Here are some books that all Christians (and non Christians) should read. They are books of substance and they are actually Biblical. Also, other books by these authors would be well worth reading.
The Gospel According To Jesus by John MacArthur
Chosen By God by R.C. Sproul
Desiring God by John Piper
God In The Whirlwind by David F. Wells
How Should We Then Live? by Francis Schaeffer
Monday, May 28, 2018
Monday, May 14, 2018
Nietzsche Says God Is Dead
Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900) was a German philosopher who proclaimed, "God is dead and we have killed him." Of course he did not really believe that God had been alive and had died. He simply meant that the concept of God was no longer needed. Other famous Nietzsche phrases include, "What does not destroy me will make me stronger", and "Live dangerously." The idea that you only live once has roots in Nietzsche. Friedrich Nietzsche also had an intense hatred for Christianity.
Friedrich Nietzsche has been very influential even down to our own time. He could be considered the father of nihilism which holds that there is no morality, no virtue, no purpose, and no meaning. At least Nietzsche tried to be consistent with his atheism. Because without God, nihilism is all that is left. He could also be considered a leading figure in postmodernism which holds that there is no absolute truth and no ultimate standard of morality.
Some key concepts from Nietzsche include the will to power, the herd morality, and the superman. Nietzsche considered the will to power to be the fundamental force of life. It was basically looking out for number one and not caring about those who are weak. It was really the will to overpower. He believed the herd morality was created by the weaker people out of fear in order to hold down the stronger, superior people. Nietzsche blamed Christianity for creating this herd morality. Finally the superman speaks of superior individuals who are courageous, throw off the herd morality and create their own values. The supermen would be something like the next step in the evolution of man. Nietzsche believed that Christianity was holding back humanity.
Of course one might ask how the supermen could create their own values if there are no values? If there is no meaning or purpose, how can the philosophy of Nietzsche have any meaning or purpose? If all is meaningless, then everything Nietzsche said is also meaningless! There would be no reason to listen to Nietzsche or to follow his teaching. Nietzsche ends up in total absurdity, which is what always happens when you reject God. Without the triune God of Scripture you have no basis for rationality, knowledge, meaning, or morality.
Interestingly Friedrich Nietzsche spent the last decade of his life insane. Then in 1900 God said, Nietzsche is dead.
Friedrich Nietzsche has been very influential even down to our own time. He could be considered the father of nihilism which holds that there is no morality, no virtue, no purpose, and no meaning. At least Nietzsche tried to be consistent with his atheism. Because without God, nihilism is all that is left. He could also be considered a leading figure in postmodernism which holds that there is no absolute truth and no ultimate standard of morality.
Some key concepts from Nietzsche include the will to power, the herd morality, and the superman. Nietzsche considered the will to power to be the fundamental force of life. It was basically looking out for number one and not caring about those who are weak. It was really the will to overpower. He believed the herd morality was created by the weaker people out of fear in order to hold down the stronger, superior people. Nietzsche blamed Christianity for creating this herd morality. Finally the superman speaks of superior individuals who are courageous, throw off the herd morality and create their own values. The supermen would be something like the next step in the evolution of man. Nietzsche believed that Christianity was holding back humanity.
Of course one might ask how the supermen could create their own values if there are no values? If there is no meaning or purpose, how can the philosophy of Nietzsche have any meaning or purpose? If all is meaningless, then everything Nietzsche said is also meaningless! There would be no reason to listen to Nietzsche or to follow his teaching. Nietzsche ends up in total absurdity, which is what always happens when you reject God. Without the triune God of Scripture you have no basis for rationality, knowledge, meaning, or morality.
Interestingly Friedrich Nietzsche spent the last decade of his life insane. Then in 1900 God said, Nietzsche is dead.
Monday, April 23, 2018
Did Jacob Actually Wrestle With God?
In Genesis 32 we encounter an unusual passage where Jacob is said to have wrestled with God. What are we to make of this passage? Did Jacob actually wrestle with God himself?
(Genesis 32:24)"And Jacob was left alone. And a man wrestled with him until the breaking of the day." (ESV)
(Genesis 32:28)"Then he said, Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with men, and have prevailed." (ESV)
(Genesis 32:30)"So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel, saying, For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life has been delivered." (ESV)
An important principle in Biblical interpretation is that Scripture interprets Scripture. So we will also look at a passage in Hosea.
