The Story Chapter 25 / The Greatest Question of All Time

A BBC magazine answered the “101 greatest questions of all time.”[1]  What did they include?  Well, questions like “What is OK short for?”  Answer? “OK comes from ‘oll korrect’, a deliberately misspelled writing of ‘all correct.’ It was popularized in Boston newspapers around the 1840s when it was fashionable to go around spelling things incorrectly for humorous effect.”

The #1 “greatest question” was “Where is the safest place to stand outside in a thunderstorm?”  And, in case you must know the answer, it is “A car or other enclosed metal structure is the safest place to be in a thunderstorm.”

Jesus asked a question that should have been first on the list.  He and the disciples were in Caesarea Philippi.  Call it the shopping mall of religion.  It was located in a region known as Paneon, or the home of the Greek god Pan.  Once it had been a center of Baal worship.  A temple was located there dedicated to the godhead of Caesar.  And other temples of Syrian gods dotted the landscape.

Plenty of gods to choose from in Caesarea Philippi.  So Jesus asks his disciples this question: "Who do you say I am?" (Mark 8:29).   Oh, at first he asked them what others were saying about him.  The answers came back in rapid fire:  “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.” 

But Jesus was more concerned with their answer to his question, so he asked, “Who do you say I am?”  They all looked at this homeless carpenter and thought about that question.  We don’t know how long they thought before Peter replied, “You are the Christ.”

Who do you say he is?  Have you given it much thought?  Some say he was crazy, claiming to be God but just a man.  Some say he was just another liar, that he knew exactly what he was saying but was deviously misleading those around him. 

But there are those who have said, along with Peter, that Jesus is the Christ.  He is “God in the flesh.”  He is the King.  He is the Savior.  You may know where to stand in a thunderstorm.  And you may think your life is OK.  But this week, if you have not answered this question from Jesus, then go to your own Caesarea Philippi, and let him ask you, “Who do you say that I am?” 

Your answer will be the greatest one you will ever give.

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[1] “Greatest 101 questions of all time: 1-20” found at  www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/

4696372/Greatest-101-questions-of-all-time-1-20.html

Sharing Your Faith

QUESTION:

HOW AND WHEN DO WE START A CONVERSATION WITH SOMEONE? SHOULD WE WAIT FOR SOMEONE TO BRING UP CHRISTIANITY?

ANSWER:

I would say that if your Christian faith is real to you then it will be a natural part of who you are. This means you don’t need an excuse to talk about Jesus, but that He is a natural part of your life and a natural part of conversation. Of the two articles above, I like the “Overflow if Your Heart Rule.” If Jesus is at the center of your life, then He will come out in normal conversations. Now I’m not saying that you say things like, “Hey I am going to the grocery store… pray to the Lord that I get there safe and back again. Send the angel of BOGO with me.” It will be more natural. Perhaps someone is sharing an issue they are having with a child. Pray with them about it. Don’t just say you will pray for them… actually pray for them. Maybe someone is talking with you about weight loss or another struggle they are having. When you share about your similar struggle, don’t leave out the spiritual aspect that is so important to you. Talk about how you pray or read the Bible for guidance. So I would say the short answer is always be ready for a conversation (Colossians 4:6) and you never have to wait to bring up your faith.

The HOW is a little different. The best way to bring up faith is to ask questions. When you ask people questions, this allows you an opportunity to share.

For example, a friend is telling you about discipline problems with their child or grandchild. You would normally ask, “What have you tried so far?” or “What advice have you gotten thus far?” or even better “What books have you been reading about discipline and kids?” You are being a good friend by helping them investigate what is going on. The opportunity will present itself… Why not also add, “Are you a person of faith, what does your faith tell you?” If they don’t have any faith… BAM… there is your opportunity to share with them from the Bible some perspectives on raising kids. Or if you don’t know that (let’s be honest, you probably won’t be that prepared), you could share how in tough times you rely on God. The best HOW way of introducing faith into conversations is through questions with a point.

Examples of questions with a point (the point being eventually you can talk about God):

How are you making through this tough situation?

Have you tried praying about this… are you a praying person?

Do you think much about spiritual things?

Additional resources:

http://awhitestoneblog.wordpress.com/2011/02/02/ways-you-can-talk-about-jesus-with-anyone/

http://www.teamsoc.net/index.php?page=26780

Troy Borst

Christian Education Minister

If you have a question about Scripture, please email me at troy.borst@newbeginningscctampa.org

More Than You Can Bear

QUESTION:

If “God will never give us more than we can bear,” why does life seem so hard sometimes and I get depressed?  Some people kill themselves.  Why is that verse in there?

