Question:Is the Bible really God’s Word.  Or is it just the writings of Jewish men who lived thousands of years ago?

Answer:The Bible is totally different from any other book ever written by any other religion.  It contains fulfilled prophecy which proves it is from God.  No other book of antiquity can make that claim.  Check out our article on “Has the Old Testament Been Accurately Preserved?” to see how the words inspired by God have been accurately carried forth from one generation to another so that today we can know we have God’s original messages intact!

Question: Should a Christian participate in carnal warfare?   

Answer:The saints of God are forbidden by the commandments of God from deliberately taking human life.  Christians should not voluntarily become engaged in military service or war.  If they are involuntarily so engaged, they should conscientiously refuse to bear arms and, to the extent possible, refuse to come under military authority.  If you are a young person who believes that carnal warfare is wrong and that you might possibly be drafted into the military some time in the future, see our article entitled, “Questions About Military Draft.”  Granted, being in opposition to carnal warfare is not fashionable in our country at this time.  Even men claiming to be ministers of Jesus Christ urge their followers to take up the sword and follow men instead of taking up the cause of Christian love and following our Savior.  Refusing to participate in man’s wars opens one up to slander, ridicule, and persecution in the same way as does keeping God’s Laws--such as the seventh-day Sabbath.

Question: All my life I have been told that I must confess my sins to a priest and then ask for his forgiveness.  Where in the Bible do we find this? 

Answer: We don’t.  Nowhere in the Bible are we instructed to confess our sins before a class of men called priests.  Instead, we are told to confess our sins to one another.

Question: Are there are societies which are trying to overthrow or dominate (from behind-the-scenes) the American government?  Don’t you think they are trying to set up a one-world government?  

Answer: There is no doubt that a Master Conspirator is at work in this world.  His name is Satan the devil.  He conspires against everything that the Bible teaches.  If certain groups (Counsel on Foreign Relations, Bildebergers, TriLateral Commission, Illuminati, Masons, Jewish bankers, Jesuits, or Rockefellers) are trying to dominate the world, it has not be proven.  When investigating things such as conspiracy theories, always follow the “fruit-and-nut admonition,” that is, God called us to bear fruit, not to be nuts.  The amount of time spent chasing improvable theories could be better used in helping the poor and preaching the Gospel of the real Jesus Christ (not the false Jesus promoted by the churches of this world).  Pray that God will help you keep your priorities straight.

Question:  Did God really create the heavens and the earth in a one-week period? 

Answer: Evolution has not been proved by atheists.  The burden of proof is not on those who are skeptical of evolution.  The burden of proof is on them to show that human life did indeed evolve from slime.  They can’t prove this because it didn’t happen.  That being said, we find nothing in Scripture that says the earth was originally created only 6,000 years ago.  Yes, all indications are that man and the current creation have been here for about 6,000 years.  But that doesn’t mean that the universe wasn’t originally created billions of years ago.  Do you want to know more?  Hint:  The key is found in the transition from Genesis 1:1 and Genesis 1:2.  Watch for future articles and broadcasts on Creation, angels, and the origins of cave men.

Question: What happens to us after we die?  Do we go immediately to either heaven or hell or purgatory or limbo? 

Answer: The Bible says the dead are not aware of anything and won’t until they are resurrected by Jesus sometime in the future.  Check out our broadcast on “Hell.”  And watch for future articles about the myth of the immortality of the soul.      

Question: Is divorce permissible?  Or are two people married until one of them dies? 

Answer: The Bible says that God hates divorce.  Jesus said, “What God has joined together, let no man put asunder.”  But Jesus also said that a marriage could be broken up for matters of sexual uncleanness.  This includes a lot of things.  Divorce is a complicated social issue and can’t be summarized in a simple slogan such as, “Once married/always married.”

Question: My church has taught me and my family never to drink alcoholic beverages.  Is this really in the Bible?

Answer: No.  Jesus’ first miracle was turning water into wine.  The word in the Bible for wine is “oinos.”  This does not mean grape juice; it means fermented wine!  Only the ignorant claim that Jesus and disciples drank grape juice on the night of the Lord’s Supper.  In those days, you could not find any grape juice in the spring.  There was no way to preserve grape juice back then.  Alcoholic beverages can be consumed in moderation.  Drunkenness is clearly condemned in the Bible.

Question: What are the right ways to keep Easter and Christmas without all the commercialism that we see today? 

Answer: There is no right way to keep Easter and Christmas.  These two holidays are rooted in the pagan religions of antiquity.  They pre-date the birth of Jesus.  Further, Jesus told his disciples that he would be in the grave for three days and nights.  No matter how much fuzzy math you do, you simply cannot get three days and three nights to fit into a Friday night crucifixion and a Sunday morning resurrection.   Check out or article on “How Should a Christian Observe Easter?”

