A Generation For Truth

Godly Friendships

2009-11-08T17:20:00.001-05:00

Well, I hope you've read the blog posts I recommended in my last post on this subject. A summary of my thoughts and convictions about Godly friendships will be (eventually) forthcoming, but in the meantime here are a few more resources to check out:

Joshua Phillips @ The Ballantyne Blog - "Friendships should be used to edify and build up both participants. Most modern Americans think of friends as people you "hang out" with, talk to about the latest movies, and try to be "cooler" than. True friends edify each other. They hold themselves accountable, discussing weighty and meaningful matters. Many modern relationships are short-lived, and then hung out to dry while the participants move on to other things. Loyalty is rarely seen."
Charles Spurgeon @ The Spurgeon Archive - In the sermon entitled "A Faithful Friend", Spurgeon speaks on Proverbs 18:24 - "There is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother." Although this sermon focuses on the friendship we have in Jesus, it is a great example for us to follow in our friendships with other men and women on this earth.

Happy *($%/@!

2009-10-31T23:00:00.006-04:00

Good evening, ladies and gentlemen; please excuse this slight interruption of G4T's regular programming.

This explains one of the purposes of this post (thanks to cshayden.blogspot.com):

We are to listen to the testimonies of our physical and spiritual parents, remember God's providence in history, and pass these truths to future generations. We are not to forget or neglect to tell of His mighty deeds, but rather to remember and declare them (Ps. 78). (@ C.S. Hayden)

But this is another reason:

When you enter the land the LORD your God is giving you, do not learn to imitate the detestable ways of the nations there. Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. Anyone who does these things is detestable to the LORD, and because of these detestable practices the LORD your God will drive out those nations before you. You must be blameless before the LORD your God. (Deuteronomy 18:9-13, NIV)

I will destroy your witchcraft and you will no longer cast spells... I will take vengeance in anger and wrath upon the nations that have not obeyed me. (Micah 5:12,15, NIV)

The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:19-21)

Why do so many Christians "live on the edge", so to speak, in this area? In Deuteronomy, God said that witchcraft is detestable to Him (in the same sentence that He says "don't sacrifice your children in the fire"), and He will drive out the nations that engage in those practices. In Micah, God says that He will destroy witchcraft, and take vengeance in anger and wrath up the nations that have not obeyed Him. In Galatians, God equates witchcraft with idolatry and sexual immorality. What's the big deal, God? Just a little witchcraft... just burning a few of our children in the fire... why are some people so uptight? We got to rid the church of all this legalism. I just can't take those religious fanatics who want to crack down on Devil Day.

I still struggle with many of the "obvious" sins that are described in Galatians, so I say this humbly, and so incredibly grateful to the Lord for his abounding grace and mercy, which are (hallelujah!) new every morning. But this is an area where we cannot compromise! Listen to the following:

In the post-modern times that today's church-goers live in, many religious leaders and laity are finding relief in stepping beyond some of the rigid boundaries that were arbitrarily set down by what they term as their "spiritual forefathers". Some are growing comfortable with holding neighborhood cursing nights, "which has really helped us reach out to an people group that we've never been able to effectively reach before", according to Rev. Don Nickels of First Church of Canterbury, CA. Other church members report being taken to new spiritual heights by the conferences their denominations have hosted on how to incorporate idol worship into their lives. "I've never felt so in control of my view of God, and it's really terrific", said lay-member Jerry Parker. (Source: TMU News Corp., accessed 31 October 2009)

I hope you didn't fall for that; sadly, that's somewhat of a fair comparison to the view that many Christians hold on "entertainment" for each October 31st. God hates witchcraft. I'm not making that up - read the Scripture passages above. He also hates idolatry. Do you think he appreciates you joking about worshiping other gods? No. Do you think he delights in you playing around about witchcraft? So what are you going to do about it?

Whew. Back to remembering our spiritual forefathers...

Today, if you weren't sure, is Reformation Day. This year marks the 492nd anniversary of Martin Luther's famous nailing of 95 theses on the door of the church in Wittenburg, Germany. Thus started the fire that ultimately set Europe ablaze - spreading to Switzerland with Calvin, Scotland with Knox, and France with the Huguenots. It didn't stop in Europe, however - it traveled across the Atlantic ocean, and those Reformation principles became a part of the foundational pillars of the USA.

That USA now has the most Christian colleges and seminaries, Christian bookstores, Christian radio and television programs, and Christian schools. We also have the most churches. And we've sent out the most missionaries of any other country in the world. That little spark that started with Luther's hammer fantastically changed the course of entire nations! God is good.

Tragically, that once-Christian nation is now a nation of apostasy, where more and more people are turning their backs on Christ. Christ, the ultimate treasure and priceless jewel, is being scoffed, mocked, cursed, and rebelled against. Immorality is rampant; moral absolutes are a thing of the past. Even our children are leaving the church in growing numbers - mentally checking out in junior and senior high, and physically saying sayonara once they've been "enlightened" by their freshman-year professors.

So what's the church to do? We must honor and remember what God accomplished through our spiritual forefathers, as C.S. Hayden so fittingly reminded us (quoted at the top of this post). And, if there's anything that bests sums up what those Godly (with their imperfections, to be sure - along with you and I and Abraham) men of old, those men of grit and battle - Luther, Calvin, Hus, Knox - if there's anything that best describes what they (literally) gave their lives to, it is this:

Semper Reformanda.

Always reforming - their personal lives, their families, their churches, their nations, and their world. How? By their own brilliance? No, although God did gift them with brilliance for a purpose. By their own power? No, although God did bless them with sturdiness and steadfastness for a reason.

Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,' says the LORD Almighty. (Zechariah 4:6, NIV)

Not by their might, nor by their power - but by the Spirit of the Lord... the reformation way:

Sola Gratia
Sola Fide
Solo Christo
Sola Scriptura
Soli Deo Gloria

What better way to live, than Semper Reformanda? Always reforming, to advance the kingdom of the King of Kings, by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone - equipped unto every good work by the complete Word of God - and for the glory of God alone. May this be our prayer, our longing, and our battle cry.

Back!

2009-10-29T21:11:00.000-04:00

It's been four weeks. A whirlwind of activity has occurred in my own life since I've last written - including a lot of testing circumstances, and some great joys. God is slowly showing me - through my own sins and failures - how weak I really am, and how I need to totally depend on Him for everything.... and sometimes I still don't get it. Yet, God continues to give more of His bountiful grace, and I am grateful to Him that His mercy is new every morning. Hallelujah!

One of those great joys happened this morning, when a neighbor's soul was miraculously regenerated by God, after an incredible series of events leading this dear lady to volunteer to have a Bible study with my mother. God had been already "working on her", as you can tell! We rejoice with the angels in heaven that another name has been written in the book of life!

One subject that I've been giving thought to lately, and have been convicted about, is that of relationships. What is the "health level" of my relationship with God? With my parents - am I setting an example to my younger siblings of a culture of honor? Am I being the older brother that God wants me to be to my siblings - allowing God to use me, an unworthy instrument, to draw them closer to God? Am I edifying my friends when I speak with them? Really edifying them, and not just talking about "neutral topics"?

Allison, at the "Letter from Christ" blog, wrote three blog posts on influence and forming friendships in this last month - and they have been a blessing to me. Although my goal is to spend some time in prayer, reading solid Biblical resources on the subject, and getting the counsel of wise people in this area of relationships/influence... and then to write about that here on this blog - that is my goal, but I would like for you to read Allison's posts first. They're definitely edifying, and challenging. Read and be blessed!

got truth? Conference

2009-09-28T20:55:00.003-04:00

My church recently held a weekend conference that covered the basics of understanding a Biblical worldview. Prior to this event my pastor gave three sermons in regards to common areas of disbelief. Here is the link to the mp3 of each sermon.

Scripture
Creation
Suffering

Kerby Anderson ,the national director of Probe Ministries, was the keynote speaker for the "got truth?" conference. He provided a precise, concise, articulate defense and explanation of the following topics:

Going to College Without Going Astray
The Bible & Economics
Truth Decay
The Christian Mind

(The PowerPoint presentations can be downloaded here.)

Come back for more information from this conference like important worldview definitions!

God Provides

2009-09-24T15:50:00.006-04:00

I had the great pleasure of attending the premiere of the God Provides series at the San Antonino Film Festival (SAICFF) in January. These short films done by the Erwin Brothers present biblical history in an aesthetically excellent production. I would highly recommend them as powerful evangelistic tools and as quality family movies. You can read more about the films here.

The Mysterious Islands Trailer

2009-09-19T10:42:00.004-04:00

I am glad to note that you can download the trailer for The Mysterious Islands on BlueBehemoth.com for free!

You may do so here.

9/11

2009-09-11T09:07:00.001-04:00

Peggy Noonan wrote an excellent article, Courage Under Fire regarding the heroism that was displayed eight years ago on this day.

Here are a few excerpts from this article:

...more than 300 firemen dead.Three hundred firemen. This is the part that reorders your mind when you think of it. For most of the 5,000 dead were there--they just happened to be there, in the buildings, at their desks or selling coffee or returning e-mail. But the 300 didn't happen to be there, they went there. In the now-famous phrase, they ran into the burning building and not out of the burning building. They ran up the stairs, not down, they went into it and not out of it. They didn't flee, they charged. It was just before 9 a.m. and the shift was changing, but the outgoing shift raced to the towers and the incoming shift raced with them. That's one reason so many were there so quickly, and the losses were so heavy. Because no one went home. They all came.

