Should Atheists Give Thanks?

A few years ago, as Thanksgiving was approaching, I began to wonder if an atheist could really celebrate the holiday and be consistant with his/her worldview. Feelings of gratitude and thankfulness are emotions that all humans experience. Whether it be for gifts received, a job, a home, family and friends, there are many things in life for which we are and should be grateful.

For the Christian, gratitude and thankfulness is expressed to God. Scripture teaches us that "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change." (James 1:17 ESV) We know that there is nothing that we have that God has not granted us by his grace. Every breath we take is granted to us by God and it is "in him all things hold together." (Col. 1:17) Paul commands Christians to "give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." (1 Thes. 5:18) Thankfulness is not only something that we naturally feel inclined toward, but it is a command that we should obey. Thanksgiving seems to be a natural holiday for Christians to celebrate. We can enjoy family and be grateful for all that with which God has blessed us. Above all, we give thanks because we have been given the greatest gift of all, life in Jesus Christ. However, if this is the case for the Christian, what does this mean for the atheist?

The atheist worldview is Darwinism--survival of the fittest and natural selection. The atheist believes that the world came from nothing and humanity has survived by its own efforts and adaptation to the surrounding world. The Darwinistic worlview is one which looks inward--claiming to be self-sufficient and self-reliant. If the atheist lives within the confines of his worldview, he cannot and should not give thanks for anything. For all that he has was something acheived by his own hands and work. If he has a job, it was his effort, his intelligence, and his self-motivation that got him there; all things that he did. If he has a home, it is because he worked hard and saved and built that home. Family? For the atheist, a spouse, parents, and children are just natural out-workings of biology. If he has good parents, it was just chance. If he has healthy children, it was just the luck of the draw. A consistent atheistic worldview allows  no room for gratitude or thankfulness.

Why then do atheists work so hard to have Christmas removed from the public square and simply accept and celebrate Thanksgiving? For the Christian, Thanksgiving is natural and special. However, for the atheist, Thanksgiving should be just as offensive as Christmas. Thanksgiving flies in the face of all that the humanistic, Darwinistic, atheist says he believes. Tomorrow, if the atheist feels grateful, he must ask himself why. The answer is found in Romans 1:

"For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world,7 in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. 21 For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.

24 Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves,25 because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen." (Romans 1:19-25)

To the atheist who is celebrating Thanksgiving, you are right to do so. Not because your worldview allows you to, but because God Almighty has granted you another day. As you war against him and his people, he grants you mercy and lovingly offers you eternal life. Repent, believe, and give thanks.

Is Jesus Enough?

In light of the political climate and the continual denial of Christian values in the public square, I see a necessity for the leaders in our churches to be "real" with our congregations about the weight of our relationship with Christ.

Here are just a few thoughts I shared this morning with our congregation:

Jesus is all in all. He is the goal of our salvation and He is the prize. It is Him we should cherish above all else. Our savlation is not simply: heaven or hell. The culmination of our salvation is the worship and glory of the Father through His Son. 

In light of that fact, I ask you this morning, do you love Jesus for what he gives you or because he's Jesus?

If you love Jesus for what He gives, you will walk away from him; because if it hasn't already happened to you, someday your faith will be tested.

After years of waiting, Abraham finally gets the son God had promised him. Can you imagine the joy and hope that came with the birth of Isaac. Abraham finally had the son that would lead to a blessing of the nations. His faith in God was now stronger than it had ever been. He must have been the happiest man on the planet. I can imagine he and Sarah rejoicing together as little Isaac took his first steps and the jubilation they felt when he spoke his first words. Abraham spent years raising this child for whom he had waited so long, teaching him to hunt, gather, and provide for his own family some day. 

 Then the unthinkable happened, God told Abraham to kill him. The son that had long been promised to Abraham. The son through whom a great nation would be born. This son, God commanded be put to death. How could this be? Why would God ask such a hard thing of Abraham? These are the types of questions we would ask. Abraham, however, did not. We read of his reaction in Genesis 22:3-5, "So Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and his son Isaac...Then Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey; I and the boy will go over there and worship and come again to you.”

Abraham not only obeyed God's command, he referred to this sacrifice as worship! The question that rises in our minds is "Why?" It is because Abraham didn't love God for what he gave him, but for who He is! 

That I know of, God hasn't asked you to kill your own son. But He has promised that those who love Him will be tested and tried. My question for you is how will you pray when you lose your job? What will you say of Him when you lose your house? How loud will you sing to God when you lose your spouse to cancer? How good does God seem when your child dies in a theater looking down the barrel of a gun?  

