Month / August 2024

by In Light Of The Cross

So, is Jesus Still Coming Back?

After more than 175 years of preaching the Second Coming, one important question comes to mind for Seventh-day Adventists. Is Jesus still going to come again? Are we still planning on it? Is it still a part of who we are?

Growing up as a Seventh-day Adventist I heard people talk about how Jesus was surely coming in the next five years. We thought for sure that the oil crisis in the 70’s was the beginning of the end of the world. I remember looking at the form the Tulsa Roughnecks Soccer team sent me when I was a teen, asking me to renew my season tickets for the 1980 season. You may laugh at me, but I stared at that form in disbelief that I actually saw the year 1980 in print. There is no way the world will last that long I thought. Well that was over 40 years ago and we are in a new century. So what happened to the Second Coming? Is it still on?

In the mid ‘80s I joined a new Adventist church in the suburbs. I had just started dating a girl who went to that church; so I switched from the larger Adventist church where I was a member to her church. We had just started dating when she dumped me. I still stayed at this new church because I did not want people to think I changed churches just for her. Besides, this church seemed to be really on fire. The weekly prayer meetings were very spiritual, and everyone was praying for the power of the Holy Spirit to prepare them for the Second Coming. We had about as many people attending prayer meeting as attended our Sabbath worship services. We were sure Jesus was coming soon, and we were getting ready.

Then something sad happened. People stopped coming to prayer meeting. Some decided “Growing Pains” was just too funny of a show to miss for prayer meeting. People stopped coming to church altogether. This was not supposed to happen! Discouraged, I asked God why He did not come back when our church was at its spiritual peak, when we had it all together. He waited too long, and now look what happened!

I believe the Holy Spirit revealed to me why Jesus did not return when the church was on top of its game. Our church was on a spiritual roller coaster. Jesus is not coming back for a church on a spiritual roller coaster. He is not coming back for a people who walk with him off and on. A groom does not want to marry a bride whose love and devotion goes in cycles. Neither does Jesus.

Enoch walked with God many years before being translated. God will come back for a church who will consistently walk with Him year after year after year, and not on some roller coaster. The church is like a woman. For centuries God’s church has loved to flirt with Him, but it also loves to flirt with the world. God’s church likes to date Jesus, but it also likes to date other things too. Jesus is not returning for a date; He is returning for a wedding. When God’s church decides to stop dating and flirting with Jesus and decides to get married, He will return.

During this same time period our suburban church was also asking the Holy Spirit to get sin out of our lives so we could be ready for Jesus to come. We did not – or at least I did not – realize how legalistic that was. Jesus is not coming back for a legalistic group who get their act together so they can have some great reward like heaven. Jesus is coming back for a people who love Him because He first loved them. Today I ask the Holy Spirit to remove sin from my life, not because Jesus is coming back, but because my sin breaks God’s heart. I do not want to break His heart any more, regardless if He is coming back tomorrow or a hundred years from now.

Now that I am older I don’t hear people talking about Jesus coming back in the next five years. So is the whole thing off?

One of Satan’s best weapons are over-zealous religious fanatics. They tell people Jesus is coming back during a certain time table, and then when their “prophecy” fails, people doubt that Jesus is coming back at all. However this is all Satan’s plan. To get us to give up right before it happens. Concentration camp survivors say they survived because they never set a date for their rescue. Some wanted to be rescued by Christmas, and then when that came and went, they wanted to be rescued by Easter, and then when Easter came and went, they gave up hope. Others just knew that they would be rescued some day, and they survived.

As Seventh-day Adventists we must believe Jesus is returning, without setting dates. Some have gone to the other extreme now and don’t even preach the Second Coming at all. They preach social sermons which they find more practical in everyday living. While we must be practical, we must also realize that God formed our church over 150 years ago for a specific reason.

Are we embarrassed by our message? I am sure the disciples were embarrassed when Jesus was crucified, but there was no reason for them to be. Are we afraid people will not believe our message, so we just preach things we know the world will accept? If so, shame on us! We are doing our Savior and neighbor no justice by hiding our special message.

The Seventh-day Adventist church has a message that will do more than prepare people to live nice little lives in this world. We have a gospel that will prepare people for the world to come! We must let everyone know the Second Coming is still on!

