"I feel a heartfelt God. I don't particularly think that God want me thinking about Him all the time. I think that would be tremendous burden on Him, you know. He's got enough people asking Him for favors. He's got enough people asking Him to pull string."
"Well, religion is repressive to a certain degree. Religion is another form of bondage which man invents to get himself to God. But that's why Christ came. Christ didn't preach religion. He preached the Truth, the Way and the Life. He said He'd come to give life and life more abundantly. He talked about life, not necessarily religion... "
"A religion which says you have to do certain things to get to God...,which is by works: you can enter into the Kingdom by what you do, what you wear,what you say, how many times a day yopu pray, how many goood deeds you may do...That type of religion will not get you into the Kingdom, that's true. However there is a Master Crerator, a Supreme Being in the Universe."
Here is another great Sunday quote from Apologetics 315. This was awesome.– John Polkinghorne
I fully agree because when you study the order of the universe...its structure...its qualities and characteristics you must can't help but be struck by the sheer awesomeness and the unmistakable fact that it is bigger than you. Something that has such intricate and ingenius design - from the galaxies to the Solar Systems to the planets to our bodies to subatomic particles - point to a mind that thought it up and carried it out. It's the only logical conclusion.
"Fate rarely calls upon us at a time of our choosing."
1. something that unavoidably befalls a person; fortune; lot: It is always his fate to be left behind.
2. the universal principle or ultimate agency by which the order of things is presumably prescribed; the decreed cause of events; time: Fate decreed that they would never meet again.
3. that which is inevitably predetermined; destiny: Death is our ineluctable fate.
4. a prophetic declaration of what must be: The oracle pronounced their fate.
5. death, destruction, or ruin. –verb (used with object)
6. the Fates, Classical Mythology. the three goddesses of destiny, known to the Greeks as the Moerae and to the Romans as the Parcae.
7. to predetermine, as by the decree of fate; destine (used in the passive): a person who was fated to be the savior of the country.
| 1. | something that is to happen or has happened to a particular person or thing; lot or fortune. |
| 2. | the predetermined, usually inevitable or irresistible, course of events. |
| 3. | the power or agency that determines the course of events. |
| 4. | (initial capital letter ) this power personified or represented as a goddess. |
| 5. | the Destinies, the Fates. |
Did you also fulfill 200+ prophecies predicted 700+ years before your birth? Perhaps you died on a cross (as predicted you would, btw), then were resurrected 3 days later?
John Travolta is a scientologist. He's been with scientology since he was 21 years old. He says that it helps him put things in perspective."A film not doing well isn't a disaster - a plane crash is a disaster,..." He said thast he believes that there is life after death but you get to get to choose to be reincarnated or "just hang out, whatever you feel like." He admits that he prays and when asked to whom he prays he answered, "To the yet-not-fully-understood God concept."
At this the Jews exclaimed, "Now we know that you are demon-possessed! Abraham died and so did the prophets, yet you say that if anyone keeps your word, he will never taste death. 53Are you greater than our father Abraham? He died, and so did the prophets. Who do you think you are?"
Jesus replied, "If I glorify myself, my glory means nothing. My Father, whom you claim as your God, is the one who glorifies me. Though you do not know him, I know him. If I said I did not, I would be a liar like you, but I do know him and keep his word. Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad."
"You are not yet fifty years old," the Jews said to him, "and you have seen Abraham!"
"I tell you the truth," Jesus answered, "before Abraham was born, I am!" At this, they picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus hid himself, slipping away from the temple grounds. - John 8:52-59
But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD." - Joshua 24:15
Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him." John 14:6-7
"Everybody thinks of God as a different thing. To me, God is that greater, higher energy - that greater, wiser wisdom. It's tha thing in all of us that we all have to draw from. I've always trusted God and trusted myself, which to are intertwined. I'm a creative person, and what gifts I have come fom that divine place that I try to tap into. So who have I got to be afraid of?"
"For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways,"
declares the LORD."As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.As the rain and the snow
come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.- Isaiah 55:8-11
But man, despite his riches, does not endure;
he is like the beasts that perish.This is the fate of those who trust in themselves,
and of their followers, who approve their sayings.
SelahLike sheep they are destined for the grave,
Psalm 49:12-14
and death will feed on them.
The upright will rule over them in the morning;
their forms will decay in the grave,
far from their princely mansions.
Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;in all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make your paths straight.
On the Apologetics 315 blog, there is a lecture by Stephen Meyer. Meyer is talking about the digital code embedded in the DNA of living cells. Meyer does a great job. No one disputes that the way information is encoded in our DNA is nothing short of astonishing. In some ways it is more efficient than our best information systems. Our computers are based on binary codes. DNA is based on twice as many bases. Binary is based on 0 and 1 but DNA has 4 bases. This means that much more information can be encoded. Meyer argues that everyone agrees that information can only be assembled and encoded by intelligence not material processes. I agree. No one picks up a book and assumes that the words and information contained in it shows up out of no where by chance. We automatically know that someone wrote it. Or when we run computer software we know that someone wrote it. Why would we assume DNA was different. Meyer did a great Job. Take a listen.
