Do Not Be Downhearted!

   

     Traditionally, it seems that the day after Christmas is one in which many people feel depressed and discouraged.  All the shiny distractions under the tree never "fix" the broken parts of us, and somehow we think that "the miracle" of Christmas passed us by.  For one day, we are able to shut out the noise of the world, with all its violence, corruptness, and ugliness.  And then somehow, we are surprised when the day following Christmas, when we rip the wrapping paper off the world, it still looks the same.  But I'm here to tell you that our culture looks at it all wrong.
     This day -- the day "after" -- should be a day of joy and hope; a day in which we are aware of the Love and Mercy of the God who created us.  For those in this nation (and the world) who reject the idea of a Creator who would sacrifice Himself to reconcile with us, it must surely seem as if we Believers are running after magical and imaginary beings; or legendary myths that have failed to produce any Good News for over 2,000 years.
     And a similar thought process might actually occur in millions of lukewarm Christians whose faith  is based on tangible results in their lives.  I wish I could tell each person who is feeling discouraged or disheartened today that there is reason to be encouraged.  That the baby born in Bethlehem 2,015 years ago brought Light into this dark world, and each day brings us closer to residing in His presence.  And all you have to do is look around for the small signs and miracles that tell us His birth was for real, and He came to heal us, to deliver us, and to redeem us.
     Sometimes those signs intrude upon our reality in the form of restored relationships, bodies, and events unexplained in the natural world.  Broken marriages are mended; lives are cured of cancer; and if God so desires, some of us are blessed with supernatural occurrences that verify His presence.  And sometimes, a simple story will speak to our spirits and we know that our hope remains alive.
     Such is this story that was reported just a few weeks ago, right after the Thanksgiving holiday.  I repeat it today as a symbol of the hope that can be yours, even in these moments when we are experiencing the let-down "blues" after Christmas.
     Let's set the stage:  At the Holy Child Jesus Church in the Richmond Hills neighborhood of Queens, New York, the custodian, Jose Moran, arranged the empty manger at the front of the church.  It faced the pews, the crèche still empty of all the animals and statues of the Christmas story. Then he went to lunch.

     When he returned, he heard the cries of a baby, and found a newborn baby boy, just hours old and full term with his umbilical cord still intact, and laying in the manger.  He was wrapped in a towel, and the church's videotape showed a woman laying him in the empty cradle just minutes before.  Now, we could get all wrapped up in the legal significance of this event -- that New York has so-called "safe haven laws" to allow parents to anonymously leave unwanted infants, without fear of prosecution, at sites like hospitals or firehouses. Churches are included in the places covered by the law, but the parent must alert someone to the child’s presence, or leave the child in the care of someone at the location. Neither happened in this case.  But is that what we should focus on?
     Or should we bask in the knowledge that the congregation in this "melting pot" neighborhood has embraced this child and enveloped him in love; that thousands of letters have flooded the church with expressions of caring and offerings to adopt him.  Just as God chose not to abandon us to our sins and a life apart from Him, this child was not abandoned, but rather placed in the midst of God's House, where the love of God's people would surround him.
     This story will soon fade away from the spotlight, but what it symbolizes should remain as a testimony of God's love -- that He came as an innocent child to bear our iniquities and to show us the Father's love and desire to restore our broken relationship with Him.  Whether it is the birth of the Christ Child in Bethlehem, or an unknown baby boy born in Queens, New York, love is evident in the world.  And that love exists because of the One True God who created us in His image.  And the message that I want you to take away today is that this Love will prevail.  There is no need to be sad, or down in the dumps.  You can gaze upon the world and be repulsed ... or you can fix your heart and spirit upon the everlasting Hope that is yours in faith.  What will you choose?

Romans 15:13     "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing [through the experience of your faith] that by the power of the Holy Spirit you will abound in hope and overflow with confidence in His promises."

What Is The True Meaning of Christmas?

     Today, millions of Christians around the world will look upon this day as a celebration of the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  I do not intend to get into a lengthy discussion of whether or not December 25th is the actual day of Jesus's birth; or even try to persuade anyone of the pagan roots of this holiday and its establishment by the Roman Catholic Church.  There is enough evidence and historical documentation of this fact that I believe it is each Christian's duty to be a good Berean and study the Word for themselves, and then make up their own mind as to how (and when) they are to acknowledge the birth of our Lord.

     Today, I choose to remember what Scripture tells me the day of the Lord's birth means... no matter what day it actually was.  I choose to cling to the words of the angel of the Lord, who said, "Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings (news) of great joy, which shall be to all people.  For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord."  Note that the great joy shall be; it is a future event -- the day when that baby in the manger would die on the cross for our sins; that is the day that He would become our Savior, paying the price for our transgressions.
     And then an angel with a multitude of the heavenly host praised God, saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men."  So, for me, today is the day that I honor God for coming in the flesh, and setting His plan in motion to restore my relationship with Him.  Even the shepherds, after finding Mary, Joseph, and the baby Jesus, returned to whence they had come, "glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them".
     I sometimes wonder if we get so caught up in the emotion of an innocent baby being born, that we forget the purpose of that baby was to die for us.  He was born to be exalted at His death, which points to our salvation and resurrection... that is a radical, but true statement, and makes His birth even more astounding.  And yes, the facts of His birth are extraordinary and incredible: born of a virgin; conceived by the Holy Spirit; the supernatural gift of a loving God to His broken children.
     The birth of this Savior was prophesied for centuries; foretold in the Old Testament and fulfilled in the New.  Today we celebrate God's appearance on earth as an innocent baby, and the expression of His love, mercy, righteousness, holiness, compassion, and glory -- all present in the Christ child in that Bethlehem manger.  May you know the joy and the hope that His birth signifies, and may we soon sing praises of His glorious return!  On this day, may you know and experience the Peace of God and His Good (and Perfect) Will towards all men.

Isaiah 9:6     For to us a Child shall be born, 
                        to us a Son shall be given;
                        And the government shall be upon His shoulder,
                        And His name shall be called Wonderful
                        Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father,
                        Prince of Peace.                     

