From Gary.... Impossible?

Question: How do you park for 2 hours, when the sign clearly says that parking is for 7 PM to 8 PM? Tough question; one which seems impossible!  Will have to think about that one!!  And yet I'm sure there must be an answer... there must be.  Life is full of difficult problems, some which seem insurmountable, if not downright impossible!!! Here is an example of one...

Judges, Chapter 7 (WEB)

  1 Then Jerubbaal, who is Gideon, and all the people who were with him, rose up early, and encamped beside the spring of Harod: and the camp of Midian was on the north side of them, by the hill of Moreh, in the valley.  2 Yahweh said to Gideon, “The people who are with you are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hand, lest Israel vaunt themselves against me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me.’  3 Now therefore proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, ‘Whoever is fearful and trembling, let him return and depart from Mount Gilead.’” Twenty-two thousand of the people returned, and ten thousand remained. 

  4  Yahweh said to Gideon, “The people are still too many. Bring them down to the water, and I will test them for you there. It shall be, that of whom I tell you, ‘This shall go with you,’ the same shall go with you; and of whoever I tell you, ‘This shall not go with you,’ the same shall not go.”  5 So he brought down the people to the water; and Yahweh said to Gideon, “Everyone who laps of the water with his tongue, like a dog laps, you shall set him by himself; likewise everyone who bows down on his knees to drink.”  6 The number of those who lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, was three hundred men; but all the rest of the people bowed down on their knees to drink water.  7 Yahweh said to Gideon, “By the three hundred men who lapped will I save you, and deliver the Midianites into your hand. Let all the other people go, each to his own place.” 

  8  So the people took food in their hand, and their trumpets; and he sent all the men of Israel every man to his tent, but retained the three hundred men: and the camp of Midian was beneath him in the valley.  9 That same night, Yahweh said to him, “Arise, go down into the camp; for I have delivered it into your hand.  10 But if you are afraid to go down, go with Purah your servant down to the camp: 11 and you shall hear what they say; and afterward your hands will be strengthened to go down into the camp.” Then went he down with Purah his servant to the outermost part of the armed men who were in the camp. 

  12  The Midianites and the Amalekites and all the children of the east lay along in the valley like locusts for multitude; and their camels were without number, as the sand which is on the seashore for multitude. 

  13  When Gideon had come, behold, there was a man telling a dream to his fellow; and he said, “Behold, I dreamed a dream; and behold, a cake of barley bread tumbled into the camp of Midian, and came to the tent, and struck it so that it fell, and turned it upside down, so that the tent lay flat.” 

  14  His fellow answered, “This is nothing other than the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel. God has delivered Midian into his hand, with all the army.” 

  15  It was so, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream, and its interpretation, that he worshiped; and he returned into the camp of Israel, and said, “Arise; for Yahweh has delivered the army of Midian into your hand!” 

  16  He divided the three hundred men into three companies, and he put into the hands of all of them trumpets, and empty pitchers, with torches within the pitchers. 

  17  He said to them, “Watch me, and do likewise. Behold, when I come to the outermost part of the camp, it shall be that, as I do, so you shall do.  18 When I blow the trumpet, I and all who are with me, then blow the trumpets also on every side of all the camp, and shout, ‘For Yahweh and for Gideon!’” 

  19  So Gideon, and the hundred men who were with him, came to the outermost part of the camp in the beginning of the middle watch, when they had but newly set the watch: and they blew the trumpets, and broke in pieces the pitchers that were in their hands.  20 The three companies blew the trumpets, and broke the pitchers, and held the torches in their left hands, and the trumpets in their right hands with which to blow; and they shouted, “The sword of Yahweh and of Gideon!”  21 They each stood in his place around the camp; and all the army ran; and they shouted, and put them to flight.  22 They blew the three hundred trumpets, and Yahweh set every man’s sword against his fellow, and against all the army; and the army fled as far as Beth Shittah toward Zererah, as far as the border of Abel Meholah, by Tabbath.  23 The men of Israel were gathered together out of Naphtali, and out of Asher, and out of all Manasseh, and pursued after Midian.  24 Gideon sent messengers throughout all the hill country of Ephraim, saying, “Come down against Midian, and take before them the waters, as far as Beth Barah, even the Jordan!” So all the men of Ephraim were gathered together, and took the waters as far as Beth Barah, even the Jordan.  25 They took the two princes of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb; and they killed Oreb at the rock of Oreb, and Zeeb they killed at the wine press of Zeeb, and pursued Midian: and they brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon beyond the Jordan. 

