May 28, 2013

On Causality: Why is there Something Rather than Nothing?

[Updated 5/30/13]
On Academia.edu, I read a number of papers recently posted by an undergraduate student who is attempting to scientifically disprove God’s existence.  Like others who have failed in this effort, he simply cannot answer the famous question posed by Jean-Paul Sartre, “Why is there something rather than nothing?”  Science does well when answering the question, “How?”  but it does not do so well with “Why?” in connection to such questions, because "Why?" presupposes intentionality, which requires mind, which assumes Person.  As common among physicalists, his answer is presumably something like, “If all things need a Creator in order to exist, then God must need a Creator in order to exist.”

It is remarkable to me that those who respond like this fail by missing the crucial issue:

1.)   Whatever lies back of all things is God and is what/who has created the law of causality as a constituent part of the Cosmos, therefore necessarily cannot be limited by such laws.

2.)   In our physical world—in the Cosmos, all things need a cause in order to exist. This is granted.  However, it is the biblical perspective that not all things need a Creator—only that which is created needs a Creator, i.e. only derivative reality needs a Creator.  God, by definition, is not physical, neither is He in this Cosmos, though He is not absent from it.  He is upstream of the Cosmos.  God is Ultimate, all else including the Cosmos, is derivative.  He is transcendent and is unique in this regard.  It is not simply that this is the best answer, it is the only answer.

This man* makes a serious attempt to answer the question as a skeptic, esteemed professor, thinker, and writer on the subject.  There is only one problem with his logic--he is explaining why there is something rather than nothing within the Cosmos, based on the assumption that the Cosmos and its laws are eternal.  The Cosmos, though, is not a nothing, but a something!  Again, this means he has answered, "Why is there something rather than nothing in the Cosmos?"  He has still not answered, "Why is there something, rather than nothing, nothing," i.e. really nothing.  

In responding to Sartre and others, he must account for the existence of the Cosmos, or he has not answered the question at all.  Do you see the difference?  To illustrate this idea, draw a circle on a white piece of paper.  Look inside the circle.  That's what physicalists mean by nothing.  Now, erase the circle.  That's what theists mean by nothing, and while you're at it, go ahead and throw away the paper.  This also helps to illustrate why Stenger and others gives as their conclusion this answer: "Why is there something rather than nothing?  Because 'nothing' is unstable."   However, this is wrong, because "nothing" cannot be unstable, because "nothing" is no-thing!  This all comes down to one's ultimate philosophical pre-commitments.  The physicalist presupposes the ultimate priority and originality of the Cosmos and thus cannot give an account for causality.  He has no answer for this ultimate question.  The theist assumes the ultimate priority and originality of God who is the source of causality and cannot be subordinate to that which He creates.  Again, this is not the best answer, it is the only answer.

Many have noticed the significance of the Bible's first verse for this discussion.  Here is the Hebrew text followed by a translation beneath:
  בְּרֵאשִׁ֖ית בָּרָ֣א אֱלֹהִ֑ים אֵ֥ת הַשָּׁמַ֖יִם וְאֵ֥ת הָאָֽרֶץ׃  
   (the earth) (and)   (the heavens)       (God)  (created)  (In the beginning) 

Remarkably, here we have the traditional 5 Categories of Science: In the beginning (time); God (force) created (action); heavens (space); earth (matter), based on God as the metaphysical precondition.  Here, "the heaven's and the earth" constitute a familiar word pair. Here's a couple of things to note:

1.) Together, the word pair represents the totality of all creation.  In the Ancient Near East, cosmology was typically formulated as either "heavens and earth," or "heavens, earth, sea."  This is a classic way to express the totality of the Cosmos (some describe this as a merismatic word pair, i.e. one that covers everything from A-Z). 


2.) Note that the point at which creation occurred marks the ultimate reference point for spatio-temporal reality, i.e. the spacetime Universe.  This shows th
subordination of all things to Him as well as His aseity, or self-existence.

