The Joke's on me

There's a common joke that's told in evangelical circles. Unfortunately I'm guilty of telling it more times than I care to count. It's always in the context of learning truth vs. knowing truth. Maybe it's less of a joke and more of a jab. It goes like this:

Whenever you refer to someone/something in "seminary" (an institution of higher education for educating students in theology, generally to prepare them for ordination as clergy or for other ministry) you replace said word with "cemetery".  ex. I learned the definition of  "Odium theologicum" in cemetery. The response is always followed by canned laughter.

The real joke is in the fact that everyone involved knows that seminary kills real Christians, instead of teaching them. Hence the replacement of seminary for cemetery.

GET IT!  WOCKA WOCKA!!!

I'm reading a book by Bart D. Ehrman. In this book he describes how he was attending a conservative seminary (Moody Bible Institute) and after graduating he furthered his studies at a more liberal seminary (Wheaton College & Princeton Theological Seminary). He then describes how he and his conservative friends had to start a peer group to "keep their faith".

It immediately reminded me of the old joke I was so guilty of telling.

I had to start asking myself, does knowledge of the truth and a better understanding of the facts of biblical history really cause you to become "dead" by conservative standards? Well, In Bart's case it eventually did. He recently became an agnostic after struggling with the philosophical problems of evil and suffering.

I'm on a quest. A quest that I have appropriately labeled "Hell Bent". In this quest I am looking for the truth. The more I look the better off I am and the more ALIVE I feel. This quest is doing anything but killing my faith.

 

In the end I am confident that I will not find my faith 6 feet under. I am quickly burying my old rotten ideas of how things should be according to popular/evangelical belief. It feels so good to let the old ways fall off my bones. I also believe that (for me) those decrepit ideas should remain in the ground.
 

So, you're prolly asking yourself, is Chris for or against Seminary? I will answer with this quote.

 

"And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.

defining moments

 There are moments in your life that define who you are, who you are trying to become, what your'e trying to achieve or where your heart is. 


I named my blog "HELLBENT" for a reason. That moment was one of those "defining moments" for me. It set me on a path that I quickly fell in love with. I have given the definition of the word below.

hell-bent or hell·bent (hlbnt)adj. Impetuously or recklessly determined to do or achieve something:

I realize that with every word I type I run the risk of offending those who I care about or lose their friendship altogether. But it's a risk I'm willing to take if it set's 1 person free of a bondage or of a mindset that's unhealthy or if they just see something from a different angle. Hence the definition.

I haven't asked many questions lately. I do plan on doing so. I need some time to get my heart right before I do. There's an old Proverb that says, even fools are thought wise if they keep silent, and discerning if they hold their tongues.

I'm gonna try that on for size for a little while. I'll be back soon with a few more questions but with my heart in the right place before I ask them.

ANYONE, ANYWHERE, ANYTIME

Some of you may know and some may not. But recently I stepped down from a pastoral position at a local church. Over the last few years I found myself struggling with the Christian system. SIDE NOTE: (I am not referring specifically to my old church or the people there). Not only am I not in agreement with most positions taken by the church but I also find the whole thing to work contrary to what Jesus taught. I just can't be a part of something that I don't agree with. We seem to focus more on the dos and donts of a book rather than the heart of what I believe Jesus came to reveal to us (by "us" I mean everyone). What I seem to struggle with the most is that the very people that Jesus had a heart for and spent His time with would never step foot through the doors of a church. (Mark 2:13-15 and Luke 15:1) And rightly so. They just aren't made welcome. Maybe your church is different. I don't want to compare or measure up who's worship center is better. I'm just tryin to make a point.

I share this with you for a few different reasons.

Many people/acquaintances who have learned of my decision have not only renounced friendships over my beliefs/writings but have written me to say "I'm praying for you" as if they are concerned for my soul and eternal destiny. To me that's a pretty big slap in the face. We don't have to agree on Theology or interpretation in order to be friends. At least I don't feel that way. But this comes off as if they have it all figured out and if I don't agree with the majority of evangelical Christian thinking then my soul is in trouble.
 BTW, I believe I'm saved and I can't lose my salvation as long as I don't deny Christ/Holy Spirit/God. But we will open that can of worms on another blog.

If I'm made to feel this way about my beliefs then how does the rest of the world (the people who would never step foot in a church) feel about how they've been treated by the church?

The other reason for this blog, the real reason I started writing this evening is to point out a simplistic understanding for anyone at anyplace at anytime who wants to commune with the Creator.

