Merry Christmas!

Hey there,

Just want to say a big Merry Christmas and a happy New Year to everyone out there. If you could have anything for Christmas, what would it be? Oh, and try to keep it realistic, like this is something someone would (hopefully!) give you for Christmas.

"Picking Fights" John 8 - Part 1

One of the side effects of teaching big groups is offending some people in that group. Jesus is waaaay past that by this chapter. Now the Pharisees start intensely trying to make him slip up by putting him in difficult situations. Jesus' reacts by saying "If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her." Man, Jesus sure is a wise and patient man.

The following part gets a little confusing. The Pharisees are really trying to make Jesus say something stupid so the crowds will figure out that he's just a crazy, demon-possessed guy. He says some awesome things, like that he is the light of the world... SO true. Wherever Jesus is, even today, "darkness" is not and "light" (spiritual light) is.

One thing I've noticed when I've been involved or watching an argument is that I usually don't really like the person who wins the argument, even if they are right. I always seem to cheer for the little guy, you know what I mean? Even after Jesus finishes defending himself beautifully, and likely humiliating the Pharisees once again, the people still like him. Maybe in their minds, Jesus was the underdog who was standing up "to the man." Whatever the case may be, many people put their faith in him!

"If It Looks Like A Duck..." John 7 - Part 2

There's an old saying:

"If it looks like a duck, and it quacks like a duck, it must be a duck."

But what if you grew up with this duck? What then? This is what's going on in the last part of this chapter. The higher-ups can't stand what Jesus is teaching (see last post), but by now, it's pretty obvious to the crowds who Jesus is:

"When the Christ comes, will he do more miraculous signs than this man?"

(note: Christ isn't Jesus' last name, it means "Saviour" or "Messiah".)
Even the guards are convinced! They can't arrest Jesus when asked because of his amazing teaching. (Kinda reminds me of Luke Skywalker at the beginning of "Return of the Jedi", but that's another topic...) But the "church leaders" think Jesus can't possibly be the Christ because he isn't from the right town. Amazing that Jesus kept his birth town secret... But I guess he wanted people to believe because of what he said and did, and not just where he was from.

"Getting it Right" John 7 - Part 1

It's easy to take for granted that Jesus had a hard life, not just a hard death. His own people loved him, then hated him, (repeat...). This is probably because of the awesome miracles he performed (popular) and the incredibly hard teachings he gave after (extremely unpopular). Many years of doing the right things for the wrong reasons (AKA legalism) had kinda got the Jews in a rut, and that's why they needed Jesus to save them. They made judgements based solely on doing the right thing, even if it resulted in something bad. To this, Jesus says:

"Stop judging by mere appearances, and make a right judgment."

God judges by the heart and not appearances. Our faith needs to take us further: we need to do the right things with the right reasons in the right way. If anything you do doesn't measure up to each of these three things, stop doing it!

"Flesh Eaters & Blood Drinkers" John 6 - part 2

So let me get this straight. Jesus escapes a crowd after feeding all of them because they want to make him king. But when he tells them that the work of God is to believe the one He sent, they clam up:

"What miraculous sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? Our forefathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written: 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'"

AH!!! DIDN'T HE JUST FEED 5,000??? Actually, how many times have we done this? We come back from an awesome retreat, camp, or other sort of meeting and we're SO excited about serving Jesus. But the conviction we had during that time fades so quickly. Jesus gives the solution to this at the end of this part: We need to constantly live on Jesus. Every breath, meal, beverage needs to be done for him and through him. We need to be so consumed with him that we eat his flesh and drink his blood. He doesn't want part of our lives, he wants all of it!

Random Poll

Hey there, just wondering if anyone still watches the Ranger DVD, and if anyone's actually printed any pictures off of it!

"Oh Hungry?" John 6 - Part 1

What a strange situation; 5,000 people following Jesus around and only one of them brings a meal. I wonder why it was such an emergency for these people to eat. I'm sure it wasn't like they were going to starve or anything! But Philip is operating on the assumption that they need to eat (ulterior motive: Philip already knew what Jesus would do; this implies that this wasn't the first mass feeding Jesus had catered.)

So Jesus feeds everyone, and the crowd figures out that he's miraculously provided for them yet again, they try to force him to be king, but Jesus gets out of it.

Hey, wait a second... why didn't Jesus want to be king? Couldn't he do much more as a king than just a teacher? Doesn't a Prime Minister have more power and influence than the pastor from your church?

