Suspicion

Got this song running through my head. "Suspicion torments my heart, Suspicion keeps us apart, Suspicion why torture me..." I get the feeling I am being set up. Again. I don't have enough to link it all together yet, but I am watching over my shoulder more. There are shadows moving where there should be none. But it is OK. I am ready. I will not hesitate to engage this time.

On a more theological front, I have four books sitting on my desk in front of me. Fortunately I have read through two of them and about half of the third. The first one so clicked with me that I wonder if others have just somehow missed all books similar to it, or they won't go there because it would tear out their foundation. It is titled "Are Men Born Sinners." The obvious answer, is of course, no. I realize that flies in the face of those who hold to the inbred sin line of thinking. But that is OK. That line of thinking has so many faults it makes the Pacific Rim of Fire seem like an elementary science project.

The second is titled "Doctrines That Divide" and addresses the central doctrines that Christian churches have adopted that do not promote unity but rather divide Christians. The third book is the book I have been referring to for the last 6 months that looks behind the scriptures of canon to the most ancient writings titled "How to read the Bible." Perhaps the deepest examination of ancient writings I have had in my hands.

The last one, and the only one not looked at other than the Introduction is titled "Reasonable Enthusiast." It is subtitled "John Wesley and the Rise of Methodism." I am anxious to get into it.The back cover begins this way, "This is the best and most comprehensive scholarly biography of John Wesley currently available." I am drawn to it because Wesley, while regarded as the father of the Methodist church, is also the underpinning of a number of churches including but not limited to the Nazarenes, several different groups calling themselves Church of God, Pilgrim Holiness, the Wesleyan Church, Heritage Wesleyan, United Methodists, Free Methodist, Mennonite and many more.

Wesley was all about salvation and sanctification, the fundamentals of holiness teachings. Many churches that claim to be Christian have phased out various parts of Wesleyan theology and with those actions created lives without the power of living holy. Leviticus 20.11 For I am the Lord your God that bringeth you up out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: ye shall therefore be holy, for I am holy. And in one of Peter’s letters in 1 Peter 1.16 he quotes the writer of Leviticus with “Because it is written, Be ye holy, for I am holy.” If it is not possible to live holy, the scriptures are a fraud. And if it is possible, then it must be a requirement of Christ's. I don't have the time tonight to get into the supporting scriptures for that. You can do your own homework. It is my opinion that not only is holiness desirable for Christians, the very word is described by holiness and is a necessary prerequisite for eternity in what we call heaven.

Problems? Read my friend. Read.