A Simple Answer for the Complex Universe

An oldie from my days writing for the Christian Apologetics Alliance. 

A recent article piqued my interest which has brought about much discussion between a whole host of people and me. This article, Can Science Disprove the Existence God? (sorry, the typo was in the title) by Natalie Wolchover, is essentially an interview of a theoretical physicist noting how advances in science are eliminating the evidence for design in our universe. However, I posit the question, “Do these advances really show random chance and tear away belief in God?”

God's Leadership in the Old Testament: A Loving Manager

Part 1: The Many Warnings of Zedekiah

Part 2: Humanity's Disobedience

What many individuals do not understand is that God was practicing the art of progressive discipline in management thousands of years before text books ever described the process. The act of progressive discipline as outlined by Heathfield (2014) is as follows: counseling or oral warning, verbal warning in employee’s file, suspension, and termination. Fallon and McConnell (2014) further add that documentation is key throughout the whole process to ensure a successful and legal process of discipline.

God's Leadership in the Old Testament: Humanity's Disobedience

Check out Part 1: The Many Warnings of Zedekiah

I like to call the books of Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel, the books of warning because they are filled with warnings against the kings and the people of Judah and Israel of what was about to befall them and even through all of this, God supplied a way to escape the fate he was foretelling through His prophets.

Therefore is the anger of the LORD kindled against his people, and he hath stretched forth his hand against them, and hath smitten them: and the hills did tremble, and their carcases were torn in the midst of the streets. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still. –Isaiah 5:25

God's Leadership in the Old Testament: The Many Warnings of Zedekiah

Richard Dawkins once wrote in his The God Delusion (2006), “The God of the Old Testament is arguably the most unpleasant character in all fiction: jealous and proud of it…” I apologize for alluding to this man however unpleasant his views are, but he seems to be the self-appointed poster boy for all arguments against Christianity in this modern era. In 100 hundreds, if Christ has not returned yet, another man will be appointed by the adversary to do exactly the same as Dawkins does today and one constant will still remain, the Word of God.

Who Really are the Intolerant Ones?

“Many times, I have found atheists to be more tolerant than Christians.” Does this sentiment sound familiar? Chances are it does due to the fact that almost every Christian has said the statement at one time or another. I know exactly why we do too. It can be said to show solidarity with the unbeliever telling them we know we have some problems in the Church, it can come after a talk about intolerance (i.e. the Westboro Baptist Church, abortion clinic bomber) where we don’t know how else to defend our viewpoint, or we may say it because we know an atheist or agnostic who doesn’t seem so bad and we don’t want to rile him or her up. No matter the reason we state that atheists are more tolerant, it can be one of the most dangerous and damaging statements we can ever make.

Using the Title of God in the Trivialization of Humanity

Humans have a tendency to call anything greater then themselves god or a god. Just about every force of nature has gotten the god treatment: the sun, moon, Earth, wind, etc. If it was mysterious, powerful, and huge to the ancients, it was a god or had a god attached to it. In the modern world, humanity still has this tendency and we see it a lot in in fiction. For example, Superman and other superheroes are routinely called gods in comic books and, cases in point, the inspiration for this article, Godzilla. In the King of the Monster’s new self-titled movie, an explanation of his name suggests that he is something of a god to us because of Godzilla’s immense power. Even humans themselves are not immune to being called gods, as we tend to pin the title on very talented individuals (i.e. metal god, guitar god).

While the term god might have been bandied about quite a bit in the previous paragraph, the point is that the word is very commonly used in trivial matters which results in a big problem. Additionally, I believe the devil has intentionally encouraged the use of the term throughout human history to destroy its overall meaning. The Word of God tells us there are two gods in this universe. “Two? I thought there was only one?” is something you are probably asking. Well, let’s take a look in the Bible, shall we?

