Yep. I missed last week. We had family in town, and I never had a long enough, quiet enough stretch of time by myself to record a video. Here is a new one, though! Here is the new Give Me 5:
Out of the Reformation of the 1500’s came what we call “The Five Solas or Solae”, but what do they mean?
The Five Solas
The Reformation started as a call to return to a simple faith not dogged down by man-made or superfluous rules and dogmas. (This is not the time for a debate about Catholic versus Protestant and denominational separation.)
It does lead to our first sola: Sola Scriptura – Scripture alone. Basically, this means that all of our traditions and understanding about God, Jesus, and humanity should be based on what the Bible says. There is value in traditions, the various councils, and books/teachings, but they must conform with what Scripture – as a whole – teaches.
This includes the matter of salvation, covered in the next solar: Sola Gratia, Sola Fide, Solus Christus, Soli Deo Gloria – By grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, to the glory of God alone.
This was summarized by Paul in Ephesians chapter two, when he said,
But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
(vv. 4-9, ESV)
We still need to confess our sins – primarily to God, but also to each other (James 5:16).
We still do works – but as an act of obedience and love for the One who saves us (2 Corinthians 5:14-15).
But it is only by grace through faith in the work Christ to the the glory of the Father as revealed in Scripture that we are saved.
Now, this is only a brief overview. We can continue to discuss this in the comments or through e-mail at Together@asimplemanofgod.com, or even on our Facebook page, a simple man of God. I am sure more videos and articles will be made discussing these.
There are a few items that prove the historicity and reliability of the Bible.
To begin with, in the last 20 years alone, several archaeological discoveries have been made confirming the existence of Kings David and Solomon, as well as much of ancient Israel from Biblical times, including NT times.
One of the greatest discoveries was the Dead Sea Scrolls, collections of biblical manuscripts dating from before the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70 and even before the time of Christ. These scrolls contained much of the Hebrew Bible, confirming that existed it before Jesus’ time. This is important, because it means the prophecies of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection existed prior.
What about the New Testament?
First, if we want to discuss numbers of manuscripts, as a whole there are about 24,000 of the New Testament, and the four Gospels alone have nearly 6,000 copies from early on, possibly as early as late first century or early second century. This is within 100 years of Jesus’ and the Apostles’ lives. Even further, we know the majority of the gospels were written before 70 due to Paul – who was killed by 64 – quoted Luke 10:7 in 1 Timothy 5:18. By contrast, the next closest ancient document is Homer’s “The Iliad” with 643 manuscripts from over 500 years after Homer lived.
This should be enough to convince anyone, but just in case, the ultimate proof is that Jesus corroborated much of the OT and said His testimony is true. His proof was that He predicted His own death and resurrection (See Luke 20-22), adding validity to His claims by being crucified and rising again.
Therefore, as Paul said in 1 Corinthians 15, “For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied. But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.” (vv. 16-20)
Welcome back, my little chickadees! Or something… And as a reminder, this is late due to technical issues. Hopefully later this week another one is coming!
This is the first of a new series of videos I will be making called Give Me 5. The premise is that in about five minutes (hopefully less, and not necessarily including the intro and a few other extras – like my little outtakes I sometimes put in) an apologetics approach (apologetics, again, coming from 1 Peter 3:15, in which we are told to always be ready to give a reasoned defense, Greek apologia, for our faith) will be used to answer some biblical/theological questions/challenges.
Specifically, I am dealing with the question of what it means that Christians are not under the Law while also looking at the challenge from atheists and the irreligious that the Law, and more specifically the Ten Commandments, are useless and/or stupid.
Not Under the Law?
It is first helpful to realize that we are freed from the ceremonial or Levitical law. We no longer need to perform certain regulations and sacrifices to be made clean before God. He did that for us by sacrificing Christ on the cross.
Jesus summarized the Moral Law by quoting the two greatest Commandments:
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.
Deuteronomy 6:5, ESV
you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord.
Leviticus 19:18, ESV
Loving God can summarize the first three and a half Commandments, while loving people can summarize the second six and a half.
Why?
Non-controversial Commandments
When God gave Moses the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20, He tells us in verse two that “I am the Lord your God,” which tells is that all morality is based on who God is. Apart from God, there is no valid reason for morals. Obviously, atheists and the irreligious disagree with this.
God begins with the First Commandment (v. 3) that we should have no other gods. He created everything ever, so no one could be as powerful as He is. There simply are no other gods. Period. (This rules out other religions.) There is a God.
