Christianity is a religion that dates back to the beginning of time. "Beginning of time?" you say. "I thought Christianity started with Christ?" That is true, our name "Christians" didn't start until the first century, but our roots are grounded in Judaism which started with God walking and talking with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden (day 6 of existence). No other religion can make that claim (although certain ones try).

So why am I a Christian? Because I, above everything else, want to know the truth. I want to know why I am here. I want to know what is going on in the spiritual realms, I want to know what will happen to me when I die.

Because of this I have examined many different religions. I have heard of many religious leaders that claimed to have the truth. Joseph Smith (Mormons) said he had the truth on Golden Tablets (its too bad no one has seen them). Mary Baker Eddy (Christian Scientists) said she had the truth. She said there was no death. Its too bad she died. Charles Russell (Jehovah's Witnesses) said he had the truth. He said that the 144,000 mentioned in Revelation were the only ones that would be saved. That is, of course, until the number of Jehovah's Witnesses exceeded that of 144,000. They were then forced to change that "prophecy".

Every religion I examined had contradictons; except Christianity. At this point you are probably saying, "Yeh right, I know this person down the street who had an affair with another person and he says he is a Christian." Yes, your probably right. We can all find people in churches today who live hypocritical lives, but what about the founder? What about the man who claimed to be the Son of God? Was He ever hypocritical? Did He ever say one thing and do another? No. That is why I am a Christian.

So what about you? Are you a believer? If you are, fantastic! If not, please read on, I have something to say that might interest you.

WHAT WE BELIEVE

We as Christians believe that in the beginning of time everything was perfect. Perfect, that is, until Adam and Eve choose to disobey God. They thought they knew better than Him and subsequently sinned. Because of their sin, we have been living in a less than perfect world; a world that ends in death for you and for me. That statement was true until Jesus can to earth. God as Man. He walked among the people of the earth. He talked with them, he ate with them, he healed them and he even wept with them. We believe that Jesus was born of a virgin in Bethlehem, Judea. We believe that he lived his whole life without sin and that he died on the cross at Calvary in Jerusalem. We believe that he was indeed who he said he was, the "Son of God." Because of this we also believe that He rose from the dead on the third day (Unlike the other religious leaders mentioned earlier). He is alive! Because He is alive we can have an active relationship with Him today through reading the Bible (His guidebook to life) and through prayer.

Some feel death is the end. For some, it is. The Bible tells us that there are two places, Heaven and Hell. Those that believe in Christ and follow His commandments will go to Heaven, those that don't will go to Hell. I know what you are thinking, "How can a loving God send anyone to Hell?" Let me ask you this, let's pretend you created a cartoon that could come alive. You draw a husband and a wife. You make the man a soldier and the woman a doctor. Why? Because you wanted to. Your the artist, it is your right. But how would you feel if the cartoon came to life and the man started throwing a temper tantrum because he wanted to be a cook, not a soldier. He was also ticked off because he had white skin and he wanted to be black. The woman also is upset. She didn't want to be the wife of a man, she wanted to marry a woman! And she wanted to be a stock broker. How would you feel? Would you start to grab for the eraser? I sure would! That is how God feels towards us. He made us to worship Him. He also made this world for us to enjoy. But we decided not to listen to God. That is why people will go to Hell. It is because some have chosen not to listen to the One who made them. They have chosen to live in sin.

WHAT IS SIN?

Sin is not following the game plan. Sin is filling the gas tank with water instead of gasoline. Sin is touching a hot stove when we are told not to. Sin is us doing our own thing because we think we know better than God. That is why the world is in such disarray. Isn't that sad? All good things are now perverted because of human's sinfulness. But there is hope! There is another place that we can go after we die that is free from sin! It is free from pain! It is free from heart ache and loneliness! Here is what the Bible says about heaven:

"And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away." Revelation 21:4

Isn't that awesome? What a place! And it can be yours. Here is how. The Bible says that "All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God." Romans 3:23. Not only have you fallen short, but so have I. The Bible says that, "Your wrong doings have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you." We are separated from God because we cannot enter into his presence because He is Holy and we are sinful. Not only that, or sinfulness leads to death. But there is hope! The Bible goes on to say, "Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous one (Jesus) for the unrighteous (you and me), to bring you to God." 1 Peter 3:18. "For the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Romans 6:23.

So what must you do? Repent. Tell God that you have done wrong, that you have sinned. "Repent then and turn to God so that your sins may be wiped out" Acts 3:19. After you have repented trust in God that He has forgiven you. "To all who received him (Jesus), to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become the children of God" John 1:12 All you have to do is ask. God is always listening. You don't have to be in a church to talk to God, he is everywhere!

Do you want to learn more about God? If so, I would strongly encourage you to talk to a friend you know who is a Christian. If you don't know any, drop into any local church some Sunday and talk with the pastor. He would be more than happy to tell you about our Awesome God!

If you have any questions about what you have read, feel free to e-mail me. My e-mail can be found on the home page. I would be happy to answer any questions you might have.