The Blog Has Been Remodeled!

I know what you're thinking, something's different. Whether you like the colors or not I am kind of stuck with them, I wanted to tighten the format up a bit though. If you look around you will see some new things and some changed things. Some of my favorite theologians and pastors (as well as the best book ever written) who have influenced me in my theology are now featured to the left. I also have the list of labels for every post I have done. I have removed some things that seemed to be taking up space for the most part. Anyway, come back on Monday for some good worship lyrics.

Should Christians Play the Lottery?

This is by John MacArthur in the Pulpit Magazine.

Personally, I don’t see gambling as a legitimate expression of my stewardship of what God has given to me.

There is no verse in the Bible that explicitly says, “Do not gamble.” (Somebody always says [referring to Acts 1], “Well, I mean, even the disciples cast lots.” Right. That was a means by which they were able to determine the will of God because God spoke through that method — that’s a little different.)

But I do not believe that the Bible legitimizes gambling (including the Lottery) as a means of stewardship. I also feel on the social end of it that the Lottery is a disaster and I will tell you why. The people who buy the tickets are the people who can least afford to buy the tickets. An already poor populace are literally consuming those things. It plays into the hands of the people who need to learn how to work productively and not hope against hope. It is another expression of “They that would be rich fall into many snares and hurtful lusts.”

The Bible advocates gaining money by inheritance, by hard work, and by wise investment, but it never advocates getting rich by gambling or fast money. The Lottery is not a legitimate way to make a living or invest for the future, nor is it a good form of stewardship; and it is certainly not a legitimate way to fund education at the expense of already poor people who are going to waste their subsistence on that.

End Times Part 3: Post-Millennialism

Post-Millennialism is the view that Jesus will return after the millennial kingdom. It has been called by some "optimistic Amillennialism" because of their similarities. So you can get a better idea about how this view works if you read last weeks post.

How do they see Revelation 20? Much like Amillennialism they consider the "thousand year reign of Christ" described in Revelation as symbolic for a very long period of time when Christ reigns in the hearts of men. The difference between their view and the Amillenial view is that Post-millennial's make a distinction between this time and the church age. Rather than saying that the kingdom began when Christ came or at the beginning of the church age they claim that the kingdom will occur between now and Christ's return when "the progress of the gospel and the growth of the church will gradually increase, so that a larger and larger proportion of the world's population will be Christians" (Wayne Grudem- Systematic Theology, 1110,1111). So if you can imagine in our day a growing majority of people becoming Christians; creating Christian policies in nations and lowering the crime rate you can imagine this view of the millennial kingdom.

Proponants of this view. It can be very difficult to discern whether someone in the past was Post or Amillennial but it seems that two very clear ones were William Carey and Jonathan Edwards, giving some credibility to the view. Today a man of much credibility within this view is Dr. R.C. Sproul.

I will give my opinion a little bit more later but I think what we see here is that I have shown two very similar views that reveal each others' weakness far too well. The credibility of a more literal understanding of Scripture and the kingdom increases in proportion with the confusion within symbolic interpretations.

That's all for now,
Stephen

1st Century Prayer

"When they were released, they went to their friends and reported what the chief priests and the elders had said to them. And when they heard it, they lifted their voices together to God and said, 'Sovereign Lord, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them, who through the mouth of our father David, your servant, said by the Holy Spirit,

'Why did the Gentiles rage,
and the peoples plot in vain?
The kings of the earth set themselves,
and the rulers were gathered together,
against the Lord and against his Anointed'—

for truly in this city there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place. And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness, while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus.' And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness." (Acts 4:23-31)

The Global Gospel

The following paragraphs are adapted excerpts from a paper I did last semester on what it means to be a "World Christian." I found the study for this paper to be very helpful and thought it might be a useful summery for some of you as well.

The great thing about the Christian Bible is that we can look to the end of it to find what God will do in our world. The book of Revelation gives us a great picture of what the result of God’s work throughout redemptive history will be, “I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, ‘Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!" (Rev. 7:9-10). So we see that in the end Christ is glorified by the worship of the redeemed of all nations.

This idea is reflected in many of Christ’s statements in the Gospels (see Luke 19:10, Mark 13:10, Matt. 28:19). This idea is also reflected in the words and mission of Paul. In fact, two of the many passages that could be considered Paul’s “mission statement” have the idea of proclaiming the gospel of Christ at their core. Speaking to the Ephesian elders he boldly states, “But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God” (Acts 20:24). Even clearer in his letter to the Romans he says, “through [Christ] we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all nations” (Romans 1:5).

