I know I have been quiet since July 23rd. Yes, I have held my thoughts and went about my life doing that which I feel I need to be doing - showing the love of Christ and supporting the lives of those who are struggling with the situations of today's world. I have spent some time writing sermons and Bible studies, making calls, visiting with members, working on my MAP for the Doctor of Ministry, spending time with Penny, sitting on the porch and doing my best to avoid the news of the world.
But this morning, I heard something that really upset me. You might know that John Lewis died. He was a politician who was invovled in the civil rights march of the 60's. He did many things to move civil rights forward. He received a 6 day funeral, which I feel was a over the top. Who needs to have 6 days worth of funerals? A president of the US doesn't even need a 6 day funeral. The only other one who has had such a funeral was a criminal who was killed by a police officer in Minneaoplis, MN. That made me shake my head as well. But that isn't why I am writing today.
Do you know Scipture? Let me quote something for you:
He was wounded for our trangressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace and with his wounds, we are healed. (Isaiah 53:5)
Do you know who this is talking about? I will wait for you to answer. (Sitting quietly while you think it though.)
Well? Who is it talking about? You? Me? Someone else? NO! This is talking about the Savior, the Messiah, the One who suffers and dies upon the cross for the salvation of all mankind. The whole of Isaiah 53 is talking about the suffering Servant, the Messiah. Read through the whole of Isaiah 53. You will see that it brings forth that which Jesus Christ went through for each one of us, for our salvation.
End of story, right?
Wrong. This is what upset me. At John Lewis's funeral yesterday, Rev. Raphael G. Warnock of Ebeneazer Baptist Church said this:
"We celebrate John Lewis. He was wounded for America's transgressions. Bruised for our inequities, and the chastisement of his peace was upon him, and by his stripes we are healed..."
Do you see what was done? Do you understand what is being done? Who is this Scripture talking about? John Lewis? Or the Savior? And if you put John Lewis into this passage, you make John Lewis into a savior. America was not saved by John Lewis. Isaiah was not writing about John Lewis. And you might say, "The pastor was just being creative to make a point." What point? That John Lewis is the one that we look to? That John Lewis, by the shedding of his blood, saved America from the problems of what it was facing? That John Lewis brought peace to America by the things he went throught?
I am sorry. No wait, I am not sorry. I am upset that a Christian pastor would give to a sinful, fallen human being that needed Jesus Christ to take his place in order to bring to him salvation, and would give that message to the very man who was saved by Jesus. John Lewis is not and never was the savior of this nation. Isaiah never spoke of John Lewis in this fashion. This is heresy. This is false teaching. This is abusing Scripture and assigning to a mere human that which belongs only to Jesus Christ.
This is sinful. This is breaking the 1st Commandment. John Lewis is not a god. John Lewis is not a savior. Stop it world! Stop this lunacy.
Jesus is the only Savior. Jesus is the One who suffered and died for our sins. Jesus is the One who shed His blood for the salvation of mankind!
Let me ask you, does this upset you as much as it does me? Does it upset you as much as it does out Lord? Isaiah 45:5a I am the Lord and there is no other. And even Revelation 13:5-6 And the best was given a mouh uttering haughty and blasphemous words...It opened its mouth to utter blasphemes agsint God, blamspheming his name and his dwelling...
Welcome to a new world, where we worship man and not God. I pray that as a child of God, you are upset by anyone applying that which is given to Jesus to a fallen human. Lord, have mercy and forgive us.
Friday, July 31, 2020
Thursday, July 23, 2020
Frustrated with the way the world is going.
Each morning I get up and watch the news. That is my first mistake. It seems as though watching the news is bad for your health. I know it is bad for my health. I watch the news and listen to the reports of murder and mayhem. Yes, murder. How many people were shot over night in the cities around the nation. Chicago has this many, New York has that many. How many can be shot and killed at a funeral? How many children are shot? How many children died?
