The Trouble with Churches Today

This topic I am going to write in this blog is not new. I have written about it a few times in the past. Hopefully I can write something knew to think about and to challenge us as believers in Christ to be the "solution" rather than the "problem" for the present local Church. To be continued...

The Trouble with Fear Mongering

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom."

(Proverbs 1: 7)

 

 

When it comes to the topic of fear, it can be a prickly subject to bring up, especially if it concerns the message of the Gospel being shared with someone. Now when it comes to my use of the word "fear," I am using it in the context of having a healthy "fear" of God. Meaning giving the Lord the "reverence" He is deserving of, as well as a healthy "fear" of judgment that awaits those who reject the message of the Gospel. You see, there are consequences to rejecting the Gospel. The consequences that await the person who rejects the good news of the Gospel is the judgment of hell.

 

People usually like the good part of the gospel that focuses on the love of God, salvation, and heaven; it is the bad part of the message they do not like, which focuses on sin, death, judgment, and hell for all eternity. It is this part that people usually get angry and object to. This is where people will accuse the Christian of "fear-mongering." What they mean by this is using such terms as the judgment of God and hell as a means of manipulating people into accepting the message of the Gospel. In other words, scaring people into the Kingdom of God!

 

What such people fail to understand is that there are times when it is wrong to "fear," and there are other times when it is right to "fear." To be continued...

The Questions People Ask: 17

QUESTION 17: “What is the difference between an opinion and a truth?” 

ANSWER: In my many years of experience in sharing the Gospel or sharing the truths of God’s Word from the fields of history, science, and theology with people, I often hear, “Well, that’s just your opinion.” In other words, they dismiss the facts I had shared with them as nothing more than opinions. Such people when they know what they are hearing is true and they don’t like it will often resort to dismissing the truth as an opinion. Despite this fact, such people often view their opinion more superior than the truth that the other person is stating. To put it more bluntly, their opinion is right while yours is wrong. Noted Christian Apologist and author, Paul Copan had this to say about such people who dismiss the truth for their opinion.  

“The view that there is no truth, only opinion—is this true, or just an opinion? If it’s an opinion and there’s no truth, then why believe anything at all? Usually when someone dismisses your view as mere opinion, he thinks his opinion is true while yours is false. “It’s all opinion” isn’t just a matter of opinion; it’s a truth claim.”[1] 

However, there is a distinct difference between an opinion and a truth. An Opinion is “a belief or assessment based on grounds short of proof; a view held as probable; what one thinks about a particular topic or question.”[2] Now a Truth is on the other hand, “a true statement; a report or account consistent with fact or reality.”[3] As the reader can see there is a distinct difference between truth and opinion. An opinion is an unproven theory; whereas truth is a proven fact.  

So when one is confronted with a person who dismisses facts you present to him or her in relation to the Gospel, by claiming that what you are presenting is just a mere opinion, ask that individual what their opinion on the given subject is in regards to God, the Bible, or theology is. This will give you an idea where they are coming from in what they believe about the Gospel. Usually they will have a distorted view on the Gospel based on the popular claims in today’s culture. Before addressing their view about the gospel, first establish the distinction between what they consider to be opinion as opposed to the truth. Make it clear to him or her that if they consider their opinion to be true and yours not. And they insist on saying that everything is subjective that truth cannot be known. Then point out to him or her why you should accept their opinion as the truth. Now they may argue that what’s true for you is not true for them. Counter that by saying, “Are you absolutely sure about that?” In order for their claim to be valid, they will have to say “Yes.” “Ah, so you do believe in absolutes. You do believe in truth, because you just admitted that your claim is true.” If they argue that is not true, then they just cancelled out their claim as pointless. Their argument for truth being relative rules out anything they say or claim to be true is all meanless. In other words, any argument they may use against you is not valid, because truth cannot be known. Again, quoting Paul Copan: 

“At any rate, relativism is a knowledge-denying enterprise. If you say you know something, you’re not really a relativist. When speaking at universities (where, presumably, people go to gain knowledge), I’ve been told that knowledge is unattainable (though one wonders how people know such things). “Objective relativism” tells us no truth is universally, objectively true or false. One person’s “truth”—which amounts to opinion—can conflict with another’s “truth” and still be valid.”[4] 

In summary, what Mr. Copan is saying is if truth is unattainable and that absolute truth does not exist, then neither does knowledge exist. What’s the point going to college or university to gain knowledge if truth does not exist? If truth is only what you think it to be, or conceive it to be, based on what your preference for truth is, whether you are right or wrong; then it is no longer absolute truth. For truth is based on a proven fact, whereas an opinion [relative truth claim] is an unproven theory as mentioned earlier.  