If I am to do God’s will for my life I will have to commit to this lifestyle. So long as I see these truths in the Scripture it should be important for me. I don’t think I will cease to see these truths in the Scripture because the theme is so clear, namely the redemption of man through the blood of Christ. God’s plan was not just for Israel or America or Europe but for every nation and people group.

Grace and Peace,
Stephen

Walk the World

"God as we walk this world,
We want to be a sign
Our prayers flow into love,
Giving your life

Broken but singing
Our hearts keep shining

Let my life shine, come and let my heart shine
We’re going to walk the world and lift the bread and wine
Like the stars shine, come and let our hearts shine
In a dark world, we lift the bread and wine

And we were born for this
Born for this day and time
Our prayers flow into love
Giving our lives"
-Charlie Hall (Walk the World)

Post #100

It's hard to believe that this is my 100th post on the blog. Check out my Wordle below created by http://wordle.net/ which features the 1,000 most used words in the past 99 posts. The size of the word is determined by its frequency of use.





Though I would like to be able to consider myself the Brett Favre of the blogosphere, always showing up every day even if the results aren't great, I have decided to cut back on my blogging as the school year begins. So instead of posting every day I will only be posting on Monday through Friday. You probably won't miss my Saturday posts because they are usually pretty random and almost always borrowed from somebody else and I will move my "Sunday Worship" post to Mondays (yes I will still call it Sunday Worship). If you haven't been with me since I started posting every day this past May you might want to check out the categories at the bottom of the site and see if you can find an interesting quote or something. Thanks for reading, this thing isn't easy to keep up but it has been a stretching exercise.

Bob Kauflin on God's Favorite Kind of Music

End Times Part 2: Amillennialism

This is part 2 of this series, surveying end time views. Click here for part 1.

Amillennialism, by definition, means that there will not be a millennial kingdom. That definition, however, does not exactly represent the view fairly. Though Amillennialism is named for its denial of a millennium (the prefix A meaning no) it actually sees the millennium as a representation of a more discernable Christian reality.

How do they see Revelation 20? Amillennialists see Revelation as mostly accomplished in the 1st century. The "millennial reign" described in Revelation 20 is seen as the entire church age. They do not believe that Christ will literally reign on the earth but, rather, he reigns in the hearts of the believers. This is supported by Scripture (primarily from the gospels) that speak of a kingdom that has already come (see Matt. 6:9-10, 28:28, Mark 1:15, etc) Some would say that the binding of Satan is fairly literal but most would say that it is referencing a great reduction in his work and influence in the nations (Luke 10:18).

What about the rapture? Amillennialists do not see the rapture as something emphasized in Scripture. Most of them would probably align their view on the rapture with the post-tribulational premillennial view, namely that there will be a resurrection, believers will be caught up in the air and given glorified bodies, they will all then return with Christ to the earth. The difference between this and post-trib is that they do not believe this will be at the end of a period of tribulation.

Proponents of this view. The view was made popular by Augustine of Hippo. John Calvin and B.B. Warfield were also Amillennial. Contemporary Amillennialists include C.J Mahaney, Tim Keller, and James White.

Remember that all of these views have different variations within them. Amillennialism presents some compelling arguments from Scripture and I have benefited greatly from the work of many of them in different areas of theology. I hope that this post can help you in understanding this category of theology, study it closer to see what you think.

Grace and Peace,
Stephen

Inspired Prayer

A Prayer of Moses, the man of God.

"Lord, you have been our dwelling place
in all generations.
Before the mountains were brought forth,
or ever you had formed the earth and the world,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.

You return man to dust
and say, 'Return, O children of man!'
For a thousand years in your sight
are but as yesterday when it is past,
or as a watch in the night.

You sweep them away as with a flood; they are like a dream,
like grass that is renewed in the morning:
in the morning it flourishes and is renewed;
in the evening it fades and withers.

For we are brought to an end by your anger;
by your wrath we are dismayed.
You have set our iniquities before you,
our secret sins in the light of your presence.

For all our days pass away under your wrath;
we bring our years to an end like a sigh.
The years of our life are seventy,
or even by reason of strength eighty;
yet their span is but toil and trouble;
they are soon gone, and we fly away.
Who considers the power of your anger,
and your wrath according to the fear of you?

