The Reformed Christians today (especially in the West, particularly in America) are known to be lack of evangelistic, if not anti-evangelism. It's a sad thing. Some blame this all to way to John Calvin. The defense would be that Calvin had to deal with Rome and worked hard correctly what Rome has perverted in Biblical and Systematic Theology. But there were hints of John Calvin being very zealous for evangelism.
One of such I came across recently from a Facebook post:
"If we have any humanity in us, seeing men going to perdition, ... ought we not be moved by pity, to rescue the poor souls from hell, and teach them the way of salvation?" [1, 2] (From a sermon on Deuteronomy 33)
I am taking Reformed21's (GRII) Fokus Q&A (by Pdt. Hendry Ongkowidjojo) more seriously as when I use Google Gemini to summarize them, there are some useful terms not seen much in the West, both in English and in Malay/Indonesian:
The Role of Laypeople: The video pushes back against a "clericalist" view (where only priests interpret). While experts/pastors are necessary for deep training, the goal is for the laity to become mature enough to study and even teach [20:59]. [Clericalist is very common not just in the Catholic Church or other religions, but in Protestant Christianity as well, where the pastors are viewed as the only ones with answers in the Bible. WCF 1.7 speaks of the Perspicuity (clarity) of Scripture: All things in Scripture are not alike plain in themselves… yet those things which are necessary to be known… are so clearly propounded… that not only the learned, but the unlearned, in a due use of the ordinary means, may attain unto a sufficient understanding of them.]
The speaker’s focus on genre and original context [01:29] is the standard Reformed method of interpretation.
Literary vs. Literal
Reformed View: One must seek the sensus literalis (the literal sense), which includes understanding when the author is using metaphors, poetry, or historical narrative.
External Source: Louis Berkhof’s Principles of Biblical Interpretation is a classic Reformed text that mirrors the speaker's points on distinguishing between "Proverbial" and "Didactic" literature.
The "Priesthood of All Believers" vs. Church Order: The video navigates the tension between the "Priesthood of All Believers" and the need for trained "Teaching Elders."
Reformed View:Unlike the Roman Catholic view of the time, Reformers believed all Christians are "priests." However, they also believed in the divine office of the ministry. God gives "Pastors and Teachers" (Ephesians 4:11) to the church to prevent "winds of doctrine" [18:54].
Analysis: The speaker clarifies that while we are all equal in Christ, we are not all equal in function or gift. This is why "Elders" must be "apt to teach" (1 Timothy 3:2) [32:21].
Moral Law vs. Ceremonial Law: The discussion on pork [10:49] touches on the Threefold Use of the Law (Moral, Ceremonial, Civil).
Reformed View: Dietary laws are "Ceremonial" and were fulfilled/abrogated by Christ. The "Moral Law" (The Ten Commandments) remains binding.
External Source: John Calvin, in the Institutes, explains that the ceremonial laws were "shadows" that vanished when the "substance" (Christ) appeared.
How Christians should vote in politics, drawing from Proverbs, Phil Vischer concluded:
"The righteous are willing to disadvantage themselves to advantage the community; The wicked are willing to disadvantage the community to advantage themselves."
The above clip comes from episode 720 of Holy Post Media: The Casino-fication of the Church and Mark DeYmaz. These are useful terminologies from the episode:
Moralistic Therapeutic Deism (MTD) is a term coined by sociologists Christian Smith and Melinda Lundquist Denton in 2005 to describe the most prevalent, de facto religious worldview among American youth and young adults. It is not a formal religion, but rather an umbrella of watered-down spiritual beliefs. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5].
The term is broken down into three core concepts:
Deism: The belief in a Creator God who exists, orders the world, but generally steps back and stays out of people's daily lives—unless needed to solve a problem. [1, 2, 3, 4]
Moralistic: The central belief that the ultimate goal of life is to be a good, nice, and fair person.
Therapeutic: The belief that the purpose of religion is to feel good about oneself, be happy, and achieve subjective well-being.
The following is where MTD is used:
The Video’s Stance: The hosts argue that the church has become a tool for personal "wellness" or political mobilization, hollowing out the slow formation of Christian character [36:56].
Reformed Analysis: This aligns with the Reformed critique of "Moralistic Therapeutic Deism." Reformed theology emphasizes that the Church is a covenant community where the primary goal is the glory of God, not the satisfaction of the individual. In The Westminster Confession of Faith, the "chief end of man" is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever, which contradicts the "casino-fication" model where God is a means to a personal jackpot.
