1)  Does beauty truly exist?

2)  Perhaps beauty is merely a feeling; an inner subjective experience; my impression of a perception . . . an emotion.  Perhaps beauty truly is in the eye of the beholder.  If this is the case, it is false to believe anything truly is beautiful.  When I look at the sunrise and exclaim in awe, “how beautiful!” I am merely expressing a feeling—I am communicating something private.  For the sunrise is not beautiful in any objective, concrete, sense; it is just an object within space and time.  Like all objects, it has no intrinsic value, no purpose, no meaning, it conforms to no pattern.  I, the observer, give it meaning . . .

3)  If beauty is simply a subjective experience, a feeling, then to speak of beauty is no different than to speak of indigestion.  In effect, the expression, “how beautiful,” is functionally equivalent to the expression, “my stomach hurts.”

4)   How wretched life would be if beauty did not exist!  I look at my wife, an angel, the radiance of the sun instantiated in human form . . . yet, this isn’t real.  The beauty of my wife is nothing but maya—an illusion.  In reality she is the endless shifting of atoms, the constant flux of matter and energy; as am I.  To say that my wife is beautiful is really to say that one shifting batch of atoms (my wife) collided with another shifting batch of atoms (my eyes) creating a chemical response in my brain and producing a particular emotion.  Her beauty is but one euphoric chemical reaction—an animal instinct, a sexual desire.

5)  In a world devoid of intrinsic value, beauty is degraded—it becomes something base.

6)   But surely beauty must exist!  Surely the sunrise is more than the endless shifting of atoms; more than the sense of awe engendered by a brute biochemical response to perception.  Surely such reactions occur in the presence of great beauty—a beauty woven into the very fabric of reality.  A form . . . an idea . . . a logos . . .

This is part two of a new series–to read the introduction click here.

“What is good? — All that heightens the feeling of power, the will to power, power itself in man.
What is bad? — All that proceeds from weakness.
What is happiness? — The feeling that power increases — that a resistance is overcome.
Not contentment, but more power; not peace at all, but war; not virtue, but proficiency (virtue in the Renaissance style, virtu, virtue free of moralic acid).
The weak and ill-constituted shall perish:  first principle of our philanthropy.  And one shall help them to do so.
What is more harmful than any vice? — Active sympathy for the ill-constituted and weak — Christianity . . .”

It’s important to remember that any definition of the good or of happiness proceeding from a naturalistic framework, such as Nietzsche’s, is completely arbitrary and, if I dare say, totally farcical — that is to say, it is a rather deceptive act in which moralistic language is ascribed to fundamentally neutral, amoral, categories.  So, when Nietzsche speaks about the good as being, “the will to power, power itself in man,” it’s important to remember that he is not outlining a system of morality; rather, he is simply describing a brute process of nature using moralistic terminology.

Any student of Biology can tell you that life is a power struggle — those organisms with the strongest will to survive and the power to do so will inevitably outlast other organisms with a weaker constitution.  In evolutionary terms, this is commonly described as the survival of the fittest.  Consequentially, a brute physical process, such as this, can hardly be described as “the good” in any objective moral sense on naturalism.  For this would imply teleology within nature — which is precisely the thing that a naturalistic view of reality denies.  Hence, to assign the, “feeling of power, the will to power, power itself in man,” or, “all that proceeds from weakness,” the terms “good” or “bad” says absolutely nothing about the true goodness or badness of such things — it is merely to state a brute fact about reality.

According to naturalism, values are completely dependent upon the observer and therefore totally subjective.  In other words, they have very little to do with reality and everything to do with one’s personal opinions or feelings.  What we are left with, under this  scheme, are merely objects and events.  How we interpret the objects and events we find in nature is purely a matter of personal taste.  This mindset explains  why we often hear the term “meaning-making” used to describe values.  What this heart warming little term is actually communicating is that nature, in and of itself, has no intrinsic meaning; you, the observer, must make meaning.

