Tag: Jesus Christ

‘Humanizing Christianity’ REPRINT

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From November 17, 2018

Secularists love to pat themselves on the back for “humanizing Christianity.” Excuse me for a moment: this deserves an appropriate response.

What do they mean, they “humanize Christianity”? I think it means they invent a new-improved model–with Christ taken out of it and replaced by man-made idols, the State and Science, and humanist pseudo-sacraments: abortion, combating “Man-Made Climate Change,” same-sex “marriage,” sex change operations, hate speech trials, and every conceivable variety of fornication. They take away the judgment, take away accountability to God, and set up their political masters and scientific oracles as gods.

How does a secularist even know what’s right or wrong? Mostly they’re content to keep some of the moral law handed down to the human race by God, to the Jews first, and then the Gentiles. But no secularist can actually explain why it’s wrong to commit a murder. We can, but they can’t. For convenience’s sake they retain much of the law and tradition amassed over the centuries by Jews and Christians, who received it from a righteous and infallible God who is a person, who made them in His image, and who loves them.

Yeah, they made Christianity nicer. That’s why more people were murdered by their own governments in the 20th century alone–Red China, the Soviet Union, Nazi Germany, and a host of others–secularist governments all–than were killed off by all the religions of the world put together in all the other centuries put together. This century is only 18 years old: give it time to come up with new and exciting deviltries all its own.

It is true that God endows all people, even atheists, with common grace, which is an inborn attraction to what is right and good. And so it was always possible for people who had never heard of God’s laws to keep those laws regardless. Common grace is the law written on our hearts. Humanity wouldn’t have survived for two hours without it.

The words of Jesus Christ and His apostles don’t need “humanizing,” and never did.

God defend us from being conformed to this fallen world.

Are We Really Deserting Christ? REPRINT

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From August 28, 2016

Linda sent me a dcclothesline article today with the alarming headline, “More Americans Than Ever Are Leaving Christianity” ( http://www.dcclothesline.com/2016/08/28/more-americans-than-ever-are-leaving-christianity/ ).

One sentence, regarding the findings of a recent Pew Poll, jumped out at me: “[The] biggest cultural shift has been among young people.”

That made me remember a 2008 study by Professor Rodney Stark, director of the Institute of Studies of Religion at Baylor University. Dr. Stark, whom I interviewed at the time, said that throughout American history, it has never been unusual for young Christians to leave the church, only to return when they’re a good deal older. So I think we ought to take that into consideration.

But there are other factors.

Chiefly, our public schools, our colleges, and our popular culture labor night and day, every day, to pry young people away from Christianity. We shouldn’t be surprised that this much indoctrination really works. And Christians should not be sending their children to those schools and colleges.

Also, America’s mainline/flatline Protestant churches have virtually ceased to be churches. Instead of God’s word, they devote themselves to fund-raising, entertainment, story-telling, and all kinds of interfaith frolics–as abundantly chronicled in this blog, throughout the year. Is it any wonder they’re losing their grip?

America needs to be re-Christianized: no two ways about it. This is a job that can’t be done by all too many of our churches, and which will be strenuously resisted by our beloved educators.

Of course, to be unaffiliated with a church does not mean a person has ceased to be a Christian. If Jesus has left the building, so should you.

In my Bell Mountain books, First Prester Orth has a vision for the Temple: that instead of a building, a hierarchy, etc., it ought to consist of God’s people nourished on God’s word, with its walls the four corners of the earth and its roof the very heavens: a church not made with human hands, which human hands cannot destroy.

I believe we can be sure that Jesus Christ Our Lord, the King of Kings, will not let His Church go extinct.

But He may very well decide to change it.

 

The Difference Between Us Reprint

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From November 30, 2017

See the source image

What is the difference between Christianity and humanism? It’s easily explained.

Humanists believe in the perfectibility of man by man; and we, as Christians, don’t.

