Proper Teaching Style

"But as for you, teach what accords with sound doctrine"  (Titus 2:1, ESV).
"But even if I'm uneducated in public speaking, I'm not uneducated in knowledge"  (2 Cor. 11:6, CEV).

There is hardly a comparison between teaching and preaching, and between a Bible study or class and a sermon--viva la difference!  In Bible studies or Sunday school, there is an encouragement of student involvement and participation, while people are basically passive and attentive during a sermon, though they can take notes.  The two are separate gifts and all teachers don't necessarily make good preachers and vice versa. Teaching is not a performance where one is judged by his dramatics or personal style.  Reading is usually considered a no-no by professors of homiletics, but some preachers are such good readers and know their material so well they get away with breaking the so-called rules--on the other hand, reading notes and hand-outs for listeners are practically always appropriate for Bible studies.

God is able to work through personalities and use them accordingly--Scripture was even written respecting individual personality and style.  Paul was known for being "bold from far away" or in letters, but "timid in person" (cf. 2 Cor. 10:1, NLT).  He probably wasn't your typical type A personality or mover-and-shaker spokesman like Peter most likely was.  We must be careful in judging teachers and/or preachers by their personality or charisma, for false teachers shall arise and deceive many--we are to test the Spirit, and to hold them accountable to true doctrine, exposing heresy.  Truth does matter and we are sanctified by the truth.  When the preacher is done, he doesn't want to hear, if he knows the Lord, that he did a good job, or that he's a good speaker, he wants to know if God spoke to their hearts, touched, and convicted them!  There are many good speakers out there who are characters and heretics, but people are nevertheless fooled and deceived.

One of the biggest lies today in the church is the presence and dissemination of prosperity theology, or that it's always God's will to prosper believers financially and they should cash in on the spiritual lottery.   The Bible makes it clear that some people's reward is in this life, and that the wicked to indeed prosper. Prosperity is no sign of God's blessing nor a litmus test that He is delighted in you.  Obedience is the only measure of faith, not even ecstasies, experiences, or achievements.

Just because a church has become a megachurch doesn't mean we can infer that it's doing God's will, and some pastors are simply great entrepreneurs and businessmen, not spiritual leaders.  Religion was never meant as a means of getting rich or to cash in on one's faith.  We must have a quest for the truth and being ever vigilant to heresy in the church, for when we become blase to it, we lose the focus and aren't keeping the main thing the main thing.   You're better off in a church with an expositor of the Word, or great biblicist of the first order, or even old-fashioned exegete than one who knows how to gather crowds by preaching what's popular, like eschatological themes, i.e., prophecy and end times.   We aren't looking for great leadership ability, because the preacher and teacher are basically servants of all the church members in toto and should be dedicating his time to study and disseminating the Word.

The studious preacher or teacher doesn't spoon-feed the flock of God, but feeds the sheep as well as the lambs, giving meat in due season, and not neglecting the milk of the Word for those not ready for solid food--there's something for everyone, with no one going away unspoken to through the ministry of the Lord's anointing.  The wise preacher knows where the sheep are spiritually, and doesn't ever preach over their heads, nor talk down to them either, but meets everyone's needs and God is able to speak to their hearts so they will know to recognize the voice of the Lord.

Note that the exhortation is to teach sound doctrine, not to teach with the homiletic devices of charisma, histrionics, or personality--it is of utmost value that the preacher/teacher knows his way around the block theologically and not to ever bail out theologically either, but to be ever vigilant to heresy creeping in and defiling many through false teachers, who may be personable and have magnetic personas.  It is much more important than the disseminator of truth use sound, biblical interpretive techniques that he is trained in public speaking or oratorical skill.  The faith must be in the Word of God not in some show the preacher puts on or exercise of his brilliance or scholarship that is intended to impress and wow the listener.

In the final analysis, God rewards faithfulness more than sheer skill or natural talent, or even education (D. L. Moody never went to a seminary, yet God just chose to anoint him to preach the gospel, not to mention the Prince of Preachers, Charles Haddon Spurgeon!). Before preaching we ought to have done our homework, prepared ourselves spiritually, and have faith God will use us.  Always "Preach the Word (cf. 2 Tim. 4:2), and do not give in to "itching ears," giving people what they crave or are curious about.  Consequently, we ought to make it our aim to preach, not like we have studied preaching and know the art, but that it be demonstrated we know the Lord.  Above all, aim to be praised by God, not man!    Soli Deo Gloria! 

Worshiping Faux Gods

"... You must acknowledge no God but me, for there is no other savior" (Hosea 13:4, NLT).

There are pseudo-gods, because there is a genuine God, who is the real thing, and all other so-called gods are counterfeits, poor excuses for, and a parody of the Real McCoy.  Evil is not the opposite of good, and couldn't exist apart from good.  It's the perversion and parasite of good and the lack or depravity of it.  It is a leech on the goodness of God and thrives by imitation and dependence since Satan is no original, but a copycat or spoiler.  People tend to think that the more gods they have the safer or more secure they are.  This was the case with Israel with Elijah when he asked them which one they will serve, as they halted between the two--Baal or God.  Baal was the god of fertility (family, fields, and flock) and they felt it couldn't hurt to have him on their side.

If we have the Almighty God of All-Sufficient One (El Shaddai) on our side, we need no other gods and have all we need.  God is sufficient to meet all our needs and fulfill our hearts, making us complete in Christ.  That's precisely what the Jehovah texts mean and the great I AM implies--God is everything to us and all we could ever need or want to be fulfilled. If we possess Him, we have all we need! 

The trouble with false gods is that they don't satisfy and leave a desire for more and other gods.  As Augustine said, "You have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in you."  Pascal described our heart and soul as having a vacuum only God can fill!  You can never get enough fame to be satisfied, nor enough money to feel totally happy and content neither can power fulfill, since power corrupts and only makes you crave for more.  Lust is the unhealthy desire for something, and there can be a righteous acquisition of fame, power, or wealth that has God's blessing, but this only happens when one puts God first:  "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you"  (cf. Matt. 6:33, KJV).  God does promise to meet all our needs per Phil. 4:19, but not necessarily our felt needs or wants, and we must trust that God has our benefit in mind as our Benefactor.  It is unfortunate that some seek the benefits apart from the Benefactor though.

