Should I stay intimate with my separated husband now that he has a new girlfriend?
Question: My unbelieving husband and I have been separated for the last two years, but we have remained intimate throughout this time. However, I am now certain he has a girlfriend and continues to want to be intimate with me. Should I stop sleeping with him, or am I required to continue on because we are still…
Read MoreDo the laws of uncleanness mean masturbation is sinful?
Question: I have to start by saying this: I do not fall under the law, but I try my best to obey it as the Holy Spirit guides me, or, as I allow God to use me. I am also not trying to make you feel guilt or shame, for it is not my duty…
Read MoreMy husband and I lived a very sinful life, but now we want to change. Is our marriage still valid? Will God forgive us?
Question: I need your advice, please? My husband and I recently started reading the Bible. We were both members of our families’ churches, growing up, and had a Christian wedding. We seemed to have stopped praying along the way and stop going to church ended up with the wrong group of friends, drinking, and doing…
Read MoreThanks for making the old Bible story pictures available!
Question: Thank you so much for putting all these old Bible storybook pictures online. I just ran across them last night for the first time. Love the old-timey feel. I’ve enjoyed downloading the pictures of these rarities. This is an invaluable resource for all kinds of different uses, especially since most or all of these books…
Read MoreHow can I be sure that my wife loves only me?
Question: I’m married. My wife was the only girl in my life. However, she did love someone before she met me but it did not materialize as her parents were against the marriage. She broke away from the boy and almost gave up on life, deciding never to marry. I then walked into her life…
Read MoreWhy was a woman unclean less time after the birth of a boy than after the birth of a girl?
Question: In Leviticus 12 it says that the woman who gave birth to a boy is only unclean for seven days, but one who gave birth to a girl is unclean for two weeks. Why is that? Answer: “Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘If a woman has conceived, and borne a male child,…
Read MoreWhy does Leviticus talk about four-legged insects when insects have six legs?
Question: In Leviticus 11:20-23, it says that insects have four legs instead of the six that we have always learned in school. Does the Bible have a different way of counting the legs of insects? Answer: “All flying insects that creep on all fours shall be an abomination to you. Yet these you may eat…
Read MoreWhy did Moses accept Aaron’s excuse for not eating the sacrifice?
Question: In Leviticus 10:16-20, I understand that Moses was upset with Eleazar and Ithamar because they didn’t eat the sin offering as they were instructed to. However, I don’t see why Moses was satisfied when Aaron told him that they did burnt offering and sin offering on the same day and that’s why they didn’t…
Read MoreNow that I’ve made significant progress against one sin, how do I know where to next make improvements?
Question: After many years of struggling with masturbation, with sinful thoughts, or watching sinful material, I feel like I’ve finally defeated it. All of the material on this web site has helped so much. Whenever I have urges I handle them without sinful thoughts or looking at sinful material anymore, and I feel so much better.…
Read MoreCan the adulterer remarry after his original spouse dies?
Question: If a person, scripturally married, commits adultery and ends up divorced, can the one who committed the adultery remarry if the one who was innocent dies? Answer: “For the woman who has a husband is bound by the law to her husband as long as he lives. But if the husband dies, she is…
Read MoreDo Men Have a Sinful Nature?
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2008/03/DoMenHaveASinfulNature.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Ephesians 2:1-10 I. Romans 3:23 – Why is it that everyone sins, barring Jesus our Lord? A. A dominant teaching among the denominations is the idea that people are born sinful. 1. The Westminster Confession gives a popular view: “Our first parents, being seduced by the subtlety and temptations of Satan,…
Read MoreThe Marshmallow Principle
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/MarshmallowPrinciple.mp3 by Steve Hamilton
Read MoreWere Roman soldiers involved in the arrest of Jesus?
Question: How many Roman soldiers came to arrest Christ? Answer – None – the guard force was from the Temple guard. A Roman guard would not have taken Jesus to the High Priest’s house but to the Roman fortress to be held. Answer: “The band of soldiers (tên speiran). No word for “of soldiers” in…
Read MoreIs it bad to keep on praying the same prayer all over again?
