For time to time there are issues that arise that you avoid or cast a weary eye upon just because of those associated with solving the issue. Today, I viewed a sermon from a local pastor of my mother's church who decided to share a little known theological fact as he called it. He stated that Adam and Eve didn't have blood, that the Breath of God flowed through their veins. He went on to state that not until the fall did blood exist within the body of Adam. OK, personally I think this is neither here nor there, however let's take a closer look at this statement and what hermeneutic it employs.
First, if your going to make this statement, I think your reading into the text and not from the text. And this type of license is dangerous. The fact that the account in Genesis states "flesh of my flesh, and bone of my bone," does not by any means negate the existence of blood in the body. I'm just gonna apply some simple redneck theology here. If bone is mentioned at all and today we see that bone includes marrow or the stuff that makes blood then why would we think that bone in the text doesn't include blood there either. I can't make it or state it simpler. I don't know why people try to read things into the text. It runs dangerously close to Gnosticism, like they have some secret knowledge. And that crowd alone raises up concerns on that persons theology.
Second, let's talk about those who seem to be talking a great deal about this issue. As I did a simple Google search I found two main groups who presented information online in argument for this theory. It was greatly lopsided. About ninety percent of the websites which listed discussion or clarification on this issue was the Mormon Church. The other ten percent belong to some KJV-only website and some other dealing with why Jesus was most likely the third Adam and not the second.
Such associations again raise eyebrows at this theory. Of course according to the Mormon church and the LDS website it is not a theory but a doctrine of the church. Lastly, would that entail a redesign or a recreation and where is that account? It is my opinion (that's all I can give), that there is no or little prema facie scriptural evidence for support for this doctrine.
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Blessed!!
I am very blessed today, I see God manifesting Himself in my life, through the providential actions of people even non-Christians. It's awesome because these things happened right after the Lord laid it upon my heart to make peace with a family member I had been sort of dragging my heels about.
And my Bible study this morning was on John 14, just diving into God's word seeking Him, and wanting to know Him more, trying to understand what it means for Him to make Himself manifest to us as Christians, and I find out at the time I was depressed yesterday, when I thought I was not heard by my God and my way was disregarded, (Isaiah 40-43ish) that my God was working things out, that even though I couldn't see Him working that He was.
All I can say is Praise Jesus!!!
And my Bible study this morning was on John 14, just diving into God's word seeking Him, and wanting to know Him more, trying to understand what it means for Him to make Himself manifest to us as Christians, and I find out at the time I was depressed yesterday, when I thought I was not heard by my God and my way was disregarded, (Isaiah 40-43ish) that my God was working things out, that even though I couldn't see Him working that He was.
All I can say is Praise Jesus!!!
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
"The Church"
I have been wrestling with some problems in a local church that are near to my heart. It is a confession of mine that I have always been bothered by what I have experienced in some local congregations. So today The Lord led me to the second chapter of Acts, more to the point verse forty-two, "And they devoted themselves to the apostles teaching and fellowship to the breaking of bread and the prayers." The Holy Scripture continues to speak on how everything they held they held in common as to meet the needs of all. It speaks of attendance and of breaking bread in each others homes with generous hearts. Praising God and having favor with all the people, and because of all this God was/did generously add to their numbers daily.
I write this because I don't see this in alot of local congregations, this church in the text of Acts, it excites me. It compels me to drive no matter the distance. The first place the scripture parked, the first emphasis in the text was being devoted to scripture. It is here if we miss this one, the boat sails and the Spirit moves on. I get annoyed at anecdotes and inspirational stories, even if they are motivating and emotionally stirring they cannot compare to scripture. "MY WORD shall not return void to me," not your cute little story or sad event, MY WORD says the LORD. (Isaiah 55:11) "Your WORD stands eternal in the heavens" (Psalms 119:89) "Is not my WORD like fire, like a hammer that breaks the rocks into pieces" (Jeremiah 23:29) Your stories your anecdotes they don't break down walls, move mountains, they don't consume the hearts of the lost and ignite the hearts of the brethren, only THE WORD OF GOD, does those things.
