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Outreach & Missions
The three foundations of Society do not stand alone. The family, Church, and State directly affect and influence each other. “As goes the home, so goes the nation.” These three institutions are responsible for the moral life of the community and therefore for civilization as we know it. The way people/we view and relate to each other creates a reality we all must live with. Through its moral authority these three foundations of society together create the culture in which we live.
Men-husbands, fathers, and sons-are faced with countless challenges. Whhat's more, the responsibilities of these family leaders cretae certain needs to navigate these challenges...
Mainstream American parents have failed their children. American youth are in crisis because they have been abandoned to face the challenges of life alone. Alone is what it feels like to develop into a young adult in a dysfunctional and unnurturing home. Alone is what it feels like to have a life and relational points of reference that are in chaos. Youth in America are emerging from homes and entering their communities without spiritual anchor and unprepared for the demands of socialization. The primary responsibility for the crisis faced by American youth falls on the parents.
Of the ten most dangerous places to be in Contemporary America, the second most dangerous place to be is the born or unborn child of the average American parent. In all fairness, the problem does not begin with one’s parents. Parents are capable only of doing for their children what their parents did for them. They carry the baggage of their own neglect and childhoods with them and they bring it into parenting. In times past, emerging generations had some semblance of a safety net if their parents and home life were destructive social norms and conventions prevalent in the Community provided a safe place and gave them direction. These norms and conventions no longer exist.
Young people in this Country are crying with one voice to say that they are desperate, disillusioned, misunderstood, lonely, suffering and hopeless and feel driven to the brink of breaking and throwing their lives away. Nothing more qualifies as a crisis as when young lives are being ruined and thrown away before they have a chance to live.
American youth are in a crisis and the chaos that is their lives threaten to destroy them. Never before in the history of this Nation have its children and young adults been faced with more challenges or pushed to the brink of disaster than today. Emerging generations warrant our attention because they are societies most vulnerable treasure. The world into which they emerge is a daunting place with dangerous and unfamiliar obstacles they are unprepared to cope with.
In many ways, life is harder today than in previous generations. The insatiable human appetite for psychological stimulation through video imagery has been accommodated by an unending barrage off consumer media. Through technology, information and the affluence that provides access to it, the world of the average American youth is larger than ever thought possible, and continues to expand with no sign of slowing. The World’s access to our youth and our youth’s access to the larger community outside the home have exposed them to untold dangers and temptations. The challenges faced by this Nation’s youth are not in themselves a guarantee of disaster, but the lack and absence of the things that give life meaning, purpose and direction is.
There is no other arena or environment that more deeply influences, effects and develops (or underdevelopes) the child than the Family/Home. Parents have served themselves, pandered to the superficial appetites of their children, failed to lead by example, and instilled nothing of any lasting value in their children all the while neglecting to provide their children with the basic, essential psychological experiences necessary to produce healthy, wholesome, functional youngsters who are equipped to engage and cope with life in the Community.
“Chaos” is the name given to the experience of one’s life as it spirals recklessly out of control. ▲
Music & Art
Hip-Hop
Hunt's rap for Clemson Tigers
Hip-Hop is a 35 year-old culture...
Subcultures & Trends
The Green Revolution
Emo & Goths
There have always been subcultures running counter to whatever was the dominant culture. The late 1970s saw the eruption of the virulently angry punk rock scene, with spiked hair and screeching vocals.
In 1979 the punk band Bauhaus recorded 'Bela Lugosi's Dead'-a song about the demise of a famous horror-film actor. 'Many young fans latched onto this mysterious, eerie sound as inpsiration for the budding gothic subculture' (Alicia Porter Smith, History of the Gothic Subculture,' gothicsubculture.com).
To counter the increasing violence of punk rock, a few bands in the late 1980s began to do more dramatic musical performances that became known as emotive hardcore. Fans of this variation were labled 'emo.' The term and style died out until the turn of the 21st century. Emo became one of the first cultural movements born (or reborn) on the internet through social networking sites. (Randy Stiver)
XTREME Sports
Fun & Games
Self-medication with substance abuse, sexual promiscuity, sexting
Overall, Hip-Hop has contributed...
I Am Second --Lecrae
Ring the Bell//Tragic Narratives testimony
Philosophy of Life
The beauty and the burden of the human animal is that he thinks! Socrates profoundly observed that “the unexamined life is not worth living.” Explicit in human existence is that man is a conscious being. ‘Being’ is defined as a state of consciousness; a thing must be conscious to qualify as a ‘being’. Man is the only creature that is a conscious being –he is innately aware of himself, the world around him and his finitude under something above him. A dog exists but it cannot be classified as a ‘being’ because it cannot participate in its own existence; it is not conscious of itself. No other creature except man is capable of standing outside himself to view and think of his own existence. Man is a conscious participant in his own existence.
Because man is conscious, he thinks! The French Philosopher Rene Descartes made this observation in his famous maxim, “I think, therefore I am.” When examining the reality of his own existence and what it meant to be human he surmised that he existed as a conscious being because he obviously thinks. When man thinks about life –his existence, the world above him and the world around him– he begins to ask questions. In his finitude he cannot see or understand it all and he asks questions to bring coherency and meaning to life. Failure to think deeply about the questions, problems, perplexities and predicament of life –existential, social, political, ethical, theological – leads to disaster, misery and an unauthentic human existence.
Philosophy has been given a broad range of definitions over the course of history, many of them emphasizing different and varying shades of the same color –inquiry! In its most basic and far-reaching sense, Philosophy is the inquiry into the ultimate realities of life; of what it means to be human (Sartre). It is to be distinguished from Science. Science is concerned to observe and analyze the external, physical realm while philosophy is concerned with the metaphysical realities underlying every facet of human life. Specifically, Philosophy inquires into the realities that underlie the questions implied in human existence. It is the raising of questions out of human existence and the quest for the answers. Philosophy is a response to human questioning that seeks to bring coherency and meaning to life and to answer the questions of life in a coherent, consistent and systematic way.
Philosophy is the inquiry and study of the life of man. It is completely anthropological. It is dedicated to an examination of man –his life and his existence– but it is distinguished from Humanism. Humanism develops its answers out of human existence; it seeks within man for the answers to its predicament and it offers self as the solution. Philosophy is anthropological; Humanism is anthropocentric.
A coherent, consistent and systematic (not to mention an honest) philosophy does not ignore the questions, problems, perplexities and predicament of man. It takes up an objective position from outside man and looks for answers to them. And this must be done through Wisdom –from a point of reference high above man. Man is the problem, not the solution. The answers to man’s deepest questions cannot be found within himself. ▲
Philosophical Justification
No other word in the English language suffers from more bad publicity nor is tainted with more disdain and repugnant connotation than ‘philosophy’. Philosophy has been the name of countless ideas that have lead the human race marching to its demise and the destruction of innumerable souls. At this point the human proclivity to fear (and subsequently hate or disparage) what it does not understand is acute.
For some, philosophy brings to mind abstract and ambiguous concepts that have no apparent relevance to real life –the speculative idiosyncrasies of a few condescending elite. For others the word denotes the ideas of radical demagogues, ideologists and revolutionaries seeking to overthrow and destroy the norms, values, religion or principles that are a way of life for so many or a leading the masses into the unknown and uncertain. For many Christians, ‘philosophy’ is associated with the godless heretics and humanists who posit philosophical insights as a standard higher than God and the Bible; a reliance upon human reasoning to obtain truth rather than revelation and fideism; the equality of many ideas over against the exclusive idea of the sacred. To all these allegations and more, philosophy is advised to plead guilty as charged.
Given the pejoration and stigma that accompanies the enterprise of Philosophy, why does it continue to emerge as a prominent pursuit and preoccupation in our world? Why does it seem to pervade every walk of life? Philosophy is as close to human life as the ideas that govern it. Simply stated, philosophy is as intrinsic and necessary to human life as the air we breathe. Man is a conscious being who thinks and questions what it means to exist. As long as man exists as an authentic “being,” philosophy as the quest for coherent, consistent and systematic answers will preoccupy human history. What’s more, philosophy will surface whenever and wherever there are people who refuse to be satisfied with superficial explanations and answers, who brave to think deeper and who search for truth –the ultimate realties that underlie human existence.
Contrary to popular belief and assumptions, Wars are not fought over religion. Wars are fought over Culture! Every ideological war in modern history has been waged as a result of a conflict over [culture] ideas, assumptions, values, norms –some religiously prescribed, but all sociological. Culture wars are battles for the mind, and ideas are the weapons. In society, the conflict between ideas is inevitable. In the psyche and in the community, ideas compete to infiltrate, influence and create an environment conducive to their free expression. The battle that ensues is a violent, sometimes subtle scrimmage to dominate, suppress or silence any and all other opposing ideas to ensure that its ideology and view of the way life should be seen and lived is imposed on the community. Never before in the history of this Nation has its inhabitants been more fragmented, polarized and disintegrated over the ideas, assumptions, values and norms that govern our lives than today. We are immersed in a Culture War! of epic proportions. The victors in this war will see their ideas dominate and take root, and the outcome will drastically shade the fabric of this Nation and determine how we all live our lives.
Philosophy serves a most important function in this Culture War –by its very nature it uncovers what is lost or hidden. In culture wars, ideas often lose or hide the realities they represent. Ideas are two-dimensional. They have both a superficial and a metaphysical existence. Superficial ideas and answers reveal only what is “on the face” or apparent and obvious about the ideas they represent; they eagerly respond to the questions implied in human existence but fail to provide the truth(s) necessary to bring coherency and meaning to life. In our contemporary society, humanist ideas flaunt their conceit and hide its consequences while they lead the masses, pander to and exploit their appetites. In the contemporary Church, religious answers have distorted or lost sight of the meaning, message and material of Biblical truth and made it rather an anemic, unintelligible maze or minefield to the soul. In this Culture War, Philosophy is an invaluable asset to test and uncover the underlying realities of ideas and their answers. Philosophy strips ideas of their superstitions, subjectivity and superficiality by analyzing and evaluating the premise(s) and realities upon which they are built based upon ideas that issue from a higher point of reference. In this battle for the mind, where the seduction of ideas threaten to infiltrate and change the way we live, philosophy provides the forum to countervail the barrage of ideas. ▲
WiseGuy Philosophy
The World and Culture in which we live is a dangerous and daunting place full of ideas and answers, all vying to lead us in “a way that seemeth right unto a man." The champion of this “way” is most often some form of Humanism and man is the measure of the “right.” “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.” Humanism’s inability to satisfactorily provide answers for the problems, perplexities and predicament of human existence is obscured by its practice of presenting old emaciated ideas in novel, contemporary form. In its personal, religious, social or political forms, Humanism is a poison built upon a faulty premise. The desperate soul’s quest and longing for answers to the ultimate questions implied in human existence continues to go unsatisfied. Mans idea of self as the answer to his own problems and predicament has weighed in, and been found wanting. Man is not the answer, he is the Question. Authentic Wisdom brings the Answers from a higher point of reference.
In this day and culture of relentless and legion voices, there is a Harbinger of Wisdom with a fresh word for the famine soul, proclaiming the Wisdom and Glory of God to “a dry and thirsty land, where no water is.” WiseGuy Philosophy –the man and the ministry is engaging, confronting and challenging the culture –its ideas, values, attitudes, beliefs, assumptions and answers about the way life should be lived, – uncovering the ultimate realities underlying all the facets of life and offering explanations and answers to the serious questions implied in the human predicament, with Wisdom that points “the way, the truth, and the life." WiseGuy Philosophy –Applied Wisdom to meet the challenges of our day. ▲
Theological Hope
Hope is born of suffering. Mankind suffers in the human predicament and his finitude prevents his escape and ratifies his affliction. The suffering soul cries out for a promise of relief. Hope is born as a confidence (earnest expectation) in a coming remedy amidst crisis. Until it is promised, hope can only be a deep yearning for relief.
Hope is an ultimate concern! The human desire to preserve and proliferate is an ultimate concern to the soul of man. Hope contains the promise that life and melioration is ahead and therefore ultimately concerns us all. Hope is born of suffering because it becomes necessary when the soul yearns for remedy, relief and deliverance. It is the human capacity to suffer that drives man to question God.
Hope does not come from within. “But hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?” The humanist portends that his hope lies within himself, but hope that is local is not hope at all and if he is his own answer and remedy he should never be distraught in the first place. Humanism is presumptuous -it presumes that it can provide or achieve a remedy or relief by its own means whenever necessary. Presumption is the folly of fools. The humanist is oblivious to his Fallacies of Hope until his need becomes more than superficial and greater than his soul can bear. The answers to man’s questions, problems, perplexities and predicament cannot be found within; man is the problem, not its answer and the only hope for remedy, relief and deliverance from his lost predicament must come from without.
Human suffering, death and eternity beg the question of hope and deliverance. God, as the ultimate Authority who commands these events, stands out prominent to the askant soul. The sense of our human finitude informs the reason/psyche which itself raises the question of God. The intuitive sense of one’s finitude tells us that there is a God –something above us to which we are subjugated. No man ever begins with the question of (interest in) God. He begins with the question of himself, his predicament, and of his place in the world around him. His philosophical inquiry (be that as it may) inevitably leads to the question of God. God answers the ultimate concern of man because He offers and represents the only hope for deliverance from the human predicament, eternal judgment and the suffering of life. The salvation [deliverance from judgment or consequences] of the creature’s soul from the depth of its predicament lies in the hands of the Creator. It is God alone that stands outside this predicament to give man hope.
God is the Answer to all the questions implied in the human predicament because He is absolute, ultimate, perfect Wisdom. God answers with truth –“that which meets the ultimate need of the inquirer” –by telling us all the words that lead to life and health. Wisdom is to perceive from God’s point of view – the highest point of reference possible. Wisdom brings coherency and meaning to the perplexities of life. “Wisdom giveth life to them that have it.” All of God’s statutes and commands are designed to lead to life. Wisdom is the recognition of God as the proper Authority under whose direction one’s life is best lived. And there is no higher point of reference possible than the One who is the Maker and Giver of Life.
In the history of man, God has appeared to make Himself known. His oracles, acts and mysteries are unfolded in a tapestry of time and recorded for posterity in the Scriptures. The Bible is the great marvel of divine Self-disclosure; God has preserved His own name in the Earth through the most foolish accommodations –the Written Page. The Bible reveals the works and intentions of God in history, His Glory and character, and His divine purpose to redeem man from the human predicament; God present in and through the human arena. Biblical theology seeks within this infallible record the answers to the questions implied in the human predicament, the intimate character of the One who breathes life to the soul, and provides an explanation for the acts and movements of God in the World. God’s answers are clear and we need only to admire those things through which He has preserved His own name in –the Bible, the Jewish people, the born again (new birth)believer –to learn of Him. ▲
Theological Acts
The hope of the desperate soul is undeniably and irreversibly tied to the acts and movements of God in the Earth. Hope then inspires the human soul to gaze at God who has become the surety of its promise. Theology is the attempt to explain, interpret and understand the operations, acts, movements and intentions of God in history, His people, and the Scriptures. It is the “doctrine of God” as He is perceived to operate and exist within Himself, and as He (and His operations) relates to man and his predicament. Biblical theology reasons about God from His acts and edicts displayed in Scripture. Philosophical theology reasons about God from the ultimate realties that underlie this revelation in Scripture. Theology as the inquiry and quest for God becomes the pursuit and consolation of those who hear (have found) God as the answer to the questions implied in the human predicament.
In the task of providing answers to the questions implied the human existence, theology and philosophy are handmaidens, for being [ontology, philosophy] cannot be separated from that which is the Ground of Being [theology]. “Philosophy and theology ask the question of being. But they ask it from different perspectives. Philosophy deals with the structure of being in itself; theology deals with the meaning of being for us.” Philosophy establishes the human predicament and theology offers a solution and explanation for it in the redemption of man from the ultimate consequences of his predicament.
God can be known with certainty through all His acts of revelation –the Bible, Creation, the Jewish people, Jesus Christ, the new birth and His dispensational movements in history- in His Heilsgeschichte (“salvation history”). The Bible is the annual, history and exemplar of God’s acts, character and will. Creation proclaims God as the origin and the teleological end of all things. The Jewish people and the Christ display the Character and intentions of God to save mankind. The new birth is the seal, the evidence and the power of God to deliver man from his predicament. The dispensational moves of God in history reveal the details and full scope of His redemptive plan. Theology views all these acts of divine communication or self-disclosure and seeks to form a coherent framework through which to Answer the questions implied in the human predicament, discern the times and interpret God’s Heilsgeschichte.
