VICTIM

This blog is going to be more from my psychology background then my Seminary background today. As a Therapist, I have talked to many people and I have taken an interest in profiling over the years, in particular behavioral profiling. This basically means learning to read people based on how they react to questions and stimulus. I have read, researched and practiced this type of profiling over the years. I only state this to give some credence to what my topic is today.

It seems to me that there are many more predators out there today than in the past. Maybe we are just aware of it more, but it seems more realistic that the Internet and technology has brought with it more instances of predatorial behavior, because it makes one more “hidden” and brave because they do not think anyone can see what they are doing. I think we have become complacent and comfortable and that has made it easy for predators to take advantage.

To give one personal example, just the other day we had a person call on our phones using a TTY system and try to order product. He gave a credit card number, address, name and the 3 digit code on the back of the card. He then asked for a specific product and wanted it shipped to a location in a state different from where he was calling. Luckily, the person who answered the phone said he was going to talk to me first, as he was nervous making the order. Being the cynic I am, I had my employee call the credit card company, who called the owner of the card, and we found out that the owner in fact was not making the order. I wonder how many people processed his order that day because they were using a TTY system, which made them appear handicapped and because they had all the standard information?

Did you ever watch people when you are out to see who was the most vulnerable, or to see who was looking a little suspicious? Probably not, as most people are not too observant, but we sure should be more observant. I live in a small town, and within one mile each direction of my home there are 8 registered sex offenders. How many surround your home? Do you know, or want to know?

I have heard over the years, horror stories of women who put themselves in bad scenarios where they were trusting someone, because “they seemed honest enough.” Then later come to find they have had some very nasty things happen to them. It is not a certain type of women, as seen on drama shows, meaning looks. Any woman is vulnerable and all ages. Predators look for the weak one or the vulnerable one in the pack and then look to isolate and attack.

How do you decrease your chances in becoming a victim? The first is to become more observant of your surroundings when you go anywhere. Become a people watcher and learn how to at least observe some basic signs of negative behavior. Second, think critically and be discerning when anyone you do not know personally tells you something. Don’t believe it just because they seem trust worthy. We tend to trust certain people more because of their position, but this is at times the very reason they chose this position. How many times have we heard of teachers becoming involved with students, or doctors abusing their privilege? How about Nannies in the home, Priests, Pastors and Police? I am not saying to become paranoid, but discerning and side on caution.

When you are out, look people in the eye and walk with confidence, even if you are not. A predator is less likely to attack if you come off confident. Women, though many articles in certain magazines tell you not to fight back against a sexual predator, this has been shown false in real research. Fight back, especially verbally and then any other way, as most rapists are not brave and will run when someone fights back. Unfortunately, if they are going to be violent, no matter what you do they will be this way. Lastly, report it and don’t blame yourself. It will be hard, and no one except who has gone through it will understand, but it will help the next person or save the next victim.

Protect yourself on the Internet. Don’t save all your passwords on your computer, or use the automatic save on sites that you do not want others to have access to, because a simple key logger can steal your information. Identity theft is on a rapid rise, and as shown above with the credit card, if you save much of your information (i.e. credit card numbers and passwords) on your computer or cell phone then it is vulnerable. Watch what you keep on there, or attain some better protections for your computer. Lastly, monitor what you put on social websites, as predators follow these and phish for information on them and for victims.

This is a fallen world and we all need to be watchful and protective of ourselves and our families. Just making some simple adjustments can help us be a little safer in this more hostile world.

Just a Rambling Thought

I have not had the opportunity to write as much as I would like lately. Recently, I have gone into the business arena and it has taken time away from one of my passions. . .writing. I have some time as my son is napping and the girls are away at a Halloween party. I have been reading quite a bit at night before I pass out from exhaustion and I started thinking about something. Let me preface, that I am going to be speaking of God in general, and not in particular the Christian God. The thought is just about God in general and not God in particular for this occasion.

Through some of the books I have been reading and debates I have been listening to, I have come to the conclusion that in many ways to be an atheist, you have to claim to be omniscient. In reality to say that there is no God, you are basically claiming to be God yourself, and thus proving there is a God. How? In order to claim there is no God, you claim to know everything about this vast universe, literally everything. You have to because in order to say there is no God you have to make the claim that you have it all figured out, again, literally everything.

You may be wondering if the opposite can be said then, and I would say no. To demonstrate God, you first have to admit that you do not know everything, which is humbling to say the least. We tend to admit we don’t know everything, except to say there is no God, and then we seem to know everything. It does not logically flow.

People will try to use the example that because unicorns are not observable like God then that will demonstrate that they exist, but this is a misnomer, because first of all the unicorn is a created being with physical attributes and if they were real then they would be observable by either a living unicorn or their remains. Just like the dinosaurs. We should also see evidence of them being on the earth, as in footprints, historical writings or as mentioned bones. We have none of them, though it still does not mean they don’t exist, as we may have yet to find the information. The problem still holds that they try to use a finite being with an infinite being, and it just does not work as an example.

God does not have physical attributes, as He is infinite and His influence would be through His design and created work and not by actual visual confirmation. Though, in Christianity you have this in Jesus Christ and in Hinduism you would have this in Avatars. Many have written about seeing Jesus historically and many have written and made drawings about Avatars. Much more evidence than unicorns, as they are only written about in fairy tales.

You don’t have to see something to believe it existed or exists. Go to any museum with dinosaurs. Many of us have not seen our ancestors past two generations, and we know they lived, though they are not observed. It is not possible to observe these things again either, but we see the evidence they left. That is the problem with unicorns. We have none of that. The example just logically does not fit at all. Thus far, we have none of this for unicorns.

The other problem is that we do see evidence of God. We see creation, the stars, the universe and everything in between. Physics has basically shown that there is a beginning to the universe we live within, and even atheist Stephen Hawking admits that to mess with the dials of the universe by a millionth movement would destroy the universe. If there is that much design, then it basically begs the question that there is a God.

We never say anything with design does not have a designer. From the simple belt to hold up our pants to the laptop computer I am writing this on, they are designed and anyone finding either one would say that someone made them. How much more intricate are all the life beings on the planet? If a human body can come by chance, then you have to admit that a computer can, as the body is much more complex. To try to add time just becomes a time/age fallacy, because even if you trace back 200 billion years there is still a starting point, and the question becomes, who made that point. Even if you believe the universe pulsates back and forth, someone/something had to start the pulsating. Just can’t get away from the logical transitions of who put it in motion? Maybe electricity caused it. Who made the electricity able to strike? It just happens with every way someone tries to create a beginning without a creator.

To say there is no possibility of God is a little arrogant to me, because it means that you know everything about everything and how it came into being. You are saying that you have heard all the evidence about everything and it is proven without a shadow of doubt. In saying yes to these statements, you just admitted to omniscience, which is an attribute of God. The atheist in the end just transfers the attributes from God to themselves and in reality just changing who God is. It is at least a little more humble to say you are not sure (agnostic) and then look, as it is the most important question, the summum bonum.

There is a proverb that sums it up pretty well. It basically says that those who do not believe in God are in reality fooling themselves. The question really is: why do they try so hard to prove there is no God, because you can never prove that without actually being God. There is just too much evidence demonstrating there is a God. The real question is which belief is correct, because they all give a differing view of who God is.

As I said, just a rambling thought.

