The official exhaustive list of all topical posts in chronological order.
A Theology of Non-Essentials
The fear of non-existence (with an unrelated introduction)
Unbelief in Matthew 13 and the purpose of this blog
Spiritual truths in Jude
Sunday, December 20, 2009
A Theology of non-essentials
WARNING: This post is significantly less humorous than previous posts. It was written as a semi-formal essay on the topic of "non-essentials" and how they should affect Christian theology. That being said, I hope you still enjoy it.
A Theology of Non-Essentials
When dealing with the non-essentials of Christianity there is a
great danger of being opinionated.
The opinionated man is both gifted and cursed in his personality.
He studies and ponders ideas to see all sides of them, for every issue
must have an answer. No enigma is allowed to remain unsolved and every
area of any given topic must be systematically probed in order to draw
proper conclusions. He is thorough in his work and leaves no stone
unturned. He thirsts for the truth and will let nothing stop him in
his quest for discovering objective reality.
The opinionated man makes hasty opinions, even without enough
evidence to support his stance. He is both argumentative and arrogant,
and will strive to maintain the integrity of his position even when
the chips are down. He fights to the death over issues of little or no
significance and is quick to withdraw form the masses with the idea
that his thoughts transcend anyone else's that don't agree with his.
When dealing with his faith, he is strongly attracted to dogma and
will quickly make divisions wherever possible. He devours theological
terms and ideas, and spews them out like vomit. He battles pride on the
front lines daily, and oftentimes, he loses. He is a resilient fellow
though, for he simply counts his losses as victories and continues on,
never looking back. The opinionated man bumbles through life and takes
advice from no one but himself. He draws his own conclusions about life
and meets an untimely end, accomplishing nothing. I am such a man.
Non-essentials of Christianity often consume me and distract me
from following The Way. So much so, that it oftentimes undermines
parts of my faith and puts up self-restraints that prevent me from
running the race that I was called for.
For the opinionated man (or simply anyone curious about the
"smaller" aspects of their faith) it is helpful to keep a few things
in mind. One of the harder facts to grasp, is that we are looking at
things through tainted eyes. We will never get everything right for we
will always see a distorted image. We are spiritually blind from birth
and until God graciously gives us the glasses of salvation, we will
scarcely be able to see Him, if we can see Him at all. Our spiritual
blindness is so severe, that even with the best glasses blood can buy,
they will never be perfect until we are. Only through the completion
of our salvation, will we be able to see clearly, and this will never
happen on this present earth. To be blunt, we will never have all the
answers.
For me, this is difficult to accept, but the sooner I accept it,
the sooner I can stop being so dogmatic when dealing with my own
answers that are not essential to Christ's life. There are so many
great theologians and yet they disagree on what seems to be almost
everything. How can so many people, who are honestly seeking God's
answers, draw so many vastly different conclusions? It is not that
they are all so sin burdened that they are unable to perceive truth,
or that they are so wrapped up in themselves that they forget to check
with God, although both of these things could quite possibly be true.
The majority of the time, it is because although they are all looking
at the One True God, they are all looking through different eyes.
This is not to say that their salvation is somehow different, rather
it is their fallen minds that alter their glasses of salvation.
This is not a problem that resides only in theologians, it's just
that it is oftentimes more strongly manifested in those willing to
boldly state their beliefs. To claim that you do not have this problem
because you subscribe to "general Christianity" is to say that outside
of the essentials, you do no thinking whatsoever. It is helpful to
remember that we are told to have child-like faith, not child-like
reasoning.
To think is to err, and it is better to err than to not think at
all. To not think about such areas for fear of being wrong is the
equivalent of living a self-sufficient, solitary life for fear of
harming people. The solution of tainted vision is not to close your
eyes, for everyone knows that some sight is better than no sight at
all. Instead of avoiding the problem, we need to confront it. We need
to acknowledge our spiritual blindness and try our best to minimize
our own destructive potential. This means that we must not get too
attached to our own conclusions concerning the non-essentials of our
faith. I do not mean by this, that we should hold no opinion on such
issues, rather we should ponder everything and bring every opinion we
have before our Lord and Savior. This does mean however, that we must
always keep in the back of our minds, the likely possibility that
we could be wrong.
We must do away with all preconceived notions about any issue,
and we must base our salvation on the solid foundation of Christ. He
is our Cornerstone and to start our foundation without Him, is to not
start at all. It is here that we begin to build our belief system.
Once Christ, the living word, is our cornerstone, we must add the
written word to our foundation of beliefs. Once we have laid our
foundation out, we must take a step back from our structure and humbly
acknowledge that anything beyond this is speculation. We might know
what blocks to use in our structure or what order some of them go in,
but we are not exactly sure about the specifics. We are now ready to
build our tower of beliefs.
These two bricks that we have set down, make up our everlasting
foundation. These two bricks are made of concrete and they are
cemented into the ground for all eternity. To cement any other blocks
on top of these two is a grave mistake. It is at this point that we
put away our concrete and our cement, and pull out our plastic
building blocks. We then begin to place these building blocks in the
way that we think they fit. At the end of our life, we might have a
completed tower but it will never look quite right. Perhaps it will
be a little unsteady, or a tad unsymmetrical. It will never be perfect
no matter how many times we rebuild it and yet, it is our tower. If,
for some reason, we discover a fatal design in it, we never have to
tear it down completely. We simply knock down the plastic blocks and
start again, piling plastic on the cement foundation.
When we are constructing this tower of beliefs, is it important to
never be afraid of two things happening. First, we must never be
afraid of rearranging the blocks, for this shall be a normal occurrence
in any man's life. Second, we must never be afraid if the breath of God
causes our entire tower to collapse, and most importantly, we must
never cry. For the breath of God blows where it pleases, and if it is
in His will that your tower should fall, it is for your benefit. There
is only one danger that you must always keep in mind throughout your
life as a spiritual architect: you must never, ever, pour cement on
the plastic blocks. It is much easier to pour on than it is to take
off!
Before you begin on your lifelong construction of your tower,
there is one important step you must take. Before you go about adding
all of your plastic blocks, you must walk over to your tower and kick
it down. You must leave no block standing, for this tower is nothing
but a tower of pre-conceived notions. If upon the destruction of your
tower, you find that both the foundation of Christ and the Bible are not
firmly cemented at it's base, please take the time to do so. Your
tower will be nothing but a pile of meaningless plastic without them.
Another problem you may encounter is that while you are kicking
down your tower, you may stub your toe on one of many wrongly cemented
plastic layers. One of these layers is called strong denominationalism and it
must be destroyed. Get out your sledge hammer and begin the difficult
yet necessary work or disassembling this layer promptly. If upon
reconstruction of your tower, the layer of a particular denomination
reforms, that is fine. Just be careful not to cement it in again and
remember not to pout if God decides that you do not need it there
anymore.
It is crucial to destroy your old tower before rebuilding it,
for no one puts new wine in old wineskins. There are many more
difficulties in the destruction of your tower that you will soon
discover. For example, one particularly difficult layer to break down,
is the cemented layer known as "family beliefs". If you are
taught certain things from your childhood, you will have poured so
much cement on top of this layer that it will hardly be
distinguishable from your two foundational blocks! It will begin to
look like one monstrous lump of cement, but don't be deceived: Christ
lies under there somewhere along with His scripture. It is difficult,
but if you are persistent, you will reach them in this highly
important rescue mission.
Perhaps the most difficult layer of all is the layer known as
"society". This layer will often sneak below the foundation itself!
It's quite possible that society IS your foundation for your tower of
beliefs, for it is indeed a parasite of incredible strength. It is
very important that we completely eradicate this layer and never allow
it to creep into our tower again! This layer is of the world, and
should have no place in the beliefs of Christians. It is more like
acid than it is like a building block and it will corrode our entire
tower and alter our view of both Christ and the Bible. It is fatal to
many people's towers and it is pure idolatry to hold it above the Word
of God, whether Living or written.
Once you have destroyed all of your old tower and have set Christ
as your cornerstone, you can now finish off the foundation by adding the
Scriptures as I have mentioned above. Your foundation is set and you
must literally guard it with your life. Pour your cement on
these two bricks and make sure you use it all. Tell yourself that you
will never alter this foundation, nor will you ever purchase a new
pail of cement. Now you are ready to prepare for construction.
Construction holds a few dangers of it's own, all of which can be
linked to pride. When we are building our tower anew, we must do it
humbly for the entire construction process. We must put away what we
like and what we want and instead we must replace them with the Truth.
We need to accept that some of our plastic blocks do not belong on our
tower at all and we must give up our own set of blocks and adopt the
Divine set. Even with this Divine set of blocks, we will continue to make
mistakes: we will still place our blocks in the wrong places and we
will somehow get our blocks mixed up with the Divine blocks, even
though they look nothing alike.
