Home Responses to Your Questions
Jesus' Body in Heaven
01/20/2010
By Johnson, Mark
Q
Last week we were teaching on Jesus' ascension into Heaven in his human body. It has always been my understanding) that He is in Heaven even now in that body. Is that correct? I had a little girl ask me if God hadn't stripped Christ of his human body once He was in Heaven (and when I told her I had not thought so, she very insightfully added, "Poor Him!").
A
You are correct.
Jesus is even now “the man Christ Jesus” (1 Timothy 2:5). He is in a “Glorified” and glorious human body (as He appears to John in Revelation 1); but it is a human body. 1 Corinthians 15:20-58 describes Christ’s glorified risen body as the “firstfruits” or pattern for our resurrection bodies. Wow—we will be the same person we are, only perfect and without sin, in a human body glorified to be able to inhabit heaven.
As far as “poor Him”: Isn’t it marvelous that He chose to identify with us and to raise humanity to a heavenly state by His incarnation and ascension? Heavenly bodies have no pain, sorrow, or tears (Revelation 21:4)
Great question. Hope that helps.
Filling of the Holy Spirit
01/16/2010
By Johnson, Mark
Q
How does someone knows when they have been filled with the Holy Spirit?
A
Thanks for your question about the filling of the Holy Spirit. Every Christian is indwelt by the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 6:19-20).
But, the filling of the Holy Spirit means His “Control” (Ephesians 5:18). The Holy Spirit indwells every Christian so that He can influence us and control us. He will unless we stop Him by un-confessed sin or un-yieldedness. So, to be filled with the Spirit, a believer needs to confess any known sin, fully yield to the Lord, and seek to walk in dependence on Him (Galatians 5:16). The evidence of being filled is the Fruit of the Spirit listed in Galatians 5:22-23.
I hope that helps. I preached on “The Holy Spirit in Your Daily Life” on 5_27_07. This message included teaching on the Filling of the Spirit and is available on our web site under resources or by clicking this link.
http://www.ibcwv.org/content.cfm?id=213&content_id=158
God bless you as you walk with Him ,
Pastor Mark
Is it possible to idolize the Bible?
08/18/2009
By Johnson, Mark
Q
Is it possible to idolize the Bible? If no why if yes why?
A
Great question. Yes it is possible and we Bible believers need to beware of that. It is possible if we pay more attention to the Bible than to the Author of the Bible. The key, I think is to see the Bible as the communication of God to us (1 Thessalonians 2:13). It is how He talks to us. SO, we love the book because we love the Author and love to hear his voice. We don't worship it, but we do cherish it because it is God's voice to us.
It's possible to become academic only in our study of the Bible and that is a danger. Read Psalm 119 and notice how the writer felt about God AND His Word. Underline every personal pronoun that applies to the Scriptures--His Testimonies (2), His Ways (3), Your Precepts (4), Your Statutes (5), etc. etc. God and His Word are connected and this Psalm is a prayer to God about His Word. It models for us how we SHOULD feel about His Word AND about HIM!
Should the body of Christ refuse to pay taxes?
07/22/2009
By Johnson, Mark
Q
Hi Pastor Mark, scripture tells us that we are to be obedient to our government and it's laws, unless it violates Gods word. I recently read that the president is going to ask congress to pass a law that will take a certain amount of tax payers money to finance abortions. Should the body of Christ refuse to pay taxes? Where do you feel the line should be drawn?
A
Great question. Since the Bible says to submit to our government and to pay taxes (Romans 13:1-7 and 1 Peter 2:13-17), I believe that we should (reluctantly) go ahead and pay taxes even if the government uses some of the money for immoral purposes (such as government funded abortions). When Paul wrote Romans 13, for example, Nero was Emperor.
We should disobey the government if they tell us to sin against God ourselves (for example, if they told a Christian doctor or nurse to perform and abortion). In that case, we should “obey God rather than man” (Acts 5:29).
