Among Divisions

Posted: 4th September 2010 by theapostate in Modern World
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                I am of Paul; and I of Apollos

Being introduced to many people, very quickly, has given me some insight on different views – very different views. There are some people who tend to argue over every aspect of theology down to the point, and there are some people who could care less about what they believe so they just passively accept what is preached or taught. Both extremes are wrong. I do not think it is healthy, mentall or socially, to fight over everything. Think about it? How differing are your own views compared to your friends, your relatives, your pastors even? I am not promoting a “what is right for you is okay even if it’s not what is right for me” mentality but I am making the claim that we need to know what is worth the sake of argument and what can be settled as personal convictions.

Summarizing one of the main points in 1st Corinthians is Paul’s addressing of division that is unnecessary. What Paul is addressing in these verses keep repeating in my head…

“Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ. Can Christ be divided into pieces?Was I, Paul, crucified for you? Were any of you baptized in the name of Paul?” – 1 Corinthians 1:12-13

Paul’s remark of “was it Paul who died for you?” is what I appreciate out of that portion the most. He gets the point across in a way that hits home yet also retains a slightly sarcastic tone too. Paul did not die for the Corinthians nor did the leaders of their day. Calvinism and Arminianism are not theological beliefs that should divide Christians today either. It is good to know what you believe and why. It is good, in a sense, to come to a theological conclusion, but it is not good or biblical to divide oneself based on secondary differences. You’re a Calvinist? Great. You’re an Arminian? Great. You both hold the same doctrinal truth that Jesus alone can save, the belief in the Trinity, the inspiration of Scriptre and the remaining crucial beliefs. That is what matters. So love your brother’s and sister’s even if you don’t agree all the time.

We can nit pick for ever but what good will arise? The unsaved will see the division and not be positively influenced. There is a time and place to discuss theological differences for a time, but that time is not always. The focus we should have is through fellowship understand we do not agree fully but find common ground on our foundation Jesus Christ. As for me, I am not a Calvinist. I am not an Arminian. I am a follow of Jesus Christ, period.

The Dance

Posted: 2nd September 2010 by theapostate in Poetry
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Two identities on one floor,

The great dance within,

On one side stands Light,

On the other stands Sin.

For a time danced only one,

The toxic of the two,

Then the Light came in,

And made this life anew.

But oh, the terrific struggle,

An all consuming fire!

Should Sin overcome the Light forever,

Then God would be made a liar.

Sin shading darker the error of my ways,

Leading and cooing my soul, as the natural dancer.

Sin is weak, pathetic, self-empowered, and manipulative,

By the power of Light it is reduced to an ailing cancer.

Lo, the answer scrolled back and revealed,

There is but One hope for an eternal life.

The Light, He makes me whole,

He begins the healing, He begins the inner strife.

Light cuts between me and my dancer,

The song still playing as Light clasps me tight.

He whispers to me gently, “I love you“,

Then turns to Sin and bodly declares, “I have won this night!”

Filled with evil the first dancer seeks my destruction,

Sin seeks to cut me off from the Light.

To bring me back into the horrific corruption,

To dance with me once more and find victory in the fight.

In terror I cried out to the Light,

With compassion He smiled as we now danced chest to chest,

The comfort, the unfailing, the all fulfilling love,

My soul has now met my soul’s Singer, God’s best.

My eyes were then opened as I looked all around,

Sin had his sight set on many more prey,

Fear overwhelmed me as Sin danced with the others,

I had to do something but what could I say?

Knowing my thoughts the Light looked upon me,

He understood my intentions, my desiring heart.

A tear slipped down those glowing cheeks,

With sadness in His voice He explained He had done His part.

They rejected the Light, they rejected His ways,

The song almost ending would they remain forever blind?

Did they not get it, they were deceived, they were fooled,

Convinced in themselves that salvation they could find!

The song entered the last of its chorus,

What would happen next after my song?

This ballroom is all that I know,

Where else in this universe do I belong?

Then again with joy did the Light look in my eyes,

I knew right then that I would be by His side,

Forever and eternal, the Light overcame Sin,

God did not lose nor doth He lie.

Finally the note had rung its last,

Holding my hand the Light took me to His place,

There was music there, complimented with dancing,

Then I saw something special, I saw it in His face.