Question: What is the Gospel?  Does it mean that Jesus’ death and resurrection have brought the Kingdom of God to this earth at this time?

Answer: The Kingdom of God is not here with us at this time.  The Kingdom of God is not a church.  It is not any nation.  The Gospel means Good News.  The Gospel is the good news that Jesus is King of Kings and will rule over the entirety of this earth when He returns.  Some churches put emphasis primarily on the person of Jesus when talking about the Gospel.  Some churches put emphasis primarily on the Kingdom of God when they talk about the Gospel.  Emphasis should be placed on both!

Question: I have heard of universal salvation where everyone who has ever lived with receive eternal life.  I also heard that you must earn salvation.  What is the truth in this matter? 

Answer: Grace is a gift.  It can’t be earned.  But, once you receive this gift, it doesn’t mean you can do any evil thing you want afterward.  Obedience is part of a Christian’s daily walk.  Check out our article, “Is it true… Grace Plus Nothing Equals Salvation?”

Question: If pagan holidays are to be avoided by those who are of Christ, are there any holidays that God does approve of? 

Answer: Not only are the holidays that God approves of.  There are holidays which God commands.  We find them in many places in the Bible, but a good summary of them is found in Leviticus 23.  Watch for future articles about God’s Holy Days.

Question: Is homosexuality a sin?  

Answer: Homosexuality is a sin, but so is homophobia.  Too many Christians seem to want to rank homosexuality as the worst sin possible, but it is no worse than adultery or fornication.  Nowhere in the Bible is sin ranked.  Sin is sin is sin.  While many Christians seem to have no problem being friends with adulterers, fornicators, drunks, liars, or thieves, they refuse to even be in the same room with a homosexual.  This is unchristian.  If a Christian is going to advocate “hating the sin while loving the sinner,” then he is going to have to no longer treat homosexuals as pariah.  All Christians need to reach out to homosexuals (as well as adulterers, fornicators, drunks, liars, and thieves) and treat them as friends—loving them as human beings while still disapproving of any sins they commit.  Finally, when we read what the Bible really says about Sodom and Gomorrah, we find that those two cities were NOT destroyed simply because they practiced homosexuality!  Read for yourself what the Bible really says about this in Ezekiel 16:49-50.  Don’t just take the word of a preacher who does not base his theology on the Bible.  Read what the Bible says!

Question: Didn’t Peter’s vision in Acts 10 show us that all meat is now clean? 

Answer: To say that all meat is now clean is to say it is permissible to eat rats, skunks, and roaches.  Of course all meat is not fit for human consumption!  And it has not been left to us to determine what animal flesh we can and cannot eat.  God’s instruction manual to mankind (the Bible) tells us clearly what animals are clean and what animals are unclean.  Peter’s vision had nothing to do with making rats, skunks, and roaches clean.  Peter said the meaning of the vision was to show that he should never again call any man common or unclean.  Peter’s vision was a condemnation of racism.

Question: I am now experiencing some bad financial difficulties.  I have been watching some ministers on TV talk about “Name It and Claim It.”  What does the Bible say about this?

Answer: These preachers use other phrases to describe “Name It and Claim It.”  They also say, “What I confess, I possess.”  They also preach, “Say it; do it; receive it; tell it.”  They correctly say that God is obligated to do what He promises to do for us.”

(The “Name It and Claim It” Theology was begun by the late E.W. Kenyon and has been further developed by Kenneth Hagin, D.R. McConnell, Benny Hinn, and Joel Osteen.)
 
Regarding this topic, the important question to ask is this:  “What has God promised to do?”   Nowhere in Scripture does it say that, if you act like a spoiled brat by making demands for physical blessings, God will give in to you as would an indulging parent.   We can only claim what GOD names—not what WE name!

God promises that, if we accept His son Jesus, we will be given the free gift of eternal life.  This is the promise we can name and claim!

It is important that, during tough economic times, Christians do not resort to gimmicks such as Name It and Claim It.  The Bible is full of admonitions regarding working hard, dealing honestly with others, and not being deceived by false teachers.  If a Christian wants to succeed in life, these are the things that he should do while avoiding erroneous teachings such as Name It and Claim It.

Question: Is it wrong for a Christian to be patriotic?  

