ABORTION:
There are many scriptural references one should meditate on when abortion is being considered:
Exodus 21:22-23 "When men strive together and hit a pregnant woman, so that her children come out, but there is no harm, the one who hit her shall surely be fined, as the woman's husband shall impose on him and he shall pay as the judges determine. But if there is harm, then you shall pay life for life".(English Standard Version) This scripture makes no distinctions as to how far along the pregnancy is,or whether it is the mother or the baby that dies, thus encompassing any which way the situation ends. God regards the death of an unborn child due to negligence as a serious offense.
Psalms 24:1 To Yahweh belong the earth and all it contains, the world and all who live there. (New Jerusalem Bible)
Psalms 115:1 To us belongs nothing, O Jehovah, to us belongs nothing.(New World Translation)
Ezekiel 18:4 Everyone belongs to me. Father and son alike belong to me. People will die because of their own sins. (New International Reader's Version)
1 Corinthians 10:26 " The earth and the plenty of it, is the Lord's." (Wycliffe New Testament)
These four scriptures show that nothing really belongs to us, Yahweh owns all, even our lives. Therefore, the unborn child within a woman does not really belong to her either.
Psalms 139:13-16 For you yourself produced my kidneys, you kept me screened off in the belly of my mother....My bones were not hidden from you when I was made in secret...your eyes saw even the embryo of me, and in your book all its parts were down in writing. (New World Translation)
This scripture points out that God has a hand in making the unborn child. After reading these scriptures, one gets the distinct impression that unborn human life is very precious to God.

Many disagree and hold to the "my body, my choice" concept. However, an embryo is a separate body from the mother because of the DNA factor: As soon as the egg is fertilized it is an embryo with DNA from something other than the mother (as from the father's sperm), causing the DNA of the embryo to be different from the mother's, (otherwise the embryo would be a clone of the mother). The embryo has it's own unique DNA making it not the mother's body, thus not really her choice. The embryo simply needs to be protected and supported by the mother's body until it can live on its own, which is how God intended it to be. Removing it from the mother is akin to pulling the tubes and wires off a baby on life support. An embryo has a functioning nervous system and heartbeat before the woman discovers she's pregnant, constituting it a separate, living being. In spite of all this, some will still insist abortion is okay in cases of rape and incest, but here is another point: That embryo is not the criminal, it is a victim just as the mother is. By the time the woman realizes the criminal has impregnated her, the embryo has a nervous system, heartbeat and simple brain - it feels pain. The mother was also a victim, and it would be unthinkable to kill her -- So to kill a younger, more vulnerable victim should be pause for thought. There are thousands of couples out there that would love to adopt an unwanted child, whether the result of a crime or not. Please, do not kill the innocent helpless victims, they committed no crime worthy of death .

And, lastly, for those who insist that an unborn child doesn't feel anything in spite of its rudimentary nervous system, you can go to this website to see an abortion of a 10 week old embryo in progress. It is a very graphic and upsetting video, but it shows the unborn child dodging the abortion tool, writhing and actually screaming in pain. As much as some don't want to admit it, abortion is a brutal, murderous act.The video (NOT for children to view!) is at: www.silentscream.org.
Just because it is unscriptural to have an abortion, it doesn't mean a woman must be stuck with an unwanted child. There are no scriptural requirements that a woman must keep a baby she gives birth to. There are plenty of childless couples that would love to raise a baby. It would be a great gift to give these unwanted children to such couples. Here are some websites regarding adoption that some may find quite helpful:
http://www.adoption.org/
http://www.adopt.org/
http://www.adopting.org/
http://www.adoptivefamilies.com/