There are several false gods that can overwhelm a Christian and lead him astray:  money or mammon (note that Proverbs says that he who loves money is never satisfied with money and Job objects self-righteously that he has never made gold his security); success or achievements (God doesn't want your achievements--He wants your obedience and most importantly He wants you!); science and technology (this is neutral in itself, but we can get over fascinated and obsessed with it--modern achievements tend to lesson our faith in the power of God); sexual lust or libido gone awry; heroes or people in general (think of how celebrities, politicians, and athletes inspire us and people emulate and idolize them); family or children; (we are to "hate" our mother, father, etc., i.e., compared to Christ, and we never should put our hopes and security in these relationships--too many live vicariously through them and don't find personal fulfillment); glory (we may have our fifteen minutes of fame, and get a fatal taste of it only to seek it lustfully); our time as leisure and pleasure that we think belongs to us, but our times are in His hand (cf. Psalm  31:15).   Remember, God can endure no rival and is a jealous God that demands absolute loyalty and undivided hearts that are fully committed to Him and seek His will and glory (cf. 2 Chron. 16:9).

We must do some soul searching and take a spiritual inventory to determine where our ultimate loyalty lies (cf. 2 Cor. 13:5).  We can only be satisfied with the blessings God gives us when we put Him first and use the blessings for His glory.  Our decision to take up our cross and follow Him is a daily exercise and must be renewed constantly, as the devil will not cease to throw roadblocks in our way.  The question of our ultimate loyalty and allegiance, and which God or god we serve is bound up in whom or what we love--"for where your treasure is, there your heart shall be also."

Sad to say, some are more loyal to their politics than their religion!  One must be willing to die for and lay down one's life for the Lord's sake and that is total commitment.  Some believers are committed to a school of thought or doctrine more than to the Lord and seek to be divisive, contentious, argumentative, and judgmental.  We must ultimately throw down the gauntlet and not waver in unbelief:  "How long will you halt between two opinions?"  (Cf. 1 Kings 18:21).

The modern secular notion is that we are still evolving and are becoming gods and will eventually achieve immortality and utopia on earth.  This is the opposition to the faith and the flip side of believing in God--as Satan told Eve that she "would be as the gods, knowing good and evil."  Note that the greatest commandment is to love God (cf. Matt. 22:37) with all our being and in the Decalogue, the first one is to "have no other gods before" Him--God deserves first place and priority in our lives and we must suppress all ungodly goals, desires, and ambitions.  Only when we worship one God and have total devotion to Him is our heart undivided and totally complete.

Not to be remiss to mention that worshiping the one God in a false or inadequate way (not in the Spirit or in the truth) is also worshiping a false God and is by definition idolatry:  e.g.,  when we make God one-dimensional or put Him in a box, like saying,  "I like to think of God as the Great Spirit, or the man upstairs, as kind Father Time, or the Mean Judge, etc."  We must take all the attributes of God into consideration in our apprehension of God for who He is.

Some people have "thoughts of God that are too human"  (as Martin Luther told Erasmus), and don't realize that it's not how big our faith is, but how big our God.  It's not the faith, but the object of the faith!  Christians ought to be able to say, "My God is bigger than yours!" They may deny there is a supernatural God, but they will inevitably worship someone or something--we're wired that way.  (I refer to J. B. Phillips book, Your God Is Too Small.)  Soli Deo Gloria!

Disagreeing And Pressing On

"Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one mind and purpose"  (Philippians 2:2, NLT).


Sometimes it behooves us to merely agree to disagree and realize the reality that we aren't always going to be in 100 percent agreement on everything, all the time.  If we find that we are never disagreeing, maybe we don't discuss enough topics or explore new areas--broaden your horizons!  Sometimes it's a shock to newlyweds when they have their first disagreement or spat and think it's all over.  This is only the beginning of a relationship, not the end of a honeymoon.  Relationships have their give and take and both sides have something to say and contribute; no one is all right all the time and can't ever be wrong, because no one has a monopoly on the truth, and we all need each other.

If you've never disagreed with your friend or made friends with someone you disagree with, you haven't lived.  If you find that you always agree, then you may just be a yes man and not doing any independent thinking.  You may find out that eventually you may disagree with even the greatest of Bible teachers or pastors and God can show you something new--for even no prophecy is of any private interpretation.  Something is not correct just because a great theologian, teacher, or preacher says so, we must be ever diligent to study the Word ourselves and take our own responsibility.

We must never have our minds so made up we don't want to be confused with the facts, knowing when God may be trying to speak to us through someone we least expect--even the voice of a child!  Historian Paul Johnson said, "A Christian with faith has nothing to fear from the facts!" Some have a tendency to make their facts fit their theories--just the opposite of what we should do!  Socrates himself said that "to gain knowledge one must admit ignorance."  Caveat:  Even you could be wrong!  It's also said that education is merely going from an unconscious to a conscious awareness of our ignorance!  When we become arrogant and think we know it all, or no one can teach us anything, we must be humbled by God, for "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble" (cf. James 4:6).

Our friends aren't just the ones who concur with us all the time, for an honest criticism is more valuable than flattery or a kiss on the lips from an enemy.  Some people are merely casting nets for themselves, trying to be everyone's friend.  Life isn't a contest to see how many friends we can manage--but how close, intimate, trustworthy, honest, etc. they are!  It is rare to be 100 percent in sync or always on the same page!  And remember:  It is our pride that gets hurt when we don't want to admit we are wrong.  Show me someone who never apologizes and I'll show you one of great pride and no real friends.  Sometimes the disagreement is merely a failure to communicate, and resultant of using the same lingo, but different dictionaries: you must find out where they're coming from and what they mean by their terminology to instigate the understanding.

