YBelieve?
The 8 articles below are stories and questions for people who are interested in finding out more about what it means to follow Jesus.
Each article begins with a short story and is followed by some thought provoking comments and questions on the topic covered by the story. You can read through them all in the order that they were written or just select one that interests you.
- Y not do something about it?
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Y not do something about it?
Adam and Emma both had a very serious disease but they had leant to live a happy life together even with the disease. Sometimes it affected them more than other times but sadly it was there in their bodies all of the time and they did not know of a cure. One of the certainties of their serious illness was that it would cause them to die young - a thought that saddened Adam and Emma greatly.
One day Adam and Emma met James who came from a different country, he told them that he Knew the cure for their disease. To begin with Adam and Emma were incredibly excited but after James had explained more details to them they became less interested. James couldn’t believe it - Adam and Emma both knew they had a disease that would kill them while they were still young and yet they were walking away from the only cure there was, preferring instead to continue as they were. Adam and Emma were thinking, we have learnt to live with the disease for all these years and life at the moment isn’t too bad!
Here are some questions for you to think about.
1. What do you think of Adam and Emma’s behaviour?
2. What do you think they were scared of?
Sometimes we know the solution to a problem but we don’t want to follow that path because of how it will effect other areas of our lives. This is sometimes true for people who are thinking about becoming a Christian.
3. Do you think your ideas about Jesus and Christianity are the same now as before you started the YBelieve course? If not, in what way has your understanding changed?
4. The Bible says in James chapter 1 verses 23 and 24 "For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was." - What about you? What are you going to do about what you have learnt?
None of us know when our time on this earth will be at an end - for some of us we will be here many years but for others only a few. If you believe Jesus died on the cross to take the punishment for the bad things you do - don’t wait another day to say you are sorry to Him; Tell Him now and give your life to Him - do not put it off because one day it will be too late.
Please don’t be like Adam and Emma - In John 10v10 Jesus said " I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep." - whatever the cost - following Jesus is worth it.
5. What do you think abundant life means? What do you think it must be like?
- Y do people read the Bible and pray?
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Y do people read the Bible and pray?
Simon and Linda were the parents of 3 children - Sarah, Mark and Peter. They used to be a very ordinary family living the way normal families do. But Peter changed all of that because at a very young age Peter became fed up with his family and decided that he'd go and live in the garden and never speak to his family again. How sad his family were but they never stopped loving him and never stopped trying to get him to talk to them but he just wouldn't - not one word!
As the family grew up they decided that they would write a long letter to Peter all about family life and the things they liked and disliked in the hope that one day he'd want to read about his family. They told Peter of their never changing love for him and how they wanted him to talk to them so that he could get to know them, understand them and love them. But Peter wouldn't even pick up the letter and open it.
Peter quite happily talked to other people who didn't live in his families house but not to his family. Simon and Linda often heard him laughing and playing and chatting happily but how sad that made them . They would even hear Peter telling others that he was a happy and contented member of their family but this only saddened and confused them more because to them he seemed so distant and to Sarah and Mark he was just a stranger.
Here are some questions for you to think about.
1. Do you think that Peter is really acting like part of the family?
2. What do his actions tell us about what he thinks of his family?
3. The Bible is all about God’s family and about how much He loves us. It also tells us about the things God likes and dislikes. If we really are a part of God’s family why do you think will we want to read God’s letter to us? If we don’t want to read it what do you think that says about us?
4. What do you think prayer is?
5. The Bible in Matthew chapter 6 verse 8 it says "For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him". If God knows everything why do you think He wants us to pray?
6. Have you ever had a close friendship with someone and then stopped talking to them? - What happened to your relationship?
7. In the Bible in 1 Thessalonians chapter 5 verse 17 it says "pray without ceasing" - what do you think that means, why do you think it says that?
8. In the Bible in 1 Peter chapter 2 and verse 2 it says "as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby" - what do you think God is trying to say by this?
- Y does God want us to bother with church?
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Y does God want us to bother with church?
