tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19715482805767073572024-03-13T17:01:02.344+00:00greatnews4allReady to preach (Romans 1 v 15);
Ready to give an answer (1Peter 3 v 15)Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.comBlogger380125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-30280816869134727582021-11-09T17:48:00.006+00:002021-11-09T17:48:45.475+00:00A fool's bet<p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">It was June 2018 and I was giving out invitations to gospel
meetings that were being held in the area. I knocked a door and a young man
answered. When I told him what I was there for, he told me that a World Cup
match was going to start soon and as soon as it started our conversation would
finish.<span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">I asked him did he ever give any thought to what happens
after death. He told me he didn’t because there was no way you could really
know. I agreed that left to ourselves we couldn’t really know, but I don’t
think we’ve been left to ourselves. I told him I thought there was good reason
to believe the Bible was God’s word. At that point he jumped in and said, “No
one can prove that.” I told him I would like to have a go, and it would only
take a minute.</span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">I read to him the following verses from Psalm 22:14-18:</span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">I am poured out like water, and all My bones are out of
joint; My heart is like wax; it has melted within Me. My strength is dried up
like a potsherd, and My tongue clings to My jaws; You have brought Me to the
dust of death.</span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">For dogs have surrounded Me; the congregation of the wicked
has enclosed Me. They pierced My hands and My feet; I can count all My bones.
They look and stare at Me. They divide My garments among them, and
for My clothing they cast lots.</span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">I asked him did he know what this passage was about, and he
had no trouble telling me it was about the crucifixion of Jesus. There’s no
doubt about it, and we looked at some details from the rest of the psalm to
establish this.</span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">“So, what’s the point?” he asked. </span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">“The point is, this passage was written about 1000 years
before the birth of Christ, and hundreds of years before crucifixion was
invented.”</span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">He hadn’t realised this. I told him that this was only one of
the many fulfilled prophecies the Bible contains.</span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">I said to him, “Imagine I told you what the score was going
to be of this match you’re about to watch, and you watch the match and I get it
right. I then tell you what the scores will be of all the group games, and I
get them all right. Then we go to the knockout stages, and I accurately
foretell the score of every match right up to the semi-final. What would you
think then if I told you what the score was going to be in the final?”</span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">He said, “If you got it right at every stage along the way, I
would be a fool to bet against you for the final.”</span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">I couldn’t have put it any better. I told him that the Bible
has got it right at every stage along the way, and so he would be a fool to bet
against it for the final – it tells us death isn’t the end, there is a God to
meet, an eternity to face, a heaven and a hell, and because of the wrong we’ve
done we aren’t going to heaven, and that the only way of salvation was through
the Lord Jesus. We looked at another Old Testament prophecy that tells us not
only how the Lord Jesus would die, but why:</span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Surely
He has borne our griefs and carried our <span style="background: white;">sorrows</span>;
yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded
for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for
our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep
have gone astray; we have turned, every one, to his own way; and the Lord has
laid on Him the iniquity of us all.</span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-align: right;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Isaiah 53:4-6</span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">The Bible has proven itself to get it right when it talks
about the future. Don’t bet against it – the stakes are too high.</span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-47310226146566312021-11-08T11:13:00.001+00:002021-11-08T11:13:00.159+00:00The Good Book, the final word<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Imagine you are travelling
home one night in your car. You are going through a dangerous part of a big
city and you run out of petrol. You have to get out and walk to the nearest
petrol station. As you are walking through the dark streets you see a group of
young men coming down the street towards you. Would you be more scared or less
if you found out that they were Christians who had just been having a Bible
study?<span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">My guess is you would be
breathing a sigh of relief. You would be saying, “If they take the Bible
seriously then I have nothing to fear from them.” You see, despite all the
people claiming the Bible is evil, when we look at the real world, the facts
tell a very different story.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Investigate the cause of the
great social reforms throughout history, the origin of charities, the roots of
health care and hospitals, the birth of modern science, the founding of schools
and universities, etc. You will find that the motivation for it all has been
the teaching of the Bible.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">For those who dream of a
society free from the Bible’s influence, all they have to do is waken up and
study history, and then they would realise it would be a nightmare. Look at any
country that has been changed by the biblical gospel – is the change for the
better or the worse? Does anyone want to go back to the superstition, the
cruelty, the human-sacrifices and widow-burnings of these pre-Christian
cultures? How have societies fared that have sought to eliminate the influence
of the Bible? Was the Soviet Union the utopia its founders envisaged it would
be? <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In 2016, the conclusion of a
two-volume symposium published by Cambridge University Press was that:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">…free
institutions hardly ever developed in places that were not influenced by Jewish
and Christian ideas [i.e., biblical ideas]. Outside the Judeo-Christian
tradition, it has been rare for thinkers to suppose that God endowed us with a
nature of our own, that freedom is part of that nature…<a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Alvin Schmidt points out:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The very freedom
of speech and expression that ironically permits them to castigate Christian
values is largely a by-product of Christianity’s influences that have been
incorporated into the social fabric of the Western world.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Where the biblical gospel
prospers, society prospers. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The Bible’s positive effect
on societies is because of its positive effect on individuals. Yes, there are
many people who claim to believe the Bible yet live self-centred lives, but we
have a word for them – hypocrites. We don’t say that such people are good
examples of biblical teaching, but contradictions of it. Even if you have had
negative experiences with Christians, my guess is that you do know some people
who are the real deal – people whose lives have been powerfully and positively
transformed, not by determination or religion, but by the message of the Bible.
A book that carries this power and makes such a difference is a book that is
worth investigating. As the old saying goes, the proof of the pudding is in the
eating, and this is a metaphor the Bible uses – swallow its teachings and see
what happens:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The law of the Lord is perfect, converting
the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple; the
statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord
is pure, enlightening the eyes; the fear of the Lord is clean, enduring
forever; the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. More to
be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold; sweeter also than
honey and the honeycomb. Moreover by them Your servant is warned, and in
keeping them there is great reward. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm; text-align: right;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Psalm
19:7-11<span style="background: white;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">People will accuse Christians of picking and choosing when it
comes to the Bible. They will say, “You are focussing on the good bits and
ignoring the bad.” No, it is the critic, not the Christian, who is picking and
choosing. The critic is the one combing through the Bible looking for shock
quotes. As we have seen in this series of articles, when these tough passages
are examined in their scriptural and historical context, and we look carefully
at the content and intent of the text, another picture and a different story
emerge. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">The picture the Bible gives of God is that He is eternally
loving, the source and standard of truth, goodness and beauty. The story of the
Bible is that this God created us for fellowship with Himself; our rebellion
has separated us from Him, and He has made the way back through His Son, and
seeks to bring us back through His Spirit, so that we can be free from the
penalty and power of sin, and enjoy the love and relationship we were created
to enjoy, forever. <i>That</i> is a good book.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">If you are a critic of the Bible, make sure you are an honest
critic – the Bible is a book with a vast amount of evidence supporting it, and
with millions of people willing to testify to its life-changing power. Read the
Bible again, this time, not to find out what’s wrong with it, but to find out
what’s wrong with you. Open yourself up to it. See the big picture; get the
main message, and everything else falls into place.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The attacks on the Bible
will keep coming, and one reason for that is that the Bible isn’t going
anywhere. It is “the word of God which lives and abides forever” (1 Peter
1:23). So, as long as there are rebels on earth there will be attacks against
Scripture, but when the rebellion is defeated and the rebels exiled, the word
of God will stand. </span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<div style="mso-element: footnote-list;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
For more on this see Alvin J. Schmidt, <i>How Christianity Changed the World</i>,
Zondervan, kindle edition 2009 or Sharon James, <i>How Christianity Transformed
the World</i>, Christian Focus, 2021.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn2" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> <i>Christianity
and Freedom</i>, Cambridge University Press, cited in James, <i>How
Christianity Transformed the World</i>.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn3" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
Schmidt, <i>How Christianity Changed the World</i>, loc 228.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-27822355584874491022021-11-04T11:10:00.001+00:002021-11-04T11:10:00.149+00:00The Good Book, part seven<p><span style="background-color: #fefefe; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Don’t eat pork or shellfish, don’t wear clothes of mixed
fabrics, don’t sow your vineyard with different kinds of seed, don’t shave the
edges of your beard… That is a sample of the commands God gave in His law that
strike many today as…well, weird.<span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Why would anyone, never mind God, care about these things? And,
if Christians are meant to take the Bible as being God’s word, why don’t any of
them obey these laws? Does this not show that Christians pick and choose which
parts of the Bible to obey?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">There are a couple of things to bear in mind:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<ul style="margin-top: 0cm;" type="disc">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="background: #FEFEFE; color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 3.75pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 36.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">These commands
weren’t for everyone – <em><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">they
were for a certain people</span></em><o:p></o:p></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="background: #FEFEFE; color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 3.75pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 36.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">These commands
weren’t for ever – <em><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">they
were for a certain period</span></em><o:p></o:p></span></li>
</ul>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">As we look at these two subjects, we will see that these commands <em><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">were for a certain purpose</span></em>,
and that purpose has been fulfilled.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<h4 style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">These commands weren’t for everyone – <em><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">they were for a certain people</span></em><o:p></o:p></span></h4>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">God selected Israel as the nation through which the Messiah
would come. It was vital then that they be kept separate from the nations
around to maintain the purity of their God-given religion and the integrity of
their genealogies. Mixing with the surrounding idolatrous nations was an
existential threat to the mission of Israel, and so God emphasised the lesson
of separation in every sphere of their lives. In the foods they ate, in the
clothes they wore, in the seeds they planted, even in the way they groomed
their faces – God was saying, “Don’t mix, stay separate.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Animals were classified as clean and unclean, and there have
been interesting reasons suggested as to why certain animals would be classed
as unclean and not allowed for food. Scholars have shown that the forbidden
animals were predatory animals, animals that fed on unclean things, or animals
that exhibited a lack (i.e., they were defective in some symbolically
significant way). In the Bible, eating is symbolic for what we feed our minds
on, and what shapes our character. With this in mind, we see that the Lord is
communicating that He doesn’t want His people being predatory, unclean or
defective in their character.</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></span></a><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">The prohibition on mixing fabrics and sowing with different
kinds of seeds (Deuteronomy 22:9-12) enforced the lesson that in everyday life
and in business life the Israelites were to be separate from the surrounding
nations.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">The instruction not to mark their beards (Leviticus 19:27) had
to do with not following heathen occultic practices (as Leviticus 19:28
indicates). According to the historian Herodotus, the Arab tribes marked their
beards in certain ways in honour of their gods.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">There are other “strange” laws but what we have looked at should
satisfy us that they were given because of their symbolic significance. While
in some cases, their significance might escape us, the Israelites would likely
have understood the point – God wanted them to be distinct.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<h4 style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">These commands weren’t for ever – <em><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">they were for a certain period</span></em><o:p></o:p></span></h4>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">We have established that one purpose of the ceremonial law was
to separate Israel from the nations. Another purpose of the ceremonial law was
to point forward to Christ. For example, the animal sacrifices had no saving
value, but they pointed forward to the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus, and all the
details connected to these offerings have wonderful significance and fulfilment
in Him.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">When we see this twofold purpose of the ceremonial law (to make
Israel distinct and to point forward to Christ), we can see that they have
served their purpose. The Messiah has come – the ceremonies have been
fulfilled. The dividing wall between Israel and the nations has been broken
down and God has started something new – the Church – composed of all
believers, no matter their nationality:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 5.0pt;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has
broken down the middle wall of separation, having abolished in His flesh the
enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to
create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, and that He
might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting
to death the enmity. (Ephesians 2:14-16)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">The law of Moses was for the nation of Israel (a certain people)
under the Old Covenant (a certain period). So, does that mean we dispense with
all the commandments of the Mosaic law? Do we say that <em><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">none </span></em>of the commands are
binding? No. Not at all. Many of the commands are binding, but <em><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">not because they are in the law of Moses</span></em>.
If you looked at the laws of another country, some of those laws would be
applicable to you, but only because they are also the laws of the country <em><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;">you</span></em> live in. The law of
Moses is the law of another country, but many of the commandments are relevant
to all humanity – God has written them on the hearts of all men (Romans 2:15).
We can see that the moral aspects of the law were not just for a certain
people, because God said He was judging the nations for their abominations:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 5.0pt;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Do not defile yourselves with any of these things; for by all
these the nations are defiled, which I am casting out before you. For the land
is defiled; therefore I visit the punishment of its iniquity upon it, and the
land vomits out its inhabitants. (Leviticus 18:24-25)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">These nations weren’t guilty of transgressing the Mosaic law (it
hadn’t been given), but they were guilty of transgressing the law God had
written on their hearts.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">We see too when we come into the New Testament that the moral
aspects of the law weren’t for a certain period. Eating pork was wrong under
the law of Moses, but when that covenant ended the eating of pork was no longer
wrong. However, murder, lying, adultery, etc. are still wrong, and condemned in
the New Testament.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">These strange ceremonial aspects of the law, while not binding
on anyone today, are certainly not irrelevant. When we look at them through the
lens of the culture Israel was in there are big lessons for us to learn about
the holiness God desires from His people, and when we look at them through the
lens of the gospel there are wonderful pictures for us to discover about the
Saviour who is pictured in so many of these passages.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<div style="mso-element: footnote-list;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
For more on this, see Copan, <i>Is God a Moral Monster?, </i>pp. 80-84.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-40883063561519050602021-11-02T11:10:00.002+00:002021-11-02T11:10:16.048+00:00The Good Book, part six<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: #FEFEFE; line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Context is
important. If I told you I saw a man running up to an unsuspecting little boy
and rugby tackling him, breaking the boy’s arm in the process, you might want
to know was the man reported to the police.<span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: #FEFEFE; line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">However, a bit of context changes the
picture – the boy had wandered into the road and the man saved his life. What
seemed cruel is now shown to be noble and good. We need to make sure we have
all the facts before we rush to condemnation.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: #FEFEFE; line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">This is especially true when it comes
to condemning the Bible. A lot of people are in a hurry to condemn the God
revealed in Scripture as cruel based on a shallow understanding of out of
context passages.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">The God of the Bible is a God whose nature is love (1 John 4:8),
and this isn’t just the “sanitised” New Testament version. In every part of the
Old Testament (the Law, the Psalms and the Prophets) we see the consistent
revelation of a God who is slow to anger, abounding in love and ready to
forgive (e.g., Exodus 34:6-7; Psalm 86:5; Jonah 4:2), who cares for the
stranger, the widow and the fatherless (e.g., Deuteronomy 14:28-29; 27:19;
Psalm 68:5; 146:9; Jeremiah 7:6-7).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">So, what do we make then of the passages that make us wince?
