Desecrated Shrines

"The soul- temple filled with desecrated shrines.

*Frivolous reading 
*Trifling conversation 
* Worldly pleasure occupy the mind so completely that there is no room left for the entrance of GOD's WORD. Worldliness, Frivolity, and Pride take the place which Christ should occupy in the soul."
MESSAGES TO THE YOUNG PEOPLE p.66 E.G.W.
 

Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. 

If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

1 John 2:15

Puritan Corner - Faith Ruling

Faith, whereby especially Christ rules, sets the soul so high that it looks down on all other things as far below, as having represented to it, by the Spirit of Christ, riches, honor, beauty and pleasures of a higher nature.
by Richard Sibbes (1577-1635) 
And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, Colossians 3:15

Creation Moment 3/31/2015 - Walrus Tusk with a purpose

"Walrus tusks can grow up to 3 feet. The tusks are canine teeth and stick out from either side of the animal's mouth. Walruses use their tusks to break through ice, and to assist in climbing out of the water and onto the ice. The animals also use their tusks to defend themselves from larger predators and to establish dominance and a hierarchy among walruses,..." LiveScience

And God created .....every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

Genesis 1:21

Book Review: 1844 Made Simple

(short) Book Review: A book that may be of some interest....
(Review by  Laymen Ministries)

1844 Made Simple

by Clifford Goldstein

Publisher: Pacific Press Publishing Association (1988) Pages: 96

"What significance, if any, does the year 1844 and the oft-attacked events surrounding it have for Christians today? Is there a way to make sense of the confusing maze of beasts, dates, and kingdoms in

Daniel? And why should it matter?
A layman's guide to understanding the prophecies of Daniel 7-9 in a manner that validates the tried and tested Adventist teachings on the investigative judgment. In clear language, this book will help you understand the symbols, kingdoms, and dates surrounding the prophecies, and more important, help you to see why it is essetial to you as a Christian, and relevant to your life today."


"Mostly important, though, I show how the gospel is central to the judgment. I contend that the only way to fully appreciate the gospel is to understand it in light of judgment. For instance, in Daniel 7 judgment is given in “favor of the saints of the Most High” (verse 22, KJV). Why? How can anyone stand when God will “bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil” (Eccl. 12:14)? The key is found in Daniel 8:14, the cleansing of the sanctuary, when the blood shed on the Day of Atonement covers their sins. “He will make atonement for the Most Holy Place because of the uncleanness and rebellion of the Israelites, whatever their sins have been” (Lev. 16:16)." Clifford Goldstein

IN the NEWS - Indiana & the Disciples of Christ Church

"Hardly anyone ever talks anymore about the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) denomination, even though it is historically Mainline, because it doesn’t have many members left and has become culturally marginal.
But the denomination, which is based in Indianapolis, provided a soundbite useful to liberals and secularists this week by claiming its governing convention may not meet in Indianapolis after Indiana approved its own version of the longstanding federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

But protecting religious minorities has become hyper politically incorrect.  Under the new zeitgeist of cultural and political demands, elderly inn owners must host polyamorous rites, nuns must subsidize condoms, and church groups should finance abortions.  Otherwise, they are guilty of “discrimination,” which has become the unforgivable sin, unless the targets of discrimination are religious traditionalists, who merit no rights, until they fall down prostrate and worship at the altar of the latest presenting fad.
One Disciples of Christ spokesman succinctly encapsulated the secularist talking points:
Any time you have laws that basically are permitting bigotry and hatred and wrapping it in the cloak of religious freedom, you are potentially excluding people who would want to come [to Indiana] and work for you.  
Yes, the Catholic Church, Evangelicals and Orthodox Jews, among others, who supported the law, are motivated by hatred and bigotry.  What else could explain their adherence to ancient scriptures that claim human dignity entails more than endless sexual freedom and self expressionism?