Suicide doesn't solve anything

I ran across an interesting perspective on suicide the other day while reading Kreeft's book on heaven.

If Heaven exists and is so great, why not escape earth right away and get there as quickly as possible? First of all because you don't get there that way. The God who revealed Heaven also forbade suicide, and all the medically dead and resuscitated patients who had committed suicide and had seen something of the next life reported hellish rather than Heavenly experiences. They saw that suicide was a disastrous mistake, that all the problems they had tried to escape followed them, but after death they could no longer do anything to change them... [Suicide is] like trying to get into college from elementary school by burning down the high school.

When you look at it like this, suicide doesn't solve anything. Why on earth would we ever consider it as an option?

"Seriously!" John 5 part 3

It's pretty crazy if you think about it: God coming to earth so He could be even closer to us. But, when he gets here, the people that claim to know him hate him! Jesus did a lot of good things: healing people, teaching, and (my personal favourite) feeding people. Plus John (see chapter 1) was respected by the Jews, and he said Jesus was the Messiah. You'd think that this is enough evidence that Jesus is who he says he is, but the Jews still reject him.

Jesus isn't a prophet, he's who the prophets talked about. He isn't a guy who did some good things, everything he DID was good. This is who Jesus is. Maybe it's time for all of us to take him a little more seriously.

"Judge Jesus" - John 5 part 2

Many people believe that judging others is in general a bad thing. But really, it's impossible not to judge people or situations. We can be less critical, but that won't change the fact that we are critical. I love Jesus' rationale on his good judgment:

"By myself I can do nothing; I judge only as I hear, and my judgment is just, for I seek not to please myself but him who sent me."

If we want to be like Jesus, our judgement MUST be godly. That is, it must occur not to please ourselves (gossip, rude joking, teasing, pride) but rather God.
So here's my question: What does it look like when we judge someone like Jesus does? What are the results? Is it possible?

"Stir It Up" John 5 Part 1

We've decided to shorten posts up a little more, so here's our first attempt!

In this passage, it seems like the only thing Jesus likes better than a healing is a healing that makes a point. But what point is he making? He heals a man, then tells him to pick up his mat and walk, and people get all worked up. Apparently, it's against Jewish law to carry your mat on the Sabbath (the holy day of the week). Then, when Jesus sees him later on, he tells him to stop sinning.

Gwah?! I thought Jesus told this guy to carry his mat! So here's your assignment: Why did Jesus tell this guy to stop sinning?

Oh, and you can't answer "because Jesus didn't want something worse to happen to him." That's too obvious.

Q.O.T.D.

Why is it so hard to do the right thing? AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!

John 4: Obey Your Thirst...

...is one of my least favourite slogans of all times. I can't put my finger on it, but it just annoys me. Just like Paul. HA! Just kidding, man.

Anyways, that's what Jesus talks about in John 4 (if you haven't read it, do so now!) Jesus meets a lady (a very promiscuous lady) at a well, and starts asking her questions. This Jesus guy is crazy: talking to a Samaritan woman (taboo), then he tells her he has living water. Her reply?

"Sir, give me this water so that I won't get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water."

Paul's brother, Kevin, made an excellent observation. It sounds like this lady is frustrated and being sarcastic. Go ahead, read that in a sarcastic voice. But then he pulls out the big guns and starts telling her about all her past broken relationships. She is floored. The disciples are confused. The lady goes home and cries in her house, goes to church for a couple months, then eventually goes back to her old life.

NO WAY!

Of course not! She goes home and tells everyone about Jesus. Then they all track Jesus down, convincing him to stay with them for a couple days. Many become believers. All because of one woman had to tell others about what Jesus did.

Is that what happened when you got home from camp? Is that what we do when we feel especially close to Jesus? Or do you just go home, feel better for a few weeks, then go back to your old life. How has Jesus changed your life? Are you different because you've "met" him? The challenge here is a HUGE challenge for all of us: If Jesus is so great, we need to tell everyone about him, how great he is, and how he's changed our lives. Don't go it alone, you'll fizzle out. Get together with other people who love Jesus, read some Scripture, tell some stories, pray, and fire each other up. But don't stop there. Change other people's lives like Jesus has changed yours.

Quote of the Day...

