HOW To Care About Politics: Concise Thoughts

Do you and I have the courage 

to admit that the biggest enemy 

of the gospel

and of God's Kingdom 

has NEVER been the ones 

with political power; 

but rather, 

the greatest enemy of the gospel 

and of God's kingdom

has ALWAYS been 

Christians who are 

un-Christlike?

The gospel flourished and spread 

under the reign of Nero, 

the Christian-butchering madman. 

The Kingdom of God

 flourished in underground churches 

all over the communist nations of the world, 

in the face of intense persecution and martyrdom.

The gospel can flourish and spread 

under whoever our new president may be.

 ###

IF we understand that the 

Kingdom of God can flourish 

no matter who is president, 

BUT we're still so upset about politics 

that we're willing to dump Christlikeness 

in favor of sinful attitudes and actions, 

in pursuit of political power, 

THEN we have no choice 

but to conclude that 

we aren't prioritizing the Kingdom of God at all,

but rather our own kingdoms, 

and we're rebelling against the One who told us to 

"Seek first the Kingdom of God, 

and His righteousness, 

and all these things will be added to you."

###

Lord, 

please forgive us 

for reviling others in Your name, 

instead of showing others that 

Your love and Your strength are enough 

to give us peace, and joy, and endless hope

no matter what!

Please forgive us 

for bringing such dishonor to You 

by being fearful, depressed by circumstances, 

hateful, spiteful, vengeful, and power-hungry. 

Who would want the god of people like that, 

when they can behave the same way 

(and sometimes better) 

with no god at all! 

Please help us 

to ask ourselves hard questions 

about why we act and feel as we do, 

and what it says about 

the powerless "little-g" god 

we so often believe in, 

when we should be exulting in 

the God of Calvary, 

and of the empty tomb, 

and of the coming Kingdom 

that shall never pass away! 

How different 

would this world be 

if we really lived 

(and talked, and Facebook-posted) 

from faith in our big-G God 

who reigns over all 

the circumstances of our lives?

Please make it so, Lord Jesus.

Please revive Your people.

Loving Religious Freedom, But Not Christ

English: Ruins of Laodicea engraving by William Miller after T Allom (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

To what shall I liken this generation, this Laodicea?

You are like men who fight for freedoms you do not care to enjoy.

When you pull your noses out of entertainment long enough to notice that your government-given rights are threatened, you get mad. You get really mad.

NOBODY STEPS ON MY RIGHTS!

You fire off angry words at whoever you think needs to be reminded of your rights.  

And then you put your face back in your screens and ignore God,
because you never really wanted God.

You just wanted your rights.

You want your pride.  You want the right to choose God if you ever get around to it.

But you never get around to it.

There's just so much else that's more important.

You know... the next level on that video game,
the next episode of that show,
that next hand of solitaire,
the next novel,
the next round of shopping for that next cute thing or cool gadget to stuff in your house.

Yes, you want the right to God,
but you don't want God.

Jesus died to save you from sin.
You designate a huge portion of your budgets to be entertained by sin. 

Jesus died to give you the gift of enjoying God forever, instead of suffering the eternal punishment your sins deserve.
You feel you're doing God a favor by showing up at church on Sundays... because you still can do it without fear... but He's too boring, intrusive, demanding, and irrelevant for the rest of your week.

Jesus died to give you the power to become sons of God... to live under the authority of your Heavenly Father, to die to this world, to take up your cross and follow Him into glory!
You only want the right to show up at a building on Sunday without fear, and the right to keep living just like the world for the rest of the week.

"What?" you gasp. "I'm not just like the world! I don't do this sin, and I don't do that sin."
But you "don't do these things" because it pleases your religious pride not to do them, and because you believe you can throw these "proofs" in God's face to defend your utter self-absorption and contempt for Him.

Don't kid yourself. For you, persecution for Christ's sake is a moot point. The government will never take away your right to freely worship as you see fit. They'll only take away your right to freely worship Christ.

Even if you do go to prison fighting for your right to a God you don't want, and even if you give up your body to be burned for your rights, but have not love for Christ, you gain nothing.

God is not your God. And the freedoms your pride defends will come back to haunt you on that Day, because when you had the freedom, you did not use it to come to Him.

Repent and believe the Gospel. Jesus died to save you from godlessness and bring you to God.  So come to Him that He might save you!

But oh, tender words for those of you who love and trust Jesus!  Fear not, little flock, it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the Kingdom, a Kingdom which cannot be shaken, a salvation stored up in Heaven for you, ready to be revealed in the Last Day. If your government throws you in prison, you will not lose Him. They can NOT take you and Christ away from each other! You have nothing to fear. When (not "if") you walk through the fire, He will be with you, and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you.

The government did not give you this right. GOD DID.  And they can never take it away.