External Source: Sociologist Christian Smith’s research on "Moralistic Therapeutic Deism" supports the video's claim that modern religion often functions as a utility for personal happiness rather than a transformative faith.
Single Event Upset (SEU), where alpha particles from uranium or thorium affect the 0 & 1 bits in microchips which are on such small enough scale that this could happen. This was discovered in 1978 by Intel, and manufacturers have been careful since. This is not easily discovered by mere thinking and could have become trade secrets:
5/14/2026 Thursday
Trump's visit to China has gotten the world watching (amidst tariff war, Putin vs. Ukraine, Iran vs. USA, Strait of Hormuz, AI chips, Soya beans, Apple, Taiwan, etc.). China is predictably playing the cool(er) head. Stephen Chan posted a photo of the meet, which I fixed with ChatGPT, and then Chan reposted my fix in a new post on Facebook, what an honor LOL. A.I. photo doctoring has gotten a long way, I didn't ask it but it actually sharpens/clarifies the image incredibly well, not sure if it's just plain photoshop edition technique or ChatGPT actually used external photos of the presidents for the enhancement. ChatGPT seems to do a better job here, while Microsoft's Copilot turned these heads a tad scary with blank eyes and such. The only problem is, ChatGPT couldn't do well when I asked it to have the presidents holding hands, so I had to cover it with something, such as Aladdin's Cartoon snapshot:
From the video below, I came across this learning: Mongol Empire 1300AD can be broken into 4 primary states (khanates) with respective successors:
Google AI: The Golden Horde, Chagatai Khanate, Ilkhanate, and Yuan Dynasty are the four primary successor states (khanates) that emerged from the fragmentation of the Mongol Empire after 1259. They represent the division of Genghis Khan’s vast territory into autonomous, regional empires ruled by his descendants, which continued to share cultural and trade connections. [1, 2, 3, 4]
Yuan Dynasty (East Asia):Established by Kublai Khan, grandson of Genghis, this became the center of the empire, with its capital in modern-day Beijing. It held nominal suzerainty over the other three khanates.
Golden Horde (Northwest):Founded by descendants of Jochi (Genghis’s eldest son), this khanate controlled Russia and the Kipchak Steppe, flourishing from the mid-13th to the end of the 14th century.
Ilkhanate (Southwest):Established by Hulegu, another of Kublai's grandsons, this khanate controlled Persia and Iran, often fighting with the Golden Horde and the Chagatai Khanate.
Chagatai Khanate (Central Asia):Ruled by the descendants of Chagatai (Genghis’s second son), this state controlled Central Asia and focused on maintaining traditional Mongol nomadic customs. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]
While initially unified under one supreme leader, the empire fragmented due to civil wars, separating into these four distinct entities that eventually collapsed or were absorbed, with the Ilkhanate failing first and the Chagatai lasting the longest.
5/13/2026 Wednesday
Interesting heads up by Allie Beth Stuckey about the upcoming Christopher Nolan film: The Odyssey. It should be disappointing with the blackwashing (black woman playing Helen of Troy, Transgender Ellen Page playing Achilles, etc.) But mainly, what I learned from this episode is that ABS likes The Hamilton musical show @58:19.
2nd time joining Christian Underground (by Pastor Greg Armstrong, Alex, Shahriq Khan). This time it's led by Pastor Greg, which seems better than last week's by Alex (slow, seemed tired). And though it's long, learned a lot about Islam and how to evangelize to them. Tons of documents they have prepared via Skool and groups joining. This time, I recorded 2nd half of the session via ShareX on top of Granola notes, as it's definitely worth it.
5/12/2026 Tuesday
Though I would still doubt that Trump was trying to turn his Oval Office in the Whitehouse into the Holy of Holies, Skye has a good take on the Golden Calf in that technically Israelites weren't worshipping a false god because Aaron called it Yahweh, just not worshipping the right way, just like the pastors mentioned in this video as claiming: We worship "Jesus", not Trump, whose statue is not the golden calf:
Open Source Icons: These 11 sites to be bookmarked...So I bookmarked. This is useful for free use of icons anywhere, particularly in website designs: 1. Lucide
I should really start pre-read the Sunday Service's Bible reading before hand, now that it's made available online.
