A topic that many people in the religious world debate over, is the subject of original sin. Many people believe that we are born sinners, and that sin is carried over from not only our parents, but as far back as Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. However, if this were true, there would be many contradictions in the scriptures themselves as we will see. This issue has often been so heatedly argued, that some have even gone as far as changing the words of verses in many of the new translations of the Bible.
In Psalm 51:5, the KJV, ASV (1901) reads as follows: "Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity; And in sin did my mother conceive me." Now in this translation which was taken from the ancient Koine Greek, we can see that the author is saying he was born by the result of his mother's sin. However, the author's of some of the modern day versions such as the NIV and NEB have rewritten this to say: "Surely I was born in sin.", clearly the opposite of the King James version. Which one is the correct translation though? Well, if you can read the Koine Greek, you can decide for yourself, but if your like me, we can either rely on what someone else says, or look for more evidence of the matter in the Holy Scriptures themselves.
The first verse we need to look at is found in Ezekiel 18:20 which reads: "The soul that sinneth shall die, the son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, and the father shall not bear the iniquity of the son...". This verse is quite clear in its meaning, in fact so clear, that the NIV and other versions left this in, even though it clearly contradicts their own translation of Psalm 51:5. The only way to understand this is that sin does not carry over.
The next verse is found in Romans 14:12, which again can only be translated in one way. "So then each one of us shall give an account of himself before God." If we are born with original sin, or sin carried over from our fathers, why would Paul write that we will have to give an account of...ourselves? Now some might say that Christ died to forgive us of our sins, which is absolutely true. He died for OUR sins, not for others. Each person will sit before God on the Day of Judgment and explain themselves. Would it be fair to have defend the actions of others? Of course not, and the Bible does not say anywhere that we do.
In Genesis 8:21, God let's us know the truth in another way. The verse clearly states that we begin sin in our youth, not as infants. Granted, some might consider infancy as part of our youth, but this is not the context here. In Isaiah 7:15-16, this becomes clearer as we read that a child must reach a level of maturity before he CHOOSES between good and evil. Can an infant choose anything? If no, then how can he choose to be evil, or sin? If yes, he still must choose, not be born with it already on board, at least if we are to believe the scriptures.
So now let's take a look at this subject from a different angle. How does God and Christ view children in comparison with the Kingdom? In Matthew 18:3, Jesus says this, "Except ye turn, and become as little children, ye shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven." We must turn and become like children. This doesn't mean we are to act like children and be immature, it means we are to be innocent like children, for God cannot allow anything unrighteous into heaven. So if children are born with sin, why should we become like them if they can't enter into heaven due to their sin? Again, another contradiction that modern versions cannot explain away.
Finally, we have to take into consideration the following passages in Ecclesiastes 12:7 and Hebrews 12:9. Here, we can see that it is God who gives us our spirit, NOT our parents. If it is God, why would He give us something that is tainted with sin, especially when we know He does not create anything evil, but everything is created in its perfect, purest form. If this is true, our spirit is created the same way, without sin. Besides, if we can believe that we get our sins from our parents, what about Jesus who had an earthly mother? Would He have sin at His birth as well?
The authors of the modern day translations have misinterpreted the Bible, and try to push their beliefs by rewriting scriptures to better fit their needs. In doing so, they failed to rewrite all the passages that pertain to this subject, creating many contradictions in their Bible. By reading all the passages that deal with this subject, I think it is pretty clear that no, we are not born with sin, but born innocent and unfortunately become sinners once we are old enough to choose between good and evil. This of course, is why baptism is essential for our salvation. Jesus died for our sins, but we must do something to attain that salvation, which is to choose to obey all that God has said. An infant cannot choose, as the scriptures have shown us, because they are born innocent, and are perfect and pure. We spend the rest of our lives trying to be as little children, just as Jesus said.
A Christian Blog that uses the Bible as it's only source of doctrine.
Thursday, June 23, 2016
Saturday, May 28, 2016
Explaining Away Miracles
Miracle: A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divine agency. This is how the New Oxford American Dictionary defines miracles. An act that is outside forces of nature! if it is outside natural laws, then it can only come from God. Most Christians will agree on this, as well as claim that God did commit miracles to either prove He was God, or to help His children and punish His enemies. Yet, for some reason, many Christians today try to explain away Biblical miracles by natural occurrences. They try to discredit God and His Word while saying that He just used natural means to get the job done. They don't understand that they are taking the wonder of these miracles away, thus giving Atheists ammunition to fight against Christians! Let's take a look at some of the claims.
There are literally hundreds of websites and Youtube videos that anyone can watch and read with this subject matter, so I could only pick a couple, but feel free to investigate any on your own. The first website I found was Listverse.com. While they are not scientific, they do report on theories drawn from science articles and comments. Right away, we can see a major problem arising. The majority of scientists do not believe in God, so therefore have to come up with a reasonable explanation for miracles. Since we learn everything in school from these "scholars", we immediately tend to believe everything that is spoon fed to us, usually without question.
The first subject that Listverse tackled was the Tower of Babel. They try to explain this away by saying ancient writings were found mentioning King Nebuchadnezzar built a large tower that could be seen from miles away. Here's the problem with this theory: Nebuchadnezzar lived a very long time AFTER the record of the Bible. Coupled with the fact that Babylon during the time of Nebuchadnezzar was united and spoke the same language even after the king's death, how could he be the same person who built the tower? The writings that were found, do not mention how the building fell, or that the population became confounded with different languages. That would be an important piece of information that most likely would not be left out.
The next miracle they want to explain is the parting of the Red Sea. Now I have heard a couple of different theories on this, such as the Sea was emptied by a super low tide and then came back with a massive force. This is similar to what Listverse says. They claim that a hurricane from the Mediterranean caused the sea to empty, allowing the Hebrews to cross on dry land. Of course, it came flooding back at the exact moment the Egyptians tried to cross. The problem? The Bible clearly states that Moses led the Exodus across the Red Sea with a wall of water on each side, which crashed down upon the Egyptians. There was no mention of a storm at all. This does not sound like a super low tide at all, unless of course Moses lied when he wrote this.
What about Sodom and Gomorrah? The explanation for this at first seems plausible. A meteorite crashed down upon the plain and destroyed the cities. Granted, God could have used a meteor to do this, and a meteor could have destroyed the cities if they were close enough, but would that explain Lot's wife turning to a pillar of salt while Lot and his daughters were unharmed? Of course not! Couple that with the fact that no evidence of a meteor has ever been found on the plains, nor any existence of the cities, which is what the Bible said.
Another claim they try to make is about the Plagues of Egypt were caused by...climate change. I have no idea how they even came up with this one, for how does that explain rivers of blood, or complete darkness on everything in the land, except for the Hebrews? That is about as absurd as their explanation of the book of Revelation which was an acid trip. Yet they want us to take them seriously.
Another miracle they try to throw away is the great flood. The claim is the flood was caused by melting glaciers. The problem with this should be obvious. If all the glaciers in the world melted at the same time, scientists say that the oceans would be raised by twenty to thirty feet (NOAA). Not near enough to cover the tallest mountains, not to mention the Bible states that it rained! Also, how would Noah know ahead of time that the glaciers would melt to build the ark?
