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Posts Tagged ‘Christianity’

faithIf I’ve learned anything during my years of writing about faith, it’s that there are folks out there who absolutely DETEST that word.

Most of those people would vigorously agree with the graphic that inspired this essay, which I found on an Internet atheism community.

Maybe you’ve never given the word much thought, but now that you’ve read the graphic, you’re thinking “ya, it’s all about ignorance!”.

So let’s look at the word for a moment. The Pocket Oxford Dictionary defines faith as: 1. complete trust or confidence; 2. firm, especially religious, belief; 3. religion or creed; 4. loyalty, trustworthiness.

First off, I want nothing to do with “religion” and this blog explains why: http://wp.me/p2wzRb-eu.

Secondly, would anyone in their right mind credibly call someone like Henry Schaefer ignorant? Schaefer, a chemist, earned the 1979 American Chemical Society Award in pure chemistry. He also wrote Science and Christianity: Conflict or Coherence?

Here’s another person that no thinking person could ever label ignorant: Ard Louis teaches theoretical physics at Oxford, one of the world’s most prestigious universities. Before that, he managed to get rid of just enough ignorance to teach theoretical chemistry at Cambridge University.

What do Schaefer and Louis have in common? They follow Jesus of Nazareth, who many people believe is the Son of God. And there are many, many more Jesus followers who are making contributions in chemistry, physics, engineering and biomedical sciences.

Schaefer and Louis have what the Pocket Oxford calls “complete trust or confidence” in Jesus — His teachings, His death, His resurrection and the truth of what He said about His creator (who also happens to be your creator).

So what isn’t faith? A pastor at my church, Henry Shore, laid it out:

  • Faith is not a positive mental attitude.
  • Faith is not a belief in a force or in a formula
  • Faith is not psyching yourself up with wishful thinking
  • Faith is not believing I can accomplish anything if I put my mind to it.
  • Faith is not believing if I believe hard enough, like some TV preachers would have us believe, then it’ll become a reality.
  • Faith is not faith in our words, it is not faith in ourselves, it is not faith in faith.
  • True faith is in God. The focus isn’t on the faith; but on the object of our faith.

From a Jesus perspective, faith is having firm belief — based on a mix of evidence and belief — that there is a creator for all that you and I see and experience. And that creator offers you and me a gift: Jesus.

Look into that gift. Talk to knowledgeable Jesus followers about Him. Despite what your friends and family may tell you, this is important and serious stuff. And it’s good news.

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Albert Einstein God quoteDid Albert Einstein believe in God?

A quick Internet search reveals this question has been debated for many decades, even before the famed physicist (1879-1955) and secular Jew died.

According to Wikipedia, Einstein used many labels to describe his “religious” views, including agnostic (one who simply doesn’t know if there’s a God) and religious nonbeliever (which appears to be pursuing inner spirituality without any connection to a creator).

Whichever term you prefer, I get the feeling Einstein lived most, if not all, of his life as if there was no God. In other words, he likely had more in common with atheists than with people of faith.

All that said, what about the quote in the graphic that inspired this essay? In some ways, he and I are in absolute agreement.

I am weak. Just like every other person on this planet. Fear, mistrust and self-doubt are part of my makeup. Just as they are part of yours.

So rather than God being a product of my human weakness, God is the solution — but not the sort of distant, disinterested creator that Einstein may or may not have believed in. (Wikipedia’s Einstein entry indicates he once wrote, “I do not believe in a personal God and I have never denied this.”)

A creator who simply winds up the universe like a clock, then walks away and lets it run with no concern or involvement is not a creator I would bother with. Would you?

But a creator that inspired and energized the entire life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ (whom serious Christians believe is God’s son)? Ah, that’s a God who’s making a difference in this broken world.

According to the Bible (which a majority of Christians take very seriously), that God offers this world a gift: Jesus, his life, teachings, sacrificial death and resurrection.

