I was wondering if you believe that God enters into our suffering as well as having already suffered for our sins? If so, do you know how He does this? Does He feel our current pain and/or anguish right along with us, or is it a type of suffering that I might have with a friend, more like compassion?

In Matthew 25, Jesus tells his followers that if they do not show mercy to one another, God will not show mercy to them. He mentions that the sheep (mercy givers)will be separated from the goats, and that the sheep will go to heaven, and the goats to hell. Can you help me understand how this isn’t saying that our salvation is works related? If this parable is speaking of faith that leads to right actions, then my question would be, can a person truly be saved but not exhibit much mercy or right actions? How many merciful actions are enough to demonstrate true faith? Or does only God know this? I’m a little worried that I’m not demonstrating enough mercy and kindness to others.

I have a question about John 21:15-17. Jesus asks Peter two times, do you love (agapeo) Me? And Peter responds, Yes Lord, I love (phileo) You. The third time Jesus asks Peter do you love (phileo) Me, Peter responds, yes Lord, You know all things; You know that I love (phileo) You. So my question is why did Peter respond that he loved the Lord with phileo love? And why the third time Jesus asked Peter if he loved Him with phileo love not agapeo love?

I have questions about Luke 24:13-15, the Road to Emmaus. 1. What was happening in Emmaus and why were these men heading there rather than any other place? 2. What was the significance of Jesus breaking the bread and its coincidence with the opening of the eyes of these disciples? 3. The scripture gave us the name of the second disciple to be Cleopas, I never heard about this name in the Bible before, was there a reason for the scripture to give it to us?

Why does the Bible give the example of “It is easy to go to an eye of needle?” And why did Peter ask “Who can be saved?”

I’ve been told there are four cups in the Passover ceremony and when Jesus instituted the so-called Lord’s Supper He was actually using the third cup. What are the four cups and what do they mean?

In Daniel 8:21, the angel Gabriel explains that the king of Greece, Alexander the Great, is represented by the shaggy goat in Daniel’s vision. Knowing that scripture doesn’t just give information this detailed for no reason, I was wondering why Alexander the Great is represented as a goat, and is there any significance in the fact that the goat is shaggy?

I have read the NIV and NKJV versions of the bible. Both versions in Matthew 6:12 state “And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.” When praying the Lord’s Prayer, why do people substitute the word debts with trespasses? Matthew 6:5 thru 6:13 is very clear to me on how we should pray. Luke 11:2 thru 11:4 is worded a little different than Matthew; but still does not contain the word trespasses. Why is that?

I just had a discussion with someone who claims that the Jews in Israel are impostors. Now I do not believe this for the simple fact, that God has brought those Jews back in the land. So if God considers them to be Jews, then they are Jews. I was just caught off guard by this as I had never heard of this. Can you help me understand this?

In Joshua 1:5 God said to Joshua, “As I was with Moses, so will I be with you; I will not fail you, nor forsake you.” In Hebrews 13:5 the writer said, “Let your conduct be without covetousness; and be content with the things that you have: for he hath said, I will never leave you, nor forsake you” quoting the promise to Joshua. How did he get from a specific promise made to an Old Testament individual, to a general promise for all New Testament believers? Was he applying a spiritual principle or describing a characteristic of God?