Buffalo Noise

"Evidence" for Evolution?

2012-01-31T07:51:00.000-08:00

“It’s clear that Haeckel may have fudged his drawings somewhat to look more like his ideal than they actually are. Now, does that actually take away from what we know about the relationship of embryology to evolution? Not a bit. The whole Haeckel’s embryo story has been greatly blown out of significance. It is a minor footnote in the history of science, and actually it’s been known for ten or fifteen years that Haeckel’s embryos are not to be relied upon. The reason why the diagrams are reproduced is because they’re easily available. There’s no copyright on them. It’s an easy way to illustrate a point. And I would argue that the basic point that’s being illustrated by those drawings is still accurate.” (Eugenie Scott, Ph.D., Director, National Center for Science Education. From the DVD, “Icons of Evolution,” Jonathon Wells, The Discovery Institute, 2002.)

So that is what the evolutionists pass off as "science." What's next? Maybe some "scientist" will say, "We are all aware that Piltdown Man was a hoax, but that does not diminish its importance as evidence of the evolution of man from an ape-like creature." Or maybe another one will say, "Everyone knows that Nebraska Man was nothing but a pig's tooth, but that does not diminish the importance of the find as evidence for evolution." Right... faked evidence is just fine as long as it supports the pre-conceived notions of evolutionists. Vary sad and very absurd.

Such illustrations could go on and on, but what would be the point? It is obvious to those who look at the facts that evolution is nothing but a house of cards that has been successful in fooling many people for quite some time. Nevertheless, it is not worthy of our consideration, and it should become nothing but a joke as it is seen more and more for the hoax it really is.

Consigned to Hell?

2012-01-02T14:19:00.000-08:00

I recently received an anonymous document in which an individual consigned a man, who had passed away in recent months, to hell. The writer of the document seemed to be very jubilant about it, celebrating and loving the thought that this man would be condemned for all eternity. As I have contemplated this, I have a number of observations.

Anyone who chooses to consign another human being to hell is stepping over into an area where no man has any right to tread. Such is God’s business, and it is not only arrogant, but it is quite dangerous, to stick our noses into areas that concern God, and Him alone. None of us should dare to judge someone else’s salvation. Do we really know who has or has not come to Christ by faith? Of course not. We can see their fruit, but being a “fruit inspector” does not make us God, and it most certainly does not qualify us to discern who really is and is not one of His own.

We know there are those who will end up in the lake of fire. The Bible tells us that the devil, his angels (the demons), the beast, and the false prophet will be there. We also know that those whose names are not in the Book of Life will be cast into the lake of fire. There are, however, no names attached to these people. We do not know who they are. There is one man we know has been in hell since the time of Christ – the rich man of Luke 16. Obviously there are others, but to take upon ourselves the position of being able to consign specific individuals to hell is extremely self-righteous and is to invite God’s judgment.

The individual who wrote the document determined that the man is in hell based on a specific sin he allegedly committed. Of course, the writer has no proof other than the belated word of someone who may well have had an agenda. An assumption is being made that cannot be verified, and a complete lack of understanding of the exceeding sinfulness of sin and of the grace of God is being demonstrated.

What do I mean by that? We must sometimes be reminded that all sin, no matter how “small” or “minor,” is evil in the sight of God. ANY sin is sufficient to condemn a human to an eternity in the lake of fire, because sin is an offense against a holy God whose standard is perfection. God does not put up with sin. He does not arbitrarily overlook some sins because those sins are not sufficiently “bad” to result in condemnation. We step over a line which we ought not to even approach when we overlook our own sin but consign others to eternal condemnation because of their sins.

On the other hand, true believers in Christ are capable of any sin in the book, and any sin committed by a believer is already taken care of by the perfect sacrifice of Christ on the cross. That is the grace of God. We don’t deserve His grace, because if we did, it would not be grace. Is God’s grace only for me and for those of whom I approve, or is it even for those of whom I do not approve? It does us well not to presume on the grace of God only for ourselves.

Just look at David, a “man after God’s own heart.” While shirking his duty as head of his army, he lusted after another man’s wife, committed adultery with her, tried to make it look as if her husband was the father of the resultant offspring, had the husband murdered, and tried to cover the whole thing up. That is all a pretty “bad” sin, yet David did not lose his salvation and suffer the pangs of hell because of it. Note that he did not ask to have his salvation restored, but instead prayed, “Restore to me the joy of Your salvation” (Psalm 51:12, NASB). He did not lose his salvation. Instead, he lost the JOY of God’s salvation. None of what David did was minor. None of it was acceptable to God. David certainly suffered a number of consequences because of it. However, no one has authority to consign him to hell because of it.

Such a view of who goes to hell and who does not based on behavior is nothing other than a very faulty view of salvation that says we are saved by our works. Clearly, the Bible teaches that we are saved “by grace through faith” (Ephesians 2:8-9) and that we could never be saved by being good, since the Law of God, itself a good thing, is unable to save us. “For what the Law could not do, weak as it was through the flesh, God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh” (Romans 8:3, NASB).

Taking pleasure in the condemnation of the lost is most certainly not what should be done by a true believer in Christ. If the man really did go to hell, where we all actually deserve to go, should we rejoice in that? How arrogant would that be? Even God Himself does not do that. “Say to them, ‘As I live!’ declares the Lord GOD, ‘I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil ways! Why then will you die, O house of Israel?’” (Ezekiel 33:11).

I did not know the man who passed away and who was accused of horrible behavior by someone else. I do not know what he did or did not do. Even if I had known him, and even if I had some way to know if he did this thing, I would certainly not be so arrogant or presumptuous as to consign him to hell. Whenever any of us goes about to condemn someone else, we need to remember that we would all, except for the grace of God, be under His condemnation. “He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him” (John 3:36, NASB).

It would do us all well to heed the words of our Lord Jesus Christ. “Do not judge so that you will not be judged. For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and behold, the log is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye” (Matthew 7:1-5, NASB).

Joseph: A Man of Great Faith

2011-12-19T10:59:00.000-08:00

My favorite Bible character from the Old Testament is Joseph, the son of Jacob and his beloved Rachel. He proved himself to be a man of great faith, even though he was hated and sold into slavery by his brothers, even though he was falsely accused of a crime he did not commit, and even though he was thrown into prison and then forgotten by the cupbearer of Pharaoh after he had done the man a great service. Joseph never did give up and blame God for his predicament. Instead, he remained faithful, and God blessed him greatly.

However, this article is not about that Joseph, as important as he is to the Bible narrative. Instead, I want to consider another Joseph, one who is much less well-known, but who nevertheless also showed himself to be a man of great faith. At this time of year, we think of Mary and Joseph, the newborn Jesus, and all that goes with the Nativity scene. Much attention is paid to Mary, the Christ-child, the shepherds, and even the wise men who showed up many months later. The one individual who tends to be somewhat and sometimes totally ignored is Joseph, who, although not the biological father of Jesus, assumed all the legal responsibilities of fatherhood.

Joseph revealed himself as a man of great faith from the time he first heard his wife-to-be, Mary, was pregnant. This was no minor situation. The period of engagement was certainly different in that time and culture than it is today. Engagement (“betrothal” or “espousal”) was a binding commitment that could only be broken by a bill of divorcement, and unfaithfulness during that time was no less of an issue than unfaithfulness during marriage. The penalty for the guilty party could be death by stoning. Clearly Joseph at first believed Mary had been unfaithful, because he knew he had not had a physical relationship with her, and he knew she was pregnant. Without a doubt, his heart was broken, but he still loved her and opted for a private bill of divorcement rather than exposing her to public disgrace and having her stoned. His faith is shown by his response to the message the angel brought to him.

Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly. But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: “BEHOLD, THE VIRGIN SHALL BE WITH CHILD AND SHALL BEAR A SON, AND THEY SHALL CALL HIS NAME IMMANUEL,” which translated means, “GOD WITH US.” And Joseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, but kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus (Matthew 1:18-25, NASB).

The angel told Joseph that the child to which Mary would give birth would be the very Son of God. Many men might have doubted this and would have gone through with the divorce. Joseph, however, quite obviously believed what the angel said, because he acted on the message. Obedience is the best evidence of faith. It is quite easy to say, “I believe,” but it is another thing entirely to act on a message that seems difficult or even impossible. Joseph was asked to believe and act on the reality of a virgin birth. This is clearly impossible with man, but not with God.

A virgin birth is not like a “married bachelor” or a “square circle.” These things are logical absurdities. A virgin birth is not a logical absurdity; it is merely an impossibility. God is powerful to accomplish the impossible, and Joseph both believed and acted on this fact. He “did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, but kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus.” There is no indication that Joseph wavered or doubted. He believed the message from God and acted on it. He knew Mary was still a virgin, and he kept her so until after the birth of Jesus. His actions were likely illogical to others around him, but he acted in obedience to the Lord, so the opinions of his friends and acquaintances were irrelevant.

Some time after His birth, King Herod heard from the wise men that one had been born who would be the new king. Of course, Herod being the paranoid scoundrel he was, immediately came up with a plan to kill this threat to his throne. Many young children were slaughtered in the carrying out of Herod’s evil plan, but of course Jesus escaped. Joseph was warned to take Mary and the child Jesus to Egypt. Once again, Joseph acted in faith and immediately obeyed.

Now when they had gone, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up! Take the Child and His mother and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is going to search for the Child to destroy Him.” So Joseph got up and took the Child and His mother while it was still night, and left for Egypt. He remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet: “OUT OF EGYPT I CALLED MY SON” (Matthew 2:13-15, NASB).

Many men might have replied with skepticism and questioned the wisdom of the angel’s message. It was surely a scary prospect to move to a different country with no notice ahead of time and no time to plan, yet Joseph, in another display of great faith, immediately “got up and took the Child and His mother while it was still night, and left for Egypt.” He did not delay, nor did he express doubt. He simply obeyed the Lord’s command and did something that would have seemed illogical to many, but Joseph obviously knew that the only place of safety was in the center of God’s will.

After a period of time, an angel again came to Joseph and told him to return to Israel.

But when Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, and said, “Get up, take the Child and His mother, and go into the land of Israel; for those who sought the Child’s life are dead.” So Joseph got up, took the Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel. But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. Then after being warned by God in a dream, he left for the regions of Galilee, and came and lived in a city called Nazareth. This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophets: “He shall be called a Nazarene” (Matthew 2, 19-23, NASB).

By this time, the little family was certainly settled in Egypt, and again, it would have been easy for Joseph to second-guess the angel’s message. He could have considered Egypt to be the best place to safely raise Jesus, since it was away from the place where His life had been in jeopardy. However, just like in the other situations, Joseph acted in faith, believing the message and acting on it. He “got up, took the Child and His mother, and came into the Land of Israel.” After coming back to Israel, Joseph was warned by God in a dream and again responded in faith and “left for the regions of Galilee, and came and lived in a city called Nazareth.”

Every step of the way, Joseph responded in faith by acting on what God told him. We know very little more about this man other than what we can assume from his godly character. We assume he died some time between the visit to the temple when Jesus was twelve years old and the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry. We can also assume that he was faithful to the responsibility of being the earthly, adoptive father of the Son of God, teaching Him many things, including the carpenter trade.

The Scripture tells us that Joseph was “a righteous man,” and there is no reason to believe he did not operate in the rest of his life in the same manner in which we observe him operating in the parts of his life we know about. He is frequently overlooked among biblical heroes, but what we do know of him makes Joseph a great hero of the faith.

Daniel’s Prayer of Thanksgiving

2011-11-24T07:03:00.000-08:00

We so often think of this time of year as a time to thank God for all His blessings – material things – our homes, our cars, our wealth relative to the rest of the world, our country, our freedom, food, etc. For these things we most certainly should be thankful, but Daniel’s prayer of thanksgiving teaches us the importance of being thankful for much more. It reveals a great deal about the nature and character of God – the things on which are based all His blessings to us. We need to be especially thankful all the time, not just at a special time of year.

Daniel’s prayer is found in the second chapter of his prophecy. King Nebuchadnezzar had his dream of the great image, and it troubled him, because he did not know what it meant. He called in all of his magicians, astrologers, sorcerers, and Chaldeans – in other words, his alleged “wise men.” Of course, these men were not truly wise at all. They had no connection with the God of heaven. It quickly became clear that Nebuchadnezzar did not really trust the wise men, because he demanded not only the interpretation but the content of the dream itself. When the wise men asked him to tell them the dream so they could interpret it, he accused them of stalling and threatened to destroy them if they could not tell him the dream, but he promised great rewards for anyone who could do so.

Their response rang quite true. Even these heathen “wise men” had enough sense to know that only God (or “the gods” as they put it) could do what the king was asking. The Chaldeans answered the king, and said, There is not a man on earth who can tell the king's matter; therefore no king, lord, or ruler has ever asked such things of any magician, astrologer, or Chaldean. It is a difficult thing that the king requests, and there is no other who can tell it to the king except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh (Daniel 2:10-11, NKJV).

Nevertheless, the king gave orders to have all of the wise men of Babylon destroyed, and this order included Daniel and his friends. When Daniel found out about the king’s command, he went to his house, along with Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. There they prayed and asked for the answer so that they might not be destroyed with the rest of the “wise men” of Babylon.

Then the secret was revealed to Daniel in a night vision. So Daniel blessed the God of heaven. Daniel answered and said: "Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, For wisdom and might are His. And He changes the times and the seasons; He removes kings and raises up kings; He gives wisdom to the wise And knowledge to those who have understanding. He reveals deep and secret things; He knows what is in the darkness, And light dwells with Him. I thank You and praise You, O God of my fathers; You have given me wisdom and might, And have now made known to me what we asked of You, For You have made known to us the king's demand" (Daniel 2:19-23, NKJV).

This prayer recognizes the superiority of the God of the universe, the God of the Bible, over all false gods that men have created. This we should be thankful for on a daily basis, because if we did not have such a God, He most certainly could not provide for us all of the other things we think about when we list the things for which we are thankful.

Notice the specific content of the prayer.

Blessed be the name of God forever and ever… God is eternal. He is outside of time. He is not limited as we are. We need to see things in eternal perspective and not just temporal perspective. He is eternally worthy of our praise and worship.

…wisdom and might are His. God is all-knowing and all-powerful. All of our questions find their answers in Him, and He is the one who can do something about our situations. There is no situation too big for Him to handle.

He changes the times and the seasons… God controls His creation. This contrasts God with Babylonian fatalism based on astrology. They looked to the stars, but God made the stars. God has power and control over all those things men look to. In spite of the evidence, man has chosen to worship the created thing instead of the Creator.

Romans 1 tells us that …the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse…who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever (Romans 1:18-20, 25, NKJV).

The heavens declare the glory of God; And the firmament shows His handiwork (Psalm 19:1, NKJV),

When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, The moon and the stars, which You have ordained, What is man that You are mindful of him, And the son of man that You visit him? (Psalm 8:3-4, NKJV).

He removes kings and raises up kings… God is sovereign. This statement contrasts a sovereign God with the weakness of Babylon deities. We sometimes wonder why God allows certain men – dictators, tyrants – to be in power. We can be confident that He has His reasons. And ultimately, all will bow to Him.

Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:9-11, NKJV).

He gives wisdom to the wise And knowledge to those who have understanding. He reveals deep and secret things… God is the source of all wisdom and knowledge. The wise men of Babylon were not really wise men. They were not recipients of divine wisdom. Man is completely dependent on God for wisdom. Professing to be wise, they became fools (Romans 1:22, NKJV). There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death (Proverbs 14:12, NKJV).

He knows what is in the darkness… There is no hiding place from God. He knows all about us.

…light dwells with Him. He is the source of light, in contrast to the darkness. Only He can save human beings.

I thank You and praise You, O God of my fathers; you have given me wisdom and might, and have now made known to me what we asked of You, for You have made known to us the king's demand. We ought to first and foremost thank God for all He is, and then it will be very natural to thank Him for all He provides.

Coming to grips with the very nature and character of God helps put all things into perspective. No matter what comes into our lives, we who know the Lord can accept it as from the hand of our Heavenly Father who knows all things, who is in control of all things, and who loves us with an everlasting love.

A Tribute to My Dad: World War 2 Veteran

2011-11-11T10:32:00.000-08:00

Wayne W. Livesay

June 16, 1922 – October 31, 2009

On this Veteran's Day, I honor my dad for his service to our country and for his service to our Lord.

My dad was not famous, but he did more for his country than most of us could ever imagine. He fought and bled for the freedom we all enjoy, even for the freedoms of those who today spit on the flag and make a mockery of the liberty we have in this country. His thirty-three missions in B-17 bombers were many beyond the average life-expectancy of bomber crews in World War 2. His nine months as a prisoner of war in Germany took a toll on his body that caused him to suffer until the end of his life.

In addition to his service to his country, he had a long life of service to the Lord, serving as a pastor and church planter, teaching adult Sunday school for many years, and presenting the gospel of Christ to unbelievers. His life’s verse was Galatians 2:20, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”

Go Lady Warriors!

2011-11-10T16:58:00.000-08:00

Here it is… the first day of basketball practice… and I am not there. I finally came to a decision a couple of weeks ago… a decision I really knew I needed to make. I stepped down as varsity girls’ basketball coach and left the team in the very able hands of my long-time assistant.

As I saw the season approaching, I found myself doing something I had never done before… I was dreading it. I was dreading spending two hours a day in practice. I was dreading the games two nights a week, especially the away games and late return times on school nights. I was also dreading what it might do to my effectiveness in the classroom.

I always told my teams that basketball is a game, and games are played for fun. I also told them that if they could not have fun and enjoy it, they should not play. I know that applies to coaches, as well. Even though basketball, as well as other sports, can be a great vehicle for teaching biblical principles, what I do in the classroom as a Bible and math teacher is of far greater significance than anything I might do in the gym.

I knew a long time ago that when the time came to step away from coaching, I would just do it with no regrets. I thoroughly enjoyed my 22 seasons of coaching at the varsity level and several other seasons at the JV and junior high levels.