In this simple passage, we have formulated for us a view of cosmology, a view that is not only true to Scripture, but is true to what really is there.  This passage provides us with the philosophical, scientific, and biblical answer to the question, “Why is there something rather than nothing?”  As much as he may try, modern man cannot answer this question apart from God.  The theist answers with something like, "Because God who IS, delighted to make something."

* Victor J. Stenger is emeritus professor of physics and astronomy at the University of Hawaii and Visiting Fellow in Philosophy at the University of Colorado.

May 27, 2013

Why is the Sacrifice of American Blood and Treasure Worth Memorializing—Because God IS

“Man is abnormal now [due to his collective and individual choice of sin]…. On this basis, we can have a real ground for fighting evil, including social evil and social injustice. Modern man has no real basis for fighting evil, because he sees man as normal, whether he comes out of the paneverythingism of the east, or modern liberal theology, or out of the paneverythingism of everything’s being reduced, including man, to only the energy particle. But the Christian has, he can fight evil … because God did not make things as they are now, as man in his cruelty has made them [which is not cruel if man merely operates according to biochemical evolutionary programming]. God did not make man cruel, and he did not make the results of man’s cruelty. These are abnormal, contrary to what God made.” —Francis Schaeffer, He is There, and He is Not Silent

May 22, 2013

Of _Five Weeks in a Balloon_ [AND]: A Future Not Even Jules Verne Could Have Imagined


Along with Hugo Gernsback and H.G. Wells, Jules Verne is considered one of the fathers of the science fiction genre.  Best known for the novels Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (1870), Journey to the Center of the Earth (1864), From the Earth to the Moon (1865), and Around the World in Eighty Days (1873), Verne wrote during my favorite period of Western literature.  Characteristic of much literature from the mid-nineteenth to early twentieth century was an optimistic view of mankind’s potential.  The characters in Verne’s stories are daring Indiana Jones like adventures who overcome impossible odds and thrive in the face of the most harrowing dangers. Difficulties are surmounted as the protagonists demonstrate perseverance, brilliance, learned creativity, fortitude, and principled exceptionalism. This is the stuff characteristic of the best of which Western Civilization has contributed to the world, culture, and history.  It’s also the stuff that is largely part of a bygone era.

Verne is noted for writing about technologies that no one else had thought of, some of which were generations ahead of his time, including: sky scrapers, glass structures, calculators, cell phones, etc.  These were so futuristic, but so realistic, that the pioneering submarine designer, Simon Lake, credited Verne as his life’s inspiration, calling him, “the director-general of my life.”
The ability to imagine what no one else has imagined is one of the truest indicators of genius, and by this standard, Verne was certainly that.  Not surprisingly, he is the second most translated author in the World, following only Agatha Christie.  

Verne's creations are so dramatic and relevant, that some of his books have been made into live-action and animated films and television shows.  In one of his lesser known works, Five Weeks in a Balloon, Verne constructed a novel around three adventurers—a scholar who had invented a new type of hydrogen, “hot air” balloon and his two companions, a servant and a professional hunter.  The three experience harrowing adventures as they sail across Africa in an effort to discover and document much about the then unknown continent, including the source of the Nile, general topography, and previously recorded explorations.  Their adventures include numerous treacherous encounters with savage African tribes, extreme climatic conditions, a near-death experience with dehydration, attacks by wild animals, an attack against their balloon by a flock of condors who destroy the outer layer, and ultimately the final demise of their balloon during the most serious threat and climax of the story—an encounter with Arab Muslim banditos. 