THANKS!
Pastor Mark
Eternal Security
07/17/2009
By Johnson, Mark
Q.
What is your view on eternal security? I have a very Godly friend who has a very good argument against eternal security. The verse Luke 8:13 helps her a lot.
A.
We do believe in Eternal Security. I will paste below from our IBC Doctrinal Statement (See http://www.ibcwv.org/content.cfm?id=2004 ) our statement of faith about this along with several verses that support it.
Here are three balancing truths about eternal security: 1. Once truly saved, God keeps us secure in Christ forever. (See below.) 2.Once truly saved, our life is changed and we are a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17). 3. It is possible to profess, but not be truly saved.
This third truth fits the category of her verse from Luke 8:13, which says: “But the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, who believe for a while and in time of temptation fall away.”
In this parable of the sower, only one out of the four soils bears fruit. Only that fourth soil represents a saved person. The shallow or soil “on the rock” in 8:13 responds quickly and emotionally (“with joy”). But, it never bears fruit and when the sun of trials comes, it does not have roots and “falls away” showing that the person was never truly saved.
There is a type of “belief” which is not saving belief. (“Even the demons believe—and tremble!” James 2:19b.) This kind of faith is not saving faith. True salvation is always accompanied by regeneration or new birth and the changed life that comes with it. A person can pray a prayer or make some kind of profession of believing but, not have saving faith. But, once truly saved, God keeps us secure in Christ forever.
Here is our statement on Eternal Security with several verses worth looking up:
VIII. Eternal Security
We believe that, because of the eternal purpose of God toward the objects of His love, because of His freedom to exercise grace toward the meritless on the ground of the propitiatory blood of Christ, because of the very nature of the divine gift of eternal life, because of the present and immutability of the unchangeable covenants of God, because of the regenerating, abiding presence of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of all who are saved, we and all true believers everywhere, once saved shall be kept saved forever. We believe, however, that God is a holy and righteous Father and that since He cannot overlook the sin of His children, He will, when they persistently sin, chasten them and correct them in infinite love; but having undertaken to save them and keep them forever, apart from all human merit, He, who cannot fail, will in the end present every one of them faultless before the presence of His glory and conformed to the image of His Son. (John 5:24; 10:28; 13:1; 14:16-17; 17:11; Rom. 8:29; 1 Cor. 6:19; Heb. 7:25; 1 John 2:1-2; 5:13; Jude 1:25)
God bless you,
Pastor Mark
Does God know the day we are going to die?
06/21/2009
By Johnson, Mark
Q.
In a message, you talked about how God knows everyone's exact day that we will die. Here's my question...
I am sure you have heard the news about Kathy… who was tragically killed this past week… I became friends/acquaintances with her. Within the last four years she accepted the Lord into her heart and life.
Her murder was brutal… My question is “did God really know that that was the day she was going to die, what she was going to go through, and how she was going to die? Would he honestly put that in someone's plan who has him in his life?” I just returned from the viewing and I am at peace knowing that she is with the Lord, but disturbed at what she went through before she got there.
A.
It is SO tragic about Kathy… and so shocking that this happened very close to us. I am glad to hear that she had accepted Jesus as her Savior.
Yes, God knows the day and manner of our death. This particular death certainly falls into that category of times we ask “why” and do not have the answer. What we do know is the character of God—that He is loving, powerful, and wise. He has promised to work things together for the good to those who love Him (Romans 8:28). We need that promise, especially when things do not make sense to us in our finite understanding. We know it is true because we know God and His character.
We also need to keep in mind that God has not promised to keep His children from suffering, but He has promised to give the grace and help for whatever He allows to come our way. See 2 Corinthians 12:8-10. For example, He will give dying grace when it is time to die and I believe He did that for Kathy.
