The Answerer

Please ask this question from some people you know are Christians because I can only give you my experience – and that backs up what the Bible says. I have had many doubts over 79 years!! Be assured of that; it is OK to doubt.

A ’voice’ has spoken to me four times in those 79 years and I did not ask for them. They have given me a lot of assurance that God cares for me.

The first one was concerning my future family. My wife had some trouble having children early on. One morning just after I woke up, a voice soon after said: ’There goes your baby.’ And I saw in a technicolour ’movie’ a three year old girl running by a farmhouse and laughing. Nine months later our baby came along and three years later we were living in the farmhouse I had seen three years before. That ’baby’ is now 54 years old.

Another time, moments after I got out of the water when I got baptised, a clear male voice said : ’You’ll be working with children.’ I had been a ’blue collar’ worker (making things) for 25 years, and the concept of ’working with children’ was very strange to me. The guy who baptised me said he heard nothing, so I forgot about it. I did forget about it but four years later I had a fall at home and broke my back. Went to University two years after that (that was a miracle in itself) and became a teacher at 47 years old. I taught for seven years, my wife divorced me in 1985, I resigned teaching in 1985. I went to Bible college for two years and began scripture teaching in 1988. I have taught Scripture since 1988. Now two books of kids questions – because YR 7. kids seem to ask me lots of questions. I sincerely thank them for it all.

The third male ’voice’ told me to: ’Go and see Mrs Arnold.’ ’Oh no!’ says me. I got a bit upset and did not want to go. He kept repeating the message. Eventually I did go – and when she came stomping to my car in slippers and dressing gown she said: ’Well God must have sent you – I was just about to kill myself by jumping out of the window.’ (of her third floor flat). She talked non-stop for 45 minutes and I never did get a chance to tell her that God had indeed sent me. Also, that I was reluctant even to make the 60km round trip to stop her. I have no idea of what or why she was saved. God always has reasons but as yet I know not why I was sent to save her.

Another one was to tell me not to be so proud, thinking that Baptists were better than any others. Yes, oops!

So I know He is there and has put up with my failings and errors and anger at Him not making me to walk again.

I am now 80 years old, have four children, eight grandchildren and four great grandchildren. I am a happy man and I know that God is good.

Pride and ambition. Lucifer (Satan) was about number four in heaven but he wanted to be number one. So there was war, he lost and was thrown out of heaven down to earth – and took many bad angels with him. These are the ’evil spirits’ now here on earth. Jesus had to deal with Satan (to show who was ‘The Boss’) on several occasions.

God just spoke and it happened! That is basically what the Bible says in Genesis chapter one – first book, first page, and the first words. It’s a simple answer for me to give – easy.

Millions of people have, still do, and always will argue and discuss just how it did happen and who did it. Nobody was there but God, Jesus, and His angels to see it happen.

I know the last bit is true because after the creation of the world was complete God said: ’Let us make man in our image and likeness.’ God said ’us’ so He must have had others with him. No voice answered or questioned that God should not make a man. A bit of humour: a ’Wag’ once said: ’God made man first because he did not want a woman looking over his shoulder telling Him how to make a man’. (Meaning women can have a lot to say). Another ’Wag’ said: ’God made man, looked at him and said: ’I can do better than that,’ so He made a woman. Do you agree gentlemen? I do and I love a laugh.

To your answer: Put three Christians (or Jews) together and you’ll get four different answers as to WHO, WHEN and HOW it was put all together, or how it all came together.

This I know and believe in my heart: God made it all, He causes the earth to turn once a day, to tilt and give us summer, autumn, winter and spring and to travel in its orbit, around the sun every year and somehow the 400 billion stars in our Milky Way galaxy hold their place and to not crash into each other. Not a bad effort eh? And this galaxy is only one of millions, (or is it billions), of galaxies yet to be discovered.

Think on this fact: If you could fly at 150,000 miles an hour and can get fuel on the way without stopping and have lots, I mean really lots of chocolate bars, it would take 670 million years to fly across the Milky Way from end to end. That’s in my Readers Digest Atlas from 1960. Sort of incredible eh?

The earth is also a massive web of life supporting billions of creatures with their food, and somewhere to live, and to have babies too. I love the singing birds, butterflies, flowers and all beautiful things and ‘yes,’ this poem by AB (Banjo) Patterson who wrote in his classic Australian poem Clancy of The Overflow: ‘And he sees the vision splendid of the sunlit plains extended, and at night the wondrous glory of the everlasting stars.’ That’s true beauty.

