'God Debate'

saw a guy's post on myspace entitled the same as this blog post, yet there was no one arguing his stance, so i decided to chime in and have some interaction. will be updating as more is said, if there is in fact anything else said between the two of us.
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Him:

Just a piece I thought expressed my point well. I might publish the whole thing with Lora's permission after we wrap it up lol.

VladVonShiver: So now you can see where I'm coming from when I denounce the whole thing. I know I'll break the rules and I know that I will feel no true remorse because I would not have broken it unless it was unjust. The whole system stinks to me. First of all I really think God is an idea that a bunch of cave men thought up when they saw lightning knock down the tree outside their house, and has been perpetuated and perfected throughout the years. We don't need the idea anymore. We know why lightning hits a tree. Science dealt God a death blow a long time ago. Habit and tradition are his life support. If great thinkers hadn't been teathered to tradition the whole idea would have been tossed but keeping with tradition they've adapted and adapted the idea . God is an old computer packed full of upgrades. We need to replace him or we won't be able to play the new games, but we like having him around, he reminds us of good times gone by so we keep upgrading and upgrading even though he keeps breaking down and doing less and less of what we ask him to do. Science is that shiny new alienware desktop with the dual graphics cards. It'll be forever until we buy into it though because we just can't bare to throw out the old one.

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My Response:

didn't look like much of a debate, unless you were just arguing w/ yourself, so i figured i'd help in validating the title of this post =).

science in NO way dealt God a death blow. in fact, 4 out of 10 scientists now believe in something called Intelligent Design (ID). it revolves around the idea that scientific disagreement with the core claim of evolutionary theory that the apparent design of living systems is an illusion. In a broader sense, Intelligent Design is simply the science of design detection -- how to recognize patterns arranged by an intelligent cause for a purpose.

"Design detection is used in a number of scientific fields, including anthropology, forensic sciences that seek to explain the cause of events such as a death or fire, cryptanalysis and the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI)."

an inference that certain biological information may be the product of an intelligent cause can be tested or evaluated in the same manner as scientists daily test for design in other sciences.

ID is controversial because of the implications of its evidence, rather than the significant weight of its evidence. ID proponents believe science should be conducted objectively, without regard to the implications of its findings. This is particularly necessary in origins science because of its historical (and thus very subjective) nature, and because it is a science that unavoidably impacts religion.

"Positive evidence of design in living systems consists of the semantic, meaningful or functional nature of biological information, the lack of any known law that can explain the sequence of symbols that carry the "messages," and statistical and experimental evidence that tends to rule out chance as a plausible explanation. Other evidence challenges the adequacy of natural or material causes to explain both the origin and diversity of life."

so where is the intelligence coming from? it doesn't matter if it's Jesus Christ, allah, the boogeyman, or the dude from the Matrix:Reloaded (the Architect, cool cat fo shizzie). no matter what label you give this higher Being, It or He is the equivalent to the generalized term of 'God'.

so yea, science has turned out to be a really cool new alienware, but this doesn't mean it replaced an older hardware system known as 'God', it simply means that we figured out a better way to put the parts together that were supplied by the same manufacturer: none other than, God.

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Like i said, i will post more as more is said, if in fact any is. peace out-

Already there...

I've been reading Watchman Nee's book Sit, Walk, Stand recently and have really enjoyed it. I read it about 2 years ago or so and thought it'd be nice to pick back up. The book is entirely based off of Paul's writings to the Church of Ephesus in the book of Ephesians. Might want to check the book out for yourself (God created Amazon on the eigth day).

