1.       Mr. McSwain’s first point was that Christians should stop saying that the “The Bible is the inerrant, infallible Word of God,” because “the Bible is replete with errors.” This brings up two questions a) what is meant by inerrancy and infallibility? and b) does the Bible fit the qualifications set forth by a?
    a.       What is meant by inerrancy and infallibility?
        i.      There are so many different definitions regarding these two words so I will set out the most basic definition and the one I find most appropriate. “Christ held the Old Testament to be historically true, completely authoritative, and divinely inspired.”[1] I think it appropriate for our view of Scripture to require no more of it than does Christ’s own view. Therefore the doctrine of inerrancy and/or infallibility should be that which has the expectation of Scripture, that Scripture is historically true, completely authoritative and divinely inspired.

        ii.      What this does not necessitate is that Scripture be without scribal errors. One of McSwain’s points was that scripture is riddled with error. Here are some of the things he is referring to. You be the judge of whether or not these issues undermine the doctrine of inerrancy as we defined it in the point above.
              1.       David’s defeat of the Syrian commander Shobak is record in 2 places in scripture. The difference here is merely the misplacement of a decimal. Does that negate historical truth, complete authority and divine inspiration?
                    a.       In 2 Samuel 10:18 it says David slew seven hundred men of the chariotry
                    b.      In 1 Chronicles 19:18 it says David slew seven thousand chariots
              2.       The differences between the genealogies of Christ in Matthew 1 and Luke 3 are often cited as contradictions, because people appear in one but not the other. The differences are that Matthew’s genealogy is of Jesus’ earthly father Joseph, while Luke tells Mary’s genealogy. They should be different because they are genealogies of two different people.
              3.       For more discussion of scriptural discrepancies, see Gleason L. Archer’s article entitled “Alleged Errors and Discrepancies in the Original Manuscripts of the Bible,” which can be found in Norman Geisler’s Inerrancy.

    b.      Does the Bible fit the qualifications set forth by the definition of inerrancy give in A? You be the judge. There’s enough room for those that desire to believe and enough room for those that wish to doubt.

2.       Mr. McSwain dislikes the statement that “we just believe the Bible,” because he says “what you really believe is your interpretation of the Bible,” this leads to a bigger question. Can we know the author’s meaning of a text, without corrupting it by our own interpretive lens? If you say no, all literary material is subject to the reader’s lens of interpretation and the author’s meaning cannot be known apart from the reader’s interpretation, then a) McSwain’s argument is irrelevant because we will each interpret his words through our own lens, making it impossible for us to understand McSwain’s intended meaning and b) this makes any response I give to McSwain, meaningless because your lens of interpretation will deem the meaning of my words irrelevant. If you say yes, the author’s originally intended meaning can be grasped from the text apart from the corruption of human interpretation, then you can in all actuality believe the ‘actual’ Bible rather than just your interpretation of it, if you put the effort into finding the original author’s intended meaning.

3.       McSwain’s third point is that Christian’s should stop saying that Jesus claimed to be the exclusive means of salvation. His argument is based upon varied interpretations of John 14:6, which says “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” McSwain interprets this passage differently, but a plain reading of the text without hermeneutical acrobatics reads that Jesus is making an exclusivity claim.
    a.       Here are some other passage which seem to prescribe that there is a specific means of salvation
        i.      Romans 10:9 – “if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” – This is a cause and effect, which implies an either-or relationship. If you…salvation else (you don’t)…no salvation.
        ii.      John 3:16 – “whosoever believes in me shall not perish…” – Sounds like it’s an either-or, not a Jesus is the best way.
        iii.      John 3:36 – “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.”- Not sure how much clearer that either-or needs to be…
        iv.      1 John 5:12 – “Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.”- Are we seeing a pattern?
    b.      He may not like the plain reading but the ultimate question goes back to the answers to questions 1 and 2, if we believe the Bible is historically true, completely authoritative and divinely inspired (#1), and we believe that the author’s originally intended meaning is obtainable by the reader of the text (#2), then it’s our responsibility to take the text at face value, whether we like what that face value has to say or not.

