A few facts:

Satan is not omnipotent (all powerful), omniscient (all knowing) or omnipresent (can be in more then one place at a time).

Satan is an Angel, a fallen Angel. (Isaiah 14:12-14)

Satan was thrown from Heaven because his pride led him to rebel against God. (Ezekiel 28:12-17)

Satan deceived and took with him one third of all angels in Heaven. (Revelation 12:7-9)
He can only be in one place at a time, so he needs his demons to help him and report back to him. If Satan could read our thoughts or if he were “all knowing” (omniscient) he wouldn’t need any help from demons.

Satan does know exactly how people think though, and he knows the weakness of humans.

This is how he’s able to tempt us; otherwise, he would not have wasted his time tempting Job. Job 1:6-12, or Jesus. Matthew 4:1-11.  Satan certainly did not know what Job would do. He had not read Job’s mind; he had simply made a guess based on his observations (his walking to and fro, and up and down in the earth) and he was certainly wrong.

Satan has had a lot of time to practice. He knows exactly how to influence man. You better believe that the enemy knows the Bible better than any human being does.

Satan has the power to deceive those who do not follow,
or have God's Word in them. If you are not full of God's
Word, that leaves "room" for the Devil's minions to come in.

“The great dragon was hurled down, that ancient serpent called the devil,
or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth,
and his angels with him.” (Revelation 12:9, NIV)

Satan was brought under the power and authority of Jesus when He died for
our sins and established His Kingdom and His church. Satan no longer has
power over us and by this, we can be sure that the devil, Satan, cannot
read our thoughts.  Revelation 12:7-17

Only God and his Son Jesus Christ can read the minds and the hearts of mankind.

This is the four Bible definitions of sin.

1) “Sin is the transgression of the law.” 1 John 3:4

2) “Sin is anything that is unrighteous, not like Christ.” 1 John 5:17

3) “Sin is failure to follow the things we know to be right.” James 4:17

4) “Sin is lack of faith in God and His Word.” Romans 14:23

The "in" thing today is talking to the dead. 

Psychics and mediums actually believe that they are communicating
with the dead. The truth is that a supernatural world indeed does
exist, and people miss the familiar voices of loved ones, but they
are sadly mistaken about mediums communicating with spirits of the
dead.
A thorough Bible study into this interesting topic will prove without
a doubt that the dead know nothing, they are dead and cannot speak.

These mediums are really communicating with demons that’s posing as ghosts and dead relatives. The last book in the Bible has this warning, “For they are spirits of demons, performing signs…..” Revelation 16:14

The Bible clearly says, “For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies.

Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scripture will be fulfilled: Death is swallowed up in victory.”

Study God’s Word and it’s easy to see that we aren’t immortal, not until the last day. That’s not the last day of our life, but the day that Jesus returns! Don’t give in to the same lie that was told to Eve, “Ye shall not surely die” Genesis 3:4

There is a difference between being able to plant a thought in someone’s mind and being able to read a person’s mind. When someone writes a book or speaks a word they are able to stimulate thoughts in people’s mind, but they cannot see what is happening beneath the surface. The only one that the Bible ever speaks of as being able to read the thoughts is the Lord. (1 Chronicles 28:9; Psalm 94:11; Psalm 139:23; Matthew 12:25; Luke 6:8) This is one of the very strong evidences that Jesus was the Son of God.

Though Satan is able to guess at our thoughts through observing, and suggest thoughts through circumstances and stimuli, there is no indication in the Bible that he can actually read our thoughts.

Keep looking up – Jesus is coming back!

The book of Matthew reveals that Jesus repeated the history of ancient Israel, point by point, and overcame where they failed. Notice these parallels between ancient Israel and of Jesus Christ:

Each blood-type also has an accompanying Rhesus or Rh factor of either positive or negative.

The most commonly found blood-type in the world is O positive while the rarest is AB negative.

From the U.S population it was determined that the percentages of blood types were as follows.

O positive – 38.4%
O negative – 7.7%

A positive – 32.3%
A negative – 6.5%

B positive – 9.4%
B negative – 1.7%

AB positive – 3.2%
AB negative – 0.7%

So what blood type do you have? Are you reasonably rare like me (AB+) or do you have a more common popular blood type? 

I don’t know if it’s true, but I’ve read online that tests from the Sudarium (or more correctly the face-cloth of Christ), mentioned in John 20:5-8 and the Shroud of Turin contains the AB blood type. If that’s the case, I’m in Great company!

DB

2-A person needs to know that he is facing eternal death.
Rm 6:23, 23For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

3-A person needs to know that Christ died so that the repentant sinner can live eternally.
Rm 5:8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

4–A person needs to know that Christ died for him personally.
Rm 5:10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

5–A person needs to know that Christ saves the one who calls upon Him, and remains faithful to Him.
Rm 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

This is the beginning of the Christian life. We need to grow in grace and the knowledge of God.
2 Peter 3:18 But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ….

We grow in grace by praying; by studying the Bible; by doing all the things the Bible tells us to do; by telling others what Christ has done for us.

By beholding (observing and studying the life of Christ and imitating it) we become changed into His image.
2 Cor 3:18 But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

We also need to confess our sins and stop doing them.
Proverbs 28:13

He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.

Jesus said that eternal life is in knowing Him and His Father.
Jn 17:3 And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

Sanctification (becoming like Jesus) is the work of a lifetime.