A Little Confused

I have been listening to some debates lately and many of them end up surrounding the evolution debate. One of the Christian debaters said that they held to evolution, which I find hard to believe. What I think they would say is that they believe God used evolution to bring about man and woman, but evolution seems to negate the whole ‘God made Adam and Eve’. I am not going to talk about evolution, but a certain aspect of Creation, as it seems to come up a lot lately in debates that I am listening to right now.

Many in Christian circles will debate the young earth and old earth, but both hold to creation, though many in the old earth camp will utilize this to incorporate evolution into their theology. My wonder comes from a different avenue. I realize I have written on this, but it just keeps driving me crazy. Of course, this blog is going to come from my a priori belief in a God, and in particular the Christian concept of God. If you are reading this, you will most likely not be turned from your belief of evolution, as this is aimed at those who already believe in creation.

Many in the old earth state that science reveals that the earth and the universe demonstrate that it is billions of years old. How many billions is a matter of debate amongst them, but when you get into billions, then a billion here or there is not that big of a deal in years (our government though would like us to think the same when it comes to our money). They will state like the young earth that even at billions of years it was still created by God. There are very good arguments from science, in particular astronomy (not to be confused with astrology) for a late date of the earth, and then there are good arguments for a young earth who use the same science to point to a younger universe.

I am not trying to convince anyone of a young earth at this point, and at times I give the same answer my professor, Dr. Geisler, would give on the subject. “On Monday, Wednesday and Friday I am a young earth creationist, and on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday I am an old earth creationist and on Sunday I rest.” What I am going to do is just try to give a little perspective on the young earth area, which I have a hard time overcoming, and give a good validation that the earth could easily be young and still look billions of years old.

Let’s say you were sitting around with some friends and they served you your favorite steak for dinner (if you are vegetarian, then your favorite dish). As you are eating, the person tells you that steak is only ten minutes old. You say, “Wow, that is crazy. That is a very fresh steak, did you just butcher it a little bit ago?” They tell you that you don’t understand; that the piece of steak you are eating is only ten minutes old. Impossible! The bull would have to be born, raised and fed for years and then taken to the slaughter house where it would be killed then cut up and shipped to the store. Your friend would have to then buy it at the store, bring it home, cook it and then serve it. No way it could be only ten minutes old. It would have to be at least 3 to 7 years old, depending on your favorite kind of steak. Really? Isn’t that exactly what Jesus did with fish?

We see all these people who were listening to Jesus and Jesus then telling His disciples to feed them. You know the story. Ultimately Jesus takes a few fish and feeds nearly 15, 000 people with them. Yes, 15,000, as only men were counted during this time, so if you take that many would be married and many with children, it would not be hard to reach this number. I wonder what they thought at the time as well. You are sitting in the back rows and you get fed last, but the fish keep appearing to feed you. You would think the fish had to be much older then what it really is. The fish would have to go to a breeding ground, the eggs then fertilized. Then they would have to hatch and grow big enough to be eaten for a meal. The bread as well. The grain would have to be planted, grow and then be harvested. Next, the grain would have to be ground down, then made into flour, cooked and served. Easily the fish would be at least 2 years old and the bread 1 year old for processes to be complete. But they weren’t for these people, as they were minutes old. Jesus performed a miracle and made enough fish and bread out of the little He had, meaning some new fish and bread had to appear from somewhere.

He did not change the nature of the fish and bread, but just used natural science and sped it up, just as He did with physical miracles. Take this very concept and expand it to the universe. Couldn’t God have created the earth in a literal six days, but it appears to be billions of years, because if left alone that is what it would take, but for God it was done in six days. Again, just like the fish, the natural processes were utilized but at a different rate of speed then normal for His purpose. He did not use different science, or logic, but just used them within His abilities.

To us the earth would look billions of years old, and we can see why science would say that. Just like if science dissected one of the fish from the feeding of the 5,000, it would look like it was years old, but in reality it was only minutes old. Could God use the science He created and make a planet that will hold human life in six days, but if done by itself would take billions of years? Absolutely! God can do anything within His nature, and the laws of nature are His to command and utilize as He wishes. To me, common sense and logic shows that God could do it without misusing any laws of nature or logic.

It leaves me a little confused why a prominent Christian debater would negate the young earth argument based on his belief that “science” says the earth is billions of years. I wonder if he would be the guy arguing that the fish in no way could be only a few minutes old because science would say it is at least a couple of years old.

Just Let It Go!

I completely support preaching the Gospel to the world and following the Great Commission, as it is a command by God. I think using this command, though, to pursue one’s own agenda politically instead of trying to witness and be light to the world is very misguided and misrepresents Christ and His message.

Many of you reading this probably know about the Dearborn, Michigan incident. If you are not familiar and want to become familiar before reading this, then google ‘Christians arrested in Dearborn, Michigan’ and you will be able to read all kinds of articles on this situation. You can see videos, blogs, news articles, and letters from Christians and Muslim groups. I have been following it and the more I read about the main group the more I actually become frustrated. At first I was sympathizing with them, and now I am actually angrier with how the whole thing is being handled by the Christians. Maybe I am wrong and you can enlighten me, but here is my gist.

I wonder how much the witness of this particular group has been hurt by their responses to Dearborn, the mayor, the police, Muslims and Christians that disagree. The attitude is astounding, as there is no humility involved in their videos and from listening a few times, there seems to be an air of superiority over everyone. It is quite incredible. How do they believe what they are doing is going to witness to anyone? By talking bad about the Dearborn police, Muslims and anyone else that dares write against them, they have in effect ruined their witness. When we are persecuted for the faith, aren’t we supposed to praise God? I could not find one spot in the Bible where the believers were persecuted for being Christian, and then they complained about the ones who persecuted them. In fact they forgave them for it, which became a much stronger witness. How does getting on Youtube and blasting the people you should be forgiving, demonstrating any witness?

There is just so much that I see wrong with this scenario. I appreciate that they want to bring Muslims to faith, but attacking the very people you witness to does not seem to be the best path. How well do you think their witness is going to be to the police, Muslims and others now? How welcome will they now be anywhere, except with those that will agree with their views?

Lastly, they seem to tie politics to their faith way too closely. Where our faith should impact our politic, it does not mean there is an absolute correct government, does it? Where do we find that in the Bible? But this is a whole other blog. When watching the videos they seem to be more worried about being “right” then about people coming to know Christ. They do not want to look like a fool in the world’s eyes for the sake of Christ, but instead want the world to accept them. I can’t see any other reason for the continued videos trying to defame Dearborn police and the community. Listening to the videos from this particular, there does not even seem to be a concern with Christ, which I thought was their purpose. No mention of those coming to Christ, or how what they have done has impacted people for Christ, but instead it is just complaint after complaint of how they were treated. Hmmmm? Does not seem like being happy for sharing in the sufferings of Christ to me.

It just seems to me in this situation that the Christians picked up the stones and have started throwing them full force. Apologetics is defending the faith and not defending your position. This is one situation where Apologetics is not following 1 Peter 3:15. Where is the meekness and humility in this situation?

Think It Through

Have you ever embellished a story when you told it? You add a little something here to make it sound better, or take out something so you don’t look so bad. I know I have. Doesn’t make it right, but we have all done it. Why? Mainly because we are worried about what others think when we are telling the story. We add to it to look braver, smarter, or better in some way. We take away so we don’t look as bad, or so we look humble. We do it with a purpose. Typically a selfish purpose.