Before diving into the particulars remember three things. First of all, God is
the only possible foundation for morality. It makes no sense to talk about God
being unjust, because that implies there is a standard of justice outside of
God that He has to conform to. God <em>is</em> the
standard of goodness. Anything He does is, by definition, right. Secondly, the
Bible has proven itself to be God’s word,</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"> if
therefore we find something in it that seems wrong, then either <em>we</em> are wrong or <em>our interpretation</em> is
wrong, what can’t be the case is that God’s word is wrong. Thirdly, God has
revealed Himself fully in Christ (John 1:18; Hebrews 1:1-3). If we want to know
exactly what God is like, look at Jesus – He tells the full story and gives the
complete picture.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Let’s now look at a couple of issues that people think are examples
of cruelty on God’s part:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<ul style="margin-top: 0cm;" type="disc">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="background: #FEFEFE; color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 3.75pt; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 36.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Capital
punishments<o:p></o:p></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="background: #FEFEFE; color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 3.75pt; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list 36.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Eternal punishment<o:p></o:p></span></li>
</ul>
<h2 style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; letter-spacing: -.25pt;">Capital punishments<o:p></o:p></span></h2>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">One particularly troubling example of capital punishment being
carried out is the execution of Achan and his family in Joshua 7. Against God’s
command, Achan took spoil from the city of Jericho. When this came to light,
Achan and his family were stoned to death. There are three issues to deal with:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<ol start="1" style="margin-top: 0cm;" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="background: #FEFEFE; color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 3.75pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list 36.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Why would God want
anyone to be stoned to death?<o:p></o:p></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="background: #FEFEFE; color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 3.75pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list 36.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Why would God want
Achan to be stoned to death?<o:p></o:p></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="background: #FEFEFE; color: #333333; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 3.75pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; tab-stops: list 36.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Why would God want
Achan’s family to be stoned to death?<o:p></o:p></span></li>
</ol>
<h4 style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">1. Why would God want anyone to be stoned to death?<o:p></o:p></span></h4>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">It seems such a brutal means of execution, why would God not
institute something more humane as a death penalty? There are a few things to
keep in mind – first, it was a brutal world, life was hard, and people were a
lot less squeamish about such things back then. It is the transforming power of
the gospel in culture that has resulted in us looking at such things with such
horror. In lands where the gospel’s impact has not been widely known or deeply
felt, there still is such brutality. As we said in a previous chapter, there
were provisions in the Mosaic law that were included, not because they
reflected God’s perfect ideal, but “because of the hardness of your hearts” (Matthew
19:8). Secondly, the penalty was supposed to act as a deterrent, and it clearly
did. In the records of Israel’s early history we have a few instances of the
penalty being legitimately carried out (Leviticus 24:10-23; Numbers 15:30-36;
Joshua 7), and that is it – the marker had been laid down, God is serious about
this, and the people got the message: “all Israel shall hear and fear”
(Deuteronomy 21:21). Thirdly, it was a collective form of execution – it was
the whole congregation of Israel that was responsible for putting the offender
to death. They didn’t have an executioner. This heightened the solemnity of the
issue and helped drive the message home.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">God knows better than we do what is required in different
circumstances. This was the sentence for certain crimes for the nation of
Israel living under the Mosaic Covenant. It is not a command for all nations
for all time. And let us remember, our society is really in no position to give
God advice on just punishments and effective deterrents.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<h4 style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">2. Why would God want Achan to be stoned to death?<o:p></o:p></span></h4>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">What had Achan done that was so serious? Well, this was Israel’s
first battle after crossing Jordan into the Promised Land; God had given a
specific command that nothing was to be taken from Jericho for themselves – it
was all devoted to destruction. Achan’s sin was an act of direct rebellion. The
nation of Israel was being used by God to purge the land of Canaan of its
idolatry and immorality; it would therefore be hypocritical of God to permit an
idolatrous and immoral man to inflict judgment on the Canaanites.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<h4 style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">3. Why would God want Achan’s family to be stoned to death?<o:p></o:p></span></h4>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">God’s law forbids children from being executed for the crimes of
their fathers:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 5.0pt;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Fathers shall not be put to death for their children, nor shall
children be put to death for their fathers; a person shall be put to death for
his own sin. (Deuteronomy 24:16)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">This establishes that Achan’s family were complicit in his
crime. After all, if someone buries a robe, 200 pieces of silver and a bar of gold
in his tent, it is pretty obvious that the other people who live in the tent
will know about it. It is not the case then that his family were innocent
parties. They shared in the punishment because they shared in the guilt.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<h2 style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; letter-spacing: -.25pt;">Eternal punishment<o:p></o:p></span></h2>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">“70 years of sin, eternal punishment?! Talk about an
overreaction! The punishment doesn’t fit the crime. 70 years of sin should
result in 70 years of punishment – an eye for an eye.” This was the content of
a (very understandable) rant from a man I was speaking to. There are two things
I think we should bear in mind as we look at this subject.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<h4 style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">a) The infinite holiness of God<o:p></o:p></span></h4>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">I suggested to the man I was speaking to that his reasoning
wasn’t altogether sound. We don’t base punishment for crimes on how long it
took to commit them. I asked him how long it took to commit a murder. Say it
takes someone a week to plan and carry it out, are we suggesting that an
appropriate punishment for the murderer is a week in prison? See the problem?
The punishment is not based on the time it took to commit the crime but on the
gravity of the crime.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">When we look at it like that it is no surprise that the Bible
teaches eternal punishment. God is infinitely holy and sin-hating. Every sin
defies His authority and also defaces His image. He has created us in His
image, as His representatives, and when we sin we demean Him. “Hell is God’s
declaration to the universe that what every sin demeans is of infinite worth.”</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> </span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">To sin against Him is to commit a
crime of infinite seriousness which carries with it an infinite penalty. That
is why the punishment lasts forever – as finite creatures we can never pay an
infinite penalty.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<h4 style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">b) The intrinsic value of man<o:p></o:p></span></h4>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">J. P. Moreland said:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE; margin-bottom: 5.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 5.0pt;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Believe it or not, everlasting separation from God is morally
superior to annihilation…Why would God be morally justified in annihilating
somebody? The only way that’s a good thing would be the end result, which would
be to keep people from experiencing the conscious separation from God forever.
Well, then you’re treating people as a means to an end…What hell does is
recognise that people have intrinsic value. If God loves intrinsic value, then
He has got to be a sustainer of persons, because that means He is a sustainer
of intrinsic value. He refuses to snuff out a creature that was made in His own
image. So in the final analysis, hell is the only morally legitimate option.</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">If people don’t want God, then they will be exiled from Him, but
not extinguished by Him. In the end, they get what they want – separation from
God. And even if they could pay the penalty for past crimes (which they can’t),
their ongoing rebellion necessitates ongoing punishment.</span><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<h4 style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></h4>
<p style="background: #FEFEFE;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Lamentations 3:33 tells us, “For He does not afflict willingly
[literally, <em>from His
heart</em>], nor grieve the children of men.” God takes no pleasure in
human suffering. He only allows it when it is necessary, and, in order to save
us from the eternal punishment we deserve, He willingly bore the penalty for us
on the cross. Such a God is worthy of our trust – He is good.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<div><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
For more on this see Paul McCauley, <i>Prove It, How you can know and show that
the Bible is God’s word</i>, Decapolis Press, 2017, or <a href="https://understandingthegospel.org/explore-the-gospel/the-bible/">https://understandingthegospel.org/explore-the-gospel/the-bible/</a>.
<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn2">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
John Piper, <i>Jesus: The Only Way to God –
Must You Hear the Gospel to be Saved?</i>, Baker Books, 2010, p. 32.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn3">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Lee Strobel, <i>The Case for Faith</i>, Zondervan, 2000, p. 255.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn4">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div><p><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[4]</span></span></span></a>
For more on this, see Paul McCauley, <i>He that believeth not</i>, John Ritchie
Ltd, 2013. </p>Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-42180211633155713132021-10-29T15:38:00.003+01:002021-11-02T11:05:20.839+00:00The Good Book, part five<p><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">It’s possible to give a right
answer but leave a wrong impression. That was driven home to me one day as I
overheard a conversation between a Christian and a woman who would have
described herself as spiritual but not religious. <span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p><p><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">She said to the Christian,
“So, what about all the Muslims and Hindus and Buddhists in the world? Are you
saying they’re all going to hell if they don’t believe in Jesus?” The Christian
replied, “Well, Christ said, ‘I am the way, the truth and the life, no one
comes to the Father except through Me,’ so that settles it.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Did he answer <i>accurately</i>?
Are people who don’t believe in Christ going to hell? Well, according to the
Bible, yes. But he didn’t answer <i>adequately</i>. He reinforced this woman’s
view that the God of the Bible is horrendously narrow-minded and bigoted – He
doesn’t care how well you live or how much you love, all He cares about is that
you believe the right thing. No matter how good you are, if you fail your
theology exam and pick the wrong religion, He throws you into hell, and no
matter how bad you are, if you believe the right thing you go to heaven. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">That sounds cruel and petty.
It sounds like God is the captain of a cruise ship who threatens to throw the
passengers overboard unless they accept a lifebelt from him. But that isn’t the
biblical picture. An illustration that is more in keeping with the teaching of
the Bible is that we are the crew of an enemy ship that has been attacking this
captain’s ship; our ship has gone down and we are drowning. The captain throws
the lifebelt out to us. Rejecting the lifebelt doesn’t <i>put</i> us in danger,
it <i>keeps</i> us in danger. The lifebelt isn’t the problem, it’s the answer.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">So it is with Christ.
Accepting Him isn’t some arbitrary hoop that God makes us jump through. He is
the only answer to the problem we have. Let’s look at the problem and then
we’ll see how Jesus is the only possible answer.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><b><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The problem<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The problem we face is that we
have sinned against God. Because God is righteous, sin must be dealt with. God
can’t turn a blind eye to our guilt. God’s law flows from His nature, and thus
cannot be set aside. The penalty for sin must be paid and God wrath against it
must be expressed.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">We have broken God’s law, and
we can’t unbreak it. Even if we could live a perfect life from now till the day
we die, we are only doing what is demanded for the whole of our lives. Keeping
the law in the future doesn’t deal with our breaking of it in the past.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Back in the early 16<sup>th</sup>
century, Martin Luther realised the problem. He was a man who had devoted his
life to the service of God in an effort to placate Him by his religious
devotions. But he said there was a phrase from the Bible “that had stood in my
way”. He said, “I hated that word, ‘the righteousness of God’.” He realised
that God’s righteousness left the guilty with no hope of earning God’s
acceptance. All we could ever deserve was His wrath and judgment. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><b><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The answer<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Our situation is completely
hopeless…unless there is someone who is able and willing to stand in our place,
to act as our representative, and bear the judgment for us. If there is someone
like that, then there would be a way of salvation. And that is why Jesus is the
only way. He was eternally one with God, and He became one with us – coming
into the human family so that He could act on our behalf and bear the sin of
the world. That’s what He did on the cross. He paid the penalty in full, and
proved it by His resurrection, and now there is a way that a righteous God can
accept sinners without compromising His righteousness. God can’t accept me on
the basis of the life I have lived, but He can accept me on the basis of the
death Christ died. Through repentance and faith in Christ, I am united to Him,
and God accepts what Christ did to be in my place, and I go free.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Greg Koukl put it like this:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm; tab-stops: list 9.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Mankind faces a singular
problem. People are broken and the world is broken because our friendship with
God has been broken, ruined by human rebellion. Humans, you and I – are guilty,
enslaved, lost, dead. All of us. Everyone. Everywhere. The guilt must be
punished, the debt must be paid, the slave must be purchased. Promising better
conduct in the future will not mend the crimes of the past. No, a rescuer must
ransom the slaves, a kindred brother must pay the family debt, a substitute must
shoulder the guilt. There is no other way of escape. This is why Jesus of
Nazareth is the only way to God, the only possible source of rescue. He is the
only one who solved the problem. No other man did this. No other person could.
Not Mohammed. Not the Buddha. Not Krishna. Not anyone else. Only Jesus of
Nazareth could save the world. Without him we are crushed under our
overwhelming debt. Without him, every single one of us would have to pay for
our own crimes, and that would take eternity.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">People aren’t going to hell
because God is annoyed they picked the wrong religion. People are going to hell
because they are guilty of breaking His law. Religion offers no answer for our
guilt. Christ is the answer – He is the Saviour. If that Saviour is refused, then
there is no other option but that we remain in our danger.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">God has thrown a lifebelt out
to a perishing world. While people think they can swim to safety themselves,
they will reject Christ. Once they realise they are helpless, they will see He
is the only hope.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<div style="mso-element: footnote-list;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
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<div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
Gregory Koukl, <i>The Story of Reality, How the World Began, How it Ends, and
Everything Important that Happens in Between</i>, Zondervan, 2017, p. 132.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-79865715238424857192021-10-28T15:33:00.006+01:002021-11-02T11:05:52.315+00:00The Good Book, part four<p><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Back in 2012, the Church of
England voted down legislation to approve women bishops. The Prime Minister,
David Cameron, expressed his frustration, saying that the Church needed to “get
with the programme”. They did, of course, “get with the programme” a couple of
years later, and so have many other churches. A few churches here and there
still haven’t got on board. Why is that? Well, they recognise that the job of a
local church is not to get with the programme set by politicians or society.