The problem with the doctrine of the immaculate conception is that it is not taught in the Bible. The Bible nowhere describes Mary as anything but an ordinary human female whom God chose to be the mother of the Lord Jesus Christ. Mary was undoubtedly a godly woman (Luke 1:28). Mary was surely a wonderful wife and mother. Jesus definitely loved and cherished His mother (John 19:27). The Bible gives us no reason to believe that Mary was sinless. In fact, the Bible gives us every reason to believe that Jesus Christ is the only Person who was not “infected” by sin and never committed a sin (Ecclesiastes 7:20; Romans 3:23; 2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 Peter 2:22; 1 John 3:5).

The doctrine of the immaculate conception originated out of confusion over how Jesus Christ could be born sinless if He was conceived inside of a sinful human female. The thought was that Jesus would have inherited a sinful nature from Mary had she been a sinner. In contrast to the immaculate conception, the Biblical solution to this problem is understanding that Jesus Himself was miraculously protected from being polluted by sin while He was inside Mary’s womb. If God was capable of protecting Mary from sin, would He not be able to protect Jesus from sin? Therefore, Mary being sinless is neither necessary or Biblical.

The Roman Catholic Church argues that the immaculate conception is necessary because without it, Jesus would have been the object of His own grace. The thought goes like this – for Jesus to have been miraculously preserved from sin, which itself would be an act of grace, that would mean God essentially “graced Himself.” The word grace means “unmerited favor.” Grace is giving someone something he or she does not deserve. God performing a miracle in preserving Jesus from sin is not “grace.” In no sense could Jesus possibly be infected with sin. He was perfect and sinless humanity joined with sinless divinity. God cannot be infected or affected by sin, as He is perfectly holy. This same truth applies to Jesus. It did not take “grace” to protect Jesus from sin. Being God incarnate, Jesus was in His essence “immune” from sin.

So, the doctrine of the immaculate conception is neither Biblical or necessary. Jesus was miraculously conceived inside Mary, who was a virgin at the time. That is the Biblical concept of the virgin birth. The Bible does not even hint that there was anything significant about Mary’s conception. If we examine this concept logically, Mary’s mother would have to be immaculately conceived as well. How could Mary be conceived without sin if her mother was sinful? The same would have to be said of Mary’s grandmother, great-grandmother, and so on. So, in conclusion, the immaculate conception is not a Biblical teaching. The Bible teaches the miraculous virgin conception of Jesus Christ, not the immaculate conception of Mary.

Do you trust God’s Word, the Bible that never changes, or Catholic doctrine that does?

In the last days, we will have to know the Bible well enough to know when a pastor misquotes it!

Click on the links below to read about each topic.

“Fornication in the Bible seems to refer to adultery, incest, homosexuality, and bestiality. I don’t see anyone being called a sinner for engaging in premarital sex.”

Answer:

In Bible translations and Bible commentaries and so on, when they talk about premarital sex they often refer to it as “fornication.” Here’s what the word “fornication” means:

* “Sexual intercourse between a man and a woman who are not married to each other.” (West’s Encyclopedia of American Law )
* “1. Noun – Unlawful sexual intercourse on the part of an unmarried person; the act of such illicit sexual intercourse between a man and a woman as does not by law amount to adultery.” (The People’s Dictionary )
* “1. voluntary sexual intercourse between two unmarried persons or two persons not married to each other.” (Dictionary.com Unabridged )
* “Fornication: Sexual intercourse that is “illicit”, outside of marriage.” (Medical Dictionary )
* “fornication n. sexual intercourse between a man and woman who are not married to each other.” (Law Dictionary )
* ” VIRGINIA BEACH — A lawsuit that accuses a Virginia Beach man of intentionally passing herpes to his lover may have implications for state law on fornication between unmarried adults.
Attorneys for a woman identified only as Jane Doe filed suit this month in Circuit Court, claiming that a Virginia Beach man gave the woman genital herpes after the two began having sexual relations in April .” (SUIT SAYING MAN SPREAD HERPES COULD AFFECT FORNICATION LAW )
* “Main Entry: for·ni·ca·tion
Pronunciation: \for-ne-’ka-shen\
Function: noun
Date: 14th century
: consensual sexual intercourse between two persons not married to each other” (Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary , emphasis added)
* “NOUN: Sexual intercourse between partners who are not married to each other.
WORD HISTORY: The word fornication had a lowly beginning suitable to what has long been the low moral status of the act to which it refers. The Latin word fornix, from which fornicti, the ancestor of fornication, is derived, meant “a vault, an arch.” The term also referred to a vaulted cellar or similar place where prostitutes plied their trade. This sense of fornix in Late Latin yielded the verb fornicr, “to commit fornication,” from which is derived fornicti, “whoredom, fornication.” Our word is first recorded in Middle English about 1303.” (The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. , emphasis added)
* “c.1300, from O.Fr. fornication, from L.L. fornicationem (nom. fornicatio), from fornicari “fornicate,” from L. fornix (gen. fornicis) “brothel,” originally “arch, vaulted chamber” (Roman prostitutes commonly solicited from under the arches of certain buildings), from fornus “oven of arched or domed shape.” Strictly, “voluntary sex between an unmarried man and an unmarried woman;” extended in the Bible to adultery.” (Online Etymology Dictionary , emphasis added)
* “The Latin verb fornicare, which is the source of English fornicate and fornication, is derived from the noun fornix, ‘arch, vault, arched basement’. Because brothels were sometimes established in the Roman vaults, fornix itself took on the sense ‘brothel’ and the derived verb fornicare was used with much the same meaning as modern English fornicate. The noun fornication appears in English at the beginning of the fourteenth century, some two hundred and fifty years before the verb fornicate. In 1303 Robert Mannyng of Brunne in his penitential manual Handlyng Synne did his best to define the noun with the utmost discretion, and though his fastidiousness resulted in some vagueness it is dispelled in part by the context: “‘Fornycacyoun’ [ys], whan two vnweddyde haue mysdoun.” (“Fornication” is when two unmarried people have done wrong.)” (The Merriam-Webster new book of word histories, p.182-183 , emphasis added)