Now admitting that everyone does this in one fashion or another, why do you think the writers of the Bible included what they did? Why would they not leave some of it out or add to it? Christianity is completely different from any other religion in this sense. By the time the other leaders died in other religions they were seen as great men in their faiths and were pretty successful. Muhammad died in the arms of his wife, and was brought a faith that solidified the Arabic community. He was in his 60’s when he died. Buddha was in his 80’s and was seen as a great man who brought enlightenment to many people. He died surrounded by his followers who loved him deeply. When their followers write about them, it is in reverence and their holy books reflect how they were holy and how others saw them in this fashion.

Compare that with Christianity. Jesus was considered by the Jewish leaders, and He was a Jew, as a blasphemer. They said his powers came from Satan, and they killed Him at the ripe age of 33. None of His followers stayed by His side and He was not surrounded by loved ones at His death, but instead people hurling insults at Him. By all worldly standards His earthly ministry at His death was a failure, as He was utterly alone on that cross. If you were to write about Jesus, and you were one of the apostles, would you write it this way? Would you want in there that you ran away naked, or that you denied Christ three times? No way. You would leave that out, right? What would it hurt to leave that out of the story? If it was up to you to write, wouldn’t you make yourself look a little better? You might say that you had no choice but to leave because the soldiers kept you away, instead of admitting you were hiding afraid for your life while Jesus faced the mob alone.

Do you see the difference? Jesus is so much different in every way, as in how they were presented in their core faith writings. It means that they were very careful to include all the truth, even at the embarrassment of themselves, because it was about Christ and not about them. They were not worried about what others thought, but instead of about what Christ thought.

When you start to think through the faiths, you will see some other differences, as how they present themselves in their faith books. There are many other ways that they are different as well. All faiths are not the same. Christianity is definitely different in just about every way then all the other faiths out there. They are not all basically the same and they certainly do not promise the same things and they do not give the same path to attain eternal life. Christianity is set apart.

More to come. . .

Culture is Changing!

I was talking with a family member the other day and while we were discussing some business opportunities, she mentioned something that really hit me. She said that when it comes to doing business the culture is changing. People are not going to stores in person as much anymore and instead shopping online. It is hard to have a “Mom & Pop” shop today, because you compete with direct sellers from the internet, and the fact that people just do not really go out to shop anymore. It is just easier to sit in the comfort of your home without the worry of salesmen/women bothering you, not having to worry about packing the kids up or going out in bad weather, and you save the gas that it would take to drive there.

It all made sense to me, as my wife and I shop online much of the time, for the very reasons just mentioned. But then I started to think about the church culture and how that is being reflected in today’s Christian life. Now you can listen to sermons live via the internet from the comfort of your own home or you can just listen later. You can chat via text, IM and Facebook with your friends without ever seeing them in person. You can play video games on the internet with people all over the world from the comfort of your own home just as easily as you can attend an online church. The culture has certainly changed.

George Barna in his research has stated that if the current trends continue in the direction they are then the church is going to lose nearly half of its life within the next 15 years. This is astonishing. He will say a lot of it is because people have been and are being hurt by the church today in a variety of ways. I think, though, that we can certainly add that the culture is changing in this form as well. In this case it is not for the betterment of the church or the Christian life, because we are designed for community. Not just IM, text and email community, but face to face community. There is something much more intimate when you are together with the church family instead of hiding behind a computer screen, and I think we are losing this aspect of our church life.

There is a danger of too much individualization, and this leads to less and less community. The question becomes how do we manage the two, as there are certainly great aspects of the internet age and what it has allowed us to do, but we don’t want to make this gift a curse by losing the body of Christ, as we are called the body?

We need to find ways to build the body through discipleship and regular interaction within the body of Christ. How do we do this in today’s changing culture? This is also a challenge because we cannot just tell people to turn their computers off, because they won’t. There needs to be some new creativity in bringing the Church community together and not just on Sunday. We need each other, yet we are isolating ourselves from each other.

Ephesians 1:18, “He is also the head of the body, the church; He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He might come to have first place in everything.”

1 Corinthians 12:13-14, “For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and we were all made to drink of one Spirit. So the body is not one part but many.”

Hope in Nothing?

Job 27:8, “For what hope does the godless man have when he is cut off, when God takes away his life?”

Some of you reading will be able to do this easily as you have kids and others will not, but try to put yourself in this situation for a moment. You’re coming home with your spouse on a snowy afternoon and see that your driveway is fairly covered with snow. Enough that you know if you do not shovel it now it will be nearly impossible to get out of the driveway.

You tell your spouse that you will get out and shovel the drive, and they are to move the car in the road until it is clear. Your spouse tells you to watch the children, as they are already jumping out of the car, as it is hard to contain a six year old and an 18 month old when they see snow and they are home. You nod and turn to go and get the shovel, but that moment, that one moment you turn towards the door and take your eyes off your child the unthinkable happens. In that brief moment you hear a noise no parent ever wants to hear; a shrill scream that sends a shock up your spine that is indescribable.

Turning quickly toward the shriek, you find that your eighteen month old child is now underneath the tire of the car. She has stopped making any noise and is motionless. Your adrenaline kicks in now and you panic, yelling for your spouse to back-up and you jump down to your knees and try to revive your child while screaming for your spouse to call 911. Reaching the hospital you are told that there is nothing the doctors could have done, and that your beloved daughter is no longer alive. You just lost your youngest child by a freak accident, and you may never be able to forgive yourself or your spouse.

Before you think that this is a made-up story to elicit emotion to make my point shortly, you would be sadly mistaken. The story is very real and happened to a family not too long ago. This is a story that could cause anyone to question the very existence of God. Why would He allow such an innocent child to die so early? When in fact the question should be asked, is how could anyone make it through such a tragedy if there was not a God in Heaven that cared about His creation? What hope would there be? If there is no God then there is hope in nothing, but if there is a God then there is a hope that one day you will see your daughter again. Psalm 25:1 says, “LORD, I turn my hope to You.” At this time in a family’s life, this is all one can do, as 97% of families that have a child who dies by accident like this end up in divorce. Unless there is hope that there is someplace better then it is all worthless, “If we have placed our hope in Christ for this life only, we should be pitied more than anyone” (1 Cor. 15:19).

It is easy to see logically how the atheist can give no hope to such a family. Seriously, what do they say that can be comforting at all, except “I am sorry.” Absolutely nothing, because they don’t think there is anything after this life. The question then is what do the other religions give as hope for in such an occurrence? Not much. Hindus will give them the hope that they can be reincarnated so they can come back to this sinful planet and try it all over again. I guess they should be happy that they do not remember all the turmoil and heartache that they felt the first or tenth time around. They can only hope that they move to enlightenment, but again there are different views as to what it takes to attain that state. That does not sound very hopeful to a family that just had a great loss.

You can take this for every religion, except Christianity because we see that Jesus came and gave us this hope. He defeated death and resurrected for us, giving us a hope for something much better. If there is something better then there is hope for a tragedy in this temporal time. That parent can have hope if one day they know they will see their daughter again in Heaven. Before anyone asks about children in heaven, read my answer on a previous blog (http://aleris.blogspot.com/2008/09/all-babies-go-to-heaven.html). 1 Peter 1:3-4 tells us, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. According to His great mercy, He has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that is imperishable, uncorrupted, and unfading, kept in heaven for you.”