The "War on Christmas": The Truth, The Reality, & The Confusion

     It certainly seems to me that with each passing year, the "war on Christmas" gains steam and the religious and spiritual sense of Christmas diminishes a little more.  Actually, in our early history as a nation, Christmas was celebrated in a far less extravagant manner than it is today... some people might choose to go to a church service, but more often than not, it was an understated family affair, and the idea of piles of gifts under a Christmas tree was more the result of some smart marketing, than any Biblical significance.

      It was actually the upper classes who had the money and time to create specific holiday traditions that caught the idea of entrepreneurs and canny businessmen.  Clement Clarke Moore’s poem, “A Visit from St. Nicholas,” written for his family’s entertainment in 1823, was soon endlessly reprinted each season in newspapers. In the years after the Civil War, Thomas Nast created a full narrative (and image) of the life of Santa Clause through his vivid engravings for Harper’s Weekly magazine.  In 1870, when Godey’s Lady’s Book, the most widely read magazine in the nation at the time, published an image of a family gathered around a small tree set atop a table, the idea of a Christmas tree soared in popularity, and a new industry was born.
     It wasn't long before F.W. Woolworth -- who had already pioneered a successful business model based on fixed prices and 10 cent inventory -- quickly saw the commercial possibilities in importing Christmas ornaments from Germany where, he reported, they were “made by the very poorest class.” It's not hard to see that this romantic sentimentalism, combined with the advent of Christmas lights, Christmas cards, and an unlimited supply of creative Christmas decorations, contributed to many vibrant commercial opportunities.
     Today we have seen the huge success of these opportunities in our new tradition of Black Friday, one of the busiest shopping days of the entire retail industry.  In fact, in recent years, it has contributed greatly to the success or failure of our domestic economy.  Sadly, it is this very Christmas "market" and the consumer economy it sustains that has come to embody "the spirit of Christmas."  So much so, in fact, that political movements like Black Lives Matter think that by disrupting Christmas shopping at the Mall of America in Minnesota, they can gain more traction for their social crusade.  (Little do they know, that they are just pawns of the behind-the-scenes players whose goal is to cause disorder and havoc for their own benefit -- but, I digress).

     I actually found it interesting to peruse an atheist website to get their take on the growing friction over the Christmas holiday.  Consider this comment by one such unbeliever when posed with the question, Why has Christmas become less "secular" in the last decade or two?  Here is his answer:  "Of course all of us atheists are fully aware that Christmas is a secularized holiday, but it seems that the culture at large has now resorted to this idea that it's specifically "Christian" and therefore inappropriate in public contexts, even when it's just the secular elements being involved. You have stories like this councilwoman, who resigns because tree lighting is renamed to add the word "Christmas", and the university diversity office condemns holding Christmas parties because they are non-inclusive, and so on.
   This has the effect of turning any mention of "Christmas" into a religious or political statement... I love Christmas, and I don't want to be associated with Christianity or the right-wing just because I happen to refer to the holiday itself.  Europe doesn't seem to have this problem... why do we?  Is it because of PC attitudes, or because of the right-wing?"
     Don't you find it hilarious, that atheists actually hate the non-religious people in the public arena complaining about possible religious ties to Christmas, because they think it actually calls more attention to the religious connotations of the holiday?  What they are really saying is, "when you make an issue of Christmas displays and greetings being too religious, then you are ruining it for me, because I actually like Christmas, and now I'm somehow politically aligned with right-wing Christian nuts!"
     Another atheist commentator felt he needed to make sure everyone was aware that, in the past, Christmas was this thing everyone celebrated, but it was always a Christian holiday.  But, now that we have become more ... ahem, enlightened ... we realize that it's not OK to ignore all the other religions in our diverse population, and it's time the Christians get over claiming the holiday for themselves.  He, of course, is in favor of the all-inclusive "Happy Holidays" because it incorporates all the minority religious holidays.
     He goes on to say, "In all this, of course, the true meaning of Christmas has been lost. The reason for the season is obviously commercialism. Christmas is your cue to go out and buy! You used to get big corporate-sponsored Christmas decorations and pageants and such. Originally, this was inoffensive because non-Christians just shut up about it and enjoyed the Christian holiday, but now the Christmas (or Christian) stuff is done at the risk of alienating a significant part of the consumer base... Is there a War on Christmas from the left? Not really. It's just general social progress, resisted by the Culture Warriors."  For the life of me, I'm not sure how or why we Christians are now referred to as the "Culture Warriors".  Doesn't make sense to me ... but then again, very little in this world makes sense to me anymore.
     So, there you have it.  We Christians, who are being marginalized in what the rest of society likes to call "social progress", are just supposed to accept that we no longer have proprietary or exclusive rights to Christmas.  Granted, I see very little of the Bible in our commercialization of Christmas; but any attempt to remove Christ from the public forum offends me -- even if I do have some issues with what we Christians celebrate as the "true meaning of Christmas."  But, you'll have to wait until tomorrow to see my perspective on that loaded statement.  Until then, let us agree on the cause for celebration on any day of the year ... that God so loved us that He sent His only begotten Son to die for us.

Thanks to the websites, Bloomberg View and Reddit, for their contributions to the history of the commercialization of Christmas and the atheist viewpoint of this religious holiday.

John 1:9    "There it was—the true Light [the genuine, perfect, steadfast Light] which, coming into the world, enlightens everyone."