I say fireman and not "firefighter." We're all supposed to say firefighter, but they were all men, great men, and fireman is a good word. Firemen put out fires and save people, they take people who can't walk and sling them over their shoulders like a sack of potatoes and take them to safety. That's what they do for a living. You think to yourself: Do we pay them enough? You realize: We couldn't possibly pay them enough. And in any case a career like that is not about money.

Let us not forget the lives of many others who sacrificed their lives to save others and families of those who perished in the flames on this earth.

Evil - Josh Harris

2009-09-10T22:33:00.003-04:00

Lacking sufficient time, I have been unable to post recently. School has kept me busy, as well as preparing for a job interview. I hope to have completed another post about the glory of God by Saturday. Convicted by the message, I wanted to share a video by Josh Harris about evil.

In this video he discusses the need to turn completely away from evil and neglecting this discipline causes us to fall more easily into sin.

The Manly Stuff - by C.T. Studd

2009-09-04T08:25:00.007-04:00

"Some wish to live within the sound
of Church or Chapel bell;
I want to run a Rescue Shop
within a yard of hell." - C.T. Studd

C.T. Studd was an incredible man who gave up wealth and fame to live a life of incomparable joy for the glory of God in three mission fields: China, India, and Africa. He was already growing in reputation as a skilled cricket player in England at the age of 16, when his soul was wondrously regenerated by the grace of God. After six years of backsliding and turning away from his first love, the Lord brought him to a point of recommitment and renewal of purpose, love, and joy.

A relatively short but edifying biography of Studd is available here: http://www.wholesomewords.org/missions/biostudd.html (please note: I am not endorsing the site in general - just the individual article - as I am not aware of WholesomeWords.org's doctrinal beliefs or content).

I'd like to thank C.S. Hayden for linking to the following video in his September 3 post, "Be a Man!". This isn't just for men, either - entitled "The Manly Stuff", it's for all Christians - men, women, boys, and girls. Being fairly short, please take the time to watch/listen to these words originally written by C.T. Studd and ask God to make it the battle cry of your soul. Persevere!

The Mysterious Islands

2009-09-03T16:34:00.006-04:00

Vision Forum Ministries has announced the official website for The Mysterious Islands, their documentary on the Galapagos Islands and the impact of Charles Darwin.

Confessions of an Undisciplined Reader

2009-09-02T09:19:00.005-04:00

Well, I’m back. After two weeks of flu and regretted procrastination, I realized it’s time to write something. Knowing God: Part III is on the way – but first, the Confessions.

I love books. I stick with non-fiction 99% of the time, so you could say my diet of books is relatively tame. But there’s one major problem: I’m not disciplined. I have at least 20 books that I’ve started at one point or another, and they’re just sitting around the house. I haven’t finished any of them! That’s not to say I’ve never read a book in its entirety – but I definitely struggle with reading one book all the way through.

Sometimes I’ll purchase a book, thinking it will be fascinating – and it is… for the first ten pages. Then it’s move-on-to-another-book, maybe one from the library this time. And the vicious cycle continues. It is not a wise use of the time God has given me – and it doesn’t help me learn anything, either.

I was talking to a gentleman a few months ago, who has a passion for studying God’s Word. This man tackles one subject at a time – if it is the Book of Revelation, then he might have several commentaries on that topic, but that’s his main reading focus. Perhaps he’ll also read a biography of Jonathan Edwards on the side, since going through several commentaries takes a considerable amount of time – but his reading habits don’t manifest confusion, as I admit they do in my own life.

We also discussed how it’s easy to read a book and then promptly forget the main points you had wanted to remember. That seems to me like a time-waster, and we postulated that summarizing the “big things” you want to remember during & after you read a book would be beneficial. Sometimes I do that, actually, but keeping track of a zillion Post-It notes scattered throughout the home (along with six notebooks) doesn’t aid the process.

Action points:

Read one book at a time
Keep a journal of the key points you want to remember from the books you've read

Do you struggle with this at all? Any ideas or suggestions?

“Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” – Psalm 90:12

2009-09-01T18:00:00.001-04:00

Submit your caption or short commentary to us. Thanks!

The Clipboard: How to Analyse a Movie

2009-08-23T14:33:00.009-04:00

Christians should disdain passive, couch potato’s strategy for watching a movie and instead adopt a pre-emptive, culture changer’s battle plan. I have listed some basic steps that you can take to develop your own battle plan for taking on films.

Preparation

Read a review of the movie before you watch the movie for several reasons, (a) Know what topics you will address and maybe gather some additional resources to support your case and (b) Make sure that you are not open the doors of your home to a spiritual Trojan horse. I have found Plugged In Online reviews to be systematic and do an adequate job of providing a heads-up.

During the Film

Wear the Play/Pause button out! Any opportunity to point out positive and negative elements in the film should be seized with gusto. Field and encourage questions from the audience to clarify issues. This is your opportunity to offer your own commentary that can involve biblical principles, filming techniques, and behind-the-scenes information.

After the Film

Discuss the movie as a whole, looking at the major themes and the ultimate message the directors and producers tried to communicate. Compare your analysis to any reviews you read before watching the movie. You could have your family compose their own review of the movie.

The Clipboard: Silver Screen Threat

2009-08-18T21:34:00.004-04:00

When a Christian normally approaches a film to ascertain its ability to provide wholesome entertainment for the whole family, the typical investigation consists of reading the short descriptions of the film or seeing a trailer and the all important MPAA rating check. Thankfully, many families will go the extra mile and read a review performed by a Christian or family organization. However, it today’s culture Christian need to go farther than these steps if they truly desire to ensure that their children are not negatively impacted by the images that flash before their eyes. Not only do families need to do their homework before they watch a film, but also the homework during and after the film.

I am glad to note that most Christians are quite able to identify and debunk the filthiness of Hollywood. When worldviews involving socialism and evolution appear, we can immediately identify, explain, and instruct those around us in the way of truth. Many Christian organizations are able to provide excellent guides to avoiding movies that contain foul language, immorality, and unjustified violence. Not all organizations provide helpful counsel, sometimes even showing favor to movies that strike against God and the family. Many films contain ideas and implied assumpstions which will slowly erode the foundations of the Biblical family.

In some ways a G or PG rated film can be just as dangerous as a more mature film. Why? First, Christians have accepted the world’s standard for grading a film and just assume that the film is okay to watch and immediately lower their guard. Secondly, due to this absurd level of trust, we let their values trump ours if you just make rules that involve ratings to determine what is viewed in your home. The G or PG rating gives a false sense of security, lulling the Christian into a philosophical slumber. I do not advocate watching mature rated films just so that you are forced to be on your toes, but I am arguing that we need to always be on guard. Movies like Princess Diaries 2, analyzed at the 2009 San Antonio Independent Christian Film Festival (SAICFF) arguably can be one of the most cleverly concealed and damaging movies for the family.

Next week I will post a short guide on how to analyze a film, providing you with a guide to forming your own battle plan to avoid passively viewing a film.

Knowing God: Part II

2009-08-17T17:53:00.001-04:00

God is the "the Truth." The Bible is the "truth about the Truth." Theology is the "truth about the truth about the Truth." Fundamentalism is the "truth about the truth about the truth about the Truth." Christian people live in these many truths about the Truth, and, because of them, have not "the Truth." Hungry, beaten and doped, we had forgotten theology and the Bible. We had forgotten the "truths about the Truth", therefore we lived in "the Truth." It is written, "The Son of man will come in the hour when you do not think and on a day you do not know." We could not think any more. In our darkest hours of torture the Son of man came to us, making the prison walls shine like diamonds and filling the cells with light. Somewhere far away, were the torturers below us in the sphere of the body. But the spirit rejoiced in the Lord. We would not have given up this joy for that of kingly palaces. (Tortured for Christ, by Richard Wurmbrand, pages 72 and 73 - © 1969)

Don't ditch theology - it's important. But consider John chapters 14-15, and the book of 1 John.

I recently finished listening to the book Crazy Love (which, incidentally, I highly recommend; more on that another time.) The author, Francis Chan, recommended that you read 1 Corinthians 13, and instead of skimming it over, stick your name in the blanks.

[name] is patient, [name] is kind... by the time I got to the end, like Chan said, I was lying.

Knowing God is about abiding in Him. It's about obeying Him out of an incredibly deep love for Him - because God first loved us. It's showing God's love to others - and having a burning passion to know God more, and an endless desire that others would know God. It's not a stuffy, dry, purely academic subject. Again, though, I'm not saying to ditch theology. That's really important - otherwise you could very well be a heretic, a blasphemer, and an idolater.

Be balanced. Beg the Lord to make the following verse true in your life, as I'm crying out for Him to make it true in mine.

Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore. (Psalm 16:11)

Glorifying the Lord - A Privilege

2009-08-12T22:09:00.011-04:00

"Oh, magnify the LORD with me,And let us exalt His name together." Psalms 34:3

A very prominent theme in scripture is the glory of the Lord. Many verses speak of God's glory proclaimed in nature (Psalm 19:1, Psalm 97:6). The Bible declares God's glory to be in His righteousness and holiness. And these attributes cause His name to be glorified above all things. In fact, the Bible speaks of God's glory being so powerful, pure, and awesome, that the mere sight of it would cause sinful men to be killed and cast into eternal punishment. In Exodus 34, the Bible describes Moses's face - a mere dimmed reflection of the glory of God - as so bright and overwhelming that the Children of Israel could not look upon him (Moses).

When Isaiah, in a vision, saw God seated on His throne and His glory, he cried out, "Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, The LORD of hosts" (Isaiah 6:5).