When You Know the Ship Will Wreck

Photo by Petcook

When you know the ship will wreck...and you warn people...and they don't listen...what do you do?  Especially if they drag you into their mess despite your warnings?

And what if, in the midst of their mess that they dragged you into, you've been promised a personal just-for-you rescue...what do you do then?

Shipwrecks are a good topic in election years.  They're a good topic for Christians at any time, because we can always look around and see the world getting into messes that Scripture warned them against.  Often times we've added our voices to the warning cry of Scripture, and have been mocked and vilified for it.  And yet we know that, when the world gets itself into the very messes that Scripture foretold, they will blame God for it (Pr 19:3).  And, to make matters worse, the messes they make often spill over into our lives.

Now, it's not as if our lives were mess-free.  We have our own, for certain.  And that makes it even easier to resent the messes that others dump in our laps.  We don't need theirs on top of ours, do we?

Or do we?

What is a Christian to do?

If the world were to judge by American Christianity, it might conclude that the Christian response to an impending shipwreck is to sit back with arms folded, hollering warnings with an air of disdain for the fools that we know won't listen, and secretly gloating over the disasters that come.

In many cases they'd have good reason to feel that way about us.  Admit it.  Don't many of us just love mocking the fools who voted for the wrong guy, even while we resent the way the wrong guy messed up the country we live in?  Don't many of us just love "writing off" this group or that group whose sins finally got them what they deserve?  If you've been around long enough, you can remember how many Christians gloated over AIDS when it first appeared.

Ugly, isn't it?  And anything but Christlike.

When you throw in the belief in a promised "just-for-you" rescue, the so-called "Christian" response tends to become even uglier.  The attitude I see far too often (and used to embrace wholeheartedly myself) is a contemptuous sneer that says, "Fine, go to Hell and take the world with you.  What do I care?  I'm getting raptured out of here.  You're going to get what you deserve, and I'm glad."

Well, if that's not the right response (and assuredly it's not!), then what is?  Does Scripture give us a picture?

It certainly does, in many places, most clearly in the face of Christ Himself.  But the picture I want to paint for you today is from the Apostle Paul in Acts 27.

He was a prisoner in chains, bound for trial in Rome.  He had no choice but to get on that ship... a ship that he knew would wreck.  He'd been divinely warned, and he had warned those in authority.  But they wouldn't listen.  (Acts 27:10-11).

Sound familiar?

On top of that, Paul had a divine promise of personal survival.  In Acts 23:11, God encouraged Paul that he must not fear, because he was going to give his testimony in Rome.  Sort-of like a "Rapture clause," if you think about it.  The ship might wreck, and everybody else might die for all he knew, but he was going to make it to Rome somehow.

But the trip sure wasn't going to be pleasant for him.  Listen to the description by the physician named Luke (Paul's traveling companion, fellow apostle,  and the author of the biblical Books of Luke and Acts):

14 But soon a tempestuous wind, called the northeaster, struck down from the land. 

15 And when the ship was caught and could not face the wind, we gave way to it and were driven along. 

16 Running under the lee of a small island called Cauda, we managed with difficulty to secure the ship's boat. 

17 After hoisting it up, they used supports to undergird the ship. Then, fearing that they would run aground on the Syrtis, they lowered the gear, and thus they were driven along. 

18 Since we were violently storm-tossed, they began the next day to jettison the cargo. 

19 And on the third day they threw the ship's tackle overboard with their own hands. 

20 When neither sun nor stars appeared for many days, and no small tempest lay on us, all hope of our being saved was at last abandoned.

Yeah, just reading it makes me queasy.  And Paul was here through no fault of his own.

So, naturally, he hunkered down in the storm.  He spewed hatred on the fools who hadn't listened to his warning, because it was their fault that he was reeling and puking along with them for days on end. He spewed hatred on the religious and political systems that had chained him on this ship in the first place.  And he prayed for his personal rescue to come get him off that ship as soon as possible, so that he could be comfy while the others perished as they deserved.  Right?

If you know your Bible at all, and if you know what Christlikeness looks like, then you know that he did the exact opposite.  Let's pick up Luke's narration again.

21 Since they had been without food for a long time, Paul stood up among them and said, "Men, you should have listened to me and not have set sail from Crete and incurred this injury and loss.

22 Yet now I urge you to take heart, for there will be no loss of life among you, but only of the ship.

23 For this very night there stood before me an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I worship.

24 and he said, "Do not be afraid, Paul; you must stand before Caesar.  And behold, God has granted you all those who sail with you."

25 So take heart, men, for I have faith in God that it will be exactly as I have been told.

26 But we must run aground on some island..."

33 As day was about to dawn, Paul urged them all to take some food, saying, "Today is the fourteenth day that you have continued in suspense and without food, having taken nothing.

