Q: Are all people in this world God's people? God calls us to love others... does this include non-christians and people who hate God as well?

A:  Firstly, let's establish if we are all in fact God's people. 


Considering the fact that God created us, yes, we are all literally God's people.  We are created in His image and we belong to Him.  Whether or not people realize this is or not and whether or not we are for God or against Him, is another story.  But Biblically speaking, everything on earth belongs to God, including us.


Secondly, let's understand the meaning of love and how it relates with others.

Jesus demonstrates the ultimate love for humankind when He died on the cross.  It's important to understand that this sacrifice that Jesus did was not for specific people who loved Him.  He died for everyone.  Even, and especially for the ones who condemned Him to the cross.  Take a look at this passage below:

¹²My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. ¹³Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. ¹⁴You are my friends if you do what I command.- John 15:12-14

This verse explains to us that we are to love one another as [Jesus] has loved us.  And what is that love? Verse 13 explains how Jesus epitomizes and shows us the meaning of love - that a man would lay down his life for his friends. 

We are given a command to love each other and an example of what it means to do that.  The challenge is as you say, to love those who hate God.  If Christ could do that and lay down His life for people who hated Him, than we too can learn how to embrace those who hate us.  This is a hard concept to master, but something that God wants us to do. 


[answered by Pastor KJT]

Q: I asked before: "Does God loves sinners?" and the answer was a simple, unquestionable "yes". Yet, this position is opposed by pastors such as John Piper and Mark Driscoll...

...who believe that God has a lawful hatred of unrepentant sinners, supported by verses such as Psalm 5:5 which states "You hate all who do wrong." How does one go about reconciling these beliefs?

[The question that was answered previously can be found here.  You may want to read it before you continue]

Hello friend!  Thank you for your response.  It is good to know that people are following up and reading the answers, I appreciate your feedback. 

I'd like to point out that the two questions you have asked are different.  The first one you asked is "Does God love sinners?" and I stand by my answer with the "unquestionable yes."  God is righteous.  He cannot be in the presence of sin.  But He loves us - those who have sinned against Him. His love is why he sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to die for our sins and to make us holy. 

I interpreted "sinners" in your first question as one who loves God, yet continues to fall short of God's glory.  They would be people who are striving to live a life that honors God. However, the sinners that you are referring to in your second question are "unrepentant sinners," in which case, I agree that God is not pleased with their actions.

The unrepentant is sinner is one that does not live in reverence or fear of the Lord.  There is a disregard for the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.  They live selfishly, justifying their sins and actions.  The live in sin and continue to willingly do so.  They perpetuate the sin in their lives and make no intention of repenting for them.  In a sense, they are non-Christians and the Bible says that God will be judging them accordingly.

There is a difference between the "sinner" that continues to try and repents of their sins as opposed to the one that makes excuses for them.  If you came to the Good Friday Service, I talked about the 2 criminals who were crucified alongside Jesus on the cross (Luke 23:43).  Both are sinners, both faced the same death sentence. But one was unrepentant, while the other one turned to Jesus as his Saviour.  Which one do you think gets the promise of Paradise?

[Answered by Pastor KJT]

Q: What does it mean when the Bible says "God is love?"

The phrase, "God is love" is found in 1 John 4:8, "Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love." What does the author mean?

1. "Anyone who does not love does not know God...": If a person lacks love, he is unchanged at the core of his being by God. The implication here is you cannot say you know God if you do NOT love others. Remember the more you know a person, the more that person's values will influence your life (e.g. decision, behavior, thoughts, etc.). Therefore, the way you know whether someone loves God or not is whether she is influenced by him - if she loves others as He does.

2. "...because God is love." The author is not saying that God is ONLY love (because God has many other attributes), nor that love is God (i.e. the emotion or feeling of love equals God). "God is love" means that God always gives of himself to others and seeks their goodness. The most visible way He shows us this attribute is through the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ (1 John 4:9). God came into our human world to suffer with us and die for us - demonstrating the greatest act of love.

Also consider the community and intimacy between God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. This is the perfect example of love, servanthood and humility. Indeed, God shows love, but more importantly, God IS love.

[Answered by Pastor HM & Elvin Wong, Agape Counselor]

Q: Does God love sinners?

A:  Yes.  He loves you and I, doesn't He?

