Christianity as a Worldview, not just religion.
Set us afire, Lord,
Stir us, we pray!
While the world perishes
We go our way,
Purposeless, passionless,
Day after day.
Set us afire, Lord,
Stir us we pray!
by Ralph Cushman
The Pocket Book Of Faith
I have heard is said that it is better to rule in Hell than to serve in Heaven. Some picture Satan being the King of Hell, there to punish all the humans in his torture chamber. While I believe Satan, the demons, and those humans who have chosen not to follow Jesus with all be there, I think we have the role of Satan in Hell wrong. It was created for Satan, but not as a gift, but as a punishment.
2 Peter 2:4 King James Version (KJV)
4 For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment;
Jude 6 King James Version (KJV)
6 And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day.
Are they torturing sinners all day and night in hell?
As mentioned above, hell is a prison for demons. It is also clear from scripture that demons like torturing humans. What kind of prison would it be, if they got to do what they enjoy for the rest of eternity?
Yes, the Devil and his demons are bad news, but the world’s portrayal of him is not the real one, but a caricature.
Another issue with demons ruling hell is justice. God is a God of justice, how just would it be to let Demons hand out the punishment for sins? I can’t imagine the very demons that thought up ways to torture people who were at least loved by their parents being fair in their punishment in Hell.
What does justice have to do with spending an eternity in Hell you ask. I will cover that in my next blog post.
2 Corinthians 11:14 (KJV)
14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
Don’t be fooled by the world’s version of the Devil and his demons. Read the entire Bible to find out who he is!
The Holy Bible: Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB) Audible Audiobook – Unabridged
Many people had Grandparents that they were able to visit at least a semi-regular basis. Your Grandparents then probably started trying to catch up on all the loving they wanted to give you while you were apart, which included expensive or too many toys, way too much sugar, letting you leave your spinach on your plate, by the time you came back home your parents, no matter how much they missed you, secretly dreaded bringing you back home. The reason for this is that your grandparents had spoiled you rotten! Many kids favorite phrase for weeks afterword was “But grandma and grandpa let me…!”. Your grandparents could afford to spoil you, your parents could not. If you didn’t eat properly most of the time, you would not grow up to be healthy, if you got all the toys you wanted all year, you would never learn the value of hard work and a dollar. or even appreciate Christmas or your birthday. If they said yes all of the time, you would not be able to handle it the first time your boss said “No”…
If by some circumstance you had to live with your grandparents permanently, instead of your parents they would have to start treating you like regular parents pretty quickly, or you would not succeed in life.
Many people seem to think that God is more like a Grandfather, rather than a father. Name your blessing and claim it, just like you did with Grandpa. However, he is our father. He gives us rules, because he loves us, and knows what would happen if he gave us everything we want. We would be spoiled rotten! We have all seen or heard of kids that grew up in the lap of luxury, with few rules or expectations put on them, who never heard the word no. Many of these kids stay kids well past their 18th birthday and are objects of ridicule to many. God knows that a huge portion of us would end up the same way if he gave us everything we want. He does not want us to be objects of ridicule, he wants us to be responsible adults who work for his kingdom. So he isn’t a Grandfather that lets us name it and claim it.
When we are with him in Heaven we will be mature enough to handle a grandfather in heaven 24/7 but not now.
My book recommendation from my Affiliate Amazon.com. If you buy the book via my link SmartChristian.net will receive a portion of the proceeds.
Where Is God When It Hurts? by Philip Yancey
A book that every believer should read. If you are not facing hard times now, you will at some point. If you have already read this book, it will make the tough times a bit easier to bear.
A Review of Heretic: One Scientist’s Journey from Darwin to Design, by Matti Leisola & Jonathan Witt
As a student beginning his scientific studies in 1966, Finnish biochemist Matti Leisola used to laugh at Christians who “placed God in the gaps of scientific knowledge,” as the criticism often went. As he saw it, those people lacked the patience and level-headedness that he possessed. After hearing Francis Schaeffer speak in 1972, though, he realized his concept of truth was naïve. He bought several of Schaeffer’s books and began to study philosophy, a subject he had previously considered of little value. At some point, he realized the god-of-the-gaps criticism cut both ways since a functional atheist could also insert a pat explanation into any knowledge gap.
Read more at : Where the Evidence Led Me by Terrell Clemmons – Salvo Magazine
Life demands that we please certain people at least some of the time; our boss, our spouse, police officers… But trying to please everyone all the time is like drinking from a colander, you might get a few sips, but mostly you get all wet! Jesus, however, notices every effort we make. Even if you don’t succeed in your efforts, if you are trying to please him, he will recognize that effort.
No, it isn’t selfish to say that you only want to please Jesus because if you are pleasing Jesus you will love your family, love the sick, the downtrodden, and even your enemies. Some of those people will not appreciate your efforts, but if you are doing those things because you love Jesus there will always be one that is pleased by you.
Kingdom Triangle
Our society is facing a terrible crisis. Many people feel as if there is no meaning in life, and we have lost our moral code. JP Moreland explores how we can recover the Christian mind, renovate Christian spirituality, and cultivate the power of the Holy Spirit in ourselves and in the world today.
If Christians were simply saying that they like Christianity, the way that some people like chocolate and some prefer vanilla, this objection would be spot on. It would be silly to argue about what your favorite flavor is. One person is free to get chocolate, and the other person is free to dig into the vanilla. That is not what we are claiming, however. Christianity isn’t built around choices it is built on a moment of history. If Jesus Christ is a real person who died, and then was resurrected Christianity is true. If as the Bible itself says that if Christ is still in the ground we should be the most miserable.
Our own faith claims that it is either based on a historical fact, or it is a lie.
It turns out that most if not all religions make exclusive claims, They believe that their leader is right, and as a consequence anyone who thinks differently is wrong, and many of those claims are contradictory, so they can’t all be true. Depending on who you talk to when you die you either cease to exist, go to Heaven or Hell, get to populate another planet with spirit babies as God, get reincarnated and there are probably other opinions about what happens after we die, but they can’t all be true. You can’t both cease to exist, and go to Heaven. Serious believers in every worldview would argue with you if you disagreed with major points in their doctrine. I have had this discussion with people who thought that all religions are true, only to have them go ballistic when I say that mine is true, and someone else’s isn’t. Their mind was made up that despite their claims that everyone’s religion is right, that mine was wrong.
Truth is exclusive. One plus one is two, it isn’t three, four or five. it is two, and anyone who disagrees is wrong, no matter how sincerely you may believe that one plus one is six.
