]]>]]>I will lay a little groundwork for how Relativism is self-referentially incoherent and a few of it's logical conclusions, such as Multiculturalism and Political Correctivism, but I am going to assume that you have read this article. It's not that hard to understand and it states most of what I rely on for my premise more clearly than I could. I do not agree with it's assertion that Christianity has been disproved and some of the examples it uses to show the differences between Christianity and Relativism, but a reasonably intelligent Christian should be able to figure out where and why it's incorrect. That being said, the premise of an objective reality is solid.
Political Correctivism's tolerance makes it impossible to test ideas against one another to determine which produces a more desirable outcome. (The desirable outcome being the ongoing survival of the happiest society in this case.) Instead, all ideas other than Political Correctivism remain firmly in the theoretical and cannot even be discussed; this leads to a general wooly-headed foolishness because no idea is exposed to failure or criticism. (If they could be discussed and criticised people might quickly discover that any foolishness they hold has already been tried and proven wrong by a dead Greek, and the view that most closely accord with reality has already been delivered to them by dead Jews and a Gentile.) This means that because hardly anyone's intelligence has been put to the test, people are on the whole, less intelligent (as evinced by the fact that few recognise Relativism as self-referentially incoherent when that was widely known previously).
This whole deadening of intelligence also deadens that national will, the belief that that cultural worldview of the Founding Fathers is the correct one, in fact, Politcal Correctivism destroys that belief wholesale and replaces it with nothing but the conviction that it was in fact terribly wrong and that white American males and any who support them must be punished for inflicting a standard on people and then having the temerity to suggest that it is right, not only for all Americans but most likely right for all. This creates an internal conflict that is almost unique to the American Hegemony. Rome did not fall from self loathing, it fell from internal corruption that left it unable to defend itself from outside forces. The American Hegemony stands ready to commit seppuku to absolve itself of the sin of existence. If a society accepts everything and cannot stand up to say that an opposing viewpoint is, in fact, an opposing viewpoint and as such cannot be tolerated it will fall to an opposing viewpoint that claims objective truth for itself ans is willing to do something about it.
If you want to build a long-lasting Relativistic society, make it a Fascist state that passes leadership to the most able. If you want to build a long-lasting society with general contentedness, build a society that is based in objective reality (*cough*Christianity*cough*), and be prepared to assert it's ideology as true against other truth claims. Multiculturalism leads to the implementation of different laws for different cultures in the same country so that no one culture imposes it self on any other equally valid culture and being conquered by a country that has conviction. Political Correctivism leads to quasi-Fascism to enforce it's standardless standard and ends up falling from a lack of will and intelligence amongst the people to a country with conviction.
Unless that American Hegemony finds some truth to cling to and to reject other truth claims by it will be taken over from the inside by Muslims who have strong enough convictions to impose their will on other.
]]>Am I sure? You fill me with joy
Our conversation, the music of minds in sync
Yet...
You confuse me...
I am sure that you feel as I do.
I think...
You hold on to the past and present
I can never be sure until I take that step
I know God has us in His hands
I am nervous, my old wounds begin to sting
I am afraid
I have confidence in my Lord
I am told to wait, I submerge my haste in God's will
We are friends, I don't ever want to lose that
I will come to my Princess' rescue, but the timing has to be divine.
Hold on, hold on
I promise, when the timing is divine you will forget to breathe and where your feet are.
I am coming in the timing of heaven
Lord, hasten my steps, strengthen my arm
Make my sword a flash of lightning
Prepare my beloved, make her secure in You
I stand ready, the day will come
When you no longer wonder and I am no longer afraid.
Even now you know me, yet I hide my true colours
'Till the day when we are friends eternal
And the Eternal One make my way clear.
Am I sure?
I am sure.
]]>Here Schaeffer was talking about the unity of salvation and how thanks to the finished work of Jesus on the cross, God the Father has become our Father, we are in Christ, and the Holy Spirit is indwelling us. So, not to get all heretical or anything God basically relates to us on the level that He relates to Himself. He relates to us in the most intimate way possibly imaginable. God sees us as His Son, we are in the Son, and the Holy Spirit is in us; therefore we have a completely personal relationship with God, so personal it's like the relationship He has with Himself in the form of the Trinity. God invites us into that personal relationship and make us positionally a part of Himself.
Schaeffer made the point earlier, that while it is part of the Christian's duty to prove God's moral standards through his or her life, it is primarily the duty of the Christian to prove God's existence through their lives. This dovetails with the first point in that we are positionally invited in to the presence and fellowship of the Trinity, and then it is natural that the reality of that relationship flows out of us.
The last point Schaeffer makes that I want to touch on is that we are the Bride of Christ as the church, literally, in reality, in the present. We are literally being prepared for Christ, and Christ is waiting for us and as soon as we step from the physical reality to the spiritual reality, He is there to receive us as His Bride.
