Results 101 - 120 of 657
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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Author: stjones Ordered by Verse |
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Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
101 | Give the difference of evil and wickness | OT general | stjones | 23819 | ||
Hi, Jepson; Interesting question! The Hebrew word (Ra') is the same in both phrases. The same word is variously translated elsewhere in Genesis as "bad", "harm", "hurt", "ill", "ill favoured". I looked at eight translations and found that they all use the same pair of words in the same places. There seems to be general agreement among translators that the word has several different connotations. One clue might be the fact that it is translated as "evil" in the pasages about the tree of knowledge of good and evil. The "evil" translation shows up again in the story of Joseph. So I take "wickedness" to refer to specific behaviors or desires while "evil" refers to a general condition or prediliction that produces wickedness. Warning: this theory has no scriptural basis and your mileage may vary. Peace and grace, Steve "Indy" Jones |
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102 | Give the difference of evil and wickness | OT general | stjones | 23820 | ||
Hi again; I forgot the second question. I would say it was a wicked act committed by evil men. Peace and grace Steve "Indy" Jones |
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103 | If He came today would He turn away fro | OT general | stjones | 23890 | ||
Hi, Rose; I'd like to add some emphasis to Bob's answer. You said "He will judge the living and the dead by how they lived and by their inocense". Perhaps "The Poisonwood Bible" (which I haven't read) says that; the Bible most emphatically does not. The biblical message is unmistakably clear - no one can earn entrance into Heaven by how they live. The narrow, politically incorrect, scandalous message from Jesus is that faith in him is the only way. The Bible does say that the children of believers are secure until they make their own decision (paraphrasing 1 Corinthians 7). God can do what he wants. He may well examine the heart of every child and make a sovereign choice to admit any or all of them to his kingdom. As a parent, I would not risk that. According to the New York Times Review of Books on line, "The Poisonwood Bible" is intended as an expose of American complicity in the assassination of Partrice Lumumba in the 60s. Any competent novelist will manipulate her characters, their words, their actions, and the interpretation thereof to move the story (and the reader) toward the desired destination. I'd take no theological instruction from Barbara Kingsolver. Peace and grace, Steve "Indy" Jones |
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104 | If He came today would He turn away fro | OT general | stjones | 23895 | ||
Explanation of infant baptism [LONG] Hi, Bob. You said "The closest thing that can be compared to baptism in my understanding is the circumsision of the Old Testament. It is an outward sign of an inward covenant. Salvation is by faith in Jesus Christ plus nothing". This is the view of the Presbyterian church - baptism does not save, faith does. Baptism is the sign of a covenetal relationship between God and his chosen people. The Sacrament of Baptism is practiced according to the theology that guides the Presbyterian church. Therefore, Presbyterians only baptize members' children and only during a worship service. When presenting an infant or child for baptism, the parents make a public profession of faith in Christ. As part of the sacrament, the congregation affirms its intention to welcome the child and help grow the child in the faith. As good Calvinists, Presbyterians focus on God's sovereign act of choosing. 'Just as Jesus had said to his disciples, "You did not choose me but I chose you . . . .", one can see in the Sacrament of Baptism God's act of choosing. Whatever the age of the person being baptized, it's God's choosing that is the crucial action. Adults, as well as infants, will have to decide many times after their baptism whether or not to choose God back!'* 'When the parents make a profession of faith, they do so not on behalf of their child, but as a statement of their identity as members of the covenanted community, and their intention to form the child's faith as best they can within that community. Under those circumstances, there is at least a reasonable prospect that a baptized person will grow into her baptism in due time, making a profession of faith and choosing back the God who first chose her.' 'Infant baptism [is] about the status of the children of believers - members of the covenant community - and not about children in general! Baptism [is] meant neither to save the child from some peril in this world or the next, nor as a sentimental blessing upon newborns, nor as a way for the parents to profess the child's supposed "implicit" faith by proxy. It [is] an act which incorporate[s] into the body of Christ the children of persons who [are] already a part of that body.' This is consistent with 1 Corinthians 7. There is no assumption that the act of baptizing with prevent the child from later deciding to leave the covenant community by choosing not to accept Christ for herself. *All quotes are from an article in the Office of Theology and Worship section of the Presbyterian Church (USA) web site. I don't intend to start a dispute over baptism, infant or otherwise; I'm posting this purely as information. Peace and grace, Steve "Indy" Jones |
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105 | If He came today would He turn away fro | OT general | stjones | 23936 | ||
Hi, Bob; Glad you found the informtation useful. I should add that when they are 14, kids in our church are given the opportunity to join after a pretty vigorous Communicants' Class. At that time, they make a public profession of faith. If they were not baptized previously (i.e. as infants), they are baptized at the same time. I would not be offended if either of my daughters chose to be baptized again. If they came to believe that the Presbyterian understanding of baptism was incorrect and their infant baptism "didn't count", I would hope they would do as you did. After all, God knows our hearts; I don't suppose he is offended at a sincere desire to discern and do his will. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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106 | Give the difference of evil and wickness | OT general | stjones | 26189 | ||
