Tuesday, November 03, 2009
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
October 28 in Persecuted Church History
312: 32-year-old Roman emperor Constantine defeats Maxentius at Milvian Bridge. Before the battle, Constantine had seen the symbol of Jesus, chi-rho, in a vision, accompanied with the words "By this sign conquer." He is considered Rome's first Christian emperor.
1949: Jim Elliot, missionary to Ecuador's Auca Indians, writes in his journal the most famous of his sayings: "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.
2001: Sixteen Christians are shot and killed as Muslim militants stormed the church service they were attending in Bahawalpur, Pakistan.
2008: Father Bernard Digal (48), died after succumbing to injuries he suffered in an attack by Hindu militants in Kandhamal, Orissa in late August.
HT: Voice of the Martyrs
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
New Sermon Audio: WHEN THE END IS THE BEGINNING- Mark 15:42-16:8
Here is the audio from Sunday's message at North Fork Baptist Church. This message concluded our 13 month long sermon series through the Gospel of Mark. Next week we begin a four week series titled THE FUGITIVE from the Book of Jonah
Monday, October 26, 2009
The Offense of the Cross ... at Penn State
I am constantly flabbergasted by the extreme sensibilities of the educated elite. I'm just glad the six complainants and all involved at Penn State did not choose to burn buildings or behead students wearing the offensive t-shirts at the center of a controversy that turns out to be not-much-of-a-controversy. The "religion of peace" would have heads rolling if the shirts had featured pictures of Mohammed.
The t-shirts, as you will see in the picture in the link, do seem to "sport" a cross on the front when it is actually a likeness of the stripe on the helmets of PU's football team. But it certainly startled the bejesus out of a handful of folks (a "handful" if one has six fingers per hand). The Anti-Defamation League joined in to fight this perceived threat of the resurrection of the crucifixion of you-know-who. There was fear apparently, that tents were going to pop up on campus with Pat Robertson preaching to lost souls, destroying the First Amendment of the Constitution faster than an Obama Democrat.
The problem was some who saw the t-shirts being worn on-campus saw something "that some say resembles a cross." It's kinda like those folks who see Mary in urine in the snow, Jesus on a piece of toast, and Elvis at the 7/11. Yes, it's that serious. Fortunately, no one took this little moment of madness too far being that there was no urine involved ...or toast or Elvis.
All in all, the school handled it very well. Go PU!
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,569665,00.html
The t-shirts, as you will see in the picture in the link, do seem to "sport" a cross on the front when it is actually a likeness of the stripe on the helmets of PU's football team. But it certainly startled the bejesus out of a handful of folks (a "handful" if one has six fingers per hand). The Anti-Defamation League joined in to fight this perceived threat of the resurrection of the crucifixion of you-know-who. There was fear apparently, that tents were going to pop up on campus with Pat Robertson preaching to lost souls, destroying the First Amendment of the Constitution faster than an Obama Democrat.
The problem was some who saw the t-shirts being worn on-campus saw something "that some say resembles a cross." It's kinda like those folks who see Mary in urine in the snow, Jesus on a piece of toast, and Elvis at the 7/11. Yes, it's that serious. Fortunately, no one took this little moment of madness too far being that there was no urine involved ...or toast or Elvis.
All in all, the school handled it very well. Go PU!
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,569665,00.html
Saturday, October 24, 2009
More than a Freudian slip? Obama's "Muslim faith."
It flowed from his lips as smoothly and as naturally as spit from a baseball players mouth while sitting on the bench. "My Muslim faith." He said it. And millions of Americans were shocked. But the interviewer, George Stephanopolous, smoothly corrected (?) him. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQqIpdBOg6I
This was not a mistake or a Freudian slip; it was an admission of who and what he truly is.
Such a slip could not come from the lips of a Christian, which Obama professes to be to our nation. Can you say "taqqiya?" Of course, he did not have his teleprompter in front of him nor did he have his blackberry at his ear.