There is another programme that Christians are called to follow, and it is laid
out in Scripture. Because of this, they, and the Bible, have been charged with
misogyny, i.e., “dislike of, contempt for, or ingrained prejudice against
women”. This is a serious charge. Is the Bible guilty? Hardly. Let’s look at
the facts.<span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The Bible asserts that men and
women are <i>equal in value</i> but <i>different in role</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><b><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Equal in value<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Genesis 1:26-27 emphasises
that men and women are both created in the image of God.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image,
according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea,
over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over
every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in His own
image in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The very first chapter of the
Bible establishes that women are equal in worth to men. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Genesis 2 teaches that God
made one woman for one man – the relationship was to be committed and
exclusive. Polygamy was not God’s will, and the Bible’s recording of it is only
intended to show how harmful it is. Everywhere it is found it is shown to be
bad. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">From Lamech’s wives to those of Abraham, Esau,
Jacob, David, and Solomon, wherever we see God’s ideal of monogamy ignored, we
witness strife, competition, and disharmony. The Old Testament presents
polygamy as not only undesirable but also a violation of God’s standards. Old
Testament narratives subtly critique this marital arrangement.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">When we look at the New
Testament, we see that the Lord Jesus was counter cultural in His interactions
with women. For example, He had women amongst His band of followers (Matthew
12:49-50; Luke 8:1-3) and He let Mary of Bethany sit at His feet with the men
and be instructed by Him, rather than send her to help Martha with the cooking
(Luke 10:38-42). Eliezer, a first century rabbi, said that if anyone who
teaches his daughter the Law (of Moses) it is as if he taught her promiscuity,
and it would be better to burn the Law than teach it to a woman. Christ did not
share that view. We find Christian women had valuable roles in the life of the
early church (e.g., Acts 18:26; Romans 16; Php. 4:2-3). The gospel teaches that
there is no distinction between the standing of men and women before God in
Christ. In fact, Paul says all Christians (male and female) are sons of God.
Some take that to be sexist, but the very opposite is the case. In that time,
the sons, not the daughters, shared in the family business and got the
inheritance. Paul is saying that every Christian has that position before God. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">For you are all sons of God through faith in
Christ Jesus…There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free,
there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. (Galatians
3:26, 28)<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><b><i><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">But what about…?<o:p></o:p></span></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">That all sounds good, but
there are some passages that certainly appear to demean women. Let’s have a
look.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><i><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Leviticus 12:1-8<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">This passage teaches that
woman is ceremonially unclean for 40 days after giving birth to a boy, but 80
days after giving birth to a girl. So, are girls twice as unclean as boys?
Given what we have already looked at, this is a very weak basis to argue for
the Bible being misogynistic. There are various explanations for this law. The
period of ceremonially uncleanness meant the mother couldn’t come to the
temple, and the fact that this was twice as long for the mother of a girl
rather than a boy is taken by some to communicate a message of special
protection for girls rather than boys – the mum was given twice as long off
before she was expected to get back into normal life. Others suggest this law
communicated that, in contrast to the nations around with their fertility cults
and temple prostitutes, the temple wasn’t the sphere of women’s operation in
Israel. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Another plausible explanation focuses on a
natural source of uncleanness – namely, the flow of blood. Verse 5 refers to
the reason: it’s because of ‘the blood of her purification.’ The mother
experiences vaginal bleeding at birth. Yet such vaginal bleeding is common in
newborn girls as well, due to the withdrawal of the mother’s estrogen when the
infant girl exits the mother’s womb. So we have <i>two</i> sources of ritual
uncleanness with a girl’s birth but <i>only one</i> with a boy’s.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">And once the time of
purification is over, an identical purification offering is to be made whether
it is for a son or a daughter, showing that females aren’t viewed as being more
defiled than males.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><i><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Leviticus 27:1-8<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In this section we learn how
people could show their willingness to serve Him, even though they couldn’t actively
serve in and for the tabernacle (because they weren’t Levites). In lieu of
their service they could give an equivalent value. But males are valued at more
than females – does this not mean women are less valuable than men? This is to
do with work connected to the tabernacle, and, generally speaking, men have
higher economic marketability than women for manual labour. Clearly it isn’t a
statement on one’s value as a person because a female aged between twenty and
sixty has a higher price than a male older age bracket, and that obviously does
not mean that the ancient Israelites thought older men had less worth than
younger women. This was a society that extolled the value of the elderly, but
it recognised that when it came to manual labour, there was more output from
younger women than older men. Similarly (and this shouldn’t be controversial),
there is more output from men than from women of similar ages (generally). Some
footballers are worth more than others, but this isn’t a statement of their worth
as <i>people</i> but as <i>footballers</i>. Similarly, this isn’t a statement
on the worth of men and women as people but as workers in the tabernacle.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><i><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Exodus 20:17<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The tenth commandment forbids
coveting what belongs to someone else. It says you aren’t to covet your
neighbour’s house, wife, servant, ox, donkey or anything that belongs to him.
The implication is that a wife is lumped in the same category as house, servant,
ox and donkey, as being the property of the man. But a woman does belong to her
husband <i>in the very same way</i> a husband is said to belong to his wife
(e.g., Genesis 3:6; Song of Solomon 6:3). Wives, unlike houses, oxen and
donkeys, could not be sold. The fifth commandment commands that mothers are to
be honoured as well as fathers, but in other cultures in the ancient Near East
mothers were under the control of the son. Mothers are certainly not viewed as
chattel. The teaching throughout the Bible (see especially the book of
Proverbs) is that mothers are to be revered and listened to.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><i><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Marrying your rapist?<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">If a man finds a young woman who is a
virgin, who is not betrothed, and he seizes her and lies with her, and they are
found out, then the man who lay with her shall give to the young woman’s father
fifty shekels of silver, and she shall be his wife because he has humbled her;
he shall not be permitted to divorce her all his days. (Deuteronomy 22:28-29)<span style="background: white;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">This passage seems unthinkably harsh, but there’s
more to it than meets the eye. First, marriage in that time was about survival
(building a family to defend and care for you) and carrying on the family name.
There weren't the romantic notions we connect with it now. Indeed, our view of
marriage is in large part due to the gospel's influence – it presents itself as
a love story, and encourages husbands to love their wives as Christ loves the
church. </span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Also, Exodus 22:16-17 needs to be read in
conjunction with this, because the Deuteronomy passage is seen by scholars as
being an expansion of what was said in Exodus 22. </span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">If a man entices a virgin who is not
betrothed, and lies with her, he shall surely pay the bride-price for her to be
his wife. If her father utterly refuses to give her to him, he shall pay money
according to the bride-price of virgins.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">The point here is that the father of the young
woman (no doubt in consultation with her) can refuse to let the marriage take
place. If he did so then the man was to pay a sizeable bridal price to ensure
some measure of financial security for a woman who would find it harder now to
find a husband. If this stipulation was in place for a woman who had been
enticed, then that stipulation would certainly be in place for a woman who had
been seized, so there is no forced marriage here.</span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">This case is similar to the one mentioned in Ex. 22:15, 16.
The omission to mention the possibility of the father refusing to give him his
daughter for a wife, makes no essential difference. It is assumed as
self-evident here, that such a right was possessed by the father.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a></span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">It should also be noted that the word that
indicates rape is not used in Deuteronomy 22:28-29. It is used in verse 25:
“But if a man finds a betrothed young woman in the countryside, and the man
forces her and lies with her, then only the man who lay with her shall die.”
The word in verse 28 is a weaker word that is more in keeping with the thought
of seduction. The fact that it says, “and <i>they</i> are found out” indicates
culpability on the part of the woman as well, but only the man is held
responsible.</span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">A woman who was not a virgin would have had her
chances for marriage severely reduced, and that is why when Amnon raped Tamor
she pled with him to marry her (2 Samuel 13:9-18). We don't have the right to
enforce our ideals of marriage back on people who would have probably looked on
them as a bit silly. The man was responsible to take and provide for the woman
he had violated and never divorce her – she would be secure for the rest of her
life. </span><span style="background: white; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">We don't see a lack of concern for the woman in
this passage. As Paul Copan says, “Her well-being is actually the underlying
theme of this legislation.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn4;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Helvetica",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a></span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><i><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">No female priests<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">There was a <i>practical</i>
reason for this – the surrounding cultures had female priests and their
function was to engage in sexual immorality. The nation of Israel was
different. They exemplified their separation from the perversity of the
surrounding cultures in lots of ways, and one was no female priests.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">There was also a <i>prophetical</i>
reason for this – the priesthood was one of the three anointed offices of
Israel (the offices of king and prophet were the others). Every priest was a picture
of <i>The Anointed One</i> – the Christ who would come, and so, the priesthood
was reserved for the males.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Then finally, there was a <i>patriarchal</i>
reason for this – the priests were the leaders and teachers in Israel, and,
like it or not, God’s will is that the man functions as the leader. This brings
us to our next major subject. Although men and women are equal in value, they
are different in role.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><b><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Different in role<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The Bible teaches that men and
women have different God-given roles and spheres of responsibility. The man is
placed by God in a position of leadership. This was reflected in Old Testament
Israel, and it is to be reflected in the New Testament church. The Bible
teaches that the head of the woman is the man. This does not imply inferiority
because the head of Christ is God, yet the Bible teaches Christ is equal with
God. The headship of man is to be demonstrated in leadership and teaching in
the church (1 Timothy 2:11-12), and the woman observing the symbol of head
covering (1 Corinthians 11:1-16). <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">This is offensive to many, but
there are many things the Bible teaches that people find offensive – the fault
isn’t with the Bible, it is with our arrogant assumption that our culture is
right. Throughout history every culture has had problems with the Bible,
including the culture in which the Bible was written. This is because, although
the Bible was written within a culture, it was not sourced in that culture. The
things that our culture struggles with are not the things other cultures have
had difficulties with. For example, the average person in Britain today would
approve of the Bible’s teaching on loving and forgiving your enemies, but would
have big issues with the Bible’s teaching on hell, but in the Britain of 1000
years ago the opposite was the case. The idea of loving and forgiving one’s
enemy didn’t fit well within an honour and shame culture, but the idea of hell
fitted quite comfortably. It is what C. S. Lewis called “chronological
snobbery” to give “uncritical acceptance of the intellectual climate common to
our own age and the assumption that whatever has gone out of date is on that
account discredited.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftn5" name="_ftnref5" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn5;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Up until the very recent past,
everyone recognised that women are better fitted for some roles and men for
others. This is not oppression but reality. And it shows up when we aren’t
thinking about it. For example, when the husband hears a clatter downstairs
during the night, he doesn’t say to his wife, “It’s your turn to go down and
check; I did it the last time.” That’s an “equality” that no one insists on or
wants. It is the role of the man to put himself in danger for his wife and
family. Likewise, God has given the man the responsibility of leadership. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The real misogyny is not from
those who recognise the unique glory women have, but from those who say that
women have to suppress their God-given instincts, despise their uniqueness, and
try to behave like men. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">A lot of churches have heeded
David Cameron’s call to “get with the programme.” However, God has another
programme. The roles of men and women reflect the love story of Christ and His
church. So, rather than being stuck in the past, biblical gender roles portray
the eternal future.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<div style="mso-element: footnote-list;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
Paul Copan, <i>Is God a Moral Monster?</i>, p. 117.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn2" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
Copan, <i>Is God a Moral Monster?</i>, p. 106 (emphases his).<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn3" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> C.
F. Keil, Commentary on the Book of Deuteronomy in C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, <i>Commentary
on the Old Testament</i>, Volume 1, Hendrickson, 2006, p. 947.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn4" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn4;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
Copan, <i>Is God a Moral Monster?</i>, p. 119.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn5" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book.docx#_ftnref5" name="_ftn5" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn5;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> C.
S. Lewis, <i>Surprised by Joy</i>.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-21004732434596394562021-05-31T10:15:00.001+01:002021-10-28T15:36:17.646+01:00The Good Book, part three<p>C<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">ulture has shifted, and
shifted fast. In 2015 in the USA, same-sex marriage was declared a
constitutional right and legalised in all 50 states. The President, Barack
Obama, was an enthusiastic supporter of this, but when he was running for his
first term in 2008, he said he believed marriage was between a man and a woman
and was not in favour of same-sex marriage. To say such a thing now is to
declare yourself a dinosaur, a bigot and a hater.<span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Here in the UK, the Labour
leader, Sir Keir Starmer, recently visited a church in London which ran a
foodbank, ministered to the poor, and had opened its premises to be used as a
COVID vaccine centre. Starmer posted a video in which he commended the church
on its work in the community, but had to hastily take it down and issue a
grovelling apology, because he hadn’t realised the church held to a biblical
view on sexual morality. It seems it had never occurred to him that there would
be churches that would still believe the Bible – surely we’ve all moved on.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In many people’s eyes, your
attitude to same-sex relationships is the deciding factor determining whether
you are a good person or not. Tolerance isn’t good enough. Love for the
individuals is irrelevant. Nothing less than approval of the behaviour will do.
That means the Bible is immoral and so too is anyone who believes it. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">There are two things we will
think about as we consider this subject.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><b><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">God’s design is safe<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Every parent has had to
instruct children on the importance of using things for their intended purpose.