This last encounter is particularly interesting from a worldview standpoint.  In it we have an ironic picture that dramatically illustrates the contrast in worldviews between the protagonists and antagonists. Verne develops the threat in the concluding sequence of the book.  Here the balloon is facing its final demise, but the aeronauts are unable to land because of the danger from the hostile Islamists.  Here is how Verne develops the narrative:

"Let us alight," suggested Kennedy, "and see what can be done with the covering of the balloon." "I tell you, again, Dick, that we have no means of repairing it." "Then what shall we do?" "We'll have to sacrifice every thing not absolutely indispensable; I am anxious, at all hazards, to avoid a detention in these regions. The forests over the tops of which we are skimming are any thing but safe." "What! are there lions in them, or hyenas?" asked Joe, with an expression of sovereign contempt. "Worse than that, my boy! There are men, and some of the most cruel, too, in all Africa."
"How is that known?" "By the statements of travellers who have been here before us….They have explored these countries formed by the elbow of the Senegal in places where war and pillage have left nothing but ruins." "What, then, took place?" "I will tell you. In 1854 a Marabout of the Senegalese Fouta, Al-Hadji by name, declaring himself to be inspired like Mohammed, stirred up all the tribes to war against the infidels—that is to say, against the Europeans. He carried destruction and desolation over the regions between the Senegal River and its tributary, the Fateme. Three hordes of fanatics led on by him scoured the country, sparing neither a village nor a hut in their pillaging, massacring career. He advanced in person on the town of Sego, which was a long time threatened. In 1857 he worked up farther to the northward, and invested the fortification of Medina, built by the French on the bank of the river. This stronghold was defended by Paul Holl, who, for several months, without provisions or ammunition, held out until Colonel Faidherbe came to his relief. Al-Hadji and his bands then repassed the Senegal, and reappeared in the Kaarta, continuing their rapine and murder.—Well, here below us is the very country in which he has found refuge with his hordes of banditti; and I assure you that it would not be a good thing to fall into his hands."
…They had just passed the borders of the forest, and the three friends could see some thirty mounted men clad in broad pantaloons and the floating bournouses. They were armed, some with lances, and others with long muskets, and they were following, on their quick, fiery little steeds, the direction of the balloon, which was moving at only moderate speed…." It is, indeed, they!" said the doctor; "the cruel Talabas! the ferocious marabouts of Al-Hadji! I would rather find myself in the middle of the forest encircled by wild beasts than fall into the hands of these banditti…."
"See," said Ferguson, "those villages in ruins, those huts burned down—that is their work! Where vast stretches of cultivated land were once seen, they have brought barrenness and devastation."
Ironically, the greatest threat to the aeronauts were not the cannibals whom they had seen devouring one another alive in the midst of battle.  Neither was the greatest threat the climate, wild animals, or even their failing balloon.  It was the villainous Arab-Muslim raiders who followed the orders of a mad-man in the role and persona of a Muhammadan style leader.  These individuals, in the words of the Dr., engaged in “rapine and murder” and a “pillaging, massacring career” leaving villages in ruin, with burned huts, and “vast stretches of cultivated land…barren…and devesta[ed].” 

Here is the irony.  The aeronauts are the quintessential representatives of Judeo-Christianity in contrast to the representatives of savage barbarism and destructive Islam.  They are daring, principled; they sacrifice for one another and strangers.  They are virtuous, they respect life—human and animal, accomplishment, productivity, etc.  As they soar in the sky and prevail over the elements, they represent the best of Western culture.  Like the protagonists in most of Verne’s works, they trust in God while fully engaging themselves in their endeavors.  They take initiative in rescuing a missionary from savages, and proclaim him to be the greatest among the men in the balloon.  While they engage in fulfilling the creation mandate—the subduing of the elements, they are as far above the savages and destructive Islamists in principle as they are in altitude. [Note: Both Verne and his heroes were likely deists, a worldview that developed out of Christian-theism and for a time perpetuated its values].    

