I read Richard Dawkins book The God Delusion, and having doubts, on my own made the switch from Christian to agnostic.  I had been accepted into Christ during my youth and later in my life came closer to Christ, enforcing my beliefs.

After reading this book, as I said, I had made the switch and confessed to both my parents and a few friends that I didn't believe in the Bible.

My parents, as I would have guessed, cannot stand the fact that I denied Christ.

Now, I am having doubts, feeling that I just lost my soul and that I am going to hell for the mistake I made.  (I made this choice before, once or twice, but felt God forgave me and that He was still drawing me closer.)

Now I am unsure what to believe – people or the Bible – and what my faith is.  I want to come back to being a Christian, but I am afraid there is no use as Jesus said, “Whoever denies Me, I will deny to My Father.”

Is there really no hope?  Am I lost for good?

Sincerely,
Soul In Despair

Dear Soul In Despair,

Yes, there is hope, and no, you aren’t lost for good.  Your question has two parts to it.

1. Can I be forgiven of denying God?
2. Does God really exist, or is Richard Dawkins right?

You can be forgiven of denying God.  Paul was forgiven of denying Jesus (1 Cor 15:9-10).  Peter denied Jesus (Matt 26:75), and he was forgiven.  Now is the time to repent and begin anew.  We recommend you read “What Must I Do To Be Saved” to learn about what it takes to obey God.

The second part of your question has a little more depth to it.  The short answer is, yes, God does exist.  We have several articles that you might want to read.  Read through our articles in the EVIDENCES category of the archive; almost all of them pertain to your situation and will reinforce your belief in God.  We also recommend that you rent or buy “Expelled” by Ben Stein.  That movie has an interview with Richard Dawkins where Dawkins admits that he has no idea where life came from.  He even guesses it might be aliens that put life on this planet!  That film does a good job of exposing the bias and prejudices that men like Richard Dawkins have.  And last, but not certainly not least, we highly recommend that you go to our congregation’s main website (www.mvchurchofchrist.org) and listen to a series of lessons preached by a geologist, Dr. Don Patton, on Science and Creation.  Every one of those sources should help to reinforce that evolutionists don’t have the answers; God’s Word does.

Jewish people claim that Jesus can't be the Messiah because in the book of Deuteronomy, they say that God says that every man is responsible for his own sin, and therefore there is no requirement for one man to die for the sin of many, as Jesus did.  Can you shed some light on this for me?  Thank you.

Sincerely,
Unkosher

Dear Unkosher,

It is true that Deu 24:16 says that everyone is accountable for his own sin.  In fact, your sin earns you a wage – death (Rom 6:23).  Our sins have made us accountable to pay a debt that is too big for us to repay.  Therefore, God sent His only begotten Son to pay the debt for us.  His sacrifice was a gift freely offered (Eph 2:8-9); it wasn’t a requirement; it was a blessing from God.  There is no contradiction between Deuteronomy’s statement that we are accountable for our own sins and the gift of salvation found in Jesus.

I attend a church that doesn't teach on the Day of Atonement.  I have in the past given my Atonement offering just the same.  Should I give my Atonement offering to a ministry that would pray over my offering in that regard, or is it okay to continue to give it to my church with the notation "Atonement Offering"?  Does it make a difference?

Sincerely,
Check Please

Dear Check Please,

The Day of Atonement was an Old Testament Jewish festival in which Jews gave offerings by fire – i.e. animal sacrifices – to God (Lev 23:27).  Christians do not celebrate the Jewish feasts.  In fact, Paul specifically told christians not to let anyone bind them to the Old Testament feasts which were just a shadow of the New Law found in Christ (Col 2:17).  The Old Law was a tutor to lead people to Christ, but now that Christ is here – we are no longer under that tutor (Gal 3:24-25).

Christians don’t make “atonement offerings”; we are commanded to take up a collection every Sunday (1 Cor 16:1-2).  We recommend reading “What Must I Do To Be Saved” and “Finding The Church” for more details on what New Testament Christianity is and how to find a faithful congregation to be a part of.

The second commandment says, “Make no likenesses of anything” (in 3 of 5 different versions this is the exact language).  Am I going too far to think that we shouldn't even be making photos?

Sincerely,
Camera Shy

Dear Camera Shy,

The verses you are referring to are in Ex 20:3-5.  The commandment is to never make a likeness or graven image for the purpose of worship (Ex 20:5).  God commanded them that they not worship anything but Him (Ex 20:3).  There is nothing wrong with sculptures, paintings, or photos.  The problem is when we worship something other than God.  It has always been a problem for mankind to worship the creation instead of the Creator (Rom 1:22-23).  Even though animals, plants, and the natural world are truly magnificent… they pale in comparison to the One that made them.  The creation speaks of God’s glory (Rom 1:20).

In  1 John 5:7-8 … what does it mean with water and blood?  Is the water the baptism?  And the blood the sacrifice that Jesus Christ did?

Sincerely,
Elemental Interest

Dear Elemental Interest,

In chapter five, John is addressing the issue of Jesus’ deity.  Those who overcome the world are those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God (1 Jn 5:6).  John says that three things bore witness to Jesus’ deity.

1. He came by water (1 Jn 5:6).  Jesus was baptized, and afterwards, the Holy Spirit descended upon Him like a dove (Matt 3:16).  John the Baptist used this baptism as proof of Jesus’ divinity (Jhn 1:31-34).
2. He came by blood (1 Jn 5:6).  Jesus died a death like no other before or after Him.  It was a horrific and painful death, and yet, He did not cry out (Isa 53:7).  As He died, the sun turned to darkness (Matt 27:45), and the temple veil was torn in half (Mk 15:38).  After a bloody death like that, even the Roman centurion exclaimed Jesus’ deity (Mk 15:39).
3. Lastly, the Spirit bore witness (1 Jn 5:7).  The Holy Spirit brought the truth about the Son of God to all mankind.  The Bible is a record of Jesus.

By those three things, it proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that Jesus is God’s Son.