An interesting contrast between Pastor Dan & Pastor Chris' sermons, today, Pastor Dan in his sermon @45:08 (my own recording) said: "You don't like your job? Don't just assume that God wants you to find a new one. Seek His will. Don't despair and become bitter. Cry out to your God..." vs. I don't have evidence but I've heard enough of Pastor Chris's (of GCC) sermons to know that he would say something similar with a different direction in "You don't like your job? Maybe it's time to look for a new one...". Now of course these are subtly relativistic, but one has to wonder the philosophy of life each of these preachers hold to differently. One strives for God, while you have to wonder if the theology of the cross is missing in the other one.
Though not my cup of tea with the lower quality CCM, in addition to no display of song titles or name of writers, I should at least play around them with SUNO to learn chords and theories.
Today, it's CityAlight's Ancient of Days (It seems Crossroads use CityAlight music a lot):
2. Hillsong's Cornerstone:
3. Phil Wickham's Living Hope:
4. Kim Walker-Smith's Jesus Paid it All:
5. Ascend the Hill's Be Thou My Vision (oh God be My Everything):
This entry documents everything related to the Christian Underground Ministry which I find fascinating as a resource for evangelizing Muslims.
One of Allie's best podcast for sure, this interview with Shahriq Khan:
It's the first time I heard of this guy. Nabeel Qureshi was mentioned in the interview. But Khan is rather zealous of reaching the Muslims, even the hardcore Islam scholars. And his unique technique, not sure if it's developed by him or his other fellow co-workers (Pastor Greg Armstrong, Alex Kerimli, etc.) who run a sort of global ministry (online?) called Christian Underground.
And the unique approach Khan claims was to use only Torah against only Qur'an. Pointing out various odd stories the Qur'an mixed up about the Torah in order to show that there's no reason for the Torah to be corrupted, which consequently could only mean that the Qur'an is corrupt. I would say that this approach is close to the Islamic Dilemma: a theological argument, primarily posed by Christian apologists, highlighting a contradiction between the Quran's affirmation of the Bible (Torah and Gospel) and its denial of key biblical doctrines.
They do run a rather active online community, free sign up at https://www.skool.com/christ. They also seem to be very dedicated to what Khan's motto seems to be: Why deport Muslims? Why hate them? why not convert them?
I just went on their first interactive stream today and Alex (later Armstrong) was giving the lecture on the Passover (the Qur'an completely lacks this concept) and the fact that Qur'an said that Moses took the Israelites out of Egypt without Pharaoh's permission. And I also tackled deeper, primarily with the help of A.I. on this fascinating topic.
If it's good, I'll summarize their Master Key of Deconstructing the REAL 5 pillars of Islam and Constructing the Biblical 5 pillars:
Islam: 1. The Torah was Corrupted 2. The Quran and the Torah have the Same Author (God) 3. Abraham and Ishmael travelled to Mecca and Built the Kaaba 4. Ishmael is the Father of the Meccan Arabs and Muhammad was an Ishmaelite 5. Muhammad Followed in the Pattern of Previous Prophets and Received his Revelation Similarly to Moses
Biblical: 1. Original Sin 2. Blood Atonement is Necessary 3. Theophanies 4. The suffering Servant 5. The Gospel
And of course, there's already attempt to debunk their work.
Learned a few things (Thanks to Google AI's help):
The two main kinds of suras (chapters) in the Qur'an are Meccan and Medinan, classified by whether they were revealed before or after the Prophet Muhammad's migration (Hijrah) to Medina. Meccan suras focus on faith and the afterlife, while Medinan suras address social, political, and legal issues.
Meccan Suras (Makkiyyah): Generally revealed earlier (86 total). They are usually shorter, with shorter verses, focusing on belief in Allah, Paradise/Hell, and stories of past prophets.
Medinan Suras (Madaniyyah): Revealed after the Hijrah (28 total). They are typically longer and deal with laws, community organization, family life, and rules of war.
On the Passover, since I took a look today, it's interesting that according to Google AI, a Muslim scholars would argue that the lack of Passover in Quranic Exodus was intentional, based on the principle "No bearer of burdens will bear the burden of another" (Qur'an 6:164). So by this principle, the whole concept of sacrificial lamb is also removed on top of the 10th plague in Egypt.
