A priori argumentation assumes definitions and therefore can be somewhat dissatisfying. Certain presuppositions anchor the propositions and if interpreted in the manner they are presented become a compelling foundation but if interpreted differently from the intention of the arguer create a dissonance that destroys the entire framework of the argument. In short, if I didn't believe it, to begin with, it'll hardly convince me to believe it after the fact.
I, not unlike many of you I'm sure, have read a litany of articles both short and long, weighty and light, humorous and stern, from the young and the old, from the conservative to the perhaps less so on the weaknesses and difficulties of doing church in an online format. I italicize because I feel no matter how strongly these well-meaning authors distance themselves from that concept, they ultimately fall prey to the underlying implications. At the end of reading each one, I am left with that a priori taste in my mouth. A fundamental proposition to everyone's argument is "gathering cannot be done virtually" and then they proceed to show that the church must gather. That being a local church is being a local gathering. That oversight of the Elders must be in person. That the sacraments are inherently physical and must meet certain parameters to be legitimate, including personal presence. All of which are compelling arguments if "gathering cannot be done virtually."
I finish these articles and immediately feel the urge to call the author and ask, "why?" Their explanations in the articles themselves range from "there's something missing" to "of course we know it's not the same" which serves perfectly well for convincing someone who already agrees with them. Hardly airtight logic or Theological proof. More personal conversations typically end up with me being kindly referred to as a "semantic" and the same general "feeling" of something missing, something unachievable in a virtual setting, being the shifting sand of a foundation for the argument. Thinking about it has finally burst into writing, so I present my defense of the Online Church.
What is gathering? Mirriam-Webster defines it by linking to two other words: Assembly and Meeting. Assembly uses gathering in its definition so that's not necessarily that helpful but its "a company of persons gathered for deliberation and legislation, worship, or entertainment." In this definition, common intent is the key to an assembly. Meeting adds an element: "an act or process of coming together." So that implies movement from not together to together. In both of these cases, physical presence is not specified. A virtual gathering can be both intentional and moves from not together (video call not connected) to together. A common proof text is Hebrews 10:25 (ESV) "not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near." I'm no Greek scholar but I can look things up with the best of them, that is ἐπισυναγωγὴν and is translated "assembly" by the KJV and other times "assembling together" and according to Bible Hub has an implication of a complete group. Again, maybe physically is assumed but an ancient near-eastern thinker wouldn't even be able to conceive of a virtual gathering so the absence of an insistence on physical presence is not evidence for either concept.
Commands to the church in Scripture are given to individual groups with the ultimate result of being instructional, binding, edifying, and directed towards the rest of the Body in the Universal sense. I in no way deny the logistical and Theological importance of the local assembly. Each autonomous unit is a relationship-center of believers who worship, serve, and minister through the structure and agency of the local body. So, what does attending church physically provide that attending it virtually does not? I'd contend nothing of spiritual importance. It can provide a sense of separation from the day-to-day which could enhance the ability of a worshipper to "get in the frame of mind" to worship. Which is all well and good, as long as we don't lose the fact that we should be always be worshipping! We fall into the trap of compartmentalizing our lives and then when circumstances mash our neatly sorted divisions together we get out of sorts. Maybe this is just the kickstart the American church needs to remember our responsibilities as worshippers don't begin and end on Sundays?
What about the ordinances? Can someone be Baptized virtually? It would certainly be odd. Picture it, the Pastor on one screen, the convert on another, the Pastor recites his favorite Baptismal passage as the convert submerges in his bathtub. Not a particularly convenient or effective ceremony, but is it wrong? If the convert is following Christ's example, the process is observed in as public a setting as a local church assembly (not that public really), and its purpose is to identify with Christ and join the local membership I see no reason it could not be called a Baptism. It is reasonable to argue that the individual cannot Baptize himself, but is it really the being physically submerged into the water that makes it Baptism? Immersion is by definition submersion, I don't suggest the modality isn't important but it derives its importance from its meaning - not its meaning from its form. Hence in extreme circumstances, full immersion may not be entirely necessary while preserving the intent and message of the act of obedience. As such, in an extreme circumstance that prevents physical presence, Baptism is not such a rigid physical ritual to be impossible.
How about the Lord's Supper? Can the Eucharist be observed virtually? This, to me, is much easier to answer. Of course, it can. Generally, I'd say the Lord's Supper is designed to represent the unity of the body both in the identification as recipients of Christ's atoning sacrifice and in the longing for His imminent coming and the Marriage Feast celebration. What about physically being in a room changes the experience of the Lord's Supper? Are the nursery workers no longer members of the Body? If it is a physical manifestation of grace and the elements must be blessed by the ordained clergy and each member must take a piece of the same loaf and a sip from the same cup to physically receive a spiritual blessing than sure, can't be done virtually. St. Bernard's can't hold Mass virtually, or at least shouldn't by their own rules. But the benefits of The Lord's Supper are not given to me by the elements or the Pastors or the holding hands and singing Blessed Be the Tie That Binds. All of those things are physical representations of spiritual benefits, representations that can be replicated in a virtual setting.
Is physical church attendance preferable? Certainly! I enjoy physical presence more than virtual presence. I am less distracted and forced to prepare physically and mentally to a higher degree to be in another person's presence. However, with time and adjustment, if the current way of life continues or gets worse this will change. We will grow more comfortable in the virtual space and the negatives will fade. Ultimately, the outcry against virtual church smacks of sacramentalism and closes off local churches from a modality of ministry that could be explored. Perhaps the best thing that could come of this difficult time would be an expansion of The Church's presence in the online world. We live in the digital age and the Church is called to minister to people where they are.
Showing posts with label Baptist. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Baptist. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 8, 2020
Thursday, August 1, 2013
SS Lesson 8-4-13 Prov 9:1-18
As I mentioned last week, with my Dad in Argentina I'm teaching his Proverbs Sunday School class. Last week seemed to go well, I made it a full 40 min and then squeezed 5 more with questions/discussion meaning we dismissed only 10 min early. Not bad seeing as last time I taught I was done 15 min in. This week we're in Proverbs chapter 9 which is only 18 verses long, so I'm sure it will be short. However, going to try to be as long-winded as possible and stretch it out. We'll see how it goes. Once again, if you're going to be there Sunday and want to be surprised, now is the time to go do something else, otherwise this is what I'll be speaking about.
Outline and most thoughts are my Dad's.
After hammering the benefits of Wisdom versus the consequences of Folly for 8 straight chapters, this one seems a little bit "superfluous" as my Dad puts it. I mean, surely we get the point. But, instead of assuming we do, Solomon paints one more word picture describing the contrast of Wisdom and Folly. It is organized into 3 sections, each with 6 versus, laid out as such: The Feast of Wisdom, The Responses to Wisdom's Appeal, and The Feast of Folly. As we noted last week, Solomon leaves the worst for last so that the warning of Folly lingers longest.
I. The Feast of Wisdom (vs 1-6)
A. Her Preparations (vs. 1-3)
1. Her House is Ready
"seven pillars" - there is no specific meaning here that anyone has determined as of yet. As Dad notes, we aren't describing a particularly well-built house or a particular type of house from Solomonic Israel. However, it is ok to numerologize the number 7 and suggest the house is perfect. Wisdom lives in a perfect place. The kind of place we should want to live in.
2. Her meal is ready
meat and wine with spices, would be the ultimate meal - just like today, a big steak, a fancy drink and no expense spared on the seasonings
this doesn't mean Wisdom is a meal. Obviously its referring to how it satisfies, it provides all we need and leaves us lacking nothing. We live a fulfilling life when we embrace Wisdom and feast on its meaty-ness.
3. Her invitations are ready
As we saw in chapter 8, she's out where we can see her. She's crying from the hilltops, not a subtle message, a loud, open, transparent one. This leads to the fact its all-inclusive. Everyone is invited, personally invited to partake in the feast.
B. Her Invitation (vs 4-6)
1. Who?
The simple and those lacking understanding - everyone without Wisdom
2. What does she invite them to do?
Eat the bread, drink the wine - enjoy the feast, taste of Wisdom, to learn, not just to sample it but to sit down and fully partake of its benefits
3. Why?
Wisdom is offering life, she contrasts it from foolishness. She wants a decision to be made, reject foolishness and come partake of my feast, this is an either-or
II. Responses to Wisdom's Appeal (vs 7-12)
A. The Scoffer's Response (vs 7-8)
1. This is the fool who has heard this all before, he's hardened his heart, he mocks Wisdom openly to draw others away from it.
2. His rejection is to be avoided, stay away from the scoffer, Christ taught us not to toss pearls before swine (Matt 7:6), arguing is not profitable. I had to opportunity several times to travel down to State Street in Madison while at college to hand out tracts and speak with the people walking up and down that busy street. Sometimes very profitable discussions occurred. Often they didn't. One night a friend of mine handed a tract to a guy and he stopped to talk. He had a blue Mohawk, several tattoos and piercings and looked rather disinterested in the actual discussion and more interested in getting a laugh. My buddy, Marc, launched into the Gospel and a little ways in casually asked, or more suggested, people would care what happened to them after they died. He cut in responding, "why should I care? I'll be dead. I couldn't care less." Marc objected, suggesting that the same thing that makes us care about whether we take our next breath in this life will not leave us in the next. He shot back that he didn't care about his next breath here either. I responded wrong to this, scoffing myself, and said, "So really, you don't care if you die and turn into a bird, or die and have to watch reruns of Seinfeld forever, or die and just sit in darkness forever or..." But he turned and walked off before I could finish. That was dumb, and it was casting pearls before swine. Once we had presented the Gospel, trying to argue along presuppositional lines was going to go nowhere. He was a scoffer and responding in kind would not help anybody.
