I feel like I'm having deja vu

Hello everyone...(pause to hear the crickets chirping)...

I know it's been a very long time since my last article. There was no real reason for my absence other than I was just spending less time on the computer at home and more time with my family.

I am going to try to begin writing a little more now, not because I'm going to be spending less time with my family now, but because my job, with which God has blessed me, allows me to bring a laptop in my truck. So, I can write whilst I work and then transfer and post my article when I get home, thereby effectively killing two birds with one stone. I get to write while at work (and get paid for it ;D), and be with my family when I'm at home. Thank you Lord for your kindness. So if there is anyone who actually reads my ramblings, I hope to ramble on a little more frequently now. I also can't stress enough how much I like the idea of getting comments. Please, comment and let us get some conversations going.

God of Wonders 1/8

Here is a fantastic video I found on YouTube from OmniChristianVids2.

This is a wonderful video which displays God's amazing power and majesty in creation. This video also disputes the ridiculous theory of science called evolution.

Enjoy




This is just part 1 of 8. Here is the link to go to YouTube and view the rest of this amazing video.
http://www.youtube.com/user/OmniChristianVids2

Essential Doctrine pt8 - Sola Scriptura

Sola Scriptura means that the Scriptures (the 66 books of the Bible) are the only authoritative source of God speaking to man. Nothing can be added nor taken away. And anything contrary is false.

The Scriptures alone are fully authoritative, infallible and inerrant, and completely sufficient. If you do not believe this then any conversation about God, about His will, about salvation, or about Jesus Christ, is going to be about as frustrating as a three legged dog trying to bury a bone on ice. It's not going to get any where.

And why would it? Because any common ground is lost, there is no longer any central reference point, it all comes down to your personal opinion. All of a sudden your reason and feelings become the source of what informs you of what is and is not true.

I have a hard time believing that any true Christian would deny the wholly inspired nature of the Holy Scriptures.

People will usually deny this when they find a passage of Scripture that they don't like, or one that would cause them to have to change the way that they live their lives. And because it's been proven time and time again that the Bible has not changed since it was written, beginning with Genesis (approx. 3500 yrs ago), to the New Testament (approx.2000yrs ago), I guess it's just easier for them to deny all together that the Scriptures are fake, or to say that the meaning is not true.

The sufficiency of the Bible is one of the strongest attacks that the Church is facing right now. Sadly, this attack is coming from those who call themselves Christians.
So many within the Church have compromised the word of God, and given in to the pressure of the world to deny the literal truth of the Word. The best example of this would be the denial of the creation of the world in 6 24 hour days approximately 6000 years ago(Gen 2:1-2). Another would be the fact that Jesus said that He is going to return to judge the world and condemn those who do not repent and trust in Him to eternal Hell (Matt 25:31-33,41).

If one does not believe that the Scriptures are fully inspired by God, then you do not trust God as He commands. The Bible says that God had inspired the writers of the Scriptures to write down exactly what He wanted to say, (1 Tim 3:16-17, 2 Pet 1:20-21). Why is it so difficult to believe that if God wields such awesome power that He can literally speak the entire universe into existence, why couldn't He preserve throughout history His words as they were spoken to the prophets and apostles?

Good Friday

Blessed be Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour. Consider how great our sins before Almighty God. Consider the cost Jesus had to pay to atone and appease the wrath of God for the sins you and I have committed. The physical beating Jesus took was not all that He suffered though. Through all that at the same time the wrath of God was poured out upon Him in such ferocity that we will never understand.

Thank you Jesus.

If you have not surrendered you life to Jesus Christ, look at what He has done for you. Will you refuse so great a salvation?

"But God demonstrates His love for us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more than, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only this, but we also exult in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation." (Rom 5:8-11)

Happy National Atheist Day Everyone!!

April 1, April Fool's Day, National Atheist Day.

The FOOL has said in his heart, "There is no God." (Ps 14:1)

Essential Doctrine pt7; Salvation is a gift of God.

Salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone.

There is one mediator between God and man, and that is Christ Jesus. (1 Tim 2:5). Jesus Christ was the only one in all of history to make atonement and reconciliation between God and man. He did this, by suffering and dying upon a cross, in such a way that no one on earth could understand. There is nothing that can match the value of Christ's offering.

Someone who believes that they must be a good person or perform some right, or observe rituals in order to receive or maintain their salvation in Jesus Christ effectively renders the gift of God as not free, as they attempting to buy it by some form of work.

For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.” Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness, just as David also speaks of the blessing of the one to whom God counts righteousness apart from works: “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven,and whose sins are covered; blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin.” (Rom 4:3-8)

For by works of the law (observing the 10 commandments, or 'being good') no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin. (because we've all broken the law, and no one has perfectly kept the law, therefore, Rom 3:10,12).