"Triangles can never be non-triangular, and rocks are always guranteed to be rocky, grass grassy, and dogs doggy--but humans can be inhuman. We alone can fail to achieve our nature. Our nature is a task to achieve, not a fact to receive... (Kreeft, The Philosophy of Tolkein, 108). Virtue is an important part of what it is to be human. Anyone whom you find transfored by vice cannot be counted a man. Gollum is an ex-Hobbit, a failed Hobbit, Ringwraiths are ex-men.

The treacherous conspirator who steals by fraud may be likened to a fox; the man who is ruled by intemperate anger is thought to have the soul of a lion. The fearful and timid man who trembles without reason is like a deer; the lazy, stupid fellow is like an ass. The volatile, inconstant man who continually changes direction is like a bird; the man who is sunk in foul lust is trapped in the pleasures of a filthy sow. In this way, anyone who abandons virtue ceases to be a man, since he cannot share in the divine nature, and instead becomes a beast. (Boethius, Consolation of Philosophy, 82-3)

Question of the Day?

What is your favorite TV show?

Cloak & Dagger - John 3

Okay, what's up? Are we too intimidating, or are we really that enlightened? Please share your thoughts and comments! Anyways...

I can just picture it: an important religious figure crouching through the shadows to talk to a "rebellious" teacher. Thank goodness only a couple torches are lit, because this guy does NOT want to be spotted! That's how this chapter begins. Nicodemus had a lot to lose: Jesus was not a good guy for influential Jewish teachers to spend time with. But he just HAD to know more about what Jesus thought. So here he is.

"Born again" is a tag line that many Christians use to identify themselves: "I'm a born-again Christian." This is where this label gets it's origin: it's an illustration of the process we must go through to know God. Just like we're born physically, we must be reborn spiritually. In short, we must allow the Holy Spirit to change us from being like the world to being like God.

And then comes one of my favourite parts:

Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God. (20, 21)

Here it is, in case you've ever wondered. Don't be surprised if people don't like the Christ you believe in or what he teaches. (This isn't a license to get people to hate you, but that's another topic.) When you are in the light and doing what God wants, it'll be as plain as day that you're acting through God's power. When you read John, remember this! You'll see those who do evil hating Jesus, but God is clearly working through Jesus. In fact, Jesus is God.

After this conversation, our pal John the Baptist has a little talk with his disciples about Jesus. (They're a little jealous about Jesus baptizing people like it's going out of style.) I'm always so amazed that John is so humble. Instead of even showing a little jealousy, he is happy for Jesus, and pretty much tells his disciples to follow Jesus. But that's definitely the right thing to do. After all,

"Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him." (36)

Jesus is the life of the party

So what are your thoughts on Jesus' first? Not the sort of thing you would expect from a religious teacher.
Some of you may be confused by the placement of the overturning the tables incident at the beginning of John; the other gospels have this story right near the end. Some people speculate that Jesus must therefore have done this twice--John tells us of the first time and Matthew and company describe the second. I don' t think that this is the case. It doesn't appear as though chronological order is always the priority in 1st century story telling as it is with storytelling today. Jesus birth always shows up before his death, but everything else is up for grabs.
So why has John moved this incident to the beginning of his gospel? What do you think?
I can just imagine how awkward the disciple must have felt as they watched Jesus spill everyone's goods in the temple. Then, just when you think things can't get any worse, Jesus responds to the Jews' question by talking about their temple being destroyed. That would be like someone saying, "Destroy the Whitehouse and I will rebuild it in three days."
The Jews were likely saying to themselves, "First of all, how dare you even suggest that our temple be destroyed, and even if it was, there is no way that you or anyone else could rebuild it in three days."
Hangin' out with Jesus must have been really hard at times.

WORD! - John 1

Before we crack open the first chapter of John, let me first make some clarifications:
-this book is one of 4 accounts of Jesus' life here on earth
-the author of this book's name is John; he was one of Jesus disciples
-the John referred to in this chapter isn't the author, he's John the Baptist. Totally different guy.

Chapter one always raises a couple key questions:
Who or what is the Word?
Why does John call Jesus "The Lamb of God"? (verse 29)

My personal favourite part of this chapter is:

44Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida. 45Philip found Nathanael and told him, "We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph."

46"Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?" Nathanael asked.
"Come and see," said Philip.

Apparently, Nazareth was the Langham of that area... just full of rebels!!! (just kidding Dawn, Melissa and Jessica..)

