Truth vs. Emotionalism

Much of the conflict we see today is between emotionalism and truth. Often, emotionalism is perceived to be winning, but in reality, truth always has and always will come out on top in the end. That's because truth is that which is consistent with reality, and no amount of wishful thinking, warm and fuzzy feelings, false hope, or emotionalism can ever change reality.

No one is helped when truth and reality are denied and replaced with "feel good" ideas. Paul asked, "...have I become your enemy by telling you the truth?" (Galatians 4:16, NASB). Jesus Himself IS truth (John 14:6). Only He can set us free. "...you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free" (John 8:32, NASB). This truth is to be spoken in love, and it cannot be loving to withhold the message of Christ. "... speaking the truth in love..." (Ephesians 4:15, NASB).

Changing the Meaning of Words

Much could be said, and much will be said and written about the Supreme Court's decision on the "same-sex marriage" issue. The following statement by Chief Justice Roberts sums up the legal situation quite well.

"This court is not a legislature … Whether same-sex marriage is a good idea should be of no concern to us. Under the Constitution, judges have power to say what the law is, not what it should be … The fundamental right to marry does not include a right to make a State change its definition of marriage … Five lawyers have closed the debate and enacted their own vision of marriage as a matter of constitutional law…" (Chief Justice Roberts).

This statement is well-thought out and well-reasoned. However, it is interesting to note that the Chief Justice used almost the exact opposite reasoning in his opinion on Obama Care. We need justices who will consistently interpret what the Constitution says, not what they want it to say. “Words mean things."

The bottom line on the "same-sex marriage" decision is that no court, not even the Supreme Court, has the right or authority to change the definition of marriage. God originated marriage, and His definition is the only valid one. Our government has now given "hearty approval" (Romans 1:32) to something of which God does not approve, and more than that, He calls it sin.

Truth is not determined by what people like or what makes them feel comfortable. It doesn't really matter if people don't like the truth. Truth is truth. God's Word is truth (John 17:17), and it would be very wise for those in leadership of our nation to heed that reality before it is too late.

When Truth Has Perished - by Ed Cardwell

Jer 7:28 ^NAS

More than 25 centuries ago the Lord God spoke through the prophet Jeremiah to a nation that was collapsing under the weight of its moral and spiritual depravity.

Anyone should be able to read Jeremiah and make the comparison with the cultural climate of our own time.  Even now one can witness firsthand from the comforts of his own living room what happens to a nation after only 2 or 3 generations of denigrating God and even evicting Him from every aspect of society.

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Here are a few of his characterizations of a people who had lost their source of strength and their crown of glory:

To begin, the Divine indictment:

“For My people have committed two evils:

They have forsaken Me, The fountain of living waters,
To hew for themselves cisterns, Broken cisterns,
That can hold no water.” ^{Jer 2:13 NAS}

1.  They left their God, the One who set them high above all the nations of the earth and who showered them with untold riches and blessed their land beyond compare.  His commandments became tedious and boring, and in time they removed His law from their public institutions, from their seats of learning, from their courts, from their daily activities and amusements – and ultimately from their hearts!

2.  They substituted a moral code more suited to their passions.  They devised fanciful doctrines that appealed to their fallen nature, and they taught them throughout their culture.  They turned to sensuality and sought to become like the heathen nations around them.   

“And they bend their tongue like their bow; Lies and not truth prevail in the land; For they proceed from evil to evil, And they do not know Me.” ^{Jer 9:3}

In order to sustain this philosophical perversion that has crept into their once great nation, they must create a culture of corruption of the truth.  In time lies become the mainstay of government, education, and the media.  To prevent their demagoguery from assault, they attack all opposition viciously, and at the same time show themselves benefactors of the populace with mountains of largesse from the national treasury.  To sustain their power they promise lifelong prosperity to all citizenry and by deception mortgage their futures with staggering debt.  Lies are the keystone to their hold on power, and they even brag about their cunning.

“For from the least of them even to the greatest of them, Everyone is greedy for gain, And from the prophet even to the priest Everyone deals falsely.” ^{Jer 6:13}

Materialism is rampant and has become the true motive behind every thought, act, and judgment at all levels of  society.  Theft, fraud, and embezzlement are rationalized, even celebrated.

“The wise men are put to shame, They are dismayed and caught; Behold, they have rejected the word of the LORD, And what kind of wisdom do they have?” ^{Jer 8:9}

The ignorance and incompetence of national leaders has become truly daunting.  They speak as if they have the answers for everything, but they have the solutions to nothing.  They are the blind guides leading their constituencies to national ruin.  They offer words of hope, but their words are seductive and devoid of truth.

“And they heal the brokenness of the daughter of My people superficially, Saying, 'Peace, peace,' But there is no peace.” ^{Jer 8:11}

Mental disorders, frustration, and despair continue to rise as the ‘good’ life of godlessness remains deceptive and the answers to the problems of the soul illusory.  Enemies sense the resulting weakness and grow ever bolder in their threats to conquer and destroy.