In ‘John’, one of four Bible accounts of Jesus life, a creator who cares about this world and everyone in it, “didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He [Jesus] came to help, to put the world right again.

Because all of us are weak, because all of us do wrong and fail to do right, I call that good news. And by accepting the gift of Jesus, we accept a perfect, eternal source of energy, confidence and love to help us overcome our weaknesses.

In addition, we have the encouragement (and often, the example) of other Jesus followers. When I join them in church, in prayer/discussion groups, in trips to help people in the developing world, I benefit from (and help contribute to) a synergy: the whole becomes greater than the sum of its parts.

Do you want to get in on this? Yes or no, type your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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Mike O'BrienUntil his death in 2015, I’d never heard of Mike O’Brien. You probably hadn’t either. But something he wrote sure grabbed my attention. This is the start of a story about O’Brien in the Calgary Herald:

In his final blog posting, Mike O’Brien said he exuded faith — faith in his radiologist, surgeons, nurses, pharmacists and counsellors — but not in God.

“Of course, I may be wrong. I often am. Fortunately, if God really exists, I’m confident he’ll look at my overall record and let me slide on the faith/skeptic issue. It just sounds like the kind of decent thing he’d do,” he wrote.

I need to satisfy your curiosity before going any further. O’Brien, who died of cancer at age 51, warranted a newspaper article because of his roles in several Canadian TV series, including the comedy cult favourite Corner Gas.

So, what about Mike’s blog post?

I can certainly understand why a hideous disease like cancer might turn a person into an atheist. A life-threatening condition tends to drive the victim into the arms of God or into the arms of…well, nothing, I guess.

The thing is, Mike exuded faith in an entire team of people. And, sadly, all those people could not stop what was happening to him.

Meanwhile, Mike ignored his creator. Now, considering what happened to him, you might say “well, what good did Mike’s creator do for him? He died of cancer!”

On the surface, I get that. But hang on; what if relieving Mike of his four-year painful struggle meant bringing him home? That might not be what his loved ones wanted, but do we hugely imperfect humans always know what’s best?

Sadly, I’m not sure the story goes like I just put it. I’m glad Mike left this world confident that if there’s a creator, that creator would “look at my overall record and let me slide on the faith/skeptic issue”.

But where on earth would such confidence come from? How does Mike, or anyone else on this planet, know how their overall record really looks?

The God that many people believe in is active in this world. He created us to have a relationship with Him – now and for all eternity. We messed that up by going our own way and, so often, doing what Mike did: claim He doesn’t even exist and this planet – heck this universe – somehow came from nowhere.

To repair that broken relationship, God has done far more than what Mike might call the “decent thing”; He offers us a gift: Jesus of Nazareth, who many people believe is God’s Son.

Jesus lived an extraordinary life, offered love and forgiveness to folks you and I wouldn’t turn our head to glance at, then died to make up for all the wrong things we’ve done and all the right things we’ve failed to do. To finish it off, he came back to life after three days, showing God’s power to do whatever God wants.

All we have to do is accept the gift of Jesus. Then we can have more than Mike’s vague optimism. We can have complete confidence that when this life ends, God will absolutely overlook our many, many shortcomings and welcome us into His presence forever.

Interested? Post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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atheism humanityWhen I read this graphic on an Internet atheism community, I started searching my mind.

When was the last time anyone — even my wife — “demanded” I get up early every Sunday and go to church? I’m still searching and still haven’t found a single instance.

In my faith, Sunday church services are important because they bring together followers of Jesus of Nazareth (who many people believe is the Son of God) to:

  • strengthen each other;
  • learn together how to be better Jesus followers, and;
  • pray together and for each other and for a world that I think we can all admit isn’t doing very well.

So has it ever happened where one Jesus follower has demanded or “guilted” another into attending church services? I’m sure it has, but I’ll venture to write that those occasions are truly regrettable. No one should ever be forced to attend “religious” events. It should *always* be voluntary.

