Are the “Sons of God” in Genesis 6 Fallen Angels?

Are the sons of God mentioned in Genesis 6 actually fallen Angels. That's just one of the questions will be answering on today's addition of core Christianity hi this is Bill Meyer along with pastor Adrian Sanchez and this is the radio program where we answer your questions about the Bible and the Christian life every day. You can call us right now with your question.

At 833, the court, that's 1-833-843-2673 and you can email us at questions at core, Christianity.com will sometimes when things are working right.

You've got to get creative. And that's exactly what one astronaut did last week. The crew of the international space station was able to plug a long-standing air leak. After locating the source with the help of teabag.

The station had been experiencing a mysterious air leak since September of last year, but the leak was minor enough that fixing it wasn't considered a priority until the leak rate increased in August.

While the source of the leak was finally found one Russian cosmonaut Anatolia function broke open a teabag allowing the leaves to float free in the service module of the station. The crew sealed off that area and they monitor the leaves on video cameras, noting the tiny teen fragments floated towards a scratch on the wall was then confirmed to be the source of the leak, and they were able to repair it. Pretty awesome. You know something if you tell that story but I thought they were going to plug the leak with the teabag. This is why I am not an astronaut has actually been probably wouldn't hold up yet mostly on reentry or whatever all men. Well, I'm glad they're okay.

I'm glad they've got creative and fix that. That's really cool.

Let's get to our first question of the day Israel.

This one is an email from Alyssa and this is just in time for Halloween. She says there's a church in our town that has an alternative event for kids to attend instead of trick-or-treating. They encourage families to avoid Halloween festivities and instead to attend this program. It's supposed to be more wholesome and family-friendly. I brought it up to my kids, but they thought it was cheesy. We might end up doing both, but I just wanted to hear what you think about these types of alternative events that we actually a couple years back we did both. We did trick-or-treating is a family and then we, as were walking through a neighborhood there is a church that was having one of these harvest festivals are met to go by different names and we got to stop by and hang out with a lot of the people there at the church and the kids got extra candy and it was a great time. My position is when it comes to trick-or-treating.

Christians are going to have differences of opinion.

There are some people that just feel like I don't want to go trick-or-treating with my kids to see all those scary costumes that kind of thing in their other Christian households that feel like it's not that big of a deal which is walking through the neighborhood and getting candy and I think we have to be charitable to each other. I think this is an issue of personal conscience. I am reminded of what the apostle Paul said in first Corinthians chapter 14 success for the one who is weak in faith welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions.

One person believes he may anything while the weak person eats only vegetables.

Let not the one who eats despise the one who abstains, let not the one who abstains pass judgment on the one who eats, for God has welcomed him.

Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another.

It is before his own master that he stands or falls.

And he will be upheld for the Lord is able to make him stand in there at the end of that passage.

In verse 12 of chapter 14 Paul says so then each of us will give an account to himself to God in a one of the issues there in the ancient world you might be familiar with this, but one of the issues that came up a couple of times he comes up in. The book of Romans, it comes up also in first Corinthians was a lot of these new believers for leaving behind paganism and in some of the pagan rituals they would offer food to idols.

Now some of those food.

Some of those meats would be sold in the meat market and you know people knew that they had been offered to idols, but Christians you know some believers who still eat them. Recognizing that an idol is nothing like Paul says in first Corinthians. No God but one God didn't bother them, they just ate the meat because it was meat didn't have any sort of magical powers or evil spirits attached to it because of the fact that had been offered up to an idol, but other believers, especially the ones who would maybe come out of that particular pagan practice.

They had a really hard time with these meats that had been offered up sacrificed to idols and so there was this difference of opinion within the early church there were Christians would argue would fight about. Can I eat meat sacrificed to idols or or should I abstain from meat sacrificed to idols and Paul emphasizes the fact that we need to be charitable. If what were doing causes our brother to stumble if it trips them up in their faith will then we have to be careful that our liberty, our Christian liberty isn't putting a stumbling block in the way of our brother or sister but at the same time, we recognize that yet there are going to be differences of opinion.

Some Christians are going to do one thing and others are going to do another thing but we have to be gracious to each other and I think that's how I view this issue of trick-or-treating as well. These people dressing up as ghouls and goblins, that's nothing real. We know that there is only one God.