This is a longer passage that I usually post, but it is worth reading. Gideon defeated the Midianites and the Amalekites and all the children of the east because God was with him. God saves by his power and not ours; which is a lesson that I need to remember and never, ever forget. When things look impossible, seek God with all your heart and lean on HIM!  

P.S. As far as that sign goes, the only answer I can come up with is that you could park there for two hours only if at the 8 PM mark you used daylight savings time to obtain an extra hour. 

From Gary... Bible Reading February 18

Bible Reading  

February 18

The World English Bible

Feb. 18

Genesis 49

Gen 49:1 Jacob called to his sons, and said: "Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you that which will happen to you in the days to come.

Gen 49:2 Assemble yourselves, and hear, you sons of Jacob. Listen to Israel, your father.

Gen 49:3 "Reuben, you are my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength; excelling in dignity, and excelling in power.

Gen 49:4 Boiling over as water, you shall not excel; because you went up to your father's bed, then defiled it. He went up to my couch.

Gen 49:5 "Simeon and Levi are brothers. Their swords are weapons of violence.

Gen 49:6 My soul, don't come into their council. My glory, don't be united to their assembly; for in their anger they killed men. In their self-will they hamstrung cattle.

Gen 49:7 Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce; and their wrath, for it was cruel. I will divide them in Jacob, and scatter them in Israel.

Gen 49:8 "Judah, your brothers will praise you. Your hand will be on the neck of your enemies. Your father's sons will bow down before you.

Gen 49:9 Judah is a lion's cub. From the prey, my son, you have gone up. He stooped down, he crouched as a lion, as a lioness. Who will rouse him up?

Gen 49:10 The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs. To him will the obedience of the peoples be.

Gen 49:11 Binding his foal to the vine, his donkey's colt to the choice vine; he has washed his garments in wine, his robes in the blood of grapes.

Gen 49:12 His eyes will be red with wine, his teeth white with milk.

Gen 49:13 "Zebulun will dwell at the haven of the sea. He will be for a haven of ships. His border will be on Sidon.

Gen 49:14 "Issachar is a strong donkey, lying down between the saddlebags.

Gen 49:15 He saw a resting place, that it was good, the land, that it was pleasant. He bows his shoulder to the burden, and becomes a servant doing forced labor.

Gen 49:16 "Dan will judge his people, as one of the tribes of Israel.

Gen 49:17 Dan will be a serpent in the way, an adder in the path, That bites the horse's heels, so that his rider falls backward.

Gen 49:18 I have waited for your salvation, Yahweh.

Gen 49:19 "A troop will press on Gad, but he will press on their heel.

Gen 49:20 "Asher's food will be rich. He will yield royal dainties.

Gen 49:21 "Naphtali is a doe set free, who bears beautiful fawns.

Gen 49:22 "Joseph is a fruitful vine, a fruitful vine by a spring. His branches run over the wall.

Gen 49:23 The archers have sorely grieved him, shot at him, and persecute him:

Gen 49:24 But his bow remained strong. The arms of his hands were made strong, by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob, (from there is the shepherd, the stone of Israel),

Gen 49:25 even by the God of your father, who will help you; by the Almighty, who will bless you, with blessings of heaven above, blessings of the deep that lies below, blessings of the breasts, and of the womb.

Gen 49:26 The blessings of your father have prevailed above the blessings of your ancestors, above the boundaries of the ancient hills. They will be on the head of Joseph, on the crown of the head of him who is separated from his brothers.

Gen 49:27 "Benjamin is a ravenous wolf. In the morning he will devour the prey. At evening he will divide the spoil."

Gen 49:28 All these are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father spoke to them and blessed them. He blessed everyone according to his blessing.

Gen 49:29 He instructed them, and said to them, "I am to be gathered to my people. Bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite,

Gen 49:30 in the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought with the field from Ephron the Hittite as a burial place.

Gen 49:31 There they buried Abraham and Sarah, his wife. There they buried Isaac and Rebekah, his wife, and there I buried Leah:

Gen 49:32 the field and the cave that is therein, which was purchased from the children of Heth."

Gen 49:33 When Jacob made an end of charging his sons, he gathered up his feet into the bed, and yielded up the spirit, and was gathered to his people.

 Feb. 18, 19

Matthew 25

Mat 25:1 "Then the Kingdom of Heaven will be like ten virgins, who took their lamps, and went out to meet the bridegroom.

Mat 25:2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise.

Mat 25:3 Those who were foolish, when they took their lamps, took no oil with them,

Mat 25:4 but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.