Coaching is very tiring and time-consuming, and we all reach the age where we have to slow down and realize we can no longer do everything we used to do. I step away with many fond memories of past seasons. The Lord was very good to me and to my teams over the years, and I thank Him for the experience.

Now I say to the team, “Go Lady Warriors! Play with all your might as unto the Lord! Have a great season!”

All of the Proof for Darwinian Evolution is Between the Lines

2011-11-10T11:14:00.000-08:00

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Moral Relativism

2011-10-23T21:40:00.000-07:00

By My Annonymous Friend

I watched a documentary yesterday telling the story of the Canadian military in Afghanistan. At one point the narrator opened a window to his mind and world view when he stated that Afghanistan created a problem for him intellectually. He said that he was raised to believe in a morally relative world where distinctions between right and wrong, or good or evil, were blurred or perhaps non existent. It is true that this view is prominent in western culture. A Zogby poll some years ago showed that 75% of American college professors teach and believe that there is no such a thing as right or wrong. Individuals and cultures must make decisions about what is right or wrong for them. This is how we hear statements like "I decide what is right for me!" or, "This is my truth!" A variation of this thinking is an absurdity I sometimes offer in jest – "I stand up for the truth whether it is right or wrong!"

Back to the Afghan documentary. Why did the narrator face an intellectual dilemma? The reason he cited is that is that he could not explain the Taliban who restrict education, force women into despicable life styles, blow up historic and religious shrines and monuments, and so on. I smiled when I heard him talk about this. Of course he faced a troubling situation. The world he was told existed was in reality a different kind of world. Some have said that moral relativists in fact see the world more as they would like it to be rather than how it is in fact. I think that is true. For many moral absolutism is annoying and interferes with how they live. I commend the narrator for his honesty!

I am aware that I have selected a major and very serious topic. There is a great deal in ancient philosophy and religion about the topic of good and evil. It is for some a reason to believe that God does not exist because if He is a good God then He could not allow evil to exist. This argument has an answer. In Taoism, the ying and yang concept is an effort to show that there is a complementarity between good and evil. I reject this way of thinking as well.

Today's disciples of moral relativism claim that tolerance and neutrality are their virtues. For example, the President of Planned Parenthood Federation of America once stated, "…teaching morality doesn't mean imposing my moral values on others. It means sharing wisdom, giving reasons for believing as I do - and then trusting others to think and judge for themselves." She claims to be morally neutral, but this is categorically untrue. Recent talks about defunding Planned Parenthood have been met with howls of protests and incredibly dishonest propaganda. Those who promote abortions are in no mood to hear the arguments of those who value the life of the unborn. Here is another example of supposed tolerance and neutrality. I found it amusing and also disappointing that a recent climate change (it is now embarrassing to call it “global warming”) conference refused to allow a leading British author and skeptic of this politically fashionable theory to speak at a conference on climate change. So much for tolerance!

Our society is paying a huge price for the false teaching of moral relativism. Contrast today's world with the thinking of George Washington. In his September 19, 1796 Farewell Address to the nation, George Washington stated, "Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, Religion and Morality are indispensable supports. In vain would that man claim the tribute of Patriotism, who should labor to subvert these great Pillars."

William McGuffey, author of the McGuffey's Readers, which were used by students in America's public school system from the early 1800's to the early 1900's, wrote, "Erase all thought and fear of God from a community, and selfishness and sensuality would absorb the whole man." McGuffey's ideas are being validated every day when we watch the evening news!

God is not the author of evil! Mankind was given a choice and chose evil. Ever since, humans have been born with both an evil nature and an evil desire. I marvel that it is not necessary to teach small children to be naughty, mean-spirited, to fight with each other, to take away each other's toys, and so on. Even my angelic children, and now grandchildren, seem to take to all these kinds of behaviors with ease. As we continue in life, we continue to make wrong and hurtful choices at times which have horrible consequences.

I commend the honesty and integrity of the narrator of the documentary I saw. Would that others in our society would honestly examine the world in which we live and question their presuppositions and theories. Moral relativism has serious flaws. It cannot answer for the behavior of brutal regimes like the Taliban and others. Nor can it answer for the evil nature that is present in each of us as well.

The great news is that God has an answer for evil. Without compromising His own righteousness and perfection, He established a way for forgiveness and restoration to be possible. This was accomplished by asking His Son, a perfect and thus legally acceptable sacrifice, to assume all the guilt of humanity by dying. Now the offer of salvation and forgiveness has solid philosophical and theological grounds. Justice and mercy were perfectly combined on the Cross.

"Bibley"

2011-09-12T12:47:00.000-07:00

Glenn E. Chatfield has posted an article entitled "Is Your Church Too 'Bibley?'" on one of his blogs, "The Watchman's Bagpipes." This brief article touches on something very important in the church today -- the teaching of God's Word. I commented on his post as follows:

I really like your new word, "Bibley." Wish I had thought of it. Thank the Lord for "Bibley" churches and "Bibley" pastors.

I have always believed that there is no substitute for teaching the Scriptures, and that is what I have practiced in my 20+ years of teaching adult Sunday school. All of the topical and "timely" and "relevant" material in the world cannot replace the teaching of the Word of God. As for me, I plan to remain "Bibley" in my approach.

I fugure if someone doesn't like the "Bibley" approach, they have come to the wrong church and the wrong Sunday school class.

Qualifications for the Office of President

2011-08-25T16:37:00.000-07:00

The Constitution makes it clear that there are some specific requirements for the office of President, as follows:

• Must be a natural born citizen,

• Must be at least thirty-five years old, and

• Must have been a resident of the United States for fourteen years.

(US Constitution, Article II, Section 1)

It seems that some have now added to those requirements:

• Must “believe in science,” to be defined as believing in the existence of “man-made global warming,” otherwise known as “climate change,” and also must believe in evolution, regardless of biblical truth, common sense, and the evidence.

• Must not believe in God, especially the God of Christianity, regardless of references to God in other founding documents, and regardless of the intent of the framers of the Constitution.

The Biblical Function of Government

2011-08-23T13:31:00.000-07:00

I determined from the very beginning of this blog that I would stay away from political issues. However, sometimes people call things “political issues” when in reality, they are biblical and moral issues. So often, Christians avoid clearly biblical issues for fear of crossing the mythical line of “separation of church and state.”

So frequently today, we see government at all levels overreaching and doing a myriad of things that government has no business doing, either constitutionally or biblically, while all but ignoring the biblical mandate in this area. It is not my purpose to point out those things. The Bible is very clear relative to the legitimate functions of government. We would all be a great deal better off if governments would follow the biblical mandate.

When God established human government, He gave man the right and responsibility to punish evildoers, up to and including capital punishment. “Whoever sheds man’s blood, By man his blood shall be shed, For in the image of God He made man” (Genesis 9:6, NASB). This point is further reinforced in the New Testament. Speaking of government, Paul says, “…it is a minister of God to you for good. But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it does not bear the sword for nothing; for it is a minister of God, an avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil” (Romans 13:4, NASB). Peter further teaches us that government authorities have been sent “…for the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right” (1 Peter 2:14, NASB).

A tremendous instruction to believers is that we are to pray for our leaders so that they might have the wisdom to protect the citizens from the dangers of evildoers, both domestic and foreign, and to lead in a manner consistent with the Word of God, to the end that we might have the freedom to live godly lives. “First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity” (1 Timothy 2:1-2, NASB).

Government needs to first and foremost take care of this responsibility. To neglect this in order to do other things not included in God’s commands is to lead a country in the wrong direction. This is so often the case as government tends to concentrate on overreaching into inappropriate areas at the expense of legitimate functions. Roads, bridges, etc. have their place, but these things become nearly meaningless unless government puts first things first ..."so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.”

An excellent article, entitled “The Five Functions of Government,” is found here.

When Not to Talk

2011-08-21T15:22:00.000-07:00

By My Anonymous Friend

I have a variety of interests as I am sure you do also. One activity I enjoy is picking up new recreational vehicles from the factory on occasion and delivering them to a local RV dealer. This past week I made such a trip … to pick up a beautiful new trailer. As I drove I listened to various talk radio stations as I often do. Doing so led me to my theme for this week.

As I listened I was chagrined to hear information being passed off as fact that I knew to be either greatly exaggerated or else patently false. The host of the talk show never once questioned the veracity of the information he was using. What happens a lot in our world today is that bloggers write about things important to them and media outlets use these blogs as their sources without ever doing the kind of fact checking that good journalism requires. Information is then made public in established print or electronic media and picked up by talk show hosts or the public. It is assumed to be true but may in fact not be so at all. At times all spectrums of the political landscape are guilty of this carelessness. This guilt extends far beyond just political discourse and includes business, family, and church life equally. As Winston Churchill once said, "A lie makes its way half way around the world before truth has put its pants on!"

It is very critical for us to be sure we have facts before we speak about them. We can do serious damage to someone's reputation or cause when we pass along information that may not be accurate. Sometimes even when we have facts it is still good judgment to guard what we say. Scripture warns of this in many references.

1. We should not talk if we do not possess the facts. "He who gives an answer before he hears it is folly and shame to him" (Prov. 18:13).

2. We should not talk if our words would only inflame a situation. "He who restrains his words has knowledge, and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding" (Prov. 17:27).

3. We should not talk if our words could damage a friendship or hurt another's reputation. "A worthless man digs up evil, while his words are as a scorching fire" (Prov. 16:27). "A perverse man spreads strife, and a slanderer separates intimate friends" (Prov. 16:28). "Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof" (Prov. 18:21).

4. We should not talk if doing so might put us into a realm where we do not belong. "Do not speak against one another, brethren. He who speaks evil against his brother, or judges his brother, speaks against the law, and judges the law; but if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law, but a judge of it" (James 4:11).

As someone for whom talking was a way of life for many years and still is to a great degree, these admonitions are at times very convicting to me. I wonder how many people I have hurt over the years with careless things I have said. James wrote of the power of the tongue. We have all experienced the positive power when a sincere compliment is given. It lifts our spirits and elevates our sense of well being. But we have also experienced the piercing pain that an unthoughtful comment can deliver. It stings and hurts.

My prayer for myself and for you is that we might only use speech that in the words of Paul in Ephesians 4:29 might give grace to the hearer.

Faithfulness

2011-08-07T20:42:00.000-07:00

By My Anonymous Friend

This past week some friends of ours celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. It was a delight to join with family and friends to help celebrate this significant milestone in their lives.

Our friends served for some years as missionaries in Vietnam before being forced to leave in 1975. They shared many stories of their work there and how they survived the Tet offensive in 1968 and the final weeks before the war ended in 1975. Some readers may recall that several missionaries were killed during the war and our friends were involved in recovering the bodies and seeking to honor their lives with a dignified burial.

Such stories provide intrigue and fascinate a listener but in my view there is something infinitely more significant about the life and ministry of our friends. Their work did not end in 1975. For years and continuing into the present, they have continued to work in various ways in this SE Asian country. They have provided a voice for the persecuted church there. They continue to advocate for those who have no platform from which to speak. God continues to provide amazing opportunities to serve. In recent months positive contacts have been established with individuals in government service. Recently a television station there featured an interview with our friend. I could continue.

All this spells one thing! F-A-I-T-H-F-U-L-N-E-S-S. What a tribute to be able to say about a person that after 50 years of marriage he or she has been faithful in their service to their Lord! I have a conviction that their work is not yet complete and that perhaps even greater ministry opportunities await them. This we simply entrust to the sovereign will and plan of God.

Scripture says that of a steward it is required that he be faithful. Our friends have been faithful for sure. They have several children who currently live abroad who are continuing in the pattern created by their parents. Thus their work will continue through their children even after their time on this earth is completed. I celebrate and rejoice.

“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ whom you are serving” (Colossians 3:23-24).

I share this with you today to encourage you to be faithful and to serve day by day in the spirit of Paul's admonition to the Colossian church. Perhaps like our friends, you are serving in a way or in a place where you receive little recognition from others. Do not let this discourage you.

Institutions or People?

2011-08-05T13:05:00.000-07:00

By My Anonymous Friend

Recently we watched the movie, "Patch Adams" again. It is based on the true story of a medical student (played by Robin Williams) who rebelled against the institutional medical traditions and barely was able to graduate even though his grades were at or near the top of his class. Hunter "Patch" Adams' basic frustration was that medicine did not treat patients as humans. He believed that quality of life should count for something as well. He founded a clinic named the Gesundheit Institute in W. Virginia that treated people free of charge. In real life, at one point 1000 physicians were on a waiting list to serve in this facility. Its purpose is to revolutionize the medical industry by replacing greed and competition with generosity and compassion. In recent years it has expanded its scope to offer a variety of holistic kind of care as well.

This movie resonates strongly with me. In my view any institution must recognize the danger of losing sight of its most important work – people! Over time, tradition and ritual often bring about a change where instead of being a servant of the mission they become the mission itself. The administrative work of running an organization becomes all consuming. Organizations lose sight of serving people.

Another example concerns a life saving station established on the rocky ocean coast in New England. Its clear vision and purpose initially was to rescue persons suffering shipwreck in the turbulent waters in the area. After some years the life saving station became a club. Money was raised to buy more boats, the station center was enlarged and furnished more exquisitely. Every year, fewer and fewer people were actually rescued. However, more and more people were members of the life saving station club!

Canada

once had two airlines competing with each other. One was the "institutional" airline. The other was private. Eventually the former bought out the latter. It could simply not compete because the playing field was not level. The "institutional" airline received more government favors and tax advantages. After the two merged I once asked an employee who had worked years for the now defunct airline about the differences between the two. "The answer is easy," he said. "One airline had in its mission statement the concept of serving people. The other saw itself as simply a mover of products!"

Jesus fought this trend during his earthly ministry. His chief antagonists – religious leaders, were much more concerned about rules and regulations than about the real needs of people. When the disciples of Jesus were hungry and ate some grain on a Sabbath, religious leaders were alarmed that a Sabbath regulation had been violated. Jesus pointed out that hunger was a higher priority than proper Sabbath observance. An adulterous woman dragged before Jesus so He could pronounce judgment on her, was given new hope while her accusers disappeared with embarrassment. Lepers, blind people, military leaders, Samaritans, tax collectors – all were friends of Jesus. He found time for them.

I have spent most of my adult life working with or in a bureaucracy or "institution". I was a pastor and a denominational executive. When I look back today I sometimes wonder how much I did that was of real value. How many lives did I truly impact for the better? Today I honestly believe God has given me the opportunity to directly touch the lives of many more people. People who are hurting for a variety of reasons can approach me because I am a "safe" person to talk to. Often they approach me because they have no confidence in the "institutions" to help them deal with their pain. Some of this hurt has come from self-inflicted wounds or bad judgment. Some of this hurt has come from institutional bureaucracy and indifference. But it does not really matter. Hurt is hurt and pain is pain! I am extremely thankful that by the grace of God I have been able to come alongside people like this. I wish I could do much more because the needs are enormous.

What are your thoughts here? Are you spending your time truly touching the lives of people? Are you mired in organization and details to the point where you simply do not have much time for people? At the end of your life will you be able to say confidently that your life meaningfully intersected with the lives of others?

Follow-up to "Man's Part in Salvation"

2011-07-30T13:53:00.000-07:00

I recently had a comment on my previous post, "Man's Part in Salvation." I wrote a response, but the comments section would not accept it. Perhaps it was too long. Therefore, I have revised my response and am making it into a new post. If you read the original post and the comments, it will help put the following in context.

It is clear that many examples in Scripture are used because they help us understand difficult truth through illustrations we humans can understand. When Jesus talked about the new birth, Nicodemus came to the concept of being born again or born from above because he understood physical birth. When the Scripture says we are “dead in trespasses and sins,” we see a picture of the lost condition of the unbeliever. No example should be carried past its intent. If carried too far, it would seem to teach false doctrine, such as extrapolating to imply that the resurrection of Lazarus means lost people who die in their sins will get a second chance or that universalism is true.

As I pointed out in another post, “Scripture complements itself; it does not contradict itself. Whether we understand it or not and whether we like it or not, when someone comes to Christ for salvation, God gets all the glory, and when someone is condemned, he gets all the credit for his own condemnation.”

We can never use one Scripture to disprove another. Instead, we need to interpret Scripture in light of Scripture. When one passage seems to conflict with another, then we need to look at the massive weight of the overall teaching of the Bible and interpret the seemingly contradictory passage in light of that teaching.

2 Peter 3:9 is a prime example of this. It may well be the most misused verse in the entire Bible. So often we hear that this verse teaches that it is God’s will that all people be saved. Of course, the Scriptures make it clear that God’s will is going to be done, so if this meaning of the verse is true, then universalism must also be true. We know that not to be the case from many passages, such as Matthew 7:14. “For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it” (NASB).

In it’s proper context, we must conclude that Paul was not writing to the whole world when he said, “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.” He was writing to believers, as is stated in 2 Peter 1:1, “To those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ” (NASB). In other words, 2 Peter 3:9 is simply teaching that it is not God’s will that any of His own should perish, and that He is patiently waiting for all of His elect to come to Him. He is patient “toward YOU” and is not willing that any of YOU should perish. This “you” or “us” (KJV) refers to His own people – the elect.

Jesus said this very thing several times, such as in John 6:37-40. ^“All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. This is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day” (NASB). He also said, ^“…other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd” (John 10:16, NASB). He had not forgotten his other sheep who would yet believe on Him.

A major point of difference relative to this discussion is the issue of “free will.” I find it interesting that so often the word “free” is put before the word “will,” and yet the Scriptures make it very clear that the will of man is anything but free, unless we rightly conclude that we are "free" to choose within the confines of our nature, which means the natural man will always choose the wrong thing. The will of man is in bondage, as Martin Luther pointed out so well in even the title of his book, The Bondage of the Will. Adam, before he became a sinner, had a free will in a way that no human has since – he was able to choose to be a sinner or not. Believers also have a type of free will – we are free to choose to submit to the Holy Spirit or submit to the old nature (Romans 7:14-21). However, unbelievers have no free will at all in these matters, and their will, by nature, surrenders to sin. They can do nothing about their lost condition. That is the massive weight of the teaching of Scripture relative to the matter of man's will.

