Tag Archives: Joel Osteen

False teachers

Joel Osteen: Still a creepy false teacher.

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His new book, The Power of I Am: Two Words That Will Change Your Life Today, could have been good if it was focused on Jesus, the real “I am.”  But Joel isn’t capable of that.

Instead, it is about this anti-Christian, anti-biblical, New Age, word-of-faith nonsense:

Can two words give you the power to change your life? Yes they can! In the pages of his new book, bestselling author Joel Osteen shares a profound principle based on a simple truth.

Whatever follows the words “I am” will always come looking for you.
So, when you go through the day saying:
“I am blessed”…blessings pursue you.
“I am talented”…talent follows you.
“I am healthy”…health heads your way.
“I am strong”…strength tracks you down.

Run, don’t walk, from Joel and those like him.

Uncategorized

“Useful Idiots for Baal”

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Erick Erickson does a great take down of Rob Bell, Rachel Held Evans, Donald Miller, Jim Wallis, Joel Osteen and more.   We need more of this!  Via Useful Idiots for Baal:

Too many of these people, often hipster prophets, make people comfortable in their sin while trying to sell Jesus. One comfortable in his sin rarely sees the need to embrace one who will extricate him from his sin. These peddlers of pop Christianity are useful idiots for Baal because they claim their faith in Christ without ever making anyone uncomfortable in their here and now. Christ made people uncomfortable.

As a friend noted this passage from Bonhoeffer last night in email:

“The messengers of Jesus will be hated to the end of time. They will be blamed for all the division which rend cities and homes. Jesus and his disciples will be condemned on all sides for undermining family life, and for leading the nation astray; they will be called crazy fanatics and disturbers of the peace.”

— Dietrich Bonhoeffer, “The Cost of Discipleship,” 1937.

The useful idiots of Baal are not willing to go along for that ride. They’d rather their Jesus bake cakes for gay weddings.

Roundup

Roundup

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How skepticism masquerading as Christianity almost cost me my soul — Phil Johnson’s experience in a theologically liberal “church” mirrors that of many of us.  I grew up in a denomination like that.  If your place of worship denies things like the miracles of Jesus or that He is the only way to salvation, just get up and leave.  The group you are with is worshiping themselves or Satan, not the true God.  Oh, they’ll talk about the Bible, but in a nonsensical way — as if anyone would build these complex, multi-million dollar organizations and come to “worship” each week just because a book full of “lies” just happened to have a little bit of good advice that the members agree with.

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Apparently “slutwalks” are back and Stacy McCain is rightfully whaling on them.The “slutwalk” thing is so moronic.  Of course they don’t “deserve it.”  The question is whether certain behaviors increase your odds of becoming a victim.  Answer: They do!  Getting drunk, being in the wrong places, etc. make it more likely you’ll get raped (or mugged, or whatever).  P.S. And yeah, guys hate it when you walk around topless.  You showed them!

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Why I Called Out Joel Osteen and Joyce Meyer — Good for him!  More people should do that.  These multi-multi-millionaires prey on people.

Conclusion for Joyce Meyer

What I wrote and linked in the first section should have been enough to completely remove her from our sphere of trust.  Her doctrine is horrific.  Her hermeneutics are horrible.  She is a woman who seems to have an unrestrained love for money and applause.  Her finances are questionable at best.  Her example is questionable at best.  Her impact on desperate people here, as well as churches and pastors around the globe is wildly destructive.

I lament with you a sense of loss if she was a teacher you trusted.  I lament that someone who is so wrong has so much influence with so many.  I do not regret, however, pointing to her as a false teacher and as one who should be rejected.

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Networks Silent about Manning’s ‘Gay Soldier’ Defense — Nets mentioned leaker’s sexuality just 6.4 percent of the time, and haven’t since 2011 — How odd that they forgot to mention that fact!

Bradley Manning must be terribly lonely. After all, how many gay men have made news the last few years without being celebrated in the media for their gayness? And a gay man who also “struggles with issues of gender identity” can pretty much write his own contract with MSNBC.

But the media, and the broadcast networks especially, are oddly reticent about the sexual orientation and confusion of Manning, the army private convicted of the most extensive military intelligence security breach in U.S. history.