B. The Wise Man's Response (vs 8-11)
1. Unlike the scoffer, the wise man desires disagreement and instruction. He wants to get smarter and he knows delving into the marketplace of ideas will grow his Wisdom. As Christians we should not shy away from learning. We should shy away from spending undue time diving into the depths of the philosophies of man, but being smarter is always better. More specifically, the wise man is looking to live better. He wants to improve his life. He knows others will know better, he knows the Bible will have better ways. He is not arrogant, he does not suppose he's figured it out.
2. This Wisdom in inexhaustible, the wise man can search wisdom from the day he is born to the eons of eternity and forever be gaining. It says, "teach a just man and he will increase in learning" This is already a just man, yet he can always take more teaching and always can increase in learning.
3. Again we see the theme. This Wisdom = The Fear of the Lord
4. As I mentioned last week, we can learn about and increasingly "fear the Lord" for eternity. This is the inexhaustible nature of wisdom, it is contained in the Being of the eternal God
C. The Contrast (12)
1. "If thou be wise, thou shalt be wise for thyself" means wisdom is rewarding. It is apparently an extremely literal translation. The satisfaction of wisdom is often merely the attainment of it.
2. So yes, Wisdom is the Fear of the Lord and ultimately we seek it to please Him, but we also receive the most blessing in our lives from it
3. However, the scoffer thinks he's getting other people to come down to his level, but in the end its his own life that's in shambles. Solomon will describe this later when he says "The way of the fool is hard"
III. The Feast of Folly
A. Her Character (vs 13-15)
1. Lady Folly, like Wisdom, has prepared us a "feast"
2. This is the same Folly we've seen before - loud, undisciplined, ignorant - she is intentionally evil and deceptive
3. Unlike previously, this time she's out in the open, she's trying to mimic Wisdom - Dad suggests the picture is like a crossroads with Folly on one corner and Wisdom on the other. A decision must be made, they're both making their case, now we must decide.
4. The passengers in verse 15 are just people going by, they have no clue what's in store, like the simple man in Chapter 7.
B. Her Invitation (vs 16-17)
1. Like Wisdom, Folly calls out to the fools, the simple, the people who haven't chosen Wisdom already.
2. She appeals directly to our sin nature - stolen water is sweet, bread eaten in secret is delicious. Its not the water and the bread which are satisfying, its the manner in which we get them. However, that satisfaction is fleeting, false and damning. This is precisely what the adulterous woman said in her passages. No one will ever know, You can get away with it. Instead of getting a massive delicious feast at Wisdom's table, the fool is happy to sneak around in the dark gnawing on some stolen bread. Why? Because he's getting away with it. He's deceived into thinking because "he did it" its better than what God has provided for him.
C. The Consequences of Accepting Folly's Invitation (vs 18)
1. The same consequences from the adulteress.
2. Foolishness is death. It is not only losing one's life but also losing the joy, fulfillment and purpose of that life. As Dad says, its a macabre picture of people gathered around a rotting meal already dead but not realizing it.
Do you get the idea now? Chapters 1-9 of Proverbs have one central theme. Will you, (will Solomon's son), choose Wisdom and her innumerable benefits? Will you choose the Fear of the Lord, the righteous path, the revealed Word of God? Or will you choose Folly? The easy path at first, but the difficult way in the end. The way of death and misery.
Why is this so hard? I mentioned it last week. We still have the old man hanging on us. That old man which wars against God. So yes, if all things were equal, the blessings of Wisdom would make her the obvious choice. However, The Fear of the Lord is Wisdom, and our old man wants nothing to do with that. This is why we need Faith. We need God's power which is channeled to us through the conduit of the Holy Spirit living within us. We need to rest in the power and in the specific instruction of His Word.
That's it. So before I close, I want to touch on something. I mentioned it for a second last week. But we kept seeing Folly and the Adulteress present sexual temptation. I believe this is Solomon's lesser-to-greater way of describing all temptation. As an example, take the story in Chapter 7. The simple man is walking down the street in the middle of the night and the adulteress springs on him, seduces him, and he falls. This same process can be used to describe ANY temptation. Picture instead, young man walking down Madison Ave, sees a pair of new Nike Tennis Shoes he just has to have (the adulteress springs out and lands a kiss). He walks into the store and notices they're just sitting on a shelf, no locks, guards anything (the adulteress mentions her Husband is away)...he looks both ways and grabs them. (He succumbs to the temptation and the result? Death). Folly is not just making poor decisions. It is sinning and not believing God and the Bible when they say "the wages of sin is death." So don't think that you, if you haven't struggled with or believe you've dealt sufficiently with sexual temptation, are invulnerable to Folly's charm. She is lurking behind every weakness we have and without God's supernatural intervention - the Holy Scripture and Himself in the person of the Spirit - we are helpless.
Short! But it's a short chapter so I think its ok. I'm off work for a week, starting yesterday, because I strained my left oblique. I'm on a 10 lb restriction and taking a couple pills for the pain and to help it heal. Totally awesome. Its also my birthday on Saturday, Happy Birthday to me, I'll be 25.
Braves are cruising, 6 games in a row. Beachy is back, Heyward, Mac, Freddie and Simba are all raking. Things couldn't be better.
Outline and most thoughts are my Dad's.
After hammering the benefits of Wisdom versus the consequences of Folly for 8 straight chapters, this one seems a little bit "superfluous" as my Dad puts it. I mean, surely we get the point. But, instead of assuming we do, Solomon paints one more word picture describing the contrast of Wisdom and Folly. It is organized into 3 sections, each with 6 versus, laid out as such: The Feast of Wisdom, The Responses to Wisdom's Appeal, and The Feast of Folly. As we noted last week, Solomon leaves the worst for last so that the warning of Folly lingers longest.
I. The Feast of Wisdom (vs 1-6)
A. Her Preparations (vs. 1-3)
1. Her House is Ready
"seven pillars" - there is no specific meaning here that anyone has determined as of yet. As Dad notes, we aren't describing a particularly well-built house or a particular type of house from Solomonic Israel. However, it is ok to numerologize the number 7 and suggest the house is perfect. Wisdom lives in a perfect place. The kind of place we should want to live in.
2. Her meal is ready
meat and wine with spices, would be the ultimate meal - just like today, a big steak, a fancy drink and no expense spared on the seasonings
this doesn't mean Wisdom is a meal. Obviously its referring to how it satisfies, it provides all we need and leaves us lacking nothing. We live a fulfilling life when we embrace Wisdom and feast on its meaty-ness.
3. Her invitations are ready
As we saw in chapter 8, she's out where we can see her. She's crying from the hilltops, not a subtle message, a loud, open, transparent one. This leads to the fact its all-inclusive. Everyone is invited, personally invited to partake in the feast.
B. Her Invitation (vs 4-6)
1. Who?
The simple and those lacking understanding - everyone without Wisdom
2. What does she invite them to do?
Eat the bread, drink the wine - enjoy the feast, taste of Wisdom, to learn, not just to sample it but to sit down and fully partake of its benefits
3. Why?
Wisdom is offering life, she contrasts it from foolishness. She wants a decision to be made, reject foolishness and come partake of my feast, this is an either-or
II. Responses to Wisdom's Appeal (vs 7-12)
A. The Scoffer's Response (vs 7-8)
1. This is the fool who has heard this all before, he's hardened his heart, he mocks Wisdom openly to draw others away from it.
2. His rejection is to be avoided, stay away from the scoffer, Christ taught us not to toss pearls before swine (Matt 7:6), arguing is not profitable. I had to opportunity several times to travel down to State Street in Madison while at college to hand out tracts and speak with the people walking up and down that busy street. Sometimes very profitable discussions occurred. Often they didn't. One night a friend of mine handed a tract to a guy and he stopped to talk. He had a blue Mohawk, several tattoos and piercings and looked rather disinterested in the actual discussion and more interested in getting a laugh. My buddy, Marc, launched into the Gospel and a little ways in casually asked, or more suggested, people would care what happened to them after they died. He cut in responding, "why should I care? I'll be dead. I couldn't care less." Marc objected, suggesting that the same thing that makes us care about whether we take our next breath in this life will not leave us in the next. He shot back that he didn't care about his next breath here either. I responded wrong to this, scoffing myself, and said, "So really, you don't care if you die and turn into a bird, or die and have to watch reruns of Seinfeld forever, or die and just sit in darkness forever or..." But he turned and walked off before I could finish. That was dumb, and it was casting pearls before swine. Once we had presented the Gospel, trying to argue along presuppositional lines was going to go nowhere. He was a scoffer and responding in kind would not help anybody.
B. The Wise Man's Response (vs 8-11)
1. Unlike the scoffer, the wise man desires disagreement and instruction. He wants to get smarter and he knows delving into the marketplace of ideas will grow his Wisdom. As Christians we should not shy away from learning. We should shy away from spending undue time diving into the depths of the philosophies of man, but being smarter is always better. More specifically, the wise man is looking to live better. He wants to improve his life. He knows others will know better, he knows the Bible will have better ways. He is not arrogant, he does not suppose he's figured it out.
2. This Wisdom in inexhaustible, the wise man can search wisdom from the day he is born to the eons of eternity and forever be gaining. It says, "teach a just man and he will increase in learning" This is already a just man, yet he can always take more teaching and always can increase in learning.
3. Again we see the theme. This Wisdom = The Fear of the Lord
4. As I mentioned last week, we can learn about and increasingly "fear the Lord" for eternity. This is the inexhaustible nature of wisdom, it is contained in the Being of the eternal God
C. The Contrast (12)
1. "If thou be wise, thou shalt be wise for thyself" means wisdom is rewarding. It is apparently an extremely literal translation. The satisfaction of wisdom is often merely the attainment of it.