Yet there is another, more striking irony.  As brilliant and noble minded as Verne was, there was a future that he would not, dare not imagine, a future that we are on the cusp of seeing realized.  As the West has become post-Christian, other ideologies have become dominant, ideologies that neither contribute to the thriving of the species, nor are even sustainable on their own terms.  Christian-theism was replaced as the dominant worldview in the West by deism.  Deism was short lived and gave way to naturalism.  Naturalism, which leads to nihilism as its logical consequence is too negative to be embraced by secularists, except for those who are philosophically honest.  So, as it presently stands, naturalism has morphed into something aggressive, yet unsustainable—secular progressivism.  Though on the rise statistically and in terms of influence, secularism cannot thrive, neither can it remain dominant for long—it is inherently devoid of transcendental values.  No worldview devoid of transcendental values can compete with an opposing worldview/religion/philosophy propelled by transcendental values, at least over the long run.    

To illustrate, consider Verne’s own caricature of a naturalist’s evaluation of a pearl from his famous 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.  Here, Professor Aronnax is asked by his two co-prisoners aboard the Nautilus the following question. “Sir, what is a pearl?” His response is as follows: “My worthy Ned…to the poet, a pearl is a tear of the sea; to the Orientals, it is a drop of dew solidified; to the ladies, it is a jewel of an oblong shape, of a brilliancy of mother-of-pearl substance, which they wear on their fingers, their necks, or their ears; for the chemist it is a mixture of phosphate and carbonate of lime, with a little gelatin; and lastly, for naturalists, it is simply a morbid secretion of the organ that produces the mother-of-pearl amongst certain bivalves.” 

Notice the vacuous, hollow definition of the naturalist.  There is no real value, aesthetically, or teleologically speaking, to the pearl.  Naturalism has no transcendental values. Of course, naturalists assign value that is not merely survival value to things all the time, but when they do so, they abandon their espoused philosophical viewpoint in preference for a worldview with transcendental values, until it becomes inconvenient, and so back and forth they go.
The result—secularist Europe, which has followed the above path much more quickly than America, is on the path to becoming philosophically, religiously Islamic due to immigration and biological growth of Islamic practitioners.  The latest reports show this transition occurring in the next few decades in England.  Soon, secularism in several European countries, including Verne’s own France, will be overcome by this even more dangerous, destructive worldview and the day will arrive when thoughtful secularists will long for the time when their biggest philosophical worry was an evangelical sharing the Gospel with them, or protesting at their abortion clinics, or playing Christmas music at the Mall, or hanging the Ten Commandments in courthouses, or arguing that families naturally consists of opposite sex couples, or suggesting that having men sexually attracted to other men as leaders in a man boy relationship, e.g. the Boy Scouts is not an ideal situation.  The future that we are on the cusp of realizing is one that not even Jules Verne could have imagined, and one which will only be recognized by secularists after it is too late.  


How relevant is all of this? Click here (note the date): 
Statement: ITV News obtained footage of a man with bloodied hands and knives speaking to a camera


May 21, 2013

DSM-5

In case you haven't heard, the new DSM-5 is out, and it's bigger than ever. And chances are, you are mentally ill, and if you deny you are mentally ill, that proves you really are.  See the following review, then read my post at the below link in light of this (seems like a good opportunity to re-inject this)--anymore compelling now?  See here:

1.  1. image


2. 

May 13, 2013

Scarabs, Egyptologists, and Dead Passions

It’s likely that your passions, whether love or hate, will die with you and forever be forgotten.

On the old library of a deceased scholar, one writer mused, “It was arranged on the plan of many college libraries, with tall projecting bookcases forming deep recesses of dusty silence, fit graves for the old hates of forgotten controversy, the dead passions of forgotten lives.”

Some time ago a friend of mine who was working on a Ph.D. in Near Eastern Languages was relating to me a sort of existential awakening that he had recently experienced.  As part of his course work, he interviewed an Egyptologist at the same university whose life’s work was to catalog scarabs.  The old scholar was excited to show off the various scarabs that he was analyzing and enthusiastically pointed out to my friend their distinguishing and remarkable characteristics.  The Ph.D. student related that as the old scholar was talking about his work, he felt a sort of empathy for the man realizing that there was almost no one who cared about the thing that he so passionately gave his life to study.  

