Thursday, July 28, 2011
I was recently reading someone’s
short blog posting and observation about our ministry and others. It was in the context of a commitment to world evangelism. He said:
“But unless you’re Pastor Warner, Mitchell, Rubi, Stephens, and others who are heavily invested in world evangelism, and who have to support regardless of how much and sadly how little comes in month after month.”
It was the phrase “heavily
invested” that jumped out at me, which I could certainly relate
to. It echoes Jesus’s “treasure principle” which he spelled
out in (Mt.6:20,21) "Do not lay up
for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where
thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven,
where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and
steal. For where your treasure is, there
your heart will be also.” Jesus is
clearly talking about our eternal investment portfolio, or our
lives and investments in the light of eternity.
In the last two or three years, many people’s investments have taken a
major hit, suffering some significant losses.
This is why there are all sorts of companies, large and small, who
specialize in “investment strategies” to help build and protect your portfolio. I’m
not sure how successful many of them have been, but I do hear at least a half a
dozen radio advertisements every day about gold as the place to be, the only
safe haven with a falling dollar and the prospect of hyper-inflation etc.
To be “heavily invested” in
world evangelism is not the same thing as living life with blinders on, or
being a monomaniac. It means being invested in God’s entire plan
of redemption in all its many aspects.
From winning souls and unchurched people, making disciples, edifying the
church, gifts of the spirit, family and marriage ministry, training in service,
and raising up new leaders, all with the goal of reproducing the same life of
Christ in other cities and nations.
Paul’s motivation captures this when he said, “I will very gladly spend and be spent for your souls.”
(2Cor.12:15a) The Message version put it, “I’d
be most happy to empty my pockets, even mortgage my life for your good.”
All of this is not simply the
promotion of a program as it is the igniting
of the heart in the direction of God’s burden. Again, I think about how prominently this
figured into the thinking, the theology, and the passion of the apostle
Paul. How many times did he refer to
people as “my joy and my crown” or the focus and fruit of his investment. To the Philippians he said, “Therefore, my brethren dearly beloved and
longed for, my joy and crown, so stand fast in the Lord, my dearly beloved.”
(Phil.4:1) To the Thessalonians his heart overflowed, “Or what is our hope or joy or
crown of boasting before our Lord Jesus at his coming? Is it not you? For you are our glory and joy.” (1Thess.2:19, 20) He is affirming what he is
heavily invested in before the Lord.
Finally, he verbalizes his ultimate goal at the end of his life in
(2Tim.4:8) “Henceforth there is laid up
for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will
award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his
appearing.”
The exciting thing about this to
me is that he is not excluding the rest of us.
In fact, he opens the door wide to us all to be invested when he said, “not only to me but also to all who love His
appearing.” It is also important to
realize that this investment will not always be immediately repaid, but
realized and fully-amortized in heaven!
“Only one life, ‘twill soon be past.
Only what’s done for Christ will last.”
LET’S STAY HEAVILY INVESTED,
MY BELOVED BRETHREN!
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
The Tour de France
just ended on Sunday, and a new winner was crowned. While some of the sporting world’s attention
was riveted on this grueling and iconic cycling event, that carried 167
cyclists throughout the nation of France, another event was getting ready to
begin in the city of Marseilles: revival services with Evangelist Marty
Carnegie! Marty was and still is
preaching for Desmond and Matilda Bell our church there, that was pioneered by
Charlie and Dawn Forman. I was excited
and anticipating good things going in, but I thought I’d give you brother
Marty’s report so far!“We kicked off revival here in Marseille last night, it was very good. Desmond said he’s never seen the crowds or the response that God gave us last night. As the singing began, it was supernatural as we watched people just start flowing in. It was like a faucet opened in heaven and they came. The building was so packed, they overflowed to the sidewalk. I saw folks standing in the back looking for seats. The altar call reminded me of a crusade in Africa, people getting up and coming to pray. I’m sure I counted between 10-12 who received Jesus. Many other visitors mentioned coming back tonight with their families. This is real pastor, this is a move of God. Charlie Forman must know, God sent him here years ago for this purpose. Don’t know how we’re going to manage the next few nights with space. Imagine, this is France. Maybe this is the backfire I preached about in conference. The devil tried to sink France in atheism and unbelief, but now it’s backfired and created even more interest in the gospel. Jesus is drawing them in. Watching last night’s service, you feel a fire rising that’s going to spread. The Gospel changes everything.”
Hallelujah! Pray that
the seed of God’s Word takes foot and brings forth fruit abundantly: some
thirty, some sixty, some one hundred fold!
What a blessing to see God continue to raise up an evangelistic,
disciple-making, church-planting center in this city and nation!
Thursday, July 21, 2011
I’ve been thinking a lot
recently about the whole realm of healing,
especially what a marvel and blessing it can be. On June 29th I had a surgical
debridement of a chronic wound on my right ankle bone. An MRI had shown that the underlying cause
and barrier to healing was some minimal osteomyelitis (bone infection). Given that diagnosis, I had little choice but
to move forward with this procedure.
Going in to it I knew a few things: 1st, I was going to wait
until after our 2011 Bible Conference in June, 2nd, it was something
that had to be done, and 3rd, there was going to be subsequent time
and recovery issues. Any paraplegic
knows about and must be constantly aware of and vigilant for any skin or wound
issue. As a result, I have gathered a
fair amount of understanding of this over the last nearly forty years.