As hard as we try to build our tower correctly, it will still
always be tainted by our pride. This is inevitable and it is the
reason that our towers will never be the same as God intended them to
be. When we die, or when Christ returns, our tower will be transformed
into the perfect, glorious tower that God Himself has constructed.
This tower will indeed be eternally cemented and not one single block
will ever fall from it. It will be identical to everyone's tower
that has been made Real in Christ but it will never be boring. It will
be infinitely complex, just as God's character is. It will be made of
gold and will put our earthly towers to shame, but we won't mind one
bit. Until that day comes, we will sit with our cheap imitations of God's
holy tower. There should be no ounce of pride in us, for we should all
realize that our towers are worthless when compared to the tower of
Christ.
So this is our job concerning our tower: we must follow the rules
of destruction and construction and build our tower to be as close to
God's as we can possibly make it. We must humbly remember that our
tower will never be completed, nor will it ever be perfected, on this
present earth. Therefore, our job is to cling to Christ who is our
essential, and to await the day when we too, will have a tower that
fully glorifies Him in all of His majesty. Until then, let us hold
unity in Christ, and diversity in our non-essentials, because in the
end we only know one thing for certain: Christ is all that counts.
A Theology of Non-Essentials
When dealing with the non-essentials of Christianity there is a
great danger of being opinionated.
The opinionated man is both gifted and cursed in his personality.
He studies and ponders ideas to see all sides of them, for every issue
must have an answer. No enigma is allowed to remain unsolved and every
area of any given topic must be systematically probed in order to draw
proper conclusions. He is thorough in his work and leaves no stone
unturned. He thirsts for the truth and will let nothing stop him in
his quest for discovering objective reality.
The opinionated man makes hasty opinions, even without enough
evidence to support his stance. He is both argumentative and arrogant,
and will strive to maintain the integrity of his position even when
the chips are down. He fights to the death over issues of little or no
significance and is quick to withdraw form the masses with the idea
that his thoughts transcend anyone else's that don't agree with his.
When dealing with his faith, he is strongly attracted to dogma and
will quickly make divisions wherever possible. He devours theological
terms and ideas, and spews them out like vomit. He battles pride on the
front lines daily, and oftentimes, he loses. He is a resilient fellow
though, for he simply counts his losses as victories and continues on,
never looking back. The opinionated man bumbles through life and takes
advice from no one but himself. He draws his own conclusions about life
and meets an untimely end, accomplishing nothing. I am such a man.
Non-essentials of Christianity often consume me and distract me
from following The Way. So much so, that it oftentimes undermines
parts of my faith and puts up self-restraints that prevent me from
running the race that I was called for.
For the opinionated man (or simply anyone curious about the
"smaller" aspects of their faith) it is helpful to keep a few things
in mind. One of the harder facts to grasp, is that we are looking at
things through tainted eyes. We will never get everything right for we
will always see a distorted image. We are spiritually blind from birth
and until God graciously gives us the glasses of salvation, we will
scarcely be able to see Him, if we can see Him at all. Our spiritual
blindness is so severe, that even with the best glasses blood can buy,
they will never be perfect until we are. Only through the completion
of our salvation, will we be able to see clearly, and this will never
happen on this present earth. To be blunt, we will never have all the
answers.
For me, this is difficult to accept, but the sooner I accept it,
the sooner I can stop being so dogmatic when dealing with my own
answers that are not essential to Christ's life. There are so many
great theologians and yet they disagree on what seems to be almost
everything. How can so many people, who are honestly seeking God's
answers, draw so many vastly different conclusions? It is not that
they are all so sin burdened that they are unable to perceive truth,
or that they are so wrapped up in themselves that they forget to check
with God, although both of these things could quite possibly be true.
The majority of the time, it is because although they are all looking
at the One True God, they are all looking through different eyes.
This is not to say that their salvation is somehow different, rather
it is their fallen minds that alter their glasses of salvation.
This is not a problem that resides only in theologians, it's just
that it is oftentimes more strongly manifested in those willing to
boldly state their beliefs. To claim that you do not have this problem
because you subscribe to "general Christianity" is to say that outside
of the essentials, you do no thinking whatsoever. It is helpful to
remember that we are told to have child-like faith, not child-like
reasoning.
To think is to err, and it is better to err than to not think at
all. To not think about such areas for fear of being wrong is the
equivalent of living a self-sufficient, solitary life for fear of
harming people. The solution of tainted vision is not to close your
eyes, for everyone knows that some sight is better than no sight at
all. Instead of avoiding the problem, we need to confront it. We need
to acknowledge our spiritual blindness and try our best to minimize
our own destructive potential. This means that we must not get too
attached to our own conclusions concerning the non-essentials of our
faith. I do not mean by this, that we should hold no opinion on such
issues, rather we should ponder everything and bring every opinion we
have before our Lord and Savior. This does mean however, that we must
always keep in the back of our minds, the likely possibility that
we could be wrong.
We must do away with all preconceived notions about any issue,
and we must base our salvation on the solid foundation of Christ. He
is our Cornerstone and to start our foundation without Him, is to not
start at all. It is here that we begin to build our belief system.
Once Christ, the living word, is our cornerstone, we must add the
written word to our foundation of beliefs. Once we have laid our
foundation out, we must take a step back from our structure and humbly
acknowledge that anything beyond this is speculation. We might know
what blocks to use in our structure or what order some of them go in,
but we are not exactly sure about the specifics. We are now ready to
build our tower of beliefs.
These two bricks that we have set down, make up our everlasting
foundation. These two bricks are made of concrete and they are
cemented into the ground for all eternity. To cement any other blocks
on top of these two is a grave mistake. It is at this point that we
put away our concrete and our cement, and pull out our plastic
building blocks. We then begin to place these building blocks in the
way that we think they fit. At the end of our life, we might have a
completed tower but it will never look quite right. Perhaps it will
be a little unsteady, or a tad unsymmetrical. It will never be perfect
no matter how many times we rebuild it and yet, it is our tower. If,
for some reason, we discover a fatal design in it, we never have to
tear it down completely. We simply knock down the plastic blocks and
start again, piling plastic on the cement foundation.
When we are constructing this tower of beliefs, is it important to
never be afraid of two things happening. First, we must never be
afraid of rearranging the blocks, for this shall be a normal occurrence
in any man's life. Second, we must never be afraid if the breath of God
causes our entire tower to collapse, and most importantly, we must
never cry. For the breath of God blows where it pleases, and if it is
in His will that your tower should fall, it is for your benefit. There
is only one danger that you must always keep in mind throughout your
life as a spiritual architect: you must never, ever, pour cement on
the plastic blocks. It is much easier to pour on than it is to take
off!
Before you begin on your lifelong construction of your tower,
there is one important step you must take. Before you go about adding
all of your plastic blocks, you must walk over to your tower and kick
it down. You must leave no block standing, for this tower is nothing
but a tower of pre-conceived notions. If upon the destruction of your
tower, you find that both the foundation of Christ and the Bible are not
firmly cemented at it's base, please take the time to do so. Your
tower will be nothing but a pile of meaningless plastic without them.
Another problem you may encounter is that while you are kicking
down your tower, you may stub your toe on one of many wrongly cemented
plastic layers. One of these layers is called strong denominationalism and it
must be destroyed. Get out your sledge hammer and begin the difficult
yet necessary work or disassembling this layer promptly. If upon
reconstruction of your tower, the layer of a particular denomination
reforms, that is fine. Just be careful not to cement it in again and
remember not to pout if God decides that you do not need it there
anymore.
It is crucial to destroy your old tower before rebuilding it,
for no one puts new wine in old wineskins. There are many more
difficulties in the destruction of your tower that you will soon
discover. For example, one particularly difficult layer to break down,
is the cemented layer known as "family beliefs". If you are
taught certain things from your childhood, you will have poured so
much cement on top of this layer that it will hardly be
distinguishable from your two foundational blocks! It will begin to
look like one monstrous lump of cement, but don't be deceived: Christ
lies under there somewhere along with His scripture. It is difficult,
but if you are persistent, you will reach them in this highly
important rescue mission.
Perhaps the most difficult layer of all is the layer known as
"society". This layer will often sneak below the foundation itself!
It's quite possible that society IS your foundation for your tower of
beliefs, for it is indeed a parasite of incredible strength. It is
very important that we completely eradicate this layer and never allow
it to creep into our tower again! This layer is of the world, and
should have no place in the beliefs of Christians. It is more like
acid than it is like a building block and it will corrode our entire
tower and alter our view of both Christ and the Bible. It is fatal to
many people's towers and it is pure idolatry to hold it above the Word
of God, whether Living or written.
Once you have destroyed all of your old tower and have set Christ
as your cornerstone, you can now finish off the foundation by adding the
Scriptures as I have mentioned above. Your foundation is set and you
must literally guard it with your life. Pour your cement on
these two bricks and make sure you use it all. Tell yourself that you
will never alter this foundation, nor will you ever purchase a new
pail of cement. Now you are ready to prepare for construction.