47When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, "Here is a true Israelite, in whom there is nothing false."

Let me just speculate that Jesus is being sarcastic. (Credit that thought to Paul.) Why would Jesus say this to Nathanael after he just cut down his hometown? TOTALLY sarcasm.

48"How do you know me?" Nathanael asked.
Jesus answered, "I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you."

49Then Nathanael declared, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel."

50Jesus said, "You believe because I told you I saw you under the fig tree. You shall see greater things than that." 51He then added, "I tell you the truth, you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man."

Now it sounds to me like Jesus wasn't in eyeshot of Nathanael when he was under that fig tree. So obviously there's some divine intuition at play here. And that's why Philip is quick to call Jesus the Messiah, or Saviour. And Jesus? He just says, "You ain't seen nuthin' yet." Certainly no lie, as we're about to see.

So what are your thoughts? What are your answers to my two questions? Anything to add? Any more questions? Looking forward to hearing from everyone!

Join the Journey through John

Over the next month or so Greg and I are going to read through the gospel of John. We would like to invite you to join us on the journey. We will make comments on each chapter and you can feel free to leave your comments and questions as well.
To get things started does anyone want to guess which John wrote this gospel? And what makes this gospel so different from Matthew, Mark and Luke?

The Camp Cold

"Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness." Hebrew 12:10

As many of my friends know, I've had this annoying camp cold for a looong time. Since the last week of camp, actually. It's a sinus infection that the doctors (seen them 4 times) can't cure: they're sending me to a specialist. I gotta admit, sometimes it feels like God's punishing me.

This time of year reminds me of Sept. 11th, 2001. "The day the world changed." (Well, it did for America, at least.) What struck me is that in the weeks and months after the attacks on the Twin Towers, some popular Christian speakers/pastors said that this was God punishing America for turning away from him. Some even went into specifics (allowing abortion, promoting homosexuality, and all those other controversial sins).

So what do you think? How does God discipline people? Is it possible that God sent this cold to punish me?

On Vacation...

Camp Director is a pretty amazing job. You get to spend all summer at camp, and then you get some vacation time in the fall. Darla and I and the kids are heading to the lake for a bit. It won't be my dream vacation, but it will still be very nice break from the noisy dining hall. What would your dream vacation be? Mine would be driving down to Kansas City to watch the Kansas City Chiefs (NFL team) play--and hopefully beat--the Denver Broncos. Some day...

"Jesus is a crutch."

Some people accuse Christians of using Jesus as a crutch for coping with life. I am not sure that I completely disagree with this statement. What do you think?

Deny, Die, Follow

How is the DDF challenge going? I don't know about you but I got a little distracted on the weekend. I started the 21 day challenge (of sending 10 minutes a day of listening prayer) over again on Tuesday. Three days later I am still on track. Have you heard anything? My last couple days have been pretty quiet.

Talkback Question of the Day!

Hey, here is a question for you...

What was the first thing you did when you got home after camp??


gil

RLBC Teen week was great!

My family (and dog) had a great week at Ranger this year. Thanks to all the campers and staff for making it a great time. We watched the DVD last night and it was good; although i sure look different on camera!
If you need to email me, it is gil@yfcsask.com - i would love to hear from you.

gil

Welcome Teen Campers, Staff and Future Staff

Camp is a place where many of us feel close to God. We talk about things that matter and meet people who are excited about their faith. Hopefully this website will be a place where you can stay in contact with some of your camp friends, while visiting about some of the most important things in life--knowing God.

A couple dates to put on your calendar are the following.
Senior High Youth Retreat for grades 9-12 (a shorter version of camp with a strong emphasis on worship and spiritual growth): September 22-24 - $40.00
Future LITs Retreat for grades 8-10 (an emphasis on leadership and spiritual growth): November 17-19 - $40.00
Registration forms for these retreats will be available soon.

In the comment section of this entry, Greg, Gil and I would love to hear some of your thoughts on what you learned or how God spoke to you last week at camp.

>>>Insert Clever Title Here<<<

Nothing like a good ol' church conference to get the evangelical blood flowing. When I was 15, our church hosted our denomination's annual youth conference, and boy oh boy, did we ever confer... with the opposite sex. But when we weren't teasing and wondering if that girl may be interested in a short-term dating relationship, we did do some constructive activities. One of these was to conduct a "God Survey" of people in downtown Saskatoon. We were all nervous at first, but after trying on perfume at the Body Shop at Midtown Plaza (hey, you have to do strange things to impress conference girls from Oregon), we talked to several people on the streets. I remember being shocked by the answers that many businessmen and shoppers gave. Shocked, that is, at how few of them denied God's existence.