Bill’s parents had always lived on the edge of the forest and had lived their very happily. Bill was their 3rd child and they loved him dearly. When Bill was 10 months old his mother left him lying on a mat on the grass whilst she went inside to get a cold drink. To her horror when she returned Bill was nowhere to be seen. It didn’t matter how loud she shouted, how much she cried he just didn’t reappear.
While Bill’s mother was away a gorilla, who had been watching from the edge of the forest, came and picked the child up and disappeared back into the forest with him. The gorilla loved Bill as her own child and cared for him and fed him. As Bill grew up he learned the way of the Gorillas - to grunt, feed, hunt and climb like one of them.
When he was 10 years old Bill saw another human for the first time - it was another creature that looked like him and so from a safe distance Bill sat and watched him. Bill noticed how different this boy was to himself. He looked the same but behaved in a way that seemed completely strange to Bill. This boy walked tall and straight and very different sounds came from his lips. Bill was both shocked and scared by what he saw so he quietly left for the safety of his shelter. But the things Bill had seen would not leave his mind and he continued to think and ponder, "was it he or this other boy that was living, thinking and acting in the way that he was created to be?"
Here are some questions for you to think about.
1. Are you sure that you are living, thinking and acting in the way that you were created to be?
2. Do you agree that we often learn more from those around us and how they act than from just reading about people?
3. Do you agree with the phrase "two heads are better than one"? Do you think that a group of people can achieve more together than they can as individuals? Why?
4. Where and when have you most felt accepted by a group of people who are not your family? Why did you feel that way?
5. In the Bible in Ephesians chapter 4 and verse 11 it says "And He Himself (God) gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ". What do you think makes the difference between a good and a bad teacher?
6. In 1 Corinthians chapter 12 verses 12-27 the Bible describes the church as a body needing each part. v 27 "Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually." God puts us in earthly families because we need each other. We can help each other and learn from each other - the church is like a spiritual family.
7. Have you ever been to church? What do you like or not like about going to church?
- Y don't people want to follow Jesus?
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Y don't people want to follow Jesus?
Jenny and Lucy were sisters and really enjoyed spending time together. They enjoyed being with each other so much that they did everything together. When they left school they both applied for a job in the army and they were both successful and started work on the same day. They went through training and ended up serving together as peacekeepers in a foreign land.
This is where the similarity between Jenny and Lucy came to an end because they always reacted so very differently when given orders. They agreed that their commanding officer was a good man with wise ideas and that he could see the bigger picture better than they could. However, Jenny always happily did what she was ordered to do but Lucy really hated the loss of her independence. This meant that, instead of obeying, Lucy often did things exactly the way SHE wanted to do them. For weeks and months she managed to get by with this attitude until one day her commanding officer shouted "get down" but Jenny did what she wanted to do, stayed up and was shot by the enemy and killed.
Here are some questions for you to think about.
1. What thoughts and attitudes do you think made Lucy behave the way she did?
2. Have you ever told people the best thing to do in a situation and then watched them ignore your advice, do their own thing and then get into problems? How did it make you feel?
3. Why do people often not like people telling them what to do or how to live their lives?
4. If you had to choose someone to be in charge of your life, what type of person would you choose?
5. In the Bible it says in Matthew chapter 15 verse 8, "These people draw near to me with their mouth and honour me with their lips but their heart is far from me". If someone always went against your advice and did their own thing and yet told you they trusted you to be really wise would you believe them?
6. In the Bible it says in Matthew chapter 6 verse 24, "No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other." We all have to choose who will be the master of our lives - will you choose to remain in charge or will you hand your life over to someone who knows better than you what is best for you? - Y do people need Jesus?
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Y do people need Jesus?
