Should a Christian be "Tolerant"?

Some people don't eat certain types of meats.  Some don't eat meat at all.  Some will eat anything that doesn't eat them first.  Who is right; who is wrong?  The same can be said of holidays: some celebrate Christmas, some celebrate it with limitations, some refuse to acknowledge it at all.  Again, who is right; who is not?

The Bible paints a clear picture of tolerance in these instances.

Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but not to doubtful disputations.  For one believeth that he may eat all things: another, who is weak, eateth herbs.  Let not him that eateth despise him that eateth not; and let not him which eateth not judge him that eateth: for God hath received him.

Romans 14:1-3 (KJV)

One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind.

Romans 14:5 (KJV)

Although the Bible clearly condemns the eating of pork and other types of meat in the Old Testament, it seems to justify the eating of pork in the New Testament.

And the swine, though he divide the hoof, and be clovenfooted, yet he cheweth not the cud; he is unclean to you.  Of their flesh shall ye not eat, and their carcase shall ye not touch; they are unclean to you.
Leviticus 11:7-8 (KJV)

And he became very hungry, and would have eaten: but while they made ready, he fell into a trance, and saw heaven opened, and a certain vessel descending upon him, as it had been a great sheet knit at the four corners, and let down to the earth: wherein were all manner of fourfooted beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air.  And there came a voice to him, Rise, Peter; kill, and eat.  But Peter said, Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten any thing that is common or unclean.  And the voice spake unto him again the second time, What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common.  This was done thrice: and the vessel was received up again into heaven.

Acts 10:10-16 (KJV)

There are a couple of interesting things to note about this passage.  The first is that according to the context, this is an object lesson designed to teach Peter that he was not to avoid contact with the Gentiles.  The second thing to notice is that there is no implication that Peter actually ate any of the food.  

On the celebrating of holidays, the Jews were clearly commanded to celebrate and recognize specific holidays.  In the New Testament Christians are neither commanded nor forbidden to celebrate holidays.  Although many, if not most, of our holidays (Christmas, Easter, etc.) have pagan origins, the Bible is silent on forbidding us to celebrate them.  

Even meat sacrificed to false gods is not forbidden.

Whatsoever is sold in the shambles, that eat, asking no question for conscience sake: For the earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof.  If any of them that believe not bid you to a feast, and ye be disposed to go; whatsoever is set before you, eat, asking no question for conscience sake.

1 Corinthians 10:25-27 (KJV)

The word shambles here refers to a meat market.  The clear indication is that whether you buy the meat yourself and take it home to cook it, or you are invited to another's home to eat, you as a Christian are under no obligation to refrain from eating it.  

Again it says in Romans:

He that regardeth the day, regardeth it unto the Lord; and he that regardeth not the day, to the Lord he doth not regard it. He that eateth, eateth to the Lord, for he giveth God thanks; and he that eateth not, to the Lord he eateth not, and giveth God thanks.  For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself.

Romans 14:6-7 (KJV)

We are each serving God to the best of our ability.  Your fellow Christians may not do everything exactly like you do, but that doesn't mean they are wrong.  We should not condemn them; they should not condemn us.  There are instances, though, where we should refrain from certain things (eating certain foods or celebrating certain holidays) if it is offensive to our brethren. 

Let us not therefore judge one another any more: but judge this rather, that no man put a stumblingblock or an occasion to fall in his brother's way.  I know, and am persuaded by the Lord Jesus, that there is nothing unclean of itself: but to him that esteemeth any thing to be unclean, to him it is unclean.  But if thy brother be grieved with thy meat, now walkest thou not charitably. Destroy not him with thy meat, for whom Christ died.  Let not then your good be evil spoken of: for the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.

Romans 14:13-17

We are not to even put a stumbling block before the lost:

If any of them that believe not bid you to a feast, and ye be disposed to go; whatsoever is set before you, eat, asking no question for conscience sake.But if any man say unto you, this is offered in sacrifice unto idols, eat not for his sake that shewed it, and for conscience sake: for the earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof:

1 Corinthians 10:27-28 (KJV)

In these instances we should be tolerant of our brethren who don't believe exactly as we do in these areas.  If you want to eat meat; eat meat.  If you want to celebrate Christmas, Easter, etc.; celebrate them.  If you don't want to do these things then don't.  The key is we should all respect each others personal beliefs.  

