The Effect of Family Instability

Source: Sydney Briggs, “Family Instability and Children’s Social Development,” Child Trends, 7 Aug 2019. “Family stability can promote positive social behavior in children and adolescents, while instability is associated with social maladjustment, including behaviors such as aggression toward peers, teachers, or parents.” “Adolescents whose mothers were married at birth had higher social competence and lower…

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Should we confess our fornication?

Question: Good day sir. By God’s grace, we are a couple who decided to get married. Our church’s marriage committee has some rules that intending couples need to follow before marriage. We have known each other since last year but things got serious towards marriage beginning to this year. We were able to abstain from…

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I don’t know how I ended up sleeping with my lover’s friend

Question: Alright, sir. I slept with my lover’s friend. Truth be told, I don’t know how it happened because he bothered me before and I refused. I even told my man about him and actions were taken, but I don’t know how I succumbed. Everything happened in a flash, and I’m wondering why, after refusing,…

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Can a man who lived for many years with a woman be baptized?

Question: This happened over 20 years ago. A husband and his wife, who were idol worshipers and uneducated day laborers, who lived in a slum with their little children. Suddenly the husband left his wife and married another girl. Seeing the state of the woman, a young man who was not married and who also…

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Can you get baptized if you are pregnant but planning to get married?

Question: Hello servant of God, I have a question which my friend has been asking to help and give her some advice: Can a woman get baptize when she’s in early pregnancy and not married yet, but they’re planning to get married? Answer: The physical consequence of sin isn’t what should be of concern. The question…

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Will I be unhappy marrying a girl who is not a virgin?

Question: Dear Sir, I would like to ask a question about what I should do regarding my relationship. I am having difficulty deciding on a solution. Also, please consider our culture and community’s point of view. I have a girlfriend. We are both in our mid-twenties. We have been together for about a month. Before…

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I got caught up in fornication

Question: Hello, I read a certain response on fornication and God’s forgiveness to us Christians. I also got caught up in fornication. The only book I found myself reading is Jude, which condemns the ungodly act of taking the grace of God for granted. I feel so low in my spiritual status because I thought…

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We can’t afford to get married, but would it be bad to have sex now?

Question: Hello! My boyfriend and I have been dating for over five years, not necessarily because we wanted to wait this long, but because we don’t have the money. I only recently finished college, and I didn’t want to get married until I was done with school. Well, I’ve been done with college for about…

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Can someone be forgiven if he purposely sins?

Question: My friend lost his virginity because he wanted to. The person he did it with had already done it a couple of times. He felt really bad because he is a Christian. Can God forgive him if he confesses to a priest? Answer: Confession to a priest is a Catholic practice. It is not…

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My boyfriend says times are different now for Christians

Question: My boyfriend and I have been together for over a year. After receiving the grace of God, I have come to the knowledge that sex before marriage is a sin, and I do not want to partake in this anymore but my boyfriend is not on board. I am a born again Christian who…

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I regret that I haven’t stopped committing fornication

Question: Please, I need your guidance and prayers. I am a male of 24 years. I have been baptized but still commit fornication. I have had sex with numerous women of which there is not even one I don’t regret instantly after having sex with. I pray for forgiveness, I but still go back to…

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I want to become a Christian, but I still like to party

Question: Hi, I had a saving experienced with Jesus, but I have not been baptized to be forgiven for my sins. I find myself in a predicament. I was in an abusive relationship and there where acts of pure evil being committed. I came away from that turmoil into the house of God and things…

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What does “uncover the nakedness” mean?

Question: In Leviticus 18:6-19, the phrase “uncover the nakedness” is used repeatedly. What is meant by this phrase? Answer: There are three sets of words in the Hebrew that are translated as naked or nakedness. The Hebrew adjective ‘arom refers to being without clothing. It can mean without any clothes or being inadequately clothed (Job 22:6).…

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I became a Christian but sinned before I was baptized

Question: Hello, I recently became a Christian. I think it was at the end of January or the first part of February that I accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior. I wasn’t able to be baptized until April. But before then, I had a few bumps in the road. I committed three acts of…

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You don’t understand, kids today have to live with someone

Question: I just wanted to say that your site is very distorted from the word to God and I pray that you find Christ. I read the topic over of the question beginning with: “I am in the same situation as the young lady, who is 23 years old. I have been with my boyfriend…

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Using Love as an Excuse

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/UsingLoveAsAnExcuse.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: I Corinthians 13:4-7   I.         Love is a wonderful attitude             A.        God is love and we should imitate our Father – I John 4:16             B.        But people pervert what love ought to be and use a claim of “love” as a cover for permitting sin II.        Love as an excuse to do wrong…

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If I had the money, I would pay the lobola

Question: Morning minister of God, I have been dating a girl from church for over five years. When it started, we agreed not to do anything that would separate us from God. We managed for several months, but before we knew it, we were sleeping together. This actually ruined our relationship with God because I cannot…

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How can I stay out of fornication?

