Could Colorado’s new texting & driving law be evidence for God? December 1, 2009
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Beginning today, December 1st, 2009, it becomes a traffic offense for any driver in Colorado to text while behind the wheel. Why? Well, it was one year ago when Erica Forney, a little nine-year-old girl from our church, was tragically killed riding her bike home by a driver distracted while using a cell phone. Little Erica died on Thanksgiving Day 2008, just two days after the accident. Remarkably, within only one short year the Forney family, dedicated to a cause which could save many lives, worked to pass the new Colorado law, making it illegal for any driver to text or enter data in a phone while driving. So, what does this have to do with a reason to believe in God? (more…)
Can different faiths live a happily married life together? October 22, 2009
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I was recently asked by a young man (who professed to be an agnostic) if I would meet with him and his Christian girlfriend. They’d been dating for some time, talked about marriage, but now this young Christian woman was having serious reservations about marrying a non-Christian. Her primary concern was how they would raise their children. And it was made more complicated in her mind by the fact that he had no problem with her raising their children as Christians, but that he simply had no personal interest in following Jesus. She was in turmoil. He was confounded by why she was in turmoil. I affirmed her turmoil. (more…)
Does God really ‘forget’ when He forgives? June 14, 2009
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I remember once hearing someone say, “Did you know that I can do something that God can’t do? I can remember my sins, while God cannot!” Now I fully understand what the person was attempting to communicate. He was extolling the graciousness of a God who didn’t go digging up past sins which had previously been confessed and forgiven. However, does the Bible teach that God actually forgets (is unable to recall) what those sins were or that we in fact committed them? (more…)
Should Christians seek psychic help? February 26, 2009
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Though obviously an overgeneralization, it does seem that spirituality is among the “in” things. It has become both cool and lucrative. The television is scattered with spiritualists like John Edwards, James Van Praagh, Sylvia Browne, and Char Margolis who claim psychic power to speak to departed human beings. But as alarming as this movement may be in our broader culture, it’s most troubling that even many Christians are being duped into thinking that the practice of physics can be squared with a biblical worldview. The Bible’s prohibitions against necromancy (communing with the dead) aren’t given to keep us from gaining helpful information from the spirit world. Rather, such prohibitions come to us to protect us from lies and deception. (more…)
Why did God command a child sacrifice from Abraham? September 11, 2008
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I had just come upstairs from putting Brielle, my four year old daughter, to bed, an hour past her bedtime—as usual. Earlier, as I sat down on her bed to tuck her in I noticed she was reading from her Children’s Illustrated Bible. She immediately fired a question, “Dad, why is this guy holding a knife?” Not the sort of thing you normally hope to be your child’s last thoughts before drifting off to sleep. Caught off guard, I looked and saw that she was “reading” (or examining the picture of) the story of Abraham’s near sacrifice of his son, Isaac, in obedience to God (Gen 22). While I knew this could not be a quick answer, I immediately found myself struggling to say much of anything. I could just imagine her furrowed little brow communicating that I had left her with far more troubling questions than she had begun with. So, I rapidly regrouped and told her that I would love to explain it but that we’d need more time. “Remind me tomorrow and I’ll tell you all about it.” This all happened last night. And tonight, right at bedtime, she reminded me. This time I skipped the several false starts of explanation and went right to the bit about needing more time. But to be totally honest, it really isn’t a “bit.” I did need more time to explain the whole story. Jumping right in with a 30 second answer, neglecting the bigger context of the story, would have left her with understandable concern and even worry. And I think that for most of us adults, the situation is not all that different. (more…)
“God Is Not Dead Yet” August 5, 2008
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The past 40 or so years have seen a recovery of natural theology—and thereby, the classical arguments for the existence of God—within the field of academic philosophy. Some of the most influential philosophers of our day are not only theists, but outspoken Christian believers. We’ve even seen one of the most influential atheists of this past century, Anthony Flew, become a theist due in large part to the advances of today’s design arguments. And in conjunction with this philosophical movement is a renewed appreciation among young people for apologetics—that is, giving winsome and cogent arguments for the Christian faith. (more…)
Jesus didn’t address homosexuality…right? July 23, 2008
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A friend of mine recently stated that we ought to give pause before tackling the morality of homosexual practice from a biblical perspective. After all, he reasoned, Jesus never even addressed it in the Gospel accounts. Therefore, as professed “followers of Jesus,” how can we be so confident on the issue? And while I think this assumption about Jesus’ supposed silence on the issue is quite common, I don’t believe it’s an informed assumption. Instead, I think that a careful examination of this assumption will both demonstrate its inadequacy, as well as give us greater confidence in understanding how Jesus views homosexual practice.
