Thou shalt not make thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the waters beneath the earth. (Deuteronomy 5:8)
What drives the worship of men? Is it not what they want; that is, what they want to be. Yes the Israelites made golden calves. But why? Because they really believed God looked like a cow? No! Because they wanted to become a nation like Egypt, they did what Egyptians did. The image of a perfect, prestigious and powerful nation was resident in their minds and they pursued and worshipped that image until it manifested two things: golden calves and the anger of God. They did not worship bulls they worship Egypt. Yet they did not worship Egypt, they worshipped the likeness of Egypt, which likeness they wanted to assume.
The real image resides where the graven image originated: in the mind of the worshipper. More existential than the idol itself, is what one believes about the graven image, for this mental idol drives the worship of any physical idol: what one sees himself as, or where one conceive herself as being: the possession, the posture, the prestige. A young man plagued by the abandonment of his dad is on the search for his perfect dad which reality resides only in his mind. Yet it drives his rebellion toward all authority figures. A longing to be married guides a woman into promiscuity, as she stares at herself being married to each man she encounters. That adulterous guy who always imagined himself to be the lady's man has never settled down in his own marriage, wagering the wellbeing of his family, as he exploits woman after woman. And where did that image come from? It was made up of three components: lack, want and hurt. And that idle is often walled in by the sentimental belief that lack, want, and/or hurt legalizes the idol.
Like Christ, the image demands faithfulness, shamelessness, and yet therein is found not the bliss and satisfaction imagined, but only the momentary pleasure of sin that quickly fades into a lifetime of pain. One is sold a scourge, the curse, an endless cycle of hurt, a hopeless hope, shameless shame, and a dead dream that will let him die desperately wondering and looking outside the will of God for fulfillment in a place where it can never be found. Oh yes he will find something: wasted time, wasted opportunities, wasted relationships, wasted resources, wasted efforts and energy. Driven to exponential sins by an idolatrous image that is now set before God, above God.
We, the saints, the warriors of God, must with the power of Christ destroy this false god that has gained dominion over the life of this man or woman. And replace that image with the image of Christ. Paul writes "Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ." It has been made number one, above Christ and to the consequential detriment of the person.
War must be waged to destroy that image as God destroyed the statue of Dagon in the pagan temple. And who is this person, but the temple of the Holy Spirit in whom God will stand alone in? God will cleanse and claim every place of worship by the entrance of His presence, for therein is light and thereby darkness is gone. The glory of Christ is revealed and the pretention of the idol is exposed and the power of the idol is expelled.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
It’s Me, It’s Me O Lord
Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. Proverbs 4:23
What is the tendency of the heart? Is it not to look around and blame others for one’s own situation? If she wasn’t so… If he would just… If they had only… and on and on it goes. However, if my relief is so contingent on the conformity of another to what I feel he or she should be or do, my hope is bleak at best; because, I can neither control nor change others. What if the perpetrator will never confess their responsibility in the matter, or moreover what if they are incapacitated or even dead? If once future hope is contingent on the confession of the perpetrator, there is no hope at all. What happened happen and it happen to you; nothing can make the past different.
This is why the psychology of the world is virtually useless; because, they want to lay the cause of one’s pain in the past and not in the present. Their diagnosis is present pain rooted in past events; rather than, present reaction to past pain causing present pain. At the risk of sounding a bit overly simplistic, “let it go is not far from the biblical prescription.” At the risk of sounding insensitive, “get over it!” Yet the former I say in the spirit of “God’s forgiveness” and the latter in the spirit of “God’s overcoming power.”
Rest assured, this is not a denial that the event happened. This is not a denial of the fact that you were wronged. This is not a denial of the hurt and pain as a result of the experience. This is not even justification or vindication of the perpetrator.
Yet, what if the problem is not the past? What if my problem is the present? What if the problem is not the perpetrator? What if the problem is much more personal? The power to control or change others does not reside with me; but what does reside with me is the power to control or changed me; the power to change the choices I make rest with me. YES! Now, my hope has been exponentially increased. And Solomon has well said, out of the heart flows the issues of a person’s life. It is not what was done, but how one deals with what was done to him that continues to pain, paralyze, and pursue him. Yes that person may have pained you, but make no mistake about it, you perpetuated the pain.