So teach us to number our days
that we may get a heart of wisdom.
Return, O LORD! How long?
Have pity on your servants!
Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love,
that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.
Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us,
and for as many years as we have seen evil.
Let your work be shown to your servants,
and your glorious power to their children.
Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us,
and establish the work of our hands upon us;
yes, establish the work of our hands!"

Psalm 90

Should Science Determine the Meaning of Words?

Try reading Genesis 1 as the original audience would have thousands of years ago. Do you think they would have understood the word "day" to mean "day" or "extended period of time"? Add to that the use of "And there was evening and there was morning..." Does this make one think of an extended period of time? What about when the author calls the days the first day, the second day, and so on?

The normal use of language affirms that the Bible claims God's creative work happening within six literal, 24 hour, consecutive days. Any other interpretation is putting secular science above the Word of God.

Many Christians are quick to rebuke the idea (as I do) that someone in a Muslim country can "get saved" and yet remain in Islam. Yet many Christians have opted to "get saved" and remain Atheists in their understanding of creation.

Grace and Peace,
Stephen

How is Christ Unique?

My pastor opened church yesterday morning by quoting Shai Linne.

"Why do we worship? Because:

Elvis is dead, Picasso is dead

Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin are dead

Marilyn Monroe is dead

Brando is dead, James Brown is dead

Princess Di and John Lennon are dead

Biggie and Pac are dead

Plato is dead, Socrates is dead

Aristotle and Immanuel Kant are dead

Neitzsche and Darwin are dead

Buddha is dead, Mohammed is dead

Ghandi and Haile Selassie are dead

Elijah Mohammed is dead

Nero is dead, Constantine is dead

Genghis Khan and Attila the Hun are dead

Alexander the Great is dead

Napoleon is dead, Lao Tzu is dead

Che Guevara and Henry VIII are dead

Saddam Hussein is dead

Pharaoh is dead, Cyrus is dead

Darius and Sennacharib are dead

Nebuchadnezzar is dead

Caesar is dead, Herod is dead

Annas, Caiaphas and Judas are dead

Pontius Pilate is dead- however

Jesus is Alive!"

My pastor is so cool...of course he will die eventually too. So will Shai Linne.

Cue Card Guy

Check out my appearance on the Across the Valley blog as "cue card guy."

Pray for the Gwatneys

http://www.foxnews.com/wires/2008Aug13/0,4670,ObitGwatney,00.html

Please remember those affected by Wednesday's shooting in your prayers.

End Times Part 1: What is the Millennial Kingdom?

For all of those who are curious about my end time beliefs (which is approximately nobody) this series is for you. But mostly this series will be a topical survey of the major views on the millennial kingdom and the rapture. Of course, if you look to the right on the blog you can see that I am premillenial so you can filter my description of other views through that lens, though I will try my best to be fair.

We will begin with a quick explanation of what is in reference when I talk about the millennial kingdom. People of different views will use different scriptures to defend their position. At this point I will simply give the anchor text, Revelation 20:1-6:

"Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain. And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be released for a little while.
Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years."

In the coming weeks we will explore the three main views on this text:
Amillennial- This kingdom is not a literal reign of Christ but he reigns in the hearts of Christians.
Postmillennial- Christ will return after the millennial reign.
Premillennial- Christ comes back and then establish the millennial kingdom.

Then I will do a quick survey of the three views on the rapture within Premillennialism:
Pretrib- The rapture of the church will occur prior to the seven year tribulation.
Midtrib- The rapture of the church will occur at the mid-point of the seven year tribulation.
Posttrib- The rapture of the church will occur at the end of the seven year tribulation.

Come back next Thursday and we'll keep it going.

Grace and Peace,
Stephen

Too Young To Stand Up For Themselves

"If the darkness of child-killing is to be overcome with the light of truth and compassion, it will require spiritual warfarem fought with humble and persistent prayer (Ephesians 6:10-20)." -Randy Alcorn (Why Pro-Life? Caring for the Unborn and Their Mothers, 120)

Please take some time to pray for the cause of the unborn today. I was just reading a post on Justin Taylor's blog on the Freedom of Choice Act of which Barack Obama said that signing would be "[t]he first thing I'll do as President..." My first thought is that if the horrors of slavery were enough to stir up a war in this country (and I believe slavery is a just cause for war) how much more zealous should we be about a child's right to life? I am not in favor of, nor do I condone in any way, the violent crimes some pro-lifers resort to. However, I'm not so sure that this is less of an important issue than the ones we see in history that caused major decisions.

