The God of Endless Days

   " Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God."

                                                       ~Psalm 90: 2

    

One of the most profound truths of the historic Christian faith is that God is eternal (Deuteronomy 33:27). That means that God has always existed and there has never been a time when God has not been. Contrary to some people, God has existed for eternity and is an uncreated being. I agree with the following creeds:

The Apostles Creed

I BELIEVE IN GOD the Father Almighty, Maker of Heaven and earth.

I BELIEVE IN JESUS CHRIST, His only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; He descended into Hades. The third day He rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From there He will come to judge the living and the dead.

I BELIEVE IN THE HOLY SPIRIT, the holy catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.

The Nicene Creed

WE BELIEVE IN ONE GOD, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible.

AND IN ONE LORD JESUS CHRIST, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of His Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father; by whom all things were made; who for us and for our salvation came down from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary, and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; He suffered and was buried; and the third day He rose again according to the Scriptures, and ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father; and He shall come again, with glory, to judge both the living and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end.

AND WE BELIEVE IN THE HOLY SPIRIT, the Lord and giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son; who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified; who spoke by the prophets; and we believe in one holy catholic and apostolic church; we acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins; and we look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come.

The Chalcedon Creed

Therefore, following the holy fathers, we all with one accord teach men to acknowledge one and the same Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, at once complete in Godhead and complete in manhood, truly God and truly man, consisting also of a reasonable soul and body; of one substance with the Father as regards his Godhead, and at the same time of one substance with us as regards his manhood; like us in all respects, apart from sin; as regards his Godhead, begotten of the Father before the ages, but yet as regards his manhood begotten, for us men and for our salvation, of Mary the Virgin, the God-bearer; one and the same Christ, Son, Lord, Only-begotten, recognized in two natures, without confusion, without change, without division, without separation; the distinction of natures being in no way annulled by the union, but rather the characteristics of each nature being preserved and coming together to form one person and subsistence, not as parted or separated into two persons, but one and the same Son and Only-begotten God the Word, Lord Jesus Christ; even as the prophets from earliest times spoke of him, and our Lord Jesus Christ himself taught us, and the creed of the fathers has handed down to us.

The Athanasian Creed

Whoever wills to be in a state of salvation, before all things it is necessary that he hold the catholic faith, which except everyone shall have kept whole and undefiled without doubt he will perish eternally.

Now the catholic faith is that we worship One God in Trinity and Trinity in Unity, neither confounding their Persons nor dividing the substance. For there is one Person of the Father, another of the Son, another of the Holy Spirit. But the Godhead of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, is One, the Glory equal, the Majesty Coeternal.

Such as the Father is, such is the Son, and such is the Holy Spirit; the Father uncreated, the Son uncreated, and the Holy Spirit uncreated; the father infinite, the Son infinite, and the Holy Spirit infinite; the Father eternal, the Son eternal, and the Holy Spirit eternal. And yet not three eternals but one eternal, as also not three infinites, nor three uncreated, but one uncreated, and one infinite. So, likewise, the Father is almighty, the Son almighty, and the Holy Spirit almighty; and yet not three almighties but one almighty.

So the Father is God, the Son God, and the Holy Spirit God; and yet not three Gods but one God. So the Father is Lord, the Son Lord, and the Holy Spirit Lord; and yet not three Lords but one Lord. For like as we are compelled by Christian truth to acknowledge every Person by Himself to be both God and Lord; so are we forbidden by the catholic religion to say, there be three Gods or three Lords.

The Father is made of none, neither created nor begotten. The Son is of the Father alone, not made nor created but begotten. The Holy Spirit is of the Father and the Son, not made nor created nor begotten but proceeding. So there is one Father not three Fathers, one Son not three Sons, and one Holy Spirit not three Holy Spirits. And in this Trinity there is nothing before or after, nothing greater or less, but the whole three Persons are coeternal together and coequal.

So that in all things, as is aforesaid, the trinity in Unity and the Unity in Trinity is to be worshiped. He therefore who wills to be in a state of salvation, let him think thus of the Trinity.

But it is necessary to eternal salvation that he also believe faithfully the Incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ. The right faith therefore is that we believe and confess that our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is God and Man.

He is God of the substance of the Father begotten before the worlds, and He is man of the substance of His mother born in the world; perfect God, perfect man subsisting of a reasoning soul and human flesh; equal to the Father as touching His Godhead, inferior to the Father as touching His Manhood.

Who although He be God and Man yet He is not two but one Christ; one however not by conversion of the Godhead in the flesh, but by taking of the Manhood in God; one altogether not by confusion of substance but by unity of Person. For as the reasoning soul and flesh is one man, so God and Man is one Christ.

