The Beach

I got tired of updating the Blatzkritters page, so I will henceforth display the occasional family photo via post.

Enjoy!

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Now playing: Sandra McCracken - O Come and Mourn
via FoxyTunes

“Exhibit D” for a Swift and Extended Implementation of Capital Punishment

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,331732,00.html

PEORIA, Ill. — A central Illinois couple faces first-degree murder charges in the death of their 5-month-old baby, who was found unresponsive in a car seat that had been placed in a crib.

…police found the infant sitting in his own waste, all the while strapped into the seat which was in a crib.

During the eight days the baby was strapped in the seat, both Hermann and Sargent were home, “playing video games, watching TV, feeding and caring for themselves…”

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“Executing a murderer is the only way to adequately express our horror at the taking of an innocent life. Nothing else suffices. To equate the lives of killers with those of victims is the worst kind of moral equivalency. If capital punishment is state murder, then imprisonment is state kidnapping and restitution is state theft.”

- Don Feder

Well said.

 

IHOP, The Call, Shofars and Lasers… Yeah, Lasers

I can’t recall if I stumbled onto this or if someone directed me to it. Either way, this is one of the more absurd demonstrations of charismatic inanity I’ve seen in a while. (Probably since Rick Pino and Dutch Sheets messed us up with a little carrot cake!)

This video was shot at The Call 07.07.07. The Call was founded by Lou Engle and heavily promoted by IHOP. Mike Bickle currently serves as Director of The Call’s National Board.

Many in the audience are holding horns called shofars. Honestly, I had no idea what a shofar was before watching this video. I searched the KJV, NIV, ESV and NAS at BibleGateway.com for “shofar”. I was unable to locate the word. Apparently, these ancient horns were used in Old Testament religious ceremonies. The shofar-wielding audience members were instructed to toot their horns in order to garner some kind of special favor from Yahweh.

This is annoying, in and of itself. Why? Why are you blowing shofars? But it gets worse - much worse. Ray Hughes of MorningStar Ministries (Rick Joyner’s ministry) said the following before commencing the shofar-ing:

Right before we do this, I want you to know that a renowned scientist inventor has invented a device that literally takes the sound and converts it back to light. And there are five lasers going forth out of this, and every sound of our voice, the sound of our praise, the sound of our proclamation literally (inaudible) goes 25,000 miles into space beyond the (inaudible) , and we’re going to praise the Lord in the heights - in the heavens, according to the word of David.

Really? God needs lasers to convert our praise from sound into light and then beam it into outer space? (Though, not very far into space. Since God is obviously bound by the three-dimensional space of this universe, I hope He was in the neighborhood of Earth when all this noise was being transmitted.)

Those of you within this movement who find yourself reading this: Do you realize how insane you look to everyone else outside your fringe charismatic clique? Just when I start to think there are reasonable folks within these movements, I run into something like this. This junk drives me nuts! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!?! What does this have to with ANYTHING?!?!

I Corinthians 1:22-24

For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.

“…but we preach Christ crucified…” Could we, please? Could we stop with the shofars and preach Christ crucified? Could we stop with the territorial spirits and preach Christ crucified? Could we stop with the generational curses and preach Christ crucified? Could we stop with the creepy wedding ceremonies and preach Christ crucified? Please?

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It should be noted that Ricky Skaggs had the privilege of kicking this nonsense off with the first seven shofar blasts. (Of course, it had to be seven. What is it with modern-day charismatic/prophetic types and numerology? Oh, and Skaggs didn’t just play or blow these blasts - he released them! Whatever that means…)

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Now playing: 16 Horsepower - Blessed Persistence
via FoxyTunes

Flirting With Amillennialism

Sam Storms, the charismatic Calvinist, recently defined himself theologically. While I disagree with Storms’ charismatic views of prophecy and continued Apostolic ministry, I have read quite a bit of the material he has made available on his site and have learned a great deal from this ministry.

Storms is an Amillennialist. I have read several of his articles on eschatology and have found them very reasonable, persuasive and biblical. Storms briefly sketches his Amillennialism:

I am an Amillennialist. This is a huge topic on which I am currently writing a book. So I’ll limit myself here to only a few specifics.

a. One of the primary reasons I am not a Premillennialist (neither Historic nor Dispensational) is because of what I read in the NT concerning the Second Coming of Christ.

To be a Premillennialist of any sort, you must believe that physical death and the curse on the natural creation will continue to exist beyond the time of Christ’s return. You must believe that the New Heavens and New Earth will not be introduced until 1,000 years subsequent to the return of Christ. You must believe that unbelieving men and women will still have the opportunity to come to saving faith in Christ for at least 1,000 years subsequent to his return. To be a Premillennialist, you must believe that unbelievers will not be finally resurrected until at least 1,000 years subsequent to Christ’s return and that unbelievers will not be finally judged and cast into eternal punishment until at least 1,000 years subsequent to Christ’s return.

But my reading of what happens at the Second Coming of Christ indicates that then, and not 1,000 years later, physical death is swallowed up in the victory of Christ, never again to exert its power; the natural creation is delivered fully and finally from its bondage to sin; the New Heavens and New Earth are inaugurated; all opportunity for salvation of the lost comes to an end; and both the final resurrection and final judgment of all mankind occur.

b. I find no biblical support for a pre-tribulation rapture, Christian Zionism, a distinction between Israel and the Church, or a future seven year period known as the Great Tribulation.

c. I believe Matthew 24:1-35; Mark 13:1-31; and Luke 21:5-33 (otherwise known as the Olivet Discourse) refer to events that transpired in the first century, beginning with the exaltation of Christ and consummating with the destruction in 70 a.d. of both the city of Jerusalem and its Temple.

As I said, I hope to finish a book on eschatology sometime in 2008, but in the meantime you may read several articles in defense of these beliefs, available on my website under Theological Studies, Eschatology.

To be honest, I find all of these arguments quite convincing. I was raised as a default Dispensational Premillennialist, believing in a literal 7-year Great Tribulation preceded by the rapture of God’s saints. I have since (before encountering Storms or Amillennialism) been convinced that scripture nowhere describes the world-shattering event of a pre-tribulational rapture. I just cannot find two Second Comings in scripture.

I also struggle with the idea of the world continuing on in sin and death after Christ’s return. I can’t even wrap my mind around how that would work. And what about the final unleashing of Satan after this literal 1,000 year period? Does Christ defeat Satan/Antichrist twice? I don’t know. It all just seems very confusing.

I have also become disabused of the notion that the Church and Israel are two distinct entities in the economy of God. The more I read scripture (particularly the Pauline epistles), the more I see the Church being grafted onto the tree that is Israel - one tree. God has one people. He has always had one people. I am a child of Abraham. My unbelieving Jewish neighbors are not. I think this insistence on distinguishing Israel and the Church drives much Premillennial thought (particularly the Dispensational variety).

(I know I run the risk of being labeled as an adherent of “Replacement Theology” with the above paragraph, but… well, that’s just how I see it right now. I’m willing to be persuaded otherwise.)

I don’t yet call myself an Amillennialist. Because I am thoroughly convinced that Christ will be returning for His Bride only once, I waffle between Historic Premillennialism (post-tribulational) and Amillennialism. I know Amillennialism is loathed by many Christians, so here’s your chance! Convince me Storms is wrong and rescue me from this eschatological heresy!

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Now playing: Grits - Make Room
via FoxyTunes