Wound care happens to be one of
the growing, necessary, and cutting-edge fields of medical science today. This is due in part to the huge increase in
the number of victims of diabetes in
America and much of the Western world.
Wound care and its related costs are also expected to grow with the
increase of the elderly population. So,
being informed about this can obviously be helpful.
Enough talk about wounds or
infirmity, since what’s been at the forefront of my mind is the matter of
healing. First, because this is one of
the biggest grace needs that exist
today. Part and parcel of the human
condition that we are confronted with on a daily basis is brokenness or wounded people.
This can be physical, mental, emotional, relational or spiritual. This is not saying that the most basic root
of human behavior is the therapeutic model.
No, it is moral, or at the root of man’s condition is the problem of
sin. However, the results of that sin
leads to all kinds of brokenness. We are
confronted with this reality on a daily basis in a myriad of difficult
manifestations. This gives real insight into
the power of God’s working, which is bringing
wholeness to people living in a broken world! This is why the revelation of God’s Name and
nature is so fantastic. (Ex.15:26) says,
“...For I am the Lord, your Healer.” This is one of the compound names of God
where we anchor our faith: Jehovah-Rophe,
the Lord,
your Physician. I think this is
why the human body is such a marvel! God
has created and formed us in such a way that in the presence of injury or
sickness, the human body, its cells and immune system goes to work immediately
to protect and to heal.
One quote that caught my
interest said, “Wound healing is a
complex, multi-faceted and dynamic process.” A major aspect to this process is creating a healing
environment that promotes overall healing. This “environment” is essential to breaking
through the various barriers to healing that always present themselves
(everything from the excess of bacterial burden or edema, the absence of
moisture, lack of adequate blood flow etc.).
It has helped to clarify and define in my mind a large part of the
church’s calling: the church is called to be God’s hospital...a healing
community. (Eph.4:11-13) sums
this up for us, “And he gave the
apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip the
saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we
all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to
mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.” Since I’ve been pondering this, let me give
you some of my thoughts (Bible-based) about some important elements in creating this
healing environment. I’ve actually come
up with 9 elements, in no particular order; but enough for you to digest
and apply to your own life.
Following Doctor’s Orders - Obeying God’s
Word
The Psalmist put it succinctly “How can a young man keep his way pure? By
living according to your word” (Ps.119:9).
Healing is inextricably connected with God’s Word. At the beginning of the Lord’s ministry at a
wedding in Cana of Galilee, Mary, Jesus’s mother said, “whatever he says to you, do it.”
(Jn.2:5) Let’s visit again the revelation of the God of healing in Exodus 15,
and put it in its context, "If you
will diligently listen to the voice of the Lord your God, and do that which is
right in his eyes, and give ear to his commandments and keep all his statutes,
I will put none of the diseases on you that I put on the Egyptians, for I am
the Lord, your healer."
Obedience to God’s Word is such a powerful and necessary healing
element. On July 10th I gave
a live Skype progress report to the
church where they could see me on the large screens, and I could see and hear
many of them. In that report, when I said,
“I am following Doctor’s orders” the
congregation spontaneously clapped and voiced their approval. What were they trying to say?! They
just might know me, so it said, “Pastor,
don’t be too reckless, but flow with the program.”
The Power of the Blood
Oh, yes, the miracle of the
Blood! (Lev.17:14a) said long before the
advent of modern medicine, “For the life
of every creature is its blood: its blood is its life.” Nothing is more important to healing in every
dimension of life as the Blood. If the
blood can reach a wound, it brings with it marvelous healing power. This is why in praying with people for
healing we appeal to the power of the blood, for this reason.
Sterile Environment - It Must Be Clean
I must admit, for the two and a
half days in the hospital until today, it’s easy to become a bit “germaphobic.”
My wife has a little sign and
list of requirements in the kitchen, and at the top of the list is, “Wash your hands!” God is looking for people He can use, and
He’s looking to use people who want to be holy.
(Heb.12:14)LB puts it this way, “Try
to stay out of all quarrels, and seek to live a clean and holy life, for one
who is not holy will not see the Lord.”
This is our master passion: to see the Lord and help others to see the
Lord! As a Christian and leader, there’s
no greater way to be used, and we’ve got to be holy to do that. We’re not talking about perfection, but a heart
and life that keeps short accounts with God, seeks to remain humble and honest
before God. All of which is vital to
God’s healing grace.
The Time Element
It’s amazing again how well
people know you (if people know, then how much more God). Tom Connors sent me a message right after the
surgery, and it consisted of really one word, “patience!” There are different things we can do to
assist in healing, but there’s no substitute for time in the healing
process. As a younger Christian and
pastor, I used to think that change could come quickly and easily. The more I’ve matured, I still have great
confidence in God’s power, but I realize that real change and healing takes a
lot more time than we think. Time is not
an enemy, but it is a factor that none of us can escape. This is why we call it a process, because it
is a process!
Nutrients - Watch Your Diet
Bill and Kim Neil allied
themselves with me a few weeks before my surgery to help with my diet. “You
are what you eat” has some truth to it.
If we want to heal, then our intake is a very important matter. The Apostle Paul said (1Pet.2:2, 3) “Like newborn babies, you must crave pure
spiritual milk so that you will grow into a full experience of salvation. Cry
out for this nourishment, now that you have had a taste of the Lord's
kindness.” The mile and the meat of
God’s Word contribute to a balanced spiritual diet to grow strong in the Lord.