“This is the city to be punished, In whose midst there is only oppression. As a well keeps its waters fresh, So she keeps fresh her wickedness. Violence and destruction are heard in her; Sickness and wounds are ever before Me.”  ^{Jer 6:6,7}

 Ignoring the severe consequences of their secular society and refusing to believe that the God of their fathers is even relevant, the spiritual vacuum that has been created invites the Adversary to run amok throughout the land in helping to destroy the very citadels of culture and civilization.  Violence and bloodshed, terror and despair, and confusion and ruination now rule on the streets and in the hearts of men.

“An appalling and horrible thing Has happened in the land: 
The prophets prophesy falsely,
And the priests rule on their own authority;
And My people love it so!
But what will you do at the end of it?  ^{Jer 5:30-31}

As long as the illusion of benefits continues flowing and there are ample amusements for distraction, the lies are tolerated and the consequences of the extermination of Truth are ignored. Annihilation and oblivion will soon follow as night follows day, and there shall be no remedy.

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I have forsaken My house, I have abandoned My inheritance; I have given the beloved of My soul Into the hand of her enemies. ^{Jer 12:7}

After their callous refusals of the Lord’s steady appeals to return to Him, the Source of their national strength and majesty, He finally leaves this perpetually stubborn and stiff-necked people to their own evil devices. And as the curtain falls on their collective ruin, this sad commentary concludes their precipitous descent from supreme greatness and national independence.

There has always been an antidote, a cure from this paralyzing decay of the national soul.

God pleaded with this people time and again to turn back from their reckless obstinacy.  Through the prophet Ezekiel, Jeremiah’s contemporary, He pleads:

“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}

It is not imperative that we persist in this same path to destruction.  It is not a universal law that the citizens can have no say in their ultimate destiny.  But the volumes of history are strewn with empires ravaged by the natural consequences of their own destructive godlessness.  As the Psalmist wrote millennia ago: 

"The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God. ^{Psalm 9:17 KJV}

But there remains hope still, and God’s faithful among us hold the key.

“By mercy and truth iniquity is purged: and by the fear of the LORD men depart from evil.” ^{Pro 16:6 KJV}

THE FOOLISHNESS OF MAN’S THINKING

Woe to those who seek deep to hide their counsel far from the LORD, And their works are in the dark; They say, "Who sees us?" and, "Who knows us?" Surely you have things turned around! Shall the potter be esteemed as the clay; For shall the thing made say of him who made it, "He did not make me"? Or shall the thing formed say of him who formed it, "He has no understanding"? (Isaiah 29:15-16, NKJV).

These two verses from Isaiah certainly address the philosophy of many men today. It is amazing how much such a short passage can say. This is certainly not an attempt to exhaust the meaning but only to briefly give attention to a few significant points.

1.)  Woe to those who seek deep to hide their counsel far from the LORD…  It is absurd for man to think He can hide from or deceive the Lord, the omniscient, omnipotent One. The eyes of the Lord are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good (Proverbs 15:3, NKJV).

2.)  …their works are in the dark… Men tend to dwell “in the dark” so as to attempt to accomplish their foolish aim of hiding their evil works from God. …the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil (John 3:19, NKJV).

3.)  They say, "Who sees us?" and, "Who knows us?"  As men walk in darkness in their futile attempt to hide from the One who knows all and sees all, they deceive themselves into believing they can actually accomplish such a thing. David recognized that there was no possible way to get away and hide from God. Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? (Psalm 139:7, NKJV). The answer to David's question is obvious. The all-knowing, all-powerful, present everywhere God ...knows what is in the darkness, and light dwells with Him (Daniel 2:22, NKJV).

4.)  Surely you have things turned around! If this does not describe the state of man's thinking today, I don’t know what does. Man seems to have just about everything turned around. “Man created God in his own image.”  “Truth is relative.”  “There are no absolutes.”  “Man evolved from lower life forms.”  “The universe is billions of years old.”  “It took millions of years for life to evolve.”  “All living things have a common ancestor.”  “There is no evidence of a global flood.”  “The appearance of design does not mean a design actually exists, so it does not mean there is a designer.”  “Man is getting better and better.”  “Man is basically good.”  “There is no such thing as sin.”  “There is no resurrection from the dead.”  “There is nothing beyond the grave.”

 

These are only a relative handful of the foolish statements based on wishful thinking made today by alleged “scientists” and other supposedly “educated” people. It is all summed up on one brief statement from Scripture:  … because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man — and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things (Romans 1:21-23, NKJV).

5.)  Shall the potter be esteemed as the clay…?  Much of humanity today sees itself as the ultimate end, the “measure of all things,” as stated by Protagoras, a Greek philosopher who lived over 400 years before Christ. Even though his statement is very old, it is certainly adopted today by many who hold to a humanist philosophy of life. William Ernest Henley (1849–1903) wrote the poem “Invictus,” in which he states, in part,  “…I thank whatever gods may be for my unconquerable soul…It matters not how strait the gate, How charged with punishments the scroll, I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul.” This is the same philosophy that elevates man to the status of equality with God and makes the true and living God powerless, and therefore, non-existent. No amount of flawed human reasoning can make God go away. He is real. He is there. He will not put up with nonsense. The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying, “Let us break Their bonds in pieces and cast away Their cords from us.” He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; The Lord shall hold them in derision (Psalm 2:2-4, NKJV).