34 Therefore I urge you to take some food.  For it will give you strength, for not a hair is to perish from the head of any of you."

35 And when he had said these things, he took bread, and giving thanks to God in the presence of all he broke it and began to eat.

36 Then they all were encouraged and ate some food themselves.

Think this through, and you’ll know how to respond to the impending shipwreck of our nation, or of that person who ignored your warning.

First – with honesty, but not spitefulness.  Paul did point out how it all began, but not to say “Nyah.”  Rather, he wanted to point people to the wisdom of listening to God.  He was always a soul-winner.

Second – with selfless, persistent prayer.  Notice the angel’s words.  “God has granted you all those who sail with you.”  The word “granted” indicates a kindness bestowed on someone who requests it.  Paul had not been content to get “raptured” off of that ship.  He prayed heartfelt prayers for the lives of everyone on board. And he prayed this persistently through two weeks...two WEEKS of tempest-tossed, vomit soaked, hungry, thirsty misery.

Third – with encouragement in the promises of God.  Unlike Jonah, who hated seeing God’s mercy extended to the wicked Ninevites, Paul was happy to give the good news of God’s grace to his shipmates.

Fourth – With personal hopefulness.  He ate.  And he shared food, even though the supplies had mostly been jettisoned.  No selfish hoarding here.  No siege mentality.  His faith was generous, contagious, uplifting.

If you read the rest of the story, you’ll see that Paul gained great credibility through all of this.  And after the wreck, God used Paul to perform miracles of healing for the natives on the island where they had run aground.  Because of this, the gospel continued to spread.

Do you suppose that God would have worked as many miracles and advanced the gospel so well through an unrepentantly self-centered, hateful jerk who just wanted to get out and let the others drown?  What about through a Gloomy Gus who sees nothing but disaster, and can't serve anyone because his hands are too busy pointing at people?  Paul’s faith made him available to move mountains.

Do I really need to say more?

One last thought from Acts 27, but from a slightly different angle.  If you've been reading my blog lately, you'll know that God has laid it on my heart to pray daily for my neighborhood.  And not just little, generic prayers, but bold prayers for the whole neighborhood to be saved, to become part of The Kingdom, and more.

This morning, as I looked out my front door and looked over the various houses to pray for them, the thought came to me.  C'mon, Betsy, do you really think that could possibly happen?  A whole neighborhood, for Pete's sake?

And that’s when the Spirit brought Acts 27 to mind for today. 

24 “God has granted you all those who sail with you."

37 (We were in all 276 persons in the ship.) 

I haven’t received any such promises from God.  But I know that He CAN save them all, and more, in response to prayer.  So why in Heaven’s name wouldn't I ask in faith and hope and love?  Why wouldn't I offer my neighbors truth...not spitefully, but in loving hope that they will turn to the One who is Truth?  Why wouldn't I have the kind of hope and encouragement that are contagious (See 1 Peter 3:15)?

Why wouldn't you?

Discovering New Enemies Lately?

I live in what is, for the most part, a very civilized country.  And I am blessed to live in a beautiful city, one that consistently hits the top of the "Best of the US" lists.  I admit that I'm spoiled.

But as someone once stated, "civilization" is a thin veneer, and under the right pressures, it can disappear instantly.  I'm not talking about the occasional madman, like the one who massacred moviegoers last week just an hour south of here.  I'm talking about "normal" people, and what they...what WE can become at a moment's notice.  And it's sobering.  Humbling.  Alarming.

We see it when people are trampled to death in a stampede to get the newest toy for the kids for Christmas.

We see it it in popular movements where tens of thousands gather to protest injustices (real or perceived) in self-righteous indignation, while treating their fellow man with utter contempt in the process.

We see it in dusty black-and-white photos in our history books, when ordinary people...former friends, neighbors, and co-workers of the dead... avert their eyes from the endless piles of corpses in the concentration camps and wonder, "How did I let this happen in my back yard?"

How indeed?

Until recently, this was an academic subject for me...but not any more.  I'm willing to bet that many Christians are feeling it hitting closer to home lately.  We see friends, neighbors, co-workers, even family members snarling, snapping, insulting, hating us for simply loving the purity and beauty of God and His ways (in this case, God's design for marriage).  We are called all manner of awful things, and are left standing in bewilderment as we wipe the flecks of froth off our faces from their spitting rage.  We see our reason and gentleness twisted by their hatred and thrown back in our faces as they curse and scream at us that we are the "haters."  We see them applauding as government leaders threaten to strip away the very pillars of our Constitution in order to unleash their hatred on us for our beliefs.

We feel shell-shocked, confused, betrayed.

Now, I know full well that there are plenty who claim to support God's pure and beautiful ways, but who fight for it with attitudes and actions so ugly that they reveal themselves to be wolves in sheep's clothing.  People who love to hate their neighbor.  I'm not speaking of them.

