I have been reading over some of these topics such as gambling, drinking, etc.  And though I believe these things are wrong if they are abused, how is it a sin to go out with some friends and have a glass of wine (some people drink wine for the taste, not to get drunk) or go to the casino every once in a while for a little fun and entertainment?  We go to the movies and spend money on other fun events when we could be putting that money toward the church or saving for the future... I realize that you may be putting yourself in sinful situations as well, but where do you draw the line?  Should we just not go out into public because most likely there will always be a sin going on somewhere?  You could be at a restaurant where someone is at the table next to you drunk, smoking, or over-eating (causing gluttony).  So how can you say it is absolutely wrong to do any of these things without knowing the situation?

And I did read 1 Timothy 6:10, and it’s true gambling can be addictive, but so can almost everything... shopping, eating, smoking, drinking, video games, etc. Don’t you think we just need to use our wisdom in every situation when it is not specifically mentioned in the Bible and be the judge for ourselves if it is wrong or not?

Sincerely,
Freedom Fighter

Dear Freedom Fighter,

Your concern that we not overstep the boundaries of the Bible is duly noted, but we fear that you may have ulterior motives in writing in this question because we have never written on the issue of drinking (may it not be the case with you, but we have often found that people “push” the drinking topic out of a desire to legitimize their own pre-existing drinking habits) which makes us wonder why you wrote, “I have been reading over some of these topics such as gambling, drinking, etc.”

When the Bible does not specifically mention something as a sin, we must be very careful not to create laws where none exist.  In all of our answers to questions, we try very hard to lay out what the Bible says specifically and what the Bible says implicitly about a topic.  Just because the Bible doesn’t specifically mention something doesn’t mean it doesn’t condemn it (the Bible never specifically mentions pornography, and yet pornography is very clearly sinful).

The key to the whole issue is to ask: “What does the sum of God’s Word say on the topic?” (Ps 119:160).  Gambling isn’t wrong just because it can be addictive or just because it feeds a sinful culture or just because it wastes money.  It is the combination of risks, influences, and errors surrounding gambling that condemn it.

The same goes with the influence and appearance involved with drinking.  Yes, you could attend a restaurant where someone is getting drunk, but everyone understands that eating at a restaurant that happens to serve alcohol is very different then going to a bar or tavern.  So just because someone next to you at a restaurant can get drunk and someone next to you at a bar can get drunk – that does not make those two places equal.

Christianity is about more than just trying to avoid breaking the rules.  We are to flee immorality (1 Tim 6:11) and flee temptation (2 Tim 2:22).  Both gambling and alcohol are a part of a culture that emphasizes worldliness.  Christians should use wisdom in every situation to discern between habits that are generally beneficial to mankind and habits that are generally destructive.  We here at AYP seek to show people all the elements involved in different choices and what God says about those elements… and, yes, sometimes that does make people walk away saying, “I don’t know how someone could ever do that without sinning”.

My parents and I have a question about how to honor my deceased grandpas.  We would appreciate it if you could please help give us some guidance on this.

 

I was raised in a non-christian family in China.  One of my grandpa's ashes is kept in a Taoist temple where all the Taoist gods are worshiped.  My other grandpa has a picture at a Buddhist temple where the monks pray regularly.  My parents and I accepted Jesus Christ a few years ago, but our grandpas' ashes and picture are still at the temples.

We are unsure how to continue to show respect and honor my grandpas without violating God's commandments.  In America, it is typical that the deceased have a grave, and the loved ones go there to present flowers to honor the dead.  However, in my case, I cannot go to where my grandpa's ashes are to honor him without entering the Taoist temple full of idols and false gods.  What should I do?  Can I go, ignore the other gods, but just put flowers there for my grandpa?  Should I not go at all?

We cannot move his ashes elsewhere either because my grandma (who is still alive) and all my other relatives are still not christians.  In addition, the spot for his ashes at the temple cost a lot of money when they purchased it.  They are not going to agree to relocating my grandpa's ashes simply because of my belief and my mother's.  Both of my grandpas never heard the Gospel in their lives.  They died never knowing Jesus.  What shall we do now to honor them?  Thanks in advance for your guidance.

Sincerely,
Temple Trouble

Dear Temple Trouble,

Every culture and country has unique issues that it presents christians with, but there is nothing new under the sun (Eccl 1:9).  Your problem is with appearances.  You know that the Buddhist and Tao gods are nothing at all (1 Cor 8:4).  You know this, but everyone else doesn’t, and therefore, for the sake of their consciences, you must be careful how you act (1 Cor 8:10).  Here are some things to consider:

1. Do people assume if you go to a Taoist temple that you are going to worship their gods?  If so, you cannot go.  Leave flowers outside the temple or give them to relatives to deliver when they visit, but make it clear that you cannot be seen as an idolater.
2. There are some religious sites that don’t give the impression that all visitors are of that religion.  For example, take the Sistine Chapel – millions of people visit the site every year, and many of them are not Catholic at all.  Visiting there does not give the impression you are Catholic; it merely gives the impression that you wanted to see the Sistine Chapel and its art.  If this is the case with visiting these temples, you may be able to go without giving the impression that you are worshipping their idols.  Only you can make this decision.  It is a cultural issue, and you must decide how people would view your visit.
3. Can you in good conscience visit your grandfathers’ memorials?  If we cannot do something in good conscience, for us it is sin (Rom 14:23).  A bothered conscience is a sign that you believe you are doing the wrong thing, and even if that isn’t true – you have to abstain for conscience’s sake.
4. There are many ways to honor our deceased relatives other than visiting their graves.  Putting their photos on our walls, writing memorials, re-telling stories of their lives, etc. are all viable ways of showing how much they meant to you.  When someone dies, they are no longer concerned with the affairs of this world; anything you do to honor them is for the benefit of the living, not them.