You Need Help - No One Heals Alone
I’ve always held to the adage, “If you see a turtle sitting on top of a
fencepost, you know that it got some help!”
That’s true with all of us. None of
us are going to finish this race well on our own; we need the help of
others. The principle is spelled out in
(Ps.68:5, 6) “A father to the fatherless,
a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling. God sets the lonely in families, he leads
forth the prisoners with singing; but the rebellious live in a sun-scorched
land.” It is a fact of spiritual
growth that God uses other people to help, to heal, and to mature us. We’re not going to experience these things in
isolation. I love the story that John Ortberg tells about a friend
traveling to the South, and ordering breakfast one day. He saw grits on the menu, and being a
Dutchman who spent most of his life in Michigan, he had never been very clear
on the nature of this item. So he asked
the waitress, “What exactly is a grit?” Her response in classic Southern drawl was, “Honey, they don’t come by themselves.” Grits don’t exist in isolation! The point here is that to be spiritual and to
be made whole is to be relational. God uses people to help us grow. The word “community”
is one of those currently popular and frequently used religious words. I think the definition puts it well: “A group that possesses and implements an
irrational commitment to the well-being of its members.” This was the early church’s environment, “So continuing daily with one accord in the
temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with
gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the
people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.”
(Acts 2:46, 47) They worshiped together, ate together, talked together, prayed
together, taught together. They stayed connected!
There is a Cost Element to Healing
The cost of wound care is
high. As far back as 1995, in the United
States alone, spending on wound care and management exceeded $3.3 billion a
year. That figure has gone up substantially
since then. It makes me think of Jesus’s
parable of the Good Samaritan in
(Lk.10:33-35) “But a Samaritan, as he
journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. He went to him and bound up his wounds,
pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an
inn and took care of him. And the next
day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, 'Take care
of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’”
Caring for others may be costly, but the alternative of an uninvolved life is a
poor one indeed, and does not see God’s wonders or power. Healing and compassion are connected at the
hip.
Not A One-Size-Fits-All Approach
Healing, like people’s needs,
are all individual in nature. This is
why Jesus employed a variety of healing methods from spit and mud, to the
laying on of hands, to words of command, to specific steps and direction that
led to healing; even delay was used by the Lord to demonstrate His power. I think it’s quite common if we find
something that works, to ride that into the ground. While there are principles that never change, methods
always do or need to be flexible.
Individual needs and healing is not a simple formula or an exact
science, but it is a combination of a number of factors and markers. Wounds, for instance, must be treated
individually, and sometimes changing approaches can lead to a real
breakthrough.
Elevate, My Good Man
Especially, if you’re dealing
with injuries to the lower extremities, you are encouraged to elevate your leg
and foot. A focus, a perspective, an
attitude that looks upward is
essential to a healing environment. This
is true with a harvest of souls: Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are
already white for harvest!” (Jn.4:35)
Elevate. It is true with mental
stability and spiritual growth, “If
then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where
Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.
Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on
earth.” (Col.4:1, 2) Elevate. Personal
strength flows from this elevation principle as well, “But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall
mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall
walk and not faint.” (Isa.40:31)
In the Gospels, as Jesus touched
people’s lives and brought healing, deliverance, hope and transformation, a
frequent description (kind of like a “release form”) was “your faith has made you whole.” That is the comprehensive word, “sozo” for salvation, healing, forgiveness,
and deliverance. If I were to sum things
us here, it is the Gospel that heals and saves people! In our therapeutic age, we must never lose
sight of this pivotal fact: that it is repentance and forgiveness of sins that
flows from faith in Jesus Christ that is the only answer to the human
condition. Jesus’s ministry was inaugurated
with the prophetic declaration, “The
Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring
good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim
liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound.”
(Isa.61:1) Do you remember the children’s nursery thyme, “Humpty Dumpty?”
Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall,Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.All the king’s horses, and all the king’s men,Couldn’t put Humpty together again.
Well, what all the king’s horses
and men couldn’t do, the Lord Jesus Christ can and does! Make sure you are still being part of this
on-going process. Open your heart to Him
and embrace His healing power and the various elements that contribute to this
healing environment.
“Preach to broken people, and you will never lack an audience, for there’s one in every pew!”
Oh, by the way, my E.T.A. for
church services again in 7-31-11, the start of a revival with evangelist Stacy
Dillard!
Friday, July 8, 2011
Note: Our 2011 Bible Conference was a fantastic time of God’s visitation; but it ended on a sad and tragic note which took place on Sunday, June 19th. Five young men from the church in Kearns, UT were driving home when they suffered a horrible accident outside of Phoenix, AZ. It resulted in two fatalities (Mike Peterson and Anthony Gallegos), with the other three being injured (Markel Taylor, Joe Gallegos, and Ezekiel Contreras). The most seriously injured was Ezekiel, who suffered a very high spinal cord injury. All of these, along with their families should be kept in prayer.
