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Since the Word of God is foundational and absolutely essential to worshipping God in spirit and truth, we believe that the most important function of this local church, and its central thrust, is the preaching of God's Word, the Bible (2 Timothy 4:2). We believe the Bible to be God's Word, inerrant in all matters, and authoritative for all generations. The following list of questions and answers address basic and common issues found in God's Word that are often asked. For an expanded list of questions answered, see our Pastor's page.
Who is Jesus Christ?
Where Do People Go After they Die?
Can a person lose his/her salvation? (long version)
Marriage, Divorce, Remarriage, Sex, and Singleness in the Bible
What is dispensationalism?
What is Sanctification?
Can a person lose his/her salvation? (short version)
What is the Holy Ghost? (a.k.a., Holy Spirit)
How many sacraments (ordinances) are there?
Is the Bible really God's word?
Am I supposed to give God ten percent of all I earn?
Should Christians Cease From Work on the Sabbath Day?
Dr. John MacArthur's Bible Answers
Who is Jesus Christ?
Answer: Definition of Chalcedon (AD 451)
Following, then, the holy fathers, we unite in teaching all men to confess the one and only Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. This selfsame one is perfect both in deity and in humanness; this selfsame one is also actually God and actually man, with a rational soul and a body. He is of the same reality as God as far as his deity is concerned and of the same reality as we ourselves as far as his humanness is concerned; thus like us in all respects, sin only excepted. Before time began he was begotten of the Father, in respect of his deity, and now in these "last days," for us and behalf of our salvation, this selfsame one was born of Mary the virgin, who is God-bearer in respect of his humanness.
We also teach that we apprehend this one and only Christ-Son, Lord, only-begotten -- in two natures; and we do this without confusing the two natures, without transmuting one nature into the other, without dividing them into two separate categories, without con- trasting them according to area or function. The distinctiveness of each nature is not nullified by the union. Instead, the "properties" of each nature are conserved and both natures concur in one "person" and in one reality . They are not divided or cut into two persons, but are together the one and only and only-begotten Word of God, the Lord Jesus Christ. Thus have the prophets of old testified; thus the Lord Jesus Christ himself taught us; thus the Symbol of Fathers the Nicene Creed has handed down to us.
Where Do People Go After they Die?
Answer:  Click here to view the answer
Can a person lose his/her salvation? (long version)
Answer: Click here to view the answer
Marriage, Divorce, Remarriage, Sex, and Singleness in the Bible
Answer: Click here to view the answer
What is dispensationalism?
Answer: The biblical dispensations are stewardships by which God administers His purposes on the earth through man under varying responsibilities. The changes in the dispensational dealings of God with man depend upon changed conditions or situations in which man is successively found with relation to God, and that these changes are the result of the failures of man and the judgments of God. Different administrative responsibilities of this character are manifest in the biblical record, they span the entire history of mankind, and each ends in the failure of man under the respective test and in an ensuing judgment from God. Three of these dispensations of rules of life are the subject of extended revelation in the Scriptures-the dispensation of the Mosaic Law, the present dispensation of the church, and the future dispensation of the millennial kingdom. These are distinct and are not to be intermingled or confused, as they are chronologically successive.
The dispensations are not ways of salvation nor different methods of administering the so-called Covenant of Grace. They are not in themselves dependent on covenant relationships but are ways of life and responsibility to God which test the submission of man to His revealed will during a particular time. If man does trust in his own efforts to gain the favor of God or salvation under any dispensational test, because of inherent sin, his failure to satisfy fully the just requirements of God is inevitable and his condemnation sure. According to the "eternal purpose" of God (Eph. 3:11), salvation in the divine reckoning is always "by grace through faith," and rests upon the basis of the shed blood of Jesus Christ. God has always been gracious, regardless of the particular dispensation in effect at any point in history, but man has not at all times in past history been under the dispensation of grace (the Church is presently under this dispensation of grace) (1 Corinthians 9;17; Ephesians 3:2, 9 [NASV]; Colossians 1:25; 1 Timothy 1:4 [NASV]).
It has always been true that "without faith it is impossible to please God" (Heb. 11:6), and all the Old Testament saints were saved by faith in a coming Savior and Redeemer. However, due to the progress of revelation, it was historically impossible for them to comprehend to the same extent as Christians do, the nature of the prophecies and sacrifices that they portrayed, the incarnate, crucified Son, the Lamb of God. They did have some understanding of the prophecies and types of the suffering Savior and other details (1 Peter 1:10-12). This faith, vague as it was, was counted unto them for righteousness (Romans 4:3-8; Genesis 15:1).
