Email Answers - Casual Clothes in Worship

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Welcome to No Compromise Radio, a ministry coming to you from Bethlehem Bible Church in West Boylston.
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No Compromise Radio is a program dedicated to the ongoing proclamation of Jesus Christ based on the theme in Galatians 2, verse 5, where the
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Apostle Paul said, But we did not yield in subjection to them for even an hour, so that the truth of the gospel would remain with you.
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In short, if you like smooth, watered -down words to make you simply feel good, this show isn't for you.
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By purpose, we are first biblical, but we can also be controversial. Stay tuned for the next 25 minutes as we're called by the divine trumpet to summon the troops for the honor and glory of her
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King. Here's our host, Pastor Mike Abendroth. Welcome to No Compromise Radio ministry.
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This is the third time I've tried to start this show. I've already hit a record two times.
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That means I've recorded over what I just said because I didn't find it that interesting, that biblical, or that provocative, or that in that order.
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So we're going to try again. If you'd like to write us, info at nocompromiseradio .com.
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For those of you who are wondering, most of the emails I receive are positive in nature. They're like K -love, positive, encouraging
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K -love. And so I appreciate that, although I know by definition if you're going to be a pseudo -public figure and you are going to say things with opinions and with dogmatism and with Bible verses to back them up, not everyone is going to like you.
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The other day I actually got a really harsh email from someone and we dialogued back and forth and kind of became friends afterwards.
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So I was very happy for that. And I think that you'll find my bark worse than my bite.
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And if you are ever in town, please come Sundays at Bethlehem Bible Church or Sundays to Bethlehem Bible Church.
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And we would love to see you. Make sure you introduce yourself and I'll try to greet you with a holy kiss. No, just kidding.
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If you're a man. I think it was MacArthur who said when he went to Russia, and you know, they take the Bible fairly literally there, at least the
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Baptists do, and he said, you know, after kissing 50 pastors, male pastors on the lips,
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I still didn't get used to it. So I might give you a hug and a handshake and I might kiss you on the cheek if I really, really like you.
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If you're a guy, I'll kiss you on the cheek. And if you're a woman, no kissing. I save all my kisses for my wife and my daughters and my loved ones, my grandmother -in -law, etc.
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I got on a website the other day, and this is just something that's in my craw, or as we say in New England, in my craw.
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And this got stuck in there. And so I've got a radio show. I can talk about it. Today's topic, by the way, is going to be,
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I'm going to answer questions from emailers. And I think you'll find it fascinating. If the first one's boring, then just wait for the second.
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And the second one's boring, just wait for the third. That's what I like about Q &A and answering questions, because there's something in this for everyone.
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We're an equal opportunity website. NoCompromiseRadio .com.
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What to expect on Sunday. If you go to a website today and you look up a church that you'd like to visit, you can learn a lot.
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And I suggest that you do that. Go to the sermon page to start and find out if there is some kind of sequential expository preaching.
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Colossians 1, 1 -5, Colossians 1, 6 -10, Colossians 1, 11 -15, etc.
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Those aren't the thought breaks there, but just for an example. And you can see this church has a high view of God, because if you don't have a high view of God, you'd never preach like that.
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This church wants to teach the whole counsel of God. They're not going to hide behind sin, death, and hell.
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They're not going to hide those doctrines. They're going to preach everything. And so I look at those websites first, and then
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I click on play, that portion of the website, and click on it, begin to listen. And then I look at staff.
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Where were they educated? Did they go to a liberal school? Did they go to a good school? Sometimes you can go to a liberal school like Fuller Seminary.
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James White went there, and he's fairly conservative. James, are you conservative? Yeah, I think he's conservative.
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Or you can go to Master Seminary and come out liberal. I know people who have been to Master Seminary and who aren't believers. And so they played like they were when they went in.
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And so it's not a reflection upon Master Seminary per se. Okay, I've got that disclaimer out of the way. But when
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I see this, this really bugs me. This just gets stuck in my craw. I don't know why people do it.
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And I would try to encourage you, if you're a webmaster, if you're a pastor, if you've got a church that does this, for the love of God, stop.
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What to expect on Sunday? And this is actually a church in Massachusetts. And it says, dress.
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We welcome you to dress comfortably and be yourself. Most people at,
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I won't say the name of the church to shame them, will dress somewhat casually while others will dress up.
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Jeans are certainly fine, as well as shorts during the warmer weather. Why?
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Why do people have to put that on their website? Of course, dress comfortably.
