Opposing Views: OPINION:10 Worst Attacks on Faith, Family & Freedom in 2009

My brother in Christ, Mariano, turned me on to this great article - giving the top 10 worst attacks on all that is dear to a believer in Christ this year - 2009. Check out the article. Funny the thing is most of  these are in California! The one I think think is worst is:

7) A school district in Castro Valley, California, refused to provide information to parents about a talk given by a lesbian minister to math and science classes. PJI filed suit on the parents' behalf.

Opposing Views: OPINION:10 Worst Attacks on Faith, Family & Freedom in 2009

Christian Apologetics - Life and Doctrine: Trinity : Is Jesus Equal to God?

Here is another in a series of posts from Mariano who shows that the Trinity is upheld in the Bible through showing that Jesus is equal to God. God is the ruler of heaven and earth. He offers several scriptures to prove that!

Christian Apologetics - Life and Doctrine: Trinity : Is Jesus Equal to God?

demotivational poster MOST POWERFUL MAN IN THE WORLD

demotivational poster MOST POWERFUL MAN IN THE WORLD

Biblical Exegesis:Jeremiah 20:7

Here is another post inspired by the insipid rhetoric attempting to validate atheism. Thank you, TheGodless. The point he tried to make was that God lies and is trustworthy and he tried to use Jeremiah 20:7 to prove his case. But what does this verse really say:

O LORD, you deceived me, and I was deceived;
       you overpowered me and prevailed.
       I am ridiculed all day long;
       everyone mocks me.

A lot of people may just look at this in context and agree that it says  God lies...if they have the reading comprehension level of a kindergartner.  However, when putting it in context we have Jeremiah complaining to God and telling us and God what his problem really is. Here is the verse in the context of verses 1 - 18:

¹ When the priest Pashhur son of Immer, the chief officer in the temple of the LORD, heard Jeremiah prophesying these things, ² he had Jeremiah the prophet beaten and put in the stocks at the Upper Gate of Benjamin at the LORD's temple. ³ The next day, when Pashhur released him from the stocks, Jeremiah said to him, "The LORD's name for you is not Pashhur, but Magor-Missabib.  ⁴ For this is what the LORD says: 'I will make you a terror to yourself and to all your friends; with your own eyes you will see them fall by the sword of their enemies. I will hand all Judah over to the king of Babylon, who will carry them away to Babylon or put them to the sword. ⁵ I will hand over to their enemies all the wealth of this city—all its products, all its valuables and all the treasures of the kings of Judah. They will take it away as plunder and carry it off to Babylon. ⁶ And you, Pashhur, and all who live in your house will go into exile to Babylon. There you will die and be buried, you and all your friends to whom you have prophesied lies.' "

Look at the context of the passage. Jeremiah does what God wants him to do and pays a price. He is persecuted for telling the truth! He was beaten and put into stocks because the chief priest, Pashhur, someone who should have welcomed the message from God, did not like it and hoped that by punishing Jeremiah, Jeremiah would be forced to shut up.  As soon as Jeremiah is released God gave Pashhur a personal message of doom. I'm sure this made Passhur hate Jeremiah even more!

 ⁷ O LORD, you deceived  me, and I was deceived;
       you overpowered me and prevailed.
       I am ridiculed all day long;
       everyone mocks me.  ⁸ Whenever I speak, I cry out
       proclaiming violence and destruction.
       So the word of the LORD has brought me
       insult and reproach all day long.

Now we can  see why Jeremiah said what he said.in verse 7 and its a great lesson for each one of us especially now. We may be tempted to think that when we obey God everything will turn out the way we want and we will suffer less. Jeremiah is expressing the frustration in finding out that this assumption is merely that...an assumption and one that I have made many times in my own life and finding out that it is the wrong assumption.  If you examine the first 20 chapters of Jeremiah, you  will find that God never promised Jeremiah that he would not suffer. God does not promise anyone in the entire Bible that they will never experience suffering for serving him. This includes us today. The opposite is true. We are guaranteed to suffer persecution when we stand up for God,.

 ⁹ But if I say, "I will not mention him
       or speak any more in his name,"
       his word is in my heart like a fire,
       a fire shut up in my bones.
       I am weary of holding it in;
       indeed, I cannot.

Jeremiah reveals that he has tried to keep his mouth shut but he can't. He is compelled.