And then there is mayhem. Portland is on its 56th night of protests. These aren't protests. They are riots. They wait till the sun goes down, then they begin their destruction. They burn things. They put graffitti all over the buildings. They attack police. They set out to hurt people and destroy property. And they accomplish both. How can you have that many nights of "peaceful protests"? I watch the report of how a police officer in Chicago hit and hurt a peaceful protester. She did nothing but stand there. And she was attacked! Can you believe it? Can you imagine that police would just lash out that way? Or wait, was that a frozen water bottle that was thrown at the police officer? Was that a black unbrella used as a weapon against the police? Are those rocks being thrown at the officers? But it wasn't her. She was innocent. She was just standing there. Yeah, right. When things get violent, I wouldn't be just standing there. I would head the other way. The police are supposed to allow themselves to be beat on, cursed at, abused, hurt, attacked and hospitalized, all in the name of peaceful protests.
They aren't peaceful protests. You can trot out some that are peaceful. They usually take place during the day. And remain peaceful. But then folks that are out to cause problems get involved and hijack peaceful protests. Wait, was that a rally in support of police in New York City where a group of thugs, not involved in the rally, came up and attacked the officers? Yes, it turned nasty. Why? Not because of the police. But because of those who have a total and complete lack of respect or any sort of moral character.
Destroying property is not peaceful protests. Putting graffitti on buildings is not peaceful protests. Setting out to hurt people is not peaceful protests. Plain and simple, this is anarchy. And there are those who support, those in positions of authority and leadership. Why? I have no way of knowing why. I have ideas. They think that by giving in, they will gain support. They want to hurt America. They want to work to keep Trump from being reelected. They have other agendas. Why does the media report as it does? There is a narrative out there.
Now I know that some of you will disagree with me. You will tell me how terrible Trump and all his followers are. You will show some thing that Trump said that is terrible or wrong. And you would be right. He isn't perfect. He makes mistakes (remember, that is what you call it when you or someone you support says or does something wrong, you call it a mistake in order t o make it sound like it istn' so bad). But when was the last time you watched a group of conservatives out burning down buildings or writing "F-U" on buildings or throwing frozen water bottles at police or breaking windows of buildings and destroying police cars?
You can say that this is just pent up feelings from years of frutration. Let me ask, do you think that it is only a certain group of people that get frustrated? Does that frustration give you the right to hurt others? To destroy property?
Defund the police. That is so stupid. Really. It is stupid. Send an unarmed social worker into a domestic dispute. Really? After you hear of how police officers are assaulted by people in those situations? And don't say it happens because they are police officers. If you will become violent with police, what is to stop you from being violent without them? A social worker? When the man is beating on his wife and the social worker comes to the door, do you really think that standing there, asking him to stop and talk about his feelings is going to make him stop? Of course - not. That is lunacy. When someone breaks into your house, are you going to call a social worker or a police officer? When your wife or daughter is being raped, do you want a social worker or a police officer? You can say those are extreme cases but what happens when there is no police available because they have been defunded? What is to stop the criminal from acting? And don't you dare pull out your gun, for then you are a bad person. Reason with the criminal. That will work.
I just shake my head. The law is given as a curb - to control violent outbursts of sin and keep order in the world. The law is specific. And it needs inforced. If you attack someone, you should be arrested and convicted. If you burn a building, you should be arrested and convicted. If you destroy someone's car, you should be arrested and convicted. It doesn't matter how "frustrated" you feel. You do not have the right to act in that way. Plain and simple.
What is the real problem going on? We have left behind God. When you remove God form society, from the moral fabric of society and life, all you have left is sin. Sin. Each and every person is sinful. Born sinful, they will follow their sinful desires and actions if there is nothing to stop them. It looks like it was before the flood. The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. (Genesis 6:5 ESV) When you are not raised with the morality of God and His Word, the wickedness of the heart shows itself in the many sinful actions. Original sin leads to actual sin. If morality is not taught, you will not acted in a morally acceptable fashion. If you do not have to answer to God, you can do as you wish because you have no one to answer to. Sin will run rampant. And we are seeing that today. We see it every time we see the violent clashes between peaceful protesters and police. We see it every time that gun is fired by someone who should not even have the gun in the first place. We see it in gang activity. We see it anarchy and the related organizations. We see it when we watch the police officer attacked and the protester hit. We are seeing it more and more because we have turnes away from God. We have turned away from God.
Yes, there are good people who are trying to do what is right. There are people following the Lord and living as His children. We give thanks for them and for all those who do live morally correct lives according to the will of God (and not the will of the world).
