Were Homosexuals Made in God’s Image Too?

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What does “God’s image” refer to? Were we all made in God’s image, including homosexuals? Did God make us perfect? You asked, the Bible answers.

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Were Homosexuals Made in God’s Image Too?

Brother Bob Pellien: As Christians, we believe that we were all made in God’s image, but some ask us, “Does that also include homosexuals? Were they also made in God’s image?”

Hello, everyone. Welcome to That’s In The Bible where the basis of the teachings here in the Church Of Christ is first and foremost, the Bible, the Holy Scriptures. And we want to clarify, as we regularly do, that the Bible does not answer just any and all questions, but regarding proper worship, right relationship with God, and most importantly, salvation. Those answers are most definitely here in the Holy Bible.

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That’s in the Bible!

Brother Bob: I’m Bob Pellien, and welcome to the program, That’s In The Bible.

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Brother Bob Pellien

Minister of the Gospel

Brother Bob: On a recent episode, we addressed some questions about homosexuality, and gender identity, as well as same sex marriage. Today, we’ll be answering a viewer’s question about the nature of people, continuing though in the context of our community members who are homosexual. Patrick emailed and asked, “In Genesis, doesn’t God say He ‘made man in our likeness?’ What does that mean?” That’s from Patrick in Calgary.

Well, we thank you very much, Patrick, for your question. And what it means to be created in God’s likeness, well, it’s important for all of us to understand. Understanding this will also answer similar questions that we received like: “Were homosexuals made in God’s image too?” Remember, God is perfect. Therefore, does this mean God made us perfect as we are, since we’re in and created in His image? So, in today’s discussion, we’ll be learning more about being created in God’s image from these points of question like: “In what way were we created in God’s image?” And, “Did God make us perfect?” And, “What are the consequences of not upholding the image we were created in?”

So, dear friends, what does God advise to those, well, when they want to fulfill being created in God’s image, and they believe they were born without the ability to do so?

Let’s address these questions. In order to answer the first question regarding creation, let’s go to the verse being referenced by Patrick in his question, and that’s recorded here in the first book of the Bible, the Book of Genesis, chapter 1, and we’ll read here, you can follow along on the screen, verse 27:

So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.
[Genesis 1:27 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: Here, dear friends, we can read that, well, as God’s creations we were made in the image of God. Yes. It should be clear, however, that the image being mentioned, it’s not the physical image. We’re sure of that. Why? Because well, for example, according to I Timothy 1:17, God is invisible. In John 4:24, God is referred to there as a spirit, and that proves He has no flesh and bones, as in Luke 24:39 that spirit does not have flesh and bones.

It’s clear then and in the image of God being referred to, it’s not then the physical human form. It’s not our body, it’s not our genetics, it’s not our functions, or our features. So in what way, then, are we all created in the image of God? And for that answer, we turn to the writings of Apostle Peter in I Peter 1:15, and 16, it says:

but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.”

[I Peter 1:15-16 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: So here, dear friends, we see in what way we were created in God’s image. We were created to be holy. We were created to reflect holiness. God himself said, “Be holy, for I am holy.” Would this mean that we’re automatically holy, that the personality, the characteristics, the essence of being, all that we know of ourselves, is automatically holy? Some might think, “Since I’m like this,” like you know referring to various tendencies or traits in themselves, including homosexuality, “therefore, I’m supposed to be like this.”

Is that how we should understand these biblical verses, dear friends? God made us perfect, no need to do anything, no need to learn God’s teachings. How can we follow God’s instructions to be holy? What can we use to reflect holiness? How can we become holy and reflect in the likeness of God? We can read the answer here in the book of John, chapter 17. Let’s quote the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, here in verse 17:

Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.

[John 17:17 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: So, dear friends, it’s God’s word, His truth, His instructions, commandments, His laws, is what can make a person holy. How so? Why so? Because it can sanctify someone. God’s laws, His commandments, they are what is good. That’s also mentioned in Romans 7:12, which is why when one follows them, he is sanctified. What’s the meaning of sanctified? To be purified, to be made clean in God’s eyes, or to be made holy, and therefore reflect the image of God, His image of holiness.

This is the precise reason, dear friends, that the only thing that we, here inside the Church Of Christ, base our faith upon and share to all of you is what is actually written here in the Holy Bible. Because following God’s law is what we were created to do. We were created to reflect the holiness of God, so that we can be and live in the image of God or in His image of holiness.

Now, we realize that it can be confusing when, especially leaders of different religions, while supposedly leading people to follow the Bible, say things that contradict the Bible. For example, when the Pope tells a gay man, “God made you like this.”

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“Pope Francis tells gay man: ‘God made you like this’”

The Guardian

Sunday, May 20, 2018

theguardian.com

Brother Bob: In an earlier program, we studied the biblical truths regarding God’s prohibition against same-sex relationships. So anyone who tells a person who is currently living a lifestyle contrary to God’s words, and they would say something like, “God made you this way, so it’s therefore okay,” is obviously not speaking on God’s behalf, not speaking God’s words, but rather from their own opinions and how they have been influenced to believe in their own life, contrary to the word of God.

Many studies, even debates, have already been done and much research has been published, all in an effort to find a biological or an environmental cause of homosexuality. Scientists have studied, for example, the human anatomy and even neuroanatomy to find out if the cause of homosexuality is biological. But up to now, they still have not found any conclusive proof that it is. The reality is that, up to now, no scientific evidence has been shown that homosexuality is inherited or that an individual is, in fact, born homosexual. So, what does the Bible say about people being created in God’s image, with the instruction to be holy as God is holy, but who have chosen to live a life outside of God’s law? The answer I quote from the Holy Bible once again. Ecclesiastes 7:29 reads this way:

Lo, this is the only reason for it that I have found: God made man upright, but they [men and women] have sought out many devices [for evil].

[Ecclesiastes 7:29 Amplified Bible]

Brother Bob: Dear friends, is there any one of our viewers right now living a life against God’s law? What you have to accept—it’s not the Creator’s fault. The Bible clearly says that God made us upright. He made us the right way. He made us able to be holy with every ability to follow his law. That is the image of God that we were created in, to live a life of holiness and obedience to His law. So why, then, are there those who are not remaining upright? As we just read here, the Bible said because people “have sought out many devices [for evil].”

So, the people living a life against God’s law: No, God did not make you that way. No. God gives us the choice of how to be and how to live. And, dear friends, what are the consequences if we do not live by or, we choose to live, breaking the laws of God? Listen once again to the answer of God. First John chapter three, verse four says:

Whoever sins is guilty of breaking God’s law, because sin is a breaking of the law.

[I John 3:4 Good News Bible]

Brother Bob: The biblical definition of sin, dear friends, is the breaking of God’s law. This is why we cannot accept that there are people born homosexuals, created by God to be on the path of a homosexual lifestyle, or that it is an innate character trait. Because if that were true, it would contradict God’s own teachings written in the Bible. God did not create us to break His law or to be lacking in the ability to abide by it. Remember, dear friends, the Bible says, “God made man upright.” In fact, in other translations of the Bible, it says that God made people good or uncorrupted. Although some would have us believe that there’s nothing wrong with always following one’s own passions and desires, we have to be aware that it is very wrong to do so, if the passion or the desire is what God regards as evil or wrong.

Those that find themselves proudly identifying as homosexuals, how does the Bible describe this kind of passion being that it is outside of God’s law? Well let’s, again, let God answer. These responses are not coming from us. We’re just reading them here in the Holy Scripture. So, for example, in the book of Romans, chapter 1, we’ll read first verse 28, and we’ll also read verse 25, 26, and 27:

And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchange the natural use for what is against nature. Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due.

[Romans 1:28, 25-27 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: Dear friends, it is the Bible that describes people, women with women, men with men, and described it as going against the nature God created for them. The Bible describes their acts, even calls it shameful, and the kind of passion that they have was called what? To quote the word of God, a “vile passion.” Therefore, living this way, it would not be living in the image of God.

Is there anyone here in this program, joining us in this program today, that wants to live in the image of God but has homosexual inclinations or desires? What is the advice of the Bible? What guidance can be found in the Holy Scriptures, because God also holds out an invitation for those who hope to live within God’s laws but feel like these desires are out of their control, or these desires are too much for them to deny. Do you feel like you were born that way? There’s an important reminder of our Creator, spoken of by the Apostle Paul in I Corinthians, chapter 10, verse 13. Let’s hear this wonderful pronouncement of our Lord God:

But remember this—the wrong desires that come into your life aren’t anything new and different. Many others have faced exactly the same problems before you. And no temptation is irresistible. You can trust God to keep the temptation from becoming so strong that you can’t stand up against it, for he has promised this and will do what he says. He will show you how to escape temptation’s power so that you can bear up patiently against it.

[I Corinthians 10:13 The Living Bible]

Brother Bob: The Bible reminds us that we “can trust God to keep that temptation from becoming so strong that you can’t stand up against it. That’s His promise. That’s the love of God. Again, we can see that love of our Creator here, right? He will not place us in a situation where we’re not able to live in His image, or to reflect His image of holiness, to reflect the obedience that will sanctify and purify us. He won’t make that too difficult for us. He will help us. He will help you if you’re feeling those passions, and you know that you need to change them. God is here. It is true that we as human beings, well you know, we have weaknesses right? Which is why it is necessary to follow God’s guidance, follow His laws on our path to holiness.

What should we remember if we ever feel alone in battling the desires to commit sin? Remember what we just read, dear friends. I quote, “remember this—the wrong desires that come into your life aren’t anything new and different.” So, you’re not the first one to have encountered this problem. How then can a person who realizes that he’s not living in the true image of God, which is being holy and upright, and they adjust his or her lifestyle to the way God intended? The answer is also recorded here in the Bible. We turn to the writings of Apostle Paul in Ephesians, chapter 4, verse 21 through 24, he said:

You certainly heard about him, and as his followers you were taught the truth that is in Jesus. So get rid of your old self, which made you live as you used to—the old self that was being destroyed by its deceitful desires. Your hearts and minds must be made completely new, and you must put on the new self, which is created in God’s likeness and reveals itself in the true life that is upright and holy.

[Ephesians 4:21-24 Good News Bible]

Brother Bob: The Bible mentions, dear friends, the first step to renewing our life is to be taught the truth, and it’s only by hearing and learning the truth, which we learned earlier when we read John 17:17 is God’s words that will sanctify, God’s words, that one would then realize the error of their ways.

Does merely realizing it, though, or admitting the error of one’s ways mean that we’re now living in the image of God.? No, of course not. Not yet. So what’s the next step? What do we do now if, “I know that I need to change, I know I need to do something different, I need help?” The next step, what did the Apostle Paul instruct? “Get rid of your old self.” “Which self is that old self that I need to get rid of?” one may ask. Well, the Bible said, it’s the one that “made you live as you used to—the old self that was being destroyed by its deceitful desires.”

So what is needed then, dear friends, to truly get rid of our old self one may ask? Well it says, “Your hearts and minds must be made completely new.” So our idea, our own mind, our own opinion, our own idea of what we call right and wrong, can change, must change. How would a person be able to prove this change in their life? The Bible also said you have to “put on the new self.” What is this new self referring to? The kind of person “created in God’s likeness and reveals itself in true life that is upright and holy.”

