We've moved!

Yup, it's true. With our brand-new website, we've incorporated the ASK US blog right there. Ask a question right there on the site, and get an answer there as well. So keep asking your questions, and check out the other parts of the site as well!

Q: I met a Taoist. What do they believe in?

A:  Taoism (also known as Daoism), comes from Eastern Countries.  Inherently, Taoism represents "the Way" or "the Path", but that "way" is not constant.  As in, there are many interpretations of the Taoist texts as to what is the way or path of life.  Thus, this Eastern religion has many streams and sects.

For Christians, we already understand that "the way" (and the truth and life), is Jesus Christ (John 14:6).  There is no doubt as to how we are to gain salvation or the path that we are to choose.  It is clear in the Biblical Scriptures.

To understand more about Taoism, please visit this site HERE.  You can also make use of Wikiepedia.org.

[answered by Pastor KJT]

Q: Following only some rules in Levicticus but not others?

The book of Leviticus was used as a guide for living a life pleasing to the Lord in the past. But nowadays, why do we only follow some rules and not others? (For example, we use the sexual relations guideline, but not the guideline about food and purification?)

Matt Slick, from CARM.org, takes the "traditional" approach in explaining how to apply rules from the Old Testament, including the book of Leviticus:

The Old Testament laws are categorized in three groups: the civil, the priestly, and the moral.  The civil laws must be understood in the context of a theocracy.  Though the Jewish nation in the Old Testament was often headed by a king, it was a theocratic system with the Scriptures as a guide to the nation.  Those laws that fall under this category are not applicable today because we are not under a theocracy.

The priestly laws dealing with the Levitical and Aaronic priesthoods were representative of the future and true High Priest Jesus, who offered Himself as a sacrifice on the cross.  Since Jesus fulfilled the priestly laws, they are no longer necessary to be followed and are not now applicable.

The moral laws, on the other hand, are not abolished, because the moral laws are based upon the character of God.  Since God's holy character does not change, the moral laws do not change either.  Therefore, the moral laws are still in effect.

In the New Testament we do not see a reestablishment of the civil or priestly laws.  But we do see a reestablishment of the moral law.  

Summarily, things like sexual relations fall under the moral law category and must be obeyed, but others like food and purification fall under the priestly category and do not have to be followed. I would suggest you read this article (especially the end) by J. Daniel Hays entitled, "Applying the Old Testament Laws." Hays suggests a new approach ("principlism"), which involves 5 steps.

1. Identify What The Particular Law Meant To The Initial Audience
2. Determine The Differences Between The Initial Audience And Believers Today
3. Develop Universal Principles From The Text
4. Correlate The Principle With New Testament Teaching
5. Apply The Modified Universal Principle To Life Today

The authors then gives an example of how this works from Leviticus 5:2, "if anyone touches an unclean thing, whether a carcass of an unclean wild animal or a carcass of unclean livestock or a carcass of unclean swarming things, and it is hidden from him and he has become unclean, and he realizes his guilt":

Leviticus 5:2 provides an example of how the method of principlizing can be used by believers today to apply legal passages without being under the Law. The verse reads, "Or if a person touches anything ceremonially unclean—whether the carcasses of unclean wild animals or of unclean livestock or of unclean creatures that move along the ground—even though he is unaware of it, he has become unclean and is guilty." The action required to correct one’s ceremonially unclean status in this verse is described a few verses later. So verses 5–6 should also be included: "When anyone is guilty in any of these ways, he must confess in what way he has sinned and, as a penalty for the sin he has committed, he must bring to the Lord a female lamb or goat from the flock as a sin offering; and the priest shall make atonement for him for his sin." The traditional approach simply classifies these verses as a ceremonial law that no longer applies to believers today. However, using the principlizing approach, one can interpret and apply this text in the same manner as one would narrative.

What did the text mean to the initial audience? The context of Leviticus discusses how the Israelites were to live with the holy, awesome God who was dwelling in their midst. How were they to approach God? How should they deal with sin and unclean things in light of God’s presence among them? These verses are part of the literary context of 4:1–5:13 that deals with offerings necessary after unintentional sin. Leviticus 4 deals primarily with the leaders; Leviticus 5 focuses on regular people. Leviticus 5:2 informed the Israelites that if they touched any unclean thing (dead animals or unclean animals), they were defiled ceremonially. This was true even if they touched an unclean thing accidentally. Being unclean, they were unable to approach God and worship Him. To be purified (made clean), they were to confess their sin and bring the priest a lamb or a goat for a sacrifice (5:5–6). The priest would sacrifice the animal on their behalf and they would be clean again, able to approach and worship God.

What are the differences between the initial audience and believers today?

What is the universal principle in this text? The central universal principle in these verses relates to the concept that God is holy. When He dwells among His people, His holiness demands that they keep separate from sin and unclean things. If they become unclean, they must be purified by a blood sacrifice. This principle takes into account the overall theology of Leviticus and the rest of Scripture. It is expressed in a form that is universally applicable to God’s people in both the Old Testament and the New Testament eras.

How does the New Testament teaching modify or qualify this principle? According to the New Testament, God no longer dwells among believers by residing in the tabernacle or temple; He now dwells within believers by the indwelling Holy Spirit. His presence, however, still calls for holiness on their part. He demands that they not sin and that they stay separate from unclean things. However, the New Testament redefines the terms "clean" and "unclean." "Nothing outside a man can make him ‘unclean’ by going into him. Rather, it is what comes out of a man that makes him ‘unclean.’ … What comes out of a man is what makes him ‘unclean.’ For from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and make a man ‘unclean’ " (Mark 7:15, 20–23). Believers under the New Covenant are not made unclean by touching dead animals. They become unclean by impure thoughts or by sinful actions.