This is why we continue to proclaim the message of the Gospel. We proclaim the need for the Holy Spirit to change the heart and life of each one of us. We focus attention on Jesus Christ and what He has done upon the cross. Yes, we continue to keep our eyes focused on the cross of Jesus Christ. We continue to proclaim Christ. Plain and simple. That is what we do.
Yes, the world needs Jesus. And that is why He came into the world.
And then there is mayhem. Portland is on its 56th night of protests. These aren't protests. They are riots. They wait till the sun goes down, then they begin their destruction. They burn things. They put graffitti all over the buildings. They attack police. They set out to hurt people and destroy property. And they accomplish both. How can you have that many nights of "peaceful protests"? I watch the report of how a police officer in Chicago hit and hurt a peaceful protester. She did nothing but stand there. And she was attacked! Can you believe it? Can you imagine that police would just lash out that way? Or wait, was that a frozen water bottle that was thrown at the police officer? Was that a black unbrella used as a weapon against the police? Are those rocks being thrown at the officers? But it wasn't her. She was innocent. She was just standing there. Yeah, right. When things get violent, I wouldn't be just standing there. I would head the other way. The police are supposed to allow themselves to be beat on, cursed at, abused, hurt, attacked and hospitalized, all in the name of peaceful protests.
They aren't peaceful protests. You can trot out some that are peaceful. They usually take place during the day. And remain peaceful. But then folks that are out to cause problems get involved and hijack peaceful protests. Wait, was that a rally in support of police in New York City where a group of thugs, not involved in the rally, came up and attacked the officers? Yes, it turned nasty. Why? Not because of the police. But because of those who have a total and complete lack of respect or any sort of moral character.
Destroying property is not peaceful protests. Putting graffitti on buildings is not peaceful protests. Setting out to hurt people is not peaceful protests. Plain and simple, this is anarchy. And there are those who support, those in positions of authority and leadership. Why? I have no way of knowing why. I have ideas. They think that by giving in, they will gain support. They want to hurt America. They want to work to keep Trump from being reelected. They have other agendas. Why does the media report as it does? There is a narrative out there.
Now I know that some of you will disagree with me. You will tell me how terrible Trump and all his followers are. You will show some thing that Trump said that is terrible or wrong. And you would be right. He isn't perfect. He makes mistakes (remember, that is what you call it when you or someone you support says or does something wrong, you call it a mistake in order t o make it sound like it istn' so bad). But when was the last time you watched a group of conservatives out burning down buildings or writing "F-U" on buildings or throwing frozen water bottles at police or breaking windows of buildings and destroying police cars?
You can say that this is just pent up feelings from years of frutration. Let me ask, do you think that it is only a certain group of people that get frustrated? Does that frustration give you the right to hurt others? To destroy property?
Defund the police. That is so stupid. Really. It is stupid. Send an unarmed social worker into a domestic dispute. Really? After you hear of how police officers are assaulted by people in those situations? And don't say it happens because they are police officers. If you will become violent with police, what is to stop you from being violent without them? A social worker? When the man is beating on his wife and the social worker comes to the door, do you really think that standing there, asking him to stop and talk about his feelings is going to make him stop? Of course - not. That is lunacy. When someone breaks into your house, are you going to call a social worker or a police officer? When your wife or daughter is being raped, do you want a social worker or a police officer? You can say those are extreme cases but what happens when there is no police available because they have been defunded? What is to stop the criminal from acting? And don't you dare pull out your gun, for then you are a bad person. Reason with the criminal. That will work.
I just shake my head. The law is given as a curb - to control violent outbursts of sin and keep order in the world. The law is specific. And it needs inforced. If you attack someone, you should be arrested and convicted. If you burn a building, you should be arrested and convicted. If you destroy someone's car, you should be arrested and convicted. It doesn't matter how "frustrated" you feel. You do not have the right to act in that way. Plain and simple.