ANSWER:

“God Will Never Give You More Than You Can Bear”

Do you think that’s true? Does it have a biblical basis?  Actually not.  We actually misread the verse and think that “God will not give us more hardship in this life than we can bear.”  Some would point to 1 Corinthians 10:13, “No temptation has overtaken you but what is common to man. And God is faithful, he will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way of escape so that you can stand up under it.”

God will never allow you to experience temptation that is too much to bear. This verse refers to solicitation to sin and enticement to do evil. Temptations are not necessarily related to troubles, trials, and suffering.  If the intent is to say that God will never allow his people to have more trouble than they can bear, it would seem to contradict what Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 1:8, “We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about the hardships we suffered in the province of Asia . We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life.”

ESV - “…utterly burdened beyond our strength”
NKJ - “…beyond measure, above strength”
NLT - “…crushed and completely overwhelmed”

It got so bad for Paul that he thought he’d never live through it! He faced hardships that were more than he could humanly handle. While his suffering was certainly severe, it was not unique. Any of us may some time experience troubles beyond what we are able to bear.

What we do have is hope in Jesus Christ, prayer, a church family, faith, and a peace that passes all understanding which are all promised to us to help in times of trouble.

Troy Borst

Christian Education Minister

If you have a question about Scripture, please email me at troy.borst@newbeginningscctampa.org

Thinking Evil Thoughts

This question came in response to our Share the Gospel class on the 4 Spiritual Laws. The four Spiritual Laws are:

1. God loves you and offers a wonderful plan for your life. (John 3:16, John 10:10)

2. Man is sinful and separated from God. Therefore, he cannot know and experience God's love and plan for his life. (Romans 3:23, Romans 6:23)

3. Jesus Christ is God's only provision for man's sin. Through Him, you can know and experience God's love and plan for your life. (Romans 5:8, 1 Corinthians 15:3-6, John 14:6)

4. We must individually receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord; then we can know and experience God's love and plan for our lives. (John 1:12, Ephesians 2:8,9, John 3:1-8, Revelation 3:20)

QUESTION:

If you think evil thoughts, is that sin?

ANSWER:

The answer to this question is yes. Actions are sin, but so are attitudes and thoughts. This is one of the hard parts about describing “sin” to anyone in law #2. Sometimes we all have different definitions of what “sin” is or what a “sinner” is. Sin is anything that is contrary to what God has for us which includes actions, words, attitudes, thoughts, decisions, etc. Hebrews 4:11-13 shares with us that everything we do and say and think will one day be judged. That is why law #3 is so important because through Jesus Christ our sins are paid for.

Here are some Bible verses:

Genesis 6:5 The LORD saw how great man's wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time.

Psalm 10:4 In his pride the wicked does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God.

Proverbs 15:26 The LORD detests the thoughts of the wicked, but those of the pure are pleasing to him.

Isaiah 59:7 Their feet rush into sin; they are swift to shed innocent blood. Their thoughts are evil thoughts; ruin and destruction mark their ways.

Matthew 15:19-20 For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. These are what make a man 'unclean'; but eating with unwashed hands does not make him 'unclean.'"

Hebrews 4:11-13 Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following their example of disobedience. For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

Troy Borst

Christian Education Minister

If you have a question about Scripture, please email me at troy.borst@newbeginningscctampa.org

Evil Spirits From the Lord

QUESTION:

I was reading in 1 Samuel 16 and in verse 14, it says that The Spirit of the Lord departed Saul and an evil spirit from the Lord tormented him. I did not know that the Lord would send an evil spirit. Is that right or is there a different translation?

ANSWER:

Well, it is a fine line between God “sending” an evil spirit and “allowing” an evil spirit to enter Saul. God on purpose removed His Holy Spirit from Saul which left him empty (see Matthew 12:43-45). He also allowed an evil spirit to enter Saul and allow it to torment him. To be honest, in Jewish theology (and in some Christian circles) there is no difference between God allowing something to happen and God doing it. God is sovereign and therefore if something happens, He allowed it or did not stop it. It is the same thought as in the life of Job. God allowed Satan to take his family, give him boils, etc, but the whole books speaks of God doing it to Job.

In the end, this is a complicated question.  In the end, we see that in ALL THINGS our God is sovereign and does allow evil to happen, but NO, He does not CAUSE it.

Perhaps the small study below will help you think through the issue…

“an evil spirit from the Lord” (3x in OT) + “God sent an evil spirit” (1x in OT)

[1 Sam 16:13-18] [1 Sam 18:10-11] [Judges 9:23]

1 Samuel 19:8-10  Once more war broke out, and David went out and fought the Philistines. He struck them with such force that they fled before him.  9 But an evil spirit from the LORD came upon Saul as he was sitting in his house with his spear in his hand. While David was playing the harp, 10 Saul tried to pin him to the wall with his spear, but David eluded him as Saul drove the spear into the wall. That night David made good his escape.