Mat 25:5 Now while the bridegroom delayed, they all slumbered and slept.

Mat 25:6 But at midnight there was a cry, 'Behold! The bridegroom is coming! Come out to meet him!'

Mat 25:7 Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.

Mat 25:8 The foolish said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.'

Mat 25:9 But the wise answered, saying, 'What if there isn't enough for us and you? You go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.'

Mat 25:10 While they went away to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut.

Mat 25:11 Afterward the other virgins also came, saying, 'Lord, Lord, open to us.'

Mat 25:12 But he answered, 'Most certainly I tell you, I don't know you.'

Mat 25:13 Watch therefore, for you don't know the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.

Mat 25:14 "For it is like a man, going into another country, who called his own servants, and entrusted his goods to them.

Mat 25:15 To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one; to each according to his own ability. Then he went on his journey.

Mat 25:16 Immediately he who received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents.

Mat 25:17 In like manner he also who got the two gained another two.

Mat 25:18 But he who received the one went away and dug in the earth, and hid his lord's money.

Mat 25:19 "Now after a long time the lord of those servants came, and reconciled accounts with them.

Mat 25:20 He who received the five talents came and brought another five talents, saying, 'Lord, you delivered to me five talents. Behold, I have gained another five talents besides them.'

Mat 25:21 "His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a few things, I will set you over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.'

Mat 25:22 "He also who got the two talents came and said, 'Lord, you delivered to me two talents. Behold, I have gained another two talents besides them.'

Mat 25:23 "His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a few things, I will set you over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.'

Mat 25:24 "He also who had received the one talent came and said, 'Lord, I knew you that you are a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter.

Mat 25:25 I was afraid, and went away and hid your talent in the earth. Behold, you have what is yours.'

Mat 25:26 "But his lord answered him, 'You wicked and slothful servant. You knew that I reap where I didn't sow, and gather where I didn't scatter.

Mat 25:27 You ought therefore to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received back my own with interest.

Mat 25:28 Take away therefore the talent from him, and give it to him who has the ten talents.

Mat 25:29 For to everyone who has will be given, and he will have abundance, but from him who doesn't have, even that which he has will be taken away.

Mat 25:30 Throw out the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'

Mat 25:31 "But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory.

Mat 25:32 Before him all the nations will be gathered, and he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.

Mat 25:33 He will set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.

Mat 25:34 Then the King will tell those on his right hand, 'Come, blessed of my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world;

Mat 25:35 for I was hungry, and you gave me food to eat. I was thirsty, and you gave me drink. I was a stranger, and you took me in.

Mat 25:36 I was naked, and you clothed me. I was sick, and you visited me. I was in prison, and you came to me.'

Mat 25:37 "Then the righteous will answer him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry, and feed you; or thirsty, and give you a drink?

Mat 25:38 When did we see you as a stranger, and take you in; or naked, and clothe you?

Mat 25:39 When did we see you sick, or in prison, and come to you?'

Mat 25:40 "The King will answer them, 'Most certainly I tell you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.'

Mat 25:41 Then he will say also to those on the left hand, 'Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire which is prepared for the devil and his angels;

Mat 25:42 for I was hungry, and you didn't give me food to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave me no drink;

Mat 25:43 I was a stranger, and you didn't take me in; naked, and you didn't clothe me; sick, and in prison, and you didn't visit me.'

Mat 25:44 "Then they will also answer, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and didn't help you?'

Mat 25:45 "Then he will answer them, saying, 'Most certainly I tell you, inasmuch as you didn't do it to one of the least of these, you didn't do it to me.'

Mat 25:46 These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life." 

From Roy Davison... What did the first Christians believe?

http://www.oldpaths.com/Archive/Davison/Roy/Allen/1940/029-firstchristiansbeliefs.html

What did the first Christians believe?

Some two thousand years have passed since a Carpenter in Galilee began proclaiming a message that would change the world. He said He would form a fellowship that would last forever (Matthew 16:18). Shortly after His death the church of Christ was established. His teachings were scattered as with the wind to all parts of the world.
But that was long ago. Much has happened since then. Many false teachers have arisen as Jesus predicted. In our time people are confronted with such an array of conflicting doctrines and practices that many do not know what to believe.
Why not go to the source and ask: “What did the first Christians believe? What was the church like in the beginning?”
In the Bible, in the New Testament, the first century church is described.
It is regrettable that in our time many who call themselves Christians do not really believe much of anything! The first Christians had a faith that conquered the world.