What is the real problem going on? We have left behind God. When you remove God form society, from the moral fabric of society and life, all you have left is sin. Sin. Each and every person is sinful. Born sinful, they will follow their sinful desires and actions if there is nothing to stop them. It looks like it was before the flood. The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. (Genesis 6:5 ESV) When you are not raised with the morality of God and His Word, the wickedness of the heart shows itself in the many sinful actions. Original sin leads to actual sin. If morality is not taught, you will not acted in a morally acceptable fashion. If you do not have to answer to God, you can do as you wish because you have no one to answer to. Sin will run rampant. And we are seeing that today. We see it every time we see the violent clashes between peaceful protesters and police. We see it every time that gun is fired by someone who should not even have the gun in the first place. We see it in gang activity. We see it anarchy and the related organizations. We see it when we watch the police officer attacked and the protester hit. We are seeing it more and more because we have turnes away from God. We have turned away from God.
Yes, there are good people who are trying to do what is right. There are people following the Lord and living as His children. We give thanks for them and for all those who do live morally correct lives according to the will of God (and not the will of the world).
This is why we continue to proclaim the message of the Gospel. We proclaim the need for the Holy Spirit to change the heart and life of each one of us. We focus attention on Jesus Christ and what He has done upon the cross. Yes, we continue to keep our eyes focused on the cross of Jesus Christ. We continue to proclaim Christ. Plain and simple. That is what we do.
Yes, the world needs Jesus. And that is why He came into the world.
Wednesday, July 15, 2020
God or gods
Today I am sharing a devotion I wrote on Isaiah 44:6-8
The world we live in offers us many gods. Oh, we don't call them gods, not like they did in year gone by. Israel struggled with such gods as Baal, Ashorah, and Molech. They faced many gods in Egpyt, Assyria and Babylon. As they returned from the Babylonian captivity, these gods has faded away but they faced new gods - more gods made by human hands or by human desire.
So we face them today. When we teach our children the 1st Commandment (You shall have no other gods), it is a struggle for our world today because we don't talk about "gods." After all, who actually has a shrine or an altar to some sort of god, where they burn incense or offer sacrifices to that god? Well, maybe they do that in India but they are Hindus, and we don't really understand what they worship. And the Japenese might burn incense to their departed elders, but is that really worshiping a false god? (Understand, I am presenting an argument. This is worshiping false gods.) So what "god" do our children know?
That is the struggle we face. What is a god - that which we fear, love and trust in above the true God? Wait, who is the true God? And what do we know about this God? Isaiah writes:
Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel, and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts: "I am the first and the last; besides me there is no god." (Isaiah 44:6 ESV)
This true God is the One revealed in Scripture, the Triune God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Here we see the Father and the Son - The Lord and the Lord of Hosts, the Lord God almighty. We see the God of the Bible, the One we hear about in Revelation:
I am the Alpha and the Omega, says the Lord God. (Rev. 1:8 ESV)
And he said to me, "It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end." (Rev. 21:6 ESV)
I am the Alpha and the Omego, the first and the last, the beginning and the end. (Rev. 22:13 ESV)
Here is where we see the God of all eternity, the one who was, and is and is to come. Here we understand that He alone is the true God. This is the God we worship. It seems so simple for us to hear these words from Isaiah and agree with him. There is no god beside the Triune God.
But then again, maybe there is. In the world today, it is safe to say (in my mind) that the new god is science. It is science that is going to save us. It is science that has all the answers. It is science that you must liten to in order to survive. Without science, there is no hope to survive the current pandemic. You are to listen to science. To accept what it tells you. And if you question science, you are seen as someone who has broken the 1st Commandment of society, "You shall hav enot other god than science." You are suspect at best and an unbeliever at worst. And in questioning science, you question the very right to live. Do as science tells you or you will die.
Is taht the new god? It used to be sports stars or stars of the silver screem. But those gods have fallen from their pedestal (or been pulled down) and are replaced by scientists, health care workers and those considered on the front lines of fighting this virus. Who do you listen to? Listen to the god of this age. They have the answers for you.
Who is like me? Let him proclaim it.
Let him declare and set it before me,
since I appointed an ancient people.
Let them decalre what is to come, and what will happen. (Isaiah 44:7 ESV)
Are the gods of this age really gods to be trusted? We see them change almost daily. One source, one power, on god today, falling from the pedestal, or perhaps dragged from it by the next god of the age. "Listen to me!" it cries, and the people listen. Perhaps we even listen because we feel that it answers our questions or quiets our fears. Perhaps the new god of science, a viral god, can quell the fears of this nation at this crucial time. Do we listen? Do we follow? Where do we put our fear, love and trust?