In building relationships you need a starting point to be the foundation; for instance, in marriage, you should be equally yoked, because romantic feelings may fluctuate and make for a rocky marriage.  In church we assume members are saved, and this makes for a beginning of a relationship without interrogating everyone.  In politics, no matter how alienated we may become, we should never demonize each other or become polarizing, because there's always some middle ground, even if it's hard to define, such as patriotism and humanity.  In the final analysis of a long-term relationship, we need common purpose, goals, interests, and plans to make it last.

In relationships, its important to stimulate the other to think for himself and to learn something new, which implies they haven't thought it before.  Now, the Bible urges us to live harmoniously and to be one in the Spirit:  "Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace [keeping the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace]"  (Eph. 4:3: NLT). The only thing that counts is the expression of love, which means we learn from and teach each other in our relationships.  Aurelius Augustine (often with the appellation "Saint"), Bishop of Hippo, had a famous dictum:  "In essentials, unity; in nonessentials, [negotiables] liberty; in all things, charity. Christians will find that they must never compromise with the devil or make concessions to the truths that unite us, believers.  We must never "give the devil an opportunity."

We must learn to pick our battles as Gen. George S. Patton said, that we should never engage in a fight where we have nothing to win or gain from.  We must fight the good fight and that entails sticking up for the truth as we know it.   Jude 3 admonishes us to "contend for the faith once and for all delivered unto the saints."  If we don't stand up for right and wrong and even take our stand, what makes us think we would stand up for Jesus?  Don't ever compromise your core values just to remain friends, but you can still be friends and you don't have to treat them like an enemy just because you disagree on vital issues.  The best testimony we have as a church body is our expression of love: "The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love..."  (cf. Gal. 5:6, NIV).

We need to learn to work out our conflicts and disagreements and come into harmony as a body, which gives us a testimony to the world, which will see what Christ's love can do.  When two disagree, they must both realize that they could be wrong (if you are unwilling to admit you could be wrong, you'll never arrive at the truth!), and this may humble a person, especially the type that likes to be right all the time and doesn't like to admit being wrong.  Both can be wrong in any given argument or quarrel, but both parties cannot be right!  They can both be partially right or partially wrong though--truth is seldom black and white in some issues with no middle, neutral or gray area.  But in any case, we must be willing to be tolerant of the other's opinions and leave room for disagreement without trying to be dogmatic on everything.  We will find out that we can learn something from everyone and that we don't know it all!

There's more to spirituality than being right all the time or having impeccably sound and correct doctrine; it's more important that our hearts be in the right place, and we learn to love those we don't always agree with too.  Remember this one lesson in engaging in disagreements: the devil's chief strategy is to divide and conquer!  People's pride will drive them to fight about minor issues simply because it is hard to admit being wrong, but if you've never admitted being wrong, you've never lived to know better either.  You begin to learn from others when you realize you don't know it or, or should I say, that you've arrived.  

The joy of fellowship is that we have come to agreement in the Spirit, not just intellectually. Some battles generate more heat than light and are not worth the adrenaline!  For instance, don't get into heated political discussions in church where we are gathered together to honor the Lord and be in agreement as a body spiritually; leave room for disagreement and give people their space and right to disagree.


One important concept is to learn that there is a difference between opinion and conviction and we should never confuse the two:  we hold opinions; convictions hold us.  People will die for their convictions, but seldom, if ever, for their opinions.  And so much disagreement is because people have the wrong worldview, which they probably learned in school in a secular setting, and is thus the secular worldview prevalent in academia.  If the foundations are strong and healthy, the branches will be too!  I must mention that many churches are negligent in this duty to teach the foundations of a worldview and parents are woefully prepared for the task, and pawn the problem off on the church, which assumed it was the family's domain.

We are never to engage in petty squabbles nor let them define who we are, but to grow in our learning experience, learning to set aside our personal agendas for the sake of the truth, which we are to speak in love for the sake of the Name. We should never become contentious, judgmental, argumentative, nor divisive!  Churches have been known to split over minor differences, but mainly churches part due to church politics and control problems over who is the leader of such and such group as its spiritual leader, and they just use the argument as an excuse or guise.  When push comes to shove, we must realize that some controversies are not productive nor fruitful, and are godless, but we should indeed engage in godly controversies--what if the Arian heresy had never been condemned at the Council of Nicea in AD 325?  What if the canon had never been closed at the Council of Carthage in AD 397?

In summation, what is fellowship, but harmonious relationship and agreement in Spirit? One definition is two fellows in the same ship!  We tend to only agree with friends but Jesus says to agree with our adversary (cf. Matt. 5:25)!  What's more, often there's more to agree with than disagree and we can always find commonalities or common ground to fellowship about something.  To walk together hand in hand, we don't always have to see eyeball-to-eyeball (our degree of intimacy will vary): you don't have to agree about everything, and then open yourself up to disappointment or set yourself up for failure

Finally, Amos tells us good advice about being in a harmonious relationship:  "Can two walk together, except they be agreed?"  (Cf. Amos 3:3).  The NLT puts it:  "Can two people walk together without agreeing on a direction?" Only engage in disputes where you have something significant and worthwhile to gain; some just generate more heat than light!   The point is to be friendly, you may discover you have more in common than you realized!   The point is that we will not always jibe with each other, but must learn to disagree without being disagreeable!   Soli Deo Gloria!   

Putting God On Trial

"I will give them a heart to know Me, for I am the LORD, and they will be My people, and I will be their God, for they will return to Me with their whole heart" (Jer. 24:7, NASB).   "... 'There is no accountability, since God does not exist'"  (Psalm 10:4, HCSB).  

