POINT AND COUNTERPOINT

 

Conflicting information can be presented if done within the context of helping clientele develop critical thinking skills. Jones (1992) noted that critical thinking is "an alternative to making decisions by blind acceptance.

The term Blind Acceptance is an attempt to reduce faith to merely an mental exercise without any substance. When it comes to the Almighty God critical thinking is an attempt to completely discredit the narrative found in scripture.

The poet placed GOD in a more favorable context;   Psalm 8:1-6)

A Psalm of David.

^"1 Lord, our Lord,  how majestic is your name in all the earth!

You have set your glory     in the heavens.
² Through the praise of children and infants
    you have established a stronghold against your enemies,
    to silence the foe and the avenger.

³ When I consider your heavens,     the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,     which you have set in place,
⁴ what is mankind that you are mindful of them,
    human beings that you care for them?

 

⁵ You have made them a little lower than the angels

and crowned them with glory and honor. ⁶ You made them rulers over the works of your hands;

you put everything under their feet."

 

The author seemed to be awe struck when he penned the words  

³ When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, 

Though David doesn't elaborate any farther for he is overcome by vastness and contemplation of the subject matter.

When he comes back to himself he states; "What is man?" 

Critical thinking is challenged to come up with a counterpoint to the idea that there could be a creator GOD. They like to use time as a component in their argument for the evolvement of what we see today. This argument starts with nothing. If there was something then it would have to be accounted for as to source which brings us back to an eternal creative force. Then there others who start with something without explaining what the source of the something is. 

There are two statements which people of faith hang their hat on so to speak. The first is "In the beginning GOD." What follows in scripture is too simple for the critical thinkers but in reality it is but a primer book of learning. The full essence of GOD and his works are not gone into and could not be understood even by those we have put up on a pedestal as our greatest thinkers. There is enough revealed to establish a basis for faith in the Almighty and that is all man needs to know.

A clue as to what transpired behind the scenes is given in; John 21:25  Jesus also did many other (Pre-creation) things. If they were all written down, I suppose the whole world could not contain the books that would be written.

Jesus the Son Of GOD was the creative force which spoke all of what we see and what we can't see also into existence.

John did his best to describe the immensity of what GOD has wrought when he spoke those words. 

The second is there will be a conclusion to what we see today. The Creator GOD will eliminate the negative and accentuate the positive and start over with those who will love the appearing of Jesus. 

Critical thinking is designed to allow people to think what they want and draw their own conclusions and live as they wish while GOD"S word's limits these actions to what he has said. Like it or not it's GOD"S way or the proverbial highway.

Satan has a counterpoint for almost every point GOD has made which caters to the lusts and whims of those who follow him. Whether it is marriage, peace, health, or worship,  he gives license to rail against everything GOD has proclaimed to be good.

When you buy into what Satan is selling you are rejecting what the creator GOD has declared to be the final word on all subjects. The time will come when the followers of the master of evil will appear before GOD and all of their arguments and justifications will vaporized before their eyes and they will stand before HIM in their garment of rebellion.

I for one would not impugn their right to chose the god of this world as their lord and master for GOD has granted them that right and who am I to try to rescind what GOD has granted.

 

I am limited to raising flags indicating they are on the wrong track. So this I will do in so far as I can endure the scorn that critical thinking requires to be heaped upon me.

WHY SOME PRAYERS AREN'T ANSWERED

 

(A message preached to myself)

I have heard some say (trying to be cute) “GOD answers every prayer. Sometimes it's yes, sometimes it's no and sometimes its wait.”

I have not been satisfied with that explanation for I think it is a self-serving copout. To me I take prayer seriously and am flatly disappointed when I don't receive the answer I'm looking for.

Prayer is a privilege with honor. A privilege extended to me by The Almighty that I must honor by not trying to abuse the privilege or be presumptive.

When you enter into prayer you enter the realm where warfare is waged.

It is important to know there is a difference between effectual fervent praying and just saying words and adding the tag line of "In Jesus' name."

I fear much of what people conclude is answered prayer is just happenstance and the way things played out. We as a people have bought into the idea that wishing is the same as believing.

Part of this reasoning is a product of scriptures that speak positively about answered prayer and the way we perceive them such as; John 16:23 Truly, truly, I say to you, Whatever you shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you. 

Philippians 4:6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  

Matthew 7:7-8 Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. "For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. 

These scriptures and others like them present a truth that is seemingly simplistic but behind the speaker in every case is a story untold within the verse. There is the doubt and unbelief struggle faced against prevailing faith.

Being conditioned by times of distress can be a formidable foe against answered prayer. We may say the words while all the time doubting our prayers will be answered. Being defeated in prayer takes some time to get over so it behooves us to choose our prayer battles carefully.

Again I refer back to just saying empty words and calling it prayer. The difference in talking and truly praying is this.

To really pray one must have the Jesus kind of relationship with the Father. A relationship where you can say most assuredly I know you always hear me and the fact of being heard is synonymous with the prayer being answered.

 

Let's look for a minute at Romans 8:4-6  So that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace.  

In these scriptures we see two mind sets. One allows us to live as the world lives without considering GOD'S rules for living at all. The other accepts GOD'S control over our lives. The one lives according to Satan's temptations, the other lives by the indwelling Spirit of GOD. 