Many passages throughout Scripture extol and exalt the glory of the Lord. God is able to display His glory to His creation in any manner He chooses. He could shine forth His glory Himself to men, which he did many times, or choose not to use any means to accomplish the displaying of His glory, but he doesn't. He gives us the privilege of glorifying Him. We who have been declared righteous in His sight by Christ's death on the cross, receive the the great honor of lifting up our Savior for His glory.

When Christ redeems us from the curse of the law, we are no longer slaves to the law and unable to glorify the Lord; He establishes us as children of the Lord and co-heirs with Christ. Christ proclaimed many times in Scripture that He sought to glorify the Father. As co-heirs with Christ our striving passion should be to glorify God in everything that we do. This is not in any way a burden, but is an incredible gift from God, that he allows us to accomplish, as well as take great joy in fulfilling.

In my next post, I will discuss how the glory of God is shown in our life, and how it is an utter privilege from the Lord to glorify Him.

The Clipboard: Gossip

2009-08-09T08:22:00.002-04:00

One way type of damaging communication is gossip. Gossip presents a great threat because of several reasons. First, it is difficult to control our tongues (James 3:5-8), secondly, it is easy to let information slip out, and, finally, people just like to give their opinion.

Why do we gossip?

To boost our ego by showing others that we have the scoop
To elevate ourselves by putting others down (Pharisee v. Tax Collector)
A desire to bring dishonor or make fun of someone

What the Bible says...

He that goeth about as a talebearer revealeth secrets: therefore meddle not with him that flattereth with his lips. (Proverbs 20:19)

...he that openeth wide his lips shall have destruction. (Proverbs 13:3b)

Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. (Ephesians 4:29)

Application

As we go about our daily lives we need to think through our words carefully. My pastor provided several questions that you can use for self-examination.

Do we have all the facts?
Do I know what I am being tempted to gossip?
If I need to say something, am I talking to the right person?
As a listener will I make the decision to quit enabling the one who gossips?

I hope this information has been helpful, I would highly recommend examining the articles and messages that I have linked to in the Resource section of this post.

Resources

Westminster Confession on Gossip

The Plague of Talebearing within the Christian Community

You can download my Pastor's sermon on "Gossip" by choosing either mp3 or the Windows Media Stream here or you can download the sermon by right-clicking here and hitting "Save Link As..."

You may also want to purchase the Vision Forum's message Gossip: The Plague of the Church (CD Version, MP3 Version)

Knowing God: Part I

2009-08-08T08:39:00.001-04:00

I introduced this mini-series last week by linking to the Our Daily Bread devotional for August 1st. I was taken aback when I read Dave Branon's concluding words: "Get to know God. Be His biographer. It will teach you more about Him than you ever thought possible." The problem lies here: if you equate "get to know God" with "be His biographer".

First of all, though, let me say that I'm not bashing ODB or Dave Branon in this post. I do think that he would agree with what is written here. I'm writing to give the broader context for his words.

Today, the word "know" is thrown around flippantly; sometimes, even to mean "I've heard about/am familiar with him." Sadly, even the word "believe" is used this way!

Q: Do you know/believe in Jesus?
A: Sure, definitely (ever since I was born).

Q: Do you know/believe in Jesus?
A: Yes (and Mohammad and Buddha, too)!

We must not stop here - we will end up in hell!

"Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble." - James 2:19 (KJV)

This lower-case "know" is a mere knowledge about God, or a general belief that he exists. God calls us not to just know about him, but to know him in an intimate way.

"O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him." - Psalm 34:8 (KJV)

Many biographies have been written - about good men and bad men. Autobiographies have also been published, but only a fool would encourage his readers to "taste and see that I am good." Knowing God must go beyond being His biographer.

An Orthodox priest, a friend of mine, telephone me and told me that a Russian officer had come to him to confess. My friend did not know Russian. Knowing however that I speak Russian, he had given me my address. The next day this man came to me. he loved God, he longed after God, but he had never seen a Bible. He never attended religious services (churches in Russia are very scarce). He had no religious education. He loved God without the slightest knowledge of Him.

I read to him the Sermon on the Mount and the parables of Jesus. After hearing them, he danced around the room in rapturous joy proclaiming, "What a wonderful beauty! How could I live without knowing this Christ!" It was the first time that I saw someone so rapturously joyful in Christ. (Tortured for Christ, by Richard Wurmbrand, page 18 - © 1969)

An officer in the Russian army, dancing around the room because now he truly knows Christ! Knowing God cannot be limited to a purely academic exercise. Yet, we do need to know about Him; this Biblical knowledge leads us to having a personal relationship with the Lord. It leads us to the cross of Christ, to salvation and regeneration, to glorifying and delighting in Him here on this earth, and living throughout all eternity in His presence.

In the end, a balance is needed - both having a Biblical theology, and knowing God. In the coming posts, we'll look at both of these aspects in greater detail.

News Flash: Defacement of Scripture

2009-08-07T13:07:00.008-04:00

Regrettably, an art exhibit in Glasgow, Scotland has facilitated the defacement of the Bible. You can read the news articles covering this on the following news websites:

Fox News

News.com.au

The Bible as you are aware is the divinely inspired Word of God, you can read A Generation for Truth's position on taking God's name in vain here.

The Glory of The Lord

2009-08-06T21:52:00.007-04:00

Normally in the middle of the week, we post another hermeneutics post, however, the research that I have been doing for my weekly post (and my schoolwork) forces me to delay that, so instead I will post my weekly post.

In our world today, the number one attribute of God that is discussed is His love. In fact, modern “Christians” seem to focus on God’s love to the exclusivity of any other attribute. The modern church in its infatuation with nothing but love, have forgotten one of God’s most striking, awe inspiring, and majestic attributes: His glory.

The Bible discusses God’s glory quite often and seems to lift it up as the most important aspect of our God. 1 Corinthians 2:8 refers to Jesus as the Lord of glory. In several verses Jesus makes it clear that He will return with power and glory. In fact the glory of the Lord is said to be our highest goal and what we should strive for above everything.

In the next few articles, I’m going to be exploring the glory of the Lord and how we as Christians are responsible to give as much glory to God as possible in everything that we do.

The Clipboard: The Words We Choose to Use

2009-08-02T19:58:00.000-04:00

Regrettably, our culture has become littered with filthy language. The decline of vocal purity displays the impact that culture has on communication as the meaning and implication of words make a myriad of tongue twisting obstacles for speech. Today I would like to address a biblical approach to what words we chose to use, expanding on a point that Anthony mentioned last week. I would like to begin by noting an interesting definition of profanity:

Profanity thus includes filthy speech, false swearing and cursing, and also polite and courteous speech and action which is outside God and which does not recognize His sovereignty (R.J. Rushdoony, Institutes of Biblical Law, Vol. 1, Pg. 107)

We will now look at what Scripture says about foul language and euphemisms.

Scripture

The 3rd Commandment

Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. (Exodus 20:7)

To take the name of the Lord in vain is to commit blasphemy and to profane the name of the Holy.

Neither shall ye profane my holy name; but I will be hallowed among the children of Israel: I am the LORD which hallow you, (Leviticus 22:32)

We should not swear by anything according to the words of Christ in the Sermon on the Mount.

Again, ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths:But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God's throne: Nor by the earth; for it is his footstool: neither by Jerusalem; for it is the city of the great King. Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black. But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil. (Matthew 5: 33-36)

Euphemisms

Regrettably, due to social pressure many people use euphinisms for profanity. These so-called minced oaths, Christian curses, or sentence enhancements do nothing except reveal the heart of the black tongued speaker.

A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh. (Luke 6:45)

It is important to note that we will be held accountable for every word.

But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. (Matthew 12:36)

Summary

We can see that both minced oaths and outright profanity is to be avoided. I have listed some discussion points and questions that may spur some conversations.

What motivates people to use profanity?
What are some examples of worthless or idle chatter that is present in our culture?
How can we encourage edifying speech?
Do you or your family have certain standards for speaking?

Knowing God

2009-08-01T22:57:00.002-04:00

This afternoon, I read the daily devotional from Our Daily Bread - not something I make a habit of, but once in a while it makes for a refreshing change of routine. Today’s devotional - entitled “Biography of God” - is about knowing God by examining three areas: what God says about Himself, what the God-inspired writers in Scripture say about God, and the countless and glorious things God has done in infinity past, is doing at the very moment you read the words, and will continue to do throughout all eternity.

Reading Dave Branon’s short devotional led me to think about what exactly it means to know God. The answer to this is critical to our relationship with Him, and the way we live in this world. Thus, may this post serve as a very brief introduction to a series of posts that I will be writing in the coming weeks about this subject.

History of Biblical Hermeneutics From the Reformation to the 1700's Part 1

2009-07-29T22:25:00.003-04:00

In this series of articles, I will continue from where Anthony ended in his history of pre-reformation hermeneutics. I will be discussing the Reformation through the 1700s.

In the late 1400s the Roman Catholic church was as far from biblical hermeneutics as possible. At this point the Catholic church had become a worldly enterprise, the pope chose to rule over the government, and bishops were chosen because of the power they had - not for any other qualification. And the Roman church had decided that it was the most important and ultimate authority in deciding what the Scripture says. This led to a time in which biblical hermeneutics was completely discarded and some of the most tragic and damnable heresies were not only propagated, but also were enforced through threats of excommunication, torture, and death.

During this time the Roman church had all but despised the Bible, and certainly didn't apply true biblical hermeneutics. They had added many doctrines to the Bible, and the chief among these was the heresy that a person must work toward they're salvation. The truth from scripture that a person is saved by faith, through grace alone, was completely rejected at the time of the zenith of the Catholic church. The church taught that working - especially in relation to the Catholic church - would merit God's favor, and thus obtain a person entrance into heaven. The biblical concept that God would graciously forgive sinners by faith alone was was an impermissible doctrine which was shunned with utter hatred.