How did God use this tragedy for good? Glad you asked. One of the parents went on to talk about how God used this very heavy tragedy to bring them closer to Jesus and used it to bring many of their neighbors to salvation through Jesus. Do they mourn for her? Yes, of course, but they also have hope that they will see her again and are so thankful that God can cause some good out of this horrible tragedy. In the end they say, “. . . Christ Jesus, our hope:” (1 Tim. 1:1).

The challenge is can we say the same as they did? “LORD, I turn my hope to You” (Psalm 25:1).

Psalm 147:11, “The LORD values those who fear Him, those who put their hope in His faithful love.”

Morality: Evolved or Created?

“All sects are different, because they come from men; morality is everywhere the same, because it comes from God.” – Voltaire

“Morality is herd instinct in the individual.” – Friedrich Nietzshe

“What is morality in any given time or place? It is what the majority then and there happen to like, and immorality is what they dislike.” – Alfred North Whitehead

If you watch a debate with Christopher Hitchens involved, you will see an interesting argument that surrounds the issue of morality, and ethics in general. Mr. Hitchens, an Atheist, will say that he does not need God to know what is good and to do good. He states that he can just as easily send a check to a poverty stricken area, just as much as any religious person. He would say that he can feel empathy for those hurting, just like Christians. If he can figure this out on his own without religion, then why do we need a God for our moral standard?

In one respect Mr. Hitchens is right, that a committed Atheist can do good acts just as much as a religious person. An Atheist can also lead a “good” life just as any Christian could, and act just as nice as any Wiccan or Muslim. The goal of this post is not to prove the idea of a Christian God, but to demonstrate in some instances that to have any consistent morality within society it presupposes a God or Intelligent Designer.

One could spend an entire book on the subject of morality in general, and many have, but since this is a blog, it needs to remain more concise and just impose some thoughts as to why there has to be a God for morality to even exist. Can there be any sustaining morals that are standard for every society if there is no God? If there are, how do we go about figuring out what those are?

C.S. Lewis on his journey to become a Christian dealt with this from one direction. One of his biggest struggles was the issue of evil and how can an all Good God allow evil and suffering in the world. The more he pondered this, the more he started to wonder how he knew something was evil at all. If there was no ultimate ideal of good then how can one know there is evil? Don’t read this argument too fast, and take time to let it sit in, because it is very deep, though only a few sentences long.

Every culture does not like to have their stuff stolen, and feel that it is a “bad” thing to have happen. Yes, I know there are cultures out there that have a “share” mentality, in that if it is out in the open within the tribe then it is the tribes as a whole and anyone can take it. But. . .if someone outside the tribe were to do this then it would be seen as an unjust act by the clan. Again, they see stealing as an act of evil done against them. Even cannibalistic societies view the murder of their own tribes as an evil and will seek revenge against the other tribe. These are just two examples of “evils” that can be seen across cultures around our world. There are many more when taken to their core meanings.

Going back to C.S. Lewis, how do all these societies know that having something stolen from them is evil? How do we know it? You can try to say that we were taught it, but it started somewhere and again this crosses all cultures, so it is not just some random rule brought about by a majority vote somewhere and imposed on society. No, we naturally do not like things being stolen from us. Just look at a child and how fast they learn the phrase “mine!” They were not taught that, as most parents teach the opposite, to share their things. Where did the natural concept of “mine” come from? The child feels there is an evil committed, because someone took something from them without their permission, which is the basic definition of stealing. How does the immaterial emotion evolve? Was there a time in history where there were no emotions like this? History does not seem to think so, as there have been wars and turmoil over such things as far back as we can trace human history, no matter where you draw your sources.

These moral laws seem to be natural and ingrained in us from our beginning. If they are ingrained or natural, and we naturally make these moral standard arguments, then maybe there is within us a natural inclination toward the ultimate good. An infinite Good that we base these ideals on whether we want to admit it or not. Maybe think of it like this: You walk into someone’s house and you see this 52” flat screen TV hanging on the wall. You say, “That is the biggest TV I have ever seen.” Why did you make the statement? You based it on other TV’s that you have seen. You based it off an ideal of a TV that was in your mind. And saying “that you have seen” clarifies that there could be bigger out there, but you have not seen it yet. There could be some TV out there even bigger and not just based on what is seen before you.

Now take it a step further and while you were there someone else came in and started to unhook the TV and remove it off the wall. They tell you that they are going to take it because in their culture stealing is alright. What do you say? Okay, since that is your culture, then I cannot judge you and you can take the TV. No way, you call the police or take the matter into your own hands, because you know that stealing is wrong. I bet many of you even reading the part of the sentence, “because in their culture stealing is alright,” even had a hard time computing it. It just does not read right and immediately red flags go up in your head. Why, if morals are culture based? Again, you can’t say because it is ingrained in you, as I just go back to the two year old that knows intrinsically about stealing without being taught. I will even argue that a nine month old realizes this when you try to take their favorite toy. They will cry, making grunting noises and even shake, because somehow they are mad that something was taken from them that is theirs. How?

The only way any of the above makes sense is if it was engrained or designed into our programming. There is no evolution of this moral, as we see it from the beginning of recorded history, and those that purport evolution know that there is a lot of time needed for things to evolve. There has not been enough time within human history for this type of evolution. It also doesn’t answer why it evolved into everyone knowing some things are wrong, as stealing and murder. Other emotions are demonstrated in people, as what people enjoy as hobbies or the type of personality they attract to. There are differences, but we see within morality there appears to be some set principles that cross all cultures.

I leave you with this to ponder, and it made me think more on this as well. If morals are society based and not drawn from an infinite good, then why is slavery not still around? Every culture had slaves, from England to America, from Africa to South America. It was so common that there was basically no serious debate about it for many years and then we see people like Mr. Wilberforce start to raise questions about its moral implication on the slaves. Why? He would have been brought up in a society that accepts it, taught that it was okay and that it was even very economic for the country he grew up in at the time. What made him change? Wasn’t culture or the majority changing, as it took him over twenty years to finally get the amendment passed. There had to be some set standard to compare it to, and in this case it was the God of the Bible who says to love your neighbor as yourself, and that we were all created by God deserving of the same rights as everyone else.

What if one day the majority says that it is now okay for slavery again, and it doesn’t matter what race they choose? Would those that accept culture, majority or societal morals then complain? How can you if it is what they choose? What are you deriving your concept from? You have preconceived ideas of good, but you could not trust those if there is no Infinite on which to base it. You are stuck within your own rules of majority vote. Seems to be a true slippery slope belief system because in the end it allows for everything, because without a set standard there is nothing in the end that one can truly say is wrong or right, but only what man/woman decides. Now, that is a scary thought, because we have seen what man does when they attain too much power and set the standard.

“There are two sorts of hypocrites; ones that are deceived with their outward morality and external religion; and the other are those that are deceived with false discoveries and elevation; and men's own righteousness, and talk much of free grace; but at the same time make righteousness of their discoveries, and of their humiliation, and exalt themselves to heaven with them.” – Jonathan Edwards

The Red Herring

“A red herring is a smelly fish that would distract even a bloodhound. It is also a digression that leads the reasoner off the track of considering only relevant information” (http://www.iep.utm.edu/fallacy/#Red%20Herring).

Have you ever thought that rationality and logic are things of the past? Just watching and listening to politicians will definitely give indication of this. It seems to me that today more people have given up on thinking critically through arguments. Instead they would rather just “believe” what they “feel” is right or take the word of a professor that they know little about besides in the classroom. Don’t get me wrong, there are plenty of great professors out there who would make great mentors as well, but you should still think through their reasoning behind what they are teaching.