The Disciples of Christ letter noted that 6000 are expected at its 2017 convention.  It doesn’t

mention that such a number represents over one percent of the total national membership of the highly shrunken denomination, which has the distinction of losing a higher percentage of membership than any other liberal Mainline denomination, all of which have shriveled.  The Disciples have lost about 70 percent, despite its widely advertised radical hospitality. 
 Why would even a hyper liberal denomination oppose religious freedom and free speech, labeling it “hatred” and “bigotry?”  Originally RFRA laws were intended to protected small religious groups like the Amish and Sikhs from undue burdens on practicing their faith in public life.  It was not imagined there would come a day when laws might seek to jail or financially destroy nuns, rabbis or Christian camp counselors who prefer to abstain, even within their own domiciles, from the next wave of sexual and gender experimentation.  And there’s always a next wave, always more provocative than the previous, and always accompanied by a shrill chorus angrily berating any and all dissent.
Religious freedom is the cornerstone of all liberty for all people.  Deny or reduce it, and there are no ultimate limits on the state’s power to coerce."
JuicyEcumenism

But his citizens hated him,

and sent a message after him, saying,

We will not have this man to reign over us.

Luke 19:14

The "Really" File - (a "gay" Passion of the Christ???)

....but was in all points tempted like as we are,

yet without sin.

Hebrews 4:15

If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman,

both of them have committed an abomination:

Leviticus 20:13

"Jesus arrives as a gay man of today in a modern

city with "The Passion of Christ: A Gay Vision," a controversial series of paintings that are newly available as a book.
The paintings and the new book that I wrote about them have been attacked as blasphemy by conservative Christians.
The contemporary queer Christ figure is persecuted, killed and rises again in the 24 paintings by New York artist Doug Blanchard. A surprisingly diverse group of friends join the gay Jesus on a journey

From the "Really" File

from suffering to freedom.

Facebook canceled ads for the book because it was too "shocking." When the LGBT community protested, the social media company reversed its decision and "resurrected" the ad.

As Easter approaches, Christians around the world remember Christ's Passion -- his suffering in his final days as he was betrayed, arrested and brutally killed. Many LGBT Christians and their allies turn to "The Passion of

Christ: A Gay Vision" for inspiration.

Blanchard's gay Way of the Cross shows a contemporary Christ figure who stands up to priests, bankers, politicians, soldiers, and police -- all of whom look eerily similar to the people holding those jobs today. He is jeered by fundamentalists, tortured by Marine lookalikes, killed as news cameras broadcast his pain, and

rises again to enjoy homoerotic union with God."
HuffingtonPost

Uhmmmm... REALLY?

Creation Moment 3/30/2015 - Command & Control of the Higher Places

"Nevertheless, it was to Darwin’s friends that the first wave of

positive responses must be attributed. For it was obvious that Darwin’s theories were as useful to them as they were to his theories. Over the following decades, Darwin’s defenders came to occupy influential niches in British and American intellectual life. Together, these men would also control the scientific media of the day, especially the important journals... Darwin’s opponents failed to achieve anything like the same command of the media or penetration of significant institutions." Janet Browne, Charles Darwin: The Power of Place, p. 129.

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities,

against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world,

against spiritual wickedness in high places.

Ephesians 6:12

Case Study: 3 Parables of Luke 15 (God is Love)

"Through a) the things of nature, and
b) the deepest and tenderest earthly ties that human hearts can know,
He has sought to reveal Himself to us.
Yet these but imperfectly represent His love.
Though all these evidences have been given, the enemy of good blinded the minds of men, so that they looked upon God with fear; they thought of Him as severe and unforgiving. Satan led men to conceive of God as a being whose chief attribute is stern justice,--one who is a severe judge, a harsh, exacting creditor. He pictured the Creator as a being who is watching with jealous eye to discern the errors and mistakes of men, that He may visit judgments upon them. It was to remove this dark shadow, by revealing to the world the infinite love of God, that Jesus came to live among men."
Steps to Christ p.10,11 E.G.W.

Case Study: 3 Parables of Luke 15

1- The Lost Sheep....leaving the 99 to search for the one lost sheep

And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbours, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost.

I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.

Luke 5:6,7

2- Housewife.....in search of lost coin

And when she hath found it, she calleth her friends and her neighbours together, saying, Rejoice with me; for I have found the piece which I had lost.

Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.

Luke 5:9,10

3- The Prodigal Son....The example of the only time God ran....

And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.

And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son.

