Saturday, November 22, 2008

NUMBER 2 WITH A BULLET

"This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief."
I TIMOTHY 1:15


The Apostle Paul wrote that he was first among sinners...not that he had been when he was killing Christians, but some twenty years into a ministry that would turn the world upside down...first...I believe that the Bible is true, so...that makes me number two with a bullet...the only reason I won't catch him is that I won't live long enough...



I am still a very passionate man...this blog will highlight the things I am most passionate about...my relationship with God...my loving wife(The most beautiful woman in the world), my children, the application of the Scriptures to a productive life, good friends, writing, acting, movies, TV, religion, politics, eschatology, global conspiracies, sex...and good cooking.




I'm very new to blogging, so I know I will make a million mistakes(OK, so I'm underestimating)...but I hope you will hang in there with me...I'll try and learn as I go, and I appreciate your comments...be prepared to get your feathers ruffled a little from time to time, but try to remember what my wife told a group of women at a church I once led..."If you think he's rough around the edges now, you should have seen him when I first married him...this is the kinder, gentler Chris you get to deal with..."



Be prepared for my vernacular to slip occasionally, especially when my pain meds aren't working...and hang on...let's make this the ride of our lives...









9 comments:

Sherrie said...

Glad to be the first follower ;)

neilbsmith78 said...

I am very excited that you are doing this! Thank you for sacrificing your time to share with us. I miss and love you!

abaddon911 said...

I look forward to more. Are we going to be visiting the "absent the" idiom again? I have been made curious and though I try, patience is a fruit of the Spirit that I have seldom found in my basket.

Christopher Blake said...

Abaddon,
Could you please amplify what you're refering to with,
"Are we going to be visiting the "absent the" idiom again?"
It could be that I'm more dense than normal at 4:15 in the morning, but I'm unsure what you're referring to...thanks...

abaddon911 said...

I am looking forward to more Bible study blogs. Do you have an outline of topics you want to go through already?
Also, I know that some people do not like to discuss the things in the Bible that are impossible to come to definitive conclusions on and would rather focus on things that are more practical and more easily understood. How do you feel about the two?
An example would be The book of Enoch and why - since it was quoted in Jude - has little or no value to the Christian church? Or further, whether other books of antiquity should have been canonized. That and many more subjects verses other principals that teach clearly how we are to live - which is also very important.

Christopher Blake said...

I have a million topics in my head, but I try and go where the Lord leads me...

There are few things that you can come to reasonable conclusions on...I try and stay away from the ,"Can God make a rock so big He couldn't lift it?" variety, but other than that, I'm pretty open...most of the things in the Bible are designed for practicle app...

The Book of Enoch is one of my favorites, as is the story of why it was excluded from the cannon...I have read both the Syratic and Ethiopic versions, and find it very informative...give me an idea of topics you would like to cover, or, better yet...ask questions...My Bible studies that I lead for my little congregation are always pre-empted by questions...

abaddon911 said...

Thank you. I have always been interested in the canonization process --- mostly the new testament, since the o.t. Was almost always agreed on.
questions I have are:
Was the canonization process (the various councils) correct? Should all the books be in the Bible or should some of the disputed books that were not 100% accepted be re-evaluated? (ie Hebrews- due to the ambiguity of the author and the talk about Melchizadek; James - for the "work your way into heaven" argument, Jude - for quoting Enoch and talking too much about angels, etc the list goes on)
Do we have a responsibility to challenge the decisions of the canonization process or is it our duty to trust that God would not allow His book to circulate so long with errors?
is it possible that other writings of antiquity are inspired?
The book of Enoch - The Ethiopic version seems to be the most accurate and is accepted in many circles. Is it possible that it is inspired?
If jude quoted Enoch and Jude is inspired does that add credibility to Enoch or does it mean that when Enoch wrote his book that God only inspired him to write those verses quoted by Jude?
If Enoch is not inspired as a whole does that mean it is not accurate or can the information in it be true?
What is the deal with Azazel? He is mentioned in Enoch which finally shed a little light on the whole goat sacrifice thing but it is still confusing.
If more discoveries are made and for example,
the real 1st Corinthians is found, should it be considered to be inspired or is the canon truly closed forever?
I can think of millions of questions on dozens of topics, so please let me know when to back off. My wife read a couple of comments I left for you and told me that a couple could be taken wrong and that I was in danger of giving off a stalker vibe. I almost died laughing! She is usually right though - so if that is the case, a thousand apologies. Thanks again!

Christopher Blake said...

Where to begin?
First...it doesn't appear you sleep any more than I do...for me it's pain...what's your excuse?

I think we have to trust God that the Scriptures in the cannon are inspired...reading Hebrews in Greek shows the style of Paul, but more than that...it shows the hand of the true author...the Holy Spirit...

Melchizadek...in Hebrew>My King is righteous, or the righteous King...it's a title...not a name...handed down from Christ to Adam and his desendents...probably Shem at the time of the meeting with Abraham...

James is another complete study, but to make it brief for now...no contradiction...he is explaining to Hebrew speaking people(look at the salutation) what pistis really means...it is an active verb>to faith, ie...
In Hebrew or English, if I say I believe Abaddon911 will catch me if I fall,it requires no action on my part...I can be sitting in a chair and not move...in fact, we don't even have to be together...in Greek, ego pisteo> I faith that Abaddon911 will catch me if I fall requires me to be in the act of falling towards you...and past the point where I can catch myself...so, when we say I faith in Christ, it requires action...falling toward Him...past the point of catching ourselves...and without the ability to see Him...prove He is there...or that He has ever caught anyone...more on that later, with highlights on James 1...

The Book of Enoch...the original, anyway, I believe was inspired...the question is...how much of what we now have is from the original? I don't know...Azazel is a topic for another day(or night)...as are the Watchers...who the Sons of God really were/are...and many others from before the Flood...and Adam's fall...

Hope that will do for tonight/this morning...one thing to keep in mind...I don't answer questions briefly, especially on Scripture, so...you'll have to be patient when you ask...allow me to answer...which will cause more questions...then more answers...you get the idea...

My beautiful wife is the only thing that really keeps a choke-chain on my neck...her and my children...but you're in no danger of sounding stalker-ish...so no worries...

Tell your lovely wife the Blakes said hey...

Sleep well, my friend...

abaddon911 said...

They say a guilty conscience is what keeps people up at night... I don't think that is my reason but I am not sure... Just not built to sleep much or well.
Hebrews is a very thought-provoking book. There are a few interesting passages in it.
thank you for the insight on James, I had not heard ( or read) it explained like that.
I figured that many of those questions would take some time to get through. I will be patient. If only the book of Enoch had been more carefully passed down...
Have a good one!

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Christopher Blake is a loving husband...devoted father...minister...crippled ex-cop...screenwriter...novelist...actor...and more than a little rough around the edges...