Sabbath Keeping
by Jeffrey W. Hamilton The Seventh-Day Adventists started in the 1800s as followers of teachers who believed in the immediate return of Jesus Christ. These predictions obviously failed, but it did not stop the rise of a self-proclaimed prophetess named Ellen G. White. Seventh-Day Adventists regard her writings as inspired instructions from God. This belief…
Read MoreDoes James’ mention of some of the Ten Commandments mean we are under all of them?
Question: My fiance is Seventh Day Adventist, and I am trying to convince him we are no longer required to observe a weekly sabbath. However, he is trying to convince me otherwise. This is putting a huge strain on our relationship. I have read through the articles on this site and I have some questions…
Read MoreI committed adultery, divorced my husband, and married my lover. Am I still in adultery?
Question: My first husband committed adultery in our relationship through pornography. I also committed adultery against him, divorced him, and married the man I committed adultery with. The man I committed adultery with left his spouse to marry me also. My first husband died a few years ago, which I think has left me no…
Read MoreI’m using your Exodus map
Question: Just wanted to let you know that I am using your map of the crossing of the Red Sea with the children (4-5 yr old) in class at church. Thank you ever so much for this work. Answer: I’m glad found the map useful.
Read MoreI keep dreaming about past bad relationships when they no longer matter because I am happily married. Am I sinning?
Question: I have been struggling with this question for a while and would like some scriptural help on the matter. I am married but keep having dreams about previous relationships that do not mean anything to me anymore. I love my husband and he is the only one I love. We have a happy, healthy…
Read MoreHow do I respond to my World History teacher?
Question: In my World History class, there was a woman who was talking about how she wasn’t sure if we had all the books of the Bible. After class, I went to her and tried to explain how most of the false gospels were written by gnostics, sometimes centuries later. Anyhow, we were talking and…
Read MoreWhat if the site I write for also advertises gambling?
Question: I write for a sports website which advertises a betting company on its homepage and also at the bottom of every article (including the ones that I write). I really enjoy my job but am concerned that whether working for a company that promotes gambling (indeed the betting company helps to indirectly pay part…
Read MoreIs it wrong to get agitated at having baby dedication ceremonies during worship?
Question: I am in search of a church home and have visited several. The last church I joined was more focused on supporting its Christian school than on evangelism, or even Sunday school and joyful singing, and it really bogged me down. That said, when I sense something out of place about a congregation, it…
Read MoreShould my sister wait for her boyfriend to convert?
Question: I have a sister dating a non-Christian for over five years now. She has been teaching him, but he still hasn’t yet made a decision to get closer to Christ. She is deciding that in the next few years if he does not change to not get marry entirely. Honestly, I do not think…
Read MoreIs it a lie to friend someone on Facebook that you don’t know?
Question: Hi there, Please tell me, if we have sent friend requests to people on Facebook that we had never met before and do not know that is like lying then what? Will we keep sinning by lying as long as we leave the friend requests stand to the persons we have sent to the…
Read MoreI’m trying to learn new habits, but am I going about it the right way?
Question: How are you today? I have a question about doing what’s right in God’s eyes. I’ve made a few changes this year. I am developing a habit of reading the Bible daily, praying, and reading biblical topics. When I do these things I have a good, if not great, day, but if I miss a…
Read MoreHow do you pick a job when so many can involve sinful things?
Question: It seems like there are a lot of jobs where a person comes in contact with alcohol and cigarettes and other morally improper things. For instance, if someone works at a restaurant they might end up pouring and serving alcohol, or maybe a musician who plays at a restaurant might be entertaining a combination…
Read MoreDid Moses have one wife or two?
Question: I am taking a Bible Study class on the “Bad Girls of the Bible” and have a question. There is speculation that Moses may have had a second wife. When referring to his Cushite wife, isn’t that Zipporah? I have been unable to find any evidence of another wife other than the verse in…
Read MoreDoes Jesus promise in John 14:12 that miracles would continue?
Question: Does Jesus promise in John 14:12 that miracles would continue? Answer: “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father” (John 14:12). In this context, Jesus is giving his…
Read MoreI’m suffering from depression and feel that God isn’t in my life
Question: Please help! I have a very difficult time believing that God loves me and that He’s not distant and wanting to punish me. I’m desperate for Him to change me into someone who truly lives as His child. I can’t do it on my own and I need Him, but I’m scared that He…
Read MoreMy father is abusive and I’m afraid to leave my mother to go to college. What should I do?
Question: My mom says that my dad has changed dramatically since they had first married. I don’t know how he was before because I wasn’t born, but I can’t imagine that he was anything like how he is now. He is easily irritable, violent, and constantly demeans her. He also tries to control everyone in…
Read MoreDo You Want to Be Here
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/DoYouWantToBeHere.mp3 by PJ Anderson
Read MoreIs it wrong to use the NIV?
Question: I just found a site that is against the use of the NIV Bible and if you search on the site there are more against the NIV version. Well, I use the NIV, and I truly didn’t like hearing such bad things about the NIV. I use the NIV version and I studied a…
Read MoreAre we responsible only for ourselves or for others as well?
Question: Hi there, I think it is in Matthew we read that we should not cause another to sin. Are we responsible for our own salvation? Or can we be held responsible someday for causing another to sin and which kept them out of heaven? Answer: “But whoever causes one of these little ones who…
Read MoreShould a woman be on the committee to select elders?
Question: Hi, I attend the church of Christ in a small town. We are looking at appointing elders in our congregation. There is what I feel a potential problem, since we are so small, most of the men who have been elected as potential elders leave very little left to be on a selection committee. …
Read MoreIs having a vasectomy a sin?