What about “overdressing”? Um, welcome to 1955; they want their suits, fedoras, dresses and white gloves back.

In a vast majority of North American churches, what you wear is pretty much irrelevant. The church I attend includes teens in jeans and T-shirts, seniors in suits and dresses, middle-aged men in cowboy boots and even recent African immigrants who love wearing their colourful ceremonial outfits. For many years, I haven’t gone to church wearing anything fancier than jeans and a golf shirt.

Are there churches where your clothing matters? Yes. But a majority of those churches are in decline; God doesn’t care what you wear to church, since He knows you inside and out and isn’t fooled by fancy and expensive outfits.

Apologize for being human? I suppose some people might think that’s what happens. But what really happens, in most churches, is people apologize for the wrong things they’ve done and the right things they’ve failed to do.

Let’s be plain here: in all the original source documents of His life, Jesus of Nazareth never once asked a single person to “apologize” for being human. And He still doesn’t today.

Bruxy Cavey, a Canadian pastor, tweeted this about our humanity: “I’m only human.” There is nothing “only” about being human.

Why did Bruxy tweet that? Because God made you and I and everyone else human. God made His Son human. So to “apologize” for that or feel bad about that is to insult our creator.

Finally, “nobody really knows where all this came from”? Well, where (and who) else would it come from but God?

In the end, while I very much appreciate the work done by dudes in lab coats (their work often tells me how God does stuff) I’d rather trust my creator. Because I love Him and follow His Son, I have a better life NOW. And I have ETERNAL life with Christ. Not even the most celebrated scientist can offer me that.

What are your thoughts? Post them below and let’s have a conversation.

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Christianity death cultI think I need to do a search. I need to find all these Christians who are looking forward to dying. According to this graphic, the earth is apparently overwhelmed with suicidal followers of Jesus of Nazareth.

OK, so maybe I’m just having a little fun. But I have to wonder why anyone in the atheist community (which is where I found this graphic) could so thoroughly believe such a notion that they would create a graphic to tell the world.

While I’m sure there are some Jesus followers out there who want to die (perhaps a few on their death beds, for example), I’ve yet to meet even one of them.

In the meantime, what about “wasting their lives”? The Jesus followers who are still in the Nepal helping victims of the devastating 2015 earthquake are certainly doing something that most people would call productive.

Same for the Jesus followers who join Samaritan’s Purse around the world helping survivors of earthquakes, wildfires, volcanoes, tornadoes, floods, tsunamis and cyclones. Wasting their lives looking forward to death? Really?

Should I wonder about the Jesus followers who put their lives on the line (again with Samaritan’s Purse) fighting the deadly Ebola Virus in Liberia in 2014? Was that just a death wish?

Now, about the central figure of Christianity: was He a human sacrifice? In some respects, yes.

Most Jesus followers believe the original source documents that state God put His love on the line for us through Jesus (who many people believe is God’s Son).

A letter from one of Jesus’s first followers explains it like this: “Christ himself suffered when he died for you, and with that one death he paid for your sins. He was not guilty, but he died for people who are guilty. He did this to bring all of you to God.”

Nothing you or I can do will make up for the wrong things we’ve done and the right things we’ve failed to do. Nothing. Indeed, all of us go wrong every day, in ways we don’t see because we live in a world that suggests “if it feels good, do it” and “it’s only wrong if you get caught”.

The only difference between you and me is I’ve figured this out. I know I can’t come close to God’s standard of perfection. But because I follow Jesus, I don’t have to. Jesus did the heavy lifting for me.

Oh, one more thing. After doing that heavy lifting, He came back to life. Paul, an ancient missionary who spent much of his life telling people about Jesus, wrote a letter that says “But Christ really has been raised from death”.

In fact, that’s such a central part of following Jesus that in the same letter, Paul wrote “if Christ has not been raised from death, then your faith is for nothing; you are still guilty of your sins.”