 ¹⁰ I hear many whispering,
       "Terror on every side!
       Report him! Let's report him!"
       All my friends
       are waiting for me to slip, saying,
       "Perhaps he will be deceived;
       then we will prevail over him
       and take our revenge on him."

Here we see that Jeremiah's enemies were many and  they plotted against him.

 ¹¹ But the LORD is with me like a mighty warrior;
       so my persecutors will stumble and not prevail.
       They will fail and be thoroughly disgraced;
       their dishonor will never be forgotten.
 ¹² O LORD Almighty, you who examine the righteous
       and probe the heart and mind,
       let me see your vengeance upon them,
       for to you I have committed my cause.

Here is the good news...although we may suffer for doing right, God will fight for us and pay back those who come after us. Yes, Jeremiah suffered but he also saw the message he carried from God validated and brought to reality.

 ¹³ Sing to the LORD!
       Give praise to the LORD!
       He rescues the life of the needy
       from the hands of the wicked.
 ¹⁴ Cursed be the day I was born!
       May the day my mother bore me not be blessed!
 ¹⁵ Cursed be the man who brought my father the news,
       who made him very glad, saying,
       "A child is born to you—a son!"
 ¹⁶ May that man be like the towns
       the LORD overthrew without pity.
       May he hear wailing in the morning,
       a battle cry at noon.
 ¹⁷ For he did not kill me in the womb,
       with my mother as my grave,
       her womb enlarged forever.
 ¹⁸ Why did I ever come out of the womb
       to see trouble and sorrow
       and to end my days in shame?

In the rest of the chapter Jeremiah gives full vent to what he really feels. The man was hurting although he still realized that he had to trust God no matter what. Some Christians have taught that we can't question God or come to Him with our fears and complaints. However, I think we forget that this thing is not about a religion it's about having a relationship with God. Jeremiah freely told God what he thought and how he felt. We can and should do the same.

Christian Apologetics - Life and Doctrine: Trinity : Who is Described as the Ruler of the Kingdom of Heaven and Earth?

Here is another in a series of posts from Mariano who shows that the Trinity is upheld in the Bible through showing that The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are each described as the ruler of heaven and earth. God is the ruler of heaven and earth. He offers several scriptures to prove that!


Christian Apologetics - Life and Doctrine: Trinity : Who is Described as the Ruler of the Kingdom of Heaven and Earth?

Christian Apologetics - Life and Doctrine: Jewish / Judaism : The Messiah Will Be “The LORD”, part 1 of 2

Image via Wikipedia

Here is part one of a great post from Mariano showing that the idea of a Messiah as embodied by Jesus originates in Judaism not Christianity. This is an awsome post!

Christian Apologetics - Life and Doctrine: Jewish / Judaism : The Messiah Will Be “The LORD”, part 1 of 2

YouTube - Atomic bombing of Nagasaki - BBC

I usually only see documentary information for Hiroshima and not much on Nagasaki. This is good video!




YouTube - Atomic bombing of Nagasaki - BBC

Stalin - Man of Steel

Image via Wikipedia

Witness the brutal story of Joseph Stalin, who ruled the Soviet Union with an iron hand. Even Stalin's successors viewed him as brutal, and in the years following Stalin's death they heavily toned down his crimes. But now, after the fall of Communism, people have come forward to reveal the tyranny they themselves lived in.

Stalin - Man of Steel

Truthbomb Apologetics: Featured Audio: An Interview with John MacArthur- The Jesus You Can't Ignore

Here is a great post from the Truthbomb Apologetics blog that makes an interview of John MacArthur available. It's worth a listen. Here is what Chad wrote as a description:

In this interview, pastor and teacher Dr. John MacArthur discusses his latest book entitled The Jesus You Can't Ignore: What You Must Learn from the Bold Confrontations of Christ.

In this short, 26 minute interview, MacArthur challenges the evangelical world to fight for truth and gives tips on how to do it.

Truthbomb Apologetics: Featured Audio: An Interview with John MacArthur- The Jesus You Can't Ignore

BBC News - Unholy row over New Zealand Mary and Joseph billboard

I came across this news story and I am shocked. St Matthew-in-the-City Church in Auckland, New Zealand recently put up a bill board shown on the left. I don't know what kind of response this springs up in you, but I find it offensive for two reasons. It makes me wonder what was the message the church was trying to send? I did some research and I found the following quote:

Church vicar Archdeacon Glynn Cardy said the billboard was intended to challenge stereotypes about the way Jesus was conceived and get people talking about the Christmas story.
"This billboard is trying to lampoon and ridicule the very literal idea that God is a male and somehow this male God impregnated Mary," said Cardy, who described his church as having very liberal ideas about Christianity.
"We would question the Virgin Birth in any literal sense. We would question the maleness of God in any literal sense," he said.

