Apparent Contradictions: God or Satan?

 First order of business, I apologize for my lack of updates lately.  I took a trip to California two weekends ago with family and was busy before and after prepping and catching up.  Now I'm back and hope to resume my normal Tuesday, Thursday, Friday routine.

You guys have voted in the next apparent contradiction for me to debunk today and it is the one found in the following verses.

Again the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, "Go, number Israel and Judah."  -- 2 Samuel 24:1

Then Satan stood against Israel and incited David to number Israel.  --  1 Chronicles 21:1

Both of these passages are telling the story of the same exact event.  So the question is "Who incited David to number Israel?"  2 Samuel says that God did it.  1 Chronicles says that Satan did it.  Is the Bible calling God and Satan the same person?  Did the author of Samuel (likely Samuel) and the author of Chronicles (likely Ezra) disagree?  What's the deal?

What Jesus Endured and Accomplished on the Cross

 
Today is Good Friday.  Its the day that we remember the death of our Savior as a sacrifice in our place.  But do we get it?  The only place I've ever seen any really violent deaths is through the television.  When I hear that Jesus was crucified, I don't have any experience to draw on to fully understand what he went through.  My guess is that most of you are in the same boat as well.  A crucifixion is so far from reality to us that its hard to comprehend.  So let's look briefly at what our Savior endured for us.  This will be detailed and may make some readers feel uncomfortable.  It should.  The goal here is not gore, but the truth of what our Savior went through for us.

Theology Thursday: Can Demons Hurt Us?

The votes are in and today's question is: Can demons hurt us?  Whether you're a Christian or not, you've probably been scared of demons at one point or another.  Have you seen the Exorcist?  Have you heard strange, scary, and unexplainable stories around a campfire?  The devil and demons can be a scary thing to talk about, but what is true and what is Hollywood?  What is real and what is hype?