The Bible assumes the existence of God and is not apologetic; it makes no effort to pander to those who doubt His existence and offer proof. When asked point-blank for evidence to support God's existence, but the skeptic on the defensive and ask him what evidence he's found that God doesn't exist!  Christians put the Lord on trial all the time when they try to "prove" Him or offer evidence in order to convince the skeptic or to argue someone into the kingdom by rationalization or presentation of proofs.  There are indeed several ways to make it seem reasonable to believe in God, but a God who demands evidence isn't worth our worship.  The fact should be obvious and people are without excuse for not believing in God (Christianity isn't about believing in a God, but in the God who is there!); people know the truth and they foolishly suppress it (you have to know it to suppress it!).

When we try to prove God the skeptic is in the position of being the judge ascertaining whether there's enough evidence to convince him.  The power of witness and conviction is in the use of the Word of God, not in our clever argumentation and rationale.  People don't realize it but they claim they know that there is no God, when this is a logical contradiction, which cannot be proved (a universal negative).  Atheism is irrational and intellectually bankrupt and has no basis in fact--the only reason people deny God is out of moral concerns, not intellectual ones--all their questions might be answered and they still wouldn't believe, or they could witness miracles and still not believe.  One must realize that all knowledge begins in a step of faith in which he cannot prove the premise; scientists are people of faith just as much as religious people, they just bet the farm that science has the answer and not God.

Faith is a gift of God and God expects us to use the faith we have if we are to get more; they are all judged according to the God that they did know and the moral principles they were aware of--our works.  God can make a believer out of the most stubborn person and melt his heart into godly faith and repentance from stone to flesh (cf. Ezek. 36:26), as it were.  When we judge God by weighing the evidence we put Him on trial and say He needs our approval and judgment to be legit.  Evidence is only for the believer to strengthen faith that is already there to help him realize the reasonableness of Christianity, as John Locke termed it, just like miracles strengthen and support faith, but note that faith doesn't come from miracles, but miracles from faith!  This is a paradox!

No one can disbelieve in Christ due to lack of evidence, and there is never enough evidence for the stubborn and unwilling skeptic, who is on a power trip or mind game and is engaging in intellectual arrogance, not intellectual honesty.  God promises to bring faith by the hearing of the Word, i.e., preaching!  We should never break faith in the Word as the means to faith, and not our clever proofs.  God needs to open hearts and quicken faith within them for the person to come to saving faith.  Just head knowledge won't do, because God requires believing in the heart with a love for the Lord.  If anyone loves not the Lord, he is anathema, Maranatha, under a curse till Christ comes, according to 1 Cor. 16:22.  We must realize that faith is given, not achieved and those who do believe are not smarter, wiser, more virtuous, nor intelligent than the infidel, but brought to faith by the grace of God and not their own merit or presalvation work.  Grace from beginning to end, as Christ is the Author and Finisher" of our faith.

When the gospel is preached, the Holy Spirit falls on those listening and does a work of grace in their hearts--for we are all given a measure of faith and receive the same faith (cf. Rom. 12:3; 2 Pet. 1:1).  Acts 18:27 says that we "believed through grace,"  and this was not because we were out-argued or intellectually convinced, but our hearts were changed by grace.  We have nothing to boast of in God's presence!  Faith is not a work or that would be the beginning of merit-based salvation!  Jesus said that the "work of God is that you believe" in Him, and we are not saved by works of righteousness that we have done (cf. Titus 3:5), but by His purpose and grace alone.  As Paul said, "grace reigns through righteousness," in Romans 5:21 (which means it's irresistible and sovereign).

In the final analysis, God is our judge--we are not His judge!  We are the ones on trial and have been found guilty as sin in need of redemption, justification, reconciliation, and propitiation.  The only ones who find the truth are those who admit they're lost and could be wrong.  Christianity is fact-based and based on historical records, not fable, myth,  hearsay, or man's origin and we don't need all the facts nor all the answers to come to faith, God expects a leap of faith to enter the kingdom and we must trust the Lord for the answers and come to know the Answerer (as Psalm 34:8 says, "Taste and see that the LORD is good," or that the proof of the pudding is in the eating)!

Our assurance is not based on conjecture, but a certainty, as sound as the Word itself.   Bertrand Russell was asked what he would say to God, should he be wrong: "Why didn't you give more evidence?"  He admits there is evidence, after all!  Like I said, there is never enough evidence for the hardened, stubborn heart who doesn't want to obey God, for Jesus said, "If any man is willing to do His will, he shall know..." (cf. John 7:17).  The heart of the matter is that it's a matter of the heart! "The fool has said in his heart that there is no God..." (cf. Psalm 14:1, emphasis mine).   Where's the skeptic's heart, not how smart is he?   Just like Paul said in Romans 1, that people refuse to acknowledge God and be thankful and their foolish hearts are darkened--they became fools!

The fact is that God exists and people foolishly suppress what they know about Him due to the calloused hearts.  Paul makes it clear in 2 Tim. 2:25 that repentance precedes knowledge of the truth and Augustine asserted that we believe in order to understand--faith precedes reason!  In other words, we don't argue the way to God, but accept Him as a given and proceed from there to make deductions.  God is the beginning point, not man as the Word says, "In the beginning God..."  Athanasius said it well, "The only system of thought that Christ will fit into is the one where He is the starting point.  Proverbs 1:7 makes my point too: "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge..."  We commence with God, we don't conclude with Him!

To explain just why we cannot engage in a battle of wits or evidence, is because people always interpret evidence in light of their worldview and the evidence they already accept and assume is true--what they do is "file" it away till they can reconcile or answer it to the satisfaction and worldview; they don't want to believe it or God would open their eyes (cf. John 7:17).  We cannot reason to God, but with God on our side, we reason from God ("In the beginning God..."), for the Bible and logic are OUR weapon!  Remember the ancient axiom:  "All knowledge begins in faith."
 Soli Deo Gloria!         

What Makes Us Human?

