Coexist

I am tired of seeing those ‘coexist’ bumper stickers.  You know- the ones with all the different religious symbols making up the letters of the word.  Not that coexisting is a bad thing.  It’s the message that the bumper sticker actually gives that wears me out.

Follow me here.

The message of the bumper sticker is that religions should all be getting along.  The de-facto idea is that NONE of the differences you have should override getting along.  The sticker’s idea would be that whatever it is that you disagree on should be ’set’ aside for peace’s sake.  Not that you can’t believe that- just don’t insist on it.

And that is my problem.  See, an owner of said bumper sticker is saying that the religious person’s ideas are causing problems because they insist on them.  The owner sees the solution in the form of ‘insisting’ on their own ideas!  In essence, they aren’t saying ‘Coexist,’ they are saying ‘Submit!’  Specifically, submit to how they see the world should work.

Wasn’t that their problem in the first place?

The Idol of Love in ‘The Shack’

Humanity is constantly creating and bowing down to replacement gods.  It is part of our sin nature.  While moderns don’t make rain gods or fertility gods (or do they?), there is still quite a bit of idolatry passing around.  It all boils down to need.  Where the ancients needed rain for food, our current conundrums are psychological.

HELLO 1517!!

Just a quick note to say that if you haven’t been paying close attention, we have slipped back into the 1500’s.  What do I mean?

No Matter Who Wins

While Christians are getting opinions from every side of who to vote for (or even if they SHOULD vote), there remains some things that need to be said regardless of who wins.  They come from the source that, for the Christian, needs no debate- God.

The Myth of the ‘Single Issue Voter’

Evangelicals are spilt during this election season and one of the reasons why is the seeming success of labeling anti-abortion voting as ’single-issue’ voting.  Some liberal and ‘progressive’ talking heads have gone as far as to label these voters as ‘immoral.’  This line of philosophy has made inroads in the evangelical realm.  This should not be surprising as the rise of liberal thought within evangelicalism has shown a stunning lack of deeper thinking, especially among younger evangelicals.  The main problem is that the ’single-issue’ charge is unfounded.  ‘Prioritized voter’ is a better definition, and considering the stakes, to not be one raises serious moral concerns.

Obama and Abortion

I plead with you to read this link.  Place it on your blogs and send it to your friends and families-

http://theologica.blogspot.com/2008/10/robert-p-george-voting-for-most-extreme.html

Fireproof

I know what many of you are going to think, but here it is- go see ‘Fireproof.’  I went, wanting to support Christian movies, thinking that I would have to suffer through it.  Are there awkward moments?  Yes.  Stilted dialogue?  Yes.  Cheesy humor?  Yes.  There is also real pain and emotion, a realistic look at a marriage in trouble and best of all- the Gospel.  Ask yourself this question- how many movies have you gone to see that you walked out of and thought ‘that was cheesy’ or ‘wasted my money on that one?’  Many, I’ll bet.  But you won’t go see a movie ABOUT JESUS because it might not be ‘Oscar worthy.’  Let me put it straight- nothing in this world is worthy of the Gospel and that is the message of the movie.  Every other movie should bow before it.

Death to ‘Goodness’

If there is one singular thing that is going to send more people to hell than ‘goodness,’ I don’t know what it is.  I realize that sin is the ultimate reason for the punishment of the wrath of God, but what I am talking about here is the total misunderstanding of God, who He is and what He requires that so pervades the church and most of our culture.

Robbing Peter to Pay Satan

I’ve recently really been thinking about some of the ways I live.  The reality of how I do things came to bear when I saw that Brad Pitt is donating $100,000 dollars to support an organization that is fighting the anti-gay marriage bill in California.  Now, never mind that the amount would in itself pay for my house, the bigger thing that came crashing home is- where did he get the money?  I have to say that, at least in principle, some of it came from me.

Why the Church has become an Irrelevancy

Big words.  While I will need to explain the scope of what I mean, I don’t think that many would disagree that more and more, the church is becoming an irrelevancy.  The difference in how I mean it and the way most others would mean it is where this post will address itself.  You could best sum up what I am going to say by saying: the church is becoming an irrelevance to the church.