“All things are lawful for me,” but not all things are helpful. “All things are lawful for me,” but I will not be dominated by anything. –1 Corinthians 6:12 (ESV)–
I was reading through the band “Thank Yous” of Zao’s 1999 album Liberate Te Ex Inferis today. It took me back to my freshman year of high school. It was basically a time capsule for all things cool to rock and roll charismatic kids when I was that age.
1. The Vineyard Church – John Wimber’s theology or church environment.
2. Deftones.
3. Playstation (PS1).
4. Nintendo 64 (N64).
5. Spawn.
6. Back to the Future trilogy.
7. Star Wars trilogy.
8. The Matrix (1st one).
9. Star Trek: The Original Series – especially Spock.
10. Event Horizon – album concept – only on VidAngel definitely.
Being that I’m a dad that podcasts and blogs a lot about theology, I thought maybe I should loosen up a bit with some of these “carnal” delights and Christian liberties. Or maybe not…too much. When it comes to the movies, I could probably only push ’em in front of my teenagers with VidAngel or Clearplay in a clear conscience. But I’d need to add the Indiana Jones trilogy into the mix. Star Wars: A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back should ONLY be watched with the original DVD set called the LIMITED EDITION: BONUS DISC. You know, the original ones without the stupid CGI edits. –J.B.
I’m from L.A. I’m Mexican; and like, I hate that my people are just being taken–LEGAL OR NOT–I’m a firm believer that no human is illegal. Its just humanity. Nobody deserves to be snatched up by somebody in a mask and taken to God knows where. That’s not right. –“No Kings” Antifa Protester (11:40)–
Squint your eyes to see clearly Blur reality to make it real Let focus go from your deceiving eyes To know what’s been concealed We’ve all been blinded Subjects to visual misinformation A systematic denial of the crystalline To see the fine grain To read the hidden words The context of parallel truth Devoid of fragmentation
Our light-induced image of truth Filtered blank of its substance As our eyes won’t adhere to intuitive lines Everything examined, separated, one thing at a time The harder we stare, the more complete the disintegration Dissolution Eyes re-opened Reasoning focalized Receptors activated
Perspectives distorted The ladder beyond our grasp The twin-headed serpent forever hidden Where’s the true knowledge? Where engines of the sane and insanity merge The clarity, the unity
Reality untouchable, transparent Invisible to our fixed, restricted fields of vision Existence taken for granted, absolute Possessed, owned, controlled By the common sense-infected rational gaze Onward, forever we walk among the ignorant Never stray from the common lines
—. Meat for Men (Bethany House Publishers, 1961). Wesleyan; Washer recommends.
—. Revival Praying (Bethany House Publishers, 1962). Wesleyan; Washer recommends.
—. Tried and Transfigured (Bethany House Publishers, 1963). Wesleyan; Washer recommends.
—. Sodom Had No Bible (Bethany House Publishers, 1971). Wesleyan; Washer recommends.
—. America Is Too Young to Die (Bethany House Publishers, 1979). Wesleyan; Washer recommends.
—. Revival God’s Way (Bethany House Publishers, 1983). Wesleyan; Washer recommends.
J. Douglas MacMillan, Jesus: Power Without Measure (Evangelical Press, 2015). Washer recommends.
Charles Spurgeon, Twelve Sermons on Prayer (Baker, 1989). Washer recommends. Calvinist.
Brother Lawrence, The Practice of the Presence of God (Whitaker House, 1982). Catholic; read with caution. Wesley recommends.
Augustin Poulain, The Graces of Interior Prayer (Kegan Paul, 1910). Catholic; read with caution; comprehensive teaching on miraculous gifts coming out of a person’s private prayer life.
Richard J. Foster, Prayer (HarperCollins, 1992). Broadly evangelical; occasionally quotes heretical teachers with universalist leanings; read with caution. But unique in that its thorough and classifies many different ways of prayer. Partially Wesleyan.
John Wimber, Power Healing (HarperCollins, 1987). In the vein of Richard J. Foster; solely focused on healing prayer. Partially Wesleyan.
John Cassian, Conferences (Paulist Press, 1985). Catholic; read with caution; based on interviews with the Desert Fathers in the fourth century.
