Someone asks, “Is it sinful to have a blood transfusion?” All three religious periods in the Bible – Patriarchy, Judaism, Christianity – prohibit eating blood. Patriarchy: “But you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood” (Genesis 9:4 NKJV). Judaism: “Only be sure that you do not eat the blood, for the blood is the life; you may not eat the life with the meat” (Deuteronomy 12:23 and many more Scriptures). Christianity: “But that we write to them to abstain from things polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from things strangled, and from blood” (Acts 15:20). Genesis 9:4 prohibited people living under Patriarchy from eating blood because life is in the blood. The two following verses, hence, introduce “lifeblood” and associate blood with life and death. Prohibitions under Judaism about eating blood provide an additional reason for not eating blood; idolatrous worship at the time involved eating blood (Leviticus 19:26; Ezekiel 33:25). Likewise, Christianity’s restriction from eating blood is also associated with idolatrous worship. “…That you abstain from things offered to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality” (Acts 15:29). All three religious periods in the Bible – Patriarchy, Judaism, Christianity – prohibit eating blood. However, nowhere in the Bible does God even mention blood transfusions. Eating blood and blood transfusions are not the same thing. Blood transfusions neither involve eating blood or having it pass through the digestive system (e.g., stomach). Neither do blood transfusions have any relationship to idolatry. The Jehovah Witnesses stand alone in Christendom in presuming that eating blood and having a blood transfusion are the same thing and

“Liar, liar, pants on fire!” is a familiar childhood refrain. Somewhere the other day, I stumbled on this catchphrase augmented with the suggestion that it would be more interesting if liars’ pants actually did ignite in fiery flames when they told lies. Just imagine such a spectacle. Where might one train his vision to witness that phenomenon? I can envision it now. While watching the evening news broadcast, suddenly the anchorman’s trousers bursts into flames. Certainly, political speeches would be a lot more interesting if the politicians’ pants began smoking and then flamed whenever they lied; doubtlessly few would escape being singed. Surely, nearly every car salesman (and most other smooth-talking salespeople) would appear charred and emit a burnt aroma. The religious arena wouldn’t be spared either; how many denominational pastors as well as some Gospel preachers would find themselves on fire when they spewed forth untruths instead of the unadulterated Word of God? The burning hot pulpits behind which those heralds stand to speak lies might combust and serve as kindling; how many church houses would evidence fire and smoke damage? Telling lies has become so commonplace that one is almost naïve to believe at face value anything anyone says. For instance, the so-called good guys (e.g., police, leading characters) in family television programs tell lies all the time, as though that was normal and a right thing to do. Friends, God takes a whole different viewpoint to telling lies. Lying is not a trivial matter, but rather, it

A visitor to Gospel Gazette Online posed the question, “To whom was Matthew written?” Each of the Gospel accounts was written generally to a different readership. The Gospel message or good news about Jesus Christ and His mission to provide human redemption is the same in each of the records. However, the manner in which that message was penned in each instance corresponded to the targeted audience. The Gospel According to Matthew was written with a Jewish audience in mind. The Gospel According to Mark was penned with a Roman readership intended primarily, whereas the Gospel According to Luke was scribed for a Gentile audience. The Gospel According to John was written much later than the former three Gospel accounts and penned for a universal audience. The Gospel of Matthew probably receives the most notice since its arrangement in our New Testament precedes Mark, Luke and John. Therefore, we are probably more familiar with it than the latter three Gospel records. Yet, together, the four Gospel accounts provide a more comprehensive overview of the life and ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ. With those four records as the foundation, Acts 2 proceeds to acquaint readers with the beginning of Christianity with the establishment of the Lord’s church. The balance of the New Testament guides Christians in the application of God’s Word to their lives and how to prepare to meet God in eternity. The Gospel accounts, Acts and the rest of the New Testament convey how to be saved from past sins,

“Did Catholicism give us the Bible?” someone asked. No, Catholicism did not give us the Bible. The Old Testament portion of the Bible was completed before the first century. The New Testament portion of the Bible was completed around the close of the first century. The church that Jesus promised to build (Matthew 16:18) was established on the first Pentecost following the crucifixion, burial, resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ in about A.D. 33. However, the Catholic Church evolved over centuries from apostasy by early Christians and did not have a universally accepted pope to govern it for hundreds of years after Christianity began. The church Jesus promised to build and over which He alone is the Head began in Jerusalem about A.D. 33, whereas Boniface III unified and governed the Catholic Church in Rome in A.D. 607. Therefore, the Bible existed before the Catholic Church came into existence.

I don’t know precisely when or where, but a few decades ago, I heard the late and esteemed brother Guy N. Woods remark that every judgment parable in the New Testament is not about bad things done, but rather they are about good things left undone. “…in the judgment parables spoken by the Lord, all of them dealt with those who did nothing, or little, as was the case with the foolish virgins and the one talent man (Matt. 25:1-30)” (Hearn 79). Someone in each judgment parable is condemned for not doing something rather than for doing something wrong. Personally, I find that thought scary. The judgment parables of our Lord, then, highlight the sin of omission. Along this line of thinking, the divinely inspired writer James penned, “Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin” (4:17 NKJV). It’s frightening to contemplate the sins of which I may be guilty personally because of laxity on my part “to do good.” Certainly, we see in the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14-30) the concept of personal responsibility to act out our alleged loyalty to our Lord Jesus Christ. The wicked servant in that parable was not accused of committing heinous sins such as fornication or murder. Instead, he was a wicked servant because he omitted his obligation to do the work of a servant to his master. The parable begins with the master of the estate entrusting three servants respectively with five talents, two talents and one

Short Answer No, God will not merge Heaven and Earth. Millennialists are incorrect to believe that the righteous will live on planet Earth for a thousand years. In addition, renewed earth theorists are equally mistaken to suppose that the righteous will live on Earth eternally. Both errors arise from a materialistic and literal view of passages that instead pertain to spiritual rather than physical applications. The complete demise of our world about which we read in Scripture utterly demolishes both doctrinal blunders. Jesus plainly declared: “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my word shall not pass away” (Matt. 25:35; Mark 13:31; Luke 21:33). The “heaven” of this passage is the ethereal atmosphere which surrounds the earth, the same “heaven” of the birds and fowls of the air (Luke 13:19; Ps. 104:12; Jer. 4:25; Lam. 4:19; etc.). …The apostle Peter gives a graphic description of the earth’s end and complete destruction by fire (2 Peter 3:7-10). He says that “the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.” The Greek word for “burned up” is katakaid, meaning “to burn utterly, as the burning of chaff” (Vine’s Expository Dictionary of N.T. Words). (Cline 6) The phrase “new earth” in II Peter 3:13 and Revelation 21:1 cannot possibly refer to a reuse of this planet, for the Greek word for “new” here means “new in nature” and thus “not yet used” (Kittel,

The Bible is the sole authority for all we practice religiously! Nothing else and no one else is as authoritative as the Word of God – the Bible. The New Testament or Covenant of Jesus Christ (the part of the Bible that primarily applies today) is reliable because the Godhead designated Jesus to possess all authority. “While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!’” (Matthew 17:5 NKJV). “And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, ‘All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth’” (Matthew 28:18). All we do in religion is to be done in the name of or by the authority of Jesus Christ. “And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him” (Colossians 3:17). A children’s book character ran around telling everyone that the sky was falling. Of course, he was mistaken, and the evidence did not support his claim. Since then, “the sky is falling” has become a phrase that represents an erroneous hysteria. However, dear Readers, there is a sense in which the sky is falling, and it has been falling for many decades in our own time. Generally, the sky is falling in religion, politics and society – in the United States of America as well as around the world. Once the Bible was the chief

Someone asks, “Due to the drastic change in government, how should we as Christians prepare for living in a socialist country?” This is an interesting question, especially since Christianity was birthed in Jerusalem under iron-fisted Roman occupation. Furthermore, the entirety of New Testament events and epistles relating to incidents in the first century transpired within the sphere of control by the Roman Empire. Therefore, the New Testament is actionable in our lives today, irrespective of the government under which we live – anywhere in the world. Whereas many in the USA may view the country lately as taking a significant turn from its roots to socialism, overnight the Burmese populace recently went from governance by a feeble democracy to control by historically lethal and harsh military rule. Christians around the world, today, experience many forms of governments under which they live and by which they are constrained. No matter where a child of God lives on the planet, there are fundamental characteristics that underscore what it means to be a Christian. These do not change irrespective of a person’s environment because the Bible stipulates them, and the Bible is the Holy Spirit inspired Word of God. To what extent, how and where Christians can assemble to worship God in spirit and in truth may vary depending upon the constrictions under which they live, but Christians will worship God in spirit and in truth each Lord’s Day. The level of public activity in evangelizing non-Christians with the Gospel may also be

Someone asked, “What is the role of an elder’s wife?” We will attempt to offer a consideration on which readers may desire to reflect. Generally, the non-gender specific biblical qualifications for elders and deacons (e.g., “the husband of one wife”) ought to be the goals of every child of God (1 Timothy 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-9). Both Christian men and Christian women should pursue for themselves the virtues that the New Testament absolutely requires of elders (and their respective wives). Yes, a woman must mirror the godly qualities of her husband in order for him to be biblically qualified to serve as an elder. Ungodly, immoral or unruly wives and children disqualify men for appointment as elders. There are some areas in particular where an elder’s wife participates with her husband in his ability to function well in his role as an elder. An elder’s wife doubtlessly assumes much of the responsibility regarding hospitality in the home, though an elder must be “hospitable” (1 Timothy 3:2; Titus 1:8). In addition, an elder’s wife bears a tremendous duty in the home for childrearing, though an elder must have “faithful children” (Titus 1:6). In a lengthier statement, the apostle Paul wrote in 1 Timothy 3:4-5 that an elder must be “one who rules his own house well, having his children in submission with all reverence (for if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take care of the church of God?)” (NKJV). An elder’s wife contributes

I was acquainted first with the King James Version (KJV) of the Bible, and most of the older reference works interact with the KJV. Hence, many of the reference works and commentaries to which I may appeal in my study of the Bible involve the KJV. However, personally and usually in print, I resort to the New King James Version (NKJV). Both of those translations are based on the same Old Testament and compiled Greek manuscript for the New Testament. For the most part, both the KJV and the NKJV are translated accurately, as well as for the most part being translated literally. The NKJV’s vocabulary has been updated and is easier to read and to understand than the KJV. Most other contemporary New Testament translations are based on a different compilation of chiefly two or three older Greek manuscripts. Consequently, at best, these translations differ in some places – chiefly leaving out some verses – from the KJV and the NKJV. Happily, when translated accurately, no doctrine is compromised irrespective of whether one uses, for instance, the NKJV or the English Standard Version (ESV). It is important to note that there are primarily two opposing approaches to translating Scripture into one’s language – more or less literally and dynamic equivalence. “Literal” refers to word for word translations (and sometimes transliterations, e.g., “baptism” for “baptisma”) with some words added by translators to help with the sense (italicized words, e.g., KJV, NKJV). “Dynamic Equivalence” presumes to reword and rephrase the original text into words and sentences that the translators

Dictionaries define “tragedy” as, “a disastrous event: calamity” (“Tragedy,” Merriam-Webster) or “a lamentable, dreadful, or fatal event or affair… disaster” (“Tragedy,” Dictionary.com). There have been too many tragedies throughout human history to even begin to list them, but let us briefly note a few of them to demonstrate the nature of human tragedies that, unfortunately, have plagued and will continue to beset mankind. The American Civil War spanned the years 1861 to 1865, and between 620,000 to 850,000 died directly and indirectly as a result (Nasaw). That tragedy was one of the topmost catastrophic events ever to transpire in the western hemisphere, and its ramifications continue to this day in the United States of America. “The RMS Titanic, a luxury steamship, sank in the early hours of April 15, 1912, off the coast of Newfoundland in the North Atlantic after sideswiping an iceberg during its maiden voyage [from South Hampton, England to New York, USA]. Of the 2,240 passengers and crew [of 900] on board, more than 1,500 lost their lives in the disaster.” Only about 705 persons survived. (“Titanic”). The Titanic and the Lusitania were the two largest luxury ocean liners ever constructed at the time they were put into service. “Lusitania met its tragic end on May 7, 1915, when a torpedo fired by a German U-boat sunk the ship, killing nearly 1,200 of the 1,959 people on board and precipitating the United States’ entry into World War I” (“Titanic”). World War I from 1914 to 1918 resulted in 20 million deaths, a little

Someone is curious about and desires an explanation of the two deaths about which one can read in Scripture. The first death – physical death – is something doubtlessly with which everyone is reluctantly familiar as family members and friends die. It, too, is an appointment that each person now living must keep, though at an undisclosed time and for which no one can be late. Introduction “The phrase ‘first death’ is nowhere found in the Bible. However, the ‘first death’ is implied by the ‘second death’ that figures prominently in the Revelation…” (Stockton 471). The first part of Hebrews 9:27 provides a biblical validation of what we might call the first death, whereas the latter part of the verse announces a disposition to be made of each person following his or her physical demise and subsequent judgment. For “many” (Matthew 7:13-14), this is when they will experience the “second death.” “And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment” (Hebrews 9:27 NKJV). The phrase “second death” appears only four times in Scripture. “‘The second death’ is unique to the Apocalypse. What matter about the first, which sooner or later must come, if we escape the second death” (Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown). “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death” (Revelation 2:11 NKJV). “Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such

