Lee Harmon's Blog, page 13
October 14, 2014
Matthew 25:33, Doing Good: The Meaning of Christianity, Part I of II
And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
//My latest book about Liberal Christianity (titled The River of Life) has opened up conversations with a couple people about whether Jesus really did want us to focus on making life better on earth. I think all Christians recognize that we are to do good, but still ima...
October 13, 2014
Book review: The Beckoning
by Michael Minot
★★★★
Well-written and touching, here’s another “atheist lawyer finds Jesus” story. Minot hooked me early in chapter one with this claim: “I was amazed to learn how the Scriptures read like a lengthy letter from the Creator to the objects of His love.” If Minot could impart this perspective to me, I would finally have what I’ve been searching for: a real reason why apologists should imagine that the God of the Bible is our creator.
The book didn’t quite take me there. In fact, bi...
October 11, 2014
Luke 17:34-35, The Fate of the Raptured
I tell you, on that night two people will be in one bed; one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding grain together; one will be taken and the other left.
//This is a popular verse among futurists who believe in the rapture. The Gospel of Matthew adds a third verse (sometimes appearing in Luke as well), telling how two people shall be in the field; one taken and the other left.
The idea, of course, is that one of the two is raptured, the other is not. But why do we think th...
October 10, 2014
Genesis 9:4, God Allows Eating Meat, Part II of II
But flesh with the life thereof, which is the blood thereof, shall ye not eat.
//Yesterday I quoted the point in scripture where God changed his mind and allowed us to eat meat. It occurs just after the flood, when God changes his rule to let us kill and eat animals. But [1] why did God change his mind, and [2] what stipulation did he put on lifting the restriction?
The key is knowing that in antiquity, life was understood to reside in the blood. Today’s verse answers the second question: the s...
October 9, 2014
Genesis 1:29, God Allows Eating Meat, Part I of II
And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.
//Today’s verse seems to be saying that God intended us to be vegetarian. Fruits and vegetables and herbs: these are our “meat.” The same is said in the next verse about animals: they are to eat green herbs for their meat.
Many bible scholars take these verses to mean exactly what they say, that t...
October 8, 2014
Book review: The Two Faces of Christianity
by Richard Markham Oxtoby
★★★★★
Great book, with a needed perspective! If you think you’ve seen Christianity from every angle, try this one. I encourage you to look at it anew from the perspective of a psychologist.
Oxtoby is a Christian. He holds a deep appreciation for the Christian church and believes it has the potential to make a very significant contribution to bringing about the coming of the Kingdom of God on earth. Nevertheless, his beliefs aren’t orthodox. His views will necessarily di...
October 7, 2014
Genesis 25:25, The Red and Hairy Edomites
And the first came out red, all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau.
//Genesis tells us that Jacob and Esau were twin brothers, but that Esau was the firstborn. He came out of the womb all red and hairy. Sounds like an ugly brute, and indeed, his mother Rebecca didn’t think much of him. She preferred his twin brother Jacob, who was “smooth-skinned.”
Jacob is known as the father of the nation of Israel. In fact, his name is later changed to Israel. Esau is known as the fath...
October 5, 2014
Genesis 2:7, Rain Brings Forth Life, Part II of II
And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.
//Yesterday, I quoted verses which indicated that when the earth was first created, no plant life could grow because it had not yet rained, and because there was still no man to till the ground. Nevermind the fact that the same verses indicate there was a mist covering the whole earth; it has to be rain, not mist. And there has to be a man to till the earth.
S...
October 4, 2014
Genesis 2:5-6, Rain Brings Forth Life, Part I of II
…before any plant of the field was in the earth and before any herb of the field had grown. For the LORD God had not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no man to till the ground; but a mist went up from the earth and watered the whole face of the ground.
//Understanding the Bible is harder than you think. We are 2-3000 years removed from the culture which generated these words. Take today’s verse as an example. Nothing could grow on the earth until God made rain. Have you ever wonde...
October 3, 2014
Chapter 1: Heaven and Hell
It may seem strange that I begin my book at the end. Isn’t the afterlife more of a destination than a starting point?
Well, I’m not really starting here. I’m dismissing the topic up front as being of little importance to Jesus. Let’s get it out of the way.
What I hope to uncover in these pages is the kernel; the real gist of the gospel; the core message that Jesus taught. I think this core should be the focus of our Christian doctrine. When we put Jesus back in his first-century Judaic setting,...
