In your response to a question about calling clergy “father”, you once again led the reader to accept your personal, fallible interpretation of Scripture. Unless you are claiming your interpretations are infallible?  Why not give your reader a more complete picture of what Scripture has to say on this subject?  Why not point out that Jesus Himself used the term “father” in a spiritual sense?  Unless you are saying that the rich man was Abraham’s physical (biological) son (Lk 16:24-25)?

Why does Paul refer to christians in Corinth as his children? Are they all his biological children (1 Cor 4:14-15)?

What about the apostle John? Are they all his biological children (1 Jn 2:1)?  What about the Old Testament?  Joseph tells his brothers, “So it was not you who sent me here, but God, and He has made me a father to Pharaoh and lord of all his house and ruler over all the land of Egypt” in Genesis 45:8.  Job has a similar statement, “I was a father to the poor, and I searched out the cause of him whom I did not know” (Job 29:16).

I think you guys know better than that.  I think you know Jesus, John, and even Paul all used the term “father” in a spiritual sense.  Again, I find it interesting that you leave these verses out in order to “hit a home run” against a faith system you disagree with.  The Catholic Church is not, nor ever has been “wrong” concerning this issue.  How could they be?  If every christian is meant to search the Scriptures and determine doctrine based on the Scriptures, why are your interpretations correct and my interpretations incorrect?  I see the term “father” used in a spiritual sense all throughout the Bible.  Thus, if I am interpreting Scripture the same as you are, who are you to tell me I am wrong?  You even admit in a previous response to a question (“Trust No Man”): “We aren’t infallible here at AYP; we are just men.”  You might want to consider your previous statements before going and making an “infallible” proclamation concerning the practices of others.

Sincerely,
Swiss Guard

Dear Swiss Guard,

Oh, Swiss Guard, how we have missed you and your anonymous rants.  It is too bad that you never provide your e-mail address, so we could personally search the Scriptures together… it seems like all you want is to use our website to publicly voice your frustrations – but we digress.

First off, we have dealt with the way that Peter, Jesus, and John used the term ‘father’ – feel free to read the post from January 13^th, 2011 entitled “Parental Paradox” for an explanation of all those verses that you say we leave out.  We’ve handled this concern before.  We don’t avoid verses – we just keep them in context… unlike the Catholic church.

As far as Lk 16:24-25, the rich man was a Jew, and he would have considered Abraham his biological ancestor – just like all the Jews did (Jhn 8:39).  And Job 29:16 is literally saying that Job treated the poor like they were his children.

Now lastly, let’s deal with the idea of interpretation.  The Bible tells us that it isn’t a matter of private interpretation (2 Pet 1:20).  What you think and what we think doesn’t matter at all – what matters is what God said.  That is why we always give lots of verses to back up our answers, so readers can check the Scriptures for themselves.  People are fallible, but the Bible never changes and we encourage people to double-check for themselves.  But that doesn’t mean that we can each believe whatever we want and all be okay – if that were the case, there would be no such thing as right and wrong at all!  Instead, God’s Word is right though every man be found a liar (Rom 3:4).  Just like a roadmap or an instruction manual – it says what it says… not what you want it to say.

In the end, Catholicism is a false religion because it isn’t built upon the Bible.  Any religion that doesn’t use the Bible as its standard of measure is false (Gal 1:8).  The Catholic church tells people that they can’t eat certain foods, and it tells their priests that they can’t marry – which is wrong (1 Tim 4:3).  The Catholic church teaches that the Pope is directly in contact with God and that people should follow him… once again, wrong.  Christ is our direct connection to God (Heb 1:1-4), and the Bible is what we should follow (2 Tim 3:16-17).  Everything about the Catholic church’s organization is in direct opposition to the Scriptures.  The question isn’t how old a church is; the question is whether or not Christ is its head (Eph 5:23).  There is only one pattern for the church (Eph 4:4-6), and the Catholic church is not it.  But, don’t take our word for it – take His.

God says all gays are going to hell because they are gay, but God also said anyone who eats hoofed animals is going to hell, so does that mean anyone that has ever eaten at McDonald’s, Burger King, etc. is going to hell also?  Also, it says a women has to kill a goat when menstruating.  Isn’t sacrificing animals a pagan thing?  So won’t they go to hell for that, too?  Also, if God gives us free will, why do we even have commandments?  The irony in that is just too blunt.  Free will, then we have laws???  Why is Jesus born for man but made a god?