   

At Last, A Statesman

     Today is the day I'm going to give in to my idealism and let my sentimentality give me a notion of hope.  It's taken me awhile to get around to this, but I think it is more important than ever that we contemplate the words of the Junior Senator from Nebraska, Ben Sasse.  Among his accomplishments, he is a well-educated legislator (a Bachelor's degree, multiple Master's degrees, and a Ph.D.); he was president of a private college in Nebraska, where he ended lifetime tenure for professors; and he appears to have solid conservative credentials, while remaining his own man in Washington.  It remains to be seen if he can keep his soul in that den of thieves.
     But in November, Senator Sasse took to the floor of the Senate to give his inaugural speech and to challenge not only the lawmakers, but us citizens, to become more enlightened, nonpartisan-thinkers with a sense of history.  The occasion for his speech was his concern over the growing threat of overreaching Executive power.  I think that is something we all are watching, as each day the news media suggests that after the Christmas recess, we will see aggressive action on the part of the President regarding gun control and the limiting of our Constitutional freedoms.  
     So, read his words, as I present them here.  This is not his complete speech, and I recommend that you take the time to get to know him by reading it in its entirety.  But I want to present the highlights; the reasons why I think he gets it right, and why I think he deserves to be heard.  See if you don't agree .... Senator Sasse's remarks from the Senate Floor:

     Thank you, Mr. President. I rise to speak from the Floor for the first time today. I have never been in politics before, and I intentionally waited a year to speak here.
     ... Let me explain briefly why I chose to wait a year since Election Day before beginning to fully engage in Floor debate.
     I’ve done two things in my adult worklife: I’m a historian by training and a strategy guy by vocation. Before becoming a college president, I helped over a dozen organizations find strategies to get through some very ugly crises. One important lesson I learned over and over is that, when you walk into any troubled organization, there is a delicate balance between expressing human empathy and yet not passively sweeping hard truths under the rug. On the one hand, it is absolutely essential to listen first, to ask questions first to learn how a broken institution got to where it is – because there are reasons. Things drift and fray for reasons; people rarely set out to break special institutions they inherit.
     ... Please do not misunderstand: Do not confuse a deliberate approach [of waiting to speak] with passivity. I ran because I think that the public is right that we as a people are not tackling the generational crises that we face: We don’t have a long-term foreign policy for the age of jihad and cyberwar; our entitlement budgets are completely fake; we are entering an age where work and jobs will be more fundamentally disrupted than at any point since hunter-gatherers first settled in agrarian villages. And yet we don’t really have any plans. I think the public is right that we as a Congress are not shepherding the country through the serious debates we must have about the future of this great nation.
     ... No one in this body thinks the Senate is laser-focused on the most pressing issues facing the nation. No one. Some of us lament this fact; some are angered by it; many are resigned to it; some try to dispassionately explain how they think it came to be. But no one disputes it.
     And if I can be brutally honest for a moment: I’m home basically every weekend, and what I hear – and what I’m sure most of you hear – is some version of this: A pox on both parties and all your houses. We don’t believe politicians are even trying to fix this mess. To the Republicans, to those who claim this new majority is leading the way: Few believe that. To the grandstanders who use this institution as a platform for outside pursuits: Few believe the country’s needs are as important to you as your ambitions. To the Democrats, who did this body harm through nuclear tactics: Few believe bare-knuckled politics are a substitute for principled governing. And does anyone doubt that many on both the right and the left now salivate for more of these radical tactics? The people despise us all.

     And being the historian/college president and crisis turn-around guy that he is, Senator Sasse proceeds to "school" his fellow Senators:  This is a place that would be difficult today to describe as "the greatest deliberative body in the world" – something that has often been true historically.
     Socrates said it was dishonorable to make the lesser argument appear the greater – or to take someone else’s argument and distort it so that you don’t have to engage their strongest points. Yet here, on this Floor, we regularly devolve into bizarre partisan-politician speech. We hear robotic recitations of talking points.
     Well, guess what: Normal people don’t talk like this. They don’t like that we do. And, more importantly, they don’t trust us because we do...
    Do we think the Founders would have regarded a 9% Congressional approval rating – a stunning level of distrust in representative government – as an existential crisis? Do we? Is it conceivable that we can get away with just drifting into the future, or is it essential that we fix this?
     Count me emphatically among those who think we need to fix it. We should not be okay with this. And if we are going to restore this place, part of it will center on recovering the executive/legislative distinction. The American people should demand more of us as legislators, and they should demand more of the next president as a competent administrator of the laws that we pass. That is only possible if we again have some identity commitments that are about the Constitution’s Article I (the legislature) in tension with the duties of the Article II branch (the executive). Everything cannot be simply Republicans versus Democrats. We need Democrats to speak up when a Democratic president exceeds his or her powers. And I promise you that I plan to speak up when the next president of my party exceeds his or her proper powers.
     To that end, in the coming months, I plan a series of Floor speeches on the historic growth of the administrative state. This will not be a partisan effort; it will not be a Republican senator criticizing the current administration because it is Democratic. Rather, it will be a constructive attempt to understand how we got to the place where so much legislating now happens inside the executive branch – for this kind of executive overreach came about because of a great deal of symbiotic legislative underreach. Republicans and Democrats are both to blame for grabbing more power when they have the presidency; and Republicans and Democrats are both to blame in the legislature as well for not wanting to lead on hard issues and take hard votes, but rather to sit back and let successive presidents gobble up more authorities. We can and we must do better than this. And the century-long look at the growth of executive branch legislating over the next many months will be an attempt to contribute to the efforts of all here, both Democrats and Republicans, who would like to see the Senate recover some of its authorities and some of its trustworthiness...
     Each of us has an obligation to be able to answer our constituents’ question: "Why doesn’t the Congress work? And what is your plan for fixing the Senate in particular?" And if your only answer is that the other party is fully to blame, then we don’t get it, and the American people understandably think that we are part of the problem, not the solution...
     Representative government requires civic reengagement. Our people need to know that we in this body are up to the task of leading during this time of nearly universal angst about whether this nation is on a path of decline. I think we can do better – and I want to labor with all who want to figure out how.