I just cannot believe it all came to be all by itself, or by evolution from a creature in a swamp billions of years ago. To me, that theory just does not add up or make common sense.

Wow, what a massive task! Moses stands about as ’tall’ as Jesus in the Bible. Some Jews regard Moses as higher than Jesus.

The Torah, the first five books of the Bible: ’The Books of Moses’ are sacred to Jews. They are the laws of God, given to Moses and written down by him. They contain The Decalogue (The Ten Commandments) and thousands of verses on how God was to be honoured and the ways to properly worship Him – and thousands of verses of instructions on how to live together in peace and how to settle disputes. King David’s son, King Solomon was in God’s presence on two occasions but Moses was the specially chosen as God’s special man.

Today there is a ‘Blockbuster’ movie that will never ‘grow old’ because it is so well done in telling Bible history and the part Moses played in it. Cecil B. De Mille produced the movie: The Ten Commandments. He stands very ‘tall’ in movie making and has done so for 60 years. This movie is still regarded as one of the ’all time greats’ of the movie world.

When Jesus was here on earth, Moses came back with the prophet Elijah and both were talking with Jesus on a mountain. Christians now call that mountain; the Mount of Transfiguration. Peter James and John were there and saw Moses and Elijah talking with Jesus. Moses had been dead for over 500 years. God’s voice split the clouds and He said: ‘This is my beloved Son whom I love and am well pleased, listen to him.’ (that’s in Matthew chapter 17 verses 1 to 9). The disciples were terrified at God’s voice and later, coming down the mountain, Jesus said to the three of them: ‘Tell nobody of this until I have risen from the dead.’ Not too many leaders in history have said things like that!!

I often wonder just what Moses gets up to in Heaven. I mean he had been dead 500 years then…and now it’s 2512 years?

The Bible does not spell out exactly how He does. It is a mystery.

God is omnipotent (all powerful), omnipresent (everywhere at once), and omniscient (knows everything). Just how God is all those things I cannot tell you, but He did make the world so everything is possible.

Angels help God’s work a lot. In the Book of Hebrews it stays: “No, for the angels are only spirit-messengers sent out to help and care for those who are to receive his salvation.” (Hebrews Chapter 1Verse 14 TLB) And it’s Life Application Bible commentary is: “Angels, God’s messengers ,were created by God and are under His authority (Colossians 1:16)  They have several functions serving believers (1:14) protecting the helpless (Matt,18:10-11) proclaiming God’s messages (Revelation 14: 6-12) and executing God’s judgement. (Acts 12:1-23) and (Revelation 20: 1-3).” I hope that helps. As to : ‘What is God?’.All I can tell you is that ‘He is’.

On many occasions in the Bible angels feature in helps to many people and tribes. They have killed a whole army during the night. Others have put awful fear into the hearts of whole armies causing them to kill one another. King Jehosophat was in deep trouble with three armies coming after him (you got plenty of notice about coming armies in those days – they walked). What could Jehosophat do? All be killed – not him!! He called all the people to fast and pray, he humbled himself and begged for God’s help. Then he led his army out singing and praising God for his goodness. They took no weapons. ‘As soon as they began singing, the Lord confused the enemy camp so that the Ammonite and Moabite troops attacked and completely destroyed those men from Edom. Then they turned against each other and fought until the entire camp was wiped out.’ That is in The Second Book of Chronicles, chapter 20.

Jahaziel, the prophet told Jehosophat: ‘You won’t even have to fight. Just take your positions and watch the Lord rescue you from your enemy.’ They did, and soon every soldier of the three attacking armies were lying horizontal (dead). It took a good while to collect all the ‘loot’ from the dead soldiers too.

In other accounts whole armies just ran away at full speed leaving all their ‘goodies’ (food and weapons and clothing) behind.

I can truly write that God’s angels are everywhere. David wrote: ’God will command His angels to protect you wherever you go.’ (Psalm 91:11). Bad things still happen to good people and I can’t explain that I’m sorry to say).

And in Hebrews : ’Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation.’ (Hebrews chapter 1 verse 14)

For myself and the four voices telling me important things (see Q 154). The Apostle Paul (or Saint Paul) had Jesus turn his life around from a Christian persecutor to a Christian teacher and writer, and Christians still today are pleased to have his writings in the Bible. Paul was a ’giant’ of a man. He was put in prison so he sang and converted the jailor and many others. The Bible certainly is not all dull boring ’stuff’.

As for ’us’, God does not attend to those who just...’want something’ from him-like a Lotto win or our personal desires. It takes many years to get to know God and His ways and He: ’…knows what we have need of before we ask.’