Frequently Asked Questions
Q: If I attend your church, what should I wear? / Where do I park? / What other rules do you have?
A: We do not have a dress code, so just wear whatever you are comfortable wearing. However, if you wear a suit, you might stick out a little, and people might think you came to preach. But if you like wearing your suit, do that! Not only do we not have assigned parking spaces, we don’t even have lines in the parking lot! We could put lines in the lot, but that is not our style. We famously do not have any rules, but are more concerned with conducting our worship services in a way that is pleasing to God. (Ref. I Corinthians 14:33)
Q: Why is life so difficult? / Why do bad things happen to good people? / Why is there no justice in the world? / Why is there so much trouble in this life?
A: There is no easy or simple answer to these questions, as hundreds, if not thousands, of books have been written to tackle them. The best place to find better understanding of undeserved suffering is the book of Job. In it, Job is called a righteous man by God himself, yet he undergoes the loss of all his wealth, possessions, and children. In chapter 14, Job says, “Mortals, born of woman, are of few days and full of trouble.” In chapter 38, God himself answers Job’s complaints, but not by explaining the reason for his troubles, but by telling Job, in effect, “Shut up! I AM God, and you are not!” – Not a precise translation, but close. The Bible also tells us that it is because of sin that pain, suffering and death have become part of our existence on earth. Not necessarily our individual sin, but Adam and Eve’s sin in the garden of Eden. In Genesis 3, when God punished Adam and Eve for their disobedience, he cursed the earth with thorns and thistles, and told them it was through painful toil that they would live out their days. It was at this time that pain, sickness, suffering and death entered our worldly existence. The Bible also tells us that God is a God of justice, and his justice will ultimately be served at the end of the age. So, even though our understanding is imperfect, we can trust that God will right all wrongs when he brings His kingdom to earth.
Q: How can I believe the Bible is true?
A: There are many who will point out supposed inconsistencies within the Bible and conclude that it is “full of errors”, but the fact is that the Bible has stood the test of time as a source of knowledge, wisdom and guidance for living our lives in a harmony with God’s laws. A better question might be how can a collection of writings by several dozen authors compiled over a thousand years telling a coherent story of God and his people not be inspired by and guided by God himself? The Bible itself attests to its accuracy and reliability. Jesus also confirmed that the Bible is truth. The conclusion is that if you believe in Jesus, you should believe the Bible.
Q: Why did Noah allow mosquitos on the ark?
A: Noah didn’t have to. He was commanded to take into the ark all the animals on land in whose nostrils was the breath of life (Genesis 6:17, 7:14-15, 22). There is no reason to believe that all the varieties of insects were on the ark because they breathe through their skin and do not have nostrils. They could have survived on floating matter or by burrowing in the mud. Some of the insects may have been on the ark in the fur of the animals or in nooks and crannies of the ark. The Bible does not teach that they had to be on board.
Q: Why is the sky blue?
A: The simple answer is that the blue color of the sky is due to Rayleigh scattering. Rayleigh scattering is a phenomenon where light changes its path when it contacts impurities in the air such as dust or pollution. The angle of scattering depends on the wavelength of light, so shorter wavelengths, such as blue or violet are scattered the most. Portions of the sun’s light are lighting up the entire sky, even when the sun is not visible. The not-so-simple part of the answer explains why the sky is blue and not violet. The reason for this is that the spectrum of the sun’s light ranges from infrared through ultraviolet and beyond, but the light is brightest in the green wavelength region. So, while the violet wavelengths are scattered the most, the blue wavelengths are stronger and brighter, and that is what we observe when we view a cloudless sky in the daytime.
Q: Why are you such a nerd?
A: I can’t help it.