“Who Knew What When?” is a common international news headline. Let’s explore “Who Knew What When?” concerning, “Who in the first century believed Jesus’ kingdom was spiritual?” As the first century A.D. began, there was an air of expectancy among the Jews that the long-prophesied kingdom of the Messiah was about to be established (Isaiah 2:2-3; Daniel 2:26-45). The fourth earthly kingdom from the time of and including the Babylonian reign under Nebuchadnezzar – the Roman Empire – had been ruling the Jews for a little less than 100 years. Therefore, the ministries of John the Baptist and Jesus of Nazareth created quite a stir among the Jews as John and Jesus both began preaching that the kingdom was near (Matthew 3:1; 4:17). The Jews expected an earthly kingdom comparable to the kingdom as it was when Solomon was king. Israel desperately wanted to overthrow Roman rule and occupation of their homeland. Therefore, many Jews were aroused by the preaching of John the Baptist and Jesus Christ. They wanted to take Jesus by force and make Him their earthly king (John 6:14-15). However, many of the Jews turned away from following Jesus Christ once they realized that He did not come to establish a physical kingdom (John 6:66). “Who Knew What When?” Many of the Jews who formerly were stirred by preaching about the kingdom were among the first to understand that the nature to the kingdom about which John the Baptist and Jesus of Nazareth preached was spiritual rather than physical

A brother asks, “What does Scripture say about tattoos, body art and piercings?” Had the question been phrased – “What does the New Testament say about tattoos, body art and piercings?” – the answer would simply be, “Nothing.” Preferences and opinions aside, the New Testament does not specifically address tattoos, body art and piercings. Indirectly, there may be some principles that one may wish to use against them, but still the New Testament does not expressly address tattoos, body art and piercings. Good judgment and responsible decorum that does not distract from one’s Christianity ought to be considered (1 Timothy 2:9). The Old Testament, though, does address tattoos and cutting the flesh, but the Old Testament is neither now the law of God to which we turn to order our lives nor the law of God by which anyone presently living will be judged (Romans 7:6-7; 2 Corinthians 3:11; Ephesians 2:15; Colossians 2:14; Hebrews 8:8-13). The Old Testament prohibitions regarding tattoos and cutting of the flesh pertained to the adoption of the practices by idolatrous peoples. Old Testament restrictions concerning tattoos and cuttings of the flesh not only pertained to the popular idolatry of that day, but they also are confined to the Old Covenant, which is no longer in effect. Brother Wayne Jackson has written a fine, brief article about tattoos and cutting of the flesh, which I recommend readers of Gospel Gazette Online read for themselves in full. Works Cited Jackson, Wayne. “Does the Old Testament Condemn Tattoos?” Christian Courier. 28 Nov 2020. < https://www.christiancourier.com/articles/246-does-the-old-testament-condemn-tattoos>.

“Is people’s sin the business of the church?” someone asks. The short answer is, “Yes” and “Yes.” First, Christians, and hence the church as it is comprised of Christians, must proclaim the Gospel to a sin-sick and spiritually dead world population. “And He [Jesus] said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved…’” (Mark 16:15-16 NKJV). “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you…” (Matthew 28:19-20). “Then Peter said to them, ‘Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins…’” (Acts 2:38). “And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord’” (Acts 22:16). Each of these passages, and more to which one could appeal, emphasize the need of sinners to hear and obey the Gospel of Christ as well as the responsibility of Christians or the church to present the Gospel to sinners. Yes, people’s sin is the business of the church. Not only so, but such is also the chief or primary mission of the church – evangelism. Secondly, Christians, and hence the church, must reprove or rebuke Christians who practice sins. The first century church at Corinth disregarded ongoing sin

Fourteen verses provide all the information biblically available about the two “robbers” (NKJV) or “thieves” (KJV) who were crucified alongside of our Lord Jesus Christ (Matthew 27:38, 44; Mark 15:27-28, 32; Luke 23:32-33, 39-43; John 19:18, 32). Luke, however, distinguishes between the criminals, one being impenitent and the other being penitent. Then one of the criminals who were hanged blasphemed Him, saying,  “If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us.” But the other, answering, rebuked him, saying, “Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong.” Then he said to Jesus, “Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.” And Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.” (Luke 23:39-43 NKJV) The penitent ‘malefactor’ (KJV) is a curious Bible character. Who was he? How did he come to be executed for his crimes? Especially, what did the thief know about the kingdom of Jesus Christ? Obviously, this condemned man knew about the ministry of Jesus Christ and possibly about the ministry of John the Immerser who preceded our Lord. “In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!’” (Matthew 3:1-2 NKJV). “From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand’”

Someone submits a statement and a question thusly: “Reading of Scripture prior to the sermon seems to be of recent origin. Does the one who reads the Scripture have to be a baptized believer?” We will consider the statement and the question separately. Rather than being of recent origin, public reading of Scripture is an ancient practice among the people of God. Nehemiah did this. “So they read distinctly from the book, in the Law of God; and they gave the sense, and helped them to understand the reading” (Nehemiah 8:8 NKJV). Centuries later, Jesus Himself illustrated the practice of the Jews to read Scripture and afterward to expound upon it. So He [Jesus] came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read. And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed; To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.” Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on

Someone asked, “Who was the father of Melchizedek?” This Bible character’s name appears 11 times in Scripture (Genesis 14:18; Psalm 110:4; Hebrews 5:6; 6:20; 7:1, 10-11, 15, 17, 21). None of the passages that refer to Melchizedek identify his parentage. The absence of references to the mother and to the father of Melchizedek or to his birth and to his death is part of why and how Melchizedek is an example of some of the characteristics of the Messiah, Jesus Christ. Note that Hebrews 7:3 says of Melchizedek that he was “without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, remains a priest continually” (NKJV). Being a mortal, certainly Melchizedek had a mother and a father. Obviously, he was born and eventually he died. However, none of those particular details have been preserved. Lacking the details of Melchizedek’s parentage and when he was born or when he died makes him appear to be without beginning and without end. Thereby, Melchizedek in this way mimics and serves as an example of God the Son, Jesus Christ, Who is eternal – without beginning and without end. “And it is yet far more evident if, in the likeness of Melchizedek, there arises another priest who has come, not according to the law of a fleshly commandment, but according to the power of an endless life” (Hebrews 7:15-16). In addition, Melchizedek served as “priest of the Most High God” (Genesis 14:18; Hebrews 7:1) under

The apostle Paul rebuked the Corinthian church for stumbling over “the simplicity that is in Christ” (1 Corinthians 11:3 NKJV). Chapter after chapter of the epistle of 1 Corinthians shows in how many areas of Christianity those first century brethren stumbled over simplicity. The apostle used the debacle with Eve in the Garden of Eden to illustrate the nature of stumbling over simplicity. The New Testament is longer and more comprehensive than the simple instructions God gave the first pair, but nevertheless, they stumbled over simplicity. After all, how hard could it have been for Adam and Eve (1) to tend or to till the Garden, (2) to keep or to guard it (Genesis 2:15) and (3) to refrain eating from a single tree (Genesis 2:17)? That’s it! What could have been simpler? There are several notable biblical examples of stumbling over simplicity. One such instance pertained to a Syrian commander named Naaman. He was a leper, and desiring to be healed, Naaman traveled to meet the prophet Elisha. However, the prophet did not respond as Naaman expected. Then Naaman went with his horses and chariot, and he stood at the door of Elisha’s house. And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored to you, and you shall be clean.” But Naaman became furious, and went away and said, “Indeed, I said to myself, ‘He will surely come out to me, and stand and call on

Commonly, people refer to a death angel or the angel of death regarding the death of the firstborn in the final plague preceding the Israelite exodus from Egyptian bondage. Others adamantly object that God killed the firstborn under consideration. Let’s see what we can discern from the Bible. Exodus 12:1 says, “Now the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt…” (NKJV). The “LORD” (KJV, NKJV, ESV, NIV) or “Jehovah” (ASV, YLT) later interacted with the Israelites over their 40 years of wilderness wandering. First Corinthians 10:4 identifies the member of the Godhead that we know best as Jesus Christ as the One Who interacted with the Israelites in the wilderness. Thus, we have identified the One Who was speaking in the context of Exodus 12. Were Exodus 12:12-13 alone considered, a person might well conclude that “the LORD” exclusive of anyone else killed the firstborn of Egypt. “For I will pass through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the Lord. Now the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you; and the plague shall not be on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt” (NKJV). The “I” refers to “the LORD” of verse 1. However, consider Exodus

“But the word of the Lord endures forever. Now this is the word which by the gospel was preached to you” (1 Peter 1:25 NKJV). In no way comparable to the inspired Word of God, nevertheless the written word of God’s children shares some of the same characteristics. First, whatever biblical literature Christians produce ought to be filled with “sound words” (2 Timothy 1:13) derived from the Word of God—the Gospel. Second, the written word of God’s servants is durable. Written material is always ready whenever and wherever the reader is ready for it. In some cases, this may be many years (e.g., the Bible itself). In the middle of 2020, a church secretary from Anchorage, Alaska informed me of an article written about “Encouragement” by Bonnie Rushmore, which appeared as parts 1 and 2 in two successive church bulletins. That article by my late wife was published in 2002 in Gospel Gazette Online—13 years before her death and 18 years ago now. Maybe not classified with the Bible character Abel, however, Bonnie “being dead still speaks” (Hebrews 11:4 NKJV). The written Word and the written word, too, are durable. Third, the written word of God’s servants travels well. Also in 2020, I received an email from overseas, I presume, in which the writer offered lauds regarding Gospel Gazette Online. He wanted me to know that the magazine was his library from which he draws substance for his television programs, sermons and Bible classes. Alaska or Africa, for instance, are places to

Must congregational benevolence be limited to saints or Christians only? Is that what 2 Corinthians 9:13 and Galatians 6:10 teach? Does New Testament Scripture chronicle largely Gentile first century Christians from northern Mediterranean countries sending benevolent money to a particular group of Christians in Palestine, who were encouraged to share some of the benevolent funds with other Christians outside of their congregation? Are churches of Christ neither authorized nor permitted to expend benevolent money or the things money can buy for non-Christians? The motivation for which the apostle Paul was collecting benevolent funds was for saints or Christians in Judaea who were the victims (along with everyone else) of a widespread famine. “And in these days prophets came from Jerusalem to Antioch [Syria]. Then one of them, named Agabus, stood up and showed by the Spirit that there was going to be a great famine throughout all the world, which also happened in the days of Claudius Caesar” (Acts 11:27-28 NKJV). Several similar references dot the New Testament. “Distributing to the needs of the saints” (Romans 12:13). “Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given orders to the churches of Galatia [Turkey today], so you must do also: On the first day of the week let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper, that there be no collections when I come” (1 Corinthians 16:1-2). “Imploring us with much urgency that we would receive the gift and the fellowship of the ministering

Empty oratory, cotton candy and meringue are each sweet tasting, and yet, none of them have any nutritional value. They simply are not healthy! In fact, a diet of such is toxic! I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables. But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry. (2 Timothy 4:1-5 NKJV) This first century exhortation is no less needed today in the twenty-first century. Next to false teaching (1 John 4:1), hollow homilies, fluffy with “smooth words and flattering speech” (Romans 16:18), which are undergirded by philosophy and endless personal analysis, immeasurably harm the collective of the church and Christians individually. Alas, however, rare is the preacher or teacher these days who will in a straightforward manner undertake the pronouncement of a portion of “the whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27). Book, chapter and verse preaching is neither any longer promulgated nor tolerated by the majority of present-day preachers or teachers and their auditors. Gone are the

Dear Louis and Rodney, This is a disturbing article on your website [referring to an article about the Sabbath]…The darkness of this world is growing, the Christian world is shrinking and loosening. I have been to many Christian churches and most of them teach and follow the same false teachings like [the article]. Shall we follow G-d and our Saviour Jesus Christ or any ignorant and deceiving men? As simple as a child, when we read cited verses, we know that Christ Jesus abolished not the Law. Sabbath keeping is one of the Law that last forever. Sabbath Worshiping is the commanded sacred worship service from our G-d. Return and repent from all false teachings and ask for His forgiveness. Let us make a simple and straight choice and submission to our G-d: obey and follow Him and His commandments. Hope that the evil one will not deceive you or blind you to not Love our G-d as He commanded. I pray that the Holy Spirit will open your eyes and ears to see and hear His Voice. Sixty-six books comprise the Bible, and they were written by about 40 different divinely inspired penmen across approximately 1,600 years. Thirty-nine of those Bible books are in the Old Testament, and the remaining 27 books are in the New Testament portion of the Bible. Two different, God-given law systems appear in the Old Testament: Patriarchy (a family-type religion) and Judaism (a national religion); another or third God-given law system is in the

One Race Acts 17:26 informs us that God “…made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth…” (NKJV, KJV, YLT, etc.). Other translations of the same verse read somewhat differently but teach the same truth. “…he made of one every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth…” (ASV). “…he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth…” (ESV). “From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth…” (NIV). “…He made out of one source material every nation of mankind to inhabit the entire surface of the earth” (Wuest’s New Testament Expanded Translation). (The derived Greek text from which the KJV and similar translations were translated relies on a large quantity of manuscripts, while the ASV and other translations depend on a derived Greek text from three or so older manuscripts, therefore,  supposedly of higher quality.) Irrespective of the translation above to which one turns respecting Acts 17:26, it ought to be obvious to every Bible-believer that actually there is only one race—the human race. Dissimilarities of skin pigmentation, hair color, eye color, physique, ethnicity, culture, language, gender (i.e., male or female), age, economics, education, social status, habitat and such like are relatively irrelevant and do not alter the fact that every person is a part of the human race. Everyone—who has ever lived, is now living or who shall ever live—has Adam and Eve as his or her first biological, ancestral parents (Genesis 1:28).