“No, don’t use the remote control as a drumstick – that’s not what it was made
for.” “Don’t use the cricket bat as a hammer – you are wrecking the bat – it
wasn’t made for that.” <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Human beings aren’t the
accidental by-products of blind forces acting on mindless matter. There is a
creator / designer. That means we have a purpose, and in order to preserve
ourselves from damage, we need to know what that purpose is, and align
ourselves with it. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">There are some items whose
purpose is obvious – you just have to look at them and you can see what they
are for. With other items, their purpose isn’t so obvious. You would need to
read the manufacturer’s instructions to know what the thing is for. When it
comes to human beings, there is an obvious purpose and we also have the
manufacturer’s instructions.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">It is obvious that men and
women are made for each other. There is a physical compatibility that just so
happens to be the means of producing new life. It seems obvious that men were
not designed to go with men, nor women with women. When we look at the
manufacturer’s instructions (the Bible), it confirms what nature loudly
proclaims. When we use something in a way it wasn’t made to be used, we wreck
it. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Despite intense political
pressure, the studies still show that same-sex relationships are harmful. The
physical harm is obvious, but the emotional harm is clearly documented too.
Often this emotional harm is attributed to social stigma and homophobia, but
the medical literature says otherwise. An extensive study of those involved in
same-sex relationships in the Netherlands found that they had higher rates of
nearly all psychiatric pathologies mentioned in the study.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book%20-%20homophobic.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> The Netherlands is one of
the most “gay-affirming” places in the world, and so this study undermines the
view that social disapproval lies at the root of the mental health problems of
those involved in same-sex relationships.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">God’s laws are for the flourishing
of humanity. The monogamous, exclusive, life-long, loving union of a man and
woman in marriage is for the emotional, physical and psychological wellbeing of
both involved, and any children that result from that union, and for the good
of society. Any deviation from God’s plan carries huge risks. God has placed
boundaries around sex because of His compassion. There is safety in following
God’s design. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><b><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">God’s design is symbolic<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Marriage communicates a
message. The union of a man and woman in marriage symbolises the union of
Christ and His church (Eph. 5:25-27), so any tampering with that distorts
something very precious to God.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The parallel between marriage
and the relationship of Christ and His church is powerful. When a woman gets
married, she takes a new name, she has a new identity. One of the reasons
people find the Bible’s condemnation of homosexual behaviour so offensive is to
do with this matter of identity. The Bible condemns all sorts of behaviour that
all of us are guilty of, but when people point out that the Bible condemns
lying, greed, fornication and adultery, there are no howls of protest or cries
for anyone to lose their job. The reason is no one identifies himself as a
liar, a greedy person, fornicator or adulterer. These things aren’t key to our
identity. But when it’s pointed out that the Bible condemns homosexual
behaviour there is an outcry because many engaged in that behaviour see it as a
key part of who they are. The “love the sinner, hate the sin” distinction
doesn’t work with them, because they identify themselves by the thing the Bible
calls sin, and so they say you can’t hate the sin without hating them, and you
can’t love them without loving the sin.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The gospel offers a new,
bigger, better identity. It calls on us to take up the cross, which means
(among other things) that we accept God’s verdict of condemnation. He condemns
not just our sexual sins, but our arrogant assumption that we have the
authority to make our own rules and create our own identity apart from Him.
When we repent of our rebellion and accept Christ as our only hope of
salvation, He gives us a source of meaning and a sense of value that we all
long for but look for in the wrong places. Salvation brings us into a union
with Christ in which we find love, security, community and fellowship, and this
provides the resources to enable us to let go of the idols that we thought we
could never live without, the identity that once defined us.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The Bible’s teaching on sex is
not oppressive. It’s not cruel. It’s liberating and kind.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book%20-%20homophobic.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Theo
Sandfort, Ron de Graaf, et al., "Same-sex Sexual Behavior and Psychiatric
Disorders," <i>Archives of General Psychiatry.</i><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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</div>Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-24564618372345984952021-05-27T10:18:00.003+01:002021-10-28T15:36:00.280+01:00The Good Book, part two<p><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt;">In the <a href="http://greatnews4all.blogspot.com/2021/03/the-good-book.html">first Good Book post</a> we
looked at the subject of slavery, and saw that the Bible does not affirm or
encourage the slave trade – it is decidedly against it. Another subject that
causes people to think the Bible is an immoral book is the slaughter of the
Canaanites in the time of Joshua. It is portrayed as an act of genocide – a
tribal deity commanding ethnic cleansing. The image is disturbing, but it is
distorted.<span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">Before clarifying and
explaining what happened, let’s get rid of this notion of genocide and ethnic
cleansing. The issue was not the ethnicity of the people in the land of Canaan.
God has always been interested in the blessing of the whole world. Indeed, His
special relationship with the nation of Israel was with the intention of the
blessing of all nations (Gen. 12:3). We saw in our article about slavery that
God “loves the stranger” (Deut. 10:18).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">Let’s lay out a few factors
that need to be kept in mind as we consider the destruction of the Canaanites.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">They were wicked<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">The book of Genesis lays a
foundation that shows that God is not swift to judge. In the time of Noah,
there was no one outside of his family with any regard for God or
righteousness. Later on, Abraham knew that God was a righteous judge who would
not destroy the righteous with the wicked. In fact, God would have spared the
evil cities of Sodom and Gomorrah if there had have been ten righteous people
in it (see Gen. 18:17-33). This was established hundreds of years before the
conquest of Canaan and needs to be kept in mind. Added to that, God was
prepared to wait about 430 years (even though it meant the Israelites were
slaves in Egypt) because the sin of the Canaanites had not yet reached its
limit (Gen. 15:16). Only when the society had reached its tipping point did God
move in judgment. This makes it clear that God views these large-scale
judgments as a last resort.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">It is clear from Scripture
that the Canaanites were guilty of unspeakable wickedness. For example, Leviticus
18 refers to all sorts of sexual sins and child sacrifice, and says that the
Israelites aren’t to engage in such practices, “for by all these the nations
are defiled, which I am casting out before you. For the land is defiled;
therefore I visit the punishment of its iniquity upon it, and the land vomits
out its inhabitants” (vv. 24-25; see too Deut. 18:9-14).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">But lest anyone thinks that
the Bible is libelling the Canaanites to justify Israel’s actions, there is
evidence outside of Scripture that shows that God was certainly not
exaggerating. Ancient papyri testify to the sexual perversions of the Canaanite
nations, and Plutarch reports that during Canaanite sacrifices, “the whole area
before the statue [of Molech] was filled with a loud noise of flutes and drums
so that the cries of the wailing should not reach the ears of the people.”
According to UCLA researcher, Shelby Brown, “No other ancient people…regularly
chose their own children as sacrificial victims”.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book%20-%20the%20conquest.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">It is not the case that the Canaanites
were living in peace and paradise before the Israelites came. The land flowed
with milk and honey, but there were also a lot of tears and blood mixed in.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">They were warned<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">This was not a surprise
attack on unsuspecting nations. They had advanced warning that the Israelites
were coming. The Exodus from Egypt, the defeat of Pharaoh’s army at the Red
Sea, and the battles that took place on the way to the Promised Land were all
known to the inhabitants of the land. This is made clear by what Rahab said to
the two Hebrew spies (Josh. 2:9-11):<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm; margin: 0cm 26.05pt 8pt 1cm;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">I know that the
Lord has given you the land, that the terror of you has fallen on us, and that
all the inhabitants of the land are fainting because of you. For we have heard
how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of
Egypt, and what you did to the two kinds of the Amorites who were on the other
side of the Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom you utterly destroyed. And as soon as we
heard these things, our hearts melted; neither did there remain any more
courage in anyone because of you, for the Lord your God, He is God in heaven
above and on earth beneath.” <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">The right response to this
display of God’s power would have been repentance and unconditional surrender.
The Old Testament testifies to the fact that this always results in mercy (see,
for example, Jer. 18:7-8 and the book of Jonah).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">They were
warriors<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">The cities that were
destroyed in the book of Joshua were, according to archaeological evidence, not
civilian populations, but military strongholds. “That means that Israel’s wars
here were directed toward government and military installments; this is where
the king, the army, and the priesthood resided. The use of ‘women’ and ‘young
and old’ was merely stock ancient Near Eastern language that could be used even
if women and young and old weren’t living there. The language of ‘all’ (‘men
and women’) at Jericho and Ai is a ‘stereotypical expression for the
destruction of all human life in the fort, presumably composed entirely of combatants.’
The text doesn’t require that women and you and old must have been in these
cities.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book%20-%20the%20conquest.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">They were
welcome<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">The experience of Rahab
shows that the Canaanites were welcome to become part of God’s covenant
community. They could have repented of their wickedness and renounced their
idolatry. Rahab was received into the nation, and even became part of the
promised line from which the Messiah came (Matthew 1:5).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">They were
withdrawn<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">The language of destruction
and slaughter is used, but it is often used in a context in which expulsion
from the land is clearly meant, for example, Deuteronomy 9:3-5:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm; margin: 0cm 26.05pt 8pt 1cm;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">Therefore
understand today that the Lord your God is He who goes over before you as a consuming
fire. He will destroy them and bring them down before you; so you shall drive
them out and destroy them quickly, as the Lord has said to you.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm; margin: 0cm 26.05pt 8pt 1cm;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">Do not think in
your heart, after the Lord your God has cast them out before you, saying,
‘Because of my righteousness the Lord has brought me in to possess this land’;
but it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord is driving
them out from before you. It is not because of your righteousness or the
uprightness of your heart that you go in to possess their land, but because of
the wickedness of these nations that the Lord your God drives them out from
before you, and that He may fulfill the word which the Lord swore to your
fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">When Moses spoke to the
Israelites before they entered the Promised Land he told them how they could
enjoy God’s blessing in the land and also warned them of the conduct that would
result in their expulsion and exile. In his summing up and final appeal he said,
“I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before
you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you
and your descendants may live” (Deut. 30:19). The point he was making is that
life is synonymous with enjoying the blessing of the Promised Land.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm; margin: 0cm 26.05pt 8pt 1cm;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">Moses held out
to the people life and death, blessings and curses, and urged them to choose
life – which meant, quite specifically, living in the promised land as opposed
to being sent into the disgrace of exile.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book%20-%20the%20conquest.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">Thus, being put out of the
Promised Land is called death and described as destruction. The Lord’s
intention was the cleansing of the land from the defilement of the nations. It
needs to be remembered as well that God warned the Israelites that if the
Israelites followed the path of the nations then the same fate would be visited
on them, and it was – exile from the land. So, the language of complete
destruction of every living thing is ancient near eastern rhetoric for complete
victory, and what was demanded by God was eviction, not annihilation.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book%20-%20the%20conquest.docx#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn4;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">Conclusion<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">God is the author of life
and has the right to take it whenever He sees fit. He is also the source of
moral value, and as such, everything He does is, by definition, right, even if
we don’t understand it. In addition, these were instructions that were given
for a specific occasion, and there is no normative command to engage in
physical warfare in God’s name. He used the nation of Israel as His instrument
of judgment on the evil Canaanites (just as He used the Babylonians as His
instrument of judgment against the Jews centuries later). This shows there was
no genocide, there was no ethnic animosity. There was righteous recompense on
wicked and unrepentant nations. It is still terrifying, but “Aslan is not a
tame lion.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm; margin: 0cm 26.05pt 8pt 1cm;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">“Aslan is a lion
– the Lion, the great Lion.” “Ooh” said Susan. “I’d thought he was a man. Is he
quite safe? I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion” … “Safe?"
said Mr Beaver… “Who said anything about safe? ‘Course he isn’t safe. But he’s
good. He’s the King, I tell you.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: right;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">C. S. Lewis, <i>The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe</i><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
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<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book%20-%20the%20conquest.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
Clay Jones, <i>We Don’t Hate Sin So We Don’t Understand What Happened to the Canaanites</i>,
<a href="https://clayjones.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/We-Dont-Hate-Sin-PC-article.pdf">https://clayjones.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/We-Dont-Hate-Sin-PC-article.pdf</a>.
I refrain from going into more detail, but the disgusting, degrading practices
of the Canaanites are on record, as Jones shows.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn2" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book%20-%20the%20conquest.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
Paul Copan, <i>Is God a Moral Monster?</i>, Baker Books, 2001, p. 176. The only
women likely to be in such places would have been those in the same profession
as Rahab.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn3" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book%20-%20the%20conquest.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn3;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> N.
T. Wright, <i>The Resurrection of the Son of God</i>, SPCK, 2003, p. 92.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn4" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Good%20Book%20-%20the%20conquest.docx#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn4;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> For
more on this, see Paul Copan, <i>Is God a Moral Monster?</i>.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-64215553152932789822021-04-09T12:19:00.005+01:002021-04-09T12:19:36.067+01:00It is finished<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">I imagine many victims of
crucifixion just before they died would have gasped, “It is finished.” They had
tried to overthrow Rome, but their efforts were in vain. However, they wouldn’t
have used the word Jesus used. He didn’t use a word that merely signified the
end of something, but rather the accomplishment of something. It was a cry of
victory, not a sigh of defeat. The word He used could be translated,
“Fulfilled”, or “Paid”, or “Completed”.<span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1)<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span></b><!--[endif]--><b><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Scripture’s prophecies – fulfilled <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The Old Testament prophesied
the crucifixion of Christ hundreds of years before crucifixion had been
invented. Just before He died, Jesus cried out, “Fulfilled!” We can go back to
passages like Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53 (just to name two), passages that
indisputably <i>predate</i> the crucifixion of Christ, and see that they
indisputably <i>predict</i> the crucifixion of Christ.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">How do we account for this?