Christians want to go walk around the neighborhood and get to know their neighbors. Frankly, I think that that's a pretty neat thing that I need opportunity while wonderful but if you're not comfortable with that. We should judge each other and if the church has a harvest festival or that kind of a thing of great if it if it's a way for the people of God to come together into fellowship into a break bread together well wonderful so I think Alyssa said that we want to be gracious to each other. I think that we want to encourage one another and we want to be sensitive to the fact that others in the church might have a little bit more of a sensitive conscience on these issues and and we want to be careful as far as that's concerned to now, of course, with everything going on because the Cove in 19 I'm not sure what trick-or-treating or harvest festivals are going to look like this year because I know at least in some areas people are saying will prescribe you to be trick-or-treating allowed and so I think every neighborhood is can the look a little bit different.

You know it's interesting you drillers thinking back to when I was in college and one of the scariest haunted houses that I ever went to those commercial hundred houses was put on by campus Crusade for but then at the end they actually were able to share the gospel which I thought was really cool and everybody is terrified instead of just ready to receive. Thanks for sharing that.

There we go. All right, well, here's another question on core Christianity. This is a call that came in from Kevin in Missouri?

Is okay now for a Christian country: it is still considered food.

You shouldn't need. Thank you.

He'll have a little hey Kevin, thank you for that question and it is okay for Christians to eat pork. Now the prohibition on pork was a part of Israel's ceremonial law under the old covenant had to do with these religious distinctions that God made for for Israel is related to the worship of the old covenant the Old Testament now under the new covenant pork is on the menu. We can you not. And really, that the passage that I would go to you.

There are several passages and actually even that one that I read in first Karen excuse me. In Romans chapter 14 with the initial question on eating different foods and I think that's a good passage to go to as well not judging each other for the things that we eat but also, and I think the main text to go to his acts chapter 10 beginning in verse nine it's a vision that the apostle Peter had said this, the next day as they were on their journey in approaching the city. Peter went up on the house top about the sixth hour to pray and he became hungry wanted something to eat while they were preparing it, he fell into a trance and saw the heavens opened and something like a great sheet descending being let down by its four corners upon the earth in it, were all kinds of animals and reptiles and birds of the air and there came a voice to Peter saying rise, Peter kill and eat.

But Peter said, by no means the Lord, for I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean and the voice came to him a second time what God has made clean. Do not call common. This happened three times in the thing was taken up at once to heaven.

Three times God has to speak to Peter at any reveals to him essentially that God has made these common things. These unclean things clean now, as the passage continues. One of the things that so interesting to see is this is really focusing on what we call the Gentile inclusion that God is welcoming the Gentiles out into the church but with that. You also have the abolition of these food laws that were part of the old covenant, and so so yes the answer to your question is pork is okay for Christians to eat. It's back on the menu and I'm personally very grateful for that bill.

How about you do you like pork rinds not pork rinds but now go for a pork chop or bacon any time at all yet.

Is that what your favorite pork dish will let's see I had a really good pork loin with Apple cinnamon topping on it was restaurant one time was just delicious.

So I'm okay with the pork rinds minima snack herself, and I'm grateful for the new covenant for me and there are all sorts of reasons to be grateful for the new covenant.

Certainly, the main one is the forgiveness of sins, but also the abolition of those food laws that allow us to receive all of God's gifts with joy moving right along with confesses core Christianity with Esther Israel Sanchez and with Halloween tomorrow. We have an excellent resource want to tell you about today.

Yes we do a return frequently requested resource over it, or Christianity.com. It's called nine frequently asked questions about angels and demons and it's free for you when you sign up for a weekly newsletter.

He is one of his. I said one of our more popular resources and unfortunately there's a lot of bad teaching when it comes to Angels and Demons download and share this resource that focuses on what the Bible actually teaches by heading the core, Christianity.com/offers to download nine frequently asked questions about angels and demons doesn't answer the question about how many angels can dance on the head of a pin that in there. I mean I think that's why the resource was written. Bill just to figure out what up now. I don't go.

So, actually, but it answers a lot of other really good questions all right will check that out again. It's called nine frequently asked questions about angels and demons. You can call us for that.

At 833-843-2673. That's 833. The core will here's a question that was posted by Mark on our Facebook page, he says, what does the word repent really mean does it mean to stop sinning or does that mean a change of mind, leading to a change life. I ask this because if we preach repent and believe.

Are we preaching works done by us or work of God done to us by God. Why preach repentance when if a man truly believes his mind has already been changed. While the Greek word met Inouye does mean a change of mind that included in this are two elements that are minute break down for you and certainly associated with this is the idea of a change life and mood. You have an encounter with the living God.