Someone submitted the question, “How old were Mary and Joseph when Jesus was born?” The ages of men and women appear in Scripture in many cases throughout the Bible. For instance, Genesis 7:6 reads, “Noah was six hundred years old when the floodwaters were on the earth” (NKJV). Furthermore, Luke 3:23 says, “Now Jesus Himself began His ministry at about thirty years of age.” However, the ages of Mary and Joseph do not appear in the Bible. There are too many variables to even put forth a credible theory.

“Is the corporate giving done on the first day of the week?” someone asks. The question is incomplete, and surely, the thought expanded would appear, “Is corporate giving [of the assembled local church] done on the first day of the week only?” The simple answer to the first or original question is, “Yes.” However, that question and answer may be misleading. The answer to the second question is, “No.” Historically and typically, members of the churches of Christ freely acknowledge that there are five activities of worship prescribed in the New Testament in which each child of God is obligated to participate each first day of the week: prayer, singing, giving, preaching and the Lord’s Supper—in no particular order. Usually, brethren assert two of these worshipful acts are limited to their observance upon the first day of the week (the Lord’s Supper and giving), while the other three types of worship may also occur on other days of the week. Scouring the New Testament Scriptures, one discerns that Christian worship ensues through prayer, singing, giving, preaching and the Lord’s Supper. These, then, must transpire during worship assemblies (Hebrews 10:25; 1 Corinthians 14:26-40) on the first day of the week (Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 16:1-2). The reason that any worshipful activity may occur on other days of the week also is because the Spirit-led, apostle-guided first century church apparently engaged in that worshipful act also on days other than the first day of the week. Only acts of worship that the New Testament does not show

Amusing myself at least, I have contemplated from time to time that contemporary Christians often add an “e” to “fasting,” resulting in “feasting.” Certainly, the favorite type of fellowship freely observed by Christians today involves a fellowship meal. We love to cook, and we love to eat! First century fellowship, though, also included being “fellow workers” (Romans 16:3), “fellow prisoners” (Romans 16:7), “fellow citizens” (Ephesians 2:19), “fellow heirs” (Ephesians 3:6), a “fellow soldier” (Philippians 2:25), a “fellow servant” (Colossians 1:7) and a “fellow laborer” (2 Thessalonians 3:2). Christian fellowship includes a partnership with the Godhead (1 Corinthians 1:9; Philippians 2:1; 1 John 1:3), a partnership in the Gospel (Philippians 1:5), a partnership in worship (Acts 2:42) as well as a partnership with the children of God (Galatians 2:9; 1 John 1:7). Fellowship may also include participation in the sufferings of Jesus Christ (Philippians 3:10). Fasting, however, differs from feasting and other aspects of fellowship. “Fasting, deliberate abstinence from food for stated intervals, and undertaken as a religious exercise, has long been practiced by man” (Woods, Volume 1, 252). “…Fasting is a Bible subject. It is mentioned quite frequently in the Scriptures” (Ashlock 2). In practice by the Jews during the time of the ministry of Jesus Christ, our Lord regulated the action rather than implemented it as a feature of Christianity. Regarding Matthew 6:16-18, Jesus “…removed fasting from the realm of public activity and classified it as a matter of private devotion” (Woods, Volume 2, 146). “Fasting for the Christian is

The related questions were put forth thusly: “Is the single or unmarried state really inferior to the married state? Why the pressures from the church and parents on the spiritual superiority of married life?” For most people, marriage is the ideal marital status, as long as husbands and wives practice biblical principles (Ephesians 5:22-33). God Himself at the budding of human habitation upon the earth determined that a man and a woman were suitable companions, coworkers and a family (Genesis 2:18, 21-24). As husband and wife, God instructed them to propagate the human race (Genesis 1:27-28), which is not possible alone. Likewise, following the worldwide deluge of Noah’s time, God told the four couples who disembarked the Ark, “…Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth” (Genesis 9:1 NKJV). This, again, is the business of growing families, not something done alone. Both testaments of the Bible abound with references to married life. God approves of marriage and detests sexual relationships outside of marriage. “Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled; but fornicators and adulterers God will judge” (Hebrews 13:4). Marriage is the proper way to address one’s natural physical attraction to the opposite sex (1 Corinthians 7:1-5). However, the apostle Paul was not only unmarried, but he also recommended that marital status to others, too. “But I say this as a concession, not as a commandment. For I wish that all men were even as I myself…” (1 Corinthians 7:6-7). In addition, the same apostle acknowledged that because of

Someone asked, “Did Jesus put a curse on a fig tree?” The implication may be that somehow our Lord acted in an unbecoming way and was worthy of censure. Now the next day, when they had come out from Bethany, He was hungry. And seeing from afar a fig tree having leaves, He went to see if perhaps He would find something on it. When He came to it, He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. In response Jesus said to it, “Let no one eat fruit from you ever again.” And His disciples heard it. … Now in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots. And Peter, remembering, said to Him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree which You cursed has withered away.” (Mark 11:12-14, 20-21 NKJV) Yes, Jesus did put a curse on a fig tree. The incident was symbolic of coming divine retribution or punishment upon wicked humanity at the conclusion of the longsuffering of God (2 Peter 3:9-12). Of all Jesus’ miracles, only this one was a curse. It was absolutely necessary that Christ’s miracles should attest the ultimate judgment of God upon evil works. Otherwise, it could have left an impression that divine power would be used only to heal, help, and bless man. The lesson of the fig tree, however, proves that God will eventually judge mankind and punish wickedness. Since the time had not yet come for the pouring

There was an occasion during the ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ when many of His disciples turned from Him (John 6:41-66). “Then Jesus said to the twelve, ‘Do you also want to go away?’ But Simon Peter answered Him, ‘Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God’” (John 6:67-69 NKJV). Within Peter’s response is the rhetorical question that should resonate with every child of God, “To whom shall we go?” To whom shall Christians turn in the face of every adversity and life challenge, today? To whom shall we go? Mankind in Jesus’ day commonly viewed everything from a physical and a literal perspective, and people were reluctant to make spiritual applications or to appeal to spiritual solutions to their problems and needs. Things haven’t changed much from then to now! To whom shall Christians turn when they face personal health crises and their own mortality? Yes, we can and should avail ourselves of medical treatments to help deal with physical challenges. Yet, ultimately, our bodies wear out, and we arrive at the stage of life when the expression “patch, patch, patch” appears to be the order of the day every day. None of us will get out of this world alive—unless Jesus returns before we expire. “Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is

A correspondent inquired, “Can a non-Christian baptize a person?” Perhaps if we pose some questions, at least some of which may appear to be rhetorical, a logical or a reasonable answer will be apparent. Most members of the Lord’s church doubtlessly realize that the Restoration Movement in the 19th century describes a widespread exodus from denominational churches by religiously sincere people who desired to be merely members of the church established by Jesus Christ 2,000 years ago. Furthermore, generally, Christians understand those thousands of souls were not petitioning existing congregations of the Lord’s church for membership, but instead, they went about to reestablish the presence of the Church of Christ (Romans 16:16) in various communities, mainly in North America and in Europe. Almost universally if not altogether universally, there were no Christians or members of the Lord’s church to baptize those masses fleeing denominationalism and desiring to return to undenominational, pre-denominational, pure Christianity discernible upon the pages of the New Testament. Initially, they were baptized by non-Christians in the biblical sense. Usually respected as a leader in the Restoration Movement, Alexander Campbell was baptized by a Baptist minister named Matthias Luce, howbeit, according to New Testament teaching rather than according to Baptist doctrine. It is true that Christians have the responsibility to herald the Gospel to “all the nations, baptizing them” (Matthew 28:19) or to “all the world…to every creature” (Mark 16:15). However, it is the responsibility of lost souls to submit to baptism (Matthew 28:19-20; Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38;

Someone asked, “In our private prayers, is it necessary to say, ‘In Jesus‘ name’?” The principle of praying to the Heavenly Father in the name of or through Jesus Christ is firmly established in the address of our Lord to His apostles. “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you” (John 15:16 NKJV). “And in that day you will ask Me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you” (John 16:23). Jesus spoke directly and only to His apostles in John 14-16, and so, many things in those three chapters were pertinent only to the apostles. However, the principle of prayer directed to the Father through Jesus Christ applied not only to the apostles, but it applies to all disciples (i.e., today—Christians). We know this because passages of Scripture pertaining to non-apostles about prayer exhibit the same principle—to the Father through Jesus Christ. “Giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 5:20). “And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him” (Colossians 3:17). These passages and others treating other subjects that refer to “in the name of the Lord” tell us what to do and not necessarily what to say. “Go therefore and make disciples

There’s nothing like a catastrophic event to capture the imagination of people and fuel prognostications of fiery pulpiteers regarding the end of the world. The signs of the times are thought by many to signify the imminent return of Jesus Christ and end-times. These assumptions are based on a misunderstanding of or, in the case of religious leaders, sometimes the outright abuse of Scripture, namely Matthew 24:6-7. “And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places” (NKJV). Though the apostles did not realize it yet, they essentially asked Jesus Christ two different questions in Matthew 24. “…Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?” (Matthew 24:3). They could not perceive of the massive Temple in Jerusalem being so utterly demolished that not one stone remained upon another except that the entire world would be destroyed also (Matthew 24:1-2). Nevertheless, our Lord answered the two questions posed by the apostles, first regarding the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem and secondly about the end of time when Jesus’ Second Coming would occur. It is important to observe that Jesus repeatedly cautioned His disciples not to be fooled by pretenders—false christs (Matthew 24:4-5), “false prophets”

Did God once command mankind to keep the Sabbath (7th day of the week)? Yes, He did. “The seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it” (Exodus 20:10-11 NKJV). Does that mean people today are required by God to practice the Sabbath? However, God also commanded to build a large, barge-like boat and populate it with a sampling of the animal world (Genesis 6:13-20). Does that mean people today are required by God to build a floating zoo? The Bible is full of commands from God. Does that mean people today are required by God to obey all of them? Frankly, it is not even possible today to obey all of the commands throughout the Bible, simply because some of the commands were given under Patriarchy (beginning with Adam and Eve), under Judaism (beginning with Moses) and under Christianity (beginning with Acts 2). Many of the commands (not all of them) across the three religious dispensations are not homogeneous with each other. It was Noah whom God commanded (Genesis 6) to build the ark. Noah alone was the recipient of that command (Genesis 6:18). No one before, no

If not now, when will you obey the Gospel? Yes, that’s right. Those who do not obey the Gospel will remain lost. By the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, both the apostle Paul and the apostle Peter warned that those who do not obey the Gospel will be lost eternally. Second Thessalonians 1:8 teaches that Jesus will return at His Second Coming “in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ” (NKJV). First Peter 4:17-18 presents a warning to Christians that also declares the consequences of not obeying the Gospel. “For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God? Now If the righteous one is scarcely saved, Where will the ungodly and the sinner appear?” Both passages of Scripture paint a dreadful picture of eternity for anyone who does not obey the Gospel. There will never be a more “convenient time” to obey the Gospel than the present. The Roman governor Felix heard the Gospel proclaimed, but he put off to some later time to become a Christian. “And after some days, when Felix came with his wife Drusilla, who was Jewish, he sent for Paul and heard him concerning the faith in Christ. Now as he reasoned about righteousness, self-control, and the judgment to come, Felix was afraid and answered, ‘Go away for now; when I

Someone asked, “What is the relationship of Judaism, Christianity and Islam?” God authored three religious systems in sequence, beginning with the creation of mankind. Patriarchy is the first period of religious history, extending from Adam and Eve through possibly Acts 10 (except for the Israelites) with the conversion of Cornelius’s household. After about 2,500 years following creation, God instituted Judaism (on Mt. Sinai) for the Israelites. Approximately 1,500 years later, God brought about Christianity through the ministry of Jesus Christ—culminating with His death, burial, resurrection, ascension back to Heaven and coronation. At that time, Judaism ended (as far as God was concerned) for the Jews, but Gentiles may have been amenable to Patriarchy a few years more until the Gospel was preached to them. In any case, by now, all men now living are obligated to practice Christianity. Christianity is nearly 2,000 years old, having begun in the first century—about A.D. 33. Islam, though, began around A.D. 600—600 years after the beginning of Christianity. Whereas Patriarchy, Judaism and Christianity were each authored by God in sequence, God did not author Islam, and therefore, it is not related to Patriarchy, Judaism or Christianity. The only direct connection between Judaism, Christianity and Islam is that the proponents of each of those religions revered the city of Jerusalem.

“Please can you kindly explain the significance of biblical festivals,” someone asked. The Jewish festivals were weekly, monthly and annual worship events. Worship of Almighty God in His own prescribed way is sufficient significance for the Jewish festivals, but some of them had additional meaning, too. These biblical worship events are described in Leviticus 23 as well as in Numbers 28-29. Maybe not a festival, the Israelites were to make daily sacrifices (Exodus 29:38-46), which were inaugurated at Mt. Sinai (Numbers 28:6). The Sabbath sacrifices were weekly festivals (Numbers 28:9-10), but there were also monthly sacrifices (Numbers 28:11-15). Annually, the Israelites were to observe the Passover (Numbers 28:16-25), the Feast of Weeks or Pentecost (Numbers 28:26-31), the Feast of Trumpets (Numbers 29:1-6), the Day of Atonement (Numbers 29:7-11) and the Feast of Tabernacles (Numbers 29:12-40). Of course, the Passover celebrated the last plague upon the Egyptians that finally led to the release of Israel from Egyptian captivity. The Feast of Weeks or Pentecost coincided with the wheat harvest. The Feast of Tabernacles commemorated Israel living in tents following their exodus from Egypt and as they traveled in the wilderness of the Sinai Peninsula (Leviticus 23:43). The Day of Atonement recognized man’s sin and his inability to compensate God because of it. The Jewish festivals wove together the civil and the religious fabric of a special people who relied on Jehovah.

