not persuasive, in nature. That is, they only discuss what the Bible says, without attempting to persuade one to believe that the Bible is true.

The Basic Message of the Bible

"Many people visualize a God who sits comfortably on a distant throne, remote, aloof, uninterested, and indifferent to the needs of mortals, until, it may be they can badger him into taking action on their behalf."(1)

This is certainly not the God that the Bible portrays. This section will discuss the basic message of the Bible, and obviously God is a part of this basic message. Man is the other essential element that the Bible continually mentions. (Note that man here is the mankind, including both men and women). However, the Bible is not simply about man and God, but it is about the relationship between man and God. Presented very simply is the Bible's story about this relationship.

In the Beginning ...

In the beginning, the Bible speaks of a perfect God creating everything. He created man, and man was created in God's own image (Gen. 1:27). Man was like God in that he was created free from defect. Thus, man and God enjoyed perfect relationship.

All Have Turned Away

Because man was in the image of God, he had a will, and thus the freedom to choose. Man, in his free will, has chosen to go his own way, as opposed to God's way. The Bible says that every person has done this. "We all like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way," (Isaiah 53:6). This is similar to a child running away form home, an analogy made in the Parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32). Imagine a three year old child telling his parents that he's decided to leave home and find his own way in life. Although powerless to survive without his parents, he still chooses to leave. Similarly, the Bible says that man cannot really do anything without God, yet he has chosen to go his own way instead of God's.

The term the Bible uses for choosing one's own way over God's is sin. This is what separates man from God; "your sins have hidden his face from you so that he will not hear." (Isaiah 59:2). Romans 6:23 says that "the wages of sin s death." Man is spiritually separated form God and receives death as a result of his sin.

Like a branch separated from the vine (John 15:5), man may appear alive for a while, but in the real, meaningful sense, he is dead because he has separated himself from the life source.

What can Man Do to Get Back to God?

Because man has broken the perfect relationship with his perfect God, he is spiritually dead and separated from God. How can man save himself from this grave situation? Many people who fell separated from God try to restore this relationship by doing things, such as participating in religious activities, living a good life, giving to charity or living by certain moral standards. However, the Bible says that it is impossible for man to save himself (Matthew 19:25-26). There are no good things that man can do that can restore his relationship with God (Ephesians 2:8,9, Titus 3:5). Left up to himself, man is eternally separated from God.

God however, wants to restore man's perfect relationship to Him. According to 1 Timothy 2:4, God wants all men to be saved and Ezekiel 33:11 says that God has no pleasure in the death of those who turn form Him. So what does God do?

In order to enjoy a perfect relationship with God, man must first be made perfect, because God is perfect (Matthew 5:48). But man has already been soiled by imperfection because of his decision to separate himself from God. God needs to rid man of his sin before the relationship can be restored.

The Bible says that God became man (John 1:14) and lived a life without sin, although he was tempted in every way like man is (Hebrews 4:15). His name was Jesus. Although Jesus was the only man to never sin and separate himself from God, he nonetheless voluntarily gave up his life:

"The reason Father loves me is that I lay down my life only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again." (John 10:17-18).

He allowed himself to be crucified and even took on the sins of all the world so that the relationship between God and man could be restored:

"God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." (2 Corinthians 5:21)

"For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God." (1 Peter 3:18)

So God made a way for men to be perfect before Him. Jesus paid sin's penalty of death and separation for men so that men would not have to.

Receiving God's Gift

So does the Bible say that all men have been restored to God because of what Jesus has done? No. Romans 6:23 says that "the gift of God id eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." It is as if a man on a street corner was offering ten dollar bills. In order to become ten dollars richer, a person must take the money. There is an act of receiving the gift involved. In the same way, the Bible speaks of receiving God's gift of eternal life (i.e. eternity with God). The following verses explain how this is done:

"Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God - children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God." (John 1:12-13)

"... if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved." (Romans 10:9-10)

Obviously, believing in Jesus is essential to receive God's gift. But believing here means more than just intellectually forming a belief system. When the Bible says "believe in your heart", it suggests a deeper kind of belief, the kind that would affect the way someone lives. It is an act of trusting Jesus to do what he said he would do. Jesus says,

"Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me." (Revelation 3:20)

Thus, all man has to do is ask, and Christ will come I to his life.

To quickly summarize, the Bible gives the following message:

God created man in His image and had a perfect relationship with him.

Jesus said, ...I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. (John 10:10b)

"... we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. (Romans 5:1)

Man chose to go his own way instead of God's. As a result of man's turning away from God (sin), he has separated himself from God and is spiritually dead.

... your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you so that he will not hear. (Isaiah 59:2)

On our own, there's no way we can attain the perfection needed to bridge the gap to God. Through the ages, individuals have tried many ways ... without success.

Good works won't do it ... or religion ... or money ... or morality ... or philosophy ...

"There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death." (Proverbs 14:12)

God's Remedy: The Cross

Jesus Christ is the only answer to this problem. He died on the cross and rose from the grave, paying the penalty for our sin and bridging the gap between God and people. Thus, restoring the man to God in a perfect relationship.

For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God ... (I Peter 3:18)

For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Jesus Christ. (I Timothy 2:5)

But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)

Man accept this gift in order to have eternal life with God. This simply involves asking God for His gift and believing that He will do it based on what the Bible says:

I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes Him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life. (John 5:24)

Is there any reason why you shouldn't cross over to God's side and be certain of eternal life?

How to receive Christ:

Admit your need (I am a sinner).

Be willing to turn from your sins (repent).

Believe that Jesus Christ died for you on the cross and rose from the grave.

Through prayer, invite Jesus Christ to come in and control your life through the Holy Spirit (Receive Him as Lord and Savior of your life).

I know that I am a sinner and need Your forgiveness. I believe that You died for my sins. I want to turn from my sins. I now invite you to come into my heart and life. I want to trust and follow You as the Lord and Savior of my life.

God's assurance of eternal life

If you've prayed this prayer and trusting Christ, then the Bible says that you can be sure you have eternal life.

"...for, everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. (Romans 10:13)

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast." (Ephesians 2:8-9)

Receiving Christ, we are born into God's family through the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit who indwells every believer ... this is called regeneration or the "new birth."

The Bridge to Eternal Life

A Summary of Bible's Message