Skip to main content

Posts

Showing posts from September, 2024

What Does It Mean that Women Must Be Silent In Church?

Let’s imagine that you have finally found that chance to study your Bible. With enthusiasm, you randomly open that book, lo and behold! It falls to the book of 1 Corinthians the 14th chapter, and the first thing that catches your eye is this...  As in all the churches of the saints, the women should keep silent in the churches . For they are not permitted to speak but should be in submission, as the Law also says. If there is anything they desire to learn, let them ask their husbands at home. For it is shameful for a woman to speak in church - 1 Cor 14:35-36 So, this is the knockout punch that has ended many Bible studies before they even start. You know, some things are so intimidating that you either run from them or confront them head-on. I mean there are some topics; some Bible verses that are so hard to understand that God’s people either run from and ignore or they just have to deal with them. Believers, throughout history, have found clever ways to dismiss this verse. One of t

Is the Church the New & True Israel?

I know that we have strong opinions about this issue. And also our emotions are quite attached to this conversation; all shaped by our experiences, political affiliations and the like – understandably so. However, my duty is to deal with this question: what does the Bible say? Whenever we start with that question, guaranteed, we are shielded from our biases towards the actual truth of the matter. Believe it or not, this is one of the most important things to learn and to have a clear understanding of. It will affect how you read the Bible. Even more, a clear understanding of this issue will affect your attitude toward Jewish people who are in Israel today. Who is Israel by the way? Believe it or not, there are some who disagree on this question, hence I will just let Paul tell us who an Israelite is when he says, … “For I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin… ”( Rom 11:1 ). Therefore, only the physical, direct descendants of Abraham, Isaac

Beware of the Pulpit Stories!

Storytelling is one of the oldest means of education. Humans were designed to get valuable lessons through the life experiences of their fellow kind. The same principle is applicable to Gospel preaching. As we see with our Lord’s parables, truth can be easily grasped through a certain story. Nevertheless, my concern today is the extreme side of this storytelling thing from the mouths of preachers. These are the dangers. When the story becomes the main message Should I remind all of us that it is the Word that has power to convict unbelievers, save sinners, and sanctify believers. It is sufficient for all matters concerning life and godliness ( 2 Tim 3:15-17 ). This means we need as much Bible as possible if we are to see a true revival in our lives. Yet, is it not concerning that most of our preachers work overtime to give us as little Bible as they can, while majoring on the individual stories of their experiences? In some cases, when it’s time for the Sunday Sermon, it takes more tha

What About “holy” Lying?

What if you find yourself in a situation where you have to lie to protect someone or even to save a life? A homely example is a Christian lady by the name Corrie-Ten Boom, whose house was a safe hiding place for persecuted Jews during World War II. When the Hitler soldiers knocked on her door, she denied ever having any hiding people inside her house. Hence those souls were saved from sure death – through that lady’s lie! So what does God say about that? What does the Bible say about that? In all honesty, this is the most difficult topic I have ever discussed. In fact, I might as well disappoint you by saying that I am still learning on this one, hence I will not end here with a definite conclusion. What I will do is to provide you with two different opinions  about this issue. So that you can also learn to think and decide for yourself. Let’s go... Opinion 1 : Lying is wrong, there is no justification for it. Our God is holy, and lying is sin. Scripture is clear that “all liars will