Let's face it! Whose fault is it that you were born in the family in which you were born or the environmental situation? Did not God know He was giving you to abusive parents or among perverted uncles? God knew and God did it; He allowed the situation to be in spite of His knowledge thereof. So one’s bitterness about the results of his or her life is a fight with God. It is hatred for who God made you and it flows out of one’s own irresponsibility toward God.
So the advice of the proverb writer is, “Keep thy heart with all diligence.” First, I will address the last word, “diligence”. This indicates the need for consistent and constant effort. Secondly, the word “keep” means to govern or control. The object of this need for constant control is the heart’s passion. The word passion means intense and increasing desire for “relief” or “accomplishment”. We have focused in this work more on the idea of relief, vindication or liberation.
Lastly, how? How does one keep his heart? First, one must stop looking around at others and look up to God. That is, count all situations as the Sovereign will of God. Note the scripture, “And the LORD said unto him, Who hath made man's mouth? or who maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? have not I the LORD?” (Exo 4:11). One will find permanent relief only in the proper response. And what then is the proper response? Again the scripture says, “In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you” (1Th 5:18). While others may indeed be a problem they are never my problem... my problem is always me!
What is the tendency of the heart? Is it not to look around and blame others for one’s own situation? If she wasn’t so… If he would just… If they had only… and on and on it goes. However, if my relief is so contingent on the conformity of another to what I feel he or she should be or do, my hope is bleak at best; because, I can neither control nor change others. What if the perpetrator will never confess their responsibility in the matter, or moreover what if they are incapacitated or even dead? If once future hope is contingent on the confession of the perpetrator, there is no hope at all. What happened happen and it happen to you; nothing can make the past different.
This is why the psychology of the world is virtually useless; because, they want to lay the cause of one’s pain in the past and not in the present. Their diagnosis is present pain rooted in past events; rather than, present reaction to past pain causing present pain. At the risk of sounding a bit overly simplistic, “let it go is not far from the biblical prescription.” At the risk of sounding insensitive, “get over it!” Yet the former I say in the spirit of “God’s forgiveness” and the latter in the spirit of “God’s overcoming power.”
Rest assured, this is not a denial that the event happened. This is not a denial of the fact that you were wronged. This is not a denial of the hurt and pain as a result of the experience. This is not even justification or vindication of the perpetrator.
Yet, what if the problem is not the past? What if my problem is the present? What if the problem is not the perpetrator? What if the problem is much more personal? The power to control or change others does not reside with me; but what does reside with me is the power to control or changed me; the power to change the choices I make rest with me. YES! Now, my hope has been exponentially increased. And Solomon has well said, out of the heart flows the issues of a person’s life. It is not what was done, but how one deals with what was done to him that continues to pain, paralyze, and pursue him. Yes that person may have pained you, but make no mistake about it, you perpetuated the pain.
Let's face it! Whose fault is it that you were born in the family in which you were born or the environmental situation? Did not God know He was giving you to abusive parents or among perverted uncles? God knew and God did it; He allowed the situation to be in spite of His knowledge thereof. So one’s bitterness about the results of his or her life is a fight with God. It is hatred for who God made you and it flows out of one’s own irresponsibility toward God.
So the advice of the proverb writer is, “Keep thy heart with all diligence.” First, I will address the last word, “diligence”. This indicates the need for consistent and constant effort. Secondly, the word “keep” means to govern or control. The object of this need for constant control is the heart’s passion. The word passion means intense and increasing desire for “relief” or “accomplishment”. We have focused in this work more on the idea of relief, vindication or liberation.
Lastly, how? How does one keep his heart? First, one must stop looking around at others and look up to God. That is, count all situations as the Sovereign will of God. Note the scripture, “And the LORD said unto him, Who hath made man's mouth? or who maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? have not I the LORD?” (Exo 4:11). One will find permanent relief only in the proper response. And what then is the proper response? Again the scripture says, “In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you” (1Th 5:18). While others may indeed be a problem they are never my problem... my problem is always me!
