DK TALBOT’ Signs of the Lord's Coming Q. Do you see any more vivid signs of . the coming of the Lord at this tim e than you did last year? A. There are things now in sight more clearly this year which may, or may not, be signs of His coming to earth to set up His Kingdom. But we are not to be occupied with signs, times and events, but rather, we are always to be waiting for the Son of God from heaven to catch us up to meet Him in the air. This is a sign less and timeless event which may transpire at any moment of any day or any night. Keep looking up! How Long Has Man Been On Earth? Q. Is there any proof as to how long man has been on the earth? Text books used in the public school sys tems in several areas of the United States give but little information on this subject. A. We do not know how long man has been on the earth. The so-called prehistoric man and the stone-age man of the historians do not prove the myth of organic evolution. They rather prove the account of the first chapter in Romans where we are informed that when men departed from God they went into the depths of sin and degrada tion. This answer satisfies the Chris tian who takes God at His Word. Hundreds of schoolbooks used in our educational institutions of today sub stitute supposition for fact; fancy for theory; man’s human philosophy, which leaves God out, for the “Thus saith the Lord” of Holy Writ. Cor roborating this assertion is the late hoax of the “ Piltdown Man,” de scribed and picturized, even in au thentic dictionaries and foisted upon the youth of our land and the public in general. It seems man will stoop to any depth to deny the truth of the Word of God. If you own a Scofield Bible you will find the footnotes give much light upon the scriptural teaching concerning the o r i g i na l creation, chaos and the renovation of the earth.
made some to be wicked, to show forth His power and glory? A. This question is discussed in con nection with other passages of Scrip ture. Romans is very deep and diffi cult, but a careful study will reveal that God does not will that any man should be lost, or determine any man’s doom to eternal punishment. Let us note verse 22 which is, per haps, one of the most difficult in this passage: “What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction” ? Who fitted these people for destruction? Not God, surely, nor does the text say so. On the contrary, God’s attitude toward them has been one of long- suffering. These unbelievers fitted themselves, by rejecting God’s grace, by rejecting the only Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. Marriage in the Time of Christ Q. Please explain the use of the word espoused in the tim e of Christ. I accept the teaching of the virgin birth, but 1 am not able to explain this word to one who has asked about it. A. The Revised Version translates the word betrothed. The following state ment is quoted from the Teachers' Testament published by Thomas Nel son & Sons, New York City, and gives helpful information: “ The betrothal of a Jewish maiden was more bind ing and significant than a similar ceremony is with us. It implied that the bridegroom had paid to the fath er of the prospective bride a sum of money, by which payment the con trol of the father over his daughter had passed to the bridegroom. Be trothal ordinarily took place a year before marriage.” (See this footnote on Luke 1:27.) Readers are Invited to submit questions which will be answered in future issues. Address questions to Dr. Talbot's Question Box, 558 South Hope Street, Los Angeles 17, California. — ED.
Babylon the Great Q. Is Babylon the great spoken of in Revelation 17, Rome? A. Babylon the great spoken of in this chapter is more than Rome, though it includes Rome. It is apostate Chris tianity as it will be during the great tribulation after the true Church has been taken away, and will be headed up in what is left of the papacy. (You will be enlightened by reading 1 Thess. 4:4-17 and Rev. 4:1.) Millennial Glory Q. What is the glory referred to in Haggai 2:7? A. This verse refers to millennial glory. The comfort for the old men was the comfort of the man of faith who was thus assured that God had not forsaken Israel, but was yet to re-establish His temple in more than the former glory. They might not live to see it but the assurance would be a comfort and stay to them. What Time was the Crucifixion? Q. Is there not a discrepancy in the statements regarding the time of the crucifixion as given by Mark and John? A. There is no discrepancy. The com mon and correct explanation is that Mark (15:25) speaks according to the Jewish computation of time, saying, “And it was the third hour” ; where as John speaks according to the Ro man system of computing time in saying, “ the sixth hour.” Of course we know that Rome ruled the world in the day of Christ, including the land of Palestine. And many Roman customs prevailed, along with many Jewish customs strictly adhered to by the Hebrew people. In a word, Mark is speaking of Jewish time; John of Roman time. Does God Will Any to Perish? Q. How do you harmonize 2 Pet. 3:9, “ The Lord . . . is not willing that any should perish,” with some state ments in the ninth chapter of Ro mans which seem to indicate that God
THE KING'S BUSINESS
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