What do these above verses describe that was a spiritual reality for King Saul?

How do we reconcile these passages with James 1:12-14 which seems to state the opposite?

What do we notice about evil spirits in relation to God in Mark 1:23-27 and Mark 5:7-9?

What do we notice about evil spirits in relation to people in Acts 19:13-17?

In view of the Old Testament and New Testament, does God really send evil spirits to torment people and harm them? 

Troy Borst

Christian Education Minister

Suicide: the Unpardonable Sin?

QUESTION:

Is suicide the “unpardonable sin?”  If someone commits suicide… do they automatically go to Hell?

ANSWER:

Is suicide a sin?  Five to seven deaths may be considered suicides in the Bible. The biblical writers do not specifically state that such deaths are acts of sin. This probably is due to the fact suicide would be included under the law that forbids murder in the 10 Commandments. Some would be considered justifiable, such as that of Samson. He actually asked God to give him the strength to destroy the building he was in, an act that would kill the enemy as well as himself. 

Suicide was practiced as martyrdom by Christians during the Roman persecution. They would put themselves in situations where they knew they would be killed so they could die for the faith. Many of these believed martyrdom was a guarantee of entrance into heaven. 

Augustine was the first theologian to declare a distinction between suicide and martyrdom. He said suicide is an act of murdering oneself, a decision in direct opposition to God's will. Suicide, along with adultery and apostasy, came to be seen as unredeemable. Thomas Aquinas later classified suicide as a mortal sin that cannot be forgiven. Because of this, the Roman Catholic Church for many years refused to conduct funerals for people who took their own lives. In recent times, the Catholic Church has modified this view, stating that suicide is no longer viewed as a reason to deny a Catholic funeral, unless it would cause a public scandal. Protestant leaders Martin Luther and John Calvin did not declare suicide to be an unforgivable sin. 

The only sin the Bible declares to be unforgivable is that of blaspheming the Holy Spirit (Matthew 12:31-32). Bible scholars debate what this sin actually is. The basic meaning is that of denying the work of the Holy Spirit. Since the Holy Spirit is the person of the Trinity who convicts of sin and offers God's forgiveness for sin, to reject the work of the Holy Spirit is to reject forgiveness--by definition, the unpardonable sin (to refuse to be pardoned is unpardonable). A related sin is the "sin unto death" in 1 John 5:16-17. This is a reference to rejecting Jesus Christ and the salvation he alone provides. 

Suicide, for Christian doctrine has by and large held that suicide is morally wrong, despite the fact that no passage in Scripture unequivocally condemns suicide. Although the early church fathers opposed suicide, St. Augustine is generally credited with offering the first thoroughgoing justification of the Christian prohibition on suicide.  He saw the prohibition as a natural extension of the fifth commandment: 

The law, rightly interpreted, even prohibits suicide, where it says ‘Thou shalt not kill.’ This is proved especially by the omission of the word ‘thy neighbor’, which are inserted when false witness is forbidden in the commandment there is no limitation added nor exception made in favor of any one, and least of all in favor of him on whom the command is laid! (Augustine, book I, chapter 20) 

Suicide, Augustine determined, was an unrepentable sin. St. Thomas Aquinas later defended this prohibition on three grounds. (1) Suicide is contrary to natural self-love, whose aim is to preserve us. (2) Suicide injures the community of which an individual is a part. (3) Suicide violates our duty to God because God has given us life as a gift and in taking our lives we violate His right to determine the duration of our earthly existence (Aquinas 1271, part II, Q64, A5). This conclusion was codified in the medieval doctrine that suicide nullified human beings' relationship to God, for our control over our body was limited to us(possession, employment) where God retained dominium (dominion, authority). Law and popular practice in the Middle Ages sanctioned the desecration of the suicidal corpse, along with confiscation of property and denial of Christian burial. 

The Protestant Reformers, including Calvin, condemned suicide as roundly as did the established Church, but held out the possibility of God treating suicide mercifully and permitting repentance. Interest in moral questions concerning suicide was particularly strong in this period among England 's Protestants, notably the Puritans. Nonetheless, the traditional Christian view prevailed well into the late seventeenth century, where even an otherwise liberal thinker such as John Locke echoed earlier Thomistic arguments, claiming that though God bestowed upon us our natural personal liberty, that liberty does not include the liberty to destroy oneself (Locke 1690, ch. 2, para. 6).