John 3:16 is a great truth. Obviously, it is the most well-known verse in the Bible, and it is true. It does not contradict any other Scripture. It merely says that whoever believes in Christ will be saved. It does not say that all will believe, and it does not say why some believe and others do not. That is where Ephesians 2:8-9 comes in. In that passage we have reinforced for us that even the faith to believe is a gift from God. Without His grace, we would all be lost with no hope of salvation.

I once had someone tell me that “whosoever” means “everybody.” In reality, it simply means “anyone who.” Anyone who believes in Christ will have eternal life. The Bible teaches that. I certainly believe it. The problem is that no one will believe if left to their own devices. Drawing someone to Christ is God’s business, as the Bible teaches and as men like Charles Spurgeon illustrated by preaching the Gospel to all and leaving the results where they rightly belong – with the Lord.

“Man’s Part” in Salvation

2011-07-28T11:26:00.000-07:00

“I know that salvation is all of God, but man has to do his part.” I have heard that statement many times over the years, and it sounds less credible each time I hear it.

When we consider that man is “dead in trespasses and sins,” and that he is totally helpless to do anything about his lost condition until the Lord makes him alive (Ephesians 2:1), then the “man has to do his part” idea makes about as much sense as saying, “I know it was Christ alone who raised Lazarus from the dead, but Lazarus had to do his part.”

What? So Jesus went out to the graves and gave an invitation, pleading with the dead and saying something like, “Whoever wants to, please raise your hand and come forward, and I will bring you to life.” Such would have resulted in Lazarus remaining in the grave, because he was dead, totally incapable of responding in any way.

On the other hand, if by some unique set of circumstances the dead could respond, how would Christ have made sure Lazarus, and only Lazarus, would come out of the grave? Perhaps Lazarus would have decided he didn’t want to come back and a number of others would have responded instead. That would have taken the Lord out of the position of control and authority and placed humans in charge of the situation.

It is clear that the Lord fully intended to raise Lazarus, and only Lazarus, on that day, and that He did so by His power according to His will. Lazarus had nothing to say about it. It was not necessary for Lazarus to believe that Jesus could raise him from the dead before He would do so. He could not do that – he was dead. Instead, Lazarus had no idea that Jesus could raise him until after He had done so. Only after he was alive did he have any ability to believe.

Many have adopted a backwards view of the Gospel and salvation, making the work of God contingent on the work of man. This is simply not so. Salvation is all of grace. Dead men cannot think, reason, respond, or make decisions. Only after He has made us alive do we have any ability to believe. Belief is evidence that we have been born again and have new life.

Salvation always has been and always will be all of God. “Man’s part” in salvation is a cruel falsehood and is foreign to the teaching of Scripture. Thank the Lord I had no part in my own salvation, because if I were in any way responsible for saving myself, I would most certainly be lost.

King Rehoboam

2011-07-28T11:17:00.000-07:00

King Rehoboam consulted with the elders who had served his father Solomon while he was still alive, saying, "How do you counsel me to answer this people?"

Then they spoke to him, saying, "If you will be a servant to this people today, and will serve them and grant them their petition, and speak good words to them, then they will be your servants forever."

But he forsook the counsel of the elders which they had given him, and consulted with the young men who grew up with him and served him. So he said to them, "What counsel do you give that we may answer this people who have spoken to me, saying, 'Lighten the yoke which your father put on us'?"

The young men who grew up with him spoke to him, saying, "Thus you shall say to this people who spoke to you, saying, 'Your father made our yoke heavy, now you make it lighter for us!' But you shall speak to them, 'My little finger is thicker than my father's loins! Whereas my father loaded you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke; my father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions.'"

…The king answered the people harshly, for he forsook the advice of the elders which they had given him, and he spoke to them according to the advice of the young men, saying, "My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke; my father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions."

So the king did not listen to the people…Then King Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was over the forced labor, and all Israel stoned him to death. And King Rehoboam made haste to mount his chariot to flee to Jerusalem. So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day…

Judah did evil in the sight of the LORD, and they provoked Him to jealousy more than all that their fathers had done, with the sins which they committed…He did evil because he did not set his heart to seek the LORD.

(From 1 Kings 12, 1 Kings 14, and 2 Chronicles 12, NASB)

Wise leaders listen to biblical principles as well as the voice of experience.

Thoughts on Samson

2011-06-28T07:48:00.000-07:00

By My Anonymous Friend

I am planning to do some character studies on various biblical women and men. Let me share with you today a bit about what I have been thinking regarding Samson.

If you grew up in the church you will remember that Samson was a man of great strength who killed a lion, tied the tails of hundreds of foxes together and attached torches to them to burn down enemy crops, and who lost his life by tearing down pillars of a pagan building taking with him to their death several thousand Philistine revelers. You may also have learned that Samson fared poorly in the romance department but that part is often not discussed as much.

Samson was a study in contradictions! Amazingly, more information and detail is given about his life in the Scriptures than is given any other of the judges who ruled Israel. It should make any Bible student curious. As with so many Bible characters, there is something to admire about Samson's life and there is also much to abhor. God set him apart to begin the deliverance of Israel from the hands of the Philistines. It is curious why the word "begin" is used in this context. I will let that tantalizing thought slide by and allow you to pursue it for yourself if you wish.

So on the one hand, Samson was set apart by God for an important purpose. At numerous times in his life, the Spirit of God began to stir in him and God came upon him in power. Yet also during his life, Samson was impetuous, hot tempered, stubborn and rebellious. He violated his Nazarite vow on more than one occasion. He was obsessed with pagan women. When he saw one, he was determined to get her for a wife. Although his parents earnestly pleaded with him to find a nice Jewish girl, Samson refused to listen.

In today's language we could say that Samson did not handle women well. He also seemed not to learn from his mistakes and repeated his bad choices. He teased and sported with his wives but in the end always succumbed to their persistent "nagging." I find it somewhat amusing that Scripture says Samson felt Delilah's nagging was so severe that he was tired to death of it (Judges 16:16). One translation renders it "annoyed to death."

A few of the contradictions that struck me as interesting about Samson are:

1. He accused the Philistines of "plowing with his heifer" to obtain the answer to the riddle he posed to them. For one thing this is a strange and not so flattering way to describe his bride. For another could it not be said that Samson was the one who really made the mistake to plow with someone's heifer in that he refused to stay with his own people and chose instead a girl from the pagan Philistines to marry?

2. The greatest contradiction or irony is that at the end of Samson's life when he was blinded, he finally was able to see things clearly and fulfill the purpose of his life to "begin the deliverance of

Israel

from Philistine domination.”

While there are many speculations and applications we might make about the entirety of Samson's life, to me his story is a story of the grace, mercy and sovereignty of God. I do not know exactly how to reconcile all the contradictions in Samson's life. To be truthful I am not always able to reconcile the contradictions in my own life either. Somehow woven through the trials and failures of the human race, God works out His sovereign plans. I cannot understand it always. But it is how God works. In the end Samson is listed among the other faith heroes in Hebrews 11. Amazing grace indeed!!!!

Fuel for Mockers

2011-05-22T17:56:00.000-07:00

Here we are – a day past the predicted Rapture, Second Coming, end of the world, Judgment Day, depending on who you talk to. The one thing about all this nonsense that I knew for sure was that none of this would happen on May 21 at 6:00 P.M. I had great confidence in that fact, because the Scriptures make it quite clear that no one knows the day or the hour. Without starting a debate on the difference between the Rapture and the Second Coming, and there is a distinct difference between those two events, I believe it will be helpful to examine a few Scriptures to see just what they say about the return of the Lord.

Jesus said in Matthew 24:36, “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone” (NASB). Jesus continues in verse 44, “For this reason you also must be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will” (NASB). Too many people over the years have attempted to reduce the Scriptures to some kind of mathematical formula, and mixing that with some kind of “hocus pocus,” they have come up with a certain date and time for the return of the Lord. Such can only be done in ignorance of or in outright denial of the Scriptures.

The worst thing about these people who think they can predict what God has not chosen to allow man to know is that they provide fuel for the skeptics and mockers. No amount of nonsense any human can say can change the truth. Jesus is coming back. He made that very clear. “I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also” (John 14:3, NASB).

The Rapture of the Church is imminent, just as it has been since they days of the apostles. Nothing has to be fulfilled before the Rapture. There are no signs of the Rapture, but there are certainly signs of the Second Coming of Christ, an event which will occur seven years later, and many of those signs are becoming more and more visible today. It is safe to say that there are many reasons to believe the Lord will return soon, but it is never safe to get into date-setting.

Of course, the media and others are using this non-event as a reason to scoff at the idea of the Lord coming back as a hoax or a fairy tale for gullible people. People will take any opportunity to deny the fundamental truths of Christianity and to group all Christians in with the types of people who make things up to grab headlines or in some cases to enrich themselves. The reality is that this is all just another of Satan’s tools to get people’s eyes off the truth.

Peter addressed this situation. “Know this first of all, that in the last days mockers will come with their mocking, following after their own lusts, and saying, ‘Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation.’ For when they maintain this, it escapes their notice that by the word of God the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water and by water, through which the world at that time was destroyed, being flooded with water. But by His word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men” (2 Peter 3:3-7, NASB).

There have always been and there will continue to be those who mock at the truth. They ask, “Where is the promise of His coming?” Many are certainly asking that today. The fact that God has already judged the world with a flood “escapes their notice.” They are “willingly ignorant” or as one speaker said, they are “dumb on purpose.” Regardless of all the evidence of a global flood, they deny it, because they don’t want to admit that God already has and will again judge the world because of sin. They desperately hope that denying the obvious will make it go away, but God is not going to go back on His promise to bring “the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.”

It is imperative that we not do or say things to add “fuel to the fire” for mockers. They desperately need the Gospel of Christ, and they need to know that judgment is coming, no matter what people may say about it.

The Resurrection and the Growth of Christianity

2011-04-24T19:49:00.000-07:00

By My Anonymous Friend

Why are dogs named Caesar or Nero? And why do we name our children Peter, Thomas, James, John, and Mary?

Today is Resurrection Sunday. I have tried to give special thought to the significance of this entire week, sometimes known as Holy Week or Passion Week. Last Sunday we reminded ourselves of the triumphal entry into Jerusalem Jesus experienced. Throughout the week I thought of what happened to Jesus after that great and ironic entry. There was a trial and the humiliation of it. There was the agony in Gethsemane where what was about to come to Jesus was so overwhelming to Him. On Friday we attended a very meaningful service here which really brought home to me the horror of crucifixion, the darkness and the despair that characterized that day. All this served to prepare my spirit for today. What an incredible contrast to Friday!! Scripture says when the disciples first heard that the tomb was empty they considered it nonsense. Who can blame them? Peter however, the ever impetuous man that he was, ran to the tomb to see for himself. And yes, indeed it was empty! I would love to know what that day was like for eyewitnesses.

Let’s get back to the dogs we name Caesar and Nero now. Historians estimate that by roughly AD 40 there might have been around 5,000 followers of Jesus in the Roman Empire. However, by AD 350 it is estimated there were about 33,000,000. What accounts for such fantastic growth? I would suggest the resurrection had everything to do with the growth of Christianity. The Roman Empire declined over the years while Christianity flourished. That is why I suppose we name our dogs Caesar or Nero! (This idea is not unique with me. I heard it in a sermon this morning). The explosive growth of Christianity is one reason why Scripture speaks of the power of the resurrection. It transforms. It is the basis and foundation of our faith. It provides hope! It is the basis for preaching. I have long believed that if a pastor cannot preach at Easter time, he cannot preach at all. The resurrection is the single most significant event in the entire history of the world.

So I wish you a very meaningful celebration of Resurrection Sunday. May you experience a renewed sense of hope and life itself today.

The Most Significant Event

2011-04-22T12:44:00.000-07:00

In the single most significant event in all of history, the Lord Jesus Christ rose from the dead three days after He was crucified. This made the salvation of all believers totally and permanently secure. Nothing and no one can ever change that. Satan, sin, and death are defeated foes that are only temporarily present. They cannot ultimately do us any harm.

The skeptics often claim the Resurrection is a hoax, but it is, in fact, a historical fact of absolute status. It is more provable and demonstrable, even outside of the realm of faith, than a very large percentage of other historical facts. This single fact vindicates the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. It proves who He is, and it proves what He did. It proves the Bible to be true from cover to cover, from the literal creation of the universe and all it contains, to the ultimate judgment of all of all humans and the culmination of all temporal things into eternity future.

This fact of the Resurrection totally validates the sinfulness of man, the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and the need in the heart of all people for the salvation that only He can provide. It makes foolish all the arguments of ungodly men and challenges them with the haunting question of the Roman Governor, Pilate, who asked the crowd, “What then shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?” (Matthew 27:22, NKJV). Every human being must personally answer this question. There will be no exceptions.

The Arrogance of Man

2011-04-09T12:24:00.000-07:00

“…When many unite as one, we can achieve anything. Together, we’re powerful.” These are some of the words from a recently-run radio spot encouraging us to unite to stop “global warming” and as some have said, to “save the planet.” This sounds amazingly like the historical account recorded in Genesis 11.

“Now the whole earth used the same language and the same words. It came about as they journeyed east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there. They said to one another, ‘Come, let us make bricks and burn them thoroughly.’ And they used brick for stone, and they used tar for mortar. They said, ‘Come, let us build for ourselves a city, and a tower whose top will reach into heaven, and let us make for ourselves a name, otherwise we will be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth’” (Genesis 11:1-4, NASB).

This action by humans was not a noble idea of self-preservation. Rather, it was an action of direct defiance of the command of God, found in Genesis 9:7 and other places. “As for you, be fruitful and multiply. Populate the earth abundantly and multiply in it” (NASB). Rather than obey God’s command to go out and fill the earth, men decided instead to stay together in one place and make themselves “a name.”

When men attempt to defy God, the ultimate result is always judgment, and in the end, His will is done regardless of the efforts of man. When men, in their rebellion, choose to disobey God, He most certainly has the power and the right to overwhelm their disobedience.

“The LORD came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built. The LORD said, ‘Behold, they are one people, and they all have the same language. And this is what they began to do, and now nothing which they purpose to do will be impossible for them. Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, so that they will not understand one another's speech.’ So the LORD scattered them abroad from there over the face of the whole earth; and they stopped building the city. Therefore its name was called Babel, because there the LORD confused the language of the whole earth; and from there the LORD scattered them abroad over the face of the whole earth” (Genesis 9:5-9, NASB).

Evidence of the arrogance of man abounds. We could all think of many examples, and I offer just a few in no particular order.

Many people operate as if the street is their trash can. How many times have we witnessed someone roll down their window and throw out a bag full of fast food wrappers? I once witnessed a father say to his little son, “Just throw it down. You don’t have to put it in the trash. They have people to do that.” Such inconsiderate behavior always makes me think about the fact that many people believe they are too good to pick up their own trash. “Let the janitor do it.” This is nothing but arrogance.

Once when I was on our school campus after hours, there were three young teenagers, not students at our school, out on the parking lot riding their skateboards. I went out and politely pointed out the posted sign that reflected our policy of no skateboards on campus. One of them decided to be the little smart mouth he had obviously, by a lack of discipline, been trained to be. “I’ve been on this earth for fourteen years, and I know my rights. I have a right to be here, and I have a right to ride my board anywhere I want to.” I resisted the impulse to say what I was thinking. Instead I pointed out that they were on private property and were in violation of our rules for those who came on campus. Only after they threatened to bash me with their skateboards and I mentioned calling the sheriff did they reluctantly leave, shouting insults and making obscene gestures as they went.

These three young “men” demonstrated an arrogance that is all too common among many young people today. This well could be a factor of a statistic I recently heard. While the United States is near the bottom in education compared to the rest of the world, we rank number one in “self esteem” and self confidence. We are training many of our young people to know nothing but to feel very good about it and to stand up for their rights when they should be learning to stand up for what is right.

Environmental extremists have been pushing “global warming” for a variety of reasons, many of which are suspect. When someone points out that back in the 70’s, scientists were warning us about “global cooling” based on the same rationale being used today to promote global warming, they are ridiculed because, after all, that premise was wrong, and we have no right to bring it up. Never mind that it was the same groups of people who promoted the one as are now promoting the other. When someone makes a remark about extremely cold weather, assuming it to be evidence against “global warming,” the global warming extremists will even say that cold weather is caused by global warming.

As a last resort, such extremists have begun referring to “global cooling” and/or “global warming” as “climate change.” This would imply that somehow humans, or at least the elite among us, know what is the best and most appropriate temperature for the earth to be. This is arrogant enough, but then we come to the idea that humans can actually make a difference in the climate. We humans are weaklings when compared to the power of God and the power of what is so often called “nature.” Someday, some scientist with no agenda will figure out that the earth gets its heat from the sun, and the cycles of the sun have more to do with the cycles of warmer and cooler here on earth than any other factor.

Ever since 1859 Charles Darwin published his book, On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life, the idea of human evolution has been pushed as a foundational principle to all of science and necessary to a well-rounded education. Darwin did not think of the idea of evolution. He only popularized it.

Actually, the first evolutionist was Satan himself, when he was known as Lucifer. He believed he, as a created being, could “evolve” into God and take over the universe. He has been telling that lie to others ever since he first told it to himself. He told Eve in the Garden of Eden that she could be like God. Biological evolution is no less preposterous than Satan’s lie, and if the scientific community were truly unbiased and honest, evolution would be exposed as the greatest hoax ever perpetrated. Refusing to accept what God has said about the origins of the universe, all of life, and the human race is further evidence of the arrogance of man.