So pastor I implore you, please, however clever or charming you may be, your words are like dust, you are a vapor, even the Bible says preaching is foolishness, why because you are only declaring the words of another, none of your own. (1Corinthians 1:21) This text also means because it's simple pastor, no funny jokes, no clever guises, no parlor tricks, it's simple take the text and preach the WORD, not your word, but THE WORD. So Pastor, give up the repetitive choruses that drone us into unconsciousness hoping to emote some response, Start with Scripture, then when we worship in song we shall know why and who we serve, not because we like the musician or band but because GOD is mighty to save, and HE alone is worthy of our praise, and Holy, Holy, Holy is HE who reigns forever. Teach us to know Him, take us to the Cross, instruct us in His wisdom, take us to the Throne room of Heaven, in the Scripture! It's the WORD of God that changes hearts, IT's the WORD of GOD that grows FAITH. IT's the WORD OF GOD, The Word of GOD.
I'll wrap up with a softer toned plea, don't steer away from the hard passages, don't veer from the hard questions, we need answers, we will face a foe that will not be merciful but seeks to Kill US, equip us dear pastor with the armor of GOD, point us to the answer of life's most difficult questions in the scripture, If you don't then the devil will, he will offer many reasons and difficulties to challenge us TODAY!
I write this because I don't see this in alot of local congregations, this church in the text of Acts, it excites me. It compels me to drive no matter the distance. The first place the scripture parked, the first emphasis in the text was being devoted to scripture. It is here if we miss this one, the boat sails and the Spirit moves on. I get annoyed at anecdotes and inspirational stories, even if they are motivating and emotionally stirring they cannot compare to scripture. "MY WORD shall not return void to me," not your cute little story or sad event, MY WORD says the LORD. (Isaiah 55:11) "Your WORD stands eternal in the heavens" (Psalms 119:89) "Is not my WORD like fire, like a hammer that breaks the rocks into pieces" (Jeremiah 23:29) Your stories your anecdotes they don't break down walls, move mountains, they don't consume the hearts of the lost and ignite the hearts of the brethren, only THE WORD OF GOD, does those things.
So pastor I implore you, please, however clever or charming you may be, your words are like dust, you are a vapor, even the Bible says preaching is foolishness, why because you are only declaring the words of another, none of your own. (1Corinthians 1:21) This text also means because it's simple pastor, no funny jokes, no clever guises, no parlor tricks, it's simple take the text and preach the WORD, not your word, but THE WORD. So Pastor, give up the repetitive choruses that drone us into unconsciousness hoping to emote some response, Start with Scripture, then when we worship in song we shall know why and who we serve, not because we like the musician or band but because GOD is mighty to save, and HE alone is worthy of our praise, and Holy, Holy, Holy is HE who reigns forever. Teach us to know Him, take us to the Cross, instruct us in His wisdom, take us to the Throne room of Heaven, in the Scripture! It's the WORD of God that changes hearts, IT's the WORD of GOD that grows FAITH. IT's the WORD OF GOD, The Word of GOD.
I'll wrap up with a softer toned plea, don't steer away from the hard passages, don't veer from the hard questions, we need answers, we will face a foe that will not be merciful but seeks to Kill US, equip us dear pastor with the armor of GOD, point us to the answer of life's most difficult questions in the scripture, If you don't then the devil will, he will offer many reasons and difficulties to challenge us TODAY!
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Why do bad things happen?
This is a question that most rattles evangelical Christians when posed by either those outside the faith or by a close brother. And this week it hit close to home for me when a close friend of the family was struck head on by a driver who fell asleep at the wheel. Many of my family members seemed confounded in their understanding of how God could have let such a thing happen to our friend.
Our friend, a young man with a hard life story had just began to show promise and some normalcy to his life when what seemed as an "out of nowhere" tragedy struck him down. Even now, as I type this, he is fighting for his life in a small Texas army hospital. How does one respond to such events? What do you say to a person who has just experienced great tragedy and is trying to get a hold on the situation? I think as Christians it is our responsibility to have an answer to this question.
Now, the question itself will be posed differently and from different world views. Some might ask how could a loving God allow such tragedy to happen? Why didn't God stop it? Why did it have to be so and so, he was just getting his life together? All these are masking hurt and emotional pain and only with deep compassion should we even attempt to answer and offer guidance.
