Love Truth Blog

I flipped on the television last Wednesday, June 26, 2013, and watched the news on the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which essentially kept same-sex couples from receiving tax, health and retirement benefits from the government. At that moment I thought, “Wow, whatever might come out of this, however this decision might shape each person in America, the world I lived in would never be the same.” Yet, inasmuch as the decision was monumental, as a Christ follower in covenant relationship to the God of the Universe, there is a bit of personal uneasiness over the whole situation. It would be naive to think the Supreme Court decision about DOMA is simply about the money $$$. (Who would object to a gay couple formulating contractual agreements for inheritance, hospital visitations, or property?) Rather, the decision set a legal precedence about marriage, particularly who can be married, and who can reap the benefits of being in a marit...

Jesus Christ’s cleansing of the temple has been on my mind of late. Matthew informs us that “ Jesus entered the temple and drove out all those who were buying and selling in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who were selling doves. And He said to them, “It is written, ‘ My house shall be called a house of prayer ’; but you are making it a robbers ’ den ” (Matt. 21:12-13). Mark adds that Christ “would not permit anyone to carry merchandise through the temple” (Mark. 11:16). John informs us that the Jesus “made a scourge of cords, and drove them all out of the temple” (John 2:15), and said, “Take these things away; stop making My Father’s house a place of business” (John 2:16). The disciples who witnessed this incident “remembered that it was written, ‘ Zeal for Your House will consume me ’ ” (John 2:17). [1] This incident would have occurred in the Temple’s Court of the Gentiles. In that place, there were money changers offering pure...

I just came across this special interest story, Banknotes worth $65,240 eaten by termintes - People's Daily Online . After reading it, I just had to let out a Homer Simpson, "Dooh!" Sad to read of how a Chinese woman lost a huge sum of yuan due to a termite infestation, but fortunately the bankers were able to consider the remains and the dear lady was able to recover what was eaten. This news piece really brings to mind the Christ's words "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Matt. 6:19-21). It is a reminder of the importance of having an eternal perspective, particularly when it comes to being a good steward of what the Lord gives. ~ WGN ...

divine omnipresence də-ˈvīn   äm-ni-ˈpre-zən (t)s Someone once asked me, “If God cannot be in the presence of sin, why does Satan can have access to heaven? The idea is that Satan enters into heaven to accuse the righteous in the books of Job (Job 1:11, 2:5) and Zechariah (Zech. 3:1-5). The problem comes when reading about final glory in the Book of Revelation, wherein there is a picture of the New Jerusalem coming down as a bride adorned for her husband, and John the Revelator says, “nothing unclean, and no one who practices abomination and lying, shall ever come into it, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life” (Rev. 21:27). How can this be? Some might parse out the semantics in Job and Zechariah in such a way to contend that “the Satan” in these Old Testament prophets is someone other than the Devil. So the problem is simply a case of mistaken identity. I’m not bought and sold on that one. So how it is that Satan can accuse the brethren ...

Just why is there something as opposed to nothing? Have you ever thought about that? Take a walk outside. You’ll see and experience the world around you. Wind, sun, moon, stars, oceans, rivers, lakes, plants, trees, insects, birds, animals, people, all these have their beauty, and we can perceive them with our senses of touch, taste, smell, and sound. But how do we account for those things?   Is what I perceive just an illusion? What if it is all a quest to discover “there is no spoon”? Why bother warning people to stop texting when they drive? Or better yet, stop daydreaming why they drive! Anyone would be wise to heed such warnings, and one never really takes solipsism to its logical extension.   Suppose there is a universe of things out there beyond one’s own mind and perception. Why is it there? Some might have thought the universe had always existed, but our scientific enlightenment rules out that possibility. The “Big Bang” theory of cosmology contends that ...

I truly sense there is an unsettling fundamentalism circulating that robs the soul of a capacity to read and understand obvious metaphors. This becomes all too clear when it comes to the resurrection of Jesus. Jesus continually reminded the disciples that He would die and rise again after “three days and three nights” (Matt. 12:40; Mark 8:31; 9:31; 10:34; John 2:19). He made many statements about dying and resurrecting on the “third day” (Matt. 16:21; 17:23; Luke 9:22; 18:33; 24:7, 21, and 46). The Scriptures also indicate that Christ burial took place prior to the start of the Sabbath (Mark 15:42-47; Luke 23:50-56; John 19:31-42), and that the empty tomb was discovered after the Sabbath ended (Matt. 28:1; Mark 16:1) on the first day of the week (Matt. 28:1; Mark. 16:2, 9; Luke 24:1). Here comes then Mr. Fundamentalism on the Left. He will tell me, “Well, there you have it. “Three days and three nights” just does not work, since you never really get 72 hours from Friday evening to...

In Gethsemane the Christos prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will…My Father, if this cannot pass away unless I drink it, Your will be done” (Matt. 26:39, 42). Here the Lord in His humanity expresses the overwhelming distress of the sufferings to come. He knew he betrayer had left to do his deed, the disciples would be scattered, and Peter would deny Him thrice. He moreover knew the agony of the cross would be His destiny. This was the cup of judgment set before Him. This is an epic moment as one witnesses the grandeur of the interpersonal relations within the Godhead. The subject/object distinctions of God the Son praying to and declaring His own will to be in submission to God the Heavenly Father. Jesus forsakes His own life in humble submission to do the will of the Father. What magnificence! Truly a fathomable mystery of the Almighty! It would be the cross that would secure the salvation of a great multitude of sinn...