I need a large amount of help

[Fraction]

I apologize if this post is in the wrong section. You can feel free to move it, and sorry for causing you to do so.

My name is Justin, and I am confused about my faith.
This all started roughly two days ago when I looked into the whole May 21st 2011 theory. I know to most of you this might seem a bit funny that it got under my skin a lot. However it did strike a fear into me. When I read about it, I immediately wanted to repent and find redemption. I wanted to make things right with god. The sad part is, is that its out of fear of going to hell and fear of not being accepted by rapture.

I am trying, I am praying, I am talking with friends about this issue. I want to believe in god and jesus. I dont want to go to hell. I want to live forever and go to heaven. I want to be able to lean on god when I need him. I dont want to live in fear of rapture or hell.

Is it wrong to seek god and believe in god and jesus because you do not want to go to hell?

If I am left behind after rapture, am I locked out of heaven forever?

I am scared. I dont have access to higher council at the moment. I need help. I came here because I need people who know and love god. I want to believe. I believe that I need him for more reasons than to not go to hell. I just cant see it. Im blinded by fear. Thank you so much all who read and respond.

 

[David777]

Dear Fraction.

Belief in Jesus Christ is the required step you must take.

Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies,... (John 11:25, NASB)

This is a quote from John in the New Testament. Jesus is the life, there is no other life. Everything you need to know about Jesus in contained in the New Testament, start with the Gospel of Luke.

Seek Jesus and you will find Him.

 

[::PreciousinChrist::]

Dear Justin,

Your situation reminded me of a similiar situation that I had gone through a year ago.. I remember being so afraid of going to hell and it was all heavy.. I was deeply confused but the LORD Jesus delivered me and as you read the following may you find peace, strength, hope and joy!

Everything has been made right between you and God by the LORD Jesus Christ (1 Tim 2:5). Praise God, all you need to do is repent of your sins believing that Jesus Christ has taken all your sins forever upon Him and that God has raised Jesus Christ from the dead!( Romans 10:9) You are not accepted through rapture! You are accepted by God through the blood of Jesus Christ.The blood of the Son of God. ( Eph 1:6)
I also want you to know that you were raised up together with Christ ( Eph 2:6) and so now "..neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate (you) from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord".(Rom 8:38-39).


You must rebuke that spirit of confusion that's making you think that you are going to hell... it has no right to tell you that! hit that thing...get those thoughts out of your mind ( 2 Cor 10:5) by speaking the verses( mentioned above) every time that horrifc thoughts come. Keep Believing the truth!

Lastly,
"Now to Him who is able to keep you<SUP> </SUP>from stumbling, And to present you faultless Before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy" (Jude 1:24). So Do not be afraid, you are not going to hell because God is ABLE to keep you from stumbling and present you faultless...!.Keep Leaning on God through His Word. The Word is your Anchor and your LIFE.


I thank my LORD for bringing me out of that pit, and He is with you to do the same...He is your Shepherd Justin! Do not be afraid, The only true living God loves you deeply...



God bless you
PRE

 

[Fraction]

Thank You David777 and PRE, I appreciate your responses. They have provided me with comfort and a little more understanding. I am trying my hardest. My mind is doubting my faith because of fear, I need to keep reminding myself that Jesus died for me to live, and that God loves me and wants me happy. I need to be sure of my belief. Thank You once again.

 

[strawberry]

Dear Justin,

No it's not wrong; Itsok. Besides, I think we all start out like that. Here's some reason from a former atheist (C.S. Lewis) or should I say, interesting thoughts...

"I was at this time of living, like so many Atheists or Anti-theists, in a whirl of contradictions. I maintained that God did not exist. I was also very angry with God for not existing. I was equally angry with Him for creating a world."

"If the solar system was brought about by an accidental collision, then the appearance of organic life on this planet was also an accident, and the whole evolution of Man was an accident too. If so, then all our present thoughts are mere accidents - the accidental by-product of the movement of atoms. And this holds for the thoughts of the materialists and astronomers as well as for anyone else's. But if their thoughts - i.e., Materialism and Astronomy - are mere accidental by-products, why should we believe them to be true? I see no reason for believing that one accident should be able to give me a correct account of all the other accidents. It's like expecting the accidental shape taken by the splash when you upset a milk-jug should give you a correct account of how the jug was made and why it was upset."

- C.S. Lewis -


Justin,

(Deuteronomy 31:8) The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.

(Jeremiah 29:11) For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

(Revelation 3:20 ) I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.

