The Nature of God

"Now Mount Sinai {was} all in smoke because the LORD descended upon it in fire; and its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked violently. When the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke and God answered him with thunder."  (Exodus 19:18-19) 

Have you ever contemplated this question?  It is a legitimate question.  “Who is He” is often interspersed with “What is He?” For example, “God is love.” (I John 4:8).  Is this an attempt to answer “who” or “what?”  I guess I would almost have to respond by saying, “both.”

 "God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."  (John 4:24) “What” He is obviously affects “who” He is.  Who and what He is also obviously affects what He wants from us.   Today I wish to approach this from an evidences standpoint… and look a little deeper into what the Bible actually reveals to us about “what” God is.

I also wish to compare this insight with the laws that drive the universe.   What the Bible reveals about God is exactly what the universe demands for God to be… in order for God to be its creator.

So They Call This Worship?

Wherefore Come out from among them, and be ye separate...

Text for today’s article:

"And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you." (II Corinthians 6:15-17)

It has been sometime since I have written, owing to the distractions of building onto my house.  However, I have had opportunity to research the modern homogenization of the church into worldly entertainment that is sweeping our country.  I will share this research with you.  As with the threat of Islam, most people among the older generation have no idea what is afoot, or at least how far it goes.  Today, I’d like to take a peek into this subject.

Three specific contemporary trends come to mind:
1.  The community church movement and contemporary worship services.
2.  The loss of discipline and godliness as a cornerstone of faithful religion.
3.  The final act: setting aside Jesus as insignificant and unimportant.  (Oprah’s version of church)

Not every church moving in this direction involves all three trends, but any one of the three is a movement away from the established truths of scripture.

The Day Our Church Fired Jesus!

Could Jesus preach for “your” church?

Is “your” church, “His” church?

Today’s article will be intended to fill in an oversight in my preaching and teaching.  Over the last few years I have found myself reacting to some of the ever changing attitudes of the society in which I live.  

I have come to believe that the “feel good” religion now sweeping our churches in the name of Christianity is to the church what drug addiction is to society at large.  Once these churches are infected, they rapidly become addicted.  I.E.  filled with a very shallow people wanting ever more dramatic events to make us “feel” fulfilled.  Once addicted, hype replaces substance. Sounds like somewhat of a reversed substance abuse? Churches abuse their members  from a lack of substance.  Drug addicts abuse their bodies by the invasion of harmful substance.  These churches are always looking for the innovative method of church growth.  “Children’s church” replaces training your children to worship and respect their creator.  As the youth move into teenage, entertainment replaces serious Bible study and effective spiritual growth. In other words, the original call of the gospel is often replaced with an offer of entertainment or treats.

Most of the religious leaders involved in these changes know that what they are presenting is different than what Jesus presented.  Their justification (once called on the issue) will remind you of all the “medical”marijuana arguments raging in the secular world.  The bottom line is really the same. 

Sermons Recorded in Matthew

Sermon on the mount 5:1 - 7:29  He sent them home with….

22.  "Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?'

 23.  "And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.'

 (Note this was followed by the parable of the wise and foolish man to drive it home).The 12 commissioned 10:1-42  He sent them home with….

33.  "But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven.

 34.  "Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.

 35.  "For I came to SET A MAN AGAINST HIS FATHER, AND A DAUGHTER AGAINST HER MOTHER, AND A DAUGHTER-IN-LAW AGAINST HER MOTHER-IN-LAW;

 36.  and A MAN'S ENEMIES WILL BE THE MEMBERS OF HIS HOUSEHOLD.

 37.  "He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.

A "Normal" Christian Worship Service???

We recently have had several studies concerning these variations of worship that have come into the churches all over the area around us.  The reality is that in the Wichita area, we have seen churches offering everything from rock music to bribes in order get people into church.  Here, the liberal churches of Christ have been embracing more and more of these behaviors and bringing shame on all of us… whether we participate or not.

