18November2008

Question of the Week: Pain and Suffering?

Posted by Chad Harvey under: Theology; You Wanted to Know; Youth Group Series; Youth Ministry.

On June 4th, 1989 the Square was unusually quiet. It was approximately 6:00am and just 8 hours earlier it was filled with the chatter of Chinese protesters. Now, it was filled with tanks, soldiers, and bodies. The attacks began at 10:30pm on June 3rd and turned Tienanmen Square into what many now call the site of a massacre. It is estimated that between 4,000 and 10,000 people lost their lives and up to 30,000 were injured.

At 8:46am on September 11th, 2001 a Boeing 767 piloted by a terrorist, flew into the North Tower of the World Trade Center. The responsibility would soon be linked to an organization known as Al Qaeda. Their reasoning behind the attacks would center on jihad (holy war) and they would claim to be doing the work of Allah. By the end of the day we would learn that 3 other planes had been hijacked and nearly 3,000 civilians had lost their lives.

The Indian Ocean earthquake took place at 7:59am on December 26th, 2004. This earthquake would lead to a series of tsunamis that would prove to be unimaginably devastating. The destruction would be felt by people in all parts of the world. The most recent tallies would state that nearly 187,000 people died and almost 43,000 are still missing and presumed dead. It is also estimated that approximately 1.7 million people were displaced.

Seung-Hui Cho had moved to the US from South Korea when he was eight. He grew up in a typical Korean-American home and decided to attend Virginia Tech University. On April 16th, 2007 Cho’s name became known throughout the country as he did the unthinkable. The shootings began around 7:15am and when he had finished the massacre, 33 people (including Cho) would be dead.

We were sitting at Starbucks talking about the end of the school year. It was June 5th, 2007 and “Katie” was having a difficult time with her home life. She talked about the anger and abuse that was currently taking place where she lived. She told me about the violence, yelling, and neglect that was a daily occurrence. I asked her if this was the worst it had been and her response was not what I expected. She told me that in comparison to what it was like when she was younger, this was easy.

How can a good, all-powerful God allow so much suffering (evil) in the world? This is a question that I have struggled with in one way or another throughout my walk with God. In fact, it is a question that nearly every believer has wrestled with and it always seems to come up when talking with a nonbeliever. People want to know why they would put their faith in a God who has the power to stop suffering, but won’t.

Come join us at epic this Wednesday night @ 7pm as we answer this question: Why is there so much pain and suffering in the world?

11November2008

Can You Really Trust the Bible?

Posted by Chad Harvey under: Theology; You Wanted to Know; Youth Group Series; Youth Ministry.

Last week we started a new series in youth group called “You Wanted to Know”. Each week we have the students submit questions for us to answer. Before youth group we put together a video of us asking random people in dowtown Salem those same questions. At youth group we show the video so the students hear how people around Salem answer the question and then we ask the students how they would answer the question. We finish by going to the Bible for the final authority. Since the Bible is our final authority we decided to start out by answering the questions Can you trust the Bible and What is the Bible all about? Click on the link below to see our video talking with people in downtown Salem. Don’t be too judgmental… it’s my first video production.

Can You Really Trust the Bible?

Below is a summary of what we looked at as “proof ” that the Bible is trustworthy:

Biblical Claims

I Thessalonians 2:13

II Peter 1:20-21

II Timothy 3:16-17

One Mind Behind the Bible

The Bible consists of 66 books, written by 40 separate authors. It was written over a time period of 1600 years, 3 different languages (Hebrew, Aramaic, and  Greek), on 3 different continents (Asia, Africa, and Europe). The authors were kings, peasants, scholars, philosophers, fishermen, herdsmen, poets, soldiers, priests, prophets, a tax collector, a tent-making rabbi, and a gentile doctor. All these authors, from all these walks of life, over a long span of time; and they all agree on each one of the hundreds of topics discussed in the Bible. More importantly, one central message is found from the beginning to the end: redemption through Christ! How is this possible unless God is the One Mind behind the Bible.

Fulfilled Prophecy

Hundreds of prophecies about future events were recorded in the Bible, not one detail of any them has ever failed. The futures of cities, nations, and the world were spoke about with complete accuracy. Specifically, the prophecy about Christ alone completely proves the validity of the Bible. In the Old Testament, which was written over a 1,000 year time period, you can find several hundred prophecies about the coming Messiah. Every single one of these came true in Jesus Christ. The odds of just of those coming true are 1 in 100,000,000,000,000,000. Or it would be like covering the whole state of Texas 2 miles deep with quarters, putting a red dot on one of the quarters, and randomly dropping it from a helicopter. Then having a guy (who is blindfolded) start walking across the state, picking up a quarter, and having it be the one with the red dot. That’s practically impossible. And that is just for 8 of the prophecies to come true in Jesus, let alone several hundred.

