Ed Link III

Thoughts on the journey with God we call life.

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Christianity: Reduced to Platitudes

Christianity: Reduced to Platitudes

Christianity has a rich history – not all good, but far from all bad. As a belief system or religion it has caused its share of atrocities (most have). Honestly, most people would be shocked to find out that very essence of Christianity is love. They might have heard it before: “God is love” or “Jesus loves you” or (the worst ever) “I love you in the Lord.” A platitude is a trite, meaningless,…

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The Kingdom of God is Like...

The Kingdom of God is Like…

Jesus was always talking about the Kingdom, usually in parables. And, honestly, a lot of those references are lost on modern day Americans. He’d talk about farming, fishing, or operating a vineyard to drop huge culture bombs on his listeners. Meanwhile, I’m over here like, “Can you relate the Kingdom to how a computer network functions?” If you’re uncomfortable or unfamiliar with the term…

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Where Is Your God Now?

Where Is Your God Now?

In a time of political unrest, it does not surprise me that so many are questioning their faith, or, rather, having their faith questioned for them. Honestly, it doesn’t surprise me because of what so many have put their faith in. This post is (as is most of my writing) directly directed at those identifying as “Christian.” Far to many bible-believing church-goers are finding themselves…

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Deep Rush In

Deep Rush In - What my bout with depression feels like

I’m lost…Drifting, floating. I know where you are,But I can’t find you…You never left me. Sinking, plunging. If I’d seek, I’d find you.If I called your name, you’d be there. But I’m lost…Alone, terrified. Screaming. Never for you;I don’t know why. I need you. Weight on my chest,Suffocating;I can’t make myself call your name. I look anywhere, everywhere,But never where I know you…

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Complexity of Theology

Complexity of Theology -- Most christians have no interest in learning theology. It sounds boring and looks complex. This is intentional... It's much easier to indoctrinate them.

How complex does theology need to be to be effective? Most clergy spend a minimum of four years in higher education to get a degree so that they can fulfill their calling. From my experience (as well as experiences of others), most of the theological lessons that are learned while attending college/university are strictly used to make sure everyone attending thinks of God in the exact same manner…

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Pronouns of God God is neither male nor female, but possesses traits, characteristics, and attributes, both masculine and feminine simultaneously.

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The Fallacy of “Going to Church”

The Fallacy of “Going to Church”

  You go to church every Sunday. You clap when you’re supposed to, bow your head when you’re supposed to, even stand and sit when you’re supposed to. Then you leave, probably to go out to eat and talk about people that either were or were not there.

The worship team put at least a few hours each into learning new music and/or practicing their instruments – the worship leader, even more.

The…

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The Law vs Christianity

The Law vs Christianity

In my quest to understand the division of the Old Covenant Law and the New Covenant, I have ran into opposition along the way. I have people accusing me of preaching “greasy” grace (or some other silly way of making grace seem like a negative). But the thing is, that once you start to learn about covenants (in general) the way they were used in the culture of biblical times, and understand the…

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Afterlife Insurance

The humans are suffocating! But, instead of helping them breathe, we're selling them afterlife insurance.

One of the major problems with christianity (in general) in America is that there seems to be a constant need to preach the afterlife to folks who are drowning in this life. What’s worse is that we know they’re drowning. We can see them drowning. Yet, instead of a life preserver, we offer them a drink of water!

People are struggling with real stuff. Their lives are messy. They are over worked and…

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What The Hell?

One thing that is certainly true is that we build up an image of god in our minds (mostly based on ourselves), then we become like that god. Our theologies are all rooted in who we are – our fears and insecurities. This is one of the many reasons I have a problem with the eternal destination known as Hell — especially as it has been presented to me most of my life.

Using the above model, we see…

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Why I’m A Single-Commandment, New Covenant Christian

New Blog Post: Why I’m A Single-Commandment, New Covenant Christian

Jesus (a first-century Jew under the Old Covenant Law), was once asked by a Jewish Law expert, “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” Jesus proceeded to tell him, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the…

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Servant of All

True love, God's love(agape), is demonstrated through self-sacrificial service... Yet, congregants will leave a church just to go to another where they don't have to do anything, where no one is asking them to pitch in or lend a hand.

I talk about and post about being a servant, especially in terms of Christianity and the Church. I say things like, “True love, God’s love (agape), is demonstrated through self-sacrificial service.” Jesus said the greatest in the Kingdom is the servant of all. In the book of Isaiah, there is a prophecy of Jesus, referring to Him as the Suffering Servant.

Servant-ship is essential to Christianity!

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Matthew on my Mind

The book of Matthew is on my mind this morning, mostly because I started working through the Sermon on the Mount with my theology/bible study group this week.

The book of Matthew is on my mind this morning, mostly because I started working through the Sermon on the Mount with my theology/bible study group this week. When I pointed out that in the book of Matthew, the term “Kingdom of Heaven” is used instead of “Kingdom of God” as it is in the other Gospels, they were all like, “Oh, yeah. I guess it is…”

So then I explained why he did that, and it…

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Religious Rituals

New blog post: "Religious Rituals" looks at what we do to connect with God and why.

I have been seeing “religious rituals” in a different light recently. I follow quite a few people on Twitter who are of a different denomination than I am. I have come to find out that Lutheran and Eastern Orthodox have just as many rituals as Catholics do – and I have come to realize that those religious rituals are not all bad (as I used to think).

I was always taught that these things were not…

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Religious Freedom

A brief editorial on what "Religious Freedom" is and is not.

It’s pretty sad that “Religious Freedom” has become an idol in this country. (I would call it ironic, but you’re free to worship what you want.) That being said, I don’t think the majority of Christian Americans really want religious freedom – they really only care that their personal brand of Christianity is free.

“I don’t think it means what you think it means.” ~Inigo Montoya

Ask yourself…

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Tweet-spiration (From My Muse)

Tweet-spiration (From My Muse)

It seems I have found my muse… A mega-church pastor I often hear in radio spots (and whom I now follow on Twitter) is giving me inspiration. He is extremely evangelical and really religious (despite his claims of not being religious). (The term religious used here meaning doing things to earn favor with God.) Such religiosity can be seen in the following quoted tweet:

Our prize is the crown of…

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Roller Rink Observations

Earlier today, we took our kids to their first roller skating birthday party. Neither of them had ever been on skates before we got there. One thing I thought was pretty interesting (since the last time I had been there, a mere 24 years ago) was the “Skate Buddies,” which were essentially a walker (but on wheels) for little ones learning to skate. The place really hasn’t changed since I was a…

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