I could go on and on, but there I am not trying to write a book. My purpose is to simply illustrate that men continue to operate in defiance of God. Puny, weak little men shake their fists in the face of God, but it never pays off. “Why are the nations in an uproar and the peoples devising a vain thing? The kings of the earth take their stand, and the rulers take counsel together against the LORD and against His Anointed, saying, ‘Let us tear their fetters apart And cast away their cords from us!’ He who sits in the heavens laughs. The Lord scoffs at them. Then He will speak to them in His anger and terrify them in His fury…” (Psalm 2:1-5, NASB).

New Truth?

2011-03-29T12:23:00.000-07:00

Today we do not need more human wisdom, new ways of looking at truth, or new truth, “…because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men” (1 Corinthians 1:25, NASB). What is desperately needed is the preaching of the old-time Gospel, a message that has never changed. The idea that we need more “relevance” is simply wrong. There is nothing more relevant than the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Watering down and changing the Gospel message in order to be “relevant” to reach a new generation will result in no one really being reached and many false converts being made.

“For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God” (I Corinthians 1:21-24, NASB).

God is So Good

2011-03-27T13:59:00.000-07:00

By My Anonymous Friend

“God is so good, God is so good! God is so good! He's so good to me!”

No doubt many who read this will recognize the words above as from a little chorus we sometimes sing. I have been thinking about this idea and wish to share with you a few reasons why we can say, "God is so good!" There are many of course, but I want to share two from Ephesians 1:7-9.

1. We have redemption through His blood, and forgiveness of sins in accordance with the riches of God's grace.

I know you know this already but please take note of one word used here. It is the word "lavished." Other words used in English Bibles are words like showered, poured out, or abounded. We have had a huge amount of rain in the area where we are presently. Creeks and rivers are overflowing, and the ground is saturated from all the rain that has fallen. That is how God "rains" His grace on us. However, we should not conclude that this is arbitrary or that it simply gushes out from God in an emotional kind of outburst. It is rather based on wisdom and understanding. God skillfully arranged or carefully formed just how He would pour out His grace on us.

I hesitate to add this by way of explanation, but it seems a contrast to "wisdom and understanding" is what sometimes is called worship today. I attended a service this morning at a church that is becoming increasingly well-known worldwide as a promoter of the supernatural. The speaker told story after story of alleged miraculous healings and resurrection experiences. The audience jumped up in delight and applauded with great enthusiasm. But as I listened carefully to what was said, I felt strongly that not all of the "stories" were factual. This did not seem to concern the audience, or at least a majority of those present. I strongly hesitate to write about brothers and sisters in this way, but I just did not think "wisdom and understanding" were much in evidence. God does not gush out grace in an emotional frenzy. He gushes it all right, but it is still measured and marvelously arranged.

2. He made known to us the mystery of His will.

I heard a sermon this past week that motivated me to think further on this concept. God self-discloses. Humans who are deceptive or dishonest hide things. Politicians who do not want citizens to know the full extent of laws they enact, do them at times when media coverage is likely to be less. They try to pass such laws quickly, before the details are known. God is so opposite. He does not hide. He reveals the mystery of His will so it no longer is a mystery and He does so at His good pleasure. God delights to make known His plans. God is transparent and is delighted to be so.

This is where my mind has been for the past few days, and I share these thoughts with you in the hopes that you will conclude more than ever, that "God is so good, God is so good, God is so good, He's so good to me!"

Valentines Day

2011-02-13T14:12:00.000-08:00

By My Anonymous Friend

Tomorrow is Valentine's Day. I am always intrigued how such special occasions and traditions get started. Was it Hallmark trying to find still another special day to sell cards? Or was it florists and candy makers marketing their particular products? How unromantic you say!!

Most people will say that Valentine's Day originated with St. Valentine. But which one? There are two for sure and likely a third early church leader named Valentine. The first two lived and died in the 3rd Century and the third St. Valentine is believed to have been martyred in Africa. None of them had any relationship with things romantic whatsoever. According to legend, one of the Valentines violated the edict of the Roman emperor that soldiers remain single and married many of them secretly. That may seem at least somewhat romantic. Another legend that has evolved is that Valentine, on the night before his execution, wrote a letter to the daughter of his jailer and signed it "From your Valentine!" There is no factual basis for this legend however, but it sounds romantic enough. In 1382 Chaucer wrote a poem which begins, "For this was sent on Valentine's Day." It is the first linking of things romantic with Valentine. Other parts of the poem however suggest that it was written several months after February 14. We will never know and it does not really matter. In the early 1800's printers began creating Valentine cards, and so the tradition has evolved to this day. It is estimated that in the US close to 200,000,000 Valentine cards are sent each year. In 2010 about 15 million e-cards were sent via the internet. In some cultures the traditions of Valentine’s Day run strongly against the political or religious ideologies of its leaders. For example in Iran today, any printing and distribution of any items promoting the holiday are banned. Those who violate this law will be legally dealt with!

So much for the unexciting historical background of Valentines's Day. The concept of expressing love to those dearest to us is a very good one obviously and it is good to have one day set aside when particular attention is devoted to it. Hopefully, it is not the only day we say "I love you" to those nearest and dearest to us.

Love is defined by some as a chemical addiction whose greatest goal is reproduction. Indeed a myriad of chemical reactions take place in the brain when the subject of love comes up. I suppose this is why we say we have or do not have "chemistry" with another person. It is an amazing and miraculous part of how the Creator designed humanity. Were it not so academic and unromantic I would go into more detail, but I have already set too much of an academic tone in this email.

Love is a basic component in all interpersonal relationships. It is one of the most common themes in the arts. Philosophically and theologically speaking, love is the highest human virtue. It can express a fondness for certain things as in "I love sports!." It can also refer to passion and romantic and sexual love. Theologically love is the basis and foundation for all being. It is the highest description we can ascribe to God. Such diversity of meaning and application makes love hard to explain with distinction. We do know that love is essential to life. George Sand said it this way: “There is only happiness in life, to love and be loved.”

I agree. I wish to pay tribute today to the person I love most on this earth-- my wife. (-----) and I first met on April 16, 1967. I remember the location and time as if it were yesterday (well almost like yesterday). Our first date took place on April 30. She says it was my persistence that won her over. Persist I did. On that April Sunday when we first met, I told a friend that I had just met my wife. He reads these emails and can verify that statement I made then. We were engaged to be married on Dec. 31, 1967 but since we were students at Moody Bible Institute and the school was not fond of students marrying, we waited, and waited, and waited for what seemed like an eternity. On August 16, 1969, our wedding day finally came. Now, almost 42 years later, the anxieties of waiting are more of a distant memory. We have lived in various places, traveled to many destinations, seen four wonderful children come into our family, experienced many joys and sorrows too, but always we have journeyed together. We do so now as we live as "empty nesters." I sometimes think that (-----) has been part of roughly 67% of every experience I have had in my entire life from birth to today.

This past week I attended a college basketball game which honored its seniors. The parents or friends of these athletes joined them on the court and were showered with flowers and plaques and other gifts. As so often happens nowadays, the parents of athletes have been divorced and remarried. Often the mother is introduced with a name different from that of the father. Sometimes only one parent is present because the other has begun a new life elsewhere. It is awkward sometimes and I always wince in my spirit at such occasions. I am very happy to say that my children's parents BOTH have the same name and are together after all these years. Thanks (-----) for being my Valentine for all these years!

I hope you have a very special Valentine too and I hope he or she knows what a special Valentine you are to each other. If you do not have such a person today and some who read this do not, I hope you will find one soon! Happy Valentine's Day to all of you.

Nobody Died

2011-02-02T20:03:00.000-08:00

I have been coaching high school girls’ basketball for over twenty years. During that time, I have had successes and failures, and my teams have both won and lost their share of games. While I always coach in such a way as to try to win each game, I learned a long time ago that, while winning is more fun than losing, winning is not everything, and winning is not the only thing. There are many important life lessons that can be learned through athletics, and the lessons learned through losing can be just as important, if not more important, than those learned through winning.

My team is currently coming to the end of a successful season with a record of 12-2 overall and 7-2 in league play. We are solidly in second place in our league and poised for the playoffs. In our 12 wins, we have had several close games and a few one-sided wins by scores such as 58-18, 60-26, and 47-11. I am always careful when a score gets out of hand not to humiliate another team with pressure defense, etc.

We hit a big bump in the road last night when we had an opportunity to move into a tie for first place if we could pull off an upset against the team currently in first. We had done very well against them the first time, playing them even for three quarters before falling in the fourth quarter and losing our first and only game of the season until last night. We went into the game at less than full-strength with one of our key players out with a knee injury. However, there are no excuses in sports. We had one of those games where nothing seemed to work, our free-throw shooting was uncharacteristically bad, we couldn’t seem to buy a basket even when we were wide open for a lay-up, and we finished with the lowest point total any of my teams have had in several years. We ended up losing by a score of 65-18 to a team that is clearly better than us, but probably not that much better than us.

So what does a coach say to his team after that kind of a loss? I said what the title of this article says. “We lost a basketball game, but nobody died.” I have never lost any sleep over a game. Does that mean I don’t care about winning? Of course not. The object of the game is to attempt to score more points than the opponent in a manner consistent with the rules. However, in the grand scheme of things, certain events, such as basketball games, fade into insignificance.

I lost my first wife to a massive stroke in the summer of 2001. Since that time, the Lord has helped me put my coaching experience even more into proper perspective. Losing a basketball game is of little consequence when compared to losing a spouse. If someone can’t deal with losing a game, how on earth will they deal with losing a friend, a sibling, a parent, a spouse, or a child? We can learn a little bit about dealing with the big losses by dealing with the small losses in a proper manner.

My first season of coaching after my wife went to be with the Lord was a unique experience. I had an All-CIF guard and a supporting cast made up of very inexperienced players. We ended up with a record of 2-18. We really cherished those two wins. Many might consider that season a total failure, but I remember it very fondly as one of the best ever, not because of what happened on the court, but because of the godly young women on my team who rallied around me daily by practicing hard, by doing the best they could do in the games, and by encouraging me with their words as they understood I had suffered a great loss.

When a little disappointment comes into our lives, we can certainly put it into perspective by recognizing that other things are much more significant and by reminding ourselves that “nobody died.”

Jesus is the Way

2011-02-01T14:06:00.000-08:00

Jesus said, “…unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins” (John 8:24, NASB). There is no wiggle room in that statement. Jesus did not give people freedom to sort of believe in Him but to also make their own way. He is the way. He is the only way. It doesn’t make any difference what anyone thinks or feels about it. If a person believes he can get to God in any other way besides through the Lord Jesus Christ, he is very badly fooled. This truth is further underscored in the Book of Acts. "And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:12, NASB).

The Mystery of Godliness

2010-12-19T17:36:00.000-08:00

"And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory" (1 Timothy 3:16).

Christmas Greetings from My Anonymous Friend

2010-12-19T15:27:00.000-08:00

For me Christmas memories involve many things. Cold, snowy weather, church and school programs, special food, candy and cookies, family gatherings, gifts, and of course, music. I was raised in a German home so we learned the carols in both English and German. I find myself still able to recall the words to songs we sang 50 years ago. I also remember that George F. Handel's Messiah was a big part of Christmas for us. We sometimes found a church or community group somewhere that was performing it and we would attend.

I also remember that every Christmas morning the Queen of England gave a Christmas greeting to her subjects and later some radio station would always play Messiah by Handel in its entirety. In my college days I had the privilege of being part of a huge oratorio chorus and symphony orchestra that performed Messiah in Chicago. I have this magnificent music in long playing records, CD, and now in my I-pod. Today it is difficult to find any group performing this oratorio and I am grieved that the Hallelujah chorus has been cheapened as it is used sometimes in commercials and other flippant settings. But not always!! I hope your computer has the ability to download this short clip. It is incredibly inspiring and takes place "spontaneously" in a Canadian mall. I have been sent this same video by several people this season and in case you have not seen it yet, here it is.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXh7JR9oKVE If you copy and paste it into your search engine it should open up. It worked as I tried it just now.

I wish to write a little about Handel today. I have long marvelled at his incredible ability to write an entire oratorio that is almost verbatim from King James Bible selections. Messiah has three parts and Handel brilliantly captures the messages of Christ's advent and birth, then His passion and resurrection, and finally prophetic words about His second coming. It is majestic. Words cannot describe the inspiration millions of people have received over the years as they have listened to the words and the beautiful music.

Handel (1685-1759) was born in Germany and lived in several countries before becoming a British citizen in 1726. I have seen his burial place in Westminster Abbey in London. Handel's father did not want his son to pursue a career in music and preferred he should study law instead. However, the young Handel somehow got a clavichord into the attic of his family home where he would sneak away at night to practice. Over the years Handel wrote many operas, cantatas, oratorios, and concertos. Messiah was written in only twenty-four days and it is said that Handel hardly slept during this time. He was a stickler for excellence and often tore up scores he wrote until they were exactly as he wanted them to be. In 1742 his oratorio was first performed in Dublin.

One of the traditions of Messiah is that when the strains of the Hallelujah chorus begin, the audience rises to its feet. This tradition began with King George II. When a monarch stands, everyone in the audience does too! Was King George II recognizing a greater Monarch than himself? Or was he just moved by the music? We do not know for sure but I would like to believe the former to be the case.

I find it fascinating what other great composers and musicians thought of Handel. Mozart, who was just a young lad when Handel died, said, "Handel understands effect better than any of us. When he chooses he strikes like a thunder bolt!" That describes how I feel when I hear that first "Hallelujah!" Beethoven who was born eleven years after Handel died, wrote, "Handel was the master of us all, the greatest composer who ever lived. I would uncover my head and kneel before his tomb!" As they say, it takes one to know one!! This is quite a compliment.

There is a story about Handel I like very much because it expresses my own inability to describe the majesty and inspiration of Messiah. One day his assistant shouted in futility to get Handel's attention. He finally entered the room where Handel was and asked, "What is the matter?" Handel looked up with tears in his eyes. In his hand he held the score of the Hallelujah chorus. Handel said, "I thought I saw the face of God!" ...

... Today, there are storms in Europe affecting air travel in Paris and London. Here in California there is heavy rain with snow in the elevations. There are also other storms in our world. Great suffering and anguish, incredible uncertainties and anxiety about economies and terror wars. In all of this we pause to remember the Messiah! He came as God in the flesh as a little baby. This is what we are celebrating! He had a timetable to be born in Bethlehem and He has a timetable and a plan for each of us individually and for this world!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Simeon

2010-12-12T18:01:00.000-08:00

By My Anonymous Friend

This week I read on a Facebook posting where someone has determined that the return of Christ will take place in May of 2011. I am not sure what the basis is for that date exactly but I believe such statements are nonsense and directly contradict what Scripture teaches. No man knows the day or the hour. An event took place when Jesus was born that bears some similarity however to date setting. It is part of the Christmas story but probably not well known. Let me expand on it for you today.

Simeon was a righteous and devout man in Jerusalem who longed for the "consolation of Israel". This is a reference to the comfort and hope Messiah would bring to His people at His coming. It is also called the redemption of Jerusalem. Simeon had been told somehow by the Holy Spirit that he would live to see this day. When he beheld the infant Jesus he somehow knew that He was the fulfilment of this long awaited promise.

One theory is that Simeon was one of the translators of the Septuagint. This was a translation of the Hebrew Scriptures into Greek completed sometime in the third century BC at Alexandria, Egypt. When Simeon came to Isaiah 7:14 which records that a virgin will conceive a bear a Son, he was filled with questions and doubts. This did not seem possible. An angel revealed to Simeon that he should translate this verse as written and that it would miraculously come to pass. Furthermore, he would live to see it happen! One problem with this theory is that Simeon would have been several hundred years old when Christ was born. I remind you that it is a theory.

What is sure is that Simeon had a profound faith and confidence that he would live to see the birth of the Messiah. How did he know that Jesus was the fulfilment of the Isaiah prophecy? I do not know the answer except that Scripture says the Holy Spirit revealed this to him. I simply leave it there. It is fascinating.

Simeon was overwhelmed with delight and thanksgiving when he realized that the Messiah had finally come. He responded with praises that are known as the Nunc Diimittis which are still an important part of worship in liturgical traditions. These words of Simeon are recorded in Luke 2:29-32.

Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all people, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.

Simeon then continued by speaking a blessing and a prophecy to Mary.

This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.

Please consider several fascinating aspects to this story.

1. How did Simeon know that this baby was finally the One he and others were longing to see?

2. Note that Simeon says that the salvation the Messiah would provide would be for ALL people.

3. Note that Simeon predicted the sufferings of Jesus which both He and His mother Mary would experience.

4. Simeon predicted the division and controversy Jesus would bring. I find it fascinating that to this day, it is relatively acceptable to speak of God in generic terms. However to refer to Jesus specifically brings out howls of protests and controversy. He is indeed a controversial and divisive figure.

Interesting points to ponder at this time of year.

Jesus came to offer....... what??

2010-12-05T06:13:00.000-08:00

By My Anonymous Friend

We are into the Advent season and I have been trying to look at the birth of Jesus in new and meaningful ways. I ask myself and here I ask you as well,

Jesus came to offer....... what??

I know most who read this know the answer but let's think together for a moment and perhaps "the reason for the Season" as the saying goes, will take on new meaning for you.

What might Jesus have come to offer?

1. He could have come as a philosopher. By doing so He could have introduced new ideas and concepts for intellectuals and others who cared, to ponder. Perhaps He might have been an innovative philosopher to introduce philosophies that no one ever had thought of before.

2. He could have come as a political reformer. Surely the people of His day longed for political renewal and an overthrow of a repressive Roman regime. Some actually believed (or perhaps just hoped) that indeed Jesus would usher in a new political system. This hope reached its peak on what we now refer to as Palm Sunday. How dreadfully disappointed these folks must have been later that week when Jesus was crucified and it became clear the Roman yoke was not about to be overthrown.

3. He could have come as a scientist or researcher. Perhaps He could have found a cure for the ravaging diseases of His day. In our day cancer would come to mind. How noble it would have been for Jesus to come to usher in an end to disease and suffering.

4. He could have come as a consultant or life coach. He could have written books and lectured on how to achieve personal goals, how to be a better leader, and how to live a happy and profitable life.