But the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet:

Luke 15:20-22

IN the NEWS - Blacks leaving PCUSA

"The National Black Church Initiative (NBCI), a faith-based coalition of 34,000 churches

comprised of 15 denominations and 15.7 million African-Americans, has broken its fellowship with Presbyterian Church USA (PCUSA) following its recent vote to approve same-sex marriage.  
The Presbyterian General Assembly, the top legislative body of the PCUSA, voted last June to revise the constitutional language defining marriage. This arbitrary change of Holy Scripture is a flagrantly pretentious and illegitimate maneuver by a body that has no authority whatsoever to alter holy text.   
Rev. Anthony Evans, NBCI President noted: 
"NBCI and its membership base are simply standing on the Word of God within the mind of Christ. We urge our brother and sisters of the PCUSA to repent and be restored to fellowship.
In this case, PCUSA deliberately voted to change the Word of God and the interpretation of holy marriage between one man and one woman. This is why we must break fellowship with them and urge the entire Christendom to do so as well."
CN

 Amen.

Galatians 6:18

Footsteps of Paul: Back into Greece

And when he had gone over those parts,
and had given them much exhortation, he came into Greece,

And there abode three months.

And when the Jews laid wait for him,

as he was about to sail into Syria,
he purposed to return through Macedonia.

And there accompanied him into Asia
Sopater of Berea;
and of the Thessalonians, Aristarchus and Secundus;
and Gaius of Derbe,
and Timotheus; and of Asia,
Tychicus and Trophimus.

These going before tarried for us at Troas.

Acts 20:2-5
 "He was but treading the blood-stained path that Christ had trodden before him. He sought no discharge from the warfare till he should lay off his armor at the feet of his Redeemer."
Acts of the Apostles p.297, E.G.W.

Creation Moment 3/29/2015 - Wearables: Just Wait for it to Evolve

WHY DESIGN it?----Just wait for it to evolve over millions of years.... maybe IF each generation would do what's in the picture---maybe it will evolve? Hey, I'm just using evolutionary reasoning---though it smacks of Lamarckism--all evolution still contains an element of Lamarckism at it's core.... (Hey, doesn't DESIGN = a DESIGNER for Wearables?...hint, hint)

--This post is to ILLUSTRATE the absurdity of the macro-evolutionary worldview---

"Tactum lets you manipulate a projected model of a bracelet right on your wrist. 

Scan the crowded wearables market, and you’ll find a wild buffet of options.

No matter what the functionality, however, wrist-worn wearables haven’t diverged much from the standard bangle-bracelet shape. It’s often a matter of practicality—a simple cuff will fit on every wrist—but it means that devices are rarely a perfect fit. “When you create wearables, there’s a lot of guesswork as to where the thing you’re making touches the skin,” says Madeline Gannon, a researcher at Autodesk.
How might we craft more personalized devices in the future? By removing the guesswork entirely. As Gannon puts it, “If you’re going to be designing things for the body, why not just design them on the body?”
Gannon says. “Your skin and hand are the equivalent of the mouse and keyboard.” The bespoke designs could then be made real with a 3-D printer." WIRED

From henceforth let no man trouble me:

for I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus.

(not Wearables)

Galatians 6:17

Old Testament just as relevant as New Testament

For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning,

that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.

Romans 15:4

Some Christians only focus on the New Testament, & either downplay, or outright reject, the Old Testament. And some, known as hyper-dispensationalists, accept only the writings of Paul.

But the Bible is a chain-of-Truth, from Genesis to Revelation.

IN the NEWS - A Stiffnecked Generation?

"When religious leaders ask millennials to make black-or-white moral judgments about sexuality, these young Americans will likely point out the gray.
Being unaffiliated with any religious tradition is the most common religious identity among this rising generation. And when it comes to sex, millennials don't always adhere to the rules of religious denominations, showing overwhelming support for the use of contraceptives, while being unwilling

as a group to be labeled “pro-life” or “pro-choice.”
In a survey released Friday, the nonpartisan Public Religion Research Institute asked 2,314 adults ages 18 to 35 to answer questions about sexuality, reproductive health and relationships.
About 78 percent want to make all forms of legal contraception available on college campuses, and 81 percent want to make sure women who can’t afford contraception have access to it.
“Majorities of both women and men in the millennial generation believe access to contraception is critical, not just for reproductive health, but also for the financial well-being of women,” said Robert P. Jones, CEO of Public Religion Research Institute.

About 58 percent of millennials, including 64 percent of Asian-Pacific islanders, 67 percent of Hispanics, 57 percent of blacks, and 55 percent of whites, say they believe corporations should be required to include contraception in employee health plans. But the group is sharply divided along political lines. Only 38 percent of Republican millennials agreed that contraception should be covered by businesses, while 73 percent of Democrats did.

