Results 21 - 40 of 154
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Results from: Answers On or After: Thu 12/31/70 Author: stjones Ordered by Verse |
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Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
21 | Can true Christians lose their faith? | Bible general Archive 1 | stjones | 88578 | ||
Greetings, yampa78; I don't whether or not "true Christians" can lose their faith. As the replies to your question illustrate, this is a question that Christians have debated for centuries and are likely to continue doing so. I for one am quite comfortable not knowing the answer. Why? Because I'm the only "true Christian" I know. Outrageous! Please bear with me. I know lots of people who certainly seem to be true Christians, people whom I am about 99 percent sure are true Christians, people whose judgment and wisdom I trust - but not quite as much I trust Jesus and his word. There is no one on Earth whose ideas or opinions in spiritual matters I would accept in contradiction to the Bible. So I can't tell you whose name is written in the Lamb's book of life. Yours? Hank's? AO's? Charles Templeton's? Others? Don't know; can't say. I can only tell you with absolute certainty that mine is but should you believe me? No. Are there contradictions in the Bible? It sometimes seems so. But nothing in the Bible contradicts the Gospel. If the numbers in Numbers don't seem to add up, does that mean that Jesus is any less the Son of God, any less my savior? Hardly. I love the Bible; I study it and I sometimes teach it; I even get to preach on it occasionally. But make no mistake - I don't believe in Jesus because I believe in the Bible; I believe in the Bible because I believe in Jesus. I think maybe some of the people you cited put their faith in the wrong place - in the Bible, not in Jesus himself. The Bible points to Jesus from beginning to end. But what's more valuable - the treasure or the map? Jesus is the treasure; the Bible's greatest value to me is that it describes the treasure and shows how to find it. See 2 Timothy 3:14-17. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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22 | 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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23 | 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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24 | 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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25 | 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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26 | 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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27 | 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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28 | 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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29 | Is the request of Christ Granted? | NT general Archive 1 | stjones | 70627 | ||
Hi, Johnny; With respect to Judas himself, search for message # 3132 and read the thread it generated - if you have time! I contended then (and I do now) that Judas' fate is unknown, a view that was forcefully and repeatedly challenged. My own opinion is that the immediate sin of those who participated was forgiven - no doubt leaving them all with plenty of unforgiven sins. But it flies in the face of everything the Bible teaches about salvation to say that they were all forgiven without repentance and without placing their faith in Christ. If it is true that "all character in that said events was forgiven because they only fulfill thier role in that scripted way of salvation", then I would expect to meet Pharoah when I get to Heaven - which I don't. But this is just an opinion; I would not care to place limits on God's grace. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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30 | 1 corinthians 14:34 | NT general Archive 1 | stjones | 81295 | ||
Greetings, krzyhors; Search on ID# 2988 (right side near the top) for a recent discussion of this topic. My opinion is that the only way to harmonize Paul's instructions regarding women in 1 Corinthians 11 and 14 with his overarching theology of grace, freedom, and unity in Christ is to assume that he was dealing with a specific situation, not laying down a new law for women. But there was plenty of disagreement. I hope you find the thread helpful. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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31 | Genesis 1:26-27 | Genesis | stjones | 28258 | ||
No you're not; He is. Or were you calling Him? Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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32 | Bible and evolution both? | Gen 1:1 | stjones | 19402 | ||
Yes - sort of. First let me say that arguments about HOW God created the universe distract us from the wonder of the fact THAT God created the universe. "in the beginning, God" may be the four most important words in the Bible because everything else hangs on their truth. The Bible is not a scientific textbook, it is a spriritual textbook ("... from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work" - 2 Tim 3:15-17). I have no trouble with thinking of the first few chapters of Geneseis as a parable. Such thinking does not impair the Bible's chief purpose of pointing the reader toward Jesus. Knowing him - and our need for him - has nothing to do with how or when God created the universe. For us old-Earth Christians, evolution is nothing more than one way God could have created the diverse life on this planet. Note that the agent is God, not the mechanism that Darwin erroneously proposed (random mutation plus natural selection). It makes perfectly good sense to me that God could have directed evolution, with his ultimate creature, man, in mind all the time. IMHO, God-directed evolution explains the evidence for both evolution and intelligent design and is consistent with the spiritual truth of Genesis. So, yes, I do think that a form of evolution provides a better explanation of the physical evidence than a literal reading of Genesis 1-2. And yes, I am a Christian who accepts without reservation my sinful condition, my inability to save myself, the person and work of Jesus, the grace of God extended through Jesus, and the promise of salvation through faith in Jesus. |
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33 | 24 hour days are based on what? | Gen 1:2 | stjones | 43488 | ||
Hi, nimrod; I agree that the Bible is not a scientific text. It makes so such claims for itself nor does anyone within its pages make such a claim. It is absolutely authoritative in matters of faith and practice and is the peerless witness to the person and work of Jesus. But it's not a reliable source of scientific information. 2 Timothy 3:15-17 sums it up: " ... from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work." I am most grateful that the pioneers of modern science were guided by the Bible's teachings on spiritual matters while taking seriously Romans 1:20: " ...since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities--his eternal power and divine nature--have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made". What we know about the world today is the direct result of their seeing the world as the general revelation of God and believing what it told them. This is not, however, a popular view around here. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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34 | Bless Israel - say "God bless Israel"? | Gen 12:3 | stjones | 42383 | ||