The only answer that makes sense is the answer the Bible gives, “All Scripture
is given by inspiration of God” (2 Timothy 3:16).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">This shows that the Bible is
God’s word, and you can trust it. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2)<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span></b><!--[endif]--><b><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Sin’s penalty – paid <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The word the Lord used also
indicates the payment of a price. Sin carries a penalty we can never fully pay,
and yet the penalty must be paid – God can’t set aside the demands of His law.
That’s why the Lord went to the cross – to pay the penalty for human sin. He
said in Luke 12:50, “I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how distressed I
am till it is accomplished!” He was referring to His “baptism” in God’s
judgment. He was able to say what no one in hell will ever say – “It is paid!”
To prove the penalty was fully paid, God raised Him from the dead.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3)<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span></b><!--[endif]--><b><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Salvation’s provision – completed <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Just before the Buddha died, he said, “Strive without
ceasing.” This is the message of religion – keep on working. What a contrast
with the gospel. Just before Christ died, He said, “It is completed” – you can
cease striving. Rest on what He has done. Receive the gift of salvation He has
provided.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">For everyone else, death is the end of their accomplishments.
For Christ, His death was the accomplishment of His end – it was the goal of
His mission – to fulfil the prophecies of Scripture, pay the penalty of sin and
make the provision of salvation.<o:p></o:p></span></p>Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-90345228779707157832021-04-09T12:18:00.000+01:002021-04-09T12:18:07.306+01:00The fear of death and the death of fear<p><i><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Inasmuch then as
the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in
the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death,
that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their
lifetime subject to bondage. </span></i><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">(Hebrews
2:14-15)</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Someone has said that this
world is a dangerous place – you won’t get out of it alive. Death is a reality
we all must face, and yet, so many bury their head in the sand, and refuse to
think about it. It doesn’t have to be that way. The fear of death can be
replaced by the death of fear.<span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1)<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span></b><!--[endif]--><b><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The fear of death<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">There is no mystery in why
people have a fear of death. It means leaving everything we know and everyone
we love. But the fear isn’t just caused by what we are leaving, but also by the
knowledge of where we are going.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The Bible says that God “has
put eternity in [our] hearts” (Eccl. 3:11), and that He has written “the work
of the law” on our hearts (Rom. 2:15), so that we know, without anyone needing
to tell us, that death isn’t the end, and that we are guilty before God. There
is a God to meet, and a judgment to come, and because of the wrong we have
done, we know that we deserve punishment. The Bible, which has proven itself to
get it right when it talks about the future, tells us that the punishment we
deserve for our sins is hell.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">It is no wonder then that we
are gripped by the fear of death. But that grip can be broken.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -18.0pt;"><!--[if !supportLists]--><b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2)<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span></b><!--[endif]--><b><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The death of fear<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The reason for our fear is
sin, and the fact that our sin must be paid for. The Bible tells us that the
Son of God came into the world to pay that penalty for us. The one who was
eternally one with God became one with us so that He could pay for the sin of
mankind. That’s why He went to the cross. His resurrection from the dead is the
proof that the price was fully paid.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The fear of death is
understandable, but it is not unavoidable. All who repent and trust in Christ
for salvation have the promise that they are forgiven and will be in the
enjoyment of God’s presence for all eternity. The death and resurrection of
Christ is the death of fear to all who turn to Him.<o:p></o:p></span></p>Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-57221362426139106112021-03-18T10:45:00.003+00:002021-10-28T15:37:25.740+01:00The Good Book?<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">It used to be that the Bible
was known as the “Good Book”, and those who believed it were viewed by society
as moral people. Society has changed, and there is an increasing number of
people who say that the Bible is an evil book and those who believe it are
immoral.<span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">A lot of these objections
are “understandable misunderstandings”. That is, I can see why people are
horrified by certain verses or passages, but they have misunderstood either the
<i>intent</i> of the passage (i.e., the author wasn’t presenting this as a good
thing, he was merely describing what happened) or the <i>content</i> of the
passage (i.e., they have imported wrong ideas into the passage).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">One of the things that
people understandably object to is that slavery seems to be condoned in the
Bible. There are instructions in both the Old Testament and the New Testament
on how to treat slaves. Why would God allow such an evil practice? <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Here are three things to
keep in mind.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">God’s prototype<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">God’s original plan for
mankind is seen in Genesis 1 and 2 – man and woman living in harmony together,
in fellowship with God, as stewards of His creation. God created human beings
in His image, meaning that they have inherent and infinite value, and are not
to treated as means to ends. They are not commodities. He states that creation
is given for man to use, but humans aren’t given for us to use. This shows
right away that slavery is not God’s intention. In fact, when you look at the
creation stories from the ancient religions, the gods created humans as slaves
– they were created to do the dirty work the gods couldn’t be bothered doing. The
Babylonian creation myth, <i>Artrahasis</i>, says:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.1pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">When the gods
instead of man<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.1pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Did the work,
bore the loads,<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.1pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The gods load
was too great;<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.1pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The work too
hard, the trouble too much…<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.1pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Belet Ili the
womb goddess is present – <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.1pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Let her create
primeval man<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">So that he may
bear the yoke.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">It is no surprise then that
slavery arose from cultures that had that worldview. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Slavery is something that issued
from the fall and man’s sin; it is not something that issued from creation.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">God’s
prohibitions<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In the Mosaic Law, God
forbids stealing and selling humans. In fact, anyone who engaged in human
trafficking was to be put to death:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.1pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">He who kidnaps a
man and sells hum, or if he is found in his hand, shall surely be put to death.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm; text-align: right;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Exodus 21:16<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">This is confirmed in the New
Testament. In 1 Timothy 1:9-11 Paul puts kidnappers in the same list as
murderers, fornicators and others, as those whose behaviour is opposed to sound
doctrine and contrary to the “glorious gospel of the blessed God”.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Furthermore, the Lord Jesus
taught us to love our enemies (Matthew 5:44) and do unto others as we would
have them do unto us (Matthew 7:12).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">These verses unequivocally condemn
the whole enterprise of the slave trade.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">So, what was going on in the
Old Testament then when God gave instructions regarding slaves? We have to try
and rid ourselves of the notion that this is the kind of slavery that existed
in the southern United States. The slavery in the nation of Israel was
indentured service. If you were in over your head in debt or had robbed
someone, you could put yourself into the employ of your creditor or victim and
work for him, getting your lodgings and food in his home. The servant was to be
regarded as a hired worker, not a mere slave (Leviticus 25:39-40). At the end
of the seven-year period of servitude he could go free, with sufficient
resources to stand on his own two feet (Deuteronomy 15:12-15). People in our
society condemn this as primitive and harsh? This is reparative justice. Is our
system that puts the offender in prison at greater expense to society really
better?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In terms of foreign servants,
the land of Canaan was given by God to the nation of Israel (to provide a place
for the arrival of the Messiah for the blessing of the world). So, only
Israelites were allowed to own land. If foreigners wanted to live in the
Israelite community then they had to be incorporated into a home, and the only
way poor foreigners could do this was by selling themselves into servanthood.
As we have seen, the Israelites were explicitly forbidden to steal anyone for
slavery. There were regulations to ensure their humane treatment, and when
these regulations are compared with how other Ancient Near Eastern cultures treated
slaves (see, for instance, the Code of Hammurabi), the contrast is stark. The
strangers in the land were not to be oppressed and the reason God gives for
this is that He loves them (Deuteronomy 10:18-19).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">God’s programme<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">God’s original plan was that humans would live in harmony
with God and each other. Sin spoiled the relationship between God and man, and
marred the relationships that exist between humans. Man became self-centred
and, rather than looking for ways to serve others, wanted to be served – thus
slavery arose. And slavery was a universal fact. Every culture engaged in it. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">God’s programme for the world is to restore that harmony – to
bring about a world in which slavery will not exist. But God was working with
real people in the real world. The Lord Jesus shows us this in Matthew 19. He
is asked a question about divorce, and He takes them back to the beginning,
showing them that God’s original plan is one man and one woman becoming one flesh
for life. They then asked Him, “Why then did Moses command to give a
certificate of divorce…?” The Lord replied, “Moses, because of the hardness of
your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was
not so.” Notice, the civil law of Moses does not express God’s ideal
arrangements for society. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">To illustrate the point, let’s assume that human activity is
causing real damage to the climate, and the only way to save the planet is to
go back to agrarian societies – no cars, no factories, etc. There is no way
such a massive change could be implemented in one leap. It would have to be
done step by step. Similarly, the Mosaic law makes provisions for practices
that were so imbedded in human activity that it just wasn’t practical to
eliminate them all at once. The Mosaic law put up safeguards, made improvements
and changed attitudes. It was progress on the journey.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">When we come to the New Testament, the slavery that existed
was not a Christian invention – it was Roman slavery. Timothy Keller writes:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">[T]here was not a great difference between slaves and the
average free person. Slaves were not distinguishable from others by race,
speech or clothing. They looked and lived like most everyone else, and were not
segregated from the rest of society in any way. From a financial standpoint,
slaves made the same wages as free labourers, and therefore were not usually
poor. Also, slaves could accrue enough personal capital to buy themselves out.
Most important of all, very few slaves were slaves for life. Most could
reasonably hope to be manumitted within ten or fifteen years, or by their late
thirties at the latest.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">This is not to defend Roman slavery, but merely to understand
it. It was not “slavery” as we think of it, i.e., New World slavery. Those who
take issue with the New Testament giving instructions to slaves and masters
really need to get into the real world. If Paul had commanded all Christian
slave owners to free their slaves, or if he had commanded all slaves to rise up
against their masters, what would have happened? Slavery was such a part of
Roman life that crucifixion was the punishment for a disobedient slave. The
best place for a slave to have been in that society was with a Christian. For
Paul to call for the overthrow of this institution would have been taken as an
act of revolution and would have resulted in a lot of bloodshed and wouldn’t
have got rid of slavery. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Instead, what Paul did was subvert slavery and show that it
is antithetical to Christianity. He says in Galatians 3:28 that, “There is
neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male
nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">Slavery was, therefore, an evil in society that the advance
of the gospel and the Christian worldview would eliminate, and so it did. Where
the gospel prospers, slavery can’t survive.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;">When the Lord returns, He will bring all creation into
“glorious liberty of the children of God” (Romans 8:21), and slavery will be
forever gone. In the meantime, He is setting people free from the worst slavery
of all – slavery to sin, and He is doing it through the gospel. “Therefore if
the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed” (John 8:36). <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-75273053604719873312021-02-12T17:48:00.004+00:002021-02-12T17:48:20.828+00:00Irrelevant Relevance<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">I was listening to a liberal
theologian talking about how Christians need to give up this obsession with the
resurrection, because we live in a scientific age in which people don’t believe
such things. He said that if we want to be relevant to the society we have to
stop insisting on scientific impossibilities like a bodily resurrection.<span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The Bible speaks about the
men of the tribe of Issachar “who had understanding of the times” (1 Chronicles
12:32). This theologian seems to have no understanding of Bible times or his
own. It was not the case that the disciples believed in the resurrection
because they weren’t scientific. People back then believed the same as we do,
dead men don’t rise. In fact, they were so convinced on that point they
believed that nothing less than a divine miracle could bring about a
resurrection, and if a someone rose from the dead then it was a proof that God
acted. Science has nothing to do with this. Science tells us what happens when
nature is left to take its course. The people back then would agree with people
now – when nature is left to take its course, dead people stay dead. That is
why, when a man who was dead didn’t stay dead, they realised God had raised
Him.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Neither does he have understanding
of his own times. The idea that the resurrection from the dead is something
that makes Christianity irrelevant is ridiculous. It is one of the things that
makes Christianity so relevant. It provides the answer to the universal problem
of death. Out of all the billions who have lived and are dead, there is one
unique person who has died and is alive. Is that not pretty relevant? It proves
He is who He claimed to be – the Son of God (Romans 1:4), and that He did what
He said He’d do – pay the penalty for sin (1 Corinthians 15:3-4). It is the
pledge that all who have bowed to Him as Lord and trusted Him as Saviour will
share in the victory and glory of His resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:51-57; 1
Thessalonians 4:13-18). The relevance of this is not local and temporal, but
universal and eternal. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;">We could stop talking about
the resurrection, and maybe some people will think we are relevant, and they
will listen to us, but it will be an irrelevant relevance because we would have
nothing to say. The most relevant message we can bring to a dying world is
“Jesus and the resurrection” (Acts 17:18).<o:p></o:p></span></p>Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-63578338836891094362021-01-18T14:21:00.004+00:002021-01-18T14:22:15.754+00:00Them and us<p style="text-align: center;"> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; text-align: center;">For the preaching of
the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is
the power of God.</span></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: right;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">1 Corinthians 1:18
(KJV)</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">We live in a time when many people are obsessed with
divisions. <span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a>Critical Race Theory (CRT) is growing in its influence and is
threatening to shatter the dream of Martin Luther King Jr – a dream in which
people are judged not by the colour of their skin but the content of their
character. That dream will never be realised if the proponents of CRT get their
way, because their doctrine is that you must judge people, not on the content
of their character, but on the colour of their skin. They want to identify and
define you primarily by colour regardless of your beliefs and values, rather
than by your beliefs and values regardless of your colour. As far as the Bible
is concerned, there are only two races – there is the natural human race with
Adam as the head, and then there is the new human race with Christ as the head
– both are composed of people of every colour and from every culture. <span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">We are not only seeing the promotion of racial
division, but political division too. I remember when people on either side of
the political divide would see their opponents as people who had the same goal
(the good of society) but a different view of what the good was or how to
achieve it. This allowed for sharp but civil and somewhat friendly
disagreements. Now, your political opponent is your enemy, intent on the
destruction of society. Brexit / Remain, Labour / Conservative, Republican /
Democrat – the hatred between these opposing sides is often unconcealed.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">1 Corinthians 1:18 shows how God divides humanity.
