Basic Christianity
What is the Bible all about?
In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. He created everything including time, space, matter, and energy. He created the earth, sun, moon, and stars. He created the plants, animals, angels, and human beings. Everything He made was good and perfect. There was no sin and no death.
He created Adam and Eve because He wanted companionship. He wanted us to live with Him and worship Him, by obeying Him. He gave Adam and Eve this opportunity by creating a forbidden tree in the center of Eden. By obeying this one command, He gave Adam and Eve the opportunity to show Him their love and appreciation for Him.
At some point in time, there was an angel, named Lucifer, who was full of pride and was overwhelmed with jealousy toward God. Lucifer was a beautiful and powerful angel, but instead of giving God thanks for these gifts he used them to attract a third of the angels to his side and led a rebellion against God. These angels waged a war in heaven against God but were defeated.
God cast Lucifer and the rest of the rebellious angels to death, but angels are not made of flesh and blood, they are spirits. So, God made a place, called Hell, specifically for Lucifer and these wicked angels. After the Day of Judgment, they will be locked up in this place for all eternity, as their punishment.
Meanwhile, Adam and Eve were living happily in the Garden of Eden, among the angels and animals, walking with God, and enjoying each other's company in a place of perfection. Everything was good. They only had one law: not to eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, for if they did, they would die.
One day, as Adam and Eve were enjoying the earth, they wandered toward the middle of the garden and saw a snake in the tree. This was no ordinary snake. This snake was possessed by Lucifer, the spirit angel who led a rebellion against God.
Having already lost one war, Lucifer was filled with hate toward God, but knew that he could never win a direct assault against Him, so he switched tactics. If he cannot harm God directly, he will hurt God by harming His children. So, Lucifer in the form of a snake, told Adam and Eve that they would not die from eating the fruit, but only become like God. After a short while, Lucifer convinced Adam and Eve to disobey.
Upon eating the fruit, death entered the world, just as God said it would. Thorns and thistles sprang up from the ground, while animals now had a desire to eat flesh. People also, could now die, but the death wasn't just physical death, it was a spiritual death as well. Adam and Eve now understood that their souls and their children’s souls were in danger of eternal death, to reside with Lucifer and his wicked angels in Hell, a place of fire and torment.
God explained to Lucifer who was still in the snake’s body.
“And I [God] will put hatred between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall crush your head, and you shall strike His heel.”
This is the first prophesy of Jesus Christ. God was telling Adam, Eve, and Lucifer that one day the seed of the woman (a human) would be born, and defeat Lucifer while at the same time be wounded himself.
As time went on, the people of the earth continued to become more wicked. Many of these people turned their backs on God altogether. It was an age of sin and violence. The people were killing each other, stealing from each other, lying to each other, and committing all kinds of unnatural sexual sins with one another. Lucifer and the rest of the evil angels (demons) knew that God was perfect and would not (nor could not) tolerate sin. So, these evil angels tempted the humans with anything and everything that was sinful. Whatever God loved…these evil angels hated. So, they put into the minds of people, all kinds of wicked and perverted desires to widen the gap between God and the people. It was a war between light and darkness, which continues till this day.
This sinning continued until there was only one family left on the whole earth who found favor with God. This was Noah's family, consisting of Noah, his wife, their three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth, and they each had a wife. Eight people total. God told Noah that because of man's wickedness, He was going to send a great flood, to kill all life on earth, both animals and people, but God told Noah to build an enormous boat so that he and his family could be saved along with two of every animal, so that the animals could repopulate the earth after the flood. God gave Noah time to build the ark and gave the people of the earth time to repent from their sins, but they did not. So, the flood came about 1656 years after the creation of the world, or around the year 2348 BC.
A few hundred years after the flood, God called a man named Abram to move from his homeland in Ur and settle in the land of Canaan. It was here that God made a number of promises to Abram. One was that Abram’s descendants would be more numerous than the stars. Another was that this land would be his children’s land, and that they would be a great nation.
