Looking across the headlines today it would be very easing to be a little depressed: Missing 12-year old girl found dead, America prime target for attack, husband accused in murder of wife.
Going to more local, here in Saginaw we have this epidemic of teen's being shot and killed (mostly gang related), Michigan's employment looking bleak, 20 Campgrounds closed due to funding.
Finally, at the personal level, friends and family report children who are living lives filled with 'sex, drugs, rap-n-rock', divorces, terminal illnesses.
There is a very bleak picture one could paint of modern, middle-class, American lives. I am sure it is the same in all classes and cultures of people. Sorry, Wayne Dyer and Norman Vincent Peale, all does not become better just because I think it is or even want it to be.
But it is OK to be a little depressed about what is happening around us. It is sad to see sin coming to fullness. We can see the pain and destruction of this from a global to a local to a personal level - and we should wonder why we embrace sin when the results are not only apparent but felt time and time and time again.
However, in our depression, we must not forget our hope. Christians have a light at the end of the tunnel that gets us through each day.
Our response to the world around us is to cling to that hope, to grasp it fully and firmly, realizing that it is what is keeping us from despair.
Job's response to the destruction of his world as he knew it was to praise God, realizing it all came from God. But this was not a stoic praise, it was a praise that came from deep within his heart because he knew how fleeting all things are except hope in God.
Let us respond the same as Job. Weep, laugh, cry, smile, enjoy, be in pain all with the knowledge that it is the repentance of our heart and the renewing of our lives through the reception of Christ as Lord that makes each breath worth breathing.
About Me
- Thomas W. Peck
- Saginaw, Michigan, United States
- A sinner who may come before God because of Christ
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Friday, July 13, 2007
Sunday, July 08, 2007
How can we then understand mercy without understanding sin?
In one episode of the West Wing, a show about American government politics, the current President is meeting with an opposition Senator and the talk goes to religion. The Senator says that he was once a church-goer until his wife bought him a Bible and he read it and was shocked at the violence commanded through the punishment of death for adulterers, homosexuals, etc. and that is why he turned away from God.
I thought this was an interesting point of view.
Most agree that the punishment should be weighed with the seriousness of the offense. The more serious and offensive we find something, the more severe and harsher we want the punishment. Misdemeanors are, to society, less offensive than felonies, so fines are less costly and jail time is of shorter duration.
It seems logical then, that what is most “offensive” to God is that which would have the most serious punishments. Therefore, those sins requiring the loss of a life as punishment would be the most grievous ones to God.
The criminal, on the other hand, does not look at his own offense but rather at the punishment, often finding it too severe for the crime.
This is where our culture misses the point.
To the character on West Wing, those “sins” are minor. In modern thinking, they are private matters and should have no offense to society or to the individual because, they ask - what harm is caused by these actions. But in the mind of the Senator (writers of the show), the “sins” were not that serious to them so the punishment appears harsh. Rather than look at it from the God’s perspective, the law-giver, they were looking at it from the law-breaker’s perspective.
How often do we, like that character, ask not “Is this wrong” but, instead, demand to know “Why is this a wrong”?
We (as a culture) theoretically set laws based on the “common good”, but God sets His laws based on His Character – Who He is, perfection. This can best be explained with the concept of silence and darkness.
With noise, silence ceases to exist. With light, darkness ceases to exist. Evil is like darkness, the absence of light or silence, the absence of noise. Bring in righteousness, evil no longer exists. That which is not righteous cannot exist in the presence of pure righteousness (which is what God is). By breaking God’s law (i.e. sinning against God) we have lost our righteousness and can no longer be in God’s presence.
That is why it is wrong, these behaviors and actions violate righteousness. We, who are unrighteous, those who have sinned (who among us has not done something wrong) can no longer be in the presence of God.
That is where Christ comes in. As God in human form, perfect human form, He “took on our sin”, actually, “became sin for us” and took on the punishment. God, in a sense that is hard to conceptualize, actually separated Himself from Himself and, in doing so, brought Himself back together and now, because of what He did, we have our sins against God covered (hidden) from God and can be in His presence. He gave us mercy through His own sacrifice for our sins.
Getting back to the original statement, unless we see our sin, our need for salvation, God’s mercy does not make sense. We are as running around in darkness not realizing we are in dark until we see light and then realize we are in darkness.
I thought this was an interesting point of view.
Most agree that the punishment should be weighed with the seriousness of the offense. The more serious and offensive we find something, the more severe and harsher we want the punishment. Misdemeanors are, to society, less offensive than felonies, so fines are less costly and jail time is of shorter duration.
It seems logical then, that what is most “offensive” to God is that which would have the most serious punishments. Therefore, those sins requiring the loss of a life as punishment would be the most grievous ones to God.
The criminal, on the other hand, does not look at his own offense but rather at the punishment, often finding it too severe for the crime.
This is where our culture misses the point.
To the character on West Wing, those “sins” are minor. In modern thinking, they are private matters and should have no offense to society or to the individual because, they ask - what harm is caused by these actions. But in the mind of the Senator (writers of the show), the “sins” were not that serious to them so the punishment appears harsh. Rather than look at it from the God’s perspective, the law-giver, they were looking at it from the law-breaker’s perspective.
How often do we, like that character, ask not “Is this wrong” but, instead, demand to know “Why is this a wrong”?
We (as a culture) theoretically set laws based on the “common good”, but God sets His laws based on His Character – Who He is, perfection. This can best be explained with the concept of silence and darkness.
With noise, silence ceases to exist. With light, darkness ceases to exist. Evil is like darkness, the absence of light or silence, the absence of noise. Bring in righteousness, evil no longer exists. That which is not righteous cannot exist in the presence of pure righteousness (which is what God is). By breaking God’s law (i.e. sinning against God) we have lost our righteousness and can no longer be in God’s presence.
That is why it is wrong, these behaviors and actions violate righteousness. We, who are unrighteous, those who have sinned (who among us has not done something wrong) can no longer be in the presence of God.
That is where Christ comes in. As God in human form, perfect human form, He “took on our sin”, actually, “became sin for us” and took on the punishment. God, in a sense that is hard to conceptualize, actually separated Himself from Himself and, in doing so, brought Himself back together and now, because of what He did, we have our sins against God covered (hidden) from God and can be in His presence. He gave us mercy through His own sacrifice for our sins.
Getting back to the original statement, unless we see our sin, our need for salvation, God’s mercy does not make sense. We are as running around in darkness not realizing we are in dark until we see light and then realize we are in darkness.
Saturday, July 07, 2007
Praise Songs should glorify God, duh.
I have a strong passions regarding when it comes to the Glory of God. I have little interest or even offense when non-Christians attack or demean or belittle God. What else should we expect from those who have know personal relationship with their Creator?
Where I do have little patience is with those who profess Christ and then who proclaim Him as less than He is.
One area where this occurs regularly is in the (so-called) praise songs bandied about these days. Some of them are great and make me fall to my knees, but others are so simplistic, even pathetic in the image they portray of our Savior and Lord.