The gospel presents a “them” and “us” scenario – “them that perish” and “us
which are saved”. This is the division that really counts. Here are three
points to consider about this division:</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Each one of “us” was once one of “them”</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Those of us who are saved should never forget that we
were once in the category of “them that perish”. No one is born into the saved group.
Because of Adam’s sin, we are all born outside of Eden, away from God, not
enjoying the blessings humanity was created for, not fulfilling the purpose we
were designed for. In our rebellion we earned God’s judgment, and were in
danger of being lost forever, but we have been saved.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">We need to remind ourselves often that, “I once was
lost, but now am found…” These reminders would preserve us from being
discontent and help us to be thankful. You may have big problems in your life,
but if there was an offer on the table that all your problems would go away if
you would move from the saved category into the perishing category, would you
do it? Of course you wouldn’t. You realise this, salvation is a far greater
blessing than anything else. God gave His Son for you, you are forgiven, a
child of God, brought into the family of God, united to Christ to share His
glory forever, and you deserved none of that. By merit, you should have been
lost, but now you are saved – be thankful. </span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Notice as well, the division isn’t “them that perish”
and “us which are good / religious”. We didn’t work our way out of the
perishing category – we were rescued from it. We were helpless to get out. This
will preserve us from looking down our nose at “them that perish” – we are no
better than them – it was grace that rescued us.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Any one of “them” can become one of “us”</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">The door that was open for us is open for them and
all are welcome. The power that delivered us can deliver them, no matter who
they are, no matter what they have done. </span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">So, don’t lose hope for your friends who are not yet
saved, or if you aren’t saved, don’t lose hope for yourself. The love that took
Christ into death show us He is willing to save. The power that brought Him out
of death shows us that He is able to save.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">No matter how bad someone is, we can produce someone
who is now in the “saved” group who was worse. The gospel “is the power of God
to salvation for everyone who believes” (Romans 1:16).</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">None of “us” can become one of “them”</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">The door between “them” and “us” only opens one way.
It’s great to know people can go from “perishing” to “saved”, but it’s even
better to know that no one can go from “saved” to “perishing”. </span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">God the Father ensures the eternal security of
everyone who is saved – we “are kept by the power of God through faith for
salvation” (1 Peter 1:5).</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">The Son of God ensures the eternal security of
everyone who is saved – “the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out”
(John 6:37).</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">The Spirit of God ensures the eternal security of
everyone who is saved – “having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit
of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the
purchased possession, to the praise of His glory” (Ephesians 1:13-14).</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Conclusion</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">When it comes to these divisive issues, there is a
lot of importance placed on making sure you are “on the right side of history.”
People are very concerned with how people in the future will look back on them.
It will make no difference to us how people in the future view us. The most
important thing is to be on the right side of eternity. All other divisions
disappear with the great equaliser of death. The division between saved and
perishing remains, with this difference – it will not be possible then to move
from saved to perishing. </span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-69313115379849549212020-12-31T12:06:00.008+00:002020-12-31T13:34:10.248+00:00A call to join the resistance<p> <span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 10pt;">…as
sorrowful, yet always rejoicing</span></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-align: right;"><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">2 Corinthians 6:10</span></i><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm; margin: 0cm 26.05pt 0cm 1cm;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">A
little way off at the foot of a tree sat a merry party… “What is the meaning of
this?” asked the Witch Queen. Nobody answered. </span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm; margin: 0cm 26.05pt 0cm 1cm;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">“Speak,
vermin!” she said again. “Or do you want my dwarf to find you a tongue with his
whip? What is the meaning of all this gluttony, this waste, this
self-indulgence? Where did you get all these things?”</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-align: right;"><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe</span></i><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm; margin: 0cm 26.05pt 0cm 1cm;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Enemy-occupied
territory – that is what this world is. Christianity is the story of how the
rightful king has landed, you might say landed in disguise, and is calling us
all to take part in a great campaign of sabotage.</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-align: right;"><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Mere Christianity</span></i><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0cm; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm; margin: 0cm 26.05pt 0cm 1cm;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Though
the fig tree may not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines; though the labour of
the olive may fail, and the fields yield no food; though the flock may be cut
off from the fold, and there be no herd in the stalls – yet I will rejoice in
the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation.</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p align="right" class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; text-align: right;"><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Habakkuk 3:17-18<span></span></span></i></p><a name='more'></a><i><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></i><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">For
many people, and for many reasons, this year has been miserable. I understand
and feel that, but I want to appeal to my fellow Christians not to surrender to
misery. The “god of this age” (2 Corinthians 4:4), the devil, wants us to
elevate created things to the position of the Creator, and to make our joy
dependent on our circumstances. When we do that we are acting as if there is no
God, no salvation, no eternity, and this world is all there is.</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">One
of the most powerful and heroic acts of warfare a Christian soldier can engage
in is to look at all the sadness, horror and tragedy, and say, “yet I will rejoice…”
This is not to minimise suffering, or to be insensitive to sufferers, but it is
an insistence that Satan is not in control and it won’t always be like this.
God is in control, and all will be well, and I have so much to be thankful for
– I will rejoice.</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">The
White Witch in Narnia was furious to see feasting and rejoicing during her
reign. Where did they get all these good things? It certainly wasn’t from her.
They had been supplied from an outside source. So, when the Christian sits amid
the devastation, then gets up and praises God and has a feast of joy, it
demands the question, “Where did you get all these things?” The source of our
joy is God and the salvation He has given us – nothing can touch that.</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">So,
yes, 2020 has been hard, it has brought huge loss and heartbreak, but don’t bow
to the tyrant’s demand to be miserable. A broken heart can still sing and a
tear-stained face can still shine. God is still good, Christ still lives and I
am His – I am going to rejoice.</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-21514624458684030492020-12-17T11:42:00.009+00:002020-12-17T11:42:40.606+00:00Christmas Savings<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">“Christmas”
and “saving” aren’t words that we immediately link together. “Christmas” and
“spending” or “Christmas” and “debt” seem to fit better, but really Christmas
is all about saving.<span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a> <span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">The
angel announced to Joseph that the baby Mary would give birth to would be
called Jesus (meaning the Lord saves), “for He will save His people from their
sins” (Matthew 1:21). That was the purpose of the Lord coming into the world –
that’s the reason for Christmas.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">We
all know that we have sinned, but not everyone knows that we need to be saved
from our sins. Maybe you think sin is nothing to worry about, no big deal. You
could not be more wrong. We are going to look at three things the Bible says
sin does to us, and it will show us how much we need to be saved from our sins,
and I hope will make us thankful that there is one who is able to save us from
our sins.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">Sin
condemns us</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">Sin
isn’t just a slip or a flaw. It’s a crime. When we sin we break God’s law, and
that means we are condemned. We have a guilty past, a criminal record, and
there is a judge who is all-knowing and absolutely righteous. He isn’t going to
overlook our crimes. Because sin is an infinite offence to God, the penalty is
one we can never fully pay, meaning that we will be under the sentence
eternally. Little wonder the Bible says, “we must be saved” (Acts 4:12), and
little wonder the angel said that the announcement of a Saviour was “good
tidings of great joy” (Luke 2:10).</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">There
is nothing we can do to save ourselves from sin’s condemnation, but there was
something the Lord Jesus did – He went to the cross, and bore the condemnation
due to sin (Romans 8:3). He paid the penalty in full, and proved it by rising
from the dead. If you will repent and accept God’s offer of a substitute you
will be saved from sin’s condemnation (Romans 8:1). </span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">Sin
contaminates us</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">Sin
leaves its defiling blemish upon our soul so that the Isaiah the prophet says,
“we are all like an unclean thing” (Isaiah 64:6). When the Bible speaks about
that beautiful heavenly city, it says, “there shall by no means enter into it
anything that defiles” (Revelation 21:27). The qualification for entering
heaven is not to be “cleaner” than other people, but to be “clean”, and none of
us is. But although we are not clean, we can be cleansed. The Lord is able to
save us from the contamination of sin. He says, “I will deliver you from all
your uncleannesses” (Ezekiel 36:29). </span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">You
maybe feel the filth of sin in your own life. Because of the life you have
lived and the things you have done your mind is defiled and your heart soiled.
There is a wonderful verse in the Bible which says, “the blood of Jesus Christ
His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7). Every single stain sin has left
upon your soul can be washed away. Mark 1:40-42 tells us about a man who had
leprosy, and he came to the feet of Jesus saying, “If You are willing, You can
make me clean.” Those last three words maybe express the longing of your heart
– “make me clean.” The Lord Jesus said to that man, “I am willing; be cleansed”,
and immediately he was cleansed of his leprosy. This is a picture of the
cleansing from sin you will have if you kneel before the Lord as he did, and
say, “Make me clean.”</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">Sin
controls us</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">Sin
has a power over us, so that we cannot live the life God wants us to live or
enjoy the blessings God intended us to enjoy. As you think of the Christian
life, you just can’t imagine ever being able to live a life like that and you
are convinced you could never be happy – it’s just not your thing. But that is
the same for everyone. No one is “naturally” able to live a Christian life. But
when we come to Christ for forgiveness, He sets us free from the dominion of
sin and gives us a new life, and this enables us to live and love the Christian
life. It’s one of the things that proves the reality of the gospel message.
Jesus said, “Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed”
(John 8:36).</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Sin
is an awful problem – you really do need to be saved from it. But Christ is a
wonderful Saviour – He is able to save you from you sins.</span> </p>Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-12662853566208570012020-11-20T14:06:00.004+00:002020-11-26T17:14:59.652+00:00Abraham & Isaac<p><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 10pt;">Genesis
22 is a chapter that puzzles and offends many people. God tells Abraham to
sacrifice his son, Abraham is about to do it, then God steps in and stops it.
Why would God be so cruel to Abraham and Isaac? What does it say about a God
who would ask for such a thing, or Abraham who would do it? What would a
Christian do if God asked the same of them? Do Christians think it’s noble to
kill your son if God says to? Can God command anything? If we isolate the
chapter from its biblical and historical context then it understandably leads
to these troubling questions, but that’s not because we’ve understood what’s
going on, but rather we’ve misunderstood.<span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">To
understand this incident, we need to see it in light of Abraham’s present, his
past and his future.</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Abraham’s
present</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Child
sacrifice was something that many ancient religions practiced. If people had
heard that Abraham was going to sacrifice his son there wouldn’t have been
shock and horror. God took Abraham to the brink and stopped him to show to him
vividly that Yahweh does not want human sacrifice. He is different than the
tribal deities around Abraham, and the great nation that would come from
Abraham would be different than all the nations around, and would not sacrifice
their children.</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">The
sacrificing of children was one of the reasons God expelled the Canaanites from
the land in the days of Joshua (see Deuteronomy 18:9-14). God told His people
they were to have nothing to do with such “abominations”. </span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">The
revulsion we feel as we consider child sacrifice is a product of the influence
of the Bible. Child sacrifice has been practised by almost every culture
historically, and tragically it is still practised in our “enlightened”
culture. Every day, thousands of children are sacrificed on the altars of
abortion clinics to the great god of “choice”. If someone supports this, then
their condemnation of the account in Genesis 22 seems more than a bit hypocritical.</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">I
have heard atheists challenge Christians by asking, “Would you sacrifice your
son if God told you to?” And they are missing the point. Genesis 22 isn’t
saying God might ask you to sacrifice your son; it is saying He never will.
That’s not the kind of God He is.</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Abraham’s
past</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">God
was not testing Abraham’s love but his faith. God had told Abraham that the
great nation that would bless the world would come through Isaac (Genesis
17:19, 21). Was Abraham prepared to trust God even when he didn’t understand? </span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Earlier,
Abraham, at Sarah’s insistence, had been prepared to send his other son,
Ishmael, out to what would have been certain death. God gave him a promise that
He would preserve Ishmael (21:12-13). Abraham had trusted God with his less
favoured son, but would he trust Him with his beloved son? The whole experience
was also going to give Abraham a taste of the heartache that Hagar (Ishmael’s
mother) experienced as a result of his actions.</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Abraham
did trust God to work things out. In verse 5 Abraham showed that he fully
expected to come back down the mountain with Isaac again. Hebrews 11:17 tells
us that he reckoned God was going to raise Isaac from the dead. He knew somehow
it would all work out, because God had promised.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/Abraham%20&amp;%20Isaac.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> </span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Abraham’s
future</span></b><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">This
incident was a picture of something that would happen in the future. As Paul
said in Romans 8:32, God “did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for
us all”. Genesis 22:2 gives us the first mention of love in the Old Testament,
and it is the love of Abraham for his son. It is no coincidence that the first
mention of love in the New Testament is the love of God the Father for His Son
– “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17). The Lord
Jesus said that Abraham was given a revelation of the coming Messiah (John 8:56)
– it could well be that Mount Moriah was where that happened. He learned, “I
don’t have to give my son for God; God is going to give His Son for me.” “For
God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever
believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">When
you extract Genesis 22 from its setting, it is a challenging chapter, but seeing
it in the context of Abraham’s present, past and future puts it in a vastly
different light. Rather than it being a source of embarrassment for Christians,
it is a source of wonder and a cause for worship.</span></p><div style="mso-element: footnote-list;">
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/Abraham%20&amp;%20Isaac.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
It’s worth noting as well that Isaac wasn’t a little boy. In verse 5 Abraham
calls him “the lad” but this is a word that is translated elsewhere in Genesis
as “young man”, e.g., 14:24; 18:7. It is also used of Ishmael in chapter 21
when he was in his teens. The point is Abraham who was well over 100 could not
have offered Isaac unless Isaac had been willing. Isaac was trusting God to
fulfil His promise too.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-6852303986681503812020-10-15T16:17:00.007+01:002020-10-15T16:17:46.072+01:00Why didn't He say so?<p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">A <a href="http://greatnews4all.blogspot.com/2020/09/why-didnt-he-say-something.html">previous blog post</a> dealt with some moral issues Jesus didn’t mention directly.
