Q&A – Page 58 – Church of the Eternal God

Where Will the Resurrection Take Place?

July 6, 2012

As we have explained before, the Bible teaches three resurrections—one to eternal life, and two to physical life. But does the Bible tell us anything about the location as to WHERE, exactly, those who have died will be resurrected?

In our Q&A on the “resurrection of the physical body,” we addressed the question as to HOW God will resurrect those who have died. We wrote the following:

“Regarding the resurrection of those who died ‘in Christ,’ that is, in whom God’s Holy Spirit dwelled when they died, we read that they are resurrected with an immortal SPIRITUAL body. God will raise them up to spiritual, immortal and eternal life. God will not first resurrect their dead ‘physical bodies’ and then ‘change’ them into spiritual bodies. Rather, God will resurrect or raise the Christians with spiritual bodies…

Are there ghosts of deceased loved ones which could be communicated with? Is it true that the ghost of Abraham Lincoln appears in the White House, and that, in general, the White House is haunted? What is necromancy?

June 28, 2012

There have indeed been many reports over the centuries about the White House being haunted and visited by “ghosts,” and quite recently, it was claimed that House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi has had encounters with ghosts.

“Roll Call” wrote on June 6, 2012, that “Pelosi… recounted an unusual anecdote about how the ghosts of past women leaders spoke to her at her first White House meeting as Speaker… in 2006… ‘I realized that on that chair with me was Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Alice Hall, Lucretia Mott, you name it, they were all there… And I could hear them say “at last we have a seat at the table,”’ Pelosi said.”

The “Wikipedia Encyclopedia” writes: “There have been several stories about ghosts of former Presidents revisiting the White House. However, the most common and popular is that of Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln’s Ghost, or to others as The White House Ghost, is said to have haunted the White House since his death.”

Does the Bible encourage us to pray for the Work of God and His Ministers?

June 22, 2012

The answer is a resounding, Yes. Most of our readers understand the importance of prayer for the Work of God and His ministers, deacons, members and coworkers who are actively involved in the Work of God. However, in this Q&A, we want to show the strong emphasis, which the Bible places on the duty and responsibility of non-ordained and ordained Church members to pray for God’s Work and the human instruments whom God chooses to carry out His Work.

First of all, we must understand that it is God who appoints His ministers and deacons and who places His disciples in the body of Christ where He pleases (1 Corinthians 12:18). Members cannot just decide to “join” the Church of God. Rather, it is the Father who must draw them to Christ and His body (John 6:44,65). Likewise, ministers and deacons are not appointed by men.

In the last Q&A, we showed that the New Testament did not abolish the Law of the Ten Commandments. In this Q&A, we will continue to show that God commands us today to keep His Law.

June 15, 2012

A fundamental statement of John the Baptist can be found in John 3:36 to the effect that he who believes Jesus Christ will inherit eternal life, but that God’s wrath rests upon a person who does not “obey” Christ (compare the correct rendering in the Revised Standard Version).

John had refused to baptize those who came to him without having shown fruits of repentance, challenging them with the question as to who had warned them to flee from the wrath to come (Matthew 3:7-12; Luke 3:7-17). In Matthew 23:33, Christ reiterated John’s warning, ultimately equating the wrath of God with the condemnation of hell fire. That is, if someone refuses to repent and obey God, ending up in committing the unpardonable sin, he will be destroyed in the lake of fire.

Since we are under grace, are we no longer obligated to keep God’s Law and be obedient to Him?

June 8, 2012

In a previous Q&A we discussed the meaning of grace. We pointed out that grace does not dispense with individual responsibility. In this Q&A, we will show in more detail what God expects of us.

It is claimed that the New Testament teaches that we are no longer obligated to keep God’s Law, and that especially Paul made clear that the Law is no longer binding for us. This is a terrible and, quite frankly, abominable doctrine stemming from demons.

An important tool for right Bible study is to look first at the clear and plain passages, before trying to understand the more difficult ones. Even Peter said that Paul wrote a few things, which are difficult to understand, and that the unlearned try to misinterpret and twist them for their own purposes (2 Peter 3:16). Let’s not make the same mistake, but look at Paul’s clear and plain statements.