Tolerance, however doesn't extend in all directions unrestrained.  There is clear indication in the Bible that sin (anything that runs counter to the righteousness laid forth in the Bible) should be condemned and rebuked.

And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.  For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret.

Ephesians 5:11-12 (KJV)

Always remember, however, that the purpose of judgement isn't to assert your righteousness over others, but rather to help lead and guide them back to the truth.

Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.

Galatians 6:1 (KJV)

How Important is a Firm Foundation?

For if the firstfruit be holy, the lump is also holy: and if the root be holy, so are the branches.

Romans 11:16

How Should We Speak?

Does your conversation lift others up or cut them down? Whether you are talking to someone, or talking about them, your speech should always be seasoned with grace.







There is he that speaketh like the piercings of a sword, but the tongue of the wise is healing.
Proverbs 12:18

Heaviness in the heart of man maketh it stoop: but a good word maketh it glad.
Proverbs 12:25

A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger.  The tongue of the wise useth knowledge aright: but the mouth of fools poureth out foolishness.
Proverbs 15:1-2

A wholesome tongue is a tree of life: but perverseness therein is a breach in the spirit.
Proverbs 15:4

The lips of the wise disperse knowledge: but the heart of the foolish doeth not so.

Proverbs 15:7

A man hath joy by the answer of his mouth: and a word spoken in due season, how good is it!
Proverbs 15:23

The thoughts of the wicked are an abomination to the Lord: but the words of the pure are pleasant words.

Proverbs 15:26

Pleasant words are as an honeycomb, sweet to the soul, and health to the bones.

Proverbs16:24


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An ungodly man diggeth up evil: and in his lips there is as a burning fire.  A froward man soweth strife: and a whisperer separateth chief friends.

Proverbs 16:27-28

Where no wood is, there the fire goeth out: so where there is no talebearer, the strife ceaseth.  As coals are to burning coals, and wood to fire; so is a contentious man to kindle strife.  The words of a talebearer are as wounds, and they go down into the innermost parts of the belly.
Proverbs 26:20-22

Contrary to popular opinion, it isn't always necessary to repeat everything you hear.  Even if something is true doesn't mean it needs to be repeated, or even said in the first place for that matter.

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He that hath knowledge spareth his words: and a man of understanding is of an excellent spirit.  Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace, is counted wise: and he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding.

Proverbs 17:27-28

A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver.
Proverbs 25:11

For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile:
I Peter 3:10

But chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise government. Presumptuous are they, selfwilled, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities. Whereas angels, which are greater in power and might, bring not railing accusation against them before the Lord. But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption;
II Peter 2:10-12

What Does the Bible Say About Sex?

Note: All references are from the King James Version (A.V. 1611)  of the Bible.

Sex has been viewed by mankind in various lights throughout the course of history.  From the free range love of the sixties, to the hush hush attitude of the Elizabethans, these views have gone to the extreme on both sides.  Even today parents have a difficult time broaching the subject with their children.  Unbeknownst to many, the Bible is far from silent on this subject.  The truth is that virtually every aspect of sex is talked about in the Bible.  Not only are the reproductive organs of both male and female mentioned by name, but their very functions (sexual, digestive, and nourishment in the case of the female breasts) are discussed frequently within the pages of the Bible.  Of interest is the fact that the Bible is written in such a way that every verse dealing with this topic can be read in any crowd without causing any to become uncomfortable.  Following are a few of these aforementioned verses.  (This post is not yet completed.  It will be updated on a regular basis until it is finished.)

Verses that mention the male body parts by name:

When men strive together one with another, and the wife of the one draweth near for to deliver her husband out of the hand of him that smiteth him, and putteth forth her hand, and taketh him by the secrets:
Deuteronomy 25:11

Wherefore Hanun took David's servants, and shaved off the one half of their beards, and cut off their garments in the middle, even to their buttocks, and sent them away.
II Samuel 10:4

And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, which thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.