So armed with this truth about what is true and what is only an opinion. You now can  engage a non-Christian person with the Gospel. Establish the truthfulness and trustworthiness of God’s Word (see John 14:6; 17;17) and make simple as possible the wonderful message of the Gospel to the unbeliever (see John 3:3, 7, 16; Rom. 10:9-10).

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[1] Paul Copan, True for You but Not for Me: Overcoming Objections to Christian Faith, (Bethany House, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Revised Ed. 2009), pg. 59.

[2] Katherine Barber, Oxford Canadian Dictionary: Second Edition, (Oxford University Press, Don Mills, Ontario, Canada, 2006), pg. 708.

[3] Katherine Barber, Oxford Canadian Dictionary: Second Edition, (Oxford University Press, Don Mills, Ontario, Canada, 2006), pg. 1114.

[4] Paul Copan, True for You but Not for Me: Overcoming Objections to Christian Faith, (Bethany House, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Revised Ed. 2009), pg. 21.

The Questions People Ask: 16

QUESTION 16: “Why does the God of the Bible allow slavery, including selling your own daughter as a sex slave (Exodus 21:1-11), child abuse (Judges 11:29-40 and Isaiah 13:16), and bashing babies against rocks (Hosea 13:16; Psalms 137:9)?”—Eric Von Sydow (Author of the book “Metawhore” a Memiore).

ANSWER: The inquiry above is a mixture of three different questions about the supposed problems Eric has with the bible. I will address each problem in three separate parts.

The Questions People Ask: 15

QUESTION 15: "In Jeremiah 20: 7 the prophet speaks to God in prayer about being deceived by Him. How can a holy and just God deceive people? God is a God of truth not lies (Heb. 6:18), He doesn’t even tempt people to sin (Jam. 1:13).  How does one reconcile this seeming contradiction about God supposedly deceiving the prophet Jeremiah?"  

ANSWER: This is another challenging question. However, the Word of God has the answer. God’s Word does not contradict itself as we soon shall see in the answer to the above question. So the question stands, "did the Lord deceive Jeremiah?" It appears when one first reads Jeremiah 20: 7 that God had deceived the prophet Jeremiah. However this is not the case at all. The word "deceive" in the text…

The Questions People Ask: 14

 

QUESTION 14: "Why was hell created and who is it created for? What is the purpose of hell?"

ANSWER: The three short questions on hell mentioned above, are no doubt questions that have been asked time and again. Such questions speak of eternity. Because hell is the total opposite of heaven. It is not a very popular subject to speak about with non-Christians when sharing the gospel with them. Usually people get angry when hell is brought up in the gospel message. Because hell stirs up such negative emotions, many Churches have focused more on the topic of heaven than hell. Some have even subtracted hell from the equation altogether in order to make the message of the gospel more tasteful to those that the message is being shared with. However, dismissing hell from the gospel does not in any way make it less true. The fact is, Jesus spoke more about hell than He did about heaven. Now having said that, let's look at each of the three above questions and see what God's Word says about the subject. 

WHY WAS HELL CREATED AND WHO IS IT CREATED FOR? 

To begin with, the Bible does not directly tell us why hell was created, but it does tell us that hell exists to punish the wicked. Matt. 25:41; 2 Peter 2:4; Jude 6. If hell is nothing more than the grave (as we are told by groups such as the Seventh Day Adventists ), and we are told it was created for the devil and his angels (see Matt. 25: 41), how do we reconcile the fact that when everyone dies they go to the grave? For example, God sent a lying spirit? (1 Kings 22: 22-23 and 2 Chron. 18:21-22) 

WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF HELL? 

To put it simply, the purpose of hell was originally created for the devil and his fallen angels, but it is also to punish the wicked and to glorify God.

The Questions People Ask: 13

QUESTION 13:  "But, how can you tell if you're in love with someone or if it's just unconditional love ?" --Holly Eberhart. 