There are twice as many prophecies about the Second Coming than there were about Jesus’ first advent. He came the first time, so we know beyond a shadow of a doubt He is coming the second time. Jesus warns against setting times for His return when He tells us, “ in the hour you think not, the Son of man cometh.” Satan has been using religious fanatics for years to get us all excited and then disappointed that He has not returned. Satan wants us to give up and think Jesus is not returning at all. There is great danger in what I was always hearing growing up – about Jesus coming in the next five years – because it does two things: It makes us give up hope when He does not return in those five years, and it also makes us think we have five years to prepare. One day we won’t have five years to prepare. We won’t have one year to prepare. In the hour we think not, He will come!

Don’t get ready, be ready! Be ready, not because He is coming back but because we love Him because He first loved us! The Adventist church – the church that believes the Bible prophecies about the Second Coming – has a reason to exist! If we just preach social day-by-day sermons that you can hear anywhere else, then we are not fulfilling our purpose for coming into existence over 150 years ago. A true Adventist more than believes Jesus is coming. We love His appearing! We have a message to give to world and the people of the world are hungry for our message. We need to tell them that Jesus is coming back. Jesus loves them and wants to be with them forever!

You may study this week’s Sabbath School lesson here.

by In Light Of The Cross

10: The Last Days-Sabbath School Lesson Teaching Plan

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Prepared by William Earnhardt for Sabbath School Class, September 7, 2024.

Main Theme: Jesus not only predicts the future but also instructs His disciples both then and now in how to prepare for the coming trials.

Read in Class: Mark 12:41-13:13. Have the class summarize these passages.

Study: How much did the widow give, and what did Jesus have to say about that? How did the disciples respond to Jesus’ statement about the temple, and what is the significance of Jesus’ answer to them?

Apply: What do these passages teach us about being faithful in giving our offerings as well as our entire selves for the Lord’s work?

Share: Your friend tells you she gets scared just thinking about the time or trouble in the last days. What do you tell your friend?

Read in Class: Mark 13:14-18. Ask class to define the main idea of this passage.

Study: What clue does Jesus give in figuring out what the “abomination of desolation” refers to?

Apply: Read Daniel 11:31 and Daniel 12:11. What event are these passages applied to? What was the abomination of desolation during the days of the Roman empire? What event in the last days could be the abomination of desolation? Hint from Tuesday’s lesson: The abomination likely refers to the planting of the Roman pagan standards in Israel during the siege of Jerusalem in the late A.D. 60s. This was the sign for the Christians to flee, which they did.

Share: Your friend asks you why you trust the Bible? What predictions of Jesus have already been fulfilled? What do you tell your friend?

Read in Class: Mark 13:19-23. Define the main idea of this passage.

Study: What does verse 19 refer to?

Apply: What hope do you find in Mark 13:20-23 for God’s people during the time of persecution, and what warning does He give them as it closes?

Share: Your friend asks, who are the false Christ’s Jesus warned us about? Can a false Christ also be a false idea or misconception about Christ? What do you tell your friend?

Read in Class: Mark 13:24-32. Define the main idea of this passage.

Study: What great event is described here?

Apply: Is it possible for us to believe Jesus is coming soon but still plan like He is not coming in our lifetime? Why or why not is this a good idea?

Share: Can you think of some friends who would be encouraged to be reminded Jesus is coming again? How can you share this hope with them this week?

by In Light Of The Cross

Does Eccelsiastes 12:7 Teach That we go Straight to Heaven When we die?

Death

Brief overview: Death is a state of unconscious sleep. The dead do not know anything at this time and are not awakened until the last trump at Christ’s second coming. See Ecclesiastes 9:5-6, Job 14:12, 1 Corinthians 15:51-55, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18.

Why is it important to know the truth about Death:

The teaching that you don’t really die is a lie Satan started in the Garden of Eden when he told Eve, “Ye shall not surely die.” By telling this lie Satan hoped to get Eve and all mankind to believe that there is really no consequence for disobeying God. He also wants us to believe that we are all immortal regardless if we have a relationship with God or not. This opens the door for spiritualism where people may actually be communicating with the devil and his angels, thinking they are speaking with their loved ones. Our salvation does not come from knowing what happens when we die. Our salvation is found alone in God’s love. However, no lie is ever harmless, and when Satan told the lie, “Ye shall not surely die”, not only was he lying but he was also calling God a liar. Not a safe path for us to follow.

Why understanding death in the light of the cross is important:

First of all if you don’t really die then Jesus did not really die for us and we still need a Savior. The lie that we don’t really die destroys the cross and everything Jesus endured and accomplished on it. If Jesus was not really tasting death likeHebrews 2:9 says He did, then we have just minimized the cross to a six hour pain endurance marathon.