This one looks at a theological issue – why didn’t He say, “I am God”?<span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">This
is a question raised by people who deny the deity of Christ. They say, “If
Jesus was God, then why not just say it?” But this objection has a couple of
problems.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">It
misses how His hearers would have understood that claim</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">If
Jesus said, “I am God”, He would have been completely misunderstood. His
hearers would have thought that He was saying that God was actually a man – the
divine nature was a human nature. They would have taken Him to be saying that
God is not the transcendent being whose throne is in heaven, who fills the
universe, but rather He is like the pagan deities who have human-like limitations.
This, then, would have prevented any Jew from giving Him a hearing. </span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">So,
the biblical truth of the Trinity would have been missed by Jesus simply
saying, “I am God”, and the biblical truth of the incarnation would likewise
have been misunderstood by such a statement. The reality of the Trinity and the
incarnation can’t be communicated accurately or adequately in a soundbite. </span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">It
misses how His hearers did understand the claims He made</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">The
Lord Jesus said and did things that left people in no doubt that He was
claiming deity, and yet not claiming to be the Father. He said and did things
that only God could say and do, and yet He spoke about Himself as a real man
and the Father (and the Holy Spirit) as a distinct person. This resulted in
Christians examining the Old Testament Scriptures and seeing that God is
revealed there in a way that demands the doctrine of the Trinity (e.g. Gen.
1:26-27), and the Messiah is presented there in a way that demands the doctrine
of the incarnation (e.g. Isa. 9:6).</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">The
Jewish leaders recognised Jesus claimed to be God – that’s why they condemned
Him to death. It’s not blasphemy to claim to be the Messiah. It’s not even
blasphemy to claim to be a pre-existent person. But it would be blasphemy for a
creature to claim to have the nature, name and prerogatives of the God of
Israel, and that’s what Jesus claimed.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Not
only did the Jewish leaders recognise Jesus claimed to be God, but His Jewish
followers saw it too. The last people who would have believed that a man was
God were the first people who did. Jesus’ disciples were God-fearing Jews, and
yet they identified Jesus as God (e.g. John 1:1), Yahweh (e.g. 1 Peter 2:3 with
Ps. 34:8), the Author of life (Acts 3:15) and the Lord of glory (e.g. Jas.
2:1). There’s no way they could have believed such a thing unless He claimed
it, and rose from the dead in vindication of those claims.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Jesus
knew what He was doing when He revealed the truth of His identity. It led to
Thomas calling Him, “My Lord and my God” (John 20:28), and anyone looking at
the evidence honestly will be led to the same conclusion and the same
confession.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-86045127591194154642020-10-02T21:47:00.003+01:002020-10-02T21:47:28.996+01:00I would be satisfied if...<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/jtuxeerv8kk" width="320" youtube-src-id="jtuxeerv8kk"></iframe></div><br /><p></p>Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-51707689559413446632020-09-29T16:21:00.002+01:002020-09-29T16:22:03.377+01:00Why didn't He say something?<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">Sometimes
silence says a lot, and other times people read too much into it.</span><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: rgb(254, 254, 254); line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><a name="more"></a><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #333333; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">I have met challenges on four areas
to do with Jesus' supposed failure to speak. Three of them are moral issues,
which we will look at now, and one is theological, which we will look at in a
later blog post.<span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #333333; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"><o:p></o:p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: rgb(254, 254, 254); line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-outline-level: 2;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #333333; font-size: 10pt; letter-spacing: -0.25pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">1) He never mentioned anything about homosexuality<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: rgb(254, 254, 254); line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #333333; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">The people who make this point are
usually condemning Christians for their view that homosexual behaviour is
immoral. They say, "Why are you getting so upset? Jesus never said a word
about it!" This argument is way off the mark for (at least) three reasons:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: rgb(254, 254, 254); line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-outline-level: 4;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #333333; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">(i) It ignores the
fact that Jesus believed the Hebrew Scriptures<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: rgb(254, 254, 254); line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #333333; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">Jesus of Nazareth taught that the
Hebrew Scriptures (the Old Testament) were the Word of God, and because the
Hebrew Scriptures condemn homosexual behaviour as sinful, the (supposed) silence
of Jesus on the topic indicates His agreement, <b>not</b> His
disagreement.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: rgb(254, 254, 254); line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-outline-level: 4;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #333333; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">(ii) It ignores the
fact that Jesus inspired the Hebrew Scriptures<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: rgb(254, 254, 254); line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #333333; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">Jesus of Nazareth is the God of
Israel. He is the one who is responsible for the Bible's teaching on sexual
morality, so it is false to say He never said anything about it - He did, in
the Old Testament.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: rgb(254, 254, 254); line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-outline-level: 4;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #333333; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">(iii) It ignores
what He taught<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: rgb(254, 254, 254); line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #333333; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">In Matthew 15:19 the Lord Jesus
taught that all sexual activity outside of marriage is defiling, and in Matthew
19:4-6 He defined marriage as the union of a man and a woman. There is no
doubt, Christ weighed in on the subject of homosexual behaviour, and He was
against it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: rgb(254, 254, 254); line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-outline-level: 2;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #333333; font-size: 10pt; letter-spacing: -0.25pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">2) He never mentioned anything about abortion<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: rgb(254, 254, 254); line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #333333; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">The point people are making here is
similar to the last one - Christians shouldn't get so upset about abortion
because Jesus never mentioned it. But by that logic we shouldn't worry about
sex trafficking, wife-beating, drug use and paedophilia because He never
specifically mentioned those things. I hope everyone can agree that it makes no
sense to say if He didn't condemn something by name He approved of it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: rgb(254, 254, 254); line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #333333; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">As we have already seen, if the Old
Testament teaches something, then that reflects Christ's view, and Psalm
139:13-15 affirms the humanity of the child in the womb. David doesn't say that
the thing that was being formed in his mother's womb <b>became</b> him,
but it <b>was</b> him.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: rgb(254, 254, 254); line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #333333; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">Also, even if we didn't have Psalm
139 and other passages to refer to, we can still conclude Jesus was against
abortion. I think everyone can agree that Jesus was against murder. He referred
explicitly to the sixth commandment. Murder is the unjustified taking of human
life. If abortion is the unjustified taking of human life then Christ was
against it. So, is that what abortion is? Well, it certainly is the taking of
life - there's no doubt that something is being killed, and there's no doubt
what is being killed is human life (what else could it be? It's not canine or
feline, it is human). And the taking of this human life is not justified - we
don't allow people to kill human beings for the reasons people have abortions.
Neither financial difficulties nor traumatic circumstances give people freedom
to kill their babies. Abortion is the unjustified taking of human life, and so
He did speak against it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: rgb(254, 254, 254); line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-outline-level: 2;"><b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #333333; font-size: 10pt; letter-spacing: -0.25pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">3) He never said anything about slavery<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: rgb(254, 254, 254); line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="color: #333333; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;">This statement comes from critics of
Jesus - "He wasn't that good, He never even condemned slavery!" Such
people are taking a very shallow view of the ministry of Christ. He
taught that we were to do to others what we would have them do to us (which
would mean you wouldn't enslave or sell anyone); He said we are to love our
enemies; He said He came not be served but to serve, and that the greatest in
the kingdom is the one who is servant of all. He didn't start a bloody
revolution to overthrow what was a universal institution, but started a
revolution in the heart. Slavery just doesn't fit with Jesus' view of humanity,
and His life and teachings have done more to eradicate slavery from the world
than anything else.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: #fefefe; color: #333333; font-size: 10pt;">Don't be too hasty to draw
conclusions from silence - you are maybe just not listening.</span> </p>Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-71947833631758163862020-08-27T14:04:00.004+01:002020-09-29T16:14:31.993+01:00Joy and peace<p><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Now
may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing… (Romans
15:13)</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;"><span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a>What
do you really want? My guess is that the first answer that popped into your
mind probably isn’t your real answer. Romance, success or money might immediately
come to mind, but there are so many people who could testify that these things
don’t really scratch the itch, fill the void, satisfy the longing of the human
spirit.<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">What
about joy and peace? If it were possible to have that, would you want it? The
Bible teaches, and multitudes of Christians testify, that it’s not a pipedream
or a fairy tale. Joy and peace are available.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">The
message of the gospel tells us how we can be brought into a right relationship
with God through Christ. It tells us how God overrules in all that happens in the
lives of His people for their ultimate and eternal good. It assures them of
eternal happiness that lies ahead, and promises that God is with them all the
way through this life. There is plenty of evidence that the Bible can be
trusted on these amazing claims it makes, and Christians can prove the reality
of God’s power and presence in their own lives. </span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">So,
here’s how to live with joy and peace – by believing. Even those of us who do
believe the gospel can fail to believe it functionally. We stake our eternal
future on its truth yet often live as if it isn’t true. We can get taken up
with our own plans and so, when things don’t go according to plan, we lose our
joy and get anxious. </span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">However,
if we bring the truth of the gospel into these situations, joy and peace will
remain. Whether you are suffering a minor inconvenience or a major tragedy, the
gospel assures you that you are loved by God, He is in control, He has a good
purpose, and all will be well. This allows you to have joy and peace no matter
what is going on.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">In
your trials, believe the truth of the gospel and even though you will still have
sorrow, you will have joy and peace. It’s that simple. Simple, but not easy. It
is far from easy to live in that frame of mind. It’s far from easy to have joy
and peace when the burdens of life are crushing you. That’s why Paul says at
the end of the verse that this can only be done “by the power of the Holy
Spirit.” This requires nothing less that omnipotence. We can’t naturally live
like this. The Christian needs to draw on the strength and resources of the
Holy Spirit. </span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">The
Christian philosopher, William Lane Craig, <a href="https://www.reasonablefaith.org/podcasts/defenders-podcast-series-3/s3-excursus-on-natural-theology/excursus-on-natural-theology-part-34" target="_blank">quotes</a> a story one of his
colleagues, Thomas Schmidt, wrote about. It really makes the point. Schmidt regularly
visited nursing homes to spend time with people who didn’t get visitors. He
recounts an incident one Mother’s Day:</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">On
this particular day I was walking in a hallway that I had not visited before
looking in vain for a few who were alive enough to receive a flower and a few
words of encouragement. This hallway seemed to contain some of the worst cases.
Strapped onto carts or into wheelchairs and looking completely helpless.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">As
I neared the end of this hallway I saw an old woman strapped in a wheelchair,
her face was an absolute horror. The empty stare and white pupils of her eyes
told me that she was blind. The large hearing aid over one ear told me that she
was almost deaf. One side of her face was being eaten by cancer. There was a
discolored and running sore covering part of one cheek and it had pushed her
nose to the side, dropped one eye and distorted her jaw so that what should
have been the corner of her mouth was the bottom of her mouth. As a
consequence, she drooled constantly. I also learned later that this woman was
89 years old and that she had been bedridden, blind, nearly deaf and alone for
25 years. This was Mabel.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">I
don’t know why I spoke to her. She looked less likely to respond than most of
the people I saw in that hallway. But I put a flower in her hand and said,
“Here is a flower for you, Happy Mother’s Day.” She held the flower up to her
face and tried to smell it and then she spoke and much to my surprise her
words, though somewhat garbled because of her deformity, were obviously produced
by a clear mind. She said, “Thank you, it’s lovely, but can I give it to
someone else? I can’t see it you know, I’m blind.”</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">I
said, “of course,” and I pushed her in her chair back down the hallway to a
place where I thought I could find some alert patients. I found one and stopped
the chair. Mabel held out the flower and said, “Here, this is from Jesus.”</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">It
was then that it began to dawn on me that this was not an ordinary human being.
. . Mabel and I became friends over the next few weeks and I went to see her
once or twice a week for the next three years. . . It was not many weeks before
I turned from a sense that I was being helpful to a sense of wonder. And I
would go to her with a pen and paper to write down the things she would say. .
. </span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">During
one hectic week of final exams, I was frustrated because my mind seemed to be
pulled in ten directions at once with all of the things that I had to think
about. The question occurred to me, what does Mabel have to think about? Hour
after hour, day after day, week after week, not even able to know if it is day
or night. So I went to her and asked, “Mabel, what do you think about when you
lie here?”</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">And
she said, “I think about my Jesus.”</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">I
sat there and thought for a moment about the difficulty for me of thinking
about Jesus for even five minutes. And I asked, “What do you think about
Jesus?” She replied slowly and deliberately as I wrote, and this is what she
said,</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">I
think how good he has been to me. He has been awfully good to me in my life,
you know. . . I’m one of those kind who’s mostly satisfied. . . Lots of folks
would think I’m kind of old-fashioned. But I don’t care. I’d rather have Jesus,
he is all the world to me.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">And
then Mabel began to sing an old hymn:</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Jesus
is all the world to me,<br />
My life, my joy, my all.<br />
He is my strength from day to day,<br />
Without him, I would fall.<br />
When I am sad, to him I go.<br />
No other one can cheer me so.<br />
When I am sad, he makes me glad.<br />
He’s my friend.</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">This
is not fiction. Incredible as it may seem, a human being really lived like
this. I know, I knew her. How could she do it? Seconds ticked and minutes
crawled, and so did days and weeks and months and years of pain without human
company and without an explanation of why it was all happening – and she laid
there and sang hymns. How could she do it?</span><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 8.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">The
answer, I think, is that Mabel had something that you and I don’t have much of.
