Wednesday, March 15, 2006
The Consequences of Sin
When Adam and Eve and the Serpent had done their evil deed, they showed consequences of sin even before God formally judged them. Adam and Eve, rather than determining right and wrong as they had hoped, realized just how wrong they were. They tried to cover themselves with leaves. They tried to hide from God. They were ashamed. They were confused. They were scared. They felt insecure and isolated. These are all results of sin. Before the Tower of Babel, they were already confused, and used messed up language. They knew they could not hide from God. They knew they could not hide their sin. They gave it a good old college try, because they were not thinking consistent with God's character.
This week, I won't quote a reformed theologian, but a friend and theologian Dr. Jim Steel. He says, quite eloquently, "All wrong thinking ultimately stems from wrong thinking about God. Wrong thinking results in wrong attitudes. Wrong attitudes result in wrong actions. Wrong actions result in wrong consequences." This is the fundamental consequence of sin.
In summary then, sin's consequences were and are confusion (sin clouds the mind), degradation (sin gets worse and worse), enmity (the state of being enemies) with God, and judgment by God.
Here we see God, coming to Adam to judge the sin that Adam had committed. More than a testimony to the sinfulness of man, this is a testimony of the justice of God. He gave a command, Adam did not follow it, and God had to judge that breaking of the law.
This can be both tremendously comforting or tremendously troubling. It is comforting because we know that amidst all the confusion of sin and the vast unknown, Somebody knows and Somebody cares. God does. It is comforting because God is consistent. He kept His part of the bargain. There is tremendous security in having a firm foundation for truth and justice. It is troubling because Adam, having sinned, had to undergo that justice. It is troubling because every natural born descendent of Adam stands in the same judgment. We stand in it because we are his offspring. Conceived by sinners, we are sinners still. We have confusion, degradation, and are enemies of God. This is the practical, troubling result of sin.
This week, I won't quote a reformed theologian, but a friend and theologian Dr. Jim Steel. He says, quite eloquently, "All wrong thinking ultimately stems from wrong thinking about God. Wrong thinking results in wrong attitudes. Wrong attitudes result in wrong actions. Wrong actions result in wrong consequences." This is the fundamental consequence of sin.
In summary then, sin's consequences were and are confusion (sin clouds the mind), degradation (sin gets worse and worse), enmity (the state of being enemies) with God, and judgment by God.
Here we see God, coming to Adam to judge the sin that Adam had committed. More than a testimony to the sinfulness of man, this is a testimony of the justice of God. He gave a command, Adam did not follow it, and God had to judge that breaking of the law.
This can be both tremendously comforting or tremendously troubling. It is comforting because we know that amidst all the confusion of sin and the vast unknown, Somebody knows and Somebody cares. God does. It is comforting because God is consistent. He kept His part of the bargain. There is tremendous security in having a firm foundation for truth and justice. It is troubling because Adam, having sinned, had to undergo that justice. It is troubling because every natural born descendent of Adam stands in the same judgment. We stand in it because we are his offspring. Conceived by sinners, we are sinners still. We have confusion, degradation, and are enemies of God. This is the practical, troubling result of sin.
Tuesday, March 14, 2006
Norm, What Did You Do?
I am appalled at the nature of intellectual attitudes and ideas. You pick the field. Science, philosophy, ethics, politics, economics, and more base their knowledge base in something I call the normative, or Norm. Norm takes a wide variety of experiences, makes an average or finds a middle point, and decides that the average is "the truth." The problem is that Norm can never explain things that happen outside his formula.
This is especially used poorly in the area of ethics. For example,Norm would say "Most people use their right hand to eat; therefore, you should use your right hand to eat." What relationship does Norm establish between "most people" and "should"? To use terms like "ought" and "should" is to assert that all left-handers are in a position of moral compromise. Maybe Norm framed the debate completely from a wrong system of thought. Need I quote Mom to refute Norm? "Just because everybody jumps off a bridge, doesn't mean you have to do it." More appropriately, adultery is still wrong no matter how many people do it or endorse it. Morality is inherently metaphysical (that means it is not biological or physiological). The debate needs to be framed according to its nature.