I remember sitting in a funeral a while back for a little girl who was hit and killed by a car. Her mother sat on the front pew sobbing uncontrollably. Meanwhile the pastor talked about how happy the little girl and Jesus were right now up in heaven. Do you know how cruel that made Jesus look to the poor mother? Would Jesus tear a mother’s heart apart just to go have fun with her daughter? I think not! The little girl is resting in her grave and will be united with Jesus in heaven when the mother is reunited with her at the second coming.

For Further study on Death

What did Adam become?

Then the Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground. He breathed the breath of life into the man’s nostrils, and the man became a living person. Genesis 2:7 NLT

Note: The KJV says man became a living soul. A living person is a soul. To be living you must have the combination of breath and a body. Breath + Body = “soul” or “person.” Without both the body and breath there is no soul or person. Just like a box made of wood and nails. The box is the combination of wood and nails. Take the nails away from the wood and you have no box. Take the breath away from the body and you have no soul or person.

Whose spirit returns to God?

For then the dust will return to the earth, and the spirit will return to God who gave it.  Ecclesiastes 12:7 NLT

What is the Spirit?

As long as I live, while I have breath from God. Job 27:3 NLT

Note: The KJV says, “All the while my breath is in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils, Job 27:3.  The NLT makes it clear that the spirit is simply our breath. So in Ecclesiastes 12:7 all that returns to God when we die is our breath. We are not conscious.

What does God take that turns the body to dust?

But if you turn away from them, they panic. When you take away their breath, they die and turn again to dust.  Psalm 104:29 NLT

What age old question did Job ask?

“But when people die, their strength is gone.  They breathe their last, and then where are they? Job 14:10 NLT

What is the Bible answer?

people are laid to rest and do not rise again.  Until the heavens are no more, they will not wake up nor be roused from their sleep.  Job 14:12 NLT

Do the dead know what happens to the living?

They never know if their children grow up in honor or sink to insignificance. Job 14:21 NLT

How much do the dead know?

The living at least know they will die, but the dead know nothing. They have no further reward, nor are they remembered. Whatever they did in their lifetime—loving, hating, envying—is all long gone. They no longer play a part in anything here on earth.  Ecclesiastes 9:5-6 NLT

What did Jesus call death?                                                                                                     

Then he said, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but now I will go and wake him up.”The disciples said, “Lord, if he is sleeping, he will soon get better!” They thought Jesus meant Lazarus was simply sleeping, but Jesus meant Lazarus had died.

So he told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead. John 11:11-14 NLT

How long had Lazarus been dead?

When Jesus arrived at Bethany, he was told that Lazarus had already been in his grave for four days.  John 11:17 NLT

Did Martha believe Lazarus was in heaven when he died?

“Yes,” Martha said, “he will rise when everyone else rises, at the last day.” John 11:24 NLT

Was Lazarus called from heaven, hell or the grave?

Then Jesus shouted, “Lazarus, come out!” And the dead man came out, his hands and feet bound in graveclothes, his face wrapped in a headcloth. Jesus told them, “Unwrap him and let him go!” John 11: 43-44 NLT

When are the dead raised?                                                                                          

And if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless and you are still guilty of your sins. In that case, all who have died believing in Christ are lost! And if our hope in Christ is only for this life, we are more to be pitied than anyone in the world.But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead. He is the first of a great harvest of all who have died.So you see, just as death came into the world through a man, now the resurrection from the dead has begun through another man. Just as everyone dies because we all belong to Adam, everyone who belongs to Christ will be given new life. But there is an order to this resurrection: Christ was raised as the first of the harvest; then all who belong to Christ will be raised when he comes back. 1 Corinthians 15:16-23 NLT

When do we receive immortality?                                                                                  

But let me reveal to you a wonderful secret. We will not all die, but we will all be transformed! It will happen in a moment, in the blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we who are living will also be transformed. For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies. Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scripture will be fulfilled: “Death is swallowed up in victory. 1 Corinthians 15:51-54 NLT

Our hope and comfort:                                                                                                     

And now, dear brothers and sisters, we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have died so you will not grieve like people who have no hope.For since we believe that Jesus died and was raised to life again, we also believe that when Jesus returns, God will bring back with him the believers who have died. We tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not meet him ahead of those who have died.For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the Christians who have diedwill rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever. So encourage each other with these words.   1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 NLT

by In Light Of The Cross

9: Jerusalem Controversies-Sabbath School Lesson Teaching Plan

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Prepared by William Earnhardt, for Sabbath School Class August 31, 2024.

