Paul's Humble Example to the Philippians

“Brothers join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us.” – Philippians 3:17

This verse has always been amazing to me. Paul writes to the church in Philippi, and has the courage to tell them to imitate him. He was so confident in his walk with the Lord; he readily set an example for the people to imitate, and told them to be like him and the many other mature Christians that had set a godly example for them.

It is important to note that Paul is not trying to put the focus on himself; he even mentioned a bit earlier that he is not perfect, but rather he is pleading with them to follow him in his humble adoration of Jesus Christ, and complete dependency on Christ. It is so amazing, the transformation that Paul went through: from killing Christians with the sword, to leading them by his own example! He says in verse 12 that he presses onward because Jesus Christ has called Paul and made Paul His own, so even though Paul has set this amazing example of humility, he still gives all the credit to the saving grace of Jesus Christ. In doing so, Paul just proves how great his example really is! If anyone could have boasted about their accomplishments, it was Paul. But he doesn’t, because he knows that everything that has happened to him was all due to the sovereign grace of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Paul submits very humbly to his Savior and invites everyone to join in. What a great example Paul is for all Christians. What a joy it is that we, Sons and Daughters of God, really can join Paul in humbly submitting to this amazing God we serve.

The Protestant Reformation: Revolution, Reaction, Reform

This is an essay I wrote for my History Day Project. I hope you enjoy it!

In the 16th Century, the church was forever changed. The Catholic Church had drifted far away from the truth and was teaching very heretical doctrine, contrary to the Bible, the inerrant Word of God. The sacraments were not being properly administered, and people were actually buying their way into heaven. The church had even been corrupted from its core, the clergy. Pope Leo X was leading this indoctrination in the church and was ready to excommunicate anyone who got in his way. The future of the Catholic Church was in no way looking good. However, despite all the false doctrine and corruption, there was a man named Martin Luther. Martin Luther was a law student, who after a close encounter with death and God, decided to become a priest. Luther bought into all the lies that were being fed to him for a while, but soon began to question some of the things taught by the church. He especially questioned the selling of indulgences. He wrote a document called the “95 Theses” and nailed it to the church door. His 95 Theses stated all the problems with the Catholic Doctrine, especially the selling of indulgences. He nailed it to the church door because that was a way of ensuring that everyone would see it. In doing this, Martin Luther started a revolution, received a reaction from the church clergy, and ultimately reformed the church, creating the greatest historical landmark of the Protestant Church.

Martin Luther, one of the most influential founding fathers of Protestantism, started a revolution of the Western Church. In fighting the catholic doctrine, he rebelled against the norm of the church, bravely standing up for the truth. No one had ever dared question the clergy, except for a few brave people like Desiderius Erasmus, John Hus, William Tyndale, and others. He started writing against the clergy and the catholic doctrine, and really collected a rather large following. Luther’s name was becoming widely known, and people everywhere were reading his writings. Word spread so quickly that even Rome was hearing of his objections. Pope Leo X was now aware that he was speaking out against indulgences and other falsities. Needless to say, Martin Luther had accumulated such a following, and word of his concerns had spread so significantly and quickly, that he really had started a revolution in the Western Church.

The revolution that Luther started now demanded for a reaction from two parties: the Catholic Church Hierarchy, and the common folk of the church. The hierarchy reacted very negatively. They expected Luther to give up and to recant all that he had written against the church’s doctrine, but when he refused to recant, the Catholic Church was very unhappy. They excommunicated Luther from the Catholic Church and on top of that, there were threats to kill him. Pope Leo X condemned Luther as a heretic and also condemned all of his literature. The sad truth is, Luther never wanted to leave the Catholic Church, but instead he wanted to purify it. He thought when he presented these problems to Pope Leo, he would take Luther’s side and stop the selling of indulgences. Sadly, that was not the case. They reacted in a way that Luther did not wish. However, the common people of the church reacted very positively. They were very much in agreement with Luther. Surprisingly, Luther’s revolution was highly followed and many people in the church were convinced of Luther’s writing and teaching against the Catholic Church. Essentially, Luther received a negative reaction from the clergy and a positive reaction from the common people of the church.

Martin Luther reformed the church. He did this by originally trying to fix the church, but when the church rejected his opinion, he began reforming the church to what he believed was the biblical view. He systematically went through changing and reforming the doctrine of the Catholic Church. Luther was an advocate of Augustinianism and his view of salvation. Luther was one of the earliest fathers of reformed theology. People like John Calvin and Jonathan Edwards would come after him and continue to contribute to the teachings of reformed theology, and even today, we have modern day reformers. Martin Luther taught the “Five Solas”. The Five Solas are: Sola scriptura (by scripture alone), Sola fide (by faith alone), Sola gratia (by grace alone), Solus Christus (by Christ alone), and Soli Deo Gloria (glory to God alone). These five solas summarized most of the basic truths advocated by Luther and the later reformers. The reformation of the protestant church brought us a clear teaching of some of the hardest doctrines and concepts uncovered in the scriptures. Another thing Luther did, was translate the Bible into German. This made it possible for everyone to read the Bible and not be forced to believe all that the church taught them, they could actually read scripture and interpret it themselves. This was one of the reasons so many people followed Luther. Originally, they believed whatever the Catholic clergy told them, but now they could read the Bible themselves and it became very clear that a lot of what they had been taught was false. So clearly the reformation really helped the common man of the church. Also, Luther reformed the teachings of the Catholic Church restoring the biblical standard of theology.

Therefore, Martin Luther started a revolution, received a reaction from the church clergy, and ultimately reformed the church, creating the greatest historical landmark of the Protestant Church. This reformation was absolutely necessary and helpful to the church. The Catholic Church had gotten to a point where they were extremely heretical and actually teaching paganism in some of areas of Christian theology, and it desperately needed to be stopped. Martin Luther, along with many others, reformed and restored the church to the biblical standard.