God is not to blame for her death. The sinful man who perpetrated it is to blame. Still, God was there with Kathy and I believe that He helped her through those tragic moments. He was also with His Son when He died a horrible death to pay for our sins. The greatest good (our salvation) was accomplished through that horrible crime by humanity against the Son of God Himself.
God bless you.
Gift of Tongues
01/15/2009
By Johnson, Mark
Q.
I had the chance to hear a small piece of your sermon on 90.5 this past Sunday and heard you quote some scripture that was new to me and I was hoping you could refresh my poor memory as I cannot recall the exact details.
Your sermon revolved around speaking in tongues and that the gift was for the Apostles and is not meant to extend to anyone beyond the apostles. I can't remember what passage from the bible you quoted to support that. Would you mind replying with that information?
A.
Great to hear from you and thank you for listening to the Word of Truth Hour, which is on the radio every Sunday at 9:30 AM on WCRH 90.5 FM and 7:00 AM on WEPM 1340 AM.
The Scripture passage that I used concerning tongues being a sign gift associated with the Apostles (and those working under their authority) was Hebrews 2:3-4. The message of salvation came from the Lord Jesus. Then, those who heard it (eyewitnesses, that is the apostles) passed it on to others, and God bore witness with “Signs, wonders, miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit according to His own will.” Another important passage is 2 Corinthians 12:12 which says that Paul had worked the “signs of an Apostle” in Corinth. 1 Corinthians 14:22 says that “tongues are a sign”.
This fits what happened on the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2. The Apostles and their associates in the upper room spoke in other real languages “the wonderful works of God”. This was a miraculous sign and gathered a crowd. Then Peter preached the Gospel to them in the language they all understood. The tongues were a miraculous sign and got people’s attention, but the Gospel was then preached in Greek, which all in the Roman empire understood.
This all helps us understand the timing of 1 Corinthians 13:8, “Where there be tongues, they shall cease”. Tongues were a sign gift, associated with the confirming of the Apostle’s message and once the work of the apostles was completed, they were no longer needed. History confirms that tongues did die out or cease late in the first century AD. It was not until the 20th century that some Christians again claimed to speak in tongues and started the “Pentecostal” movement. However, I do not believe that their experience is from God since tongues ceased after the Apostles, just as God said it would. I am not saying that those who claim to speak in tongues today are not Christians, but that we do not believe what they are experiencing is the gift of tongues from God as it was in the first century.
I appreciate hearing from you and hope that these passages will be helpful.
God bless you,
Pastor Mark
Question about modern Christian Music
11/19/2008
By Johnson, Mark
Q.
Do you think the new modern Christian music is wrong? Do you think all music can be used to glorify Christ? I have been playing electric guitar all my life and can't find any place to use my talent for God.
A.
It is great that you want to use the electric guitar to glorify Christ. If you read Psalm 150, I believe that it is saying that every instrument should be used to praise God. The Psalm ends, “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!” So, keep using your talent and your guitar for God.
As far as modern Christian music: There are lots of older hymns and songs that praise God. I love the old hymns. But, there are also some great newer music that glorifies Him. Personally, I think we need both. (Psalm 40 refers to a “new song” of praise that God puts into our mouths.) At IBC, we have two services, the first of which is blended toward traditional and the second of which is blended toward contemporary. Personally, I love the music in BOTH and worship God through both.
The most important thing about music is the MESSAGE that it conveys. (The Bible contains the words to songs in the book of Psalms and elsewhere, but it never gives the music.) The words to songs need to honor God (Philippians 4:8). Be careful that words glorify God and also that the music does not drown out the words or contradict the words in the feelings that it conveys. Music is a wonderful gift from God and I am glad that you desire to honor Him with your music. His Holy Spirit will lead you as you seek to worship Him in “Spirit and in truth” (John 4:24).
Questions about witnessing to Mormons
09/21/2008
By Johnson, Mark
I have been witnessing to a friend who is Mormon and need some advice.
A.
