Sinful Human Nature, Government and the US Constitution

This is a post before the Fourth of July.

 

Sinful Human Nature, Government and the US Constitution

 

Purpose: Today we will see how a biblical view of human nature has implication of how government’s form looks like and also consideration of the US Constitution.

• The Bible teaches people can be sinful, so there is a danger with pure democracy
• The Bible teaches kings can be sinful, so there is a danger with pure monarchy
• The Bible teaches a powerful minority can be sinful, so there is a danger of an aristocracy
• The Rationale of the US Constitution for Divided Government and Checks and Balances

 

Some words before we begin

• I am not trying to say America is right in everything
• Nor do I think America is wrong with everything
• In talking about the Constitution I don’t think it is on par with the Bible, God’s Word.
• While not seeing the Constitution as sacred I do think there are some wisdom behind its design of the government of the United States that shows agreement with a biblical view of human nature.
• Also this is not meant to say there’s no good government except for the United States.

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Free PDF Apologetics’ Dissertation: Humanity’s Capacity to Apprehend Aesthetic Value as an Argument for God’s Existence

Here’s a doctoral dissertation that Liberty University’s Rawlings School of Divinity has made available titled “Humanity’s Capacity to Apprehend Aesthetic Value as an Argument for God’s Existence.”   I imagine this would be a treat and food for thought for those into apologetics, theology and philosophy.  I myself am fascinated with how our thinking ability shows there is the existence of God; or rather, because God is, we know we can think, reason, etc.

The dissertation was written by Walter Davis and was completed on March 2017 as part of his completion of his Doctor of Philosophy (PhD).  I am thankful Liberty University has made this thesis available online for free.

Here’s an abstract:

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Quick Devotional from Matthew 6:13 (Observation from the Greek)

This is from my daily Greek exercise of sight reading some time ago, courtesy of Vincent S Artale Jr.

Our text is from the Greek translation of Matthew 6:13.  Here is my translation:

“καὶ μὴ εἰσενέγκῃς ἡμᾶς εἰς πειρασμόν,
And lead us not into temptation

ἀλλὰ ῥῦσαι ἡμᾶς ἀπὸ τοῦ πονηροῦ. ”
But rescue us from the evil one

Here are some observations:

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This Sunday at Church: Encourage someone you seen changed this past year

For this Sunday here’s what you can do: Encourage someone you seen changed this past year.
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Contempt of the Court and thinking about God’s Judgment Day

Do you ever hear some mockers of the faith say that on the Great Judgment Day they will stand before God and bravely accuse God of wrong doing and God not being fair, or they wish to express blasphemy towards God?

Never felt comfortable when people say that.

But I don’t think it will turn out the way they think.

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Bible Contradiction? Is it OK to covet?

For today’s post we will tackle the question the Skeptic Annotated Bible asked: Is it OK to covet?

Here are the answers which the skeptic believes indicate a Bible contradiction:

Yes, some things you should covet.

Like prophecy.

“Therefore, my brothers and sisters, earnestly desire to prophesy, and do not forbid speaking in tongues.” ( 1 Corinthians 14:39)

And the best gifts. (Especially on Christmas morning.)

“But earnestly desire the greater gifts. And yet, I am going to show you a far better way.” (1 Corinthians 12:31)

Don’t covet.

Don’t covet anything.

“What shall we say then? Is the Law sin? Far from it! On the contrary, I would not have come to know sin except through the Law; for I would not have known about coveting if the Law had not said, “You shall not covet.”” ( Romans 7:7)

“For this, “You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and if there is any other commandment, it is summed up in this saying, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”” ( Romans 13:9)

“But sexual immorality or any impurity or greed must not even be mentioned among you, as is proper among saints;” (Ephesians 5:3)

“Therefore, treat the parts of your earthly body as dead to sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry.” (Colossians 3:5)

At least not these things: your neighbor’s house, field, wife, slave, concubine, ox, ass, or anything else that belongs to your neighbor.

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male slave, or his female slave, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”” (Exodus 20:17)

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor desire your neighbor’s house, his field, his male slave or his female slave, his ox, his donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.’” (Deuteronomy 5:21)

(All Scriptural quotation comes from the New American Standard Bible)

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A weekly if not daily objection to Christianity I hear on Social Media

So many things going on this week.

A quick post. Notice this past week every day I hear objection to Christianity because religion has done bad things.

In fact it seems every week I hear that.