There are many others as well, such as the burning bush being on top of a volcanic vent. Which wouldn't explain the bush not burning up or God's voice coming from it. Or Jesus actually walked on ice and not water (because there is so much ice found in this region). There are more from this website you can check out and decide for yourself.
A couple of other miracles that men try to explain away is the earthquake and darkness when Christ died. Many try to claim the earthquake is perfectly normal for this region, which it is. However, there was a Greek philosopher who was in Greece at the time, and not a Christian, wrote there was indeed a great earthquake AND the world went dark for three hours. There is also the scientific attempt of explaining creation and the age of the earth. Most of us know this theory from the "scholars" of science, but remember, this is just a theory that even the most famous atheistic scientists say can never be proven. Great minds such as Stephen Hawking, and their champion Charles Darwin both claimed it can never be proven, but just trust us. Would two men who do not believe in God, try to prove God? If not, why would Godly people believe them over God?
In Genesis, the account of the creation is clear in every translation, that the heavens and earth were created in six days. The Hebrew word used here is YOM, which every time it is used in the Old Testament, meant a 24 hour period. The Hebrew language has words for Millennia, Eons, Centuries and Years, but none of these were used here. Why would God use the wrong word? Some try to look to 2 Peter 3:8 as proof that creation was actually done over a long period, but this verse has nothing to do with creation and is taken out of context. Plus why would Jesus, when talking about creation, also said six days? Did He misunderstand the account, even when He was there? Was He trying to mislead us? What is the answer?
Man wants to explain away God's miracles because we can't even come close to understanding the power of God, and so therefore can't grasp the miracles at work. What is troubling, is that many people who believe these falsities, are Christians. Too many want to believe educated men who don't believe in God, instead of believing God and His words. By taking away the miracles of God, we take away the power of God and His glory. As Christians, shouldn't we believe that God has the power to do whatever He wants? Friends, God is not trying to mislead us, or trick us. He has told us exactly what we need to know, and since He cannot lie, everything in the Bible, including the miracles, is complete and absolute truth. If not, how and why can we believe anything? Trust in the great creator, the only true God, and not in men who do not believe in Him. The Israelites failed to trust in God in the Old Testament, and we know how that turned out for them. This shouldn't need to be said, but BELIEVE THE TRUTH! listverse.com
There are literally hundreds of websites and Youtube videos that anyone can watch and read with this subject matter, so I could only pick a couple, but feel free to investigate any on your own. The first website I found was Listverse.com. While they are not scientific, they do report on theories drawn from science articles and comments. Right away, we can see a major problem arising. The majority of scientists do not believe in God, so therefore have to come up with a reasonable explanation for miracles. Since we learn everything in school from these "scholars", we immediately tend to believe everything that is spoon fed to us, usually without question.
The first subject that Listverse tackled was the Tower of Babel. They try to explain this away by saying ancient writings were found mentioning King Nebuchadnezzar built a large tower that could be seen from miles away. Here's the problem with this theory: Nebuchadnezzar lived a very long time AFTER the record of the Bible. Coupled with the fact that Babylon during the time of Nebuchadnezzar was united and spoke the same language even after the king's death, how could he be the same person who built the tower? The writings that were found, do not mention how the building fell, or that the population became confounded with different languages. That would be an important piece of information that most likely would not be left out.
The next miracle they want to explain is the parting of the Red Sea. Now I have heard a couple of different theories on this, such as the Sea was emptied by a super low tide and then came back with a massive force. This is similar to what Listverse says. They claim that a hurricane from the Mediterranean caused the sea to empty, allowing the Hebrews to cross on dry land. Of course, it came flooding back at the exact moment the Egyptians tried to cross. The problem? The Bible clearly states that Moses led the Exodus across the Red Sea with a wall of water on each side, which crashed down upon the Egyptians. There was no mention of a storm at all. This does not sound like a super low tide at all, unless of course Moses lied when he wrote this.
What about Sodom and Gomorrah? The explanation for this at first seems plausible. A meteorite crashed down upon the plain and destroyed the cities. Granted, God could have used a meteor to do this, and a meteor could have destroyed the cities if they were close enough, but would that explain Lot's wife turning to a pillar of salt while Lot and his daughters were unharmed? Of course not! Couple that with the fact that no evidence of a meteor has ever been found on the plains, nor any existence of the cities, which is what the Bible said.
Another claim they try to make is about the Plagues of Egypt were caused by...climate change. I have no idea how they even came up with this one, for how does that explain rivers of blood, or complete darkness on everything in the land, except for the Hebrews? That is about as absurd as their explanation of the book of Revelation which was an acid trip. Yet they want us to take them seriously.
Another miracle they try to throw away is the great flood. The claim is the flood was caused by melting glaciers. The problem with this should be obvious. If all the glaciers in the world melted at the same time, scientists say that the oceans would be raised by twenty to thirty feet (NOAA). Not near enough to cover the tallest mountains, not to mention the Bible states that it rained! Also, how would Noah know ahead of time that the glaciers would melt to build the ark?
There are many others as well, such as the burning bush being on top of a volcanic vent. Which wouldn't explain the bush not burning up or God's voice coming from it. Or Jesus actually walked on ice and not water (because there is so much ice found in this region). There are more from this website you can check out and decide for yourself.
A couple of other miracles that men try to explain away is the earthquake and darkness when Christ died. Many try to claim the earthquake is perfectly normal for this region, which it is. However, there was a Greek philosopher who was in Greece at the time, and not a Christian, wrote there was indeed a great earthquake AND the world went dark for three hours. There is also the scientific attempt of explaining creation and the age of the earth. Most of us know this theory from the "scholars" of science, but remember, this is just a theory that even the most famous atheistic scientists say can never be proven. Great minds such as Stephen Hawking, and their champion Charles Darwin both claimed it can never be proven, but just trust us. Would two men who do not believe in God, try to prove God? If not, why would Godly people believe them over God?
In Genesis, the account of the creation is clear in every translation, that the heavens and earth were created in six days. The Hebrew word used here is YOM, which every time it is used in the Old Testament, meant a 24 hour period. The Hebrew language has words for Millennia, Eons, Centuries and Years, but none of these were used here. Why would God use the wrong word? Some try to look to 2 Peter 3:8 as proof that creation was actually done over a long period, but this verse has nothing to do with creation and is taken out of context. Plus why would Jesus, when talking about creation, also said six days? Did He misunderstand the account, even when He was there? Was He trying to mislead us? What is the answer?
Man wants to explain away God's miracles because we can't even come close to understanding the power of God, and so therefore can't grasp the miracles at work. What is troubling, is that many people who believe these falsities, are Christians. Too many want to believe educated men who don't believe in God, instead of believing God and His words. By taking away the miracles of God, we take away the power of God and His glory. As Christians, shouldn't we believe that God has the power to do whatever He wants? Friends, God is not trying to mislead us, or trick us. He has told us exactly what we need to know, and since He cannot lie, everything in the Bible, including the miracles, is complete and absolute truth. If not, how and why can we believe anything? Trust in the great creator, the only true God, and not in men who do not believe in Him. The Israelites failed to trust in God in the Old Testament, and we know how that turned out for them. This shouldn't need to be said, but BELIEVE THE TRUTH! listverse.com
Thursday, January 14, 2016
Johnny and Mrs. Crabtree
Let's try a little something different. Johnny is a bright 8th grader who has his entire future ahead of him. He is an exceptional student, making straight A's and has shown he can handle any assignment or problem given to him, and do so with great success. He is also one of Mrs. Crabtree's favorite students. Mrs. Crabtree teaches history, which Johnny enjoys, but not near as much as Science. Science is what he lives for, everything he wants to be and do with all of his time. History was something that dead people have already done, events that had already occurred, things that were not going to happen again. History was, well, boring. The only thing that made him pay attention in History was his respect for Mrs. Crabtree.