However, it is really dangerous beyond ethics. Science is filled with statistics like 55% or 82%. The fact that most water on earth is salt water does not mean that water is salt water. Many scientists, to their credit do not frame their results by saying that x% majority equals universal fact. The fact is that .0000000000000001% to the contrary means that one does not have a universal trait. I don't even want to get into the problem of changing scientific conditions from one generation to the next, both atmospheric and philosophically. Needless to say, Norm, you really do not explain anything to me.
Norm, what I really do not like is that you get so much press. Every day, another poll is promoted telling me what I should think because most people think this or that. Norm, truth is not democratic, it is not conventional. Every day some new scientist gets a lot of press because he says "most of the time." Most Christians are out there arguing for this or that with attention to Norm's theory, rather than stating (consistent with their worldview) that they believe something to be true because God made it so. I know, that is an offensive and hated message, but it makes at least as much sense as "most people think this, therefore this is true" or "most dogs weigh that, therefore all dogs should weigh that." In fact, Solomon wrote "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge" (Prov 1:7). Paul characterizes the thoughts of the ungodly as "futility of their own mind."
When you think about it Norm, you are running around the world getting people all worked up, motivating them to action (sometimes violent action), and keeping them in the dark. Rather than letting them reframe the debate from a more adequate worldview, we are stuck talking about "norms." Norm, you are responsible for stereotypes and ignorance at the same time. Norm, I would rather know what is right and true than what is normal.
This has been a tirade from the Intolerant, Bigoted, Right-wing, Christian, and Evil I Hate Norm Organization.
This is especially used poorly in the area of ethics. For example,Norm would say "Most people use their right hand to eat; therefore, you should use your right hand to eat." What relationship does Norm establish between "most people" and "should"? To use terms like "ought" and "should" is to assert that all left-handers are in a position of moral compromise. Maybe Norm framed the debate completely from a wrong system of thought. Need I quote Mom to refute Norm? "Just because everybody jumps off a bridge, doesn't mean you have to do it." More appropriately, adultery is still wrong no matter how many people do it or endorse it. Morality is inherently metaphysical (that means it is not biological or physiological). The debate needs to be framed according to its nature.
However, it is really dangerous beyond ethics. Science is filled with statistics like 55% or 82%. The fact that most water on earth is salt water does not mean that water is salt water. Many scientists, to their credit do not frame their results by saying that x% majority equals universal fact. The fact is that .0000000000000001% to the contrary means that one does not have a universal trait. I don't even want to get into the problem of changing scientific conditions from one generation to the next, both atmospheric and philosophically. Needless to say, Norm, you really do not explain anything to me.
Norm, what I really do not like is that you get so much press. Every day, another poll is promoted telling me what I should think because most people think this or that. Norm, truth is not democratic, it is not conventional. Every day some new scientist gets a lot of press because he says "most of the time." Most Christians are out there arguing for this or that with attention to Norm's theory, rather than stating (consistent with their worldview) that they believe something to be true because God made it so. I know, that is an offensive and hated message, but it makes at least as much sense as "most people think this, therefore this is true" or "most dogs weigh that, therefore all dogs should weigh that." In fact, Solomon wrote "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge" (Prov 1:7). Paul characterizes the thoughts of the ungodly as "futility of their own mind."
When you think about it Norm, you are running around the world getting people all worked up, motivating them to action (sometimes violent action), and keeping them in the dark. Rather than letting them reframe the debate from a more adequate worldview, we are stuck talking about "norms." Norm, you are responsible for stereotypes and ignorance at the same time. Norm, I would rather know what is right and true than what is normal.
This has been a tirade from the Intolerant, Bigoted, Right-wing, Christian, and Evil I Hate Norm Organization.
Monday, March 13, 2006
In Brief
While tornadoes ripped across the USA and protests and bombs happened around the world, I just went to class and read stories, boring stories. It is good to review, but we still have not really attempted to advance very much in my classes. I was expecting more, but that is yet to come. I continue to extend by studying outside of class. I am learning more and more too by reading news and listening to the radio, but I am really happy to have a good church with Christian friends who can teach me as well.
I am trying to upload some pictures of the leitão, but I do not know if it will work. If you remember, it is a local specialty that I was able to eat a couple weeks ago. If you cannot see them, there are little links where the text is indented that will give you a big version for your pleasure.
Please pray that all the folks here in Portugal will be able to continue to learn Portuguese.Please pray for the teams in Mozambique as they learn language, build relationships, and search for the proper vocabulary to present the Gospel.
