The 3rd Choice: Recent Episodes
Jim Walton
The 3rd Choice is a safe and anonymous Internet website for dialogue about spiritual things: philosophy, science, theology, world religions, politics, and the Bible. There is no judging and no jamming anything down your throat. Just honest dialogue and answers you can trust.
Background and context of the verses
Go through the text a piece at a time.
Questions that arise:
- Is it OK to have close non-Christian friends?
- Is it OK to do business with non-Christian people?
- Is it OK to marry a non-Christian?
Practical applications
- Live in the world as witnesses to the truth and agents of reconciliation
- Engage the world with gusto. We are salt and light.
- Tread carefully around alliances that have spiritual weight to them.
- Separate from anything that compromises the life of God in you.
1, Why does it matter in our modern times that the Bible is trustworthy?
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What do you mean by trustworthy?
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What do you mean by reliable?
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Is its reliability based on how we got our Bible?
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How did our Bible come about?
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Are the disciples trustworthy sources?
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Why do some Bibles have different books?
Nature of prophecy
We have to understand that the whole idea of “prediction” is a misnomer. It’s not the best word to describe biblical prophecy.
The nature of prophecy is fluid: Jonah 3, 1 Ki. 21.28-29, 2 Kings 20, Jer. 18.1-12.
Fulfillment of Prophecy
The End Goal of Prophecy
Eschatology as Soteriology & Ecclesiology
What do we do with Deuteronomy 18.22?
The details
We have to find the core, and that’s what we can be confident about.
We see so many elements at work to breakdown American culture and also to breakdown Christianity (not that the two are synonymous).
When you take truth out of the equation, all that is left is flux.
When you take objectivity out of the equation, all that is left is power.
When you take God out of the equation, all that is left is materiality and self.
So where does our direction lie as Christians?
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We must refuse to be sucked in by this mindset and worldview.
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We must insist on propositional truth.
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We must fight the culture wars.
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We must inform each other and be informed by each other.
Is Pope Francis dead?
Is the pope an advocate for one-world government and one-world religion?
Is the pope part of a global cabal of world leaders trying to exert power around the world?
Did Pope Francis renounce his title of "Vicar of Christ"?
Is Pope Francis under the authority of the Black Pope, Arturo Sosa?
Is the upside-down cross on the pope's chair a witchcraft symbol?
Is the pope an enemy of Israel? Is the Vatican trying to get control of Jerusalem?
Is Pope Francis trying to influence American politics?
Was the papacy infected by union with Luciferians?
Is the pope involved in a Satanic pedophilia ring being operated by the him, the United Nations, governments, and various other wealthy people?
We are in civil conflict: ideologies, politics, religion, morality, sexuality and gender.
We are being set up by a powerful instigator.
- Luciferianism
- New Age: Protection of the natural world
- Wicca
- Exaltation of the arts and sciences
- Primacy of education (“The God of the Bible dooms people to perpetual ignorance”)
- Pragmatism, Hedonism, nihilism, narcissism
- Individuality, self-determined choices
- Worship of the inner self and one’s ultimate potential
- Secularism
- Morality is because of good to humanity, not because of any deity.
- All ideas should be tested and proved by science before being accepted. (scientism)
What changes do we see Corona bringing to America?
What changes do we see Corona bringing to the world?
What changes do we see Corona bringing to the Church?
Jesus's declarations of deity.
The New Testament's affirmation of Jesus's deity
How the doctrine of the Trinity formed through the first several centuries.
Trinitarian heresies that grew up.
The differences between the Trinity and polytheism.
The differences between the Trinity and Hinduism.
A conversation between Esther Meek and Jim Walton discussing what it means to know God and to find truth.
An examination of Luke 21.11, Rev. 6.8 and 8.11 give us an indication that, without further information or events, we should not consider the Corona Virus outbreak a sign of the End Times. In the prophecies, "plague" is part of a cluster of events happening, and those other events are not present. For now, I would regard the Corona Virus as just a terrible outbreak, not particularly as a sign of the End. But we're always on the alert and paying attention to watch how events evolve and to see what else is going on.