"Salvation is by faith alone through Christ alone through God's grace alone. When you put your trust in Jesus Christ, God declares you righteous. Not because you are, but because He imputes the righteousness of Christ to you, because He imputes your sin to Him. Christ bears your sin, you receive His righteousness. This is the glory of the great doctrine of justification. Roman Catholicism doesn't believe that. The Council of Trent, 1545 to 1563, came out with statements. Listen to some of them. "To those who work well unto the end, and trust in God, eternal life is to be offered." That doesn't sound like anything I just read. To those who work well unto the end, and trust in God, eternal life is to be offered. Listen to this. "It is given as a reward, promised by God Himself to be faithfully given to their good works and merits. By those very works which have been done in God, fully satisfied the divine law according to the state of this life and to have truly merited eternal life." Eternal life in the Catholic system is something you earn by your works, you merit it and you receive it because of your merit. That is absolute and total contradiction. That is another gospel." [1]

This rejection of the grace of God, inescapably led to a false biblical hermeneutic, and the elevation of the Catholic hierarchy, writings, and traditions over scripture in almost every area. "Roman Catholics since the Council of Trent, flatly deny that Scripture is the supreme authority in all matters of faith, conduct and doctrine. The words of Vatican II, quote: 'The Roman Catholic Church does not draw her certainty about all revealed truth from the holy Scriptures alone, but both Scripture and Tradition must be accepted and honored with equal feelings of devotion and reverence.'" [2]

Continue Reading on Google Knol

Godliness and Contentment

2009-07-28T07:09:00.009-04:00

In my last two posts, I talked about being a good example, and the beauty of nothing.

"But godliness with contentment is great gain." - 1 Timothy 6:6

I read that verse in 1 Timothy a few days ago, and realized that it summed up those main two points. There are two more things I'd like to mention, though, to wrap it all up.

First, the power of the tongue. My pastor has recently preaching through the book of James, and James heavily emphasizes the power of the tongue, for evil and for good.

"Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great htings. Behold, how great a matter a liuttle fire kindleth! And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, and it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell." - James 3:5-6

Also, I've been reading these last few days through the books of 1st and 2nd Timothy, where Paul warns Timothy repeatedly against ungodly words.

"Of these things, put them in remembrance, charging them before the Lord that they strive not about words to no profit, but to the subverting of hearers." - 1 Timothy 2:14

"But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness." - 1 Timothy 2:16

"But foolish and unlearned questions avoid, knowing that they do gender strifes." - 1 Timothy 2:23

Secondly, our joy. The message by Pastor Wurmbrand was an excellent guidepost towards experiencing "the beauty of nothing." This is mission critical - if we are not letting the Lord be our everlasting satisfaction and overflowing joy, we are veering toward idolatry. No matter what the external circumstances may be, we are commanded to rejoice always! Thus, this a very important matter - a command, which we must obey by the grace of God... for the praise of the glory of God. Yet, this is also about happiness, and joy. This balance was summed up by C.S. Lewis when he wrote, "There is a kind of happiness and wonder that makes you serious."

May we be serious as we seek to be holy - by the strength and mercy and grace that God gives to us daily - and pursue ultimate joy in God. A holiness that glorifies God and is a testimony to His love and goodness... and a joy that cannot be broken by the storms of this world.

The Clipboard: Basics of Christian Communication

2009-07-26T11:10:00.003-04:00

A key element of Christianity is the communication of the God's Word, I would like to briefly address some of the basic goals that Christian need to have in regards to conveying precious treasure of wisdom that only Scripture offers.

Proclaim the Word

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen. (Matthew 28:19-20)

We are charged by Christ to teach all nations, specifically to observe the commandments found in Scripture. We must use the Scripture as the foundation for what we say.

Always Ready to Give a Reason for the Hope Within

But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear. (1 Peter 3:15)

The Christian communicator must be prepared (always!) to be able to defend his faith. At the end of 1 Peter 3;15 we see that there is a exhortation to convey this hope with meekness and fear. I will address meekness later in this mini-series, but the principle of Godly fear when expounding upon Christianity is essential to our approach.

Fear of the Lord

It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea, than that he would cause one of these little ones to stumble. (Luke 17:2 NASB)

When I am instructing others from and about the Scriptures, my one of my greatest prayers is that I do not cause my audience to "stumble." I cannot not stress enough the sobriety that every Christian should have when he approaches the podium. Do not take the mantle lightly!

As we have learned today, the Christian as he fulfills his commission to communicate the gospel, must always be ready to provide a defense of his faith always keeping in mind that he should approach his office with desire to submit to Christ and His Word. I look to forward to explaining many of these issues in more detail in the coming weeks.

Pre-Reformation History of Biblical Hermeneutics: Part III

2009-07-22T21:50:00.009-04:00

Having finished looking at the hermeneutics of Ezra and the scribes, what remains in this pre-reformation history is a period of 1400 years. The question posed at the end of part II of this series was “Will the religious leaders, church fathers, and medieval theologians of this era maintain the same hermeneutical preciseness exemplified in Nehemiah 9?”

A few decades before the birth of Christ, two rabbis come on the scene. Hillel and Shammai both lived during the reign of King Herod, from 37 B.C. to 4 B.C. Sadly, it was their differing character traits and perspectives (rather than holding to unchangeable Biblical standards) on the Roman occupation that led to their differing hermeneutics. “Shammai was concerned that if Jews had too much contact with the Romans, the Jewish community would be weakened, and this attitude was reflected in his strict interpretation of Jewish law. Hillel did not share Shammai's fear and therefore was more liberal in his view of law.” [1]

Another more serious issue arose a few centuries before, and it affected the Church for centuries to come. Years after Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey were written, other Greek philosophers came along who admired and desired to preserve these early writings. Yet, they also were embarrassed by the content – the immorality, and the way it portrayed the gods as weak and like humans. The easiest solution to this was to allegorize. “This allegorizing approach enabled Greek philosophers who came along later… to promote their own ideas while claiming to be faithful to the writings off the past. They could promote their own teachings under the guise of allegorizing the mythology of Homer and Hesiod.” [2]

The Jews also faced a similar dilemma. In their minds, the Old Testament contained unedifying stories of immorality, and also undesirable anthropomorphisms (the representation of God as having human form or traits [3] ). Two examples would be the story of Judah and Tamar (immorality), and a verse such as Exodus 15, verse 3: “The LORD is a man of war: the LORD is his name” (anthropomorphism). Instead of humbly seeking to understand the original meaning and context of these passages, they chose to allegorize. In some cases, the Jewish people went beyond allegorization and actually deleted such references. This occurred in the Greek translation of the Old Testament – the Septuagint.

Continue Reading on Google Knol

Part I: A Man Named Ezra || Part II: Prayer of the Levites
Part III: Religious Leaders and Medieval Theologians

____________

[1] http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/hillel.html
[2] Zuck, Roy. Basic Bible Interpretation. Colorado Springs: David C. Cook, 1991. Print.
[3] http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=anthropomorphism

What Kind of Christian are You?

2009-07-20T12:55:00.007-04:00

What kind of Christian are you? A recent article by Christianity Today explained some research they gathered on the types of Christians that exist. According to this research they specified five types of Christians :

Active Christians
Professing Christians
Liturgical Christians
Private Christians
Cultural Christians

Their definition of “Christian” is large based upon a person saying that they are a “Christian” as opposed to know them by their fruit (Matthew 12:33)

The Biblical analysis of their description of Active Christians vs. Cultural Christians:

1. Believe salvation comes through Jesus Christ vs. Favor universality theology/Do not view Jesus as essential to salvation/Affirm many ways to God

Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. (John 14:6)

2. Committed churchgoers vs. Little outward religious behavior or attitudes

Let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching. (Hebrews 10:24-25)

3. Bible readers vs. Little outward religious behavior or attitudes

But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. (Psalm 1:2)

4. Accept leadership positions vs. Little outward religious behavior or attitudes

This is a true saying, if a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work. (1 Timothy 3:1)

5. Invest in personal faith development through the church vs. Little outward religious behavior or attitudes

But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. (Hebrews 3:13)

6. Feel obligated to share faith; 79% do so. vs. Little outward religious behavior or attitudes

But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother's womb, and called me by his grace, To reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood: (Galatians 1:15-16)

These characteristics describe 19% of 1,000 "self-identified Christians," essentially 190 people. All Christians should either be or on the road to becoming similar to the people in this side cut of America's Christians. While not an exhaustive list of the facets of a Christian life, we can learn some of the basic parts of approaching our daily walk.

You may read the full article here, I will note that I disagree with several statements in the commentary, but the whole article will provide useful information regarding the condition of the modern church.

The Beauty of Nothing

2009-07-18T12:15:00.017-04:00

I just finished listening to a sermon preached by Richard Wurmbrand, who was promoted to glory in 2001. He was a pastor in the underground Romanian church, and spent 14 years in Communist prisons because of his unwavering faith and ministry. After his release from Romania, he began the work of The Voice of the Martyrs (formerly Jesus to the Communist World). This ministry continues to be a voice for the persecuted church around the world.

The Beauty of Nothing is a stirring reminder of the contrast between the modern Church and the persecuted Church. This is the testimony and example of Christians who have lost all for Christ - but who have found ultimate joy in Jesus, and have realized the value of “the nothing”. This beauty, however, is found not in "nothing" - but in understanding that nothing means everything. Jesus is always with us (Matthew 28:20), and it must be our passion and life-long desire to be fully satisfied in Him. Jesus is our fullness of joy!

