Can you give me any proof that God exists? I consider myself a practical person and a realist. Faith in God may be fine for sentimentalists, dreamers, and romantics who see the world through emotionally tinted glasses. But I’m determined to base my personal philosophy and my concept of truth on nothing but rock-solid facts. …
Faith Q&As
Does “willful sin” make someone lose their salvation?
Why is it taking me so long to grow as a Christian? I’ve been a believer for a while, and I have to confess that my lack of spiritual progress has really got me down. When I was born again, I thought life was going to be beautiful from that moment forward, but several years …
What is the best way to communicate the Gospel message to the “millennial” generation? Our church has committed itself to reaching out to this group, but I’m concerned about what I perceive as a tendency to “broaden” the Gospel’s appeal to twenty-somethings by watering it down and removing all references to sin, repentance, and judgment. …
Do we go straight to heaven when we die, or is there some kind of a “waiting period?” This is all very confusing to me. Christians talk a great deal about “going to heaven,” but Scripture never once indicates that anybody moves straight into the presence of God at the moment of death. Instead, it …
Why should I be part of the institutional church? I’m convinced that the modern church has completely lost its way. As a result I’ve embarked on a personal quest to rediscover the pure, original Christianity of the New Testament era. I recently left the church and started a small discipleship group in my home. It …
How can pain and suffering be good? It seems whenever Christians talk about this subject, someone always quotes Romans 8:28. Is this verse literally true? I’ve seen Christians go through the same kinds of sufferings as unbelievers, and in most cases nothing “good” has come of it, at least not from my perspective. Can you …
What is “The Apocrypha?” While discussing spiritual subjects with a Roman Catholic friend, I discovered that her Bible is different from mine. Apparently it contains several additional books. I have no idea what to make of this, but it raises unsettling questions in my mind about the formation of our canon of Scripture. Why have …
What does “evangelical” mean?
Is it wrong to have doubts about Christianity?
How can I know that I’m saved when I don’t feel saved?
What’s the relationship between “facts” and “truth”? Is there any difference between them? If so, how would you describe it?
How can I help the senior citizens I’m working with to get really enthused about their Christian commitment? They’re all dear, sweet people, and many of them are lifelong saints who have been walking with the Lord for decades. But that’s exactly where the problem lies. There’s nothing I can tell them that they haven’t …
What is “original sin?”
How do we reconcile the idea of “free will” with the doctrine of “indwelling sin”? I’ve always been told that God did not create evil, that human beings sin through their own free choice, and that for this reason we are all accountable before Him. But recently I heard a Bible teacher say that we …
How can Christians say that the God of the Bible never changes? I have often heard preachers and Bible teachers make this claim. I suppose this is a comforting thought, but I’m having trouble reconciling it with my own understanding of Scripture. The more I read the Bible (the Old Testament, anyway) the more confused …
When different people read and understand the Bible in a thousand different ways, how do we know who’s right? Christian ministries like yours are always quoting Scripture and talking about the authority of the Word of God. To me, this raises a huge question: how can I know whose interpretation is correct?
How do we explain God’s command to slaughter the Canaanites in the Old Testament? I’m a Christian, but I have serious issues with the doctrine of scriptural infallibility, especially where the Old Testament is concerned. I’m particularly disturbed by the accounts of divinely authorized genocide and “Holy War” recorded in Numbers, Deuteronomy, and Joshua. When …
What’s the difference between an “unbeliever” and a person who simply has honest questions about God? I believe in the Bible, and I have often told friends and family that God can do miracles and even raise the dead. Nevertheless, when things get tough, I find it hard to trust in the Lord. Though I …