Troy Borst

Christian Education Minister

If you have a question about Scripture, please email me at troy.borst@newbeginningscctampa.org

The Marks of Jesus

QUESTION:

In Galatians 6:17 it says, “Finally, let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus.”

What does that verse mean?

ANSWER:

There are two ways to interpret that verse depending on your Christian background:

For Protestants, we see him describing the marks on his body because of the beatings, shipwrecks, etc that he has gone through. All of that was for the Gospel and because of Jesus and so it is the “marks of Jesus” on his body because of his apostleship (because of Jesus). 2 Corinthians 4:10 uses the same language and speaks of the same thing.

For Roman Catholics, they may or may not agree with the above interpretation, but some of them may see in what Paul says that he experienced the “Stigmata” which are the “marks of Jesus” on believers in that they have a wound in their side and marks on their hands and on their feet and sometimes forehead. There is no basis for this in Scripture anywhere. St Francis of Assisi was the first one to claim he had the stigmata if I remember correctly.

So in interpreting the verse, yes, Paul is talking about being beaten in prison and being stoned and that the Galatians should not question his authority as an Apostle because “he has the bruises to show he is an apostle."

Troy Borst

Christian Education Minister

If you have a question about Scripture, please email me at troy.borst@newbeginningscctampa.org

Generational Curses

QUESTION:

In Matthew 27:24-25 it sounds like the people ask for a “generational curse” to be put on them so they could kill Jesus… is that true?

ANSWER:

In verse 24, Pilate is trying to rid himself of guilt over the death of Jesus.  He has declared Jesus innocent, but will still condemn Him to death.  He mentions “innocent of this man’s blood.”

The crowd has in mind Leviticus 20:9-16 which uses the phrase “blood on their own heads” to indicate responsibility.

The people are willing to accept the responsibility for Jesus’ death and even extend that responsibility to their children… in the legal sense. 

All of the language and actions going on in Matthew 27 are legal in nature.  The trials, passing Jesus between governors and kings, and other leaders.  The Jews were stuck because of Roman law and could not put Jesus to death themselves.

They state that if Rome decides to retaliate because they have done something illegal, they are willing to suffer.

RT FRANCE, TYNDALE NT COMMENTARY, pg 392: “Jesus has been ‘convicted’ under Jewish law, and they will therefore be answerable for his death to Rome or to anyone else.  To read this Declaration as an eternal ‘curse’ on the Jewish race is therefore to press the language beyond its biblical context… Matthew perhaps had particularly in mind the fate of the Jews of ‘this Generation’ in the Jewish War of AD 66-70, a fate already foreshadowed in 23:35-39 as a result of the rejection of God’s final messenger.”

IVP BACKGROUND COMMENTARY, pg 126: “Matthew probably relates this cry of the crowd to the Pharisaic opponents of his community and to the judgment of AD 66-70 that crushed the Next generation; but he would hardly would have approved of the anti-Semitic use to which this verse was subsequently put.”

THE WORD BIBLICAL COMMENTARY, MATTHEW 14-28, pg 827: “It is certainly the Jews of that generation – and indeed, only some of them – who were responsible for the death of Jesus, not the Jews of later centuries.  And that generation could from Matthew’s perspective easily have been regarded as suffering God’s judgment in the fall of Jerusalem when it occurred.”

In my opinion, there is no such thing as generational curses… especially for believers.  Not from God anyway.  Such things are not a Christian belief that I have ever known about.  I would, however, think that the more charismatic flavors of Christianity might believe in such things.  Almost all of the articles on the internet that deal with “generational curses” come from denominations that have a charismatic background.  There may in fact be consequences for sins that are passed from one generation to another, but this is not from God, but a side-effect of our sinful world and our sin nature.  This is not from God. 

http://www.gotquestions.org/generational-curses.html

There is a trend in the church today to try to blame every sin and problem on some sort of generational curse. This is not biblical. God’s warning to visit iniquity on future generations is part of the Old Testament Law. A generational curse was a consequence for a specific nation ( Israel ) for a specific sin (idolatry). The history books of the Old Testament (especially Judges) contain the record of this divine punishment meted out.
The cure for a generational curse has always been repentance. When Israel turned from idols to serve the living God, the “curse” was broken and God saved them (Judges 3:9, 15; 1 Samuel 12:10-11). Yes, God promised to visit Israel ’s sin upon the third and fourth generations, but in the very next verse He promised that He would show “love to a thousand [generations] of those who love me and keep my commandments” (Exodus 20:6). In other words, God’s grace lasts a thousand times longer than His wrath.
For the Christian who is worried about a generational curse, the answer is salvation through Jesus Christ. A Christian is a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17). How can a child of God still be under God’s curse (Romans 8:1)? The cure for a “generational curse” is repentance of the sin in question, faith in Christ, and a life consecrated to the Lord (Romans 12:1-2).

