Monthly Archives: December 2011

Tim Tebow attacked by Bill Maher

December 27, 2011 – 1:16 pm

 

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Tebow attacked by Bill Maher:

Even in defeat, Tim Tebow creates controversy — this time in Tinseltown.

HBO’s Bill Maher created a firestorm over the Christmas weekend with a scathing reaction to Tebow’s subpar performance in Buffalo. Shortly after Tebow threw four interceptions in the Broncos’ lopsided defeat to the Bills, Maher turned to his Twitter page to poke fun at the very religious NFL star. (And a warning: Maher’s tweet includes harsh language and divisive references.)

“Wow, Jesus just [screwed] #TimTebow bad! And on Xmas Eve! Somewhere … Satan is tebowing, saying to Hitler “Hey, Buffalo’s killing them,” Maher tweeted.

Maher, a proud atheist who supports legalizing pot, same-sex marriage and is a board member for PETA, upset a number of conservatives, according to Entertainment Weekly. Eric Bolling of Fox News responded to Maher by calling him “disgusting vile trash,” among other things.

Tebow didn’t bother responding to Maher, but plenty of his fans did. Some called for a mass cancellation of HBO subscriptions over the offensive tweet. “Real Time with Bill Maher,” is scheduled to return to the premium cable channel on January 13, 2012.

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By Everette Hatcher III | Posted in Current Events | Comments (0)

Christopher Hitchens and William Lane Craig debate (part 3)

December 27, 2011 – 12:37 pm
DEBATE William Lane Craig vs Christopher Hitchens Does God Exist 07

Below are some reactions of evangelical leaders to the news of Christopher Hitchens’ death:

 
Posted on Dec 16, 2011 | by Michael Foust
 

DEBATE William Lane Craig vs Christopher Hitchens Does God Exist 08

Author and speaker Christopher Hitchens, a leader of an aggressive form of atheism that eventually was dubbed “New Atheism,” died Thursday from pneumonia, a complication of his oesophageal cancer. He was 62.

Hitchens’ interests were varied and he wrote extensively about politics, but it was his outspoken, confrontational words on God’s existence that caught the attention of the Christian community. Hitchens and other members of the New Atheism movement — such as Richard Dawkins and Sam Harris — went beyond the centuries-old arguments against God and religion. Hitchens wasn’t simply arguing against God’s existence; he said that the world’s greatest problems were caused by religion. Society, he argued, should cleanse itself of all religious beliefs. Hitchens’ most famous book on the subject summed up his thoughts in the title: “God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything.”

He once said of families who raise their children to believe in God: “How can we ever know how many children had their psychological and physical lives irreparably maimed by the compulsory inculcation of faith?”

He wrote that religion was “violent, irrational, intolerant, allied to racism and tribalism and bigotry, invested in ignorance and hostile to free inquiry, contemptuous of women and coercive toward children.”

Hitchens, who had dual British and U.S. citizenship, regularly took part in debates over God’s existence. For example, in November 2010 he debated Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary professor William Dembski and in April 2009 he sparred with Christian apologist William Lane Craig.

After Hitchens’ death, Christian leaders were mostly gracious in their response….

DEBATE William Lane Craig vs Christopher Hitchens Does God Exist 09

Ed Stetzer, vice president of research and ministry development at LifeWay Christian Resources, wrote in a blog post that for many people, “Hitchen’s passing will lead to stirring up old debates and old bruises.” Yet Christians should react with compassion, Stetzer said.

“I would like to see the dialogue of Christian apologetics move from Hitchens, Dawkins, and Harris into our houses, diners, and local community centers,” Stetzer wrote. “The AP news wire will not be abuzz with the passing of the atheist in your neighborhood, but your heart ought hurt for them. I am grateful for evangelical scholars who have engaged New Atheism with the level of intellectual commitment the movement deserves. But for most of us, we ought to concern ourselves with and grieve over the debates that war in the minds of our families, friends, and coworkers.”
–30–
Michael Foust is associate editor of Baptist Press.

Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter (@BaptistPress), Facebook (Facebook.com/BaptistPress) and in your email (baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp).

DEBATE William Lane Craig vs Christopher Hitchens Does God Exist 10

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Brantley condemns Mississippi personhood amendment because it “gives the status of a human being to a zygote” (Part 2)

  Max Brantley (Arkansas Times Blog, Nov 8, 2011) wrote: The world will watch today as Mississippi votes on a “personhood” amendment that begins protection at fertilization. It, in short, gives the status of a human being to a zygote. _____________ Sometimes I wonder how we got to this place where the preborn are discarded? […]

Review of Carl Sagan book (Part 4 of series on Evolution)jh68

Review of Carl Sagan book (Part 4 of series on Evolution) The Long War against God-Henry Morris, part 5 of 6 Uploaded by FLIPWORLDUPSIDEDOWN3 on Aug 30, 2010 http://www.icr.org/ http://store.icr.org/prodinfo.asp?number=BLOWA2 http://store.icr.org/prodinfo.asp?number=BLOWASG http://www.fliptheworldupsidedown.com/blog _______________________ This is a review I did a few years ago. THE DEMON-HAUNTED WORLD: Science as a Candle in the Dark by Carl […]

Review of Carl Sagan book (Part 3 of series on Evolution)

Review of Carl Sagan book (Part 3 of series on Evolution) The Long War against God-Henry Morris, part 4 of 6 Uploaded by FLIPWORLDUPSIDEDOWN3 on Aug 30, 2010 http://www.icr.org/ http://store.icr.org/prodinfo.asp?number=BLOWA2 http://store.icr.org/prodinfo.asp?number=BLOWASG http://www.fliptheworldupsidedown.com/blog ______________________________________ I was really enjoyed this review of Carl Sagan’s book “Pale Blue Dot.” Carl Sagan’s Pale Blue Dot by Larry Vardiman, Ph.D. […]