The Effectiveness of the Bible

More people believe in what the Bible teaches than any other religion or creed in the world… and its not even close. Even though it was written hundreds of years ago, it is still just as relevant as they day the last book was finished. We are constantly updating text books or encyclopedias, but the Bible has never had to be revised (there are new versions, but they say the same thing, just in contemporary language.) The Bible changes lives every day. The Bible is relevant to every person, in every culture, in every age, because the Bible is a living message; authored by the Living God.

Moral Standards of the Bible

The morals that the Bible calls us to live by are impossible without God. If the Bible was written by men, they never would have set themselves up to fail. A few authors, maybe, but not 40. We are also taught that we are saved not by what we do, but by grace. Biblical Christianity is the only major faith that does not require some sort of works for salvation. “Religion is man reaching to God. The Gospel is God reaching to man. There are many religions, but only one Gospel.”

Archeological Evidence

The Bible is historically accurate. Even though the Bible is the most critiqued and scrutinized book in the world, no one has ever been able to prove it historically inaccurate. In fact, the more we learn about history, the more trustworthy the Bible becomes. The truth is, many will claim the Bible isn’t true; but no one will challenge it point by point.

Scientific Evidence

The Bible makes numerous claims that we have just recently discovered. To name a few:

The shape of the earth — Isaiah 40:22
The fact that the earth is suspended in nothing — Job 26:7
Innumerable stars — Genesis 15:5
The existence of valleys in the seas — II Samuel 22:16
The existence of springs and fountains in the seas — Genesis 8:2; Proverbs 8:28
The existence of water paths (ocean currents) in the seas — Psalm 8:1,3,6,8
The Hydrologic Cycle (how it rains) — Job 26:8; Job 36:27-28; Ecclesiastes 1:6-7

This week we’ll be talking about why there is so much pain and suffering in the world. I’ll post about that tomorrow…

8November2008

Health Fair

Posted by Chad Harvey under: Service Opportunity.

Just a reminder that the church health fair is this weekend. If you want to help out try to be there by 9:30. If you can’t come the whole time, thats also fine. Just show up when you can. Thanks!

20October2008

Status

Posted by Chad Harvey under: Ephesians; Youth Group Series; Youth Ministry.

We really seem to base a lot of our self-worth on our status. Loosely defined, to speak of someones status means to speak of their position in relation to other people. It is sort of like seeing how someone measures up with the rest of society. I guess this isn’t such a bad thing, except we seem to get our measuring sticks from all the wrong places. We define ourselves based on who the world says we are. We let society determine what we think about ourselves. We let the culture around us guide our actions. The truth is, culture and society change. How can we be measured by something that is never the same? Things were a certain way in the 60’s and then they were different in the 70’s. Although current fashion may have a hint of the 70’s, things today are very different than they were just 30 years ago.

I encourage you to come and be a part of youth group this week as we begin a look at the Book of Ephesians. This week we will be discussing your status. I promise you, the discussion will be encouraging. And the source of this status will never change.

So, what are your thoughts on status and self-worth? Do you feel that society should be the ultimate measuring stick for who we are? Why or why not? I look forward to your comments…

chad

p/s — if you are able, please bring bagged candy to youth group this week. we need as much as possible for the Halloween party next week.

14October2008

Mid-High Parent Meeting This Sunday, October 19th

Posted by Chad Harvey under: Youth Events.

All mid-high students and their parents will be meeting in the Fireside room after 2nd service this weekend. There will be lunch, games for the kids, and a time for questions and information for the parents. We hope to see you there!

13October2008

Two Kingdoms

Posted by Chad Harvey under: Uncategorized.

This past week in youth group we discussed the reality of two separate kingdoms battling within us. We are talking about what it means to trully follow Jesus with our lives. I suggested to the students that unless we acknowledge the existence of two kingdoms, we will have a very difficult time giving ourselves wholly to our Savior.

We looked at the passage found in James 4. in verses 7-10 James writes:

“Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded…. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will exalt you.”

I love that James uses such strong language. He talks about submitting and resisting and fleeing. Then he talks about drawing near and cleansing and purifying. This isn’t some small thing that he hoped a couple of his readers would understand. James’ intention seems clear. It is vital for Christians to choose Jesus over the world every day.

Satan’s main goal in the Christian is to distract. He will use whatever means possible to accomplish this. Maybe in your life it is guilt, or materialism, or depression, or addiction, or something else. Once you believe in Jesus, Satan has no rights to your eternal life. However, he will try to have an affect on it’s quality as much as possible while he still can.

So, which kingdom do you enlist in each day. God wants to use you; He wants to exalt you. All He needs is your willingness. Are you willing to be used by the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. The funny thing is… it seems to be your choice.