Atheistic Proselytizing

A group of eight atheistic organizations have collaborated to market atheism in New York. I won’t comment too much on this, but I will say that it’s curious how badly so-called non-religious atheists want to make proselytes. I think it reveals at least these things:

1) They believe people need to be saved from something.
2) They have a “savior.”
3) They will go to great lengths to preach their message.
4) They’re banding together as a community of “believers” (so to speak).
5) They believe their message is absolute truth.
6) They’re not satisfied with people NOT believing their message.

Religious or not? What do you think?

Interlude: Martin Gets the Gospel Wrong

In between my posts on Why We Love the Church, I’ll briefly comment on something I read today.

Roland Martin often writes articles on faith (specifically the Christian faith) featured on CNN.com, a site I check fairly often. And while I bet he’s a super nice guy with some wonderful qualities, I’m not so sure he gets the gospel (I say this based not on this one article, but after following his articles over a two-year period…there are patterns).

In this particular article, he’s tackling the subject of faith and Hollywood. More particularly, he’s using Tyler Perry and his movies as a focal point. I won’t go into his analysis of the films, nor his view on Christianity and Hollywood. I want to focus on something else.

At one point in the article, he’s making the point that hope and redemption should be prevalent ideas in the filmmaking industry (a gigantic AMEN to that!). And he explains how Perry’s movies mention God, Jesus, and the Bible all the time. This is all fine and well. But this is the quote that gets me:

When we look at the destruction going on all around us – people committing suicide because of financial strains, mounting job losses, folks screaming and yelling at health care town hall meetings – it’s gratifying to watch a movie that speaks to the goodness in people, no matter how messed up they are.

I think his point here actually works against the argument of his article. A message of the “goodness in people” is not God’s message at all. In fact, I would say that’s the message God is speaking against in the cross of Christ. Additionally, it’s arrogant to say that movies about people of faith are movies about the goodness within said people, for they should be the very ones saying the opposite.

The cross of Christ tells us that we are not good at all (Rom. 3:9-18). It indeed says we are “messed up”, but the goodness we need must come from outside of us — we need the righteousness of another. That’s the message of the gospel. It’s not a relief to watch a movie that promotes the deep-down goodness of human beings, it’s a lie; the last thing we need are movies promoting self-goodness. Rather, we need to hear about the goodness of God as he ransomed our sins through the work of his Son Jesus on the cross.

If Christians are going to be involved in Hollywood, we need to get our message right.

Our Money for Murder?

Dr. Mohler posts on Obama’s decision to federally fund (tax dollars?) the destruction of human embryos for the sake of medical advancement.

When human embryos are destroyed in the name of medical advancement, we make a deal with the Culture of Death and sacrifice embryonic human beings for the hope of medical advances. We all hope and pray for those advances, and for treatments to cure or treat intractable diseases. But there are valid alternatives to the use of human embryos.

The vulnerable human embryo is now at greater risk than ever before. And this, inevitably, means that every single human life is devalued by this decision.

It’s difficult to think of anything “advancing” – medical or otherwise – if our morals are in steep decline and our consciences in disrepair. We should heed Dr. Mohler’s call for prayer on this matter.

Be Courageous, Mr. President

Eric Redmond on Living Soli Deo Gloria under Obama

In light of the previous two posts regarding the five Solas, especially that one into which all the others are swept up, Soli Deo Gloria, check out this guest post by Eric Redmond at Between Two Worlds. Here is a brother who has already sought to apply Soli Deo Gloria to how he will be living under the leadership of President-elect Barack Obama. He includes very helpful thoughts on ethnicity (e.g. a Christcentric rather than Afrocentric proposal), prayer, and concern for the unborn. To read his post click here.

For previous posts by Eric Redmond related to similar issues, click below:

• Election Day Joy (November 4, 2008)
• How can any Christian African American Vote for Obama? Throwing the Race Card on an All Black Table (July 11, 2008)

Some Follow-Up on Piper’s Comments on Election 2008

Justin Taylor has responded to John Piper’s comments regarding the complicated factors of this election. Since I recommended watching the video in the previous post, and since some of my own family members have had some questions about it, I thought I would mention the link as well as some other clarifications Piper has made regarding his own comments.

• Justin Taylor’s humble post: ”Piper, Politics, and Abortion: A Few Thoughts“
• John Piper on “Why a woman shouldn’t run for Vice President, but wise people may still vote for her.“

A Brother’s Heart Concerning the Election

I found these words from pastor John Piper helpful and encouraging as we consider the elections in 2008. I hope they might effect you similarly.

Humans Need Jesus: Horror or Christ

According to recent news reports, the horror movie “Saw V” came in at number two this week in the North American box office. People from North America alone spent $30,500,000.00 this weekend to be “entertained” by a psycho named “Jigsaw” who apparently makes a game of murdering people. Evidently people enjoy watching this “torture porn” (to use the vocabulary of the New York Times). Indeed, according to a couple of local high school boys, ”this stuff is cool”.

I must ask, in what way is torture cool or entertaining? How is the theatrical destruction of human beings, who have been created in the image of God, enjoyable to watch? How does the cruel murder of persons on the “big screen” bring a high school boy to say, “that was a cool movie” and “that torture device/game was clever”? On what grounds does a people justify investing $30,500,000 in a weekend to see death and carnage when the same funds might have been used to see thousands of people dying of starvation live in Mexico, Sudan, Chad, and India? How does one, after delighting in such an evil flick, not become numb to the real news reports of others who are being sawed in two for proclaiming the Gospel of peace?