This is where I make a short story long :)

Last week my wife and I celebrated 13 years of marriage. I rented a cabin on top of the Shenandoah national park. It was breathtaking. I am always amazed at Gods beauty In and through His creation. We arrived to a super duper foggy Saturday.

It took us over 2 hours to drive what normally takes 30 mins. But we made the best of the evening. When we awoke Sunday morning we stepped outside to enjoy our coffee and our beautiful view. My wife looked around, looked at her watch and looked at me and said "well baby, I don't think we are going to make it to church this morning". To which I replied "we are at church".

Anywhere, at anytime we are in our Creators presence. To stop and enjoy it and recognize His handiwork, to thank Him for something simple or something amazing is to worship and commune with Him.

For all of you who have been hurt by the church and will never go back. For all of you who don't feel welcome in a building on Sunday. For all of you who know there is something not quite right with the current system and can't find it in you to "join" in. It doesn't mean you can't commune with God. It doesn't mean you cant worship the creator and It doesn't mean your soul is in trouble.

Next time you see a beautiful sunrise, smell a flower or catch a glimpse of a masterpiece in a fallen tree. Consider yourself at church :)

Sin City?

I'm back! My trip to "Sin City" was super busy with work and I'm exhausted. I did get some free time while I was there and managed to wonder up and down the strip to do a little shopping for my family. As I walked by all the homeless, by the guys/gals handing out hooker cards, by the many people to drunk to be coherent, by all the people on vacation enjoying the sights, by all the hard working people trying to make a living (you get the idea)...I remembered that (in the past) I have referred to Vegas as "Sodom and Gomorrah". Everyone knows that story from the bible. But as I walked around the city, it occurred to me that Vegas is really no different than any other big city in America. Let me explain.

While Vegas may be different in many ways than most cities, It is also very similar. How? The people. The people are what makes a city. And the people in Vegas are from everywhere. It's a conglomerate of people from all walks of life from all areas of the world. Knowing that, I felt is was unfair for me to label a city of people with such prejudice. To be honest, I was just repeating what I had heard from almost every preacher I've ever listened to. I've decided to leave that decision to God. I found a couple of verses in the bible that you've prolly never heard or had pointed out to you that refer to Sodom and Gomorrah.

First-Let's look at what happened. In Gen. 19 we read: "Early the next morning Abraham...looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah...and he saw dense smoke rising from the land, like smoke from a furnace."
And so for thousands of years that city has served as a warning from every pulpit of what happens when God decides to judge a city. But know let's read about those verses you never hear from the pulpit.

In Ezek.16 the Profit has a series of visions and has a promise from God that He will "restore the fortunes of Sodom and her daughters" and they will "return to what they were before."

Here's another, In Matt. 10 Jesus travels to Galilee, asking people to see things a new way. He encounters great resistance from the devout religous people and  He warns those religous people that "it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah than for them on judgement day". He tells highly commited, pious, pompous, religous people that it will be better for Sodom and Gomorrah than for them. Hmm?

Here's a few more for the heck of it:
In Matt. 19 "renewal of all things", Acts 3 - Peter says that Jesus will "restore everything", Paul says in Col. 1  that through Christ "God was pleased to...reconcile to Himself all things, whether on earth or things in heaven".
Sounds to me like God's in the restoration business, not the destruction business.

Sooooo, lesson learned. I will no longer repeat hateful prejudices I hear from the mouths of men but will search the heart of God on such matters from here on out.

What say you?

What happens in

I'm off to Vegas for a week of work. I know I know, it's a tough life. All joking aside. I work harder there than I do on most days back home. The old saying of "what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas" will not apply to me and never has :) A full report of every thought from sin city will follow when I get home. Many blessings to all my followers. May the love that Jesus showed us here on earth overwhelm all of you (whether you agree with my crazy ideas or not).

Today

Nope...this isn't photo shopped.

My stomach hurts. I feel sick. I feel convicted. HOW DARE I...

"Then those 'sheep' are going to say, 'Master, what are you talking about? When did we ever see you hungry and feed you, thirsty and give you a drink? And when did we ever see you sick or in prison and come to you?' Then the King will say, 'I'm telling the solemn truth: Whenever you did one of these things to someone overlooked or ignored, that was me—you did it to me.

That's Jesus speaking, recorded by Matthew.

