“You cannot study Pleasure in the moment of the nuptial embrace, nor repentance while repenting, nor analyze the nature of humour while roaring with laughter.”
–Myth Became Fact, World Dominion
Response to An Atheist
I just finished reading Doug Wilson’s book, “Letter from a Christian Citizen,” and I feel like I want to buy a copy for all my friends, and several of my enemies. He has a definite flair for defending the faith and making skeptics look like sophomores. Wilson takes up a response to Sam Harris’ book, “Letter to a Christian Nation,” and he answers most of the main arguments point by point. The main idea is that if we take atheism seriously, then we are left with a meaningless world that undermines atheistic criticisms of Christianity, and everything else. That is a mouthful, and easy to say. It is also easy understand once you think through the logic. But it took a little while for me to let it sink in.
However, taking time to understand the real implications of atheism is perhaps the greatest way to refute it. Atheists, of the Sam Harris variety at least, deny the existence of anything but matter. On that basis they deny the existence of God and criticize Christianity. After doing this they appeal to all sorts of non material principles to tell other people how to live. After supposedly clearing the deck of theological debris, they proceed to use of laws of logic, demand certain rules of proof, call for standards of ethics, and even insist upon telling believers that they “should” not apply their faith in the public arena. These all smack of “immaterial” things, the kinds of things that they say do not exist. In this regard atheists are like an anarchist filing a law suit, or a flat earth advocate trying to prove their point by talking about satellite orbitals.
Anyway, Wilson does an excellent job, and these 100 or so pages are worth your 8 bucks.
you can get the book at American Vision
12 Angry Men
The 1957 movie “12 Angry Men” is an old black and white move with Henry Fonda. Almost the entire movie takes place in a jury room, and is really all about courage and reason. Fonda plays a juror who wants to take seriously the act of casting a guilty verdict that will send a man to the electric chair. It is thought provoking and tame for the family, though some kids might not want to sit through it. It is all dialog and drama. But definitely a good movie, with lots of fodder for discussion.
C. S. Lewis
C. S. Lewis is the author of many famous books, including The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe.
“I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: ‘I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept His claim to be God.’ That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.” – Mere Christianity, pages 40-41.
Purpose in the Savior’s Name
What’s In a Name?
In studying science, it has surprised me again and again how many strange names there are for scientific things. The vocabulary is often ugly: borrowed from many languages, then chopped and pressed into our usage. Look at a junk food label if you don’t believe me. One of my instructors often takes pains to explain the origin of these names. Sometimes they are named after the scientist who discovered it, sometimes based on appearance, and sometimes based on function. He always says he prefers a name that is explanatory rather than a technical catalog sort of name. The reason: it helps us to remember what that thing is, or what it does.
To the man on the street, the name of Jesus doesn’t hold any special meaning. It is just a reference symbol. For many His name is filler in a sentence. For some, a source of jesting and mockery; For others still, a distant historic name that has little personal significance; and for a number who call themselves by that name, “Christian”, it is a good luck charm. But the name of Jesus wasn’t chosen because it had a pleasant ring to it. When my wife and I chose our children’s names that was an important factor. How does the name sound when you say it? Can you picture yourself calling the baby this name? And what about when he grows up? And of course we practiced saying them, and comparing the sound of competing names from baby books. Not so with Jesus. God had picked his name and delivered it to Joseph by an angel. That name was not picked because of how it sounded. It was picked because of what it meant. It was picked because of Jesus’ job description. In our country we used to have names based on job description: smith, wainwright, etc. I used to work with a man with the last name “Goldsmith.” Jesus name fits his calling.
In Matthew 1:21 we read, “And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins.” The name of Jesus means, “The LORD is salvation.” He is a savior, and it is important to note that he will save His people “FROM THEIR SINS.” The whole purpose for the baby in the manger was to rescue sinners from their sins. And that is what He does. He takes people who are full of themselves, miserable because of their shameful behavior, sick in sin, and he rescues them…from their sins. What that means is that people who are saved by this Jesus are saved from their old way of life. Not saved to remain in sin, but to leave it behind. When Jesus saves a sinner he picks them up and puts them on a new path, a wonderful path of serving him.
That is my experience. I heard the story of the Bible many times, but when I really began to listen to the story of Jesus in my high school years, my sins began to look worse and following Jesus looked better and better. Most people that I speak to don’t see that they need to be saved from anything. Except maybe election commercials! And they’re probably partly right. But every time you say the name of Jesus you are handling a loaded gun. Jesus’ name has distinct purpose. It tells us about His skills, His purpose. His name is His resume. He saves us from our sins and reconciles us to God. That is why we pray in Jesus’ name, and that is why we baptize in Jesus’ name.
