Institute of Biblical Defense

Originally posted by IBD Vice President Matt Coombe on mjcoombe.com

In the mist of my morning studies as I was reading a book concerning the resurrection of Christ I realized how Christian view of Christ (and more importantly Christ himself) has not waivered for 2,000 years. The early followers of the resurrected Christ were put to death and tortured because they would not cry “Caesar is LORD” but rather maintain, “Jesus is LORD.” For the initial 250 years of Christianity two things were certain, the Christians would not think of Christ as anything else other then God, and they were willing to die for this belief.

Some early disputes arose concerning the deity of Christ and the bodily resurrection of Him among early believers but they were quickly refuted by eye witness accounts. As latter disputes arose, once the eye witnesses were dead, the apostolic fathers (the disciples of the disciples) were likewise easily able to refute claims that Jesus was not God.

For the most part, views concerning Christ were in no way refuted with any source of evidence until the turn of the 18th century when German Higher criticism arouse.  I am not going to respond to this now, because I don’t have space though, I do have a lecture on the subject on www.sermonaudio.com. From this, people had a new criticism, Jesus was not who He claimed to be. This view was met with a barrage of responses, but none better the simplistic response of the logician C.S Lewis, who singled the argument to, Jesus was either a liar, a lunatic, or LORD. The attacks on Jesus ceased.

The attacks moved from Jesus to the people that wrote about Him, the apostles. They had turned him into an unwilling icon of their religious revolution. Jesus never claimed to be God. So the responses turned to the apostles as well, “if the first 250 years were marked by disciples for dying for the refusal of calling Christ anything other then God, then the question remains, ‘do people die for what they know to be a lie.”

Running out of cards to play, the criticisms returned to Jesus, “He never really existed.” By far the most laughable of all the claims, because there is neither any evidence to support this and not one scholar who is dedicated to first century history holds to it.
Attacks have come and gone for the last 2,000 years and the Christian response has yet to change, “Jesus is LORD.” And we back this up not with a fist but with words. We eagerly anticipate the next objection so that we can refute that as well!

Originally posted on mjcoombe.com

by Matthew Coombe Vice President of the Institute of Biblical Defense

There is a difference between sleep and rest. You can easily be rested but not have sleep. Further you can sleep but not feel rested. While a healthy body requires both of these factors to flourish, there is something else that the human requires. She requires a “rest” that does not come about through sleep or from relaxing sore muscles and bones. This rest is found in complete surrender and trust in the LORD. This is true rest. Augustine said it quite perfectly; “You stir men to take pleasure in praising you for you have made us for yourself. Our hearts are restless oh Lord, until they rest in you.”

It is with great hesitation I write about this, not because the concept lacks veracity but rather because it has been so badly abused. People consider God to be nothing more then a missing piece to what is lacking in their life and come to Him solely to fill some void. And while God does fill our voids our need for Him must be established on nothing else but justification by faith. Our initial communication to God is nothing less then a cry for help, which results in being declared righteous by faith. Once this has been established God is able to purify the believer and consequently fill in voids. For just as Paul said, “Therefore, having been justified by faith we have peace with God, through Jesus Christ our LORD.” Justification first, peace second.

Once one has been transformed through faith by grace she has finally been put in a position to experience true rest, true peace. So then is such peace assured? Absolutely not, for while it is within the grasp of believers so few submit themselves enough to taste of such relaxation. Just as the Psalmist in 131 begs, “Oh LORD my heart is not lifted up, my eyes are not raised to high for thee, I do not think of things to high and marvelous or things to difficult for me. But I have calmed and quieted my soul like a weaned child with its mother, like a weaned child is my soul within me.” David claims that once a man clings to the LORD not from need but desire he will experience the bliss of a weaned child with his mother.

Happy is he who trusts in the LORD. Happy is he who leans on Him not from need but desire. Happy is he who understands, “I desire obedience not sacrifice.” Trust in the LORD from this day and for-ever.