Thomas Dubay, Fire Within (Ignatius Press, 1989). Catholic; read with caution; a study of Teresa of Avila and John of the Cross.
A growing sickness in the heart Defective, lack of control The cure is somewhere in the silence But I’m crushed by the noise inside
Don’t lock the door on me You’d kill me, face down, dead Another part of me falls for you
Another day in the dark Stranded in the night Stranded in the cold
Don’t lock the door on me You’d kill me, face down, dead Another part of you gone to waste Please hear me out You’d kill me, face down, dead Another day in the dark
Leave the moment alone Leave the moment alone
–Gojira, “Stranded”–
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Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee. –Isaiah 26:3 (KJV)–
Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. –James 4:8 (KJV)–
Don’t worry about anything, but in all your prayers ask God for what you need, always asking him with a thankful heart. And God’s peace, which is far beyond human understanding, will keep your hearts and minds safe in union with Christ Jesus. –Philippians 4:6-7 (GNT)–
That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us. –Acts 17:27 (KJV)–
The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God. –Romans 8:16 (KJV)–
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I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again; he ascended into heaven, he is seated at the right hand of the Father, and he will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.
–The Apostles’ Creed–
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Augustin Poulain, The Graces of Interior Prayer (Kegan Paul, 1910).
A. W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God (Christian Publications, 1948).
Charles Finney, Sermons on the Way of Salvation (E. J. Goodrich, 1891), p. 195. Another revelation of God’s wrath he makes is in his juridical abandonment of sinners. God manifests his despair of doing any thing more for their salvation when he manifestly withdraws his Spirit and gives them over to hopeless abandonment. Withdrawing his Spirit, he leaves them in great moral blindness. They may have been able to see and to discriminate spiritual things somewhat before, but after God forsakes them, they seem almost utterly void of this power. Everything is dark; all is confused. The light of the Holy Spirit being withdrawn, it were practically vain for the sinner himself or for his sympathizing friends to expect his salvation. This mental darkness over all spiritual things is God’s curse on his rejection of truth, and significantly forebodes his speedy doom.
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Just to keep things clear, I don’t recommend that Catholics should marry Protestants and vice versa. That can lead to spiritual confusion. But I have no problem cooperating with Catholics on conservative Christian talking points. Protestants differ from Catholics on Purgatory, progressive justification, relics, prayers to Mary and the saints, the pope, transubstantiation, and confession. These differences make it spiritually confusing for raising children under any meaningful catechism. However, for political causes and joint Christian causes, they have this in common: Jesus, prayer, holiness, the Bible, church attendance, straight marriage, pro-life, and works of mercy. Out of all the Protestants out there, I’d say charismatics and ecumenically minded Wesleyans have the most in common with Catholics. –J.B.
Bloody rain Floods these streets, came falling onto the Earth Run away A thunder hangs above me like an eye
Holy Ghost I’m on fire Holy Spirit I’m on fire
Blows a wind It fills and quakes the houses from above Wide awake Burning out the foxes from the vines
Holy Ghost I’m on fire Holy Spirit I’m on fire
A display Tongues of fire against the night The display Ignites your mind (ignites your mind)
Feel the waves Crash against the concrete from below A new wine Intoxicates you slowly out of time
Holy Ghost I’m on fire Holy Spirit I’m on fire
A display Tongues of fire against the night The display Ignites your mind
Holy Ghost I’m on fire Holy Spirit I’m on fire (I’m on fire) Holy Ghost (Save, save, save) I’m on fire (Save, save, save) Holy Spirit (Save, save, save) I’m on fire (Save, save, save; I’m on fire) Holy Ghost (Save, save, save) I’m on fire (Save, save, save) Holy Spirit (Save, save, save) I’m on fire (Save, save, save; I’m on fire)
–Deftones, “Milk of the Madonna”–
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He that prophesieth, speaketh unto men to edification, and exhortation, and comfort. –1 Corinthians 14:3 (KJV)–
Archibald Alexander, Thoughts on Religious Experience (Banner of Truth, 1996), ch. 7.
Ira Milligan, Understanding the Dreams You Dream (Treasure House, 1997).