I'm speaking of ordinary Christians of good will having venomous hostility poured out on us, not for our real faults (of which we have many), but purely because of our belief in what God has defined as Right and Wrong.

In short, though we don't desire enemies, we're finding that we have more and more of them.

What is happening?

For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. 

Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way.

(2 Thess 2:7)

"He who restrains lawlessness..." who is that?

I believe it is the Holy Spirit.  He holds evil back, only allowing it to express itself in the ways that conform to His ultimate plan for our good and God's glory.  God is not the author of evil, ever.  But He can, does, and MUST shape, restrain, and control our evil to make sure that it all "works together for good to those who love God," and to make sure it fulfills prophecy.  Look how He shaped and controlled the evil of Judas to bring about the greatest good that ever happened, exactly when and how the prophets said it would happen.

And I believe that there are times when He steps back a bit.  No, He won't be "out of the way" completely until the very end of the age, for He never leaves His people.  So as long as His people are here, He will be here.

And no, He never loses control.  He is God, always and ever.

But there are times when He gives evil a looser grip, just to let it show itself for what it really is.  You see, evil under a civilized veneer can fool a lot of people.  But when the veneer is stripped away, and evil gets freer rein, people may begin to recognize and loathe it more easily (though even that takes a miraculous work of the Spirit).  And those who are committed to evil are left without even the lie of "civilization" as an excuse.

So now, in this moment of American history, evil snarls in my complacent face much more than it used to.  Yours too, I'll bet.

And, in response, evil snarls in our hearts much more than it used to.  We are not purely innocent in these matters, are we?  If we think we are, we're fooling ourselves.

If you're like me, you want to triumph over evil in these days.  But I have to tell you, I don't define "triumph" the same way that I used to.

To triumph over evil is NOT to whitewash it, whether in our own hearts or in society.  Triumph is NOT a victory of mere legislation, or social pressure, or convincing rhetoric.  Triumph is NOT "winning God's wars for Him" by using the weapons of evil.  Triumph is NOT stockpiling enough to hunker down while the world goes to Hell around us.  Triumphing is NOT out-snarling the snarlers, out-shouting the shouters, out-hating the haters.

How can the Church triumph over evil in our day?

I'll post my thoughts on that question in the next entry.  But in the meantime, I'll be happy to post any comments which seek to answer that question, as long as they fall within certain guidelines.

• I will not post hateful comments
• I will not debate whether or not Scripture clearly calls homosexual activity "sin."  It does.  It also calls a lot of other things "sin."  We need to agree with God on ALL of it.
• I will not post comments which attempt to encourage worldly responses to sin.

Within the above guidelines, I look forward to hearing your thoughts!

Taxes and the Christian Conscience

Image via Wikipedia

Del Tackett (the wonderful host of The Truth Project) has addressed an interesting question on his blog. In light of the fact that the new government health care plan will fund abortions, how should we as Christians wrestle with the concept of paying the taxes which fund those abortions? Should we pay them, or refuse? He words his questions very thoughtfully, and opens his blog up for comments so that others can help bring clarity to the issue.

I ended up writing two comments there (one has been posted at the time of this writing, and one is still awaiting moderation). Since this is a touchy subject, and one that we must all deal with in the near future, I thought I ought to reproduce my comments here for your consideration. I encourage you to read everyone else's comments at Del Tackett's site as well.

As always, your comments are appreciated!

-----------------------

(1st Comment)

I believe that Jesus’ “Render to Caesar” (Matt 22:16-21) is very relevant to our question. Caesar was not a godly man, and his government did many horrible things with tax money. Jesus paid it anyway (Matt 17:24-27), and commanded it to be paid.

I am very Pro-Life. I am horrified by what has become of America by every moral measurement, not just the issue of abortion. I believe I would have been horrified by Caesar’s government if I had been alive in those days.

Why did Jesus say, “Render unto Caesar?”

Tell me, what good did Caesar’s money do against the cause of Christ? Christ’s kingdom is not of this world. It cannot be bought with money, nor defeated by it. Do we really believe that obedience to Christ’s command to “Render unto Caesar” will cause Christ’s purposes to be thwarted? Would Jesus naively command the very thing that would bring about the Kingdom’s destruction? Or does His command force us to take our eyes off of the power of money and put it on Him, trusting Him to conquer those who have the world’s mammon?

There are clearly battles to be fought and won, but they are not fought with the weapons of this world. If we want to change our world, we have to deal in hearts, minds, and spirits, not in fleshly things (2 Co 10:3-4). If we settle for the latter, we may someday end abortion, but we won’t see souls saved. By all means, fight the abortion battle, but fight for the hearts and souls of those who would kill, and fight in a way that brings glory to Christ. We do not glorify Christ when we disobey Him (Render to Caesar), and we do not glorify Him when we fear money’s supposed power to defeat Him. We glorify Him when we serve Him in humble, trusting, loving obedience; and when we serve our fellow man the same way Christ served.