Thanks, Steve; I admire your discernment. ;-) ;-) I also appreciate yours, including those few I may disagree with. One of the things to like about this forum is the (usually) thoughtful and sincere posts. Ok, enough of the group hug. Peace and grace Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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107 | What is the right amount to tithe. | OT general | stjones | 54485 | ||
Hi, JF; That's certainly a valid thought, but it begs the question. The fact is I keep some of my paycheck; I suspect most Christians do. So I guess the question is, how much do I keep? Well, that's not entirely up to me since the government waltzes off with some of it before I even see it and I have no control over that. My answer is that I tithe the gross. It amuses me to think that I'm paying God's taxes for Him, but that's the way it works out. Say I gross 100 silver coins a day and the total tax bite is 30 pct - 30 silver coins. At the end of the day, I have 60 silver coins left. God got 10 of them off the top and I kept 90. But the government takes its slice of the whole 100 silver coins. So I pay 3 silver coins on God's share and 27 on my share. Of course, those 3 coins are deductible, so I may get some of them back in April. At least I don't have to worry about tithing the refund.... But God loves a cheerful giver, so I don't mind. :-) Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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108 | What is the right amount to tithe. | OT general | stjones | 54513 | ||
Amen, brother. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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109 | Biblical location of ISRAEL | OT general | stjones | 67004 | ||
Greetings, MEW1008; The general location is the same although the borders are different. For example, much of ancient Israel is now the occupied West Bank, which, in theory, is not part of modern Israel. Any study Bible or Bible dictionary would have a map of ancient Israel to compare with modern maps. HTH Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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110 | To learn the truth | OT general | stjones | 72306 | ||
Hi, FytRobert; Christians do indeed worship the God of Abraham. Muslims, however, worship Allah, a made-up god. Muslims consider themselves, Jews, and Christians to be "People of the Book". However, the "Bible" they refer to is an edited version, altered to suit the claims of Islam. The test is very simple: the prophet Muhammad claimed that Allah revealed the Qur'an to him. The Qur'an denies Jesus' divinity, death, and resurrection. Therefore, whoever revealed the Qur'an to Muhammad, it was not the God of the Bible. Hope this helps. Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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111 | To learn the truth | OT general | stjones | 72330 | ||
Thanks, Ray; It always astounds me when Christians go along with the fiction that we all "worship the same God". Our God is the Father of our Savior; the god of Islam isn't. And you're right about the Holy Spirit and the Trinity. A falsehood about Christians sometimes spread by Muslims is that we are polytheistic, having three gods. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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112 | To learn the truth | OT general | stjones | 72403 | ||
Hi, Taleb; Thanks for the interesting reply. I admit I'm not a student of the Qur'an although I have read parts of it, especially what it has to say about Jesus. Your Lebanese friend's father must have been accomplished exegete to prove Jesus' claims from what the Qur'an says. You said "Sorry to say, the end result has not been what I had prayed". But as you know, you don't know what God will do with a seed once planted. So you keep up the good work too. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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113 | To learn the truth | OT general | stjones | 72426 | ||
Hi, Taleb; Thanks for the education - a fair exchange perhaps for a little encouragement. May God bless you as you continue to work in a very challenging vinyard. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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114 | Was He being punished... | NT general Archive 1 | stjones | 20875 | ||
Hi, REVbuff; You're right; Jesus was sinless. If he weren't, he would simply be suffering the punishment for his own sins and so could not be the substitutionary sacrifice for ours. God reveals his grace (his unmerited love for us) by allowing us to exchange our own sin for Jesus' righteousness. When we do that (through faith in Jesus), we get his sinlessness before God and he gets our punishment: "the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed." (Isaiah 53:5) Hope this is helpful. Peace and grace, Steve |
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115 | end times | NT general Archive 1 | stjones | 23211 | ||
Hi, Brianna; I'm sure many Christians believe what you proposed, but I'm not sure that it's "generally" believed. I, for one, don't believe it. It may come to pass, but I don't see any convincing evidence. Call me cynical, but I don't see any evidence that any end-time events are imminent. Jesus called us to be fishers of men, not predictors of the future. Whatever is going to happen - and there's no general agreement on that except that Christ will return - will happen when God wants it to. I'll let him take care of the timing. In the meantime, we have the Great Commission to worry about. Just my inflammatory 2 cents' worth. Peace and grace, Steve |
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116 | end times | NT general Archive 1 | stjones | 23761 | ||
Hi, Kalos; It's an old joke, but it applies to me: I'm not a premillenialist or a postmillenialist; I'm a panmillenialist - it'll all pan out in the end. Peace and grace, Steve |
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117 | end times | NT general Archive 1 | stjones | 23776 | ||
Thanks, Kalos. You too. Peace and grace, Indiana Jones, formerly "Steve" (too many Steves around here) |