(Matthew 11:28-30) Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.

(Romans 3:23) For all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God;

(Romans 10:9-13) If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.” For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

(John 14.27) Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world gives, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

:heart3:

 

[halva]

Thank You David777 and PRE, I appreciate your responses. They have provided me with comfort and a little more understanding. I am trying my hardest. My mind is doubting my faith because of fear, I need to keep reminding myself that Jesus died for me to live, and that God loves me and wants me happy. I need to be sure of my belief. Thank You once again.

Hi Fraction, I think I can relate to some of what you are saying about doubts and fear.

There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. 1 John 4:18

If you believe in Jesus's death and resurrection - that he has paid the price for your sins by his shed blood - and have asked for forgiveness for your sins - then you are accepted by God, He is not angry with you and He does not want to punish you - you are reconciled to God and He loves you and you are precious and honoured in His sight.

Try not to beat yourself up over whether you may or may not have had 'good' motives to get right with God - you can just speak this concern honestly to God and ask for forgiveness if its on your conscience (He is faithful and just to forgive you your sins when you confess them) and be willing to follow Him and His ways now. Having said that though, God calls peoples in different ways and i'm sure lots of people are called because they become aware of the reality of hell and afraid of going there and then they find out that there is a choice and that God is calling them to choose and put their faith in Jesus.

When I've feared I've found it helpful to thank God for his perfect love towards me. (Aswell as think about the things that He has done for me - once you get started and think about all the good things in your life - even like seeing flowers in the sunshine - it can help you see that He shows His love in lots of ways.)

With doubts, i've found that they do come but they sometimes can lead to a closer walk with the Lord - if you ask for His help with them, perservere and research scriptures and evidence to find the truth that counters the doubt or answers the question that you have. If they seem a bit overwhelming it might help to write them down - infact journalling can be really helpful - writing your prayers to God, your thoughts and what you are learning about scripture etc.

Do you have one or two trustworthy Christians who can come along side you and pray with you and study scripture together?

 

[Fraction]

Thank you halva and strawberry for responding. I appreciate your insight on my situation and it is greatly helpful. Halva, sadly this has been a recent thought of mine. I do not have people to pray beside me at the moment. I plan on seeking things now though. I want knowledge and understanding. The fear is slowly shedding away but still remains. I keep reminding myself that god loves me, and jesus has given his life so that I may live happy and carefree. I keep saying it over and over to fight fear and doubts.

 

[halva]

Thank you halva and strawberry for responding. I appreciate your insight on my situation and it is greatly helpful. Halva, sadly this has been a recent thought of mine. I do not have people to pray beside me at the moment. I plan on seeking things now though. I want knowledge and understanding. The fear is slowly shedding away but still remains. I keep reminding myself that god loves me, and jesus has given his life so that I may live happy and carefree. I keep saying it over and over to fight fear and doubts.

Im glad you're able to come here for help, but I'm sorry that you haven't got anyone close enough to you to pray either one-to-one or in small groups at the moment who you can trust. I shall be praying about it and think it is so important and would encourage you to pray and ask the Lord for a prayer/bible-study partner or several Christian friends who are trustworthy and who would meet regularly.

In the meantime, i know that Christian prayerlines can be very supportive -I ring the ones here in England, but I believe there are some in the US.

I understand you saying that you want knowledge and understanding - it will come through a relationship with God and following His Commandments and learning His ways.

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.

Love your neighbour as yourself.

(Luke 10:27)

PS. just occurred to me that while repeating that God loves you may help you remember - actually thanking God that He loves you may help you in building your relationship with God

 

[::PreciousinChrist::]

Thank You David777 and PRE, I appreciate your responses. They have provided me with comfort and a little more understanding. I am trying my hardest. My mind is doubting my faith because of fear, I need to keep reminding myself that Jesus died for me to live, and that God loves me and wants me happy. I need to be sure of my belief. Thank You once again.

Dear Justin,

The death and the resurrection of Jesus Christ is the demonstration of God's love for you! (1 John 4:9-10)... Jesus went to hell instead of you, how wonderful is that?

I wanted to write this in my last msg that it is OK to seek God and believe in Jesus Christ because you do not want to go to hell... because this has led you to seek the LORD more! you want to grow in knowledge and understanding, you don't want to die but live forever, so you are on the right direction growing closer to the LORD...!



God bless you
Jesus is with you
and you are not alone
Do not be afraid

PRE

 

[Neuroscience101]

I apologize if this post is in the wrong section. You can feel free to move it, and sorry for causing you to do so.