The same Christ who confidently paid His taxes to the very government that would crucify Him.

I don’t pretend to understand it, but isn’t that the point? We walk by faith, not by sight. And faith obeys.

Whose power do we trust more…God’s, or mammon’s?

---------------------------

(2nd Comment)

I feel the need to add a little to my previous comment.
Scripture makes it clear that we are not to trust in money. We are to trust in the Lord our God. Most of us would agree with that when it comes to spending money…but how many of us agree when it comes to withholding money? If we see our power coming from the withholding of money, then our faith is still in money’s power. If we withhold it from them, we win, because victory comes to those who have the most greenbacks.
Really?
The kings of the Old Testament were often evil, vile men, and Scripture tells us they exacted taxes from the people to support their wickedness. Yet in all the canon of Scripture, do you find people being chastised by God for paying taxes?
Let’s think about the well-known story from 2 Kings 6:15-23. Elisha and his servant were isolated and surrounded by the best that their evil king’s tax monies could buy for him. Armies and chariots in numbers sufficient to surround the whole city…all focused on capturing just two men.
The servant was terrified, but Elisha was calm. The prophet prayed for his servant’s eyes to be opened, and suddenly, the servant was able to see piles and piles of shekels all around them. Woo hoo, they were saved!
Of course, if you know the story, you know that’s not how it went. The servant saw angelic hosts arrayed in their defense, not piles of money. But I fear that in our current Western mindset, we’re hoping to see my made-up version rather than Scripture’s. The servant might have been happy if he’d seen gobs of earthly treasure instead of angels…and he never would have known what he missed out on seeing.
I wonder if that’s why we’ve been losing this battle all along. Has our trust been in carnal weapons? What have we missed out on seeing?
How Spirit-filled are Christ’s people? How open are our eyes?
I know there are good honest Christians who will disagree with me on this. And while I may not understand what seems to me like pure disobedience to a clear command of Christ’s (render to Caesar), I can at least respect the heart motive. I love to see faithful obedient hearts, trusting Christ as they best understand Him. Even if I think they’ve misunderstood Him, I would rather see that than either paying OR withholding done with misplaced faith…faith in the power of money. So that is my plea. Whether you choose to pay or withhold, be sure you do it with your faith focused on Christ, not on the money.

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Please note: Del Tackett has posted an interesting (and probably quite valid) rebuttal to my view on his blog here.

Current Events: The Pre-Inaugural Prayer

This week I've decided to participate in the Current Events Wrap-Up Meme, which unites Christian bloggers in discussing, as you probably guessed, current events. Now, I'm not typically a "Current events" type of blogger, but something I read on the Christian Worldview Times really stuck in my throat. I quote from that article:Image by ajagendorf25 via Flickr

President-elect Obama has asked V. Gene Robinson, the openly gay Episcopal bishop of New Hampshire, to deliver the invocation at a pre-inaugural event this Sunday on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.

Bishop Robinson said he had been reading inaugural prayers through history and was "horrified" at how "specifically and aggressively Christian they were." He states, "I am very clear that this will not be a Christian prayer, and I won't be quoting Scripture. The texts I hold as sacred are not sacred texts for all Americans, and I want all people to feel that this is their prayer."

Robinson said he might address the prayer to "the god of our many understandings," language that he said he learned from the 12-Step program he attended for his alcohol addiction.

And, once again, I find myself grieving for our once-great nation.

Remember that wonderful audio sermon I linked to yesterday? In it, Paul Washer points out that most people are not victims of false preachers/teachers. The word "victim" implies passivity and innocence. No, the Bible doesn't say that in the last days, people would love to have sound doctrine, but they simply can't find anyone to teach them truth. Instead it says that people will not endure sound doctrine, and will "heap up for themselves teachers" who will tell them the lies they want to hear (2 Tim 4:3).

The reason we have so many false gospels, so many false prophets, so many false teachers is because people will not endure the truth. There may be some "victims" of false teachers, but most who flock after the wrong shepherds are getting exactly what they want. And when people hate and reject the One True God long enough, He pronounces on them a frightening judgment; namely, He abandons them to their idolatry (Eze. 20:39), and lets them destroy themselves with it (Rom. 1:28, best read in its entire context).

And so, in this once-Christian nation, we have the Pre-inaugural prayer given by someone who is "horrified" by the Christianity in his predecessors' prayers.

Horrified by the Christianity!

On the 20th, I hope Christians everywhere will join in fasting (if possible) and praying for our lost nation. As I've said before, our new President isn't the problem. This Bishop isn't the problem. The problem is the corrupt, godless nation who wants to be led by such men.

