Church. Culture. Life.

Origins of the Universe

2009-07-06T12:51:00.002-05:00

My brother in law just alerted me to a great website on the origins of the universe, creation, evolution, intelligent design, etc.--from the intelligent design perspective:

origins.org

Others I was aware of included answersingenesis.org, reasons.org, discovery.org, and probe.org. Each has a different slant, but when taken in total they present all the sides of the issue from an overall 'Christian' perspective.

Summer Class--Holy Spirit in Book of Acts, Week 1

2009-07-05T14:36:00.002-05:00

Below are the notes from the summer class I'm teaching on the Holy Spirit in the Book of Acts, week 1. I see that in posting them, all my fancy formatting doesn't translate over into blogger....but at least you'll get the information!

Come join us!! 10 am Sundays, 'Family Room' (first room on right from north entrance).

Class: Holy Spirit in the Book of Acts
Week 1: Intro to the Holy Spirit
Format of the class: 15-40 minutes of interactive lecture; 10-30 minutes of Q/A discussion. Led by Nathan Custer and Greg Ahrens.
Introduced ourselves in first class: Nathan, Alex, Monica, Lew, Jo, David, Mrs. S., Steve, Mia, Adam.
My bias (Nathan): Christian, Wesleyan-Arminian Christian, United Methodist; biblical theology; apostolic hermeneutics. (If none of that makes any sense to you…that’s fine!)
Why this class?
1) “Christianity” basically developed into what it is today following Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension…and those first years after Jesus’ ascension are recorded in the book of Acts.
2) After Jesus’ ascension, THE deciding on whether or not someone was fully a “Christian” was whether or not they were fully connected to God by having the Holy Spirit dwell WITHIN them.
---
On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: "Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. 5 For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit."
6 So when they met together, they asked him, "Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?"
7 He said to them: "It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
Acts 1:4-8 (NIV)

1 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
Acts 2:1-4 (NIV)
Had a short class discussion here where we emphasized that the power of the Holy Spirit that was promised by Jesus was said by him to be for the action of witnessing, and then when the HS came at Pentecost the gifting the HS gave the disciples was that of speaking known languages for witnessing! The Pentecost arrival of the HS fit the mission of the HS’s power told by Jesus.
9 You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.
Romans 8:9 (NIV)
Note: Spirit of God, and Spirit of Christ are synonymous!
---
3) SO: For us to be fully Christian, we must have the Spirit of God—the “Holy Spirit”—within us, and when that happens it leads to a “new life.” We learn about this explicitly throughout the book of acts, and learning about it can lead us into new LIFE!

Who is the Holy Spirit?

Class’s input on question, ‘what comes to mind when you hear the words HOLY SPIRIT’:
Helper, Moving, Force, Always with us, omnipresent, omniscient, perfect love, part of the Trinity active in the world, gives understanding and insight.

Notes:

HOLY—set apart; pertaining to God—ENTIRELY
SPIRIT—living, interactive existence not confined to our typical spatial and chronological dimensions
THE Holy Spirit—the Spirit of God who acts in conjunction with God en total, but in a distinctive way from the other two ‘persons’ of God.

SPIRIT—Ruach = “moving air” in Hebrew, language of the Old Testament (and remember that the New Testament writers always inherited the essence of their religious terms from their use in the Old Testament, since they were all Jewish). Thus translated in natural terms as breath or wind, and then as “Spirit” when pertaining to the supernatural.
Emanating from God en total (the “Godhead”), but then acting in a distinct way…as our own breath is a part of us one moment, then expelled from us into the world the next even though it was the same breath-stuff, so the Holy Spirit is identical God-stuff to the Godhead but is also distinct.

Old Testament to New Testament description:

Old Testament:

Genesis 1:1 and hundreds of other places in the Bible, the Hebrew word for God is “Elohim”—a plural word, always used as a singular word grammatically.

Genesis 1:2—the Spirit/Wind/Breath of God is moving over the waters. Common in OT to refer to the spirit/wind/breath of God, though was not thought to be anything beyond a manifestation of a singular God.

Genesis 2:7—God breathed into humans the breath of life, and gave them life. Therefore human life has some sort of divine spark from God’s spirit, but is not technically God’s Holy Spirit within us—as if his spirit gave us the energy to animate our complex molecules, but was not ‘God in us’ as is available now.

Spirit Charism—filling of individual with God’s spirit for particular task:
--Gen. 41:38-39, Ex. 28:3, Dt. 34:9 (including to give wisdom)
--Judges 14:6, 15:14-15 (to give military leadership, strength)
--1 Sam. 10:6, 19:24; Is. 61:1 (to give prophetic visions and words)

New Testament:

(Scripture verses above from Acts and Romans)

John 4:24—God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.

Mt. 28:18-20—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit equated by Jesus in baptism.

1 Timothy 3:16—Scripture is God-breathed (God-Spirited)

Galatians 5:22-25-- 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. 25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. – Didn’t get to this set of verses.

