Change

For the most part, people detest equal change. What I mean by equal change is a change that doesn't hurt you or benefit you.
When I first heard we were moving down to Omaha, I didn't like the idea. Now, I am so glad we did, I can't imagine if we would have stayed.
I think that the main reason people want change when they do want it, is because they want to undo a change that happened previously, or want something better. People nostalgically want to live back in the "Glory Days".

News Flash: Things don't go back to exactly the way they were.

Even when the millennium comes, (assuming you believe in post-millennial-ism,) things won't go back to the way they were before the fall. There'll still be sin.

Predestination

Predestination

Romans 8:30
Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.

Ephesians 1:4-5
just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will

Ephesians 1:9-11
having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth--in Him. In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will

Psalm 33:10-12
The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect. The counsel of the Lord stands forever, The plans of His heart to all generations. Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, The people He has chosen as His own inheritance.

2 Timothy 1:9
[God,] who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began,

Isaiah 6:8-10 (John 12:40 quotes this passage)
Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: "Whom shall I send, And who will go for Us?" Then I said, "Here am I! Send me." And He said, "Go, and tell this people: 'Keep on hearing, but do not understand; Keep on seeing, but do not perceive.' "Make the heart of this people dull, And their ears heavy, And shut their eyes; Lest they see with their eyes, And hear with their ears, And understand with their heart, And return and be healed."

John 12:37-40
But although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him, that the word of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spoke: "Lord, who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?" Therefore they could not believe, because Isaiah said again: "He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts, Lest they should see with their eyes, Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, So that I should heal them."

Philippians 2:13
 for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.

Total Depravity

Ecclesiastes 7:29
Truly, this only I have found: That God made man upright, But they have sought out many schemes."

I have not come across a better proof text; this one is not very clear-cut.

Biblical Inerrancy

In case you need proof of it now.
2 Timothy 3:16-17
All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

Perspective

You may remember some time when you were younger, and you lost a quarter in the grass. You may have searched for 15 minutes, half of an hour, maybe a whole hour. Chances are, you did not find your pursued prized possession. (If this never happened to you then think of a small toy you lost and looked for...)

If you searched for 15 minutes, and found it, you aquired $1/hr. The national minimum wage is $7.25/hr.
Basically: It probably was not worth your time looking for it.

Now you look back, and probably do not care that you lost a quarter.

If, when we're 80, we  look back on some of our biggest disappointments in life, (totaled car, dead dog, etc.), they're such a minuscule things! We should see them as small things, and the sooner we see that after it happens, the better (in most cases).
Easy to say, and hard to do.
It's hard to keep the right focus when you feel that the situation is hopeless, but if you remember that in a few years, it won't matter much (depending on what it is), it can help to keep in focus
But we should not be passive on earth. Our primary purpose here is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.

The last half of the last verse of This is My Father's World ends this post quite nicely...

This is my Father's world,
why should my heart be sad?
The Lord is King, let the heavens ring!
God reigns, let the earth be glad!

Thoughts on Psalm 1

Psalm 1 (Italicized words are not part of the text; they are notes.)

Righteous:

1 Blessed is the man Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night.
3 He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper.
Wicked:

4 The ungodly are not so, But are like the chaff which the wind drives away.
5 Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.

Both:
6 For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, But the way of the ungodly shall perish.

Verse 6 is about both.

I think that Psalm 1 is like a Hebrew Chiasm, (ki-as-um). A chiasm is when you go through a list of things and then again in reverse order. The beatitudes are a great example...

Verses 1-2 are opposite of Verse 5.

Verse  3  is the opposite of Verse 4.

Verse 6 is the conclusion.

3 Topics of Ethics Pt. 2

This is expounding on my previous post.
Again, the three topics are:
1. Law
2. Motive
3. Situation

I will only add mostly to 2 and 3 since I don't like how they're mixed in the previous post.
1. Law
Killing an abortionist who has not been on trial would still be breaking the 6th commandment.
Executing the wrong action, for the right motives, in the right situation, (if such a scenario exists,) is still sin.

2. Motive:
If someone reads Matt. 20:16 and takes it literally (which it probably should), then they might always try to be the last in line for things. Trying to be last in line is fine, but it can be done for the wrong motive; E.G., always being first later (in Heaven, maybe). That would be the right action, for the wrong motive, in the right situation is still sin.

3. Situation
Situation is really broad, and I can think of a few examples, but here is one I like: Matt. 5:23-24.
Bringing a gift to the altar was a great thing to do... unless you had a brother (in Christ) who had something against you. The right action, with the right motive, in the wrong situation, is still sin. [Depending on your definition of "wrong situation"]

Thanks for reading. Hope this helps.

3 Topics of Ethics

There are three different areas that you have to consider when analyzing if something is right or wrong. I will expound on them later.

1. Law

2. Motive

3. Situation

First is law:

The 1st commandment is 'You shall have no other gods before me.' This is a great example of law, there are no exceptions in this commandment. If you have a god before God, then you're sinning.