Monday, December 21, 2009
A Setting For A Coming
And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. (Luke 2:13-14)
Seeds of ambiguity have been sown among believers, as to whether Christians should observe the Christmas celebration. Some have gone as far as deeming it a pagan practice, yet a look at history will not affirm this. Christmas has its origin, not in paganism, nor in edicts of Emperor Constantine, but in the church. That's right! The church has always set aside a day to celebrate the birth of Christ. While no one knows the day that Jesus Christ was born, the day of observance was not first December 25th, but January 6th. Some say it was a syncretistic change of date, meant to merge Christian and pagan worship. However, history does not produce the outrage, debate, division, or bloodshed that such a motive would have occasioned. Rather history is more aligned with the idea that, in agreement, the church sought to counter pagan observances by moving the Christmas celebration. This seems clear not only by the absence of resistance, but confirmed by the fact that this was not the only holiday moved as a counter measure to pagan observances.
While history of this sort is very meaningful and one should be careful in either contradicting or abandoning the long standing traditions of the church, there is still a higher authority that sets forth a pattern of celebrating the birth of Christ.
The angels celebrated the birth of Christ, for they sang "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men." Not only did the angels celebrate the birth of Christ, but the shepherds celebrated the birth of Christ, "And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen." Not only so, but eight days after Jesus was born, there in the temple, Simeon the priest celebrated the birth of Christ saying, "Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: For mine eyes have seen thy salvation, Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people; A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel." And after him, a widow who served continually at the temple, the prophetess Anna, she celebrated the birth of Christ, as she gave thanks "and spake of him to all them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem." About two years later, the wise men arrived at the home of Mary and Joseph and they celebrated the birth of Jesus, "and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh." Is this not a pattern of celebrating the birth of Christ to be imitated?
For 400 years God had shut up heaven. Since the prophet Malachi, there was no word, no revelation, no prophet, and no preacher. Isaiah described the conditional context of the advent of the Savior as a drought, dry and unfruitful ground, a land filled with crusting and cracking river beds. And then an emerging greenery came into view, a shoot out of the parched dirt, and the consoling sight of life, the hope of fertility.
This is the setting, circumstance, context, background of Christmas. The setting for the coming of Christ is the extended silence of heaven broken by the heralding voices singing angels. For the one who understands the setting in which the birth of Christ occurs, it not only commands the celebration of Christmas but it demands the celebration of Christmas. Moreover such shallow religion that does not affirm the celebration of Christmas, one may rest assured that it is neither biblical nor Christian.
Seeds of ambiguity have been sown among believers, as to whether Christians should observe the Christmas celebration. Some have gone as far as deeming it a pagan practice, yet a look at history will not affirm this. Christmas has its origin, not in paganism, nor in edicts of Emperor Constantine, but in the church. That's right! The church has always set aside a day to celebrate the birth of Christ. While no one knows the day that Jesus Christ was born, the day of observance was not first December 25th, but January 6th. Some say it was a syncretistic change of date, meant to merge Christian and pagan worship. However, history does not produce the outrage, debate, division, or bloodshed that such a motive would have occasioned. Rather history is more aligned with the idea that, in agreement, the church sought to counter pagan observances by moving the Christmas celebration. This seems clear not only by the absence of resistance, but confirmed by the fact that this was not the only holiday moved as a counter measure to pagan observances.
While history of this sort is very meaningful and one should be careful in either contradicting or abandoning the long standing traditions of the church, there is still a higher authority that sets forth a pattern of celebrating the birth of Christ.
The angels celebrated the birth of Christ, for they sang "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men." Not only did the angels celebrate the birth of Christ, but the shepherds celebrated the birth of Christ, "And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen." Not only so, but eight days after Jesus was born, there in the temple, Simeon the priest celebrated the birth of Christ saying, "Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: For mine eyes have seen thy salvation, Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people; A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel." And after him, a widow who served continually at the temple, the prophetess Anna, she celebrated the birth of Christ, as she gave thanks "and spake of him to all them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem." About two years later, the wise men arrived at the home of Mary and Joseph and they celebrated the birth of Jesus, "and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh." Is this not a pattern of celebrating the birth of Christ to be imitated?