Introduction When I was a very young married man, my late wife Bonnie and I along with our first child, Rebecca, moved to Memphis, Tennessee. We lived in a cottage behind a church building, in which were living a brother and a sister who had been placed into foster care. Bonnie and I were new parents ourselves, and we had become foster parents, too. It wasn’t long until a third child was introduced into the home, a 13-year-old boy; the other two children were maybe six and 11. The boys shared a room in which were bunk beds—one over top of the other. The younger boy who had already been there informed the new arrival that the bottom bunk was already occupied and that the older boy had to climb up to the top bunk. That arrangement, though, lasted only one night because the new kid was a bed-wetter! The younger boy who the day before insisted that the older boy take the top bunk now adamantly demanded that he would have the top bunk and that the bed-wetter would have the bottom bunk. However, even that sleeping arrangement was not entirely satisfactory because the bed-wetter would turn on the light in the middle of the night to take the sheets off of his bed—which disturbed the sleep of the other child. We really didn’t know what to do, but neither did we want him sleeping the balance of the night on any other furniture in the house. Sadly, we

Dear Brother Louis Rushmore, Christian greetings from Foncha Street congregation, Nkwen, Bamenda, Northwest Region, Cameroon. You have always handled doctrinal and Christian teachings that seem to be controversial with utmost maturity and plain biblical truths. Consequently, I would like you to give a comprehensive and thorough teaching concerning the following: 1. What is the Godhead? 2. Explain fully the “oneness” of God in the Godhead. 3. Explain fully the distinctive nature of the divine persons (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) in the Godhead. 4. Is there anywhere in the Bible that teaches that the name “Jesus” stands for the Father, Son and Holy Spirit or that Jesus is the Father, Son and Holy Spirit? 5. Is there any passage in the Bible that supports the idea that the “us” in Genesis 1:26-28 is referring to God (the Father) and angels? Please, brother, be very thorough in answering these questions with biblical passages. These issues are trying to tear our congregation apart. I wait for your urgent answers through God’s guidance and wisdom. Regards, Andrew Ihedi Umezurike The question above is lengthy and complex. Yet, let us answer its parts with brevity as well as with sufficient thoroughness. First, the Godhead (Acts 17:29 KJV; Romans 1:20; Colossians 2:9) is to the Persons of the Godhead what humanity is to the people who comprise it. Whereas there are three divine Persons in the Godhead (Matthew 28:19), there are billions of persons in humanity. Second, Jesus spoke of the “oneness” of the Godhead. “I and

“Does God punish people with earthquakes?” someone inquires. The short answer is, “Yes,” but some clarification is necessary. God created a perfect world and an Edenic habitat for the original pair of humans, Adam and Eve. However, once they sinned (Genesis 3), God modified His created universe. Adam and Eve were expelled from the Garden of Eden, in which they had access to the Tree of Life, by which they would never have died. Consequently, death entered the world, along with its accomplices—aging, pain, diseases, accidents and murder (Genesis 4). The earth underwent changes, too, with the introduction of thistles and sweating labor; these may be representative of other changes from paradise that we experience today, too. Later, mankind excelled in sinfulness, for which reason God determined to destroy the surface of the world that He had created. A remnant, though, of humanity—Noah, his wife and their three sons and their wives—was spared from the universal flood (Genesis 6-8). Only eight people and a sampling of animal kind aboard the ark (barge-like ship) survived that deluge (1 Peter 3:20). The events surrounding the flood forever changed the face of planet Earth as well as its weather patterns. Continents may have formed; mountains and valleys occurred; global weather dramatically altered from what it was. Thereafter, natural disasters such as earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, local flooding, snow blizzards, droughts and such like were commonplace. Akin to that, disease, genetic defects and similar maladies also became ordinary. All of the foregoing and kindred things

Curiously, some in a congregation have evidently construed something Jesus said to mean that congregations of the church ought to be small, rather than grow in number. The Scripture at the center of this inquiry is, “For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them” (Matthew 18:20). I must profess that I have never heard of such an interpretation of that verse. Part of the context in which the phrase “where two or three are gathered together” is as follows. “Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Again I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them” (Matthew 18:18-20 NKJV). Enough of the context appears here to show that our Lord was speaking exclusively to His apostles. Verse 18 pertains to Christ’s authorization of the apostles to speak doctrinally on behalf of God. Elsewhere, the result of their decisions on behalf of God and directed by the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:20-21) was called “the apostles’ doctrine” (Acts 2:42). Usually, even members of the church lift Matthew 18:20 from its context (which they should not do) to teach about the presence of our Lord as Christians assemble

Someone inquired, “Were there Christians before the Pentecost of Acts 2?” Probably most Bible students are aware that the name “Christian” appears three times in the New Testament. “And when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. So it was that for a whole year they assembled with the church and taught a great many people. And the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch” (Acts 11:26 NKJV). “Then Agrippa said to Paul, ‘You almost persuade me to become a Christian’” (Acts 26:28). “Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in this matter” (1 Peter 4:16). From Acts 11:26, one can easily see that the words “disciples” and “Christians” are synonyms for the same group of people. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines the word “Christian” as “1 a: one who professes belief in the teachings of Jesus Christ, 1 b: disciple.” Even after the first recorded use of the name “Christian” (Acts 11:26), those wearing that name were still called “disciples” (Acts 11:29). Many of the disciples of our Lord previous to the Pentecost of Acts 2 (Matthew 5:1) remained disciples of Jesus when the events of Acts 2 were about to unfold (Acts 1:15). The term “disciple” continued to be applied to members of the Lord’s church after its establishment and for about 10 years before the name “Christian” was used of them in Acts 11:26. Disciples of Jesus were not called “Christians” until Acts 11:26, though even then, the terms “Christian” and “disciple” continued to be

The phrase “given to hospitality” (Romans 12:13) appears under the NKJV subheading of “Behaving Like a Christian.” The apostle Peter also wrote about the Christian obligation to be hospitable. “Be hospitable to one another without grumbling” (1 Peter 4:9). One of the qualifications for becoming an elder is practicing hospitality (1 Timothy 3:2; Titus 1:8). All Christians are commanded to be hospitable, but especially elders (and their wives) must possess this attribute (along with others) to qualify for appointment as elders (complemented by their wives). “A husband who is ‘given to hospitality’ would have a difficult time entertaining guests without the cooperation of his wife. Much depends on the hospitality of the lady of the house” (Grider 902). “Hospitality is a joint effort of husband and wife, working together to make guests feel comfortable and welcome” (Bumbalough 24). Through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, the apostles Paul and Peter as well as the writer of Hebrews (Paul or someone else) in five verses of Scripture in the New Testament explicitly require Christians to demonstrate hospitality in their lives. The exercise of hospitality in one’s Christian life is not optional! Sadly, though, due to the busyness of modern living, especially in the western world and in any metropolitan setting globally, hospitality is seldom practiced anymore. The entire Bible is filled with examples of hospitality besides instructions in both testaments to perform it. An early notable account of hospitable treatment of others appears in Genesis 18 through the persons of Abraham and Sarah. Then the Lord appeared to him by the

The Edomites were descendants of Esau and citizens of Edom. “And this is the genealogy of Esau the father of the Edomites in Mount Seir” (Genesis 36:9 NKJV). “He also put garrisons in Edom; throughout all Edom he put garrisons, and all the Edomites became David’s servants. And the Lord preserved David wherever he went” (2 Samuel 8:14).

A few decades ago, I preached for a small congregation perched on the ridge and border between Virginia and North Carolina. I so loved those Blue Ridge Mountains. Apparently, the congregation was more interested than I was in the wall clock at the back of the auditorium. Hence, I hung a framed message just below the timepiece, which simply read, “Remember Lot’s Wife.” Years later after my family had moved away from there, the little sign remained just where I had placed it. I don’t know if it still complements the clock today. The episode regarding the flight of Lot, his wife and two of their daughters ahead of the impending divine destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah is well known. It also was well known in Jesus’ day so that He simply could say, “Remember Lot’s wife” (Luke 17:32 NKJV). The next verse defines His reference to Lot’s wife thusly, “Whoever seeks to save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it.” In the context, Jesus contrasted the normal things people do and the possessions they cherish with spiritual pursuits. It is not wrong necessarily to be about the ordinary affairs of life (1 Timothy 5:8) and to have even many possessions or to be wealthy. Yet, especially things and wealth are often snares to even the children of God (1 Timothy 6:7-10). There is a proper sequence and estimation of importance to spiritual interests versus one’s temporal activities and possessions (Matthew 6:33-34). Why did

Someone asked, “For what can the church contribution or the church treasury be used?”  Behind the question is the implication, “For what will God approve a congregational contribution to be spent?” or “What does Scripture approve for using the church contribution?” The general answer would be that the church contribution can be spent for anything for which the church has an obligation to fulfil. However, brethren disagree about and have differing opinions regarding for what a local congregation has an obligation financially. In addition, there is no more agreement as to how the church can execute its financial expenses in those areas where it is obligated to spend the Lord’s money. In areas of human judgment and opinion, individual Christians and local congregations need to act in accordance with their consciences and local, congregational decisions. However, when it comes to opinions and human judgment, brethren need to refrain from trying to enforce their opinions and personal decisions on other brethren and on other congregations of the Lord’s church. Making laws where God has not made laws is the same offence for which Jesus Christ rebuked the sect of the Pharisees in the first century. “Then the scribes and Pharisees who were from Jerusalem came to Jesus, saying, ‘Why do Your disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread.’ He answered and said to them, ‘Why do you also transgress the commandment of God because of your tradition?’” (Matthew 15:1-3 NKJV). Elsewhere, our Lord described the scribes and

Someone inquired, “Why use unleavened bread on the Lord’s Table (1 Corinthians 10:21)?” There are two answers to this question that complement each other and arrive at the same conclusion that we ought to use unleavened bread in the memorial of the Communion (1 Corinthians 10:16) or the Lord’s Supper (1 Corinthians 11:20). First, if we imitate what our Lord Jesus Christ did in the institution of the Lord’s Supper, we will use what He used for the bread portion of that spiritual feast. Since Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper immediately following the observance of the Passover meal, the only bread in the dwelling where He was at the time was unleavened bread. This is because the Jews were forbidden to have any leavened bread in their homes during the days of the Passover. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall remove leaven from your houses. For whoever eats leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that person shall be cut off from Israel. On the first day there shall be a holy convocation, and on the seventh day there shall be a holy convocation for you. No manner of work shall be done on them; but that which everyone must eat — that only may be prepared by you. So you shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for on this same day I will have brought your armies out of the land of Egypt. Therefore you shall observe this

The early church did not own church property and had no meetinghouses of its own apart from the homes of members and public places. The birthday of the Lord’s church in Acts 2 found the church and the other disciples in a public place, probably on the Temple grounds, whereupon about 3,000 souls were able to respond favorably to the preaching of the Gospel of Christ. The church frequented the meeting area of Solomon’s Porch thereafter (Acts 3:11; 5:12); the apostles had been there previously with Jesus Christ (John 10:23). Later, some disciples had gathered for prayers in the home of Mary, the mother of John Mark (Acts 12:12). It was also customary for followers of God to assemble in quiet places outdoors, such as among trees and near a river (Acts 16:13). The New Testament epistles show that the church often met in the homes of fellow Christians. “Likewise greet the church that is in their house…” (Romans 16:5 NKJV). “…Aquila and Priscilla greet you heartily in the Lord, with the church that is in their house” (1 Corinthians 16:19). “Greet the brethren who are in Laodicea, and Nymphas and the church that is in his house” (Colossians 4:15). “To the beloved Apphia, Archippus our fellow soldier, and to the church in your house” (Philemon 2). Perhaps the first church building of sorts, and it was in a cave, devoted to the assembly of the church is dated about 200 years after the establishment of the Lord’s church. Archaeologists

Some brethren are concerned about whether instrumental music can be used in funerals. Apparently, these brethren feel so strongly instrumental music must not be used in funerals that congregations of God’s people divide over this issue. Religious questions deserve Bible answers, including this question. So, what does the Bible or even more specifically, the New Testament, legislate concerning funerals? Nothing! Therefore, practice regarding funerals becomes a matter of personal judgment. Hence, brethren ought not to divide God’s people over this—or anything else about which the Scriptures do not teach. Strictly speaking, neither weddings nor funerals are religious events prescribed in God’s Word. They are not equivalent to congregational worship, for instance. Yes, instrumental music in congregational worship is not authorized, and another form of music instead has been authorized in Scripture for Christian worship—singing (Ephesians 5:19; Colossians 3:16). However, it is possible to interject aspects of Christian worship into a funeral (i.e., hymns, prayer, preaching). All of our acts of worship at all times and in all places ought to conform to what is authorized in Scripture for Christian worship. It would not be harmonious with Scripture regarding hymns sung during a funeral to be accompanied by instrumental music. It would be a matter of (poor) judgment in a setting such as a congregation’s auditorium, in which it ordinarily worships, to use instrumental music even if it did not accompany hymns; Christians and non-Christians alike would get the wrong idea about worshipful music. Funerals are not always conducted in meetinghouses for God’s people