(Hosea 12:3-4a)"In the womb he took his brother by the heel, and in his manhood he strove with God. He strove with the angel and prevailed; he wept and sought his favor." (ESV)
From the Hosea passage we see that Jacob strove with the angel. But it also says that he strove with God, as does the passage from Genesis 32. Jacob even named the place Peniel which means the face of God, because he had seen God face to face. We might say that Jacob wrestled with God through the angel. In a sense Jacob did wrestle with God, but it seems that the actual figure he wrestled with was the angel.
Jacob was transformed by this encounter. The God of Abraham and Isaac had now become the God of Jacob as well. His name was changed from Jacob to Israel. Jacob means he cheats or he deceives, while Israel means he strives with God.
(Genesis 32:24)"And Jacob was left alone. And a man wrestled with him until the breaking of the day." (ESV)
(Genesis 32:28)"Then he said, Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with men, and have prevailed." (ESV)
(Genesis 32:30)"So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel, saying, For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life has been delivered." (ESV)
An important principle in Biblical interpretation is that Scripture interprets Scripture. So we will also look at a passage in Hosea.
(Hosea 12:3-4a)"In the womb he took his brother by the heel, and in his manhood he strove with God. He strove with the angel and prevailed; he wept and sought his favor." (ESV)
From the Hosea passage we see that Jacob strove with the angel. But it also says that he strove with God, as does the passage from Genesis 32. Jacob even named the place Peniel which means the face of God, because he had seen God face to face. We might say that Jacob wrestled with God through the angel. In a sense Jacob did wrestle with God, but it seems that the actual figure he wrestled with was the angel.
Jacob was transformed by this encounter. The God of Abraham and Isaac had now become the God of Jacob as well. His name was changed from Jacob to Israel. Jacob means he cheats or he deceives, while Israel means he strives with God.
Monday, April 2, 2018
Was The Resurrection Of Christ Bodily Or Just Spiritual?
So what was the nature of the resurrection of Christ? When the New Testament was written the idea of a bodily resurrection was absurd to the surrounding Greek culture. The Greeks spoke of the immortality of the soul and viewed matter as evil. They thought that salvation was found by the soul escaping from the body. In our time the idea that Christ's resurrection was just as a spirit has been held by groups from the Jehovah's Witnesses to the liberals.
(Luke 24:39) "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." (ESV)
Jesus had appeared to his disciples and they thought they had seen a spirit. Jesus showed that his body was physical, "flesh and bones" and not a spirit. In 1 Corinthians 15 Paul stressed that the resurrection of Jesus was not just his spirit going to heaven but that his body was raised from the dead.
Paul also pointed out that over 500 people witnessed his bodily resurrection. Also in 1 Corinthians 15:12-13 the phrase "resurrection of the dead" literally means "the standing up of dead ones." The Apostle Paul proclaimed that if Christ is not raised bodily from the dead then your faith is futile, you have no hope, and there is no Christianity.
The Bible plainly teaches that the resurrection of Christ was bodily and not just spiritual. Jesus was victorious over sin, death, and the devil, accomplishing salvation for his people.
(Luke 24:39) "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." (ESV)
Jesus had appeared to his disciples and they thought they had seen a spirit. Jesus showed that his body was physical, "flesh and bones" and not a spirit. In 1 Corinthians 15 Paul stressed that the resurrection of Jesus was not just his spirit going to heaven but that his body was raised from the dead.
Paul also pointed out that over 500 people witnessed his bodily resurrection. Also in 1 Corinthians 15:12-13 the phrase "resurrection of the dead" literally means "the standing up of dead ones." The Apostle Paul proclaimed that if Christ is not raised bodily from the dead then your faith is futile, you have no hope, and there is no Christianity.
The Bible plainly teaches that the resurrection of Christ was bodily and not just spiritual. Jesus was victorious over sin, death, and the devil, accomplishing salvation for his people.
Friday, March 30, 2018
Focusing On The Resurrection Of Christ On Easter
Focusing on Jesus on Easter may seem strange to some people. But he should be our focus instead of bunnies, egg hunts, and candy. Jesus is even far more important than kids and family time. We would all do well to get more serious and focus on what really matters.
(Matthew 28:6a) "He is not here, for he has risen, as he said." (ESV)
(1 Corinthians 15:3-4) "For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures," (ESV)
We are all born sinners. We inherited our sinful or fallen nature from Adam when he rebelled against God. God is holy, righteous, and just, so we incur his wrath because of our sin. None of us are righteous, not even one. We all deserve to go to hell. But God by his love and grace sent his Son, Jesus to save his people from their sins. Jesus died on the cross to pay for the sins of all believers. Christ takes our sin on himself and his perfect righteousness is credited to us.
