Search Results for: baptize in the name

In 2006, the Church of God and Orthodox Christianity kept Pentecost on the same day. Does this mean that all have been obedient in keeping the annual Holy Day of Pentecost, as instructed by God in the Bible?

It does not mean this at all.

This year, the Church of God and
the Orthodox Catholic and Protestant world kept Pentecost (meaning:
count 50) on Sunday, June 4. But this is merely coincidental. There are
many years when the Church of God and the Orthodox Christian world
celebrate Pentecost on different days. Why? Because the Church of God
determines the correct date for Pentecost by counting 50 days from the
Sunday [after the weekly Sabbath] which falls within the annual Holy
Days of Unleavened Bread, as instructed in the Bible (Leviticus 23:11).
In other words, we are not to count from the weekly Sabbath that falls
within the seven Days of Unleavened Bread, but from the SUNDAY on which
the wave sheaf was offered — and it is that SUNDAY, that must fall

Does the Bible say anything about man's character development?

Actually, the Bible has quite a bit to say about this topic.

(1) To give a good definition of righteous character, as we want to apply this term in this Q&A, we would like to quote from several of Herbert Armstrong’s writings, the late Pastor General of the Worldwide Church of God.

In “What Science Cannot Discover About the Human Mind,” copyright 1978, he wrote about righteous character as “the ability in a single entity to come to comprehend and distinguish the true values from the false, the right way from the wrong, to choose the right and reject the wrong, and, with power of will, to do the right and resist the evil.”

In “Mystery of the Ages,” copyright 1985, he elaborated, as follows:

“Perfect, holy and righteous character is the ability in such separate entity to come to discern the true and right way from the false, to make voluntarily a full and unconditional surrender to God and his perfect way — to yield to be conquered by God — to determine even against temptation or self- desire, to live and to do the right. And even then such holy character is the gift of God. It comes by yielding to God to instill HIS LAW (God’s right way of life) within the entity who so decides and wills. Actually, this perfect character comes only from God, as instilled within the entity of his creation, upon voluntary acquiescence, even after severe trial and test…”

Would you please explain 1 John 5:6-8?

1 John 5:4-8 reads, in context:

“(Verse 4) For whatever is born [better here: begotten] of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. (Verse 5) Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? (Verse 6) This is He who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ; not only by water, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who [better: which] bears witness, because the Spirit is truth. (Verse 7) For there are three that bear witness (in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one. (Verse 8) And there are three that bear witness on earth): the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and these three agree as one.”

First of all, please note that the words in verses 7 and 8, which are placed in parenthesis, are not in the inspired original text, but they are a very late addition by a copyist who wanted to “prove” that the Trinity was biblical. Today, it has been universally accepted that these words were a fraudulent falsification and must be omitted from the text. Many modern translations do not even contain these words any more, and those which do, normally point out in the margin or in a footnote that they are a very late addition, which are not found in the oldest manuscripts.

What does the Bible say about Ethiopia?

Even though Ethiopia is not mentioned as often in the current news as countries such as Egypt, Libya, Syria or Iran, the Bible has much to say about the past and future of Ethiopia. As we pointed out in a recent Q&A on Egypt, Ethiopia was at one time the influential “king of the South,” as mentioned in the book of Daniel, and the Bible shows that Ethiopia will still play an important role in future world affairs. This is not that surprising when considering even the present role and status of Ethiopia, which should not be underestimated. As the Wikipedia encyclopedia tells us:

“[Ethiopia] is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 85.2 million people… When Africa was divided up by European powers at the Berlin Conference, Ethiopia was one of only two countries that retained its independence. It was one of only four African members of the League of Nations. After a brief period of Italian occupation, Ethiopia became a charter member of the United Nations. When other African nations received their independence following World War II, many of them adopted the colors of Ethiopia’s flag, and Addis Ababa [Ethiopia’s capitol] became the location of several international organizations focused on Africa… Ethiopia is one of the founding members of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), G-77 and the Organisation of African Unity (OAU).

In the last Q&A, we showed that the New Testament did not abolish the Law of the Ten Commandments. In this Q&A, we will continue to show that God commands us today to keep His Law.

A fundamental statement of John the Baptist can be found in John 3:36 to the effect that he who believes Jesus Christ will inherit eternal life, but that God’s wrath rests upon a person who does not “obey” Christ (compare the correct rendering in the Revised Standard Version).

