Thursday, December 23, 2004

His Light Still Shines

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May all those whose eyes have found this site experience the light of Christ and the love he gives freely to all people of good will. Merry Christmas!

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There is a reason for the season

As William E. Channing put it...

The sages and heroes of history are receding from us, and history contracts the record of their deeds in a narrower and narrower page. But time has no power over the name and deeds and words of Jesus Christ.


It's true. There is no name under heaven which has come anywhere close to having the impact that Jesus' name has. Fables don't have that kind of power; only truth does.

This last week leading up to Christmas I have posted just a few of the more popular Old Testament prophecies that predicted events that would surround Christ's birth. Actually, the OT contains nearly 300 prophecies concerning Christ's first coming, from Genesis (written between 1200 and 2000 years before Christ) all the way down to Malachi. The French mathematician, George Heron, calculated the odds of one man fulfilling even 40 of these prophecies to be 1 in 10 to the power of 157 (that's a one with 157 zeroes behind it). Christ fulfilled them all. And I have not even hinted at the prophecies foretelling his death and resurrection (wait until this Easter). Taken together, the odds of one man fulfilling them by chance or even by human design are staggering beyond comprehension.

Combine this with the timeless and growing influence of Christ's message, the fact that his closest disciples, having been being burned, speared, sawed in two, stoned, and crucified, stayed true to their convictions that Jesus was God to their last dying breadths; this and the fact that the gospel demonstrates no less power to redeem broken lives today than it did 2000 years ago, and you begin to understand why Jesus, more than any other name, stirs up so much emotion. Fables don't have that kind of power, only truth does.

When Peter and some of the other Apostles, who had been preaching Christ in the Temple, were arrested and brought before the Sanhedrin, there was a great outcry among some of the leaders who wanted to put the the Apostles to death. But Gamaliel, called the "light of Israel" for his wisdom and piety cautioned them saying...

you men of Israel, be careful about what you do to these men. Because a while ago Theudas appeared boasting that he was somebody important. He was joined by a group of men, about four hundred. He was slain and all that followed him were dispersed and came to nought. After this man, Judas of Galilee arose, in the days of the taxing, and attracted many people to him. He also perished. And all those who followed him were dispersed. And now I tell you, refrain from these men and leave them alone. For if this counsel or this activity is of men, it will come to nothing. But if it is of God, you cannot overthrow it, lest as a result you are found to be fighting against God! Acts 5:34-39.

Gamaliel knew that fables don't have lasting power, only truth does. And his words were heeded that day. In time, however, most of the Apostles were eventually put to death, but not their message. For as Gamaliel likely suspected, the message was not from men, but from God.

One Apostle who survived until exile on the Island of Patmos was John, one of Jesus' closest disciples. The opening words to his epistle are a fitting witness to this present Christmas season and all it means. For...

That which was from the beginning which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life (Christ) - the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us - that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. These things we tell you that your joy may be full. 1 John 1:1-4


It is my prayer that all who read this will feel Christ's love and experience the timeless joy that only He can give.

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Tuesday, December 21, 2004

Out of Egypt He would come

Old Testament Prophecy

When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my Son. Hosea 11:1



New Testament Fulfillment

Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, 'Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy him'. When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, 'Out of Egypt I called my Son'. Matthew 2:13-15


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Happiness & Virtue: Two Sides Of The Same Coin

Perhaps you've noticed a theme this week from my posts: Old Testament prophecies foretelling the Christ. After all, it is the season and what better time to reflect on the fact that God provided His people a rich, albiet mysterious, set of signposts foretelling the coming of their salvation - the Christ.

But Christmas is not a time of happiness for all. For many, the season only sharpens the discord and depression already felt. While Christ's love is the ultimate andidote to Christmas blues, I came across this piece by J.P. Moreland that is definately worth reading: Get it here

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Monday, December 20, 2004

Seed of Abraham

Old Testament Prophecy

And in your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice. Genesis 22:18



New Testament Fulfillment

The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. Matthew 1:1


Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. He does not say, 'And to your seeds,' as referring to many, but rather to one, 'And to your seed,' that is, Christ. Galations 3:16

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Sunday, December 19, 2004

Messiah's birth to be followed by the slaughter of innocents

Old Testament Prophecy

Thus says the Lord: 'A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentations and bitter weeping, Rachel weeping for her children, refusing to be comforted for her children, because they are no more. Jeremiah 31:15



