The Bible Explained, part 38/40: Appendix A: Questions and Answers

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THE BIBLE EXPLAINED

A Guide to the Holy Bible
for Parents and Teenagers

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Where did you come from?
What is your purpose?
What happens when you die?

These questions--and more--are answered in 'The
Bible Explained', which is based on the teachings
of the Holy Bible. The Holy Bible is a collection
of ancient books which claim to be the word of the
one and only God. This one and only God claims to
be the sole creator, owner, and sustainer of all
things; he further claims to hold the one and only
key to eternal life. Are these claims true? Get
the facts and then decide for yourself.

This document is meant to be understood by everyone,
and is therefore written in plain, simple language,
avoiding complex religious jargon.

Understand the Bible like never before.

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Introduction
Quest for Truth
The Holy Bible
Origin and Destiny
The Big Picture: Good and Evil
The Story of Man
The Purpose of the Earth
The Standard and the Test
Work: The Key to Success and Life
Pyramid Society
Failure of Man
Male and Female
Family Relationships
Marriage and Family
Sexual Immorality
The Value of Life
Multiplication and Overpopulation
Racism
Creation and Evolution
Government
Politics
Justice
Words, Speech, and Censorship
Church Matters
Monotheism, Jews, and Christians
Temptation
The Nature of Evil
Life and Death of Satan
Reincarnation
The Rapture
The End Times
The Near Future
Preparing for the Future
Groups and Labels
Understanding Judgement
Preparing for Death
Conclusion
Appendix A: Questions and Answers
Appendix B: The Ten Commandments
Appendix C: Marriage

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TITLE: "The Bible Explained"
AUTHOR: "Arrant Knave"
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Appendix A: Questions and Answers

Q1: What is God?
A1: God is the creator, owner, and sustainer of all things. To create is to bring forth something from nothing. (Man does not create, but merely manipulates that which has already been created.) God is the author and originator of all things. All law and order and wisdom come from God.

Q2: If God made all things, did he also make Satan?
A2: Yes, but not directly. God is perfect; and all things which issue from God are likewise perfect. God created the angels perfect and gave them freewill. Lucifer, one of the angels, used his freewill to rebel against God, thus earning the titles of the Adversary and Satan.

Q3: Why did God make man?
A3: God desires companions comparable to himself. God made man in his image, then said: "It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper (wife) comparable (equal) to him." [Genesis 2:18] God later describes himself as a husband seeking a wife (followers) from among men. Here is the relationship between a man and his wife: "Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh." [Genesis 2:24] God gave man marriage as a foreshadow of things to come: After the Day of Judgement, God will marry his faithful followers and they will live happily ever after in the restored creation (eternity).

Q4: Why does God desire a "wife"?
A4: God desires love, the love of his people -- just as a man desires the love of his wife.

Q5: How does one become a "wife" to God?
A5: By keeping his ways. Start with the Ten Commandments. See Exodus 20:1-17 or Deuteronomy 5:6-21 for a list of the Ten Commandments.

Q6: What is the purpose of life?
A6: To acquire knowledge. What knowledge? The knowledge of good and evil, so that we may choose one over the other. Good leads to life eternal; evil leads to death eternal. Life is awareness; death is unawareness. Note that we cannot choose both life and death, since the two are mutually exclusive.

Q7: Why are we here?
A7: To choose between life and death. Death comes to every man -- unless he chooses life instead. Man possesses temporary life, but has the opportunity to obtain life eternal -- that is, everlasting life. Life eternal comes through the keeping of the commandments of God: "You shall therefore keep My statutes and My judgements, which if a man does, he shall live by them: I am the LORD." [Leviticus 18:5] "But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments." [Matthew 19:17]

Q8: What is life?
A8: Life is immortality; to live is to be in eternity; eternity is heaven; to be in heaven is to be in the presence of God. Immortality is a gift from God -- it cannot be earned. One proves himself worthy of immortality by keeping the commandments of God -- not grudgingly, but willingly. (Note: For lack of a better term, 'immortality' is used loosely: God alone is immortal -- having no beginning and no end; man, on the other hand, has a beginning and, therefore, can never be immortal, but he can inherit life eternal, which is sometimes referred to as 'immortality' -- not subject to death.)