The New Covenant also changed the way God’s people are to deal with sin and uncleanness. Rather than bringing a lamb or goat to atone for sin, a believer’s sins are covered at the moment of salvation by the sacrifice of Christ. The death of Christ washes away sin and changes the believer’s status from unclean to clean. Confession of sin, however, is still important under the New Covenant (1 John 1:9), as it was under the Old Covenant. Christians are not under the Old Covenant, and their sins are covered by the death of Christ. Also because they have direct access to God through Jesus Christ, they no longer need human priests as mediators.

Hope this helps. Keep asking good questions such as this one.

[Answered by Pastor HM]

Q: What does it mean to meditate on God's Word?

To answer this question, we must first understand what the word meditate means: To engage in contemplation or reflection, to focus one's thoughts on: reflect or ponder over.

Listen to what one author writes:

Meditation is a function of the mind and the heart. It is what we think about in our hearts and it is something we each do every day. Whether we realize it or not, we all spend a large portion of our time in some form of meditation. The thing is, what we meditate on may or may not be worth while. In fact, what we habitually think about is frequently unhealthy for our growth as Christians. Often it is simply sinful. This is why I asked you earlier to spend some time making notes about what you thing about. This is the first step in the process of training ourselves to think correctly.

What then is Christian meditation? It is the deliberate practice of turning our hearts and our minds to the full time task of bringing the word of God to life in the daily activities of our lives. God wants to change us from the inside out. He wants to renew our minds and hearts so they will become more like his own. However, it is only by God's grace and power that this could ever happen. We cannot change ourselves. God uses a number of things to accomplish this. But the primary tool he uses is his own word recorded in the Bible. If we ignore it, he cannot work in us. If we use it and put it to use, he will be able to enter into our lives and form us into what he wants us to be. Meditation on the word of God allows its transforming power to renew our minds and change our hearts. 

HOW do we meditate on God's Word? Justin Taylor has a great little post that will help. It also contains a bunch of links that will further your understanding in this crucial area of Christian living.

[Answered by Pastor HM]

Q: Is depression a sin? Or is it an idol?

Tim Chester, from the UK, has a great post on this very issue. Read it in its entirety here. Chester writes the following:

Depression can have a number of underlying causes – guilt, disappointment, trauma, bereavement, betrayal and so on. (Depression is sometimes linked to chemical imbalances in the brain, but medical science is unclear which is cause and which is effect. In my experience and the experience of others pastors to whom I’ve talked, chemical imbalances are never the only cause. You have to remember that medical practitioners look at all problems in medical terms because that is what they are trained to deal with – they almost inevitably ignore the spiritual dimension.)

We are not responsible for most of those causes. But we are responsible for how we respond to them. We all at different points in our life have to respond to adverse circumstances. Those circumstances may be external (bereavement, failure, disappointment, relational difficulties). They may be internal (illness, chemical imbalances). They may involve both external and internal factors. But we are responsible for how we respond and we will respond with different degrees of faith. Where we are not trusting God’s grace or God’s care or God’s goodness then that response will be expressed in ungodly ways.

The word ‘depression’ covers so much that it is impossible to say depression is a sin or not a sin. Many of those causes (guilt, disappointment, trauma and so on) will make us sad. They may sap our energy and our zest for life. They may feel like an overwhelming darkness. All these are classic symptoms of what people call depression. All of them are, I think, natural and often quite proper responses. But God also tells us to rejoice in the Lord. So in some people features of their depression can reflect a failure to have faith in God in some sense. They may doubt God’s grace and so be consumed by guilt. They may doubt God’s goodness and so be consumed by disappointment. They may doubt God’s care are so be consumed by fear. For some people their depression becomes an identity that enables them to avoid taking responsibility in life.

I am always surprised that people are so reluctant to say that sin might be involved in depression. People seem to think this is cruel. But it should not be shocking to evangelicals to discover that we are sinners, and that our sin affects us in profound and significant ways. And seeing the sin that is involved also offers profound and significant hope because we have a Saviour who rescues us from the penalty and power of sin. Often the process of change is slow. Complete change takes a lifetime. But change is always possible because of Christ’s work for us and the Spirit’s work in us. That is not cruel. That is good news.

Summarily, it is difficult to say definitively whether or not depression is a sin. Depression can arise as the result of sin. One thing is for sure however: How we respond to depression can be sinful. When we fail to trust God (in essence, we commit idolatry; we end up trusting/loving/serving something or someone more than God), then it will expressed in ungodly and sinful ways.

I think Chester's final comments are worth-noting:

It is simply not true that Christians with depression are in any way lesser Christians. In fact it’s a horribly, ugly distortion of the gospel. But the issue is not whether some people think depression is a sin or not (as if Christians without depression are not sinners in a myriad of others ways?!). The issue is people believing anything we might do could make us more or less a Christian. That is the lie. I guess it’s a lie many people operate with, but it is a lie. Our identity is entirely based on God’s electing love, Christ’s finished work and the Spirit’s regenerating power. I can’t add to that and I can’t take away from that.

Friend, remember our identity, significance, security and worth is found in Jesus. When you are faced with depression or anything else, remember this truth!

[Answered by Pastor HM]