Questions and Answers
The answer may very well be YES! In fact, no matter how many times you may have been ceremonially baptized, the crucial question is whether or not you followed all that the Bible requires in order to have a valid baptism. It is true that many church organizations that nominally claim to be based on Biblical Christianity also include baptism in one form or another. Several groups baptize newborn babies by pouring or sprinkling water on their foreheads—this is associated with rites of christening, which also includes naming a child. This practice emerged following the first century A.D. and was institutionalized by the Roman Catholic Church—a practice continuing to this time. According to the Illustrated Dictionary of the Bible (Lockyer, 1986 Edition), “Those who believe in baptismal regeneration (Catholics especially) argue that baptism of infants is necessary. In traditional Roman Catholic teaching, unbaptized infants who die cannot enter heaven in this state, but are instead consigned to a state of limbo. If this fate is to be avoided, they must be baptized in order to remove the guilt of their sins and receive new life.” Even though the pope recently stated that the concept of “limbo” was a human invention and not… The Bible uses the word “elder” in many different connections. In each case, the context will show, however, how the word is to be understood. “The Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words,” by W.E.Vine, gives a fairly accurate description of the meaning of the word “elder,” with the exception of several related or unrelated blatant mistakes, as will be pointed out by us through annotations in brackets: Vine’s commentary states the following: “A. Adjectives “1. PRESBUTEROS…, an adjective, the comparative degree of ‘presbus,’ an old man, an elder, is used “(a) of age, whether of the elder of two persons, Luke 15:25, or more, John 8:9, ‘the eldest’; “or of a person advanced in life, a senior, Acts 2:17; “in [Hebrews] 11:2, the ‘elders’ are the forefathers in Israel [including spiritual teachers]; so in [Matthew] 15:2; Mark 7:3,5; “the feminine of the adjective is used of elder women in the churches, 1 [Timothy] 5:2, not in respect of position but in seniority of age; “(b) of rank or positions of responsibility, “(1) among Gentiles, as in… [Genesis] 50:7; [Numbers] 22:7; “(2) in the… nation [of Israel; Vine says here, “Jewish nation,” which is too restrictive, as the nation of Israel consisted of more than just Jews; “Jews”… In the vast majority of Biblical passages, the terms “all” or “every” are all-inclusive and don’t allow for exceptions, but this is not always the case. The fact that Bible commentaries and interpreters have IGNORED this vital truth, has misled them to reach doctrinally incorrect conclusions. It is also very critical to read passages in context, and in consideration of other passages which might shed more light on a given subject. Failing to do so might lead to wrong concepts. For example, we read in Daniel 7:27 that “ALL dominions shall serve and obey” Christ, when He establishes the Kingdom of God here on earth. This might give the impression that there won’t be any who will disobey and who will have to be dealt with, accordingly. However, this conclusion would be incorrect, as we read in Isaiah 60:12: “For the nation and kingdom which shall not serve you shall perish, And those nations shall be utterly ruined.” Compare, too, Zechariah 14:16-19, regarding nations who will at first refuse to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. We see, then, that even though we read that “ALL dominions” will serve and obey Christ, some will NOT do so, at first. In fact, some will… Even though the Bible nowhere states explicitly that the ancient house of Israel kept Sunday, it is very clear from the implicit record that they did. It is also clear that God punished them severely for this practice. We know that they abandoned the weekly Sabbath–the seventh day of the week (from Friday sunset to Saturday sunset). This was one reason why they went into slavery. We also know that they were guilty of idolatry, e.g., Baal worship. And historical records prove that Baal–the sun god–was worshipped on his day, Sunday, the first day of the week. In fact, Baal, the pagan sun god, was worshipped under many different names throughout man’s history. For instance, we find the following comments in “Funk and Wagnall’s New Encyclopedia,” under “Baalbek,” a town in Eastern Lebanon: “The name, which means ‘City of Baal,’ is derived from the early association of the town with the worship of Baal, a local sun deity whom the ancient Greeks identified with their sun god, Helios; the Greeks and Romans called the town Heliopolis, ‘City of the Sun.'” Pagans worshiped the sun on Sunday (Sun’s day). It was a heathen festival in honor of the sun god. Webster’s Unabridged… Even though God COULD know everything, He has decided NOT to know–generally speaking–how we will act under pressure. God’s purpose is to create in us holy righteous character, which requires free moral agency and the opportunity to chose right from wrong. God tests us to see HOW we will act–that is, He tests us to get to know us better in the process of our overcoming the wrong way and accepting and living the right way. Since God knows even the secrets of our hearts (Psalm 44:21) and our thoughts (Psalm 94:11), He knows what kind of trials He can bring upon us, so that we CAN pass them, and which would not be too difficult for us to bear (1 Corinthians 10:13). [Please read pages 58-69 in our free booklet– “Teach Us To Pray!” –for a further explanation of why God tests us, and why we are to pray not to be led into temptation or very difficult trials.] For instance, we read in Deuteronomy 8:2: “And you shall remember that the LORD your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you to KNOW what was… Christ knew very clearly what He was saying, and He was by no means uneducated or incorrect about His statements regarding the proverbial mustard seed. He stated in Matthew 13:31-32: “Another parable He put forth to them, saying: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field, which indeed is the least of all the seeds; but when it is grown it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.” The spiritual application of this parable is very clear. Christ compared the Kingdom of God with a very small seed, as it begins in a very small way. It is like a little