Construction holds a few dangers of it's own, all of which can be
linked to pride. When we are building our tower anew, we must do it
humbly for the entire construction process. We must put away what we
like and what we want and instead we must replace them with the Truth.
We need to accept that some of our plastic blocks do not belong on our
tower at all and we must give up our own set of blocks and adopt the
Divine set. Even with this Divine set of blocks, we will continue to make
mistakes: we will still place our blocks in the wrong places and we
will somehow get our blocks mixed up with the Divine blocks, even
though they look nothing alike.
As hard as we try to build our tower correctly, it will still
always be tainted by our pride. This is inevitable and it is the
reason that our towers will never be the same as God intended them to
be. When we die, or when Christ returns, our tower will be transformed
into the perfect, glorious tower that God Himself has constructed.
This tower will indeed be eternally cemented and not one single block
will ever fall from it. It will be identical to everyone's tower
that has been made Real in Christ but it will never be boring. It will
be infinitely complex, just as God's character is. It will be made of
gold and will put our earthly towers to shame, but we won't mind one
bit. Until that day comes, we will sit with our cheap imitations of God's
holy tower. There should be no ounce of pride in us, for we should all
realize that our towers are worthless when compared to the tower of
Christ.
So this is our job concerning our tower: we must follow the rules
of destruction and construction and build our tower to be as close to
God's as we can possibly make it. We must humbly remember that our
tower will never be completed, nor will it ever be perfected, on this
present earth. Therefore, our job is to cling to Christ who is our
essential, and to await the day when we too, will have a tower that
fully glorifies Him in all of His majesty. Until then, let us hold
unity in Christ, and diversity in our non-essentials, because in the
end we only know one thing for certain: Christ is all that counts.
Friday, December 11, 2009
The fear of non-existence (with an unrelated introduction)
The first thing you may notice when you read this post is the time it was posted at: around 3:30 am. Okay, it says 1:30 but that's because I incorrectly estimated my time zone... For those of you reading this who know me (none of you), you will probably be gasping for breath as you realize I have an exam tomorrow that I haven't studied for. Should this alarm both you and me? Yes. Will I be studying tonight? No, I'll be writing a blog post that probably no one will read that is more or less inconsequential to my life.
At this point you may also ask: "Who do you keep addressing if you believe that no one views your blog?" There is no simple answer to that... I am addressing "you". If a blog is posted and noone reads it, does it even exist? Perhaps this is strange offshoot of Shrodinger's box... No one knows if this blog is alive or dead! Did I just confuse you with an irrelevant physics concept? It's okay, I'm taking physics next semester so I will most likely be opening a sister blog to this one entitled "Physical sojourners". Am I serious? No, of course not... That would be silly.
The next order of business is to ask a favour of "you", whoever you may be (unless you are a web-crawler; in that case this does not apply to you). If you actually read this post; maybe you are even a "frequenter" of this blog, would you please email me letting me know? I mean, it's not that I have an inferiority complex... Sometimes I just feel unloved... So if you would be so kind as to email spiritualsojourners@hotmail.com, then I will maybe feel a bit of hope with the knowledge that SOMEONE out there cares/pretends to care about what I have to say.
That being said, lets talk about a topic. The topic for today is "The Fear of Non-existence". Now this is a very personal topic for me, so you will most likely not be "lolling" as much as you usually do. Not that the occasional lol is forbidden or anything, but try to save your lols until the end so I don't have to hear them.
Non-existence has been a somewhat secret fear of mine for quite some time. Ever since I was a wee lad, I would always get intensely afraid at the thought of not existing after death. I know people always say that non-existence would not be "that bad" because it COULDN'T be that bad because you're dead and you don't know you don't exist. The people that usually say this tend to get this big smile on their face as they marvel at their own cleverness. Well I have something to say to these people: "Not existing would suck". Go ahead and TRY to correct me, but we all know that it would be horrendous. No one wants to stop existing... Well, at least not me!
The fear of non-existence can seem overwhelming at times and strangely enough has been used as a tool of both God and Satan throughout my life... Isn't that bizarre? It's like my fear is a hammer in a workshop and sometimes God comes in and builds a chair with it... But other times Satan picks it up and wacks me over the head with it! Ouch! This proverbial hammer seems to be capable of helping or hindering my walk with God... I told you it was bizarre! Let me give you some examples of the work of the hammer. First of all, there's Satan's side of the situation. He uses the fear of non-existence to frighten me and weaken my faith. He tries to harm me emotionally and sometimes he succeeds to some extent. Then there is God's side of the situation. God uses my fear of non-existence to call me to Him. The fear shows me that I shouldn't waste my life because some day I will die. For those of you that didn't know, there is an aspect of the fear of non-existence that is subsequent to the phobia: you think about death an awful lot. This DOES have quite positive effects and it often leads me into prayer. So is the fear of non-existence a good thing or a bad thing? I think it's both.
The fear of non-existence is a hammer that could be used for good or for evil. It is a good thing because it IS a healthy thing to fear. As Christians, we SHOULD be afraid of non-existence because we were created to live forever. We should also remember that we are all going to die. This should bring us to God and prevent us from wasting our life. The fear of non-existence becomes a tool for evil when we let it corrupt our faith. We should fear it, but we should also know and believe that we have been given eternal life. If we let this fear be used for evil, it will start to getting to us and we will start to doubt our faith. When we get such fears, we need to pray and remember that God has promised eternal life to us... And God is not a liar. Remember, we should also recognise that it IS natural to fear non-existence...
"He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end."
-Ecclesiastes 3:11
God has set eternity in our hearts. We desire to live forever because we were created that way. Some of us feel that we will never die... They are right.
At this point you may also ask: "Who do you keep addressing if you believe that no one views your blog?" There is no simple answer to that... I am addressing "you". If a blog is posted and noone reads it, does it even exist? Perhaps this is strange offshoot of Shrodinger's box... No one knows if this blog is alive or dead! Did I just confuse you with an irrelevant physics concept? It's okay, I'm taking physics next semester so I will most likely be opening a sister blog to this one entitled "Physical sojourners". Am I serious? No, of course not... That would be silly.
The next order of business is to ask a favour of "you", whoever you may be (unless you are a web-crawler; in that case this does not apply to you). If you actually read this post; maybe you are even a "frequenter" of this blog, would you please email me letting me know? I mean, it's not that I have an inferiority complex... Sometimes I just feel unloved... So if you would be so kind as to email spiritualsojourners@hotmail.com, then I will maybe feel a bit of hope with the knowledge that SOMEONE out there cares/pretends to care about what I have to say.
That being said, lets talk about a topic. The topic for today is "The Fear of Non-existence". Now this is a very personal topic for me, so you will most likely not be "lolling" as much as you usually do. Not that the occasional lol is forbidden or anything, but try to save your lols until the end so I don't have to hear them.
Non-existence has been a somewhat secret fear of mine for quite some time. Ever since I was a wee lad, I would always get intensely afraid at the thought of not existing after death. I know people always say that non-existence would not be "that bad" because it COULDN'T be that bad because you're dead and you don't know you don't exist. The people that usually say this tend to get this big smile on their face as they marvel at their own cleverness. Well I have something to say to these people: "Not existing would suck". Go ahead and TRY to correct me, but we all know that it would be horrendous. No one wants to stop existing... Well, at least not me!
The fear of non-existence can seem overwhelming at times and strangely enough has been used as a tool of both God and Satan throughout my life... Isn't that bizarre? It's like my fear is a hammer in a workshop and sometimes God comes in and builds a chair with it... But other times Satan picks it up and wacks me over the head with it! Ouch! This proverbial hammer seems to be capable of helping or hindering my walk with God... I told you it was bizarre! Let me give you some examples of the work of the hammer. First of all, there's Satan's side of the situation. He uses the fear of non-existence to frighten me and weaken my faith. He tries to harm me emotionally and sometimes he succeeds to some extent. Then there is God's side of the situation. God uses my fear of non-existence to call me to Him. The fear shows me that I shouldn't waste my life because some day I will die. For those of you that didn't know, there is an aspect of the fear of non-existence that is subsequent to the phobia: you think about death an awful lot. This DOES have quite positive effects and it often leads me into prayer. So is the fear of non-existence a good thing or a bad thing? I think it's both.
The fear of non-existence is a hammer that could be used for good or for evil. It is a good thing because it IS a healthy thing to fear. As Christians, we SHOULD be afraid of non-existence because we were created to live forever. We should also remember that we are all going to die. This should bring us to God and prevent us from wasting our life. The fear of non-existence becomes a tool for evil when we let it corrupt our faith. We should fear it, but we should also know and believe that we have been given eternal life. If we let this fear be used for evil, it will start to getting to us and we will start to doubt our faith. When we get such fears, we need to pray and remember that God has promised eternal life to us... And God is not a liar. Remember, we should also recognise that it IS natural to fear non-existence...
"He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end."
-Ecclesiastes 3:11
God has set eternity in our hearts. We desire to live forever because we were created that way. Some of us feel that we will never die... They are right.