So “fornication” refers to voluntary sex outside of marriage, and the earliest recorded use of this word in English (with the meaning of premarital sex) was in the early 14th century, around 1303.

In the New Testament, the word “fornication” is translated from the Greek word porneia. Here’s how Greek dictionaries and Bible commentaries define this word:

* “porneia por-ni’-ah from 4203; harlotry (including adultery and incest); figuratively idolatry: – fornication.” (Strong’s Greek Dictionary , emphasis added)
* “porneia:
1) illicit sexual intercourse
1a) adultery, fornication, homosexuality, lesbianism, intercourse with animals etc.
1b) sexual intercourse with close relatives; Lev. 18
1c) sexual intercourse with a divorced man or woman; Mar_10:11,Mar_10:12
2) metaphorically the worship of idols
2a) of the defilement of idolatry, as incurred by eating the sacrifices offered to idols” (Thayer’s Greek Dictionary , emphasis added)
* “porneia … Fornication, lewdness, or any sexual sin” (The Complete Word Study Dictionary of the New Testament, Spiros Zodhiates, p.1201, emphasis added)
* “Fornication. Chastity was the exception instead of the rule among Gentiles at this period.” (People’s New Testament commentary , Acts 15:20, emphasis added)
* “and from fornication–The characteristic sin of heathendom, unblushingly practiced by all ranks and classes, and the indulgence of which on the part of the Gentile converts would to Jews, whose Scriptures branded it as an abomination of the heathen, proclaim them to be yet joined to their old idols.” (Jamieson, Fausset, Brown commentary , Acts 15:20, emphasis added)
* “Fornication, all uncleanness of every kind was prohibited; for ??????? [porneia] not only means fornication, but adultery, incestuous mixtures, and especially the prostitution which was so common at the idol temples, viz. in Cyprus, at the worship of Venus; and the shocking disorders exhibited in the Bacchanalia, Lupercalia, and several others.” (Clarke’s commentary, from http://www.e-sword.net/commentaries.html , Acts 15:20, emphasis added)
* “and from fornication; not spiritual fornication or idolatry, but fornication taken in a literal sense, for the carnal copulation of one single person with another” (Gill’s commentary , Acts 15:20, emphasis added)
* “Fornication – Hebrew: zanah / Greek: porneia
Fornication is voluntary sexual intercourse between a man and woman who are not married to each other. Adultery is one type of fornication.
In every form, fornication was sternly condemned by the Mosaic law among God’s people, the Israelites (Lev. 21:9; 19:29; Deut. 22:20-11, 23-29; 23:18; Ex. 22:16). (See ADULTERY.)
Fornication is also mentioned many times in the New Testament (Matt. 5:32; 19:9; John 8:41; Acts 15:20, 29; 21:25; Rom. 1:29; 1 Cor 5:1, 6:13, 18, 7:2; 10:8; 2 Cor 12:21; Gal 5:19; Eph 5:3; Col 3:5; 1 Thess. 4:3; Jude 1:7; Rev. 2:14, 20-21; 9:21; 14:8; 17:2,4).
“The Greek word for ‘fornication’ (porneia) could include any sexual sin committed after the betrothal contract. …In Biblical usage, ‘fornication’ can mean any sexual congress outside monogamous marriage. It thus includes not only premarital sex, but also adultery, homosexual acts, incest, remarriage after un-Biblical divorce, and sexual acts with animals, all of which are explicitly forbidden in the law as given through Moses (Leviticus 20:10-21). Christ expanded the prohibition against adultery to include even sexual lusting (Matthew 5:28).” (Dr. Henry M. Morris)
The word “fornication” is sometimes used in a symbolic sense in the Bible, for example, meaning a forsaking of God or a following after idols (Isa. 1:2; Jer. 2:20; Ezek. 16; Hos. 1:2; 2:1-5; Jer. 3:8-9).” (christiananswers.net , emphasis added)

So the Greek word porneia can mean adultery (which is sex outside of marriage), incest (which is sex outside of marriage), prostitution (which is sex outside of marriage), fornication (which is sex outside of marriage), etc., depending on the context.

What it boils down to is that sex outside of marriage is always a sin, whether it’s adultery, incest, prostitution, fornication, etc.