When we come to the need of prayer the mind set comes into play and what some Christians find is they are trying to straddle the fence between the two mind sets of faith and doubt.  This becomes an admixture of walking after the flesh and being led by the Spirit.

The Apostles all warn against being double mindedness especially James the brother of Jesus.   James 1:5-8  If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do. 

While are at it we might as well look at;

James 1: 14-16  But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death (unanswered prayer).

Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren. When anyone presumes to do business with GOD they should have their ducks in a row so to speak otherwise they will be confused as to why GOD doesn't perform according to their interpretation of the scriptures.

For many the only prayer they should even consider praying is a prayer for forgiveness after repentance because of the way they are living.

 

Hearing the Right Voice

 

I used to go night hunting with some friends and we all had our hounds that went with us. It was a delight to ramble around in the dark most of the night and then go to work the next day with very little sleep. When one of the dogs would strike a trail the barking would begin and the interesting thing was we could tell which dog or dogs was hot on the trail by the sound of their bark. I could recognize my dogs by their bark even if there were other dogs barking along with them.  

Another amazing thing is, even with all the voices in the world once you become accustom to someone speaking over the phone you know who you are talking to. 

In the tenth chapter of St. John there is several verses that addresses the importance of recognizing whose voice  is speaking to you.  

John.10:2-3 "The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out." Through out this chapter Jesus emphasizes the relationship between him and the father and the shepherd and the sheep and the recognition of the voices.  

In the realm of the spirit it is essential to know who or what is speaking to you.

1 Corinthians 12:2 You know that when you were still pagans, you were led astray and swept along in worshiping speechless idols. Paul speaking of the Gentiles past reminds them of the voices they listened to in the past and the results from following them. 

"Notice that He said in verse 3, His sheep hear His voice. He didn’t say His sheep CAN hear His voice or SHOULD hear His voice. He made the emphatic statement that His sheep DO hear His voice. Most Christians would question the accuracy of that statement since their experiences don’t line up. But it’s not what Jesus said that is wrong; all true believers can and do hear the voice of God; they just don’t recognize what they are hearing as being God’s voice." Womack

Jesus says in John 10:26-27 But you do not believe because you are not of My sheep. “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. Here Jesus contrasts those who are not his sheep and those who are. 1 Corinthians 14:10 There are, it may be, so many kinds of voices in the world, and none of them is without signification.

 

There are voices from without and those from within. God can use all of them. It may be a word of wisdom from a friend, from a scripture, or more importantly from out of your spirit. The key is to recognize the source and then the validity of what you are hearing before letting it take on any importance in your life.

Isaiah received some good advice Isaiah 30:21 Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, "This is the way; walk in it." This is another way of being led by your spirit in harmony with the Holy Spirit. When GOD speaks it will be Spirit to spirit. There will be an inside knowing of what is right.

 

This is where a debate commences between the mind and the spirit. There are times where the mind must yield to the spirit and is the time when you must have a trust relationship with your inner man.

 

There is another dimension to this subject and that is hearing the wrong voice. It will be like trying to listen to a radio broadcast and having static overpower the voice on the radio to the point you can't hear anything but the static. If you are led by your spirit instead of outside forces there with be peace. The question arises how do I know it is the wrong voice?

 

The first step is it in any way contrary to the word of GOD, if so it is the wrong voice. Second if peace doesn't accompany the consideration of it then it is the wrong voice. Third will it harm others due to no fault of their own then it is the wrong voice. Fourth is can you live with it and be in harmony with GOD and the world around you if you can't then it is the wrong voice.

 

Knowing the voice of the Lord is both an inherent result of being born again and a learned response by walking in fellowship with Him daily.

 

IS TRUTH IRRELEVENT TODAY?

IS TRUTH IRRELEVAENT TODAY?

The simple answer is yes because we now live and are controlled by political correctness. A given set of facts must be filtered through P C and then be given the spin treatment before anything can be judged to be true or not.

Jesus had a different view on the truth; in fact he said that I am the embodiment of the truth.  “Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth and the life.”

Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him; “If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. 

In contrast to those who are Disciples of Christ we find those who worship at a different altar, the altar of the lie!

One could say the center of LIE-kingdom can be found in Washington D.C. where the worship of the lie is continuously performed twenty four hours a day.  There are those who infuse the world with lies whose origin is found in the heart of our leaders are all too obvious and constantly promoted by them.

The scripture speaks this way about them; “You people are from your father the devil, and you want to do what your father desires.  He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not uphold the truth, because there is no truth in him.  Whenever he lies, he speaks according to his own nature, because he is a liar and the father of lies. John 8:44.”

Adam and Eve are witnesses to this fact.

Even as the gospel truth sets you free; the lie places one in bondage and servitude whether it is a person or a nation the principle and the result is the same.

 

There are many who will participate in the coming election and the question at hand is who is the liar and who tells the unvarnished truth. This is the litmus test for those who are running. Those who are liars are automatically disqualified. It matters not what political affiliation they profess to belong to the lie will render them ineffective as a leader.



Choose ye well!

For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.  And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.  Hebrews 4:12-13