Jul 27 2013

Yoga is not for Christians

If you are an average secular person, you probably never heard anything negative about yoga.

If you are a Christian, you probably heard more positive than negative things about yoga.

Let us be clear from the beginning.

The practice of yoga is grounded in idolatrous and demonic aspects of eastern religions, and Christians who are filled with the Holy Spirit should not partake in it.

As a physician anesthesiologist I regularly ask  patients about their level of physical activity in order to assess their cardiopulmonary status before surgery.  More than half of them claim they practice some form of Pilates exercise mixed with elements of yoga.  This led me to research yoga, and the results I came across were astonishing.

Not only is yoga tremendously popular, but there are many Christians who practice it and there is even “christian yoga” out there.

What is yoga? It literally means “union” or “to yoke” with the universe and the Hindu gods.

Yoga is a school of Hindu philosophy defined as “the stilling of the changing states of the mind.”  Mumbo-Jumbo that makes you smile… But in reality it addresses physical, mental and spiritual techniques geared toward attaining permanent peace.  In the western world we tend to associate yoga with stretching, body posture, breathing exercises and meditation, but these are grounded in a practice meant to unite the individual with the universe and ultimately with the Hindu supreme god.

The Bible strictly forbids Christians from engaging in elements of other religions, in this case Hinduism.  We are called to avoid pagan methods of attaining peace and tranquility, and instead undergo the new birth which will give us a completely new outlook on life:

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” Rom 12:2 ESV

Attaining a nirvana state of peacefulness via physical posturing and meditation should never be our goal.  By hiding ourselves in Christ we will attain the “peace that surpasses all understanding” which Paul talks about in Philippians 4:7.

What about the so-called benefits of deep breathing and stretching?

Instead of the physical aspects of yoga, I highly recommend traditional exercise like running, biking and swimming which raise the heart rate for sustained periods of time and have been definitively shown to increase the HDL (good cholesterol) and lower the LDL (bad cholesterol).

Incorporating yoga elements in your life will lead to spiritual downfall because of disobedience to God’s Word which is explicit about detesting other gods and worship related to them.

If you are a Christian, you belong to Jesus who paid the ultimate price for you, and therefore yoga and any practice associated with other religions is not for you. 

Jul 25 2013

John 3:18… Already Condemned?

Innocent until proven guilty.

That is one of our favorite clichés in the American system of justice.  Too bad it fits into the social media category #thingsjesusneversaid.

As in… there will be a judgement at the end of this age, the sinner will be on trial and considered innocent until the plethora of sins, misdeeds and crimes will be presented, and only then will he be judged and condemned.  Too bad that is not biblical.

In a twist that only a God who foreknows future events and who actually ordains them, John 3:18 reveals a shocking statement:

“Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.”

Condemned already?

This verse poses two problems for the humanists who criticize biblical faith

1. It tells us that there is only one way to avoid eternal judgement.  There is only one way to avoid condemnation at the final judgement in front of the white throne: to believe in Jesus Christ now.  Such concept runs against the inclusivity of today’s modern humanistic thought.  The world hates us because we are an exclusive faith.  There are no multiple ways to heaven.  There is one Way and His name is Jesus Christ

2. Future condemnation is foreordained for those who do not believe.  How is it possible to condemn someone before his sins are even judged? They ask this question because they do not know God.  They do not acknowledge His infinite and timeless attributes.  At any point of our earthly time dimension, God knows all facts and events… past, present, future.  God reserves the right to condemn an unbeliever even before he commits sin. Understanding and believing such attributes makes sermons like “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” all the more effective.

 The message of the Gospel is best news for those who believe it and the worst news for those who do not.  Condemnation to hell, as abrasive as it sounds not only in the world, but even in lukewarm churches, must be part of any Gospel presentation.  Without it the Gospel is incomplete which makes the Gospel a false gospel.

Eternity has been sealed.  

Believers in Christ and His atoning work stand redeemed, and those who will not believe have already been condemned.

Jul 23 2013

Child Marriage is an Outrage

People say that a picture is worth a thousand words.

From the bride dresses to the ring on the girl’s finger, I will let this picture speak a thousand words.

The truth about Islamic child marriage is painful and it must be told.

In this case, THE TRUTH IS AN OUTRAGE!

Jul 19 2013

Fuller Seminary, the Progressive?

About Fuller Image

The famous Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California has crossed a line that is becoming increasingly blurry within the lukewarm church today.

The Christian evangelical college has opened its doors to a gay/lesbian student club on campus.  CBN reports that about three dozen students are members in this club, and their mission is to support the  “LGBTQ community at Fuller Seminary,” per their public statement.