My name is Justin, and I am confused about my faith.
This all started roughly two days ago when I looked into the whole May 21st 2011 theory. I know to most of you this might seem a bit funny that it got under my skin a lot. However it did strike a fear into me. When I read about it, I immediately wanted to repent and find redemption. I wanted to make things right with god. The sad part is, is that its out of fear of going to hell and fear of not being accepted by rapture.

I am trying, I am praying, I am talking with friends about this issue. I want to believe in god and jesus. I dont want to go to hell. I want to live forever and go to heaven. I want to be able to lean on god when I need him. I dont want to live in fear of rapture or hell.

Is it wrong to seek god and believe in god and jesus because you do not want to go to hell?

If I am left behind after rapture, am I locked out of heaven forever?

I am scared. I dont have access to higher council at the moment. I need help. I came here because I need people who know and love god. I want to believe. I believe that I need him for more reasons than to not go to hell. I just cant see it. Im blinded by fear. Thank you so much all who read and respond.

Fraction,

Speaking as someone who struggles between fear and tranquility, I can relate to your problem of fear concerning what is supposed to happen in two hours. However, from my perspective, there are two things you can do:

1) You can rejoice in the fact that 'no man knows the day' when the end will be and take comfort in that. However, that's not going to help your belief issues.

2) You can take some time and just absorb knowledge from every place you possibly can; you can pick up the works of St. Augustine, Rick Warren, Richard Dawkins, Stephen Jay Gould, and many other prominent theologians and scientist. I, personally, would always consider to look at all arguments and every side to strengthen your faith. You can take some time and really ask yourself "What do I believe?" and "Why do I believe?" in an open honest sense.

It should be noted however, than neither of these are mutually exclusive. No one - not even Camping - knows when the end will come (in the theological sense). Take some time off and just learn everything you can. And I mean everything - go to the source if you can find it. All it will do is give you questions to ask and answers to find.

 

[PrayerWarr1or]

Standard Fear

Hey Justin, as someone whom Jesus found through that very fear awhile back, I can definetly relate to that horrible feeling. Your on the right track and fellowship is so important for you right now. I would love it if you got ahold of me through my instant messenger links i have here or you can send me a message here as well because I have so many things I want to let you know which is more than I can put in one post. But I will say that alot of christians go through that fear which is definetly the enemy trying to trip you up. I am praying God puts someone physically in your life that can continuously help you progress in Him and pray with you. And alot of awesome verses from scripture have been posted above proving that you have nothing to worry about. God's going to take care of us, just remember that and never cease in prayer when you feel those bad thoughts enroaching.

Luke 18:42
And Jesus said unto him, Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved thee.

This verse shows us more than just the physical meaning it applied to. Jesus wants us to know that with faith in Him we will be able to have sight and clarity, meaning we will be able to tell God's voice from the enemies. God's word(the Bible) is how you become familiar with His voice as it is God's letter to us.

 

[Fraction]

Thank you so much all of my recent posters.

I have learned so much from you all, and so much from others as well. I now understand that god loves me, and cares for me.

I understand that Christ has given his life to free me from the confinements of sin.

I have doubts and fear, but truly believing is me constantly calling out to God in prayer, and constantly reminding myself that God and Jesus loves me.

I have prayed to Him, and acknowledged all that has been done for me by his hands.

God comes to us in many ways, and stays in our lives in many ways. I believe in his love. I will live the best way I can, and take comfort in knowing that I am saved.

I still am worried however, and I still have doubts here and there. From what I have heard I am not alone and it is common and normal. I just have to keep reminding myself and praying, and I will continue down the right road.

Thank You all so very much, future posters please feel free to give more advice and share stories and such. I love to hear them.

 

[Brighthouse]

Dear Brother Justin! First!!Hear the Word of the Lord concerning the end!! Matt 24:42-44! No one knows the hour!! NO ONE! If this were not so,then God would have told us different in HIS WORD!

So I hope that fear departs you! Next,The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom!( psalm 111:10) Notice Justin it is not me I want you to believe!! I want you to believe in the only Person who can take to you heaven!!Jesus! We come to Jesus because we love him brother,fearing him,is not wrong to do,because who among us would not fear and tremble before our Creater??

But LOVE not fear comes from our wonderful Jesus being so awesome in love,in tenderness,yes brother in kindness. Fear is the same as being lost,which if you do not have Jesus we all are at the time.

