March 26, 2021

“Historians of the future will have a hard time figuring out how so many organized groups of strident jackasses succeeded in leading us around by the nose and morally intimidating the majority into silence.” ~ Thomas Sowell ~

So much of what is going on today in the social, political, and moral scenes has to do with the results of crippled spirits, corrupt souls, and confused minds. The reason we are so confused is that we have chosen to replace God with ourselves. As the Apostle Paul says, we have chosen to exchange the truth for a lie and worship the creation in place of the Creator. (Romans 1:20-25) Talk about confusion. This confusion is best demonstrated by what Paul describes in modern terms as homosexuality and lesbianism. (I bet he would include transgenderism as well, Romans 1:26-27.) The response of God to this belief that leads to this behavior is to allow mankind to plunge headlong into depravity and experience all the disgusting consequences it entails. In Paul’s summative words he declares three times, God gave them over to a depraved mind. (Romans 1:24, 26,28) Man became enslaved to sin.   The human heart becomes enslaved to sin when it believes in self-deification. I will be god. I will worship me! This is based on a decree and determination of self-identification. We see this confusion today in the gender identity issues that are confusing so many. Finally, we demand, self-determination. I will decide what is 'truth' to me and the moral direction that it takes me. I will not submit to anyone or anything outside of my own desires and demands. Perhaps it is hard to imagine a city or a country governed by this world view. Perhaps we are about to find out. Serving Him with you until He comes for us, Fred

 March 19, 2021

                    How Does a Moral Man Live in an Immoral Society? 

This is a question that involves ethics but also morality. Ethics is the process and procedure by which we make moral principles and decisions. This is a question that is becoming more relevant every day in America. We are seeing immorality institutionalized through executive orders and congressional legislation. And where it stops nobody knows. The Lord has declared many ethical and moral standards and systems. In the Old Testament, we think of Moses and the Decalogue called the Ten Commandments. (Exodus 20) In the New Testament, we might think of Jesus and the Sermon on the Mount. (Matthew 5-7) Both the Old and New Testament are replete with righteous paradigms for people living in unrighteous times. But one of the shortest and yet most comprehensive is expressed in Micah 6:8: “He has told you, O man, what is good; and what the Lord requires of you; to do justice, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.” How do you do justice? By deepening your Competence in the Word. The only way to do justice is to know truth and the only way to know the truth is to know the Word of God. (Psalm 119; 2 Tim. 3:16; John 17:17). Then we are to live it out. How do you love mercy? By developing your Compassion for the World. (John 13:34-35; I John 4:7) How do you walk humbly before God? By living out your Commitment to the Way of the Lord. As we live out our life we need to develop priorities, principles, and patterns by which we: believe the Word of God, behave according to the way of God, and belong with the people of God. This will require us to demand the time to think and develop the habit of thought. Serving Him with you until He comes for us, Fred

 March 12, 2021

Not Being Heard is No Reason for Silence ~Victor Hugo~

Although the church finds itself in a culture that wishes to cancel the voice of Christ, now is not the time to be silent and not speak for the Savior. In case you have missed it, the culture would like to tell the Church; “Shut up, be quiet, and do not speak. Do not proclaim you have the truth that judges my sexual preference or my sexual identity. Do not preach to me what is right or wrong, good or bad, acceptable or unacceptable. I will determine my own truth; thank you very much. You no longer hold sway over the minds of the people. You are an ancient cognitive convention to control weak people’s thinking. You are a sociological infection that must be excoriated, and a psychological disease that must be eradicated. You are a spiritual force that must be eliminated.” That “you” the culture would like to tell to “shut up” is you and me. However, in the face of such animosity, we must provide answers. In the face of such rejection, we must provide a response. We must flex our convictions and our compassion simultaneously. We must provide divine wisdom with human winsomeness. Is that not what Jesus did in the midst of His cancel culture, before people who wished Him to not only shut up, but to die?  Living in the present often depends on how you see the future. As Hugo said, “The future has several names. For the weak, it is impossible; for the fainthearted, it is unknown; but for the valiant, it is ideal.”  The best way to live in this world is to keep an eye on the world of the future. We have read the back of the book and know the end of the story, and the story says that the Savior wins. And so do we!   You say the times are evil. Live nobly and you will change the times. ~Augustine~   Serving Him with you until He comes for us, Fred

 March 5, 2021

Jesus, The Great Communicator

It has always intrigued me that Jesus interacted with so many different types of people. Nicodemus was a religious leader of the Jews who had high moral character and was a social and political insider. The woman at the well was a Samaritan and a social outsider. The nobleman, whose son was sick, was a powerful man and perhaps a Gentile leader. The lame man at the pool was a poor beggar and of course, the “woman caught in adultery” was the epitome of evil. (John 3-5,8) Jesus had the social skill and spiritual sensitivity to involve and engage Himself with all kinds of people. But no matter how socially different, spiritually distinct, or morally differentiated the people were, His message was one of spectacular singularity. His Father loved all of these people and Jesus had come to tell them. (John 3:16) As Saint Anselm reminds us, Jesus did not come out of curiosity or out of any personal need. He came on an errand of mercy solely to accomplish our redemption. We live today in a polarized world of sociological insiders and outsiders. We live today among those who are morally high or low, of those who are financially rich or poor. The distinction and differentiation have never been more diversified and divisive. But regardless of morality, sociology, or nationality, God loves them all and Jesus wants to tell them. In fact, Jesus wants us to tell them. Serving Him with you until He comes for us, Fred