Let’s get a few things out of the way at the start. First, it’s early. For any spinal cord injury, Ezekiel, you find yourself trapped in a very jumbled time, where there are far more questions than answers, but then you even forget the questions. They’re still trying to stabilize you and your condition, my brother, and that takes time. You own body is trying to adjust to a myriad of issues. This is why sometimes victory is just making it day by day, and sometimes even hour by hour. Second, it is not easy. Things in your life and world have been turned upside down. I could hear the concern and maybe even fear the other day, which is perfectly understandable. When I was injured 38 years ago, and my dad came to visit me from the East Coast, he had some of the same emotions, even though it was hard for him to express emotion. Finally, I realize things are not equal. The difference between a cervical SCI (spinal cord injury), and a lumbar injury is night and day. So, I can’t really say, “I know what you’re going through.” I struggled with what to say that had any kind of meaning, knowing that sometimes you should say nothing at all.
Ezekiel, when I heard the news
of your accident, it brought all kinds of “memory
flashbacks” reminding me of some of my own challenges, some of which are
still fresh in my mind. On April 30,
1973, I was driving back to Prescott from Kearny, AZ, with the distinction of
the shortest church-planting venture in our fellowship. I arrived there on Friday, and by Monday
morning I was returning to Prescott with the church-planting door closed in my
face! It had just rained lightly in the
area, there was fresh pavement on that stretch of highway, and the tires on my
car could be described as well used.
Suddenly, we went into a skid towards the side of the road, hitting and
then the car rolling over a 20-25 foot embankment. What I didn’t know at the time (although I
did know something bad had happened) was that I suffered a compression fracture
of my L-1 vertebrae, severing my spinal cord, and ending up paralyzed. Since it was beyond their capacity in the
little town of Kearny, I was immediately transferred to Good Samaritan Hospital in Phoenix, AZ replete with my now torn clothing,
dirt on my face and in my mouth, and securely strapped to a stretcher. What followed were seemingly endless tests,
work to stabilize me physically, surgery to fuse my vertebrae, countless
Doctor’s visits, all the time trying to learn what had happened to me, and how
I was going to move forward.
Needless to say, this was my
real lesson that life can sometimes be tough, bordering on the cruel and
unexplainable. The Bible tell us that we
are “fearfully and wonderfully made” which
is certainly true. Another unspoken
element in this creative marvel, which is our bodies, is that we are also fragile at times. Superman only exists in comic books or at the
theaters. I learned that life can be
turned upside down on a dime. From one
moment to the next your whole world can change.
Everything in my life had radically changed in a matter of minutes; but
the one thing that did not change was my relationship with God! “Behold,
I am the Lord, I change not” was certainly true, almost surreal at the
time. Everything else had changed, even
down to some of the most personal and intimate needs, but God and His grace
toward me did not change one iota.
All of this has gone into what
is almost a life motto, “LIFE IS TOUGH,
BUT GOD IS GOOD!” It is not an
accident that one of the most common refrains in the Bible is, “O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good”
with the congregational response “for his
love endures forever.” Over the
years, there have been two questions asked me more than any other. The first is, “Were you a Christian (saved) before your accident, or did you come to
Christ after?” In some, I think the
underlying motive in that question is human pride, that I must’ve need someone
or something to lean on after the accident, as if the timing would somehow
invalidate my experience with Christ.
Ultimately, it would not matter how or when I came to Christ, but I
simply tell people the truth, “No, I was
already living for God at the time of the injury.” The second big question people have asked was
“Did you get bitter?” Of course, there were some major mind
battles, but my honest answer was “No.” Why?
Well, for one, God didn’t do this to me.
If your car goes into a skid, and rolls over, then there are laws of
physics that are involved, not a failure of God’s love toward me.
Ezekiel, I don’t want to try to
comfort you with empty word, what the Book of Job calls “words without knowledge.”
Let me just tell you of some of the “anchors” that brought me through,
and are still keeping to this very day.
Looking back, there were a number of real “difference makers.”
- God’s supernatural grace. I’m not talking about a religious cliché here
either. When God said to Paul’s urgent
request to remove his harassing “thorn in his side,” the Lord responded “My grace is sufficient for you; for My
power is made perfect in weakness.”
He was describing a real supernatural provision. It’s hard to explain it to people, but when
we’re at our wit’s ends, and say, “this
is more than I can bear,” there is a Divine grace upholding and sustaining
us. I was recently reading the testimony
of Joni Eareckson Tada. She was an athletic teenager who broke her
neck in a diving accident in 1967 in the Chesapeake Bay. It left her totally and permanently paralyzed. After 25 years in a wheelchair she began to
have health problems and had to go back to bed.
Hoping to cheer her up, her husband Ken hung a bird feeder outside her
window. At first she envied the birds
their freedom. But then she remembered
what Jesus had said about sparrows. She wrote: “I glanced at the bird feeder and
smiled. I could understand Jesus noticing
an eagle....but a scrappy Sparrow?
They’re a dime a dozen. Jesus
said so himself. Yet from thousands of
bird species the Lord chose the most insignificant, least-noticed, scruffiest
bird of all. A pint-sized thing that
even dedicated bird watchers ignore.
That thought alone calmed my fears.
I felt significant and noticed...if the great God of heaven concerns
Himself with a ragtag little Sparrow clinging to the bird feeder outside my
window, He cares about you!” The
old-fashioned American lyric puts it, “His
eye is on the sparrow, And I know He watches me.”
