Ralph Rebandt's Christian Testimony
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Pastor Ralph Rebandt Gubernatorial Candidate Michigan |
1. When and how did you become a Christian?
Ralph Rebandt: "I made a profession of faith at First Baptist Church of Trenton, Michigan when I was almost five years old. Our pastor gave a call to the congregation to place our faith in Jesus Christ. I responded and was interviewed. I was asked questions regarding sin, confession of sin, and faith in Jesus Christ as the only Savior and way to the Father. I received Jesus as my personal Savior and was baptized."
2. How did becoming a Christian change you?
Ralph Rebandt: "From my earliest years I’ve had a desire to please Jesus, my Savior. My parents were exemplary Christian role models and were faithful in instilling in me biblical truth and calling me to be obedient to the teachings of Jesus in all areas of my life."
3. How would you describe your relationship with Jesus today?
Ralph Rebandt: "My faith in Jesus Christ has grown since the seed of faith was planted in my heart as a young boy. Today, I have a mature and vibrant relationship with my Savior, Jesus Christ. I have always told people that the only person that I want to please at the end of the day is the person that I will meet at the end of my life. I’m thankful that the Holy Spirit opened my eyes to see the light of the gospel. There is no greater joy than to know that I know Jesus, but most importantly that He knows me."
4. Which church in which city do you attend most often?
Ralph Rebandt: "I have been the lead pastor of Oakland Hills Community Church in Farmington Hills, Michigan for the past 35 years."
5. In the past 12 months, how many church services have you attended?
Ralph Rebandt: "My wife and I attend morning worship each and every Sunday morning. While traveling on the campaign trail, we have continued the regular practice of worship on Sundays. In addition, many churches in Michigan have requested me to preach a single sermon or multiple sermons at their Sunday morning worship, Sunday evening service, or to speak in Sunday Bible classes or mid-week events in different churches. I also attend various prayer meetings throughout the month."
6. In the past 12 months, how much time have you spent in prayer to God daily?
Ralph Rebandt: "I have daily devotions, usually in the morning. I suspect the average prayer length is 20-25 minutes, however as the Apostle Paul instructs us to “pray without ceasing,” I often pray while driving or during other times of the day as well. My wife and I spend about 15 -20 minutes in prayer together each day as well. I attend many zoom or prayer calls put out by various organizations. It is also a custom for my wife and I to “pray the word” by reading a portion of the Bible and praying over it."
7. In the past 12 months, how much Bible reading have you averaged daily?
Ralph Rebandt: "I usually read an Old Testament and New Testament chapter a day. This past year, my wife and I have studied together the books of Nehemiah, Ecclesiastes, Daniel, I Timothy, Psalms, and Proverbs with portions of the Gospels in December and prior to Easter."
8. Do you believe Jesus always has been both God and the Son of God?
Ralph Rebandt: "Yes, absolutely. No question about it. The words of Jesus, and the writers of the Old and New Testament point to the fact that Jesus is one person with two natures, the Godhood and the manhood inseparably joined together without confusion, composition or conversion, which person is fully God and fully man."
9. Why did Jesus die on the cross?
Ralph Rebandt: "Jesus died on the cross to pay for the penalty of our sins, for my sins. He was the only begotten Son of God who, although He was without sin, had our sins placed on Him so that we could be forgiven. As the apostle Paul says, the Just died for the unjust, so that we might be brought to God, and the debt of our sins paid for by the perfect Son of God, who is also God the Son."
10. Do you believe Jesus rose from the dead?
Ralph Rebandt: "Yes. One cannot be a Christian without believing in the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. Romans 10:9-10 – “if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” 1 Corinthians 15 – “if Jesus has not been raised from the dead, our faith is useless and we are to be pitied more than all men.” After the resurrection, Jesus was seen by over 513 people including individuals, groups, his own disciples, and many of those who hated him as well."
11. Do you believe Jesus ascended to heaven and will return someday?
Ralph Rebandt: "Yes. We read about the return of Jesus in Acts 1. Jesus also said in Matthew 24-25 that He would return in clouds of glory. He bodily arose. He bodily ascended. He will bodily return."