Of the 125 mentions Manning has received on ABC, CBS and NBC news programs between his arrest in 2010 and July 30, 2013, just eight included references to his homosexuality. This is even stranger since his sexual preference was central to his defense – what some called the “Gay Soldier Defense.” According to the Chicago Sun-Times, “Lawyers for Pfc. Bradley Manning began laying out a defense to show that his struggles as a gay soldier in an environment hostile to homosexuality contributed to mental and emotional problems that should have barred him from having access to sensitive material.”

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Ten Simple Frugal Steps That Save Money Without Skipping a Beat — We weren’t doing any of the first example below, so no savings there.  But we did just swap out bulbs for LEDs.  I love the cost savings and how they are long-lasting and don’t need to be changed so often.  Conventional bulbs lasted about 2 years.  I know because we just helped our daughter with a bit of packing just before her marriage and it seemed that a light bulb went out about every 15 minutes (she had been there exactly 2 yrs.).  The LEDs will last much longer, generate less heat and use less electricity.

Are you a consumer of alcohol, tobacco, soda, energy drinks, or drugs? All of these things are needless money drains. They’re ingested, forgotten about, and then contribute a long-term negative to your health. They cost substantial money, too.

Are your light bulbs efficient? Are you leaving electrical items on when you go to work or to sleep? Stop by a hardware store the next time they have a demonstration of LED bulbs and take a look for yourself as to how efficient they are and how good the light is. Swapping all the lights in your home for LED bulbs can save you a ton on your monthly energy bill. Another way to cut that bill is to just make sure your lights and electronic devices around the house are all off before you go to work or go to bed.

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CNN & NBC’s Close Ties to Obama, Anita Dunn, Bob Bauer and IRS Intimidation — In case you’ve been wondering why the media has ignored this “phony” scandal.  The IRS abuses alone should have been enough to fire up any real media and to sink this administration for eternity.

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The Democrat Race Lie — This link is a keeper.  The Democrats do not have the best interests of blacks at heart and never have.

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Please watch this video — especially if you are a Dawkins fan.  You’ll love it.

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Vile Gay Threats Attack Christian Wedding Chapel Owners — Because they are all about tolerance.  Enjoy your vanishing religious freedoms.  In many areas the chapel owners could be fined or jailed.

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A great column by Ann Coulter (yeah, I know she gets few style points, but her facts are usually vastly superior to the Leftist media) about the real causes of illegitimacy.  Government policies, as predicted, increased illegitimacy and that led to more poverty and incarcerations.  Poverty doesn’t cause these things.

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“They About to Beat This Boy to Death” — Oh, but it was about black boys beating up a white boy.  Never mind.  The “social justice” people won’t be planning any protests over this one.

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9 Things You Should Know About Human Trafficking — this is such a horrendous and common crime.  Please read the link. Here are my suggestions to address it.

Reduce the supply

1. Institute the death penalty for slave traders.  Hey, it was good enough for the Israelite theocracy!

Exodus 21:16 “Whoever steals a man and sells him, and anyone found in possession of him, shall be put to death.”

Seriously, there needs to be some serious consequences for something so evil.  Put a few of them to death and that would save countless people from becoming slaves.  Or at least make it life without parole.

2. Increase education for at-risk groups, so they know the scams the traders use (i.e., offering jobs as nannies in other countries, then taking their passports).

3. Expose and de-fund Planned Parenthood, because they systematically hide statutory rape and sex trafficking.

Reduce the demand

1. Publicize the names and pictures of the customers and punish them.

2. Reduce access to pornography, which certainly fuels the demand for these girls.

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Bible

The History Channel and the Bible

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I’ve had a couple queries about the upcoming History Channel special on the Bible.

I tend to be skeptical of anything on TV related to the Bible.  The TV preachers are mostly false teachers, and the allegedly mainstream channels usually pull out all sorts of theological Liberals (read: non-Christians) and present them as mainstream experts.

Based on names supposedly associated with the production (Joel Osteen, T.D. Jakes, Della Reese, and more) I’m even more skeptical.  But this interview with the makers made it sound like they were trying to be true to the text.

Having said that, it might be good to watch.  Remember, just because we disagree with something on TV doesn’t mean we can’t use it as a segue to truths about the Bible.  If the shows are realistic depictions of the text, then that’s great.  Get people to talk about it.  If there are errors, you’ll have a chance to point them out.  Even if you don’t watch it you can ask people what they thought about it and take the conversation from there.

