Topics: Life Observations, ChristianityMy uncle just passed away Friday night. Although we were not blood related, we were fairly close. I'm trying to be sad, but I can't be. I am happy. Let me explain. My uncle had cancer and he was always in pain. For most of that time he could still function - he could still travel the world and teach - but it was somewhat difficult. Near the end, things made a quick escalation and his condition became terrible. He even lost use of his legs. We all wanted him to get better, and now he has. He feels good again. Now I can't help but frequently think of that and what his reaction must be meeting God. There is some debate on if we meet God immediately after death or wait until the rapture, but does it matter? My mind automatically thinks about my uncle's intense joy, excitement, and wonder. As MercyMe's very good song says, "I Can Only Imagine" what that must be like. And that gives me joy. - James D. McIntosh Jr.
Topic: ChristianityMatthew 5 has a lot of wisdom in it. Among other things, it tells us that those who are persecuted shall be blessed, we should not murder or even speak or think evil things against others, and we should love and pray for our enemies. One of the more famous passages is probably this one: "You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on the right cheek, turn the other to him also. If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also." (Matthew 5:38-40 NKJV) Does all this mean that if someone attacks on us on the street, we should let them do whatever the will to us? I do not believe so. A slap on the cheek is not the same as, say, a stab wound to the stomach or many other things you may be able to think of. After all, the Bible also says: Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's (1 Corinthians 6:19 NKJV) How do we take care of our temple? Well, for one thing, we try to keep ourselves healthy and fit. For another, we prevent dangerous people from destroying the temple. Additionally, it is said: Then He [Jesus] said to them, "But now, he who has a money bag, let him take it, and likewise a knapsack; and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one." (Luke 22:36 NKJV) Two are better than one, [...] Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him. And a threefold cord is not quickly broken. (Ecclesiastes 4:9a, 12) GotQuestons.org also brings up the case of a thief breaking into a house in Exodus 22:2-3. (Another interesting read is Biblical Self-Defense.) So obviously there are times when we must fight back. King David did. But fighting in anger and with hatred is not the same. We protect our temple and other people and cause as little damage as possible. We still need to love. (All scripture retrieved from BibleGateway.com, who in turn says: "Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.") - James D. McIntosh Jr.
Topics: Life Observations, ChristianityI've never seen hail so big. It was somewhere between the size of golf ball and a baseball last night, coming down thick and fast. It was very scary, mixed with a thunderstorm and a tornado watch. Then this morning, on the way to work, there was a rainbow and decent weather. A rainbow is always beautiful and always cheers me up. Hail at night, rainbow in morning. That seems like it would be a nice life philosophy. It reminds me of Psalm 30:5b: Weeping may endure for a night, But joy comes in the morning. (New King James Version; Retrieved from BibleGateway.com) - James D. McIntosh Jr.
Topic: ChristianityThat may seem like a rough title. No, I am not saying Jesus is useless. The way some people view Him and salvation is useless. Let's take a flashback to a small part of my life. Some time back I was driving in my car and listening to songs in my Google Play account. Included in my playlist is Guardians of the Galaxy (Awesome Mix Vol. 1), which was legally free. In that album is the song "Spirit in the Sky" by Norman Greenbaum. I was enjoying it. It's catchy. And I was so excited to find a mainstream song that supports Jesus and Heaven. (Come to find out later that might not be entirely true.) Yeah, preach it! Then I got to the part where Greenbaum sings, "Never been a sinner, I never sinned./I got a friend in Jesus./So you know that when I die,/He's gonna set me up with the spirit in the sky." Well, that ruined it. Let's look at two things: perfection and salvation. PERFECTION "Never been a sinner." Yeah, right. Remember, "There is none righteous, no, not one;" and "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (New King James Version, Romans 3:10b, 23). Romans 3 has a fairly long section making this point abundantly clear. If we think hard enough, we can all recall things we have done wrong at some point. We have all hurt somebody else or ourselves somehow. Even if it seems simple or you were "just a kid," it still happened and it was still sin. Additionally, Jesus, while he was on earth, preferred to hang out with the tax collectors and sinners than with the Pharisees and other such men anyway. SALVATION Whether or not you think it is possible to be perfect, "Spirit in the Sky" suggests that you have to be a good person to have Jesus as your friend and entryway into Heaven. It is because the narrator "never sinned" that he has "got a friend in Jesus." If you are perfect or your salvation is based on your deeds, then why does it matter whether or not you have a friend in Jesus? You do not need Him. The works-based belief is pretty common. Many people think that you lose your salvation when you sin and have to ask for forgiveness again to get it back. Other people think that you just have to be a good person to get into Heaven and that's it. If any of that is true, then what was the point of Jesus even coming to die? That way of thinking is the Old Testament way of thinking. There had been no perfect human sacrifice for the redemption of sins, so the ancient Jews had to make animal sacrifices. It was all based on deeds. When Jesus came, he got rid of that way of doing things. He brought in a new way to get saved "through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe" (Rom. 3:22b). A reading of Romans 3 reveals more about the law and righteousness. For example, the chapter says we are "justified freely by His [God's] grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed" (Rom. 3:24-25). There is a lot there about Jesus's sacrifice and about faith, and this is only a portion of what is in Romans 3. It is perhaps said most plainly in verse 28: "Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law." Of course, that is not the end of the chapter, but I think you get the idea. Although the law is still important (for we still do not "make void the law through faith," but "we establish it) it is no longer our salvation (Rom. 3:31). Anyone who believes otherwise is saying that Jesus's sacrifice was useless and that He does not matter; we do not need Him because we have to do it for ourselves. Things are just as they were before He came: based on works. So we should actually all get circumcised and make animal sacrifices instead of simply saying a prayer and trying to be good for the holy version of Santa. (Passages retrieved from BibleGateway.com) - James D. McIntosh Jr.
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