Who suffered for our salvation, descended into hell, rose again from the dead, ascended into heaven, sits at the right hand of the Father, from whence He shall come to judge the living and the dead. At whose coming all men shall rise again with their bodies and shall give account for their own works. And that they have done good shall go into life eternal, and they who indeed have done evil into eternal fire.

This is the catholic faith, which except a man shall have believed faithfully and firmly he cannot be in a state of salvation.      

Trinitarian

In recent months I have done much to make my views known. The unfortunate thing about this is that the vast majority of my writings of late have been about what I disagree with more than what I agree with Christians about. I have become known in certain circles as a critic of Evangelicalism and the Southern Baptist Convention, but as much as I want to see definite change occur throughout American Evangelicalism and the SBC, I want to know God and give an accurate representation of who God is to contemporary postmodern society.

Once and for all, for the record and for the utmost clarity; I am a devout Christian. I make no apologies for my Christian faith. I believe in Jesus Christ with all my heart and I believe the Bible is the inerrant, inspired, infallible Word of God. I also believe that the Bible is our only authority, and while I strongly concur with the historic and ecumenical creeds of the Christian faith, my faith is predicated on God's Word alone.

I believe that salvation in Jesus Christ alone. I believe we are justified by God's grace alone, apart from human works or effort and I most definitely believe salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, for the glory of God alone and based exclusively on the Bible alone.

I also believe in the historic Christian doctrine of the Trinity that teaches that there is one God and in God exists three distinct persons who share the same spiritual essence, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. I am very much a Trinitarian and believe in this aspect of Christian theology very much.

I am sorry if there is any confusion out there about what I believe. I need to do better at promoting my Christian faith to this lost world.

For the record and with boldness and agreement with the historic Christian Church, I believe in Jesus Christ.

On those 21 Coptic Christians Killed by ISIS

   I have very little time to write on this today. I am so busy with grad school and my job that I often do not have time to edit these blog posts and that bothers me.

 I had planned on writing some more on why I think Rob Bell is needed in American Evangelicalism today, but my conscience is very bothered and my heart is heavy about those 21 Coptic Christians who murdered by ISIS the other day.

You see as a Libertarian, I have major problems with American intervention in the affairs of a sovereign nation. I do not like government intrusion in my life or any other life for that matter. I do not believe the 2003 invasion of Iraq was morally justified. 

I recently read a peer reviewed report put out by John Hopkins University that states that over 900,000 Iraqi citizens were killed by America in that last campaign and it greatly outrages and sickens me. Because of this, I do not want to see us fight any more unjust and unnecessary wars for oil profit again.

Having said this, I am not a pacifist and do believe there will be times where the United States will have to defend herself and her allies. After much contemplation and internal dialog with myself over this issue. My conscience is bothered by what ISIS is doing and now believe we must go after them with everything we have. We must now crush ISIS to spare human lives. It is that simple. 

My heart is saddened by the great loss of life ISIS is causing in the Middle East and believe we have no other recourse but to end their reign of terror immediately. I now stand behind President Obama and the US Congress and pray that we go after ISIS will full force and bring them to justice at once.

I am writing this out of love for the 21 Coptic Christian brothers who were killed recently by ISIS and for the other people were murdered by this heinous group. It is time to light them up like the 4th of July. Let justice be swift.

Deconstructing Evangelicalism

"If anyone is in Christ, he (or she) is a new creature, old things have passed away, behold new things have come" (2 Corinthians 5:17).

In recent months I have been asked why I blog and post so many videos. I guess that is a fair question. Here is why.

I have been part of American Evangelicalism for almost three decades. I have attended some of the most prominent Evangelical megachurches and academic institutions in America. During my almost thirty year sojourn in American Evangelical Christianity, I have seen some grave weaknesses that threaten to make Evangelicalism irrelevant as a spiritual and theological force in America. Because of these weaknesses, I believe I am obligated to do all I can do to right my own ship and proclaim the gospel in a relevant and Biblical manner. My main goal is to clear the American cultural landscape of unnecessary baggage that women and men may hear the Gospel with clarity and come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.

An inherent presupposition of historic Christianity is that Christ has come to redeem humanity and set things right on this earth. While this has not happened yet in totality, we Christians concur with the Apostles Creed that Jesus will return to judge the living and dead and impart life everlasting to the redeemed. Through faith in Christ and His salvific work upon the cross we have the promise of our own salvation and the ultimate restoration of this fallen creation.

The world we live  is fallen. The evidence of this inherent fallen condition is all around us. There is much evil and suffering in this world. Our daily newspapers and news broadcasts report to us the radical nature of evil in everyday life on an instantaneous basis. As Christians who have been given the Gospel of life, we have a divine mandate and ethical obligation to proclaim the way out of this fallen situation. Because of the utmost seriousness and gravity of humanity’s predicament, I have chosen to post my thoughts on this blog. Christianity is of great importance to me. As the Apostle Paul said, “Christ is our life” (Colossians 3:4) and, “I am determined not to know anything among you but Jesus Christ and Him crucified” (1 Corinthians 2:2).