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Are all sins equal?
I think all sin separates us from God, but not all sins are equal in their effect of our relationship with Him... BUT that being said, once they are forgiven, God forgets them all equally.
Here are three reasons why I believe all sins are not equal.
Old testament law (decided by God) states that certain sins (i.e adultery) result in death, but other sins (i.e. stealing) result in a smaller penalty.
There are different degrees of punishment for non-believers.
David repented like no tomorrow for committing adultery with Bathsheba and murdering her husband, and his child was killed by God as a consequence. We don't see this for David's smaller sins.
I think the first one is the strongest argument... Also, experience tells us the same thing: we feel that we have sinned greater when we do extreme things (murder) as opposed to non-extreme things (lying).
Basically, it's dangerous for anyone to equate lying with murder... That means that if you lie once, and commit murder once, it's the same thing! Doesn't make much sense does it?
Here are three reasons why I believe all sins are not equal.
Old testament law (decided by God) states that certain sins (i.e adultery) result in death, but other sins (i.e. stealing) result in a smaller penalty.
There are different degrees of punishment for non-believers.
David repented like no tomorrow for committing adultery with Bathsheba and murdering her husband, and his child was killed by God as a consequence. We don't see this for David's smaller sins.
I think the first one is the strongest argument... Also, experience tells us the same thing: we feel that we have sinned greater when we do extreme things (murder) as opposed to non-extreme things (lying).
Basically, it's dangerous for anyone to equate lying with murder... That means that if you lie once, and commit murder once, it's the same thing! Doesn't make much sense does it?
Unbelief in Matthew 13 and the purpose of this blog
On the surface, this blog post will seem to be a rather strange combination of two very different topics, but we mustn't judge a book by its cover. That being said, this is an atypical example and therefore it IS quite accurate of you to judge a book by its cover: these ARE two completely unrelated topics that wont fit together in any way whatsoever. Lets start with the least important one, the purpose of this blog. In case you want to skip right to the meat and potatoes of this post, I will number these two topics to avoid mass pandemonium. If you want to avoid annoying cliched phrases, you aren't out of the woods yet! You are stuck between a rock and hard place; out of the frying pan and into the fire. Without further ado, lets get this party started.
1. The purpose of this blog from this point on will be twofold. I will continue to answer all of your many questions that are constantly filling up my inbox [/sarcasm], but I will also start posting various "insights" that I have stumbled upon concerning spiritual things. There will be two types of posts now: answers and topical posts. I know what you're all thinking:
"Blogmaster, what will you be posting in these topical posts?"
"Why the change?? I HATE CHANGE!!!!!!111"
"I searched "topical creams" on google and I was brought to your site. Do topical posts have any relation with topical creams?"
To answer your questions: "I'll explain them on the next line, because change was needed, and no."
Topical posts will NOT be answers to questions. I know many of you will turn away in disgust because this is supposed to be a "Christian question and answer blog" but hear me out. I thought these were necessary because there's a lot going on in my mind that I would like to share with the world. The problem is, most people I meet in real life don't want to listen to all of my "insights". I have thus concluded that the internet would be a better medium to share my propaganda errr I mean wisdom. That being said, these topical posts will be somewhat like mini-sermons. Each one will be discussing a topic or section of the Bible and *hopefully* giving helpful insights into the topic/text. If you want a good example of a topical post, read the post directly below this one that is entitled "Spiritual Truths in Jude". That will be the prototype for topical posts.
2. Okay, onwards to Matthew 13. I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I really don't have an incredible amount to say about Matthew 13. It was more of a trick to get you to read #1... There, I confessed! *Phew* I'm glad that's off my chest! Now I can properly share the small amount of insight that I do have about Matthew 13. Matthew 13 has a TON of things to talk about, but I only chose two verses. This could explain why I don't have a whole lot to say...
Turn to Matthew 13 and feast your eyes on verse 58: "He did not do many miracles there because of their unbelief." This has always been a puzzling verse, why would someone's lack of faith affect the frequency of miracles? The short answer is: we don't know. The important thing is that we know that IT DOES. For some reason, God decided that miracles will occur primarily to those that believe. It seems to me that this Nazareth occurrence can be taken as a paradigm for the Christian life. If we believe that Christ CAN and WILL do miracles in our lives, they will happen. The more faith we have, the more God will work in our lives.
Scan the pages BACKWARDS until you get to verse 12. I know that it is rather unorthodox to go backwards in the Bible, so if this is something that you feel conviction about, feel free to close your Bible and reopen it instead. Lets read verse 12 out loud: "For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance;but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him." This is in the same context as verse 58 and one may wonder why they appear in the same chapter. They are found in the same context because they are interconnected. If someone has faith, they "have" and more will be given to them (in this case miracles). If someone doesn't have faith, they "don't have" and even what they have will be taken from them (in this case, they will not see the hand of God at work in there lives). It is worth noting that verse 12 is primary about gaining the Kingdom of Heaven. If we have God on earth, we will attain eternal life with Christ. If we do not have God, even what we have now (physical life) will be stripped from us. The occurrence of miracles are simply a subsequent step of this interpretation.
And there you have it! I hope that you now know all about my blog (there will be a test on that next week) and also have a keen understanding of two verses in Matthew 13. Not enough scripture for you? Get off the internet and go read Matthew 13 in its entirety. Then go tell your friends about this "super awesome blog site you just found". God bless!
1. The purpose of this blog from this point on will be twofold. I will continue to answer all of your many questions that are constantly filling up my inbox [/sarcasm], but I will also start posting various "insights" that I have stumbled upon concerning spiritual things. There will be two types of posts now: answers and topical posts. I know what you're all thinking:
"Blogmaster, what will you be posting in these topical posts?"
"Why the change?? I HATE CHANGE!!!!!!111"
"I searched "topical creams" on google and I was brought to your site. Do topical posts have any relation with topical creams?"
To answer your questions: "I'll explain them on the next line, because change was needed, and no."
Topical posts will NOT be answers to questions. I know many of you will turn away in disgust because this is supposed to be a "Christian question and answer blog" but hear me out. I thought these were necessary because there's a lot going on in my mind that I would like to share with the world. The problem is, most people I meet in real life don't want to listen to all of my "insights". I have thus concluded that the internet would be a better medium to share my propaganda errr I mean wisdom. That being said, these topical posts will be somewhat like mini-sermons. Each one will be discussing a topic or section of the Bible and *hopefully* giving helpful insights into the topic/text. If you want a good example of a topical post, read the post directly below this one that is entitled "Spiritual Truths in Jude". That will be the prototype for topical posts.
2. Okay, onwards to Matthew 13. I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I really don't have an incredible amount to say about Matthew 13. It was more of a trick to get you to read #1... There, I confessed! *Phew* I'm glad that's off my chest! Now I can properly share the small amount of insight that I do have about Matthew 13. Matthew 13 has a TON of things to talk about, but I only chose two verses. This could explain why I don't have a whole lot to say...
Turn to Matthew 13 and feast your eyes on verse 58: "He did not do many miracles there because of their unbelief." This has always been a puzzling verse, why would someone's lack of faith affect the frequency of miracles? The short answer is: we don't know. The important thing is that we know that IT DOES. For some reason, God decided that miracles will occur primarily to those that believe. It seems to me that this Nazareth occurrence can be taken as a paradigm for the Christian life. If we believe that Christ CAN and WILL do miracles in our lives, they will happen. The more faith we have, the more God will work in our lives.
Scan the pages BACKWARDS until you get to verse 12. I know that it is rather unorthodox to go backwards in the Bible, so if this is something that you feel conviction about, feel free to close your Bible and reopen it instead. Lets read verse 12 out loud: "For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance;but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him." This is in the same context as verse 58 and one may wonder why they appear in the same chapter. They are found in the same context because they are interconnected. If someone has faith, they "have" and more will be given to them (in this case miracles). If someone doesn't have faith, they "don't have" and even what they have will be taken from them (in this case, they will not see the hand of God at work in there lives). It is worth noting that verse 12 is primary about gaining the Kingdom of Heaven. If we have God on earth, we will attain eternal life with Christ. If we do not have God, even what we have now (physical life) will be stripped from us. The occurrence of miracles are simply a subsequent step of this interpretation.
And there you have it! I hope that you now know all about my blog (there will be a test on that next week) and also have a keen understanding of two verses in Matthew 13. Not enough scripture for you? Get off the internet and go read Matthew 13 in its entirety. Then go tell your friends about this "super awesome blog site you just found". God bless!
Monday, December 7, 2009
Spiritual Truths in Jude
I was reading Jude today and came across many great Spiritual Truths, some of which I wanted to share here. This list will be numbered, but not in order of importance. Open up your Bible and turn to the Epistle of Jude: the second last book in the New Testament.
1. We share a common salvation Verse 3 tells us this. It is important to remember that no matter what your denomination, a Christian is a Christian. We are united by our essentials to the faith, but there is always room for debate concerning the non-essentials. As followers of Christ we need to be united with one another no matter what we think about Predestination!
