Comicbook World #37- Can you say 'Tactile Holograms'?

Good. I knew you could. Samax, over at ghettoManga.com has posted something very interesting! Japanese scientists have began to find ways to make holograms that can be touched! The technology apparently use ultrasonic vibrations - sound. As Samx points out the possible uses of such technology is almost limitless. One thought came to mind is when CNN used holographic communication during their coverage of the 2008 Presidential Election. I really got to get me one of those.





Comicbook World #37- Can you say 'Tactile Holograms'?

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He Lives: God's Humorous Theodicy

On David Heddle's blog, he posted a great article about what he called the two most funniest moments in the Bible.

1. When Abraham was discussing with God about sparing Sodom and Gomorrah. (Gen 18:27-32)
2. When Gideon was talking to God. (Judges 6)

I wanted to respond to this article because it really good. I liked how David points out the difference between what the Bible calls "righteous" and what we refer to as "saved" or "believers" I admit I disagree with him on his point that some people in Sodom who died could have been saved, but I do agree that none of them, or us, are righteous in the strictest Biblical sense. I'd like to think that had there been others in the city (like Lot's family) who believed and would leave the city that they would have made it too.

Here is my favorite quote from David Heddle's post:

I used to think of it this way: everybody in Sodom was wicked, all were lost. Unsaved. Reprobate. Unbelievers. Whatever term you like. But that is not necessarily the case. There may have been many saved people in Sodom—and they were annihilated along with the lost. But on that day no righteous man died. That, in fact, has happened only once.

Abraham's question to God was essentially the same as Rabbi Kushner's "Why do bad things happen to good people?" For Abraham asks, in effect, surely a holy God will not kill the righteous along with the unrighteous? God's answer to Abraham is: I won't. His answer to Rabbi Kushner is: They don't. 

Scripture agrees with this conclusion:

 ⁹What then? are we better than they? No, in no wise: for we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin;
 ¹⁰As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:
 ¹¹There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. (Romans 3:9-11, King James Version)

I also have to disagree as two the 2 funniest moments in the Bible but I agree that David's choices should be on the funny list.

1. When Jesus told his opponents that in being so careful in fine-tuning the law, they missed the point - "strain[ing] out a gnat but swallow a camel."  Why do you think Jesus' enemies got so angry? They knew they were the butt of the joke.

"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.

 "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. - Matthew 23:23-25

2. When Peter boldly stepped out of the boat to walk on water. Jesus had to be laughing because He knew Peter would not make it all the way. Can't you just see Jesus thinking to Himself, "Watch This."?

But Jesus immediately said to them: "Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid."
"Lord, if it's you," Peter replied, "tell me to come to you on the water."
"Come," he said.
Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, "Lord, save me!"
Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. "You of little faith," he said, "why did you doubt?" - Matthew 14-27-31

He Lives: God's Humorous Theodicy

James White vs. Dan Barker MP3: Was Jesus a Myth? Debate Audio - Apologetics 315

 Announcement: The MP3 for the debate is linked to Apologetics 315

James White vs. Dan Barker MP3: Was Jesus a Myth? Debate Audio - Apologetics 315

Was Jesus a Myth? James White vs. Dan Barker

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I'm amazed. James White has posted his debate with Dan Barker from last Saturday. The question they were talking about  is :"Was Jesus a Myth?". I'm going to post my own review when I see the whole thing, but I wanted to post the debate first!

This debate took place on September 26, 2009, in Newberg, Oregon, between Dan Barker of the Freedom From Religion Foundation and James White of Alpha and Omega Ministries.

Michael Licona Answering Bart Ehrman Interview MP3 & Video - Apologetics 315

I was so happy to find this on Apologetics 315. It's a frank discussion on the work of Bart Ehrman. from someone who has debated him twice, Mike Licona. Licona discusses what Ehrman has gone on record saying and writing (things that I have heard himself say). Licona also does a great job putting Ehrman's work in a historical conference. Some people who think that Bart Ehrman is unchallenged and Christians have no answers the problems he raises, but this is not true. Here is a great discussion about why Ehrman draws wrong conclusions from correct data that everyone agrees with. Here is the post from Apologetics 315 below and the video!

