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This is a very controversial subject that most ministers simply will not touch. Either because they don’t know what is going on or their mind isn’t ready to accept the possibility that there may be something else out there. I first became involved in the UFO/Alien phenomena in 7th grade. I believe it was the very first subject that I was passionate about. As a result, I’ve been following the culture for the last 14-15 years. Back then it was almost an obsession, but something happened in 9th grade that changed my entire perception on the issue of life on other planets, but I’ll save that story for later. The new series “V”, a remake of the old series just debuted the day before yesterday and not only is the show great already, but also very disturbing for those of us in the Christian community that follow these sorts of things. I encourage you to keep an open mind as you follow this series, but most of all, I encourage you to do some research for yourself to see whether these things are so (Acts 17:11).

A Shocking But Very True Reality

As Christians, we have a tendency to flat out deny or dismiss things we don’t understand, but that is a narrow minded and ignorant way of viewing the world. According to the Bible, anyone that answers a matter before hearing it, it is a folly (foolish) and a shame (Proverbs 18:13). I must admit that if I hadn’t developed an interest in these things early on, I may have fallen into this category, but God has a purpose in everything.

Before making any assumptions, lets look at a few facts about UFOs:

• UFOs have been tracked on multiple radars simultaneously.
• UFO landings leave traces of radiation.
• UFOs have been sighted by multiple witnesses simultaneously.
• UFO sightings have been reported by astronauts, police officers, military personnel, and at least one U.S. President.
• UFOs maneuver in a manner that is contrary to known laws of physics.
• UFOs have been sighted in every country on the planet.

Even if we would like to ignore that mainstream media, we can’t deny that people are indeed seeing something. It seems sort of ironic that Christians of all people are the least willing to believe that other people on the planet are indeed seeing something. As Christians we claim a belief in angels which are supernatural spirits with extraordinary powers that roam between the unseen world of Heaven and earth doing the will of a Creator we’ve never seen with our own eyes. Yes, that’s exactly how it sounds to people that don’t believe in what we do.

Thousands upon thousands of people have reported seeing something strange in the skies, so as good stewards of God’s word, it is important that we understand what is going on. We also need to figure out how to reconcile these strange events with what the Bible says about life, salvation, and the future of mankind. There are only two possibilities to the UFO/Alien phenomena:

1. Something is actually out there.
2. Nothing is actually out there.

If nothing is out there, we don’t have anything to worry about from a religious perspective. On the other hand, if something is indeed out there, we need to face the following questions:

• Why isn’t it in the Bible?
• What exactly is out there?
• What are their intentions toward mankind?
• How do these things obtain salvation?

Personally, it would seem that something as huge as the possibility of other life in the universe would be addressed in the Bible. So I’m going to call God’s bluff and hold Him to His word. I believe 100% that God has told us all things, and in His own words:

• “Behold, the former things are come to pass, and new things do I declare: before they spring forth I tell you of them.” – Isaiah 42:9

Something Strange Is Going On

Another problem we encounter when we begin to study the UFO phenomena is what we call an abduction. The forceful taking of a human against their will. Many people in general think only crazy people believe in abductions, but that’s because most people in general are very uninformed on the subject. Lets look at abduction from an animals perspective:

• Strange beings show up in unusual craft (helicopters, airplanes, boats, cars, etc.)
• We snatch animals against their will and move them to new environments (zoos, habitats, etc.)
• We experiment on them without their consent.
• We sedate them and tag them to track where they go and what they do, then return them as if nothing happened.

If humans do that to animals right here on this planet, why does it seem so far fetched for some to believe that something presumably more advanced than us would be doing the same thing to us? What can’t be denied is that people believe that something took them against their will, performed experiments on them (usually sexual), then put them back as if nothing happened.

As we continue to explore this subject, I will attempt to address this subject in detail because I believe it is very important to understand this from a Christian perspective. We are slowly being desensitized by the media to the possibility of open alien contact. If you remember how big cloning was when it was first revealed to the public, you should also take note of the slow media build up to the announcement of that technology. The media has slowly been pushing the UFO/Alien genre for the last 60 or so years:

• What should we as Christians expect?
• What happens to our faith if something does make contact?
• Where does the Bible fit into all of this?