This experience compelled my friend to reevaluate his own academic work and vocational goals.  It may be easy to write off the work of the Egyptologist in this specific scenario as inane (although I think this sort of work is very valuable), but what about the value of your work? What determines its value—is it arbitrary?  Without question, there will be some who will assign value to your work, and some who will denigrate your work regardless of what you do.  Some will simply dismiss the value of any work they do not understand.

Take a moment to do a couple of things: 1.) look over your own library for a moment and remember that each of the books there says something about your life—ask what your collection means about you and what it will mean to those who will own it upon your death (the absence of a library is just as telling); 2.) Ask yourself what you want your legacy to be and evaluate whether or not this is developing; 3.) Evaluate your answer from question 2 in light of biblical principles and values, i.e. what does God think about your work and how will He evaluate it?  4.) Remember these words written by a most famous inspired scholar thousands of generations ago:


“(5) For the living know they will die; but the dead do not know anything, nor have they any longer a reward, for their memory is forgotten. (6) Indeed their love, their hate and their zeal have already perished, and they will no longer have a share in all that is done under the sun”  (Ecc. 9:5, 6).

In other words, it’s likely that your passions, whether love or hate, will die with you and forever be forgotten.  Consider the following thoughts/questions.

Christian:  It's true that "[W]hether then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, [you should] do all to the glory of God" (1 Cor 10:31).  What does this mean and what are the implications? Is it in keeping with wisdom that you should take care to employ your skills in that which will bear eternal fruit and make the most impact for the Kingdom? What does this look like for your specific vocation?

Cautions: 1.) What is the difference between striving for Kingdom impact, and striving for prominence/self-promotion?  How can you tell the difference in your own heart?  2.) What is the difference between doing work in Christ and doing work for Christ?  3.) Is God equally pleased with little done for Him as He is with more done for Him, or vice versa?  What biblical principles/passages relate to these questions? 

Reminder to the Minister: Personally, the above is a reminder to me not to become embroiled in unfruitful controversies that distract from the work God has given me to do.  To this end, I have had the following anonymous quote framed and placed on one of my own bookcases since my seminary days.  It reads: 

"Stick with your work.  Do not flinch because the lion roars; do not stop to stone the devil’s dogs; do not fool away your time chasing the devil’s rabbits.  Do your work.  Let liars lie, let sectarians quarrel, let critics malign, let enemies accuse, let the devil do his worst; but see to it nothing hinders you from fulfilling with joy the work God has given you.  He has not commanded you to be admired or esteemed.  He has never bidden you defend your character.  He has not set you at work to contradict falsehood (about yourself) which Satan’s or God’s servants may start to peddle, or to track down every rumor that threatens your reputation.  If you do these things, you will do nothing else; you will be at work for yourself and not for the Lord.


Keep at your work.  Let your aim be as steady as a star.  You may be assaulted, wronged, insulted, slandered, wounded and rejected, misunderstood, or assigned impure motives; you may be abused by foes, forsaken by friends, and despised and rejected of men.  But see to it with steadfast determination, with unfaltering zeal, that you pursue the great purpose of your life and object of your being until at last you can say, 'I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.'”

May 11, 2013

Fall BMATS Registration Now Open 

Fall registration for The Baptist Missionary Association Theological Seminary, Arkansas campus is now open (as is the main campus). For those thinking about enrolling in my Hebrew program, here’s my commitment to you. If you enroll and complete the program, at minimum you’ll learn Hebrew well enough to have your personal devotional/everyday Bible study in your Hebrew Bible. You’ll also be able to use Hebrew as a practical tool in your ministry. Here’s what you get with us that you likely won’t get elsewhere regardless of how much you pay:

• In addition to the three semesters required for the M.Div., I typically conduct an off-campus summer long Hebrew reading seminar (for free) between semesters 2 & 3 to ensure that students progress beyond what is typical M.Div. proficiency (additional options for advanced study available)
• Devotional study of the Hebrew Bible is a passion of mine, not merely a job or academic exercise; my desire is for every student to fellowship intimately with God through meditation in their original language Bible 
• For over 15 years, I have taught 5 biblical/theological research languages to students ranging from age 8 to 78, from diverse ethnic and sociological backgrounds; if you finish the program, I’m confident you’ll have the skills outlined in the course objectives; I'm also confident that on completion, our students will test higher than those at almost any North American equivalent

To enroll, go this link:

http://bmats.edu/

BMATS



May 10, 2013

Pursuing Nubia: An Analogy of Cultural Extinction

Can a Christian culture become extinct? Yes.  Can your culture become extinct, Christian or otherwise?  Yes.  It has happened before, and throughout history is not uncommon.  This is set to occur in some Western countries in the next few decades.  This isn’t a reference to the ghost town scenario where entire populations disappear, but where either: a.) one ethnic group is displaced by another, or b.) where a worldview shift occurs that is so dramatic, that though the ethnicity remains the same, the replacement culture is not recognizable.

The primary difficulties with evaluating this sort of thing are: 1.) accessing and evaluating the data, i.e. getting the data right and correctly interpreting it—factors leading to the demise of a culture typically develop slowly, often over decades or more; 2.) there is a huge psychological barrier—those who take part in revolutions always think the new principles are superior to the old; 3) there is a spiritual barrier—people have a spiritual bent which dramatically complicates the above two factors (Rom. 1:18-32)—they are both blind and hostile to the truth (except where God gives grace for clear understanding). 

In a relatively slow, non-militaristic style revolution, the vanguard group is broad and moves like a wave rather than like the lighting of a militaristic revolution.  Europe is experiencing a slower revolution primarily of the “a” type above.  America is experiencing a revolution primarily of the “b” type, but which exploits factors of the “a” type for its goals.

Most often it is difficult to show individuals within the shifting culture that this is happening (until it is too late) much less to warn them of the dangers.   America is in the midst of a violent conflict of ideas, a revolution in thought, an exchange of worldviews.  Despite what we hear from many, there are many serious negative aspects to this revolution with forthcoming disastrous consequences.  To make the point: when was the last occurrence of a revolution that went really well and resulted in really good things for everybody?  Conversely, how many revolutions have gone wrong?  The Judeo-Christian American culture is on the cusp of extinction.  But this is not the first time such a thing has happened.  Consider the following analogy of one example of a cultural extinction:

 “During the early centuries of the Christian era, Nubia, which lies between Egypt on the north and Ethiopian on the South, comprised three independent kingdoms.  When Christianity first reached the Nubian people is not known, but the vast stretches south of Egypt would have given shelter to more than one Christian driven from Egypt by the persecutions ordered by the Roman Emperor Diocletian in 303.  The first formally designated missionaries arrived in Nubia about the middle of the sixth century.  Over the centuries, the number of congregations in Nubia multiplied and were counted, we are told by the hundred.  For about five centuries, Christianity flourished, providing the chief cohesive element in Nubian society.  By the close of the fourteenth century, however, having been cut off from the rest of the Christian world by Arab invaders pressing southward from Muslin Egypt, the weakened Nubian Church was ready to expire.  The growing power of Arabs hemmed in the Nubian Christians on the north, east, and west and, finally the whole population embraced Islam” (The Text of the New Testament, Metzger and Ehrman, p. 123).

I’m familiar with Nubia primarily because it plays a role in Ancient Near Eastern history, but even more, it is relevant, somewhat, to the study of ancient Bible versions—Old Nubian is the oldest recorded language of Africa, and about a hundred or so ancient Christian documents were discovered in the 20th century written in Old Nubian, including Old Nubian biblical texts.  In spite of the 5 centuries of vibrant Christianity in the region, all that’s left of Nubia’s great Christian culture are a few ancient documents.