Here is a high quality video interview with New Testament scholar Mike Licona discussing the work of Bart Ehrman. From 4truth.net:

Bart Ehrman is perhaps the most influential skeptical New Testament scholar in North America. Several of Ehrman's books have become standard textbooks in many universities. His skepticism is not well-founded, however. This interview features New Testament scholar Mike Licona who answers a number of Ehrman's major contentions.

Apologetics 315 provides this as a full MP3 Audio file here. (47 minutes)
Videos here. Lots of Licona debates here.

Enjoy.

Michael Licona Answering Bart Ehrman Interview MP3 & Video - Apologetics 315

Dr. Claude Mariottini - Professor of Old Testament: The Nation of a Thousand Gods

One of the best things about the Internet is that we have access to blogs and websites by scholars who can post their thoughts and ideas without having to publish whenever they want to. This is something that can't be ignored or taken for granted. For example I have found the blog of Dr. Claude Mariottini who is a Professor of the Old Testamhent at Northern Baptist Seminary. I'm excited because he posted this article about the Hittites. He is an acknowledged expert on these people who until the twentieth century, many scholars began to think were mythological. This post is great!


Dr. Claude Mariottini - Professor of Old Testament: The Nation of a Thousand Gods

William Lane Craig vs. Lewis Wolpert: Is God a Delusion? Debate MP3 Audio - Apologetics 315

I thought that this debate was interesting  and although William Lane Craig did not offer anything new that I have not heard before but I did like hearing him interact with a scientist I have never heard before this debate.

I'm amazed that Wolpert can't grasp the idea that God has no beginning but has always been and always will exist.



William Lane Craig vs. Lewis Wolpert: Is God a Delusion? Debate MP3 Audio - Apologetics 315

Dan Barker Versus Dr. James White - Debate in Newberg, Oregon - Atheist Review

One of the things I appreciate about James White is that he is not afraid to point out and interact with the ideas of people who disagree with him. On his blog today, White has pointed out a review of his debate with Dan Barker from this weekend by an atheist. The writer of the article saw the debate and i have not yet. I would have appreciated more detail for why he thought that Jame White's presentation "ran out of steam"? I also would like to know why he still thinks that Barker is credible when he personally witnessed Barker denying his own book that he was still selling!? Huh? Read his article here.

Sunday Quote: F.F. Bruce on Jesus Christ - Apologetics 315

Here is a great quote from the Apologetics 315 Blog.

"The historicity of Christ is as axiomatic for an unbiased historian as the historicity of Julius Caesar."

- F.F. Bruce

I don't understand Bruce asserting that the doctrines about Jesus being Lord and savior (although true) being axiomatic but the fact of his existence being axiomatic.

Sunday Quote: F.F. Bruce on Jesus Christ - Apologetics 315

Thoughts on the Barker/White Mythology Debate

TurretinFan has posted his thoughts on the Dan Barker debate with James White. Reading his short report makes me excited to see the whole video. You can read his notes on the Alpha & Omega Ministries blog. I liked the first debate between James White vs Dan Barker but this one is not about God's existence but about if Christianity is borrowed or stolen from ancient mythologies. I can't wait to see how Barker looses this one as he lost the last one.

Don't Quote Me, Bro! Video

Image by Matti Á. via Flickr

If you have not heard, Dr. James White debated atheist, self-professed ex-christian, Dan Barker again last Saturday. Unbelievably Barker took issue at having his own book Godless quoted back to him in context. I don't get it. To add insult to injury, from what I gather, Barker was even selling the book that day in that venue. I don't get how he could have had a problem with his own writings being raised. Here is a quote from James White's blog followed by a clip.

As I noted in the previous article, Dan Barker's attempt to hide the horrifically bad argumentation he presented in his 2007 book Godless failed badly. I promised the video, and here it is (my system is currently cooking along at 162 degrees in the CPU importing the gigabytes of video of the entire debate). I note that it is a meaningless argument to claim that quoting Dan's book on the topic of the debate is tantamount to changing the topic of the debate to the book itself. For someone who prides himself in his "rational" thinking, the recordings of this debate will provide a large amount of evidence that Dan Barker often abandons the laws of logic in his promotion of the hatred of God.

source

Iron Sharpens Iron: TurretinFan: Harold Camping's Achilles Heel: Why Family Radio's Date for the End of the World is Wrong

I heard the original James White vs Harold Camping debate on Iron Sharpen Iron and I think that TurretinFan made some great comments worthy of serious contemplation. It does seriously show that Harold Camping's teaching can't be trusted!