ALCOHOL/DRUGS/TOBACCO:
Alcoholic beverages are a common topic in the bible, the most common form being that of wine. Many believe the wine in the bible was simply grape juice. However, if this were true, then wine wouldn't be considered a source of intoxication in scripture. However, the fact is the bible does list wine as an intoxicant (Genesis 9:21, Genesis 19:33, Genesis 49:12, 1 Samuel 1:14, 1 Samuel 25:36-37, 2 Samuel 13:28, Esther 1:10, Proverbs 23:20-21, Isaiah 28:1, Acts 2:13-15, Ephesians 5:18, Titus 2:3.) Drinking alcoholic beverages is not a sin in itself (1 Timothy 5:23), shown by the fact that Jesus transformed water into wine for a wedding feast (John 2:1-10). However, drunkeness is a sin (1 Corinthians 5:11, 1 Corinthians 6:10, Galatians 5:21). We are to keep sound in mind, Romans 12:3, Titus 1:8, Titus 2:2-6, 1 Peter 4:7, and being drunk does not allow for that.
Drug abuse is another issue. Yahweh gave us plants for our consumption (Genesis 1:29, Genesis 9:3). However, again, we are to keep our minds sound and reasonable (1 Timothy 2:15, 2 Timothy 1:7, Titus 2:12, Philippians 4:5). Jesus even refused to accept a drug when in his time of trial (Mark 15:23), after all, he had to be sure his mind was clear to the end. Legal, prescription drug use is not a sin. This is because, again, God did give us all plants for our consumption (Genesis 1:29, Genesis 9:3). Most drugs we use nowadays originate from plants. Pharmaceuticals such as digitalis, aloe, and penicillin, among others, originate from the plants of the earth. At least one disciple, Luke, was a physician (Colossians 4:14). Nowhere in the bible does it forbid people to seek a doctor.
Tobacco is another issue. Although is doesn't alter our perceptions like alcohol and illicit drugs do, it is a pollution to our bodies. The bible says we must cleanse ourselves of bodily pollutions (2 Corinthians 7:1, James 1:21). The smoke from tobacco adds to the pollution and destruction of the earth as well. This means that those who smoke are part of those ruining the earth, and God will ruin those ruining the earth (Revelation 11:18). Smoking also shows a lack of love for others: Second hand smoke causes severe health problems in others, especially babies, the elderly, and asthma sufferers. Since all that we do is to take place with love (1 Corinthians 16:14), this leaves no room for tobacco products. As for smokeless tobacco, we would still be defiling our bodies with the addictive substance, which is unbiblical, and the spittle resulting from it is also a form of pollution.
Alcohol abuse, drug abuse, and tobacco use are all abuses to our bodies that hurt us physically. According to scripture, we are to take care of our bodies (Ephesians 5:28). We are all given the gift of life from our God Yahweh (Acts 17:24-25) and so we must show appreciation and respect for such a valuable gift. Allowing ourselves to succumb to our addictions and cravings is a form of enslavement (Titus 2:3) and an act of selfishness (James 4:1,3) that distracts us from true worship.

ANTICHRIST:
Some are confused as to who or what the antichrist is. The only places in the bible that mention "antichrist" are in the books of 1 John and 2 John (not to be confused with the Gospel of John):1 John 2:18-19 Little youths,it is the last hour; and even as ye heard that the antichrist doth come, even now antichrists have become many -- whence we know that it is the last hour; out of us they went forth, but they were not of us, for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us -- but that they might be manifested that they are not all of us. (Young's Literal Translation)
This clearly indicates that the antichrist already exists and has existed since at least the apostle John's time. In fact, he even states that there have been many antichrists!
1 John 2:22 Who is the liar? Whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Whoever denies the Father and the Son, this is the antichrist (New American Bible)This indicates that anyone who denies the Father and Jesus are also a part of the antichrist. This would include those who falsely claim to be a Messiah, for by such claims they deny Christ as the only Messiah.
1 John 4:2-3 This is how you can recognize God's Spirit: Every person that declares that Jesus Christ has come as a human has the Spirit that is from God. But every person that doesn't declare that Jesus Christ has come as a human has a Spirit that isn't from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist that you have heard is coming. That spirit is already in the world. (God's Word Bible) Again, the antichrist is already here, and anything that denies faith in Christ is the antichrist.
2 John 7 Many deceivers have gone out into the world. They do not believe that Jesus Christ came to earth in a real body. Such a person is a deceiver and an antichrist. (New Living Translation) This is speaking of all antichrists as a collective entity.

AUTHORITY:
According to scripture, Yahweh has given Jesus all authority in heaven and on earth. (Matthew 28:18) Jesus was given authority to judge who gets resurrected (John 5:26-27) We are to obey earthly authorities because they are allowed by God to exist. (Romans 13:1, Colossians 1:16) However, if the earthly authorities demand that we do something that's against God, we need to obey God's will first (Acts 5:28-29). Other than obedience to God, people who go against the earthly authorities are also going against God, because God allows the authorities to exist (Romans 13:2-4). This means we must obey the laws of the lands we live in (Colossians 3:22, Titus 3:1) pay our taxes, and give appropriate honour to our leaders (Matthew 22:17-21,Romans 13:6).

