Is wasting food a sin?

Question: Hello, Brother in Christ! I recently got into a discussion about the usage of food in certain parlor games and advertisement tactics. In these situations, people would buy food and use it as paraphernalia to perform the game mechanics or as a way to advertise a product. The result of this is that the…

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Wrong Is Always Wrong

by Richard Thetford In a period of loose and sagging morals, Satan provides many rationalizations for improper behavior. Those who would live faithful Christian lives must not be ignorant of Satan’s devices. Paul said, “…Lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices.” Wrong is always wrong despite our…

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Character Matters

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/CharacterMatters.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Romans 5:1-5   I.         Suppose you needed to hire someone for a job. What would you look for?             A.        You probably need someone with the skills to do the job, but what other things would you look for? Given several candidates with equivalent skills, what would set one person out above…

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What Happened?

by Zeke Flores It used to be that we called things by what they were: What used to be called lazy is now called “finding myself.” What used to be called modest is now called “old fashioned.” What used to be called indecent is now called “adult.” What used to be called irresponsible is now…

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Would Jesus Do What We Do?

by Jarrod M. Jacobs This question is slightly different from the oft-asked question, “What would Jesus do?” Asking what Jesus might do in a situation is indeed a righteous question to ask. Such a question is consistent with Bible teaching (Colossians 3:17; I Peter 4:11; etc.). However, in this article, let’s put this question in…

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Two Views

by Terry Wane Benton The Biblical View God created us and gets to make the rules. He made two genders: male and female and expects us to act like men if we are men and women if we are women. God does not approve of us changing the natural genders and gender roles as it…

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Our Mixed-Up, Topsy-Turvy Society

by Dennis Abernathy Our society can be described as running toward chaos. I am 77 years old, and today’s society is not the culture I grew up in. We are seeing more and more what the apostle Paul describes as “perilous times” (II Timothy 3:1-5). Today’s society is described in Isaiah 5. People were greedy,…

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Called to Rise Above

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Called-to-Rise-Above.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Ephesians 4:17-24   I.         I found an article the other day by Ray Gonzalez, of Mexico, that started me thinking …            There’s Shorty, just standing … scoping out the morning. Where will he strike today? Like a tiger, he is smelling the air to see where he may find prey.…

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A Sense of Shame

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/A-Sense-of-Shame.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Jeremiah 6:10-17   I.         On June 18, 2008, Time released a story about 17, now 18, girls in Gloucester High School on the outskirts of Massachusetts.             A.        (Read the story)             B.        What would cause a bunch of girls to purposely set out to get pregnant?             C.        The report gave these reasons:                         1.         It’s not…

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Culture Wars

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Culture-Wars.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Ecclesiastes 1:3-11   I.         Some questions are hard to answer             A.        Not because the Bible is unclear on the subject             B.        But because there is a strong cultural bias against the correct answer             C.        Example of idolatry                         1.         We have no difficulties denouncing idol worship today                         2.         Even non-Christians understand that an idol is worthless…

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Illogical Fixes to Problems

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Illogical-Fixes-to-Problems.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: I Samuel 8:1-8   I.         For over 400 years, God ruled over the land of Israel.             A.        When the people became wicked, God sent in an enemy nation to conquer a portion of the land.             B.        When the people turned backed to God, he raised up a judge to lead the people…

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Challenges for the Year

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Challenges-for-the-Year.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Romans 1:28-32   I.         Toward the end of each year, people tend to review the year and record the trends that are evident             A.        I’ve been collecting several articles in the last few months dealing with moral trends             B.        We are not of the world, but we must live in it -…

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Our Part Is to Try and Trust

by Gary Henry Reaching Forward 31 October 2012 “In the morning sow your seed, and in the evening do not withhold your hand; for you do not know which will prosper, either this or that, or whether both alike will be good” (Ecclesiastes 11:6). One of life’s great discouragements is the thought that it “won’t…

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How Fundamental Is Faith to Christianity

by Afolabi Akinyemi (Nigeria) “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6). No other Bible passage describes the importance of faith to Christianity than the one quoted above. The…

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A Fundamental Question Concerning Abortion

by Doy Moyer Many of the arguments concerning abortion are emotionally based. Those who oppose abortion can fall into the emotional trap by pointing out how cute a baby is and asking how anyone can hurt it. It’s the same appeal made by those who oppose killing cute baby seals. Those who fight for abortion…

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Liberal, Missouri: A Failed Experiment

by Roger Shouse in Biblical Insights, Vol. 6, No. 2, February 2000 The little town of Liberal, Missouri, lies near the Missouri-Kansas border, a few miles north of Joplin, Missouri. This sleepy little town of about 800 residents is typical of many small towns scattered throughout the United States. Liberal, Missouri, had a very interesting…

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What America Needs

by Ken Weliever During the past couple of days, I’ve been listening to politicians, political pundits, and experts from various fields discuss the “why” of the recent school shooting in Uvalde, Texas that snuffed out the lives of 19 innocent little children. This occurred just 10 days after a gunman went on a shooting rampage…

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Why Do We Keep Letting This Happen?

by Terry Wane Benton Why? “Why do we keep letting this happen?” You cannot control human hearts. From the heart proceed murders and all manner of sin (Mark 7:21-23). We have stopped giving hearts a moral compass in our homes. Schools have conditioned generations to think morality is just whatever we want it to be…

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Is an ad blocker immoral?