I have been confronted in many different ways by several people since my blog started. Most are encouraging, but the "few" that have spoken/written of their rejection or separation have used the words of the bible to try to convict me of my wrong doing. My thoughts have been consumed with theological debate, translation issues, context, Greek/Aramaic and Hebrew language studies, modern teaching, dividing lines, lifestyles, interpretation, doctrine, definition, so on and so forth. These thoughts have dominated me. Why I am more right than someone else. I've searched my soul for any wrong doing. I pray every day for revelation. Search me Father for an inch of my heart that isn't focused on Yours.

Today I got my answer. LOVE

How dare I.

In my quest to redefine, in my quest to change the filter through which we see things, in my quest to help others understand...my eyes were opened. I have missed the big picture. I have been distracted by the argument. I need to find my "blinders". I need to set aside my offense. Who cares if "a few" ignorant people don't understand? There will always be "a few".

What about LOVE?

All of the B.S. we argue over, all of the denominational splits, all of the theological debates, they miss it all. We are just clanging symbols, making noise with no purpose other than to say we are right.

It's time to lay down our swords, it's time to beat them into shovels and our spears into hoes. Our weapons need to profit the needy. Our arguments need to benefit the helpless.

WOW Chris...You're JUST getting this revelation?

Sorry, I'm a little slow on the draw. This is where I am right now and I said that this blog would be for such a revelation. I hope we can all benefit from this, not because Ive got it figured out but because I think it lines up with what Jesus came to do.

I.M.H.O.

I guess it's time for me to start answering some of my own questions. I will do so over a number of blogs. But before I do, I think I need to state that just because I let my opinion be known, that it doesn't mean that I have it all figured out or that this is absolutely theologically sound or that I am teaching a doctrine. I will not pretend to have all the answers. Anyone who claims to have it all figured out really should get their head examined or at the very least, their heart. The questions within me/on my blog have been debated for centuries. Man will never completely agree on them, hence the fact that we are referred to as "Protestants" (which comes from the word: protest).

I'm going to start with "What IS sin?". This answer may as well indirectly answer a few of my questions/blogs. The best definition of the word I found was: (Sin-Actions by which humans rebel against God, miss his purpose for their life, and surrender to the power of evil rather than to God.)

Maybe before explaining my beliefs I should give an example that Jesus used. Matthew's letter (Ch. 5) records Jesus saying this: "You know the next commandment pretty well, too: 'Don't go to bed with another's spouse.' But don't think you've preserved your virtue simply by staying out of bed. Your heart can be corrupted by lust even quicker than your body. Those leering looks you think nobody notices—they also corrupt. "Let's not pretend this is easier than it really is. If you want to live a morally pure life, here's what you have to do: You have to blind your right eye the moment you catch it in a lustful leer. You have to choose to live one-eyed or else be dumped on a moral trash pile. And you have to chop off your right hand the moment you notice it raised threateningly. Better a bloody stump than your entire being discarded for good in the dump.

In my opinion, Jesus is basically saying that a sin is a sin is a sin, that there is no degree of sin. All sin is equally bad. Adultery vs. lust = the same. Below is another example but from John this time.

The way we know we've been transferred from death to life is that we love our brothers and sisters. Anyone who doesn't love is as good as dead. Anyone who hates a brother or sister is a murderer, and you know very well that eternal life and murder don't go together

I know that there are several places in the bible that refer to different levels of punishment for different types of sin and that some Christians typically believe/teach that certain sins are deserving of eternal damnation (homosexuality) vs. lying or adultery which only require church discipline and repentance.
I personally put a lot more clout on anything Jesus says vs. any of His disciples. (He was constantly correcting them about their understanding) When Jesus says something and He appears to be contradicted by something else in the bible. I always agree with Him. I believe that He alone was perfect.

So…What IS sin? I think the bible lists several things that it considers a sin. Some of those things we adhere to today and others we don’t. It also lists several things that are/were acceptable. Some of those things we adhere to today and others we don’t. I personally believe that each of us knows the difference between right and wrong (sin). Somewhere deep within us there is an awareness of sin. I believe that the Holy Spirit is “that” awareness. It speaks to us, nudges us, urges us, sways us, moves us, helps us, teaches us, forms us, shapes us………… so on and so forth. Sin isn’t a list in my opinion, it’s purposefully rejecting what we know is right for our lives. What is a sin to me might not be a sin to someone else and vice versa. I think this statement fits the definition given above.

Thoughts? I am always open for discussion.