Arkansas Times Blogger says Communists were not atheistic, but they were and they believed “might made right” jh48

Paul Kurtz pictured above. Norma Bates noted on the Arkansas Times Blog yesterday The most common justification throughout history – the elephant in everybody’s living room – is religion. “God is on our side.” “We are the chosen people.” “God gave us this land.” “God said to — .” Judaism, Christianity, or that relative Johnny-come-lately […]

Atheists confronted: How I confronted Carl Sagan the year before he died jh47

In today’s news you will read about Kirk Cameron taking on the atheist Stephen Hawking over some recent assertions he made concerning the existence of heaven. Back in December of 1995 I had the opportunity to correspond with Carl Sagan about a year before his untimely death. Sarah Anne Hughes in her article,”Kirk Cameron criticizes […]

Is the Bible historically accurate? (Part 9A) jh46

My sons Wilson and Hunter are now climbing a mountain in the LA area. However, they will be helping Sherwood tonight at Santa Monica Promenade. Sherwood preaches and has question and answer sessions. Below  a former muslim turned atheist debates Sherwood on the issue of evolution. My sons will be attending church on Sunday at […]

By Everette Hatcher III | Posted in Current Events | Comments (0)

Why We Love Tim Tebow

December 27, 2011 – 8:14 am

I really enjoyed this article and wanted to share it with you.

Why We Love Tim Tebow

posted by Linda Mintle | 7:33am Wednesday December 14, 2011
 

Yesterday I was asked to do a TV interview on Tim Tebow. This time the focus was positive. Tebow is very polarizing. People either love or hate him (see my blog on 10 reasons for Tim Tebow Hate).

One of the questions asked was how does Tebow’s faith affect his performance and his team? My answer was that his faith permeates everything he does. Because his faith is real, it is a part of him that doesn’t get sidelined when he steps on the football field. His love for God isn’t an add on. When you live a life serving others, allow God to give you a heart of compassion and truly believe that nothing is impossible, it shows in every aspect of your life. The impact of his faith is that it brings out the best in him and those around him.It raises people up.

Think about it. When ego is not the driving force, the end result is to encourage and empower those around you. And the mark of a true leader is to influence, but to do so with humility.  So far, this is the Tebow we see and why we love him so much. This type of leadership, in which football in only a game, and character rules the day, is sorely missing in the world of professional sports.

Tebow embodies the words of Christ–they shall know us by our love. According to 1 Corinthians 13, “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.”

Why do we love Tim Tebow? We are drawn to his love, the love of the Father, evidenced in him.

So whether or not Tim Tebow continues to win (he is highly competitive and loves to win) is not what Tebow is all about. His greatest strength is love. Raised by a missionary father who taught him the value of all people, that God so loved the world that HE gave, Tebow gets it. And at a time when we are desperate to find real heroes of the faith, Tebow comes along and gives us hope.

P.S. If my beloved Chicago Bears had to lose to a team this past week, I’m glad it was Tim Tebow who led the rally.

Related posts:

Tom Brady, Coldplay, Solomon and the search for satisfaction (part 1)

Tom Brady “More than this…” Uploaded by EdenWorshipCenter on Jan 22, 2008 EWC sermon illustration showing a clip from the 2005 Tom Brady 60 minutes interview. To Download this video copy the URL to http://www.vixy.net Tom Brady is still searching for satisfaction in his life. Over the years I wanted bands like Kansas and Coldplay […]

“True Satisfaction,” Tebow has it, Brady would like to have it

Tom Brady “More than this…” Uploaded by EdenWorshipCenter on Jan 22, 2008 EWC sermon illustration showing a clip from the 2005 Tom Brady 60 minutes interview. To Download this video copy the URL to http://www.vixy.net Below you will see several video clips of both Tom Brady and Tim Tebow. Evidently despite all the super bowl […]

Sound off on Tebow

Denver quarterback Tim Tebow reacts after Broncos running back Lance Ball scored a touchdown against the New England Patriots on Sunday, Dec. 18, 2011. (Associated Press/Jack Dempsey) I think Tebow is fine Christian man who believes in telling others about Christ and he lives a morally pure life unlike many others in our society. Therefore, […]

Joy Behar and her liberal friends on “The View” gang up on pro-life Elisabeth Hasselback

“The View” Fights over Abortion Uploaded by RandomClips2008 on Jun 14, 2009 Hot-Topics The ladies on “The View”sit down and talk about President Obama’s commencement speech at the University of Notre Dame and talk about how the crowd got a little riled over Abortion protesters. They then continue on the abortion subject which leads to […]

SNL mocks Tebow and endorses Romney: Is Mormonism true?

I was saddened that SNL proclaimed Mormonism true in a skit Saturday. The archaeological record is obvious that Joseph Smith was wrong in many of the details he put in the  Book of Mormon and he assumed that the Indians in the North America had the same surroundings that the Jews did in the middle east 2000 years […]

Tebow’s team goes down to defeat, what next?