God gave us clear instructions on how to pursue the holiness that He created us for. We started this discussion with a few main questions that we hope everyone understands now, as they have been answered by God.

Brother Bob: Yes, we were all created in God’s image. Yes. But that image was not the physical nature but was the image of holiness, it was our capacity to live upright and to follow God’s commands. God did not create us cookie-cutter perfect specimens of utmost obedience. No. We have weaknesses, failures that are our own responsibility to correct. Thankfully, we have His laws. We have His commands, the guidance He provides to follow, so He’s there with us helping us attain that holiness, that upright stature of being in His likeness that he asks us, asks from us. This is the way of life we were intended to live in the first place, a life in the image of God.

We have learned today the starting process to truly live in God’s image. And that is what we have to do, because That’s in the Bible.

You know, dear friends, there are many similar topics regarding sexuality and self expression that we’ve been covering and discussing here on the program That’s In The Bible. Some of these have included: How many genders did God create? and Does god support same sex marriage?

Continue learning about the Iglesia Ni Cristo, the Church Of Christ. Visit us. Visit us online as well and browse the different topics.

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Brother Bob: Set up an appointment if you’d like to meet with a minister of the gospel. If you have any questions about the Bible, about salvation, please email them to us.

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Brother Bob: I’m Bob Pellien. Thanks for watching. See you next time, right here, on That’s In The Bible.

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Does God Support Same-Sex Marriage?

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What does the Bible say about same-sex marriage? Can God support or bless gay marriages? You asked, the Bible answers.

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Does God Support Gay Marriage?

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Brother Bob Pellien: Can one believe in the Bible or be a true Christian and at the same time believe in, or promote on our social media accounts, same-sex marriage? Does God support same-sex marriage?

Hello, everyone, and welcome to this program! The basis of the teachings here, in the Church Of Christ, is and will always be the Bible or the Holy Scriptures.

Now, we want to clarify though that the Bible does not answer just any and all questions, but regarding proper worship, regarding [the] right relationship with God, and most importantly regarding salvation—those answers, most definitely, are here in the Holy Bible.

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That’s in the Bible!

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Brother Bob Pellien

Minister of the Gospel

Brother Bob Pellien: I’m Bob Pellien and welcome to That’s in the Bible! On a recent episode of this program, we addressed the question, “How many genders does God recognize?” or “How many genders did God actually create?”, which the biblical answer is, as we learned then, was two: and they’re male and female.

Now, we move on to another question on a similar topic that was emailed to the program by Annie. Annie asks us this: “What does the Bible say about gay marriage?”

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Annie | San Diego, California, USA

What does the Bible say about gay marriage?

Brother Bob Pellien: Thank you, Annie for that question.

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Can two people of the same sex or gender be married in God’s sight?

Does God support same-sex marriage?

Brother Bob Pellien: So, can two people of the same sex or gender be married in God’s sight? Can one believe in the Bible and be a true Christian and at the same time believe in or promote, like I said a while ago, promote on their social media accounts same-sex marriage? Like. Share. Does God support same-sex marriage?

Again, before we start reading the answer, we would like to clarify ahead [that] we do value and recognize the human rights of every individual. We as Christians also, we do not tolerate that any person is oppressed or discriminated against by others. And, we do not promote hatred against anyone.

With that said, to answer the question regarding same-sex marriage, we turn as always to the Holy Bible to understand what is marriage and what marriage is not. And we do that by turning to the book of Genesis, chapter 1, verse 27 and 28, and it reads this way:

So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

[Genesis 1:27-28 New King James Version]

Brother Bob Pellien: So, dear friends, here we can see that marriage was established by none other than the Creator Himself. It’s important to understand that there is no culture, there’s no country, nor government, nor any person or group of people that came up with or established marriage. Marriage, it’s not simply a legal institution. It’s an institution established by God. So, it is a religious union or a spiritual union. Why? Because the two, they cannot be joined as one in God’s sight unless they first seek the blessing, the blessing from Him, since God’s the One who established marriage.

Dear friends, this union, like all of God’s other institutions, has very clear rules and guidelines that cannot be altered or adjusted by anyone. The Bible is very clear that the two God joins together is male and the female, or a man and a woman.

And after blessing them, or marrying the first couple, what was His instruction to them? He gave the instruction to go forth and multiply, fill the earth.

Consider: that cannot be done by those who enter into that marital union as same-sex partners, obviously. Even with the help of modern medical science, a child created for these same-sex couples is not a product of their union with each other. Which is why, therefore, we are very sure that same-sex marriage is not what God has established.

Now to be fair, many may argue that, well, because this is a new day and age, a whole new era–the Christian era, and the complexities of modern life, current culture should be taken into account, there should be a change in attitude. “Jesus is love,” they would say. Others simply avoid taking a stand at all for fear of offending others and say, for example, “Who am I to judge others?” And there are even some who say, “Christ never discriminated. He taught love.”

Dear friends, being that we are living in the Christian era, the Lord Jesus Christ is Whom we should follow and listen to, which is the true definition of a Christian anyway. And because we should not be judging others, and that’s true really, who are we to judge, right, we should simply respect and follow the judgments of the ultimate Judge–God our Creator.

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What does the Bible teach regarding marriage?

Brother Bob Pellien: According to Jesus, what does the Bible actually teach regarding marriage? Has God’s original establishment of marriage, that we read a moment ago in the book of Genesis from the Old Testament, has that changed according to His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ? Let’s read what Jesus actually says on that matter, in Matthew, 19, verses 4 through 6. He said:

And He answered and said to them, “Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning ‘made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.”

[Matthew 19:4-6 New King James Version]

Brother Bob Pellien: Dear friends, we can see how there is nothing vague or confusing about Christ’s teaching regarding marriage. Our Lord Jesus Christ shows how God’s policy stands to this day: marriage is between man and woman. In fact, Christ even quoted word-for-word what is written earlier, as we read earlier, in the Holy Scriptures so as to avoid any misinterpretation. True Christians follow Christ’s teachings, so they can be right with their Creator—the only Judge, as we also mentioned earlier.

It’s understandable, though, that there are countries now that are changing their laws to recognize same-sex marriages. But, it should also be understood that same-sex marriages will only be recognized by man’s laws, not God’s, because God’s law written here in the Holy Bible does not change based upon ever-changing cultural tolerances.

Maybe some however are thinking, or maybe even are a bit conflicted thinking that, “I thought Christ preached a message of love and understanding. How is this possible if He does not allow same-sex marriages?” Dear friends, to clarify how Christ’s stand and policy on marriage is in fact really a message of love; how could that be? Well, I Corinthians, chapter 6, verses 9 and 10 read this way:

Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.

[I Corinthians 6:9-10 New International Version]

Brother Bob Pellien: Why should this be considered a message of love? The message of love makes it clear what will happen if one does right or does wrong. We can see here that it is wrong to engage in same-sex or homosexual relationships, just as it is wrong to steal, or to slander, or to swindle others. It is a warning, a loving warning, to help people be saved from what will happen if left to their own desires. The biblical truth is that those who do these acts “will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Making this perfectly clear is a great manifestation of the deep love of Christ. He doesn’t want anyone to be punished by God.

Christ’s love for all people is the reason He taught the truth. The modern, pop cultural concept that Christ’s love approves of and encompasses any and all relationships between consenting adults—it’s NOT in the Bible. This is also the reason why we are here, why all of us here inside the Church Of Christ, continually share what is actually written here in the Bible. Why? So that just as we have read, we would “not be deceived” but we could still inherit the Kingdom of God.

We are fully aware that there might be some who, as they watch this episode, we know there may be some to be hurt, get angry even, and refuse to believe what they’re hearing and seeing in the Bible. We also know that there are many more people who are not even interested in what’s in the Bible and would rather base their beliefs on their own sources, such as personal philosophies and ideologies, or internet influencers. Why is it not surprising that there are people who refuse to believe God’s words written in the Bible? It really is not surprising, and here’s why. We turn to the book of Psalms, 107, verse 11, because it says this:

Because they rebelled against the words of God, And despised the counsel of the Most High,

[Psalms 107:11 New King James Version]

Brother Bob Pellien: Dear friends, the Bible makes mention here of the people even before who despised God’s words, decided to rebel against them. Are you one of those people today in our time? So, what we are seeing today is, it’s nothing new. It’s just that society’s legal definition of marriage is one point of rebellion for some.

Now that we’ve learned God’s laws regarding marriage, that He established it, it’s He who blessed the first couple, a man and a woman, male/female to be joined together, well, what about those that have tendencies or desires to go against that set order?

Dear friends, if there’s anyone watching at this moment who might have these tendencies, these feelings, the question now is: would you automatically be punished eternally for having these tendencies, having these feelings, feeling this way? We find the answer again here in the Holy Bible, and this time we turn to the book of James, chapter 1, verse 14 and 15:

But every person is tempted when he is drawn away, enticed and baited by his own evil desire (lust, passions). Then the evil desire, when it has conceived, gives birth to sin, and sin, when it is fully matured, brings forth death.

[James 1:14-15 Amplified Bible]

Brother Bob Pellien: First of all, we have to clarify that not all desires or passions are evil. But notice: if the desire is drawing one away from God and tempted, entices one to break His commandments, then that is an evil desire. What we can notice in this verse, that we’ve just read here, is that every person is tempted but not all are tempted in the same way. Some may be tempted in other kinds of vices, in stealing, drinking, or gambling, or they easily get angry or maybe are easily led to laziness, immorality, or lust for same-sex relationships, whatever it may be.

What does the Bible say, however? Only those whose desires are allowed to conceive will it give birth to sin and bring forth death. Everyone is tempted, yes. But we can see also that merely having an evil desire, a passion, or let’s say the tendency, it does not—we have to emphasize that, dear friends—it does not automatically mean that you will not enter heaven or will be punished eternally.

It was made clear that when the evil desire of a person manifests itself by committing sin, or taking action on those evil desires, that is when a person falls into God’s judgment already established. Which is why, as we read earlier, the wrongdoer not the tempted, I repeat, the wrongdoer not the merely tempted, the ”wrongdoer will not inherit the kingdom of God.”

Even though many people today are very concerned with making sure they live their lives politically correct, we inside the Church Of Christ are primarily concerned that we live our lives biblically correct or in accordance with God’s will.

This is, again, the reason why learning these biblical truths is truly God’s love for us. People say Jesus is love. He is! He warned us. That is love. We hope, through this teaching today that comes from the Lord here in the Holy Scriptures, we have all received that love.

But there are many similar topics yet, similar topics regarding sexuality and self expression that we’ll be covering regularly here on upcoming episodes of That’s in the Bible. And some of these topics include: Gender identity, Being created in God’s image.

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Gender identity

Being created in God’s image

Brother Bob Pellien: We’d like you to continue learning about the Iglesia Ni Cristo (Church Of Christ).

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Visit

Incmedia.org

Brother Bob Pellien: Please visit us online and browse the different topics, or set up an appointment to meet with a minister of the gospel. If you have any questions about the Bible, about salvation, please email them to us.

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answers@incmedia.org

Brother Bob Pellien: I’m Bob Pellien.

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Brother Bob Pellien

Minister of the Gospel

Brother Bob Pellien: Thanks for watching. See you next time, as we continue this discussion, right here on That’s in the Bible!