Some time ago a college student approached me and we ended up getting into a conversation about creation/evolution. I am not going to debate either right now in light of right and wrong, because there is not enough space to give my argument. It would also be me moving into a red herring, as I would be redirecting the topic to something else, however it was the central topic of our discussion. Plus, you will get an idea of my view just from the conversation.

It ended up that he could not understand why I would believe in creation, and that evolution was obviously the answer and proven. I asked how he knew this and what evidence he had. He just stared at me, and instead asked another question, because he had no idea how to respond. Instead he tried to defend his side by just throwing out a name used by many who do not actually study because everyone uses it and almost all basic science classes use his name. He asked me about Charles Darwin. Now, he did not give any evidence that Darwin gave, just asked me about him. I said I did not agree with his premises and that many scholars, even in evolutionary thought, no longer hold to much of his arguments. I then asked him if he has ever read Charles Darwin at any time in his life. Again, he stared at me and said he has read some quotes. I am betting all my evolution and creation friends are now rolling their eyes.

I moved forward and asked if he knew of the theory regarding Darwin’s Black Box, because anyone that has done some study has heard of this in one form or another. He said no, so I explained to him that Darwin himself theorized that if the eye were more than just a gelatinous ball, his very own theory of evolution would crumble. I asked him if the eye was more then just a gelatin ball. Instead of answering rationally, he says “yes.” Are you serious? I actually asked him that. The eye is made up of cones, rods, and retina and many other parts and is not just a gelatin ball in our heads.

Here is the red herring. Instead of saying he did not know as much as he thought about evolution and would have to go and think about my questions and come back with an answer, and I did ask him about fossil records and transitions and he could not answer or give any credible evidence, he tried to redirect the conversation. His answer was that he thought religion was just an invention so people could figure out how the world began because they did not know prior. Did you catch it? I never brought up religion, but he knew I was a Christian so he used it. He tried to move to religion in general because he could not defend a position that he held so tightly. It was a self-protective mechanism that many use when they know they are caught in a debate.

The second statement was an even more overt red herring. He told me that as an educated man that he can’t understand how I would believe this, even though he could not defend the position for me. Again, instead of answering the topic he attacked my education background. I did not bite, though I wanted to respond to him. I would have said, “Actually it should tell you something that I have a Ph.D. and believe in creation, and you do not even have a Bachelors and you do not believe in it.” Now that would be me giving a red herring back, as it has nothing to do with my or his education, because it is either true or it is not. Has nothing to do with me or him. I never gave religious answers to the creation account, but scientific arguments against the evolution account. I used more of the Intelligent Design arguments (please check before you comment, because there are many non-Christians in this movement as well). I could have given the religious arguments, but wanted to stick to his theories that he did not understand.

I can’t tell you how many times I have seen Christians use this as well when debating others. I have done it myself when I got flustered, or just did not realize until I was taught about it. We are not teaching high school or college students how to critically think and how to debate with someone, and I won’t even get started on the lack of respect being shown to elders either in this regard. We need to teach that just spouting our professors’ beliefs is not enough, and we should work through these arguments ourselves. These are important matters. Either evolution is true or creation is. Either there is a God or there is not. Either all ways lead to God or they don’t. Either Jesus is Savior and Lord or He is not. These questions cannot be answered by simple little cliché statements that you have not studied or learned how to answer and then counter-answer arguments regarding the issue, regardless of where you stand on the spectrum.

Lastly, I do want to say that I have debated many on the other side who do debate very well and have their arguments very concise, both within the Christian circle and without. It seems though it is becoming a far less occurrence then a norm though. Time to get rid of some of the junk liberal classes that everyone has to take and replace them with logic, critical thinking and philosophy, at least at the basic level in order to teach our younger generation how to think critically and for themselves.

Proverbs 23:23, “Buy the truth, and do not sell it, Also wisdom and instruction and understanding.”

Keep the Sabbath? What's the Big Deal?

“I’d like to be remembered as one who kept my priorities in the right order. We live in a changing world, but we need to be reminded that the important things have not changed, and the important things will not change if we keep our priorities in proper order.” – Truett Cathy

Warning: this is a reflection blog and is a glimpse of how my mind works when thinking upon these topics. I have my opinion, of course, but it is just for us to reflect and I think we have to let God speak to us on this topic and strive to live out that conviction.

Your son or daughter has trained for years, sacrificing a lot for this moment. They longed for this special day for years, and as a parent you are so proud and excited for them. In some ways this is just as important to you because of all the sacrifice you had to give as well through driving to practice, paying for equipment and being there for them through all the ups and downs. Then you find out that this culmination of time, talent and practice is now to be demonstrated on Sunday, the “normal” day of Sabbath for the West. What do you do? Do you sacrifice because of the special day and not go, or do you go and know God will understand?

This just happened with a group of girls who worked all year to make it to the championships and refused to play because of their faith. Now they are Mormons, but they are certainly an example of living out convictions. They walked away from a championship trophy because they believe Sabbath is a holy day. How many of us would do that?

How many of us have missed events because we had to work, go to class, or another function that we thought we had to be at? Now, how many have given up an event because it conflicted with church? My goal is not to get into semantics about which day is Sabbath, but about Sabbath itself and what we have made of it in Western culture. How often do we go to church in order to rush out to another event, especially a sporting event our children are in today?

Imagine you have a child if you don’t, and not so hard if you do. Now imagine you get a call from school and they tell you they did not show up for school. You start to worry and sweat because your child is not at school, where he should be. After school, he walks in the door and you immediately ask him where he was. He tells you instead of school he went to a video gaming arcade to practice his gaming skills, because tonight his team is going to go online live and play another group and he wanted to be ready. He says it is no big deal, because school is boring and that missing it once in a while is no big deal. How would you respond? Would you explain to him the importance of school and that skipping is going to hurt him in the long run? What would you say?

Now take that to our eternal perspective and what are we saying to our children when church becomes something we have to do on Sunday and then we take off for the “rest” of our day. Now I am just as guilty with this and probably why God brought it to mind. How do we treat our Sabbath day? Again, not about which day, but the day. Is it really about God, or about fitting God in? What does it say to our kids, new believers, unbelievers, and anyone else watching us? Does it say we truly care about what God deemed as important, or secondary?

There was a movie out years ago called Chariots of Fire and the main character refused to run the 100 meter because the race was on Sunday, and instead trained for the 400 dash and ended up winning gold. Now he took a lot of heat for following this conviction, and I believe because it made people feel guilty that he was doing what they knew they should be doing, and that is respecting the Sabbath.

How are we to treat the Sabbath today? Like the Eric Liddell from Chariots of Fire, and Truett Cathy of Chic-Fil-a, or more like the average Westerner who fits God in to at least one of their days for at least an hour for service? I will end with some verses for us to ponder and then act upon how God leads through His Word. It is by no means an exhaustive list, but to give a start. Remember it is not about doing good on Sabbath, but about the importance of the day itself.

Genesis 2:2, “And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.”

Leviticus 16:31, “It is a sabbath of solemn rest for you, and you shall afflict your souls. It is a statute forever.”

Leviticus 23:32, “It shall be to you a sabbath of solemn rest, and you shall afflict your souls; on the ninth day of the month at evening, from evening to evening, you shall celebrate your sabbath.”

Leviticus 25:2, “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘When you come into the land which I give you, then the land shall keep a sabbath to the Lord”

Mark 2:27-28, “And He said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath. Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath. Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath.”