II Kings 20:18

Wherefore Hanun took David's servants, and shaved them, and cut off their garments in the midst hard by their buttocks, and sent them away.
I Chronicles 19:4

Notwithstanding thou shalt not build the house; but thy son which shall come forth out of thy loins, he shall build the house for my name.
II Chronicles 6:9

His breasts are full of milk, and his bones are moistened with marrow.
Job 21:24

And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, which thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.
Isaiah 39:7

Neither let the son of the stranger, that hath joined himself to the Lord, speak, saying, The Lord hath utterly separated me from his people: neither let the eunuch say, Behold, I am a dry tree.
Isaiah 56:3

Thou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles, and shalt suck the breast of kings: and thou shalt know that I the Lord am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob.
Isaiah 60:16

Verses that mention the female body parts by name:

And they committed whoredoms in Egypt; they committed whoredoms in their youth: there were their breasts pressed, and there they bruised the teats of their virginity.
Ezekiel 23:3

Neither left she her whoredoms brought from Egypt: for in her youth they lay with her, and they bruised the breasts of her virginity, and poured their whoredom upon her.
Ezekiel 23:8

Thou shalt even drink it and suck it out, and thou shalt break the sherds thereof, and pluck off thine own breasts: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord God.

Ezekiel 23:34

Let thy fountain be blessed: and rejoice with the wife of thy youth.  Let her be as the loving hind and pleasant roe; let her breasts satisfy thee at all times; and be thou ravished always with her love.  And why wilt thou, my son, be ravished with a strange woman, and embrace the bosom of a stranger?
Proverbs 5:18-20

A bundle of myrrh is my well-beloved unto me; he shall lie all night betwixt my breasts.
Song of Solomon 1:13

Thy two breasts are like two young roes that are twins, which feed among the lilies.
Song of Solomon 4:5

Song of Solomon 7:3
Thy two breasts are like two young roes that are twins.

Song of Solomon 7:7-8

This thy stature is like to a palm tree, and thy breasts to clusters of grapes.  I said, I will go up to the palm tree, I will take hold of the boughs thereof: now also thy breasts shall be as clusters of the vine, and the smell of thy nose like apples;Verses that discuss the digestive functions of the human body:

Song of Solomon 8:8
We have a little sister, and she hath no breasts: what shall we do for our sister in the day when she shall be spoken for?

Song of Solomon 8:10

I am a wall, and my breasts like towers: then was I in his eyes as one that found favor.

Isaiah 3:17
Therefore the Lord will smite with a scab the crown of the head of the daughters of Zion, and theLord will discover their secret parts.

Isaiah 32:11-12
Tremble, ye women that are at ease; be troubled, ye careless ones: strip you, and make you bare, and gird sackcloth upon your loins.  They shall lament for the teats, for the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vine.

Isaiah 66:10-13
Rejoice ye with Jerusalem, and be glad with her, all ye that love her: rejoice for joy with her, all ye that mourn for her: That ye may suck, and be satisfied with the breasts of her consolations; that ye may milk out, and be delighted with the abundance of her glory.  For thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river, and the glory of the Gentiles like a flowing stream: then shall ye suck, ye shall be borne upon her sides, and be dandled upon her knees.  As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you; and ye shall be comforted in Jerusalem.

Verses that discuss the digestive functions of the male body:

So and more also do God unto the enemies of David, if I leave of all that pertain to him by the morning light any that pisseth against the wall.

I Samuel 25:22

Therefore, behold, I will bring evil upon the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel, and will take away the remnant of the house of Jeroboam, as a man taketh away dung, till it be all gone.
I Kings 14:10


And it came to pass, when he began to reign, as soon as he sat on his throne, that he slew all the house of Baasha: he left him not one that pisseth against a wall, neither of his kinsfolks, nor of his friends.