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If you'd like to dress casually, then dress casually. But people know, even unbelievers know, oh, there's a funeral.
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Should I dress up? Should I dress down? Should I wear shorts? Unless you're sequestered in your room with your
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Game Boy and the latest Call of Duty that you have been playing for your whole life, you know that when you go to a wedding, you dress up.
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When you go to a funeral, you dress up. And most of the time, when you go to a church service, there's a certain kind of atmosphere.
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Now, what I am not saying is you have to wear a tie and a dress to be able to go to church.
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I'm not saying that. If you really knew me, you'd realize I'm not a legalist at all. But I am saying this.
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Why do you have to put it on your website? We don't say on our website at Bethlehem Bible Church, dress.
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Well, you can wear a suit and tie, and you can wear a dress, or you can wear shorts.
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By the way, I like to wear shorts in the winter sometimes. And so why can't I wear shorts to this church when it's wintertime?
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When I'm in India, I wear certain things when I preach. When I'm here, I wear certain things. I preach in a suit in the morning.
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I preach with a sport coat and tie at night. That stuff doesn't need to be on there. What do
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I need to say? If you've got tattoos on your neck, feel free to come. It's implicit.
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Yes, if you're a sinner, this is open for you. Forget the dress code. Forget what it's like. I don't say on there, you know, no low -cut dresses, no tight pants.
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I don't say any of that. Unbelievers, and actually immature believers, are going to dress in a way that's not the best.
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But over time, as the Word of God, through the Spirit of God, begins to sanctify them, the men's hair will get shorter.
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I met a guy, his name's Steve. As a matter of fact, his name's Steve Janae. I don't know if Steve Janae is alive or not. He's in Southern California, and he was a heroin addict, and he had super long hair, probably down past his knees, and he got saved.
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And I never said, Steve, cut your hair. I never said, 1 Corinthians 11 says, it's a shame to have your hair that long. How long is long?
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Well, longer than mine. I never said any of that. But as he grew, he had his hair cut shorter, shorter, shorter, shorter.
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And so, as people grow in Christ, ladies become more modest. I'm sure men could have a modesty problem when they dress.
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And I'm thankful that the leisure suit with the unbuttoned shirt down to your belly button and some kind of gold jewelry,
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I'm glad that's not in fashion, in vogue these days. But my point is this on No Compromise Radio.
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You don't need to tell people it's okay to come casually to church. They already know that.
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They already know what's going on, and maybe they want to dress up. I don't care if somebody came in a
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Tarzan outfit, as an unbeliever, because if God saved him, I'd say, quit wearing that Tarzan outfit and dress up a little bit.
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Here's some animal skins for you, and go knock yourself out. It just strikes me as seeker -sensitive, watered down.
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How about, we don't care what you wear. We hope it's comfortable because we want the
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Word of God to so impact you that you'll fall on your face and say, surely God is in this place, like 1
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Corinthians chapter 14. So whatever kind of clothes that you wear, we hope that you can kneel in them well because we want you on your face, prostrate, laying out before a thrice holy
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God. Woe is me, I am undone, for I'm a sinful man. That's what we want. But this whole idea, what to expect on Sundays, okay, we're really nice, there'll be a greeter at the door, there's going to be some coffee over to the side.
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Some people might say, would your kids like to go over to Sunday school? Some man will stand up and he might read from a book, we'll sing a few songs, some contemporary, some with hymns, some a blend.
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You don't have to stand up, you don't have to give, you don't have to listen, you don't have to wear a suit, you don't have to come that often, you don't have to give your name.
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We won't ask for your bank account number unless we're Ed Young Jr. I mean, the list goes on and on and on.
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So we have a church. May I say it for once and for all, we want to love sinners.
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God loved us as sinners. He demonstrated that great love towards us and that while we were yet sinners,
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Christ died for us. We didn't have to make ourselves better so Jesus would like us. We didn't have to somehow make some moral reformation in order that God would save us.
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He saved us as sinners because Christ's death and life, burial, resurrection, so great, it's a great
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Savior of great sinners. And if you would like to come and hear the words of the living
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God, proclaimed with authority, power, conviction, all that comes from the
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Holy Spirit as He ministers through sinful preachers to proclaim the truth, this is a good church for you.
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If you want a church that you're concerned about dress code and will they give an offering, do I have to shake somebody's hand, then this probably isn't a good church for you.
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We're going to be kind. We're going to be nice. There's no sense being mean at church. That's why I love our cookie ministry.
