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But the people refused to listen to Samuel. “No!” they said. “We want a king over us. Then we will be like all the other nations, with a king to lead us and to go out before us and fight our battles.” – 1Samuel 8:19-20 Israel wasn’t content to be called out by God as a holy (separate, distinct…

“Infinite resignation is the last stage before faith, so anyone who has not made this movement does not have faith, for only in infinite resignation does an individual become conscious of his eternal validity…” – Soren Kierkegaard, Fear and Trembling I ran across this quote by Kierkegaard yesterday as I was preparing for our church’s Fall…

It is common these days to hear those advocating ‘social justice’ to frame wealthy individuals (e.g. Romney, insert your favorite CEO here) as being driven by greed. The solution for this seems to be to clamor for the government to take some of their wealth and redistribute it to those who have less (socialism). But…

“It’s a waste of time to argue with fundamentalists. And this film doesn’t do it. It’s designed for intelligent people who are willing to change their mind. And of course, one film is not going to change religious life in America, but it will give intelligent people who want to read the Bible in a modern way a chance. If we…

The Bible is difficult to defend in a brief exchange because it is a complex book whose image in the nonbelieving world has been shaped much more by hearsay than by firsthand inspection. Many believe that it is not inspired by God but originated with man. How motivated would you be to read a book…

“The theory that all the living forms in the world have arisen from a single source which itself came from an inorganic form.” – General Theory of Evolution (GTE), Gerald A. Kerkut After reading the GTE, it is easy to see why evolutionists try to popularize their theory with students and lay audiences by claiming that evolution…

“So how could you ask me to believe in God when there’s absolutely no evidence that I can see? I do believe…that there are scientific explanations for phenomena that we call mystical because we don’t know any better.” -Jodie Foster in an interview regarding her 1997 film Contact Jodie Foster probably doesn’t realize that she has exchanged one source…

Celebrate diversity! has become a popular mantra. True diversity makes the world interesting and challenges us to look at things from another point of view. True diversity allows evaluation of and disagreement about differing viewpoints. However, like its twin brother, “tolerance,” today’s “diversity” uses a group’s racial, ethnic, religious, or sexual identity to shield that…

A petard was a medieval bomb. To be “hoisted by one’s own petard” is to be blown up by one’s own bomb. People utter petards when they use words that destroy their own arguments (self-defeating statements). Here are a few  humorous examples: • “I plan to be more spontaneous.” • “All extremists should be shot.”…

From Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (2005): Palpatine: “Anakin, search your feelings.” Anakin: “The Jedi use their power for good.” Palpatine: “Good is a point of view, Anakin.” Anakin: “The Sith rely on their passion for their strength. They think inwards only about themselves.” Palpatine: “And the Jedi don’t?” Anakin: “If you’re not…

Moral relativism is a slippery worldview. It is blatantly self-defeating yet alarmingly popular because it sounds so tolerant and inclusive. Relativists want to liberate the world of moral absolutes they believe inhibit personal freedom and expression, yet they advance their own subjective views as absolute standards. It takes practice to recognize the convoluted language relativists…

The typical (and mistaken) definition of heaven in American pop culture is “the place all good people go after they die to have an eternally good time.” But the key element missing from flawed ideas of heaven is love. If love is the highest ethic, shouldn’t it be involved in reaching the highest place? Partying…