The Nature of Man

     What is the nature of man? Is man inherently good or evil, and can he bring himself to a position of being fully good or not? These are the questions that try men's souls. If man is good on his own, then by his own wit and ability to reason, he can create a society that is perfect and a utopia. Such has been the topic of many a novel and motion picture, however, none come to pass in the movies or in reality. Because there is inconsistencies with "man being good' and what the Bible has to say about it.

      In Romans it talks about man being fully depraved, since man is depraved we cannot trust the systems that are not foundation-ally built on something higher than himself. Such as a domestic system, if the idea of marriage doesn't come from God, then the covenant is said unto what? There is no higher thing you are bringing into the picture, and since we are only basing it out of ourselves, and since we can change our minds, it logically follows that man cannot be his own standard. This is the problem with culture, since we have gone out into an age..a "new age" we now believe that the only standard necessary to be measured against is what we create for ourselves.

      In a world where we cannot be held accountable to anything except ourselves, then any kind of moral justification is possible. The unborn being slain, or who is to say that a person can't logically get to the point where any person with tan skin is not experiencing the utmost pleasurable quality of life and therefore doesn't deserve to be alive.

     We don't like to believe in the most extreme examples but that is the logical implication. If I say that tan is not good, and what is say is the standard I go by, then it is ok that tan is not good. Since I am "good" then what I say is therefore good. The logical incoherency is irrelevant when you are only justifying right and wrong and what is good and bad simply by the standard you create.

     This is the post-modern world that we now live in, where according to polluck the artist everything is irrational and by chance, and a hodge podge of religions can make up my moral code. Whatever the group with the loudest voice determines what rights are for individuals, and the one with the most say so can determine what society looks like. Be warned and vigilant, this is the culture we live in.

Salvation in Christ

We as man have spent most of our days seeking and pursuing truth and life. Everyone wants to be accepted, everyone wants to be loved. These are universal truths among all peoples and among all cultures.

Humanity has spent so much time seeking truth, especially regarding religion, that it is easy to forget why we began to look in the first place. When it comes down to it, all men feel that there is something missing, an emptiness that cannot be filled no matter what we try to fill it with. I think it is safe to say that when we attempt to fill it, it may feel good for a while but brings us right back to where we started, and that is seeking to fill that hole.

Truly I think Christ is the only thing that can fill such a whole that has been laid inside of us. It only makes sense that man is incapable of filling it himself since he is created and not complete in himself. It takes a soft heart and an open mind to be able to accept it, but Christ in Christianity is the only example of self-sacrifice in an act of service to bring all of man to a position of holiness so that he may be close to his creator. No other religion in the world teaches that man is fallen and can’t do anything to save himself, but simply has to rely on a just, loving God.

Romans 3:23

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”

 It seems indefinitely difficult to wrap our minds around becoming in touch with God once we realize that we have a sin barrier between us but there is hope.

John 14:6 says

“For I am the way the truth and the life and none come to the Father except through me”

If we choose to accept the one who has accepted all the suffering and pain of the world so that we know God which truly is life, then there is salvation in that. It is not difficult and requires no works or acts for us to be saved. It simply requires a hint of faith.

Romans 10:9

“If anyone believes in their heart that Jesus is Lord and confesses with their mouth that He rose from the dead, they will be saved”

If you believe and confess the verse above, you are a child of the living God and a part of the kingdom of Christ. If you have any desire to know more or learn more about this, leave a comment.

Selflessness or Love?

      C.S. Lewis brings up a remarkable point in one of his daily devotionals. He brings to light the realization that if we ask someone what is the greatest action or character trait we can show or portray to other people, people would answer selflessness. What's the problem with that right? Well it seems that it does truly show that our culture has become so narcissistic that even when we are talking about how to be "pious" we are still absorbed in the idea of self. The answer really implies that by my neglecting of self I am showing everyone else nobility and Christ. The reality is that we should be showing love that is the answer, not SELFlessness, which is making it about others instead of making it all revolve around self. 

     I think this shows a level of feeling inadequate, we desire sometimes to be so Christlike we in our own minds make it about how we can keep from granting our own desires or ambitions. We fear being selfish to a point where in the attempt to love others, the motive is to be the opposite of selfless instead of love itself. This is all very revelational especially to me because I am one of those people who feels the need to see my actions as selfless or selfish, trying to judge myself and every action and motive. That isn't necessarily a bad thing, but my phrasing and mindset is wrong, I should be trying to show love in every action and thought. Christ doesn't call us to be selfless toward others and toward God, he calls us to love our neighbors as ourselves and to love God with all our heart and soul and mind. We can't get lost in the notion that it is about us even when making it about others. This is something I felt needed to be shared on a more widespread note. 

      No need to rant on about this idea, be blessed hope you enjoyed it!

