9 ¡âZX
E
?
?
9 9
9 9 T a l b o t ’ s Q u e s t i o n
SIN OF WORRY Q. I have a friend who is ill from worrying all the time. She frets about everything and declares all the ills in the world are happening, or are going to happen to her. What can I tell her? A . Worry is a sin. Fretting and worrying indicate a lack of faith in an all-wise and loving Father in Heaven, and that is a sin. First Peter 5:7 is reassuring if only we would heed it, casting all our care upon Him, remembering that He careth for us. Many other Scriptures admonish us not to worry, among which are to be found in Matthew 6:25-34, and Philippians 4:6, 7, 19. OBSERVANCE OF HOLIDAYS Q. According to Jeremiah 10:2 “ We are not to learn the way of the hea then . . . for the customs of the peo ple are vain.” Does this mean that all our celebrations of Christmas, Easter, Good Friday, Palm Sunday, etc., are pagan? What is the only true church? A . The observance of Christmas, Easter, Good Friday and Palm Sun day need not be pagan, although in some churches they may be so cele brated. However, in the greater number of evangelica l churches these occasions are) taken advantage of by both pastor and people to reach many with the gospel who would otherwise not attend the house of God. The true church of God is com posed of all who are born again by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and have had their sins washed away by His precious blood; they are to be found in all Christian denomina tions. No one group of Christians can claim that they are the only true church of Christ. W H A T ABOUT TH E APOCRYPHA? Q. Why are the Apocryphal Books included in the Roman Catholic Bi ble and excluded from the Protestant Bible?
declares it to be the doctrine of demons. God instituted marriage.
A. There are a number of reasons why the Apocryphal Books are not recognized by the Protestant Church as being inspired by the Holy Spirit: 1. They do not claim divine au thority. 2. Some of these books disclaim such authority, as seen in II Mac cabees 11:23; 15:38. 3. They contradict facts that are found in the Scriptures that we know are inspired. Compare Baruch 1:2 with Jeremiah 23:6, 7. 4. The Jews never received them as inspired. Orthodox Jews would rather forfeit their lives than falsify any portion of the Old Testament of sacred Scripture. They never accepted the Apoc ryphal Books as being anything more than the work of man. 5. The Lord Jesus and His apostles never quoted from them. 6. The Roman Catholic Church re jected them until 1545. Therefore it cannot claim apostolic author ity for them. These books were accepted at this late date because of a fanciful support that is found in them for the doctrine of purgatory. Some of the Apocryphal Books are historical; some are fiction. A care ful reading of them will convince one taught by the Holy Spirit that they were not divinely inspired. Q. Did Paul teach in First Corin thians 7 that the unmarried state was better than the married? A. If you read the chapter carefully, you will note that Paul advocated celibacy in this chapter only for the then present distress, not for all time. Even then he did not insist upon it. In First Timothy 4:13 he expressly warns against the teaching of those forbidding to marry, and CELIBACY BETTER TH A N MARRIAGE?
UNREPENTANT PHARAOH Q. Please explain why God said to Moses, concerning Pharaoh, “ I will harden his heart, that he shall not let the people go.” A. In the first place, before God hardened Pharaoh’s heart, Pharaoh hardened his own heart against God. Then, in order to show to the world what comes from rebellion against Him, God made an example of that wicked king, as a warning to others against similar rebellion. Read the whole story carefully, and you will see that repeatedly Pharaoh made such blasphemous statements as this: Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I know not the Lord neither will I let Israel go (Exodus 5:2 ). Again, it is a matter of the sov ereignty of our all-wise and all-lov ing God. Read once more Romans 9:14-24. And trust Him who doeth all things well to take care of such things that our finite minds cannot comprehend. Remember also — al ways — that He is the God of in finite love; and as such, He cannot be unjust or unrighteous. He is the God of all holiness and truth. W H Y WAS HELL DESIGNED? Q. In Matthew 25:41 I read, “De part from me, ye cursed, into ever lasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels.” Would this not im ply that hell is not prepared for man? A . It does imply that hell was not prepared for man. Hell was prepared for the devil and his angels. When man fell into sin, God prepared sal vation for him. But it is clearly stated that, if man rejects that pre pared salvation, he will find himself in the place prepared for the devil and his angels.
THE KING'S BUSINESS
20
Made with FlippingBook - Online catalogs