Funny theologies.

I do not mean funny in a "ha ha" sense but a funny way in that they are strange. I look at these differently than a cult.  A cult is a rejection of basic Christian beliefs. A cult will always fail in the test of who Christ is.  Funny theologies are found within the "Christian" world.   They are a corruption of Biblical truth and create a lot of confusion.

More and more our Christian world is being invaded with this funny stuff. We have had the hyper faith movement.  You still find some of it.  The prosperity gospel was thrown at us and caused confusion.  I was invited not to long ago to a church that claimed to have gold dust falling in worship.  That drew people.  I didn't see any.

Soul sleep is not new but has been resurrected.  A keeping of the sabbath in the Old Testament way is still around.  I suppose the newest funny theology is the messianic movement.  They really can not get their act together as to what they believe but it is basically a resurrection of the Galatians problem that the Apostle Paul deals with.  Of course, no one can forget 88 reasons why the Lord will come in 1988.  He didn't come.  I don't know where those followers are.

Some of this stuff is so strange that you have to laugh.  They throw these funny things out and expect everyone to accept it without question.  After all, they will tell you, this is a new revelation.  They forget that Solomon said, "there is nothing new under the sun."

The best way to keep from falling into one of these traps is to know your Bible.  A solid biblical knowledge will help you recognize funny theologies when you hear them.  They will continue to come.  Jesus warned in Matthew 24 of mass confusion within the Christian faith in the days just before He returns.  The confusion will be so great that many will depart from the faith.

Call them what you like but beware they can cause you to fall.

  

Oh, how I love Christmas!

It is in the air.  It has been since the "ber" months started.  The music is playing.  The decorations are going up.  Excitement is in the air.  I am not sure what part of Christmas I like the most but I like the season.  I suppose it would start with the carols.  My favorite?  Wow.  That's a hard one.

"I am dreaming of a white Christmas."  I love that one.  Silent night.  Joy to the world.  Jingle bells.  I even like Rudolph and Frosty.  I love Christmas trees all bright and cheery.  I love the lights, the gatherings, the gifts.  I like to give and receive.  What a beautiful way to tell someone we care.

I do not know what day our Lord was born into our world.  It probably was not the 25th of December.  There were 364 other days He could have chosen.  I am not sure it really matters.  What I do know is Jesus was born and we should celebrate his birthday.  After all most of celebrate our own birthdays.

There are some who say they do not believe in Christmas.  I am not sure why or what they mean by making such a declaration.  Do they not believe that Jesus came?  If He did come why not celebrate.  In stating we do not believe in something we are making a statement of personal principle.  Being a principle we must not violate it in anyway.  We must reject the Christmas bonus.  We must not accept gifts and tell the giver that it is against our principle.  We must not attend any Christmas gathers.  After all our religious convictions are on the line here.

As for me and my house we will celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  The decorations are up.  The kitchen is preparing.  The smells are in the air.  Let's celebrate.  Its Jesus' birthday.

The King James Version

The KJV is a translation just like NIV, NASV, ASV, Message, Living Bible, Amplified, etc, etc.  They are all guilty.  They are translations.  Each one done in a different time and authorized by different sources.  The KJV is a translation no better or worse than others.  It depends on your need.

The KJV was authorized by King James I.  He certainly was no holy man.  When the supporters of this version talk,  they sometimes speak of the fact that it is the authorized version.  So was every other translation.

If you are a purist you might want to consider taking Hebrew and Greek so you do not have to rely on a translation.  But even if you so this, remember that there are no original manuscripts of the bible.  They do not exist.  The nearest thing we have are the dead sea scrolls.  But they are copies of a source nearest the original.  

Just a warning.  Be careful how you berate other translations over the KJV.  It is no different and somewhat difficult because of its usage of the old English.  To speak of it as of Satan is very dangerous.  You will have more questions about your stand than you can answer.  

Every translation is a serious effort to bring the bible into a language we can understand.  And, by the way,  what translation do the various language groups use.  If you speak an very obscure chinese dialect how are you going to ever read a King James Version.  To listen to some you are in big trouble.  You probably will never make it to heaven.  I think the proverbial Saint Peter is going to check at the gate to see what translation you have been using.  Excuse me, I am going to look for my old KJV.  I think it is here somewhere being neglected. 

Ramblings!

1.  Buddhists have flags that doing their praying for them.  Cool!

2.  Nepal has an airline called Buddha Air.

3.  Thailand is seriously flooded.

4.  Do you think there will be an Occupy the World movement?  The problem is when it is over where would we go?

5.  There are several countries in the Middle East who do not have a leader.  They just up and got rid of them.  Now what?

6.  Israel is dead serious!

7.  God doesn't care for about half of our so called theology.  He didn't have anything to do with it anyway.

8.  The last days won't last.

9.  Christmas is real.

10.  Pray before you go to bed and you will sleep better.

A Mission trip to Nepal

This trip was into the interior of Nepal to the town of Bharatapur nestled in the shadows of the Himalayan.  It took three flights and two days to get here from Manila.  We found our church on a gravel, dusty, one lane road.  It was in a beautiful setting with bright green rice paddies all around.  Water buffaloes contently lying in the shade.  Children running to nowhere.  They always like to run.  Boys racing on their Chinese made bikes.  Boys the world over like to race.

Already at the church were 150 to 200 pastors and their wives and friends who had gathered for a three day convention.  We enjoyed the greeting time as we renewed friendships of ten years.  In the church the ladies sit on one side.  Men on the other.  All sitting cross legged on the floor.  They sang joyfully as if they had no concerns whatsoever.  I enjoyed the sounds of their unknown tongue.  At least to me it was unknown.