I think TurrentinFan's point that Camping has to ignore 4 Bible verses the says that Aram was Moses' father in order to get his chronology and calculations to work to come up with Jesus' return being 2011. Doesn't work.

Iron Sharpens Iron: TurretinFan: Harold Camping's Achilles Heel: Why Family Radio's Date for the End of the World is Wrong

Here is TurretinFan's blog entry on the AOMIN blog

TOP TEN SIGNS YOU ARE A CHRISTIAN FUNDY- ExChristian.Net - Articles

Here is a list of points that, Mariano, pointed me to. It seems it was originally posted more than 4 years ago. I'm amazed at the mental gymnastics that had to be performed to get this list! I can't resist. Here is my answers to each point. My points are in red.

10 - You vigorously deny the existence of thousands of other gods claimed by other religions, but feel outraged when someone denies the existence of your god.

Dr. James White gave a very succinct answer to this statement that so many people use.




9 - You feel insulted and "dehumanized" when scientists say that people evolved from lower life forms, but you have no problem with the Biblical claim that we were created from dirt.

I have no problem with being evolved from "lower" life forms if it were demonstratably true and not all scientists agree that it is. MY problem is with the implications. IF we evolved through natural selection and "survival of the fittest", why should it stop now? If I'm smarter or stronger than you, then why can't I kill you and take all that I have to make my life better? Why should we have compassion for the weak and protect them? Answer: Because each and everyone of us were created in the image of God and deserve respect.

8 - You laugh at polytheists, but you have no problem believing in three gods- the trinity.

The Trinity is not 3 gods. One God - One Being. One God - Three persons! Get it straight.

7 - Your face turns purple when you hear of the "atrocities" attributed to Allah, but you don't even flinch when hearing about how God/Jehovah slaughtered all the babies of Egypt in "Exodus" and ordered the elimination of entire ethnic groups in "Joshua" --including women, children, and trees!

We don't worry about these because we know that God has ultimate purpose for the good of all. I can't explain or know how it all fits together. What I do know that God gave the Egyptians and the annihilated ethnic groups time to change. The Egyptians were given the option to let Israel go before that final plague...Pharaoh did not take that option. And in Genesis, God told Abraham that full measure of the Amorites and the other Canaanites had not been reached yet. They were not evil enough to destroy. And from Jonah we learn that had Canaanite nations had repented maybe God would not have destroyed them. He did not destroy Ninevah when they repented and more importantly He won't destroy you if you repent.

6 - You laugh at Hindu beliefs that deify humans, and Greek claims about gods sleeping with women, but you have no problem believing that some spirit impregnated Mary, who then gave birth to a man-god who got killed, came back to life and then ascended into the sky.

The Holy Spirit did not impregnate Mary sexually! You can't equate Greek and Hindu myths with Jesus at all.

5 - You are willing to spend your life looking for little loopholes in the scientifically established age of Earth (4.55 billion years), but you find nothing wrong with believing dates recorded by Bronze Age tribesmen sitting in their tents and guessing that Earth is a couple of generations old.

No where does the Bible attempt to tell us the age of the Earth. No where can we see where it says the the Earth is 6000 yrs old. The text does not support that interpretation.

4 - You believe that the entire population of this planet with the exception of those who share your beliefs --though excluding those in all rival sects - will spend Eternity in an infinite Hell of Suffering. And yet consider your religion the most "tolerant" and "loving."

It's either 1 or 0. Belief or unbelief. Either you allowed Jesus to pay your infinite debt or you try to pay it yourself. It's nothing personal...just the way it is.

3 - While modern science, history, geology, biology, and physics have failed to convince you otherwise, some idiot rolling around on the floor speaking in "tongues" may be all the evidence you need to "prove" Christianity.

Not all Christians believe that tongues are proof of conversion or God's existence. It's a sign. Not THE sign. So this is not proof of any kind.