In short, use this as an opportunity to share the truth: The original writings of the Bible turned out just as God and the human writers wanted them to, and they have been passed down to us in a highly accurate fashion.  Therefore, we should all study it carefully and seek to meet God on his terms, not ours. 

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Updates — Here are a couple reviews that go into more detail.  Sounds like they took a lot of poetic license with the text.

The Word Made . . . for Television?

The Bible … on the History Channel? A review of the TV series The Bible

Roundup

Roundup

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The pastoral “call,” and how there isn’t one — The “called to _____” is one of the most common examples of sloppy God talk.  People often ignore the clear requirements for pastors and elders and lead with vague statements about feelings.  They let their self-validation trump what the Bible says, which, ironically enough, should be evidence that they aren’t “called.”

They were chuckling and sharing the story of how one of them felt, as a (young!) teenager and a brand-new convert, that he “had the call,” meaning “the call” to preach. So he announced his call one week, and got up to preach the next. Period. No training, no apprenticeship, no evidence, no clue as to what it meant Biblically to preach (let alone be a pastor). He attributes this to a move of the Lord at that time in that location, as He reportedly grabbed up a lot of young men and “called” them to preach.

The brothers clarified that in their culture, all one need to is announce that he has “the call,” and he is to preach. Like, right away.

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Nature publishes discovery of fossil with complex brain dated just after the Cambrian explosion — Once again, evidence that Intelligent Design would predict and Darwinism would not.  The Darwin lobby will ignore this or try to pretend that it supports evolution — even though it is the opposite of everything they’ve claimed for 150 years.

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A great video for Christians, Democrats and especially black Christians.

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As I’ve said before, Detroit is the petri dish of Liberalism.  Now police are warning people not to enter Detroit because it is so unsafe.  If you want your city to be like Detroit, then vote Democrat.

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Undercover Sting Reveals Eagerness of Obama Camp to Facilitate Voter Fraud — just more evidence when they lie about fraud not existing.  Remember this when people claim that we don’t need voter ID or that it is somehow racist (Project Veritas has more videos like this).

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Officer Has Career Destroyed for Acknowledging Islamic Enemy — this is part of the deadliness of political correctness.

How much success would we have had in World War II if politically servile top brass had punished military officers for failing to whitewash Nazi ideology? The answer sheds light on our current difficulties:

During a press briefing, Army General Martin Dempsey, President Barack Obama’s Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, publicly lambasted Lieutenant Colonel (LTC) Matthew Dooley, a 1994 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and a highly decorated combat veteran. His reason: The course on Islamic Radicalism which LTC Dooley was teaching at the Joint Forces Staff College (JFSC) of the National Defense University was offensive to Muslims, according to a statement released on Monday by officials from a public-interest law firm in Michigan.

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Obamunists Call for Vandalizing Cars With Romney Stickers — I wish I was surprised by this.  Even sadder are the people promising to riot if Romney wins.  This all stems from the sense of entitlement brought by Liberalism and appealing to the lowest common denominators of coveting and instant gratification.

If you put a Romney sticker on your car and it is subsequently vandalized by the lower grade of human that is attracted to the Democrat Party, you can’t say you weren’t warned. Twitchy reports:

As Twitchy has reported, unhinged supporters of President Barack Obama are stealing, defacing, and urinating on pro-Mitt Romney yard signs and bumper stickers.

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Joel Osteen, Rick Warren and Oprah — need I say more?

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I’m not into marching band stuff, but this was very impressive.  Go Bucks!

Roundup

Roundup

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Mia Love runs rings around our current President and most politicians on both sides with her accurate and common sense views. I love how she is so clear and unapologetic. I hope she has a long and successful career.

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From the “I am not making this up, but I wish I was” category: Joel Osteen greeting cards.

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I’m relieved that the iPhone 5 announcement (Official response: “Yawn”) didn’t have more to it, or I might have been tempted to upgrade. But iOS6 looks good. They finally added a “rewind 10 seconds button” to go with the “forward 30 seconds” feature. And they added a double-speed option to go with the old 1.5 speed. There is a triple-speed option but that’s too fast!

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Anyone who thinks the Romney tax return issues are still a big deal is too gullible to vote. If only they cared a fraction as much about all the things Obama has sealed, or if they would take the time to learn about what he wrote in his own books! (Er, uh, at least what someone wrote in the books credited to him.)