Main Theme: While the religious leaders tried to defeat Jesus they never could. Jesus’ teaching and examples will help truth to be victorious in our day as well.

Read in Class: Mark 11:12-26. Ask the class to define the main idea of this passages.

Study:  What is the significance of the events depicted here?

Apply: What things in your life do you need Jesus to clean? How does this happen?

Share: Your friend asks you, what if Jesus came into our church today? What signs of irreverance might He find? What do you tell your friend? What solutions might you share with your friend?

Read in Class: Mark 11:27-33. Ask the class the define the main idea of this passage.

Study: What challenge did the religious leaders bring to Jesus, and how did He respond?

Apply: Read Mark 12:1-12. How did this story apply to those accusing Jesus?

Share: Your friend tells you she has been trying to share with her inlaws Bible truths she has been learning in the Adventist Church. However, one of her inlaws is a pastor of another denomination. Her inlaws tell her they will listen to their relative pastor, but not to her because she is not a pastor, and has no authority to be trying to teach the Bible to them. What do you tell your friend?

Read in Class: Mark 12:13-27. Ask the class to summarize this passage.

Study: What is going on here, and what truths does Jesus teach?

Apply: If someone were to ask you, “Do you know the power of God?” what would you reply, and why?

Share: Your friend asks what Jesus meant when He said, “But concerning the dead, that they rise, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the burning bush passage, how God spoke to him, saying, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living.” Your friend asks you if this means Abraham, Isaac and Jacob are still alive right now? What do you tell your friend?  

Read in Class: Mark 12:28-34. Ask the class to summarize this passage.

Study: What deep question did the friendly scribe ask, and what double response did Jesus give?

Apply: How do we learn to love God and to love our neighbors as ourselves? Why is the Cross the key to following these commands?

Share: At the end of Mark 12:28-34 it says “no one dared ask Him any questions after that.” Your friend asks you what it was about that teaching that made them stop asking Jesus questions? What do you tell your friend?

by In Light Of The Cross

Meeting the Needs of the Community

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So Jesus answered and said to him, “What do you want Me to do for you?…” Mark 10:51 NKJV

While we were studying last week’s Sabbath School lesson in class, a friend told an interesting and disturbing story. She said several years ago her stepfather was in the hospital. A “sunshine band” from her local Adventist church came into his room and told him they would sing for him. He told them he was glad to visit but did not wish to be sung to. The sunshine band simply would not take no for an answer. They knew this man needed to be sung to regardless of what he thought or said. So they proceeded to sing around his bed, so sure this would cheer him up. He got so frustrated he tried to get up from bed and leave! Joyful members of the sunshine band pinned him down as the others joyfully sang, convincing themselves this was just what the patient needed, despite his vocal and physical protests.

This did absolutely nothing to endear this man to the church or to God, but the sunshine band members walked out of his hospital room patting themselves on the back for faithfully completing their mission. 

It was after my friend’s testimony in class that we read Mark 10:46-52. After the passage was read, another friend said, “Notice Jesus asked the man what he wanted Jesus to do for him.” After our friend’s story about her stepfather this observation was huge. We talked about how often a church will choose a “cookie cutter” form of evangelism for their community instead of finding out exactly what their own community wants or actually needs. We may want to do a Revelation Seminar, but what if the community needs a divorce recovery workshop instead? I know Revelation is important. You don’t have to tell me. I have been teaching and preaching Revelation for years. But when we have a Revelation seminar which no one comes to, can we really say we did our best and its the community’s fault no one showed up? After all, no one got on the ark with Noah and his family, right? All we can do is preach and if no one comes to hear that’s their fault, right? 

Well, did we even ask the community what they wanted, like Jesus asked the man in Mark 10:46-52 what he wanted? If we do a survey in the community and the majority ask for a divorce recovery workshop, and no one  asks for a Revelation seminar, it makes more sense to do the divorce recovery workshop, because people will actually show up, and after all, the Bible not only teaches us about last day events. The Bible also teaches us

we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, Titus 2:12 NKJV

Meaning, while prophecy is important, people also need to learn how to live like Jesus in ever day life. There is more to righteous and godly living than just knowing about last day events. We need to be interested in the community’s day to day lives and needs. 