After considering both your conscience and the influence you have upon others, prayerfully make a decision and stick to your guns.  In the end, you serve God and not man (Acts 5:29).

The elders at the church I go to are on my case.  I don't think my family needs to go to church all day on Sunday.  God says I'm in charge of my own family.  What verse can I use to remind them that it's my right to decide?

 

Sincerely,
Head Of My House

Dear Head Of My House,

If it is a question of what is your right – just explain to them that you have freewill like every human since Adam and Eve, and nobody can make you do anything you don’t want to do.  However, I think your real question is if there are any verses that explain that your family doesn’t need to go to services all day on Sunday.  That is a slightly different question.

Every congregation must decide for itself how often and how long it will meet.  This is an issue of expediency and wisdom.  Some congregations may choose to meet only once on a Sunday; others may choose to meet twice… or even more!  The Bible does not give any specific guidelines.  It does, however, provide some principles that must be contemplated by every individual and every congregation.

1. Sunday is “The Lord’s Day” (Rev 1:10).  Though there is some debate over what the apostle John meant by using the term ‘the Lord’s Day’, most commentators (including some of the earliest church writers) agree that the term ‘the Lord’s Day’ refers to ‘Sunday’.  Sunday is intended to be a day dedicated and set aside by christians for the worship and service of God.  If we only meet for 45 to 60 minutes in the morning, can we fairly say that we treated the whole day as belonging to the Lord?
2. The Old Testament Sabbath example.  We no longer have the Sabbath in the New Testament (no matter what the Seventh Day Adventists say).  However, the Sabbath does teach a principle.  God, in His infinite wisdom, thought it was important for the Jews to set aside one entire day every week to rest, reflect, and worship God.  Even though we are not bound by the Sabbath laws, that practice was given to us as an example to teach us something about the spiritual needs of mankind (1 Cor 10:11).  How much of our time are we setting aside for the pure and undistracted worship of God?
3. The assembly and worship service is not merely a duty; it is an essential tool God has given us to protect our souls.  When christians forsake the assembly, they are headed down a path that leads to destruction (Heb 10:25-27).  When we assemble together on a regular basis, we provoke one another to love and good works (Heb 10:24).  When christians come together to sing songs to God, they admonish each other as a side-effect (Col 3:16).  The church doesn’t just need you; you need the church.

When the elders of a congregation set the meeting times, they should be considering these principles for the health of the congregation.  There is no hard and fast rule for how much time to set aside, but it is important to consider whether we are devoting enough time to worshipping God.  In general, we here at AYP err on the side of liberality.  We would rather hear, “You worshipped more than was needed” than “You didn’t worship enough” on the Day of Judgment.

Who did Adam and Eve's children marry?

 

Sincerely,
My Family’s Not That Close

Dear My Family’s Not That Close,

They married each other.  Adam and Eve were the only people God created on day six (Gen 1:27, Gen 2:25).  Adam and Eve were given the command to “go forth and multiply and fill the earth” (Gen 1:28).  Since there was only the two of them in the beginning, their children had to marry each other.  Of course, this makes us think about incest and the problems with marrying people that you are too closely related to, but those were not applicable to the people during the initial years after creation.

Incest is only wrong because God says it is wrong, and He never condemned the practice until well after the Flood (Lev 18:6-18).  It was perfectly appropriate (and necessary!) for people to marry their close relations during early Earth history.  It was also perfectly safe because there was no worry about the genetic problems that we face today.  Today, when people marry someone that is too closely related to themselves, there is a risk of emphasizing genetic defects in the next generation – such as the infamous cases of hemophilia found amongst European royalty.  This wouldn’t have been a problem for the earliest generations of mankind.  In the beginning, Adam and Eve were perfect and without any genetic flaws whatsoever (Gen 1:31).  Therefore, there was no risk for them or for the generations that closely followed them of spreading a genetic flaw.  So yes, as strange as it may seem, Adam and Eve’s children married each other.

I was wondering when the Bible was being copied and spread around, how careful were they about copying it?  Because I know they didn't have ‘copy-and-paste’ back then.

 

Sincerely,
Control C

Dear Control C,

The people who copied the Bible were so accurate and detail-oriented… they would put any OCD accountant to shame.  Those who made copies of the Bible were called ‘scribes’.  Ezra, from the book of Ezra, was a scribe (Ezra 7:6).  Scribes are recorded throughout Jewish history, from the time of David (2 Sam 8:17) all the way into the time of Christ (Matt 8:19).  Scribes were so proficient at copying text that they were also employed as lawyers because of their precise knowledge of all things legal.

When scribes copied a biblical text, they had some very stringent rules that they followed.  Secular history tells us that these rules were universal amongst scribes, and the rules were followed very, VERY strictly.  Here are some of those rules:

1. Every word must be verbalized aloud while writing.
2. There must be a review within thirty days, and if more than three pages required corrections, the whole document was destroyed.
3. Letters, words, and paragraphs were counted, and the middle paragraph, word, and letter must correspond to the original document.
4. If two letters touched, the entire manuscript had to be redone.
5. Each column of writing could have no less than forty-eight, and no more than sixty, lines.

As you can tell from the list, scribes were exceptionally meticulous about accuracy.  The proof of this accuracy can be seen in the Dead Sea Scrolls.  When the Dead Sea Scrolls were found, amongst them was uncovered a copy of the Book of Isaiah that had been written by scribes.  This copy of Isaiah was ONE THOUSAND years older than any other previous copy.  Yet, over that thousand-year time span, there was no notable disagreement between the manuscripts.  In fact, the only difference between the Dead Sea Scroll copy and the other copies were punctuation marks and spelling differences.  There is no doubt that God has perfectly preserved the Bible over the centuries.