In sharing the Gospel, a problem that we often run into is a misunderstanding about truth. I often hear claims like, “well it is good for you to follow Christianity, but I’m going to follow my own beliefs.” I also run into individuals who seem to think that we can’t know any kind of truth at all. Often these relativistic ideas arise because people are uncomfortable claiming that someone else is wrong but don’t want to change their lives. The Christian response to these views is also lacking. We either get involved in a debate about philosophical minutia, or we drop the issue altogether. The Bible reveals that truth is a person by the name of Jesus Christ. (more…)

This is a review of Fathers and Sons by Ivan Turgenev.

I read this book this past semester for my Russian literature class, and I really enjoyed it. I thought it would be useful to review here, because one of the central characters is a nihilist. In the novel Turgenev paints a very intriguing picture of the nihilistic life lived out by the character Bazarov. As I learned in class, when the book first came out it was rejected by the liberals because the portrayal of Bazarov was too extreme, and they did not want to be associated with his ideas. However, it was also rejected by the conservatives, because they claimed that the portrayal of nihilist attitudes was too attractive. We see this in our society today where we are oddly attracted to people who live out the implications of their philosophy, but we are scared to be extreme. (more…)

I have decided to return in my Bible reading for a little while to the minor prophets. Yesterday I read Hosea and it struck me powerfully. This section of the Bible is often overlooked. Hosea is a small book tucked away in the part of the Bible that isn’t read in Sunday School. However, Hosea has one of the most powerful testimonies of any biblical character. Here we have a man who was told by God to go out and marry a prostitute, because Israel had committed prostitution against God. That’s pretty rough. It doesn’t end there; even after Hosea’s wife leaves him to go pursue other lovers, God calls him to go and buy her back; sound familiar? The prostitution that Israel was guilty of committing against God was idolatry. I refer you back to another post, Idols Named Jesus, to figure out what this means today. I would like to take a look at two powerful passages from Hosea, keeping in mind the context of what God has commanded Hosea to do. (more…)

Before commencing the third installment of Tuesdays With Wesley, I thought I’d pause and give a disclaimer: I am not Wesleyan, nor is anyone involved with ex-icarus or Lexington Christian Fellowship. The only name we want to be associated with is Jesus Christ, the name above all names. As far as “isms” go, (and I will say this again in the same way it’s been said before in this blog) it’s not what I don’t know that scares me, but what everyone else thinks they know. Having said that, I present to you an interesting perspective on the issue of sin in believers, as seen through the eyes of Mr. Wesley. I believe it to be solidly biblical and very enlightening, but give no weight to it as inspired truth. This should serve as a good follow-up to last week’s installment, Christian Perfection. (more…)

Blaise Pascal was one of the most brilliant men to ever live. He made major advancements in math and science. He published an influential treatise on probability when he was only 16. However, after a dramatic conversion to Jansenism he abandoned his pursuit of science and wrote very eloquently about the philosophy of religion. He died, at the age of 39, before his final work, the Pensees, could be completed. In philosophy he is most well known for a few pages from this incomplete work known as Pascal’s Wager. This argument basically asserts that everyone ought to live as if God exists because it is the best bet. I’ll outline how this works, then I’ll talk about some of the criticisms of this idea. Whether people know about Pascal or not, I run into people regularly who base their relationship with God on similar reasoning. (more…)

I have a confession to make. God has recently revealed to me me an area in which I need to become more broken. God wants all of me and this includes my mind. He has shown me that the God I talk about in class and the God I talk to are not quite the same. I have tried to fit him into my systematic ideas about him. Worst of all, I have talked to people as if I know something. I care more about being right than helping others see God. I pray that God would truly break me in each of these areas. I want to be able to search out the deeper things of his character that he wishes to show me instead of creating my own philosophical God that fits with my system. It is time to hand my philosophy of God over to God himself. (more…)

A few weeks ago I made a post on “what is a disciple?” That post covered what Jesus was doing when he called his disciples. It was looking at the issue of discipleship from the perspective of a disciple. Now I would like to take a moment to take a look at the issue from the other side. In Mathew 28:19, Jesus commanded his disciples to go out and make other disciples. This command is important to keep in mind as we go out and share the gospel. If we lose sight of this, then we will be converting people to a religion rather than sharing our relationship with Jesus Christ. We will be asking people to follow us and our ideas rather than give all of their life to our King. (more…)

I would like to say a few words today about the discipline of prayer. Often times, we make prayer what we want or we forget it altogether. However, if we do not draw close to the Lord Jesus, how are we to be called Christians? I say the discipline of prayer, because prayer is more than asking God for what we want when we feel like it. Prayer is drawing close to the throne of God even when we don’t want to. It is a transforming power that shapes our lives. It is the highest office of ministry in which we can join Christ in interceding for the world. It is a necessity not a luxury. The time has long since come when Christians need to get serious about spending time on their knees. (more…)

I like this time of year. I enjoy the fireworks and the hot dogs. In Lexington, where I live, there is a big parade on July 4th. All of this to celebrate American independence. We are all about freedom, we hold it as one of our highest values. While this understanding of man being free from man is all well and good, this love of independence leaks into our spiritual understanding as well. The fact of the matter is that we are not and never have been independent. Now don’t get me wrong, I believe we have freewill, that isn’t what I’m addressing here. What I’m addressing is the fact that there is a war going on with only two sides. You are either serving the kingdom of God or the kingdom of Satan; choose this day whom you will serve. (more…)

Once again, it’s time for our weekly delve into the sermons of John Wesley. Like last week’s selection, “The Almost Christian,” this week’s sermon is a very notable and defining one in the writings of Wesley. Sermon 40: “Christian Perfection,” addresses first what Christian perfection does not entail, and then suggests what is implied by this hotly debated biblical concept.

So often I hear people say, “Nobody’s perfect. I’m human. I still make mistakes.” What they really mean, though, is that they are in sin, and do not believe in the power of Jesus Christ to free them from sin. I believe wholeheartedly, both from scripture and experience, in freedom from the bondage of sin. I also agree that, yes, we are all in fact human. But Wesley, and also the Bible, leaves sin noticeably off the list of things that are inescapably human. If you are a Bible-believing Christian, you must come to terms with verses like Matthew 5:48: “You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” You must face the fact that sin has no place in the call of Jesus, and that his call is not an impossible standard, but an expected response. (more…)