Why is my preacher always talking about liberalism?

Sincerely,
Too Much Talk

Dear Too Much Talk,

Liberalism is a term that refers to a certain attitude toward the Bible.  To be “liberal” with the Bible is to not carefully adhere to its teachings.  The Bible is full of examples of those who were liberal with God’s Word, and the consequences were always very unpleasant.

1. Nadab and Abihu were liberal and burned a fire that God hadn’t permitted – they died because of it (Lev 10:1-2).
2. King Saul was liberal in not completely fulfilling God’s command to destroy the Amalekites – he was told that he was in open rebellion against God for it (1 Sam 15:1-23).
3. David was liberal when he allowed a non-Levite to carry the ark – a man died because David didn’t carefully adhere to God’s teachings (2 Sam 6:1-9, 1 Chr 15:13)
4. Jesus told the Pharisees that they were hypocrites because they made their own rules instead of conservatively obeying God’s (Mk 7:10-13).

We can’t speak for your preacher’s motivation, but we can tell you that liberalism is a very real concern because a loose attitude toward God’s Word can lead people straight to heartache and hell.  Liberalism brings the risks of drifting from God and shipwrecking our souls.

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'm sixteen and homeschooled and have been knowing God since I was a small child in Christian school, but I feel the pulse that I'm here to do something for God… not that I feel more important than anyone else.  I just feel I'm here to accomplish something for Him on earth, and I also have a strong pull towards Armageddon in Revelation; am I just weird, or is my strong pull towards doing something in God’s name real?

Sincerely,
Full Of Fire

Dear Full Of Fire,

You aren’t weird… the right word is ‘zealous’.  Being zealous for God is a good thing (1 Pet 3:13, Tit 2:14).  The important thing is to take the zeal of youth and combine that with Biblical knowledge.  It is only when we combine a zealous spirit with truth that we can please God (Jhn 4:24).  Many people have a zeal for God but fail to gain knowledge to properly serve Him (Rom 10:1-2).  Dedicate yourself to becoming a worker who has no need to be ashamed because you will have gained a proper and deep understanding of the Scriptures (2 Tim 2:15).  God wants to use everyone for His service – the question is whether or not we will be prepared (2 Tim 2:21).

Case in point, it is clear from your question that you have some misunderstandings about the book of Revelation.  We recommend you start building a sturdy and scholarly Bible knowledge now.  We have an entire section of our website dedicated to classes on every book of the Bible.  We recommend you visit sermons.mvchurchofchrist.org, download, and listen to classes on various books of the Bible… including the book of Revelation.  The more you know, the more you will be prepared to do good in this world.

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

Why is it so hard to just have faith?  Why can't it be absolute instead of questionable?

Sincerely,
Wanna See It

Dear Wanna See It,

Faith, without an element of trust, isn’t faith at all.  If you can see something, then all doubt is removed – faith is a conviction in things not seen (Heb 11:1).  God has provided ample evidence of His existence (Rom 1:20, for further details read “Does God Exist?”) as well as abundant evidence that the Bible is His Word (see “Who Wrote The Bible?”).  The vast preponderance of evidence proves that God exists, but it is up to us to trust the evidence without actually seeing Him.  Faith is the great struggle and battle of the human soul.  Will we choose to believe in a God we cannot see (but can logically prove exists)… or will we choose to believe that there is nothing after death?