Most Americans say they believe in Jesus. Do you know anything about the purpose of this name? Have you been saved from your sins?
Mark Twain Quotes
I recently came across a little book full of little quips from Mark Twain. He was a wisecracker for sure, and definitely makes me chuckle. His observations about human nature often have an uncanny accuracy for someone who was not exactly friendly to Christianity. Enjoy!
“There are 3 kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.”
“Get your facts first, then distort them as much as you please.”
“The man with a new idea is a crank until he succeeds.”
“If you pick up a starving dog and make him prosperous, he will not bite you . This is the principle difference between a dog and a man.”
“Man is the only animal that blushes, or needs to.”
“Familiarity breeds contempt. And children.”
“Soap and education are not as sudden as a massacre, but they are more deadly in the long run.”
“Few of us can stand prosperity. Another man’s, I mean”
“Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence in society.”
“Good breeding consists in concealing how much we think of ourselves and how little we think of the other person.”
Santa Barbara
This weekend we celebrated our 16th wedding anniversary. What a wonderful privilege! I am so thankful to my wife for putting up with me. She is the best woman in the world, and I am happy she is mine. We had a wonderful time. SB has many very nice restaurants all cramped in the downtown area near State St. I would highly recommend a visit.
Also, we went to the Santa Barbara Mission, which is a wonderful place to visit. There is a lot of history there, unlike many places in California. The mission, and the city, have been there for more than 100 years. It is amazing. Considering the circumstances of our visit, I am very thankful that my wife is not a nun 🙂 That would have been a terrible waste…
New CD
I am listening to the new Caedmon’s Call CD (Overdressed) that just came out a couple of months ago. It is wonderful. In my opinion this group is treasure. They are a folk band that sings Christian music, but there is so much more here. They have a long history of turning out consistently enjoyable music. They sing about Jesus, and the excellencies of God. But they also sing about common stuff such as “bus drivers”, families, single guys and their struggles, San Francisco, etc. So many groups fall into the dreadful trap that makes every song sound exactly the same. I love that this group has escaped that dismal position. While they have a distinct modern folk sound, they also have a lot of unique songs and variety within that genre. Also, they have great poetry for lyrics, thoughtful, beautiful, and true. No stupid Shania Twain songs here.
They are strong on acoustic guitar in their music. But they have several percussionists, a piano player, and great vocals. Some of their rhythm work is very complicated. If you have good speakers and listen closely you will hear some amazing complexity in the music. They have consistently great vocals, and several in the band can really sing. I am addicted!
On this album the song “there is a reason” is a great look at how we can trust in God’s promises when we don’t understand the confusing world around us. It is loosely from Ecclesiastes 3, “in everything there is a season” (which even the chorus is sort of a play on that: season/reason, I saw that just now as I was writing this)
I was overcome with gratitude and wept after listening to “love grows love” this is a great family/love song.
“Share the Blame” is a unique song that calls everyone to take their share of responsibility for the bad things in the world and our life. Guys like me would just say, that’s your fault, don’t blame everyone else for your screwed up life. The Lyrics in this one are a much more beautiful way to say it. “hold up the mirror and share the blame”
You can buy them on itunes or check out their website: caedmonscall.com
Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
I have spoken to some friends about my paramedic experience, and thought it would be helpful to add some info about this stuff.
In fall of 2005 I was working for AMR in Victorville and had the amazing privilege to be part of a huge rescue and recovery effort following Hurricane Katrina. We drove 30 ambulances from Riverside to Baton Rouge, where we helped to set up a major “temporary ambulance operation” during the weeks that followed the hurricane. We were there for about 3 weeks. It was a great privilege, and I would say it was a defining experience in my life. I had been a paramedic 10 years and like anyone in EMS that amount of time, I had seen enough to give me nightmares for a lifetime. But being there was different. It was not the normal 911 mode of doing things where there are a few people at a time in the midst of crisis. almost everyone there was experiencing some degree of chaos, or was related to someone who was. I felt like the purpose of my life to help others was just as clear as it has ever been.
