Thoughts by Theophilus

[theophilus]

This morning I opened the door to my wardrobe and found a lion in it. I asked him what he was doing there and he replied, "Narnia business."

[theophilus]

There is a logical fallacy known as the “No true Scotsman” fallacy. Here is how it is described in Wikipedia.

Philosophy professor Bradley Dowden explains the fallacy as an “ad hoc rescue” of a refuted generalization attempt. The following is a simplified rendition of the fallacy:

Person A: “No Scotsman puts sugar on his porridge.”
Person B: “But my uncle Angus likes sugar with his porridge.”
Person A: “Ah yes, but no true Scotsman puts sugar on his porridge.”

This fallacy is often used in debates about evolution and creation. The evolutionist claims that scientists believe in evolution. The creationist points out that a lot of scientists believe in creation and reject evolution. The evolutionist says that they are not true scientists.

Even Christians sometimes use this fallacy to dismiss other Christians with whom they disagree on doctrine. I was once engaged in an internet discussion with someone who believed that the only true Christians were those who believed in the five points of Calvinism. Anyone who rejected this belief was not a true Christian. (If you don’t know what Calvinism is, you can find out here: https://carm.org/what-is-calvinism )

However this argument isn’t always a fallacy. It is possible that there are people who claim to be Scotsmen when they are not. There are non scientists who claim to be scientists. And there are definitely many who claim to be Christians when they are not. It is possible that false Christians outnumber true Christians. Jesus told a parable that explains why this is the case.

He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. And the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?’

He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’

So the servants said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’

But he said, ‘No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, “Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.”’”
Matthew 13:24-30 ESV

He explained the parable to his disciples.

Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples came to him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.”

He answered, “The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. Just as the weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law-breakers, and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.
Matthew 13:36-43 ESV

The weeds in this parable are darnel, a plant that resembles wheat when it first sprouts. Just as darnel is often mistaken for wheat, Satan’s false Christians are often mistaken for real Christians. Satan uses these weeds to lead true Christians into erroneous beliefs and practices. Jesus warned about this.

Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.
Matthew 7:15-20 ESV

The weeds that Satan sows don’t realize they are weeds but think they are really Christians. There was a time when I was one of them. As far as I recall I have always believed the Bible was true and that Jesus died and rose from the dead, but I didn’t understand that his death paid for my sins and eternal life could be mine if I trusted him. I believed that I must earn my salvation by doing good works. I attended a church that was liberal in theology and I don’t recall ever hearing a clear explanation of the gospel there. I got baptized and joined the church so I could begin the process of working my way into Heaven.

Shortly after this I heard and believed the gospel and became a genuine Christian but I sometimes wonder what my life would be like if this hadn’t happened. It is possible that I would have a blog today but instead of using it to teach the truth I would be spreading false teaching and turning others from the faith. Paul warned that we should make sure of our own salvation.

Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test!
2 Corinthians 13:5

Perhaps a good way to do this self-examination would be to study 1 John. It was written to assure believers that they have eternal life.

I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life.
1 John 5:13 ESV

If you find that some of the things it says aren’t true of you that might be an indication that you aren’t yet a Christian and that you need to be saved.

[theophilus]

I have learned that June is Gay Pride Month. I am sure that those responsible for this designation care about gay people and want to help them, but I wonder if they know what the Bible says about pride.

God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.
James 4:6-10 ESV

They are actually advocating that gays adopt a course of action that will lead to their being opposed by God. If they do this, nothing they try to do will be successful. On the other hand God will show his grace to them if they are humble.

The rest of this passage describes how a person practices humility. A humble person submits to God and draws near to him. He cleanses his life of all sin, both in action and in thought. He mourns the sinfulness of his past life. Anyone who does these things will receive God’s grace and be exalted by him.

If you care about gays it would be better to promote the adoption of a Gay Humility Month, when gays are encouraged to do those things which will enable them to receive God’s blessings. And it wouldn’t hurt to have a Straight Humilty Month too. Straight people are just as guilty of pride as gay people are.