Question: Evening sir, I need spiritual deliverance. I am a married man, but before my marriage, I was lost in fornication. I even dragged my fiancee into it. We realized later that it was not good and confess our sins. However, I couldn’t get control over my sexual desire, to the extent that I masturbated…

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Was the Samaritan woman really married that many times?

Question: In John 4, I get confused with the issue of marriage. Christ wanted her to call her husband until she said she had none. Then Christ said she had had five husbands, except that her present man was not her husband. Was Christ trying to prove that she had never married properly? And if…

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Did God change His mind about sexual sins?

Question: Did God change? How is it that God that was so quiet about fornication, adultery, and polygamy in the Old Testament and then suddenly changed in the New Testament? Answer: It is in the Old Testament that we learn that a man is to leave his family, get married, and become one flesh with…

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Notes on Sex

Fornication (Greek: porneia): Porneia, typically translated as fornication, sexual immorality, or sometimes just immorality is defined as follows: “Porneia, which is relatively rare in classical Greek (Moulton-Milligan), originally stood for “prostitution” … In other, later contexts it denotes “unchasity, illicit sexual relations” of any kind (“fornication” is a somewhat archaic but common translation).” [The Complete Biblical…

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Does “burning with passion” include masturbation?

Question: Hello preacher, I write to you because I want to read your answer more carefully and I believe that a written response will be more crafted. I’ve already read the material you have on the website about masturbation while one still a single person and the subject was closed to me for. Recently, however,…

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I get so mad at my former boyfriend that it is affecting my life

Question: Hello, I am a member of the Lord’s church. I have been going through a rough cycle of hurt, anger, and unforgivable times with my daughter’s father. After we broke up a few years ago, it started to be rough with co-parenting with him. I called off my relationship with him because I knew…

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Are gay people going to hell?

Question: Is it true that gay people go to hell? I’m not gay, but a lot of people are, and it’s not out of choice. They are just born attracted to men. So if it’s not an option, why should they get punished for it? Answer: “Attraction” just means what you find appealing. Some people…

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Is it right for my parents to reject my fiance?

Question: Hello Minister, I started praying to God for a wife and stated the qualities I wanted each time I prayed. My prayer used to go like this: “Dear Lord, give me a woman who has a heart for you, one who would love me and be loyal, and increase my hunger for you. Make…

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Did we really get married?

Question: Hello, I have an issue that has been weighing on my mind. Like many of your questions, it has to do with sexual activity. Six months ago, I met an amazing, wonderful girl whom I fell in love with. We have spent so much time with each other (after we began our relationship in…

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Can porneia only refer to sex with someone you have no emotional connection with?

Question: I was reading your page about the Greek “porneia” and I was wondering if this meant prostitution and sexual intercourse with those to whom you have no emotional connection. More specifically, is sex with someone you love, like a boyfriend or girlfriend, specifically deemed immoral in the Bible, or is this another misrepresented sin lumped…

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I think I’ve been under a spell

Question: Greetings, I am 26 years old. I am a Christian, but I backslid. It all began a long time ago. I think when I was even less than 7 years when I started masturbating. A few years ago, I met some guy and we committed fornication. I knew I was sinning. Since then I…

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I learned a lot from your post about avoiding sex before marriage

Question: Hello, I have read the post on avoiding sex before marriage. I have learned a lot. I hope that I will be able to stick to what the word says and that my relationship won’t fail because we are trying to stay pure. Thank you for the advice. Answer: You’re welcome.

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Limping Between Two Opinions

by Matthew W. Bassford The story of Elijah and the prophets of Baal is one of the most famous in the book of I Kings. Even though the direction of the book is generally downward, I Kings 18 contains a moment of spiritual triumph. However, even before the triumph takes place, there are still lessons…

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How far can you go with your girlfriend in regard to intimacy?

Question: Hi Jeff, How far can you go with your girlfriend in regard to intimacy? Answer: Let’s start with what most people would agree would be going too far: sexual intercourse or fornication. Sexual acts outside of marriage are sinful and are covered under the word “fornication.” In Greek, the word is porneia. It is…

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I have had guilt since I let an escort do oral sex on me

Question: Hello, The other day I spent the night with an escort but did not have sex. I am still a virgin in my 30’s. I did, however, receive protected oral sex for several minutes. Since then I have had immense guilt over it. I have had depression since I was a teenager and have…

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