I knew this day would come soon. I was asked this morning if I thought God was pulling for the Broncos and I responded, “No I do not. Many think that and for them it will be said that that devil Tom Brady brings the Tebow winning streak to a halt.” Sure enough New England […]

Tim Tebow verses and interviews

Another good article I read on Tebow: By PATTON DODD On a brisk Thursday evening in mid-November, I sat high in the stands at a Denver Broncos home game, covering the ears of my 4-year-old son as the fans around us launched f-bombs at Tim Tebow, the Broncos’ struggling second-year quarterback. Mr. Tebow was ineffective […]

What is God doing with Tim Tebow? Fellowship Bible pastor of Little Rock ponders…

Everyone is wondering if this amazing fourth quarter comeback streak will end for the Denver Broncos and their quarterback Tim Tebow. At the December 11, 2011 early service at Fellowship Bible Church, pastor Mark Henry noted: How many of you have been watching the drama behind Tim Tebow. Tim Tebow is the starting quarterback for […]

By Everette Hatcher III | Posted in Current Events | Comments (0)

“Tip Tuesday” Advice to Gene Simmons

December 27, 2011 – 7:41 am

Gene Simmons and his son Nick (Refer to end of post for more on Nick and Gene)

28 July 2011
Gene Simmons has proposed to long-term girlfriend Shannon Tweed.

The Kiss bassist – who claims to have slept with over 2,000 women and has for a long time vowed never to marry – popped the question to the actress-and-former-Playboy model, in Belize recently.

In video footage for their reality show ‘Gene Simmons Family Jewels’, he asks Shannon: “I come with so much baggage, but you’re the only friend I’ve got, you’re the only one I’ve ever loved, you’re the only one I love, and the only one I ever will love. I’ve never said those words to anybody, and I don’t ever wanna…

“It’s funny, they used to watch movies where they say I can’t live without you but for me it’s true.”

He then gets down on one knee and says “will you marry me,” at which point Shannon is crying.

Gene, 61, and Shannon, 54, have been together for 27 years and have two children, Nicholas, 22, and Sophie, 19.

___________________________

Above you read that Gene Simmons has gone to bed with 2000 women. However, he is engaged to be married to the mother of his children. The point of contension in the past has been his infidelites. Will he be faithful to his wife? There is a strong warning from the Bible concerning this.

In the Fellowship Bible Church worship service on July 24th, Brandon Barnard read Proverbs chapters 5, 6, and 7 and when he finished he said that was strong and explicit. This warning that comes to us comes with power and intensity. I know when we talk about this, it is talking about the adulterous woman, and Proverbs is speaking to sons, but you have to take the universal context and that is that sexual pressures are coming on all of us. Men and women are engaging in pornography and affairs and romantic fantisies, but when you read Proverbs 5, 6, 7 so you there is the warning STAY AWAY FROM THIS. DEATH IS THERE AND TRAPPING IS THERE AND IT WILL TAKE YOUR LIFE. WE HAVE TO CHOOSE IF WE ARE GOING TO WALK THIS PATH OF IMPURITY OR THIS PATH OF PURITY. ALL OF US HAVE DEALT WITH THIS IN OUR LIVES MAYBE IN MORE WAYS THAN WE CARE TO ADMIT. We just can’t sweep everything under the carpet and go on doing life. We have to deal with it.

He started off the sermon by reading three chapters from Proverbs. Here are the verses:

Proverbs 5:1-23

English Standard Version (ESV)

Proverbs 5

Warning Against Adultery

1 My son, be attentive to my wisdom;
incline your ear to my understanding,
2that you may keep discretion,
and your lips may guard knowledge.
3For the lips of a forbidden[a] woman drip honey,
and her speech[b] is smoother than oil,
4but in the end she is bitter as wormwood,
sharp as a two-edged sword.
5Her feet go down to death;
her steps follow the path to[c] Sheol;
6she does not ponder the path of life;
her ways wander, and she does not know it. 7And now, O sons, listen to me,
and do not depart from the words of my mouth.
8Keep your way far from her,
and do not go near the door of her house,
9lest you give your honor to others
and your years to the merciless,
10lest strangers take their fill of your strength,
and your labors go to the house of a foreigner,
11and at the end of your life you groan,
when your flesh and body are consumed,
12and you say, “How I hated discipline,
and my heart despised reproof!
13I did not listen to the voice of my teachers
or incline my ear to my instructors.
14 I am at the brink of utter ruin
in the assembled congregation.”

15Drink water from your own cistern,
flowing water from your own well.
16Should your springs be scattered abroad,
streams of water in the streets?
17 Let them be for yourself alone,
and not for strangers with you.
18Let your fountain be blessed,
and rejoice in the wife of your youth,

19a lovely deer, a graceful doe.
Let her breasts fill you at all times with delight;
be intoxicated[d] always in her love.
20Why should you be intoxicated, my son, with a forbidden woman
and embrace the bosom of an adulteress?[e]
21For a man’s ways are before the eyes of the LORD,
and he ponders[f] all his paths.
22The iniquities of the wicked ensnare him,
and he is held fast in the cords of his sin.
23 He dies for lack of discipline,
and because of his great folly he is led astray.

Proverbs 6:20-35

English Standard Version (ESV)

Warnings Against Adultery

20 My son, keep your father’s commandment,
and forsake not your mother’s teaching.
21 Bind them on your heart always;
tie them around your neck.
22 When you walk, they[a] will lead you;
when you lie down, they will watch over you;
and when you awake, they will talk with you.
23For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching a light,
and the reproofs of discipline are the way of life,
24to preserve you from the evil woman,[b]
from the smooth tongue of the adulteress.[c]
25 Do not desire her beauty in your heart,
and do not let her capture you with her eyelashes;
26for the price of a prostitute is only a loaf of bread,[d]
but a married woman[e] hunts down a precious life.
27Can a man carry fire next to his chest
and his clothes not be burned?
28Or can one walk on hot coals
and his feet not be scorched?
29So is he who goes in to his neighbor’s wife;
none who touches her will go unpunished.
30People do not despise a thief if he steals
to satisfy his appetite when he is hungry,
31but if he is caught, he will pay sevenfold;
he will give all the goods of his house.
32He who commits adultery lacks sense;
he who does it destroys himself.
33He will get wounds and dishonor,
and his disgrace will not be wiped away.
34For jealousy makes a man furious,
and he will not spare when he takes revenge.
35He will accept no compensation;
he will refuse though you multiply gifts.

