Q: Would the ministry of the Church of the Eternal God and of its affiliates in Canada and Great Britain perform a marriage between a "believer" and an "unbeliever"? Would they officiate over a marriage between two "unbelievers"? What are the Biblical principles that would apply in these cases?

A: In order to properly answer this question, we need to go back and review the biblical basis for a decision that the Worldwide Church of God made under Mr. Herbert Armstrong in 1974, involving divorce and remarriage. Prior to 1974, it had been the understanding of the Church that every marriage was bound in God’s eyes. This included civil marriages, whether or not the married couple “invited God into their lives,” and — arguably, it included even marriages of persons who didn’t even claim to believe in the God of the Bible. Mr. Armstrong explained our growth in Biblical knowledge regarding this point in a member letter, dated May 14, 1974:

“God has revealed HIS LAW OF MARRIAGE — His TRUTH about marriage — God’s PURPOSE in marriage, its sanctity, its PERMANENCY — to His Church. And we applied that truth to ALL marriages, ASSUMING that God entered into every marriage, EVEN THOUGH GOD HAD NOT ENTERED INTO THE LIVES OF THOSE we SUPPOSED He had bound… Unconverted people have never let GOD enter their lives. They live APART from God — CUT OFF from God — because sin cuts one off from contact with God (see Isa. 59:2). When they have never let God come into their lives — have been CUT OFF from contact with Him — could He enter into their MARRIAGE and BIND them?… The unconverted are BOUND by the state, but NOT DIRECTLY BY GOD! Their marriages are LEGAL. Their children are LEGITIMATE — in no sense bastards — but the children of the unconverted are not HOLY.”

Continue reading "Q: Would the ministry of the Church of the Eternal God and of its affiliates in Canada and Great Britain perform a marriage between a "believer" and an "unbeliever"? Would they officiate over a marriage between two "unbelievers"? What are the Biblical principles that would apply in these cases?"

Q: Should a Christian ever charge another person, including another Christian, "interest" or "usury"?

A: Many Scriptures prohibit the charging of interest or usury in certain circumstances.

For example, Exodus 22:25 states, in the Authorized Version, “If thou lend money to any of my people that is poor by thee, thou shalt not be to him as an usurer, neither shalt thou lay upon him usury.”

The Hebrew word for “usury” is “neshek” or “neshech” and has the meaning of “biting” (Young’s Analytical Concordance). Its root word is “nashak” or “nashach.” Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance, under Nos. 5391 and 5392, gives the following explanation: “…to strike with a sting (as a serpent); fig. to oppress with interest on a loan.”

Soncino points out: “That which ‘bites’ (nashach) like a snake. The victim of a snake does not at first feel the bite, but soon the wound swells and spreads over the whole body; likewise it is with usury: at first the borrower does not feel its pinch, but little by little it grows until it amounts to a crushing sum. Do not impose usury on the borrower in consideration of an extended time limit for repayment.”

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Q: Romans 9:13 states: "Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated." Malachi 1:3 states: "But Esau I have hated, And laid waste his mountains and his heritage For the jackals of the wilderness." The New KJV commentary points out: "The expression Esau have I hated cannot simply mean to love less but must mean, in the context of Malachi 1:1-5, that God has actually directed his wrath toward Esau and his descendants. The judgments upon Edom are positive judgments and not merely the absence of blessing. God displays His wrath upon the sins of Edom not in unholy rancor but in righteous judgment. He does the same with individuals." However, Galatians 2:6 states: "But from those who seemed to be something — whatever they were, it makes no difference to me; God shows personal favoritism to no man — for those who seemed to be something added nothing to me." Luke 20:21 confirms: "Then they asked Him, saying, 'Teacher, we know that You say and teach rightly, and You do not show personal favoritism, but teach the way of God in truth…'" The question is that, by loving Jacob and hating Esau, wasn't God showing favoritism when the references to Galatians 2 and Luke 20 show that God has no favorites? Can you please explain.

A: We are glad to. To understand all these passages in their proper context, we must realize that God has decided to call a few people during this day and age, to offer them salvation, while the overwhelming majority of mankind will be called at a later time — during the Millennium, and during the Second Resurrection and the Great White Throne Judgment period (Revelation 20:6, 11-12). Everyone will get his or her chance to respond to God, but everyone in his or her own order (compare 1 Corinthians 15:23). God has not preordained anyone to eternal death — those who are not called yet are not judged yet — they will be judged later, when their time of calling has come.

