Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand and John Piper

I've known about the book Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand for a long time. I finally bought a copy and started reading it. I can't put it down. I'm only a little over half way though it's more than 1000 pages. I've also watched Part 1 of the recent movie adaptation of the book.

Atlas Shrugged was written in 1957, but has gained a new popularity in the past few years.

Ayn Rand was an atheist/philosopher/novelist. She explained that she wrote the book for herself, not her readers. It's her world as she sees it and how she wants it to be. To Rand, those that buy and read it are "voyeurs".

I found that I was drawn to much of her philosophy of "Objectivism".

Rand defined Objectivism as "a philosophy for living on earth," grounded in reality, and aimed at defining man's nature and the nature of the world in which he lives."

An acknowledgement of God or a higher power is left out of Rand's philosophy. This can be seen in a letter she wrote to Sylvia Austin in 1946 about Christianity where she refers to Jesus as "one of the first great teachers". You can read the full letter here.

I found a critique of Ayn Rand written in 1979 by John Piper that I believe would be helpful to a Christian reading her books. Piper had mixed emotions about Rand's philosophy.

He even sent his critique to her before she died in 1982. I hope she read it.

You can read Piper's full critique here.

Rob Bell Leaving Mars Hill

Controversial pastor Rob Bell is leaving Mars Hills in Michigan, the church he founded. Bell has been teaching and preaching what many believe is a watered-down gospel.

Bell will be taking his message to a wider audience and surely the controversy surrounding him will only grow. Look for more books by Bell and against Bell on heaven and hell.

Read the story about this in the Blaze here.

Sign of the Times and Pat Robertson

A lot has been going on this week: Earthquake hits near DC; Glenn Beck rally in Jerusalem; Huge hurricane heading to the East coast. On top of that, the 700 Club is running a "Sign of the Times" series that was scheduled before all these events.

Read this article about it.
http://www.christianpost.com/news/virginia-earthquake-a-sign-of-the-end-times-public-looks-to-pat-robertson-54431/

Here is a link to the series with videos that can be viewed online.
http://www.cbn.com/700club/signsofthetimes/

This series is also being shown on the 700 Club the rest of this week.

Coincidence???

America's Last Call

I have been re-reading David's Wilkerson's 1998 book "America's Last Call". A free Internet copy has been posted.

http://worldchallenge.edgeboss.net/download/worldchallenge/books/americas_last_call.pdf

With the economic turmoil the world is in, it's worth reading and considering.

Prepare to Believe

Recently we visited the Creation Museum near Cincinnati, OH. The experience at the museum was eye opening. Basically, it was designed on the premise that the Bible can be trusted and the book of Genesis is the basic building block. That is, if one dismisses Genesis as not being literally true, the rest of the Bible, including the New Testament and the Gospel, are suspect.

The evidence, scientific and otherwise, is significant.

The theory of evolution is taken on as the main reason that trust in the Bible has weakened - especially in Christian Churches. The presentation given is no re-hash of the Scopes "monkey" trial. Solid scientific evidence is presented. Evidence that mostly is ignored in public schools.

Religious people, atheists and agnostics would find the Creation Museum enjoyable and challenging to their world view. But, as the website warns: "Prepare to Believe". Click here for more information.

http://creationmuseum.org/

Where is Our Reward?

We (me included) seem to have a human need to get recognition for the things we do. What we do in church is no exception.

I learned in politics that to build a campaign organization, heaping praise and creating titles is vital.

Charities also take advantage of this need to be recognized too. For example, we give to many charities. Most now will send a certificate of appreciation that can be framed and hung on the wall. I even suggested to my wife that she do this. :)

Don't get me wrong. I don't blame organizations for recognizing those who help.

Considering this myself, Mathew 6-1-4 and related scriptures came to mind.

1 “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
2 “So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.
3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. (NIV)

The next time I write (or not write) a check for an organization, as a professed believer, I need to consider Scripture. That applies to volunteering my time too.

For more information on this, check the following link out. It includes Bible verses similar to Mathew 6:1-4.

http://bible.cc/matthew/6-4.htm

My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge (Hosea 4:6 NIV)

Lately I have read several pleas for people to read the Bible. (see links below)

Hosea 4:6 and Psalm 1 come to mind. Our times demand a knowledge of the Bible.

http://peebles.wordpress.com/2007/09/18/my-people-perish-from-a-lack-of-knowledge/
http://mikethepastor.blogspot.com/2011/06/how-to-read-bible.html

Following is a good link to share that gives one the only answer.

http://peacewithgod.jesus.net/?/2/that-he-gave-his-only-son.html

Are Bible Commentaries a Crutch?