The history of God’s redemptive plan for man (Heilsgeschichte) is chronicled in the Bible and discernable in the dispensational shifts and moves of His Spirit in every age. Contemporary events such as Apostate Christianity, cell churches and the Jewish Awakening constitute unique dispensational movements of the Holy Ruach, or Spirit of God in history. All of God’s Answers to man’s questions have been enumerated in His Heilsgeschichte. We discern and understand the answers God has provided through a Biblical world-view. The three essential and controlling themes of the Bible that provide a paradigm through which to view God’s Heilsgeschichte are (1) the Glory of God, (2) the Grace of God, (3) the Rūach of God, (4) the Election of God, and (5) the Dispensations of God. By interpreting these divine themes, theology offers an explanation and answers to the questions and concerns raised by the human predicament.
God’s answers are explicit and they are certain. In his search and yearning for remedy, relief and deliverance, man questions the existence of God (philosophy of religion, theology proper), evil and suffering in the world (theodicy), the exclusive claims of the Judeo-Christian religion (Apologetics), existence (ontology, existentialism), the human predicament (hamartiology), hope, remedy and salvation (soteriology), our relationships with others (Ethics), how to best live one’s life (Puritanism, Christian thought), the Church and Community (Ecclesiology)…ad infinitum. To all these questions and more, God has given us the explanation and answers, and theology serves and labors to present them in a coherent manner. ▲
Christ the Wisdom
The central figure of God’s Heilsgeschichte is His Christ. To the Jew He is the Anointed One of God (Christ), the promised Messiah of God. To the gentile Nations, He is the Savior of the World. Jesus Christ is the Promise, the Hope, the fulfillment and the consummation of God’s redemptive plan for man. The Christ is the divine Answer to all the questions implied in the human predicament. Jesus Christ is the Wisdom of God for man.
From Antiquity, Man’s search and discovery of true Wisdom prepared the way for Jesus Christ by raising the questions to which He gave the answers. The earliest Greek Philosophers were in search of the answers to the questions implied in human existence. They realized that the diversity of life, existence and those questions could only be answered and made coherent by a principle that unified the whole. The search for a unifying principle that makes the diversity (and predicaments) intelligible and brings order and coherency to life began with the first person to be given the label “wise.”
Thales (600 B.C.) reasoned that all the diversity he saw in the world and the constant state of change that affects everything could be unified and explained by identifying the basic element that underlies it all. He believed water to be the unifying principle. Thales’ students were to later develop the idea that all reality consisted of four basic elements –earth, air, water and fire. When these principles were determined to be truly independent of one another, the search began (continued) for another element, a quintessent or fifth essence, that could explain the diversity in the universe and unify all the other elements of reality. Heraclitus (536-470 B.C.) envisioned this unifying principle as a cosmic balance. In Heraclitus, the doctrine of the lógos first emerged as the universal principle that brought order to Chaos.
Plato (428-354 B.C.) understood the lógos to be wisdom. In Plato’s thought, wisdom could do for the philosopher what the philosopher could do for the populace –open their eyes to perceive the underlying realities of truth. Wisdom is the unifying principle that makes the diversity of reality intelligible and coherent.
In Stoicism (300 B.C.), a clear association of the lógos with the Godhead emerged. For the Stoic, the lógos was the cosmic reason at work in the Universe. This lógos as Reason imparted wisdom (Sophía) for the arete life by making it intelligible.
The concept of the Lógos had religious meaning for the Jewish people. “The doctrine of the Word of God appears in the Old Testament in association with the Hebrew word dābhār, which is regularly translated by lógos in the Septuagint, and the Word of God on occasion undergoes considerable personification.” (G.B. Kerferd) The Jewish Philo (20? B.C.-40?A.D.) sought to fuse Greek wisdom with his Hebrew religion. As the immediate predecessor of the New Testament writers, Philo did more to prepare the first century mind for Jesus Christ than any other. He described the lógos as and intermediate, the mediating principle between God and man. The divine mediates or communicates through the lógos which is necessary to make the transcendent, unapproachable Mystery of God immanent and intelligible for man. As a result, Philosophical Hellenistic Judaism had conceived of the Lógos as the personified agent of the divine being, the agent of creation, revelation, and redemptive action.
In the New Testament (A.D. 52-60), Jesus was identified with the Divine Wisdom, or Lógos, and the incarnation of this preexistent wisdom or Lógos (see Colossians 1:15-20; Hebrews 1:1-3, John 1:1-18). Jesus Christ is God’s Wisdom and the glory of His Heilsgeschichte. He is the Lógos, the Word or divine communication that man could understand. “And the Word [lógos] was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.” He is the mesítēs, the Mediator between God and man. “For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” Jesus Christ is the divine communication that reveals the Wisdom of God for man by making the way of man’s redemption intelligible. He is the divine explanation and answer to the universal and perennial question, How can we best live our lives’?
As the Lógos, Jesus Christ reveals the mystery (that which is hidden) of God. As the mesítēs, Jesus Christ reconciles that which is estranged. As the Wisdom of God, He is the basic element and fifth essence and the cosmic balance and rationale that brings order to chaos. He is that which mediates between the human and the divine, and the divine communication that appropriates and makes God’s Wisdom intelligible to man. A word (lógos) from God brings ultimate unity to diversity and order and coherency to all of life’s predicaments. In the words of Santayana, true religion is “man’s reverent attachment to the sources of his being and the steadying of his life by that attachment.”
Jesus Christ is the hope (1 Timothy 1:1) for man. He is the Savior (John 4:42; 1 John 4:14; 1 Timothy 4:10), the power (1 Corinthians 1:24) the revelation (Hebrews 1:3; 2 Corinthians 4:4) and the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6) for mankind who suffers in the human predicament. Theology offers answers to the questions of ultimate concern by pointing to the Wisdom of God, the One that is the ultimate hope of man. ▲
Authentic Christianity
Authentic Christianity is that which accurately represents the nature and character of the One whose name it bears. The Church has always appeared as the representative of Christ. The masses and countless numbers of desperate and longing souls have flocked and ran to it for an authentic glimpse of Jesus and the hope that only He can give. They have trusted the Church as Christ’s representative for direction for their lives, and they have eagerly sought therein the remedy and answers to the questions, problems, perplexities and predicament of human existence. Instead of finding a clear representation of the life and hope that is in Jesus Christ, far too many have been subjected to a prismatic Christianity. The church has largely become incapable of providing real and satisfactory answers to the questions implied in the human predicament, and worse still has been its inability to represent and project the genuine nature and character of Jesus Christ to those in need. The search for answers and Christ’s example in the contemporary Church has left desperate souls disappointed, disillusioned, disaffected, abused and sometimes certain that the Church is in worse shape than they are.
Theology is a function and interpretation of the Christian faith and one of its duties is to critique the Church. Augustine (City of God), Calvin (Institutes), and the Puritans were fond of making the distinction between the visible church and the invisible church. From the very beginning it was evident that a counterfeit Christianity would exist along side the genuine article. The Wheat and the Tares would grow together in the field called Church. “Let both grow together until harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the Wheat into my barn.” Christendom could develop, adopt and promote a semblance and the clichés of Christianity. “For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God:”
The visible church is that membership, organization, and activities that can be seen with the natural eye and with whom anyone can associate, participate and infiltrate. As the natural counterfeit of the supernatural, authentic article, the visible church has always been characterized by the man-made inventions (membership, organization and activities) that bespeak of the carnality, connivance and corruption of human nature. The invisible church are those who have been made part of a spiritual or supernatural life that is at work within them, independent of ANY human intervention, and cannot be seen by the human eye. Christendom is the visible counterfeit of an invisible (Christian) reality.
Authentic Christianity is distinguished from mere counterfeits of religianity by its supernatural nature. Those who are made partaker of the life and nature of Christ bear His indelible image, and the character of Jesus Christ is manifest through them to everyone around; they possess a transparency. The world can see and experience Jesus in those who are filled with His Spirit.
When a man looks through a prism he sees the distorted images formed in the glass and not the Object as it really is on the other side. The visible church has always been a prismatic Christianity. His image and likeness cannot be seen in the carnal nature of man. The Christian is called to be transparent, but when the world looks for Jesus in the visible Church it sees a grotesque distortion, a tragic misrepresentation of the real thing. In the course of human history, many evils have been carried out in the name of Christ, but real Christianity manifests the supernatural nature of Jesus Christ.
Answers are always authentic when they satisfy the questions. Authentic Christianity alone provides the answers to the questions, problems, perplexities and predicament of human existence because it provides a supernatural remedy. Man’s salvation and deliverance –any hope of freedom from suffering and the bondage of the human predicament – must be supernatural (from a higher place than man himself) if it is to be effective. Because man is trapped and enslaved by his humanity, something above (greater than his finitude) and beyond him (outside his predicament) must come to his rescue. If there is any hope for man in his human predicament it must come from above or beyond him –the supernatural.
Authentic Christianity makes an exclusive claim. Salvation is made possible through Jesus Christ alone. “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” There is no other name under heaven whereby men can be saved but by Jesus Christ because He alone is divine, the ultimate reality and Infinite Ground of all being, the supernatural fifth essence and power of God that transcends man above his predicament and bondage. Jesus Christ alone is able to save man to the uttermost because He alone is supernatural- He is God, begotten of the Father!
Along with this exclusive claim of Christ, Authentic Christianity makes two additional and unique claims. No other religion in the world posits that (1) man is spiritually dead to God and (2) a supernatural power is necessary to quicken the dead to life. As the Authentic Christian can be known by the fruit of the Spirit and the spirit of the Fruit, so authentic Christianity can be known by its assertion of these two Biblical doctrines.
The religions of the world, including those counterfeit, prismatic “Christian” circles, reject and resent the belief that man is spiritually dead, which is tantamount to stating that he is free. But if man is not spiritually dead without the regenerative work of the Spirit of God, then his predicament is not desperate, nor is it even a predicament, and no supernatural remedy is necessary; the answers and salvation of man can be found within himself, Jesus Christ has no basis for exclusivity, every religion is equal and none of them are necessary.
Authentic Christianity has the inherent power to raise man from the bondage of his human predicament, to infuse him with a higher principle by which he might live, and quicken him to spiritual life and relationship with God. This is the Christian gospel, the Good News, the answer to man’s predicament and ultimate questions.
Man is spiritually dead to God, oblivious to His life and Authority. This spiritual death, along with the finitude, depravity and self-will of humanity places mankind in a predicament which separates him from God and leads him to certain misery, ruin and self-destruction. Because this predicament is human, it requires a supernatural remedy. Christ as the appointed Savior of mankind has made the quickening of man to spiritual life possible by the same supernatural power displayed in His life and Crosswork. Through the indwelling Rūach, God creates a spiritual relationship with individuals He has elected out of His own good pleasure by the quickening power of the new birth in Jesus Christ. This is the only Gospel of Authentic Christianity. Jesus Christ is the only remedy that can raise the dead to life. He is the hope of the desperate and longing soul. “Look to the God who is bigger that your problems.”
The Christian message, interpreted, articulated and promoted by theology, provides the answers to the questions of ultimate concern implied in human existence. Jesus Christ gives New Life! as the answer to man’s ultimate questions. The power of the Triune God demonstrated in the Crosswork and Resurrection of Christ is our hope. This same power has been demonstrated in the lives of God’s people. They receive new life by which they are transcended up above the predicament and bondage inherent in human nature.
The supernatural provides a higher principle by which man can live and obtain deliverance from the bondage of his human predicament. Through the power of Jesus Christ, God’s plan of redemption for mankind is the Answer to all the questions implied in human existence. And our hope is confident because God is not [natural] and man that He should lie; our hope is secured by the Character of God. Man’s ultimate predicament is that the application of the spiritual life he so desperately needs is completely out of his control. This idea is the nemesis of every humanist!
Theology presents Jesus Christ as the Answer to all the questions implied in human existence. Contemporary Religianity has so distorted or lost sight of the meaning, message and material of the biblical religion as to make it prismatic Christianity. It is an anemic misrepresentation of a Spirit-filled Christianity. In this day and climate of religious delusion, there is a Harbinger of Wisdom with a word of hope for the desperate soul, proclaiming the Wisdom and Glory of God to “a dry and thirsty land, where no water is.” WiseGuy Philosophy –the man and the ministry is engaging, confronting and challenging the way we think about God by offering explanations and answers to the ultimate questions of human existence, with Wisdom that points “the way, the truth, and the life.” WiseGuy Philosophy –Applied Wisdom to meet the challenges of our day. ▲
Preaching
Word of God speak! The questions, problems, perplexities and predicament of human existence that leaves man desperate, suffering and hopeless can be remedied by nothing but a divine visitation. God’s presence is always accompanied by a word whereby He is made known. The presence of God manifests his power, which makes the deliverance of man from his predicament, bondage and death possible. Nothing but the very [supernatural] Presence of the divine Essence can quicken man from his death and spiritual slumber –anything less would be a human [natural] invention and have no redemptive power!
When God visits man, His holy Rūach animates and quickens the dead and lifeless with a word. The word of God communicates the divine Presence. This Word is the incarnate presence of God. It is through the word of God that the transcendent Ground of Being becomes immanent, near for man. The Word of God gives life and light to the desperate soul. When spoken, His Word quickens the dead to life and shows them how to walk in the night. When His Word is restrained, darkness covers the deep.
The divine lógos was the perfect visitation (presence) and revelation (communication) of God, incarnate (through human agency) in the man Christ Jesus. Whenever God condescends to give a people visitation it is marked by a display of His presence, the communication of a Word for the times, and a human agent through which to incarnate it.
The divine power and presence sits upon a meager man, the Kērússō (herald, or harbinger), a word from God, the Kērygma (the message, oracle or proclamation), quickens his soul to speak and he becomes the embodiment of God’s visitation. “…for there is no answer from god. But truly I am full of power by the Spirit of the LORD.”
There is a dearth and a famine in the land. The doors of heaven have been hut up against this day and this people. “Behold, the day come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst of water, but of hearing the words of the LORD:” There is a hunger and thirst in the hearts of men and women everywhere. Many perish and live without hope. Their need has went unsatisfied and they are desperate. “They shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shall not find it. In that day shall the fair virgins and young men faint for thirst.”
The quickening power of the presence and word of God has been withheld. His Spirit has been restrained and the dark night has covered the deep. God’s word is always preceded by a famine which makes hearts ready and expectant. In these famine days, mans predicament and his soul is desperate for a word that communicates the life and Presence of God.
WiseGuy Philosophy –the man and the ministry has emerged for such a time as this, charged with a word to quicken and divide the soul, preparing and announcing the dispensation of God, with answers to the questions and dilemmas facing us all, and leading the cause to preserve and salvage definitive Christian Fundamentalism. Purity ~ Compassion ~ Vigilance. WiseGuy is dedicated to addressing the controversial issues of the day, proclaiming the Wisdom and Glory of God, confronting the Church with its condition and the World with its future. Comforting the Afflicted, Afflicting the Comfortable! WiseGuy Philosophy –Applied Wisdom to meet the challenges of our day. ▲
To schedule an appearance or host an event Contact Us!
Lectern
From the podium of the conference or in the peripatetic tradition, WiseGuy Lectures are engaging, insightful and challenging, offering explanations and answers to the serious questions pursued by the human heart and the eye of its understanding.
WiseGuyLectures in Christian Thought address the ideas that shape the way we thinkand live from the Christian perspective. Christian thought spans a wide range of topics including theology, world-views, church controversies, apologetics, doctrines and dogma, Biblical studies and hermeneutics, culture, church history, and philosophy of religion to name a few.
WiseGuyLectures in Philosophical Thought address the ideas that shape the way we think and live with a philosophical perspective to uncover the ultimate realities that underlie the world around us, the world within us and the world above us. Philosophical Thought spans topics from ontology to existentialism, ethics to criminology, sociology and culture, developmental, social criminal, corporate and urban psychology to psychology of religion, politics to jurisprudence, metaphysics and philosophy of mind…In the Solon, Lecture Hall, or public debates, in the presence of two, or before thousands, WiseGuy Lectures bring the Wisdom and Glory of God to the forefront with refreshing and revitalizing ideas for our postmodern era.