You're not left the same. If you can't be Martin Luther, the Protestant reformer, a sexy appropriate that we talk about him you know around this time of the year because it's around this time of the year that he's said to have stabled his 95 theses of course he didn't use the stapler, but to the castle door at Wittenberg, where he was basically protesting against some of the practices going on in the medieval church is that that's one of the things that a lot of Christians remember around this time of the year in and there was a controversy there in the 16th century, known as the anti-know me in controversy. Now that might be a word that you've never heard before. Anti-know me and it's a big award to know because there are people out there today who are antinomian, anti-and non-moss nemesis, the Greek word for law so anti-law. Think of. Think of it that way. People who reject the law of God, even, who live in ways that are that are totally contrary to it so you think of for example the people that claim the name of Jesus Christ. They say all I've repented. I follow Jesus, but they live like the devil they don't really love God are not a part of the church. They don't follow God's law there and he know me and we might say well in lieu Thursday.

There were some people that were saying that repentance didn't come from the law, preaching the law, but from preaching the gospel in Luther said actually true repentance requires both first and indeed these are at least according to him, and I think it's it's helpful to think about this as we get to kind of the core of your question.

What is repentance will first repentance includes sorrow over sin. I recognize what my saying is, and what it's done to me and to others, but it also includes repentance also includes the intention to do better resolving to say Lord I'm going to follow you a sorrow for sin comes from being confronted by God's law and you know the feeling you're at church and in your pastor is preaching and he's talking about what it means to follow God, to obey Jesus to obey the law and you recognize man I fall so short of that I don't love my neighbor as I show that I don't love goddess I should welcome that sorrow that you experience comes from the preaching of the law, but you also have the intention to do good in repentance, or you ought to have it in repentance that comes from the hope of the gospel. The law brings sorrow, but the gospel brings hope she see repentance is a turning away from our sins because we recognize that their heinous but it's also turning toward God in faith with hope and if you don't have that second part if you just have sorrow what your left in despair and I think sometimes Christians confuse repentance for despair that they go. I just got in us sit and wallow in my sin for a while and beat myself up and in the more miserable I can be. The more truly, I've repented, but there's no hope it's just complete sorrow, depression, darkness, repentance includes both the sorrow over sin but also looking in faith to the one who can cleanse our sins.

Jesus repentance is so it's really important that you have both of those things because if you just have sorrow, your left in despair.

And if you dictate your sin and turn from it you were just trying to look to Jesus, quote unquote, while still clinging to, and loving your sin, you could be deceiving yourself think a lot of people do that today. I she wrote an article over it core Christianity.calm called true versus false repentance.

What's the difference right try to sort of untangle this question of well what about false repentance and what is what is true repentance look like, but I think Luther right there is is a really helpful guide and it's important also me going going to the other part of your?

We see you know if I preach repent and believe. Are we preaching works done by us for a work of God done to us by God. Repentance is a work of the Holy Spirit. God is the one who works in us.

Paul says to the Philippians, both to will and to do so know this when we talk about repentance is not your part in the sense that you pull yourself up by the bootstraps. Note even repentance recognizing that your sin is as bad as it is in and being able to look up and hope to got even that is a gift to the work of the Holy Spirit. As you know, one thing you could do if you feel like a bladder. No fight. If I've truly repented arm wrestling with her pension as you do get on your knees and you go before the Lord, and you say God by the grace of your Holy Spirit help me to truly repent to hate my sin and to turn to you by faith to cling to you Lord to leave behind these things so easily ensnare me to cling to your cross. The cross of your son Jesus, pray for it because that is a gift given to us by God by the grace of the Holy Spirit.

So Mark, thank you for that question and may the Lord bless you and you mentioned something about godly sorrow Benadryl and I think we have to understand the difference between godly sorrow and wallowing in shame and guilt, which is never God's intent.

You're absolutely right. And you know there are places in Scripture that talk about that with Paul's letter to the Corinthian seat and when he writes to the Corinthians. He talks about the repentance that was produced through his work through his preaching his ministry to them. He talked about the fact there was sorrow but there also was this desire for righteousness. This turning away from sin.

This hope in God, you think also the accountability of one of the things that I think is characteristic of true repentance is the willingness to have accountability they were bringing our sin into the light was out. I'm through with it and so I can be honest about it.