Jeff Doles, Miracles and Manifestations of the Holy Spirit In the History of the Church (Walking Barefoot Ministries, 2007), ch. 7. John Knox and the Scottish Reformation preachers were all into dream interpretation and the gift of foretelling prophecy. Knox regularly received a list for divine healing prayer during the Sunday service.
In Scripture, predestination is usually expressed generally to the body of Christ, and never to a living individual: it was always God’s plan, before the foundation of the world, to make the Gospel a part of human experience. But it is not sound to draw assurance of salvation from this doctrine. Scripture exhorts us to make our calling and election sure, because only God knows the elect. Election means that God foresees those particular saints who will persevere to the end of their lives with repentant faith in Christ; and it is these saints whom God will choose out of mankind for eternal salvation. The most Calvinistic sounding passage in the Bible is Romans 9:6-29. In this passage, the apostle Paul cites some examples of a few individuals: Jacob as the elect and Esau as the reprobate; and then Moses as the elect and Pharaoh as the reprobate. In this passage he refers to the prevenient grace of God drawing Jacob and Moses to faith by the activity of his Spirit. This does not mean that the Spirit put forth no effort to draw Esau and Pharaoh to God. In fact, the ten plagues of Egypt are evidence enough that God cared about Pharaoh’s salvation. Many of the Egyptians came to believe in God because of those plagues, but Pharaoh refused to believe. He said, “Who is the Lord, that I should obey him and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord and I will not let Israel go.” His own unreasonable and personal resistance to the Holy Spirit, much like the stubborn Pharisees whom Stephen rebuked, allowed his heart to become hardened, and drove the Holy Spirit away from him, in the same way that “the Spirit of the Lord had departed from Saul,” and allowed it to be fairly said that God has “mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden.”
God does not arbitrarily force his Spirit into some and pass by or overlook others. There is not one clear teaching of double predestination in all the Bible. Peter used to believe that the Jews were God’s chosen people; and that they had a special salvation status when compared with the Gentiles; but after receiving a vision, he changed his mind and said, “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism.” We only wish it were the same way with high Calvinists who continue to assert such a favoritistic notion with their doctrine of election. They take this from the Westminster Confession 3.7, which says, “The rest of mankind, God was pleased, according to the unsearchable counsel of His own will, whereby He extendeth or withholdeth mercy as He pleaseth, for the glory of His sovereign power over His creatures, to pass by, and to ordain them to dishonor and wrath for their sin, to the praise of His glorious justice.” They support this view with several Scriptures, among which is Romans 9:21-22: “Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for special purposes and some for common use? What if God, although choosing to show his wrath and make his power known, bore with great patience the objects of his wrath—prepared for destruction?” The Arminian understands that Paul was only using rhetorical questions, hypothesis, and conjecture here. Notice his use of “what if God” (Gk. ei de thelo ho theos), which shows that he was suggesting to his readers, “What if double predestination were in reality the way that God relates to mankind? I’m not saying that it is, but what if it was? Well, if that were the case, then people should still have an attitude of reverence to submit themselves to the will of God, and not be argumentative and just godlessly chatter against what has been revealed in Scripture.”
However, the apostle Paul did not say that double predestination is a revelation from God. He only brought up the concept as a philosophical response, to those who would irreverently chatter against the Biblical revelation that God decides to judge and send some people to Hell for their sinfulness. There is not one clear revelation in all of Scripture which states that God passes some people by, and “ordains them to dishonor and wrath,” as it says in the Westminster Confession. Such a view of God is monstrous, unjust, unfair, unloving, and completely unreasonable. Biblical election may be a personal experience. It might be possible for the elect to identify themselves as those who feel the presence of God and have true faith in the Gospel: compared with everyone else, whose minds are filled with skepticism, rationalism, and always rely on natural explanations for supernatural occurrences and miracles (Romans 8:28-30; Ephesians 1:4-5, 11; 2 Peter 1:10; 3:9; Hebrews 12:14; Matthew 24:13; Acts 13:48; 2 Timothy 1:9; Revelation 13:8; Exodus 5:2; 11:3; 12:33; Acts 7:51; 1 Samuel 16:14; Romans 2:11; Acts 10:34; WCF 3.7).
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