Existence of God proven

The old version of proof for God's existence is the analogy of wind. You cannot see the wind, but you believe in it. This argument can hold up for some time, but eventually the other party will realize the apparent flaw in the analogy. Though you cannot see the wind, you can still experience it via touch. It is experienced by a sense. They would say that you cannot draw the analogy because a person cannot experience God by a sense (sight, taste, touch, hearing, smelling). I have thought about this for a while and thought of an argument to the opposing side's argument.

Man was created in God's image. That is one belief that is nearly a fundamental in the Christian world. The hard part is figuring out what it means. I have heard it said that we have emotion, and that separates us from the animal kingdom. The problem is, that animals also experience emotion. You know when your dog or cat is angry, scared, or happy. Science has even observed what seems to be "love" in chimps. Therefore, I do not believe that emotion is the quality that makes man an image bearer of the creator. What separates man from the animal kingdom is passion (worship), and unpredictable will.

If emotion is not a spiritual, image bearer act (though it can be fueled spiritually), it must be a physical phenomena. No doubt our emotions are light-years ahead of any other animal, but they still have their roots in the brain for the use of primal protection.

If a person is experiencing great trial in his life, he will be distraught. If his wife left him, he lost his job, and his home, it would seem that all hope is lost. But when that man has the emotion that everything is going to be all right, we call that 'God.' It is a spiritual, miraculous intervention from God Himself in the physical aspect of emotion. There is no way to disprove that it happened if it is a personal experience by the man.

Thus, God is experienced by the physical realm.

Psalm 119, Beth.

In my pastoral ministries classes, I have been given the task of finding something wrong with me, and making it right. The process is what Dr. Ayers calls, "character contract." This semester, I have decided to focus on purity. Now, purity does not simply mean sexual purity. Purity means freedom from sin's contamination. But for me, I do want the emphasis of my purity to be in the sexual area, because I am engaged, and would like to get married without bringing baggage into our new life. The first assignment I chose for myself was to write three-point sermon on the topic of purity. Enjoy.

One day, I decided I was going to read the Bible. I quickly flipped to the Psalms, because I often overlook them. I generally avoid them, because I enjoy logical arguments--something for which Psalms is not exactly known. Ironically on many levels, my Bible flipped open to Psalms 119:9, which is the section of Beth, the second letter of the Hebrew alphabet. The section starts out with a question, "How can a young man keep his way pure?"

I recognized a three-step process presented by the Psalmist.

In verses 9-11, David instructs the young man to learn scripture; to seek after the truth in it with all force and diligence.

In verses 12-14, David speaks of praise. The praise is done by simply singing God's grace, or even teaching others the amazing love in the Law. If David can rejoice reading Leviticus, what excuse do we have for not praising?

Finally he concludes with verses 15-16. These verses speak of meditation. It is meditation on the Word that truly uploads the livability into our lives.

When the steps are completed, the result is purity.