The Rev. Debra Haffner, president of the Religious Institute, a nonprofit that advocates sexual justice in religious congregations, said churches need to be more open and honest about discussing sex. Church leaders, she added, need to realize that pre-marital chastity is an unrealistic option.
“We know that many millennials stop coming to religious institutions, and for many of them it’s because of these intolerant attitudes, particularly around LGBT people, but also about being single and making healthy moral sexual decisions as a whole,” Haffner told HuffPost. “I think the church in particular needs to be more helpful to people about how to make moral ethical decisions about sex that aren’t based on the criteria of a wedding band.”
Interviews for the poll were conducted from Feb. 12 to Feb. 25. The margin of error is 2.7 percentage points." HP

O Lord, let my Lord, I pray thee, go among us;

for it is a stiffnecked people;

Exodus 34:9

Since when are people entiteled to birth control paid for by someone else? Why can't you pay for your own good time? How did we raise a generation so stiffnecked?

Creation Moment 3/28/2015 - 10 Gender Differences

But from the beginning of the creation God

made them male and female. Mark 10:6

10 Gender Differences Backed Up by Science

Women are better at worrying
Women produce only about half as much serotonin -- a neurotransmitter linked to depression -- as men do and they have fewer transporters to recycle it, according to Karolinska Institute research. As a result, women tend to worry more. That’s not always a bad thing, as women might then possess an enhanced ability to foresee problems and plan how to handle them.


Men are better at judging person’s size based on their voice
A study in the latest Biology Letters holds that "men are better than women at acoustic size judgments." This means that men have an enhanced ability to determine a person's size based on the sound of his or her voice, according to Benjamin Charlton and colleagues from the University of Sussex.


Men have better spatial awareness



Men possess a stronger ability to think of objects in three dimensions, helping with navigation, which was also discussed during the British Psychological Society Annual Conference. Even 3-month-old infants exhibit the sex-based behavioral difference.


Women are better at locating specific items

Men often may have better spatial awareness than women do, but women are "better at remembering where things are," Halpern said. As a result, women are more likely to navigate using landmarks. While both men and women can therefore find their way to places with about equal skill, women might have an edge, since they could likely find things like missing car keys and maps first.


Women detect colors better than men do

Women can detect subtle variations in color that men fail to identify, such as noting certain off-white colors versus white, Israel Abramov of CUNY’s Brooklyn College, determined a few months ago. Abramov suspects that sex hormones are behind the differences, given that male sex hormones can alter development in the visual cortex.


Men handle lack of sleep better than women do
A Duke University study found that men could tolerate sleep deprivation more than women could. This is either good or bad news for men, as sleep is involved in brain repair, when the brain sorts out memories and other information acquired throughout the day.


We are evenly matched at multitasking

Some studies have found that men are better at multi-tasking, while others have determined just the opposite. When compiled, the data so far suggests that our multitasking skills could be evenly matched.

Men are better at detecting infidelity
Men appear to be better at reading subtle vocal, visual, scent and other cues indicating their partner's fidelity, concludes a study published in the journal Human Nature. The downside, said co-author Paul Andrews of Virginia Commonwealth University, is that that these cues aren’t always accurate, and men are more likely than women to falsely suspect cheating.


We are evenly matched in terms of intelligence
Men tend to be larger and, as a result, tend to have bigger brains. Size, however, does not necessarily correlate with intelligence. Braininess instead relies more on neuronal connections, which we help forge when learning by experience or study.


Women usually live longer than men

 Better immunity, reduced risk for blood diseases and lower risk-taking may give women an edge on longevity. Based on Centers for Disease Control data, women tend to have a life expectancy that’s 5.3 years greater than men's, but the gap is narrowing. In 1978, it was 7.8 years. The good news for men is that they tend to remain sexually active longer than women do. "Interest in sex, participation in sex and even the quality of sexual activity were higher for men than women, and this gender gap widened with age," said Stacy Tessler Lindau of the University of Chicago, who worked on a related study.
DiscoveryNews