God have mercy on us!

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This week's Current Events Wrap-Up Meme is being hosted by Julie at The Surrendered Scribe. Drop by there for links to other entries based on today's news.

Insulting God: In God We Trust?

Seventh in a Series

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 8

Photo from Stock.xchng by 13dede

Back in Part 1 I made the following assertion which we are finally ready to address:

We insult God when we insist that our nation must officially talk the Christian talk even though it doesn't walk the Christian walk.

Periodically I get emails forwarded to me, pleading with me to "defend our nation's Christian identity" by fighting to keep "Under God" in our pledge; or worrying about whether "In God We Trust" is going to be taken off of our coins.

I shake my head and hit "delete."

God takes His Name very seriously. His Name is holy, never to be used lightly, never to be profaned.

And you shall not swear by My name falsely, nor shall you profane the name of your God: I am the LORD. (Lev 19:12)

To misuse His Name is to insult Him, and that's a deadly serious matter.

"You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain. (Exo 20:7)

God is not interested in lip service. Nor is He interested in the kind of "honor" he receives only by human customs and conventions. He wants those who name His Name to give him their hearts.

Therefore the Lord said: "...these people draw near with their mouths and honor Me with their lips, but have removed their hearts far from Me, and their fear toward Me is taught by the commandment of men" (Isa 29:13)

In fact, he says that those who pretend to worship Him are actually profaning his Name as much with their insincere gifts as with their idols. Do you think He is any more pleased with our insincere national pledge, or the claiming of His Name on our coins?

"As for you, O house of Israel," thus says the Lord GOD: "Go, serve every one of you his idols—now and hereafter—if you will not obey Me; but profane My holy name no more with your gifts and your idols. (Eze 20:39)

As I pointed out in Part 1, the world looks at what this "Christian nation" does, and judges our God accordingly. The same thing happened when the nation of Israel was scattered because of their sin. Their love for sin had outweighed their love for God and for His Holy Land, and thus they insulted Him before the world.

When they came to the nations, wherever they went, they profaned My holy name—when they said of them, 'These are the people of the LORD, and yet they have gone out of His land.' (Eze 36:20)

Today the nations also say, "These are the people of the LORD, and yet they..." You can fill in the blank with any abomination you like.

Some Christians may believe that God's Name on our money and in our Pledge will act as some sort of talisman, protecting us from harm and guaranteeing God's blessing. But nothing could be further from the truth. Claiming allegiance to the Name of God brings any nation under stricter judgment. It's no different in the secular world. Those who guard our nation's gold reserves at Fort Knox; those who are entrusted with our health; those who care for our children...all of these are scrutinized, and are held to a high standard because of the preciousness of what they deal with. And the Name of God is truly precious. He guards it jealously, and for His Name's sake He will severely judge those who profane it.

But they rebelled against Me and would not obey Me. They did not all cast away the abominations which were before their eyes, nor did they forsake the idols of Egypt. Then I said, 'I will pour out My fury on them and fulfill My anger against them in the midst of the land of Egypt.' But I acted for My name's sake, that it should not be profaned before the Gentiles among whom they were [dwelling] (Eze 20:8-9)

Think soberly, my friends, and with wise judgment. Would it be an insult to God to revoke this nation's claim to be His people? Or is it not far more of an insult to Him when His Holy Name is sullied by association with a godless country which celebrates perversion of every kind, chafes against Him, mocks Him, defies Him, and hates His people?

Ask yourselves this...has God ever wanted the unregenerate to carry His Name? Would that not be as much of an abomination as an unclean, unqualified person carrying the Ark of the Covenant? When God gave His Name to the children of Israel, didn't He command them to walk worthy of it? And doesn't His commandment apply to us as well?

that the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you (2Th 1:12)

Is His Name glorified when it's chanted by unbelievers in a memorized patriotic verse? Is His Name glorified when it is written on idols? What is the biggest idol in our nation, if not the almighty Dollar?

Is His Name glorified when people, not even noticing the phrase "In God We Trust" on their money, fork it over by the billions to pay for their vile entertainment, their drug habits, their abortions?

Did God ever ask us to force unbelievers to recite His Name? Did He ask us to put it on our coins? Does He care about formalities performed by those who neither know nor love Him?

"To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices to Me?" Says the LORD. "I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fed cattle. I do not delight in the blood of bulls, or of lambs or goats. When you come to appear before Me, who has required this from your hand, to trample My courts? Bring no more futile sacrifices; incense is an abomination to Me. The New Moons, the Sabbaths, and the calling of assemblies— I cannot endure iniquity and the sacred meeting. Your New Moons and your appointed feasts My soul hates; they are a trouble to Me, I am weary of bearing them." (Isa 1:11-14)

There's nothing wrong with sincere, worshipful hearts desiring to put a proclamation of faith on coins or in pledges, or anywhere else. But when we demand proclamations of faith from those who are apathetic or downright hostile to God, we are demanding an abomination.