5. There are other possibilities: therapist, social worker, engineer,--- add your own list.

All the above would have had degrees of merit. The world would have been a better place if Jesus had come in any of the scenarios I have described. And, in a sense He was some of the things I listed.

However, had Jesus come only in the capacities mentioned above, it would have been like applying band-aids to the human condition. Humanity needed more than new philosophies or political reform. What was needed was more radical and profound.

Now recall the words of what we call the Benedictus in Luke 1 and the words of the angels to the shepherds in Luke 2. It is clear from these and other references that Jesus had a unique mission that transcended any suggestions I have made above. He came to be a Savior! Why? Because humanity needed saving. Pretty simple. Yet very, very profound.

Some years ago I was called a savior! It is true. I was in an airport waiting to fly to my home. The flight was greatly overbooked and the airline personnel were desperately seeking passengers who might be willing to give up their seats. After I was assured that a flight an hour later had room for me and that I would be rewarded financially for giving my seat up, I volunteered. The person at the check in counter was overwhelmed with gratitude. He said to me with passion,

"Thank you! Thank you! May I call you Jesus?"

I assumed he used that term because I had been a "savior" of sorts so I replied, "No, not really! I know Jesus personally and I do not think I qualify to bear His name!"

That led to an interesting discussion as you can imagine.

My point is that when we use the word "Savior" with regard to Jesus, the meaning is enormous. I have the ability to "save" an airline a measure of embarrassment for selling more seats than the plane has on board, but in no way whatsoever can I or anyone else be the kind of Savior Jesus was and is.

He saves people from their sins! Only a perfect sacrifice (lamb) can make this kind of saving efficacious. Jesus fit the bill perfectly.

So, my hope is that somehow the well worn and familiar words and expressions of Christmas will take on new meanings to you this year.

"Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord!" (Luke 2:10-11).

A Practical Look at Theology

2010-11-28T20:23:00.000-08:00

Recently I had a brief conversation with one of our associate pastors relative to theology. Although the conversation was very short, he said some very profound things, and I scrounged a piece of paper right after we were finished in order to write down what he had said.

He said there are three principles to remember when looking at theology, as follows:

1. "There is a God, and I’m not Him.” The first time I ever heard it put like that was while watching the movie, “Rudy.” The main character, Rudy Reuttiger, was desperately trying to get into the University of Notre Dame. He asked a priest if he had done enough, prayed enough, etc. in order to be admitted. The priest responded, “Son, in 35 years of religious study, I have only come up with two hard incontrovertible facts: there is a God, and I'm not Him.” While there is much Catholic doctrine which is based on the traditions of men instead of the Word of God, I believe the last half of the priest’s statement is very biblically accurate. “There is a God, and I’m not Him.” My theology needs to be based on what God has said in His Word, not on the opinions of any man, including my own.

2. "Never take the opposite side of what Jesus taught.” Jesus was very clear relative to His teachings, and it is always dangerous to take a position on the other side of any issue. He clearly knew and taught that Moses wrote the Pentateuch. That makes it quite foolish to adopt the documentary hypothesis. He taught that Noah’s flood was a fact and was God’s judgment on the world at the time. All the statements that the flood is a myth are contradictions of statements made by the Son of God. That is dangerous ground. He taught that salvation is by grace through faith, which negates all the human opinion to the contrary. There are many such examples. Bottom line – the safe ground is to be in agreement with what Jesus said.

3. "When you come to a problem you can’t answer, just make God bigger.” There are many things we can’t explain. We accept God’s word by faith, and there are times we simply don’t understand what God has done or how He has done it. Do we need to know? No, we really don’t. We just need to realize that our God is bigger than any difficulty, and no matter how big we make Him, we can never make Him too big. As a matter of fact, we can never even make Him as big as He is. He is infinite. We are finite. Our God is bigger than any question a skeptic can ask, and He is bigger than any situation.

These three principles are good guidelines to follow when considering the truth of Scripture.

Evolution: “Just a Theory” or Not a Theory at All?

2010-10-11T13:12:00.000-07:00

There was a time when Christians would say that “evolution is just a theory.” Then the evolutionists decided to use a different definition for the word “theory.” The definition of the word used by those who said “evolution is just a theory” is found at dictionary.com, as follows: “A proposed explanation whose status is still conjectural, in contrast to well-established propositions that are regarded as reporting matters of actual fact.” Now the evolutionists have decided instead to use the following definition: "A theory in technical use is a more or less verified or established explanation accounting for known facts or phenomena.”

Changing the commonly accepted definition has enabled evolutionists to stick their fingers in the eyes of creationists and essentially say, “Thanks for recognizing the scientific nature of evolution.” This is, of course, only playing with words, because no one who ever said “evolution is just a theory” actually meant to recognize evolution as even remotely scientifically valid.

I have often in the past told my classes that we need to stop making any statements about evolution being only a theory and put it in its proper place. Based on what is now being used as the definition of a theory, evolution is, at best, not a theory but only a hypothesis, and not a very good one at that. According to the same dictionary webpage, a hypothesis is “a conjecture put forth as a possible explanation of phenomena or relations, which serves as a basis of argument or experimentation to reach the truth.” Evolution is a “conjecture.” It is certainly nothing more than that.

I can live with that definition, but I even wonder if maybe calling evolution a “hypothesis” is giving it far too much credit. Maybe it would be more appropriate to just call it “a stupid idea.”

Someone has written a brief article on this exact topic, and I am glad they did. It is on the “Answers in Genesis website and is entitled “Evolution: Not Even a Theory.” If you would like to read it, please click here.

Tale of the Blinded Man (Repost)

2010-10-04T19:24:00.000-07:00

There once was a man who began to be very frustrated by his failing eyesight. At one time, he had perfect vision, but in recent months, things had started to appear more and more blurred. Some of his friends tried very hard to convince him to see an eye doctor, but he listened instead to another group of so-called "friends" who convinced him that eye doctors didn't know anything, and that the real answer was to be found inside of each individual.

He tried a number of medications, salves, and ointments recommended by his friends, but none of these things did any good at all. His eyes grew steadily worse until he was all but blind. As his eyes grew worse, so did his frustration level. He finally became desperate, but still he refused to see an eye doctor. By now he had become even more convinced that no eye doctor could possibly know the answer.

In his desperation, he concocted a mixture of several salves and ointments and applied it to his eyes. The sting was intense, but he hoped the pain would be worth it when his vision was restored. To his great disappointment and dismay, his eyes not only did not improve, they got much worse, and he finally just closed his eyes and assumed he was totally blind.

His blindness at first resulted in rage. He was especially angry with all of the eye doctors who had not helped him, even though he had never really sought their help. However, his rage eventually went away and was replaced by a relative degree of comfort in his situation. All the while, he refused to open his eyes, because he "knew" he would not be able to see, even if he did open them.

He soon developed a very interesting view of life. He concluded that being unable to see was a great way to live. He further concluded that since he could not see, he was now an expert on vision. Since he was unable to see, obviously no one else could see, either. As a matter of fact, since he had not seen an eye doctor recently, he was no longer sure if such a thing as an eye doctor even existed. Since he didn't know, obviously no one else could know, either.

Even though he once could see, he seemed to forget that fact, and he dismissed all efforts to convince him that vision was a reality, because he based all of his views on his own recent experiences. None of the people trying to convince him that they could see knew what they were talking about. How could they possibly know anything that he didn't know? Because of his unwise choices and flawed thinking, he closed his eyes, steadfastly refused to open them, and spent the rest of his life as a blind man, believing that everyone else was blind, as well.

Follow-up to "Character Matters"

2010-09-20T17:56:00.000-07:00

by My Anonymous Friend

Last week I received more emails in response to last Sunday's writing on character issues than any I have received previously. I find this very interesting. … One person shared an interesting story confirming my comments about people in ministry expecting or demanding preferential treatment. This person told how a musical group insisted on traveling first class by aircraft and insisted on certain kinds of food to be delivered to their luxury hotel rooms. So sad to read these kinds of stories.

All week I have been thinking about why this email appeared to generate more interest than others I have written. My conclusion is that you long for authenticity and genuine humility as much as I do. Since my writings each week are read by people in various continents of the world, I very rarely ever write about political issues that may be of interest to me but not to those in other parts of the world. However, the matter of character most certainly applies in this realm of our society as well. I find that I tend to let the words of politicians go "in and out of my ear." I realize I am "painting with a broad brush" and that there are of course sincere, committed, public servants who stand on principle and core values. I know such people as well and I am grateful for them. But, others campaign and say one thing. Once elected, they often demonstrate something entirely different. I pay little attention to what they say. I can confess to you that when I hear some politicians on TV, I either switch stations or hit the "mute" button. I try to pay a lot of attention to what they do however. That shows me what they really believe regardless of what they might say. I have heard people say over the years that they would rather see a sermon lived than to hear one. I think this is the same principle but in the church context not in the political arena.

All this supports perfectly the concept that Jesus expressed when He said that people would know we are Christians by our love! Once a man said to me, "I am not religious, but if I ever decided to be, I would join......! (certain cult). They at least take care of people." I was saddened to hear him mention a cultic group. Why did he not say that about the church or group with which I identify? Maybe he saw us fighting and squabbling too much and about peripherals no less. I wonder?

I have long liked the thoughts recorded in 1 Corinthians 8:1. Paul writes that knowledge makes arrogant but love builds up. I am ashamed when I think of welcoming cultists into my home at times and then trying to argue them into my way of seeing things. I doubt whether they saw much of a Christ-like spirit in me. I also doubt seriously that they were drawn to explore the truths of Christianity because of my persuasive arguments. Once after a cultist expounded to me all the things that the Bible teaches in its original languages, I handed my Greek New Testament to him and asked him to show me from that text what he was talking about. Of course he did not know the Greek alphabet much less any of its vocabulary. All I probably did was embarrass him in front of people he was mentoring in his beliefs. I felt like a proud peacock with my "superior" knowledge, but in truth I was a stupid Pharisee for doing what I did. I never do that anymore but instead try to have some literature of my own to give them in exchange for what they wish to give me. Rarely do they accept it but that is their choice. I receive what they have to give me and thank them for making the effort. I then hope for an opportunity to also tell them just a bit more about who Jesus really is, for example.

So, I am glad that many of us think the same way here. Let us pray that we will live our lives in such a way that people may be drawn to God and seek to glorify Him.

Character Matters

2010-09-11T23:29:00.000-07:00

by My Anonymous Friend

A few days ago I met with a pastor friend for whose church I have done some work this year. He comes from a very different tradition. In a number of ways his political views are much more liberal than mine. Theologically we are fairly close although our church tradition, polity, and so on, are very different. It has been a fascinating journey for me to develop a friendship with this person. Two days ago my wife and I were invited to join my friend and his wife for a concert. It was a wonderful evening and a good step in the formation of a new friendship for us as couples.

This pastor has endured some unfair treatment from a segment of his church parish. They have slandered him and said very troubling things about him. His reactions have reminded me of what Scripture says about Jesus....."when He was reviled, He reviled not again!" My friend has been very gracious and has been careful not to speak ill of his detractors. When we drove into the church parking lot for the concert, I happened to notice that his car was parked in the very last parking place the farthest away from the church. They were expecting a large crowd and he was thinking of others. This in itself is not a particularly important matter but it is an indication of what sort of man he is. I was touched by this simple expression of charity and concern for others. I have seen the opposite as well where clergy have insisted they have a special parking spot reserved for them as near to the doors of the church as possible.

So why do I mention all this?

As I get older I believe more and more that character is what is most important in a person. I have seen many things over the years and find myself now less and less impressed with persons who are eloquent, flamboyant leaders, prolific authors, in demand speakers at conferences and seminars, and so on. I believe our society honors the wrong things at times. We measure the greatness or value of persons by the size of their parish if they are members of the clergy, by the number of employees, or the annual earnings if they are in business, or by the size of their homes or by the number and type of cars they own. I am less and less interested in these sorts of things. I have found that sometimes these sorts of people are narcissistic, self centered, ungrateful, demanding, and difficult to deal with. I recall a visiting musician/speaker, well known in our area, who was determined to tell me, the pastor of the church where he had been invited to preach, how the service would be conducted. I also recall a well known conference speaker refusing to ride in a certain car to the airport because he really thought he should have a limousine at his service. I was shocked when I observed this personally.

I want to be with people who truly are committed to serving others. I want to be with people who have learned to yield their rights instead of demanding that their rights be granted to them. I sometimes wonder just how God will deal with rewards in heaven. I am guessing some of us might be surprised. Those who were greatly revered and honored here on earth may possibly not be so regarded in heaven. Those who served without notoriety and fame here on earth may perhaps be greatly honored in heaven. I really do not know how all this will work, but I do know that God values faithfulness. In the parable of the talents, the "2-talent" man and the "5-talent" man both received precisely the same kind of affirmation and commendation from the master. Only the man who did nothing with his "talent" received a rebuke. So that is a clue to me.

What do you think? I want to live out my years as a faithful person. I want to be gracious and generous in dealing with people. I hope they see a little of Jesus in me when they observe me. I wish that for you too.

Labor Day

2010-09-05T17:55:00.000-07:00

by My Anonymous Friend

In North America and in several other countries around the world, the first Monday of September is set aside as a holiday to recognize the contributions made to society by labor. Its origins were in the labor movement near the end of the 19th century, which advocated 8 hours for work, 8 hours for sleep, and 8 hours for recreation. It was initially celebrated with parades and speeches to remind citizens that workers represent the backbone of society. For many today this long weekend marks the end of summer, the beginning of school, and the beginning of collegiate athletic activities for the school year.

There is a labor story of sorts in the Gospels which I find quite intriguing. I wish to share it with you today. Jesus told the story in Matthew 20 This is the story:

A number of laborers were hired to work in a vineyard. These workers were hired at different times of the day. The first group commenced their work "early in the morning"..... perhaps 6 or 7 AM. They agreed to the terms of payment and went to work. At 9 AM a second group was hired. Around noon and again at 3 PM new groups of laborers were deployed to work in the vineyard. Finally at around 5 PM the last group of workers was hired and sent to work. This group only worked for an hour when the foreman called all the workers together and began to pay them their wages. What a surprise awaited the early morning group!! To their chagrin they noticed that the 5 PM workers were paid exactly the same wage for the one hour they had worked as the early morning group was paid for the 12 hours or so that they worked. This seemed like a gross unfairness... the very kind of injustice that the Labor Day holiday sought to address in more modern times! After all, the first group worked through the heat of the day and for many more hours than the last group. It just did not seem fair and the first group let their unhappiness be known. After all, it is hard to accept that someone could get for almost nothing, what they worked so hard for, the entire day long.

The owner of the vineyard presented his arguments:

1. A deal is a deal. Group #1 agreed to work for a certain wage. So why are they complaining?

2. A land owner can make whatever deals he wishes. It is his prereogative.

Here are some lessons I see in this parable.

The grace of God is generous and even reckless. God's generosity knows no bounds and does not respect people.

Those who believe that performance is the basis for God's system will not appreciate the grace of God. This is a very subtle but very basic principle.

Surely the 5 PM workers did not utter a complaint. I suppose they hurried to their local bank to cash their checks. I am sure they did not enter into long discussions with the early morning group. They did not ask what others were paid. When we receive mercy we do not care who else gets it, too. If we are bothered by the 5 PM salaries, then we are likely a person who is depending on something other than God's mercy to make us acceptable to God.

I meet people sometimes who actually dislike God's grace although they would rarely say so. They do not like when sinners are extended grace. They may say something like, "I have served God all my life, I have been part of a church for years and held every office in it. I deserve more than someone who comes off the street, has perhaps lived a wicked life and now is regarded by God with the same degree of favor as I am!" But this is how "unfair" the grace of God is! We do not like this much. It seems unfair. It is,..... if we base our acceptance by God on performance. But if we do not, then we clap our hands with delight and fall on our knees with gratitude.

What group of workers are you in?

Just in Case

2010-08-22T15:12:00.000-07:00

by My Anonymous Friend

Ever had a really frightening email or phone call? I assume all of us have at some point. I got one such email this past week. A friend sent me a note to say that his doctor had used the dreaded word “Cancer” as he diagnosed some concerns my friend went to see him about. Suddenly everything changes!

We both serve together on a board. My friend suggested we go to the bank to add one more name to be authorized to sign checks for our organization, “just in case!” As we talked about some plans we had to attend a football game together later this fall, my friend said, “Let's see first what happens, just in case!” Several more times during our board meeting time he said, “Let's see what happens, just in case!” My friend went on to tell us that he was rethinking the lease on a new car because it might not be needed in the future, – “just in case!!”

We tend to live our lives as though we will live forever even though we know full well that we will not. We simply assume we will do this or that tomorrow, next week, or next month. My friend's announcement this past week reminded me once again how fragile and temporal life is.

Scripture addresses this topic:

Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit.” Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.” But as it is, you boast in your arrogance; all such boasting is evil (James 4:13-16).

Speaking or thinking as though we are in charge of our lives is called arrogance and evil by this Scripture. I was struck by the harshness of this idea. But when we really think about it, assuming we are in charge of our lives really is arrogance. We are taking upon ourselves a prerogative that is not ours to take. Although we may not actually say so, we are really telling ourselves we are in charge of our lives when we say, “I will do this or that tomorrow!” We shut God out and assume He has nothing to say about our lives.

We are not in charge and the experience of my friend this past week was a painful reminder to me of this truth. I often say, “"God willing” when I make plans with others but today that expression takes on a fuller meaning.

Have a great week and be careful how you make plans – “just in case!”

Fearfully and Wonderfully Made

2010-08-15T16:09:00.000-07:00

by My Anonymous Friend

...we visited an exhibit entitled "Body Worlds and the Brain." This is a traveling exhibit making its way around North America. If it comes near where you live make the effort to go see it along with the more than 26 million people around the world who have already seen it. It is spell-binding and features preserved human bodies revealing inner anatomical structures in a process called plastination. This technique was developed at the University of Heidelberg in the 1970's. The exhibition shows nervous, muscle and bone systems and how they function together to make our bodies perform. Over 200 specimens of real human organs or organ systems are displayed along with 25 full body plastinations. It also demonstrates the development of the human body prior to birth from the first few weeks onward. I enjoyed the display of prosthetic devices (heart valves, hip joints, and the like) thinking I may not be so far away from needing some of this technology in the days to come. Hopefully not for a long time!

