Please enlighten me about Christianity.?

Question

Firstly, no offence to Christians, but what I am about to ask might offend some of you. If you still want to continue reading, please do.

#1. Who is God in Christianity? Some say its Jesus, some say its Jehovah.

ok, fine, if its Jehovah. We'll sub Jehovah as 'God' (like, Let X be God)

#2- If God is god, then who is Jesus? Some say he's the son of God. In Islam, Jesus is a Prophet (PBUH)

#3- If he is Son of God, that means God gave birth? God and Mary.... (omg, I am SO not going there!!!) or how do you explain "SON of GOD"???

#4- Is your god omnipotent?

#5- Why are there so many bibles around? What's the difference between bibles? Who compiled the bible?

#6- Why was the Testament allowed to be edited? Old and new- if it was the word of god, who gave people permission to change its contents and declare them as they wish?

Thanks for your interest, I appreciate it very much :)

Seeing the answers I get, I can make 3 inferences.

#1- Christian faith is divided; i.e. many people claim many different things, based on what they learn

#2- Christians believe God is omnipotent and omniscient. One person commented that the Holy Trinity was due to God wanting to put himself in 3 places, and compared it to a human- whose being is in three places- physical, spiritual and soul. My question to you is: If God is omnipotent and omniscient, why would he need to put himself in three places? Doesn't that defeat the purpose of being omniscient and omnipotent itself?

#3- The bible should be collectively called "Bibles", seeing the numerous versions of Bibles around, i.e. Revised Standard Version, King James Version, New International Version, Living Bible Version, Good News Bible. Which bible is which? Why should there be "revised versions" for an original god sent work? Assuming human beings made those "revised versions", is it safe to say that their reliability as The Word of God is questionable?

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"Basically Jesus is the physical manifestation of God."- Ok, this is agreed with regard to holy trinity. "God would rather spend three days in hell.Then spend the rest of time without us.So he came to us in the physical."- Now this puzzles me. If god made hell and adam and eve, everything, yada yada, Why the HELL would he want to go to hell to "suffer" for his people? Excuse me, but if MY god were to do that, I'd think he's rather stupid. Furthermore, what is the purpose of being a Christian? Is it to do more good deeds on earth and achieve heaven? If that is the case, then WHATEVER FOR would god send himself to hell and make (sic) part of himself (sic) suffer in hell for 3 days?

Whatever the hell for?

Aren't humans supposed to ph34r God (sorry, culdn't resist tt :p) and do good deeds to get into heaven?

Why would "God" (in e christian sense) want to make himself suffer for his people? Arent people supposed to suffer for HIM?

Geez.

Answer 1

1.) God is in three persons...not three gods but three persons....God, The Son, and the Holy Spirit.

2.) Jesus is also God; in human form, that is.

3.) No, God did not give birth. Mary was pregnant by the Holy Spirit and NOT through sexual intercourse. Remember that she was a virgin when she was pregnant with Jesus.

4.) Yes He is.

5.) The reason for so many Bibles is because it needs to be translated into different languages which started in the 17th century when the Bible was first translated into English and this Bible was known as the King James Version or KJV for short (during the reign of the English King James). Protestant Reformer Martin Luther translated the Bible from Latin into German so the common German folk could read it, too.

It spawned editions such as the NIV (New International Version...the easiest to read in my opinion) and the NKJV (the New King James Version, which is what is on my nightstand).

6.) It wasn't edited. God's Word is the same today. It's just that Jews do not recognize the New Testament and the Catholic Church decided to add some unrelated stuff called the "Apocrypha" (it is wise to note that it comes from the adjective "apocryphal," meaning "doubtful"...in my opinion, the Apocrypha is NOT the word of God).

Answer 2

1. According to Christianity, Christ, the Holy Spirit, and Jehovah are the three faces of God. They are one God, together.

2. Jesus is God, as well as the son of God. It's the concept of Trinity, spoken of in answer #1.

3. Mary gave birth to Jesus. Again, Jesus is both Son of God, and God.

4. Christians believe God to be omniscient and omnipotent.

5. There are basically about three different Bibles, but a number of different translations. There is the Protestant version, the Catholic version, and at least one older Orthodox version. The differences are relatively minor, with the Protestant version eliminating the intertestemental books, such as Maccabbes (sp?). The much rarer version contains some books that were not included when the Roman Catholic Canon was created. I don't remember the name.

6. The old and new testaments weren't "edited". Many books existed, but did not exist as a "Bible" or authorized collection of books. The Church decided which, among very many books would constitute the library of books called the Bible.