John Hana Quote: Reaction Paper

“It is inconceivable that a person could fall in love with the Redeemer in the Biblical sense, and not long to be conformed to the object of that affection.” – John Hana

This quote, in its simplicity, is so powerful. It quite eloquently is saying that once you have fallen in love with Jesus Christ, our Redeemer, it is absolutely unthinkable that you would not desire to be changed by Him. But it goes even further than that; it describes a specific kind of love, Biblical love.

 This is not the kind of love that an unsaved person can give, or even most Christians give, it is a sacrificial love. It is the love Christ had for us when He died on the cross, and the love God had for us when he elected us and sent His Son to die for us. It is the love God has for His people, the church. God the Father had to “sacrifice” His Son to save us, out of love for us. It involves sacrificing. So, if the Biblical sense of the word love means to sacrifice, then what does it mean to “fall in love with the Redeemer in the Biblical sense”? It means we give something up; we sacrifice something when we fall in love with Jesus. But what do we give up? Jesus taught that anyone who wants to find his life will lose it, but those who die to themselves will indeed find it. We must sacrifice everything we were before Christ saved us, in order to love Him the way He loves us. 

It then says we should long to be “conformed to the object of that affection”, that object is Christ. We are constantly being sanctified by God in order to one day be like Christ, glorified in heaven. Romans 8:29 says that we have been “predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son (Jesus)”. So, we must daily continue to conform to the image of Christ, for that is what we have been saved for. When we fall in love with Christ, we should desire nothing more than to be conformed to the image of Christ, due to the work of the Holy Spirit in our hearts.

Demons: Fallen Angels

If you believe in Modernism or what is called "Scientific Rationalism", you probably do not believe in demons. You believe science has proven there is no way they could be real and have interaction with humanity in daily life. You disregard the doctrine of demonology completely. The only problem with this view, is the Bible speaks of demons, demon possession, and demonic activity in the physical world. If you embrace the content of scripture, you have to believe in demons. There is no way around it, it is there and it is clear. Even those who do believe in it, have created some twisted views and beliefs about Satan and demons. So, in this comprehensive article, I will do my best to give a biblical lesson on demonology, and all that the doctrine entails.

It is very important to have a good understanding of angels before you can fully understand demons since demons are fallen angels, but I will do my best to explain the the doctrine of demonology without first explaining angelology. Perhaps I will even write about angels after this, so you can have a greater understanding of the origin of demons, but I will cover their origin in this post as well.

Ghosts: NOT REAL

I would like to make it very clear, before I get in to demons, that although it is very common for ghosts to be closely affiliated with demons in Hollywood, stories, myths, etc.. there is nothing biblical about ghosts. Ghosts are the spirits of people who have died and are remaining in some sort of limbo stage of the after life and harassing or tormenting the lives of those still alive. That is very quickly refuted in the Bible. Everyone has an appointed time to die, and when they die they go to one of two places: heaven or hell. There is no limbo, intermediate state after death. Plain and simple, ghosts do NOT exist, demons do. That being said, I will now discuss demons.

The Existence of Demons

According to the Bible, Demons are very real, and are very much involved in our lives today. In the Old Testament we see an example of those who “sacrificed to demons that were no gods” (Deut. 32:17) and others who “sacrificed their sons and their daughters to the demons” (Psalm 106:37). Demons are mentioned in nineteen out of the twenty-seven books of the New Testament. More than that, Jesus frequently claimed to “cast out demons” (Matt. 12:27). A great evangelist, apologist, and author, John Blanchard said, "Demons are not the product of hyperactive religious imagination, nor the disembodied spirits of a prehistoric race, nor the long-existent result of antediluvian sex between angels and human women (all these theories have been advanced). The Bible never questions their existence." Very clearly, the only way you could not believe in demons, is if you completely deny the scriptures. The Bible proves the existence of demons.

The Origin of Demons

When God created the world, He "saw everything that He had made, and behold, it was good" (Genesis 1:31). “All things were made through him and without him was not any thing made that was made” (John 1:3). So, clearly God created everything in existence outside of Himself, there is no way around that fact. Yet, because God cannot and was not directly involved with the creation of sin and evil, reason and scripture cohesively state that while all angels were created to be holy, some fell from their original state. James Myers describes the creation of angels as such, "This vast host of rational, spirit beings was composed of various orders. Some were messengers, some served God in relation to His worship, others were involved in the activities of the heavenly temple. Two of the highest angelic orders are called seraphim and cherubim (Gen. 3:24; Ezekiel 10:1-15; Hebrews 9:5; Isaiah 6:2, 6). But the highest of all the angels, the most intelligent, beautiful, talented, and powerful is called Lucifer." Lucifer was the first to rebel, causing a great war in heaven. The war was between the archangel Michael and Lucifer, who then became Satan.

Satan, now the "Prince of Demons", was then thrown out of heaven along with his demons, making up 1/3 of all the angels. The Bible says they “did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling” (Jude 6) in contrast to “the elect angels” (1 Timothy 5:21) who were given grace to remain sinless. We must note, that unlike humanity, each apostate angel fell by his own choice, whereas all of humanity fell solely based on the imputed unrighteousness that came from Adam. It is very clear in scripture that the fallen angels were not given the hope of redemption, rather God condemned them to hell and put them in chains of "gloomy darkness" until judgement day (1 Peter 2:4), but are still able to influence, torment, and possess humans in the world. Therefore, demons: began as angels, fell from their original state, were cast out of heaven, torment and possess humans on earth, and will one day be judged.