Paul spent most of his life telling people this. And God worked through him to start churches and spread Christianity throughout the Mediterranean.

So much for a death cult, eh?

Does this make you rethink what you thought you knew about following Jesus? Yes or no, post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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Bill Maher atheismFirst of all, “religion” certainly is dangerous, and for more reasons than Bill Maher lists in this meme. Like Maher (a well-known TV host/political commentator/atheist), I want nothing to do with “religion” and I explain why here: http://wp.me/p2wzRb-cP.

Now, what about “faith” (an entirely different thing) being dangerous? Are there people out there who believe their faith affiliation supplies all the answers to every question? Sadly, yes.

In my faith, saying Jesus of Nazareth — who many people believe is the Son of God — is the answer to everything is superficial and, in my opinion, shows a disturbing lack of thought.

(Then again, we live in a culture that discourages thoughtful living, so this shouldn’t be a surprise.)

I have all kinds of questions that following Jesus doesn’t answer:

  • Is there life on other planets?
  • If there is life on other planets, do they know about God?
  • Why is our world set up so people and animals kill and eat each other to survive?
  • When is Jesus going to return (as primary source Jesus biographies say He will)?
  • Why is spirituality so repugnant to some people and so welcome to others?
  • And finally, how did hip-hop ever become popular? 😉

What’s truly fascinating is that Jesus Himself didn’t know the answers to all the questions. Before He was crucified on a Roman cross, one of his followers asked when He would return. Jesus replied “No one knows when that day or time will be. The Son and the angels in heaven don’t know when it will be. Only the Father knows.”

Does this bother some Jesus followers? Probably. But it doesn’t bother me; serious Jesus followers like me believe He is God AND man and when He was physically on earth, Jesus set his Godhood aside. Thus the lack of knowledge about His return.

But what about my questions? There was a time when some of them, especially the third question, disturbed me greatly. I’m not nearly so disturbed today, but these unanswered questions are still important.

Our culture tends to suggest we can be God, with all the wisdom, all the technology and all the resources to command our lives and destinies. But my questions (which I don’t believe science can ever answer) are important and necessary because they remind me that God is God. And I am NOT.

So what about you; do your unanswered questions keep you from seriously investigating what it means to follow Jesus and be transformed by His love, His life, His death and His resurrection? Post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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Jesus fake not realSo, did a guy from the ancient Middle East called Jesus actually exist? And did he do miraculous stuff and change the world forever?

If you’re unsure, you probably haven’t looked into it. So using nothing but ancient writings and original source documents on His life, let me advance the case for Jesus being real and doing the things that people like me believe He did.

Consider the life of Paul, a tent maker from the ancient Turkish city of Tarsus. Paul was a devout Jew who went out of his way to persecute Jesus followers, supported by religious leaders who felt threatened by Jesus and His followers.

But something extraordinary happened to Paul. While travelling to Syria to arrest Jesus followers, ancient documents record Paul having a dramatic, life-changing spiritual encounter with Jesus.

After that, Paul became a fervent Jesus follower and travelled around the Mediterranean region starting churches and mentoring others who believed Jesus was the Son of God.

Think about it: Paul went from being a staunch member of the Jewish religion and culture to someone spurned by his own tribe, a black sheep to be forever shunned. Why would he do that to follow just another person who claimed to be special?

Think about it: travelling around the Roman Empire 2,000 years ago was HUGELY risky. Indeed, in letters he wrote to church leaders, Paul mentions being in prison for his faith, getting whipped five times and beaten three times. He also survived a stoning and several shipwrecks.

Again I ask, why would anyone go through all that? Could anyone possibility be that delusional for more than half his life?  To me, the answer is plain: Paul wasn’t delusional. He was risking it all because he knew Jesus existed and he knew Jesus was – and still is – God’s gift to a sick and broken world.