The only editing that takes place comes in deciding the meanings of specific words from the original tongues. Many words can have multiple meanings. Many concepts described in early writings are foreign to modern readers. One has to decide with translation how best to convey the actual meanings.

There are a number of translational tools which lead to different "versions" of a translated text. Some language is meant to be poetic, so a translator will attempt to keep the poetic feel. Some readers wish a word-for-word translation, and some an idea-for-idea translation. Reading a work in it's original tongue might be best, but not all readers are equipped to do so. This is the reason for multiple translations. They are not changes in scripture, but a presentation of scripture based on certain assumptions.

It's much like the Tao Te Ching. There are many different translations, but it's the result of there not being a perfect correlation between the original and translated tongue. It's impossible to capture all of the subtleties of the original language in another language, so multiple translations offer glimpses, and hopefully in reading these, one can come to a better understanding.

Answer 3

Ok, I will do my best for you. Hope this helps.

1. The word "Christian" comes from the Greek word christianos which is derived from the word christos, or Christ, which means "anointed one." A Christian, then, is someone who is a follower of Christ. The first use of the word "Christian" in the Bible is found in Acts 11:26, "And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch." It is found only twice more in Acts 26:28 and 1 Pet. 4:16. However, it is important to note that it is the true Christ that makes someone a Christian, not the Mormon one (brother of the devil), or the JW one (Michael the Archangel), the New Age Jesus (a man in tune with the divine Christ Consciousness), etc. The true Christ is God in flesh (John 1:1,14; 20:28; Col. 2:9; Phil. 2:5-8; Heb. 1:8): Jesus.

2. God, Jesus & the Holy Spirit. The word "trinity" is not found in the Bible. Nevertheless, it is a word used to describe one fact the Bible teaches about God: Our God is a Trinity. This means there are three persons in one God, not three Gods. The persons are known as the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit and they have all always existed as three separate persons. The person of the Father is not the same person as the Son. The person of the Son is not the same person as the Holy Spirit. The person of the Holy Spirit is not the same person as the Father. If you take away any one, there is no God. God has always been a trinity from all eternity: "From everlasting to everlasting, Thou art God" (Psalm 90:2).

God is not one person who took three forms, i.e., the Father who became the Son, who then became the Holy Spirit. This belief is known today as the "Jesus Only Movement". It is taught by the United Apostolic and United Pentecostal churches, and is an incorrect teaching. Nor is God only one person as the Jehovah's Witnesses, the Way International, and the Christadelphians teach (These groups are classified as non-Christian cults). For proof that there is more than one person in the Godhead, see the Plurality Study.

The Bible says there is only one God. Yet, it says Jesus is God (John 1:1,14); it says the Father is God (Phil. 1:2); and it says the Holy Spirit is God (Acts 5:3-4). Since the Son speaks to the Father, they are separate persons. Since the Holy Spirit speaks also (Acts 13:2), He is a separate person. There is one God who exists in three persons.

3. Son of God, This is a title of Jesus. It implies His deity (John 5:18) because the title is one of equality with God. In the OT it was figuratively applied to Israel (Exo 4:22). In the NT it is applied to Christ (Luke 1:35). It has many facets, for example: It shows that He is to be honored equally with the Father (John 5:22-23). That He is to be worshiped (Matt. 2:2,11; 14:33; John 9:35-38; Heb. 1:6); called God (John 20:28; Col. 2:9; Heb. 1:8); prayed to (Acts 7:55-60; 1 Cor. 1:1-2).

4. Yes, God is omnipotent and is an attribute of God alone. It is the quality of having all power (Psalm 115:3). He can do all things that do not conflict with His holy nature. God has the power to do anything He wants to.

5. There is only one Bible. However, there are many versions of the Bible; examples NIV, KJV, ASB. It is also important to know what the word canon means. Canon is another word for scripture. The Canon consists of the 39 books of the Old Testament and the 27 books of the New. The Canon is closed which means there is no more revelation to become Scripture.

6. The New & Old Testaments are not edited so to speak. The Canon is closed which means there is no more revelation to become Scripture. If you look at a Kings James Version and then look at a New International Version you will find the words are different. However the meaning is the same. Helping to bring more of God's children to His Truth.

May God Bless and Keep you in all you do.