I've read the scriptures and I've read the commentaries on our state of falleness and how no one deserves anything good and that we all are wretched. And I do not deny the depravity of man, however I do not believe telling a emotionally distraught family member that their child or loved one deserved what they got, is the way to lead them into a healing place or share the love of Christ with them. It is my belief that that best approach comes from sharing two main principles or facets about God and life.
First, lets tackle the big issue why God allows things to happen in the first place. We exist in a fallen state; natural disasters, disease, and crime in all aspects are a direct result of this fallen nature of the world and mankind. And God so values our freewill that He chooses not to act in general sense diverting all bad things that might happen to man, so as not to violate this freewill. Another reason is He will not violate his word, and as Galations states, "whatever a man sows that shall he also reap," so He is voluntarily yet eternally bound in His perfection by His word. A simple illustration would be if you jump off a building without the proper safety gear then you will die depending upon the height of said building. Of course that illustration also brings into consideration the natural law of gravity God has set forth during creation. But let's not get sidetracked, so freewill is a high price for some tragedy but it's worth it.
The second part or facet, concerns God's personal choice of when He intervenes miraculously and when He doesn't. I would only loving offer some caution here as not to be to judgmental when asking why here. Job asked God why in Job chapter 40 and it didn't go so well, "Will the faultfinder contend with the Almighty? Let him who reproves God answer it." It is not ours to question God's will for our lives or the lives of our friends and family. When we search through scripture and seek God's direction or answer in why something happened or why something didn't happen the way we thought it right to be, then it is my feeling that at those times when not declared directly in scripture we must trust what we know about the nature and Character of God.
This is not an easy one to convey to the lost about why tragedy happens, so salvation would be my first goal. Salvation prayed for through deep prayer and intercession. Ultimately, God's plan for us is to bring freewill agents to a saving knowledge and a relationship with and to Jesus Christ. He may choose to use tragedy to turn our minds to Him, to remind us that life is short, as He did in the New Testament with the tower of Siloam, He may use the circumstances to display His glory and heal or repair the situation or tragedy.
I want to reflect and bring this to a few short points so we don't get lost in thought. One - some tragedy is a result of man/world's fallen state. Two - God so cherishes our freewill that He does not generally violate our will and prevent these things from happening. Three - God can and does heal us, prevent tragedy in our lives, and change the course of events from time to time to demonstrate His grace and mercy in our lives or to show His mighty power over sin and death. Four - If God does not choose to do so, then we must trust in what we know about Him and trust that He knows best and loves us more than we can imagine. Do not lose that fact when times go bad, God infinitely , jealously , perfectly loves you, He pursues you, you didn't get right and then He chose to love you, the bible says that God demonstrates His love for us in that while we were YET sinners, (porn addicts, thieves, alcoholics, child abusers, gang bangers, murderers, self-righteous false converts, prostitutes...etc), Christ died for us.
It is not my intent for this to be a complete answer for every situation as to why all bad things happen. I just hope that it offers some guidance and direction for anyone locked in confusion or hurting.
Our friend, a young man with a hard life story had just began to show promise and some normalcy to his life when what seemed as an "out of nowhere" tragedy struck him down. Even now, as I type this, he is fighting for his life in a small Texas army hospital. How does one respond to such events? What do you say to a person who has just experienced great tragedy and is trying to get a hold on the situation? I think as Christians it is our responsibility to have an answer to this question.
Now, the question itself will be posed differently and from different world views. Some might ask how could a loving God allow such tragedy to happen? Why didn't God stop it? Why did it have to be so and so, he was just getting his life together? All these are masking hurt and emotional pain and only with deep compassion should we even attempt to answer and offer guidance.
I've read the scriptures and I've read the commentaries on our state of falleness and how no one deserves anything good and that we all are wretched. And I do not deny the depravity of man, however I do not believe telling a emotionally distraught family member that their child or loved one deserved what they got, is the way to lead them into a healing place or share the love of Christ with them. It is my belief that that best approach comes from sharing two main principles or facets about God and life.