Man is not an animal; they want you to believe that because they want to act like animals! We are stewards of the animal kingdom, not part of it.   However, man has no inherent dignity, but only as extrinsic from God, being imago Dei, or in the image of God--bearing the image and likeness of God as His icons, so to speak.  There isn't much worth in being a grown-up germ or glorified monkey!  Even Darwin scoffed at the idea of trusting the convictions of a monkey.

 One news magazine published an article that said we are all "lucky to be here!"  Some biologists believe this Great Lie that man has evolved from the ape (sometimes called the "naked ape"), as a credo that is really a "time-honored, scientific tenet of faith." That means the only reason some scientists believe it is because it's so universally accepted and for such a long time--only recently have serious issues and doubts been raised (in fact it doesn't even fit the definition of scientific theory).   There is no fossil evidence for evolution either, and Darwin said that if the theory were correct, there would be!

It has been said that evolution is unproven and unprovable--it's never been observed, and no one has ever been able to create a new species, much less pull off an origin of life experiment.  Even if you have a primordial soup (where did this soup come from?) perfect with methane, ammonia, water, nitrogen, etc., and jolt it with electric shocks, the simple amino acids formed (the building blocks of protein, which is necessary for life) are destroyed simultaneously by the oxygen in the atmosphere, and they have proved that the early earth atmosphere had oxygen present. Truly, the Achilles' heel of evolution is that they cannot explain what life is, nor explain how it originated--if they have to add an intelligent input, that would prove only that a Creator was in charge.

Now, what does this image mean to us?  Man is like God and God formed us in His image, we didn't form God in ours!   There is a bona fide similarity because God is a person, we are too, and able to communicate with each other; we have a mind to know God, a heart to love Him, and a will to obey Him--animals don't but are driven by instinct.  Man is capable of rebelling against God and going his own way, and he does!  The obvious truth is that if we are persons, God has to be greater than a person or a person Himself to a greater degree in order to create us!  Except for our sin and limited nature, whatever we are as persons, you can say about God.

How are we like God then?  We are rational, emotional, communicative, moral beings, that have dignity, purpose, and meaning in life.  We can relate to God as a person because of this--God is just perfect, infinite, immutable, almighty, invisible, omniscient, holy, etc., and God is Spirit, while we have bodies!    Originally Adam and Eve had no sin and were innocent, not knowing good and evil, nor what that means, but now they are guilty before God as sinners in need of redemption, and this image is marred and will be restored someday in glory.  Being like God, we are creative and have an imagination that can be communicated and enjoyed.

How do we know we are not animals, that we're unique?  Have you ever observed an animal of any species building a chapel, or communicating with God in prayer?  Do animals have a conscience, and feel guilty when they've disobeyed or sinned?  Animals have a will of their own, for sure, but not to disobey or obey God--animals are oblivious to God's presence and dimension.  Only man has the ability to reflect on the past, present, and future, making plans, etc., and to criticize himself or see himself through other people's eyes objectively.  Man alone is rational (you can reason with him, and he can reason and learn from it), and is able to communicate all thoughts and feelings, in written, verbal, and body language.  Man alone judges and this is because he has a conscience that knows right and wrong by nature; you don't call something crooked if you don't have some idea of what straight is.  Man has discernment, the ability to distinguish spirits, and insight; however,  animals have instinct--they're basically creatures in heat, seeking food and shelter, only to perpetuate their kind. Do animals appreciate art and design, though they may be beautiful, none appreciate it, except the opposite sex for the mating ritual?   Do you realize that man alone can enjoy something vicariously?  Man can accumulate and increase a body of knowledge and pass it on to succeeding generations and build civilizations and cultures.  Animals stay at the same level of learning (by instinct) their full lives and never increase in knowledge generation after generation. Animals can mate for life, but they do not fall in and out of love, it's a basic instinct, hormones, and testosterone in action, not the soul or spirit.  Animals, such as dogs and cats can show similar qualities of love and affection but have no desire on the abstract level with God (or ideas, learning, wisdom, causes, etc.), and that dimension of the relationship.

Now, God says in Genesis One that He breathed into Adam the breath of life and he became a living being (soul)!  This is the distinction:   God has only given man the concept of eternity and the hope of eternal life in his heart, he alone ponders the afterlife and looks for answers to life's spiritual dilemmas. Aren't you glad that you aren't some grand fluke of nature or cosmic accident, but have a reason for being and purpose in life?  And so it's not as simple as the proverb:  To err is human, to forgive divine!   Soli Deo Gloria!  

Jesus And The Samaritan Woman

You may have heard of Good Samaritan laws, whereby the one who attempts to give reasonable aid to a person ill, injured, or in peril is exempt from legal liability--physicians cannot be sued for malpractice!  The point of this episode with the Samaritan woman is to learn to reach out beyond our comfort zones and sphere of influence when the Spirit leads, and to be ready for that opportunity when the door opens--and we should never think anyone is unredeemable or beyond hope or salvation.  The story unfolds as Jesus goes one-on-one with the woman of ill repute and shows that he is not prejudiced, though the disciples seem to be.

The Jews despised the Samaritans (it was a slur word used in a derogatory manner).  They were said to worship at the wrong place (Gerizim, not Zion) and only accepted the Torah's first five books, known as the Pentateuch.  They were seen as worse than Gentiles because they were half-breeds or hybrid Jews and had a religion of syncretism or mixture with foreign gods.  (Prejudice is not based on reason, but emotion, and especially not experience, and shows ignorance or not being up on what you're down on!)

However, Jesus knew they could be saved too and the Great Commission would include them (cf. Matt. 28:19-20; Acts 1:8; Mark 16:15).  Jesus wasn't ignorant of where she was coming from and didn't speak down to her but reached out to her, knowing where she was spiritual.  The woman was not only a Samaritan, but an outcast due to being divorced five times, and Jesus showed concern for her soul, not trying to pick her up or come on to her.  She noticed that they had something in common ("our father Jacob") and she tried to change the subject when it got personal, but then she noticed Jesus was prophesying.  This was the local meeting place and it was high noon, not the regular time for drawing water, and it looked suspicious from the get-go.

