Pentecostal Evangel

10 Questions Kids Ask About God

Jesus had a heart for children. On one occasion, when His disciples tried to keep some children at a distance, Jesus commanded them, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these” (Luke 18:16, NIV). Children have a special connection with God’s kingdom, Jesus explained, because their untarnished faith makes them particularly receptive to the truth of the gospel (Matthew 18:3).

We can learn much from children and the gravity, implications and simplicity of their questions about God and faith. We invited children to send their questions to the Pentecostal Evangel. The following questions may be worded simply, but they force us to explore some of the most profound truths. We’ve attempted to provide answers that can build your faith and also be shared with your children.

Why did God make us?
Eddie, 5

God made human beings for three main reasons: to be His friends, to give Him glory, and to take care of the earth.

God created the first man and woman in His image (Genesis 1:26,27). Because they were made like Him, they would be able to have a close relationship with Him.

This image was passed down. God considers all the descendants of Adam and Eve to also have been created in His image, even though they were not created by a direct act of God as Adam and Eve had been (Genesis 9:6).

That means you and I still bear the image of God.

We, like Adam and Eve, are made to have a relationship with God. God would visit the Garden of Eden when Adam and Eve lived there (Genesis 3:8). God’s goal for all people is to be their Friend, through salvation in Jesus Christ. As friends of God we can talk to Him every day. This is called prayer.

As friends of God, we can then give Him glory. That means we honor Him as we praise Him and as we represent Him before others.

God called upon Adam and Eve initially to take care of the Garden of Eden (Genesis 2:15). He also gave them dominion over the earth and its creatures (Genesis 1:26,28). That means we are to be caretakers of God’s creation.

If God made everything and everybody, then who made God?
Carolyn, 8

This question is easy to answer but very hard to understand. Nobody made God. He has always existed. There was never a time before God or without God. In fact, God’s existence isn’t connected to time at all.

The Bible points to God’s existence in its opening sentence: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). God was there at the beginning of all creation.

In Exodus 3:14, God reveals His name to Moses as “I AM WHO I AM.” One way to understand that name is “I AM the One Who Always Is.” In other words, God doesn’t have a beginning or an end.

God has life in himself (John 5:26). He never needed anyone to give Him that life.

How come we can’t see God?
Chimere, 9

First Timothy 1:17 gives us the direct answer to this: “Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen” (NIV).

God is invisible. But why is God invisible? Because “God is spirit” (John 4:24) and “a spirit does not have flesh and bones” (Luke 24:39, NKJV).

But Jesus, who is the Son of God and is God himself, did take on a physical body that could be seen. “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory …. No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father’s side, has made him known” (John 1:14,18, NIV).

So why can’t we see Jesus today? After His resurrection He returned to heaven and is with God the Father (1 Peter 3:22).

How big is God?
Cristan, 10

The Bible tells us that God is everywhere (Psalm 139:7-12). He is limitless, infinite. That makes Him pretty big. But since He is spirit, He does not have a large physical body. His size is spiritual.

Stuart Hamblen wrote a song titled “How Big Is God?” that sums it up well: “How big is God? How big and wide His vast domain? To try to tell, these lips can only start. He’s big enough to rule His mighty universe. Yet small enough to live within my heart.”

Does God like everybody?
Brooklyn, 6

The answer is yes. And even more than that, God loves everybody. The best known verse in the Bible speaks of this: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life”
(John 3:16).

God even loves people who don’t love Him. “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). In fact, “God is love” (1 John 4:8); it is His very nature.

Does God have a family?
Gracyn, 3

Yes, He does. But not in the same way that you and I have a family.

First, the Trinity — God in three persons — includes God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

But there is also the family of God, which is all the followers of Jesus. How do you become part of that family? By receiving Jesus as Lord and Savior. Then God adopts you (Romans 8:14-17; Galatians 4:4-7). You’re still part of your earthly family, but now you are in a much larger family too. That’s why we sometimes call other Christians “brother” and “sister.”

It’s a wonderful thing to be in God’s family. These words from a gospel song say it well: “I’m so glad I’m a part of the family of God.”

Does God listen to my thoughts?
Chloe, 10

Yes, He does. God knows everything, and that includes your thoughts. “The word of God … exposes our innermost thoughts and desires. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God” (Hebrews 4:12,13, NLT).

God doesn’t just look for the bad thoughts you are thinking. What’s really important to Him is knowing if you love Him. Because God knows your thoughts, you can talk to Him silently and He will hear every word of your prayer.

Will God help me play sports better?
Drew, 11

You can count on God to help you with every good thing you try to do. The Bible talks about how we should want to do what God wants us to do. “What you ought to say is, ‘If the Lord wants us to, we will live and do this or that’ ” (James 4:15). “And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men” (Colossians 3:23, NKJV).

If you want God’s help with sports, be sure you are honoring Him by how you play. Be sure you have a strong Christian testimony during every game. That means you’re honest and fair, and that you’re as good a Christian on the field as you are at church. “Whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31).

But don’t ask God to help you win; He cares as much for the people on the other team as He does for you. Ask Him to help you do your best.

What does God’s voice sound like?
Diana, 7

We don’t know. Though God has spoken to believers out loud, most of the time He speaks in a “still, small voice” (1 Kings 19:12), an impression on your spirit. Anything God says to you this way will always be in agreement with what He has said in the Bible, which is His written Word.

When is God coming back to get me?
Aleesa, 11

God is preparing a place for all His children (John 14:2,3). He will come for each of us — either when we die or on the day He comes for all His family, a day called the Rapture.

Death should not be a fearful thing for the believer. Second Corinthians 5:8 tells us that if we leave our bodies at death, we are immediately with God, and that is something we can look forward to.

The Rapture is the other possibility. This is when Jesus returns to take His church out of this world. (See 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17.)

But no one knows the day of his or her death and no one knows when the Rapture will take place. “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only” (Matthew 24:36).

KEN HORN is editor of the Pentecostal Evangel and blogs at Snapshots (khorn.agblogger.org).

Editor’s note: We received many good questions beyond these 10. Let us know if you would like to see more answers to kids’ questions.

E-mail your comments to pe@ag.org.