TO KNOW CHRIST AND TO MAKE HIM KNOWN

TO KNOW CHRIST AND TO MAKE HIM KNOWN

Tuesday, January 24, 2017

What Actually Matters?

My first response to Spike Lee declaring he won’t use Chrisette Michele’s music in his Netflix series was like the response I usually feel when someone in a prison declares a hunger strike. For some reason, I cannot see how it matters to anybody.

I do not know any of Chrisette Michele’s music and I could not name one thing that Spike Lee is involved in (Except for Netflix, I guess…) but I cannot help but wonder how this is different than someone who owns a bakery not selling a cake to a homosexual couple.

Spike Lee is refusing to use Chrisette’s music because she has chosen to somehow, loosely at best, associate herself with President Trump. The bakery owners were refusing to serve a homosexual couple because of how they associate themselves. Why is the media ignoring this “hate” talk by Spike Lee or is does hate talk only take place when conservatives challenge liberal lifestyles?

On the day of the inauguration I saw the windows of a Starbucks and a bank get smashed buy a crowd that was protesting Donald Trump. The breaking of the windows of local businesses accomplished nothing and would be considered hate crimes if a conservative crowd was involved but because it supported the liberal’s ideology it was a protest that got out of control. (When I looked at the television pictures of the crowd I saw more reporters with their cameras in the police line’s face than protesters.)

The day after the inauguration there was a women’s march in Washington and various cities around the world. I watched and listened so I could try and figure out what it was these ladies were trying to accomplish. I heard much hate speech and eventually  figured out that they must just need a channel to demonstrate their hatred. So, they did.

I do not think we as a nation are better off now that many ladies cursed, lied and marched and I think most of us who watched the demonstration have no idea what they wanted. It reminded me of the time a reporter interviewed a child that skipped school to protest the “evils” of Governor Walker, of Wisconsin. When he was asked what he was protesting he had to look at someone for the answer and eventually said something to the order of “he is a bad person,” not even knowing who “he” was.

These protests brought me the same feeling I get when I watch an advertisement on television and have no clue as to what they were advertising.

Sometimes people begin to forsake the very attributes that make them human and act more like a herd than a human.

This is the United States of America and children have the right to protest people they do not know for reasons they do not understand. Spike Lee has the freedom to use or not use someone’s music for whatever reason he chooses. Chrisette can choose to sing or not sing at anybody’s inauguration and bakery owners can serve or not serve people based on personal convictions.

Those who damage other people’s property should be held accountable to the damages and both sides should condemn such actions and reporters who are fueling the fires of dissent rather than just reporting should be disregarded.

Today, it seems like the latest “silent” movement in our nation is to bypass the media. If I am typical of the “silent majority” in this nation, then they do not believe anything the media reports. We need not get into a “Twitter” debate but we should look at why President Trump and millions of people find it fascinating and necessary.

Direct access to the news and news makers is more important than listening to the news. The media has lost its power and influence over the educated masses and now can only control those who live in their pretend world and there are less and less people who want to drink their Kool-Aid.

A Godless nation struggles to create “truth” and struggles with personal identity when someone disagrees with their “truth.” Truth is not dependent upon the masses acceptance of it to be truth. Truth is not dependent upon eloquence, feelings or the timing of the message. Truth is not available exclusively to specific genders, political parties, churches, races, or geographical areas.

Having someone agree with you or convincing that the masses are “right,” does not mean you or they are “right.”

We cannot make up truth we need to discover it and the only place to find it is God.

The problem in a Godless nation is that it is Godless and therefore they cannot live in the truth. If we, as a nation, cannot correct that, then we will live in confusion as each man/woman does what is right in their own eyes. When one does what is right in their own eyes, they, in essence, become a “god.” When there are many “gods” demanding that all things revolve around them we have mass confusion.

A nation that lives in confusion acts like they are confused and confused people make very little “sense.”

We are not a divided nation because of political ideology but because we have no basis for truth. The solution is not more debate, committee meetings or future elections. The solution is for our nation to recognize its sin, repent and come back to God.

There will be those who disagree with me and they are welcomed to do so in any respectful manner they choose. There are those who would disagree with God and, again, they, for now, are free to do so. However, they will one day wish they had humbled themselves before Him rather than challenge Him.  For now, the choice is ours.















Sunday, January 15, 2017

Sleight of Words

Ideas have consequences that affects what we consider normal today while framing tomorrow. For the past several years we have lost confidence in those holding political office to the point where those who lie, misrepresent the truth, scheme and connive are normative instead of the exception. Definitions have changed, opinions are more important or at least equivalent to truth and feelings more powerful than facts.

Those in the media love pointing the finger at figures like Donald Trump when he is just exploiting the system the media has created. Mr. Trump’s “tweets” are cleverly crafted to control the conversation and seems to have the media off balance and out of sorts.

Those in the media seem to be upset because Mr. Trump is controlling the conversation when, for years, they have had the freedom to control the conversation. Mr. Trump seem genius as a verbal “sleight of hand” artist or, if you will, “sleight of words” artist.

What is happening here is that the Godless are attempting to be in “control” for it is a characteristic of God that they are attempting to take for themselves. They may use money, authority or words to manipulate those around them and control the dialogue to create their own “truth.”

These attempts at the recreation of truth are at the core evil and depend upon rhetoric, belief systems and manipulation, Satan’s most effective tools of destruction.

If we want to successfully navigate in this environment we must recognize that nothing is true because somebody believes it’s true or because someone can eloquently defend their premise or because someone with power and authority says it’s true.

Regardless of the framing, sin is sin. Homosexuality is wrong. Gay marriage is unacceptable. Gender is determined by God at birth. Greed is not acceptable as the engine for economic growth. Divorce is wrong. Etc., etc., etc.

Rhetoric and belief are based on human wisdom and understanding. Truth is based on divine revelation and always trumps belief systems, rhetoric and human authority.

Those who know and love the truth do not try to manipulate it, they embrace it. Their words are not something they craft to cover truth but to discover truth.

The long-term result arising from those who have been fed many streams of distortion is confusion and those who are confused begin to ignore words and live life as they desire, as it is right in their own eyes.

There are not many Gods, there is only one and since there is only one God there is only one authority in all matters of absolute truth. Without Him, we have no capacity for truth, we only have capacity for manipulation.

The answer to a confused people is not more news or having more people believe as we do but to cut through the confusion by knowing God and giving Him His rightful place as Almighty God, the Creator and Sustainer of all life.

We must stop being a people that is influenced more by then news cycle than Scriptures.

Those who possess true power do not attempt to keep it or control the masses to protect it. In fact, they give it away and use their power and authority for the good of those they have power and authority over. The only legitimate use of power and authority is for the good of the people, not the good of the one in authority.

God, the ultimate authority, used his power and authority to ensure man an opportunity to be reconciled with Himself even though He did and does not need to do so to be God.

If we do not want to live confused lives, we need to know and submit to God. Without doing so, we will never get out of the constant fog of confusion that seems ever prevalent. For now, the choice is ours.