I can confess it. A lot of times I think we we tried to cling to our sins hold onto that we want to let them go yet and will tell ourselves. We've repented I'm done with that, but in reality we want to still have it and protect it and engage in it well bring it into the light because when you bring sin into the light. That's right, dries up and dies and I think that's one of the things it's so beautiful about the Christian community about the church is we get to fellowship with each other.

We can be honest with one another and as were honest with each other bring sin into the light. That's how it's put to death.

It flourishes in the darkness, but in the light in the light of Jesus Christ in the light of Christian community. It dies.

This is core Christianity with pastor Adm. Sanchez and if you have a question for us. You can call us anytime at 833-843-2673. That's 833. The core and now I have a question and read articles on your website recently about it. And this past Sunday we had a sermon in that sermon are pastor mentioned view that he has changed. I just recently and does research for the sermon and it is regarding angels and specifically in Genesis chapter 6 wanted to the sons of God.

All the daughters of man and polity were attractive and they took as their wives pacifically, the sons of God, who they are. It was supposed that they might be angels, as I wanted to know your problem is safe. I got to enjoy the show and really enjoy listening will.

Thank you for that question. And this is one of the more controversial passages and in the book of Genesis, there have been several different interpretations. I think probably the most popular interpretation and this is the one that you you see evidence for early on is the one that it sounds like your pastor has angels in the phrase sons of God is often used to describe angels you think of Job, chapter 1 verse six or chapter 2 verse one, you know, the idea of the sons of God is a reference to the Angels and so another reason that that view is unsettling for a lot of people is because me talks about these beings. These angelic beings having relations with women and having offspring and so that raises all sorts of questions. But that is one of the views on this passage and I think there are biblical reasons for embracing that view.

Amid think there's some controversy obviously. And that's why there are differences of opinion on this text amid another reason that people embrace this to Tommy's because when you look at the New Testament particular in second Peter chapter 2, and then a parallel text in Jude verse seven.

It does seem to indicate there are two that there was this sort of event that took place related to sexual immorality and angelic beings, so there seems to be some New Testament corroboration for this view that the sons of God are angelic or were angelic beings that were later not judged by God, basically because of what they had done and condemned by the Lord and judged severely another view, which I think is legitimate and has biblical warrant is that really what what's being talked about here are the two lines the line of Seth and the line of Cain and Seth is obviously the good line cane was the first murderer that is the idea that the set by good line was marrying Canaanite women corrupting the godly line. Now there are some questions that are raised even with that view of intent. I think the primary one is will will then why does verse four when it talks about the net full of him who were on the earth talk about them and in the way that it does. Another view is that this sort of divine kingship view and that's it asserted on the basis of Psalm 82.

It's this idea that rulers or judges are sometimes referred to as God's you think of second Samuel chapter 7 verse 14 and in in this view, the idea is that these rulers are engaging in polygamy. Taking multiple wives and so that that's what's being condemned Tommy each one of these views I think has a degree of warrant and I think that there are things about them that that are problematic as well.

I think more and more I'm sort of partial to the angel view may be in on this is one of the ways it's been sort of parsed out is that these angelic beings. These evil beings possessed men, people who possessing them essentially engaged in these relations and that's how you ended up with these offspring but the fact of the matter is, like I said just principle of biblical interpretation that I think is really important for us is let the clear passages of Scripture interpret the less clear passages of Scripture and so with that I think right like we do know that angels don't have sexual relations that we have to be careful just imagining these angelic beings coming straight down from heaven. You know not to possessing someone or something like that and with all this. I think Tommy one of these want to keep in mind is this really important principle of Bible interpretation, and that's that. We let that the clear passages of Scripture interpret the less clear passages of Scripture and while in some ways I'm not partial to the.

The angel view because of the fact that it's got a lot of support in the history of the church and also because of some of those New Testament texts that seem to corroborated. I think also one of the strengths of the other view, the sort of Seth IBU is in the book of Genesis. What's being traced this the godly seat. You think back to the promises in Genesis chapter 3 where the seed of the woman is and across the head of the serpent. So the focus is on the seed of the woman that's coming and that's being traced throughout the book of Genesis and if that's one of the major themes. Maybe that's supposed to be the focus, and we know that the seed of the woman crushes the head of the serpent. This is the hope of the gospel that see is Jesus Christ. Thanks for listening to core Christianity to request your copy of today's special offer. Visit us@corechristianity.com and click on offers in the menu bar or call us at 1-833-843-2673 that's a 33, the court when you contact us. Please let us know how you been encouraged by this podcast and be sure to join us next time. As we explore the truth of God's word together