But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. (Rom 3:20-26)

Now I know that this may cause some to think that one may go on sinning as they please since salvation is given for free, and especially when I say that being a good person does not maintain salvation. This is a misunderstanding. My 7th point of essential Christian doctrine is this; True faith must always be preceded and followed by repentance.

Repentance defined, means to apologize and turn from doing evil works. Evil as it is in the eyes of God. Such lying, stealing, idolatry, blasphemy, and the other 10 Commandments. So if one is repentant, they won't want to continue sinning. Especially against the very One who died to save them from their sins.

So is repentance a work for salvation? No, but rather it the right response to the One who offers the free gift. Faith and repentance are two sides of the same coin. One without the other results in a false conversion.

Hey Why Don't You Throw one at Me, Eh!

Hello, anyone. I was just curious to know if there were any readers that would like to throw a questions at me. I'd love to get some conversation going, so if anyone has a question that they have been pondering for a while, let me know, and we can together see what the Bible has to say about it.

It can be about absolutely anything (almost anything, we'll keep it civil right?). Social, political, religious, philosophical, etc.

Come on, don't be bashful. Just leave me a question under this post and I shall try my best to answer it. (I enjoy the REALLY hard ones that many others might try to avoid).

I'm for Changing O Canada

Canada has had several different versions of the national anthem. My favourite version is that hymn written by a Toronto doctor, Dr. Thomas Bedford Richardson, in 1906.

" O Canada! Our fathers' land of old
Thy brow is crown'd with leaves of red and gold.
Beneath the shade of the Holy Cross
Thy children own their birth
No stains thy glorious annals gloss
Since valour shield thy hearth.
Almighty God! On thee we call
Defend our rights, forfend this nation's thrall,
Defend our rights, forfend this nation's thrall."

If we're going to change the anthem, I vote for this one.

Essential Doctrine pt6; The Resurrection from the Dead

Three days after Jesus was crucified, He rose to life from the dead in a physical body. This is and must be true. Why? Because as Paul put it, " If He did not rise our faith is in vain and we are still in our sins. (1 Cor 15:10)

If you reject the resurrection, than what is the point of calling yourself a Christian. Jesus said on several different occasions that He would be in the grave 3 days, and on that third day He would rise again (Mk 8:31, Mk 9:31, Mk 10:34)

Jesus was clear that this was a literal bodily resurrection. He spoke with the Sadducees (A certain party of the religious leaders. They did not believe in the resurrection; Mk 12:18) that the resurrection was a true fact.

Jesus said, "But regarding the fact that the dead rise again, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the burning bush, how God spoke to him, saying, 'I AM THE GOD OF ABRAHAM, AND THE GOD OF ISAAC, and the God of Jacob'? "He is not the God of the dead, but of the living; you are greatly mistaken." Mark 12:26-27


Paul explains the importance of the resurrection of Christ concerning our salvation. "Now if Christ is preached, that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain.

Moreover we are even found to be false witnesses of God, because we testified against God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise, if in fact the dead are not raised.

For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied." 1 Corinthians 15:12-19


Some people like to alogorize or moralize the truth of the resurrection. They might say something like the resurrection symbolizes a new life for the believer. This is not exactly what meant in the Scriptures.

The resurrection of Christ does provide a new life for us, meaning that we now receive eternal life in Christ. Whenever, the Bible talks about the resurrection or our eternal life in Christ or the life that we ultimately hope for, it is always future tense, after we pass from this plane. "If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied... If from human motives I fought with wild beasts at Ephesus, what does it profit me? If the dead are not raised, LET US EAT AND DRINK, FOR TOMORROW WE DIE. (1Co 15:19,32)

The truth of the resurrection can not be seperated from the cross, nor from the forgiveness of our sins. It is the very fact that Jesus was raised from the dead that it proves that His sacrifice was pleasing and acceptable to appease the wrath of God and thereby purchase the forgiveness for our sins. All of what Christ did hinged on the resurrection.
"Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead." (Acts 17:30-31)

If you deny the resurrection, then again I ask, who is the Jesus Christ that you are following? Because he is not the Christ if you do not believe that He was physically raised from the dead.

Now does that mean that you can't have 'doubts' or questions, because someone raising from the dead! That's not something that happens every day. It is a stumbling block for many. It was in Peter and Paul's day, it is now. It was also for all of the disciples of Jesus.
But they were startled and frightened and thought that they were seeing a spirit. And He said to them, "Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? "See My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself; touch Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have." (Luke 24:37-39)

Jesus does not send you away for having troubles believing something, but rather He will gently tell you to be not unbelieving but believing.
But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came.

So the other disciples were saying to him, "We have seen the Lord!" But he said to them, "Unless I see in His hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe."

After eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus *came, the doors having been shut, and stood in their midst and said, "Peace be with you."