Acts 13:44, “On the next Sabbath almost the whole city came together to hear the word of God.”

Acts 16:13, “And on the Sabbath day we went out of the city to the riverside, where prayer was customarily made; and we sat down and spoke to the women who met there”

Hebrews 4:9-11, “A Sabbath rest remains, therefore, for God’s people. For the person who has entered His rest has rested from his own works, just as God did from His. Let us then make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall into the same pattern of disobedience.”

UnChristian Love!

Psalm 52:4, “You love any words that destroy, you treacherous tongue!”

I have talked about love before in some of my blogs, but typically it was on what love looks like in its entirety and not just the emotional level typically fixated on by the average Christian writer. I still think there is a lot to say about love from this perspective, but today I want to focus on another concept. How not to show Christian love!

You think that would be easy, right? Wrong. I am not going to get into self-debasing Christians, otherwise known as “eating our own,” because too many Christians do that today. It has become popular among certain Christians to continually criticize and point out all the flaws within Christianity. I can see it to a point, but we need to do it in a manner that also reminds them that Christianity is the answer. “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). I have looked at a lot of verses about love in the Bible and I do not see where we are to apologize in such a public forum, except to God. We are to apologize to those we sin against whether a group or a single person, but how that is to look, it appears to me, is much different at times then what comes across in a lot of “popular” writings and articles today.

With that said, I am going to apologize for the actions of someone that calls themselves a Christian and yet did exactly the opposite of what Christian love is. “And to love Him with all your heart, with all your understanding, and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself, is far more important than all the burnt offerings and sacrifices” (Mark 12:33). Of course I always ask if you treated someone the way you treat yourself, then how would it look? I want Christians, those looking at Christianity and those not considering Christianity yet to know that I apologize for the person that I am about to write about next and they do not represent true Christianity in my humble opinion, and actually represent the opposite of it.

One terrible example of this just presented itself to me. You can see the picture in the beginning of this blog of what was written. This note was left on someone’s car while they were in a store. They based their note from a bumper sticker on the car, which you can see right next to this paragraph. What kind of witness is this for the Christian faith? Instead of getting to know the driver of the car by waiting to talk, or leaving a note asking them to meet and discuss the bumper sticker; instead they leave a note with an apparent hate sentence included, “Burn in hell you demon.” Personally, I am not a fan at all of the note or the process they took as there is no real evangelism, outreach or true love in this type of note.

One question I thought of right away is, how do they know they did not just buy the car and the bumper sticker was on there and it was not taken off yet? How do you know that someone did not borrow the car for the day and you left the note for another to find (not that it makes it right)? What would that do to the person ever listening about Christianity? What if the person just lost a family member, or found out they had cancer, or was thinking about suicide and came to their car and find that note? Everything about the note reeks of hate and bile and it is uncalled for in the Christian circle. There is a big difference between holding someone accountable within the church and treating someone you do not know with such contempt. I must say that I would not treat someone in the church that way either.

Unfortunately there are those out there that will call themselves Christian and yet live a life without showing it in any real form. This is another reason why I am not a big fan of just using words, and instead we must follow it up with action. Words can be deceiving. I can say one thing to you and make it sound so encouraging and loving, but turn around and treat the same person with disdain with my actions. Which is more true, my words or actions? My actions because they demonstrate what is truly inside. We see this issue with many of the Sadducees and Pharisees in Jesus’ day, and we see it with this note writer today.

This blog is meaningless unless my actions line up with my words and I can guarantee you that I would never leave such a note on someone’s car. Since I know this person, I can tell you they would have talked about the differences in religion and done so respectfully and also in an engaged fashion. How do I know, because I have had those discussions with them over the past two years. Will we all make mistakes? Absolutely, and that is why we are to point people to Jesus and not ourselves. Let Christ deal with them in His time.

Words are important in one way for sure; they will demonstrate whether you truly line up with what you do. Like the old adage says, “actions speaker louder then words,” and seems to line up with James, which is talking about justification before the world. Instead of writing hateful notes, how about building a friendship and a dialogue about truth, another name for it – Evangelism.

James 2:19-20, “You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?”

Christian Lyrics--A Positive Take

I want to do a follow up to the previous blog, so if you have not read that one yet, read it first and then read this one as it will only make partial sense if you do not.

In the last blog I was working through the issue of some songs and how their delivery did not seem to line up with Scripture, though some of the message could be seen as a plausible message. I still do not see anything plausible about his message regarding Heaven though.

On the other side there are groups out there that challenge the Christian church, and do it without shock value, such as vulgar language and videos that promote the very thing they are singing against. Remember I mentioned the video that has his friend smoking a cigarette while he is singing worrying about people dying everyday. The message becomes garbled and incoherent in its delivery and as mentioned does not glorify God.

But if done right, there is a way to challenge with song and glorify God, and I think Casting Crowns gives us a great example of this, as seen from the two songs below. Interesting enough, I think the two songs are the same message that Derek is trying to get across, but because of his delivery his is lost in translation. Casting Crowns does it in a way that hits you in the face with what we as the church should be doing, but does not use vulgar language to make their point. Nor does Casting Crowns make a mockery of the Gospel by doing what it says not to do in trying to tell people to do what it says.

I think Casting Crowns applies 1 Corinthians 5:12-13 well, “What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside? God will judge those outside. . . .” They try to get the church to wake up by asking questions through a song and challenging what they see the church doing in an honorable way.

What if His People Prayed

What if the armies of the Lord/Picked up and dusted off their swords/Vowed to set the captives free/And not let satan have one moreWhat if the church, for heaven's sake/Finally stepped up to the plate/Took a stand upon God's promise/And stormed hell's rusty gatesChorus:What if His people prayed/And those who bear His name/Would humbly seek His face Yeah/And Turn from their own wayAnd what would happen if we prayed/For those raised up to lead the wayThen maybe kids in school could pray/And unborn children see light of dayWhat if the life that we pursue/Came from a hunger for the truth/What if the family turned to Jesus/Stopped asking Oprah what to doWhat if His people prayed/And those who bear His name/Would humbly seek His face Yeah/And Turn from their own wayHe said that they would hear/His promise has been made/He'll answer loud and clearIf only we would prayIf My people called by My name/If they'll humble themselves and pray/If My people called by My name/If they'll humble themselves and pray

What would happen if we followed the song? It would be a good thing, more prayer. They challenge the aspect of what the church body is truly doing in communication with God and not bashing the Church for shock value. Basically the essence of “eating our own,” as seen in my previous blog.

There song follows the command of God (Jeremiah 29:12; Acts 8:22; 1 Thess. 5:17; 1 Peter 3:15-16).

If We are The Body

It's crowded in worship today/As she slips in trying to fade into the facesThe girls teasing laughter is carrying farther than they know/Farther than they knowChorus:But if we are the body/Why aren't His arms reaching?/Why aren't His hands healing?Why aren't His words teaching?/And if we are the body/Why aren't His feet going?Why is His love not showing them there is a way?/There is a wayA traveler is far away from home/He sheds his coat and quietly sinks into the back rowThe weight of their judgmental glances/Tells him that his chances are better out on the roadJesus paid much too high a price/For us to pick and choose who should comeAnd we are the body of Christ

This song definitely is challenging the church with the great commission seen in Matthew 28:19-20, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.”

It is easy to see this in their songs and the challenges are very clear and is not offensive in language or using some form of shock to try to be like the world.

