What are my options after being divorced for having an affair?
Question: Hello. I am a brother in Christ, have been for over thirty years, it hasn’t been easy. Now I am divorced after having an affair. I still love the woman I had the affair with and she truly loves me. I believe because of my martial unfaithfulness my wife is free of me and…
Read MoreDoesn’t the Bible say the earth is a circle as opposed to a sphere?
Question: Quick question or comment about the statement of the Earth being flat: You refute that claim with this: The real core of the argument is a claim that the Hebrew word tehom implies that something is flat. There is just one small problem. “Flat” isn’t in tehom’s definition. Tehom is “A noun meaning ‘the depths of the ocean'” But…
Read MoreWhat do you think about the “God’s Word” Translation?
Question: What do you think about the “God’s Word” Translation? Answer: God’s Word is a “dynamic equivalent” translation, which simply means it favors readability over strictly following the original text. It is on the order of the New Living Translation. It is less strict than the New International Version, but not quite to the level…
Read MoreIs it wrong for the husband to cook instead of the wife?
Question: Is it wrong for the husband to cook instead of the wife? It appears that it is the role of the wife, but at the same time, we see that men clearly cooked in the Old Testament, such as Esau was told to cook by his father. I know you might think, “It’s in…
Read MoreIs love enough for marriage?
Question: Is the love between a man and a woman, apart from the mutual agreement of both families enough to bind them? I’m asking this question on behalf of my cousin who wants to go on and marry a Muslim girl irrespective of the lack of agreement between the two families of different religions. They…
Read MoreWhy did my mother have such a strange dream?
Question: I hear you’re from a church. Can you tell me any reason why my mom dreamed last night that she was somewhere in a mountain and all of a sudden she heard a voice saying look up in the sky and she looked up and saw a crack in the sky and in the…
Read MoreWho Are the Gnostics?
by Ethan R. Longhenry In recent years a strong interest has arisen in “alternative” religions, and Gnosticism has received interest as an “alternative” to “orthodox Christianity”. The recent success of Dan Brown’s novel The Da Vinci Code has popularized this trend. The book speaks regarding “over eighty gospels” that were not chosen to be a part of…
Read MoreHow could God repent for creating man when the Bible also says God is not like a man to repent?
Question: The Bible says in Genesis that God repented for creating man. But then why does the Bible say “God is not a man to lie, and not a son of man to repent”? And if God repented, why did Paul said that God prepared the chosen ones to give fruits before the world was…
Read MoreI’ve done so much wrong, I fear it is too late for me
Question: Thank you so much for your web site. The analogy of the young soldier being afraid to die and the old man being afraid to live was very touching to me. I myself am an agnostic, but then I have a tremendous fear of God, so perhaps this is telling me I do believe in God…
Read MoreCan homosexuals have a godly marriage?
Question: I just have to say that when I stumbled upon La Vista Church of Christ’s sermon on “Who Are You Going To Marry?” while searching for something similar, I found it quite terrifying. As a Christian who is engaged to be married, I am, for the first time, having second thoughts about marriage at…
Read MoreHow to Win the Lottery
David Osteen via Pleonast True story for anyone’s gambling lesson: There is a man at the Texas City church of Christ named Marlin Ridenour. He works for the City of Galveston and oversees the water department. The year the Texas State Lottery commenced in 1991, one of the employees wrote on a whiteboard a little…
Read MoreThe Deceitful Heart
by Daniel H. King Sr. via Guardian of Truth XXXIX: 2 p. 22-23, January 19, 1995 The prophet Jeremiah’s life and the unique experiences which he had with Israel, offered him a “laboratory” to study the workings of the human heart. God had entrusted him with a message of dismay, desolation, and destruction for the land of…
Read MoreWhat does Laodicea mean?
Question: What does Laodicea mean? Answer: Laodicea is the name of a city in Asia Minor that wasn’t too far from Colosse. The name of the city is a compound Greek word: laos means people, nation, or crowd; dike means custom, law, judgment, penalty, or punishment, depending on the context. From that, most conclude that the founders of Laodicea…
Read MoreHow do I overcome my homosexual behavior?
