What's Already Been Attained

In Rob Bell's book, Velvet Elvis, he has this to say:

"None.

No shame.

No list of what is being held against us.

No record of wrongs.

It has simply been done away with.

It is no longer an issue.

Bringing it up is pointless.

Beating myself up is pointless.

Beating others up about who and what they are not is going the wrong direction. It is working against the purposes of God. God is not interested in shaming people; God wants people to see who they really are.

"Let us live up to what we have already attained."

I am not who I was.

You are not who you were.

Old person going away, new person here, now.

Reborn, rebirthed, remade, reconciled, renewed.

Jesus put it this way: "You are in me and I am in you."



Christians are people figuring out their identity. When someone becomes a Christian, they are being transformed into a new person. Jesus takes root in our hearts and cleans house, so to speak. There is no burdening ourselves with senseless legalism that only leads to despair. God wishes to ease our pain, not pile it on with the burden of the Law. That is why Jesus said he came to fulfill the Law so that He was the one to live up to, not the Law.

In my life, I have seen God working in me. I am a project. The good thing is that God never gives up on us though we may give up on Him. I struggle a lot with this faith and it's taken away my joy. The new person I'm supposed to become seems to be chained down in the depths of my heart. There are times where I don't know if he will ever be released. I don't know if I can literally just let Jesus take control and allow Him to be the Savior I accepted. There are times where I feel like Job and pray for death hoping only then will I achieve peace. I'm tired of the sin that courses through my veins. It sickens me. It angers me. I ask Jesus to take it and it's like a part of me retains it because I don't know what I would do without it.

God may not be keeping a record of wrongs for me, but I am for myself.

Jesus, let me be who I really am.

What Is And Cannot Not Be

Possibility cannot,
account for actuality.
Whatever can come to be,
is caused in order to be.

Nothing cannot be something.
I am but can not be.
My existence depends on,
what is but cannot not be.

Every effect has a cause,
principle of causality.
The existence of God is,
theistic relativity.

the God the heart needs,
the mind only grieves

Rage

I am full of so much rage.

As I sit here, I think of everything about religion that infuriates me. I think of the hypocrisy that is blatantly displayed in the public eye. I think of the bondage that the institutionalized hierarchy of Catholicism and Protestantism burdens people. Christianity is supposed to be a belief of freedom. What do we have in America, the so-called land of the free? WE ARE SLAVES.

That's right, we are slaves. Slaves to the religious dogma of accepted hypocrisy and false doctrines. Proof-texting, for example, is one of the biggest corrupters of biblical interpretation. Do you honestly think you can just read a verse and think it's ok to make it say what you want? Bringing African slaves to America was justified using proof-texted Scripture. Wars have been started based off biblical interpretations. No wonder why the world thinks religious belief is so dangerous. Sometimes I agree. Sometimes you have the wrong people believing in religion like fundamentalists and that's when things go to hell. Sure we're all sinners and our lives are corrupted by sin, but honestly, if you're a Christian, you're not ignorant of it. You know if you're teaching false doctrines or not and I condemn you for it.

I am so fed up with Christianity as a religion of liars. I am fed up with the bland structure of unbiblical traditions you find in Catholic churches for example. Church history is laced with sin and corruption, greed, genocide and hypocrisy. I am ashamed of what modern Christianity is. I hate denominations. I hate that we have such division in the ekklesia (church). We are supposed to be one body in Christ and right now, we are nothing but scarred body parts skewered across the land. I blame Catholicism and Protestantism for most of this. We are so worried about how we look to people, how we dress, how we talk, etc. that we forget to just be ourselves. Jesus says come as you are. Instead, we come like used car salesmen building ourselves up. Building up for what? Utter failure. Eat a slice of humble pie, you charlatan.

Now, I may be coming across as harsh and I'm sure some of you (if anyone even reads this stupid thing) will disagree with me. But you know what? I don't give a damn. These are my thoughts and my feelings. I have hate for the stupidity and ignorance that plagues American Christianity. Religion is useless. You want to burdened with legalism and guilt, then religion is perfect for you. I want my freedom, thank you.

Catholicism is an idolators religion. Since when did it become ok to pray to so-called saints, like they have any kind of heavenly power? When did it become ok to ask Mary for anything? Is she greater than God? Did any of you forget the commandment, no other gods before me? Obviously you must have because this practice is still prevelant. When did it become acceptable to elect someone like the Pope and pretty much hail him as a second Christ? He is nothing but a sacred golden calf in human flesh. Good job at repeating history, you fools. Your church hierarchy is despicable. The priesthood is a farce because if you are a follower of Jesus, you are already a priest and therefore are commissioned to minister to everyone. You don't need to be ordained to do that. You don't need to have this false authority bestowed on you. It just breeds arrogance and pride, which was the downfall of Satan. Don't let yourself be lumped into that company. All these rituals and traditions are useless and are just human creations. Isn't that what the Pharisees were doing to earn their favor with God? Once again, history is repeating itself in the Christian church. "Beware of the religious leaders".

