American Idol & Hosea

It's amazing isn't it. I never thought of it before this moment, but the title of America's favorite reality show is about worship. What good is an idol if you don't worship it? Ironically I don't think most Americans worship the singers, although I am sure there are some who do. Maybe the American Idol has nothing to do with singing at all. Israel (or as Hosea like to call them Ephraim) made idols in their day. They did it with their hands. You might say it was like going to a craft show only the craft was little gods. America has created another kind of god.

During the time of Hosea the chosen people of God had begun worshiping Idols. Undoubtedly many of these same people attended worship gatherings on a weekly basis. Certainly they believed they were worshiping Yahweh. Yet if you entered their house or watched them the rest of the week you would certainly see the worship of idols. They did not see it as idolatry because they were simply worshiping the same god in different forms and using different methods.

Today in America our idol worship has become much more sophisticated. We don't generally worship wooden carvings or golden calves. We worship a god made in the image of man. We look at God and instead of seeking out Him we seek to change Him into something else. We want God to be a god that we like, one we can control, or one we can understand. The American Idol is one of the mind. These people who worship this false god are found all over the place. Many of them are found in the temple (church) worshiping on Sunday mornings. They believe they are worshiping Yahweh. They think they are worshiping Jesus the God-Man! In reality they are worshiping idols created by their own mind.

As seen continually throughout the book of Hosea the answer is first to see the error (exegetical preaching would help in this area) and then to repent. WOW, that is a little too Old Testament for me...wait, I guess the New Testament isn't really that much different. I guess Jesus demanded worship as the only way to the father. There is also that one passage that says something like there is only one name by which men can be saved. Hmmmm.

The idols in America are pervasive and found everywhere. Perhaps what hurts most to God is not that people worship idols, but that they confuse Him for someone else. Let me illustrate, I once went to a wedding where one of my former students was getting married. I knew the family well. I don't often where a suit (most people are shocked when they hear that I own one). As I was going through the greeting line the mother of the bride, whom I know well, did not recognize me. She thought I was from the grooms side of the family. Potentially that could hurt. This mom was embarrassed and apologized profusely (all is forgiven of course). This is the same kind of thing that happens with God. We have created this image in our mind, but it does not resemble the real thing. When we see the real thing we are confused, we realize we have been worshiping something that is not real.

Should We Preach About Election?

I have to admit that I have gone through a transition. I have flipped and flopped on this. I have been all over the map, been on both sides of the fence, and even tried to walk on top of it for a while. Unfortunately my balance isn't that good. It seems like such a weird question, but I want you to stop and consider for a moment when the last time you heard a preacher deal with this issue in an unapologetic way.



If you are like most people and you don't go to John Piper's church then you probably couldn't remember the last time that happened. I don't know if that means your church is bad if you can't remember a sermon on election, maybe you were gone that week. Still it is a fair question.



Why do I even bring this up? The reason is simple, if we believe in the word of God it is hard to avoid such doctrines. It doesn't really matter how you understand this word. Scripture brings the issue up many times (Romans 8; Ephesians 1; 1 Peter 1; etc...). You might be thinking this is not a very practical thing to preach on. My first inclination is to agree, but then why does Scripture bring it up? Perhaps a closer look at these passages will reveal the importance of understanding this Biblical doctrine. For example a closer look at 1 Peter 1:1-2 might encourage Christians who question how God could possibly save someone like them.



I am all for a practical approach to God's word, but I start with the idea that all of scripture is practical. Isn't that the point of 2 Timothy 3:16?

Kids only need one mom!!

This post is not about homosexuality, it is not even about moms. Instead it is about dads being dads.

I heard a statistic about the amount of time dads spend with there kids on a daily basis. Of course the statistic was used to show how dads in our society are horible at being parents. Time magazine published an article basically taking a shot at dads as well. According to this article human dads stink because they don't spend 90% of there time with the kids. If you think I am exagerating read the article. You might also want to notice how many of the researchers mentioned are male. All the research and statistics in the world will not help people to understand what being a dad is all about.

Being a dad is a lot more than spending time with the kids. Just think if dads spent 90% of their time with the kids someone else would have to go out and find a way to pay the bills. I guess if we did that then a bunch of male researches could get together and blast moms for not spending more time with the kids. Frankly I am sick of the immunization of the role of fatherhood.

