In the first three installments of this series, we addressed questions related to God’s command not to do “work” on the Sabbath; not to pursue our own “pleasure”; not to engage in “business”; whether it is permissible to eat out in a restaurant on the Sabbath; and attendance of Church services. In this installment, we will address guidelines for proper appearance in our worship services. The next and final installment in this series will address proper conduct during our Church services.

In addressing our proper dress code during Church services, we stated the following in our Q&A on wedding rings:

“Some have raised the issue that the wearing of rings… especially by women… allegedly violates biblical injunctions… This assumption is wrong… James 2:2-4 speaks about a ‘man with gold rings, in fine apparel,’ coming into our assembly or church services. James is not saying that the man should stop wearing gold rings or fine clothes; rather, his point is that the brethren should not show favoritism towards him and look down on those in the church who do not possess such fine things…”

In the first two installments of this series, we addressed questions related to God’s command not to do “work” on the Sabbath; not to pursue our own “pleasure”; not to engage in “business”; and whether it is permissible to eat out in a restaurant on the Sabbath. With this third installment, we will begin to address God’s teaching on Church attendance, and we will focus specifically on God’s command to attend Church services. In the next installment, we will address guidelines for proper appearance and conduct in our worship services.

We will start with quoting from previous articles on the issue of Church attendance, while adding explanations regarding questions which have arisen.

In a previous Q&A, we asked, “Does the Bible command regular personal attendance of Church members at weekly Sabbath and annual Holy Days services?”

In the first installment of this series, we addressed questions related to God’s command not to do “work” on the Sabbath; not to pursue our own “pleasure”; and not to engage in “business.” In this installment, we will concentrate on the question as to whether it is permissible to eat out in a restaurant on the Sabbath. We addressed this question in a previous Q&A, stating the following:

“The Church of the Eternal God in the USA and its corporate affiliates in Canada and Great Britain have consistently taught that it is not wrong to eat out on the weekly Sabbath or annual Holy Days (which are also called ‘Sabbaths’ in the Bible), depending on the circumstances. At the same time, we must always keep firmly in mind that whatever we do or say or think on the Sabbath should be in realization of the fact that we are spending time that God has set aside for a holy purpose (Isaiah 58:13-14)… This is not to say, however, that a Christian should engage in shopping on the Sabbath [but see our comments below], except in a real emergency… Nor should this… be used as justification or an excuse for a refusal to prepare for the Sabbath on the previous day…

True Christians know and have proven for themselves from the pages of the Bible THAT they are still duty-bound today to keep the weekly Sabbath–the time from Friday sunset to Saturday sunset–as it is holy time.  But often questions may arise as to HOW to keep the Sabbath. Are there any principles or passages in the Bible which tell us what kind of activities are permitted, and which are prohibited? Are we told how to apply those passages and concepts practically, in an individual situation?

In this new series, we will address many of those questions which have puzzled and perplexed Christians for decades. We will begin with quoting statements which we have made through the years in our literature regarding proper Sabbath observance. In this installment and the next one, we will concentrate primarily on God’s command not to do “work” on the Sabbath; not to pursue our own “pleasure”; not to engage in “business”; and we will discuss whether or not we should eat out in a restaurant on the Sabbath. We will address and answer specific questions which we may not have addressed before in writing.

Acts 20:7 reads, in the Authorized Version: “And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow, and continued his speech until midnight.”

Some claim that this passage proves that the disciples took “communion” on the first day of the week—on Sunday. Others claim that this passage proves that the disciples took “communion” on the weekly Sabbath. And then there are those who say that this passage has nothing to do with “communion”—regardless as to when Paul’s “breaking of the bread” occurred.

To address first the concept regarding “communion on Sunday” and “communion” in general, we stated the following regarding Acts 20:7 in a previous Q&A:

One of the foundational practices of every Christian is prayer. It is a tool that we rely on to communicate with God, through Jesus Christ as our Mediator, to share our innermost thoughts. When prayers that we present to God, especially those which include a request, seem to go unanswered, it can be a frustrating experience. Why would God, who promises never to forsake His children, decline to answer their prayers according to their expectations? When this inevitably happens to a Christian, it is helpful to understand exactly why prayers might not be heard and otherwise seem to fail.