Question: How can I have victory over homosexual behavior? Guilty of homosexuality 100%. I gave my life to Christ and have struggled to remain faithful to God. I’ve successfully abstained from actually committing homosexual sex, but it doesn’t stop me from pornographic material. How do I have a victory? I want this to just stop,…
Read MoreIf I Don’t Preach on Hell
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/IfIDontPreachOnHell1.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: I Corinthians 9:16-23 I. It won’t take you long to find out that the topic of Hell is not popular among the denominations of the world A. The Jehovah’s Witnesses declare that it doesn’t exist. Nor do the Episcopals, Methodists, and some Baptists want to discuss the matter. B. A survey…
Read MoreIs the Papacy Biblical?
by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Matthew 16:13-20 I. The world was fascinated with the process the Roman Catholic Church used to pick a new pope. A. We were given detailed accounts of all the traditions surrounding a pope’s selection B. We were shown the events step by step. C. But in all the hoopla, how many wondered where…
Read MoreThank you for the information on forgiveness and repentance
Question: Thank you very much for your web site’s index. I have been struggling a lot with issues concerning forgiveness, repentance and such. My story is quite intriguing and alarming; however, I don’t want to overwhelm you with it. Your site makes me feel like I have hope, and that when I repented, that God really…
Read MoreMy cousin wants to be saved, but he is waiting for God to give him an experience so he can stop being gay. What should he do?
Question: I have a cousin who’s been struggling with something for a long time. The problem is that he’s gay, which he hates. He doesn’t want to be gay, he wants to live for God, but he says he can’t because of his homosexual desires. He has been waiting for God to suddenly change him…
Read MoreDid Jesus spend three days in hades?
Question: I had a lady try to tell me that Jesus spent three days in Hades before he arose from the grave. I didn’t really get to discuss this with her because she had to leave. How do people come up with this kind of thinking? Answer: Sometimes people make up things, but in this particular…
Read MoreFalse Teachers and Lying Prophets
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/FalseTeachersAndLyingProphets.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton I. As long as God has had teachers and prophets in the world there have been those who taught falsely. A. Jeremiah complained about the false prophets – Jeremiah 5:30-31 B. Paul had problems with teachers binding the Old Law – Acts 15:1-2 C. Paul warned the Ephesian elders that false teachers would…
Read MoreCan instrumental music be used for worshiping God on days other than Sunday?
Question: I was also speaking with her regarding instruments in worship. She claimed that since it is only the first-day assembly, which is that worship was done together in one place, then to go to a place where they have instrumental music on a Wednesday night is not sinful. She went on to talk about…
Read MoreWhat was the flaw in the Old Covenant?
Question: Is the flaw of the Old Covenant (Hebrews 8:7) that there was no way for sins to be completely forgiven (Hebrews 10:1-10)? Or was the law impossible to completely follow as well? If it was possible to completely follow, then what is Peter talking about in Acts 15:10 and what is the meaning of…
Read MoreMust I marry the girl I had sex with?
Question: Praise the LORD! I have read some of your replies to other questions and I perceive that you have knowledge. So, I come to you in regard to a question of mine. But, first let me explain: At one time in my walk with God, I was struggling, and instead of leaning on God,…
Read MoreI’m finding flaws in my denomination and I don’t know what to do
Question: Hello. As a fellow believer of the true gospel, I thought I’d ask you for some personal advice. I apologize if this gets a little long. This is a problem I haven’t been able to receive any real help with and had to battle by myself for years, and I’m still without a sense…
Read MoreI want to be baptized. Does it matter if I do it in a church that I know doesn’t teach the truth?
Question: Hey, I saw in one of your articles that being baptized in a place where people teach wrongly isn’t valid, such as being baptized when you’re a baby. I was baptized when I was a baby, but I know it’s not valid because I didn’t repent of anything. But now I want to be…
Read MoreDoesn’t the Bible teach that you can be saved without baptism?
Question: I read your article, “Why I Am Not a Nazarene,” as I have been researching the Wesleyan Nazarenes and was considering attending there as a member but I am having doubts. However, I read your article and where it says “No one is saved without being baptized with water” is not biblical. One is saved by faith in…
Read MoreWhy does my sinful ex seem to have it so good?