As the Lord says, "Let them declare what is going to come, and what will happen." And yet, these new gos cannot, any more than the old gods could. They cannot tell you waht was to come. Oh, they make their claims, but do they really know what is to come? If this happens, then that might take place. But what they say soon changes. One teacher told me, "Things are so fluid, that we don't know what to expect." And it that way. One model says this, so do it. Another model says that, so do that. Can the gods of this age answer?
Who can tell us waht is to come except for the true God?
He tells us who to trust - not the gods of this age but His only-begotten Son that He sent into this world, to bring true hope, peace and salvation to a world that is tearing itself apart and to a people who do not know which way to turn. Listening to the voice of the Shepherd in the chaos of this world brings hope and peace. The Lord is my Shepherd - Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow, I will fear no evil. Why? Because the Lord God has shown me the depth of His love for me, that which He is able to do for me as He died upon the cross and rose again from the dead. He tells me the outcome of all that I face. It is what leads Paul to write, "For I consider the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed in us." (Romans 8:18 ESV)
Fear not, nor be afraid,
have I not told you from of old and declared it?
And are you my witnesses!
Is there a God besides me?
There is no Rock; I know not any. (Isaiah 44:8 ESV)
So fear not, nor be afraid! But the gods of this age seek to creat fear and not peace. The gods tell us, "You will die." Yes, you are right, I shall die. Not because you have told me but because the Word has told me. Because of my sin, I shall die. From a virus? Form a disease? From an accident? Fro a war? Who knows? God does, but the gods of this age do not for they are not gods at all. They are made in the hands and the minds of sinful, corrupt man.
God has shown this to me. But He has not shown me the outcome - the empty grave. For death does not win. That is shown in the hands, feet and side of the One living Lord, the One who was slain but is now alive.
Yes, you and I are His witnesses. In this age of new gods and new teachings, we are witnesses of the One, the only God who gives life, forgiveness, peace and hope where these gods cannot.
Is there any God besides Him? No. There is not. He alone is the true God. As we hear the call of the false gods of this age, we need to remember:
On Christ the solid Rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand.
WIth Isaiah we proudly proclaim: There is no Rock, I know not any!
Friday, July 3, 2020
Do you proclaim Christ?
Thinking about some of the things that are out there in the world today. Coronavirus is a part of our daily lives today. If you watch local news, the numbers of new cases is read like baseball scores. Whenever a new case happens here in Page County, I get an email and a text, telling me that another case has been confirmed. It has only gone off 20 times in the past 3+ months as there has only been 20 confirmed cases in the county. Excitement! It gave people something to talk about when they saw each other or talked with each other on the phone or internet. Another case! WooHoo! All right, I am being cynical. But it felt like there was a sense of excitement when another case was found. It was the talk of the town.
We are made to be afraid of the virus. It will kill you. If you don't social distance and wear a mask and stay away from every other person, you will get the virus and you will die. If you don't get it, your grandma or grandpa will get it from you, and they will die. The whole idea is stay inside, stay away from each other, stay home from work, stay out of school and if you do that, then you just might not die or you might not kill another person. Live in fear. Be afraid. Be very afraid of this virus.
And I think, I wish that people were that afraid of hell. I wish that people would be just as adamant about telling people about that which will save their lives - Jesus Christ. Without Jesus, you are going to die and go to hell. Period. If the virus kills you, and you don't believe in Jesus, you will go to hell. If you die from a heart attack, a car accident or any of the other million ways you might (it is "might" but the fact is that we are all going to die in some fashion) die, and you don't believe in Jesus as your Savior, you will not go to heaven. You will go to hell.
But that is something that we don't share. We can be told that we must accept what we are told by this doctor or this expert, even if there is another doctor or expert that says just the opposite about the virus. Accept it. Believe it. Live it. If you don't, you aren't being loving to others.
Yet don't tell anyone about Jesus because you cannot force your beliefs on someone else. You must wear a mask, but don't tell anyone about Jesus. You must stay 6 feet away from other people, but you cannot tell them about Jesus because that is forcing your beliefs on others. Wait - force your beliefs of the coronavirus on others, but don't force your beliefs on salvation on others. I shake my head. Why/ Because Christians listen to this way of thinking and avoid talking about their faith because they don't want to force their beliefs on others.