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The last couple of weeks have been pretty slow going, but yesterday I really got back to work. I added a little more description and dialog to the counsel members in chapter 1. We also plan to introduce Zophiel’s research and development team (previously not in chapter 1). We are also developing more of a back story for Leviathan and a few of the other characters that will be introduced into the series. Every group important to the series will be introduced in the first book, but not every individual will play an important part in The Fall: Rise of Lucifer. One character is briefly introduced in this book, but won’t have a major role until book 2.

In chapter 2, one of the characters goes missing, and he turns out to be very important to the future of the series. Michael and Gabriel also meet a few characters with some awesome abilities that a lot of sci-fi and mythology fans will definitely find interesting. I’m just waiting on Bro. Stanford to finish the concept for Michael and Gabriel’s adventure through the underworld before we can complete chapter 2. So far, from what we have discussed, it sounds great.

In chapter 3 we introduce one of the races mentioned in the previous chapter. Chapter 3 is very foundational to the series also. There are going to be prophesies from Ruach Elohim to several of the characters. Lucifer’s plot becomes a little deeper as certain characters start to share what they know with each other. A few things happen in this chapter that are going to play a big part in the other two books in the series.

This week, I plan to get started on chapter 4 where we plan to introduce a few technologies developed by Zophiel that will be very important to book 3. Make sure you stay tuned and spread the world.

Disclaimer: This article is an Origin story from the coming book: The Fall Rise of Lucifer. If you are looking for more info on the actual fall of Lucifer as told by the Bible, please feel free to browse the site.

Bernael: Origins

Race: B’nai ha Elohim

Background: This is Lucifer’s right hand angel. He knows all the details anytime it comes to what Lucifer has in mind. He fought along side Lucifer in the “1^st War” and now they have an inseparable bond. Bernael is short and stocky, but very fast and very strong. Both he and Lucifer are very tactical in their planning, which makes him a formidable foe. Anytime Lucifer needs something handled correctly, he entrusts the mission to Bernael.

Weapons: Bernael is good with a sword but even better with an ax.

Allies: Lucifer and Zophiel

Enemies: Michael and Gabriel

I am constantly amazed by so called Bible believing Christians. Another recent discussion I had online was about the temptation of Christ. I’m not sure what denomination this person claims to be but his position was the Jesus wasn’t tempted because He didn’t give in, so lets find out if he was or not. I’ll start by defining temptation.

Temptation – something that tempts, entices, or allures.

In The Beginning…

When the serpent tempted Eve in the garden, he tempted her with something that was alluring or enticing. It wasn’t the fruit itself, but the prospect of knowing good and evil and becoming like the gods, as the serpent put it (Genesis 3). One does not have to give into temptation in order for it to be temptation. Being tempted comes before being obedient or disobedient.

The serpent had to find a convincing reason for Eve to eat the fruit because it obviously hadn’t been an issue before then. Up until the point that the serpent told Eve of the tree’s potential, it wasn’t tempting. Eve wasn’t tempted by the thought of dying. She was tempted at the thought of becoming like God.

In The Wilderness

Those that say Jesus wasn’t tempted are calling God’s Word a lie. The Bible specifically says He was tempted:

“Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.” – Matthew 4:1

Jesus was led into the wilderness to be tempted, not to be talked to. That was the point of the passage. He was God but He was also flesh and human desires. Jesus successfully resisted temptation which means He did not sin. Some people believe that being tempted is a sin, but its not. When you are faced with a choice then you the ability to  choose to do right or wrong.

• “Because the law worketh wrath: for where no law is, there is no transgression.” – Romans 4:15
• “(For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law.” – Romans 5:13

Jesus knew what God wanted, but the devil wanted Him to go about it a different way. Just look at the offers the devil made:

• Turn rocks into bread
• All the kingdoms of earth
• Jump off a mountain so angels could save Him

If the devil approached me in person and asked me to turn rocks into bread I’d laugh at him. Its not something that would be a temptation to me because I don’t have the power to turn rocks into bread. On the other hand, Jesus did, and he was hungry after His 40 day fast. This temptation had to do with His human desire for nourishment.