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118 | Judas went to hell? | NT general Archive 1 | stjones | 27947 | ||
Hi, Nolan; With all due respect (and that's a fair amount!), I disagree. These passages make it clear that Judas committed a grievous sin. So have we all. Probably the most damaging passage is John 6:70, where Jesus calls Judas "a devil". The phrase "a devil" doesn't show up anywhere else in the NT, so it needs to be approached with some thought. The Greek word translated as "devil" is defined in Strong's as "prone to slander, ... false accuser, slanderer, ... applied to a man who, by opposing the cause of God, may be said to act the part of the devil or to side with him." Most of the time (34, to be exact), the word is preceded by the definite article "the" which makes it clear that it refers specifically to Satan. In four places, it is used indefinitely - this passage in John and 1 Tim 3:11, 2 Tim 3:3, and Titus 2:3 where it is translated as "false accuser" or "slanderer". Elsewhere in John's gospel (13:2), "the" devil (the one and only) is said to have "prompted" Judas (NIV) or "put it into his heart" (NAS) to betray Jesus. So the motive for betraying Jesus came from Satan, not from Judas himself. Judas, like all of us from time to time, was guilty of succumbing to Satan. And he was certainly a false accuser, so it possible that Jesus used the word in that sense. I don't think John 17:12 reveals Judas' fate; I think it describes his condition. The word "perished" (as in this passage) is also translated nearly as frequently in the NT as "lost". Given the context, Judas had clearly not yet "perished", so he must have been "lost". I think the other passages convey a similar message. But Jesus came to seek and save the lost and no one - not even Judas - is beyond his reach. The fact remains that Judas repented. Martyr said that if he had accepted Jesus, he wouldn't have hanged himself. But at that time, nobody knew what it meant to "accept Jesus". The thief on the cross didn't utter the "sinner's prayer"; Peter hadn't given his Pentecost sermon yet; there were no letters from Paul. Judas might well have called upon the name of the Lord and beed saved. (Rom 10:13) My point is not to prove that Judas is in Heaven; I don't know where he wound up. But if he truly repented - and returning the money and killing himself is pretty strong evidence - he might be in Heaven. Jesus' unconditional love and atoning sacrifice could cover even Judas, a truth for which I am eternally grateful. Peace and grace and a blessed and merry Christmas to you and yours Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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119 | Judas went to hell? | NT general Archive 1 | stjones | 27997 | ||
Hi, Nolan; If I have you and Tim arrayed against me I know I've written something that requires further thought. But having thought about it a bit more, I'm inclined to defend my position. (That position, by the way, is NOT that "Judas went anywhere but hell". I said I didn't know where he wound up; I still don't know.) The various translations of Matthew 27:3 certainly do hold open the possibiliy that Judas truly repented. In these four, for example, the Greek word is translated as either "seized with/felt remorse" or "repented": [NIV] When Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was seized with remorse ... [NASB] Then when Judas, who had betrayed Him, saw that He had been condemned, he felt remorse ... [KJV] Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself ... [RSV] When Judas, his betrayer, saw that he was condemned, he repented ... Is this a word unrelated to true repentance? It is the same word that Jesus used in Matthew 21:28-32, translated first as "changed his mind" and second as "repent": [NIV] "What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, 'Son, go and work today in the vineyard.' 'I will not,' he answered, but later he changed his mind and went. "Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, 'I will, sir,' but he did not go. "Which of the two did what his father wanted?" "The first," they answered. Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. For John came to you to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe him." The second use is clearly related to gaining entrance to the Kingdom of God. We don't know what was in Judas' heart and so don't know if he truly repented. English translations of Matthew's gospel may not prove that he did, but they certainly leave it as a real possibility. The other passages are inconclusive. Judas in either Heaven or hell could not be a part of the disciples' earthly ministry, so they replaced him. "His place" might have been the field where he died - that was probably the last they'd heard of him. "Better if he had not been born"? Yes, far better than to be the one who betrayed Jesus. Perhaps Judas in his remorse/repentance figured that out and did what little he could to correct the error of his birth. What the Bible does not say is that Judas went to hell. It says he committed a grevious sin and the consequences of his sin were terrible. It describes the earthly cost to him - remorse, suicide, and universal contempt. It does not say that the cost included eternal damnation. I am not willing to judge Judas' heart. And I am not willing to assume that the actions of a man clearly driven by remorse and self-loathing were improper and somehow prove that he did not really repent. What I am willing to do is express thanksgiving to a God who could - and perhaps did - forgive even Judas. Peace and grace Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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120 | Judas went to hell? | NT general Archive 1 | stjones | 27999 | ||
Hi, Tim; Please see my (lengthy) response to Nolan. Peter's sin was vastly different from Judas' so I don't think they can be equated. I agree that Judas' actions after realizing what he had done seem wrong, but I don't see how he could have known what was right. He couldn't ask Jesus; he dared not go to the disciples, the religious leaders had betrayed him ("What do we care?") and until Jesus, everything he knew about God had come from them. As I said in the original post, I just don't know and I can't see that the Bible provides a definitive answer. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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