New Testament Fulfillment

Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men. Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying, 'A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, refusing to be comforted, because they were no more. Matthew 2:16-18


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Saturday, December 18, 2004

Messiah to be heir to the throne of David

Old Testament Prophecy

Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this. Isaiah 9:7



New Testament Fulfillment

He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the thone of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end. Luke 1:32, 33



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Friday, December 17, 2004

The Messiah to be born of a virgin

Old Testament Prophecy

Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel (God with us). Isaiah 7:14



New Testament Fulfillment in Christ

Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin bethrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin's name was Mary.... Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus (savior, deliverer) Luke 1:26, 27, 30, 31

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Thursday, December 16, 2004

The Promised Messiah To Be Born in Bethlehem

Old Testament Prophecy

But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will rule over Israel, whose origins are from ancient times. Micah 5:2



New Testament Fulfillment in Christ

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, "Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship. Matthew 2:1,2

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Sunday, December 12, 2004

The Ents of Europe

by Victor David Hanson
National Review Online




One of the many wondrous peoples that poured forth from the rich imagination of the late J. R. R. Tolkien were the Ents. These tree-like creatures, agonizingly slow and covered with mossy bark, nursed themselves on tales of past glory while their numbers dwindled in their isolation. Unable to reproduce themselves or to fathom the evil outside their peaceful forest — and careful to keep to themselves and avoid reacting to provocation of the tree-cutters and forest burners — they assumed they would be given a pass from the upheavals of Middle Earth. (Read Story)

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Thursday, December 09, 2004

Brave New World

A number of news items today confirm that we are indeed living in a brave new world -to cite Aldous Huxley. Take a look...

In Minnesota, pigs are being born with human blood in their veins.

In Nevada, there are sheep whose livers and hearts are largely human.

In California, mice peer from their cages with human brain cells firing inside their skulls.

These are not outcasts from "The Island of Dr. Moreau," the 1896 novel by H.G. Wells in which a rogue doctor develops creatures that are part animal and part human. They are real creations of real scientists, stretching the boundaries of stem cell research". Read Story



Also, Canada's Supreme Court ruled today that gay marriage is constitutional under that nation's laws. Read Story

And finally, in Califonia, only five weeks after voters in eleven states banned same-sex marriage, Assembly Member Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) introduced the "Marriage License Nondiscrimination Act", which would amend California's family code that defines marriage as a "personal relationship arising out of a civil contract between a man and a woman" to read "between two persons".

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Tuesday, December 07, 2004

Spirits Reaching Out

The Sense of Being Stared At


Have you ever had the sense of being stared at? Me too.

I’m one of those who read several books at the same time. I’ll start on one with every intention of reading it straight though, and before you know it something else captures my interest and away I go. I confess I don’t always finish what I start; the good news is I don’t tend to waste much time on the dross, and once in a while I stumble upon a real gem, like Rupert Sheldrake’s The Sense of Being Stared At. I noticed the title while browsing through Borders one day and I was snagged.

Sheldrake, a resident of London, took his Ph.D. in biochemistry at Cambridge after a stint at Harvard. He is a Research Fellow of the Royal Society and has authored more than sixty scientific papers and several books.

Here’s why his book grabbed me. I’ve long been intrigued by the mind – body connection. The Bible teaches something like a duality of material and immaterial realities that coexist in human life. God is described as immaterial Spirit. If we are made in God’s image, it stands to reason that spirit is also a component of our being. Genesis 2:7 states: “Then the LORD GOD formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being [literally ‘soul’].

The Hebrew writers in the Old Testament referred to body as “basar”, or flesh. In the New Testament, the Greek words “sarx” and “soma” are used in reference to the body. The idea here is that the body is material, physical, and distinguishable from the spirit. The Hebrew word for spirit is “ruah”. In Greek it is “pneuma”, but the same concept is conveyed in both languages. Described as breath, life giving air or wind, the spirit is the body’s energizing power, or, in the parlance of Star Wars, the life force.

The word soul, to breathe (in Hebrew “nepes” and in Greek “psyche”) relates to the integration or union of spirit and body. God breathes life (spirit) in the body and the union of the two results in a living soul. As Robert Saucy puts it:

The soul is the total person enlivened by the spirit. The spirit is thus a meta-physical entity, namely, the principle of life which empowers, while the soul is the individual subject or bearer of that life. The spirit is thus immaterial in essence, whereas the soul encompasses the total person, material and immaterial1.