6.)  …shall the thing made say of him who made it, "He did not make me"? Such an idea relative to a potter and his clay is, at best, absurd. However, it is no more absurd than the idea of weak little man, who views a fallen world through the sinful eyes of a fallen nature, saying, “There is no creator. Everything came into being by natural processes.”

 

Consider this – there are four faces of U.S. Presidents on Mount Rushmore. No one is his or her right mind would say, “Those four faces got there by the forces of nature – wind, rain, lightning, etc.” Such a thought is ridiculous. For even one such face to form by natural processes is clearly impossible and certainly would cast doubt on the intelligence and common sense of anyone propagating such a far-out idea. And what are the chances that the one face that formed by natural processes would be a U.S. President? But wait – there are four such faces, all representing presidents, which multiplies the impossible odds against such a thing happening. 

 

All people with any measure of common sense would readily admit that the faces on Mount Rushmore were designed and formed by intelligence. However, many of those who recognize that George Washington’s face could not appear by accident on Mount Rushmore would say that the actual man George Washington was a product of evolution through natural selection. This borders on the insane when one considers that a real person is literally billions of times more complex than any rock formation, which makes belief in evolution billions of times more absurd than believing in the clear impossibility of Mount Rushmore forming by natural processes.

7.)  …shall the thing formed say of him who formed it, "He has no understanding"? Humanity thinks far too highly of itself. We all have far too much of that humanistic thing we call “self-esteem,” which very quickly degenerates into extreme arrogance. It is hard to imagine anything more arrogant than for men to say that God “has no understanding.” That is basically atheism, because if God has no understanding, He is not God, and if He is not God, then there is no God.  The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.” (Psalm 14:1, NKJV). This can also be translated, "NO, God!"  Either way, failure to believe in the obvious existence of God and/or rebellion against the sovereign rule of God over His creation identifies an individual as a fool.

Even though the book of Isaiah was written more than 700 years before Christ, this passage has great relevance for today. This illustrates the unchanging nature of Scripture. God, through the prophet Isaiah, has communicated a statement about the foolishness of man’s thinking. It all boils down to the arrogance of man as he pretends to know better than God about everything, when in reality, man does not know better than God about anything. The tongue of the wise uses knowledge rightly, but the mouth of fools pours forth foolishness (Proverbs 15:2, NKJV). The heart of him who has understanding seeks knowledge, but the mouth of fools feeds on foolishness (Proverbs 15:14, NKJV).  …the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men (1 Corinthians 1:25, NKJV).

 

The Real Source of Evil and Violence

by Kathryn Krummrey, RN

 

As we Americans awake one more time to another "morning after killings" experience, we must acknowledge some real truths. Evil, violence, and terror are found in the hearts and minds of people, not in the objects used to commit their evil.

 

In recent weeks and months we have had people hurt, maimed, and killed by various objects. There is nothing inherently evil in household goods that can comprise a bomb, knives, cars, ball bats, in strong arms and hands that are placed on small, weaker bodies of little children, or even in guns. The problem is not with these objects, but rather with the heart, mind and thought processes of the human being using these objects.

 

All caring American citizens want this terror in our land to stop! We want to send our kids off to school or to public events without the fear of terror and the carnage it can bring to our lives. We want the "old America" back when evil and violence were not invading our shores on a sporadic but regular basis.

 

So we must look back to what has changed in the heart of our people, our culture, and the way we think. In the last several decades we have changed dramatically in the way we think about the crucial values and morals of our society. In our "enlightenment" we became self focused people rather than family focused people.

 

Keeping the family unit strong and nurturing the next young generation dropped dramatically on our list of priorities. We sent our kids a message with our new laws and our new trends. Marriages are easily disbanded if it gets too hard. Human beings are only of value if they are wanted. We can also easily get rid of things we don't want and put a nice name on it, like being pro-choice.

 

We have outlawed the very things that gave stability, strength, and hope to Americans in tough times. Things like the Ten Commandments that told us how to honor God and our fellow man have been banished from our public places as if they were too dangerous for our kids to know. The freedom to acknowledge and call out to our God for his help at our schools was done away... And this is when evil came in to fill this void in our land.

 

We have raised a generation of people without the influence of God and what He values in their life. This is the true definition of evil; a total absence of God and His loving standards of conduct for His people. Societies of people are not healthy when there is a void in their spirit and soul. They fill this void with self serving evil rather than good for others.

 

I fear that we could now be on the receiving the end of some of our choices as a nation. Could this be one of the true sources of evil and violence in America? There is hope if we will turn back to the One who offers the real cure. Yet, I fear we may be too progressive and enlightened to do that.

Moral Relativism

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.