The highlight of WiseGuy Lectures is the Lecture Series. Each lecture within these Series is an independent presentation that develops its own unique ideas in the context of the Series’ central theme. ▲
Christ in Culture Lecture Series Fallacies of Hope Lecture Series Power in the Pulpit Lecture Series Truth to Power Lecture Series Restoring the Justice Lecture Series Black Studies Lecture Series Psychology of Deprivation Lecture Series Sex, Lies, and Videotape Lecture Series Impressions of Childhood Lecture Series Social Foundations Lecture Series Real Men Lecture Series The Mind of Mayhem Lecture Series
LECTURE SERIES
Encore Careers: careers that matter
Sex, lies, and Videotape
Reason & Faith
Meaning & morality
Searching for where we came from on the way to where we’re going
Christ In Culture
Truth to Power
Überhero
What is Beauty?
Dysfunction: the new normal
What’s wrong with the West?
The Moral Impulse
On Man’s religious Tic
On the Just Society
Search for Significance
Nihilism and the Demise of the West —LECTURE—
“Life is punishment, death is a reprieve.” (Columbine Shooter Dylan Klebold wrote before his death)
Of Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold a May 3, 1999 (page 27) issue of Newsweek reported, “Both Harris and Klebold became enamored of Nazi culture…” (quoted in America: A Call to Greatness, John W. Chalfant, 2003, page 70)
The Rise and Demise of Western Idealism
African-American/Black Studies
Christ in culture
Balancing the Scales of Jurisprudence
Marriage and Family in Crisis
Nationalism and the Demise of the American Ethos
Mandate of the People: or common weal?
Truth, Reality, and Existential Meaning: postmodernism in crisis
The War of Culture
Speaking truth to power
Meaning & Morality
Post-Christian Society and the Future of America
“Image of Man”
To schedule an appearance or host an event Contact Us!
Seminars & Retreats
Singles and Marriage Seminars
Parenting Seminars
Pastor/Clergy Seminar
Challenges of Troubled Youth Seminars
Women’s Revival & Retreat Weekend
The Emerging Generations Seminar
Explore Weekend Men's Retreats
Literature has the unique ability and obligation to command our attention and challenge our thought. In the written page we see permanent words available for our studied contemplation and to which we can return until their meaning becomes more clear to us. Literature captures in time and history the ideas expressed by one generation and preserves it for the next.
Literature is the handmaiden of truth. Truth is timeless and as such speaks to every age. Among the sea of ideas, only the truth rises from the mass of forgotten pages and beckons to the soul of man, answering his ultimate questions and concerns. We all stand squarely on the shoulders of those who have went before us and from their position we see more clearly the truth contained in their statements. If ever once recorded in Written form, truth will avail itself and continue to resonate with the hearts of those who seek it. When literature speaks or contains the truth, it functions to preserve, chronicle and archive that truth until another comes searching for its treasure.
WiseGuy Philosophy –the man and the ministry is dedicated to proclaiming the Wisdom and Glory of God through the Written and spoken word. Literature is a timeless venue for proclaiming and preserving the Wisdom of God. WiseGuy is engaging, confronting and challenging the way we think and live by promoting, presenting and preserving in the written page the ideas that point to “the way, the truth, and the life.”▲
“The gods and heroes of Greek mythology were moral images—transcendent ideas. They were all images that represented a transcendent, innate idea. In the superhuman and hero the Greeks escaped the darkness and were able to keep the darkness at bay. In the image of the hero the Greeks consoled their yearning for the transcendent. The Hero speaks deeply to us as a transcendent idea.
Throughout the history of the West the yearning and appearance of the hero who symbolizes and represents the transcendent and whose image evoke the existential feeling of completeness, fulfillment, and wholeness surfaced inevery culture. America in the 20th century was no exception...
Costumed and superhuman powers transported these superheroes beyond humanity and represented their transcendence. As moral images, these superheroes emerged to confront the threats and uncertainties Americans faced. More so, costumed Superheroes appeared to satisfy a much deeper, existential yearning in the hearts of Americans; they represented the transcendent ideas which gave mortal men strength and courage and which touched man deeply.
Through their extraordinary action Superheroes took ideas which they championed to a whole other level. Since the times of the ancient Greeks the concept of aretē or the full potential of man’s nature had continuously developed and expanded. After the Stoics and under the influence of Christianity the excellence of man’s full potential was increasingly understood to be expressed internally; man’s full potential could be realized when the soul or nature was conformed to the virtues. In their actions costumed Superheroes represented the full potential of man. The ancient concept of aretē was represented in 20th century American culture in heroic, superhuman costume and character...
The Cult and infatuation with gods and heroes of human history represent transcendent ideas; myths are man’s attempt to answer the moral law within; myths have developed and endured because they represent transcendents that speak deeply to man; Überhero is the sacrificial hero of the people.
Excerpt from the original essay, On The Hero
Additional Resources
The views and information contained in these resources are those of its contributors. This Ministry does not accept responsibility or endorse all the content of these resources. Readers should remain vigilant.
Worship--Living toward something
Despicable Me! [movie review]
Mr. Grew’s self-centeredness led to a deep void and meaninglessness in his life, which he tried to fill with self-absorbed and satisfying adventures. The love and purity of the girls touched and softened his heart. Through this experience he found that the fulfillment and satisfaction his heart had been searching for could be found by sharing and investing in the lives of others.
The Grace of God
The Dispensations of God
God can be known with certainty through all His acts of revelation –the Bible, Creation, the Jewish people, Jesus Christ, the new birth and His dispensational movements in history- in His Heilsgeschichte (“salvation history”). The Bible is the annual, history and exemplar of God’s acts, character and will. Creation proclaims God as the origin and the teleological end of all things. The Jewish people and the Christ display the Character and intentions of God to save mankind. The new birth is the seal, the evidence and the power of God to deliver man from his predicament. The dispensational moves of God in history reveal the details and full scope of His redemptive plan. Theology views all these acts of divine communication or self-disclosure and seeks to form a coherent framework through which to Answer the questions implied in the human predicament, discern the times and interpret God’s Heilsgeschichte.
The history of God’s redemptive plan for man (Heilsgeschichte) is chronicled in the Bible and discernable in the dispensational shifts and moves of His Spirit in every age. Contemporary events such as Apostate Christianity, cell churches and the Jewish Awakening constitute unique dispensational movements of the Holy Ruach, or Spirit of God in history. All of God’s Answers to man’s questions have been enumerated in His Heilsgeschichte. We discern and understand the answers God has provided through a Biblical world-view. The three essential and controlling themes of the Bible that provide a paradigm through which to view God’s Heilsgeschichte are (1) the Glory of God, (2) the Grace of God, (3) the Rūach of God, (4) the Election of God, and (5) the Dispensations of God. By interpreting these divine themes, theology offers an explanation and answers to the questions and concerns raised by the human predicament. CLICK
The Election of God
Total Depravity
Total Depravity
Irresistible Grace
Unconditional Election
Supernatural New Birth
The Holy Ruach of God
The Glory of God
The Heilsgeschichte of God
The drama of God's Heilsgeschichte (salvation history) is ever unfolding, justifying the expectancy of the people of God. In every age, redemption takes on a new and progressive dispensation. Divine decree deals with a particular group of people, to the Glory of God, The hand of God is again shifting the Heilsgeschichte. A new dispensation is upon us, and God has not failed to reveal His purpose and intent to His contemporary Harbingers. New Day Dawning
Dietrich Bonhoeffer on Socrates and Christ
"Socrates mastered the art of dying; Christ overcame death as 'the last enemy' (1 Corinthians 15:26). There is a real difference between the two things; the one is within the scope of human possibilities, the other means resurrection. It is not from ars moriendi, the art of dying, but from the resurrection of Christ that a new and purifying wind can blow through our present world....If a few people really beleived that and acted on it in their daily lives, a great deal would be changed. To live in the light of the Resurrection--that is what Easter means." --Letters and Papers from Prison
What Calvin Got Right
The term 'Calvinism' is pejoratively applied by those who jump or slouch to conclusions about anyone who suggests that they have a problem with the notion of the free will in his salvation. The fact of the matter is Calvinism is an entire system based on his Institutes of the Christian Religion (1536). His Systematic Theology includes views on hierarchical church government, infant baptism, and the numerous implications of Covenantal theology. Many of his doctrines are dogmatically refuted by Reformed Baptists and Electionists alike. Limited Atonement
Many ReformedBaptists and Electionists seem comfortable enough with how 'Calvinism' articulated certain ideas of soteriology to reference the TULIP acronym when they express their own articles of faith. Restating well-articulated ideas does not a follower make.
Soteriology is the "doctrine of salvation." Electionism covers a body of soteriological doctrines that center around the basic but essential concept that God choses or elects people to salvation, not based on any foreseen or actual merit or obedience on their part, and that He alone effectuates this salvation in the lives of individuals by the supernatural indwelling of His Spirit.
The T.U.L.I.P. consists of five doctrines: the Total Depravity of man, his spiritual death and alienation toward God, and his complete inability to reach out toward God or do anything to change this predicament. He is dead unto God and in trespasses and sin; Unconditional Election—that God choses individuals to salvation by His own eternal and sovereign will and that this election is not based on any foreseen or actual merit or obedience on their part (unconditional); Limited Atonement—the doctrine that Christ "offered Himself as a sacrifice with the purpose of saving only His elect"; the doctrine of Irresistible Grace, which teaches that in relation to natural man’s regeneration, God effectually calls and draws a man to Himself and that this calling and drawing (Grace) is Irresistible; it cannot be ignored, rejected, or averted by the recipient; and the doctrine of Perseverance of the Saints, that those who are elected and indwelled by God’s Spirit “can neither totally nor finally fall away from the state of Grace; but shall certainly persevere therein to the end, and be eternally saved.” (Rom. 11:29; John 10:28; Phil. 1:6; 2 Thess. 3:3; 2 Tim. 1:12; 1 Peter 1:5). Among Reformed Baptists and Electionist', Limited Atonement is particularly up for debate.
The pejorative that anyone who argues for the Total Depravity (or spiritual lifelessness and alienation) of man and against free will is a 'Calvinist' is lazy. Electionists have been around since Abram was called out of Mesopotamia, Jonah was sent to Nineveh, and John the Baptist (reportedly) left the Essene Community to preach in the wilderness, long before John Calvin got some things right.
Contextualizing the GospelOn Man's Religious TicOn the Uses and Disadvantages of 'Christian' Counseling
ChristWalk -a short course in Christianity
The Bible is filled with many admonitions to “Walk” in the way of Christ. “A walk” implies a course or journey that leads to some desired end. The Apostle Paul’s admonition to “Walk in the Spirit” (Gal. 5:16, 25) carries a unique context. He challenges us to walk in the OT covenant promise of the Holy Rūach [Spirit] of God* which the NT believer is made partaker of; to embrace and walk in the covenant wherein we rest; walk in the [Spirit] Promise – be mindful, remember you are partaker of the promise and should walk as though He is in you. This New Covenant is righteous (Eph 4:24) because partakers of this New Covenant are indwelled and quickened by the Spirit of God whereby they are made spiritually alive unto God. To be righteous before God is to be quickened and directed by the Rūach of God to walk in the fruit of God (Gal 5:22,23). Those who are made alive unto God by His promised Spirit walk in a certain way and bear these fruit of righteousness (Phil 1:11). Jesus Christ is the perfect manifestation of God and His life fully reveals the will and righteousness of God. As the embodiment of God, Jesus Christ walked in the fruit of the Spirit(Gal. 5:22,23) and His walk revealed the spirit of this fruit(Phil. 4:8). As born again believers who are recipients of the New Covenant promise, we are lead by His Spirit to walk after Christ because His way leads to right standing before God and His pleasure -the desired end. If we have been made partaker of the New Covenant [the promised Rūach of God], we will walk as Christ walked because His Spirit lives within us and these fruit of righteousness will be evident in our lives. ChristWalk
He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked. 1 John 2:6
The Family, Foundations of SocietyPostmodernismThe Church, Foundations of SocietyThe State, Foundations of SocietyThe Eye of the SpiritRomans CommentaryThe Rule of the Rūach
'Twilight of the Idols'
“I say then, that idolatry is a worship in which the honor due to the Triune God, and to God only, is given to some of His creatures, or to some invention of His creatures.”—J.C. Ryle (1816-1900)
Hebrews Commentary
Dispensational Discourse (Romans 9 – 11) Were it not for the Apostle’s inspired explanation of the Jewish question in chapters nine through eleven, we would struggle in the absence of any other biblical testimony to coherently see the mystery (11:25) of God’s dispensational decree as it is being played out during and since the church age began. No other link provides such a definitive and explicit explanation for just how God will accomplish a shift back to Israel and what the Gentile church can expect in the wake. Where Peter’s famous sermon describes only the shift in dispensations to the Gentiles the Apostle Paul here reveals the consummation of God’s Heilsgeschichte, and leaves nothing doubting God’s dispensational scheme includes a shift of His grace back to the Jews when the fullness of the Gentiles be come in.
The Apostle enumerates the characteristics that every objective observer can always find in a dispensation of God. A dispensational shift always (1) makes some group desperately jealous to prepare them for salvation; (2) reveals the sovereign and free election of God; (3) reveals God as the sole sustainer and savior of fallen man.
The Apostle enumerates the characteristics that every objective observer can always find in a dispensation of God. The current dispensational shift makes the Jews desperately jealous to prepare them for salvation, reveals the sovereign and free election of God, reveals God as the sole sustainer and savior of fallen man to the praise and honor of His grace and glory, will conclude the Jews in unbelief because His glory and grace is magnified when extended particularistic, and will be bestowed upon a person or group who has absolutely no claim to it. The latter could only be said of Israel after they were cut off and hopelessly lost.
Wisdom, sapientia, is the knowledge of the principles, of truth itself.” (Paul Tillich, Theology of Culture, page 14, ed. Robert C. Kimball, 1959)
Pentecostal Power—a Baptist looks at the Bible doctrine of Pentecost
The views and information contained in these resources are those of its contributors. This Ministry does not accept responsibility or endorse all the content of these resources. Readers should remain vigilant.
Worship--Living toward something
We all worship something. Even the atheist worships himself. Worship is simply and profoundly, "Living toward something." No matter where we are at or where we are headed, we are living toward something. If we live our lives toward ourselves and our destructive appetites we will not find life at all but death.
Religion Sucks!
The Mortmodern mind is tired of a lifeless religion and a meaningless life. Whether sitting on a bar-stool or in a pew on Sunday morning, life without God is empty and leads to death.
A Postmodern Gospel
Why can't I find God anywhere?
The Insidious Culture of Relativity
The M’Naghten Rule was formulated by the judges of England in 1843 in response to public outcry that resulted when Daniel M’Naghten was aquitted, on the grounds of criminal insanity, of Mudering Sir Robert Peel’s private secretary by accident. “the nature and quality of the act he was doing…The question has generally been, whether the accused at the time of doing the act knew the difference between right and wrong.” The M’Naghten Rule is outmoded for one single reason: people in this day no longer understand right and wrong. The absence of any Ultimate Authority under which they exists has removed any semblance of a standard to understand the concept of right and wrong. —WiseGuy
The 'Deep Magic' of the Cross
Nietzsche was confused about life. He failed to realize that in the realm of “the deep magic” life and power come only through death. This is the real scandal of Christianity’s Cross. Every true hero knows courage is only manifest in the face of real threat to the self. “It is out of the deadliest struggles that we get the noblest characters.”* Excerpt from an original WiseGuy essay, On the Hero
*paragraph 185, George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950), Man and Superman (1903 play), Act I —Bartleby.com
'Sunday Neurosis'
"The withdrawal of God’s Spirit from America is most evident in her Churches. The Church has fell into repute and irrelevancy. They have been “left in spiritual disarray.” It has created unrest in almost every congregation and community.
More and more Americans are experiencing a mood called “Sunday neurosis.” Neuroses are disorders in thinking, feeling, and behavior that interfere with the individual’s everyday personal and social life. Neuroses can take the form of hysteria, anxiety, depression, obsession, and so on. These individuals experience a sense of dread and depression as Sunday approaches and is anticipated. This neurosis is often triggered by the individual’s experiences and memories of Sundays locked in/spent in lifeless Church exercises. The boredom, superficiality, and general absence of life, meaningless religious norms and exercises, create dread and depression.