The next claim that the devil could give Jesus all the kingdoms of the world wasn’t disputed by Christ. As the supreme Ruler of the universe, Christ was use to being worshiped. This may tempt regular people as well, but when you go from being worshiped to hated, the temptation to return is much higher. The Bible even testifies that the devil was the god of this world:

• “In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.” – 2 Corinthians 4:4

The final temptation was for Jesus to show His power and prove who He was. I personally wouldn’t be tempted to jump off of a mountain in hopes of angels catching me. Again, Jesus knew God’s promises were 100% but maybe the fleshy side of Him wondered what would happen?

Lets assume this is something the writer put in from his perspective of the events. For the sake of argument lets throw it all out and tackle the subject strictly from Jesus’ words alone.

What Does Jesus Have To Say About It?

• “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.” – Matthew 6:13

When Jesus was teaching the disciples how to pray, He closed by asking God to deliver them from evil. Why would He pray to resist temptation if its not possible for Him to be tempted? Why would he teach the disciples to pray to resist temptation if Christians can’t be tempted with sin after they are saved?

• “Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” – Matthew 26:41

Again, He reminds them to pray for resistance to temptation. If they weren’t going to be tempted, why would they need to pray? Jesus wasn’t only tempted by the devil, He was also tempted by the Pharisees on several occassions:

• Matthew 16:1
• Matthew 19:3
• Matthew 22:18
• Matthew 22:35
• Mark 1:13
• Mark 8:11
• Mark 10:2
• Mark 12:15
• Luke 11:16
• Luke 20:23
• John 8:6

We have at least three different testimonies that Jesus Himself asked why they were tempting Him. To hold the position that He wasn’t tempted means throwing out quite a few verses. He did not give into those temptation which means He didn’t sin, but was obedient to God.

The Whole Armor Of God

A little more proof that Jesus was in a spiritual battle come from Ephesians. When the devil tempted Christ, He resisted with God’s Word, which just so happens to be one of the two weapons we have. The other weapon is prayer.

• “And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:” – Ephesians 6:17
• “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” – Hebrews 4:12
• “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you” – James 4:7
• “And when the devil had ended all the temptation, he departed from him for a season.” – Luke 4:13

When you study God’s Word you will begin to see that everything is connected. Each of those verses are taken from different scriptures but they were all truths that were present at the temptation of Christ. He used the word of God to resist that devil and the devil did flee from Him.

Conclusion

To drive home my point I’ll close with the words of Paul:

• “Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.   Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” – Romans 4:14-16

Before I begin, let me explain the title. I’m not asking should we sin after we are saved. The answer to that question is clearly a NO. I’m addressing the question whether or not we do sin after we are saved. Some people believe we don’t. Some people believe that Romans 6 says we won’t want to sin. Some people, like myself, believe we do sin and continue to sin. This post is in response to someone that has taken the Bible way out of context, so lets look at what the Bible says about sin after being saved.

Examining Romans 6

This book was written by Paul to the church in Rome. It seems to be misunderstood by a lot of people. Paul wasn’t saying that we no longer sin or we no longer want to sin, he was saying that we shouldn’t sin.

• “Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.” – Romans 6:6

Notice that Paul says “we should not serve sin” but he never says that we won’t sin.

• “For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.”  – Romans 6:15-16

Again, Paul asked if we should sin, meaning that we are still capable of sinning. He again states that we shouldn’t sin. As Christians, we are not to be controlled by sin, but to control our sin. When Christ was tempted in the wilderness by the devil, He used the Word of God to resist temptation.

We can resist just as Christ did by using the word of God. Just because something appeals to our flesh doesn’t mean we have to give into it. Anybody that tells you that they don’t sin is a liar, plain and simple. Anyone that makes themselves equal with Christ is full of pride, which is a sin, and pride comes before destruction (Proverbs 16:18).

Isaiah Defines Our Problem

• “But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.” – Isaiah 64:6

Even at our best we are still an abomination before God. That verse in Hebrew refers to a menstrual cloth. Thankfully God was also willing to work it out through the death of Christ.

• “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” – Isaiah 1:18

Did Paul Contradict Himself?