Hell is not a place our LOVING Father wants anyone to go to!! There is so much I could say to you concerning this,but let us get you reconciled to Jesus first! Jesus loves you Justin!! He always has!! The first step is give Jesus your heart! Proverbs 23:26 Repent of all your sins.

Today Justin my good brother,you have answered the door finally!! Rev 3:20 You have opened the door to your heart,Jesus shall come in,Jesus shall make you like all who follow him.Full of LOVE,peace!,and yes joy, no matter what is around you! Justin after you do this,continue to abide in Jesus,read his Word,pray for his wisdom,he will give you this I promise you!(1 cor 2:16,and 1 Cor 1:30 says he will,and do you know what was best of all for me when I gave Jesus my life Justin?? God CANNOT LIE!!!( titus 1:2 and hebrews 6:18!!) When I found this out beside all the other wonderful promises of my Jesus!! WOW!! We come to the cross Justin, not because we are afraid of Jesus,but because we love and so need our Jesus! Judge me now Justin if Jesus is not speaking through me to you directly!!

Psalm 103:11-17 then please read this!! Isaiah 41:9-13!! Jesus is here to help you Justin,not to judge you,he has no need to judge you now Justin,you know, you understand why you fear,for one who is lost is fearful.I sure was!

If one is in a very dark room, we usually put our hands out in front of us,so we do not get hurt,Justin,you have found the light! You can put your hands down at your side now!( psalm 119:105)!!

Jesus has his arms out toward you!! Go my brother to a loving Father!! blessing to you,and you will be in my prayers! One more point!! Very inportant!! make sure you forgive all those who have done you wrong as well!! Please read matt 18:21-35 to fully understand what forgivness is.Blessing to you Justin!

 

[sunshineaaks]

I apologize if this post is in the wrong section. You can feel free to move it, and sorry for causing you to do so.

My name is Justin, and I am confused about my faith.
This all started roughly two days ago when I looked into the whole May 21st 2011 theory. I know to most of you this might seem a bit funny that it got under my skin a lot. However it did strike a fear into me. When I read about it, I immediately wanted to repent and find redemption. I wanted to make things right with god. The sad part is, is that its out of fear of going to hell and fear of not being accepted by rapture.

I am trying, I am praying, I am talking with friends about this issue. I want to believe in god and jesus. I dont want to go to hell. I want to live forever and go to heaven. I want to be able to lean on god when I need him. I dont want to live in fear of rapture or hell.

Is it wrong to seek god and believe in god and jesus because you do not want to go to hell?

If I am left behind after rapture, am I locked out of heaven forever?

I am scared. I dont have access to higher council at the moment. I need help. I came here because I need people who know and love god. I want to believe. I believe that I need him for more reasons than to not go to hell. I just cant see it. Im blinded by fear. Thank you so much all who read and respond.

Wish I had seen your post before today. There aer many false teachers out there and this guy just happens to be one of them. Had he remotely read the Bible he would not have made such a ludicrious statement of juegment day May 21. If Jesus doesn't know the hour or the day what makes you think that God is going to tell some uneducated preacher? He wouldn't

HOWEVER, I do believe God can and does use stupidity like this for His glory when the person searching for God searches the Bible to find who is of God and truth or who is like this one and many other preachers who are false. Comparing what a preacher says to what the Bible says will weed out the rotten from the righteous.

Repentance is one thing a believer must do inorder to be in obedience to God. with repentance comes the will to turn from sin. Reading God's word, prayerfully asking for understanding and LIVING as Christ did a person can be assured of heaven.

 

[j_sp]

Focus on Getting to Know the Lord

Fraction,

If you're really struggling with your faith then get back into reading the Scriptures and ask the Lord to reveal to you, by His Holy Spirit, the ways to overcome your confusion. Focus on learning to hear God's voice (or understanding how to be led by the Holy Spirit) - as this is the best way for overcoming any confusion because the Lord will lead you out of it and set you straight. Another suggestion is, see if you can find a sermon online by Paris Reidhead titled, "If You Agree," and listen to it. It may help you understand more about your question you had on 'is it ok to come to the Lord because you do not want to go to hell'? This sermon talks about these things people struggle with in their walk (and that is one of the topics he covers). It's based on the Scriptures from Matt. 18:19-20.

Keep pursuing the Lord. Don't allow confusion to hold you back, but look to the Lord to show you the way out of it. God is not the author of confusion. This could be His way of revealing some things to you within your own heart, which He would like to help you with, in order to heal and strengthen you in the faith of the Gospel.

j_sp