First the Word proclaims the name of Yahweh, Jehovah, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ:

One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. –Ephesians 4:6

Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; -2 Corinthians 1:3

Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: Deuteronomy 6:4

The second god is our horrible, evil, and despicable adversary, satan:

 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. -2 Corinthians 4:4

Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: -Ephesians 2:2

The important thing to note is that both God almighty and, shall I say it, the devil are more powerful than anything man routinely identifies as a god or goddess. This is exactly why satan likes to beguile humanity and perpetuate the use the word because its utilization causes three things: it limits God, understates the devil’s power, and trivializes humanity. That last point might surprise you because you might be thinking that the physical person is helpless in the spiritual battle of good against evil, but we will cover that point in just a bit.

The common use of god limits the most high, almighty God in our society because he is associated with any person, thing, or character which happens to be seen as more than human. However, He is much more powerful than we can ever imagine.

Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding. –Isaiah 40:21

O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out! –Romans 11:33

God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good? –Numbers  23:19

Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men. -1 Corinthians 1:25

I could go on forever in His Word, but I think you have caught a glimpse of God’s matchless power. Superman or the moon does not hold a candle to the awesome power, wisdom, and majesty God, the Creator of the heavens and the Earth, has displayed and continues to show even as we speak. In fact, He warns that humans would worship His creation rather than His almighty hand.

And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen. –Romans 1:23-25

Does this not sound like antiquity, who attached a god to any force of nature and worshipped it?

The second god is not even close to the power of the First most High, however he merits mentioning because of his power over the natural man. A physical human not born again of the incorruptible seed under God cannot hold a candle to the power and deceit with which the tempter tempts.

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: -1Peter 5:8

And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. –Revelation 12:9

How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! They that see thee shall narrowly look upon thee, and consider thee, saying, Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms; That made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof; that opened not the house of his prisoners? –Isaiah 14:12,16-17

The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: -John 10:10

As we see, the devil is evil and a great deceiver, he has destroyed kingdoms and men alike through his beguilements and temptations. Humanity has no equal with the devil; however, new life given to us through God’s Son Jesus Christ, gives us the upper hand as it says in 1 John 4:4, “Greater is He [Christ in you, the Hope of glory], than he [the devil] that is in the world.”

The third point of the trivialization of humanity might seem weird but it is very prescient. The devil has done a good job of hiding the power even the basic person has to control his way on the Earth. Have you ever wondered about something that you have greatly feared which has befallen you just as you “knew it would” or have you ever received something that you concentrated on and just “knew you would get?” Well, each episode is no coincidence and is actually the subject of The Secret. In The Secret, secular philosophers and physicists ponder the reality of “what you believe you will receive.” They call this principle the Law of Averages.

Though to the Christian, this law of averages should not be a secret at all because Jesus Christ and Paul described this concept many times in what is known throughout Christianity as the Law of Believing.

Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth. –Mark 9:23

Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done. And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.  –Matthew 21:21-22

And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith [believing]? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm. –Matthew 8:26

 Now faith [believing] is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. –Hebrews 11:1

Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. –Philippians 4:6

What is the point Philippians 4 is trying to make about asking God with thanksgiving? It is to show us we are thanking Him that we have already received what we are asking for demonstrating belief for our desires to come to pass. What is amazing is that these preceding verses point out that believing is one of the main tenets of human existence yet almost nobody, Christian or otherwise, knows much about it. Believing encompasses everything we do, great fear can manifest in horrible things happening in our lives while positive believing can give us all the desires of our hearts.

Another thing to realize is that the law of believing applies not only to the Christian but to all of humanity. Jesus Christ was not talking to Christians (He couldn’t because He hadn’t died and rose again yet) when He was talking about believing. Hebrews 11 contains a whole collection of believers before Christ who were not Christians. However, our salvation gives us access to a whole reality of faith that the natural man is not privy to.

He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover. –Mark 16:16-18

Calling men and those things slightly better than human god helps to destroy the whole notion that humanity has a stake in this spiritual battle through believing.