On the current trajectory, to use the analogy of cultural extinction, America’s Christian culture is a dinosaur that is soon to become extinct and fossilized.  At some point in the distant future, cultural paleontologists will unearth it, reassemble her bones, study her, and place her in a museum only to marvel over how great she once was. 

The above is set to occur sooner rather than later, unless, however, we address complicating factor #3 from above.  We must deal with the issue of spiritual barriers.  The only effective tool we have to reverse this trend is the Gospel.  The goal, however, is not merely to save a culture, but to save souls. We must do this.  In fact, the only thing the church can do better on Earth than in Heaven is to make disciples.  This is the one reason we are here. 

May 9, 2013

On the Work of the Christian Scribe

Before dismissing the work of the scribe, or his modern day academic equivalent, consider the words of Cassidorous on the work of copying ancient manuscripts. He wrote, "By reading the divine Scriptures [the scribe] wholesomely instructs his own mind, and by copying the precepts of the Lord he spreads them far and wide. What happy application, what praiseworthy industry, to preach unto people by means of the hand, to untie the tongue by means of the fingers, to bring quiet salvation to mortals, and to fight the Devil's insidious wiles with pen and ink! For every word of the Lord written by the scribe is a wound inflicted on Satan. And so, though seated in one spot, the scribe traverses diverse lands through the dissemination of what he has written....Man multiplies the heavenly words, and in a certain metaphorical sense, if I may dare so to speak, three fingers are made to express the utterances of the Holy Trinity. O sight glorious to those who contemplate it carefully! The fast-travelling reed-pen writes down the holy words and thus avenges the malice of the Wicked One, who caused a reed to be used to smite the head of the Lord during his Passion." _Cassiodori Senatoris Institutiones_


Imagine the labor involved in the ancient transcription process. A common colophon placed at the end of many non-biblical ancient mss. by the scribe is: "He who does not know how to write supposes it to be no labor; but though only three fingers write, the whole body labors."

May 8, 2013

“There are two ways before me, one leading into Paradise, the other into Hell.”


[From the Babylonian Talmud]
When Yochanan, the son of Zachai, was sick unto death, his disciples came to visit him; and when he saw them he wept, upon which his disciples exclaimed, “Light of Israel!  Pillar of the right! Mighty Hammer! Why weepest thou?” He replied, “If I were going to be led into the presence of a king, who is but flesh and blood, to-day here and to-morrow in the grave, whose anger with me could not last forever, whose sentence against me, were it even unto death, could not endure forever, and whom perhaps I might pacify with words or bribe with money, yet for all that should I weep; but now that I am about to enter the presence of the King of kings, the Holy One—blessed be He forever and ever!—whose anger would be everlasting, whose sentence of death or imprisonment admits of no reprieve, and who is not be pacified with words nor bribed with money, and in whose presence there are two roads before me, one leading into Paradise and the other into Hell, and should I not weep?” Then prayed they him, and said, “Rabbi, give us thy farewell blessing;” and he said unto them, “Oh that the fear of God may be as much upon you as the fear of man.”  --Berachoth, fol. 28, col. 2.


We would add to the old Rabbi's appropriate fear, that though one come to God trusting in Christ as the propitiation for his sin, he can not approach Him; and except he come trusting in the Father's promise of mercy to those in Christ, still he cannot come.  

