Posted March 14th, 2010 in Ask a Bible Teacher
Q. I heard someone speak on this once (I think they were of Jewish decent, but can’t remember). They said that the Jews believed that the person’s spirit hung around for a couple of days before leaving (remember Lazarus–”he stinketh”). Therefore, Jesus waiting for 3 days should have quieted the lies that “He never really died”.
Posted March 13th, 2010 in Ask a Bible Teacher
Q. I was thinking by myself about eternity, and was wondering what your opinion would be on the topic of eternity. God is eternal, and when we die and go to our Father in Heaven, we leave this time-based universe with beginnings and endings for an eternal existence. When we will become eternal, will it be like from God’s point of view with regards to time? Could it be then that we also existed then, viewed from that point of view, when we are in Heaven, that we also existed before the earth was created because we will be in eternity?
Posted March 13th, 2010 in Ask a Bible Teacher
Q. Thanks for your dedicated ministry. I’ve enjoyed reading both your Q&A and your commentaries. Both Lot and Noah are referenced in Luke 17 :26-29 as to what the world would be like at the end of the age. In Noah’s case, only 8 out of millions and with Lot, only him and his family were spared. Looking at what Jesus said, asking if there would any be any faith when he returned (Luke 18:8) do you see a comparison to the full number of Gentiles? Will it be a relatively small number too?
Posted March 13th, 2010 in Ask a Bible Teacher
Q. In our fellowship group, we are going through a series focused on helping the poor in other countries. The line seems to always be, “these people need to know Christ, BUT we need to meet their physical needs too.” The problem is, the gospel message never seems to get in there. Then the term “social justice” gets thrown in and all I can think about are the corrupt, socialist politicians who use the same term. What should I make of high-profile leaders, ministries, and regular people who strive for this social justice and seem to neglect all mention of sin and redemption? The explicit message is “Go into the world and heal the world,” instead of “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.” (Mark 16:15). Am I being too cynical here?
Posted March 12th, 2010 in Ask a Bible Teacher
Q. I wonder if you could clear up some confusion for me about 2Thess.2:6-8. I think most scholars believe the restrainer mentioned is the Holy Spirit. Some say this means he will vacate the scene, so to speak, which also means the church must go with him. My question is about the vacating the scene aspect. Isn’t the Holy Spirit omnipresent, which makes it impossible for him to vacate the scene?
Posted March 12th, 2010 in Ask a Bible Teacher
Q. My granddaughter has a friend who is reading his horoscope daily and sees nothing wrong with it. She needs specific verses of scripture to show him that will convince him it is demonic. I am familiar with the verses in Deuteronomy 18, and in several places in Daniel, but they are not as specific as I would like. Can you help?
Posted March 12th, 2010 in Ask a Bible Teacher
Q. Grace Thru Faith has been such a blessing to me and I gain so much information from your knowledge of the scriptures. I have a question that has been bothering me for some time now. There are several people close to where I live who have not had a job in years and live on SSI. I am retired and live on SS and have cut expenses as much as possible but I still tithe. From time to time, one of these people will come to me and ask to ‘borrow’ money. I’m not a stingy person but when these people come to me for money, I feel like they think I’m a soft touch and I feel like I’m being used. Getting the ‘loan’ paid back isn’t the issue. I realize that our Lord wants us to be generous but when does being generous become being used?
Posted March 11th, 2010 in Ask a Bible Teacher
Q. I have a question about Our Lord when He was on earth. I have heard it said that His knowledge or power was limited on earth according to God the Father’s discretion. That is why Jesus frequently prayed to the Father or the scriptures say, “Not even the Son of Man knows” about a particular thing. Do you agree with this?
Posted March 11th, 2010 in Ask a Bible Teacher
Q. I would like to know why Jesus was dead for three days and not one or five. Is there a symbolic reason for three days?
Posted March 11th, 2010 in Ask a Bible Teacher
Q. In Revelation 3:10 Jesus promises the Philadelphia church that He will keep them from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth. I use this as one of my pre-trib rapture evidences of the church being spared from the judging wrath of God. However since it is not the last church to be addressed, how does Laodicea fit in? Is Laodicea the apostate church? Yet it reads like they can be saved also, so how can they come after the church that is spared? Or are the two church types overlapping at the same time?