The Activity and Power of Demons

Demonic power, contrary to popular belief, is very limited. In the book of Job, it is made very clear that Satan was limited to what he could do, based on what God gave him permission to do and absolutely nothing more (Job 1:12, 2:6). As we discussed earlier, demons are kept in eternal chains (also Jude 6) and can be resisted by Christians through the power and authority that Christ gives them (James 4:7). However, they are still very active in our daily lives and do have powers that they use against God's elect. Dr. John Blanchard writes, "Simply put, demons are involved in every part of Satan’s program — opposing God, preventing people from understanding the Gospel, opposing God’s people, attacking the church, tempting people to sin and thwarting the spread of the Gospel." So, the sole purpose of demons is to oppose the work of God. If angels exist solely to glorify God, then fallen angels would exist solely to destroy everything God has willed to happen.

We see in Luke 13:11, a woman who has a "disabling spirit" and cannot straighten her back because of it. In verse 12 and 13, Jesus comes along and heals her by laying hands on her, but what is interesting is in verse 16, Jesus describes her to the ruler of the synagogue as "...this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen years..." Jesus was attributing the cause of her disability to the demonic power of Satan. Also, this woman is a daughter of Abraham, meaning she belongs to God. So, even in the church, Satan has power to physically harm a person, or to come as an illness, or some sort of pain.

We also see in 2 Corinthians 12, Paul describes his "thorn in his side" as a "messenger of Satan", that God gave Paul to keep him humble. Even Paul was tormented by physical pain and illness throughout his life. Now, we have to be careful. We must not blame Satan for every physical illness that we have. We cannot presume to believe that every illness or pain or disability comes from the devil, because to do that is to have a unhealthy obsession with demons and demonology. Augustus Strong, an American theologian, wrote "We are to attribute disease and natural calamity to their agency only when this is a matter of special revelation." So, to say that every illness or disability is a result of Satan is simply ignorant and silly.

It is also very important that we understand that it is possible for demons to influence areas like government, society, philosophy, and really any kind of ideology or influential system. Also, God could use demons to bring His Sovereign plan in to effect. For instance, Adolf Hitler's rise to power. It happened very quickly, and there was a lot of evidence that he was possessed or influenced by demons. After his power subsided, people were confused as to how he rose so quickly. Some say it was because he spoke so well, he could give a good speech. He persuaded many people to fall for his lies. Someone else was very good at this too, his name is Satan and he persuaded Adam and Eve to break God's law through using lies. There were many unknowns and questions about Hitler's demonic influence. Even, many non-Christian historians suspect there was some sort of "spiritual" influence controlling him.

Also, take into consideration, abortion. It is very likely that there are demonic forces or spirits influencing the political leaders, the abortionists, and the women who get abortions, to hold the position they do, and to act the way they do. Abortion is murder and murder hurts God's heart, and demons are constantly trying to hurt God or to oppose God's will (even though it is impossible). Somewhere down the line of history, America abandoned some of the simple moral truths we, at one time used to stand firm on. Now, in today's world, we have to fight for the right to life! Why has America drifted so far from the truth? Could it be demonic activity and influence in government and possibly even our monetary system? I think so.

 We see in John 12:31, that Satan is "the ruler of this world", so that is more evidence of the fact that demons can and do have a strong influence in government and social issues. It would be foolish to think that there was no spiritual influence in government or society, and that it all happened based on chance. It is very plausible to believe there is a spiritual or demonic influence in areas that greatly affect us, our lives, and this world overall.

Demonic Possession

Demon possession/oppression is seen multiple times in the New Testament (Matt. 4:24, Mark 1:23, Luke 13). It is made very clear that demon possession occurred then, and no indication has ever been given in scripture, that it has ceased. There is no evidence that it has digressed in intensity through the centuries, actually, quite the opposite thesis/argument could be made.

The question now becomes, "what is demon possession?". Demon possession is when the personality of the possessed individual is eclipsed by the demon, so the demonic personality is revealed through the person, and all control is in the hands of the demon, not the person being possessed.

Below, is a documented case of an exorcism for a woman named Julia [her last name is omitted for her and her family's protection], done by Dr. Richard E. Gallagher. All of this was documented in the February issue of the New Oxford Review.

"Sometimes objects around her would fly off the shelves, the rare phenomenon of psychokinesis known to parapsychologists," reports Gallagher. "Julia was also in possession of knowledge of facts and occurrences beyond any possibility of their natural acquisition."

"Julia requested a Roman Catholic exorcism ritual, convinced from the beginning of her consultations that she was under demonic attack."

"The exorcism began on a warm day in June," Gallagher recollects. 

"Despite the weather, the room where the rite was being conducted grew distinctly cold. Later, however, as the entity in Julia began to spout vitriol and make strange noises, members of the team felt themselves profusely sweating due to a stifling emanation of heat. The participants all said they found the heat unbearable."

"Julia at first had gone into a quiet trance-like state. After the prayers and invocations of the Roman Ritual had been going on for a while, however, multiple voices and sounds came out of her. One set consisted of loud growls and animal-like noises, which seemed to the group impossible for any human to mimic. At one point, the voices spoke in foreign languages, including recognizable Latin and Spanish (Julia herself only speaks English, as she later verified to us)."

"The voices were noticeably attacking in nature, and often insolent, blasphemous and highly scatological. They cursed and insulted the participants in the crudest way. They were frequently threatening – trying, it appeared, to fight back – 'Leave her alone,' 'Stop, you whores' (to the nuns), 'You'll be sorry,' and the like."

This is a very real, very frightening case of a legitimate, documented exorcism. Now I will move on to a biblical case for demon possession.