Question: This is a question about prayer. Is it bad to keep on praying the same prayer all over again? It could be from desperation, or it can be another reason. For example, you have a problem or worry you share with the Lord and you think that you are not getting any answers. Does…
Read MoreWhy did Moses veil his face?
Question: Exodus 34:33-35 talks about Moses putting on the veil because his face was radiant after speaking with the Lord, which I read to mean that people would be scared to see a glowing face which reminded them of the fear of God, but in II Corinthians 3:13 it says that Moses didn’t want people…
Read MoreWhy do friends take advantage of you?
Question: With friends, there is a tendency to take things for granted, especially when you do favors. I have a good friend who I have helped out in the past numerous times and continue to help. I lent him transportation since he had no mode of transportation, which I later informed him I wanted to…
Read MoreAre firstborns only male?
Question: in Exodus 11:5 it says that every firstborn son in Egypt will die, does that mean if the firstborn is a daughter and the second born is a son, then the son would die but not the daughter even though she’s really the firstborn? Also in Exodus 34:19, it says the first offspring of…
Read MoreHow do we determine who is right and who is wrong when everyone claims to take his stand from the Bible?
Question: How do we determine who is right and who is wrong when everyone claims to take his stand from the Bible? For example, what is the appropriate time for holy communion? Some believe it is evening while some believe it could be any time. Does the timing determine our eternal destiny? Also, can I…
Read MoreWhat if I can’t repent?
Question: In Hebrews 12 it talks about how Esau could not repent. My life is rampant with sin, and I can’t get rid of it. I think I’m like Esau. He begged for repentance with bitter tears. My mind is more corrupt than you can imagine. He could not repent, and what if I can’t either?…
Read MoreWhat can you do when you are completely controlled by your sinful nature?
Question: Paul said that he did what he hated and that as long as he knew the law of God was good, that shows it’s the sin in him and not him that does it. But he also said if your sinful nature is controlling you, it leads to death. If you have God’s Spirit,…
Read MoreI don’t know who the father of my child is
Question: Hi, I had lost a baby last May. After the miscarriage, I wasn’t put on any birth control. My boyfriend and I had unprotected sex. He pulls out, but he pre-nuts a lot while we are having sex. One night, well OK, I cheated and had unprotected sex with a friend. I don’t know…
Read MoreIt seems to me that we have no choice but to live together
Question: I have lived in sin for as long as I have breathed, but I am now trying to get closer to God and change for the better, to please Him and do things His way. But only one thing is stopping me, I live with my boyfriend. We have one son and are not…
Read MoreDo I have to live with my parents until I get married?
Question: I am currently going to college, and I live with my parents. One day I will graduate, and I will be able to support myself. I would also like to move out of my parents’ house, but my mom told me that as long as I am not married, that I have to live…
Read MoreHow do I get over loving a boy who doesn’t love me?
Question: I met this boy at work. Initially, it was OK, but after some time, because of his good nature and politeness, I became attracted to him. I then found out that he had a girlfriend in the past and he loved her very much, but somehow their love did not end up in marriage…
Read MoreCould Paul have told Timothy to drink grape juice for his stomach’s sake?
Question: I just read your article online about alcohol and the Bible, New Testament Beverages, and wanted to say it is magnificent. I do want to point out something about a loophole you left for the drinker concerning Paul’s advice to Timothy about drinking wine. In the Greek book, The Learned Banqueters and other sources mention medicines…
Read MoreMy husband repented of his adultery, but he still works with the woman. What do I do?
Question: My husband committed adultery. He tried so hard to hide it and, honestly, if God didn’t declare that it was time for him to be exposed, it would still be going on right now. I do believe him when he says he’s repented, and he’s truly sorry. I have forgiven him with all my…
Read MoreHow can people with different views on the second serving of the Lord’s Supper worship together?