John had refused to baptize those who came to him without having shown fruits of repentance, challenging them with the question as to who had warned them to flee from the wrath to come (Matthew 3:7-12; Luke 3:7-17). In Matthew 23:33, Christ reiterated John’s warning, ultimately equating the wrath of God with the condemnation of hell fire. That is, if someone refuses to repent and obey God, ending up in committing the unpardonable sin, he will be destroyed in the lake of fire.

Does Ephesians 4:11-12 indicate that “teacher” is an ordained office or rank in the Church?

Ephesians 4:11-12 states the following: “And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ…”

Even though “teachers” is listed together with the offices of the ministry, including apostle, prophet, evangelist and pastor, what was the original intent of this passage and the inclusion of “teachers”?

Looking at the qualifications of a bishop (literally, an overseer) or an elder (compare New International Version) will help us to clarify this issue.

1 Timothy 3:1-7 states:

“This is a faithful saying: If a man desires the position of a bishop [“elder,” New International Version], he desires a good work. A bishop [“elder”] then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good behaviour, hospitable, able to teach; not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not covetous; one who rules his own house well, having his children in submission with all reverence (for if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take care of the church of God?); not a novice, lest being puffed up with pride he fall into the same condemnation as the devil. Moreover he must have a good testimony among those who are outside, lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.”

Does God give His Holy Spirit to people who have not been baptized?

In the writings of the Bible there are a small number of examples of individuals who received the Holy Spirit without a Christian baptism. Prior to the time of the establishment of the New Testament Church, some received the Holy Spirit without first being baptized. They were used by God at that time for a specific and special purpose. They had a job to do, which involved establishing the truth of God among people on the earth and executing the plan of God.

Following the establishment of the New Testament Church, the standard process for receiving the Holy Spirit involves a Christian baptism followed by the laying on of hands by a minister of God.

We write in our free booklet, Baptism – A Requirement for Salvation?: 

“Without baptism based on biblical teaching, we normally would not receive the Holy Spirit and we would not be in a position to look forward to salvation. (An obvious and extremely rare exception to this rule would be, of course, when it is physically impossible to baptize someone, because the person is physically incapable of being baptized.) We understand, of course, that the situation was different in Old Testament times because God did bestow His Spirit on a few people without prior baptism, so that they could fulfill His specific commission for them.

How Does the Church of the Eternal God and its International Affiliates Differ From Other Christian Churches? (Part 2)

In the first installment of this series, we discussed the fact that according to the Bible, not every Church organization, claiming to be “Christian,” is indeed accepted by God. In addition, not all of those Christian groups which might even be part of the spiritual Body of Christ may manifest the spiritual requirements which are necessary to receive God’s approval, blessing and support. The Bible shows us that a falling away from the Truth is still going to occur prior to Christ’s return, and we are all warned not to become involved with wrong teachings and practices which will contribute to and facilitate the departure from the Truth and the true faith which has been once for all entrusted and delivered to the saints (Jude 3). The Church of God must remain to be the foundation and pillar of the Truth (1 Timothy 3:15), and it has the responsibility to retain and preserve the Truth, in spite of tempting obstacles and the enticing spirit of compromise.

How Does the Church of the Eternal God and its International Affiliates Differ From Other Christian Churches? (Part 5)

In this installment, we will discuss the remaining aspect of the commission given to the Church, which is, as stated in our Statement of Beliefs under The Church’s Commission, “… to feed the flock of Christ—the Church—spiritually and physically.” The correct understanding of properly feeding the flock distinguishes us substantially from most other Church organizations.

To begin with, we will address the responsibility of the Church to feed the flock spiritually. This task is foremost assigned to the ordained ministry of God’s Church. We discussed in previous installments that the Church of God is a spiritual organism, which is physically organized.

We read in John 21:15-17:

“So when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, ‘Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these?’ He said to Him, ‘Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.’ He said to him, ‘Feed My lambs.’ He said to him again a second time, ‘Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?’ He said to Him, ‘Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.’ He said to him, ‘Tend My sheep.’ He said to him the third time, ‘Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?’ Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, ‘Do you love Me?’ And he said to Him, ‘Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed My sheep.'”

What Does It Mean to “Confess Christ”?

Many denominations encourage their members to publicly “confess Jesus Christ.” Oftentimes, this proclamation is presented in the context of “finding the Lord” or of “being saved.” Along with this personal “witnessing” others are then encouraged to “accept Christ” in order that they, too, might be “saved.” A favorite Scripture for this approach is Romans 10:9:

“[T]hat if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”

Indeed, this statement and others, such as John 3:16; 6:40; and 6:47, all point to necessary actions for salvation. But is professing Jesus Christ and merely appropriating His name all that God requires? Jesus addressed those who would falsely believe they were serving Him by using His name:

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