Jesus said, the Way to the Father is through Me. What youve written so far is largely tradition and not Scriptural at all. She became a Christian and wanted to be baptized, so her church adjusted their normal baptism ceremony to make sure she was able to be publicly baptized without risking her life. He has a mind and emotions and gives us gifts and fellowships with us, for example. Believe it or not, other Christians need you. Im sure you would agree that (in an extreme example) reading only ONE verse about something as important as salvation would be a really, really bad idea. Many of my friends believe that when we die our spirit leaves our body and is with Jesus. If it does, I BEG you to make sure youre attending a church that teaches directly from the Bible, that gives you opportunities to hang out with more mature believers who will support and encourage you, and that can help you learn to better trust God with your troubles. He is God. Christians ARE obedient not perfectly, but purposefully but its not obedience that MAKES us Christians. Im not saying, go to church. Im saying that when you decide to follow Jesus, you ARE the church you and me and everyone else who follows Jesus. The main confusion that I see is that youre not convinced that the Father and Son and Spirit are all ONE GOD. Now, I dont want to offend you unnecessarily. A lot of people, not understanding the trinity, have a hard time understanding the Holy Spirit. However after looking at scripture im beginning to believe we are in our Graves until Jesus returns and we are the resurrected. One is something you choose to do, the other is an involuntary emotional attraction. We have no evidence that our dead loved ones appear to us at any time, let alone as butterflies or flowers or rabbits or ghosts. Augustine discusses this in one of his earliest works if one pays attention to his logic on the issue of what happens to unbaptized children: Not even the leaf of a tree is created without a purpose. In traditional Christian theology, Limbo is the place where the souls of unbaptized babies, young children and virtuous individuals who lived prior to the coming of Jesus Christ will reside until the resurrection. Let God decide which prayers to answer, and trust that He knows best. You can also subscribe without commenting. I prayed to God many times to heal me of this sin, but I lived with it for many years. I believed in Jesus and that He had died for my sins, to make a way for me to go to heaven when I died. Your sins have already been forgiven. Their spiritual growth is stunted because they spend more time on what they GET from God, rather than on what God wants FROM THEM. When they asked me what I was listening to, I could say this: I was listening to one of the songs you like, and wondered about these lyrics. If your parents will not allow it, wait until youre able to decide for yourselfand, in the meantime, grow in the faith. We read a number of times in the Bible that Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness. Be like the Bereans. Many people are taught to be Christians without having much of an idea about faith or repentance. I cant see into your heart, and I cant see into Gods mind. So, the caring person who wants nothing to do with God gets their wishand the hateful, terrible person who wishes to change and be forgiven and to do things Gods way also gets their wish, and will be in Heaven. Hes always right. Finally, lets talk about religion. I can help. They were able to speak in tongues at Pentecost because the Holy Spirit enabled them to do it. When buying shoes, its important to get the right size. When Jesus was baptized, He was baptized with the Holy Spirit, and with the Spirit came. Have children, and you can learn how much God loves us. Jesus died for us because God loves us. Why do you and I rebel against God? In the Bible, God says that were not saved by our own works, but by what Jesus did for us. Its a ritual bath where utensils are cleansed, new priests were dunked to begin their ministry, and so on. Every religion talks about being good. WHAT ABOUT JUDGMENT? Q: My granddaughter does not want to baptize her new baby. Keep in touch! Anything else YOU do to earn going to Heaven. God knows all things. The aborted or unborn child that dies, along with all children that die not reaching the age of accountability, are in heaven. Long answer: It breaks my heart every time a mother or father asks that question upon the death of their infant or child. The New Testament is clear that everyone will either be in Heaven or Hell. I respect my grandparents very much. When we die, it seems that the breath of life leaves us, turning us back into basically earth. He taught His disciples to serve, rather than be served. Thats not how it works. Theological problems inevitably lead to relationship problems with God, which is why I feel the need to caution you. The Father and Son and Spirit are ONE God, and have no body at all. You clearly have not studied the Scriptures on this topic. Talk soon! I wouldnt expect non-Christians to be obedient to God, nor would I run around telling strangers how to live. If you disagree in the end, I wouldnt worry about it too much. I didnt take my time to truly know GOD and who he was. First, you should read my article about the doctrine of the Trinity. I appreciate it. No of course not. 2 Corinthians 5:14 tells us that when Jesus died, its as if we all died. I am not baptized yet and im not sure by which name i have to be baptized. Let me know if theres more I can do for you. Heres