She had power. Lying there, in that bed, unable to move, unable to see, unable
to hear, unable to talk to anyone . . . she had incredible power.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-color-alt: windowtext;">Is
there any worldview other than Christianity that could give Mabel this joy and
peace? Is there any person other than Jesus that could do it? Is there any
power other than the power of the Holy Spirit that could do it?</span></p>Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-10660870440647812472020-08-26T21:40:00.001+01:002020-08-26T21:46:13.423+01:00The gospel in 25 words<p> A gospel message based on John 3:16.</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/DThzYjn2spY" width="320" youtube-src-id="DThzYjn2spY"></iframe></div><br /><p></p>Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-382875421671927532020-08-21T18:46:00.000+01:002020-08-21T18:46:02.359+01:00The Trinity - it matters more than you think<p><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Some
people dismiss it as an invention of the church, while others ignore it as a
point of doctrine that theologians in ivory towers talk about because they have
nothing useful to do.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">But the
truth of the Trinity is more important and relevant than you could imagine.<span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><o:p></o:p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">This
isn’t something that developed in the early centuries of the Christian era.
It’s something that is found right on the very first page of the Bible. In
Genesis 1:26 God says, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our
likeness”, showing us that within the being of God there is a plurality of
persons – there is relationship, communication, love. This plurality within the
nature of God is all throughout the Old Testament, and then is fully revealed
in the incarnation of the Son and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">But
why does it matter? <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">If God
were just a single solitary person, then it would make no sense to say that His
nature is love, because love requires an object as well as a subject. C. S.
Lewis said, “All sorts of people are fond of repeating the Christian statement
that ‘God is love’. But they seem not to notice that the words ‘God is love’
have no real meaning unless God contains at least two Persons. Love is
something that one person has for another person. If God was a single person,
then before the world was made, He was not love.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Trinity%20-%20it%20matters%20more%20than%20you%20think.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> Real love isn’t
self-centred but is self-giving (1 Cor. 13:5). A unitarian God could not have
love as His essence.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Aristotle,
the Greek philosopher reasoned that, since God is the greatest good, He must be
loving and kind, but it makes no sense to say that God was loving and kind when
He was all on His own, so the universe must be eternal in order that there
would be an object for God’s love. But this makes God dependent on His creation
– He would not be self-sufficient, but rather would need something outside
Himself for His fulfilment.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Only
in the doctrine of the Trinity do we have a God who is essentially and
eternally loving and self-sufficient. He experienced and enjoyed love, yet
didn’t need creatures to do it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">So, if
you think love is real and love is good, trace that river back to the source.
The source of love isn’t mindless matter, an impersonal life-force, or a
unitarian god, but a tri-personal God who existed forever in loving
relationship. If you deny the Trinity you have no foundation for affirming the
reality or virtue of love. Love is real and good because it flows from the
nature of God – the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<div style="mso-element: footnote-list;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20Trinity%20-%20it%20matters%20more%20than%20you%20think.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> C.
S. Lewis, <i>Mere Christianity</i>, HarperCollins, 2002, p. 174.<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-75382142988123394152020-07-18T20:49:00.001+01:002020-09-29T16:26:40.869+01:00The Way<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;">
<span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;">Before
Christianity was called Christianity, it was called “The Way” (Acts 9:2; 19:9,
23; 22:4; 24:14, 22). The reason for this is they were believers in the one who
said, “I am the way” (John 14:6). Maybe you are feeling lost in life. Let’s
think how Jesus is the way.<span><a name='more'></a></span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;">
<b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;">He’s
the surest way to gladness<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;">
<span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;">Everyone
wants to be happy, and you might feel happy enough with the way your life is,
but if the source of your happiness is something this world has given, then
it’s something this world can take – your happiness is vulnerable – it will be
taken from you at some time and it may be taken from you at any time. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;">
<span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;">The
gospel of Christ offers you blessings that the world can’t give or take. That
means that if disaster strikes, or when trials come, the Christian always has
something to rejoice in. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;">
<span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;">Also,
if the source of our happiness is something this world has given, then not only
does that source not last, but the happiness doesn’t either. Whatever gives you
gladness in this world is something you will tire of eventually if you are
looking to it for fulfilment. Solomon put it like this, “All the rivers run
into the sea, yet the sea is not full” (Ecclesiastes 1:7). The human heart is
too big for the world to fill. Christ is an eternal source of eternal joy. He
is big enough to fill your heart and satisfy your spirit forever.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;">
<b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;">He's
the best way to goodness<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;">
<span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;">A
lot of people think that the purpose of religion is to make people good, and it
is arrogant to say one way is better than another. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;">
<span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;">Let’s
just ignore for the moment the mistaken presumption about the purpose of
religion, and acknowledge that many religions help people live decent lives, (although
there is no faith that can match Christianity for the powerful, positive
changes it makes in individuals and societies).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;">
<span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;">However,
I want to suggest that every worldview apart from Christianity is a barrier to
true goodness, because they all encourage you to do “good” for your own sake.
If you want to get to heaven, paradise, nirvana etc. you have to live a “good
life”. This leads to you doing “good works” so that you get a reward, but
that’s just self-interest, not true goodness.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20way.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> This comes out over and over
again as I speak to religious people about the gospel. When I tell them that
salvation is not by works, inevitably they ask the same question, “Well, why
bother doing good works then?” By asking that question they are admitting that
their motivation is their own salvation. J. Warner Wallace has put it like
this:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm; margin: 0cm 26.05pt 6pt 1cm; text-align: justify;">
<span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;">It
seems to me that rules-based and works-based religious systems don’t actually
produce ‘good’ people. They instead produce people who LOOK good. True goodness
is a heart condition. It’s a reflection of who we are when no one is looking.
It’s a reflection of our desire to do what’s right, even when there is nothing
in it for us. It’s one thing to experience joy or satisfaction for doing what
you know you ought to do; it’s another thing to do something ONLY because you
are hoping to gain a prize. If we are only ‘performing’ because we are hoping
to get the reward of ‘Salvation’, we’re merely trying to serve ourselves by
earning a prize. On the other hand, if our hearts are so changed that we desire
to behave morally even when the carrot of salvation is not dangling in front of
us, then we can say that we truly are ‘good’ people.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; margin-left: 1.0cm; margin-right: 26.05pt; margin-top: 0cm; margin: 0cm 26.05pt 6pt 1cm; text-align: justify;">
<span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;">If you
are looking for a spiritual worldview in which truly good people are even
possible, you are going to have to look for one that does not REQUIRE good
works. Now what religious worldview teaches that Salvation is NOT the result of
anything that you can do, but is instead the result of something that has
already been done for you by God Himself? There is only one; it is called
Christianity.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20way.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;">
<span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;">Good
works are only possible if they play no part in our salvation. The Christian
does what he does, not because the carrot of salvation is dangling in front of
him, or the stick of hell is behind him – he does it for God and for others.
Furthermore, when someone receives Christ as Saviour, the Holy Spirit of God
comes to live within him to enable him to live and love a life of goodness in a
way he never could before.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;">
<b><span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;">He's
the only way to God<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;">
<span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;">Some
might say they aren’t particularly sad or bad – they have enough happiness and morality
in their lives already and so they don’t need Jesus. However, when Jesus said
He was the way, He wasn’t talking about the way to gladness or the way to
goodness, He was talking about the way to God. People might have gladness or
goodness to some degree without Christ, but they can’t have God without Him.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;">
<span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;">We
are separated from God because of the wrong we have done, and, because God is a
God of perfect justice, those sins must be answered for and the penalty paid.
That’s why no amount of working on our part can ever bring us to God, and
that’s why Jesus is the way. He came from heaven and became a man so that He
could act as our representative. When He was on the cross He gave Himself to
take the punishment sinners deserve and make the payment God demands. His
resurrection from the dead is the assurance that God’s justice has been
satisfied, and, because of that, we can be reconciled to God.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;">
<span face=""Arial",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 150%;">If
you know you are separated from God and want to be brought back, then turn to
Jesus Christ in repentance. He will bring you to God now and into heaven when
life is over. There is no other way.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6pt; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="mso-element: footnote-list;">
<!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20way.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a>
This is true even for the atheist – secular morality is essentially “treat
others as you want to be treated.” Morality can rise no higher than that
because atheism demolishes the foundation for calling anything objectively good
or evil.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn2" style="mso-element: footnote;">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/The%20way.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn2;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> <a href="https://coldcasechristianity.com/writings/stepping-toward-the-christian-god-with-a-wallet-and-a-dollar/">https://coldcasechristianity.com/writings/stepping-toward-the-christian-god-with-a-wallet-and-a-dollar/</a><o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
</div>
<br />Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-80699138640794864232020-07-11T21:23:00.000+01:002020-07-11T21:23:34.974+01:00Knowing God<a href="https://understandingthegospel.org/the-utg-podcast/episode-9-on-knowing-god-in-an-age-of-doubt/">Here</a> is a link to another Understanding the Gospel podcast I contributed to. Hope it's helpful.Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1971548280576707357.post-13885208990292128012020-07-02T17:07:00.000+01:002020-07-02T17:07:02.225+01:00Is God hiding?<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">“If
God exists, why is He so secretive about it? Why not make it more obvious?” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">The
hiddenness of God is an argument that many atheists find compelling, but when
we think about the evidence I think we will find that it certainly isn’t God is
who is hiding.</span></div>
<a name='more'></a> <o:p></o:p><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Look
at creation – you see His fingerprints<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Everywhere
we look there are the fingerprints of God.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/Is%20God%20hiding.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Think
of <i>the beginning of creation</i> – the fact that the universe came into
existence requires a cause outside of the universe, i.e. a Creator. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Think
as well of <i>the balance of creation</i> – the universe is balanced on a
razor’s edge. For the universe to exist and permit life, the physical constants
and quantities have to be <i>just right</i> to an astonishing degree of
accuracy. The fine-tuning required is breath-taking and mind-blowing. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">What
about <i>the biology of creation</i>? In our planet there is life, and the very
simplest form of life – the single cell – is far from simple. It is a complex
factory that defies naturalistic explanations. Within every cell are billions
of units of DNA. DNA is language – a set of instructions, like a computer code.
Language, information, data – whatever way people try to describe it, it
demands an intelligent source.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Finally,
consider <i>the beauty of creation</i> – we stand in awe of the majesty of the
mountains, the glory of the heavens, the power of the waves and the
tranquillity of the river, but why did it have to be this way? Our ability to
appreciate beauty is surely not a happy by-product of mindless processes. It
seems like humans and the universe were “made for each other”. We are able to
enjoy and explore, investigate and describe the workings of the universe – our
appreciation of creation should lead us to appreciate the Creator. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Look
into history – you see His footprints <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: 6.0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">The
claim of the Christian message is that God has come amongst us in the person of
Christ. But why would anyone believe such a thing? I recently heard a Christian
point out that there have been many people in history who have claimed to be
God, and there have been many people who have been widely admired and revered
for the wisdom of their teachings and the beauty of their lives, but there is
only one person whose name appears on both lists, and that’s Jesus, and that is
significant. Let me give two powerful witnesses in support that Jesus is who He
claimed to be.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">The
Old Testament Prophets<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">The
Old Testament prophets painted a portrait of a coming Saviour – He would be a
miracle worker, marked by compassion and known for His devotion to God, yet
despised and rejected by His people, condemned at an unjust trial, and led
submissively to His execution. He would be brutally disfigured, pierced through
His hands and feet, surrounded by a hostile crowd of Jews and Gentiles while He
suffered as a criminal. His bones would be dislocated, and He would be exposed
to the burning heat of the sun as He was mocked and taunted. However, He would
be raised from the dead, worshipped as God, and His name and fame would spread
across the world and throughout the ages, leading multitudes of Gentiles to
turn to the God of Israel. As you look at the outline sketched by these
prophets, is there anyone who fills it? Yes, and only one – Jesus. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">The
point is these prophets said that this Saviour would be none less than God. If
He did what the prophets said He would do, then that’s good reason to believe
He is who the prophets said He would be.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">The
New Testament Apostles<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">The
last people in the world who would believe that a man was God were the first
people who did. The disciples of Jesus were God-fearing Jews who believed that
there was only one God and He alone was to be worshipped. To worship anyone or
anything other than God was blasphemy and apostasy. And yet, these very men
praised and proclaimed the crucified carpenter as God. There’s no way they ever
would have dared invent such a story, and there’s no way they ever would have
dared believe it without absolute proof. What could have convinced these men
that Jesus of Nazareth was the God of Israel? Only that He claimed it, and rose
from the dead in vindication of that claim.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Look
within humanity – you see His imprint<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">Every
human being bears the image of God. The fact that we are conscious, reasoning, moral
creatures points us upwards to a conscious, moral Creator, not downwards to
non-conscious, amoral matter. Every rational thought, conscious experience,
moral judgment and free choice is proof of God’s existence. Our unshakeable
awareness that we have meaning, purpose and value is not a by-product of
evolution, but a direct product of creation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 150%;">So,
rather than God being out of sight, the reality is we can’t escape the evidence
of His existence. His fingerprints, footprints, imprint are all in plain sight.
You would have to be blind not to see it… Maybe that’s the problem… The Bible
speaks about how we have been blinded because of sin. Why not sincerely and
humbly ask God to open your eyes – He’s able to do it (Luke 4:18; Ephesians
1:18; Mark 10:46-52).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="file:///C:/Users/Paul/Documents/Understanding%20the%20Gospel%20project/Is%20God%20hiding.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" style="mso-footnote-id: ftn1;" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="mso-special-character: footnote;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a> We
have talked more about this <a href="https://understandingthegospel.org/big-questions/has-science-buried-god/has-science-buried-god-part-2/">here</a>.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br />Paul McCauleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11828483028178241515noreply@blogger.com