We don’t have enough information on Jesus’s fiscal commentary to make that decision. Jesus spoke against greed and He spoke for generosity. He agreed we should pay taxes. It's not wealth that is evil, but rather what our attitude towards it is. What matters is how we got it, how we treat it, and what we do with it.
Jesus had a reasonable amount of things to say about our attitudes and accumulation of money, but he had nothing to say about economic systems. He was neither an advocate of capitalism or socialism. In other words, Jesus never tried to define the shape of society; he never advocated for a certain sort of economy. Instead he told us what people should be like whatever system they’re in. So please don’t lasso Jesus to drag him into your camp to endorse your way of thinking. You have your opinion, and that’s fine, but let Jesus’s teaching speak for itself.
The film poses itself as economic and social commentary. It's about human nature and the American Dream (How can I get more money than I have? How can I not lose what I gain?).
I would summarize the film with this sentence: "The only person who matters is me." It's a failed worldview for three reasons:
- It is an impossible foundation for a relationship with God.
- It is an impossible foundation for living well.
- It is an impossible foundation for good citizenship.
Yes. We Christians think, evaluate, explore, do science, weigh data, ask questions, wonder, search, doubt, and learn.
There is truth all around us. We find truth in almost every corner. Learning is a wonderful thing. It's never a sin to think, to ask questions, to search, to doubt, to wonder, or to learn.
I mention a few verses as samples that show us using our minds is biblical.
Matt. 22.37: "Jesus replied: 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' " I show my love for God by using my mind. Lack of curiosity is a sin. Studying science is one of the ways we can love God with all our minds.
Luke 1.3: "I have carefully investigated all things from the beginning." The text is affirming research, critical thinking, data, and conclusions.
Luke 24.45: "Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures." God wants us to understand, to have open minds to learn, digest, form new thoughts, and take us deeper in knowledge.
Romans 12.2: "Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind." It's our responsibility to be good thinkers. Notice in this verse that Paul’s appeal here is to the mind and the will, the body and the spirit, just like Jesus when He says, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength." All that we are is to be offered to God as useful.
1 Peter 1.13: "Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober, set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at his coming." Christians should never be content with a flabby and unexamined faith. You must think things out and think them through.
Acts 17.11: "Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true." Use your brain! Check things out. Evaluate, research, confirm or disapprove. The Bible calls this being "noble."
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Isaiah 1 (17, 21, 23) tells us that where worship of the true God falters, justice fails. We are seeing this in America with all the non-stop machinations of the Department of Justice.
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Isaiah 3.4 tells us that where worship of the true God, falters, the result is that the nation will be run by children. We are seeing this in America with proud, petty, and partisan leaders who are like 3rd graders calling each other names, bullying each other, and lying about it all.
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Isaiah 5 tells us that a nation that has been given every blessing and advance, but spoils it though immorality as a people and corruption in government is going to see demise as a nation.
We live in a time of continuing political chaos. We need to be able to find a place of peace in the middle of it. I give some suggestions to give help for life.
I give 3 helps for life.
- Real life will never match up to your ideal. You need to find your peace in Jesus, not your circumstances.
- Change the conversation. Instead of a spirit of complaint (which is so easy to do), change it saying things that build up.
- Be change agents. Don't let these miserable circumstances change who you are and how you think (though everything influences). Instead, Create distance from the anxiety and be an agent for positive change.
What the Old Testament says:
- God created humans in his image.
- Humans bear God's image from conception on.
- Birth is considered a co-creative process involving a man, a woman, and God. We share in God's act of creation.
- The OT law sought to protect the life of the mother and fetus. A high value was placed on both.
- The OT elevates human life as a precious gift from God.
What the New Testament says:
- It expressly condemns infanticide.
- Conception is seen as a blessing.
- Humans bear God's image from the moment of conception.
- The NT teaches personal continuity of identity from womb to grave.
- Paul makes it clear that a woman doesn't own or rule over her own body.
Theological perspectives:
- Humans are unique creations in that we are in the image of God.
- The woman does not have exclusive rights over the developing human inside her body. Theologically, that life inside her is a gift and a trust from God.