The quote from the New KJV commentary conveys a blatantly false concept. The authors simply do not seem to understand God’s character, nor God’s purpose for mankind. God most certainly does not hate anyone, “before having done any good or evil” (Romans 9:11). Rightly understood, God does not hate anyone at all, but He does hate the evil that a person commits.

Continue reading "Q: Romans 9:13 states: "Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated." Malachi 1:3 states: "But Esau I have hated, And laid waste his mountains and his heritage For the jackals of the wilderness." The New KJV commentary points out: "The expression Esau have I hated cannot simply mean to love less but must mean, in the context of Malachi 1:1-5, that God has actually directed his wrath toward Esau and his descendants. The judgments upon Edom are positive judgments and not merely the absence of blessing. God displays His wrath upon the sins of Edom not in unholy rancor but in righteous judgment. He does the same with individuals." However, Galatians 2:6 states: "But from those who seemed to be something — whatever they were, it makes no difference to me; God shows personal favoritism to no man — for those who seemed to be something added nothing to me." Luke 20:21 confirms: "Then they asked Him, saying, 'Teacher, we know that You say and teach rightly, and You do not show personal favoritism, but teach the way of God in truth…'" The question is that, by loving Jacob and hating Esau, wasn't God showing favoritism when the references to Galatians 2 and Luke 20 show that God has no favorites? Can you please explain."

Q: In your Update (Update #99, in the Q&A section), you explain that Christ was in the grave for three days and three nights . Doesn't Christ also say that He was dead for three days? Since He died before He was placed into the grave, was He raised back to life and stayed alive in the grave for a while, before He walked out of the tomb?

A: In Matthew 12:40 Christ makes the statement, “For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth” (Authorized Version throughout). In John 2:19 He said, “Destroy this Temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” In John 2:21 it is noted: “But He spake of the Temple of His body.”
We will address in this section the following questions in relation to these verses:

1) Was Christ dead for exactly 72 hours?
2) Was Christ in the tomb for exactly 72 hours?
3) How can we reconcile these two Scriptures since they appear to be contradictory?
4) Was Christ not dead the whole time He was in the tomb?

In John 2:19, where Christ says, “Destroy this Temple, and in three days I will raise it up,” He is not speaking specifically of a time of exactly 72 hours counting from the time of His crucifixion. As we will review in this Q&A – by definition – the crucifixion occurred over several hours. It began about 9 am that Wednesday morning. Christ died about 3 pm that afternoon. He was placed into the tomb about 6 pm that evening. As Mr. Armstrong described this event in his booklet, “The Resurrection Was Not On Sunday” – Christ was “To be raised up in three days after being DESTROYED, or crucified AND buried…”

Continue reading "Q: In your Update (Update #99, in the Q&A section), you explain that Christ was in the grave for three days and three nights . Doesn't Christ also say that He was dead for three days? Since He died before He was placed into the grave, was He raised back to life and stayed alive in the grave for a while, before He walked out of the tomb?"

Q: Should a Christian Observe Mother's Day?

A: The Bible is very explicit that we are to honor our parents at all times. For example, Exodus 20:12 and Ephesians 6:1-3 make this Christian duty very clear. In one of our recent Updates (Update #95), we explained that Jesus Christ honored His mother on a continuous basis.

To “honor” or “remember” our mother just on one particular day in the year, while forgetting to do so in day-to-day living, would, of course, be wrong. The world tries to make up for the forgetfulness to always honor one’s parents by dedicating a day to mothers. As Christians, we are to honor our parents at all times! This fact alone, would not preclude a Christian from participating in Mother’s Day celebrations.

However, the Bible makes it very clear that we are not to learn the religious ways or customs of the Gentiles, by embracing those customs in our own Christian lives. (Deuteronomy 12:29-32; Matthew 15:709, 2 Corinthians 6:14-17). The Church has long taught that we are not to keep holidays such as Christmas, Easter, New Year’s or Valentine’s Day because of their pagan origin and the embracing of those days by the Catholic Church in their religious worship.

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Q: I have heard that Christ's miraculous birth was also a sign that He was the Messiah. If so, wouldn't this contradict Christ's statement in Matthew 12:39-40?