- God’s family, the Church. I’ve always had a deep love and appreciation
for the church since I was saved, but I can tell you, having committed and
caring Christian brothers and sisters during this time made a huge difference. Much of this was their faithful prayers to
God for me, which have continued to this present day. some of this involved
their timely visits, like the time one brother “hijacked” me from the hospital,
and took me on a rolling stretcher out “for a walk” in the streets of Phoenix
around the hospital! Ezekiel, I know
that you’ve been blessed with a church family that loves you, and a Pastor,
Josh Scribner, who will stand with you.
- An incredible wife. My wife, Mona, had been God’s special gift to me, and an extraordinary care-giver.
It is going to take time, my
brother, for things to untangle and start to come together. Jesus is with you every step of the way, and
you have people who are “blanketing you in prayer.” Whatever hospital or medical facility you are
in, make sure you ask as many questions as come to mind. There are a lot more places and information
available for spinal cord injury patients than when I was hurt. Their input, care and help can be
invaluable. Plus, if you want to call or
write to me, or have someone do it for you, feel free to do so. We are there for you.
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
The 4th of July
holiday celebrations are over, the American flags have been taken down, most
people have returned to work, but the importance of freedom to all of us remains, no matter what day it is! Probably, the foremost question to ponder is
WHERE DOES FREEDOM COME FROM? As
individuals and Christians, there’s an easy answer to that,
“If the Son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed.” (Jn.8:36)
You’ll
find no arguments here from me, but I’d like you to travel with me on this road
for a bit.
The
Foundation of Our Freedom
The secret of American freedom
is the Bible, God’s Word! This has some
profound implications which I’d like you to consider. In his quest to change the oppressive regimes
in Afghanistan and Iraq, President George W. Bush argued that “everyone desires freedom.” Yes, that’s definitely true; but any genuine
or lasting freedom must have some deeper roots, or if will fail. For instance, everyone also desires a happy
marriage, but does this mean that everyone therefore can automatically have
one? Look around at various nations:
freedom does not flow from the barrel of a gun, nor does freedom flourish in
every country or society.
Let me ask you a question: why
do most American Presidents place their hand on a Bible to take their oath of
office? Some would say that it’s just
symbolic or a meaningful tradition, but the tradition exists because the Bible
is the secret of America’s freedom! This great nation was built by an ethic: a spirituality that taught its citizens to work, to earn, to save, to
invest, and to use their wealth to help and serve their neighbors. That ethic is enunciated directly from the
pages of Scripture, from God’s Word as the motivating force and intellectual
reasoning (i.e. the Protestant work ethic).
I recently read a review of a
book by Vishal Mangalwadi, a native
of India, called “The Book That Made Your
World” - How the Bible Created the Soul of Western Civilization. His basic premise is he explores the Bible’s
impact, not only in leading the West to unparalleled liberty and prosperity;
but also helping India and other nations to share in the West’s success. He examines the intellectual and spiritual
roots of Western concepts such as: human dignity, morality, science, liberty,
and self-sacrificial heroism. Each of
these concepts grows out of the Bible, and he contrasts the Biblical view with
alternative worldviews like secularism, Islam and Hinduism. A major point he makes is that false
worldviews lead to de-humanizing consequence.
It was very refreshing to read this from a native-born Indian, rather
than someone raised in a Bible-belt, fundamentalist Christianity
background.
Think about some of the
following “freedom virtues,” starting with human dignity. A
Biblical worldview sees all people as valuable because they are made in God’s
image.
(Gen.2:26, 27) “Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”Created in the image of God, we are given the freedom to choose, to work to change our lot in life In contrast, the Hindu worldview of fate or karma leads to little hope for change, self-improvement, and a happy and successful life. Think about the freedom issues from literacy. Translating the Bible into the vernacular of the common man brought about a social revolution. Now, even the poorest peasant had as much right to read and study the Word of God as the priests and nobles. Another powerful freedom relates to marriage and family life, which emphasized the equal dignity of women, contributing to Western prosperity. Essentially, Mangalwadi has researched and credits the Bible for everything we value in Western society. Look no further; these are the Christian roots of religious freedom.
The
Corrupting of Freedom
It is accurate to say that “relativism rules” in many sectors of
American life. Relativism denies moral
absolutes of objective standards of truth.
To paraphrase, relativism says “Your
beliefs are true for you; my beliefs are true for me.” Unfortunately, this is not the legacy of
religious freedom: religious freedom and relativism are not the same
thing. True religious liberty rests on a
Biblical foundation. While relativism denies the very existence of
truth, real religious freedom upholds truth as something precious, something
powerful, something created by God, which we may freely embrace – or not. A recent cover story in Newsweek magazine asked, “What
Do Teens Believe?” There is both
encouraging and distressing parts of the story.
It is distressing to find that more than half agree with the statement
that “all religious faiths teach equally
valid truths.” That is relativism,
and ultimately, it undermines our freedom.
Remember that the greatest dangers to any nation or culture are not just
the enemies without, but the erosion
caused by the enemies within.
Back to an earlier argument
involving marriage and family life.
Almost everyone desires a
happy marriage, but without the Bible, America cannot even define, let alone sustain
marriage as one man, one woman, in an exclusive and lifelong relationship. One of the cornerstones of the West’s
greatness has been Biblical monogamy, because it harnessed sexual energy to
build strong families, men, women, and children. Human history knows of no other force other
than the Bible that has the capacity to dam sexual energy and build powerful
families and nations. Indeed, no non-Biblical
culture has ever been able to require husbands to “love your wives as Christ loved the church” and give them the
spiritual resources to do so.