The real story should be about how Senator Harry Reid and others told wild lies and won’t be held accountable.

If journalism hadn’t died in 2008 they’d be writing about how incredibly generous Romney has been for decades and about how stingy Obama and Biden are (not to mention Democratic politicians in general).

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This is highly scientific and true. Early in my career I almost said something about a client’s apparent pregnancy who turned out not to be pregnant. Ever since I remember not to say a thing, regardless of how pregnant someone looks.

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Benny Hinn is such a transparently false teacher that I put most of his followers in the “you got what you deserve category.” Here are just a few of his pronouncements, via The Watchman’s Bagpipes: Did They Really Say That?!?

“I’m sick and tired of hearing about streets of gold. I don’t need gold in heaven, I’ve got to have it now!”

“Poverty is a demon. God had to show me a vision of a demon literally to prove this to me.”

“I feel revelation knowledge already coming on me. … Holy Spirit take over in the name of Jesus. … You say, ‘I never heard of that.’ Well do you think you’re in this church to hear things you’ve heard for the last fifty years?”

“The Spirit of God tells me an earthquake will hit the east coast of America and destroy much in the nineties.” [never happened]

“Not one place will be safe from earthquakes in the nineties. Those who have not known earthquakes will know it.” [never happened]

“The Spirit tells me Fidel Castro will die in the nineties.” [still alive in 2012]

“And angels to this day can decide to rebel against God.”

“Now the Lord just told me – and I don’t know whether this is true or not…”

Roundup

Roundup

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An excellent summary of why you should avoid avoid Joel Osteen — in his own words! Hat tip: Glenn

KING: If you believe you have to believe in Christ? They’re wrong, aren’t they?

OSTEEN: Well, I don’t know if I believe they’re wrong. I believe here’s what the Bible teaches and from the Christian faith this is what I believe. But I just think that only God with judge a person’s heart. I spent a lot of time in India with my father. I don’t know all about their religion. But I know they love God. And I don’t know. I’ve seen their sincerity. So I don’t know. I know for me, and what the Bible teaches, I want to have a relationship with Jesus.

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Skip the “cleanse” diets. They are basically counter-productive starvation diets. Just eat a little less, eat a little healthier and exercise a little more. And ignore what celebrities say.

What you need to know:

The cleanse diets make 2 claims: 1) clean your guts an 2) lose weight fast.

With respect to weight loss, they are right – this is basically a starvation diet. Your body loses mostly fluids at first, then starts to lose muscle and fat in order to keep basic bodily functions running. There is a potential for serious bodily damage for people who maintain calorie deprivation for several weeks. . . .

With respect to detoxification – guess what? That’s what your liver is for. Our body is an amazing machine that knows how to rid itself of toxins without any intervention. Calling these starvation diets “detox” plays off people’s fear that there are poisons lurking in their body that can be magically removed by subjecting oneself to days of a concoction that tastes bad.

Scientifically there is no evidence that cleanse diets do any good. Most people who go on rapid weight loss diets often gain the weight back with a vengeance.

Dear Lucy – lose a little less weight but do it the right way. Keep eating healthy food, exercise, and be patient.

One last note to celebrities – please DON’T share your diet tips and tricks with us mere mortals. The fact that your are gorgeous and can sing and act (at least some of you) does not mean you know anything about nutrition. Our idolizing societal norms mean that you are setting examples for millions of people. That’s too much of a responsibility for you to pass off quack diets to your fans.

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Stay classy, LGBT activists — What Happens When You Let Gay Philly Activists Into the White House — They pose for pics giving Ronald Reagan’s portait the finger. That was just the beginning. They are just like the groping blind men of Sodom.

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An excellent point by Haemet related to my Roundup note that Socialized Medicine Euthanizes 130,000 Old People per Year in UK.

To put it another way, if the American medical system killed the same proportion of people as does the NHS, then we would lose approximately 643,000 people a year . . .

While any death from a lack of access to health care (or food, or shelter) is a tragedy, the phrase “Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good” comes to mind. Equal opportunity early death is not the solution to inconsistent access to health care.

The next time someone says that our health care system “kills” 46,000 per year, be sure to remember that even if that claim was true it should result in victory laps, not a dismantling of our system.