At the risk of being pedantic there is one more word the Bible uses frequently in relation to human life – heart. If soul is the union of spirit and flesh, then heart can be thought of as the “operating center of the soul”. The Scriptures describe it as the origin of desire, feeling, sadness, joy, motive, and decision. As Proverbs puts it: “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out it spring the issues of life (Proverbs 4:23)”.

The word heart in the Old Testament is most associated with what we think of as mind. Our mind, or heart, is the place where we live. It’s the part of me that thinks, reasons, remembers, holds grudges, feels love. My heart is who I am. Now I know that this can be confusing, and for the sake of simplicity the terms "spirit", "soul", and "heart" are often used interchangeably to describe the immaterial phenomena of our minds.

“Heart, Schmart”, I can hear someone saying. “You’re giving me a headache”. “Who cares anyway?” “When you die you die -- game over”.

We’ll I know some people believe that. But, curiously, most do not. In poll after poll people say that they believe at least part of them lives on after death. The Bible supports this. For though the body is dependent upon the spirit (James 2:26), the spirit is not dependent upon the body. Jesus told his disciples: “…do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul, but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell (Matthew 10:28)”. Recall what Jesus, while dying on the cross, promised the thief dying next to Him: “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise (Luke 23:43).” Obviously Jesus was not talking about the man’s body. He was referring to the part of the man that would live on after his body died, the part of him not subject to time and space – his spirit.

Most people feel their souls are ageless. When you’re sick, does not your heart view the whole affair from a certain distance? Your body may reel and writhe with the pain, but the mind stays above it all with a measure of detached objectivity. There is a mysterious line of demarcation that distinguishes body from mind.

I still remember this incident that happened over twenty years ago. I was with friends enjoying a business lunch. At the table next to us was a very old man who paid his bill and got up to leave. As he did so we watched him take notice of a pretty waitress. One of my friends, Dave Bellandi, remarked casually, “there’s a twenty five year old locked up in an eighty year old body”. It was true.

As I type these words, at the age of fifty-two, in my heart I’m still twenty five. Yes, I’ve slowed way down. My body shows and feels the years. I’m often shocked a bit when I see a recent photo or video of myself. Yet the core of who I am, my thoughts, hopes, passions, and the dreams that drive me have not aged at all.

So what does all this have to do with Sheldrake? Just this. His work supports the Bible’s teaching of the mind/heart being somehow independent from the body/brain. Having read his book, I doubt Sheldrake is particularly religious, let alone a Christian. And I almost didn’t buy the book when I read the endorsement from Deepak Chopra. Nevertheless, Sheldrake’s studies on some of the stranger aspects of the human experience, I think, are very telling.

What is consciousness? How does it interact with the body? Is the mind locked completely inside the brain, or not? Sheldrake has tackled these questions by studying what he calls “the seventh sense”. As the title of his book reveals, the seventh sense has to do with that prickly sensation that someone is staring at us, or suddenly knowing something is wrong with a loved one that turns out to be true, or having a strong hunch about something that proves accurate. Almost all of us have experienced this. My mother, for instance, seems to have a very well developed “seventh sense”. I recall numerous occasions where the phone would ring, and she knew before answering who was calling even with people she had long lost touch with. It was weird, but I knew something real was going on.

In the Second World War, pilots with the RAF were instructed not to stare at their enemy during a chase. Experience had taught them that the intensity of the gaze would often make the enemy do an about face to discover an otherwise invisible attacker. It’s as if the mind reaches out beyond the body and makes a connection.

Related to this is the “phantom limb” phenomenon. For years after losing a limb, and often for the rest of their lives, amputees will feel excruciating pain where the limb once was. It’s as if the mind reaches out beyond the truncated limb’s boundaries remembering or looking for that which has been lost. Indeed, doctors count on this phenomenon to help amputees adjust to prosthetic replacements, which the mind tends to embrace and integrate with the rest of the body.

Sheldrake points out that these experiences are more than anecdotal. In controlled, double blind, studies these phenomenon occur with statistical significance and which eludes simple explanations. For instance, during big news events when millions of people are focused on a similar event -- like the O.J. Simpson verdict -- random event generators all over the world, which normally produce “noise” related to quantum processes, are seen to encounter statistically measurable changes. It happened again on September 11, 2001.

So does Sheldrake have any theories about all this? He does.