For 400 years God had shut up heaven. Since the prophet Malachi, there was no word, no revelation, no prophet, and no preacher. Isaiah described the conditional context of the advent of the Savior as a drought, dry and unfruitful ground, a land filled with crusting and cracking river beds. And then an emerging greenery came into view, a shoot out of the parched dirt, and the consoling sight of life, the hope of fertility.
This is the setting, circumstance, context, background of Christmas. The setting for the coming of Christ is the extended silence of heaven broken by the heralding voices singing angels. For the one who understands the setting in which the birth of Christ occurs, it not only commands the celebration of Christmas but it demands the celebration of Christmas. Moreover such shallow religion that does not affirm the celebration of Christmas, one may rest assured that it is neither biblical nor Christian.
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
A Sound Basis for Confident Living
Psalm 27:1 The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
The Psalmist, David here brings to mind a little child that talks big noise. The subjects of his rant and raving no doubt are left wondering, how and where did such a little person gained so much boldness, life, vigor and vitality? Only to realize that the child’s daddy standing there right behind him is the source of all of his boldness. ...And that is the case here in this psalm: None of the confidence, themed in this passage by the writer is self-sourced or self-sustained.
David declares His power; the Lord is light, liberty, strength and courage. Yet let us not fall victim to admiring the power without first examining the person. The first word that arrests my attention is "Lord". It begs the question, is this "Lord" lord of some, or Lord of All? While the use of the definite article is conclusive, a bit of rationale may provide for a more firm footing practically. If He were merely "a" lord, there may be other lords on His same level; on the other hand, if He were merely "my" lord, then He may not be able to master my enemies. However, since He is "THE" Lord; that is Lord of "ALL", then He can make the wicked cease and the weary rest.
It is His Lordship from whence His power flows through the life of the believer. David says, from Him I gain light, liberty, strength, and courage. He gives light to clearly see what I should do and that I'll be ok in spite of the limitations of my own sight, liberty to not remain under the bondage of fear induced by the rumors of my enemies, strength to press forward regardless of the apparent obstacles and obstructions that lay in my way, and courage to confidently employ this equipment in the realities of everyday life.
Yes one can consider the possibility of His promise, you can walk through the fire and the fire won't burn; you can walk through the flood and the waters won't overcome you; however, unless He is Master of all, one is hardly compelled to wager his life on such absurdity. Moreover if He is THE Lord, then He can temper the heat of the fire and the wetness of the water.
Thus the Psalmist rightly declares that when enemies realize that our confidence is in God fully, finally, and forever, they stumble and fall before the fight even begins. Then in verse 4 he moves to the application of the Lord's person and power as observed in this passage: a slim focus, a solitary desire, a single practice. He states it simply, "One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in his temple."
My whole desire and duty is to stay in His presence. Isn't that simple, just make sure daddy is behind me.
The Psalmist, David here brings to mind a little child that talks big noise. The subjects of his rant and raving no doubt are left wondering, how and where did such a little person gained so much boldness, life, vigor and vitality? Only to realize that the child’s daddy standing there right behind him is the source of all of his boldness. ...And that is the case here in this psalm: None of the confidence, themed in this passage by the writer is self-sourced or self-sustained.
David declares His power; the Lord is light, liberty, strength and courage. Yet let us not fall victim to admiring the power without first examining the person. The first word that arrests my attention is "Lord". It begs the question, is this "Lord" lord of some, or Lord of All? While the use of the definite article is conclusive, a bit of rationale may provide for a more firm footing practically. If He were merely "a" lord, there may be other lords on His same level; on the other hand, if He were merely "my" lord, then He may not be able to master my enemies. However, since He is "THE" Lord; that is Lord of "ALL", then He can make the wicked cease and the weary rest.
It is His Lordship from whence His power flows through the life of the believer. David says, from Him I gain light, liberty, strength, and courage. He gives light to clearly see what I should do and that I'll be ok in spite of the limitations of my own sight, liberty to not remain under the bondage of fear induced by the rumors of my enemies, strength to press forward regardless of the apparent obstacles and obstructions that lay in my way, and courage to confidently employ this equipment in the realities of everyday life.
