Who are the God-Haters?

Westboro Baptist Church, which is not affiliated with any Baptist organization, will be picketing the funerals of the Virginia Tech victims. Their reasoning? The Virginia Tech teachers and students who died brought their fate upon themselves by not being true Christians.

“The evidence is they were not Christian. God does not do that to his servants,” Phelps-Roper said. “You don’t need to look any further for evidence those people are in hell.”

You can read the rest of the article here.

I couldn't help but think about a similar situation posed to Jesus.

1 There were some present at that very time who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. 2 And he answered them, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered in this way? 3 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. 4 Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them: do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem? 5 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”

So it doesn't follow that gratuitous suffering stems from the grade of our sins.

Or consider Paul, his life was filled with calamity. (See 2 Corinthians 11:24-28) Did he undergo this suffering because of sin? No way! Paul is one of the Church's greatest saints. The reality is that Paul underwent suffering for his RIGHTEOUSNESS.

So, what are we to do with these lies and false teachings? How do we explain to a skeptical world that true Christians don't believe this?

The irony is that since Christ loves the world (John 3:16) and we are to love what Christ loves (Matthew 22:36-40), the real God-haters are these poor souls from Westboro Baptist. I also wonder how should we correct them. Thoughts?

On Becoming an Elder

"The more anxious a person is to devote himself to upbuilding, the more highly Paul wishes him to be regarded." - John Calvin

90-Second Middle East History Lesson

Here's a brief time line of the empires that governed Palestine.

Quote of the Day

"The greatest enemy of hunger for God is not poison, but apple pie." - John Piper

Rabbits, Eggs, and the Risen Christ?

What do rabbits, eggs and chocolate have to do with Easter? Find out in this 4 minute video from the History Channel.

Francis Collins on 'The Language of God'

Fresh Air with Terry Gross has a wonderful interview with Francis Collins.

Geneticist Francis Collins is director of the National Human Genome Research Project. He is also an evangelical Christian, and author of the book The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief.

I found this program intriguing for two reasons: First, Dr. Collins argues that evolution is not in contradiction with the Christian faith. Second, and way more fascinating, the brilliant biologist/physicist Dr. Collins walks Terry Gross through his own conversion from atheism to Christianity.

Devotions with Swindoll

Chuck Swindoll is writing some fine devotionals for the Nation Day of Prayer Task Force. Enjoy.

Broken Bread Dinner

My friend Jon Kelley is organizing a dinner to assist those who are suffering from AIDS. Check it out. I also attached a brief description from the primary organizer.

My friends, the “Broken Bread Dinner” will be held on April 1st at 7:00 pm in the La Sala Ballroom on ASU’s West campus (43rd Ave. and Thunderbird.) We are hoping to have two hundred plus people attend this event from ASU West YL, ASU’s West campus and various valley churches. This event will be a collaboration of faith-based organizations and our campus at ASU West to increase the awareness among students at ASU and people throughout the valley. That night we will only be serving water and porridge, provided by World Vision, to give all who attend the opportunity to reflect upon the hunger and pain that millions of people experience daily around the world. We will be showing clips from the documentary, “A Closer Walk”, listening to our speaker Bo White, from Food for the Hungry, advertising Invisible Children’s “Displace Me” and raising donations for World Vision and Blood:Water Mission. At the dinner we will also be selling tickets to a benefit concert on April 27th at Alice Cooperstown in downtown Phoenix.

The dinner is free and open to anyone, so please come. This event is being organized and run by college students who have a dream for a better world, and it is our hope that through this dinner you can catch our vision too.

If you have any other questions about the “Broken Bread Dinner,” please can contact me by phone or by email. You can also access our website and register by going to www.brokenbreadmeal.com.

Emily Harman
brokenbread@ylasuwest.com

contextualizing our lives

I was reading a modern translation of the book of Daniel the other day. I came across a sentence that caught my attention.

"In every way that is unimportant, let them make us Chaldeans."

Daniel was removed (enslaved) from Palestine and brought into Babylon, a foreign land with many different customs. These people were often referred to as Chaldeans. Daniel chose to become like them in all ways that are unimportant. Thus, they had no trouble with name changes.

And yet I have a question for Daniel. How did he determine what issues are considered "unimportant?"

We learn early on in the book that food and wine were a big issues for him and his friends. He refused to eat the royal food or wine. Why was this a big deal to Daniel? Was this purely a conscience issue based on food sacrificed to idols?

This cannot be the case since 1) that'll be reading a New Testament problem into the Old Testament and 2) he refrained from drinking wine too, which neither the Old Testament nor New Testament prohibits.

It seems that sharing food at ones table was a sign of friendship. Daniel wanted it to be clear that he was no friend of the king. The implications of this principle are a bit interesting.

Is it acceptable for someone to use a four-letter word in an environment where four-letter words are common as long as one refrains from entering into friendships with non-Christian people who use four-letter words?

Basically, should we determine the unimportant aspects of our lives by the relationship they create between us and the people of the world? Can I be best-friends with a drug dealer?

Does James 5:4, "friendship with the world is hatred toward God," mean anything in this discussion?

What is "unimportant?"

Blogging Rules

I'm excited to see more people interacting with my blog. It's been fun reading the responses.

I think it would even be more fun if the following rules are followed.

1) No anonymous posts please. If you don't have the courage to post your convictions then you may need to refrain from posting a reply. Moreover, blogs are great places for us to get to know each other better. Let's take advantage of this opportunity. It's also difficult for me to reply to "anonymous" if there are six anonymous responses! So add your name!

2) No ad hominem arguments. Ad hominem is a type of argument that appeals to the emotions rather than logic or reason. They usually take the form of attacking an opponent's motives. This style of argument never seeks to discover the truth. Please refrain from using it.

3) Be clear and concise. Don't ramble.

4) Remember the power of the tongue! Many of us have been convicted by our tongues since we've been going through the Book of James. Let's be slow to speak (or type!). Remember that once you hit "publish" it's too late.