- The destruction of human life in any form is against God's purpose in creation. God is the giver of life; it is Satan who is the destroyer of it.
- Jesus's persistent teaching was that those whom the culture perceived as marginal human beings have value.
- The Bible speaks strongly against the shading of innocent blood.
- The Bible teaches us to help those who are helpless.
- There is nothing in Scripture that even remotely suggests that the unborn child is anything less than a human person from the moment of conception on.
We discuss four questions:
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What is theology?
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Why is theology important?
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The church's role in teaching theology
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One's individual responsibilities and the parents' role in teaching theology
A conversation with Kim Fletcher, President and Founder of "Moms For America," a national movement of mothers to reclaim our culture for truth, family, and freedom.
Beth Nimmo is the mother of Rachel Joy Scott, the first student shot and killed at Columbine High School on April 20, 1999.
I'm not trashing public schools. We sent our 3 children to public schools, and they did very well. But public school can be a rough place for Christian kids.
- Train your kids (by example and training) to have a strong moral code.
- The better they know what the Bible teaches, the stronger they can be against deceit.
- Encourage your kids to get involved at school.
- Prepare them to answer the questions of our age.
- Involvement in a good children's ministry and youth group.
- Daily devotions.
- Prayer partners.
- Parenting doesn't equal paranoid protection. Instead, train them how to function as Christians in the world, just as all of us must do.
- It's never too late to start.
Whoever controls the terminology of a culture controls the narrative. Whoever controls the narrative controls the ideology. Therefore, the words we use determines the thoughts we think. Words are powerful weapons; they dictate and redesign societies. Words can create reality.
Here is what we see happening:
- The rise of white supremacism
- The escalation of racism
- The growth of Anti-Semitism
- America is in an ideological war with each other
- The attempt to control the narrative by changing the definition of words
- Suppression of a free press
- Disallowance of free speech
- False accusation of innocent people
- Failure to indict the guilty
- Cultural volatility with violence at hand
- Relative morality
- Irrational "tolerance"
- Intellectual persecution of Christians in America
Here's what to do about it:
- Insist on freedom of the press
- Guarantee free speech
- Guarantee freedom of religion
- Tougher anti-abortion laws
- Laws against euthanasia and doctor-assisted suicide
- Return of the judiciary to judicial function rather than imperialistic executive intrusion
- Return of the Congress to legislative function rather than perpetual attack
- Responsible environmental stewardship
- Free religious expression in schools, government, and the public forum.
- Return of values to education
- Concerted ecclesiological, political, and education suppression of supremacism, racism, and Anti-Semitism.
Despite what it sounds like the Bible says, there was no chattel slavery in ancient Israel.
- What’s going on in the world is neither a surprise to God nor something He can’t handle. He has foreseen it all. He is not wringing His hands in confusion, but is instead broken hearted.
- As Christians we are to be encouraged and comforted. Think above life. These are exciting times.
a. Matthew 24: it’s an opportunity to live a strong testimony (24.14) also 1 Peter. 1.7.
b. 1 Thes. 4.18: Comfort one another
c. Book of Revelation wasn’t written to scare us, but rather to help us understand what God is doing. 3. They need to be grounded in the Word (Mt. 24.4: Watch that no one deceives you). Not just specifically eschatological passages, but the whole Word of God. The better they know the Word, the more ready they will be for all that lies ahead. 4. They need to know that success by evil people doesn’t mean God isn’t there (Mt. 24.9-11; Hab. 1). 5. Therefore, it’s a time to show confidence, not fear. We know what’s going on, we know where this is headed. We need to instill in our children confidence and trust, not fear. Be careful not to communicate fear. 6. Teach your kids to be human. In days like this, too many people turn barbaric. They turn to violence, greed, and self-centeredness. It’s all about “me.” Teach your children to be human: compassion for others, kindness, not bullying, not violent. 7. Teach your kids to be helpers. There’s that saying by Fred Rogers (“Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood”): “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.” 8. Teach your kids to be good and faithful servants of God, no matter what. Instill in them a biblical worldview. 9. Don’t believe everything you see on your technology. Talk to your parents about it. 10. Talk at the dinner table about what’s going on in the world. 11. Discussions about politics and political figures are out of place at the grade school lunch table and in back yards between children. Children are almost always just parroting things they have heard adults say, and they generally know very little about these matters. Teach your children to stay quiet if the conversation at the school lunch table turns to politics. So also Middle School. High school is a different matter. If your child is informed, he or she should be able to take a position and justify it. In that case, make sure your kid knows what they are talking about if they’re going to discuss it.