2 - You define 0.01% as a "high success rate" when it comes to answered prayers. You consider that to be evidence that prayer works. And you think that the remaining 99.99% FAILURE was simply the will of God.

God answers my prayers 100% of the time. The thing is sometimes He answers "NO". Okay most of the time. I'm doing better praying according to His will. If you do, you always get "Yes".

1 - You actually know a lot less than many atheists and agnostics do about the Bible, Christianity, and church history - but still call yourself a Christian.

Whoever made this list knows a lot less than they think they know. They don't even know what a Christian is. Sad, really.

TOP TEN SIGNS YOU ARE A CHRISTIAN FUNDY- ExChristian.Net - Articles

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Kirk Cameron Defends Attack on 'Species'

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I just found an article reiterating the news that the "On The Origin of Species" will be given away for free with a 50 page introduction explaining the Creationist viewpoint. I still don't see a problem with this. Why can't college students get both sides in the same volume? Most people haven't even read what Darwin said. The article also includes a video by Kirk Cameron explaining why he and others are distributing this. I want you to see this video. Kirk is very straight and to the point I admit his appeal is a little heavy-handed at the beginning. The same freedoms that allows the "On The Origin of Species" to be handed out for free does allow people to read their Bibles in school, pray, and openly display the 10 Commandments in public. However, Kirk is pointing to something deeper. He is not trying to force people to believe what we believe. He is trying to get the word out that rejecting the Bible on the basis of evolution is groundless because Creationism is not groundless and is a valid theory opposed to evolution.





Now look at a rebuttal video - the venom - the hate - the profanity. Is it really necessary.





This lady is not well-informed on a couple of matters. She believes many of the lies that people tell on the Bible. No where does it teach that the earth is flat, or that the earth is the center of universe, that women are less than men, or that slavery is the optimum way people should relate to one another. It's sad. The reason why no one would put 5o pages of that in the Bible and hand it out is because it's not true. As for the things in Ray Comfort's introduction all of it can be substantiated. Including the stuff about Hitler. Was Hitler a Christian? Yes, in the same way that people claim to be Christians but don't believe and follow the Bible. And as for the existence of transitional forms between species, not all fossils are transitional and no fossil can be be proven to be intermediate between two living species. Instead of taking those copies of Origins and ripping out the introductions, why not publish your own ideas about why Comfort is wrong if you disagree.

Here is a copy of that introduction



Kirk Cameron Defends Attack on 'Species'

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Dinesh D'Souza vs. Daniel Dennett: Is God a Man-Made Invention? Debate MP3 Audio - Apologetics 315

This was a great debate. I admit Daniel Dennett came across well, although I disagree with him. The thing is I would agree with Dennett that teaching our children about the truth claims, history, and view point of all the major world religions. I would go further. Actually what would be wrong with comparing their claims with empirical science and history and see who is telling the truth. We can have the best apologetic arguments for each religion and see if they can carry weight. I'm confident that Christianity is the only one which can withstand such scrutiny.


Dinesh D'Souza vs. Daniel Dennett: Is God a Man-Made Invention? Debate MP3 Audio - Apologetics 315

Responding to Netzarim - Part 2

There have been a couple of links that have placed on this blog pointing visitors to the site Netzarim (Hellinized "Nazarene"): Orthodox Israeli Jews, Ra'ana, Israel. I'm all for this blog being open to all viewpoints including idea counterposed to my own. This is why I keep the comments sections open and do not censer the comments. This particular web sites makes claims against Christianity that I do not agree with. I would like to have a dialog on the issues that are brought up on the site. Let me list the claims that I think should be discussed in more detail. The site attempts to make its claims starting from Jewish, Christian, and Islamic perspectives and then bringing them into a single argument. My problem is that the site misrepresents what I, as Christian, believes. I will be writing this response in 3 parts. Here is the 2nd part. This part challenges the charges that there is no Old Testament for the incarnation, Jesus' deity, Resurrection, and the atonement. In short, let's see if we can come up with an apologetic similar to that the first century Christians used.