Jesus was raised from the dead victorious over sin, death, and the devil. The resurrection proves that Jesus is God and that his atoning sacrifice was accepted by God the Father. All who repent of their sins and trust in Christ alone for salvation will spend eternity in heaven.
(Matthew 28:6a) "He is not here, for he has risen, as he said." (ESV)
(1 Corinthians 15:3-4) "For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures," (ESV)
We are all born sinners. We inherited our sinful or fallen nature from Adam when he rebelled against God. God is holy, righteous, and just, so we incur his wrath because of our sin. None of us are righteous, not even one. We all deserve to go to hell. But God by his love and grace sent his Son, Jesus to save his people from their sins. Jesus died on the cross to pay for the sins of all believers. Christ takes our sin on himself and his perfect righteousness is credited to us.
Jesus was raised from the dead victorious over sin, death, and the devil. The resurrection proves that Jesus is God and that his atoning sacrifice was accepted by God the Father. All who repent of their sins and trust in Christ alone for salvation will spend eternity in heaven.
Monday, March 12, 2018
Does The Bible Teach That The Earth Is Flat?
Some make the assertion that the Bible teaches that the earth is flat and it is therefore proven to be in error. I assume many of these people have never read the Bible because nowhere does it say that the earth is flat. In fact it teaches the very opposite.
(Isaiah 40:22a) "It is he who sits above the circle of the earth," (ESV)
While Isaiah the prophet was not primarily concerned about the shape of the earth in this passage, it clearly presents the earth as a circle, a globe.
Once again the criticisms hurled against the Bible prove to be false. The Bible is true and all true science is in line with it. In fact without the Biblical worldview it would be impossible to even conduct science.
(Isaiah 40:22a) "It is he who sits above the circle of the earth," (ESV)
While Isaiah the prophet was not primarily concerned about the shape of the earth in this passage, it clearly presents the earth as a circle, a globe.
Once again the criticisms hurled against the Bible prove to be false. The Bible is true and all true science is in line with it. In fact without the Biblical worldview it would be impossible to even conduct science.
Monday, March 5, 2018
What Is A Worldview?
Everyone has a worldview whether they realize it or not. Our worldview comes from how we answer the most important questions in life. A worldview is composed of three basic elements. They are metaphysics, epistemology, and ethics. This is not as hard to understand as it may seem. We must learn to think in terms of worldview, and of course having the right one is of the utmost importance.
First of all metaphysics or ontology deals with ultimate reality, our view of God, and the nature of man. Epistemology deals with knowledge, that is how do we know what we know. Ethics deals with morality, what is right and wrong, what is good or evil. How we answer these basic questions then determines our worldview. Our worldview shapes our life and thought. We interpret all our experiences through our worldview.
Christians must learn to think in terms of worldview instead of just in bits and pieces. We must see Christianity as an entire thought and life system that gives us true answers and reality. People reject Christianity and hold different views on issues because they have a non Christian worldview. They operate on different assumptions that they have made regarding ultimate reality, knowledge, and ethics.
The Christian worldview is the only worldview that provides the necessary preconditions for intelligibility. In other words only the Christian worldview makes sense of your world. All other worldviews ultimately collapse because they do not fit reality. They cannot be lived out consistently. Christians need not fear those holding other worldviews because all non Christian worldviews are false and the Christian worldview is true.
First of all metaphysics or ontology deals with ultimate reality, our view of God, and the nature of man. Epistemology deals with knowledge, that is how do we know what we know. Ethics deals with morality, what is right and wrong, what is good or evil. How we answer these basic questions then determines our worldview. Our worldview shapes our life and thought. We interpret all our experiences through our worldview.
Christians must learn to think in terms of worldview instead of just in bits and pieces. We must see Christianity as an entire thought and life system that gives us true answers and reality. People reject Christianity and hold different views on issues because they have a non Christian worldview. They operate on different assumptions that they have made regarding ultimate reality, knowledge, and ethics.
The Christian worldview is the only worldview that provides the necessary preconditions for intelligibility. In other words only the Christian worldview makes sense of your world. All other worldviews ultimately collapse because they do not fit reality. They cannot be lived out consistently. Christians need not fear those holding other worldviews because all non Christian worldviews are false and the Christian worldview is true.
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