There are so many other things that upset me. A black national anthem being played at football games. When did we get a black national anthem? I don't remember that being accepted by the nation. When will there be the Hispanic national anthem? Or the white national anthem? There won't be! Why? There is only one national anthem. I guess we shouldn't be surprised. As a child of God, I find that I am just as disgusted, or maybe more so, when we are told there are other ways to salvation that Jesus Christ. Really? When did Jesus say that there are other ways to the Father? He didn't. There is no other way. There is only one way of salvation for whites, blacks, hispanics, asians and so on. That way is through Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, who suffered and died upon the cross and rose from the dead on the 3rd day.
One way to salvation. One hope for life. Not found in a national anthem. Not found in a mask. Not found in our attempt to make things my way. It is found only in Jesus Christ. Plain and simple. Remember that.
We are made to be afraid of the virus. It will kill you. If you don't social distance and wear a mask and stay away from every other person, you will get the virus and you will die. If you don't get it, your grandma or grandpa will get it from you, and they will die. The whole idea is stay inside, stay away from each other, stay home from work, stay out of school and if you do that, then you just might not die or you might not kill another person. Live in fear. Be afraid. Be very afraid of this virus.
And I think, I wish that people were that afraid of hell. I wish that people would be just as adamant about telling people about that which will save their lives - Jesus Christ. Without Jesus, you are going to die and go to hell. Period. If the virus kills you, and you don't believe in Jesus, you will go to hell. If you die from a heart attack, a car accident or any of the other million ways you might (it is "might" but the fact is that we are all going to die in some fashion) die, and you don't believe in Jesus as your Savior, you will not go to heaven. You will go to hell.
But that is something that we don't share. We can be told that we must accept what we are told by this doctor or this expert, even if there is another doctor or expert that says just the opposite about the virus. Accept it. Believe it. Live it. If you don't, you aren't being loving to others.
Yet don't tell anyone about Jesus because you cannot force your beliefs on someone else. You must wear a mask, but don't tell anyone about Jesus. You must stay 6 feet away from other people, but you cannot tell them about Jesus because that is forcing your beliefs on others. Wait - force your beliefs of the coronavirus on others, but don't force your beliefs on salvation on others. I shake my head. Why/ Because Christians listen to this way of thinking and avoid talking about their faith because they don't want to force their beliefs on others.
There are so many other things that upset me. A black national anthem being played at football games. When did we get a black national anthem? I don't remember that being accepted by the nation. When will there be the Hispanic national anthem? Or the white national anthem? There won't be! Why? There is only one national anthem. I guess we shouldn't be surprised. As a child of God, I find that I am just as disgusted, or maybe more so, when we are told there are other ways to salvation that Jesus Christ. Really? When did Jesus say that there are other ways to the Father? He didn't. There is no other way. There is only one way of salvation for whites, blacks, hispanics, asians and so on. That way is through Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, who suffered and died upon the cross and rose from the dead on the 3rd day.
One way to salvation. One hope for life. Not found in a national anthem. Not found in a mask. Not found in our attempt to make things my way. It is found only in Jesus Christ. Plain and simple. Remember that.
Wednesday, July 1, 2020
Ramblings on a Wednesday morning
It has been a while since I blogged, maybe 2 weeks. So much is going on. So much has happened. And I wonder what is going to happen next. It is July. 2020 has been a crazy year so far. What else can happen? I am just going to ramble through some thoughts. Good luck following me.
It is raining this morning. Thunder and lightning. Good to have rain. But there is also damage that comes with it. When a storm blows through, wind can cause lots of damage. Heard some reports of damage from it. Limbs down. People out of power. Even a semi is blown over on I-29. Summer storms can do that. Yet at the same time, it will be nice to have the cracks in the yard fill in with the moisture. Good thing to come from bad. But then again, grass is going to grow again. Bad things following the good things that follow the bad. Sounds like life.