Then again, maybe your community is asking for Revelation seminars. The point is, Jesus did not tell the man in Mark 10:46-52 what he needed. He asked him what he wanted. As my Sabbath School class discussed last week, we need to follow Jesus’ example of asking people what they want instead of being like the “sunshine band,” that pinned a man down in his bed making him take what they thought he needed. 

You may study this week’s Sabbath School lesson here.

by In Light Of The Cross

Mentoring or Grooming

A while back I was watching my favorite show at the time, Unsolved Mysteries. This episode was about a young boy who was mentored by a young man. Since it was Unsolved Mysteries, where we’re often told to call their phone number to catch the bad guys, I was bracing myself for the turn in the story, when the man would harm the boy. That time never came. Instead the boy, now grown, was using the show to find his mentor, to thank him for being such a great friend in his time of need. It turned out to be a heart warming story about an adult mentoring a child.

Sadly the media often shares the horror stories which have made a few of my friends, both male and female, afraid to mentor children, even though they would make amazing mentors.. The horror stories, sadly mostly true, that get passed from church to church, scare legitimate mentors away from helping children as well. They do not want their intentions to be misconstrued.

A while back in a school I was working with, I heard an excellent discussion about child safety, which mentioned grooming. Grooming is where an adult with ill intentions, over time gains the trust of a child, only to abuse that trust. During the talk, it occurred to me, exactly why some would-be great mentors refuse to mentor. Is it possible to them, mentoring and grooming look alike? After all Satan has to have his counterfeit for everything good. He knows how vitally important mentoring is, so he wants his counterfeit, grooming to look like mentoring. This gives him a double victory. He can destroy innocent lives through grooming, and make good people afraid to mentor for fear they will be considered groomers. As a matter of fact, before I started writing this, I Googled, “Mentoring and grooming,” and found this website saying that grooming and mentoring are synonyms! That gave me a hunch that I may be on to something.

So I thought it might be a good idea if potential mentors could have a clear picture of mentoring, and a clear picture of grooming, so they could tell them both apart. I realize I am not an authority on the subject, so I would like to paint a picture of both just to get the ball rolling, and hopefully some people a lot more skilled than I am can chime in and agree or disagree and add some insight. Here goes:

Mentoring: A coach works with a group of children and other adult coaches to give each child a sense of belonging to the group and community. When a particular child needs extra coaching, the parents and/or child approaches the coach, and the coach gives the extra instruction on the group site, only as requested and needed. The goal of the coach is to get the child back into the group mainstream. The coach networks to get the child the help he/she needs. If Sally needs extra help memorizing her Sabbath School memory verse, the coach will share tips, like word associations, and then encourage other students and/or coaches to practice with Sally. The coach wants Sally to feel like she is a valued part of the community, and trains Sally to be a useful and healthy member of the group and community. Regardless of the genders of the mentor and child, regardless of how long the mentor has known the child, regardless of how close the mentor is to the family, the mentor will never under any circumstances allow themselves to be alone with the child. Mentoring is community driven and social in nature.

Grooming: A coach meets a child in a group, but then isolates the child from the group, under the guise that the child needs extra and “special” training that only the coach can give. The coach may even claim that Sally should not be working with others, as she may become “confused” by the tips others may give her along with the tips the coach provides. The coach wants Sally to feel like she is special when she is alone with the coach, instead of feeling special to the entire group. Instead of training Sally to be a healthy member of the group and community, the coach teaches Sally to rely on her/him and the special instruction only she/he can give. The coach may even suggest time alone to properly mentor Sally but remember, Regardless of the genders of the mentor and child, regardless of how long the mentor has known the child, regardless of how close the mentor is to the family, a legitimate mentor will never under any circumstances allow themselves to be alone with the child. A groomer plans on being alone with the child at some point even if it is in several years. The legitimage mentor has no plans or intentions of ever being alone with the child-ever. Grooming is one-on-one driven, and is isolating in nature.

I hope together, we can give a clear picture of what healthy mentoring looks like, as boys and girls can use, not one or two, but many positive male and female mentors in their lives. The more the merrier-and the healthier!

You may study this week’s Sabbath School lesson here.

by In Light Of The Cross

8: Teaching Disciples, Part 2-Sabbath School Lesson Teaching Plan

Prepared by William Earnhardt, for Sabbath School class, August 24, 2024.