12. By what criterion do you believe people go to heaven?
Ralph Rebandt: "I am glad that this question is singular because there is only one criterion – faith alone in Christ alone. “For it is by grace that you have been saved through faith, it is the gift of God, not of works lest anyone should boast” – Ephesians 2:8-9."
13. In the past year, how many non-Christians have you told why Jesus died?
Ralph Rebandt: "Wow, seriously, too many to count. God has opened doors for the gospel on the campaign trail, in fact more doors than when I was a pastor."
14. Which gift(s) has the Holy Spirit given you, and what fruit(s) has it borne?
Ralph Rebandt: "I have the gifts of leadership, teaching, evangelism, and showing mercy. God has used my ministry over the years to bring many people to Himself, to repair broken relationships, and to care for those who have been rejected or fallen on difficult times or circumstances. Hearing the testimonies of lives who have been impacted by my ministry has confirmed these gifts as well as humbled me to know that God has produced fruit from my labors."
15. What do you pray to God for/about our nation?
Ralph Rebandt: "I pray for revival in the Church and a great awakening among our citizens. I have specifically been praying for a third great awakening in Michigan and America. We are in a spiritual war, and only by God’s grace and in His power, will be able to experience the peace and abundant life that Jesus came to give. I pray that God will cause our nation to repent of the sin of abortion and that God will bring an end to that atrocity. I pray that God will provide our nation with Godly leaders in the church and in government who understand wisdom, knowledge, life, and policy from a Biblical worldview. I pray for unity in the Church and in our country."
16. How do you define "marriage"?
Ralph Rebandt: "I define marriage the way God does – a covenantal union before God and witnesses between one man and one woman for life."
17. Under what circumstances do you believe abortion should be allowed?
Ralph Rebandt: "There are no circumstances where abortion should be allowed. I am aware that there are unique circumstances where life is given for life, to spare the life of the mother. These situations are extremely rare and difficult, but in these circumstances, where a life is given for a life, it is not abortion, but life for life. Effort should be made to save both lives."
18. What remedies do you advocate against illegal immigration?
Ralph Rebandt: "Illegal immigrants should be sent back to their country of origin or from where they entered. Build and fully fund the wall. Enforce legal immigration laws, advocate for legislation that closes loopholes, and encourage citizenship through “sponsors” that will help new citizens adjust."
19. Where can the rest of your policy positions be read?
Ralph Rebandt: "My Lighthouse Initiatives can be found at RalphRebandtforGovernor.com. Listed are my 4 words, 4 values, 4 strategies, and 4 solutions."
20. What would you like to say to Michigan's Christian voters?
Ralph Rebandt: "I am convinced that unless we get God right in this next election, nothing else will matter.
It is impossible to understand life, knowledge, wisdom, government, human rights, dignity, economics, medicine, and care for the poor and needy outside of a biblical framework which provides us as believers in Jesus Christ a biblical worldview. Every person has a worldview that determines the perspective from which they derive their conclusions. Our country was founded on Judeo-Christian values supported in an abundance of historical documentation. George Washington said, “It is impossible to rightly govern a nation without God and the Bible” and he additionally warned “Let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion. Reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle.”
Our Founders, understanding these biblical foundations for government, had much to say about the role of government. George Washington said, “It is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor”, and that is what I will commit to do as the 50th Governor of the state of Michigan.
Our Founders also described the proper role of government in the Declaration of Independence, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness”.
Our National Motto, the U.S. Constitution, and Michigan’s Constitution were all guided by Biblical principles and give us the freedom to dust off our Nation’s past to get it back on course again. Michigan needs a Governor who has a Biblical worldview to combat the spiritual war we are in right now as a State and as a Country. As our Founders, pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor to fight for the freedoms we enjoy, so I promise this to the citizens of Michigan. Our Founders in the Declaration of Independence understood the laws of Nature and Nature’s God. Sixty years ago, God was removed from the classroom, the courtroom, and our culture. Now we see the laws of Nature being removed. I intend with God’s help to bring back Judeo-Christian values and a Biblical worldview to Michigan’s culture, and in doing so to 'Make Michigan a Lighthouse to the Nation.'
Ralph A. Rebandt
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