I want to commend you for your concern for and witness to your Mormon friend. I pray that God will use your friendship with him to soften his heart. My main suggestion for witnessing to Mormons (or Jehovah Witnesses) is to try to stick to two topics: 1. Is Jesus God? (They don’t think so. To them, “Son of God” means less than God since they do not believe in the trinity. But, if He wasn’t God, we don’t have an adequate Savior for all mankind. Have some verses ready on His deity, like John 1:1-14, John 10:30, Matthew 28:19, Hebrews 1:1-8, etc.) 2. Is salvation free? (Ephesians 2:8-9, Romans 6:23, Titus 3:5, etc.)
Mormons do not believe that salvation is free, already purchased fully by the death and resurrection of God the Son for our sins. They say that they accept Jesus and His death for our sins, but they add works, as evidenced by your friend’s quote pasted here: “We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel.” That last phrase about obedience to laws shows that they depend on works as well as Christ, which is not salvation (Galatians 2:16, Romans 4:5).
Your friend, like many Mormons, is well schooled in his beliefs. I knew that they downplayed the Bible by saying it is authoritative “in so far as correctly translated” (their subtle way of saying it has been messed up over the years.) I had not heard the particular details of his attack on the Bible when he said: Second, we believe the Bible to be the word of God, as far as it is translated correctly. There is obviously works that have been lost from the Bible which were considered authentic and valuable. Consider for example: book of the Wars of the Lord (Num. 21: 14); book of Jasher (Josh. 10: 13; 2 Sam. 1: 18); book of the acts of Solomon (1 Kgs. 11: 41); book of Samuel the seer (1 Chr. 29: 29); book of Gad the seer (1 Chr. 29: 29); book of Nathan the prophet (1 Chr. 29: 29; 2 Chr. 9: 29); prophecy of Ahijah (2 Chr. 9: 29); visions of Iddo the seer (2 Chr. 9: 29; 2 Chr. 12: 15; 2 Chr. 13: 22); book of Shemaiah (2 Chr. 12: 15); book of Jehu (2 Chr. 20: 34); sayings of the seers (2 Chr. 33: 19); an epistle of Paul to the Corinthians, earlier than our present 1 Corinthians (1 Cor. 5: 9); possibly an earlier epistle to the Ephesians (Eph. 3: 3); an epistle to the Church at Laodicea (Col. 4: 16); and some prophecies of Enoch, known to Jude (Jude 1: 14). The foregoing items attest to the fact that our present Bible does not contain all of the word of the Lord that he gave to his people in former times, and remind us that the Bible, in its present form, is rather incomplete. The fallacy to this is that these other documents (of which there were many extra-biblical historical and religious documents) were never part of the Bible to begin with. They are referred to; but they were never included and that was intentional. If God’s Spirit went to all the trouble to inspire Scripture, He surely would see to that it is preserved and not lost. This is their way of greasing the skids to add the Book of Mormon, etc.
As far as Melchizedek: Jesus is a High Priest forever after the order of Melchizedek (a man who was here in the time of Abraham and so not a Jew, but a priest to the Most High God). He is only mentioned in Genesis 14:18-20, Psalm 110:4, and Hebrews 5-7. But, the reason Jesus could be both priest and king and not be from the tribe of Levi, the Jewish priestly line, was that He was a priest from a different line: He is like Melchizedek, appointed by God directly to be priest. The Mormon argument that the line of Melchizedek is around today is false, since the Bible ONLY recognizes Jesus as a priest after the order of Melchizedek and He has no successors. He needs none, since “He is able to save to the uttermost, all who come unto God by Him” (Hebrews 7:25). We will be studying Melchizedek next year on Sunday mornings, since I will be starting a Hebrews series in December, 2008.
DO keep praying for your friend. God bless you, brother! Hope that is some help.
Who do we sin against, God or man?
09/13/2008
By Johnson, Mark
Q.
