What's in it for me?
There are many real advantages to living a life with Christ - being a Christian.
• There's peace of mind. The Bible gives us assurance that our past is forgiven, our present is protected by the Holy Spirit, and our future in heaven is secure.
• Churchgoers are more likely to express a higher level of satisfaction with life.
• Church involvement moves people out of poverty. It’s also correlated with less depression, more self-esteem and greater family and marital happiness.
• Church involvement is the most important predictor of marital stability and happiness. Regular religious participation leads people to become more engaged in their family life.
• Teens with religious parents are more likely to say they enjoy spending time with their mothers and fathers and that they admire them more.
• Churchgoers also tend to have a higher sense of self-purpose which gives meaning to their life and direction for their important life choices.
• People in church have a higher probability of being active in serving their community in some form of charitable service or giving of donations to the needy and special causes outside the church.
If God is so good and loving, why does He allow evil?
This is a flawed premise since it implies that we are in a position to say what is good and what is not good about God. We ourselves do not know what good is naturally, for we are not basically good. How then can we judge God?
Still, the question of evil persists, and we often hear the question "why?" in the aftermath of some tragedy. Remember, when God created the world, He created it perfectly. That includes His creation of man. Yet, this "perfect" man was also given the freedom of choice, or an ability to choose. When Adam chose to disobey God, sin, death and suffering became an inevitable part of life. Romans 5:12 states,
"When Adam sinned, sin entered the entire human race. Adam's sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned". The evil in this world is a result of that original sin. The Bible teaches that we all have sinned (Romans 3:23). We have a natural bent in us to please ourselves instead of God, just like Adam and Eve.
The only solution for sin is found Jesus Christ. Once you surrender your life to Jesus Christ, you can be assured of the promise in His Word, that "everything works together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them" (Romans 8:28). God can redeem the tragedies of life to result in something good.
Consider Joseph in the book of Genesis, who was sold into slavery. Joseph continued to trust God, believing that God had allowed it to happen to some heavenly purpose. Joseph said later in his life, after becoming the second most powerful man in Egypt. Responsible for saving the nation from a famine, "God turned to good what you [my brothers] meant for evil. He brought me to the high position I have today so I could save the lives of many people" (Genesis 50:20).
We may not always understand the "why's" of a certain tragedy, but we know the "Who" that will carry us through it. God promised, "When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord your God . . ." (Isaiah 43:2-3a).
How can Christians say that Jesus is the only way to heaven?
Are you saying that if a person does not believe in Jesus Christ, they are going to hell? Jesus Christ Himself said, "I am the way, the truth and the life, and no one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6 NKJV). If humankind could have reached God any other way, Jesus would not have had to die. His voluntary death on the cross makes this fact even more compelling.
Christians are not superior to any other person. A person who believes that Jesus Christ is the only Son of God and proclaims that truth, is just one beggar telling another beggar where to find bread.
Don't all religions teach the same thing?
"Don't all roads lead to God?" people often ask. "If a person is sincere in his or her beliefs, won't he or she get to heaven?" If you allow that all beliefs are true, then by what standards do you live? All belief systems cannot be true, because they all claim to be right.
But Christianity is unique -
its not a religion. We follow Jesus, not a set of rules. In fact, the Bible says that we are saved by grace through faith, and not by works (Ephesians 6:12).
All other religions fundamentally teach a for of salvation by works - that means saving yourself by living a certain way, making specific sacrifices, earning enough favor on their own to make their lives and / or eternity better. These are all ultimately flawed because a person can not save themselves. If that were possible then humankind wouldn't be in trouble in the first place.
How can a God of love send someone to hell?
God doesn't send anyone to hell. It was never His desire to send people to hell. It breaks the heart of God to see people, made in His image, make the deliberate choice to go to hell. Hell was not made for people; it was made for the angelic being, Satan, who rebelled against God. In Matthew 25:41, Jesus says the everlasting fire was prepared for the devil and the angels or demons that follow him.
Scripture also teaches, "[God] is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:9). That is why God sent Jesus to die on the cross in our place-to bridge the gap between sinful people and a Holy God. Those who are sent to hell, have chosen to reject God, the salvation He went to great cost to provide, and bring destruction upon themselves.