What is the apostasy mentioned in 2 Thessalonians 2:3? Is it a continuation of wrong teachings by a revised orthodox Christianity?

June 1, 2012

In 2 Thessalonians 2:3 there is a falling away (“apostasia”) mentioned, which is defined by Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Dictionaries (G646) as “defection from the truth, falling away, forsake.” This verse is in the section of Scripture (2 Thessalonians 2:1-4), which reads as follows in its entirety:

“Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come. Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.”

The context of these verses is interesting. This is talking about a falling away from the truth, and it is the only place in the Bible where the word “apostasia” is used. The apostle Paul is addressing “brethren” (verse 1) about an apostasy especially at the end time, as “the man of sin” is also mentioned who is to reveal himself during the very last days, and who will sit in the temple of God and pretend to be God himself. This strongly indicates that the Jews will build a temple in Jerusalem prior to Christ’s return, where they will bring sacrifices, and that the man of sin or the false prophet will occupy the temple for a while, when the armies of the beast power will occupy the city of Jerusalem and suppress the daily sacrifices. All of this will be fulfilling aspects of Christ’s end time warning that the abomination of desolation will be set up or standing at the holy place, where it should not be (Matthew 24:15; Mark 13:14).

It is correct, of course, that an apostasy from the true gospel already began during the lifetime of Paul, when he stated that he marvelled that so many in the Church of God had turned to another gospel (Galatians 1:6-7). But Paul’s warning, taken as a whole, is not about others who did not or do not have the truth, but he is addressing those who had learned it and who would nevertheless “fall away” or leave their own beliefs behind and go off in a different direction.

It is therefore clear that any revival of orthodox Christianity, including a revival of the Roman Catholic Church, the Greek and Russian Orthodox Church or the different Protestant churches (as mentioned in Revelation 13 and 17), is not in any way to be viewed as being an aspect of the end-time apostasy or falling away from true biblical teaching.

What exactly is God’s grace; what does it do for us; and what are we to do, if anything?

May 25, 2012

Simply put, God’s grace is God’s unmerited favor. It is the gift of God. It includes manifold facets of God’s undeserved pardon and forgiveness, His mercy and His compassion. For instance, our heart is established and made firm and becomes totally convicted through grace, preventing us from accepting wrong doctrines (Hebrews 13:9). It is grace […]

Does 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 Teach a “Secret Rapture”?

May 25, 2012

It does not. Please look carefully at the context of the passage in light of other Biblical evidence. 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 reads: “But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and […]

Where is the Ark of the Covenant today? Will it be found prior to Christ’s return?

May 18, 2012

Numerous theories exist as to what happened to the Old Testament Ark of the Covenant. Some claim, based on the uninspired Second Book of the Maccabees, that Jeremiah hid it in a cave on Mount Nebo in Jordan when the Babylonians conquered Jerusalem. The non-inspired book of 1 Esdras claims that the Babylonians carried the […]

Where will the marriage supper between Christ and His Church be held?

May 18, 2012

Revelation 19:7-9 states the following about the marriage between Christ and His Church: “Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb [Jesus Christ, compare Revelation 5:1-14] has come, and His wife [the Church, compare Ephesians 5:31-32] has made herself ready. And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints. Then he said to me, ‘Write: “Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!”‘…”

Please note that this Scripture does not say where the marriage supper will take place. Other Scriptures strongly imply that it will take place here on earth, after Christ’s return.

Christ gave a parable of the wedding feast in Matthew 22, presupposing that the wedding feast or marriage supper will take place here on earth. We read in verse 11: “But when the king [who had arranged the marriage for his son, verse 2] came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment.” In the parable, “the king” represents God the Father, and “the son” represents Jesus Christ. If the marriage supper were to take place in heaven, the guest without a wedding garment could not have been there — neither as a physical being nor as a fallen spirit being. He could not have been a disqualified saint, as there are no physical beings in heaven and as the disqualified saint would not have been changed to spirit. Nor could he have been a “fallen” spirit being, i.e., Satan or a demon, as by that time, Satan and his angels will have no more access to God’s throne in heaven. Revelation 12:8 speaks of a time, before the marriage supper, stating, “…nor was a place found for them [Satan and his demons, verse 7] in heaven any longer.”