Why Unicorns and Jesus have nothing in common...

Did I get your attention? Well this blog post got my attention, and here is my stab at a response. I have read through the entire thing at least twice, some of it more than that. The reason I decided to take the time to respond should hopefully be obvious by the time I'm done. So my suggestion first and foremost is go read it for yourself. That way you can see that as much as possible I am trying to be honest with what I read, and I'm not trying to rape any context or anything violent like that. So with all that said...

If you're like me, when you started off reading you feel there is some real possibility for the subject matter and all. Believe it or not, i like the unicorn idea, and the whole opening section. I agree as well that there is a HUGE issue with how Christians deal with Atheists. I agree that the Atheistic movement and "The Brights" and all that seem to be a branch of Atheism that is interested in an evangelism of its own... thats scary itself. Anyway, yeah we as Christians seem to have a hard time dealing with these people.

I even agree with Mr. Peacock's first main point about understanding that Atheist don't believe in God and keeping that in mind when you talk with them.

BUT...

The second point that he follows up that first one with and pretty much all subsequent points that follow are in some serious need of critical thought and biblical wisdom. Consider some of the following quotes from that section. (These should just be for refreshment, because I am sure you already read it for yourself)

"They're not wrong - no more than you are in asserting that your faith in the tenets of Christianity are all you need to live your life."

I believe it is at this point that the author really reveals a lot about themselves. If you read the quote in context you get a better idea of the issue here... The author is dealing with the main issue that ultimately all evangelism comes down to. ABSOLUTE TRUTH! Where do we find it? Is it a fact? How do we know? etc... The last statement in the same section confirms that this is the issue at hand.

"It's crazy to buy something you can't prove exists, isn't it?"

So what we are really arguing over or talking about, or whatever you want to call it, is Faith. You put your faith in science as an Atheist. You say you don't need faith because Science is all about fact and what you can know and doesn't deal with things that can't be proven, and yet it deals with the origin of man and universe, which is completely unobservable by man, and so therefore in the purest since of the word, cannot be science. Not to mention the whole paragraph smacks of post-modern ideology.

So True, atheist don't need to believe in God, but they still need faith...

Next issue. Consider the following paragraph that describes the typical response to a conversation about God, faith, religion, Christ, etc.

"When you did any of those things, did you notice an eye roll? Did the person groan? Did they shift in their seat and, at the very least, say they would go (or research what you just said, or give the matter some thought) and then never got back to you?These techniques probably feel natural to you. They feel like you're sharing the good news of your faith and the joy it brings to your life, and it probably feels great to share that joy with others."

It is right after this that he compares your effort to talk about Christ with an Amway sales person.

My question is this; Who's problem is it that your conversation about the truth of Scripture is making them uncomfortable? Consider Christ's own words in John 15:18-19. Should we not expect that response most of the time, no matter if they are an Atheist or not?

Then there was this idea, and seriously I loved it...

"Again, try to put yourself outside of your own perspective and into the shoes of your intended audience. You're interrupting their time and space to bring them a message you feel is important. And sure, you have the right to choose your faith and the right to free speech, but as GK Chesterton said, to have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it. And ultimately, "You need to hear this because I need to say it" is the ultimate in self-serving causes... And if you're serving yourself, you certainly aren't serving God."

Right on! We better make sure we have the right motives for why we do what we do! But shouldn't love motivate us to tell everyone we know and have opportunity to talk with, that they are wearing the cross-hairs of God's Wrath squarely on their shoulders. "Naw man, you're cool... that just looks like a huge set of cross-hairs. God isn't really that worried about what you're up to." That could be the most unloving thing i could ever think to do to someone.

I also take issue with the paragraph where the author blames this "interruption tactic" evangelism on the rise of Atheism in our world. I would purpose (as my elder at church Dr. Marks has already done) that the reason the Atheistic movement is in such blossom, is that as a whole, Christians have written off science, and higher thinking. Instead of trying to become as educated as we can and interact with them on their level, we have tossed the baby out with the bathwater. Be honest, as a whole, Christians are a pretty uneducated lot. Do i believe in creationism? YES! That doesn't mean i shouldn't learn as much as i can about how the scientific data that we have points to the truth of Scripture about creation. Instead, we give all that data and evidence, and allow the atheist to do what they will with it, completely unopposed. Shame on us!

Although there is much more that i take issue with in this post, there is only one more that i will deal with here. (maybe i'll finish it up later in a part 2! that will keep all 4 of you on the edge of your seats, won't it?)

What is the goal of evangelism? Pretty basic question to ask if you want to talk about it right? Well here is Mr. Peacock's answer:

"And the goal is to get people to follow the teachings of Christ and live a Christ-like life, right?"

