oddXian: Challenge the Consensus

WHY WE BELIEVE CHILDREN WHO DIE GO TO HEAVEN By R. Albert Mohler, Jr. and Daniel L. Akin Few things in life are more tragic and heartbreaking than the death of a baby or small child. For parents, the grief can be overwhelming. For the minister, to stand over a small, white casket and provide comfort and support seems to ask for more than he can deliver. Many console themselves with the thought that at least the child is now in a better place. Some believe small children who die become angels. They are certain these precious little ones are in heaven with God. However, it is important for us both to ask and answer some important questions if we can. Do those who die in infancy go to heaven? How do we know? What evidence is there to support such a conclusion? Sentimentalism and emotional hopes and wants are not sufficient for those who live under the authority of the Word of God. We must, if possible, find out what God has said. It is interesting to discover that the Church has not been ...

Wow - now this is a youth movement I can appreciate!

Good article. Does survey reveal a 'pulpit problem'?

But, as I look out from my window at the snow-capped hills surrounding Santiago, I cannot help feeling that we risk losing what nature is if we couch its value in human terms. Quote from here . At least this environmentalist admits that a "man-centered" approach does not provide all the answers.

Well, why not? Spanish parliament to extend rights to apes What if they refuse to work, pay taxes, run around naked, or steal things? I guess they’ll be voting soon, if they haven't been already...

Saudi marriage officiant Dr. Ahmad al-Mu’bi told Lebanese television viewers last week that it’s permissible for girls as young as 1 to marry — as long as sex is postponed. See here for article. See here for video . See here for transcript . Problems with his view: 1. He communicates a low view of marriage where a spouse need not be ready or fit for the roles within marriage to be married. 2. He refers to marriage as simply a contract rather than a spiritual union and covenant. 3. He communicates such a low view of marriage that a one year old can meet the qualifications and readiness. 4. He suggests the qualification regarding readiness for sex are determined by environment and traditon without any reference to marriage, maturity, or marital purpose and fulfillment. 5. He suggests both that marriage can exist without sex and yet suggests sex constitutes marriage. 6. He suggests that mere protection and provision constitutes reason alone for marriage. (He doesn't consider...

"What do people really mean when they say that many religions lead to eternal life? It might mean they don't believe their particular truth at all. Others might be saying, 'We believe a truth but respect other people, and they are not necessarily going to hell.'" ... Nearly across the board, the majority of religious Americans believe many religions can lead to eternal life: mainline Protestants (83 percent), members of historic black Protestant churches (59 percent), Roman Catholics (79 percent), Jews (82 percent) and Muslims (56 percent)... "What most people are saying is, 'Hey, we don't have a hammer-lock on God or salvation, and God's bigger than us and we should respect that and respect other people,'" said the Rev. Tom Reese, a senior fellow at the Woodstock Theological Center at Georgetown University. Quote taken from here . The issues is not whether God is "bigger" than us but whether the God who is bigger than us can be...

But this year, the government is beginning to make substantive changes. The schools are moving from rote learning — which was always linked to memorizing the Koran — to critical thinking, where teachers ask students to research subjects and think about concepts. Yet the students and teachers are still unprepared, untrained and, in many cases, unreceptive. “Before, teachers used to explain the lesson,” Malek said. “Now they want us to think more, to research, but it’s very difficult for us.” The result of years of Islamic domination in Algeria. Quote taken from here .

from this site: Van Til Diagrammed "It is exceedingly dangerous to confuse the orthodox concept of the incomprehensibility of God with the ultimate mysteriousness of the universe as held by modern thought. Modern thought in general, and modern logic in particular, holds . . . that God is, at most, an aspect of Reality as a whole. Hence, God is himself surrounded by darkness or mystery, just as man is surrounded by darkness or mystery. In other words, modern thought believes in an u ltimate irrationalism, while Christianity believes in an ultimate rationality. It is difficult to think of two types of thought that are more radically opposed to one another. It is the most fundamental antithesis conceivable in the field of knowledge. . . . The very foundation of all Christian theology is removed if the concept of the ultimate rationality of God be given up." -- Cornelius Van Til, An Introduction to Systematic Theology, (Phillipsburg, NJ: Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing, ...

2008 SBC Annual Meeting - Indianapolis, Indiana Complete text of amended membership resolution Wednesday, June 11, 2008 - 4:43:00 PM Following is the amended version of the resolution passed this morning, "On Regenerate Church Membership and Church Member Restoration." Messengers passed two amendments to the original resolution. (See previous post in this blog.) Additions are in bold here: WHEREAS, The ideal of a regenerate church membership has long been and remains a cherished Baptist principle, with Article VI of the Baptist Faith and Message describing the church as a “local congregation of baptized believers”; and WHEREAS, A New Testament ...