In Matthew 8:28-33, we see Jesus exorcising demons from two men. In verse 28, we find that they were so fierce that no one could go near them. The people avoided the road these two possessed men were on. That is very explicitly telling us that demons can possess people and are very powerful, and can do real damage in this world. However, there is someone more powerful, His name is Jesus Christ. In verse 31, the demons beg Jesus not to destroy them, but to send them into a heard of pigs. They BEGGED to Jesus. Obviously, they are aware of the power of Christ. In verse 32, Jesus commands them out of the two men, and into the heard of pigs. The pigs then drowned in a nearby body of water. So, from this, we can see that Jesus is in control of demons and has authority over them. He commands them, and they listen. In Mark 3:14-15, we see that Jesus has given that power to His apostles. They can command demons in His name. Also, after Pentecost (Acts 2), every Christian has the Holy Spirit in them, and possesses the power to cast out demons in Jesus' name.

Now, we must understand that it is impossible for a Christian to be demon possessed. They can be oppressed, meaning they can be tormented, physically injured, or haunted by demons, but never can a demon exercise control or authority over a Christian. That is because, after Pentecost, every Christian is possessed by the Holy Spirit. So, Christians are already possessed by a spirit, the Spirit of God. We read in 1 John 5:18, "the evil one does not touch him", him referring to the Christian, chosen by God. This word "touch" actually means "to grasp, so as to detain", and it is mirrored in John 10:29, "no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand." Essentially, Christians are protected by God in the matter of possession, and are unable to be possessed because they are already possessed by the Spirit of the same God that is holding them, and keeping them safe in His hand.

So, demon possession is very real and very much still active to this day. We have seen this in scripture. We have also learned that a Christian cannot be possessed and also has power over demons by the power given to them in the Holy Spirit (James 4:7).

I hope this post has educated you on the topic of demons. Demonology is a very intense doctrine to study and can sometimes be frightening, but we must recall that the Christian has authority and power over the demon through the Holy Spirit, and by the name of Christ. I will hopefully write about angels, giving an even fuller understanding of demons and their origin. 

The Puritans: Colonies

In the 16th Century, a reformation occurred in England. This reformation changed the Church of England from Catholicism to Anglicanism. Although many were in favor of this, there was a movement that, not necessarily opposed it, but simply wanted to take it a step further. This group was called the “Puritans”. The Puritans, obviously, wanted to purify the Church of England. They believed the Anglican Church was too much like Catholicism, and wanted to reform it far beyond the changes that had already been made (truthfully, not many changes were made, that is why the Puritans felt they needed to reform it more). They believed in Reformed Theology and/or Calvinism (the truth) and wanted to see that integrated in the Anglican Church. The sad truth is, Calvinism never made its way into the Church of England, and in 1593, the “Acts of Supremacy and Uniformity” demanded that they conform to the practices and beliefs of Anglicanism, or they would imprisoned. This caused them to leave England for safety and freedom to teach and practice their views without being thrown into prison for it. The Puritans fled England and established the famous “Massachusetts Bay Colony”. This may have been one of the famous establishments of the Puritans, but they established many other colonies as well. Most of them were very similar, they all consisted of homes, a schoolhouse, some shops, and at the center was a meeting house/church. However, the three main points of all the colonies established by the Puritans were; their common living conditions (as stated above), their government, and their economy. 

When the Puritans first established the colonies, life was fairly rough. The structures in which they lived in were very bad. Many of the structures consisted of wigwams, dugouts, and huts, typically with dirt floors. Living was rough and sadly many people died. However, as time went on, their methods of construction improved. Their houses began to have plank roofs and wooden chimneys. Wealthier families would even add on to their homes, which gave them bigger kitchens, more rooms, and a sleeping loft. This was the beginning to what is now called the “saltbox” style house. Also, each town usually had a tavern, school, possibly some small shops, and a church or meeting house in the center. The meeting house was used as a church and also for civic and political use. They attended church at the meeting house on Sunday and also on Wednesday. They met there often to make decisions for the colony as well. The meeting house was where they spent most of their time.

The government of the Puritan colonies was based on the colonial charter. The colonial charter was designed for the management of a corporation, so the needs of the colonial government did not always fit well into this model. The result was the government began with a corporate organization that included a governor, a general court of its shareholders, and a council of assistants similar to a board of directors. It ended with a governor and deputy governor, a bicameral legislature that included a representative lower house and a body of freemen. This body of freemen was the adult inhabitants, who were authorized to vote in elections. The charter gave the general court the authority to make laws and elect officers for the colony. Laws were established specifying that only men who are members of the churches in the colonies were eligible to become freemen and gain the vote. The typical process in which individuals became members of one of the Puritan churches involved an intense questioning by the church elders of their beliefs and religious experiences; as a result, only individuals whose religious views accorded with those of the church leadership were likely to become members, and gain the ability to vote in the colonies. Essentially, these men ran and operated the colonies.

In the earlier years of the colonies, the economy consisted of the import and export of commodities. Trade was very popular. The economical stability of the colonies depended on the success of trade, in part because the land was not as suitable for agriculture where large plantations could not be established. Often, goods were transported to local markets over roads that were sometimes no wider than the Indian trails. Towns were required to maintain their roads or they would have to pay a penalty or fine. Essentially, trade was crucial in the colonies. Also, the government would often try to regulate the economy in multiple ways. Laws were passed regulating wages and prices of economically necessary goods. However, these laws rarely lasted. Interestingly enough, two trades were given authorization to form guilds, giving them the power to set the price, quality, and expertise level for their work. These two trades were shoemaking and barrel making (coopering). This was in some sense, their version of “free trade”. Overall, the essential part of the economy in the Puritan colonies was trade.