Various NT and OT passages—Spirit also gives gifts, abilities and power to do tasks God calls us to do.

VERY IMPORTANT:
The ‘trinity’ shows us that God in essence is RELATIONAL. And the creation narrative shows us that God’s essential position in association with us is as loving relationship—as God ‘himself’ is in a loving relationship in essence.

Thus, our ideal is loving relationship with God and with each other. In sinful present, that’s broken, and much works against that….and the Spirit helps restore it!!

Important functions of the Holy Spirit: RECONCILIATION and EMPOWERMENT

CHRISTIAN THERMODYNAMICS

2008-01-21T16:18:00.000-05:00

I believe it was the ancient Christian leader St. Augustine who described evil as 'the absence of goodness.' That is to say, the less something is good and godly, the more it is evil and sinful. A person who focuses less and less on goodness will therefore become more and more evil and sinful.

What then is the best way to keep from falling into self-destructive behavior and habits that gradually drag our minds and actions into realms of darkness and selfishness and greed and self indulgence? The answer is to avoid the absence of goodness--which means that one will focus on being continually filled with goodness.

Can you imagine what a day would be like if we all focused on the godly, good things all day for one day, and looked at each person in as good a way as we possibly could?

I dare say that if we listen to music that promotes the goodness of God, and we watch movies that promote godly goodness, and we look at people and make ourselves think, 'regardless of how they act, they're created by God and God loves them and so do I,' etc. etc.--we'll be well on our way to being filled with such goodness that evil will naturally decrease because of our increase in God's goodness.

"God is light and in him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we say that we have fellowship with him while we are walking in darkness, we lie and do not do what is true; 7 but if we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin." -- 1 John 1:5-7 (NRSV)

Telling a 6 yr. old about poverty

2007-11-11T20:30:00.000-05:00

Our church participates in the national Christmas service project called "Operation Christmas Child" in which plastic shoeboxes are filled with presents for a boy or a girl who receive the box via Christian airmail.

Recently I was preparing to go shopping for the items to go in the shoebox we were going to donate, and was explaining to my shopping partner--my 6 year old son--why we were going to buy these gifts for a 6 year old boy in another country. "Well, a lot of other countries don't have the stores we have. Remember when I went to Haiti not long ago? Many of their villages don't have stores even as big as that gas station store over there." And then I tried to explain how some parents were only able to make 1/3 or 1/4 or 1/10 of the money I make, and so their children may only get 1/3 or 1/10 the number of presents he gets...including some that don't get any at all.

Then it hit me that this was a lot for a six year old to take in!
And THEN it hit me that it's a lot for the six year old to take in who doesn't get a present but knows that others do.

So, here's a little tidbit: If you ever have to explain poverty to a 6 year old, be sure to buy everything we've been putting off buying up until that point BEFORE giving the explanation. Because afterwards it's going to be pretty tough to justify a lot of those expenses! :)

Appalachia and you

2007-11-01T15:23:00.000-05:00

I'm getting ready to go to Good Works, a ministry in Athens, Ohio to what would technically be called--for the most part--low income people in Appalachia. I was born in Appalachia, and lived the first 15 years of my life in Appalachia, so I suppose I should expect to see a lot of people I'm related to...

The funny thing is that while Appalachia has certain stereotypes--some of them good (beautiful scenery, hometown feel, wilderness) and some of them questionable (yes, I have all my teeth; no I'm not married to my sister; no, I don't drive a pickup truck)--the ministry to the poor of Appalachia is remarkably similar to the ministry to much of the rest of the nation.

Once I was on a trip from an "urban" region of Appalachia (relatively speaking) to a "rural" area of Appalachia (as in, yes some of the homes have dirt floors...really). Any outsider would say, "you idiots! There's no place to work here! There's no future life for your children! You're in poverty here...so MOVE!" Of course, there are some people in Appalachia who are making some very poor choices that are causing terrible poverty, and others who are enslaved in a system that brings about hunger. But, moving is probably not a necessary answer--and they know that, because they response to the idea usually goes something like this:

"My parents are here, my grandparents are here, my friends I've known for my whole life are here. My brother's buried over there in that cemetery. The owners of that store will let me pay for stuff a little late if I have to. The most beautiful sight in the world is on top of that ridge, at dawn, in winter with the snow in the valley. Five generations of us have survived here...and we will too."

In that they're saying, "I'm not going to play the game of life by the rules of what is deemed to be popular culture. There are things more important."

There's something noble about that.

"What I've Done" --Song i referenced 9/23

2007-09-26T13:08:00.000-05:00

Was Jesus a pacifist?

2007-09-26T12:29:00.001-05:00

(Just a quick post here on something I've been kicking around with a friend of mine.)

