Commands of Jesus: Blessings & Woes

Hot Topics: Free Will

Do human beings have free will? When we talk about free will, we are usually concerned with the matter of salvation. https://www.gotquestions.org/is-God-sovereign.html Sovereignty of God – Romans 8:29-39, Ephesians 1:4, 2:8-9 Free Will – John 3:16 https://www.gotquestions.org/arminianism.html https://www.gotquestions.org/calvinism.html https://www.gotquestions.org/semi-Pelagianism.html Perhaps the more important question for the Followers-of-Jesus is this: what is the extent and limit of our free will? Obvious Limits - Our free will is limited by our genes, our time and our space environment, as well as the actions of others. Unavoidable consequences - We may have the free will to act, but once the free will action is taken, the resulting consequences are outside of our control. A good heart and an empty head are no excuse to unavoidable consequences. Will an erroneous intent or the lack of knowledge excuse the unavoidable consequences of our free will choices? No, unavoidable consequences are just that, unavoidable. A child who plays with matches may have neither the intent nor the knowledge, yet he will get burnt just the same. All of which to say, once we take an action, there are no excuses, defenses, or exemptions that will protect us from the unavoidable consequences of such an action. Simply being human has unavoidable consequences. We are men and women under the curse of Adam. We are not free to live forever. As Followers-of-Jesus, we are not free from the Judgment Seat of Christ. And, we are not free to change the plans of God the Father. Consequences are no respecter of person.

Hot Topics: How Should we do Ministry?

Imitating Christ in Our Ministry The question is what was our Lord's approach to his earthly ministry? See Corinthians 11:1 What are Not Acceptable Ministry Practices? Let us at ways and methods our Lord specifically rejected when it came to ministry. See Luke 4:1-13 1. Bribes - Jesus rejected the first temptation, to turn stones into bread. On a ministry level, Jesus rejected the temptation to give people "stuff," that is to bribe them into following him. Bribes include: bread, rice, money, and so on. This means that Jesus rejected ministries such as the Prosperity Gospel, Name It and Claim It ministries, positive confessions, faith contracts, visualization, and the like. 2. Worldly Power - Jesus rejected the second temptation, to bow to Satan and to use the resources of the world to further his Kingdom. On a ministry level, Jesus rejected the temptation in ministry to compromise with the world (Satan) and to use worldly ways and the governments of this world for "godly purposes." This means that Jesus rejected any ministry that uses political power to further its mission, whether that be the Roman Catholic Church, or Protestant churches grounded in Dominion or Reconstruction type Theology. Jesus rejected: the creation of a Christian political power, Christian leaders delivering Ohio and Florida to the Republican Party in the 2000 Election, and political endorsements from the pulpit, to name a few. 3. Miracles and Entertainment - Jesus rejected the third temptation, to use the miracle of jumping off the pinnacle of the Temple and being rescued by angles in front of all the people in order to be declared the Messiah by the High Priests and those in attendance. Jesus rejected the use of miracles as a way to get people to follow him. This means Jesus rejected any ministry that is "focused" on Signs and Wonders, that is charismatic gifts. It also means that Jesus rejected any ministry that is "focused" on entertaining people. For example, Hollywood-type, mega-church worship productions may fall into this category if their worship service goes from glorifying God to mostly entertaining the people in attendance. What are Acceptable Ministry Practices? See Luke 10 Jesus sent out 72 disciples, two by two, without a purse or bag or sandals. They were not to worry about how they would live. Instead, God took care of them through the hospitality of the local people they stayed with. The 72 were not to try to improve their situation on the mission field, but to minister faithfully wherever God led them. The job of the 72 was simply to preach the Word, to heal, to cast out demons, and in faith, to rely on the Lord for everything else. These are the acceptable ministry practices.