I am sick of the guilt that Christians spew on people. All this talk about how sinful everyone is, while neglecting to talk about grace and forgiveness. All this preaching on Hell and how everyone who doesn't agree with you is heading there is exactly what is wrong with Christianity. Don't be surprised to find yourself burning in Hell for your hypocrisy. Also, since when did Christianity become a haven for conservative politics? It is not our problem to involve ourselves in everything. In fact, I would rather Christians stay out of politics. If it meant idiots like Sarah Palin were out of the public eye, then thank God. Conservative, fundamentalist right-wing Christian politics are vomit-inducing.

Are we not allowed to think for ourselves? Are we not allowed to wrestle with doubts and questions and anger? You are witnessing the boiling point of my rage. You are witnessing my question: WHY, LORD, DO YOU ALLOW THIS?

You all make me sick.

The Chief of Sinners

1 Timothy 1:15-16, "Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners - of who I AM THE WORST (Emphasis mine). But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, THE WORST OF SINNERS (Emphasis mine) Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life."

Paul is wrong.

I AM the worst of sinners. As a human being, I am plagued with this innate sense of wrongdoing and sinfulness. I can't escape it. It's a part of my every day process. Why can't I just live the way God wants me to? Why can't I abide in his mercy and stay there? Why must I continue to do the same stupid things that hinder my relationship with God and the way I feel about myself? What will it take to get me on the right path?

Well, I obviously cannot do anything on my own and I'm done thinking I can even try. Without God, I am NOTHING. Sure, I can beat myself up consistently but even that doesn't work. Sure, I can make empty promises to Jesus knowing full well that promises are meant to be broken, intentionally or not. I can only see myself through God's eyes and realize that I am not my own. There is a nice saying; "Not I but Christ in me". You know, I wish that saying was true for me. I don't feel very Christ-like when I let my lusts overwhelm me or let my mouth explode like a loose cannon. I want Jesus to look down on me and see Himself reflected through my life, not the sinful, prideful, lustful, fool that I must acknowledge I am before any real progress is made.

I am not the kind of person for blind submission to anything but at this point, all I can do is throw myself at the Lord's mercy and hope that he'll forgive me and let me move on with my life. He knows that I'm going to screw up. That can include looking at things I shouldn't be looking at or flipping off someone on the highway or cussing up a storm at work. This isn't being salt of the earth or a beacon for the lost. I am a terrible representative of Christ.

Maybe this is why grace exists.

Ravi Zacharias - The Existence of God

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Id2Ik4whVr8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YeF62v3b3BM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwQnXOl2e9Q

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cdQ7feXPou4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t6xm6aGtXss

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EhfNZR75r6k

This is a 6 part video series. Please take the time to listen to this man. He is a great speaker and a great theologian. If you would like to know more about Ravi Zacharias and his Apologetics ministry visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ravi_Zacharias and http://www.rzim.org/

Ex Nihilo

According to the current mainstream thinking of the scientific and non-theistic community that inhabit this world, nothing times nobody equals everything. Well, let me assure you, reader, that this assertion is ludicrous. Let me tell you why.

For one, we live in a universe with infinite amounts of intricacies and immense detail. I find it extremely difficult to believe that from one single-celled organism, all life we see on this planet exists from it. Why? Because one cell, without a design and a purpose in mind, cannot be self-sustaining without an outside force to create it that way. There was no primordial soup that contained all life to evolve from. There is no such thing as macroevolution which is the belief that one species can evolve into a completely new species. In the beginning, every life form created was created as it was. I do not believe there were billions long eons of time for life to evolve to its current state. Why? Because that would be undermining God's sovereignty to say that He cannot create life as it is. God did not need billions of years to complete his masterpiece.

Some creationists, in an effort to reconcile differences with the scientific community, try to make the claim that evolution and the Creation story go hand in hand. How? The Genesis account is quite clear that God created everything he needed to create in a specified amount of time. Day and night, six days. The reason for creating creation this way was to set the standard for which living things would measure life. I believe that all creation reflects the majesty and power of its Creator.

The process of naturalistic evolution is a far reach to rationalize existence. How can anyone say that every single species to ever have existed on this planet evolved from a single eternal source, outside of God? Everything living HAS to have a beginning for life to exist. Why? Because a lifeform, on its own, is not self-sustaining without an outside source to design it that way. From the surface, down to the very atoms of any lifeform has a specific purpose and design for its existence. It has a unique job. I don't believe that these specifications of a cell or organ or anything that sustains life in a creature naturally evolved on its own and created for itself its job in the body. It doesn't make any sense because these cells or whatever it is cannot create for itself a purpose. It has to have a design for it to work.

Atheists who accept evolution will come up with anything as an alternative to anything faith-based. I'm not saying that having an objective mind is "evil" but I don't think that believing God is responsible for our existence is undermining reason and logical thinking. In fact, I believe that belief and acceptance of a divine authority is the only logical conclusion after careful analysis of the evidence put forth to us. I believe that nature is a sign of wonderful craftmanship. It is hardly the work of naturalist evolution which says nature exists because it always existed and randomly, by chance, evolved to sustain living things.