2. Christ is God Who knew that a secret message of Christ's divinity can be found in this tiny epistle? Read verse 4 and 5: Verse 4 tells us that Jesus is our "only Master and Lord". Verse 5 tells us that the Lord saved the Israelites from the Egyptians. I hope you caught that! So the Lord in verse 4 is Jesus and also saved the Israelites from the Egyptians in verse 5. Due to the proximity of these verses, it seems safe to conclude that these two Lords are in some way, one and the same.
3. Men are destroyed by instinct Read on down to verse 10 and check out this passage. According to Jude, men are destroyed by there basic instincts. Because of Adam's sin, we are all affected by a sin nature. We have a wide variety of instincts which are in rebellion to God, yes, even our "evolutionary" instincts. Just because it FEELS right, doesn't make it right!
4. The book of Enoch is NOT canonical Perhaps it would be better if I left this one alone... Too late, the title for this one has already been bolded. If you didn't know any better, you would skip right on by verses 14-15 and continue merrily on your way. BUT being the scholars you are, you thought to yourself: "Hey, wait a minute! Jude is quoting from the infamous Book of Enoch that is considered to be apocrypha!" You are right young scholar, Jude is indeed quoting from a book found solely in the Roman Catholic Bible. Don't believe me? Turn to your table of contents and see if you can find it (assuming you DON'T have a Roman Catholic Bible). Anyway, no one knows exactly why Jude quoted this, although it is important to note that not everything quoted by a canonical writer is "inspired". As an example, just because Paul quoted Epimenides by saying "All Cretans are liars" in his letter to Titus, it doesn't mean that Paul is suggesting that we staple Epimenides' writings in the back of our Bibles. So it seems safe to assume that the book of Enoch is NOT meant to be a biblical book, but it DOES contain a valid prophecy. You will all thank me now that you can finally sleep at night.
5. It is our responsibility to build up faith Before you all jump on me and start screaming "FAITH IS A GIFT FROM GOD", here me out. Faith DOES come from God, but it's almost like a seed that needs to be watered. We need to water that seed daily so that we can build up a strong faith. Verse 20 tells us to do so by praying IN the Holy Spirit. This means deep, honest fellowship with God.
6. God is capable of justifying us This is the best short title I could think of, but I think a longer one would be better... "God is able to keep us from stumbling and make us stand blameless in His presence with joy". There we go, that feels MUCH better despite the awkwardness of that sentence. It's all found in verse 24 if you would like to hear it straight from the source. The truth here is that God alone is the only possible way that we can keep from stumbling... And if we do stumble, we can be sure He will pick us up so that we can stand blameless in His presence!
7. Christ is eternal This little gem is found in the last verse of Jude, verse 25. Jude tells us that our Lord Jesus Christ has been around before time, now and forever. Christ exists in the past, the present and the future! Before you confuse yourself by attempting to imagine a time traveling Jesus, consider this: Christ is outside of time and is therefore eternal. I know this is a study of the book of Jude, but would you like to cheat a bit? SNEAKILY flip a page or two forward and glance at Revelation 1:8. Are you feeling especially honest today? Find, I'll cheat for you. Christ says that He is the Alpha and the Omega. These are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet. Therefore, Christ isn't just present for the beginning and the end, He IS the beginning and the end! Now that's eternal!
Well, seven seems like a good, spiritual number to stop at. Remember, if you have any questions, email them to spiritualsojourners@hotmail.com
I'll be waiting!
1. We share a common salvation Verse 3 tells us this. It is important to remember that no matter what your denomination, a Christian is a Christian. We are united by our essentials to the faith, but there is always room for debate concerning the non-essentials. As followers of Christ we need to be united with one another no matter what we think about Predestination!
2. Christ is God Who knew that a secret message of Christ's divinity can be found in this tiny epistle? Read verse 4 and 5: Verse 4 tells us that Jesus is our "only Master and Lord". Verse 5 tells us that the Lord saved the Israelites from the Egyptians. I hope you caught that! So the Lord in verse 4 is Jesus and also saved the Israelites from the Egyptians in verse 5. Due to the proximity of these verses, it seems safe to conclude that these two Lords are in some way, one and the same.
3. Men are destroyed by instinct Read on down to verse 10 and check out this passage. According to Jude, men are destroyed by there basic instincts. Because of Adam's sin, we are all affected by a sin nature. We have a wide variety of instincts which are in rebellion to God, yes, even our "evolutionary" instincts. Just because it FEELS right, doesn't make it right!
4. The book of Enoch is NOT canonical Perhaps it would be better if I left this one alone... Too late, the title for this one has already been bolded. If you didn't know any better, you would skip right on by verses 14-15 and continue merrily on your way. BUT being the scholars you are, you thought to yourself: "Hey, wait a minute! Jude is quoting from the infamous Book of Enoch that is considered to be apocrypha!" You are right young scholar, Jude is indeed quoting from a book found solely in the Roman Catholic Bible. Don't believe me? Turn to your table of contents and see if you can find it (assuming you DON'T have a Roman Catholic Bible). Anyway, no one knows exactly why Jude quoted this, although it is important to note that not everything quoted by a canonical writer is "inspired". As an example, just because Paul quoted Epimenides by saying "All Cretans are liars" in his letter to Titus, it doesn't mean that Paul is suggesting that we staple Epimenides' writings in the back of our Bibles. So it seems safe to assume that the book of Enoch is NOT meant to be a biblical book, but it DOES contain a valid prophecy. You will all thank me now that you can finally sleep at night.
5. It is our responsibility to build up faith Before you all jump on me and start screaming "FAITH IS A GIFT FROM GOD", here me out. Faith DOES come from God, but it's almost like a seed that needs to be watered. We need to water that seed daily so that we can build up a strong faith. Verse 20 tells us to do so by praying IN the Holy Spirit. This means deep, honest fellowship with God.
6. God is capable of justifying us This is the best short title I could think of, but I think a longer one would be better... "God is able to keep us from stumbling and make us stand blameless in His presence with joy". There we go, that feels MUCH better despite the awkwardness of that sentence. It's all found in verse 24 if you would like to hear it straight from the source. The truth here is that God alone is the only possible way that we can keep from stumbling... And if we do stumble, we can be sure He will pick us up so that we can stand blameless in His presence!
7. Christ is eternal This little gem is found in the last verse of Jude, verse 25. Jude tells us that our Lord Jesus Christ has been around before time, now and forever. Christ exists in the past, the present and the future! Before you confuse yourself by attempting to imagine a time traveling Jesus, consider this: Christ is outside of time and is therefore eternal. I know this is a study of the book of Jude, but would you like to cheat a bit? SNEAKILY flip a page or two forward and glance at Revelation 1:8. Are you feeling especially honest today? Find, I'll cheat for you. Christ says that He is the Alpha and the Omega. These are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet. Therefore, Christ isn't just present for the beginning and the end, He IS the beginning and the end! Now that's eternal!
Well, seven seems like a good, spiritual number to stop at. Remember, if you have any questions, email them to spiritualsojourners@hotmail.com
I'll be waiting!
Thursday, December 3, 2009
What does the Bible teach concerning Heaven?
It really depends on how we define heaven. Heaven is not so much a place, as it is a "presence". What I mean by this, is that heaven is only paradise because it is filled entirely with God's presence. If we talk about heaven in reference to the place we go immediately when we die (the intermediate state) that specific "place" is not our final destination. The Bible teaches that the new earth will be our final resting place. We will receive new resurrected bodies there and will live Christ and fellow believers forever. Heaven is NOT a place "in the sky", nor is it a place where "people sing all the time". The majority of Christians DO NOT believe these things. When the Bible speaks of heaven and hell, it uses metaphorical language to help us understand them better. That is why we are met with "streets of gold" in reference to heaven (timelessness) and "unquenchable fire" in reference to hell (no presence of God). Most humans have difficulties grasping these spiritual concepts, therefore the Bible uses these pictures to help us understand these two places.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Are drugs bad if they give you a religious experience?
If you are taking drugs to "meet God" it is the wrong way to go about it. Why would God only want to come meet with us when our body is heavily intoxicated? For Christians, our objective reality is Christ. Because Christ is the best possible reality, there is absolutely no reason to exchange the truth of Christ for some subjective high or trip. I do however, think that God can and does reach out to people who are on drug trips and call them to Himself. The bottom line is that God could talk to us legitimately while we are under the influence of hallucinogenics, but to chase after such drug-induced religious experiences is morally wrong.
What is the significance of baptism?
Baptism is a public display of our faith that announces to everyone that we believe and trust in our Lord Jesus Christ. It is a symbolic representation of us dying in our sins (going under the water) and being raised in Christ (coming out of the water). This is why we are not left under the water when we are baptized: we share in Christ's resurrection and therefore our pastor typically lifts us up.