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How Many Genders Did God Create?

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How many genders did God create in the beginning? Does Jesus’ love allow for gender to be a spectrum, or to be non-binary? You asked, the Bible answers.

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That’s in the Bible

How Many Genders Did God Create?

Brother Bob Pellien: With the current climate of politicized issues prevalent on the internet, social media and even mainstream media, a number of you have reached out to us via email and are simply asking “How many genders does God recognize?” or even “How many genders did God create?” Hello, everyone. Welcome to That’s in the Bible. The basis of our faith here in the Church Of Christ is first and foremost the Bible or the Holy Scriptures. Now, we want to always clarify that the Bible does not answer just any and all questions. But regarding proper worship, the right relationship with God and most importantly, salvation. Those answers are most definitely here in the Holy Bible.

Brother Bob: I’m Bob Pellien. Welcome to the program That’s in the Bible. Now, to some, this might be a fairly simple question to answer: How many genders did God create? But for others, the fear of offending a whole community of people and being labeled as, well, not politically correct or even being labeled a bigot, have confused them regarding what is right and what is true, since the question is: How many genders did God create? We will simply use God’s own words to respond to that. And his words are written here in the Holy Bible.

Now, before we start reading the answer we would like to clarify something first, and that is that we really do value and recognize the human rights of every individual. We also do not tolerate that any person would be oppressed or discriminated against by anyone, due to their gender identity, or sexual orientation. And, we do not promote hatred against anyone. Instead we encourage seeking biblical truth about this and every subject.

Brother Bob: So, to understand of whether a gender spectrum or gender fluidity is recorded in the Bible, we first turn to the Bible and read Genesis 1:27 NKJV:

So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

Genesis 1:27 New King James Version

Brother Bob: Here, dear friends, we can clearly see that, from the very beginning, when God created people, there was not a gender spectrum. We’ve always been two biological sexes, manifesting in only two sexual genders. A human being is either male or female. God did not create additional genders other than those two. And, dear friends, since today, there are some that, well, they simply claim otherwise. We can pose a follow up question specifically for the time or era we are all living in now: the Christian era. Some wonder and say that, well, since Christ’s teachings are full of love—and that’s true—surely He would have accepted those who claim to be of a gender not mentioned in the Old Testament. So, have the number of genders changed or increased in this era according to the Lord Jesus Christ? Let’s go to the writings where he’s quoted here. Matthew 19:4 reads this way, our Lord Jesus said this:

And He answered and said to them, “Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning ‘made them male and female,’

Matthew 19:4 New King James Version

Brother Bob: Again, dear friends, we can clearly see the answer of the Lord Jesus Christ, since He’s actually quoting God’s very own words, showing that there’s no change, no change in the Christian era. We live in the Christian era still. But you might wonder why then are there some who have taken a very clear, very simple, very good and straight forward truth as we’ve read it here, and view it to be complex, quite complicated. Gender identity and Christianity have become, for some people, even opposing forces. There may be those who feel confused as to where they fit on that gender spectrum that was created, not by God, but created by society, and might be even blaming God for their personal confusion because they truly believe they were created in His image. Dear friends, how can one be created in His image, His image of holiness, if in fact they are tempted to represent themselves in a way they know to be different from what and how God created them to be? Or to say it even simpler, they might think “If God created me and I’m like this, it must be okay with God.” Let’s let God respond. And we turn to Ecclesiastes 7:29, let’s read together here what is God’s response about that:

Here is what I have figured out: God made humanity for good, but we humans go out and scheme our way into trouble.

Ecclesiastes 7:29 The Voice

Brother Bob: Clearly the fault then, dear friends, it’s not with the Creator. God created us for good, and His words determine, of course, what is good and what is not good. And since God already told us in the verses that we’ve already read previously, God created male and female. He created binary genders. He provides everything that we need to live our lives peaceful, live our lives happy and content. This is why when one properly follows God’s instructions and His commands, then he is able to enjoy and receive God’s promised blessings—His protection, His peace, His happiness. So, where then is the problem and confusion of some? The Bible states as we just read it, humans, we humans go out and scheme our way into trouble.

So following God’s commands and teachings is what every created person, male and female, has the ability to do. The disobedience and failure to follow God’s words, to live as God created them to live is no one else’s fault or struggle to overcome but the individual themself. Knowing these truths are vital, dear friends. So we all have human weaknesses, right? Weaknesses that make us susceptible to stray from God’s ways and from His words. But we can’t allow that. We must not allow that to happen. Why do we say it’s vital to know these biblical truths, meaning hearing them, learning, and studying and accepting what is actually written in the Bible should really be priority in our lives? We say this because, well, there’s a danger of not knowing or allowing sources other than God’s words to be our guide. What’s the danger? Let’s read about it. And the answer to that question was responded to by the Apostle Paul here. 2 Corinthians 11:3, wherein it says this:

But I am afraid that your minds will be led away from your true and pure following of Christ. This might happen just as Eve was tricked by the snake with his evil ways.

2 Corinthians 11:3 New Century Version

Brother Bob: So dear friends, we are reminded that Eve (the first woman created and one who was able to enjoy a life in paradise known, as we all know, as the Garden of Eden), she was tricked by who? The enemy of God (the devil in the form of a snake). She was tricked into straying from following God’s truth. Here the apostle warns us of the danger that we too could be tricked from following the truth written in the Bible that the Lord Jesus Christ taught. This is the reason why learning what is actually written here in the scriptures, written here in the Bible should really be a priority in our lives. If there are those who desire to follow biblical truth, but yet are struggling with their own tendencies, their own feelings that tempt them to go against God’s words – maybe they find themselves, for example, identifying with a non-binary concept of gender, or in confusion regarding which pronouns they want others to address them as – what instruction does the Lord Jesus Christ give? Let’s turn again to the Scriptures, this time the words of our Lord are recorded here in Matthew 26:41 NKJV it says:

Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.

Matthew 26:41 New King James Version

Brother Bob: Dear friends, temptations to sin or to break any of God’s laws are all around us. We should never allow anyone to convince us that any one of God’s laws is outdated, any of His laws in the Christian era is, obsolete, invalid, or no longer needs to be followed, or are in fact impossible to follow and still be happy. Why? Jesus Christ taught to us: “Watch,” He said. “Watch and pray.” Let’s be alert. Let’s all be ready, alert, aware of what is happening in these difficult and changing times, and pray that we accept God’s guidance through His words contained here in the Holy Bible. That’s how we should handle the situation. That’s how we can fight against temptations. The situations that are around us and are prevalent and being fed to us by other kinds of influencers other than God and His words, because that’s in the Bible. And we understand, dear friends, that these modern issues regarding sexuality have many more things that need to be addressed and can be addressed by studying the Bible with us here in the Church Of Christ, which provides, well, much hope and strength. Return for the next episodes as we continue diving deeper into these important topics, such as:

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Same sex marriage

Are homosexuals made in God’s image too?

Brother Bob: So, dear friends, we’d like you to continue learning about the Iglesia Ni Cristo (Church Of Christ).

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Visit incmedia.org

Brother Bob: Please visit us online and browse the different topics and set up an appointment to meet with one of the ministers of the Gospel here inside the Church of Christ, and if you have any questions about the Bible, salvation, these topics—please email them to us.

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answers@incmedia.org

Brother Bob: I’m Bob Pellien, thanks for watching. See you next time, right here on That’s in the Bible.

Why Do We Work So Hard in Life?

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Does anything we do in life matter if we all die anyway? Why do we work so hard in life, just to die? Do good deeds matter? You asked, the Bible answers.

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Brother Bob Pellien: Everyday people are working hard, working to make ends meet and sacrificing to provide for their families, laboring without end. Do our efforts in life have any importance if we all die in the end? Let’s find the answer, here, in the Holy Bible.

[Show open]

Bob Pellien: Hello everyone and welcome to That’s in the Bible! And the basis of the teachings here in the Church Of Christ is always the Bible, the Holy Scriptures.

Now we want to clarify, as we do regularly, that the Bible does not answer just any and all questions, but regarding proper worship, the right relationship with God, and most importantly, salvation – those answers are most definitely in the Bible.

Dear friends, today we’re answering a question from John Mota. He writes:

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Why do people strive to succeed in this life? They strive so hard in school and after school, they go to maybe other schools, or they try really hard to get a really stable career just in the end to die, when in the end it’s just death. So why do we all do that in our life just to meet death?

Brother Bob: Well, it seems to imply that working so hard just to provide, and such, is useless. It doesn’t have any value, it does not have any importance, and because we’re just going to end up dying anyway?

For us, however, inside the Church Of Christ, we would not embrace that particular observation or, let’s say, that particular way of thinking. Why not? Because we believe in an important promise of the Lord. And to understand this promise, let’s focus today on a few topics based on John’s question. We’ll be turning, of course, here, to the Bible, to answer the following:

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Will all of my efforts be forgotten after I die?

Why does it matter what I do in this life?

What kind of work should I be doing?

Will all my efforts be forgotten after I die?

Brother Bob: … is the question, dear friends, as promised.

Let’s turn to the Holy Scriptures and hear what the Lord has in response to these questions. Revelation, chapter 14, verse 13 begins answering this way:

Then I heard a voice from heaven say, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them.”

[Revelation 14:13 New International Version]

Brother Bob: So, those who are laboring, dear friends, those who are sacrificing so much, they do not just die, and that’s the end of it. No. The Bible mentions very clearly here. They will rest from their labors, and there’s a record of their deeds that will follow them.

Brother Bob: How does the Bible further describe the record of their deeds that will go with them or will follow them? Let’s continue going to the Bible for answers to these important questions. And we’ll turn to the book of Revelation, chapter 20, verse 12 and 13 which reads this way:

And I saw the dead, small and great standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works.

[Revelation 20:12-13 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: So dear friends, the Bible is very clear. Everyone is judged according to their works. So, will one’s efforts end after you die? Clearly no. You will rest, says the Bible. And your deeds, the things, the actions of what you have done, the works you have accomplished, will follow you. You will be judged by these deeds. We will be judged, all of us, by our works. If the deeds recorded there in those books mentioned here in the Bible, [are] pleasing and acceptable to the Lord, and we are then worthy of salvation or eternal life to be with Him there in His Kingdom, well if that’s the case, this brings us to our next question: Why does it matter what I do in this life? How important are the things done in this life? In the book of 1 Thessalonians, chapter 4, verse 16 and 17:

For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.

[1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: So, dear friends, if our deeds are found acceptable to the Lord, we will be worthy to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Do you know what one’s life will be like there in the Kingdom of Heaven? The Bible also describes it. How? In the book of Revelation, chapter 21, verses 1, and let’s continue all the way to verse 4. It reads:

Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”

[Revelation 21:1-4 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: Dear friends, if you are worthy to enter that Kingdom of Heaven, there’s a perfect life waiting for you. A life without pain, a life without grief, a life without crying, a life without suffering. Does it mean that what we do in this life doesn’t matter? The opposite – it does matter what we do in this life! How are we sure? If your deeds are acceptable to God, then you will be worthy to go to this place – the Kingdom of Heaven. There is work in this life that has value, has importance, but not all work. Some work may, of course, fulfill certain responsibilities in life. Yes. But what work has the greatest value of all? And that brings us to our next topic:

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What kind of work should I be doing?