All this to say that because we as Christians are the Bride of Christ, and it is our duty to be the reality of God in our lives, and most importantly that we are relationally let into a relationship with the Trinity on His own level, as positionally part of it, all of this is so great, how can we compromise? We are the Bride, the reality, and the Son so how can we not have God's view towards sin and not absolutely loathe even the thought of it? How can we compromise what we allow ourselves to watch and think on and listen to and read? I am not saying that one cannot be saved if they read/watch/listen to things that are not edifying, I am saying that once you understand salvation how could you want that anymore? You can still indulge your flesh, but why would you want to?
]]>The second reason I changed the name is that it was hard to tell people what the website was called without a lot of spelling confusion.
The third reason is that deathislove was originally part of a tattoo idea I had and has since morphed into a convenient summary of how I view God's love towards us as humans and how I see the ideal relationship between humans. We show how much we love one another by what we are willing to sacrifice for one another; how much we are willing to "die to self" for the sake of the one we love. Thus, our "death to self" demonstrates our love, and so our death to self is our love for another. It is just a simple concise statement of belief that gets strange looks and allows me to explain and unpack my take on relationships or the Gospel and the situation calls for; that is also why I think it makes a great tattoo.
The final reason I moved away from Set to Shuffle was that the domain was taken.
Kyle
]]>Other than that, I'm back home in the States for now, the British government wouldn't let me stay and apply for a religious worker's visa, so I had to come back home. This is really the best thing that could have happened though, now I get a chance to raise support in person and take care of things the right way instead of long distance. God has me back here for a reason and I'm okay with it.
I graduated at the end of the semester, so I'm all done there. Some people and family members are pushing me to continue school and get another Associate's, or a Bachelor's but I'm really not all that interested and I don't feel called to that. I DO need to get a job though... Please pray for that and the whole visa/support process.
That's about it... Just keep me in prayer while I'm home that God would use me here and that I would grow in the knowledge of Him, and quit being a bum. :P
God Bless
]]>
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]]>God will rock your world so hard, He’ll make your head spin, your assumptions will be challenged, your idols removed, and He’ll talk to you, like you could almost reach out and touch Him. It’s so awesome. And once your wolrd is rocked you’ll look around and realize that you are connected to people form all over the world, and could quite possibly road trip the US and stay at friend’s houses the whole way. You’ll know PK’s, former drug addicts, homeschoolers, scene kids, geeks, normal people, and the next great worship leader/pastor/missionary. You’ll meet people who will do great things for God and people who will make you wonder “Why are they here again?” It’s a unique environment and a wonderful experience.
I know people who’s parent’s, committed Christians, leaders in the church, don’t know why they came here and don’t want them wasting their time here. The real waste of time is putting off your relationship with the Lord. You don’t have to come here to have one by any means, but it helps, you can just devote time to God and His Word like you can very few other places. People who don’t think CCBC is a real education or the real world are so sadly mistaken it’s sad. It’s possibly the closest thing to real life available in this mortal coil… I know that might seem ridiculous, but if God is real, He is the determinant of reality, therefore the closer you are to God, the closer you are to reality. Therefore, since Bible College is a place where you get closer to God, it is where you really learn to live, and where you really live. It’s where you go to learnhowto live your life, not necessarily what you’re going to do with your life. That’s all up to God anyway. Everything always has been and always will be. Praise the Lord oh my soul! I wish that you could know Him like I do if you don’t, or know Him better if you do. If you have any questions or just want to talk, feel free.
Another thing, once you go here, going back home can be depressing. Sure, you get to see your friends or family, but you don’t see any change. Same hopes, same people, same problems, same drama. A lot ofthingschange, but the people and the essentials don’t change that often. You come back and the youth room is different, but not the youth group. Oh, you’ll see basic change, btu not heart change. It makes you absolutely desperate for a revival. I’m sick of American “Christians.” The people who go to church, help out, pray, lead discipleship groups, and don’t understand how you can go to Europe with no support, no money, no plan, nothing but a call and vision of rocking the world, and the faith that God will make a way and do His work through you. They say “God Bless you, how will I pay the rent next month?” The answer is: pay it with faith and prayer. I know I’m not perfect by any means, but I have the faith to at least take the step, and the training to know that it can happen. These are the people who need a early church crash course. The early church wasn’t perfect by any means, but at least they had faith and knew what they believed and had a fire in their hearts that burned with the desire to share the faith that was so real to them. I don’t share like I could I admit, I’m in no way perfect or and example, but at least I can see a goal. These poor souls think it’s all okay. The Son of God is getting ready to return and who is ready? Who anticipates it with eagerness? Too few. My church is dynamic, friendly, and solid… and in need of a massive outpouring of the Spirit, a fresh vision and a fresh teaching. These people know what the Word says, but they don’t know what a relationship can look like. One of our guest speakers at chapel broke down crying over things he saw Bible College graduates doing, and not doing. I weep for the church, the social center of conservative America, breeding ground of heresy, defiler of Christ. Not everyone or every church fits that description. Mine doesn’t. But the church in America is largely apostate and filled with heresy. This is the last great falling away. It can be the last great revival in the personal relationship between Christ and members of the church. God doesn’t see a congregation. He sees individuals, He sees His child, His bride in every one of us, when is the last time we had an encounter on a personal level with our future bridegroom?
