Life / Religion / Philosophy / Science / Polictics

Tag: Satan

  • Who Owns Death? (Part I)

    Death is a subject that may not interest very many people. For some it may be something that looms over their head that they just don’t want to think about. For others it may be a mystery that grips the heart with fear. Still others have some morbid fascination with death that defies logic and explanation. But one thing is for sure, it is something that is universal and affects each and every person who lives.

    Given that death may be such an uncomfortable subject that most people don’t want to get into, or even think about, why would I devote a BLOG post to it? Especially since my BLOG purports to talk about Life/Religion/Politics/Science/and Philosophy? And while there may not seem to be any connection with death in that topic list, death is something we deal with in life, and it has very serious and important consequences in the Religious (Spiritual) realm. But my purpose for bringing it up today is to hopefully have people, especially, Christians, think about it a little bit differently than what is typically put forth in mainstream conversations. I believe that we treat several conversations about death incorrectly and that concerns me for a number of reasons. So that is why I’d like to share my thoughts on death today.

    When we talk about death, the very first thing we should consider, and the most important thing we should clarify, is Which death are we talking about? For the atheist or agnostic, there is probably surprise (or disbelief) at the concept of multiple deaths. But for the theist, and especially Christians, two deaths should be known and understood. Scripture makes it very clear that there are two deaths (Revelation 2:10-12, Revelation 20:5-7, Revelation 20:13-15, and Revelation 21:7-9 King James Version Bible). If there is a second death mentioned, it would only follow that there is a first death. Christians know these two deaths as the physical death and the spiritual death.

    Everyone knows of the physical death regardless of your world view. Things live and die. It is the cycle of life. For the evolutionist this is the end. Nothing else happens (by-the-way, if you are an Evolutionist who believes in some type of afterlife or spirit world, you are at odds with evolutionary theory which does not allow for any type of god or higher being).

    For the agnostic, you might believe in reincarnation, so something that allows the spirit to still inhabit the earth (as in ghosts, ghouls, or goblins), but there is little rational thought around those ideas, and they lack purpose, meaning, or hope.

    For the theist however, there is an afterlife, perpetuated by a god. And for Christians that God is Jehovah God. And the part of the being that carries forward is the spirit. And most theists, Christians included, believe that God (or gods for polytheists) provide a new body when this this present physical body dies.

    The second death, or spiritual death is unique to Christians and Judaism, and has no meaning to either atheists, agnostics, or most other religions.

    So far, I believe that about 80% – 90% of people are understanding of at least one, some, or all of these concepts and think there is nothing new here. So, let me ask you a question, Who owns death? And let’s be even more specific and identify who owns each death.

    This is where I believe so many people begin to get things wrong (even in some churches). Because believe it or not, I believe they are not the same.

    In Genesis 2:17 the death talked about is clearly spiritual death. This is obvious because when Adam ate of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, he did not immediately physically die. But at the same time Adam sealed the fate of humanities mortality to physically die. And we know this because in Genesis 3:22-24 God clearly indicated that He would honor His original design should Adam eat of the tree of life. And God clearly took steps to not allow that to happen.

    So here we see God exercising control over physical life and death. Both in the fact that Adam and Eve did not immediately physically die when they sinned against God, and by not allowing them to live forever by eating of the tree of life.

    But what of spiritual death? Satan was the one who deceived Eve with a lie. We see this in Genesis 3:1-7. Yet God did not intervene. He allowed Adam and Eve to make a choice. Free will. To either gamble on Satan’s lie, or to adhere to the truth. And he allowed Satan to deceive because he gave over the spiritual life to Satan.

    I am sure there are Bible scholars screaming at their screens right now. God did what!?! OK, OK, the proper way to describe it in the words of Paul is that Satan stole humanity away from God (Ephesians 1:13-15, Hebrews 9:11-16). But I’m going to maintain that no one, not even Satan, can steal from God that which He does not allow to be stolen. Allow me a few verses to illustrate. Christians know that humans start their physical lives dead in trespasses and sin (Ephesians 2:1-3, Colossians 2:12-14). That is, we inherit the sin nature, and its condition, from Adam (Romans 5:6-21). And in this passage, we even see Paul explain that even though we did not sin in the same manner of Adam, we are still sinners (Romans 5:14).

    What we see here is that from Satan’s initial lie to Eve, humanity has been trapped in sin (spiritual death). And we all see that God sent His Son in order to pay our sin debt (buy us back). And why would God need to buy back that which was stolen from Him? And what does any of that have to do with physical death? And what is the relevance to you today?

    Come back and read Part II to find out.

  • Do You Practice What You Preach?

    [For the second time in a very short period of time I find myself breaking one of my primary rules for a fixed length BLOG and making a long post (about 2.6 times longer than my average).  I realize that your time is a precious commodity and that time spent on one resource (on the Internet) is time lost to another resource.  However, I believe the hypocrisy in our political, social, and religious conversations these days is spiraling out of control and wanted to share my thoughts on it.  For continuity's sake I am putting this discourse into one post rather than breaking it apart.]