A few years ago, I critiqued in a newsletter I send out (now called Encouragement from Saginaw) a song that was used in the church I was a member as falling into the poor category. The response from the leadership was interesting - they did not argue or disagree with my critique, but the concern was that I was hurting the leader's reputation. Their concern was more how this would effect the ministry.
I apologized for any personal offense but stood firm on my assessment of the songs lyrics. After this had settled I wrote the following:
While I have strong beliefs, I try to test them through exposure to alternative or contrary viewpoints. It would be foolish for me to believe in my own perfection, even the “great” thinkers of the faith have some short-comings or area of error or personal character flaw. These should remind us of how far we are from God’s glory.
Secular humanism, on the other hand, stands man above God as more important than God. It is centered on the individual, while promoting the concept that everything is interconnected and nothing is above anything else. No wonder modern man is outraged at the killing of baby seals but celebrates the abortion of unborn human children.
Man risen, not Christ risen, is the call of humanism. Out of this line of thinking rises a number of other “isms” – naturalism, feminism, communism, socialism, egalitarianism. All centered on man and his needs, wants, and desires - that God-granted talents are best used for man’s purpose and not as God desires.
When this concept is not purged from one’s self, our worship moves from Awesome God to Magnificent Man. Worship’s focus becomes the individual’s experience rather than God’s delight in our outpouring to Him. Worship moves from a corporate statement to a singular feeling best summarized.
“Was I fed?”, “Was I ministered to?”, “Did the songs please me?” Becomes the mantra as the measurement of the value of the service (or music or sermon) - being the tickled ear and not the changed heart.
A.W. Tozer put it this way: “
I'm always suspicious when we talk too much about ourselves. Somebody pointed out that hymnody took a downward trend when we left the great objective hymns that talked about God and began to sing the gospel songs that talk about us. There was a day when men sang "Holy, Holy, Holy," and "O Worship the King," and they talked objectively about the greatness of God. Then we backslid into that gutter where we still are where everything is about "I." "I'm so happy," "I'm so blest," "I'm so nice," "I'm so good," always "I." The difference between heaven and hell is the difference between God and I. Jesus Christ, by canceling His "I" was the Christ of God, not as I will, but as Thou wilt. The devil by magnifying his "I" became the devil-when he said, "I will arise, and I will raise my throne above the throne of God."
I struggle with wanting me pleased on Sunday morning (and the rest of the week) rather than our Lord being pleased, forgetting that His pleasure brings me no greater joy. I struggle with putting my self aside for what God has ordered or ordained. I struggle with the roles He placed, or has not placed me in; with the doors He close and the personal desires left unmet.
Yet, I am learning to bring to the altar each week the leftovers of my “old man” to put them under the authority of Christ and renew my mind - but sometimes I will just not let go of who I was! Having been raised on the junk food of Humanism, filled with the fat of self-esteem, digested the lie of personal potential, and have grown obese on the philosophy that it is all about me, so much that my heart is clogged with the cholesterol of the world.
But Praise God who is a skillful surgeon, and who operates with a precise, radical surgery. He opens my chest and replaces that dead heart with one made in His perfection. He clears the blocked arteries with the medicine of the Word. He places me on the healthy diet to disdain the world’s poisoned feast, reminding me to not eat of it to my fullness but to find true bread only in Him!
Brothers and Sisters, eat of the only worthy fruit, which is Christ Crucified. Obliterate our old self through the shining light of Him. Stand firm in the Law and the Grace. May you be filled by the station He has set before you and find your satisfaction not in the mud pies of the world but in the banquet feast of the Lord.
For His Glory,
Tom
Where I do have little patience is with those who profess Christ and then who proclaim Him as less than He is.
One area where this occurs regularly is in the (so-called) praise songs bandied about these days. Some of them are great and make me fall to my knees, but others are so simplistic, even pathetic in the image they portray of our Savior and Lord.
A few years ago, I critiqued in a newsletter I send out (now called Encouragement from Saginaw) a song that was used in the church I was a member as falling into the poor category. The response from the leadership was interesting - they did not argue or disagree with my critique, but the concern was that I was hurting the leader's reputation. Their concern was more how this would effect the ministry.
I apologized for any personal offense but stood firm on my assessment of the songs lyrics. After this had settled I wrote the following:
While I have strong beliefs, I try to test them through exposure to alternative or contrary viewpoints. It would be foolish for me to believe in my own perfection, even the “great” thinkers of the faith have some short-comings or area of error or personal character flaw. These should remind us of how far we are from God’s glory.
Secular humanism, on the other hand, stands man above God as more important than God. It is centered on the individual, while promoting the concept that everything is interconnected and nothing is above anything else. No wonder modern man is outraged at the killing of baby seals but celebrates the abortion of unborn human children.
Man risen, not Christ risen, is the call of humanism. Out of this line of thinking rises a number of other “isms” – naturalism, feminism, communism, socialism, egalitarianism. All centered on man and his needs, wants, and desires - that God-granted talents are best used for man’s purpose and not as God desires.
When this concept is not purged from one’s self, our worship moves from Awesome God to Magnificent Man. Worship’s focus becomes the individual’s experience rather than God’s delight in our outpouring to Him. Worship moves from a corporate statement to a singular feeling best summarized.
“Was I fed?”, “Was I ministered to?”, “Did the songs please me?” Becomes the mantra as the measurement of the value of the service (or music or sermon) - being the tickled ear and not the changed heart.
A.W. Tozer put it this way: “
I'm always suspicious when we talk too much about ourselves. Somebody pointed out that hymnody took a downward trend when we left the great objective hymns that talked about God and began to sing the gospel songs that talk about us. There was a day when men sang "Holy, Holy, Holy," and "O Worship the King," and they talked objectively about the greatness of God. Then we backslid into that gutter where we still are where everything is about "I." "I'm so happy," "I'm so blest," "I'm so nice," "I'm so good," always "I." The difference between heaven and hell is the difference between God and I. Jesus Christ, by canceling His "I" was the Christ of God, not as I will, but as Thou wilt. The devil by magnifying his "I" became the devil-when he said, "I will arise, and I will raise my throne above the throne of God."
I struggle with wanting me pleased on Sunday morning (and the rest of the week) rather than our Lord being pleased, forgetting that His pleasure brings me no greater joy. I struggle with putting my self aside for what God has ordered or ordained. I struggle with the roles He placed, or has not placed me in; with the doors He close and the personal desires left unmet.
Yet, I am learning to bring to the altar each week the leftovers of my “old man” to put them under the authority of Christ and renew my mind - but sometimes I will just not let go of who I was! Having been raised on the junk food of Humanism, filled with the fat of self-esteem, digested the lie of personal potential, and have grown obese on the philosophy that it is all about me, so much that my heart is clogged with the cholesterol of the world.
