Why did God tell Abraham to kill his son Isaac?

"Now it came about after these things, that God tested Abraham, and said to him, Abraham!' And he said, 'Here I am.' 2 And He said, 'Take now your son, your only son, whom you love, Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah; and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I will tell you,'"(Gen. 22:1-2).

God told Abraham to kill his son Isaac because their actions are pointing ahead to the person of Christ in a typology of the true sacrifice. First of all, God says to Abraham to take his only son. But, we know that 13 years earlier Ishmael had been born to Abraham. So why would God call Isaac the only son? The answer becomes clear when we see what the Scriptures teach.

Read more at CARM.org

What's Wrong With Critical Race Theory?

'Only' Black Lives Matter

"Activists Fight Racism By Driving All People Of Color Out Of Pop Culture"

Resource

I saw this coming. BLM also is pushing LGBTQ+2 and Intersectionality. Everything is fluid. All of this they call "Social Justice" is a Marxist concept. "BLM" in the title itself and it's movement are in fact a method of social control falsely concealing itself in the guise of social reconstruction. Rioting to make their point and endorsing violence to get the message across. Protesting to disarm the Police or better yet; removal of the Police. It's anti-democracy. It's a push for an authoritarian state. The opposite result they will get is a Police State in the end. The BLM movement is ungodly. It's a lie. All the social justice groups are on the same agenda. It's not worth my support.

Yes, there are victims of racism in workplaces, I wouldn't deny that. But I could argue, from the other end of the spectrum, the over-the-top inclusivism of other races and sexes in secondary education and politics. Universities are bending over backwards to get as many people from diverse backgrounds as possible and even at times giving extra credit to "those of the minority." We see it advertised by businesses and institutions blatantly showing their support during the month of June.

If they, as a whole, succeeded--what the end result would be is an authoritarian state controlled by a minority of violent people. If what they are fighting for is to remove the "1%" from power they will inevitably become the new "1%" in charge. But in reality what could happen is a push-back from the current government to create a "Police State" in which everyone is monitored for the protection of society and harmony.

All the problems boiled up in society has been cause by the destruction of the family. More than half of couples in North America have children out of wedlock. Through the years more black children grow up without their fathers. The problem is that fathers aren't taking their roles seriously and society is demeaning males as authority figures. Societal issues stem from what goes on at home. When you break down the family, society breaks down.

It all started in the early 20th century. First, they remove Jesus as the authority of where we get our morals. Then came divorce without cause. Then Gay rights. Then Trans, Queer, two-spirit, non-binaries and the plethora of self-identities. Now the next step is to make everything "fluid." There is no objective truth. Truth is under attack. It always has been. It has always ended up being the topic. It's always the way to attack God. Satan tested it with Eve and the relationship between her and Adam and her and God broke down. God truth is always attacked. This is the destructive nature of the lie. It destroys the perfect relationships we were supposed to have.

The only fix to humanity is through the heart and Jesus has already done it. And this is also God's judgement to people. "He gave them up to depraved minds." This is the end of society.

Romans 1:26-32 New Living Translation (NLT)

26 That is why God abandoned them to their shameful desires. Even the women turned against the natural way to have sex and instead indulged in sex with each other. 27 And the men, instead of having normal sexual relations with women, burned with lust for each other. Men did shameful things with other men, and as a result of this sin, they suffered within themselves the penalty they deserved.

28 Since they thought it foolish to acknowledge God, he abandoned them to their foolish thinking and let them do things that should never be done. 29 Their lives became full of every kind of wickedness, sin, greed, hate, envy, murder, quarreling, deception, malicious behavior, and gossip. 30 They are backstabbers, haters of God, insolent, proud, and boastful. They invent new ways of sinning, and they disobey their parents. 31 They refuse to understand, break their promises, are heartless, and have no mercy. 32 They know God’s justice requires that those who do these things deserve to die, yet they do them anyway. Worse yet, they encourage others to do them, too.

Evangelizing Children

A GRACE COMMUNITY CHURCH DISTINCTIVE

For many believers, fulfilling Christ’s command to make disciples of all nations begins at home—with their children. In fact, few experiences bring greater joy to Christian parents than seeing their children come to faith in Christ.

The process of evangelizing one’s children, however, can be a daunting task. For many parents, the questions are as practical as they are disconcerting: How should I present the gospel to my children? What’s the best approach to take? How do I know if I’m doing it right? Pitfalls, both real and imagined, intimidate virtually every parent who contemplates this responsibility. On one hand, there’s the danger of leading children to think they are saved when they are not. On the other, there’s the risk of discouraging children who express a genuine desire to follow Christ.

How, then, should we evangelize our children? The answer to this question is not an easy one, but it begins with recognizing and avoiding some of the common pitfalls in child evangelism.

Ravi Zacharias

Always more interested in the questioner than the question itself

When Husband and Wife Unite

I was recently studying on a question related to marriage. Going through my library, I came across, “The Christian Directory” by Richard Baxter. And man, what a great treasure he has left to the Church in the form of this book. Weighing in at 921 pages, this book seeks to apply Scripture and biblical wisdom to just about every conceivable situation one could imagine. This is not a book you read cover to cover, but one you consult regularly for insight on how to handle just about every imaginable situation in the church.

As I read through his discussion of the mutual duties of husbands and wives in marriage, I was struck by the beauty and simplicity of his directions: “Direct. IV. Husband and wife must take DELIGHT in the love, and company and conversation of each other.” (emphasis mine) The keyword here my brothers and sisters is “Delight” Baxter says that one of our duties to our spouse in marriage is make it our ambition to enjoy our spouses affection, friendship, and conversation. That means this advice is not a suggestion.

The aim is that by labouring to find pleasure in our spouse, we would find life-long pleasure in marriage before the Lord. So, what if I want to do this but it feels impossible or like it won’t be worth it!? Baxter is extremely practical. He starts by discussing the reasons why delighting in each other is so wise:

(Without quoting the old English exactly)

When husbands and wives strive to take pleasure in each other…

Masturbation and the Christian

Solo Sex Doesn't Fit The Biblical Pattern

Considering masturbation specifically, two things must be at the forefront: (1) because of our image-bearing, the Bible teaches sexual activity is reserved for marriage. It’s designed to be inherently relational, an aspect of deep knowing and intimacy with another, providing a context for the bearing and rearing of children. (2) In that context, the goal is giving wholly to the other, providing pleasure and joy in the deepest act of mutual vulnerability. This is particularly clear from 1 Corinthians 7:1–5, the only “how to” passage in the Bible prescribing sexual activity.

God designed sexuality to be like every other aspect of the Christian life: turning away from selfish desires to honor God with my body and use it to serve another. Sex in marriage should reflect the New Testament ethic in general. Describing discipleship, Jesus said, “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45 ESV). Much more than a proof text for the atonement, this is the culmination of Jesus’ teaching on what it means to follow Him.

Multiple passages proclaim the Christian life is freedom from living for self. We live foremost for Christ and secondarily to love and bless others (see Gal. 2:20; 2 Cor. 5:14–15; Phil. 2:3–4; 1 Pet. 4:1–5). Jesus promises only when we live according to this pattern do we truly find life. (All four Gospels include this teaching. See Matt. 10:39; Mark 8:35; Luke 9:24; and John 12:25.) Living for “self” guarantees that true life and peace will elude us. This is particularly true of our sexuality. Ephesians 4:17–19 gives a chilling assessment that living for our own sexual desires signifies a “turning away” from God, leading to ever-increasing depravity and sexual insatiability.

Read more at equip.org.