Is philosophy wrong and evil as I’ve been told in the past? One biblical passage, in the letter to the Colossae church, is given as proof text. Now, I think those who make such claim get this passage wrong. In addition, I have two humorous side notes about those who make such claims. I’ve noticed […]
Christians Who Fear Christmas, Because It Has Pagan Origins, Is That Good Thinking?
“The most wonderful time of the year” is also the time of the year when we start hearing some denounce Christmas celebrations and Christmas paraphernalia. While we may expect this from atheists, we are sideswiped unexpectedly when it comes from a Christian. It all comes down to celebrations on December 25th are thought to have […]
Cultural Uniformity Can Divide, Biblical Unity Unites: Why Culture Can Cause Division Away From Christ
“Love the icing”, boldly plasters the front of one Toaster Strudel box. Is that why you buy Toaster Strudels, for the icing? I don’t think so, you buy it for the strudel, right? The icing may help with taste, but it is not the essence of the product. In a series that will climax on […]
How To Spot Deception and Prevent Yourself From Being Swayed by Illicit Arguments (Post 2)
The Maxim I Like Most catch phrases concern me, especially when one uses them at whim without reflection and deep background knowledge of the meaning and potential pitfalls. However, there is one I kind of like. Penned by nineteenth century Alexander Campbell, this maxim address Christian religious authority: “Where the Bible speaks, we speak; where […]
How To Spot Deception and Prevent Yourself From Being Swayed by Illicit Arguments (Post 1)
Adding to the Scripture If one does not hold the Bible as the ultimate authority and from God, there are greater concerns then what I’m about to address. However, I assume you hold the Bible to be foundational. I’m very concerned when people, Christians, elevate other concepts to biblical level. Or as Jesus put it […]
The iApologia Vision, And What It Means for You
A number of years ago, A biography of Patrick of Ireland was given to me [1]. He was connected with a fifth century group of Christians from ancient Britain (not Roman Catholic), he seemed to have had two main goals. One was for Christians to follow Christ closer, and the second, his heart was for […]
10 Christian Teachings That You May Have Thought Were Biblical, But Aren’t!
So I need a job. Ah, a chef position would be great! After application I get an interview. I expect questions like “have you ever made Louisiana Gumbo?” or “Grilled Mediterranean Chicken?” or maybe “Braised Lamb Shank?” False! I get questions like “do you believe that we should use forks here?” or maybe “we hold […]
Reading Someone Else’s Mail
We already talked about description vs. prescription. I want to give you a good example of this thinking in process. It is the story, “description”, in Jeremiah 35 about the Rechabites. Rechabites. This group of people obeyed their “father” by living in tents, not drinking wine and not planting crops. God blesses them because of […]
Paint On The Wall
Paint on the wall. Yes, it does have significance to a house, but structurally what does it do? Do we as Christians sometimes focus on the “paint” instead of structurally issues? Do we quarrel over silly issues that have no long term ramifications and just cause division? Yes, we can say they are important , but are […]
When John Came to Town
Bercot: …modern Christians think that if John were to walk into any conservative church today, he would feel right at home. He would find that twenty-first century western Christians think and reason just like first-century Christians living in the Mediterranean world. He would find that today’s western Christians worship in the same manner as he […]