Common Questions

Christianity is not just about following the rules of a religion. It is about the deep and personal love that Jesus Christ has for us. Jesus offers us a real and personal relationship with Him and an inheritance that includes eternal life. Jesus Christ loves us! No good works can earn us a seat in Heaven, and God spells that out for us in the Bible. In Christianity, Jesus, who is 100% God and 100% man, sacrificed Himself to save us from Hell. Since no person can ever earn their way into Heaven, it is by grace that Jesus has freely given us righteousness by accepting Him. He provided us with the free and undeserved gift of salvation. Good works and dedication are followed after repentance and accepting Jesus' free gift as a celebration proclaiming God's good work in us. Christianity is rooted in real history, following a real God who has made a real impact on this world. There’s a wealth of historical and observational evidence of things that Christianity proclaims through the Bible. Our Bible, which is rooted in history, is infallible, never in error or contradiction.

Baptism is the proclamation of faith after someone is saved by Jesus. The prerequisite to baptism is to be born again as a believer in Christ. When you are baptized, you symbolically take your old sinful self down "under the water," washing it away and coming back up a new creation. Baptism can be done in a church tank, river, lake, ocean, pool, or any body of water deep enough for the person to be submerged. Before being immersed in the water, the Priest or fellow friend in Christ performing the baptism should acknowledge, "I baptize you in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit." This is how Jesus taught the Disciples in the Great Commission. "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." (Matthew 28:19 NIV).

The Lord's Supper is the coming together of Christians to remember Jesus and what He has done for us. By taking communion, we eat bread and drink wine resembling Christ's body and blood. This act is a remembrance of Jesus and seals us in the new covenant with Christ consecrating us to His service. This sacrament can vary slightly between denominations. Communion may be every Sunday, once a month, or a couple of times a year. Scripture does not instruct us exactly how often to observe it. Some churches offer real pieces of baked bread and wine. While others have small crackers and grape juice in disposable cups. It is the act that is what is important. The coming together of Christ's church to remember what He has done for us and to acknowledge our commitment to the covenant we share with Christ.

One of Christianity's most challenging questions is, "If God is so loving and all-powerful, why does He allow evil to exist?" This question can never be answered in a genuinely pleasing way for a true unbeliever. Understandably, it takes more than an answer to truly settle this question in their minds. As answers will be given below, what it takes for someone impacted traumatically by the evil of this world is a renewal of their heart and mind by Jesus Christ. It takes God's love, mercy, and strengthening to get past the horrors of evil. So, why does God allow evil in the first place? When the Angels and Adam and Eve were created, God gave ultimate and undeniable free will. God can absolutely intervene, which He has, does, and will do. Still, humanity's actions and decisions are up to them. Galatians expresses exactly how free will is meant to be used, "You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love" (Galatians 5:13 NIV). God did not create humanity to do evil. Quite the opposite. God himself says that He made a good creation, "God saw all that he had made, and it was very good" (Genesis 1:31 NIV). The Devil, jealous of humanity's unique bond with God, chose to use his free will and rebel against God. He caused Adam and Eve to fall into sin, and they decided to freely indulge their flesh. Unfortunately, since Adam and Eve's sin, people grew more wicked, indulging in rape, murder, stealing, slavery, and being foul in any way imaginable. God has proven in the Bible that no matter what He does to try and rebalance the world, "even at the point of a global flood," humanity will always go back to corruption. God does intervene and help people. He also calls people to help Him with His work. However, some do not find help. Free will demands a level of passiveness from God. It is incomprehensible to humanity what happens in every circumstance. Christians can see what God does for people and how hard at work He is. Understanding this takes a transformation and renewal of an individual's heart. It still deeply burdens and hurts Christians as much as it hurts God to see someone suffer. God does give people way outs, and He does help them, but not everyone gets help. Why? This is not for us to know, and that is tough to accept. One day, God promises to set the world right and abolish all evil. He has a master plan of redemption that was put in place, is currently at work, and will be finished in the future. Until then, instead of being mad at God for allowing free will, which humanity uses to create evil, we must work together with God to fight evil and "serve one another humbly in love."