But Praise God who is a skillful surgeon, and who operates with a precise, radical surgery. He opens my chest and replaces that dead heart with one made in His perfection. He clears the blocked arteries with the medicine of the Word. He places me on the healthy diet to disdain the world’s poisoned feast, reminding me to not eat of it to my fullness but to find true bread only in Him!
Brothers and Sisters, eat of the only worthy fruit, which is Christ Crucified. Obliterate our old self through the shining light of Him. Stand firm in the Law and the Grace. May you be filled by the station He has set before you and find your satisfaction not in the mud pies of the world but in the banquet feast of the Lord.
For His Glory,
Tom
Tuesday, July 03, 2007
Good and Faithful
Have you ever been going along just thinking you were doing okay. Maybe living on ‘auto-pilot’, looking at your life and saying, “ Hey, I’m doing alright”. “I’m praying, I’m reading the Bible, I’m serving, God is blessing me, I’m giving a tithe, I’m offering alms, I’m sharing the Gospel, I’m avoiding sin, I’m serving the Church and my neighbors, I’m being righteous, I’m bathing most days, I’m brushing my teeth regularly, I’m losing a little weight”.
Then the Lord strikes you through the heart with a passage. Well, not even a passage, but a verse. Actually not even a verse but a few words in a verse.
That happened to me today in Mark 11:12: “For you are not swayed by appearances but truly teach the way of God.”
My other readings of this always brought me to the conclusion that this was only about how I viewed others. Do I love (or hate or dislike or give kindness or withhold my love) to people based on their actions, circumstances, poor choice, or ethnic heritage or economic situation or even who their mother happened to be? Am I judging others with the same scale that I weigh myself? It seemed this verse was only saying – “Tom, what is your attitude towards others”. Am I seeing others through my distorted vision or through the clarity of God’s eyes?
But today these little words went a little deeper than that for me.
Christ is not ‘asking’ me anything here but making a statement, a command. We are not only ‘not to be swayed’ by where or who or how someone is, we are to ‘truly’ teach the way of God to them.
Which raises an even more critical question: “While I am living as a Christian, is my life teaching about Christ and is it doing that in a way that is true?
Here is the thing about teachers, the effective ones are those who have a great passion for the topic they are instructing. A ‘true’ teacher not only has knowledge and a great technique, but a desire for the student’s betterment. He wants others to not only learn, but to catch his passion and grasp hold of the subject.
We are not only to be good students of Christ, we are to be true teachers of Christ. We are not only to be concerned if “I” am doing good, but is that good coming of anything – does my living good teach the way of God?
It was much easier to assess my life on only how I treat others because then I could pat myself on the back and say “See, God, I am doing well”. And our hope is that he responds “my good and faithful servant”.
Then the Lord strikes you through the heart with a passage. Well, not even a passage, but a verse. Actually not even a verse but a few words in a verse.
That happened to me today in Mark 11:12: “For you are not swayed by appearances but truly teach the way of God.”
My other readings of this always brought me to the conclusion that this was only about how I viewed others. Do I love (or hate or dislike or give kindness or withhold my love) to people based on their actions, circumstances, poor choice, or ethnic heritage or economic situation or even who their mother happened to be? Am I judging others with the same scale that I weigh myself? It seemed this verse was only saying – “Tom, what is your attitude towards others”. Am I seeing others through my distorted vision or through the clarity of God’s eyes?
But today these little words went a little deeper than that for me.
Christ is not ‘asking’ me anything here but making a statement, a command. We are not only ‘not to be swayed’ by where or who or how someone is, we are to ‘truly’ teach the way of God to them.
Which raises an even more critical question: “While I am living as a Christian, is my life teaching about Christ and is it doing that in a way that is true?
Here is the thing about teachers, the effective ones are those who have a great passion for the topic they are instructing. A ‘true’ teacher not only has knowledge and a great technique, but a desire for the student’s betterment. He wants others to not only learn, but to catch his passion and grasp hold of the subject.
We are not only to be good students of Christ, we are to be true teachers of Christ. We are not only to be concerned if “I” am doing good, but is that good coming of anything – does my living good teach the way of God?
It was much easier to assess my life on only how I treat others because then I could pat myself on the back and say “See, God, I am doing well”. And our hope is that he responds “my good and faithful servant”.
Saturday, June 30, 2007
Spam and Doctrine
There are a number of church “movements” that have become popular. The ‘seeker sensitive’, the ‘emergent’ conversation, ‘purpose driven’ approach are all ways of ‘doing’ church. There is ‘love languages’, ‘boundaries’, ‘wild at heart’, and a number of other trends in improving our personal growth with God and each other.
Now, this happened to me a couple of years ago just before Thanksgiving.
I received an email announcing that my Pay-pal account needed updating. Now, Pay-pal is a very secure method for transferring funds for purchasing items over the Internet. Since I had not used the service in a few months, I clicked the link from the e-mail (I can already hear some groaning) and was taken to a site with the login boxes. I logged in and filled out the information to update the requested information, which included my debit card number and password.
Well, this turned out to be a bogus site. A couple of days later I tried to purchase some Christmas gifts using my debit and it was rejected. This was a shock because my paycheck had just been deposited a couple of days before the purchase. When I got home and checked my accounts on line, the checking account had been drained of all available funds through ATM withdrawals from some banks in Bulgaria (I live in Michigan).
I then remembered that I had updated through an email. I went and checked. The bogus website looked and acted exactly like the Paypal site. It had the same logo, the same fonts, everything. I opened both sites up and the only difference was the address.
The lesson learned – something can look true, can sound true, can even feel true, but not be true.
Doctrines can be the same way. They can look and feel the same but only appear different when checked with the ‘address’ – Scripture. Upon being compared with the Word of God, they become clearly false and the results can be even more disastrous than an empty bank account or embarrassment for being taken. Lost souls remain lost and do not know they are lost because they cling to a false belief.
That is why Scripture says we are to be Bereans (Acts 17: 10-11), checking beliefs by searching the Scriptures in order assure that our faith is true to Christ, and is aligned with God.
For His Glory (not mine),
Tom
Now, this happened to me a couple of years ago just before Thanksgiving.
I received an email announcing that my Pay-pal account needed updating. Now, Pay-pal is a very secure method for transferring funds for purchasing items over the Internet. Since I had not used the service in a few months, I clicked the link from the e-mail (I can already hear some groaning) and was taken to a site with the login boxes. I logged in and filled out the information to update the requested information, which included my debit card number and password.
Well, this turned out to be a bogus site. A couple of days later I tried to purchase some Christmas gifts using my debit and it was rejected. This was a shock because my paycheck had just been deposited a couple of days before the purchase. When I got home and checked my accounts on line, the checking account had been drained of all available funds through ATM withdrawals from some banks in Bulgaria (I live in Michigan).
I then remembered that I had updated through an email. I went and checked. The bogus website looked and acted exactly like the Paypal site. It had the same logo, the same fonts, everything. I opened both sites up and the only difference was the address.
The lesson learned – something can look true, can sound true, can even feel true, but not be true.