Proverbs 7:6-27

English Standard Version (ESV)

 6For at the window of my house
I have looked out through my lattice,
7and I have seen among the simple,
I have perceived among the youths,
a young man lacking sense,
8passing along the street near her corner,
taking the road to her house
9in the twilight, in the evening,
at the time of night and darkness.

10And behold, the woman meets him,
dressed as a prostitute, wily of heart.[a]
11She is loud and wayward;
her feet do not stay at home;
12now in the street, now in the market,
and at every corner she lies in wait.
13She seizes him and kisses him,
and with bold face she says to him,
14“I had to offer sacrifices,[b]
and today I have paid my vows;
15so now I have come out to meet you,
to seek you eagerly, and I have found you.
16I have spread my couch with coverings,
colored linens from Egyptian linen;
17I have perfumed my bed with myrrh,
aloes, and cinnamon.
18Come, let us take our fill of love till morning;
let us delight ourselves with love.
19For my husband is not at home;
he has gone on a long journey;
20he took a bag of money with him;
at full moon he will come home.”

21With much seductive speech she persuades him;
with her smooth talk she compels him.
22All at once he follows her,
as an ox goes to the slaughter,
or as a stag is caught fast[c]
23till an arrow pierces its liver;
as a bird rushes into a snare;
he does not know that it will cost him his life.

24And now, O sons, listen to me,
and be attentive to the words of my mouth.
25Let not your heart turn aside to her ways;
do not stray into her paths,
26for many a victim has she laid low,
and all her slain are a mighty throng.
27Her house is the way to Sheol,
going down to the chambers of death.

____________________________________

Pictured above is Gene with his son Nick. Does Gene want to follow what Proverbs says or not? If he doesn’t then will his son also fall down the same trap? It is a powerful question. That is why Solomon directed these warnings to his son!!!!

By Everette Hatcher III | Posted in Current Events | Tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

Christopher Hitchens’ debate with Douglas Wilson (Part 4)

December 27, 2011 – 6:48 am

Christopher Hitchens vs. Douglas Wilson Debate at Westminster Theological Seminary, Part 4 of 12

Douglas Wilson

I want to begin by thanking you for agreeing to—as the diplomats might put it—a “frank exchange of views.” And I certainly want to thank the folks at Christianity Today for hosting us.

P. G. Wodehouse once said that some minds are like soup in a poor restaurant—better left unstirred. I am afraid that I find myself sympathizing with him as I consider atheism. I had been minding my own business on this subject for a number of years when I saw Sam Harris’s book on the desk of a colleague, and that led to my book in response, not to mention a review of Richard Dawkins’s most recent book, and now a series of responses to your God Is Not Great, all culminating in this exchange. I am afraid that my problem is this: The more I stir the bowl, the more certain fumes, mystery meats, and questions keep floating to the surface. Here are a few of them.

Your first point was that the Christian faith cannot credit itself for all that “Love your neighbor” stuff, not to mention the Golden Rule, and the reason for this is that such moral precepts have been self-evident to everybody throughout history who wanted to have a stable society. You then move on to the second point, which contains the idea that the teachings of Christianity are “incredibly immoral.” In your book, you make the same point about other religions. Apparently, basic morality is not all that self-evident. So my first question is: Which way do you want to argue this? Do all human societies have a grasp of basic morality, which is the theme of your first point, or has religion poisoned

everything, which is the thesis of your book? The second thing to observe in this regard is that Christians actually do not claim that the gospel has made the world better by bringing us turbo-charged ethical information. There have been ethical advances that are due to the propagation of the faith, but that is not where the action is.

 

Christians believe—as C. S. Lewis argued in The Abolition of Man—that nonbelievers do understand the basics of morality. Paul the apostle refers to the Gentiles, who did not have the law but who nevertheless knew by nature some of the tenets of the law (Rom. 2:14). But the world is not made better because people can understand the ways in which they are being bad. It has to be made better by Good News—we must receive the gift of forgiveness and the resultant ability to live more in conformity to a standard we already knew (but were necessarily failing to meet). So the gospel does not consist of new and improved law. The gospel makes the world better through Good News, not through guilt trips or good advice.

 

In your second objection, you gaily dismiss the Old Testament, “which speaks hotly in recommending genocide, slavery, genital mutilation, and other horrors.” Setting aside for the moment whether your representation of the Old Testament is judicious or accurate, let me assume for the sake of discussion that you have accurately summarized the essence of Mosaic ethics here. You then go on to say that we who teach such stories to children have been “damned by history.” But why should this “damnation by history” matter to any of us reading Bible stories to kids, or, for that matter, to any of the people who did any of these atrocious things, on your principles? These people are all dead now, and we who read the stories are all going to be dead.

 

Why should any of us care about the effeminate judgments of history?

Should the propagators of these “horrors” have cared? There is no God, right? Because there is no God, this means that— you know—genocides just happen, like earthquakes and eclipses. It is all matter in motion, and these things happen.

