Christianity and Christianity

I wonder just how far a diversion in religion must go before it is labeled a new religion. Today, Christianity is not Chrsitianity. You've got two different religions trying to live under the same roof. Two different religions trying to carry the same title. No wonder everyone's so confused! Are you a Christian or a Christian? One Christian says this and another says this. Yet you are both Christians? I don't get it.

It's not right that in order for someone to be certain they are worshipping with and being taught by true Christians they must undergo extensive theological studying and deep cautious criticism. This is not for everyone. Not everyone is meant to be a Paul. It is not right that a new Christian can never be certain if he is spending time with Christians or Christians. This modern version of Christianity needs a new name, and I'm not being sarcastic here.

Bryce discusses this in a recent post. Albert Mohler apparently dubs the new wave Christianity "Christian Moralistic Therapeutic Deism." Read Bryce's post for more on what this new title means.

It's not just this. It's not just the run-of-the-mill-"I'm-a-Christian-but-I-don't-think-it's-necessary-to-live-my-life-like-a-religious-zealot-or-fundamentalist"s that I'm talking about here. I'm including all sorts of people who have completely turned their backs on traditional orthodoxy in exchange for something "new" and "mysterious" and "exciting" and "fresh" and "lots of other hip words". Christians that are actually in the church, actually doing the things that Christ calls us to do, are pushing the edges of heresy. Can a true Christian, of the Peter and Paul sort, say things like, "He can hold onto his blessed Bible. I'll hold onto Christ"? How is it that the Bible is becoming separated from Christ and is being made as less than the only precise revelation from God we have or will ever have received?

This new Christianity is being propogated by both self-seeking men and innocent men alike. The innocent are simply trying to find a religion that is real-but they are looking in all the wrong places. The only place to look is Christ- and the only place Christ is originally found is in God's Word. "Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God." These new Christians are looking for a faith that cometh by experience, and experience by whatever means it may come. They may call it the Holy Spirit- but the Mormons claim that their beliefs come from the Holy Spirit as well. How can we truly know what the Holy Spirit is saying if we do not test all things by the Word of God, i.e. the Bible?

Tommy Tenney is one of these faith-by-experience chaps. In his book The God Chasers he tells us that he'll take experience over something like "the dusty pages of an ancient book" (paraphrase mine, though not far off--if you know the exact quote, please post it.) This is not the same religion that Paul preached! It is preaching Christ crucified, yes, that is the only similarity. Mormonism and many other religions will go as far as that, but if everything else in their belief system is far from Biblical, how can they be Christian?

The Message, a paraphrase of the Bible written by Eugene Patterson, propogates this new Christianity. He never blatantly shouts, "I believe something different than traditional Christianity!" but he sure proves it in his paraphrase. The gospel, which is proclaimed by our early church forefathers, including Paul, is offensive. So how is it that The Message can be such an easy read and so self-satisfying and so simplistic that I could take it on my summer holiday to Barbados and read it on the beach while sipping a cocktail? It's because this new form of Christianity is not offensive. Homosexuality is permissable, as long as it is monogamous and loving. The long list of damning sins all throughout the New Testament gets turned into a simple exhortion to be good. The Jesus who never compromised the truth and said incredibly harsh things to religious leaders is painted as helpless and weak, but sweet and pitiable. You almost want to pat his head.

How is this the same Christianity that formed the Church? With this new Christianity about, you are given the new benefit of the doubt. Maybe when you say you're a Christian, you're one of these rational ones who understand that religion isn't about rules and doctrine and sending people to hell. Maybe you realize that God loves everyone and will only send the Satan worshippers where they belong. Maybe you're a rational Christian and don't believe the Bible is the end all, be all of life. Let's hope so!

Therefore, if you are not one of these rational Christians, you're a bigot, an asshole, a facist, one not worthy of the heaven you think you will go to.

Are you confused? Do you wonder what kind of Christian we are?