Here’s the latest from Dr. Fernandes:

Dr. Fernandes’ new book “The Atheist Delusion: A Christian Response to Christopher Hitchens and Richard Dawkins” will be available in about a month through amazon.com and Xulon Press. You do not want to miss this!

Also, check out the latest episode of The Christian World View: the nonfiction writings of C. S. Lewis. This great discussion between Dr. Fernandes’ and Matt Coombe has been downloaded over 1,000 times in less than a week.

For those of you who enjoy Christian Radio, Dr. Fernandes will be interviewed on the David Drui show on KGNW in the near future. The program will be recorded on April 7th, but the airing of the program is yet to be determined.

Lastly, it’s good news for us Seattle residents, Dr. Fernandes has two new speaking engagements. Both are exciting events with much to offer the seasoned or amature apologist. Check out the events in the bar to the right.

It’s time to update you on the latest in Sermon Audio fun. Matt Coombe continues his Spiritual Disciplines series with “Spiritual Disciplines Part 5: Silence“. Here the IBD vice president leads us into a land most of us are unfamiliar with: The land of silence.

Find Some Silence Everyday

With all the noise and chatter that bombard us everyday, many of us have lost track of God. We’re so distracted by music, video, phones, and other people that we never stop to consider ourselves or our lives. We listen to everything else but God Himself.

Mr. Coombe illustrates this point by asking how many are afraid when it’s time for bed. Not afraid of the dark or of sleep but of the moments of silence before the darkness overtakes us. When we are left alone with just our thoughts, do they haunt us with guilt, shame, or remorse? This is God speaking and giving you the opportunity to repent and make the right decision before the day is finally done.

It’s a great listen as Matt explains the difference between inner and outer silence as well as the importance of each. Don’t miss out.

Of course, a week would not be complete without a new episode of The Christian Worldview. In a mere hour Mr. Coombe and Dr. Fernandes flesh out the Creation / Evolution debate. They cover the most controversial topics and answer the challenging questions. This is a must if you’re curious about the controversy and want a clear, concise and straight-forward review of the main issues with the Christian answer to each.

I thoroughly enjoyed both of these and I hope you are encouraged not only in your faith, but also in your zeal to seek after God.

Apparently. IBD vice president and professor Matt J Coombe has admitted talking to himself on a regular basis. He even went so far as to admit that sometimes it turns into a conversation between alter egos or separate personalities, each residing only in Matt’s head. What a wild and unexpected discovery!

So, what are they discussing? Being Matt Coombe, the alter egos are found reasoning amongst themselves, often appearing to form a round-table discussion, exploring some spiritual truth or personal insight. Well, at least they’re seeking after God.

Oh, I should mention that for those close to him, this isn’t something well hidden. Everybody knows about it. His girlfriend talks about it. Not even his writing is immune, sometimes forming into more of a script than an essay. What is going on?

If you’re curious, take a listen to this weeks installment of the spiritual disciplines series, “Spiritual Disciplines part 4: Journaling“. Matt explains his own inner workings while enlightening you to how he has grown so strong in the Lord. Through anecdote and testimony, scripture and insight, Matt carries you through the process of the “lost art of journaling”.

Some of you probably didn’t even know journaling was a spiritual discipline. According to Mr. Coombe, your journal is the most important spiritual resource you have outside of the Word of God itself. Find out in this week’s installment.

But wait, there’s more! Enjoying “The Christian World View” show? There’s another great episode just waiting for you. The title of this week’s show is: “Classical Thought – Modern Day.”

Here, Matt Coombe interviews Dr. Fernandes while they explore the great philosophers of the infamous Medeval period of world history. It wasn’t quite as dark as many of us think. Some of the greatest works of Christian thought came out of this period. Get it, put in on the iPod, and enjoy!

Lastly, I’ve been told that the institute is turning out another work, “The Atheist Delusion.” An obvious take-off of Dr. Dawkins famous “The God Delusion” I’m certain it’ll be a fun and interesting read. More on that as it comes.

So many blessings, so little room on the iPod.