Creation Moment 3/27/2015 - Shopping

FIRST - "It’s one of the oldest stereotypes, but it’s also probably

one of the most accurate: women love to shop. Well, not all of us love it, but many of us do. Men, on the other hand, don’t seem generally all that excited by the activity.
Back in 2013, researchers conducted a survey on 2,000 British people and discovered that men get bored with shopping after just 26 minutes. This is exacerbated if they’re feeling hungry or if they’re shopping with a female partner who can’t make her mind up. (We can’t imagine why.)
Women, meanwhile, are generally pretty happy shopping for around two hours before they start to get bored or stressed out. We tend to only get fed up when we can’t find what we’re looking for, when shops become too crowded, or when our other half starts moaning about being bored."
BUSTLE/IsobelMarkham


Second (now for the evolutionary psycho-babble) - "For hundreds of thousands of years, until around 8000 BCE, all human beings lived as hunter-gatherers—that is, they survived by hunting wild animals (the man’s job) and foraging for wild plants, nuts, fruit, and vegetables (the woman’s job).

Beginning in the Middle East, human communities began to switch to farming around 8000 BC, and slowly, over the following millennia, the practice spread widely throughout Asia and Europe. But after so many hundreds of thousands of years of living that way, it’s no surprise that hunting and gathering are still instinctive to us. And this brings us back to shopping—because these instincts may show themselves in our shopping habits. When most women shop, they are in more of a 'gathering' mode - browsing from tree to tree (or shop to shop) looking for ripe and nutritious fruit. They spend a lot of time examining the food, checking its freshness and edibility, and they discard quite a lot of it. At the end of the trip, they return home laden with a wide variety of food stuffs (or shopping bags)." PsychologyToday


Third (now for the socio-feminist nonsense) - "Polly Young-Eisendrath, professor of psychiatry and psychology at the University of Vermont, puts forward the theory that

today’s method of shopping is simply an offshoot of advertising and commercialism that was created by corporations to encourage women to feel in charge. 
This phenomenon began in the late Victorian era, well before women even had the right to vote. The advent of women shopping in stores gave the marginalized gender a chance to participate in a significant economic activity; a realm that had previously been reserved just for men."
BUSTLE/IsobelMarkham




Fourth (now for the real science of shopping) - ".....as shopping

stimulates the release of the neurotransmitter, Dopamine and  hence shopping feels good and lifts one's moods.   Therefore shopping = fun.   Why this occurs in women more often than men?  I speculate that there may be some gender specific differences in our neuroanatomy/neurochemistry."
Quora

SUMMARY

I'm Gonna go with the science & say it's a neuroanatomical/neurochemical difference between the genders--DESIGNED that way for a reason. Maybe not for shopping-lol, but still, shopping is due to a difference in DESIGN of the genders.

Our first mother "shopping" in the wrong Tree?

 Male and female created he them;

Genesis 5:2

The Real Global Warming

There is going to be a day of Global Warming---but  not like that preached by the Green Religion...

And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory.

Revelation 16:9

It will not be caused by man.....

...and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days,

Isaiah 30:26

SDA Issues - the "physicians"

And a certain woman, which had an issue of blood twelve years,

And had suffered many things of many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse,

Mark 5:25,26

Picture the "woman" here as the Church---and the many "physicians" as those who are trying to fix the Church for modern times......(the so-called "progressives" within the Church)

These "physicians" have----

A few of the self appointed "physicians"

 ATTEMPTED TO ALTER OUR BIBLICAL DOCTRINES  - (Creation, the Sanctuary, Spirit of Prophecy, nature of Christ, eschatology, Sabbath, etc.)

ATTEMPTED TO UNDERMINE DISTINCTIVE LIFESTYLE PRACTICES - (bodily adornment, clean vs. unclean meats, use of alcohol, divorce & remarriage, homosexuality, seriousness of Sabbath observance, etc.)

ATTEMPTED TO ALTER OUR WORSHIP - (introducing the music of the charismatics, borrowing the cheap grace sermons of the mega churches, pushing women ordination, the use of gimmicks, downplaying the doctrines, etc.)

ATTEMPTED TO UNDERMINE OUR PUBLISHING WORK - (printing books containing errors, printing of material not Bible centered in content, etc.)

A Son...

And Adam knew his wife again;

and she bare a son,

and called his name Seth:

For God, said she,

 hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew.

Genesis 4:25

And Simeon blessed them, and said unto Mary his mother, Behold, ....(Yea, a sword shall pierce through thy own soul also,)

Luke 2:34,35

When Jesus therefore saw his mother, .... he saith unto his mother,

Woman, behold thy son!