The reason I’ve gone through great pains to express the above point is that many, these days, mistakenly believe it is possible to have objective morality within the naturalistic framework.  This belief, however, is entirely incompatible with the naturalistic worldview.  For there is nothing, objective, to ground values in under this framework–and this is something that Nietzsche understood all too well.  This is precisely why he speaks of the desire for power and the will to power–because this is, essentially, what life boils down to in a world without God and without objective  moral standards or purpose.  So, do not be confused by Nietzsche’s use of the terms “good” or “bad” and suppose that he is speaking of morality; on the contrary, what he is proposing is the complete antithesis of morality.  He is proposing that those who believe God to be dead embrace the implications of this belief and recognize what life truly is:  a cold, and fundamentally meaningless, struggle for power; the brutal battle for survival.

It is no wonder that Nietzsche viewed Christianity with such contempt; for Christianity stands in complete contrast to this view of reality.  It teaches that there is an overarching meaning and purpose to reality and that values are grounded in the source of existence Himself.  It asserts that man is made in the very image and likeness of the source of his existence and is, therefore, intrinsically valuable and important.  It further insists that, as creatures made in the image of their Creator, man is accountable to Him and obligated to care for all the things which He has made–even the lowly.  Hence, Psalm 41 implores us to, “consider the poor,” and Jesus says, “Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it for me” (Matt. 25:40).

As  you can see, the Christians attitude towards the “ill-constituted and weak” and his mindset that our existence is rooted in notions like love, service, and self-sacrifice, stands in total contrast to the naturalistic worldview which explains human existence in terms of a desire for and will to power.  Under the naturalistic view such care for the weak is truly absurd: for, “the weak and ill-constituted shall perish:  first principle of our philanthropy.  And one shall help them to do so.”  This is simply a brute fact about reality that one must accept, or else, continue to live in a delusional state and be subject to the control and power of those few human beings who do accept it.

Now, you must ask yourself, at this moment, what view of reality you are prepared to accept.  If you truly believe that “God is dead” and that the physical world is all there is then you must be willing to embrace Nietzsche’s assertions with all of your being–for this is the only honest position to take.  However, if Nietzsche makes you uncomfortable, if you sense that love must somehow enter the picture, that the acquisition of power is somehow shallow and ultimately meaningless, that there is intrinsic value to all human beings–and, in fact, in every organism–that somehow morality must be objective and grounded in something, and that somehow you were made for a purpose, then you must come to terms with the fact that God may not be as dead as you had originally thought.

Pain in the Offering

Carolyn Williams

I have been writing since I was a little girl.  Over my lifetime I’ve been married, given birth to three beautiful children, and divorced from a nineteen year marriage. Through all the drama and heartache, writing has helped me stay sane.  The devil has tried to ruin my life in so many ways, but I have overcome it all. God has blessed me so much and inspired me to inspire others through my gift he has blessed me with. I’m happy that I am standing strong to tell how God has taught me many lessons through my writing. I hope my writing will inspire you to stay strong, and keep pressing on for Him

Well this is a story I did not want to tell of how I use to be a Samaritan Woman. In my obedience to God I am going to share my experience God revealed to me, when I was a woman at the well.

I was baptized as a teenager and believed in Jesus Christ. So how could my life be like a woman at the well? Then the Lord took me back to the devastating time almost six years ago, when I caught my husband in the bed with another woman. Asking God how could this happen to me after all we had been through? Then the pain turn to anger I was going to beat him at his own game. Who was he to play me someone who is capable of writing the rule book? Then I tried to justify my sins because of my husband’s infidelity and then his abandonment. So I begin looking for love in all the wrong places.

God revealed to me this is how I was like the woman at the well, one man left or did not work out just find another to fill his shoes. I thought I was better than the woman at the well because I was not fooling with anyone’s husband or living with a man. My husband had broken the marriage covenant and defiled our bed. The Holy Spirit reminded me but my actions were sinful too. How I was going to the well thirsty for love because the one I love left and left a void in my life. Father how could he use your words to sustain me, but the same words did not sustain him?