Plato, Rousseau, the modern Left–they all think that if we only get the right science behind it, spend enough money, and apply the requisite measure of brute force, we can solve any human problem. All we need is another law, another set of new regulations, another bureaucracy to put it into play, round up all the dissidents, and bob’s your uncle: Utopia is achieved.

We believe in an ongoing process of individual sanctification, accomplished by God’s grace and by faith in Jesus Christ. We may not reach perfection, but we can get better than we were. As for Utopia, that doesn’t come until Jesus returns and establishes His kingdom on the earth. We do not believe that human nature is just a more complicated form of Play-Doh, to be shaped as desired by anyone clever enough, strong enough, rich enough, or ruthless enough to do it.

But their belief in their own godlike powers, their own wisdom, pretty much explains the whole history of that horrible 20th century. Always breaking eggs to make the perfect omelet, but never getting there no matter how many they break.

See? I told you it was easy.

What’s Missing from the Easter Message? REPRINT

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From April 5, 2012

The Episcopal Church has sent me a copy of the annual Easter Message from Presiding Bishop Katherine Jefferts Schori. It’s 383 words long, in eight paragraphs.

Not once in this message has the Presiding Bishop seen fit to mention the name of Jesus Christ.

Oh, she drops hints that Easter maybe sort of, kind of, have something to do with Jesus. In the next-to-last paragraph she says, “I would encourage you to look at where you are finding new life and resurrection, where life abundant and love incarnate are springing up in your lives and the lives of your communities.” It is just conceivable that this could be a roundabout approach to Jesus—albeit an approach that never quite gets there. And she concludes, “Give thanks for Easter. Give thanks for Resurrection. Give thanks for the presence of God incarnate in our midst.” God makes it into the very last line of the message.”

Continue Reading “What’s Missing from the Easter Message? REPRINT” →

Some Thoughts on ‘The Chosen’

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The Keys to the Kingdom: A Gentle But Firm Correction to ...

Jesus and His disciples

We spent the day this weekend watching three episodes of The Chosen, Season 4.. Why not? It gives us some quality time with Jesus, and we appreciate that very much.

But when all is said and done, The Chosen is a “Bible movie,” which means the screenwriters will add some things that aren’t in the gospels. That makes me fidgety.

Without committing a spoiler, I must still say that I object to a scene we saw yesterday. If this incident really happened, it should have been mentioned in the Scripture. But I feel certain that it was invented by the writers to make a point.

Later on, when Jesus and His disciples visit their friend Lazarus and his sisters, Mary and Martha, in Bethany, we are given a hint that Lazarus has already been touched by the illness that will take his life; and Jesus see this, but says nothing about it. We know from the Gospel that Lazarus dies, his body is entombed–and Jesus raises him from the dead.

It’s not that the earlier incident I’ve alluded to fails to raise an important point. It doesn’t. I understand why the writers invented and included it. But even so, viewers who are not familiar with the Bible may not know that this was an invented incident: it didn’t happen. I think the writers should have found some other way to make their point.

It’s not just me being picky, is it? Shouldn’t the Bible, as written, be sufficient for our needs? We are committed to the proposition that the Bible tells the truth. Saying something happened, when it didn’t, makes me uneasy.

I hope I hear more about this from some of you. Again, I have not described the incident in question because I don’t want to influence your perception of it.

Yes! Yes! Yes!

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A Cradle Held Him but a Tomb Could Not​ - This weeks church sign Saturday is located in Harrogate, TN to First Baptist Church of Harrogate. ​

“Courageous Christian Father” posted this picture a sign at the First Baptist Church in Harrogate, Tennessee:

“A Cradle Held Him But A Tomb Could Not”

Let’s keep that in mind, very much in mind, shall we! Not that we mean to ignore the world nooze–but the real news, the Good News, is the birth of Jesus Christ… which we mark as a historical event a week from now.

Up against the evils and stupidities of a fallen world, we plead Jesus Christ the Son of God, who was and is and shall be, Amen.