Brother Bob: The Bible responds this way. Again, going back to the writings of Apostle Paul, 1 Corinthians 15:58:

So then, my dear friends, stand firm and steady. Keep busy always in your work for the Lord, since you know that nothing you do in the Lord’s service is ever useless.

[1 Corinthians 15:58 Good News Translation]

Brother Bob: So, dear friends, there is labor, there is work for the Lord that is expected to be done, and that’s not useless. That’s not without importance or value. And some examples as we’ve also studied on this program: John, chapter 10, verse 9, the Lord’s instruction to enter into Him. Colossians 1:18: in His body which is the Church. Worship faithfully. Love the brotherhood. Invite our fellow men to join with us serving the Lord. Protect ourselves from the evils of the world around us. There is a lot of important works that the Lord instructs us to do as His loyal and faithful servants. There is important work that has to be done in this life to ensure one’s right to enter the Kingdom of Heaven.

Let’s summarize. In conclusion, let’s review, dear friends, what we have just read from the Scriptures together. Our question was:

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Will all my efforts be forgotten after I die?

Brother Bob: What did we read? No. You will rest. And then what? Your deeds will follow you. How so? You will be judged, as well, by those deeds or works done. If the deeds recorded there in those books are pleasing and acceptable to the Lord, we are worthy of salvation or eternal life with Him in His Kingdom. And we heard that Kingdom described. What else? What does it matter, when one says:

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Why does it matter what I do in this life?

Brother Bob: Dear friends, it does matter what you do! Because if your deeds are acceptable to God, then you’ll be worthy of going to that place, the Kingdom of Heaven. There is work in this life that has value. It must be done. And then we asked:

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What kind of work should I be doing?

Brother Bob: [The] answer in the Bible was what? There’s important work that has to be done in this life to earn one’s right into that kingdom. What was the instruction? Keep busy in your work for the Lord. That’s the work we have to be busy doing. Like I was saying, that’s why inside the Church Of Christ, we worship, we sing, we pray, we learn.

We’d like you to continue learning with us about the Iglesia Ni Cristo, the Church Of Christ. To do that, visit us online:

[On-screen text graphics]

Visit incmedia.org

Brother Bob: Browse the different topics and set up an appointment to meet with a Minister of the Gospel. Join us in worship services. If you have questions about the Bible or about salvation, e-mail them to us.

[On-screen text graphics]

answers@incmedia.org

Brother Bob: Dear friends, I’m Bob Pellien. Thanks for watching this program. We’ll see you again, next time, right here on That’s in the Bible!

[Show close]

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How Do I Know I’m a True Christian?

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Is baptism into the true Church important? What if I’m already a believer? How can I differentiate between the true Church and other denominations? You asked, the Bible answers.

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That’s In the Bible – How Do I Know I’m a True Christian?

Brother Bob Pellien: If you believe you are a Christian, you likely accept the biblical truth that Christ built a Church. It’s simple enough, but it gets complicated because many preachers today teach that the true Church is made up of everyone who truly believes in Christ, regardless of what denomination or church they belong to. But that’s wrong. The true Church is only one organization. Why are we sure? Let’s find the answer in the Holy Bible.

Brother Bob: Hello everyone! Welcome once again to this program, That’s in the Bible. The basis of the teachings here inside the Church Of Christ is, first and foremost, the Bible—the Holy Scriptures. Now, we want to clarify, as we always do, that the Bible questions we address on this program are regarding proper worship, the right relationship with God, and most importantly, salvation—those answers are most definitely found right here, in the Holy Bible. So, we’ll be turning today to the Bible to answer these following questions: First, why is it important for me, you, everyone, to be baptized into the true Church? And secondly, what if one would say, “Well, I’m already part of a particular Christian church or denomination, aren’t I then a believer?” And next, “How can I differentiate between the Church Of Christ and the various Protestant churches?” Let’s start with the first question: Why is it important for me to be baptized into the Church? Let’s go directly to the Holy Bible and begin receiving our answers. And to do so, we turn to the book of Acts 2:41, where it says:

Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them.

[Acts 2:41, New King James Version]

Brother Bob: So, dear friends, the Bible clearly says here that those who believed and were baptized “were added to them.” What does the term “them” refer to? Those that they were “added to,” those that underwent the true baptism. Well, let’s turn here to chapter 2:47 in the book of Acts. It says this:

Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.

[Acts 2:47, King James Version]

Brother Bob: So, the term “them” in the verse that we read refers to the Church—and of course, the true Church. So why is it important for you to be baptized into the true Church? Because—being part of the true Church is important. Why? Because that’s where the believers were baptized into. They were baptized into “them,” baptized into the Church. Maybe someone might say, “Well, I’m already part of a different denomination. I’m part of a different Christian-professing church or denomination, doesn’t that make me then also a believer?” Well, consider the Bible’s answer to those who may think like that. So, for the Bible’s answer, we turn to 1 Corinthians 12. We’ll read verse 13, then we’ll read verse 12:

By one Spirit all of us—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—were baptized to form one body, and that one Spirit was poured out for all of us to drink…As the body is one and yet has many parts, and all the parts of the body, many as they are, form one body, so is Christ.

[1 Corinthians 12:13, 12 Beck]

Brother Bob: So the true Church is, dear friends, it’s very clearly described as singular—“one body”—and the members all make up parts and form that one body. Not many bodies. How many bodies did we read? Only one. One body, one true Church. Are we sure that there’s only one? How does the Bible further clarify that the body, or the true Church, is but one? Romans 12:4-5:

We have many parts in the one body, and all these parts have different functions. In the same way, though we are many, we are one body in union with Christ, and we are all joined to each other as different parts of one body.

[Romans 12:4-5 Good News Bible]

So dear friends, the body, it’s just one. Like a human body, there’s a lot of different parts to it, but yet all its members, all its parts compose or make up just one. In this case each of these parts serve their own function. They are united and one. What outstanding quality can be found therefore in the true Church that functions like this as described here? Well, 1 Corinthians—let’s go back to the writings of Apostle Paul, he describes here in chapter 12:25 of 1 Corinthians. It says:

And so there is no division in the body, but all its different parts have the same concern for one another.

[1 Corinthians 12:15 Good News Bible]

Brother Bob: Dear friends, members of the church, although yes, they may have different functions, but they still work together cohesively as one body not split up and not denominationalized. No. And to answer then the question that we posed together earlier, which went like this: Are you really a true believer if you are part of a different, “detached,” let’s say, Christian professing religion, religious organization, church or denomination? No, you’re not. No matter what you may say, the Bible is very clear. The true Church is not made up of different denominations. It’s not—the body is not all divided up with different names and all sorts of things like that. No, it’s a single organization, a single body. What are many? The members are many, but the organization, the body, is but just one. Well, what then about all these various denominations? How can we differentiate between the true Church Of Christ recorded here in the Bible and the multitude, the many Protestant churches prevalent all over the world? They have:

“20,800 denominations in the world, supplemented by more than 15,000 distinct parachurch agencies, we have ‘something for everyone,’ the carnival midway of Christianity. But the competition among these carnival booths is anything but amusing.”

[Moody Monthly, September 1984]

That quote is from a 1984 periodical named the Moody Monthly. What did I just quote? That there was already 20,800 Protestant denominations, and that was already back in 1984. We’re reading that particular periodical, because they’re saying, almost sarcastically, that we have all of this different “carnival midway” of denominations. But, what we can notice is, clearly, they have no unity, no single body, just division, strife, different names, different everything, beliefs. What must we learn from seeing that? What should we understand? Beloved friends, again, we pose the question. We turn now to the Holy Scriptures. James, chapter 3, where he provides an answer. In verses 14, 15 and 16. What does he have to say about these denominations and these divisions and such that man has created for himself. The Bible answers:

But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth. This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish. For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work.

[James 3:14-16 King James Version]

Brother Bob: Division, strife and confusion: Where do they come from? The Bible said that’s devilish. That’s from the devil then. Not from God. There’s no division in the true church. Why not? How does the Bible describe here, dear friends, the true church of Christ? Is the true church of Christ described having divisions and denominations and different beliefs and different faiths and different forms of baptisms and all those kinds of things? Let’s check together. You can read along on the screen. I’m reading Ephesians 4:4, 5, 6. Let’s include reading verses 12 and 13:

There is one body and one Spirit, just as there is one hope to which God has called you. There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism; there is one God and Father of all people, who is Lord of all, works through all, and is in all. …He did this to prepare all God’s people for the work of Christian service, in order to build up the body of Christ. And so we shall all come together to that oneness in our faith and in our knowledge of the Son of God; we shall become mature people, reaching to the very height of Christ’s full stature.

[Ephesians 4:4-6, 12-13 Good News Bible]

Brother Bob: Dear friends, the difference then between the true Church Of Christ, the biblical Church Of Christ, and the various Protestant denominations and other organizations that are different than the one true body of Christ, the singular organization described here in the Bible, is that Protestantism is full of division, so much so that the different denominations even end up competing with one another. The Church Of Christ, the biblical true Church Of Christ, the church found in the Bible is the one single organized body.

So, dear friends, in conclusion, let’s summarize the questions that we posed. The first: Why is it important for me to be baptized into the true church? Well, as we learned, being part of the true church is so important because that’s where true believers are baptized into the church. And then we asked, in response to the mindset of some who say “I’m already part of a certain Christian church or denomination, so that makes me a believer too. Right?” What did we learn? No, you are not. The true church is not made up of different denominations and different churches with different names and different faiths and different baptisms and different worship service. All such things, it’s not divided up and everybody just do what you want. No, it’s a single organization, a single body that is made up of many members. Join with us and be part of that.

And then we asked “Well, how can I differentiate between the Church Of Christ and these different Protestant denominations and organizations?” Well, we even quoted the Protestant Church is made up of over—and this was a quote from quite a while ago. We quoted that one because it’s they themselves who are pinpointing and describing their own situation. The church, they said, is made up of over 20,000 denominations. What else did they say? It’s full of division but the Church Of Christ, the true church founded in the Bible is not like that. Again, I repeat, it’s one single organized body. Dear friends, we’d like you to continue learning about all of these things—it’s so important. Learn with us here in the Iglesia Ni Cristo, the Church of Christ. Visit us online, browse the different topics or set up an appointment to meet with a minister of the Gospel. If you have any questions about the Bible or salvation, you can email them to us.

I’m Bob Pellien. Thanks for watching. See you next time right here on That’s in the Bible.

How Will I Know if God Accepts Me?

Do you find yourself asking “Why won’t God help me?” Feeling hopeless or alone can drive someone to seek help and comfort. How can you reach out to God?

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How Will I Know if God Accepts Me?

Voiceover: You might find yourself devoted to doing what you are really convinced and believe is the right thing, and trying your very best to be a good person. But, does it seem sometimes like God is not by your side? Does it feel like He isn’t accepting you? And when you pray, asking for help from God, does He answer? Unfortunately, this has left many asking the question: Why won’t God help me?

Let’s find the answer in the Bible.