    For all of my life and for all of history that I have learned, there has been one complaint that is constantly brought up: You Christians are hypocrites. And I’ll be bold enough to answer this criticism on behalf of all Christians everywhere: Yes, we are. And if you are a Christian who is screaming at your screen right now: I am not a hypocrite! then I guess I’ll just speak for myself and remind everyone that not only am I the biggest hypocrite here, I am also still chief amongst sinners.

    We are all human and we all live in a sinful world. And all of us (the entirety of humanity) are bound to slip at points and not exactly practice what we preach. And when we don’t practice what we preach, well that is pretty hypocritical.

    But all of that is mostly an academic argument. The real heart of the matter is why the criticism is brought up in the first place. And that (usually) is: You Christians want to force your morals on everyone. Or: You Christians just want to force your God on everyone. Or: You Christians just want to tell me what to do. Which is a really interesting lie from Satan that actually surprises me that so many people believe.

    There are three words in my vocabulary that I have been told I am never allowed to use (except when referring to Nancy Pelosi). Those words are stupid, idiotic, and moron. And I understand those are harsh and hurtful words, however they sometimes spill out of my mouth when frustrated by the inexplicable lunacy we see in the world around us. However, I’ve freely admitted that Christians are indeed hypocritical at times. What I’d ask of any rational thinking person is that they would honestly evaluate their own arguments and consider what really occurs.

    For example, Christians just want to force their morals/values on everyone else. But do you even know what Christian morals or values are? You may think that you do because you feel that they are anything that tells you, you can’t do what you please. But let me tell you what Christian morals and values really are:

    (1) To have no other god before the Lord God in Heaven. Christians worship God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ), and God the Holy Spirit. The triune God of all of creation. There is no way that I or any other Christian can force you to worship God. Not even with torture or under duress. Worship just cannot be forced on anyone. It is an act of free will. So no, Christians do not force this on anyone. Rather they invite people to participate in the worship of the one true God. The world, on the other hand, insists that Christians worship at their alter and honor their gods. The world constantly and consistently forces their worship of child sacrifices through abortions, immorality through transgenderism and LBGTQIA+ agendas, and insisting that Christians cater to them in business and grant them marriages in God’s houses of worship, and to even grant them Holy Communion under the practices of the Christian faith. The world demands that Christian honor their religions, without showing the same respect and courtesy to Christianity.

    (2) To make no graven images of worship. Christians are to worship in Spirit and in Truth. Not bowing down to some golden idol made by kings. And when the governments set up graven images and command the people to bow down and worship, Christians should not, and I will not, bow down and worship them. Even when threatened with being thrown into the fiery furnace. Christians do not hail Cesar (or Hitler, or the President, or even the Pope) as a god. And obviously Christians cannot force you to you to not make graven images nor to not bow down and worship them. Rather it is the world that wants to tear down and eradicate the Cross of Jesus Christ. It is the world that wants to close the doors of Christian churches. It is the world that has hated Christians throughout all of history and has sought to end it. And it is the world that creates the graven images of worship that they then demand Christians bow down to.

    (3) To not take the name of the Lord God in vain. Christians are physically and emotionally pained when around someone who vehemently, needlessly, and with scorn exclaims the name of Jesus Christ. And this is a particularly puzzling thing since Jesus Christ is our God. So why does the world delight in exclaiming the name of the Christian God as an explicative? Christians do not force this on anyone, rather it is the world that insists on causing pain and anguish by repeatedly invoking the name of Jesus Christ inappropriately in their conversation. If we really wanted a kinder, gentler world, I would think that the world would be a little more sensitive and respectful in their conversations.

    (4) To remember the sabbath and to keep it holy. Christians want to work six days a week and on the seventh day, to rest and worship God. This may vary between various groups and practices with some debate on whether Saturday or Sunday (on the Gregorian calendar) is the proper day of worship, but Christians want to keep one day a week holy, meeting in their synagogues, temples, or churches to worship as they see fit. I know of no law of man in any free world country that would compel you to keep the sabbath holy. And indeed, Christians cannot, and do not force this on anyone. If anything, I would say that it is the world that has succeeded in making the Sabbath an un-holy day (or just another day of the week).