Yes one can consider the possibility of His promise, you can walk through the fire and the fire won't burn; you can walk through the flood and the waters won't overcome you; however, unless He is Master of all, one is hardly compelled to wager his life on such absurdity. Moreover if He is THE Lord, then He can temper the heat of the fire and the wetness of the water.
Thus the Psalmist rightly declares that when enemies realize that our confidence is in God fully, finally, and forever, they stumble and fall before the fight even begins. Then in verse 4 he moves to the application of the Lord's person and power as observed in this passage: a slim focus, a solitary desire, a single practice. He states it simply, "One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in his temple."
My whole desire and duty is to stay in His presence. Isn't that simple, just make sure daddy is behind me.
Monday, November 23, 2009
The Missing Link
By Yuri Solomon
The daughter of a dear friend of mine, complained to her mom about having to go to the museum of natural science to see “Lucy.” She asserted, “Mom I don’t believe we come from monkeys, so why should I have to go see Lucy.” “Lucy” is the name given to the famous fossil skeleton that American anthropologist Donald Johanson found in Ethiopia in 1974. Lucy purports to be the so-call, and dare I say mythical, "missing link." The missing link is the long sought after transitional form between species that evolutionist count on breathing the breath of life into their theory on the day it is discovered. Specifically, scientific proponents of evolution claim that Lucy is a 3.2 million year old hominoid bearing the cross features of primates and Homo sapiens (or humans.)
The exhibit has now made its way to our city and is on display in the museum of natural science. While many Christians may have little interest in this, the fact is we need to pay attention. They march our children down to the museum and fill their heads with these God-denying fables of man evolving from apes. Christians certainly should be concerned about this, yet not fearful. It merits our concern, first because Satan specializes in the tactical use of schemes to capture the attention of unsuspecting victims of his temptation, as he did Eve in the Garden of Eden. The hook line, “Has God said that you shall not eat of any of the trees of the garden,” was extreme and meant to make her more susceptible to subtler ideas that opposed God’s word. Secondly, as we are concern about teaching and training children, and perhaps many adults, in the difference between a Christian/Biblical worldview and a secular worldview.
So in light of these concerns, what simple things should Christians remember when approaching this subject? First and foremost Christians must realize, although passed off as science, evolution is not science. This statement may be surprising; however, science is definitively a hypothesis which can be empirically proven in a laboratory repeatedly. Evolution stops at being a hypothesis, and moreover falls far short of even being that, given the weight of evidence to the contrary (which evidences will not be discussed in this article.) Evolution fails every test of any sort that may be called legitimate science. Evolution is an unobservable theory, a belief, which its proponents desperately want to prove true, and the present hope of their glory is in Lucy. Christians can rest assured that evolution is only a belief and not a fact. Christian faith is in the words of scripture concerning creation, while the evolutionist trusts in their own unfounded reasoning and rationale about creation.
Secondly, Christians may find assurance in the fact that biblical truth cannot and will not ever be discredited. No one in all of history has ever proven that the assertions of scripture err. The opposite is true of these supposedly transitional forms. The reality is that Lucy is the latest attempt to substantiate the clearly defunct theory of Darwinian Evolution. She is in the back of the line of a long list of frauds and failures. There was Piltdown Mann (1890s), Peking Man (1912,), Homo erectus (1927) and the list goes on, always ending in virtual scandal to the dismay of the proponents of evolution. So Lucy is certainly not the first and probably will not be the last of these futile attempts at proving faulty theory. The reason the proponents of evolution are so oppose to our view being voiced in the public forum is because they know that their evidence is lacking; therefore, if your argument cannot be proven true, then the next course of action is to keep your opponents from asserting their position.
Lastly Christians should not inadvertently adopt their approach, seeking to forcefully silence the evolutionist. The truth will stand all on its own, and bring falsehood to shame. So then the appropriate response is to be bold in faith, allowing what they believe to be tested for its soundness, so that their faith will be increased by seeing the truth stand against its critics. Encourage our children to hear out the world’s rationale, especially while they have you by their side to help them reason well. Allow the light of God’s revelation to shine brightly against the dark theories of the world. It is the divine cultural mandate that our faith is placed on display in the market place of ideas. So go to their exhibitions. Hear the theories of the world. Test them in light of the scripture and hold on to what proves to be true. Tested faith is real faith.