Chance does not exist. It is not a force that decides anything. Chance is not an empirical force that decides the fate of anything because nothing empirical supports chance. So by accepting this, you would be denying the notion that all life that exists is here by randominity and chance. Essentially that is what evolution is. It is proporting the idea that existence is here by chance. Evolution cannot answer for everything and only a fool could believe it does. Evolution cannot so easily explain the complexity of thought and why a man searches his soul for answers about his life. Evolution and philosophy do not go hand in hand.

Evolution also cannot explain moral absolutes. If there is no God, then the idea of good and evil don't exist and people should be free to do anything they want, including rape and murder. We have built in our consciences the inner workings of what we consider to be good for mankind and what we consider to be evil towards it. There is absolutely no natural process to explain why we feel we can differentiate between the two because without a divine authority, we are lawless creatures from the beginning of existence. Chaos cannot become orderly on its own, so is the heart of a human being. What we feel is a reflection of the creator of feelings. Since we are made in God's image, we inherited his traits despite what sin created in us. Sin and the existence of evil stems from sin and it is this sin that is the reason for the evil that plagues mankind. When we ask, "Why does God allow suffering?" It is because he gives us our free will to choose either good or evil and because sin exists, it corrupts that line. Evil and sin is OUR fault and the only reason we blame God for our suffering is because we don't want to own up to our actions. We are sinful beings, despite the perfection we were initially created with. It is only through the person of Jesus Christ that any kind of salvation is found.

I know I rambled on a lot and I probably forgot a lot of points I wanted to make but I feel like I should express my stance and viewpoints on this trend of belief in this society. Rational and logically thinking human beings should stop trying to deny the reality of God and should stop trying to come up with ridiculous theories of life existing because it created itself. That does not make any sense. God is the giver of life and shares his love with his creation. Do not be blinded by the corruption. Examine the evidence for creation and examine the evidence for evolution and come to find ultimate Truth of God.

With evolution, there is no hope. With its theories, there is nothing to say, "It will get better". My friends, this is not a way to live. It is not right that humanity should live in its suffering without hope, love and salvation. Even if you don't accept God or believe he exists, I encourage you to pray and ask Him for discernment. Ask him if he's truly the God of universe and to make himself known to you and the Lord will be faithful. It won't hurt you and you lose nothing of yourself for doing so.


Psalm 14:1, "The fool says in his heart, "There is no God."
Proverbs 2:6, "For the Lord gives wisdom, and from his mouth come knowledge and understanding."
Proverbs 14:15, "A simple man believes anything but a prudent man gives thought to his steps."
John 14:6, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

Using The Bible In Life

Here is an excerpt written by Marion L. Soards, professor of New Testament at Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary:

"The author of Hebrews describes the Bible as "living and active...sharper than any double-edged sword." We are called to move beyond reading it or even meditating upon it; we are to take the next step, employing its wisdom to critique life and determine courses of action. The question is how.

Subtle differences in the ways people appeal to and use the Bible in ethical reflection seem endless. But the great variety of uses- ranging from irresponsible to responsible- people make of Scripture in deliberations about morality fall into four basic categories: proof-texts, paralells, principles, and paradigms.

Proof-texts. People may point to a "proving" text in the Bible in an effort to establish or validate an argument, idea or action- even though the Biblical material referred to at times may have at best a questionable relevance to the matter at hand.

Parallels. Biblical material is used this way when people refer to a passage, usually a sentence or story, they see as in some way analogous to a context other than that of the original Biblical text.

Principles. A Biblical text is used to establish a principle when someone derives from it a directive or standard they can then cite to make an ethical decision, either in relation to a particular situation or to general practice. More than proof-texts and parallels, principles formed and articulated from Scriptural perspectives can provide insight and guidance for serious ethical reflection.

Paradigms. Biblical texts yielding examples or patterns that may offer ethical guidance for life situations are usually identified as paradigms. Paradigmatic passages typically present pictures, most often in the form of stories, that can serve as examples, models, or precedents for thinking about ethical issues.

Because the models communicated through paradigms are often complex, this kind of text may have a unique capacity to inspire, inform, and guide our decision-making efforts. As is always the case with Biblical materials, the best use of Scripture in reflection on matters of morality comes when we pay attention to two areas: (1) the plain sense of the texts (what do they say, period, in and of themselves, in isolation from the material before and after?) and (2) their place in their original Biblical contexts (what do they say in the framework of the time, place, and unique situation in which they were written?).

At various times and in various places the Bible speaks directly, indirectly, or not at all about matters of ethical significance. Scripturally based reflections about right and wrong engage Biblical statements that seem pertinent to the issues by using a range of approaches. Because there are diverse ways of reading and responding to the Bible, people attempting to make moral decisions on a Biblical basis are wise to (1) summarize their understanding of the Scriptural statement, (2) recognize that--and how--others might interpret the material differently, and (3) be able to articulate how and why they feel this particular passage impacts their process of ethical reflection.