The withdrawal of the life of God from American Christianity has led to a Great Exodus from Churches. People are leaving their long-held traditions and memberships in record numbers. They have found Churchianity useless and lifeless. They complain that they cannot find God there or the authentic experiences they yearn for. They complain that the Church has failed to effectively communicate its message, that it is “irrelevant to their every day lives,” that it simply has no answers relevant to postmodern culture, or that its message is no longer authentically Christian. As if this were not enough, exposure to the Church and its people often leave them feeling abused or nauseated."
The good news is only "good" to those who relaize they have a problem....
Spiritual Formation & Discipleship
The Promise of the Ruach
The Bible is filled with many admonitions to “Walk” in the way of Christ. “A walk” implies a course or journey that leads to some desired end. The Apostle Paul’s admonition to “Walk in the Spirit” (Gal. 5:16, 25) carries a unique context. He challenges us to walk in the OT covenant promise of the Holy Rūach [Spirit] of God* which the NT believer is made partaker of; to embrace and walk in the covenant wherein we rest; walk in the [Spirit] Promise – be mindful, remember you are partaker of the promise and should walk as though He is in you. This New Covenant is righteous (Eph. 4:24) because partakers of this New Covenant are indwelled and quickened by the Spirit of God whereby they are made spiritually alive unto God. To be righteous before God is to be quickened and directed by the Rūach of God to walk in the fruit of God (Gal 5:22,23). Those who are made alive unto God by His promised Spirit walk in a certain way and bear these fruit of righteousness (Phil 1:11).
Jesus Christ is the perfect manifestation of God and His life fully reveals the will and righteousness of God. As the embodiment of God, Jesus Christ walked in the fruit of the Spirit(Gal. 5:22,23) and His walk revealed the spirit of this fruit(Phil. 4:8). As born again believers who are recipients of the New Covenant promise, we are lead by His Spirit to walk after Christ because His way leads to right standing before God and His pleasure -the desired end. If we have been made partaker of the New Covenant [the promised Rūach of God], we will walk as Christ walked because His Spirit lives within us and these fruit of righteousness will be evident in our lives.
The Ten Commandments in New Testament Perspective
Christian Apologetics Christian Leadership
Christian Political Reconstruction
Philosophy of Religion
Doctrines & Dogma
Church Controversies
NotReligion.com
Christianity Claims to be a relationship, not a religion. The central idea behind the novel and insightful website not religion.com is that the Jesus of Christianity calls people into personal relationship even if much of “Christianity” has been institutionalized, religionized, and forgotten that it is the people that matter their needs are spiritual. Religianity builds its kingdom here in this world; Jesus builds the “Kingdom of God” in the hearts of men through intimate personal relationship with His people. “behold, the kingdom of God is within you.” (Luke 17:21)
The idea that Christianity is a relationship rather than a religion is based on the understanding of religion as “man’s attempt to reach God.” It is also based on the Bibles teaching that God comes to us; we do not go to Him. God reveals Himself in Jesus Christ to us and through this divine self-disclosure He covenants or commits to care for us and draw us near to Him. Religion is in the head, that is, it is a rational exercise. God is Spirit (John 4:24) and He relates to the spirit of man. This intimate communion of the Spirit of God with the spirit of man produces spiritual fruit and life in the heart of the believer and constitutes relationship.
All the religions of the world, even much of “Christendom,” is humanism—“man’s attempt to reach God.” Authentic biblical Christianity alone claims that God supernaturally indwells man as the basis of intimate, personal relationship.
Much of what is called “Christianity” and “Church” today is religianity. Like all other religions it is man-made, built only as monuments of nothingness to men, devoid of a genuine Christ-like love and compassion for people, ad driven by self-serving ambition and mechanized to trample over any poor or needy soul who gets in the way. Religion abuses people; Jesus fulfills them.
St. Augustine said, “Our hearts are restless until they rest in you O Lord,” (Augustine, Confessions 1.1). If your heart longs to find its rest, which religion, even religianity, find its rest, which religion, even religianity, cannot provide, visit www.notreligion.com and find a community that will encourage you to find instead relationship with Jesus Christ rather than religion.
Freewill & 1 Timothy 2
2:4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.
A maximum-security prison is the most unlikely place to find a group of intellectuals determined to make the world a better place. Each week an avant-garde assembles for the Socratic Society for Life and Culture, a project sponsored by Chaplain N.A. Cooper. Members meet behind the razor-wire to grapple with the big questions about life and society.
The Socratic Society was birthed out of the experiences of men who have learned first-hand the ruin, suffering, and devastation they have caused by lives of reckless and criminal irresponsibility. They have learned what it is to feel deeply the sense of responsibility, the call to leadership in their misguided environment and beyond, that restoration and redemption must always be associated with contribution and investment in the lives of others, and that they themselves must “be the change they want to see in the world.” Enlightened by exposure to the great minds, ideas, literature and events of world history—the sciences, arts, and philosophy—the Socratic Society is making a significant contribution to research, scholarship, public policy, social ethics, and the ideas that affect and influence all our lives. The Socratic Society project exemplifies the desire and intention of its members to become part of the solution rather than the problem.
The Socratic Society occasionally sponsors a conference, symposium or forum and invites community leaders, public officials, and those on the front lines who are making a difference in the world by confronting social dilemmas, promoting extraordinary values and achievements, and leading the way through innovation and critical thinking. These events are committed to honoring the integrity and authority of all state institutions and are strictly designed and function to encourage quality of life and culture for South Carolinians.
Socrates is famed for having said “Live by questions.” The Socratic Society for Life and Culture is asking the hard questions—from this unique perspective—about religion, humanity, social problems and solutions, politics, culture and life. Auguste Comte, the founder of sociology, said “Ideas govern the world or throw it into chaos.” The Socratic Society is actively committed to making a difference in life and culture by shedding light on the ideas that shape our world.
Freewill & 2 Peter 3
3: 9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to
The most powerful argument for the existence of God is the existential (moral) argument. —WiseGuy
Additional Resources
The views and information contained in these resources are those of its contributors. This Ministry does not accept responsibility or endorse all the content of these resources. Readers should remain vigilant.
Christian Patriotism addendums
Cf. “Christian Activism,” by Dave Hunt in the November 1989 issue of The Berean Call,
“Poliltical/Social Activism?” in the January 1997 issue of The Berean Call
“All truth is God’s truth.” (Steve Mitzell)
“Without a public capable of receiving them, ideas have little practical effect.” (Page 650, The Mainstream of Civilization, Chodorow/Knox/Schirikauer/Strayer/Gatzke)
“CHURCH ISN’T THE BIGGEST INFLUENCE IN MY LIFE OR MY SPIRITUAL DEVELOPMENT” ‘As a teenager, who or what is molding and shaping your attitudes and actions? Seventy-eight percent (78%) of them say: ‘It’s my parents.’ Studies show that their parents have three times the influence over….The prevalent idea that movies and TV have the greatest influence in our kids’ lives simply doesn’t hold up under the research…Parents have six times more influence over teenagers than TV does and almost eight times more influence than movies. Parents, therefore, carry far more weight —for good or bad—than they give themselves credit for.” (The Last Christian Generation, Josh McDowell, page 59)
The three pillars of the Christian faith: belief in the deity of Christ, the reliability of Scripture, and the bodily resurrection of Jesus! To this, I would argue that what is relevant to the world is the implications of these things, viz., the indwelling power of God to overcome the power of indwelling sin.!
When we chose a way in which to live we should always remember that we are all reference points that others refer back to. May we point to the Glory of God.—WiseGuy
“The world wants to amuse us. The word ‘amuse’ is a French word and literally means ‘no thinking’.” (Rev. Maarten Kuivenhoven)
“The age group least likely to claim belief in god is 18 to 29-year-olds, 84 percent of who said they are believers, compared to 94 percent of older Americans.” (2011 Gallup Poll, Belief in God Among Americans)
Additional Resources
The views and information contained in these resources are those of its contributors. This Ministry does not accept responsibility or endorse all the content of these resources. Readers should remain vigilant.
A Healthy Divorce: A Christain Response for Coping with the Destructive Force
“He who has a Why to live for can bear almost any How.” (Nietzsche quoted in, Man’s Search for Meaning, Viktor E. Frankl, page ix)
“The U.S. savings rate is zero; the current account deficit, the trade deficit and the budget deficit are high; the median income is flat; and commitments for entitlements are unsustainable.” —Fareed Zakaria, Newsweek International editor (The Future of American Power, May-June 2008, Foreign Affairs page 29)
Historically, misgovernment has taken four forms: (1) tyranny or oppression, (2) excessive ambition, (3) incompetence or decadence, (4) folly or perversity.—Barbara Tuchman, The March of Folly: From Troy to Vietnam (1984)
“Emerging adulthood is the age of identity explorations, the age of instability, the self-focused age, the age of feeling in between [adolescence and adulthood] and the age of possibilities.” (Dr. Jeffrey Arnett, developmental psychologist at Clark University, quoted in Relevant Magazine, March/April 2012)
“The world isn’t what it used to be, I don’t feel like I belong anywhere. I have no idea who I am or what I want out of life, so I’d rather just have fun right now and put off dealing with adulthood for as long as I can.” (23-year-old George Irving)
“In western Europe, I think it’s fair to say the good News about Jesus and the Kingdom is not considered to be a credible solution to the problems facing modern nations.” (Tyler Charles, article in Relevant,Mar/Apr 2012)
“Christendom” is “the story of Jesus plus military, civil and economic power, control and empire expansion.” (Tyler Charles, article in Relevant,Mar/Apr 2012)
“The tag ‘atheist’ functions more as a protest against formal religion than a description of their disbelief in any kind of god.” (page 21, Just Thinking Magazine, RZIM.org, in the article but John Dickson, Jesus: God’s Tangible Sign, volume 19.3) In this sense I stand with that otherwise deplorable man Nietzsche as an “atheist”.
“The ‘size’ of human suffering is absolutely relative.” (Man’s Search for Meaning, Viktor E. Frankl, page 44)
“We need to stop asking about the meaning of life, and instead to think of ourselves as those who were being questioned by life—daily and hourly. Our answer must consist, not in talk and meditation, but in right action and in right conduct.” (Man’s Search for Meaning, Viktor E. Frankl, page 77)
“Community”— a sense of fellowship with someone or something outside and larger than themselves
“Sex is justified, even sanctified, as soon as, but not as long as, it is a vehicle of love. Thus love is not understood as a mere side-effect of sex; rather, sex is a way of expressing the experience of that ultimate togetherness which is called love.” (Man’s Search for Meaning, Viktor E. Frankl, page 112)
“Life”—the empowerment (over the uncertainties of their life’s course; to control their lives); theconnection of community (fellowship of others outside them/larger than themselves); the reality of God’s presence.
The Power of Music
WORLDVIEWS
“A world view is, first of all, an explanation and interpretation of the world and second, an application of this view to life. (Page 13, Think Biblically: Rediscovering a Christian Worldview, Ed. John MacArthur, quoting Ronald Nash, Faith And Reason)
Worldview: “a collection of presuppositions, convictions, and values from which a person tries to understand and make sense out of the world and life.”(Page 13, Think Biblically: Rediscovering a Christian Worldview, Ed. John MacArthur)
Questions a Worldview should address:
How did the world and all that is in it come into being?
What is reality in terms of knowledge and truth?
How does/should the world function?
What is the nature of a human being?
What is one’s personal purpose of existence?
How should one live?
Is there any personal hope for the future?
What happens to a person at and after death?
Why is it possible to know anything at all?
How does one know what is right and what is wrong?
What is the meaning of human history?
What does the future hold?
(Page 14, Think Biblically: Rediscovering a Christian Worldview, Ed. John MacArthur)
“A Christian worldview contrasts with competing worldviews in that it: 1) recognizes that god is the unique source of all truth, and 2) relates all truth back to an understanding of God and His purposes for this life and the next.” (Page 15, Think Biblically: Rediscovering a Christian Worldview, Ed. John MacArthur)
“No person can be ‘argued into being a Christian.’ Yet without meeting rational criteria one’s religious experience is less that biblical and evangelical.”(Page 16, Carl F. Henry, quoted in Think Biblically: Rediscovering a Christian Worldview, Ed. John MacArthur)
“He whose head is in heaven need not fear to put his feet into the grave.” (Matthew Henry)
The term ‘CRACKER’
The term ‘Cracker’ used to describe white southerners. in south Georgia and north Florida. As early as the mid 1700’ it was used in Scotland as a colloquialism for boaster.
In Samuel Johnson’s famous 1755 Dictionary it described a “noisy, boasting fellow.” (oppressive?)
In the 19th century travelers wrote and referred to poor white farmers as Crackers which had some association with ‘cracking’ or pounding corn for food.
Later the term ‘whip crackers’ were those who used a long whip with a tip called a ‘cracker’.
“By the turn of the 20th century the term cracker was a pejorative for a poor mill worker or rural sharecropper.”
Postmodern Ministry
Postmodernism places no inherent value or meaning on spoken words. Like the written word, the spoken word is under every suspicion. Words are cheap these days and a mouth will say anything. In such a culture, we must earn the right to be heard. The word must be lived out in front of the world if we are to effectively communicate the truth. A life well lived cannot be ignored.
“Deep down, all of us sense that to some extent, the hells of our lives are related to the brokenness of our own hearts and minds, and that this brokenness is the most vital thing we must examine and fix.” (Escape Routes, Johann Christoph Arnold, page 103)
“Precisely because I do not have the beautiful words I need, I call upon my acts to speak to you.” (Daisy Zamora quoted in Escape Routes, Johann Christoph Arnold, page 118)
Christian Counseling
“It is significant that the psychological doctor (within my experience) is consulted more by Jews and Protestants than by Catholics. This might be expected, for the Catholic Church still feels responsible for the cura animarum (the care of the soul’s welfare). But in this scientific age, the psychiatrist is apt to be asked the questions that once belonged in the domain of the theologian.” (Man and His Symbols, Carl G. Jung, 1961, page 75)
The Servant-Leader
It is symbolic of an advanced state of moral and cultural decadence of a nation abandoning the centerpiece of its greatness- the family institution. ( “America A Call To Greatness” John W. Chalfant, pg.136).
Ravi Zacharias: “However one might wish to interpret it, the sword and warfare are an intrinsic part of the Islamic faith” Ravi Zacharias, Prophetic Observer, Aug.2001, (Quoted in “America A Call To Greatness” John W. Chalfant, pg.118-119).
Cherry-picking
“Regardless of compelling logic, the only test of truth is consistency with Scripture. We can’t begin with a philosophical idea of divine sovereignty or human freedom and then cherry-pick our favorite verses.” —Michael S. Horton, In the article, Debating Calvinism, in Relevant Magazine, January/February 2012, page51
Lynch-pin of the Debate
The Electionism vs. Freewill debate (Calvinism vs. Arminianism) is not as complicated as proponents have made it out to be. It hinges on one single factor: regeneration.
”While we’re busy creating political action committees to keep condoms our of “our” schools, while we push for “abstinence training” in “our” schools, “our” iPods are telling us (and forgive the anachronism) that we feel like making love, that what we need is sexual healing. The iPod wins every time.” (Dr. R.C. Sproul, Jr., article in TableTalk, 02/2007)
The Problem of Evil
Good God, Bad God: Theodicy Revisited
(or, On Evil in the World)
God is good but good or benevolent demands definition. What do we mean when we say that God is good? “Good” from whose perspective? God is glorified in our weakness—in our utter dependence on him. God is glorified as the Holy over against the profane. Our bad or evil reveals His good. Evil needs good for its definition. Evil/pain is necessary to shape or purge us into His image. Evil is inherent in a world of finite, moral creatures.
A theodicy is an explanation for how a supposedly good God allows evil in the world. I do not offer a theodicy because I do not think it’s necessary.
For centuries now agnostics, atheists, and skeptics have made a case against the existence of God based on the presence and prevalence of evil in the world. The position, as it goes, is that if any Being worthy of the name “God” existed He would be both all-powerful and benevolent. Such a God would not allow evil in the world, being both powerful to stop it and loving towards mankind. Defenders of this assumption have missed a very important point. The dilemma and debate does not rest on a question of either God’s power or benevolence. It hinges on the matter of His absence— when God is absent evil naturally materializes. The presence of evil in a situation does not prove the existence or nonexistence of God, it proves the absence of God. (from New Day Dawning)
Now we are left with the question, “If God’s presence vanquishes evil, why does He not visit every situation and every human heart? How presumptuous of us to think that He must!