America the Collectivist.

I have been reading Ian Toll’s book Pacific Crucible about the war in the Pacific from 1941-1942 and I came across an interesting fact. The Allied forces did not seem to think that Japan could train excellent pilots because of the lack of individualism exhibited within Japanese culture at the time. The Allies were very wrong of course, but this question of individualism had me thinking about life today in the United States. Can we still claim individualism as a strong trait in the country today? I would answer with an astounding, “No.” You might be thinking, “Whatever could you mean? School taught me that everyone is unique and special.” Yeah, they told me that when I was in elementary school too; however, I have come to same profound conclusion stated within The Incredibles, “When everyone’s special, no one will be.” This is a very true statement and one that amply puts the argument of individualism vs. collectivism square in the minds of the young and old alike (because, let’s face it, The Incredibles was a great movie enjoyed by all ages).

Still not convinced? Let’s look at how the education system in this country has been acting as of late toward those individuals who dare think differently or question the academic status quo or consensus. The first example is of a Columbia State Community College general psychology professor who forced her students to wear “Rainbow Coalition” pins and noted that anyone who opposed homosexuality is a bigot. Another example is the secret removal of a pro-life display by the University of Alabama. Yet another instance involves the bullying of a 15 year old high school student by teachers because of his conservative beliefs. The last incident involves a North Carolina teacher who said it was against the law to criticize president Obama in answer to opposition of her comments about the president. I could on and on with story after story, but you get the point. Coupled with the report by the American Council of Trustees and Alumni (ACTA) that the top 25 liberal arts colleges are guilty of restricting free speech, do any of these cases sound like they are meant to encourage free and individual thought? No, it sounds more like there is encouragement of support for only one world view and it definitely is not a view of freedom and liberty.

What does every one of these examples of educator intimidation have in common? The professors and teachers are all leftists. When looking up the definition for leftist on Wikipedia (I wouldn’t recommend it), I found the most ridiculous definition as one who supports social equality with the Right Wing supporting social inequality. Isn’t Wikipedia’s bias just wonderful?  Merriam-Webster dictionary defines the left wing as “the part of a political group that consists of people who support liberal or socialist ideas and policies.” Thus, a leftist is one who holds to this world view.

While the leftist might support social and economic equality, equality does not always correlate with the terms liberty or fairness. Government subsidies, themselves originated from left-leaning social programs, are even noted by Revkin (2010) in the New York Times as lacking fairness for certain energy firms while promoting others. Additionally, the Soviet Union sacrificed freedom and standard of living for its own version of “equality.” McClelland (2014) states that Communism under the Soviets failed to motivate the workers to produce enough goods to promote a high standard of living.       

It’s quite convenient that these leftist educators are in league with socialism. Vladimir Lenin, leader of the Bolshevik Revolution, stated, “Give me four years to teach the children and the seed I have sown will never be uprooted.” This same sentiment is being bandied about today as the leftists indoctrinate our children into collectivist drones to serve the statist agenda. The idea is to get them young so you’ll have them for life.

According to Biddle (2012), “Collectivism is the idea that the individual’s life belongs not to him but to the group or society of which he is merely a part, that he has no rights, and that he must sacrifice his values and goals for the group’s ‘greater good’” (para. 3). This is the opposite of individualism which promotes the idea that the life of the individual person belongs to himself or herself. In an individualistic society, a person is free to choose his or her own path regardless of the state’s desires.

Why mention collectivism in a discussion about socialist education? I mention it due to the fact that collectivism is the wood that fuels the fire of the social agenda. Without all of us being on the same page, socialism would crumble without the financial support of the agreeable and eager sheep. A socialist society needs the producers to provide money for the programs that assist the “disenfranchised.” This is the reason leftists like to trivialize the right wing competition by making their views seem evil and uncaring. “The Republican health plan is for old people to die.” “The Right hates the poor. “ “Christians just want to stone gays.” You don’t want old people to die, hate the poor, or want to stone homosexuals; so, the left seems like the way to go. However, none of those arguments are based in reality are really meant to shame you into buying into their propaganda.