A: Matthew 12:38-40 reads as follows:

“Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, ‘Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.’ But He answered and said to them, ‘An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.””

Note that Christ talked to the scribes and Pharisees, describing them as an “evil and adulterous generation.” He said that the only sign that would be given to IT was the sign of the prophet Jonah. As Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so Christ would be three days and three nights — 72 hours — in the grave. Christ’s statement goes further, however. He made clear that He would not stay in the grave for less than three days and three nights, and, that He would not stay longer in the grave than 72 hours. As the sea monster vomited Jonah alive onto dry land, so Christ would be brought back to life and leave the grave after three days and three nights.

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Q: Do you teach that God heals our sicknesses? Does a sick person need to be a member of your church to ask you for healing? Do you teach that God heals sick persons, even though they are not members of your church?

A: The Bible is very clear that God heals sick people who try to obey God and who have faith that He will heal them. He tells us in Exodus 15:26, “If you diligently heed the voice of the LORD your God and do what is right in His sight, give ear to His commandments and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have brought on the Egyptians. For I am the LORD who heals you.”

We are also told how healing from sickness has been made possible. We are healed by the stripes of Jesus Christ who gave His life for us, and who was tortured and beaten so that we can obtain forgiveness of our sins and healing from our sicknesses and diseases (Psalm 103:1-3; Matthew 8:16-17; 1 Peter 2:21-25; Isaiah 53:5).
Generally, God instructs us, when we are sick, to call for the elders of the Church of God — the body of Christ, a spiritual organism — to pray for us and to anoint us with oil (a symbol of the Holy Spirit) and to lay hands on us, so that we can be healed (James 5:14-15; Mark 16:18).

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Q: I have heard that you teach that there are three heavens mentioned in the Bible. Would you please elaborate on this? If true, why do the Jews and some Christian groups teach that there are seven heavens?

A: The Bible does indeed reveal the existence of “three” heavens. While the first two heavens are “physical” in nature, the third heaven is composed of spirit — it is referred to in Scripture as God’s dwelling place.

That there is more than one physical heaven can be seen in Genesis 1:1, where we read, “In the beginning God created the HEAVENS and the earth” (New KJB; RSV).” Also, in Genesis 2:1, “Thus the HEAVENS and the earth were finished, and all the hosts of them” (New KJB; RSV). These verses imply that “the whole material universe was created simultaneously with the earth” (Herbert W. Armstrong, “Mystery of the Ages,” p. 45).

The first two heavens — the physical heavens — can be divided into the earth’s atmosphere and the space beyond our atmosphere — commonly called the universe.

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Q: Why does the Church of the Eternal God exist? Why don't you merge with other Church of God groups?

A: We at CEG, along with our affiliated groups in Canada (CGCF) and in the UK (Global), are continually asked the question by Church of God people why we have not merged with one of the larger Church of God groups at a time when some seem to encourage unity among all the people of God.

Since this is an often asked question, we have attempted to give answers in various sermons and articles presented by our ministry. Still the question continues to be directed toward us as a group.

We know that when God established the Church in the wilderness, He revealed at that time certain requirements of His people which remain unchanged to this day. (We exclude from this discussion the sacrificial laws that were added, due to the transgressions of the people, which were for a time, but are no longer required after the perfect sacrifice of Jesus Christ, compare Galatians 3:17-19).

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Q: Did Jesus dishonor His mother, as recorded in John 2:4, when He said to Mary, "'Woman, what have I to do with thee?'"

A: If Jesus Christ committed just one sin, we would not have a Savior. If He had violated the Fifth Commandment (“Honor your father and your mother…,” Deuteronomy 5:16; Exodus 20:12), He would have sinned, as “sin is the transgression of the law” (1 John 3:4). Many Scriptures make clear that the law spoken of in the New Testament includes the Ten Commandments (compare James 2:8-12).

We read that Christ never sinned (Hebrews 4:15). He practiced what He preached. When a young man came to Him to find out what he had to do to have eternal life, Christ told him to keep the commandments (Matthew 19:16-17). He then specifically listed the Fifth Commandment, in verse 19. Christ also emphasized in Mark 7:7-13 the continued obligation for children to honor their parents (Compare, too, Ephesians 6:1-3).

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