2. So yes, Wisdom is the Fear of the Lord and ultimately we seek it to please Him, but we also receive the most blessing in our lives from it
3. However, the scoffer thinks he's getting other people to come down to his level, but in the end its his own life that's in shambles. Solomon will describe this later when he says "The way of the fool is hard"
III. The Feast of Folly
A. Her Character (vs 13-15)
1. Lady Folly, like Wisdom, has prepared us a "feast"
2. This is the same Folly we've seen before - loud, undisciplined, ignorant - she is intentionally evil and deceptive
3. Unlike previously, this time she's out in the open, she's trying to mimic Wisdom - Dad suggests the picture is like a crossroads with Folly on one corner and Wisdom on the other. A decision must be made, they're both making their case, now we must decide.
4. The passengers in verse 15 are just people going by, they have no clue what's in store, like the simple man in Chapter 7.
B. Her Invitation (vs 16-17)
1. Like Wisdom, Folly calls out to the fools, the simple, the people who haven't chosen Wisdom already.
2. She appeals directly to our sin nature - stolen water is sweet, bread eaten in secret is delicious. Its not the water and the bread which are satisfying, its the manner in which we get them. However, that satisfaction is fleeting, false and damning. This is precisely what the adulterous woman said in her passages. No one will ever know, You can get away with it. Instead of getting a massive delicious feast at Wisdom's table, the fool is happy to sneak around in the dark gnawing on some stolen bread. Why? Because he's getting away with it. He's deceived into thinking because "he did it" its better than what God has provided for him.
C. The Consequences of Accepting Folly's Invitation (vs 18)
1. The same consequences from the adulteress.
2. Foolishness is death. It is not only losing one's life but also losing the joy, fulfillment and purpose of that life. As Dad says, its a macabre picture of people gathered around a rotting meal already dead but not realizing it.
Do you get the idea now? Chapters 1-9 of Proverbs have one central theme. Will you, (will Solomon's son), choose Wisdom and her innumerable benefits? Will you choose the Fear of the Lord, the righteous path, the revealed Word of God? Or will you choose Folly? The easy path at first, but the difficult way in the end. The way of death and misery.
Why is this so hard? I mentioned it last week. We still have the old man hanging on us. That old man which wars against God. So yes, if all things were equal, the blessings of Wisdom would make her the obvious choice. However, The Fear of the Lord is Wisdom, and our old man wants nothing to do with that. This is why we need Faith. We need God's power which is channeled to us through the conduit of the Holy Spirit living within us. We need to rest in the power and in the specific instruction of His Word.
That's it. So before I close, I want to touch on something. I mentioned it for a second last week. But we kept seeing Folly and the Adulteress present sexual temptation. I believe this is Solomon's lesser-to-greater way of describing all temptation. As an example, take the story in Chapter 7. The simple man is walking down the street in the middle of the night and the adulteress springs on him, seduces him, and he falls. This same process can be used to describe ANY temptation. Picture instead, young man walking down Madison Ave, sees a pair of new Nike Tennis Shoes he just has to have (the adulteress springs out and lands a kiss). He walks into the store and notices they're just sitting on a shelf, no locks, guards anything (the adulteress mentions her Husband is away)...he looks both ways and grabs them. (He succumbs to the temptation and the result? Death). Folly is not just making poor decisions. It is sinning and not believing God and the Bible when they say "the wages of sin is death." So don't think that you, if you haven't struggled with or believe you've dealt sufficiently with sexual temptation, are invulnerable to Folly's charm. She is lurking behind every weakness we have and without God's supernatural intervention - the Holy Scripture and Himself in the person of the Spirit - we are helpless.
Short! But it's a short chapter so I think its ok. I'm off work for a week, starting yesterday, because I strained my left oblique. I'm on a 10 lb restriction and taking a couple pills for the pain and to help it heal. Totally awesome. Its also my birthday on Saturday, Happy Birthday to me, I'll be 25.
Braves are cruising, 6 games in a row. Beachy is back, Heyward, Mac, Freddie and Simba are all raking. Things couldn't be better.
Thursday, July 25, 2013
SS Lesson: 7-28-13 "Prov. 8"
My dad is in Argentine for the next two weeks teaching a class. He is currently working through the book of Proverbs for one of the adult Sunday School classes at our church. He asked me to cover for him the next two weeks while he's gone, but in order to maintain the flow of the series he gave he his Proverbs notes. He teaches a 2 hour elective on the book at MBBC and has 3-5 page lectures already prepared. He has trimmed them to fit the Sunday School format and is 7 chapters in. He also missed the two weeks prior to last week while in VA but I was also in VA so our Pastor covered them.
I get Proverbs chapters 8 and 9. I'm pretty excited and, as usual, irrationally nervous. For some reason that I can't seem to put a finger on, I have a completely biological, and to this point unavoidable, physical reaction to speaking in front of people. Not just speaking, also singing, playing the piano and competing in an individual sports event/act. I shake, hands sweat, yawn uncontrollably, sick feeling in stomach, nothing particularly startling but definitely annoying. I've tried several things to alleviate said response but yet to no avail. Writing about it seems to cause it so I'll move on.
I'm going to try blogging a transcript of sorts for my lesson to see if that helps me organize my thoughts better. If you're going to be their Sunday and want to be surprised, skip this post. If you're going to be their Sunday and want to go to Mr.'s Blevins' or Moores' lessons, you get two for the price of one! If you're not going to be there, hopefully you'll enjoy.
(Outline is essentially stolen from my dad, seeing as he gave it to me)
Proverbs 8:1-36
Dad's Title: Wisdom's Extraordinary Value
1. Wisdom's Invitation (vs 1-3)
A. An open, free offer
What immediately jumps out is the contrast between the adulteress and Wisdom. "She standeth in the high places" "She crieth...at the coming in at the doors" Wisdom isn't hiding out to catch anybody. Nothing sneaky, no hidden agenda. The adulteress waited till the dark of night before pouncing, Wisdom shouts from the mountain.
She cries out from: a) The hilltops - where everyone can see ("top of high places")
b) The crossroads - where everyone will pass ("places of the paths")
c) The gates - where decisions are rendered
Wisdom wants everyone to see her, everyone to go with her, and everyone to use her help in their decisions. She's an obvious choice, the transparent option.
We can draw application to what Wisdom is like to how we should be - not only should we desire the Wisdom that is out in the open, we should live out in the open. We should be willing to "shout" our lives from the hilltop, or more directly, we should be able to shout our lives from the hilltop without shame. Folly, adulteress, has to hide or we'd see her true colors, Wisdom shines out brightly.
B. A practical offer
Someone wrote: "I would like a job as tutor, teacher, and adviser to your family. I will never take a vacation. I will never be out of humor. I don't drink or smoke. I won't borrow your clothes or raid your refrigerator. I will be up in the morning as early as anyone in the household and will stay up as late as anyone wishes. I will help solve any problems your children might have. I will give you the satisfaction of knowing that no questions your children ask will go unanswered. For that matter, I will answer any of your own questions on subjects that range from 'How did we get here?' to 'Where are we headed?' I will help settle differences of opinion. I will give you information that will help you with your job, you family, and all of your other interests. In short, I will give you the knowledge that will insure the continued success of your family. I am God's Word. Do I get the job?" -- Pastor David Whitcomb, our family's Pastor in South Carolina.
When I say Wisdom, when Solomon says Wisdom, he's not referring to an ethereal force which can be tapped into, or some sort of magical recipe for happiness. The Wisdom described here is God's Word. You're holding it and most of you have owned it nearly all your life. This is not an unattainable secret protected by some mysterious monks. It is the book you're reading out of right now.
We talk about the leading of the Holy Spirit. In this dispensation, the primary way to experience this leading is through the Word of God. Wisdom's call to "Hear" her voice is obeyed when we spend time reading, applying and living the Scriptures. This is not "esoteric and mystical but rather very practical for the believer" as my dad says.
II. Motivation to Accept Her Invitation (vs 4-21)
A. Wisdom cries out to all (vs 4-5)
Immediacy, A point of decision ("ye fools, be ye of an understanding heart")
The past several chapters, the same concepts, the value of Wisdom and the danger of Folly, have been reiterated again and again. Now is the time to respond. After a lecture like chapters 1-7, the only way to choose Folly would be unbelief, the information is all there. It's not a difficult decision, all things being equal. However, if we lack faith, if we don't believe that God and His way are best for us, if we listen to the flesh, world and Devil, we will choose Folly. Every act lacking Wisdom, is an act devoid of Faith. The Faith that says, God knows what is best, God knows what will be most effective, efficient and edifying, I need to trust Him.
B. Wisdom has excellent characteristics (vs 6-9)
Once again, almost casually, we are given a list of Wisdom's benefits.
1. Excellent - princely, above the wisdom of the world
2. Truth - correct, precise, not deceiving (unlike the adulteress)
3. Right - straight, the standard, contrasted to the twisted perversions of Folly
4. Plain - not difficult to understand
a. Dad describes verse 9 as a tautology, a phrase which describes itself. Understandable things are understandable to the understanding. Why does Solomon say this?
b. 1 Cor. 2:14 "But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned."
c. Notice the contrast between the "natural man" and "him that understandeth" God's Wisdom is only understood through the lens of the illumination of the Holy Spirit. Wisdom is the pair of glasses we are to see world through.
d. I would like to explain this further, but to do so, we need to talk about Immanuel Kant. It is extremely important to understand how we apply Wisdom to our lives and Kant describes it in a fascinating way. He was a very important philosopher in Germany, writing primarily in the mid to late 1700s. He has been called the "central figure of modern philosophy." He wrote several books, one of which discussed the ways and reasons people react to each other. In this book he describes "duty" or what we would call morality. The knowledge of what is the right thing to do. Prior to Kant's work, it was suggested morality was a result of experience. I see the man kill the other man. I see one man is dead, so not happy, other man is guilty, so not happy. Killing = bad. My experience informs my morality. This fails, mainly because sinful people find joy in sin, but also because no two people experience anything exactly the same way. Kant argued "duty" is a priori or without any prior cause. It is a part of us, a thing which makes us human. Boy he's close. The way he illustrated it, is with the rose colored glasses.