Question: I am truly struggling with this. I was married for 21 years now divorced due to infidelity and a horrific divorce. My ex is now with the women he committed adultery with. He continues to come around my family as well as our friends bragging about how God is now blessing him. It seems…
Read MoreWhy doesn’t God prevent innocent children from being harmed?
Question: A man was baby sitting the seventeen month old son of his girlfriend when he struck and killed the infant for acting like a girl. The man is charged with first-degree manslaughter after he allegedly hit the boy “several times throughout his body with closed fists.” Apparently, he then grabbed the infant by the…
Read MoreWhere do you draw the line with sinful relatives?
Question: My husband has a relative that is a practicing Wiccan doing witchcraft and ‘spells’ and always wears her ‘Wiccan necklace’ that she’s proud of. She was raised to know about Jesus and God. But in her early teens, she got caught up in witchcraft. My husband’s question is: is it wrong for all his…
Read MoreAm I committing adultery by looking?
Question: I have a question maybe you can answer because I think I’m in a very strange and confusing situation. Since very young I like women, very much. I also did watch a lot of pornography but not anymore. So I did and sometimes still look at women a lot. I’m married now, and I…
Read MoreDid Jesus have a choice about dying on the cross?
Question: I have a question that I hope you can help me with: I was raised in the church of Christ, but in my twenties, I quit attending. After three decades, I returned and am now a faithful member. A lot of things changed in the years that I was away. One thing that really…
Read MoreGod didn’t keep my wife from leaving me, so I give up following God
Question: I desired to follow God the best I could. I stopped my wayward ways in the world. I got married. In fact, my now ex-wife became a Christian first and I have to say she was a good wife. I just don’t know what happened. I didn’t see this coming at all. It took…
Read MoreWhat Boys, Girls, and Their Parents Need To Know
by Wendi Capehart The following is adapted from an old post the good blogger at Wit-nit wrote. He wished to illustrate just how heady and disorienting a brew lust can be, how dangerous in the hands of the immature, but he is not a believer and he wrote an R-rated post. He allowed me to…
Read MoreCan you explain Zechariah 13:1-5? I don’t see how it talks about the ending of prophecy and demons
Question: Could you explain to me the passage in Zechariah 13 where it talks about the prophets, the idols, and the unclean spirit? Because if God removed the unclean spirit, why is the devil still here tempting Christians? And what does “from the land of Israel” mean? Is it actually the place Israel or is…
Read MorePeople are really bashing the Bible and Jesus’ teaching in attempting to forbid the eating of meat
Question: I’m a hunter who’s also a Christian and I see no problem with providing food for my family. People are really bashing the Bible and is twisting Jesus’ teachings to their liking. I read the ‘Was Jesus a Vegetarian?’ and I loved it! Answer: Thank you for your kind words. Yes, there are all sorts…
Read MoreYour sermon on modesty was just what I was looking for
Question: I have been asked to do a split session with our teen girls on modesty. In my internet searching for illustrations, I stumble across your sermon. I have books, printouts, and many other sources, and needed help consolidating. What you have put together is exactly what I was looking for. You gave good illustrations…
Read MoreI don’t see how Zechariah 13:1-5 talks about the ending of prophecy and demons
Question: Could you explain to me the passage in Zechariah 13 where it talks about the prophets, the idols, and the unclean spirit? Because if God removed the unclean spirit, why is the devil still here tempting Christians? And what does “from the land of Israel” mean? Is it actually the place Israel or is…
Read MoreCan you explain what “if we sin willfully” in Hebrews 10:26 means?
Question: I am confused at what I am reading in Hebrews 10:26-27: “For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins,but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries” (ESV). I am confused because I know…
Read MoreHow could “out of Egypt I have called my Son” be about Jesus?
Question: About the “from Egypt I called my son” prophecy: Was God applying the same thing to Jesus and to Ephraim? Answer: “When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called My son” (Hosea 11:1). Egypt was a nation given over to idolatry. Hence, when Israel left Egypt they also…
Read MoreWhat if the used software I bought doesn’t allow for resale? What should I do?
Question: Hi. This may seem like an odd question. In the past, I have bought used computer games, sold computer games, and installed computer games on my computer. My brother bought and games that were my stepdad’s. According to the terms of agreement in many computer software, you do not own the software and are…
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