     To use a sports analogy, I know that we are in the bottom of the ninth, with two outs, and two strikes against us -- and I know that we have been fooled before by men and women we thought were going to uphold the legacy of Liberty that we hold so dear.  Is Ben Sasse the "real deal"?  It will remain to be seen.  He got one thing right; he says that the Senate is "a human institution populated by sinners."  As such, we cannot expect them to be perfect.  But we can -- and should -- expect them to uphold the job they have been elected to do.  And I must admit I'm not even sure that can be done in the midst of the profoundly immoral and corrupt cesspool that has become the spiritual wasteland called Washington, D.C.
     And call me the hopeless romantic that I am, but a little part of me is hoping that Senator Ben Sasse is cut out of the same cloth as one of my favorite movie characters, Jimmy Stewart as "Mr. Smith Goes To Washington".  Somehow, I think Senator Sasse would agree with Mr. Smith when he says, "Take a look at this country through [the eyes of the Statue of Liberty] if you really want to see something. And you won't just see scenery; you'll see the whole parade of what Man's carved out for himself, after centuries of fighting. Fighting for something better than just jungle law, fighting so's he can stand on his own two feet, free and decent, like he was created, no matter what his race, color, or creed. That's what you'd see. There's no place out there for graft, or greed, or lies, or compromise with human liberties...  And it's not too late, because this country is bigger than the [all the corrupt politicians], or you, or me, or anything else. Great principles don't get lost once they come to light. They're right here; you just have to see them again!"
     So, will we ever see them again in this country -- in this world?  Historians say that this country was a grand experiment; no other men in history have been given the opportunity to establish a republic founded on individual liberty.  Can we keep it?  Or will we just be an asterisk in the history books?  We must not discount God, whom I firmly believe has had His hand on us since our founding.  But I cannot dismiss the fact that we have removed ourselves from under the protection of that Hand, and may be suffering the effects of our own self-worship.  I think, in effect, that is what Senator Sasse has expressed.  It remains to be seen if his speech will make a difference.  But I, for one, thank him for making the effort, and I pray that he spoke into the spiritual darkness that pervades our nation's capitol and put them on notice... 

Luke 22:26     "But not so with you. Rather, let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as one who serves."


   

   
   

Do You Recognize The Church?

     I'm sure many of you have had the same experience that my husband and I have shared.  Early in our marriage we had decided to throw off the lethargy of our youth and seek a church that met our goal of growing in our faith.  We wanted a church rooted in the Bible, and a place in which we could immerse ourselves in a Sunday School class or small group for more intimate and deeper study.  We thought the answer was a church that made us "feel comfortable", and one in which we could set a taproot for life-long relationships with fellow Christians.

     Then the Holy Spirit intervened and showed us that faith in our Savior must be anything but "comfortable".  In fact, the more He drew us to Jesus, the less contented we became in feeling comfortable.  Our desire for more of Him made us question what we believed and why; and we soon realized that it wasn't about identifying with our fellow Church members, as much as it was about seeking to live a righteous and consecrated life in relationship with Jesus.
     At about that same time, our church changed "management", so to speak, and the Search Committee assured the congregation that they had found just the right man to take over the helm of our Church.  The committee was made up of people I knew to be Bible-believing and faithful Christians; men and women who took their task very seriously.  When they introduced him that first Sunday, he actually stood at the front of the Church holding a Bible, reading from it and centering his sermon on the Word.  We thought, "Surely, God has a calling for this man to lead us."
     But within a few months of assuming his role as Shepherd of God's flock, the tell-tale signs were there.  There was definitely a new agenda and plan for our spiritual future.  It seemed the pastor was not as he had seemed at first.  And it seems that our church has not been alone in this pattern of change.
     Now The End Begins, a website that I would classify as "on the fringe", yet oftentimes uncannily correct, recently ran an article suggesting that there is a "Purpose Driven Plan to destroy the Church of Jesus Christ."  Now, you might recognize that phraseology as being associated with Rick Warren, the popular pastor from California, who wrote a blockbuster book, called The Purpose Driven Life, which had profound influence on the modern church.  Since that book was first published in 1997, Dr. Warren has become a controversial figure, and openly advocates for change in how we Christians approach church growth and evangelizing, saying, "When you reveal the [new] vision to the church, the old pillars are going to leave. But let them leave… they only hold things up.”
      Here's what I've observed about Dr. Warren's philosophy regarding the "Purpose-Driven Church"... it seems to be based more on a business model than a faith model.  It seems to promote the idea that believers must move away from their moral absolutism (and resistance to change), so that the church can welcome more unbelievers in a spirit of compromise, and therefore grow their numbers, and plant new churches.  You can see that if all members of the church stand firm on the Word of God, and it’s final authority in all doctrine and tradition, then the church cannot and will not change.  Dr. Warren has suggested that this is why the Church has grown stagnant, and change must occur.
     I agree that the Church is in danger of becoming lukewarm in its outreach, its desire to "keep God in a box", and its inclination to contain the Gospel Message inside its own four walls.  But I allege that what Dr. Warren is promoting has very little semblance to what Jesus had in mind when He gave us the Great Commission.  I see more about how to attract a crowd with slick marketing and contemporary music, than how to reach a crowd with the Spirit-led Word of God.  It seems to be all about taking that wide, easy path through a gate that lets everyone in, instead of requiring a response to the Gospel Message, and teaching and preaching about confession of personal sin, repentance, and our need for the Cross.
     So, if you are like me and my husband, we began to see the ways in our church was changing -- the change in music to a contemporary rock style; repetitive singing of praise lyrics instead of Scriptural-based hymns; dressing down to casual and informal attire; the name “Sunday School” is dropped and classes are given new "culturally attractive" names;  there is no need to bring your Bible to church because only specific verses are flashed on a screen or referenced during regular services; there was an emphasis on more fun and party sessions for the youth, rather than teaching the Word; the elimination of such words as “unsaved”, “lost”, “sin”, “Hell”, “Heaven” and other Gospel truths from the pastor’s messages; and in our case, open hostility to members, like us, who did not openly embrace the new program, or who may have left for another church.
     Here is the bottom line for me... Because of this movement toward compromise, "feel good" sermons, inclusiveness of all opinions on God, and variety in the Gospel Message, it has been difficult for me to affiliate myself with any church.  Please don't misunderstand.  There are still small churches who have not succumbed to these marketing techniques, and who earnestly desire to stay true to The Word.  But oftentimes, the Holy Spirit is absent in their buildings, or they deny the full extent of what Jesus has charged us to do in bringing in His Kingdom.  Their hearts and spirits are in the right place, but they are not very effective outside their own buildings.
     This is a time for God's Truth ... ALL of His Truth; and for boldness in declaring it!  And I am seeing more and more of His people who are no longer satisfied to sit comfortably in the building each Sunday -- either doing the same things and bearing little fruit; or embracing what their spirits are clearly telling them is not Biblical nor pleasing to God!  So, a remnant is awakening and committing themselves to discerning (and doing) His will and following the promptings of the Holy Spirit in these daunting days.  We recognize that His ways are not our ways, and it is time to step out, and to be courageous and strong in our faith.  We are ready to present ourselves to the Lord; workers who are not ashamed of our love for Him and our passion to serve His Kingdom, rightly handling the Word of Truth.  We abide in Him, and He in us ... we are His Church.