So here I want to share a post I wrote on this topic that I recently revisited and found it helpful for myself; funny how that works.

Responding to Objection against Christianity: Religion causes problems

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God’s attribute: The Holiness of God Part 2

This is a series on the attributes of God.

 

Holiness of God Part 2: God’s Infinite Moral Purity

Purpose: Define and demonstrate that God’s infinite moral purity is a Biblical teaching followed by its inter-relationship with other doctrines and implications for our lives.

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Presuppositional Apologetics’ Links: Third Week of June 2021

Here are links related to Presuppositional Apologetics gathered between June 15th-21st, 2021.

1.) Cave to the Cross’ Written Bible – Ep. 129 – Why Should I Believe Christianity? – God Is Not Silent – Part 1

2.) Bible Contradiction? When did the earth dry after the flood?

3.) Mathematics Cannot be Racist

4.) How the Trinity explains the problem of the one and the many

5.) Christian Blogger: How To Think About ‘Woke’

6.) Plato: A Van Tilian’s Thoughts

7.) Authority of Scripture

8.) Brute Facts Are Mute Facts: A Van Tilian Transcendental Argument

9.) The Economics of Protestantism

10.) Arguing from the Impossibility of the Contrary

11.) Pushing the Antithesis meme and a Veritas Domain meme

12.) What’s Lacking in Evolutionary Theory

Missed the last round up?  Check out the re-blogged post from a friend

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Review: Divine Blessing and the Fullness of Life in the Presence of God

William R. Osborne. Divine Blessing and the Fullness of Life in the Presence of God.  Wheaton, IL: Crossway, October 20th 2020.  160 pp.

5 out of 5

Purchase: Westminster | Amazon

Do you have a biblical view of God’s blessing?  There are those today who get caught up with prosperity Gospel.  That’s one error.  But another error can arise that is born from over-reaction to the Prosperity Gospel in which God’s blessings are denies, downplayed or the subject is diverted.   A biblical theology of blessing is much needed and I believe this book makes a unique contribution since most works against prosperity Gospel engages the topic more in a fashion of “systematic theology” but here with this book the author uses biblical theology in his methodology in tackling the blessing of God.  This I think helps readers to see verses about blessing in its context and also in light of how God’s progressive revelation unfolded.  The author is William R. Osborne , a Professor of biblical and theological studies at College of the Ozarks and he is more than qualified to write a biblical theology of God’s blessing from Genesis to Revelation.

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This Sunday at Church: Encourage a father that’s an Example to Others

For this Sunday here’s what you can do: Encourage a father that’s an Example to Others.

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Bible Contradiction? When did the earth dry after the flood?

For today’s post we will tackle the question the Skeptic Annotated Bible asked: When did the earth dry after the flood?

Here are the answers which the skeptic believes indicate a Bible contradiction:

On the first day of the first month.

“Now it came about in the six hundred and first year, in the first month, on the first of the month, that the water was dried up from the earth. Then Noah removed the covering of the ark, and looked, and behold, the surface of the ground had dried up.” ( Genesis 8:13)

On the 27th day of the second month.

“14 And in the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth was dry” (Genesis 8:14)

(All Scriptural quotation comes from the New American Standard Bible)

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Believers’ Circumcise hearts and Jesus

This is a thought about Jesus I had this week.

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Review: Batman: Gates of Gotham

A Pastors also need a break from heavy theological reading!  So here’s a Batman comic book review!

Scott Snyder.  Batman: Gates of Gotham. New York, NY: DC Comics, February 7th 2012. 144 pp.

5 out of 5

Purchase: Amazon

There is a rather different feel to this Batman story, in a refreshing kind of way!  Its part-mystery, part-Gothic, part-Steampunk and part-Noir.  And yet it does all that in a way that didn’t feel it was forced or trying to do everything but failing in doing anything.  I appreciate these dimensions to the story of this Batman graphic novel and felt the uniqueness kept me going in reading this (and I haven’t read much comics so far in 2021!).

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God’s attribute: The Holiness of God Part 1

This is a series on the attributes of God.

 

Session 25: Holiness of God Part 1: Definition and God’s Transcendent Majesty

Purpose: In this lesson we will consider the definition of holiness, note the two-fold aspect of divine holiness, present biblical proofs concerning the Transcendent majesty of God and end with implications for our lives.

• Definition
• Proof from Scripture of God’s Transcendent Majesty
• Implications

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