Well, no actually i would disagree. The goal I believe is to expose people to Christ, and then pray like crazy that God will actually change their hearts so that they will be able to understand and apply truth, and then they will be able to follow and live Christ. Consider Paul's words here in I Cor. 1:22-24. We can do nothing to change a person's behavior. We want them to come to a deep and real understanding of the Truth of Christ and the power of His resurrection. Only then, through the power of the Holy Spirit will they be able to live and follow Christ. While you're at it take a gander at Romans 6.

Really what scares me, is that most all of us could read that post and at some time or another in our day or lives would totally agree with it. It looks good! But like my mom tells all her students; its like an ice cream Sunday with just the smallest amount of poison. That's how the Enemy is most effective.

Keep your guard up!

I'm not dead yet...

but you have to admit there are some days when you really understand the bit about death losing it's sting".
been a while since I've been on here so I am sure all 3 of my readers are long gone. oh well... its been busy that's for sure.
These past few months have been filled with pressure, pain, and disappointment. God is dealing with me for sure. As if you needed to be reminded about God's sovereignty, even over the little things; here is the passage that God brought me to about 2 days before this last run of trials began. So needless to say, I was warned. :)

But as I arrived home tonight with a heart full of disappointment again something occurred to me while seated in the bathroom. (some would say that that is best place for deep thinking) So if you can get past the place where the thinking went on, let me fill you in...

it isn't ground breaking and it really isn't that deep, but it was what started me out of the hole i was in. I Peter 5:6-7 "Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, 7 casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you."
Look this is it. Humility says I am not numero uno. There is someone bigger, better, greater, and its about them not me. That someone is God, who by the way if you are a child of His, CARES FOR YOU!!! LOVES YOU!!! (this is how it went in my head). The reason i can cast all the anxiety, all the cares, all the needs, all the concerns on Him is because of two HUGELY (not a word i think) important facts. God is sovereign. That means He is in absolute control. Nothing happens or exists outside of His control. If it did, He wouldn't be sovereign. Second important fact: God is love. Not God loves, God is LOVE. Complete and utter concern for the person being love, and doing what is best for them. So He does whatever he pleases, and it is His pleasure to love His children. It can't go wrong! It won't be a loss for me!

It still hurts though... BUT... God is faithful!

It was huge for me tonight. Maybe God led you here so that it might encourage you too.

What I read on the NY Times Website that didn't shock me...

...but scares me when I think about the nation my children will grow up in.