Because of the seriousness of the current situation in this world, I have chosen to rebel against status quo Evangelicalism and the archaic fundamentalism and cultural backwardness inherent in the Southern Baptist Convention. I am now arguing for what I call, “Neo-Reformationalism,” a movement of historic and contemporary Protestant and Evangelical Christianity that respects the doctrinal verities of the past but jettisons all the cultural baggage and garbage so rampant in Fundamentalist Evangelicalism. I am calling for a new Reformation within American Evangelical Christianity. I am calling for the complete deconstruction and reconstruction of Evangelicalism. I want to see the old things pass away and new things come.

So, I guess I am doing all that this to rock and sinking ship of American Evangelicalism, that many may come to know Christ.

Why the Evangelical Church Needs Rob Bell

   Former Mars Hill pastor Rob Bell has made international news again recently while expressing his views on same sex relationships and how he believes the Evangelical church is "moments away from accepting gay marriage."

While I am not sure what to think about gay marriage from a theological perspective, as a Libertarian who believes that all Americans should have the same basic rights safeguarded to us by the US Constitution, I generally concur with Bell on this matter.

I think the gay marriage issue in America is a moot point and will be the law of the land  after the US Supreme Court decided upon it this year.

My basic position on gay marriage is that I am very much for a small and limited government that does not intrude on our personal freedoms. I also do not believe the government should try to interfere with how consenting adults choose to express their love for one another. I do not want the government sticking it's nose and long arm into my pocketbook and bedroom and want to afford that same right of privacy and human autonomy to every single American irrespective of their gender identity and sexual preference.

I know full well that my view is controversial within American Evangelicalism. Trust me. I know full well. Almost every day over the last four months I have received a phone call or email from an outraged Evangelical or fundamentalist Southern Baptist pastor over my views, and have had ample time to think my views over.

I agree with Rob Bell that the gay marriage issue is a done deal in America and will be the law of the land.

While I do not agree with Rob Bell on every issue, such as his views on hell and the afterlife, I respect his boldness and willingness to take risks. I also love Rob Bell's creativity and innovative manner in the way he communicates his views. I love how Rob Bell wants to be relevant to contemporary secular culture, a big aim of my own.

I also agree with Rob Bell, that all too often, Evangelicals have been mean spirited and have turned away secular people from the church and this is very unfortunate. I am not sure if this is what Jesus would do.

I believe American Evangelicals need Rob Bell, but are they willing to listen?

Creeds and Confessions

 Recently I have been challenged by many Evangelical pastors and other self-appointed fundamentalist gatekeepers to "return back to the Christian faith." I am not sure how to respond to this constant nagging, since in my estimation, I have never left the historic Christian faith. I believe in all the historic and ecumenical creeds and confessions of Christianity. I believe in the Trinity, justification by grace alone and all the other essential doctrinal truths of Evangelicalism as well. 

I am not sure what more I can say folks. I believe in Christ and hold to all the Creeds and Confessions of Christianity. I believe in Jesus and like to play the devil's advocate most of the time. If you do not know that I am goofing around most of the time with these wild posts and videos, I suggest you stop your self-mortification and self-mollification and enjoy life a little more. Try having fun and stop sucking the marrow of humor out of life, it's very dull.

I Heard the Virgin Weeping

 After I was told I could never return to my alma mater, I went back home to Southern California. There I sought healing in the mystical waves south of Big Sur that crashed against the majestic shores of the land that I love more than life itself.

While walking from my friend's apartment to the beach at Costa Mesa, I stumbled upon a rosebush encrusted  labyrinth by an ancient Roman Catholic chapel. While it took me a while to reach the end of the maze, I finally reached its culmination. There at the end of this rose garden stood a statue of the blessed Virgin Mary.

For a hour or more I sat on a bench near her statue weeping. I wondered within myself what I had become and why I had stood against all the sin, odd teaching, nepotism and hypocrisy at my Southern Baptist school. I wondered within myself and asked why I had become this brazen rebel, this forever vigilante. I wept for what seemed like days.

 Then in the bitter distance, in that ancient asylum, I thought I heard a woman's voice. There in my darkest hour, I thought I heard the Virgin Mary crying. When I drew closer to the statue I realized that it was not a representation of the Virgin, but it was in all actuality a bleeding gargoyle!

 And I was wrong! It was not weeping, but merely laughing. Yes, the statue, a figment of my fertile imagination, was laughing at me. So, I kicked it over and went on my merry way.

And with that one, final act of defiance, I joined  Friedrich Nietzsche and all those who smash ideological idols in this postmodern world...