4.       I don’t disagree with McSwain on his fourth point. Jesus makes it pretty clear that no one knows when He will return “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” – Mark 13:32 and Matthew 24:36, so pretending that we do is dishonest and pretentious as we’re claiming more knowledge then even the angels and the 2nd person of the Trinity.

5.       McSwain’s fifth comment against Christian claims that “Homosexuality is a chosen lifestyle and it is a sin against God,” is a sticky topic. Follow me because my answer is two-fold and may take a bit to sink in fully.
    a.       This goes back to the answers to questions 1 and 2, if we believe the Bible is historically true, completely authoritative and divinely inspired (#1), and we believe that the author’s originally intended meaning is obtainable by the reader of the text (#2), then it’s our responsibility to take the text at face value, whether we like what that face value has to say or not (Genesis 19, Leviticus 18:22, Leviticus 20:13, 1 Corinthians 6:9–10, Romans 1:26–28).

    b.      Typically Christians choose homosexuality and a few other “obvious” sins upon which to harp, and see these as great mounts for their soap boxes. The reality is “all have sinned and fallen short off the glory of God,” “no man is righteous, no not one” and all are slaves to sin until Christ redeems them with his righteousness, so why as Christians do we look at those who are still slaves to sin and expect them to behave righteously, when we ourselves don’t always behave righteously, even though we’ve already been redeemed by the blood of Christ? “First take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye” (Matthew 7:5). Sin is sin, before God. If the worst sin you’ve ever committed is lying, cheating on a test or speeding, then wonderful, but those sins earn you the same exact eternal result as homosexuality (or fill in the blank w any other soap box sin) does, if you’re not redeemed by the blood of Christ. SO rather than harping on whether or not homosexuality is a choice, we should be showing those who identify with the homosexual lifestyle, Christ’s love, in the same way we would anyone else. Lead them to Christ and let Christ work out the details of their sin with them. It’s amazing how quickly God can clean up a surrendered life, without the assistance of us pesky picketers!

6.       As for McSwain’s 6th comment about the age of the earth. I personally believe that there is a Biblical and scientific case for humanity’s existence being less than 10,000 year and the result of 1 set of human parents (visit: Creation Ministries International and The Institute for Creation Research, if you’d like to explore these topics more). Nevertheless, the issue is over whether one set of philosophical beliefs should be allowed to be taught in schools while the other is banned. Humanistic Naturalism is the underlying philosophical worldview behind the theory of evolution. It is the belief that all can be known by natural means and it precludes the option of anything supernatural. In other words, by definition there can be no God, so no scientific explanation that results in, or points to a divine being can be accepted, because that belief falls outside the pre-defined borders. This is a philosophical worldview, Christianity is a philosophical worldview. They are both philosophical worldviews and they are in contradiction with one another AND neither one can be scientifically proven. Hang on, let that one sink it. Neither humanistic naturalism nor Christian creationism can be scientifically proven. Why? Because no one was there at the beginning. We can study all that is currently in existence and then hypothesize as to which theory is the best explanation of reality, but that is all that science can bring to the table, details upon which scientists can hypothesize. So, while I am a young-earth creationist, many of my colleagues find the arguments for an old earth more convincing, both are valid ideas upon which to have a discussion. As for whether or not creationism should be allowed to be taught in schools? My answer is, either remove the teaching of the philosophical worldview of humanistic naturalism from the schools, or allow it to be taught side by side with the philosophical worldview of creationism. What’s the harm in letting the students have some healthy debate?



[1] John W. Wenham, “Christ’s View of Scripture,” Inerrancy, (Grand Rapids, Zondervan Publishing House: 1980), 6.

Luke 10:25-37 tells the parable of the Good Samaritan. For those not familiar with this parable, a Samaritan (a man from a community at complete and utter odds with Israel) encounters a man upon a road who has been beaten up and left to die. The Samaritan takes the man to an inn, pays for his lodging until he recovers and also all his medical expenses. Here we have a man who has no reason to get involved, who very easily could have walked right by saying “it’s not my place,” because of the bad blood between Israel and Samaria, but instead he physically helps the man and then financially continues to do so until the man can take care of himself again. What would have happened to the beaten man had the Samaritan decided “it wasn’t his place?”