This isn’t where I meant to go, but the words came. Maybe they came from God, I pray that that is the case. I know a family who heard God’s call and just packed up and moved to Romania as missionaries. They heard God’s call again and now they live in Iraq. They have the kind of faith that I want. Faith with proof. I just wanted to talk about Bible College, not condemn anyone. But if this convicts you, pray about it. Before you go calling me a legalist, please examine why this post makes you uncomfortable and pray about your response. I never intended to go here with this post, but I did mean to go here at some point. As God leads then. I hope this ministers to you, who knows, maybe you’ll come to Bible College and understand first hand. *shrugs* As long as this is a call to holiness and intimacy with God, it’s been worth it. I love my brothers and sisters, that’s why I do this, because I care. I just hope that this comes across. I point no fingers, save one, and that one upwards, towards heaven, that’s what we need to be mindful of. Every second, every heartbeat, every God given breath should remind us that this is not our home and drive us to live for eternity right now.
]]>That’s all well and good, as far as it goes. In a sense Gaiman has a great insight and is close to the truth, but he lands just short and winds up far from it in the end. America has it’s new gods, self, TV, sex, information, government, the list goes on. They are hollow, empty, revolting. It goes to show the depths man that man sinks to when he ‘kills God.’ Everyone believes in something. You know all those saccharine kids movies where ‘you just have to believe’? They’re a total crock. Everyone believes. The question is: In what?
Gaiman says the older things are truer and nobler. Cheap? Yes. Old and poor? Definitely. But far preferable to the rotten new gods. In a sense he’s right, the pagan gods have greater elements of truth, better explanations (or at least more satisfying ones), and they call for self sacrifice and service of something higher than yourself. On the other hand, all the new gods are really just manifestations of one god, Self. The new gods are gods with no explanations, no need for them, no need for thought. They are the gods of mindless self-indulgence. They are the gods of drive thru coffee and plastic, the gods of consumers, urging their worshipers to consume even more. But the old gods are no different really in the end. The result is the same. Or is it? The end is the same in both cases except for one crucial detail. The old gods gave us self-satisfaction and the same sin, but as service to something higher, in this they are braver than the new gods, the old gods were brave enough to allow consciousness of the eternal and a desire for transcendence. The new gods have thoroughly and mercilessly destroyed that.Nowis the end point. There is no eternal, there is no need to transcend. God has set eternity in the hearts of men so we would ask questions. The old gods used this, they stole it and answered the questions in a way. The new gods silence the voice in our heads. There are no questions, no answers. It is as C.S. Lewis foretold in ‘The Screwtape Letters’, it is easier to damn a numb man, one who thinks he’s fine, one who is comfortable. That is what the church dies in America and lives in China. WE ARE COMFORTABLE.
Man always creates gods that are less than himself because you cannot create something greater than yourself. In so doing man becomes less because man always becomes more and more like his gods. Man’s gods are always just extensions of what’s in the heart of man so man becomes less and less and more and more mannish each time he creates new gods. These new American gods might just be the death of man…
But the new gods aren’t entirely successful, they can’t kill the voice, just muffle it. So when it gets too loud, they pull a fast one and anesthetize it. They give us ’spirituality’, a watered down nothing that sates what’s left of our God-consciousness. And we go as sheep to the slaughter. In masses we go, happy to be damned.
So, in response Gaiman summons a vision of a counter-culture of the old gods. Except that the old gods aren’t a fix, just another demonic smokescreen. The human idea of counter-culture is a joke. It’s all the same in the end, just different names, different faces, all the same mannish ideas. The only view that offers something truly different, that’s really counter to all human culture is the Way. The true Christ-likeness of the apostles, the denial of the world and the focus on the eternal. Christianity in the mainstream has become just another anesthetic on the whole. You have the old god of orthodoxy, the form of godliness and the half-answers of ritual. And you have the new god of the Emergent Church, a culture of ’spirituality’ and ‘faith’ that just sates our consciousness into the sleep of the comfortable damned. I’m not saying that there aren’t true believers in either of those camps, I’m telling the truth about the majority of what I’ve seen. What we need here is the True God of the Bible and arealrelationship with Him. Your Standard American Christian is as much a lost sheep as anyone else. What we need isn’t Christianity as a religion, politics as a tool, or any other human method that promises to fix the problem. We need nothing apart form a return to the Way. A return to true relationship and maybe even apostolic poverty, who know? God.
The church in China is alive because it isn’t easy to be Christian, you can’t be a comfortable Christian. You have to have the truth to have the courage to even claim the name of Christ there. In America it’s easy to claim the name of Christ and call yourself a Christian, but very hard to live like it. It’s a subtle but definite line. Let’s make sure we’re on the right side of it. The side of God, not gods. To quote Tolkien:
The board is set, the pieces are moving. Now we come to it, the great battle of our time. -Gandalf
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