What if I knew someone who simply didn't care about their own life but didn't actively try to take it? For example: never wearing their seatbelt or something.

Sincerely,
Healthy Choices

Dear Healthy Choices,

God says that your body is a temple that ought to be used to glorify God (1 Cor 6:19-20).  The issue comes down to whether or not we care for our bodies – which are gifts from God. If someone woefully neglects their body (through gluttony, poisoning it by doing drugs or smoking, taking excessive risks of bodily injury, etc.), they are sinning. As we make decisions regarding our own health, we must be sure to avoid judging others in this area. A healthy body and lifestyle will look different for every person. All you can control is yourself. We must strive to live with a good conscience (Heb 13:18) and consider how to glorify God with our bodies.

How does the Bible view suicide?

Sincerely,
Morbid Matters

Dear Morbid Matters,

Suicide is murder, self-murder, and is therefore very clearly a sin (Rev 21:8).  The only difference between suicide and murdering someone else is that you don’t get a chance to repent after suicide.  Suicide is a final decision and leaves no room for correction or for asking forgiveness.  It is a willful act of disobedience against God without opportunity for repentance.  The final judgment belongs to God (Heb 12:23), but we certainly wouldn’t want to face that judgment with our own blood on our hands.

     In April, before "Easter", a couple of members from Jehovah's Witnesses gave me a flyer to their lecture on how Christ could have provided salvation for lost sinners in this generation today. Then it got me thinking.  I thought I've learned about it before, but I'm not sure if it was Bible Scripture or a principle.  And it really made me think about it.  So, how is salvation from Christ still available to people today as it was for people in the times before He was crucified?  How can I respond to people who may ask me that question?

I am in dire need of understanding.

Sincerely,
Wondrous Mind

Dear Wondrous Mind,

We aren’t entirely sure we understand your question, but we’ll do our best to explain how Jesus’ blood pays for the sins of both Old Testament and New Testament believers.  The New Testament teaches that the sacrifices that cleansed the Jewish people from sin never truly removed the sin (Heb 10:1-4).  The Jewish nation (along with all faithful people) needed God’s blood to permanently remove sin and make them righteous.  When Jesus died on the cross, His blood paid the price for those who had gone before and those who were to come after… one sacrifice for all sins (Heb 10:12).

All mankind is saved by faith in God, including those found in the Old Testament.  Abraham lived by faith and is considered the father of the faithful (Rom 4:11-12).  Abraham didn’t understand the mystery of what God would do in Christ, but he did live knowing that God would send salvation (Jhn 8:56).  Moses placed his faith in God (which includes Jesus because Jesus is Deity – Jhn 1:1-3) and was rewarded for it (Heb 11:24-26).  All the faithful who lived before Christ did so in expectation of better things through God (Heb 11:13).  Though they didn’t understand the details, all the faithful of the Old Testament anxiously anticipated the coming of the Messiah (1 Pet 1:10-12).  Jesus’ blood covered the sins of those who looked forward to the coming of the Messiah… as well as the sins of those who rejoice that He already came.

Will the world end in 2012?

Sincerely,
Doomsday Dreamer

Dear Doomsday Dreamer,

Feel free to do your shopping for the holidays in 2012; the world isn’t likely to be destroyed on Dec. 21, 2012.  The idea that the world is going to be destroyed or transformed on December 21^st (some say 23^rd), 2012 is based off of the Mayan Long Count calendar.  The Mayan Long Count calendar is a non-repeating calendar that was used in Mesoamerica during the height of the Mayan civilization, and because it is a non-repeating calendar (unlike the Roman calendar which repeats every 365 days), it eventually runs out of days.  The last day on the Mayan Long Count calendar is December 21^st, 2012.  Therefore, some folks are expecting a cataclysmic change to the world order on that day.

Now that we’ve explained what it is, let’s explain what it isn’t.  It isn’t right.  We here at AYP are pretty sure that if God was going to hide the date of the end of the world in a conspiracy-theory fashion, He probably wouldn’t hide it in the calendar of a blood-drinking, child-sacrificing, snake-worshipping heathen culture.  But, hey, maybe that’s just us… (insert friendly chuckle here)

As you mentioned, God promises that He will return like a thief in the night (1 Thess 5:2).  If there is one day this year that you can be guaranteed Jesus won’t return – it is Dec. 21^st, 2012.

     How many chapters are in the Bible (both Old and New Testament)?
What is the best yearly reading guide, and where is it available?

Sincerely,
Ready To Read

Dear Ready To Read,

There are 66 books in the Bible.  39 are in the Old Testament, and 27 are in the New Testament.  There really isn’t a “best” guide for reading the Bible in a year.  The best plan is the plan that you will stick to!
There are numerous schedules that will take you through both the Old and New Testament in a year.  Probably the easiest way to do this is to go and buy a “daily Bible” that breaks the Bible into 365 chunks.  Here is a link to an example.  There are other books, such as Halley’s Bible Handbook, that work well to help reference things if you get confused… or you could always write in to us!  We also have classes available for download on every book of the Bible at http://sermons.mvchurchofchrist.org.  Overall, our advice would be to simply start reading your Bible on a regular basis with a plan that you are likely to continue with.  There is nothing more wholesome or fulfilling than simply reading the text God wrote (1 Tim 4:13).