Now let’s take a look at what the New Testament says about fornication. For example, Jesus said that fornication is in the same category as murder, adultery, blasphemy, etc.:

“For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man.” (Matthew 15:19-20, KJV)

Abstaining from fornication was one of the rules given to the Gentile Christians by the apostles and elders of the Church:

“Wherefore my sentence is, that we trouble not them, which from among the Gentiles are turned to God: But that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from blood.” (Acts 15:19-20, KJV)

The apostle Paul told the church at Corinth that they should have mourned the fact that a man among them was committing fornication:

“What will ye? shall I come unto you with a rod, or in love, and in the spirit of meekness? It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles, that one should have his father’s wife. And ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you.” (1 Corinthians 4:21-5:2, KJV)

In the above passage, the woman who was involved in the affair (“his father’s wife”) was married, and therefore she was committing adultery. However, the man who was involved in the affair was not married, because he was committing fornication rather than adultery (for example, notice that Matthew 15:19-20 (above) uses different Greek words to distinguish between adultery and fornication, as Paul did in Galatians 5:19-21 below). The above passage doesn’t say that the man had sex with his own mother, so this wasn’t incest. There is also no hint of prostitution. In modern terminology we would say that he had an affair with his stepmother, and since he was unmarried then by definition he was having premarital sex (premarital sex does not imply that the man and woman intend to get married).

Paul also told the church at Corinth not to associate with fornicators, and he said that the above fornicator should be put out of their fellowship (referring to him as a “wicked person”):

“I wrote unto you in an epistle not to company with fornicators: Yet not altogether with the fornicators of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or with idolaters; for then must ye needs go out of the world. But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat. For what have I to do to judge them also that are without? do not ye judge them that are within? But them that are without God judgeth. Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person.” (1 Corinthians 5:9-13, KJV)

Our bodies are not meant for fornication:

“Meats for the belly, and the belly for meats: but God shall destroy both it and them. Now the body is not for fornication, but for the Lord; and the Lord for the body.” (1 Corinthians 6:13, KJV)

Fornication is a sin against our own body, and we are told to run away from fornication:

“Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body. What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.” (1 Corinthians 6:18-20, KJV)

The Israelites committed fornication in the wilderness, and thousands of them were killed. This was written down as an admonishment (warning) to us:

“Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand. Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents. Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer. Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.” (1 Corinthians 10:8-11, KJV)

Paul gave the Galatian church a list of sins of the flesh, and notice that adultery and fornication were at the top of the list:

“Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.” (Galatians 5:19-21, KJV)

Fornication must not be found (“named,” as in 1 Corinthians 4:21-5:2, above) among Christians:

“But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints;” (Ephesians 5:3, KJV)

It is the will of God that we abstain from fornication:

“For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication” (1 Thessalonians 4:3, KJV)

Sodom and Gomorrha gave themselves over to fornication, and they are set forth as an example:

“Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.” (Jude 1:7, KJV)

Jesus told the church at Pergamum that He had a few things against them, including the fact that they held to the doctrines of someone who led God’s people to commit fornication:

“But I [Jesus] have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication.” (Revelation 2:14, KJV)

Jesus told the church at Thyatira that He had a few things against them, including the fact that they were putting up with someone who led them into fornication and idolatry:

“Notwithstanding I [Jesus] have a few things against thee, because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols.” (Revelation 2:20, KJV)

Fornication is listed with other sins which need to be repented of, such as demon-worship, murder, sorcery, and theft:

“And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk: Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.” (Revelation 9:20-21, KJV)

Earlier we saw that the word “fornication” has had the meaning of premarital sex from at least the 14th century, and it still has that meaning today. The KJV was written in 1611, so the word “fornication” in the above passages conveys the meaning of premarital sex. For example, notice that some of the above passages make a distinction between adultery and fornication.

As we can see in the above passages, God has strong views against fornication. Therefore, so should we.

Now, notice that Paul said that the Church will be presented to Christ as a pure virgin bride:

“I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. I promised you to one husband, to Christ, so that I might present you as a pure virgin to him.” (2 Corinthians 11:2)

This indicates that in Scripture, purity and virginity are highly valued before marriage. Premarital sex takes away that purity and virginity. For those who have already lost that purity before marriage, God is willing to forgive our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). Christian recording artist Rebecca St. James points out that if we have made the mistake of having sex before marriage then we can repent and give our sexuality back to God and become “recycled virgins.” As I see it, the idea of being a “recycled virgin” means that we have received forgiveness from God and we are now keeping ourselves pure for marriage by abstaining from sex (just like a virgin).

Paul also said that if unmarried people cannot control their passions then they should get married:

“Now to the unmarried and the widows I say: It is good for them to stay unmarried, as I am. But if they cannot control themselves, they should marry, for it is better to marry than to burn with passion.” (1 Corinthians 7:8-9)

The above passage says that if unmarried people can’t control their passions, then they should get married. Paul didn’t say that they should give in to their passion by having premarital sex, but instead he gave them two options: Either control themselves or get married. This clearly indicates that premarital sex is a sin.

Another thing Paul said was that men should have a wife and women should have a husband, in order to avoid fornication:

“Now concerning the things whereof ye wrote unto me: It is good for a man not to touch a woman. Nevertheless, to avoid fornication, let every man have his own wife, and let every woman have her own husband.” (1 Corinthians 7:1-2, KJV)

Again, God has strong views against fornication, and we have specifically been told that there are only two valid options when we are burning with passion. Our options are to control ourselves or to get married. We are never given the option of having premarital sex.
Common Questions

Here are some questions that I am sometimes asked concerning premarital sex:

* “Is it okay to have sex if you’re totally in love with each other, and you’re totally certain that you’re going to marry each other and spend the rest of your lives together (especially if you’re engaged to be married)? What if you’re over 30 or 40, or what if you had previously been married before? Is premarital sex okay at that point?”