This post is pulled from a possible Sunday School lesson I would like teach about the differences between Islam and Christianity. The interesting thing is that the apologetic being developed for defending Christianity works equally as well as against the Netzarim web site. I have a power point that illustrates the points I want to make. Find it below. The rest of this post will be the narration that I would use that would go with the slides.

Basics of Islam and Comparison to Chris...

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Slide 2: There are three main objections raised against Christianity:
The Trinity
Jesus incarnation and deity
Jesus’ Atonement for the sins of humanity

Slide 3: Let's define some terms
Monotheism means belief in one God. Polythesim is belief in many gods. They are opposite of each other and mutually exclusive. You can't be bother a monotheist and a polytheist. Trinitarianism is the belief that God is one in being and three in person. Unitarianism is the belief that God is one in person as well in being. Monotheism and Trinitarianism are not mutually exclusive. You can be a monotheist and a Trinitarian because the Trinity is not about three gods.

Slide 4: Misconception of Christianity
Confusing Trinity with polytheism is what some Jews and Islam does.
They hear three beings - three persons.
Or they imagine a man with three heads
Or they think we mean The Father, the Mother – Mary, and the Son – Jesus.

Slide 6: Defining what the Trinity is!
There is only One God. Jews, Muslims, and Christians agree on this. One in being. One in Essence.

Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Deuteronomy 6:4

One what? One being.
Three Persons. Father, son, the Holy Spirit.
Co-equal, Co-eternal, distinct
If the Bible tells us that the Father is God. The Son is God. The Holy Spirit is God, then all three are God.

Slide 8: The Father is God - Another point we can all agree on.
2 Peter 1:17 clearly states that the Father is called God.



For he received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased."

Slide 9: The Bible tells us Jesus is God
Jesus accepted worship – no one, Biblically, can be worshiped but God alone –

Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my God!"
Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."
John 20:28,29

And again, when God brings his firstborn into the world, he says, "Let all God's angels worship him." - Hebrews 1:6

Jesus applied the divine name to Himself

Philip said, "Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us."

Jesus answered: "Don't you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, 'Show us the Father'? Don't you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves. I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.
"If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him."– John 14:8-21

His opponents understood what Jesus was claiming to be.

"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 8:58,59

We know that Jesus was equating himself with the one who spoke to Moses from the burning bush in Exodus 3.

See also John 10: 24-39

Jesus’ earliest followers equated Jesus with God. - John 1:1-5,14,18; John 12:39-41; Colossians 1:15-20; Phillippians 2:5-11

Jesus taught that He and the Father are not the same person – John 12:12-14; He said that Her and the Father are two distinct witnesses.

Slide 10: The Holy Spirit is God
The Holy Spirit is not an impersonal force or energy field without consciousness or thought. Look at Acts 5:3,4 which says:

Then Peter said, "Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some of the money you received for the land? Didn't it belong to you before it was sold? And after it was sold, wasn't the money at your disposal? What made you think of doing such a thing? You have not lied to men but to God."Examine what Peter said. First he said Ananias lied to the Holy Spirit. You can't lie to a force, you can only lie to a person. Second, Ananias lied to God not just to men.

The Holy Spirit is equated to God. Let's get another example: Acts 13:1-3 says:

In the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch) and Saul. While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them." So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off.

I'm sure you can see that it says that the Holy Spirit spoke. He said He had a plan for Barnabas and Paul. A force cannot have plans or have desires.

Slide 11: Jesus says and does things only applies to God
Only God can forgive Sin – Jesus claims this right in Matthew 9:6-7
Only God is eternal - Yet the Bible says the same of Jesus John 8:58,59; John 1:1-5; Revelation 1:17,18; Hebrews 13:8; Romans 1:20

Only God can walk on water – Job 9:8; Matt 14:22-33; Mark 6:47-51; John 6:16-21

Jesus is Good, but none is good but the God- Mark 10:18 – Jesus did not object, but instead points out the fact that like God only He can truly be called “good”

Slide 13 - Old Testament Reference to the Incarnation
No Man can see God – Exodus 33:19,20; John 1:18; John 6:46; 1 John 4:12
Old Testament is full of references of people relating to either angels or God in human form.
If no one can see God, whom did they see?
Abraham - Genesis 18: 1-15
Hagar - Genesis 16:13
Jacob – Genesis 32:22-32
Moses – Exodus 3; Exodus 33:19,20
Manoah and his wife – Judges 13
Ezekiel – Ezekiel 1
Isaiah – Isaiah 6
Daniel – Daniel 7