Evangelist Charles E. Fuller who founded the school in 1947 must be rolling in his grave by now.

Fuller Seminary like other Christian colleges, is compromising the message of the gospel by endorsing this club.  Fuller is preparing the future wave of evangelists and pastors, and given the current social pressures to “equalize love,” these young ministers-to-be will potentially be swayed to accept the LGBT lifestyle as normative and within scriptural bounds.

Scripture rings true in Romans 1:32 when it tells us that people know God’s decrees (Fuller in this case) and despite knowing God’s decrees they give approval to those who practice such lifestyles, by officially endorsing them.

I am sure there are many born-again students and faculty at Fuller who love God and who are disappointed by this turn of events.  Their school has become a social and political battleground for the progressive wave, and there is not much they can do about it.

Fuller is not alone in this shift.  Azusa Pacific University in California, another Christian college, has been invaded by progressive faculty eager to advance the LGBT agenda.  This trend will continue in the future, and it will encroach even upon conservative churches.

Delight in Truth is writing about this development in order to warn the body of Christ that apostle Paul’s teaching to Timothy regarding the last days stands:

“Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. ” 2 Tim 3:12-13 ESV

image http://www.fuller.edu

Jul 17 2013

More Than Just a Late-Term Abortion Ban in Texas

After developments that featured efforts to protect life but also elements of spiritual warfare, the Texas governor is going to sign the 20 week abortion ban into law.

We saw the worst that the pro-abortion feminist agenda had to offer when their protesters were chanting “Hail Satan”  while Christian pro-lifers were singing “Amazing Grace.”  It was a classic case of spiritual warfare.  We got a glimpse of the spiritual battle going on in the heavenly realms.

It is absolutely shameful to list the items confiscated by law enforcement from anti-life protesters trying to get in the Texas legislature: jars of urine and excrement among other things meant to be thrown at pro-life senators. How low can these human beings go to continue their manic support of killing the unborn?

The Texas law that limits abortions at a maximum of 20 weeks gestational age is brilliant because it does much more than just set a gestational age after which it is illegal to abort.

It will indirectly close about 35 abortion clinics.  Here’s how:

  1. The law will require all abortion clinics to meet the standards required of surgery centers.  This is absolutely critical part of the law.  Many abortion clinics do not have surgery-center privileges even though an abortion IS a surgical procedures.  This requirement alone will make these places safer, but will also cause many of them to close down for a long time.  In California for example, the process to open a surgery center can take as long as two years and it is very costly.  Emergency medications and equipment alone can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, and many of these expensive medications (ie. the ones used to treat malignant hyperthermia) have to be renewed periodically.
  2. Abortionists are now required to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals (30 miles), automatically closing any abortion clinic outside of this radius.
  3. Abortionists are required to administer the “chemical” abortion drug RU486 in person, placing another barrier in the abortion process.

Delight in Truth feels that governor Perry is in step with the majority of Americans who are in fact opposed to late-term abortion when he referred to “protecting women’s health [and] defending our smallest and most vulnerable Texans and future Texans.”

We are fighting a losing abortion war which started in 1973 in the US, but this was a significant victory.  Other conservative states will follow Texas in the wake of abortion atrocities made public in recent times, like those of Kermit Gosnell who murdered premature babies born alive during abortions.

If only the American public would know the horrors of the abortion procedure, the overwhelming majority would oppose it.

Jul 8 2013

Newborn Blogging Vacation

Photo: Hello world! Amy Elise Prunean. May God bless her with eternal life!

Delight in Truth will be on a blogging vacation for a week or two in order to help take care of this precious addition to our family.  Her name is Amy Elise.  “Amy” means beloved and “Elise” is short for Elizabeth.

I can’t believe she is smiling at day 1!

Psalm 127:3  “Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward.”

Jul 5 2013

The High Cost of Pre/Extramarital Sex

The diagram and the following are statistics compiled by the American Sexual Health Organization

  • More than half of all people will have an STD/STI (sexually transmitted disease/infection) at some point in their lifetime
  • There are 19.7 million new STIs every year in the US
  • Each year, one in four teens contracts an STD/STI in the US
  • It is estimated that as many as one in five Americans have genital herpes, a lifelong (but manageable) infection
  • With more than 50 million adults in the US with genital herpes and up to 776,000 new infections each year, some estimates suggest that by 2025 up to 40% of all men and half of all women could be infected
  • HPV infection is the cause of cervical cancer in vast majority of cervical cancer cases

These are sobering statistics.  

STDs are hidden and they can lead to life-long suffering, infertility, cancer and death. 

We can see that in addition to spiritual implications there are severe physical consequences of sexual immorality.  The Word of God defines sexual immorality as any sexual behavior outside of marriage, physical AND non-physical.  Not only does God want us to have eternal life by being obedient to this Word, but He is looking out for our well-being in this earthly life as well.