In class, Mrs. Crabtree has a very exciting assignment for her class. That is, at least to her. The project she has chosen for her students is a Civil War model of the battle of Gettysburg. All of the students must build a scaled down model, using plastic toy soldiers, canons, and horses, and then put them in correct order as the battle was fought. They must use cardboard, plastic, and make their own bushes and trees, using simple things such as pipe cleaners and brushes. Johnny rolls his eyes at the simplicity of the project, but like the rest of the class agrees to have it done by the next week.
Johnny goes home and complains to his mother about the stupid project that Mrs. Crabtree wants them to do. His mother just shrugs, not really paying him any mind, and says "Well then, just do what you want to do. You should be teaching that class anyway. You're just as smart as any of them." Johnny thought about that and decided to do just that. Besides, Mrs. Crabtree only told him what she wanted done, she never asked his opinion on what he wanted to do. He was going to create a much more exciting project that would impress all the students, and Mrs. Crabtree as well. So he sets out to do what he always dreamed of doing.
On the due date of the projects, all the students brought their models in. Most were exactly what Mrs. Crabtree expected. Not exactly Picasso, but she could tell they had grasped the information of the battle, and followed her instructions. She was excited to see what Johnny was going to bring, because she just knew he would bring his best. That was why she was so shocked at what she saw. Johnny's project was simply amazing! It was a volcano model, with spouting lava, electronic dinosaurs that moved and roared, and even lights that flashed with the sound of thunder. It was the most amazing volcano project she had ever seen. Which of course why it was so disappointing to her.
"Uhm, Johnny, what is that?"
Johnny, beaming proudly, replied, "Why, it's the best volcano model this school has ever seen. Don't you like it?"
Mrs. Crabtree looked at the model, smiled, then slowly shook her head no. "Johnny, that is a beautiful volcano, but nothing that I asked for. I asked for a model of the Battle of Gettysburg, and gave precise instructions. Why did you do a volcano?"
Johnny shrugged. "Well, I wanted to learn more about volcano's and dinosaurs, since science is my favorite subject. And I wanted to show this to you to prove how much I like science. Besides, you know I know all about the Civil War, so I wanted to impress you with this. You never said I couldn't do it!"
Mrs. Crabtree sat Johnny down, and smiled at him. "Johnny, you are correct that I never said you couldn't do that project, but, by telling you exactly what I wanted, that excludes anything else that you may have wanted. I shouldn't have to tell you everything under the sun that you shouldn't do. Let me ask you something, do you believe that I'm the teacher?"
"Of course."
"And as the student, what is your responsibility?"
Johnny sat and thought for a minute. "Do what you tell me to do?"
"Exactly what I tell you to do. Anything else is, such as doing what you want, is not following directions, it is being disobedient. If you believe that I am the teacher, and the directions I give you are the only way to pass, what should you do?"
"Do everything just as you taught me."
"Exactly."
Isn't it amazing how we all can understand this simple rule when it comes to school, or laws, but yet when it comes to being a Christian, many of us would rather do things our way, or the way someone else has taught us. We often forget that our teacher has already taught us everything we need to know, and He left nothing out. If we do not do everything the teacher tells us, which includes doing nothing when He says nothing, why should He give us a passing grade?
In class, Mrs. Crabtree has a very exciting assignment for her class. That is, at least to her. The project she has chosen for her students is a Civil War model of the battle of Gettysburg. All of the students must build a scaled down model, using plastic toy soldiers, canons, and horses, and then put them in correct order as the battle was fought. They must use cardboard, plastic, and make their own bushes and trees, using simple things such as pipe cleaners and brushes. Johnny rolls his eyes at the simplicity of the project, but like the rest of the class agrees to have it done by the next week.
Johnny goes home and complains to his mother about the stupid project that Mrs. Crabtree wants them to do. His mother just shrugs, not really paying him any mind, and says "Well then, just do what you want to do. You should be teaching that class anyway. You're just as smart as any of them." Johnny thought about that and decided to do just that. Besides, Mrs. Crabtree only told him what she wanted done, she never asked his opinion on what he wanted to do. He was going to create a much more exciting project that would impress all the students, and Mrs. Crabtree as well. So he sets out to do what he always dreamed of doing.
On the due date of the projects, all the students brought their models in. Most were exactly what Mrs. Crabtree expected. Not exactly Picasso, but she could tell they had grasped the information of the battle, and followed her instructions. She was excited to see what Johnny was going to bring, because she just knew he would bring his best. That was why she was so shocked at what she saw. Johnny's project was simply amazing! It was a volcano model, with spouting lava, electronic dinosaurs that moved and roared, and even lights that flashed with the sound of thunder. It was the most amazing volcano project she had ever seen. Which of course why it was so disappointing to her.
"Uhm, Johnny, what is that?"
Johnny, beaming proudly, replied, "Why, it's the best volcano model this school has ever seen. Don't you like it?"
Mrs. Crabtree looked at the model, smiled, then slowly shook her head no. "Johnny, that is a beautiful volcano, but nothing that I asked for. I asked for a model of the Battle of Gettysburg, and gave precise instructions. Why did you do a volcano?"
Johnny shrugged. "Well, I wanted to learn more about volcano's and dinosaurs, since science is my favorite subject. And I wanted to show this to you to prove how much I like science. Besides, you know I know all about the Civil War, so I wanted to impress you with this. You never said I couldn't do it!"
Mrs. Crabtree sat Johnny down, and smiled at him. "Johnny, you are correct that I never said you couldn't do that project, but, by telling you exactly what I wanted, that excludes anything else that you may have wanted. I shouldn't have to tell you everything under the sun that you shouldn't do. Let me ask you something, do you believe that I'm the teacher?"
"Of course."
"And as the student, what is your responsibility?"
Johnny sat and thought for a minute. "Do what you tell me to do?"
"Exactly what I tell you to do. Anything else is, such as doing what you want, is not following directions, it is being disobedient. If you believe that I am the teacher, and the directions I give you are the only way to pass, what should you do?"
"Do everything just as you taught me."
"Exactly."
Isn't it amazing how we all can understand this simple rule when it comes to school, or laws, but yet when it comes to being a Christian, many of us would rather do things our way, or the way someone else has taught us. We often forget that our teacher has already taught us everything we need to know, and He left nothing out. If we do not do everything the teacher tells us, which includes doing nothing when He says nothing, why should He give us a passing grade?
Tuesday, December 29, 2015
What Happens When We Die?