Anyone who respects the authority of the Bible—God’s Word—acknowledges that Almighty God condemns the sinful act of homosexuality (Genesis 18:20; 19:1-25; 2 Peter 2:6; Jude 7). “Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites,  nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God” (1 Corinthians 6:9-10 NKJV). Various individuals may be born with physiological weaknesses or lesser tolerances for certain life situations. For instance, some people apparently have a greater physiological intolerance for the consumption of alcohol or other drugs, though alcohol and recreational drugs harm anyone who uses them. Yet, despite the likelihood for some people more easily to become alcoholics once they begin consuming alcohol, they first must make the poor choice of drinking alcohol before they could succumb to its affect and become alcoholics. Possessing a weaker tolerance for alcohol does not make one an alcoholic; choosing to drink alcohol and subsequently being overtaken by it makes one an alcoholic. Likewise, irrespective of any physiological tendency toward homosexuality—if such truly exists, and that is questionable—only the choice resulting in the act of homosexuality is observable as sinful. Of course, one may fill his mind with thoughts that are sinful also, which are merely precursors to sinful actions in many cases (Matthew 15:19). Environment (family, friends, community mores, etc.) rather than physiological attributes with which one may be born affect a person more thoroughly. No, one is not born into homosexuality. One makes a choice to become

The word “know” appears 32 times in 1 John (NKJV). Brock Hartwigsen observed in 1 John “that man can know 23 different things” (19). He enumerated: We can know Jesus (2:3; 5:20). We can know that we know Jesus (2:3). We can know we are in Jesus (2:5; 5:20). We can know it is the last times (2:18). We can know all things (2:20). We can know the truth (2:21). We can know that Jesus is righteous (2:29). We can know that everyone that does righteousness is born of God (2:29). We can know the when Jesus appears we shall be like him (3:2). We can know that Jesus was manifested to take away sins (3:5). We can know that we have passed from death unto life (3:14). We can know that no murderer has eternal life (3:15). We can know that we are of the truth (3:19). We can know that God dwells in us (3:24; 4:13). We can know who has the Spirit of God (4:2). We can know God (4:6). We can know  that we dwell in God (4:13). We can know when we love the children of God (5:2). We can know that we have eternal life (5:13). We can know that God hears us (5:15). We can know that God will answer our prayers (5:15). We can know that we are of God (5:19). We can know that Jesus has come (5:20). Two different Greek words are translated as “know” in 1 John—ginosko and oida. “The differences

“Is there any distinction between the doctrine of the Bible and that of the church of Christ?” The word “doctrine” means “teaching.” The question, then, amended becomes, “Is there any distinction between the teaching of the Bible and the teaching of the church of Christ?” However, the phrase “the churches of Christ” (Romans 16:16) pertains specifically in the actual sense as in existence to the New Testament rather than to the Old Testament. Hence, once more the question amended results in, “Is there any distinction between the teaching of the New Testament (i.e., Gospel) and that of the church of Christ?” If by “church of Christ” one refers to the church of the Bible (the New Testament), most certainly the doctrine of the New Testament is the doctrine or teaching of the church of Christ. There is no difference between the doctrine of the New Testament and the doctrine of the church of Christ because they are one in the same. The church of Christ (the church of the Bible) does not have a doctrine or a teaching independent of the New Testament (the Bible). Yet, if by “church of Christ” one thinks of a manmade religious organization—a denominational body—then, there may exist a vast difference between what the New Testament teaches and what such a sect believes and teaches. Historically through the present, there are several avowed denominations who at one time or another have appropriated to themselves the moniker “Church of Christ.” In addition, from a biblical perspective,

“Were Jews commanded to be baptized by John Baptist?” someone inquired. It is clear that John the Baptist was baptizing Jews from Jerusalem and Judah. “Now John also was baptizing in Aenon near Salim, because there was much water there. And they came and were baptized” (John 3:23 NKJV). “John came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. Then all the land of Judea, and those from Jerusalem, went out to him and were all baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins” (Mark 1:4-5). John claimed to be the manifestation of Old Testament prophecy (Matthew 3:1-3; Isaiah 40:3) as the one who would prepare the way for the coming of the Christ. As such, then, like other prophets before him, John was acting on God’s behalf when he required the Jews within the sphere of his influence to be baptized. Incidentally, biblical “preaching” has never been merely “informational speeches,” but the very nature of preaching carries with it the requirement to implement the preaching or teaching into one’s life. Because Jews within the influence of John the Baptist (i.e., Jerusalem, Judah, etc.) were commanded to be baptized is the reason for which Jesus was baptized, despite not having any sins of which to repent. “Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. And John tried to prevent Him, saying, ‘I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?’ But Jesus answered and

Introduction Aside from historical and contemporary fascination with demons, demons are also a biblical topic. However, much of what worldly people believe concerning demons has no basis in either factual evidence or biblical reference. “The problem for the modern world, then, is not demon possession but demon obsession!” (Mosher, “Demons (1)” 4). The English words “demon” and “demons” appear 88 times in the NKJV, including four times in the Old Testament (Leviticus 17:7; Deuteronomy 32:17; 2 Chronicles 11:15; Psalm 106:37). Deuteronomy 32:17 and Psalm 106:37 refer to a ‘malignant demon.’ The other two citations derive from another Hebrew word and mean “shaggy,” particularly a “he-goat.” Therefore, 55 times that Hebrew word appears, owing to the definition and contexts, it refers to goats, and twice it is translated as “satyr.” Also due to the contexts of Leviticus 17:7 and  2 Chronicles 11:15, what elsewhere refers to goats is translated as “demons” in those instances. Demons Existed “Daemon” translated “demon” appears 13 times in the New Testament. “Daimon” appears only in Matthew 8:31, meaning a “demon” or “an evil spirit.” “Daimonion” appears in the New Testament 63 times and is translated as “demon.” The verb “diamonizomai” means possessed by a demon and occurs 13 times. The adjective “diamoniodes” means demonic, used only in James 3:15. “The existence of demons is taken for granted in the gospel accounts and nothing is said concerning their origin” (Gulledge 5). “Even the enemies of Jesus admitted the fact of His casting out demons, though they wrongly

Two related questions received are, “How will you know you have the Holy Spirit?” and “What is the influence of the Holy Spirit today?” The Holy Spirit no longer manifests Himself in miraculous ways—since the close of the first century. The purpose of miracles in the first century was to validate the New Testament prophets (i.e., the Christ, apostles, other disciples) and validate their messages (Mark 16:17-18, 20). Miracles, according to their purpose, did confirm the New Testament or the Gospel (Hebrews 2:3-4). Therefore, once “the faith which once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3) had been declared to humanity, the purpose of miracles was concluded. Accordingly, the inspired prediction that miracles would end (1 Corinthians 13:8-13) came to pass. Therefore, no one living today can ascertain that the Holy Spirit is in him or her merely by observance. Without miraculous confirmation of the Spirit’s presence, one must turn to another source to determine if the Holy Spirit is in him or her. In our time, the only way a person can know that the Holy Spirit is in him or her is because the Bible teaches that the Holy Spirit is in the child of God. “Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” (1 Corinthians 3:16 NKJV). “Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are

We cannot ascertain conclusively from the Bible whether mankind ate animals before the worldwide flood of Noah’s day. Neither can we answer the more finely tuned inquiry whether faithful children of God ate animals—irrespective of what non-faithful humans may have done—prior to the universal deluge. Here is what we do have in Scripture regarding a God-authorized diet. Following creation, God permitted Adam and Eve as well as the animal kingdom to eat vegetables. “And God said, ‘See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food. Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food’; and it was so” (Genesis 1:29-30 NKJV). Then, after the global inundation, Noah was told, “Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. I have given you all things, even as the green herbs” (Genesis 9:3). God made several changes to the environment of earth (1) as a consequence of sin in the Garden of Eden and (2) as a consequence of sin leading up to the universal flood. Paradise or an Edenic existence no longer prevailed on earth after God made changes to His original creation because of man’s sin. Adam and Eve were advised that (1) women would experience labor pains in childbirth

Some accommodative language doesn’t appear in Scripture despite corresponding to biblical topics. For instance, though the word “trinity” doesn’t appear in the Bible, what it represents is certainly taught in the Holy Writ—God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19; Acts 2:32-33; 1 Peter 1:2). The phrase “youth ministry” isn’t in the Bible either, but many passages in both testaments address youth (Deuteronomy 6:2, 5-9; 1 Timothy 4:12; 2 Timothy 2:22; Ephesians 6:4)—their responsibilities and especially parental responsibilities toward them. “Placing membership” is another phrase that simply is absent from the pages of inspiration. Yet, it is apparent that each Christian has an obligation to a local congregation, as we will see. Someone converted by the Gospel might be assumed to be a new member of a local congregation of the Lord’s church with which he or she has had contact leading up to his or her baptism. However, such an assumption or even knowledge of a member of the church moving into a community is not automatically acknowledged by either the individual or the local church. It seems that some members of the church desire to get lost in the crowd and conceal themselves in anonymity when relocating to a new area of the country. Perhaps they want to be amenable to no eldership. They may consider themselves members at large—whatever that may be—but it is not a biblically defensible position. Maybe this sort of Christian does not want to shoulder any responsibility that

Synonyms for “claptrap” are “nonsense,” “humbug,” “drivel,” “hogwash” and “twaddle.” “Clap” means to strike two things together to produce a percussion noise, such as with one’s hands to applaud or to produce applause. There is neither biblical precedent nor authority for clapping or applause in Christian worship. Clapping or applause in Christian worship is a trap into which even many Christians and congregations become snared in their efforts to be modern and contemporary. Hence, regarding the assembly of the saints, clapping is essentially claptrap, nonsense, humbug, drivel, hogwash and twaddle. Clapping or applause belongs in secular settings whereby an audience commends performers for their performances, rather than in a holy, solemn, religious assembly for worship. Likewise, applauding baptisms adds secularity to the most important decision that any soul can make, hardly fitting for the occasion. It is regrettable that some have introduced clapping into our Bible classes and assembled hour of worship. Such removes the dignity and solemnity of the occasion. Such is surely not pleasing to God or to the serious worshipper. Paul discusses conduct when the whole church is assembled (1 Cor. 14:23ff). “Let all things be done decently and in order” caps the discussion (v. 40). (Taylor 22) Handclapping is often associated with other innovations into the assemblies of the churches of Christ, including children’s church, house churches, contemporary services, praise teams, testimonials, instrumental music, multiple simultaneous worship activities, dimming lights, lifting hands, solos, choirs, claims that all of life is worship, women assuming public worship roles,

Can a eunuch, a lame person, a blind person, and a cripple or a mute lead the church in any position like a preacher, a deacon, an elder or a song leader? May You support it with the Scripture. The biblical qualifications for a man to serve as an elder or as a deacon pertain to his character and experience (1 Timothy 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-9), rather than inclusive of his physical prowess. The apostles did not stipulate any physical criteria in Acts 6:1-6 for the selection of deacons to serve widows of the Jerusalem church. Regarding a eunuch, some of the qualifications for elders and deacons require them to have children, which a eunuch could not father. However, a man can be a father to children despite them not being his seed offspring (e.g., adoption). Biblical references to preachers, likewise, pertain to their appreciation of “sound doctrine” (Titus 2:1) and their proclamation of the Gospel of Christ (Romans 10:13-15), rather than consideration of whether they are an ideal specimen of physical perfection. The apostle Paul, for instance, apparently had poor eyesight (Galatians 6:11) and additional physical imperfections (2 Corinthians 12:5-9). Timothy had some kind of stomach ailment (1 Timothy 5:23). Song leaders are only instructed in Scripture to lead “psalms and hymns and spiritual songs” (Ephesians 5:19; Colossians 3:16) and to take turns to avoid confusion (1 Corinthians 14:26-33), rather than required in the New Testament to be perfect examples of manhood. Under Judaism in the Old Testament, priests were

The phrase “second death” appears in four verses (Revelation 2:11; 20:6, 14; 21:9). The first death is the physical death with which we are all too familiar and over which we sorrow when our loved ones pass away. “And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment” (Hebrews 9:27 NKJV). Physical death occurs when the physical side of man—his fleshly body—and the spiritual side of man separate. “For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also” (James 2:26). The body returns to the earth and the spirit or soul returns to God at death. “Then the dust will return to the earth as it was, And the spirit will return to God who gave it” (Ecclesiastes 12:7). The second death will occur following final Judgment when the unrighteous are separated eternally from God. “Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death” (Revelation 20:14). “But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death” (Revelation 21:8). At the Second Coming, Jesus Christ will approach the unrighteous “in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power” (2 Thessalonians 1:8-9). The

Turn in your Bible to any passage of Scripture that mentions the “Trinity.” Are you there yet? I’ll wait, but how long must I wait? Have you turned to even one verse of Scripture that uses the word “Trinity”? Why not? Don’t you know your Bible? Where in the Bible can you find the word “Trinity”? If you do know your Bible, you are aware that the word “Trinity” does not appear anywhere in Scripture. Yet, the Bible does teach about what we refer to as the Trinity—three persons in one Godhead. There are numerous verses of Scripture that refer to one, two or three persons of the Godhead or Trinity (Matthew 1:18). Concisely, some passages mention all three persons of the Trinity together at once (Matthew 3:16-17; 28:19; Acts 2:33; 10:36-38). Our word “Trinity” and the biblical word “Godhead” are equivalent (Romans 1:20; Colossians 2:9; Acts 17:29 KJV). So, though the word “Trinity” does not appear in the Bible, nevertheless, the Bible teaches about the Trinity. Likewise, the phrase “Youth Ministry” does not appear in the Bible. However, the Bible does teach about what we call “Youth Ministry,” using other words. Youth Ministry Begins in the Home Children debut in the home—years before there is any prospect of their church membership. Furthermore, the home has the primary responsibility for attending to the needs of its children—all physical, social, psychological and spiritual needs. Any responsibility that the Lord’s church may have regarding children of its members is secondary and occurs later than the introduction of children into their families. Children