In this podcast I speak briefly about the historical accuracy of the biblical text as corroborated by other records, whether the Bible makes sense of the data at hand, and whether the study of the Bible proves to be valuable for life.
Historical accuracy: historical documents, archaeological artifacts, linguistics, and form criticism all support the reliability of the biblical text.
Whether the Bible makes sense of the data at hand. Continuing archaeological discoveries are verifying that the Bible makes sense of the data at hand rather than showing us a picture out in left field.
The Bible proves to be valuable for life: (1) If everyone lived this way (Christianity), it would be of benefit; (2) The Bible has the power to change lives; (3) God really does reveal himself as we read.
An Interview with Dick Loizeaux, church consultant, talking about the signs of a healthy church: justification by faith and social justice
An Interview with Dick Loizeaux, church consultant, talking about the 5th of 8 elements that cause a church to fail.
Element #5: A successful church has to have an effective governing structure.
Qualities of an effective pastor: shepherd, teacher, leader
Qualities of an effective board
- role differentiation
- Job description
- clear selection process
A. character
B. Chemistry
C. Competence
D. Culture 4. adequate training
An Interview with Dick Loizeaux, church consultant, talking about the first 2 of 8 elements that cause a church to fail.
Here Dick speaks about a church that fails to have meaningful small groups
An Interview with Dick Loizeaux, church consultant, talking about the first 2 of 8 elements that cause a church to fail.
Here Dick speaks about a church that fails to have a clear mission, vision, and core values.
An Interview with Dick Loizeaux, church consultant, talking about the first 2 of 8 elements that cause a church to fail.
Here Dick speaks about unwillingness to embrace change, and an inward focus.
An interview with church consultant Dick Loizeaux about church leadership and management.
The eight reasons churches struggle.
Functional Structure.
Pastor as a team builder.
Role of elders and pastors.
Strategies for discipling and mentoring our own children to become fully devoted disciples of Christ. Radio show on WDCX, Buffalo, on Linda Penn's radio show "Today's Living Hope."
We can no longer be casual about discipling our children. The culture is thoroughly secular.
Parents need both character and content. It's not just a strategy, but who you are as well as what you do.
Deuteronomy 6 is our model.
- There is a strong need for accurate biblical data.
- There is a strong need for a good parental model and example.
- Immerse them in a permeating Christian worldview.
- Attend church and be committed there.
- Read the Bible with your children.
- Conversation in all places about all things. Immersion in biblical worldview.
- Infusing of Christian music.
- Social action.
Interview of two middle school students about Christianity in middle school.
How many of your friends are Christians?
Do the kids at school know you are Christians?
Is there much bullying?
Do the kids treat you any differently because of that?
Do they make fun of you because you're a Christian?
How do you show your Christianity?
Where did you learn what you know about God and the Bible?
Why do you wish more of your friends came to youth group?
Interview with Sergeant Matt Evans, a detective with 20 years experience in police patrol and being a detective.
The conflicts of being a policeman and a Christian.
Dealing with criticism, violence, and fear.
How faith makes a difference
An interview with Rebecca Evans, children's book illustrator and writer.
Hard work, paying attention to the environment, adapting with the changes, and walking carefully in an angry and intolerant world. These are the challenges of living as a faithful Christian in our culture.
An interview with Linda Penn, a leader of women's ministry on church staff for four decades. We talk about church, discipleship, evangelism, spiritual gifts, and women's ministry.
- How do you hear the voice of God?
- What is the church supposed to be?
- What is the church doing right?
- Where is the church failing?
- What is a disciple?
- What is the process of discipleship?