What am I suggesting? Prayer, and thoughful consideration. I'm not a political pundit nor do I play one on TV (like Bill Maher) so I am simply throwing out ideas that I have heard suggested and asking for passionate prayer.

Later,
Stephen

Book Review: The Difficult Doctrine of the Love of God

Some of you might be such careful readers of my blog that you have realized that lately I have been in a new phase of writing on the subject of the love of God. The are two simple reasons for this: (1) I will be teaching on the subject in about a month and I usually blog on the topics for which I am studying. (2) In this study I have found a very useful resource in D.A. Carson's book The Difficult Doctrine of the Love of God. I'm not very experienced in reviewing books but I want to commend this one to you so I'll give it a shot.

The first thing that drew me to this book is that it was written by Carson, one of the most clear-minded evangelicals of our time. The man is smart, reverent, and pastoral in his writing.

The second thing that appealed to me was its size, the book is only 93 pages long (84 if you don't include notes and index) so it was meant to be a concise work.

More important is the level of content you receive. Carson is all about balance. He doesn't want anyone to fall into a ditch on the left or on the right. For example, he is a Calvinist and that shows up in his third chapter "God's Love and God's Sovereignty." But he critiques the majority of Calvinists' interpretation of John 3:16. He also devotes a small amount of time to defending a conditional love of God which some more passionate Calvinists might be reluctant to agree with. That is why I love Carson, his passion is for biblical truth and not vague systems.

There are some annoying things you will find in Carson's writings that show up a little bit in this work. One of his biggest flaws is that he travels down many rabbit trails. That is why I was surprised to find that he had written such a short book but he still managed to go down one or two rabbit trails, he just made them shorter this time. The second thing that I don't like very much about Carson is his use of the English language. This is more of a cultural difference than anything. Carson is a Canadian, has spent much time in Europe (you would think he is British by listening to him speak!) and is crazy smart when it comes to language. So if you're like me you will find yourself grabbing your dictionary a time or two.

Overall this book has been very helpful for me. If you're like me and have little or no education when it comes to Greek and Hebrew you will have one or two times when you have to struggle through his points but those are few and far between. I was able to get by having already been taught a thousand times on the three different Greek words for "love." The hour or two you spend reading this book is well worth the better understanding you will gain, especially when it comes to verses like 1 John 4:8,16 (God is love) and John 3:16. It is also inexpensive which is a huge plus.

Here is Tim Challies' review on the book.

Sovereign Love

If you read the Bible carefully, giving thought to the meaning of every phrase, and if you have any grasp of the insufficiency of language for describing certain categories of thought, it should be no problem for you to understand that there are many different "kinds" (for lack of a better word) of God's love (I apologize for that long sentence). But if you have ever doubted God's unwavering love for you as a Christian there is one kind of love that you should understand, namely, sovereign love.

As the Apostle Paul makes his great argument in Romans 9 for unconditional election in order to defend the justice of God for not saving the entire nation of ethnic Israel he points to the twins, Jacob and Esau. "...when Rebekah had conceived children by one man, our forefather Isaac, though they were not yet born and had done nothing either good or bad—in order that God’s purpose of election might continue, not because of works but because of him who calls— she was told, 'The older will serve the younger.'"

And then Paul quotes a verse from Malachi. In the first verses of the book of Malachi the Lord is making a similar sort of defense, namely, a defense of His love for Israel. It does seem that this sovereign love is for a peculiar spiritual nation within an ethnic nation that, during Paul's time, would grow to the nations.

What is so important about this? The sovereign love of God is an impossible thing to understand. But the Bible gives us examples of it to show us the unshakable nature of God's love for His people. If you ever doubt the love of God just look at a passage like the one Paul quoted in Romans 9:13:

"'I have loved you,' says the LORD. But you say, 'How have you loved us?' 'Is not Esau Jacob’s brother?' declares the LORD. 'Yet I have loved Jacob but Esau I have hated." (Malachi 1:2-3)

The Solid Rock

My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus' blood and righteousness;
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
But wholly lean on Jesus' name.

When darkness veils His lovely face,
I rest on His unchanging grace;
In every high and stormy gale
My anchor holds within the veil.

His oath, His covenant, and blood
Support me in the whelming flood;
When every earthly prop gives way,
He then is all my Hope and Stay.

When He shall come with trumpet sound,
Oh, may I then in Him be found,
Clothed in His righteousness alone,
Faultless to stand before the throne!

On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand;
All other ground is sinking sand.