1 Peter 3:18 For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; (1Pe 3:18 NAU)

UBS Greek NT
1 Peter 3:18 ὅτι καὶ Χριστὸς ἅπαξ περὶ ἁμαρτιῶν ἔπαθεν, δίκαιος ὑπὲρ ἀδίκων, ἵνα ὑμᾶς προσαγάγῃ τῷ θεῷ θανατωθεὶς μὲν σαρκὶ ζῳοποιηθεὶς δὲ πνεύματι·

Modern Hebrew NT (1 Pet. 3:18)
 כִּי גַּם־הַמָּשִׁיחַ עֻנָּה פַּעַם אַחַת בְּחַטֹּאתֵינוּ אִישׁ צַדִּיק בְּעַד אֲנָשִׁים חַטָּאִים וַיְבִיאֵנוּ עַד־הָאֱלֹהִים אַחֲרֵי אֲשֶׁר הוּמַת בְּשָׂרוֹ וַיְחִי בָרוּחַ׃ 

Latin Vulgate
1 Peter 3:18 quia et Christus semel pro peccatis mortuus est iustus pro iniustis ut nos offerret Deo mortificatus carne vivificatus autem spiritu 


May 6, 2013

On Christian Higher Education


[From a Facebook Discussion]

It is the responsibility of Christian education to: 1.) out think the world for Christ; 2.) operate from a thoroughly Christian WV in the respective disciplines showing how true science issues from a presuppositional commitment to Christ; 3.) advance science by taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ and by thoroughly bringing the realm of knowledge and science into submission to Him. Oftentimes our educational institutions are more interested in following the model of secular universities (business as well as academic), than in accomplishing the above goals. We ought to strive for excellence for the sake of Christ. When we don't, we dishonor Him.

Consider this perspective on the importance of study for the Christian: "Study is itself a spiritual discipline, and the very act of study can change the self. One who undergoes the discipline of study lives through certain types of experiences where certain skills are developed through habitual study: framing an issue, solving problems, learning how to weigh evidence and eliminate irrelevant factors, cultivating the ability to see important distinctions instead of blurring them, and so on. The discipline of study also aids in the development of certain virtues and values; for example, a desire for the truth, honesty with data, and openness to criticism, self reflection and an ability to get along non defensively with those who differ with one."--JP Moreland and William Lane Craig, _Philosophical Foundations_.

 Consider this perspective on the importance of Christian academics for the expansion of God's Kingdom: “God usually exerts [his regenerative] power in connection with certain prior conditions of the human mind, and it should be ours to create, so far as we can, with the help of God, those favorable conditions for the reception of the gospel. False ideas are the greatest obstacles to the reception of the gospel. We may preach with all the fervor of a reformer and yet succeed only in winning a straggler here and there, if we permit the whole collective thought of the nation or of the world to be controlled by ideas which, by the resistless force of logic, prevent Christianity from being regarded as anything more than a harmless delusion.”—J. Greshem Machen, _What is Christianity?_

Here's a couple of sources for reading, one is older and reflects a presuppositional perspective and discusses the different divisions of study, one is newer and part of a larger series on the issue:


Then, go to Amazon and read everything by Dockery, then go to Mohler's site and read all relevant articles there.

May 4, 2013

The Christian Anarchist: Understanding Your Non-Conformity

If you are like me, you have likely wondered at the tension in your heart. There is a sense in which every true Christian is a sort of anarchist, albeit a reluctant anarchist. Why? His conscience is bound solely to the Word of God, and civil laws rarely comport with God’s laws—when called upon to choose between God and government, the Christian always chooses the former. At the same time, it is not for the Christian to engage in conflict with the World—yet serve Christ, and the World will soon be at conflict with him. Hence he is a decided, though reluctant anarchist. Even in conflict, though, the Christian must love with the love of Christ remembering that Christ came to save and not to judge (John 3:17). It is Christian love (not conservative politics) in the midst of your non-conformity that makes you the salt and light Christ commanded you to be. Before you object too strongly to my use of the provocative term "anarchist," consider its full range of meanings, and consider the spirit of the following accusation:
“But the Jews, becoming jealous and taking along some wicked men from the market place, formed a mob and set the city in an uproar; and attacking the house of Jason, they were seeking to bring them out to the people. 6 When they did not find them, they began dragging Jason and some brethren before the city authorities, shouting, "These men who have upset the world have come here also; and Jason has welcomed them, and they all act contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus" (Acts 17:5-7).