God all along you was trying to talk to me but I was so angry and I did not care to listen. I was angry with him for betraying me, myself for investing twenty years of my life for nothing, and you God for not allowing it to stay together. I heard about the living water but how do I get it? But Jesus was still faithful on my way to the well (the club) and reminded me the love I find at this well was superficial.  Because the water (love) I received from this well is only temporal and how I would come to draw water day after day leaving with an empty bucket (my soul).

My child may I have a drink of water you seek form this well, and can you trust me to fill the void? I said, “Jesus you seen how they hurt me your obedient child and what extent I went through to hold it together for so long. Jesus replied, “My child you can’t see the goodness of the hand of God because of your pain. So come back to the living water in spite of your temporal circumstances.” Jesus my pain is so deep how can I go on from here.

I know the sacrifices that need to make to receive the living water. In my pain Lord it over took my mind I did not have enough strength to pull myself out of the pit. My child all of your life you been going to all types of well even in your marriage your mate did not quench your thirst. He only saturated your lips with a temporary liquid but still left your soul thirsty. These wells in life can not quench your thirst because I am the only living water.

Father I thought I had been seeking your living water. My child you sought it but when you get hurt by man you are angry with me. See my child you can never find this love in humans which the living water provides (a love that surpasses anything you can even imagine) my love flows for eternity. Father I want the water to quench my thirst for eternity that I may never come to draw water at a well again.

Jesus said, “Go tell your husband and return.”

Jesus I have no husband because he has left.

Jesus said to me, “You are right your husband did leave. You tried to justify your sins because of your pain. You got angry at me when I don’t fix things, when you do not consult me at first. But you took on a husband that was not your own by participating in acts reserved for marriage. What you said is quite true.

I said, “Jesus nothing is hidden from you. My mother, father, grandmother, grandfather, etc. have worshipped and displayed their trust in you daily.

Jesus said. “It is time for you to worship me whole heartily not just on the surface but at all times. I seek true worshippers and know the heart of man.

I exclaimed, “Jesus now is the time I truly understand the importance of having your living water”

Jesus declared, “I am the only true and living God and no one should come before me.”

Just then my friends arrived I met at this well to see my crying. But no one asked me what was wrong because this was their well also? Then I left my water jug (everything I had been carrying on the inside) at the well and went back to my home. I begin to tell everyone of how Jesus revealed everything about me and nothing was hidden from him. How he wanted to supply the living water in order for me to never be thirsty again. They were amazed because they were witness of my pain and how I handled it. Many from the neighborhood believed because of my testimony. They told me they no longer believed because of what I said but because they tried Jesus for themselves and received the living water too. So all the relationships I have experienced in my life was the direct result of being like the Samaritan Woman.

One who has been thirsty for love that the living water can only fulfill because Jesus is the ultimate lover. This love is something no human will ever be able to do because Jesus love is unconditional not like man. Also, the living water I received from Jesus caused me to never go to the wells in life and gather water.

I always need to remember when circumstance occur in my life, just know who I am, whose I am, and I am loved by Jesus Christ who laid down his life for me. I learned the woman at the well was thirsty but she didn’t know what she was thirsting for in her life.

We all have wells (addiction, infidelity, depression, self-centered, selfishness, etc.) in our life and we try to fill them without Jesus. I was like her at the well trying to fill a physical need (love) with a physical substance (the clubs). How gracious Jesus is to meet you just where you are in life. He fulfilled my spiritual needs so I would no longer be controlled by my physical needs.