Notice that after you are married, then sex is appropriate between you and your spouse. But before you are married it would be premarital sex (fornication). So if premarital sex is a sin, then it’s a sin up until the moment you are married. The New Testament never says that if you’re totally in love with each other and you’re committed to each other and you’re certain that you will get married, then premarital sex is okay. The New Testament also never says that premarital sex is okay if you’re over a certain age, or if you had previously been married before, or anything like that. Sorry, but there are no “loopholes”!

Consider that there are many people who were engaged to be married, and who expected to spend the rest of their lives together, but then they broke up. Some of them gave their virginity to each other because they were certain that they would get married, and they ended up regretting that they gave up their virginity to the wrong person. Life is full of uncertainties, and you’re not married until you’re married!

* “Is oral sex okay? Is fondling okay? Is “heavy making out” okay? Is it okay to see each other naked?”

Sometimes we want to know how far we can go without “crossing the line,” but remember what the New Testament says:

“Flee fornication.” (1 Corinthians 6:18, KJV)

God has told us to run away from fornication. Therefore, it’s best not to go anywhere near “crossing the line.” We might want to know if it’s safe for us to fondle and touch each other sexually (even fully clothed), or to have oral sex instead of intercourse, or to see each other naked, etc., but notice that those are not the attitudes that the Bible tells us to have. All of those things will increase our desire and temptation to have sex, but the Bible says to run away from those temptations rather than indulging in them.

Sometimes people think they’ll be able to stop short of having sex, but the problem is that you don’t really know for sure that you will be able to stop. Sexual feelings and emotions can be very powerful, and it might be very difficult to stop yourself from going too far. Even if you’re able to exercise self-control and stop yourself before having sex, you can’t be sure that your partner will be able to exercise self-control at that point.

Concerning oral sex, here are some other things to consider. When you finally meet your future spouse, will you be happy to learn that he or she had oral sex with other people? Will he or she be happy to learn that you had oral sex with other people? What if you or your future spouse have an incurable sexually-transmitted disease from oral sex with other people, such as herpes or AIDS? Is it really worth the pain and heartbreak that you might be bringing into your marriage?

What it boils down to is that it’s best to avoid any situations which will cause sexual temptation, such as touching each other sexually, being naked (or near naked) with each other, “making out,” or sometimes even just being alone together. This might seem difficult to do when our emotions are flying high for that special person, but keep in mind that when we follow God’s plan then everything always works out for the best!

Conclusion

We saw that long before the KJV was written, the English word “fornication” had the meaning of premarital sex, and it still has that meaning today.

We saw that when Bible translations and Bible commentaries talk about premarital sex, they often refer to it as fornication.

We saw that God has strong views against fornication, and therefore so should we.

Nowhere in the New Testament are we told that premarital sex is acceptable in God’s eyes. Nowhere in the New Testament do we see anyone having sex outside of marriage without being strongly chastised for it.

In fact, fornication is so detestable to God that it’s the only sin in the entire New Testament which we are specifically told to run away from! (1 Corinthians 6:18, above).

Keep in mind that if you have made the mistake of having sex before marriage, then forgiveness and restoration are only a prayer away (see 1 John 1:8-10). You can make the decision to become a “recycled virgin” (as Rebecca St. James puts it) by receiving forgiveness from God and then keeping yourself pure for marriage by abstaining from sex (just like a virgin).

For unmarried Christians, I recommend a book by Joshua Harris called I Kissed Dating Goodbye (as well as his follow-up book called Boy Meets Girl ). Some people agree with his thoughts on giving up dating, and some people disagree, but I recommend these books because he provides some great insights on how to have a Godly relationship before marriage. Even more importantly, he gives some powerful guidelines on how to know if a person is the mate that God intends for you to have. After all, sometimes we get so emotionally involved with a person that we miss hearing from God about whether or not that person is meant to be our future spouse. Christians are not supposed to get divorced (except possibly in the case of adultery), so if we make the wrong decision and marry the wrong person then we’ll be stuck in a marriage which is not the perfect marriage that God intended for us to have (and which we always dreamed of having).

In addition, check out Rebecca St. James’ book called Wait for Me . Her song “Wait for Me” (written to her as-yet-unknown future husband) has had a huge impact on unmarried Christians around the world as they wait for God to bring them their future spouses. Also check out her book called Pure , which “proves that purity is anything but old-fashioned and boring. It’s edgy and relevant. Rebecca lives it–and readers can live it too.”

For some ideas on how to discern if someone is the perfect spouse for you, consider taking a look at my article called How to Hear the Voice of God.

All for Your glory, Lord Jesus!

From Dave Root at Layhands.com

Modification History

• 09/30/2009 – Reorganized the information. Added more passages on fornication. Added more information in the section called “Common Questions.” Modified the “Conclusion” section.
• 11/02/2005 – Removed 1 Timothy 5:1-2, which talks about treating other Christians as brothers and sisters. I had said that if a guy must treat a girl as his sister, then this pretty much rules out premarital sex. However, this isn’t a strong argument because it would rule out any kind of romance.
• 05/16/2005 – Modified some of the wording throughout the article. Added some definitions of the English word “fornication” and the Greek word porneia. Added a section called “Common Questions.” Added a link to my article called “How to Hear the Voice of God.”
• 07/29/2003 – Added links to some books by Joshua Harris and Rebecca St. James.
• 08/17/2001 – New article.
• All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION (R). NIV (R). Copyright (C) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. (Emphasis added.)This material is not copyrighted. Please feel free to use it in any way which will glorify the Lord Jesus Christ!

www.layhands.com

Prov. 16:25  “There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.”
The same words occur also in Proverbs 14:12, showing that the sacred writer felt deeply the force of
this truth.