CIRCUMCISION:
Under the Law Covenant that Yahweh gave the Israelites, each son born to them was to be circumcised (Leviticus 12:1-3). God commanded the males to be circumcised beginning right from Abraham, the patriarch to Israel (Genesis 17:9-14). However, the sacrificial death of Jesus did away with the Law Covenant (see page titled "Law Covenant"), thus circumcision became unnecessary (1 Corinthians 7:18-19, Galatians 5:6, Galatians 6:15). Therefore, males no longer are under compulsion to be circumcised. However, there is nothing in the bible that indicates it is wrong for a male to be circumcised. Therefore, it is now a matter of preference, not biblical command.

DIETARY REQUIREMENTS:
According to the Old Testament, the Israelites had to live under the Law Code that God gave them (Exodus 24:12) The only dietary restriction that carried over from the old testament to the new testament was that we abstain from blood (Leviticus 17:10, 14, Acts 15:20). The original reason was because of the life that is within the blood, (Leviticus 17:11) and all life belongs to God (1 Corinthians 10:26). We are allowed to eat meat so long as we bleed it out first (Leviticus 17:13 Deuteronomy 12:15-16,20). Eating meat is okay because Yahweh gave the animals for food after the flood of Noah (Genesis 9:3). Some people get confused with the scripture at Leviticus 17:15-16 because they think it means it's a provision to eat unbled meat if it is from an animal already dead, in this case However, this is not so: The verse immediately preceding it reiterates the restriction on blood (Leviticus 17:14). The actual cause of uncleanness is because of the handling a dead body, not because of eating unbled meat (Leviticus 11:31-40).The Israelites were forbidden to eat certain animals such as listed at Leviticus 11:1-47. Since we still have the restriction towards eating blood, (Acts 15:20) this means we are not to eat any food that has blood added to it: blood pudding, some European chocolates, blood sausage, etc. If you look at the ingredients of foods, sometimes they don't actually use the word "blood", they will substitute the word "plasma" or "byproducts" instead. Therefore, if you find something like "beef plasma", "pork byproducts" or some other similar wording, that could be the same as blood. Be careful, because these things will show up in unexpected foods sometimes. Though the Israelites were forbidden to eat certain animals such as listed at Leviticus 11:1-47, Jesus later declared all foods to be clean (Mark 7:18-19). Jesus changed the Law Code given the Israelites (details of this can be read in the page titled "The Law Covenant"). Fasting can be used as a tool for worship (Matthew 6:16-18, Luke 2:37, Acts 13:2-3, Acts 14:23). Any other compulsory religious dietary restrictions beyond this are not of biblical origin and are wrong (1 Timothy 4:1-4). Jesus was not a vegetarian (Luke 24:42-43).

ENOCH:
Enoch descended from Adam's son, Seth, and was the seventh in line from Adam. (Genesis 5:6-18). Yahweh commissioned him to warn the wicked that He would destroy them if they continued their course (Jude 14). After a little more than three hundred years, according to scripture, He then took Enoch (Genesis 5:24, Hebrews 11:5). Many believe this to mean that God took Enoch to heaven. However, this cannot be, because at John 3:13 the bible says that no man had yet gone to heaven at that point - and this was several centuries after Enoch lived. This is not contradictory, though, because the scripture never said that God took him to Heaven, it just simply says that God took him. This can mean he simply ceased to exist.

FATE & PREDESTINATION:
There were some instances in the bible where Yahweh foretold the birth of someone. Examples: Isaac, son of Abraham was fortold (Genesis 17:19), John the Baptist was foretold (Luke 1:13) and Jesus was foretold (Luke 1:31). Sometimes God foretold that certain people would be the fathers of nations. Examples: Ishmael, first son of Abraham (Genesis 17:20), Jacob and his twin brother Esau (Genesis 25:22-23). Many other instances of foretelling by God are throughout the bible as well. However, these are not instances of fate or predestination. These are merely examples of prophecy. Prophecy can refer to a particular event that Yahweh specially "orders" to happen, or warn of the outcome of the natural course of events. Other than that, people are not predestined in their lives. This is brought out in various scriptures such as Ecclesiastes 9:11 "....but time and chance happeneth to them all." (Darby Translation), showing that we all have risks in our lives. If we were predestined for things, then it wouldn't matter whether or not we used safety devices or took crazy risks with ourselves. If we were predetermined on when we die safety issues wouldn't be of any concern. Also, if predestination were a fact, then God not need to admonish us to obey him (Jeremiah 7:23-26, and 2 Peter 3:9) if we were already "fixed" to obey or disobey. The scriptures show that we all have free will (Deuteronomy 30:19, Joshua 24:15).