Have you ever been wearing you sun glasses so long you forgot you had them on? After awhile, you don't notice the darker shade which descended on the world when you put them on. Imagine for a minute you're in that situation and somebody asks you to describe a color. If you don't remember you're wearing your sunglasses, you will inevitably describe it to be a darker shade/version of the color the other person sees. Not only that, but if you're stubborn, and still forget you're wearing the sunglasses, you'll be inclined to argue your view. Only after you've remembered you've got the glasses on, or have removed them, you'll see they were changing your whole view of the world and the people in it. Not only do we see things differently, we expect everyone else to as well.
This is a bad thing, unless the glasses we are wearing are perfect. vs 8-9 "All the words of my mouth...are all plain to him that understandeth" could read "My instructions are obvious to the person with his glasses on." So what are a Christian's glasses?
The blood of Christ, the person of the Holy Spirit, and the Word of God. We see the world though those lenses and we'll experience all the benefits Wisdom describes in the next few verses.
C. Wisdom is More Valuable than Riches (vs 10-11)
Dad says "What good is stuff when you don't understand how to use the stuff or what its real value is?"
D. Wisdom is Godliness (vs 12-13)
vs 12 - Prudence - discerning, carefully making the right choice
- Knowledge of witty inventions - resourceful, crafty
vs 13 But not "Yankee ingenuity"
We've seen before (You've seen before) Wisdom = The Fear of the Lord and here is more equation. Wisdom = The Fear of the Lord = Hating evil, pride, arrogance, the evil way and a froward mouth
Wisdom is loving right and hating wrong. Having the same view of sin as God does. (Wearing our glasses)
E. Wisdom is Rewarding (vs 14-21)
More reiteration. The rewards of living wise.
vs 14-16 Wise counsel - answers questions
vs 17-21 Blessings - fulfills needs and desires
III. Description of the Wisdom That Is Offered (vs 22-31)
In Chapter 4 Dad briefly addressed Wisdom's role in Creation. This section hits that again with more detail. Consider that for a second. The same Wisdom that created the Universe is offering itself to you!
A. God's Eternal Wisdom
"The Lord possessed me in the beginning of His way" This Wisdom in an eternal attribute of God, His Omniscience.
Over the last 2000 years, Theologians have suggested this Wisdom is the 2nd person of the Trinity: Christ, the Logos. (The female pronouns and descriptions do not matter, the Hebrew word is feminine)
Very popular in the early church. Based on John's use of Logos describing Christ in John 1 and Paul's statement in 1 Cor 1 that Jesus is made Wisdom for believers.
Dad disagrees. I don't speak Greek or Hebrew, so I'm going to disagree too. :)
This interpretation allows for bad Theology. The word possessed was translated created in the Septuagint, though it was a bad translation, and also vs 23 "set up" and vs 24 "brought forth" seem to suggest a cause-effect relationship between God and Wisdom. Deniers of the Eternality of Christ have used this passage to argue God "brought forth" the Son. Therefore, the Son would not be coequal and coeternal with God. The Arians, and their modern versions such as Mormons or JW's, used this argument.
This is not a passage about Christology, as my dad says, and the Wisdom here, as in the rest of the book, is a personification of God's attribute of Wisdom.
B. God's Creative Wisdom (vs 24-31)
This shows as dad says, "God's Wisdom is awesome"
IV. Wisdom's Final Appeal (vs 32-36)
A. Final Request (vs 32-34)
Once again, "Listen Up!" Dad may have addressed this already, but I think part of Solomon's repetition is due to his own hardheadedness. Solomon made many of the same mistakes he's going to warn against in the book, so he knows constant reminders are necessary. vs 33 "refuse it not"
B. Final Results (vs 35-36)
Fittingly, chapter ends on a direct contrast: Finding Wisdom is finding Life, losing Wisdom is losing Life. Life here is not just Heaven, death not just Hell. Those are the points of no return, instead the Life we find though Wisdom is the "blessed Life" the day-day relationship with God. The death, a life of disappointment, judgement and failure.
Seems like an easy choice! Next week, chapter 9, even more evidence to help with the decision.
Sorry about the length. Last time I taught SS I finished just 15 min through the 50 min time block. Hoping to get at least 30 min deep this time.
Well, listening to the Braves-Mets game on the radio so gotta go. Pray for me on Sunday if you would please, I'd appreciate it.
I get Proverbs chapters 8 and 9. I'm pretty excited and, as usual, irrationally nervous. For some reason that I can't seem to put a finger on, I have a completely biological, and to this point unavoidable, physical reaction to speaking in front of people. Not just speaking, also singing, playing the piano and competing in an individual sports event/act. I shake, hands sweat, yawn uncontrollably, sick feeling in stomach, nothing particularly startling but definitely annoying. I've tried several things to alleviate said response but yet to no avail. Writing about it seems to cause it so I'll move on.
I'm going to try blogging a transcript of sorts for my lesson to see if that helps me organize my thoughts better. If you're going to be their Sunday and want to be surprised, skip this post. If you're going to be their Sunday and want to go to Mr.'s Blevins' or Moores' lessons, you get two for the price of one! If you're not going to be there, hopefully you'll enjoy.
(Outline is essentially stolen from my dad, seeing as he gave it to me)
Proverbs 8:1-36
Dad's Title: Wisdom's Extraordinary Value
1. Wisdom's Invitation (vs 1-3)
A. An open, free offer
What immediately jumps out is the contrast between the adulteress and Wisdom. "She standeth in the high places" "She crieth...at the coming in at the doors" Wisdom isn't hiding out to catch anybody. Nothing sneaky, no hidden agenda. The adulteress waited till the dark of night before pouncing, Wisdom shouts from the mountain.
She cries out from: a) The hilltops - where everyone can see ("top of high places")
b) The crossroads - where everyone will pass ("places of the paths")
c) The gates - where decisions are rendered
Wisdom wants everyone to see her, everyone to go with her, and everyone to use her help in their decisions. She's an obvious choice, the transparent option.
We can draw application to what Wisdom is like to how we should be - not only should we desire the Wisdom that is out in the open, we should live out in the open. We should be willing to "shout" our lives from the hilltop, or more directly, we should be able to shout our lives from the hilltop without shame. Folly, adulteress, has to hide or we'd see her true colors, Wisdom shines out brightly.
B. A practical offer
Someone wrote: "I would like a job as tutor, teacher, and adviser to your family. I will never take a vacation. I will never be out of humor. I don't drink or smoke. I won't borrow your clothes or raid your refrigerator. I will be up in the morning as early as anyone in the household and will stay up as late as anyone wishes. I will help solve any problems your children might have. I will give you the satisfaction of knowing that no questions your children ask will go unanswered. For that matter, I will answer any of your own questions on subjects that range from 'How did we get here?' to 'Where are we headed?' I will help settle differences of opinion. I will give you information that will help you with your job, you family, and all of your other interests. In short, I will give you the knowledge that will insure the continued success of your family. I am God's Word. Do I get the job?" -- Pastor David Whitcomb, our family's Pastor in South Carolina.
When I say Wisdom, when Solomon says Wisdom, he's not referring to an ethereal force which can be tapped into, or some sort of magical recipe for happiness. The Wisdom described here is God's Word. You're holding it and most of you have owned it nearly all your life. This is not an unattainable secret protected by some mysterious monks. It is the book you're reading out of right now.
We talk about the leading of the Holy Spirit. In this dispensation, the primary way to experience this leading is through the Word of God. Wisdom's call to "Hear" her voice is obeyed when we spend time reading, applying and living the Scriptures. This is not "esoteric and mystical but rather very practical for the believer" as my dad says.
II. Motivation to Accept Her Invitation (vs 4-21)
A. Wisdom cries out to all (vs 4-5)
Immediacy, A point of decision ("ye fools, be ye of an understanding heart")
The past several chapters, the same concepts, the value of Wisdom and the danger of Folly, have been reiterated again and again. Now is the time to respond. After a lecture like chapters 1-7, the only way to choose Folly would be unbelief, the information is all there. It's not a difficult decision, all things being equal. However, if we lack faith, if we don't believe that God and His way are best for us, if we listen to the flesh, world and Devil, we will choose Folly. Every act lacking Wisdom, is an act devoid of Faith. The Faith that says, God knows what is best, God knows what will be most effective, efficient and edifying, I need to trust Him.
B. Wisdom has excellent characteristics (vs 6-9)
Once again, almost casually, we are given a list of Wisdom's benefits.