The Value of Church Attendance
Church attendance — if the truth of God’s word is being proclaimed and there are gathering of individuals who are actively and genuinely seeking God in their lives —provides an opportunity for God’s external call.
It is the ideal place to be challenged to develop and grow in Christian maturity
The Call of God
God’s external call is broadcast to hearers everywhere. Whenever we sit under the gospel and word of God, we receive the external call. Yet without the accompanying internal call of the Spirit of God, it is to none effect.
“The word ‘focus’ (Latin fogur) refers to the hearth, the traditional center of the household. In Roman society, the union of a marriage was sanctified at the hearth, and in other times the dead were buried under the hearth. The fireside has traditionally been the place for the family to gather to work in leisure. In turn, home was the focus of security, significance, shelter and celebration. It assigned to each family member his or her tasks for the day, forming a web of nurturing human relationships.” (page 113, 114, James M. Houston, Joyful Exiles: Life in Christ on the dangerous edge of things)
Is Bill Cosby Right?-Abstract
“People who complain that Church is boring have no idea. Church is scary.” (Carolyn Arends, Taste the Soup, article in Christianity Today, September 2012)
We need a God who is personal. A non-personal God cannot share or touch our lives where we hurt and struggle. Before the face of a personal God we are not alone. God’s Spirit and His Word allow us to know Him intimately. “God’s Word reveals who He is and how His Holy Spirit empowers us to live like Him.” - Josh McDowell
“Because he is the God of relationships, he gives us his Spirit and his Word that we might know him so intimately that he literally lives in and through our very lives.” (The Last Christian Generation, Josh McDowell, page 74)
CLICK HERE
The Sovereignty & Glory of God
Above all else, God is sovereign. "Sovereignty" means that a thing needs nothing outside itself. Man is a contingent being, that is, his existence is contingent or reliant on something else outside himself. God is a necessary being-He needs nothing outside Himself and He is necessary for everything else to exist.
God needs nothing from man. He is a completely self-sustaining Being. However, there is one thing that man can add to God-we can add glory to Him. Our lives, microcosms of the universe which bears His handiwork, are made to give God glory. "We were made and our chief end is to glorify God." No other creature, not the angels in heaven or the devils below, can glorify God like we can for no other thing has the potential to be at the same time both great and destructive. Man has been given the greatest purpose in the universe.
Additional Resources
The views and information contained in these resources are those of its contributors. This Ministry does not accept responsibility or endorse all the content of these resources. Readers should remain vigilant.
Wall Street Revolutionaries
<<CLICK>>
Get it!
Can't we all get along?Be there for me. Be there for me.
Prismatic Christianity
“When a man looks through a prism he sees the distorted images formed in the glass and not the Object as it really is on the other side. The visible church has always been a prismatic Christianity. His image and likeness cannot be seen in the carnal nature of man. The Christian is called to be transparent, but when the world looks for Jesus in the visible Church it sees a grotesque distortion, a tragic misrepresentation of the real thing. In the course of human history, many evils have been carried out in the name of Christ, but real Christianity manifests the supernatural nature of Jesus Christ.” <<CLICK HERE>>
Scientific Quandry of Evolution
Darwin Under the Microscope: How Recent Scientifc Evidence Points to Divine Design BOOK Link
Ten Things Darwin Got Wrong PDF
Assumptions of Darwin
“Naturalistic evolution has clear consequences that Charles Darwin understood perfectly. 1) No gods worth having exist; 2) no life after death exists; 3) no ultimate foundation for ethics; 4) no ultimate meaning in life exists; and 5) human free will is nonexistent.”
“The existence of the capacity for rational thought is surely a pointer, not downwards to chance and necessity, but upwards to an intelligent source of that capacity.” (page 14, 15, Just Thinking Magazine, RZIM.org, in the article but John Lennox, Stephen Hawking and God, volume 19.3)
Limited Atonement
From the point of view of an Electionist, Calvin's T.U.L.I.P. acronym got some things right. The doctrines of Total Depravity, Unconditional Election, Irresistible Grace, and Perseverance of the Saints have sound biblical basis. The "L" in TULIP stands for Limited Atonement. Stated succinctly, it is the doctrine that Christ "offered Himself as a sacrifice with the purpose of saving only His elect.” The doctrine of Limited Atonement is based on a misconception of the nature and divine purpose of the Cross-work of Jesus Christ. TULIP?
The Calvinist view of Limited Atonement, or particular redemption, is intended to counter the (Arminian universalism) possibility of Christ making atonement without actually securing the salvation of all for whom He died. The Arminian view is that the Atonement was intended to save all men without exception but is limited in its accomplishment. “The cross is not directly a satisfaction for sin; it only becomes so when a sinner believes in Christ for salvation…salvation depends on human acceptance of it,” (Joel Beeke). This view is likewise ill-conceived, for obviously He does not save all men. To defend this view "exposes the work of Christ to the charge of wholesale failure," that this great and final work was ineffectual because it did not actually secure the salvation of those it was intended for.
The Cross-work has far too many ramifications and effects than can be discussed here. We can, however, be assured that the atonement itself was theological, not anthropological, that is, it was God, not man, who was the object. The atonement of Christ did not change something for man, it changed something for God.
The Atonement of Christ was necessary to (1) establish the severity and profanity of sin, and man’s separation and predicament, and it (2) signified and effectually put “the sins of the whole world” (1 John 2:2 ) away from the righteous judgment of God. It “propitiated the wrath of God,” (John Murray). “Through Christ's atoning blood, a holy God and sinful men and women are reconciled. The atonement brings unity and fellowship between God the Holy One and man the sinner. This is the central doctrine of Christianity because Christianity is preeminently a religion of redemption.” God was in Christ reconciling Himself to man, (1 John 2:2; Hebrews 2:17). In the Cross-work of Christ, all sin has once and forever been forgiven. In this way, the atonement is not limited.
The central question in the Calvinist/Arminian debate should not be Did the Cross-work of Christ universally atone for all or only for the elect? but Was the Object of the atonement God or man?God Himself was the Object of the Atonement; man is the Object of Regeneration. Regeneration is made possible by the power appropriated to the elect, through the Spirit, and because of the Cross-work of Jesus Christ. This regeneration by the indwelling power of God’s Holy Spirit in the soul of those chosen by God is anthropological.
What Calvin Got Right
The term 'Calvinism' is pejoratively applied by those who jump or slouch to conclusions about anyone who suggests that they have a problem with the notion of the free will in his salvation. The fact of the matter is Calvinism is an entire system based on his Institutes of the Christian Religion (1536). His Systematic Theology includes views on hierarchical church government, infant baptism, and the numerous implications of Covenantal theology. Many of his doctrines are dogmatically refuted by Reformed Baptists andElectionists alike. Limited Atonement
Many ReformedBaptists and Electionists seem comfortable enough with how 'Calvinism' articulated certain ideas of soteriology to reference the TULIP acronym when they express their own articles of faith. Restating well-articulated ideas does not a follower make.
Soteriology is the "doctrine of salvation." Electionism covers a body of soteriological doctrines that center around the basic but essential concept that God choses or elects people to salvation, not based on any foreseen or actual merit or obedience on their part, and that He alone effectuates this salvation in the lives of individuals by the supernaturalindwelling of His Spirit.
The T.U.L.I.P. consists of five doctrines: the Total Depravity of man, his spiritual death and alienation toward God, and his complete inability to reach out toward God or do anything to change this predicament. He is dead unto God and in trespasses and sin; Unconditional Election—that God choses individuals to salvation by His own eternal and sovereign will and that this election is not based on any foreseen or actual merit or obedience on their part (unconditional); Limited Atonement—the doctrine that Christ "offered Himself as a sacrifice with the purpose of saving only His elect"; the doctrine of Irresistible Grace, which teaches that in relation to natural man’s regeneration, God effectually calls anddraws a man to Himself and that this calling and drawing (Grace) is Irresistible; it cannot be ignored, rejected, or averted by the recipient; and the doctrine of Perseverance of the Saints, that those who are elected and indwelled by God’s Spirit “can neither totally nor finally fall away from the state of Grace; but shall certainly persevere therein to the end, and be eternally saved.” (Rom. 11:29; John 10:28; Phil. 1:6; 2 Thess. 3:3; 2 Tim. 1:12; 1 Peter 1:5). Among Reformed Baptists and Electionist', Limited Atonement is particularly up for debate.
The pejorative that anyone who argues for the Total Depravity (or spiritual lifelessness and alienation) of man and against free will is a 'Calvinist' is lazy. Electionists have been around since Abram was called out of Mesopotamia, Jonah was sent to Nineveh, and John the Baptist (reportedly) left the Essene Community to preach in the wilderness, long before John Calvin got some things right.
“Share the assumption that here is something wrong with this world and that one of the chief ways to fix it is to strive for greater authenticity.” (Exiles: Living Missionally in a Post-Christian Culture, Michael Frost, page 90) Inauthentic foods, politicians, ministers, entertainments, hobbies and activities are killing them—constitute what’s wrong with the world).
“want to know where their food comes from and what’s in it; they want politicians to come clean about the lies that they’ve told and musicians to play rather than mime at concerts; they want to speak to a person rather than a machine when they call a helpline; they seek out local produce and frequent framer’s markets as a means of revitalizing community agriculture and bypassing supermarket monopolies.” (Exiles: Living Missionally in a Post-Christian Culture, Michael Frost, page 89, referencing David Boyle in “Authenticity: Brands, Fakes, Spin and the Lust for Real Life”)
Mortmodern
“We need something ‘bigger than we are’ to be awed by and to commit ourselves to in a new, naturalistic, empirical, non-churchly sense, perhaps as Thoreau and Whitman, William James and John Dewey did.” (Abraham Maslow , Toward and Psychology of Being, 1956, page iv, quoted in The End of Christian sychology, Martin & Deidre Bobgan, 1997, page 201)
Dead-Hand
“The man of the future…will be living his transient life mostly in temporary relationships…he must be able to establish closeness quickly. He must be able to leave these close relationships behind without excessive conflict or mourning.” (Carl Rogers, quoted in The End of Christian Psychology, Martin & Deidre Bobgan, 1997, page 212)
Nihilism and the Demise of the West —LECTURE—
“Life is punishment, death is a reprieve.” (Columbine Shooter Dylan Klebold wrote before his death)
Of Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold a May 3, 1999 (page 27) issue of Newsweek reported, “Both Harris and Klebold became enamored of Nazi culture…” (quoted in America: A Call to Greatness, John W. Chalfant, 2003, page 70)
Mr. Grew’s self-centeredness led to a deep void and meaninglessness in his life, which he tried to fill with self-absorbed and satisfying adventures. The love and purity of the girls touched and softened his heart. Through this experience he found that the fulfillment and satisfaction his heart had been searching for could be found by sharing and investing in the lives of others.
Theological Metanarrative
We live our lives based on the ideas and assumptions of a world view. The question is whta wolrd-view do we live? Many are wearied and have turned a deaf ear to the culture war between world-views. Many of us have seen the movie,“This is your life,” and Hollywood has produced a relentless list of films following the life of one lone individual. Well this is your life. More specifically, this is your metanarrative. A narrative is a story but a meta-narrative is an explanation and interpretation of the story. This is a world-view many might find true to their experience.
You are born into alienation—alone is the essential human predicament.
You sense in one form or another isolation, estrangement, and predicament.
You spend most of your life trying to satisfy, massage, or overcome this cosmic aloneness.
At some point in your life—hopefully sooner rather than later you sense a “spiritual” void and you look upward or outward to fill this need…
The individual experiences union with the divine and in so doing eliminates the separation between himself and God.
A Supernatural Christianity
Of all the religions in the world, authentic Christianity is the only faith that claims to provide a supernatural remedy to our human predicament...
The supernatural provides a higher principle by which man can live and obtain deliverance from the bondage of his human predicament. Through the power of Jesus Christ, God’s plan of redemption for mankind is the Answer to all the questions implied in human existence. And our hope is confident because God is not [natural] and man that He should lie; our hope is secured by the Character of God. Man’s ultimate predicament is that the application of the spiritual life he so desperately needs is completely out of his control. This idea is the nemesis of every humanist!
Additional Resources
The views and information contained in these resources are those of its contributors. This Ministry does not accept responsibility or endorse all the content of these resources. Readers should remain vigilant.
The Moral Impulse
Three Foundations of Society
“It is not accidental that Paul refers to the Church as the pillar and foundation of the truth (I Timothy 3:15).” (J.M. Njoroge, in his article Apologetics: Why Your Church Needs It, in Just Thinking: The Triannual Communique of Ravi Zacharias International Ministries,Volume 18.3, page 11)
Missions in a Post-Christian Society
The Jewish Question is the phenomenon, as well as the implications, surrounding the origin, existence, purpose, and future of the Jewish people in human history. The Jewish Question poses many considerations for the conscientious observer. Inquiry into the Jewish Question seeks to answer and understand the uncontroverted prominence of the Jew and Israel in human history. The Jews, and Israel as a nation, are unavoidably found at the epicenter of current world events. In answer to this question, Dispensationalism holds with the Scriptures that the Jew is a peculiar and chosen people before God. As a result, the determined existence and future of the Jew has been ordained by God f a glorious end. In this view, the purpose of God for the Jew controls and influences the ultimate course of history for all mankind.
A 2008 presentation given by WiseGuy before a group of Muslims
he befriended. As the relationships grew, there were many conversations about the differences between authentic Christianity and Islam. WiseGuy pulled no punches in this public presentation. CLICK HERE
Philosophy is the love (Philía) of Wisdom (Sophía). Philosophy says that there is a higher truth, reality, and point of reference that lye under, behind, or above everything that appears before us. Philosophy that takes a view from God’s reference or vantage point is true “Wisdom” and “giveth life to them that have it.”
Quite literally, Wisdom is to see or perceive from a higher point of reference; to see from God's perspective. There is no higher point of reference than God's. We find the answers to life's greatest questions when we conform our lives to the wisdom of God. God has revealed Himself, His Wisdom and Glory, in the Power and Person of Jesus Christ, the Word, and the supernatural indwelling, quickening Spirit.
We passionately pursue Wisdom because we are convinced that it provides remedial answers to the problems and predicament faced in human existence.
No matter what you're looking for, WiseGuy Philosophy has some thoughts for you. WiseGuy Philosophy, the man and the ministry, is dedicated to proclaiming the Wisdom and Glory of God in Jesus Christ by engaging, confronting, and challenging the myths, philosophies, values, beliefs, and assumptions that pervade the culture.
WiseGuy is engaging, confronting, and challenging the way we think and live through the ideas that move us. Asking the relevant questions, thinking deeper, making sense of it all. WiseGuy Philosophy--Applied Wisdom to meet the challenges of our day. Answers for life.
From the pulpit, lectern, and written page, WiseGuy is answering the questions and ideas of contemporary American culture with the Wisdom of God. Dedicated to the ideas that shape our world.
Proclaiming the Wisdom and Glory of God in Jesus Christ
and the hopelessness of our times outside of life quickened by the His Spirit
Reminding the Church of its condition and the world of its future
Comforting the afflicted, afflicting the Comfortable!
What he believes & proclaims:
THE ABSOLUTES
THE WORLDVIEW
DOCTRINES & DOGMA
The Christian Message
the Gospel, community life, personal ethics, and kingdom of God
The Christian Doctrine
Power and Person of Jesus Christ through the indwelling of Spirit to overcome the power of the human predicament and sin.
the final authority of Scripture
the exclusivity of Christ
The three pillars of the Christian faith:
belief in the deity of Christ,
the reliability of Scripture,
the bodily resurrection of Jesus!
To this, I would argue that what is relevant to the world is the implications of these things, viz., the indwelling power of God to overcome the power of indwelling sin.!
"The withdrawal of God’s Spirit from America is most evident in her Churches. The Church has fell into repute and irrelevancy. They have been “left in spiritual disarray.” It has created unrest in almost every congregation and community.
More and more Americans are experiencing a mood called “Sunday neurosis.” Neuroses are disorders in thinking, feeling, and behavior that interfere with the individual’s everyday personal and social life. Neuroses can take the form of hysteria, anxiety, depression, obsession, and so on. These individuals experience a sense of dread and depression as Sunday approaches and is anticipated. This neurosis is often triggered by the individual’s experiences and memories of Sundays locked in/spent in lifeless Church exercises. The boredom, superficiality, and general absence of life, meaningless religious norms and exercises, create dread and depression.