Jesus asked her for water but knew she was thirsty! But what she really needed was Him!   She demurs and hesitates because she didn't think Jews had any dealings with Samaritans--but this one was different and it piqued her interest.  True to himself Jesus was self-advancing or promoting and offered her living water, of which she was ignorant, and this was when Jesus broke the ice and got through to her: it's all about Him and her eyes are opened!

She was confounded, her friends and the disciples were too, who didn't know about the living water that was necessary for spiritual life.  You could say she was taken aback when her spiritual eyes were opened when she saw the light.  Jesus knew what manner of woman she was, yet He treated her with dignity and respect and was polite, not chauvinistic--unheard of in that day.

She changed the subject to worship after Jesus spoke of her husbands and showed signs of guilt and shame, but Jesus accepted her (it's vitally important that we accept the people we're witnessing to and see where they are coming from and relate to it).  The tone of the dialogue shifts to the spiritual and she wonders about where to worship (a legitimate query), but Jesus tells her it's not where but how one worships.

Finally, she shows discernment and is penitent, opens the door to her heart, and accepts Jesus for who He is (you must accept Him on His terms!).  She looked for validation and assurance and Jesus gave it to her.

Jesus makes the final point to the disciples:  the real food in life is doing God's will!   In other words, you will always have the stamina and ability to do God's will, so get with the program!   God's will is fulfilling and rewarding and the only safe place to be!  There is more to life than the mundane (going to the well) and the profane or secular, but the spiritual dimension.

By her witness, there was an evangelistic explosion in Sychar and many came to faith, as she was probably the first evangelist.  The converts wanted to see for themselves and this revival shows how important witnessing is and that God can multiply our efforts, though they may be only one person at first or at a time.

There are several lessons from this episode at Jacob's well:  don't be prejudiced; don't flaunt your faith, which turns people off before the door is opened by the Spirit; don't privatize or be ashamed of your faith either, no matter how small; we all can find a need and fill it and be useful for Jesus in our sphere of influence and circle of friends; we should know the good news and be ready to share it--be prepared like a Boy Scout; we need to relate and listen to people as well as preach and tell the good news; we must learn to personalize our witness to the situation and person and be able to adjust; finally, we need to get the "can't-help-its" or the urge to preach eagerly (cf. 2 Cor. 4:13; Acts 4:20).
Soli Deo Gloria! 

The God-hypothesis

"And because they did not think it worthwhile to have God in their knowledge, God delivered them over to a worthless mind to do what is morally wrong" (Romans 1:28, HCSB.
"And since they did not like to retain God in their knowledge..."  (Rom. 1:28, NKJV).

Fools and infidels are seldom convinced by argument, though there are many "proofs" of God's existence, and you cannot argue someone into the kingdom!  God must do a work of regeneration and make a believing heart of flesh from the stubborn heart of stone.   Secularists have tried to rule God out of the universe by deifying man, and dethroning God, but God will not die!  God is real and alive since He can be found by those who seek!  God cannot be described, defined, nor put in a box and made one-dimensional; however, you can know Him, since He's a personal God that loves us.  It is misleading to say you can prove God, but certain arguments lead us in that direction; however, you cannot disprove God either, for that would be the logical impossibility of proving a universal negative. 

Modern scholars believe it's no longer necessary to invoke God to explain the cosmos since evolution gives them intellectual fulfillment and a way to understand nature apart from God or what they refer to as the God-hypothesis.  Actually, evolution was a working hypothesis at first, then it was championed as a scientific theory (actually it doesn't qualify as one); and finally, it's being touted as unquestioned scientific fact.  But there are reputable scientists who do not adhere to this theory.  God is more than a hypothesis, or working conclusion to account for a set of facts.

God can be experienced and seen with the spiritual eyes, once God opens them.  Love is real and changes lives and Christians experience the love of a personal God.  God invites the skeptic to "taste and see that the LORD is good" (cf. Psalm 34:8), and it's true because the proof of the pudding is in the eating.  There are no unsatisfied customers of Christ, those who have been regenerated unto new and more abundant eternal life.  How can one account for all the changed lives of those who experience Christ in a personal way, except by the fact that God is real, and not imagined?  It's not a matter of self-hypnosis, or being conditioned since people come to know him from all situations and backgrounds--anyone can be saved!

On the other hand, according to Sir Arthur Keith, "evolution has not been proven and is unprovable"--no one has witnessed it nor recorded it.  There is no fossil evidence of missing links or transitional forms.  It is simply a "fairy tale for adults" (Dr. Duane Gish), and a "time-honored, scientific tenet of faith" (Dr. David Allbrook).  Evolution has become a religion and the basis for the Secular Humanistic worldview.  By today's scientific standards, it doesn't even "qualify as a theory" (Dr. Karl Popper, scientist).

God is real and is the God who will not die, contrary to what Nietzsche said, "God is dead," meaning irrelevant.   Christianity is not just about the God who is there, but about God in us!  Christians experience a personal encounter with the Almighty but they must take the leap of faith first and then God will authenticate Himself to you.  He doesn't have the patience for triflers or for the insincere. God is no man's debtor and will make Himself known to those who earnestly seek Him, and it must be by faith because it's impossible to please God except by faith (cf. Heb. 11:6). Christianity is not just pie in the sky, nor wishful thinking, but based in history--if the fact of the resurrection were false or a hoax, the faith would fall apart.

"Christianity is Christ," according to John Stott, and we disembowel it by removing Him--in other religions, you can remove the founder and the faith remains intact (Islam remains the same, Buddhism the same, etc.). The ultimate proof of God is in His incarnation as the Son of God in a manger and dying on a cross, and rising from the dead to manifest His divinity and deity.  This bears witness of His claims, is consistent with them, and is evidence for them.

If Jesus is the Son of God, and this is who He claimed to be (and equal to the Father), then the existence of God is proved consequently.  But there is no final proof we can cite for the so-called theory of evolution--it remains a figment in the imagination of scientists who refuse to acknowledge God and are seeking some alternative worldview.    Soli Deo Gloria! 