Signature in the Cell MP3 Audio by Stephen Meyer - Apologetics 315
"I put the Force into the movie in order to try to awaken a certain kind of spirituality in young people - more a belief in god than a belief in any particular religious system. I wanted to make it so that young people would begin asking questions about the mystery. Not having enough interest in the mysteries of life to ask the question, 'Is there a God or is there not a God?' - that is for me the worst thing that can happen. I think you should have an opinion about that. Or you should saying, 'I'm looking. I'm very curious about this, and I am going to continue to look until I can find an answer, and if I can't find an answer, Then I'll die trying.' I think it's important to have a belief system and to have faith."
"I think that there is a God. No question. What that God is or what we know about that God, I'm not sure."
The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. - Roman 1: 18-20
"The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else. From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us. 'For in him we live and move and have our being.' As some of your own poets have said, 'We are his offspring.' - Acts 17: 24-28
The Black Snob Blog: Congress Apologizes For Slavery: So What? Now What?
Rep. Steve Cohen, a Democrat from Tennessee, drafted the resolution. Cohen explains the apology's long journey for Congressional approval and the significance of its timing.
| 20080730_tmm_03.mp... |
Atheism is Dead: A. J. Jacobs - Night at the Royal Ontario Museum
Here is an interview of Dr. Paul Vitz from the Apologetics 315 blog. Vitz's work has been featured before on Apolologetics 315 blog and I have found his work extremely interesting! He in no way tries to argue that all atheists have horrible fathers, only there seems to be a correlation between "bad" inattentive fathers and atheism. I for one would not wanna be a stumbling block for children as they seek God. This is extremely interesting!
Fatherhood and Atheism: Paul Vitz Interview MP3 Audio - Apologetics 315
One of my good friends has allowed me to borrow a book entitled What Hollywood Believes by Ray Comfort. It contains quotes and interviews from the biggest stars and creators in Hollywood regarding faith, religion, and their real worldviews. This topic interest me because I know that Hollywood influences and permeates all of human culture today. They control the movies we see, the television we watch, the books and magazines we read, the music we listen to, and even the things we buy. Not to say that this is an aweful thing in every case but it does shine light on why our society is what it is and why it is getting worse. Just what are we competing with for the hearts and minds of ourselves, our children, and the future? For example, many people in the Hollywood elite support same-sex marriage. Do they hold to the same worldview and opinion of who God is and the infallibility of the Bible as I do? If some do, which ones? This book is a great way to view that and look at human pscholhogy. We can explore what makes us human looking at a book like this.Iranian girl , Neda and her father attend a peaceful rally in Tehran before things took a tragic turn.
The girl, known as Neda and thought to be 16, has become both a martyr and rallying cry for those opposed to the Iranian hardline government.
"Neda, your death will not be in vain," reads one message on Twitter, where her name is being used as a call sign for anti-government bloggers and is one of the site's most mentioned words.
The deaths follow threats from Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Friday that fresh opposition unrest would be met with "blood, violence and chaos".
Iranian state television is reporting that 10 people were killed and more than 100 wounded in yesterday's violence in Tehran.
Foreign media are banned from reporting on non-official events in Iran, where the state censors and regulates the information seen by its citizens and those abroad.
But a video clip showing a girl known as Neda, who is thought to have been no older than 16, bleeding to death while frantic attempts are made to save her life has been broadcast across the globe via the internet.
Reports from the country say the teenager had been watching Saturday's protests with her father when she was shot by Iran's militia.
A message posted with the original footage on YouTube alleges she was intentionally shot in the chest.
"I am a doctor, so I rushed to try to save her," the video's poster said.
"But the impact of the gunshot was so fierce that the bullet had blasted inside the victim's chest, and she died in less than two minutes.
"The protests were going on about 1 kilometre away in the main street and some of the protesting crowd were running from tear gas used among them, towards Salehi St.
"The film is shot by my friend who was standing beside me. Please let the world know."
Neda, whose name means "voice" in Farsi, has been hailed as a martyr by those outraged at the brutality of the Iranian government's response to the election protests.
Clashes broke out soon after the presidential election on June 12, which many supporters of Iranian opposition parties claim was rigged to re-elect the hardline Islamist government.
The story of Neda's death has resonated with protesters across the world.
In America, pictures of her face have appeared on posters at protests against the Iranian government, hailing her as a martyr, US media reports.
Anti-government bloggers using Twitter to thwart the authorities' attempts to stop them communicating have started using her name as a call sign, making it one of the most mentioned words on the site.
""The film is shot by my friend who was standing beside me. Please let the world know."
Neda, whose name means "voice" in Farsi, has been hailed as a martyr by those outraged at the brutality of the Iranian government's response to the election protests.