“I am become a fool in glorying; ye have compelled me: for I ought to have been commended of you: for in nothing am I behind the very chiefest apostles, though I be nothing.” – 1 Corinthians 12:11

Listen to The Beauty of Nothing

Pre-Reformation History of Biblical Hermeneutics: Part II

2009-07-15T17:00:00.006-04:00

The previous post in this series gave an introduction to the history of Biblical hermeneutics, while taking a close look at Nehemiah 8. That chapter set the stage for what is, arguably, one of the earliest (c. 445-420 B.C.) canonical references to hermeneutics. Nehemiah 8 also gives us the three main steps in studying the Bible: observation, interpretation, and application. This post will examine the hermeneutical principles laid out in Nehemiah 9.

While the exact exposition of the Law that the Levites gave to the Israelites (Neh. 8:8) is not written in the text, a summary is presented in chapter 9… in the form of a prayer to God. In this prayer, the Levites begin by proclaiming:

“Stand up and bless the LORD your God for ever and ever: and blessed be thy glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise. Thou, even thou, art LORD alone; thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all things that are therein, the seas, and all that is therein, and thou preservest them all; and the host of heaven worshippeth thee.” (verses 5-6)

In the previous chapter, the Levites read to the people the books of the Law – the Pentateuch. Now, in this prayer, they are praising the Lord for all He has done, while giving a summary of the first five books of the Bible! In verse six, they begin at the beginning – the Creation story, in the book of Genesis.

“Thou art the LORD the God, who didst choose Abram, and broughtest him forth out of Ur of the Chaldees, and gavest him the name of Abraham; And foundest his heart faithful before thee, and madest a covenant with him to give the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Jebusites, and the Girgashites, to give it, I say, to his seed, and hast performed thy words; for thou art righteous.” (verses 7-8)

The Levites describe here God’s call of Abraham, and God’s covenant with him.

One important thing stands out – as they pray, they are taking the text very literally! In verses seven and eight, the Levites interpret the events in Genesis 12 as if that chapter is actually describing real people (Abram, Chaldeans), places (Ur), and things (land, promise). Remarkable!

“And didst see the affliction of our fathers in Egypt, and heardest their cry by the Red sea; And shewedst signs and wonders upon Pharaoh, and on all his servants, and on all the people of his land: for thou knewest that they dealt proudly against them. So didst thou get thee a name, as it is this day. And thou didst divide the sea before them, so that they went through the midst of the sea on the dry land; and their persecutors thou threwest into the deeps, as a stone into the mighty waters. Moreover thou leddest them in the day by a cloudy pillar; and in the night by a pillar of fire, to give them light in the way wherein they should go." (verses 9-12)

Continue Reading on Google Knol

Part I: A Man Named Ezra || Part II: Prayer of the Levites

Part III: Religious Leaders and Medieval Theologians

Fellowship in the Gospel

2009-07-13T21:28:00.007-04:00

Philippians 1:3-5:

³ I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, ⁴ always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy, ⁵ for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now.

For my weekly column, I am going to discuss something that the Lord has laid on my heart recently. The fellowship of the saints.

We as Christians often discuss fellowship.

"We are going to get together with some believers and have some fellowship."

"How about coming over to my house for fellowship?"

"We're going to have a fellowship meeting tonight."

Often we will loosely toss the word fellowship around as if the only requirement for fellowship is that believers are going to be together. We will discuss "the game" from last week, or what we did last Saturday, or even what things we did with the church, or the like.

But is this really what the Bible describes as fellowship?

In this passage in Philippians, Paul makes the statement that we have "fellowship in the gospel." Yet too often, we as Christians will come together and discuss anything but the gospel, the Bible, or anything related to spiritual growth... even our savior. But we are still willing to call the gathering fellowship.

Paul makes it clear in this verse - and throughout Philippians - that we as Christians have fellowship in the gospel. When we become believers, we have fellowship with other believers in the many areas - common goals - of glorifying Christ, serving the Lord, and growing in sanctification. We also share in the joy, the blessings, and the promises of the Lord. But we would not share in these if it were not for the gospel, the centerpiece of the Christian's life. Therefore, when Paul talks about fellowship, he makes it clear that our fellowship with believers should be in the gospel.

By stating this, I am not in any way stating that we only talk about the gospel, although it is the most important part of Christianity. We should also discuss other doctrines, and portions of the Bible, but the crucial and most important aspect of fellowship is the gospel.

Neither should we only discuss biblical topics, but the Bible in no way describes these as fellowship.

In conclusion, I think when we as Christians are together we should focus on true biblical fellowship and the centerpiece of our fellowship should be the gospel. And we should not gather for "fellowship" and discuss nothing that is biblical.

Pre-Reformation History of Biblical Hermeneutics: Part I

2009-07-08T21:39:00.016-04:00

As people seek to understand Biblical hermeneutics, the first step is to examine the historical pattern – from Biblical times to just a few decades ago. This mini-series on the pre-Reformation history of Biblical hermeneutics will be composed of three parts. Parts I and II will focus on the hermeneutics of a man named Ezra and his fellow Levites. In Part III, the hermeneutics of the later Jewish religious leaders, church fathers, and medieval theologians will be laid out.

It is exciting to start with the example of Ezra, because he was a man who feared God and correctly applied Biblical hermeneutics. The text is straight from the pages of Scripture and its meaning is clear; it also is one of the earliest examples of the existence of hermeneutical rules in relation to studying the Bible.

Nehemiah 8:1 reads:

“And all the people gathered themselves together as one man into the street that was before the water gate; and they spake unto Ezra the scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses, which the LORD had commanded to Israel.”

To set the context, Nehemiah was the cup-bearer for Artaxerxes the king – king of the Persian empire (chapter 1). Then, in chapter 2, Artaxerxes grants Nehemiah's request to go to Jerusalem and rebuild the wall. In the next chapter, the wall is repaired and built. In chapters 4-6, the Israelites face new foes, in the form of Sanbalat and Tobiah. They cry out to the Lord for help and strength (6:9), and God allows them to finish the work they begun. Skipping over chapter 7 (the genealogy), there is this verse at the beginning of chapter 8.

All the people gathered together in one accord, and asked Ezra to bring to them the book of the law – Genesis through Deuteronomy. Then, the next two verses are critical.

“(v3) And Ezra the priest brought the law before the congregation both of men and women, and all that could hear with understanding, upon the first day of the seventh month. (v4) And he read therein before the street that was before the water gate from the morning until midday, before the men and the women, and those that could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive unto the book of the law.”

Here lies the first step in studying the Bible – observation. Ezra read to the people from the books of the law from morning until midday (which is convicting in and of itself). There can be no second step of understanding - or a third step of application - if there is no observation. Thus, even though in-depth study is very important, it is also important to be reading God's word often.

Continue Reading on Google Knol

Part I: A Man Named Ezra || Part II: Prayer of the Levites || Part III: Religious Leaders and Medieval Theologians

An Example

2009-06-30T21:41:00.006-04:00

Last week, Aaron introduced a new series on this blog about hermeneutics. It is still coming.

Today, however, I want to write about a verse that God has been convicting me about over the past few weeks. It is something I still struggle with, so I say this humbly… yet with deep conviction. It is a command that if obediently applied in the lives of young people around the country, would result in a remarkable change unto the glory of God in families and churches around the world!

Biblical hermeneutics requires faithful application. Without obedience to God’s Word, accurate interpretation is useless, devoid of meaning. I pray that this post will more clearly underscore the critical need of Biblical hermeneutics. Without it, there is no proper application; without it, we drift away from obedience to God.

“Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.” - 1 Timothy 4:12 (KJV)

Let no man despise thy youth. Paul is speaking here to Timothy, his son in the faith. Timothy is a younger man - much younger than Paul. But Paul does not give Timothy an excuse to act in an ungodly manner because of his age. Quite to the opposite, Paul exhorts him to “Let no many despise thy youth."

But be thou an example of the believers. As younger men and women, we must be an example of the believers. God commands us to be example to the world of what a follower of Almighty God is, and an example to those who are younger in the faith of what a mature and growing Christian is.

In word. See Ephesians 4:29 – our speech is to edify. In Matthew 12:36, Jesus warns “That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.”

In conversation. This is a 17^th-century word that signifies a person’s whole life. Not just their words, but also their actions. See Colossians 3:23-24.

In charity. We know in our heads what Matthew 22:37-40 says, but do we truly love God with all of our hearts? Do we have any competing affections? Do we love our neighbor as ourselves… literally? With a 1 Corinthians 13 love? The apostle John gives a strong exhortation to love in 1 John 4:8 – “He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.”

In spirit. God is still doing a work in my heart to make me totally consumed with Jesus Christ. That my joy may be in Him. That I may live in Him, abide in Him, and glory in Him. This is what our spirit must be.

In faith. Our faith – is it growing? Do we beg the Lord to “increase our faith”, like the disciples did? I recently heard a man speak about how we can spend an hour watching TV, but it is difficult for us to spend an hour in prayer. We can spend a day with a friend, but not a day with Jesus. Why? Are we “constant in prayer”, as the Bible commands?

In purity. This is huge. Not only physical purity, but also emotional, and spiritual. It is a single-mindedness, understood as walking down the narrow road, picking up our cross and following our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Again, do we have competing affections?

We have a grave responsibility. It is sobering to realize that God requires us – young men and women - to be an example of the believers, that unbelievers may not be given a cause to blaspheme the name of Jesus.