While giving some powerful and
positive insights, Vishal Mangalwadi did issue a sober warning: in abandoning
Biblical beliefs and practices, the West has lost its soul and is starting to visibly degenerate. This is true with all false worldviews: they
don’t free people and give them hope, but end up imprisoning them, robbing them
of the dynamic of hope and leading to the process of degeneration. This is why secularism is always a failed experiment. The Biblical ethic that helped build this
nation has been replaced by secularism and an entitlement culture. This
teaches people that they have a right to this, that, and the other without
corresponding obligations to work, save, and serve. This kind of corruption of character is destroying the world’s greatest economy,
robbing us of liberty, responsibility and dignity.
Guarding
Our Freedom
Many of you no doubt have seen
the bumper sticker that says, “QUESTION
AUTHORITY.” Our modern age
represents a challenge to authority at every level. The greatest authority that an
anti-authoritarian spirit must topple is the authority of the Bible as the Word of God! While ours is certainly a changing world,
our anchor is God’s unchanging
Word!
There is a trend today of people
attempting the impossible: acknowledging the Lord Jesus Christ while rejecting
the Bible! The only explanation for this
is a spirit of deception powerfully at work in people’s lives. Jesus spelled out the path of following Him
when he said
“If you continue in My Word, you are my disciples indeed, and you shall know the truth, and truth shall make you free.” (Jn.8:31, 32)Each and every part of this is critical to a life of freedom and wholeness. Being a Christ-follower is indispensably connected with obedience to His Word, which is the source of true freedom. A tragic example of this is the recent decision by the Presbyterian Church (USA) and the 33-year effort to remove all restrictions of homosexuals serving in the church’s ordained ministry. They recently voted to ordain openly homosexual candidates to its ministry! This represents the denomination’s tragic surrender to those pushing for the normalization of homosexuality.
Beyond the specific issue of
homosexuality, the church faced two of the most fundamental questions of
Christian theology – the authority of the Bible and the Lordship of Jesus
Christ. What the church is trying to
affirm is that one may submit to Christ’s lordship without submitting to the
clear teachings of Scripture. Can you
say, “impossible” or “nonsense?” We’re talking about the completely
implausible position of claiming to believe in the Lordship of Christ, while
subverting the authority of Scripture.
Not only has this church denomination capitulated to the spirit of our
times, but they’ve engaged in an act of open
defiance against the Scriptures.
Here is the church-wide letter to the denomination, PC (USA) where the
leaders stated:
“Reactions to this change will span a wide spectrum. Some will rejoice, while others will weep. Those who rejoice will see the change as an action, long in coming, that makes the PCUSA an inclusive church that recognizes and receives the gifts for ministry of all those who feel called to ordained office... Those who weep will consider this change one that compromises biblical authority and acquiesces to present culture. The feelings of both sides run deep.”
The feelings no doubt run deep,
but the injury to this church runs far deeper than feelings. This is another tragedy in the sad history of
mainline Protestantism’s race toward theological disaster.
The Bible includes so many
different metaphors of the Word of
God: it is like water, like bread, like a searchlight, like a mirror,
like milk, like meat, and like a hammer. One intriguing metaphor comes from
(Isa.56:10) and has to do with a watchdog! “For the leaders of my people—the Lord's watchmen, his shepherds—are blind and ignorant. They are like silent watchdogs that give no warning when danger comes. They love to lie around, sleeping and dreaming.”The purpose of a watchdog is to sound the alarm. If you are in a building that catches on fire, the most loving thing you can do is to scream, to get people’s attention, to warn them of the potential danger, if they don’t do something. My job as a Pastor, as a truth-bringer, is to try to do my part to stem the tide of moral relativism, of casual Christianity, of ethical decline; and to challenge you to a life of prayer, a life in the Word, a life of holiness, and a life of victory when Satan tries to “sift you like wheat.”
ALL OF THIS IS BECAUSE “YOU SHALL KNOW THE TRUTH, AND THE TRUTH SHALL MAKE YOU FREE.”
Monday, July 4, 2011
On this 4th of July America celebrates another birthday. Americans across the land are hoisting their
flags, marching in parades (unless you live in Tucson where it is 100+
degrees), preparing for BBQ’s, and setting off fireworks. It still moves me to hear the lyrics, “America, America, God shed His grace on
thee.” The reason is because God has
indeed blessed America, the reason it has endured for over 230 years. America is the oldest constitutional republic
on earth. It is for this reason that we
all need to think seriously about this great and noble experiment in freedom.
This is why religious liberty is America’s
first freedom. The first amendment
of the U.S. Constitution states,
It is our nation’s first freedom not just because of its order in our nation’s founding documents, but because religious liberty and our relationship and responsibility to God is foundational to every other freedom. The inalienable rights are granted by God. Charles Colson wrote,
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.”
It is our nation’s first freedom not just because of its order in our nation’s founding documents, but because religious liberty and our relationship and responsibility to God is foundational to every other freedom. The inalienable rights are granted by God. Charles Colson wrote,
“The references to God in the Declaration of Independence provide a foundation for an ongoing moral conversation within civil society. And moral truths pervade our founding documents from beginning to end. Without God as the source of all those moral principles, the public square would quickly revert to the law of the jungle. British power would prevail. The weak, the unborn, the elderly, and the gravely ill could be quietly terminated."