All the while we were there I kept wondering when someone or some display would raise the question of how all this came to be. Just how is it that our bodies are so incredibly wonderfully designed? The underlying assumption all through was that all this evolved over time. I could not help but wonder how anyone could really believe this to be true. In my mind all I could think of was the Scripture that says we are fearfully and wonderfully made.

I am not a medical person and medical things do not usually excite me. For my wife and daughter who are both nurses the exhibit was particularly fascinating from that standpoint. However, I too was spell-bound by all this. Having seen what goes on inside my body I now feel almost afraid to move lest anything be pushed out of place or somehow be damaged. Of course that is foolish, but it points out how intricately our bodies are designed and how fantastically they function.

To me it all serves as a reminder that we have an omnipotent and sovereign God, the Ultimate Designer and Creator! Praise be to Him!

God is Sovereign

2010-07-26T12:03:00.000-07:00

Following are some words of wisdom from A.W. Pink, 1886-1952.

How different is the God of the Bible from the God of modern Christendom! The conception of Deity which prevails most widely today, even among those who profess to give heed to the Scriptures, is a miserable caricature, a blasphemous travesty of the Truth. The God of the twentieth century is a helpless, effeminate being who commands the respect of no really thoughtful man. The God of the popular mind is the creation of a maudlin sentimentality. The God of many a present-day pulpit is an object of pity rather than of awe-inspiring reverence.

To say that God the Father has purposed the salvation of all mankind, that God the Son died with the express intention of saving the whole human race, and that God the Holy Spirit is now seeking to win the world to Christ; when, as a matter of common observation, it is apparent that the great majority of our fellow-men are dying in sin, and passing into a hopeless eternity: is to say that God the Father is disappointed, that God the Son is dissatisfied, and that God the Holy Spirit is defeated. We have stated the issue baldly, but there is no escaping the conclusion. To argue that God is "trying His best" to save all mankind, but that the majority of men will not let Him save them, is to insist that the will of the Creator is impotent, and that the will of the creature is omnipotent. To throw the blame, as many do, upon the Devil, does not remove the difficulty, for if Satan is defeating the purpose of God, then, Satan is Almighty and God is no longer the Supreme Being. (A.W. Pink, The Sovereignty of God, Revised Edition, 1961, page 21.)

“But our God is in the heavens; He does whatever He pleases” (Psalm 115:3, NASB).

God is sovereign! What more needs to be said? I am very thankful for my pastor who diligently proclaims the all-powerful God of the Bible!

The Bible Speaks With Accuracy

2010-07-25T08:31:00.000-07:00

by My Anonymous Friend

I discovered something interesting recently. The cycle of water that we observe in nature was actually known by the Romans as early as 30 BC. An engineer named Marcus Vitruvius understood what we know as the hydrologic water cycle. Ecclesiastes, Amos and Job all speak of it many hundreds of years earlier. Matthew Maury (1806-1873) is known as the father of oceanography. He read about the "paths of the sea" in Psalm 8 and used this concept to develop his ideas about ocean currents. What we take for granted today... that all water continually moves in a never ending cycle from the seas to the skies to the land and back to the sea to repeat the cycle, and that water moves in currents of the ocean, was discovered by men but mentioned in the Bible from the very beginning.

This may not be a profound revelation to you but to me it is once again a reminder that the Bible speaks with accuracy and truth in all it declares. Sometimes it is generations ahead of itself and we are slow to understand what it reveals. When we do not understand it is not the Bible with the problem. It is us! We do not know everything. We did not always know about the water cycle. We were unaware of ocean currents. We did not know the earth was round at one time either. The Bible declared all these concepts all along. What have we not yet discovered that the Bible has been stating all along? I wonder!

All Who Come are Secure

2010-07-20T14:57:00.000-07:00

Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst. But I said to you that you have seen Me, and yet do not believe. All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. This is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day" (John 6:35-40, NASB).

This passage and others like it are frequently ignored in Bible studies, because such passages bring up many questions that we often find easier to ignore than to address. The truths found here tend to be ignored, marginalized, or explained away today. It is important to recognize the balance found in the Scriptures. On the one hand, we know that the Bible teaches us about human responsibility. On the other hand, we see the sovereignty of God. Today things are out of balance. There is far too much emphasis on the human side and far too little emphasis on the Divine side.

Consider the following:

Jesus claimed to be “the bread of life.” This tells us that He is the very source of and sustainer of life. Without physical food, we die physically. Without Him, there can be no life. Salvation is totally of the Lord, and it is by His grace.

Those who come to Christ and believe in Him will “never hunger” and “never thirst.” The use of the word “never” teaches us that salvation is eternal. We can NEVER lose our salvation. Many really resist this truth, because it takes away all pretense of human ego. Not only can we not save ourselves, but we cannot keep ourselves saved. Salvation is all of grace and not even partially of works, “...so that no one may boast” (Ephesians 2:9, NASB).

Some of those who saw Christ and witnessed His miracles did not believe in Him. How often do we hear it said that if we could just see miracles, it would be so much easier to believe? Yet, many saw those miracles, but only some believed. The same is true today. Many know about Jesus Christ and what He did, yet they do not believe, because it is the nature of sinful man to reject the truth.

All those given to the Son by the Father will come to the Son. This certainly tells us that there are those who are not given to the Son, because if all are given to the Son, then all will come to the Son. That is not going to happen. The Scriptures make it clear that many will reject salvation and be eternally condemned. Those who have not believed are condemned already. Those who are given to the Son will come to Him and be saved. When the Gospel is preached, it is preached for this purpose. What an encouragement it is to servants of the Lord to know that it is never a waste of effort to proclaim the Gospel, because His Word will accomplish its purpose and there will be results! “…so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.” (Isaiah 55:11, ESV).

No one who comes to Christ will ever be “cast out.” Here again, we have biblical support for the doctrine of “perseverance of the saints,” which means that true believers will endure, because they have been “born again” or “born from above.” There is a reason the Lord used “birth” as an illustration of salvation. People understand that no one can ever be “unborn.” Once we come into this world, our parents will always be our parents, no matter what may happen. Birth cannot be reversed and made as if it had never happened. In the same way, once someone is born again, they cannot become “unborn.” Since birth is a permanent arrangement, those who have been born again cannot be other than a child of our Heavenly Father for all eternity.

The one who came from heaven, God the Son, came to do His Father’s will, and that perfect will is that all those the Father gives the Son will come to the Son, that the Son will lose none of them, and that the Son will raise ALL of them up at the last day. Here again we find the doctrine of “perseverance of the saints.” This doctrine is a great comfort to believers.

The same truth is once again repeated. When God says something once, it is very important. When He repeats it a second time or even a third or fourth time, it is EXTREMELY important, and He wants us to hear it. Sometimes we are slow learners, and we need to hear something several times. This passage concludes with another reference to our resurrection and a mention of the fact that we have “eternal life.” Somehow, the definition of eternal life gets twisted around to mean just about everything but what it actually means. It is not a difficult concept. Eternal life is life, the source of which is Christ, which is eternal (never ending, not even when we sin). What could be clearer? Eternal life is a present possession, and if it could ever end, then it would not be “eternal” and God would be less than truthful, which means He would not really be God. He cannot go back on His promises. That is why I frequently say, “My salvation is as secure as the integrity of God.” That is as secure as anything gets.

God gets to be God, whether we like it or not. Does this fact eliminate human responsibility? Absolutely not. Do I completely understand that? Not really. I can only humbly believe what God has said. He does not contradict Himself. Scripture complements itself; it does not contradict itself. Whether we understand it or not and whether we like it or not, when someone comes to Christ for salvation, God gets all the glory, and when someone is condemned, he gets all the credit for his own condemnation. It is interesting that even many who believe salvation is a matter of the will of man will pray to God for the salvation of their friends and loved ones. I am not really sure why they do that, unless they somehow suspect that God is really more in control of things than they are willing to admit. The fact that we go to God in prayer indicates tacit agreement with the fact that God really does get to be God, and He is in charge.

God is sovereign. Man is responsible. An unbeliever cannot blame God for his lost condition. A redeemed man cannot take credit for his salvation. That is what the Bible teaches. God does not ask us, in our limited ability, to understand every detail. He only asks us, in simple childlike faith, to believe what He has said.

“He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” (John 3:18, NKJV).

"He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him" (John 3:36, NKJV).

“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand” (John 10:27-28, KJV).

A Significant Sequence of Events

2010-07-19T20:16:00.000-07:00

by My Anonymous Friend

I have been curious sometimes why Gospel writers under the direction of the Holy Spirit recorded certain events in the sequence they did. These events are not always in chronological order and sometimes time passes in between one incident and another.

A good example is Luke 5. The chapter begins with the miracle of the fish catch. The next narrative is about a leper healed. The third "cameo" in this chapter concerns the paralytic who was lowered through the tiles of a roof so he could get near Jesus and be healed.

So why are these three events following each other? I wish to offer a suggestion. It can be said that each of them teach a lesson about the human condition. Let me show you what I mean:

Fishing story – Peter responds, "Get away from me, I am a sinful man." A most unusual response we could say. Jesus said to him, "Be not afraid!"

Leper – Dr. Luke reminds us that this man was full of leprosy. In light of biblical teaching about leprosy we could say he was HOPELESSLY sick. Jesus said to this man, "I am willing to heal you!"

Paralytic – Had to be helped by others. He was HELPLESSLY sick. Jesus called this man "Friend!"

Do you see the progression?

Fear,.... hopelessness.... and helplessness. Then.... Do not be afraid,..... I am willing,..... Friend!

A beautiful picture we have here. Our initial response to God may well be fear. When we are made aware of His presence as Peter was, we shrink back in fear and terror. But Jesus tells us not to be afraid. Leprosy is a frequent picture of the pervasiveness of sin. Luke takes pains to let us know that the person was full of leprosy. The paralytic was entirely helpless. He needed others to bring him to Jesus. We too are hopelessly and helplessly lost and in need of healing.

The response by Jesus in each instance is fantastic. Who would not be comforted to hear Him say, "Do not be afraid." Who would not be thrilled to hear Him say, "I am willing to heal and cleanse you!"? Many believe their "leprosy" is too far advanced or beyond healing. Not so! Who would not be thrilled to hear Jesus say, "Friend" and to continue to hear the words, "Your sins are forgiven you!"?

Well these are some thoughts that have been rolling around in my head for a time. I hope they give you occasion to think and to realize that these three cameos present a beautiful picture to us of God's grace and love.

Groom has Appendectomy in the morning and gets married in the afternoon!

2010-07-11T20:07:00.000-07:00

by My Anonymous Friend

I presume the heading above would serve as a good newspaper headline and would attract attention. It is exactly what happened to our new nephew by marriage this past week. Early on Friday morning we learned that he was taken to a local hospital and very shortly the medical team determined that his appendix needed to be removed. He was to be married at 4:30 that afternoon. All the myriads of finely planned details were now in great jeopardy. Everyone waited nervously and prayed. Options were considered. The hospital offered its atrium as a place to perform the wedding if necessary. Around noon the young groom was released and the decision was made to proceed as planned with the church wedding. It went forward almost as originally planned and all was well.

In circumstances like these I always tend to look for the philosophical or theological issues. Here are a few that came to my mind.

1. Man proposes but God disposes. This is not a direct biblical quote but the concept is very biblical. We make our plans but ought to always hold on to them loosely. Ultimately, God is in charge. Our niece, just like other brides, worked for months to plan every little detail of the wedding. She is an incredible organizer and nothing was left to chance. Flowers, music, colors, reception details, and on and on. In just one moment every single detail was up in the air.

2. God is omniscient. There is today in some circles a vigorous discussion about what God knows. It is known as Open Theism. The view is that God is not in exhaustive control of the universe and that He desires meaningful relationships with people who therefore must have the opportunity to exercise their own free will. The concept is passionately argued today. Just how does God's involvement in our lives actually play out in events like weddings and surgeries? As I get older my theological positions are becoming both more simple and more profound. The former because I am less willing to argue and debate the complexities involving an infinite God. I tend to simply accept even seemingly paradoxical statements about God. I view myself as finite and greatly limited in my understanding and I see God as infinite and high above my understanding. The latter position about my theology works well also. God is omniscient and omnipotent. I cannot possibly hope to fathom the depths and heights of the truths about who He is. I seek to bow in humility and awe before Him. It does not bother me that I am unable to answer many questions about Him. I do not believe there are contradictions about God. I believe God knows all and I believe that somehow humans have freedom to make choices. Are these concepts contradictory? Only to a limited mind. I leave it at that.

I KNOW WHAT IT SAYS, BUT WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

2010-07-10T07:56:00.000-07:00

There are many today who approach the Bible from quite a different perspective than those of us who grew up believing it to be the infallible Word of God, our only rule of faith and practice. The continuing questions about its accuracy and reliability can be very frustrating when it seems so obvious that the Bible is not something to be questioned. However, we live in an era when many, even in the church, are so consumed with pop psychology and political correctness that they simply cannot submit to the simple, straightforward teaching of the Word of God. To some, it has become all about “what it means to me,” “how I feel about it,” and “does it make me comfortable?”

Often, the Scriptures are used to teach the very opposite of what they actually say. This is done by clever, sometimes scholarly-sounding manipulation of words, often by self-appointed experts with little knowledge of the Bible, in order to make a passage of Scripture say other than what it actually says. The Bible warns against such misapplication of truth. “…just as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given him, wrote to you, as also in all his letters, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which the untaught and unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction” (2 Peter 3:15-16, NASB). When confronted with something in the Scriptures that may be hard to understand or hard for man’s ego to accept, there are always those who are willing to distort the clear meaning or wrest it from its context to make it say what is more comfortable.

The Scriptures say that there are some who are “willingly ignorant” of the truth (2 Peter 3:5, KJV) or that they “deliberately overlook” the facts (ESV). In the NKJV, it says they “willfully forget.” The NASB says it “escapes their notice.” No matter how it is said, it is quite clear that some simply choose to ignore the truth of Scripture, and become as one teacher said, “dumb on purpose,” and they do so at their own peril.

One thing we hear frequently today is the title of this article: “I know what it says, but what does it mean?” Such a question, at best, borders on the ridiculous. I remember hearing Ken Ham, the creationist speaker, respond to this by saying, “If you come to a big red sign that says S-T-O-P, it wouldn’t make any sense to say, ‘I know what it says, but what does it mean?’ I’m not sure it can mean anything if it doesn’t say anything.” Mr. Ham was exactly correct.

A common practice is to use the Scriptures to justify pre-conceived beliefs. For example, if someone wants to believe that God did not really create the universe and all that is in it in six days, then it is a simple matter to reinterpret the Bible and make it say what is desired. For example, if such a Bible actually existed, the “Politically Correct Self-Esteem Version” (PCSEV) might say, “In several million years the Lord allowed the heavens, the earth, the sea, and all that is in them to come into being.” This would indicate that there was no specific, direct creative act by our omnipotent God, but instead, there is plenty of room for evolution and all of the other human opinion that so often comes into play when men try to tell God what He means.

What does Bible actually say? "For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them” (Exodus 20:11, NASB). That’s what it says. That’s what it means.

Sin is an unpopular issue in today’s culture. The idea that there is a standard of which we all fall short is not at all politically correct. As a result, we get self-serving, popular opinions and reinterpretations of the Scriptures, such as, “All have made mistakes and can find relationship with God difficult unless they work hard to find a proper level of self esteem.”

But what does the Bible actually say? “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23, NASB). That’s what it says. That’s what it means.

The biblical teaching of the penalty of sin is likewise unpopular. Would God really hold people accountable and bring judgment on them because of sin? Isn’t He a God of love? Doesn’t the word “love” completely define the very essence of who and what God is? In light of this, the Bible ought to say, “The cost of making mistakes is independence from God, but the reward of seeking a relationship with God is personal comfort and high self-esteem.”

But what does the Bible actually say? “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23, NASB). That’s what it says. That’s what it means.

And of course there’s this business of salvation. Isn’t it kind of a put-down of modern humanity to say there is need of a savior because of our sin, and to make it more humiliating, there is nothing we can do about it in our own strength? Aren’t we better than that? Won’t God accept our efforts on our own behalf? So we arrive at a new interpretation of Romans 10:9. “If you confess with your mouth your own deity, and believe in your heart that you are truly God, you will find yourself at one with nature and your own self-esteem.”

But what does the Bible actually say? “That if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9, NASB). That’s what it says. That’s what it means.

What about this stuff about the sovereignty of God in all areas, including salvation? Doesn’t such a doctrine violate the “free will” of man? Does it not make man totally powerless and give God much too high a standing? Does it not reduce man a mere puppet to be manipulated by God? A new approach to this doctrine is as easy as rewording the Scripture to say what feels good. “When the people heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying themselves; and as many as believed and sought a relationship with God were, as a consequence, appointed to eternal life.”

But what does the Bible actually say? “When the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord; and as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed” (Acts 13:48, NASB). That’s what it says. That’s what it means.

Another very unpopular teaching is that there are “rules” for Christians to follow. After all, “I am free in Christ.” It almost seems as if some would use The Shack as their Bible. A nice, convenient, comfortable rewording of the Scripture might say, “If you love me, and yourselves, you will seek a relationship with me (unless of course you find a relationship with me uncomfortable and not to your liking).”

But what does the Bible actually say? "If you love Me, you will keep My commandments” (John 14:15, NASB). That’s what it says. That’s what it means.

We live in a day in which the value and even the definition of marriage has been undermined. The biblical view of “one man and one woman for life” has been replaced by “any two (or sometimes more) people together for as long as they feel like staying together.” So it would be easy for someone to re-write the Bible to say, “Persons, love your significant others, at least while you feel like staying together.”