Will you be an example?

Hermeneutics - How to Read the Bible Correctly - New Series

2009-06-22T07:18:00.004-04:00

"What do you think that verse means?"

"What does this verse mean to you?"

"What do you believe about this verse?"

Many Christians, when studying the Bible, often ask these questions, trying to determine what the Bible means. But is this truly how we are supposed to understand the Bible?

In the modern "Christian" church we have developed such a warped view of scripture with many heresies, false doctrines, and other forms of aberrant theology, it is evident that we have truly lost an understanding of how to read the Bible rightly.

In the next couple months Noah and I, and our newest blogger, Anthony will be discussing, how the modern church has lost proper biblical hermeneutics, and we are going to lay out, how to lead the Bible correctly.

Quotes of Past Preachers

2009-05-19T14:39:00.006-04:00

Once or twice a week until Noah is back posting full time. I will be posting short (or long) quotes from older Preachers like Charles Spurgeon, A.W. Tozer, and the like.

This quote if from Charles Spurgeon.

Coming Back

2009-05-14T21:55:00.001-04:00

I just wanted to let anybody who still might look at this blog that we will be starting this blog back with regular posts very soon. I have been extremely busy with school. And Noah has been unable to post. With school I could not keep this blog going alone. I will be posting brief updates for the next couple of months and Noah will be back posting in mid July. I'm not sure when the podcasts will be back, it takes quite a bit of time to record and edit a podcast.

More to come soon.

A Cry For Our Nation

2008-11-05T14:58:00.008-05:00

Many Christians upon hearing that Obama had become our new president, were shaken, fearful, depressed and discouraged. My prayer through this election is that we as a nation learn something and that we as Christians do as well.

For many years we've been watching our nation disintegrate as we allowed more and more evil into our country. With the passage of laws, homosexuality and abortion became legal. And with activist groups and others, we saw these evils become tolerated, then accepted, and now almost celebrated. Our country has grown more and more evil in other areas as well. Over 50% of our nation declares itself to be addicted to pornography. And these are just the ones who are willing to admit it. Our country has moved away from true christian values, and has instead chosen to satisfy the lusts of their hearts. As these things have taken place, the country has moved farther and farther to the left politically. We have become more accepting of liberal policies. As I look upon these developments that have taken place in the USA I can't help but think, "Do we deserve God's wrath? Do we deserve his judgment?" I think the answer is and overwhelming yes. My cry for this nation is that we fall to our knees in repentance. If God is going to judge this nation, we must learn what he wants to show us. We must repent of our sins and cry out for mercy.

As I ponder the state of the country I can't help but think, well, these in this country are non-Christians, we cannot expect them to act like Christians. Those who are carnal will act like they are carnal. Only through the blood of Jesus can these things be washed away. Only through the blood of Jesus saving individuals can these things change. So my mind turns to the church. What has happened to the church? Is the church even more guilty than the world? After all the world is only acting as the world always does, sinfully. In fact it is impossible for the world to act with any Christian virtue. So I look back at what the church has become over the past years.

What is the church supposed to be? It is supposed to be people who have been saved by Christ felowshipping together, growing together, reaching a lost world, and serving our lord and savior, Jesus Christ. What have we become? Nothing but a mirror image of the world. (Please note that I am not saying that every church is like this, but many are.) What do "so called Christians" do, they go to the same movies, they watch the same TV shows, they want the world's fun. Instead of being in the world but not of it, the church today is in the world and of the world. With the rise of the seeker sensitive movement we saw church become what it was not supposed to be. It was done for the world, and sadly it became like the world. As this movement took hold more and more false converts were "made" in the church. And it went downhill from there. Now in the church the divorce rate is just as high as in the world. The number of people who view pornography is just as high, It is even high among pastors. The church also contributed to this fall with the breakup of the family. Every member of thew family was split into different groups. The family didn't worship as a whole they worshiped separately. This also bled into the home as more and more families failed to worship and learn together at home. Fathers gave the responsibility of training to the Sunday school pastor and the youth "pastor". And these have failed miserably at teaching the children and training them. Church has become nothing but a fun fest for children, and even for adults. Even today the emergent church is taking on the postmodern mindset of the world and has embraced the world's philosophies wholeheartedly.

Even in this election many Christians for the first time voted for a pro-abortion candidate in John McCain. Even Christians have abandoned the principles that once guided our voting. We have placed our trust in politicians instead of God.

As I look back at the church's recent history I can't help but think that we have lost the most important part of our faith, THE GOSPEL. And as we lost sight of the gospel we, lost the battle. We became like the world and our nation collapsed. As we prepare for an Obama presidency, let us think of one thing, and one thing only, THE GOSPEL. Let us fight and strive for it, let it motivate us, let it encourage us, and let it form the very essence of who we are. Let us look to Christ for comfort, hope, and council. Let us trust in him, not only for our salvation, but for every part of our lives. Let us as a church get on our knees and repent of the evil we have done. Let us return to the principles of our Christian faith, as God judges this nation. And above all let us love the gospel, protect the gospel, and spread the gospel, because that is the ONLY thing that is going to save the church, our nation, and the world.

P.S. I am sorry we have not posted in a long time. Noah has not been able to post, and I have been extremely busy with school.

Sermon Video Clip - Voddie Baucham

2008-08-24T16:50:00.004-04:00

I love this clip from Voddie Baucham about God's sovereignty in the world. It is very powerful.

By the way. I am sorry I have not posted in a while. I have been very busy. I will try to post my next post on "The Word Became Flesh" by next week.

The Word Became Flesh Part 1

2008-08-01T08:00:00.002-04:00

John 1:1-5; 14: 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. 14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

What is the greatest miracle? It is an intriguing question. When Jesus lived on this earth, He performed many miracles. From healing the of the sick to creating wine from water, Christ displayed His power and substantiated His claim that he was the Messiah. But what is the greatest miracle? Surprisingly it is not any of those performed by Jesus while He was on earth. No it is not even the new birth that he causes in sinners dead in trespasses of sins, as great a miracle that is. No, the miracle which surpasses all others is contained in this in this one phrase from John 1:14, "And the Word became flesh".

When I study the Bible, I like to understand the context of the verse, and the first five verses of the book of John provide an excellent background to this amazing event. Verses 1 and 2 state who Jesus is. He is the eternal Word, who is coequal with the Father and the Holy Spirit. The apsotle John states explicitly that Jesus Christ is God and has existed forever. But this also makes it very clear that Jesus is a separate and distinct member of the trinity, thus dispelling any arguments from modalists, who claim that there is one God with three manifestations, not persons. In verse three John clearly states that Jesus is the creator of all things. Many people have the misunderstanding that it was God the Father who created the earth. In reality, Jesus Christ, our savior, was also our creator. This becomes extremely powerful when we understand verse 14. Just as a side issue, it is also very interesting that when man was created, the Old Testament makes it clear that it was the work of all three members of the trinity, Genesis 1:26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”

"In him was life". I love this phrase, because it absolutely demolishes the idea of evolution, that life can come from non-life. Clearly Jesus alone can clearly give life to anything, life can not, "just happen".

Now let's take a close look at verse 14. "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us,". This phrase states the greatest miracle that was ever accomplished in the history of time. Nothing else can compare to what is stated in that phrase. Of all the miracles that are recoded in the Bible God, in the person of Jesus Christ, became flesh and dwelt among us. That Jesus Christ, the eternal Word became flesh without losing any of his divinity is undoubtedly the most awesome event recorded in the Bible. And to think John describes it in one phrase, "The Word became flesh."

Serving God, Not Man

2008-07-29T08:00:00.002-04:00

The Apostle Paul, in Galatians, penned the following in his letter to the Galatians: “For do I now persuade men, or God? Or do I seek to please men? For if I yet pleased man, I should not be the servant of Christ.” (Galatians 1:10) A simple question that is followed by a powerful answer, that Christians have honorable duty to serve God before any man. Triangulating Galatians 1:10 by taking a close look from three points of reference, namely, the Biblical view, how modern day Christians can apply the concept, and a personal illustration we will discover the lesson that lies behind this verse.

The nation of Israel had just escaped their four hundred arduous years of being slaves in Egypt. They had spent many months in the Sinai desert trudging through the broiling sand under a merciless sun. On the horizon, Canaan appeared as a dark silhouette of lush trees. A welcome sight after traveling through a bleak desert, the Promise Land lived up to its name. Moses, a wise leader, decided that it would be a good idea to send some spies so the Hebrew nation do not nonchalantly walk into someone’s backyard unprepared. Moses democratically picked one man from each of the twelve tribes to scout out the land before them and give a report of the land’s resources. After the twelve men completed their reconnaissance, they returned bringing in clusters of grapes so large it required two men to carry one cluster attached to a poll. They also brought stories of the land that flowed with milk and honey. Of course, the twelve men also informed the people that there were monstrous giants that made the Israelites look like grasshoppers. Ten men claimed that any attempt to take the land would result in a massacre. Caleb and Joshua countered by reminding everyone that God was on their side and that the giants would be conquered. Unfortunately, in an effort that placated men but not God, the majority ruled and all received the punishment of wandering in the desert for forty years. Illuminated by the story of the twelve spies, it appears absolutely essential for Christians, especially Christian leaders to strive to please the Almighty God of the Universe than the men of earth.

