Is something moral because God says that it is, or does God say that something is moral because it is? This is a common objection to Theism. If something is moral because God says that it is, then morality is arbitrary. If God says that something is moral because it is, then morality is autonomous …
Human history is filled with efforts to objectify ethics. Interestingly, these efforts continue despite their failure as evidenced by a lack of cross cultural adherence. Having a black and white guide to ethics would greatly simplify many dilemmas faced by humanity, but is there such a thing as an objective ethic? To answer this question …
Starting a writing on ethics seemed at first to be a somewhat easy task until I actually started putting thoughts down on paper and making sense of what I was writing. I thought this would provoke some thought but never imagined the amount of thought this would take. The basic definition of Ethic from Merriam-Webster …
The following is a fictional dialogue between an engaged couple, Bill & Ashley following a distressing email: Bill, I have a lot on my mind lately and I really feel like I need to talk to you about it. The property manager of the venue called today and she said that there are complications with …
Hermeneutics is important for interpreting and applying the Bible in our devotional life. There are many ways to approach the Bible when it comes to reading, interpreting, and applying it; but the moment you open the Bible and begin reading you are engaged in the art and science of interpretation. I admit that hermeneutics can … Continue reading »
I assure you, this post will raise more questions than it will answer. One of the most important (and consequently hardest) parts of biblical interpretation is translating biblical commands from one culture to another. There are typically two ends of the spectrum. On one end, there are those who believe scriptural principles and the commands … Continue reading »
The Bible. Holy Scripture. The ‘word of God.’ Names given to a collection of writings, created and compiled over thousands of years to and by multiple people groups in several different cultures – people who understood God, creation, humanity, justice, and suffering differently, both from culture to culture and even person to person. It includes … Continue reading »
Have you found the key to becoming wealthy? I heard it from a preacher not too long ago. He quoted Proverbs 11:24: One gives freely, yet grows all the richer; another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want (ESV). If you genuinely desire to be rich, you have to give. Oversized houses, tricked-out cars, … Continue reading »
What is hermeneutics? Herme-Newt-ics? Depends who you ask. But generally, it involves interpreting written communication. I’m not seeking to get philosophical or to provide a history of hermeneutics. Rather, I simply want to talk briefly about how I – as someone who does not hold to the doctrine of inerrancy (is errantist a word?) - … Continue reading »
I recently had to write an evaluation of a book concerning four views on women in the ministry.[1] Without getting into personal opinion on that topic, I would like to rehash what I saw to be a hermeneutical slippery slope down which all four authors slid to one degree or another. In general I find … Continue reading »
The last post discussed the universal effect of God’s work of glorification. All of creation will eventually be redeemed and brought into union with the Divine. This post will look at the culmination of that union. In order to do so we will revisit the crucial 1 Cor. 15 chapter. Paul includes a very odd … Continue reading »
I made the 5-½ hour trip home to Oklahoma a few days before my grandmother’s funeral. The fight against cancer was over! I remember when my dad called me with the news; I knew what the call was about when my phone rang. It did not come as a surprise since we had made the … Continue reading »
Christmas songs are always hard for me to listen to outside of the Christmas season. I love Christmas and the songs, but to listen to them in September just seems strange. But recently I heard a Christmas song that said more than just the usual yuletied cheer. The song, Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas, … Continue reading »
I was going to write a formal post about divine foreknowledge by using scripture, tradition, and subjective experience to try and bolster and formulate some kind of discernible argument. Instead, I think I’ll go a slightly different route. Most of my beliefs are generally centered around whether I think they cohere with my own subjective … Continue reading »
Open Theism (OT) is the belief that God does not have an exhaustive knowledge of future events. The argument goes something like this: - 1. God does not know things that do not exist. - 2. Future events do not exist because they have not occurred. - 3. Therefore, God does not know future events. … Continue reading »
God has complete and exhaustive knowledge of the future. This is what Christians commonly affirm: God is all knowing, or omniscient. In other words, God knows all truths and believes no falsehoods. However, like many doctrines in the Christian tradition it is subject to interpretation. Despite whatever disagreements over the details of God’s foreknowledge there … Continue reading »
There are two main camps of thought when it comes to God’s foreknowledge and our election in regards to salvation. Some of you may not even have a clue about this which is probably doing better than some supposed “experts” on the issue. I am not dismissing other camps of thought but rather discussing the … Continue reading »
Does God know the future? Historically Christians have answered in the affirmative. The standard answer is that God does indeed know the future and He knows it exhaustively. There is no past, present, or future event that God does not know. Additionally, God knows infallibly so He cannot be wrong about what has happened, what … Continue reading »
