Questions and Answers (Part 1)
For more than 15 years, your congenial editor has been doing Questions and Answers on the first Sunday of every month. Connor has taken his share of questions, and sometimes, we have devoted an entire worship hour to just one question (in a different time slot). Many questions have been asked over the years; below are some you may not remember or were not present for. Some edits were made to accommodate the transition from speech to the written page.
Why do Jews wear yarmulkes? When did they institute this tradition?
This is a matter of Jewish tradition—not something God commanded His people under the Old Law. According to Wikipedia, the word yarmulke derives from the Polish (or Yiddish) word jarmulke, meaning “cap.” It is pronounced (ya’ mul kah). It seems to be very popular right now, and Jews have an emotional commitment to it as an identifying mark. Conservative and traditional Jews wear it during worship. Reformed Jews do not.
Its purpose may signify that all are under the authority of God. In the first century, Greek men and women prayed without a covering, but Jewish men prayed with a covering. Paul deals with this in 1 Corinthians 11:2-16. He tells the men that having their heads covered dishonors their head (Christ). See verse 7, also. This tradition of the Jews appears to be a longstanding one—but without authority or requirement from God.
Where did Episcopalians and Methodists get their names from?
Episcopalian means “having bishops.” The origin of this religious group began when Henry VIII wanted to divorce his wife (one of the six that he had) and the Catholic Church refused to cooperate. He decided that he could be the head of the church in England instead of the pope. Sometimes it is referred to as the Anglican Church. In America it has been called the Episcopal Church.
Bishops are in charge of 111 dioceses, and it is in many ways like the Catholic Church—but, of course, without allegiance to the pope. The Greek word, episcopos, is translated bishop or overseer in Acts 20:28, Philippians 1:1, 1 Timothy 3:2, Titus 1:7, and 1 Peter 2:25. [In recent years, they have departed significantly from the Bible’s teachings on homosexuality and gender.]
Methodism had its roots in the 1700s but became what they are today in England with John and Charles Wesley nearly a century later. They are different from most Protestant churches in that they believe in free will rather than in Calvinism, but they still teach “faith only” with respect to salvation. The name reflects the methodical way they developed fo doing mission work, which is the reason they spread so rapidly.
Was the Lord’s Supper instituted by Christ or the Father?
At the Passover dinner, Jesus told His disciples how He wanted to be remembered (Matt. 26:26-30). After all, with Him about to die on the cross, who knows what men might have come up with as ways of remembering Him? They might have worn crucifixes around their necks and invented genuflection. They might have set a date for His birth—even though the Bible does not say when that event occurred—and had an annual Easter celebration. Well, those things occurred when He gave us instructions; imagine what might have happened if He had not.
But Jesus came to do the Father’s will (John 5:30; 6:38). His teaching was the Father’s (John 12:49). Jesus showed the disciples how He was to be remembered, but all things are of the Father.
What does selah mean at the end of several of the psalms?
Psalm 66 is given as an example. Selah appears after verses 4, 7, and 15. It occurs 71 times in 39 of the psalms, perhaps as many as four times in one psalm. It appears three times in the book of Habakkuk (3:3, 9, 13). It has been called one of the most difficult words to translate. Strong [#5542] says that it refers to “a suspension of music, a pause.” Gesenius says the word means “silence” and is a direction to the singer to stop while the music continues. Some have thought that it means “always” or “forever.” The root of the word means “to hang” as in weighing or measuring something. Thus, the idea has been presented that the reader of the psalm stops to give the hearers time to think and reflect on what has been said. Today it is used at the end of spoken-word segments of reggae songs.
Regardless of what selah is intended to convey, it is the case that we ought to pause and meditate upon the Word of God and its meaning. If we are not accustomed to doing so, it might be beneficial to read the Word aloud, as in a family devotional. Some truths might be overlooked in a silent reading (in an effort to complete a day’s schedule), that might be heard in a vocal expression. In either case, the Word of God is intended to build us up (Acts 20:32).
Why doesn’t anyone ever preach a sermon on gluttony? Isn’t it considered a sin not to take care of our bodies physically and spiritually?”
One reason might be that the Bible does not speak much about it. Here are the four passages in which the word is found.
1) Deuteronomy 21:20. Here it is linked with being a drunkard and rebelliousness.