Another Favre Trade? To Lakewood?

Breaking news from Tom-In-The-Box:

Houston, TX -- In what would be an unprecedented move, Joel Osteen revealed Friday that his team at Lakewood Church has submitted serious offers to the New York Jets in an effort to acquire Brett Favre.

Having already been traded once this week, Favre is probably not anxious to move again, but Joel Osteen may have an irresistible offer for him and the Jets.

Earlier this week, rumors surfaced of a bidding war between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the New York Jets to obtain Brett Favre from the Green Bay Packers. Favre, the only three-time MVP of the National Football League, never discussed the Osteen camp as a possibility.

Joel Osteen Ministries spokesmen feel they had a legitimate shot to obtain Favre from Green Bay, but their bids were completely ignored by the Packers. They now hope to convince the Jets to part ways with Favre before he gets too comfortable in New York.

Favre’s agent, James “Bus” Cook, did confirm to TBNN correspondent Elder Eric that Lakewood Church was on the list of those desiring to acquire Favre. “But I never called Osteen,” Cook admitted.

In an email to the Associated Press late Friday night, Joel Osteen explained his interest in Favre. “Unlike those guys in the frozen tundra, we still see a lot of potential in Brett,” said Osteen. “I have committed my life to helping every person, regardless of background and economic status, to achieve their fullest potential.”

On her way out of court on Friday, Victoria Osteen provided hints of the Lakewood Church interest when she told reporters, “Favre sure has demonstrated amazing ability to excite crowds on Sundays. I’ve never seen anyone else like him… except Joey, of course,” she added as she held close to Joel.

In TBNN interviews during the wee early hours of Saturday morning, Joel Osteen explained that another appealing feature of Favre is his ability to work on days other than Sunday. “We feel Brett's weekday evening work experiences may be useful in planning Monday night services. Thanksgiving afternoon services would also be an option.”

Osteen added, “Brett has performed in front of 60,000 live souls a week for 16-20 weeks a year during the last 16 years. I think with a little conditioning, we could get him to fill our smaller 40,000 capacity stadium for a longer duration of 30 or 40 Sunday afternoons per annum.

Osteen was asked what exactly Osteen Ministries could offer the Jets in exchange for Favre. Osteen chuckled and said, “Why Victoria, of course! She is quite the offensive player, and she has an amazingly powerful right arm. She’s willing to go to New York to quarterback the Jets if Brett can be convinced to co-pastor Lakewood in her place. Besides, our private airline allows her to travel without fear of confrontation.”

In the end though, the bottom line for Osteen Ministries is their willingness to help. “We believe we can help Brett by sharing the Osteen secrets of filling stadiums on a more regular, year round basis, not just on occasional days during the fall and winter months. We want to turn Brett into the ultimate stadium-packer.”

What is Sin? Part 5

Thanks for coming back for part 5 even though it isn't Thursday. If you need to catch up on this series here are the links: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4.

The answer to the question "what is sin?" can ultimately be answered "treason against a Holy God." I have already shown that one root sin of every "sin" is idolatry. In Psalm 51 David says "Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight..." (Psalm 51:4). Historically treason is considered a crime against ones master, country, or anyone to whom that person owes allegiance. God created us, He is infinitely Holy, righteous, and good.

So the next fitting question is, "what is a fitting punishment for this high treason?" And the unfortunate answer to that question, according to the Bible, is eternal conscious torment. Because this has been a survey of sin and not hell I won't go very deep. The important thing to see is that hell is the result of sin. It is described as a place "prepared for the devil and his angels" (Matt. 25:41) but the same text tells us that it is the destination for those one the wrong side of God's judgment.

There are several objections to the doctrine of eternal punishment these days all of which are rooted in a misunderstanding of several doctrines not the least of which is sin. If you only think of sin as that bad word you said the other day or that white lie you probably think God will judge you less harshly or perhaps even find you to be a pretty good person. But when we see that our very nature is sinful, that our attitudes our sinful, that apart from enabling grace every moment of our lives would be faithless and therefore sinful, that our sins are committed against the highest of kings and therefore an infinite treason, we might just realize that eternal punishment is the only fitting judgment for us.

This concludes the series. I'm not sure what I will do beginning next week so just come back.

Grace and Peace,
Stephen

Christian Hedonism in Real Life

Steven Curtis Chapman's family was on Good Morning America. This is a perfect example of Christian Hedonism. The Christian's joy is not ultimately rooted in the good things that happen in life but in Christ; that is a joy that sustains us through the horrific times.






