It is a natural human tendency to take the easy route when faced with challenges. Staying motivated to keep God’s commandments and love the Truth requires overcoming impulses to neglect our commitment to God.
Eric Rank
The End of Violence
From the time of man’s beginning on Earth until the return of Christ, violence is a scourge. What are the causes of violence, and what will it take for it to come to an end?
Wrapped Around the Axle
With all that is wrong in the world it is easy to become entangled in a negative frame of mind, in which anger feeds on itself. If we are not careful, this will lead us further away from God. By focusing on what is good and pure, being guided by the Holy Spirit that lives within us, we can overcome the human tendency to get wrapped around the axle.
Blood
Blood is found everywhere in the Bible. What is the significance? What can we learn about blood that can help us understand our Salvation?
The Antidote
Among the most elusive spiritual poisons in the life of a Christian is pride. The antidote is faith. By putting our faith in God we bring Him into every aspect of our lives, leaving no space for pride to do its harm.
Calculating Profit
The calculation of profit is an easy one. Simply subtract costs from total revenue to tabulate the margin of profit. When considering any kind of endeavor, counting the costs to evaluate whether it is worth the investment is essential. We don’t want to waste our resources on pursuits that will not bring us the kind of return that we seek. But the question is, what is the unit of measure that we use to calculate our profit?
Pharmaceutical companies are raking in record profits for the year — calculated in units of money. For example, prior to the Covid 19 pandemic, Moderna was a relatively small pharmaceutical company, typically making about $100 million in annual revenue. By way of contrast, their 2021 profits are projected to be $10 billion. This makes their profits one hundred times larger than their average revenue before the pandemic. Undoubtedly a financial success story, at least on the face of it. But this is only true if we consider the financial costs. When considering the collateral damage done to the percentage of people who have physically suffered or even died as a result of taking their vaccine, the costs are much more material. One wonders how God calculates the profits of pharmaceutical companies when considering the cost of unnecessary harm done to people desperately seeking safety. I doubt the numbers would be very impressive.
To some, an endeavor that appears to waste money or time might in fact produce value that is meaningful to us individually. Volunteering time or donating money are examples of giving away valuable resources that may not appear at first to bring in a profit by the same measure. The profit of those activities may be inherent in the joy of helping others. What appears to be a fruitless dedication of time and money can yield great returns when the unit of measure is not so material. As Christians, we ought to understand this clearly, as we are admonished to seek our treasure in heaven (compare Matthew 6:20). We also understand, of course, that giving to others with the right motivation will result in physical as well as spiritual blessings (Luke 6:38; Malachi 3:10; compare also Mark 10:29-30)
God wants us to profit, but only in the right way. “Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, The Holy One of Israel: ‘I am the LORD your God, Who teaches you to profit, Who leads you by the way you should go. Oh, that you had heeded My commandments! Then your peace would have been like a river, And your righteousness like the waves of the sea’” (Isaiah 48:17-18). Our methods and measures for achieving a profit must be guided by God. We are to make our investment with a spiritual return as our motivation, knowing that He will hold us accountable in our time of judgment. In whatever way we choose to invest the resources that God bestows upon us, the targeted product must not compromise with His commandments. He is the one who teaches us to profit through obedience, measured by the fruit of the Spirit that we are able to produce (compare the above with Galatians 5:22-25).
When we become baptized into the Family of God, we are given a measure of the Holy Spirit. It is not something that we can feel in any physical way, but it has the power to produce immense positive change in our lives. However, the power of God the Father and Jesus Christ will only work within us when we put it to use. If we choose to continue in our worldly ways, seeking a material profit by worldly measures, we will quite ironically become unprofitable (compare Matthew 25:30, Luke 17:10). Not only does God want us to be profitable with our lives, we have a responsibility and duty that we MUST be profitable. This, of course, according to our spiritual growth.
The measure of our profitability lies in the way that invests our resources spiritually. The proverbial “good life” is not identified by luxury. Rather, if we want to live the good life, we dedicate our resources to obedience, loving the way of life that God commands, with joy. Love for Him and our fellow man lead us into the kind of profits that are most valuable in the long run. If our costs are the sacrifices that we make to leave the desires of this world behind, and our revenue is spiritual fruit, then our profit is the reward promised by God to those who remain diligent in their commitment to the Work (compare Matthew 16:27).
Stories of Friendship
From the start when God created man, He highlighted the importance of friendship. What can we learn from the stories of friendship in the Bible?
Fruition
Christians are instructed to bear Spiritual fruit. What is involved in the process? How can we practically produce the results that God expects?
What questions have you answered throughout your Church history?
The naïve would assume that over the course of twenty years that all of the possible questions about the teachings of the Bible would be answered. But having a Berean outlook on learning, we know better. In the month of August, 2001, we published our first Q&A on the topic of the rapture. Immediately seeing the value of presenting the Truth in this format, we began publishing new Q&As regularly, setting a pace to answer a new question with every weekly version of the Update. In this 1,000th version of the Update, we have produced enough material to fill a 3,000-page book with well-researched answers to 935 questions.
The wealth of information presented in the Q&As cannot be overstated. These tightly focused presentations provide our readership with a wide variety of continually relevant material. Topics range vastly from foundational Christian doctrine, to timely questions affecting our society during a snapshot in time, to the interpretation of commonly misunderstood Scriptures, to topics that provide a detailed insight into the reasons behind the doctrines we uphold. The breadth and depth of content published in our Q&As has an immense range.
Each Q&A produced by the Church ministry takes a deep dive into the Bible. As those who have been involved in writing and editing them can attest, the process of study takes tremendous focus, preparation, and rigor. As much work as it takes to write, the inherent joy of study provides a great reward in producing these written works. The authors write each Q&A as a rigorous Bible study, making them a fantastic resource worth studying on our own.
It is impossible to concisely summarize the entirety of Q&As that we have produced over the years. However, we encourage you to consider a small selection of some of those that provide a survey of the most foundational topics of our Christianity. As we consider our Church roots during this landmark 1,000th Update, it is useful to likewise consider the core of our Christian beliefs. It is only upon a solid foundation that we can build a spiritual house that will endure in this world (compare Matthew 7:24-25).
Q: What does it mean, practically, not to add to or delete from God’s Commandments?
Q: When should a person be baptized?
Q: When we ask God for healing and are not healed, does this mean that we don’t have enough faith?
Q: Can you elaborate on the Church being a spiritual organism?
Q: Are we forbidden to eat the meat of “unclean” animals?
Q: How Are We to Keep the Sabbath? (Part 1)
Q: What Is the Mystery of the Salvation of the Gentiles?
These Q&As mentioned above and all the rest of the Q&As serve as a fantastic reference for us all to use when seeking out an answer to a question we might have. Truly, the work produced over the years is vast. As long as God grants us the means to continue producing this valuable material, we will do so. As the mission we have been given instructs us, we will continue to share our research openly, so that you may continue on your spiritual journey and fulfill your Christian walk.
Lead Writer: Eric Rank
Staying Engaged
The life of a Christian requires sustaining love for the Truth. What does the Bible teach us that can help us maintain a thriving relationship with God? What can we do to stay engaged in our conversion?