1. Excellent - princely, above the wisdom of the world
2. Truth - correct, precise, not deceiving (unlike the adulteress)
3. Right - straight, the standard, contrasted to the twisted perversions of Folly
4. Plain - not difficult to understand
a. Dad describes verse 9 as a tautology, a phrase which describes itself. Understandable things are understandable to the understanding. Why does Solomon say this?
b. 1 Cor. 2:14 "But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned."
c. Notice the contrast between the "natural man" and "him that understandeth" God's Wisdom is only understood through the lens of the illumination of the Holy Spirit. Wisdom is the pair of glasses we are to see world through.
d. I would like to explain this further, but to do so, we need to talk about Immanuel Kant. It is extremely important to understand how we apply Wisdom to our lives and Kant describes it in a fascinating way. He was a very important philosopher in Germany, writing primarily in the mid to late 1700s. He has been called the "central figure of modern philosophy." He wrote several books, one of which discussed the ways and reasons people react to each other. In this book he describes "duty" or what we would call morality. The knowledge of what is the right thing to do. Prior to Kant's work, it was suggested morality was a result of experience. I see the man kill the other man. I see one man is dead, so not happy, other man is guilty, so not happy. Killing = bad. My experience informs my morality. This fails, mainly because sinful people find joy in sin, but also because no two people experience anything exactly the same way. Kant argued "duty" is a priori or without any prior cause. It is a part of us, a thing which makes us human. Boy he's close. The way he illustrated it, is with the rose colored glasses.
Have you ever been wearing you sun glasses so long you forgot you had them on? After awhile, you don't notice the darker shade which descended on the world when you put them on. Imagine for a minute you're in that situation and somebody asks you to describe a color. If you don't remember you're wearing your sunglasses, you will inevitably describe it to be a darker shade/version of the color the other person sees. Not only that, but if you're stubborn, and still forget you're wearing the sunglasses, you'll be inclined to argue your view. Only after you've remembered you've got the glasses on, or have removed them, you'll see they were changing your whole view of the world and the people in it. Not only do we see things differently, we expect everyone else to as well.
This is a bad thing, unless the glasses we are wearing are perfect. vs 8-9 "All the words of my mouth...are all plain to him that understandeth" could read "My instructions are obvious to the person with his glasses on." So what are a Christian's glasses?
The blood of Christ, the person of the Holy Spirit, and the Word of God. We see the world though those lenses and we'll experience all the benefits Wisdom describes in the next few verses.
C. Wisdom is More Valuable than Riches (vs 10-11)
Dad says "What good is stuff when you don't understand how to use the stuff or what its real value is?"
D. Wisdom is Godliness (vs 12-13)
vs 12 - Prudence - discerning, carefully making the right choice
- Knowledge of witty inventions - resourceful, crafty
vs 13 But not "Yankee ingenuity"
We've seen before (You've seen before) Wisdom = The Fear of the Lord and here is more equation. Wisdom = The Fear of the Lord = Hating evil, pride, arrogance, the evil way and a froward mouth
Wisdom is loving right and hating wrong. Having the same view of sin as God does. (Wearing our glasses)
E. Wisdom is Rewarding (vs 14-21)
More reiteration. The rewards of living wise.
vs 14-16 Wise counsel - answers questions
vs 17-21 Blessings - fulfills needs and desires
III. Description of the Wisdom That Is Offered (vs 22-31)
In Chapter 4 Dad briefly addressed Wisdom's role in Creation. This section hits that again with more detail. Consider that for a second. The same Wisdom that created the Universe is offering itself to you!
A. God's Eternal Wisdom
"The Lord possessed me in the beginning of His way" This Wisdom in an eternal attribute of God, His Omniscience.
Over the last 2000 years, Theologians have suggested this Wisdom is the 2nd person of the Trinity: Christ, the Logos. (The female pronouns and descriptions do not matter, the Hebrew word is feminine)
Very popular in the early church. Based on John's use of Logos describing Christ in John 1 and Paul's statement in 1 Cor 1 that Jesus is made Wisdom for believers.
Dad disagrees. I don't speak Greek or Hebrew, so I'm going to disagree too. :)
This interpretation allows for bad Theology. The word possessed was translated created in the Septuagint, though it was a bad translation, and also vs 23 "set up" and vs 24 "brought forth" seem to suggest a cause-effect relationship between God and Wisdom. Deniers of the Eternality of Christ have used this passage to argue God "brought forth" the Son. Therefore, the Son would not be coequal and coeternal with God. The Arians, and their modern versions such as Mormons or JW's, used this argument.
This is not a passage about Christology, as my dad says, and the Wisdom here, as in the rest of the book, is a personification of God's attribute of Wisdom.
B. God's Creative Wisdom (vs 24-31)
This shows as dad says, "God's Wisdom is awesome"
IV. Wisdom's Final Appeal (vs 32-36)
A. Final Request (vs 32-34)
Once again, "Listen Up!" Dad may have addressed this already, but I think part of Solomon's repetition is due to his own hardheadedness. Solomon made many of the same mistakes he's going to warn against in the book, so he knows constant reminders are necessary. vs 33 "refuse it not"
B. Final Results (vs 35-36)
Fittingly, chapter ends on a direct contrast: Finding Wisdom is finding Life, losing Wisdom is losing Life. Life here is not just Heaven, death not just Hell. Those are the points of no return, instead the Life we find though Wisdom is the "blessed Life" the day-day relationship with God. The death, a life of disappointment, judgement and failure.
Seems like an easy choice! Next week, chapter 9, even more evidence to help with the decision.
Sorry about the length. Last time I taught SS I finished just 15 min through the 50 min time block. Hoping to get at least 30 min deep this time.
Well, listening to the Braves-Mets game on the radio so gotta go. Pray for me on Sunday if you would please, I'd appreciate it.
Thursday, June 27, 2013
Prayer - What, When, Where, Why and How
That's enough NBA talk for a little while, back to something a little more important. I wouldn't begin to know who to source regarding my ideas on Prayer, I know CS Lewis, John Piper and my Dad have all played vital rolls in the formation of the following. However, there are many other things I've read and people I've heard that lead me to these conclusions. I'll try the W ?'s as a framework and see if that organizes this better.
What - Prayer is defined as "a devout petition to God, or an object of worship" on dictionary.com, "an invocation or act that seeks to to activate rapport with a deity, an object of worship, or a spiritual entity through deliberate communication" by wikipedia, which breaks my third rule of definition: don't use words that would need to be looked up when defining a word, but is a much fuller definition. In Scripture the word Prayer, Pray and Praying are used a combined 439 times in the Bible. Which is a statistic I've never understood the value of. Sure, when comparing particular author's word usages I get it, but not just intro-ing a sermon on a topic and rattling off its usage stats and various Greek & Hebrew modes. Nonetheless, despite only appearing 439 times, prayer is a very important topic in the Bible. There's no recorded instance of God pulling aside Adam, Noah, Abraham or any other Patriarchal figure and explaining to them how to talk to Him. The word prayer first appears in 2 Sam but I think its safe to assume the practice had been going on since the beginning of time itself. Of course, the "Lord's Prayer" story is the most commonly used template to teach how to pray and is also relates Christ teaching His disciples. However, do you think the disciples really didn't know how to pray? When they asked Christ to teach them, was it out of total ignorance in the process? These are Jews, they've been watching and participating in prayers their whole lives. They were asking for special guidance, not start-up instruction. Christ prayed differently because Christ was speaking to His Father within perfect harmony of His will.
My definition of prayer:
The intentional and sometimes audible presentation of praise, information and requests with expected results from the created to the Creator.
When - Paul tells us to "pray without ceasing" or "pray constantly." I've heard it preached that in a perfect world we could sit on our knees and talk to God all day. That's dumb. God is eternally long suffering so we can't annoy Him per se, but He created and saved us for a reason and as far as I can tell, it wasn't to sit on our knees all day. Maybe the Muslims are on to something here. Just like Daniel, they have set times to gather and pray. This is good and a lot of Christians I know are similar, just less public (which is recommended in the Sermon on the Mount) but it doesn't quite fit into "without ceasing." I don't think I'm going to blow anybody's mind by saying Paul is talking about maintaining a close, sharing, open communication channel between God and ourselves at all times. Does this mean we don't have to bless our meals? Yes. Is it a good practice to do it anyway? Of course it is. But my mom saying "You're going to choke on that because you ate it before we prayed" is frankly ridiculous. In fact, suggesting we can't start anything without "praying first" suggests we weren't praying to begin with, which misses the point entirely. Praying for ritual's sake cheapens the act. Prayer should be spontaneous, legitimate and passionate. However, I think we should also have public prayer before ballgames, meetings, meals and the Sunday morning offering. But public prayer is a different beast altogether than personal prayer, I'll explain more as we go.
Where - If we are praying "without ceasing" then everywhere. There are some recommendations though. The parable of the Publican and the Sinner shows that a prayer's legitimacy is dependent on the heart not the performance. This concept is attached to the corollary that requests made known to God in secret are fulfilled in the open. Meaning relying on God alone in our prayer lives will strengthen our faith more, make us more like Christ (who prayed alone on numerous occasions) and promises results.
Side note - teaching "how to get prayers answered" is borderline blasphemous. God is not a tool to be used or a daddy figure to be manipulated. Take care
Why - Everything we do should be to the Glory of God, correct? So prayer fits into that same category. In the case of public prayer, a benediction or invocation at the beginning or end of an event symbolizes God's presence there, His power over the proceedings and the utter dependence on Him of the participants. This is beneficial for all in attendance and I believe "beneficial" to God in that it gives Him glory or as we've mentioned before, demonstrates His glory fuller.
Side note - If you think Ben Franklin's request to open the Constitutional Congress session with prayer is evidence of his faith, consider these facts. 1 - Franklin was a well-documented Deist who believed God had no or little interest in the affairs of men and 2 - the task facing the members of that Congress was enormous to say the least. I believe Franklin was showing his hand regarding prayer and throwing up what was in his mind the most desperate "Hail Mary" (pun intended) he could think of. I suggested as much my sophomore year in "Early American Political Thought" and the prof, who has since retired, about burned me at the stake. oh well.