I’m talking about this because
religious liberty is being imperiled both at home and abroad. I want you to consider a number of things
with me. This is not a “political sermon” but truth that I want
you to measure through the filter of the Word of God. Remember King David’s words (Ps.127:1) “Unless the Lord builds the house [you can
put nation here also], those who
build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain.”
REMEMBERING
OUR FOUNDATION
The first
thing George Washington did after
being inaugurated was to stoop down and kiss his Bible, as an affirmation of
the submissive spirit that he had to have toward the rule and authority of
Almighty God. John Adams, the 2nd President of the U.S. said it best, “Our Constitution was made for a moral and
religious people. It is wholly
inadequate to the government of any other.
For democracy to work, the majority of the people have to be religious
and moral at their core, or it falls apart.” Add to this the fact that many of our institutions honored God back then as
well. Did you know that 106 of the first
108 schools in America were founded on the Christian faith? Did you know that Harvard and Yale began as
ministry training schools–schools to train preachers? What’s remarkable is if teachers taught this
in our schools today, their job would be in jeopardy!
What about Abraham Lincoln, who is considered by many as the greatest
President in our nation’s history. On
February 11, 1861, he spoke in Springfield, IL, and said, “In regard to this great book,” -and he held up his Bible- “I have but to say it is the best gift God
has given to man. All the good the
Savior gave to the world was communicated to us through this book. But for it, we would not know right from
wrong.” In 1909, President Theodore
Roosevelt said, “After a week of
perplexing problems, it does so rest my soul to come into the house of the Lord
and to sing and to mean it, ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty.’ My great job and great glory in occupying
this exalted position as president of the nation is that I am enabled to preach
the practical moralities of the Bible to my fellow countrymen and to hold up
Christ as the hope and Savior of the world.” Taken as a whole, there was an unashamed resolve that our forefathers
demonstrated. They were unapologetic
about faith in the Lord! This is a far
cry from the politically-correct, multi-cultural drivel we are being fed today.
A great, modern day lesson on
freedom and religious liberty comes from China. According to the Pew Research Center, 50 to
70 million Chinese Christians belonged to an unregistered house church in
2007. They vastly outnumber members of
the legal but government-regulated “three self” churches. These house-church Christians are not rebels. They love their country and want legal
recognition, but not at the price of government control over their
religion. The Communist government views
this growing Christian movement as a threat to its authority. They tolerate churches that submit to
government control, but churches independent of the state face serious
persecution. In the wake of recent
persecution, 19 pastors from house churches across China are circulating a
petition that urges the government to investigate its policy and treatment of
the house-church movement. It goes even
further by asking for broader protection for religious freedom. They claim freedom of religion as their “first and foremost freedom” (right out
of America’s foundation). Without
religious liberty, they claim, a diverse society like China cannot “form a peaceful civil society, or bring about
social stability, ethnic solidarity or the nation’s prosperity.” These Chinese petitioners know the difference
between being allowed to worship in state-regulated churches and being allowed
true religious freedom — the freedom to live
out their beliefs in all areas of life without government restriction.
THE
TRAVESTY OF “GOD-SCRUBBING”
I am deeply concerned about the
condition and direction our nation is taking, because it is not a
positive step, but a slippery slide to tyranny.
We’ve gone from being a God-fearing people who wanted religious freedom,
who knew that God was sovereign and important, to a nation where we can hardly talk about God for fear of offending
someone in these multi-cultural times.
Someone likened it to cracks appearing and growing in the foundation of
freedom! There is a definite spiritual dimension to this as the
Psalmist recorded, “Why are the nations
so angry? Why do they waste their time
with futile plans? The kings of the
earth prepare for battle; the rulers plot together against the Lord and against his anointed one.
"Let us break their chains," they cry, "and free ourselves from slavery to God.”
Over the last few decades,
legions of skeptics have mounted a massive assault on these “self-evident
truths.” From prestigious law schools,
to the halls of government, and especially in the Supreme Court, God is often
banished from the public conversation.
It’s what I call a God-scrubbing. The assault on God in public severely damages
our republic. If God is thrown out of
history, we lose our basis for believing individuals have rights and
dignity. Without God there are not
inalienable rights, no certain proof that liberty is better than tyranny. Everything becomes a matter of opinion or
power. Listen, I’m not saying
everyone needs to be a born-again, Spirit-filled, Bible-believing person, but,
neither is God a curse word or Someone who has no place in the public
square.
The most recent example of this
came from NBC’s final day coverage of
the U.S. Open golf tournament. It began
with a patriotic segment featuring children reciting the Pledge of Allegiance to a video montage of past U.S. Open golf
highlights. In this taped vignette, the
kids omitted from the Pledge the phrase, “under God, indivisible.” The criticism came so fast and furious that
NBC issued an on-air apology before the day’s programming was even
finished! Here’s what NBC’s Dan Hicks
said on-air, “We began our coverage of
this final round just about three hours ago and when we did it was our intent
to begin the coverage of this U.S. Open championship with a feature that
captured the patriotism of our national championship being held in our nation’s
capital for the third time. Regrettably,
a portion of the Pledge of Allegiance that was in that fear was edited
out. It was not done to upset anyone and
we’d like to apologize to those of you who were offended by it.” Ah yes, another “non-apology apology” that
said “we’d like to apologize to those of you who were offended by it.” It’s not our fault, but you out there who are
overly sensitive, well, we’re sorry. The
following day, Monday, they did go farther in their apology. They said, “Unfortunately, when producing the piece – which was intended to
capitalize on the patriotism of having our national championship played in our
nations’ capital – a decision was made by a small group of people to
edit portions of the Pledge of Allegiance.