The withdrawal of the life of God from American Christianity has led to a Great Exodus from Churches. People are leaving their long-held traditions and memberships in record numbers. They have found Churchianity useless and lifeless. They complain that they cannot find God there or the authentic experiences they yearn for. They complain that the Church has failed to effectively communicate its message, that it is “irrelevant to their every day lives,” that it simply has no answers relevant to postmodern culture, or that its message is no longer authentically Christian. As if this were not enough, exposure to the Church and its people often leave them feeling abused or nauseated."
“When a man looks through a prism he sees the distorted images formed in the glass and not the Object as it really is on the other side. The visible church has always been a prismatic Christianity. His image and likeness cannot be seen in the carnal nature of man. The Christian is called to be transparent, but when the world looks for Jesus in the visible Church it sees a grotesque distortion, a tragic misrepresentation of the real thing. In the course of human history, many evils have been carried out in the name of Christ, but real Christianity manifests the supernatural nature of Jesus Christ.” <<CLICK HERE>>
We live our lives based on the ideas and assumptions of a world view. The question is whta wolrd-view do we live? Many are wearied and have turned a deaf ear to the culture war between world-views. Many of us have seen the movie,“This is your life,” and Hollywood has produced a relentless list of films following the life of one lone individual. Well this is your life. More specifically, this is your metanarrative. A narrative is a story but a meta-narrative is an explanation and interpretation of the story. This is a world-view many might find true to their experience.
You are born into alienation—alone is the essential human predicament.
You sense in one form or another isolation, estrangement, and predicament.
You spend most of your life trying to satisfy, massage, or overcome this cosmic aloneness.
At some point in your life—hopefully sooner rather than later you sense a “spiritual” void and you look upward or outward to fill this need…
The individual experiences union with the divine and in so doing eliminates the separation between himself and God.
Horrific and compelling testimonies from inmates.
Tragic Narratives chronicles the stories of four crime- and sin-hardened inmates who found peace, purpose, and redemption after they destroyed themselves, ruined the lives of others, and went to prison.
run time: 73 minutes
Prismatic Christianity
“When a man looks through a prism he sees the distorted images formed in the glass and not the Object as it really is on the other side. The visible church has always been a prismatic Christianity. His image and likeness cannot be seen in the carnal nature of man. The Christian is called to be transparent, but when the world looks for Jesus in the visible Church far too often it sees a grotesque distortion, a tragic misrepresentation of the real thing. In the course of human history, many evils have been carried out in the name of Christ, but real Christianity manifests the supernatural nature of Jesus Christ.” <<CLICK HERE>>
Limited Atonement
From the point of view of an Electionist, Calvin's T.U.L.I.P. acronym got some things right. The doctrines of Total Depravity, Unconditional Election, Irresistible Grace, and Perseverance of the Saints have sound biblical basis. The "L" in TULIP stands for Limited Atonement. Stated succinctly, it is the doctrine that Christ "offered Himself as a sacrifice with the purpose of saving only His elect.” The doctrine of Limited Atonement is based on a misconception of the nature and divine purpose of the Cross-work of Jesus Christ. TULIP?
The Calvinist view of Limited Atonement, or particular redemption, is intended to counter the (Arminian universalism) possibility of Christ making atonement without actually securing the salvation of all for whom He died. The Arminian view is that the Atonement was intended to save all men without exception but is limited in its accomplishment. “The cross is not directly a satisfaction for sin; it only becomes so when a sinner believes in Christ for salvation…salvation depends on human acceptance of it,” (Joel Beeke). This view is likewise ill-conceived, for obviously He does not save all men. To defend this view "exposes the work of Christ to the charge of wholesale failure," that this great and final work was ineffectual because it did not actually secure the salvation of those it was intended for.
The Cross-work has far too many ramifications and effects than can be discussed here. We can, however, be assured that the atonement itself was theological, not anthropological, that is, it was God, not man, who was the object. The atonement of Christ did not change something for man, it changed something for God.
The Atonement of Christ was necessary to (1) establish the severity and profanity of sin, and man’s separation and predicament, and it (2) signified and effectually put “the sins of the whole world” (1 John 2:2 ) away from the righteous judgment of God. It “propitiated the wrath of God,” (John Murray). “Through Christ's atoning blood, a holy God and sinful men and women are reconciled. The atonement brings unity and fellowship between God the Holy One and man the sinner. This is the central doctrine of Christianity because Christianity is preeminently a religion of redemption.” God was in Christ reconciling Himself to man, (1 John 2:2; Hebrews 2:17). In the Cross-work of Christ, all sin has once and forever been forgiven. In this way, the atonement is not limited.
The central question in the Calvinist/Arminian debate should not be Did the Cross-work of Christ universally atone for all or only for the elect? but Was the Object of the atonement God or man?God Himself was the Object of the Atonement; man is the Object of Regeneration. Regeneration is made possible by the power appropriated to the elect, through the Spirit, and because of the Cross-work of Jesus Christ. This regeneration by the indwelling power of God’s Holy Spirit in the soul of those chosen by God is anthropological.
A Supernatural Christianity
Of all the religions in the world, authentic Christianity is the only faith that claims to provide a supernatural remedy to our human predicament...
The supernatural provides a higher principle by which man can live and obtain deliverance from the bondage of his human predicament. Through the power of Jesus Christ, God’s plan of redemption for mankind is the Answer to all the questions implied in human existence. And our hope is confident because God is not [natural] and man that He should lie; our hope is secured by the Character of God. Man’s ultimate predicament is that the application of the spiritual life he so desperately needs is completely out of his control. This idea is the nemesis of every humanist!
The Jewish Question is the phenomenon, as well as the implications, surrounding the origin, existence, purpose, and future of the Jewish people in human history. The Jewish Question poses many considerations for the conscientious observer. Inquiry into the Jewish Question seeks to answer and understand the uncontroverted prominence of the Jew and Israel in human history. The Jews, and Israel as a nation, are unavoidably found at the epicenter of current world events. In answer to this question, Dispensationalism holds with the Scriptures that the Jew is a peculiar and chosen people before God. As a result, the determined existence and future of the Jew has been ordained by God f a glorious end. In this view, the purpose of God for the Jew controls and influences the ultimate course of history for all mankind.
A 2008 presentation given by WiseGuy before a group of Muslims
he befriended. As the relationships grew, there were many conversations about the differences between authentic Christianity and Islam. WiseGuy pulled no punches in this public presentation. CLICK HERE
The Heilsgeschichte of God
The drama of God's Heilsgeschichte (salvation history) is ever unfolding, justifying the expectancy of the people of God. In every age, redemption takes on a new and progressive dispensation. Divine decree deals with a particular group of people, to the Glory of God, The hand of God is again shifting the Heilsgeschichte. A new dispensation is upon us, and God has not failed to reveal His purpose and intent to His contemporary Harbingers. New Day Dawning
The Glory of God
The Grace of God
The Holy Ruach of God
The Election of God
Total Depravity
Total Depravity
Irresistible Grace
Unconditional Election
Supernatural New Birth
The Dispensations of God
God can be known with certainty through all His acts of revelation –the Bible, Creation, the Jewish people, Jesus Christ, the new birth and His dispensational movements in history- in His Heilsgeschichte (“salvation history”). The Bible is the annual, history and exemplar of God’s acts, character and will. Creation proclaims God as the origin and the teleological end of all things. The Jewish people and the Christ display the Character and intentions of God to save mankind. The new birth is the seal, the evidence and the power of God to deliver man from his predicament. The dispensational moves of God in history reveal the details and full scope of His redemptive plan. Theology views all these acts of divine communication or self-disclosure and seeks to form a coherent framework through which to Answer the questions implied in the human predicament, discern the times and interpret God’s Heilsgeschichte.
The history of God’s redemptive plan for man (Heilsgeschichte) is chronicled in the Bible and discernable in the dispensational shifts and moves of His Spirit in every age. Contemporary events such as Apostate Christianity, cell churches and the Jewish Awakening constitute unique dispensational movements of the Holy Ruach, or Spirit of God in history. All of God’s Answers to man’s questions have been enumerated in His Heilsgeschichte. We discern and understand the answers God has provided through a Biblical world-view. The three essential and controlling themes of the Bible that provide a paradigm through which to view God’s Heilsgeschichte are (1) the Glory of God, (2) the Grace of God, (3) the Rūach of God, (4) the Election of God, and (5) the Dispensations of God. By interpreting these divine themes, theology offers an explanation and answers to the questions and concerns raised by the human predicament. CLICK
Pentecostal Power—a Baptist looks at the Bible doctrine of Pentecost
Hebrews Commentary
ChristWalk -a short course in Christianity
The Bible is filled with many admonitions to “Walk” in the way of Christ. “A walk” implies a course or journey that leads to some desired end. The Apostle Paul’s admonition to “Walk in the Spirit” (Gal. 5:16, 25) carries a unique context. He challenges us to walk in the OT covenant promise of the Holy Rūach [Spirit] of God* which the NT believer is made partaker of; to embrace and walk in the covenant wherein we rest; walk in the [Spirit] Promise – be mindful, remember you are partaker of the promise and should walk as though He is in you. This New Covenant is righteous (Eph 4:24) because partakers of this New Covenant are indwelled and quickened by the Spirit of God whereby they are made spiritually alive unto God. To be righteous before God is to be quickened and directed by the Rūach of God to walk in the fruit of God (Gal 5:22,23). Those who are made alive unto God by His promised Spirit walk in a certain way and bear these fruit of righteousness (Phil 1:11). Jesus Christ is the perfect manifestation of God and His life fully reveals the will and righteousness of God. As the embodiment of God, Jesus Christ walked in the fruit of the Spirit(Gal. 5:22,23) and His walk revealed the spirit of this fruit(Phil. 4:8). As born again believers who are recipients of the New Covenant promise, we are lead by His Spirit to walk after Christ because His way leads to right standing before God and His pleasure -the desired end. If we have been made partaker of the New Covenant [the promised Rūach of God], we will walk as Christ walked because His Spirit lives within us and these fruit of righteousness will be evident in our lives. ChristWalk
He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked. 1 John 2:6
On Man's Religious Tic
On the Uses and Disadvantages of 'Christian' Counseling
Contextualizing the Gospel
Dispensational Discourse (Romans 9 – 11) Were it not for the Apostle’s inspired explanation of the Jewish question in chapters nine through eleven, we would struggle in the absence of any other biblical testimony to coherently see the mystery (11:25) of God’s dispensational decree as it is being played out during and since the church age began. No other link provides such a definitive and explicit explanation for just how God will accomplish a shift back to Israel and what the Gentile church can expect in the wake. Where Peter’s famous sermon describes only the shift in dispensations to the Gentiles the Apostle Paul here reveals the consummation of God’s Heilsgeschichte, and leaves nothing doubting God’s dispensational scheme includes a shift of His grace back to the Jews when the fullness of the Gentiles be come in.
The Apostle enumerates the characteristics that every objective observer can always find in a dispensation of God. A dispensational shift always (1) makes some group desperately jealous to prepare them for salvation; (2) reveals the sovereign and free election of God; (3) reveals God as the sole sustainer and savior of fallen man.
The Apostle enumerates the characteristics that every objective observer can always find in a dispensation of God. The current dispensational shift makes the Jews desperately jealous to prepare them for salvation, reveals the sovereign and free election of God, reveals God as the sole sustainer and savior of fallen man to the praise and honor of His grace and glory, will conclude the Jews in unbelief because His glory and grace is magnified when extended particularistic, and will be bestowed upon a person or group who has absolutely no claim to it. The latter could only be said of Israel after they were cut off and hopelessly lost.
What Calvin Got Right
The term 'Calvinism' is pejoratively applied by those who jump or slouch to conclusions about anyone who suggests that they have a problem with the notion of the free will in his salvation. The fact of the matter is Calvinism is an entire system based on his Institutes of the Christian Religion (1536). His Systematic Theology includes views on hierarchical church government, infant baptism, and the numerous implications of Covenantal theology. Many of his doctrines are dogmatically refuted by Reformed Baptists and Electionists alike. Limited Atonement
Many ReformedBaptists and Electionists seem comfortable enough with how 'Calvinism' articulated certain ideas of soteriology to reference the TULIP acronym when they express their own articles of faith. Restating well-articulated ideas does not a follower make.
Soteriology is the "doctrine of salvation." Electionism covers a body of soteriological doctrines that center around the basic but essential concept that God choses or elects people to salvation, not based on any foreseen or actual merit or obedience on their part, and that He alone effectuates this salvation in the lives of individuals by the supernatural indwelling of His Spirit.
The T.U.L.I.P. consists of five doctrines: the Total Depravity of man, his spiritual death and alienation toward God, and his complete inability to reach out toward God or do anything to change this predicament. He is dead unto God and in trespasses and sin; Unconditional Election—that God choses individuals to salvation by His own eternal and sovereign will and that this election is not based on any foreseen or actual merit or obedience on their part (unconditional); Limited Atonement—the doctrine that Christ "offered Himself as a sacrifice with the purpose of saving only His elect"; the doctrine of Irresistible Grace, which teaches that in relation to natural man’s regeneration, God effectually calls and draws a man to Himself and that this calling and drawing (Grace) is Irresistible; it cannot be ignored, rejected, or averted by the recipient; and the doctrine of Perseverance of the Saints, that those who are elected and indwelled by God’s Spirit “can neither totally nor finally fall away from the state of Grace; but shall certainly persevere therein to the end, and be eternally saved.” (Rom. 11:29; John 10:28; Phil. 1:6; 2 Thess. 3:3; 2 Tim. 1:12; 1 Peter 1:5). Among Reformed Baptists and Electionist', Limited Atonement is particularly up for debate.
The pejorative that anyone who argues for the Total Depravity (or spiritual lifelessness and alienation) of man and against free will is a 'Calvinist' is lazy. Electionists have been around since Abram was called out of Mesopotamia, Jonah was sent to Nineveh, and John the Baptist (reportedly) left the Essene Community to preach in the wilderness, long before John Calvin got some things right.
Postmodernism
The Family, Foundations of Society
The Church, Foundations of Society
The State, Foundations of Society
The Eye of the Spirit
Romans Commentary
'Twilight of the Idols'
“I say then, that idolatry is a worship in which the honor due to the Triune God, and to God only, is given to some of His creatures, or to some invention of His creatures.”—J.C. Ryle (1816-1900)
The Rule of the Rūach
Freewill & 1 Timothy 2
2:4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.
3: 9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to
The Bible is filled with many admonitions to “Walk” in the way of Christ. “A walk” implies a course or journey that leads to some desired end. The Apostle Paul’s admonition to “Walk in the Spirit” (Gal. 5:16, 25) carries a unique context. He challenges us to walk in the OT covenant promise of the Holy Rūach [Spirit] of God* which the NT believer is made partaker of; to embrace and walk in the covenant wherein we rest; walk in the [Spirit] Promise – be mindful, remember you are partaker of the promise and should walk as though He is in you. This New Covenant is righteous (Eph. 4:24) because partakers of this New Covenant are indwelled and quickened by the Spirit of God whereby they are made spiritually alive unto God. To be righteous before God is to be quickened and directed by the Rūach of God to walk in the fruit of God (Gal 5:22,23). Those who are made alive unto God by His promised Spirit walk in a certain way and bear these fruit of righteousness (Phil 1:11).
Jesus Christ is the perfect manifestation of God and His life fully reveals the will and righteousness of God. As the embodiment of God, Jesus Christ walked in the fruit of the Spirit(Gal. 5:22,23) and His walk revealed the spirit of this fruit(Phil. 4:8). As born again believers who are recipients of the New Covenant promise, we are lead by His Spirit to walk after Christ because His way leads to right standing before God and His pleasure -the desired end. If we have been made partaker of the New Covenant [the promised Rūach of God], we will walk as Christ walked because His Spirit lives within us and these fruit of righteousness will be evident in our lives.