Answer 4

1- I believe God as the father and Jesus as the some. Seperate but related, literally one from the other, Jesus a part of God, the Holy Spirit a part of God completing the Holy Trinity.
2- Here is an analogy... a man is looking at some ants building an anthill, but sees that the anthill is doomed since he knows the ground they are building on is unstable. Wishing he could warn them he realizes the only way to communicate to them would be to becom an ant. Jesus is God's way to communicate with us, it's His Son whom He sent to help us understand God, and eventually to save us.
3- Again, I think the term "son" and "father" were the best explanations for the relationship that God could give us.
4- Yes, I believe He can do all things, one of those things he did was to give us a free will, in other words He allows us to choose our own paths.
5- The earliest text was the Septaguent (I butchered the spellin) it is regarded as the prototext or earliest text. Several groups convened to canonize the Bible (Decide what books are included) and it is a matter of faith to believe what we have is God inspired and what He wanted for us. Since Hebrew and Greek don't directly translate into English, you have different versions, but in almost every version the central truths are the same.
6- I suppose God could have waived his hand and given us the Bible but that's not how God works. God yearns to have a relationship with us... thus the Bible was a project God used man for. The development of it inspired and guided by God in relation with man. To me that makes it more sacred.

** I'm not an expert, but I'm confident in my faith... I hoped in some way this helped, let me know if you'd like to discuss anything further.

Answer 5

Well, the religion can be very complicated (if you try going through the Bible and such), but to put it simply, Christianity involves you having a personal relationship with God through prayer (talking with Him). It also means following His laws (basically, the Golden Rule: Treat others as you'd like to be treated!). Being a Roman Catholic, let's see how I can do with these questions...

1. God is a bit of a mystery, but He is our Father and He is somewhere out there watching over us. The Bible never truly describes Him in detail physically, but He is basically omnipresent and all knowing.

2. It's a bit complicated... But the Holy Trinity is sometimes seen as the one God (God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit). But according to the Bible, Jesus is God's son, sent to Earth. So He's more than a prophet. He said He was part of God as one, but it's tricky to say whether They're separate or one entity.

3. Oh my, don't want to go there... Mary was called the Virgin Mary, she conceived through "immaculate conception." Basically the power of the Holy Spirit and God allowed her to become pregnant, as opposed to the natural way most people do it.

4. According to the Bible, yes, and I believe it's true.

5. Well there's the one Bible, containing the many books. There wasn't *one* true author, but a bunch of people from the Biblical times (such as some of the Apostles and such) wrote down what had happened and these writings were compiled to form the Bible. The Church eventually chose which writings to include, so some were left out (Judas' writings, for example).

6. Another tricky question... Well, the Old Testament includes all the events before Jesus, and the New Testament starts with Jesus' birth. So they're both different, in chronological order. People wrote everything you read in the books, not God Himself, so that might explain any changes that might occur, or any ommissions (like how I mentioned earlier that not all the writings were included).

Christianity can be pretty complicated, but try thinking of it as finding God through prayer and building a relationship with Him, while living by the Golden Rule, and that's the main philosophy behind it (at least, that's what I believe). Hope this helps!

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"Aren't humans supposed to ph34r God (sorry, culdn't resist tt :p) and do good deeds to get into heaven?

Why would "God" (in e christian sense) want to make himself suffer for his people? Arent people supposed to suffer for HIM?"

We are suppose to sacrifice and suffer for Him, but He loves us enough to suffer for us. He is the Creator, and He is our Father, meaning there is a relationship there with him akin to a parent-child relationship. He sacrificed Himself and such as a parent would for their child- out of love. In return, we show our love, following His will and praying to Him.

Answer 6

1. God is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; He is Yahweh, the "I AM" that led Moses. He has many names, but He is the only God.

2. Jesus is the son of God in that God himself came to Earth in human form.

3. Yes, Mary was impregnated by the Holy Ghost, so to speak. The conception was immaculate and the birth a virgin birth, meaning there was no intercourse involved. It was a miracle.

4. Yes, God is omnipotent.

5. The main difference between Bibles is translations. Ask a group of bilingual Spanish/English speakers for a translation of a paragraph, for example, and you'll get a number of different responses with the same gist. The Bible has been translated so many times into many languages and dialects and even been changed linguistically so modern people can understand the ancient texts.

6. The books of the Bible were not copyrighted. Anyone who wants to can make a translation of the Bible and edit it however they want, but the body of Christ (the church) keeps a pretty good hold on it. I'm sure God watches out for the sanctity of His holy word.

God bless you!