[theophilus]

The Israelites were often tempted to worship the gods of the Canaanites and the surrounding nations. One of those gods was called Molech or Moloch. He required that his worshipers sacrifice their children to him. Here is what Wikipedia says about him.

Rabbinical tradition depicted Moloch as a bronze statue heated with fire into which the victims were thrown. This has been associated with reports by Greco-Roman authors on the child sacrifices in Carthage to Baal Hammon, especially since archaeological excavations since the 1920s have produced evidence for child sacrifice in Carthage as well as inscriptions including the term MLK, either a theonym or a technical term associated with sacrifice. In interpretatio graeca, the Phoenician god was identified with Cronus, due to the parallel mytheme of Cronus devouring his children.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moloch

It seems inconceivable that anyone would be willing to kill their own children. Perhaps it makes more sense when we understand the power behind idolatry.

What do I imply then? That food offered to idols is anything, or that an idol is anything? No, I imply that what pagans sacrifice they offer to demons and not to God.
1 Corinthians 10:19-20 ESV

The idols that people once worshiped were not simply statues. They were empowered by demons and those who worshiped them placed themselves under the power of those demons. The power of Molech overrode the natural instincts of parents to care for their children and led them to sacrifice them to their god.

Today no one sacrifices his children to a statue of Molech but the spirit of Molech is very active in the world. Many people consider it acceptable to sacrifice their children as long as they do so while the child is still in its mother’s womb. Proponents of abortion defend the practice with a zeal that seems almost religious. Most Christians know that those who have abortions are violating the sixth commandment, “You shall not murder,” but how many of us realize that they are also violating the first commandment, “You shall have no other gods before me”?

Of course abortionists don’t call abortion a sacrifice. Instead, they say it is a mother exercising her right to control her own body. There are two things wrong with this belief. They are actually destroying a child whom they have a God given responsibility to protect, train, and nurture. And their bodies do not belong to them but to the God who created them.

Here is God’s command regarding those who sacrifice their children to Molech.

The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “Say to the people of Israel, Any one of the people of Israel or of the strangers who sojourn in Israel who gives any of his children to Molech shall surely be put to death. The people of the land shall stone him with stones. I myself will set my face against that man and will cut him off from among his people, because he has given one of his children to Molech, to make my sanctuary unclean and to profane my holy name.”
Leviticus 20:1-3 ESV

Surely he feels the same way about today’s worshipers of Molech. Of course the church is not a nation, as Israel was, so we have no authority to use force to end abortions, but we should do what we can to get our nations to outlaw abortion, and we should do all was can to show others how evil it is.

Have you ever heard anyone say something like this, “I am personally opposed to abortion but I don’t feel that I have any right to impose my beliefs on others”? God has something to say to these people.

And if the people of the land do at all close their eyes to that man when he gives one of his children to Molech, and do not put him to death, then I will set my face against that man and against his clan and will cut them off from among their people, him and all who follow him in ******* after Molech.
Leviticus 20:4,5 ESV

There can be no neutrality on the issue of abortion. Unless you are opposing it you are supporting it, either actively or passively. There are several ways to fight it. You can try to get abortion outlawed by voting for prolife candidates and you can support organizations that provide counseling for women considering abortion and help for those who decide against it.

While these are all good, none of them addresses the Satanic influence which is the real source of the problem. People who do not worship the true God can easily be tricked into worshiping Satan. By nature, all of us are in this category. We have all sinned and our sins separate us from God. This separation must be removed before we can to serve him. Jesus died and rose from the dead to pay for our sins and we can be forgiven by repenting and putting our faith in Jesus. Here is an explanation of how to do this: https://carm.org/christianity/answers-for-seekers/

Preaching this message, rather than ending abortion, is our primary task. When we put this first it will be easier for us to oppose abortion.

[theophilus]

In Job 4:7,17 Eliphaz the Temanite asked Job four questions.

"Who that was innocent ever perished?"
"Where were the upright cut off?"
"Can mortal man be in the right before God?"
"Can a man be pure before his Maker?"