Then He *said to Thomas, "Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing." Thomas answered and said to Him, "My Lord and my God!" Jesus *said to him, "Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed." (John 20:24-29)

Jesus will give you the gift of belief if you repent and put your faith in Him. There is a part for us to participate in growing in the Lord, but it is really the Holy Spirit who leads us in our faith.
"But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. "He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine and will disclose it to you.
(John 16:13-14)



"O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR VICTORY? O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR STING?" The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law; but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord. 1 Corinthians 15:55-58

A New Kind of Christianity Review by Tim Challies

There is within Christiandom a man who has quite a following. The problem is that for years this man has been confusing, allusive, and divisive about all things theological, in this false guise of humility. His prey; those who either don't have the Biblical knowledge to discern truth from what sounds true but just isn't quite right, and those who are too polite to say somebody is wrong and follow the Biblical command to mark those who cause dissension and avoid them (Rom 16:17-19), and those who were just looking for someone to finally come from within the Church and call into question the authority of Scripture and yet be able to maintain a standing within the Church.

(I guess the latter wouldn't really be 'prey' but rather divisive themselves yet too cowardly to come out with their false beliefs until someone else did first)

Many of you probably know that I'm talking about Brian McLaren. Brian McLaren has always set himself apart from modern conservative Christians with little pokes and jabs at orthodox teachings of the Scriptures, yet never actually giving in to explain what he is really saying.

Until now.

I don't as of yet have his new book, "A New Kind of Christianity" but I will soon. I will then put up quotes from his book which will show that he is finally drawing a line and showing everybody where his heresy stands.

Until then, here is a link to a very well know reveiwer of all books Christian ans those which claim to be "Christian", such as The Shack.

I hope you will read the review and see that Brian McLaren is a heretic and should be cast from the Church. He is dangerous and his teachings are evil.

Tim Challies - A New Kind of Christianity

Essential Doctrines pt5 The Propitiation of Jesus Christ

So far we have examined 3 of 8 essential doctrines pertaining to the Christian faith. I hope that I have been clear in my explanations as to why these doctrines are so essential. If anyone claims to be of the faith they will not deny the truth as shown in the holy Scriptures. If they do then they are not of the faith as they have received "another Jesus" or "another gospel" (2Cor 11:3-4). The Scriptures speak of this with such severity that Paul says "But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed!"(Gal 1:7-10)

The essential doctrine that I want to present now is even more essential as it pertains to how one is saved in the first place. The doctrines I've spoke of so far, I've mentioned that they are not exactly necessary to believe in order to be born again. This doctrine now though, is. This is what our salvation hinges upon.

If you reject this then as the author of the letter of Hebrews says; "For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a terrifying expectation of judgment and the fury of a fire which will consume the adversaries.

Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know Him who said, "vengeance is mine, I will repay." And again, "the Lord will judge His people." It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God". (Hebrews 10:26-31)


The Propitiation of Jesus Christ. What does propitiation mean?

PROPITIATION, n. propisia'shon.

1. The act of appeasing wrath and conciliating the favor of an offended person; the act of making propitious.

2. In theology, the atonement or atoning sacrifice offered to God to assuage his wrath and render him propitious to sinners. Christ is the propitiation for the sins of men. Rom.3. 1 John 2. (From Noah Webster Dictionary 1828)

This is what we must believe;
In the beginning when God created He gave man one command. Man disobeyed God and has done so ever since, in the form of lies, thefts, blasphemy, impure thoughts, and idolatry. It is appointed unto man once to die and then judgment (Heb 9:27).

"But now apart from the Law (meaning the 10 commandments, and trying to keep it's commands and to be a good person) the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God He passed over the sins previously committed; for the demonstration, I say, of His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus." (Romans 3:21-26)

This is the gospel. That great and glorious news that says that we have sinned and Jesus has paid our sin debt. There is no amount of good works that we can do to earn God's favour, because none of us are good, only God is good. We must understand this. In order to be saved we must come to the point where we admit that we are not good, but rather that we are evil before a holy God, and thus we deserve His wrath.

But thanks be to God for sending His Son to take our place, who became sin for us, and God in turn credits the righteous life that Jesus lived to us, so that we might be seen as holy in the eyes of God.

If you do not believe that Jesus Christ lived a holy pure life, or that He was crucified on our behalf, taking upon Himself the full wrath of God, for our sins, and if you do not repent of your sins and surrender your entire life, putting all your trust and faith in Jesus Christ, you will not be saved.

You must believe that Jesus paid our debt in full. Jesus said that you must deny yourself (Mat 16:24) if you want to follow Him. If you believe that you must do something to be saved, i.e. be baptized, confess your sins to a man in a box, attend church, take communion, perform some sort of ritual, or say a certain prayer, or be a good person (that isn't to say that we can go on sinning, but we've seen already that we cannot be good enough) you are sorely mistaken, because Jesus will get all the credit for your salvation.

Also, if you think that you must do something to add to Jesus' sacrifice then when God says that we are forgiven on the bases of what Jesus did for us, then that is a lie. For it was the Father's good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him (Jesus), and through Him (Jesus) to reconcile all things to Himself (the Father) , having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven. (Co 1:19-20)

This verse should say something like "and through Him and certain obligations on our part, to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross and our good deeds, through Him and us... But it doesn't because Jesus is going to get all the credit.

