Searches every word across every teaching, article, and Q&A on the site.
Searches every word across every teaching, article, and Q&A on the site.
Teacher: Pastor Paul LeBoutillier Pastor Paul: Hi everybody and welcome to the latest Bible Q&A. This is where we take your questions that we receive from our YouTube channel or our website or by email. And we do our best to give you a good answer. Sue: We will start with Deborah. Who says, “Good day Pastor Paul – My sister and I are reading through the Bible for the fourth consecutive year. This time your through the Bible teachings are tremendous help to us. In Numbers 8:25 it says that the priests only held that role until age 50. Luke 1:7 says Zechariah and his wife were advanced in age. Does this mean that the priests no longer had to retire from the priesthood at age 50? Or, were they considered advanced in age in relation to the common timeframe that couples usually had kids after marrying? Thank you for sharing your teachings.” Pastor Paul: Well, Numbers 8 is not talking about the Aaronic priests or the descendants of Aaron, which Zechariah and Elizabeth were. They were descendants from Aaron and that means they were or Zechariah was in the priestly line. Numbers is talking about the Levites. And the Levites really were the helpers of the priests. And the reason that numbers 8:25 talks about the Levites retiring essentially after age 50 is that word was given when they were in the wilderness and there was a lot of physical labor that went along with being a Levite. They broke down the tabernacle and carried it to the next location and then set it up again. So they needed to be done by age 50. But as far as the descendants of Aaron, which were the priests, they served for the remainder of their lives, particularly the high priest, he wouldn't pass along his role to his son until he passed away physically. So different restrictions given for different groups. Sue: Good. Well, that clears it up, I think. Christine says, “Why did John the Baptist (when he was in prison) send his disciples to ask Jesus if He is the one or should we wait for another? Yet, according to Luke 7:19 John baptized Jesus and had already met Him.” Pastor Paul: Prison can do incredible things to a man. Even though John did recognize Jesus, he baptized Jesus. He even declared Jesus to be the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Still, he had been arrested by Herod. He'd been spending time in what we assume was a very difficult prison sort of a situation. And he allowed doubt to enter into his heart and mind to the point where he sent some of his followers, some of his disciples to go and ask Jesus, are you the one or should we wait for another? It's what can happen when someone allows doubt into their heart and mind. And John was a man just like any man, and he was subject to the same kinds of difficulties and struggles as any individual. Plus, the Jews had a very different view of what Messiah was going to come and do. They believed pretty much that he was going to rebel against Rome or lead a rebellion against Rome. So none of those things were happening. But what's really interesting is that when John's disciples came to Jesus with the question from John, I love how the fact that Jesus just turned him back to the Word and he said, go back and tell John what you see in here. The good news is being preached. The lame are walking, the blind are seeing. And that is exactly what, prophetically, they were told the Messiah would do. Sue: Which John had to lean heavily on what he actually heard, because unlike Peter, James, John, the disciples who followed and were with Jesus, God gave John a different ministry. And he wasn't physically there much of the time for himself see, the disciples actually had it a little easier because they were eyewitnesses to much more. But yet they did hear John the Baptist heard from them. Pastor Paul: That's true. Absolutely. Sue: All right. Anusha says, “I feel guilty even though I'm praying and repenting of my sin. Why?” Pastor Paul: There could be a lot of different reasons why people will sin, repent of that sin, pray for forgiveness, and yet still struggle with guilt. The enemy can be involved in doing what he does best, and that's accusing when we sin and pointing out our sin and that keeps that guilt really fresh. It can also be because we're not really applying faith as we should. We're told in the Bible that if we confess our sins, that God is faithful and just and will forgive us and cleanse us of all unrighteousness, 1 John 1:9. Well, the fact is, sometimes we just don't believe it. So that can be a reason for guilt. But there's something else that I want to point out. I think a lot of Christian’s struggle differentiating guilt with grief, because when we sin, grief is a very real and very healthy thing to experience. We have to remember that as believers, we are indwelt by the Holy Spirit of God. And when we sin, we grieve God, we grieve the Holy Spirit, and we feel that grief. We get a sense of that grief. It's a very difficult thing to endure, frankly, because no one wants to feel like you've grieved your heavenly Father and yet we do. And I think some Christians believe that what they're feeling is guilt, when in fact it is grief. And grief needs to be felt. It's a healthy thing. It produces a godly sorrowful attitude that leads us further to repentance. Sue: Good. Obuo says, “I'm currently reading Leviticus and I have a question on the punishment for sins (Lev 20). In Romans 3:25, it says God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood – to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished. However in Leviticus 20, the whole chapter talks about the