“When a man looks through a prism he sees the distorted images formed in the glass and not the Object as it really is on the other side. The visible church has always been a prismatic Christianity. His image and likeness cannot be seen in the carnal nature of man. The Christian is called to be transparent, but when the world looks for Jesus in the visible Church it sees a grotesque distortion, a tragic misrepresentation of the real thing. In the course of human history, many evils have been carried out in the name of Christ, but real Christianity manifests the supernatural nature of Jesus Christ.” <<CLICK HERE>>
A horrific story of how justice and redemption brought peace to a troubled soul
No one can fully predict where a young life will lead. The circumstances, opportunities, and tragedies of life make their mark. One thing that is certain is that broken and hurt people almost always pass the pain on to others. “Broken people break people; hurt people, hurt people.”
In this candid memoir, the author gives us
a glimpse into how a child can think, feel,
interpret, and respond to traumatic experiences. But tragedy is turned into triumph when the One who knows us most intimately, who made our every part, comes to “bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound.”
In Caged Rage the author takes us along for a heart-wrenching self-examination of how his reckless rage destroyed lives, led him to prison, and how in this most unlikely place he was radically and forever changed.
Prismatic Christianity
“When a man looks through a prism he sees the distorted images formed in the glass and not the Object as it really is on the other side. The visible church has always been a prismatic Christianity. His image and likeness cannot be seen in the carnal nature of man. The Christian is called to be transparent, but when the world looks for Jesus in the visible Church it sees a grotesque distortion, a tragic misrepresentation of the real thing. In the course of human history, many evils have been carried out in the name of Christ, but real Christianity manifests the supernatural nature of Jesus Christ.” <<CLICK HERE>>
New Day Dawning: how Americans everywhere have felt the move of God but can’t find Him anywhere
A critique of contemporary American culture and the Christian church. Mortmodernists are an emerging culture who are looking for a deeper spiritual and way of life than these have to offer. Ministry to this emerging culture requires a unique approach.
ChristWalk
Contextualizing the Gospel
Sexual Deviancy Disclosure Groups: how a group of unassuming prisoners created a culture of accountability and found wholeness and healing by living transparently
A how-to manual on creating powerful and effective disclosure groups and a look at how a philosophy of disclosure can break the taboo about sexuality, teach sex offenders or anyone how to protect themselves from deviancy by creating a culture of accountability and living transparently, and how an educational campaign can prevent sex offenders from reoffending and protect potential victims
On the Uses and Disadvantages of 'Christain' Counseling
Überhero
A debut of the author’s moral philosophy and a call to embrace the Superhero within by living in and for the moral world beyond this one. By participating in transcendent (moral) ideas we can rise above the self, suffering, and meaninglessness of the human predicament. The Überhero is the “image of man” who will teach us how to live
Contextualizing the Gospel
Wall Street Revolutionaries
The Descent of Man: a metanarrative of how western man’s autonomous climb to the top led him to the bottom
A history of the Western mind, philosophies, and ideas that have led the West in general, and Americans in particular, into the nihilistic abyss of what the author refers to as “moral individualism”
Charles Darwin wrote The Descent of Man postulating that man is born in a low estate and that he evolves to a higher state. ...
The Ten Commandments in New Testament Perspective
Postmodernism
The Family, Foundations of Society
The Church, Foundations of Society
The State, Foundations of Society
The Eye of the Spirit: the Bible doctrine of Faith
Can't we all get along?Be there for me. Be there for me.
Prismatic Christianity
“When a man looks through a prism he sees the distorted images formed in the glass and not the Object as it really is on the other side. The visible church has always been a prismatic Christianity. His image and likeness cannot be seen in the carnal nature of man. The Christian is called to be transparent, but when the world looks for Jesus in the visible Church it sees a grotesque distortion, a tragic misrepresentation of the real thing. In the course of human history, many evils have been carried out in the name of Christ, but real Christianity manifests the supernatural nature of Jesus Christ.” <<CLICK HERE>>
Commenting on What Paul Tripp calls the “age of opportunity,” Jerry Benjamins says “Our teens desperately need the wise and loving influence of their parents to guide them through these strenuous years.”
“Tupac didn’t just become a thug—he became a metaphysical thug. He was the thinking man’s verbal outlaw.” (Michael Eric Dyson, Holler if you Hear Me: Searching for Tupac Shakur, in the INTRODUTION)
“Taking time to learn what our youth are thinking and why they create the art they do demands a capacity for deferred justification that most adults lack. They seek to ensure the legitimacy of their moral critique by rendering quick and easy judgments about the art form.” (Michael Eric Dyson, Holler if you Hear Me: Searching for Tupac Shakur, page 118)
“Given its universal popularity and its troubling effects, hip-hop is a vital cultural language that we had all better learn. To ignore its genius, to romanticize its deficits, or to bash it with undiscerning generalities is to risk the opportunity to engage our children about perhaps the most important cultural force in their lives.” (Michael Eric Dyson, Holler if you Hear Me: Searching for Tupac Shakur, page 137, 138)
“Many critics are unable to acknowledge the ingenuity of artistically exploring the attractions and limits of black moral and social subcultures.” (Michael Eric Dyson, Holler if you Hear Me: Searching for Tupac Shakur, page 169)
Hip-hop/Rap
“Raps holy trinity: broads, bling, and booze.” (Michael Eric Dyson, Holler if you Hear Me: Searching for Tupac Shakur, in the INTRODUTION)
“glorifying guns, gangs, and the ghetto.” (Michael Eric Dyson, Holler if you Hear Me: Searching for Tupac Shakur, page 137)
“Teenagers today are the most relational and community-oriented generation in history….Young people rank ‘close, personal friendships,’ ‘one marriage partner for life,’ ‘a close relationships with God,’ and ‘influencing other people’s lives’ so highly that Barna says, ‘One of the distinguishing marks of [today’s kids] has been their insistence upon the importance of personal relationship…[They] appear to esteem relationships more highly than has been the norm for more that a quarter century.” (The Last Christian Generation, Josh McDowell, page 61)
“In many ways, today’s youth are just as promising and as spiritually inclined as any generation.” (The Last Christian Generation, Josh McDowell, page 14)
I am the way into the city of woe.
I am the way to a forsaken people.
I am the way into eternal sorrow.
Sacred justice moved my architect.
I was raised here by divine omnipotence.
Primordial love and ultimate intellect.
Only those elements time cannot wear.
Were made before me, and beyond time I stand.
Abandon all hope. Ye who enter here.
(Dante’s Inferno: Canto III, translated by John Ciardi)
Can't we all get along?Be there for me. Be there for me.
Prismatic Christianity
“When a man looks through a prism he sees the distorted images formed in the glass and not the Object as it really is on the other side. The visible church has always been a prismatic Christianity. His image and likeness cannot be seen in the carnal nature of man. The Christian is called to be transparent, but when the world looks for Jesus in the visible Church it sees a grotesque distortion, a tragic misrepresentation of the real thing. In the course of human history, many evils have been carried out in the name of Christ, but real Christianity manifests the supernatural nature of Jesus Christ.” <<CLICK HERE>>
We all worship something. Even the atheist worships himself. Worship is simply and profoundly, "Living toward something." No matter where we are at or where we are headed, we are living toward something. If we live our lives toward ourselves and our destructive appetites we will not find life at all but death.
Religion Sucks!
The Mortmodern mind is tired of a lifeless religion and a meaningless life. Whether sitting on a bar-stool or in a pew on Sunday morning, life without God is empty and leads to death.
Prismatic Christianity
“When a man looks through a prism he sees the distorted images formed in the glass and not the Object as it really is on the other side. The visible church has always been a prismatic Christianity. His image and likeness cannot be seen in the carnal nature of man. The Christian is called to be transparent, but when the world looks for Jesus in the visible Church it sees a grotesque distortion, a tragic misrepresentation of the real thing. In the course of human history, many evils have been carried out in the name of Christ, but real Christianity manifests the supernatural nature of Jesus Christ.” <<CLICK HERE>>
Despicable Me! [movie review]
Mr. Grew’s self-centeredness led to a deep void and meaninglessness in his life, which he tried to fill with self-absorbed and satisfying adventures. The love and purity of the girls touched and softened his heart. Through this experience he found that the fulfillment and satisfaction his heart had been searching for could be found by sharing and investing in the lives of others.
The Presuppositional Gospel
The good news is only "good" to those who relaize they have a problem....
A Postmodern Gospel
Dietrich Bonhoeffer on Socrates and Christ
"Socrates mastered the art of dying; Christ overcame death as 'the last enemy' (1 Corinthians 15:26). There is a real difference between the two things; the one is within the scope of human possibilities, the other means resurrection. It is not from ars moriendi, the art of dying, but from the resurrection of Christ that a new and purifying wind can blow through our present world....If a few people really beleived that and acted on it in their daily lives, a great deal would be changed. To live in the light of the Resurrection--that is what Easter means." --Letters and Papers from Prison
Transcendent Superheroes
“The gods and heroes of Greek mythology were moral images—transcendent ideas. They were all images that represented a transcendent, innate idea. In the superhuman and hero the Greeks escaped the darkness and were able to keep the darkness at bay. In the image of the hero the Greeks consoled their yearning for the transcendent. The Hero speaks deeply to us as a transcendent idea.
Throughout the history of the West the yearning and appearance of the hero who symbolizes and represents the transcendent and whose image evoke the existential feeling of completeness, fulfillment, and wholeness surfaced inevery culture. America in the 20th century was no exception...
Costumed and superhuman powers transported these superheroes beyond humanity and represented their transcendence. As moral images, these superheroes emerged to confront the threats and uncertainties Americans faced. More so, costumed Superheroes appeared to satisfy a much deeper, existential yearning in the hearts of Americans; they represented the transcendent ideas which gave mortal men strength and courage and which touched man deeply.
Through their extraordinary action Superheroes took ideas which they championed to a whole other level. Since the times of the ancient Greeks the concept of aretē or the full potential of man’s nature had continuously developed and expanded. After the Stoics and under the influence of Christianity the excellence of man’s full potential was increasingly understood to be expressed internally; man’s full potential could be realized when the soul or nature was conformed to the virtues. In their actions costumed Superheroes represented the full potential of man. The ancient concept of aretē was represented in 20th century American culture in heroic, superhuman costume and character...
Excerpt from the original essay, On The Hero
NotReligion.com
Christianity Claims to be a relationship, not a religion. The central idea behind the novel and insightful website not religion.com is that the Jesus of Christianity calls people into personal relationship even if much of “Christianity” has been institutionalized, religionized, and forgotten that it is the people that matter their needs are spiritual. Religianity builds its kingdom here in this world; Jesus builds the “Kingdom of God” in the hearts of men through intimate personal relationship with His people. “behold, the kingdom of God is within you.” (Luke 17:21)
The idea that Christianity is a relationship rather than a religion is based on the understanding of religion as “man’s attempt to reach God.” It is also based on the Bibles teaching that God comes to us; we do not go to Him. God reveals Himself in Jesus Christ to us and through this divine self-disclosure He covenants or commits to care for us and draw us near to Him. Religion is in the head, that is, it is a rational exercise. God is Spirit (John 4:24) and He relates to the spirit of man. This intimate communion of the Spirit of God with the spirit of man produces spiritual fruit and life in the heart of the believer and constitutes relationship.
All the religions of the world, even much of “Christendom,” is humanism—“man’s attempt to reach God.” Authentic biblical Christianity alone claims that God supernaturally indwells man as the basis of intimate, personal relationship.
Much of what is called “Christianity” and “Church” today is religianity. Like all other religions it is man-made, built only as monuments of nothingness to men, devoid of a genuine Christ-like love and compassion for people, ad driven by self-serving ambition and mechanized to trample over any poor or needy soul who gets in the way. Religion abuses people; Jesus fulfills them.
St. Augustine said, “Our hearts are restless until they rest in you O Lord,” (Augustine, Confessions 1.1). If your heart longs to find its rest, which religion, even religianity, find its rest, which religion, even religianity, cannot provide, visit www.notreligion.com and find a community that will encourage you to find instead relationship with Jesus Christ rather than religion.
The 'Deep Magic' of the Cross
Nietzsche was confused about life. He failed to realize that in the realm of “the deep magic” life and power come only through death. This is the real scandal of Christianity’s Cross. Every true hero knows courage is only manifest in the face of real threat to the self. “It is out of the deadliest struggles that we get the noblest characters.”* Excerpt from an original WiseGuy essay, On the Hero
*paragraph 185, George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950), Man and Superman (1903 play), Act I —Bartleby.com
Socratic Society for Life & Culture
A maximum-security prison is the most unlikely place to find a group of intellectuals determined to make the world a better place. Each week an avant-garde assembles for the Socratic Society for Life and Culture, a project sponsored by Chaplain N.A. Cooper. Members meet behind the razor-wire to grapple with the big questions about life and society.
The Socratic Society was birthed out of the experiences of men who have learned first-hand the ruin, suffering, and devastation they have caused by lives of reckless and criminal irresponsibility. They have learned what it is to feel deeply the sense of responsibility, the call to leadership in their misguided environment and beyond, that restoration and redemption must always be associated with contribution and investment in the lives of others, and that they themselves must “be the change they want to see in the world.” Enlightened by exposure to the great minds, ideas, literature and events of world history—the sciences, arts, and philosophy—the Socratic Society is making a significant contribution to research, scholarship, public policy, social ethics, and the ideas that affect and influence all our lives. The Socratic Society project exemplifies the desire and intention of its members to become part of the solution rather than the problem.
The Socratic Society occasionally sponsors a conference, symposium or forum and invites community leaders, public officials, and those on the front lines who are making a difference in the world by confronting social dilemmas, promoting extraordinary values and achievements, and leading the way through innovation and critical thinking. These events are committed to honoring the integrity and authority of all state institutions and are strictly designed and function to encourage quality of life and culture for South Carolinians.
Socrates is famed for having said “Live by questions.” The Socratic Society for Life and Culture is asking the hard questions—from this unique perspective—about religion, humanity, social problems and solutions, politics, culture and life. Auguste Comte, the founder of sociology, said “Ideas govern the world or throw it into chaos.” The Socratic Society is actively committed to making a difference in life and culture by shedding light on the ideas that shape our world.
“People who complain that Church is boring have no idea. Church is scary.” (Carolyn Arends, Taste the Soup, article in Christianity Today, September 2012)
“The word ‘focus’ (Latin fogur) refers to the hearth, the traditional center of the household. In Roman society, the union of a marriage was sanctified at the hearth, and in other times the dead were buried under the hearth. The fireside has traditionally been the place for the family to gather to work in leisure. In turn, home was the focus of security, significance, shelter and celebration. It assigned to each family member his or her tasks for the day, forming a web of nurturing human relationships.” (page 113, 114, James M. Houston, Joyful Exiles: Life in Christ on the dangerous edge of things)
The Call of God
God’s external call is broadcast to hearers everywhere. Whenever we sit under the gospel and word of God, we receive the external call. Yet without the accompanying internal call of the Spirit of God, it is to none effect.
The Value of Church Attendance
Church attendance — if the truth of God’s word is being proclaimed and there are gathering of individuals who are actively and genuinely seeking God in their lives —provides an opportunity for God’s external call.
It is the ideal place to be challenged to develop and grow in Christian maturity
...engaging the Culture
The three foundations of Society do not stand alone. The family, Church, and State directly affect and influence each other. “As goes the home, so goes the nation.” These three institutions are responsible for the moral life of the community and therefore for civilization as we know it. The way people/we view and relate to each other creates a reality we all must live with. Through its moral authority these three foundations of society together create the culture in which we live.
Culture simply defined is “to think the same thoughts; to see the same thing.” When the culture that thinks alike honors and defends the dignity and sanctity of those under its care and every person through its actions, beliefs, values, ideas, myths, norms, standards, and assumption its citizens experience life and fulfillment. When the culture ignores, disregards, or rejects the value of every person this amoral culture creates a society full of needy, empty, alone, and abused people.
21st century American culture is in crisis. The liberal assault against the three foundations of Society, their subsequent moral decline, decadency, and demise threatens to lead the nation head-long into destruction, debauchery, and indenturement. These institutions are not the only ones feeling the ominous crisis: the individual too is experiencing the void, emptiness, the isolation and pain.
Human suffering raises questions of ultimate concern and the suffering soul asks ‘Where is God?’ The Culture, intent and hell-bent on nihilism, tells us there is nothing beyond the Self—He is not there, He is silent amidst the suffering while the moral structure of our being tells us there must be more. God is not silent. He is speaking to the suffering of man.