He reminded me of His love, of His unfailing grace,

He whispered His name that I so unworthily now know,

It did not matter now what journeys lay on,

Because I am convinced in my heart He is by me where I go.

My song had been accomplished, I was faithful in the dance.

I had my fears, my doubts, my pain,

But in the end what all I went through, both good and bad,

Were meant for my betterment and are now considered my gain.

Sin will keep dancing until the Light dances with he,

Then can Sin not stand it anymore,

Sin will pay for the actions he committed, his end is near,

The consequences repayed from the actions he bore.

So I will keep on dancing to the song that I hear,

The song it rings with all of God’s might,

I have found my song’s purpose, my dance’s cause,

I have found all I ever needed in the all-loving Light.

- C. T. Warren

Can We Know Anything?

Posted: 2nd September 2010 by theapostate in Apologetics
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A common question that appears in philosophical discussion is “Can we know anything at all?“. If you take the question at face value it may seem to have a decent view. Most certainly there are aspects in life by which we cannot explain. Tell me how is it that you can trust your memories? If you consider the objection carefully it is quite a challenge. What kind of a response would you offer if a co-worker asked you how do you know you can trust memories and that they are not collectively mixed with dreams or abstract thoughts you invoked? An argument once posed was something similar to this: “Well, I know I can trust my memories because when I park my car for the work day I can go back to it at the end of my shift and drive home.” This statement, along with many like it, are self-refuting. You cannot use a memory to prove all memories are trustworty. He recalled a time that he went to work and was able to locate his car in the same placement as when left. Did he ever go to work? Does he own a car?

The original question of “Can we know anything” is easily answered in my opinion. This question would fall under the guidelines of logic, thus under logical law. For this particular case the Law of Non-Contradiction, also known as the Either/Or scenario, would be used. To say “No, we cannot know anything“, is self-refuting. The proposition is that we can either know nothing or know something. By saying “No, we cannot know anything“, one has proclaimed that he knows an idea that reflects reality. If it is confusing, simply think about it. In other words he is saying “We cannot know anything but… “, attempting to allow one exception to the overarching absolute.

One of the highlights in Christianity is that it is the best worldview that accurately reflects reality. Christianity believes and promotes absolutes. Christianity, apart from other religions declares man’s essentially nature as being sinful. All other religions believe mankind is essentially good, some saying perfectable (Note: Islam believes in the original sin, but man still retains a tendecy of goodness rather than a directly sinful nature). Christianity offers reasons for everything, from the problem of pain, to the need of salvation. See past the false philosophies, see past the deceit that the world reeks of. Look ahead to the life eternal. Look ahead to the truth found in Scripture.

“See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.” – Colossians 2:8

Forgiving Wound

Posted: 31st August 2010 by theapostate in Poetry
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Your words they cut me like a jaggered razor,

You declare your never dying affection,

But the utterances you project,

Have left my soul in anguished perplexion.

Love is not love if it’s bound by a promise,

It cannot be a forced decision,

Trust me, understand how I am,

I use the most careful precision.

Have faith in me, have faith in yourself,

Believe me when I say that you taught me well.

The separation and conflict amongst us two,

It hurts, it destroys, it’s a window into Hell.

You who knew me best became my Judas Iscariot,

With words filled with malice a proclamation announced.

With a pervasive manner you cursed my being,

From love to hate your curse was pronounced.

I want no part in the life you demand,

To forgive is to let go, forget the wrongdoings,

Become unbitter and pursue the unfamiliar,

My endeavors are fulfilled and now time alone will show.

Your way is not the way.

Other options still exist.

I have grown and matured,

My will is made strong,

I know to persist.

The void you have cut out has wrecked my soul,

What can I do more to remove this heart ache?

Will God open up, will He hear me once more?

Will He bring great aid for my souls sake?

I need You God, I need Your mercies,

Abba, Daddy, heal the wounds that confound me.

My Judas had so much I am left tied in a knot,

The bindings so tight only You can set me free.

Pick me up, make me move on.

My head is pounding, a sure sign of the strumbling mind.

My heart’s been removed for now,

Apathy breathes in me with no desire to find.

Life is far from the end,

I will continue and I will prevail.

Tears will fall and nights will have sorrows,

With an unbeatable pursuit I shall avail.