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A good overview of the history of Social Security — My only objection was the perpetuation of the myth of a “trust fund.” The grand total of money saved from prior contributions to fund future obligations is — wait for it — $0.00. Zero. Anyone hinting otherwise is not well informed on this topic. This is a Ponzi scheme waiting to crumble.

Apologetics, False teachers

Advice for real skeptics and authentic seekers

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Everyone should consider matters of eternity very carefully, because eternity matters.

I used to be a skeptic.  I’ve gone to church most of my life, but let’s just say I wasn’t paying very close attention for the first 28 years or so.  At all.  I couldn’t have told you anything about the Bible. Even then the church I attended was a lousy Joel Osteen-wannabe type church — nothing but messages about “God’s unconditional love,” with no scriptural analysis.  I learned nearly everything of importance about the faith outside of church.  My hope is that the rest of you are in churches where you can learn and grow.

My path to Christianity wasn’t linear, but there were many things along the way that I recommend to real skeptics and authentic seekers (hereafter referred to simply as skeptics and seekers).  I hope you will consider using some of these on your search.

(I wrote real skeptics because many self-proclaimed skeptics across aren’t skeptical at all.  They have a position and work aggressively to advance it.  I respect their freedom to do that but it would be an abuse of the word to say they are skeptical.  And I mean authentic seekers in the sense that they are seeking God on his terms and not in some immature fantasy world where they think they get to invent their own god or just pick the religion they like best — and that the real God will consider that to be acceptable.)

Read/study the Bible – This may sound obvious, but far too many people ignore it.  I come across very few people who have read the whole Bible and/or read it regularly, and that includes the countless Christians I know.  Everyone should read it carefully and often.  Jesus didn’t call it “bread” for nothing.  I don’t know about you, but I don’t miss too many meals of real food.  I eat at least 5 times per day (My motto: “Second breakfast – the third most important meal of the day!”).  I work hard to read at least some of the Bible every day.  I’m currently doing a “read the Bible in a year” plan, which is roughly three chapters a day, plus I listen to various Podcasts that go into detail on the scriptures.

Christians should read it to spend time with God, strengthen their faith and educate themselves to help others know the truth.  Skeptics should read it to have a better idea of what they are criticizing.  Some do, but I find that most critics of Christianity make no efforts to do that.   They just repeat out-of context passages (“Don’t judge!”).  Seekers should read it because Christianity is a logical starting point in the search for God.

The Bible makes many claims about itself and its power.  It quotes God directly over 3,000 times and states that He inspired all the writings it contains.  It claims that it has the power to save and transform you.  It has made an immeasurable impact on the world.  Those things aren’t what make it true, but they are good reasons for any skeptic / seeker to read it carefully.

If you want to know someone, you spend time with them.  Reading the Bible (and praying) is spending time with God.  Read it carefully and get to know Jesus.  Then decide if you think He is trustworthy and if He should be the Lord of your life.

The Bible Fast Forward is a great audio resource that ties together the major themes of the Bible.  I highly recommend it for anyone at any stage of their journey.

Pray – Tell God that if He is real that you truly want to know him on his terms.

Self reflection — In your quiet, honest moments, ask yourself if you think you need forgiveness.

Examine your motives.  There are typically three reasons at the root of unbelief.  Which are yours?  If you want to deceive others that is bad enough.  But don’t deceive yourself.

1. Rational / intellectual – Have people gathered enough information to believe?  Have they investigated the facts and logic behind the faith?  Are they using reasonable criteria (i.e., adequate evidence versus absolute proof)?

2. Emotional – People may have had bad experiences with church and/or Christians.  Some people would have very serious consequences from converting (rejection or even persecution from friends, family or society).  People may not want to give up favorite sins.  These may be difficult but are nothing that should get in the way of your eternal salvation.

3. Volitional, or that of the will – Plain old rebellion.  People have seen the facts but use items from the first two categories as excuses.  Spending eternity in Hell because of pride = really bad idea.

Podcasts / websites / Facebook groups – There are countless sites out there, but here are the ones I’ve used the most.  The links go to the main sites, but you can search for those names in iTunes to get the Podcasts.  These will address most common objections.

Stand to Reason – My all-time favorite.  An amazing mix of facts, ways to think clearly and techniques to share the truth in an effective way.