Main Theme: Jesus’ lessons prepare us for the challenges of discipleship.

Read in Class: Mark 10:1-16, Genesis 1:27 and Genesis 2:24. . Define he main idea of these passages.

Study: How did the Pharisees try to trap Jesus with their question? What did Jesus teach in these passages about the sacredness of marriage and family, including children?

Apply: How does your church family encourage and mentor married couples and their children?

Share: Your friend says she would love to work with the kids in Adventurers, but with so much in the media today concerning teachers and kids, she does not want to be falsely accused of anything, so she has decided not to participate. What do you tell your friend? See Coaching and Mentoring Vs. Grooming.

Read in Class: Mark 10:17-31. Define the main idea of this passage.

Study: What crucial lessons about faith and the cost of discipleship­—for anyone, rich or poor—is revealed here?

Apply: Read Romans 6:1-11. How do these verses describe the reality of letting go of selfish ambition and following Jesus.

Share: Your friend asks, why did Jesus ask the young ruler to sell all that he had? Why not just some of what he had or even just half? What do you tell your friend?

Read in Class: Mark 10:32-45. Define the main idea of this passage.

Study: How do these verses reveal the continued ignorance of the disciples regarding not only Jesus’ mission but what it means to follow Him?

Apply: What does it mean as a Christian to be a “servant” to others? That is, how do you manifest this principle in your daily interaction with people?

Share: Your friend asks you if you can name a leader who has led with a servant’s heart? What do you tell your friend?

Read in Class: Mark 10:46-52. Define the main idea of this passage.

Study: How did Bartimaeus react to Jesus’ passing by?

Apply: In what ways have you at times cried out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”? What happened, and what did you learn from this experience?

Share: Can you think of someone who could use Jesus’ help this week? How can you be the hands of Jesus in helping that person this week?

by In Light Of The Cross

7: Teaching Disciples Part 1-Sabbath School Lesson Teaching Plan

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Prepared by William Earnhardt, for Sabbath School class, August 17, 2024.

Main Theme: This section of the second Gospel is marked off by the healing of two different blind men, one at the middle of Mark 8:1-38 and the other at the end of Mark 10:1-52. These miracle “bookends” illustrate dramatically how discipleship includes spiritual insight regarding who Jesus is and where He is going. As His teachings challenged the twelve disciples about two thousand years ago, so they continue to confront disciples today with the deep cost, and benefit, of following Jesus.

Read in Class: Mark 8:22-30. Define the main idea of this passage.

Study: Why did it take Jesus two touches to heal the blind man, and what lessons came out of this account?

Apply: What does this story teach us about times when it’s important not to say some things, however true they might be?

Share: Your friend asks you if it has ever taken you a while to understand something in Scripture. What do you tell your friend?

Read in Class: Mark 8:31-38. Define the main idea of this passage.

Study: What does Jesus teach here about the cost of following Christ?

Apply: “ ‘He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life’ ” (John 12:25). How have you experienced the reality of these words?

Share: Your friend asks you if there was ever a time when you had to make a public stand or confession for Jesus, maybe even when no one else was standing up for Jesus? What do you tell your friend?

Read in Class: Mark 9:1-27. Summarize this story.

Study: What did Peter, James, and John see one night with Jesus?

Apply: In what situations, if any, have you had to cry out, “ ‘I believe; help my unbelief’ ”? What did you learn from those experiences?

Share: Your friend asks what led to the disciples lack of faith in this story. What do you tell your friend?

Read in Class: Mark 9:30-41. Define the main idea in this passage.

Study: What is different about Jesus’ second prediction of His death and resurrection (compare with Mark 8:31)? Also, what do the disciples argue about, and what instruction does Jesus give?

Apply: What is the biblical idea of greatness in contrast to the world’s idea? Which one are you striving for?

Share: Your friend says, we may not come right out and say we are the greatest, but in what ways or actions do people try to say they are the greatest today?

by In Light Of The Cross

Did Jesus say in Mark 7 That we can eat Pork?

https://youtube.com/watch?v=-mkdm1SOBQM%3Fsi%3D2W6zWOn9SBl7YC49

Food doesn’t go into your heart, but only passes through the stomach and then goes into the sewer.” (By saying this, he declared that every kind of food is acceptable in God’s eyes.) Mark 7:19 NLT

First let me say that I am explaining this with the NLT instead of the KJV, because most of our friends will be asking about this passage after reading it from the NLT and we can properly explain it using the NLT, so let’s do so. 