Therefore, although there were many things that made up the colonies established by the Puritans, the three main points of all those colonies were; their common living conditions, their government, and their economy. These three things greatly affected all the colonies in a number of ways, more so than any other element of the Puritan colonies.

My Jesus

“Who do you say that I am?” 

Theologically, Christ Jesus is the Lord God. He is Yahweh, the great I Am. He is the second member of the Trinity; He is the Son of God the Father, and God Himself. He is fully God, and fully man. He is the “Logos”, found in John 1:1. I could go on with specific titles that He has been given in the Bible, but to me, Jesus is the greatest thing that has ever happened to me. Because of Him, God the Father looks on me with love, and that fills me with the greatest joy I could ever feel, that I am loved by God. The greatest thing about Jesus is my relationship with Him. However, my relationship with Jesus is confusing. He unconditionally loves me and gives me everything and its awesome, although sometimes I love Him back, I hurt Him and willfully defy His law and forfeit the tight, intimate relationship we share.. But what does He do? He still manages to keep me and to hold me when I do something stupid. He even carries me out of situations I got myself into by disregarding everything He has given me. However, I have to say, the COOLEST thing He does, is reminds me that He has chosen me and loves me NO MATTER WHAT I do. His amazing grace is incredible. I haven't even been able to put into words the amount of ways He has blessed me recently. His blessings definitely do not always come the way I want them to, and often, His blessings don't even feel like blessings! And I fail to see the good in the situation. But thanks to His Holy Word, the Bible, I am able to see that although I don't always think He cares, He cares so much more than I do! So basically what I'm trying to say is, that Christ is the greatest thing that has EVER happened to me, and I am madly in love with Him. It truly is Amazing Grace that God sent Him to earth so He could save me then keep me. I rarely ever even realize how amazing that is. John 10:28-29 says that He is always with me and that nothing can ever take me away from Him, and nothing can take me from God the Father either, that I am in the Hands of God, and that will never change. He will always be with me, and that truly is the peace that passes all understanding. Jesus is the greatest thing that has ever happened to me, and I look forward to the day when I am standing in Heaven, glorified with Him, and in the eternal presence of my Lord and my God.

The Great Commission: Reaction Paper

And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” – Matthew 28:18-19 (ESV) [Emphasis Added] 

This verse (v.19) is a clear example of the “Great Commission”. This is the commissioning of the church by Jesus Christ, our Lord. The universal authority of the Lord, leads to the universal mission of the church. The church’s mission is to make disciples of all nations. It is important to understand why He says, “all nations”. Jesus’ ministry in Israel was to foreshadow or to begin what would eventually become a proclamation of the gospel to all peoples of the earth, not only Jews but also Gentiles. We also see here, a reference to the Trinity. “Father, Son, and Holy Spirit” are all mentioned in this verse, also clarifying the deity of Jesus Christ, and explicitly advocating the Triune attribute of God. Essentially, the message of this verse is simple, go and preach the Word. We have a calling, as Christians, to go out and share the gospel. This may seem hard, but if you are living for Jesus daily, it is so simple. To quote John Calvin, “I offer my heart to thee, O Lord, promptly and sincerely.” If we give ourselves up to Christ, we want nothing more than to make disciples for Him.

“Soli Deo Gloria”

Predestination: the Historical Debate

Throughout church history, one of the most debated topics is the doctrine of Predestination. Through a series of posts on this doctrine, I will attempt to educate you on predestination, and hopefully make the truth clear to you. This post will be on the historical debate of this topic.

 In the early Church, there was only one way in which people viewed salvation, and that was predestination, well more specifically, sovereign election. Now we have widely adopted the doctrine free-will. Surprisingly enough, the concept of free-will did not even exist until about 400 years or so after Christ. (that should be a good indication that it is a man made doctrine, and is not biblical). It was common knowledge that man's will was not free, rather it was enslaved to sin because of the imputed sin of our father Adam, and unless you were effectually called by God and set free by Christ, you were spiritually dead, and were, indeed enslaved to sin. However, the church eventually encountered a very serious controversy. A controversy on the topic of salvation. This controversy was known as the "Pelagian controversy". In the 5th century, a monk by the name of Pelagius came out against the Augustinian view of the fall, grace, and predestination. He maintained that the fall only affected Adam, and that there was no imputation of original sin to the rest of mankind. He believed that anyone born after the fall, retained the ability to live holy, and righteous lives apart from the grace of God. He stated that grace could have "facilitated" righteousness but said that it was not necessary to live a sinless life. He wholeheartedly taught that man was not enslaved to sin and was actually morally capable of choosing God, apart from God's sovereign grace. Pelagianism was condemned as heresy in 418 by the church at a synod in Carthage.

Although Pelagianism was condemned as heresy, the debate never ended. New positions on the subject came up, old positions came up, even the condemned heresy of Pelagianism was brought back to the table. In the end, this whole debate left us with three main views of salvation and righteousness. Those three are: 

1. Pelagianism
2. Semi-Pelagianism
3. Augustinianism

Pelagianism was started by Pelagius (obviously) and states, as I already explained earlier, that man does not need God's grace to be saved and can actually achieve righteousness without the help of God at all. It teaches that salvation is of man and God plays little or no role in it. It also teaches that man is not born with original sin, and from birth can live a holy, righteous life apart from God's grace. This, in no way, can be seen as a Christian approach to this subject at all. This is indeed a sub-Christian or anti-Christian view and approach of fallen humanity. It totally rejects the need of a Savior, Jesus Christ, and elevates man to the level of God. 

