I love my pets very much, but do they have souls?  Will I see them in heaven?

Sincerely,
Cat Lady

Dear Cat Lady,

Animals have the “breath of life” just like humans do (Gen 2:7, Gen 6:17).  This “breath of life” is also sometimes referred to as the “spirit” of a man or animal (Gen 7:22).  Animals have spirits, and humans have spirits, but humans were also made in the image of God (Gen 1:26).  Our spirit is eternal and will go up to be with the Father, and animal spirits are temporary and will return to the dust of the earth (Eccl 3:21).  God made our spirit of a different caliber than He made those of the animal.  Dogs don’t go to heaven, but we can feel confident that God has decided wisely on this issue like all others.  We may not always understand His reasons, but He always makes good decisions.

Our congregation is small, and we have a small Spanish group that meets in the rear of our building on Sundays and on Wednesday evenings.  On Sundays, the group from the back joins us for the invitation song, the taking of the Lord’s Supper, and the closing prayer.  We have an English prayer led and then a Spanish prayer for both the Lord’s Supper and the closing.  It sometimes gets confusing because we do not speak Spanish and vice-versa.  In doing so, many of our congregation are saying, “Amen” to the Spanish prayers; also, sometimes our preacher goes over with his lesson while the Spanish group is waiting patiently, listening to something they do not understand.  My question is: would this be a violation of 1 Corinthians 14:23-33?  It surely is very confusing.  Thank You.

Sincerely,
Bilingual Brouhaha

Dear Bilingual Brouhaha,

The whole point of 1 Corinthians 14 is that things should be done in an orderly fashion.  The Corinthians were shouting over each other instead of taking turns, and Paul said they should keep things to a maximum of two or three speakers who take turns (1 Cor 14:29).  Furthermore, the Corinthians were speaking in multiple languages (miraculously in their case) when no one could understand the language.  Paul condemned this behavior (1 Cor 14:28).  The answer to the problem was to:

1. Speak understandably with meaning and purpose, so that the people listening were able to comprehend what was being taught (1 Cor 14:7-11).
2. Speak one by one and take turns (1 Cor 14:29-32).
3. Let only the men speak (1 Cor 14:34-35).

Now let’s use that criteria to analyze your situation:

1. Everything that is said has meaning and purpose, so that a portion (either English-speaking or Spanish-speaking) of the congregation can comprehend the teaching.  There is a concern over the fact that not everyone can understand everything, but fundamentally, this criteria is being met.
2. From what you have said, all of the speakers are being diligent to take turns and not shout over each other.  There may be ways to improve the organization, but we would be hard-pressed to say that there is no organization already.  Any improvement would be an issue of fine-tuning, not removal of error.
3. You never address women speaking, so we will assume this is also being handled scripturally.

The criteria of the Scriptures is clear, and as long as your congregation remains diligent to stick to those ideals, it will be fine.  We will admit that having two languages in the same congregation can be a little unwieldy, but in truth, this wouldn’t be too uncommon of a circumstance in the first century church.  We would chalk this up to an opportunity to “bear with one another” and show patience as you try to overcome the struggles of the language barrier (Eph 4:2-3).

I was studying the Bible with my friend (she is a Mormon), and she showed me a verse that talks about baptizing dead people (1 Cor 15:29).  What is that all about?

Sincerely,
Coffin Dunker

Dear Coffin Dunker,

God does command baptism for the dead… but not how the Mormons teach it.  Baptism for the dead is a Mormon practice where they baptize a living family member on behalf of a dead relative.  The Mormons then profess that “proxy-baptism” saves the soul of the dead relative, turning them into a Mormon.  There is nothing in the Bible that teaches this doctrine, and they misuse 1 Cor 15:29 when they refer to it.

1 Cor 15:29 is in the middle of a discussion Paul is having with the Corinthian church about life after death.  Paul just got done explaining that Jesus died and lived again (1 Cor 15:15-18).  Paul will then later explain that he is willing to be persecuted even to death in order to preach the gospel (1 Cor 15:30-32).  The statement about baptism for the dead is smack-dab right in the middle of that context.  Therefore, whatever “baptism for the dead” is referring to must have something to do with life after death and the willingness to die for the gospel because you have such a hope.

Baptism removes our sin (Acts 2:38).  Baptism saves us (1 Pet 3:21, Mk 16:16).  When we are baptized, we move from a state of spiritual death to spiritual life (Eph 2:1-5).  That spiritual death (i.e. eternity in hell) is what Paul is referring to in 1 Cor 15:29.  People are baptized for death, to remove spiritual death, and live in the hope of eternal life (Tit 3:7).  Jesus came and preached to those living in the “shadow of death” (Lk 1:79).  When we obey the gospel, we have passed out of death and into life (Jhn 5:24).  Jesus even went so far as to say that we will never see death if we keep His word (Jhn 8:51).  In the context of first Corinthians chapter 15, Paul is talking about this eternal death.  When people are baptized, they are baptized to avoid the eternal death that awaits all who are outside of Christ.