    (5) To honor their fathers and mothers. Christians believe in a nuclear family consisting of a father and a mother. That they have the inalienable God given right, duty, and responsibility to raise up their children in the way they should go. And that those children should honor their fathers and mothers so that their days may be long upon the Earth. Is it Christians that force other’s children to honor their parents? Of course not. Christians suggest that the world would be a much better place if we had children that honored their fathers and mothers, but Christians have enough responsibility raising their own children let alone everyone else’s. So why is it then that the world is not content to raise their own children but insists on moral and ethical indoctrination of children within the public school system? It is the world that wants to take a place of learning and turn it into a place of socialization and indoctrination. Why do our public-school systems believe it is OK to usurp parents’ responsibilities and thrust a state sponsored set of morals and values upon them? And while the world believes it is Christians that want to force their morals and values on everyone else, the world goes blindly by as public schools promote Heather Has Two Mommies or the support by teachers of transgenderism in the classroom. Forcing their morals and their values on Christian students.

    (6) To not commit murder. Christians are fiercely pro-life. Christians know life is a gift from God and that death is the wages of sin. Christians know God is the author of life and that all life comes from him and is for His honor and His glory. Christians also know that Jesus Christ paid the ultimate price of His own life so that we may have eternal life with Him. Not taking the life of another human through deliberate means contrary to God’s law (murder) is respect for the precious gift of life and the creator that sustains it. It is the world that does not see life as precious. And why should they? If everything is just an accident of natural forces within the universe and all of humanity just happened to crawl out of the primoradial ooze by chance, then who cares if a person lives or dies? There is no meaning to it all, and no greater consequences to our actions here on earth. So, it is easy for the world to sacrifice little unborn children in abortion factories. It is easy for the world to champion euthanasia. It is easy for the world to pull the life support plug on those hanging by a thread. And it is easy for the world to adopt a cavalier attitude towards the suicide and murder rates within our cities and towns and not rush to defend the innocent. This is all because the world does not respect nor cherish life.

    (7) To not commit adultery. Christians believe in the sanctity of a Biblical marriage between a man (biological male at birth) and a woman (biological female at birth). Or at least they should. Christians believe that marriage is ordained by God and is a depiction of his perfect plan in the world. God is a trinity – God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ) and God the Holy Spirit. Humans are a trinity – a Body, a Soul (our mind, will, emotions), and a Spirit (that part of us that connects with God and that He sustains). Our families are a trinity – a Father, a Mother, and Children. Our Churches are a trinity – Jesus Christ (the head of the Church), a Pastor (Priest, Rabbi), and the body (congregation). Even the US Government is a trinity – the Executive Branch, the Legislative Branch, and the Judicial Branch. This balanced design is seen throughout our world and Christians know that a breakdown in this balance (such as the act of adultery in a marriage) has disastrous consequences long term. It strains (or often destroys) the marriage. It perpetuates discord and distrust in the lives of children, often for several generations. And it betrays a commitment and a trust that Jesus Christ has set an example of through His love for us. The world takes great pleasure in sexual promiscuity. And it is easy to understand why as lust has a very powerful pull in our lives. So, while Christians do not sanction the act of adultery as it destroys the trinity of the marriage, they still recognize (and at times succumb to themselves) the dangerous alluring temptations of adulterous relationships. It is for this reason that Christians believe they need to be on their constant guard such that they are able to stand against the temptations of evil. The world delights in tearing this guard down. The world delights in the sensual, the sexual, and the temptations that destroy families. And all the while the world is flaunting these temptations and putting their own morality (or lack thereof) on display for all to see, they are demanding that Christians stop forcing Christian morals on them. One might honestly ask, who is forcing whose morals on whom?

    (8) To not steal. For Christians, not taking that which does not belong to them goes beyond just respecting others property and others’ rights. For Christians, not taking that which does not belong to them from others is trusting in God. It is trusting God to provide for their needs (without having to steal from others). It is trusting God bless them and keep them (without having to take the blessings of others). And it is trusting God with a jealous heart in that God has provided for them as He has seen fit and not as they see fit in their own eyes. Seemingly, for the world, taking that which is not theirs has become a standard of excellence. Our news is filled with stories of rioting and looting across our entire country. The world believes it is “owed” something as people demand reparations and seek compensation for perceived injustices. And it is the world that constantly strives to ignore the crime of theft, to the point where the State of California will hardly prosecute thieves anymore.

    (9) To not bear false witness. For Christians, not bearing witness to the truth, should remind them of the betrayal of their Lord and Savior to be crucified on a cross. Christians believe in honesty and integrity in their witness because it depicts the honesty and integrity of God’s own words to Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden when He told them that if they were to eat of the tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, that they would surely die. And the lie that Satan then whispered into Eve’s ear that they would not die but would become as gods. And Christians should love all even as God loves all. To bear false witness against another and cause them harm, is the same betrayal shown by Satan at the beginning of time. More and more it would seem that the world is no longer with Christians when it comes to truthful testimony in court. Especially in politics. Today we simply need to turn on our cable network news, visit a news WEB site on the internet, consult a social media application on our cell phone, or tune into talk radio. The world is full of those that bear false witness against others and have no problem with it whatsoever when it is to their benefit.

