nected w ith the seasons of the moon. Easter is the third day after the Lord Jesus was crucified. This took place, of course, at the passover which is a Jewish feast. All such oc casions in the Old Testament are based upon the seasons of the moon. The Jews have a lunar calendar. Every so often, according to the rabbinical arrangement, they have a certain rec tification of the calendar. The Jewish month is composed of 28 days. As far as Easter this comes on the near est Sunday to a certain new moon in that time of the year. Q . Spokane, Washington — “How can a person deal w ith sin fu l thoughts?" A. “I f I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me.” Therefore, to harbor sinful thoughts in our minds and hearts means a shortening of prayer fellowship and communion. Yet, the promise of Scripture is, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” As soon as temptations come we need to repel them by filling our minds with the things of the Lord and of His Word. It is not sin to be tempted, but sin comes from actually harbor ing the evil thoughts. Immediately we should confess the sin and be assured of divine forgiveness. It needs to be done only once. God promises to for give and to forget. Proceed to live in the fullness of the joy of forgiveness, and to radiate the life of the Lord in your heart and life. Remember that He will keep in perfect peace all whose minds are stayed on Him. There can never be peace or a victorious life as long as our lives are fixed upon our selves. Q . Whittier, California — “In E cclesiastes 7:16 and 17 it tells us not to be righ t eous overmuch. Does this mean that we could become too spiritual?” A. The Book of Ecclesiastes is man’s reasoning on the human level, in his own limited way. But being righteous is not the same as spiritual. We can not be sinlessly perfect but we cannot
shall be taken from them, and then shall they fast.” In other words, after the great Delighter of their hearts was there, the Messiah of Israel, that one for whom righteous men and prophets had been waiting for cen turies to come, they had every reason to exult with exceeding joy. But the day was to come when the bridegroom was to be taken from them. Such cruelty was enough to make the angels weep, let alone the disciples. This sor row was the reason why they could not eat. Scripture gives us no indication that the Lord wants us to fast today. The New Testament does not set down any such regulation. It may be, however, that you are so taken up with a burden you are spending time in the Word, you have so much of a prayer objective, that eating is one of the last things you think of. A mother waits for a crisis with her sick child all night. Does food mean anything to her? She has some great er emotions. It is what has sometimes been called the expulsive power of prayer. If our communion with God puts a burden on our heart for the lost, and it is greater than eating, then fast. Do it out of grace and love, however, out of your own volition. Q . Phoenix, Arizona — “How could, JeSU S be ‘the Lamb slain from the founda tion o f the world’ when He did not die until Calvary?” A. In the oracles and ordained coun sels o f God, Christ was the Lamb slain from before the foundation of the world, although in the process of time the event was wrought out on Cal vary’s cross. But in the mind of God, He was slain from before the founda tions of the world. To understand this we must look at it from God’s point of view as well as man. Q . San Luis Obispo, California — ‘‘Why does E aster always come on Sunday, i f the tim e o f its observance is based on the seasons o f the moon?” A. Easter always comes on Sunday, even though its observance is con
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