John 15:16    "You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in My name, He may give it to you."
   
   

Hollywood vs "The Force" of the Holy Spirit

     You'd have to be living on another planet not to be aware that the latest in the Star Wars movie franchise was released this weekend.  Titled, The Force Awakens, it continues the saga of Good vs Evil for a new generation.  Funny thing ... many of the Millennials who see this film will have little attachment to the original characters of Luke Skywalker, his sister Princess Leia, and Hans Solo ... although the film pays homage to all three; decidedly older versions of themselves, obviously.
     But, as many of you know, Hollywood has been cleverly (and not so subtly) showing us for years what's behind the curtain via movie plots that are designed to prepare us for the New World Order.  I mean, Defense experts are now predicting that the next world conflict will begin in space with superpowers or terrorists blasting communications and spy satellites out of orbit.  Also, scientists and pointy-headed professors speculate that future conflicts will be fought in space as rival nations compete to plunge each other into a 'technological Dark Ages' by destroying satellites that play an important part in operating our banks, road systems, airlines, weather forecasting, power grids and mobile phones.  Just read some of their comments:
     “The idea of relying on space and even fighting in space was once science fiction, but now it’s real,” said Brian Weeden of the Secure World Foundation, who was once part of the US military’s nuclear deterrent program.  Peter Singer, from the digital think-tank, the New America Foundation, told the BBC program Space Wars, "The sanctuary of space, this location that no one has ever fought in before, would be one of the first things to see fighting if the great powers ever went to war."  Jeremy Greaves, of the Airbus Group, which makes military satellites said: "We are dealing with a fact and reality that you just cannot ignore space as a sovereign nation.  Space is the fourth frontier. You have got surface warfare, air warfare and under-sea warfare. And now space warfare."
     All of this doesn't make the plot of the Star Wars movies seem so fanciful, does it?  Just think back through all the sequels and prequels ... you have the Galactic Empire, the Death Star, the Resistance, and the Republic.  You have Stormtroopers; you have the Jedi Knights versus the Sith Warriors and the Dark Side.  It all takes place in space and adds up to the ages-old conflict between Good and Evil.  And I believe that the storyline of Star Wars, from the beginning, has been a thinly disguised counterfeit of the Bible.  And interestingly enough, I discovered a website called The Real Truth that gives us an interesting parallel.
     Charles Herzog writes, "In the movie series, the people are led to believe that good is in control. But the reality is that the “bad guys” are in control. In a similar sense, most people assume that this is God’s world, yet it is not. After an initial battle in Heaven, Satan was cast back down to earth, where he continues to be the “god of this world” (II Cor. 4:4). When he tempted Christ, Satan stated that he had the authority to give the world to Him; due to Christ’s response, we can glean that He and the devil understood that this is Satan’s world (Matt. 4:8-10)."
     Star Wars gives us both the Jedi Knights and the Sith Warriors.  They both derive supernatural power from “the force.” The Sith lords are on the “dark side” of this force.  This “force” is a resemblance of God’s Holy Spirit and is a source of great power.  Consider some similarities of "the force" to the Holy Spirit. When asking how to differentiate between the good side and the bad, Luke Skywalker was told by his master, Yoda, “You will know when you are at peace.” In the same sense, there are fruits of the Spirit. And notice that one of these fruits is peace: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law” (Gal. 5:22-23).
     Another similarity is related to the midichlorians, which are an element of the force in Star Wars. In the series, there was a prophecy of a coming savior, (comparable to prophecies of Jesus Christ) “one who would come and bring balance to the force.” The one who would fulfill this prophecy would be begotten by the midichlorians. Anakin Skywalker, one of the main characters, had potential to fulfill this prophecy. His mother claimed that Anakin was conceived without a father.
     I could go on and on with both the similarities and the differences between Star Wars and the Biblical story; their themes of Life after Death, Temptation, the Final Battlefield, and Man's Final Destiny are actually quite fascinating.  While I cannot deny that there is an agenda behind the "clues" being given us through our forms of entertainment, we must never rely on Hollywood to present all the truth.  We must remember that it is a convenient and potent tool for the Deceiver, and he will lead many astray; there are actually those who are willing to believe that a movie plot is representative of the real world.  The writers and producers mix just enough truth with deception; and the foolish fall for it.
     The same is true of Satan in today's world.  Those who are not in tune with the "force" of the Holy Spirit will fall for the lies of the Enemy; lies that seem like God's Truth but, in reality, will lead you straight to the pits of hell.
     The plots of all the Star Wars movies are sometimes hard to follow, just as Satan -- the god of this world -- has confused the human spirit with various religions that blind us to our true purpose.  Which way are we to follow?  Which "Force" are we to follow?  The latest Star Wars movie may be a metaphor for that struggle we humans face, but it is just that ... an abstract concept designed to mimic the real Truth.  For we have one purpose, and that is to reconcile our spirit with the One who created us; to overcome our human nature and all our vanity, self-centeredness, lust, greed, hatred, envy, jealousy and hostility toward God.  And when that "force awakens" within us, nothing can stop us from the Victory that is ours through Jesus Christ.  Hollywood will never top that storyline!