 

If you are on the receiving end, there is only death, and if you are an agent delivering this genocide, the long-term result is brief victory and death at the end. So who cares? Picture an Israelite during the conquest of Canaan, doing every bad thing that you say was occurring back then. During one of his outrages, sword above his head, should he have stopped for a moment to reflect on the possibility that you might be right? “You know, in about three and a half millennia, the consensus among historians will be that I am being bad right now. But if there is no God, this disapproval will certainly not disturb my oblivion. On with the rapine and slaughter!” On your principles, why should he care?

 

In your third objection, you say that if “Christianity is to claim credit for the work of outstanding Christians or for the labors of famous charities, then it must in all honesty accept responsibility for the opposite.” In short, if we point to our saints, you are going to demand that we point also to our charlatans, persecutors, shysters, slave-traders, inquisitors, hucksters, televangelists, and so on. Now allow me the privilege of pointing out the structure of your argument here. If a professor takes credit for the student who mastered the material, aced his finals, and went on to a career that was a benefit to himself and the university he graduated from, the professor must (fairness dictates) be upbraided for the dope-smoking slacker that he kicked out of class in the second week. They were both formally enrolled, is that not correct? They were both students, were they not?

 

What you are doing is saying that Christianity must be judged not only on the basis of those who believe the gospel in truth and live accordingly but also on the basis of those baptized Christians who cannot listen to the Sermon on the Mount without a horse laugh and a life to match. You are saying that those who excel in the course and those who flunk out of it are all the same. This seems to me to be a curious way of proceeding.

 

You conclude by objecting to the sovereignty of God, saying that the idea makes the whole world into a ghastly totalitarian state, where believers say that God (and who does He think He is?) runs everything. I would urge you to set aside for a moment the theology of the thing and try to summon up some gratitude for those who built our institutions of liberty. Many of them were actually inspired by the idea that since God is exhaustively sovereign, and because man is a sinner, it follows that all earthly power must be limited and bounded. The idea of checks and balances came from a worldview that you dismiss as inherently totalitarian. Why did those societies where this kind of theology predominated produce, as a direct result, our institutions of civil liberty?

 

One last question: In your concluding paragraph you make a great deal out of your individualism and your right to be left alone with the “most intimate details of [your] life and mind.” Given your atheism, what account are you able to give that would require us to respect the  individual?

 

How does this individualism of yours flow from the premises of atheism? Why should anyone in the outside world respect the details of your thought life any more than they respect the internal churnings of any other given chemical reaction? That’s all our thoughts are, isn’t that right? Or, if there is a distinction, could you show how the premises of your atheism might produce such a distinction?

Cordially,

Douglas Wilson

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Christopher Hitchens’ view on abortion may surprise you

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Christopher Hitchens discusses Ron Paul in 3-2-11 inteview

Max Brantley in the Arkansas Times Blog reports that Ron Paul is leading in Iowa. Maybe it is time to take a closer look at his views. In the above clip you will see Chistopher Hitchens discuss Ron Paul’s views. In the clip below you will find Ron Paul’s latest commercial. Below is a short […]

Evangelicals react to Christopher Hitchens’ death plus video clips of Hitchens debate (part 3)

DEBATE William Lane Craig vs Christopher Hitchens Does God Exist 07 Below are some reactions of evangelical leaders to the news of Christopher Hitchens’ death:   Christian leaders react to Hitchens’ death Posted on Dec 16, 2011 | by Michael Foust   DEBATE William Lane Craig vs Christopher Hitchens Does God Exist 08 Author and […]

Evangelicals react to Christopher Hitchens’ death plus video clips of Hitchens debate (part 2)

DEBATE William Lane Craig vs Christopher Hitchens Does God Exist 04 Below are some reactions of evangelical leaders to the news of Christopher Hitchens’ death: Christian leaders react to Hitchens’ death Posted on Dec 16, 2011 | by Michael Foust DEBATE William Lane Craig vs Christopher Hitchens Does God Exist 05 Author and speaker Christopher […]

Evangelicals react to Christopher Hitchens’ death plus video clips of Hitchens debate (part 1)

DEBATE William Lane Craig vs Christopher Hitchens Does God Exist 01 Below are some reactions of evangelical leaders to the news of Christopher Hitchens’ death: Christian leaders react to Hitchens’ death Posted on Dec 16, 2011 | by Michael Foust Author and speaker Christopher Hitchens, a leader of an aggressive form of atheism that eventually […]

By Everette Hatcher III | Posted in Atheists Confronted, Current Events | Comments (0)

Tom Brady has learned what does not bring satisfaction (part 4)

December 27, 2011 – 12:42 am

Tom Brady “More than this…”

Uploaded by on Jan 22, 2008

EWC sermon illustration showing a clip from the 2005 Tom Brady 60 minutes interview.

To Download this video copy the URL to www.vixy.net

___________________

Tom Brady has it all, but he does not have true satisfaction. He has put an enormous amount of effort into his work and has got several Super Bowls rings. He has become the most exact passer in the NFL and he did it by putting lots of time in practice and studying film. After he got on top of the world financially, he started to enjoy the pleasures that riches and fame brought him. However, this only led him to realize that there is something more out there. He was not satisfied at all.

This reminds me of the lyrics of a Coldplay song:

Oh…Time is so short and I’m sure
There must be something more…

In fact, I want to spend the rest of my time on this post talking about the similar desire that Coldplay has put forth.

Coldplay – 42 Live

Coldplay perform on the french television channel W9.

