Three question's to ponder.

Three questions that were discussed between three friends. I thought it might be of interest to some who follow this blog!
Question one: Why do you suppose that God sent Jesus at the exact time that He did?
Erick and Glady did a great job. I would simply add this; Daniel 9:26 After the sixty-two ‘sevens,’ the Anointed One will be cut off and will have nothing. {26 Or ; or } The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolation’s have been decreed.” He saw when Christ was coming to Atone for sin. Precise timing of God’s Revelation. Jesus mentions this; Luke 19:41 As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it 42 and said, “If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace– but now it is hidden from your eyes.
43 The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side.
44 They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognize the time of God’s coming to you.” Notice Jesus said they did not recognize the timing of His Coming.

Question two: Why not be tolerant of other religions such as Muslim, Buddhist, etc as long as it does not effect how we believe?
Again Erick and Glady speaks volume’s on this issue. My input is this; Did the Prophet Elijah tolerate the Baal worshipers idol? NO. Did Moses tolerate the idolatry of Egypt and the idolatry of Israel? NO! Did Jesus ever teach His disciples to tolerate Pagans religions? NO! Does Jesus state any where that there are other religions that are valid? NO! He said John 14:6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Listen to Paul”s teaching in 2 Corinthians 6. 14 Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?
15 What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever?
16 What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.”
17 “Therefore come out from them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you.”
18 “I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.” We a Bible Christians cannot tolerate what God does not tolerate, PERIOD! Love them and proclaim the Gospel but never tolerate religions offered by the World!

Question three: Do you believe smoking is a sin? if yes or no, what scripture backs your beliefs.
Again Erick and Glady spoke well on this issue. But I do disagree with their personal conviction on this issue. The reason I say this is simple. God defines what sin is and what it is not. The passage used by Paul is 1Corinthians 6:13 “Food for the stomach and the stomach for food”– but God will destroy them both. The body is not meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. 14 By his power God raised the Lord from the dead, and he will raise us also. 15 Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ himself? Shall I then take the members of Christ and unite them with a prostitute? Never! 16 Do you not know that he who unites himself with a prostitute is one with her in body? For it is said, “The two will become one flesh.”
17 But he who unites himself with the Lord is one with him in spirit.
18 Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a man commits are outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body.
19 Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own;
20 you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.” Context is important. Paul is talking about Sexual sin. If we as believers tell people that anything that is bad for our bodies would be a sin against the Temple of God, we would be opening Pandora’s box. Caffeine, sugar, salt, eggs, trans fat, soda, most meat, too much sun….have all been determined to be bad for our bodies. So if we practice this passage we must abstain from all these things as well. Right? If a Christian has a conviction that smoking is a sin, stop smoking. Remember, saints of old thought woman should not wear pants because they thought it was a sin. Sin is well defined by God’s Word, we don’t need to add our own convictions on others. If a person is enslaved by smoking or any other substance not describe as a sin in God’s Word, then they need to ask God to help them.
Great discussion! Peace and Love to all!