The most violent thing we have Jesus doing ON EARTH that I can think of is driving the corrupt merchants out of the temple. And in that act, he certainly was violent to an extent. On the other hand, nothing he did would have caused permanent physical damage...so it would be a long shot to try to use that to justify war or something.

I had a professor at Trevecca once say, "I'm pretty sure Jesus was a pacifist and that I should be too, but I'm not brave enough...at least not yet." (Henry Spaulding)

I resonate with that. On the one hand, I've let someone spit in my face before and others call me names without retaliating with violence...but try to hurt my kids or wife and I'll likely beat the crap out of you.

And yet, God says via the bible that vengeance is his--not ours to take. And He promises protection to those who love him. I'm not sure it's always literal, but what if it is? What if I'm afraid to be a pacifist because of things like the fear that if someone would break into my house and hurt my family I'd ideologically be obligated to not harm/kill them...when all along God may be saying, "Uh, pray about it, and I'll keep that from happening!"

I believe it was G.K. Chesterton who said that the tragedy in life was not that Christianity had been tried and found to be wanting, but that it had been left untried.

On a related note, my grandfather who still has shrapnel in his body and a missing finger from fighting in WWII (after being the kind of tough leader they make movies of) would you think be like, "Yeah, we whupped up in WWII and saved the day, just like we should today!" But he's exactly the opposite....totally against war whatsoever if it can in any possible way prevented.

Stanley Hauerwas says that Romans 13 was used by the Allies AND the Nazis (many of whom had Christian upbringings, remember, and considered themselves Christian) to kill each other; but had they used Romans 12 as their ideology they would have spent the years trying to overcome each other by doing good!

Anyway...thought I'd throw this on here and see if it brought out any wisdom from you all. Any pacifists out there who can explain how they deal with it?

Nathan

"On a Mission from God"--Good, or terrorizing?

2007-09-01T18:19:00.000-05:00

On Sunday Sept. 2 I preached a sermon entitled "On a Mission From God," in which I declared that each person is created for the purpose of being a family member of God, and that since many people rebel against God our mission as Christians is (at least in part) to help those people to come back into God's family. This is especially seen when Jesus is ascending into heaven (Matthew 28), leaving us his disciples behind to be sent by the Holy Spirit to help people, and he says "Go make disciples of all nations..."! That makes total sense--go make little mini-Jesuses, because we're all supposed to be one big happy family with God as our heavenly Father.

So...every person is 'on a mission from God.'

But...who these days uses that language? Uhhh.....yeah.....guys who fly planes into buildings 'for Allah', or guys who car bomb other "Christians" in Ireland.....those kind of guys, right? Who wants to use THEIR language!?!?!

And that's where the Bible comes in. Right off the bat, in the first couple chapters in Genesis God has revealed to us that when He made humans he COMMANDED them to "Be fruitful and multiply." He commanded other things too...and continues to throughout the Bible...but that's the first one. Why would God say that? Presumably because he wants lots of people relating to him, relating to each other, kind of like one big incredible family. (My wife's pregnant with child #3, so we're doing our part!)

Now, in that immediate context it meant procreate...but since there was soon thereafter rebellion against God, and after that and until now there has always been a bent toward rebellion and against God in people, it now takes some conscious effort to be in God's family. A choice...a continual 'paying attention to and obeying' God. SO, THAT'S A PART OF OUR MISSION NOW AS WELL! Now we try to expand God's family by helping others to come in and choose to join in His family.

So, we have the command in Genesis 1:27ff to "be fruitful and multiply," initially meaning physically and spiritually both, then we have the command in Matthew 28 to "go and make disciples," meaning spiritually--which means we have a standard from which to measure behavior:

--Terrorist says God said to go fly a plane into a building and kill a bunch of people who do not directly threaten the terrorist. Did God really say that? Well, is that consistent with the revelation He gave us that he wants us to help others come into his family? NO. So, God did not really say that. No way. And it's not just 'my opinion versus their opinion,' that's 'my opinion which comes directly from a source outside of me that's thousands of years old and has been tested throughout those years to be true!'

Isn't that helpful? I think so. Now if someone says, "God told me to do....", you can measure that against the mission from God that we're all on: Is it consistent with God's desire that we increase his family? Does it help or hinder that? By answering those questions, we can at least see if it's likely or unlikely that God said what they said He did...which will help us all, because God's been misquoted quite a bit don't you think? (Have any good stories to share regarding that? Share away in the comments!)

Thanks,

Nathan

Jesus brings peace and division

2007-08-20T11:10:00.000-05:00

Today I had to write a short devotion on Lk. 12:49-56, which is a part of the Bible that is assigned to this week in a church-calendar book many denominations use called the "Lectionary." Thought I'd share it here, since it addresses the fact that even as Christians, our lives are almost never completely 'peaceful'...even by definition!

"In Luke 2:14, within the Christmas story, we read that Jesus’ birth was bringing ‘peace on earth’…but then within the Lectionary passage for this week, Lk. 12:49-56, Jesus says, “Do you think that I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I tell you, but division!” Well…which is it?