Friend if Jesus is not your treasure, if He is not enough, you do not know the God of the Scripture. If you look to Christ for what He gives you, you have a god that has been made up by wicked men who, under the influence of the Enemy, have sold you a lie! If you love Jesus for what He gives you, you will question, if not deny, His goodness, His love, and your faith.

But if you love Jesus for who He is, you will pray to a Father who provides for the smallest sparrow when you lose your job. You will worship the One who owns cattle on a thousand hills when your house is taken. When Jesus is your treasure, you can still sing of his loving kindness when you lose your spouse to disease. And when your child is shot in cold blood you can cry out with the Psalmist "Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever." (Psalm 73:25-26)

May Jesus be your all-consuming pursuit and your magificent obsession.

The Chick Fil A (Non) Scandal

I'm sure everyone is now tired of hearing about the Chick-fil-a (non) scandal that has erupted in the last few days. The reason I say it is a non-scandal is because it is. This story has been driven by the liberals in the media. Traditional, everyday Americans do not see any scandal in traditional marriage or in the fact that a Christian believes in traditional marriage. Here are some thoughts I shared on Facebook today: 

First of all, Dan Cathy didn't just come out one day and share his beliefs about marriage. The reporter asked him about his stance. This is a trend in the liberal media when Christians are on the news (i.e. Kirk Cameron, Joel Osteen, John MacArthur, etc) Everyone knows that Christians, who believe the Bible is inerrant and authoritative, hold to a Biblical view of marriage, but the media insists on asking every Christian they can about the subject so they can then "flog" them in the public square. Also, for the liberals, screaming that Christians should just keep their personal beliefs to themselves - tell that to every Hollywood elitist that tells us everything from what to eat to the cars we should drive. 

Second, Dan Cathy never said he hates gays or wished ill upon them. In fact, he didn't even mention gay marriage. He answered in only a positive manner. He said that his family holds to a traditional, Biblical view of marriage. Quoting from an article by Hunter Schwarz on Mediaite.com: 

“We are very much supportive of the family — the biblical definition of the family unit,” he said. “We are a family-owned business, a family-led business, and we are married to our first wives. We give God thanks for that.”

Cathy is president of a company that believe “in the importance of loving your neighbor as yourself.” “While my family and I believe in the Biblical definition of marriage, we love and respect anyone who disagrees,” he said.

Third, Chickfila gives money to pro-family organizations. In no way is that harmful to gay people. All of Hollywood is giving money to pro-gay organizations but Christians aren't boycotting movies. 

Fourth, I worked for Chickfila, twice. it is a great company that treats their employees and customers well! Their purpose statement begins with "To glorify God.." People know this business is owned by Christians who are unashamed of their beliefs and the God they serve. Are people really surprised by Dan Cathy's answer? No they're not. Again, it is a far left-wing fringe of the culture trying to stir up a controversy where there was no controversy. 

Lastly, people have allowed the media to blow this story up. There is no controversy here. There is only intolerance on the part of those whose mantra is tolerance. Christians are expected to "tolerate" gay marriage, homosexuality, atheism, evolution taught in school as fact (not theory), yet the left cannot tolerate Christians believing the Bible. Really?! Have we even recognized that many Muslim and Jewish business owners would share the same marriage view as Dan Cathy? They just haven't been asked the question by a "journalist" (I use that term lightly) because the liberal media in this country is focused on tearing down Christianity in any way they can. Let's not be "dooped" here. 

Here are a couple of links to articles that I thought to be helpful in thinking through this: 

-In Defense of Eating at Chickfila

-Two Persistent Lies About Chickfila in the Press

welcome.

My name is Jarrod Manning. I am a follower of Christ, the Pastor of Music & Media at Crossroads Baptist Church in Elizabethtown, KY, and a student at Southern Seminary in Louisville, KY.

I have several purposes for this blog: 

First, I wanted a place to share my thoughts on life in ministry. As a student in seminary, I have benefited greatly from blogs of pastors and church leaders. Now that I am serving a church as a pastor, I want to use this blog to share things that I learn along the way as well as resources that I find that could help others. 

Second, I am a cultural and political "junkie." I love the news. (I know...nerd) I also like to run everything I hear and see in culture and politics through a biblical filter and figure out how to respond to culture and politics in a biblical way. In light of this, I will be sharing some of my thoughts on culture and politics. 

Lastly, I love graphic design. My first year of college I started getting into designing things on my computer. I'm not the best, but I do enjoy sharing what I do with others. Therefore, I will be posting things I design on the "Graphics" page. Mostly there will be wallpapers to download for computers. But occasionally, I will post some things I'm working on just for fun. 

It is my hope that this blog is helpful and encouraging to all who stop by.

By His Grace,

Jarrod