How can our physical acts affect our non-physical soul?
Many of our physical actions can indeed affect our soul. This is because there is no clear dichotomy between the body, soul and spirit. They are all tightly interconnected and appear to overlap. An example of this is using an intoxicant. If someone is intoxicated, their body is feeling the toxic effects and there mind is functioning differently. Another example is brain damage: When your physical brain is damaged, your soul will obviously not be able to function how it usually does. This is because the body can almost be seen as a vehicle for the soul and spirit. If the vehicle is damaged, the driver can't hope to keep driving the same way he has been driving previously.
Why are Catholics criticized for using mediators to Christ?
There is only supposed to be one mediator between man and God and that is Christ. Christ died on the cross so that He can bridge the gap between humanity and the Divine. Why would you add another man in there when you can have direct access to God? Why buy retail if you can buy wholesale?
"For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus."
-1 Timothy 2:5
"For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus."
-1 Timothy 2:5
What about the parts of the Bible that are offensive?
Some people claim that the Bible contains many racist and sexist statements that are mainly located throughout the Old Testament. These people are correct. The Bible is an honest book that tells about true life and it will not bend to fit our cultural expectations of a "religious text". Woman and men are not the same, they are two unique sexes that greatly differ. Similarity, being Jewish in the Old Testament was NOT equal to being a Canaanite. The Jews, as a race, were seen as God's people and the Canaanites were not. The Bible offers no apologies for this, and rightfully so. Just because we have the desire to state that men and woman are the same and the Jewish people were the same as the gentiles, doesn't mean that this is true. There are also many instances in the Bible where violence was prescribed to handle the situation and sometimes this involved the slaughter of a whole village. Does this mean that the God commanded "evil" things? Of course not, why should we claim to know what is morally good or evil. What is good is defined by what God does, not what we would want Him to do. For more information on what "good" is, check out this link:
http://spiritualsojourners.blogspot.com/2009/11/what-is-difference-between-good-and.html
http://spiritualsojourners.blogspot.com/2009/11/what-is-difference-between-good-and.html
Monday, November 30, 2009
How do we die to Christ?
Dying to Christ means surrendering our will in place of His will. It means acknowledging that everything that comes from ourselves is evil and the only true good comes from God. We need to empty ourselves of all sins and barriers that prevent us from being true worshiper of God. Once we have emptied ourselves, there is the necessary next step of filling ourselves with the Holy Spirit. This means asking Christ to live His life through us, because we cannot do it on our own. If we just exterminate our sins, but do not fill ourselves with Christ, we will have accomplished nothing: our sins will retain with more power than before. This is why it is so important to die to Christ and carry our cross daily. We need to ask God to keep us close to Him and shield us from the many evils in this world that threaten to rear up and choke us. This is why it is fully necessary to commit ourselves to Christ everyday.
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Are freewill and predestination contradictions?
It depends on the sense in which your talking about them. If you are talking about man's autonomic will of choosing God versus God's sovereign unconditional choice of man? If so, then they both cannot be true at the same time. If both of these terms are used in the context of salvation they are polar opposites. In this sense, we are comparing salvation that ultimately comes down to man, with salvation that ultimately comes down to God. If we hold to a salvation-based predestination, we COULD still hold to a non-salvation-based style of freewill. I believe that salvation comes down to God choosing man, but we know from the bible and our experiences that we still make decisions and choices all the time. There are many interpretations about these matters, but this is how I see it: God chooses us for salvation, but it is up to us to pursue Him once we have become regenerated. We must exercise our "freewill" and choose Him daily over sin. For if we draw near to God, God will draw near to us. (James 4:8)
What is the lake of fire?
The lake of fire is found in the book of Revelation and is known as the second death. The first death is when unbelievers die physically, and the second death is when they die spiritually. The lake of fire is a symbolic portrayal of an unbelievers eternal disunion from God. The flames represent the pain that will be caused from being fully and utterly separated from Christ.
Saturday, November 28, 2009
What is the difference between Good and Evil?
The only possible way that we can define good and evil is by introducing a deity. Without God there are no objective morals; we cannot say what is right and what is wrong. For a logical atheist, what is "good" and what is "evil" is rather arbitrary based on some notion passed down from society. We can only define good in this way: God is good and subsequently so is every law, commandment and word that He says. Anything that is not God or from God, is evil. When we are acting outside of God's will, we are acting "evil". Therefore, sin is "evil" and doing God's will is "good".
Did Jesus really have to die?
If Jesus Christ didn't die, He would not have fulfilled His mission here on earth. Jesus had to die because He came down to earth to become a sacrifice for our sins. It was through His death that we can now be reconciled with God. Because of Adam's sin, we all deserve to go to hell. The only way that God could reach us, is if He Himself died for our sins. This is because without blood, there is no forgiveness of sins. This is why in the Old Testament they were required to sacrifice animals for their sins.
Is Jesus equal to or lesser than God?
Jesus Christ is the second member of the trinity and is therefore equal to God Himself. The Bible tells us that Jesus has been around since before the universe and by implication, is eternal. Jesus Christ made Himself less by confining Himself to the limitations of a human body. This is why Jesus said that even He did not know when the rapture would be. Jesus Christ claimed to be equal with God numerous times, and was almost stoned for it. He was eventually crucified for claiming Divinity.
In the Book of Revelation, what does "new world" mean? Does that mean the world will start over again?
When Revelation talks about a "new earth" it's referring to the eternal destination of everyone that has ever accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior. A lot of Christians these days seem to think that our eternal home is in heaven, when actually the Bible teaches that it is right here on earth! But not this earth, because this world will pass away. God doesn't bring us to heaven, He brings heaven to us! In the new earth we will be granted new resurrected physical bodies. Christ will reign over the new earth and we will enjoy intimacy with God forever.
Do all Christian denominations accept the Trinity?
All orthodox denominations do accept the doctrine of the trinity and they all acknowledge that the concept wasn't articulated until the 4th century. It is however backed my numerous passages in both the Old and the New testament. Roman Catholics, Protestants and Eastern Orthodox all agree that the Godhead involves 3 distinct "person" that are all God.
Friday, November 27, 2009
Why did God create evil? He obviously did because He's sovereign!
In some way, God DID orchestrate His absence to be in the world, namely evil. He is sovereign over all His creation, but it would be more helpful to look at the motive behind this common question. We should be questioning Atheists that ask this. Who are you to question God? What if God did create evil to magnify His goodness? Are you in a position to tell God what is right and what is wrong? In some way, God is using evil to show us Himself. It's a divine plan, so why do humans question it? It's the same thing with people saying "I don't believe that a talking snake and 2 naked people caused all this evil". How do you know what God used in His divine plan? Just because it sounds ridiculous to you, doesn't mean that it's proof that Christianity isn't true.
What is the active presence of the Spirit of God in our time?
The Spirit of God is just as active now as He was during the writing of the Old and New Testament. God is unchanging and His spirit is available to us as often as we are open to it. Th spiritual realm is always open to us; we are just the ones that always shut the gate. God's Spirit gets quenched in our North American culture because we simply don't believe that God will work. Most theists these days seem to act more like deists and this is true of myself more often than not. If we want to feel God's presence, we can! If we are Christians, we know God's presence is always with us because He has promised that. It is just a matter of us being aware of his presence. This is what's referred to as the "divine presence and apparent absence". Sometimes the Spirit seems to depart from us and we really do need to walk by faith and not site. We can get through these tough times by believing what we know: that God is always with us and will never leave us or forsake us.
What does the Bible say about divorce and remarriage?
"I hate divorce, says the LORD God of Israel." Malachi 2:16
"So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate" Matthew 19:6
"But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, causes her to become an adulteress, and anyone who marries the divorced woman commits adultery." Matthew 5:32
"For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh." Genesis 2:24.
The Bible is very clear about divorce and remarriage. The ONLY condition in which divorce is acceptable is adultery. Many people state that there are other conditions for divorce such as physical and emotional abuse. The problem with this is that Jesus says explicitly that the only case in which we can divorce someone is marital unfaithfulness. If the relationship is physically or emotionally abusive, separation is a good idea. Just because you don't live together, doesn't mean that you need to be divorced. What God has joined, man should not separate. There is ALWAYS a chance for reconciliation. With prayer and mutual forgiveness, any marriage can be successful.
"So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate" Matthew 19:6
"But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, causes her to become an adulteress, and anyone who marries the divorced woman commits adultery." Matthew 5:32
"For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh." Genesis 2:24.
The Bible is very clear about divorce and remarriage. The ONLY condition in which divorce is acceptable is adultery. Many people state that there are other conditions for divorce such as physical and emotional abuse. The problem with this is that Jesus says explicitly that the only case in which we can divorce someone is marital unfaithfulness. If the relationship is physically or emotionally abusive, separation is a good idea. Just because you don't live together, doesn't mean that you need to be divorced. What God has joined, man should not separate. There is ALWAYS a chance for reconciliation. With prayer and mutual forgiveness, any marriage can be successful.
