The True Meaning of Sola Scriptura

I have recently been involved in discussions with Catholics about the Protestant belief in Sola Scriptura. In case you are not familiar with the phrase, it translates from Latin as “scripture alone.” There is a misconception held by Catholics of what this means for Protestants.

First, it does not mean that the only truth is Scripture. What do I mean by this? There are plenty of truths found outside of Scripture. The Bible is concerned about revealing God (Jesus) and who he is. Scripture’s primary concern is not science, math, psychology or any other field though it touches on every subject one could imagine.

Journey to Christmas: For Five Strangers, the Nativity is Now Reality

REVIEW: Journey to Christmas, DVD
Tyndale House

Some wonder about the truth behind Christmas. Not Santa Claus, but the Nativity. Either the Christmas story is true, or millions of Christians have been misled and believe a completely demented lie. This small group study, Journey to Christmas, seeks to answer the questions behind Christmas. Five people take a journey through the Middle East, walking in the footsteps of Christ witnessing firsthand how people lived during Jesus' time.

Abbie Hoffman: What Can Christians Take from His Life?

Abbie Hoffman was a character of the 1960s who stirred up controversy beyond what most dream of. You could say he did just to do it. Some of Hoffman’s actions had no true purpose behind them, primarily what he did as a youth. What can Christians learn from Hoffman though?

What issues are Christians facing?

This is the first time I have tried this and possibly the last depending on your response. Instead of answering questions I think you may have, I want to know what issues you think Christians today are struggling with.

This might be your way of asking me about something you, a friend, or loved one is facing, or it could simply be your way of saying, "this is important and the church is struggling in this area." You can ask any question or give any statement to this.

I am merely asking for ideas on future posts. I am not out of ideas, I just want to help you and your walk with Christ if at all possible.

If you are not a Christian, feel free to respond as well. Maybe you have a perspective as an outsider looking in, a challenge to the Christian faith, or unanswered questions in your own soul search.

Book Review: Torn by Jud Wilhite

BOOK REVIEW

Torn
Trusting God When Life Leaves You in Pieces
By Jud Wilhite
Published by Multnomah Books

Pastor Jude Wilhite of Central Christian Church in Las Vegas, Nevada has written his book, “Torn” from the perspective of how to respond to evil. In the beginning of the book, he makes a claim I am not comfortable agreeing with, but beyond that, the book is a great edition to the many books covering the problem of evil and suffering.

Has God Spoken? by Hank Hanegraaff

BOOK REVIEW

Has God Spoken?
Proof of the Bible’'s Divine Inspiration
By Hank Hanegraaff
Published by Thomas Nelson

Has God been disproven? Is the Bible really true and if so what proof is there that it has not been changed over the course of time? Hank Hanegraff has written "Has God Spoken?" to prove Scripture's divine inspiration. 

Christianity and Illegal Immigration

I am a student at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary where I am pursuing a Master of Divinity in Christian Worldview and Apologetics. Part of my general studies requisites includes "Survey of Christian Ethics" with Dr. Russell Moore. It has been a wonderful class; convicting and challenging. For our final, he posted an ethical dilemma on his website. You must read it to make sense of my post.

Book Review: The Cost of Discipleship

Dietrich Bonhoeffer's The Cost of Discipleship is like reading a blade into your heart where the more you read the more that blade twists, ripping out every bit of pride and arrogance you may have had. When he says being a Christian means being willing to die a martyr in the name of Christ, he not only wrote it, but lived it.

Not too many weeks ago I was able to visit his church in Wroclaw, Poland, (previously Breslau, Germany) seeing his memorial. It is moving and tragic. There is a twofold reason for saying this. Bonhoeffer's grave was never found. He was executed in 1943 at the command of Himmler just a few days prior to his concentration camp being liberated by the Allies. Secondly, and more of a side note, what was once the church he pastored is now a Catholic parish since 1946 when Breslau once again became a part of Poland.

The Danger of Christianity

There are a great number of Americans who now, in retrospect, believe our efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan to be a failure. Many want our troops back home. I can certainly understand where these people are coming from and I sympathize with them. To date we have lost more than 6,000 lives when you tally both so called "wars." Military involvement is dangerous and it not only affects the soldiers, but their families, friends, and neighbors as well.

Days 7-8: Glogow

Today, 25 October, has been the most emotional day of the trip, but I do not want to begin there. I want to first think about a conversation I had last night with my host family. When returned from a long day of teaching English and cleaning out a local church here in Glogow, Emma and I had kava and herbata with our hosts (coffee and tea).

Day 6: Lubin, Poland

Today was a blessed Lord's Day in Lubin. We were able to worship with our brothers and sisters in Christ here from Poland, but also two Ukrainian families as well. There were many familiar songs with the exception of Polish, but also some we did not know.

Day 3-5: Auschwitz and Birkenau

What a birthday present. Most cannot say they have been to Auschwitz, even fewer can say they have been on their birthday. There were a lot of surprises, one of which is how nice it is outside of the buildings in Auschwitz I. I do not say this to denigrate what its victims experienced, but to ask, "Why?".

I have become so confused over the Nazi concentration camp issue because I cannot understand why anyone would ever have so much work go into killing someone... The inmates were forced to build housing upon housing at Birkenau (Auschwitz II), but why? So they could house more Jews to be exterminated. It is still baffling. Why not just shoot them in their homes? Why not some other way? If one escaped, ten were tortured. They carrier their dead back to camp after a day's work so the Nazis would not accuse anyone of escaping.

Day 2: Krakow, Poland

This morning began at 7:00a in Wroclaw. I woke up, showered, repacked, and then traveled to the “bankomat” (ATM), withdrew 100z (PLN) or about the equivalent of $33.33 USD, then grabbed our luggage. We had to make a trip from our hotel to PKP (the train station) where we then waited for our four-hour ride to Krakow (pron. Crackoov; Pope John Paul II was the archbishop here). Once we arrived, we met with a local IMB missionary who had us drop our bigger luggage off with a strange man in a small, unsecure building next to the train station. Hopefully it will be there once we head out on Friday morning.

Day 1: Wroclaw, Poland

Yesterday (October 17, 2011) we took off from the Bluegrass Airport around 12:45p, arrived in Charlotte, then to Munchen (Munich), and finally to Wroclaw (pron. Vrotzwav) around 11:00a. We lost a day due to traveling, were extremely tired since it was about 5:00a in the U.S. Last night (October 18, 2011) we finally went to sleep at 8:30p (2:30p in the U.S.).

Bioethics: A Primer for Christians by Gilbert Meilaender

Book Analysis

Bioethics: A Primary for Christians

by Gilbert Meilaender

Published by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.

Introduction

Few Christians, if any, have thought long and hard about abortion and its effects on the mothers, families, and communities. As Christians, we are staunch opponents of abortion, fighting for the sanctity of life. Another ethics issue we think a lot about include the sanctity of marriage, but beyond that, our scope of concern for ethics is typically narrow. We can give some kind of answer after thinking about an issue for a period of time, but we are not prepared to face these kinds of situations.