Q9: What is heaven?
A9: Heaven is life eternal in the presence of God; heaven is a kingdom ruled by God. A kingdom is defined by its laws: When in the kingdom of America, one must abide by the laws of America; when in the kingdom of China, one must abide by the laws of China; when in the kingdom of God, one must abide by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. There is one notable difference between the kingdoms of men and the kingdom of God: In the kingdom of God, it is impossible to break the laws of God. Hence, the kingdom of God (heaven) is the most undesirable place to lawbreakers. The Ten Commandments is a simple test to determine a person's worthiness for life in heaven: If you fail to keep ten simple rules for a short time on the earth, how will you fare in eternity -- where one must forever abide by every word which proceeds out of the mouth of God?

Q10: What is hell?
A10: Hell is death eternal; hell is the Second Death. (There are two deaths: the First Death, which is the death of the flesh; and the Second Death, which is the death of the spirit. The First Death is temporary, since it bears a resurrection; the Second Death is permanent, since it bears no resurrection -- ever.) To suffer death eternal is to be completely out of existence forever; to be permanently unaware of anything; to be as if one has never been. That which God has no use for, he casts into hell. Hell is often viewed as a lake of fire: If you cast a man into a lake of fire, he is reduced to ashes; he is no longer a man; he is no longer alive; he is no longer aware of anything; he has gone out of existence forever. The lake of fire is symbolic, not literal. Hell is often confused with the Day of Judgement, however, they are not the same thing. In the Day of Judgement, one will be judged and recompensed for his every thought, word, and deed which he has committed while he was in the flesh. After the Judgement, then one enters either heaven or hell. Heaven is life eternal in the presence of God; hell is death eternal. Contrary to popular belief, hell is not an everlasting fire or a place of eternal torment. The LORD is the God of justice and mercy: Is it just or merciful to punish someone forever for committing a few short years of sin? I think not. Besides, why would God waste his time and energy maintaining something (an eternal fire) for which he has no use? Some have claimed that hell is eternal separation from God, however, how can one be separated from God when he is everywhere? "Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend into heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there." [Psalm 139:7-8] There is no existence apart from God; nothing can exist without God, since God is in all things, being the only creator and sustainer of all things: "For in Him we live and move and have our being." [Acts 17:28] "...and upholding all things by the word of His power." [Hebrews 1:3]

Q11: What is the path to heaven?
A11: The path to heaven is the Ten Commandments coupled with the spirit of love. The spirit of love is selfless benevolence. Most people believe that they will make it into heaven, however, this is not the case: "Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it." [Matthew 7:13-14] As you can see, people tend to have an inflated opinion of their own goodness; but God judges the heart: "Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the LORD weighs the hearts." [Proverbs 21:2] What is the 'heart'? The heart is the intent or motive of a word or deed. You may intend to do evil to someone, but it turns out good; likewise, you may intend to do good to someone, but it turns out bad: Nevertheless, God judges the intent -- not the result.

Q12: What is the path to hell?
A12: Simple: Do nothing; everyone goes to hell -- unless we choose heaven instead. How do you choose heaven? Simply ask God for entrance; but remember that no one comes to the Father except through the Word of God. In heaven, one must abide by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. If you want to get into heaven, learn the word of God; then decide whether or not you want to keep the word of God while on the earth and forever in eternity. If so, keep the word and ask God for entrance into heaven via a simple request, such as: 'LORD God, from this day forward I will keep your Ten Commandments so that I may receive life eternal in your presence.' You must make your intention known to God, since he will not force life on anyone. God never uses force; God always gives choice.

Q13: Why did God give man freewill and then impede his freedom by giving him restrictive commandments?
A13: The purpose of the commandments of God is twofold: Firstly, to prevent men from hurting themselves and others; secondly, to enable men to enjoy the gifts of God to their fullest extent.