But most importantly, God promised Abram that all the families of the earth would be blessed through his seed. This was a continuation of the promise that God gave Adam and Eve, a promise of Jesus, someone who would crush the serpent's head, therefore blessing all people on earth. God then changed the name of Abram and his wife to Sarah and Abraham.
A year later, Sarah gave birth to Isaac, and he grew into a young man.
Eventually, God spoke to Abraham again, to test his faith. God asked Abraham to sacrifice (kill) his only son, but just moments before Abraham was about to kill his son, an angel commanded Abraham to spare him.
As harsh as this might sound to our modern ears, God was testing Abraham.
Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his only son, was a type & shadow, pointing to how God was willing to sacrifice his only son, Jesus, for us and for our salvation.
Abraham’s son Isaac grew older, took a wife, and had a son, they named him Jacob. Jacob’s name was eventually changed by God to “Israel”. Israel married and had twelve sons. The 2nd from the youngest was named Joseph. Joseph’s brothers were jealous of him and the love that their father had for him and they were going to kill him but ended up selling him into slavery.
Joseph eventually found himself in Egypt as a slave, but he was successful in everything he did because he was blessed by God. After successfully saving Egypt from certain famine and starvation, Pharaoh promotes Joseph to the rank of 2nd in command, in all of Egypt. The famine eventually brings Joseph's brothers, their wives and children, and his father, to Egypt where they are provided for.
Generations later, a new king took control over Egypt, who did not know Joseph, and he enslaved the children of Israel for many generations. Feeling threatened by the vast number of Hebrew slaves, the king eventually gave orders to kill every baby boy born of the Hebrews. Despite this decree, a boy was spared this fate by being hidden in a floating basket, on the Nile.
The boy was found and taken out of the water by the Pharaoh’s daughter and raised as her own child. He was educated in Egyptian schools and was treated as royalty. They named him Moses. Moses committed murder and was forced to run from Pharaoh to the land of Midian, where he found a wife and stayed for many years.
One day, Moses noticed a bush burning on a nearby mountain, without being consumed. Moses climbed the mountain to investigate this strange sight. Here, God spoke to him through the bush. God told Moses to go back to Egypt and tell Pharaoh to let the Hebrew people leave Egypt. If Pharaoh would not listen, then there were certain miracles that God would perform through Moses. (It was also at this time that God revealed to Moses His name, which is "I AM WHO I AM".
So Moses went to Pharaoh demanding that his people be released from slavery and be allowed to leave Egypt. Pharaoh refused to do as God commanded, so God sent ten plagues upon Egypt to change his mind.
The 10th plague was the Angel of Death moving through Egypt, killing all the first-born males.
To avoid this death, God instructed His people, ahead of time, to wipe lamb's blood on the doorframes of their houses and stay inside eating a specific meal in a specific way.
This night became known as the Passover, for this was the night that the Angel of Death passed over the houses of the believers, sparing those people living inside who were trusting in the blood of the lambs.
This event also, points to Jesus, for it is His blood that we must trust, for He was / is the Passover lamb.
It was not until this last plague, with the passing of Pharaoh's son, that Pharaoh let the Hebrew people leave Egypt, and journey to their Promised Land.
God wanted the Israelites (Hebrews) to take possession of the land of Canaan. This was the land that God promised Abraham, all those many years earlier (about 400 years earlier). But upon seeing the wicked giants that inhabited the land, the Hebrews were filled with fear and refused to attack them. So, God punished them by sending them off into the wilderness for 40 years.
It was here in the wilderness, atop Mt. Sinai, that God gave Moses the 10 Commandments on two stone tablets.
1.You shall have no other Gods.
2.You shall not misuse the name of the Lord God.
3.Remember the Sabbath day to keep it Holy.
4.Honor your father and your mother.
5. You shall not Murder.
6.You shall not commit adultery.
7.You shall not steal.
8.You shall not bear false witness.
9.You shall not covet your neighbor's house.
10. You shall not covet your neighbor's wife, workers, animals, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.
As the Israelites walked throughout the wilderness they would often grumble against God and against Moses. On one of these occasions, God "sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and many of the people of Israel died." Some of them repented of their sin and asked Moses to pray to God. God then told Moses to make a bronze snake and hang it from a pole so that whoever would look to it would not die from the snakes.