What is Sanctification?
Answer: Sanctification, which is a setting apart unto God, is three-fold: It is already complete for every true Christian because his position toward God is the same as Christ's position. Since the believer is in Christ, he is set apart unto God in the measure in which Christ is set apart unto God. The Christians does retain his sin nature, however, which cannot be eradicated in this life. Therefore, while the standing of the Christian in Christ is perfect, his present state is no more perfect than his experience in daily life. There is therefore a progressive sanctification wherein the Christian is to "grow in grace" and to "be changed" by the unhindered power of the Holy Spirit. The child of God will yet be fully sanctified in his state as he is now sanctified in his standing in Christ when he shall see his Lord Jesus Christ and shall be like Him (John 17:17; 2 Corinthians 3:18; 7:1; Ephesians 4:24; 5:25-27; 1 Thessalonians 5:23; Hebrews 10:10, 14; 12:10).
Can a person lose his/her salvation? (short version)
Answer: Because of the eternal purpose of God toward the objects of His love, because of His freedom to exercise grace toward the meritless on the ground of the propitiatory blood of Christ, because of the very nature of the divine gift of eternal life, because of the present and unending intercession and advocacy of Christ and the Holy Spirit in heaven, because of the immutability of the unchangeable covenants of God, because of the regenerating, abiding presence of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of all who are saved, all true believers everywhere, once saved shall be kept saved forever. God, however, is a holy and righteous Father and since He cannot overlook the sins of His children, He will, when they persistently sin, chasten them and correct them in infinite love; but having undertaken to save them and keep them forever, apart from all human merit, He who cannot fail will in the end present every one of them faultless before the presence of His glory and conformed to the image of His Son Jesus Christ (John 5:24; 10:28; 13:1; 14:16-17; 17:11; Romans 8:29, 32-39; 1 Corinthians 6:19; Hebrews 7:25; 1 John 2:1-2; 5:13; Jude 24).
It is the privilege, not only of some, but of all who are born again by the Holy Spirit through faith in Christ as revealed in the Scriptures, to be assured of their salvation from the very day they take Him to be their Lord and Savior; and this assurance is not founded upon any fancied discovery of their own worthiness or fitness, but wholly upon the testimony of God in His written Word, exciting within His children filial love, gratitude and obedience (Luke 10:20; 22:32; Romans 8;15-16; 2 Corinthians 5;1, 6-8; 2 Timothy 1:12; Hebrews10:22; 1 John 5:13).
What is the Holy Ghost? (a.k.a., Holy Spirit)
Answer: The Holy Spirit, the third Person of the blessed Trinity, though omnipresent from all eternity, took up His abode in the world in a special sense on the day of Pentecost according to the divine promise, dwells in every believer and, by His baptism, unites all to Christ in one body and that He, as the indwelling One, is the source of all power and all acceptable worship and service. He never takes His departure from the church, nor from the feeblest of the saints, but is ever present to testify of Christ; seeking to occupy believers with Him and not with themselves nor with their experiences. His abode in the world in this special sense will cease when Christ comes to receive His own at the completion of the church (John 14:16-17; 18:7-15; 1 Corinthians 6:19; Ephesians 2:22; 2 Thessalonians 2:7).
In the present age, based on that which the Holy Spirit is to the believer, the Holy Spirit has certain well defined ministries, and it is the duty of every Christian to understand what the Holy Spirit is to him, and does to him, and to be rightly adjusted to the Holy Spirit in his own life and experience. The Holy Spirit, as a special provision of God, is an anointing (2 Corinthians 1:21; 1 John 2:20-27), a seal (2 Corinthians 1:22; Ephesians 1:14; 4:30), and an earnest (2 Corinthians 1:11; Ephesians 1:14). His ministries to the Christian are the restraining of evil in the world to the measure of the divine will; the convicting of the world respecting sin, righteousness and judgment; the regenerating of all believers; the indwelling of all who are saved whereby they are sealed unto the day of redemption and anointed of God for service; the baptizing into the one body of Christ of all who are saved; and the continued filling for power, witnessing, teaching, leading, and service of those among the saved who are yielded to Him and who are subject to His will (John 3:6; 16:7-15; Acts 1:8; Romans 8:3-14; 1 Corinthians 12:13; Ephesians 4:30; 5:18; 2 Thessalonians 2:7; 1 John 2:20-27).