Sincerely,
Conflicted

Dear Conflicted,

We think you have an issue of receiving a lot of misinformation.  God does say that homosexuality is a sin (Rom 1:26-27), but the dietary habits and sacrifices that you referred to are Old Testament commandments.  First of all, it wasn’t all hoofed animals – just certain types (Deu 14:4-8).  Beef is from cattle and perfectly permissible, even to an Old Testament Jew.  As for animal sacrifice, that was a consistent part of Old Testament worship, but now that Jesus has come, we no longer are bound by the old law (read “Changing Of The Guard” for further information).

Last but not least, let’s address your concerns about Jesus and freewill.  Freewill doesn’t mean that you are incapable of doing anything wrong – it actually means the exact opposite.  Freedom to choose means that you can choose to do the right thing or choose to do the wrong thing.  God didn’t make us to be robots; He gives us the ability to live by His rules or to rebel against them.  He has set life and death before us, and we get to decide for ourselves how we want to live (Deu 30:19).  All mankind has sinned (Rom 3:23), and Jesus, God’s Son, came down from heaven and died on a cross, so we might have forgiveness of those sins.  Jesus is Deity (Jhn 1:1), and He emptied Himself that He might give us the freedom to choose life in Him (Php 2:6-8, Jhn 3:16).  If you would like more information about what it takes to choose Christ and be saved, please read “Five Steps To Salvation”.

On July 5th, the only animal that ever loved me (and I her) died next to me in my bed.  She was sick for a while, and I had prayed for her healing.  However, your god took her from me peacefully.  I am so angry at your god that I am cursing him with as much anger as I can stand.  He has really hardened my heart against him.  If there is a god, why doesn’t he hear me, and why didn’t he heal my baby?  I may never believe in him again, and this was all his fault.  If he cares so much for us, then why did this happen?  I just can’t pray on his deaf ears anymore.  I can’t explain the anger that I have against him… if there is a him up there.  I have been a believer all of my life, and this is changing my mind to go over to the other side and start over again.  Maybe the worship of a cow or a monkey isn’t such a bad idea.   All of those people can’t be wrong, could they?

Sincerely,
Grieving

Dear Grieving,

We are so sorry for your loss.  Losing a beloved animal is a very difficult loss.  We often have people write into the site after a great trial in their life and ask us, “Why?”.  We wish we could give you a specific answer, but we can’t.  We can tell you that God didn’t bring death into our world – sin did.  In the Garden of Eden, all life was blessed, and everything was perfect (Gen 1:31).  It is only after mankind sinned that death and suffering were introduced (Gen 2:17).  All of creation was affected by sin (Gen 3:17-18).  The devil would have us blame God for our suffering, but he is the one that created all the chaos and hurt (Gen 3:13).

Our hearts go out to you in your time of suffering.  We cannot imagine how you must be feeling (Pr 14:10), but we hope your hurt eventually draws your heart nearer to the Lord for comfort (2 Cor 1:3).  If you are in need of a congregation in your area to edify and encourage you at this time, we would be happy to help you find one (our e-mail is askyourpreacher@mvchurchofchrist.org).

If God is omniscient (knows the past, present, and future things to come), how come He created people that He knew would only end up in Hell to suffer forever and forever without ever being able to repent or escape… and yet says He loves people?

Even if you say, “it is each person’s choice on whether or not they go to heaven or hell”, set that aside and ask yourself: what loving, caring couple, if they knew in advance, that a child they could conceive, raise, etc. would only ultimately end up in an eternal hell would go ahead and procreate that child?  I don’t think any good, loving parent would do that.

Also, how come we think God is “pro-life” when He condoned the killing of men, women, and children (including infants) in the Old Testament?  Whatever the excuses or rationalizations are… they would just be making excuses for acts of atrocities.

Sincerely,
Where’s The Good?

Dear Where’s The Good,

God could have made us without the freedom to choose, but then we wouldn’t be “in His image” (Gen 1:26)… we would be automatons.  You told us to set aside human choice, but setting aside the freedom to choose isn’t as easy for us as it is for you.  If every parent had the choice between having a child that may break their heart or purchasing a robot that would obey their every command… well, the choice is obvious.

God has to make complex decisions that allow individuals the freedom to choose while still keeping the rest of mankind safe.  Every time that God has destroyed a nation, He has done it for the safety of other nations and because that nation had become so corrupt that it was unsalvageable (Gen 15:16, Gen 6:5).  God knows that infants will be safe in His arms when that nation is destroyed.

In short, your argument makes perfect sense – if people weren’t people and freewill wasn’t important.