What is faith?
By accepting reliable testimony we can know things we did not experience personally. “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1).
Have you heard someone say, “I'll only believe that when I see it”? This is not reasonable, because if you see something, faith is not required.
Faith is the acceptance of testimony. For example, how do you know that Socrates was a Greek philosopher? You know this by faith. You believe what Plato and others wrote about him, although Socrates himself did not leave any writings.
Faith in God is based on evidence and testimony. “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork” (Psalm 19:1). The creation proves God's existence. We accept the proof.
If you saw the words, “God is good,” formed with sea shells on the sand by the sea, what would you conclude? Could anyone make you believe that the waves had accidently washed the shells into such a form? No, you would know that someone had been there before you, who formed the words on the sand.
When we observe the intricate systems of life on earth, we know Someone made these things: “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead” (Romans 1:20).
John says that Christian faith rests on testimony: “If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater; for this is the witness of God which He has testified of His Son. He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself; he who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed the testimony that God has given of His Son” (1 John 5:9, 10).
We accept many things by faith in the testimony of men. God's testimony is greater. There is no excuse for not accepting the truths to which He testifies. If we reject God's testimony we are calling Him a liar.
Faith is a valid method of gaining knowledge. Some say, “You do not know God exists, you just believe He exists.” They are mistaken. I know God exists. My knowledge is based on faith, that is true. But the testimony is reliable and the evidence is conclusive, irrefutable.
Do you know that Napoleon was defeated at Waterloo? Yes, you know this, but not because you participated in the battle, but by faith in written testimony.
In the same way, we know that Jesus rose from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:3-8). Christian faith is based on the testimony of eyewitnesses. Their testimony is recorded in the New Testament.
John testifies: “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life - the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us - that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us” (1 John 1:1-3).
Peter testifies: “For we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty” (2 Peter 1:16).

The first Christians believed God.
“Without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6).
The first Christians not only believed that God exists, they also believed His testimony, the word of God.
“For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe” (1 Thessalonians 2:13).

The first Christians believed the Scriptures.
Jesus taught that the Scriptures are trustworthy. He said. “The Scripture cannot be broken” (John 10:35).
Jesus confirmed events in the Old Testament. He referred to the creation of Adam and Eve (Matthew 19:4). He mentions the murder of Abel (Matthew 23:35). He speaks about Noah and the flood (Matthew 24:37, 38). He mentions the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (Matthew 10:15; 11:23, 24). He refers to Lot's flight from Sodom and to his wife who became a pillar of salt (Luke 17:28, 29, 32). Jesus refers to the time when it did not rain for three years and six months because of Elijah's prayer (Luke 4:25). He mentions the healing of Naaman the leper (Luke 4:27). He said that “Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish” (Matthew 12:40).
People who deny the truth of these happenings in the Old Testament have no right to call themselves Christians because they do not believe Christ. He taught that these things happened. As He told the Jews: “If you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me. But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?” (John 5:46, 47).
The first Christians considered the New Testament writings to be Scripture. Peter refers to the letters of Paul as Scripture (2 Peter 3:14-16). Paul quotes from the gospel of Luke (Luke 10:7) as Scripture (1 Timothy 5:18).
The first Christians believed that the Scriptures were inspired by God: “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16, 17), “knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:20, 21). The words used came from God: “These things we also speak, not in words which man's wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches” (1 Corinthians 2:13). Through “prophetic Scriptures” the gospel would be “made known to all nations” (Romans 16:26).

The first Christians believed Jesus.
They believed that He is “the Christ, the Son of God” (Matthew 16:16). They believed that He rose from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:1-6). They believed that He has “all authority in heaven and on earth” (Matthew 28:18). They believed that He is “the head of the body, the church” (Ephesians 1:22, 23). They believed that He is coming again (Revelation 1:7). They believed that He will “be Judge of the living and the dead” (Acts 10:39-43).

The first Christians believed there is one faith.
Paul speaks of “one Lord, one faith, one baptism” (Ephesians 4:5). He warns, “Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith” (2 Corinthians 13:5). Jude writes that Christians must “contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3).

The first Christians believed that Jesus is the Savior of the world.
This message they called 'the gospel', 'the good news'.
They believed that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23, 24) and that salvation is only through Christ, “who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree” (1 Peter 2:24), “for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). He is “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29).
They viewed faith and confession as essential: “For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation” (Romans 10:10).
They believed that a spiritual rebirth is required. “Unless one is born again ... Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:3, 5).
The first Christians believed that this spiritual rebirth takes place at baptism from which one rises “to walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:3-5).
Paul explained that “according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit” (Titus 3:5).
Peter commanded, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38). They believed that sins are washed away at baptism: “Arise and be baptized and wash away your sins” (Acts 22:16) and that baptism “now saves us ... through the resurrection of Christ” (1 Peter 3:21). Jesus declared, “He who believes and is baptized will be saved” (Mark 16:16).