The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD,
but the prayer of the upright is His delight. (Pro 15:8)

If our nation does not want His Name on it coins or in its pledge, then our nation is not worthy of that Name!

Yes, I would love to see America as a Christian nation. If it ever happens, I will sing and weep for joy as strongly as anyone. But for the sake of the precious Name of the God I love, I will not fight for the preservation of national hypocrisy. I cannot wish to see The Name Above All Names sullied.

If we want our nation to keep the Name of God in our pledge and on our coins, then we must work, and pray, and sacrifice, and love, and serve, and be used by God to help our nation see His beauty and desire Him for themselves. But we are, in many cases, more concerned with seeing our neighbor recite the words "under God" than seeing him saved! We are more worried about what words are imprinted on his money than we are about the fact that his lost soul worships money instead of the Living God.

But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth." (Joh 4:23-24)

But there is one place where God does want to see His Name written.

And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him. They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads. (Rev 22:3-4)

Let us never forget that our nation is made up of individuals. A godless nation is made up of godless individuals. Let us be far more concerned with seeing our neighbor saved, and with someday seeing God's Name on his forehead, than we are with any form of false worship.

Let us stop pretending we live in a Christian nation, and stop demanding that they play along with our pretense. Let us try to make this a truly Christian nation by truly winning souls.

And finally, let us make sure that we ourselves are walking worthy of that Holy Name!

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This week's "In Other Words" is being hosted over at Shortybear's place. Please drop by there for links to other entries on "Love Weighs More Than Gold."

Hard Words for Hard Times

First in a Series

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Normally I would be participating in "Friday Fiction" today, but I'm not doing that this week. For one thing, I ran out of pre-written fiction articles, and I didn't write a new one. But that's minor.

Mostly I'm just not in a fictional frame of mind.

This isn't a political blog, and I won't let it become one. Even yesterday's post wasn't primarily political. It was mostly about sin, righteousness, and judgment. Already it has become by far my most read article - in the past few days it has been accessed over 4 times more than the 2nd most read article, and readers have been emailing links to it to various points around globe. That tells me that a lot of people aren't in a fictional mood either. And I hope it means that a lot of people want to look at this presidential election in a way that brings us closer to God.

God-centeredness. That's what it's all about.

Now, this may sound like an unrelated topic, but hear me out. Last night I was with my Small Group, watching The Truth Project. The episode (if you want to call it that) was "Science, Part 2."

It was glorious.

I sat entranced as I watched the inner workings of a cell, and the only word that kept coming to mind was, "GLORY!" I wanted to burst out in praise of the Creator right there. It is inconceivable to me that anyone can see this level of complexity at a microscopic level and deny God. Not only that, but it makes me a little bit angry.

He deserves the glory for what He has done!

Imagine if you had been a close personal friend of the great Michelangelo. Think how you would Image by Robert Scarth via Flickrfeel at the unveiling of his masterpiece, "David." Now imagine standing there, bursting with joy for your friend and exulting in what he had accomplished, when two strangers walk up beside you. One points to the statue and says to the other, "Look, isn't it amazing what years of wind and rain did to that giant slab of marble? It looks like a person!" First of all, you wouldn't be able to believe their stupidity, and secondly, you'd be angry on behalf of your friend (especially if you told the strangers that the statue had been sculpted by someone, and that you personally knew the creator, and they refused to believe you).

The greatest human minds cannot create even a minuscule approximation of God's handiwork, and yet they have the gall to say that His work could be made by nothing at all. What an insult!

And yet there is another way to insult God, and perhaps it's even worse.

It is a greater insult to acknowledge Him with the mouth, but deny Him with the life.

Those who deny His existence do not cast His character in a negative light by their own actions. But when people (or when nations) name the name of Christ and live like the Devil, they throw mud on His reputation.

America has thrown enough mud on Him to cover the continent a thousand miles deep. Have you heard what the president of Iran has said about Christ because he believes that America is a Christian nation? He said (I paraphrase), "The followers of Jesus walk around half naked, but Allah's followers are modest."

The nations blaspheme because of us (Rom. 2:24).

We American Christians need to get our thinking straight on this subject. Because the way we "do Christianity" in this country has helped to bring us to the grave situation we find ourselves in today.

- We insult God when act as if we can and should expect unregenerate people in our society to live just like those who have been born again by God's Spirit.

-We insult God when we insist that our nation must officially talk the Christian talk even though it doesn't walk the Christian walk.

-We insult God when we cheapen His grace into an excuse for sinning, pampering our own favorite iniquities while yelling at our society for committing sins that are on our lists of pet peeves.