Please also check out this interview of John Piper on NPR after the Tsunami of '04.


"Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you." (Psalm 73:25)

I will continue the "What is Sin?" series tomorrow.

Shut the Door!

"And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you." (Matthew 6:5-6)

Not Your Fathers Christian Rap Part 3

"We’re now in the realm of the sublime and profound

With God at the helm it’s about to go down

The Father’s wrath precise will blast and slice

The priceless Master Christ as a sacrifice

Willingly, He’s under the curse

To be treated as if the Son was the worst scum of the earth

The scene is the craziest

Jesus being treated as if He is the shadiest atheist

How is it the Messiah is in the fiery pit

As if He was a wicked liar with twisted desires?

The One who’s sinless and just

Punished as if He was promiscuous and mischievous with vicious lust

The source of all godly pleasure

Tormented as if He was a foul investor or child molestor

How could He be bruised like He was a goodie two-shoes

who doesn’t think that she needs the good news?

He’s perfect in love and wisdom

But He’s suffering as if He constructed the corrupt justice system

We should mourn at the backdrop

Jesus torn like He’s on the corner with crack rock with porn on His laptop

What is this, kid? His gifts are infinite

But He’s hit with licks for religious hypocrites

He’s the Light, but being treated like

He’s the seedy type who likes to beat His wife

He’s treated like a rapist, treated like a slanderer

Treated like a racist or maybe a philanderer

Jesus being penalized like He had sin inside

Filled with inner pride while committing genocide

I could write for a billion years and still can’t name

All of the sins placed on the Lamb slain

But know this: the main thing the cross demonstrated

The glory and the holiness of God vindicated"

"So forever will I tell

In three hours, Christ suffered more than any sinner ever will in hell"
-Shai Linne The Cross (3 hours) verse 2 and bridge.

Limiting the Spirit to the Extraordinary

"With a perversity as pathetic as it is impoverishing, we have become preoccupied today with the extraordinary, sporadic, nonuniversal, ministries of the Spirit to the neglect of the ordinary, general ones. Thus, we show a great deal more interest in the gifts of healing and tongues-gifts of which, Paul pointed out, not all Christians are meant to partake anyway (1 Cor 12:28-30)-than in the Spirit's ordinary work of giving peace, joy, hope and love, through the shedding abroad in our hearts of knowledge of love of God." -J.I. Packer (Knowing God, 118)

Here is Love

Here is love, vast as the ocean
Lovingkindness as the flood
When the Prince of Life, our Ransom
Shed for us His precious blood
Who His love will not remember?
Who can cease to sing His praise?
He can never be forgotten
Throughout Heav'n's eternal days

On the mount of crucifixion
Fountains opened deep and wide
Through the floodgates of God's mercy
Flowed a vast a gracious tide
Grace and love, like mighty rivers
Poured incessant from above
And Heav'n's peace and perfect justice
Kissed a guilty world in love

Exodus 20:7

A thought I had today,

"Wow, that movie only took the Lord's name in vain a couple times."

Maybe I need to reconsider my movie watching habits.

God is Love

A monotheist who rejects Christianity might win many converts based on shallow philosophical argumentation but there is one thing they cannot state convincingly that Christians can namely, "God is love" (1 John 4:8 and 4:16). Consider that it is agreed that time and creation had a starting point. All monotheists agree that there was God before there was anything else. If there was nothing else in existence before creation we must say that there was a time when the only one God could love (at that present time) was Himself. I am not saying this is a problem, I see the Bible as showing that God is far more "God-centered" than anyone else in all creation (lest we claim to worship an idolater). But a superficial view of monotheism cannot explain how God could be alone and truly be tied so closely with the nature of love.

But for Christians this is no problem. It seems that one of the great characteristics of passages affirming the Trinity is "intra-trinitarian love." The Father and the Son give us a picture of one of the most loving relationships a person can know (see the book of John). The Holy Spirit is, in many ways, the Divine Person Who applies the love of God. As D.A. Carson writes, "[t]here has always been an other-orientation to the love of God" (The Difficult Doctrine of the Love of God, 39). So while Allah and other concepts of monotheism might picture their god loving "me me me" we see our God as loving "you you you" and still being perfectly God centered while upholding a biblical definition of love (this blows my mind). To again quote Carson, "love is bound up in the very nature of God. God is love" (ibid).

My buddy Jason recently gave a less confusing post on this topic.