I Kings 16:11

For the whole house of Ahab shall perish: and I will cut off from Ahab him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel:

II Kings 9:8


Verses that discuss the sexual functions of the male body:

And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, which thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.

II Kings 20:18

Notwithstanding thou shalt not build the house; but thy son which shall come forth out of thy loins, he shall build the house for my name.
II Chronicles 6:9

And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, which thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.
Isaiah 39:7

Verses that discuss the sexual functions of the female body:

But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.
Isaiah 64:6


Verses that discuss childbirth:


Genesis 3:16
Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.

Numbers 3:12
And I, behold, I have taken the Levites from among the children of Israel instead of all the firstborn that openeth the matrix among the children of Israel: therefore the Levites shall be mine;

Deuteronomy 28:57

And toward her young one that cometh out from between her feet, and toward her children which she shall bear: for she shall eat them for want of all things secretly in the siege and straitness, wherewith thine enemy shall distress thee in thy gates.

Song of Solomon 8:5
Who is this that cometh up from the wilderness, leaning upon her beloved? I raised thee up under the apple tree: there thy mother brought thee forth: there she brought thee forth that bare thee.

Isaiah 26:17-18
Like as a woman with child, that draweth near the time of her delivery, is in pain, and crieth out in her pangs; so have we been in thy sight, O Lord.  We have been with child, we have been in pain, we have as it were brought forth wind; we have not wrought any deliverance in the earth; neither have the inhabitants of the world fallen.

Jeremiah 22:23
O inhabitant of Lebanon, that makest thy nest in the cedars, how gracious shalt thou be when pangs come upon thee, the pain as of a woman in travail!

Jeremiah 30:6

John 16:21
A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world.


Verses that discuss the nourishment aspect of the female breasts:

Song of Solomon 8:1
O that thou wert as my brother, that sucked the breasts of my mother! when I should find thee without, I would kiss thee; yea, I should not be despised.

Joel 2:16
Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the elders, gather the children, and those that suck the breasts: let the bridegroom go forth of his chamber, and the bride out of her closet.

Matthew 24:19
And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!

Verses that discuss heterosexual acts.


I Kings 1:4
And the damsel was very fair, and cherished the king, and ministered to him: but the king knew her not.


Verses that discuss adultery and/or fornication.


Proverbs 30:19-20
The way of an eagle in the air; the way of a serpent upon a rock; the way of a ship in the midst of the sea; and the way of a man with a maid.  Such is the way of an adulterous woman; she eateth, and wipeth her mouth, and saith, I have done no wickedness.

Jeremiah 5:7-8
How shall I pardon thee for this? thy children have forsaken me, and sworn by them that are no gods: when I had fed them to the full, they then committed adultery, and assembled themselves by troops in the harlots' houses.  They were as fed horses in the morning: every one neighed after his neighbour's wife.

Mark 10:2-12
And the Pharisees came to him, and asked him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife? tempting him.  And he answered and said unto them, What did Moses command you?  And they said, Moses suffered to write a bill of divorcement, and to put her away.  And Jesus answered and said unto them, For the hardness of your heart he wrote you this precept.  But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female.  For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife; and they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh.  What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.  And in the house his disciples asked him again of the same matter.  And he saith unto them, Whosoever shall put away his wife, and marry another, committeth adultery against her.  And if a woman shall put away her husband, and be married to another, she committeth adultery.

Galatians 5:19
Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,...


Verses that discuss homosexuality and sodomy.


I Kings 14:22-24
And Judah did evil in the sight of the Lord, and they provoked him to jealousy with their sins which they had committed, above all that their fathers had done.  For they also built them high places, and images, and groves, on every high hill, and under every green tree.  And there were also sodomites in the land: and they did according to all the abominations of the nations which the Lord cast out before the children of Israel.

Verses that discuss sexuality as pleasure.

Proverbs 5:18-20
Let thy fountain be blessed: and rejoice with the wife of thy youth.  Let her be as the loving hind and pleasant roe; let her breasts satisfy thee at all times; and be thou ravished always with her love.  And why wilt thou, my son, be ravished with a strange woman, and embrace the bosom of a stranger?