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

(This question is a follow-up to “Division Of Leaven”)

     How much of a pattern is one to follow?  You require one to follow the "order" Jesus used in taking the Lord’s Supper, but you don't require the distributor to break the bread prior to serving it?  Why do you pick and choose and say the latter requirement would be non-essential to the pattern?  Why not say the order is also arbitrary because essentially the juice will beat the bread in the digestive system anyway?

Sincerely,
Broken Up Over The Issue

Dear Broken Up Over The Issue,

Good brethren are divided over whether or not it is an important detail to physically break the unleavened loaf.  Unleavened bread is flat because it doesn’t have the yeast to make it rise – like a cracker.  Some brethren think it is required to break the bread; other folks point to Scriptures that use the term “break the bread” as a colloquialism to generically refer to any meal.  The argument isn’t over whether or not we should break the bread – the disagreement is over whether or not “break the bread” in this context means to share the bread (a common meaning of the phrase) or to physically crack the bread into pieces.  It is best not to be too dogmatic because there is no way to know definitively.

The Bible says, "Touch not My anointed, and do him no harm".  My question is: when is it a legal issue?  If the anointed is a child molester and a murderer, should his behavior be reported to the leaders of the church?

Sincerely,
Pressing Charges

Dear Pressing Charges,

The verse you are referring to (1 Chr 16:22) has nothing to do with reporting a murderer or other heinous criminals.  1 Chr 16:22 (it is also mentioned in Ps 105:15) is specifically talking about how God took care of the nation of Israel.  The preceding verse (1 Chr 16:21) mentions how God forbid other kings and nations from attacking Israel.

If someone has committed a serious felony, you should do more than report them to the leadership of the church – you should report them to the authorities.  God specifically sets the government in place to bring to justice people who having chosen to destroy others’ lives (Rom 13:3-4).

What does the Bible say will happen after Jesus comes back?

Sincerely,
Waiting Expectantly

Dear Waiting Expectantly,

Many things will happen when Christ returns, and they will all happen very quickly (1 Cor 15:52 says that many things will happen in the “twinkling of an eye”).  Let’s list what God says will happen at the return of Christ.

1. The wicked will be resurrected for judgment, and the righteous will be raised to eternal life (Jhn 5:28-29).
2. The dead in Christ will rise and meet Christ in the clouds, and those who are alive to see that day will join them (1 Thess 4:16-17).
3. The righteous will be given spiritual bodies that are incorruptible and built to last for eternity (1 Cor 15:44-46, 1 Cor 15:50-52).
4. The earth will be destroyed (2 Pet 3:10-12).
5. God will create an eternal dwelling place that is appropriate for Him and His saints (2 Pet 3:13).

The day of Christ’s return will be the most spectacular day of mankind’s history and the fulfillment of God’s promise made in Acts 1:10-11.  Someday, Jesus will return in just the same manner that He left.  He will descend from the clouds with the voice of an archangel and come to claim His people (1 Thess 4:16).

Which interpretive method do you use?

Sincerely,
Studious

Dear Studious,

Our interpretive method can be found in Ps. 119:160, “The sum of Thy Word is truth”.  We interpret the Bible using the Bible.  We take the passages in context, compare them to other passages on the given subject, and then add them together to come to a conclusion.  The Bible isn’t a matter of private interpretation (2 Pet 1:20) where anyone may decide that a passage means whatever they feel it means.  We study the Bible by using the Bible as the guide to itself.  We use Bible words in Bible ways and understand topics by looking at the totality of what the Bible says about those topics.