Frequently Asked Questions

No doubt it's a big step. But the good news is, it's not that difficult. All Jesus wants you to do, is repent of all your sins and believe in Him. Ask Him to forgive you of your sins. Ask Him to fill you with the Holy Spirit and to guide you in your new life as a Christian. Ask him to protect you from Satan. In essence, you are praying while you do this. When we pray, we pray to the Father, but via Jesus. Jesus is our intercessor. (just a reminder..... The father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are all one). I know it's confusing, but as you read the Bible and go to church, this will become much clearer. Here's an example prayer: "Father, I accept your Son Jesus as my Lord and Savior. I submit myself to your will. I repent of my sins and I ask that you forgive me of all my sins. Fill me with your Holy Spirit. Let your Holy Spirit guide me daily. Protect me from temptations and from Satan. Give me wisdom so that I may grow in you, that I might understand your Word (the Bible). Father, I pray this in the name of your Son Jesus Christ, Amen"

Great question ! When I evangelize, I don't necessarily focus on a "Church". That is, a physical location, a building. I focus my energy on teaching about Jesus. Jesus does not ask us to go tell everyone about "their church". Instead, He tells us to go and tell everyone about Jesus (Him). Having said that, I would point you to Calvary Chapel. Only because that's where I go (Calvary Chapel Oceanside), but there are also plenty of other good churches out there that have nothing to do with Calvary Chapel. https://www.calvaryoceanside.org Just make sure the church you choose bases everything they do on scripture (the Bible). What they believe is called "Doctrine". So make sure their doctrine is based solely on what the Bible says. If they use other books, pamphlets or other printed material to teach from (other than the Bible), that should be a huge hint to you to avoid that church. What what I mean by this, is that the Bible is secondary to other forms of material. The Bible has to be the focus. The church should teach the Gospel of the "Good News". That is, that Jesus died on the cross (for our sins), was resurrected and will return for His church (believers). Jesus has brought salvation to all those who believe in Him. The church should teach not just the "make you feel good" stuff in the Bible, but also all the other stuff that perhaps challenges our comfort level. We are all sinners and we need to "take our medicine" as they say. If you have any doubt, just send us an email with the name of the church (and address) and we can look into them and tell you what we think. Although I love Calvary Chapel, it doesn't mean you have to go to a Calvary Chapel church. One more thing; If anyone ever tells you that you can only be saved by going to their church, run as fast as you can away from them ! They are false teachers.

I would strongly advise any new Christian to reguraly attend church services. The reason being is this: As a new Christian, Satan will begin to attack you. He does not like the fact that you have accepted Jesus into your life. He wants you. By congregating regurlary with other Christians, you get the benefits of learning God's word as it is being teached during services. That's one great reason why I like Calvary Chapel. Our church services are essentially studying the Bible from cover to cover, every week. We go throug each book of the Bible chapter by chapter, verse by verse. With that, you will learn about God, what he expects of you, how he loves you, how he can forgive you, how he brings us salvation, etc, etc. It also provides you a means of being around more Christ oriented people. People who can mentor you and people who can help you with issues. I won't tell you if you HAVE to go to church. But if you read the whole book of Matthew or Mark, you will find your answer. Sorry for the homework :)

There are many versions of the Bible out there. And for most part, they are all quite suitable for Christians. However, there are some Bibles to steer away from: The Mormon Bible The New World Translation Some good versions are: New International Version (NIV) - my preferred New King James (NKJ) English Standard Version (ESV) New Living Translation (NLT) There are plenty others. They all say the same thing. They just say it slightly differently. As an example Matthew 17:24 states: “Does not your teacher pay the half-shekel?” How many people know what a Shekel is worth ? Bible versions such as the NLT do not mention the word "Shekel", they just say "Does not your teacher pay the Temple tax ?" The NLT version is translated to use the words used in todays time as opposed to during the time of Jesus (and even before). This makes reading the NLT version perhaps a bit easier. I have about six different versions of the Bible on my Tablet and Phone. They are all well founded. I switch between different versions if I get stuck with a reading. Sometimes, that helps with potential confusion in interpretation.

What does it mean to repent? To "repent" is to turn away from sin. I suppose you can break it down to three steps: 1) Recognize the sins you have committed 2) Ask God for forgiveness of your sins. 3) Commit to live a righteous life. Spend time every day to reflect on sin you have committed that day (or the day before). Recount EVERY sin you committed. That could be lying, being arrogant, getting drunk, and the list goes on. Then while in prayer, ask God to forgive your sins. Spend more time in prayer for those sins that you are shackled to. Don't give up. God will break those chains in His time. Also, do not feel that you are being led to full condemnation because of your sin (especially those sins that you are trying to shake, but just can't quite break loose from). What you may be be feeling is what we call "Conviction" meaning that the Holy Ghost is working within you. Giving you those messages that "Hey !! You are sinning against me !". There's a big difference. After praying, you should make every effort to turn away from those sins. Some sins are more difficult to shake than others, but at the end of the day, there is no excuse for the sin you commit. Ask mentioned above, God is always there to help you out. Just ask Him to help you with your sin.

Yes, most of us Christians at one point or other have been asked to prove God exists. But by the same token, I have asked an equal number of people to prove that God does not exist. Or to prove that the Big Bang actually occurred. Currently, neither of the three can be absolutely proven. Another rebuttal is how something (the Universe) came into existence from NOTHING. However, there is plenty of evidence that points to an "Intelligent Creator" which we call God. The Bible is also the only book ever written that includes prophesy that was in fact completed. That is, events were predicted hundreds to thousands of years before they actually occurred. I don't recall the exact number, but I believe it is about 130 prophecies that were completed by Jesus. As an Engineer, I can tell you there are many things (scientifically) that point to an Intelligent Creator. You can start with DNA. Click the button below to hop to our sister website (www.R120.Science). This explains how science and God (the Creator) go hand in hand.