In regards to personal prayer. The benefits for an individual frequently praying are clear - a closer relationship to God, there are more chances to repent so sins have less of chance to fester, constant prayer means Christ-like thinking more often which wards off sins to begin with, a more direct connection can be made between requests and results which increases faith, the transforming power of the Holy Ghost which works through direct contact with the Divine (this occurs only 2 ways: prayer and the reading/meditation of Scripture), etc.
How - as I said before, "how to pray in order to get results" is a false teaching. Christ lays out a template in the Lord's Prayer, the Saxon Paraphrase goes like this:
Heavenly Father, the Almighty God,
may your perfect will be accomplished,
You've promised to provide and as You know I need ________, thank You for Your provision.
Forgive me for ______ and help me to forgive ________ for __________, thank You for You forgiveness. Protect me from myself and the darkness of this World, thank You for Your protection. In the name of the Christ, the Supreme King Jesus, Amen.
Braves have won only 13 of their last 36 on the road. They dropped yesterday's in extras to the Royals. This 3 games series is their first ever at Kauffman stadium, one of 2 active stadiums Chipper Jones never played in. They did win game 1 however, Jason Heyward blasting off in a big way with 3 rbis and a big fly. As the All-Star game approaches here are my picks for the starters, always a bunch of tough picks:
NL
C - YMolina 1B - FFreeman 2B - MCarpenter SS - TTulowitzki (hurt but deserving) 3B - DWright
LF - JUpton CF - SChoo RF - CBeltran
Bench - JVotto, PGoldschmidt, YPuig, BHarper, ACraig, CGonzalez, JSegura (start), CGomez, BPosey
SP - AWainwright
AL
C - CSantana 1B - CDavis 2B - RCano SS - JJHardy 3B - MCabrera DH - PFielder
LF - AGordon CF - AJones RF - NCruz
Bench - NMarkakis, JLowrie, YCespedes, JMauer, MNapoli, JEllsbury, VMartinez, JBautista
SP - MScherzer
Thursday, June 13, 2013
A Theology of Regret
My wife would not hesitate to tell you that she and I come from very different backgrounds. One of the areas that has moved to the forefront of our relationship is our mindset towards decisions. On one hand, I make decisions with irrational confidence. I launch myself towards a door, even if its only open a crack, merely based on a "gut feeling" or "seems like God is orchestrating this." I have no fear of failing, failure is inevitable and the mortar with which we build our lives. Jenni has lived with a different mindset for most of her life. A caution to the extreme which is more concerned with one thing above all else: regret.
Every decision is painstakingly slow if the primary thought is, "I really don't want to pick the wrong thing, what if I regret it?" There are several logical and theological problems with this mindset, and I've been slowing showing my very teachable wife the wonder a life free from worry can be. So, I'll share some of my thoughts here.
I don't want to call it regret-free because that sounds too much like the YOLO, live life to the fullest crowd. But because I don't have a good name for it yet, I'd love your help by the way, I'll call it just that. To be regret-free you have to have certain presuppositions.
First - God is in control. It all comes down to this, the rest of the thought process revolves around God's sovereign authority over everything. From Creation to Christ to the 2nd Coming and Cosmic Ending (oh yeah) we are taught one thing above all else, God > _____. Regret-Free living is "God > _____" thinking. (Copyright 2013 PrinceofSaxony)
Second - God loves you. His sovereignty would be the most frightening truth possible were it not for His love. However, knowing His love compels us to Trust Him. As Paul says in Romans 8:28-29, Saxon Paraphrase Version (SPV) "God has planned out everything for His children's gain, the ones He handpicked and saved and is perfecting to be like Christ."
--- Side note, I prefer to paraphrase scripture for two reasons, #1 - I try not to fill my writing with quotes, this is supposed to be what I think #2 - You don't truly understand something until you can paraphrase it ---
Third - Sometimes there is no right choice. This may be the toughest one for some people to swallow. But lets face it, Big Mac or Double Quarter Pounder? They're both so good and yet they're both so so bad. Poor example, I know, but the concept should be clear, millions of times each day we make innocuous decisions, why fret over them? This shirt or that shirt? Apple or Banana? Apple or Microsoft? (We both know there's a right answer to that one...Microsoft) The list goes on and on. I have seen people, my beautiful wife in particular, slave over such simple decisions because they're afraid of making the "wrong" one. As Kevin DeYoung so elegantly put it, "Just Do Something" (I have the book, haven't sat down and read all the way through it, too busy just doing something I suppose).
So, there's the foundation to regret-free living. Recognizing when a decision is not right/wrong, acknowledging God's love for me, and keeping "God >" at the front of my mind. This leads to the ultimate question, what if two good people disagree on what's right/wrong? How do I know who to listen to? "If I speak I am condemned, but if I stay silent...I am damned." Catch 22s, "rock and a hard place" situations, strain even the calmest regret-free lifer. However, if God is truly in control then no situation find myself in is the "wrong" one. Also, if God truly loves me, then I will be able to handle any difficulty with His help. I don't have to worry that I lost some chance to serve, or lost some reward somewhere, we can't go back in time. Regret leads to despair and in despair lurks death. I would venture that a sizable majority of suicides stem from regret. Granted, some are spurred by impending consequences but the thought pattern that results in the false-escape of suicide most often is a cesspool of regret and despair.
The Theology of Regret also introduces an enormous amount of stress into your life. I sounds goofy, but living regret-free is healthier. Not YOLO, gonna party like the Epicureans, regret-free. But no-regret, make a choice and live in the confidence that 1 Peter 4:19 is true: (SVP) "We endure this life knowing that our King, the Creator God, who we can trust explicitly, is holding us in His hands." regret-free.
Should we regret sin? No. and yes. But mostly no. Did Christ die on the cross for my sin? Yes. Did He die for my sins already committed, that is past sins? Yes. But didn't He also die for the sins yet to be committed? Of course. Does this mean I should go out and sin? Of course not! But, Romans 8:1 reminds us of the most liberating truth, "For Christ's children, the verdict is not guilty." (SVP) Hey, David wept over his sin. True, and he begged for forgiveness. He didn't write a Psalm that said, "People of Israel, I have massively erred and therefore must remove myself from the ministry God has appointed me to and forever be marked a failure in the Christian Life" although if you look around in today's Evangelical circles, you'd think he did. True repentance releases regret. Let that sink in, cuz its HUGE. Place your sins at the cross and let Christ give you the gift of new life. Let me rephrase, live in the freedom and blessing Christ died to secure for you, not in the bondage of guilt Satan works tirelessly to maintain.
Are you living in regret? Stop it, and don't worry about it if you think you are, cuz that's just more regret about being in regret, and it can cycle for awhile, just ask my wife. Instead, change your thinking altogether, through the renewing of your mind by the power of the Holy Spirit, and focus on "God >" and His undying (and dying but resurrected) love for you.
Braves just dropped 3 straight to San Diego, ugh, but we pitched pretty well, just can't get any consistency from the lineup. Nasty, no good, horrible parallels between this team and late 90s Braves teams are cropping up, but I'll ignore them and maybe they'll go away. Home for 3 with the Mets and 4 with the Giants before coming up here to MILWAUKEE!!!! WHIPEEEEEEE!!!! Already gots my tix for all 3 games, come out and support America's Team - if you don't you're a traitor and should watch out for the NSA cuz they're watching you.
Every decision is painstakingly slow if the primary thought is, "I really don't want to pick the wrong thing, what if I regret it?" There are several logical and theological problems with this mindset, and I've been slowing showing my very teachable wife the wonder a life free from worry can be. So, I'll share some of my thoughts here.
I don't want to call it regret-free because that sounds too much like the YOLO, live life to the fullest crowd. But because I don't have a good name for it yet, I'd love your help by the way, I'll call it just that. To be regret-free you have to have certain presuppositions.
First - God is in control. It all comes down to this, the rest of the thought process revolves around God's sovereign authority over everything. From Creation to Christ to the 2nd Coming and Cosmic Ending (oh yeah) we are taught one thing above all else, God > _____. Regret-Free living is "God > _____" thinking. (Copyright 2013 PrinceofSaxony)
Second - God loves you. His sovereignty would be the most frightening truth possible were it not for His love. However, knowing His love compels us to Trust Him. As Paul says in Romans 8:28-29, Saxon Paraphrase Version (SPV) "God has planned out everything for His children's gain, the ones He handpicked and saved and is perfecting to be like Christ."
--- Side note, I prefer to paraphrase scripture for two reasons, #1 - I try not to fill my writing with quotes, this is supposed to be what I think #2 - You don't truly understand something until you can paraphrase it ---
Third - Sometimes there is no right choice. This may be the toughest one for some people to swallow. But lets face it, Big Mac or Double Quarter Pounder? They're both so good and yet they're both so so bad. Poor example, I know, but the concept should be clear, millions of times each day we make innocuous decisions, why fret over them? This shirt or that shirt? Apple or Banana? Apple or Microsoft? (We both know there's a right answer to that one...Microsoft) The list goes on and on. I have seen people, my beautiful wife in particular, slave over such simple decisions because they're afraid of making the "wrong" one. As Kevin DeYoung so elegantly put it, "Just Do Something" (I have the book, haven't sat down and read all the way through it, too busy just doing something I suppose).