Doctrines can be the same way. They can look and feel the same but only appear different when checked with the ‘address’ – Scripture. Upon being compared with the Word of God, they become clearly false and the results can be even more disastrous than an empty bank account or embarrassment for being taken. Lost souls remain lost and do not know they are lost because they cling to a false belief.
That is why Scripture says we are to be Bereans (Acts 17: 10-11), checking beliefs by searching the Scriptures in order assure that our faith is true to Christ, and is aligned with God.
For His Glory (not mine),
Tom
Thursday, January 18, 2007
Capital Punishment
As a Christian, Scripture clearly tells us that human life is sacred to God. After all, He created man in His Image and set forth the Law so that a human life can only be taken in certain circumstances. He tells us to love one another, regardless of their situation, regardless of their circumstance. He even tells us to love those who are our enemies or who have wronged us. He tells us to even love the criminals in prison.
So, in light of that, I would like to propose a Christian Response to the issue of Capital Punishment.
Firstly, we need to be cognizant not of our desires, but God’s desires when an occasion happens that a life will be taken. To God, life is sacrosanct, so it was only for the most heinous of crimes (to God, not to man) that a person should lose his/her life.
In the Old Testament, God laid out the Law, and He also laid out the consequences (i.e. punishment) for violating the Law, some of which required the forfeiting of life. The consequence shows man how important the Law was to God and the seriousness of the situation.
In some cases of sin, God allowed a substitute to be used in place of the guilty one, in others the criminal must pay directly him/her self. In those cases there needed to be absolute proof that the person committed the crime. This was also at a time before there were "governments" so it was the family, loved ones, friends, etc. who were allowed to carry out the punishment.
In the New Testament, Christ, who is God, fulfilled the Law so that man was no longer the payee of the crime (Christ died for our sins) or required to carry out the punishment. I think of the response of Christ to the adulteress in John 8. In this well-known passage Christ says to the crowd: “you without sin throw the first stone (Tom’s translation) and turns to the woman and says “go and sin no more”. The Law moved from corporate to individual. It was now God who will judge and condemn not His people. It is God who is to avenge and bring about His perfect Justice.
However, when it comes to governing bodies, according to Romans, they have the right to designate those civil crimes that will be punished, including the taking of the life of the criminal. This can be done to fulfill the government’s role in administering the principles of justice and to protect those it governs. That should be the two measures used for any punishment.
Deterrence is the concept that I won’t commit a crime because I do not want to do the time. There is some truth in this, but most people who were caught committing a crime did not believe they would get caught. I don’t see Capital Punishment as a deterrent. My experience of being a parent has shown me that the possibility of punishment does not deter, it is the reality of punishment that deters.
For instance, if I say to my child, if you don’t eat your vegetables then you cannot go out and play with your friends, she will test that once. Afterwards, I only have to say it. If, on the other hand, she does not eat her vegetables and then I allow her to go outside, I have lost my credibility. The threat is only as good as the willingness to carry out the consequences, and with our judicial system, the reality of punishment is a coin-toss probability, or is at least seen that way. Doing the crime is worth the chance – so I do not see Capital Punishment as a good deterrent.
Capital Punishment does exact justice. The tricky part is to assure it is being administered justly. Man’s record on doing that is not very good. That is why in God’s Laws that were capital offenses, He required exact evidence and, if there was falsifying evidence, those who lied forfeited their lives as well - again, an example of how serious the crime is to the Lawgiver as shown by the punishment.
However, Capital Punishment is an effective way to protect society. The criminal has been removed from the possibility of committing another crime. The saga is done, the person is no longer a threat, but we have the same problem with administering it correctly.
While I see life as sacred, I can agree that Capital Punishment is allowed and supportable but only in very specific situations and with absolute proof and where there the purpose is to both administer justice and secure safety.
A Christian Response to Capital Punishment then is that it is allowed, but under these conditions:
It must bring about justice (the punishment fitting the crime)
It must bring about protection to society or to individuals
It must have been adjudicated fairly with absolute proof of guilt
It must not be done to appease the crowd or to sate our own desires
So, in light of that, I would like to propose a Christian Response to the issue of Capital Punishment.
Firstly, we need to be cognizant not of our desires, but God’s desires when an occasion happens that a life will be taken. To God, life is sacrosanct, so it was only for the most heinous of crimes (to God, not to man) that a person should lose his/her life.
In the Old Testament, God laid out the Law, and He also laid out the consequences (i.e. punishment) for violating the Law, some of which required the forfeiting of life. The consequence shows man how important the Law was to God and the seriousness of the situation.
In some cases of sin, God allowed a substitute to be used in place of the guilty one, in others the criminal must pay directly him/her self. In those cases there needed to be absolute proof that the person committed the crime. This was also at a time before there were "governments" so it was the family, loved ones, friends, etc. who were allowed to carry out the punishment.
In the New Testament, Christ, who is God, fulfilled the Law so that man was no longer the payee of the crime (Christ died for our sins) or required to carry out the punishment. I think of the response of Christ to the adulteress in John 8. In this well-known passage Christ says to the crowd: “you without sin throw the first stone (Tom’s translation) and turns to the woman and says “go and sin no more”. The Law moved from corporate to individual. It was now God who will judge and condemn not His people. It is God who is to avenge and bring about His perfect Justice.
However, when it comes to governing bodies, according to Romans, they have the right to designate those civil crimes that will be punished, including the taking of the life of the criminal. This can be done to fulfill the government’s role in administering the principles of justice and to protect those it governs. That should be the two measures used for any punishment.
Deterrence is the concept that I won’t commit a crime because I do not want to do the time. There is some truth in this, but most people who were caught committing a crime did not believe they would get caught. I don’t see Capital Punishment as a deterrent. My experience of being a parent has shown me that the possibility of punishment does not deter, it is the reality of punishment that deters.
For instance, if I say to my child, if you don’t eat your vegetables then you cannot go out and play with your friends, she will test that once. Afterwards, I only have to say it. If, on the other hand, she does not eat her vegetables and then I allow her to go outside, I have lost my credibility. The threat is only as good as the willingness to carry out the consequences, and with our judicial system, the reality of punishment is a coin-toss probability, or is at least seen that way. Doing the crime is worth the chance – so I do not see Capital Punishment as a good deterrent.
Capital Punishment does exact justice. The tricky part is to assure it is being administered justly. Man’s record on doing that is not very good. That is why in God’s Laws that were capital offenses, He required exact evidence and, if there was falsifying evidence, those who lied forfeited their lives as well - again, an example of how serious the crime is to the Lawgiver as shown by the punishment.
However, Capital Punishment is an effective way to protect society. The criminal has been removed from the possibility of committing another crime. The saga is done, the person is no longer a threat, but we have the same problem with administering it correctly.
While I see life as sacred, I can agree that Capital Punishment is allowed and supportable but only in very specific situations and with absolute proof and where there the purpose is to both administer justice and secure safety.
