The Gospel Of Repentance

Why couldn't Adam and Eve eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil? God was establishing law and order for the human race. Although they were full grown, they had to develop mentally. It was important that God placed boundaries on them. To command them not to eat was a necessary prohibition. God placed them on probation - to test them to see if they would obey His command.  God was sending a message to them that they could not do anything they wanted to do - they had a higher authority they were accountable to.  The serpent comes and talks with Eve. He questions God's word to her so as to create doubt. Secondly, he lies to Eve - telling her that she would not surely die if she partook of the fruit (Gen 3:9). They would be like God knowing good and evil (Gen 3:5). Adam and Eve were made perfect without sin, yet they were temptable. When both of them ate the forbidden fruit, the Bible says their eyes were opened and they knew they were naked. It was at this po...

Hophni and Phinehas appear in the beginning of the book of 1 Samuel. Who are they? They were priests, and they were the sons of the High Priest Eli in Shiloh in the land of Ephraim. The Bible says the Lord desired to kill them. Why?  They both showed contempt or disrespect for the Lord's sacrifice. When a person came with their offering, and the meat was boiling in the pot, Hophni and Phinehas would take a three pronged fork and take whatever portion came on the fork from the pot and claim it for themselves. When the one offering the sacrifice protested, the two sons would say that their father (the High Priest) will not accept boiled meat only raw. The problem with this is that the fat of the animal was supposed to be burned on the altar. The evil sons said if the one sacrificing would not listen to them, they would take the offering by force - thus stealing what belonged to the Lord. In addition, Hophni and Phinehas were also sleeping with the women who would bring their s...

I have written and spoken about this matter on a few occasions. I need to discuss the matter again. I want to for your consideration, present another angle to this subject. As most people know, sin is rebellion against God and man. The Bible says the wages of sin is death (Rom 6:23). Would the writer be out of line if he said, “God hates the sinner because of their sin?” I would say no because the Bible supports that phrase. Psalm 11:5 reads, “the Lord tests the righteous, but the wicked and the one who loves violence His soul hates.” David declared in Psalm 139:21-22, “do I not hate them O Lord that hate You? And do I not loathe those who rise up against You? I hate them with perfect hatred. I count them my enemies.” David is showing his righteous zeal for the Lord. Anyone who opposes the Lord is not only God’s enemy, but his enemy as well. David’s hate in this sense is justified. You cannot be friends with those who hate God. As a believer if they are God’s enemies, they H...