God, Aliens, and Other Stuff

A friend recently asked me if I had ever considered switching to Sabbath services in light of the Old Testament command to keep Yahweh's Sabbath. I said no. Here's why. If you are going to keep the Law, keep it all. Look at what the Law says about food. In Leviticus 11:41-45. God is literally shouting about foods that defile the human who eats them. That unclean human is therefore unfit to approach God’s holiness in ritual worship. Figuring that God never changes, it would appear that we should all be keeping kosher. But look at Mark 7:14-23. Jesus is not just declaring all foods clean. If you think about what he is saying, it is spiritual dullness that makes us think that food could ever have defiled anyone. It is sin that defiles. Why would food spiritually defile anyone when, as Jesus says, it goes in the stomach, comes out the other end processed and smelly, and winds up in the sewer. Fasting is a powerful spiritual activity. Since Jesus fasted, we should, too. But in Isaia...

Here is some early marketing information for Dust or Dew: Wipf and Stock will has it available on their website for $24.80 + shipping. You can also call their customer service on M - F at 541-344-1528. They are located in Eugene OR, so no tax. Go to http://www.wipfandstock.com/ and enter "dust or dew" into the search box. There are discounts for ordering 5 or more. It will be available online around mid-April (amazon.com, etc.). Amazon retail will be $31 plus shipping. At that time, a Kindle version will be available for about $19. It's an academic book, so it might be a hard read for some, but there are chapters that are readable for those who know something about the Old Testament. My approach is that God's revelation to us fully human types was gradual. He stepped into their ancient culture and spoke through a contemporaneous worldview. The step-by-step process of changing their worldview was often jarring. Blood was spilled, families were divided as people tried ...