Does the Bible Really Say That?

Jerry C. Berry

Description

Ride along with retired Detective Berry as he unravels the some of the Bible's most misunderstood subjects.
Dr. Charles Stanley once said," Do you really think God would give us a Bible we can't understand"?
Jerry is a retired homicide detective who uses investigative principles to help readers come to a better understanding of some of the more controversial issue in the Bible. Conclusions are reached for each subject discussed by either a preponderance of the evidence, or beyond a reasonable doubt.

Sujets

• Religion
• Christianisme
• Controversial
• Christian Living
• Personal Growth
• Philosophie et théologie
• Controversia
• Truth
• Simple
• Berry
• Bible

Informations

• Publié par: WestBow Press
• Date de parution: 29 août 2022
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781664274297
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

Does the BIBLE Really Say That?
 
A Simple Man’s Search For The Truth.
 
 
 
Jerry C. Berry
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
Copyright © 2022 Jerry C. Berry.
 
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
 
WestBow Press
A Division of Thomas Nelson & Zondervan
1663 Liberty Drive
Bloomington, IN 47403
www.westbowpress.com
844-714-3454
 
Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.
 
Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.
Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.
 
Scripture taken from the King James Version of the Bible.
 
Scripture taken from the New King James Version® Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
 
ISBN: 978-1-6642-7430-3 (sc)
ISBN: 978-1-6642-7431-0 (hc)
ISBN: 978-1-6642-7429-7 (e)
 
Library of Congress Control Number: 2022914190
 
 
 