(There will be more on each of those points in future entries.)

We speak of God judging America, and I believe that is happening. But let's remember where God's judgment always begins.

For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God? (1Pe 4:17)

And what does Paul tell us we can do when we realize we are undergoing judgment?

For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world. (1Co 11:31-32)

May God in His mercy show us our sin and grant us repentance (2 Tim. 2:25) as we seek His face in humility. And then let us heed the wise counsel of the prophet Hosea:

Come, and let us return to the LORD; For He has torn, but He will heal us; He has stricken, but He will bind us up. (Hos 6:1)

Grief and Disillusionment Bring New Hope

Image via WikipediaOk, I'll admit it. I'm grieving.

I know that no human being is our savior. A different election outcome would not have brought Heaven on Earth. My hope is not in politicians. My hope is in the Lord.

But I'm grieving.

Grief is appropriate for a devastating loss, for the death of a loved one. And for me, that's what this election represents.

But let me be very clear about this. I don't think America is in mortal danger because of the candidate who won. I believe the opposite.

I believe that the candidate won because America is in mortal danger. That's why I said that I grieve over what this election represents, not over what it did.

And frankly, if the other candidate had won, I would not feel much better.

If America had truly been a vital nation "Under God," not only would the outcome have been different, but we wouldn't even have been presented with the same candidates or the same issues. This election didn't so much change the country as it revealed it.

And so I grieve the death of a dream.

I know that the America I love is really an ideal, a dream, a hope. For many years, the America I love has not been the America that I live in. And more and more I'm having to admit that the ideal, the dream, the hope could never really be achieved by human beings. Democracy is the best human form of government, but it is still human, and so will still be brought down by the weight of its own sin. It can only work as the Founding Fathers dreamed IF it is a godly nation seeking to be led by godly leaders.

America hasn't been that for a long, long time. So November 4th, 2008 was inevitable. If it hadn't happened this year, it would have happened in 2012, or 2016. In fact, I suspect that in God's eyes, Election Day was a minor blip. He's been watching our moral and spiritual decay and our blatant rebellion growing worse and worse throughout our history.

If a gardener knows that the root system of a vine runs under his whole property, he won't be surprised to see any particular shoot pop out of the ground. Besides, our Gardener can't be surprised by anything. He removes kings and raises up kings (Dan. 2:21).

We are the ones who feel the shock, because we had hoped the roots wouldn't send up this particular sprout. We feel the threat of the power that this shoot wields. And we see the danger that it poses to America.

But if we look at any one individual as the greatest threat facing our nation, then we misunderstand the danger.

The danger is never in the sprouts. It's in the root.

Our nation made this choice, and made all of the previous choices which led up to this choice, because our nation desperately needs God and has rejected Him. And that, my friends, is what we need to grieve. Not the outcome of the election, or the man it will put in office, though there is a great deal of heartache that will no doubt follow those two things.

Let me say it again.

We are headed for a great deal of grief now that we've chosen this president. But the heartache will not be primarily the result of the election or of the new president. It will be the result of national apostasy, of which November 4th was only a symptom.

We should not be grieving as if yesterday marked a horrible defeat for a great nation. We should be grieving as those who recognize that our nation ceased to be great decades ago, and has been self-destructing for a long time. Let our prayers focus around our lost nation, pleading with God to grant us repentance from sin, and grant us true Spirit-led revival.

And by all means, let's be disillusioned.

"Disillusionment - noun - a freeing or a being freed from illusion." (Dictionary.com)

We, as God's people, are called to walk in truth, not in illusion. And faith in human government is faith in an illusion (Ps. 118:9, Ps. 146:3, Jer. 17:5-8.)

When God strips away illusions, He is doing us a great kindness. The process may be painful, because we tend to love the little dreams we've clung to. But the end result is something far better than any illusion could ever give.

The result is real hope. Not a false hope based on the supposed virtues of any politician or nation, but a true hope in our Heavenly King and our eternal home.

Php. 3:20 For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.

How often have we Americans read that, and said that? How often have we actually meant it? I fear that, for many of us, those have just been words, nothing more.

God is going to change that. When "Hate Crimes" laws are passed which get your pastor (and mine) thrown in prison for preaching the truth of God; when Obama fulfills his promise to sign our nation on with the Alliance of Civilizations, which among other things defines all who believe in absolute truth as "terrorists" and says parents who teach their children exclusive dogmas are guilty of child abuse, then we're all going to begin to long for our Heavenly home much more fervently.

But that's where our main allegiance should have been all along.

So I, for one, will grieve in my own way, but I will also have hope, for the truth of Php. 3:20 is becoming more real to me already. No one, NO ONE can corrupt that Heavenly city, and its King will never be deposed!

Praise God!