Darwin predicted that the fossil record would either prove or falsify his theory; over a century later, the missing link remains undiscovered. Lucy is but another attempt at saving this doomed theory. The missing link is not a transitional form of any species; the missing link is "faith" that God created the heavens and the earth and he made every kind to produce after its own kind. The Christian may be confident that these words of scripture will always be true and no human theory can or will make this brilliant reality fade.
The daughter of a dear friend of mine, complained to her mom about having to go to the museum of natural science to see “Lucy.” She asserted, “Mom I don’t believe we come from monkeys, so why should I have to go see Lucy.” “Lucy” is the name given to the famous fossil skeleton that American anthropologist Donald Johanson found in Ethiopia in 1974. Lucy purports to be the so-call, and dare I say mythical, "missing link." The missing link is the long sought after transitional form between species that evolutionist count on breathing the breath of life into their theory on the day it is discovered. Specifically, scientific proponents of evolution claim that Lucy is a 3.2 million year old hominoid bearing the cross features of primates and Homo sapiens (or humans.)
The exhibit has now made its way to our city and is on display in the museum of natural science. While many Christians may have little interest in this, the fact is we need to pay attention. They march our children down to the museum and fill their heads with these God-denying fables of man evolving from apes. Christians certainly should be concerned about this, yet not fearful. It merits our concern, first because Satan specializes in the tactical use of schemes to capture the attention of unsuspecting victims of his temptation, as he did Eve in the Garden of Eden. The hook line, “Has God said that you shall not eat of any of the trees of the garden,” was extreme and meant to make her more susceptible to subtler ideas that opposed God’s word. Secondly, as we are concern about teaching and training children, and perhaps many adults, in the difference between a Christian/Biblical worldview and a secular worldview.
So in light of these concerns, what simple things should Christians remember when approaching this subject? First and foremost Christians must realize, although passed off as science, evolution is not science. This statement may be surprising; however, science is definitively a hypothesis which can be empirically proven in a laboratory repeatedly. Evolution stops at being a hypothesis, and moreover falls far short of even being that, given the weight of evidence to the contrary (which evidences will not be discussed in this article.) Evolution fails every test of any sort that may be called legitimate science. Evolution is an unobservable theory, a belief, which its proponents desperately want to prove true, and the present hope of their glory is in Lucy. Christians can rest assured that evolution is only a belief and not a fact. Christian faith is in the words of scripture concerning creation, while the evolutionist trusts in their own unfounded reasoning and rationale about creation.
Secondly, Christians may find assurance in the fact that biblical truth cannot and will not ever be discredited. No one in all of history has ever proven that the assertions of scripture err. The opposite is true of these supposedly transitional forms. The reality is that Lucy is the latest attempt to substantiate the clearly defunct theory of Darwinian Evolution. She is in the back of the line of a long list of frauds and failures. There was Piltdown Mann (1890s), Peking Man (1912,), Homo erectus (1927) and the list goes on, always ending in virtual scandal to the dismay of the proponents of evolution. So Lucy is certainly not the first and probably will not be the last of these futile attempts at proving faulty theory. The reason the proponents of evolution are so oppose to our view being voiced in the public forum is because they know that their evidence is lacking; therefore, if your argument cannot be proven true, then the next course of action is to keep your opponents from asserting their position.
Lastly Christians should not inadvertently adopt their approach, seeking to forcefully silence the evolutionist. The truth will stand all on its own, and bring falsehood to shame. So then the appropriate response is to be bold in faith, allowing what they believe to be tested for its soundness, so that their faith will be increased by seeing the truth stand against its critics. Encourage our children to hear out the world’s rationale, especially while they have you by their side to help them reason well. Allow the light of God’s revelation to shine brightly against the dark theories of the world. It is the divine cultural mandate that our faith is placed on display in the market place of ideas. So go to their exhibitions. Hear the theories of the world. Test them in light of the scripture and hold on to what proves to be true. Tested faith is real faith.