Answer: There is nothing in Scripture which forbids a Christian from saying the Pledge of Allegiance or celebrating our national day of Thanksgiving.  But he must keep in mind that his first loyalty is always to the God of the Bible.  Some Christians think that their church is the Kingdom of God on earth.  It is not.  Some Christians seem to think that their country is the Kingdom of God on earth.  It is not.  The truly patriotic person is not one who supports his nation in all its bad decisions.  A truly patriotic person points out how his nation should show gratitude to God for our national blessings by condemning the sins being committed by the nation.  America needs to learn the lessons that God tried to teach the Israelites.  The two major sins which got Israel and Judah into trouble over and over again with God were idolatry and Sabbath-breaking.  Read Ezekiel 20:12-24.  In addition to America’s many sex sins, our country needs to be taught to stop committing idolatry and to stop breaking God’s seventh-day Sabbath.  Any patriotic person should encourage fellow citizens to repent of such horrendous sins. 

Question: Should our public schools have prayer which is organized by the administration and faculty?   

Answer: There is nothing in Scripture which says a public school should have organized prayer.  In fact, there are biblical admonitions against the paganism we see public schools.  These heathen practices are promoted through music, dress, and art on days which celebrate Halloween, Christmas, and Easter.  Once a Christian agrees that a school should promote religion, he is agreeing to the method the school uses to perform this function.  The Bible is clear that it is the responsibility of the parents to instill godly values in their offspring!  Nowhere does the Bible say this spiritual teaching should be done by government schools.  Finally, Christians have no business trying to integrate Ceasar and Christ.  The Church should not be the servant of the State and the State should not be the servant of the Church.  Rather, the Church should be the conscience of the State.

Question: Are the other races inferior to the white race? 

Answer: No.  The Bible condemns racism in all its forms.  There are those who claim that Genesis 6:9 indicates Noah was “racially pure.”  Not!  This Scripture is merely stating that Noah was “morally upright” among those in the world at that time.  When Ezra and Nehemiah broke up marriages after the return of the Jews from captivity, it had nothing to do with race.  The prophets were against Judah’s young men having wives who were pagan and who would lead their husbands into sin.  In Leviticus 19:33-34 God instructed the Israelites that, once a person who wanted to become a citizen accepted Yahweh’s Laws, he was no longer considered an adopted relative.  He was to be treated as though he were born into the nation no matter what his race.

Question: When did God change the seventh-day Sabbath to Sunday, the Lord’s Day. 

Answer: God did not make any such change.  Neither did His Son, Jesus.  Neither did the Church.  This change was made by the churches of this world.  The Sabbath command is just as binding on us today as it was for God’s chosen nation of Israel thousands of years ago.  The Sabbath day is a wonderful day for rest, rejuvenation, learning, and being with family.  Check out our article entitled, “Tradition vs Truth.”

Question: What does the Bible teach about sexual practices?

Answer: Sex is a wonderful thing that was created by God.  It is used by married couples to show their love for one another.  It is also used for the procreation of the human race.  The Bible is not explicit when it comes to instructing a married couple what they should or should not do in bed.  For that reason, what a husband and wife do in the privacy of their own home is no one else’s business.  No ministry or church should presume to prescribe what is right and what is wrong for a married couple.  That being said, the Bible is clear that adultery, homosexuality, and fornication are wrong.  And, if you believe that life begins at conception, then you must further believe that abortion is murder.   These are the things that ministers of God should teach against.

Question: Is it wrong for a Christian to wear a cross? 

Answer: The cross is not a symbol that comes from the Bible.  Jesus was probably not crucified on a cross but on a stake.  When reading the four Gospel accounts of His crucifixion, the original Greek word was stake—not cross.  The symbol of the cross goes back to pagan Egypt.

Question: Does God really require that a Christian give 10% of his gross income to the church? 

Answer: No.  Although tithing has not been done away with, it still must be practiced with care and not in ignorance as so many do today.  For example, the Bible tells us to tithe on increase, not on gross or net.  There is a difference.  Also, in ancient Israel, a man would tithe on every tenth cow--not his first or second or third.  What if he only had eight or nine cows?  Well then, he didn’t tithe on his cows!  This principle shows that there are certain minimums to be met when it comes to tithing.  From this, we know that some poor people shouldn’t tithe even though they should give offerings.  This principal, on the other hand, should NEVER be used as an excuse not to exercise financial responsibility toward assisting God’s work.  Tithing is a fascinating study.  There are so many variables that need to be taken into consideration.  Again, it is so misunderstood in the religious world.  Watch for future articles on this subject.

Question: Is God really a trinity of three persons? 

Answer: No.  God is not a trinity.  God is a family.  Presently, there are two divine beings in the divine family.  The purpose for your existence is to increase God’s family!  God wants millions and millions of sons and daughters to be born into His family.  Trinitarianism teaches says that the family of God is closed to new members.  No, God’s family will accept new members at the return of Jesus.  For more information on this important subject, read our article entitled, “Why Did God Create Man?”