First, lets tackle the big issue why God allows things to happen in the first place. We exist in a fallen state; natural disasters, disease, and crime in all aspects are a direct result of this fallen nature of the world and mankind. And God so values our freewill that He chooses not to act in general sense diverting all bad things that might happen to man, so as not to violate this freewill. Another reason is He will not violate his word, and as Galations states, "whatever a man sows that shall he also reap," so He is voluntarily yet eternally bound in His perfection by His word. A simple illustration would be if you jump off a building without the proper safety gear then you will die depending upon the height of said building. Of course that illustration also brings into consideration the natural law of gravity God has set forth during creation. But let's not get sidetracked, so freewill is a high price for some tragedy but it's worth it.
The second part or facet, concerns God's personal choice of when He intervenes miraculously and when He doesn't. I would only loving offer some caution here as not to be to judgmental when asking why here. Job asked God why in Job chapter 40 and it didn't go so well, "Will the faultfinder contend with the Almighty? Let him who reproves God answer it." It is not ours to question God's will for our lives or the lives of our friends and family. When we search through scripture and seek God's direction or answer in why something happened or why something didn't happen the way we thought it right to be, then it is my feeling that at those times when not declared directly in scripture we must trust what we know about the nature and Character of God.
This is not an easy one to convey to the lost about why tragedy happens, so salvation would be my first goal. Salvation prayed for through deep prayer and intercession. Ultimately, God's plan for us is to bring freewill agents to a saving knowledge and a relationship with and to Jesus Christ. He may choose to use tragedy to turn our minds to Him, to remind us that life is short, as He did in the New Testament with the tower of Siloam, He may use the circumstances to display His glory and heal or repair the situation or tragedy.
I want to reflect and bring this to a few short points so we don't get lost in thought. One - some tragedy is a result of man/world's fallen state. Two - God so cherishes our freewill that He does not generally violate our will and prevent these things from happening. Three - God can and does heal us, prevent tragedy in our lives, and change the course of events from time to time to demonstrate His grace and mercy in our lives or to show His mighty power over sin and death. Four - If God does not choose to do so, then we must trust in what we know about Him and trust that He knows best and loves us more than we can imagine. Do not lose that fact when times go bad, God infinitely , jealously , perfectly loves you, He pursues you, you didn't get right and then He chose to love you, the bible says that God demonstrates His love for us in that while we were YET sinners, (porn addicts, thieves, alcoholics, child abusers, gang bangers, murderers, self-righteous false converts, prostitutes...etc), Christ died for us.
It is not my intent for this to be a complete answer for every situation as to why all bad things happen. I just hope that it offers some guidance and direction for anyone locked in confusion or hurting.
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
A Reasonable Thought!
I'm still trying to hack this one out; however, if a supreme being creates a construct such as time and space, and then maintains these constructs, then doesn't it just fall into reason that the being is not constrained by the same construct created?
I write this addressing some questions that often come up about the believability of the omniscience and omnipresence and other attributes of God that seem to hard for us to fully comprehend. But if God created time, then He is not constrained by time because He exists outside of time. He conveys this through His word and I don't think we understand it correctly. God created time. He lives and exists outside of it. He entered into it to let us know Him better and more intimate through the person of Jesus Christ, His Son.
Just a thought, I agree with some Christian Theologians that say that existence is a part of God, that is in His nature to be eternal, that existing is part of His being. And that we all draw or are given our existence from Him. I only write this to illustrate the logical viability of a few of the characteristics of God. We serve a logical creator. I believe our belief in our Creator God, is purely logical. At times even empirical, if we choose not to be so biased and pampas as to reject our natural state as evidence or moral ethics as reason. And to this I refer to Romans 1-3. I mean sincerely how arrogant is it to reject evidence given. How narcisisitically atrocious is it to find yourself in the middle of all that exist and existed prior to our arrival and then dismiss it as coincidence and reject the given proof of a Creator and construct a different theories about one's origin. I believe this among many others to be eternally damnable. It is the fist that the empiricist shake at Almighty God. They do not fear, and they do not know Him,because they have rejected clear proof and evident reason and have drowned the truth in unrighteousness. God save them, for so were we before Christ saved us.