I love you, I always will,

But for my sake I look ahead.

Never to forget you do I leave with scars,

Those wounds to remember the times that I bled.

Should you change and accept,

I will stand by you again.

We will pick up where we left,

A new start and alas we will begin.

- C. T. Warren

Outcry

Posted: 30th August 2010 by theapostate in Poetry
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Another day forgotten, another wound reopened,

The sun sets as dusk befalls the people,

Where will we go when the aching turns to numbness,

Where is my Healer, where is Thy steeple?

I scream out in unbearable agony,

But the silence, it mocks me.

I plead for a saving mercy, a powerful hand,

But Death overcomes me.

In utter despair do I carry on,

I flinch, I bleed, I cry out, I have no where to turn,

Into eternal darkness do I reach forth my hands,

But on the first Hell remains many soon to learn.

I blame them all, I blame you,

You who held the answer of Grace.

You stabbed me, you beat me,

You left me to kiss Death face-to-face.

You hate me, you hate them,

You shut your lips, you blew out your light.

Left us to suffer in vain and alone,

To continue a losing fight.

So now I am here left to cringe,

Congratulations to you select few,

Those who remained quiet and ashamed,

My fate was sealed from the start, so thanks be to you.

The sun may rise tomorrow,

But my breath found its last.

My time here was the best I know,

But my how time went fast!

My final remarks I leave for you,

To suffer much and drink Death’s cup,

Perhaps you were somehow misled,

I yearn for you to join me and sup.

- C. T. Warren

Eternity Starts Now

Posted: 26th August 2010 by theapostate in Modern World
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 ”Eternity is really long, especially near the end.”

                                                                     - Woody Allen

In most discussions considered “deep”, philosophical, or even just thoughts of the future, the subject of eternity arises. For myself the subject has been trolling my mind frequently, a good friend named Keith Tatum Reed passed away just over a month ago. Death is difficult to endure, the time leaving its wounds. Keith left behind memories and many laughs for quite a few people. He is missed and will not be forgotten but I firmly believe he would tell us to move on because we have a hope of seeing him one day in Heaven. That, is the hope I hold onto but not only because I will reuinite with brothers and sisters but because that is when all the pain of this world will make sense. We learn the lessons from those who die, so we can cherish the moments, learn from the mistakes and walk away treating each and every second with the utmost of gratitude.

I will do by best to not embellish this post in a morbid sense, however there are two more deaths I would like to discuss…

First off there is the death of another person who is close to home for me, my sister Jesse Aaron Warren. I never met Jesse because she would have been older than me by several years. Due to some mistakes made by arrogant doctors, my sister passed away October 31, 1989. Growing up I would see the only picture taken of Jesse and not comprehend why exactly she was not here with me. I remember a time period where nightly I would weep because I lived and she did not. Was it that God had no purpose for her? I believe He did and still does have a purpose for her. There are many ideas of what that purpose may be, but for the sake of momentums let us speculate. Quite possibly the death of my sister had an impact that would accomplish far more for the glory of God than a life time of pursuing holiness. Not to say any effort would have been fruitless however more could have been done by death. Another possibility is that her purpose in Heaven was more urgent than her duty here on Earth, again simply speculatory not saying I agree necessarily but possibilities others have suggested.

I know there are theories on sleeping or immediately in Heaven and opposing beliefs on whether in Heaven we have a purpose (i.e. something similar to a job) or do we worship the Almighty God nonstop. All I say is I cannot know, I do not know, but in the end I can say it will not matter. If I sleep until God’s calling up, I will not know the difference, at least not extremely. When I sleep here, it feels as if time flies and I awake minutes after falling asleep. If I worship nonstop in Heaven, that would be the highest honor. If I am to serve in work in Heaven, that too is the highest honor. Those small points about eternity have no significance in the end.

And now to focus in on the last death I want to write on. For nearly two years now I have been blogging on the Internet. I talk about Jesus Christ frequently but have never directly written on the whole point of His living and dying. See, apart from Christ there is no hope. There is no eternity. If matter is all we are then matter will one day cease (at least in the sense of energy, the Law of Thermodynamics states that we are losing usable energy). The single most amazing event in all of time though, is the death of Jesus Christ. It burdens me that my sin is what gave Him pain but my burdens are daily removed because of His astoudning love. My sin is not what held Him to that cross though, my sin did not require Him to die. He chose to stay on that cross, He chose out of unconditional and all-powerful love to die for the wretched sinner I am. He died for us all, not just myself nor you, all.