Please don't ever suppose that there may be anything that we can do that would compare to what Jesus did. Take the free gift of salvation and do not offend God by trying to offer Him something for it.

Repent and turn to the Lord for He is kind and merciful. Look at what a kind thing He did for you. No one has ever done a more kind and loving thing for you. Turn to Him and receive the salvation that is offered to you, for today is the day of salvation.

"BLESSED ARE THOSE WHOSE LAWLESS DEEDS HAVE BEEN FORGIVEN, AND WHOSE SINS HAVE BEEN COVERED. "BLESSED IS THE MAN WHOSE SIN THE LORD WILL NOT TAKE INTO ACCOUNT." (Romans 4:7-8)

Essential Doctrines pt4 The Triune Nature of Yahweh & Deity of Jesus Christ

This post is going to be a combination of two of what are generally considered essential doctrines within the circle of orthodoxy. These are also the biggest, as they are directly about the nature of God Himself.

From my list on Essential Christian Doctrines pt 1 I listed as 2 - God exists eternally as three equal persons; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And for 3 - Jesus Christ is God in the flesh. I'm going to do these two essentials in one post for obvious reasons; if I'm going to talk about the triune nature of God, then the deity of our Saviour will come up.


** I want to, before I go further, mention again that according the Scriptures, to receive salvation from God He does not necessitate believing that He exists eternally as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, or even believe that Jesus is God, but rather that you repent of your sins, and put your faith in Jesus Christ as the one and only Saviour. The Holy Spirit will then guide you into true knowledge of God.**


The teaching that Yahweh is one and yet exists eternally as three personages is by far the most incomprehensible doctrine of God's nature. How do we understand this? We don't. Nor is it possible for us to really understand how it is that Jesus Christ can be fully man and fully God at the same time.

Throughout the history of the Church, these have been the most debated and attacked truths of the revelation of God. Scripture is so clear on these issues.

Let us first concern ourselves with the Tri-unity of God. When God spoke to Moses, God told Moses that His name is "I AM WHO I AM", or YAHWEH (Ex 3:14). God's name essentially means, "the self-existant one. God also declared to the Jews at Sinai; "Hear O Israel, Yahweh is God, Yahweh is one." (Duet 6:4) Also, the first commandment of Yahweh's law is; “You shall have no other gods before me." (Ex 20:3)

So it is that if we worship a plurality of gods, we are guilty of idolatry, or if we should worship a single god, but one of our own imaginations, we are guilty of idolatry. We are to worship the one and true God as He is.

We see though that in the Scriptures, God has revealed Himself as one God who exists in the form of three persons. (Gen 1:26 Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; ... & Mat 28:19 "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit...)

So if we deny this then we deny the full revelation of God and Jesus said that, "God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth." (Jn 4:24)

How could it be said then that you are worshiping God if you do not worship Him as He is. God's very name is I AM WHO I AM. Notice how His name is not I AM WHO YOU THINK I AM.

Now, I understand the complexity (that's an understatement) of the triune nature of God. Trust me I understand completely. How can God be one God and yet three persons? Well a simple yet totally insufficient analogy might be my family. We are one family yet 4 persons. This analogy doesn't begin to bring us any greater understanding, but should we really be able to understand God's nature? As I said before, it's not up to us to fully comprehend, but rather to obey the truth. Yahweh exists eternally as one God in three personages.

One of the greatest revelation that leads to the conclusion that God is three is that the Scriptures clearly reveal that Jesus Christ is God in human flesh. Not only that but Jesus is fully God, yet fully man. Such is why it is even so important to believe that Jesus Christ was born of a virgin conceived by the Holy Spirit. If you deny this then you instantly wonder off into heresy land.

Jesus declared Himself as God and the Apostles did so as well.
So the Jews said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?" Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am." (emphasize added)
Therefore they picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple. (John 8:57-59)

Here we see the Jews were trying to stone Jesus to death. For what? That he was alive before Abraham? Hardly legal for them to do so according to the Laws of Moses, but legal for them to do if Jesus were calling Himself God and wasn't thereby committing the sin of blasphemy (Lev 24:16).

It was also clear to the Jews that Jesus was calling Himself God when they said He was as is found in John 5:17-18 "But He answered them, "My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working." For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God."

One more example of Jesus' divinty is found in Heb 1:1-3 and His nature of being fully man in Luke 24:37-43

All of this is really important to believe. In 2 John 1:9 we read this; Anyone who goes too far and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God; the one who abides in the teaching, he has both the Father and the Son.

If we are to be in a right relationship with God or the Son, we must know truly who it is we are putting our faith in. We must believe rightly.

