 |
| This is the only month during which I shower. |
Here are the most popular posts for the month of April, followed by my stats for the lifetime of the blog. You will find comments listed in the stats…feel free to leave yours!
From the all time posts: If you have yet to read Athletes With Shuffling Feet survey says, “READ IT NOW.” In just a month & a half of existence, it has become the all time most popular post–it’s not even close.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
| More #BTSermon? Please do!!! |
This week I have one message from my own dear father. And guess what, HE WAS RETWEETED!! By an absolute stranger at that. Boo yah! You see, people are getting into the conversation. Let’s get to the tweet!
 |
| The Glorious Rapture! |
First in a series of video blogs. This one is based on Philippians 2.6 Remember: He changed his status one time so you could change yours for all eternity.
 |
| J.N. Darby |
Want to know more about those people who don’t want to say they are part of a denomination, but when you pressure them they say Plymouth Brethren? Your wait is over!
If you have access to the Florida International University network of libraries, you can use my guide to the Plymouth Brethren Origins & Distinctives to find out more about these Christians. I put this Pathfinder together as an assignment for my Library and Information Science class and decided to share it with the world.
If you have any questions about using the guide, feel free to contact me through the comments section.
 |
| Make Your Choice |
Where do you fall in this discussion? What do you see in your reaction to the scripture, or your reaction when someone talks about Jesus or your reaction to this blog post? Maybe some things need to change. Or maybe you need to read a little more. Here’s a few places to start:
Revelation 5.11-14
Imagine this scene with me. John the apostle, or perhaps you, are taken in the spirit to heaven’s throne room. And you are faced with this scene.
You are faced with angels, elders, creatures & created things of all kinds making noise and features of all sorts. The volume & energy is overwhelming.
But after a little while you start picking out what each group is saying. The myriads of angels are the loudest so you hear them first: Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power & riches & wisdom & might & honor & glory & blessing.
Soon you notice how the creatures respond: To Him who sits on the throne, & to the Lamb, be blessing & honor & glory & dominion forever & ever.
Yet there is more. There is a rhythm to this worship song. You (or John) locate the source; the four living creatures keep repeating something in earnest. You strain our ears & catch the exact lyric: Amen… Amen… Amen… Amen… Amen… Amen… Amen… Amen… Amen… Amen… Amen… Amen… Amen… Amen
All this for a Lamb. A Lamb who was slain. It was mentioned this morning during the Lord’s Supper God came to be among man. Realize that now the tables have been turned. Man is now gathered in the midst of God.
All thanks to the Lamb.
 |
| A “must-read” for the thinking man |
I just finished teaching Mere Christianity to my Sunday School class. Actually, to be completely accurate, @mrskylarkk & I just finished teaching Mere Christianity to the High School Sunday School class. It was a phenomenal experience.
It is one thing to read a book & enjoy it yourself, it is another thing entirely to use a book as a text for pedagogy. One must know the material better than their students. One must know the chapters and how they relate to other arguments. One must be prepared for everything. As a result, One learns more than he has in previous readings of the same book. That happened to me.
C. S. Lewis, the author of this classic work, begins with a natural argument for morality–not Christianity, not even Deity. Slowly, the argument for an outside entity is built. Notice also that Christianity is in the majority throughout the first chapter. Christianity agrees with every religion (which well outnumbers atheists). In fact, Christians agree that there is one monotheistic God, and is still in the majority with Judaism & Islam. These things do not distinguish Christianity, these are things that are common to mankind.
What distinguishes Christianity is the relationship that Mankind can have with their Creator. Since the Creator is outside of the Creation, He has an ultimate goal. That ultimate goal is reanimation–to make Mankind back into a perfect image of Himself. That is the mere goal of Christianity; the point, if you will. By looking at the human experience in this way, it makes sense that Man has no meaning as long as he strives against God’s will. If the painting ran away from the artist, would it ever be a masterpiece? The answer is no, and the same applies to Man’s spiritual state.
Another thing to keep in mind with this piece of literature–& it should be treated as such, this is no self-help book–is its original presentation. Remember that Mere Christianity was originally conceived as a series of radio segments aired after World War II while Lewis was at Oxford. Hence, the chapters are short and succinct. In addition, the chapters build and never get too heavy. Further, note that Lewis is struggling to keep a fair & balanced view of humanity in a time when absolute devils were seen in positions of power. How many people must have thought they were in the presence of the Antichrist? While Hitler & Mussolini were antichrists, they certainly were not the apocalyptic Antichrist of Dispensationalism. But that is another topic for another time. What is to be remembered is the state of the world at the time of these discussions.
We Talk of Holy Things 