QC session and carolling rehearsal (10/12/16)
We met in Shaun and Wen Ai's place today.
As I said, we had a rather morbid QC session where Selwyn shared his recent apparently paranormal experiences (phones ringing after office hours, objects on tables moving) in his office. We discussed briefly what the Bible taught about 'ghosts'. There is the story of the witch of Endor in 1 Sa 28 when the spirit of the departed Samuel seemed to appear to Saul. Some think that God would not have allowed the repose of a godly man to be troubled by being summonable by someone practicing forbidden magical arts. I personally think that God allowed this encounter specifically to pass judgement on Saul.
In Matt 14:26 and Mark 6.49 the disciples think that Jesus was a 'ghost' ('phantasma'). But we are told no more about this, and we are left to surmise that there was certainly a belief in ghosts, but not taught anything about their nature. Given that people die and afterwards face judgement (Heb 9:27), it seems wrong that the restless spirits of the departed would then be still present to trouble the living. The incident where Peter was unexpectedly released from prison (Ac 15) records the praying Christians thinking that Peter was his 'angel' - perhaps Peter's personal angel that looked like him and had been sent to them. We could mention Jesus' post-resurrection appearances ("A ghost does not have flesh and bones as I do" (Lk 24:39) and still remain puzzled about how Scripture understands ghosts.
We then talked about the the equally grim topic of crime and diminished responsibility of the insane. I said that God looked on the heart and judged intentions (Is 11:3, 1 Sa 16:7). Amelia raised the point in Mosaic law that allowed for a lesser punishment if harm was done unintentionally (Dt 19). We observed that all sin is genetic and that tendencies to sin do not excuse us for moral responsibility (whether we are sociopathic or homosexual or kleptomaniac).
Finally, Selwyn shared how often God's discipline is a mark of grace (Heb 12:5-13). In suffering God gives the world what it justly deserves, but he turns suffering into the good and glorious aim of changing us into the image of his Son. That makes His discipline towards us an undeserved work of grace.
After supper we were stuck in the lift for 15 minutes on the way home, making silly jokes to pass the time :D
As I said, we had a rather morbid QC session where Selwyn shared his recent apparently paranormal experiences (phones ringing after office hours, objects on tables moving) in his office. We discussed briefly what the Bible taught about 'ghosts'. There is the story of the witch of Endor in 1 Sa 28 when the spirit of the departed Samuel seemed to appear to Saul. Some think that God would not have allowed the repose of a godly man to be troubled by being summonable by someone practicing forbidden magical arts. I personally think that God allowed this encounter specifically to pass judgement on Saul.
In Matt 14:26 and Mark 6.49 the disciples think that Jesus was a 'ghost' ('phantasma'). But we are told no more about this, and we are left to surmise that there was certainly a belief in ghosts, but not taught anything about their nature. Given that people die and afterwards face judgement (Heb 9:27), it seems wrong that the restless spirits of the departed would then be still present to trouble the living. The incident where Peter was unexpectedly released from prison (Ac 15) records the praying Christians thinking that Peter was his 'angel' - perhaps Peter's personal angel that looked like him and had been sent to them. We could mention Jesus' post-resurrection appearances ("A ghost does not have flesh and bones as I do" (Lk 24:39) and still remain puzzled about how Scripture understands ghosts.
We then talked about the the equally grim topic of crime and diminished responsibility of the insane. I said that God looked on the heart and judged intentions (Is 11:3, 1 Sa 16:7). Amelia raised the point in Mosaic law that allowed for a lesser punishment if harm was done unintentionally (Dt 19). We observed that all sin is genetic and that tendencies to sin do not excuse us for moral responsibility (whether we are sociopathic or homosexual or kleptomaniac).
Finally, Selwyn shared how often God's discipline is a mark of grace (Heb 12:5-13). In suffering God gives the world what it justly deserves, but he turns suffering into the good and glorious aim of changing us into the image of his Son. That makes His discipline towards us an undeserved work of grace.
After supper we were stuck in the lift for 15 minutes on the way home, making silly jokes to pass the time :D
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