Psalm 51:4 says, “Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest Why does David say “against thee, thee only, have I sinned”? There were others involved like the messenger and Joab, but I believe the focus of his confession is on the adultery and murder – namely Bathsheba and Uriah. He actually calls out the murder in Psalm 51:14. Here’s my question: Should we only be asking God for forgiveness? Why is David ignoring Bathsheba – did he not sin against her?
A.
“Thee Only” means “Thee ULTIMATELY”. David’s confession was to God ultimately as the one that ALL sin ultimately offends. The sin against God is so grievous that it makes the human offense seem small in comparison. We tend to focus on the human level, and we SHOULD ask forgiveness of those humans we sin against (Acts 24:16). But, as much as we hurt people, we hurt God even more! Our sin is ultimately and at its most basic level, against a holy God.
Having said that, David DID sin against many others, including all the ones that you named and everyone in the nation who heard about what their king had done. That is why David did what he did in writing this Psalm. He addressed it to “The Choirmaster” (see Psalm title, before verse one). In other words, he sent it to the Temple to be used in public worship before the entire nation. No more cover up! He wanted ALL of God’s people to know that he was broken, repentant, and begging God’s forgiveness.
In addition , a friend at IBC who is a prosecuting attorney contributed this insight: “Plain reading would indicate that David is recognizing that for an act to be a sin it must violate God's law. Sin is therefore a wrong against a Holy and Sovereign God. I would perhaps go so far as to say that we do not "sin against" our fellow man. We wrong them and we hurt them, but the concept of sin is wrapped up with the authority of God. God as the giver of the law has the authority to demand we His creation live a certain way. God defines our failure to submit to/comply with His authority as sin. In a similar fashion, I do not break the law of my neighbor. My acts constituting a breaking of the law may very well be against my neighbor (he is the victim), but I am punished under the law because I violated the State's prohibition of certain behavior, not necessarily because my behavior harmed someone.”
Why does a Christian need to confess sin?
09/13/2008
By Johnson, Mark
Q.
I've been a Christian a long time but don't feel I totally understand the whole concept of, shall I say, maintaining a clean heart… At the point of salvation God forgives all our sins (far as east is from west). Sure, we need to continue to confess our ongoing sin to Him (I Jn 1:9) to maintain a close walk with Him. But do we need to continue to "ask God for forgiveness" for this ongoing sin like we need to seek forgiveness from others when we wrong them? And is our heart "not as clean" until we confess the sin that's unconfessed?
A.
It’s not as easy to put together as some people assume.
Theologically, it helps to realize that there are two types of forgiveness—judicial and parental. (These are not biblical terms, but theological terms for biblical ideas!) “Judicial forgiveness” happens at salvation when we are justified, declared righteous. The book of Romans is full of this—there is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus (8:1 and many others). 1 John 1:7 verifies this as well—the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.
“Parental forgiveness” describes what 1 John 1:9 is talking about. If we are already forgiven for all sins, past, present , and future, why do we need to confess to God? It is because 1 John 1:9 is written to Christians, but in a context of FELLOWSHIP with our Father. When we sin as a Christian, we are just as pure and just as clothed in the righteousness of Christ judicially before heaven’s courtroom. (We will never be punished for our sins.) However, our fellowship with our Father is hindered. THAT is why we need to confess to him as a child to a parent. (It is just like when our child disobeys us and needs to ask forgiveness. They are still our child, but until they express confession of the sin, our fellowship as Father and child is not as close as it should be.)
Judicially, positionally, believers are righteous as Christ in God’s eyes (2 Cor. 5:21). But, when we sin, our fellowship with our Father is hindered and we need to be “forgiven” in the 1 John 1:9 sense to restore that closeness with our heavenly Father. If we continue in that state, refusing to confess our sin, the Father may chasten us (Hebrews 12:1-3). Chastening is not judicial punishment, but loving correction to bring us to confess and come back into fellowship.
I hope that helps!