Are babies born in sin? There are popular religious dogmas that affirm that babies are born in sin. The doctrine of “original sin” supposes “the imputation of Adam’s first sin to his posterity, and also that native depravity which we have derived by inheritance from our first parents” (“Original Sin”). The view of original sin, then, is that babies are born into this world with the imputed sin of Adam and Eve on their souls, and additionally, as a consequence, babies are born with an inherited depravity and propensity to commit sin because of the sin of Adam and Eve. “Original sin” is usually associated with Catholic doctrine. Calvinism regarding “Heredity Depravity” maintains a similar doctrine to “original sin.” “All men are conceived in sin, and born the children of wrath, indisposed (inepti) to all saving good, propense to evil, dead in sin, and the slaves of sin; and without the regenerating grace of the Holy Spirit, they neither are willing nor able to return to God, to correct their depraved nature, or to dispose themselves to the correction of it” (“Calvinism”). “We all come into the world stained with sin, possessed, as Adam’s posterity, of a nature essentially depraved, and incapable, in ourselves, of aiming at anything which is good…” (Calvin). Calvinism, attributed to John Calvin and modified over the years, underlies the tenets of several Protestant denominations (e.g., Baptists, Presbyterians, etc.). However, does the Bible teach that babies are born in sin? Though not embraced by Catholicism as

Various Forms ofCommunication (Media) Today, there are many avenues of communication or streams of media. The word “communication” refers to the transfer of information, and certainly regarding the Gospel, that ought to be our objective as Christians, members of the Lord’s church, teachers, preachers and missionaries. The word “media” owes its origin to the field of advertising about 70 years ago; “media” refers to the process of expression. In a sense, we Christians have a product to advertise—the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Gospel is the best product and beyond comparison to anything else one could promote on earth. Especially when one thinks of mass media, several methods come to mind where numerous people have to them advertised the Gospel of our Lord, to whom are communicated the Word of God. There is teaching or preaching where particularly for the latter several persons comprise an audience. Mass evangelism may resort to the media of radio, television, the printed page, the Internet and magnetically recorded as well as digital audio or visual messages. Typically, one presumes that the communication method or media portal that he uses is superior to all others. I once heard a televangelist among us boldly proclaim to a packed auditorium that only TV was worth the investment of the Lord’s money to reach the world’s population and that no other form of media deserved notice or use by the Lord’s church. Such an arrogant attitude is wrong on so many levels! I have had radio programs, and I have participated in television programs stateside and abroad. However, my niche is in writing or use of the printed

The fundamental meaning of “modest” (1 Timothy 2:9) is to be “orderly” or “decorous.” Yes, then, modesty includes both being insufficiently dressed as well as being overdressed. The meaning is broad enough to include deportment—actions and words. Regarding modesty as it pertains to clothing, clothing was originally implemented for two purposes—to conceal the human form and to protect one from the elements (Genesis 3:7, 21). God exchanged Adam and Eve’s fig-leaf aprons with animal skins. Such tunics, irrespective of the material from which they were made, usually extended from the shoulders to the ankles. God determined in the Garden of Eden what constitutes modest dress—for both men and for women. Often these days, however, clothing neither conceals the human form nor protects one from the weather. When the human form is not concealed—too much skin is exposed, or clothes are essentially painted on one’s body—what passes for clothing is counterproductive to the original purpose of clothing, and it is immodest. First Corinthians 12:23 presumes that especially the children of God will modestly cover their “unpresentable parts.” For decades, clothing worn in public by the masses—and even by Christians, also—has been too revealing to correspond with biblical modesty. Tight-fitting clothes, low-cut blouses, short skirts and shorts, sundresses, spaghetti straps, off the shoulder shirts, bikinis, crop tops, low-rise pants, ripped or distressed jeans, and so forth are not biblically modest. No one ought to wear such things in public, and especially Christians should never be characterized by such immodesty. Even more widely today, much of the clothing selected by the masses, and unfortunately

Until someone inquired, I do not recall having heard of the term “Associated Churches of Christ.” Upon looking up the phrase on the Internet, I  became aware of this phrase which has been appropriated by at least a couple of different religious groups to themselves—one group associated with the Disciples of Christ and one group associated with the Pentecostal movement. Neither of those represent the churches of Christ (Romans 16:16). From the middle of the 19th century in the United States of America through the beginning of the 20th century, internal strife over the missionary society, adding instrumental music to Christian worship, open fellowship and other doctrines troubled the churches of Christ, often also known as the Christian Church. In 1905, the US government recognized a distinction between the churches of Christ and the Christian Church. The latter introduced and retained the missionary society and instrumental music in worship. In 1968, the Christian Church split into the Christian Church and the Disciples of Christ. They both retained instrumental music in worship, but the former gave up the missionary society. Both maintained additional denominational practices, such as the use of religious titles. From the middle of the 19th century onward, the Christian Church and the Disciples of Christ continued to refer to themselves as the Church of Christ. The foundation stones of some older church buildings still have inscribed on them “Church of Christ,” though they may be occupied by the Christian Church, the Disciples of Christ or some other religious

My God is real and ever-present with me—always and everywhere (Psalm 139:3, 7-10; Jeremiah 23:23-24). Yes, I pray upon rising in the morning (Psalm 88:13), for each of three meals daily (Matthew 6:10) and before I retire for the evening (Psalm 55:17). I pray at other times, too (Matthew 6:6; 1 Thessalonians 5:17), such as for my sins (Luke 11:4)—known and unknown (1 John 1:7-10). My prayers are thankful (1 Timothy 4:3-5), and they often include requests of special blessings for others (Colossians 1:3). Through prayer, I (merely an animated lump of clay, Isaiah 64:8) glorify God as my Creator (Isaiah 40:28). I know that He is aware of me (Matthew 10:29-31), and I am aware of Him day and night every day. Of course, like all other mortals, I falter and fail (Romans 3:10, 23) from time to time, especially if God’s presence in my life is somewhat dimmed through worldly distractions or when my emotions are heatedly aroused over some incident. I try to minimize interferences that would obscure my vision of God at my side (or me at His side, actually). I endeavor to corral my passions that essentially would knock God out of the way by some outburst—if He could be moved by such a one as I am. Awake and even in slumber, I remember my God, for He is real in my life. I struggle (Romans 7:19-25) onward to embody His righteousness (2 Timothy 2:22), not looking backward to sinful ways for which I have

Whereas the Book of Joshua is about triumph, the Book of Judges is about failure. Joshua was such a powerful figure with an immense amount of influence that he was able to stabilize God’s people for two successive generations. “So the people served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great works of the Lord which He had done for Israel” (Judges 2:7 NKJV). However, the very next generation fell away from God into indisputable apostasy. When all that generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation arose after them who did not know the Lord nor the work which He had done for Israel. Then the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, and served the Baals; and they forsook the Lord God of their fathers, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt; and they followed other gods from among the gods of the people who were all around them, and they bowed down to them; and they provoked the Lord to anger. They forsook the Lord and served Baal and the Ashtoreths. (Judges 2:10-13) What happened? Several factors combined led to the downfall of the people of God. Now this is the commandment, and these are the statutes and judgments which the Lord your God has commanded to teach you, that you may observe them in the land which you are crossing over to possess, that you may fear the Lord your

Someone inquired whether it is permissible to appoint as deacons men who do not have children. The sole list of qualifications for those who may be considered for appointment as deacons appears in 1 Timothy 3:8-13. Everyone who reveres God and submits to His authority will make every effort to abide by what God stipulated in the Bible on any and about every subject. Anyone who does not revere God and refuses to submit to His authority need not bother visiting Scripture regarding any topic, because he or she is unconcerned about doing what God decreed or in the way God may have commanded; such a person will do what he or she desires, despite God and His Word. First Timothy 3:12 answers the question as to whether candidates for appointment as deacons must have children. “Let deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well” (NKJV). This verse requires that a man being considered for appointment as a deacon to be married to “one wife.” He is not a polygamist. There is no less of a stipulation or an exceptive clause in the verse to excuse him from also having children. If the verse is authoritative, and it is, the deacon must be a married man with children. The likely reason is the same as to why God expects candidates for appointment to be elders to have children: “for if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take

Many Christians today profess belief in God and an allegiance to His revealed will—the Bible, but their conduct contradicts their profession. The Bible is not only a dead letter to those who disregard it and consequently disallow it an influence in their lives. The Bible essentially is equally a dead letter to even Christians who disregard it and disallow it a meaningful influence in their lives. Jesus Christ noted during His ministry some who thought of themselves as His disciples and as children of God, who nevertheless, did not substantiate their discipleship through compliance or obedience of divine directives. “But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say?” (Luke 6:46 NKJV). Contrariwise, Jesus said, “…blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!” (Luke 11:28). Likewise, James penned: But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does. (James 1:22-25) The apostle John continued the discussion about the correlation between one’s profession and obeying divine instruction. Now by this we know that we know Him, if

Wikipedia says, “The phrase alternate reality often serves as a synonym for a parallel universe” (“Alternate reality”). “A parallel universe is a hypothetical self-contained reality co-existing with one’s own” (Wikipedia, “Parallel Universe”). Some cosmologists and physicists imagine the existence of one or more parallel universes alongside of the physical universe in which we live. From science fiction to science fact, there is a concept that suggests that there could be other universes besides our own, where all the choices you made in this life played out in alternate realities. The concept is known as a “parallel universe,” and is a facet of the astronomical theory of the multiverse. The idea is pervasive in comic books, video games, television and movies. (Space.com) Neuroscientists observe in patients with mental disorders their imaginary worlds, which often intersect imperceptibly with the real world. Furthermore, “Neuroscience shows us that we all create our own concept of reality” (Jacobs). In addition, there are many people, today, who appear to be in their own little worlds or self-made universes, which are running parallel or even on a collision path with reality. Not surprisingly, anecdotal evidence especially notes young people, who have immersed themselves totally in video games, are increasingly unable to distinguish between a fantasy world and the real world. Also, children who have been overly sheltered or showered with an overabundance of material gifts fail to mature properly—leading them to experience a sort of alternate reality and not preparing them for the real world. All of these

Someone asks, “Is one church as good as another?” That depends. Churches originating in the minds of men are relatively equal to each other. Hundreds of years after the first church was promised by (Matthew 16:18) and established upon Jesus Christ as its foundation (1 Corinthians 3:11), deviations from the church appearing in Acts 2:47 occurred, as foretold (2 Thessalonians 2:3-4; 1 Timothy 4:1-3; 2 Timothy 3:1-5; 2 Timothy 4:3-4). Over the centuries, deviations from the church of the Bible continued to diverge more radically from the church belonging to the Lord Jesus Christ. In addition, a couple millennia after the establishment of the Lord’s church in Jerusalem in about A.D. 33, literally thousands of manmade churches or denominations now exist. All of them differ from each other, and more importantly, they differ from the church about which we can read upon the pages of the New Testament. The Lord’s church still exists, but it is more difficult to discern that church from the great number of counterfeit, manmade churches. Often, the church of our Lord is obscured by the sheer number of human religious organizations. Due to the popularity of contemporary religion in so-called Christendom, sometimes members of the Lord’s church desire to fit in with denominationalism—much the same way that Israel of old desired an earthly king to become like the nations around them (1 Samuel 8:5, 19-20). The identifying characteristics of the church that Jesus Christ established are clearly observable in various New Testament passages. For instance,

We live in a time when homosexuality and every other vile sin has come out of the proverbial closet. Not only so, but homosexuality, pornography, murder, abortion, fornication, adultery and such like adamantly demand that Christianity get into the closet—hide there and shut up! Notably, history has a way of repeating itself, and not usually in a morally good way. The first-century, Bible world was steeped in all manner of sin and debauchery. Then, like today, Christians faced the daily challenge to eschew evil and to pursue righteousness. “Let him turn away from evil and do good; Let him seek peace and pursue it” (1 Peter 3:11 NKJV). For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. …Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:17-21) Despite the spiritual pitfalls of all sorts that had engulfed the world by the time Christianity dawned, men and women obeyed the Gospel of Christ and came out of every kind of despicable sin to become the children of God. Do you not know that the unrighteous will

The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless. ( 2 Peter 3:9-14 NKJV) The context of 2 Peter 3:9-14 is an end of time passage. This physical earth and the entire universe are only temporary. They will be utterly destroyed; even the basic elements of physical matter will cease to exist—indicated by “pass away,” “the elements will melt” (twice), “burned up” and “dissolved.” This earth, however, is presently mankind’s dwelling place. After this earth and the universe are destroyed—after man’s present dwelling place no longer exists—mankind will need a replacement dwelling place. Peter described

Without the companions of conviction and conversion, true redemption or salvation remains elusive. Firm conviction and authentic conversion will lead a person to obey the Gospel even when it may be inconvenient or dangerous to do so. Zealous disciples of Jesus Christ left something on purpose—a worldly lifestyle, a family religion, maybe even family or possibly a vocation. “He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me” (Matthew 10:37-38 NKJV). The apostles left even honorable occupations (e.g., fishing) to more effectively devote themselves to fulltime service in the ministry of our Lord. What the apostle Paul suffered illustrates the extent to which conviction and conversion can manifest itself in unmitigated Christian zeal. “But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ” (Philippians 3:7-8). Much earlier, the apostle Peter contemplated the sacrifice that he and the other apostles were experiencing in the face of conviction regarding and conversion to the Christ. Then Peter answered and said to Him, “See, we have left all and followed You. Therefore what shall we have?” So Jesus said to them, “Assuredly I