I don't have the dad thing figured out, I am learning on the job. I mess up on a regular basis. Sometimes I am too nurturing (that is rarely the case, but it does occasionally happen), more often I am not nurturing enough. Still if both mom and dad were always comforting and never helped their kids develop things like toughness then we would end up with a bunch of really confused, wimpy, and even sissy kids. Don't get me wrong there is a balance, but the balance is different for mom and it should be. Real men cry, but they cry different than women and about different things. Real men may be "secure" in their "feminine" side, but I am more concerned about them being secure in their manly side. I honestly don't care if they are comfortable wearing pink or crying in public.

A good dad will spend time with the kids, but I am not sure how much. A good dad will more importantly show his kids what it is to have priorities right. Sometimes that may mean spending time doing things that take him away from the family. A good dad will not try to be mom. He will realize that mom can't teach some lessons to the kids as well as dad. He will also realize the reverse is true. Moms are not generally good at teaching their kids to be tough, they need help from dad. Moms may be in a better position to teach love and compassion, but they are probably not the best ones to teach their kids how to be appropriately competitive.

Dads, be a dad, and be a good one, but don't try to be mom!!

Are You A Concealed Carry Christian?

In most states it is legal, once you have jumped through the appropriate hoops, to carry a concealed weapon (usually a gun). Recently there was a shooting not too far from my house (the shooting took place in Coon Rapids) between an officer and a civilian who was carrying a gun. In spite of how this blog entry has started it is not necessarily about guns, but instead about being armed in another way.

The entire concept of concealed carry is keeping the weapon concealed. In other words people who have a permit walk around armed but the people around them don't know they are armed. Simply put, the concealment gives the armed citizen the ability to better defend themselves because an attacker would not know they are armed. Smart people (in my opinion) would not advertise the fact that they have a permit or carry a weapon. It would defeat the purpose.

Christianity is different, it is not a concealed carry religion. Still I would argue that many Christians live in such a way. They may not completely conceal their faith, they may tell people they carry, but they are afraid to bring out the weapon. People should not carry a weapon if they don't know how to use it or if they are unwilling to use it. I might suggest the same is true of Christianity. It is the responsibility of every Christian to seek out training that would help them use the weaponry God has given them to accomplish God's purpose. Not only must they know how, but they must practice in real life situations.

What kind of Christian are you?

Citizens of Two Worlds

It seems there has been a negative reaction to "The Religious Right" by other Christians over the past several years. In some ways this attack is very much warranted, still we must be careful what we wish for.

The religious right has been on the anti-gay, anti-abortion war path for some time. It seems they would rather put a bumper sticker on their car that says, "Abortion is murder!" rather than tell their neighbor about Jesus. It seems that the religious right is more concerned about legislating morality than changing hearts.

Still it is a Godly thing to fight abortion and to promote Biblical marriage (1 man 1 woman till death). It is a good thing to desire our country to be moral. Those are Godly things!!

So what? Perhaps we should put our bumper stickers away. Maybe we should do everything we can to support those things which are Biblical and moral, but we should do that from a non-Biblical perspective rather then shoving the Bible down peoples throats. We must first be citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven and second citizens of whatever country we are in.

Let's change people minds about Jesus first and everything else second.

Lessons From Chris Angel

I know Chris Angel has been around a long time, but it wasn't until today that I watched any of his shows. I have to admit he is pretty amazing!! I saw him walk on water, walk through glass, and escape from a watery grave. All of those were pretty amazing to watch. Still the most intriguing thing I saw was the hypnotisms.

Chris attempted (and pretty much succeeded) in hypnotising a room full of people. Part of the show was Chris and his staff talking about how people are hypnotized. Apparently a person can be hypnotised by smell, sound, visuals, etc...

The reason I found this to be so intriguing is simple. Let me explain:

• If a person does not want to by hypnotized it is apparently impossible to hypnotise them. For the person who wants to be hypnotized it is apparently pretty easy to do so.
• It is also interesting to note that some people who were standing when this happened seem to fall to the ground as if they suddenly fell asleep.
• People also seemed to be open to suggestion during that time as well.

As I was watching it dawned on me that people who are desperately searching for a "spiritual" experience ore desperately want to be healed could be easily hypnotized. They would also be open to the suggestion that what they desperately wanted is true. Hmmm