Here’s the challenge for those that believe we no longer sin or want to sin after we are saved.

• “For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin. For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I. If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good. Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me. For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.” – Romans 7:14-25

Those verses are a little bit hard to understand, but what they say is: Paul does what he’s not supposed to do and doesn’t do what he is supposed to do. He even says that with his mind he serves the law of God and with his flesh he serves sin. Paul uses present tense and says “serve” instead of “served” which is past tense.

Paul is indeed already saved when he makes this statement, so my challenge to those that believe we don’t sin or don’t want to sin, is to tell me what Paul’s problem was when he wrote this. He must not have gotten your memo.

Do We Sin Without Realizing It?

Someone actually told me that we sin daily but don’t realize it. I’m not perfect and I know it. I also know each and every time I sin. I know when I think a sinful thought or take a sinful action. It seems like this is just a poor attempt at escaping accountability, but that won’t work with God. We are responsible for every thought and every action. I shouldn’t need a verse to back this up, but:

• “But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.” – Matthew 12:36
• “So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.” – Romans 14:12

Closing Words

Until next post I’ll leave you with these words:

“Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.” – 1 John 4:1

I’m one of those guys that swears by the KJV Bible. There is a lot of mythology that surrounds the the KJV, such as Shakespear writing his name in it and various other misconceptions that have been passed around. That seems like a good place to start.

Is Shakespeare’s Name In The Bible?

Well if you go to Psalm 46 and count 46 words, you get to the word “shake” then count another 46 words and you get the word “spear”. So what? If you spell God backwards you get the word “dog”. You could do that all over the Bible, but its a completely invalid point as to the reliability of the King James Version.

How Accurate Is the KJV?

We know that the King James version has been proven to be 95% accurate and the other 5% is made up of untranslated words and misspellings. One example of an untranslated word are the first and last letters of the Hebrew alphabet when they appear together: Aleph (first) and Tau (last). Together they make the word ET but they are left out in at least two places in the Old Testament.

1. Genesis 1:1 should read: “In the beginning God (the first and the last) created the heaven and the earth.”
2. Zechariah 12:10 should read: “And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and supplications: and they shall look upon me (the first and the last) whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.”

If those translations were present, they would shed a brighter light on Revelation 1:11 which reads: “Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last…”

Those verses further support the Deity of Christ but we still know who He is without them. The KJV is the most reliable version of the Bible because there weren’t any attempts at political correctness during its writing. The king wanted to know what the Hebrew scriptures said, so he had it translated from Hebrew and Greek into the English language. Shakespeare wasn’t the only guy that worked on the project even though that is a popular but inaccurate belief.

Overall, the KJV may be harder to understand but it is extremely reliable and is actually the closest translation to the original texts that we have. It is also the most widely quoted, memorized, and referenced version in existence.

Is The NIV Reliable?

The NIV is mostly reliable but there are several issues with its translation. Although its a lot easier to understand, its not entirely unbiased in the interpretations. For those of you who have read “A Word About The NIV” which appears in the front or back of every NIV Bible, you will notice the following statements:

1. “To achieve clarity the translators sometimes supplied words not in the original texts but required by the context.”
2. “In some cases two possible translations were considered to have about equal validity. In other cases, though the translators were convinced that the translation in the text was correct, they judged that another interpretation was possible and of sufficient importance to be represented in a footnote.”

If you’re not super advanced in your Bible study that will probably mean absolutely nothing to you, so let me give you an example of what I mean.

1. “And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day.Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.” – Jude 1:6-7 (KJV)
2. “And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their own home – these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the Great Day. In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example to those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire. – Jude 1:6-7 (NIV)

The NIV is a lot easier to understand but we lose a ton of spiritual significance. Here is what I mean about losing spiritual significance. Jude references angels, Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities around them as going after “strange flesh”. The NIV the phrase they replace strange flesh with is “sexual immorality” which is unfortunate because Jude was pointing us to another passage, which we lose in the NIV.