To begin with, God clearly instructs that prayer is one of the primary tools that should be used to communicate with Him. Jesus Christ provides some excellent instructions to follow that describe how to pray to God, resulting in being openly rewarded when performed properly (compare Matthew 6:5-13). We have also produced a free booklet, Teach Us to Pray, which describes in great detail how to succeed in our prayers. With such a great promise of being heard by God by following such a simple model, what are the reasons that prayers might seemingly not be answered? Several examples follow which describe different types of situations that can cause God not to answer our prayers according to our expectations.

In both its history and prophetic revelations, the Bible has a great deal to say about the Jewish people. In fact, events associated with the House of Judah provide vital keys to understanding God’s great plan of salvation for all of mankind!

The term “Jew” is found in the Old and New Testament and primarily refers to the descendants of one of the sons of Jacob—as distinguished from other of Jacob’s children.

It is important to understand that Judah was ONE of twelve sons born to Jacob. Jacob had twelve sons by four wives (Genesis 35:22-26). These are the ones who became the nation of Israel with each son becoming a distinct tribe and, eventually, individual nations. Not all Israelites are Jews, but all Jews are Israelites. This distinction is vital.

If we search the Scriptures, we will find that depending on the circumstances, God endorses both being married and being single.   Let us look briefly at what He has to say about each state.

In Genesis 2:18 we read: “And the Lord God said, ‘It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.’”   In verses 21-24 we further read: “And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. Then the rib which the Lord God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man.  And Adam said: ‘This is now bone of my bones And flesh of my flesh; She shall be called Woman, Because she was taken out of Man. Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.’”

In chapter 6 of our free booklet, “Middle Eastern and African Nations in Bible Prophecy,” we speak at length about modern Turkey and what the Bible has to say about its future. Based on this knowledge, we should be able to see the significance of current events in Turkey.

First, we explain from the Bible and history that the Turks are the modern descendants of ancient Esau or Edom, the twin brother of Jacob or Israel. We give numerous proofs for this conclusion. In this Q&A, let us just review a few brief excerpts.

We quote as follows from an article by The Plain Truth, dated 1966, titled, “Turkey in Prophecy”:

“‘Turkey can be identified by research in encyclopedias, or history books dealing with the subject, as the descendants of Esau… One of the grandsons of Esau was Teman (Genesis 36:11). Teman became a great leader among the peoples… As the Edomites began to expand…, portions of the land began to bear the name of Teman… much of the area… including … Turkestan… became known as the “Land of Temani” (compare Genesis 36:34 [according to the Authorized Version; the New King James Bible says: “the land of the Temanites”]… Is it any wonder then that the indelible stamp of Teman, one of the leading dukes of ancient Edom, was carried down into modern history in the form of the “Ottoman” Empire?'”

Is it physically possible to experience the Holy Spirit? If so, how does this affect us in our daily lives?

Let us start this Q&A with John 3:5-7. Here, Christ is laying out in detail how people actually receive the Holy Spirit. He shows that the Holy Spirit will be given to us by becoming baptized and through the laying on of hands by the ministry and prayer (Please read our free booklet, “Baptism – A Requirement for Salvation.”). In verse 8, Christ shows that the Holy Spirit is not a Personage or a Person, but rather the power of God the Father and of the glorified Christ. He compares it with a mighty powerful wind which can be heard and felt. The conclusion is that the Holy Spirit is the very power of God and of Christ. We do not become Spirit beings at the moment of our baptism. We still bleed, we are still visible and we still make wrong choices and sin. We are still human at this point. But we now have the power of God in us helping us to make right decisions; helping us to become more like the Father and Christ. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 2:13-14 that we can understand godly truth, because the power of God’s Spirit helps us to open our minds to the truth.