What I wish I would have applied then that I understand now

So I had the opportunity to share some truth with the entire high school today in chapel. The title pretty much sums up the jumping off point that I used to get started today. Over all I felt like things went rather well, and I've since received some positive feed back. (which i never really know how to take... i mean if you were blessed by something i said, i am thrilled, but only because God used me, so it wasn't really me that did anything other than open my mouth) But i thought i would put it up here for all 4 of you to read as well. Maybe it reminds you and encourages you. Maybe it helps you understand me better. Maybe God will use it here too!
So my background is pretty much the one where you grow up in a Christian home, you always go to church, and you know all the right things to say and how to act Christian. I got some more practice at acting Christian in HS since i went to the same Christian HS that i now work at. There are two things I am sure of as i look back at my "Christian" HS experience. 1) I was 100% sure i was a believer then. 2) I'm about 95% sure now, that i wasn't a believer then.
So as i thought more and more about what i would tell these students who sit where i had sat, and many of whom think like i thought, i decided that i would tell them what i wish i would have applied (not known, because most of us already know it) to my life then, that would have saved me a lot of trouble, hurt, regret, and pain now. What would I tell myself if i had the opportunity to go back and tell skinny little HS Mark, what would i want me to know? I came up with 2 things...
1) The decision you make now carry consequences far beyond HS. The decisions you make now set the stage for the decisions you make later. Good or bad. Don't be foolish enough (like i was) to think you can live for yourself now, and sometime later you'll get everything worked out with you and God.
The best example i can think of when it comes to this mistake (outside of myself), is David. Like I said, its nothing we don't already know. But take some time and remind yourself about the most infamous incident in David's life. Did good ol' King Dave set out that fateful spring to make a baby with another man's wife? NOPE! Then how the heck did it happen? It was all in the decisions. Look closely at the 1st 6 verses.
v1) "But David remained in Jerusalem": Nothing sinful with this decision. Maybe he just wanted to take the spring off. Maybe he wanted to stay home and spend more time with his family. There are a ton of maybes that we can throw in here, but one thing is for certain, you can't call the decision sinful. What seems to be the key here though, is that this isn't where David belongs. It wasn't the wisest decision.
v2) "and the woman was very beautiful...": Why does this phrase stick out to me so much? Well how did he know she was beautiful? He took a look that was long enough to allow him to observe those details; probably more than one look in fact. He found himself in a position that would be very tempting for most men... a naked lady in plain sight. Do i look away, or do i make a closer inspection. It doesn't seem to far off to say that David had crossed from a look to an inspection. Why was he in this position in the first place? See verse 1 again.
v3 "And David sent and inquired about the woman..." While we can make some educated guess as to why he makes this inquiry, he may have allowed himself to make this step based on some sort of feigned decency. "Who would take a bath on a roof like that? Out in the open for people to see? Who is this lady? What's her deal? I need to get to the bottom of this!"
From there its all down hill... once he knew who she was, he sent for her, slept with her, conceived a child with her, murdered her husband, and took her for a wife. How in the world did we get here!? See verse 1. The decisions we make now will set us up for the decisions we make later. We can't expect to be able to live our life for ourselves and make decisions based on what we want one day, and then expect to be able to magically switch gears the next day and automatically make good, wise, God honoring decisions. Don't hear me say that once we have made bad decisions there is no hope for change. The point here is, once we make selfish, unwise decisions, its easier to make more of those same decisions than it is to make wise ones in their place, and vice-versa.
2) The Christian life is just that... a LIFE.
What are you about? Here is a fun little exercise... ask your closest friend/family member to answer that question for you with complete honesty. See there shouldn't be a part of our life that is the Christian part of us that remains separate for the weekend us, and the "no one is looking" us. If we have been truly born again, then our life should be saturated with Christ. It should bleed over into every last aspect of who we are.
The best example from the Bible that i can think of for this is Judas. Why? Well lets observe a little bit about our friend, shall we?
Historical Background: The Jews are looking for a political Messiah that will throw off Roman rule and oppression and set up an earthly government that puts the Jews at the top of the food chain. This was the common understanding of the Messiah in this day. Judas is a normal Jew that would have understood the Messiah like the rest of the normal Jews of his day.
What we can learn about Judas from scripture seems to indicate that he was particularly fond of money, and most likely what he could buy/do with that money. He finds this guy named Jesus who people are saying might be the Messiah. He seems to be able to do some pretty incredible things. He hangs out in interest. Jesus then recruits Judas to be one of his students. BINGO! Free ride to the top! Judas has hit it big... man he can't even believe it!
The rub... As the movement gets rolling and things seem to be headed in the right direction, all of the sudden Jesus starts talking about dying and what have you. Maybe it was a mistake, or one of those tricky parables that Jesus likes to tell... but no... he keeps talking about it. He really thinks he is going to die! He wants to die!? This guy isn't the real deal! He is just like every other fake Messiah that tried to throw off Roman rule before! This is a sinking ship!! I have to get out of here, and fast. And on the way out, he figures out a way to make a little bit more money off this fake. Sell him out...
What went wrong!? Think about it! How could you walk, talk, eat, sleep, laugh, cry, etc. with the Son of God for 3 years or more and not really believe? How could you be a part of some really amazing things and not really buy into what was going on around you?
I think the answer is simple. The "Christian" Judas was only a small isolated part of who Judas was. It wasn't real. He had found a way to restrict his "Christianity" to a small part of who he was. He was able to play that part when he needed to, but it wasn't who he was, or what he was about. It never became his life. The proof is in the jello. when the pressure was on, and things started looking bad, the real Judas revealed himself. And we all know how the story ends for him... (ref Matt 6:24)

This one nagging question still remains... Why is the lie that, when you become a Christian your life won't be as good, fun, enjoyable, so believable? Am i helping to promote that idea with how i live? Are we promoting that idea as Christians in general?
Truth is: "I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly"

Not too sure how this one is going to turn out. I am sitting here at my CPU. I should be in bed. I am coming to the end of another long week. I am acutely aware of the fact that trials are the best thing for me, but man I would much rather not put up with them.

James 4 keeps coming to mind these days. There is certainly a lot of things that I would like to have, maybe even want to have. Then there is this on particular thing that I REALLY WANT. And so far, nada. My faith is at least deep enough to be able to dismiss the little whispers of "If God was really good He'd give you whatever you wanted." Maybe its not even my faith, but the fact that I work in a Christian school and I see the result of parents who never tell their child "NO!"

What is most amazing to me about the thing that I want so bad is that it is a good thing. Really, honestly, truly. I would even go so far as to say that what I want is biblically something I should want. But that really isn't what amazes me. What really amazes me is that I am so depraved, so fallen, so twisted, so un-human that I can take this really good thing and want it so much that it becomes wrong.

Maybe we all need to read James 4 with a little more candor. Lets be a bit more real about our situation. What is it that I want so bad, that isn't God, that if I don't get, I can promise you I will sin about it. So what! I mean it's not my neighbor's wife that I want that bad. Its not untold riches that I desire to the point of committing sin to attain. It something that in just about any other situation God would smile on in delight.

