Tag Archives: creation
Salvation: More than a ticket to Heaven?
When someone says, “I’m Saved!” There is always the contextual question, “Saved from what?” Except if its said at Church. Within Christianity Salvation has become synonymous with Eternal Life. Yet, should Salvation always mean being rescued to Heaven? Continue reading
Filed under Everything
Sexual orientation: a celebration of diversity or a display of sin?
Could sexual orientation be a God created human distinction like skin color or being born left handed?
…God layered creation with diversity and color. God imprinted on the framework of creation the ability to reproduce in its kind. Yet, no flower, or fingerprint are the same. This is the mystery and majesty of creation. The act of reproduction is not to form a mere copy but to produce a completely new and diverse life in the image of the creator. Continue reading
Filed under Everything
No More Sea.
Throughout the Scriptures, both Old and New Testament, the seas and oceans represented Chaos and wickedness. Continue reading
Filed under Everything
Spiritual Milk? Do you get enough? Has it changed?
Some of the items on this list are understandable as “milk.” Repentance and faith in God are the introductory elements to the Christian life. However as one examines the other items on the list unanimous consent isn’t a given. For some these points might be areas of contention between denominational communities. For many others there might a complete and genuine ignorance as to understanding of these issues. To this ladder point I write to address.
The Christian church has failed on many levels to educate its people. At one point Christians were at the forefront of community education. Yet our ranking has dropped. Many churches are “producing” dumb Christians. I am not an advocate that every Christian needs a seminary education. However, I do believe that the community of believers need to taught more than many of them get in the Sunday morning situational/behavioral sermon. Our lives are shaped and flow out of our understanding of who God is. If our view of God is shallow than our lives are build on a shallow footing and any powerful event may have the ability to shake us from beliefs.
It also seems as though this list has shifted today from what it was. The elementary teachings of the church ages past are not consistent with the elementary teachings of the church modern. I have debated my self, wondering if this is due to contextualization or if there is a misrepresentation of what truly is an “elementary teaching.”
Two of the most common substitutions on this list are the teaching of Creation, and the Rapture. In many circles these have become the benchmark doctrines for new believers. Evolution is only equaled by some to Satanism, and the teaching of the resurrection of dead has been surpassed by the Hollywood images of floating in clouds in some mysterious Rapture.
I want to hear your opinion on the issue. Think back for me what was the most common and frequent teaching you remember or hear to this day in church? Continue reading
Filed under Everything
Wonderful cross or place of death?
We often sing of the wonderful beautiful cross. And because our mind cannot handle the intensity or cruelty of the cross we grow numb to the brutality of the cross. Yet, we have to remember the cross was torture leading to death. Jesus experienced pain at the highest levels of the human experience. Continue reading
Filed under Everything
Must death preceed recreation and renewal? Is creation lost?
There is this conflict within the christian community as how the recreation of the world will take place.
One side believes that all of creation will be destroyed. Then God will form again from nothing a new created world.
The other side believes that this created world will not be destroyed merely recreated. God created this world “good,” loves this world, and does not and will not ever destroy it. Continue reading
Filed under Everything
How could God allow evil to exist? Not your typical answer!
Refer to these two posts for a background of this argument, and the traditional Christian responses. http://saintdisillusion.wordpress.com/2009/07/01/the-problem-of-god-the-existence-of-evil/ or a similar article… http://christianelements.wordpress.com/2010/01/24/how-can-a-loving-god-allow-evil-and-suffering-to-exist/ In this entire conversion, a distinction must be made between Pre-Fall World and Post-Fall. Mankind, and the created … Continue reading
Filed under Everything
Jesus Picture of Perfect God, or Perfect Man?
“The truth is that the Man who walked among us was a demonstration, not of unveiled deity but perfect humanity.” A.W. Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy.
We often equate Jesus life on the earth as this great picture of God among us. However, this is not an appropriate statement. God did not come to this earth to completely reveal himself, but to completely reveal what was lost in the fall off mankind. Jesus is the picture of original humanity. Jesus is our example to live by, not as a picture of God, because we are not supposed to be “God” (for there is only one God) but we are supposed to be as God first created mankind, like Jesus. We are not to be god-like (per say), but Christ-like. We are not called to fill the role of God, but our role as men and women created of God. Continue reading
Filed under Everything
The Richness of Atonement Theories
Theology is an integrated area of study, and it works to our disadvantage by compartmentalizing its many different facets. To study atonement without the understanding of its relationship to the rest of theology would be detrimental to its significance. The atonement would be meaningless without the depravity of man; it would be powerless to display the love of God without the incarnation, and it would be hopeless without the promise of a resurrection. Continue reading
Filed under Everything