And his forgetting how many states are in the US? He said, or wondered out loud, "57 states?" And it just so happens that there are how many Islamic states? You guessed it. There are indeed 57 Islamic states. Practicing taqqiya is more difficult than one might think when you have to do it 24/7 in the nation Islam refers to as "The Great Satan." Our puppet president, who must have his teleprompter to keep his facts(?) straight, is paving the way for his Islamist cohorts to bring America to financial ruin and the slow deliberate employment of sharia.
This was not a mistake or a Freudian slip; it was an admission of who and what he truly is.
Such a slip could not come from the lips of a Christian, which Obama professes to be to our nation. Can you say "taqqiya?" Of course, he did not have his teleprompter in front of him nor did he have his blackberry at his ear.
And his forgetting how many states are in the US? He said, or wondered out loud, "57 states?" And it just so happens that there are how many Islamic states? You guessed it. There are indeed 57 Islamic states. Practicing taqqiya is more difficult than one might think when you have to do it 24/7 in the nation Islam refers to as "The Great Satan." Our puppet president, who must have his teleprompter to keep his facts(?) straight, is paving the way for his Islamist cohorts to bring America to financial ruin and the slow deliberate employment of sharia.
Thursday, October 22, 2009
A brief lesson on eternal security
Every work of grace completed by the Lord Jesus Christ has the approval of the Father and the seal of eternity stamped on it.
Every soul saved by the grace of God is eternally saved.
Every sin forgiven by the blood of Christ is eternally forgiven.
The wrath of God satisfied by the death of His Son on the cross is eternally satisfied.
The condemnation, the guilt, the shame, the fear, and death, are all eternally removed from the life of the believer.
The new life we have is eternal life, not "contingent life."
His words from the cross, "It is finished," His words, "And I will give them eternal life," and the words "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whoever believes on Him might not perish but have everlasting life," have the guarantee of eternal life within them.
The presence of the Holy Spirit whereby we are "sealed unto the day of redemption" places the seal of eternity upon every believer.
The covenants of God fulfilled by Jesus Christ are eternally fulfilled.
The promises fulfilled by the Lord Jesus Christ are eternally fulfilled.
God's will and God's law are absolutely satisfied and fulfilled for us for eternity in Jesus Christ.
Every believer lives in the eternal state of:
1. Grace
2. Justification
3. Sanctification
4. Righteousness
5. Love
6. Peace
7. Glory
8. Reconciliation
9. Union with God
10. Liberty
11. Completion
12. The Kingdom of God
13. Holiness
14. New Life
Every soul saved by the grace of God is eternally saved.
Every sin forgiven by the blood of Christ is eternally forgiven.
The wrath of God satisfied by the death of His Son on the cross is eternally satisfied.
The condemnation, the guilt, the shame, the fear, and death, are all eternally removed from the life of the believer.
The new life we have is eternal life, not "contingent life."
His words from the cross, "It is finished," His words, "And I will give them eternal life," and the words "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whoever believes on Him might not perish but have everlasting life," have the guarantee of eternal life within them.
The presence of the Holy Spirit whereby we are "sealed unto the day of redemption" places the seal of eternity upon every believer.
The covenants of God fulfilled by Jesus Christ are eternally fulfilled.
The promises fulfilled by the Lord Jesus Christ are eternally fulfilled.
God's will and God's law are absolutely satisfied and fulfilled for us for eternity in Jesus Christ.
Every believer lives in the eternal state of:
1. Grace
2. Justification
3. Sanctification
4. Righteousness
5. Love
6. Peace
7. Glory
8. Reconciliation
9. Union with God
10. Liberty
11. Completion
12. The Kingdom of God
13. Holiness
14. New Life
Saturday, October 10, 2009
"Beware of Idealogical Teamism," Church of Jesus Christ
Here is an article from American Thinker that I find extremely eye-opening concerning human nature and why some Christians get caught-up/deceived by various "winds of doctrine," heresies, and liberalism. How is it that whole denominations fall into apostasy, embracing lifestyles and teachings contrary to the word of God? This helps explain some of their behavior.