This leads to the Second Commandment (v. 4) that we are not to make idols. This is anything we create or is a part of God’s Creation that we give worship to. And before anyone argues that this does not happen: many people, such as astrophysicist Niel DeGrasse Tyson, argue that all of the elements were created in stars which blew up, spreading that stuff all over, so that we are mad up of this star stuff, therefore we should literally thank the stars that we are alive.
That is idolatry.
Which relates to Commandment Three (v. 7), that we do not use the Lord’s name in vain. This does mean not saying “G.D.” or “omg” and stuff like that, but more importantly it is claiming to be a follower of God (i.e. Christian) and do the very things Je says not to do (i.e. cuss people out, sleep around, lie, mistreat others, etc.)
Now it shifts to the halfsies Commandment, number four (v. 8): Observe the Sabbath. Atheists and the irreligious disregard this (and the first three Commandments) because it is all about the God they do not believe in, because it says that He spent six days creating and then rested, so we should, too.
However, they should not object to the idea of taking a day off every week! It is about rest! (Again, why this is not exactly reiterated in the New Testament is for another time, but essentially we have rest for our souls now with the hope of eternal Sabbath after Christ’s return.)
The other six Commandments should be what we all agree on(at least to some extent.
The For-Some-Reason-Controversial Commandments
Fifth: Honor your parents (v. 12)
Sixth: Do not murder (v. 13)
Seventh: Do not commit adultery (v. 14)
Eighth: Do not steal (v. 15)
Ninth: Do not lie (v. 16)
Tenth: Do not covet (v. 17)
What is there to disagree with?
God says to show respect to people (especially parents, which has become weird in the past few decades), do not murder, take a spouse from or stuff from, lie to or about, or desire to have the possessions and loved ones of other people.
Sure, our society now says that parents are largely irrelevant and that it is okay to want others’ stuff, including spouses. Even murder is seen as okay (i.e. abortion and assisted suicide).
But we do all agree that resting, showing respect to others, and not taking other people’s things, loved ones, or life are all good.
We also need to remember that God is the reason these are good, that we are even here to experience it all, and deserves all honor and worship.
If you want to debate, challenge, or question any of this, comment below or on the video, or even send an e-mail over to Together@asimplemanofgod.com.
For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
Romans 1:16, ESV
Do not be intimidated with sharing the gospel or that you believe.
You should be ready to explain why you believe, but it is okay (as a young Christian, at least) to admit you are not entirely sure of all of the reasons.
Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1, ESV
We do not have a blind faith. We have the historical, prophetic, and biblical evidence, with the ultimate proof of our faith being the real and physical death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
If you have followed my blog long, searched through my all of my posts, and/or know me personally, you know I do not subscribe to the modern teaching of evolution.
Do I need to mention spoilers? I mean, if you have read Genesis chapter 1, you know how it goes. If you have ever looked into Answers in Genesis, you probably know what they think about Creation. And AiG supplied many of their scientists and speakers for this film.
The Film
Genesis: Paradise Lost in 3-Dwas created largely on a computer to show an idea of what the creation of everything looked like based on the Bible – specifically Genesis 1. The stylized rendition was punctuated with “live commentary” of scientists and speakers about what the Bible and science have to say about the origins of everything and, especially, us – humans. Much of this cast consisted of people who work for AiG, but it included other scientists, professors, evangelists, and pastors. While focused on Genesis chapter one, other passages were included, and a lot of science was included throughout.
And, yes, dinosaurs make appearances!
My thoughts
Overall, I really enjoyed the film. The imagery was awe inspiring, and the science was clearly explained mixed in with good theology.
I do not completely agree with everything that AiG teaches (I differ slightlyon the age of the Earth and therefore the historical timeline of humanity, but only slightly), but by and large the science and logic seems reasonable from them and those associated with this film.
They make fairly solid arguments against evolutionary theory, with some humor and compassion thrown in, and it is presented in a compelling way.
My biggest complaint against the film is with the 3-D. There are times that effect is not as accurately applied, causing some blurriness and/or ghosting (double-imaging). On a smaller screen, it might not be as noticeable, but when 30 feet tall it is jarring.
However, when you consider that this was not a James Cameron or major Disney production (the filmmaker, Ralph Strean, did work for Disney at one time, though) with a relatively small, crowdsourced budget, and only a few dozen people working on it, it is amazing what they did accomplish.