So I've been in the middle of a situation lately, and am presently still situated therein, and thus have felt the need and urge to pray to God for things such as strength, assurance, wisdom, and other similar attributes that would seemingly help me out in escaping from this little pit I have found myself in. So now I write to ask you if I am correct in asking for these things. *long, thoughtful pause....* Ok, ready for my take on the matter? I think that I am far from being correct in asking for them. No, I'm not saying that it's a sin to ask God for things or that it's a selfish deal or anything of the sort. Here's what I am saying...if Christ is part of our new being due to the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, then why must we rely on ourselves to get the job done and then when we can't do it on our own strength ask for His help? Has it clicked yet? We don't need to ask God for the wisdom because the problem is not the lack of wisdom, it's the self-efforts of ourselves! There is no lack in a Christian, they are, in a juvenial way of thinking, a super man among mere humans, but it is not of themselves that all things are possible, but because of and with Christ. I am trying to learn to let go and stop trying with all my might to do what is right, to say what is right, to be wise, to be strong, to be patient and loving and all those other things. Am I a quitter? No! Am I dropping from the race? No! I am merely letting myself go, realizing that Christ already is all those things and that according to Paul in Ephesians, I was "...made to sit in Christ...", thus enabling the possibility of Him to be all the strength, wisdom, discernment, etc... that I may ever need. But this also serves a great purpose, and this is the kicker that proves what may seem a mere theological 'theory' to you thus far as a spiritual fact...ready? Allowing Christ to be all those things that we need, to allow him to love our enemies through us instead of trying with all our might to love someone that we cannot help but hate brings Him, not us, all the glory. If we did it on our own strength then we could boast of the results and the triumph over hatred, death, despair, etc...but no, the glory is never meant for us, but rather it is always intended for the only one worthy of such praise, God Himself.

So I challenge you as I too am being challenged, let go of your efforts and realize what power lies within due to the grace of Calvary. Peace to all-

Hapy MeeLs

Been thinking a lot lately about the major riff I have with Christianity in general and many specific people who deem themselves as Christians, that being the property of unbalance. There are so so many people who claim Christ but only subscribe to a few of his attributes. Is this really Christianity? If the root of Christianity is total surrender and submission, then the answer is apparently a big, fat 'NO'. Why do I come to this conclusion? The reason is simple, if you're only surrendering a percentage of your life to this Being you call 'Lord', then 1) you are ignorant for calling it surrender due to the fact that it is contradictory to the very nature of the word you use to define your actions, and 2) you're trying to keep part of your life in your hands, thus keeping it carnal, and another part you are giving to God, allowing it become a spiritual thing. These two planes of existence cannot coincide in such a scenario. Yes, the natural and spiritual are intricately intertwined within one another, but this is due to the fact that both are very present. You are alive in the natural world, but are living also in the spiritual. However, when holding on to one more tightly than the other, and not allowing room for both to be present in a sort of 'fullness', you destroy the balance that should exist between the two.

Modern Christianity in America has decided to create a mix-and-match type of God. One that has a seemingly endless list of attributes to choose from and enjoy. This much is true, He does in fact have unlimited resources of personality, feelings, etc. However, this is not the case so that you may pick and choose which portion of Him you would like at the moment. A Happy Meal is only a Happy Meal if it is...you guessed it...a Happy Meal. You may order a Happy Meal, but then you take away the fries, substitute the drink for an ice cream, and ask for no ketchup and only one of the two buns, so is it really a Happy Meal, or has it become more of a Hapy MeeL, a type of variation of the original, the one and true Happy Meal? The same applies to God. Is He really truly God if we only see Him as merciful and not as just? Is he really truly God if we worship his kindness but not his wrath? Is he really truly God if we brag about his patience but not his anger and judgement? I say no. He is not God because He is not the Original. In the midst of so many christian telivision shows, books, worship cds, and churches...it is very hard to find the Original. There are many duplicates in the world, many people who try to replicate 'the originals' in the earth, but everyone knows that they are not the true thing, but merely an attempt in recreating this original item that captivated our hearts, minds, or......tastebuds (thanks to gourmet cheese).

So then, why is it that people wanting to be called Christians apparently make no observations of all the fakes, duplicates, and frauds out there? Are we so hypnotized and brainwashed to where we cannot find the one, true Original? Or is it because we love to be spoon fed by others and not discover this amazing Original for ourselves in the Book that we carry with us to these quick dine-ins that serve, many times, nothing but regurgitated cliches and phrases of religious nature?

All this was to say that lopsided faith is no faith at all. This comes across as harsh, I'm sure, but it is the truth. Yes, you may very well believe in this Original, thus possessing an obvious faith, but the fact that you must choose to form Him into the God you want Him to be takes the whole concept of your need upon Him out of the picture and places you on the throne of your life, which requires absolutely no faith whatsoever.

Make sure you do not say to one another via your actions "let us make God in our image", for that creates something that is far from the Original and is of no use to you or anyone else.

Appetizer

For starters, I will briefly explain the purpose of this blog. It is a place for me to put random thoughts, no matter the nature, whether they be theological, abstract, or any other genre of thought process. I look forward to keeping these little nuggets on here. Take care-