- Why don't churches disciple better?
- Why is women's ministry so important?
- How does a church do women's ministry?
Free will is a necessary part of humanity and life. Determinism (fate) is self-defeating.
- The human brain is dynamic, plastic, and fluid. There is no biological determinism.
- The ability to reason is grounded in free will. If we have no free will, we cannot and do not think.
- Without free will there is no such thing as science. Science requires assessing observations, weighing data, filtering information, and drawing conclusions. Without free will, this process is an illusion.
- It's impossible to believe in determinism for rational reasons.
- The characteristics that most make us human (love, forgiveness, kindness, mercy, grace, and justice) require free will.
- God's omniscience has no impact on my freedom to choose. Knowledge is not causative.
This is a recording of a seminar I taught at the Iron Sharpens Iron Conference in Rochester NY, in November, 2018. I spoke on "What You Need to Know." With Christianity under increasing attack in America, it becomes more critical all the time that we know the truth about it and how to talk about it. In this seminar we will examine the defense of our belief to assure you that we stand on solid ground. These are the questions the culture is asking, and these are the reasons so many people are falling away from the faith. There is never cause to desert or doubt Christianity. There is solid research and good evidence for what we believe. You need to know what it is, not only so that you don’t drift away, but also so that you can help others.
- Christianity is coming under increasing attack.
- The evidence for God is far more substantial, far more convincing, far stronger a case than anything anyone else can mount.
- The evidence for the resurrection is strong enough to convince anyone who has an open mind.
- The evidence for the historicity and reliability of the Bible is huge.
- Science cannot possibly be the only reliable path to knowledge.
- Then there are subjects like genocide, slavery, and misogyny. You need to understand that these are all misunderstandings because of our modern mindset. They are not valid criticisms of God, the Bible, or Christianity.
An interview with Adam Walton, who has a congenital heart defect, about his perceptions of God and suffering.
An interview with Bob Walton, church historian, about the early era of the church, the Church Fathers in particular.
How reliable are the Church Fathers?
The church fathers and the authorship of the Gospels
Were there power plays to eliminate contrary opinions?
Early records of Jesus
Were the apostles really martyred for their faith?
Conspiracy theory
The question is "Why is the God of the Old Testament so violent when Jesus in the New Testament is so peaceful?" First of all, the question reveals a fundamental misunderstanding. God in the Old Testament is full of love and peace, but he has to judge evil. God in the New Testament is no different.
The Old Testament is the story of a nation; the New Testament is the story of a person. There are different things going on. Violence is a normal part of a sinful world and will never go away. Sometimes the only way to not let violence take control is to meet it with a "bigger sword." As long as the use of force (1) has a legitimate basis, (2) has a moral end, and (3) has a justifiable means, a qualified use of force is not only necessary but justifiable.
Atheism requires more faith than Christianity because there are fewer evidences for atheism than there are for theism.
- There is no evidence of any kind that the universe is a closed system and that the existence of a deity or interference by a deity is scientifically impossible. Atheists just believe it.
- There is no evidence of the transitional life forms required to make unguided evolution possible. Atheists just believe it, filling in all the blanks even though science doesn't and can't.
- There's no evidence that purpose can derive from random processes. Christians reason that purpose comes from a purposeful source. Atheists just believe it.
- There's no evidence that meaning can derive from matter + time + chance. Atheists just believe it.
- There's no evidence that informational data can come from anything other that informational data. We have no example of any informational data that spontaneously generates. Christians reason that informational data came from an intelligent source. Atheists just believe that somehow it happened, with no evidence to substantiate it.
- There is no evidence that personality arose from the impersonal—that chemicals and blind forces yielded consciousness and personality. Christians reasons that personality came from a personal source. Atheists just believe it came about all by itself.
- There isn't even any evidence that reason could arise from other than an intelligent source. If we are the result of chemicals + blind forces + matter + time + chance, I really can't believe the workings of my mind (or anyone else's), because it all came about by random combinations, and is still random combinations (because that's all that's in the system). Therefore, I can't necessarily trust any of it to be giving me what I would consider to be reason, or even further, truth. Atheists just believe it.