Think about it: If Paul got rich from his work telling everyone he could about Jesus Christ, his letters – and all other ancient documents – certainly don’t record it. Did he get women? Again, no mention. Fame? He was probably well known among fellow Jesus followers, but to others he was everything from an annoyance to a serious threat. Thus the jail time (at least five years) and beatings. So, no riches, no women and only dangerous notoriety. Would you go through all this for someone who didn’t exist?

What about this resurrection thing? Serious Jesus followers believe the original source accounts of Jesus being put to death by Roman soldiers (on the urging of vindictive religious leaders) and coming back to life three days later.

False? Well, consider that in a letter to fellow Jesus followers, Paul writes “After that [His resurrection], Christ appeared to more than 500 other believers at the same time. Most of them are still living today, but some have died.

In other words, Paul wrote that there were living witnesses to the resurrection. And as Tom Harper wrote in his book For Christ’s Sake, “Paul is saying those who do not believe him can go and find out for themselves.”

Think about it: was Paul just lying? Was this just more delusions? Paul put his credibility as a Jesus follower on the line with his statement. And there’s no reasonable justification to doubt him.

So what do you think? Post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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Freddie Mercury QueenThanks to the advice of a wise friend, I’ve been reading up about rock singer Freddie Mercury (1946-1991), the flamboyant, amazingly talented lead singer of Queen.

Even now, more than 30 years after his death from AIDS-related pneumonia, most of us can hum such classic Queen hits as We Are The Champions, Crazy Little Thing Called Love or Bohemian Rhapsody. Mercury wrote or co-wrote these and many other songs that are staples of classic rock radio.

By any measure of our culture, Mercury was an over-the-top, break-open-the-champagne success. Fame, wealth, peer recognition and adoring fans were all his.

So what can explain the lyrics in the Queen song The Show Must Go On? Several times, Mercury (who was by then quite ill) sings “What are we living for?”

In addition, during one of his last interviews, Mercury said:

  • “I don’t have any real friends. I don’t think I do. I discard them. People tell me they’re friends, but there we are. I don’t believe them.”
  • “You can be in a crowded area and still be the loneliest person, because you don’t really belong to anyone.”
  • “In fact, my kind of loneliness is the hardest to bear. Loneliness doesn’t mean being shut away in a room by yourself.”

Does this sound like a man who had it all? Despite the approval of our culture, despite the 18-room London mansion, the extraordinary voice and the legion of male and female lovers, Mercury showed me (and you) something important: these are not the stuff of contentment. Indeed, these are lies.

In his last days, did Mercury pursue something deeper and more eternally important? We’ll never know. But it’s not too late for you and me to do that.

Strip away what our culture says is vital (and what Mercury proved is NOT) and you’re left with something very, very controversial. You’re left with God, your creator.

I’ll be bold and declare that beyond friends, parents, relatives, spouses and children, the only relationship that is completely loving and completely permanent (so permanent that it continues beyond this life) is with God.

God created you. And He offers you the gift of Jesus of Nazareth, who many people believe is God’s Son.

Jesus teaches us how to live — to REALLY live — with such crazy notions as forgiving your enemies, turning the other cheek, loving your neighbour as much as you love yourself, not judging others unless you’re ready to be judged the same way, and doing for others what you want them to do for you.

Jesus did more than teach. He told his followers that for everyone who believes in Him, He would die on a cross to make up for the wrong things they’ve done and the right things they’ve failed to do. Then He did it. And original-source documents of His life on Earth say He came back to life.

Just by believing in Him and following Him, you can have Jesus wiping out all your failures, too. And you can have a richer and fuller life NOW. Interested? Post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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SinIt’s easy to make this call about a word that’s so loaded, isn’t it? In our culture “sin” has come to be associated of judgementalism, arrogance, hard-heartedness and “religious” people.

Some of those people, who lack full awareness of their own failures, think they’re doing good when they shame others for the wrong things those people might have done.

But does that mean the word “sin” should be tossed in garbage? The person who created the meme that inspired this blog might shout YES.