bit of leaven, which will ultimately leaven the whole world (Matthew 13:33). Today, the gospel of the Kingdom of God is not accepted by very many, and very few–the firstfruits–respond to its message and become converted. Once they receive the Holy Spirit, they are begotten children of God and of His Kingdom–which is the Family of God that will rule on this earth, when Christ returns. Ultimately, the knowledge of God will cover the earth, as the… This is absolutely incorrect. Under the law, you are entitled to be excused from serving on a jury, if you have sincere religious convictions, based on the Bible, which prevent you from serving on a jury. You might be excused by a clerk, once you make your request in writing, or you may be required to appear before a judge to explain to him or her your sincere religious convictions. Our Q&A in Update # 66 (Update ending Friday, November 8, 2002), explains in detail the grounds for Biblical refusal to serve on a jury. It is true that some clerks have taken the incorrect position that the law prohibits them to excuse you from serving because of religious reasons. However, once their misapplication of the law was explained to them, sincere Christians opposed to serving on the jury were ultimately excused. To help you better understand the legal application of the issue, we are setting forth below excerpts from a letter with which we provide the courts in relevant cases. This document sets forth the legal rights of sincere Christians who refuse to serve on a jury because of their sincere religious convictions, which are based on Biblical grounds… It is important to understand exactly WHO did resurrect Jesus Christ, and that the Scripture reveals the truth in this matter. First of all, in the referenced verse in John 2:19, Jesus, as He oftentimes did, taught by means of an allegory and in this example He spoke of His own body as symbolic of the Temple (verse 21). This especially poignant parable was given by Jesus as the Jews were assembling to observe the Passover (Compare verse 13). A few years later, when the Jews did arrest Jesus, false accusations were made by some who thought that Jesus had spoken of the literal Temple in Jerusalem (Compare Matthew 26:60-61 and Mark 14:57-59). Additionally, Jesus was mocked by some even as He was crucified–challenging Him about His statement concerning the “Temple”(Matthew 27:40 and Mark 15:29). Further proof that Jesus was referring to His own body is borne out in the later teachings of the Church of God. We see that Paul instructed Christians in Corinth about the fact that God dwells in us through His Spirit: “Or do you not know that your body is the TEMPLE of the Holy Spirit [which] is in you, [which] you have from God,… We have published several pieces of literature on this misunderstood topic, including a booklet, titled, “Don’t Keep Christmas,” and an Editorial, in Update #89, on the celebration of Easter. In this Q&A, we would like to include several additional reasons, which clearly prove that it is absolutely WRONG for a true Christian to celebrate these holidays. These additional reasons are adopted from Professor Philippe Walter’s book, “Christianity–the Origins of a Pagan Religion,” copyright 2003, 2006. Walter is professor of medieval French literature, and has published numerous books on the Middle Ages. In his above-cited book, Walter makes several startling statements about the real origins of Easter and Christmas, as well as their customs. It has been well-known that Halloween was originally referred to as “Samhain” (compare our Q&A on Halloween). It is celebrated today by the Roman Catholic Church on November 1 as “All Saints’ Day.” That is the time, according to pagan belief, “when the beings of the Otherworld have temporary permission to visit the living and is also the moment when the living gain furtive access to the Otherworld” (Walter, page 35). Walter explains that pagans believed in the Otherworld “as a place of… While “forever” may indeed convey an absolute sense of being perpetual or interminable, “forever” is also used metaphorically and in a conditional sense. The Hebrew word that is translated many times as “forever, is “owlam.” It can be found in Daniel 12:2. In this case, the English word “everlasting” is used to translate the Hebrew word “owlam”: “And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, Some to everlasting life, Some to everlasting contempt.” This prophesied occurrence speaks of a future time when the fate of many humans will be decided on a perpetual and eternal basis. Jesus also taught about life that would be endless. In John 6:51, He states: “‘I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.'” The Greek word “aion” translated as “forever” in this passage is used by John in a similar context as he contrasted that which is temporary to that which is permanent: “And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does…Since I was baptized when I was young and because I was later baptized as an adult, is there any Biblical reason for me to be BAPTIZED AGAIN?
What is the meaning of the Biblical term, "elder"?
I have heard it said that the Biblical terms "all" or "every" [such as, "every person" or "every thing"] do not necessarily have to mean, "without any exception." Is this correct?
I have heard it taught that the ancient house of Israel engaged in Sunday worship. Is this correct, as I cannot find this stated anywhere in the Bible?
Why does God say that He wants to get to know His people? Doesn't God know everything?
Would you please explain Matthew 13:31-32? Was Christ incorrect when He referred to the mustard seed as the "smallest" seed? Aren't there smaller seeds than the mustard seed? And isn't it also incorrect that the full-grown plant is not the greatest among herbs? Wouldn't this mean that Jesus did not know the size of seeds and plants which He had created (compare John 1:1-3)?
Is it correct that we in the United States cannot be excused from jury duty for religious reasons? Therefore, we must serve on the jury, even though we are conscientiously opposed to doing so and might otherwise face contempt and jail?
In John 2:19, Jesus is quoted as saying "'Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.'" Did Jesus resurrect Himself?
Why do you teach that true Christians should not observe Christian holidays such as Easter and Christmas?
When the Bible uses the term "forever," does this always mean the same as "everlasting" or "eternally"?