John 19:26

Papal Notes - Half Miracle?

"Pope Francis is being credited with a miracle -- or at least a "half miracle" -- after St. Gennaro's blood liquified in his presence in Naples on Saturday.
The saint's blood is usually dry inside of its sealed glass ampoule.

However, after the pope kissed the relic, it began to turn to liquid.
“It is the sign that St. Gennaro loves Pope Francis: half of the blood turned to liquid," Cardinal Crescenzo Sepe, archbishop of Naples, told the cheering crowd, according to Vatican Insider.
“If only half of it liquefied that means we still have work to do; we have to do better," the pontiff replied. "We have only half of the saint’s love.”
The website reports that the blood continued to liquefy until the entire contents of the ampoule had turned to liquid, causing some in the crowd to weep." HP

For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets,

and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that,

if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.

Matthew 24:24

The "Really" File - (Awe Shuck's)

 For there are certain men crept in unawares,

who were before of old ordained to this condemnation,

ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness,

and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.

Jude 1:4

Minister Who Denies God’s Existence:

"Presbyterian minister, John Shuck, was unsuccessful in his recent attempt to influence the Presbyterian Church, USA (the progressive branch) to endorse Evolution Sunday. 

John Shuck, also an open member of the Clergy Project is one of a few practicing clergy who is open about his lack of supernatural beliefs.   The Rational Doubt blog, whose contributors include founders and members of the Clergy Project, supports John Shuck for speaking out publicly about evolution.

On June 11^th, 2011, John published this personal statement of beliefs on his blog, Shuck and Jive:
I believe…

1. in evolutionary theory. This obviously includes human beings. Evolution and science in general have had major implications regarding theology that we mostly ignore or in our worse moments deny.
2. in higher criticism of the Bible. The Bible like all other books are human products (what else could they be?) and should be read as such as opposed to special revelation from a divine
   
   being.
3. that all religion is a human construct. Its primary purpose has been and should be an attempt to find and evoke meaning amidst life’s contingencies as opposed to speculation regarding supernaturalism.
4. that “God” functions as a symbol. The concept of “God” is a product of myth-making and “God” is no longer credible as a personal, supernatural being. For me, “God” functions as a shorthand for the Universe and sometimes for qualities and aspirations I wish to pursue or to emulate.
5. that human consciousness is the result of natural selection. Human beings do not have immortal souls nor will consciousness survive death. Thus there is no afterlife. There is no heaven, no hell, and no need for salvation from one realm to another.
6. that there is no “end” in human time. Earth is four billion years old. Earth was here long before human beings. Earth will spin on its axis and revolve around the sun long, long after the last human being has breathed her last. We will have to find meaning and our “eschaton” in this life.
7. that Jesus may have been historical but most of the stories about him in the Bible and elsewhere are legends. But he’s cool. He serves as a human ideal and a focal point for devotion (like an ishta deva).
8. that industrial civilization is in for a long descent. Peak Oil and Overshoot should be everyday terms in our lexicon. We ought to be putting our religious energies toward spiritual, emotional, and practical preparation for this reality.

As John says in his blog, there are many clergy who share his beliefs."
Patheos"BEAVERTON, Ore. – A Presbyterian USA minister in Oregon who says that he doesn’t believe in God—and doesn’t require his members to believe either–remarked in a recent article that he is offended by those who assert that he is not a Christian.
“Someone quipped that my congregation is BYOG: Bring Your Own God. I use that and invite people to ‘bring their own God’—or none at all,” wrote John Shuck of Beaverton’s Southminster Presbyterian Church in a guest post for Patheos last week. “While the symbol ‘God’ is part of our cultural tradition, you can take it or leave it or redefine it to your liking.”