The Kenosis Of Christ

The title refers to the "emptying" of Jesus (the kenosis in Koine or common,"vulgar" Greek) or when He "made Himself of no reputation," NKJV, in the sense of laying aside His glory and independent usage of divinity, as He functioned as a man with all the limitations that go with it.  Christ never stopped being God, nor did He lose His powers as God, but only did what the Father told Him to do, following the interposed will of the Father.  Philippians 2:7 (NLT) says, "Instead, he gave up his divine privileges...." Christ's glory is that He laid aside all His glory and humbled Himself, even to the death on a cross as a criminal.

Some may object to this ignominious death, (thinking that it's repugnant to have Christ "defeated" by man) but it was the pleasure of the Father to judge sin in this manner.  We all ought to learn a lesson in humility following His example.  Just to make a point about true service, Christ took a towel and washed the disciples feet, and they were all taken aback, Peter even objected, thinking this was not fit the Lord's dignity.  When Christ said that we also ought to wash each others' feet, we get the lesson that, in God's economy, the way up is down just like John the Baptist said, "He must increase, but I must decrease"  (cf. John 3:30).

Peter failed to see Christ as the servant of the Lord and that greatness is in how many people you serve, not how many serve you.  Christ himself said that he came, "not to be served, but to serve and to give [His] life a ransom for many" (cf. Mark 10:45).  This gesture of foot-washing showed that we must be willing to humble ourselves, for humility comes before exaltation.  There is no caste system nor superstar believer in the body, but all are "one in Christ" (cf. Col. 3:11; Gal. 3:28; 1 Cor. 12:13).  There are no "untouchables" and neither is anyone beyond redemption.

All believers are called to become  the servants of Christ; at the bema (or Judgment Seat of Christ) we all look forward to hearing Christ pronounce:  "Well done, thou good and faithful servant...."  Albert Schweitzer was right:  "The only happy people are those who have learned how to serve."   I call this humiliation of ourselves in Christ's service as the "order of the towel," and the question should not be how high we can aim, but how low we can go--nothing is literally "beneath" the believer.  Whosoever humbles himself as a child shall be great in God's kingdom (cf. Matt. 18:4).   Service is the keynote of Christ's ministry, for He went about doing good (cf. Acts 10:38).   Soli Deo Gloria! 

Can Man Live Without God In The Picture?

I'm not saying what would happen if there were no God (Acts 17:28 says, "For in Him we live and move and have our being..."), but how man's worldview is affected without a foundation in God--we must begin with God and explain the universe, not begin with the universe and explain God away!  Athanasius said that the only system of thought that Christ will fit into is the one where He is the starting point.

Man cannot survive without conceiving of God; His manifest reality is known to every tribe, nation, and tongue or civilization.  Man isn't naturally an atheist or agnostic, but religious to the core; he has been dubbed Homo religiosus or the religious being.  They also call him Homo divinus, or the divine being (in the image of God or Imago Dei).  Man is meant or hard-wired for worship, and if he doesn't find God, he will worship someone or something else, which is idolatry.  There is a gap or vacuum that must be filled and only God can adequately do the job.  Pascal did say that only God can fill this empty space and Augustine said that we are restless till we find our peace or rest in God.

When you take God out of the reckoning, man becomes uncivilized, as witnessed and documented in Romans 1, where God gives man up to his perversions.  Yes, we need God, He doesn't need us!  We can only find our fulfillment in Him and serving Him.  There is indeed purpose in life when one knows the Lord and serves Him; the chief end of man, according to The Westminster Shorter Catechism, is "to glorify God and enjoy Him forever"--taken from Isaiah 43:7, which says we're created for His glory.  We are the icons of God, bearing His image to the world and God has something to say through us; we are His voice to spread the Word, not angels!

Without God, man has come from nothing, has no meaning in life, and is heading nowhere!   We must be able to answer the ultimate questions of life to have meaning and fulfillment:  Where did I come from?  Why am I here?  Where am I headed or going to?  What is man's destiny?  Is there a difference between right and wrong?  The Bible answers all these questions and science cannot because they are out of its domain or turf.  Science cannot make philosophical, religious, ethical, nor metaphysical judgments--neither can it make any value judgments, it is the "know-how," not the "know-why."  Yes, science is limited and we must not put our ultimate faith in it to solve all our problems or answer all our questions.

The scientific method doesn't apply to the metaphysical answers to the physical and to the spiritual, religious, ethical, nor moral domains.  For example, you cannot measure three feet of love, nor five pounds of justice, yet they exist and are real.  Love exists, yet you cannot prove or disprove it either!  In science, you have to have laboratory conditions, be able to measure, observe, and repeat an experiment with variables and controls to get a working hypothesis and finally a theory, and then a scientific, verifiable fact.

Note that it's only because of the Christian worldview that science was made possible and the first scientists were Christians--there's no final conflict between science and the Bible, which is not a science text, but has no scientific absurdities or erroneous ideas.  Where it does make scientific claims, the info is correct and has been proven ahead of its time--such as the discovery of the water cycle, and ocean currents, the fact that the earth is round and is hung on nothing in space!   When science alienates Christians and becomes their enemy, they become unscientific and dogmatic, which is not scientific.

When we try to establish ethics without God, it is impossible to have a foundation.  Fyodor Dostoevsky said that without God all things are permissible or up for grabs.  God is the source of absolute truth with a capital T and if there is no God, there can be no absolute Truth!  And so, without God, man is like a ship without a rudder with no anchor nor moral compass!  We are a law unto ourselves and each of us can make up our own ethical system as we go along, and morality is simply what we decide it is as a group, and it changes over time as we get more "civilized."   The Ten Commandments are then obsolete and too binding for our free lifestyle, which has no restraints nor limits.