Atheists have bigger gaps in knowledge than theists do, they make more leaps of faith, and take stock in less-well-supported positions.
In this podcast I talk about what faith really is. Biblical faith is always based in evidence. It is making an assumption of truth based on enough evidence to make that assumption reasonable. God always gave evidence to people before He expected them to believe. John 17.8; 14.11, and Hebrews 11.1 all define faith as being based in evidences. There is nothing in faith that is blind, contrary to reason, or lacking evidence.
In this episode I share what it means that God is omnipotent, or all-powerful.
Omnipotence doesn't mean that God can do anything and everything and that there are no limits to what God can do, but rather that He can do whatever is maximally consistent. What omnipotence means is that God is able to do anything that is a proper object of his power. The omnipotence of God is all-sufficient power. He can never be overwhelmed, exhausted, or contained. He is able to overcome apparently insurmountable problems. He has complete power over nature, though often he lets nature take its course, because that’s what He created it to do. He has power over the course of history, though he chooses to use that power only as he wills. He has the power to change human personality, but only as individuals allow, since He cannot interfere with the freedom of man. He has the power to conquer death and sin, and to save a human soul for eternity. He has power over the spiritual realm.
There are things, however, that God cannot do.
- He cannot do what is logically absurd or contradictory, like make a square circle.
- He cannot act contrary to His nature. God cannot be self-contradictory.
- He cannot fail to do what He has promised.
- He cannot interfere with the free will of man.
- He cannot change the past.
Omnipotence means that God has all-sufficient power to do whatever He sets out to do.
- Nothing material can explain its own existence. It is either self-existent or was caused.
- Nothing cannot produce something. Since there is something rather than nothing, there was a cause for the universe.
- Therefore nature and the universe are not self-existent but were caused by something else.
- The universe, then, had to have been caused by something outside of itself that is self-existent.
- That self-existent entity must, therefore, be eternal, timeless, personal, powerful, and intelligent.
Therefore God is the source of the universe, and he is uncreated. In other words, God is self-existent and has always existed. He didn't have an origin.
Making sense out of the Trinity. We don't just have to blindly accept it by faith, we can explaining it using reason.
- In the the Trinity distinguishes between the principle of divine action and the subject of divine action. The principle of all divine action is the one undivided divine essence, but the subject of divine action is either Father, Son, or Holy Spirit. The Father can send the Son according to his power, and the Son can be incarnated according to his nature without dividing the divine essence.
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- This comes mostly from Dr. Henry Morris. All physical reality has a dual nature. Mass and energy are in principle inter-convertible, through nuclear fission or fusion reactions. E = mc^2. We can, therefore, speak of the universe as a "space-light-time" universe. It is significant that this motion of light is famous for its mysterious and paradoxical complementarity. It has the characteristics of both waves and particles, and yet it definitely behaves as a wave motion under some conditions and as a particle motion under others. This duality applies both in radiations of electro-magnetic energy and in the atomic structure of matter, in which the orbiting electron likewise behaves both as a particle and as a wave. The two disciplines of modern physics known as quantum mechanics and wave mechanics have been developed from these two concepts.
- Superposition. In quantum mechanics there is a principle called superposition, where subatomic particles are able to exist in two states at once.
- Quantum Entanglement. For another potential scientific "validation" of such possibilities, in 2017 a group of quantum scientists (University of Science and Technology of China in Shanghai) successfully teleported a photon from earth to a satellite in orbit. It's called quantum entanglement. As far as our discussion here, quantum entanglement means that the two quantum objects share a wave function and share the same identity, even when separated. What happens to one happens to the other—whoever it exists. They are more than identical twins, the article said, "the two are one and the same." Apparently, according to the article, when they interact with matter on Earth they lose certain aspects of entanglement, but in the vacuum of space, they can extend infinitely (eternally).
- From Sheldon Vanauken in his book "A Severe Mercy": Suppose I write a book about me. I am the main character in the book. The character in the book only says and does what I would say and do. That's me in the book. He’s exactly as I am, but at the same time the person in the book is a different person than the person who is the author. So in reality the "me" in the book and the "me" who is the writer of the book are separate persons, but we're the same essence. They're both me, but the two are distinct. I can easily be both the author and a character without compromising either.
