May 13, 2013
Posted by daniel ayad in Biblical.add a comment
The bible teaches us to always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you (1 Pet 3: 15). It is important that we give good consise answers to the people that question us, while maintaining persuasive doctrinal statements.
Attached is part 2 of several doctrinal questions that you could be asked by people that question us. Before you read my answers, have a look at the question and think about what your answer would be. Some questions may not have a straight forward answer, and are more open, so please feel free to share any of your answers or disagreements with mine below.
doctrinal questions – part 1 May 5, 2013
Posted by daniel ayad in Biblical.add a comment
The bible teaches us to always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you (1 Pet 3: 15). It is important that we give good consise answers to the people that question us, while maintaining persuasive doctrinal statements.
Attached is part 1 of several doctrinal questions that you could be asked by people that question us. Before you read my answers, have a look at the question and think about what your answer would be. Some questions may not have a straight forward answer, and are more open, so please feel free to share any of your answers or disagreements with mine below.
Music and heresy April 5, 2013
Posted by daniel ayad in History & Tradition.add a comment
It has long been known that music and singing can influence people in more ways than one. Music has a powerful influence on your behaviour, and many scientific studies have been performed to demonstrate the connection. With this in mind it is interesting to know that one of the most famous heretics, if not the most famous, greatly spread his heresy using songs. This man was Arius, the heretic of the first ecumenical council in Nicea. In addition, it is also interesting to note that one of the ways to counteract heresies was also with music.
The Council of Chalcedon March 18, 2013
Posted by daniel ayad in History & Tradition.add a comment
The Council of Chalcedon marks the first great schism in the church. We are still greatly feeling and bearing the marks of the decisions made at this council. There is great controversy surrounding the decisions made on this council, and the events that preceded it.
Efforts to reunite have probably been most notable in the recent past, but unfortunately unity hasn’t quite happened.
The following document aims to provide an unbiased approach to this controversial council.
Click here: council of chalcedon – church history for the full post!
The three ecumenical councils (Nicea, Constantinople and Ephesus) March 12, 2013
Posted by daniel ayad in History & Tradition.add a comment
The three ecumenical councils are definitely a critical part of church history. After the Roman persecution of Christians started to die off, the church was greatly affected by heresies from the inside. We are still living in the effects of the decisions made by these three councils, and I have uploaded a table to help provide a greater understanding of the context surrounding this difficult, yet valulable period in history.
Click The three ecumenical councils for the full post.
Happy new year! December 31, 2012
Posted by daniel ayad in prayer.add a comment
Happy new year everyone! I hope everybody has a great opportunity to celebrate 2013 as a fresh start to be a new creation! For me the year kept dragging on and didn’t want to finish, but for others it went by very quickly.
I can sincerely hope that 2013 is a year in which you make a fresh start with Christ, and therefore with Him you will be full of joy and peace.
Please magnify the good of 2012, and lower the bad of 2012. You can’t turn back time or change the past, so you should press on with Christ for 2013.
We thank God for preserving our life for another year, and we thank Him in everything. “If Christ is for us, who can be against us”.
Let us trust God to guide and lead us in 2013
God bless you
We are never worthy! December 16, 2012
Posted by daniel ayad in History & Tradition.1 comment so far
One of the most interesting aspects to living a Christian life is the constant battle between pride and humility. It is commonly taught (and rightly so) that pride is the most dangerous of all vices, and thus subsequently pride is the root of all sins. God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble (1 Pet 5: 5), and how we need this grace!
Original scientists November 10, 2012
Posted by daniel ayad in Science.add a comment
In school today, most students get the impression that all the famous scientists believe in evolution. It would be surprising to most students that most branches of modern science were founded by believers in creation. In fact the list of creation scientists who founded science is very impressive and here is a small sample.
Physics – include Newton, Faraday, Maxwell, Kelvin, Joule
Chemistry – Boyle, Dalton, Ramsay
Biology – Ray, Linnaeus, Mendel, Pasteur, Virchow, Agassiz
Geology – Steno, Woodward, Brewster
Astronomy – Copernicus, Galileo, Kepler, Herschel
Mathematics – Pascal, Leibniz, Euler[1]
Keep the shiny side up! September 17, 2012
Posted by daniel ayad in Uncategorized.add a comment
A fundamental principle of Christianity is to place your trust in the Lord. This principle is one of the most talked about, but is often very challenging to practice. The bible is loaded with verses that speak about trusting the Lord, and not placing your trust in any human being.
We often need to remind ourselves that when we sin, we have become enemies of God. “Friendship with the world is enmity with God” (Js 4:4). We have rejected and abandoned God who made us to live in Him forever. Despite our continual rejection of God, he never rejects us or ever abandons us. God never gives up on us, and wants every sinner to turn to Him in repentance.
Return to God August 25, 2012
Posted by daniel ayad in prayer.add a comment
Hi everyone. It has been a while since my last post but here is something short.
- Do you ever have the feeling that you are a failure?
- Or ever have the feeling that you have made too many mistakes to deserve forgiveness?
Well, join the club that says yes to the above.
We could go on and on, describing how many times we have fallen and chosen to separate from God by sinning. We have made too many mistakes to remember, and if you were to focus on the mistakes it will make you really feel like a loser.
But by the grace of God, Christ died on the cross for our forgiveness to live eternally in Him. We have the comfort knowing that when we return to God, we feel that He is present with us[1]. God was never away from us, but it is we who have left Him. It is sort of like us thinking that the Sun is leaving us in the evening, but it is rather us (the Earth) turning its back on the Sun.
We do not want to follow what is false. Sin blinds, binds and grinds!
Help us to return to You, O Lord, in order to receive forgiveness of our many sins…. and the relationships with mankind will follow.
In Christ, Daniel
[1] H.H Pope Shenouda, Return to God, pg 50, 2005