2. Proverbs 23:21. Again, it is linked with a drunkard and laziness.
3. These are the only two passages in the Old Testament. The word translated “glutton” means “to shake, to make tremble, to pour out, to shake out, those who squander, prodigals, to be abject, worthless, vile.” It’s an interesting definition but not helpful in defining gluttony. In the New Testament the adjective gluttonous appears only twice (Matthew 11:19 and Luke 7:34). Both gospel writers are referring to the same event—the one in which Jesus said He was accused of being a gluttonous man and a winebibber by some. Of course, it was a false accusation. The Greek word here is phagos; it is related to phago, which simply is translated “to eat.”
4. History records that in the Roman empire some would eat, then cause themselves to throw up so that they could eat more. We can agree that this practice is wrong, but how can we define the word, which was considered one of the seven deadly sins in the Middle Ages? Most definitions say something such as someone with a voracious appetite or someone who eats immoderately. From there we might diminish it to “overeating,” but none of these words carries any precision. If we make it a habit to eat until we pop, that would be gluttony.
5. Should we take care of our physical bodies? Yes, but we ought to recognize that we live in a society that glamorizes the physical body to the neglect of spiritual development. Advertisements use sex and the flesh to sell products. Still, some New Testament passages may apply (1 Cor. 6:12; 18-20; 10:31). Going back for fourths might not be a good idea. Paul Harvey [noted news commentator] once reported that science has concluded that we eat too much and would be healthier if we ate less. Imagine!
What’s a good definition for revilers (1 Cor. 6:9)?
In the KJV, the word is translated “railer” in 1 Corinthians 5:11 but “revilers” here. The NKJ uses “reviler” in both places. Those are the only two times the noun is used. The adverb appears three times (1 Tim. 5:14—“to speak reproachfully” and 1 Peter 3:9—two times). The verb is used in four passages (John 9:28; Acts 23:4; 1 Cor. 4:12; and 1 Peter 2:23). The word primarily means “to speak evil of” someone. We should be careful that we do not become guilty of reviling others—it is a reason to withdraw fellowship. We know how Christ was reviled at Calvary. Acts 23:3-5 contains both a definition of the word and an example.
The Sabbath Day—Is this Saturday or Sunday? Years have changed the calendar; how do we know?
The Sabbath is Saturday. Christians have no command to keep the Sabbath, as the Israelites did (Ex. 31:16-17); we worship on the Lord's Day, the first day of the week (Acts 20:7). Dates have sometimes been changed throughout history, but the days of the week have always remained continuously the same, so far as we know.
Will the believers that go to heaven know one another as they knew them on earth, or just know each other as children of God? Who they will be in heaven?
We shall know each other in heaven. Jesus is known as Himself as He sits at the right hand of God. We shall retain our individuality. The rich man was still the rich man, and Lazarus was still Lazarus. Abraham was still himself, also (Luke 16:19-31).
After Jesus ascended back to glory, He was Spirit. What happened to His physical body?
Jesus' physical body was raised from the grave and reunited with His spirit (Ecc. 12:7); to enter into heaven one must be transformed into a completely spiritual body (1 Cor. 15:51-58).
Matthew 18:22-35. The forgiven servant (v. 34) who does not forgive others would be tortured until “he should pay all that was due….” Does this mean a period of punishment for some sinners before attaining heaven (purgatory or Hades)? Is it part of the initial judgment after the death of the body before the final judgment?
There is no such place as purgatory mentioned in the Scriptures; it is not found in 1 Corinthians 15:51-57 nor in 1 Thess, 4:13-17. One cannot find it in the entire book of Revelation (see 20:11-15). Perhaps most telling is that it is not in Luke 16:19-31. The idea that someone is punished and then allowed into heaven is as wrong as punishment prior to (alleged) annihilation.
The only initial judgment is the separation of the righteous from the wicked. What we refer to as THE judgment is the degree of punishment or the degree of the reward each person receives.
What might be confusing is the use of the word until, which does not always mean that the condition specified can be fulfilled. In this case, the debt was so enormous that he would be in torment all the rest of his life. He would be under the supervision of the torturers as long as his life lasted. Likewise, the debt of the unmerciful can never be repaid after this life; they will forever be in torment. Matthew 6:14-15 makes this point clear.
What is brimstone?
This word is used 7 times in the Old Testament and 8 in the New. The first occurrence in the Old is with Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen. 19:24), when God rained fire and brimstone down on them. Other references often recall this first one—especially Luke 17:29-32. The other references in the New are all in Revelation: 20:10 mentions the lake of fire and brimstone, the devil’s permanent home; 21:8 describes his company. Fire refers to intense physical pain. Brimstone is simply the chemical, sulfur. Its boiling point is 446 degrees—Celsius. It’s Hot!