- From Dr. Joe Boot of the Ezra Institute: "If God is not the triune Lord revealed in Jesus Christ, then the doctrine of creation is rendered impossible, and man is part of a cosmic chain of being. This is because a monadic conception of God as some kind of singularity leaves us with the emptiness and void of non-personality as ultimate. If there is no plurality within God’s being, then there is no subject-object relationship, no particularity, only a blank unity. In such a view of God there can be no foundation for knowledge, love, morality, or ethics. Indeed, without an absolute personality, there is no diversity or distinction basic to reality at all; ultimate reality is a bare unity about which nothing may be said. This is why the Trinity is so important in tackling the philosophical problem of the one and the many. Moreover, because a denial of the Trinity leads to a denial of an absolute personality, we cannot speak coherently of the will of God. Only persons have a will. But if God has no will, then creation is not the free act of an absolute, personal God. Rather, the universe is the emanation of divine being, and what we call the universe is merely the extension of god, or, as some pagans would say, it is the body of god."
The Trinity is hinted at in the Old Testament.
Jesus teaches the Trinity.
Paul teaches the Trinity.
It is often accused by detractors that God doesn’t really answer prayer, but that Christians are guilty of confirmation bias. It’s the tendency to see what we want to see and expect to see, to say that certain circumstances are answers to prayer because I believe they are. When I expect to get an answer to prayer, I will find some event that fits my expectations, and then claim that it happened.
I claim this accusation is not only untrue but also impossible.
- To know it was confirmation we would have to be able to isolate the events on earth that were acts of God and those that weren't, so we could know what was a false assumption and bias. That's not possible.
- We would have to be able to guarantee who was praying for the object and hand and who was not, and how they were praying. Any stray prayers may skew the data. Such a guarantee is impossible.
- We would have to establish objective criteria for what counted as an answer to prayer and what did not. Knowing that God at times uses very natural and normal means, that sometimes he answers the prayers in a different way or by a different means, sometimes he answers partially and sometimes in stages makes such criteria impossible.
- We would have to construct a model or standard by which we can discern what answers to prayer are legitimate and which are contrived. This is impossible.
- We would have to have an ironclad control group that eliminates all possible other factors. This is impossible.
- We would have to know with certainty what circumstantial events are answers to prayer and which are not, which is impossible.
Therefore any accusation of confirmation bias is illegitimately. Prayer can not be measured in that way.
I'm talking about what prayer is really about. Its primary purpose is not to ask for things, but to have a love relationship.
If God were to answer our prayers at a greater rate than average, we would easily become power crazed and corrupted.
If God were to answer our prayers at a lesser rate than average, we would consider him to be cruel.
If God were to answer our prayers at average, where we couldn't tell if the prayer ever got answered or not, we would think God didn't care and prayer was worthless.
Instead, prayer is not primarily about getting stuff, but rather about the relationship. From the Bible I have learned at least three things about prayer:
- Almost all of what God promises to do in the New Testament is internal, not circumstantial. The Bible teaches us to pray mostly about inner qualities: strength, patience, clarity of thought, enlightened heart, the power of the Spirit, and the like.
- Almost all of what God does for me circumstantially is through normal means. : the actions of words of a person, something I read in a book, a thought in my head. I have to learn to recognize the imprint of God, because it's often quite normal human things going on.
- God's answers are often not what I ask for but still what what most needed. I have to learn to see that and accept it.
Prayer is mostly seeking the pleasure of God's company, not asking for things. He's my God, not Santa Claus. My circumstantial life may not be significantly different from anyone else's, but my inner life is a new creation. I have to learn to to see the hand of God around me. It's a learning process.
If God really wants us to know Him, why doesn’t He appear to all of us and speak to all of us?
A direct experience with God is no guarantee of a loving relationship with him, or being convinced to walk in his ways. Satan and demons are glaring examples.
Seeing spectacular miracles are no guarantee that a person will follow God. The Israelites of the Exodus and the people who knew Jesus are glaring examples.
