A: The Bible specifically mentions two birthday celebrations of kings, ending with the deaths of certain individuals (John the Baptist and Pharaoh’s chief baker, compare Mark 6:21-27 and Genesis 40:20-22). There is another possible reference to birthday celebrations in Job 1:4: “And his [Job’s] sons would go and feast in their houses, each on his appointed day, and would send and invite their three sisters to eat and drink with them.” The German Menge Bible explains that this is a reference to the “birthdays” of the sons (A similar expression is used in Job 3:1, referring to Job’s day of birth). The children’s conduct prompted righteous Job to “sanctify them,” for he said, “It may be that my sons have sinned and cursed God in their hearts.” (Job 1:5).

A: We believe that the Bible is very clear and explicit in condemning Christian participation in war. You may want to reread our Editorial, titled, “War or Peace — Which?” (Update #81, February 21, 2003), and our Q&A, titled, “Christian Participation in War” (Update #67, November 15, 2002). How do we explain Israel’s fighting in the Old Testament? Did God, who does not change, condemn war in the New Testament, but approved of it in the Old?

You may want to listen to our three-part sermon series on Military Service and War for a thorough explanation. It is posted on the Audio page of our Website. In short, ancient Israel sinned when they went to war. For Biblical proof, we are quoting pertinent excerpts from Herbert W. Armstrong’s booklet, “Military Service and War,” Copyright 1967, beginning with page 23. The headline of that section reads, “WHY Israel Did Fight.” The booklet continues:

A: The command in Exodus 12:18 is an essential part of the annual seven day celebration of the Days of Unleavened Bread. As we fully explain in our new booklet, “God’s Commanded Holy Days,” these annual Feast days are still to be kept today.

Numerous Scriptures tell us to remove, during these seven days, leavened bread from our houses, and not to eat leavened bread. At the same time, we are told to eat unleavened bread during these days. Biblical passages containing this command can be found in Exodus 12:15-20; 13:7; 23:15; 34:18; Leviticus 23:6; Numbers 28:17; and Deuteronomy 16:3, 8. We also read that the Days of Unleavened Bread will be kept in the Millennium (Ezekiel 45:21). Further, Paul upholds the ongoing validity of God’s command to keep these days, explaining at the same time the accompanying symbolism, in 1 Corinthians 5:8, “Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.”

A: There is no biblical evidence that God created animals at the beginning with vicious natures. We do find, however, that the nature of animals changed, when they gave in to Satan’s influence.

We read, for example, in Genesis 3:1 that “the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made.” While Satan is described as a serpent and as a dragon (Revelation 20:2), it appears that Eve was confronted by and spoke to a real serpent in the Genesis account. Satan gave the serpent a voice — as later, God gave a donkey a man’s voice to speak to the false prophet Balaam (Numbers 22:28; 2 Peter 2:16).

We read that the serpent — that is, the animal — was more cunning or more subtle than every other beast of the field. Later, God punished the serpent, stating that it was more cursed than all cattle, and more than every beast of the field (Genesis 3:14). God pronounces punishment on a literal serpent, as well as, of course, on Satan the devil who used the serpent.

If they do, does that mean if we are unclean because of a bodily discharge as described in verses 16-24 that we should not come before God in prayer or for worship during the time which we are unclean? Should we abstain from sexual relations with our marriage partners in order to be clean thus allowing us to keep the Sabbath holy?

A: Most of the laws in Leviticus 15 were clearly only of a ritual nature and are no longer binding for us today. We explain the concept of ritual laws in our free booklet, “And Lawlessness Will Abound…” As we point out on page 53 of the booklet, one way to determine whether laws are temporary or permanent, is to look at the “penalty”:

“For instance, the violation of a statute or a particular circumstance could make a person ‘unclean’ for a certain period of time. Following ritual washings, that person could become clean again. Clearly, these kinds of laws are strictly ritualistic in nature, as no violation of a binding law was automatically cured simply by lapse of time and ritual washings.”

A: According to the Hebrew calendar, a month starts with a new moon. While there are express and clear commandments in the Bible to celebrate today God’s weekly Sabbath and His annual Holy Days, there is no command in the Bible, enjoining us to celebrate today the beginning of the new months — or new moons. The early New Testament Church continued to keep and celebrate the weekly Sabbath and the annual Holy Days, but we do not have any Biblical record indicating that they celebrated new moons. (In Colossians 2:16, Paul does not speak about “new moons” in general, but about “a new moon” — referring specifically to the Feast of Trumpets, the only annual Feast day which falls on a new moon.)

In ancient times, some assembled on the occasion of each new moon, with the blowing of trumpets, to signify the beginning of a month (Numbers 10:10). Calendars were not available to everyone in ancient Israel the way we have them today. Rather, the priesthood was entrusted with the responsibility to determine and make known to the people when a new month would start.

Doesn’t this contradict Scriptures such as Deuteronomy 24:16, stating that children are not to be put to death for their fathers, but that a person “shall be put to death for his own sin.”?

A: This question has puzzled many over the years. To fully understand what God is saying in Exodus 20:5, let us read the entire passage in context, beginning with verse 4:

“(4) You shall not make for yourself a carved image… (5) you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, (6) but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.”

Similar statements can be found in Exodus 34:6-7; Numbers 14:18; and Deuteronomy 5:8-10.

A: Many years ago, the Church of God, under Mr. Herbert W. Armstrong, the late Pastor General of the Church, made the administrative decision to ask Church members and co-workers to send one tenth of their second tithe to the Church, to be used for necessary Feast of Tabernacles expenses, including rental for Church halls. Since then, the Church has usually referred to this amount as the “tithe of the tithe.” Church members and co-workers were asked to calculate their second tithe available to them at the time of the Feast of Tabernacles, and to send ten percent of that (calculated) amount to the Church, in advance, as soon as possible. This practice has allowed the Church to avoid using for the payment of Feast expenses general contributions received to be spent for the preaching of the gospel and the feeding of the flock.

A: It is wrong. Such words are known as “euphemisms,” which are defined as the substitution of a mild, indirect, or vague expression for another felt to be too blunt or offensive. God instructs us not to take His name in vain (Exodus 20:7). To casually use expressions such as “My God,” “O my Lord,” […]