so whats the deal with heaven then...

[>> Hannah <<]

all i will say is that im not sure if i believe or not.... i change my mind hourly...

im really confused about this....

can i be 100% certain that im going to heaven?

does a person only get into heaven on good deeds?

does believing in god get you into heaven alone?

is getting into heaven circumstancial?

even though my grandma didnt get baptised she did believe, will she be in heaven?

[Gerioke]

all i will say is that im not sure if i believe or not.... i change my mind hourly...

im really confused about this....

can i be 100% certain that im going to heaven?

does a person only get into heaven on good deeds?

does believing in god get you into heaven alone?

is getting into heaven circumstancial?

even though my grandma didnt get baptised she did believe, will she be in heaven?

I would leave those decisions to God and pray for mercy.

[>> Hannah <<]

this faith malarky is a right cop out you know

someone once said to me that they would rather live their life as though god exists to find out he doesnt, than to live their life as if there is no god to die and find out their is?

come on what were working towards is eternal life right, its not like god is saying believe in me and on your death bed you can have the hugest bowl of your favourite ice cream, he is offering us eternal life....

i dont wana go to hell, but i dont wana live my life for some invisible being that claims to have all power, yet sits back and lets thousands and thousands of innocent children die everyday

[tah]

Hannah, faith comes by hearing...and hearing by the word of God...

no malarkey involved...

Gal 3:22 But the Scripture imprisoned everything under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.

Gal 3:23 Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed.

Gal 3:24 So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith.

Gal 3:25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian,

Gal 3:26 for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.

Gal 3:27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

Gal 3:28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

Gal 3:29 And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise.

Does this help you see that faith is essential...out of faith we know we are His ...

Seek Him...clear your frustrations out of your mind and seek Him..He will speak to you..

Jam 1:5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.

It may take time but waiting on Him is well worth it..He has the words of life...

[>> Hannah <<]

faith annoys me, because it entails uncertainity and trust.... just frustrates me that we have to have faith to be saved.... its screwed up

Edited May 22, 2006 by >> Hannah <<

[Abigailwc]

faith annoys me, because it entails uncertainity and trust.... just frustrates me that we have to have faith to be saved.... its screwed up

The faith we need to be saved is the belief that God exists, that He is who He says He is and that, henceforth, we agree to make Him the master of our life and live for Him.

God will give us faith and help our faith to grow. We just have to trust Him and allow Him to work in and through us.

[>> Hannah <<]

can a person gain more faith? will god give someone more faith if they are faithful or do you think by somone exercising there faith in god with certain situations etc... there faith will grow stronger...

i seem to only have faith in god when everything i going great... or see him as my only hope when my world is crashing down around me...

bad bad attitude to have...

so screwed up...

[Abigailwc]

can a person gain more faith? will god give someone more faith if they are faithful or do you think by somone exercising there faith in god with certain situations etc... there faith will grow stronger...

i seem to only have faith in god when everything i going great... or see him as my only hope when my world is crashing down around me...

bad bad attitude to have...

so screwed up...

Hebrews 12:2 - looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

The more we learn from Him, the more we spend time with Him, the more we grow in Him and the bigger our faith will be.

[Guest NewPilgrim]

Hannah, you know as well as I do, that you will get opposing answers to your questions, depending on who answers them, but for what its worth, here is my reply:

can i be 100% certain that im going to heaven? The apostles can answer this questions with far more authority than I have:

Act 16:31 And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.

does a person only get into heaven on good deeds? No. Entry to heaven is a gift (Eph 2:8)

Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: [it is] the gift of God:

No amount of good deeds will lead to your salvation. Good works IN salvation will come as a result of believing in Jesus and having eternal life. They are the fruits of salvation and the evidence of it.

does believing in god get you into heaven alone? In principal yes, but because God is just and faithful, he ensures that his work in us is fruitful and complete. That means that when we have submitted completely to him and accepted his sacrifice, he begins a work of sanctification in us that produces works. Rare exceptions are those such as the thief on the cross who do not have time between repentance and death to do good works. It was belief alone which allowed him into Heaven

is getting into heaven circumstancial? I'm not sure what you mean by this, perhpas you have "unrepented sins" in mind thinking about the suicide posts that have upset you so much. The circumstance in which we are allowed into heaven is that we have accepted the sacrifice of Christ, having heard the gospel and believed it.

even though my grandma didnt get baptised she did believe, will she be in heaven? baptism is not essential for entry into heaven, despite the protestations of those who mistranslate John 3:5 ignoring the clear explanation in the following verse 6

[Guest NewPilgrim]

faith annoys me, because it entails uncertainity and trust.... just frustrates me that we have to have faith to be saved.... its screwed up

Its actually simple in premise and provision has been made for us by God:

Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: [it is] the gift of God:

Eph 2:9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

God provides everything we need for salvation, including the faith by which we are able to accept him.

Hbr 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

substance means something tangeable, something you can touch, see, hear, taste, smell.

evidence is likewise something real, something that you KNOW.

Faith in God comes not from vain hopes or uncertainties. Faith in God is the trust we place in someone we know to be real. Faith comes by revelation:

Matt 16:15 He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"

16 Simon Peter answered and said, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."

17 Jesus answered and said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.

We are required by faith to trust that Gods will is sovereign and just. That is the only uncertainty we have in faith, that what we WANT is not always what God desires for us.But knowing that God is faithful, we can be sure that what ever befalls us, we are able to endure and overcome it by submission to God.

1Cr 10:13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God [is] faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear [it].

___________________________________________________

can a person gain more faith? will god give someone more faith if they are faithful or do you think by somone exercising there faith in god with certain situations etc... there faith will grow stronger...

Luke 17:5 And the apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith."

6 So the Lord said, "If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, 'Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,' and it would obey you. 7 And which of you, having a servant plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, 'Come at once and sit down to eat'? 8 But will he not rather say to him, 'Prepare something for my supper, and gird yourself and serve me till I have eaten and drunk, and afterward you will eat and drink'? 9 Does he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded *him? I think not. 10 So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, 'We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.'"

When asking for increased faith, Jesus explained to the apostles that whatever perception we have of our faith, what we have is sufficient. The parable of the servants illustrates that the apostles were likening increase of faith as some kind of reward for obedience, Jesus points out that reward will come to us in the rest after we have served him. The rest being our eternal life with him.