Both. Jesus brings peace, unity, and division all at the same time. He gives the ‘peace that passes all understanding’ in terms of the ceasing of inner rebellion against God that makes our hearts restless until they rest in Jesus’ love. He gives unity among all true believers, that transcends personal preferences and personal ideologies to bind us together with his love. But, since our peace is then in Jesus rather than some other leader or nation or ideology, and our unity is with other believers in greater measure than with other people who do not believe, we are therefore by definition set at odds with some other leaders, family members, nations, religions, and ideologies…even before we interact with them directly at all!

Jesus was never hateful toward individuals, yet he was hated by some people who did not like his message. He spoke in support of natural families, but his call to follow him sacrificially meant that some people had to choose Him over their non-believing family if their family opposed Jesus. Likewise, we can expect both peace and disharmony, unity and division, to be a part of our Christian experience. It’s not easy, and definitely not always fun…but take heart. Christ has been there already, and will carry you through as you continually pray to Him!"

Investing long-term

2007-07-23T09:06:00.000-05:00

"By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." Jesus--in John 13:35 (NRSV)

In a recent conversation with Roger Howell, the CEO of City Ministries--a premier urban mission here in Cincinnati--I asked him what factor seemed to be more important than any other in the transformation of a person's life. What main key is most instrumental in helping a person to be more Christ-like in character and able to function well in the world? His answer was RELATIONSHIPS.

In a recent conversation with a long-time friend of mine, he asked how long I thought it had been since we last talked. I said I wasn't sure, but that it had probably been two or three months. He replied, "Did you know my wife is pregnant?" "No," I said. "Uhh, well, she is…and the due date is next month." Obviously my friend and I had not recently invested much time in our relationship!

And that's the conundrum. We need good healthy relationships to make progress toward who God has created us to be, and having good healthy relationships takes a substantial investment of time and energy and money, but other things desire our time and energy and money as well!

My prayer for all of us is that we will realize more fully that it is our relationships have the potential to last forever, and that we will have the courage and fortitude to invest our time, energy and resources in those relationships. It will be then that other people will recognize that we are serious about being who Jesus wants us to be, and it will be then that our lives will have the joy that God desires for us.

On letting Jesus focus us...

2007-07-20T09:50:00.001-05:00

Jesus has visited the home of Martha, who was busy with meal preparations as her sister Mary came and sat listening to Jesus, the Son of God. Jesus responded:

"Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; ⁴² there is need of only one thing.^”Luke 10:41-42 (NRSV)

Isn’t it incredible how easy it is to get distracted from what’s truly important in a given situation? This summer I was standing in the surf with my feet inching deeper into the sand as the waves lapped at my shins--when suddenly I realized that my jaw was clinched, my shoulders were tight, and my mind was pondering some questions and issues that had plagued me before I left for vacation. Aghast at my waste of the serenity that was immediately at hand, I resolved to focus on the relationships and beauty before me and quickly gathered my boys together for a game of ‘jump over the waves’…thankful to Jesus for helping me to remember that there was a ‘greater thing’ immediately at hand than worrying about problems.

What is Jesus telling you today? I pray you can pause in the midst of the distractions to allow Him, the Ultimate “One Thing” that is the center of our lives, to speak to you.

Link to United Methodist Bishop's Sermon (seriously!)

2007-06-26T15:31:00.000-05:00

I'm a certified member of Generation X, which means that like the hippies of the 1960's I'm naturally suspicious of authoritarian leaders of the Establishment and unlike the hippies I have little faith that such people and institutions can or will change.

So, it's strange that I would post a link like the one I'm going to post--but the fact is that it's a heck of a sermon and was given by the bishop of our West Ohio Conference, who is actually helping to redirect a behemoth of an institution.

http://www.westohioumc.org/news_detail.asp?PKValue=38

If you aren't a Christian or aren't familiar with the denominational leadership of the United Methodist Church you may not realize how special this sermon is...and it references a lot of 'in house' things that may not relate to you...but I'll bet there's something in it that might be helpful or encouraging nonetheless.

AND if you're the leader of a corporation or organization of some sort, it should encourage you that your efforts--when inspired by God--can truly make a big difference!

Nathan

Why believe in "God the Father Almighty"?

2007-06-17T14:08:00.000-05:00

The text below is the expanded version of a sermon I gave today. It was one of those "I know this isn't going to be the most entertaining sermon in the world, but I'm so excited about the content" kind of sermons...so I thought I'd post it here and see what you think. It's not the tightest, and definitely isn't the most entertaining...but the my main point in the "Father" section is probably one of the top ten best original ideas I'll ever have:

2007-06-17 Faith's Foundations #1: Why believe in 'God the Father Almighty' "?