A judge in England had a guilty man called Sam in court in front of him. Sam was really very sorry for what he had done but the judge said "the law still stands and you still must pay your fine". When Sam heard this he answered "but I promise to always be good from now on". When the judge heard this he replied, "that is great and so you should be, but that does not remove your guilt for the bad you have already done. I know you are really sorry but the law has been broken, you have to pay the fine. The law demands it - I cannot just let you off and ignore the bad you have done and the laws you have broken. You must pay £1,000,000 or go to jail forever". Sam looked really worried and said "I can never pay that much, it is too much for me." But the judge simply said that the court case was now over. Then, with Sam still looking desperately sad and shocked, the judge took off his official court wig and gown and walked up to the court administrator and said, "Please accept this cheque for £1,000,000 from my personal account to pay Sam's fine." The administrator filled in a form and then turned to Sam and declared, "You are now free to go - your debt has been paid by someone else - you are free!"
1. Instead of having to pay £1,000,000 do you think Sam should have been set free simply because he said he’d be good from now on?
This story is very similar to what Jesus did - except that the fine was not £1,000,000 but was to be punished in Hell. When Jesus was killed on the cross he was punished by His Father for the bad things we do so that men and women, who believe in Him, can be forgiven and set free just like the judge did for Sam.
2. Do you think you’d be that kind to someone who had done something against you?
3. Why do you think Jesus did it?
In the Bible in Deuteronomy it says in chapter 4 verse 39 "The Lord himself is God. But in heaven above and on earth beneath; there is no other" - it tells us that there is one God. But we learn in other places in the Bible that God is made up of 3 persons - God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.
4. Do you think Jesus is God or not? Why do you think that?
5. In the Bible the prophet Isaiah wrote in chapter 53 and verse 5 "He was wounded for our transgressions (sins) He was bruised for our iniquities (sins)" - How does it make you feel to think that Jesus, who had done nothing wrong, was "wounded" and "bruised" so that you could be forgiven?
6. How do you think someone can becomes a Christian? Why do you think this?
7. If you really thought that Jesus had suffered and died to enable you to go to Heaven - what would it make you think or do?
The Bible tells us that 3 days after Jesus had died he came back to life again and then 40 days later he went back to heaven. It tells us that He is still alive today and that one day He will come back to this earth as a ruler and a judge. - Y do people hurt each other?
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Y do people hurt each other?
Matthew was a young married man with his first child about to be born - only 1 week left to go! As the expected date for his child’s birth came closer Matthew spent many hours thinking back over his years as a child. Some memories were happy but many were sad. Matthew had never had many friends and the friends he had were only ever friends for just a very short time before they decided that they wanted nothing more to do with Matthew.
Friends always complained that the things Matthew did were unkind and hurtful but Matthew knew that he wasn’t like that - it was everyone else that was unkind and unhelpful to him. He admitted that he had done and said some bad things to some of them but they always had deserved it because they were always cruel to him first. What Matthew did to them was only fair, he was simply reacting to them, it had always been their fault not his!
The more Matthew thought, the more he realised that it wasn’t just some of them that he had been bad to, it was all of them. He was still certain though that they had all deserved what he had done and said because they were always hurtful first. He was convinced that their selfishness was to blame - it had provoked him and made him do what he did and say what he said.
A month went past and the baby boy was born but Matthew couldn’t understand why the baby seemed so selfish, he was such a young child but so selfish with it. Matthew decided that his son had obviously inherited this selfish attitude from his wife, because the more he thought about it the more Matthew realised that his wife was selfish too!
Here are some questions for you please answer or comment on anything you want.
1. What do you think about people like Matthew?
2. Why do you think people do bad things?
3. Do you think selfishness is learnt or natural to us?
4. Have you ever met a perfect person?
5. How do we know what is bad and what is good?
6. In the Bible, in Paul’s letter to the Romans, it says in chapter 3 verse 23, "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God". Do you agree that everyone in the world does bad things some of the time?
7. In the Bible, the Prophet Isaiah in chapter 64 verse 6, said "But we are all like an unclean thing and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags". This means that compared to God’s purity even the seemingly good efforts me make to try and please God are nothing when compared to Him. How does this make you feel?
- Y do people believe the Bible tells the truth?
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Y do people believe the Bible tells the truth?
As Simon grew up he was told many stories about his family’s history. He found it all very interesting; most of his family seemed pretty normal but there was one character in his family’s past, called John, that he had been told had been really bad! Some of the tales about John were terrible and he knew they were true because he had heard them from his Dad and he had got them from his Father who had got them from His Father.
