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Will you please explain 1 Cor. 3: 15, "If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire."
If you will note the context, the apostle is speaking of the ministry. He tells in verse 11 that there is only one Foundation, Christ Jesus. He wanted to build surely. Some would build upon that Foundation gold, silver, precious stones; others would build wood, hay, stubble. So it is in the work of some ministers of the Gospel. The converts gotten by some are steadfast, stable, well-grounded in the truth; other ministers, equally honest, tho not so well fitted for the building up of character in the church, fail in these respects. Their work, so to speak, ravels out; their converts do not stand the test. They are like the seed that is sown on stony ground, which springs up quickly, but in time of drought burns away. And the apostle tells us that while this may be the case with earnest, honest laborers, they themselves may be saved, tho their work will prove of little worth. It does not have reference to individual character. For the character which is built of wood, hay, and stubble, will be devoured in the fires of the last day.
2653.—Trust and Insurance.
Please harmonize Mal. 3: 10, 11 with the custom of those Christians who pay tithes in getting their buildings and crops insured. Does not the Lord say, "I will destroy the devourer," etc.? They profess to believe this is true, but in taking out insurance policies, do they not virtually say that in case the Lord does not do as He agreed, they want some resource for loss?
The matter of insurance is one which must be settled by conscience. If one feels that it is impossible to insure in the light of Mal. 3: 10, 11, by all means he should not do it. Follow conscience in the matter. There are some who use the principle that "a prudent man foreseeth the evil and hideth himself." Such a one thinks it duty to insure. Sometimes he thinks it duty to insure for the reason that not only is he in danger because of carelessness on his part or the part of some of his family, but on account of the carelessness of his neighbors. Sometimes his property is mortgaged, and insurance is demanded. These and other facts enter into the solution of the problem.
Among God's children, all in the ranks are pledged by virtue of their relationship to God to help those in affliction. The ideal insurance society among Christians would be the insurance of the church; so that whenever need, or want, or death came to a family, it would find the people of God all willing and anxious to help the one who is afflicted. That ideal condition can not be realized in this world. The only way to do is to leave all in the hands of the great Father; that is the better way; "according to thy faith, be it unto thee, as thou wilt." If one has not the faith, he is still in the Lord's hands. Let the Lord teach him.
2654.—The Bread and Wine.
What should be done with the bread and wine left over after the Lord's Supper? Have we any definite instruction regarding it?
We know of no definite instruction. What was left over of certain sacrifices was to be burned. Why not follow this practise regarding the consecrated elements? If they were used at all, we would say give them to the poor. After they have been consecrated to God, ought they to be made common?
2655.—Israel in Egypt.
Please tell (1) how many children went into the land of Egypt; (2) how long they were there; (3) how many of them were God's children who kept His covenant after they came out of Egypt; (4) why God put them there.
In reply: (1) Acts 7: 14. (2) About 215 years. (3) We do not know, nor does God tell us. Many fell in the wilderness, yet over 600,000 of the children under twenty years of age when they started entered Canaan. (4) First, to carry the Gospel to Egypt; secondly, to teach Israel the right way, the humble way, the true and trusting way. Read Psalms 78 and 105.