“God so loved the world…” that He drowned it.  How is that a loving act?

Sincerely,
Flooded With Emotion

Dear Flooded With Emotion,

Because God loved the people of the world – not the physical planet.  The Great Flood of Genesis 7 was an effort to give mankind a second chance.  God took the last righteous people on the planet and saved them from the corruption of a completely wicked generation (Gen 6:5-6).  God saved the eight people of Noah’s family through those floodwaters (1 Pet 3:20).  The rest of that generation was beyond redemption, so God (in His infinite love) saved those who could be salvaged.

(This post is a follow-up to “Bullycide”.)

Sorry, I disagree on a couple of points.  I’ve been in the line of fire, so I know from firsthand experience that some kids are sinners of the worst kind.  I believe some kids ARE aware of what they’re doing, and if God let evil people like that into heaven, it wouldn’t be heaven anymore.  Kids who drive other kids to their grave are guilty of MURDER in the sight of God.  You can’t let the wicked off the hook.  Jesus put no age limit on repentance.  He said, unless you repent, you shall ALL likewise perish (Luke 13:3-5).  Paul says in I Cor.7:14: Else were your children unclean, but now are they holy.  Merely being a child doesn’t bring holiness.  There are clean children and unholy children.

The prophet Elisha was teased (apparently, only verbally) by a gang of youths for being bald in 2 Kings 2:23-24.  Elisha pronounced judgment on those kids.  He didn’t absolve them of blame just because they were young.  NO WHERE in scripture does God say you’re automatically innocent if you’re below the age of 18, 13, or whatever.  What’s missing in modern pulpits is good, old-fashioned, fire-and-brimstone preaching.  God’s love is so overemphasized to unrepentant sinners that they never suspect there might be a fiery hell awaiting them on the Day of Judgment and God’s righteous wrath against sin.

Sincerely,
Done Being Bullied

Dear Done Being Bullied,

We appreciate your points and think there might be some miscommunication.  There is an age where a child reaches young adulthood – often known as the “teens”, and children do begin to be responsible before God for their choices.  There is a point where a child ceases to be simply a product of their environment and transitions into being a culpable adult who has chosen a path of righteousness or wickedness.

However, children are not born in sin as you seem to be stating.  1 Cor. 7:14 is being used out of context.  In 1 Cor. 7:14, the children are ‘holy’ because they are purified by their believing parent’s influence.  Otherwise, 1 Cor. 7 would be literally saying that a child is bound for hell or bound for heaven based off of whether or not their parents are christians.  Jesus died to save the whole world (Jhn 3:16), and every human has an opportunity to obey Him.

2 Kgs 2:23-24 is dealing with teenagers (or young adults), not small children.  Yes, many of today’s youth exhibit the same hateful and rebellious attitudes that are shown by that gang of young adults that Elisha interacted with.  Children that rebel against parents and show a lack of respect for authority are clearly condemned in the Scriptures (Col 3:20, Deu 21:18-21).

We couldn’t agree more that there is a need for preaching on hell and the judgment to come (if you read the answers to many of our questions, we think you will see that we don’t shirk our responsibility to that topic).  Once we reach the age where we are old enough to make decisions and repent of those decisions on our own – we must prepare ourselves, so that we won’t perish (Lk 13:3-5).  Children eventually become adults, and as adults, we must be prepared to meet our God.

You wrote, “The story is not directly applicable to us today because we can’t perform miracles like the apostles could – but there is an important principle being taught.  Faith makes a difference.  Faith is one of the greatest elements of Christianity (1 Cor 13:13).  If we trust God, great things can happen.”  You gotta be kidding, right? (Of course you’re not – you are serious).  Why must you say such ridiculous things such as this; we can’t perform miracles like the apostles?  Why can’t we?  Because you can’t?  Because you are a supposed man of God and haven’t this authority to perform the works of God?  God is, was, and will be.  He hasn’t changed; if He wills me or someone to do His will with that of His miraculous ability, He is free to do so.  To claim that God doesn’t do this anymore is the equivalent of the Jehovah’s Witnesses saying angels don’t give messages like in the Bible anymore!  Who are you to make such claims?  You have not got the authority to be so pompous to state that as TRUTH!  However, you have freedom of choice, and you may continue to say what you will, but, friend, I tell you this, you could say anything, but that in it of itself means nothing.

Sincerely,
Who Do You Think You Are?