This absolutist avenue of creating a guilty collective consciousness has worked so well for the Left that they have been organized against us with almost one central voice. One of the greatest blessings of the Right, free thought, can also prove to be its curse if we let it. All people situated within this spectrum tend to exhibit many different opinions which can divide as much as unite. We need to unite now more than ever because as Benjamin Franklin said, “We must hang together, gentlemen...else, we shall most assuredly hang separately." 

Biddle, C. (2012). Individualism vs. collectivism: our future, our choice. The Objective Standard, 7(1). Retrieved from http://www.theobjectivestandard.com/issues/2012-spring/individualism-collectivism.asp.

McClelland, E. (2014).  Communism saved the American worker. Salon. Retrieved from http://www.salon.com/2014/04/01/communism_saved_the_american_worker_how_soviet_competition_raised_our_living_standards/.

Revkin, A.C. (2010, August 2). All’s not fair when it comes to energy subsidies. New York Times. Retrieved from http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/08/02/alls-not-fair-when-it-comes-to-energy-subsidies/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=0.

 

 

        

My Top 10 Video Games of All Time: #9.

At the end of my third article discussing why gaming is leaving me behind, I promised to make a list of my top 10 games to show that I am not bitter toward gaming itself. I full-heartedly believe video games can be an art form regardless of what critics say and my list contains a number of gaming’s greatest masterpieces. A thing to remember about this list is that it is a record of my personal favorites and not a list of the objectively greatest games of all time. If you disagree then that’s fine with me, we all have different tastes.  So, I invite you to sit back, relax, put on your Power Glove and Mind Link (little known Atari reference for the uninitiated), and get ready for a discussion of some of my favorite video games of all time…

Just for your information, all of these articles may contain spoilers…

9. Super Smash Bros. Brawl

In Geek circles, there is always that ridicule for picking anything new as a favorite; but, in this case, Brawl is most assuredly the best out of the trilogy. The first Super Smash Bros. was an amazing and ground breaking game on the Nintendo 64 and brought many a gamer’s dreams to life by pitting everybody’s favorite Nintendo characters against each other in a fighting game. No longer were arguments about who would win in a fight between Link and Mario fought with words and dissipated by the changing of the subject, now these characters were placed in a virtual arena to determine the winner. Every gamer I knew played this game until their thumbs ached and then they played it some more.

Then, along came Melee which was an improvement on the original in every way. More characters, arenas, mini-games, and challenges were added to fuel gaming addiction everywhere. It really was a perfect game; however, it was not perfect enough and this idea was perpetuated by the release of Brawl on the Nintendo Wii. This game did what the other games were incapable of doing: allowing for the battle between Mario and Sonic.

Modern day gamers who grew up in the era of Playstation and Xbox do not understand the epic nature of such a battle. Sonic and Mario were, for the longest time, bitter enemies on two competing consoles never able to meet. The seven year old in me went berserk with the prospect. In addition to fulfilling one of my gaming desires, Brawl really is a great game with a lot of replay value. The traditional gameplay and modes are there in addition to the extremely entertaining Subspace Emissary. Super Smash Bros. Brawl might be one of the newest games on the list but it definitely deserves be counted among the best.     

Check out #10    

A Review of "God's Not Dead"

This last week I saw a movie that I had not heard much about prior. The movie was God’s Not Dead and it was definitely a pleasant surprise. It turned out to be a film that was right up my anti-atheist ally and it was a shame that I couldn’t have written a couple posts about it leading up to the premiere. The first thing I noticed was the quality of the production. Long gone are the days of the Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) style productions of The Time Changer and The Omega Code (however, both movies I thoroughly enjoyed) in favor of the movie theater quality we see from Sherwood Pictures and the company in question: Pure Flix Entertainment.