I'm thinking of traveling internationally for a while.  I don't like having an itinerary to be tied to, so I'll just come and go when I feel like it.  Here's the problem: my mom thinks that I need to get my own job and move out.  I'm young!  I need to see the world.  Isn't there something in the Bible to show my mom that she's holding me back from true experiences?  (She's a Christian, so she'll believe whatever is in there).  I want to go as soon as I get enough for airfare, so a quick answer would get rid of the guilt she uses to manipulate me.

Sincerely,
Ready to LIVE!

Dear Ready to LIVE!,

Get a J-O-B.  If you won’t work, you shouldn’t eat either (2 Thess 3:10).  What if your parents had been “come and go when I feel like it” people?  If they had been that way, you wouldn’t have a stable home-life to mooch off of!  Bear the yoke in your youth and get to work (Lam 3:27).  When you have labored and strived, then you can enjoy the blessings of your labor (Eccl 5:18).  There is nothing wrong with traveling to see the world, but you should only enjoy that blessing after you’ve worked for it and gained the wisdom to do it properly.  The verse I would show your mother is, “Answer a fool according to his folly” (Pr 26:5); if you want to see the world, she should move you out herself, so you can see it authentically.

We have several ministers at our church and, of course, our pastor.  Ministers in our church are people who have told Pastor that God has placed a call into ministry on their lives.  Then they gain the title from the pastor.  I am not a minister in the church, but, however, I married one of those ministers last November.  My question is... I'm not sure what is right for me to do as a minister’s wife.  The women of the church are always telling me that I need to be in all these groups; I need to be a part of this ministry and that ministry.  At this time, the pastor’s wife even put my name down to be a team member for our woman's conference, and I was never even asked if I wanted to be a part; then they put me in the food ministry, and I have worked in food since I was 12; I'm now 44 and told myself when I left the last job that pertained to food that I'd never do it again; I really dislike it.  My other problem is that I'm a people pleaser; God is working on me.  I also feel like I have to do what everyone expects me to do so I don't disappoint them or my husband.  I think my husband thinks like they do.  He’s been in that church for about 9 years, and I've only been there almost 2.  I believe in serving others, and I want to, but I'd really like to be able to do what I enjoy and not what everyone else thinks I need to do.  I've never been a minister’s wife, and I would just like some advice outside of our church from a godly perspective. Thank you, and may God bless you.

Sincerely,
The Minister’s Wife

Dear The Minister’s Wife,

Well, if you are a people pleaser, you are probably not going to be pleased with the advice we give.  Your problem is that you are part of a congregation that doesn’t do things God’s way.  You are dissatisfied and unhappy because what you are involved in is man’s religion, not God’s church.  Whenever we do things our way instead of God’s, we are bound for confusion and strife (1 Cor 14:33).  Several things to consider:

1. Your congregation’s leadership structure is wrong.  There is not a single example of a church in the New Testament that is led by a pastor… all of the congregations had multiple pastors (also known as ‘elders’) working together to shepherd the flock (Acts 14:23, Acts 20:17).  Your congregation’s future is directed by the attitudes and opinions of a single man.  Your direction is guided by him, instead of being tempered by the wisdom of multiple men guided by God’s Word (1 Pet 5:2).  Read our article “Elders” for further details on what a pastor should be.
2. You mentioned all of these different “ministries” of your church, including a food ministry.  It is our experience that the word ‘ministry’ has become a replacement for the term ‘social program’.  Social programs are designed to help the physical needs and desires of a community.  The church is the pillar and ground of the truth (1 Tim 3:15).  It is designed to uphold and further God’s Word, not every social program and community need.  Read our article “Blow Out The Candles” to understand why it is so important that we not stray from God’s work for His church.
3. Ministers are preachers.  They are men that have decided to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ (1 Thess 3:2).  It is not a title given to someone by a congregation’s pastor; it is a title earned by a lifestyle of teaching and preaching God’s Word to christians and unbelievers alike (1 Tim 4:6).  Paul was a minister because he served others and preached God’s Word to mankind (Col 1:23).  Being a minister’s wife is no different than being a plumber’s wife – no one expects a plumber’s wife to fix toilets.  These are manmade expectations being placed on you, not Biblical ones.

We recommend you start thinking about looking for a church that does things God’s way… a congregation without any attachment to manmade doctrines.  If you feel what we are saying is too harsh, we recommend that you ask your pastor about the things we have written and see how his answers match up.  You might also ask him some of the things mentioned in the article “Preacher Interrogation”.