[Show Open]

Brother Bob Pellien: Hello, everyone, welcome. Welcome to That’s in the Bible. The basis of the teachings here in the Church Of Christ is first and foremost, the Bible or the Holy Scriptures. So, we want to clarify that well, even if the Bible is asked and posed every imaginable question, but it does not answer just any and all questions. But regarding proper worship, regarding the right relationship with God, and most importantly, salvation; those answers are definitely here in the Holy Bible.

Dear friends, as people continue to encounter deep heartbreak in life, some have begun to pose questions, as we’ve said, like “Why won’t God help me?” Many are feeling rejected by God or that He refuses to accept them. People believe that God should be hearing them and God should be responding to their prayers, helping them get through tough times in life. Because they’re in a church, they’re in a religion that’s offering up a kind or form of service to Him.

Others believe it doesn’t matter to God which religion the person belongs to, or how the service that they’re rendering to God is done. Why? Well, because they believe what matters is that one will just be dedicated to serving God in the religion of their own choice. Though, to understand why God may not be accepting or listening to you, despite how devoted you may be to serving Him, well, we’re going to turn here to the Holy Bible, for the responses for the answers.

There, we’ll study together:

If God isn’t helping you, does that make one’s worship of God useless?
Is there a proper way of following what God wants from all of us?
Who, then, will be accepted by God?

Let’s turn to the Holy Bible for the answers. What we’ll read is here in Matthew 15:9, it says:

And in vain they worshipped Me, Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.”

[Matthew 15:9 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: So dear friends, in rendering worship to God, one must make sure that this basis for doing so is not the commandments or the teachings of men. Why? God does not want and will never accept any worship that is based on man-made doctrines. Even if a person deeply believes in certain teachings, if those teachings are wrong, if those teachings are based upon man-made doctrines, their service rendered, becomes vain, or useless. Therefore, anyone who is worshiping God must understand that God will not accept his worship, and it is done based on man’s own instruction, rather than God’s will. What else must be considered? What if you think that you already know and recognize God? And maybe we know a lot of people who think that way. “I know God, I recognize God, then there’s no need for me to really determine if the teachings believed in are true or not, or if the need to obey God’s pristine commandments…well, that’s not what’s important,” others might think. How does the Bible respond to anyone holding on to that way of thinking?

And the Bible’s response is recorded in I John 2:3-4:

If we obey God’s commands, then we are sure that we know him. If we say that we know him, but do not obey his commands, we are liars and there is no truth in us.

[I John 2:3-4 Good News Translation]

Brother Bob: So on the other hand then, dear friends, one who claims that by saying they know God, but does not obey Him, is called a liar. By whom? That’s written here in the Holy Scriptures, and of course, therefore cannot truly please God. Why not? Because the Bible said, “there’s no truth in [him].”

There are those who are very devoted [to] bowing down to statues and images. But God said, do not bow down to statues and images. Therefore, those who would render worship within the context of following commandments that are not from God, [they renders] their worship in vain. That’s just one example. So dear friends, that person then, like so many others, has fallen into the wrong way of recognizing and the wrong way of serving God. Why? Because he’s not submitted to the righteousness of God, which is right here. The Gospel, as is mentioned in Romans 1:16-17, the righteousness of God, that’s the gospel.

Well, what have they done, then? What have they done, instead of following the gospel instead of submitting to the righteousness of God? Let’s turn to the Bible’s answer once again, and we do so reading Romans 10:2-3:

I can assure you, that they are deeply devoted to God; but their devotion is not based on true knowledge. They have not known the way in which God puts people right with himself, and instead, they have tried to set up their own way; and so they did not submit themselves to God’s way of putting people right.

[Romans 10:2-3 Good News Translation]

Brother Bob: Therefore, any recognition or service that they render to God, it’s not based on his words recorded here in the Bible. But instead, based on the ideas or the interpretations of people, their opinions, their own idea of righteousness; that kind of worship, prayers offered by those who are worshiping God from that mindset become what? Worthless or vain in the sight of God.

So dear friends, if you’re going to worship God, no one can simply do it their own way. It must be done God’s way. How’s that? That’s by obeying His commandments. But you know, there are those who claim their basis of faith and their basis of serving God, well [what do they say]? “It’s rooted here in the Holy Bible and the word of God.” However, what did they do? They failed to comply with the policy or the rule of God regarding His commands. What’s that policy or rule? It’s recorded here in Deuteronomy 12:32, and it says this:

“Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; You shall not add to it, nor take away from it.

[Deuteronomy 12:32 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: Therefore, dear friends, when a person is serving God, and what do they do, they add to it, or they take away from His commands—maybe by injecting their opinions or their interpretations or something like that—then they’re not observing carefully the rules, [the] commands of God. And then they render their worship and their service. But what happens to it? Their worship and services [become] unacceptable to God. But some ask this: “Can’t I just worship God anywhere I want, anywhere I choose?” We’ll tell you right at the outset, dear friends, the answer is what? No.

Why are we so sure about that? Because one of the commandments that God has given one of the commandments that He made, has to be observed by anyone and everyone who wishes to perform true and acceptable service to Him. And what’s that instruction? It concerns the specific place that the Lord has chosen, where His people should perform their services to Him. Where they could rightfully obey His commands and then that service would be acceptable to the Lord.

So we’ll read the response of God, dear friends, here in Deuteronomy chapter 12, verse 5, then we’ll also go directly reading as well, verses 13 and 14:

Out of the territory of all your tribes the Lord will choose the one place where the people are to come into His presence and worship him. You are not to offer your sacrifices wherever you choose; you must offer them only in the one place that the Lord will choose in the territory of one of your tribes. Only there are you to offer your sacrifices that are to be burned and do all the other things that I have commanded you.

[Deuteronomy 12:5, 13-14 Good News Bible]

Brother Bob: So dear friends, services performed by anyone that [is] not in the place chosen by God, well, they become unacceptable, worthless before His sight. It’s, therefore, necessary for one to examine first if his services to God are based on God’s commandments and if he’s offering those services in the one place chosen by God, where He promised to accept them.

What else must be considered, dear friends? Who has the right to serve God and be confident it is the right way to worship God? They are the ones who truly serve God, and have been appointed or chosen, given the right to do so, the privilege to perform true service to Him. But you know, many would hesitate to accept that very direct statement. But let’s turn to the Holy Bible and hear what the Apostle Paul has written regarding this. I Timothy 1:12, it says this:

I gave thanks to Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength for my work. I thank him for considering me worthy and appointing me to serve him,

[I Timothy 1:12 Good News Translation]

Brother Bob: Dear friends, he was appointed to serve; didn’t just decide and choose and do it any just way, no, he said there was a choosing there was an appointment to serve. What else proves that one cannot just offer their service to God and the Lord is going to find that acceptable without yet being appointed to do so first. Evidence of the Holy Scriptures is recorded also in the writings of Apostle Paul, this time in Colossians 1:12-14 It reads:

giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light. He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.

[Colossians 1:12-14 New Kings James Version]

Brother Bob: Dear friends, we have to remember that ever since man committed sin, he’s lost that right to serve, lost the right to worship God. Man has been separated from God—in Isaiah 59:2 that’s stated very directly—when a man has been separated from God because of his iniquities, because of sin. So there’s a need to be forgiven for our sins. There’s a need to regain the right regain the privilege to serve God and be found with acceptable service. And as we just read, this is done how? Through the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ shed on the cross. What happened? Redemption, they were redeemed by that shed blood. And as we’ve learned earlier,

we have to carefully follow God’s commandments regarding proper or true worship, no adding, no subtracting.

So according to God’s commandments, there’s only one place where we can find those who are qualified. One place to find those who are accepted by God. One place has been redeemed or purchased by the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, therefore [given] the right to serve again.

So who then do the apostles testify? Who are they? Who [did] the apostles give testimony to as was who was redeemed, who was purchased with the blood of Christ? Is it just anyone who wants to serve God? Anyone who says they’re serving God? Anyone who wants to be heard, when they pray? Acts 20:28 tells us this, tells us who they are. 20:28 reads this way:

Take heed therefore to yourselves and to all the flock over which the Holy Spirit has appointed you overseers, to feed the church of Christ which he has purchased with his blood.

[Acts 20:28 George Lamsa Translation]

Brother Bob: Who did the apostles testify? They testify that it is none other than the Church Of Christ. What did they say about the Church Of Christ? It was redeemed or purchased with what with the blood of Christ, that’s the Church of Christ, then is that Kingdom of the Son, the Kingdom of the Son, where redemption is found. It’s where people can render true and acceptable worship the God.

Many may have worshiped God in their own way. Wondering why they still felt as though God wasn’t with them. God wasn’t helping them. God wasn’t accepting them wasn’t hearing their prayers.

Dear friends, today we have learned that worshiping God is useless if we do it our own way, instead of following the way God wants us to worship Him. To prove that we’ve truly acknowledged God, we have to obey Him. We’ve also learned that the way God wants us to obey Him is carefully not adding or subtracting from His commands. So when it comes to worshiping God, we must carefully observe that there is only one place where people can perform valid and acceptable service to God. Those that are qualified or those that have been appointed, chosen to serve Him, are therein.

So one must carefully make sure first, that he is among the ones appointed or chosen or elected by God by becoming a member, not just of any religion, but of the one that was redeemed, purchased with Christ’s blood. And the Bible clearly states that is none other than the Church Of Christ, which is why we always invite you continue learning about the Iglesia Ni Cristo, Church Of Christ.

Visit us online, browse the different topics or set up an appointment to meet with a minister of the gospel here inside the Church Of Christ. If you have any questions about the Bible, or salvation, email them to us. I’m Bob Pellien. Thanks for watching. See you next time right here on That’s in the Bible. May you please [join us] in a concluding prayer.

Almighty Father, dear God, we thank you for allowing us to hear from Your holy words, the guidance that is needed each and every day of our life. Father, we pray, most especially for all our guests and visitors joining us in our study, may they understand the importance of continuing their studies with us. May they understand the value of worshiping You properly guided by Your rules, policies, laws, commandments and instructions, so that we may serve You, O God, acceptable in Your holy sight. May You inspire everyone to unite under Your laws and commandments here inside the Church Of Christ. Please forgive whatever shortcomings You may see in us. Always bless this program, and all the programming inside Your holy Church, most especially when we assemble in the houses of worship, and we sing and pray and worship You Lord with all our heart. May You find us worthy, always and acceptable in Your holy sight. We pray for this always, in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

The Difference Between INC and Catholic Church

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How can you tell the difference between Church Of Christ and Roman Catholic beliefs and practices? Does the Church Of Christ practice pagan rituals?

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Brother Phillip: Hello, I’m Brother Phillip Velasquez and thank you for joining us again on another episode of That’s in the Bible, where your questions are answered straight from the Bible. Today we have a number of questions asked by Geoffrey Laganga from good ol’ London and this is what he asks…

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Question: What makes the Church Of Christ different from the Catholic Church?

Geoffrey

London, England

What makes the Church Of Christ different from the Catholic Church?

Brother Phillip: What makes the Church Of Christ different from the Catholic Church? Well, there are many differences. The most obvious, though, is the name: “Church of Christ” and the “Roman Catholic Church.”

