True Christianity

Here is something I read on Facebook.

True Christianity

by Joshua Arnold

Christianity is more than being right. It’s more than having correct doctrine. In addition to having correct doctrine, there should be a warmth that radiates from the heart of the Christian. And that warmth that radiates from the Christian is something that can be felt and experienced by the people that interact with them.

Evangelizing atheists

I have spent a lot of time on internet forums debating atheists and trying to convince them that God exists and the Bible is true.  I usually tried to show them that the existence of God is the only logical explanation for the existence of the universe and I pointed out scientific evidence that shows that the theory of evolution can’t be true.  However I have come to believe that I was going about this in the wrong way.  This conclusion is based on hearing two former atheists tell how they became Christians.

The first is someone I know personally.  He had a long conversation with a pastor which ended with the pastor explaining to him how to be saved.   He said he was an atheist and didn’t believe in God, and that ended the conversation.

Over the next few days thoughts about God kept entering his mind and he came to the conclusion that there really was a God.  Since the pastor had told him how to become a Christian he knew what he needed to do and so was saved.

Choose your battles wisely

In the past Christianity has had a strong influence on American culture.  That influence has grown much weaker and that fact is reflected in our laws.

Because humans are created in God’s image human life should be protected.  Today abortion is legal and there is a movement to legalize suicide by the terminally ill.

God established marriage as a permanent union between a man and a woman.  Almost all states have no fault divorce laws which make it easy to end a marriage and many of them allow marriage between two members of the same sex.

Gays who follow Christ

The gay rights movement is promoting the legalization of same sex marriage and the belief that homosexual activity is as normal as heterosexual activity.  Anyone who opposes these goals is accused of hating gays.

In some cases the accusation is true.  There are people who hate gays; the existence of the Westboro Baptist Church and organizations like it is evidence of this.  But there are others whose opposition is motivated by love.

God established marriage as a union between a man and a woman and has forbidden any sexual activity outside of this union.  Anyone who truly loves gay people will warn them of the dangers of violating God’s commands rather than encouraging disobedience.

There is a common misconception that all gays support the gay rights movement.  In fact there are many gay Christians who oppose it because they recognize the harm it does.  Here are three web sites where you can learn more about them.

The second elephant

Most people have either read this poem by John Godfrey Saxe or have heard the story that it tells.

It was six men of Hindustan
To learning much inclined,
Who went to see the Elephant
(Though all of them were blind)
That each by observation
Might satisfy the mind.

Washed and Waiting: the story of a gay Christian

What is it like to be a Christian who believes the Bible’s teaching that homosexual activity is a sin and who realizes that he is sexually attracted to others of his sex?  Wesley Hill knows the answer to that question.  He decided that the only way he could be obedient to the Bible was to live a life of celibacy.  He has written a book called Washed and Waiting in which he describes his experiences.  Here is what he says about his reasons for writing the book:

Lazarus and the rich man – parable or actual event?

In Luke 16:19-31 Jesus tells the story of a rich man and a beggar named Lazarus and describes how they lived in this life and what their circumstances were after they died.

Why are there four gospels?

The Bible contains four accounts of the life of Jesus which are very different from each other and each one contains some information that isn’t in the others. Some of the differences are so great that the gospels almost seem to contradict each other. Why would God inspire men to write four different accounts rather than just one?