Grace more abundant

Grace in perspective

     God's grace is not something that we can really comprehend in terms of anything man has done, or even aspires to do. God created us knowing that we would fall short, and that our free will would be our greatest downfall.

     We know this because God had a predetermined plan for his son to die on the cross to give all of us sinners a second chance. We can define grace as, a free, predetermined gift that of which cannot be diminished or made greater, neither forced upon us or earned.

     Grace is not earned, merely accepted or refused (Romans 3:23-24). Having something given to us that gives us freedom from the bondage of this world in our spirit is incredibly difficult to fully grasp.

 We are not bound by sin any longer, we can choose something better, although all fall short (Romans 3:23). we do not have to live by this world's standard of sin and death any longer (Romans 5).

Peace and Joy through Grace

     Because of the acceptance we choose in Christ, we have become holy and can experience the greatest conceivable joy. The greatest conceivable joy comes from knowing the greatest conceivable being, which is God.

 Grace is empowering, because it comes by love. We can have overwhelming peace knowing that we could have been the most vile, ill-reputed human, and still are loved and accepted into God's family if we so choose.

 When we can come to terms with ourselves in accepting that we really cannot do ANYTHING to make God love us or accept us, and that we are fully paid for by the blood of Christ, then we can have peace and joy in any circumstance.

 If we can can mentally reach the point that Paul reaches regarding grace, knowing that whether he is being stoned, put in prison, or persecuted by his own followers, God still loves him more then anyone could ever imagine, and has freed him of the old self, then we know the love of God.

Somebody love me.

As a culture have began to lose our self esteem and our innate sense of purpose. Man looks for companionship and a sense of belonging, this is undeniable. Love is what is sought after, and is more passionately pursued then anything else in the world. Anywhere that it could possibly be found, regardless of what it takes from us and what it makes us.

 This world has corrupted love in its purest form for so long that I'm not entirely sure we know what it really is anymore.

"Somebody love me" is the underlying statement in a heart expressed in the form of seeking others affections. Well OF COURSE IT IS! some would say. Really take a moment and think about it though, to compromise any presupposition has become acceptable in our world for love.

 Man will do drugs, have sex, lie, cheat, steal, and even kill at times so that others would accept and if they are lucky "love" them. To try to find acceptance in a world full of rejection and death is something so hard to find genuinely. Because of this man will do WHATEVER it takes at crucible points in life.

Where is this all going? Ya I want love and acceptance..so what!? What's the kicker, that's the punch-line here. There exists something to offer containing objective truth about yourself and reality.

 Yes, I am a Christian writer and I offer you the most realistic perspective as I can. Through a Christian perspective to this world issue, and what I believe to be the only true solution to this problem.

Christ died so that we may go to heaven, right? I mean that's the preached gospel and why a lot of people may have become Christians, because eternity in hell can be avoided by saying a few simple words according to the eccentric religion.

No, I'm gonna tell you now that, that is a lie. Christ did NOT die so that we can go to heaven. He died for a more noble cause then that. The question must then be asked, what in the world could possibly be more noble then that?

 Christ died so that man could have and be in a personal relationship with the one true God again. The by-product of this is that if you do happen to choose him you will go to heaven, but this is not why. Christ loved you so much, that out of his free will he became a bridge over the abyss sin has created so that we can get to know the greatest conceivable being.

        Habakkuk 2:14 For the Earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea

How does all this relate to someone loving me? If you could only imagine the most amazing unreachable person to you in the world (an actor, actress?), now imagine them seeking to be your friend and trying to teach you everything they can and be a part of every aspect of your life. You have just created a small fiction which in a way represents how we should see God.

The creator of the IDEA of LOVE desires you to be intimate and close to Him. Someone who could never leave or forsake you, someone who knows every evil thing you have done or thought while no one was watching and still has the most captivating desire to choose you to be his son or daughter.

 This is a great comfort if you can wrap your mind around it. I'm not here to say that you need the Bible memorized to know God. Abraham who birthed the nation that became Israel so to speak, walked and talked with God in a relationship with no guide to show him what to do.

Genesis 12:1 The Lord had said to Abram, "Go from your country, your people and your father's household to the land that I will show you.

 Now I do want to emphasize, being in a relationship with God will not keep you from sinning, people from dying, or "bad" things from happening, but it gives us purpose and hope regardless of what does happen.

 Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is confidence in things hoped for and assurance about what we do not see

 Since the world is fallen, sin will happen, but to be close to the one who desires the greatest purpose for your life, that is something we can hold onto. Please, read the Bible though, We can see who God is through it and how incredible the nature of his love is.

Understanding love in a self pleasure seeking world.