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Church Of Christ, Iglesia Ni Cristo, Kirche Christi, whatever language

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That’s in the Bible

Brother Phillip: The Church Of Christ, or Iglesia Ni Cristo, Kirche Christi, whatever language you say it in is the Church that is in the Bible. While the name “Roman Catholic Church,” isn’t. We can read here “the Church Of Christ” here in Acts 20 and 28:

Take heed therefore to yourselves and to all the flock over which the Holy Spirit has appointed you overseers, to feed the church of Christ which he has purchased with his blood.

[Acts 20:28 Lamsa Translation]

Brother Phillip: We can also read it here in Ephesians 4 and 12. This is what Apostle Paul teaches:

The common object of their labor was to bring the Christians maturity, to prepare them for Christian service, and the building up of the Church of Christ.

[Ephesians 4:12 Norlie’s Translation]

Is there a difference in doctrine between the Church Of Christ and Catholic Church?

Brother Phillip: But Geoffrey, the differences extend beyond the name, differences can be found in the doctrines taught and upheld. Why?

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The basis of doctrines are different

Brother Phillip: Because the basis of doctrines are different for the two religions. According to a Catholic writer recognized by the Vatican, what is the basis of the Catholic Church in regard to the doctrines and teachings they uphold? Let’s read a book entitled [The] Spirit of Catholicism and this is written by Karl Adam:

“Without Scripture,” says Mohler, “the true form of the sayings of Jesus would have been withheld from us. Yet the Catholic does not derive his faith in Jesus from the Scriptures.”

[The Spirit of Catholicism by Karl Adam, pg.50]

Brother Phillip: Dear friends, the Catholic Church, by their own admission, did not get their faith from our Lord Jesus Christ and from His gospel. Hence, we shouldn’t be surprised to find out that many of the Catholic teachings or practices are not based on Scripture or on the Bible. So what do they base their doctrine on, then?

Let’s read what John Walsh, another Catholic writer recognized by the Vatican says in his book entitled, This is Catholicism. Here [on] page 181, 182, to 183. This is what it says:

Does the Catholic Church derive all her doctrines solely from the Bible? No. While most of the Church’s teachings are contained in the Bible, some others are not…From what source does the Church obtain these other teachings? They are derived from the past pronouncements of the Church herself…This includes not only the works of the Fathers and Doctors of the Church, the letters and decisions of her popes, the minutes of her councils, the treatises of her principal theologians, and biblical commentators, of her saints and mystics, but also the writings of hundreds of obscure bishops and forgotten priests.

[This is Catholicism by John Walsh, pg.181,182,183]

Brother Phillip: And we can read here in the footnote:

These evidences of the Church’s past teaching are collectively termed tradition.

[This is Catholicism by John Walsh, pg.181,182,183]

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What does the Catholic Church base many of her doctrines upon? Tradition. Minutes of Councils. Doctors of the Church. Hundreds of obscure bishops. Forgotten priests.

Brother Phillip: On what does the Catholic Church base many of her doctrines upon? Tradition, according to what we just read. Teachings derived from minutes of councils, doctors of the church and even, according to their own admission, writings, and hundreds of obscure bishops, and forgotten priests. What else does the Catholic Church base their doctrines and teachings on? Here in The Spirit of Catholicism by Karl Adam, here [on] page 166, is what we can read:

She does not hesitate even to take over pagan ritual and pagan symbols, whenever such things can be Christianized and reformed.

[The Spirit of Catholicism by Karl Adam, pg.166]

Brother Phillip: Throughout history, the Catholic Church’s doctrines have evolved or changed, as they incorporate tradition in their teachings and even rituals taken from pagan religions in their efforts to convert these people into Catholicism. What’s an example of a popular Catholic teaching or practice that’s based on tradition? Let’s read an official Catholic book, The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 13, here in pages 184 to 185:

In the Western Church, ‘The Rosary,’ says the Roman Breviary, ‘is a certain form of prayer wherein we say fifteen decades or tens of Hail Mary, with an Our Father between each ten…when the Albigensian heresy was devastating the country of Toulouse, St. Dominic earnestly besought the help of Our Lady and was instructed by her, ‘so tradition asserts,’ to preach the Rosary among the people as an antidote to heresy and sin.

[The Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 13, pgs.184-185]

Brother Phillip: As we’ve read, the practice of praying the rosary in the Catholic Church is based only on tradition, and is written nowhere in the Bible. What’s another example of a Catholic teaching or practice that was taken from other pagan religions and adopted as her own? The use of candles in praying for the deceased. From where did it originate? Let’s read the same book [The] Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 3, this time, [on] page 246. This is what we’re told:

…we need not shrink from admitting that candles like incense and lustral water, were commonly employed in pagan worship and in the rites paid to the dead but the Church from a very early period took them into her service, just as she adopted many other things indifferent in themselves, which seemed proper to enhance the splendor of religious ceremonial.

[The Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 3, pg.246]

Brother Phillip: So we can see dear friends, even the teaching of using candles to pray for the deceased originated from pagan worship, which the Catholic Church incorporated into her own services. There are many other instances where Catholic doctrine is based upon ancient pagan practices.

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How about the Church Of Christ?

Brother Phillip: How about the Church Of Christ? What is its basis for its doctrines upheld? Well, it’s just this: the Bible.

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The Bible. The sole basis of faith of the Church Of Christ.

The Holy Scripture is the sole basis of the faith of the Church Of Christ. “Why,” you ask? Let’s read here in Deuteronomy 12:32. This is God’s strict instruction, 12:32:

Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; you shall not add to it not take away from it.

[Deuteronomy 12:32 New King James Version]

Brother Phillip: So, it’s God’s strict instruction that we must not alter or modify by adding to or subtracting from any of His commandments for any reason. What’s the characteristic of God’s Word written in the Holy Scriptures, that is why it should be the sole basis of our faith? We can read here in John 17:17:

Sanctify them by Your truth Your word is truth.

[John 17:17 New King James Version]

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Our teachings based solely upon the words of God written in the Bible which is truth.

Brother Phillip: Our teachings are based solely upon the words of God written in the Bible, which is, which is Truth. And we do our best to share this truth with others, because our Lord Jesus Christ instructed this. And that’s written in Mark 16:15 and 16. Here are the specific commands of our Lord Jesus Christ:

And he said to them, “Go throughout the whole world and preach the gospel to the whole human race. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; whoever does not believe will be condemned

[Mark 16:15-16 Today’s English Version]

Brother Phillip: As a matter of fact, the Church of Christ goes to great lengths to share this knowledge of truth to our fellow men.

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Ministers sent to preach the truth

Brother Phillip: Ministers are sent throughout the world preaching these truths. We’re very active in works of propagation.

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Iglesia Ni Cristo Evangelical Missions

Brother Phillip: We set up Iglesia Ni Cristo Evangelical Missions in every corner of the globe, where thousands are invited to hear the truth.

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Chapels throughout the world

Brother Phillip: Our chapels throughout the world are open for anyone seeking the truth.

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Incmedia.org

Where truth meets you

Brother Phillip: Even the show you’re watching right now, along with other programs on this website—which are also broadcast on TV stations in a growing number of countries—all of this is for the noble intention in spreading the true knowledge of God for man’s salvation. This is a massive undertaking, no doubt. And you can imagine the massive resources used for this holy work.

Although the members do give voluntary contributions in the worship services,

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The giving of offerings in the Church Of Christ has Biblical basis

Brother Phillip: . . . the giving of offerings that we observe in the Church of Christ has a Biblical basis, as written in 2 Corinthians 9:7:

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II Corinthians 9:7

New International Version

Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

Brother Phillip: …and they are being used for holy endeavors, such as to help in the propagation, or spreading the true teachings of God, and for the administering of our services to Him. And this is what we can read in the Bible, in 2 Corinthians 9:12 to 13:

For the administration of this service not only supplies the needs of the saints, but also is abounding through many thanksgivings to God, while, through the proof of this ministry, they glorify God for the obedience of your confessions to the gospel of Christ, and for your liberal sharing with them and all men,

[2 Corinthians 9:12-13 New King James Version]

Brother Phillip: We do hope, Geoffrey, that your questions were answered today. That all came from the Holy Scriptures, the Bible. Well, that’s all we have time for for this episode. We thank you for joining us. We’ll be back soon. But in the meantime, why not share this episode with someone you know.

We also encourage you to email us with your questions. Remember one of the instructions of our Lord Jesus Christ, written in Matthew 7:7:

Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be open to you

[Matthew 7:7 New International Version]

Now that’s in the Bible. Thanks for watching. I’m Brother Phillip Velasquez and we’ll see you next time.

What is Exorcism?

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Do evil or bad spirits really exist? What are exorcisms and can just anyone perform these miracles? Are all people who perform miracles sent by God?

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Jose Ramirez: My name is Jose Mendoza Ramirez and my doubt is that if exorcists really exist—sometimes they come to swindle us.

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Jose Ramirez

San Miguel el Grande

Oaxaca, Mexico

[Video ends]

Brother Bob Pellien: Thank you very much, Jose for that comment or question. As we can notice from Jose’s video submission, he’s wondering, or maybe it’s more accurate to say doubting, if there are really people who can perform what he calls exorcisms, because he feels that, well, there [are] people who are just swindling others and being deceptive for the purpose of dishonest gain. So, today, dear friends, we’re going to ask, well, two important questions based on what Mr. Jose has said. First of all, what is exorcism?

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QUESTION: What is exorcism and are there those who can really perform them?

Brother Bob: And are there those who can really, truly perform them? And then secondly, if one does perform such a miraculous work is that the evidence that that person is really sent from God?

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QUESTION: Does performing miracles prove that a person is from God and therefore we should follow what he or she says?

Brother Bob: And of course then should therefore be followed and believed and everything that they will teach and say? Let’s start by defining exactly what is exorcism? Exorcism from the dictionary, well, it’s the act of casting out or expelling an evil spirit or demon from someone.

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-Exorcism

[ek-sawr-siz-uh m, -ser-]

(noun) the act or process of exorcising.

(verb) exorcised, exorcising.

1. to seek to expel (an evil spirit) by

Adjuration or religious or solemn ceremonies:

To exorcise a demon.

Source: Dictionary.com

Brother Bob: The dictionary calls it or considers it to be a noun, they act or even process of exorcising, as a verb exorcised, exorcising, to seek to expel an evil spirit, by adjuration or religious or solemn ceremonies: to exorcise a demon.

Who performs exorcisms? Do bad spirits really exist?

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QUESTION: Are there really those that can perform exorcism or cast out evil spirits or demons?

Brother Bob: So according to the Bible, are there really those that can perform exorcism, or what the Bible describes as the casting out of evil spirits or the casting out of demons? Let’s go to the Bible to start receiving some biblical guidance and answers. So it may be that the term exorcism is not found in the Bible, but what is found in the Bible? Matthew, chapter 8, verse 16, I quote:

When evening came, people brought to Jesus many who had demons in them. Jesus drove out the evil spirits with a word and healed all who were sick.

[Matthew 8:16 Good News Translation]

Brother Bob: So we can read here in the Bible, dear friends, where Jesus—

He did have the ability or the power, the authority to perform what Jose called exorcism or the casting out of evil spirits.

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QUESTION: Is he the only one that had that ability according to the Bible?