Probably the most asked and most concerning question for most people is what happens when we die. This is a question that is by nature an uncomfortable one, but one that needs to be answered, for the one thing we are all guaranteed in life, is that one day it will end. As everything else that we might think of, the Bible is by far the best place to find the true answers for man. True, there are countless different beliefs on what happens after death, but all of these are based on man's beliefs or a misinterpretation of scriptures. Some believe that there is no afterlife, while others believe in a place called Purgatory, while others believe that the soul simply 'sleeps' until Christ returns on the day of judgment. All the answers to these questions can be found in one place, the Bible.
Now naturally, being Christians, we believe that where we end up depends upon how we live our life and whether or not we are obedient to the commands of the Lord. If we have lived a good and righteous life, we will have our reward as promised by God, while if we choose to ignore God and His commands, and live our life by our own personal laws, will spend eternity in torment in hell. Of course that is to say our souls or spirit, for our fleshly bodies will return to the dust of the earth. But I'm getting ahead of myself here, let's see what the scriptures say.
There is not a lot of passages in the Bible that go into great detail, so we must read and study all the passages on this subject. We do know that when we die, our bodies return to the earth, but our souls leave the body upon death (Gen. 35:18, James 2:26). Once our souls leave our fleshly vessels, they will enter into a depository of Spirits of sorts, as can be seen in the story of the rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16:19-31. This story, which some believe to be a parable, while others believe this to be an actual story, perhaps gives us the best insight into this place. There appears to be two separate places where souls go after death, that is separated by a wide gulf between them. One area is where the evil and wicked go, an area where they are tormented in their punishment for turning their backs on God. The other are, called here as Abraham's bosom (Luke 16:23) is a place where the saved will be under protection of Abraham himself.
The souls will be in either one of these two places until the 'Last Day', when all will be raised up and judged (John 6:44, 54). Then it will be raised up in a new form, an immortal body (Daniel 12:2, Matt. 10:28, 1 Cor. 15:54). This 'spirit' state that our souls will be in, is called Hades some 10 times in the New Testament. The word Hades is a letter for letter translation from the original Koine Greek that the New Testament was written. The King James version renders the Greek term Hades as Hell in Luke 16, but most Greek scholars believe this is a mistaken translation. Hell was always the final place of the damned, while Hades was the generic term for the spirit state, both the righteous and the wicked. Jesus' spirit was also in this place (Luke 16:22), which was also called Paradise (Luke 23:43), while His body lay in the tomb (Acts 2:27). The tormented rich man from the story in Luke, was in Hades (Luke 16:23), being the same state that is called 'hell' but is actually correctly given the term Tartarus, where rebellious angels who are "chained by darkness" (2 Pet. 2:4), and remain until their ultimate destination in hell, also called Gehenna. This is the final destination of the wicked (Matt. 25:41, Rev. 20:10). At the time of Christ's return, ALL will be raised for the final judgment (John 5:28-29, Acts 24:15).
When the Lord descends from heaven, He will bring with Him the righteous of those whose bodies "fell asleep" as they died (1 Thess. 4:14, 16). The apostle Paul speaks of "the coming of our Lord Jesus with all His saints (3:13). Now to be very clear here, the word 'sleep' is never used in terms of the souls, but of the body (Dan. 12:2, John 11:11f). At this time, Hades will surrender its meaning (Rev. 1:18, 20:13-14), since both the righteous and the wicked will be assigned their final destinies; with their incorruptible bodies (1 Cor. 15: 53-54), and their immortal souls reunited (Dan. 12:2, Matt. 10:28, 2 Cor. 5:1ff). Since no single text contains all that is to be known, again we must study all of them to understand the full picture. This is what the Bible teaches us about what will happen to us.
So to put it in perhaps more simple terms, when our bodies die, which they will, our souls enter a place called Hades. In this place are two areas, one for the righteous who have done what God commanded them (Paradise/Abraham's Bosom), and one for the wicked and evil who have chosen to ignore their Father (Tartarus), which will be a place of torment. Our souls will remain in either one of these two areas until Christ returns to judge all, and all will be placed in their final destination of either heaven or hell. All other beliefs and doctrines that men have arrived at, they did so without consulting the scriptures.
The doctrines of Soul Sleeping, which is the belief that our souls sleep until the judgment and then are awakened, is not found in the scriptures nor does it fit in with the descriptions we have in the Bible. Lazarus and the rich man were obviously aware as was Jesus in this state. Another false doctrine that is very popular, is the Catholic doctrine of Purgatory. Not much can be said of this because it can be found nowhere in the Holy scriptures. Purgatory is place where the dead go to suffer punishment in order to be purified. This belief was not introduced until the sixth century, and wasn't made doctrine until 1439. The scriptures teach against this (Heb. 9:27), and Christ taught there is no second chance for the willful sinner (Luke 16:19-31). This is a false and very dangerous doctrine, allowing people to do as they wish, for even after death, they have a chance to make things right.
Along with these false doctrines, something new has been on the rise which seems to be so ridiculous to even be believed. It is the belief found in many 'mega-churches' that there is not even a place called hell, but just different levels of heaven. Many people find this attractive, for they like to tell themselves how can a loving God condemn anyone to eternal damnation. Of course, this is for people who have no want to study the scriptures at all, or simply like to twist them to fit their lifestyles.
Again, this is a subject that most do not like to talk or think about, but one that we will all one day face. As a Christian however, if you have done what God commanded and Christ taught, death is nothing to be feared, and even something that can be looked forward to. You will be in a place of eternal rest and great joy unlike anything you have ever witnessed here on earth (Phil. 1:23). A place of quiet rest with our God and savior for all eternity. This is what God has promised us, just as He promised that those who laugh or thumb their noses at His Word, will be punished in eternity. The truth here is shown to us for us to understand, all we have to do is follow what God has shown us.
Now naturally, being Christians, we believe that where we end up depends upon how we live our life and whether or not we are obedient to the commands of the Lord. If we have lived a good and righteous life, we will have our reward as promised by God, while if we choose to ignore God and His commands, and live our life by our own personal laws, will spend eternity in torment in hell. Of course that is to say our souls or spirit, for our fleshly bodies will return to the dust of the earth. But I'm getting ahead of myself here, let's see what the scriptures say.
There is not a lot of passages in the Bible that go into great detail, so we must read and study all the passages on this subject. We do know that when we die, our bodies return to the earth, but our souls leave the body upon death (Gen. 35:18, James 2:26). Once our souls leave our fleshly vessels, they will enter into a depository of Spirits of sorts, as can be seen in the story of the rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16:19-31. This story, which some believe to be a parable, while others believe this to be an actual story, perhaps gives us the best insight into this place. There appears to be two separate places where souls go after death, that is separated by a wide gulf between them. One area is where the evil and wicked go, an area where they are tormented in their punishment for turning their backs on God. The other are, called here as Abraham's bosom (Luke 16:23) is a place where the saved will be under protection of Abraham himself.