What did the first Christians believe?
Based on conclusive evidence and divine testimony, they believed in God, and that He makes His will known through Scriptures. They believed that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. They believed that there is one faith and that Christians must maintain that faith. They taught that faith, repentance, confession and baptism are essential for salvation.
To be saved we must believe what the first Christians believed. Only if we have their faith can we have the salvation and hope they had. Amen.
Roy Davison

The Scripture quotations in this article are from
The New King James Version. ©1979,1980,1982, Thomas Nelson Inc., Publishers.
Permission for reference use has been granted.

Published in The Old Paths Archive
(http://www.oldpaths.com)

From Jim McGuiggan... Church Shopping

Church Shopping

That's an ugly expression but it reflects on an ugly thing that has become part of Western Christianity. In a world where individualism is pandemic and our "rights" have become a near obsession "church shopping" isn't too shabby a phrase to cover what we do. And yet, we ought to be shopping.

P.T. Forsyth a Scots theologian of some years ago became incensed when he thought of the way churches were viewed and viewed themselves. He thundered out against people asking what the church's programmes were like, what it could do for them as potential members or what its record of successes was like. He insisted that we shouldn't ask for its programmes or even its piety but instead we should ask, "What is your gospel?" He was blisteringly, scathingly and cuttingly right! For what difference does it make how successful it is as a religious body or how well it caters for the youth or how involved it is in community benevolence if its gospel is not the "gospel"?

I admitted at the beginning of these suggestions that there's something silly about pretending I could begin again. But I now know that what makes a church great and what makes a church the kind of church that I should urge my family to be involved with is one that knows and loves the gospel that centres in the God who ultimately revealed himself in Jesus Christ at the cross.

Not only do all Christians need to be part of a local congregation of Christ, they should be. We aren't strong enough to make it on our own. We are sub-Christian if we attempt to make it on our own. Christians have been added to the Body of Christ, which manifests itself in and as local assemblies.

But see to it that you look out for a congregation that focuses on the gospel of God. That understands what the church is and is not to be. A church that will feed you on the living bread of Christ. A church where the teachers take seriously their calling and work with scripture so that they will shape all the members for service to God in a body which is indeed the body of Christ.

All good advice no doubt but how do the inexperienced go about this? Yes, this is a tricky question. Well, when in trusting repentance you've been baptised into union with the living Christ you are his so trust him to help you find such a place. Tell him it's the kind of place you want because you're hungry to get to know and love him so you can reach out and bless others also. Rejoice in the hunger you feel for the rich truth of the gospel because it's God's work in you and fervently ask him for more. Listen to what's being offered, what's usually talked about in classes and from pulpits and you'll get to know if that church is parading itself or the Master. Is it ceaselessly "issue" oriented, endlessly asking for money to support its projects or is it clear that it's central business is to "grow"? If you've no reason to believe that God's redeeming work in Christ for the world is the vibrant centre of that church's faith and that reverent attention is paid to God's word you need to continue praying and looking. But if you have reason to believe that their benevolence, community outreach and moral development is fuelled by the big, rich truths of the gospel you should thank God and stick to that group like glue.

©2004 Jim McGuiggan. All materials are free to be copied and used as long as money is not being made.

Inconsistencies About Incest? by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

http://apologeticspress.org/AllegedDiscrepancies.aspx?article=2281&b=Deuteronomy

Inconsistencies About Incest?

by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

On more than one list of “Bible discrepancies” is the allegation that Bible writers erred in their teachings about incest. In Leviticus 18:6-30, 20:11-12, and Deuteronomy 27:20-23, one learns that sexual relations between close family members is sinful and punishable by death: “None of you shall approach anyone who is near of kin to him, to uncover his nakedness” (Leviticus 18:6). Other passages, however, indicate that God tolerated incest among His people, and even blessed those involved in such relationships. Abraham married Sarah, his half-sister (Genesis 20:12; cf. Genesis 17:15-16; 22:17), while Abraham’s son, Isaac, married Rebekah, his second cousin (Genesis 22:20-23; 24:4,15), and Jacob, Abraham’s grandson, married his first cousins, Rachel and Leah (Genesis 24:29; 29:15-30). Even Moses’ father, Amram, “took for himself Jachebed, his father’s sister, as wife” (Exodus 6:20, emp. added; cf. Leviticus 20:19). Critics claim that such passages are contradictory. Were Bible writers really inconsistent when they addressed the subject of incest?