Dr. Wayne W. Dyer is another of the self help gurus touted by Oprah. Let's compare him with Christianity. Nature of God: Dyer - God is an energy field. God can also be equated with soul, spirit, cousciousness. God is always creating and loving and it excludes no one. It is a source that has no judgment. Christianity - God is divine. God is personal. God judges between right and wrong, good and evil. Only those who walk in truth and righteousness may abide with him. Nature of Creation: Dyer - Everyone and everything that shows up in the world of form in this universe originates not from a particle, as quantum physics teaches us, but from an energy field. Christianity - God (a personal, intelligent, creator-designer) is the creator of the universe. In Him we live, and move, and have our being. Nature of the Universe: Dyer - The universe is friendly. Christianity - The world was created good, but due to sin displays a curse as evident in such things as simply as loss and deter...

Thirdly, religious faith potentially has a crucial part to play in shaping the values that can help to guide the modern world. It can and should be seen as a force for progress and betterment. But there is a risk that it either falls prey to extremist and exclusionist tendencies ... Quote from here . While Tony Blair and his faith foundation have recognized the important role faith plays in society and while they state their intentions are not to "engage in doctrinal inquiries or try to subsume all faiths into a world faith of the lowest common denominator", at the same time the above quote concerns me when they refer to "exclusionist" tendencies. By this, do they simply mean there's a problem with those who have an elitest attitude, who look down on others and are prejudiced toward them, even doing them harm; or do they also see a problem with Christians who hold to and proclaim the "exclusive" claims of the Bible? This is certainly an organization t...

But Dowd’s preaching also draws on more contemporary scientific thinking. Central to his pitch about a “God-glorifying, Christ-edifying, Scripture-honoring way of thinking about evolution” is how findings from evolutionary psychology might help people overcome guilt about their immoral or unhealthful behaviors. “We live in a world today that is very different from the world that our instincts evolved to deal with,” he says. “We have cravings for sugar, salts and fats because for 99 percent of human history, we didn’t have easy access to those things.” Likewise, he says, addictions like sex and drugs are part of our inner proclivities. “Today we have a far more empirical way of talking about human nature than through stories like the original sin,” Dowd says. Quote taken from here - Darwinists for Jesus . Another example of one who seeks compromise (Christianity & Evolution) but in order to do so must reject and oppose an essential element of Christianity (i.e., man's guilt).

But God will have His people at last appear glorious, that the mouths of ungodly wretches may be stopped, that they may justify God in His goodness and mercy towards His own people. When they shall see those who they accounted as the monsters and fools of the world, men not worthy to live in the world— when they shall see crowns set on their heads, and glorious robes put on their backs—oh how will ungodly men gnash their teeth, and say, "Oh! we thought them fools and madmen, who thus served God, and walked with God—but now we see that we ourselves are the only fools, the only mad ones, who have turned our backs on God, and have said—It is futile to serve God. What did we gain by carrying out His requirements and going about like mourners before the Lord Almighty?" Malachi 3:14

Does the Church Need to Rethink Leadership? Church planting lessons learned along the way

What I am listening to/reading Gifts of Healings and Workings of Miracles 1 Corinthians 12:1-11 March 4, 1990 Read | Listen | Download Download: Audio The Elders, the People, and the Prayer of Faith James 5:13-18 March 11, 1990 Read | Listen | Download The whole series here Download: Audio When Will Prophecy Cease? 1 Corinthians 13:8 - 14:5 March 18, 1990 Read | Listen | Download Download: Audio The Authority and Nature of the Gift of Prophecy Acts 2:14-21 March 25, 1990 Read | Listen | Download Download: Audio

Since we have had a lot of comments here that say that Tolle and Christianity are saying the same things, let's have a quick comparison. Nature of God: Tolle - God is an impersonal force and/or cumulative energy of the universe. Christianity - God is personal,sovereign, transcendent, knowledgable, and interested in the universe. Nature of Creation: Tolle - Everything in the universe is interrelated as the same underlying consciousness and energy, and constitutes God. Christianity - God is the creator of the universe and is separate and distinct from the universe. Ontology of God and creation: Tolle - All reality is a one unified consciousness called God, and everything that exists is part of God. Christianity - God is outside of the time/space dimensions of the universe. Nature of truth: Tolle - Truth is within the person. ("Your very Being is the truth"). Your version of the truth depends on your state or level of consciousness, and that affects how you view realit...

I've observed a trend that continues to this day especially among New Agers/Tolle adherents and emergents) where when pressed into a corner regarding the validity and integrity of their beliefs, they either seek to decry "unkindness" on the part of those they debate or they attempt to heap praise upon the "kindness" of their partners of like-mind (regardless of the fact their their arguments are just as empty/lacking as their own) as if by doing so this might perhaps settle the argument or at least have them come away as if they stand on higher/better ground. (It is a shame when those who stand on a faulty foundation cuddle themselves to their own destruction.) This is an area where Christian apologists have been silent, but an area deserves comment and at times addressing (perhaps this post may serve as a reference or resource for those who encounter it that they may point others to it rather than having to spend lengths of time in other debates making this po...