John 1:4-5     "In Him was life [and the power to bestow life], and the life was the Light of men.  The Light shines on in the darkness, and the darkness did not understand it or overpower it or appropriate it or absorb it [and is unreceptive to it]."

Romans 12:1-2

Therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, I urge you
 to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, 
holy and pleasing to God; this is your spiritual worship.
  Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed 
by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what
 is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.

     Although this Scripture is not usually connected to the celebration of Christ's birth, I thought it was wholly appropriate for this season of celebration.  For who else than the Christ Child would grow into the One who would offer His body as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God?  Who else refused to be conformed to this world, resisting all temptation, in order to perform the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God?  

     And, yet, we must not lose sight of the fact that these verses are directed to us, too.  Each of us must be transformed by the renewing of our mind, so that we, too, might live holy lives; sacrificing what this world has to offer for a life that is in agreement and harmony with the will of God.  But what does that really mean, and how are we to achieve it?

     What does it mean to present our bodies as a living sacrifice and that this would become our spiritual worship?  Well, the word "sacrifice" is defined as "an act of giving up something valued, for the sake of something else regarded as more important or worthy."  That seems to suggest that our worship is going to cost us something.  But what?  If the act of "presenting our bodies" implies that we are dedicating all of ourselves, or setting ourselves apart from something, then it must be in contrast to what others in the world accept and embrace.  And how would this result in a life that is holy and pleasing to God?

     A very wise friend of mine recently told me that a pastor had presented a theory how we could change the moral culture of this nation in two generations; three at the most.  The pastor said there were three things the citizens of this nation could do to begin to turn our country around.  We could: 1) decide not to engage in premarital sex, waiting until we were married;  2) when we get married, to stay married; and 3) teach our kids to do the same.  If we could commit to do those three things through two or three generations, we could eventually rid our society of orphanages, broken families, fatherless kids, sexually transmitted diseases, divorce, abortion, adultery, sexual experimentation and confused gender identities, and all the disease and sickness that comes from loneliness and degenerate lifestyles.  

     Don't you think it would be a lot easier to mature spiritually -- to be transformed -- if we would focus on Godly values and ethical/moral attitudes?  Wouldn't that make it easier to discern the will of God; of what it is He wishes us to do and not to do?  We know that it is His will that we love our enemies; that we repent of our sins; and that we be holy as He is holy.  If we truly presented our bodies as a living sacrifice -- giving up the ways of the world for a life committed to pleasing Him -- wouldn't it not only be easier to traverse our years on this planet, but make us much happier and more content?

     I know that sounds simplistic and doesn't take into account our sinful nature.  But we were not made to disobey God.  That comes from our free will decisions.  He has given us the power and the ability to sin and disobey, but if we truly renewed our minds and focused on Him, we would be progressively transformed into the image of our Savior.  

     So, as you celebrate Christmas in a few days, and you worship the Son of God and picture Him lying in a lowly manger, keep in mind that this child is our role model.  He came to live a life that was Holy; separate from the world, and He did not conform to it.  He was willing to sacrifice His mortal body in order to accomplish our Father's plan and purpose for Him.  Nothing less is expected from us.  And that is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God!  May your focus be on our Lord and Savior this season, and living a life that is pleasing to God.  Merry Christmas!

       

What Is The True Meaning of the Brotherhood of Christ?

     I find as we are coming closer to the return of Christ, that the Body of Christ is actually in danger of becoming fractured.  Just as in the first century, when the birth of the Church presented new and unfamiliar ways of viewing God working in the world, I see Christians being separated by what they perceive as being "acceptable" ways to glorify and honor Him.
     Of course, there are the differences among Christians based on the changing cultural "morals".  Issues like gay marriage, abortion, social justice, and civil disobedience are addressed in the Bible, yet we find that people who call themselves Christians differ on how their faith instructs them on these matters.  How can that be?  God doesn't offer compromises or concessions in His commandments, does He?  So how are we to contend with these varying opinions?

      I think we need to take another look at our understanding of what it means to be the "Brotherhood of Christ".  If we truly understand the concept of God as our Father, it seems to me that being part of a brotherhood would encompass brotherly union and a joining with Jesus Christ in a unity of Grace.  Yet, I fear that we sometimes get caught up in our own definitions of what God finds satisfactory, or allowable, or just plain "good enough".  And I have to ask myself if we haven't let "religion" cloud our judgment, just a little.
     I am as guilty as the next Christian.  I know that Jesus and the Holy Spirit have been doing mighty works in my life; and showing me how to help others experience the joy of their Presence.  My experience has not been the norm; it is outside what the Church in America has known and promoted for at least the last century.  Yet I know it is real and from God!  But I have to fight the temptation to reject the traditional and "safe" message of the Church, because who am I to know the mind of God, or how He might reach just one person sitting in a pew on a Sunday morning?  I do not want to become my own god!
     At the same time, there are highly controversial people who call themselves Christians, and who appear to have borne fruit for His Kingdom through decidedly non-Church methods.  Are we to discount that their message or testimony is not real?  I think all of us can agree that we are to know our fellow Christians by the fruit that they bear.  But Jesus taught in John 15 that the primary purpose of a fruit tree is to bear fruit, and it is therefore judged by what it produces and not by how it looks.  We are instructed to be careful and not to be deceived by false prophets who look like beautiful fruit trees, whose fruit is pleasant to look at, tastes good, and is easy to digest; but produce nothing for the Kingdom.  At the same time, we must not forget that a bad tree cannot produce good fruit.  So while a fruit tree might look unorthodox and strange, if we discern that it is producing good fruit, then does it have credibility?
     It is easy for us Christians to establish the rules and determine what looks like Holy Spirit-produced fruit.  But I caution us that we must not fall into the trap of the Pharisees and Sadducees, who simply could not fathom that this rabble-rousing son of a carpenter could be a representative of Yahweh.  I am not saying that we should accept every new and dynamic conversion as the real thing, just because they say they have "found Jesus."  But neither do I think we should rush to condemn someone if they aren't miraculously changed on the spot.  Jesus told the woman caught in the act of adultery, and the man healed at the Pool of Bethsaida, to both "go and sin no more."
     They didn't instantly become a sinless, perfect human being.  None of us will ever be that.  But the power of the Holy Spirit broke the power that sin once had over them, and a process was begun towards conforming them into the likeness of Christ.  We are all on that path.  Some of us get there quicker than others.  Some have to stumble and fall many times over before we can shake the depravity and lies of our sinful past.  But if we have accepted Christ as our Savior, and surrender to Him, He will do the work... no matter how long it takes.
     I have seen evidence of that long path in a good friend of mine this week.  I never doubted his faith, but his actions did not show that He was walking with the Lord.  But God is now using him, while in a still imperfect state, to witness to people who need to hear of the Grace, Mercy, and Healing Power of Jesus.  His has been a very personalized, and different path to Christ.  He embraced the path to Christ easily, but he didn't walk the usual and normal path.  I have always felt that it was my duty as a Christian to embrace him and where he started, but also to encourage him and pray that he would not finish there.
     Should not the same thing be said for all of us in relationship to each other?  We are not all going to look alike or produce the same fruit from a cookie cutter template.  We must test the spirits and the message of those who look and sound different from us.  But we must also be open to the power of the Holy Spirit to be working in unique and unusual ways.  He is smarter than all of us, and can use just the right person to reach the unreachable.  We have entered an Age in which nothing resembles the ordinary, and nothing looks like it did in the past.  Jesus and the Holy Spirit worked outside the realm of conventional religion in the first century.  They can do the same today.  And through discernment, we must evaluate the good fruit from the bad, and support our brothers and sisters in Christ as we all strive to share the Good News.  We may not all look alike or follow the same path to Christ, but if we converge at the Cross, then the path forward will be in true brotherhood and unity.