“All flesh is not the same flesh: but there is one kind of flesh of men, another flesh of beasts, another of fishes, and another of birds.  There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another.” – 1 Corinthians 15:39-40 (KJV)

This same verse in the NIV reads almost the same, but without the “strange flesh” translation, you don’t realize that angels were also going after “strange flesh”. 1 Corinthians 15:40 is very clear that our bodies are different from the bodies of angels. This is important because of Genesis 6:2 when the “sons of God” start taking wives and created what we call the Nephilim.

Possible NIV Conspiracy?

Something else that is very apparent if you have read both the KJV and NIV is that every reference to “giants” has been replaced with Rephaim (the undead) or Nephilim (the fallen ones). Neither of those words has much significance to anyone who hasn’t studied the Bible in depth. Both the Nephilim and Rephaim were tribes of giant angel/human hybrids according to the Hebrew tradition. The NIV seems to avoid any direct reference in the Bible that has to do with the possibility of angels reproducing. Most preachers will tell you that angels can’t reproduce based on the following verse:

1. “For when they shall rise from the dead, they neither marry, nor are given in marriage; but are as the angels which are in heaven.” – Mark 12:25 (KJV)

Although they have good intentions, they fail to recognize the following:

1. The verse refers to angels that are “in heaven”.
2. You don’t have to marry to be capable of having sex.

These same preachers will tell you that the Devil and his angels aren’t in heaven. If that’s true, what’s to stop them from having sex or marrying? If we also look again at Jude 1:6 only certain angels were bound in “chains of darkness” for going after “strange flesh”. It seems as though the translators of the NIV kept this in mind while translating and attempting to not to make obvious modifications to the translation. Sort of hiding it in plain site. Another example comes from the book of Numbers:

1. “And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.” – Numbers 13:33 (KJV)
2. “We saw the Nephilim there (the descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim). We seemd like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them. – Numbers 13:33 (NIV)

Nephilim is indeed the actual word used in Hebrew, but its not a proper noun as presented in the NIV.  How many people would even bother to look it up to see what it means? The next question you should ask yourself is why would they choose not to translate this pronoun, then proceed to present it in English as a proper noun? I could go on and on with many examples of familiar words and phrases being replaced with extremely unfamiliar words and phrases. I feel its important to let the translators of the NIV have the final word about this:

“Also for the sake of clarity or style, nouns, including some proper nouns, are sometimes substituted for pronouns, and vice versa.”

Which Version Should I Read?

Honestly, I enjoy the KJV and enjoy the NIV. When read together, they offer a lot of clarity, but neither offer as much clarity as the original Greek and Hebrew. I would encourage you to study from both of them and reference the original meanings of the words in order to gain a much clearer understanding of the Bible. As always, you should do your homework and study to show yourself approved.

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The Fall: Rise of Lucifer is coming along very smooth. Chapter 1 is just about complete and we’ve started working on chapters 2 and 3. We’ve also started developing new characters, relationships, and locations.

This week, I’ll be posting: Bernael – Origins and Michael – Origins. Possibly a few others, but I don’t want to commit to it just yet. Stay tuned and don’t forget to grab a copy of Religion and Relationship for only $14.95

Disclaimer: This post is not about the fall of Lucifer. It is in reference to the book The Fall: Rise of Lucifer.

As you read through The Fall: Rise of Lucifer, you will see a lot of words that will be unfamiliar to most people. The angelic language is a combination of Hebrew, Greek, Latin, Nordic, and a few others. Those of you familiar with the different myths and legends from around the world will recognize names of places and angels.

For mythology fanatics like myself you will be interested to find that we have included such familiar settings as Mount Olympus (Greek city of the gods) and Valhalla (Norse heaven). These are just two examples of cities that exist in Shamayim (Hebrew word for heaven), and eventually get passed down to mankind through our known and unknown interaction with angels.

Something else familiar you will see in The Fall: Rise of Lucifer, is the technological level of the B’nai ha Elohim. The merkabah (Hebrew for vehicle), the main source of angelic travel, resembles what we would refer to today as a UFO. That is just one of the technologies at Lucifer’s disposal.

When the book is released there will be phrases that appear in other languages that may or may not be translated in the series. If you wish to find the meanings of these phrases, you will have to do a little digging on the Internet to find the meaning of the words.