Slide 14 - Who was it that they saw?
The early Christians equated at times the physical manifestation of God with a pre-incarnate Jesus Christ. - John 12:39-41 refers to Isaiah 6:1-4
God is Omnipresent when He was with any one on the list previous He was still in Heaven and running the universe
If He can dwell on the earth among us for hours, minutes, or days, He could do it for years!
“God dwelled among men when He so desired, and He did it ultimately in Jesus the Messiah.” Hazakim

Slide 15: Sacrificial Laws Fulfilled By Jesus
In light of the New Testament: Galatians 3:23-25


Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice Isaac typifies the work of Jesus – Genesis 22

The Last Supper equates with Passover – Exodus 12; Matthew 26: 17-30

Jesus is the propitiation for our sins – 1 John 2:1,2; 1 Corinthians 6:19,20; Romans 5:6; 1 Peter 2:24

We are justified before God and wrath satisfied before God.

Like Jesus’ one-time sacrifice for all, the sacrificial system was substitutionary Hebrews 7:11-28;8;9;10

Here is the Theophanies video again





Sources on this blog
Biblical Basics - The Deity of Christ
Biblical Basics - The Deity of Christ - Redux
Biblical Basics - Trinity: A Positive Presentation Part 1 Introduction
Bible Basics - Trinity - Part 2a Bible Foundations
Bible Basics - Trinity - Part 2b Bible Foundations
Bible Basics - Trinity - Part 3 Conclusion
Bible Basics - The Trinity Part 4: Bibliography
Bible Basics Trinity - Part 2 Redux
Bible Basics: Trinity

A Brief Introduction to the Reformation - Discern 2009

When James White spoke at the Discern 2009 conference, one of his lectures - the one on the Reformation - has been posted on YouTube. I really enjoyed it. I wish I could have been there in person.

Black Superhero Blog: Black, Jack Johnson

Image via Wikipedia

On the Black Superhero Blog has a very interesting post about a real historical person: Jack Johnson. He was the world's first celebrity Black Athlete. Without him, there would be no Muhammad Ali or Michael Jordon or Venus Williams or Serena Williams. I dare say there would be no NFL or NBA as we know them (if at all) today. I remember talking about him briefly in history class in high school. He was truly undefeated and lived his life the way he wanted (including dating white women) and did not cowtow to white people who hated him because he was black. I heard that when he retired and threw his last fight. He laid on the ground and shield the sun from his eyes as he was counted out.

I think it was because of his attitude and self-respect that made the American power structure fear him so much. This is why great pains has been taken to make sure that there would never be another black man like him. If you notice anytime a black man becomes greatly successful, something happens to either humble him before society if not outright destroy him. Look at Muhammad Ali. At the top of his game, the government tried to draft him for Vietnam and when he refused he wasn't allowed to compete anymore for a time. I think they hoped that when he came back he would never be successful again (they were wrong). Look at Michael Vick (I'm not condoning dog fighting), his career in football has been halted and almost destroyed. Kobe Bryant almost lost his career due to legal problems also. The list goes on and on. It seems like a concerted effort to destroy these men before they begin to look at themselves the way Jack Johnson looked at himself. The sad thing is that today these black celebrities are being caught doing things that they shouldn't be doing and I although one might argue that they are being set up to fail, they are still allowing themselves to be caught up.

I digress. The post has a great link to an online comic that serves as a biography for Jack Johnson.


Black Superhero Blog: Black, Jack Johnson

High School Students Can't Name First President

I found this story appalling. I notice a distinct lack of interest in our culture of history. If we do not know our past, I have no idea how we can understand ourselves and our future.

Embedded video from CNN Video

High School Students Can't Name First President

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GOD'S STORY - FROM CREATION TO ETERNITY

Here is a cool animated video chronicling Genesis to Revelation. You can find it on YouTube in multiple languages too.