But what does the Bible actually say? “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her” (Ephesians 5:25, NASB). That’s what it says. That’s what it means.

Even though the simple matter of church attendance is quite clear in the Scriptures, it is not necessarily popular among professing Christians today. Some feel they can worship God in their own way – in the mountains, at the beach, etc. After all, “the weekend is mine, and I need to relax after a hard week at work. And besides, I don’t like the music, and I don’t like the pastor’s annoying preaching style. I would rather go where people will listen to my opinion instead of my having to listen to a sermon from the Bible.” It is almost as if some believe the Bible says, “Going to church can be a good thing, but only if it makes you feel comfortable and gives you what you want to hear, which will encourage you, and all the more as you realize how important it is to have your needs met.”

But what does the Bible actually say? “Not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near” (Hebrews 10:25, NASB). That’s what it says. That’s what it means.

It would be quite easy to think of many more examples, but there is really no necessity. Anything in the Scriptures that people don’t like can be dismissed through twisting the words and meaning to make it say what is desired. The Bible tells us that when people refuse sound doctrine, they will seek out teachers who will twist the Scriptures for them. ^“For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths” (2 Timothy 4:3-4, NASB).

We need to take a proper approach to the study of the Scriptures, realizing that the Bible says what it means and means what it says. This can be summarized as follows:

“When the plain sense of Scripture makes common sense, seek no other sense; therefore, take every word at its primary, ordinary, usual, literal meaning unless the facts of the immediate context, studied in the light of related passages and axiomatic and fundamental truths, indicate clearly otherwise” (Dr. D.L. Cooper).

This has been restated as follows:

1. If the literal sense makes good sense, seek no other sense, lest it result in nonsense.

2. If the literal sense makes NO sense, seek another sense until it makes good sense.

3. If the literal sense seems to make good sense, but appears to be in contradiction to other parts of the Word, use cross-references, check original Hebrew or Greek, check context, tenses of words, arrangement of contradictory words and see other translations.

www.gnbcbible.com

These are good guidelines. As we study the Scriptures, our best approach is, “That’s what it says. That’s what it means.” What’s so hard about that? We either believe what God has said or we choose to let our opinions rule, which is a very dangerous way to interpret and understand the Bible.

Questions, Problems, and Objections

2010-07-05T18:49:00.000-07:00

There is no question a human can ask, no problem a scientist can pose, and no objection a skeptic can raise that cannot be answered by the Creator.

“O LORD, You have searched me and known me. You know when I sit down and when I rise up; You understand my thought from afar. You scrutinize my path and my lying down, And are intimately acquainted with all my ways. Even before there is a word on my tongue, Behold, O LORD, You know it all” (Psalm 139:1-4, NASB).

“Great is our Lord and abundant in strength; His understanding is infinite.” (Psalm 147:5, NASB).

Blinders

2010-07-04T15:01:00.000-07:00

by My Anonymous Friend
I've been thinking about this concept for a while now. It comes up in Luke 9 as Jesus asks His disciples who people say that He is. People actually think He might be John the Baptist who was beheaded only days before??? What about the blinders of Christians after Christ? Augustine had so much right but he believed women had the same value as cattle. The Stoics had a supreme reverence for God but completely missed out on the joy of celebrating the life given to us here and now. The reformers dismantled the evils of the church and affirmed the doctrines of justification by faith but were happy to execute Christians if they believed in a different mode of baptism. The modern church made such a helpful commitment to the inerrancy of scripture and absolute truth but often quenched the Spirit's work as a real experience. The emergent church brought community, relationship, humility, and dialogue to the forefront of Christian practice but moved away from the firm foundation of biblical doctrine.
These are only a few examples; there are many more. How about my own blinders? I have teetered back and forth on some philosophies, some doctrines, and pragmatics of Christianity my whole life...a new book, a new set of influences, a new church, a new job, new life circumstances, etc. I think the reality of Christians' blinders is that if we major on one aspect of the faith, we are susceptible of missing out on or simply getting another aspect wrong. We shouldn't disregard everything Augustine or Luther said because of their blinders, but we should seek the truth in what they said, and add it to the toolbox of our Christian thought and practice. In terms of what they got wrong, we should identify it, and renounce it. If history shows that even the greatest Christians had blinders, how am I to proceed on my journey of redemption? I still come back to the two concepts I want to build my life around--humility and fierce resolve. Humility to accept my own blinders and shortcomings, but a fierce resolve to stand firmly on the aspects of truth I know to be absolute.

Not My Will

2010-07-03T09:13:00.000-07:00

Does God have our lives planned out? There is certainly indication in the Scriptures that He does. "Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; and in Your book were all written the days that were ordained for me, when as yet there was not one of them" (Psalm 139:16, NASB).

I found great comfort in this when my first wife went to be with the Lord. She made her life better with exercise and eating right, but she did not change the length of her life. She lived all the days that God ordained for her, and she completed the work He called her to do.

I don't believe this makes God a puppet master. Instead, it makes Him a loving Father who knows what is best for each of His children. In the same context, the next verse says. "How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How vast is the sum of them!” (Psalm 139:17, NASB). Some might say that this makes God responsible for our sin. That idea is based on human logic rather than the Word of God, which very clearly says, “…God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone” (James 1:13, NASB).

There are many things in the Scriptures that don't make sense to my human mind. I just accept them by faith and trust that God knows what He is doing. Someday I will understand.

I am a "Calvinist" (for lack of a better term) who believes that God's sovereign will works in harmony with human responsibility (not "free will"). Do I understand that? Absolutely not, but I submit my lack of understanding to His wisdom.

I can take a glimpse at this truth by considering a very imperfect illustration of a fly that gets in the car. No matter what that fly may do, no matter how much it may disturb the driver or be annoying, when the car gets to its destination, the fly is there too. The outcome was predetermined, and the fly did according to its will, but in the end, only the will of the driver mattered.

Our natural rebellion may cause catastrophes in our lives, but in the end, we will arrive safely in our heavenly home because of the loving will of our heavenly Father.

I believe that our perception is not always the same as reality. God is very likely more in control of things than we tend to think. He used the enemies of Israel to discipline His people, but He still held those nations accountable for their actions, and He was absolutely just in doing so. Whatever He does is right and just.

He expects us to act wisely, but our lack of wisdom does not destroy His plan. We cannot just sit back and wait for Him to do the work, but the reality is that God gets to be God, and His will is going to be done. That's why we are on safe ground to pray, "Thy will be done."

Christian Schools and the Nature of Man

2010-06-26T16:31:00.000-07:00

…The importance of Christian moral training is pointed up by the commands of God to give moral training to our children. When God had given His moral instruction to the children of Israel, He commanded them to teach them to their sons and their sons’ sons (Deut. 4:9) and to teach them diligently to their children (Deut. 6:7).

One of the chief concerns of Christian parents today is that their children receive Christian moral training. Christian parents are seeking information and instruction so they can give this moral training to their own children, and they are seeking schools that will continue this training. This concern of Christian parents for the moral training of their children is one of the main reasons for the phenomenal growth of Christian schools in recent years.

The idea that right and wrong are relative rather than absolute has controlled the thinking of our secular society and our secular schools for many years. As a result, moral training outside of our Christian institutions has become impossible. If we, the adults, do not know what is right and what is wrong, we cannot instruct our children in this area. Thus, in modern educational philosophy, moral training is not part of the program. Teachers are left to flounder concerning moral training even though education, by its very nature, has a moral dimension.

Christians relate all morality to God. All goodness is God’s goodness and He tells us in the Scriptures exactly how He wants us to conduct ourselves. Like Joseph, we need to learn to say, “How can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?” (Gen. 39:9). All authority is God’s authority (Rom. 13:1). God has delegated some authority to parents (Eph. 6:4), to the state (I Pet. 2:13-15), to the local church (Heb. 13:7), and to employers (Eph. 6:5). Thus, disobedience to these God-ordained authorities is disobedience to God.

The Scriptures make it clear that concerning the moral training of children the parents are given the authority and the responsibility to carry it out (Heb. 12:7-11; Eph. 6:4; Prov. 13:24). Some people today seem to think that this authority belongs to the state. In Romans 13:4 we are told that the state bears the sword. The sword is an instrument of death. In other words, the state, and the state alone, has authority of life and death over its citizens. Neither the home nor the church was given this power. The problem rises when the state attempts to use this power in the area of education. One can force people into a schoolroom with the sword, but to get them to learn by threatening with the sword is not very practical. Neither is moral training a job that can be done by one bearing a sword.

The persuasive power of the home and the church rests in love, which commodity was not given to the state. Much of the present-day confusion concerning the matter of authority over children stems from the fact that the state has thrust its authority between the parent and the child. As Christian school teachers, we need to remember that God delegated the only authority we have over any individual student to the parent and by the parent to us.

If any family’s moral and ethical standards are so divergent from the Bible-based Christian standard that the student does not fit into the Christian school program, then that child should not be in the Christian school. The power to expel must remain with the school authority in order for moral training to take place.

Cain’s Wife and Dinosaurs

2010-05-08T09:13:00.000-07:00

I find it interesting that skeptics keep coming up with the same lame arguments against the Creator, and each time someone comes up with such an argument, two things are true – he thinks he thought of it, and he thinks he has now proven beyond any argument or question that evolution is true. "The debate us over." Foolishness never stops.

How many times have we heard someone ask, “Where did Cain get his wife?” Generally that question is asked with an air of smug assurance and an utter confidence that asking a question that has been asked and answered many times before somehow refutes biblical creation forever and clearly establishes the truth of Darwinism. Obviously, Christians should run for cover when this question is asked, because there could not possibly be an answer.

Never mind that the question has been asked and answered too many times to count. Never mind that the Bible is consistent with itself on this and all other matters. Never mind that the God who created all things certainly has enough wisdom to take care of reproduction so the race did not disappear after one generation. Never mind that Adam and Eve had many sons and daughters. Never mind that marrying one’s sister had no legal or medical implications back at the beginning, because laws relative to marriage had not yet been made, and the gene pool was not yet so polluted by the ravages of sin that marrying a close relative would likely produce medical problems in the offspring. Remember that Abraham was married to his half-sister Sarah. And never mind that the idea that man and woman both evolved in a timely way so as to make reproduction possible is patently absurd and laughable.

Those who come up with this question ought to do a little thinking for themselves and see if they can come up with something a little more substantial and a little more original. The things modern day “scientists” ask people to swallow in their attempts to explain the world and everything in it in a purely naturalistic way would be funny if they were not so pathetic.

How about this one? I heard a talk show host talking about dinosaurs, but not out of any real interest in dinosaurs other than the fact she thought somehow that the very existence of such animals somehow refuted creation and the Creator. “So, you Christians, what about those dinosaurs? Huh? Huh? What about those dinosaurs?” To that I would respond, “What about them?” Dinosaurs were animals, created by God, just like all of the other animals. The ones we commonly refer to as “dinosaurs,” are believed to be extinct, just like many other animals are extinct.

Of course, scientists are never wrong, are they? The coelacanth, a fish that was “known” to be extinct for sixty-five million years, was discovered alive and well in 1938 and continues to exist today, and scientists began calling it a “living fossil.” How’s that for a contradiction in terms? That doesn’t mean “dinosaurs” are alive today, but it does mean that even “scientists” can be very wrong and frequently are.

We ought never to be taken in by the agenda of those who are desperately looking for something to prove that there is no Creator and therefore no Judge to whom we must answer. Alleged millions of years, Cain’s wife, dinosaurs – none of these things has the slightest impact on the truth of Scripture. The foundation of all of the Bible is found in the book of Genesis, and that is why so many want to undermine it with foolish arguments against the simple truth laid down in Scripture.

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1, NASB).

“For it is written, ‘I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the cleverness of the clever I will set aside.’ Where is the wise man? … Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? … Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men” (1 Corinthians 1:19,20,25, NASB).

The Emerging Church

2010-04-27T09:24:00.000-07:00

Several months ago, someone asked if I would write a post about the emerging church, also called “the emergent movement.” My firsthand knowledge of this subject is limited, so I did some research before attempting to write about it.

My first observation is that clearly identifying and defining the emerging church is something like trying to nail Jell-O to the wall. There seems to be no clear-cut statement of doctrine and no real definition of what the emerging church is. The movement appears to be quite fluid and changeable. The best definition that can be given is that there is no real definition. It is difficult to define that which allows God to be anything we feel like making Him. This non-definable characteristic is symptomatic of the “post-modern” era in which we live and the efforts to create a “post-modern” church to “engage the culture.” Some even contend that the emerging church is fading away and will no longer exist by the time it can be defined. See the article, “Farewell Emerging Church, 1989-2010.”

It appears there are a number of common threads that run through the different variations of the emerging church. A short review cannot even begin to scratch the surface, but I have put into writing a brief summary of a few of these. Some of them almost seem contradictory, but even that fits with the elusive definition.

It looks as if there is a desire to reverse the Reformation and to go back into the mysticism, traditions, and doctrines that ultimately caused the Reformation. Not the least of these is a revival of the "Eucharist" and the doctrine of “transubstantiation,” which would have us believe that the once-for-all sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ was really insufficient to save us, and it therefore must be replaced by a continual offering of the actual body and blood of Christ in the form of bread and wine. This is clearly refuted by the teaching of Scripture. “By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. Every priest stands daily ministering and offering time after time the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins; but He, having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, sat down at the right hand of God” (Hebrews 10:10-12, NASB). Although this passage was obviously written concerning the Old Testament priests and sacrifices, it has a very valid application to that which was yet future at the time – the mass. The Reformation took place for many reasons, not the least of which was the doctrine of justification by faith alone, apart from good works, on the basis of the finished work of Christ, as presented so clearly in the Scriptures. See the video “Emerging Church: The Road to Rome” by Roger Oakland.

The emerging church is a response to our "post-modern" culture. There is nothing wrong with recognizing the nature of the culture, but there is a huge difference between that and conforming to the culture. Culture should not be allowed to dictate doctrine and practice to the church. The website gotquestions.org offers the following: “Post-modernism can be thought of as a dissolution of ‘cold, hard fact’ in favor of ‘warm, fuzzy subjectivity.’ The emerging / emergent church movement can be thought of the same way. The emerging / emergent church movement falls into line with basic post-modernist thinking — it is about experience over reason, subjectivity over objectivity, spirituality over religion, images over words, outward over inward, feelings over truth. These are reactions to modernism and are thought to be necessary in order to actively engage contemporary culture … the emerging church rejects any standard methodology for doing anything. Therefore, there is a huge range of how far groups take a post-modernist approach to Christianity. Some groups go only a little way in order to impact their community for Christ, and remain biblically sound. Most groups, however, embrace post-modernist thinking, which eventually leads to a very liberal, loose translation of the Bible. This, in turn, lends to liberal doctrine and theology.”

Because experience is valued more highly than reason, truth becomes relative. Once truth is considered to be relative rather than absolute, there can be no sound doctrine, because everything is interpreted according to individual feelings and opinions rather that according to God's holy, unchangeable Word. Some have variously described the doctrine of the emerging church as “absence of the cross,” “no real reference to sin or the need of redemption,” “a move away from theology to a ‘fix the world’ philosophy,” “less theological and more relational emphasis,” etc. (Taken from personal interviews).

After doing some reading on the emerging church, I realized that I had already read and reviewed a book that could serve as a manifesto or a “Bible” for the emergent movement, The Shack, by William Paul Young. As I looked further, I quickly discovered that the connection between the emerging church and The Shack had already been made by many writers.

An article entitled “The Shack’s Cool God,” by David Cloud of Fundamental Baptist Information Service, gives a great deal of insight into the relationship between The Shack and the emerging church. Following are some quotes from that article:

“The emerging church loves to tamper with traditional Bible doctrine and there is no fear of God for doing so!”

“The Shack is about redefining God. Young has said that the book is for those with ‘a longing that God is as kind and loving as we wish he was’ … What he is referring to is the desire on the part of the natural man for a God who loves ‘unconditionally’ and does not require obedience, does not require repentance, does not judge sin, and does not make men feel guilty for what they do.”

“Young’s god is the god of the emerging church. He is cool, loves rock & roll, is non-judgmental, does not exercise wrath toward sin, does not send unbelievers to an eternal fiery hell, does not require repentance and the new birth, puts no obligations on people, doesn’t like traditional Bible churches, does not accept the Bible as the infallible Word of God, and does not mind if the early chapters of the Bible are interpreted as ‘myth.’”

“...The Shack’s god is suspiciously similar to the one described in the books of the more liberal branch of the emerging church …”

“…To believe that the Bible is the infallible Word of God and the sole authority for faith and practice is not to ‘put God in a box.’ It is to honor God by receiving the Scripture for what it claims to be and what it has proven itself to be … To reject the Bible as the infallible Word of God is to launch out upon the stormy waters of subjective mysticism. It allows man to be his own authority and to live as he pleases, which is an objective of both the New Age movement and the emerging church.”

“What is happening is that people who don’t like Bible Christianity, don’t want to obey the Bible, don’t want to feel guilty for their sin, and have rejected the ‘angry’ God of Scripture, are responding enthusiastically to the man-made idol presented in The Shack.”

“Miracles do not prove that something is of God. There is one that the Bible calls ‘the god of this world’ (2 Corinthians 4:4), and he can do miracles and answer prayers … Miracles are not the proof of the truth; the Bible alone is the proof.”

Roger Oakland, author of Faith Undone, said, “For nearly two thousand years, most professing Christians have seen the Bible as the foundation for the Christian faith. The overall view at the Rethink Conference, however, is that Christianity, as we have known it, has run its course and must be replaced…Speakers insisted that Christianity must be re-thought and re-invented if the name of Jesus Christ is going to survive here on planet earth.” (“My Trip to the Rethink Conference,” by Roger Oakland.)