Be prepared for other cultural and technological surprises as well. Every detail in the book is important and will come into play in this first book and definitely in the 2nd and 3rd books.

Q: “After reading the “shacking up” article I still have a question.

I’m currently divorced, I’m dating somebody who is working on the legal aspects of a divorce but has been emotionally divorced for a few years now (i.e. they two have not lived together or had any marriage like contact in years). Avoiding the mess & stress of explaining her dilemma I’ll jump straight to the point.

What are the rules of two divorced people starting a relationship (physical and emotional) and possible marriage. Where can more info on this subject be found?”

A: First let me start by saying thanks for reading and taking the time to ask. The subject of adultery is a big deal now days because our societies moral standards have taken a nose dive. Lets look at your situation from a Biblical perspective. Lets start with the basics.

1. “Thou shalt not commit adultery.” – Exodus 20:14

What Exactly is Adultery?

Adultery – voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person and someone other than his or her lawful spouse.

Based on the question you asked, she is still married, so you are committing adultery, assuming you too are sexually active. However, Jesus took it a step further when He was talking about adultery.

1. “Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery: But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.” – Matthew 5:27-28

I’m sure most men, myself included, are guilty of the looking and lusting after women. Sometimes we  may not know that a woman is married until after we have had the thought, but that should teach us to control our thoughts. The Bible doesn’t make mention of two unmarried people thinking thoughts about each other just to clarify the verse. That verse applies to someone that is married. Either the married man looking at a woman or a single man looking at a married woman.

What The Bible Has To Say About Divorce

The Bible has very clear rules on divorce and adultery, but sometimes we don’t agree because it doesn’t fit our current situation. When that happens we try to rationalize and justify our beliefs.

1. “When a man hath taken a wife, and married her, and it come to pass that she find no favour in his eyes, because he hath found some uncleanness in her: then let him write her a bill of divorcement, and give it in her hand, and send her out of his house.” – Deuteronomy 24:1

The Bible does say its OK to get divorced if the wife is found to be unclean. This could mean disease, infidelity, or several other things, but thankfully, Jesus clears that up for us in the NT.

1. “But I say unto you, That whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth her to commit adultery: and whosoever shall marry her that is divorced committeth adultery.” – Matthew 5:32

Here we see that the only supported reason for divorce according to the Bible is unfaithfulness. Irreconcilable differences are not a good enough reason to get divorced. Based on what you’ve told me, she isn’t divorced yet and that presents a problem between you and God, whether or not she is emotionally divorced. The Bible is clear that the divorce needs to be in writing for it to be considered complete. God has some pretty harsh rules and opinions  for adulterers:

1. “And the man that committeth adultery with another man’s wife, even he that committeth adultery with his neighbour’s wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death.” – Leviticus 20:10
2. “But whoso committeth adultery with a woman lacketh understanding: he that doeth it destroyeth his own soul.” – Proverbs 6:32

Can Two Divorced People Get Married?

According to the Bible, they shouldn’t, but you CAN do anything you want to do. Nobody, not even God will force you to obey the rules:

1. “And he saith unto them, Whosoever shall put away his wife, and marry another, committeth adultery against her.    And if a woman shall put away her husband, and be married to another, she committeth adultery.” – Mark 10:11-12

All of the rules concerning adultery are pretty straightforward and clear.

Will I Go To Hell For Adultery?

I know you didn’t ask the question, but I’m sure someone reading this has that question in their head. Its hard to repent when you’re living in a sinful situation. Repenting requires you to try to change your current habits that you are repenting for. Thankfully, we serve a loving and forgiving God that understands that fact that we screw up.

1. “Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.” – Matthew 12:31

According to the Bible, you won’t burn in hell for adultery, but you will be out of favor with God because you are indeed breaking His rules. Again, God won’t force you to obey, so it is a decision you have to make for yourself. You can try to rationalize it or justify it as much as you want, but it won’t change God’s viewpoint on the subject. My personal advice is the same as always, use your best judgment and try to do what is right in God’s eyes.

How Do You Feel About Adultery?