Responding to Netzarim - Part 1

Image via Wikipedia

There have been a couple of links that have placed on this blog pointing visitors to the site Netzarim (Hellinized "Nazarene"): Orthodox Israeli Jews, Ra'ana, Israel. I'm all for this blog being open to all viewpoints including idea counterposed to my own. This is why I keep the comments sections open and do not censer the comments. This particular web sites makes claims against Christianity that I do not agree with. I would like to have a dialog on the issues that are brought up on the site. Let me list the claims that I think should be discussed in more detail. The site attempts to make its claims starting from Jewish, Christian, and Islamic perspectives and then bringing them into a single argument. My problem is that the site misrepresents what I, as Christian, believes. Here are a few the statements I have issue with. I will be writing this response in 3 parts. This is part 1.

1. The doctrine that Tor•âh′ is the "law of sin and death" is a Christian canard, the epitome of misojudaism.
2. The original—and only authentic—plan of salvation is found only in Tor•âh′ . Everything subsequent is a supersessionist "pretend salvation" of Displacement Theology.
3. Those who castigate Tor•âh′ to rely instead on "pretend salvation" have doomed themselves to lack the ki•pur′ essential to co-mingle with the Perfect Creator in hâ-o•lâm′ ha-bâ′ ; misled by their own respective Displacement Theology
4. You, too, can be chosen—the same way Israel was: by abandoning Displacement Theology and turning to the practice of Tor•âh′

The thesis of the site seems very similar to many Islamic critcs that Paul taught separate doctrines that the 1st Century followers of Jesus Christ did not teach. Things such as His deity, and His being the only way to Salvation.

The only way to finally overcome Christianity, after 2,000 years of consistent failure, is by exposing the anti-Torâh Yësh"u as a counterfeit of the pro-Torâh original: historical Ribi Y^әhoshua!

Think about it… the original, historical Ribi Y^әhoshua, because he advocated Torâh before Paul's Hellenist apostasy, will lead Christians out of their post-135 C.E. Roman idolatry to Torâh – and the fulfillment of Z^әkharyâh 14.16-21 (which is already beginning) and related prophecies.

The site quotes Rabbi Michael Skobac charging Paul with the following crimes:

None of the charges and thoughts expressed are new. As a matter of fact, I've noticed that many of these things were raised to Jesus and Paul themselves in the first century! So where to start unpacking these ideas and examining them? Let's start with what Bible-believing Christians really believe: Paul did not make up his doctrines. He got it from the Torah, the prophets, the Psalms, the history books - in short the Testament. He was teaching the same thing Peter, John, James, and the rest. All of which came from Jesus!

1. Paul refers to the "Law of Sin and Death" because he recognized the inability of all people to keep it perfectly. The purpose of the Torah was not to save anyone but point out the need for a savior. Who can keep it? Can you? Do you perfectly? Breaking anyone of them breaks them all! We all have to admit that we don't keep it. In the Torah, we have prescriptions for how to atone for our sins and get back in right standing with God temporarily until we sin again. As far as I know Judaism no longer has a sacrificial system so how do Jews today atone for their sin!

2. Is the Torah the first covenant? Exodus and Moses are not the start of the story but the beginning they stand on the shoulders of Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph! Were any of the patriarchs under Torah? No, there was no written Torah yet. While we are told that upholding the commands through Moses was the way Israel was to uphold their end of the covenant, what about Abraham and those who predated Moses? Are we going to say that before the Moses no one pleased God? No way.

Abram believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness. - Genesis 15:6

This was the center of Paul's whole argument and it's unassailable. No way did Paul castigate the Torah.

¹⁵Brothers, let me take an example from everyday life. Just as no one can set aside or add to a human covenant that has been duly established, so it is in this case. ¹⁶The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. The Scripture does not say "and to seeds," meaning many people, but "and to your seed," meaning one person, who is Christ. ¹⁷What I mean is this: The law, introduced 430 years later, does not set aside the covenant previously established by God and thus do away with the promise. ¹⁸For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no longer depends on a promise; but God in his grace gave it to Abraham through a promise.

¹⁹What, then, was the purpose of the law? It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come. The law was put into effect through angels by a mediator. ²⁰A mediator, however, does not represent just one party; but God is one.