This was a bad decision.”
This is an enlightening
admission that this decision was made by a “small group of people.” A small group of people who want to dictate
to the majority of Americans on all matters moral and spiritual. This is what we’re up against today.
I think it’s also revealing that
even our President is complicit in these kinds of omissions. In a statement issued on Friday, June 17,
2011, President Obama declared that “LGBT [lesbian, gay, bi-sexual-trans-gender] persons are endowed with what
he called “inalienable rights – and entitled to the same protections – as all
human beings.” Words right out of
the Declaration of Independence, but conveniently omitting the word “Creator.” The actual wording is “all men are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights.” How significant is that? Well, if you omit or deny God the Creator,
then who’s to say what or where or why these so-called “rights” originate. I seriously doubt that the revolutionary war
was fought over LGBT issues! We all make
mistakes, so I’m fully prepared to give him the benefit of the doubt, a simply
mistake. However, this isn’t the first
time. This was actually the 3rd
time this year that the President has used the “inalienable rights” language
and omitted reference to the “Creator.”
Let me add that the amount of illustrations of things of this nature are
legion today, and are almost weekly news stories.
How else to you explain three
years ago the school board at Arlington H.S. in Massachusetts making the
decision that there could be no American flags in classrooms. They also stopped saying the Pledge of
Allegiance. After a three year battle to
get those things reinstated, the principal relented and decided the pledge
could be said after school in the lobby area, so as not to offend anyone. Like some kind of covert operation rather
than gratitude, loyalty and a simple faith acknowledgment. Our Constitution is under attack from all
directions, even though it grants us freedom of speech! Recently it came to light that Wilder Publications has begun printing
copies of the Constitution and reprints of the Declaration of Independence with
warning
labels on them. It reads, “This book is a product of its time and does
not reflect the same values as it would if it were written today. Parents might wish to discuss with their
children how views on race, gender, sexuality, ethnicity, and interpersonal
relations have changed since this book was written before allowing them to read
this classic work.” In other words,
they really didn’t know what they were talking about back then, so take it with
a grain of salt. Three weeks ago in the
Cape Cod area, the school board unanimously passed a policy for elementary
students — yes, I said elementary students – to be able to distribute free
condoms at school. It even requires that
school officials keep it confidential so parents will never know if their child
has requested them. Totally
unbelievable! It’s like it comes to us
from the theater of the absurd. The
school superintendent says, “Well, the
intent is to protect kids.” If you
think all of these are just isolated events, you are mistaken. They are happening with more and more
frequency; it is like we’re becoming a different nation.
I don’t know about you, but I am
growing increasingly weary and upset, by so-called atheists or minorities who
are supposedly hurt and offended, or feel their rights have been infringed upon
by the mention of God in normal public life.
The latest were the group of NYC atheists who is “demanding” that the city remove a street sign honoring seven
firefighters killed in the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, because they
say the sign violates the separation of church and state. The street’s name is....“Seven In Heaven Way.” But,
the group is saying “there should be no
signage or displays of religious nature in the public domain.” One representative told Fox News Radio that
his organization was especially concerned with the use of the word “heaven”...“we think this is a very bad thing.” No, what’s a bad thing is, people like you
who are ignorant both of our nation’s Constitution and history. The word “heaven” is a bad thing?! I wonder if they are as deeply offended by
the escalation of profanity, vulgarity and incivility in media, entertainment
and the public discourse. By the way,
much of this is fueled by the ACLU,
which is a group of God-hating, and in my opinion, un-American communists. Time won’t allow a full expose, but the
phrase “the separation of Church and
State” is one of the most misunderstood and misapplied statements used
today by ignorant people, reporters and even jurists; who mistakenly think it’s
part of our nation’s founding charter!
Just a hint, folks, it’s not found in the Constitution at all! I’ll leave that for another time.
My point, dear ones, is that religious
liberty is under assault in our land.
(Ps.11:3) says, “If the
foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?" Those precious foundations that gave birth to
our nation and have sustained us for over 200 years have been targeted by a
relatively small group of agenda-driven people.
The other dangerous reality accompanying all this is that we have diluted what it means to be a
Christian. We have compromised and made
it easy to be a Christian in name only.
So, instead of the resolve
that made our nation strong, we have a relativism
that makes “sincerity” the measuring rod of everything, and not truth. (Jn.14:6) is still the bell-weather, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.
No one comes to the Father except through me.”
GOD,
HEAL OUR LAND
Let me close with prayer. It is a prayer for our nation offered by
Abraham Lincoln in 1863 at a pivotal point in our nation’s history. I’m going to give it to you exactly as it was
prayed:
We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of Heaven. We have been preserved, these many years, in peace and prosperity. We have grown in numbers, wealth, and power as no other nation has ever grown; but we have forgotten you, O God. We have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved us in peace, and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us; and we have vainly imagined in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God who made us. It behooves us then, to humble ourselves before the offended Power, to confess our national sins, and to pray for clemency and forgiveness.
Amen and Amen!
Special thanks to material by Charles Colson, Dave Stone and Rob
Schwarzwalder
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