Fourth Year Ministries

Question - "Hello Pastors, today in Biology class we were talking about Malaria. We discussed that the only way a person can become infected with Malaria is if they get bitten by a mosquito that has the disease, and the only way a mosquito is carrying the disease is if they bit an infected person; and I was wondering what came first and who created diseases? Thanks." Answer - No, thank you! It has been over 35 years since I took High School Biology so it was about time I brushed up a little. I'm not sure about everything your Teacher taught but the dilemma you present is an accurate one. Where did the Malaria come from in the first place? How did the first person infected with it get infected? I checked out the science stuff. Here is what I was able to find. Malaria is a living organism. A parasite. The Malaria that infects humans is called p. falciparum  or p. vivax depending on the strain. I believe the "p ." classifies it as a parasite but remember...

Q: Do you have to forgive even if someone doesn't ask or say they're sorry? A: The short answer to this question is: Yes. A study on the command to Christians to forgive throughout the New Testament is both interesting and fruitful. To take a survey of the teaching on forgiveness, we see that the New Testament is explicit that forgiveness should be extended (at the very least) every time someone asks for it: Then Peter came and said to Him, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?" Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven. For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. When he had begun to settle them, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. But since he did not have the means to repay, his lord commanded him to be sold, along with his wife and children and all that he had, and rep...

Q: In the New Testament, we see that Jesus regularly healed physical ailments (e.g., leprosy, blindness, paraplegia, etc.), he healed demon possession (i.e., by casting them out), and he even healed (restored) life to a corpse (e.g., Lazarus). Why did we never see Jesus heal 'heart issues’? We know from Scripture that God can harden hearts (e.g., Pharaoh) for his glory. Can He soften them? Can He change them? Can Jesus mend a 'broken' heart? A: Any time we attempt to answer a question that Scripture does not explicitly answer itself, we need to be cautious. This is a question of that type. What follows is my best guess (!) – I can’t claim to know for certain why the biblical authors never recorded the healing of ‘heart issues,’ but I can speculate! :) If we focus our attention on the miracles of Jesus, we don’t witness much “internal healing.” While emotional ailments are very real (e.g. depression, ‘broken’ hearts, etc.), the main thrust of Jesus’ healing ministry re...