How does one live in the world yet be not of the world?
As Christians, we are told to not be "of the world". When the New Testament uses the word "world" (kosmos in Greek) it uses it in two different ways. First of all it uses it to talk about this physical world. In this sense, Christians are very much "of the world". The second way that the NT uses "kosmos" is to talk about the fleshly, sinful environment that we find ourselves in. It is in this way that Christians are not to be "of the world". This "world" is tainted; we as Christians should not conform to the debauchery that goes on among us. We are called to live a higher life than that of society. Society will always be predominantly immoral to varying degrees because it is made up of people who are sinners. Because of this, this world will always decay and we will always see a "deterioration of morals" in every society. That is why we are called to be the salt of the earth: we need to preserve this place as long as we can. We should not live how the majority does; we are not "of this world".
Why does God take our loved ones away?
I don't really have any clear cut answers to this question, but I would like to say a few things. For starters, God did does not take our loved ones away prematurely; Satan does. We should not blame God for what Satan does, although I do understand that God is fully sovereign over His creation. The next thing that we should note is that death is a consequence of human actions. For Christians, it is better to die than it is to live.
"For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain." Philippians 1:21
We NEED to die in order to get new bodies, so because of Adam's sin, death is necessary to fulfill God's divine plan. The last thing I want to say about this is that if God always listened to everyone's prayers about keeping people alive, no one would ever die. I'm sure that in the majority of cases of people that have terminal diseases, there is someone praying for them. God's plan is better than ours and sometimes that's tough to see at the time. There is always comfort though, everything will be fixed beyond the grave.
"For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain." Philippians 1:21
We NEED to die in order to get new bodies, so because of Adam's sin, death is necessary to fulfill God's divine plan. The last thing I want to say about this is that if God always listened to everyone's prayers about keeping people alive, no one would ever die. I'm sure that in the majority of cases of people that have terminal diseases, there is someone praying for them. God's plan is better than ours and sometimes that's tough to see at the time. There is always comfort though, everything will be fixed beyond the grave.
At what point in eternity did God create the universe?
God is outside of time, so there can be no "quantification" given to answer this question. He is completely and utterly outside and independent of the universe, so the question itself is impossible to answer. The question is asking for a "time point" in a realm where there is no time. The only way to put it is this: God is eternal and He created us at the beginning of time, because time started with the universe. It's important to remember that we can never comprehend this though, because we will never be outside of time even when we die. We will always experience a procession of events. This is why talking about these things is so complicated: we are using finite minds to try to understand the infinite.
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Can you hear God's voice? The Bible says His sheep can hear his voice?
The Bible is a book with many different styles of writing, not all of which are meant to be taken at face-value. This particular passage is referring to what is commonly called "spiritual intuition". We can "know" part of God's plan for our life because we "hear God's voice". Most of us do not audibly hear God, but we all can perceive His "still small voice". He leads us, convicts us, teaches us and fellowships with us. This can also manifest itself in the gift of discernment: listening to others and knowing if what they say is actually from God or against God.
What does apostolic mean?
It means "pertaining to the apostles".
ex. The papal system is an example of apostolic succession because the papacy was apparently passed down from St. Peter to the next-in-line pope all the way to Pope Benedict XVI.
ex. The papal system is an example of apostolic succession because the papacy was apparently passed down from St. Peter to the next-in-line pope all the way to Pope Benedict XVI.
Are all Gods the same? Can they all be true?
The problem with all God's existing simultaneously is that many of them contradict one another. For example, any monotheistic God will automatically rule out every other God. Therefore, for Allah to exist, Christ cannot exist. Consequently, Allah and Christ cannot exist at the same time and cannot be the same God because they each have different divine attributes, some of which contradict. By definition, two monotheistic Gods cannot be the same God, nor can they coexist together.
What exactly is a "real" Christian?
A real Christian is someone that has accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior and now has a personal relationship with Him. We need to believe in Him with our hearts and this is called "faith". The reformers said that there were three aspects to faith and this seems to be in line with the Bible. Faith they said, involved knowledge, belief and trust. We need to know ABOUT Jesus in order to make a choice to follow Him. Once we have the required knowledge we need to believe that He is who He claimed to be. Finally, we need to trust fully in Him. We cannot simply believe in Him; this does not make us a Christian. We need to fully trust Him with our lives from the point of conversion on. This does not imply that we can lose salvation, rather it implies that at the moment of conversion we need to be bearing our naked souls to the Divine. Many people think that belief alone is what faith is all about, but consider this: We are saved by faith alone, yet James says this:
You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble!
James 2:19
Belief is not enough; even the demons believe! Does this mean that the demons have faith? Of course not. We need to know what we believe, believe what we know, and trust in what we know and believe. The people that do these things are real Christians.
You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble!
James 2:19
Belief is not enough; even the demons believe! Does this mean that the demons have faith? Of course not. We need to know what we believe, believe what we know, and trust in what we know and believe. The people that do these things are real Christians.
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Should we reject tradition as a source of truth?
Due to the division between the Protestants and the Catholics it is easy to condemn tradition because it is something that "only Catholics follow". Tradition can a be a rich and interesting thing to study; why throw out the baby with the bath water? Although most evangelical Christians adhere to sola scriptura (the view that the Bible is the only source of infallibility) this does not mean that Church tradition is not a source for truth. The early church fathers wrote great things about God and the teachings of Jesus Christ. They are well worth the read, but are almost avoided by Protestants because of their "Catholic ties". Did you know that at one point to be Christian was to be Catholic? Being Catholic simply meant "worldwide" or "united". You can now say the Nicene creed without feeling guilty! In my opinion we should not reject tradition, as there are many things to be learned from it.
What about those who have never heard?
What we know as Christians is this: If someone rejects Christ, they are lost in their sins. When they die they will follow their chosen pathway that leads to eternal separation from God. Those that are saved by the blood of the Lamb will enjoy eternal life with Christ. What about those people who are unreached by the Gospel? Are they destined to hell? We can't give a full answer on this because the Bible does not tell us. We do know however, that God IS just and He IS loving. It seems improbable that a God of Justice and Love would condemn someone to hell who never had the chance to accept Christ. Ultimately though we do not know what happens to unreached souls. This should give us all the more urgency to preach the Gospel.
Are angels always good?
Angels are good or they would no longer be angels, they would be demons. A demon is a former angel who has rebelled against God and has consequently "fallen" from heaven. In this world there are only two types of spiritual creatures: those that are for God and those that are against Him. A human is also a spiritual creature...
Why would God choose fallible human beings to speak on his behalf?
God didn't have to use us humans, but He chose to. Not only does He use us on occasion, He actually seems to use us anytime He can! It almost seems like the general rule is: If God can use humans no matter what the cost, He will. We see this all through scripture numerous times; even the scriptures themselves are proof of this! God chooses to use fallible humans to reveal His written word. Why did He do this? Perhaps 2 Corinthians 12:9 might help us:
"My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness."
God is so powerful that He can work through our failures and our weaknesses. What's even greater is that He chooses too! Instead of doing everything Himself, He leaves the task up to mere mortals to accomplish the spreading of His Gospel. I don't know why God trusts us with so much but I'm glad He does!
"My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness."
God is so powerful that He can work through our failures and our weaknesses. What's even greater is that He chooses too! Instead of doing everything Himself, He leaves the task up to mere mortals to accomplish the spreading of His Gospel. I don't know why God trusts us with so much but I'm glad He does!
How did God create evil? Is this a paradox?
God did not create evil; evil is the absence of God. In the same way that darkness is the absence of light and cold is the absence of heat. God created two beings that were capable of choosing not-God or God and they made the wrong choice. This does not mean that God created sin, rather He "orchestrated" it because He IS sovereign over all creation. There is no paradox here.
Can God make a rock so big He is unable to pick it up?
Although most people think that this "disproves" God, it is only paradoxical if you have a warped idea of God's omnipotence. The answer to this question is a simple "no". God cannot create a rock so big He cannot pick it up. God also cannot sin or stop being God. Being omnipotent means being all-powerful, not being able to do "anything".
what year did the prophet Abraham live in?
Although there is no agreed upon date among biblical scholars, the most common date given is ~1850 BC.
Which Bible translation should I use?
A good translation is one that is mostly literal but still has some room for cultural interpretation. There are too sides of the spectrum: word for word and thought for thought. It's good to pick a version that's somewhere in the middle but preferably closer to the word for word translation. Two good translations are ESV and NASB. Both are mainly word for word
and still retain some instances of thought for thought to help us understand more clearly. If we are fluent in Hebrew and Greek, and have studied the culture, we could read a full word for word translation. For most of us though, we will need to find a happy medium.
and still retain some instances of thought for thought to help us understand more clearly. If we are fluent in Hebrew and Greek, and have studied the culture, we could read a full word for word translation. For most of us though, we will need to find a happy medium.
Where in the body is our soul?