Brother Bob: Is He the only one though that had that ability or had that authority according to the Bible? Well, let’s continue. The Bible also teaches us the following in Matthew chapter 10, verse 1:

Jesus called his twelve disciples together and gave them authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and every sickness.

[Matthew 10:1 Good News Translation]

Brother Bob: So evidently, according to the Bible, exorcism did take place or the casting out of demons did happen. And the Bible mentions those, for example, our Lord Jesus Christ, and in this verse His apostles were given that authority to drive out evil spirits. They were able to perform that miraculous work. There’s no question of course, that our Lord Jesus Christ even his Apostles, and others enumerated in the Bible, just like them are in fact instruments of God.

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Our Lord Jesus Christ , the Apostles and others enumerated in the Bible like them are instruments of God.

Brother Bob: There’s no question that they are specifically because they’re specifically described that way in the Bible that they were given that authority from God. And as instruments sent by God, messengers of God, we should follow them, we should obey what they teach. Why? Because what they teach are God’s teachings. They are God’s messengers and they bring God’s message.

Can anyone do an exorcism?

Brother Bob: Well, but does it mean though, that just anyone who was able to perform miracle—and this is this is the point that Mr. Jose is posing. This is what he’s noticing. This is what he was commenting about because he saw some that were performing miracles or some that were claiming to have all these wonderful things and then they were deceiving and swindling the people. So does it mean that anyone who performs miracles, this is our question, Mr. Jose.

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Question: Does it mean that anyone who is able to perform miracles or exorcism is then a messenger of God, which in turn should be followed and obeyed? Is that the only proof necessary?

Brother Bob: Anyone performing miracles and casting out demons, can it be said that they are therefore a messenger of God, in turn to be followed and obeyed? Is the casting out of demons or other kinds of miracles or healings and such, is that the only proof that is necessary to determine that one is truly an instrument of God? Let’s listen together, dear friends, to the answer of our Lord Jesus Christ. To those who feel that they’re with Him, well, because well maybe they’re able to cast out demons, maybe they’re performing different kinds of wondrous works, here’s the response of Jesus to them. It’s recorded here and in Matthew chapter 7, verses 22 and 23. He said this:

Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied In Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many many wonders in your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’

[Matthew 7:22-23 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: So here, dear friends, according to what is written, Jesus Himself, well, He cleared up any misconception that if one is able to perform exorcisms, as Mr. Jose calls them, or the casting out of demons, or any other miracle, for that matter, even if one uses the name of Christ, the idea of many as a well is that then that automatically proves or presents the evidence that they must be God’s messengers. But we can see from what Jesus said here, that’s simply not true. Christ, who was of course the greatest messenger of God and He’s the one who knows those who truly God has sent, because he’s the only mediator between God and men in the first place, He said of some who performed the casting out of demons and performed the grand healings and other kinds of miracles, what did he say to them? He said:

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“I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practices lawlessness!”

Brother Bob: But you know, some might be wondering how [can] one who’s not sent by God is able to perform such kind of wonders and miracles and healings and casting out of demons and all these things?

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QUESTION: How is it then that one not sent by God is able to perform such wonders?

Brother Bob: If he’s not doing God’s work, then, well, whose work is he doing? Let’s turn to the writings of the Scriptures once again for the Bible’s answer. We turn 2 Thessalonians 2, verses 9 and 10, which says this:

The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved.

[2 Thessalonians 2:9-10 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: Here, dear friends, what we can see, what we’re learning here is that Satan can use miracles.

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Satan can use miracles or wonders as deceptions.

Not all miracles are from God

Brother Bob: Satan does use miracles, uses wonders in his attempt to deceive. This means that Jose, you know, Mr. Jose presented those doubts and skepticism, it actually has some validity. Why? Because the devil himself uses these powers to swindle people, to deceive people, according to what we just read here from Apostle Paul. So, if these miracles, signs, or wonders are used by the devil to deceive people, one might ask, “why does God allow these things to take place?”

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Question: “Why does God allow these things to take place?

Brother Bob: Listen again to the answer of the Holy Bible, here in Deuteronomy, chapter 13. Let’s Let’s read together, verses 1, 2, and 3:

“Prophets or interpreters of dreams may promise a miracle or a wonder, in order to lead you to worship and serve gods that you have not worshiped before. Even if what they promised comes true, do not pay any attention to them. The Lord your God is using them to test you, to see if you love the Lord, with all your heart.

[Deuteronomy 13:1-3 Good News Translation]

Brother Bob: So, dear friends, according to the Bible here, if any one of us would witness somebody performing what appears to be a miracle, a miraculous event takes place, or it’s a grand wonder, they should not automatically listen, automatically perceive that that someone to be followed because they’re from God. No. We already learned earlier that the devil could use these powers to deceive people. And here now we learned that, well, why does God allow that to happen? In order to test His people. Why? To see if they really love Him with all their hearts and they’ll cling to this. If that were the case then how would any one of us go about passing God’s test?

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QUESTION: How would one go about passing God’s test?

Brother Bob: If God does not want us to pay attention or just be so easily duped by Satan’s deceivers, it wants us to pay attention and not follow just anyone who might claim to come from God, even if they perform miracles, even if they perform various kinds of wonders, then who should we follow? We find the answer in the very next verse of the Bible, Deuteronomy 13. This time we’ll read verse 4 wherein it says this:

It is the Lord your God, you must follow and him, you must revere. Keep his commands and obey Him; serve him and hold fast to him.

[Deuteronomy 13:4 New International Version]

Brother Bob: So, dear friends, the answer is very clear. In order to pass God’s test, one must follow God by obeying His commands. And as we can clearly – and we already know, that His commands are what’s written here in the Holy Bible. And so this is the reason why performing miracles or wonders like exorcism, casting out of demons, it’s not the basis we can use to determine if someone is really from God.

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Performing miracles or wonders like exorcism is not a basis we should use to determine if someone is from God.

Brother Bob: Why not? Because even if one is able to perform such miracles, it could easily be God’s enemy, the devil, trying to trick us into going against God’s words. We should understand that well, those sent by God, they will speak God’s words.

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Those sent by God will speak God’s words.

Brother Bob: They will teach God’s teachings and God’s commands written here in the Bible. Therefore, that’s what we should always follow. That’s what we should always use as a foundation of our faith. This is what we should firmly believe in because that’s in the Bible.

Brother Bob: Friends, when you are ready to learn more about the fundamental teachings found here inside the Church Of Christ, please visit

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incmedia.org

[Music starts]

Brother Bob: Because there you’re going to find various series of programs all dedicated to answering your spiritual questions. You can also follow us on our Facebook pages:

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facebook.com/IglesiaNiCristoNewsandUpdates

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facebook.com/IglesiaNiCristoMedia

Brother Bob: To view more of our shows and see how the Church gets involved in and interacts with all of the communities where our congregations are, you can visit those houses of worship to find the house of worship that is nearest to you.

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iglesianicristo.net/directory

Brother Bob: If you have a question that you’d like answered here on this show…

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Do you have questions about the Bible?

Brother Bob: Please email them to

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Send your videos to: answers@media.org.

Brother Bob: Thank you for joining us today. We’ll see you again next time on That’s in the Bible!

Why You Should NOT Make the Sign of the Cross

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Not all Christian religions use the sign of the cross, so why make the gesture? What is the meaning of it and is making the sign of the cross Biblical?

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EMAIL QUESTION: Why doesn’t the Church Of Christ use the sign of the cross?

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Brother Bob Pellien, Minister of the Gospel

Brother Bob: Thank you very much, Ms. Ivy Armenton for your email question. Thank you for that. Before we turn to the Holy Scriptures for the Bible’s response, of course, to your question, for the sake of our viewers and even many other Christian-professing religions that—well, they may not yet know for sure what’s really meant by that whole “sign of the cross”. Let’s take a look at a couple of video clips here that show, first of all, how this is being done inside the Roman Catholic Church, and then together, let’s take a check of what the Bible actually has to say in response to all of that. Let’s take a look.

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Source: https://www.youtube.com/CatholicChicago

Priest: In the name of the Father, the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Congregation: Amen.

Narrator: We begin with what is, perhaps, our earliest personal religious memory and practice: the sign of the cross. We invoke the name of the triune God: Father, son, and holy spirit. The God we have come to meet and the God whose life we share.

[Video]

Source: https://www.youtube.com/DominicanAllSaints

Narrator: As often as we make the sign of the cross, repeating at the same time these words:

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An indulgence of 100 days is granted for making the sign of the cross and saying the words.

An indulgence of 300 days for making the sign of the cross, with holy water.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.

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In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost

Brother Bob: So, Ivy, it’s clearly a sign that the members of the Catholic Church have made for themselves, and well, we can see it everywhere in their religion. We can see the cross on their worship buildings, we can see the cross on the rosaries that they always use. We can see the cross in so many places and it has become such a prevalent visual symbol and everyone is convinced that that is a good symbol.

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QUESTION: What have they themselves said about the importance of that sign they have given to their people?

What have they themselves said, in fact, about the importance of that sign that they have branded or let’s say they have given upon their people?

In a book they have written entitled Externals of the Catholic Church, page 218, let’s take a look at what they have written about the cross:

“The ordinary method of making the sign of the cross is that which every Catholic learns in early childhood – the putting of the right hand to the forehead…”

[Externals of the Catholic Church, p. 218]

Brother Bob: So, dear friends, what they’ve written in their book then, is that it’s a sign to only be used with the right hand—the right hand to the forehead. To use the left hand, that would be incorrect. That would not be the proper procedure. Right hand to the forehead is the method they teach. In fact, what else do they have to say in their religion about that sign on the forehead and the right hand?

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QUESTION: What else do they say about the sign on the forehead and right hand?

In another book, this one entitled 1000 Questions and Answers on Catholicism, on page 240, this is stated:

“What is the significance of the sign of the cross? The sign of the cross is an inseparable symbol of the Catholic faith.”

[1000 Questions and Answers on Catholicism by Philip O’Reilly, p. 240]

Brother Bob: So they claim that that symbol, the right hand to the forehead, is an inseparable symbol. It’s what identifies them as a Roman Catholic. It’s their symbol. It’s their sign. It’s what they have given upon the forehead of all their members.

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Why doesn’t the Church Of Christ use the sign of the cross?

Well, dear friends. Ivy. What more have they said about their symbol, the sign of the cross? Here’s what they had to say in another one of their books. This one is entitled My Catholic Faith, written by authoritative writer of the Catholic Church, the Bishop Louis La Ravoire Morrow. Page 392 in his book. This is very interesting, what he wrote:

“We usually begin and end our prayers with the sign of the cross.”

[My Catholic Faith by Louis La Ravoire Morrow, p. 392]

So first off, we can notice it’s how it’s they begin all their prayers; it’s how they end all their prayers. So it’s very important to them. Let’s continue:

“Nothing in the Church is begun, carried out, or completed, without the sign of the cross. It is used in innumerable blessings and ceremonials of the Church. At Mass alone it is used fifty one times.”

[My Catholic Faith by Louis La Ravoire Morrow, p. 392]

So we can also see here how important it is to them. In fact, they use it fifty-one times in the Mass. Beginning prayers, end prayers, fifty-one times. It is used in their ceremonies, they said. It’s very important to them. What else have they said? What does it show when the members of the Catholic Church are always using this sign. What does it demonstrate? Let’s continue. Same page:

“The sign of the cross is the most common way of confessing our faith. By it we can know Catholics from non-Catholics. It is believed that it had its origin in apostolic times.”