First, one must recognize that simply because Scripture mentions godly men such as Abraham or one of his righteous descendants doing something God forbade elsewhere, does not mean the Bible writers contradicted themselves. Christ was the only perfect man ever to live (2 Corinthians 5:21). Though Noah, Abraham, Moses, etc. were counted faithful to God (Hebrews 11:7-29), they occasionally disobeyed His will (e.g., Numbers 20:1-12). God never blessed their disobedience, only their faithfulness. Consider the harlot Rahab. Whereas God did not condone her harlotry, she was “justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way” (James 2:25). “By faith the harlot Rahab did not perish with those who did not believe, when she had received the spies with peace” (Hebrews 11:32). Simply because God graciously saved Rahab from the destruction of Jericho, does not mean that God condoned her past sexual sins. Similarly, just because the Bible writers mention a particular event (e.g., Amram marrying his aunt) without condemning it, does not necessarily mean the Bible writers condoned it.

Second, for one to identify a legitimate contradiction, he must be considering the same time frame. To condemn Thomas Jefferson for not paying Federal income tax would be inappropriate because there was no Federal income tax in the United States during his lifetime. Likewise, to accuse certain righteous men of breaking God’s law prior to the establishment of that law is equally erroneous. The first indication of God forbidding incestuous marriages is not until after the Israelites departed Egypt (when Moses was already 80 years old—Exodus 7:7). Prior to Mosaic Law, men could lawfully marry close family members. Indeed, God blessed Abraham (Genesis 12:1-3) while he was married to Sarah, his half-sister. What’s more, implied in the creation of Adam, the first man (1 Corinthians 15:45), and Eve, “the mother of all living” (Genesis 3:20), is that their immediate offspring married each other and had children. Furthermore, following the great Flood, the entire Earth was repopulated by Noah, his three sons, and their wives (Genesis 9:1). Thus, in the beginning God allowed incest.

There was no need for strict laws on marriage partners in the early Patriarchal Age (apart from the divine “one man, one woman, for life” institution), and for at least one good reason: during this time, man was in a relatively pure state, at least physically, having left not long before the perfect condition in which he was created and the Garden that had sustained his life....[N]o harmful genetic traits had emerged at this point that could have been expressed in the children of closely related partners. However, after many generations, and especially after the Noahic Flood (Genesis 6-9), solar and cosmic radiation, chemical and viral mutagens, and DNA replication errors, led to the multiplication of genetic disorders. God protected His people by instituting strict laws against incestuous marriages in the eighteenth chapter of Leviticus (Thompson and Major, 1987, 7[2]:7).

Laws regarding incest were given only during the Mosaic dispensation. Those living prior to this period or since this age ended (Colossians 2:14) have not been bound by its laws on incest anymore than we are bound by other Mosaic mandates (e.g., refraining from eating pork—Leviticus 11:7). That said, since “more genetic disorders have arisen in the world population since the time of Moses,...it is even more important to avoid marrying a close relative. Christianity thus far has insured that such rules have been carried forward into modern laws in the western world” (Thompson and Major, 7[2]:7). Though it may not be sinful for you to marry your first cousin, you may need to think twice before saying, “I do.”

REFERENCE

Thompson, Bert and Trevor Major (1987), “Where Did Cain Get His Wife?” Reason and Revelation, 7[2]:5-7, February.

1777 & 1782 Congressional Proclamations by The Continental Congress

http://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=7&article=2543

1777 & 1782 Congressional Proclamations

by	The Continental Congress

Click Images to Enlarge

Images courtesy of the Library of Congress, Rare Book and Special Collections Division

"Proof" that Does Not Prove by Kyle Butt, M.Div.

http://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=9&article=1249

"Proof" that Does Not Prove

by	Kyle Butt, M.Div.

The law of rationality insists that a person should accept only those propositions and ideas for which there is adequate evidence. This law of thought is so general and ubiquitous in its application that few people even realize they actually use it on a regular bases. For instance, if a man shows up at his office late for work with a torn shirt and a black eye, claiming that he was attacked by killer fairies from Sherwood Forest, the man’s boss does not have to think very long before reprimanding the tardy employee. On the other hand, if an employee shows up claiming to have been in a car accident, and he bolsters his claim with the evidence of a dent in his car and a police-written ticket verifying that an automobile accident occurred, then the boss most likely would believe the employee. We see, then, that the law of rationality is used by most people on a regular basis.