John 15:44    "How can you believe [in Me], when you [seek and] receive glory and approval from one another, and yet you do not seek the glory and approval which comes from the One and Only God?"

Do You Need Any More Proof?

     I have often explained my position that there is no real difference in the political parties; each is not really in Washington to serve the people.  The idea that we have a representative government of the people, by the people, and for the people, has not been evident for a very long time -- at least not in my lifetime, and most likely not during the last century.  

      Those who are inclined to believe in conspiracy theories will point to the existence of organizations like the Trilateral Commission, the Council on Foreign Relations, the Bilderberg Group, and the Illuminati as confirmation that an Elite group of men, all members of these secret societies, are really ruling the world.  They just let us peons think we have a say in our government to keep the masses satisfied.  But, the conspiracists will say, the curtain has been pulled back and those in power in D.C. all work for the same side; and it is against us, not for us.

     How can one argue with that premise when the supposedly conservative Republican Party controls both the House and the Senate, yet did nothing to stop the advancement of budgetary legislation that seems to be destroying the country?  Paul Ryan may be trying to disguise his true colors behind his new facial hair, but do you need any more proof that we, the people, are insignificant in the affairs of this nation?  

     Breitbart.com provides a clear and concise summary of just how the men and women who were elected to represent us have sold us out.  But, we saw it coming, didn't we?  Although House Republicans put on a good show by pushing John Boehner out and electing Paul Ryan as the new Speaker, the negotiations under the new Party leadership were, as The Washington Post expressed, "the same high-stakes, closed-door give-and-take involving only a handful of congressional leaders that has closed out virtually every fiscal deal in recent memory."  Why did we think anything would change?  So, in case you don't have the stomach to wade through all the hype, let me just spell it out for you:

     1)  This latest appropriations bill funds entirely the 2012 executive amnesty for “DREAMers”—or illegal immigrants who came to the country as minors.  The President's executive action, known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), has granted around 700,000 illegal aliens with work permits, as well as the ability to receive tax credits and federal entitlement programs. A recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) report documented how this illegal amnesty program for alien youth is, in large part, responsible for the illegal alien minor surge on our southern border.

     2)  Five months after Kate Steinle died in her father's harms -- murdered by an illegal alien in San Francisco, a sanctuary city -- Ryan’s omnibus rewards these lawless Sanctuary Cities with federal grants. To be specific, Division B Title II of Ryan’s omnibus funds various grant programs for the Department of Justice (pages 167, 168, and 169) and contains no language that would restrict the provision of such grants to sanctuary jurisdictions.

     3)  This appropriations bill will fund President Obama’s refugee resettlement operation and will allow for the admission of tens of thousands of refugees with access to federal benefits. Division H Title II of Ryan’s bill contains appropriations of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and contains no language that would restrict the program. Nor are there any restrictions for the program in Division K of Ryan’s bill, which provides funding for the Department of State, which oversees refugee admissions.  In addition, Ryan’s proposal does nothing to limit admissions from jihadist-prone regions and funds all of the Mideast immigration programs that have been exploited by terrorists in recent years.

     4)  It seems to be all about the refugees and illegal aliens in this bill.  The inflated legislation funds not only illegal alien resettlement, but funds the release of criminal aliens; quadruples H-2B visas for unskilled guest workers; and preserves the expansion of the President’s expiring child tax credits without any accompanying language to prevent illegal aliens from receiving those tax credits.

     5)  Here's an important fact for us American tax-payers:  The bill funds the Obama-Boehner budget deal, which eliminated spending caps, and will increase both defense and non-defense spending next year by $25 billion more each.  Think that is going to effect our wallets?

     6)  And finally, the American people were promised a 700-mile double-layer border fence with the passage of the 2006 Secure Fence Act.  Guess what?  It ain't gonna happen.  It should not surprise us that this bill does not require that funds be allocated to finish the construction of the 700-mile double-layer fence.

     Granted, all this is bad news.  But here's the real damage that's been done according to the folks at Breitbart ... By locking in the President’s refugee, immigration, and spending priorities, Ryan’s bill is designed to keep these fights out of Congress by getting them off the table for good. Delivering Obama these wins–and pushing these issues beyond the purview of Congress–will suppress public attention to the issues and, in so doing, will boost the candidacy of the Republican establishment’s preferred presidential contenders, who favor President Obama’s immigration agenda.

