I recently attended a church that is part of the Restoration Movement. This is the first I’d heard of it, but what puzzled me is that they believe baptism is necessary for salvation. They quote Acts 2:38 and Mark 16:16 in their literature. Could you please give your take on these verses?

I have been a believer since as far back as I can remember. It is only as of recently that I have come up with questions that I have asked many times to no avail. I feel that I believe in Jesus as my savior and acknowledge that I am a sinner and know that Jesus is the only way to heaven and to a awesome life of happiness when he returns. My problem is I an unsure if this is a head knowledge or a heart knowledge or even both.

I know a great deal about what the Bible says and have been brought up to accept it. I just feel that because I have been brought up in it and never had to learn it at an older age as opposed to a younger age when one believes everything their told, that maybe its just habit or something. I want so bad to know that I am saved but fear that I can’t be until my head and heart can agree. Any thoughts?

Your site is very informative and a blessing. I have a question regarding the account in 2 Samuel 14:27 which states that Absalom had three sons and one daughter, whose name was Tamar (his sister had the same name, 2 Sam. 13:1). Then we read in 2 Sam. 18:18 that Absalom says “I have no son to carry on my name,” so he named a monument after himself. How can this be understood?

I have a question regarding the Church’s purpose. I was in Church on Sunday, and I heard my pastor speaking on the purposes of different churches. For example, some churches teach prosperity as their main outreach, that is what they do. He said that our church’s main purpose was to seek the presence of God, which to our church is even more important in saving the lost. This somewhat confused me. Shouldn’t the main purpose of every church be to spread the Gospel and save the lost? What is the main purpose of the Church?

We are wondering who the 7 shepherds and eight principal men in Micah 5:5 are. I typed Micah into search and found some information in a question about an Assyrian anti-Christ.

It’s great to have a Bible teacher to ask when you have a question. Thanks for all the time & effort you put into this.

Thank you so much for your commitment in sharing God’s word! My question concerns Micah 6:16. The NKJ version reads,

For the statutes of Omri are kept; All the works of Ahab’s house are done; and you walk in their counsels, That I make you a desolation, And your inhabitants a hissing. Therefore you shall bear the reproach of My people.

My question is who is Omri? What is his historical Old Testament significance? I am familiar with Ahab and understand his and Jezebel’s wickedness but who is Omri?

In your latest post I noted this statement: “But the people disobeyed God’s commandment to go forth and replenish the Earth, setting about instead to build a great city and a tower to protect themselves from another flood. They also used the tower to study astrology, a corruption of the Gospel that God had written in the stars using the names of 12 constellations.” I’ve never heard of a Gospel in the stars. What does that mean?

Thank you for the time you take to answer so many questions every day. I have another one for you.

My dad is a really bad alcoholic. He battled his addiction for many years while me and my siblings were younger, but he got sober after my mom left him. He stayed sober for a long time, until I went to college. Then he starting drinking again.

I have heard many people say that if you are saved, then you cannot be possessed. I am wondering if this is the same as having a demonic attachment of some sort. When my dad gets drunk and falls asleep (which is every night), he screams and cusses in his sleep. He screams horrible things, and it’s like he is being tortured. When he wakes up, he has no recollection of it. I know that this is demonic.

My question is, if my dad is saved, would he still have this demonic attachment? My dad has never been baptized, and it is almost impossible to have a coherent conversation with him about Christ. I just don’t think that someone who is saved would have these problems. Am I wrong? Thank you for your time.

I have two questions on baptism. For those of us who can not find a true bible believing Church, how do we get baptised? My family and I would all love to be baptised, but don’t know any other Christians we can ask to do this….and we do not want to be baptized into a specific denomination…

My other question is this. Through the years I have attended many Churches and have seen alter calls yet they never offer to baptize new converts immediately afterwards….shouldn’t the two go hand in hand (understanding of course that baptisim doesn’t play a part in salvation)?

Please help me explain something to my son. He says God is partly to blame for our sin because He created us. I told him that God didn’t create people to sin but that Adam chose to sin. I know that God was not surprised and had a plan already in place. What can I tell him so that he does not blame God for his sin. He says he does not feel guilty because it is not his fault that he sins, he was born that way.