Matthew 10:37-39:

Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.  (38)  And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.  (39)  Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

John 8:31-36:

(31)  So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples,  (32)  and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”  (33)  They answered him, “We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, ‘You will become free’?”  (34)  Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin.  (35)  The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever.  (36)  So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.

John 15:8-15:

By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.  As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love.  (10)  If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love.  (11)  These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.  (12)  “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.  (13)  Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.  (14)  You are my friends if you do what I command you.  (15)  No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.

A disciple of Jesus needs to CHOOSE to take up his cross and follow Jesus.  The purpose of a cross is to crucify something on.  We have to crucify our service to sin, or die to serving sin and choose to live to serve God.  That is what life in Christ is about.  We don’t have to make that choice, but once we do, we have to  follow Christ’s commands.

If a person considers surrender to Christ’s commands a violation of free will, that person has not understood Christ’s message.

If a person chooses not to follow Jesus’ teachings, that person must face the consequences.   Submission to Christ, actually sets us free – free from submission to sin.  We either serve God and Jesus or we serve sin.  One, through God’s grace, results in eternal life the other in eternal death.

Proverbs 1:28-33:

Then they will call upon me, but I will not answer; they will seek me diligently but will not find me.  (29)  Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD,  (30)  would have none of my counsel and despised all my reproof,  (31)  therefore they shall eat the fruit of their way, and have their fill of their own devices.  (32)  For the simple are killed by their turning away, and the complacency of fools destroys them;  (33)  but whoever listens to me will dwell secure and will be at ease, without dread of disaster.”

Why should we rely on scripture so much when written from Paul, such as Romans, Ephesians, Colossians? Wasn’t he just a human being who could have written on his own beliefs?

The witness of the resurrection of Jesus Christ is at the foundation of Christian faith. In the first century the evidence was in two parts:

1. This was “according to the Scriptures”.
2. There was strong evidence of the apostles whose whole lives were instantly turned around by their witness of the risen lord.

1 Corinthians 15:3-9  For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures,  (4)  that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,  (5)  and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve.  (6)  Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep.  (7)  Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles.  (8)  Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.  (9)  For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.

Rather than spell out these two arguments in full detail, I’ll look at how this foundation leads to confidence in the New Testament books left by the apostles. Do we imagine that God raised Jesus from the dead and then left the gospel message to be only passed down by hearsay to later generations? No, God left us with an inspired record, the New Testament written in the common language of the day, Greek. This added to the inspired Hebrew scriptures, the Old Testament.

Jesus foretold the miraculous power, the Holy Spirit, that he would give his apostles after he left them:

 John 16:13  When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.

It was this Holy Spirit promised by Christ that led to the writing of the New Testament.

There are claims in the New Testament of authority from Christ. Here are some examples:

Galatians 1:1-2  Paul, an apostle–not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead–  (2)  and all the brothers who are with me, …

1 Corinthians 11:23-25  For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread,  (24)  and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”  (25)  In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”

On the other hand when Paul is giving his own personal opinion he is careful to make that clear unless his readers mistook his words as from God:

1 Corinthians 7:10-12  To the married I give this charge (not I, but the Lord): the wife should not separate from her husband  (11)  (but if she does, she should remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband), and the husband should not divorce his wife.  (12)  To the rest I say (I, not the Lord) that if any brother has a wife who is an unbeliever, and she consents to live with him, he should not divorce her.

This is unusual. Normally Paul and the other apostles wrote, not their own personal opinions, but as God-appointed apostles with the Holy Spirit gift of prophecy.

A very practical way of testing the New Testament is to compare and contrast it with other works, both earlier by Jewish writers, and later by Christian writers. It immediately becomes apparent that the New Testament is vastly superior.

We do not know specifically what happened in the case of Esther, but there is no indication that she altered this practice.

(a) The Bible does not say that drinking alcohol is sinful in itself. The psalmist talks of God blessing mankind with wine to gladden the heart (Ps 104:15). Paul encourages Timothy to drink when to help his stomach (1 Tim 5:23). Jesus himself probably drank wine (Matt 11:19) and, of course, wine is one of the symbols Jesus gave his disciples to remember him by. So alcohol itself does not seem to be sinful.

(b) Alcohol can lead to sinful behaviour. Paul condemns some at the church at Corinth for dishonouring the breaking of bread service by getting drunk (1 Cor 11:21). Elsewhere Paul condemns drunkenness (Rom 13:13; 1 Cor 5:11; 6:10; Gal 5:21). Paul says drunkards are unsuitable for serving the church (1 Tim 3:3; Tit 1:7). In Eph 5:18 Paul warns that getting drunk leads to reckless living. It is drinking to excess that Paul condemns. Of course, this raises the question of how much is too much. The Bible does not explicitly answer this point but given that what Paul condemns is drunkardness leading to reckless living then we can suggest that it is the loss of control that is the problem. Alcohol reduces your inhibitions and may lead you to doing things you wouldn’t normally do. This loss of control is a problem as it may lead you into sinful behaviours.