Dear Who Do You Think You Are,

Yes, we are serious – and we’ve got the Scriptures to back it up.  God clearly said that there would come a time when miracles would cease (1 Cor 13:8).  A miracle is something that breaks the laws of physics (such as raising someone from the dead, supernaturally healing leprosy, etc.).  Miracles were needed to prove that Jesus and His apostles were sent from God (Acts 14:3, Acts 2:22, Jhn 9:16).  Now that we have the perfect and complete Bible, we no longer need those miracles – which was Paul’s point in 1 Corinthians.  When the “perfect” of 1 Cor 13:8-10 happened, the church no longer needed miracles to further the message of Christ.  After the Bible was completed, the church was able to fully see God’s message of salvation (1 Cor 13:12) without further need of prophecies and miracles.

Some other articles (with further Scriptures) you might want to read on the subject are “I Dreamed A Dream”, “Three Cheers For Miracles”, and “Gifts That Stop Giving”.  We completely agree with you that just saying something doesn’t make it true; that is why we wanted to show you the plethora of verses on the topic.

First of all, let me state that I am a believer in God’s Word.  I do believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God; however, is it so impossible that human intervention (we are blessed with the gift of free will after all) in the compilation of the Bible did omit books?  Weren’t the four gospels chosen out of all the others to be included because of the way they were written – easy to understand, story lines, and recognizable authors, etc. – because a group of humans got together and voted?  And as for my disinformation, I have to disagree – I AM a woman, therefore I know what it is like to be treated condescendingly because of that fact.  Long hair as a covering… what about short hair; are you saying that is a sin?  Silence in church assembly… so if I let out an “Amen” or “Praise Jesus” during a sermon, I am sinning, but if a man does, he is not?  Why should a woman’s role not include leadership?  As for Mary Magdelene, by me quoting “kissed her on the…”, I meant to illustrate their relationship not as a romantic one, but as a fellowship.  Do you mean to tell me that Jesus and Mary didn’t have a relationship?  If you follow that line of logic, then it would be logical to say that He did not have a relationship with the twelve either.  She was part of His entourage, for lack of a better word, along with the twelve disciples.  Friendship/Fellowship/Discipleship is a *relationship*, is it not?  What about the paintings they have found in ancient worship sites with Mary in a teaching position with her two fingers raised that have been scratched out…by a human’s male hand no doubt…simply because of sexism?  Is it not fact that at the time the Bible was written, women were considered so second-class that to even include them in a conversation or use them as a witness, was laughable?  For example, you seem to have labeled me in a derogatory way by judging me and calling me a feminist simply because I am asking a question that perhaps is not answerable until we are able to ask the Source.  No, God does not care about our gender, on this point we agree… but we humans sure do!

Sincerely,
Would Prefer Not To Be Called A Feminist

Dear Would Prefer Not To Be Called A Feminist,

To begin with, we did not mean to offend you by using the byline ‘The Feminist’ – your question was about female rights – the title seemed appropriate because ‘feminism’ is defined as ‘the advocacy for women’s rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality with men’… isn’t that what you are trying to defend?

Now having said that, let’s address the issue.  No, parts of the Bible are not missing.  You cannot simultaneously say that the Bible is divinely inspired and also say that God allowed necessary parts of it to be lost.  If the Bible isn’t exactly as God wrote it, it isn’t God’s Book anymore.  You can’t have it both ways.  Your whole argument is based off the idea that when you run across something you find distasteful in the Scriptures (in this case, the verses concerning men’s and women’s roles), you can simply say, “We don’t have the complete Bible”.  Jesus says that not even the tiniest detail of the Scriptures have been lost (Matt 5:18).  Jude says that we have the Word of God handed down to us “once for all” (Jude 1:3).  Regardless of what ancient paintings, manuscripts, mythology, etc. you reference – the Bible is what the Bible is.  Your frustrations with what the Bible says about hair length, women leadership, etc. are not with us… they are with the Scriptures.  No matter how many times you talk about these subjects, you will still have to contend with verses like 1 Cor 11:15, 1 Cor 14:34, Eph 5:23, etc.  These verses aren’t going away.  God, from the very beginning, designed men and women to be equal heirs of salvation (1 Pet 3:7) but to have different roles.  Men and women are different – frankly, that shouldn’t be news to anybody.

The differences between men and women are often abused by both genders.  Women tell jokes about how stupid men are, and men condescend and demean women… neither behavior is right.  In the Bible, God doesn’t ignore the differences between men and women; He explains how men and women ought to live to fulfill their fullest potential.  Until we accept that we must mold our lives as God desires, we will never truly be submitting ourselves to Him… and whether male or female, we are all subject to God (Jas 4:7).