When we think of love, a person that we are attracted to, or an ideal, on object, an activity, a savior, a personified inanimate object comes to mind. I can't say that, this all isn't what comes to my mind, but if i think about love objectively, something else prevails. How can you define love in one word? I believe by studying the  bible, philosophers who seemed to have it right, people that understand life, it seems to come down to selflessness. I can't think of one instance where love isn't selfless or where it shouldn't be. The qualities of love follow selflessness. I had a friend define love one time in such a different way I could never forget. He defined it as toward people specifically "the act of trying to help someone reach their full potential within your own limits for the sake of love alone." That is such an interesting definition. It has several interesting dynamics to recognize.  To love is an action, and a perspective. As that same friend told me, you have to be able to love with your motives and with you affections. Now this means to understand the purpose and concept of true love, id est, the different types of love, and also be able to effectively convey it with your affections not doing it for personal game or for anything other then the same of God's glory and love itself.

To be competent in what love is it takes an understanding of the four different types of love in the original Greek. Check it out sometime. Read Chapter 13 of Corinthians. Even if your not sure about your religion, Mahatmat Ghandi who was in no way Christian agreed with most of Christ's and the apostles teaching, give em a shot. Don't let a Christian you know, define Christianity. Check it.

Essence of..Purpose?

     One of the longest pondered philosophical question that exists which creates for many a curious and anxious state to know is what one's purpose is in life. To undoubtedly have affirmation that there is even purpose in life, is hard to grasp from a humanist worldview if logically taken to its end. This specifically gets sketchy at the point where you must say we are not designed and therefore must design our own purpose if to have one at all. This brings the problem of conceptually having the possibility of assuming a purpose of destroying others purposes. This would create paradoxical implications for assuming your own version of purpose and of autonomous decision making concerning right or wrong.  When society says, what is reasonable is always right, as long as it is reasonable for you, creates an anarchial state of mind over time if it were not for innate natural law that of which tends to bind us to a sense of reality (at least for most people). When we give up any predetermined assertions  that there is a "natural law" we come dangerously close to the necessity of man or say the government creating morals and purpose for us. What we end up agreeing to is saying that if [this] man or [that] man is given undeniable right to rule, he also has an undeniable right to rule and decide what is right for the individual without any kind of demarcation. We have to as a people have a universal standard. We are set apart from the animals, that should be obvious if you take a moment and think about it, the fact you can consciously recognize you are different shows our difference. Oh right purpose of life..I do have an answer, and i'll get to that..in another blog. Many men have wondered for scores of years..why not a little longer?

Evolution? please..

      There seems to be some kind of huge surge in young people's belief in evolution because of the education system and what is said to be "truth". However most people aren't even aware that evolution is one man's attempt to reconcile his denial of a deity.

 The fact that there was no coherent approach to the beginnings of the cosmos aside from creation, Darwin attempted to formulate some sort of basis on how life could have evolved trans-species into new life forms.

HOWEVER he never even began to attempt to understand how life originated, how it came to exist [in itself]. Also at a place of ignorance because of the technology of the time, he couldn't have possibly known how incredibly irreducibly complex that even single celled organisms were and still are.

       As discoveries are still being made, such as a recent one I saw on Sciencenow (a popular science journal media site), a lot of the mammals can now be seen as surviving and existing in a far more predated setting as to what was originally assumed.

 There is no reason to believe in the evolution as far as 5 sigma proof goes. By necessity to not exist in a thought vacuum, a antithetical view must oppose theism. Unless a new paradigm shift begins, with something to fill the void other than evolution to be used to deny any kind of deity, it will persist rational or not.

 It necessarily follows than that by logical systematics, an individual develop or accept whatever the current leading belief system for life that accepts your predetermined outcome. Think about it, man will always reason to prove whatever he already believe at a foundational level.

So attempt to grasp the nature of reality, id est, there is one reality, and there ARE things that cannot be scientifically explained. To not be able to accept that is essentially to deny that any sense of spirituality and perhaps even the inconceivable existence of the conscious mind itself.

Back to reality

The reality that we live in seems to have escaped so many now a days. I'm incredibly perplexed as to how so many can believe in some of the most inconsistent mindsets and enjoy a smorgasbord of worldview concepts. To be quite frank the average person's ability to recognize simple truth is a joke in today's society. If you asked someone why they believe what they do, they will either give you a chivalrous answer with a qualitative notion to it, yet lacking content, or they will give you an insignificant "never thought about it" sort of approach. It makes me sick to see how everything in our world today, morality wise, has gone so far oft awry. It's time to wake up and smell the roses, and realize these roses do NOT give you permission to live like you have no moral obligations. AT LEAST attempt to reconcile with natural law, even if it's a pathetic attempt, but to say that you create your own truth is the most self centered narcissistic view and distorted perspective of reality I have ever heard. Find truth, the ignorant lavish in what wisdom they lack, and it is their demise.