The souls will be in either one of these two places until the 'Last Day', when all will be raised up and judged (John 6:44, 54). Then it will be raised up in a new form, an immortal body (Daniel 12:2, Matt. 10:28, 1 Cor. 15:54). This 'spirit' state that our souls will be in, is called Hades some 10 times in the New Testament. The word Hades is a letter for letter translation from the original Koine Greek that the New Testament was written. The King James version renders the Greek term Hades as Hell in Luke 16, but most Greek scholars believe this is a mistaken translation. Hell was always the final place of the damned, while Hades was the generic term for the spirit state, both the righteous and the wicked. Jesus' spirit was also in this place (Luke 16:22), which was also called Paradise (Luke 23:43), while His body lay in the tomb (Acts 2:27). The tormented rich man from the story in Luke, was in Hades (Luke 16:23), being the same state that is called 'hell' but is actually correctly given the term Tartarus, where rebellious angels who are "chained by darkness" (2 Pet. 2:4), and remain until their ultimate destination in hell, also called Gehenna. This is the final destination of the wicked (Matt. 25:41, Rev. 20:10). At the time of Christ's return, ALL will be raised for the final judgment (John 5:28-29, Acts 24:15).
When the Lord descends from heaven, He will bring with Him the righteous of those whose bodies "fell asleep" as they died (1 Thess. 4:14, 16). The apostle Paul speaks of "the coming of our Lord Jesus with all His saints (3:13). Now to be very clear here, the word 'sleep' is never used in terms of the souls, but of the body (Dan. 12:2, John 11:11f). At this time, Hades will surrender its meaning (Rev. 1:18, 20:13-14), since both the righteous and the wicked will be assigned their final destinies; with their incorruptible bodies (1 Cor. 15: 53-54), and their immortal souls reunited (Dan. 12:2, Matt. 10:28, 2 Cor. 5:1ff). Since no single text contains all that is to be known, again we must study all of them to understand the full picture. This is what the Bible teaches us about what will happen to us.
So to put it in perhaps more simple terms, when our bodies die, which they will, our souls enter a place called Hades. In this place are two areas, one for the righteous who have done what God commanded them (Paradise/Abraham's Bosom), and one for the wicked and evil who have chosen to ignore their Father (Tartarus), which will be a place of torment. Our souls will remain in either one of these two areas until Christ returns to judge all, and all will be placed in their final destination of either heaven or hell. All other beliefs and doctrines that men have arrived at, they did so without consulting the scriptures.
The doctrines of Soul Sleeping, which is the belief that our souls sleep until the judgment and then are awakened, is not found in the scriptures nor does it fit in with the descriptions we have in the Bible. Lazarus and the rich man were obviously aware as was Jesus in this state. Another false doctrine that is very popular, is the Catholic doctrine of Purgatory. Not much can be said of this because it can be found nowhere in the Holy scriptures. Purgatory is place where the dead go to suffer punishment in order to be purified. This belief was not introduced until the sixth century, and wasn't made doctrine until 1439. The scriptures teach against this (Heb. 9:27), and Christ taught there is no second chance for the willful sinner (Luke 16:19-31). This is a false and very dangerous doctrine, allowing people to do as they wish, for even after death, they have a chance to make things right.
Along with these false doctrines, something new has been on the rise which seems to be so ridiculous to even be believed. It is the belief found in many 'mega-churches' that there is not even a place called hell, but just different levels of heaven. Many people find this attractive, for they like to tell themselves how can a loving God condemn anyone to eternal damnation. Of course, this is for people who have no want to study the scriptures at all, or simply like to twist them to fit their lifestyles.
Again, this is a subject that most do not like to talk or think about, but one that we will all one day face. As a Christian however, if you have done what God commanded and Christ taught, death is nothing to be feared, and even something that can be looked forward to. You will be in a place of eternal rest and great joy unlike anything you have ever witnessed here on earth (Phil. 1:23). A place of quiet rest with our God and savior for all eternity. This is what God has promised us, just as He promised that those who laugh or thumb their noses at His Word, will be punished in eternity. The truth here is shown to us for us to understand, all we have to do is follow what God has shown us.
Wednesday, September 30, 2015
Once Saved Always Saved?
There is a large group of people in Christendom today who follow the belief that once you have been saved, no matter what you do in the future, there is nothing you can do to fall out of favor with God. In short, once saved, always saved. This is a concept that is nothing new, and one that John Calvin and his followers faithfully believed. But when one thinks on this logically, it really doesn't make any sense. Do we really think that after we have been saved, we can do whatever we want without repercussions? What if we converted to Islam, or became Agnostic? Would God still be happy with that decision? Let's look at this in another way besides logic, let's see as we always should do, what the Lord says about this important topic.
Calvinism, to be fair, doesn't actually say you can do whatever you wish, but they say basically that the Holy Spirit will force you to obey and stay faithful. John Calvin wrote this, "They, whom God hath accepted in His beloved, effectually called and sanctified by His spirit, can neither totally or finally, fall away from the state of grace: but shall certainly persevere therein to the end, and be eternally saved." So, God will not allow one to fall away and be eternally lost, at least according to John Calvin. Is this in agreement with the scriptures, or is this simply a doctrine of man? Calvinists like to use 1 John 3:9 which they say means the child of God cannot fall from grace because he cannot commit sin. Part of the reason for this is because the KJV wrongly used the word commit here. According to Vine's Expository, the correct translation should be "doeth" as the RSV and ASV uses. In this sense, what the Bible is saying is that if you are walking with God, you can do no sin. If you sin, you are not with God!
This thought continues with Paul in his letter to the Romans in chapter 6:1-2. "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin so that grace may abound? God forbid. We who died to sin, how shall we any longer live therein?" And in Hebrews 10:26 the author (most likely Paul) says if we sin after we have received the knowledge, there is no more sacrifice of sin, but we must repent of those sins. Why would Paul bother to tell us what we must do after we have been saved, if we can't sin after we've been saved? It seems there is a contradiction between Calvin and the Apostle Paul! John, one of the 'Sons of Thunder' writes in 2 John 9 "Whosoever goeth onward and abideth not in the teaching of Christ, hath not God". This is important, for he states 'onward', meaning from baptism. Again, why would John need to state that anyone who falls away after being saved, falls away from God if he is automatically saved? When we depart from the Word we no longer abide in Him, there is no preservative.
Other verses that we can see the truth are as follows: Eph. 4:30 says we are sealed by the Spirit unto redemption only as long as we do not grieve Him. Jude 24-25 says God is able to keep us from falling but we must allow Him to lift us up. It isn't a question of God's ability but of our willingness to allow Him to do so. No one can separate us from Christ, not even Satan, if we don't allow it to happen. 1 Cor. 10-12 and James 4:10 says God provides a means of escape if we are willing to walk after Him. What more evidence do we need?
Just in case you still aren't sure there is enough evidence, let's see what the Bible says about someone falling from grace. Gal. 5:4 says "Ye are severed from Christ, ye who would be justified by the law; ye are fallen away from grace." Paul again is showing there were some who had fallen away from Christ. The Apostle Peter also tells us that if we return to sin AFTER having obeyed the truth, we will fall from grace. There are many more verses that support this, but let's look at two examples in the Bible of this happening.
