furnace as the One “ like the Son of God” (Dan. 3 :25 ); He was “ the angel of the Lord” before whom “ Joshua the high priest” stood, Satan also “ standing at his right hand to resist him” (Zech. 3 :1 ). From the context of these Scriptures we note that in several of these ap pearances of our Lord, the descrip tive terms are either “men” or “man” — suggestive of the human form. However, in the light of the fact that our Lord did not receive His human body until He was “made flesh” (John 1:14), we con clude that His appearances in the Old Testament period were likely in angelic form. Christ's Crowns Q. Is the Lord Jesus crowned now, or will He wear a crown after the church is raptured? Can we take Psalm 8:5 and Hebrews 2:9 as meaning literal crowns? A. Nothing is said in Scripture to prove that Christ is wearing a crown at the present time. We know that “ God hath highly exalt ed him” (Phil. 2 :9 ); but whether this exaltation includes a crown, we do not know. However, we do know that “ crowns” are awards for service rendered to God (1 Thess. 2:19, 20; 2 Tim. 4 :8 ; Jas. 1:12; 1 Pet. 5 :4 ); and that Christ has al ready received a crown of glory and honor, or will receive it in the future (Psa. 8:5; Heb. 2 :9 ). This crown, or award, is for His suffer ing on Calvary’s cross for man’s sin. We read in Revelation 19:11, 12 that at His second coming Christ will have “many crowns.” These we take to be literal, visible dia dems. From the Hebrew origin of the word “ crowned,” we learn that this act is “ to adorn with an honor ary wreath.”
tians give two or three times that much. And some who are blessed with this world’s goods have given as much as one-half of their income to the Lord’s work. 1 Corinthians 16:2 is a good rule to follow in New Testament giving. The 8th and 9th chapters of 2 Corinthians should be read and followed by all believers. Whatever we give and whenever we give, the sum should be that which is devoted specifically to the Lord’s work and nothing else. So while the church may derive some benefit from the cost of a church supper, the one buying the ticket does too, so I should not rec ommend that one’s tithe or offering for the Lord’s work he used in this way, but rather that the Christian take it out of his own pocket. Christ in the Garden of Eden Q. What form did God take when He walked in the Garden of Eden? A. The appearances of God in Old Testament times were pre-incamate manifestations of our Lord Jesus Christ. God’s appearance in the Garden of Eden was one of these revelations. Sometimes these the- ophanies reveal the appearance of God in the form of an angel. How ever, when Christ is described as “ the angel of the Lord” or “ the angel of the covenant” it must he remembered that this “ angel” is entirely distinct from the created angels. Christ was the Creator of the angels. (See Hebrews.) W e read that when God talked to Abraham, “ three men stood by him” (Gen. 18 :2 ); and we learn from verse 1 of this chapter that one of the “men” was the Lord. Again He appeared to Joshua as the “ captain of the host of the Lord” (Josh. 5 :14 ); He walked with the three Hebrew men in the fiery
" In " and "O n " Q. Is there any significance in the fact that the preposition “ in” in stead of “ on” is used in Matthew 6:10, John 11:25, and similar Scrip ture references? A. A search of the Scriptures and a study of these terms in concord ances, Greek grammars, etc. reveal that they are used throughout God’s Word with approximately equal frequency. Not only is this true of the wording in general, but it is particularly noticeable in the refer ences pertaining to belief in or on the Lord Jesus Christ. Here are a few examples: “ in” is found in John 3:15 ,16 ; 7:5; 14:1; Acts 10: 43; Romans 3:26; and “ on” is used in John 3:36; 5:24; 12:44; Romans 4:5; 9:33. The expressions are syn onymous and are used interchange ably. No particular significance is involved in the matter. The Tithe Q. Please tell me whether my tithe money should be used for church suppers. A. For the Christian of today, the Lord has laid down no hard and fast rule for tithing. The Israelites were commanded to do so, but we live in the age of grace and are free to give when, where and how we please. However, the Holy Spirit is our Guide. What we do for the Lord should he the result of His direction and given out of love for Him, and to the work that is near est His heart: that of winning souls, at home and abroad and of build ing up His children in their most holy faith. It is often said that if the Jews gave one-tenth trader law, surely we who are under grace will not give less than that. Many Chris
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The King's Business/May 1958
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