From the "Really" File

Shuck first came out as an unbeliever in 2011, generating controversy as to how one could serve as a minister and not believe in the Bible.
“The concept of ‘God’ is a product of myth-making and ‘God’ is no longer credible as a personal, supernatural being,” he wrote in a blog post on his site “Shuck and Jive.” “Jesus may have been historical, but most of the stories about Him in the Bible and elsewhere are legends.”
Shuck reiterated his unbelief in his article “I’m a Presbyterian Minister Who Doesn’t Believe in God” on Tuesday, as he asserted that “[b]elief-less Christianity is thriving.”
“We all have been trained to think that Christianity is about believing things,” he wrote. “Its symbols and artifacts (God, Bible, Jesus, Heaven, etc) must be accepted in a certain way. And when times change and these beliefs are no longer credible, the choices we are left with are either rejection or fundamentalism.”
But Shuck says that although he rejects the Bible as being literal, and denies the existence of Heaven and Hell, he takes offense when people tell him that he’s not a Christian.
“[E]ven though I hold those beliefs, I am still a proud minister. But I don’t appreciate being told that I’m not truly a Christian,” he stated. “Many liberal or progressive Christians have already let go or de-emphasized belief in Heaven, that the Bible is literally true, that Jesus is supernatural, and that Christianity is the only way. Yet they still practice what they call Christianity.”
ChristianNewsNwetwork

REALLY?

Creation Moment 3/26/2015 - Terms

"Whenever talking about challenges to "evolution," it's vital to carefully define terms, otherwise confusion can result. There are three common usages of the term "evolution":

• Evolution #1 -- Microevolution: Small-scale changes in a population of organisms.


• Evolution #2 -- Universal Common Descent: The idea that all organisms are related and are descended from a single common ancestor.


• Evolution #3 -- Darwinian Evolution: The view that an unguided process of natural selection acting upon random mutation has been the primary mechanism driving the evolution of life.

No one doubts Evolution #1, which is sometimes called "microevolution." Some scientists doubt Evolution #2. But the Scientific Dissent from Darwinism list only concerns Evolution #3, also called Darwinian evolution or Darwinism. The scientists who have signed the dissent statement say this:

We are skeptical of claims for the ability of random mutation and natural selection to account for the complexity of life. Careful examination of the evidence for Darwinian theory should be encouraged.

I defined Evolution #1 by equating it with "microevolution" -- small-scale changes in a population of organisms. Collectively, Evolution #2 and #3 might be termed macroevolution, which is defined as follows:

Macroevolution: Large-scale changes in populations of organisms, including the evolution of fundamentally new biological features. Typically this term also means that all life forms descended from a single common ancestor through unguided natural processes.

Unfortunately, evolutionists sometimes purposefully confuse these definitions, hoping you won't notice that they have overstated their case. They will take evidence for microevolution (Evolution #1), and then over-extrapolate the evidence and claim it supports macroevolution (Evolution #2 or Evolution #3). Indeed, sometimes evolution advocates will

equate microevolution and macroevolution, the idea being that macroevolution is just repeated rounds of microevolution added up. I will address these inaccurate claims.

The signers of the Scientific Dissent from Darwinism List have many scientific reasons for being skeptical of Darwinian theory. In writing this, I do not intend to speak for any of them in particular, but the following section briefly lists some of the types of scientific data that are often cited by those challenging Darwinian evolution:

• Genetics -- Mutations Cause Harm and Do Not Build Complexity: Darwinian evolution relies on random mutations that are selected by a blind, unguided process of natural selection. This undirected process has no goals. Being random, it tends to harm organisms and does not improve them or build complexity. As biologist Lynn Margulis, a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences until her death in 2011, said: "New mutations don't create new species; they create offspring that are impaired." Similarly, the past president of the French Academy of Sciences, Pierre-Paul Grasse, contended that "[m]utations have a very limited 'constructive capacity'" because "[n]o matter how numerous they may be, mutations do not produce any kind of evolution."


• Biochemistry -- Unguided and Random Processes Cannot Produce Cellular Complexity: Our cells are like miniature factories using machine technology but dwarfing the complexity and efficiency of anything produced by humans. Cells use miniature circuits, motors, feedback loops, encoded language, and even error-checking machinery to decode and repair our DNA. As Bruce Alberts, former president of the U.S. National Academy of Science, observed: "[t]he entire cell can be viewed as a factory that contains an elaborate network of interlocking assembly lines, each of which is composed of a set of large protein machines." Darwinian evolution struggles to explain the origin of this type of integrated complexity. Biochemist Franklin Harold admits in a book published by Oxford University Press: "There are presently no detailed Darwinian accounts of the evolution of any biochemical or cellular system, only a variety of wishful speculations."