Last month one of those liberal churches… the South Emporiachurch of Christ (Wichita, Ks) invited our young people to some kind of wing ding. . . They promised to give them all free pizza and dilly bars if they’d come!  The social gospel has so eclipsed the gospel of Christ in these churches that they don’t even recognize the damage they are doing…  Perhaps even more tragic, I doubt that many of that church’s members realize that I have raised a doctrinal objection to their behavior with their leadership. They are still blindly following along.

Jesus said…”They are blind guides of the blind. And if a blind man guides a blind man, both will fall into a pit."  Note how the focus of the invitation is blatantly social/worldly.  Notice further what this says about their young people… they assume that their young people are not interested in godliness… they are therefore luring them with worldliness.  Dilly bars, special appearances, entertainment etc.
 Let me ask a practical question. When you picture Jesus’ cross… Do you envision the apostles working the crowd offering free pizza and dilly bars? Me neither! So… Is Jesus the Head of this church?

When the Vow Breaks

Today’s article is a rarity.  I generally write the articles for this list but every now and then one really hits home and I’ll forward it. This is one of those articles.  No one alive remembers what it means to live in a country where the Bible is truly respected.  A local reporter (Wichita, Ks) in 2004 did a local average on divorces and they hit 70% in 2002.  I.E. 70 divorces for every 100 marriages. By way of contrast, once upon a time, long, long ago…. In 1870, there was only one divorce for every 34 marriages. 

 Times have changed.  All of us, even the innocent, have been affected by all this.  Even those with godly happy homes have not escaped the pain. For example, my little sister was murdered over a divorce gone awry. The human heart truly needs it’s creator! This article below puts a human face on one of the great tragedies of our time.  

Yours in Christ,
Jerry Blount

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When the Vow Breaks

By Wilson Adams

            I am divorced. Like the alcoholic who finds the courage to stand at his first A.A. meeting and admit what he would rather hide and deny, well, that's me. It's not easy writing those words or even admitting them to myself.

            You may wonder why it is that big of a deal. After all, many marriages end in divorce and it is a common thing for people to talk in flippant tones about an ex-husband or wife as if they were speaking about a once-loved vehicle they have traded in on a newer model. I hate that. My view of marriage is one of permanency—one man and one woman "until death do you part" (Romans 7:2-3). I learned, however, a valuable lesson along the road of life—you cannot make some-one else remain committed nor can you make him / her do what is right. You can, however, control yourself.

Proving the Story of Jesus

Today’s article will be focused on untangling a stubborn knot for some people. I will be attempting to put before you one very solid answer to why a grown man can hold his head up and declare that he believes Jesus to be the Son of God.

To often we have allowed others to characterize Christianity as a group of followers of an incredible myth. Little do many realize that Christianity, the Bible, and the story of the Bible will stand up to honest, even hostile, scrutiny.

Christianity is not Blind stupid faith! It is the only sensible way to approach life and the God who created it! Today we’ll look at one segment of proving this to be so.

I am 52 years old and I won’t blindly follow anyone anywhere without a real reason to do so…. I don’t expect you to either! That said, the Bible is the Word of God!

The story of Jesus: Was it a Myth or can we prove Jesus to be the true focus of all of human history?

Answer: Yes, a Christian can prove that Jesus is the focus of all of human history!

A History Lesson on Mormonism

Last week I sent out an email to the list comparing the Mormon's founders to the founders of Christianity. I noted that virtually every signatory witness to the golden plates either repudiated their testimony, left the mormon faith or was excommunicated before they died. Comparably, we also noted that none of the authors of your Bible ran... even though most of then became martyrs. 

Today's email is somewhat of a follow-up from last week.

I was unprepared for the quantity and varied nature of the comments about Mormonism that followed. There seems to be a renewed interest in displacing what I would call a willful ignorance of Mormonism.  It is likely to be because of Mitt Romney's being a Mormon. We live in a funny world. Most churches are so afraid of sounding negative they just leave their members wallowing in ignorance.

I am reminded of another time...

Hosea 4: 6. My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being My priest. Since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.

By the same token, the behavior of the original Mormons was so inappropriate that most Mormons just do not want to know either! I have always thought how sad it was that Mormon leaders really have had to hide much of their history from their members. The Bible deals directly with this mindset. 