The first one would have to be one of the closest men to Jesus. That of course would be Judas. Now some like to argue that Judas never was faithful to Christ, but by reading the scriptures, that would be a complete assumption. Nowhere does it say that Judas was a spy, or always knew he would betray Christ, but leans more to temptation and a moment of weakness and love of money. We must also not forget about the angels, who were created by God, yet some of them fell as well (Jude 5-6 and 2 Pet. 2:4). In short, our name can be removed from the book of life (Rev. 20:14-15). If it is, we will be eternally lost. The proof is right there before us, it is just a matter of whether we want to believe God, or the doctrines of men.
Calvinism, to be fair, doesn't actually say you can do whatever you wish, but they say basically that the Holy Spirit will force you to obey and stay faithful. John Calvin wrote this, "They, whom God hath accepted in His beloved, effectually called and sanctified by His spirit, can neither totally or finally, fall away from the state of grace: but shall certainly persevere therein to the end, and be eternally saved." So, God will not allow one to fall away and be eternally lost, at least according to John Calvin. Is this in agreement with the scriptures, or is this simply a doctrine of man? Calvinists like to use 1 John 3:9 which they say means the child of God cannot fall from grace because he cannot commit sin. Part of the reason for this is because the KJV wrongly used the word commit here. According to Vine's Expository, the correct translation should be "doeth" as the RSV and ASV uses. In this sense, what the Bible is saying is that if you are walking with God, you can do no sin. If you sin, you are not with God!
This thought continues with Paul in his letter to the Romans in chapter 6:1-2. "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin so that grace may abound? God forbid. We who died to sin, how shall we any longer live therein?" And in Hebrews 10:26 the author (most likely Paul) says if we sin after we have received the knowledge, there is no more sacrifice of sin, but we must repent of those sins. Why would Paul bother to tell us what we must do after we have been saved, if we can't sin after we've been saved? It seems there is a contradiction between Calvin and the Apostle Paul! John, one of the 'Sons of Thunder' writes in 2 John 9 "Whosoever goeth onward and abideth not in the teaching of Christ, hath not God". This is important, for he states 'onward', meaning from baptism. Again, why would John need to state that anyone who falls away after being saved, falls away from God if he is automatically saved? When we depart from the Word we no longer abide in Him, there is no preservative.
Other verses that we can see the truth are as follows: Eph. 4:30 says we are sealed by the Spirit unto redemption only as long as we do not grieve Him. Jude 24-25 says God is able to keep us from falling but we must allow Him to lift us up. It isn't a question of God's ability but of our willingness to allow Him to do so. No one can separate us from Christ, not even Satan, if we don't allow it to happen. 1 Cor. 10-12 and James 4:10 says God provides a means of escape if we are willing to walk after Him. What more evidence do we need?
Just in case you still aren't sure there is enough evidence, let's see what the Bible says about someone falling from grace. Gal. 5:4 says "Ye are severed from Christ, ye who would be justified by the law; ye are fallen away from grace." Paul again is showing there were some who had fallen away from Christ. The Apostle Peter also tells us that if we return to sin AFTER having obeyed the truth, we will fall from grace. There are many more verses that support this, but let's look at two examples in the Bible of this happening.
The first one would have to be one of the closest men to Jesus. That of course would be Judas. Now some like to argue that Judas never was faithful to Christ, but by reading the scriptures, that would be a complete assumption. Nowhere does it say that Judas was a spy, or always knew he would betray Christ, but leans more to temptation and a moment of weakness and love of money. We must also not forget about the angels, who were created by God, yet some of them fell as well (Jude 5-6 and 2 Pet. 2:4). In short, our name can be removed from the book of life (Rev. 20:14-15). If it is, we will be eternally lost. The proof is right there before us, it is just a matter of whether we want to believe God, or the doctrines of men.
Tuesday, September 22, 2015
We Need Godly Zeal
I hear so many people today complaining about the state of our society in America, and how bad it has become. They claim it is due to many different reasons such as the downfall of the family dynamic, the socially liberal movement of the government, T.V. programs, movies and even video games. These are all correct in their way, but they can also be put into one major category: We have lost our zeal for God. This doesn't mean we have lost our love for God, or we don't attend worship correctly, although that is a part of it. The biggest issue I believe, is that the majority of people are afraid to stand up for God and respect the beliefs of all others. Now I'm not condoning the disrespect of people at all, but we must stand up for God and the Bible and what is right without fear of being talked down to. Far too many Christians allow others to say evil things about God, and then just shrug their shoulders and say "Well, that's how they believe." They don't realize that 'belief' will lead to destruction.
Our society has reached a point today where it is the popular thing to go against God and Biblical values. Now, this has always been an issue, but the difference today is that Christians seem to be too timid and let things slide for fear of offending anyone, and out of fear of being persecuted. As far as being persecuted goes, what we experience in this country is far from a true persecution that was experienced in the past. How can we put ourselves into the same category as those who were arrested, tortured and executed? Being called names and laughed or scoffed at is not persecution, it is ignorance. But, if we continue to allow this to happen, and not show our offenders that they can do or say whatever they want, it will escalate more and more. This has happened in the past many times and will again, however in the past, there were great people who stood up against the accusers and still spread the Word. When one does this, others will listen. If we remain silent, how can anyone ever learn the truth?
As far as offending someone, we do not want to hurt anyone's feelings, but we must care for their salvation above anything else. The Bible has always been offensive to unbelievers, but the only way to get someone to believe, is to educate them, try to get them to listen to the truth. If we let others say and believe what they want without saying something, they will be lost. In order to do this properly, we must have the proper zeal, a Godly zeal to do this. Think about this, what if Paul, Peter and the other Apostles and disciples in the first century were timid and afraid to say anything? All of the Apostles suffered persecution and all but one gave their lives for their belief, and knew they would go through it, yet were unafraid and did it without violence of any kind, but out of love for the lost.
When we have the correct zeal for the Lord, good things come from it. The first time we read about zealous workings, is in Numbers 25:11. God said He spared the people of Israel because of the zeal of Aaron's grandson Phineas, that he was able to bring Israel away from God's wrath. Much later in Paul's letter to Titus, Paul calls Christians peculiar people, wanting to have zeal in good works of God (Titus 2:14). Staying silent, being afraid to speak, is not a work at all and can do nothing for the lost. In Revelation 3:19, we are also told that we must be zealous and repent for our past sins. We can't just give lip service and simply say something, but we must truly want to this, and strive to do what is right in the eyes of God.
I love the story of Peter in Acts chapter 2, mostly because of the zeal that he showed. Just prior to this event where he was preaching to the Jewish leaders, he was running from these same men, and even denying Christ three times. Now, Peter has been empowered and encouraged, and is no longer afraid of what men could do to him. His only goal for the rest of his life was to spread the Word of God to all who would listen, even those that would eventually kill him. Possibly no one had more zeal than Paul, who was a great example of both the wrong type of zeal and Godly zeal. When he was still known as Saul, he went out and arrested as many Christians as he could find, and did so with the love of God in mind. It wasn't until his experience on the road to Damascus that he realized Christ was the Messiah. and his zeal for the rest of his life was for Christ. He was even brought before the Sanhedrin (Acts 23:1-5), the Pharisees (Acts 23:6-10), Felix (Acts 24), Festus (Acts 25), and King Agrippa (Acts 26). Each time, even though he knew if he simply remained silent or denied his offenses, he might be released, he used each opportunity to teach the leaders about Christ. He was not afraid of what the future would bring or what others thought of him.