what I am saying: the eternal penalty for sin has already been paid. Im happy to help, Prabha. Being together is a primary way we grow and become better followers of Jesus. Im always curious. God told the ancient Israelites to not eat pork, and there was a reason for it. Thanks for asking! . All believers should be baptized in front of their community of faith, but that has never, and will never, save anyone. I think theyre being silly, and given the right opportunity I might actually tell them so. If so, you are my sister in Christ. Clearly, thats not true. Sometimes its obvious that a person trusts God with their life. Logically speaking, wouldnt That mean he was praying to himself? Youre clearly not rejecting Godyou seem to want more of Him. There are no perfect churches. Instead, God took the first step. Because we have a relationship with God, and because we want to know Him better, we should make sure that we learn all we can about Him. I am torn. Jurisdiction. Also, if youre able, Id love to hear how the conversation goes! Sometimes, its not obvious. No, a whole bunch of people on here are wrong. Many churches are full of people who have never read the New Testament and learned what they say they believe. However: nobody is served by having their dumb ideas bronzed. Where do they fit into the world God has created? >> Will God still consider you a Christian. At the moment of death the soul of the lost is sent to hell where it is in conscious torment. But its not a right now need. Nobody should be manipulated into being baptized but, to be baptized as we see in the New Testament, new converts need to understand the nature of the commitment theyve made. Im 16 years old & I feel absolutely ridiculous writing this to you because I think its pointless. You ask good questions! After your explanation it makes more sense. So many keep saying his the Lord spoke to them, how they had a dream, a sign. The ancient Israelites baptized converts to Judaism. If youre already a follower Jesus that is, if youve already been born again I recommend that you find some people in your area who follow Jesus closely, and be baptized. Your job is to cooperate with Him, not to do the work yourself. Our problem is that were spiritually dead, and need to be made alive. He grew up, and He had a beard. What we do know is that God will do what is right. What happens to children when they die? - Denison Forum Christianity is an intellectually rigorous pursuit of the truth, and these folks care about explaining the truth in ways that make sense. You see, there are a LOT of reasons people dont want to go to church, but theyre not all the same. While the Bible teaches that homosexual activity is a sin, so are gluttony and pride and, as youve pointed out, fornication and a whole bunch of other things. Why accept one thing that Jesus taught and reject another? But, I have a question: when the disciples asked Jesus if they should pray to him he replied, no you pray to the father. Thank you for your kind words. Trust that Jesus knows best, and avoid the idea that your dreams are what people need. As you grow, youll begin to see that what you thought was a frustrating situation you couldnt wait to get out of was actually God, doing His thing, growing you and using you. Ephesians 2:1-10. You could get hit by a bus, or bitten by an angry goat, or have a sudden aneurysm, or trip on a crack in the sidewalk and hit your head on the corner of a little kids red wagon, or slip in the shower and break your hyoid bone on the faucet, or any number of other things. Will you do that right now? It was that way for the Jews, and its that way for Christians. Its not enough to know about God, or even to believe Hes awesome. I dont want you to be confused about this issue, so Ill speak very plainly. Second, judgment day. The New Testament explains that, at the end of time, everyone will be gathered together. And if he was the father why did he have to pray so much while on earth? Jesus was buried in a tomb, as this was the tradition of that day. Nobody has suggested that theyre nowhere. (Matthew 28:18-20) According VERSE 19, this passage says a disciple is made, baptized and taught all under the authority of Christ. My dead twin sisters are my guardian angels. God knows that we cant be all that we should be without His help, so He offers His help. There are two sides: Gods and ours. The Bible tells us that God has been working on you for your whole life. If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. However the bible also surports your soul going on to heaven immediately. Its pretty awesome, I must say. I see no contradiction between the existence of dinosaurs and Gods Word. Instead, I use the term Satan. Thanks for writing to me. What I dont like is music that makes me feel bad, and some songs do that to me. Did you catch that? The rich man also died and was buried. People tend to think, Surely a message such as mine will convince people that God is real, and that they should heed my warning, and that I can help bring about revival. Maybeand maybe not. At the same time, the Holy Spirit comes to live in us. Would it be unfair for God to tell old people who die that they lived long enough for their mistakes and bad judgments to add up and disqualify them? You need other Christians. It doesnt make us better people. First, we know that the molecules in our bodies will end up somewhere else, regardless of how our corpses are handled. I love Jesus with all my heart, cause I know how of the burden he took on for me and many other people.