Christina Williams

I have been writing since I was a little girl.  Over my lifetime I’ve been married, given birth to three beautiful children, and divorced from a nineteen year marriage. Through all the drama and heartache, writing has helped me stay sane.  The devil has tried to ruin my life in so many ways, but I have overcome it all. God has blessed me so much and inspired me to inspire others through my gift he has blessed me with. I’m happy that I am standing strong to tell how God has taught me many lessons through my writing. I hope my writing will inspire you to stay strong, and keep pressing on for Him

Lord my pray is to be healthy for you

Then I will have the strength to do the things you ask me to do

In your word it says they have no struggles when their bodies are strong and healthy

Father, free me from the burdens that are common to man, by taking better care of my body

Lord, I know I can’t change my lifestyle without you

So Father lead me in the healthy changes you want me to do

God not sinning with gluttony by eating what I see

So Father lead me in the healthy changes you want me too

Lord you have been faithful in bringing us through

When we needed healing as a result

Ponder upon the wealth you pursue

Gathering possessions however you can

For avarice there’s nothing you won’t do

Why do you envy him poor and distraught

Why do you want his gold

Why trade your plight for his lot

What good will it be when you are old?

Become richer than your neighbor

But across town there is one richer than you

For material luxury you increase your labor

Forgetting one day death will require your due

What is a yacht compared to an empty stomach

Or designer boots compared to bare feet

For eternal life you can’t write a check

It is the one thing you cannot cheat

God holds everything within His hand

And your wealth is simply on loan

Charity with your wealth is His demand

Or His punishment you will bemoan

A car, a house, the best clothes

All burned up in the fire

For everyone undoubtedly knows

His will should be your desire

Give to the poor, the widows, the oppressed

Give without ceasing or without cue

For it is by the Cross we are blessed

His life was given for you

Christina Brown

Christina Brown received her BA in Intercultural Studies from Crown College and currently resides in Fort Worth, TX.  Her interests lie largely in how the gospel can reach every nation around the world and how to become more culturally aware.   She enjoys discussing matters of Missiology, Theology and Philosophy and writes many of her thoughts in the form of poetry

Fall down before

Cry out and weep

His Glory

His Glory

Feel His fire

Repent, release

Oh, Majesty

His Majesty

Mourn and die

The self to cease

His Death

His Death

Arisen, new birth

Our Great High Priest

His Love

His Love

Commune be one

Earth’s septs to see

His Body

His Body

Oh, world to fall

He waits, be free

His Mercy

His Mercy

Resurrect and reign

Lamb’s praises sing

His Coming

His Coming

Judgment of fire

Shepherd of sheep

His Wrath

His Peace

No more to cry

Eternity…

His,

His Eternity…

A thousand miles away a woman stumbles out of the car of her most recent “John.” She came to Hollywood to lead the glamorous life, the life of a Hollywood actress. When she could hardly make the rent, she allowed men to film her having sex with other men. She made money while she could, hoping that eventually she could make a breakthrough at a real movie and leave her self-created nightmare. But it wasn’t long until she was too worn out for films. She turned to the streets where her pimp injected her with drugs, he intentionally hooked her, all so he could use her to keep turning tricks and making him money. She remembers the songs that her father used to sing at church. She remembers the peace and safety of home and longs for it. But she knows there is no forgiveness for a whore and returns to walking her corner, waiting for the next middle-aged man unsatisfied with his life.

A young boy in Indonesia wakes up for his shift at the local factory. A man in Grand Rapids attends to his wife’s hospital bed as cancer eats away at her. A mother and father collapse into each other’s arms as the police tell them of their son’s death in an alcohol related incident. Another man becomes homeless, another husband cheats on his wife, another homosexual teenager contemplates and commits suicide due to bullying, another woman feels she has no hope and has an abortion, another soldier kills an innocent civilian. Around the world lives are ruined, tears are shed, and a cycle of the darkest evil perpetuates itself in our world.