    (10) To not covet their neighbors’ possessions. Christians believe that they should be content with what God has given them and that their desires should not be for the things of this world, but rather for the things of God. For Christians, not coveting or lusting after the possessions of others is to keep from replacing God in their lives with the things of this world. It is to keep their hearts and minds free to be filled by God and not the desires for the possessions of others. And as with all other Christian morals/values, Christians cannot force this upon the rest of the world. It is something that must be accomplished individually and personally. Today, the world is trying to force socialism and communism upon all of us. The world tries to force a level playing field to the detriment of all. And the world is immensely jealous of the “haves” and the “have nots” believing that it is a blight on society that they must fix. It is the world that is trying to play out it’s lust and covet-ness on everyone (including Christians).

    And on all of these hang the entire law. These 10 morals/values that Christians hold to (or at least should strive to make a reality in their own lives) define an outcome that places God first, others second, and themselves last. And Christians see the world this way (or should see the world this way) because God sees the world this way. Christians can consider every other person better than themselves because Jesus Christ, being God, did not consider Himself better than God and gave Himself up for all of creation. God humbled Himself before us, the creation, and we should do the same for others around us.

    And I don’t really believe that people are stupid, or idiotic. At least I don’t believe that about the majority of people. I believe that people are not honest. They are not honest with themselves, and they are certainly not honest with others. If they were, they would recognize their own hypocrisies and understand that they do not Practice What They Preach. Think about it.

  • So, You Want to Be Free?

    Remember when Queen told us this (and yes, this is the official music video – just so you know what they wanted to break free from):

    The song, released on April 2nd, 1984 (missing April Fool’s Day by one day, in a rather ironic twist) tells us they want to break free as if they are being held prisoner against their will or are somehow enslaved. The subtle undertones of the music video imply that there is a social or cultural slavery going on (even if not found in the words of the song). And this cultural slavery is keeping them down, oppressing them somehow, and they just need to break free of the chains that bind them so that they may finally be happy.

    What about these freedom fighters in Canada? Do truck drivers who believe they are being oppressed by their government deserve to be free? At what point do laws, mandates, and government leaders actually become oppressors, eventually prompting people to want to break free?

    Remember the riots in Seattle, Washington just two years ago? We were told these people were free to protest and express their views. Even though the looting and rioting certainly seemed threatening to the freedoms of peaceful business owners and families living in the area.

    And we should not forget that we are told that freedom is not free:

    The world exists today, full of people, who have never experienced a day of slavery in their lives, and yet they constantly enslave themselves. They enslave themselves to the culture, to others around them, to perceived threats to their way of life, to governments, to employers, to drugs and other addictions, and even to religions. Most of all though, the world is full of people enslaved to lies that they do not recognize as lies, or even where those lies come from. And all of us just want to be free.

    The real irony of it all is that one person’s freedom is another person’s slavery. There is always a master and a slave. After all, that is how one becomes enslaved in the first place, by being ruled by the master. If drugs are your master, then drugs will rule your life and rob you of your freedoms. And far be it for me to be judgmental here. Jesus did not come into this world to condemn the world (John 3:17), and I have no place passing out condemnation either. I am still chief amongst sinners here and I need the Salvation of the Lord more than anyone else. But that does not change the Truth. Truth still stands and there is still light and dark in the world, and we all need to be aware of that. Sometimes we all feel a little condemned by the Truth and that causes us to embrace the chains that enslave us. No matter what those chains are.

    We all want to be free of something. To the point even of arguing who is the greater of the oppressed. Consider the Black Lives Matter movement. Does God consider the worth of one life over another? Of course, He does not. When people argue that black lives should receive a special pass because they have somehow experienced a greater degree of discrimination or oppression, they are simply putting themselves at the forefront. It becomes all about them. And when life become all about you … it is not all about God. The sheer craziness of these movement is that they enslave themselves. Christians are oppressed all over the world and all the time. Yet there is no Christian Lives Matter movement (and I sincerely hope there never will be). Why? Simply because Christians are not enslaved to their oppressors. And they do not bring any attention to their oppressors because to do so would be to take away from their freedom.

    You may be an African American today supporting Black Lives Matter. You may be a supporter of abortion (and the, so called, rights thereof). You may be an anarchist decrying the government. You may even be a Christian (or just a theist) and just feel like the whole world is against you. You believe (perhaps without recognizing it) that you are enslaved by the world. You are oppressed. It is discrimination, or threats to your perceived rights, or the government, or others that are taking away your freedoms and keeping you down. And so, we all reach a breaking point where we just want to break free (pun intended). But in doing so we put ourselves at the center of attention, and we (by necessity) put down everyone else. After all, Black Lives Matter could never ever allow ‘White Lives Matter’, or “Asian Lives Matter’, or ‘Jewish Lives Matter’, or ‘Hispanic Lives Matter’, or …. Because to do so would detract from them and would dilute the attention that they believe they so richly deserve (because they are enslaved and no one else – or at the very least, they are enslaved with the heaviest chains).