We must first enquire,
I. What is meant by seeming to be right.

II. What is the doctrine of the text?

III. This one way, what is it?

IV. Why do men think this way to be right?

V. But why do men thus deceive themselves?

VI. This sort of obedience is not the way to heaven.

VII. How should a man act if he may not do what seems to him right?
I. What is meant by seeming to be right.
The original word denotes what lawyers express by saying a thing is right “prima facie” — on its face
– at first appearance — as the case presents itself at first view and without looking at the other side.

Unless objections appear, it is to be assumed as true. The word implies a want of certainty. It does not

preclude doubt or further investigation. Indeed if the matter be one of any importance, there ought to
be further investigation, notwithstanding all this appearance of being right. The original word applies
naturally to an opinion adopted loosely, on a merely surface view and without honest and thorough
investigation. It also implies a credulous state of mind as to this way that seems right. The mind is
very willing to satisfy itself with a mere seeming.
Such I take to be the meaning of the phrase “seemeth to be right.”

II. What, then, is the doctrine of the text?
1. Plainly this — that we may think we are right and are doing right, when in truth we are utterly
wrong. It may seem that we are in the way to heaven, while we are really in the way to hell.
2. Hence it is of vital consequence to enquire and ascertain what this way is. It is remarkable
that the text speaks of one way, there is a way that seemeth right to a man. It does not indeed
expressly affirm that there is but one, yet it may be inferred that the writer’s mind rested on one
general way in regard to which men deceived themselves to their ruin.

III. Let us therefore enquire for this one way, what is it?

I answer, in general it is the way of obeying God’s commands merely in the letter and overlooking the
Spirit. In this way men overlook that in which alone real obedience to God consists, namely, the state
of mind — the real motive and spirit in which a deed is done. Men do what their conscience demands,
outwardly, but not with the heart. They obey in the letter, but they disobey in the spirit. Their
obedience is constrained, not loving and cheerful; and therefore, it is really no obedience at all. They
yield to the demands of their conscience as to the letter of the precept; and there, with them,
obedience ends. This seems to them to be obedience, and therefore they expect from it God’s favor
and heaven at last; but they deceive themselves; for the end of this way is only death.
But it will be well to enquire here –

IV. Why do men think this way to be right?
Because it is required, both by conscience and by the sacred scriptures. For example, honesty in
business; prayer to God. These and similar duties, both conscience and the Bible require. Of course it
seems right to do them. And it truly is right. Outwardly, it is the thing God demands. But they
overlook the fact that God does and must demand something more than the outward. They forget that
real obedience consists in the loving state of mind in which the externally right things are done. They
forget that, while “man looketh on the outward appearance, God looketh on the heart.”