(Father's Day)

Even though I was raised in a Christian home by unbelievably wonderful parents;

Even though I grew up having great experiences with churches and Christians in general;

Even though I had multiple spiritual experiences with God;

STILL throughout the years I've had times at which I've questioned my faith.

Nathan, are you SURE you believe that?

Nathan, are you POSITIVE you're following the one true God?

Can you relate to that?

Maybe you've been a Christian for years, but then a tragedy comes and suddenly you start to question a little bit perhaps?

Or perhaps you realize you've never been really, truly convinced?

Well don't kick yourself, I think a little questioning and doubt is a part of the human existence for most of us. I know very few long-time Christians who say they've never had at least occasional doubt.

And from the reading I've done from the ancient past, I think it's been like that for centuries.

We regularly examine what we believe…even if just to reassure ourselves.

The ancient Christians, especially in the second and third centuries AD researched the events surrounding the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus to see what precisely they should believe and what they should pattern their lives after----and eventually several of those beliefs were compiled into what we now call the APOSTLE'S CREED.

They figured out the facts about Jesus, then matched them up with the ancient OT Jewish Faith, and compiled a list of beliefs that people who wanted to commit themselves to Jesus would declare publicly that they believe.

BEFORE BAPTISM: "Do you believe in God?"

"Yes, I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of Heaven and Earth."

Even today, that's one of the ways we do a baptism ritual, and it's even in our hymnals.

Throughout the summer on each Sunday except youth Sunday, Greg and I are going to preach through all the lines of the Apostle's Creed.

THIS FIRST LINE of what we now call the APOSTLE'S CREED declared that it is foundational to our life that we believe in God the Father Almighty.

And you'll recall from earlier teachings I've done that that "believe" is an active idea-- if you "believe" in the Bible's use of the term, your actions will reflect the idea that you acknowledge and trust in and follow that God.

THEREFORE: If you want to live life the best way, the way you were created to live it, you should--according to Christians throughout the centuries--believe in God, the Father Almighty------meaning that you live as though everything depended on God.

FURTHERMORE: If you want to help your FRIENDS to live life the best way, God may use you to help them to believe in this God, the Father Almighty.

This is a FOUNDATIONAL idea for our lives.

BUT: OCCASIONALLY we may have some doubts….

AND worse, some people today ATTACK THAT IDEA in three ways, corresponding to the three main claims of the first part of the Apostles' Creed:

1) "God Exists."----vs. atheism

2) "God as Father"----vs. some forms of feminism

3) "God as almighty"----why then is there so much pain and suffering?

So, today I'd like to:

■ Encourage you who believe but sometimes have doubts

■ Equip those of you who would like to be better able to help friends to understand your faith

■ And for those who are not yet convinced of the existence of the Christian God, I pray that my discussion might be used by God to convince you more than you were before!!

WHY believe God, exists?

This is a tough question to handle because if the Bible is inspired by God, then God's inspiration hasn't given us many arguments to use!

Gen. 1:1--first verse of the Bible doesn't try to prove God's existence, just says,

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth."

The Bible ASSUMES people already know there is a God.

That's why Paul writes in Romans 1:18-23:

¹⁸ For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and wickedness of those who by their wickedness suppress the truth. ¹⁹ For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. ²⁰ Ever since the creation of the world his eternal power and divine nature, invisible though they are, have been understood and seen through the things he has made. So they are without excuse

Romans 1:18-21 (NRSV)

Paul indicates that throughout history God has revealed to each person whose mind is functioning properly that there is an invisible, all-powerful God!

The Bible proclaims further:

¹ Fools say in their hearts, "There is no God."

Psalms 14:1 and 53:1 (NRSV)

Goodness.

Twice the Bible seems to say that if you refuse to believe in God, you're a fool.

===================

Atheists use the same language, but to argue the opposite.

They'll say it's foolish to BELIEVE in God!

Both DO sides present arguments for their side, but at the heart of their opinion is the idea that it ought to be just plain obvious that they are right!

Most of the scientists I know who are Christians have said to me, "When people see the complexity of life and the universe, how could they not believe in God!?"

Most of the scientists I know who are Atheists or Agnostics say the same thing with a different conclusion, "When people see the complexity of the universe, why would they ever believe in God?"

===================

A good friend of mine sent me an article from the online version of The Economist newspaper that gives a brief review of two books by very prominent scientists who come to opposite conclusions about God.[1]

You can tell their conclusions by their book titles:

■ Christopher Hitchens, an atheist, wrote: God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything.

Catchy title, eh??

■ Francis Collins, a Christian, wrote: The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief.

After reading these two works, the writer for the economist writes in the very first sentence:

"A writer who believes in science not God; a scientist who believes in both. But why are they that way? Nobody knows."

The last line ends, "either you get it, or you don't."

Honestly, that conclusion isn't half bad.

I can present argument after argument for God, and some academics will say, "how could anyone not believe after seeing all that evidence!?"