The first picture is of me and Phil Titsworth. He was a supervisor for AMR in the Antelope Valley then, and I think he still is. He is a great guy and we developed a pleasant friendship while we were there. We were partnered up the day of this picture. Location: We were in the Omni hotel in the French quarter, and we were detailed to an improvised clinic there. We had a doctor, a nurse, and a bunch of paramedics. Most of the citizens were gone, and the people that remained were mostly relief workers of one kind or another. Police, Fire, Militar, and various workers. So people would come in and we would help with vaccinations, and give all kinds of care….a lot like an urgent care. We did many different things, and each day was often a different “mission.” Some helped with backing up 911 units, some transferred patients to other hospitals, some worked at refugee centers, some helped with search and rescue teams, some helped with body recovery….we did all this and everything in between.
When the water went down and they opened one of the freeways in N.O. we drove through and saw this makeshift “dock.” It was a place where many of the citizens had taken their boats into the water to rescue the stranded. When the water receded they leaned over onto the ground where they were tied up…amazing….
Some lessons I learned:
- Texas is a very big state, you just drive and drive and drive, and you are still in Texas.
- Don’t count on the government to save you, even when the resources are just a few miles a way. No kidding, things were very disorganized. At one point I was so frustrated I was fighting back tears. In my personal experience, the state of Louisiana should bear the greatest brunt of the blame, right after the personal failure of individuals who ignored warnings..
- Listen when you are told to evacuate, and do at least something to prepare yourself for disasters. It is really easy to throw stones at all those idiots in New Orleans isn’t it? But how many of us in Cali, right up the street from the San Andreas Fault are really prepared for the big one. They have hurricanes, we have earthquakes. We should give some thought to preparing for emergencies.
- There are lots of great people in America that rise to the occasion during disasters. I was overwhelmed by the kindness of the southerners. I met a doctor who volunteered to go out there and help. She said she had student loans, and a struggling practice, but that she just HAD to go to help the people there. Wow! I saw lots of that and felt humbled to be among so many sacrificial people. I was also very proud of AMR. They have their problems, but in disasters they do the right thing.
- I was amazed at the power of God. I saw destruction right in front of me, the news doesn’t compare to seeing miles after miles of destruction.
Psalm 46:8 Come, behold the works of the LORD,
Who has made desolations in the earth.
I have lots more to say, but this is all for now.
America’s First Woman Poet on a House Fire
This is a wonderful poem by an American Puritan Woman. Her house burned down, and she poured out her heart in this poem. It is beautiful and full of deep feeling, but I think I like most of all that she is able to realize that her life does not consist in the things found here on earth. That her real life is hidden with Christ in God. In light of the recent wildfires, this is applicable.
by Anne Bradstreet
(1612-1672)
Upon the Burning of Our House – July 10th, 1666
In silent night when rest I took,
For sorrow neer I did not look,
I waken’d was with thundring nois
And Piteous shreiks of dreadfull voice.
That fearfull sound of fire and fire,
Let no man know is my Desire.
I, starting up, the light did spye,
And to my God my heart did cry
To strengthen me in my Distresse
And not to leave me succourlesse.
Then coming out beheld a space,
The flame consume my dwelling place.
And, when I could no longer look,
I blest his Name that gave and took,
That layd my goods now in the dust:
Yea so it was, and so ’twas just.
It was his own: it was not mine;
Far be it that I should repine.
He might of All justly bereft,
But yet sufficient for us left.
When by the Ruines oft I past,
My sorrowing eyes aside did cast,
And here and there the places spye
Where oft I sate, and long did lye.
Here stood that Trunk, and there that chest;
There lay that store I counted best:
My pleasant things in ashes lye,
And them behold no more shall I.
Under thy roof no guest shall sitt,
Nor at thy Table eat a bitt.
No pleasant tale shall ‘ere be told,
Nor things recounted done of old.
No Candle ‘ere shall shine in Thee,
Nor bridegroom’s voice ere heard shall bee.
In silence ever shalt thou lye;
Adieu, Adeiu; All’s vanity.
Then streight I gin my heart to chide,
And didst thy wealth on earth abide?
Didst fix thy hope on mouldring dust,
The arm of flesh didst make thy trust?
Raise up thy thoughts above the skye
That dunghill mists away may flie.
Thou hast an house on high erect
Fram’d by that mighty Architect,
With glory richly furnished,
Stands permanent tho’ this bee fled.
It’s purchased, and paid for too
By him who hath enough to doe.
A Prise so vast as is unknown,
Yet, by his Gift, is made thine own.
Ther’s wealth enough, I need no more;
Farewell my Pelf, farewell my Store.
The world no longer let me Love,
My hope and Treasure lyes Above.
MattTroupe.net 