What does it mean that the “letter killeth”? The biblical reference is to 2 Corinthians 3:6, which reads, “Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life” (KJV). The NKJV reads similarly with “who also made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.” Scripture in this context contrasts the Old Law of Judaism with the New Law of Christianity—the Gospel of Christ. But if the ministry of death, written and engraved on stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of the glory of his countenance, which glory was passing away, how will the ministry of the Spirit not be more glorious? For if the ministry of condemnation had glory, the ministry of righteousness exceeds much more in glory. For even what was made glorious had no glory in this respect, because of the glory that excels. For if what is passing away was glorious, what remains is much more glorious. (2 Corinthians 3:7-11) The New Testament or Gospel of Christ is superior to the Old Testament Law of Judaism, which has passed away (Romans 7:6-7; Ephesians 2:15; Colossians 2:14). Since the Old Testament Law had no provision for the complete forgiveness of sins, it could only condemn in as much as

“Why was the Law given only to the Jews and not to the Gentiles?” The Master’s master plan for the redemption of humanity unfolded over 4,000 years from creation and the Garden of Eden through the ministry of Jesus Christ, His death, His resurrection, His Ascension and the establishment of His church. In those 4,000 years, God introduced three successive religious law systems—Patriarchy, Judaism and Christianity. Patriarchy was a family-type religion; Judaism was a national religion; Christianity is a universal religion. The first two law systems were preparatory for and foreshadowed the third law system—Christianity—which has been in place for nearly 2,000 additional years so far. Especially Judaism was ‘wiped out, taken out of the way and nailed to the cross of Christ’ (Colossians 2:14), being “…a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ” (Colossians 2:17 NKJV; cf., Hebrews 8:5; 9:9; 10:1). The three law systems were related to one another and progressive toward the unveiling of the Messiah, through whom actual forgiveness of sins is possible. Regarding Judaism or the Law of Moses, the Master’s master plan for human redemption began with one man—Abraham—to whom God made promises (Genesis 12:1-3; 18:18; 28:18) and through his descendants the Messiah was to come. Between Abraham and the coming of Jesus Christ into the world the promises were repeated to Abraham’s son Isaac (Genesis 26:4) and grandson Jacob (Genesis 28:14), also called Israel, (Genesis 32:28). Ultimately, the children of Jacob or Israel became a nation on the move after they exited Egyptian captivity and trekked to

Plainly, the apostle Paul acknowledged that he personally baptized some individuals. Now I say this, that each of you says, “I am of Paul,” or “I am of Apollos,” or “I am of Cephas,” or “I am of Christ.” Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, lest anyone should say that I had baptized in my own name. Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas. Besides, I do not know whether I baptized any other. For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect. (1 Corinthians 1:12-17 NKJV) The reason that Paul stated that he was reluctant to personally baptize people was to avoid criticism that he was baptizing persons into his name or making disciples for himself instead of for Jesus Christ. It was the apostle’s purpose in the passage cited above to dispel rather than to propel a sectarian spirit among members of the Lord’s church. Paul was not minimizing the essentiality of New Testament baptism but merely diffusing the party spirit that had arisen in the first-century church at Corinth. After all, our Lord Himself taught that belief + baptism = salvation. “He who believes and is baptized will be saved…” (Mark 16:16). Likewise, the apostle Peter emphasized the necessity of being baptized to be saved. “The

A scofflaw is “a contemptuous law violator” (Merriam-Webster) or “1. a person who flouts the law, especially one who fails to pay fines owed. 2. a person who flouts rules, conventions, or accepted practices” (Dictionary.com). There’s a lot of that going around these days. It seems that almost no one obeys the rules or respects the laws of the land. On every hand, multiple people simultaneously openly violate laws, their only remorse, if any at all, merely being that they were caught and penalized. The volatile, reckless Israelite history about which one reads in Judges 21:25 appears to be the general attitude shared by contemporary people. “In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (NKJV). There is hardly a roadway anywhere where a driver obeying the speed limit isn’t at least passed by a hoard of traffic zipping along with excessive and unlawful haste. Several speeders, though, bully other drivers by tailgating, blowing horns, flashing headlights, shouting obscenities, making offensive gestures or sometimes simply by forcing their way through with a crash-and-burn mentality (get out of my way now or else because I don’t care whether either of us lives or dies!). Often, drivers of vehicles overtaking other cars on Interstate highways are fully involved in their cell phones—texting or pushing digital buttons—combining speed and inattentiveness. Other driving violations are too numerous to enumerate all of them (e.g., running red lights and stop signs, parking in fire zones, etc.), but suffice

Some may ponder the relationship of the feasts of Passover and of Unleavened Bread or if they refer to the same Jewish feast. They were different, but related. The Passover and the Feast of the Unleavened Bread were among “the feasts of the Lord” (Leviticus 23:4; cf., Mark 14:1). They were consecutive or back-to-back feasts—the Passover day beginning at twilight (Leviticus 23:5; Numbers 9:2-5), followed by seven days of the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Leviticus 23:6). Consequently, the feasts of the Passover and of the Unleavened Bread were viewed as one, protracted event (Exodus 12:1-20; Matthew 26:17; Luke 2:41-43, “Passover” and “days”; Acts 12:3-4, “during the Days of Unleavened Bread” and “after the Passover”). “Now on the first day of the Feast of the Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying to Him, ‘Where do You want us to prepare for You to eat the Passover?’” (Matthew 26:17 NKJV; cf., Mark 14:12; Luke 22:7-9). “Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread drew near, which is called Passover” (Luke 22:1). The Passover reminded the Israelites that the Lord passed over their homes when He visited death upon the Egyptians (Exodus 12:21-30). The feast of Unleavened Bread caused the Israelites to remember their impromptu and hasty departure from Egyptian slavery—so suddenly and swiftly that they had no time for leavened bread to rise (Exodus 12:39). Therefore, the feasts of the Passover and of the Unleavened Bread were different, but related. Depending upon the perspective in which one may refer to them determines

Someone inquired, “What day of the week did Paul arrive in Troas?” More than one commentator on Acts 20:6 takes the reference to “seven days” literally. As such, then, the apostle would have arrived on Monday. He then purposely waited seven days until the first day of the week came around again—at which time, he and other Christians assembled to worship (Acts 20:7; cf., 1 Corinthians 16:1-2). Prior to arriving in Troas, the apostle Paul sailed for five days from Philippi. The apostle and others of his day were obliged to make use of the schedules of merchant ships for their passage, and they were further reliant upon the winds, which expedited or hindered travel. Thus, the apostle did what he could to arrive in Troas in time to assemble with the saints of that city, necessitating him to linger seven days for the Lord’s Day to come.

Among other things (i.e., introducing sin into the world among humanity, Genesis 3:6; Romans 5:12), Adam and Eve initiated the very first clothing line. “Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings” (Genesis 3:7 NKJV). In place of “coverings,” some translations render the original language word in this place as “aprons” (KJV, ASV, RSV) or “loincloths” (ESV). Hebrew lexicons concur with the context here that Adam and Eve fashioned for themselves loincloths. The first pair’s loincloths barely qualified as clothing, hanging from the waist and merely concealing their genitals. Nevertheless, aware of their nakedness, Adam and Eve endeavored to clothe themselves, howbeit, crudely. Their efforts, though, were unsatisfactory to God, Who became the first fashion critic. Therefore, He replaced their loincloths with a more expansive covering. “Also for Adam and his wife the Lord God made tunics [“coats” KJV, ASV] of skin, and clothed them” (Genesis 3:21 NKJV). God introduced the first fur or leather clothing line, and the first intimation of the death of animals resulted from human sin in the persons of Adam and Eve. Unlike loincloths that hung from their waists, the “tunics” or “coats” hung from the first pair’s shoulders. The “tunics” or “coats” were robes or long, shirt-like garments extending at least to one’s knees and possibly to the ankles. God did not consider the fig-leaf loincloths as sufficiently modest or an orderly arranged covering to conceal one’s nakedness. God has not changed His

“I don’t see anything wrong with instrumental music in Christian worship, and I like it,” is the sentiment sometimes expressed. Well, I like instrumental music, too, and if God had asked me for my input, I would have recommended it. However, God stipulated, a long time before I or anyone else who has lived in the last nearly 2,000 years was born, precisely how we in the Christian Age are authorized to worship Him musically. Specifically and exclusively, Ephesians 5:19 and Colossians 3:16 authorize “singing.” Note that singing is not only distinguishable from instrumental music, but it is also distinguishable from vocal expressions other than singing (e.g., humming, whistling, extraneous noises, etc.). The very next verse following Colossians 3:16 pertains to authority in religion. While the passage applies generally to the authority of God’s Word, in its context, Colossians 3:17 applies first to singing being authorized for Christian worship. “16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. 17 And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of [by the authority of] the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him” (Colossians 3:16-17 NKJV). Some Old Testament Bible characters could have said that they, too, didn’t see anything wrong with doing something in an alternative way to what God stipulated or authorized. For instance, Nadab and Abihu—sons of Aaron and priests themselves—could have

Read your article and agree what you wrote down concerning Jesus’ teachings of the exceptive clause about fornication, which was addressing the Jewish custom. As for Christians, though, it will best to divorce during the betrothal or engagement stage… In western, contemporary society, civil laws governing marriage do not include an engagement or a betrothal in the legal proceedings of a wedding. Biblical Judaism overshadowed cultural, religious and civil circumstances, and it lumped together the engagement or betrothal—a legal contract—with the officiation of the wedding. The Bible does not designate a wedding as a religious activity other than that a man and a woman may marry to avoid immorality (1 Corinthians 7:2, 36). Therefore, people must address the laws of the land under which they live (Romans 13:1-7) respecting the legal proceedings of obtaining and defining a marriage. Whatever legal procedure required in a nation to constitute a marriage is obligatory upon couples intending to wed (as long as man’s laws do not conflict with the laws of God, Acts 5:29, e.g., so-called “homosexual marriages”). However, once a marriage has occurred, Deity requires that the marriage continue, except that a separation or divorce from marriage may occur due to fornication (Matthew 5:32) or because of desertion (1 Corinthians 7:12-15). Jesus Christ set a precedent for the Christian or Gospel Age regarding divorce from a marriage, stipulating that only the innocent party to fornication may remarry (Matthew 19:9). New Testament teachings concerning marriage, divorce and remarriage are not confined to consideration

Matthew 27:46 and Mark 15:34 recorded one of Jesus’ statements on the cross not long before He died. The account in the Gospel According to Mark reads, “And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, ‘Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?’ which is translated, ‘My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?’” (NKJV). These words are a quotation of Psalm 22:1, where we find, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? Why are You so far from helping Me, And from the words of My groaning?” David’s Psalm 22 is noted for being Messianic and prophetic about the sufferings of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Through all the adversity described therein, nevertheless, an unfailing confidence in Almighty God concludes Psalm 22. The questions arise, “Why did Jesus on the cross utter, ‘My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?’”; “What did Jesus’ statement mean?” and “In what sense did God the Father ‘forsake’ Christ on the cross?” Scripture does not answer these questions for us specifically. Hence, commentators are perplexed and provide varying explanations. Like some similarly difficult biblical passages, it is easier to declare what the passage does not mean than it is to confidently affirm what it does mean. As such, for instance, the notion is rejected that the divine side of our Lord separated from the human side, leaving only the abandoned, suffering and confused human on the cross. Instead, following are some of the best observations from commentators that offer plausible and

Hello. Is ok for a female pastor/minister/officiant to marry a couple? It doesn’t specifically say in the Bible, however, it does say females shouldn’t be pastors etc. I am really confused on this. If the woman officiant isn’t preaching in a church but is only ordained to perform marriages is that ok as well? Please advise; doing this correctly under God means a lot to me. Thanks, Ms. Robinson You are correct that the Bible does not authorize a woman to preach the Gospel to an assembly in which men are present. The New Testament makes a distinction between the religious roles of women and men. For instance, sisters in Christ must remain silent in the worship assemblies (1 Corinthians 14:34), except for their part in congregational singing (Ephesians 5:19), confessing their faults (James 5:16) and professing Christ (Romans 10:9-10). Further, Scripture forbids a woman to teach or have dominion over a man (1 Timothy 2:12). The New Testament makes no provision for female preachers, teachers, elders, deacons, song leaders, leading prayer, Scripture reading or any other religious activity in which men are subject to a woman. (Women, of course, may preach, teach, lead singing, etc. in the presence of women exclusively, e.g., Ladies’ Days, Ladies’ Bible Classes.) In addition, a woman may participate in teaching God’s Word to a man in a private setting as long as the man is not subjected to her (e.g., Bible study, conversation, etc.) per the examples of Priscilla (Acts 18:26) or a grandmother

The statement, “Some of my ancestors may have hung by the neck, but didn’t any of them swing by the tail,” is attributed to William Jennings Bryan. Of course, Mr. Bryan made that affirmation in direct opposition to the popular theory of macroevolution. “Macroevolution” pertains to purportedly large, complex changes that supposedly resulted in the formation of species. Contrariwise, “microevolution” relates to minor changes within a species, and it is an established, observable fact. For instance, breeding animals or plants results in variations but no new species. Likewise, trait variations in human offspring manifest themselves in different body sizes and shapes, a variety of graduated skin tones, dissimilar heads of hair, etc.—all within the scope of microevolution. Commonly, macroevolution is abbreviated to simply, “evolution.” Rather than being a proven, scientific fact, macroevolution is only a theory for a number of reasons. First, macroevolution is not observable, and it cannot be demonstrated even under laboratory circumstances. Yet, science refers to a body of knowledge ascertained by observation and experimentation. Second, macroevolution opposes proven, scientific facts (e.g., life does not spring forth from non-life; life forms do not change from one species to another species—cats don’t turn into dogs, and dogs don’t turn into cats). Third, macroevolution cannot explain the origin of either matter or energy, much less show that lifeforms change into different species. Fourth, the fossil record does not show even one of the millions of so-called missing links, which macroevolutionary theory implies would be necessary for the development of and for the diverse species that exist or have existed.