As much as I despise the “Sinner’s Prayer” I believe the prayer of repentance is the first prayer God honors (Note: if your confused on what I mean by “Sinner’s Prayer” it is the idea that all you have to do to get to Heaven is repeat a special prayer and your saved. The people who promote this, do not discipleship, do not follow up. They seek to gain numbers in hands raised rather than being honest on what genuine repentance is. A prayer is not what saves you. Honest prayer is how we communicate to God, Jesus Christ’s death is what saves. So know when I say I despise the “Sinner’s Prayer” it is that uniform prayer by which many are convinced they are saved out of a fear of Hell versus an outcry of repentance). When your sole being is convicted and you beg for the mercy, grace and forgiveness of God, that is when you have found salvation in Jesus Christ. It is His grace not our works. That statement though requires a “but” at the end it seems. It is His grace not our works but works should then follow revealing that salvation experience. For some reason Christians have convinced themselves that since grace abounds they are free to unrelentfully sin. That is not what Jesus taught, nor how any apostle lived. Paul addresses the issue of living in sin in Romans 6:1, “Shall we continue to sin that grace may abound? God forbid!“. The phrase “God forbid” is Paul’s way to communicate in the strongest manner possible a fervent rejection of the lifestyle ingulfed with sin.

Eternity does not start when we die. Eternity has started at your birth. Granted, you are not, nor will be eternal because you did not exist always but you will exist from here on out after physical death. One option is to do nothing more than remain the same and for that you will dwell in the Lake of Fire for eternity. Not because God enjoys knowing His creation is suffering but because He created you in His image, an image too precious and so glorious, that He cannot destroy it. The only alternative then is a state of quarantine. The other option is to live for Jesus Christ and out of that relationship comes Heaven. We are saved to be reconnected with God, not so we can benefit or escape Hell. My life has been given to the Living God. I have gone through trials, gone through times of doubt but God has always guided me to solutions and brought me out of the sorrow. I have a hope that there is more to all of this than flesh and blood and it is my hope, that if you have not, one day you will find this same hope.

Coexisting with Religious Pluralism

Posted: 15th August 2010 by theapostate in Culture
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“I am THE Way,THE Truth and THE Life.” 

                                                                      - Jesus Christ

There has been a new trend lately (at least I have just began to notice it), of a movement towards religious pluralism. Well, to be honest I am not sure if I can possible classify this as a movement due to the fact that the only new material coming to the scene is a series of bumper stickers. At first it began with a sticker that stated “COEXIST”, which in part I agree with coexistence to which I will address in a moment.

Understand that in Alaska trends usually follow the continental United States by a couple years, so what I see might be extremely popular depending on your geographical location or it may be obsolete. As I said it started with the original “COEXIST” sticker but lately I have seen two new stickers, “One Love” and “Believe”. Again, this may only be a new trend where I am from but I felt that I should make some comments about the idea of religious pluralism.

Generally speaking most religious pluralism promotion derives from New Age organizations. The concept is that no one religion can know total truth, therefore each religion contains small fragments of the overall truth. Often the idea is expressed through stories such as “The Blind Men and The Elephant” where each religion is represented by a blind man and truth is the elephant. Each blind man feels a part of the elephant (i.e. one touches the tusk, another touches the thick skinned areas) and after touching his section the blind man determines what the object is he touched. One says the object must be soft, another says it is smooth and hard, another speaks up to say it is thick and very large. Since not one man touches the entire elephant, his conclusion is partially correct.