In other words, the point was to take a swipe at fundamental Christian doctrine and theology. It's admitted that they were making fun of the doctrine of Jesus' virgin birth  by implying that God had sex with Mary. The Bible never implies that Jesus' conception was sexual. On top of that the man said that they are coming against the maleness of God. However, God is never described as male or female...God is beyond all of that. Historic Orthodox Christianity has never embraced these ideas.

Once I found out what kind of church this is, I was not surprised. It's a liberal Anglican church. Anglican church is certainly no longer orthodox. They used to be but they really seemed to have "jumped the shark" so to speak. I went to St Matthew-in-the-City Church in Auckland, New Zealand main website and found that like many American Anglican churches are performing same-sex marriages and like more than a few churches today have turned its back on the Bible as being the final authority for faith and practice.

You can imagine that the billboard has offended a lot of people.

Lyndsay Freer, spokeswoman for the Catholic Diocese of Auckland, said the poster was offensive to Christians.
"Our Christian tradition of 2,000 years is that Mary remains a virgin and that Jesus is the son of God, not Joseph," she told the New Zealand Herald. "Such a poster is inappropriate and disrespectful."



As a Roman Catholic she holds to the perpetual virginity of Mary, for which there is only Roman Catholic dogma and tradition that we have support so of course she is not happy. I want to be clear that not all Christians dislike the billboard for the same reasons or would agree with her 2000 year assertion or Mary always being a virgin. I've already written on why I disagree with her. However, I do agree that the billboard is wrong but for denying Jesus' virgin birth or trying to cast God as having human gender is wrong.

Sources:
BBC News - Unholy row over New Zealand Mary and Joseph billboard
Religious billboard provokes wrath, mirth
Billboard Depicting Joseph, Mary In Bed Sparks Row
Vicar wants to keep billboard

Christian Apologetics - Life and Doctrine: Jewish / Judaism : The Isaiah 9 Controversy, part 1 of 4

Wow! I had no idea that some tried to avoid Isaiah 9! That is mind blowing. I love this series and I hope to read more - parts 2-4. I wanted to add a couple of observations. There are several places in the Hebrew Bible that prophecies were given in the past tense although it was talking about the future. I believe it is because to God He knows the future so well (because He is doing it) that He can talk about it as if it has already happened! The only other thing I've gotta to add to Mariano's brilliance is the inescapable fact that these verses 6-7 could ever be applied to anyone but Jesus, least of all to me, you, or Hezekiah. Who else is "Mighty God", "Prince of Peace"? Wait Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize! Naahh!!!! Just kidding.

⁶ For to us a child is born,
       to us a son is given,
       and the government will be on his shoulders.
       And he will be called
       Wonderful Counselor, ^[a] Mighty God,
       Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
 ⁷ Of the increase of his government and peace
       there will be no end.
       He will reign on David's throne
       and over his kingdom,
       establishing and upholding it
       with justice and righteousness
       from that time on and forever.
       The zeal of the LORD Almighty
       will accomplish this. - Isaiah 9:6-7

Christian Apologetics - Life and Doctrine: Jewish / Judaism : The Isaiah 9 Controversy, part 1 of 4

YouTube - WWII:RARE COLOR FILM:PEARL HARBOR DECEMBER 7 1941 1

Image via Wikipedia

Archival Gold!





YouTube - WWII:RARE COLOR FILM:PEARL HARBOR DECEMBER 7 1941 1

Breaking Down The Iron Man 2 Trailer

In case you missed it...the first official trailer for Iron Man 2 has been released. Check out this article from G4TV analyzing the trailer in exquisite detail. Here is my analysis: I can't wait for this movie. I like the idea of the government coming to Tony Stark and telling him that his technology is too dangerous for him as a private citizen to control. I think that in real life if a guy really came up with such a suit, everyone would be after him trying to take it. The trailer really makes me wanna see this movie. The thing I'm most excited about is seeing the War Machine armor.