Years ago and for several years on and off, my late wife Bonnie and I researched our respective family trees. We relied on a number of resources, including extended family records and interviews of family members as well as electronic databases. Subsequently, we even visited some sites where our forefathers had lived decades previously. We amassed a mountain of information, copies of records and antique photographs. Everything was neatly tied together in a comprehensive computer software program or mounted on all of the available wall space in one room of our home. Bonnie and I traced our respective families back several generations. I was able to follow my ancestry hundreds of years backward and even discover distant family members of yesteryear in Europe. We uncovered marriages, births, religious faiths, occupations, travels across the United States, government service, deaths, achievements and criminal records. Some of it was very interesting while other bits of information were disappointing. There were some proverbial skeletons, too. The missteps of some of our ancestors and the misadventures of some of our more contemporary kinfolk diminished our formerly keen interest in our research. Today, the walls of a spare bedroom and boxes on shelves in the laundry room comprise the residue of researching our respective family trees. However, there is another family tree of which I am a member that is more important and of greater interest to me these days. Though I was the oldest of four brothers in my immediate family growing up, now, I

Alarmed that a woman has written a religious article that a man might possibly read, some loving brethren have consigned us—me as an Editor and a Publisher as well as women who may write—to a devil’s hell. Often such ‘judgment’ (James 4:12) is pronounced anonymously, too. Is that “cowardly” (Revelation 21:8) as well as not “rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15)? The supposition is that an article written by a woman if read by a man is to “usurp authority over the man” (1 Timothy 2:12 KJV). “Usurp” means to “dominate.” A woman who wrote an article and who is not present were a man to pick up and read a piece of literature in which a woman’s article appears cannot possibly dominate over a man. The sister is not forcing anyone to do anything or even to read the article. Furthermore, if a man were to feel (subjective emotion) dominated by a woman whose article he was reading, he can and ought to put it down immediately! He certainly should not violate his conscience (Romans 14:23). By all means, put it down! The New Testament does make a distinction between the religious roles of women and men. For instance, sisters in Christ must remain silent in the worship assemblies (1 Corinthians 14:34), except for their part in congregational singing (Ephesians 5:19), confessing their faults (James 5:16) and professing Christ (Romans 10:9-10). Further, Scripture forbids a woman to teach or have dominion over a man (1 Timothy 2:12). Yet, a sister in

“What is meant by being judged by idle words?” a reader ponders. “But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned” (Matthew 12:36-37 NKJV). Both the words “idle” and “word” in this text have negative connotations. Jesus was not talking about utterances that are either positive or neutral, but rather He spoke about negative or evil speech. See that there are only two categories under consideration—words that justify or words that condemn. Compare Matthew 12:36-37 with Ephesians 5:4, which reads, “neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks.” Once more, there are two categories of words—words that justify or words that condemn.

Someone asks, “Can a Christian sin and be lost?” Writing to Christians, the apostle Paul said, “Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall” (1 Corinthians 10:12 NKJV). “Fall,” here, refers to a spiritually fallen condition—or becoming lost. The same word in Greek and in English appears also in Revelation 2:5. “Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent.” Clearly, in this case, a congregation of Christians were at risk of being lost unless they repented. The apostle Peter declared the certainty of Christians who turn from the practice of Christianity returning to a worse condition of being lost. For if, after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the latter end is worse for them than the beginning. For it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered to them. But it has happened to them according to the true proverb: “A dog returns to his own vomit,” and, “a sow, having washed, to her wallowing in the mire.” (2 Peter 2:20-22) Receiving the forgiveness of one’s past sins is conditional upon obeying the Gospel of Jesus Christ (Mark 16:16). Not obeying the Gospel of our Lord leaves non-Christians

Sometimes good and godly people try too hard to do the right thing—to a fault, one might say. While little harm occurs when one unnecessarily restricts himself, harm occurs when one’s personal opinion, which he binds upon himself, he also binds religiously on others (Romans 14:1-2). Consider a remarkable example from antiquity whereupon honest efforts to do the right thing were exaggerated to the point of being ridiculous. “If pure water in a pure vessel is poured into an [ceremonially] impure vessel, the water in the impure vessel certainly becomes impure; but does the impurity travel up the poured stream of water so that the remaining water in the pure vessel also becomes impure (along with the formerly pure vessel)?” (Magen). Yes, 2 John 9-11 restricts normal social interaction with false teachers. ”Whoever transgresses and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God. He who abides in the doctrine of Christ has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this doctrine, do not receive him into your house nor greet him; for he who greets him shares in his evil deeds” (NKJV). The relationship is under consideration in the text, not necessarily the location or the occasion for being in a public location. Can a faithful Christian attend a funeral at which in attendance are also erring brethren, non-Christians, sinners in general and even false teachers? If the place and the occasion require Christians to abstain from participation in an event (e.g., a funeral), what are

“By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin” (Hebrews 11:24-25 NKJV). God-given religion throughout the ages has always called upon mortals to refuse and to choose. Mother Eve did not refuse the temptations of Satan, and consequently, she chose to disobey God (Genesis 3:1-6). Even today, faced with manifold temptations in every direction in the ungodly world (2 Peter 2:5; 1 John 2:15-17), the child of God must refuse to succumb to temptations (1 Corinthians 10:13) and choose to abide in the Word of God (Romans 6:17). The very journey to salvation requires one to refuse every sin of which one may be guilty. Following a Bible-based faith (Romans 10:17), a person must repent of past sins (Luke 13:3; Acts 17:30). Repenting is refusing to any longer be characterized by sin. The child of God can no longer be categorized as a sinner (i.e., someone who habitually sins) because Christians no longer live the way they did formerly before obeying the Gospel. “Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God” (1 John 3:9 NKJV). The phrase “does not sin” is present tense in the Greek, which usually refers to a continuing action. Hence, though the child of god may commit “a sin” from time to time (1 John 1:8, 10; 2:1), sinning is not his lifestyle any longer. He

“When did Joseph, the father of Jesus, die?” someone asked. Scripture does not indicate when Joseph the father of Jesus died. Yet, Scripture implies the death of Joseph through his absence in the life, the ministry and at the time of our Lord’s death. “It is not easy to determine when Joseph died. That event may have taken place before Jesus entered on his public ministry. This has been argued from the fact that his mother only appeared at the feast at Cana in Galilee” (McClintock and Strong). The final reference to Joseph alive was when Jesus was 12-years-old as He accompanied His parents to Jerusalem for worship (Luke 2:41-51). Joseph may have died during the interim between that event and the commencement of Jesus’ public ministry, a period compressed into a single verse of Scripture (Luke 2:52). The absence of Joseph at the crucifixion of our Lord and Jesus’ assignment of His mother’s care to His disciple John (John 19:25-27) strongly implies that at least by then Joseph was no longer available to assume that care, and that he most likely had passed away previously. Unlike today when other scenarios might commonly absent a father from his family, first century Jewish culture and customs would have obligated the husband to provide for his wife if he were alive. If Joseph were much older than Mary, as often was the case among peoples anciently, it would not be unusual for the mother of Jesus to be a widow during the

Someone posed the question, “Did Mary bear additional children after the birth of Jesus?” Some people want to make the brothers of Jesus His cousins instead of His half-brothers. Most Bible students, though, take the words in the Gospel records and New Testament epistles at face value, recognizing that Jesus had brothers and sisters. “Is this not the carpenter, the Son of Mary, and brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And are not His sisters here with us?…” (Mark 6:3 NKJV; cf., Matthew 13:55-56; 1 Corinthians 9:5; Galatians 1:19).

“Was Joseph a widower before marrying the mother of Jesus?” someone asked. The biblical record says very little regarding Joseph. Joseph, the carpenter (Matt 13:55), was a “just man” (Matt 1:19 the King James Version), who belonged to Nazareth (Luke 2:4). He was of Davidic descent (Matt 1:20; Luke 2:4), the son of Heli (Luke 3:23) or Jacob (Matt 1:16), the husband of Mary (Matt 1:16), and the supposed father of Jesus (Matt 13:55; Luke 3:23; 4:22; John 1:45; 6:42). (ISBE) However, some uninspired, extra-biblical historical documents portray Joseph as an aged widower at the time of his engagement and marriage to Marry, the mother of Jesus. According to McClintock and Strong Encyclopedia, the Apocryphal Gospels record that Joseph was an 80-year-old widower at the time he wed Marry. Works Cited International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia (ISBE). CD-ROM. Seattle:  Biblesoft, 2006. McClintock and Strong Encyclopedia. CD-ROM. Seattle:  Biblesoft, 2006.

Mortals must participate with the Godhead to obtain forgiveness of sins. In the absence of biblically authorized human involvement in one’s salvation, a person remains a spiritual castaway (John 3:18). God’s saving grace is available to all men (Titus 2:11), but it must be properly appropriated to oneself. Under Christianity, several New Testament passages relate to man’s part to receive human salvation. They are not mutually exclusive. Neither do various verses regarding redemption present multiple-choice options. Instead, Scriptures work together in providing instruction about correctly addressing mankind’s sin problem. They complement each other. Psalm 139:17 illustrates the collective worth of God’s Word on any subject. It reads, “How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them!” (NKJV). Faith saves (John 3:15, 36), but faith alone does not save (James 2:24). Rather, believers have “the right to become the children of God” (John 1:12). Baptism saves, though most of the religious community denies that plain biblical teaching (1 Peter 3:21; Acts 22:16). Yet, merely going through the act of immersion in water for the remission of sins does not save one from sins (Acts 19:1-7; Luke 3:3). Grace saves, but in relationship to one’s faith (Ephesians 2:8). Mercy saves, but in relationship to one’s baptism (Titus 3:5). Confessing Christ saves (Romans 10:9-10), but does it save apart from faith, baptism, grace, mercy or any other contributor to human redemption? No! Repenting of one’s sins pertains to one’s salvation, too (Luke 13:3; Acts 17:30). Hope (Romans 8:24), endurance (Matthew 10:22; Revelation 2:10) and being born again (John 3:3-5) are involved in redemption

How can one have confidence in one’s salvation? There are many schemes of redemption presented by a myriad of church organizations around the world—besides other world religions. The problem arises in that these plans of salvation conflict with each other. In what way, then, can a person be sure how to be saved from one’s sins? Most world religions resemble polytheism and offer no more spiritual promise of human redemption than characteristic of Greek or Roman mythical idol gods. Some of these predate Christianity, but they do not precede God-authored religion. Instead, they are corruptions of original God-given religion (Romans 1:18-23). One particularly militant world religion, though, developed about 600 years after Christianity began. However, only Christianity relates to God-given religion from the time God placed man on earth through the present. Christianity is God’s third and final phase in a succession of three religious systems through which mankind can come once more into the presence of a sinless, holy God. Patriarchy—a family-type religion—began with Adam and Eve after they were expelled from the Garden of Eden. Judaism—a national-type religion—was given to the Israelite nation in Moses’ day, which for its members replaced Patriarchy. Finally, nearly 2,000 years ago, Christianity—a universal-type religion—replaced Judaism for Jews and Patriarchy for non-Jews. Together and in harmony with each other, Patriarchy, Judaism and Christianity provide, in an interconnected way, the pathway from sin into which the world of men was thrust post-Garden to having the promise and prospect of living forever in God’s heavenly house. The Bible, a collection

The word “trinity” does not appear in the Bible. However, what the word “trinity” represents is taught abundantly throughout the Bible. “Trinity” refers to the three Divine persons in the one Godhead (Acts 17:29; Romans 1:20; Colossians 2:9). Sometimes, the individual Persons of the Godhead appear in a single verse of Scripture (Matthew 3:16-17; 28:19). Usually, though, one or two persons of the Godhead may appear in a biblical passage (Matthew 17:1-5). Each Divine Person of the Godhead is equal to every other Person in the Godhead. Nevertheless, each Person of the Godhead occupies specific roles. Each Person of the Godhead (i.e., God-the-Father, God-the-Son [Jesus Christ] and God-the-Holy Spirit) has distinctly different functions. In concert, the three Members of the Godhead participate in such a way as to interact in an organized fashion as one God or Godhead. God exhibits unity not paralleled on earth by humans. There is only one humanity, but there are billions of persons who comprise that one humanity. There is only one God or Godhead, but there are three Divine Persons who comprise that one Godhead—or possess the qualities and attributes of God or Deity. Other studies can concentrate on the sundry activities of the Persons of the Godhead. Herein, we want to consider human activity toward the Godhead. Particularly, how ought we mortals act in worship respecting the Godhead? Observations of late discern what appears to be a twisting of the Trinity respecting mankind’s worship of God. This is apparent in primarily two areas: (1) prayers and (2) singing. The underlying reasons