I think it important as anyone thinks through it to consider that there is a way to write a song without using foul language, or denigrating Heaven as a self-proclaimed Christian, and this is where the world could cry out – Pharisee or Hypocrite.

Let’s be like Casting Crowns in writing lyrics. Music applied can be different, as I liked a lot of the beats from Derek, but that is where a lot of it ended. Time to be in the world, but not of the world, including in our “Christian” lyrics!

John 15:19, “If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.”

Christian Lyrics

Warning: There is foul language used, as I quote verbatim from a song writer, so if language from a “Christian” songwriter is going to offend you then you may want to skip this blog.

I am looking for input on this blog in particular, because maybe I am missing something today or maybe I am just finally considered “old fashioned.” Either way, I am going to work through my thought process with you, and it is not complete, and I am hoping some of you can fill in the blanks. I was sent a message to listen to some songs by a singer named Derek Webb, who used to be with Caedmon’s Call.

He had a new album come out called “Stockholm Syndrome” this past summer. And yes, I am just hearing about it now. I know some of you reading are thinking that this is a great album, while others might be thinking the exact opposite. For one song, I am definitely not a fan, as I am not a fan of using swear words for shock value regardless when using them in the framework of a Christian message. Secular movies, TV shows and such do what they do, but when you say you are a “Christian” artist, actor, business man/woman or whatever, it places you on a different level because you are making a claim about what you are doing, but I digress. We will touch on this again in a bit.

I listened to three songs from this album and then read the lyrics of many of them and I must say I am a little confused and a little disappointed and a little understanding at the same time. Meaning, that is where your input comes in to help me with forming my completed thought process. I will lay out mine with Biblical support and then I ask you to do the same if you agree, disagree, or a mixture of the two. But I think this is a good conversation to have to find what the truth is in this issue.

What Matters More lyrics
You say always treat people like you'd like to be/I guess you love being hated for your sexuality/You love when people put words in your mouth/About what you believe/Make you sound like a freakCause if you really believed/What you say you believe/You wouldn't be so damned reckless/With the words you speak/You wouldn't silently consent/When the liars speak/Denying all the dying of the remedy

(Chorus)

Tell me, brother what matters more to you/Tell me, sister what matters more to you

If I can see what's in your heart/By what comes out of your mouth/Then it sure looks to me like being straight/Is all it's about/It looks like being hated/For all the wrong things/Like chasing the wind/While the pendulum swingsCause we can talk and debate/Till we're blue in the face/About the language and tradition/That He's coming to save/And meanwhile we sit/Just like we don't give a shit about/Fifty thousand people who are dying today

Colossians 3:8 Says, “But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth.” Yes, in contrast to the comparison he made to people dying that is a small comparison, but it is an apple to a car comparison. The problem is that the Bible tells us not to use such language regardless. Yes, we should be worried about the 50,000 dying today, and I would add to that if you count abortions into that, but I wonder if he did. Either way, why negate one part of the Bible in order to make a point about the other? He is doing exactly what he is complaining about the others doing. He is just rationalizing his is better because death is better to worry about then swearing, but I thought when we tell people about sin, we tell them sin is sin before God regardless of what it is? Seems contradictory and not a great message for youth or anyone. Why not steal then as long as I worry about those dying, and maybe even give some of what I steal to the poor? I will conclude with Ephesians 5:4 in order to give more then one verse, “neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks.”

Lastly, in the video if you watch it, and not sure that I recommend that you do, so I am not going to promote it with a link. You will have to find it on your own if you so desire. But in the video Derek’s friend is smoking, and if I am not mistaken, cancer is one of the number one killers in America. Why doesn’t he get mad at his friend for smoking, as that is killing him with his second hand smoke? He talks about caring for the 50,000 dying today, but does not cut the smoking scene from his video so as not to promote something that kills. Just another apparent contradiction.

I chose one more song, but most of them all have contradictions in them, or use examples that are not comparable to make an exaggerated point in my opinion. Again, my opinion and maybe you can clear it up for me.

Below are the lyrics to Heaven and I will let you read them and then I will make my comments afterwards.

Lyrics to Heaven

I was killed in a shopping cart/turned upside down and left for dead/i saw a clown try to speak to me/as i floated overhead/i found my way to a familiar place/i swear i’d been sometime before/i would’ve thought it was the marketplace/but i could not find the door

(chorus)

oh i have been to heaven/and i have walked the streets/but i couldn’t find a hand to holdto keep me on my feet

paradise is a parking lot/a spot up front is your reward/and all the rest walk down streets of gold/to the house they could afford/i got lost in the swelling crowd/i could not afford to eat/you only have what you came in with/so i’m living on the streeti heard Jesus Christ was there/he had a car that’s bulletproof/that way everyone is safe/from the man who tells the truth

There is so much that can be said on Heaven that you can type it into my blog and read about it. This song does not do it justice at all and actually plays it down. I find it hard to believe that if he is in Heaven that he would not find someone’s hand to hold. It is the place where you find Christ and those who have died before and gone to Heaven. The chorus is far from true in my opinion and far from glorifying God in any real way. To me it denigrates what Heaven will be like and plays it down way too much. It is a place we are to desire to go, as that is where Christ is. "In My Father's house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also" (Jn. 14:2, 3).

I guess my concern in the end is how do these songs help the cause of Christ in any fashion since they use poorly done examples, foul language and he contradicts his very song within the video. I just don’t get it. Maybe you can help. All I ask is that if you are going to comment is that you use Biblical support for your arguments, as we are dealing with a Christian artist and not a secular artist.

Walking the Walk

Galatians 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.”

A week ago I gave my testimony to a youth group. When I am asked to give my testimony, I am always a little nervous because I have to refrain from giving details of my past life, as people can get caught up in the enticement of the sin I committed. During my talks on my testimony I tend to just give enough of a highlight to give people an idea of what I was like as a non-believer. It was not a pretty picture to say the least, but that aspect is for another time.

As I prayed and thought about it, I talked about my testimony, but I did so in light of where Christianity in my opinion, and again I say in my opinion, is at today. I think especially within the youth group scenario. With that in mind, below is the challenge that God gave to me for them, for me, and now I am giving to whoever is reading this right now as a follower of Jesus Christ.

I just heard an interview of Bishop Spong who said that he believed that the Bible was to only be taken symbolically, and that no one educated believes in the major claims of the virgin birth, resurrection, and even a literal Heaven anymore. What was shocking is this interview was given by a leader who says he is a Christian, though I would challenge that since he also does not believe in most of the core beliefs of Christianity. What upset me most, is that he never challenged Spong on any of the very mistaken claims he made and even supported the belief that there is probably no literal Heaven. The Emergent movement is one of the major areas I was thinking about when preparing for my testimony and challenge of the youth, because these guys are very popular among the youth because they write well, make cool videos, dress sharp, and speak eloquently for the most part. But what they write is pretty much worthless dribble lined with sugar so you don’t realize you have taken the poison until it is too late.

Why didn’t Mr. Pagitt defend the core beliefs with Spong, or at least say he disagreed. He did neither. As I say many times, silence is a form of agreeance. 1 Pet. 3:15 says, ABut sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear.@ He could have given easy answers for the truth of the resurrection, virgin birth and Heaven. Why not also give him names of prominent Evangelical believers that do believe those beliefs, and also others out there as well. How about Josh McDowell, Sean McDowell, Dr. Norman Geisler, Ravi Zacharias, Dr. J.P. Moreland, Dr. William Lane Craig, Dr. Montgomery Ward, Dr. Peter Kreeft, and Dr. Francis Beckwith, just to name a few off the top of my head. All well respected theologians, philosophers and academics. Even Christopher Hitchens, a stringent atheist knows what Christians are to believe as a foundation.

