Filed under: Deep Thoughts
It’s Christmas time – time for the presents to pour in. Maybe the video game you’ve been wanting all year. Maybe the new cell phone or the car. Or maybe, just maybe, the homemade knit sweater from Great Aunt Sophie. Or whole silver dollar given to you by your Grandpa Joe. Don’t be despaired, your parents are getting bad gifts too. The great philosopher, Bill Cosby, once said, “Fatherhood is pretending the present you love most is soap-on-a-rope.”
Yes, Christmas isn’t all about presents. It’s about the birth of our Savior. But who are we kidding, we are getting and giving gifts. Some we’ll keep, others we’ll return to the store, and still others we’ll have to wear in a picture sent to Great Aunt Sophie. The significance in giving presents, however, is not for the recipient, but for the giver. Ever notice that you get more joy out of giving “the perfect gift” than getting “the perfect gift”? I think that is why God gets so much pleasure out of giving us His Son. It brings Him more joy than it ever brought us. “I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent” (Luke 15:7). Merry Christmas.
Filed under: Shallow Thoughts
My five favorite “Deep Thoughts” by Jack Handey.
5 If you think a weakness can be turned into a strength, I hate to tell you this, but that’s another weakness.
4 To me, it’s always a good idea to always carry two sacks of something when you walk around. That way, if anybody says, “Hey, can you give me a hand?,” you can say, “Sorry, got these sacks.”
3 I wish I had a dollar for every time I spent a dollar, because then, yahoo!, I’d have all my money back
2 If a kid asks where rain comes from, I think a cute thing to tell him is, “God is crying.” And if he asks why God is crying, another cute thing to tell him is, “Probably because of something you did.”
1 When you die, if you get a choice between going to regular heaven or pie heaven, choose pie heaven. It might be a trick, but if it’s not, mmmmmmm, boy.
Filed under: Shallow Thoughts
Two Games into the season, and we look horrible. Can you believe that the winningest program in the history of basketball got BLOWN OUT by Garner-Webb. Before this season, if you asked me about Garner Webb, I probably would have thought you were talking about a kicker in the NFL or a point guard for some sub-par NBA team. Maybe he’s an umpire I heard about in MLB, but I wouldn’t have even know they were a college. And Goliath has fallen ala Appalachian State v. Michigan.
For those of you who have no idea what I’m talking about, read on…. It will make sense. I have been a Kentucky Wildcat basketball fan forever. (I was born the night that Kentucky lost to Louisville in their highly hyped first meeting in years - March 26, 1983. It went into overtime, but my parents watched the game while in labor with me!) When they lose, I cry a little. (Usually inside, but sometimes outside.) I was happy to see Tubby go, not because I disliked him, but because I bought into the idea that we need a “change” in coach. Isn’t that typical? Wanting “change”?
I am not anti-Billy Gillispie, but I think we overreacted when we bought into the idea that a “change” was in order. The grass is always greener. As Americans, we are never content with what we have. This is never truer than in the world of sports. Joe Torre wins four World Series and goes to two more in 12 years with the Yankees, and they offer him a pay cut. Kobe Bryant doesn’t like where the young talent around him is taking the Lakers so he demands a trade. And Kentucky is satisfied with 22 wins and 5 SEC championships in 10 years. We needed a “change.” I hope the “change” works out better than game 2 of the 07-08 season. And I hope that I learn to be content with what I have.
Filed under: Shallow Thoughts
It’s been over a month since I had my hair shaved at Fear Factor night. It’s grown back, just like everyone said it would. As a matter of fact, I’ve even had a hair cut since then. So if your wondering whether or not to point out to me that my hair has grown back, don’t bother. I know it has grown back. Remember, I’m the one who it grew back on. I’m the one who had an unbelievable itchy head for weeks. I do have a mirror in my house, so yes, I’ve seen that my hair has grown back.
And for your next question, yes, I know that there is still less on my head than most 24 year olds. I can’t help going bald. Just trying to make dad proud.