Breaking Down The Iron Man 2 Trailer

Biblical Exegesis:Acts 2:30

This week let's consider Acts 2:30 which says:

 ³⁰Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne; (Acts 2:30, King James Version)

But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne. (NIV)

I was inspired to write this post by the arguments of TheGodless on Twitter. He was trying to use the Bible to show that Mary was not a virgin when she conceived and gave birth to Jesus. He took this verse to mean that Jesus was a son of David in terms of what we mean today - genetically - and therefore Jesus had an earthly father and was born the same way as everyone else. I thought that it would be instructive to really look at the text and see if you can draw that meaning out.

Let's start with context. Who is speaking, to whom, and what is the speaker talking about? Peter is speaking. He and the other followers of Jesus (from 12 - 120 people) have all received the Holy Spirit and had began speaking in tongues. They had also just spent 40 days with the risen Christ and had seen him ascend into heaven.

Now consider the audience - hundreds of Jews from all over the empire in Jerusalem to celebrate Passover and Pentecost feasts. They had just heard local Jews speaking and praising God in languages that they could not have known (tongues). They knew about Jesus' crucifixion and the empty tomb. Peter is attempting to explain all of this to them and in verse 30 he makes a direct statement that Jesus was a dcscendant of David just as they knew the Messiah had to be. Keep in mind that both Mary and Joseph were descended from King David and Jesus was truly human...he had Mary's genetic traits. God performed a miracle - a live human birth without the genetic material of a man.

Instead of just focusing on defending Jesus' virgin birth, lets look closer at the first Christian sermon following Jesus' assention. It's fascinating. You get to speak up as a Christian for the first time anyone outside of Jesus has given the full gospel...what do you say? See verses 14-41. Peter tells them that they are watching prophesy being fulfilled. The people speaking in tongues and declaring God's wonders in a miraculous way. So he started with building on the miracle God had already performed because God already had their intention. Then Peter reminded them what they had witnessed concerning Jesus and then Peter warns them no to miss out on this opportunity to be free of their sins! Not all of his listeners believe but at least 3000 of them do

14Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: "Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. 15These men are not drunk, as you suppose. It's only nine in the morning! 16No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:
17" 'In the last days, God says,
I will pour out my Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
your young men will see visions,
your old men will dream dreams.
18Even on my servants, both men and women,
I will pour out my Spirit in those days,
and they will prophesy.
19I will show wonders in the heaven above
and signs on the earth below,
blood and fire and billows of smoke.
20The sun will be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood
before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord.
21And everyone who calls
on the name of the Lord will be saved.'[c]

22"Men of Israel, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know. 23This man was handed over to you by God's set purpose and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men,[d] put him to death by nailing him to the cross. 24But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him. 25David said about him:
" 'I saw the Lord always before me.
Because he is at my right hand,
I will not be shaken.
26Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will live in hope,
27because you will not abandon me to the grave,
nor will you let your Holy One see decay.
28You have made known to me the paths of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence.'[e]

29"Brothers, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day. 30But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne. 31Seeing what was ahead, he spoke of the resurrection of the Christ,[f] that he was not abandoned to the grave, nor did his body see decay. 32God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact. 33Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear. 34For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said,
" 'The Lord said to my Lord:
"Sit at my right hand
35until I make your enemies
a footstool for your feet." '[g]

36"Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ."

37When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, "Brothers, what shall we do?"

38Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call."

40With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, "Save yourselves from this corrupt generation." 41Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.!

Chuck Missler - Return Of The Nephilim

Here is a talk that Chuck Missler gave regarding UFOs, extraterrestrial life, and the Nephilim. Here is what Missler said.




I agree with Missler on the science he presented. I even agree with his discussion of dimension and perspective. He makes good points. And I think that these ideas shared by many should be explored.

I heard a talk given by Dr. Walter Martin that shows that he thought that perhaps the talk of UFOs were because of beings that exist in higher dimensions than just the 4 we easily perceive. Some folks even go as far as postulating that the aliens that are reported are actually demons. Martin, didn't really go as far as that, but he did say that we can't just ignore the accounts of so many who claim to have interacted with extraterrestrial life. They are seeing something...experiencing something.

I have to disagree with the further assertions Missler makes. Things such as that demons attempting to pollute the human gene pool to keep the Messiah from being born or that the Nephilim of the Bible were half-human and half angel. I just don't think that the Bible holds up that interpretation.