    So why is it that we all feel enslaved by something, even if it is just a tiny little annoyance? Why is it we all feel the weight of the chains to the point we want to cry out that we just want to be free?

    I believe the answer to this lies in the understanding of just who it is that enslaves us and who it is that sets us free. 2 Timothy 2:24-26 tells us that Satan has taken us captive at his will. But John 8:35-36 tells us that Jesus is the one who can set us free.

    And when Jesus sets us free, we are told that we are free indeed. Meaning we are truly and completely free. And when Christ has made us free, we need not be oppressed by the bondage in this world (Galatians 5:1). We can put off the yoke of bondage that is keeping us down (whatever that is) and be free indeed.

    Freedom is a person. And that person is Jesus Christ. And freedom is free. It is His free gift to you. But my freedom does not serve myself. My freedom is nothing more than a vessel to serve Jesus Christ. Colossians 3:10-11 tells us that in Christ there is no bond nor free, no Greek or Jew. But rather Christ is all in all.

    When your freedom is all about the Glory of God and uplifting Jesus Christ for all the world to see, then you are truly, and completely free. Do you want to be free today? You need look no further than the person of Jesus Christ.

  • Does God Want Bad Things For You?

    A question that I have pontificated upon before, but nonetheless a difficult question in life is: “Why do bad things happen to good people?”  The basic premise is: If God is such a loving and kind God why is there pain and suffering in the world?  It is a concept that even the brightest minds and strongest of faith amongst us struggle with.  It is also a rather foolish argument that some use to reject faith, especially Christianity.

    I have considered these topics in several postings in the past, but always with reasoning as to why God would allow pain and suffering in our lives.  But the question still remains: Does God intend for bad things to happen in our lives?

    This question surfaced recently when I was asked the question “Did God intend for me to have cancer?”  I didn’t answer the question at the time it was posed because the question came from a close family member and it would not have been respectful to do so.

    However I know that many people have the exact same question in their lives.  They cry out “Why me?” and “What did I do to deserve this?”

    But have we considered the question from God’s perspective?  I have provided logic and reasoning in the past as to why we may expect a world of good and evil from mankind’s perspective, but does God really and truly design bad things for people’s lives?

    I think this is an extremely important question to answer because it goes directly to the question of God being in control.  If God is God, then is he really in control?  And if he is in control, then why do these things happen?

    I’d like to share with you my view by answering the question with a question.  “Did God intend for Job to lose everything he had?”  Remember the story of Job?  Job was the greatest man in the East – Job 1:3.  He was greatly blessed by God.  And yet in a single moment Job lost his donkeys, his oxen, his sheep, his camels, his servants, and even his sons and daughters – Job 1:13-19.  The question is: “Did God INTEND for Job to lose everything?”  We all know from the story that it was Satan who took these things from Job’s life, but consider the whole host of errors that God had to commit in order to get to that point:

    This first error God would have had to commit was to bring up Job in the first place: Job 1:6-8.  Notice that it was God who brought up Job in the first place, asking whether or not Satan had considered him.  Did God really and truly believe that bringing up Job to Satan would not, or could not possibly result in bad things?  Of course God knew that pointing Job out to Satan was going to result in Satan showing an interest in the subject.  Do you really believe that God is that bad of a Chess player?  Of course not, God knew full well what he was doing and what the outcome would be.

    The second error God would have had to commit was to taunt Satan with Job’s record – Job 1:8-10.  Note the second half of verse 8, God refers to Job as a perfect, and an upright man.

    I think it important to note here Satan’s reasoning for why Job was a perfect and an upright man – Job 1:10.  Satan places Job’s condition squarely at the feet of God.  God placed the hedge of protection about him.  God blessed his life and all that he had.  Satan basically said “God, you are the one who made him perfect and upright, of course he fears you.”  We need to consider this when accounting for the blessings in our lives.  If Satan himself acknowledges God as the source of all good things, maybe we should as well.

    At any rate, do you really believe that God did not consider the turn for the worse that things would take if he were to flaunt Job’s record in front of Satan?  Did God not believe that Satan would challenge him on that?  Of course not!  Once again God knew perfectly well what he was doing and what the course of events would be.

    But the third error God would have had to commit was to lower the shield of protection that he had placed around Job – Job 1:11-12.  Do you really and truly believe that God did not know that bad things would happen if he lowered his protection from Job and placed all that he had in the power of Satan?  Perhaps you would like to believe that this was a test for Satan and God was hoping that Satan would do the right thing?  But Job 2 implies a different story.  God knew what he was doing, and God knew perfectly well what the outcome would be.  God even told Satan that he had moved against him and that he sought to destroy him without cause.