(c) To some people alcohol (or certain types of alcohol) has negative associations. This, however, is rather subjective. For example some people thinking having a glass of sherry before dinner is fine but look down on beer. But it is just as easy (if not easier) to get durnk on sherry as with beer. Some people might think that the sort of people who drink beer are worse than the sort of people who drink sherry but those kinds of stereotypes are unrealistic and unhelpful.

In summary, the Bible does not condemn drinking alcohol in itself. Nor does it seems sensible to frown upon alcohol just because it is sometimes associated with sinful activities. However, drinking to excess is warned against in the Bible as it leads to a loss of control and other sinful behaviours. We can enjoy alcohol as a blessing from God but we must do so responsibly and not let it lead us into sin.

• 4 gospel accounts of the resurrection (Matt 28; Mark 16; Luke 24; John 20)
• Paul’s list of the resurrection appearances (1 Cor 15:3-11)
• Repeated statements by the apostles, recorded in Acts (3:15; 4:10; 10:41; 13:30)
• Repeated statements in the NT letters (Rom 4:24; 6:4; 7:4; 8:11; 10:9; Gal 1:1; Eph 1:20; Col 2:12; 1 Thes 1:10; 1 Pet 1:21)
• John’s vision of the risen Lord in Revelation (1:9-20)

The NT gives us repeated and consistent claims that Jesus rose from the dead.

How should we understand Gen 2:4-3:24?

There are several indications in the text that the passage is not a literal historical account:

(1)    No shrub had grown up when Adam was formed (Gen 2:5). But in Gen 1:12-13 plants were described as been created on the third day, three days before man and woman.

(2)    On the very day that Adam and Eve were formed, God planted an orchard and the plants were made with fruit already growing, because Adam was commanded which fruit he might and might not eat (Gen 2:8,9).

(3)    The animals and birds are described as being created after Adam was formed, but before Eve was formed (Gen 2:19). But in Gen 1:22-23 the birds are described as been created on the fifth day, a day before man and woman.

(4)    After God created them on that day, Adam named all the animals and birds. A very busy day indeed! And this was before Eve was formed on that same day. And then they were married that same day.

(5)    In Gen 2:12 the gold is described as pure. Why was gold important if there were not yet any people other than Adam?

(6)    The snake of Gen 3 could speak and reason. But this is unlikely to be literal because snakes are unable to speak and to reason. An animal that speaks is not a snake.

Of course it is possible to force answers to all these objections to a literal reading. However the natural reading of the text is to interpret this passage other than literally.

God has left us two books. These are God’s word, the Bible. And God’s work, his creation. We have already seen that a natural reading of God’s word does not encourage a literal interpretation. If we also look at the witness of God’s work, then it is also clear that the passage cannot be correctly understood literally for several reasons:

(1)    The first flowering plants are known to have existed about 140 million years ago, not 6000 years ago.

(2)    Ancient fossilised impressions from raindrops have been found.

(3)    Mammals were first seen early in the Jurassic period which was 200–145 million years ago.

(4)    Fossils of anatomically modern humans have been found about 200,000 years ago.

That is what the passage does not mean. What then does it mean? It contains spiritual principles :

(1)    The responsibility of humankind to care for the world.

(2)    The importance of marriage.

(3)    The relative positions of men and women. This may not suit modern ideas; but it is nevertheless an explanation.

(4)    Human sin leads to the sentence of death.

(5)    An implied prediction of the coming of Jesus Christ (Gen 3:15).

This list and these ideas could no doubt be extended.

When it says and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground, do you think it was blood and if so what was the meaning or symbol did this represent?

I think that this description, is referring to blood pigment in sweat, which very occasionally occurs in highly stressed people.  It is a condition called Hematidrosis.  See Wikipedia & The Free Dictionary.

Surprisingly, when I was a teenager, I had a boss who experienced this condition from time to time.  In Jesus’ case, no doubt the stress of a looming crucifixion, would be an explanation for why this happened, as we read in Matthew 26:39:

And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”

With regard to the symbology of this event, I think this was an event pointing forward to the shedding of Jesus’ blood.  It is a further illustration of the cost to Jesus of what he did for us, and the love he showed to us.

Matthew Henry (1662-1714) in his commentary on the Bible, has the following interesting comments:

That, in this agony, his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground. Sweat came in with sin, and was a branch of the curse, Gen 3:19. And therefore, when Christ was made sin and a curse for us, he underwent a grievous sweat, that in the sweat of his face we might eat bread, and that he might sanctify and sweeten all our trials to us.