Filed under: FYI
I am not one to boycott, but…
A new movie is coming out December 7th that is being called the “Anti-Narnia.” The movie is called “The Golden Compass” and stars Nicole Kidman. The author says that his goal is to “Kill God.” (Check out the third paragraph under “Origins”
here.) News came to me via email and I thought is might be a rumor - it’s not. The author of a trilogy of books entitled His Dark Materials, Philip Pullman is an avid atheist who is targeting youth and children in his anti-God/anti-religion campaign. The film is based on the first of this trilogy entitled Northern Lights.
This movie is very similar to Narnia in it’s fantastical theme. At face value, the movie looks fun, clean, and entertaining. I am not one to boycott, but if there ever was something to boycott, it’s The Golden Compass.
Check out more about here.
Filed under: Deep Thoughts
In the Bible, there are over 550 references to the temple in the Bible, most in the Old Testament, and perhaps the boldest in the New Testament. Why all this emphasis on the temple? Christians today don’t even have buildings we designate as temples. Our churches today are NOT temples and they are not meant to be temples. There was ONE temple of importance the Bible talked about - the temple in Jerusalem. All other worship places were referred to as Synagogues.
So why does the Bible, the ageless always relevant Word of God, mention the temple over 550 times? God Himself made the need for a temple building obsolete when He tore the temple curtain in half after the death of Christ (Matthew 27:51; Mark 15:38; Luke 23:45). Surely God would have known that there would be people reading about the temple long after it was destroyed by the Romans. So why all this temple talk? Is the temple still a relevant topic among Christians? Of course it is. As a matter of fact, worshiping in the temple is the most freeing and important action of a Christian.
Originally, God gave the nation of Israel the ARK OF THE COVENANT. Among other functions, the Ark’s primary function was to literally be the seat of God. God gave the Ark to the Israelites and was literally seated on the Ark. Did I mention that God’s presence was not just figuratively on the Ark, but literally? Eventually, God had King Solomon build a temple where the Ark would permanently reside, and therefore God would permanently reside. The temple was literally the house of God. God did not live in Egypt or Babylon or even Europe or America. God literally lived in Jerusalem in the temple.
Israelites could not enter the temple unless they were completely clean of their sins. They had to be HOLY just to enter into certain parts of the temple. And in the middle of the temple was the HOLY OF HOLIES where the Ark of the Covenant sat. Only the high priest could enter into the Holy of Holies to offer a sacrifice for all of Israel. If the high priest was not found holy, he would drop dead upon entering because God cannot be in the presence of sin. (They tied a rope to the priest’s ankle and a bell. If they ceased to hear the bell ringing, they would know that the priest was unholy and died. They would pull him out with the rope! True story!)
So where does God live now? The temple has been destroyed and rebuilt and destroyed again in the first century by the Romans. Did God leave earth? Where can we experience His presence? The most profound statement about the temple is found in 1 Corinthians 6:19 - “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit…” Maybe you didn’t catch that - “YOUR BODY IS A TEMPLE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.” Your body is literally where God lives. He doesn’t live in trees or animals or rocks or buildings. God literallylives in Christian believers.
Which brings me to my next problem. In the Old Testament, if the priest wasn’t holy, he could not enter into the literal presence of God. Are we ticking time bombs, waiting for God to strike us dead because He cannot be in the presence of my unholiness? Woe is me, for I am a man of unclean lips! No, God cannot be in the presence of ANY unholiness. Not even a little.
But that is what makes the temple so freeing. If I am a born again believer then I am the temple of God. If I am the temple of God, I must be constantly in His literal presence. If I am not struck dead by being in God’s literal presence, then I must be HOLY. What a freeing thought that you and I as believers are already holy in God’s sight. We don’t have to do enough stuff to be holy - because of Christ’s death on the cross, we are made holy.
When you look at the Christian life from a temple perspective, it makes my disciplines much easier to swallow. I read my Bible, not to be made holy, but because I am holy. Reading your Bible will not make you more or less holy in God’s sight. Skipping out on an inappropriate party does not make you more or less holy. I live a set apart life, not to be made holy, but because I am holy. Your disciplines are not obligations, they are a natural reaction to your status as a believer - a HOLY temple of God.
“Only let us live up to what we have already attained.” - Philippians 3:16