I mentioned at the beginning that believing these things are not a pre-requisite to salvation (although Jesus did say in John 8:23-24 "And He was saying to them, "You are from below, I am from above; you are of this world, I am not of this world. "Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins." This is clearly another declaration of Jesus' divinty as Yahweh said this often of Himself (Deut 32:39, Is 41:4, Jer 29:23) So maybe it is true that we MUST believe that Jesus Christ is God in the flesh as God has always declared that He is the only Saviour.)


The importance of believing the true doctrines as taught in the Scriptures is so imperative.
The Apostle John says, "If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house, and do not give him a greeting; for the one who gives him a greeting participates in his evil deeds." (2 John 1:10-11)

Doctrines contrary to Scripture are sin. What's more is that if you dig deep enough into the teachings of those who hold false doctrines contrary to these, you will inevitably find that these religions are a works righteous religion. Meaning that you have to earn your way to Heaven by performing certain requirements or by being a good enough person, because apparently Jesus' sacrifice was not enough to atone for our sins. This thinking even more so is great wickedness.

God has so graciously revealed Himself to us. I can understand someone having questions or confusion about the complexity of God's nature, and I think we can be assured that God is most gracious to those who are seeking to know the Truth, after all He did say that when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come (Jn 16:13).

To those however, who deny what is clearly written in the very word of God, the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them.

For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.

For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures. Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them. For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
(Romans 1:18-25)

Let us cast away from us all forms of false teachings of who God is. Let us stand firm in the truth, for the glory of God.

Creation or Evolution?

I grew up going to public schools. In which we were taught that we all evolved from slime (no joke). I never really thought about it though, I mean how it all began. I guess I would have said the big bang started it all if I was asked, but I did believe in God (the god of my own imagination), but I never equated the two.

When I became a Christian, I can remember the day (it was night actually) when I was trucking home and I was listening to a Christian station and I heard this guy mention something about dinosaurs.

I don't know who it was or what else he said as I soon lost the reception, but it hit me like a bag of bones (dinosaur bones maybe, WHAM-O), "How do dinosaurs fit into the Bible? I don't think I've read anything about dinosaurs in there. And if the Bible is true and it tells of how God created the universe, but I was taught that we evolved from the goo to the zoo to you, then someone has to be wrong."

Now if I was into the whole unreasonable logic of post-modernism, I wouldn't have thought much of it, but I had to know if the faith I have given my life to was real, if the God I bowed to was a truly living God. If evolution was true than how could I believe any of the Bible if it claims a completely different world history than that of reality? It would all be false, and my faith would be false and pointless, if the Bible was wrong in history, then it would surely be wrong about God. I had to know. I was though, afraid. I feared what I might learn. However, I could not remain ignorant.

Where would I start? I'm a truck driver, how am I going to learn this great truth? So I prayed.

It wasn't long after that that heard another preacher begin talking about this. John MacAurthur was the man I was listening to and the series that he began was called "The Battle for the Beginning; Creation, Evolution, and the Bible" This is what I wanted to hear.
It was this that confirmed my faith and demolished all the lies told to me as a youth about really being a monkeys uncle.

I do not believe that evolution is true and it is not even real science (I know your may be thinking that I'm some sort of wack-a-doo) but I have now a great interest in science (no I'm not a scientist, nor do I plan to be one). With a little common sense and desire to learn the truth, I have, and this is what I wish to share with all y'all in future post.

Psalms 95:1-11
O come, let us sing for joy to the LORD, Let us shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving, Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms. For the LORD is a great God And a great King above all gods,
In whose hand are the depths of the earth, The peaks of the mountains are His also.
The sea is His, for it was He who made it, And His hands formed the dry land.
Come, let us worship and bow down, Let us kneel before the LORD our Maker.
For He is our God, And we are the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand.
Today, if you would hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts...

Prayer Post - A Prayer for Haiti

Dear Lord God, You are almighty and sovereign over all of Your creation. My Lord, the island of Haiti is before You, may You hear their cries and mourning and anguish. May Your mercies and grace be found among them.

The nations gather together O Lord to bring aid and relief from their sufferings. Bless them in their aid for this little island. May all the operations of the United Nations, Canada, U.S., and all the other countries operate smoothly and efficiently in the best manor for those in the greatest need.

Amidst all this O God, may your chosen ones, those who call themselves by the name of Jesus Christ, be blessed and go forth to Haiti bearing witness of your grace among such tragedy.

You are in control, and Your purposes for causing this calamity are You own, whether it was judgment upon a nation, or some other reason, Your counsel is Your own. However, Your judgments are just, but Your mercies are greater, O Most High God, only may Your will be done.

May the gospel of Jesus Christ go forth into the island of Haiti, may the suffering find the greatest comfort of all in the saving faith of Your Son who has purchased for them salvation. I pray Lord Yahweh that You would open the eyes of the peoples to see your great love for them and how much more our Saviour has suffered to purchase their salvation, even with His own blood.