HATE
All men have the same origination: Adam (Acts 17:26, 1 Corinthians 15:22). Adam and his wife, Eve, were to procreate and start populating the earth globally (Genesis 1:27-28, Genesis 3:20). When the fallen angels came to earth to marry human women God had to wipe out mankind from the earth in order to fix the problems they caused, only righteous Noah's family survived (Genesis 6:1-22 and 7:23). After this was finished, God commissioned Noah and his family to populate the earth (Genesis 9:1). When the populations became numerous, God separated the different groups in order to spread the people throughout the earth (Genesis 11:1-9, Deuteronomy 32:8). Although God separated the different groups, this does not mean He favored some over the other Acts 10:34-35, 1 Timothy 2:3-4. No man is superior to another (Matthew 12:50). Interracial marriage is not offensive to God (Jeremiah 13:23 compared with Numbers 12:1).

Some believe the dark skinned Africans are the cursed descendants from a man named Canaan, but is this true? Canaan was a grandson of Noah through Noah's son Ham (Genesis 9:18). Canaan's seed was cursed into slavery because his father, Ham, didn't have the decency to cover Noah's shame one day (Genesis 9:20-27). So are these cursed descendants from Canaan the people that became African slaves? No. This is because the dark skinned Africans were actually descended from Canaan's brother, Cush, and were thus called Cushites (Numbers 12:1, Jeremiah 13:23), thus they are not the seed of Canaan but of Cush instead. This indicates that people with dark skin are not under the curse of Canaan.

We cannot be people of God if we hate other people (Leviticus 19:17, 1 John 4:20-21). This is further illustrated in the parable Jesus gave of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:29-37 compared with John 4:9). Jesus also healed a Samaritan along with the non-Samaritans (Luke 17:11-19). Divisiveness is not a godly trait, it is a wicked trait (1 Corinthians 1:10, Galatians 5:20-21). God abhors all wickedness (Psalms 5:4, Romans 1:28-32, 1 Thessalonians 5:22). The belief in racial superiority is wicked, as all men are the same in God's eyes (Acts 10:34-35) and we should work to banish prejudice from our every day living. It is not enough to practice "tolerance", because people need to be more than just tolerated. We need to actually love them as well (Proverbs 25: 21-22, Matthew 5:43-48).

JESUS CHRIST:
Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of God. (John 3:16) God sent him to earth to preach about His kingdom and to die for our sins (Luke 4:18, John 4:34, Hebrews 10:17). Jesus was alive in Heaven before coming to earth (John 3:31, 8:23). Jesus' first miracle was when he turned water into wine at a wedding. (John 2:1-11) Twice he caused a small amount of food to become enough to feed thousands of people. (Matthew 14:14-21 and Matthew 15:32-38). Twice he became angry at the greed displayed at the temple and went on a rampage overturning the money tables and such. John 2:13-17 (this is the first time, Just after the wedding in Cana and near the passover time) Matthew 21:14-13. He calmed storms (Matthew 8:23-27) Walked on water (Mark 6:46-51) Healed the sick (Luke 5:18-25) and resurrected the dead (Luke 7:12-15). There are many prophecies that pointed to his time of life on earth:
Jesus was born from descendants of the tribe of Judah. (Matthew 1:1-3, Luke 3:33-34) Jacob prophesied that his son, Judah, will be lauded and hold the scepter, people's obedience will belong to him. Genesis 49:8-10

