From: nestabro@nova.gmi.edu (Noel Estabrook)
Subject: Re: What do you do when your child thinks Metallica is cool?
Organization: GMI Engineering&Management Institute, Flint, MI
Date: Sun, 15 Nov 1992 17:21:42 GMT

jsteiner@anwsun.phya.utoledo.edu (jason 'Think!' steiner) writes:

>know your enemy. 

I do.  I can attack just about any non-Christian philosophy with Scripture.
I have talked to Buddhists, atheists, nihilists, Jehovah's Witnesses, etc
etc.  I have not _intimately_ known all of their positions, but God 
somehow always manages to provide the appropriate Scripture to use in
response to false doctrine (just like Jesus in the desert - you'll 
notice He didn't try to use some stupid logic, He went straight to the
Word of God, and Satan had NO answer.  So, too, if we use Scripture, the
world will have NO answer except that they are sinners and will have to
make a decision to either accept Christ or not).

>you can be sure that the average young nihilist knows a bit about the 
>book you and i go by. what are you going to talk about when you don't 
>know the first thing about -her- hero, Friedrich Wilhelm, much less 
>how your beliefs differ?

Scripture can handle any world-view, because outside of God's world-view,
they are all inherently the same - they deny the necessity of knowing our
Lord Jesus Christ.  I don't need to go to a Satanic sacrificial ceremony
or read a Satanic bible to be able to point out error and shine the light.
All I really need to know is that it is evil, and that Jesus is the answer.
Jesus Himself said, "I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life, no one 
comes to the father but through Me."  No deep theology, no complicated
algorithms, just a statement that fallen man needs Jesus Christ.

> are you going to use 'Christian 
>ignorance' as an excuse to let them burn? is your Christ really so
>weak that prayerful study of a great philosopher will "lead you
>away from God"? i certainly hope not.

Certainly not.  As a matter of fact, my Christ is so strong that He is 
able to save people by just the mere mention of his name.  He is so 
strong that He can overcome any philosophy and show it false with His
Word.  I don't need to understand Goethe's Ubermensch to know that what
he sought was a fallen, pathetic alternative to what Christ offers (BTW,
you'll notice by many of the references in my posts that I am NOT
"ignorant" of other points-of-view.  However, I prefer to spend my time
studying God's word so that I can "make a ready defense").

>the people who need to be reached most by the message of Christ will
>merely laugh (and rightly so) if all you can offer is 'i'm right and 
>you're wrong'. no wonder the church has a reputation for blind faith.

Aaah, but I don't do that.  I say CHRIST is right, you're wrong, and here
is the evidence for it.  I will be the first to denounce faith in something
not believed (which is what blind faith really is).  But faith in something
we KNOW to be true is never blind.

>we're shutting our eyes to the awesome evidence that is all around us.

What evidence are you referring to?

>t instead of shining our light into the dark corners of the world we're 
>telling the people huddled there to close their eyes and follow us 
>into the light.

I always tell them to OPEN their eyes and see Jesus, I am simply not 
qualified to lead them anywhere (being blind myself), only Christ is.

>is it any wonder that few bother to listen?

Few bother to listen because Christ's truths are hard.  People have 
hardened their hearts.  Scripture says, "every man is without excuse".
If I share Christ with someone, they won't be able to go to God and say,
"yeah, but that guy that shared with me didn't really KNOW where I was
coming from.  What he said I needed to do didn't make any sense, I just
couldn't relate, you know?"  He'll be in hell, nonetheless.  Christ said
to go out and preach the Good News to all nations, not spend time arguing
about useless philosophy.  The world needs Christ - direct, undiluted,
truthful, all-powerful Christ, nothing more, nothing less.

>jason 'Study! Learn! Think!' steiner

Noel "have faith, follow Me" Estabrook
(Which brings up a good point, did Christ give any of the apostles a good
"reason" to follow Him?  To be "fishers of men?".  No, He basically said,
"hey, I'm going to lead you guys out of sin, follow me."  Christ's message
has always been simple and uncluttered, I see no reason to break a model 
that works.)

B
--
Noel Estabrook			|	Your religion is what you
nestabro@nova.gmi.edu         --|--     do after the sermon is over.
Instructional Design & Tech.    |     
Michigan State University       |               Romans 12:2
Newsgroups: rec.music.christian