What He doesn't love is the SIN in our lives.  God is holy...and being holy means without sin.  Therefore God is without sin and cannot be apart of anyone with sin.  Insert Jesus here.  He comes to save us from our sins so that we may have a relationship with God.  The only reason that Jesus could save us from sin is because He Himself, was without sin.  Jesus is a clean man, coming to save an unclean human race.

Let me make this clear, God loves all His children.  He created us in His image and wants us to have a relationship with Him.  But He hates the sin in our lives and thus offers us a way out.  This is really the basic Christian Gospel.

This coming Friday is Good Friday, which in the Christian faith is the day in which we remember the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross.  It is the pinnacle moment in which our loving God sacrifices His holy son in order to save us...all due to His love for us.

I invite anyone who is reading this post to come to our church and be apart of the service. Details are below.

 


[answered by Pastor KJT]

Q: How Do I Love God?

A: We love because God first loved us. (1 John 4:19). The foundation of love comes from the fact that God has given us an example of it through His son, Jesus Christ. We can only know how to TRULY love, if we know the TRUE love that God gives us.

There are a number of ways that the Bible teaches us how to love God:

1. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. (Deut 6:5) - We need to love God with our whole beings. That means He must be apart of your every day life, and not just the times we are at church. In every decision we make, every action we do, every word we speak, it must honour God.

2. So if you faithfully obey the commands I am giving you today—to love the LORD your God and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul (Deut 11:13) - When we love God, we also want to serve Him. We adopt an attitude of giving and servant. We want to give back to God, what He has blessed us with. We no longer want to be consumers in our churches or fellowships, but instead, we want to use the gifts that God has given to us, to glorify Him.

3. Love the LORD your God and keep his requirements, his decrees, his laws and his commands always. (Deut 11:1) - As a response to the love that He has for us, we strive to live a righteous life. That means following His commands outlined in the Bible, living for God and not for our selfish desires and trying our best not to sin. The reason why we do this is not because we want to do good deeds to gain salvation. Instead, it is because we have already received the gift of salvation that our hearts have changed and we wish to honour God by keeping His commands.

4. Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. (James 1:27) - we love God by loving the people around us. This passage says that if we are to have a genuine faith, it means to love the people that God loves. The challenge is that sometimes we find it hard to love those we don't like...but God is clear that if we have experience His love, we are to love others in that same manner.

Loving God requires everything. You must make a conscience decision to love Him in every aspect of your being. Not only are we to DO the things outlined above, more importantly, our attitudes and our outlook on life must change from the worldly view to the Godly view.


[answered by Pastor KJT]

Q: One of the strongest arguments for homosexuality is that love has no gender. How do we counter a point like that?

I think the CARM staff writers answer it pretty well. They make a distinction between moral truth and emotions. Here's what they wrote: "Whether or not a homosexual couple is committed to each other is irrelevant to the argument since love and feelings do not change moral truths. If a couple, not married to each other but married to someone else, commits adultery yet they are committed to loving each other, their sin is not excused.

If homosexuality is made acceptable because the homosexual couple "loves" each other and are committed to each other, and by that logic we can say that couples of the same sex or even of different sexes who love each other and are committed to each other in a relationship automatically make that relationship morally correct. The problem is that love is used as an excuse to violate scripture. Second, it would mean that such things as pedophilia would be acceptable if the "couple" had a loving and committed relationship to each other. Third, the subjectivity of what it means to "love" and the "committed" to another person can be used to justify almost any sort of behavior."

Practically, I would say - again - we must counter a point in love. We cannot blurt out these objections with a self-righteous attitude. We must - by God's Spirit - remain humble as we speak the truth logically and clearly.

[Answered by Pastor HM]

Q: What can we do other than pray for a family member who's bisexual?

An increasing number of Christians have within their circle of friends/family who is struggling with homosexuality (including, bi-sexual/lesbians).Usually, there is a conflict, desire to help, but feelings of not knowing what to do or say. I can honestly say I AM NOT an expert in this field. After spending some time to think and research about it, here are a few suggestions that may be helpful for your situation.

1. Realize that God has placed you in this situation for a special reason; you do have something to share. You do not have to be a professional counselor or come from a homosexual background to be effective. Your life can make a difference!!