²¹Is the law, therefore, opposed to the promises of God? Absolutely not! For if a law had been given that could impart life, then righteousness would certainly have come by the law. ²²But the Scripture declares that the whole world is a prisoner of sin, so that what was promised, being given through faith in Jesus Christ, might be given to those who believe.

²³Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. ²⁴So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. ²⁵Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law. - Galatians 3:15-25

In addition, I realize that people may disagree that God supercedes one covenant for another. I agree. The covenant of grace that God has made through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus the Christ is a return to the Abrahamic covenant not the one through Moses.

³⁰ Instead, everyone will die for his own sin; whoever eats sour grapes—his own teeth will be set on edge.

³¹ "The time is coming," declares the LORD,
"when I will make a new covenant
with the house of Israel
and with the house of Judah.

³² It will not be like the covenant
I made with their forefathers
when I took them by the hand
to lead them out of Egypt,
because they broke my covenant,
though I was a husband to ^a]">[a] them, ^b]">[b] "
declares the LORD.

- Jeremiah 31:30-32

Skobac further alleges that Paul and James disagreed with one another about fundamental doctrine. I totally disagree. There are two verses that people use to defend this idea.

Paul wrote:

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.- Ephesians 2:8,9

James wrote:

¹⁴What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? ¹⁵Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. ¹⁶If one of you says to him, "Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed," but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? ¹⁷In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

¹⁸But someone will say, "You have faith; I have deeds."
Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do.

¹⁹You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.

²⁰You foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless^d]">[d]? ²¹Was not our ancestor Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? ²²You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. ²³And the scripture was fulfilled that says, "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,"^e]">[e] and he was called God's friend. ²⁴You see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone.

²⁵In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction? ²⁶As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead. James 2:14-26

Some erroneously interpret these passages as conflicting with one another. Paul is discussing a different context than James. Paul is referring to attempting to justify yourself before God by the things that you do. James is referring to showing that if you truly have saving the faith that Paul is talking about then you will be doing good things. Remember Paul said that we are saves so that we can do good works. They agree!

Paul and James had dealing with one another. Take note of 1st Corinthians 15:1-11

1Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. 2By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.

3For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance[a]: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5and that he appeared to Peter,[b] and then to the Twelve. 6After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. 7Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.

9For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. 11Whether, then, it was I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed. - 1st Corinthians 15:1-11

Check Paul's testimony. He say explains compactly what he taught and then says he did not make it up. He received it! Where did he get it from? From God. What about the apostles who knew Jesus before the Crucifixion?

1Fourteen years later I went up again to Jerusalem, this time with Barnabas. I took Titus along also. 2I went in response to a revelation and set before them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles. But I did this privately to those who seemed to be leaders, for fear that I was running or had run my race in vain. 3Yet not even Titus, who was with me, was compelled to be circumcised, even though he was a Greek. 4This matter arose because some false brothers had infiltrated our ranks to spy on the freedom we have in Christ Jesus and to make us slaves. 5We did not give in to them for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might remain with you. - Galations 2:1-5.

Paul is clear he checked out his understanding and teachings with the apostles themselves and they agreed with him. WE have testimony from one of them - no less than Peter. Peter tells us exactly what he thinks of Paul's teachings.

15Bear in mind that our Lord's patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. 16He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction. - 2 Peter 3:15-16

I have much more to say. In part 2, I will write about how the Incarnation, Jesus
deity and substitutionary sacrifice is not part of Paul's imagination and nor did it begin with him but are rooted in the scriptures and his Christian contemporaries taught the same things. Part 3 will focus on the claims the site make concerning the manuscript traditions of the New Testament and the charges being made about corruption of the New Testament.

Terminology Tuesday: Wager Argument - Apologetics 315

This week Brian defined the "Wager Argument". I've been accused in a very derogatory matter much of using this by just pointing out that if you are not sure that there is a God, then you are taking a greater risk than believing that there is a God. I still think that this is true, but I think that the power of this argument is not because of the lack of convincing evidence because I think that the evidence is very convincing. My point in following Pascal's line of reasoning is that the risk of believing that God exists and being wrong is less than rejecting God although God truly exists.

Terminology Tuesday: Wager Argument - Apologetics 315