Although most likely redudant I say this but the story in whole seems doomed to utterly collapse upon the assumptions it is founded on. First off, can the blind men not communicate what their section appears to be? Can the blind men not move or are they paralyzed as well? When blind people in real life examine what an object is they handle as much of the object as possible. An example would be the face, a blind man or woman would not touch just the cheek and know what that persons face would appear to be, they feel the chin, cheeks, eye brows, lips, etc. to formulate a correct depiction. The story is built on to many assumptions that just make no sense. Back to the overall idea of religious pluralism though and not just a story…

How would religious leaders such as Buddha, Muhammed and Jesus feel if they were told all religions are essentially the same? Sects of Buddhism are athesitic, so for starters they will reject any Deity. According to Muhammed Jesus is simply a prophet but Jesus calls Himself THE Truth THE Life and THE Way, not exactly a sentence an Old Testament prophet would say nor a proponent of religious pluralism. Other than the truth on Deity, the world’s religions are full of philosophies that contradict other worldviews, thus they take on different names, leaders and writings!

As I said above I agree, when defining terms, with coexisting with other religions because that is life! Being a Believer does not give me the license to kill the unsaved, it gives me the responsibility to preach the Gospel. I coexist by living peaceably when possible. I will hold my ground on Jesus Christ’s absolute truth but simultaneously I am not going to push my faith to the extent of becoming a pharisee or flat out jerk. I tolerate other religions. Odd enough the word tolerate has come to mean, incorrectly, accept, largely since the LGBTQ community has been pushing the two words as synonymous. In reality to tolerate infers a disagreement. So again, I coexist while tolerating but do not follow religious pluralism.

But now what? All that is left is what I already hinted at. Until every soul is won, the Gospel is to be preached, in love, meekness, but also in boldness. Being the light means shedding truth to a dark world. Following THE Light means modeling my own life after His.

Progressive Purity

Posted: 9th August 2010 by theapostate in Modern World
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  ”Create in me a clean heart,  O God;

                         and renew a rightspirit within me. Psalm 51:10″

Generally speaking when pastors preach on purity the first thought many have is the idea of sexual purity. Anytime someone commits a sexual act outside of marriage it is often said that they have lost their purity. Another common situation is a husband and wife are said to have given each other their purity on the marriage night. While studying the Scriptures I just cannot say that the Bible concludes purity as a virtue that is either gained or lost in a single instance.

For starters purity is treated as an object that once gone it is forever lost. I quite possibly may be wrong but it seems that purity is, like patience, a virtue that is progressive. We are told to seek purity, to chase after purity. The psalmist, David, cried out for God to create in him a pure heart. The modern idea of purity and what the Scriptures say just does not seem to correspond. Is the loss of a pure mind something to hard for God to restore? Is it possible for God to forgive a sinner for sexual immorality and likewise restore purity? Physically speaking the act is done, thus it would be irrational to say that an act can be done “for the first time“, twice. What I am addressing is the mind.

A few years ago three people I knew all committed immoral acts. Two were having homosexual relations and the other was involved with fornication. All three were condemned equally, as it should be. The church labels homosexuality as a “worse” sin far to often, merely fulfilling the world’s perception of an unequally judgmental congregation. Now, years later, the three have moved on since their sins were brought forth publicly. I do not see it unbiblical to say that if they individually sought repentance and turned to God that He would be faithful to forgive them and restore what was lost. If you disagree then let me ask how then could God restore anything? If I am dead in sin but God forgives me am I then left dead? No, I am made alive in His resurrection! Therefore if I am impure in every motivation, whether pornography, lust or physical relations, if I confess and repent God then too is faithful to forgive and restore.

To bring this to an end I have one more thought in regards to the idea that purity is forever lost at the moment of sexual relations. Jesus Christ taught heart motivations were just as equal as direct actions. If I lust after a woman I am condemned just the same as if I committed fornication or adultery with her. In order to stay consistent you would have to say that at the same time I lusted in my thoughts after a woman I lost my purity as well. If that if true, few is any men and few if any women truly are pure prior to sexual activity.

Purity, like other virtures is given because of God, not because of anything I have done nor can do. In one way it is like patience, it takes time to create. Having a pure heart and mind is not a split second choice followed by a lifetime of purity. It takes time, discipline, and a firm belief that God is on our side. Alone, no thought I produce can even remotely be pure. With God leading me, truly all things are possible.

