Sensitivity Is Needed When Utilizing the Old Testament

Since the early days of Christianity, when we no longer had apostles who could authoritatively answer questions, believers have debated exactly how to handle the Old Testament. With the exceptions of heretical groups like the Marcionites (whose beliefs about the OT have unfortunately resurfaced some in recent years), it was acknowledged that it was the word of God. 

However we as Christians are in this tension where certain parts seem to contradict what we believe as Christians. Of course, the skeptic or the liberal or so-called red-letter Christian would simply say that the Old Testament does indeed contradict the New Testament, as well as itself, but we aren't in a position where we can agree. This tension between Christianity and the Old Testament, the bulk of the very scriptures upon which Christianity is based, is nothing new.

A Common and Problematic Attitude Towards Big Business (And Someone Else's Brilliant Response To It)

It's no secret that Americans are pretty distrustful of big business. And who can blame us? Every day we hear horror stories of what big, heartless corporations do. And this is despite the fact that things are 100x better than they were 100 years ago!

Of course, as I have written previously, we need people to follow their self-interest in producing goods and making money in order to have a functioning society. The reason we even have blogs is because some people realized they could make a profit by investing large amounts of money to build a factory that produces computers. When done properly, everyone benefits. Just as businesses use consumers to their advantage, so consumers and society at large uses businesses to their advantage. It's a symbiotic relationship of everyone pursuing their own self-interest and everyone ending up the better because of it. That's why capitalism works.

But capitalism also only works for society when its excesses are curtailed, and I'll be darned if we don't still have problems in the US with how big business does things. And in response to a Cracked article on the way banks mistreat their customers, a fellow with the internet name mickeyten brilliantly summed up the attitude that way too many Americans have. This attitude makes it that much harder to solve the problem because it wrongly attacks consumers and wrongly justifies businesses who do wrong.

When Bible Literalists Aren't So Literal - Ezekiel, Isaiah, and the Devil

What is this blog post about? And what do I mean by "Bible literalist"?

For our purposes, there isn't a hard and fast definition. Some people take things in the Bible more literally than others. There isn’t necessarily a specific, concrete point where someone gets to the point of being a literalist. You just kind of know it when you see it.

As for me, I do think I probably am more on the literal side of the spectrum. However, I do think that things like genre, use of Old Testament language and imagery, and historical context can, in various contexts, make the right interpretation one that differs from what one reads at face value. So in practice, I leave a lot more room for idiom, figures of speech, metaphor, and complexities than do some other students of scripture within evangelicalism. Whether you think that is a good thing or not will probably depend on whether or not you agree with me, lol.

The thing is, almost no one takes everything absolutely literally. Even Bible skeptics and atheists, who tend to take the Bible more woodenly and simplistically than anyone else (including fundamentalists), don't take everything literally. There is always some point where pretty much everyone steps back and admits that something is a metaphor or imagery. Of course, this has nothing to do with the accuracy of scripture; throughout our lives, in all sorts of contexts, we recognize metaphor, idiom, imagery etc. The idea that suddenly the Bible cannot do that and still be completely true in everything it teaches is counter to human experience. But the point is, no one takes everything literally.

Is Worrying A Sin?

Is worrying a sin? A number of books and articles, ironically meant to help put our minds at ease, say that it is. Why is it a sin to worry? Because the Bible says not to and so it is a sin to do so, darn it!

Or is that so?

It Is Time To Restore The Sanity To Social Advocacy

Every group and interest needs an advocate. Those in the liberal media are quick to mock the idea that some groups (e.g. men, white people, straight people) would ever have anything to complain about. However, when you get past the modern, liberal academic idea that everyone is just their group and individuals don’t matter, you realize that injustice happens to everyone. Some groups, of course, are much more prone to it (women more so than men, people of color more so than whites, etc.). And so, more energy and resources should go towards protecting their interest. But everyone needs an advocate. Even Jesus Christ is described as an advocate for all who put their faith in Him (which can be you if it isn’t already – some recommended resources: http://www.cru.org/how-to-know-god/would-you-like-to-know-god-personally.html, http://3-ringbinder.weebly.com/) (1 John 2:1).

The problem has arisen in many circles where those who advocate for other groups are being drowned out by those in their movement who advocate evil, outlandish, or otherwise ridiculous views and then express and advocate for them. Because advocacy is so important (especially for minority groups), it is important that sanity is brought back into the discussion. Here are a few examples, and more are likely to come in the future.

Why The (Non-Lethal) Shooting of Lavar Jones Is More Terrifying Than Michael Brown or Eric Garner

Many people have not heard about Lavar Jones, a black man who was shot by a white police officer in South Carolina last September. There are probably reasons why it didn’t grab national attention. Jones survived (thankfully). The officer was charged (case still pending). And it was on video tape, so there wasn't ambiguity, which means it could not easily be used to divide the races and give a platform to those who make a living of racial discord. But despite the lack of media attention and the much better outcome than the other cases, this is a situation that I think is far more alarming than the killings of Michael Brown or Eric Garner.

Book Review - Not Who I Want to Be by Glenn Sasscer

Glenn Sasscer's book, Not Who I Want to Be, attempts to look at how the person God wants you to be may differ from you are now, how various factors in life can affect you and cause this difference, and how you don't have to stay the person who you do not what to be.

Sasscer’s book offers some useful insights. He delves into a very broad array of influences in our lives, from family to the media to the spiritual realm and even the deep emotional pains many have held onto much of their lives. In that sense, it is more broad than deep, but it does a good job of getting the ball rolling. And the soul-searching that the reader is walked through in the final chapters does go fairly deep, for what it is worth.

I have no doubt that many readers could benefit from the book. It should have at least a positive influence on the reader. I would say I personally fit into that camp. For some, I could see this book as being potentially be life-changing, depending on where you are with God.