An atheist can present their case, and some academics will say, "see, how could anyone believe in God after seeing all that evidence!?"

I've studied both sides, and I'm convinced that both sides have good, intelligent arguments, but that the arguments for God are vastly superior. Others would disagree.

To make things even MORE ponderous, Jesus says in Jn. 6:

Jn. 6:44, "No one can come to me unless drawn by the Father who sent me."

Repeats the idea in 6:65.

THAT means we can't on human effort alone either convince ourselves to follow Jesus or convince someone else to follow Jesus.

The Romans passage and John passages and others indicate that God relates to people at a very deep and basic level, showing that He is real and that Jesus is real…and people either accept it or reject it.

IT'S THAT SIMPLE.

Arguments and intellectual debates may be used in the process, but they are just tools to get people to confront the call of God and challenge them to make a decision.

SO: IF SOMEONE ASKED ME RIGHT NOW--Nathan, why should I believe in God?

The most basic answer I would give is, "Because you know it to be true."

Now, if they want to argue some back and forth…I'll give them some good reasons:

Always be ready to make your defense to anyone who demands from you an accounting for the hope that is in you; ¹⁶ yet do it with gentleness and reverence.^[

1 Peter 3:15-16 (NRSV)

----Atheistic Scientific faith supposedly depends on what is supported by testable evidence.

BUT Random chance has never been tested or observed to be able to create molecular interactions that resulted in an increase of information in an object or organism…that means we have no testable evidence that can demonstrate that the most basic tenet of evolution could happen without the aid of some kind of other-worldly being.

I got that from Dr. Werner Gitt, a German scientist…

That is an A-level, first-class direct argument against Atheism and indirect argument for the existence of God….but that's STILL not good enough to EVER convince someone without the direct interaction of God.

You can point people to WONDERFUL writers out there who are showing the evidence of God: Werner Gitt, Francis Collins, Lee Strobel's interviews in The Case for the Creator, Peter Kreeft, William Lane Craig, Alvin Plantinga--gigantic intellects, great arguments and reasoning…..

…..but they in themselves will not be enough on their own to convince someone.

People are convinced when God impresses it upon their heart that it is true, and the person says in some way, "I am starting to believe."

WHY SHOULD YOU BELIEVE IN GOD?

Because you know it to be true. God is revealing to you it is true.

It may be some thoughts, or a feeling or impression, or a still, small voice-

You can start to believe a little, and God will reveal even more.

I BELIEVE IN GOD. Further,

"I BELIEVE IN GOD THE FATHER "

WHY do Christians refer to God as "Father" and use masculine pronouns like "he"?

Because that's the kind of language the Bible uses Generally, and Jesus uses specifically.

Some people are REALLY ANGRY at Christians for using the word "Father" to refer to God, and male language such as "he" or "him," even though that is the kind of language the Bible most often uses.

They say it implies that God is a "he" in terms of sexuality…

--which would mean to be more "godly" you have to be more "manly"

--which would mean men are more godly than women!

THUS, even though the Bible is clear that God is spirit and is beyond sexuality, they claim that the Bible must be male-chauvinistic and misogynistic.

SO:

--Is the Bible male-dominant, in that it speaks mostly from a male perspective, was written mostly by men, has men as the majority of the main characters and speaks most directly to men?

Is the revelation of the Bible male-dominant in that way???

YES. Absolutely. No question. Any smart fifth grader who reads the Bible carefully can see that.

Does it give a women's perspective sometimes? YES

Does it speak to women's issues? YES.

Does it exalt women as created equally with men? YES.

But is it male-dominant? YOU BET.

WHY???? Why would God seem to be so chauvinistic as to focus mainly on men in the revelation to humans that we call the "Bible?

WHY!!!??? Is the Bible against women!?!?!? Are you Christians against women!?!?!?

WHY would God ever use such a male-dominated bent in divine revelation!?

Let me suggest an answer, by posing a question.

Q: Would you please shout out the names of the most horrible individuals in the history of the countries of the world.

Cult leaders who were manipulative; dictators; war lords; terrorists; serial killers:

Hitler, Hussein, Bin Laden, Stalin…Jim Jones…Jeffrey Dalmer…Son of Sam…

For any one woman you can name I'll bet you can name 50 men.

History has proven that there is one thing that without question men can do

better than women --be destructive.

If you were God and you wanted to save the human race, would you write your book with a slight bent toward men?

YOU BET.

There may be MANY reasons God led Jesus to pray to God using the phrase, "Our Father," but I think at least one of them is that it forces the manly men who may be prideful and macho to have to declare deep in their hearts,

"there is one bigger and stronger and more powerful than me, one who is more manly than I am, to whom I must listen and obey."

The second problem that some feminists have with the Bible's use of the term "Father" for God is that many people have had horrible experiences with their father.

Well, that's true and is an important point to consider…though we'd have the same issue if we called God 'mother.'

