Archive for category: FAQ

Where is it? Where was Jesus after His death before Sunday?

What we can deduct from the teaching of Scriptures about this subject all souls of people who have died, and who die, go to a place called “Sheol” in Hebrew and “Hades” in Greek. It means “The place of the dead”. But “Sheol” (“Hades”) has two seperate abodes: One for Christians who die, one for the unbelievers.

The story of Lazarus and the rich man gives us a glimpse of the circumstances there (Luke 16:19-31). The abode of the blessed is called the bosom of Abraham or the place of the righteous dead.

There all will stay until the resurrection of the bodies, when souls and bodies will be united to live forever: The saints in the places named in Revelations 21-22. The unsaved will go to hell – body and soul (Revelations 20:11-15).

We do not know where Jesus was. But he promised the dying thief that he would be with him in Paradise. Perhaps this is another name for “the place of the righteous dead”.

No! God exists as: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The Son came to this world as a man, so that He could be able to die, as a man, for our sins. His name on earth was Jesus.

The devil was a beautiful angel in heaven who, filled with pride, opposed God. He became the evil one, the devil. He is not God’s eldest son. We must be careful not to be misled by this notion.

The devil was originally created as a good angel, to serve God. But after that he became proud, and rebelled against God’s authority (1 Timothy 3:6-7). Then he was thrown out of heaven with the angels which followed him. The devil is evil, and in God there is no evil whatsoever.

Eventually the devil will be punished in a lake of fire for all eternity (Revelation 20:10).

Unfortunately it will not only he who will suffer. The Bible continues, “But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars — their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.” We pray that you will not be one these unfortunate souls, because you accepted Christ as your Saviour while you still had the time!

I would answer you as follows:

1. Alcohol is known to be a habit-forming drug. Some people are able to drink small amounts, but many continue to increase their drinking until they cannot handle the problem. A good percentage of social drinkers become alcoholics and each of them affects many people.

2. Alcohol is the cause of many domestic problems with poverty and hunger causing suffering to children and an unstable relationship between husband and wife.

3. It is well known how much damage is done on the roads through drinking and driving.

4. Drinking too much (which often starts with only a little) breaks down a person’s control of himself and leads to other sins.

5. Alcohol can also destroy one’s health.

For a Christian this is the kind of life which should be left behind (Proverbs 20:1; 1 Corinthians 6:10). He is a new person in Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17) and he should have a new set of values and standards which are to please the Lord (Ephesians 4:22-24). Our bodies are the temples of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 3:16-17) and should be kept clean and pure. The Christian life is a joyful one and we can be happy in Him (Philippians 4:4) without any outside stimulant.

On the other hand, the Bible is clear that drunkards will not inherit the kingdom of God (1 Corinthians 6:10). Christians are warned against getting drunk with wine, but should rather be filled with the Spirit (Ephesians 5:18).

It is not sinful to use wine as Christ did, but it becomes sin as soon as the alcohol takes control of your life. The best way to avoid becoming a drunkard and alcoholic is to avoid alcohol altogether!

And if you are an alcoholic already, or someone whose drinking causes problems, there is deliverance. Jesus can set you completely free (John 8:34-36). The Corinthian Christians experienced this themselves (1 Corinthians 6:9-11). May this be your experience as well!

In order to understand this question we must first answer the question: What is the Second birth or what is being “born again”? The Lord Jesus taught the necessity to be regenerated or being born again in John 3:3 when He said to Nicodemus: “In truth, in very truth I tell you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God unless he has been born over again”.

What does this mean? It means that man in his natural state, under the influence of inherited sin, is lost. On the cross Jesus paid for the guilt of sin. Now, when God wants a person to change and become a Christian, the Holy Spirit comes into the heart and takes away the old love for sin, renews the person inside and he/she is born again. It is solely the activity of the Holy Spirit, just as it happened at the natural birth. The baby is totally passive in the whole process and knows nothing.

But as soon as the Holy Spirit brought about that change inside man, whether in the childhood days or in a crisis (like Saul in Acts 9), that person adopts a changed attitude. He no longer lives for sin; he lives for God because he wants to. We say he is converted. He lives a new life for God. He is regenerated.

Some churches teach that regeneration or new birth includes, not only Spiritual renewal, but also justification, which is affected by Baptism, especially in children. But we don’t see it that way. A person can be regenerated, become a new creature (2 Corinthians 5:17) without baptism. Baptism is a sacrament. A sacrament is a sign which points to a greater mysterious work. Baptism simply says: Just as you wash your body clean with water, so Christ washes away the filth of your sin by the blood of the cross (not literally). So it is good to be baptized, but baptism is not an essential element in the second birth. If you are born again but not baptized, you are not lost. You are saved by Jesus Christ through the work of the Holy Spirit; you are not saved by baptism. The thief on the cross went to Paradise without being baptized (Luke 23:43), while Judas Iscariot was lost, even though he was probably baptised. The essential thing is faith (trust) in Jesus, not an outward sign (John 3:16, 18, 36).

Jesus was born shortly before the death of Herod the Great. Modern theologians calculate the year of His birth about four years earlier than the calendar which we use, that is why they reckon that the birth of Jesus must be dated at about 4 years “before Christ”. His public ministry began when he was about thirty years old (Luke 3:23). The length of his ministry is impossible to determine exactly, but a period of about three years is generally accepted as true. This calculation is based on the two springtimes indicated in the Gospel of Mark before the final Passover and the three Passovers of John 2:13, 6:4 and 12:1. This would suggest that Jesus was crucified about 33 A.D. But certainty on the precise date of his death is impossible.

However, the main news to us is that Jesus died in order that we may live forever in His glory, if we accept Him as our Saviour. isn’t that the best news you ever heard?