July 18, 2021

Does God have a purpose for sin?

Roger Olson is a leading Armenian theologian who teaches at Baylor University. He is articulate, and his blog at patheos helps understand the critical differences between Calvinism and Arminianism. As a Latter-day Saint, I have found quite a bit of benefit in understanding these two historical views on Christianity to understand from whom we claimed our truth (See Brigham Young). In 2011, he and Michael Horton (a devout Calvinist) conversed about their key doctrinal differences. In the short video below, we can hear the differences on their views of sin. In listening to their differences, I hope we can understand our Latter-day Saint views on sin with more clarity.

May 16, 2021

Community and the quest for the right path

Community and the quest for the right path. What would you think I was describing if I said I wanted to talk to you about a group with dietary restraints, garment adornments, public behavior traditions, and leader fidelity? Some may respond, ‘cult’ or ‘religion’ with a bit of disdain for those fools that allow themselves to fall into those traps. Cults exemplify an extreme form of the above features that usually start with a heavy dose of leader fidelity.

May 1, 2021

Solving problems with God (Chosen: your faith is beautiful)

The Chosen TV series is framing many attributes of God in such a fantastic way. I especially enjoy Season 1 Episode 6 for how it depicts Christ’s interactions with those around him. The scene starts with Jesus sharing the parable of the importuning widow found in Luke 18 then it builds to the moment where two different characters make a petition of Jesus. The contrast of these three examples of petitioning God provides excellent insight into how we should petition Him.

April 25, 2021

Abraham Heschel and the Most Moved Mover

Abraham J. Heschel is worth our reading time. He was a good friend of Martin Luther King, lost his family in the Holocaust, and taught for 27 years at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America in Manhattan. I believe he is the one that coined the phrase most moved mover in describing God. His daughter explained that he and Martin Luther King used the phrase.1 I am reading Between God and Man which is a compilation of his writings.

April 18, 2021

Our journey for Christ's Christianity (Mormonism and Francis Chan)

What might it mean for a church to look at itself and discover that it has moved beyond Christ? I don’t think it is much different than a child of God looking at themselves and notice that they have strayed beyond Christ. In one of the more exciting dilemmas of Christianity, God invites us to move forward in a very tumultuous sea. We can’t just drop anchor and stay in the same spot.

April 10, 2021

Murder among the Mormons and Prophetic Agency (Authentic relationships with God)

We want leaders to be infallible or completely fallible. It is hard for us to realize the giant grey zone for every leader on the planet - prophets included. That grey zone is called agency or free will in a world full of others that wield the same power. The life of Mark Hoffman, Gordon B. Hinckley, and our prophetic narrative all seem to make people think that this story of the Murder among the Mormons is a faith crusher.

April 4, 2021

Christ's Atonement throughout Eternity (A poem)

When did Christ atone for me? Indeed, it happened in Calvary. It must be his death on the cross that set us free. But didn’t he bleed from every pore On a hill where he suffered in agony? Surely, it happened in that dark time before. Can both be included in his atoning reach? Each moment seems part of his love for me. Yes, his sacrifice was more than one momentary breach.

March 28, 2021

MostMovedMover it's about time.

Ok, it’s not really about time. It is about a relationship with God in time. However, as soon as we push the concept of God working with us in our mortal lives in a compassionate give and take relationship, it strikes the cords of a common Christian belief of God’s timeless perfection. This traditional Christian belief often aligns with members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I didn’t understand how far-reaching a timeless God assumption could infiltrate all other aspects of God’s nature.

March 21, 2021

What is the wind of God (Acts 2)?

And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. … And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost Acts 2

If you look, the blessing of wind is scattered throughout the scriptures. However, wind is also used to identify cursings and the influence of Satan. I see the wind as a fascinating metaphor used by God to represent covenants.

I suppose that the wind was the source of cooling, movement, power, and destruction most often experienced by the ancients. They didn’t have jet engines, air conditioning, guns, or bombs that responded to their commands. They depended on and succumbed to the wind and gave it metaphorical powers.

March 14, 2021

A Bounding God (D&C 82:10)

In D&C 82:8-10 we learn that God wants to bind himself to His Zion people. He is kind enough to provide insight on how we can ‘act before him’ to become as He is. Maybe it is just my thinking when I hear this verse read; However, I often hear this verse imply a type of inverse slave/master relationship between God and us. In the second half of verse 10, I understood that God would throw us to the lions if we didn’t do what he said.

March 7, 2021

How would a meek God reveal Himself to His prophets?

His meekness honors our power of agency and waits for us to invite. He can work with His prophets in their agency to initiate, consolidate, and facilitate His plan. His meekness would not allow Him to manipulate them or dictate what they must do to enact His plan. He persuades, and with any persuasion, there are alternatives that they can choose. He is prepared for their choices, but He will not discourage or limit their voluntary intention to seek His views.

February 28, 2021

Perfected His way of being relative to others

So, I think that the relativized version of this is relativized to a being who has perfected his way of being relative to other beings.

James Faulconer

Stop and read that quote a few times and make sure you can see what Jim is saying. Do you believe there is such a thing as perfected relativity?