V. But why do men thus deceive themselves?
1. Because they are in a dishonest, selfish state of mind. They are in a state like Paul’s when he
verily thought he ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth; but the
reason of his verily thinking so lay in the strong committal of his soul to Judaism and to his
selfish interests in that system. Really he was not in an honest state of mind, and therefore was
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not prepared to judge truly in such matters. In a dishonest state of mind, men are satisfied with
cheap service done for God. They are by no means careful to give Him good measure. Perhaps
they do not even think for a moment that, by the very necessity of His position as Moral
Governor of the universe, He must demand the sincere homage of the heart. They think to turn
Him off with miserably cheap service. They would not themselves be satisfied with such
service from their own wives or children. A merely outside show of obedience and affection
would not satisfy them. Yet strangely they assume that such outside obedience in their case will
satisfy God! Being in a thoroughly selfish state of mind, they are blind to the spiritual demands
of God’s law. They have no just conceptions of the real nature of their own righteousness. They
assume it to be a fair and perfect robe, but God accounts it only as filthy rags — not rags only –
but filthy rags — loathsome and foul — intolerable.
2. Such persons are blind to the spirit of God’s law. For example, the law which requires them
to pay a debt to a neighbor. In a selfish spirit, one will pay such a debt because the civil law
demands it, and he cannot avoid paying it. Or he may do it selfishly to sustain his reputation.
But the truly benevolent man pays this debt out of love to his neighbor. He remembers the law,
“Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself,” and he considers nothing less than this, as real
obedience to God. Because he loves his neighbor, therefore he pays to him what he owes him.
This, and this only is obeying in the true spirit of obedience.
3. So selfish men go to the house of God to please themselves and not to please God. They have
no heart in it. This seems to them to be right, but it seems so, only because they are selfish, and
do not deeply consider the matter. They do not ask themselves — Would I be pleased with such
service from my wife or from my children? Would I be satisfied if my servants thought only of
the outward appearance and had no proper respect for my feelings and wishes?
This kind of service is all wrong, however right it may seem. It does not answer the
demands of the law of God. This law demands the homage of the heart, and can accept of
nothing less. How then can it accept that which is wholly selfish?
VI. This sort of obedience is not the way to heaven.
1. It does not make the heart mellow, humble, holy; indeed it has no such influence at all, but
rather the opposite. It only makes the heart vain, proud, hard and yet more selfish.
2. It should never be forgotten that any obedience which is not from the heart and from real
love is no obedience at all.
3. People are prone to congratulate themselves on their selfish and external obedience, but such
obedience is not performing their duty to God or to man either. It leaves the soul in sin and in
bondage.
4. This delusion is wholly inexcusable.
VII. Some men, willing to justify themselves, will ask — How should a man act if he may not do
what seems to him right?
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1. I answer, he may and must do what seems right to him; he must follow the dictates of his
conscience; but he must see to it that his mind be honest and that his conscience be enlightened.
For this, he is responsible. He can be honest; he can open his eyes to see God’s claims in their
true light.
2. Such selfish men obey their conscience only apparently, not really, for in its proper action,
conscience requires a right heart. It demands all this and is satisfied with nothing less.
Conscience requires that the mind be upright and the heart truly obedient. It cannot be satisfied
with obedience that is merely in the letter and not in the Spirit. Hence it is plain that selfish men
do not really obey conscience.
3. Again, their obedience is only servile. It is not done in the spirit of heaven and does not mold
them into this spirit. It has no tendency to prepare them for the purity of heaven, and cannot,
therefore, fit them to enter easily and naturally into the obedience and worship of that world of
purity and love. God requires something more than a mere seeming to be right, and selfish men
really know, deep in their heart, that such worship is only a seeming.
REMARKS.
1. This class of persons abstain from open vice. Such vice cannot seem to be right to anybody. With
any amount of effort, they cannot make it seem right. Hence this way that seems right to a man must
be one of strict outward morality and of correct external observance. If men do what seems to be their
duty, they cannot stop short of this, for nothing less than this can ever seem to be their duty. A man
has been to meeting; he has paid his honest debts; therefore, say they, all is right. All this looks right;
nothing less than this could even look right. But those who neglect the outward cannot even suppose
their course to be right. It cannot seem right to an honest mind. They trust they are right, they say. Ask
them — Are you walking with God? I trust so, they reply. Are you resting on Christ alone? I hope so.
But you observe they speak only with much qualification, not with confidence. This is quite different
from the manner of the sacred writers. They do not say — We trust we are right; we hope we are God’s
people; but they say — “We know in whom we have believed;” “We know that we have passed from
death into life because we love the brethren.” The men of whom the text speaks, say all that they dare
say — all they ought to say of themselves. It is only a faint sort of hope and trust that they have. They
altogether lack the clear, strong, decided conviction which the inspired writers felt and expressed.
2. Again, they look only to the proximate intentions — not to the ultimate; they think only of the
outside. They went to public worship; yes they were there. That was all. They do not claim their
hearts were there. Ask them, Is that obeying God? I hope so, say they — but in their hearts their
confidence that God can accept it must be very weak. Are the old heart and the new one, just the
same? Is the new no better than the old?
3. Men will often deceive themselves even out of the Bible itself. The things said in the Bible of
sinners and hypocrites they apply to Christians and so they find something which both meets their
case and encourages their hopes that they are Bible Christians. How sad a thing is this!
4. These self-deceived men have no heart in their worship of God. Their souls are not all liquid,
flowing out in praise, and full of love and of heaven. There is none of the spirit of heaven in their
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hearts. Yet they think they mean to do right and to do their duty. It seems so to them. They are in the
way that seemeth right. They read their Bibles; they go to the house of God; they do a great many
things; but all goes no farther than right seeming. It is right only in the outward — the letter. The
inward is still all wrong. Jesus Christ is not formed in them, the hope of glory. How awful that men
should be deceived by this mere seeming! Mark that man. He goes on with his doings, his hope
perhaps still growing a little brighter. How awful to think that he must wake at length in hell! A
woman who had lived long with a dull Christian hope, but seemed to herself to be nearly ripe for
heaven, drew very near to the grave; she sunk away, and they thought she was really dead — when
suddenly she started up, shrieked once with an expression of unutterable horror, — Is this hell? then
fell back again and passed away! We cannot know what she saw! Yet who would wish to die so?
My dear hearers, the time is short ere we shall know our fitness or unfitness for the eternal world, past
all uncertainty, or mistake. No longer here; the places that know us now shall know us no more then.
If this day were to be your last, what would you do? Would you not say, I cannot be satisfied with a
mere seeming — I must absolutely know that all is right? What is your state today? Do you say — I
have examined my foundation; I have not been satisfied with merely seeming to be right? But even
you, if this day were surely known to you to be your last, would say, (would you not?) I must be more
certain. I must go over this whole ground again, for how can I rest while the least possibility of doubt
remains! Let this work be honestly done, from first to last; lay your soul bare to the searching of God’s
word and Spirit; cry unto Him — “Search me, O God, and try my thoughts; prove me and know my
ways, and lead me in the way everlasting.” Leave no room for mistake in a matter of such enduring
moment. See to it that you, at least, be not of those who go in a way that seemeth right, but the end
thereof are the ways of death.
GLOSSARY
of easily misunderstood terms as defined by Mr. Finney himself.
Compiled by Katie Stewart
Complacency, or Esteem: “Complacency, as a state of will or heart, is only benevolence
modified by the consideration or relation of right character in the object of it. God, prophets,
apostles, martyrs, and saints, in all ages, are as virtuous in their self-denying and untiring
labours to save the wicked, as they are in their complacent love to the saints.” Systematic
Theology (LECTURE VII). Also, “approbation of the character of its object. Complacency is
due only to the good and holy.” Lectures to Professing Christians (LECTURE XII).
1.
Disinterested Benevolence: “By disinterested benevolence I do not mean, that a person who is
disinterested feels no interest in his object of pursuit, but that he seeks the happiness of others
for its own sake, and not for the sake of its reaction on himself, in promoting his own
happiness. He chooses to do good because he rejoices in the happiness of others, and desires
their happiness for its own sake. God is purely and disinterestedly benevolent. He does not
make His creatures happy for the sake of thereby promoting His own happiness, but because He
loves their happiness and chooses it for its own sake. Not that He does not feel happy in
promoting the happiness of His creatures, but that He does not do it for the sake of His own
gratification.” Lectures to Professing Christians (LECTURE I).
2.
Divine Sovereignty: “The sovereignty of God consists in the independence of his will, in 3.
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consulting his own intelligence and discretion, in the selection of his end, and the means of
accomplishing it. In other words, the sovereignty of God is nothing else than infinite
benevolence directed by infinite knowledge.” Systematic Theology (LECTURE LXXVI).
Election: “That all of Adam’s race, who are or ever will be saved, were from eternity chosen by
God to eternal salvation, through the sanctification of their hearts by faith in Christ. In other
words, they are chosen to salvation by means of sanctification. Their salvation is the end- their
sanctification is a means. Both the end and the means are elected, appointed, chosen; the means
as really as the end, and for the sake of the end.” Systematic Theology (LECTURE LXXIV).
4.
Entire Sanctification: “Sanctification may be entire in two senses: (1.) In the sense of present,
full obedience, or entire consecration to God; and, (2.) In the sense of continued, abiding
consecration or obedience to God. Entire sanctification, when the terms are used in this sense,
consists in being established, confirmed, preserved, continued in a state of sanctification or of
entire consecration to God.” Systematic Theology (LECTURE LVIII).
5.
Moral Agency: “Moral agency is universally a condition of moral obligation. The attributes of
moral agency are intellect, sensibility, and free will.” Systematic Theology (LECTURE III).
6.
Moral Depravity: “Moral depravity is the depravity of free-will, not of the faculty itself, but of
its free action. It consists in a violation of moral law. Depravity of the will, as a faculty, is, or
would be, physical, and not moral depravity. It would be depravity of substance, and not of free,
responsible choice. Moral depravity is depravity of choice. It is a choice at variance with moral
law, moral right. It is synonymous with sin or sinfulness. It is moral depravity, because it
consists in a violation of moral law, and because it has moral character.” Systematic Theology
(LECTURE XXXVIII).
7.
Human Reason: “the intuitive faculty or function of the intellect… it is the faculty that intuits
moral relations and affirms moral obligation to act in conformity with perceived moral
relations.” Systematic Theology (LECTURE III).
8.
Retributive Justice: “Retributive justice consists in treating every subject of government
according to his character. It respects the intrinsic merit or demerit of each individual, and deals
with him accordingly.” Systematic Theology (LECTURE XXXIV).
9.
Total Depravity: “Moral depravity of the unregenerate is without any mixture of moral
goodness or virtue, that while they remain unregenerate, they never in any instance, nor in any
degree, exercise true love to God and to man.” Systematic Theology (LECTURE XXXVIII).
10.
Unbelief: “the soul’s withholding confidence from truth and the God of truth. The heart’s
rejection of evidence, and refusal to be influenced by it. The will in the attitude of opposition to
truth perceived, or evidence presented.” Systematic Theology (LECTURE LV).
11.
.
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A. The Bible is clear that we are called to use our gifts to serve in the church (see Romans 12:6-7 and Ephesians 4:11-12). It sounds like you are doing just that and you should receive more encouragement.