Our soul is our conscious thought, will, emotions etc. It is intimately connected to the body, as the body is the vehicle of the soul. If the body is damaged the soul will be unable to function correctly. Our soul would then be "located" in our brain, although it is nothing physical. That being said, there is no certain dichotomy of the body and soul. They are connected, yet distinct.
Are Christians bound by the Old Testament laws?
Throughout the Old Testament there are many different laws that were to be followed at that time. Should Christians still follow them today? In order to answer this question we must realize that there are two categories of Laws: cultural and moral. The first category was specific to the Jewish people during that time frame. Those laws include things like not eating certain foods and purity laws. Moral laws are timeless laws that detail what is objectively wrong to do. They include things like prohibiting murder, adultery, lying, etc. When reading the Old Testament it is important to distinguish between the type of law that was written. This can be done by checking for context and the reason behind the law. For example if the law was given to keep someone "clean", we know that we are not obliged to follow it.
Are animals spiritual? What about bacteria?
Contrary to what most people believe, animals DO in some way have a spirit within them. God is life and therefore anything that is "alive" has the breath of God in it. This does not mean that man's spirit is the same as the "spirit" of bacteria, but there is SOME amount of spirit present. In Genesis 2:7, we have an account of the creation of man.
"the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being."
The word "breathe" can also be translated as "spirit". Later on in Genesis 6:17, we are told that the animals also have the "breath of God" in them.
"I am going to bring floodwaters on the earth to destroy all life under the heavens, every creature that has the breath of life in it."
So to answer the question, in some way animals and bacteria ARE spiritual, but this is very different from man's spirit.
"the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being."
The word "breathe" can also be translated as "spirit". Later on in Genesis 6:17, we are told that the animals also have the "breath of God" in them.
"I am going to bring floodwaters on the earth to destroy all life under the heavens, every creature that has the breath of life in it."
So to answer the question, in some way animals and bacteria ARE spiritual, but this is very different from man's spirit.
Why does Love triumph over the Law in the New Testament?
Love is more important than Law in the New Testament because Love encompasses all things. If we truly loved God with all of our being we would never sin. Sin is always a result of loving something more than God, whether that be an action, a person or ourselves. This is why loving God is the greatest commandment and loving others is the second greatest commandment. We do not need law if we follow these two commandments.
Do humans have intrinsic value apart from God?
If we look at the world from an atheist point of view, humans are nothing more than highly evolved animals. It is impossible to say that humans have special intrinsic value apart from the fact that we are made in the image of God. We do have unique DNA, but so does a cockroach. We may be the most intelligent, but what if we find an animal that is more intelligent than a person with a mental disability? Would that make the animal more valuable than that human? We all FEEL that we as humans have intrinsic value, but from an atheistic perspective there is simply no reason to think that humans have any value greater than our animal "relatives". The only way we can have intrinsic value is if we were made in the image of God as the Bible suggests.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Does it matter that we celebrate the birth of Jesus on a pagan date?
To put it frankly, no, it does not matter which day we celebrate the birth of Christ on. It was a pagan date in the past, but if we do not celebrate it as one there is no harm done. Many things were once pagan including drums, birthday candles, Christmas trees and tattoos. If the meaning now has been well disconnected from the origin there should not be any negative moral implications.
Can you prove that God exists?
One basic proof that has been around for quite some time is what's called the cosmological argument. The basic idea is that something couldn't have come from nothing. Everything in the world is caused by something and those causes need to be caused by something too. Eventually, you are left with an infinite regression of caused causes. This of course is impossible because infinity does not exist in nature and modern day science tells us that time had a beginning. Because of these factors, there must be one initial uncaused cause. This cause must be outside of the universe and outside of time. This uncaused cause is God.
Why do John 20:17 and Luke 23:43 seem to contradict eachother?
In Luke 23:43, Jesus tells the thief on the cross: "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise." In John 20:17, Jesus tells Mary: ""Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, 'I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God." The reason that Jesus told Mary not to hold onto Him was because Jesus had not yet ascended into heaven. Mary was still alive, therefore she needed to live out her life on earth. In contrast, the thief was just about to die, therefore he was going immediately to be with Christ, who is God. Although Jesus was the manifestation of God on earth, He is was and still is God. Therefore, He cannot be fully contained in a human body. In some sense, Christ was always in heaven, even when He was on earth.
Should Christians date non-Christians?
If you are a believer who is dating an unbeliever, the result can be very painful. If we are true Disciples of Christ, that means that Christ is the most important thing in our lives. Why would we want to share marriage with someone who we cannot enjoy intimate fellowship with? It will only lead to heartbreak. Furthermore, the scriptures command us against it:
"Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?" - 2 Corinthians 6:14
"Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?" - 2 Corinthians 6:14
Is there a separate place besides hell for morally upright non believers?
When people die, there are only two places they can go. The bible teaches that people who have accepted Jesus as their saviour will go to heaven, and people who have not will be eternally without God in hell. We have all sinned and without God's intervention, we would all be going to hell. The bible does however teach that there are different degrees of punishment.
"That servant who knows his master's will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows. But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows."
Luke 12:47-48
"That servant who knows his master's will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows. But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows."
Luke 12:47-48
Why do I feel bored and useless in my life?
As human beings, we all have a desire for our lives to have meaning. If you stick with the transient things in life, you will find no lasting satisfaction. We all have a want for the "eternal" because God has placed this want in our hearts.
"He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end." - Ecclesiastes 3:11
In our innermost being we all desire something more out of this life. That something is God. A relationship with Him is truly eternal and we will not feel that our time has been wasted.
"He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end." - Ecclesiastes 3:11
In our innermost being we all desire something more out of this life. That something is God. A relationship with Him is truly eternal and we will not feel that our time has been wasted.
Is the word translated poor in Luke 13:18 and the word translated poor or meek in Isaiah 61:1 the same word?
It seems to me that you are talking about Luke 7:22
"The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor."
The word translated "poor" is the Greek word Ptochos.
Luke is quoting Isaiah 61:1:
"The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners"
The word "poor" here is translated from the Hebrew "anav.
These words due mean the same thing and can both be accurately translated as "poor" but they are not the same word because they are in different languages.
"The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor."
The word translated "poor" is the Greek word Ptochos.
Luke is quoting Isaiah 61:1:
"The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners"
The word "poor" here is translated from the Hebrew "anav.
These words due mean the same thing and can both be accurately translated as "poor" but they are not the same word because they are in different languages.
Where do dinosaurs fit in with the Bible?
In most cases, there seem to be two thought groups when dealing with the issue of Christianity and dinosaurs.
The first group would be called young-earth creationists. They believe that dinosaurs were created in the same week as humans and therefore coexisted with them on the earth. Most young-earth creationists agree that the dinosaurs then died out at the time of the great flood.
The second group is the old-earth creationists. They take Genesis 1-3 to be an allegorical account of creation and not a scientific one. If this is the case, then each "day" of creation could be seen as a time period of millions of years. They believe that the dinosaurs lived million years ahead of humanity and therefore agree with the majority of paleontologists. While this theory is most relevant with modern-day science, it also comes with numerous theological problems.
The first group would be called young-earth creationists. They believe that dinosaurs were created in the same week as humans and therefore coexisted with them on the earth. Most young-earth creationists agree that the dinosaurs then died out at the time of the great flood.
The second group is the old-earth creationists. They take Genesis 1-3 to be an allegorical account of creation and not a scientific one. If this is the case, then each "day" of creation could be seen as a time period of millions of years. They believe that the dinosaurs lived million years ahead of humanity and therefore agree with the majority of paleontologists. While this theory is most relevant with modern-day science, it also comes with numerous theological problems.
Do we have to choose between loving God and going to hell?
It is a common misconception to think that God gives us an "eternal ultimatum" between loving Him or going to hell. Hell is not a place of physical torture as is commonly thought. Hell is the infinite trajectory of us continually not choosing Him throughout our lives. God does not send us to hell, rather hell is the place that we could ultimately end up if we choose to be there. To put it simply, hell is the only conceivable place where God does not exist. It is the only place that is completely void of His presence and all of His attributes. It is a place of utter misery because it is there that people will be eternally separated from God. The Bible uses images of fire to display this utter misery, not to "scare" us with images of pain. Perhaps this quote sums things up best:
"Why would you want to be with God in heaven if you don't want to be with God on earth?"
"Why would you want to be with God in heaven if you don't want to be with God on earth?"
If you knew there was no Heaven, would you still try to be "good"?
For theists of different faith-groups the answer to this question may greatly vary. For Christians, heaven is not pursued because it's paradisaical nature, rather it's pursued because of the Person who dwells there. As Christians, if heaven did not exist it would follow that God did also not exist. Humanity appears to be inherently destructive, therefore if God did not exist and all Christians knew this, it would be futile to be "good" to achieve some intangible goal. Christians strive to be good to please God and this has nothing to do with trying to be "good enough" to get into heaven.
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