Sometimes, however, a certain idea or philosophy will present itself that does not have the adequate, verifiable evidence necessary to demand acceptance. Because of this lack of evidence, the proponents of this idea appeal to certain “proofs” that, on the surface, seem to be legitimate, but in reality are not evidence at all. For example, suppose that a salesman is selling medallions that are supposed to keep elephants away from the owner of such a medallion. And suppose that the salesman happens to be selling these amazing contraptions to the citizens of Alaska. When one suspicious customer asks if the medallions really work, the salesman replies, “Sure they work, you don’t see an elephant within 100 miles of here, do you?” Looking at the salesman’s statement, it is easy to see that something is amiss, but exactly what is it? In short, the salesman has committed a logical fallacy known as argumentum ad ignorantiam (argument from ignorance). The argument from ignorance basically says, “You cannot prove that my elephant medallions are not the reason why there are no elephants here.” The essence of this fallacy is the claim that a person accepts a proposition because it cannot be proven untrue. The problem with this line of reasoning is that it does not present any positive proof, therefore, in reality, it presents no proof (see Geisler and Brooks, 1990, pp. 95-96). The above example is just one of a plethora of logical fallacies—i.e., appeals to as proof that, in reality, offer no proof at all.

The primary logical fallacy with which the remainder of this article will deal is known as argumentum ad verencundiam (appeal to authority). This faulty line of reasoning suggests that a certain idea or proposition should be accepted because all the “authorities” accept it. And, while it is true that legitimate authorities can be trusted to supply real evidence, it is not true that a person should accept a conclusion solely because “an authority” says that such is the case, without that authority giving proper evidence for the conclusion (Geisler and Brooks, pp. 98-99).

One classic biblical example of a faulty appeal to authority is found in John 7. In verse 32, Jesus had defied the Jewish leaders to such an extent that they commissioned officers to take Him by force. The officers, however, after listening to Jesus teach boldly, returned to the chief priests and Pharisees without apprehending Jesus. When asked why they did not arrest Jesus, the officers stated: “No man ever spoke like this Man!” They were, in essence, making the argument that Jesus should not be arrested because He spoke things that no ordinary man could have known or spoken. Yet, instead of dealing with the actual evidence of the case (i.e., the things Jesus actually said), the Pharisees made a false appeal to authority when they said, “Are you also deceived? Have any of the rulers or the Pharisees believed in Him? But this crowd that does not know the law is accursed” (vss. 47-49). Notice that the Pharisees did not expound on the parts of the law that Jesus allegedly was breaking, nor did they offer any rebuttal to Christ’s statements. Instead, they “proved” their argument by suggesting, “We know more than you and this ignorant crowd, therefore you should believe what we tell you, even without proper evidence.” After being made aware of the logical fallacy of an appeal to false authority, it is evident that these Jewish leaders were guilty of offering “proof ” that proved nothing.

Even today, the false appeal to authority is a common ploy used to bolster ideas or conclusions that lack sufficient evidence. This logical fallacy finds a welcome seat at the table of many books and papers that purport to “prove” the theory of organic evolution. The following sampling of statements goes a long way toward showing how this appeal to authority (without supporting evidence) is used in evolutionary circles.

• Richard Dawkins wrote: “It is absolutely safe to say that if you meet somebody who claims not to believe in evolution, that person is ignorant, stupid, or insane (or wicked, but I’d rather not consider that)” (1989, p. 34, parenthetical item in orig.).
• B.B. Vance and D.F. Miller quipped: “All reputable biologists have agreed that evolution of life on earth is an established fact” (1958, p. 520, emp. added).
• Richard Goldschmidt declared: “Evolution of the animal and plant world is considered by all those entitled to a judgment to be a fact for which no further proof is needed” (1952, p. 84, emp. added).

As one can see, statements that purport to show what all “reputable” biologists believe, or what all those “entitled to a judgment” say, are clearly designed to appeal to a sense of intellectual authority for which supporting evidence is not deemed necessary. In fact, J. Savage is on record as stating, “Noserious biologist today doubts the fact of evolution.... The fact of evolution is amply clear. We do not need a listing of evidences to demonstrate the fact of evolution any more than we need to demonstrate the existence of mountain ranges” (1965, preface, emp. added).