Yet it is this very thing that God has seen fit to expose my own vileness with. Lord help me! help us! help us to be wretched and mourn. Help us to gain a proper understanding of who we really are. Lord, then give us the grace to change. Give us the grace to over come. Lord help us to trust that every thing you do is good. You cannot do evil or wrong. Help us to apply the truth about You and your Word to the specific and vile parts of our lives.

Lord help us to humble ourselves before You, so that we will be exalted by You and You alone. Lord you know... you know...

Survey Says!!!

(never really got into that show, btw) So how do we go about answering this question of Christ's ability to sin. (His peccability/impeccability) Well, first things first. Lets start with what we know.

1) Christ was sinless... If you can read through the New Testament and somehow come away with any other idea about Christ, throw that Bible away and find a real one. I mean, if you want to argue that the Bible teaches anything else, then stop reading, your wasting both of our time.

2) Christ's Temptations were real... The real deal for sure. If they weren't real, then passages like the ones we find Matthew 4:1-11 are so bogus that once again I would ask that you take your Bible and throw it away. Well don't do that... better yet, get on your knees, beg God for Mercy and Grace and read like your life depended on it. (eternally it does)

3) God cannot be tempted with sin... Jesus was God. 100% God. And so begins the rub with what we can clearly say is defined for us in Scripture. James 1:13 and Col 2:9

But that didn't really get us anywhere did it? I mean all it did was confirm that the question we are faced with in the person of Christ isn't something lame Bible teachers come up with to mess with their students. It's a real problem!

So what are we to do now? Well lets continue the consideration BUT FIRST let me just say that we are now leaving what is clearly, 100%, undeniably taught by scripture, and we are making some "observations" that still may help us come to some sort of conclusion.

Observation 1: If Jesus was only Human, and was still born in the miraculous way that He was, then we would be able to say that it was in fact possible for Christ to sin. Why? Because if you read Genesis 1-3, you will notice that there were 2 other humans in the same state and we all are aware of what they decided to do when faced with temptation.

Observation 2: The problem we have with our first observation is that it seems more likely that Jesus, from conception until death, never was simply just God, or just man. His natures were always apart of Him all the time. Thus we have to consider a different option if we are going to affirm that indeed Christ was tempted and could sin.

Observation 3: While we have observed that it seems safe to say that the two natures of Christ were never separated from one another, there are certainly things that Christ did experience only in His humanity. One example would be sleep. Jesus, being a man, slept. He even got so tired, that at one point he was sleeping through a violent storm while in a small boat in the middle of a large lake. But it is also clear from numerous passages like Psalm 121:3-4 that God never sleeps. So it would be safe to say then, that while the human Jesus slept, the divine nature did not experience the same state. SO... could it be then that Christ could have sinned and experienced temptation only in His humanity? Well not so fast... because we also observe at this point that it seems clear from Scripture that sin effects the entire being of the one that is committing it.

Observation 4: It is impossible for God to sin. Well duhhh, right. But the reason that it is impossible for Him to sin is because He is both infinite and holy. So there is no end to his holiness, which equals no sin.

So then, with these 4 observations in place. Understanding that Jesus was both 100% God and 100% Man, when we ask the question of whether or not it was actually possible for Jesus to sin; we must answer with an emphatic NO!!

See that wasn't so bad. "Ok", you say, "but what about Hebrews 4:14-16?" Doesn't seem to me that the author of Hebrews can really make a claim like that if the guy that was being tempted never really had ability to sin. I mean lets be honest, the thing that is so hard about temptation is that there is this pressure, tension, and mental/spiritual battle going on between what we know we should do, and what we shouldn't do (and there is a distinct possibility/probability that we could in fact do the thing we know we shouldn't do).

Glad you asked!!

Well? Was it?

Oh yeah, that nagging question that we were left with when we talked about the humanity of Christ. Could Jesus, the incarnate God and human being, have sinned? Well first off, is this question even that big of a deal? I mean yeah, maybe if your some big headed, think glasses wearing, dead language speaking theologian. But what about you? or you? Yeah you guys, the normal, every day, run of the mill American Christian. Well consider the possible outcome of either answer.

1) YES! Well ok, that means when we read Heb 4, we can look and say; "Man he really does know what I am going through! But then again, what if he had sinned? Now I seriously cannot think of a more terrifying thought. Thats the end of everything as we know it! (REM is playing softly in the background for effect) Leaves a big question mark behind the word deity when you refer to Christ.

2) NO! Well ok, that makes me feel a ton better about whether or not the world as we know is simply going to cease to exist all of the sudden because Jesus finally gave in to some temptation. But then again, when I look at Heb 4 with this answer, it seems.... well... disingenuous doesn't it? Really? Tempted like me in every way? Right...

So this one seemingly small and theologically obscure question has some serious weight too it doesn't it? How do we answer it? Which one is right? They both have issues, serious draw-backs even. I think I might leave that answer for another day...