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People making nice cookies. And by the way, if we have not very many visitors on a certain
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Sunday, there are extra cookies. And so I claim those. They are oath bound to give the pastor their last few remnants because I've earned my cookie allotment through my preaching.
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Just kidding. Although sometimes I do get the extras, probably because I'm last one out the door sometimes and then there sets the cookies.
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We wouldn't want them to go stay on that, would we? So if you have a website and it says dress comfortably, what to expect?
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I guess if you want to say we sing, this is we have blended worship, preaching's 50 minutes,
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I guess you can do that, but it just kind of drives, rubs me the wrong way. You can dress comfortably.
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You can dress casually. Who did that? Who ever talked that way? Edwards, I don't think did.
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Calvin didn't. Forget the internet stuff, but just meeting somebody on the streets of Geneva. Oh, you could please come to church today and you can dress comfortably.
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Well, my wife and I talk often. I like to dress comfortably and she said sometimes fashion is not comfortable.
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I said, that's why you're a woman and I'm a man because I want, you know, I don't mind fashion, but I want it to be comfortable fashion.
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Back in the eighties with David Byrne and those kind of big, funky baggy suits. That was my kind of fashion, all right.
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Anyway, if you want to dress comfortably and casually and be yourself, fine. Why would
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I want sinners to be themselves, by the way, here just come and sin? No, I want you to come and be convicted and confronted by the word of God.
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I want to have our website designed in such a way that it shows this is what to expect from God's perspective.
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So anyway, that's just at the top of my list on No Compromise Radio. We're not going to get too far. We're 11 minutes in and all
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I've talked about is how loathsome it is for me to hear. Please dress comfortably and please dress casually.
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Okay. Okay. Next, this is from Mike. Mike says,
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I discovered your podcast quite by accident. Well, first of all, Mike, we don't believe in luck and serendipity and accident, so I'm not going to read your letter.
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Just kidding. He said, it seems like I'm surrounded by Roman Catholicism, word of faith, emergent and liberal
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Christianity all day. So it's refreshing and encouraging to hear sound biblical teaching more than I can tell you.
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Here comes the question. I've been a Christian for many years now, and I've been studying the Bible for much of that time, but I'm really interested in a new
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Bible, preferably King James version, although I'm not King James version only.
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Do you have a particular Bible you can recommend? Thanks, Mike. Well, Mike, here's what
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I would say. I love getting new Bibles because it really does make you want to open them up and read them all the more.
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I just got my children each. I got them a nine -year -old and 11 -year -old. I got them a new ESV Bible to read.
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I particularly like the ESV because Crossway has done a great job in integrating the ESV into the lives of Christians, both in print, both on internet.
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A soft copy, hard copy, makes it easy for churches, pew Bibles, they are very user -friendly when it comes to the
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ESV Bible, particularly on the ESV Bible. When you are reading poetry, it sets it in, it tabs it in, it moves the column in a little bit so your mind says, oh, this is a different genre.
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So I particularly like that. I like the word -for -word translation model.
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And basically they've taken the Revised Standard Version, a liberal translation, and have made it evangelical.
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It could stand for Evangelical Standard Version, the English Standard Version. And so I really like the
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ESV. I still may enjoy the NAS more because I was born and raised on the
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NAS. That is, when I was first born again, I had the New King James and then switched to the
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New American Standard. And so I think you'll be fine there if you want to study the New American Standard, whether that's the 77, 78 edition, or 95, the
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New American Standard has done its very best to drive that translation in the ground. And as Crossway for the
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ESV has done a great job in promoting their Bible and trying to get it out to the mass markets,
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NAS has done the exact opposite. They've tried to kill that Bible, and sadly one day it probably will be.
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I'm sure it's 1 % of the market or less now, and it is a sad thing indeed.
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If you'd like the New King James, that would be a fine, acceptable translation. And it is based on some text types that are a little different than ESV and NAS, but still a very trustworthy
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Bible, as well as the King James Version. King James Version, you're just going to have some trouble with English that's 400 years old.
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Superfluity of naughtiness, what does that mean? In James Chapter 1, it just is a little different. A lecture conversation in 1
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Peter Chapter 1, it means lifestyle, it doesn't mean anything about talking. So you just have to study a little bit more with the
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King James Version, and maybe you like that. Elegant language, my old professor, Pastor Dave Duhl, Dr.
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Dave Duhl said he always reads Scripture publicly from the King James Version. It's an elegant language, and it's a wonderful language.
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So I would say stick to a word -for -word translation, especially if you're going to study.