John 8:2-11 tells the story of a woman caught in adultery. The religious leaders of the day brought her to Jesus in order to trick him into saying something they could use to arrest him. Jesus had no authority. He was a carpenter not a religious leader or political figure, it literally wasn’t his place to get involved, yet check out what he says “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” Can you believe that? Jesus doesn’t walk away, he doesn’t say “well ya’ll are the authority so it’s up to you to handle this,” he doesn’t say “it’s not my place.” NO, he actually baits the religious leaders! He stands up, looks them square in the eye, and basically accuses them all of being as guilty as she is! Woow! Guess what happened? Everyone walked away and the woman was freed. What would have happened if Jesus had decided it wasn’t his place? She’d have been stoned to death!

Now look at yourself in the mirror. You’re a sinner, just as I am. We have broken God’s holy and righteous commands and as a result you and I both deserve death. We deserve everlasting separation and punishment from God, but what did God do? He decided that He would send His son to die in our place and take our punishment for us. God lowered himself from His seat in heaven to take on our punishment when it truly “wasn’t his place” to suffer and die. But God loves us so much that He wasn’t willing to say “it’s not my place,” rather He said “I’ll take your place,” and because of that we can have an everlasting joyous relationship with the Creator of all. We can have an eternity of peace and joy with the one who created us, and be free of all our guilt and pain. Aren’t you glad Jesus didn’t say “it wasn’t my place?” I sure am! So next time your hesitant to get involved in a potentially uncomfortable situation remember what Christ did, because your actions could have eternal significance in lives of those you could help!

This is an excellent question and one with which many struggle. We wonder how God can forgive such heinous crimes.  Thankfully, that is the very message of the Gospel. Romans 3:23 tells us “all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God,” while Romans 3:10 tells us that “there is no one righteous, not even one.” If we look back over the course of Scripture we see that this all began with the fall. Adam and Eve were sentenced to death, no not immediately, but that was the end result, because they defied God and chose their own path. With every new generation, mankind has made the same choice. We are separated from God not as a result of our individual actions, but as a result of our heart. We are separated from God because we have sin in our heart, which pours out into our lives via our actions. Our actions are evidence of our heart. Proverbs 4:23 tells us to “guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.” “The things that come out of the mouth come from the heart,” says Matthew 15:18. We have a heart issue and that heart issue is that we’d rather do things our way than God's. 

Unlike mankind, God doesn’t rank or rate sins. He is a holy and just God who cannot be in the presence of ANY sin. That mean, he can have nothing to do with ANYONE who commits even the littlest of sins, say a white lie. Why? Because, it offends his very nature, it is counter to who he is by definition. Some might find this difficult to wrap their heads around because they draw the analogy that parents associate with their children even when their children defy them. This is true, but that analogy breaks down because in that comparison, the parents too are sinners who have defied someone at some point in their life. They are not righteous and without sin. God is completely righteous and without sin, AT ALL, therefore he cannot be around it and accept it without changing his very nature and characteristics. That’s not something we want either, for if God could change his nature in order that he might be able to be around sinners, than God could change other parts of his nature, say the part that is always faithful, always true, all loving, and where would we be if he started changing those parts? The immutability, or unchangability, of God’s nature is one of the things that makes him safe, reliable and trustworthy.

So where does that leave us? It leaves us in desperation and completely separated from God. It leaves every single one of us completely and utterly lost, not just the rapists, murderers or child molesters, EVERY SINGLE ONE OF US! Without the cross, that is. Good news! Christ’s payment on the cross satisfied our debt to God! It paid the penalty for our sin. He took our punishment upon himself in order that we might be free from the guilt and punishment of our defiance against God. Romans 6:23 tells us “for the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” It does not stipulate which types of sinners end up with death and which ones receive the gift of life based off of the sins committed. It states the wages of sin, ALL sin, is death, but the gift of God is eternal life. John 3:16 tells us, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that WHOEVER believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Whoever! That means ANY person, REGARDLESS of their past, if they confess Jesus Christ as Lord and surrender their life to his lordship and service, they WILL receive eternal life. How awesome is that!