    The answer to the question as to whether God wanted bad things to happen to Job?  Well I think God made 3 egregious errors that need not have been made if he truly intended to protect Job and all that he had.  And since I do not believe that God, being God, is capable of making mistakes, I am left with the alternative that Yes, God fully intended to allow bad things to happen to Job.

    And if God could have stopped all of the disastrous events in Job’s life, I know he could stop the cancer in the bodies of those around us today.  But he chooses not to.  Does God intend, really and truly, for us to experience bad things?  Well, let me say that God is completely, 100% in control all the time and that nothing happens that he does not want to happen and that nothing catches him by surprise.

    Why?  Consider the blind man in John 9:1-3.  Jesus answered his disciples that neither the man nor his parents had sinned, but that the man had been blind from birth simply for the glory of God.  And that is the answer for everything in our lives.  Whether it be great blessings or incredible hardships, or happiness, or sadness.  It is all for His Honor, and His Glory, and His Pleasure.  Praise be to my Lord Jesus Christ.

  • There Is No Honor In Death

    I lost my cousin today.  The son of my dad’s brother,  and the youngest of two children, he was known to the family as Little John.  I suppose from some throwback to the Robin Hood character.  But not to me.  To me he was always Big Bad John.

    John stood 6 foot 5 inches tall and for most of his adult life weighed more than 300 pounds.  He was younger than me, but he was a much bigger man than I ever have been.  Dad used to refer to him as the Gentle Bear.  John was intimidating in his size, but there was nothing at all intimidating about his heart.  John warmed up to everybody he came into contact with and was always looking for the good within people.  It is just the way he was.

    John passed away at 0500 EST this morning peacefully in his sleep after a short battle with cancer.  I have always been the rebel in the family, not seeking out relationships or contacts.  But not so with John.  These last few months, and really for the last couple of years, John confided in me maybe a little more than the rest of the family.  Almost to the point where the rest of the family was asking me if I had heard from him and if I knew how he was doing.  Perhaps to some extent, John was more respectful of our relationship than I was.

    Perhaps it was because I served in the U.S. Military and John never did and he always had such great respect for our Nation’s military.  Or perhaps he just cherished some of the moments we shared in our youth.  But whatever his reasons, Big Bad John wanted to share the last few months he had on this earth reminiscing with myself, his cousin.

    I’ve stated this before, but I’ll take this opportunity to say it again, Death is the antithesis of Life.  Jesus Christ said that he came to earth that we might have Life (and have it abundantly) (John 6:39-41).  God gave all of humankind Life from the inception of creation.  Death is the sin curse upon the world and Satan uses it as a feeble attempt to rob God of his created family.  And thus Death and Life are at odds with each other.  One brings joy and happiness, and the other brings sorrow and pain.

    I was at work when I got the call from my wife with the news that John had passed.  I must have been visibly shaken because my coworkers asked if I was OK, and one asked if the phone call was bad news after I had hung up the phone.  Even though I knew it was coming, and even though the family expected it at any time, the moment of the news was a point that shattered my soul.  Big Bad John was gone.  No longer may I take for granted his Skype calls or his IM chats, or the time that he wanted to share.  Those times are now past.  And the memories of those times are all that remain.

    If your world view is Atheistic, then I am saddened for you all the more. The one thing that evolution cannot answer for you is the emptiness in your soul at the passing of a loved one, a family member, or even a friend.  There is no science that explains the inexplicable bond that all of humanity shares over the helplessness of Death.  Even though as a good atheist you should know that it is all without meaning and that we are all just cosmic particles drifting in the vastness of the universe, there is still, to varying degrees in all of us, that unnatural feeling of loss that Death brings.

    If your world view is Agnostic, then you really should not care one way or the other at the loss of a life.  But the impact of Life and Death is still there and is still an unexplainable force that impacts us all.

    However, if your world view is Theistic, as mine is, then you should understand that God is still in control and that His Great Plan is playing out on the world stage and just how privileged we are to be a part of it all.

    Christians sometimes wonder why God allows Death in the world.  I believe that Christians shouldn’t wonder why God allows Death, but rather understand that God orchestrates Death.  God is the giver of Life and only He (and He alone) may take that Life away.  Consider the Life of Job.  When God asked Satan if he had considered his servant Job, and Satan accusingly challenged him on the blessing God had bestowed upon him, God allowed Satan free rein in Job’s Life but would not allow him to take Job’s Life (Job 1:1-12).  Because God, and God alone holds the keys to Life and Death.

    We like to depict Death as the Grim Reaper, as some evil character coming to take Life away, but in reality, the Angel of Death works for God, not Satan.  And Satan has no more say over your Death than what God allows within His plan.

    And thus, like Paul of Tarsus, we may proclaim, “Oh death where is thy sting, Oh grave where is thy victory?” (I Corinthians 15:54-56). Because the Theist, the Christian, has a great hope that this life is not meaningless, that there is order to it all, that there is a God who loves us and who has a Great Plan for His Honor and for His Glory and that we have the great privilege of being a part of that plan.

