Hebrews 11:6
If you are going to come to God you must believe that
1. He is
2. He rewards those who seek him

What is the reward for seeking God? I have never really tried to answer this question. Maybe it is my aversion to a "contract based" relationship with God. Maybe it is my Baptistic upbringing. Perhaps I have considered this a which-came-first kind of question. It was a question that shouldn’t really be asked. But once I admitted that I was asking the question, I was able to seek an answer. Context is always a good place to look when I don’t understand a portion of Scripture, so I read the rest of chapter 11. I read Hebrews 11, keeping verse 6 at the front of my mind: “What is this reward?”

I understand why many so-called exegetes prefer proof-text to context. I do. Context muddies the waters. I, for one, am uncomfortable with the answer I found to my question, “What is the reward for seeking God?”

This is a slighty different topic than is usual for this blog, but I thought it would be close enough. It is a paper I am writing for my church history class. I have not yet turned it in, so if you have any helpful comments, I would be appreciative. It'd be kind of cool to quote a blog.

Ever since my time in Israel, I've been interested in anti-semitism and Christianity. A fairly common view is that anti-semitism results directly from Christianity, and that in fact the NT itself is anti-semitic. This paper is an attempt to examine some specific acts of anti-semitism and the links between those attacks and the church. It is rather depressing, but a topic that should be thought about. The first post is a little long, but it tells the gruesome details of the attacks. The next two (shortert) posts will discuss why the attacks happened and their relationship to the church.

The last time I wrote something here, I decried the disconnect between Scripture and doctrine. Then I went off and worked 70+ hours a week to complete a major project at work. But now I am a free man again, and I wish to address how Scripture is used in the pulpit. “The pulpit” is shorthand for any occasion in which the man of God teaches or preaches. On these occasions, he teaches how to handle the Word of Truth by example.

In this final post I offer what I consider to be the most and least likely responses to the data at hand.  In some ways I feel like my conclusion is too brief...but perhaps I'm just spent by this point.  I've been editing, re-writing, and re-thinking all along the way, and yet have come to the same conclusions.  If you have experienced the sort of grief we've been talking about, I hope that this paper has helped you work through some of that.  If you want to carry on the conversation with me on a personal basis, my e-mail is always open, I'd be glad to talk with you.

                                                                                                    - Sam

I recently watched Joss Whedon’s (soon to be cult classic) Serenity.  I suggest you run out right now and rent this movie.  I suggest this for two reasons: First, it’s a fun, provocative movie (though disturbing at times – this is not a good flick for kids).  Second, I’m going to ruin vast parts of it for you if you read any further than this summary.  Aside from just being a rather interesting movie, it takes on the topic of sin and handles it in an interesting way.  So, watch the movie and then come back to read and interact with this post…

In this fifth (and next-to-last) installment, we deal with five concepts that contribute to my view that the unborn do, in fact, receive salvation.  I introduce an idea herein that has moved some to gather kindling, firewood, and a bit of rope.  Oh well, what's a little martyrdom among friends?