This is an interesting question.

Today, many can use the arguments that as culture changes, God will go along with the flow and bend according to the particular dictates of man at any given time. They don’t phrase it that way of course, but that is how they view it.

In an article in April 2015 in the New York Times, a columnist wrote: “And homosexuality and Christianity don’t have to be in conflict in any church anywhere. That many Christians regard them as incompatible is understandable, an example not so much of hatred’s pull as of tradition’s sway. Beliefs ossified over centuries aren’t easily shaken.  But in the end, the continued view of gays, lesbians and bisexuals as sinners is a decision. It’s a choice. It prioritizes scattered passages of ancient texts over all that has been learned since — as if time had stood still, as if the advances of science and knowledge meant nothing. It disregards the degree to which all writings reflect the biases and blind spots of their authors, cultures and eras. It ignores the extent to which interpretation is subjective, debatable.”

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To the majority of the world, the question of what Christians need to do to prepare for the Passover doesn’t make any sense. Why would a Christian need to prepare for a “Jewish” memorial? While the majority of professing Christians today don’t understand it, the Bible clearly instructs that the Passover is to be observed by true Christians today. In addition, it is not enough to observe Passover as a mere memorial, but it also must be observed in the right way – with reverence and honor. To do anything less incurs the penalty of taking the Passover in an unworthy manner (compare 1 Corinthians 11:27).

Acknowledging that it is important for true Christians to observe the Passover and participate in the right way, it is incumbent upon them to prepare diligently. What do Christians need to do to prepare for the Passover so they can fully observe and participate in the annual Passover service?

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The entire passage reads, in context: “On that very day some Pharisees came, saying to Him, ‘Get out and depart from here, for Herod wants to kill You.’ And He said to them, ‘Go, tell that fox, “Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I shall be perfected.” Nevertheless I must journey today, tomorrow and the day following; for it cannot be that a prophet should perish outside of Jerusalem’” (Luke 13:31-33).

Christ made the statement in the context of His violent death which would occur in the city of Jerusalem. Halley’s Bible Handbook points out that Jesus spoke His words when He was “in Perea, Herod’s domain. He was safer there than in Judea. His answer: ‘You, not Herod, are my murderers. Jerusalem, not Perea, the place for it.’”

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Matthew 23:37 quotes Christ’s words as follows: “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing!”

This quote could also be applied to how Christ feels about those God would call into the Church—not just how He felt about Jerusalem. Some may probably think that a chicken is one of the dumbest animals in creation, but there are amazing lessons to be learned from what Christ said.

When a chicken lays an egg, she goes into a cackle for some thirty to sixty seconds, letting everyone know what she had just accomplished. This cackle is unique in its sound. Even though this reaction is instinctive, if we were to apply it to human feelings, we could say that the hen is communicating her joy over the eggs to others.

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In Exodus 23:20-23, we read about “an Angel” who would lead the Israelites into the Promised Land and who would keep them safe throughout their travels. Can we identify this Angel?

Before we answer this question, we will briefly look at other passages in the Bible where angels are mentioned.

In our free booklet, Angels, Demons and the Spirit World, we state the following on pages 5-6:

“We read in Hosea 12:3–4 that Jacob ‘…struggled with God. Yes, he struggled with the Angel and prevailed.’ We also read in Genesis 32:28, 30 that Jacob ‘…struggled with God,’ and that he had seen ‘…God face to face.’

“In addition, we are told in Exodus 3:2 that ‘…the Angel of the LORD appeared to [Moses] in a flame of fire.’ In verse 4, we are told that Moses was called by God from the midst of the bush. However, in Acts 7:35, Stephen said that ‘…the Angel… appeared to him in the bush.’

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Throughout the Bible, we read many examples in which God spoke to mankind through dreams.  Can we expect that God will also speak to us in dreams and visions at some point?  While it is possible, we must guard our minds and not assume our dreams are a message from God.

