Emergence

I'm pretty biased, admittedly, but I think Ry's Mother's Day message was one of the best I've heard. When you get to hear sermons multiple times every Sunday, you have the right to critique pretty honestly, I think. The good thing is Ryan and I have pretty honest dialogue normally anyhow, so it isn't rare to hear from each other areas where we dropped the ball or missed the mark. We also can tell each other when it was a job well done. Ry, It was good.

OK... enough sunshine and unicorns.

One thing that Ryan talked about today was the issue of depravity of mankind--how none of us need to be taught how to do sinful things. The Bible says we are sinful from birth. 

The rest of the world has convinced itself that babies are born into this world as one of two things: Good--and are later corrupted through environment, or Neutral--a blank slate that has equal capacity to choose good or evil.

Psalm 51 is very clear about God's point of view:

"Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me."

Pretty clear, right?

Most of the world, however, does not view the Bible as the source of wisdom. Their loss. As a result, scientists, psychologists, and others are usually playing catch-up to the truth that has been present all along.

Case in point, I got home tonight, pulled up the news of the day (since I've been in my Emergence bubble for the past 14 hours) and came across this story.

From the first paragraphs of the article:

"At the age of six months babies can barely sit up - let along take their first tottering steps, crawl or talk.

But, according to psychologists, they have already developed a sense of moral code - and can tell the difference between good and evil.

An astonishing series of experiments is challenging the views of many psychologists and social scientists that human beings are born as 'blank slates' - and that our morality is shaped by our parents and experiences."

Pretty apropos timing, no?

There's a lot more good stuff in there, too--maybe it's all true? :)

Ryan mentioned it today, but if you're a college student, and you'd like to meet other college students at Emergence this summer, or just learn some practical, biblical wisdom while home from school, keep your eyes peeled for what we're calling an "equipping community" focused on Proverbs--info will be available soon.