A Christian Response to Capital Punishment then is that it is allowed, but under these conditions:
It must bring about justice (the punishment fitting the crime)
It must bring about protection to society or to individuals
It must have been adjudicated fairly with absolute proof of guilt
It must not be done to appease the crowd or to sate our own desires
Monday, January 08, 2007
God’s With Us.
This last Sunday, the sermon at church was on "God With Us", making the Scriptural case that God has been present with us in varying forms, but each time it was better than before.
For instance, in the Old Testament times, He was in the Pillars that led Israel in the desert and in the early New Testament He was in the Temple. Then He was Christ in human body and now He dwells in us, who repent and believe, through the Holy Spirit. In the future near He will be with us in totality, so there is this growing presence of Him with us through the ages.
That, on its own, is something to chew on and consider, but what does that mean “for the price of tea in China” (funny how we always want to bring something to us personally – like it is only worthwhile if it has meaning to us). It means that you will have a face-to-face relationship with God.
There is something about God that we need to realize and remember. He knows. He knows everything. He has the capability to see, comprehend, understand and respond to everything. Nothing happens that is a surprise to Him nor that was not allowed by Him nor done through Him.
I recently had a conversation where I knew that I was not getting the whole story from the other person. That is to be expected. No one can give the whole story because we do not know the whole story and because we do not want to tell the whole story and because we may not, at the moment, remember the whole story. Rare is the person who can give a blow-by-blow account of an event, but God knows the second-by-second of our whole life. So we cannot fool God – accidentally or on-purpose.
This means everything we do is not only seen by God, but understood by God, and judged by God, and one day we will be in His presence. That will be a humbling experience when we see the one whom we have hurt the most. Even our repentance will not remove the sorrow we will feel when we are faced with the ultimate love to us and realize that we have often given the ultimate snub to that love.
Our purpose, since it seems the fashion these days to seek out purpose, is to glorify God, and that is the standard to which we must measure each moment. Yet we don’t. We ignore God until we need Him. We focus on the daily grind, the latest fashion, this weeks cinematic release, the hottest song, the most popular show. . . entertainment, which by definition is meaningless activity, becomes most everyone’s meaning. We allow it to define us, to guide us, to control us.
And all the while God’s plan moves forward with Him coming closer to being with us each day and we will regret each moment we did not prepare for Him. Some will regret how they ignored His wrath, others will regret how they ignored His love.
Let us respond without regret, let us remember He is with us, now through His Spirit, before through Christ, in the future, before our eyes and act accordingly.
For His Glory,
Tom
For instance, in the Old Testament times, He was in the Pillars that led Israel in the desert and in the early New Testament He was in the Temple. Then He was Christ in human body and now He dwells in us, who repent and believe, through the Holy Spirit. In the future near He will be with us in totality, so there is this growing presence of Him with us through the ages.
That, on its own, is something to chew on and consider, but what does that mean “for the price of tea in China” (funny how we always want to bring something to us personally – like it is only worthwhile if it has meaning to us). It means that you will have a face-to-face relationship with God.
There is something about God that we need to realize and remember. He knows. He knows everything. He has the capability to see, comprehend, understand and respond to everything. Nothing happens that is a surprise to Him nor that was not allowed by Him nor done through Him.
I recently had a conversation where I knew that I was not getting the whole story from the other person. That is to be expected. No one can give the whole story because we do not know the whole story and because we do not want to tell the whole story and because we may not, at the moment, remember the whole story. Rare is the person who can give a blow-by-blow account of an event, but God knows the second-by-second of our whole life. So we cannot fool God – accidentally or on-purpose.
This means everything we do is not only seen by God, but understood by God, and judged by God, and one day we will be in His presence. That will be a humbling experience when we see the one whom we have hurt the most. Even our repentance will not remove the sorrow we will feel when we are faced with the ultimate love to us and realize that we have often given the ultimate snub to that love.
Our purpose, since it seems the fashion these days to seek out purpose, is to glorify God, and that is the standard to which we must measure each moment. Yet we don’t. We ignore God until we need Him. We focus on the daily grind, the latest fashion, this weeks cinematic release, the hottest song, the most popular show. . . entertainment, which by definition is meaningless activity, becomes most everyone’s meaning. We allow it to define us, to guide us, to control us.
And all the while God’s plan moves forward with Him coming closer to being with us each day and we will regret each moment we did not prepare for Him. Some will regret how they ignored His wrath, others will regret how they ignored His love.
Let us respond without regret, let us remember He is with us, now through His Spirit, before through Christ, in the future, before our eyes and act accordingly.
For His Glory,
Tom
Saturday, December 30, 2006
The Death of an Evil Man
Saddam Hussein was hanged just before dawn in his country. There was no doubt that he had done some horrendous and terrible things to others. He ruled with a tight fist, he exploited his people, he was ruthless to his enemies, and he showed no mercy.
He professed Islam, but there are reports that he did not believe in God. Perhaps he saw that faith as a sound political decision rather than something that was heartfelt. The reports indicated he was carrying a Koran when he died, perhaps in the final days, his faith became more important to him.
His death is a happy day for those who were oppressed by him, but it is also a sad day for those who love humanity because he passed onto an eternal fate that no one wishes on another. Saddam Hussein was not saved by the blood of Christ.
For some reason, we Christians have become squeamish about making just such a statement about someone else. It yields cries of “judgmental” or “intolerant” or even “how presumptuous”. I think we are afraid to face that truth because it means we need to do react to that reality.
Is my neighbor saved? I don’t know but I might offend him if I tell him of the gospel and ruin a perfectly good relationship (hey, I might need to borrow his step-ladder some day).
But we should be questioning the salvation of others by constantly conveying the gospel. We should be breathing the words of salvation. We should be preaching to the choir. I should be asking you and you asking me.
A few years ago I was talking with one of the men ushering at church. He was a neat guy. He was known for his generosity, his kindness, his love for others. He passed out candy to the kids coming into church. He volunteered on the menial tasks. He was the kind of guy you just wanted to hug when you saw him. He had even developed the habit of writing the names of people in his Bible to remind him to pray for that person. My name was in there, as were the names of many others. I felt a great assurance by this.
During our conversation, he looked at me and his brow furled. He said he was reading the Bible the other day and was not sure he was saved.
You could have knocked me over with a feather. His statement left me dumbfounded. At first I stuttered something to the effect of “of course you are” – thinking of his position and long-standing membership in the church – he is an usher. He had been an elder. He prayed for the people whose names he had written in his Bible!
He retorted that he was just not sure.
I asked him if he had ever repented of his sins and accepted Christ as Lord and Savior. He said he had. Then I told him to be assured about his salvation - on that day an evil man had died and a child of God had been born.
He chuckled and smiled, his countenance changed and he seemed assured by this. No opportunity to discuss this issue further happened because soon after our conversation he passed away from an illness.
Was he “saved”? I believe he was because of his profession and his life.