So what do you do?

• First, I would encourage you to share your concerns with your friend, family, or pastor. Maybe they aren’t aware you’re feeling used.
• Next, try to keep three things in mind:

1) You’re in control of your schedule.

They can ask all they want, but you are the one saying yes. You have my permission to say no.  Serving Christ doesn’t mean doing everything. That’s why we have an entire church body.

I encourage you to really think about how much time you can give to service.
What would be the right amount for you?
What duties, events or commitments do you really want to keep?
Did you volunteer or did someone else volunteer you?

Do you wish you never said yes to any?

Use these questions to create boundaries for yourself. Then, speak up to keep you firmly within those boundaries.

2) You need to be fed spiritually.

Are you feeling drained from spending so much time serving that you aren’t spending time in the Word,  fellowship, prayer or worship?  As you pour your life into others, make sure you are also being poured into.

3) You are serving God, not anyone at your church.

Live your faith for an audience of One.  You feel you are giving without getting.  Do you think that might come from a selfish motive?  It’s nice to have a “thank you” but remember the real reason for your service.

I once attended a Bible study that lasted about a year.

I learned a great deal within that 12 month period.  We followed a very good study guide with lots of Scripture references. It’s called “Seeking Him” by Nancy Leigh DeMoss.

I also started a 1 year Bible reading plan, but it took over 2 years to finish.  Now I’m starting over using a different translation. There is no such thing as a perfect translation. To get the correct meaning of  the Holy Scriptures that the authors are trying to relate, you actually need:

• Belief
• More than one translation
• Understanding through the Holy Spirit.