Some gifts of the Holy Spirit such as speaking in tongues and miraculous healings were given to be used as signs to authenticate the message of the first century church. Speaking in tongues was never the common or necessary sign of the baptism nor of the filling of the Spirit, and the complete deliverance of the body from sickness or death awaits the consummation of our salvation in the resurrection (Acts 4:8, 31; Romans 8:23; 1 Corinthians 13:8; 2 Corinthians 12:12). In accordance with the sovereign will of God, healing is available through the prayer of believers but is not guaranteed. Other non-sign gifts were given to the church and that through the exercise of these gifts in the church, believers who learn and apply the truth of Scripture to their lives will mature spiritually. Ecstatic experiences, though they may be valid manifestations of the grace of God, do not appreciably contribute to one's spiritual maturity (Ephesians 4:11-16; 1 Peter 2:2).
How many sacraments (ordinances) are there?
Answer: Baptism...Jesus Christ, the head over all things to the church (Ephesians 1:22), has commanded us to baptize in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19). This water baptism comes after one's profession of Christ as Lord and Savior. John the Baptist said that Jesus Christ would baptize with the Holy Spirit and with fire (Matt. 3:11). So it is Jesus Christ who baptizes the believer WITH the Holy Spirit the moment he/she believes (1 Corinthians 13:12) in a spiritual and mystical sense. Spirit baptism is synonymous with salvation, but following one's conversion all believers should then take part in water baptism. Water baptism is simply an outward and public act signifying a uniting with Christ and his death. It is to Christianity what a ring is to marriage.
Communion...Christ also commanded Christians to partake at His table. When He had given thanks, he broke the bread and said, "this is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me." In the same way He took the cup also after supper, saying, "this cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me. For as often as you eat this bread, and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until He comes" (1 Corinthians 11:23-26).
Is the Bible really God's word?
Answer: Second Timothy 3:16 says, "all Scripture is given by inspiration of God," by which we understand the whole Bible is inspired (literally "God-breathed”) in the sense that holy men of God "were moved by the Holy Spirit" to write the very words of Scripture. While there was progress in revelation from God, this divine inspiration extends equally and fully to all parts of the writings-historical, poetical, doctrinal, prophetical and to the smallest word and inflection of a word as appeared in the original manuscripts. Therefore, the whole Bible in the originals is believed to be without error. All translations of the Bible (English, Spanish, German, etc.) are considered infallible insofar as they are based upon the original manuscripts. Though they may differ slightly in various portions their differences reflect the opinions of the translators, and in no way are they to be viewed as promoting errors and/or contradictions.
All Scriptures center about the Lord Jesus Christ in His person and work in His first and second coming, and hence that no portion, even of the Old Testament, is properly read or understood until it leads to Him. Furthermore, all the Scriptures were designed for the practical instruction of God's children (Matthew 5:18; Mark 12:26, 36; 13:11; Luke 24:27, 44; John 5:39; Acts 1:16; 17:2-3; 18:28; 26:22-23; 28:23; Rom. 15:4; 1 Corinthians 2:13; 10;11; 2 Timothy 3:16; 2 Peter 1;20-21).
Am I supposed to give God ten percent of all I earn?
Answer: Two kinds of giving are taught consistently throughout Scripture: giving to the government (always required), and giving to God (always voluntary).
The issue has been greatly confused, however, by some who misunderstand the nature of the Old Testament tithes. Tithes were not primarily gifts to God, but taxes for funding the national budget in Israel.
Because Israel was a theocracy, the Levitical priests acted as the civil government. So the Levite's tithe (Leviticus 27:30-33) was a precursor to today's income tax, as was a second annual tithe required by God to fund a national festival (Deuteronomy 14:22-29). Smaller taxes were also imposed on the people by the law (Leviticus 19:9-10; Exodus 23:10-11). So the total giving required of the Israelites was not 10 percent, but well over 20 percent. All that money was used to operate the nation.
All giving apart from that required to run the government was purely voluntary (cf. Exodus 25:2; 1 Chronicles 29:9). Each person gave whatever was in his heart to give; no percentage or amount was specified.
New Testament believers are never commanded to tithe. Matthew 22:15-22 and Romans 13:1-7 tell us about the only required giving in the church age, which is the paying of taxes to the government. Interestingly enough, we in America presently pay between 20 and 30 percent of our income to the government – a figure very similar to the requirement under the theocracy of Israel.
The guideline for our giving to God and His work is found in 2 Corinthians 9:6-7: "Now this I say, he who sows sparingly shall also reap sparingly; and he who sows bountifully shall also reap bountifully. Let each one do just as he has purposed in his heart; not grudgingly or under compulsion; for God loves a cheerful giver."
Should Christians Cease From Work on the Sabbath Day?
Answer: Click here to view the answer
For more helpful questions and answers, please see Dr. John MacArthur's Bible Answers.
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