I wrote this article a couple of years ago:

The Spiritual Search for the Afterlife
Russ Breimeier rightly noted that it seems that Coldplay is “on the verge of identifying a great Truth” and their latest CD is very provocative. Many songs mention God and other Biblical themes such as dealing with death, and the afterlife and meaning in life and the shortness of life. The song “42” states,
Those who are dead are not dead
They’re just living my head
And since I fell for that spell
I am living there as well
Oh…Time is so short and I’m sure
There must be something more
This is the same journey that Solomon went on 3000 years ago in the Book of Ecclesiastes. The Christian Scholar Ravi Zacharias noted, “The key to understanding the Book of Ecclesiastes is the term UNDER THE SUN — What that literally means is you lock God out of a closed system and you are left with only this world of Time plus Chance plus matter.” Most people are not in the position of Solomon was in because he had a great deal of resources and could see if getting true lasting satisfaction was possible without God in the picture and Solomon went about this experiment.  He found out these hard cold facts.
Three things that do not bring lasting Satisfaction
Satisfaction does not come through (#1) learning more, or (#2)  putting more effort in your work or  (#3)seeking pleasure.
Read Solomon’s words for yourself.
Ecclesiastes 1:16- 2:11
16-17 I said to myself, “I know more and I’m wiser than anyone before me in Jerusalem. I’ve stockpiled wisdom and knowledge.” What I’ve finally concluded is that so-called wisdom and knowledge are mindless and witless—nothing but spitting into the wind.18 Much learning earns you much trouble.
The more you know, the more you hurt.
Chapter 2
1-3 I said to myself, “Let’s go for it—experiment with pleasure, have a good time!” But there was nothing to it, nothing but smoke.What do I think of the fun-filled life? Insane! Inane!
My verdict on the pursuit of happiness? Who needs it?
With the help of a bottle of wine
and all the wisdom I could muster,
I tried my level best
to penetrate the absurdity of life.
I wanted to get a handle on anything useful we mortals might do
during the years we spend on this earth.
 4-8 Oh, I did great things: built houses,
planted vineyards,
designed gardens and parks
and planted a variety of fruit trees in them,
made pools of water
to irrigate the groves of trees.
I bought slaves, male and female,
who had children, giving me even more slaves;
then I acquired large herds and flocks,
larger than any before me in Jerusalem.
I piled up silver and gold,
loot from kings and kingdoms.
I gathered a chorus of singers to entertain me with song,
and—most exquisite of all pleasures—
voluptuous maidens for my bed.
 9-10 Oh, how I prospered! I left all my predecessors in Jerusalem far behind, left them behind in the dust. What’s more, I kept a clear head through it all. Everything I wanted I took—I never said no to myself. I gave in to every impulse, held back nothing. I sucked the marrow of pleasure out of every task—my reward to myself for a hard day’s work!
 
 11 Then I took a good look at everything I’d done, looked at all the sweat and hard work. But when I looked, I saw nothing but smoke. Smoke and spitting into the wind. There was nothing to any of it. Nothing.
No band has worked harder than Coldplay (creating 4 of the greatest cds in pop history) and Chris Martin is a very educated man who has achieved the storybook life in many areas. Why has his writing turning more towards spiritual matters now? Could he be traveling down the same road that Solomon was going 3000 years ago?
________________

Tom Brady, the answer is Jesus Christ!

Uploaded by on Jan 28, 2008

Everyone needs Jesus, even Super Bowl champions. See the rest of Pastor Greg Laurie’s message “What Do You Live For?” at www.harvest.org.

By Everette Hatcher III | Posted in Current Events | Comments (0)

Tim Tebow: Bestselling religious author of 2011

December 26, 2011 – 2:20 pm

Tim Tebow seems to win at everything he tries.

The Good Book: Tim Tebow A No. 1 Author

Monday, December 26, 2011 12:45 pm
Written by: Ben Maller

Sports experts go crazy debating whether Tim Tebow can win NFL games, but there’s no question he can win over readers.

Tebow’s Christian life story, “Through My Eyes,” was the No. 1 new release of 2011 for HarperOne, a leading religious book publisher. Tebow’s book has sold more than 220,000 copies since its debut this summer, according to USA Today. That makes Tebow the top selling religious author in 2011.

Weekly book sales have skyrocketed since Tebow became the Broncos starting quarterback, going from less than 2,000 a week in October to more than 25,000 for the week ending Dec. 18.

“Through My Eyes” has 475,000 copies in print and Mark Tauber, senior VP and publisher at HarperOne, believes even more copies will be made and sold after the season.

In case you’re wondering how Tebow celebrated Christmas, he didn’t. Well, let him explain.

When asked last week if he’d wrapped up his Christmas shopping, Tebow tossed this curveball to the Denver Post:

“No, it’s so bad, I haven’t done any, but we’re not doing Christmas until after the season’s over for me and my family.”.

Despite a brutal loss to the Bills on Christmas Eve, Broncos fans are still hopeful the team will win the AFC West and keep Tebow’s Christmas plans on hold for weeks.

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By Everette Hatcher III | Posted in Current Events | Comments (0)

If elected what would Ron Paul do as President?

December 26, 2011 – 1:45 pm

It appears that Ron Paul may win in Iowa according to Mike Huckabee (Arkansas Times Blog). Ron Paul was right in my view when he noted that Obama is beating himself and ANY OF THE REPUBLICANS WOULD BEAT HIM IN NOVEMBER.

In the clip above you will see comments from Ron Paul from the latest debate and below you will read what Paul plans to do if elected President of the United States.

Ron Paul’s ‘Plan to Restore America’

Posted by Tad DeHaven

Presidential candidate Ron Paul has released a fiscal reform plan that would dramatically cut spending and rein in the size and scope of the federal government. My reaction to the proposal can be summed up in one word: hallelujah.

Republican policymakers – including the current GOP field of presidential candidates – talk a good game about reducing spending, but very few are willing to spell out exactly what they’d cut. As NRO’s Kevin Williamson puts it in the title of his write-up on the plan, “Ron Paul Dropping a Reality Bomb on the GOP Field.”