I'm like a child in a candy store! No, I'm not going on vacation. I've not inherited a million dollars. But for the next few weeks, my secondary reading is going to be in the area of worldviews. The following books (which were recommended to me) have just arrived: The Universe Next Door: A Basic Worldview Catalog by James Sire The Reason for God by Timothy Keller Revolutions in Worldview by Andrew Hoffecker Total Truth: Liberating Christianithy from Its Culture Captivity by Nancy Pearcey Worldview: The History of a Concept by Arthur F. Holmes. A World of Difference: Putting Christian Truth-Claims to the Worldview Test by Kenneth Samples Remember: The Bible says 'Don't Be Envious!' Order them and read them as well! I'd write more, but time's a wasting! There are some pages calling my name!

Yesterday, a speaker for Planned Parenthood in recommending one political candidate over another stated that one who had opposed abortion would not be favorable to women because he was opposed to giving them "health care" options. Mirriam Webster defines "health care' as "efforts made to maintain or restore health especially by trained and licensed professionals". Short of emergencies, abortions do neither. Not only do they immorally end the life of the child, they cause negative spiritual and psycological effects (on both the one having the abortion and/or others involved); can cause negative immediate and/or long term medical effects, and can cause negative effects on future children, etc. To refer to abortion as "health care", one must first re-define health care to simply mean whatever the individual wants or believes will satisfy them at the time.

You have to appreciate Bob and Tim's passion and reason :) from here

Over the last few weeks, we had quite a few visitors who dropped by to comment on what we posted on Tolle. I hope I got all of the comments from the different visitors. We always appreciate comments, and want to thank those who took the time to comment on this issue. It is hardly surprising that most of the comments were negative, given the emotional smokescreen that surrounds the whole topic. Before I get into the details of answering the comments, I want to ask a few questions to start with, so that those who wish to comment on the topic in future can start from that point, by answering those questions, and we can move the discussion forward. Christianity has a history that goes back thousands of years, and has produced billions of followers throughout the ages. The majority of the comments here say that all of those people were deluded, or wrong, that Christian teachings, history and traditions are all a load of nonsense. So the responsibility lies with them to prove that it is so. ...

Incredible...I consider this an excellent musical accompaniment for meditating on the Psalms of lament - particularly the Messianic lament of Psalm 22. Psalm 22 (English Standard Version) Why Have You Forsaken Me? 1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning? 2O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night, but I find no rest. 3Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel. 4In you our fathers trusted; they trusted, and you delivered them. 5To you they cried and were rescued; in you they trusted and were not put to shame. 6But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by mankind and despised by the people. 7All who see me mock me; they make mouths at me; they wag their heads; 8 "He trusts in the LORD; let him deliver him; let him rescue him, for he delights in him!" 9Yet you are he who took me from the womb; you made me trust you at my mother’s breasts. 10On you was I...

I am reading through this - outstanding stuff: Parts: 1 2 3 4

An example of how an attempt to abort (/kill) could have taken a human life. See: Baby Miraculously Survives Abortion, Expected to Live a 'Normal' Life WCF Q. 68 What is required in the sixth commandment? Ans: The sixth commandment requireth all lawful endeavors to preserve our own life, and the life of others. WCF Q. 69 What is forbidden in the sixth commandment? Ans: The sixth commandment forbiddeth the taking awaay of our own life, or the life of our neighbor, unjustly, or whatsoever tendeth thereunto.

A timely publishing considering the news lately about the African American Church. New Book by Anthony Carter on bringing the reformation to the African-American Church. For interview with Anthony Carter with ByFaith Magazine, see here .

I think chance, in context, is equivalent to God's permissive will - that is - for the reprobate, since they are not saved, dwell within a continuum that God allows them to exist in a state of circumstantial indeterminism - that is - except for their final dispensation or to the degree that they are used as components for the sanctification of the elect. The redeemed, however, exist within a continuum of full circumstantial predeterminism - all things work together for the ultimate good of the elect. Nothing is purposeless for the elect.

Some would have you and me to think that science in on the verge of having all the answers (even for a world apart from God). The question is: Does science have all the answers? The answer unsurprisingly appears to be No. See Dark, Perhaps Forever and An Overflowing Five-Day Banquet of Science and Its Meanings

I have been thinking about joyfulness lately. Particularly since I am in a time of subdued joyfulness. Several things have happened in my life lately that have caused me to wonder what the Lord has planned for me and how I will react to the unknown. It is an uncomfortable place to be. Hard to find joy, so I am understanding better and better the saying: "It's a choice to rejoice!" Lord, in your mercy, please give me the wisdom to understand your Providence and the strength to do Your will. Also, help me to refine my actions to be glorifying to you and not self serving. Amen Psalm 5:11 But let all who take refuge in you rejoice;let them ever sing for joy,and spread your protection over them,that those who love your name may exult in you.