Does Jesus love everyone… even people who don't love Him?

Sincerely,
Hugs All Around

Dear Hugs All Around,

Yes, Jesus does love everyone.  Jhn 3:16 says that God so loved the world that He sent Jesus to die for us.  1 Jn 4:19 says that God loved us first.  God still gives us the choice to decide whether to spend eternity with Him or without Him, but that doesn't mean He enjoys it when the wicked choose to live wickedly (Ezek 18:23).

My mom was adopted, so we don't know her family history well.  What would you do if you found out your boyfriend of twelve years maybe your cousin?  We have no children together.  He doesn't know we may be cousins... we live together... WHAT DO WE DO FROM HERE?

Sincerely,
Regretful Researcher

Dear Regretful Researcher,

The very first thing you need to do is stop living together before you are married.  More important than any biological issues your future children may have, you are sinning, and that is much worse than any physical problem.  The reason people don’t get married – but instead (outside of marriage) have sex, live together, have children together, and eventually destroy their lives – is because we spend our lives making up the rules as we go.  We live our lives by the “what-makes-me-feel-good-right-now” philosophy.  We have no real standard to live by other than what we feel at the moment.  Like Pilate, we ask, “What is truth?” (Jhn 18:38) because we don’t know where to find the right answers to life.  How can we know what is the right thing to do?  Only the Creator can give us a rulebook for life that allows us to comfortably say, “I’m making the right choice.”  Jesus is the truth, the way, and the life (Jhn 14:6).  All the answers to life are found in His Scriptures (2 Pet 1:3).  If we want our relationships, our families, our careers, and our lives to work, we have to use the manual.

Biblically, there is nothing wrong with marrying your cousin – people did it quite commonly just a couple generations ago.  You would have to consider the medical ramifications of having children, but that is a medical decision – not a moral one.  As we said, more importantly than anything else is that you make your lives right with God.

Even though one's a christian, can he still have objections about the things God, Jesus, the apostles, the angels, and all the good guys have done and said in the Bible (like God allowing slavery and Moses’ "shall be put to death" laws)?

Sincerely,
Conscientous Objector

Dear Conscientous Objector,

We can object to human behavior as much as we want – but part of being a christian is agreeing that God knows better than us.  If we don’t submit our will to God’s, then we really don’t trust Him to be our Master (Matt 6:24).  If God says that something is wrong, we must have faith in His judgment.  And if God says something is right, we must listen and follow.

Having said that, we must differentiate between God’s ways and our ways (Isa 55:9).  God is responsible for all of the capital punishment laws that Moses gave (Ex 31:18), and therefore, we must accept that God deems capital punishment a good thing in certain circumstances.

However, slavery is an entirely different issue.  God does address slavery in the Bible.  He makes it clear that it is better when people are free; freedom is what God desires for all men (1 Cor 7:21).  However, God also deals with how people can live in a world where slavery does exist… hence, verses like Col 3:22.  The fact that God gives us practical laws for how to live in a world with slavery doesn’t mean He condones it.  Just because we don’t have slavery in America doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist elsewhere, and mankind must learn how to be faithful to God in whatever circumstances we are living.

Is it wrong to drink coffee or take a caffeine supplement for an extra boost of energy?

Sincerely,
Feeling Sluggish

Dear Feeling Sluggish,

Much to the joy and relief of those of us in the Pacific Northwest, the Bible never says anything about caffeine, and it certainly never says it is a sin.  The Church of Christ of Latter-Day Saints, also known as the Mormon church, strictly forbids the use of caffeine… but the Bible never does.

The Bible tells us to take care of our bodies (1 Cor 6:19).  God also warns against gluttony (Pr 23:21).  There is much debate over the effects of caffeine upon the body, but no studies are conclusive enough that one could condemn all use of caffeine.  Caffeine, like all other consumables, should be used with moderation and balance… but it isn’t wrong.

I have a question about 1 Cor 5:1-13; when would you apply it to a member?  And if leaders of a church ignore what Paul said about handing this brother over to Satan, could they then be responsible if that sinful member loses eternal life at the Day of Judgment?

Sincerely,
Tough Love

Dear Tough Love,

1^st Corinthians chapter five discusses the process of a church withdrawing from a christian who is living a sinful life.  It is important to note that the man who Paul said needed to be disciplined was living a life that was actively and unrepentantly sinful (he had his father’s wife – 1 Cor 5:1).  That is the type of person that a church should withdraw from.  If someone is caught doing something sinful, and they continue to do that behavior without any remorse or attempt to change, the church must act.  So how do you know someone has reached that point?  Matt 18:15-17 tells us that if we know a christian is sinning, we should attempt to talk to them one-on-one.  If that doesn’t work, we should bring one or two others to attempt to further persuade the person, and lastly, if that doesn’t work, the church should rebuke the individual and withdraw from them.  The principle is that the person should be given ample opportunity to repent because you don’t want to discipline too early, but if it becomes clear that they aren’t interested in obeying God’s Word, the church must stand firm.

If the church doesn’t act, it will have to answer to God because it didn’t stand up for the truth.  Paul told the Corinthians that they were arrogant for not addressing their errant member (1 Cor 5:2), and he warned them that if they didn’t act, the church would eventually be rotted away by sin (1 Cor 5:6-7).  A church that won’t stand by the truth is bound to fall away from the Lord and cease to be a faithful church.  When someone sins, they are responsible for their own behavior, but if the church doesn’t warn them, they have sinned as well (Ezek 3:18-19).