When you grow up in an Evangelical youth group, you're kinda bombarded with the teaching that most of the world is filled with evolutionist athiests. But to the contrary, in most of the conversations I've had with unchurched folk, I've been surprised at how many believe God exists. And in the more in-depth conversations, (with both churched and non-churched people) I'm surprised at this recurring thought: "Yeah, as long as you're a good person, [no matter what you believe] you'll end up going to heaven."

And so, my question is twofold:
What should you say to a camper who tells you this?
What Scripture teaches that this is belief is true or false?
Oh, and you can't use John 14:6. That one's too easy.

Gone, but not forgotten

Hey everyone,

I gotta apologize for the lack of posts the last week here. We're busy with rental groups and moving out to camp, but now that we're getting organized, we're going to make more regular posts starting now. So check back often because we're baaaaaack!

Two More Days.

Well, it's almost staff training time! I'm looking forward to seeing all those familiar faces, along with some new ones too. Maybe we can get a sweet steam shack going, or maybe even a Heavy Half Hot-tub. And if you have NO clue what I'm talking about, well, prepare yourself for a summer of surprises! See you all soon.

No, Really! Who did Jesus Claim To Be Anyway?

No, my feelings are not hurt. 3 comments on a post? Paul's had less. I hope.

To be honest, it doesn't really surprise me that I wasn't inundated with comments. It isn't easy to prove that Jesus is God from Scripture because he doesn't say, "I am God, and so is the Father and the Spirit." He does make allusions, though. And Mr. Keith hit on one: "I and the Father are one." But also regarding this unity, Jesus prays:

"My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you." John 17:20,21

So one could argue that Jesus and God are unified like the church is; this passage is good, but is still a little unclear about Jesus' deity. And even though that egg illustration may help us understand how the Trinity works, an illustration cannot prove a point, it can only help us to better understand a proven point.

Here's my problem. We all believe that Jesus is God. You will be signing our Statement of Faith that subscribes to this at staff training. So WHY do you believe Jesus is God, if you are unable to prove it from Scripture? Don't be afraid to share the reasons, no matter how naive they may seem.

To Watch Or Not To Watch: Decoding Da Vinci

As Christian what is an appropriate response to the hype surrounding The Da Vinci Code that hit theatres last weekend? It is a fictional story of secrets about the life of Jesus. The story told in the Bible is the fictional story that the church has lied about for centuries. Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection never happened. What actually happened (according to the story line in the movie) was that Jesus married Mary Magdalene and had a child. Which category of response do you fall into (there are Christians that fall into each of these categories)? Or would prefer to add your own response?
1. Relax. It is a fictional work that doesn't claim to be true. Sit back and enjoy like you would any other movie.
2. Don't get to worked up. Yes, this movie is blasphemous...just like many other movie. This is just the world doing what it normally does--blaspheming its Creator. I am not sure whether I will bother seeing it or not. If I do decide to watch it, I definitely won't watch it this summer because I have agreed not to watch any movies while working at camp.
3. This movie is blasphemous and should be banned from theatres. Just give me a petition and I will sign it.

Why Does God Hide Himself? Part deux

In the Garden of Eden man chose self over God. Since that time God has been trying to restore this relationship. This has become an incredibly complex task in many ways because God wants to restore this relationship without compromising the free will of man. Why doesn't God just make everyone love Him? He can't. Love doesn't work that way. Therefore, God has chosen to hide himself and has only revealed himself in part. He has done this for at least two reasons: 1) Sinful humans would not survive should God's full glory be revealed; and 2) if He did completely reveal himself, humans would loose the opportunity to choose Him.
Therefore, in faith we must seek after the God who has given us just the right amount of light for us to find Him. Peter Kreeft puts it this way:

[God] gives exactly the right amount of light. If he gave less, even the righteous would be unable to find him, and their will would be thwarted. If he gave more, even the wicked would find him, against their will. Thus he respects and fulfills the will of all.
If he gave more light, the righteous would not learn humility, for they would know too much. If he gave less light, the wicked would not be responsible for their wickedness, for they would know too little.