One day Simon was tidying up his Dad’s old shed when he came across a scruffy looking box full of old letters. Simon was very interested in his families history and so he sat down to read them. As he searched through them he came across one that was talking about John so he read on . What he read shocked him - the letter was all about how kind hearted and gentle John was! He rushed back into the house and told the rest of his family but nobody believed it to be true because it was so different to what they had all heard before.
Back went Simon to see if he could discover more. A few hours later he came across another letter saying the same thing - now he was really confused and didn’t know what to think. He wondered whether perhaps these letters had been written many years after John had lived and were just an attempt to try to make John appear to be better than he really was.
At the bottom of the old scruffy box was another smaller box which contained 15 letters all dated much earlier than the other letters, in fact they were written only a few years after John had died. All of the letters said how kind John was and how some of his family had not liked him and his kindness because it showed others that they were not as kind as he was. The letters also talked about how hurt John had been by all of the untrue comments and stories about him being an evil man. Simon was now more confused than ever.
Here are some questions for you to think about.
If you want to tell us what you think please send us an email - we'd love to hear from you.
1. What would you advise Simon to think now, what should he trust?
2. How did you decide if to trust what the Bible says or not?
3. Have you ever read much of the Bible - what did you think of it?
4. Why do you think Christians say their Bible is right and the books belonging to other religions are wrong? Do you think it is possible to decide which is correct and truthful?
5. How should we go about establishing whether a book is reliable or not?
6. Do you think that the Bible has changed much over time? How do you think we can test this?
7. In the Bible in the second letter of Paul to Timothy chapter 3 verse 16 it tells us that "All scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction" - Do you think that we should let the Bible teach us things or do you think we are wiser?
8. In the Bible, in Paul’s letter to the Romans chapter 15 verse 4, talking about the earlier parts of the Bible, it says "For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope." - How do you think the Bible can bring hope and comfort? - Y do people believe that God exists?
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Y do people believe that God exists?
Gary was an intelligent man with an opinion on everything. He always wanted to share his expertise with everyone - particularly with those who he thought were wrong. Gary enjoyed spending time with most types of people but there was one type of person who he really didn’t like. Gary didn’t know why, but he always hated people with strong opinions. At work Gary shared a room with Peter, a man with strong opinions, and Gary hated him.
When they first started working together Gary thought that perhaps they could be good friends but as time went by Gary began to hate Peter more and more. The next thing that happened in their relationship was that Gary argued with everything and anything Peter said. Then as the months passed by Gary began to ignore Peter and pretend he wasn’t there. Peter WAS still there and Peter kept on working in the same room as Gary even though he was being ignored. Peter continued to be kind and considerate towards Gary but Gary just ignored him - he no longer argued with Peter but he still hated him. Gary did not stop here, at this point, but as time went by he began to actually believe that Peter was no longer there anymore. He decided to try and convince all the other people at work that Peter did not exist and that he was just a thought in their mind. This may sound strange but because Gary was a very intelligent man in so many other ways, many people believed him!
Here are some questions for you to think about.
Please email us if you want to tell us your answers or if you want to make a comment about something else in the story. Please feel free to be really honest in your answers and comments. You will get the most out of this course if you say what you really think. Your comments and thoughts are worth hearing because they are what you think.
1. Do you think that many people treat God the same way as Gary treated Peter?
2. Do you think that God exists or not? Why do you think that?
3. Do you think it is possible to know definitely that something exists even if you can’t see it? How?
4. Do you think it is possible to prove 100% that someone does not exist? How?
5. In the Bible in Psalms chapter 14 verse 1 it says, "The fool has said in his heart, There is no God."
Why do you think it says this? Do you think the Bible is fair to say this?
6. In the Bible in the first letter written by John in chapter 4 and verse 12 it says "No one has seen God at any time."
Some people say "If I see with my own eyes I will believe" - Why do you think this? If there is a God why do you think that He might choose to not let anyone see Him with their eyes?