It is drastically important for a nation to follow God, especially if God represents the executive, judicial, and legislative branches of your government. Ananius and Sapphiras decided to please men with devastating consequences. Because many Christians engaged in selling various articles of wealth and donating them to the local church, Ananius and Sapphiras decided to sell some land, but they decided to skim the profits a little without telling anyone. The deception they displayed before the church and God resulted in instant deaths, a harrowing reminder of the effects that lying and catering to men bring upon someone. In today’s day and age, churches must strive to maintain a spirit of one accord. When half of the church decides to satisfy their own desires and aspirations while the other half hungers to follow God’s will, the church will fall. “And Jesus, knew their thoughts, and said unto them, Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand.” (Matthew 12:25) Modern day Christians must learn from their predecessors the importance of following God with all of the heart, mind, and soul. Although the resulting consequences rarely are as dire as those meted out to Ananius and Sapphiras, Christians must rise up to the standard laid out by Jesus and His Father.

All of the insight, inspiring Bible stories, and head knowledge of what you are supposed to do does not matter if the real life application never happens. Why train for something that will never happen? Over winter vacation, I received an assignment to enter the grocery store, select a tub of ice cream from an exacting, predetermined list contain on a piece of paper, purchase the items, and come home. Everything went according to plan until I began to fail at living up to the label society placed upon my peers and myself, Generation Multi-task. Despite the normally justified name, I absolutely could not walk, carry grocery bags, and place the change I received from the cashier into my pocket. The solution? Stop walking. For some reason, probably a God thing, I took the chance to count the money after I saw that there was ten-dollar bill where it wasn’t supposed to be. Checking the receipt I discovered that I should had only received eight dollars back when in reality, thirteen dollars lay in my hand. My conscience decided that I needed to return the money. Walking back into the store, a war raged inside my mind. Was it even possible to return the money because of the technology inside the cash register? If my conscience had not bothered me, my family would save five dollars, which would come to about a 30% savings or more. “A false balance is an abomination to the Lord; but a just weight is his delight.” (Proverbs 11:1) In this particular instance I would unscrupulously taking advantage of the store’s mistake, which would damage my witness. Upon the returning of the money, the worker was extremely grateful. Looking back, I am glad I decided to delight God rather than my inclinations of the flesh.

At this point, an important question comes to the surface, what does this all come down to? Not everyday does the possibility of getting thrown to the lions, selling property to donate the proceeds to a church, or making an important foreign policy decision arises. Some of those things will never happen in some people’s life, but everyone faces little decisions where the choice to please God or to please peers appears with clear distinction. God cares about the seemingly small choices just as He cares about life or nation changing decisions. Christians must stand firmly resolved that they will please God before they attempt to please man.

A Generation For Truth Podcast Episode 5

2008-07-26T20:33:00.004-04:00

In this episode we discuss the ACE of Rick Warren's PEACE plan.

You can also download it at...

http://swordmaster31.podbean.com/2008/07/26/a-generation-for-truth-podcast-episode-5/

PEACE Plan: The Final Verdict

2008-07-23T13:16:00.005-04:00

On A Generation for Truth we have discussed and critiqued Rick Warren's PEACE Plan over the past few weeks. Now comes the time for a summarizing opinion, the final verdict if you will. My personal opinion, simply boils down to that the PEACE Plan misses the mark. Listen to Rick Warren's words regarding his Plan, "The first Reformation was about belief; this one's going to be about behavior." Falling back on my debate training and instincts I would now like to show the advantages and disadvantages of enacting the PEACE Plan.

Observation 1: Definitions

Philosophy of the PEACE Plan: Listen to Rick Warren's words regarding his Plan, "The first Reformation was about belief; this one's going to be about behavior." I would like to comment first by saying that Christians have been trying to influence Godly behavior since before the 1^st century.

PEACE Plan:

Promote Reconciliation

Equip servant leaders

Assist the poor

Care for the sick

Educate the next generation

Observation 2: Harms of the Status Quo

Rick Warren calls these the five "giant problems" that exist today.

Spiritual Emptiness (Aaron finds a major problem with the word "empty." I have a tendency to feel that they just messed up a little bit and should have used the phrase "Spiritual Darkness.")

Self-serving Leadership (Rick Warren hobnobs with some leaders that feel to belong in this category, however, if Warren attempts to truly make some of these socialistic thinkers to truly think about the people they claim to serve, then great.)

Extreme Poverty (As someone who enjoys finding historical patterns and cycles, extreme poverty occurs often when dictatorships arise. God creates both the wealthy and the poor, of those who receive much, much is expected. Also, if someone will not work, neither shall he eat.)

Pandemic Diseases (Diseases are a direct consequence of sin and many sins cause illness. Christians have established thousands of hospitals, clinics and other source of medical care across globe.)

Educate the Next Generation (What type of education are we talking about? A God centered philosophy or man centered ideologies?)

Observation 3: Advantages of the PEACE Plan

First Christians will address these problems and will be living witnesses for Christ although that is not the primary objective (see main disadvantage for further discussion). My church headed up ShareFest in our area and I believe had a positive impact on our community, why not reach out to the whole world if you can?

Observation 4: Disadvantages of the PEACE Plan

If Rick Warren had not made his "2nd Reformation" claim and instead stated that he believed that the church should help people in need, it would be an extremely great plan. But he focuses on the deed as opposed to doctrine. God judges the heart, not the outward appearance. Groups like Samaritan's Purse and Operation Christmas Child provide aid and supplies to countries around the world and the Gospel. The PEACE Plan could do this too.

The Bottom Line: "The first one to plead his cause seems right, until his neighbor comes and examines him." Proverbs 18:17

2008-07-20T21:18:00.002-04:00

Will you be admitted into Heaven?

Only those not blotted from the Lamb's Book of Life are "Authorized Personnel."

2008-07-11T16:33:00.003-04:00

From time to time we are going to be posting video clips from sermons. This is from one of my favorite speakers, Paul Washer. This is a great clip which speaks about true conversion.

A Generation For Truth Podcast Episode 4

2008-07-07T18:50:00.003-04:00

In this episode we discuss Rick Warren and his PEACE plan Pt. 1

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The podcast is also availible for download at...
http://swordmaster31.podbean.com/2008/07/07/a-generation-for-truth-podcast-episode-4/

The Clipboard: Brian Mclaren's Preferred Candidate

2008-07-05T07:00:00.002-04:00

Brian Mclaren wants everything to change. It appears he will put his vote where his mouth is. In a post on his blog, Brian Mclaren said the following, "So, inaccuracies happen. To say I was sent by Senator Obama wasn't accurate. To say I hope he will be our next president rather than Senator McCain is accurate." Mclaren says he will be "outspoken" on his opinions of this election and he "enthusiasticly supports the Matthew 25 Network which is supporting Senator Obama." Not as a pastor but a a responsible private citizen. Define "responsible." Senator Obama supports abortion and high taxes. Do you call that responsible? Not from a Scriptural basis.

Taxes: If you read 1 Kings 12, you will discover that a wise king will not burden his people with gratutious taxes. When politicians institute tax systems that are designed to imitate Robin Hood (Take from the rich, give to the poor), they commit "legal plunder."

Abortion: This issue clearly violates the 6th commandment, "Thou shall not kill." As the social gospel attempts to save the world, eliminate global warming, and other social issues, thousands of defenseless children are being slaughtered in an ongoing massacre. The Pro-Life* issue is incredibly huge (physically, emotionally, spiritually, etc.) so I will not address this topic in detail right now.

Bottom Line: "When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan." (Proverbs 29: 2)

*A Generation for Truth defines Pro-Life as being against abortion, human cloning, and embryonic stem cell research. Some groups define the Pro-Life movement as also opposing the death penalty.

PEACE Part 2: Equip Servant Leaders

2008-07-02T18:24:00.001-04:00

Rick Warren desires to train servant leaders to fill multiple areas of authority. On it's face, this area of the PEACE plan apears valid. Until you examine the leaders that Rick Warren deals with. He invited Hillary Clinton to attend a summit, where video messages from John Edwards and Barack Obama also were displayed.

On a trip to visit Bashar Assad, Warren discussed how everyone gets along, in regards to Christians and Muslims. An anti-semintic country and persecutor.

If these are the kind of leaders that Rick Warren appreciates, what will happen when he wants to train thousands ofleaders to control his one billion man army of "peace?"

If you go to World Net Daily , you can learn a lot about Rick Warren's diplomatic escapades.

The problem that the need for servant leaders is caused by? Self-serving, corrupt leaders. Rick Warren believes he can solve this problem. Maybe his political friends can help by showing a good example. For example, warren already has dissension in the ranks, Hillary Clinton and Barak Obama spent the last few months attacking each other trying to win the Democratic nomination.

Bottom Line: "And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye." (Matthew 7:3-5)

PEACE, Really? Part 1

2008-06-30T20:49:00.009-04:00

Rick Warren has become one of the most influential pastor’s in America. He has even been termed “America’s Pastor”. But what does he really teach? And most importantly, is he biblical?
When Rick Warren’s book, “The Purpose Driven Life” burst on to the Christian scene, it rocked the world. It almost instantly became the New York Times number 1 national bestseller. But what was he teaching and was it biblical? And should we follow it. Although we may review the actual book at some point we are not here to discuss it now. However, I will say that his book was very seeker sensitive and contained a very unbiblical gospel. In recent days, Rick Warren become more and more emergent as the movement has become more prevalent.

Recently Rick Warren has unveiled a new plan through which he wishes to begin a new reformation throughout the world. It is called, The PEACE plan. PEACE is an acronym for which each letter stands for a solution to what he sees as the five big problems in the world. Unfortunately what he sees as the big problems of the world don’t deal with the root issue at play in the world, sin. Since he does give five problems and five solutions I am only going to deal with two in this post.