As I preached the three ceiling fans were doing the best they could.  Heat was coming through the windows and doors.  The church was full.  People were sitting outside in the international plastic chairs that has made someone very rich.  My interpreter seems to be working harder than me.  He is trying to catch every word.  I was wet to my skin for the entire two hours of preaching/teaching.  As I taught they took notes by putting their tablets on the floor.

I looked out the back door of the church as I was preaching and saw the beautiful rice paddies at different stages of growth.  I noted as we came in, the heads of the rice bowing over to us as if to say, "Please harvest me."  I would hate for the harvest to be lost.  The grain is precious.

I visited the kitchen where the young people were preparing the lunch.  Large basins were full of chopped specialities. A large pan of chopped onions.  Two bowls of garlic.  Large pan of very hot peppers.  Two differ large pans full of different greens.  Everyone would eat well today.

It was a wonderful three days with God's children.  Life is hard but their laughter real.  I have grown to love these dear ones.  I weep because of the harsh life they live.  They really do not complain and worshipped with the greatest expressions of joy.

A Mission trip to Bharatpur, Nepal

Sue and I left Manila on a Saturday morning.  We left behind a devastating typhoon and another one on the way.  Our big Thai plane took us out on our way to Bangkok where we would stay over night.  This would be the first of six flights we would take before returning home.  The next morning we were off to Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal for another over night.  The next morning our third flight took us into the interior of Nepal to the town of Bharatpur for a National Convention of Word for the World.

Our home for the next three nights would be an experience.  Our room had a TV.  It didn't work.  A phone. No, it didn't work.  When they said wifi in the room. We took another look around us and doubted.  It didn't work.  He didn't say it did.  Cold shower.  Sue hates them.  A place to sleep.  What else do you need?

The gardens are beautiful with a huge variety of trees, flowering shrubs, beautiful large butterflies flipping through the flowers and singing birds with strange but beautiful songs.  The place we are staying is man made.  The garden is God's.  What a difference.

We just came from a tour of the town via a hired taxi.  Sue likes to take photos.  With her two cameras and my one on my cell phone off we went.  Stopping here and there taking photos we circle the town.  Beautifully dressed ladies in the bright colors of the rainbow with long, black flowing hair down their backs.  Children with coal black eyes sparkling back at you.  Rickshaws drifting in and out of traffic.  Water buffaloes lazily carrying burdens with a certain contagious contentment. Horns blaring as they do in Asia.  Sidewalks filled with fruit vendors.  Did I say there are no sidewalks?  Sue has the driver stop for another photo.  Did I tell you she likes to take photos?  She has hundreds of them stored.  Everywhere.  While she adjusts her camera our dilapidated taxi is rear ended.  By a motorcycle.  Normally you would not feel this.  In an ordinary car.  As the Chinese would say, "Anyone can build a car."  Someone tried on this one.  I was grateful when our driver and the motorcyclist exchanged pleasantries and we were on our way.  I was already imagining our being at the police station trying to explain, "My wife likes to take photos."  We are foreigners you know.  Finally we are back at our "resort."  Sometimes it doesn't take much to make a place a resort.

It is dark and the lights are still on.  We have our candles near by.  A must in most of Asia's out of the way places.  I made an ocular inspection of the generator.  I felt on familiar grounds.  It was very much like the one I fought with for three years in the Gilbert Islands.

I'll close for now.  It is dinner time.  Dinner time in these small Asian villages can be a pleasant evening time.  The lights are subdued.  Oriental music.  Helpful waiters with giant size smiles and stumbling through what little English they know.  Drinks are refreshing and made of fruit we have never heard of.  The smells are always laced with garlic, ginger, peppers and other spices.  Oh, by the way, when you pray for your food, really pray.

The lights just went out.

An Asian Airport

We arrived at Tribhuvan Domestic airport in Kathmandu with no tickets.  Our overseer had them and he was not to be seen. We pulled into the airport in a cloud of dust in a wheezing, dilapidated cab.  It proceeded to die as we got out.  Two wild men came out of the crowd and took off with our bags.  I begin yelling and they stopped looking bewildered as if I was the wild man.  They were not stealing our bags, just heading for the airport.  How in the world was I suppose to know this?

You are not allowed to enter the airport without tickets.  Since we didn't have tickets I began shoving every paper I could find toward the guard including our passports.  It worked.  He became totally confused at these crazy foreigners and sent us on our way.

By this time we are in the middle of chaos.  Lines, security machines, guards, bag boys all trying to be in the same spot at the same time.  We shoved, pushed, said words under our breath and reached security status.  We were in.

Describe the scene?  Yes, well it was something like this.  The room was small with a large crowd of people wanting to go somewhere else.  Pushing, shoving, calling out to one another and just a general roar of noise.  There must be a shortage of water.  No one has been near any for sometime.  One tall man, all arms and legs was marching under someone's orders up and down, back and forth.  His long arms and very long fingers were piercing the air.  Everyone stayed clear of him.  Sue and I stood over in a dark corner.

Out of the chaos of the security area our overseer broke free and came toward us.  Tickets in hand he directed us toward one of the several carnival booths that serve as airline counters when not used for something else.

I really am not sure how our bags got checked and we had boarding passes in our hands.  An absolute miracle.  Behind some curtains our carry on bag was checked and we were frisked.  Out another curtain and into a larger area of chaos.  A loud speaker was yelling at everyone.  We didn't know whether to sit down, duck or board.

Finally it was time to board Buddha Air.  One of these crashed last week and all on board died.  Buddha failed.  The plane was a two motor prop.  This is what is called a shake, rattle and roll flight.  I just hope the pilot gets the three co-ordinating.

We are off for a three day convention in the town of Bharatpur.  The Himalayans are beautiful.