    I know that I know that I know, that one day Big Bad John and I will swap stories once again.  I know this because Cousin John told me that he was at peace with his King and his Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.  And I know that God is now holding Cousin John in His great hands, safely awaiting that day when we will all be united once again as part of God’s great family.  Not for me, and not for Big Bad John, but for His (Jesus Christ’s) own Glory.

    So Big Bad John, just know that in the meantime I will keep the faith, and as for me and my house, WE WILL SERVE THE LORD until that day that he either calls me home or He comes again to reunite all of His children in the ultimate culmination of this fantastic journey He has orchestrated for each and every one of us.

    John Keith Orman: March 24, 1965 – March 31, 2016image

  • Further Considerations of Hell

    Yesterday I left you with my belief that God, The God, The One True God, Jehovah God, created Sin. and that he actually allowed evil to come into existence by design.  I also stated that I believe he did this by creating Satan (the Angel Lucifer) as a vessel of dishonor for the purpose of bringing evil into existence.

    This thought probably does not sit well with most non Christians and quite a few Christians as well.  But let me ask you a couple more questions.  Did God create the Angel Lucifer (Satan)?  Of course he did.  We know from Scripture that God and God alone is the only being outside of time and space (meaning he just IS and always HAS BEEN).  And did God know that Satan was going to rebel (Sin) against him and take one-third of the Heavenly host with him at the time (at the exact moment) He created him?  Of course He did.  He absolutely knew what would occur.  To think that God did not know what Satan’s actions would be in advance of his creation would be to limit God.  And if you limit God against his nature, he would no longer be God.  In other words, God is either omniscient (all-knowing) or else he is not God.  You can not have it both ways.  If an attribute of God is that he is all-knowing (and this is a base characteristic of God for me), then he has to have full knowledge of the actions and their consequences that He is taking.  And by-the-way, if you want to bring a god to the table that is somehow only partially omniscient, I’ll tell you that is not my God or else your understanding of my God is incomplete.  My God is in full control, including in control of all of the evil in the world today, or that ever has been in the world, or ever will be in the world.

    If you are with me up to this point, we are at the shocking (for some) realization that God carried through with a certain set of plans knowing that those plans were going to result in evil and Sin (that which is against the nature of God).  And that he did so with intent and that it is part of his great plan.

    I believe the next question most reasonable people ask at this point is: Why?  Why would God allow evil, and pain, and suffering, and hurt, and Sin to come into the world?  Why would he do that?  And some might even ask (or state): Doesn’t that make Him a bad God?  Paul addressed this in Romans Chapter 9.  He asks this very question in Romans 9:14.  I hope you take time to read the whole chapter very carefully, but here Paul acknowledges that some would come to the conclusion that there is unrighteousness in God.  And if I may paraphrase his answer: ABSOLUTELY NOT!

    I have on many occasions mentioned Dr. Ravi Zacharias here.  I sincerely hope you take some time to follow this man’s ministry.  I can only hope to say this as eloquently as he would, but consider this:

    Without evil how would you ever know good?  Without pain how would you know sorrow?  Without sadness how would you know happiness?  Without loss how would you ever know gain?  Without lows how would you ever know highs?  Without unrighteousness how would you ever know righteousness?  Without God’s great plan how would you ever, ever know of His great mercy and love?

    Every scientific discipline I know of in the world today creates baselines of study.  In other words they collect data to establish what is normal.  They then conduct their experiments with-respect-to that baseline.  Looking for good deviations and bad deviations.  Without establishing the baseline first, the results are meaningless.  I need the baseline in order to determine what my data actually means.

    Could God have created a perfect utopia without sin or pain?  Sure, he could have.  But then you and I would have not had any reference point when God told us about the suffering he had kept us from.  We would have existed without a baseline, without a reference point, and would have never, ever known God’s Mercy or his Love.

    With this line of reasoning, Paul of Tarsus has brought us to the realization of two things.  One is that God is completely in control.  There is nothing more freeing (in my experience) than the understanding that Satan, Sin, Evil cannot (and will not) win.  This world can throw all the pain and hurt and sadness it possibly can at me and it simply does not matter.  In the end, God wins and I am his child.  The second is that God has established for us a baseline.  We can now know His Mercy, His Righteousness, His Love, His Grace, and we can know it experientially because he has shown us the unmerciful, the unrighteous, the hateful and the scornful.  We now KNOW what God means when He says He Loves us.  We understand His Mercy and His Grace.  We can fully praise Him for His Righteousness because we were unrighteous and He made us Righteous before Him.

    But now that God has created the baseline, the contrast, the experiential part of this creation what do we think he will do with it?  Is it going to go away?  I believe the answer to that is No.  Humanity is a fickle set of creatures.  We need to constantly refer to our baselines and update our reference points.  No, I believe God is going to keep the Sin and the Unrighteousness around.