We might find some people undeserving of Christ, but that is not up to us. We are not judge, we are simply the messengers. Jesus commanded the apostles to “go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” That’s all we are commanded to do. Share the message of Christ with everyone who will listen and leave the convicting and converting to the Holy Spirit. God will handle the details and he will decide who is worthy of eternal life based upon who surrenders their life to Christ Jesus our Lord. If God judged sins like people do, we’d all be in a lot of trouble. So let’s be grateful our God is more merciful than we are, and share that message of mercy with all who will listen!

For another article on how God has used some seriously broken people, check out I’m Jumping!


For more on what Christ has done for us, check out What Does This Mean For Me?

A few months ago I stepped out boldly into an area where I've never felt confident and reached out to a person with whom I've had a broken relationship for quite some time now. In the midst of this sermon series I finally got a reply, just as we were challenged to act boldly. Nervously I stepped out and responded boldly trusting that only by the power of God could this work, and behaved as though I believed it would, even though I wasn't entirely certain this would go any better than precious attempts. Yet God blessed my willingness to test Him and my boldness. Today I received an email which brought me to tears instantly. It was a forwarded message so it was nothing personal, but the reality of Gods hand in this person's life rung true so evidently that I was immediately humbled and all I could say was thank you God, oh thank you! as tears streamed down my face! We have an almighty God who really does do the impossible! Trust in our almighty God to work the impossible in your life! I hesitantly did and He has given me soooo much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving! Plus He's given me the confidence to know that He really is an impossibly powerful God who cares as much for the desires of my heart as I do! Trust our impossibly powerful Lord, Jesus Christ, and I PROMISE you, you'll NEVER be sorry you did!

I recently got a taste of this very lesson. As I have said, I always saw vulnerability as a terrible thing. It literally left a bad taste in my mouth, but a few years ago God started a work in me, in relation to vulnerability that has led to God’s power being portrayed in a mighty way and a truly perfect plan. My first taste of attempting to be vulnerable did not go quite like I had hoped. When my marriage fell apart, I tried being vulnerable with my spouse in an effort to resolve thing. While it did not change our relationship, it did change me. I learned, for the first time, that I did not have to hide the way I felt, I did not have to be another person and that I did not want to be. I learned that I like myself and that no matter what others do with my vulnerability, my worth and value will always remain intact, because my worth and value stem not from the opinions of others, rather they extend from being created in the image of the Almighty God (Gen 1:27).

This started a series of changes. It changed the way I looked at myself and others. It changed the way I interacted with God and others. It changed the way I viewed life in general and my purpose in particular. My choice to be vulnerable changed me and recreated me, because when I chose to be vulnerable before God and others, I chose to trust God. I chose to allow Him to work His power in my life.

Fast forward a few years and I’m finally seeing the ripple effect. What God started a few years ago, He is now making perfect. Because I allowed Him to begin to change me then, things I never imagined possible are coming to fruition. I did not have the easiest of childhoods. Quite young my family splintered in many directions which have left us limping along through our relationships, not trusting each other or anyone else, yet pretending to be an impenetrable force. For all intents and purposes, we’ve been faking it. We’ve been faking true vulnerability and trust in one another, and though I can’t speak for the others, I have done it because I have always hoped one day it would turn out to be real. “Fake it ‘til you make it,” has been my self-proclaimed life motto, as I have always hoped that if things could appear as I desired, then hopefully one day they would really be that way.