Missler had to go outside the Bible, the apocryphal "Book of Enoch" to come up with his hypothesis. In addition the view kind of requires that we think that God and Lucifer are equals playing chess and that there is a possibility that God can loose if he doesn't block the movers Satan is doing. For example, Missler said that God sent the flood to kill the hybrids, and that Noah was saved because his DNA and that of his family was untainted. The Bible says God chose to save Noah because

 This is the account of Noah.
      Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked with God.  Noah had three sons: Shem, Ham and Japheth.
 Now the earth was corrupt in God's sight and was full of violence. God saw how corrupt the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways.  So God said to Noah, "I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth.- Genesis 6:9-13 (NIV)

The KJV says Noah was "perfect in his Generation" but I think that the NIV is clearer. God was not choosing Noah because of his genetic purity....but for his moral purity. In addition we have no scripture that says that Angels are able to take physical form at will on their own prerogative. All this leads me to reject the notion that the Nephilim were not just human. So why would God allow demons to deceive the world into thinking that they are space aliens? I think the jury is out if this hypothesis is true or not...I'm gonna vote - I don't know what UFOs are or what people are experiencing.



Chuck Missler - Return Of The Nephilim

Truthbomb Apologetics: Resources about the Twilight Saga

Chad has posted some great resources on his blog about what Christians should view about the Twilight cultural phenomenon. I personally really like science fiction, horror, and fantasy genres. I think that what makes these genres so interesting is how we can explore philosophy, religion, and think about what it really means to be human and worldview. Some people tend to write off the genres and noit really think about what they are really saying. We need to think about who and what we are and what does society says versus what God says in the Bible.

Truthbomb Apologetics: Resources about the Twilight Saga

Golden Duas from Quran

Recently U.IBRAHIM ALI  left a list of 13 Duas in the comments of a recent post - important verses of the Koran that Muslims  should recite  everyday. On their face I agree with most of them and see no problem with them because the Bible tells us to pray the same way...except for numbers 5-9. They deal with repentance and atonement. I don't read Arabic and I know the Bible far better than the Koran so i may be understanding them out of of context. I invite  U.IBRAHIM ALI to comment further. Here is what I don't get.

1. In reciting the verses the Muslim admits that he is undeserving of mercy because he has sinned, so does that mean the Muslim expect God just to fogive that sin without penalty? Where is the the justice in that? Why shoiuld one not be heald accountable for that crap he hasd done against his creator?
2. On what basis do we have the right to ask for forgiveness on the behalf of our forebearers and others when there is no foundation for why we should be forgiven besides on the basis of God's mercy, grace, and kindness?
3. What guarantee is there that God would give us these mercies? The verses here to suggest that the guarantee for the Muslim is that he believes.

From what I know about Islams thes questions are not answered. Allah saves those He wilts and damns the others...being a Muslim is not a guarantee you will be accepted. As for how the Bible answers these questions it is quite different. The God of the New Testament is the same as the God of the Old Testament. His character is revealed not just in scripture but in active relationship with those who believe even today.  So what does the Bible say about the questions I have asked.

 ³Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. ⁴For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love ⁵he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— ⁶to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. ⁷In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace ⁸that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. ⁹And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, ¹⁰to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment—to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.
 ¹¹In him we were also chosen,  having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, ¹²in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. ¹³And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, ¹⁴who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession—to the praise of his glory. - Ephesians 1:3-14

We are saved by faith in Jesus'  paying for our sins on the cross and we are guaranteed this freedom...this forgiveness...by Jesus' resurrection and being indwelt by the Holy Spirit! Here is all thirteen duas in Arabic and English.



13 Golden Duas - Arabic English Transliteration


Golden Duas from Quran

Christian Apologetics - Life and Doctrine: Trinity : Which Member of the Trinity is Described as Truth?

Here is another in a series of posts from Mariano who shows that the Trinity is upheld in the Bible through showing that The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are each described as Truth. God is Truth. He offers several scriptures to prove that!

Christian Apologetics - Life and Doctrine: Trinity : Which Member of the Trinity is Described as Truth?

Doctrines of Grace , Saint Charles

Image by size8jeans via Flickr

Dr. James White has posted the 2nd and 3rd parts of his recent sermon defining and defending the Doctrines of Grace.

Super-Gods: The Greatest Mythology in Comics

I just saw a great article summarizing the greatest fictional comic book character that are inspired by the ancient mythologies of other cultures. Turns out to be a lot. If I remember correctly there is a counter part for each of the Roman -Greco, Egyptian, Mayan, Aztec, Babylonian,and Norse gods and myths in the Marvel and DC universes. Thor is pictured on the left.


Super-Gods: The Greatest Mythology in Comics