Answer 7

The Christian God is a Triune God, one God revealed in three personalities; the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

The name Jehova refers to the Father, while Jesus of course is the Son. The terms "Son of God" and "Son of Man" are messianic terms refering to Jesus.

Jesus and God are one in the same. Jesus is God.

God is not only omnipotent, meaning all powerful; but He is also omniscient, meaning all knowing; and omnipresent, meaning He is everywhere at the same time.

Reason for so many Bibles is because of translations. When you translate a word from Greek to English, it can be translated a number of different ways. For example, the Greek word "lego" can be translated I say; I am saying, I speak, I am speaking. All those translations are correct, so you can see where different translators may come to slightly different translations. Than there's also different ways of tranlating. The King James Bible translate word for word, whereas the NIV Bible translate idea for idea. Than there's modern language Bibles and paraphrased Bibles. The books that are in the Bible are those books that were inspired by the Holy Spirit.

The Bible wasn't edited. I've seen some of the earliest manuscripts, and they are virtually identical to todays copies. The big problem today is that most people believe novels like the DiVinci Code, which is full of lies. You can trust today's Bibles as being the Word of God.

I just want to say something to Dan C. Jesus didn't go to Hell during the three days He was in the tomb. Hell is a realm that will be used at the end of the ages, after the White Throne Judgment. If you remember what Jesus said to the thief on the Cross; "Today you will be with Me in Paradise". Paradise was a part of Hades where the Old Testament Saints were kept awaiting Jesus' sacrifice on the Cross. When He died, He went to Paradise, and broght the saints to Heaven.

Answer 8

Jehovah is God. Jesus is his only begotten son, born of a virgin. She conceived by means of the Holy Spirit. Yes God is EVERYTHING. The reason there are so many different bibles and beliefs is because they want to change what the bible really says. And instead of living by what God says, they live to suit themselves. Men gave themselves the right to tamper with the word of God. But you can get study guides to help with the actual translations. I know I didn't answer all your questions, but I'm still learning the truth myself.

Answer 9

Who is God in Christianity.He is the all knowing,all seeing,and loving Father.No matter what,he loves us.Jehovah is just German for the Hebrew "YHWH."When God revealed himself to Moses he said his name is 'I AM THAT I AM =yhwh."
Basically Jesus is the physical manifestation of God.God would rather spend three days in hell.Then spend the rest of time without us.So he came to us in the physical.To teach us to love one another.An to die for our sins( guess where he spent the three days...hell.)But had to be born of a human women.A free will thing.If just plain showed up,as he is.We would have no choice,but to believe.He would prefer we came of free will,not force.
Yes he is all powerful.But he loves enough not to force himself on us.
The Bible was compiled of books that was actually there.Some books were left out because they were written centuries after wards.

Answer 10

This question (and others from argumentative types) seems to ignore the fact that Jehovah God Himself has selected Christ for special privileges and honor. Jehovah's Witnesses believe that the Scriptures alone quite plainly demonstrate that Jesus and the Almighty are separate distinct persons, and the Almighty created Jesus as His firstborn son.

(Colossians 1:15) the firstborn of all creation

(Mark 10:18) Jesus said to him: 'Why do you call me good? Nobody is good, except one, God.

(Revelation 3:14) the Amen says, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation by God

(Philippians 2:5-6) Christ Jesus, who, although he was existing in God's form, gave no consideration to a seizure, namely, that he should be equal to God

(John 8:42) Neither have I come of my own initiative at all, but that One sent me forth

(John 12:49) I have not spoken out of my own impulse, but the Father himself who sent me has given me a commandment as to what to tell and what to speak

(John 14:28) I am going my way to the Father, because the Father is greater than I am

(1 Corinthians 15:28) But when all things will have been subjected to him, then the Son himself will also subject himself to the One who subjected all things to him

(Matthew 20:23) this sitting down at my right hand and at my left is not mine to give, but it belongs to those for whom it has been prepared by my Father

(1 Corinthians 11:3) I want you to know that the head of every man is the Christ; ...in turn the head of the Christ is God

(John 20:17) I am ascending to my Father and your Father and to my God and your God.

(Deuteronomy 6:4) Jehovah our God is one Jehovah

(1 Corinthians 8:4-6) There is no God but one. For even though there are those who are called "gods," whether in heaven or on earth, just as there are many "gods" and many "lords," there is actually to us one God the Father, out of whom all things are, and we for him

Thanks again for an opportunity to share what the bible actually says about the distinct persons of Jesus Christ the Son and Jehovah God the Father!

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