Yet “faking” it does not cut it. Fake vulnerability is not vulnerability at all. It’s actually the opposite of vulnerability and it makes growth and change impossible. Let me say that again, fake vulnerability makes growth and change IMPOSSIBLE! Why? Because those you’re interacting with never really get to see the things they need to see in order for things to change. They see the perception you present and they react to the lie. They can tell you’re not really being vulnerable and so they too continue to hide behind their walls. Only true vulnerability can break down walls and rebuild lives.

I found this out recently. Through a series of conversations I have been having with family members over the past few months, I am seeing God shine through vulnerability. Vulnerability brings honesty; it allows people to open up and truly see you and see themselves through a different perspective. It allows people to feel comfortable to be vulnerable with you. I have noticed that as I have been vulnerable with my family, they have given me grace where I was certain they would hurt me. They have given me patience, where previously defenses would rise. AND most important of all, THEY have started to be vulnerable with me! Why? Because when a person is vulnerable with you, you receive a precious gift, you receive their trust! And when a person truly trusts you, especially when you know how hard it has been for them to get to that place, something shifts and you begin to expose more of yourself to them as well. It is the most amazing gift I have ever had the blessing to receive or be a part of, next to the grace God bestowed upon me, and it is something I now thirst for and crave. Truth always brings blessing! Truth always brings freedom! Truth always returns value! Vulnerability is truth. It is allowing others to see the truth about you, with grace and peace; it is not hiding who you are or how you feel. It is honesty and openness, it is truth lived out in grace for the edification of others and the accomplishment of God’s good and perfect will, and so after experiencing the amazing effects of being vulnerable with God “I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me,” for my weakness is made perfect in Christ’s strength (2 Corinthians 12:9)!

                The two religions that have the most followers of all the belief systems that can be classified as eastern mystical religions are Hinduism and Buddhism. There are some important terms that need to be defined in order to understand Hinduism. First, is the concept of Brahman, the unembodied impersonal reality that includes everything.  Atman is the self. Karma is the positive and negative effects of a person’s actions. Reincarnation is the idea that each person lives many lives. 

                Each person lives a series of lives. Each birth is determined by the karma that the person has built up in the life before. If a person has good karma she will move up in the order of reincarnation. Bad karma causes a reincarnation to a lower form of life. The lowest form of reincarnation is insects and similar animals. The highest order is the priestly class. The goal of life is to escape the cycle of reincarnation. The Upanishads teach that this is done by realizing that “Brahman is all and Brahman is Atman.”[i]  That is, a person must realize that a self is not an individual self, but a part of the one impersonal universal reality that is everything.         

                You realize that the “atman is Brahman” by meditating on the primordial sound, the Om. The Upanishads put it this way:

The syllable om is the bow, the atman is the arrow. It is said that the Brahman is the object of the bow and the arrow. Do not hesitate in trying to achieve your aim. Be as unmoving as the arrow and attain your target.

Realize the Brahman in whom can be found heaven, the earth, and the atmosphere. In him reside your senses and your heart. Forget everything else and attain the one and only Brahman. This is the way to salvation.[ii]

Through meditating on the Om the atman progresses through the process of reincarnation and realizes that everything is Brahman.

                In Hinduism there is no difference between good and evil because all is Brahman.  Good and evil are illusions. Hinduism also includes a contradiction; one must deny that the self (atman) exists while affirming the existence of the universe (Brahman). But in the very act of denying their existence, a person proves that they exist. By claiming that good and evil are illusions and denying the existence of the self Hinduism is not able to address the human condition.

                Gautama was a Hindu prince that lived 500 years before Christ. He was disturbed by the suffering that he saw outside the palace. Gautama left his crown, wife, and children to find the answer to the problem of human suffering. As a result of his meditation he rejected Hindu teachings and became the Buddha, the enlightened one.

                Buddha accepted a view of reality that is similar to that of Hinduism. Buddha believed in one impersonal ultimate reality, but he called it the void. Buddha also believed in reincarnation. However, his doctrine of reincarnation was not that a person was reincarnated. The karmic debt is passed on from person to person.      