ANSWER: Real good question. How does one distinguish between being in love with someone as opposed to unconditional love? Well, to begin with, unconditional love is not "just" unconditional love as if it were inferior to being in love with someone. It is the greatest and deepest kind of love. Many rivers cannot quench this flame of love. For it is God like love and eternal in nature. It is the chiefest and most powerful level of love. Yet, it is a kind of love that is impossible for man to obtain completely. More about that later. Let's first consider being in love and then we will look at unconditional love. 

UNDERSTANDING BEING IN LOVE. 

Often, when we think about "being in love," we conjure up images of a romantic scene of a man and woman seated at a table in a classy restaurant, enjoying a meal together over a glass of wine. Observing the scene, we can tell by their conversation, laughing, and body language that they are very much in love. However, what we perceive to be two people in love may not be necessarily the case. For appearance can be deceiving. "Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment" (John 7: 24, KJV). Now God on the other hand, does not see as man sees. "For the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart" (1 Sam. 16: 7, KJV). In order to correctly judge, we need to understand that being truly in love with someone is an issue of the heart, not of what we see or understand to be a couple in love. Being in love is much more than what we see on the surface, when we observe a man and a woman in love. It is much more than a state of mind, it is a state of heart. It is that emotional response someone gives us, when we feel something for him or her. Such love is akin to unconditional love, for we choose to love that person despite their shortcomings.  

However, though being in love helps us to overcome obstacles in our path and accept the faults and undesirable traits of the one we are in love with, and gives us the strength of perseverance in the relationship we have with that person. Still, it has its limits, if it is not anchored in God's divine unconditional love. Since we are all sinners by natural descent (see Rom. 5: 12), we are bound from time to time to hurt and disappoint those who we are closes to. Which sometimes causes two people who were otherwise in love to fall out of love. This usually only happens when the situation in a relationship becomes intolerable and irreparable for either one or both life partners.  

The term "being" in the phrase "being in love" is defined: "the nature or essence (of a person etc.) (his whole being revolted); a human being; anything that exists or is imagined." In essence, it is the emotional state that a man or woman is in, when in love with someone. However, such love is subject to change, when the condition or stipulation is not maintained. In other words, staying in a state of being in love takes work and dedication on the part of both individuals who are in love. There are laws to follow if one hopes to be successful in maintaining the love shared between their partner. This of course reveals to us that being in love is primarily based on conditions that need to be met. At first, it may be based on feelings, but as love grows between the couple who are in love; it should be based on much more than feelings or the physical features of the loved one.  

Unconditional love is a choice; whereas being in love is a challenge. Love is unconditional whenever a person makes a conscious choice to sacrificially love someone despite all the obstacles and opposition that stands in the way. This is the highest form of love, it is Christ like love. Now being in love is more of a challenge to maintain in that both parties need to be dedicated and be willing to work at remaining in love with the one you love. Falling in love may not be a choice, but to stay in love is. 

UNDERSTANDING UNCONDITIONAL LOVE. 

Now let's look at what it means to be marked by the necessity of "Unconditional Love." Even though being in love is to a degree closely associated with unconditional love; still, it is not unconditional love. The term "unconditional" means "Not subject to conditions (her love for her daughter was unconditional)." Whereas "conditional" is defined, "Dependent; not absolute; containing a condition or stipulation (a conditional offer). Expressing a condition on which something depends, e.g. the first clause in if she wins, we will be rich. Expressing or including a condition." (Oxford Canadian Dictionary, 2nd Edition). Unconditional love is not dependent on any condition or stipulation, because it is not suppressed by such rules that determine who to love and who not to love. Unconditional love can be seen in David's words, "For my father and my mother have forsaken me, but the LORD will take me up" (Psalm 27: 10, NASB). Again, this same truth is echoed in the book of Isaiah, when the Lord said, "Can a woman forget her nursing child and have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, but I will not forget you" (Isa. 49: 15, NASB). As you can see from these verses that it is possible for parents, who are supposed to love their children unconditionally, may forsake their children. However, this is never true of the Lord. For the prophet Moses says, "He will not fail you or forsake you" (Deut. 31: 6, Josh. 1: 5 NASB). And in the Epistle to the Hebrews, Paul repeats the same truth, "I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you" (Heb. 13: 5, NASB). That's God's unconditional love for us, but what about us?  