Something else I took away from the movie is the caliber of acting exhibited by most of the main characters. Kevin Sorbo acts against type here as the antagonistic atheist professor, Professor Radisson, and you can tell he enjoys it thoroughly. He really nails the pomposity, condescension, and vitriol these types of men are known for. Any Christian college student can tell you about that one professor who was just like Kevin Sorbo in the movie. Shane Harper does a good job as Josh Wheaton, the somewhat green college freshman who decides to challenge Radisson on the existence of God. Even though the debate is technically the main plot, many subplots are generated throughout the story with the reverend of the local church played by David A.R. White serving as the common thread. He even has his own subplot involving the inability of his car to start.

I was getting ready to play the “six degrees of Reverend Dave,” wondering how all these subplots would eventually be resolved and all of them were with satisfying conclusions to each. However, the main event was the debate and I thought the arguments from the Christian perspective were mostly sound and should give anyone who might consider following in the protagonist’s footsteps a good spring board by which to explore and research more. Though the end of the debate was purely a feel good moment and not one that would be seen in reality, it’s good to see God lifted high and His Word given respect on the big screen.

I recommend this movie to any Christian and anyone who has faced these types of militant atheists (I have seen plenty myself). They really captured the professor’s reasoning for his beliefs well as I have heard that ex-Christian speech many times in my debates and discussions. While my understanding about God and His Will might differ slightly from some of the messages portrayed, I want this movie to do well because it deserves all of the Christian support it can muster.

P.S. There was a Dean Cain sighting in this movie and he portrays a real jerk.             

My Top 10 Video Games of All Time: #10

At the end of my third article discussing why gaming is leaving me behind, I promised to make a list of my top 10 games to show that I am not bitter toward gaming itself. I full-heartedly believe video games can be an art form regardless of what critics say and my list contains a number of gaming’s greatest masterpieces. A thing to remember about this list is that it is a record of my personal favorites and not a list of the objectively greatest games of all time. If you disagree then that’s fine with me, we all have different tastes.  So, I invite you to sit back, relax, put on your Power Glove and Mind Link (little known Atari reference for the uninitiated), and get ready for a discussion of some of my favorite video games of all time…

Just for your information, all of these articles may contain spoilers…

10. Final Fantasy VIII

This choice might cause some contention among gamers because opinion favors Final Fantasy VII as the greatest game in the series; however, I don’t agree. It’s not that I don’t like VII; I think the game is amazing. It’s just that VIII was my introduction into the series and a darn good one at that. Squall Leonhart was the kind of dark, brooding, and inexplicably coat-wearing hero that appealed to my 14 year old mind. It didn’t hurt that he had one of the coolest and most impractical weapons ever devised in fiction, the gun blade. I can’t imagine that sword being very comfortable to hold. 

So, other than VIII grabbing my attention first, what else makes this a better game than Final Fantasy VII? First of all, the Junction system was better than the Materia system. I can see some of you shaking your heads right now, “Who wants to be drawing Thundara out of a giant bee for 30 minutes?” Well, I get your point, but I still believe the junction system required much more strategy because in order to stay at maximum stats you would have to preserve your different abilities. For example, if you attached 100 meteors to the Lion Heart (sword) to give it maximum damage potential, then you were smart not to use too much and figure out another way to beat an enemy. 

The second reason that VIII was better than VII was that the hero was cooler than the villains. The villains of the game were a punk doppelganger and a time traveling sorceress. The latter game went through great pains to make Sephiroth the most awesome video game character ever and gamers ate it up. However, my Christian proclivities never gravitated toward the bad guy and I was a bit turned off by VII in that way.

Last, while VII was very light on the love story elements, which were implied more than shown, VII hammered the point home with a love story fit for a gaming teenage boy. This love story, however shallow and adolescent it was, helped us feel like we were playing a more mature and adult game compared to its predecessor.