Consider the following stern warning by apostle Paul:

1 Corinthians 6:18 “Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a person commits are outside the body, but whoever sins sexually, sins against their own body.”

Jul 4 2013

Five Questions Christians in American Society Should Ponder

In light of the recent Supreme Court decision which made the Defense of Marriage Act unconstitutional, Christians have reason to be worried.  Justice Kennedy was loud and clear when he wrote that the only possible motive to be against gay marriage is hatred.  That was codified talk by Kennedy targeting Christians as a hateful group.

Delight in Truth feels this will become the underlying motive for hate-speech legislation in our country in the near future.

We must start to really think about these 5 issues as presented by Todd Friel on his show:

1. Will churches lose their tax exempt status because they believe what the Bible teaches about homosexual sin?

2. Will pastors be forced to officiate same-sex marriage against orthodox interpretation of the Bible?

3. Will Christian schools be forced to endorse the progressive agenda or lose accreditation?

4. Will pastors be able to counsel persons struggling with homosexual desires and tell them that such lifestyle is sinful?

5. Will parents be able to tell their children that homosexuality is a sin?

I predict we will see lawsuits against churches claiming discrimination because gay church members will not be given pulpit time or worship leading roles.  It has already happened at Mariner’s church in Irvine, CA when the church fired their gay choir director when he came out of the closet.  After a 6 year legal battle the church won the case.  I foresee many churches losing these types of lawsuits in the future based on discrimination and hate speech laws.

I write about these things because the Church needs to prepare for these events.  We must continue to press forward, make the Gospel our number one mission, and pray that the Holy Spirit will change the lives we touch.

Jul 3 2013

Rick Warren on Homosexuality… Again

Double-speak and incomplete gospel statements have become the norm for the best-selling author and star pastor Rick Warren.

This post is not about the sin of homosexuality, but it is about pastor Warren and the false gospel he affirmed in the strongest terms to date.

Let us look at his statements in context.  The following is part of a recent interview with the Huffington post.

“I have many, many gay friends, and have worked around the world with them in gay organizations to try to stop AIDS,” Warren said.

“What about the love part, though? I hear about the AIDS part,” asked the interviewer.

“It’s not illegal to love somebody,” Warren replied.

“But you think it’s a sin,” the interviewer said.

“No, it’s not a sin to love somebody,” Warren said.

“It might be a sin to have sex with them,” he added. “It might be.”

Then Warren was asked if homosexual people will go to hell.

“No, not because they’re gay,” he said. “We go to Hell because we choose to reject the grace of God.”

When asked what happens to a homosexual that accepts Jesus, Warren responded enthusiastically.

“He’s going to Heaven!” he declared. “Without a doubt.”

In the strongest terms to date Warren has appeased the LGBT community (even though they will still not be happy with a half endorsement).  The Bible clearly says that “If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination.” (Lev 20:13).  In the context of homosexuality Warren tells us that it ONLY “might be a sin.”

The Bible tells us in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 “Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals… will inherit the kingdom of God.” Warren tells us the opposite, that is such people ‘without a doubt‘ will go to heaven.

This is a half truth which will derail the salvation of many. Satan told Adam and Eve a half truth as well and we are now reaping the results of their actions.

Rick Warren does not have the fortitude to deliver a complete gospel message, which makes it a false gospel .

The full gospel message in this situation is that a gay person can be saved and go heaven without a doubt if he/she repents of the sin of homosexuality including the homosexual lifestyle, and puts their trust in Christ for delivery from this (and any other) sinful passion.  This applies to any sinner bound in the chains of darkness not just the homosexual.

When will Rick Warren stop preaching a false gospel to the lost?

Jul 1 2013

Ten Bible Verses Against Sexual Immorality

Deuteronomy 23:17-18 “None of the daughters of Israel shall be a cult prostitute, and none of the sons of Israel shall be a cult prostitute.

2 Kings 23:7 And he broke down the houses of the male cult prostitutes who were in the house of the LORD, where the women wove hangings for the Asherah (Josiah’s reforms)

1 Corinthians 10:8 We must not indulge in sexual immorality as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in a single day.

Jude 1:7 Just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding cities, which likewise indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural desire, serve as an example by undergoing a punishment of eternal fire

Isaiah 3:9 For the look on their faces bears witness against them; they proclaim their sin like Sodom; they do not hide it

Romans 1:24-27 …God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.

Ephesians 5:3 But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints.

Matthew 5:32 But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery

Mark 9:42 “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea”

Exodus 20:14 You shall not commit adultery