The Wall That Stands

Posted: 15th July 2010 by theapostate in Modern World
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        “No civilization ever survived

  after its family life

                  deteriorated“. – John Stonestreet

There is no such thing as complacency in this life. There is progression and then there is degression. The world is in a constant struggle and battle for ideas, but in the end only one set of ideologies can be proven true. To say that none are true because there is no such thing as absolute truth is a self-refuting statement. By saying that remark you are indeed making an absolute claim that contradicts the context of the sentence. Is it that nothing is true but what you personally uttered is absolute? If that is what you implied then what you are trying to coninvce me of is that every other truth is relative except this one that is the only absolute standard for all other truths. Simply put, moral relativism is a self-refuting attempt at excusing sin and a poor attempt at that too.

     As previously mentioned we are in a battle of ideas. As the next generation is arising the battle wages on, but here in America there is a high cost at stake. The upcoming generation of Christians has no choice to sit back and be idle or the downward spiral the country finds itself in will only continue until its ultimate demise. How can I say this? Because when the family structure is perverted and the blessing of children made an inconvenient curse no civilization ever continues in success. The upcoming Christians have the battle ahead but what will we do? Do we hold the values and beliefs we proclaim to be true? Do we believe enough to endure the slander, endure the hate to make a worthy attempt at regaining what seems almost hopeless?

     Praying needs revival in the individual Christians life – at least I speak for myself in this area. Martin Luther, when leading the Reformation, chastised himself for not praying several hours a day. It’s pathetic to even admit I do not make it an hour in prayer. Fasting needs revival because when Christ sought to be closer to God He, like many prophets of Old, fasted.

     There is a wall that stands, a wall that could fall. On one side stands those who hold fast to the belief in the Living God, pushing to keep the wall up. On the other side stands those in the dark, tearing the wall to pieces in all areas (i.e. the family). Only one side will win the battle, only one side can claim victory. We have been placed here for purpose, placed here for a cause, and with that cause should we fight. Personally, I long for the day I have a family. I do not know what desires you have been placed with, but whatever they may be fight for them, take a stand for them because if you choose not to they may be lost.

     I am not one who sits on the side of the street declaring the end times are upon us. Some say they are, others disagree. Jesus did not care when we thought He would return. He wants us to be diligent until He returns and that is what I care for. For all I know the world is not going to end for another thousand years, but I do know if I sat idle and did nothing I would regret my choice immensely. There are values to stand up for and lives to be won over. There is a wall that stands on the ideas encompassing the world, are you building to keep it up or aiding in the destruction?

Science Or Religion?

Posted: 6th January 2010 by theapostate in Apologetics
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“Reason and faith are not enemies,

       rather one leads to the other.”

Personally I love to discuss worldviews among other people. Debate is fun as long as it remains best. The best quote I have ever heard in regards to debate is this: “As soon as emotions enter an argument, the debate is over. Logic and emotional reasoning differ greatly.” I would have to say I agree with that statement as well. Over this recent summer I participated protesting a proposition. Those in favor relied mostly on emotion to appeal. Why? Because they lacked logical reasoning to contend with those who opposed. 


A similar situation has happened now. A good friend has a father who is an evolutionist. He specifically does not hold to any particular evolutionary view (i.e. Darwinism, Neo-Darwinism, Punctuated Equilibrium), but simply says “I have my own.” Okay. So I engaged in conversation to help aid my friend and the her father would not hear. Not only did he not answer my arguments. but he got angry and kept repeating his former remarks. This is when I leave a conversation heavy hearted. I strongly dislike when talking ends with anger. Obviously it is bound to happen so I try to prepare myself – nonetheless it’s not pleasant.


If I had one point in this post it is this: Evolution can be categorically considered a religion just as my Christianity is. The debate is not set science against religion. The sad fact is that evolution is not a science itself, merely a theory. To be science it MUST be: 1. Observable (The Big Bang is not observable) 2. Repeatable (Same as before, we cannot repeat the Big Bang) 3. Logical (Life derived out of the nonliving is not logically based). Am I making the claim that Creationism is scientific fact? No, because I am aware I cannot. Now the results of Creationism, whether it be irreducible complexity or the DNA coding in our bodies, is science. I do believe Creationism is fact just as the evolutionist believes evolution is fact, I am just stating the obvious, that neither can be scientifically deemed fact.


It’s just another way to excuse atheism I suppose. By ruling out the need of God in a mathematic formula for the cosmos have we made another attempt to “kill” God.


2 Timothy 4:3-5
“For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; and they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables. But watch thou in all things.”