The answers he expected were, "No one who was innocent ever perished", "The upright were never cut off", "A mortal man cannot be right before God", and "A man cannot be pure before his Maker". These would have been the correct answers except for one important fact of which Eliphaz was unaware. God sent his son, Jesus Christ, to atone for our sins by shedding his blood on the cross. Jesus was the only truly innocent person who ever lived. In light of this fact these are the correct answers to his question.

"Who that was innocent ever perished?" Jesus. Jesus was the only truly innocent person who ever lived.

"Where were the upright cut off?" At the cross of Calvary.

"Can mortal man be in the right before God?" Yes, if he has put his faith in Jesus Christ.

"Can a man be pure before his Maker?" If he is trusting Christ for salvation his sins have been paid for and he stands before God as if he had never sinned.

If you don't understand this you can find out more about it here: https://carm.org/christianity/answers-for-seekers/

[theophilus]

Imagine that you are the devil. You have just tried to tempt Jesus to sin and failed. This is your greatest failure against him to date. (It is not your greatest failure ever. That will come when you crucify Jesus and he rises from the dead.) Would you give up or try again? We don't have to wonder how the devil would respond. After Jesus was baptized he spend 40 days in the wilderness being tempted. His response is recorded in Luke 4:13. "And when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from him until an opportune time."

That opportune time came.
16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read. 17 And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written,

18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind,
to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
19 to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.”
20 And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. 21 And he began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” 22 And all spoke well of him and marveled at the gracious words that were coming from his mouth. And they said, “Is not this Joseph's son?” 23 And he said to them, “Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb, ‘“Physician, heal yourself.” What we have heard you did at Capernaum, do here in your hometown as well.’” 24 And he said, “Truly, I say to you, no prophet is acceptable in his hometown. 25 But in truth, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heavens were shut up three years and six months, and a great famine came over all the land, 26 and Elijah was sent to none of them but only to Zarephath, in the land of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow. 27 And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian.” 28 When they heard these things, all in the synagogue were filled with wrath. 29 And they rose up and drove him out of the town and brought him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they could throw him down the cliff. 30 But passing through their midst, he went away.
Luke 4:16-30

Like the devil's previous attempts it failed.

A similar opportunity arose and this time the devil handled things differently.

31 And he went down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee. And he was teaching them on the Sabbath, 32 and they were astonished at his teaching, for his word possessed authority. 33 And in the synagogue there was a man who had the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out with a loud voice, 34 “Ha! What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God.” 35 But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent and come out of him!” And when the demon had thrown him down in their midst, he came out of him, having done him no harm. 36 And they were all amazed and said to one another, “What is this word? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out!” 37 And reports about him went out into every place in the surrounding region.

38 And he arose and left the synagogue and entered Simon's house. Now Simon's mother-in-law was ill with a high fever, and they appealed to him on her behalf. 39 And he stood over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her, and immediately she rose and began to serve them.

40 Now when the sun was setting, all those who had any who were sick with various diseases brought them to him, and he laid his hands on every one of them and healed them. 41 And demons also came out of many, crying, “You are the Son of God!” But he rebuked them and would not allow them to speak, because they knew that he was the Christ.

Rather than opposing Jesus openly the devil played the part of an angel of light. He encouraged those who needed healing to come to Jesus. The devil knew the harm that would come if Jesus yielded to the demands of the people.

42 And when it was day, he departed and went into a desolate place. And the people sought him and came to him, and would have kept him from leaving them, 43 but he said to them, “I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns as well; for I was sent for this purpose.” 44 And he was preaching in the synagogues of Judea.

Jesus as sent not just to a single city but to the whole world. He came to die for the sins of the people so they could receive eternal life. If Jesus had yielded to the demands of the people and remained in Capernaum he would no doubt have gone down in history as a famous healer but he would never have atoned for the sins of the people by his death and resurrection and all he healed would have been condemned to spend eternity in hell for their sins.

https://carm.org/christianity/answers-for-seekers/