[My Catholic Faith by Louis La Ravoire Morrow, p. 392]

So, Ivy, it shows that it is a sign found—it is a sign made inside the Catholic Church. For what purpose? To brand, to identify a Catholic from a non-Catholic. To identify themselves, among the other reasons, some of which were also mentioned here.

So, let’s turn to the Holy Scriptures and pose some questions about the sign that they have presented, the sign of the cross. Let’s turn to the Scriptures and hear the response from the Bible about all of this. What does the Bible have to say about the sign of the cross?

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What does the Bible have to say about the sign of the cross?

–the sign made with the right hand to the forehead. They said, it’s a good sign. They said, it will bring God’s blessings into the one who receives that sign—or makes the sign of the cross, it will bring God’s blessing in their life. They said. Is that what the Bible says about that sign, the right hand to the forehead? Let’s take a look. We turn to the book of Revelation, chapter 13—first of all, where we can ask this question: does the Bible make any mention of that sign at all in the first place? Absolutely yes. 13:16:

He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads,

[Revelation 13:16 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: That’s clearly a sign that is recorded in the Bible. A sign: from the right hand or the forehead. In the Catholic Church, it’s the right hand and the forehead. It’s both—that they make the symbol using the right hand, and the first place it goes is to the forehead. The Bible makes mention of such kind of a symbol like that, such kind of a sign. And, well, what we read, it’s a good sign, they said.

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QUESTION: What awaits those people who possess, or brand themselves with the sign of the cross on the forehead and the right hand?

What awaits the people who possess or brand themselves with the sign of the cross on the forehead, or on the right hand, or both for that matter. Is it a good sign? Should we all be making that sign of the cross? Is the cross—by the way, dear friends, isn’t it that the cross was the instrument that was used to murder our Lord Jesus Christ?

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The cross was used to murder our Lord Jesus!

They had capital punishment back then, and they used the cross to punish our Savior Jesus Christ. We’re going to honor that? We’re going to venerate that? We’re going to worship that? Bow down and say prayers to things of the cross? Brand ourselves on the forehead like what they do on Ash Wednesday every year?

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What does the Bible have to say about the sign of the cross?

They have that sign of the cross placed in ashes right there on the forehead, saying, “I’m a Catholic, I’m a sign of the cross maker, I’m branded with that cross.” That’s the instrument that was used to murder our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. But, even considering all of that, we have to base our correct understanding and our correct faith and correct instructions from our Creator upon what’s recorded here in the Bible, of course. So let’s turn to the pages of the Holy Scriptures asking this question: Is it a good sign, yes or no?

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QUESTION: Is the cross a good sign?

We turn back again to the answer of the Bible. Revelation 14:9, 10 and 11:

“Then a third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worship the beast and his image, and receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand, he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of His indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever; and they have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name.”

[Revelation 14:9-11 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: Dear friends, is it a good sign? Should we all be identifying ourselves as a member of the Roman Catholic Church by placing that symbol on our forehead? Using our right hand to make that sign of the cross that identifies a person as Catholic? What did we just read? It is the sign and symbol of Catholicism. It is the symbol of those that are to be tormented in the lake of fire forever.

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The cross is the symbol of those to be tormented in the lake of fire forever!

The Bible described their torment: day and night without end. If that’s what a person sees for their future—if that’s what a person wants for their future, then that sign, given by the Pope to all Catholics—then that’s a good sign for them. Because that’s a sign that you’ll be tormented. If you do not want to be tormented, and who in their right mind would want to be tormented, right? It’s the sign of those to be tormented. It’s not a good sign, dear friends. It’s not a sign—don’t brand yourself with that sign: the sign of the cross. That is not assigned from God. That is a sign identifying one having been deceived by the deceiver, and he is branding them to be tormented in the lake of fire.

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Brother Bob Pellien, Minister of the Gospel

Brother Bob: Dear friends, when you’re ready to learn more about this and so many other important fundamental truths here in the Holy Scriptures—the teachings found, taught here inside the Church Of Christ, please visit incmedia.org.

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incmedia.org

There you’re going to find various series of programs, similar to this—all of them are dedicated to answering your spiritual questions. And you can also view our programs on the Iglesia Ni Cristo Media Facebook page,

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facebook.com/IglesiaNiCristoMedia

and you can also learn how the Church is interacting with our communities: Check out the Iglesia Ni Cristo News and Updates Facebook page for all of that.

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facebook.com/IglesiaNiCristoNewsandUpdates

And any time you would like to send us a video question, please email them to answers@incmedia.org.

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Send your videos to: answers@incmedia.org

Brother Bob: So to you, Ms. Ivy Armenton, thank you for your question, and to all of you, thank you for joining us in our study for today. We’ll see you again next time here on That’s in the Bible.

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What Happens to Us When We Die?

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Death is inevitable. What happens to your spirit, soul, and body after taking your last breath? Why can’t living people communicate with the dead?

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Brother Bob Pellien: Hello everyone and thank you for joining with us here on this episode of That’s In The Bible. I’m Bob Pellien. Our question that we received for today came to us via email from Tom Nguyen in Garden Grove, California. He asks, “What happens to us after death?”

Brother Bob: Well, that’s a nice question because especially right now as so many are losing the COVID battle leaving behind grieving loved ones. There are many people who are wondering well, what happens after death and, you know, there’s an endless number of answers that many religions of this world are very willing to provide. But, before we really know what happens to a person when he dies, dear friends, it’s essential to know that a person actually is composed of three parts. And what are these three parts, and what happens to each individual part when we die? Well, that’s where we begin. The answer to that first question is recorded here in I Thessalonians chapter 5:23 wherein it says this:

Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

[1 Thessalonians 5:23 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: So, dear friends, a person is composed of three parts: a body, a soul, and a spirit. So to know what happens to a person when he dies, we need to know first: what happens to the soul, what happens to the spirit, what happens to the body?

What happens to the soul when a person dies?

Brother Bob: Where does the soul go immediately after death? What happens to the soul immediately after death? Well, if we go to Ezekiel, a prophet wherein he wrote the following in Ezekiel, it’s recorded in chapter 18, verse 4:

“Behold, all souls are Mine; The soul of the father As well as the soul of the son is Mine; The soul who sins shall die.

[Ezekiel 18:4 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: So, dear friends, the Bible mentions here what will happen to the soul. Clearly, it dies. No matter what other religious organizations will tell you what will happen to the soul immediately after a person dies, the Bible’s answer is definitive. The soul dies. Wait, whose soul dies? Well, the one mentioned here is the soul of the sinner. The soul of the sinner dies. Well, who’s the sinner? In the Bible—we’ve read in many of our lessons in the past—Romans 5:12 makes it very clear that all people commit sin. Nobody could stand up and say, well, I’m perfect [and] never committed sin. No, it was only Jesus that was without sin. All people sin, therefore, all [peoples’ souls die].

What happens to the spirit and body when a person dies?

Brother Bob: How about the spirit? That was one of the three elements of a person, right? How about the body? What about these two components? First, let’s go to Ecclesiastes chapter 12, and let’s take a look here, together, in verse 7. What happens to the body? What happens to the spirit? In verse 7, it says:

Then the dust will return to the earth as it was, And the spirit will return to God who gave it.

[Ecclesiastes 12:7 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: The Bible’s very clear. The spirit returns to God. And the body returns to the dust from where it came. And, as we read previously, the soul dies. So, that’s what happens to the three parts. But the question of Tom is also like, “What about the consciousness?” OK, because we know what happens to the soul, we know what happens to the body, we know what happens to the spirit. But then, what people really want to know is what about their consciousness after one dies and goes to the grave?

What happens to your thoughts when you die?

Brother Bob: The body returns to dust, spirit returns to God, what about my thoughts? Will I no longer have thoughts? Is there something that a person who has already died and has been buried already, is there something that they could benefit from, or is there something that they could participate in that is still being done here on Earth by those who are alive? Can they still have contact? Should they still expect to be communicating with the living?

What happens to your thoughts when you die, dear friends? These are the kind of questions that many are asking relative and connected to the question that Tom posed. So let’s continue here in Ecclesiastes, we turn to chapter 9, and let’s read verse 5 and verse 6, where the Bible gives the clear answer:

For the living know that they will die; But the dead know nothing, And they have no more reward, For the memory of them is forgotten. Also their love, their hatred, and their envy have now perished; Nevermore will they have a share In anything done under the sun.

[Ecclesiastes 9:5-6 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: Tom, dear friends, the Bible is, once again, so very clear. They will never have a part in anything that is done under the sun. Any novenas, or masses that are said for them, they have no part in that. The Bible is very clear. Any communication with them, they have no part, that’s not it. People have all these different kinds of ceremonies for the dead and rituals for the dead. [But the] Bible is clear. The Bible does not instruct for those things to be done. Why not? Because those who have died have no more share, or no more part in anything that is done under the sun. “Do you mean to say then, that’s the end of it all? There’s nothing more?”

What will happen to the dead in Christ when Christ returns?

Brother Bob: What will happen to the dead when Christ returns? Well, the Bible continues to provide important information about these things, so we turn to I Thessalonians 4:16-17:

For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.

[1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: Dear friends, what happens to those who have died in Christ, according to the Holy Bible? Although they may have been in the grave, even if they were there for a long period of time, the Bible makes it very clear: they will be brought out of that grave. When? When the Lord descends from heaven. And at that time, there will be a [separation] of what the Bible calls the sheep and the goats.

Separating the sheep from the goats

Brother Bob: Our Lord Jesus spoke of this as well in the book of Matthew. Let’s include that in our reading for today as well. In the book of Matthew chapter 25. We’ll read verse 33, 34, as well as 41:

And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:… “Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels:

[Matthew 25:33-34,41 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: So here, dear friends, Jesus spoke of it in these terms when He said at that moment, the sheep would be separated from the goats. On the left would be what He called the goats that would be cast aside into eternal destruction. And then those on the right? Well, He referred to them as His sheep. They would enter the kingdom that would be prepared for them by the Father in heaven. And what will be the basis of that judgment? That judgement that would determine whether or not we would be those goats on the left or the sheep on the right? What will determine that? Revelation chapter 20, let’s listen together to what is recorded here in verse 12, wherein this is recorded:

And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books.

[Revelation 20:12 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: So the Bible does mention, then, of the basis of that judgment. It will be what’s recorded in the books that will be read on that upcoming Day of Judgment. Be sure that the works recorded in that book on the Day of Judgment— that will be read on the Day of Judgment—will include that you are in Christ. The works that have brought you to be in Christ. Do you want to know how you can be sure that you are in Christ? Will it be just our own declaration? Just saying so? No.

Brother Bob: When you’re ready to learn more about the fundamental teachings found here inside the Church Of Christ, visit us online or visit any of our various social media accounts (Facebook, Instagram). And to speak to a minister of the gospel and worship with us, you can find a directory of our houses of worship online as well. If you have any questions about the Bible, email then to us for a chance to be featured here on the show. I’m Bob Pellien. Thank you for joining us and we’ll see you again next time right here on That’s in the Bible.

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