God, in his great wisdom, has revealed himself just enough for us to find. May we be people with great faith, who's lives are marked with seeking....and finding.

Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls. - I Peter 1:8-9

You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. - Jeremiah 29:13

Who did Jesus claim to be anyway???

I was amazed! And not in a good way. I read the latest edition of Servant magazine (AH! That's what my parents used to read when I was a kid and they still do to this day) when something caught my attention.

Anyhow, what caught my eye was the title of an article: "The Last Christian Generation." In it, author Josh MacDowell explains how we are witnessing the possible final generation of Christians in the North American Church. This means that Christians are becoming mere church-attenders as opposed to actual disciples of Christ. Let me let Phil Callaway illustrate:

"According to Barna (a renowned researcher) 65 percent of our churched kids either suspect or believe there is no way to tell which religion is true. In 1994 52 percent of evangelical Christian kids said, “there is no truth apart from myself.” In 1999 that number jumped to 78 percent. Now it is a staggering 91 percent. Sixty-three percent of our kids say, “Jesus Christ is not the Son of God.” He’s a son of God."

There's a lot of places that we can go here, and if you feel you need to address an issue that this raises, by all means, address it here. But I do want to ask you a question: How do you know that Jesus is God? Or does the Bible even say (or imply) that Jesus is indeed God at all? No doubt the root of this issue will help explain why we are potentially witnessing the last Christian generation. Find some Scripture to back it up and post it!

Why Does God Hide Himself?

The following is a quote from Christianity for Modern Pagans by Peter Kreeft.

Bertrand Russell, on his deathbed, was visited by a friend who asked him, "You've been the world's most famous atheist most of your life, and now you're about to die. What if you were wrong? What would you say to God if you met him? Don't you think it's prudent at least to raise that question now, before it's too late?" Russell replied: "I think I should say to him: Sir, it appears that my atheistic hypothesis was erroneous. Would you mind answering me one wee little question? Why didn't you give us more evidence?"

This is a question that both believers and non-believers find themselves asking from time to time. Why doesn't God reveal himself more clearly? Why does He insist on hiding?
Any suggestion...

Good... for you Part 2

Yeah, God never promised our lives would get better, but he did say that he'd be with us, to the very end of the age (thanks Nancy). (side note: Paul reminded me that this verse is actually refering to those who are discipling others in the name of Christ, not just people in general doing whatever they please) It's great to read your comments! I do feel bad for kinda misleading you a little: I side with Karissa, I don't really know what to "say" to anyone. So I guess when I asked what to say to someone who is grieving, I implied that we must say something.

Let me throw this out there: the verses in Part 1's comments are probably more effective when we live them. Just as God is with us, we need to be with those who are grieving. We need to be the helpers to the fatherless (of which there will be plenty this summer). And often, this will involve less talking and more listening.

Before my wife and I were dating, we worked together at camp the summer after my girlfried died. Whenever she saw me having a bad day, she always tracked me down and listened to me, cried with me, and said some kind, compassionate words. And if you know my wife, she hates crying. She's a great example for me. I too often feel like I need to say something when I actually need to just show love in a different way. Let's take these verses and apply them to our lives, speaking more through our actions first, and then words.

Adam and Eve as Historical Figures

To say that some portions of the Bible are fictional is not to say that some parts of the Bible are not true. The problem is some interpreters dismiss portions of Scripture as fictional when it is difficult for them to accept (stuff like miracles and the resurrection...and talking snakes). This is not what I am suggesting here. Jesus often used fictional stories (what we call parables) to make a point that was true. For example, the parable of the unforgiving servant (Matthew 18:23-35) is the story of a servant who owed a king an unimaginable amount of money (10,000 talents would be similar to you or I owing the Prime Minister a million billion dollars). It is the point of the story that is true, and not the story itself. God has forgiven us an unimaginable debt, so we ought to forgive others.
The prophet Nathan also used this technique when confronting David about his relationship with Bathsheba. He told a story about a shepherd with many sheep who stole from a shepherd who only had one. He did this in order to help David recognize the inappropriateness of his behavior (sleeping with Bathsheba and killing Uriah, her husband).
So how do we know that Adam and Eve are historical figures and not part of a fictional story that is being used to describe the fall of man? I want to offer three reasons to believe that Adam and Eve were real people.
1. Adam is part of geneologies throughout the Scriptures. It is only logical that fictional characters are not part of these geneologies. If Adam is a fictional character then how many other people in these geneologies are fictional? And what point do these geneologies shift from fictional characters to actual people?
2. The apostle Paul speaks of Adam as a historical figure (Romans 5; I Corinthians 15). If Paul, while writing Scripture, believed Adam was a real person, should we not also believe?
3. If there wasn't a literal first Adam, do we really need a literal second Adam (Jesus) to save us from the consequences we are suffering as a result of the first Adam?