The coronavirus - need I say more. Yes it is real. Yes people do get sick from it. But I see it as being used for political gain. We have become pawns to the politicians. They are using this virus as a way to attack the sitting president. As the communities begin to open up, if things look to good, suddenly the virus is spiking and we need to close down again. Bars are open, and causing the spike. Beaches are open, they need to be closed because they have caused the spike. Yet, thousands upon thousands have protested in cities around the country, and the virus has not had an effect at all. There is no spike because of angry people getting in other's faces and yelling and screaming. The virus knows who to attack and who to avoid. Really? Something tells me that my chain is being pulled by the media and the politicians. Nothing more than pawns. Our lives mean very little, like the pawn on the chess board. Use them up. Why? To protect the king and queen, and the other "important" pieces. Before you say that I don't care, that I am unloving, and all the other things that can be said, forget it. That is not the case. I do care. I do love. And yet, I also know that we must live our lives.
Living in fear. That is what is taking place now. We are living in fear. Fear of the virus. Fear of other races. Fear of violence. Fear of... The fear is used to control and make people act in a certain way. Used to control you and me. Yet I think about what the Lord tells me over and over again, "Fear not." Why? Because He is my fortress and strength. He is the One who will help me through.
Just heard that one state is changing laws. It will no longer be a felon to attack a police officer. It will be a misdemeanor. Really? How about we put a target on the backs and chests of the ones who serve on the thin blue line? Go ahead, attack them. It won't really be a problem for you. I can't imagine what it must be like to try to control the mass of people who are angry and attacking you, and know that your every action is being recorded, they are trying to push your buttons in order to get you in trouble and use you to be the reason for the next riot. My prayers are with those who are serving. May the Lord surround you with His holy angels. May they protect you as you serve the people of the communities. My heart aches each time another officer is attacked, hurt and killed. And yet, we make them the bad ones. Really? The police officers are not the ones rioting, destroying things or hurting other people. I don't know how you do it. You are in my prayers.
I am amazed that it is all right for some to destroy statues and other things because it offends them. But if you are offended by their action, then you are the bad person. I am not in support of slavery, nor do I say that it was a good thing in our country. But at the same time, I do not support removing that history from our country. And guess what, I don't care if that offends you. The actions of these rioters offends me. The destruction of communities offends me. The trespassing on private property offends me. The liberal media offends me. The liberal politicians offend me. The attack on life offends me. The abuse of power offends me. Should I go out and protest. Should I go out and trespass on other's property? Should I go tear down statues that offend me? Should I hurt other people because they offend me? NO!
When the police officer came into the church on that Saturday evening and told me that we could not have in person worship, should I have gotten mad, yelled and screamed at him, and got people together to protest that those in authority were not allowing me and those of us in the church to not have our worship services? In some communities, I think it would be "yes." But I did not. I respected his authority and said, "Yes sir." And we didn't have in person worship. Why? Because of the 4th commandment, "Honor your father and mother." Yes, it speaks of those in authority. I respect the authority of the police officer. In our country, many don't. Many don't care about authority.
Why? Because they do not respect or honor God. Period. Plan and simple. Take God out of it, and you have no moral compass. That is the problem. God is out of the equation. The leaders don't honor God. The protesters don't honor God. The media doesn't honor God. Even many people don't honor God. The civil rights movement was based in faith and in honor of God. That is not taking place today. God is not accepted. God is not followed. Jesus is no longer the Lord of people's lives. Lip service is played to faith but lives don't follow that faith. The fruit that is developed is rotten, if indeed there is fruit. The Lord tells us to bear good fruit, and that is not happening. So much rotten fruit.
Ramblings. There is much to be said. There is much to be done. The one thing that I can say, "It is for this reason that the Father sent His Son into this world to be the Savior." It is because of how terrible and sinful we are that the Son of God comes into the world, why He goes to the cross, why He dies and why He rises. It is because of how terrible we are and how sinful we are that He came. That is why we continue to proclaim Christ. We continue to proclaim the Gospel. We continue to point to the cross and the empty tomb.
Jesus Christ is the Lord and Savior. He is the hope for this world. Let's get that in our head and live our lives with Him leading and guiding us. That, is the only way we can work together.
It is raining this morning. Thunder and lightning. Good to have rain. But there is also damage that comes with it. When a storm blows through, wind can cause lots of damage. Heard some reports of damage from it. Limbs down. People out of power. Even a semi is blown over on I-29. Summer storms can do that. Yet at the same time, it will be nice to have the cracks in the yard fill in with the moisture. Good thing to come from bad. But then again, grass is going to grow again. Bad things following the good things that follow the bad. Sounds like life.