The brave men and women of the Bible were not afraid to stand with God and preach the truth, no matter what might happen. In doing this, many people wanted to know what their message was, why it was so important that they were willing to risk their lives for it. Today, when we remain silent, other will simply think that our message is not important enough to speak of it, and will turn away. The American government is the perfect example of this. Politicians used to be proud to stand for their religious convictions, and oftentimes were elected for this. Now, we poke fun at the ones who have a strong Christian background, and even hold up those who have no convictions at all, or support those that lean more toward a Muslim background. What's wrong with that? Simply paying attention to Muslim countries and how they treat people will tell you that this is not what anyone wants. These people are making headway though, because we remain silent, and are afraid to rock the boat.
One of the last thing that Jesus said to His Apostles, was to go out into the world and spread the Word (Matt. 28:19-20). Are we doing this today, and being zealous in all of our works? We might be helping the poor by feeding them, or going to other countries and building schools and digging wells, which are all good and right things to do, but our priority must be to teach the message that Christ brought, to save all those that might listen. We are judged by how we came to God and live our lives by Christ, and having the correct zeal, a loving Godly zeal, to bring other to Him as well. This is what is wrong with our society today, and I thank God that the Apostles were not like most today, and were much more afraid of doing nothing, than doing what God commanded them, and us to do.
Our society has reached a point today where it is the popular thing to go against God and Biblical values. Now, this has always been an issue, but the difference today is that Christians seem to be too timid and let things slide for fear of offending anyone, and out of fear of being persecuted. As far as being persecuted goes, what we experience in this country is far from a true persecution that was experienced in the past. How can we put ourselves into the same category as those who were arrested, tortured and executed? Being called names and laughed or scoffed at is not persecution, it is ignorance. But, if we continue to allow this to happen, and not show our offenders that they can do or say whatever they want, it will escalate more and more. This has happened in the past many times and will again, however in the past, there were great people who stood up against the accusers and still spread the Word. When one does this, others will listen. If we remain silent, how can anyone ever learn the truth?
As far as offending someone, we do not want to hurt anyone's feelings, but we must care for their salvation above anything else. The Bible has always been offensive to unbelievers, but the only way to get someone to believe, is to educate them, try to get them to listen to the truth. If we let others say and believe what they want without saying something, they will be lost. In order to do this properly, we must have the proper zeal, a Godly zeal to do this. Think about this, what if Paul, Peter and the other Apostles and disciples in the first century were timid and afraid to say anything? All of the Apostles suffered persecution and all but one gave their lives for their belief, and knew they would go through it, yet were unafraid and did it without violence of any kind, but out of love for the lost.
When we have the correct zeal for the Lord, good things come from it. The first time we read about zealous workings, is in Numbers 25:11. God said He spared the people of Israel because of the zeal of Aaron's grandson Phineas, that he was able to bring Israel away from God's wrath. Much later in Paul's letter to Titus, Paul calls Christians peculiar people, wanting to have zeal in good works of God (Titus 2:14). Staying silent, being afraid to speak, is not a work at all and can do nothing for the lost. In Revelation 3:19, we are also told that we must be zealous and repent for our past sins. We can't just give lip service and simply say something, but we must truly want to this, and strive to do what is right in the eyes of God.
I love the story of Peter in Acts chapter 2, mostly because of the zeal that he showed. Just prior to this event where he was preaching to the Jewish leaders, he was running from these same men, and even denying Christ three times. Now, Peter has been empowered and encouraged, and is no longer afraid of what men could do to him. His only goal for the rest of his life was to spread the Word of God to all who would listen, even those that would eventually kill him. Possibly no one had more zeal than Paul, who was a great example of both the wrong type of zeal and Godly zeal. When he was still known as Saul, he went out and arrested as many Christians as he could find, and did so with the love of God in mind. It wasn't until his experience on the road to Damascus that he realized Christ was the Messiah. and his zeal for the rest of his life was for Christ. He was even brought before the Sanhedrin (Acts 23:1-5), the Pharisees (Acts 23:6-10), Felix (Acts 24), Festus (Acts 25), and King Agrippa (Acts 26). Each time, even though he knew if he simply remained silent or denied his offenses, he might be released, he used each opportunity to teach the leaders about Christ. He was not afraid of what the future would bring or what others thought of him.
The brave men and women of the Bible were not afraid to stand with God and preach the truth, no matter what might happen. In doing this, many people wanted to know what their message was, why it was so important that they were willing to risk their lives for it. Today, when we remain silent, other will simply think that our message is not important enough to speak of it, and will turn away. The American government is the perfect example of this. Politicians used to be proud to stand for their religious convictions, and oftentimes were elected for this. Now, we poke fun at the ones who have a strong Christian background, and even hold up those who have no convictions at all, or support those that lean more toward a Muslim background. What's wrong with that? Simply paying attention to Muslim countries and how they treat people will tell you that this is not what anyone wants. These people are making headway though, because we remain silent, and are afraid to rock the boat.
One of the last thing that Jesus said to His Apostles, was to go out into the world and spread the Word (Matt. 28:19-20). Are we doing this today, and being zealous in all of our works? We might be helping the poor by feeding them, or going to other countries and building schools and digging wells, which are all good and right things to do, but our priority must be to teach the message that Christ brought, to save all those that might listen. We are judged by how we came to God and live our lives by Christ, and having the correct zeal, a loving Godly zeal, to bring other to Him as well. This is what is wrong with our society today, and I thank God that the Apostles were not like most today, and were much more afraid of doing nothing, than doing what God commanded them, and us to do.
Monday, August 3, 2015
We Need Preachers of Truth
Ever since the death and resurrection of Christ, men have gone around preaching and spreading the Word. Unfortunately, in many cases, the truth has been twisted or misunderstood and the message they are spreading is their own and not that of God. How can we tell the difference, or can we know what the truth really is? Some people believe that much of the Bible can't be fully understood and God left it up to man to freely translate His Word. Of course we all know what man can do to the truth of anything, so why would God allow fallible men to distort it? Besides, Jesus Himself said "You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." (John 8:32). There are many who teach this as "You CAN know...", but Jesus actually was saying you will know. How can we know what the truth is? Well John wrote in John 21:24 that his testimony is true, all we need to do is study it.
Too many preachers and T.V. evangelists preach a message that is either far from truth, or deliver a message that their listeners want to hear. Their message is often a feel good one and is often uplifting, but should it always be? Jesus was accused of being too negative, and on many occasions taught about the dangers of hell. Yet today, there is a new movement teaching that there is no such place as hell because God loves us too much to ever condemn us there. Is that truth? John Calvin, whom millions of people today still follow his teachings, taught that God chooses who is to be saved and who is not before we are even born. This is would mean that it doesn't matter if you are faithful or not because the decision has already been made. If this were true, what is the point of having scripture to teach us anything?