2. Remember, your family member IS A WHOLE PERSON, not just a homosexual/bisexual. There is more to him or her than his sexual sin. He or she has value as a person, since your family member was made in the image of God. Christ died for him or her and will continue to love him or her no matter what. This must also be your attitude. Any attempt to help your friend without this unconditional love will fail.

3. EXAMINE YOUR OWN BEHAVIOUR AND MOTIVES. Before you attempt to help, be certain that your relationship with Christ is firm. Ask Him to bring to mind, and to change, any areas of your own life that are inconsistent with His will.

4. Determine if your family member is a Christian. If he/she is not, your first priority is to introduce them to the Lord. Stick to the issue, not on their homo/bi-sexuality. Remember that we are all sinful and have come short of the Glory of God. Their homo/bi-sexuality is not a special case. Homo/bi-sexuality is not the biggest sin. In fact sin is sin in God’s eyes…there is no difference!

5. As you talk. Keep in mind that homo/bi-sexuality (like other sins) is just ANOTHER EXPRESSION OF UNFULFILLED NEEDS and unresolved hurts. As these basic needs are filled and hurts resolved, homosexuality will gradually lose its power and appeal.

6. ESTABLISH TRUST. Be a true friend. That is your duty as a Christian. Do not play psychologist. Be yourself. Respect your family member’s confidence as you expect them to keep yours.

7. Be HONEST with your family member. Do not break down on God’s standard, that homo/bi-sexuality is sin. God hates sin, but loves the sinner. Do not be afraid of such loving confrontation.

8. As you would with any friend, SHARE TRIALS THAT YOU HAVE EXPERIENCED IN THE PAST or are going through now. Convey hope. Tell how God helps you.

9. Finally…..BE PATIENT, realize that you will not have all the answers. Be willing to admit your limitations. God is at work. Do not judge your family members progress. God is ultimately in control. If after all this, your friend rejects God’s help and yours, Don’t’ blame yourself or lose confidence in God.


[Answered By: George M.]

Q: Would it be "Christian" to date someone outside our religion?

Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. 

For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? 

Or what fellowship has light with darkness? 

What accord has Christ with Belial? 

Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? 

-Paul, 2 Corinthians 6:14-15

The Bible does not mention dating as we know it today, so the principles that can apply to dating must come from principles of marriage and general relationships with each other. To answer your question, we must first examine several important questions:

1. What is the goal of dating? ANSWER: Marriage.

2. What is the goal of marriage? ANSWER: Intimacy/closeness/oneness with your spouse. This intimacy between husband and wife is meant to reflect God's desired intimacy with this people (Eph. 5)

3. How can we be intimate with other person? ANSWER: When you share and love the most important thing in your heart with your husband or wife.

Here's how these questions apply: For the Christian, the most important thing in your heart is God. For the non-Christian, it isn’t. So what inevitably happens – if you want intimacy with your spouse – you’ll have only one choice: You have to push God out of the center of your heart to make room for her. If you want to keep God in the center, however, then you’ll be forced to put her on the outskirts of your heart and lose intimacy. It’s a brutal choice at the end of the day, so that’s why I implore you to trust God; that he’ll put before you a godly husband or wife.

You may ask, “How am I supposed to tell someone that is non-Christian that I can’t or don’t want to date them?" And my response would be that you have to be graceful and tactful (don't say “You’re not a believer!” and leave it at that). You have to say, “Look, every major decision I make involves God somehow, and you wouldn’t even understand that. So every time we make decisions, I have to hide the most important thing in my heart, and that won’t work.”

If you are dating a non-Christian, I know this is a really hard thing to hear. It's brutal. It's saddening. But the longer you wait and the more serious the relationship gets, the more IMPOSSIBLE the choice becomes.

For more thoughts on the matter, please visit our podcast and look for our sermon, "The Dating Game" where I address this question and more.

[Answered by HM]

Q: How far can you go with your gf/bf without displeasing your parents or God?

The bottom line, biblically, is that your body is to be touched sexually by only your husband or wife. The way God sees it is that every person who is not your husband or wife is a brother or sister to you (1 Timothy 5:1-2, “Treat…older women as mothers and younger women as sisters, with absolutely purity.” So I guess that’s the easiest way to put it. So every time you’re with your gf/bf, ask yourself: Would I touch my sister this way? Would I touch my brother this way?

[Answered by Pastor Ho-Ming]