October 10, 2009
Beware of Ideological Teamism
By Jason Lewis
Many people don't realize it, but they are being exploited by a psychosocial phenomenon that is encouraging them to think irrationally. Everyone is susceptible, and it can lure you to betray your principles in order to support ideological causes. The general form of this phenomenon as defined here is called "teamism." "Ideological teamism" is a more specific manifestation. In both cases, your belonging to a team will influence what you want to believe, and can corrupt your judgment. To illustrate teamism, here are two familiar examples of how wanting to believe something will induce non-critical thinking.
First, consider a sporting event where a referee makes an incredibly close call in the final championship game. The referee's call is made within a cloud of dust, and he is the only one with a clear view of the critical event. The fans from the losing team instantly become furious and hostile. Rumors of a bad call are believed without any factual basis. Fans from the winning team instantly accept the referee's call. Neither side has any objective basis for having a strong opinion. Anger ensues, followed by fights between fans of opposing teams, and the stadium eventually erupts into rioting.
The second example illustrates an effect of ideological teamism. For this phenomenon, consider a close presidential election in which the deciding state was a statistical tie. One candidate sues, and eventually, one candidate is confirmed as the winner after a court's decision is made on procedures. Supporters of the losing candidate are furious and hostile. It takes little effort to convince them that the judge made a bad call and robbed them of the election. Rumors of fraud, corruption, incompetence, and unfairness are easily accepted and believed without any factual basis. Supporters of the winning candidate immediately defend the judge's ruling without understanding the basis of the ruling. People are outraged all over the country and neighbors become hostile with each other.
As humans, we seem to have a tendency to identify with a team and to be defensive about other perceived teams. Some have proposed that this is an inherent evolutionary trait based on tribal identity or psychology of hunter-gatherer bands. An experiment in the 1950's with fifth grade boys had interesting, yet somewhat disturbing findings. For this experiment (Robber's Cave Experiment), 22 boys were divided into two groups at the Robber's Cave State Park in Oklahoma. Initially, the groups were kept separately. As soon as the two groups became aware of each other, they immediately became defensive about territory, and were eager to challenge the other team. A set of competitive games were setup, and the hostilities between the groups escalated to alarming levels, including name calling, vandalism, and likely violence if the adult researchers (posing as staffers) hadn't prevented it.
While many manifestations of teamism can lead to a harmless, exciting, and productive competition in sports and business, its corrupting influence on our judgment can have a detrimental effect on society when it affects other areas, such as science, economics, politics, and history. Our tendency to become emotionally attached to issues and ideologies encourages a loss of rationality by making us want to believe conclusions which support our ideology. People tend to rationalize what they want to believe by seeking out information that confirms what they want to believe and by ignoring contradictory information.
It's unfortunate that expert economists and politicians can't agree on lessons learned from the Great Depression. Political beliefs affect economic beliefs, and two teams looking at the same data will emotionally defend opposite conclusions. On one team, FDR's policies were necessary and beneficial. On another team, FDR's policies made the Great Depression worse and longer that it needed to be. Polite intellectual disagreements are understandable, but an internet search using the words "Krugman" and "Shlaes" reveals an abundance of emotional vitriol. The quest to determine man's role in global warming is another important field which has been corrupted by ideological teamism. Ad hominem and nasty rhetoric are rampant among both researchers as well as non-scientist advocates on both sides of the issue.
What to watch for:
As with many hazards in life, recognizing the hazard is often the key to prevention. This can be useful in identifying ideological teamism in you, as well as in other people. Here are some traits that are often found in ideological teamism:
1. Emotional Attachment: It's very hard to remain objective when you are emotional about an issue. An emotional influence will encourage you to want to believe certain things. It's not wrong to be emotional about an issue, but be aware that your objectivity may be compromised.