Then we have those that are simply afraid to rock the boat, not wanting to offend anyone in this new age of 'tolerance'. An example of this is the popular televangelist Joel Olsteen. For years Mr. Olsteen taught against the dangers of homosexuality, that is until Sixty Minutes pressed him for being bigoted. When they did, he stated he still believes it is sin, but he won't preach against it so as not to offend anyone. Others have even gone as far as encouraging same-sex couples to join their congregation and will marry them. How often do we hear a sermon on what Jesus taught about the truth of marriage? Oh, we hear many sermons on family, but rarely do we hear about Christ condemning divorce except for the case of adultery (Matthew 19:9-10)? With the divorce rate in this country well over fifty percent, very few want to teach about this, knowing that many in their audience have been married more than once. The truth isn't always pleasant, but if it isn't taught, it will lead to those who believe otherwise.
Jesus tells us to go out into the world and preach His message which we can only find in the Bible. Paul wrote in Romans 12:11 that we should be zealous in every good work, to know the teachings of Christ and teach others. But probably the best books in the Bible to read about a preacher and his work is Paul's letters to Timothy and Titus. In Titus 1:9-16, Paul informs his young friend to "hold to the faithful word according to the teaching...to convict the gainsayers. For there are many unruly men, vain talkers and deceivers...whose mouths must be stopped." Paul goes on to say that his testimony is true, and false teachers should be reproved sharply. He ends in verse 16 by saying "They profess that they know God; but by their works they deny Him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate." Paul, arguably the greatest preacher that ever lived, shows us that we just can't believe or teach whatever we want as long as we do it in God's name, but teach the truth only.
In his letter to Timothy, Paul writes to not be ashamed of the gospel, and to preach not according to our works, but to His purpose and grace. The only way to know what He wants is to study for yourself, and know what the truth is. After all, you are responsible for your own actions, and can only reach salvation for what you do, not what your preacher does. Recently, I was speaking to someone about a certain topic. They gave me their interpretation on it, but when I tried to show them what the Bible said, they actually told me they didn't know for sure, and I should talk to their minister. How sad that is that they completely rely on someone else's teaching, and not searching it out for themselves. What if that teacher is wrong, or misleading and you are blindly following? Will God just shrug and say "It's ok, it's not your fault."? We need more preachers who preach the truth, and we must know the truth even before the sermon!
Not long ago, there was a documentary on the growing atheist population. One case stuck in my mind more than the others. A college student had started an atheist club at his campus when he stopped believing in God. The reason for his apostasy? His father, who was a Baptist preacher, told him that God would literally speak to him when he was saved. Well, after a few years of waiting to hear God's voice that never came, the boy could only arrive at two conclusions. Either God was not happy with him, or He doesn't exist. Sadly, he chose the latter. It never occurred to him that maybe the message from the start was wrong, and that God can exist without ever hearing His voice. Because of false teaching, that boy, and many others, are in a lost state.
We need more preachers who are willing to teach the truth, even when it hurts, or might offend some. We need preachers who care about the souls of the lost, and only aim is to help save and teach the truth. Not someone who examines the Bible and comes up with their own conclusion, and then wants millions to preach on television. Have you ever wondered if someone like Joel Olsteen, or Joyce Meyer would continue if they got paid only 30 or 40 thousand a year? Could they continue that lifestyle, and keep teaching a warm and fuzzy message that offends none and is tolerant of all? Again, our reward depends on what we do and believe, not on what a preacher says. We need more preachers of truth.
Too many preachers and T.V. evangelists preach a message that is either far from truth, or deliver a message that their listeners want to hear. Their message is often a feel good one and is often uplifting, but should it always be? Jesus was accused of being too negative, and on many occasions taught about the dangers of hell. Yet today, there is a new movement teaching that there is no such place as hell because God loves us too much to ever condemn us there. Is that truth? John Calvin, whom millions of people today still follow his teachings, taught that God chooses who is to be saved and who is not before we are even born. This is would mean that it doesn't matter if you are faithful or not because the decision has already been made. If this were true, what is the point of having scripture to teach us anything?
Then we have those that are simply afraid to rock the boat, not wanting to offend anyone in this new age of 'tolerance'. An example of this is the popular televangelist Joel Olsteen. For years Mr. Olsteen taught against the dangers of homosexuality, that is until Sixty Minutes pressed him for being bigoted. When they did, he stated he still believes it is sin, but he won't preach against it so as not to offend anyone. Others have even gone as far as encouraging same-sex couples to join their congregation and will marry them. How often do we hear a sermon on what Jesus taught about the truth of marriage? Oh, we hear many sermons on family, but rarely do we hear about Christ condemning divorce except for the case of adultery (Matthew 19:9-10)? With the divorce rate in this country well over fifty percent, very few want to teach about this, knowing that many in their audience have been married more than once. The truth isn't always pleasant, but if it isn't taught, it will lead to those who believe otherwise.
Jesus tells us to go out into the world and preach His message which we can only find in the Bible. Paul wrote in Romans 12:11 that we should be zealous in every good work, to know the teachings of Christ and teach others. But probably the best books in the Bible to read about a preacher and his work is Paul's letters to Timothy and Titus. In Titus 1:9-16, Paul informs his young friend to "hold to the faithful word according to the teaching...to convict the gainsayers. For there are many unruly men, vain talkers and deceivers...whose mouths must be stopped." Paul goes on to say that his testimony is true, and false teachers should be reproved sharply. He ends in verse 16 by saying "They profess that they know God; but by their works they deny Him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate." Paul, arguably the greatest preacher that ever lived, shows us that we just can't believe or teach whatever we want as long as we do it in God's name, but teach the truth only.
In his letter to Timothy, Paul writes to not be ashamed of the gospel, and to preach not according to our works, but to His purpose and grace. The only way to know what He wants is to study for yourself, and know what the truth is. After all, you are responsible for your own actions, and can only reach salvation for what you do, not what your preacher does. Recently, I was speaking to someone about a certain topic. They gave me their interpretation on it, but when I tried to show them what the Bible said, they actually told me they didn't know for sure, and I should talk to their minister. How sad that is that they completely rely on someone else's teaching, and not searching it out for themselves. What if that teacher is wrong, or misleading and you are blindly following? Will God just shrug and say "It's ok, it's not your fault."? We need more preachers who preach the truth, and we must know the truth even before the sermon!
Not long ago, there was a documentary on the growing atheist population. One case stuck in my mind more than the others. A college student had started an atheist club at his campus when he stopped believing in God. The reason for his apostasy? His father, who was a Baptist preacher, told him that God would literally speak to him when he was saved. Well, after a few years of waiting to hear God's voice that never came, the boy could only arrive at two conclusions. Either God was not happy with him, or He doesn't exist. Sadly, he chose the latter. It never occurred to him that maybe the message from the start was wrong, and that God can exist without ever hearing His voice. Because of false teaching, that boy, and many others, are in a lost state.
We need more preachers who are willing to teach the truth, even when it hurts, or might offend some. We need preachers who care about the souls of the lost, and only aim is to help save and teach the truth. Not someone who examines the Bible and comes up with their own conclusion, and then wants millions to preach on television. Have you ever wondered if someone like Joel Olsteen, or Joyce Meyer would continue if they got paid only 30 or 40 thousand a year? Could they continue that lifestyle, and keep teaching a warm and fuzzy message that offends none and is tolerant of all? Again, our reward depends on what we do and believe, not on what a preacher says. We need more preachers of truth.
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