When interviewed by a self proclaimed liberal Christian, Marilyn Sewell, Hitchens said, “I would say that if you don’t believe that Jesus of Nazareth was the Christ and Messiah, and that he rose again from the dead and by his sacrifice our sins are forgiven, you’re really not in any meaningful sense a Christian.” I would say he gets it better then most Emergent Church people.

Pagitt did not fulfill Jude 3:22, as it says ABeloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints. And on some have compassion, making a distinction; but others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire, hating even the garment defiled by the flesh. As believers today we need to be contending for the faith, and if you do a study on the word “contend,” then you will find it is used in the form of being in a war. Our youth are in a battle today, and not just from the world, but from inside our very own system, as many are trying to have them move toward a very liberal, or not Christian at all, form of faith.

We are to hold fast to the Bible as told to us in Titus 1:9, Aholding fast the faithful word as he has been taught, that he may be able, by sound doctrine, both to exhort and convict those who contradict. This will give us the ability to see these people in disguise and also strengthen our faith that is based on evidence that is unseen (Heb. 11:1). Today many cannot defend, explain, or answer contradictions to the Christian beliefs.

We are allowing our youth to use these men and women as an excuse for their weak understanding of Scripture and lack of ability to be able to defend or have confidence in what they believe. How do you have confidence in something you don’t know or understand? How do you deepen your faith if you don’t know the One you are following?

Today we need to train our youth to stand up for Christ so it is easier for someone else to do so. Let’s be their excuse so they can be the excuse for their peers not to sin or fall into the snares of wrong belief, instead of being the excuse to sin. “Hey look their Christian and they do it, so why can’t I?” “They look cool and it sounds good, so why isn’t true?” We need to train them to be able to see the truth and to be able to defend with confidence what they believe.

We have the answers to the questions above that were posed by Spong and now many times by the Emergent Church movement. It does take time to read, research and find the answer in Scripture and utilize those before us who have already walked through the fire of trials.

My challenge to the young adults today Don’t be those church group kids that believe it because it was a recent best seller in the Christian market, as Brian McClaren’s books or Rob Bell’s. If you don’t believe it then stop pretending. Walk what you believe. I and most would personally respect you more for it. But if you do believe then walk it. Follow what the verses given above say about being able to answer questions and defend your faith. Be bold, Jesus Christ died for you so that you could have Heaven. Is that worth a little teasing from friends because you are Bible Thumper? Or maybe some friends stop talking to you and instead about you?
Someone is watching you. What excuse are you giving them? That you stand up for Christ and will be there for them? Or are you the one that does one thing on Sunday and during youth groups and is another person outside of here? Again, that is weak and what I would call a chicken. If you believe then walk, and if you don’t then don’t, but be real.

I am going to end with a lyric from a song that is not from a Christian group, but he certainly also gets the point like Christopher Hitchens. Again, this person is not a Christian, but he knows that if you choose to follow then you follow. Why is it today some who are not Christians seem to understand better then those that claim to be believers?

“Bow down before the one you serve, you’re going to get what you deserve”—Nine Inch Nails.

All We Need Is Love. Really?

What if you loved your neighbor the way you love yourself? Think about it. What if you treated your neighbor the way you treat yourself (talking to yourself in your head, the way you think about yourself, and how you see yourself in God). How much would they like you?

I have been reading and hearing people talk and write about love and how love is the answer as a Christian. The problem is that is not true. Love is not the answer, Christ is. Love is the outworking of what we have in Christ, because He loved us first. We cannot love properly on our own, as it is all self-diluted.

Love has been washed down in Western thought. When you read about it, it is always the same old cheesy examples used. Give to the poor, help the widow and down trodden. Those are great and good, but the easy form of love. A lot of people that write on this subject don’t seem to want to get to the deeper levels and the harder levels of love. Atheists, Muslims, Mormons, Jehovah Witnesses and many other religions help the poor and down trodden. Just look at Haiti today as a great example. Not everyone donating is a Christian.

What if your mother, daughter, or sister was taken and brutally raped and murdered by a serial killer, the LRA, or some strange occult. What would your love look like when you see them in court? Would you love your enemy? Would you walk up and say, “I forgive you and love you because of what Christ did for me?” Honestly, I cannot say that would be my response, or I would have that kind of love, because it is severely difficult and goes against every fiber of my being.

What about love that hurts? Jesus said that love for Him in comparison should be like hating your parents. “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple” (Luke 14:26). What about Jesus’ violent act in the temple when He chased out the vendors from the temple? Matthew 21:12 says, “Then Jesus went into the temple of God and drove out all those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves.” How come He did not walk up and tell them how much He loved them, or did He do this by His violent act?

Seems to me to be much more to love then what we talk and write about much of the time. Probably because we don’t want to think about the harder side of love. The love that disciplines, or allows bad things to happen for God’s ultimate purpose. Or allows people the choice to sin and commit heinous acts of horror; like what happened in Rwanda.

Interestingly enough, we have seen more acts of love in places like Rwanda amongst Christians then we do in most places on earth. They repented as a nation and forgave those that stole their children and turned them into cold hearted killers, which ultimately led some of them to Christ. They could have killed them, or tortured them once caught, but they didn’t. Why? If I knew that my son was made to help bite his own brother to death by one of the LRA leaders, I would want revenge. Wouldn’t you? They did not because the love of Christ exuded through them. This is true love, when every inch of your sin nature wants to take revenge for yourself, to act in violence, and yet you love them. Yes, some did retaliate, and in some ways it is hard for me not to blame them, because I struggle with that kind of love, real love that makes us demonstrate it in non-violent actions against our very nature.

My point is love is not just some warm and fuzzy feeling. And Christ even talks about how non-believers demonstrate this kind of love. What sets Christian love apart is our love is bound in what Christ did for us. While we were yet sinners (enemies of God), He sent His Son to die for us (you and me), so that we may no longer be an enemy of God but His family. Loving your enemies takes on a whole new dimension when thought of in these terms.

Love is not easy. Jesus tells us the whole world is going to hate us, because it first hated Him. John 15:18 says, “If the world hates you, understand that it hated Me before it hated you.” If that is the case, then even our good acts are going to be seen as bad at times, right? Jesus lived a Holy Life and they killed Him for it. He loved like no other and it cost Him His life.

We tend to forget when Jesus was harsh on people when we talk about love. Love is also telling the truth when it needs to be said in the matter that it needs to be said, and sometimes that is not pleasant. Look at the names Jesus called Peter, the Sadducees, Pharisees, and His disciples throughout the Gospels. At times the love He showed was not easy to hear and not easy to take. He was also blunt at times, though softly, as with the woman at the well, but still a hard truth said in love.

We need to give people the whole picture of love when we write and talk. Yes, giving and helping the needy is a large part, but that actually falls a lot of the time in righteousness and justice. Take time to study those areas in context sometime, though those are aspects of love as well.

Love is giving your life away so that others may love. “To live is Christ to die is gain,” as said by the apostle Paul. Love cares about your enemies and their salvation. Love prays for blessings for those that we despise. Love is only capable through Jesus Christ.

How well are you doing?