I will take the criticism that I am being judgmental and intolerant and even presumptuous, because the reality is that all evil men will someday die – either in the flesh, like Saddam Hussein, or in the spirit, like the usher at church.
For His Glory,
Tom Peck
He professed Islam, but there are reports that he did not believe in God. Perhaps he saw that faith as a sound political decision rather than something that was heartfelt. The reports indicated he was carrying a Koran when he died, perhaps in the final days, his faith became more important to him.
His death is a happy day for those who were oppressed by him, but it is also a sad day for those who love humanity because he passed onto an eternal fate that no one wishes on another. Saddam Hussein was not saved by the blood of Christ.
For some reason, we Christians have become squeamish about making just such a statement about someone else. It yields cries of “judgmental” or “intolerant” or even “how presumptuous”. I think we are afraid to face that truth because it means we need to do react to that reality.
Is my neighbor saved? I don’t know but I might offend him if I tell him of the gospel and ruin a perfectly good relationship (hey, I might need to borrow his step-ladder some day).
But we should be questioning the salvation of others by constantly conveying the gospel. We should be breathing the words of salvation. We should be preaching to the choir. I should be asking you and you asking me.
A few years ago I was talking with one of the men ushering at church. He was a neat guy. He was known for his generosity, his kindness, his love for others. He passed out candy to the kids coming into church. He volunteered on the menial tasks. He was the kind of guy you just wanted to hug when you saw him. He had even developed the habit of writing the names of people in his Bible to remind him to pray for that person. My name was in there, as were the names of many others. I felt a great assurance by this.
During our conversation, he looked at me and his brow furled. He said he was reading the Bible the other day and was not sure he was saved.
You could have knocked me over with a feather. His statement left me dumbfounded. At first I stuttered something to the effect of “of course you are” – thinking of his position and long-standing membership in the church – he is an usher. He had been an elder. He prayed for the people whose names he had written in his Bible!
He retorted that he was just not sure.
I asked him if he had ever repented of his sins and accepted Christ as Lord and Savior. He said he had. Then I told him to be assured about his salvation - on that day an evil man had died and a child of God had been born.
He chuckled and smiled, his countenance changed and he seemed assured by this. No opportunity to discuss this issue further happened because soon after our conversation he passed away from an illness.
Was he “saved”? I believe he was because of his profession and his life.
I will take the criticism that I am being judgmental and intolerant and even presumptuous, because the reality is that all evil men will someday die – either in the flesh, like Saddam Hussein, or in the spirit, like the usher at church.
For His Glory,
Tom Peck
Thursday, December 14, 2006
Sunday, December 10, 2006
News From Saginaw 12-10-06
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
The cold wind of this week turned warm and the temperature turned “balmy” (in winter that means above freezing), enough to melt the thin layer of snow and dampen the sidewalks.
This unexpected thaw, while not typical, is not unexpected. Around this time of year in Michigan it seems the weather bounces back and forth between freezing cold to damp cold. My arthritis is not sure which is worse, but it has truly become a two anti-inflammatory pills season for me.
These aches were not unexpected, though I had hoped they would stay away until I reached sixty, but fifty-three is better than forty-two. As we look forward into the future we hope for the best but have knowledge that only the worst will come until the Lord calls us home. Someone will disappoint us. Someone will get very ill. Someone will die. Someone will achieve something we had only dreamed about.
I am not being maudlin here, just realistic. This world holds nothing for us but the hope of the return of Christ. This was the subject of the sermon today at Immanuel – Jesus Christ is returning. He will be back.
This is not our hope, but our reality. It is, as the sermon indicated, a very practical doctrine for those of us waiting on His return. It should be the guiding principal of our every breath since in the next He could be here, and it is something we need to be consciously considering always.
Forget the 244 things every Christian should do, just remember that He will be here in the next eye blink or the next finger snap or the next swallow. In an instant, not unexpected, but anticipated.
I never thought too deeply about this reality. It is like Christmas coming. We don’t really get that ‘season’s spirit’ until after Thanksgiving (ok, unless you are a retailer then it starts in October). We don’t really get excited about it until December comes and we suddenly realize that we have gifts to buy and decorations to put up and cookies to bake and cards to send. It is the busyness of preparing that elevates the excitement and anticipation of the event.
How I desire that I dealt with the coming King like the coming holiday. How I need to be busy in preparing for the return of Christ. How I must see it as immanent and take care of the last minute details. If the King comes in the next moment will I have the gifts wrapped, the decorations up, the food ready?
There are sins within that I must face and hard-heartedness that needs to be addressed. There are those I have wronged whom I never sought forgiveness. There are others who I have never told the good news of repentance and salvation.
My hope is that you are ready to rise up to meet our Savior when He comes on the trumpet sound, and that He will greet you as a good and faithful servant. Remember that we are not of this world, but we will be going home sooner than we think, and I pray that we all will be ready.
For His Glory,
Tom
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
The cold wind of this week turned warm and the temperature turned “balmy” (in winter that means above freezing), enough to melt the thin layer of snow and dampen the sidewalks.
This unexpected thaw, while not typical, is not unexpected. Around this time of year in Michigan it seems the weather bounces back and forth between freezing cold to damp cold. My arthritis is not sure which is worse, but it has truly become a two anti-inflammatory pills season for me.
These aches were not unexpected, though I had hoped they would stay away until I reached sixty, but fifty-three is better than forty-two. As we look forward into the future we hope for the best but have knowledge that only the worst will come until the Lord calls us home. Someone will disappoint us. Someone will get very ill. Someone will die. Someone will achieve something we had only dreamed about.
I am not being maudlin here, just realistic. This world holds nothing for us but the hope of the return of Christ. This was the subject of the sermon today at Immanuel – Jesus Christ is returning. He will be back.
This is not our hope, but our reality. It is, as the sermon indicated, a very practical doctrine for those of us waiting on His return. It should be the guiding principal of our every breath since in the next He could be here, and it is something we need to be consciously considering always.
Forget the 244 things every Christian should do, just remember that He will be here in the next eye blink or the next finger snap or the next swallow. In an instant, not unexpected, but anticipated.
I never thought too deeply about this reality. It is like Christmas coming. We don’t really get that ‘season’s spirit’ until after Thanksgiving (ok, unless you are a retailer then it starts in October). We don’t really get excited about it until December comes and we suddenly realize that we have gifts to buy and decorations to put up and cookies to bake and cards to send. It is the busyness of preparing that elevates the excitement and anticipation of the event.
How I desire that I dealt with the coming King like the coming holiday. How I need to be busy in preparing for the return of Christ. How I must see it as immanent and take care of the last minute details. If the King comes in the next moment will I have the gifts wrapped, the decorations up, the food ready?
There are sins within that I must face and hard-heartedness that needs to be addressed. There are those I have wronged whom I never sought forgiveness. There are others who I have never told the good news of repentance and salvation.