The first big problem that Rick Warren sees in the world is Spiritual Emptiness. This term is completely overused and it really doesn’t describe the true problem. Humans do not have a problem with “spiritual emptiness” but they have sin problem. We don’t need some emptiness in our hearts filled; we need our hearts, which are filthy, wretched, and foul, cleansed and renewed by God who can only do this through our repentance and faith in Jesus Christ’s sacrifice on the Cross.

Warren’s solution to this problem is the first letter of peace: Promote Reconciliation. Although this phrase is not inherently wrong, but we need to look at what Warren means by Promote Reconciliation. On his website he makes it abundantly clear that he is referring mainly to reconciliation between men. This however is not the main issue which needs to be dealt with. The true need of reconciliation is between God and man. This is accomplished only through Christ’s atoning work on the cross. Once the reconciliation between man and God is accomplished the minor issue of men to men reconciliation will take care of itself.

Bottom Line: Ephesians 2:16 “and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity.

Note from Noah:

An important facet to discuss when addressing the need for reconciliation exists in the fact that different people will attain different positions in life. Life is not "fair" normally when man tries to be fair, major issues arise. Communism/Socialism is a big attempt that parades under the façade of fairness, but in reality represents a totally unjust system. While it is true that "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness" (The Unanimous Declaration of the thirteen United States of America) and that "The rich and poor meet together: the LORD is the maker of them all." (Proverbs 22:2) The key to this view that is that God gives and takes away. In the book of Proverbs we find numerous examples of the importance of diligence and a good work ethic. "But with righteousness He shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; He shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, and with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked. Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins, and faithfulness the belt of His waist. The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. (Isaiah 11:4-6) This passage of prophecy from Isaiah depicts a time of true, complete reconciliation, a kind that on Jesus can bring, not man.

The Clipboard: Lessons from Skiing

2008-06-26T02:10:00.001-04:00

Last week I had the privilege of visiting a friend's grandma's lake house. Almost every morning we would take a morning water skiing/wake boarding run. Why did we sacrifice sleep and the chance of getting a complete breakfast? The "glassy" water which you glide smoothly across once you cut out of the boat's wake. Once other boats get onto the lake the water begins to get choppy and unpleasant to some.

One time our boat plowed through the wake of another boat sending a short series of waves which I had to go over. They family was surprised I was able to calmly ski over the obstacles like they barely existed. I realized that by learning to water ski and almost exclusively water skiing on the Ohio river, I had naturally learned to handle the wakes of boats and even barges! Because I had been inserted or literally dragged into rough water from the beginning my performance level "accidentally" is higher than normal.

On the other side of the spectrum, snow skiing has provided me with a slightly different experience. When I began snow skiing, the people I skied with were very cautious and safety minded and every time we hit the slopes we would slowly warm ourselves up on the green slopes. However, a few years later I started skiing with people who had experience out west. The combination of being in an group of athletic, more risk-taking guys I was forced to bump up my skills and level of courage. While other groups enjoyed the opportunity to socialize and talk while other people in their group were coming down the mountain, we were striving slide over the maximum amount snow in a day.

Home schooling instincts kicking in. What lessons can I glean from my experience and apply to my life? First, if we are placed in a tough situation realize the advantages down the road, such as being able to outrun, outwit, outlast your opponents and/or friends. Whether the "rough water" is represented as a difficult piano piece, a "boring" book, or difficult physical activity, persevere through it with determination. Secondly, sometime we need someone to encourage us to "kick it up a notch." For example, if you start running for exercise, find someone who can run farther and faster than you can.

The Bottom Line: Get into rough waters* and, if needed, acquire someone who can spur you on in pursuing your quest.

*A Generation for Truth, it's authors, and/or affiliates disclaim any impacts, injuries ( minor, major, silly and/or serious), accidents, stress, and/or death of either mental physical, and/or spiritual implications resulting from taking the advice provided in this article. Any actions you take after reading this article are to be performed at your own risk. Also, success is not guaranteed. A Generation for Truth, it's authors, and/or affiliates disclaim any loss of self-esteem resulting from reading the aforesaid sentence.

Moral Absolutes

2008-06-19T09:00:00.002-04:00

Moral absolutes vs. no absolutes. Depending on your background a battle summarized as, Decarte vs. Nietche, Western thought vs. Eastern thought, and God and His legions of angels vs. Lucifer and his horde of demons. I would like to address the existence moral absolutes by examining the fact by the three ways we can know truth, experience, reason (or logic), and revelation. Because of the advances of post-modernism and people desiring to do whatever they want, many people believe that my generation will provide the soldiers in a final stand, the last battle, or epilogue of the war for truth. I feel a need to reach out to my peers and equip them to face the conflicts that will arise in their classrooms, work places, and, unfortunately, their churches.

Experience:
Doubting Thomas example. Post-modern people sometimes feel that you can dictate your own truth and what is wrong to you can be right to me. For instance, I could say that a tennis ball is bright orange, but Aaron could say that the tennis ball is yellow. The law of non-contradiction says that we cannot both be right, however, some people would say that we can both be right. By using our five senses we can discern truth. In the case of Thomas the disciple, upon seeing Christ he wanted physical evidence, he wanted confirmation.

“Now Thomas, called the Twin, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said to him, “We have seen the Lord.” So he said to them, “Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.” And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, “Peace to you!” Then He said to Thomas, “Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.”” (John 20: 24-27)

Reasoning:
Logically we can deduce that absolutes exist. To begin with, if you say that there are no absolutes, you have just stated an absolute. However, because logic resides in a mental state, many people disregard it’s validity, even Christians. Why? For Christians, reasoning alone allows the opportunity to rationalize any action or behavior. Secular minded people do not like logic because it requires people to systematically through an idea and when people carefully think through an issue sometimes they figure out how foolish an idea really is, i.e. global warming. “It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, but the glory of kings is to search out a matter.” (Proverbs 25:2)

Revelation:
Revelation provides the most accurate and infallible source of truth. “Your word is truth.” (John 17:17b) However, it requires faith to be considered credible. Currently, the Bible exists as the most readily available ways of obtaining revelation since the Bible is the inspired Word of God. It also provides truth that will always over rule experience and reason if it comes to a fight over who’s right. Using the Bible as the final word on any matter is incredibly vital no matter who and where you are in the world.

Is the Emergent Church post-modern? Do they deny absolutes? As with all issues each promoter or church requires a case by case examination. For instance, Brian Mclaren, claims that he is not post-modern because the meaning of post-modern has been simplified too much. The main goal of this article focuses on showing proof of absolutes. The best evidence of moral absolutes lies in the fact that God always keeps His promises.

Bottom Line: “And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and your descendants after you. (Genesis 17:7)

A Generation For Truth Podcast Episode 3

2008-06-17T20:14:00.008-04:00

In this episode we discuss the Kingdom Dominion Theology of the EC.

The podcast is also available for download at...
http://swordmaster31.podbean.com/2008/06/17/a-generation-for-truth-podcast-episode-3/

The Clipboard: Brain Mclaren's Gospel

2008-06-14T08:35:00.011-04:00

I was at the library the other day and on a whim, I searched for books by Brian Mclaren. Normally, when I am about to critique someone or their ideas I like to read their ideas in context before I throw my words out of my mouth and a foot enters the void. I looked at The Secret Message of Jesus and I am still working on Everything Must Change, but these books explain why Mr. Mclaren advocates a social gospel. In his introduction he says that there are three kinds of people who read his books, People who are...

Converts to his teachings.

Curious about his teaching.

Critics of his teachings

I would place my self in between 2 & 3. Why? I am interested in what he has to say, but I am critical of his ideas. Like a well trained debater he has pre-empted his opposition and is very kind to them throughout the entire book. Initially, he used to believe in the standard gospel, but was influenced by a friend to adopt a social gospel/kingdom dominion viewpoint.
Why is the message of Jesus a "secret?" Mainly because Jesus speaks in parables and metaphors. Such as "born again" (John 3:1-8) and "living water" (John 4: 10-15). But that is a just a small point compared to why Mclaren believes in a social gospel/kingdom dominion.

In Chapter 11: The Open Secret, Mclaren relates to a significant conversation at a restaurant. During this lunch, Brian Mclaren was asked what he believed the gospel to be by a friend who claimed that most people had the gospel wrong. He replied by quoting Paul about justification, salvation, and Christ dying for our sins. Mr. Mclaren then asks his friend what he believed the gospel to be, expecting heresy. His friend answered with,"The kingdom of God is at hand. That was Jesus' message. Don't you think we should let Jesus tell us what the gospel is?"

"Some would say that we have exchanged "Christianity" for "Paulinity." Christianity was about the kingdom of God coming to earth for everyone, they would say. Paulinity is about about a select few escaping earth and going to heaven after they die. (The Secret Message of Jesus, pg. 91)"

He goes on to say later in the chapter:

"But the question remains: if Paul doesn't use the exact same language with the similar frequency, how does he translate Jesus' message into his own, new situation?(The Secret Message of Jesus, pg. 95)"

Aaron covered a lot of the issues regarding kingdom dominion in his post on Thursday so I will not expound on the in depth issues so as not to bore you with redundancy. However, one issue begs of discussion. Paulinity vs. Christianity. In II Timothy 3: 16-17 it says, "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work." The key phrase is that "all scripture is given by inspiration of God." Does it say that only certain parts of the Canon represent truth? No, the entire Bible is completely infallible.

For a detailed review, which covers a lot of Mclaren's ideas that are presented in The Secret Message of Jesus, click here.

The Bottom Line: "Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." (John 14: 7)