Semi-Pelagianism was started by an abbot of a monastery in Gaul, named John Cassian. He came after Pelagius and formed Semi-Pelagianism. Semi-Pelagianism teaches that grace, not only facilitates a life of holiness and righteiousness, but is absolutely necessary for salvation. However, he taught that the grace of God, can be, and is often rejected. Semi-Pelagianism teaches that the fall of man is real and serious, but not as serious as Augustinianism states it to be, because a certain level of moral ability remains in the fallen creature to the extent that the fallen person has the moral power to cooperate with God’s grace or to reject it. This is also called synergism, the belief that salvation is two-handed. It displays God's hand reaching down to save the sinner, and in return, the sinner reaching up to God in response. This leaves God's sovereign will up to fallen man, and ignores spiritual death. As incorrect and heretical as this may be, going fully against Ephesians 2, it is still considered a view among Christianity (unlike Pelagianism).

Augustinianism is the third and final view on this subject. It was started by a man by the name of Augustine (obviously) and, out of the three, is the only biblical view. It states that man is totally and utterly depraved and is in full necessity of God's sovereign grace for salvation. Augustinianism states that the very cooperation with grace was the effect of God, by His sovereignty, empowering the sinner to cooperate. Augustine again insisted that all of those who were numbered among the elect were given the gift of the grace of regeneration that brought them faith. This is also called monergism. Monergism teaches that salvation is one handed. It displays God reaching down out of Heaven, saving spiritually dead sinners by Himself, giving them life with Christ. In no way does this doctrine teach man reaching up to grab God's hand, for that would defy the spiritual death of man. This doctrine comes directly from Ephesians 2: "But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ." (v. 4-5), "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast." (v. 8-9). So, clearly it is God alone, reaching down out of Heaven, and saving fallen men. Even when we were dead in our trespasses, God made us alive, He did not give us a chance to make ourselves alive, rather, He did it for us, because a dead man, being dead in sin, cannot save himself. 

To put this in perspective, that would be like telling a dead man that there is a hospital down the road, and all he has to do is walk there. That there is an offer of life, and all he has to do is accept it. Of course the dead man cannot accept it or even choose to walk over to the hospital, that would be absurd because he is dead! The same applies to salvation, God does not simply provide a hospital for us then tell us we have to finish the job, and accept the offer of life. No, He does the whole job for us. He does this by giving us dead beings life in and through Christ. This means that God alone is responsible for salvation. Salvation is from the love of God the Father, through the sacrificial death and resurrection of God the Son, and by the regenerating power of God the Holy Spirit.

SOLI DEO GLORIA

Financial Collapse

this collapse is immanent and we need to begin preparing.. watch this video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lei0wVtlczQ

Humanism In Renaissance Literature (10th Grade Essay)

This is an essay I wrote in 10th Grade, it could be better, but its still pretty good. Enjoy :)

The Renaissance was an interesting time period. It started in the 14th Century and ended in the 16th Century. It was a time of new things and new beliefs. One of the very famous beliefs that came out of the Renaissance was Humanism. Humanism became very popular right around the start of the Renaissance. Humanism is focused around the idea that man is the center of everything. Three of the main points of Humanism that make up the philosophy are: Exalt the Individual, Enjoy This Life, and Study/ Question Critically. The philosophy of Humanism was carried out in many different methods during the Renaissance, but one of the most significant methods was Literature.

The first point of Humanism is Exalt the Individual. Exalting the individual really means praising man and man’s accomplishments. When Francesco Petrarch wrote Sonnets to Laura, he wrote one of the greatest displays of Humanism ever written. Sonnets to Laura is all about the ideal woman. He focused on the most beautiful thing he had ever seen, Laura. He was exalting the individual. Another great display of Humanism was The Prince by Niccolò Machiavelli. It was focused around the ideal ruler. This ruler being man, he exalted man. One of the most unique displays of Exalting the Individual was Romeo & Juliet by William Shakespeare. It displayed the perfect love, between star-crossed lovers; the sad part is that they both die. It was the ultimate display of love between a man and a woman. As you can see, Exalting the Individual focuses on man’s accomplishments and displays man as the greatest thing ever.


The second point of Humanism is Enjoy This Life. Enjoying this life really means to understand that this life is the best and we ought to make the best of it. The Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio was an excellent display of Humanism by Enjoying This Life. It is about a group of nobles escaping the Black Death (Bubonic Plague). Although times around the Black Death were rough, Boccaccio finds the Joy of life in the book. It was once described as “a book of the love of life”. It really focuses on the good of life and ignores all the disease and despair around the Black Death. Another great display of Enjoying This Life is Utopia by Thomas More. It was focused around the perfect society, where the people rule and everyone is enjoying this life. It displays the idea that a world where everyone does their part, everyone can enjoy their life. Romeo & Juliet by William Shakespeare also displays the idea of Enjoying This Life. Romeo and Juliet do not bother focusing on the fact that no one acknowledges their love, instead, they focus on the love they share, and together they both are enjoying their lives. So clearly, Enjoying This Life is focused on understanding that the life we have now is the best.


Another point of Humanism is Study/ Question Critically. Study or Question Critically really means exactly what it says, we are to study and question everything we hear. We ought to study it for ourselves. That is exactly what Niccolò Machiavelli was doing when he wrote The Prince. In order to understand what the perfect ruler would be, he had to study and question various leaders. When he was finished with all the studying, he compiled what he thought was the ideal ruler, and wrote The Prince. Thomas More did the same thing. He had to study all the different societies and question them in order to write Utopia. He believed that everyone doing their part was the ideal society. In Praise of Folly by Desiderius Erasmus was probably one of the greatest criticisms of the Catholic Church. He studied the church during the Renaissance and questioned the flaws he found. Erasmus also, because of his writings, inspired Martin Luther to spark the greatest event in Church history. Martin Luther was inspired by Erasmus to start the Protestant Reformation. Then John Calvin, and others, went on to reform the already reforming church, having been inspired by Luther. If Erasmus had never pointed out those flaws in the Catholic Church, Luther never would have started the Reformation. As you can see, studying and questioning the things we hear and are taught, can actually turn out to be very useful.