Please Convince Me – Hosted by a cold-case homicide detective who is a former atheist, he is very thorough and analytical in explaining the reasons for our faith and addressing objections.

CARM (Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry) – A great site for information on just about any Christian topic or world religion.  Very easy to navigate.

Grace to You – John MacArthur gives terrific verse-by-verse sermons.  He reads countless commentaries and the original languages to prepare each one.

Debates – some people don’t see the value in debates, because it is more like a sporting event where each side is just rooting for their team and against the opposition.  Few minds seem to be changed.  But I think debates have merit.  For a skeptic or seeker it is important to hear both sides in their own words.  I find apologetic works to be very useful because over time I have learned which apologists to trust.  If someone just sets up straw men to knock down, then that isn’t productive.  You may get a temporary boost in confidence for your views but will get creamed when you use those in the real world.

The best sources I’ve seen for debate are the Wintery Knight blog and Apologetics 3:15, where you can get countless videos and transcripts of debates.

Science

There are some things you should never forget about Darwinian evolution.  While this worldview has had a monopoly position in education, media and government for many decades, there is a reason most people still don’t believe it.  Despite what its proponents may tell you about how the theory lets you be an intellectually satisfied atheist, Darwinian evolution has many issues and major theories about it continue to change.  Their views from just a few years ago about “junk” DNA should haunt Darwinists and Theistic Evolutionists alike.

But remember that even if Darwinian evolution was completely true, it would:

  • not explain the origin of the universe (they have to resort to un-scientific stories  like the “multiverse” theory to rationalize away the amazing design in the universe).
  • not explain how life came from non-life.  Despite decades of efforts, they have no idea how to prove how life might have come from non-life, though in their blind faith they persist.
  • be 100.00% responsible for the faith of Christians in the evidence for the life, death and resurrection of Jesus (what else could have created these beliefs?).
  • be unable to ground true universal morality.   They have a thing they call morality, but they are really just running off the fumes of Christianity and the fact that God wrote his laws on our hearts.  But real, universal morality in a Darwinian worldview is merely an illusion.  If those in power decide what is right, then it isn’t transcendently right.  It is just a power play.   That doesn’t mean atheists can’t do things we consider to be moral.  Some atheists are pro-life, for example.  It just means they have no philosophical grounding for morality.
Here are a couple great books to help balance out all the Darwinian propaganda you’ve been force-fed your whole life.

Signature in the Cell – DNA and the Evidence for Intelligent Design – this book is a little complex for the average reader but very important for those who want to know more about what Intelligent Design is really about.

There Is a God: How the World’s Most Notorious Atheist Changed His Mind by Antony Flew – one of the most famous philosophical atheists eventually became a theist based on the evidence for design in the universe.  Sadly, I don’t think he became a Christian before he died.

The big picture — Consider a two-step approach (though you may do this in parallel):

  1. Is there a God?  Examine the information from teleology (design), cosmology, morality, etc.  And meditate closely on this passage: Romans 1:18-20 The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.
  2. Is Christianity true?  Consider the “minimal facts” approach.  Christianity is a faith based on reason and evidence, not “blind faith.”

If you are a real skeptic / authentic seeker, I highly encourage you to learn enough about Jesus to decide whether you want to put your trust in him.  Deep down you know you are a sinner and will one day die and face God to be judged based on this life.  You can stand alone and take the punishment for your sins, or you can trust in the sacrifice Jesus made.  If you trust in him, all your sins are transferred from his account and all his perfect righteousness is transferred to yours.  It is literally the ultimate deal – and it is free.  You can’t buy it or earn it.

Remember, “doubting Thomas” (who got a bad rap, by the way) was shown the evidence and he made the proper response of belief.  You may not see Jesus face to face as evidence, but there is more than enough evidence for you if you really want to know the truth.

Ultimately, you can trust in yourself or you can trust in Jesus . . . and eternity is a mighty long time to regret a prideful decision.

Christian worldview

“That’s interesting, but what does the Bible say?”

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I urge you to respond with the quote in the title when people make claims about Christianity.  Today’s example: A pro-gay theology fluff piece by the Houston Chronicle about “Bring your gay teen to church day.”  It was pure propaganda-masquerading-as-news.  Of course I’d like to see everyone in church on Sunday, including gays.  I just want them to go to churches that teach the truth.

Ebie Hussey’s first reaction when her son announced that he is gay was to offer unconditional love.