Two things I always try to remind people in this regard are that:

a) There is feminine imagery in the Bible for God as well, so we need not get stuck thinking God is a domineering judge just waiting to abuse us.

b) God can substitute in your mind and experience for your real father. Maybe you had an abuse father, or no father present in your life….you can start to heal some by reading and studying about God in the OT and NT and you'll find a balance of mercy and justice, of fairness and discipline, and an abundance of Love that you can start to experience directly from your heavenly father.

BUT HOPEFULLY….especially on this day of Father's Day, you can think of some wonderful qualities of your father that were reflections of what God is ultimately like: loving, sacrificial, patient and kind, generous, protective but empowering….

Remember and be thankful.

I BELIEVE IN GOD THE FATHER

++I BELIEVE IN GOD THE FATHER, ALMIGHTY++

HOW could God be an almighty, loving Father, when there is so much pain and suffering in the world?

If there is a God, then we presume God is responsible for creating the universe.

(That's next week's sermon, which Greg will give)

If God created the universe, then God can manipulate matter and energy in any way God chooses…and is therefore, 'almighty.'

BUT there are still numerous tragedies that God either causes or allows to happen…so how could we possibly believe there is such a God (unless that God is a monster!).

Classic argument: there are little children around the world who live several years only to be abused and killed. With that as an absolute fact, how could we believe in an almighty God?

Whatever your worldview, you HAVE to be able to explain that to have any respect from other people.

SO: The atheist has an answer, though I don't like it.

They won't shout the answer, they'll try to couch it in nicer language, but the ultimate answer if you go with atheism and the logical conclusion of evolution that excludes God entirely, here's the atheist's answer:

--the fittest survive. That child wasn't one of the fittest.

The child was weak, and is now removed from the gene pool.

Period. End of story.

No big deal.

The Christian has answer that on the surface doesn't seem much better, but under the surface is infinitely better.

Almighty God could have prevented it, but didn't…because God knew that in eternity the tragedy is trivial.

People often get hung up on the first part--Christians declare that there is some way that God could have prevented the tragedy and didn't, and yet that same God is almighty and loving!?!?

What!?!?!?

That only makes sense in the light of eternity.

The NT declares that in eternity, after we've died, God is going to redo everything--New Heaven, new earth, new resurrected bodies. Revelation says in that day there will be no more crying or pain for those who have faithfully followed God.

That means bodily wounds will be healed, and memories will be healed--and we'll be in that new condition forever.

At that point, we will not care what happened to us on Earth before…it will be inconsequential…trivial…won't matter AT ALL.

God's actions will overcome EVERYTHING…in the end.

I DOUBT that ANYONE can have a full belief in "God, the Father Almighty" without having a full belief in the eternal life after death for the innocent children and the adults who choose to believe in and follow God.

WITHOUT that belief, we are left with the evidence that, as I heard on Inside the Actors Studio (tv show) Dustin Hoffman quote Robert DeNiro as saying, "If there is a God he has a lot of explaining to do."

I think that explaining has already happened….it's the explanation of eternal life.

THAT heals all wounds and memories and atrocities.

Does the Spirit of God impress upon your spirit that Marcus Fiesel is ok, with God?

With a heavenly Father who loves him and is caring for him as we speak?

Is God almighty?

Yes…I know, because I believe God created everything, and God confirms in my soul that dead children like Marcus are in his care in eternity.

Is God a Father?

Yes…Not in a gender sense, but in the sense that God is bigger and stronger and more powerful than any of the men who try to dominate; and is even more loving, patient, and kind than the most loving of human fathers.

Is God?

Does God exist?

Yes. How do I know?

The same way you know.

God has shown us that he is real.

THEREFORE WE CAN SAY

in all circumstances…in all situations…

and base our lives on the fact that we can say:

"I believe in God, the Father Almighty."

AND NOW we can TEACH OTHERS what we mean when we say:

"I believe in God, the Father Almighty."

[1] economist.com, "To Believe or Not to Believe," May 31, 2007

iPOD Leads to Family and Church Divisions!

2007-05-27T06:59:00.000-05:00

Ok. I realize I'm probably overstating things here...but consider this: with the continual use of mp3 players for the past several years people have been able to wake up, go to work, work, play, eat, go home, and go to sleep in the presence of continual music that has been entirely selected by the individual. Hundreds and thousands of songs edited to PERFECTLY match the taste of the individual.

To do that in 1910 A.D. one would have had to have a live orchestra in one's room, and in one's buggy, and in one's office, and walking around with you all day! What an AMAZING transformation that has taken place during just a hiccup in the world timeline.

SO: In previous generations families consisted of extended generations of people gathering for worship and for meals and parties, with traditional folk music being taught by the older generations to the younger generations with only the slightest variations through the years. BUT NOW, a family of parents aged 60 and 50 and kids aged 25, 18, and 10 could have practically five different generational preferences of sound that can all be catered to through the music industry.