• Its 100% Wrong
• Its OK In Some Situations
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If you haven’t asked the question, I’m sure you’ve heard someone ask the questions. When you really think about what that question is asking, its actually kinda funny. First of all, the question assumes that there are good people. Second, the asker usually makes the assumption that they are one of these good people. Lets see if we can figure this out.

What Is A Good Person

Defining what a good person is, should help us figure out who the bad people are. People usually consider themselves good if they haven’t committed any big sins, such as adultery, murder, blasphemy, etc. The thought that you have never killed anyone makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside, but you’ve forgotten about the person on the road that you cussed out earlier in the week.

Maybe the Bible will clear things up on what a good person is. Lets see what Isaiah has to say about who is righteous.

1. “But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.” – Isaiah 64:6

I’m sure you’ve read that or heard that in church before, but the English language tones it down a bit. In Hebrew, it says, “used menstrual cloths”. That’s a pretty bad description of what we perceive to be our own righteousness. For those of us that still believe we are good people, Isaiah isn’t much help. Maybe Paul will shed a different light on things.

1. “As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:” – Romans 3:10
2. “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;” – Romans 3:23

Now we have Paul saying we are all sinners and fall short of the glory of God. I guess all of our ideas of self righteousness have gone out the window, if you believe what that Bible says. To some of us, it would seem a bit unfair that God lets those people we consider to be “evil” go unpunished.

Time Traveling

Lets assume for the sake of argument that you could go back in time and kill Hitler or Stalin before they massacred millions of people. The problem you run into is that if you do it while they are still babies, you’re now a killer of innocent babies, since they haven’t done anything yet. You would then have people asking the question, “why didn’t God stop you?”

Something else that really needs to be considered is within yourself. If you were willing to travel back in time to murder babies, what makes you any better than the men they grow up to be? In God’s eyes, there is no sin larger than another. Stealing $1.00 is just as bad as stealing $1,000,000. Regardless of the amount, you are taking something that doesn’t belong to you.

Job’s Plight

Job is one case in which we can think of bad things happening to a “good” person. Job was minding his own business, and God put the devil’s attention on him. In the end he was rewarded, but the question is never answered, “why did God point him out?”

In the end, Job was blessed with more than he had, but why did he have to go through it?

That Still Doesn’t Answer My Question

1. “Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.” – James 1:3

Sometimes, in order to find the answers we are seeking, we need to dig a little deeper in the scriptures. My friend David L. Hudson always says that we get real close, then stop before we get our answers. Now if the Bible tells us that when our faith is tried, it builds patience, we can assume that there is a point to patience.

1. “And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;    ⁴And patience, experience; and experience, hope:” – Romans 5:3-4

OK, now things are starting to come together. Our faith is tested so we can be patient. Then that patience leads to experience. I’m not sure who said it, but I’m sure we’ve all heard it, “experience is the best teacher.” When we as Christians go through tribulations in our lives, we can use that to relate to someone that has been through something similar. I can reach out to people who have been to jail, while the person next to me may be a single parent that has never been to jail. I can’t relate to their experience in a personal way and vice versa.  Through our experiences we are not only capable of reaching out to people, but we gain hope. So, what exactly are we hoping for?

1. “For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?    But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.” – Romans 8:24-25
2. “For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming?” – 1 Thessalonians 2:19
3. “In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;” – Titus 1:2

The word “hope” is used 121 times in the Bible, mostly in reference to God, Christ, everlasting life, and a few times in Paul’s greetings to the churches. In almost every circumstance, the word “hope” is referring to things that happen after this life, such as God’s grace, mercy, and gift of everlasting life.

If you haven’t caught it yet, the reason that “bad” things happen to “good” people is to strengthen our faith that God will have our back here on earth, which gives us the experience needed to reach out to people and strengthen our belief in what He has in store for us when we pass from this world to the next.

1. “In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:18

The verse says we need to thank God for everything, not just the good, but the bad also, because there is indeed a purpose in everything, and God is in complete control.

1. “Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.” – James 1:12
2. “That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:” – 1 Peter 1:7

Finally, there is a major blessing in store for us when our faith is tried. As long as we endure until the end, we are guaranteed to receive our reward that has been promised to us since the beginning of the world.