2. Emphasis on beating the other side: When winning a debate is more important than understanding both sides of the issue, then a person has definitely crossed the line into teamism. The issue has turned into an "us against them" game. In a truly objective investigation, a person should embrace and invite viewpoints that oppose his current beliefs about a subject. A good scientist will test his own theories harshly and thoroughly in order to try to prove them wrong. An ideological teamist will use rhetorical tricks to try to deflect arguments that do not support his ideology. An ideology should win on its own merits, and not by the skill of the debater.
3. Ridicule and Insults Become Acceptable: This is a common type of ad hominem attack for the ideological team member. Normally nice people can become rude while under the influence of teamism. While it is more common to directly insult and ridicule someone else's ideology in a semi-anonymous internet forum, ridicule in a face-to-face situation most often occurs among friendly team members of the same team. Have you ever ridiculed a political issue to a friend who agrees with your politics? If so, then this may reveal an emotional attachment to an issue. Sometimes, ridiculous things happen. However, be cautious of your objectivity about an issue when you recognize it.
4. Vilification: There is a moral superiority in being a victim. I'm not just right, but my team is "better" than yours. The other side isn't just wrong; they are stupid, negligent, uncaring, irresponsible, or evil. This is standard practice in many political discussions. Godwin's Law is demonstrated over and over again in internet forums. The words "ilk" and "minions" become more common when they describe the opposition. Try an internet search of the words "Cheney" + "Ilk" or "Democrats" + "Ilk". Be cautious if you begin to feel that those with whom you disagree have ill intent. It may be that one or both of you are simply misguided.
What's in it for me?
By recognizing and preventing an emotional attachment to your ideologies, you may be less defensive and more rational in your thought processes. You'll be better able to test your beliefs and be less defensive about them. For the issues which you are right about, you will be better able to test them and discuss them calmly. For issues which you are wrong about, you'll be better able to see and accept a correction. There's nothing illogical about having strong opinions, but it's good to not get too emotionally attached to them.
Jason Lewis, Ph.D blogs at nomoon.org/blog
October 10, 2009
Beware of Ideological Teamism
By Jason Lewis
Many people don't realize it, but they are being exploited by a psychosocial phenomenon that is encouraging them to think irrationally. Everyone is susceptible, and it can lure you to betray your principles in order to support ideological causes. The general form of this phenomenon as defined here is called "teamism." "Ideological teamism" is a more specific manifestation. In both cases, your belonging to a team will influence what you want to believe, and can corrupt your judgment. To illustrate teamism, here are two familiar examples of how wanting to believe something will induce non-critical thinking.
First, consider a sporting event where a referee makes an incredibly close call in the final championship game. The referee's call is made within a cloud of dust, and he is the only one with a clear view of the critical event. The fans from the losing team instantly become furious and hostile. Rumors of a bad call are believed without any factual basis. Fans from the winning team instantly accept the referee's call. Neither side has any objective basis for having a strong opinion. Anger ensues, followed by fights between fans of opposing teams, and the stadium eventually erupts into rioting.
The second example illustrates an effect of ideological teamism. For this phenomenon, consider a close presidential election in which the deciding state was a statistical tie. One candidate sues, and eventually, one candidate is confirmed as the winner after a court's decision is made on procedures. Supporters of the losing candidate are furious and hostile. It takes little effort to convince them that the judge made a bad call and robbed them of the election. Rumors of fraud, corruption, incompetence, and unfairness are easily accepted and believed without any factual basis. Supporters of the winning candidate immediately defend the judge's ruling without understanding the basis of the ruling. People are outraged all over the country and neighbors become hostile with each other.