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If you're just trying to read it through, fine. The NIV is more thought -for -thought. The old
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NIV, it was more of an interpretation than a translation, but trustworthy enough.
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When I see people of NIV Bibles, I don't immediately say, you're NIV positive, and point them out.
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I don't say that. But the new NIV, 2010 version, they're playing fast and loose.
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They're going the way of the TNIV, and so I would not recommend the TNIV, nor would
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I recommend the NIV 2010. You've got the Holman Standard Bible, that's like the
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NIV, it's a Southern Baptist Bible. I looked at it a little bit, don't really have much use for it, although I'm sure it's
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Evangelical, Orthodox, and Baptist. So, Mike, if you need a
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Bible, that's what I would say for picking a Bible. My suggestion would be the ESV. Secondly, the
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NAS. Now, the next thing you're going to have to ask yourself the question, Mike, is do I get a study Bible or not? Now, I like study
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Bibles because they help me figure out the differences in culture.
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We have a Bible that was written a couple thousand years ago, at a minimum, a different language,
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Greek, Hebrew, it's a little Aramaic there, and Daniel and Esther. We have time changes, we have an
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Eastern culture, we live in a Western culture, so you've got all kinds of differences and bridges to gap, as it were, and so study
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Bibles help. Study Bibles are especially helpful if they help you understand what the text says and what the text means.
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That's Bible study, by the way, I stole this from Wayne Mack. When you study the Bible, you smack the
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Bible, S -M -A -C, S -M -A -C. You smack it. What does the text say?
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What does the text mean? Is there an area in my life that I can apply this truth about God, and is there anything in my life
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I should change to think more right along God's thinking, or to do something along His way of thinking, that is, actions or attitudes?
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So you smack the text. Bibles that teach you what the text says and means are very helpful.
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MacArthur Study Bible, Reformation Study Bible, English Standard Version Study Bible, those are helpful.
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Where you get in trouble is if you have a study Bible that is particular to a group, our setting, our cause, are very psychological.
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Life Application Bible, if you go to Romans chapter 12, it's got a lot of mumbo -jumbo psychology.
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I would not recommend the Life Application Bible. I would not recommend the Application Bible for teens who like Game Boy instead of PlayStation 2, but prefer free
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Wiis on Saturdays. You've got these niches because Bibles sell. This is a money -making venture.
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Maybe some of the motives are good on why we have the Women's Study Bible, the
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Man's Study Bible, the Arnold Schwarzenegger Study Bible. That's a new one. I might have to get that one.
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No, I think his popularity is too low, 22 % on his way out, but he would like to go heat shooting,
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I think, with the Russian Prime Minister. So Mike, if you want a Bible, King James, fine.
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If you're out there on the moon someplace and you think
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King James Bible is the only version, then you need a different show for that. But I think you've admitted that you're not, so buy yourself a
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King James Bible. Maybe you can find a King James MacArthur Study Bible and read away.
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S. Lewis Johnson said, the problem with American evangelicals, evangelicals around the world, they just don't read your
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Bible enough. Their Bible enough. So, hey, get a Bible, read it. I'm really enjoying the
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Bible .is app on my iPhone, Bible .is, I don't know what the is is for, and it's a free dramatic reading of the entire
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Bible. You can get ESV, dramatic or non -dramatic, and I've got the dramatic one, and I was listening in Genesis and Lot's there, and the people are trying to come into the house where Lot is housing the angels, and they want to sleep with the angels, and God blinds them, and they're still trying to grow up for the door, and they're shrieking at the dramatized
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Bible and yelling. It's kind of interesting. So just in about five days, I'm up through Genesis 38, and I'm just reading my
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Bible but listening at the same time, and so that's a good way to do it. If you're reading your Bible more, I am happy.
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This is Mike Abendroth, No Compromise Radio Ministry. Here is a letter from Barbara, and Barbara is writing about an interview, and she said she had to get used to deer, elk, and freshly slaughtered pork because she married a guy who was a hunter -farmer.
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She said, my pet peeve, in parentheses pet, Christians who fall for the whole veggie, the soil is depleted, organic eaters.
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If the soil was depleted, you wouldn't be able to grow anything, a small carrot, a big carrot, it's still a carrot.
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Lime Jell -O, Jesus, would he eat lime Jell -O? Barbara said, yes, because he was a polite person.
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Anyway, who doesn't like Jell -O? She moved 3 ,000 miles away from Connecticut to get saved, and she is glad to know there are
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Bible teachers in New England. I'm looking for a question, Barbara, I can't find one.