 

‘Light of the World’

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I don’t know how many times I’ve posted this hymn, and I hope you don’t mind hearing it again. I felt a need for it today. This world needs the light of Jesus Christ: nothing else can lift the darkness.

Light of the World, by Charles Wesley; performed by Maddy Prior and the Carnival Band.

‘Jesus Said, “It Is Not for You to Know”‘ (2016)

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468 Jesus Ascends To Heaven Stock Photos, Pictures & Royalty-Free Images - iStock

I re-run this post every now and then because this poor fallen world seems to be growing worse by the day, with flagrant ungodliness everywhere we look, and it wouldn’t surprise me if those headhunters from the World Economic Fund were plotting to kill and eat us. So, yes, we have powerful incentives to long for Christ’s return.

Only we can’t know when it’ll be.

Jesus Said, ‘It Is Not for You to Know’

Even after He rose from the dead, even after He was just about to ascend to Heaven, Our Lord had to deal with what seems, today, like a really silly question: Now would He bring back the kingdom of Israel? Throughout His entire ministry He talked about the Kingdom of God–and they thought He just meant them?

God loves and honors us by admitting us into His labors–like a mother allowing her little girl to “help” her in the kitchen. But the cookbook is way out of our reach, up on the counter; and even if we could get up there to see it, we wouldn’t be able to read it.

“Watch.” And “Occupy until I came.” That’s what He said. That’s what we must do.

How Wrong Have I Been?

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Deeper Heaven: A Reader's Guide to C. S. Lewis's Ransom Trilogy by Christiana Hale

Someone (I suspect my Chalcedon mentor, Martin Selbrede) has sent me a book by Christiana Hale (Hail, Christ?)–Deeper Heaven: A Reader’s Guide to C.S. Lewis’ Ransom Trilogy. I’ve already begun to read it. There is profound wisdom here–one might almost say “intimidating” wisdom.

I want to be a servant of the Lord; but my sins, my worries, my fears, and my inborn limitations hold me back. Lewis based his Ransom Trilogy (Out of the Silent Planet, Perelandra, That Hideous Strength) on the medieval model of the universe, which our modern Science says is simply not true. I mean, how could anyone believe in that? But Truth goes way beyond just “facts.” So does C.S. Lewis.

The Truth is that God Himself, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, Second Person of the Holy Trinity, came to be born–incarnated–here, on Earth; and died, and was resurrected, here. He did it to save us, to pay the ransom for our sins. And it’s simply not possible that He did this in vain.

I stand in awe of this. The material that I ignored as twaddle is really of critical importance. It’ll take me some time to understand this. I have to read more, pray more, study the Bible more, before I can write any more about it.

But we do have this: God’s Word never returns to Him unfulfilled. Never.

I’ve Got the Blues

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64,235 Lizard Photos and Premium High Res Pictures - Getty Images

Maybe a picture of a nice lizard will cheer me up (worth a try)

The last couple nooze items I studied, then wrote up, have kind of sucked the air from my lungs. Ex-Archbishop of Canterbury sez being trans is “a sacred journey.” Current senior bishop sez they don’t know how to define “woman” anymore. Pregnant woman scrawls on her belly, “Not Yet A Human,” meaning the baby she carries in her womb: already alienated from it. Highly-paid, highly visible barking idiots insisting men can get pregnant.

Forgive me, Lord, for wondering: but have you gone on vacation? The world is going to hell and we need some help down here!

And then I think of Jesus sleeping in the boat while the disciples panic (Mark, Ch. 4), they’re convinced the storm’s gonna sink the boat and drown them all. Finally they wake Jesus, who commands the storm to stop (which it does, right away). And he turns to the disciples and asks, “Where’s your faith?”

It ain’t easy, watching John Kerry and his friends trying to destroy our civilization. How far will the Lord let them go?

We don’t know. That’s why we need faith. And that’s why faith is hard. But only faith can stand up against the worst of times. Only faith can get us through.