I could write more, but suffice it to say that there have been many good articles and a number of books written concerning the emerging church, and I really have little to add to those. Roger Oakland's website, "Understand the Times," has a number of helpful articles on the emerging church. In addition to the many resources on his website, he has written an excellent book on the subject entitled Faith Undone. Interviews with John MacArthur about the emerging church are found here and here.

The Scriptures are full of warnings and instructions relative to the importance of avoiding false doctrine while preaching and teaching sound doctrine. The standard by which we should measure any church is the standard of truth, based on the Word of God.

“If anyone advocates a different doctrine and does not agree with sound words, those of our Lord Jesus Christ, and with the doctrine conforming to godliness, he is conceited and understands nothing; but he has a morbid interest in controversial questions and disputes about words, out of which arise envy, strife, abusive language, evil suspicions, and constant friction between men of depraved mind and deprived of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain” (1 Timothy 6:3-5, NASB).

“…preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths” (2 Timothy 4:2-4, NASB).

“…holding fast the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching, so that he will be able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict” (Titus 1:9, NASB).

“But as for you, speak the things which are fitting for sound doctrine” (Titus 2:1).

"But, there are too many hypocrites..."

2010-04-26T14:17:00.000-07:00

One of the excuses so frequently offered by unbelievers for not coming to Christ is that “there are too many hypocrites in the church.” Surely no one really thinks such an excuse will stand up at the Great White Throne Judgment. God will not hold anyone accountable for someone else’s sin, and He certainly will not excuse unbelief on the basis of someone else’s hypocrisy.

The truth is that all human beings are hypocrites from time to time. All of us, other than the one perfect man, the God-man, our Savior, The Lord Jesus Christ, are sometimes guilty of saying one thing and doing another. I am actually glad there are hypocrites, and therefore sinners, in the Body of Christ. Otherwise, we would all be left out. I can only express my gratitude that I am a sinner saved by the grace of God instead of a sinner self-condemned in unbelief.

I recently saw a very thought-provoking statement – “When you let a hypocrite stand between you and God, the hypocrite is closer to God than you are.” How true.

God is God and I am not!!

2010-04-25T17:30:00.001-07:00

By My Anonymous Friend

You may have heard this statement in the past and this week I was reminded of it again. There are things that happen in life that neither I nor any other human can explain. We can try but we soon reach a brick wall as we seek to understand the ways of God.

For example: A family that we consider our friends has experienced horrific tragedies in the past two years. First a granddaughter drowned tragically. A few months later the grandfather died within just a few months of being diagnosed with a serious illness. Now a few weeks ago, his son, the oldest of the children died suddenly as well. Within the space of two years, three generations of persons in this one family have passed away. I am at a complete loss when trying to understand this.

A few days ago I got involved in an interesting conversation with a twenty year old sky diver. When he asked me what I did as a career he surmised that I might be "religous" as he put it. I asked him if he was. "No", he said, "I control my own life!" He seemed so convinced. I smiled at him and said, "My friend, you could not be more wrong!" He insisted however. I suggested that he might be stricken with some dread disease or that some foolish driver might hit him on the highway somewhere. I asked him what he would do if his parachute would not open for some reason on one of his sky dives. He dismissed all my potential scenarios and shrugged them off. It seemed he did not really hear me at all. It seemed to me he was being intellectually dishonest and that he simply did not want to believe in a Deity of any sort. No one can truthfully and thoughtfully say that he controls his own life. Many things are beyond our control. I am hopeful that someday he will think more carefully.

So, if we acknowledge that we do not control our own lives all together, how do we cope with the unexplainable and incomprehensible? My conviction is that we ought to be more humble and admit that our knowledge is extremely limited. When I watch our daughter buckle our little granddaughter into her car seat, the baby never asks any questions. She does not ask if there is enough gas in the car, or if the tires are properly inflated. She does not ask if the streets are under construction. She never asks where they are going. She only sits and accepts what her parents plan for her. Sometimes she complains but she never questions! (not yet, anyway).

Am I pressing the analogy too far? Maybe a little bit. The priniciple fits though I think. Compared to the wisdom and sovereignty of God, we are infants. So I draw from this analogy these points:

1. God loves me with a perfect love. It is not His intent or purpose to destroy me or make my life as miserable as possible. That would not be love. My daughter would never deliberately hurt her little girl.

2. God's wisdom is perfect. He knows what I need or do not need. He knows how much I can take. My daughter does not just drive aimlessly about. She has a purpose in mind.

3. The small part of what I do know about God's way of operation is that He has purposes that are beyond my comprehension. My granddaughter is always pleasantly surprised when she figures out she is being taken to "Papa's house", or to her favorite park or pet store.

4. I should never doubt in the darkness what I clearly understood in the light. That is, under pressure my perspective can easily be skewered and distorted. The other day my granddaughter was riding with me and at an intersection she said, "Green!". She did not know that I was waiting for my own green arrow so I could make a left turn. She did not see the whole picture.

5. God's perspective is eternity. Mine is temporal. When my daughter says to her baby, "No more candy", it is for some longer term purpose.

One of my seminary professors used to quote Deuteronomy 29:29 to us at times. Here is how it reads: The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our sons forever, that we may observe all the words of this law.

I leave you this week with this additional thought: To the world you might be just one person, but to one person you might be the world!!

Addition to My Review of "The Shack"

2010-04-07T16:48:00.000-07:00

Over a year ago, I wrote a review of the very popular book, The Shack. Since that time, the book continues to be widely read among Christians and continues to deceive many people with false doctrine. Recently, I realized I had left out one of the most important points I should have made, so I revised my review and included the following in the section, "An Unbiblical View of Salvation." (Note: My complete review is found here.)

On page 110, “Jesus” makes a statement that is nothing short of heresy. He says, “I am the best way any human can relate to Papa (God the Father) or Sarayu (The Holy Spirit).” What? Jesus says he is the “best” way to God, thereby implying that there are other ways. Such a statement as this is by itself enough to relegate this book to the trash can. The real Jesus of the Bible would never have said such a thing. Instead, He said, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me” (John 16:6, NASB). Notice the use of the word “the” instead of “a” or “the best.” Reducing Jesus to “a” way to God or “the best” way to God robs Him of His deity, His glory, and the value of His redemptive work.

Jesus also said, “…unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins” (John 8:24, NASB). There is no wiggle room in that statement. Jesus did not give people freedom to "sort of" believe in Him but to also make their own way. He is the way. He is the only way. It doesn’t make any difference what anyone thinks or feels about it. If a person believes he can get to God in any other way besides through the Lord Jesus Christ, he is very badly fooled. This truth is further underscored in the Book of Acts. "And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:12, NASB).

The Resurrection of Jesus Christ (Repost)

2010-03-28T20:35:00.000-07:00

by Ron Livesay

Christianity stands alone among the “world religions” for two very important reasons. First of all, we Christians have a God who loves us. The majority of the people in this world worship gods who are angry and must be appeased, while our God, the Creator of all things, loves us, cares for us, and shows His grace to us. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16, NKJV)

Second, we have a risen Savior rather than a dead prophet. “But the angel answered and said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. 6 He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay.” (Matthew 28:5-6, NKJV) Our Lord Jesus Christ has defeated death, the thing that all of mankind fears, and He has made salvation a reality. His resurrection validates Christianity, the Gospel, and the Bible in its entirety. It is utter foolishness to reject Him, when his miraculous resurrection, the event that validates all truth, has been established beyond question.

The resurrection is a more solid historical fact, based on eyewitnesses and documentation, than many other facts that people believe without question. Very few would doubt that Ben Franklin flew a kite with a key on it, that George Washington crossed the Delaware, or that Abraham Lincoln gave the Gettysburg Address. Why do we believe these things? We believe them because there were eyewitnesses, and the events were documented and are now in the history books. Yet, many events found in history books are less provable historically than the resurrection of Jesus Christ. He was seen alive after his death by many individuals and groups, one of which was larger than five hundred, and much documentation has been written attesting to the facts surrounding His resurrection.

It is interesting that this event is left out of history books, while many other far less established events are included. The reason is obvious. Men do not want to accept this truth, because it validates all of God's truth, and that places great responsibility on humanity to respond appropriately to the truth. It is much easier to be intellectually dishonest about the resurrection and relegate it to merely being “religious belief,” while claiming it is some kind of violation of the so-called “separation of church and state” to allow this truth to be taught and accepted as fact. It often boils down to the fact that many people make a deliberate choice to believe what they want to believe, regardless of the truth.

Truth is consistent with the facts. Certain historical events are factual, based on the standards for establishment of historicity, even though they are rejected by many who do not want to believe them.

· Irrefutable historical fact: Jesus Christ walked the earth.

· Irrefutable historical fact: Jesus Christ was crucified and died.

· Irrefutable historical fact: Jesus Christ rose again from the dead.

No amount of hiding the truth on the part of those who write history will ever change the facts. The fact of the resurrection absolutely establishes the truth of all of the Scripture and the validity of Christianity and the Gospel. Many people choose not to believe the truth, because it requires something of them. Anyone who does so is only fooling himself, and that at his peril.

The great message of Christianity is that the God who created all things, the God who loves us, gave His Son as a sacrifice for our sins, and that He not only died for us, He defeated death forever by His resurrection. God does not ask us to feel anything or to have an emotional experience, although some do. He only asks us to have simple, childlike faith in Him and what He has already done for us. When all is said and done, all human endeavor and all human wisdom will evaporate into ashes, and the one important issue will be each individual’s answer to the question asked so long ago by Pilate during the trial of Jesus. “What then shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?” (Matthew 27:22, NKJV)

Organ Donation: The Gift of Life

2010-03-22T13:24:00.000-07:00

When my first wife Sue passed away in 2001, I honored her wishes to donate her organs. Following is an excerpt from the book (unpublished) I wrote in the months following her death. I titled the book, Let Her Works Praise Her: A Life that Counted, ©Copyright January 2002. This is taken from Chapter 3, “Giving, Even in Death.”

Sue spent her life giving to others. She determined a long time ago that there was no reason to stop giving if her earthly life ended while she was still young enough that someone else could use her organs. Her thinking was “I won’t need them anymore.” Accordingly, she signed a donor card and placed it on the back of her driver’s license. She specified that the organs would be used for transplant only – not research.

I did not realize that even if someone signs a donor card, the family can overrule the wishes of the person who has died. I would never have considered not carrying out her wishes, so I did not hesitate to sign the papers that were necessary for the organ transplant process to begin. This was the first thing I had to take care of after I was informed that she had passed away, and even though paperwork was the last thing I wanted to deal with at that time, I fully understood that time was of the essence…

I never before really knew anything about the process of organ transplantation and all the logistics that go with it. Prospective recipients are required to always be within two hours of the appropriate hospital. As soon as the papers are signed, the whole process swings into action. Tissue-typing is done, and appropriate recipients are admitted to their hospitals, a surgical room in the donor’s hospital must be made available, and teams of doctors are flown in. It makes good sense, but it was a new revelation to me that the doctors who are scheduled to implant the organs are the same ones who are flown in to take the organs from the donor. That is a most logical procedure, but it is the kind of thing one never thinks about until it becomes a reality.

All of this takes time. Sue’s body was kept functioning for twenty-eight hours after her death in order to incubate the organs. During that time – from Friday at 12:55 P.M. until late Saturday afternoon – she was kept in the Neuro-CCU unit...

Late on Saturday night, I received a call at the motel from the transplant nurse. She informed me that the surgery was over and gave me a general rundown of where the organs had gone and who, in general terms, would receive them. One team of doctors had come from USC Medical Center, another from Stanford Medical Center, and at least one more came from somewhere in Wisconsin.

About four weeks later, I received the following letter from the California Transplant Donor Network:

Dear Mr. Livesay:

I would like to express my deepest sympathy to you and your family for the loss of your wife, Susan. I can only imagine how difficult these last few weeks have been for you and your family. My hope is that your decision to help others, through donation, can bring a sense of peace and comfort to each of you. I would like to share with you the outcome of your generous gift.

A 60 year-old woman from the San Diego area had suffered from chronic lung disease and had been waiting for a lung transplant for over a year and a half. She is a widowed mother of two daughters, and her disease had left her disabled. Both of Susan’s lungs were able to be transplanted into this woman, and her condition after surgery was listed as good.

Susan’s liver was successfully transplanted into a 57 year-old man from the San Francisco area. He works as a computer analyst, is married, and has one daughter. He had suffered from liver disease for several years, and had been waiting for a new liver since June of 1997. Thanks to Susan’s generous gift of life, his wait is now over. He was reported to have good liver function after his surgery.

Two fortunate people were the recipients of Susan’s kidneys. The right kidney was transplanted into a 58 year-old woman from Central California who had been on the waiting list since April of 1990. She is married and has no children. The kidney was a little slow to “wake up” after surgery, but it’s function is expected to improve.

A 53 year-old man had been waiting for a second chance since July of 1998. His kidneys had been damaged due to diabetes, and this made working as a foundry supervisor difficult. He is married and lives in the state of Wisconsin, and is reportedly doing well after his transplant.

As we discussed in the hospital, Susan’s pancreas and heart were not able to be transplanted due to her age and decreased organ function. However, her left cornea was transplanted into a 74 year-old woman from the San Francisco Bay Area. The right cornea was not able to be transplanted.

As you can see, your family’s decision for organ donation has touched the lives of many ill and dying patients, as well as their families. On their behalf, please accept our condolences as well as our gratitude for these most humanitarian gifts…

Sincerely,

____ ________, RN, Transplant Coordinator

There is a certain good feeling that comes from knowing that some of Sue’s organs live on in the bodies of others, improving the quality of their lives. I also have to admit that there is a certain strange feeling about it. She is gone, but parts of her physical body live on. I pray the Lord will not only use these transplanted organs to improve the lives of the recipients but that each and every recipient will come to know the Lord Jesus Christ through this experience if they do not already know Him.

Although the letter implied that the decision to donate these organs was mine and the family’s, in reality, it was not my gift to these people – it was her gift, and ultimately it was the Lord’s gift. Sue would not have had it any other way, and I would certainly not have denied her the privilege of giving this gift.

In so many ways, what was true of Abel is also true of Sue. Abel continued to have a positive testimony after his death. “By faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained the testimony that he was righteous, God testifying about his gifts, and through faith, though he is dead, he still speaks” (Hebrews 11:4). Sue is still giving today in many ways, and this is a very specific way as her organs give improved quality of life and health to others.

A couple of years later, I was contacted by the recipient of Sue’s liver. This was not a simple process, because all such contacts must go through the California Transplant Donor Network. At first there is no direct contact, and the donor network gets permission from the other party before contact is allowed.

The man who received her liver was a retired military officer and a decorated war hero. He was genuinely appreciative of the gift of life, and quality of life, that Sue had given him. He made it a tradition to contact me each year on the anniversary of Sue’s death, and I very much appreciated that. When that did not happen last summer, I wondered why, but I got busy with other things and neglected to try and contact him. A few days ago, I sent him an email, and I was saddened to receive the following email from his wife:

Hi Mr. Livesay:

It's with great sorrow that I have to tell you that my husband Clark passed away last February. I tried to contact you, but I could not locate your e-mail address. I was hoping that you would write Clark one day.

It was the saddest day of my life when he died. We were married for 44 years and had a great life together. He was in the hospital at Stanford for two weeks. The doctors tried everything possible to save him, but at the end it was not enough. They even put him on the list for another liver transplant. Eventually all his organs shut down and there was nothing else they could do for him.

I want to thank you for the extra eight wonderful years we had due to your generosity. He appreciated every minute he was given and he did a lot of good.

Fondly,

Ursula

In a later email she said, "Clark was such an inspiration to many people. A decorated war veteran, he never once complained about his fate in life. He insisted on looking ahead and making every day count. I have accepted his death, however, my heart will be broken forever.”

I could only wish that Sue’s liver would have lasted longer for him, but as we all know, life is very uncertain from day to day, and we can thank the Lord for what we have been given. I regret never having met him face to face, but there is certainly nothing we can do to change the past. It is a blessing to know that he, his wife, and the rest of his family were blessed by Sue's gift.

This experience leads me to encourage everyone, young or old, to become organ donors. Very many people die waiting for organs that never become available. While we recognize that God is ultimately in control, it is wise to make ourselves available to Him in every way possible. Being an organ donor can certainly be a blessing, not only to the recipients, but also to the donor’s family.

Blogging and Basketball

2010-02-24T18:26:00.000-08:00

For the past few months, since mid-November, I have found it difficult to add very many posts to my blog because of the time commitment involved in coaching basketball. Our season came to an end last Saturday night as the Lady Warriors lost in the second round of the CIF Southern Section Playoffs.

What a game! We fell behind by as many as 14 points early, trailed by 12 at halftime, and were still down by 8 at the beginning of the fourth quarter. It was still 8 with three minutes to play, but the girls did not quit and made quite a comeback, closing the lead to three with 5.9 seconds to play. The only problem was that the best player on the other team (Avalon, from Catalina Island) had two free throws coming, and we knew that if she made even one of them, the game was over. After both free throws were missed, we came down court, got the ball to one of our guards, who had not made a basket the entire game, and everyone in the gym held their collective breath as she shot a three-pointer, the clock expired with the ball in the air, and it banked in to tie the game. This was the first time we had been tied since 0-0.

The game went overtime, and we just could not quite get it done, and we ended up losing by 5 points. Nevertheless, it was a game that was a great deal of fun. Those kinds of games make coaching enjoyable, but they also give coaches lots of gray hairs.

Now that the dust has settled, I may find I have more time to post articles on my blog. We’ll see.

Biblical Discernment

2010-01-22T09:36:00.000-08:00

Charles Spurgeon once said, “Discernment is not knowing the difference between right and wrong. It is knowing the difference between right and almost right.”

Biblical discernment is sorely lacking today, because there is a lack of biblical knowledge. Often, study of the Scriptures has sadly been replaced by "how-to" seminars and feel-good books. When human opinion replaces God's Word, the result can only be a mess.

For a thoroughly biblical, yet brief, treatment of this subject, go to "The Watchman's Bagpipes," here.