Jesus was descended from the family line of King David, the son of Jesse. (Matthew 1:1,6-16 9:27, Acts 13:22-23), fulfilling the prophecy in Isaiah which said that a son of David would sit on the heavenly throne (Isaiah 9:6-7). Here are the Old Testament prophecies regarding Christ and the New Testament occurances in which he fulfilled them:
He was born in the city of Bethlehem (also called the city of David):(Luke 2:4-7) and (Micah 5:2)
Jesus' earthly mother was a virgin when she bore him:(Matthew 1:18-23, Luke 1:30-35) and (Isaiah 7:14)
When Jesus was a child, God had him and his family sent to Egypt for protection, and some time later he was called back out of Egypt.
(Matthew 2:15) and (Hosea 11:1)
Jesus was commissioned to do a special work:(Luke 4:18) and (Isaiah 61:1-2)
He was hailed as king and as coming in God's name:
(Matthew 21:1-9, Mark 11:7-11) and (Zechariah 9:9)
His side was pierced (Matthew 27:49, John 19:34-37) and (Isaiah 53:5, Zechariah 12:10)
The purpose for his death was to save us from our sins.(Matthew 20:28, John 1:29, Romans 3:24) and (Isaiah 53:5-12)
He was dead for three days before being raised up. (Matthew 12:39-40, Matthew 27:64) and (Jonah 1:17, Jonah 2:10)

MEN:
Men of responsibility in the congregation must be upright, monogamous, moral, and in proper control of their families (1 Timothy 3: 1-10,12-13,Titus 1: 6-9). Men are the heads of their households (Colossians 3:18) but must still respect their wives (Colossians 3:19, Ephesians 5:25, 28-33). Fathers are responsible for the spiritual upbringing of their children (Ephesians 6:4). Men are to be the spiritual heads of their families (1 Corinthians 14:35). This is supported in that the original sin is considered to be Adams failure, even though it was Eve who first took the forbidden fruit (Romans 5:14, 1 Corinthians 15:21-22, 1 Timothy 2:13-14) Husbands are to stay with their wives (Ephesians 5:31). Men are to treat their wives with honor, remembering they have less physical strength (1 Peter 3:7). There is no sin in a man marrying a woman (1 Corinthians 7:1-3, 28). There is no sin in a man choosing to remain single (1 Corinthians 7:27).

MILITARY:
Yahweh does not approve of man-made warfare and will not listen to the prayers of those who are participating in bloodshed (Psalms 5:6, Proverbs 6:16-17, Isaiah 1:15). We are to be peaceable with all as much as possible (Romans 12:18) Whereas vengeance belongs only to God (Romans 12:19). Peace is one of the fruits of God's spirit we are to cultivate (Galatians 5:22). We are to love our enemies and conquer evil with good (Romans 12:20-21). Yahweh would prefer that we don't learn war anymore (Isaiah 2:4, Micah 4:3). God does not approve of people killing each other (Exodus 20:13, Romans 1:28-29, Romans 13:9-10).

SIN / SUFFERING:
People were not originally created into sin, the original pair introduced sin into the human race (Genesis 3:1-24). Before this particular incident, they hadn't done anything wrong.

Many believe the act of sexual intimacy was the original sin, the "forbidden fruit", but is this true? According to scripture, God told Adam and Eve to procreate and fill the earth at Genesis 1:28. And if you read that verse, you see that this was actually a blessing, not a sin. God intentionally created male and female to be able to naturally reproduce offspring together (Genesis 4:1-2), for the purpose of filling the earth (Genesis 1:27-28, Genesis 9:1), and God's purposes always prevail (Isaiah 55:11), and God doesn't tempt us with evil (James 1:13). Nowhere in scripture is such intimacy between a married couple condemned as a sin (Genesis 2:24, Proverbs 5:18-19).

According to scripture, original sin didn't happen until some time after God forbade the eating of the fruit from the tree of life (Genesis 3:1-17). Eve ate the fruit first, and then gave some to Adam. So if they are the ones who sinned, why do we have to suffer for their mistake? It has to do with the issue of who has the right to universal sovereignty. Because this particular point is addressed under the heading "Why There Is Suffering In The World?" on the "Bible Topics" page, we recommend reading that article to get the full scope of the issue.

SPIRIT/SOUL:
According to scripture, when a person dies his spirit returns to God (Ecclesiates 12:7). Notice, this scripture does not make a distinction between a righteous man and an evil man. This indicates all persons' spirits return to Him. But this does not say that a spirit is a sentient being either, it is more like a simple life force/energy. Since God gives us our life force, it only makes sense that he'd take it back when our lives are finished. We have no greater reward after death than a common animal has (Ecclesiastes 3:19-21). The soul is not the same as a spirit, because according to scripture sinning souls actually die (Ezekiel 18:4) and the spirit and soul can be separated (Hebrews 4:12). Since the spirit returns to God, yet the soul dies, this indicates they are not one and the same. The soul is actually the body and spirit together (Genesis 2:7).