There are many elements of this film that the 3-D makes amazingly beautiful and engaging. At one point, I even felt the impulse to attempt to wipe water off of my glasses! And when you consider that
Therefore, if you easily suffer from motion sickness or get headaches from 3-D movies, avoid the 3-D showing.
That being said, I would suggest checking this movie out, if you get the chance.
Even if you completely disagree with their premise, the imagery alone makes it worth it.
This author feels that pro-lifers (or, as he calls them, anti-abortion) reveal they are not really pro-life, or perhaps they are inconsistent in their beliefs. And, after years of asking this question, not a single pro-lifer has truthfully and adequately answered this question.
My first thought is, “Who has he been asking?” Because I find this relatively easy to answer. And I know I am far from alone.
However, here is his question:
For some unimportant reason, you are in a fertility clinic, when the building catches fire. As you are about to run out, you hear screaming.
You run back in and find the room where the screaming is emanating. When you open the door you see a 5-year-old child on one side, fire in the middle, and a container holding 1000 viable embryos. (Just assume the container is able to preserve the embryos indefinitely.) You know you only can save one.
Which do you choose?
His argument is that if you choose the child, you prove you are not really pro-life, because you allow all of those embryos – potential humans – to die. If you choose the embryos, you are a monster for letting a child burn.
My initial response is this: Thanks for admitting those embryos are alive!
In connection with this, he and others assert that scientists and politicians can not agree when life begins.
However, all embryologists and many biologists agree that life begins at conception.
There is DNA for a distinct human life.
Check any biology textbook: a cell is a living thing, so they are alive.
The debate then becomes, “But does it have a soul?”
I would argue, yes! Based on:
Psalm 139:13-16 — We were formed in the womb and are fearfully and wonderfully made;
Jeremiah 1:5 — This prophet was chosen before he was even conceived, demonstrating his soul already existed at fertilization. This can be applied to all humans.
As to my answer:
I would save the 5-year-old child.
Does this prove I am not pro-life?
Not at all. In fact, I mourn the loss of those embryos, and I trust God to take care of those lost embryos in His way. But as Christians we also are called to ease suffering.
This child was screaming. Further, being a fertility clinic, this child probably has parents who were there, so I am also helping those parents not to lose a child they already have.
If we change the scenario, maybe my response would be different.
What if I was on a space station above earth or on ship to a new human colony, and the future of the human race depended on those 1000 embryos. I would probably save the embryos.
But this shows the major issue with this question: It is avoiding the point, and it does not show whether a person is truly pro-life.
It is one of those impossible situations in which any choice is not ideal.
If I were on a bus about to go over the edge of a bridge, I would save the first person closest to me. I would not look over the other 36 people on the bus and try to decide who to choose, I would just grab who was closest. I am not responsible for those others, especially if I only have time to save one. No one would question my convictions (except perhaps loved ones of the others on the bus, but most would understand).
Likewise, being in such a situation as this question suggests does not demonstrate that someone is not truly pro-life. It is the complex question fallacy, begging the question. It is basically asking, “Why do you want to let innocents die?” without properly considering other options that are clearly available.
Recently, I have heard several people – including Richard Dawkins, AronRa (an atheist apologist?), Neil DeGrasse Tyson, Bill Nye the Science Guy – all call faith in general, with Christians in particular, foolish.
These people claim that Christians believe with a blind faith, that they do not believe in the Bible or God for any good reason, but just because that is what they were told to believe.
Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
So, what does this mean?
Basically, faith is trusting and believing something based on evidence. Something that is not seen is believed because there are things we can see and test that support it.
A popular example is a chair.
The chair looks sturdy. I have seen other chairs hold people up. Therefore, I have faith this chair will hold me up.
How do I know your faith is true?
Live it out. Show me. Sit on the chair. Show your faith by sitting.
Another example is a compass.
We believe a compass points north, because we have seen so many compasses point north.
(Though, it is possible a compass can be manipulated by magnets …)
“Ah,” you may say, “But that is science!”
Conviction of things unseen …
What evidence do we see of not seeing things in science?
A lot!
What about black holes?
We have never seen black holes, because they literally eat light. So, how do we know they exist? We have evidence they are there.
An interesting example from the past few years is the Higgs boson.
The Higgs boson is, essentially, what gives matter mass (the ability to have weight and substance). It was theorized using mathematics. The so-called “God particle” (actually, the “Oh my God particle”, from a note scribbled by a physicist) was officially discovered by slamming atoms together in the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) and using the resulting mathematical probabilities to “see” this “thing”.