Q14: What is the purpose of the law of God?
A14: The purpose of the law of God is to test men to determine who is worthy of life and who is worthy of death. Remember that life is heaven, and death is hell; and that heaven is an eternal kingdom ruled by God. If a kingdom is to endure forever, it must be built on infallible law and order: Only a perfect lawgiver can issue perfect laws -- the foundation of an everlasting kingdom. God alone is perfect. That which is built on lawlessness and chaos will not endure forever, but will eventually come to destruction.

Q15: Why does God permit evil?
A15: God permits evil in order to test the hearts of men -- to determine if they are worthy of life or death. Satan the devil -- God's adversary -- is used by God to test men (see the book of Job for an illustration). The devil is nothing more than an instrument in the hand of God. After the devil has served his purpose, God will destroy him -- and his followers.

Q16: Why do bad things happen to good people?
A16: According to God, no one is good: "No one is good but One, that is, God." [Matthew 19:17] Since we are all sinners through Adam, we are all worthy of death: "The soul who sins shall die." [Ezekiel 18:20] As sinners, we have no right to life; we live only by God's grace: God has given us a grace period in which we may choose to repent (return to God by keeping his commandments) of our sin, so that we may be reconciled to God and receive life eternal in his presence.

Q17: If God is good, why do bad things happen?
A17: Bad things, such as natural disasters, occur because the universe is in an imperfect (fallen, unstable) state as a consequence of Adam's sin. God also uses natural disasters as judgements upon men's sins.

Q18: What does God expect of man?
A18: Thus says the word of God: "And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways and to love Him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments of the LORD and His statutes which I command you today for your good?" [Deuteronomy 10:12-13] "He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?" [Micah 6:8] God made man; and God knows his abilities. God never asks a man to do something without first providing him the wherewithal to accomplish it: "No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it." [1 Corinthians 10:13] Man fails to keep the laws of God because, when faced with a decision, it is man's first instinct to take the path of least resistance -- rather than the path of righteousness: "God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes." [Ecclesiastes 7:29]

Q19: Why does God have so many "oppressive" rules?
A19: All of God's laws are designed for one purpose: To prevent you from hurting yourself and others. You see, God is currently in the process of perfecting his creation; and a perfect creation requires perfect laws, both physical and spiritual. Only that which is perfect will enter into eternity; all other things will suffer eternal destruction before eternity begins. Unless you agree to submit to God's perfect laws, you will suffer death eternal. If anything imperfect enters into eternity, the creation will once again become corrupt (the creation previously became corrupt when evil, through Lucifer's rebellion, entered into it). God has only one law in heaven: Do no harm or destruction, which, incidentally, is the law of love. "They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain (kingdom), for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea." [Isaiah 11:9]

Q20: Who made God?
A20: No one made God. God is immortal. God has always been and will always be. God had no beginning and God has no end. We exist in a fallen creation which is subject to decay ending in death, and therefore it is natural for us to think in terms of beginnings and ends; and it is difficult for us to grasp the immortal and eternal. Although the universe is currently in a state of decay, it was initially created perfect and will eventually be restored to its initial state of perfection. The current state of decay is nothing more than a temporary aberration. This temporary state of decay is designed for the benefit of man -- that men may die and not forever remain in their fallen state in which their flesh bodies are subject to pain, sickness, disease, ageing, and physical laws.

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The above book is available for purchase at:

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Search for:
TITLE: "The Bible Explained"
AUTHOR: "Arrant Knave"
ISBN-10: "1468197061"
ISBN-13: "9781468197068"

Or try this direct link:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Bible-Explained-Parents-Teenagers/dp/1468197061

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The above excerpt from 'The Bible Explained' is copyright
2010 by Arrant Knave. All rights reserved. No part of this
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All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are
taken from the New King James Version (R). Copyright (C)
1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights
reserved.

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