1. Teachers are those who themselves have been taught (Tit.1:9)
2. They hold fast to the faithful word they have been taught (either by word or epistle (Tit.1:9; 2Thess.2:15) observing the pattern of sound words (2Tim.1:13))
3. They are rooted and built up, abounding in the Word (Col.2:7; Jude 1:20; Matt.7:24)
4. Teachers are skillful in the word of righteousness (Heb.5:13)
5. Teachers are mature (Heb.5:14)
6. Teachers have trained senses to discern both good and evil (Heb.5:14)
7. Teachers have their spiritual eyes opened (Luke 6:39; Eph.1:18)
8....
Christ, Truth, and Politics
Published in the Souvenir of Central India Theological Seminary of October 2005.
Pilate saith unto him, What is truth? (John 18:38)
It is interesting to note that the only instance where Christ ever met Pilate in recounted history was at His trial. The ensuing dialogue between both of them is intriguing. It heavily concentrates on the urgency of Truth in a world mismanaged by humans.
The trial of Christ at Jerusalem reminds us of the trial...
Cognitive Voluntarism of James F. Ross
Excerpted from Epistemics of Divine Reality (2009, 2011)
In his paper Reason and Reliance: Adjusted Prospects for Natural Theology (1990),[1] James Ross defines ‘Cognitive Voluntarism’ as the view that ‘humans, for the most part, believe not because they are compelled by the evidence, but because they want to (sometimes even being compelled by wants operating as “convictors”) because assenting appears to advance their ‘apprehended...
Angels at Prayer - Some Witnesses
Incident 1: Place – Makhu, Punjab
In 1994, Pastor Surinder of Makhu, a genuine man of God whose life and ministry I personally witnessed, told us an incident from his life. He had the practice of kneeling by a chair and praying every morning or during any part of the day when he got any free time. There were two chairs there besides a bed in that single room where he and his family lived. And, because they didn’t have any church building then, people...
Toward the Tithe and Beyond | John Piper - Review
http://www.desiringgod.org/messages/toward-the-tithe-and-beyond
John Piper presents 7 Biblical reasons for tithing in this article. Quite contrary to the teaching of John MacArthur that Christians don’t need to tithe since they pay taxes to the government, Piper sees tithing as vital to a Christian’s being part of the Kingdom work. Tithing is also an antidote against covetousness, he says. Piper’s 7 Reasons reminded me of David Jeremiah’s 7 Reasons for tithing. Clearly, again contrary to what MacArthur teaches, Jesus made...
Some Self-Defeating Philosophical Positions
Scientism – The principle that only scientifically verifiable statements are true is itself not scientifically verifiable.
Skepticism – The statement that truth cannot be known is itself a statement considered to be true, which by its own verdict cannot be known.
Logical Positivism – The principle that only empirically verifiable statements can be true is itself not empirically verifiable.
Kantian Phenomenalism – If causality is just an a priori mental category imposed on sense data, then the whole enterprise...
The Joy Of A Boy
That surge of joy
In the heart of a boy
At the sight of his toy
Is greater than
The smugness of man
Who won't understand
That life isn't a game
Of dime, dame, or fame;
We leave as we cam...
Some Maxims of Wisdom
Character is Carved by Choices
Faith Flourishes by Favor
Love Looks Beyond Lacks
Truth is Tested on Temperance
Silence Succors Sometimes
Fear Fills up Folly
Reverence Reflects Royalty
Reliance Reassures Rest
Intent Inspires Imagination
Godliness Goes Before Glory
Pride Precedes Perdition
Discipleship Demands Denials
Honor comes by Honoring
Suretyship is a Sure Snare
Frame no Thought on Fragmentary Talk
Snobbery Secures Segregation
The Devil's Patience Doesn't Postpone his Perdition
Doubt Confuses, Faith Convicts
...
Should the Genesis Account of Creation Be Taken Literally Or Figuratively?
Ever since the dawn of Darwinism and the subsequent rise of Evolutionism, theologians have tried to wrestle with objections posed by science to the Creation account. The enormous amount of fossil records and proven accuracy of dating methods that try to figure out dates of each fossil along with other scientific researches are seen as a real issue that intellectual Christianity cannot be blind to. Many of the modern theologians and apologists have...
Origin of the Poem "When God Wants To Drill A Man"
The poem as quoted in Oswald J. Sander's (not to be confused with Oswald Chambers (1874-1917)) Spiritual Leadership (1967) credits it to an "Author Unknown". The poem as he quotes it is as follows:
When God wants to drill a man
And thrill a man
And skill a man,
When God wants to mold a man
To play the noblest part;
When He yearns with all His heart
To create so great and bold a man
That all the world shall be amazed,
Watch His methods, watch His ways!
How He ruthlessly perfects
...