In other words, it was seen through the symbols of mathematics.
It was not actually seen with eyes. Rather, it was predicted (hoped for) and then proved through mathematics. We used these symbols to express the evidence of what we cannot see to prove (have conviction) that it is there.
In the math.
Scientists use written symbols to find evidence of things unseen.
Sound familiar?
You could say I have faith that people have faith, even when they are “faithless.” Because I see the evidence.
They say “These words made out of symbols and numbers tell me this should be here, and I am going to believe it because all of the other math checks out, too.”
So, why do we as Christians believe the Bible?
Because we have these words that tell us about Jesus.
Some of you may remember the Four Core Facts I covered a few years ago. What does this have to do with anything?
If you are willing to objectively look at this evidence, you can see the evidence for the truth of God and His Son, Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ.
That evidence includes that Jesus quoted the Old Testament, which we know existed before He was born, He claimed it was about Him, and then He claimed He would die and raise again.
And He did it! Thus validating what He said.
In fact, this is the ultimate evidence. Paul himself (you know, one of the most successful evangelists for the Church, having planted so many throughout the Roman Empire) said this is all that needed to be preached! (1 Corinthians 1:22-23, 2:1-2)
It could be argued that the Church itself is the biggest evidence.
Jesus proved it Himself.
So we do not believe it “Just because,” but because Jesus said He would die and come back and did.
One of many points of evidence of this kind of faith is Abraham.
God called Abraham to sacrifice his son. Some call this barbaric, but it really is not.
Abraham and his wife were way too old to have children, but God said “You will have a son.”
When God then called him to sacrifice this son, I can guarantee you that he thought something like, “Well, you said I would have a son through whom you would multiply my descendants, and here he is. You could easily bring him back to life, so though I may not like it, I will obey.”
God did not raise Isaac back to life (He did not need to), but He did do it with His own Son!
So there is faith: “I have seen the evidence. I may not see God. I may have seen Jesus Himself. I may not be able to see everything the Apostles and other disciples saw, but I see the written evidence.
People just do not want to accept the evidence.
So, whose fool are you?
Do have the foolish faith of a Christain or the foolish faith of those who say there is no God? (1 Corinthians 1-2)
I still have faith in science, even with a lot of people who do not believe the Bible, because the math and the science checks out and proves the validity.
I know just a week ago I said this site would be updated more often, but there was a quick day trip, errands to run, minor illnesses at home, and the need to respond to people about the Mandalay Bay Las Vegas shooter.
Which leads to today’s post finally coming your way.
I have had to respond to several people this week about all of the why’s, how come’s, and Am-I-allowed-to-be-angry’s. This video and post are one of those responses.
The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it? Jeremiah 17:9, ESV
We, as humans, are sick and deceitful. We are messed up, apart from God.
Clay Jones, an apologist and Associate Professor of Apologetics at Biola University, asks and answers the question “Is it inhuman that people do these things? Obviously not, since humans did them.”
Well, we are so messed up that we cannot understand what and why people do things. However, God answers his own rhetorical question in the next verse.
“I the Lord search the heart and test the mind, to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds.” Jeremiah 17:10, ESV
God, and God alone, understands our hearts.
Amazingly, it is in this knowledge that He has done something about it. As Job told us long before Jesus walked the Earth,
We are horribly messed up, but Jesus, our Redeemer, lives!
Jesus came and lived an in-messed up life, then he was horribly messed up for us by being crucified so that our sins could be forgiven and our sick hearts could be cured. He now lives in resurrection power.
That is our response.
The world is messed up, and it is our fault, but God can change our hearts to change our world.
It is sad and horrible what happened in Las Vegas and happens around our world, but our Redeemer lives!
The focus will always be helping people see how simple theology can be:
What does the Bible mean?
How can we apply the Bible and theology to our lives?
Apologetics – how can we defend the faith?
What theology is in our music?
It may be a bit shaky at first – all of the changes, getting content posted consistently – but here is to a new start … on the weekend of the Day of Atonement! (A post coming just a little later on this!)
Do we truly love the Lord our God with all our hearts, souls, minds, and strengths? Maybe I can help with the mind part, at least! This is Daniel M. Klem, apparent poet, reluctant yet passionate Disciple (Peter?), and foolish man attempting to understand theology!
a simple man of God 