One of the most controversial issues in the church today and forever is the subject of Hell. The Postmodern movement is just the most recent to deny the existence of hell, and quite frankly one of the greatest questions asked by non-Christians is “How can a loving God create Hell” This article is very thoughtful in answering that question.

Preaching Hell

Should Christians be “nice”? | TheResurgence

I just really thought we could use these thoughts in a time when Jesus seems to be little more than a tame house cat and not the Lion of Judah.

Yesterday morning my Pastor touched on two of my favorite issues, that of men and their aversion to church and the difference between universal and particular sin. He announced yesterday to the chagrin of many in attendance, I am sure, that this year our men’s ministry is going to be stepping outside of the box in an effort to attract some men who do not already have a relationship with the Lord. He understands that, as a whole the Church, (all denominations and creeds) has been taken over by women. There are many speculations as to why this is but suffice to say it is easier to find a fundamentalist having fun that is it to find a church with a surplus of manly men under 50.

So, on February 10th we will be having our first Texas Hold ‘em tourney. However this is not meant to be simply a fundraiser, it is truly the heart of my Pastor to bring people, who normally would drive a different way to avoid church, into our community, and then into a relationship with Jesus. I guess that makes it three of my favorite topics, because he follows the St. Patrick model of evangelism people tend to belong before they believe, which is why churches that turn in upon themselves and react to the outside world like a vampire to garlic do God a disservice. We want men to realize that the church is more than a good ol’ boys club where you are told to come in, sit down, shut up, and be a good boy, but at the same time we are not attempting to be less of a church in order to reach them, or we could just pass out pot as service, that would attract a lot of people.
He preached from John 2:

1 On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, 2 and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. 3 When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no more wine.”

4 “Dear woman, why do you involve me?” Jesus replied. “My time has not yet come.”

5 His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”

6 Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons.

7 Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim.

8 Then he told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.”

They did so, 9 and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside 10 and said, “Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now.”

11 This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed at Cana in Galilee. He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him.

Now if you study out things said here you will discover a few things. First teetotalers will go to any length to convince themselves that this wasn’t wine, people have told me it was grape juice, or at least not alcohol like we know today, and maybe that last part is true we have worked for centuries to perfect the fermenting process. Regardless Jesus was accused of being a glutton, drunkard and a friend of sinners. I don’t think this accusation would have been made if there were no grounds for it.

The issue wasn’t that Jesus was breaking God’s law we know that never happened, but he was breaking the traditions of men. And here is the difference, there are sins that are universal; murder is a sin no matter the person, and there are particular sins, those particular to the person. I spoke to someone after the service and he said he would not be comfortable playing cards in church but would have no problem playing at someone’s home and I don’t begrudge him that, I commend him for being cognoscente of his limitations. I do not feel right watching movies with high sexual content and people who have trouble with alcohol shouldn’t go to bars, those are particular sins because although it is not wrong to have a drink or play cards or watch certain types of movies if your conscience convicts you; then listen to it.

This is tough but if we are to ever have and impact on our world it is something we must understand, if not we simply become another Pharisaical demanding things of people that are not specifically enumerated in the Bible, and I respect God’s word to much to try to change it.

I love the Big Bang Theory, it is rife with geek humor which is right up my alley. I can’t wait until the writers are done striking so it will be back on the air. Please watch it so it doesn’t go off the air.

Opposite of Jesus II

Ever since I had my revelation last weekend I have been struggling with what it means and what to do with it. First I think it is a good thing because I realize I can still hear from God on what needs to change in my life and I was beginning to think I was perfect, now that I know I am not I must find how to deal with the situation.
I first need to realize that I think it is human nature to have greater sympathy for those whose burdens you share, that is part of the definition of sympathy. And the Bible says Jesus was tempted in ever was we are so his sympathy is real. I am not tempted the same way everyone else has been, as I discussed before.
I used to discuss things with a friend of mine and I could understand how people just didn’t fix their situations, “Not everyone can just pull themselves up by their bootstraps” he would tell me. He is right and I need to understand that, but I don’t. If I don’t like something I fix it. I didn’t think I was getting paid enough at my last job so I got a new one, I didn’t gripe, I just fixed it. Some people need a little more help.
Jesus acts as our Prophet Priest and King, most people understand that at an intellectual level but most of us have an unbalanced understand of those roles. Jesus has just acted as my prophet; he came into my life and pointed out my sin. As King he is sets the standards for my life. Now he comes into my life as priest, sympathetic to my needs to change. He has already sacrificed himself for my sin, but he doesn’t stop there, he is helping me to change. I need to change the way I think about people who suffer different vices than I do. It will be an ongoing process but it is one I look forward to.

Heb 4:13 — Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are–yet was without sin. 16 Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

I was listening to a message by Pastor Mark Driscol on our way home from West Virginia yesterday and he was discussing Jesus’ role as our Prophet, Priest and King and he brought up this passage. I had never really thought about it in the way I did at that moment, Jesus us able to have sympathy for us on our temptations because he has been through them; yet without sin. I realized I am the exact opposite, I tend to have no sympathy for those whose temptations do not affect me, and sympathize with those who share my struggles.
I have never done drugs and when I hear a sad story involving drug use I guess my thoughts are “Natural selection at work.” Additionally I have never been sympathetic to those who have grown up in church and are desensitized to the Gospel, or stuck in a religious rut. Those very people are the ones who kept me away from Christ by their example so I may begrudge them a little although not intentionally. I know it sounds heartless and may stem from the fact that I have never truly been tempted to do drugs or thankfully to take Jesus for granted, but deep down that is the way I feel. I never examined these feelings before but when I did so in the light of Jesus I realized I am his opposite, not a place I really want to be but I am not sure how exactly to change it.

Here is the first of my “Video Friday” Posts. This year I am looking to post videos every Friday, some will be funny, some will be more serious but this is the first. This is Jeff Dunham one of my favorite Comedians, he actually inspired me to buy a dummy of my own, not that I did anything with it. This is an older video so he is much more polished now, but the end is still very impressive. Check him out at www.jeffdunham.com