In Mark 7 the religious leaders are asking Jesus why He does not have His disciples follow the man -made tradition of washing of hands before eating. Jesus replies by defending the Old Testament Scriptures over man-made traditions. 

Jesus replied, “You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you, for he wrote, ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.Their worship is a farce, for they teach man-made ideas as commands from God.’ Mark 7:6-7 NLT 

Jesus is using the Old Testament as the standard against man made traditions. So it is very clear that Jesus is not doing away with any Old Testament teachings about eating pork or not. He would not defend the Old Testament and condemn man made traditions and then turn around and do away with the commands in Leviticus 11 all the same breath. That would not make sense. The context in both Jesus and the Pharisees’ minds is ceremonial washing and not pork. Jesus explains that it is not what goes in and out of our bodies that makes us clean or not but what comes out of the heart. Jesus finishes by saying, 

Food doesn’t go into your heart, but only passes through the stomach and then goes into the sewer.” (By saying this, he declared that every kind of food is acceptable in God’s eyes.) Mark 7:19 NLT

Now in the KJV Mark 7:9 ends with “purging all meats” While the NLT says “every kind of food.” The NLT is actually more accurate here. The word  that the KJV used for meat is the Greek word, “bromata.” Bromata simply means food. It does not necessarily mean flesh. So the NLT is right, Jesus said the food that comes out of your body is clean regardless if you did the traditional washing of hands or not. Again clean or unclean flesh is clearly not the issue here. Again Jesus would not exalt the Old Testament over the traditions of man and then turn around and do away with what the Old Testament taught. He is doing away with the traditions of man. Again, “bromata” simply means food not flesh of any kind though it could include flesh I suppose. So Jesus is declared all foods clean regardless of the traditional washing. When the NLT says every food is acceptable in God’s eyes it is absolutely accurate. Pork was never considered food in this context either by Jesus or the pharisees. We have to keep things in context. When you tell your kids there is no school today so you can do whatever you want, it goes without saying that they still can’t rob a bank. When you said “anything” the context was automatically understood. Likewise when it says “thus purging all meats” in the KJV or “declared that every kind of food is acceptable in God’s eyes,” the context is automatically understood that the food is clean regardless if one did the ceremonial washing or not. The Ceremonial washing does not make the food clean or unclean. The context in this story has absolutely nothing to do with pork or other unclean flesh being made clean. Matthew makes the context even more abundantly clear. 

For from the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, all sexual immorality, theft, lying, and slander.These are what defile you. Eating with unwashed hands will never defile you.” Matthew 15:20 NLT

Matthew 15:19-20 makes the context in Mark 7:19 abundantly clear that Jesus is talking about washing with unclean hands and not about pork. Again pork was not the issue to any of the parties participating in the discussion taking place in Mark 7 and Matthew 15. 

If Jesus had declared pork clean in Mark 7 then I would really be confused why later, in Acts 10 Peter was still following the regulations in Leviticus 11. And even then Peter makes the context of the vision of Acts 10 abundantly clear in Acts 10:28 NLT “But God has shown me that I should no longer think of anyone as impure or unclean.”  Peter tells us the context of the vision was clearly about Jews and gentiles and not clean and unclean flesh foods. While stressing the importance of context, I should also point out that in 1 Corinthians 8 when Paul is saying you can eat whatever you want, 1 Corinthians 8:1 makes food sacrificed to idols as the abundantly clear context. Again eating pork never crossed Paul’s mind while he was speaking or writing. 

Regardless if we are Jew or gentile, before the cross or after the cross we all have the same stomachs, and we don’t need just the Bible to tell us how unhealthy pork is. Just ask your doctor. My doctor, who is not even an Adventist had a video playing in the waiting room, telling us that pork triples your chances of heart disease. Let’s close by looking at this the same way we should look at every Bible teaching, in the light of the cross. In Romans 12:1-2 we are told to offer our bodies as a living sacrifice. Just as Jesus gave His body for us on the cross, we give our bodies to Christ as a living sacrifice. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 10:31 that whatever we eat or drink we should do for the glory of God. That includes way more than just eating pork or not. This is a challenge for all of us, including myself especially. Let’s live and eat and drink in the light of the cross, and eat and drink to have healthy bodies to help us spread the Gospel of Jesus. 

You may sutdy this week’s Sabbath School Lesson here.

You may study more about healthy living in light of the cross here.