I pray that the peoples of Haiti would turn to you and that you would heal their families and their lives and that the nations of earth may see your kindness and glorify your holy name O great King of all the earth.

Psalms 63:1-11
A Psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah.
O God, You are my God; I shall seek You earnestly; My soul thirsts for You, my flesh yearns for You, In a dry and weary land where there is no water. Thus I have seen You in the sanctuary, To see Your power and Your glory. Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, My lips will praise You. So I will bless You as long as I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name. My soul is satisfied as with marrow and fatness, And my mouth offers praises with joyful lips. When I remember You on my bed, I meditate on You in the night watches, For You have been my help, And in the shadow of Your wings I sing for joy. My soul clings to You; Your right hand upholds me. But those who seek my life to destroy it, Will go into the depths of the earth. They will be delivered over to the power of the sword; They will be a prey for foxes. But the king will rejoice in God; Everyone who swears by Him will glory, For the mouths of those who speak lies will be stopped.

Non Essential Doctrines pt2 Calvinism vs Arminianism

When it comes to Biblical theological understandings, perhaps the greatest rivals (and the most contentious) are team Calvin vs team Armenian.

I honestly don't know a whole lot about either doctrine, but for as long these teachings have been around (as set out specifically by John Calvin or Jacobus Arminius), the believers of these two views have been in conflict.

I personally don't have any solid stance on either side. I believe a little Calvinism and a little from Arminianism, so I guess you could call me a "Cal-minian".

This could be a really long post if I were to get into this more, but as I've stated, I really don't know great details of either and I personally am not so interested in getting into the debate between the two sides.

I do know that there are concerns of either idea being extended too far, such as hyper-Calvinism, and Arminianism leading into Palagiamism, many times though these are simply misrepresentations made by the critics of either side. They can however lead into false teaching just like many ideas can.

I just want to encourage those on either side that if you both believe that Jesus Christ is the sole Saviour of mankind by grace alone through repentance and faith alone than you should be able to call each other brother. We should also be able to talk to each other about these differences and do so in peace without arguing. We can disagree without being disagreeable.

Let us exemplify our unity in Christ, not by having to believe exactly the same thing about being a Christian, but rather by the shed blood of Jesus Christ all of our sins are forgiven and we are brought into a common grace.

Essential Christian Doctrines pt 3 - There is one God

Why must I believe that there is only one God? Because that's what God says and because all other gods are but idols and come from the imaginations of men and they do not exist therefore they cannot save anyone.

This is one of those doctrines that must even be believed before anyone can even receive salvation. The first commandment of God is "you shall have no other gods before me".

God also says by the prophet Isaiah "You are My witnesses," declares the LORD, "And My servant whom I have chosen, So that you may know and believe Me And understand that I am He. Before Me there was no God formed, And there will be none after Me. "I, even I, am the LORD, And there is no savior besides Me. "It is I who have declared and saved and proclaimed, And there was no strange god among you; So you are My witnesses," declares the LORD, "And I am God. "Even from eternity I am He, And there is none who can deliver out of My hand; I act and who can reverse it?" (Isaiah 43:10-13)

Not only must we believe that there is one God, but we must worship God in truth as He is not as we imagine Him to be. The truth of which is magnified by God's very name, YAHWEH, which means I AM WHO I AM (Exodus 3:14). God's name denotes His self-existance and His eternality, all else has come into being by Him and for Him. God is who He is, not who we think He is, and He must be sought for as He is in truth because He is the embodiment of all absolute truth.


It is futile and even sin against God to seek after other gods. "For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them.

For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.

For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures... For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. (Romans 1:18-23,25)

Another reason why we must believe that God is one is because the very fact that Jesus also testifies to God being one. In the account as recorded by Mark in chapter 12:28-30 "One of the scribes came and heard them arguing, and recognizing that He had answered them well, asked Him, "What commandment is the foremost of all?"
Jesus answered, "The foremost is, 'HEAR, O ISRAEL! THE LORD OUR GOD IS ONE LORD; AND YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND, AND WITH ALL YOUR STRENGTH."

So unless you seek after the Lord as He is in truth and worship Him as He is in truth, you are committing idolatry and the truth is not in you. "For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony given at the proper time." Titus 2:5-6

"And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved." Acts 4:12

"For this reason He is the mediator of a new covenant, so that, since a death has taken place for the redemption of the transgressions that were committed under the first covenant, those who have been called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance." Hebrews 9:15

Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life." Romans 5:9-10

Essential Christian Doctrines pt2 - Pre-amble

Good day everyone and welcome.

Before I begin commenting on why this essential truth is so essential, I just want to make a comment that I briefly stated but should have made more clear in Essential Christian Doctrines pt 1.

I had said that "I believe 8 essential Christian doctrines that should be held by all believers and that for anyone who does not hold these doctrines to be true, they may be outside the faith and therefore do not share in the unity of Christ at all, or they are young immature believers and need yet to be taught from the word of God."