Second is Motive, Third is Situation

Executing a good deed for the wrong motive, or in the wrong situation can be sin. I am going to merge these last two because I have an example that'll fit both.
There is a fiction book that we have where a boy is supposed to learn Mozart's 'Moonlight Sonata'. His mom tells him to practice until the newly-lit candles burn down. After she leaves to go to the store, he opens a window so that the candles burn down faster. His motive was to evade the spirit of the law, thus opening the window was, in my opinion, wrong. (If it was real. I remember that it's fiction.) If it was any other night, opening the window would have been fine, but in this situation, (and with the knowledge the boy presumably had,) this is inexcusable dodging of the rule.


Sorry if the examples aren't fitting. :)

When I'm Older

"That will come easier when I'm older." How many times do we think that? Waving to neighbors, witnessing, raising hands during church, being nice to girls, and diminishing usage of sarcasm don't come easily with age. If I never waved to my neighbors, and then tomorrow I started, it would be hard  to persevere because it wouldn't be a habit. Also, the neighbors might notice, that "the dude that lives in the first house down the road is acting really weird." But a change like that is not very notable, and is much easier then suddenly starting to talk about the Lord to co-workers, neighbors, and even Christian friends, or raising hands during church.

A habit that is formed is not usually easily stopped.
A habit that's not formed is not usually easily started.
But due to total depravity, good habits seem hard to make, and bad ones hard to break.
Make good habits before you die.

ECD Part 2: Kilts

Deuteronomy 22:5
A woman shall not wear anything that pertains to a man, nor shall a man put on a woman’s garment, for all who do so are an abomination to the Lord your God.


In the US, skirts, dresses, and the like, are considered a woman's garments.
A kilt probably is not cross-dressing. I feel that it is somewhat border lined.
Why I would not wear one:
1. I don't know if it is morally ok.
2. They look silly.
3. I'm Dutch, not Scottish.

ECD Part 1: Searching

This is the first of a series on English Country Dancing. My thoughts on ECD, on the people attending, and the thoughts about ECD of those who I've talked to.

First off, I probably need to clarify that, yes, I am fine with dancing. I like dancing with my sister best though, it's much easier to talk.

The first thing I think is weird about the English Country Dances is that some people's motives are solely for acquiring a soul mate. Finding a spouse based on what can be seen at a dance seems like a bad idea.

I talked to someone who told me that that is their reason for attending. They said that they didn't really care for dancing but they came to the dances get to know girls, by dancing, and they wished that they could go to more of their church's social gatherings for the same reason.

The other thing I don't like about ECD is the ridiculous attire.
I there to dance or hang out; not to reenact the 1600s. If others want to, that's cool with me.
Also, kilts feel like cross dressing, even though they might not be.

I don't mean to offend anyone.
If you believe I am wrong, please expound. I am not a fountain of knowledge of this topic.

Sundown - Sundown Day

Bible Passages:
Genesis 1:5,8,13,19,23,31
Nehemiah 13:19
Psalms 55:17
Matthew 27:45-46,57


This could be the most controversial blog post that I will write for years.


I believe a day begins at sundown. The reason this matters is because: what is usually considered a Saturday night, is actually part of the Sabbath. These views are all in accordance to the aforementioned passages of the Bible.


Some believe that a day is from 6 PM - 6 PM. According to the following sources, the Jewish calendar was timed so that the 12th hour was right at sundown.

"Sunset marks the start of the 12 night hours, whereas sunrise marks the start of the 12 day hours. This means that night hours may be longer or shorter than day hours, depending on the season.

A Jewish-calendar day does not begin at midnight, but at either sunset or when three medium-sized stars should be visible, depending on the religious circumstance." (From http://www.webexhibits.org/calendars/calendar-jewish.html)

(See also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hebrew_calendar#Day)

The Bible does not tell us that a day beginnings at midnight, and it never implies a change.

If you have argument for or against this, I would love to hear them in the comments, in an email, or in person. Thanks!

Jokes

Disclaimer: I am not referencing Batman: The Dark Knight in this post.

One thing I have noted with many unkind jokes, is that they are based on something mean that the joker thinks.

What if I thought Seth's hair was awful when he dyed it? (My bro, for a play, 2012)
I could have said "Seth, your hair is horrendous. Just kidding." The "joke" would have been based on truth.

Bob is pitching to Tom who is batting, and Tom thinks, "he is not very good at pitching." It could be easy for Tom to say, "you should take pitching lessons from me... Kidding!" Or Tom might sarcastically say "You're good at pitching."

The previous insults are based on truth, which not only hurts the receiver more, but also tells what the joker is thinking. In the case of sarcasm though, usually the statement is opposite of the thought. When I see it, I wonder how often I do the same.

If our lives were fully centered around following in Christ's footsteps, then how different would our jokes be?