My hope is that you are ready to rise up to meet our Savior when He comes on the trumpet sound, and that He will greet you as a good and faithful servant. Remember that we are not of this world, but we will be going home sooner than we think, and I pray that we all will be ready.
For His Glory,
Tom
Friday, November 10, 2006
Out of the Mainstream
In the last few days I have been reading blogs and listening to some of the speeches from people who describe themselves as “liberal” or “progressives”. They are vehemently anti-Biblical Christian, filled with hate and venom for the “enemy” (i.e. those who oppose their beliefs), and care very little about the facts. Of course, if you read the “right-wing” or “conservative” blogs you will get the same thing. The interesting thing is that most people consider themselves “mainstream” – they want to believe that most everyone, the majority, believes as they do.
I remember once I was late taking my son to school. I drove like a maniac through the streets and as I pulled up to the entrance, there was a long line of cars. “Ahhh” I consoled myself, “I’m not the only one late”, and this brought me some comfort, and maybe some sense of redemption or forgiveness because I was not the only arriving after the bell. We are not naturally drawn to being alone, to being the outsider. We prefer to be part of the crowd.
Yet, as Christians, we should know that we are not in the mainstream. In fact, we should be a puzzle to the world around us. We should be opposing and at the same time supporting. We should be speaking at the same time listening. We should be convicting at the same time comforting. We should be responding from our faith and not from our ideology.
Putting this into action, then, can become messy. We may have to wash the sores of the man dying from AIDS while admitting to him that God says his sexual desires are a sin. We may have to love someone who wronged us terribly. We may have to befriend someone who smells. We may have to endure the venomous words of others while still praying that they be blessed by God through salvation of their soul, even if our hearts are secretly delighted with the thought of them burning in hell.
As a Christian who labels himself Evangelical, we should not place our trust in this world, yet we are still a part of this world. God did not call us to create Eden in America or in the world, only to do as He would have us do.
This nation is terribly divided politically. We are in the midst of a war, both hot, in Iraq and Afghanistan, and cold, in the secret cadres of Jhadists, but there is a greater war being waged in the spiritual realm, and in our hearts.
We need to cling to the fact that God is sovereign and we are here to serve Him, and not some ideology, political party, or even a nation (though we can serve Him through those). Do not get wrapped up in the storm.
Let us remember that God is both Just and Merciful. Lord, help us to be the same.
For His Glory,
Tom
I remember once I was late taking my son to school. I drove like a maniac through the streets and as I pulled up to the entrance, there was a long line of cars. “Ahhh” I consoled myself, “I’m not the only one late”, and this brought me some comfort, and maybe some sense of redemption or forgiveness because I was not the only arriving after the bell. We are not naturally drawn to being alone, to being the outsider. We prefer to be part of the crowd.
Yet, as Christians, we should know that we are not in the mainstream. In fact, we should be a puzzle to the world around us. We should be opposing and at the same time supporting. We should be speaking at the same time listening. We should be convicting at the same time comforting. We should be responding from our faith and not from our ideology.
Putting this into action, then, can become messy. We may have to wash the sores of the man dying from AIDS while admitting to him that God says his sexual desires are a sin. We may have to love someone who wronged us terribly. We may have to befriend someone who smells. We may have to endure the venomous words of others while still praying that they be blessed by God through salvation of their soul, even if our hearts are secretly delighted with the thought of them burning in hell.
As a Christian who labels himself Evangelical, we should not place our trust in this world, yet we are still a part of this world. God did not call us to create Eden in America or in the world, only to do as He would have us do.
This nation is terribly divided politically. We are in the midst of a war, both hot, in Iraq and Afghanistan, and cold, in the secret cadres of Jhadists, but there is a greater war being waged in the spiritual realm, and in our hearts.
We need to cling to the fact that God is sovereign and we are here to serve Him, and not some ideology, political party, or even a nation (though we can serve Him through those). Do not get wrapped up in the storm.
Let us remember that God is both Just and Merciful. Lord, help us to be the same.
For His Glory,
Tom
Monday, November 06, 2006
When one of us fails.
For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.
This startling, sad, shocking, stunning news came out a few days ago. One of the rising stars of American Christianity had not only failed, but fell, no, plummeted into a sin that many see as one of the worst sins, one that is described as an abomination (Lev 18:22). That sin is engaging in sexual relations with someone of the same sex.
So, what should our response be to this?
On a personal level, we need to be in prayer not only for brother Haggard, but also his family, his friends, his church, anyone who is associated with him. We need to flood this whole issue in prayer, because it is so public and can so easily be used by the enemy, the evil one, to further besmirch the name of Christ.
On a congregational level, we need to assure our pastors and church leaders to be more open about their struggles. There seems to be tremendous pressure on church staff to perform, that failure is measured in dollars or numbers or performance. We need to take some of this pressure off so they can feel free to humble themselves and be strengthened in their weaknesses.
On a worldly level, we need to show the love of Christ to Mr. Haggard, but even more so, to the homosexual ‘community’. We need to show them that because they are imprisoned by their sin, their sexual desires, that this does not mean they are beyond the grace of God. Ray Comfort is right, we should not get in debates about specifics of sins but let the mirror of Scripture convict and convert.
This is actually a wonderful door that has opened. The world will be looking to how the Evangelical community responds to this. My hope is that they see an unbelievable response like the world saw from the Amish community when their daughters were senselessly killed and they put out their arms in love to the killer’s family.
Let us stand firm in His truth, but remember that we are not placed here to enforce God’s Law upon mankind. We are here to show God’s grace and mercy which came from Christ on the Cross and His Resurrection.
We all fall short. We all fail. Let us approach others with moral superiority but as co-conspirators, freed from our own transgressions, because of Christ.
Romans 3:22b-25
‘Ted Haggard, former president of the National Association of Evangelicals and former pastor of New Life Church in Colorado Springs, has been in seclusion today as the evangelical Christian community reels from news of his admission that he lied to conceal his "sexual immorality."’
-Agape Press, Nov. 6, 2006.This startling, sad, shocking, stunning news came out a few days ago. One of the rising stars of American Christianity had not only failed, but fell, no, plummeted into a sin that many see as one of the worst sins, one that is described as an abomination (Lev 18:22). That sin is engaging in sexual relations with someone of the same sex.
So, what should our response be to this?
On a personal level, we need to be in prayer not only for brother Haggard, but also his family, his friends, his church, anyone who is associated with him. We need to flood this whole issue in prayer, because it is so public and can so easily be used by the enemy, the evil one, to further besmirch the name of Christ.
On a congregational level, we need to assure our pastors and church leaders to be more open about their struggles. There seems to be tremendous pressure on church staff to perform, that failure is measured in dollars or numbers or performance. We need to take some of this pressure off so they can feel free to humble themselves and be strengthened in their weaknesses.
On a worldly level, we need to show the love of Christ to Mr. Haggard, but even more so, to the homosexual ‘community’. We need to show them that because they are imprisoned by their sin, their sexual desires, that this does not mean they are beyond the grace of God. Ray Comfort is right, we should not get in debates about specifics of sins but let the mirror of Scripture convict and convert.
This is actually a wonderful door that has opened. The world will be looking to how the Evangelical community responds to this. My hope is that they see an unbelievable response like the world saw from the Amish community when their daughters were senselessly killed and they put out their arms in love to the killer’s family.
Let us stand firm in His truth, but remember that we are not placed here to enforce God’s Law upon mankind. We are here to show God’s grace and mercy which came from Christ on the Cross and His Resurrection.
We all fall short. We all fail. Let us approach others with moral superiority but as co-conspirators, freed from our own transgressions, because of Christ.
__________________________________________________________
Friday, November 18, 2005
The Prime Response
The greatest purpose of God is His own Glorification because only He is worth worshiping. This is our prime response – worship.
What is worship? It is that thing which we see as greater and worth more than ourselves. It is that thing which causes us to peer into our souls and see we are not what we would like us to be or what we are in reality. It is that thing which leads us to see a point to a pointless existence.
What good is man? Animals exist, and doing what they do is neither good nor evil, just done. With man, we call something good or something evil and put a value and a morality on it. Subjectively we say this is good and that is bad – usually based on how it directly effects us but sometimes altruistically to meet our own philosophy.
Surely Hitler saw himself not as evil but doing as much good as Mother Teresa. Left on our own we see ourselves as good or having the potential for good. Even those who suffer from poor self-esteem truly see themselves as having good in their lack of goodness for they keep their eyes intent upon themselves.
So, since only God is good, we have elevated ourselves to Him and so we move our worship to ourselves – either thorough an object or an idea or a concept or a person.
A Christian is someone who has said "I am not good." Our eyes have been opened to our own depravity, not only our capability of evil but our desire for evil, and have been disgusted with our filthiness and hopeless in our knowledge that we are not worthy of praise but worthy of disdain.
Then comes Christ, God Himself who sacrifices His Holiness for the sin of each of us so that we will no longer worship ourselves but worship only Him Who is worth worship, and in doing so moves us from a purposeless existence – self direction – to a purposeful life – worship.
Our prime response to the world around us and all our circumstances and all our joy and all our trials and all our pain and all our pleasure and all our noise and all our quiet is to look upward and raise our arms and soar our heart to the Lord in worship.
This is not an easy thing to do. Our flesh tugs at our shirt like a young child who wants attention from a distracted adult. Our sin wants to rob God of His glory. Our perverseness holds hostage worship in hopes of getting something to feed its hunger for depravity.
In this we must train ourselves to capture our thoughts, make them obedient to Christ, ready to punish that thought by obliteration if it is not a thought that brings forth worship of God. We must fall to our real or virtual knees when we see sin in action around us and weep for the starving, dark, cold world that wallows in its own foolishness when the full, light, warm love of God is within thought’s reach.
The greatest purpose of God is His own Glorification because only He is worth worshiping. This is our prime response – worship.
What is worship? It is that thing which we see as greater and worth more than ourselves. It is that thing which causes us to peer into our souls and see we are not what we would like us to be or what we are in reality. It is that thing which leads us to see a point to a pointless existence.
What good is man? Animals exist, and doing what they do is neither good nor evil, just done. With man, we call something good or something evil and put a value and a morality on it. Subjectively we say this is good and that is bad – usually based on how it directly effects us but sometimes altruistically to meet our own philosophy.
Surely Hitler saw himself not as evil but doing as much good as Mother Teresa. Left on our own we see ourselves as good or having the potential for good. Even those who suffer from poor self-esteem truly see themselves as having good in their lack of goodness for they keep their eyes intent upon themselves.
So, since only God is good, we have elevated ourselves to Him and so we move our worship to ourselves – either thorough an object or an idea or a concept or a person.
A Christian is someone who has said "I am not good." Our eyes have been opened to our own depravity, not only our capability of evil but our desire for evil, and have been disgusted with our filthiness and hopeless in our knowledge that we are not worthy of praise but worthy of disdain.
Then comes Christ, God Himself who sacrifices His Holiness for the sin of each of us so that we will no longer worship ourselves but worship only Him Who is worth worship, and in doing so moves us from a purposeless existence – self direction – to a purposeful life – worship.
Our prime response to the world around us and all our circumstances and all our joy and all our trials and all our pain and all our pleasure and all our noise and all our quiet is to look upward and raise our arms and soar our heart to the Lord in worship.
This is not an easy thing to do. Our flesh tugs at our shirt like a young child who wants attention from a distracted adult. Our sin wants to rob God of His glory. Our perverseness holds hostage worship in hopes of getting something to feed its hunger for depravity.
In this we must train ourselves to capture our thoughts, make them obedient to Christ, ready to punish that thought by obliteration if it is not a thought that brings forth worship of God. We must fall to our real or virtual knees when we see sin in action around us and weep for the starving, dark, cold world that wallows in its own foolishness when the full, light, warm love of God is within thought’s reach.
Tuesday, November 15, 2005
As a Christian, someone who professes Christ as Savior and Lord, I am called to respond to life’s circumstances and situations in a way different from how I would "naturally’ respond. I am called to always love others. I am called to be honorable and respectful. I am called to be gentle and thoughtful. I am called to be patient and kind. I am called to be righteous in my actions and humble in my attitudes.
The problem is I do those things with little consistency and much variability.
The Christian Response is about looking at what is going on in the world using our imperfect human eyes and seeing the world through Christ’s perfect eyes.
Fortunately, we have Scripture, which is God’s words written by human hands – an amazingly accurate and consistent compiled document of books written over thousands of years by a vast array of writers. Much maligned, but not discounted, the Bible tells the story of Christ and gives us how we should live.
There are a few rules about using Scripture to respond to the world that I follow:
For His Glory,
Tom
The problem is I do those things with little consistency and much variability.
The Christian Response is about looking at what is going on in the world using our imperfect human eyes and seeing the world through Christ’s perfect eyes.
Fortunately, we have Scripture, which is God’s words written by human hands – an amazingly accurate and consistent compiled document of books written over thousands of years by a vast array of writers. Much maligned, but not discounted, the Bible tells the story of Christ and gives us how we should live.
There are a few rules about using Scripture to respond to the world that I follow:
- I try to filter out my belief (or hope) that the Bible agrees with me and twist my thoughts to make them fit the Bible. (2 Corinthians 10:5)
- I try to discern that of which is important to God versus that which is important to man (i.e. me). (Romans 14:1)
- I try to look for the Biblical concept over the situational specific. For example, while there is no command – Thou Shalt Not Smoke Cigarettes there are a number of concepts in Scripture about how we should live and what actions we should (or should not) be doing. (Christ spells out this idea starting in Matthew 5:17 and forward when He tells the Old Testament Commandment and then gives an application to a circumstance).
- I seek to be shown my own short-comings through the sins in the world. (one of Christ’s lessons about the woman caught in adultery in John 8).
For His Glory,
Tom
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