We are the kind that believe Jesus came to die on the cross because we are all desperately wicked, every last one of us, and without his sacrifice we would all receive our just punishment in hell. We are the kind that believe Jesus does not save all mankind, but only the elect, and the elect only come to Jesus by a faith given us by the undeserved grace of Jesus Christ. This means we are not the rational kind who believe all good people go to heaven. This means that we are the "bad" kind, the traditional, Biblical kind. We believe in the inerrancy of Scripture and the inspiration of Scripture through the Holy Spirit. We believe all things must be tested against Scripture and if something clashes with Scripture, we will side with Scripture.

I suppose what upsets me the most is that the other side will never take on a new name other than Christian, so the confusion may never end. Innocent men will be lured into the trap of universalism, humanism, and who knows what else. Yet I am encouraged knowing the God's Truth will remain, no matter what comes against it, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. The Bible will be preserved, even though errant and not-inspired versions will come against it, and God will forever be glorified regardless of what we humans do. Man may attempt to turn Christianity inward and make it all about us, but the Truth will never change. True Biblical Christianity has never been about us and never will be. It has always been and will always be about Christ, and the only reason we are even pulled into the equation is because of the immense, undeserved love and grace of God.

Skeeball

I remember one night Scott and I set up a skeeball game in the kitchen with increasing sized tuperware bowls and a ball of foil. It started out as a game of baseball until one of us knocked over a plant...

Scott picked me up from the train station the other day with a surprise for me. I had a suprise for him, too. I'd brought him home a slice of cake wrapped up in a napkin. He'd bought me a new set of really nice paintbrushes, after he'd seen me get frustrated with the cheap ones I'd been using.

Marriage is hard. It's wonderful and exciting and fun, but it's hard. It's not for the faint of heart. It takes neverending patience and self-control. It's the most selfless institution known to man.

Which is why I am stopping to write this post. So often when times are tough we are quick to forget just how wonderful marriage can be. So I'm calling all spouses (or spouses-to-be) to leave a comment remembering just two special things you and your spouse have done or your spouse has done for you. Let's celebrate, let's party, let's talk about the good times. ;)


On the other hand, let's not leave out our single friends. If you're not married, you've got your own special stories. Leave a comment specifying two special things about how nice it is to be single. Being single sometimes is hard, too, and takes patience and self-control, so let's celebrate your good times, too!

I was reading my old blogs to see what I sounded like prior to the wedding. I found this and liked it. I still think its true, and all the more true after marriage:

Scott and I are fantastic. I am simply desperate to see him again. He will be here in something like 15 days! I love him so much more than I ever knew was possible. What I've realized with Scott is that one may love someone else with everything one has, but if that love is not returned just as strongly, that love will be maximized to its fullest extent and will plateau. One may feel they are loving with all one has and to love more would be impossible. But when that love is spilled back over to one from the beloved, one's love suddenly gains the capacity to grow even deeper and even bigger. Thus one's love re-overflows back to the beloved and the cycle continues. I assume the cycle must continue forever. I assume this is part of God's plan with marriage, and partially explains why divorce is so disasterous.

Love.

Big things are happening here at Scott and Lori.co.uk. We are looking into switching over to Wordpress from Blogger, though we may have to upgrade our server to allow PHP and MySQL. (Hehe, I love talking like this. I don't know what the crap I'm talking about.) Blogger has been good to us, and we hate to leave, but they just aren't suitable for our needs any longer. We've outgrown them, I'm sad to say, and I will miss them.

Scott is supposed to try to get the graphics and frames back up on the site today. Whether he'll actually get around to it, I can't say. It's his day off, and he has a new video game. I have my doubts.

Tomorrow we plan to spend a buttload of moolahs. I'm getting my bridesmaid dress tomorrow, and if I can talk the old man into it, I'm also gonna order a hairpiece. I wanna look like Camilla on her wedding day, only less Royal Family and old. Yes, I get my fashion clues from the RF.

(Actually, I wanted this hairpiece long before the Prince's wedding. I didn't think it so much Royal Family as it was Singing in the Rain.)