Now does this mean that in order for a man or women to be saved that they must believe that the Holy Spirit is God or that Jesus Christ is God incarnate? I don't think so. Not at the moment of salvation. There are a couple of things that a person should believe and do in order to be saved and that is;

1. Seek the Lord with all you heart, (seek the true God, for it profits you not to seek a god of your imagination, you must seek God in truth)
2. Repent of all sin, and deny yourself as worthy before a holy God.
3. Believe in Jesus Christ as come from God and taking our punishment for our sins by dying on a cross and three days later that He physically rose from the dead.
4. Die to yourself and submit your life to Christ by putting all your faith and trust in Him as your Lord and King.
5. Be baptized in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. (It is important to note that being baptized will not save you, nor does being baptized insure your salvation (baby baptism), but rather it is an outward showing of your obedience and submission to Jesus Christ, as Jesus says to repent and be baptized. To refuse shows a lack of sincerity in heart about your repentance and faith.)

These are the requirements for salvation, and they can be summed up as "repentance and faith", and from that comes obedience.

With that said, yes, someone may come to faith without believing in the triune nature of God, or that Jesus Christ is God in the flesh, but I think a more accurate word for this would be someone may come to faith without knowing these important truths. Also, I do believe that someone can be a Christian and for a time, however long God knows, be unaware of these truths, or confused by them, or perhaps even doubtful. I don't think this would be for long though, because all believers are given the Holy Spirit of God, sent from Jesus, who is the Spirit of truth who guides us into all the truth (John 16:13)

I think where the essential nature of these doctrines come in play is that, as God grows you in faith and by the sanctification of the Holy Spirit, you will not deny that these doctrines are true. If you claim to be a follower of Jesus Christ and deny Him as He is in truth, then beware, and hear the warning of Jesus, "Not everyone who says to Me, `Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, `Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?' And then I will declare to them, ` I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS." Matthew 7:21-23

And of Paul, "For if one comes and preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted, you bear this beautifully." 2 Corinthians 11:4

And of John, "Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father; the one who confesses the Son has the Father also." (1 John 2:23) ... "And we know that the Son of God has come, and has given us understanding so that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life. Little children, guard yourselves from idols. 1 John 5:20-21

Non- essential Christian Doctrines pt1

This morning I put up a post about how Christians should be united in the truth, and should stop bickering and shunning those who do not believe in some of the minor doctrines they believe in.

I also said that I do believe that some minor doctrines, if taken to far can lead into major consequences, sometimes eternal consequences. I want to try and explain this a little further.

I want to start with a doctrine that I believe is a very great truth that I do wish all Christians believed, but one that I am well aware of the grave consequences that can come of it. That is of a believers eternal security, or commonly known as "once saved, always saved".

I believe that once God saves an individual that person is born again as a new creature in Christ and is sealed for all eternity, never to lose their salvation.

A common misunderstanding is that this then gives the Christian freedom to sin as they please because it doesn't matter, they can't lose their salvation right? Wrong!! Unfortunately, some people think this way. This usually happens because they have not been told or do not hold high esteem for God's command for repentance.

God commands us to repent, and if an individual is truly grieved at how sinful they are from within their heart, not just about the mistakes they've made or consequences of such, then God will give them a new heart with new attitudes and desires for righteousness, and they will sin less but they won't be sinless.

If someone continues in sin then as John says, "If we say we have fellowship with Him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth" (1Jn 1:6). And I say that person was never saved in the first place. Paul says it well in Romans 6;

What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin. Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.

Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.

What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? Butthanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness. I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification.

For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Another concern for those who do not believe they can lose their salvation is that I believe although they strive for holiness, they may become a little indifferent to minor sins. That is why I pray for God's heart concerning all sin, and that God would continuously reveal my sin to me and that it may grieve my heart.

<--------------------------------\/--------------------------------->

One more doctrine that I will touch on for now is that of being able to lose ones salvation.

This teaching I believe has at least two consequencial implications. One being that I believe it puts a great burden upon those who believe that they can lose their salvation.

If you believe this, then the Christian will spend so much of their time worrying that anything that they do wrong may have caused them to fall from God's graces. Face it, while we are here in these mortal bodies we will sin until the day we die and you will probably live in guilt and worry most of that time.

Another great concern is that these people become very legalistic and can get to the point where they believe that you must never sin again or you are not saved. John responds to this thinkning in 1 John 1:8 and 10 "If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us"..."If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us."

Something I would say to that also is, that there is and never was or will be anything that we can do to earn our salvation, therefore there is nothing that we can do to keep our salvation either. Our salvation has been bought and paid for by the blood of Jesus Christ, and we are now seen as righteous before God because of Jesus' life not our own.

I believe the writer to the Hebrews addresses this as well in Hebrews 6:4-6;
"For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt".

I think what he's saying is that if you thought you were saved and then lost it, then that's it, because you'd essentially have to crucify Jesus again to regain your salvation, and I don't think that is going to happen.


