Great Bible 

Target - Blockade

More thoughts on the Target blockade...
The Target store also provides employment to many Christians as well. I wonder if they get profit sharing? Would the drop in stocks because of the boycott impact any kind of Christmas Bonus(Holiday Bonus rather)? This is the time of year when those kinds of things are given out.

But most importantly I don't see anywhere in the Bible any indication that we are to react in this manner.

The church is only to preach the Gospel or the Ministry of Reconciliation. That's how God changes hearts, through the foolishness of preaching.

---

Hello Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I hope you don't mind me venting a little.

I think this tells us that no matter what, at the heart of it all. They wont "really" change unless we preach Christ. And we go out as Ambassadors for Christ with the message of Reconciliation. The change in people doesn't come before reconciliation, but after reconciling them to Christ. Notice it says in 2Cor 5 if they are "in Christ" they are a "new creation". "The old has gone, the new has come!"

So, we might be able to convince them for the next season to change their advertisements, but at the heart of the matter, they are still lost. We basically get to make life more comfortable for the people who claim to be Christians.

The kind of attitude in the business world (Target, Walmart etc.) doesn't bother me or surprise me anymore, and I'm sure it doesn't surprise God at all (He IS Sovereign). At least we would know where they stood if they didn't have "Merry Christmas" in their stores. I sometimes can't tell the difference between the marketing schemes in the business world and the marketing schemes in the "Church" business world. (Purpose Driven...., Prayer of Jabez, Message Translation, etc.) Let's make the world look more like Christians and then make the Church look a little more like the world. Then we will have a really hard time figuring out who the "real" Christians are.

(I've been listening to John MacArthur again... I'm sorry!)

Thanks for letting me vent.

Grace and peace,

Chris

2 Corinthians 5

¹⁶So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. ¹⁷Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! ¹⁸All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: ¹⁹that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. ²⁰We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. ²¹God made him who had no sin to be sin^[a] for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

---

The Message - Reply from Phil Johnson

Dear Allen,,

Many thanks for your message. You wrote:

> I'm curious to hear your thoughts on the Message Translation.

I hate it. It's unfortunate that anyone would take it as a serious translation. It's not even a good paraphrase. It twists the meaning of the text in many vital places. It's obvious that Eugene Peterson has a low view of the Scriptures.

-- Phil Johnson
The Spurgeon Archive
http://www.spurgeon.org
http://phillipjohnson.blogspot.com/

The Message Translation

Below is an Email to Phil Johnson (Grace Community Church).

http://www.spurgeon.org/images/pyromaniac/pj6.gif


Hello Phil!

I'm curious to hear your thoughts on the Message Translation.

Or as the White Horse Inn puts it the "Massage Translation".

What is your view on this? I don't like that it is called a translation. It seems to have taken the edges off of some significant words in the bible like in Romans 8: the word Predestination, and in Ephesians 1: Election is not to be found. And In Romans 1:17 you don't see that "The Just shall live by faith".

It just seems like these words that we are used to using are more precise. It is also hard to tell where actual translation has taken place whether word for word or thought for thought. And to distinguish where added thoughts and paraphrasing is taking place by the translator.

It is also interesting that it doesn't seem that Mr. Peterson had anyone or a group of people holding him accountable for keeping "The Message" translated accurately.

Thanks for your time.

Grace and Peace,

Chris

What Are The Essentials of Christianity???

What Are The Essentials?The Essentials of Christianity
Essential Christianity. We hear a lot of discussion about essentials and non-essentials, but what are the essentials of Christianity?When we talk about the essentials of Christianity we're referring to the basic elements that make up and characterize our faith, and which, of course, separate it from other beliefs. Let's survey these doctrines.First, we believe in the authority of Scripture, which is another way of saying that the Bible is God's inspired, infallible, and inerrant Word. It's the ultimate source for knowledge about God, as well as the definitive guide for our daily lives.Next we affirm the existence of a triune God or one God in three distinct persons - the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. This God is self-existent, eternal, unchanging, omnipotent, omnipresent, holy, righteous, and loving. God created the universe from nothing and He rules over His creation sovereignly including both human and angelic beings.We also hold that man is a physical and spiritual being who is created in God's image. But because of his sin or transgression, man has lost his fellowship with God. The extent of sin is so great that its effects continue to this very day in the form of cruelty, suffering, and death.By God's grace, Jesus Christ - Who is fully God and fully man - was sent to save us from our bondage to sin. We believe that Christ was born of a virgin, died for our sins, physically rose from the dead, and will one day return to judge the world and deliver His people. Faith in Christ is the only means by which mankind can escape eternal damnation and judgment.Finally, we recognize the church as God's ordained institution headed by Christ. The church is composed of all believers, and is organized for worship, for fellowship, for the administration of the sacraments, for spiritual growth and support, and for evangelizing the world.Much more can and will be said, but we hope this summary has encouraged you to explore the links on the right and continue studying the essentials.