There is ample evidence of God using dreams to talk to His servants.  These examples, as the Bible plainly describes, were for very specific reasons.  We also see a few examples of God speaking to those who weren’t His followers as a means to indirectly interact with His servants for an explicit purpose.  When Abraham journeyed into Gerar and met king Abimelech, Abraham lied and stated Sarah was his sister. Abimelech brought her to his house, but before he unknowingly sinned by “touching” her, God came to Abimelech, “…in a dream by night, and said to him, ‘Indeed you are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is a man’s wife’ ” (Genesis 20:3).  Because of Abraham’s deceit, God stepped in to save a whole household from death.

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In this series, we have been pointing out many of our doctrines and practices, which, if taken together, clearly distinguish us from virtually every other Christian organization. In this last installment, we will discuss further defining aspects of our teaching and understanding.

Very few believe the Bible when it tells us what man is.

We say in our Statement of Beliefs, under “Human’s Mortal Nature”:

“We believe that humans are mortal and subject to death, and that they can only obtain immortality through a gift from God.”

When man (“the soul”) dies, he (“it”) is dead (Ezekiel 18:4, 20; Psalm 22:29, Authorized Version). To become alive again, he (“the soul”) must be resurrected from the dead (Revelation 20:4). Man has no consciousness in death (Psalm 6:5; 115:17; 146:4; Ecclesiastes 9:10; Isaiah 38:18-19).

Continue reading "How Does the Church of the Eternal God and its International Affiliates Differ From Other Christian Churches? (Part 7)"

One of the most distinguishing and defining differences between most Christian organizations and the Church of the Eternal God and its international affiliates is the observance of the biblical Sabbath and the biblical annual Holy Days.  In our Statement of Beliefs, we state the following, under “Observation of God’s Commanded Holy Days”:

“We believe that we are to observe certain weekly and annual Holy Days, during which time we are to attend Church services and to refrain from secular labor, including school, college or university attendance, and which time we are to dedicate and devote to worship, spiritual study, prayer, fellowship with Church members, and physical rest.”

This shows that the biblical Holy Days are sanctified by God. God set those days aside for a holy purpose; it is not for us to determine when certain times are holy, since only God can and does decide this. God wants us to remember those days to keep them holy. And so, we continue in our Statement of Beliefs to list those Holy Days, introducing them as follows: “These weekly and annual Holy Days are…”

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In this installment, we will discuss the remaining aspect of the commission given to the Church, which is, as stated in our Statement of Beliefs under The Church’s Commission, “… to feed the flock of Christ—the Church—spiritually and physically.” The correct understanding of properly feeding the flock distinguishes us substantially from most other Church organizations.

To begin with, we will address the responsibility of the Church to feed the flock spiritually. This task is foremost assigned to the ordained ministry of God’s Church. We discussed in previous installments that the Church of God is a spiritual organism, which is physically organized.

We read in John 21:15-17:

“So when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, ‘Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these?’ He said to Him, ‘Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.’ He said to him, ‘Feed My lambs.’ He said to him again a second time, ‘Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?’ He said to Him, ‘Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.’ He said to him, ‘Tend My sheep.’ He said to him the third time, ‘Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?’ Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, ‘Do you love Me?’ And he said to Him, ‘Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed My sheep.'”

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In the first three installments of this series, we discussed our belief in the infallibility of the Holy Scriptures; our doctrinal foundation; and our Church government. We also emphasized that while the Church of God is a spiritual organism, this fact does not exclude the necessity of physical organizations. In that context, we showed the importance of the Church’s correct biblical name. We also began to explain Christ’s commission to His Church; that is, to preach the gospel of the Kingdom of God to all nations as a witness. We showed what is meant with the terms, “gospel,” “the kingdom of God,” “to all nations”, and “as a witness.” In this installment, we will address another aspect of the Church’s commission; i.e., to warn the nations.

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