We are to remain silent and ask our husbands?  What about women’s Bible study groups where we ask someone other than our husband a question?  Aren’t we also, according to John, to cover our heads?  Is this not just a cultural bias of the time in which this was written?  There is no precedence that has made it past the Nicene council as to what books are canonical and which are not.  Did Jesus not love Mary Magdalene (and kiss her on the …?), that somehow got written off as a prostitute, so that males can continue to dominate?  Why should it be that because God chose to make me a woman that I am second class to a man?  Why should it not be that He created me to be just as smart, capable, and able to lead as a man?  Doesn’t God only care about our spirit and not our anatomical parts?

Sincerely,
The Feminist

Dear The Feminist,

Before we address your question, let’s get one thing straight – the Bible is complete, and there aren’t any books left out.  Read “Books of the Apocrypha” to better understand that topic.  If we don’t at the very minimum agree that the Bible is written exactly as God intended, we have no common ground with which to have a sensible discussion.  There is ZERO reason to believe that Jesus had a relationship with Mary Magdalene… that is just apocryphal mumbo-jumbo.

Now, on to your question regarding men’s and women’s roles.  You have a lot of disinformation that is coloring your question.  God doesn’t treat women as second-class citizens – they are equal heirs of salvation (1 Pet 3:7).  Women don’t need to have their heads covered – their long hair is their covering (1 Cor 11:15).  Women are also welcome to ask questions in Bible studies – the command of 1 Cor 14:34-35 pertains to the church assembly, not individual classes.  Men and women are created different, but equal.  God has designed men and women to complement each other – Adam and Eve were a pair that were incomplete if separated (Gen 2:20).  God doesn’t care about our gender… He cares about whether we are willing to fulfill the role He has given us in this life.

Know that the Bible HAS NOT been translated into every single language on the earth; there are still thousands of tribes out there that have not heard the gospel and do not have the Bible in their language.

Please be careful when making such assumptions. If you are going to disagree, again, you are simply wrong on this point. I know people right now who are out in Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, and the Philippines that are translating the Bible into languages that do not have it, RIGHT NOW.

Sincerely,
The Linguist

Dear The Linguist,

The statement we made concerning translations can be found in this post. We said, “Now that the New Testament is complete and has spread to every nation and language, there is no need for miracles.” Though it is true that there are literally thousands of dialects that the Bible has not been translated into – the Bible is translated so that over 99% of mankind can read it in a language that they are fluent in. This doesn’t even account for people receiving the gospel message through someone preaching and speaking the Word. We often forget that many people depend on the gospel being spoken to them because they are illiterate. Many of these obscure settlements only have spoken languages – not written ones. The United Bible Society puts the total amount of languages and dialects that the Bible has been translated into at 2,479 as of Dec. 31, 2008.

Places like the Philippines do have pockets of aboriginal people with isolated dialects and cultures, but that notwithstanding, the process of translating the Bible into all the major languages of mankind is considered a resounding success. This fact is not intended to undermine the importance of bringing the Bible to as many of these aboriginal cultures as possible; it is simply to say that using the term ‘all’ is appropriate. When we say the Bible is translated into all languages, we are using the word ‘all’ in a non-technical sense. It is the same as saying, “I cleaned all of my house today” even though I’m sure dust could be found in some unseen corner. The Bible has indeed spread to all nations under heaven. We appreciate your zeal for the topic though.

Why is it that talking to certain christians is a lot like talking to a communist?

Sincerely,
Comrade

Dear Comrade,

There are three possible reasons:

1. Many christians are communists. Cuban christians are communists. Chinese christians are communists. Christians can be found amongst all the nations of the world. Christ died for us all, whether slave or free, Jew or Gentile (Col 3:10-11). Perhaps, you have been visiting these places lately and met a christian to talk to there. That would explain why they sounded that way.
2. Communists are also known for their belief in a unified government under a single party. That would be similar to Christianity. Christians all serve Christ as the head of the church (Eph 5:23), and within the church we are all equals and servants one of another (Matt 23:8). If you really wanted to stretch the idea, you could say that Christianity completes the utopia that Karl Marx wished for (but failed to achieve). In Christ, all are equal, all help each other, and all have hope. Maybe that is why you feel that talking to certain christians is like talking to a communist.
3. It could just be that you are attempting to be rude and mean.

Let us hope that it isn’t the last one.