Good... for you.

Romans 8:28
"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."

"People say the darndest things." That's a revision of the thought that went through my mind at my girlfriend's funeral waaay back in 1997. An elderly lady was just offering me her condolences: "That's too bad. But don't worry, you're young. There's plenty of fish in the sea!"

Yeah, as you may have guessed, that didn't make it all better. But wasn't she just illustrating Romans 8:28? What do I have to worry about? God will take care of me.

But at that time I wasn't thinking about fish, or any body of salty water. I was probably worried, thinking: "Why isn't God taking care of me? My world is falling apart."

So what do we tell hurting campers, and what do we tell ourselves when hard times come? Are there other Bible verses that are more helpful in this situation?

Yahoo!

Well, I'm excited. This is my third day on the job at Ranger, and Paul and John still haven't convinced me to shave my head! So it looks like I'll get to post some stuff here too.

Cheers!

Creation: Part II

The Bible does not teach us the age of the earth. Any conclusions we draw from the Scriptures about the age of the earth are speculative. Lindsay makes a good point that God's concept of time is quite different from ours (II Pet 3:8).
Today there is a growing number of Christian scholars who argue for an old earth, and there remains many (like Mr. Cody Keith) who argue for a young earth. I believe that all Christians should be able to look at both scientific argument objectively because the reliability of the Bible does not depend on a young earth conclusion. Personally, I am a fence sitter on this one. I think the flood of Noah's time period will continue to squew the data of old earth scientists; however, something like supernovas will continue to baffle young earth proponants. When we witness supernovas we are witnessing the explosion of a star millions of years after the fact based on the speed of light.
The creation account is actually written in a poetic form in its original Hebrew language. So how do we interpret day? Our first clue that day is being used differently is that for the first three "days" there is no sun or moon (they aren't created until "day" four).
So what does the creation account tell us if not how and when the earth was created? The main points that we cannot miss are: 1) There is a Creator, who creates from nothing; 2) mankind, the pinnacle of creation, is accountable to the Creator; and 3) man has damaged his relationship with the Creator.
So, if Genesis 1 is a poetic description of an indescribable event (God creating stuff from nothing), some people begin to wonder if Adam and Eve are fictional characters who are used in describing the fall of man. How might we defend Adam and Eve as real historical figures? This isn't a question you will likely face at camp, but it is a popular question in post-secondary education.

Creation and the Age of the Earth

Does the Bible teach how old the earth is? What if scientists were able to prove that the earth is not thousands of years old, but millions of years old, would that prove that the Bible is false? If you are open to the possibility of the earth being millions of years old, how do you interpret the word "day" in the creation account? Doesn't day mean a 24 hour period?

Faith and Works: Part II

With regard to the Ephesians and James passages it is important for us to recognize that Paul and James are answering two different questions. Paul is answering the questions: What saves us? To which he responds: FAITH, and faith alone! James is answering the question: What kind of faith saves us? To which he responds: Faith that produces works (not to be confused with faith + works).
Jesus, in the Matthew passage, assumes James' perspective that those who hear and act are those who will enter the kingdom of heaven. There is no such thing as faith that only hears but never acts. (There is perhaps one exception...can you think of who it might be?)
Donald Miller, in Blue Like Jazz, says: If you want to know what I believe, don't listen to what I say; watch what I do. This is a sobering statement because it means that the things I say I believe are only things that I am thinking about, if I am not living them out. Ouch!

Faith and Works...and Salvation

What is the relationship between these two when it comes to our salvation. How do we reconcile the following verses, which appear to contract one another?

Ephesians 2:8-9 - "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast."
James 2:20-24 - "You foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless? Was not our ancestor Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. And the scripture was fulfilled that says, "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness," and he was called God's friend. You see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone."
Matthew 7:24-27 - "Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash."

How would you explain the connect between works, faith and salvation in your own words? Leave a comment or email your thoughts to paul@rlbc.ca