5 minutes a day
5 days a week
1 New Testament in a year

There are 261 weekdays in a year, and there are 260 chapters in the New Testament. By reading one chapter, Monday through Friday, you will read the whole New Testament by the end of the year. The Daily Cup series is to help with that goal.

Happy Studying!

"The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup." -- Psalm 16:5

Click here for a pdf of the study schedule - CLICK HERE

Hello, I watched a program on TV about this small African tribe.  The people of this tribe were amazingly kind and welcoming, but they didn't even know we have been to the moon or of Jesus.  They believed in different gods, and they were brought up that way from birth.  Their whole tribe is kind of separated from the rest of the world.  There has to be hundreds of these same kinds of situations out there; what happens to these people when they die?

Sincerely,
Hermit Helper

Dear Hermit Helper,

What God does with the African tribe that is isolated from society is between Him and them.  We know that God doesn’t hold people accountable for things that they cannot do (2 Cor 8:11-12).  We also know that He says all mankind is without excuse because the Creation speaks of His greatness (Rom 1:20).  We also know that God has a certain expectation that we will seek Him out (Matt 7:7-10).  All of these principles must be balanced out when considering the fate of isolated peoples.

Ultimately, the Lord is judge… a righteous one (2 Tim 4:8).  The Lord doesn’t desire any of the wicked to perish (Ezek 18:23).  He will fitly and properly judge all mankind.

5 minutes a day
5 days a week
1 New Testament in a year

There are 261 weekdays in a year, and there are 260 chapters in the New Testament. By reading one chapter, Monday through Friday, you will read the whole New Testament by the end of the year. The Daily Cup series is to help with that goal.

Happy Studying!

"The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup." -- Psalm 16:5

Click here for a pdf of the study schedule - CLICK HERE

I have a question referring to the time when tribulation falls upon the earth.  What if someone who is going through tribulation recognizes  the Lord’s existence and repents for his sins, and truly accepts Jesus, but is  knocked out or drugged to where he becomes unaware of his surroundings and has no say or right to what happens to his body, and receives the mark of the beast?  He awakens to realize he has received an unforgivable mark and will go to hell.  Would God prevent something like this from happening, or could the person repent for this if he had no choice?  If the Antichrist was smart, wouldn't he force or drug (a drug that physically prevents you from making decisions such as a sedative, not deception) mankind to give them the mark without consent?

Sincerely,
Tattoo Terror

Dear Tattoo Terror,

The teaching that there will be a specific Antichrist that will take over the world at a future date is an erroneous doctrine that has confused many.  The Bible specifically says that anyone who deceives and mocks Christ is an antichrist (2 Jn 1:7).  The apostle John mentions that there are many antichrists (1 Jn 2:18).  The word ‘antichrist’ simply means ‘against Christ’.  Anyone who stands up in opposition to the teachings of Jesus is an antichrist.

The ‘mark of the beast’ is a reference to Rev 13:17.  There are two things that we need to keep in mind whenever we discuss the book of Revelation.  First, it is a symbolic book (John says he will be writing in ‘signs’ - Rev 1:1); many of today’s false doctrines have been created by treating symbolic language as literal.  Second, the book of Revelation prophesies of events that were to “shortly come to pass” (Rev 1:1) and events that were “at hand” (Rev 1:3).  The book of Revelation isn’t dealing with a future tribulation for the church – but the suffering that christians of the first century were about to endure at the hands of their countrymen.  If you would like a full understanding of the book of Revelation – listen to our class series on the topic.

The end result is that you need not fear the mark of the beast, nor is that mark a literal insignia upon people’s flesh.  We always have a choice, and no one will ever accidently be condemned to hell.

5 minutes a day
5 days a week
1 New Testament in a year

There are 261 weekdays in a year, and there are 260 chapters in the New Testament. By reading one chapter, Monday through Friday, you will read the whole New Testament by the end of the year. The Daily Cup series is to help with that goal.

Happy Studying!

"The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup." -- Psalm 16:5

Click here for a pdf of the study schedule - CLICK HERE