The coronavirus - need I say more. Yes it is real. Yes people do get sick from it. But I see it as being used for political gain. We have become pawns to the politicians. They are using this virus as a way to attack the sitting president. As the communities begin to open up, if things look to good, suddenly the virus is spiking and we need to close down again. Bars are open, and causing the spike. Beaches are open, they need to be closed because they have caused the spike. Yet, thousands upon thousands have protested in cities around the country, and the virus has not had an effect at all. There is no spike because of angry people getting in other's faces and yelling and screaming. The virus knows who to attack and who to avoid. Really? Something tells me that my chain is being pulled by the media and the politicians. Nothing more than pawns. Our lives mean very little, like the pawn on the chess board. Use them up. Why? To protect the king and queen, and the other "important" pieces. Before you say that I don't care, that I am unloving, and all the other things that can be said, forget it. That is not the case. I do care. I do love. And yet, I also know that we must live our lives.
Living in fear. That is what is taking place now. We are living in fear. Fear of the virus. Fear of other races. Fear of violence. Fear of... The fear is used to control and make people act in a certain way. Used to control you and me. Yet I think about what the Lord tells me over and over again, "Fear not." Why? Because He is my fortress and strength. He is the One who will help me through.
Just heard that one state is changing laws. It will no longer be a felon to attack a police officer. It will be a misdemeanor. Really? How about we put a target on the backs and chests of the ones who serve on the thin blue line? Go ahead, attack them. It won't really be a problem for you. I can't imagine what it must be like to try to control the mass of people who are angry and attacking you, and know that your every action is being recorded, they are trying to push your buttons in order to get you in trouble and use you to be the reason for the next riot. My prayers are with those who are serving. May the Lord surround you with His holy angels. May they protect you as you serve the people of the communities. My heart aches each time another officer is attacked, hurt and killed. And yet, we make them the bad ones. Really? The police officers are not the ones rioting, destroying things or hurting other people. I don't know how you do it. You are in my prayers.
I am amazed that it is all right for some to destroy statues and other things because it offends them. But if you are offended by their action, then you are the bad person. I am not in support of slavery, nor do I say that it was a good thing in our country. But at the same time, I do not support removing that history from our country. And guess what, I don't care if that offends you. The actions of these rioters offends me. The destruction of communities offends me. The trespassing on private property offends me. The liberal media offends me. The liberal politicians offend me. The attack on life offends me. The abuse of power offends me. Should I go out and protest. Should I go out and trespass on other's property? Should I go tear down statues that offend me? Should I hurt other people because they offend me? NO!
When the police officer came into the church on that Saturday evening and told me that we could not have in person worship, should I have gotten mad, yelled and screamed at him, and got people together to protest that those in authority were not allowing me and those of us in the church to not have our worship services? In some communities, I think it would be "yes." But I did not. I respected his authority and said, "Yes sir." And we didn't have in person worship. Why? Because of the 4th commandment, "Honor your father and mother." Yes, it speaks of those in authority. I respect the authority of the police officer. In our country, many don't. Many don't care about authority.
Why? Because they do not respect or honor God. Period. Plan and simple. Take God out of it, and you have no moral compass. That is the problem. God is out of the equation. The leaders don't honor God. The protesters don't honor God. The media doesn't honor God. Even many people don't honor God. The civil rights movement was based in faith and in honor of God. That is not taking place today. God is not accepted. God is not followed. Jesus is no longer the Lord of people's lives. Lip service is played to faith but lives don't follow that faith. The fruit that is developed is rotten, if indeed there is fruit. The Lord tells us to bear good fruit, and that is not happening. So much rotten fruit.
Ramblings. There is much to be said. There is much to be done. The one thing that I can say, "It is for this reason that the Father sent His Son into this world to be the Savior." It is because of how terrible and sinful we are that the Son of God comes into the world, why He goes to the cross, why He dies and why He rises. It is because of how terrible we are and how sinful we are that He came. That is why we continue to proclaim Christ. We continue to proclaim the Gospel. We continue to point to the cross and the empty tomb.
Jesus Christ is the Lord and Savior. He is the hope for this world. Let's get that in our head and live our lives with Him leading and guiding us. That, is the only way we can work together.
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