Of course, showing that the “intellectually” elite sometimes use the logical fallacy of appealing to false authority in their attempt to prove evolution, does not disprove the theory of evolution. It does, however, manifest the fact that this “proof ” of the theory frequently is offered instead of actual evidence. Could it be that sufficient, verifiable evidence does not exist to prove rationally the theory of organic evolution. H.S. Lipson, an evolutionist himself, wrote: “In fact, evolution became in a sense a scientific religion; almost all scientists have accepted it and many are prepared to ‘bend’ their observations to fit in with it” (1980, p. 138). If many of today’s scientists maintain a belief in the theory of evolution because they have been taught that “serious,” “reputable,” educated scientists believe in evolution, is it not time to dismiss this false appeal to authority and go in search of actual evidence? If this ever happened on a grand scale, I believe that the bulk of scientists, like the officers of the Pharisees, would become increasingly skeptical of the establishment’s pseudo-evidence. In fact, with enough honesty and diligence, I believe they inevitably would arrive at creationism as presented in the Bible, declaring that, “No book ever spoke like this one.”

REFERENCES

Dawkins, Richard (1989), “Book Review” (of Donald Johanson and Maitland Edey’s Blueprint), The New York Times, April 9, section 7, p. 34.

Geisler, Norman L. and Ronald M. Brooks (1990), Come Let Us Reason: An Introduction to Logical Thinking (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker).

Goldschmidt, Richard (1952), American Scientist, 49:84.

Lipson, H.S. (1980), “A Physicist Looks at Evolution” Physics Bulletin, 31:138, May.

Savage, J. (1965), Evolution (New York: Holt, Rinehart, Winston).

Vance, B.B. and D.F. Miller (1958), Biology for You, (Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott).

Did God Seduce Mary? by Kyle Butt, M.Div.

http://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=10&article=4663

Did God Seduce Mary?

by	Kyle Butt, M.Div.

Recently we received an e-mail at Apologetics Press from a skeptic who accused God of breaking one of His own commandments. The skeptic cited Exodus 20:17, which is the final commandment in the list of the Ten Commandments, that states: “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife.” The skeptic then stated that “God most certainly wronged Joseph when He seduced Mary, the betrothed of Joseph.” Did God violate His own laws of morality when the Holy Spirit came upon Mary so that she conceived Jesus? Not in any way.

First, it must be stated emphatically that there was no sexual seduction of any kind involved in the conception of Jesus in Mary’s womb. In fact, that is just the point of the miraculous, virgin birth of Christ. Hundreds of years before Christ was conceived in the flesh, the prophet Isaiah had stated: “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear and Son, and shall call His name Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14). The New Testament writers stressed the fact that Mary was a virgin when Christ was conceived (Matthew 1:23). When the angel announced to Mary that she would conceive a child, she said: “How can this be, since I do not know a man?” Mary’s response makes it clear that there was no seduction involved. Instead, it was a miraculous conception that had nothing to do with sexual intercourse. Mary remained a virgin until after giving birth to Jesus, at which time Mary and her husband Joseph came together in marital relations and conceived several other children (Pinedo, 2009).

Notice the skeptic attempts to lump Jehovah God in with the grotesquely immoral pagan gods whose seductions and sexual perversions fill the pages of ancient mythology. Zeus, the “father of the gods” was a mythological deity whose sexual appetite and rapine seductions were all too well known. During some of his more infamous escapades he seduced Europa by turning himself into a white bull, running off with her on his back, and ravishing her on the isle of Crete. He had an affair with Io and then turned her into a heifer. He seduced Semele and eventually killed her by showing her his full, godly glory. These are but a few of Zeus’ “conquests” (Hunt, n.d).

Only the most prejudiced reader would attempt to relate the conception of Jesus to the seductions perpetrated by the pagans gods. In the historical account of Jesus’ conception there is no contact by God in any type of physical form with Mary. Mary was completely aware of how babies are normally conceived, yet she stressed the fact that she had been involved in no physical, sexual activity that would bring about pregnancy. The biblical text emphatically states that Mary was a virgin when she conceived and gave birth to Jesus. Mary was not seduced, violated, ravished, or involved in any sexual way with Jehovah. In a miraculous event that had nothing to do with sexual seduction, the Holy Spirit “came upon her” (Luke 1:35), and brought about the conception of the Messiah. The skeptic has no legitimate grounds to accuse Jehovah God of immorality in His interaction with Mary. Such an accusation truly reveals more about what is in the sinful heart of the skeptic than it does about God’s character.

REFERENCES

Hunt, J.M, (No date), “Zeus Lovers,” http://edweb.sdsu.edu/people/bdodge/scaffold/gg/zeuslover.html.

Pinedo, Moisés (2009), “Was Mary a Virgin Her Whole Life?,” Apologetics Press,http://www.apologeticspress.org/apcontent.aspx?category=105&article=2665.