Why is it that whenever something good happens, God gets credit. As if God only exists when good things happen. No one ever wants to hear about the bad things that happen in the presence of God. If you are a believer, then they are all events to cherish, good or bad.
I send my daughter to a private Christian school. It is the best education in the city, but I think about her attending often because it has an massive impact on our lives. But, not all of it may be beneficial.
Anyway, this happens all the time in church (that I haven't attended in over a year), but I wanted to bring this up here:
There was a lot of email and snail mail going across about how great it was when the school experienced a revival at chapel time during school. There was an inspirational story told by boy who gives God the credit for his making it through his trials. After the story was told and the music faded, an altar call was given and many children including my own were moved to walk up and confess their sins and renew the vows to God. Religion aside, I give credit to the event of inspiration. It is a credit to inspire the youth of today into action to make everyone's lives better.
But...
Why does it take an inspirational story for the Holy Spirit to manifest? Why can't an inspiration just be cherished and applauded? Why can't something good happen without Christians dragging in the Holy Spirit?
As for me, I'm undecided with the existence of God, and partly because those who confess Jesus as their lord and keeper of their soul cannot recognize their Holy Spirit. Well, to give them credit if there is a God, then I'd say maybe they are recognizing it 50% of the time. By their own admission they fear that they become a church that operates without correctly acknowledging the Holy Spirit...thinking the Holy Spirit is with them, but it is not. That is a fear told by many preachers I've heard sermons from, many times. I think the root is perhaps from the scriptures talking about people, like the Jews, who did not accept Jesus as the savior. Or those like the Pharisees, who Jesus condemned. Jesus himself says the even some of the elect will be deceived. Given this fear, it is enough to say Christians are not completely confident in their God radar. So, how can it be assumed that an event is of the Spirit, or an event is without?
Here's the problem I have with the existence of God: All these events that are reproducible. Every single event I hear about how God was so good is reproducible. They all can exist without God. You take a huge tragedy or calamity. When people band together it is inspirational. It is the stuff of legends and heroes. But, these things can happen without God. Every event in history is the result of man or nature. So, what is God, and what is circumstance??
That is the problem I have with Christians assuming things are through their filtered reality. It is both their strength and their undoing.
The bottom line is if it can be reproduced...if there is plausible explanation...the conclusion about the existence of God, in any situation, cannot be achieved. In fact, we are left with the fact that the event in question above was the result of heroism. I wonder if any revival would have happened if no story was told, and no music was played. What then? Can revival happen without all these man made things? I challenge any Christian to point out a case where people got together and said nothing and did nothing, but God came in and they had revival.
I send my daughter to a private Christian school. It is the best education in the city, but I think about her attending often because it has an massive impact on our lives. But, not all of it may be beneficial.
Anyway, this happens all the time in church (that I haven't attended in over a year), but I wanted to bring this up here:
There was a lot of email and snail mail going across about how great it was when the school experienced a revival at chapel time during school. There was an inspirational story told by boy who gives God the credit for his making it through his trials. After the story was told and the music faded, an altar call was given and many children including my own were moved to walk up and confess their sins and renew the vows to God. Religion aside, I give credit to the event of inspiration. It is a credit to inspire the youth of today into action to make everyone's lives better.
But...
Why does it take an inspirational story for the Holy Spirit to manifest? Why can't an inspiration just be cherished and applauded? Why can't something good happen without Christians dragging in the Holy Spirit?
As for me, I'm undecided with the existence of God, and partly because those who confess Jesus as their lord and keeper of their soul cannot recognize their Holy Spirit. Well, to give them credit if there is a God, then I'd say maybe they are recognizing it 50% of the time. By their own admission they fear that they become a church that operates without correctly acknowledging the Holy Spirit...thinking the Holy Spirit is with them, but it is not. That is a fear told by many preachers I've heard sermons from, many times. I think the root is perhaps from the scriptures talking about people, like the Jews, who did not accept Jesus as the savior. Or those like the Pharisees, who Jesus condemned. Jesus himself says the even some of the elect will be deceived. Given this fear, it is enough to say Christians are not completely confident in their God radar. So, how can it be assumed that an event is of the Spirit, or an event is without?
Here's the problem I have with the existence of God: All these events that are reproducible. Every single event I hear about how God was so good is reproducible. They all can exist without God. You take a huge tragedy or calamity. When people band together it is inspirational. It is the stuff of legends and heroes. But, these things can happen without God. Every event in history is the result of man or nature. So, what is God, and what is circumstance??
That is the problem I have with Christians assuming things are through their filtered reality. It is both their strength and their undoing.
The bottom line is if it can be reproduced...if there is plausible explanation...the conclusion about the existence of God, in any situation, cannot be achieved. In fact, we are left with the fact that the event in question above was the result of heroism. I wonder if any revival would have happened if no story was told, and no music was played. What then? Can revival happen without all these man made things? I challenge any Christian to point out a case where people got together and said nothing and did nothing, but God came in and they had revival.