Bible Answers

Esther 9:24-25 – “For Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, the enemy of all the Jews, had plotted against the Jews to destroy them and had cast the pur (that is, the lot) for their ruin and destruction. But when the plot came to the king’s attention, he issued written orders that the evil scheme Haman had devised against the Jews should come back onto his own head, and that he and his sons should be hanged on the gallows. (Therefore these days were called Purim, from the word pur .)”

Esther explains the origin of the Jewish holiday “Purim,” which occurs every year in February or March.  The modern holiday celebrates the victory that God gave His people against the genocide plotted by Haman.  The name “Purim” refers to casting lots, as the passage mentions above.  This practice was an important feature of Israel’s relationship with God in the Bible.  It has an important application for believers today in the form of asking God to speak through His Word.

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The outer courtyard of the Tabernacle was 100 cubits long and 50 cubits wide. Each long side had 20 wood posts, and each short side had ten, so there were 60 posts in all. As we will see, 5 is the main denominator running through all the Tabernacle measurements, which is a symbol of the ministry (first the Levitical ministry, then the fivefold ministry of the New Testament – see Ephesians 4:11). So the 60 posts that made up the surrounding partition of the sacred courtyard were 12 x 5. Twelve is the number of biblical foundations (12 Tribes, 12 Patriarchs, 12 Apostles) and in the New Testament the spiritual foundation is the revealed doctrine.

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Revelation 4:6-8 – “…Also before the throne, there was what looked like a sea of glass, clear as crystal. In the center, around the throne, were four living creatures, and they were covered with eyes, in front and in back. The first living creature was like a lion, the second was like an ox, the third had a face like a man, the fourth was like a flying eagle. Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under his wings. Day and night they never stop saying: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.”

The prophetic pictures of Jesus in the Bible take several different forms. First, there are prophetic symbols, like the sacrificial Lamb, the blood on the doorposts in Exodus, the Ark, the bread and wine presented by Melchizedek, etc.

Second, there are prophetic allegories, events like the Exodus (foreshadowing the Rapture of the church), the marriage of Ruth and Boaz (symbolizing the union of Jesus with the faithful church, the Bride of Christ), the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (illustrating the Great Tribulation), and so on. These events really happened historically, but God preserved them in the Word to teach us about his project of salvation.

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1 Peter 1:16 – “…for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy….” 

How do we define sanctification?  Sanctification means “set apart for God’s purposes” or “separated from sin and spiritual uncleanness.”  In the original text of the Bible, “sanctification” is often the same word as “holiness.”  The definition of sanctification has two components – separation from sin and dedication for God’s purposes (that is, the will of God).  In practice, we experience sanctification in three general ways: past, present, and future.  As Christians, we can say that we were sanctified, that we are being sanctified, and that we will be sanctified.  

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James 5:14-16 – “…Is any one of you sick?  He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord.  And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up.  If he has sinned, he will be forgiven.  Therefore, confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.  The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective…”

SEVEN POINTS ABOUT “HOLY ANOINTING OIL” IN THE BIBLE: continue

Exodus 16:31 - “The people of Israel called the bread manna.  It was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey.”  

The Lord brought the Israelites out of Egypt with many signs and wonders.  Even so, the Hebrews rebelled against the Lord and complained that they had no food to eat.  The Lord had a plan to provide for His people.  Each morning when the dew on the ground dried, thin white flakes appeared on the ground.  God commanded them to gather manna each morning but only as much as they needed for that day.  He provided this food for them for forty years as they followed Him in the desert.   continue

Genesis 20:12-13 (KJV)

“And yet indeed she is my sister; she is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife.  And it came to pass, when God caused me to wander from my father’s house, that I said unto her, ‘This is thy kindness which thou shalt shew unto me; at every place whither we shall come, say of me, He is my brother.’”

Twice during his wanderings in Genesis, Abraham encounters situations where the local ruler takes Sarah into his harem (pagan kings back then had a large collection of wives, of course).  The first time was with Pharaoh in Genesis 12, and the second was with Abimelech in Genesis 20.  In each case, before any harm comes to Sarah at all, the Lord intervened and rebuked the ruler, so that Sarah came back to Abraham immediately.  Prophetically, this illustrates how we as believers are both Christ’s brothers, as well as the Bride of Christ collectively.   continue

John 5:39 - “You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me…”

Genesis 37:3 - “Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he had been born to him in his old age; and he made a richly ornamented robe for him.”

The Scriptures teach us that Jesus is “the Word.”  He is the Word of God; the entire Bible points us to Jesus, even the Old Testament.  Jesus challenged the religious leaders of his day for their mistaken emphasis on the letter of the Scripture, from which they would try to extract principles and precepts for life. 

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Jonah 4:1-3 - “But Jonah was greatly displeased and became angry.  He prayed to the Lord, “O Lord, is this not what I said when I was still at home? That is why I was so quick to flee to Tarshish.  I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity. Now, O Lord, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live.”

The prophet understood the nature of prophecy – that normally God predicts judgment in an effort to turn people to repentance. Jonah did not want God to have the opportunity to show mercy to Israel’s enemies. He was being nationalistic, putting his naitonalism before God’s purposes.

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Ephesians 4:11-13 - ”It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers…”

We believe that God uses some men as apostles today, but that nobody needs to use this title for himself.  What matters is the spiritual reality or fruit of how God uses a person, not the designations people claim for themselves. We see God using some men as apostles today, even though they do not call themselves that.   continue