As humans, we seem to have a tendency to identify with a team and to be defensive about other perceived teams. Some have proposed that this is an inherent evolutionary trait based on tribal identity or psychology of hunter-gatherer bands. An experiment in the 1950's with fifth grade boys had interesting, yet somewhat disturbing findings. For this experiment (Robber's Cave Experiment), 22 boys were divided into two groups at the Robber's Cave State Park in Oklahoma. Initially, the groups were kept separately. As soon as the two groups became aware of each other, they immediately became defensive about territory, and were eager to challenge the other team. A set of competitive games were setup, and the hostilities between the groups escalated to alarming levels, including name calling, vandalism, and likely violence if the adult researchers (posing as staffers) hadn't prevented it.
While many manifestations of teamism can lead to a harmless, exciting, and productive competition in sports and business, its corrupting influence on our judgment can have a detrimental effect on society when it affects other areas, such as science, economics, politics, and history. Our tendency to become emotionally attached to issues and ideologies encourages a loss of rationality by making us want to believe conclusions which support our ideology. People tend to rationalize what they want to believe by seeking out information that confirms what they want to believe and by ignoring contradictory information.
It's unfortunate that expert economists and politicians can't agree on lessons learned from the Great Depression. Political beliefs affect economic beliefs, and two teams looking at the same data will emotionally defend opposite conclusions. On one team, FDR's policies were necessary and beneficial. On another team, FDR's policies made the Great Depression worse and longer that it needed to be. Polite intellectual disagreements are understandable, but an internet search using the words "Krugman" and "Shlaes" reveals an abundance of emotional vitriol. The quest to determine man's role in global warming is another important field which has been corrupted by ideological teamism. Ad hominem and nasty rhetoric are rampant among both researchers as well as non-scientist advocates on both sides of the issue.
What to watch for:
As with many hazards in life, recognizing the hazard is often the key to prevention. This can be useful in identifying ideological teamism in you, as well as in other people. Here are some traits that are often found in ideological teamism:
1. Emotional Attachment: It's very hard to remain objective when you are emotional about an issue. An emotional influence will encourage you to want to believe certain things. It's not wrong to be emotional about an issue, but be aware that your objectivity may be compromised.
2. Emphasis on beating the other side: When winning a debate is more important than understanding both sides of the issue, then a person has definitely crossed the line into teamism. The issue has turned into an "us against them" game. In a truly objective investigation, a person should embrace and invite viewpoints that oppose his current beliefs about a subject. A good scientist will test his own theories harshly and thoroughly in order to try to prove them wrong. An ideological teamist will use rhetorical tricks to try to deflect arguments that do not support his ideology. An ideology should win on its own merits, and not by the skill of the debater.
3. Ridicule and Insults Become Acceptable: This is a common type of ad hominem attack for the ideological team member. Normally nice people can become rude while under the influence of teamism. While it is more common to directly insult and ridicule someone else's ideology in a semi-anonymous internet forum, ridicule in a face-to-face situation most often occurs among friendly team members of the same team. Have you ever ridiculed a political issue to a friend who agrees with your politics? If so, then this may reveal an emotional attachment to an issue. Sometimes, ridiculous things happen. However, be cautious of your objectivity about an issue when you recognize it.
4. Vilification: There is a moral superiority in being a victim. I'm not just right, but my team is "better" than yours. The other side isn't just wrong; they are stupid, negligent, uncaring, irresponsible, or evil. This is standard practice in many political discussions. Godwin's Law is demonstrated over and over again in internet forums. The words "ilk" and "minions" become more common when they describe the opposition. Try an internet search of the words "Cheney" + "Ilk" or "Democrats" + "Ilk". Be cautious if you begin to feel that those with whom you disagree have ill intent. It may be that one or both of you are simply misguided.
What's in it for me?
By recognizing and preventing an emotional attachment to your ideologies, you may be less defensive and more rational in your thought processes. You'll be better able to test your beliefs and be less defensive about them. For the issues which you are right about, you will be better able to test them and discuss them calmly. For issues which you are wrong about, you'll be better able to see and accept a correction. There's nothing illogical about having strong opinions, but it's good to not get too emotionally attached to them.
Jason Lewis, Ph.D blogs at nomoon.org/blog
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