@Pale Tuvalu Ok. But how do you do connect Jesus parables to your allegorical interpretation of Genesis? Where is that in the text?

@Pale Tuvalu So I guess what I'm asking is where in the text do you get that information? Why should we read it like that? What about the text tells us to understand it that way? I understand what you're saying, my question is why should we use that understanding?

@Glen Veltum See now that's an evidential framework I can get behind. When two believers are talking there is common ground and common starting points. But we use a different approach with the unbeliever because we have no common ground. See guys? I told you we should keep Glen around.

@Pale Tuvalu Presuppositional apologetics is different from evidential or classical apologetics in that the latter methods tend to start with supposedly neutral facts, neutral reason, or neutral standards, and then try to argue to God from there. Presuppositional apologetics challenges that starting point itself (neutrality and the sufficiency of man's reasoning alone). It asks what must already be true in order for reasoning, facts, morality, science, and knowledge to make sense at all. So its a different approach. For me, the easiest way to think about it is presup is asking the question "what must be true first in order for anything else to be known?" Instead of beginning with man as though he is neutral and can reason his way up to God, it begins with God as the necessary foundation for reason, truth, morality, and knowledge to even be possible.

You are right that we can't treat “the Holy Spirit told me” as an automatic, unquestionable trump card. People can claim "God told me" for bad interpretations, and that claim by itself proves nothing. Its valid and invalid at the same time, lol Valid: the Holy Spirit truly illuminates believers, opens blind eyes, convicts, teaches, and causes us to receive God’s word. Invalid: “the Holy Spirit told me” is not a trump card that overrides the actual text. The Spirit does not give private meanings disconnected from Scripture that can't be tested publicly. He inspired Scripture, so He is not now giving interpretations that contradict it.

This is a good question: “How do Protestants know our canon is the correct index?” That is a real question, but the answer isn't, “because the church said so.” lol Protestant would say that the church recognizes the characteristics of God’s revelation: apostolic origin, consistency with prior revelation, reception by the churches, the self-authenticating character of Scripture as God’s word, etc (there are probably more).

Tradition maybe? Bc that has typically been called Worship? That's a good question. I'm not sure. It's how I've always labeled it, too.

Oh yeah, lol, modern CCM is designed to be learned by Bob the plumber that plays in the band once a month. It has to be simple by necessity. I do miss the deep theology of older hymns.

It was good. It's a progressive church. I talked to one of the leaders. I pressed him on what Interfaith means and how do you harmonize religions that contradict each other. He's said "If it's good, it's good." So truth wasn't his concern. We did connect with 2 people. I met a guy that was a Baptist turned Mormon. He didn't seem to know anything about LDS theology. That didn't surprise me because of the way the leader talked. I got his number and I'll follow up with him. It was interesting though. I've never seen so many images of Mormon Jesus before. Lol. They're everywhere.

@Cynthia Flint I would go with anyone to a ward. That's essentially what we did on that Friday That guy who had been attending for 13 years didn't know what i would call foundational LDS theology. So there are lots of opportunities.