And the Christian response would generally be (Google AI):
Proportionate justice (Genesis 12:3, Exodus 1:22, the sin of Egypt), Divine sovereignty (original sin is unavoidable, everyone eventually dies, God choosing the timing of that death is not an act of injustice), and Redemptive foreshadowing (The plague was not restricted by ethnicity, any Egyptian who feared the God of Israel and followed the instructions to put blood on their doorposts would have been spared.)
Someone in the discussion also mentioned that his Muslim friends gave him a hard time about the fact that in Joseph's time, Pharaohs do not exist, only kings in Egypt. Which is true, that Pharaoh was not a title used before the New Kingdom in Egypt. But this would just be anachronism in literature (like King David longed for his Coca-Cola from his hometown), and the Bible use "Pharaoh" and "king" interchangeably (i.e. Genesis 39:20 and Exodus 1:8). The word Pharaoh literally means "Great House" and thus could just be descriptive of supreme authority of Egypt.
Update 5/14/2026:
It's interesting to see how Muslims view sins, particularly whether there are sinless people in the world or not. I believe this is an important insight because our view of the seriousness of sins come from two very different worldviews. Here's Google AI's take:
So the muslims believe that prophets are not corrupt or sinless?
Yes, in Islam, it is a foundational belief that prophets are not corrupt, immoral, or untrustworthy. They are considered chosen, moral exemplars. [1, 2]
The concept of their sinlessness is known as 'Ismah (infallibility or divine protection). However, there is a nuance between different schools of thought regarding whether they are absolutely sinless or protected specifically from major sins. [1, 2, 3]
Here is a breakdown of the belief:
1. Protection from Corruption ('Ismah)
No Major Sins: There is a consensus among scholars that prophets are protected from committing major sins (such as idolatry, lying, or murder) throughout their lives, both before and after receiving revelation.
Perfect Delivery: They are considered completely infallible in their task of receiving and delivering the message of God.
Role Models: Because they are intended to be followed, they are guided by God to be moral exemplars rather than corrupt individuals. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
2. The Nuance of "Sinlessness"
Majority (Sunni) View: Most Sunni scholars believe that while prophets are protected from major sins and mistakes in delivering God's message, they might commit minor, unintentional errors (referred to as saghira), but they do not persist in them, and God immediately corrects them.
Minority (Shia) View: Shia theology (as detailed in this Al-Islam.org article) holds a stricter view, often considering prophets, and in their view, Imams, to be completely infallible and incapable of any sin or mistake, major or minor, intentional or inadvertent, from birth to death. [1, 2, 3, 4]
3. Understanding Verses on Prophetic Mistakes
In the Quran, some prophets ask for forgiveness, or are corrected by God (e.g., this Quora post cites Quran 48:2 regarding Muhammad, or 20:115 regarding Adam). [1, 2, 3, 4]
Interpretation: Muslim scholars interpret these instances not as immoral sins, but as "shortfalls" or "less than ideal actions" (called tark al-awla—leaving what is better).
Purpose: These moments are meant to show their humanity and to provide lessons for believers on repentance. [1, 2, 3, 4]
In summary, Muslims believe prophets are not corrupt and are divinely protected from major sins and immoral acts, with differing views on whether they were capable of minor, unintentional slips. [1]
Interesting take by the Holy Post Media in analyzing speeches between King Charles III and Donald Trump:
Google Gemini:
King Charles III: His address to Congress referenced his Christian faith as a "firm anchor" that inspires a "generosity of spirit" and a duty to foster pluralism and peace among all faiths.
Donald Trump: In his welcoming remarks, Trump framed Christianity as a "cultural identity" linked to Anglo-Saxon heritage, presenting it as something fragile that requires protection and walls to preserve.
The Contrast: Skye Jethani observed that King Charles' vision was rooted in love and outward service, whereas the vision promoted by Trump and J.D. Vance was driven by fear and inward preservation.
5/4/2026 Monday:
Interesting interview with Carlos Campo, CEO of the Museum of the Bible in Washington, DC. Seems that Campo is not Reformed, so Allie Beth Stuckey caught the common grace - "self evidence" error, but wasn't able to correct him easily, perhaps due to Allie's own lack in the Reformed doctrine: That by general revelation (common grace), human rights are indeed "self-evident" though corrupted by sin and thus not perfectly executed by unregenerate sinners. Christian view is perfected by Christ on this.