WiseGuy, the man and the ministry, is a philosopher of culture and is dedicated to engaging the culture with answers found in the three foundations of Society, defending the sanctity and significance of the Family, Church, and State, promoting their ideals and reminding them of their moral responsibility to the culture. WiseGuy Philosophy—engaging the culture through the ideas that shape our world and speaking truth to the three foundations of society. ▲
...the human predicament
Deep within the human soul, mankind suffers. There is nothing that makes man more essentially human and no greater tie that binds humanity together, than suffering. To live is to suffer –sickness, death, emptiness, loneliness, despair– is the experience of each one of us; to survive is to find meaning in something amidst the chaos. The depth of our suffering and our inability to alleviate it casts mankind into a predicament –the human predicament. The deepest suffering shakes the human soul to its core and leaves life ruinous, meaningless and empty. Many despair even of their very own lives. Those who suffer the most have discovered a yearning in their soul that has gone unsatisfied. Socrates is famed for having said that he “lives by questions.” For those feeling the weight of the human predicament, Questions emerge out of necessity. The human predicament is (raises) a question. The void and hunger in the human soul questions in order to harmonize its predicament with reality and thereby find some relief. Like no other period in American history, disillusionment and despondency has griped the hearts of people from every walk of life. They long desperately for answers to life’s essential questions that will bring meaning and relief to their existence. With Ezekiel the suffering soul asks the question, “How should we then live?” with the conditions of our predicament. Questions are the soul’s prayer for relief.
There is descending upon this day a dearth and famine of the word. As if the doors of heaven have been shut up against this day, the quickening power of this word has been withheld. “And the word of the LORD was precious in those days; there was no open vision.” The suffering soul searches in vain for the answers to the questions implied in the human predicament. Since the Greek Philosophers’ of the 4th Century B.C. man has not been hungrier for the “lógos” –a word that communicates and brings the ultimate answer, quickens him to life (from his slumber), and points to and provides for him the way of relief. It is God that gives a word to quicken –it quickens because it is the work of the One who gives life –the human heart from the slumber of its predicament. Man has frantically stumbled to and fro in search of this word and no answer has been given. Endless returns to the old tranquilizing bulwarks of mass sedation have proven to no avail; the complacent answers long relied upon and offered by Institutions and traditions have ceased to satisfy the seriousness of the predicament. People today are hungry for more; they are looking and longing for the real deal –the authentic representation (of Christ, the Church, a marriage, life, friendship…) and the famine has caused it to be scarcely found in this day. The anemic and lifeless Church, sophisticated skepticism and philosophies of affluence and materialism will no longer comfort. In this angst and hungry desperation the soul cries out with questions of “Why?” and Wisdom answers, directing the inquirer beyond to a point of reference high above man himself.
The human soul cries out and Wisdom answers! Wisdom is a gift from God. It is a [metaphysical/spiritual] perception of the realities underlying the conscious or physical world. Wisdom brings a successful synthesis and correlation of ideas and thought into [to form] a coherent whole. Wisdom is to see or perceive from a higher point of reference. In its most essential form, Wisdom is the perception of truth -To “understand” means literally “to stand under the place where the object of knowledge stands;” to consider the full scope of the thing. “Hindsight is 20/20” the old adage goes. But what is hindsight but the ability to see, or perception from a [higher] place of objectivity that takes all the unseen facts into consideration. If we only knew before what we know now… Wisdom is God’s answer to man’s ultimate questions. The lack of this Wisdom in the decisions of our everyday lives’ has led to most of the suffering we face. The Proverbial fool is he who lacks Wisdom. Wisdom brings coherency and meaning to the perplexities of life. “…Wisdom giveth life to them that have it.” Wisdom informs what we should do. ▲
...the power of ideas
Ideas are powerful. "Ideas," says Aguste Comte, "govern the wolrd, or throw it into chaos." The power of ideas lay in their nature and ability to first emerge, captivate and influence us, and second to create culture. Ideas shape our world by informing the mind to act. A society laden with this much suffering, famine and desperation becomes the birthplace of a culture teaming with ideas, all promising answers to this human pathos. Culture is a pervading and controlling force to be reckoned with. Culture is the arena where the battle is waged to determine how we should live. It conditions how we think and how we behave. When an idea takes root in the assumptions, norms, values, beliefs, and attitudes of a portion of a group so as not to meet resistance within that group, the idea has created culture. “Ideas govern the world or throw it into chaos.” Culture tells us how we should live. Ideas promise answers to the questions that emerge from human existence. Questions are answered with ideas embodied in the culture.
All ideas are not equal. Every man is born with at least one innate idea –that he is the center of the universe. We are all natural born humanists, emphasizing and admiring the “glory” of our human potential. We like to see man dignified and ennobled, the confident answer to all his own problems, or completely free and master of them. The humanist philosopher Protagoras, a leading Sophist, embodied this idea in his famous maxim, “Man is the measure of all things.” –the center of the universe by whom all things can be weighed and judged. This innate idea that posits self as the only authority and consideration has been the catalyst of untold ruin and misery in human history.
Inquiry into the ultimate reality underlying ideas is the essence of Philosophy. One form of [metaphysical] reality underlying every idea is the premise(s) upon which the idea is formed. If the premise is faulty, the conclusion or idea is poison. No idea emerged from deeper within the human heart nor influenced and brought ruin upon mankind more than the idea of Humanism. It is the promotion and exaltation of man above that which he ought to be and it promises “to make one wise.”
Humanism –man as the answer to his own problems and predicament– is characterized by the hubris of the species. Hubris in this sense is not mere pride, which is the refusal to accept one’s limitations. Hubris is “the self-elevation of the great beyond the limits of its finitude.” It is to feel one is capable and qualified to be a law unto himself; to ignore one’s limitations and any other authority. Humanism climbs Babel-like up an illusionary tower of its own making in the instinctual efforts to abdicate any authority or accountability that would restrain the lawless appetites and ambitions of self-will. In the end it allows for self-deification –the god worshiped by every atheist.
At its very core Humanism is built upon a poisonous, faulty premise. A delusional passage from The Humanist Manifesto I makes the point, “Man is at least becoming aware that he alone is responsible for the realization of the world of his dreams, that he has within himself the power for its achievement.” Man cannot be the answer to his own questions for he is not the end in himself nor is he above himself to see objectively. Man’s suffering and frailty –his finitude– and his inability to alleviate it leaves him in his predicament. “Man [in his existential predicament] is the question, not the answer.”
Humanism strives to establish human autonomy in the face of any authority which seeks to bring it under subjection. Social norms, traditions, values, standards, religion…God, all represent authorities that threaten to subjugate the free expression of the individual. It is this idea and philosophy that led the Nihilists and Deconstructionists to emerge in force at the start of the 20th century and begin to speak against the Judeo-Christian world-view. Having successfully relieved the American collective conscience of the norms, values, traditions and Authority upon which its stability relied, this humanist philosophy posited man himself as the answer to all the questions implied in the human predicament. Contradistinction, Wisdom is the recognition of God as the proper Authority under whose direction one’s life is best lived.
Humanism worships homo sapiens, “Man the wise.” Humanism and the hubris of man presumes its own wisdom. But it is this idea and philosophy that has left so many lives in ruin. In the history of ideas, self as the answer has produced the postmodern nihilist –those who are empty, void and suffering –and left them with no answers and all the plaguing questions. The wisdom of man is deceitful, unlivable and cannot relieve one’s suffering. Answers that come from within are hollow; prone to illusion, deceit and distortion. “Man as the measure” weighs man in light of the questions implied in the human predicament and he is found wanting. “It is vain, Oh men, that you seek within yourselves the cure for all your miseries.”
We all have a philosophy, and like it or not, it influences how we view and react to our lives and the world around us. We are all searching for answers to the questions implied in our predicament. And where do we turn? To the ideas and philosophies that surround us. Ideas and philosophies pervade every facet of our lives. We either hold tenaciously to our own or become conditioned by those around us. Theism as the underlying premise and answer to the questions implied in the human predicament is an idea that offers and stands firmly upon Wisdom. Real Wisdom points man beyond himself to a higher point of reference –a reference point that alone brings cohesion and meaning to our human existence. Like it or not, we all live under the influence of ideas and philosophies. The only Question that remains is, Is yours livable?
Philosophy is the love (Philía) of Wisdom (Sophía). Philosophy that takes a view from God’s reference or vantage point is true “Wisdom” and “giveth life to them that have it.” We passionately pursue Wisdom because we are convinced that it provides remedial answers to the problems and predicament faced in human existence. ▲
...for such a time as this
There is a void in the land that speaks to the bankruptcy of our times and way of life. The world in which we live has been stripped of coherency and meaning. These times of ruin, spiritual famine and suffering are ripe for a display of Chrisma –the power of God communicated through human agency –to bring relief and hope to the afflicted. “thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this." These desperate and famine days are pregnant for a Harbinger of Wisdom to declare the way – “the truth, and the life.”
America has become a Post-Christian Culture and as such raises questions which cannot be ignored or pacified. “Nothing is more undignified than to make faith do duty for evidence which is lacking.” WiseGuy Philosophy –the man and ministry seeks to help those who cannot be satisfied with superficial answers and remedies that merely pay homage to religion and lifeless tradition find answers to the big questions of faith, philosophy, culture, art and world-views that pervade their lives.
Philosophy is the inquiry into life [reality] and search for answers to its perennial questions –of what it means to be human. Theology posits God as the explanation and answer to these questions implied in the human predicament and raised by philosophy –of mankind in relation to God. Philosophy is [raises] the question and theology [God] is the answer. God offers and is the answer to the question implied in human finitude. Philosophy and Theology is the framework this ministry uses to present the Christian message as the answer to the questions implied in the human predicament. The ideas and concepts that frame the questions have changed, but the answers have not.
WiseGuy is a man and a ministry dedicated to proclaiming the Wisdom and Glory of God in Jesus Christ to the three foundations of society ~ the Family, the the Church and the State. Through a ministry of Philosophy and Theology from the Preaching, the Lectern and the Written Page, WiseGuy confronts the challenges and questions that concern mankind ultimately. Three forums, two fields, one man. Comforting the Afflicted, Afflicting the Comforted!
...asking questions, thinking deeper,making sense of it all
The quest for reality as a means of obtaining relief from the problems and predicament of man is the philosophical search for truth. This search is resolved and ends in the “Lógos” –the incarnate Wisdom and Word that communicates and answers the questions implied in the human predicament. Philosophically speaking, Jesus Christ is “the way, the truth, and the life.” WiseGuy is a man and a ministry engaging, challenging, and confronting the ideas of humanism that exude the culture; juxtaposing the Authority and Wisdom of God to the wisdom and answers of the world; asking the relevant questions, thinking deeper, making sense of it all. WiseGuy Philosophy –Applied Wisdom to meet the challenges of our day. ▲
Health & Wellness
Intentional healthy living is an act of worship. We love God and the people in our lives who need us when we sacrifice our appetites and pleasures, restrain our weaknesses, and work to make ourselves available for service to God, our family, and others.
Healthy living is a race. We run to life not from it. A winner is always driven toward a goal rather than from something in the past. Many try diets, exercise and fitness plans, and commit to significant life changes because they are dissatisfied with their lives. In desperation they run from the unflattering image they see in the mirror, from debilitating health problems, from broken and lost relationships, from shame, from loneliness, meaninglessness, and emptiness.
If you have struggled to find/bring balance to your life or experienced a problem with healthy living and you are exhausted, be encouraged! C.S. Lewis wrote that “Pain may very well be God’s megaphone to a morally deaf world.” The feeling of defeat when we try to overcome in our own strength can be the most acute pain. God speaks to His people in such crises as this. Failure is intended to bring about exhaustion —of self-efforts— to cause you to recognize and hate your own bondage and impotence, and to learn to depend upon God as your only hope.
When the life is centered on Jesus, balance and health will come. “Love is the greatest motivator.” The path to deliverance is filled with many failed diets, exercise tapes and equipment, and would-be fitness plans. God is lovingly, patiently waiting for you to cease your own work, and rest in utter dependence on Him!
Choose life! ...
Find a life that finds you “eating to live, living to worship.”
www. TOTAL BODY
Socrates is famed for having said, "Live by questions." In today's techno-modern world, we have more questions than ever. Our instincts and desires have produced pain and suffering in our lives. How should we then live? (Ezekiel 33:10) We often question to get up the courage to live as we should. The greatest questions address our human predicament and point us to the indwelling power and person of Jesus Christ.
Start a new discussion board by posting a question of your own or contribute to the Q&A discussions already underway.
Join the discussion: read, respond, post your own questions and comments, find answers for life.
Why does God allow evil in the world?
Coming Soon!
Why can't I find God anywhere?
Content 3
Why does beauty matter?
Content 4
Why do politics matter?
Content 5
What is truth?
Q & A
Does God need or want creatures who can “freely” love and serve Him? Contra, Deut. 30:6 He is glorified in doing the work in us Himself, by His power and might.
Why do we suffer?
Content 7
Does God exist?
Content 8
Where did I come from?
Content 9
Is there any purpose or meaning to life?
Content 10
Is suicide an answer to pain and problems?
Content 11
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Content 12
Label 13
Content 13
Label 2
Content 2
Pillaging Your Own Village
10/12/2013
Delivered at...
A controversial message, .... the contemporary American Church that ..... and whether sitting on a bar stool or in a pew on Sunday morning, these are dangerous times
Fishing With Dynamite
10/12/2013
Delivered at...
A controversial message, .... the contemporary American Church that ..... and whether sitting on a bar stool or in a pew on Sunday morning, these are dangerous times
Presuppositional Gospel
10/12/2013
Delivered at...
A controversial message, .... the contemporary American Church that ..... and whether sitting on a bar stool or in a pew on Sunday morning, these are dangerous times
The Days of Noah (It's gonna rain/A Message Nobody Want's To Hear)
10/12/2013
Delivered at...
A controversial message, .... the contemporary American Church that ..... and whether sitting on a bar stool or in a pew on Sunday morning, these are dangerous times.
ve exposed them to untold dangers and temptations. The challenges faced by this Nation’s youth are not in themselves a guarantee of disaster, but the lack and absence of the things that give life meaning, purpose and direction is. 
hardcore. Fans of this variation were labled 'emo.' The term and style died out until the turn of the 21st century. Emo became one of the first cultural movements born (or reborn) on the internet through social networking sites. (Randy Stiver)
nd the eye of its understanding.
ology to existentialism, ethics to criminology, sociology and culture, developmental, social criminal, corporate and urban psychology to psychology of religion, politics to jurisprudence, metaphysics and philosophy of mind…In the Solon, Lecture Hall, or public debates, in the presence of two, or before thousands, WiseGuy Lectures bring the Wisdom and Glory of God to the forefront with refreshing and revitalizing ideas for our postmodern era.
pressed by one generation and preserves it for the next. 
lly refuted by Reformed Baptists and Electionists alike. Limited Atonement 
he novel and insightful website not religion.com is that the Jesus of Christianity calls people into personal relationship even if much of “Christianity” has been institutionalized, religionized, and forgotten that it is the people that matter their needs are spiritual. Religianity builds its kingdom here in this world; Jesus builds the “Kingdom of God” in the hearts of men through intimate personal relationship with His people. “behold, the kingdom of God is within you.” (Luke 17:21) 
Why I am not a Mohammedean
ference or vantage point is true “Wisdom” and “giveth life to them that have it.” 
as “moral individualism”
questions implied in the human predicament. Since the Greek Philosophers’ of the 4th Century B.C. man has not been hungrier for the “lógos” –a word that communicates and brings the ultimate answer, quickens him to life (from his slumber), and points to and provides for him the way of relief. It is God that gives a word to quicken –it quickens because it is the work of the One who gives life –the human heart from the slumber of its predicament. Man has frantically stumbled to and fro in search of this word and no answer has been given. Endless returns to the old tranquilizing bulwarks of mass sedation have proven to no avail; the complacent answers long relied upon and offered by Institutions and traditions have ceased to satisfy the seriousness of the predicament. People today are hungry for more; they are looking and longing for the real deal –the authentic representation (of Christ, the Church, a marriage, life, friendship…) and the famine has caused it to be scarcely found in this day. The anemic and lifeless Church, sophisticated skepticism and philosophies of affluence and materialism will no longer comfort. In this angst and hungry desperation the soul cries out with questions of “Why?” and Wisdom answers, directing the inquirer beyond to a point of reference high above man himself. 
erate and famine days are pregnant for a Harbinger of Wisdom to declare the way – “the truth, and the life.” 