    And He has a place for the Sin and the Unrighteous.  And that place is Hell.  Hell is where he will lock away Sin for all of eternity.  A constant contrast and an ever-present reminder of His Mercy and His Grace.

    And now, from that perspective, Hell suddenly becomes a very real place.  Hell: Fantasy or Reality?  I assure you, very, very REAL.

  • Hell: Fantasy or Finality?

    A while back I had a post here in which I mentioned Hell.  In that post I based arguments on some assumptions that were given’s up front in my discussion and I purposely did not offer a definition or an explanation of Hell for the stated reason that I wanted to revisit the subject of Hell in more depth one day.  Let’s make that day today.

    But before I get to the actual subject of Hell itself, which I may actually have to address in several separate posts,   Please allow me to lay some groundwork with a short examination of why I believe we have both good and evil in the world.

    I had a friend of mine (my friend is a lawyer and is quite intelligent.  He passed the Florida Bar the first time he took it.) once tell me that he believed people were born in a neutral state.  That is a person comes into this world without any disposition towards good or evil.  As time goes on, a person is then influenced by good and evil forces within their lives and they are pushed and pulled towards one side or the other.  Kind of like Star Wars.  You either choose the light side of the force or the dark side of the force.  It is amazing to me the number of people in the world (I would guess the vast majority, although I have no definitive statics on this) that have this exact same philosophy.  There is one religion in the world that does not teach this, and that religion is Christianity.  And thus it is even more amazing to me the number of Christians that seem to hold this basic belief.

    There are a couple of fundamental problems I believe you should have with this thinking.  The first is “Where did the first evil person get their influence from?”  For that matter where did the first good person get their influence from?  If we indeed started out neutral, and are still born that way today, how did good and evil come to exist to begin with?  And who was it that first defined what was good and what was evil?  I’ve addressed this conundrum of morals in this previous post.

    The second problem I believe you should have with this philosophy is that you should ask yourself the question “Which side is winning?  Good or evil?”  Is there more good in the world today or is there more evil in the world, and why?

    People want to believe that both forces have existed from the beginning of time (they have, from humanity’s standpoint) and that the great struggle is for humankind and we are caught in the balance waiting to see who will win, the forces of good or the forces of evil.

    Christianity however teaches that people are born into sin.  That is they are alienated from God.  Having a propensity towards evil and that there is no good in them.  Paul of Tarsus made this argument rather eloquently in Romans and every Christian should be familiar with it.

    But were good and evil always present?  Meaning did they both exist equally before the beginning of time?

    Let’s see if we can ask some theological questions that will help us with this question.  The first question I would like to ask is: Where did God come from?  A Christian’s answer should be God has always been and always will be.  He had no beginning and He has no end.  God Is.  My second question would be: Is God good, or is God evil?  And once again, a Christian’s answer should be God is good.  My third question would be: Is there any scenario ever where God’s will is not fulfilled?  Now before you answer that, think about it very carefully. Is there anything (anything at all) that God does not know is going to happen or exactly how it is going to happen?  Is there any scenario where God could ever lose a battle?  Is there anything that could ever surprise God or catch him off guard?  Is there anything that God could not change should he so desire?  By definition, God is in absolute control.  It is His show.  It is His creation.  He is preeminent.  He, and He alone is supreme.  Therefore, your answer should be No.  God’s will is always fulfilled.

    So my next question would be: Where did evil come from?  Well if it existed before time, wouldn’t God have been aware of it?  He should have been.  And would not God have been able to erase it?  Why wouldn’t He?  He is, after all God.  It does not theologically follow that evil existed either prior to or current with God’s own existence.  Evil has not just always existed without beginning or end.  Evil came into existence just like anything else in creation with God’s full knowledge and approval.

    So the real wonderment then becomes the understanding that it was created along with the everything else.  Now I personally don’t believe that God, in a single act just brought Sin into existence.  What I believe he did is, he created the avenue for Sin to come into existence knowing full well that it would fulfil the course he set it on.  This is explained in Romans Chapter 9.  In Romans 9:21 Paul asks the question as to whether God has the power and the wherewithal to make both good and bad vessels.  Paul concludes that he does.  I believe God created Satan for the express purpose of bringing Sin into existence.  He created him as a vessel of dishonor.  Why would God do such a thing?  Paul answers this question in Romans 9:17 and in Romans 9:22-24.  God allowed Sin to come into existence through a vessel of dishonor that he created in order to show his great purpose.

    And what of Hell?  Hell is God’s containment vessel for that Sin.  Hell is the holding place where he is going to keep it locked up for eternity.  Hell is the prison that will separate the unrighteous from the righteous for ever and ever.

    And from that consideration – Hell is very much a finality and not fantasy.  Next – Further Considerations of Hell.