punishment for sins. Why were the people being punished when it says that God left the sins committed beforehand unpunished?” Pastor Paul: Because we're not understanding the difference between temporal punishment and eternal punishment. And what I mean by that is sin always carries a consequence. If I do something against my brother, I have to deal with the consequences of my brother's anger, my brother's hurt, and maybe his reaction to it. I may even have to deal with the law if I commit an area of sin. If I'm speeding on the highway and I get caught by a police officer and he finds me for speeding. Well, that is a form of punishment. It's a form of temporal punishment. What Romans is talking about, I should say what Paul is referring to in Romans 3 is the eternal punishment that God in his forbearance allowed to be unpunished until Jesus came and bore that punishment on the cross. So when Jesus died on the cross, he suffered the punishment of our eternal sin. He bore it on the cross. That's not just consequences to sin. Where I hit my brother and he's mad at me. These are the eternal consequences. So we have to understand that there are still consequences to sin that are talked about through the course of scripture. But that doesn't mean when you read about someone being punished, and we have examples in the Old Testament, we have examples in the New Testament. And when you read about those, that's not eternal punishment. That's temporary punishment. People who are punished in the Bible may very well be Christians and we'll see them in heaven. They're not lost. They were just punished for their sin on a temporary basis. Sue: That's good. So important for us to understand that distinction. Pastor Paul: Yeah, it really is. Sue: All right. Jodi says, “I've been studying the Gospel of John with Pastor Paul. It has been wonderful. John 14 has me a bit confused. Pastor Paul made the statement that a believer can never be possessed by a demon. I see the truth of that but can they be oppressed?” Pastor Paul: Isn't it interesting that Christians will say that they'll hear me make a statement, a believer can't be demonically possessed, and then they'll say, I'm confused. So my question is, why are you confused? Do you see any examples in the Bible of believers being possessed? And the answer is, no, you don't. There's not one. And yet it is such a prevalent belief, and it's actually taught by some Bible teachers that believers can be, in fact, demonically possessed, meaning that a spirit literally lives within them, inhabits them. Well, there are no examples in the Bible of believers being inhabited after somebody comes to Christ, still being inhabited by a demonic spirit. So can a person be oppressed? Absolutely. I mean, there are many warnings in the Bible that tell us to be alert and recognize that we have a spiritual enemy who prowls around like a roaring lion seeking whom he will devour. So we need to be very, very careful. We need to take up the shield of faith, the sword of the spirit, so on and so on. But that doesn't mean that a demonic spirit, can take up residence in us. That is just simply not in the Bible. Sue: That's good. Vada says, “I have read through the Bible. I have heard several times about John being boiled in oil. Is it in the Bible? Have I missed it somewhere?” Pastor Paul: No, you haven't missed it. It is considered to be extra biblical. We get things like that from historical sources, other writings that are not biblical writings. In fact, that's how we learn about how really all of the saints were martyred, except for Stephen. Stephen is in the Book of Acts. But the rest of them, we know that they were martyred from other historical writings. Sue: So Stephen is the only one I can think of that we actually read about in the Bible itself. Is that what you're saying? All the rest, it's just either in history or it's lost. Pastor Paul: Exactly. Sue: So you didn't miss it? Pastor Paul: No. Sue: All right. And our last question is from Joel, who said, “I prayed to receive Jesus Christ as my Savior, but it took many more years to invite Him to be my Lord. Is one not saved until they make Him Lord?” Pastor Paul: I believe you're saved when you come to faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross. That is what marks our salvation. That is when we become a child of God. That is when we receive the indwelling presence of God's Holy Spirit. It's all about faith in what Jesus did on the cross. Many people, myself included, took years to actually bow the knee to his lordship and to crown Him Lord of our lives. For me, it was about 10 years. And yet I believe that I was saved during that time. I just wasn't growing. I wasn't maturing. I was kind of a wilderness Christian. But I was a Christian. I was a child of God. But it wasn't until I invited him to be Lord of my life that I really began to grow as a believer and serving the Lord, being in fellowship with other believers. That was when my Christian life took off. So if there's anyone who's watching us maybe this is where you are. You're thinking, I've accepted Jesus what He did on the cross. I believe he died for me. I believe that he's my Savior. But I don't remember a time in my life when I ever just surrendered my life to him and said, I crown you Lord of my life. I would encourage you to do that today because that's when things are really going to change for you. So give your life to the Lord completely. Don't be afraid. Don't let fear dictate your reaction or responses. Just give yourself to the Lord. Invite him to be the Lord of your life. He's waiting for you to give him that permission to be Lord and Master. So there you go. Sue: All right. Those are some good questions.
