Category Archives: Christianity

Asleep at the Wheel

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We hear a lot these days about texting and driving, but there’s a million ways to not pay attention to the road.  You could be talking to a person in the car with you, changing the radio dial, reading; I saw a guy on I-75  in Atlanta shaving with a cordless razor.  Have you ever driven on auto pilot?  Perhaps you’re deep in thought or just daydreaming, then suddenly realize where you are.  If you drive a route routinely you do it without really thinking about it.  That will become a problem if something non-routine happens, like a car suddenly breaking or kids running out in the road.  Drivers don’t have to be drunk or texting to be zoned out.

1 Peter 5:8 says “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”  Not living in a drunken stupor is not enough, we have to watchful.  We must be vigilant.  In chapter 1 Peter tells us to prepare our minds for action.  Riding a motorcycle requires more presence of thought driving a car; a few seconds on autopilot could be the end of your trip.  Riders are trained to watch further down the road in order to anticipate problems, as well as be aware of what’s going on behind them on the road.

The Church can’t function on auto pilot.   Continue reading →

Auto Ichthus

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The Ichthus (also Christian fish, Jesus fish) is a symbol of Christianity from the early days of the church.  In short, “ΙΧΘΥΣ (Ichthys) is an acronym for ‘Ίησοῦς Χριστός, Θεοῦ Υἱός, Σωτήρ’, (Iēsous Christos,Theou Yios, Sōtēr), which translates into English as ‘Jesus Christ, God’s Son, Savior’ “.  -Wikipedia; more here.  The symbolism is still used today on everything from youth group t-shirts to church websites.  A common usage is the auto decal ichthus, and it is the pro’s and con’s of this phenomenon I wish to examine here.

Some Christian leaders do not believe a public declaration of faith is necessary.  If we live our lives as “people of the book” then others will see there is a difference in us.  If you arrive early for work, aren’t stealing the office supplies, and take responsibility for your own mistakes, then you may very well stick out like a sore thumb.  The argument is that if we as Christians conform to the image of Christ, and walk circumspectly of the world, then we don’t need Christian t-shirts, auto emblems nor anything else to announce our presence.  If we need to wear signs identifying ourselves as Christian, maybe there’s a problem.  Continue reading →

True or False: Man Cannot See God and Live

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I’m going to consider this question in order to illustrate two important truths that should apply to other questions.  I have heard entire sermons on Exodus 33:20, in which God says to Moses “you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live.”  Some elevate the idea of dying at the sight of God to one of the great doctrines of our Christian faith.  If your paradigm is that no man can see God and live then you run into problems with other passages of scripture when men do see the face of God.  So here come two important lessons.

1) The Bible does not contradict itself.  The Bible is the Word of God.  At essence it conveys one single message, that of how a holy, righteous God deals with a sinful, fallen, broken humanity.  Many apparent conflicts are the result of not understanding historical or cultural context.  Bible students must learn something of history, Hebrew poetry, and the language of analogy. Continue reading →

God Bless Chick-fil-A

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If you don’t know Tim Hawkins you’re really missing out.  All seriousness aside, let’s watch this and share a smile.  I’ll see you all next Wednesday at a Chick-fil-A near you (unless you live in Boston).

…

Below is Tim’s original Chick-fil-A song, with a special Truet & Dan Cathy verse. Continue reading →

Chick-fil-A Drama Play by Play

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The Chick-fil-a saga continues, and some would argue has gotten ridiculous.  Here’s a timeline, a play by play if you will, of how we ended up where we are.  The story has been picked up by national media, who of course are reporting many facts wrongly.

  1. Dan Cathy is interviewed by Ken Coleman, a radio talk show host in Atlanta.  The link I had to the interview is longer valid, but Cathy did remark that America is inviting God’s judgement.  That broadcast was over a month ago, and there was no social media attention nor public outrage in the weeks that followed.
  2. Last week this interview was published by the Baptist Press.  Cathy says in the interview there is no such thing as a Christian company.  A company cannot be lost or saved but individuals are.  A company can however be run according to Christian principles.   Continue reading →

Bloggers, Moderate Your Comments

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Typically I allow anyone that has been approved before to have their comments automatically displayed.  Meaning that your first comment to this blog will be held for moderation and after that one is approved your others will appear instantly.  Some blogs strictly moderate every comment, while some allow everything to appear regardless of the source.