The Original Division of Light From Darkness (Genesis 1:4)
And God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided the light from the darkness. (Gen 1:4)
The usual way has been to look at this along with the statement that "God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night." (Gen.1:5). So Barnes notes:
God then separates light and darkness, by assigning to each its relative position in time and space. This no doubt refers to the vicissitudes of day and night, as we learn from the following verse:...
The Shack (2017): Movie Review
There are a number of Christian movies that have tried to tackle the issue of human suffering in the face of faith in an all-good and all-powerful God. The Shack, based on the 2007 novel by William P. Young, is a serious attempt towards the same. The movie shows Mack who is in deep shock from the sudden loss of his youngest daughter struggling with the issue of faith and forgiveness. By a turn of events, He meets the Trinity which manifests to him...
What Was the Light On Day 1 Of Creation And How Come There Was Night When The Sun Was Created On Day 4?
Then God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light.
And God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided the light from the darkness.
God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. So the evening and the morning were the first day. (Gen 1:3-5)
Then God said, "Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years; and let them be for lights in the firmament of the heavens to give light on the earth"; and it was so.
Then...
Gospel in Words and Gospel in Deeds
Jesus ministered in word and in deed. He said His works testified of Him.
The Gospel is not only communicated by words but also by deeds. Preaching, talking, apologetics, discourse, conversations exemplify the Gospel in words. But, the Gospel can and is expected to also be communicated by deeds.
One may confess with his mouth that Jesus is Lord (Rom.10:10). But, they may deny the Lord by their works.
They profess to know God, but in works they deny Him, being abominable, disobedient, and disqualified for every good work. (Tit 1:16)
Many...
Stories
Life is an interweaving of stories. We hear stories all the time and stories help us to experience the experiences of others, though vicariously, though in a personal way feeling together with the other. One of the greatest gifts given to humanity by God is the gift of imagination. It is saddening when this is used vilely and foolishly, but humans need imagination to transcend their own world-frame and enter another world-frame to experience learning and benefit from the experiences of others. Stories cannot be told or listened to without the use...
Creation-Faith and the Value of the Cosmological Argument
The cosmological argument takes off from the common-sense idea that every effect must have a cause. From a rational point of view, the idea of something being created or effected out of nothing is absurd. Therefore, in many religious cosmologies, God is seen as either the material cause or the formal cause or the final cause of the world. In many cosmogonies, the universe is looked at as created out of something (and not nothing), many times the body of God (the eternal One). The idea of creation out of nothing does not originate in reason, though...
The Significance of Miracles
Jesus told the Jews to believe in Him, if not because of His words, then because of His works. The book of Acts records signs and wonders that accompanied preaching. The Bible talks also about lying signs by the devil in the last days. Obviously, as human experience proves (in all anthropological cultures), miracles play an important role in the area of faith and worldview formation.
Despite the Enlightenment euphoria challenging the possibility...
If God Is Love Means The Father Eternally Loves The Son, Does God Is Judge Means He Eternally Judges The Son?
Augustine in the eighth book of On Trinity begins to talk of love as involving three substances: the lover, the loved, and love. Modern apologists like Ravi Zacharias have argued that the statement God is Love could only be true if God is essentially and eternally a Triune being: the Father eternally loves the Son through the Holy Spirit. Thus, it was not that God was all alone (a monad) before the creation and had nothing to love, but being the Triune inter-personal God, He ever existed as Love.
Of course, Augustine also talks about the possibility...
Does the Moral Law Require a Moral Lawgiver?
One popular version of the moral argument for the existence of God has been that the reality or rational necessity of the moral law proves the existence of a moral lawgiver. However, we must admit that there are religious philosophies, especially in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism that do not find a leap from moral law to moral lawgiver necessary at all. In fact, in these, the moral law exists independently to any concept of deity. So, how justified is the argument from law to lawgiver?
I believe that the concept of a moral law and God are inseparable....
Is Fallenness Present As Opposite Sex Attraction In Some And Same-Sex Attraction In Others?
Sometime back, a pastor and leader in a reputed apologetic ministry commented that temptation to him occurred in the form of same-sex attraction, emphasizing that Christians must not regard temptation as sin but fight against temptation. He then went on to state that the fallenness of humanity is common to all and that while depravity may be manifest as opposite sex attraction in some, it appears as same-sex attraction in him and others. His comments went viral on social media. However, I disagree with his latter theological comment. Let me clarify...
Four Religions That Originated In India - Chart
RELIGION COUNTRIES HISTORY SCRIPTURES BELIEFS FESTIVALS PRACTICES
HINDUISMॐ India, Nepal, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Bali, Fiji, Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Mauritius, West Indies Name derived from River SindhuOriginally, Arya DharmaVedic Age (2000-600 BC)Protests Age (600-200 BC)Epics & Puranas (200 BC-AD 1000)Bhakti Age (AD 1000-1750)Modern Age (AD 1750-)
6 Schools of Philosophy: Sankhya, Yoga, Nyaya, Vaisesika, Uttara Mimmsa, Purva Mimamsa
Sects: Saivism, Saktism, VaishnavismModern...