Therefore, the philosophy of Humanism was carried out in many different methods during the Renaissance, but one of the most significant methods was Literature. We see that great things came from these people writing the things they wrote and doing the things they did. In their writings, they carried out the philosophy of Humanism. Humanism was most certainly carried out in Renaissance Literature.

The "Federal" Reserve

What is it?

If you're like I was, you probably thought, whenever you heard about the "Federal" Reserve, that it was owned and operated by the "Federal" Government. But here's the thing, you and I were both wrong. There is nothing "federal" about the "Federal" Reserve. It is a private company! Also, there are no "reserves" in it either! So, with all this said, what the heck is it??

The History of the Federal Reserve

It all started less than a decade into the 20th century. Some of the wealthiest men in the world got together and started planning the biggest heist ever to take place in the history of America. These men were so wealthy, that together, they accumulated 25% of the entire world's wealth! And that was BEFORE they started the Fed. Some of these men were Cecil Rhodes, J.P. Morgan, John D. Rockefeller, etc... At an estate owned by Mr. Morgan on Jekyll Island, they started writing what was finally called the "Federal Reserve Act". Although that is what the final name was, that is not what it started as. They tried many titles, but found that adding the word "federal" added some sense of comfort to the ignorant. This act basically gave them complete power over this Nation's monetary system. It was a complete monopoly. Again, if you're like me, you're probably thinking, "well there's no way this could get passed, it's extremely unconstitutional!" Well, I wish you were right, but you're wrong. It got passed. A president by the name of Woodrow Wilson signed it and passed it (along with a corrupt and ignorant house and congress). This gave them more power than we can ever imagine. They had been given virtually complete control of the country.

So, what does the Federal Reserve do?

The Federal Reserve has total control of our currency. That means they control "inflation" (the amount of money that is in circulation) and the "interest rate" (the added amount of money on top of a loan). This means that they have the power to put money into circulation and to take money out of circulation. So lets say the government wants to take out $100 (I'm keeping it low for simplicity). The Fed will LOAN them the $100 with full expectancy of it being payed back (cause its a loan) and on top will charge an extra $25 interest. So, immediately, the country is in debt. Now, the country is ready to pay back the loan, so in order to do this, they take out another loan, just enough to pay back the original (not even including the interest). But by doing this they have only created more debt. So, there really is no way to truly be out of debt, because the only way you can get money to pay off the debt, is by taking money out of the same place you owe money to, and then consequently only creating even more debt while trying to pay the original debt off. It is a never ending situation resulting in debt every time. And now that we are off the gold-standard, we can print money even when we do not have it, giving appearance of wealth, when truthfully all we are doing is causing the value of our currency to go down and creating even MORE debt! Are you starting to get the picture?

Consequences

Many many years ago back when we were on the gold-standard, your dollar was actually worth something. On it, you could read "redeemable by gold" which meant that somewhere, probably Fort Knox, there was a piece of gold that your dollar was representing. So the value of the dollar was based on real gold. Now, we are no longer on a gold-standard, which means your dollar represents nothing. Now bills say "this note is legal tender" meaning its backed by nothing, it is simply a piece of paper. So, the value of the dollar is dependent upon inflation. So, the value goes up when you take money out of circulation and the value goes down when we print more money. Sadly, we have over time, accumulated a substantially large debt, and it continues to rise every day. And the government's answer to that, is to print more money! So, this gives the market a temporary lift, but ultimately devalues our currency, only creating more debt. At this point we have printed way too much money and the dollar's value continues to drop rapidly, and it is only going to get worse. Eventually it will get bad enough that the dollar will crash (because we are not on a standard, we have no accountability, meaning our currency can and will crash). Meaning it will go from little value to no value. Leaving you with nothing but worthless paper. Meaning someone with a hundred million dollars is no richer than the guy with 5 dollars. It will be WORTHLESS. This may be hard for some of you to even comprehend, but sadly, its true. This day is coming and it is coming soon.

Our Nation's Economy

http://www.usdebtclock.org/

The Protestant Reformation (Observing Strictly Luther)

The Protestant reformation was started by a monk/parish priest named Martin Luther. He studied the various teachings of the Catholic Church and found many of the church’s teachings false and heretical. The Catholic Church based the belief of salvation on works and the following of the rules. Martin Luther, after reading various scriptures and studying various writings, found that one is saved by faith alone, rather than works. He then wrote a document titled the 95 Theses. It basically stated all the problems in the Catholic Church, according to Luther, and the doctrine they taught as well as the practices they were doing. Since no one had ever dared to question the authority of the Catholic Church hierarchy, this caused much tension in the church.

When the church leaders heard about Luther’s questioning of the Catholic Church’s doctrine, they were filled with rage. Even though the Church hierarchy was furious with Luther, his 95 Theses were copied and published throughout all of Europe. Pope Leo X condemned Luther’s teachings as heresy. Luther was then called to the Diet of Worms on April 17th, 1521. He was to either recant his writings or to reaffirm them. On April 18th, Luther gave a speech saying that he would not recant his writings for that would go against his conscience and scripture. Sadly, Luther was declared an outlaw by the Emperor (Here I Stand).

Although this seemed like the end, it was not. It was only the beginning. Luther began to do more teaching and writing in the favor of Protestantism. Even after Luther, there were many other great theologians, pastors, teachers, etc. that carried on the reformation and continued to reform the already reformed church.