How can I ask God to take away the thought of wanting to be rich? I have struggled financially all of my life and I have gotten to the point where I pray for winnings in the lottery. I don’t like thinking like this, so can you suggest a verse or prayer?

Probably the best way to overcome the desire to be rich, is to be content with what you have and constantly strive to focus on the blessing God has given you.  I know this is easier said than done, but it is achievable.

Paul says in 1 Timothy 6:6-10:

Now there is great gain in godliness with contentment,  (7)  for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world.  (8)  But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content.  (9)  But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.  (10)  For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.

Paul continues with the antidote to desiring to be rich in 1 Timothy 6:11.14:

(11)  But as for you, O man of God, flee these things. Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness.  (12)  Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.  (13)  I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who in his testimony before Pontius Pilate made the good confession,  (14)  to keep the commandment unstained and free from reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ

Some advice from the writer to the Hebrews – Heb 13:5:

Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

Some advice from Jesus – Matthew 6:31-34:

Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’  (32)  For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.  (33)  But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.  (34)  “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

Basically, it is a matter of being content and focussing on serving God.

I have been feeling spiritually empty. I mean I know God exists and Jesus died on the cross for my sins but recently I have been feeling this emptiness inside of me.  I desperately want to heal my spiritual faith in the Lord, it’s just I don’t know what to do.  I was brought up in a liberal catholic family who said you don’t need to go to church to get into heaven  but now I don’t know what to do to heal my spirit.  Is there a way to heal and restore the faith in my heart?

There is a way to heal and restore faith.   I think that many believers have bad times in their spiritual life, when their faith wavers.  For example, in Mark 9:24 we read about the father of an epileptic child. The father is struggling with his faith and cries to Jesus:   ”I believe; help my unbelief!”  I’m sure many of us can empathise with that father.  So what does the Bible say about faith?

Romans 10:13-17

For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”  (14)  How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?  (15)  And how are they to preach unless they are sent? … (17)  So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

To have faith, we have to hear the word of Christ.  I have personally found in my life, that when I neglect reading the Bible and praying to God, my faith fades, and conversely, when I focus more on listening to God through his word and praying to him, my faith is strengthened.  I feel this is a critical area of our spiritual life.  Practically, I have found using a Bible reading chart that takes the reader through the Old Testament once a year and the New Testament twice a year, very helpful.  But there are many good structured ways of reading God’s word.

You say your family says you don’t need to go to church to get into heaven – let’s have a look at what the Bible says.

Firstly, it is a common misconception that heaven is the place of reward – the Bible does not say this.  In fact the Bible says the opposite – see John 3:13 & Acts 2:34.  The place of reward is right here on earth – God will reward the faithful with immortality at the return of Christ, when he will raise the dead and all the faithful will receive immortality together. Hebrews 11:39-40; Revelation 5:9-10; Isaiah 2:2-4

Secondly, we read in Hebrews that we should not neglect to meet together – Hebrews 10:23-25:

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.  (24)  And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works,  (25)  not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

It is very important to meet with with people who believe the gospel, and very important to regularly remember what our Lord did for us by eating the bread and drinking the wine as the apostle Paul reminds us in 1 Corinthians 11:23-26:

For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread,  (24)  and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”  (25)  In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”  (26)  For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

We also get some good advice via the prophet Malachi – Malachi 3:16-18

Then those who feared the LORD spoke with one another. The LORD paid attention and heard them, and a book of remembrance was written before him of those who feared the LORD and esteemed his name.  (17)  “They shall be mine, says the LORD of hosts, in the day when I make up my treasured possession, and I will spare them as a man spares his son who serves him.  (18)  Then once more you shall see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve him.

In conclusion, our faith can be increased by humbly praying to God and seeking God, which involves reading God’s message to us.  I’ll list 2 passages from Scripture for you to think about, which I find very helpful:

Psalms 34:11-18

Come, O children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD.  (12)  What man is there who desires life and loves many days, that he may see good?  (13)  Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit.  (14)  Turn away from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.  (15)  The eyes of the LORD are toward the righteous and his ears toward their cry.  (16)  The face of the LORD is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth.  (17)  When the righteous cry for help, the LORD hears and delivers them out of all their troubles.  (18)  The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.

And the 2nd passage which is an overview of how a new Christian should live – Romans 6:1-18:

What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound?  (2)  By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?  (3)  Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?  (4)  We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.  (5)  For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.  (6)  We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin.  (7)  For one who has died has been set free from sin.  (8)  Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.  (9)  We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him.  (10)  For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God.  (11)  So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.  (12)  Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions.  (13)  Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness.  (14)  For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.  (15)  What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means!  (16)  Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?  (17)  But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed,  (18)  and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness.