July 29, 2022

We now understand how little we understand. -Jerome Powell-

It’s hard to determine and differentiate the difference between confusion of thought and corruption of action. Given the Federal Reserve Board’s lack of understanding of inflation, the confusion of the CDC regarding the origin of the Chinese Covid virus, or the president’s inability to define recession, not to mention the newly appointed Supreme Court justice’s inability to define what a woman is, all of this causes me to wonder: Why do people in such exalted roles of leadership understand so little? It seems Proverbs 18 is correct: Whoever separates himself seeks his own desire, He quarrels against all sound wisdom. A fool does not delight in understanding, but only in revealing his own mind. Proverbs 18:1-2 As Christians we do not need to be confused in our thinking and we dare not be corrupt in our actions. And we most certainly must not simply rely on our opinions. Instead, we have the infallible and inspired word of God to guide us in these days of confusion and corruption. (See 2 Tim 3:16, 2 Peter 1:21, and Psalm 119, yes all of it!) The word of God is a light and a lamp to guide us. We certainly need illumination in these dark moral days. The word of God is like honey to the taste. We need this as we live with such a distasteful morass of moral realities. The word of God is the pillar of truth that can stabilize our foundations as we live in an ever-fracturing culture. The word of God is our anchor which stabilizes us as we navigate through the rough seas of a cesspool society. As we “count the days and make the days count” we must count on the word of God to lead us, feed us, control us, and conform us to the image of Jesus. Serving Him with you until He comes for us, Fred

July 22, 2022

Disturbing Days

Let's engage in some sanctified imagination. Imagine you, as a believer in Jesus, lived in the first century under the Roman dictatorship. Imagine that everything you had could be confiscated legally/illegally at any moment and you would have no legal recourse. Imagine you have no healthcare not to mention antibiotics, and you lived with many chronic medical and dental conditions and symptoms. Imagine how you would feel and how you would respond if one of your children was kidnapped by the government or beaten by street dwellers or raped with no legal consequences. Imagine if you had no voice in government or in most of society. Imagine you and your family had to be exposed to moral filth or homosexuality, transvestites, and all manner of perversion and were unable to get away from it and its pervasive influence in your life. Imagine you are ordered to affirm the gods of the state, and if you ever talked about Jesus or went to a gathering of Christians, you would be thrown in jail to either die slowly by being forgotten or die quickly in the arena for someone’s entertainment. Now, consider the challenging words of the New Testament. If someone slaps you on the cheek turn and give them the other cheek. Be patient, tender-hearted, kind to all men. Pray for Nero and pray for all government officials. Don’t lie. Do not steal. Give generously to others. Living in the corrupt first-century and living by the precepts of the Christian faith as described in the New Testament seem very incongruent, and yet that is what Jesus calls us to do. But I wonder if you can actually live that way in that kind of environment apart from the power and the filling of the Holy Spirit? Can you genuinely manifest the fruit of the Spirit in an authentic way apart from the power of the Spirit in your life? To ask the question is to answer it. Living in 21st century America, it’s not that difficult to pray for my government or be patient with bad drivers or move away from foul-mouthed people or turn the channel from something that I do not like. If someone tried to hurt my family, I would have no problem with a first strike and then calling the police. It is not that difficult paying taxes or obeying the moral commandments in the New Testament in my American 21st-century comfortable world. I can actually do it without the power of the Spirit because I’ve been accustomed to and benefitted from the influence of Christianity and its civic form of religion all of my life. However, this is a dangerous situation because it can deceive me into thinking that I am actually being spiritual when I am not. The flesh loves to take credit and act as a counterfeit. It is all too easy to fake it or live fraudulently without most people noticing. But God notices. To say we are living in troubling times is an understatement. To realize that times may become terrible does not sound that extreme. I am not a prophet nor the son of a prophet, but I believe we need to prepare for the coming days. The best way to live this day in this world is to remember there is coming a future day and a future world. And as we live today, we must live under the power of the filling of the Holy Spirit to guide and control our attitudes and actions. Ethics and eschatology always go together in the Bible. And so, we need to have holy conduct with a heavenly outlook.   Serving Him with you until He comes for us, Fred

July 15, 2022

Certainty without power can be interesting. Certainty with power can be dangerous. -Donald Rumsfeld-

This axiom of Rumsfeld is true on both sides of the political aisle. All sides seem to have a corner on certainty. Being certain is helpful if it is tied to truth. The real issue is not political construct but theological conviction. And that is manifested in a person or a nation’s “World View.” Latest polls describe not only a deterioration in trust of the government and media, but also a dwindling in church attendance, and diminishing belief in the authority of the Bible. This decline reflects a change of view and a reconsideration of people’s “World View.” “Thus says the Lord” does not carry the weight it used to in the minds of the modern man, not to mention the postmodern man. Skepticism, suspicion, and cynicism are replacing personal confidence and conviction, not to mention personal consecration. This is not simply a millennial mindset or a woke mentality. Its roots go back farther than that. It goes back to Eden. It goes back to a challenge against the authority and accuracy of God’s word. It is an audacious condemnation of the character of God’s goodness and a challenge of His love. We are living in a day when everything we thought was nailed down is now coming loose. I know it can feel like that is certainly true. However, let me assure you -- it is not! Moses (1400 BC) in Genesis 1-3 wrote about things of the past, and the apostle John (70-90 AD) in Revelation 20-21 wrote about things of the future. Both wrote convincingly and with compelling clarity about God’s Person, God’s Plan, and God’s Program, with an accurate prophetic certainty of both history and eternity. This is certainly why God makes sense in a world that does not. As Swiss theologian Hans Urs von Balthasar reminds us, “The first thing that must strike a non-Christian about the Christian’s faith is that it obviously presumes far too much. It is too good to be true.” It certainly is true! Serving Him with you until He comes for us, Fred

July 8, 2022

“Kakistocracy”

The way of words has always been of interest to me. Consider "Kakistocracy." It simply means government by the worst or least competent citizens of a state or a society. We are familiar with the opposite word, aristocracy, from the Greek word “aristos,” meaning excellent. “Kakos” means bad in Greek. “Cracy” means form of rule or influence. "Kakistocracy" is a government run by the worst types of people or the most inept people regarding character or ability. A Theocracy is a rulership or a kingdom under the rule of God. As you read your Bible you cannot help but see how the Lord desires to establish His rule in the life of mankind.   The Garden of Eden was the initial attempt as the Lord provided a place and a purpose for Adam and Eve to live in fellowship with each other and with the Lord. But sin and selfishness put a stop to that.   Fast forward to the establishment of Israel and the attempts of a kingdom ruled by God and mediated through Saul, David, Solomon, and others, only to be destroyed by issues of corrupt character and disobedience to the Lord.   Many see the church as a spiritual form of the kingdom of God as the Lord rules in the spirit of believers through the Holy Spirit. However, there is no land or aristocracy guiding or ruling.   In the future we await the Millennial Kingdom of God as described in Revelation 20:1-11 and Psalm 2. This is the 1,000-year (millennium) reign of Jesus on earth over the entire earth.    This then is followed by the Eternal Kingdom described in Revelation 21-22 in which the foundation of the gates of the city are named with the 12 apostles and the gates are named for the 12 tribes of Israel. The tabernacle of God will be among men. (21:3)   The kingdom plan of Eden will be restored and perfected. This Kingdom will be a theocracy accompanied by an aristocracy. God will rule and He will rule through His people.   I cannot tell you if we are headed for an economic recession or a reversal of political leadership in our country. But I can tell you the world of the future is going to be awesome. For our God is an awesome God. He reigns from heaven above for now and on the new earth later. Soon and very soon we are going to see the King.   Serving Him with you "now" until He comes for us "later," Fred

July 1, 2022

I’m Ann and I’m Out to Change My World ~Ann Kiemel~

Back in 1974 this was a book as well as the by-line and message of Ann, a “twenty something,” who was out to change her world. In her naivete and childish simplicity she actually thought the Gospel could change the world. Many mocked her, including me, and the audacious and simplistic solution she put forth to deal with the complex problems of a tumultuous society. Today many Evangelical Christians have sought cultural safety in a political party. There clearly is a distinction and difference between the parties. There is no denying that one of the political parties provides a platform that includes progressive means for death of the unborn, perversion of the once born, and hostility to us who believe in being twice born...Again. The other political parties have their own problematic proclivities. But Ann was right, because she understood what Jesus said and the Apostle Paul taught. If you want to change the world then you need more than the power of a political party. You need more than the political power to mandate laws. You need the spiritual power to transform lives. The Gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ, provides that power because Jesus is the message and He transforms lives. It is His message and His power that takes a man or a woman from hell to heaven. Now that is power! The great commission is preceded with the great comment, “All authority has been given unto Me on heaven and earth." Then the great commission: “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” The mandate is to make disciples. That is the main verb. The three participles tell us how we do it. As we we are“Going” we are evangelizing the lost, evidenced in “Baptizing,” and then Edifying the saved by “Teaching” all things. This great commission has not been changed or rescinded. Paul captured this idea in Colossians 1:28; “We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, so that we may present every man complete in Christ. For this purpose also I labor, striving according to His power, which mightily works within me.” It sounds so simple, and in one sense it is not only simple it is sublime. As Jesus converts people and as people become conformed to the image of Christ there is a sacred presence in the world. And that is the power the Lord uses to transform society. Do not get me wrong. We are to vote and vote for those who best promote truth, righteousness, and justice. But we must never forget; “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel saying, ‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ says the Lord of hosts.” Zechariah 4:6 Serving Him with you until He comes for us, Fred