So, there's the foundation to regret-free living. Recognizing when a decision is not right/wrong, acknowledging God's love for me, and keeping "God >" at the front of my mind. This leads to the ultimate question, what if two good people disagree on what's right/wrong? How do I know who to listen to? "If I speak I am condemned, but if I stay silent...I am damned." Catch 22s, "rock and a hard place" situations, strain even the calmest regret-free lifer. However, if God is truly in control then no situation find myself in is the "wrong" one. Also, if God truly loves me, then I will be able to handle any difficulty with His help. I don't have to worry that I lost some chance to serve, or lost some reward somewhere, we can't go back in time. Regret leads to despair and in despair lurks death. I would venture that a sizable majority of suicides stem from regret. Granted, some are spurred by impending consequences but the thought pattern that results in the false-escape of suicide most often is a cesspool of regret and despair.
The Theology of Regret also introduces an enormous amount of stress into your life. I sounds goofy, but living regret-free is healthier. Not YOLO, gonna party like the Epicureans, regret-free. But no-regret, make a choice and live in the confidence that 1 Peter 4:19 is true: (SVP) "We endure this life knowing that our King, the Creator God, who we can trust explicitly, is holding us in His hands." regret-free.
Should we regret sin? No. and yes. But mostly no. Did Christ die on the cross for my sin? Yes. Did He die for my sins already committed, that is past sins? Yes. But didn't He also die for the sins yet to be committed? Of course. Does this mean I should go out and sin? Of course not! But, Romans 8:1 reminds us of the most liberating truth, "For Christ's children, the verdict is not guilty." (SVP) Hey, David wept over his sin. True, and he begged for forgiveness. He didn't write a Psalm that said, "People of Israel, I have massively erred and therefore must remove myself from the ministry God has appointed me to and forever be marked a failure in the Christian Life" although if you look around in today's Evangelical circles, you'd think he did. True repentance releases regret. Let that sink in, cuz its HUGE. Place your sins at the cross and let Christ give you the gift of new life. Let me rephrase, live in the freedom and blessing Christ died to secure for you, not in the bondage of guilt Satan works tirelessly to maintain.
Are you living in regret? Stop it, and don't worry about it if you think you are, cuz that's just more regret about being in regret, and it can cycle for awhile, just ask my wife. Instead, change your thinking altogether, through the renewing of your mind by the power of the Holy Spirit, and focus on "God >" and His undying (and dying but resurrected) love for you.
Braves just dropped 3 straight to San Diego, ugh, but we pitched pretty well, just can't get any consistency from the lineup. Nasty, no good, horrible parallels between this team and late 90s Braves teams are cropping up, but I'll ignore them and maybe they'll go away. Home for 3 with the Mets and 4 with the Giants before coming up here to MILWAUKEE!!!! WHIPEEEEEEE!!!! Already gots my tix for all 3 games, come out and support America's Team - if you don't you're a traitor and should watch out for the NSA cuz they're watching you.
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
The Kingdom of Heaven
Some thoughts, though not organized well because sometimes I just need to ramble.
Seemingly contradictory statements in Scripture are where most of the major Christian controversies are born. The most discussed in Evangelical circles are Calvinism vs Arminianism, the Atonement, and the Kingdom. The first two I may devote a post or series of posts too in the future, but today I'd like to tackle the third.
The contradictions that introduce the argument come straight from the teachings of Christ, so suggesting that they truly are contradictions is a gross misunderstanding and near-blasphemous misrepresentation of Christ Himself. "The Kingdom of Heaven is like..." beings several Parables which are given directly to His disciples. Couple those with the Sermon on the Mount and several statements Christ made to various people and you get a somewhat hazy but important theology of the Kingdom. Here's the Saxon Paraphrase Bible version.
So, open your Bibles to Matthew chapter 3...
John the Baptist is preaching and he says "Jesus is coming" but he uses the words "The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!"
then in chapter 4
Christ preaches the exact same thing as John - "I'm here" but He also uses these words "The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand"
chapter 5
He gathers a group of followers, people who were interested in Him because of His miracles, His words and probably curiosity. He describes to them how a Kingdom citizen is to live. He describes a moral person with a love for God and man. He describes someone interested in what God thinks and with a keen sense of the suffering of others. He describes someone who isn't selfish, isn't greedy, isn't blood-thirsty, and most of all isn't prideful. He uses contemporaries (the Pharisees) as an example of how not to be a Kingdom citizen. He is describing a culture, but a culture of ideas and paradigms not actions. When he says "blessed are the poor" He means "happiness comes from spiritual things, not material" when he says "love your enemy" he means "we are in a struggle for souls, not territory, we are not trying to conquer the world, we are trying to convert the masses". This is not a description of thousands of years from then. This is not Heaven in the sense of Zion with the elders, angels, beasts, and the golden streets. This is Heaven, Christ reigning over the people of His church, His own flesh and blood, the Body of the Living King. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
chapter 10
Christ commissions his "army" to go an preach the same thing "I'm here, your King has arrived" using those same words "The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand"
chapter 11
The Kingdom of Heaven is filled with Saints, and those Saints are the most valuable things in God's Universe
chapter 12
Christ casts out demons either by Satan (illogical) or by God (logical) and then draws the corollary that if it is by God then the Kingdom is here
chapter 13
starting at verse 24,
The Kingdom of Heaven is like a group of people, some of which are followers of Christ, some of which are not --- and they won't be separated until its time to judge finally.
now at verse 31,
The Kingdom of Heaven is greatness born out of small, specific actions, thoughts and ideas
verse 33
The Kingdom of Heaven should (and will) permeate every aspect of your life
verse 44 & 45
The Kingdom of Heaven should be valued above all else
verse 47
The Kingdom of Heaven will be purified, and the judgement will make sure of it -- this and the sower shows that at first it will not be pure, and that it will need to be purified
chapter 16
Here's where you've got some "contradiction"
Christ hands Peter the "keys to the Kingdom" (seemingly future tense) and then declares that those present will "not taste death till they see the coming of the Son of Man in His Kingdom" (also seemingly future) I think these back me up from my previous claims in the Sermon on the Mount. Christ was telling them that His crucifixion, resurrection (the coming of the Son of Man in His Kingdom) and Ascension were very near (even could be described as "at hand"), so near the listeners would not have time to die.
How do you describe getting saved to a 5 year old? Jesus Christ is coming to live in your heart.
What is He doing there? Reigning. Unlike the sin that before had "reigned in your mortal body" He is King now. The Church is His body and the Kingdom is then/now/then. Or as my dad says (he didn't originate it, just "bleeds it" haha) already, not yet.
So, am I an amillennial, Heaven Forbid! The same common sense approach to Kingdom teaching allows for a common sense Eschatology suggesting that when John describes a 1000 yr period of physical a Kingdom with particular defining aspects (such as Saints judging Angels, the reinstatement of Israel, the bodily reign of Christ in Jerusalem, the binding and eventual loosing of Satan and the final judgment) he isn't drawing pictures.
Next time, possibly I'll address missions in light of the Kingdom mandates, or not I'll see how I'm feeling.
Braves are going through a bit of an up and down stretch. JUpton is mired in a horrible slump which has countered the emergence of Uggla's and BJ's production. It is becoming evident that the reason the Braves are good is because their starting pitching is phenomenal. That leads to a difficult query - who does Brandon Beachy replace? BB was the staff ace, no doubt about it, before he had to get TJ. Now Minor is the 2nd or 3rd best lefty in the NL (Kershaw, Lee, Corbin and Minor is some order), Medlen is the guy who started 25 straight wins last year, Maholm has been stellar, Huddy is a future HoFamer and Teheran has given up more than 2 runs only 3 times over his last 9 starts. I hate to say it, but either Juilo gets sent down or Maholm gets traded, but we better get half the farm and an impact now reliever or Frank's got some 'splainin to do.
Seemingly contradictory statements in Scripture are where most of the major Christian controversies are born. The most discussed in Evangelical circles are Calvinism vs Arminianism, the Atonement, and the Kingdom. The first two I may devote a post or series of posts too in the future, but today I'd like to tackle the third.
The contradictions that introduce the argument come straight from the teachings of Christ, so suggesting that they truly are contradictions is a gross misunderstanding and near-blasphemous misrepresentation of Christ Himself. "The Kingdom of Heaven is like..." beings several Parables which are given directly to His disciples. Couple those with the Sermon on the Mount and several statements Christ made to various people and you get a somewhat hazy but important theology of the Kingdom. Here's the Saxon Paraphrase Bible version.
So, open your Bibles to Matthew chapter 3...
John the Baptist is preaching and he says "Jesus is coming" but he uses the words "The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!"
then in chapter 4
Christ preaches the exact same thing as John - "I'm here" but He also uses these words "The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand"
chapter 5
He gathers a group of followers, people who were interested in Him because of His miracles, His words and probably curiosity. He describes to them how a Kingdom citizen is to live. He describes a moral person with a love for God and man. He describes someone interested in what God thinks and with a keen sense of the suffering of others. He describes someone who isn't selfish, isn't greedy, isn't blood-thirsty, and most of all isn't prideful. He uses contemporaries (the Pharisees) as an example of how not to be a Kingdom citizen. He is describing a culture, but a culture of ideas and paradigms not actions. When he says "blessed are the poor" He means "happiness comes from spiritual things, not material" when he says "love your enemy" he means "we are in a struggle for souls, not territory, we are not trying to conquer the world, we are trying to convert the masses". This is not a description of thousands of years from then. This is not Heaven in the sense of Zion with the elders, angels, beasts, and the golden streets. This is Heaven, Christ reigning over the people of His church, His own flesh and blood, the Body of the Living King. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
chapter 10
Christ commissions his "army" to go an preach the same thing "I'm here, your King has arrived" using those same words "The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand"
chapter 11
The Kingdom of Heaven is filled with Saints, and those Saints are the most valuable things in God's Universe
chapter 12
Christ casts out demons either by Satan (illogical) or by God (logical) and then draws the corollary that if it is by God then the Kingdom is here
chapter 13
starting at verse 24,
The Kingdom of Heaven is like a group of people, some of which are followers of Christ, some of which are not --- and they won't be separated until its time to judge finally.
now at verse 31,
The Kingdom of Heaven is greatness born out of small, specific actions, thoughts and ideas
verse 33
The Kingdom of Heaven should (and will) permeate every aspect of your life
verse 44 & 45
The Kingdom of Heaven should be valued above all else
verse 47
The Kingdom of Heaven will be purified, and the judgement will make sure of it -- this and the sower shows that at first it will not be pure, and that it will need to be purified
chapter 16
Here's where you've got some "contradiction"
Christ hands Peter the "keys to the Kingdom" (seemingly future tense) and then declares that those present will "not taste death till they see the coming of the Son of Man in His Kingdom" (also seemingly future) I think these back me up from my previous claims in the Sermon on the Mount. Christ was telling them that His crucifixion, resurrection (the coming of the Son of Man in His Kingdom) and Ascension were very near (even could be described as "at hand"), so near the listeners would not have time to die.
