This business with the Indiana restaurant owner who turned away gay customers is a prime example of why Christianity is viewed as a religion of hypocrites and buffoons.
I value religious liberty as much as anyone; we should be allowed to proudly display and exercise our religious values--displaying the nativity scene on our property and things like that. Passing a bill to protect us from haters (atheists who for some inexplicable reason take offense at the nativity) seems like a good thing. But what this restaurant owner 'Ryan' did under the protection of the Indiana Religious Freedom bill was a prime example of how to mutate a reasonable and potentially good bill.
He turned away a gay couple, citing the bill and stating "If I allowed gay customers, it would turn away my other customers and I would lose money." Which is total bologna and we all know it, Ryan.
His act was based solely on old fashioned bigotry. Thing is, when someone claims to be a Christian, and then turns around and displays such hatred for his fellow men, he puts a black mark on the entire religion. If he had thought about the Word, he would have displayed righteousness, instead his act not only turned the gay couple away from his restaurant, but it likely turned them off to the idea of Christianity--forever. Think of the harm his act of hatred might cause for their eternal souls.
Jesus Christ Himself dined with sinners on a regular basis. No matter what we think of other people, it should not determine how we respond to them; rather, our knowledge of the Bible, the fruits of the spirit, should guide our actions and words. The first fruit is Love! Galatians 5:22-23.
Sunday, March 29, 2015
Tuesday, March 24, 2015
Intelligent Design vs Random Accident
President Coolidge once said to a group of boy scouts: 'It is hard to see how a great man can be an atheist. We need to feel that behind us is intelligence and love.'
I would agree, and put it this way: 'I prefer to believe that intelligence and love are behind my creation.'
I cannot imagine what emptiness, what hopelessness there must be in the belief that your existence was brought about by some random meaningless 'big bang', that there is no greater purpose to your life than to consume resources and then die, returning to the oblivion. By God's grace we were created for a purpose, and by His grace we can fulfill this purpose, which was summed up by Jesus in Matthew 19:19 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' A command and purpose which includes lending aide, assistance, counsel, encouragement, donations, and all manner of helpful righteous acts.
How in the world can any decent, law abiding human being have issues with a belief and a religion that promotes such useful active love?
If a man chooses to believe he was not intelligently created, for a purpose, he will not fulfill any eternally useful purpose. This sounds harsh, but this is the place where hard truths are given. So deal with it and grow. If you want to feel like you are a 'little god' then go listen to Osteen.
Only by God's grace can we find and fulfill our design. So find it. So fulfill it.
I would agree, and put it this way: 'I prefer to believe that intelligence and love are behind my creation.'
I cannot imagine what emptiness, what hopelessness there must be in the belief that your existence was brought about by some random meaningless 'big bang', that there is no greater purpose to your life than to consume resources and then die, returning to the oblivion. By God's grace we were created for a purpose, and by His grace we can fulfill this purpose, which was summed up by Jesus in Matthew 19:19 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' A command and purpose which includes lending aide, assistance, counsel, encouragement, donations, and all manner of helpful righteous acts.
How in the world can any decent, law abiding human being have issues with a belief and a religion that promotes such useful active love?
If a man chooses to believe he was not intelligently created, for a purpose, he will not fulfill any eternally useful purpose. This sounds harsh, but this is the place where hard truths are given. So deal with it and grow. If you want to feel like you are a 'little god' then go listen to Osteen.
Only by God's grace can we find and fulfill our design. So find it. So fulfill it.
Friday, March 20, 2015
Atheists and the Armor of God
Have you ever engaged in a conversation about God with an atheist?
It's frigging exhausting! You know what I'm talking about. Atheists are passionate about not believing in the existence of a supreme being, devoted to doubting the universe was created by an intelligent Creator. You have to give them props--atheists are fanatically loyal to their way of thinking. You could say they are religious about it. And they know how to speak their minds and support their point of view.
Unlike most believers who, when questioned about God, tend to ramble off some sanctimonious platitude: 'God works in mysterious ways,' or 'God loves everyone.' What a bunch of shallow fluff.
This is why a faith firmly built on the Word is so essential. If you don't have true-blue scripture to back up your faith when an atheist corners you, then you sure as heck ain't going to persuade him.
The apologetics are an interesting bunch of believers; they study scripture with the intense hunger to learn WHY they believe, and to discover--from the Word--how to defend this belief.