I write this addressing some questions that often come up about the believability of the omniscience and omnipresence and other attributes of God that seem to hard for us to fully comprehend. But if God created time, then He is not constrained by time because He exists outside of time. He conveys this through His word and I don't think we understand it correctly. God created time. He lives and exists outside of it. He entered into it to let us know Him better and more intimate through the person of Jesus Christ, His Son.
Just a thought, I agree with some Christian Theologians that say that existence is a part of God, that is in His nature to be eternal, that existing is part of His being. And that we all draw or are given our existence from Him. I only write this to illustrate the logical viability of a few of the characteristics of God. We serve a logical creator. I believe our belief in our Creator God, is purely logical. At times even empirical, if we choose not to be so biased and pampas as to reject our natural state as evidence or moral ethics as reason. And to this I refer to Romans 1-3. I mean sincerely how arrogant is it to reject evidence given. How narcisisitically atrocious is it to find yourself in the middle of all that exist and existed prior to our arrival and then dismiss it as coincidence and reject the given proof of a Creator and construct a different theories about one's origin. I believe this among many others to be eternally damnable. It is the fist that the empiricist shake at Almighty God. They do not fear, and they do not know Him,because they have rejected clear proof and evident reason and have drowned the truth in unrighteousness. God save them, for so were we before Christ saved us.
New Blog, familiar post.
Recently, I woke to ponder the title of my blog site, which led me to this name change and a narrowing or more detailed explanation of the thoughts and opinions represented here. I have posted a blog from my first site, which I feel states more of the central focus and intention of the blog.
Please feel free to respond or comment on any posting. I simply ask that you refrain from all uses of profanity or coarse language. Thank you. I look forward to hearing your thoughts and comments.
Please feel free to respond or comment on any posting. I simply ask that you refrain from all uses of profanity or coarse language. Thank you. I look forward to hearing your thoughts and comments.
"God in the dock" C.S.Lewis
I recently came across a quote from CS Lewis from God in the Dock, which I think helps those when dealing with opposition to the Christian worldview, especially coming from obscure places or philosophies. I can not take credit for this discovery, it was brought to my attention from a podcast I am subscribed to of Greg Koukl's Stand to Reason. I think however, it makes a good point.
C.S. Lewis stated in his book, God in the Dock, “You must show that a man is wrong before you start explaining why he is wrong. “ (C.S.Lewis)
You will find in college or through your encounter with the internet that many young adults are exposed to movies such as "Zeitgeist," that there are many opponents to the Christian religion, claiming among them that even the historical account of our savior Jesus Christ life was stolen from ancient egyptian belief or greek thought, this dates back to the myths of Horus and even Mithra. And one can spend tons of time researching each claim and debunking them, feeling as though it's our responsibility because they introduced the idea, we must vet these claims on our own. But here Lewis gives us a clever response.
It is not our responsibility to explain away every little coincidence, if there are any, Jesus was a real person, who performed miracles and was resurrected from the dead. These are historical facts and most atheist don't discredit this. So in redneck laymen's terms when someone presents one of these new ideas simply say "so," prove to me He never existed first then we can discuss the similarities.
Again, I am no apologetics savant, just came across this and thought it might be helpful.
Soli Deo Gloria,
C.S. Lewis stated in his book, God in the Dock, “You must show that a man is wrong before you start explaining why he is wrong. “
You will find in college or through your encounter with the internet that many young adults are exposed to movies such as "Zeitgeist," that there are many opponents to the Christian religion, claiming among them that even the historical account of our savior Jesus Christ life was stolen from ancient egyptian belief or greek thought, this dates back to the myths of Horus and even Mithra. And one can spend tons of time researching each claim and debunking them, feeling as though it's our responsibility because they introduced the idea, we must vet these claims on our own. But here Lewis gives us a clever response.
It is not our responsibility to explain away every little coincidence, if there are any, Jesus was a real person, who performed miracles and was resurrected from the dead. These are historical facts and most atheist don't discredit this. So in redneck laymen's terms when someone presents one of these new ideas simply say "so," prove to me He never existed first then we can discuss the similarities.
Again, I am no apologetics savant, just came across this and thought it might be helpful.
Soli Deo Gloria,
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