My Journal

12/14/2024 So we got an email about our church sprinkler system failure causing us not able to worship tomorrow at Grace. So Nadia and I decided to visit the church which U has been moonlighting at. Millington Baptist Church. I have my list of churches to visit, MBC and PCA's Crossroads Community Church are on top of my list because they are being mentioned most during my time at Grace. I had briefly checked MBC's website before and was impressed by some of their programs, such as Behind the Pulpit podcast, which is supposed to be a chat about the sermon that was just preached. The idea was my praise, but I cannot value the content because I haven't gone through them comprehensively yet. But now, reading their statement of faith, I caught some error: #5 "Satan is the author of sin", if I understand what they're implying, then I would not agree. Everyone of us is the author of sin, not just Satan. They probably got this off of John 8:44 "father of lies" or that it was Satan who beguiled Adam and Eve, which are inadequate for this conclusion.

12/10/2024 Dr. Tong criticized 周神助牧师 of twisting the verse: 1 Corinthians 14:15 - "pray with the spirit and also pray with the understanding. 我要用灵祷告，也要用理智祷告." or 用悟性祷告. The Charismatics twisted this verse to be all should speak in tongue. Tong had them hosted a debate on this during the 4th 华富大会。I have just ordered this meeting for $22.

12/09/2024 Dr. Ed Feser's method to bully is to bully back. This Catholic way is not biblical. Jesus doesn't care if someone's a bully or not, He rebuked Peter harshly, He cleansed the temple with wrath, He ignored the high priests and Pilate.

• Pope Honorius I (Papacy: 625-638): viewed Islam as Arianism. Allegedly committed heresy of Monothelitism.
• Pope Formosus (Papacy: 891-896): Cadaver Synod: where his body as exhumed for the trial of stirring distrust in Bulgaria against other popes: Pope Nicholas I, Pope John VIII.
• Pope John VI (Papacy: 896-897): Instigated the Cadaver Synod, which ultimately led to his downfall and death.
• Pope John XII (Papacy: 955-964): Accused of gambling, incest, and killed by jealous husband while enjoying adultery.
• Pope John XXII (Papacy: 1316-1334): Canonized Thomas Aquinas. Controversially believed that the blessed would not see God's presence immediately after death, but would have to wait until the Last Judgement, which was considered heretical by most theologians and ultimately led him to retract his position before his death; his successor, Pope Benedict XII, officially clarified the Church teaching that the blessed immediately experience the Beatific Vision after death.

The above list was from the Youtube video above.

A selfish person is not always prideful; but a proud person is always selfish.

Selfish = self-centered

Therefore, self-centeredness or selfishness is the root of pride and not the other way around.