Finding a new church was a close second.

That is a recurring lie they weave into their messages: If you say that sin is sin then you are being unloving.  Christianity may not be Ms. Hussey’s strong suit.

“His first question was, ‘Am I going to hell?’ ” Hussey said of that conversation with her son, Jaxn. “Mainstream Christianity and fundamental Christianity really pushes that homosexuality is a sin, and he had caught on to that.”

Actually, the Bible is pretty clear on this topic:

  • 100% of the verses addressing homosexual behavior denounce it as sin in the clearest and strongest possible terms.
  • 100% of the verses referring to God’s ideal for marriage involve one man and one woman.
  • 100% of the verses referencing parenting involve moms and dads with unique roles (or at least a set of male and female parents guiding the children).
  • 0% of 31,173 Bible verses refer to homosexual behavior in a positive or even benign way or even hint at the acceptability of homosexual unions.

Even a lot of pro-gay theology folks will concede that.  They just claim that the Bible isn’t really God’s word or that he has changed his mind.  Run, don’t walk, from “Christians” who claim those things.

Jaxn, now 15, knew his parents didn’t think that. “But I had always heard people saying that kind of thing,” he said.

Note how he and his parents are the arbiters of God’s truth.  The article never even hints that we’d look to the Bible for the answers.

In an effort to counter the message, almost two dozen Houston-area churches have designated Sunday as Bring Your Gay Teen to Church Day.

I wish they would have published a list.  They would be churches to avoid.

“We think it’s important for families to know there’s a safe place to go to worship,” said Jim Bankston, senior minister at St. Paul’s United  Methodist Church. “Families who have gay members want to make sure they feel welcome in church and aren’t bashed in any way.”

There’s that falsehood again: If you say that sin is sin then you are “bashing” people.  Hey “Reverend” Bankston: Is bashing a sin?  Then aren’t you bashing the bashers and committing that sin yourself?  Why aren’t you open and affirming towards “bashers?”

Joanna Crawford, a seminary student at the Houston Graduate School of Theology, said the idea came up after the suicide last fall of Asher Brown, a Cypress-area eighth-grader who killed himself after what his parents said were years of bullying and taunts that he was gay.

Did you catch the non sequitur?  They try to say that teaching biblical truths cause suicides.  The facts show otherwise: These suicide tragedies are usually very complicated.  It isn’t people who just left Focus on the Family “Love Won Out” conferences that are doing the bullying and taunting.

It is a project of the Houston Clergy Council, formed last year to allow churches to work together on shared concerns.

“None of us knew Asher, but we felt if we could get families into our churches, where they have support, where they feel loved for who they are, not in spite of it, something good could come of that,” Crawford said.

They get love backwards.  Yes, love them for who they are: Human beings.  Don’t love them because of a particular sin.

Organized religion has had a complicated relationship with homosexuality.

Mainly because fakes have crept in and polluted the teachings of the church.

Joel Osteen, pastor of Lakewood Church, waded into the fray last month when he told CNN that homosexuality is a sin, although he doesn’t preach on the topic and a number of people who attend his church, the largest in the United States, are gay.

Joel finally spoke the truth?!

A survey last fall by the Public Religion Research Institute found that fewer than 20 percent of Americans believe places of worship do a good job on the issue. Almost half said religion’s message on the topic is “negative,” and 40 percent said the messages contribute “a lot” to negative perceptions of gays and lesbians.

This is where surveys prove to be meaningless.  The question shouldn’t be whether the messages contribute to negative perceptions but whether the messages are biblical.

Almost two-thirds said the messages contribute to higher rates of suicide among gay and lesbian youth.

That’s because the wildly biased mainstream media has been telling them that.  It doesn’t mean it is true.

Mainline Protestant churches — including the Episcopal, Lutheran and Methodist churches — began wrestling with how to interpret biblical writings on the issue several decades ago, he said.

That’s only because those churches went soft on keeping apostates out and exercising church discipline on false teachers. But just because some want to ignore the Bible doesn’t mean the teachings aren’t still there.

“Younger people are much more supportive on rights for same-sex couples than the older generation,” he said. “They also were much more likely to see these connections between negative views in the churches and negative views in society and with the higher rates of suicide.”