I suppose it’s easier to think everything is relative and there is no real “good” or “bad” that would necessitate a word like “sin”. Do you really think that’s so? Isn’t murder a sin? What about setting someone’s house on fire — can you think of a reason that would condone arson? Is there an excuse to justify printing and distributing counterfeit money?

Just like you, I haven’t done any of these things. But I examine my own life and see plenty of behaviours that qualify as sin:

  • I’m tired of the slow truck ahead of me, so I dangerously cut off another car in the passing lane to get around it.
  • I find pathetic excuses to stay on the computer when I should be helping my wife clean the house.
  • I allow ancient, petty squabbles with my relatives to stop me from connecting with them.

Maybe these aren’t “sins” to you. Our culture might come up with softer descriptions like “shortcomings” or “mistakes”. To me, a shortcoming is not being able to resist sugary snacks (I’m absolutely guilty). A mistake is misspelling a word in a Frank’s Cottage essay (often guilty). A sin is different and I hope the bullet-point examples above make that clear.

So what can I do about these sins and many others? Lord knows, I’ve tried and tried to change my ways. I’ll bet you’ve tried to fix your sins, too. And I’ll bet you’ve had as much success as me. Kinda sad, eh?

But there IS something real and substantial and meaningful that we can do. I’ve done it and it IS making a difference. Not as quickly as I (or my wife) would like, but the change is happening.

Prepare yourself for what this is, because it’s radical and controversial: believing there is a creator. A creator who knows YOU. A creator who cares about YOU. A creator who is involved in this world and wants to be involved in YOUR life.

Furthermore, this creator has a son, whom He offers to everyone (including YOU) as an extraordinary, life-changing gift. He is Jesus of Nazareth and God invites YOU to accept the gift of Him. When you do that, you’ll come to know that He died on a cross to make up for ALL the sins of EVERYONE who believes in Him and follows Him.

When this life is done and you come before God, He no longer sees your sins. He sees the sacrifice and the perfection of His son. Sound interesting? Post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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Fog of faith I bet some folks see the graphic that inspired this essay and vigorously nod in agreement.

So why is it that me, and so many others, found the world to be in a fog until we decided to follow Jesus of Nazareth (who many people believe is the Son of God)?

For years, I accepted the worldview pushed by my family, friends, co-workers, the entertainment industry and the media.

But it all lacked…focus. People, including me, weren’t satisfied. Struggling to climb the ladder of career success. Struggling to afford monster flat-screen TVs, bigger houses and cruise ship vacations. Struggling to obey our culture’s directive to ignore a world that seemed bent on slow destruction. Struggling to constantly turn our thoughts away from the nagging question “What’s it all for?”.

When I decided to follow Jesus, the fog cleared and the truth of this world came into focus.

Struggling to get more money, more toys, more power and more sex is not the way to satisfaction. As a follower of Jesus, I’ve come to know that satisfaction comes through following His example and His teachings.

Check out these teachings from one of the four original-source biographies of Jesus’ physical life on earth:

  • You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbour and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies. Pray for those who treat you badly.
  • When you do something good, don’t do it in front of others so that they will see you. If you do that, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
  • You cannot serve God and money at the same time.
  • Don’t hoard treasure down here where it gets eaten by moths and corroded by rust or—worse!—stolen by burglars. Stockpile treasure in heaven, where it’s safe from moth and rust and burglars.
  • Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.
  • Don’t pick on people, jump on their failures, criticize their faults— unless, of course, you want the same treatment.
  • Do for others what you would want them to do for you.

Yes, some of these teachings are hard. And trust me, you are going to fail at some of them, just like me. And that’s OK. Serious followers of Jesus know that His sacrificial death on a cross wipes away the failures of His followers, so that all God sees is the perfection of His son.

Furthermore, when you become a serious follower of Jesus, you welcome Him into your heart and your mind, where His strength, His perfection and His love for YOU start to transform your life. Right here, right now.

What do you think? Post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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