Question: I was recently reading your post about the Lord’s Supper being taken on a Sunday night. I have recently joined a congregation where they serve on Sunday nights to just a few people. I do not partake because I believe the Christians assembled did not meet for the purpose of eating the Lord’s supper…
Read MoreAm I doing the right thing waiting for my husband to come back?
Question: Am I right to stand for my marriage to be restored? My husband and I were 18 and 19 when we married. The first five years were hard on him since I had childhood issues and used them to push him/test his love. But he always told me he loved me and hung in.…
Read MoreCan a marriage be done by a civil official?
Question: If both a man and a woman love each other, is it OK to have a civil marriage done by our local public official to be able to save money? Answer: There is no requirement in the scriptures that a marriage must be done in church or by a preacher. A wedding before a…
Read MoreHow can a girl get over the disappointment that her boyfriend isn’t a virgin?
Question: How can a virgin get over the disappointment that her boyfriend isn’t a virgin? I am a female in her mid-twenties and a virgin. A childhood friend of mine moved back to the city we grew up in, and we became friends again, attending church and Bible study together. Over several months we became…
Read MoreWho Is Responsible for Sin?
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2006/05/WhoIsResponsibleForSin.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Ezekiel 18:4-20 I. A number of years ago, I couldn’t find a parking space in our lot because of some school function across the street. I finally found a spot on the side of one street among many other cars and walked to the building. When I came out,…
Read MoreCould Matthew and John not be eyewitness accounts?
Question: My friend sent me this critique on the gospels of Matthew and John not being eyewitness accounts. He said, according to the majority viewpoint, this gospel is unlikely to have been written by an eyewitness. While Papias reported that Matthew had written the Logia this can hardly be a reference to the Gospel of Matthew.…
Read MoreWhat would have happened if Satan wasn’t in the Garden?
Question: I was scanning around the web and found your article on the Tree in the Garden. Some brothers get together for breakfast and fellowship one day a week before work. This week we had both an elder and minister, two deacons, and another brother. We occasionally discuss issues that I would not normally talk about…
Read MoreHow are the age ranges defined in the Bible?
Question: Can you tell me what the Bible says concerning growing into a man? I’ve heard that an adolescent or a child was from 0-19, and that ages 20-39 were considered a young man, and that 40 and over was adulthood. Can you help me with scriptures or even necessary inferences? Answer: As we look…
Read MoreWhy does it feel like I can’t stop myself from having sex?
Question: I am 21 years old. I was born into a Christian family and brought up with Christian morals. At the age of 19, I fell in love with a guy in my assembly who wanted to marry me. We started dating. After a few months, we fell into a physical relationship, and I gave…
Read MoreWhy is God holding us responsible when it is He who made us?
Question: Why does a perfect God, who knows all and sees all, create imperfect beings in the first place, then curse those people and all the people thereafter? Then we who were born into this world without a choice must obey all these things, meet every week, and if we don’t adhere to His commands,…
Read MoreIt is encouraging to see a positive attitude toward the mentally ill
Question: I cannot tell you just how encouraging it is to see Christians who have such a positive attitude toward the mentally ill. I am educated, have traveled, been a public speaker, and done all kinds of things, but I am mentally ill, too. It has kind of challenged my faith, but it is still…
Read MoreDoes Genesis 1:1 say there was nothing except God before the beginning?
Question: Here’s another question and it may seem silly but all I want is you to answer it in the best way you can. Genesis 1:1 “in the beginning there was nothing except God.” or “in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (different versions of the Bible) and I am confused about…
Read MoreMy son told me of his sins just before a car accident that looks like it will be fatal. What can I do for him?
Question: I am a father and my youngest, who just turned 16, has been in a car accident. He is in a coma, and the doctors tell me there is a very real probability he won’t come out. He is showing little brain activity and his organs have begun to shut down. The morning the…
Read MoreHow much did a shekel weigh?
Question: Hello sir, I used your commentary on Genesis 24, A Wife for Isaac. In the fifth paragraph, you state that the nose ring that was given to Rebekah weighed 6 ounces and the two bracelets weighed 120 ounces. Could you tell me where you received this information? As I shared that information with my home group,…
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