The other error of a few more which I am not willing to go over all here, is his take on the etymology of the word "amusement". Google AI has great response, I couldn't have done it better:
No, the prefix in amuser does not mean "without."
The French Prefix a-
In this specific French word, the prefix a- comes from the Latin ad-, which means "to," "toward," or "into a state of."
It acts as an intensive to push someone into an action.
Amuser literally means "to put into a muse" or "to make someone stare blankly."
The Confusion with Greek a-
The confusion happens because there is a completely different prefix a- (sometimes an-) that comes from Greek.
That Greek prefix does mean "without" or "not."
Examples include amoral (without morals) or anonymous (without a name). [1, 2]
Because amusement grew out of Latin and French roots rather than Greek, it means to engage the mind rather than strip it away.
Last but not least, love the brief tour part:
Archaeological Reliability: Campo highlights significant artifacts like the Megiddo Mosaic (one of the earliest Christian worship spaces found) and the Crosby-Schøyen Codex (containing the earliest copy of Jonah) [00:03:10]. These demonstrate that the Bible was not a "phone game" but a carefully preserved text [00:09:27].
In politics and social commentary, a dog whistle is an expression that has a secondary meaning intended to be understood only by a particular "in-group"
The Literal Origin: Actual dog whistles emit high-frequency sounds that dogs can hear, but humans cannot. The Figurative Meaning: A speaker uses words that sound neutral or "innocuous" to the general public—like "traditional values" or "inner city"—but signal controversial or biased messages to a specific group. This allows the speaker to maintain plausible deniability if they are accused of being offensive.
"This talk had more dog whistles than a canine construction site."the critic is accusing the speaker of being highly manipulative, filling their talk with so many secret signals that the subtext has become almost impossible for "those in the know" to miss.
On 5/3/2026, I received an email from YouTube regarding a video of Stephen Tong I posted long time ago, I appealed and still got overruled. Whoever that was policing this must have only half a brain in the leftist self-righteous justice-oriented delusion:
Hi Timothy Law, It looks like Stephen Tong Romans Series: Disc 045 with Subtitle didn’t follow our Community Guidelines. We removed it from YouTube.
What we found We think your content violated our hate speech policy.
Content that incites hatred against individuals or groups based on their protected group status isn’t allowed on YouTube. This may include inferiority claims and/or conspiracy theories. We review educational, documentary, artistic, and scientific content on a case-by-case basis. Limited exceptions are made for content with sufficient and appropriate context.
You can see an example around 00:06:45, although there could be other instances.
This is what's said @06:45: 希腊的民族是很伟大的，所以他们的国家早就被罗马所消灭掉，但是罗马人只能吞他们的土地，他们却侵吞了罗马人的头脑。所以这两个民族是人类的代表。
So which historical fact is hate speech? The part about Greek conquering Rome's mind? Or the part that Rome sacked Greek?
By standard economics, people with this kind of job at google or living standard won't last. Whoever that is must be some kind of purple-hair culture Western anti-Christianity Atheist. Unless it's all A.I.
This is Google Gemini (from same company as Youtube)'s response when I asked it to examine this video:
@50:40 Michael, I have found that because our modern generation, our youngest generation, is very justice-oriented, they are really justice-oriented. I'm not sure the idea of hell as judgment of God on evil is going to be quite as offensive to them as it was to my generation of therapeutic baby boomers. So, first of all, I would say that I'm not sure to bring out the idea of hell as a way for God to judge evil and injustice is going to be quite as offensive as it used to be.
After coming across titles posted by Youtuber "Learn Chinese Now", I think I need to start taking a list because these historical Chinese films seem quite interesting:
孔子 Confucius (2010): Chow Yun Fat 周潤發
武松 Wu Song, multiple versions but 2013 is the one promoted by the youtuber, I just can't find the streaming online for now.
張三豐2太極天師 2020
New Kung Fu Cult Master 倚天屠龍記之九陽神功 (1 & 2) 2022: Regarding 張三豐
Giving out of appreciation is fine; But giving out of compassion, sympathy is toxic empathy.
Also, Americans (or Americanized folks) who do not understand basic economics, tend to think that everyone in the world should have equal pay (i.e. a waiter in America should get paid the same as a waiter in Thailand).