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She said, P .S. still, I don't want to eat my dog, but I pray he is not an idol. And the thing is, I don't want to eat my dog either, but if I had to eat my dog,
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I'd eat my dog and probably be sad about it. You need to study Ernest Shackleton and the boat, the ship
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Endurance, and how those men, tough men, when they were stranded on the iceberg having to eat their dogs, and they would just cry when they'd have to kill their dogs and eat them.
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But that doesn't really have much to do with theology now, does it? Here's one from Rennie. Rennie said,
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I just started listening to your radio show, enjoying it, heard about your radio, listening to one of your programs you were talking about, we must be witnessing to people.
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My question is, I have a hard time witnessing to strangers, but I have been giving out Bible tracts wherever I go, into a store like the
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Cashier Drive -Thru while buying a cup of coffee. Would you consider this witnessing to people, even though I don't usually say anything except perhaps
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I have something for you? I'd appreciate your feedback. Well, Rennie, I'm really glad you're doing that.
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And I used to do that all the time. I worked in Los Angeles at the hospitals and they all have parking lot attendants and I would have a stop track from Grace Church, for instance, and I would say,
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I have something for you. I'd say the exact same thing. And they'd say, oh, thank you. Or I'd say, you should read this. This book tells you how to have all your sins forgiven.
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And then what are they going to do? Sit there all day taking money. It's a fine job to have, but it's a boring job. And so I would always give those out.
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I think in a sense, that's witnessing. You're trying to give the good news. I remember when I moved to Boston, we went to a
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Celtics game. I'd been here only maybe a month or two. And I tried to give a track to the person who was at the parking booth in the garden, in the
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Boston garden. And I tried to give it to him. I said, I've got something for you. I think my wife and Scott and Cindy were with me.
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And the guy said, I don't want that. Get that out of my face, you dirty rat or whatever he said that I can't say on the radio.
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And I thought, welcome to New England. Get that out of my face. So maybe what you do next time is you drive through and if you see one of those people that you have given a track to, maybe you say to them, did you read what
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I gave you? And that would open it up. I think as time goes on, you'll be more and more brave, be more and more excited about the truth,
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Renny, and that you will begin to talk to people. Of course, Jesus, when he gave the
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Great Commission, he wanted us to tell people, use our lips, use our mouths to tell people about the gospel.
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But I think that's a great start. So good job. Just do a little bit better. And I'd love to see you start opening your mouth.
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If you've been saved, Renny, by the grace of God, you've got a testimony. I was lost and now I've been found. I was a sinner.
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God has forgiven me. And I love to tell people about Jesus who forgives people's sins. And if they say,
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I'm not interested, then you don't have to say anything. So when you are getting a cup of coffee, I think that's fine.
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But I would love to have you pray for some other people and God would give you, that God would give you some boldness to talk to them.
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And it's not easy. It's probably easier to do this with strangers than it is friends and family. We have a great message.
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And that message is, Jesus Christ saves sinners. It reminds me of MacArthur when he's on the airplane, he's busy studying, he's going to go fly to preach someplace.
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And he usually says to people when they ask, what do you do for a living? And John says, I go around the world and tell people how they can have their sins forgiven in Christ Jesus.
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It's a great job. Are you interested? And then he knows right away, they're not interested. He can get back to work.
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If they are interested, he can stop everything and proclaim the gospel that Jesus Christ saves.
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The good news. We have good news and we want to tell people the good news. In a world of bad news, bad news everywhere, we have great news.
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And that is our God reigns and he is so reigned through the person of work of Christ Jesus that he's the King of Kings.
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Jesus is coming back and we want people to be ready. The only way you're ready to have Jesus come back is if you're forgiven and you're his friend, because he's coming back and he's going to slay the enemies.
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And so we would ask you, if you're an unbeliever, to lay down your weapons and bow your knee and repent and believe in the gospel of Christ.
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No Compromise Radio with Pastor Mike Abendroth is a production of Bethlehem Bible Church in West Boylston.
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Bethlehem Bible Church is a Bible teaching church firmly committed to unleashing the life transforming power of God's word through verse by verse exposition of the sacred text.
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Please come and join us. Our service times are Sunday morning at 1015 and in the evening at 6. We're right on route 110 in West Boylston.
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You can check us out online at bbcchurch .org or by phone at 508 -835 -3400.
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The thoughts and opinions expressed on No Compromise Radio do not necessarily reflect those of WVNE, its staff or management.