Darwin predicted that the fossil record would either prove or falsify his theory; over a century later, the missing link remains undiscovered. Lucy is but another attempt at saving this doomed theory. The missing link is not a transitional form of any species; the missing link is "faith" that God created the heavens and the earth and he made every kind to produce after its own kind. The Christian may be confident that these words of scripture will always be true and no human theory can or will make this brilliant reality fade.
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Playing to Win
For though I be free from all men, yet have I made myself servant unto all, that I might gain the more. (1 Corinthian 9:19)
My friend Joe asked me, “How do you get passed the attitudes and hurtful dispositions of others?” To which I replied, “I play to win.” In other words, I try to keep my mind on what it takes to get a “well done” from God in every situation. That is the defining trait of a matured believer; every situation is an opportunity to profit eternally.
In I Corinthians 9, Paul lays out three contests that believers of the faith must overcome in order to bear fruit as a father (soul-winner/fruit bearer) in the faith. They are in reverse order in the text; because, his focus is ultimately on winning people. However, there are two prerequisites to winning people: winning against your body, and winning against the culture that has the person imprisoned. So the goal is winning against the person, which requires winning against the culture, which requires winning against one’s own flesh.
First of all, if we do not discipline our own bodies, (i.e. attitude, arguments, and actions) we can hardly hope to endure the difficult course of successfully infiltrating a culture that holds a person hostage or winning against the resistance of the person you are intending to win. Worse even, Paul says it is possible to win, and after having run the course to win, one ends up being a cast away; because, the person sees hypocrisy.
Paul points out potential loss; because, the person one seeks to reach views a weakness in behavior because of a lack of discipline over the body against sin. That's right; you won the battle but lost the war; because, your vise has outshone your virtue in the eyes of the person you sought to win.
Secondly we must overcome the culture that holds them captive. This involves what I call the “art of condescension.” Paul says,
It is to become not sympathetic but empathetic with a person for the purpose of winning them over. The difference between sympathy and empathy is this: sympathy sits down at the foot of a mountain and weeps with a person about the difficulty of climbing the mountain; empathy on the other hand, puts its arm around the person and says I understand, but come on let’s climb the mountain together; “Condescension = humility + compassion + edification.” In other words, one becomes a servant to another in his area of weakness by entering into his situation. As someone aptly put it, "compassion is your pain in my heart".
The culture is a stronghold, a wall, which must not be assaulted by carnal combat, but marched around in faith and obedience, trusting and depending on the word of God to make the difference.
Now we are ready to win against the person, (i.e. against his ideology), armed with goodness against disorder, knowledge against tactic, temperance against attitude, patience against obstinacy, godliness against worldliness, kindness against weaknesses, and love against debt. This will enable you to pull down the stronghold that encompasses the person and take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.
My friend Joe asked me, “How do you get passed the attitudes and hurtful dispositions of others?” To which I replied, “I play to win.” In other words, I try to keep my mind on what it takes to get a “well done” from God in every situation. That is the defining trait of a matured believer; every situation is an opportunity to profit eternally.
In I Corinthians 9, Paul lays out three contests that believers of the faith must overcome in order to bear fruit as a father (soul-winner/fruit bearer) in the faith. They are in reverse order in the text; because, his focus is ultimately on winning people. However, there are two prerequisites to winning people: winning against your body, and winning against the culture that has the person imprisoned. So the goal is winning against the person, which requires winning against the culture, which requires winning against one’s own flesh.
First of all, if we do not discipline our own bodies, (i.e. attitude, arguments, and actions) we can hardly hope to endure the difficult course of successfully infiltrating a culture that holds a person hostage or winning against the resistance of the person you are intending to win. Worse even, Paul says it is possible to win, and after having run the course to win, one ends up being a cast away; because, the person sees hypocrisy.
But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway. (1Co 9:27)
Paul points out potential loss; because, the person one seeks to reach views a weakness in behavior because of a lack of discipline over the body against sin. That's right; you won the battle but lost the war; because, your vise has outshone your virtue in the eyes of the person you sought to win.