It is fair to ask what God would allow such suffering. How could God stare down at His creation and watch them suffer? Such a question is not without its attempt at an explanation. One theological student will scoff at the question and say, “God allows it for his glory!” He will be satisfied with such a deeply theological answer, even as the orphan dies from AIDS, the theologian will insist that God’s glory is found in the open wounds of a dead orphan. The more philosophically minded theologian will say that God allows evil for a greater good. He will look to the sexually abused child and say, “Don’t worry, God is going to let a greater good come of this” and then offer a brilliant syllogism for the child to follow, all so the child will understand why God allows his father to sexually assault him on a daily basis. But others will not be satisfied with such theodicies. They will tell the suffering that God is weak, that God didn’t know such suffering would occur and that God is powerless to stop such suffering. The only hope for those who suffer, say these modern pseudo-philosophers, is in other people, all the while forgetting that the least of these suffer because of other people. These pseudo-philosophers suck all hope out of the lives of those who suffer.

What God would allow such suffering? We can come up with extremely intellectual replies – replies I myself have used – but how do you tell an abused woman that God is letting her husband beat her so He doesn’t have to contradict free will? Such a God seems cold, without love, and unworthy of worship.

What God would allow such suffering? The answer to this question is found in the cosmic mystery of Jesus Christ, in the Incarnation; the answer to why God allows evil is that He allowed evil to befall Him, to befall His ever-beloved Son, so that healing might be found. Upon the cross all theodicies are broken and laid bear, they are shown to be insufficient for explaining evil and inadequate and conveying God’s love in suffering.

Why would God allow evil? What we do know is that He faced that evil Himself. In the beginning God breathed life into Adam and then watched Adam fall. God witnessed Cain kill his brother. God watched man fall into oblivion and turn their hearts against Him, which only increased their suffering. But God did not view this as a distant observer, as a Deistic fantasy; instead, God took on our flesh and witnessed our suffering through our eyes. He walked our streets, He breathed our air, He ate our food, and He suffered as we suffer. Though God had a purpose for evil, He did not make us face such evil alone, but instead endured the evil Himself.

The god of Islam would not allow evil to befall him. The multiple gods of Greece, or northern Europe, or India are often the causes of evil and indifferent to human suffering. Yet, in Christianity, God comes down with full knowledge that one day His own creation will beat Him and crucify Him. As the soldiers flung the whip at Him during His scourging, He knew the soldiers’ most inner thoughts, for He knew them before they were ever born. The hands that held Him down and nailed Him to the cross were the same hands He formed in the womb; these men who murdered Him were once children He looked over. Christ suffered the ultimate betrayal, but in this He gained victory over death.

He went down into the grave and death swallowed Him up in triumph, but death could not contain Him. Even the blackest darkness cannot contain the faintest light, but Christ is the light from which all light comes. The darkness engulfed Him, but His light broke the darkness so that only He could be seen. These dark chains that attempt to bring us into the grave were broken when Jesus died and then rose from the grave. While God allowed suffering, He did not allow us to wallow in it; Christ died for us and provided a way for healing.

As the dying orphan looks up into the sky as the stars shine upon her, she is ushered into the arms of Christ by a thousand angels. As she peers into his eyes her scars are removed, her sickness is gone, and in death she finds healing, for just as death could not contain Christ, it cannot contain His children either.

As the worn down prostitute is left without hope and feels she cannot be forgiven, but she is looked upon by Christ as a lovely bride. He is more than the tract she has been handed multiple times by Christians who will only deal with this seedy individual in passing; He is grace, He is forgiveness, in His infinite nature her finite sins are forever lost, and He has buried those sins in His death. As He kisses her on her forehead to remind her of what a loving touch feels like, He wipes away her sins and makes her brand new, and He brings her into her new home, one that will not cast her out, but instead a place where she will feel more at home than she ever has anywhere else.

The tears we shed are not shed alone, but are shared with the God of the universe. Jesus looks upon the evil of the world and weeps. He died those many years ago so that we might find a respite from these problems, that while evil might befall us it could not overtake us, that one day as we fall before His feet He may raise us up, embrace us, wipe our tears away, and say, “Never again shall evil come to you, welcome home my child.”

It is very difficult to find hope in this world. It’s easy to come across people who see no point in life. We can look into the blank stare of an emancipated child in a third world country to realize this world is hopeless. So many in our age face evil on a daily basis and bear such a burden.

