Christians Don't Believe Jesus Died on the Cross What do you really believe? Do you even know what you believe and why you believe it? There should be no fear in asking yourself questions. It is not a sin question what you believe. The purpose of this sermon is to question some beliefs widely held by Christians. Please don't be offende d by my use of " you" and "Christians". I realize these are gross generalizations, as Christians vary greatly in their beliefs. In fact, beyond agreeing that "Jesus is Lord", you'd be hard pressed to find two Christians from different franchises to agree in much else. I also include myself in when I say "Christians" or "you" because up until recently, I held the same beliefs that I am now questioning. But when I think about it, I did not hold these beliefs out of any deep conviction or careful study. I just accepted what I was taught. After all, the Bible teachers, pastors, authors, and preachers who mentored me were all decent, caring, and intelligent people. It never occurred to me that they just might be more influenced by the traditions and doctrines of men than they or I were willing to admit. Christians don't believe anybody really dies Christianity has joined many of the world's religions in redefining death to mean life in some other form and in another location. When a man dies, his body is buried or burned. In order for ther e to be any l ife beyond that he would need to have some immaterial, invisible, conscious, and immortal part of his being. This is sometimes called the soul or spirit. In Genesis we read the Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being (soul in the KJV) (Gen. 2:7) It is clear from this account of creation that man does not have a soul man is a soul. The same word translated soul or living being here is also used of insects, fish, and animals. If being made a living soul means one is immortal, then insects, fish, and animals must also be immortal. However, the same verse says that the Lord God breathed into his nostrils, thus giving him life. This is understood to be the spirit or "life force" which caused a lifeless lump of dust to become alive. We are told in Ecclesiastes that at death the dust returns to the ground it came from, and the spirit returns to God who gave it. (Ecc. 12:7) (notice there is no mention of heaven or hell) Man has a spirit, but is this spirit a conscious entity which can continue to live after he dies? We do have the promise of the resurrection of the dead. This, according to Paul, is our only hope of any life