Question: Is it immoral to use an adblocker on a computer? I’m mainly referring to how you can block ads on videos. Aside from the fact that certain websites could contain malware within their ads, would it be cheating the content creators and streaming services of their revenue obtained from ads if one were to…

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Boredom

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Boredom.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton I.         The child has a room full of action figures, video games, cable TV, VCR, a huge collection of video tapes, every piece of sports equipment known to man, his own telephone, a fully loaded computer with Internet access — but he doesn’t have anything to do. He’s bored.             A.        Boredom is…

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Hormones

by Joe Fitch “Flee also youthful lusts; but pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart” (II Timothy 2:22) Paul reminds and warns young Timothy of the danger in youthful lusts. Not all youthful lusts are sexual, but surely sexual lusts are included — maybe top…

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If There Be Any Virtue

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2008/05/If-There-Be-Any-Virtue.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Romans 7:14-25   I.         One of the educational fads is “values clarification”             A.        Government run schools have a problem.                         1.         It is good for society to have morally good citizens, but the whole concept of morality assumes a standard of right and wrong that is greater than mankind.                         2.         How do you teach…

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My Conscience

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/My-Conscience.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: I Corinthians 4:1-5   I.         Defining your conscience             A.        A part of every human is an awareness of what he should do in various situations             B.        Your conscience does not determine what is right or wrong                         1.         That is what judgment is for.                         2.         Righteous judgment is done by God’s wisdom – Proverb 8:12-17…

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Safe Sins

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Safe-Sins.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: I Corinthians 6:9-11   I.         The lengths people will go to justify their sins is sometimes amazing             A.        It is a rare person who will say that something they are doing is a sin and that it shouldn’t be done.             B.        More common is to dress up the sin so that at…

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Canceled!

by Jefferson David Tant During our recent Christmas holidays, several churches around the country canceled their Sunday services. Some of the statements made by church spokesmen probably revealed more than they realized, as they not only reflected an attitude towards the mistaken idea concerning the birth of Christ but an attitude towards the religion of…

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“I Don’t Want My Kids to be Different”

by Greg Gwin The Beacon, January 22, 2013 Although most Christians wouldn’t say it in so many words, many parents seem to be very concerned about things that might make their kids look ‘different.’ They are concerned about raising their children in strict, disciplined ways that might make them stand out in contrast to others.…

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Rhetoric in the Propaganda Wars

by Terry Wane Benton It is interesting how the rhetoric used in truth vs. propaganda often turns to prejudicial phrases. Elijah was called a “troubler” in Israel, by the wicked king (I Kings 18:17). Who really was the troubler? Was it not those who grew to accept immorality and idolatry? But Ahab used the word…

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Negotiable Morals

by Terry Wane Benton Do we, mere humans, get to negotiate with each other what morals, standards of right and wrong, should be? Can we negotiate changes over time? If so, the people of Sodom and Gomorrah were treated wrong. They negotiated their standard and their negotiations brought them to the conclusion that their sexual…

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Seeking the Things Above

Seeking the Things Above (Part 1)Seeking the Things Above (Part 2) by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Colossians 3:1-4   I.         So often we focus on winning souls for Christ that we lose sight that conversion is not the goal but the first step in a life long process of change – Colossians 2:6-7             A.        To stay with…

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What Is This World Coming To?

by Tommy Thornhill Photo by Anne Nygård on Unsplash We are now in the year 2021 and many are fearful of what the future holds for us. We wonder, ”What is this world coming to?” To us older Christians it is certainly disturbing to see the present “status quo” (the mess our nation is in).…

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The Better Way

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/The-Better-Way.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: I Peter 4:1-6   I.         What is accepted and praised in the world isn’t always what is best for people             A.        Jesus’s sermon on the mount began with startling facts – Matthew 5:3-12                         1.         When you take the opposites of what Jesus states brings true happiness, you find a list of things…

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The Source of Morality

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/The-Source-of-Morality.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Romans 2:12-16   I.         Where does the concept of right and wrong come from?             A.        Why are some things “right” and other things “wrong?”             B.        Paul points out that the Gentiles were able by nature to know right from wrong – Romans 2:14-15 II.        Where morality doesn’t come from             A.        Some people want to…

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The Changing Morals in America

by Sewell Hall There was a time when the leaders of our country unashamedly proclaimed their trust in God. George Washington said, “It is impossible to govern the world without God and the Bible. Of all the dispositions and habits that lead to political prosperity, our religion and morality are the indispensable supporters.” Similar quotations…

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The Battlefield: Your Family

by Mark Broyles Biblical Insights, July 2007 “And there arose another generation after them, who did not know the LORD, nor yet the work which He had done for Israel” (Judges 2:10). How could that happen? How could Satan get such a position of strength among God’s people in such a short time? The nation…

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Thank you for explaining why coed sleepovers are a bad idea

Question: Thank you for the coed slumber party article. My son said that if I could give him biblical reasons, he wouldn’t go to a coed campout with him and two girls in the forest. In this current age, these kids innocently think they don’t see a difference between girls and boys and don’t understand…

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Basically Good

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Good-Basically.mp3 by Garry Floyd I used Ecclesiastes 7:29 to make the point that mankind is not basically good. The “Basically Good” title denotes the idea that mankind’s standard of good, outside of God’s standard, makes it not good, not even ‘basically good’ as most people think they are. My concern is that my fellow brothers…

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It’s Not Politics

by Irvin Himmel Moral statements and positions will, necessarily, impact political issues. This is not because morality is inherently political, but because the government has the task of recognizing the difference between good and evil, so moral issues will have to be dealt with (Rom 13:3-4). This means that, contrary to what is so often…

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Is it wrong to download software already purchased by another person?

Question: Hi minister, Is downloading a paid software without paying for it a sin? Note that no hacking or cracking is involved on the side of the downloader.  It is a case of seeing it online and downloading (copying) it. The owner still has a copy. Is it good to buy a second-hand device with cracked…

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