Today a Facebook Friend posted this on his wall.

"Start with the Bible..."

‎"...never get to the commentaries"?

This got me thinking about my walk with Jesus and the Bible

Reading the Bible without "helps" is scary. It's hard to read the Bible. So many names, so many places, so many pages. So confusing. It takes time and thought and prayer to slog through. We have so much else to do that is more important and fun: like watching TV, blogging, reading books about the Bible, etc. You fill in the blanks.

Assuming that you are a Christian, what do you do with the Bible? If you do as I have done, you skim through the Bible and read a comment in a commentary if you have questions. You do this because you are in a hurry.

What's your favorite commentary? The MacAurthur Study Bible? Calvin's Commentaries? Patristic commentaries? Rationalistic commentaries? Midrashim commentaries? We have thousands of choices. Check them out here.

Usually your church will recommend an "approved" or "unapproved" list. For example, if you are a protestant, a commentary by Francis Ribera of Castile would not be approved. If you are a Catholic, Martin Luther's Bible Commentary would be banned. If you are a member of a reformed church the Scofield Study Bible would be a no, no.

I have found that each commentary will have a slant towards the theology of the denomination.

Confused yet? But how do we find the truth?

Consider the Holy Spirit.

But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. John 16:13 (NIV)

Consider the Bereans.

As soon as it was night, the believers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea. On arriving there, they went to the Jewish synagogue. Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. Acts 17:10-11 (NIV)

But what or who is the ultimate truth?

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." John 14:6 (NIV)

Good reading, praying and searching. Scared?

Bashing Rick Warren

Today, a friend forwarded me the link to a story which called out Rick Warren of Saddleback Church as a "wolf in sheep’s clothing".

Read the article titled "Chrislam Starts To Spread In America" here.

I did some research and the Rick Warren controversy started in 2007 when he and other notables signed the document Loving God and Neighbor Together

"as a response to an October statement from 138 Muslim scholars and clerics calling for interfaith cooperation. Wheaton College president Duane Litfin and provost Stanton Jones were among the signatories, along with pastors Rick Warren and Bill Hybels, National Association of Evangelicals president Leith Anderson, Youth With a Mission chairman Lynn Green, Frontiers mission founder Greg Livingstone, theologians Miroslav Volf and John Stott, and Christianity Today Media Group editor-in-chief David" Neff."

Read the complete post in Christianity Today here.

I also found a very well crafted short video response to the signing of that document by John Piper on You Tube which is worth watching.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTY-9FY13kw

Praise God, help is on the way. Piper himself will be at Saddleback Church April 29 and Saturday, April 30 to speak at his "Desiring God 2011" conference. I am positive he will get his message of Biblical truth to Saddleback people.

http://saddleback.com/blogs/communityblog/desiring-god-conference/

I don't think Rick Warren has "horns", as some critics suggest, but I do agree with others that his message is sometimes too "seeker friendly". Nevertheless, his willingness to host a Piper conference is strong evidence that he wants his flock to dig deeper into scripture and through the help of the Holy Spirit, Saddleback seekers will be led into "all truth". (John 16:13)

It's good we have people like John Piper to keep us "simple folk" in line.

Note - I am appreciating John Piper more and more as he corrects error gently. I am trying to learn from his style. LOL.

(John Piper is the Pastor for Preaching at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Read more about him here.)

Good Friday

Have you ever had the experience of knowing about something before it happens? In some cases it is a good thing like a surprise birthday or anniversary party for a milestone that is reached and in other cases it can be not so good like news from a Doctor that a loved one does not have long to live. In both instances you know what the outcome is going to be. Well my wife is in a Bible Study called BSF (Bible Study Fellowship) and they are studding Isaiah. With Easter coming up this got us thinking. Jesus was a scholar of the Law and Prophets. This is evident even as a child in Luke 2:46-47, After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers.

With this knowledge he knew what the Prophet Isaiah had said.

I offered my back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard; I did not hide my face from mocking and spitting...” (Isaiah 50:6)

Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

Yet it was the LORD’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the LORD makes his life an offering for sin, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand. After he has suffered, he will see the light of life and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities. (Isaiah 53:4-6, 10-11)

Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors. (Isaiah 53:12)

So even as a child Jesus knew he was going to die for our sins. What a burden this must have been for Him to carry His entire life. So on this Good Friday let us take some time to reflect on the burden that Jesus had upon him and the burden of sin on our lives. Let us also look forward to what we have coming up this Easter. From the song Christ is Risen by Matt Maher:
O death, where is your sting
O hell, where is your victory
O church, come stand in the light
Our God is not dead
He’s alive! He’s alive!