"Law is merely the majority vote that licks all others," to quote Oliver Wendell Holmes.  The Bible says in Psalm 11:3 that "when the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?"  We have then lost our moral fiber as a nation and become free spirits, each man doing his own thing and what is right in his own eyes, the way Israel did before it had a king (cf. Judges 21:25).  God cares a lot about right and wrong and we have His moral law in our hearts in the form of conscience (cf. Rom. 2:15)--unfortunately, some choose to ignore it do evil.  We were meant for something better than anarchy and an immoral, unethical society.

The end result is that man worships himself, fame, fortune, power, popularity, success, possessions, and even does hero worship, all of which are unfulfilling false gods and idolatry, that cannot meet man's inner longing for a relationship with God, not merely acknowledging or knowing He exists.  Jesus promised abundant life to all sincere seekers and God will authenticate Himself to everyone who diligently searches for Him (cf. Heb. 11:6)--He's not playing cosmic hide-and-seek, but will not reveal Himself to triflers!

And so the biggest question and issue facing man today is whether he can live without God, according to humanist historian/philosopher Will Durant, and our government becomes the highest law, in the land and is accountable to no one as final Judge.  Consequently, there is no Judgment Day, no Lawgiver, and no Ruler of man, no hell to shun, and no motive to be good, all because man doesn't put God in the equation.

Just like Friedrich Nietzsche declared God dead, or irrelevant and unnecessary, we must find out for ourselves the hard way, because man refuses to listen to the modern-day prophets and heed what Scripture says; man is ultimately headed nowhere and history has no meaning or purpose, with no climax, conclusion, or consummation either.  Man becomes a glorified ape or hominid, without the dignity of being in God's image, having any restraint on evil, and being able to communicate and know Him.    Soli Deo Gloria!

In Control Of Your Thinking Process

"... They capture every thought to make it obedient to Christ" (2 Cor. 10:5, CEV).

Martin Luther supposedly said that you cannot control a bird from flying over your head, but you can prevent it from making a nest in your hair!  We cannot be responsible nor even control what thoughts enter our minds--they could be from the devil, just as Jesus told Peter, "Get behind Me Satan!"  However, we must rein in our thoughts and get a grip on our thought life, which can only happen by the power of the Spirit to restrain.  Our thoughts and thought life are important indicators of our obedience to Christ.

David was concerned about his thought life when he prayed:  "Let the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in Thy sight..."  We can indeed control what we choose to meditate on and what words come out of our mouths, for Jesus said that which comes out of the mouth is what defiles a man (cf. Mark 7:15).  There is a correlation between our thought life and our spiritual life and obedience.  Paul says in 2 Cor. 10:5 that we capture our rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ.  There is a direct connection here!

We need to do more than just get our thinking straightened out, in getting a Christian worldview--we need to get a grip on our thought life and be heavenly minded.  Proverbs 4:23 says that we should "keep [our] heart with all diligence, for out of it flow the issues of life."  Again, similarly, it is written in Prov. 23:7 (KJV) that if we "commit [our] works unto the LORD, [our] thoughts will be established."

First things first:  we dedicate our minds to Christ and commit to doing His will in an obedient life and God cleanses our minds and give us a pure heart:  "Therefore, if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things [including our thinking] are become new!" (2 Cor. 5:17, KJV).  "...but let God transfer you into a new person by changing the way you think..."  (Rom. 12:2, NLT).  ("Be renewed in the spirit of your mind.").

It is important to note that we are not to be so heavenly minded we are no earthly good.  We are not purely spiritual creatures, meant to live on cloud nine with our minds preoccupied and not to ever be ethical, practical, applicable, nor recreational.  We need to apply our thoughts to everyday situations and be a witness of our thoughts, not keeping them to ourselves--this is where sharing and witnessing come in.  One must conclude that if we only expose ourselves to junk we will exhale the same, just as the axiom goes: garbage in equals garbage out (GIGO).

Proverbs 1:7 says a fool despises wisdom and knowledge: The Bible emphasizes wisdom and increasing in knowledge:  "Knowledge is power"(cf. Prov. 24:5) according to Sir Francis Bacon and a fool feeds on trash, while the wise are hungry for the truth (cf. Prov. 15:14).  Why?  Because we become byproducts of what we expose ourselves to.  "A man is what he thinks about all day," said one poet.  It has also been said that "you are not what you think you are, but what you think, you are!"  We are basically the sum total of our thoughts and resultant thought life, which defines our character and personality.

We all need to take inventory of our thoughts and get regular spiritual checkups, and catch ourselves making mistakes in our thinking, like three thought wasters of time:  dwelling on the past with regret; misinterpreting the present with angst, and anticipating the future with worry.  If we are making a mistake in our thinking we ought to correct it and replace it with more therapeutic and healthy or balanced thinking--this is sound mental health!  All three (regret, angst, and worry) work together to rob us of our joy and steal time and energy and can lead to depression or melancholy--being in a depressed funk or in the doldrums, as it were.

Note that the psalmist complained to God of his mood swing in Psalms 42 and 43 and didn't even know why he was downcast and so glum. And in Psalm 143 the writer complains that his depression deepens!  Being discouraged is a form of depression as well as the blues, and everyone is vulnerable or susceptible--no one is immune, it's only being human--as the song by Neil Diamond goes, we're all subject to the blues now and then!  Thinking negative thoughts is destructive to mental health and we should always see the bright side and the silver lining behind the cloud--thinking negatively is a bad habit and there is always a positive spin on a problem--actually, earth has no ill or dilemma that heaven doesn't have the cure or answer to--it's a matter of faith and facing our problems with courage and seeing the lighter side sometimes.

In conclusion, bear in mind that the Word of God is capable of judging the thoughts and attitudes of the heart and shows us what we are made of and our true selves, pulling no punches and sparing no reprimand where appropriate (cf. Heb. 4:12).  The Bible speaks to every attitude and frame of mind and addresses every issue we can face--Christ fully relates to us in every dilemma and fortunately intercedes for us.   Soli Deo Gloria!