Now, granted, these questions stem from the worldview of a Christian. That is, they come from a person who has been rescued from his slavery to sin and corruption and moved by the Spirit of God and his holy word to see the world and its creatures through the unique lens of their Creator. Such questions do not necessarily flow from the heart of the non-believing community, unless otherwise stirred by God’s common graces. Nevertheless, Christians such as I are surely constrained to ask the world such questions in light of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

In light of Scripture, sin, death, and destruction are not taken lightly. Sin destroys our fellowship with God and brings the curse of death on all people (Gen 3; Rom 1-3). This is why people die: death spread to all men because all sinned in Adam (Rom 5). Death is not supposed to be here; but it is here as a result of Adam’s and our own sin. It takes away life. Death is not something to smile about, especially if you are a non-believer. Why? Because, death will one day be taken away, forever, for those who embrace the Gospel. However, others who stiff-arm the grace of God offered in the Gospel will experience the Second death when God casts them into the Lake of Fire to suffer the torments of Hell forever (Rev 20). In so doing, he will be just and will keep them there justly dispensing his wrath. This eternal destruction is not pleasant; it will not be “cool”; it will be forever painful.

Scripture also has something to say about life. Life is beautiful. It was designed for eternal fellowship with God himself (Gen 1-2). This happens for those trusting in the one Jesus, whom God the Father sent into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved and have life through him (John 3). God has promised life, eternal life in Jesus, the Christ. On the last day, participants in this eternal life with Christ will not experience a Second Death, but be raised up to reign with him forever in his everlasting kingdom. This life, which God created for good, wonderful, reasons is meant to be cherished and enjoyed, not mocked by horrific media.

The worldview that delights in horror, as illustrated by the box-office results above, does not taste the severity of death nor the joys of life. This is because the person who embraces this worldview has a deeper problem, he or she does not embrace the message of Scripture or the person and redeeming work of Jesus Christ revealed in the Gospel. This is why such a person is fascinated with death and disregards life, he does not know Jesus. Humans need Jesus. Repent, come to him, behold the kindness and the severity of God. Trust him, and he will make you his own and raise you up from the dead on the Last Day to enjoy himself forever.

Gospel According to T.I.

I’ll start this by saying I have absolutely no idea who T.I. is. Evidently, he’s big right now. His third number one album is coming out, he currently has the number 1 and 2 singles, and his previous albums went platinum. In the hip-hop industry he’s not doing too shabby.

I read on CNN today about his arrest for illegal weapons possession. The article includes an interview, in which the following statement is made:

“When I saw that they were trying to give me another chance, that kind of showed me something — like, ‘You can’t blow it.’ You gotta meet God halfway. You have to help him help you.

This is, for many people, the “good news”. God gives us second and third chances to not “blow it”. We work hard at making ourselves better, and when we reach the half-way point of goodness, God takes us the rest of the way. I’m sure we’ve all heard this theology before. It’s usually spoken like this: “God helps those who help themselves.” Even those of us who can articulate the true gospel, still live according to this false gospel daily. We try and “clean up” before we pray, or we consider God’s grace conditioned upon our recent success in living for and loving Jesus.

All of that is false. It is a gospel with absolutely no good news — it is the anti-gospel. As long as we stand upon our works or good intentions before God, Scripture clearly teaches we are condemned. The half-way point does not exist. God does not extend his arm half-way, waiting for us to reach toward him. We are, as Colossians says, “alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds” (1:21). As long as we’re dependent upon our ability to bring ourselves toward God, we are enemies of God.

The picture of our condition that Scripture paints for us is much more severe. We are dead (Eph. 2:4)…no movement toward God originating within us (Rom 3:10-12). God must come to us, not half-way, but all the way, making us alive in Christ (Eph 2:5). All of this, God does on his own (Eph 2:8, 9). Even your response to God’s actions are a work of God himself, so that you may not boast in anything you have done (Eph 2:9).

The gospel spoken by T.I. is an empty promise; a man-centered philosophy that will only result in more judgment, more failure, and more frustration. Praise God for the gospel of Jesus, crucified and risen on behalf of dead sinners like myself, salvation accomplished.

“When I stand on the edges of Jordan
With the saints and the angels beside,
When my body is healed, and the glory revealed,
Still I can boast only Christ.” -Awake My Soul, Sandra McCracken.

Trash

I read this today.

A fourteen year-old girl has a baby at school and subsequently dumps her child into a trash can, leaving him to be rescued by others.

One comment stuck out to me: “I just think she got scared and didn’t know what to do.”

Maybe. But I think we should let this situation stare us in the face just a little bit longer before we attribute her actions to just being scared, especially since we’ve all heard stories just like it.

It would seem more likely to me that this is being bred into our children. They grow up hearing people fight for the right to have an abortion…baby-murder. I recall a lady’s comment on NPR a few months back: “I had an abortion and I have no regrets whatsoever. It was the right thing for me to do, and we should stop making people think it is bad.” If a child grows up with parents who teach them that abortions are acceptable — that murdering a baby is o.k. — then we should not be surprised when one of our young ones throws her baby in the trash. They’ve been taught that babies are inconvenient, pre-human and therefore extinguishable. And they will act that way unless we teach them the truth.

Scared? Maybe…probably. But it doesn’t rule out the fact that she was merely keeping in line with the absolutely sinful, morally reprehensible, ways our culture thinks and acts.

I do not believe that a law will change any of this (though we should pursue the outlawing of abortion). We can give our culture a new law, but their hearts will not change. We must certainly put before them (and ourselves) Christ, the risen God-man who died on behalf of sinners. We must let those who have had abortions know that they can find forgiveness and reconciliation with God in Jesus, as they repent of their sin and trust in Him.