Question: Is having a vasectomy a sin? My husband had a vasectomy several years ago. I am just finding out now that we may have committed a rather large sin or is that just a Catholic view? Is this a sin we both committed? Answer: Having a vasectomy is not a sin. The Roman Catholic…
Read MoreIf I left my wife because she had an affair years ago, does that allow for remarriage?
Question: Hi, I’m glad I found this site. I am hoping I can get some unbiased answers to some questions I have concerning situations in my life and the church. I did not attend church growing up. After college, I met a member of the church of Christ. I dated her and eventually married her.…
Read MoreShould I marry my child’s father?
Question: Hello. I am in my early twenties, I have a young child, and I am not married. I have asked God for forgiveness, and I am moving on. I am a God chaser now. I stay before the Lord. I am active in my church. I have changed my life. I am not fornicating…
Read MoreI love your site; it’s really encouraging
Question: I love your site; it’s really encouraging. Answer: Thank you! I’m happy to be of service to you.
Read MoreShould we require our sons to wear lederhosen year-round?
Question: Should we still require our sons to wear short leather shorts year-round? We are from Bavaria in the south of Germany near the Alps. In the past, it was very normal that boys wore the traditional short leather shorts with woolen knee socks. We followed this tradition not to let the boys wear any…
Read MoreWhat do you do with someone who thinks they are fine and won’t listen to the Bible?
Question: How can I evangelize somebody who says that he already does what is right by not lying or killing anybody and that all is needed is to just love God and that’s it? I don’t see any opening to evangelize because if I talk about Jesus, they will just call me crazy. Not that…
Read MoreI’ve been blessed while reading your articles
Question: I have visited your website and have been blessed while reading your articles. You speak the truth of our Lord. Thank you for your effort in proclaiming the words of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Answer: Thank you for the kind encouragement.
Read MoreCould you explain Hebrews 13:17?
Question: Hebrews 13:17 states “Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account. Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you.” There are two schools of thought that I’ve heard regarding this verse. …
Read MoreCan multiculturalism work?
Question: Can multiculturalism work? What should our attitude as Christians be toward the same? Answer: Multiculturalism is the belief that people from diverse cultures can peacefully co-exist without changing. It doesn’t work because there is no effort at uniting the groups, only a pretense of unity by ignoring the differences. Actual attempts at unity are…
Read MoreDoes a person from a Baptist background need to be baptized again if he believes he has done everything God asks of him correctly?
Question: I have a question about baptism. My husband and I are setting up to teach a man who has been visiting the church where we attend for going on two years now. His background is Baptist and when I asked him was he baptized for the remission of sins he replied, yes. He says…
Read MoreIs it wrong to hope that Jesus won’t come soon?
Question: A while ago my grandma, who has been an amazing influence on me as a Christian, says sometimes she feels hypocritical when we sing and pray about wanting Jesus to return soon. She says she wants to go to heaven, but she enjoys life and hasn’t had to deal with too much suffering. She’s a…
Read MoreCan a non-Christian truly understand forgiveness?
Question: I understand that it is impossible for a non-Christian to understand the concept of true forgiveness toward another person. Is that correct? Answer: Most spiritual concepts are difficult for non-believers to grasp. Not because the concepts are hard, but because it requires looking at the world from a framework that makes non-believers uncomfortable. “These…
Read MoreDon’t women have the same job as men in teaching the Gospel?
Question: Hi, I have been reading through some of your interpretations of biblical scriptures on your website and I felt it necessary to tell you that while whoever is writing them is knowledgeable on the scriptures, they seem to have missed the point of them, particularly in regards to women in the church. Jesus gave…
Read MoreI can’t find anyone near my age who hasn’t been divorced
Question: My question is in regard to Matthew 5:32: “But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, makes her the victim of adultery, and anyone who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.” I am in my forties and have never married. There were times throughout my life that dating…
Read MoreCan a person who was once a Christian, but now is as worldly as anyone else, come back?
Question: Hello, I John 1:9 says that “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” but would that apply to someone who’s a baptized Christian but has been away from God for several months, committed fornication and has been very close to atheism? Mostly the atheism…
Read MoreMust I shun my worldly family and friends?
Question: Hello, I was reading one of your Q&A’s and a question came to mind about I Corinthians 5:9-11, “I wrote to you in my epistle not to keep company with sexually immoral people. Yet I certainly did not mean with the sexually immoral people of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or…
Read MoreIs Matthew 5:25-26 a reference to the Catholic Purgatory?
Question: Is Matthew 5:25-26 a reference to the Catholic Purgatory? Answer: “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.’ But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger…
Read MoreI was uplifted by your explanation of why the Old Testament should no longer be followed
Question: Brother in Christ, Yesterday I providentially discovered your website. I must say that I was uplifted by the explanation as to why the Old Testament should no longer be followed. I have studied this issue for a little while, and I wanted to let you know that I truly appreciate your explanation. Before now I…
Read MorePremillennial Theories
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2005/08/PremillennialTheories.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton I. There are a lot of ideas floating about concerning the Second Coming of Christ A. Most of them are strange fantasies that have little to do with the teachings in the Bible. B. Many of the myths are repeated over and over so many times that many people accept them as truth…
Read MoreMy husband left me for another woman. Do I have to forgive him?
Question: My husband left me for another woman. After returning back from an overseas assignment, we got into an argument which left me hospitalized. We are both saved Christians (he was saved in our marriage). Even though he says that he didn’t leave his kids but the marriage and me. He filed for divorce and…
Read More