The following are some of the plan’s highlights:

  • Paul says his plan would cut spending by $1 trillion in the first year alone, and balance the budget in three years without increasing taxes.
  • Funding for the wars would end. That’s not isolationism – it’s a common sense position that also reflects popular opinion. In addition, foreign aid spending would be zeroed out.
  • On entitlements, younger people would be given the freedom to opt out of Social Security and Medicare. Spending would be frozen for Medicaid and other welfare programs and they would be converted to block-grant programs.

That’s an ambitious agenda to say the least, and one that the press is likely to dismiss as a pipe-dream. Then again, Paul has managed to single-handedly turn the Federal Reserve into a campaign issue, which nobody could have foreseen just several short years ago. In fact, several of Paul’s fellow candidates for the GOP nod have taken to echoing his anti-Federal Reserve sentiments. Hopefully, the other candidates will copy Paul again by getting specific on what they’d cut. If not, they should be prepared to explain to the electorate why taxpayers should keep funding the departments that Paul would ax.

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Christopher Hitchens debate with William Lane Craig (part 2)

December 26, 2011 – 12:31 pm

DEBATE William Lane Craig vs Christopher Hitchens Does God Exist 04

Below are some reactions of evangelical leaders to the news of Christopher Hitchens’ death:

Posted on Dec 16, 2011 | by Michael Foust

DEBATE William Lane Craig vs Christopher Hitchens Does God Exist 05

Author and speaker Christopher Hitchens, a leader of an aggressive form of atheism that eventually was dubbed “New Atheism,” died Thursday from pneumonia, a complication of his oesophageal cancer. He was 62.

Hitchens’ interests were varied and he wrote extensively about politics, but it was his outspoken, confrontational words on God’s existence that caught the attention of the Christian community. Hitchens and other members of the New Atheism movement — such as Richard Dawkins and Sam Harris — went beyond the centuries-old arguments against God and religion. Hitchens wasn’t simply arguing against God’s existence; he said that the world’s greatest problems were caused by religion. Society, he argued, should cleanse itself of all religious beliefs. Hitchens’ most famous book on the subject summed up his thoughts in the title: “God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything.”

He once said of families who raise their children to believe in God: “How can we ever know how many children had their psychological and physical lives irreparably maimed by the compulsory inculcation of faith?”

He wrote that religion was “violent, irrational, intolerant, allied to racism and tribalism and bigotry, invested in ignorance and hostile to free inquiry, contemptuous of women and coercive toward children.”

Hitchens, who had dual British and U.S. citizenship, regularly took part in debates over God’s existence. For example, in November 2010 he debated Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary professor William Dembski and in April 2009 he sparred with Christian apologist William Lane Craig.

After Hitchens’ death, Christian leaders were mostly gracious in their response….

Pastor and author Douglas Wilson, who participated in a series of written debates with Hitchens over God’s existence that were put in book form, wrote a tribute to Hitchens at ChristianityToday.com.

“Christopher knew that faithful Christians believe that it is appointed to man once to die, and after that the Judgment,” Wilson wrote. “He knew that we believe what Jesus taught about the reality of damnation. He also knew that we believe — for I told him — that in this life, the door of repentance is always open.”

But Hitchens tried to explain away any potential death-bed conversion, Wilson said.

“Christopher was worried about this, and was afraid of letting down the infidel team,” Wilson wrote. “In a number of interviews during the course of his cancer treatments, he discussed the prospect of a ‘death bed’ conversion, and it was clear that he was concerned about the prospect. But, he assured interviewers, if anything like that ever happened, we should all be certain that the cancer or the chemo or something had gotten to his brain.”

After Hitchens died, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary President R. Albert Mohler Jr. also commented, saying in a Tweet: “The death tonight of Christopher Hitchens is an excruciating reminder of the consequences of unbelief. We can only pray others will believe.” Mohler added, “The point about Christopher Hitchens is not that he died of unbelief, but that his unbelief is all that matters now. Unspeakably sad.”

DEBATE William Lane Craig vs Christopher Hitchens Does God Exist 06

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By Everette Hatcher III | Posted in Current Events | Comments (0)

Comments on Christopher Hitchens and William Lane Craig debate

December 26, 2011 – 12:26 pm

Here are some comments on the Hitchens and Craig debate I got from the Stand to Reason Blog:

April 06, 2009

Hitchens Made Two Major Admissions – No Three

There were two things Christopher Hitchens said in the debate Saturday night at Biola. 

First, he admitted at one point that he’d be very disappointed if God does exist because he feels his freedom would be impinged upon.  Hitchens stated quite clearly that freedom is his major concern about religion – the behavioral restrictions it would impose if God exists and also the earthly power religions have exercised in various forms, some leading to tyranny.  Hitchens has a true dedication to freedom in all its forms and has engaged in efforts extend freedom in the world, and he should be given credit for that.  And he has a true hatred, I think comes across, for religious tyranny.  But he also believes religion in any form exercises a personal tyranny, at least as he sees it.  His personal sovereignty, I believe, is what he would be most disappointed about giving up if God exists.

The second major admission is that he doesn’t have an explanation for the real moral values he believes exist.  One of the major problems of his book is that he continually calls religion evil and believes that that is a real, non-material value that he can judge others by.  He’s not a moral relativist.  He believes things are truly good and evil.  But in a materialist explanation of the world, which he believes, these kinds of non-physical values are aliens.  Hitchens has never offered an explanation.  Dr. Craig questioned him on this point during the cross-examination and Hitchens said that, if pressed, he’d offer an evolutionary explanation for morality but that he didn’t want to be reductionistic.  He will employ an evolutionary story if necessary, but he realizes that that makes moral values unreal, non-objective, useful fictions really, and that is not the kind of moral value he believes in.  He’s got something in his worldview that doesn’t fit and he admitted he doesn’t know how it got there.

