java.lang.NullPointerException (aka NPE). Yep! You're using nothing thinking it is something, roughly speaking.
A simple example: 
Here is your car:
public class MyCar{
public void startEngin(){
}
Here are some cases where  java.lang.NullPointerException will show up:
class Driver(){
  MyCar myCar; 
public void drive(){
//trying to start the engine of a car not yet created. 
//we should've created it like this:  myCar = new  MyCar();
myCar.startEngine(); 
} 
} 
You're using an object referencing null.