As I'm sure you noticed in the title that this is only part 1 for this topic and there will obviously be other posts for this in the future. For now, ponder these things and remember to always cross check everything I say with the Scriptures for they alone are the sole authority.

Essential Christian Doctrines pt 1

So recently I put a post up about Christians being united in Christ in this new year and to stop bickering back and forth about minor doctrines. There is no Biblical grounds for any servant of God to shun another for not believing in a non-essential doctrine that they do.

I did not say either that we should never shun someone though. I did mention that there are I believe 8 essential Christian doctrines that should be held by all believers and that for anyone who does not hold these doctrines to be true, they are probably outside the faith and therefore do not share in the unity of Christ at all, or they are young immature believers and need yet to be taught from the word of God.

I want to now expound on these 8 essentials and explain why I believe, and probably greater men than I (I presume) would agree (I hope), that these are essential tenants of the Christian faith. Just now as I write this,I figured that I want to do this justice and I don't want to skimp on my details and reasoning so I will make this my first series of messages.

The 8 essentials of the Christian faith are these;
1. There is one God.
2. God exists eternally in three equal persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
3. Jesus Christ is God in the flesh.
4. Jesus was crucified for our sins against a holy God, taking the punishment we deserved upon Himself, thus redeeming and reconciling us to God.
5. Three days after His crucifixion, He rose from the dead in a physical body.
6. Salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone.
7. True faith must always be preceded and followed by repentance.
8. Sola Scriptura, the Scriptures alone are fully authoritative, infallible and inerrant.

Stay tuned as I will comment on these soon.

Unity in Christ this New Year

Happy New Year everybody. I just wanted to reiterate a message on unity in Christ that was given by my good friend and mentor Kelly Powers at
www.rootedinchrist.org/1/Christian_Essentials/Entries/2009/12/25_Doctrine_Wars.html

I want to say that in this new year let us as the body of Jesus Christ live as one in love and respect. There are many things in the Scriptures that many of us disagree about such as between calvinists and arminianists, pentacostals and non-pentacostals, creationists and theistic evolutionists. Let us though treat each other with respect and so long as we have untiy in the essential doctrines than we shall call each other brother and sister.

Now that begs the question; what are the essential doctrines? I believe there are several truths that if you call yourself a Christian you will not deny;
->There is one God (Duet 6:4, Jam 2:19),
->God exist eternally and equally as three persons, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit (Is 48:12-16, Matt 3:16-17),
->Jesus Christ is God in the flesh (Jn 1:1, 14, Col2:9, Heb 1:8),
->Jesus was crucified for our sins against a holy God, thereby taking our punishment upon Himself (Rom 3:21-26, 4:25, 1 Cor15:3-4)
->and three days later He rose from the dead in a physical body (Lk 24:36-43, 1 Cor 15:14,17)
->Salvation is by grace alone through faith alone in Jesus Christ alone (Acts4:12, Eph 2:8-9)
->Faith must be preceded and followed by repentance (Lk 24:47, Acts 2:38)
-> and Sola Scriptura, the Scriptures alone are fully authoritative, infallible and inerrant (Acts 17:11, Gal 3:22, 2 Tim 3:16, 2 Pet 1:20)

I believe we should and must stand firm on these. Sure we can have disagreements about minor issues, but let's try to talk about them with grace for one another. If it's not an issue of eternal implications then let's not bash each other about it.

I know some minor issues can and do lead into big implications (I'll talk of those soon), but there are now so many people out there who call themselves Christians and use words that sound right but are not quite, and they are slowly and discreetly changing definitions of such essentials as Jesus' deity, or our justification by grace alone through faith alone, before God and they also challenge the authority and infallibility of the Scriptures such as Jehova's Witnesses and Mormons the Emergent Church and the Word Faith Movement
(see www.carm.org and www.rootedinchrist.org and www.justinpeters.org for great info on this)

We can discuss our differences, and even try to correct those who believe wrongly about a minor doctrine such as theistic evolution, but let us do so in love for one another. I think a great passage for us to consider when it comes to a brother or sister in Christ and a minor issue is in Romans chapter 14;
Now accept the one who is weak in faith, but not for the purpose of passing judgment on his opinions. 14:1

Who are you to judge the servant of another? To his own master he stands or falls; and he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand. 14:4

But you, why do you judge your brother? Or you again, why do you regard your brother with contempt? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God. 14:10

So then each one of us will give an account of himself to God. Therefore let us not judge one another anymore, but rather determine this--not to put an obstacle or a stumbling block in a brother's way. 14:12-13

Now I know the context of these verses is in regards to obeying the Jewish laws, but I think the principle can be used in regards to minor doctrines. There must be unity within the body, although, even as I say we must have unity, there can be no unity with those who stand opposed to the truth of essential doctrines.

So for the sake of the truth and for the sake of the souls of those who are perishing for the made up beliefs in idols let us stand united for the true gospel for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.