                While meditating Buddha discovered the Four Noble Truths: “suffering, the cause of suffering, the end of suffering, and the Noble Eightfold Path that takes you beyond suffering” (The Dhammapada 191). The Four Noble Truths are the core of Buddhist teaching. Suffering is real, caused by desire, and ends when people cease to have desires. The Buddha taught, “All human beings are subject to attachment and thirst for pleasure. Hankering after these, they are caught in the cycle of birth and death…Overcome this thirst and be free” (Dhammapada 341, 343). The way to overcome desire is to follow the Eightfold Path.

                The Eightfold path is considered the greatest contribution of Buddhism. The Dhammapada states, “Of paths the Eightfold is the best” (Dhammapada 273) and “there is no other that leads to purification of the mind” (Dhammapada 274). This path includes right understanding, right thought, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right meditation.[iii]

                The shortcoming of the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path is that there is no justice. There is no payment made by those who cause suffering. Detachment is one of the highest values of this system. However, there are some things that we should be attached to, like family, friends, and community. We should also desire peace, justice, and to know truth.

                Christianity offers a different view of the world. First, the whole universe is created by a personal God. The first verse in the Bible is, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1). People are created in the image of God (Gen. 1:27). People rebelled against God and allowed sin and evil to reign in the world (Gen. 3). Each person has sinned against God. Paul writes, “None is righteous, no, not one” (Rom. 3:10). An honest self evaluation will reveal that all people have lied, stolen, hated others, and disrespected God. There is a broken relationship between man and God. Paul describes the problem and the solution, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith” (Rom. 3:23-25). That is, the Father sent his Son to earth to take the form of a man and pay the penalty of the sins of humanity. If a person places her faith in the work of the Jesus then he will restore her relationship with God.

                Hinduism, Buddhism, and Christianity give different descriptions of the nature of reality, the nature and cause of suffering, and what to do about suffering and evil in this world. Hinduism claims that suffering is the result of karma and people should realize that atman is Brahman. Buddhism claims that following the Four Noble Truths and The Eightfold Path will end suffering and evil. Christianity claims that the price of sin has been paid for by Jesus. If a person places their faith in the person and work of Jesus, then their relationship with God and with their fellow man will be restored. Not all of these answers can be true. I have seen a picture that would make a much better bumper sticker. It uses the symbols of the religions from around the world to spell the word contradict. Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No man comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).

[i] James W. Sire, The Universe Next Door, (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2008), 152.
[ii] Marry Pat Fisher, Lee W. Bailey, An Anthology of Living Religions, (London: Laurence King Publishing, 2008), 65.
[iii] Marry Pat Fisher, Lee W. Bailey, An Anthology of Living Religions, (London: Laurence King Publishing, 2008), 113.

As I was listening to this song on the radio today I finally realized what Matthew 17:20 was talking about when Jesus says “I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." I’ve always read this verse with some confusion as to specific application, but while listening to Only A Mountain by Jason Castro today I realized God has shown me firsthand what this verse means in the past few months.

Our ministry team has been in the beginning phases of putting together an apologetics conference for next summer, here in Jacksonville. We have no experience in this area, but it is a passion inspired by God and so we've moved forward. There have been a lot of obstacles and many things we've had to overcome. Now I love having everything laid out and planned with no surprises, so when we've hit these roadblocks, I usually become anxious and start strategizing all the ways that we can try and get over or around the mountain before us. Yet every time I’m drawn back to God, when it appears we've hit a dead end and I realize I can’t strategize us out of the particular situation, I take a step back, pray and see where God leads (which of course should be my initial reaction). Guess what happens EVERY time! Sure enough, God moves the mountain! He doesn't just help us find a way around it, exhausting ourselves in the process; he drops the mountain to rubble and shows us the breathtaking beauty of the other side!

This is what Jesus is speaking of in Matthew. If you’re facing a mountain and trying to figure out a way around it, call on the creator of all things, lay the issue at his feet and allow Him to move the mountain, allow him to turn the issue into rubble and show you the breathtaking beauty on the other side. For if you call upon God in faith, truly believing he can and will handle your mountain, I promise you, your mountain WILL move!