Definition of 'widow'
08/29/2008
By Johnson, Mark
Q.
In yesterday's sermon entitled, "The Family of God" my questions are in regard to the definition of the 'widow' women. In terms of application of the 'widow' person in today's society, is this individual limited only to a married woman who has lost her husband by death or would this include a divorced or single woman? Historically as well as in today's culture, would a man ever fall in to this 'widow' category? Thanks again for your consideration and time.
A.
Great question. The primary application of "widow" in 1 Timothy 3 and James 1:27 is, of course, to a woman who lost her husband. But, I think that the church should be very aware of single mothers in the congregation if they have needs. Single mothers has gotten to be a large group in our culture and many of them have needs for encouragement and financial or practical help.
God bless you,
Pastor Mark
Spiritual Gift of Prophecy
08/29/2008
By Johnson, Mark
Q.
In light of the current emphasis on spiritual gifts,how is a 'prophet' used in the broader ministry of the local body vs the ministry as an individual? Is the the individual's ministry limited by gender? Thank you for your time.
A.
Another good question. Of course the spiritual gift of "prophet" had an application in the first century of giving new revelation from God like the Apostles (Ephesians 3:20, 4:11-13). That aspect of the gift has ceased since the New Testament is complete and the foundational work of the Apostles and Prophets is complete.
But, the modern application of "prophet" or "prophet-like" (Romans 12:6-8) has more to do with preaching, whether to a group or one on one. 1 Corinthians 14 refers to prophesying as something like preaching in the church at Corinth. Prophetic preaching or "communicating truth in a bold and pointed way" is still very useful in the church. It can happen from the pulpit or in a class or even one on one. A woman may have the gift of prophecy. But, since women are not to teach men in the church (1 Timothy 2:11-15), the prophet gift should be limited to one on one or to a group of women or children if a woman is exercising it in the church today.
Hope that helps.
Pastor Mark
What happened to Jesus during His three days in the grave?
08/21/2008
By Johnson, Mark
All that indicates to me that when He died, Jesus went straight to be with His Father. He went to "Paradise" (Luke 23:43), which I believe was in heaven. There have been many theories about Him "descending into hell" at that point; but the passages that that is based upon (Ephesians 4:8-10 and 1 Peter 3:19, in a modern translation like NIV) have other interpretations that are much simpler and fit better with sin already being paid for fully during His death on the cross.
Q.
I haven't been able to find in scripture what happened to Jesus spritually in the 3 days from his death to resurrection and then subsequent ascension. I was just curious if it is thought that he was in heaven for those 3 days, returned to fufill prophecy and then ascending to his rightful place. The alternatives could be endless, but I was curious if he might have been suffering more by experiencing death of unsaved sinners in hell for those 3 days since he did die for our sins so that we wouldn't have to suffer? Thank You.
A.
Cremation
04/18/2008
By Johnson, Mark
Q.
Is it wrong for a Christian to be cremated instead of buried?
A.
Cremation is not forbidden in the Bible. Traditionally, Christians have preferred burial as an opportunity to express faith in the resurrection. (Hindus and others who believe in reincarnation typically cremate.) Burial is my personal preference.
Having said that, cremation is not a problem to God. The soul still goes to be with the Lord and awaits the resurrection of the body to be reunited with a glorified body at the Second Coming of Christ (1 Cor. 15). God can reconstruct and raise our body no matter if it is lost at sea, burned in a fire, cremated, or etc. All He needs is our DNA code, which I'm sure He knows since He numbers the hairs of our head and knows all things.
My advice is to discuss this with family, pray for wisdom (James 1:5) and make your decision as to what you believe would please the Lord. For anyone who chooses cremation, I encourage them to make it known to loved ones that they would like a memorial service of some kind where the Gospel can be preached and the message of the resurrection can be shared, even if there is not a body there in a casket as is traditional.
Hope that is helpful. Thanks for asking.