Another article about this:

http://www.answers2prayer.org/bible_questions/Answers/deliverance/generational_curses.html

Troy Borst 

Christian Education Minister

If you have a question about Scripture, please email me at troy.borst@newbeginningscctampa.org

Get Behind Me, Satan!

QUESTION:

Matthew 16:22-23 22 Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. "Never, Lord!" he said. "This shall never happen to you!" 23 Jesus turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are astumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men."

Jesus told Peter He must die and Peter told Him no.  Then Jesus rebuked Peter and said “get behind me Satan.”  I am guessing that anyone who stands in the way of God’s plan is Satan… is that right?  Peter had not grasped that Jesus was dying as part of God’s plan to save mankind. Is that close?  Another question about that verse is how was Jesus’ response to Peter an act of love?

ANSWER:

In pulling Jesus aside and rebuking/reproving Him, Peter was giving Jesus instructions on how things should go. This was very much a situation where the student was telling the teacher what was going to happen. In Peter’s case, the stakes or the situation was much higher. The disciple was telling the Master what should occur… the created was telling the Creator what should happen. In opposing the death of Jesus, Peter was advocating something directly opposite of the will of God and so was lining up directly with what Satan would have wanted. Satan was all about sidetracking Jesus from what God wanted (Matthew 4:1-11). Jesus would willingly go to the cross, but He did struggle with it (note the Garden of Gethsemane … “take this cup”). Peter, the Rock, was acting like a “stumbling block” instead and was attempting to tell Jesus what He should or rather should not do. Peter was neither Satan nor filled with Satan, but his attitude was the same as Satan’s and this was what Jesus was commenting on.

The command “get behind me” is a clearing away of the temptation/obstacle (Peter) so Jesus could focus on going to the Cross.

Jesus’ response to Peter was an act of love in that it undoubtedly crushed Peter and also shocked him to a right thinking and right belief about the mission of the Messiah. Knowing Peter the way we do from other Scriptures… Peter needed a harsh response to get through his thick head. Jesus DID have to die. He DID need to suffer and this was the path of the Messiah. Jesus could not let Peter keep his mind on the “things of men” or he would end up in a worse sinful situation (maybe like Judas Iscariot). Jesus’ harsh response was to shock Peter into right thinking. Jesus’ response put Peter on the right path of accepting Jesus’ role of the Suffering Servant and not the Conquering King.

I have always found it interesting that in Mark 8:32-33 which is parallel for this passage in Matthew, Mark does not report what Peter said to Jesus. Perhaps because Mark was Peter’s secretary and Peter was trying to block out what he said to the Savior of the World (maybe…my thought only). Mark wrote down Peter’s recollections of Jesus’ ministry which is why it is so action oriented. I wouldn’t want to admit what I said to Jesus either (my thought). Peter was a stumbling block for Jesus at this particular time.

Troy Borst

Christian Education Minister

If you have a question about Scripture, please email me at troy.borst@newbeginningscctampa.org 

Angels & the Temptation of Jesus

QUESTION:

The verse I have a question on is Matthew 4:11. Satan left and the angels came. Here’s the question: Why did the angels wait to come until after Satan left?

ANSWER:

Matthew 4:9-11: "All this I will give you," he said, "if you will bow down and worship me."  Jesus said to him, "Away from me, Satan! For it is written: 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.'" Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.”

We notice in verse 11 that at the end of Jesus’ temptations in the wilderness that angels came and helped Him.  We should notice two things about Jesus and the angels.  First, they came when He needed them and not before.  Jesus lived as 100% human being while on this earth.  He experienced life as you and I do and was tempted as you and I are (Hebrews 2:17-18, Hebrews 4:15).  The angels were not there to get Him out of a jam, He had to get Himself out of those situations.  Otherwise, Jesus would not have really been perfect and the Cross would not have been possible.  Jesus’ death on the Cross only takes away our sin because He was sinless… on His own… without help.

Second, notice that Jesus in charge and they come at His bidding.  In Matthew 26:52-54, Jesus tells the disciples that He has legions (that is a whole lot!) of angels at His disposal.  The angels let Jesus do His thing and fulfill Scripture and did not prevent events or attend Him when not needed.  They followed His lead!

Troy Borst

Christian Education Minister

If you have a question about Scripture, please email me at troy.borst@newbeginningscctampa.org