How do you describe getting saved to a 5 year old? Jesus Christ is coming to live in your heart.
What is He doing there? Reigning. Unlike the sin that before had "reigned in your mortal body" He is King now. The Church is His body and the Kingdom is then/now/then. Or as my dad says (he didn't originate it, just "bleeds it" haha) already, not yet.
So, am I an amillennial, Heaven Forbid! The same common sense approach to Kingdom teaching allows for a common sense Eschatology suggesting that when John describes a 1000 yr period of physical a Kingdom with particular defining aspects (such as Saints judging Angels, the reinstatement of Israel, the bodily reign of Christ in Jerusalem, the binding and eventual loosing of Satan and the final judgment) he isn't drawing pictures.
Next time, possibly I'll address missions in light of the Kingdom mandates, or not I'll see how I'm feeling.
Braves are going through a bit of an up and down stretch. JUpton is mired in a horrible slump which has countered the emergence of Uggla's and BJ's production. It is becoming evident that the reason the Braves are good is because their starting pitching is phenomenal. That leads to a difficult query - who does Brandon Beachy replace? BB was the staff ace, no doubt about it, before he had to get TJ. Now Minor is the 2nd or 3rd best lefty in the NL (Kershaw, Lee, Corbin and Minor is some order), Medlen is the guy who started 25 straight wins last year, Maholm has been stellar, Huddy is a future HoFamer and Teheran has given up more than 2 runs only 3 times over his last 9 starts. I hate to say it, but either Juilo gets sent down or Maholm gets traded, but we better get half the farm and an impact now reliever or Frank's got some 'splainin to do.
Thursday, May 9, 2013
Eine Kleine Theologie
I haven't written much regarding my specific Theological bent. Here goes somethings.
God.
I believe God is.
I believe God was.
I believe God will be.
I believe God is independent of anything.
I believe God occupies space-time but also exists outside of it.
I believe God created space-time.
I believe God created space-time out of nothing.
I believe God has complete control over space-time and everything in it.
I believe God is perfect.
I believe God is always right.
I believe God will never change.
I believe God is the standard for everything good.
I believe God cares.
I believe God has a purpose.
I believe God won.
I do not believe God created evil.
I do not believe God needs anything.
I do not believe God is obligated to do anything.
I do not believe God vainly promises.
I do not believe God is conceivable.
I do not believe God had to compete.
I do not believe God is alone. (In that, He is 3-in-1 a Being of relationship)
I do not believe God is a sociological concept derived from natural occurrences meant to entrench the higher class.
I do not believe God can be used to obtain peace, wealth, fame or power.
I do not believe God can be used.
I do not believe God is me.
I do not believe God is nature.
I do not believe God is all things but instead all is from and as a result of Him.
I do not believe God is unfair.
I do not believe God is a dualistic necessity representing the good against the bad.
I want to know which of these y'all want more on instead of doing a talk on each. Hit me back. And Shane, can't you hear Trip-Lee doing this list?
God.
I believe God is.
I believe God was.
I believe God will be.
I believe God is independent of anything.
I believe God occupies space-time but also exists outside of it.
I believe God created space-time.
I believe God created space-time out of nothing.
I believe God has complete control over space-time and everything in it.
I believe God is perfect.
I believe God is always right.
I believe God will never change.
I believe God is the standard for everything good.
I believe God cares.
I believe God has a purpose.
I believe God won.
I do not believe God created evil.
I do not believe God needs anything.
I do not believe God is obligated to do anything.
I do not believe God vainly promises.
I do not believe God is conceivable.
I do not believe God had to compete.
I do not believe God is alone. (In that, He is 3-in-1 a Being of relationship)
I do not believe God is a sociological concept derived from natural occurrences meant to entrench the higher class.
I do not believe God can be used to obtain peace, wealth, fame or power.
I do not believe God can be used.
I do not believe God is me.
I do not believe God is nature.
I do not believe God is all things but instead all is from and as a result of Him.
I do not believe God is unfair.
I do not believe God is a dualistic necessity representing the good against the bad.
I want to know which of these y'all want more on instead of doing a talk on each. Hit me back. And Shane, can't you hear Trip-Lee doing this list?
Friday, March 29, 2013
Postmodern Utilitarian Pragmatic
After many discussions with my Premodern Neo-Platonic bother I have decided to start putting down what I think about stuff.
"Thinky" stuff.
Mostly for my own benefit as I often have a great answer for one of his arguments and then forget it an hour later, but also to point others to in case the need were to arise.
So I'll start with a Philosophical introduction of myself.
I am a Radically Conservative Postmodern Utilitarian Pragmatic Christian Independent Baptist.
Let's break that down a little.
Radical - I tend to be 100% into things. To "nerd" them if you will. Anything from Sports to Music to organizing my wife's medical bills. All the other qualifiers (Conservative, Postmodern...etc) are increased in magnitude by this radicalism. In other words, I am Radically Christian, Radically Utilitarian and Radically Radical. This not only describes my fervor but also the tendency for my "positions" to be less than mainstream. Fringe may be too strong of a word, but in many ways it is apropos. This also gives me the freedom to distance myself from less-than attractive adherents to any one of the above descriptors. Many pragmatists are not my allies, but I can call my self a Pragmatic because I am a radical.
Conservative - I am historically aware. I am politically red and I am theologically narrow. My radicalism is tempered by a desire to be in-line with THE Standard. This balance will be the topic of many posts in the future.
Postmodern - I reject the notion, that in the created realm, apart from God's direct impact, there is a perceivable absolute truth. Here my bother and I part ways, goofy kid. Keep this is mind if you intend to engage me, I will look for inconsistencies, because I feel they are the building blocks of the universe.
Utilitarian Pragmatic - These are so very closely related, I thought I'd join them together. It works better that way and accomplishes my purpose which means its a good idea.
Christian - I believe I was born in direct rejection of the Supreme Being, my Creator, God (Yahweh, Jehovah as described in the Bible). That He was fully just in destroying me, even deciding not to create me, but instead chose to give me life. In doing so, He demonstrated both His power over me and His love for me. I am not a Christian because I want to be, though I desperately do. I am a Christian because that's who I am made to be.
Independent Baptist - Very specific terms regarding my theological leanings, though they are derived from the same philosophical base as my political leanings. Freedom and Life are the two highest goals of a human being. Your definitions of those words determine everything.
So there you go. Next post (Tuesday or Wednesday next week) will be on Relativism. (MY FAVORITE)
"Thinky" stuff.
Mostly for my own benefit as I often have a great answer for one of his arguments and then forget it an hour later, but also to point others to in case the need were to arise.
So I'll start with a Philosophical introduction of myself.
I am a Radically Conservative Postmodern Utilitarian Pragmatic Christian Independent Baptist.
Let's break that down a little.
Radical - I tend to be 100% into things. To "nerd" them if you will. Anything from Sports to Music to organizing my wife's medical bills. All the other qualifiers (Conservative, Postmodern...etc) are increased in magnitude by this radicalism. In other words, I am Radically Christian, Radically Utilitarian and Radically Radical. This not only describes my fervor but also the tendency for my "positions" to be less than mainstream. Fringe may be too strong of a word, but in many ways it is apropos. This also gives me the freedom to distance myself from less-than attractive adherents to any one of the above descriptors. Many pragmatists are not my allies, but I can call my self a Pragmatic because I am a radical.
Conservative - I am historically aware. I am politically red and I am theologically narrow. My radicalism is tempered by a desire to be in-line with THE Standard. This balance will be the topic of many posts in the future.
Postmodern - I reject the notion, that in the created realm, apart from God's direct impact, there is a perceivable absolute truth. Here my bother and I part ways, goofy kid. Keep this is mind if you intend to engage me, I will look for inconsistencies, because I feel they are the building blocks of the universe.
Utilitarian Pragmatic - These are so very closely related, I thought I'd join them together. It works better that way and accomplishes my purpose which means its a good idea.
Christian - I believe I was born in direct rejection of the Supreme Being, my Creator, God (Yahweh, Jehovah as described in the Bible). That He was fully just in destroying me, even deciding not to create me, but instead chose to give me life. In doing so, He demonstrated both His power over me and His love for me. I am not a Christian because I want to be, though I desperately do. I am a Christian because that's who I am made to be.
Independent Baptist - Very specific terms regarding my theological leanings, though they are derived from the same philosophical base as my political leanings. Freedom and Life are the two highest goals of a human being. Your definitions of those words determine everything.
So there you go. Next post (Tuesday or Wednesday next week) will be on Relativism. (MY FAVORITE)
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