We face evil, we face pain, and we wonder if there will ever be an end. A young girl cries herself to sleep, wondering if the abuses of her father will ever cease. A father worries over how he will provide for his family since he lost his job. A teenage boy attempts to take his life because he feels like a stranger in his own home, emotionally neglected by his parents. A lady collapses in a back alley, longing for death because she feels she is worth nothing, not even good enough for prostitution. This is the hopeless world we live in.

To the burdened down, to the trial weary, to the restless, to those without hope, I beg of you, look in the empty tomb. The nothingness of the tomb of Jesus is full of everything you need.

Jesus Christ, God incarnate took upon our sins as a propitiation for what we deserve. He offered His life as a ransom. He took on our pain and suffering so that He too might be made weak like us, so that He might endure what we endure. But it is in this tomb, this beautifully empty tomb, we see Christus Victor, Christ victorious! In His resurrection He gained victory over everything laid upon Him on the cross.

Look into the empty tomb, those without hope, and in the emptiness find your hope. In His resurrection He has gained power over that which holds us back. All the evil of the world has been defeated and will one day come to an end.

For those who feel bogged down by their sins, see them upon the cross and see their defeat in the tomb. See that you are forgiven and can live life victoriously. To those tormented by demons, see that they hold no power over you, for they could not keep Christ in the grave.

For those who have no hope, look upon this empty tomb and see that He has given you hope, a hope beyond hope, that you will one day be resurrected. To those who live in poverty, peer into the richness of the empty tomb and see that your wealth is not found in the things of this world, but instead is found in Christ.

To those afraid of death, look in the tomb and realize that death is dead because Christ is raised. To those with physical ailments, look beyond the tomb, look to the risen Christ! As He is so shall we be, with new bodies that do not fail us.

To the blind, fall before the risen Christ and look up to Him with the sight you shall receive. To the deaf, listen to the beautiful song the resurrected Christ has written for you. To the terminally ill, fight death and laugh at it, realizing that death holds no power over you because Christ has already defeated it.

To the weak and paralyzed, run to our risen Lord and collapse in His arms, feel His strong embrace. To the hungry, go feast with the living Christ, who died for our sins, but has been raised by the Spirit of God, the power of God, to victory!

Look upon this resurrection, this very real resurrection that took place in time and space. Look upon the victorious Jesus. Look upon Him, oh weary and trodden down, and have hope; for Christ is risen, He is risen indeed!

The trials of this world mean nothing for our hope is in Him. He is our only hope. When the trials of this world become too much, when the seas begin to rise and the earth shakes, when all comes tumbling down and the darkness will not cease, we take comfort in this; Christ Jesus died for our sins, our struggles, took them to the grave, left them there, and was risen in victory. In His victory we seek comfort from the ravages of this world.

We hide in the power of Christ from the heaviness of this world. When we struggle, when we are hurt, when all of life makes no sense, we can turn to Him. This is not some distant deity we worship. He is not some subject to be studied. He is the personal God, resurrected.

We live in power now because of Him. We live in victory. We live moment by moment for Christ. It is the power of the resurrection that transforms us; we die with Christ and are raised to Him, our old nature being destroyed, and our new nature being created.

Take heart in the dark times of life and have hope in the resurrection to come when we shall all join Christ. O what a glorious day that will be! Can you imagine, o sinner, what it will be to look upon the face of the One who died for you? Can you imagine looking at God, a God none of us are worthy to see, and instead of feeling His righteous wrath, to feel His warm embrace? Actually feel Him, for Jesus is truly resurrected!

This is the hope of all Christianity, that we will one day be as Christ is. We will one day be resurrected. We will be in perfect fellowship with Him. The hungry will feast with Him. The oppressed will be liberated. The orphaned will find their Father. The sinner will be made righteous. The impure will be made pure. The hope of things to come shall finally be upon us. Find hope in Christ, for Christ is what sinners dare not dream, He is hope fulfilled.