I wrote this article about 10 years ago. I’m surprised by its relevance today. We live in a time where many hold a pragmatic view of truth. As a result, it’s even more urgent for us to set a firm foundation for our faith by learning and using apologetics.
Read MoreWithin recent years a movement has been “emerging” within Christianity promising to repaint the Christian faith. The leaders of this movement depict modern Christianity as a rigid, dusty orthodoxy, filled with endless dogmas and doctrines. According to their perspective, true Christianity must be understood as fluid, changing, and being reworked to throw off the straitjacket of doctrines restricting its modern relevance. Among these doctrines being reworked is the Christian teaching of substitutionary atonement –the belief that Jesus died to pay humanity’s moral debt to God.
Read MoreDuring the mid-1800s, the state of Tennessee divided over the issue of slavery. Most of Western Tennessee sided with the Confederacy and wanted to separate from the Union.
On the other hand, people from Eastern Tennessee didn’t depend on farming and agriculture, since they lived in a mountainous area. Therefore, they didn’t rely as much on slave labor. Therefore, they supported the Union.
Following the Union surrender of Fort Sumter in 1861, Tennessee broke away from the Union. Immediately after Tennessee split from the Union, Eastern Tennessee petitioned to break away from Tennessee. But the state legislature denied their request to break off from the state of Tennessee and sent Confederate troops into Eastern Tennessee to prevent them from splintering.
So the Union supporters in Eastern Tennessee went underground. Many Eastern Tennesseans engaged in guerrilla warfare, burning bridges, cutting telegraph wires, spying for the North and supplying soldiers for the Union army. Eventually, Union troops liberated Tennessee from Confederate control in 1863.
In a lot of ways, we’re like the citizens of Eastern Tennessee. We live in a world that’s in a state of rebellion against God. The world questions the legitimacy of God’s authority to rule.
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