Are we living in the last days; I mean, do you think that the world will end soon?

Sincerely,
I Don’t Like Surprises

Dear I Don’t Like Surprises,

If we were living in the last days… we wouldn’t know it.  The Bible specifically says that the Second Coming of Christ will come like a thief in the night (1 Thess 5:1-2).  Jesus will return when people least expect Him.  The apostle Paul warned all christians to live their lives soberly, so that they would be prepared whenever that great day might come (1 Thess 5:4-8).  Whether Christ returns in your lifetime or whether you die before you go and face the judgment, live your life so that at Christ’s appearing, you shall be saved (Heb 9:27-28).  If you don’t know what the Bible says about salvation, we recommend you read “What Must I Do To Be Saved?”

Are the people who protest against abortion and homosexuality wrong in the way that they go about protesting?  I understand that these things are sinful in God's eyes, but aren't people wrong by making them feel attacked?

Sincerely,
End Doesn’t Justify The Means

Dear End Doesn’t Justify The Means,

It would be wrong to physically attack someone while protesting (two wrongs don’t make a right – Rom 12:17), but it should also be noted that very few abortion and homosexuality protestors are violent.  Abortion is murder (Rom 1:29-32), and homosexuality is a sin (Rom 1:26-27); christians should oppose these with every fiber of their beings.  Violent protestors receive a lot of coverage in the mainstream media, but what isn’t covered are the thousands of peaceful and honorable protestors who are simply trying to stand up for the innocent lives of the unborn and the sanctity of marriage.  Unborn children have souls and are distinct people (Lk 1:44) and marriage is the bedrock of all healthy civilization (all the way back to Adam and Eve – Gen 2:24).  Yes, violent protesting is wrong, but be sure not to paint all protestors with the same mass-media tainted brush.

I do not believe people are born "gay".  Am I correct to conclude that because man was created in God's image (with free will to make choices in our lives), it wouldn't make sense that He would create some of us to live a lifestyle specifically condemned in the Bible?  Or is there a better answer given in the Bible to support this argument that people are not born homosexuals?

Sincerely,
Ain’t Talking About Being Happy

Dear Ain’t Talking About Being Happy,

Nobody is forced to have a sinful homosexual relationship.  The argument of the homosexual community is that they are born desiring people of the same sex and that they have no choice whether or not they act upon those desires.  That simply cannot be true.  God makes it clear that He will not allow us to be tempted beyond what we are able (1 Cor 10:13).  Even if someone is born with a predisposition toward homosexuality – they aren’t forced to act upon it.  We always have a choice.  There is always a way of escape from sin.  We often use 1 Cor 10:13 as a proof text that no one is born “gay”.

Homosexuality is like all other sins; we sin when we act upon the lust... after all heterosexual lusts get people into plenty of trouble, too.  Attraction is not the same as action.  God does not tempt us to sin (Jas 1:13).  It is our own lusts that entice us to do the wrong thing (Jas 1:14-16).  One person has a tendency toward anger, another has a tendency toward alcoholism, and some may in fact have a tendency toward homosexuality – but that tendency does not force them to sin.  We need to put away all filthiness of the flesh and be doers of God’s Word (Jas 1:21-22).

I am an African American; I say this because I recently took a history class and found out that Christianity was used as one of the means of not only imposing slavery, but justifying it.  As someone who was brought up in the church, this has really disturbed me.  So I went to the Bible and began reading the laws of slavery in Leviticus 25, and there was also a particular verse in Colossians 3:22 which implies that slavery was not condoned by God but not frowned upon either.  Funny enough, all of my years being in the church, I have never heard any of these passages mentioned... I have two questions:

Where does God stand when it comes to slavery?  How come it is not allowed anymore if the Bible does not discourage it?

Sincerely,
Loosing Faith

Dear Loosing Faith,

Unfortunately, many horrendous things have been done in the name of Christ… but that doesn’t make them right.  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.  Slavery was, and is, a reality in many parts of the world, a reality that doesn’t go away once people become christians.  How a slave should behave toward their master is a down-to-earth, practical, moral question for many, many people.  The fact that we Americans don’t have to deal with such dilemmas anymore is a blessing indeed.

I have a quick question about the mark of the beast; I like to read others’ questions on this website ‘cause it helps me learn more about the Bible.  Often I have some of the same questions myself, so it helps a lot.  My question is about the "RFID CHIPS".  I’ve been looking at videos about them, and it seems that people will be putting computer chips into their hands to "buy stuff" and, of course, many other things.  It seems that the world is going to be pushing people to get these things one day, and maybe it would even be required.  This scares me because this sounds like the mark of the beast to me.  I admit I could be wrong, but I wanted to know what you thought about these so-called "chips".  I don’t know if this is the mark or not, but I do not want to risk it.  What do you think?  Thanks for your time.

Sincerely,
I Don’t Want Stuff In Me

Dear I Don’t Want Stuff In Me,

Nope, RFID chips implanted under the skin (although ridiculously creepy) are not the mark of the beast.  The topic of the book of Revelation was the battle between Rome and the church.  It has nothing to do with modern society or modern technology.  When John wrote the book, God told him the vision was "shortly to come to pass" and "at hand" (Rev 1:1-3).  That vision was dealing with a specific problem that the first-century christians were about to face - physical persecution at the hands of Rome.  Although the book of Revelation provides great encouragement to christians today through its message of hope through trials, it is not specifically applying to us.  The mark of the beast was most likely the practice of burning incense to Caesar as a god.  In Roman society, anyone who wouldn't burn incense to Caesar as a god was persecuted and often killed.  The only people unwilling to do that were christians.