Why God’s “promises” don’t work July 15, 2008
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One of the most tragic and frustrating conversations that I have from time to time is the one that starts something like this: “I don’t understand! I’ve been living for God—praying, reading the Bible, trying to honor God with my relationships, finances, possessions, etc. But God isn’t following through on His promises. Doesn’t He promise blessing for righteousness (e.g., biblical promises to prosper the nation of Israel if they obey and trust Him).” They wonder why their experience of following God doesn’t comport with the theology that’s been peddled to them. And they are left reeling with understandable confusion and frustration. Tragically, for many, there is no one there to offer what they need most at that moment—a healthy dose of biblical truth. And as a result, some walk away from God, thinking that He simply doesn’t keep His promises. (more…)
Review of Eckhart Tolle’s book, “A New Earth” April 23, 2008
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I spoke this evening at our mid-week service here at Timberline Church. We’re in a series considering the implications of living a spirit filled/influenced life. Tonight was on “learning humbly.” We explored the idea that recognizing and submitting to objective truth (or “true truth” as Francis Schaeffer used to say) seems to be a prerequisite to being a humble learner. However, much in our culture suggests that truth is a private and subjective endeavor. One contemporary example of that come from spiritual teacher, Eckhart Tolle’s latest book, A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose. (more…)
Is God evil for destroying entire nations in the Old Testament? April 19, 2008
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While this post originally appeared last year, I thought it would be appropriate to reengage with it, given our consideration of the supposed evils of Christianity which we’ll be discussing this Sunday in our Atheism class.
I recently heard from somebody who said that he could never believe in a God who would command the destruction of an entire group of people—an act of genocide! Genocide is murdering a group of people because of a hatred of who they are. And after all, why would God destroy a group of people for being who they are (ethnically) if God made everyone in the first place? So, obviously the God described in the Old Testament, who did such things, cannot be the true God who made all people. (more…)
Does Freud’s argument against God work? April 2, 2008
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The 20th century skeptical Lutheran New Testament scholar Rudolf Bultmann stated that it is impossible for a person to live in the modern world—using “electric lights” and so forth—and still believe in spirits and miracles. Now, quite obviously there are many intellectually sophisticated people today who continue to believe in the supernatural, and who believe that being a Christian doesn’t require a person to be intellectually dishonest. However, this attitude or philosophical persuasion of modernity (as expressed by Bultmann) continues to be believed and championed by many still today. And while Bultmann represents the modernist attack on historical Christianity from the disciple of New Testament studies, the assault can be seen in many disciplines. In fact, one of the more influential attacks on belief in God from this past century came through the field of psychology—specifically, through the person of Sigmund Freud (1856-1939). But does Freud’s argument against God really work? (more…)
Was Jesus forsaken by God on the cross? March 20, 2008
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What is the meaning of Jesus’ statement spoken on the cross, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mt 27:46; Mk 15:34)? Many suggest that Jesus’ words are desperate cries out of the depths of the deepest depression imaginable, as a result from being separated from the Father. However, I tend to think that something is being missed here. There are four reasons why I would take a different interpretation.
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