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A Holy Kiss

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  David and Jonathan We have a little problem with the Bible.   How do we decide when a command that is given is based on culture and when it is a command we still have to follow? That question in itself supposes that if a command is based on the culture in which it was given, then it no longer applies to us at all. Cultural context is by far the most common reason that people think certain things no longer apply or were never meant for us.  All of the New Testament commands for women, for example, were conveniently given based on their culture alone and therefore were not meant for anyone but those people.  Women today are therefore under no restraints at all and are free to be as rebellious as they desire to be, simply because that culture was one in which Paul needed to give those instructions, but ours is not.   I jest, of course, but it does put the question I asked in a different light, and perhaps reveals the true question at the heart of the issue ...
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Did the Sadducees Observe an Early-14th Passover?

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  Every now and then, you’ll hear someone confidently assert that the two major Jewish parties of Jesus’ day, the Pharisees and Sadducees, disagreed about when to observe Passover. I’ve heard or read this claim a handful of times in recent years, and from more than one person. They declare that the Sadducees killed the Passover lambs as soon as the sun set at the end of the Nisan/Abib 13, at the beginning of the 14th, and ate them that night, the night of the 14th. So how about it? Is this true? A few months ago, we published a study entitled, “ Eyewitnesses to History: When Were the Passover Lambs Killed? ” In it, we noted that every eyewitness account — such as the Bible, Philo, and Josephus — places the Passover sacrifice from mid to late afternoon on Nisan 14, which is both the same day and the same time that Jesus Christ died as our Passover Lamb. Later Jewish traditions written in the Mishnah and both the Babylonian and Jerusalem Talmuds fully agree. Regarding the Sadducees, ...
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Rear Up a Child (Whoop His Butt!!)

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  The Goal of Marriage An equal partnership in marriage works if your only goals are a happy union, peace, met needs, and companionship.  If marriage has no higher purpose or mission beyond a sense of community, it can still work fairly well. Most would identify a peaceful marriage where all their needs are met, or where an effort is made to meet them, as a strong and happy marriage.  People can have a marriage like this that lasts for 70 years, and it’s viewed as a success, but what defines success? Is the goal of marriage simply to be happy and get along with each other? Most people, especially Christians, would say that it absolutely is the goal of marriage to be happy, get their needs met, and all that jazz. In fact, most of the marriages in the various Churches I have associated with have exactly that goal.  A strong marriage means you’re connecting better, getting along better, and both parties are constantly yielding to each other with no one really in charge....
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