Existential View of the World

A world without God is a painfully dismal place.

1) There is no purpose for good things or bad things. They just happen. Every event is random; there are no patterns, design, or intention. Just chaos and accident with no possibility of meaning or significance. Roll the Bones.

2) There is no one to thank for good things and no one to complain to about misfortune. There is no emotion only cold, hard, chaotic forces. No comfort, only luck of the draw.

3) There is no expectation for future justice, resolution, or positive outcome.

4) There is no hope of rest or peace, only pain suffering and death.

5) There is no deep connection possible between personalities; only temporary and pragmatic liaisons. Stark and empty aloneness awaits us all.

6) There is no truth or authority only numerous tribal traditions. Ultimately might makes right. No standard. No basis or bounds for human relationships.

7) The only virtues are self-preservation, self-empowerment, self actualization, and self-pleasure. To each his own. Even our procreation is a self serving attempt to perpetuate ourselves beyond death.

A world without God is a painfully dismal place. Our life is a narrative best categorized as a tragedy. Or more accurately a tragic comedy. For all human effort and dreams are mere vanity. A foolish attempt to capture the wind in a jar. Such is a world without God.

Love and Marriage go together like...

A couple of weeks ago while eating breakfast with my wife and grandson, I noticed a man wearing a t-shirt with a special message. That message was "I heart my wife" in large letters across the chest. In smaller letters underneath it continued, "because God loved me." While I am not necessarily fond of Christian slogans and Christian bookstore novelty items/trinkets, this shirt caught my attention. I immediately admired the man and his message. I didn't stop and talk with him and so I don't know him and I probably never will. But I think I know a few things about him:

1)This guy loves his wife, and he wants his wife to know it and feel loved.
2)This guy loves his wife and he wants his children to know it and feel secure.
3)This guy believes in marriage commitment and is inviting all readers to hold him accountable.
4)This guy believes in marriage commitment (and vows!) in a culture that has devalued marriage in many ways (e.g. ignoring, redefining, and easily dissolving).
5)This guy has his priorities straight (wife before sports teams, vacation spots, hobbies, political causes, or sarcastic messages which are the usual t-shirt slogans).
6)This guy has a high view/standard of love (Divine, inner-Trinitarian, active commitment love not the fluffy and feathery emotional bed that you might fall into).
7)This guy has an appropriate view of himself and his ability to love.
8)This guy has a gospel which both energizes and directs his personal affections.

I probably won't be wearing this t-shirt in the future. But, I will be striving to follow his example and to live his values.

Self Reminders

I have spent most of my life reading, talking, debating, and theorizing on theological topics. The focus has often been on controversial subjects: eschatology (Pre-trib vs. Post Trib), sovereignty in salvation (Calvinism vs. Arminianism), covenant framework of redemptive history (dispensationalism vs. covenant theology), apologetic framework (evidentialism vs. pre-suppositionalism), eschatology (a-mil vs. post Mil), biblical ethics (dispensational vs. reformed vs. prog dispensationalism), baptism (believers exclusively vs. believers and their children), church government (independent vs. presbyterian), miraculous spiritual gifts (cessationist vs. continuationist), and the age of the earth (old earth vs. new earth). It has been easy to get caught up in these topics. Search for meaning in order to choose a position. Read and discuss at length and miss the true value of theological inquiry. The focus can become on adopting and defending a position at any cost. It can become about being right…not righteous.

Below I have listed a few self-reminders about theological study that have been helpful to me:

1)The goal of all theological study is knowing God through his son Jesus Christ. The goal is not personal prestige, academic notoriety, ministerial effectiveness, or renowned debating prowess. If I study the scripture and miss Jesus, I miss the eternal life that I desperately need (e.g. NT Pharisees; Duke Professor Bart Ehrman). I am just another practical atheist with an interesting hobby.

2)The essential result of all theological study is personal change. I am fooling myself if I think that my understanding without my repentance is God pleasing. Again I have missed the point.

3)The true agent of my understanding is the Holy Spirit. I will not come to know God or master his revelation with a spirit of autonomy, independence, and self confidence. True understanding will only come to one with a humble, dependant, and teachable spirit.

4)The means of theological study are persistent, prayerful, and systematic hard work in the scriptures. It is not the studies that I begin and that quickly stall, but the studies that I begin and persist through to completion that are beneficial. In my reading of other writers I must not get too far from the scriptures.

5)The necessary context for theological study is within the community of faith: The Church. Theological study is best carried out within the guardrails of the church’s documents and fellowship. Mutual accountability helps us avoid self-deception, extremism, and theological novelties. It keeps us in the real world.