Clashes broke out soon after the presidential election on June 12, which many supporters of Iranian opposition parties claim was rigged to re-elect the hardline Islamist government.
The story of Neda's death has resonated with protesters across the world.
In America, pictures of her face have appeared on posters at protests against the Iranian government, hailing her as a martyr, US media reports.
Anti-government bloggers using Twitter to thwart the authorities' attempts to stop them communicating have started using her name as a call sign, making it one of the most mentioned words on the site.
There is a great series of 10 posts coming out every Tuesday over at Apologetics 315. Each post will define a different term from Apologetics jargon. This week's term is "Theodicy" and it's the first term defined. Check it out. I can't wait to see what next week's term will be! I'm looking forward to expanding my vocabulary
So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, "It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared."
| Hazakim - Genesis ... |
Apologetics 315 has published the following quote:“Truth is so obscured nowadays and lies [are] so well established that unless we love the truth we shall never recognize it.”
- Blaise Pascal
For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.
"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.
"Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets – Matthew 7:7-11
Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord. – Ephesians 6:4
Sons are a heritage from the LORD,
children a reward from him.
Like arrows in the hands of a warrior
are sons born in one's youth.
Blessed is the man
whose quiver is full of them.
They will not be put to shame
when they contend with their enemies in the gate.
Pslam 17:3-5
because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, "Abba, Father." The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children.
On the Apologetics 315 blog there is a great sermon by William Lane Craig. He discusses about where is God when we fail. It was pretty good. He points out that God's purpose of our individual lives could include experiencing failure and suffering. It made me think. I thought about when it comes to how God leads us and guides us, Craig sounds very Calvinistic. He does not have a problem with the idea that God is in control of our live and bring about everything according to His will and purpose. Human free will does not enter in. To which I readily agree. My question is when it comes to personal salvation and being reconciled back to God he runs back to Human Free Will Why? Brian always shares cool stuff on his blog. He linked the audio and video to his blog. Please go check it out.
Where is God in Failure? MP3 Audio by William Lane Craig - Apologetics 315
The writer of the Atheism is Dead blog. Mariano, has been invited to write an essay defining Atheism, and why it isn't reasonable. His work is always great to read and I highly recommend the article! Read it at http://www.google.com/coop/cse/
In Willard's article, Jesus the Logician, he writes:
'In understanding how discipleship to Jesus Christ works, a major issue is how he automatically presents himself to our minds. It is characteristic of most 20th century Christians that he does not automatically come to mind as one of great intellectual power: as Lord of universities and research institutes, of the creative disciplines and scholarship. The Gospel accounts of how he actually worked, however, challenge this intellectually marginal image of him and help us to see him at home in the best of academic and scholarly settings of today, where many of us are called to be his apprentices.'"
Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us.
Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit. - 1 John 4:11-13
This is where we get the song's hook which points out that the preceding verses are true, however we have several recorded instances where the patriarchs see or physically experience God, so they ask the question, "Who was that they saw?". Many scholars and theologians answer the question the same way the song does: the pre-incarnate Christ. We know that God becoming a man is not out of nowhere because of Abraham and Sarah's experience in Genesis 18 as well as from other passages in the Old Testament. We also know this about Jesus:
No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father's side, has made him known. - John 1: 18
Here is the audio for the song
| hitchens_wilson_de... |
In my opinion the song is most definitely an Example of Gospel Music!
In his third article spotlighting Jesus as the ultimate intellectual evidenced by his apologetic and logic, Chad announces a new book by Norman Geisler and Patrick Zukeran called The Apologetics of Jesus. This article is an awesome book preview. Chad has also given us the honor of providing a link to an interview of Patrick Zukeran and an article written by Zukeran on this topic. Great stuff!!!
Here is Chad's next article examining Jesus fr0m the point of view of Jesus being a master intellectual. It features a lecture by Dallas Willard called Jesus as a Logician and Apologist.Now about food sacrificed to idols: We know that we all possess knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up. The man who thinks he knows something does not yet know as he ought to know. But the man who loves God is known by God. - 1 Corinthians 8:1-3
Truthbomb Apologetics: Featured Audio: Jesus as a Logician and Apologist
RE-Do. About two weeks ago, I read a post on the Apologetics 315 blog and now I can't find it! I hate it when that happens especially since I wrote quite a bit. Here is my attempt to re create it. Here is the quote:The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, 19since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.
Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen. - Romans 1: 18-25
Sunday Quote: J.P. Moreland on God's Existence - Apologetics 315
Chad is starting a series on his blog Truthbomb Apologetics in which he provides resources and astute commentary regrading Jesus from the point of view of Jesus as an intellectual and apologists. I agree with Chad that Jesus is not just the best and perfect man who ever has ever lived but also the most intelligent. He was constantly intellectually challenged by the skeptics of His day and He pawned all of them. This is a series worth checking out to learn more about who Jesus is.
Truthbomb Apologetics: The Greatest Apologist Who Ever Lived: Jesus Christ