No wonder it's tough to get people to come together as one body and worship God through music--families can't even take a road trip with a single set of music playing in the van!

So how can Christians like me help people in this environment to truly, deeply, spiritually and emotionally connect with God and worship God? One church I know does almost no music at all, thereby avoiding the situation altogether. That's definitely the easiest road to take. Yet that seems dangerous to me since music such a powerful force in our culture. Would we then be saying, "we want to teach you how to think, but we'll let MTV teach you how to feel?"

Ideally we could achieve the older style of multi-generational common music, and in some settings we do (like when we sing "Amazing Grace" at funerals). Yet, the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches who have demanded that this approach be taken seem to have little ability to connect with non-Christians and make little evangelistic impact. After all, someone who's into Shakira or DMX doesn't immediately connect with most quarter-note-dominant- organ-accompanied traditional church music.

So for now, I don't see any choice but to cater to the individualistic needs of people by specializing our musical offerings in Christian worship--and then pushing at selected times for events of inter-generational unity and pushing at multiple times for all generations to learn at least a minimum of inter-generational music (i.e. Amazing Grace). HOWEVER, this is a difficult and miry road to navigate...so if you have any better suggestions I'm all ears!

What do you think?

All You Need is Love: Pt. 1

2007-04-17T19:37:00.000-05:00

(I'll intend to update this blog AT LEAST once a week. Sorry to get off to a slow start, but we're getting there!)

I know a guy who says he's a Christian and zealously tries to convince other people that Jesus is real, who can be just about the most obnoxious person you ever saw. He'll leave a couple of quarters for his tip at a restaurant and stick a little tract on the table that looks like a hundred dollar bill. The server will come by and think there's a big tip there--only to see that on the other side it's religious propaganda about Jesus. Nice.

I know another guy who says he's a Christian but who in public will use his wife as the brunt of joke after joke. Uh...just like Jesus did? Can you imagine? "Hey Mary! -- Matthew's so fat that..."

Right mental assents about Jesus do not always lead to right actions in relationships, do they? It's the same in other areas of life too. As a minister, I visit hospitals rather regularly. When I started out doing hospital visitation I was ASTOUNDED at the number of nurses who smoked! It's like, if they aren't willing to take care of their own bodies how do I know they're going to be willing to take good care of MINE???

It seems like it is like that in the church sometimes. We show people outside of the church how we'll likely treat THEM by the way in which we treat OURSELVES inside the church.

I know a lady who calls herself a Christian who went through a bitter divorce from her husband, (and he had an affair on her), who forgave him so thoroughly that she harbors no bitterness and has become a tender helper in numerous people's lives. She went on to show such grace to her husband's mistress that later on the mistress became a minster! That's orthopraxodoxology...right action meeting right belief and transcending the normal abilities of humanity. "Um, Great Server? I'd like to try what she's having, please."

If you go to a church, what's the most radical expression of love someone expressed to you?

Faith Infusion's Goal: Right beliefs, or right actions?

2007-04-04T10:26:00.000-05:00

The name of our contemporary service, and the nature of our worship in general, is different than the majority of Christian congregations and maybe some would say is even "weird"--

--we use contemporary, even 'rock' style Christian music predominantly...but we use hymns and traditional gospel songs occasionally that are set to a more modern beat and feel because we respect the faith of those who have gone before us.

--we use ancient Christian prayers and creeds on because we're REALLY serious about our faith, but once you move out from the ancient essential beliefs our opinions differ greatly and we're REALLY diverse.

--we'd rather have someone associate with us, join in on our worship and activities, and start to serve others alongside us even if they don't believe all the "Christian stuff" yet, rather than demanding that they believe all the right things before they can participate.

--we'd rather have visitors wow'ed by our gracious hospitality and passionate worship than by glitz and glamor.

--we're trying to be a part of a larger Church body, both in our local church and denomination and the world-wide group of Christians in general, rather than a separatist, insulated, exclusive club.

--we want to be cutting-edge and ancient at the same time.

--Even our name "Faith Infusion" is a blend of ancient (how many churches throughout the centuries have used the word "Faith" in their name!?!?!?), and modern (at first our team felt like "Infusion" alone sounded like a dance club name!!!).

--The theology behind it is ancient...as you can read in the "About" section of the faithinfusion.org website. But the practices are often modern...as in this blog. (What would St. Peter have thought a "blog" was? Maybe something you shouldn't step in?)

So in the midst of the weirdness I want to ask:

WHAT DO YOU THINK?: An article I just read yesterday said that one tendency of congregations like ours is that they place a greater emphasis on orthopraxy--the right ACTIONS, than on orthodoxy--the right MENTAL ASSENTS / BELIEFS.

Is that what you think we do? Is that what we should do? Are they really separate emphases, or are they inseparably related?

For example, is it more important that a person act lovingly toward fellow humans than for that person to mentally assent to / believe the correct details about God?