Hi, Search; I don't think Christians have any special obligations to the modern state called Israel. This Israel is a political entity created by political means; it is unrelated to the nation created by God to serve His holy purposes. There's a big difference between God and the U.N. ;-) I think Christians should pray for the people and leadership of Israel, just as we should pray for the Palestinian people and for all the lost who have been misled by the "prophet" Mohammad. While Christians do have a special relationship with the ancient nation of Israel, we should be prepared to see the modern state's many warts as well as its virtues. I don't think President Bush should single out Israel for any special blessings either. It's presumptuous to assume that God wants Israel to hold onto the West Bank or Gaza. God loves the Palestinians who wish to live in peace no less than He loves the Jews in Israel. It's hard for me grasp, but He even loves the terrorists too. President Bush - and all of us - should ask God's blessings on all the people of the world. As Christians, we should ask for God's gospel to be made known to all lost people, especially to the Muslims and Jews who know the name of Jesus and continue to reject him. And we should realize that Palestinian Christians are suffering alongside their Muslim countrymen. I'm not saying Christians - including the President - should't express to God our special concern for the Middle East. An extra prayer for peace there certainly won't grieve God. But Isael is a political issue, not a religious one and I think the President's utterances on the subject should be political, not religious. Just my two hundredths of a dollar. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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35 | Is "Israel" actually Jacob's descendents | Gen 32:28 | stjones | 104938 | ||
Jacob was given the name Israel by God. The Israel of the Bible consist of his descendants. As for Jacob's deceitfulness, he was no worse than his grandfather Abraham before him or King David after him. Rahab was a prostitute, Samson was a lustful doofuss. They were far from perfect, but they had two things in common. They had uncommon faith in God and they were chosen by god to do extraordinary things. I take two lessons from this - God is sovereign and chooses whomever he wishes and God can use anyone, however flawed, to do his will. Men throw away cracked vessels; God fills them with the Holy Spirit and uses them, cracks and all. That gives me hope. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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36 | Was God the Protector of the Israelites? | Ex 13:21 | stjones | 107781 | ||
Hi, punkiedo; Well, I believe that God was in the pillar of cloud and in the pillar of fire as Exodus 13:21 says. Why do you ask? Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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37 | How would you apply Deuteronomy 29:29? | Numbers | stjones | 103828 | ||
Greetings, Aixen7z4; To be honest, much of what we have said to one another has consisted of quibbling over words. I had thought that we might agree that while we might use different words differently, at the end of the day we are expressing similar ideas. Maybe; maybe not. I seem not to have make myself clear. The answer to the question "What did Jesus teach about divorce?" can be found by looking it up in the Bible. In contrast, the answer to the question "What is God saying to us?" will not be found by simply looking it up. It will be found only by reading and studying the whole Bible with that question in mind. The question itself is not disingenuous; it is the only question that matters when we approach the Bible. Further, it is a qustion that is likely to have a different answer every time we pursue it, since we can never exhaust the riches of God's word. Be assured that I have seen (and participated in) much Bible study that began with that question. The fact that many scholars, theologians, and even pastors of the last century have started with different questions ("handling the sword by the blade", as you so succintly put it) hardly means that everyone does. Richard Foster, C. S. Lewis, R. C. Sproul, Philip Yancey, and Jack Hayford come to mind as examples of professionals who certainly seem to have started with the right question. It is true that computer science students tend to be very concrete, not given to abstract thinking. Eventually, many of them came to understand that a computer program is a mental artifact; everything else is just notation. I even managed to teach a unit on ethics once or twice. It gave me the opportunity to point out the flaws in every human ethical system we studied. In the end, I was able to tell them where my ethical system came from. I remain hopeful that we have more in common than not. Most importantly, we seem to have Jesus in common. Nonetheless, something tells me we are drifting away from the forum's charter.... Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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38 | Two, Three of Forensic Evidence | Deut 17:6 | stjones | 64976 | ||
Hi, Lionstrong; It should be the standard if we be ruled by Judges or a King of God's choosing. Of course, we would have to throw out our legislatures too. :-) IOW, I don't think the political and judicial forms instituted by God for his chosen people prior to the advent of Jesus are commanded for civil government today. Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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39 | Two, Three, or Forensic Evidence | Deut 17:6 | stjones | 65068 | ||
Hi, Lionstrong; I did indeed notice and I don't disregard the OT. But I don't see any reason to believe that the judicial and legistlative standards for Israel are normative for any civil government including ours (USA, many others). If they are, then I would expect God to appoint a king for us as he did for Israel. But the fact is that if those standards are normative, then every government other than ancient (not contemporary) Israel is hopelessly lost. Ancient Israel was the only nation created by God with him as its king. No nation created by men (the only kind on Earth just now) can conform to that standard. So I'll ask you a question. Since God did not ordain elected legislatures for ancient Israel, is representative democracy an abomination in God's eyes? Peace and grace, Steve aka Indiana Jones |
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40 | Does God endorse polygamy? | 1 Kin 11:3 | stjones | 68903 | ||
No. ;-) |
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