Suffering: Part 3

The Emotional Problem of Evil – How to comfort those going through intense suffering? Sympathy, not explanation, is the key. It is not necessarily a questioning of God. This page further explores the Emotional Problem of Evil. Is there a purpose for suffering? For Followers-of-Jesus, the New Testament teaches the following four-fold reason or purpose for suffering: There is an internal purpose for suffering. All suffering and trials of any kind strengthen and mature the Christian’s faith. From the Book of James we know that if a Christian responds to the suffering brought on by the various trials and tribulations of this life with an open heart to God that the Lord Jesus will give him a crown-of-life for his perseverance when he stands before the Judgment Seat of Christ. There is an eternal purpose for suffering. When a Christian perseveres in suffering through various trials and tribulations, he is a witness to the unsaved. For some unsaved people this witness is positive, and the suffering of Christians will lead them to salvation. For other unsaved people this witness is negative as they are not moved by the suffering of Christians, and as such are left with no excuse on the Day of Judgment. A third purpose of suffering is identification. When a Christian suffers unjustly for Christ Jesus, the Holy Spirit rests upon this person in a special way. We are told that Jesus Christ personally knows who is suffering unjustly for him and blesses this person. By way of example we read in the Book of Acts that when Stephen, the first martyr, was being stoned to death, he could see Jesus standing at the right hand of God the Father waiting to take him into Heaven. The fourth purpose for suffering is fellowship. A person who suffers unjustly for Christ Jesus understands in some way how Christ suffered unjustly on the cross for him. The person who suffers because he is a Christian has a special bond of fellowship with the Lord Jesus Christ. Somehow this person literally participates in Christ’s suffering, not for purposes of salvation but for fellowship with Christ. While this may seem strange at first, we can all identify with the concept. When we are suffering a particular loss or trial in life, only a person who has suffered through a similar loss or trial can really understand and sympathize with what we are going through. No one wants suffering, yet suffering in this life is not optional. The difference between a follower-of-Jesus and an unsaved person is that the follower-of-Jesus suffers for a reason, and the unsaved person suffers for nothing. Based upon: Phil 3:10-11; 2 Tim 1:8; James 1:2-4, 12; 1 Pet 1:6-7, 2:18-21, 3:1-2, 8-9, 13-17, 4:1-2, 12-19

Suffering: Part 2

How can the All-Powerful, Loving, and Just God allow evil and human suffering?   The conclusion in the modern mind is that God either does not exist or if he does, he is neither all-powerful nor all-good. This results in a Theodicy, an effort to defend the existence of God (and his power and goodness) in the face of evil in the world.  The Intellectual Problem of Evil – How do you make a rational argument for the coexistence of an all-good, all-powerful God with evil and human suffering? (This is the subject of the apologists.)   The Intellectual Problem of Evil has vexed philosophers and theologians for centuries. It presented the main intellectual attack against Christianity. By and large this was a problem for the academics, until World War I, The Great War. So terrible and horrible was the suffering on a world-wide basis, that Western Culture was stunned that God allowed it to happen. And so began the slide of churches, universities, and indeed most institutions in Western Civilization away from Christianity in earnest. No educated or thinking person could believe that God existed after the horrors of WWI.  However, in 1967, Dr. Alvin Plantinga published the Free Will Defense Argument. Using the classic logical arguments of secular philosophers, Plantinga convincingly proved that an all-good, all-powerful God had morally sufficient reasons for allowing evil and human suffering to exist, such as giving man   Free Will, which necessitates the existence of evil and its resulting human suffering. (You can easily search the internet for a more thorough explanation of Plantinga’s Free Will Defense.)  Today the Intellectual Problem of Evil is an interesting study, but thanks to Plantinga, it is no longer the main attack by academia against Christianity. All but the most ardent and narrow minded atheists have acknowledged Plantinga’s significant work. As proof of the universal, although begrudging, acceptance of the Free Will Defense and its many subsequent forms, the main attack by academia against Christianity and the existence of God is now focused on evolution vs intelligent design. Those academics on the forefront of the fight against Christianity are no longer philosophers but biologists and others in the hard sciences.

How can the All-Powerful, Loving, and Just God allow evil and human suffering? (Part 1)

How can the All-Powerful, Loving, and Just God allow evil and human suffering?   The conclusion in the modern mind is that God either does not exist or if he does, he is neither all-powerful nor all-good. This results in a Theodicy, an effort to defend the existence of God (and his power and goodness) in the face of evil in the world.  The Intellectual Problem of Evil – How do you make a rational argument for the coexistence of an all-good, all-powerful God with evil and human suffering? (This is the subject of the apologists.)   The Intellectual Problem of Evil has vexed philosophers and theologians for centuries. It presented the main intellectual attack against Christianity. By and large this was a problem for the academics, until World War I, The Great War. So terrible and horrible was the suffering on a world-wide basis, that Western Culture was stunned that God allowed it to happen. And so began the slide of churches, universities, and indeed most institutions in Western Civilization away from Christianity in earnest. No educated or thinking person could believe that God existed after the horrors of WWI.  However, in 1967, Dr. Alvin Plantinga published the Free Will Defense Argument. Using the classic logical arguments of secular philosophers, Plantinga convincingly proved that an all-good, all-powerful God had morally sufficient reasons for allowing evil and human suffering to exist, such as giving man   Free Will, which necessitates the existence of evil and its resulting human suffering. (You can easily search the internet for a more thorough explanation of Plantinga’s Free Will Defense.)  Today the Intellectual Problem of Evil is an interesting study, but thanks to Plantinga, it is no longer the main attack by academia against Christianity. All but the most ardent and narrow minded atheists have acknowledged Plantinga’s significant work. As proof of the universal, although begrudging, acceptance of the Free Will Defense and its many subsequent forms, the main attack by academia against Christianity and the existence of God is now focused on evolution vs intelligent design. Those academics on the forefront of the fight against Christianity are no longer philosophers but biologists and others in the hard sciences.