I just thought of a third major admission Hitchens made by omission.  He never addressed the cosmological argument Craig offered.  He took some jabs at the other arguments Craig gave and he tried to make hay of the false cosmology religion has held in the past, but he ignored the cosmological argument altogether, didn’t show how any of the premises were wrong, or offer an alternate explanation, which I take to mean he doesn’t have a response.  It’s one of the strongest objections to a materialist worldview.

Posted by Melinda on April 06, 2009 at 08:24 AM in AA:Melinda, Ethics, Philosophy | Permalink

Comments

So from his point of view, who gets to decide what things are truly evil and truly good?

Posted by: Jeremy Melberg | April 06, 2009 at 08:42 AM

does anyone have a link to the debate? I can’t find it anywhere.

Posted by: Chris Scott | April 06, 2009 at 09:00 AM

I don’t think you really have to be able to explain a thing exhaustively to believe it. Before Newton people knew that if you jumped off a cliff you’d fall, and you might die. They didn’t understand gravitation, but that’s OK. It’s still a fact.

That’s kind of how I view morality. It’s a complex topic. It’s like numbers and logic in some ways. It seems to simply be in the nature of things. People write whole books on the topic and it’s hard to figure out who’s right. For example there’s a book with Jean Pierre-Changeux and Alain Connes on the nature of mind, matter, and mathematics. Changeux, the neurobiologist, believes numbers are nothing but projections of the human mind, whereas Connes, the mathematician, sees them as existing independently of minds. It’s a difficult question, but regardless I’m still going to use math to balance my checkbook.

The Christian sees that this is a difficult problem to resolve, so he sees an opportunity. Since we don’t have answers (right now) this is a perfect place to rush in and insert God as the explanation, since God explains everything. Well, yeah, he does. Is that really helpful?

I like to call radio shows sometimes. I’ve spoken with Greg a couple of times. I speak with a guy named Bob Dutko in Detroit. He claims that Christianity is backed up by “science, logic, and intellectual reasoning.” He’s a young earth creationist. One time I spoke with him about how certain virus sequences common to humans and chimpanzees show that we share a common ancestor. He replies “I have no problem with God inserting certain genetic sequences between humans and animals. Similar design, similar designer.”

I wanted to say (but didn’t get a chance) that of course you have no problem. You have no problem if the sequences are similar. God did it. You have no problem if the sequences are different. God did it that way. You have no problem with fossil evidence indicating intermediarries. God made a unique creature that way. You have no problem if there are no intermediarries. God didn’t make them. It doesn’t matter what is observed. God is consistent with all of it. He explains everything. He can explain lightning, meteorites, genetic similarities with humans and chimps. God explains morality, numbers, logic. He’s the universal all explaining entity. But with a track record so poor (what was long thought to only be explainable with God no longer is) I’m not just going to accept God as an explanation for morals. I’ll say for now I don’t know, and that’s OK.

Posted by: Jon | April 06, 2009 at 09:28 AM

Like all atheists who are smart enough to see the uselessness of moral relativism, Hitchens still must assume contradictions are reasonable to live with. How that is more noble than true relativism, i’m not sure. I guess my question to him would be…”why should I listen to anything you have to say?” I have an explanation for morality and it is backed up by what is observable. You sir…have have nothing more than your preference that you not be ultimately accountable. Any thinking person needs more than that, sorry.

Posted by: Frank Cory | April 06, 2009 at 09:45 AM

Why is it that many atheists and agnostics think Christians are arguing that if one cannot explain morality, then they cannot believe in a set of morals and live by them?

Posted by: Jesse | April 06, 2009 at 09:54 AM

If I was Craig, I might’ve asked Hitchens what it is he feels he has the freedom to do now that he would not be able to do if God exists. After all, Hitchens frequently makes the challenge that there is no moral a Christian can hold that an atheist couldn’t also hold.

Jon, you make “God” seems like an arbitrary explanation for anything we don’t understand, but I don’t think “God” is an arbitrary explanation for morals. It seems to me that morals MUST have their origin in a transcendent personal being who has authority over us.

Jesse, I’ve decided that in any debate where the moral argument for God comes up, it’s almost guaranteed that the atheist will not understand the argument or will misconstrue it somehow. And it doesn’t matter how many times they are corrected.

Posted by: Sam | April 06, 2009 at 10:31 AM

“Why is it that many atheists and agnostics think Christians are arguing that if one cannot explain morality, then they cannot believe in a set of morals and live by them?”

Jesse: Well put. I might take it a step further. As a Christian, I am inclined to believe that sane atheists must believe in a set of morals and (try to) live by them, even though they cannot explain their existence. The problem for them is in explaining it. And even atheists should admit that an objective universal morality, to the extent that it exists, is immaterial.

Posted by: Naturallawyer | April 06, 2009 at 10:33 AM

“It seems to me that morals MUST have their origin in a transcendent personal being who has authority over us.”
Exactly. A personal thing that is must be the source of these things we hold as Good. Abstract things do not exist of themselves. A number 12 doesnt actually exist even if there are 12 actual objects. Likewise, “good”, of itself, does not exist outside of a personal thing.

Posted by: Drew Carey Von Price Is | April 06, 2009 at 10:38 AM

 

By Everette Hatcher III | Posted in Current Events | Comments (0)