I have suggested that minds are not confined to the insides of our heads, but stretch out beyond them. The images we experience as we look around us are just where they seem to be… Our intentions, likewise extend beyond the brain. They are generally directed toward people, things, and places in the outer world, in accordance with our needs, appetites, desires, loves, hates, duties, ambitions, and sometimes, ideals.

Through attention and intention, our minds stretch out into the world beyond our bodies2 .



Sheldrake calls the mind’s ability to stretch out beyond the body: “morphic fields.” The significance should not be missed. Think about it: the computer screen or paper you’re looking at. Where are you actually seeing it? Inside you’re brain? Or are you seeing it right where it is? What do you think? What does your heart tell you? According to Sheldrake, in actuality the mind reaches out beyond the brain and sees the object of its focus right where it really is. If true, that means that when you look up into the stars at night your mind is instantly, at the speed of thought, able to reach out toward objects millions of light years away

Likewise, according to Sheldrake, the mind can reach out and touch the person you’re staring at, or thinking about, in a way their own minds can often sense and respond to. When you pray for or meditate on someone, your spirit, your mind, actually and really connects with theirs. But there is more:

Our minds project forward into the future through our intentions, which extend outward not only in space, but also in time, toward future aims. By their very nature, intentions extend into the future3… .

We are used to the theory that all our thoughts, images, and feelings are in the brain, and not where they seem to be. Most of us picked up this idea by the time we were ten or eleven. Although Francis Crick called this theory the Astonishing Hypothesis, it is not usually treated as a testable scientific hypothesis. Within institutional science and medicine, it is generally taken for granted, and most educated people accept it as the “scientifically correct” view. Yet the mind-equals-brain theory turns out to have very little evidence in its favor.4



While I certainly don’t subscribe to all Sheldrakes’s conclusions, I do embrace his main point. I’ve long believed that the brain acts as an exceedingly complex interface between our spirits and the material world we live in. Yes, it shapes and, to a significant degree, controls personality, intelligence, and memory. But all that applies to our life in this world. The writer of Hebrews talks about “the spirits of just men made perfect (Heb. 12:23)” in heaven. That perfection will never be achieved in these corrupt bodies. Yet I do believe, and science is beginning to support that belief, that our minds, our spirits, even while tethered to the body in this life, already are able to act somewhat independent of it.

The world is more than we know, and I find that very exciting.

Though I’m sure he didn’t intend to, Sheldrake’s work bolsters my faith. It is also a vivid reminder that my spirit will return to the Spirit who gave it, and unite with Him in a way that is unimaginable.



Remember him-before the silver cord is severed, or the golden bowl is broken;
before the pitcher is shattered at the spring,
or the wheel broken at the well,
and the dust returns to the ground it came from,
and the spirit returns to God who gave it.
(Eccl. 12:6-7)





1 Edited by J.P Moreland and David M. Ciocchi, Christian Perspectives on Being Human – A Multidisciplinary Approach to Integration (Baker Books, 1993, p. 35)
2 The Sense of Being Stared At (Rupert Sheldrake, Three Rivers Press. p. 263)
3 Ibid., p. 266
4 Ibid., p. 284


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Wednesday, December 01, 2004

Culture of Death?

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There is, for many Americans, a certain romantic fascination with all things European. Paris, London, Rome, and yes, Amsterdam, are names which immediately inspire images of urbane beauty and sophistication. But fashion and architecture aside, the secular socialism on that continent is producing something very ominous. Advancing from as far back as the Enlightenment one can trace a steady devolution in human value, the result of the systematic separation of God from all vestiges of public and intellectual life.

Only the latest incarnation of this dark trend is happening now in the Netherlands, where the government is experimenting with giving doctors the power to prematurely kill terminally sick children, even over their parents' wishes, up to the age of 12! (see "Euthanasia debate in Europe focuses on children"). This is all done in the name of compassion and preventing needless suffering, of course. That was the argument in Germany during the Wiemar Republic (1919-1933) and on into the Third Reich. And we know were that led. Euthanasia was used to murder millions of the retarded and infirm that were thought widely to be a drag on the state.

In the Netherlands, the new power given to doctors to decide who lives and dies is cryptically referred to as -- the protocol-- a term straight out of a George Orwell novel. Only in the Netherlands it isn't fiction, but yet another grim reminder of how otherwise reasonable men become brutes when God is rejected.



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