http://www.pleonast.com/user/bombadil recent pleonast.com entries by user bombadil en-us http://www.pleonast.com/user/bombadil?l=5&entryID=404876 In a recent book (Benjamin Wiker and Jonathan Witt, "A Meaningful World") our old friend Darrel Dawkins is taken to task over some monkey business he has tried to pull off with some primates and a computer (he has apparently got them to produce a phrase from Shakespear’s hamlet by random chance). Their book, has received excellent reviews as it takes the intelligent design argument a step further. They argue that creation not only evidences design, but genius. Like the kind of genius seen in Shakespear’s Hamlet. One illustration is that of whimsy - which not only requires order and design, but design with a funny twist. To illustrate this they use the Panda which they call an instance of “comic relief” or “divine whimsy.” Of course they anticipate a reaction from creationist because, as a whole, we tend to be a bit too focused on finding flawless design in everything and forget that God is not a humorless engineer, but more like a quirky inventor. They write: ... 2007-07-10 http://www.pleonast.com/user/bombadil?l=5&entryID=391901 In this text, Paul explains how the foolishness of God demolishes the wisdom of men. We sometimes take this expression to mean something like, “God at his worst, on an off day, when He hasn’t had time to think things through, can still outdo the best and brightest of the world’s thinkers.” But, when we put it in such crass terms it becomes clear that something else must be meant. Paul is actually saying that God delights in using things the world finds contemptible, weak and foolish to wreck havoc with the things the world exalts and glories in. While it is important to understand this in principle, it is more important that we understand that God has actually done this in history. In fact, this is precisely what God has done in the cross. In our text Paul draws attention to the wisdom and the rulers of this age and to the hidden wisdom of God (2:7) or the foolishness of God (1:25). What he wants us to see is that both of these came together at one particular moment in his... 2007-06-08 http://www.pleonast.com/user/bombadil?l=5&entryID=391124 I heard on the radio today that the second most popular baby name in Great Brittan is Mohamed. I also ran accross this little jewel: "This has produced the extraordinary phenomenon of radical Islam—which denies female equality and preaches death to gays—marching under the banner of human rights. The self-styled progressives on the British left, for whom human rights have replaced Christianity as the religion for a godless society, have formed a jaw-dropping axis with militant, fundamentalist Islamism. These two revolutionary camps have put their very sizable differences to one side so that each can use the other to advance their goal, which is the destruction of Western society and its foundation values. The effect on Britain of Islamist-chic has gone far beyond left-wing circles" (Melanie Phillips, Londonistan, p. xxiii). 2007-06-06 http://www.pleonast.com/user/bombadil?l=5&entryID=389167 Once there were two boys who happened to be twins. Most of the time they got along wonderfully well, but on other occasions they could treat each other like the worst of enemies. One summer afternoon, their mother asked them if they would like some ice cream and, as you might imagine, they were both delighted. They climbed up onto the kitchen stools and waited patiently while their mother dipped the first bowl. When she finished, she slid it over in front of the oldest who dug in with wide eyed delight. The other said nothing, but was inwardly murmuring and thinking, “He always gets served first.” When their mother finished the second bowl and slid it in front of the other, he was well pleased because it had a smidgeon more in it that his brother’s. Unfortunately, when the first brother noticed this he erupted over the blatant injustice. “You always get more” he said, “You always get served first” the other shot back. But their mother was wise and simply put both bowls b... 2007-06-01 http://www.pleonast.com/user/bombadil?l=5&entryID=386463 Here is the final product: All sin is deadly but the two I’ve saved for last are exceptional. All sin damages our relationship with God, but pride and envy possess a destructive power that wrecks havoc in the lives and communities of those where it takes root like nothing else. Justification for such a claim comes from both the experience and teaching of Jesus Himself. The pharisees knew how to keep a clean white shirt looking nice and tidy, while yet rolling around in the filth of pride and envy which was rampant in their ranks. What did Jesus warn them about? The drunks and harlots will enter the kingdom before you! He didn’t say this just to get a dig in at his adversaries; He said this because it was true. Envy is like covetousness, with a wicked twist. Whereas the covetous man wants what another man has, the envious man wants the other person ruined. To covet is to want what another person has enough to steal it, to envy is to resent what another person has so badly that ... 2007-05-25 http://www.pleonast.com/user/bombadil?l=5&entryID=385271 I'm getting close to the end of my series on deadly sins, but I've saved the worst for last. Envy this week and pride the next. I want to post a number of random thoughts on the topic of envy this week and solicit any input you would like to offer. Rather than making a new post for each thought, I'll just edit this post each time I make a new entry. So, if you are interested, just skip down to the bottom and read the new stuff each time you visit. And please, feel free to drop by any time. Envy desires something that someone else has which they perceive themselves as lacking. Dante defined this as "love of one's own good perverted to a desire to deprive other men of theirs." In Dante's Purgatory, the punishment for the envious is to have their eyes sewn shut with wire, because they have gained sinful pleasure from seeing others brought low. When someone else possess qualities we want, but do not have we will invariably react in one of two ways. If the person we admire is... 2007-05-22 http://www.pleonast.com/user/bombadil?l=5&entryID=384842 We have been dealing with the cravings of the body. Things that naturally and rightly appeal to our senses, but turn deadly when pursued without restraint. As bad as they are they do not attain to the demonic transgressions to which we now must turn our attention. Greed, Envy and Pride are the deadliest of the seven and are made all the more deadly by their ability to hide under the cloak of virtue. The fornicator and glutton knows what he is, as does the wrathful or lazy man, the covetous man however, rarely sees himself for the horse leach that he is, but thinks himself to only be thrifty or enterprising. Today we want to consider first what greed or covetousness is, second how we may detect it in our lives and third, the means God provides to overcome it. As we proceed I want us to take care that we examine our own heart thoroughly whether there be any covetousness or greed to be rooted out. I am convinced that the vast majority of us will find plenty of work there to keep us occ... 2007-05-21 http://www.pleonast.com/user/bombadil?l=5&entryID=381289 The purpose of this and all of the sermons on the Seven Deadly Sins is to make us feel guilty. However, as the apostle Paul told the Corinthians, conviction of sin produces different results in different hearts. First, there is the sorrow of the world. Now, worldly sorrow comes in different flavors. Sometimes it resists the counsel of God’s word, stiffens its neck and hardens its heart. On other occasions it wilts and despairs of ever being good enough. In both instances the result is deadly and the cause is the same - a refusal to look to the cross. But the conviction of sin can also produce godly sorrow leading to life, which is always accompanied by reformation of character. Gluttony is a sin that we must seek to avoid, but we must do so with a full appreciation of what God has to say on the topic of food and feasting. We also need to recognize that here as everywhere else we are primarily addressing an issue of the heart, not the mouth. In the main, the Bible’s teaching... 2007-05-11 http://www.pleonast.com/user/bombadil?l=5&entryID=379659 In scripture, the word lust is translated from the Greek epithumia meaning strong desire. The word is sometimes used with a positive moral connotation. Jesus told the disciples, With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer (Luke 22:15). Likewise, Paul said that he desired or lusted to depart this life in order to be with Christ. Most everywhere else it is used in a bad sense. But these two verses are important in showing us that the goal of the Christian faith is not to transcend passion, but to learn to desire the right things in the right way. More about this later. Lust is commonly used to refer to uncontrolled sexual desire and it is this ordinary sense that we want to consider this morning. There are important things we need to know about lust: First, sexual desire is not sinful in itself (Prov 5:15-19). However, it must be controlled by keeping it under the direction God gives in His word (Heb 13:14). All sane men recognize the neces... 2007-05-07