A direct experience of God is not what turns the soul towards belief.
Among all the religions on earth, why do we think Christianity (and none other) is true? How do we know Christianity is true?
- YHWH is the kind of God we would expect if a God truly exists, and Jesus is the kind of person we would expect to see if God visited the planet.
- The Bible presents a world that we see.
- The Bible portrays "religion" not as a way to earn a place in God's graces, but as God reaching out to us, to love his way into our hearts.
- A true religion must engage the whole of the human nature, not just the mind and not just the emotions.
- A true religion must make sense out of history.
- A true religion must make sense out of science.
- Christianity teaches purpose, significance in humanity, forgiveness for wrongs, life out of death, hope for the hopeless, redemption, fairness, love, beauty, a God who is there, knowledge, conscience, renewal, and meaning.
- Christianity gives an explanation for the beauty of nature and the beauty of the noble side of humanity.
- I believe Christianity is true because of the historical credibility of the resurrection of Jesus.
- I believe Christianity is true because of hundreds of millions of people have had life-changing experiences, not just religious ones.
- I don't find the worldviews of Hinduism, Islam, or Buddhism either consistent, true to life, or true.
Wasn’t God being unfair to harden Pharaoh’s heart and then punish him for it?
No. First of all, the text is clear that Pharaoh's hardened his own heart long before it says anything about God hardening it. In other words, God is not doing anything actively or unfairly, but merely letting Pharaoh pursue the course Pharaoh had already committed himself to pursue.
Secondly, in Egyptian theology, a hard heart was a heavy heart. The language could be indicating Pharaoh's guilt, not God's unfairness.
Third, in Egyptian literature, a hard heart was one that was decisive. It's possible that God was letting Pharaoh decide his own course.
Any of these could be true, and possibly more than one, but the one that is definitely wrong is the way most people read it—that God is forcing Pharaoh to do things the king doesn't want to do, and then God blames Pharaoh for what God made him do in the first place and then punishes him for it. That’s the one that’s untrue.
Some people accuse that if Jesus didn't really stay dead it wasn't really a sacrifice—that if He knew He was going to rise again, there was nothing sacrificial about His death.
"Sacrifice" in the Old Testament was a covering, not a deprivation. It's not about loss, but rather about atonement. Jesus's sacrifice was that of standing in our place so our sins would be covered. So it was still a legitimate sacrifice.
Second, it's a matter of satisfying legal requirements and balancing the books, so to speak. The issue isn't loss but fulfillment.
Third, the Bible accepts the idea of substitutionary atonement: one for many. Since His death accomplished that, it was a legitimate sacrifice.
Is God egotistical when He demands our worship? What is worship, and why does God both demand it and/or deserve it?
Worship is recognizing and rehearsing all of who God is, and giving all of myself to Him. Therefore He deserves our worship because of Who He is, and also because of what He does.
- God deserves to be worshipped because He is truly God.
- God deserves to be worshipped because He loves us.
- God deserves to be worshipped because he has acted sacrificially to secure our salvation.
- God deserves to be worshipped because he is acting out of concern for our safety and wellbeing.
God demands our worship because he is truly worthy of it.
Could Jesus have given in to temptation? If so, they he could have sinned. If not, then how was he really human?
1 Peter 2.21-22 says Jesus could not have sinned.
Hebrews 4.15 says Jesus was tempted in every way as we are.
Temptation had the same dynamic for Jesus as it does for us, and therefore he was tempted as we are even he could not have sinned.
A conversation with Dr. Ami Alderman about public education, common core, and technology.
Bias may be inevitable, but it's not necessarily negative. We all have our cultural and personal contexts and filters, but that doesn't necessarily mean our information is distorted or skewed. The question of the day is, "Are the Gospels biased?"
Bias is inevitable. We cannot help but look at a situation through our own eyes.
Bias is not always negative, but instead can give a unique perspective.
As far as the Gospels is concerned, their bias gave them a reporting advantage, similar to a Jewish person speaking about the Holocaust or an African American talking about antebellum slavery.
Bias can be advantageous.