This too was a prophesy pointing to Jesus, for John 3:14-16 tells us:
"And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life."
After the 40 years in the wilderness, Moses died, and the Israelites started to conquer the wicked nations of Canaan. At first, the people were governed by Judges, then they demanded a king. King Saul was their first king but later in his life, he too rejected God, so God raised up a new king. His name was King David, the same man who killed the mighty giant Goliath. It was prophesied that the Messiah (or Christ) was to be born through David's line.
Throughout Israel's history, God would raise up prophets to speak His Word and keep the people on the path of God.
Occasionally, these prophets would speak of a Messiah (Christ) who was to come, and they gave many detailed descriptions of what He would look like when He arrived.
This Messiah was to be a firstborn son. He would be born of a human woman, made pregnant while she was still a virgin. He would be born in the small town of Bethlehem, and at the time of His birth there would be a massacre of infants. We are also told that kings would bring Him gifts and fall down before Him.
We are told that David’s house (King David’s line) would be restored through Him. We are told that He would establish a new priesthood and would be a prophet like Moses. We are told that He would be sent from God. That the Spirit of the Lord would rest upon Him. That God Himself would dwell among the people.
This SON OF MAN / SON OF GOD would care for the poor and needy. He would instruct the people using parables and hidden meanings. He would be like a shepherd taking care of his flock. He would declare freedom to those oppressed. He would make the deaf hear and the blind see. He would be a healer, savior, and miracle worker.
And when He enters Jerusalem, He would do so as a King riding on a donkey.
But we are also told by the prophets that the rulers would take up council against Him, and that they would hate Him for no reason. Even His own people would hate Him. The people would mock and insult Him. But despite this He would pray for His enemies. Ultimately, He would be betrayed by a friend and sold for 30 pieces of silver.
He would have false witnesses lie about Him. He would be accused and afflicted, but not open His mouth. He would be beaten and spit upon. He would be mistreated to the point where He would be barely recognizable. He would be led like a lamb to the slaughter.
He would be forsaken by God. He would have His hands and feet pierced. He would be hung on a tree. He would be numbered with the transgressors (sinners). He would be despised and rejected. Soldiers would cast lots (play dice) for His clothing. He would be thirsty during His execution. He would be given gall and vinegar (sour wine) to drink. He would commit His Spirit into God’s Hands and die.
He would be buried with the rich (it was a rich man's tomb) and raised from the dead. He would conquer death through His resurrection (coming back to Life). He would swallow up death in a great victory. He would be the firstborn over all creation.
He would ascend on high. He would be David’s Son and yet David’s Lord. The government would be on His shoulders (meaning that all authority would be given to Him). He would be known as the Bread of Life and Prince of Peace. He is the Great I AM (The same name, God gave Moses at the burning bush in reference to Himself).
He would pour His Spirit out upon His people.
Today there are people who make the claim that Jesus did not perform these miracles and that the stories are just made up. In reality, there were thousands of people who witnessed these miracles. He was in plain view of everyone. This was the main reason for why His popularity was so intense. He had thousands of people following Him around, everywhere He went, watching and listening to everything He was doing. If the disciples were spreading false claims about Jesus, someone could have, and would have, spoken up and denied those accounts, but we have no evidence of that. Nor would the disciples have lied about His resurrection, as these men were tortured and died horrible deaths, that could have been avoided, had they simply recanted their beliefs about Jesus.
What does it mean to be a Christian?
To be a Christian, is to believe in the triune God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. A Christian understands that we are all sinful from birth and are by nature enemies to God. A Christian also understands that Jesus came down to earth to live a perfect life and die the death that we deserve. A Christian trusts in the forgiveness of Christ, as a free gift from God, for their eternal salvation. Knowing that this gift was undeserved, we Christians attempt to follow the teachings of Christ by obeying His Word, as a gesture of thanks for what He has done for us. Obedience to God is our act of worship. Preaching His Word is our joy and pleasure. We look forward to the return of Christ and our heavenly home.