     So that brings us right back to the question of whether we really have any say in the governing of this nation.  But it is time that we quit putting our faith in men.  As Christians, we know that Satan is the prince and ruler of this world.  We know that God is Sovereign, but we also know that, in His infinite wisdom, He has allowed Satan to operate in this world within the boundaries God has set for him.  That means that Satan has domain over all unbelievers, and it is not hard to see that those who seek power and wealth for themselves, over and above serving their fellow man, will fall prey to the Deceiver's influence.  In essence, they have believed the lie that they are all "little g" gods unto themselves, and have been caught in the snare of the devil.

     But so have the ordinary citizens of this world.  2 Corinthians 4:4 says, Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe.  That is plain to see as I scan the nearly 11,000 comments on the Breitbart article.  People continue to think that there is a political answer to our dilemma and the decline of this nation.  They argue back and forth, calling each other names, claiming that one Party or another is to blame.  They truly are blinded to the "glorious light of the Good News."  They don’t understand that only our confession, repentance, and faith in Jesus Christ can stop the hemorrhage.  It has to happen among the Elite of the world, the leaders of our nation, and all the way down to the common man.  We just don't get it that the Enemy has assigned rulers and principalities to each nation, and it is these spiritual entities that truly have authority and control over us.  Until each individual surrenders to Christ, no future election or change of political parties will effect our destiny.  And if the passage of this appropriations bill is any indication, there is no soul searching in sight.

John 16:8    "And He, when He comes, will convict the world about [the guilt of] sin [and the need for a Savior], and about righteousness, and about judgment..."

A Threat To Mankind Of Its Own Making

   

     I found it rather amusing, yet chillingly scary, that Elon Musk and his tech giant buddies have pledged $1 billion to save humanity from destruction by artificial intelligence.  That's right, they just came right out and said it... they believe that there is a very real danger that human-level AI might one day decide that we are no longer necessary, and commit to destroy us.
     That may sound like the oft-repeated storyline of science fiction movies, but apparently they feel it is a real enough threat that they are sounding the alarm and hope to keep big companies like Google or Facebook — both of which have huge artificial intelligence operations — from getting too much power from “super-intelligence systems”.  Of course, there are the really fringe conspiracy theorists who worry that governments may also use the power of AI to oppress their citizens.
     So, that you get a clear picture of this situation, Elon Musk, who made his fortune from PayPal, is joining forces with other tech entrepreneurs to establish a $1 billion investment fund for researchers to pursue applications with a positive social impact and to try to stay one step ahead of the technology.  It is their fear that AI systems communicating among themselves could eventually control entire transport networks and national economies.  So, along with Indian tech giant Infosys and Amazon Web Services, he has set up OpenAI, a nonprofit company that will back research into novel uses of AI and share the findings.
     Their stated goal is to ensure that someone is looking at the pros and cons – free from the financial constraints of research and development departments at the likes of Google or IBM that have spent billions of dollars on research.  But I find it rather ironic that Elon Musk and his collaborators will share the data that their companies generate with the AI firms. That will mean, for instance, that everything on Reddit could be given to the robots to help them learn.  Musk will also hand over data from his projects, including Tesla’s self-driving cars and SpaceX’s rockets.
     So, am I missing something?  Why would you hand over mountains of data to fight a takeover by robots --- to other robot companies?  Doesn't that defeat your objective?  Why give them more technology information?  I mean, Stephen Hawking is on record for warning that we may face an “intelligence explosion”, as machines develop the ability to engineer themselves to be far more intelligent.
     Then there is Dr. Stuart Armstrong, of the Future of Humanity Institute at Oxford University,  who has predicted a future where machines run by artificial intelligence become so indispensable in human lives they eventually make us redundant and take over.  And he says his alarming vision could happen as soon as the next few decades.
     Here is a pretty good analogy that Dr. Armstrong uses to get his point across:  "[For now] humans steer the future not because we're the strongest or the fastest, but because we're the smartest.  When machines become smarter than humans, we'll be handing them the steering wheel."  And because we think we're so smart, Armstrong envisages machines capable of harnessing such large amounts of computing power, and at speeds inconceivable to the human brain, that they will eventually create global networks with each other - communicating without human interference.
     In other words, machines, computers, and robots now carry out specific tasks designed for them by humans.  But when they can operate without human interference, and at speeds that we cannot fathom or understand, then that is when they will be able to take over those entire transport systems and national economies that were mentioned previously, along with financial markets, healthcare systems and product distribution.  It won't just be that they will eliminate our jobs.  They might quite possibly decide to eliminate us!
      Dr. Armstrong warns that the seemingly benign instruction to an AI to "prevent human suffering", could logically be interpreted by a super computer as "kill all humans", thereby ending suffering all together.  Furthermore, an instruction such as "keep humans safe and happy", could be translated by the remorseless digital logic of a machine as "entomb everyone in concrete coffins on heroin drips".
     An even scarier scenario is that as we develop these super computers, it will be impossible to determine whether a machine is developing in a benign or deadly direction.  Just think of the movie franchise Terminator.  And if you think it is as simple as writing a moral code by which machines could operate, just stop for a second and think about that.  The human race has debated for centuries on what constitutes acceptable moral boundaries, and we haven't agreed yet.  What makes us think that we can come up with a universally accepted set of instructions by which all machines will operate?  We can't even decide what is right and wrong!
     So while the Elite and the scientists and the technology giants debate the pros and cons of advancing the interaction between artificial intelligence and human beings, we are inching towards what all the writers of fiction that was based on imagined future scientific or technological advances have portrayed ... the cataclysmic moment when the human race is faced with its own distinction at the hands of the very devices we have created.  That's what happens when you become your own god and forget that you, too, have been made to serve a Creator.  Conspiracy or not; fiction or not --- it is real enough that the Elite of the world are willing to give up a portion of their fortunes to stop it. That should tell you something.

Isaiah 47:10    You were secure in your wickedness; you said, ‘No one sees me.’ Your wisdom and knowledge led you astray. You said to yourself, ‘I exist, and there is no one else.’