Secondly we must overcome the culture that holds them captive. This involves what I call the “art of condescension.” Paul says,
For though I be free from all men, yet have I made myself servant unto all, that I might gain the more. And unto the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might gain the Jews; to them that are under the law, as under the law, that I might gain them that are under the law; To them that are without law, as without law, (being not without law to God, but under the law to Christ,) that I might gain them that are without law. To the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the weak: I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some. (1Co 9:19-22)
It is to become not sympathetic but empathetic with a person for the purpose of winning them over. The difference between sympathy and empathy is this: sympathy sits down at the foot of a mountain and weeps with a person about the difficulty of climbing the mountain; empathy on the other hand, puts its arm around the person and says I understand, but come on let’s climb the mountain together; “Condescension = humility + compassion + edification.” In other words, one becomes a servant to another in his area of weakness by entering into his situation. As someone aptly put it, "compassion is your pain in my heart".
The culture is a stronghold, a wall, which must not be assaulted by carnal combat, but marched around in faith and obedience, trusting and depending on the word of God to make the difference.
Now we are ready to win against the person, (i.e. against his ideology), armed with goodness against disorder, knowledge against tactic, temperance against attitude, patience against obstinacy, godliness against worldliness, kindness against weaknesses, and love against debt. This will enable you to pull down the stronghold that encompasses the person and take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.
Saturday, November 14, 2009
The Divorce of Marriage
We have moved beyond the need for mere "marital counseling" to a need for "marriage promotion." People are not getting married. Extreme secular culture has even gone as far as declaring marriage as old fashion, obsolete, and antiquated. The results are live-ins and/or disposable marriages. This cancerous ideology is metastasizing among heterosexuals while those who promote the gay agenda are seeking to distort the definition of marriage beyond that of a covenant relationship between one man and one woman. Simply put this most primary and historical institute of humanity is under attack on every front, whether divorce, abandonment, or perversion.
What havoc has this phenomenon wrought on our communities and society at large? The degradation of the sanctity of marriage is the source of the unwedded and unwanted pregnancy epidemic, teenage delinquencies, increased child abuse and molestation, continued propagation of divorce, the embrace of homosexuality, and countless mental, emotional, and spiritual wounds to the posterity of the broken marriages. Marriage may be optional or disposable in our minds, but this is anything but a reality. The pain is real; the cost is high, and the pathology is virtually unstoppable.
The most extreme consequence being realized today is that it is becoming more in vogue to simply not get married: sometimes out of fear, after experiencing the horrific details of the divorce of their parents, and sometimes out of seeking a personal lifestyle of convenience, not wanting the difficult challenges of this covenant keeping task; moreover, in a culture of "feel-good seekers," either motivation serves as a catalyst for abandoning marriage.
Lastly, long-term effects of a self-serving, self-esteem seeking, and self-gratifying culture is that our children are taught to enter into marriage with as much independence and autonomy as possible. The idea being, establish one's self firmly before entering into marriage. Parenthetically, one need only to converse with a few average adults passed age forty-five to quickly surmise that personal establishment is a life-long task which is refined and/or re-defined every decade of a person's life. Additionally, such establishment faces added difficulty and slower progress apart from a context of marriage and family contrary to popular credence. Moreover, even when the bonds of matrimony after this so-called personal and career achievements are met, the bonding glue on the tape of marriage is hardly sticky; rather, interdependence is thwarted by separate bank accounts, separate friendships, separate visions and ideals for the family, attending separate churches, and even separate lifestyles. When marriage in youth is postponed for social and material achievement, there is practically nothing left around which to build and grow a marriage.
All the ideals mentioned are sourced in man's cognition and not God's word. We've abandoned the instructions of the one who invented male and female, instituted marriage, installed its purpose, and informs its success: "And God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them: and God said unto them, be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it; and have dominion" (Gen 1:27-28).
This is the sole purpose of marriage: the propagation of God's image in the earth. Whatever pleasure we find in it is an incidental fringe benefit to the duty of faithfulness to God's word.
No doubt this does not sit well with our epicurean culture; however, rest assured that the Christian life will always bring us to the choice of seeking our pleasure or seeking God's glory, and both cannot be sought simultaneously. The glory of God still remains in the promotion of youthful, fruitful, faithful and dutiful matrimony, which will in turn provide for a more blessed and stable society.
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