I said big things were happening at Scott and Lori.co.uk. I think I lied. Nothing else big is happening. We do have two major holidays coming up, which is exciting. Prince Edward Island in only a few months. Our friends Graeme and Emily are getting married. (And Scott is the Best Man!) Then shortly after that, we're off to Arkansas for my little bro's wedding. (And I'm a bridesmaid!) Weddings are in the air. I like to think I started it. :D

Don't forget about the Unbelievable Cheek Award Nominations. I only have two submissions aside from my own, and I need many many more! Come on friends from home, we all know some people with unbelievable cheek. (Translation-audacity, er... I don't know any good definitions. Cheek is the best word for it.)

Ta ta.

Under Construction

The site is currently under construction as you can probably guess if you have been checking our site frequently (and by frequently I mean yesterday, the day before, and today). We've had to make some major adjustments to the blogger code in order to make frames work, which in return made blogger un-work, so we're under construction for the time being. Posts may be made (actually, I'm sure they will be made) but links, graphics, etc. are all going to be down until we get this all sorted.

We have also been given the priviledge of being asked (and being paid!) to design some websites for a family run company here in the area. So we're just regular web designers these days! It's all very exciting and professional-ish. I love it.

Anyway, more updates soon, more exciting updates that regard things you care about.

Like for instance, my party that is coming up very soon. :D

Our New Site

Greetings,

Just posting to let you know that we know the links are all broken. I had good intentions of putting those pages together, but Fireworks was being a complete nuisance and refusing to do symbols properly. Then I had to get the slicing to work too.

Gah.

Anyway, the job's mostly done. Whaddyathink? It's a bit smoother than the old interface, anyway.

Unbelievable Cheek Award Nominations

The Unbelievable Cheek Award!

Has someone simply amazed you with their cheek? Do you know someone so cheeky they deserve international recognition? Send us a story illustrating unbelievable cheek and see how it rates against all the other cheeky bastards in the world!

Finalists’ stories will be posted here and voted on by viewers. Cheeky people usually do more than one cheeky thing so enter as many stories as you like to get your cheeky friend—or more likely cheeky foe—the Unbelievable Cheek Award!

Please send submissions to lori_mcf@hotmail.com.

Names may be changed for protection against slander, so tattle away!

The Pilgrim's Progress Notes & Quotes

I'm reading The Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan right now, and I'm finding it so comforting spiritually! To read someone else's writing from so long ago and yet relate so explicitly to every detail is indeed an encouragement. Christians have been experiencing the same things for --goes to check the date-- at least 350 years. To know that all Christians go through the same struggles and emotions and disappointments affirms my faith to an extent. Last night I was feeling quite low, and then I recalled a place in the book where Christian discovers he has the key of Promise in his bosom which unlocks all the doors of Doubting-Castle. This recollection freed me! I recalled that I, too, have the key of Promise, and God has promised me that He will never leave me or forsake me, and that the work which He began in me will be performed until it is completed. I recalled Great Grace coming to save us when we are nearly destroyed by the villans of Mistrust and Guilt and so many others. It's an excellent read (though difficult with all the language antiquities) which I suggest to you all.

I've started keeping a record of quotes I like from the book. I will share two with you here:

"...And he told me, that unless I could obtain the Righteousness of a man that had never sinned; neither mine own, nor all the Righteousness of the World could save me."

"Why man! Christ is so hid in God from the natural apprehensions of all Flesh, that he cannot by any man be savingly known, unless God the Father reveals him to them." -Both quotes by Hopeful

I believe this book might comfort me for years to come. When I face certain adversities, I shall remember how I have caught glimpses of the Celestial Gate and how God has rescued me in the past and that I do indeed have the key of Promise, along with many other jewels that cannot be stolen, buried in my bosom. It is indeed a good book.

Jonah's Wail

Please visit Jonah's Wail for a special message regarding the Easy Alternative to Alcohol.

Happy Birthday Mrs McFarlane

Said in a Marilyn Monroe stylee.

It's my wife's birthday. I hope she enjoys what's left of it.

Happy Birthday, Lori.

p.s. I got a £50 bonus today, hurray.