If you aren't armed with the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God (Eph 6:10-18) you probably shouldn't argue with an atheist. They are fully prepared to fight your faith; are you prepared to defend it?
It's frigging exhausting! You know what I'm talking about. Atheists are passionate about not believing in the existence of a supreme being, devoted to doubting the universe was created by an intelligent Creator. You have to give them props--atheists are fanatically loyal to their way of thinking. You could say they are religious about it. And they know how to speak their minds and support their point of view.
Unlike most believers who, when questioned about God, tend to ramble off some sanctimonious platitude: 'God works in mysterious ways,' or 'God loves everyone.' What a bunch of shallow fluff.
This is why a faith firmly built on the Word is so essential. If you don't have true-blue scripture to back up your faith when an atheist corners you, then you sure as heck ain't going to persuade him.
The apologetics are an interesting bunch of believers; they study scripture with the intense hunger to learn WHY they believe, and to discover--from the Word--how to defend this belief.
If you aren't armed with the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God (Eph 6:10-18) you probably shouldn't argue with an atheist. They are fully prepared to fight your faith; are you prepared to defend it?
Saturday, March 14, 2015
Movement in the Church
There is a movement happening in the church today.
For the longest time I did not see it, as so many fail to see it still. 'You will listen and listen, yet never understand; and you will look and look and yet never perceive. For this people's heart has grown callous; their ears are hard of hearing, and they have shut their eyes; othrwise they might see and hear, understand with their hearts and turn back and I would cure them.' Matthew 13:15
These days we hear what we want to hear, and our teachers tell us what we want to hear, because what matters to (the majority) of them is the Number (of congregants) and they will do whatever it takes, say whatever needs saying to become our friend so that the Number might rise.
We should be wary of any preacher whose messages are filled with anecdotes, skits, or jokes. These maneuvers are fluff, used to fill in the sermon in place of hard truths to make it more universally acceptable. Pastors these days are even becoming politically correct--Jesus was not politically correct. He gave the message of truth, regardless of who it offended.
No one wants to feel convicted, that they need to ask forgiveness for sins, that we need His grace. This is why the message of the cross is so rarely preached these days. I can't remember the last time I heard it preached, save for the required Easter mass once a year, and even that--last year--was quickly skimmed over by our pastor, lest we feel for two seconds that we need the cross.
Don't take my word for it: pay close attention to your teachers. Sometimes, I have found, it is only a single phrase squeezed in between the fluff that makes my spirit cringe. One statement that is incongruous with the gospel.
The devil is a clever imp. He knows the best way to deceive believers is to feed them what they want to hear. But what we want to hear and what we NEED to hear are two very different giraffes.
So look, listen, and understand. The better we know the Word, the harder it will be for the devil to dupe us.
For the longest time I did not see it, as so many fail to see it still. 'You will listen and listen, yet never understand; and you will look and look and yet never perceive. For this people's heart has grown callous; their ears are hard of hearing, and they have shut their eyes; othrwise they might see and hear, understand with their hearts and turn back and I would cure them.' Matthew 13:15
These days we hear what we want to hear, and our teachers tell us what we want to hear, because what matters to (the majority) of them is the Number (of congregants) and they will do whatever it takes, say whatever needs saying to become our friend so that the Number might rise.
We should be wary of any preacher whose messages are filled with anecdotes, skits, or jokes. These maneuvers are fluff, used to fill in the sermon in place of hard truths to make it more universally acceptable. Pastors these days are even becoming politically correct--Jesus was not politically correct. He gave the message of truth, regardless of who it offended.
No one wants to feel convicted, that they need to ask forgiveness for sins, that we need His grace. This is why the message of the cross is so rarely preached these days. I can't remember the last time I heard it preached, save for the required Easter mass once a year, and even that--last year--was quickly skimmed over by our pastor, lest we feel for two seconds that we need the cross.
Don't take my word for it: pay close attention to your teachers. Sometimes, I have found, it is only a single phrase squeezed in between the fluff that makes my spirit cringe. One statement that is incongruous with the gospel.
The devil is a clever imp. He knows the best way to deceive believers is to feed them what they want to hear. But what we want to hear and what we NEED to hear are two very different giraffes.
So look, listen, and understand. The better we know the Word, the harder it will be for the devil to dupe us.
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