WestBow Press rev. date: 08/11/2022
Contents
Acknowledgments
Disclaimer
Prologue
 
Chapter 1       Can a Divorced Man Be a Pastor or Deacon?
Chapter 2       Generational Curses—Fact or Fiction?
Chapter 3       Can You Lose Your salvation?
Chapter 4       Should Women Be Pastors?
Chapter 5       How Many Baptisms Are There?
Chapter 6       Worship is not Music, and Music is not Worship
Chapter 7       Can a Homosexual/Lesbian be a Christian?
Chapter 8       Speaking in Tongues, is it Necessary?
Chapter 9       Predestination, What is it?
Chapter 10     Is The Rapture Real, And What Is It?
Chapter 11     Does God Punish Christians When They Sin?
Chapter 12     The Bottom Line
Acknowledgments
I would like to give special thanks to my wife Susan, who encouraged me and supported me during the process of writing this book. I also appreciate her tireless efforts in proof reading the manuscript. Without her corrections and suggestions, I would not have the achieved the finished product that I wanted.
I also want to thank my little sister Sharon Daley, who has been a sounding board for me. She and my Brother in law David devote their lives to serving our Lord Jesus Christ. They both are seekers of the truth and study God’s word relentlessly.
Disclaimer
I am not an English Major, so you will most likely see some grammatical and punctuation errors in this book. I write the way I talk and I write from the heart as a simple man who loves Jesus.
I ask that you read this book with an eye on the message and not as an expert in correct English or superior literary skills.
Jerry C. Berry, Your brother in Christ.
May God bless you.
Prologue
My parents taught me about God when I was growing up, even though we didn’t attend church on a regular basis. I at least had a knowledge of right and wrong and knew that there were consequences for sinning.
It wasn’t until 1975 that I accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. It was in a small Baptist church in Las Vegas, Nevada. My uncle talked me into visiting the church and I believe it was the second or third visit when I went forward. My hands were griping the back of the pew in front of me and tears were cascading down my face. I tried to resist the call to step out and go forward, but I couldn’t. It wasn’t long after that when I was baptized and eventually all my family accepted Jesus at West Okey Baptist Church. Pastor Tom Popelka was the Pastor then and he is still alive at this writing. He resides in Temple, Texas with his wife Linda.
It has been a long time since the days at West Okey Baptist Church and a lot of roads traveled since then. I have learned a lot through prayer and study since that time.
For many years I questioned why there are so many different interpretations of the Holy Bible. I have had to ask some hard questions. Does the Bible contradict itself, or is it too complicated for mortal man to understand? In man’s attempt to make the Bible easier to understand, new versions have been created with many of the original scriptures left out or altered.
II Timothy 3:16: “All scriptures is given by the inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.” (KJV) I do believe the original scriptures were written by men who were chosen by God and God did in fact inspire them to write down His Words. That does not mean that every new version of the Bible is necessarily inspired by God. Perhaps they are called versions for a reason.
It is no wonder people become frustrated when trying to research and understand the issues that have caused so much confusion. It is also understandable for those who are seeking the truth to become disenchanted with Christianity and even turn away. This is compounded when they hear some of the most notifiable theologians, past and present, differ in their interpretations of God’s Word. After all, if these highly learned men can’t come up with the same interpretations, then there is no doubt a problem. One thing is for certain, they all can’t be right. Is it possible these men used their own intellect rather than being led by the Holy Spirit?
I Corinthians 14:133: “For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.” (KJV) I once heard Dr. Charles Stanley ask his congregation, “ Do you really think God would have given us a Bible we can’t understand.” I am convinced the higher the education and the greater the seminary training a man has, the less likely he will rely on the Holy Spirit for guidance. He is more likely to turn to his own intellect and seminary indoctrination.
For centuries battle lines have been drawn and Christians have chosen sides, each believing they have chosen correctly with none willing to look at the bigger picture. Christians are no different than other people when it comes to susceptibility to tunnel vision and loyalty to their own respective denominational training. Unfortunately, most Pastors are more than willing to sit on the side lines to avoid anything controversial.
As a former homicide detective, I believe the evidence will always speak for itself and it will always lead to the truth. I have attempted to apply some of the investigative techniques and principles to some of the scriptures that have caused so much confusion. We will then reach a conclusion based on at least a preponderance of the evidence, if not beyond a reasonable doubt.
One
CAN A DIVORCED MAN BE A PASTOR OR DEACON?
W hat does the Bible really say about a divorced man becoming a pastor or deacon? The answer is, nothing! The Bible does not even address this particular issue, yet it is one of the most controversial topics among churches.
Most of the larger denominations have adopted this practice without a second thought or any serious considerations. There are many godly men and women who are living for Christ, but our churches force them to wear the stigma of a divorced person, in essence they become second-class Christians.
Disqualifying a man with a divorce in his past from becoming a pastor or deacon has the potential to inflict life-long spiritual damage to Christians. Always being conscious of a divorce and knowing you are not good enough in the church’s eyes to be a church leader, is not something you just set aside.
Pastors will tell you that you are not a second-class Christian and that God will use you in other ways. That is nonsense because it is God who has the authority to choose people to serve Him in any capacity He wants. A pastor or church has no right to usurp God’s authority and you will know if God is calling you to serve in a leadership role.
How do proponents of the belief a divorced man is disqualified from being a pastor or deacon support their belief? We must turn to the only real source of truth, God’s Word. It is the Holy Bible that is the infallible Word of God and the truth lies therein.
It always comes down to two scriptures that are the most used. We will start by looking at 1 Timothy 3:2: “A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behavior, given to hospitality, apt to teach.” (KJV) The phrases “a bishop must be blameless” and “the husband of one wife” are used to support the idea that a divorced man cannot be a pastor or deacon.
Let’s review the first part: “ a bishop must be blameless.” Does it mean he must be blameless since the beginning of the age of accountability to his present age? This would be rather an impossible task considering no one is blameless before accepting Jesus Christ. Only Christ was able to maintain that status. It is far more reasonable to believe Paul was referring to a man’s character in the present tense. Now consider “husband of one wife.” This could be referring to polygamy. The Jews practiced polygamy through the fourteenth century, so to say they did not practice it is simply not true. It was against the law in the Roman Empire, but that does not mean that it wasn’t practiced.
Those who practice the belief that a man who has a divorce in his past cannot be a pastor rely heavily on the phrase “husband of one wife.” They