The Provoked Apologist

  Introduction Today was like any other day. I woke up, got dressed, sauntered into my kitchen. Having arrived at my destination, I then opened my pantry, pulled out a coffee filter, turned my coffee grinder on. I then checked every box in the "making coffee" to-do list. Then I hit the power button, moved over to my couch, about 6 steps, sat down, and waited.  I went about my usual routine, watch some cooking videos, check out my favorite youtube channels, then came the ever so delightful "beep-beep-beep." My coffee was perked and ready to drink. I got up off my couch and poured myself some of that coveted java, then went and sat in the same spot on my couch.  I then went about my next routine. I still looked at some youtube videos, then sauntered into my Bible reading. I've been reading through a Bible in a year plan, and I'm currently in Ezekiel. This was a great time; it felt as though scripture was jumping off the page. I was finding connections between ...

 Well, here we are, my first blog post in this series. Before we get into the issue at hand, I just want to say that this isn't my way of bashing any particular movement. This post is intended to correct an incorrect interpretation/application of scripture. So, without further explanation, here is the post: " “If you are a Christian, and can’t hear #BlackLivesMatter without feeling the need to respond with a criticism that “All Live Matter.” then crack open your Bible and hit up Luke 15. Don't have it handy? Let me summarize it for you. There are 100 sheep, but one goes missing. Jesus leaves the 99 and goes after the one. The 99: But… what about us? Don’t we matter? Of course the 99 still matter, but they’re not the ones in danger The one is.  I’ll say it again, #BlackLivesMatter (Jared Price) ” What is the claim of the OP? Jesus is speaking directly to racial inequality. And this text points out that Jesus cares for the one that is in danger. More specifically, an oppress...

What About My Blog? So, it has been a lot of time in between my blog posts. I don’t think that it was noticed. Up until this point, I’ve been reassessing the purpose of my blog and the amount of work that I committed to it. I think that I will be taking a more relaxed approach and survey popular topics. For example, the discussion surrounding COVID-19, Black lives matter, possibly Wayfair, and other things that may hit mainstream media.  I’ve been motivated to do this for a few reasons: Because it is easier for me to respond to things instead of producing brand new material The internet has been full of ad-hominem on many of these issues The church has slowly been going from spiritual justice and righteousness to social justice and unrighteousness. Now, numbers two and three are blanket statements but are true in most church cultures. These posts won’t be an attack on specific churches, doctrines, or secondary issues. I want my blog to transition into a fair assessment of arguments...

Scripture: Mark 1:16-20 "Passing alongside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” And immediately they left their nets and followed him. And going on a little father, he saw Hames the son of Zebedee and John his brother, who were in their boat mending the nets. And immediately he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants and followed him.” Here we find, once again, the nature of Mark’s gospel, swiftly moving and bringing the essentials of the gospel forward. Here, we see very foundational truths for every Christian. We also find one of the greatest characteristics of Christ and His heart. They were fishermen So, imagine yourself minding your own business, working (I know it’s hard to imagine with this quarantine)  at your basic minimum wage job, barely getting by. Possibly ...

Scripture: Mark 1:14-15 "Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, ad saying, “the time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel”” Do you recall John the Baptist? The one that opened up the gospel of Mark? He had now served his purpose. Now, the nature of Mark's gospel is shown evidently here. Mark's aim was to give testimony of Jesus Christ in the fewest words possible. Here we see 3 things regarding the start of Christ's ministry.  John the Baptist had served his purpose There has been this resurgence in the church today, and I don’t think it’s for the better. We find more so today than before, people that preach a message that indicates that we must check some boxes on the “I can go to heaven if” list. For the sake of illustration, let’s look at the ministry of John the Baptist. His concern was never with “how much more can I do,” rather it was “this is all I must do.” For J...

Scripture: Mark 1:12-13 "The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. And he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. And he was with the wild animals, and the angels were ministering to him” This past week, I have been reflecting and thinking about being called into vocational ministry. From about 20 years old, I knew that I was going to be a pastor. At other points in my life, I had wanted to be a teacher in some capacity. I remember at one point that I wanted to be a gym teacher (but who doesn’t contemplate that at some point). I thought that it would be a great experience to work with teenagers and point them in the right direction (or something like that). Little did I realize that I would wind up pointing not only kids in the right direction but parents too. This isn’t something that is based around teaching good morals, if Christianity were to teach you about morals and how to live a good life, we would be a dead religion. Christianit...

In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. And a voice came from heaven "You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased." Originally I had planned to post this in January. However, since I am still fighting the thorn in my flesh of procrastination here, we are. Nevertheless, we shall continue with the gospel of Mark. Now, the gospel of Mark doesn't include the birth of Jesus or the exile that Mary and Joseph would embark on. Mark, as a gospel writer, is most known as the author that includes the most essential elements of the gospel that pertain to salvation. Not that any other account includes unnecessary parts of Jesus' ministry, instead it consists of the testimony of Christ being the sent one from God as prophesied in the Old Testament. Mark also testifies that the Son of God wou...