Keep your eye out for comments from L.W. Dickel.  If there is even such a guy (it could be a group of people) he keeps leaving exactly the same inflammatory remarks on multiple posts of multiple Christian blogs.  It’s nothing more than anti-Christian spam, but my filters didn’t catch it and I’ve seen at least two Christian blogs displaying the same comment.  Keep an eye out, moderate your comments, don’t bother engage.  If he wants a legitimate dialog, let him follow the rules.

 

As For Me and My House, We Will Eat at Chick-fil-A.

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Thousands of conservatives protested JC Penny when they announced that Ellen DeGeneres would be their new spokesperson.  (If you recall, I cited the ridiculousness of such a boycott).  In light of Christians calling on others in their ranks to boycott Disney, JC Penny, or (retailer of the week) for supporting gay marriage we should not be surprised that gay and lesbian groups are calling for organized boycotts against Chick-fil-A for their public stance on supporting the family.

Please read this article, published by Denny Burk, titled Chick-fil-A and the Irony of the Tolerance Policy.  I will offer a couple of excerpts but strongly encourage reading the original piece. Continue reading →

Christians Response to Gay Advertising

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Over the weekend I got a rather feisty comment on my Ellen DeGeneras post from February (link).  The commenter railed on Christians that would still shop at JC Penny after they “actively supported this!”  I thought the article was clear that what the retail chain supported was buying more stuff; they sell lots of women’s clothing and DeGeneras is a public iconic figure that wears women’s clothing and probably knows a thing or two about shopping.  Mr. Smith, in his comment, used words like faggot, queers, and terms such as “the homos” and suggested we would talk about his language while ignoring the depravity around us.  Which does beg the question: What should the Christian response be to the proliferation of homosexuality in our culture? Continue reading →

The Nearest Thing to Heaven

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How many times have you bitten into a delicious slice of cheesecake (insert favorite dessert here) and made the statement “I’m in Heaven?”  Listening to beautiful music, attending a wedding reception, or perhaps sitting at home in a rare moment of peace and quiet can move us to feel that way at times; this is what heaven must be like.  Do you ever feel that way at church?

My dad wrote a song about the church titled The Nearest Thing to Heaven.  Like old country music, even Dad’s gospel songs were made of two things: 3 chords and the truth.  The point of the song is simple; the Church (universal) should be the nearest thing to heaven you can find on earth.  While he acknowledges there are problems and that no person nor congregation is perfect, the Church is (or should be) filled with God’s people.  The Church is made up of disciples of Jesus, who are continuously learning to be more Christ-like.  In short, the Church should be populated with God’s people, led by and filled with the Holy Spirit, and working for the Kingdom.  With Christ as its head, the Church should be the body.  That should be manifest in our worship and in our service.  Worship takes place in the church building, while our service takes place Monday through Saturday outside of the church building.

Do you enjoy going to church?   Continue reading →

Full of God

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The goal of Christians is to be conformed to the image of Christ.  The reason we ask “What would Jesus do?” is to put ourselves in the right frame of mind to be Christ-like in our decision making (Philippians 2).  We know from reading the Gospels and the letters of Paul that we are to think like Christ, to have the heart and mind of a servant, to be humble, to love as Christ loved, and so forth.  Like John the Baptist we must make less of ourselves and more of Christ.  Realizing that we can never become perfectly like Christ, the goal is to continuously work at it.  As we get closer and closer, others should be able to see Christ in us.  They were called Christians first at Antioch why?  Because the followers of Christ at Antioch sounded and acted like the one they were following.

Ephesians 3 mentions one way to be Christ-like, which I had never noticed before.  Read Colossians 1, noting verse 19 that says “For in him [Christ] all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell…”  Jesus was incarnate deity, the person of God robed in a body of flesh.  One aspect of Jesus Christ is that he was full of God.  Now look at Ephesians 3, a short chapter in which Paul reveals the mystery of the Gospel.  In particular:

For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.  -Ephesians 3:14-19 ESV

There are many things we can choose to fill ourselves with; Paul says we should be full of God.