Love: the Biblical View

Love: Some say “true love is your soul’s recognition of its counterpoint in another” (wedding Crashers), others say that true “love is patient, kind, and does not boast” (1st Corinthians 13). Others say that love is simply fun two people share until it becomes boring. Some say that true love does not exist. So, with all these views of love, what are we to conclude it really is? There really are three main types of love; Trinitarian Love (the love between all three members of the Trinity), Man’s love for the world and/or sin, and finally, the love between God and man.

First, Trinitarian Love, the love God has for Himself. John 5:20 says, “For the Father loves the Son-“, so we see that one member of the Trinity, God the Father, loves another member, God the Son. He is expressing love to His Son, and Himself. We believe God is Love, the only way God could be Love, is if He was Trinitarian, because love is something one gives to another. God is love because He has perfect love for Himself, the other members of the Trinity. God expresses Trinitarian Love.

Secondly, the love man has for the world/sin. In the beginning, man had free will to choose good or evil. When Adam ate the fruit he was told not to by God, all men lost free will and became enslaved to sin (Romans 5:12). In this situation, we see that man loved sin, and gave into the lies the world had to offer. Romans 3 is clear that no one is righteous and no one seeks God, because, of the love man has for sin and for things of this world. By our own works, we have enslaved ourselves to sin; this is called “the bondage of the will” (Martin Luther). Apart from Christ, there was absolutely no hope.

Finally, the love between God and man, God loves man. Arguably the most popular verse in the Bible is a great example of the love God has for man. John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” This verse explicitly displays that God loves His creation so much that He sent His perfect Son to die for many sinful, evil, fallen, people. This displays just how strong this love is. Romans 5:8 says, “But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” This is another clear example that God chose to redeem a fallen, evil group of sinners, out of love for us! By the sovereign grace of our Great God, we have been set free (Galatians 5:1). To complete my previous point that there WAS no hope, now there IS. Christ diverted the wrath of God onto Himself on the cross, taking the punishment of sin and imputing His righteousness on to us. Christ paid the penalty of sin so we could be set free from sin. How amazing is that? God literally poured out His wrath on His own Son, who is perfectly Holy and perfectly Just, so we could have eternal life. He chose to save us out of His good pleasure. Psalm 115:3 says that God, while in Heaven, does whatever He wants. “Even as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love He predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of His will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.” Ephesians 1:4-6. This verse completely sums up God’s love for us. God, out of love predestined a group of evil sinners, to be adopted as sons with and through Christ, based solely on His sovereign will. That is true love.

Therefore, there are three main types of love; Trinitarian Love (the love between all three members of the Trinity), Man’s love for the world and/or sin, and finally, the love between God and man. Also, although there is much debate over the topic of love, we know what true love is because of God's Holy Word, the Bible.

-Soli Deo Gloria

Trust in God

It has come to my attention, that today's economy is at a record worst and it is not looking good. We are not on the gold-standard anymore, we haven't been for decades, and the value of our dollar keeps dropping. Sadly the government has decided to abandon the basic concept of economics, that the more you have of something, the less valuable it is, and is printing more money. Hyper-inflation is so immanent. We are over 14 Trillion dollars in dept, and its only getting worse. On top of that, we owe China a very large amount of money, and if we cannot pay them back, it could cause war. I am telling to all of this, to try to instill the basic, and yet so difficult, concept of simply looking to Christ. This world is temporary. This nation is temporary, and whether its soon or not, the end is coming, and nothing else will matter, except Christ. In these times its tempting to become really obsessed with whats happening now, and that is okay, just remember that no matter what happens, God remains the same. It is so crucial that we do not find comfort in this world, or nation, but to trust in our Heavenly Father. No matter what happens, to this nation, or to this world, we must genuinely look to Christ in all things. I implore you to look to eternal things. Find comfort in this, that God, never changes, and He will be with us until the end. We must be satisfied in Him and not this world, or this nation. Look to Christ, and set your eyes upon eternal things. Trust in God, nothing else matters in the eyes of eternity.

General Revelation (stolen from my facebook page)

Just recently I watched the video from the Prince of Egypt when Moses encounters the Burning Bush.. when I first saw the video, I thought to myself how awesome it would be to see God's Glory like Moses did, but then I realized that I do see His Glory every day. God's general revelation is everywhere in creation, He has revealed Himself to the whole world.. His invisible attributes have been analogically made visible through His creation, meaning that He has revealed things we cannot see, by using the things we can see.. we can get a feel for God's infinite character by looking out into the ocean, or we can see a fragment of God's Glory by looking up into the sky, we can even see God's creative design when we examine the infrastructure of the fish and sea creatures. we can also see that this magnificent design begs for a designer, and the only logical theory we can take from all this design, is that there is a transcendent Designer.. God is everywhere and has revealed Himself to everyone. Psalm 19:1 says, "The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork." God really is an Awesome God!

God has also revealed His law to everyone. We are born with a specific moral code, what we believe in our hearts is right and wrong without anyone telling us. In the former paragraph I explained "Mediate General Revelation", that God has revealed Himself to us outwardly, in this paragraph I intend to look at Immediate General Revelation". This means that God has given every man and woman, even the reprobate, a knowledge of Him. Romans 1 says that those who do not believe in God "suppress the truth". Romans 2:15 says that He has written His law (morals) on everyone's heart, so there is no excuse. God has revealed Himself in multiple ways to all of His creation, and all you have to do is look, and its there.

Who I am

My name is Zach Hayes. I am a junior at Wilmington Christian School. I am in love with Jesus and I am trying to express that love to others (its a slow learning process). I am a strong advocate of Covenant Reformed Theology, Libertarian Politics, and the Theistic Worldview. I love philosophy because it covers all the topics I just mentioned. This blog is basically my way to express my views of philosophy for all to see.

God Bless!