When a person receives Christ as their personal Lord and Savior by faith, they receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit aids us in being able to love with the most profoundest kind of unconditional love, God's love. The Apostle Paul says this about the Holy Spirit's work in instilling God's love in us, "because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us" (Rom. 5: 5, KJV). When talking about unconditional love, it is easy to get confused between the human aspect of love as opposed to the divine aspect of love. Because people, including Christians lump human love and God's love together as the same type of unconditional love.  

They forget that human love tainted by sin is imperfect; whereas God's love absent of any sin is holy and perfect in its essence. In other words, the human aspect of unconditional love is really limited and conditional. However, God's unconditional love is truly unconditional and cannot be measured or limited by human understanding of how love functions.  

CONCLUSION 

Now that I have given a background on the topic before us. This now brings us back to our original question: "But, how can you tell if you're in love with someone or if it's just unconditional love?" To begin with, I will tell you what it is not. It cannot be properly judged based solely on outward appearance. For public displays of affection are seen and recognized as love between two people. It does not tell us anything about how each individual truly felt about the other. One needs to inquire about the context and setting of the situation and the people involved in order to properly determine whether the love displayed is either love in friendship, love between family members or love expressed between lovers. Even then, is it unconditional love or being in love that is expressed between the two people? Now I will tell you what love is. First, falling in love is the early initial stage that evokes a powerful emotion in us towards a specific person; second, being in love reveals the present existing emotional state and attitude of a person's heart towards the individual that such love is focused on; third, falling out of love is the ceasing of the state of being in love with someone due to intolerable circumstances or irreparable problems. As you can see, each of these three stages of being in love can be understood as being conditional and contingent on circumstances and the state of the relationship between the couple. Now as for unconditional love. It can be seen and understood in two ways. First, the human aspect of unconditional love can be seen in a mother or father's love for their child. Their love for their child is not determined by how well the kid behaves, but rather on the child being biologically a part of both parents. They choose to love the child unconditionally because he or she is a part of them. However, even this deepest degree of human love fails at times due to the fact that such unconditional love is marred by sin. Therefore it is imperfect and conditional; second, there is the divine aspect of unconditional love. This is the kind of love that originates from God. Such love is immeasurable and unfathomable. This kind of unconditional love gives one the ability to love others with the understanding that others will not love you.  

So how to tell the difference between whether you are in love with someone, or if it is unconditional love? This will take time and observation on one's part. The distinction between the two can be best understood on my part in the fact that "being in love" is primarily motivated by one's emotions in how he or she feels about the other person and is limited by conditions; whereas, "unconditional love" on the other hand is mainly based on a solid certainty that such love does not change towards the person it is focused on no matter what the circumstances are. It is unchanging and eternal in nature and essence. This is how you can tell the difference between the two.  

There are three specific Greek words on the word "love" that come to mind. These words and their meanings are as follows:  

1. agape ---> This kind of love freely gives without any conditions required. It is a deep, godlike love that does not erect any fences to keep people out of its sphere of affection. A love without expectations or demands. A love that even loves enemies. Unconditional love. (see John 21:15-16; Matt. 22:37-39, Gr. agapas, deeply love; used of divine love [John 14:21] and of that love which the law demands [Luke 10:27] C. I. Scofield).  

2. eros ---> Known as romantic, erotic, or sexual desire, love shared between two people (husband and wife) who love each other. Conditional love. The word is not even used once in the entire New Testament.[1] 

3. phileo ---> A conditional kind of love based on a fondness, shared interests, affection, appreciation and shared companionship within the sphere of friendship. (see John 21:15b, Gr. phileo, am fond. It is a lesser degree of love than agapas. C. I. Scofield).

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[1] Unlike English, in which the word “love” means many different things, the Greek uses three words to describe the range of meaning that our word “love” conveys. The first word is eros, from which we get the English word ‘erotic.’ Eros is the word used to express sexual love or the feelings of arousal that are shared between people who are physically attracted to one another. By New Testament times, this word had become so debased by the culture that it is not used even once in the entire New Testament. (www.gotquestions.org; S. Michael Houdmann).