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| ctinag7 (guest) |
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Posted:07/12/2006 1:51 AM |
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Hi , I tried to post my questions to the "ask the pastors" but I
couldn't figure out how. Anyway, I was just wondering what you
think of previous lives, or past and future lives. I keep hearing
about people who have had past lives. For example, I was
watching a talk show the other day (i know they're dumb, but very
addicting ) and the woman on the show claimed to have known
people's past lives. One man in the audience supposedly used to
be a civil war hero. I always thought that once you pass on that
you go to heaven and that was where you stayed. Like I said, it
was a goofy talk show, but it seems like past lives have become quite
the topic of interest.
Okay well my 2nd question is do you believe that everything happens for
a reason? It's just so hard to see the silver lining
sometimes. My daughter sees an oncologist and almost everytime
she has an appointment, I see a child with cancer, and it
breaks my heart. Or every night on the news, kids are being
abused, so what could possibly be the reason for these things? I know
that God has a mission for all of us, but I have a hard time
understanding the harsh realities of the world sometimes.
Thank you very much!!!
-Christina Gardner
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gfike
Posts:242
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Posted:07/12/2006 10:53 AM |
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Hi, Christina. The scripture teaches us explicitly that "...just as it is destined that each person dies only once and after that comes judgment, so
also Christ died only once as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many
people. He will come again but not to deal with our sins again. This
time he will bring salvation to all those who are eagerly waiting for
him." (Hebrews 9:27-28 NLT) Reincarnation is a false teaching contrary to the Bible. The "remembrance" of previous lives is a deception from demonic spirits. These fallen angels have been around since the Garden of Eden and have experienced the history of the world so they are able to supply mediums with disinformation.
Secondly, as to whether everything has a reason - "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." (Romans 8:28 NIV) This verse does not suppose that God "causes all things to happen," but that he takes "all that happens" and uses it "for the good of those who love him."
The context of this verse is important; the preceding verses tell us "We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And
he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the
Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will." (Romans 8:26-27 NIV) That tells me that when I don't understand why hardship has come I can trust the Holy Spirit to know what's going on, and will find a way to give my heart assurance that God has it all under control.
That Jesus died on the cross demonstrates forever that God loves you and is concerned about every part of your life. He will walk with you through every struggle - especially the hard-to-understand ones.
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