By: Dale Weckbacher
Colossians 2:8
8 Beware lest anyone
cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of
men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to
Christ.
NKJV
One of the surprisingly
successful movies this year, a year when many Hollywood Blockbusters bombed,
was God’s not Dead. I recommend the
movie to anyone regardless of whether they believe in God or not for the movie
uses a compelling storyline to make viewers think about whether there is
evidence of the existence of God. Of course,
we must understand that belief in god is a matter of faith since we cannot
actually see God. However, God did send
us His Son, Jesus who was God in the flesh (1 Timothy 3:16) giving us a glimpse
of what God is like (John 14:9).
The main theme of the movie
God’s not Dead is how a university professor played by Kevin Sorbo attempts to
indoctrinate his students with his atheistic anti-God philosophy. The movie may be a fictional account but
accounts abound of university professors spewing their philosophies in the
classroom. Perhaps the most compelling
argument made by professors is the creation of doubt in the existence of a
loving compassionate god by pointing to suffering and disasters in our
world. Of course, they completely ignore
that it was the disobedience of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden that caused
a separation between man and God and only ended through the death of God’s son
Jesus. Unfortunately, many students in
universities enter academia with a belief in God and leave doubting God’s
existence. (1)
Whereas the tentacles of
atheism are spreading throughout academia and infecting youth, the tentacles of
terrorism are spreading all over the world and threaten us all. After 9/11,a coalition led by the United
States engaged in a war on terrorism. In
the process of fighting this war, we were able to capture Sadam Hussein and
topple his regime and kill Osama Bin Laden, the mastermind of the 9/11
attacks. Much as we would like to
believe these two men were the heads of terrorism, they are in essence only
tentacles of radical Islam whose goal is the annihilation of anyone not
converting to Islam. Even if we
successfully cut off the tentacle of ISIS, another tentacle will take its
place. To win the war on terrorism
requires tactics unlike any we have used in warfare before.
The war on terrorism, unlike
past wars, is not a war against a nation like Germany, Japan, North Korea, or
North Vietnam. This war is against a
religious theology that has a presence in many countries of the world,
including the United States. To be
victorious in the war on terrorism we must not only battle terrorists on the
battlefield but also battle the very theology of radical Islam and its belief
that killing infidels somehow brings glory to god.
Ephesians 6:10-13 encourages
us to put on the Armor of God for the battle is not against flesh and blood but
against principalities, powers, and rulers of the darkness of this age. Whether it is an atheist professor or a
radical Islamic terrorist, the battle is against philosophies that are in
direct opposition to the Word of God.
Combatting these philosophies requires special weaponry.
Ephesians 6:14-17 goes on to
list the weaponry required to fight this battle.
1) Belt
of truth
2) Breastplate
of righteousness
3) Foot
covering of the gospel of peace
4) Shield
of faith
5) Helmet
of salvation
6) The
sword of the Spirit
Ephesians 6:18 then urges us
to pray always. This does not mean we
are to be like monks devoting every minute of the day to prayer but to pray
whenever God places it on our minds and hearts.
Verse 19 also tells us to open our mouths and boldly declare the
gospel.
In the movie God’s not Dead,
the student was bold taking a stand for his faith. He lost his girlfriend and risked not being
able to attend law school but he provides us with an example of someone boldly
putting on the whole armor of God, praying, and opening up his mouth to declare
the gospel. This is the type of boldness
needed today.
Politicians must stand up
and declare terrorism for what it is, an evil theology breeding thousands who
are willing to risk their very lives in service to Allah. We must train our youth in the Word of God so
they will have the tools necessary to stand up to the atheist theologies
attempting to indoctrinate them against their Christian faith. Instead of bemoaning the spreading of the
tentacles of atheism and Islam, we must begin spreading the tentacles of the
Gospel.
The only way to achieve
victory against evil in this world is to spread the good news of God’s mercy
and grace. God gave fallen man the
greatest gift ever given, an opportunity to have a relationship with their
creator. This relationship was lost due
to Adam and Eve’s disobedience in the Garden but instead of destroying his
creation, God gave humanity a second chance by sending his only Son, Jesus to
die for our sins.
We therefore must put on the
Armor of God, pray, and open our mouths declaring the good news of the
Gospel. Granted, there may be opposition
and even some risks but we must engage in the battle and remember, God has
promised to always be with us and if God is for us, who can be against us
(Romans 8:31). The only question is are
we willing to engage.
1. Crossexamined.org. Youth Exodus Problem. crossexamined.org.
[Online] [Cited: September 30, 2014.]
http://crossexamined.org/youth-exodus-problem/.
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