Sometimes I forget how smart teens are...

I have been getting a lot of tough questions from students lately, and I have decided to share them with you. Maybe some of you can answer them better than me...


Alright, here goes nothing....

"Why do we have to pay the price for someone else's sins? Like, why do we have sin in us that we cant control because of Adam and Eve?"

Adam and Eve were created absolutely perfect, so when they sinned it was proof that any and every person would sin. In that way we are guilty of the same sin as Adam and Eve. Also, it seems that in a way sinfulness is genetic - passed down from Adam and Eve to our parents and then to us - so we all are born with a tendency to sin. So, since we definitely would have failed the way Adam and Eve did then we can't complain that we are born with the sin nature that they passed down to us. Ultimately, though, we are paying the price for our own sin - which is why if someone dies before they reach an age where they are consciously rebelling (the age of accountability) they still go to heaven. They have not actually sinned for themselves, so God doesn't hold them responsible for their sin.

"Why does god put people through stress and everything if he loves us."

I'm afraid that your blame is a little off. We feel stress because we sin. Even if we are just worried about something, worry itself can be a sin. Here is what we do know - God puts us in situations that cause us to mature and grow spiritually, but because of our sinfulness we tend to not like those situations very much - hence the stress. Besides, this isn't that much different from what any good parent does. Potty training is pretty stressful for a kid - but very necessary. Same is true for bed time, taking the kid off the pacifier, forcing the kid to do her homework, etc.

"Why don't any literally any of my prayers come true?"

A prayer is not the same as a dream or a wish that may or may not "come true." God is not a genie. He is our Heavenly Father, so He wants the best for us and will give us what we want as long as what we want is good for us. If God is not giving you what you want, then He is working to change your desires so that they line up with His - that way eventually He can give you what you want. Besides, the primary purpose of prayer is definitely not just to get what we want. God allows us to talk to Him and bring our requests to Him so that we can get to know Him better and be changed to be more like Him. Prayer is just conversation with God, so when you pray try not to just make requests. Instead, try to just talk to Him like you would your best friend.

"If god is all knowing why did he put people on this earth to endanger others or know that somebody will be homeless or go to hell and make them suffer?"

I could answer your question with a question: why do you think this is unfair? If someone rightly deserves to go to Hell, then why is God at fault? If sinners really deserve eternal suffering in Hell, then why is suffering on Earth (like homelessness) considered unfair? Actually, the thing that is unfair is that any of us sinners actually get to enjoy anything at all! That is unfair to God. The most unfair thing at all is that Jesus Christ died for our sins - He was perfect and definitely didn't deserve death, but He died for us anyway. That is unfair. Yes, God does knowingly allow things to happen to us that can make us sad. But remember, every bad thing that happens to a sinner - any of us - is much much less suffering than we actually deserve. God did know about the suffering ahead of time, but since the suffering is deserved He is not obligated to prevent it.

"Isn't it rude for him to put himself here on earth for us to worship him and the ones who don't burn forever?"

Is it rude for a lifeguard to jump into a pool when someone is drowning - pull them out, give them mouth to mouth, etc? Is it rude for that lifeguard to tell people going to the pool "Hey, I'm the lifeguard - if you get into trouble then call for me." Jesus endured the only undeserved suffering a human has ever endured. Period. The one's who don't worship Him deserve Hell because they have rebelled against their Creator. Also, we have to remember that every single good thing that happens to us, every good feeling/emotion/sensation/etc happens because God allowed it. Hell is what happens when God stops allowing all those good things. When someone goes to hell they are getting what they asked for - space away from the God of the Bible and our Lord Jesus Christ. At the end of the day, the real rudeness isn't God trying to save us, it is us rejecting Him. Just imagine if you sacrificed everything to help someone and they just walked away hating you....

"Does he have favorites? By giving some people so much more than others have handed to them?"

God uses everyone in different ways and for different purposes. Some people have more because God's purpose for them requires more. Some people have less for the same reason. As I have already said though, none of us deserve anything good that God has given us. Just remember, the more God gives a person, the more responsibility that person has to give back to God. From our perspective it may look like God has given some people as easy life and others a hard life, but everyone is going to be judged by how they used the gifts God gives them - so the person that is given more is going to be judged more.