“The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means; and my people love to have it so: and what will ye do in the end thereof?”  Jeremiah 5:31

Now a Mormon wants to be president and people don’t know whether they should be afraid or not. 

To make a long story short, a couple years back,  our high school class was asking some pointed questions about the origins of the various churches. They also wanted to know how one church could be as good as another! Logically our young people were properly concluding that just couldn’t be so.  They knew they were correct and were asking for a basis to judge various churches as adults. Well, we don't leave our children ignorant. This is the material I used in that class. 

Providentially at  about the same time, I was studying with some young Mormon elders that had come to my door. These 20 year old “elders” complained that all they heard was negative things said about the Mormons.  They elaborated that people just read bad things about the LDS church. I thought about it awhile and decided that part of their complaint was fair.  It is important to know what Mormons really say, rather than what others say they say…  I determined that I  would concentrate on finding my material in the LDS documents rather than just from others.

What Happened to the People Who Wrote Your Bible?

The character of the Bible’s Witnesses

"You are My witnesses," declares the LORD, "And My servant whom I have chosen, So that you may know and believe Me And understand that I am He. Before Me there was no God formed, And there will be none after Me. I, even I, am the LORD, And there is no savior besides Me.” Isaiah 43:10-11 

The strength of any testimony absolutely depends on the quality of it’s witnesses.  The Bible is not unique in that respect.   In a court of law, the witnesses are often tried as aggressively as the accused.  The reason is simple, there is a lot at stake and we need to be sure the story holds up to competent investigation. 

God went to a lot of trouble to be sure we would have the ability to test and know that His story was true.  The Bible really did come from God.  Let’s begin looking at the Bible’s testimony and evaluating it’s witnesses.

The first and obvious testimony inside our modern completed work is prophecy.  By 740 BC God’s batting average is so clearly established that it became the basis of other discussions as we can see in Is. 43 under our title. 

How the Koran Uses the Word "Kill"

"They desire that you should disbelieve as they have disbelieved, so that you might be (all) alike; therefore take not from among them friends until they fly (their homes) in Allah's way; but if they turn back, then seize them and kill them wherever you find them, and take not from among them a friend or a helper." [Surah 4.89]

 I have begun a series of studies in Islam.  We hear a lot on the local news about Islam being a religion peace and yet we see these pictures of hate and violence.  Moderates say Islam was hijacked.  How can you or I or anyone else know?Well, let me share a simple exercise with you that I have begun.  Choose any online Koran with a good search engine and do some word searches.  This will allow you to see what the Koran actually teaches. Some so-called Christians ignore what the Bible says, but that is not true Christianity.  So to determine true Islam, let’s look at the Koran….  The Koran is obviously the beginning point for Islam. I googled for a Koran and chose this Koran online, which has a search engine.  The benefit of doing this is that no human filters or prejudices are involved.  Just choose a word and search.  A complete picture of every use of the word in this book emerges.

The search below is the word “Kill.”  As a history buff, I know that the West has only maintained peace with the Islamic world for short periods of time since Muhammad.  My obvious question is, “Why?  Why are we constantly at war?” Every time I have brought this hatred and killing up with a Muslim the response has been, “Your old testament has the same things in it!”  You know, that is true.

 Let’s consider the Bible for a moment.  Genesis tells us that man sinned, he sunk into sin and the pain that goes with it.  God destroyed the world over sin at one point, but then started leading a group out of all this. God spent a few thousand years teaching the world a better way… With Jesus, God moved the human race massively forward.  I would submit that 600 years later, Muhammad moved it massively back ward. In other words, to all that follow Muhammad, this is a leap back into the elemental principles of the world.

Jesus specifically took the sword away from the Christian as a means of spreading or defending his religion.  (Matthew 26:52).  The apostle Paul noted that the sword belonged to civil governments in order to minister, not to Christian ministers (Romans 13:4).  From Jesus' time forward, the religious disputes are to be handled in the mind.
Bottom line? Wars of religion were eliminated by Jesus, but demanded by Muhammad.  Put another way, Killing in the name of Jesus is hypocrisy.  Killing in the name of Muhammad, is Islam!