• Paleontology -- The Fossil Record Lacks Intermediate Fossils: The fossil record's overall pattern is one of abrupt explosions of new biological forms, and generally lacks plausible candidates for transitional fossils, contradicting the pattern of gradual evolution predicted by Darwinian theory. This non-Darwinian pattern has been recognized by many paleontologists. University of Pittsburgh anthropologist Jeffrey Schwartz states: "We are still in the dark about the origin of most major groups of organisms. They appear in the fossil record as Athena did from the head of Zeus -- full-blown and raring to go, in contradiction to Darwin's depiction of evolution as resulting from the gradual accumulation of countless infinitesimally minute variations." Likewise the great evolutionary biologist Ernst Mayr explained that "[n]ew species usually appear in the fossil record suddenly, not connected with their ancestors by a series of intermediates." Similarly, a zoology textbook observes: "Many species remain virtually unchanged for millions of years, then suddenly disappear to be replaced by a quite different, but related, form. Moreover, most major groups of animals appear abruptly in the fossil record, fully formed, and with no fossils yet discovered that form a transition from their parent group."


• Neo-Darwinian Evolution Has Been and Continues to Be Critiqued by Mainstream Scientists: Everyone agrees that microevolution occurs. But mainstream scientific and academic literature is saturated with skepticism about the neo-Darwinian claim that microevolution offers an adequate basis for justifying macroevolutionary claims.

Evolutionary biologist Stanley Salthe likewise describes himself as "a critic of Darwinian evolutionary theory," which he insists "cannot explain origins, or the actual presence of forms and behaviors" in organisms. Biologist Scott Gilbert has stated in a report in Nature that "[t]he modern synthesis is remarkably good at modeling the survival of the fittest, but not good at modeling the arrival of the fittest," and evolutionary paleobiologist Graham Budd admits: "When the public thinks about evolution, they think about the origin of wings and the invasion of the land, . . . [b]ut these are things that evolutionary theory has told us little about." Eugene Koonin writes in Trends in Genetics about the increasingly undeniable reasons to doubt core neo-Darwinian tenets, such as view that "natural selection is the main driving force of evolution," indicating that "the modern synthesis has crumbled, apparently, beyond repair"." EN&V

A Prayer for ALL Church Leaders on this Topic

Give me now wisdom and knowledge,

that I may go out and come in before this people:

2 Chronicles 1:10

Job's Rebuttle

Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him:

Job 13:15

"A man whose heart is stayed upon God is just the same in the hour of his most afflicting trials ...as when he was in prosperity, when the light and favor of God seemed to be upon him."
Thoughts From the Mount of Blessing p.32 E.G.W.
"When Job says, “Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him,” he answers both the slander of Satan and the charge of his three friends.  Satan’s accusation was that Job feared God only for his wealth and prosperity and good physical health, that God with these good things had put a hedge of

protection around Job, and that it was only because of this that Job feared God.  His claim was that, should Job lose all he had, God’s grace could never sustain and preserve him in his faith.  How ably Satan is answered in these words of Job, “Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him.”  Job is saying, “Yes, God has taken my wealth and health and family from me, yet I still trust Him.  And, should He go the next step and take away my life, I will still trust Him.”  In one sentence he silences the Devil. 
 This little word from Job also answers Job’s friends, who had insinuated that Job was a hypocrite, that all his trouble had come because he was hiding some great sin, which he needed to confess, and from which he needed to turn in repentance.  These words of Job are the best answer to their accusation, for no one but a sincere child of God would say this.  Would a hypocrite trust in God, when God slays him?" PRCA

Creation Moment 3/25/2015 - Scientism in the Age of Obama

See John West on

"Scientism in the Age of Obama"

David Klinghoffer March 24, 2015 11:12 AM | Permalink

"That was fast. Discovery Institute's John West spoke on "Scientism in the Age of Obama" just yesterday at the Heritage Foundation in Washington, DC -- and they've already got the speech up on YouTube.

There's a cute exchange at the beginning between Becky Norton Dunlop, Heritage's VP for External Relations, and Dr. West over the hundred-plus pages of footnotes at the end of his book Darwin Day In America: How Our Politics and Culture Have Been Dehumanized in the Name of Science, the newly expanded version. Dunlop observes that with this impressive scholarly documentation of sources, "Once you've finished the book, you're not finished."

John West reassures the audience that they are not under any ethical obligation to read all the footnotes, though of course they are welcome to do so. Enjoy!" EN&V

For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen,

being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead;

 so that they are without excuse:

Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God,

neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations,

and their foolish heart was darkened.

Romans 1:20,21