Wow, they keep working in that false connection, don’t they?  Almost as if the Chronicle wants you to believe it.  One of the tragedies in the last year involved a kid who, among other things. took a stuffed animal to school and insisted on a chair for it.  This kid was deeply trouble and not helped.  To blame his suicide on Bible-believing Christians is ridiculous, but the pro-gay theology ghouls love a good victim story.

Hussey did a computer search for “gay-friendly churches” and discovered Plymouth United Church of Christ in Spring.

“It’s been a huge blessing,” Hussey said. “It has brought me so much closer to God and to my spirituality, having a gay child, because it puts me in the position of Jesus’ message, which is unconditional love.”

Really?  Where did they get this news about Jesus?  If it was the Bible, why do they ignore what He says in the rest of it, including his claim that God’s design for marriage is for one man and one woman?  Why do they pick and choose which parts of Jesus they want to listen to?  Seems to me they are just making up their own version of Jesus.

The Rev. Ginny Brown Daniel and members of the congregation “showed me God doesn’t hate you because you’re gay,” he said.

God hates sin, and He wants to save you.  But you have to repent and believe.  I wonder how often the “Reverend” Daniel teaches that?  The truth sounds like hate to those that hate the truth.

That was important to his parents.

“When a child tells you they’re gay, you don’t want to change your plan for him,” Ebie Hussey said. “I still want him to be a doctor. I still want him to marry a doctor. I still want him to be Christian.”

She should start by being a Christian herself and trusting the word of God and following God on his terms.  As it stands, she is making up her own god.

If you really love those identifying as GLBTX you’ll seek to share the truth with them.  Propping them up with lies to make yourself more popular in our politically correct culture is just loving yourself, not your neighbor.  Here’s one of my experiences sharing the Gospel with someone identifying as gay.

Roundup

Roundup

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Philadelphia Opera performs “random act of culture” (aka flash mob), singing “Hallelujah chorus” in Macy’s.  “King of Kings and Lord of Lords” in public?  Sweet.

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Christian couple barred from having foster children –Just one of the many, many reasons that the debate about oxymoronic “same-sex marriage” really matters.  If sexual preferences are civil rights then you get decisions like this. If you have to teach the opposite of what God says to be able to be foster parents then that is yet another sign of how horrible Western culture has become.

The couple in the High Court test case, Eunice and Owen Johns, said Derby City Council’s fostering panel rejected them as carers because they would never tell children a homosexual lifestyle was acceptable.

Mrs Johns said: ‘The council said: “Do you know, you would have to tell them that it’s OK to be homosexual?”

‘But I said I couldn’t do that because my Christian beliefs won’t let me. Morally, I couldn’t do that. Spiritually I couldn’t do that.’

The Pentecostal Christian couple from Derby, who have fostered almost 20 children, are not homophobic, according to the Christian Legal Centre, which has taken up their case.

But they are against sex before marriage and do not recognise as marriage civil partnerships between gay couples.

P.S. If your church teaches that the Bible is “hate speech,” then it is not a church.

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Palin: Do newspaper reporters read their own newspapers? – Apparently not.  It is amusing to see the Left try to dismiss Palin as being stupid, especially when she continually outsmarts them (uh, if she’s really stupid but she’s smarter than you then . . . ).  But name calling is easier than addressing the merits of arguments, eh?

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Glenn’s commentary about the case of a 13 year old told by his school that he couldn’t fly a flag on his bike – not even on Veteran’s day!

This is the same school where earlier this year the Hispanic (read “Mexican”) kids were allowed to bring their Mexican flags to celebrate Cinco de Mayo, leading some American kids to bring in their American flags, resulting in “racial tension,” so the school officials are worried about a repeat of the “racial tension.”  So, rather than telling those kids supported by tax dollars of the USA that they don’t have a right not to be offended, the leftists at the school punish a kid who loves his country and honors those who served – and even died – to defend the rights of those kids who are offended by the flag of the country in which they live.

Only in the upside-down, politically-correct America are kids not allowed to be proud of their country by flying its flag.  Only in upside-down, politically-correct California are the rights of American children violated so as to protect a few kids from being “offended” by the symbol of the nation that supports them.

The Union should secede from California!

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HHS falls short of pre-existing coverage prediction by … 97.8% – the title says it all.

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Great rebuke of Joel Osteen.  Preach on, John!  Please watch it all.  Hat tip: Mark

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