The ancient people of God had many ups and downs. Most of which they brought on themselves. In this case I’m referring to, the Lord said that they had polluted God’s temple, and transgressed the same way the heathen did. And then the author of 2^nd Chronicles reports the following.

And the Lord God of their father sent to them by his messengers rising up betimes, betimes means in good time, speedily, and sending; because he had compassion on his people and on his dwelling place: (36:15)

God looked at his sinful people and, not surprisingly, had compassion on them, pity on them for the mess they had made of their lives. So because God loved them, he sent messengers, prophets to them to turn them from their polluted ways. And how did they react? Well listen,

But they mocked the messengers of God and despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the Lord arose against his people, till there was no remedy. (36:16)

God sent them preachers of righteousness, and the people mocked them. Laughed at them, and continued their polluted ways. It sounds like what happens today to preachers of righteousness who called the nation to spiritual truth and righteous living based upon God’s Word the Bible.

Now look at the response from God that they brought upon themselves.

Therefore he (God) brought upon them the king of the Chaldees, who slew their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary, and had no compassion upon young man or maiden, old man, or him that stooped for age: he gave them all into his hand. (36:17)

Here is a simple principle for peoples and nations to realize and adhere to, even modern nations like ours. Mocking God’s word may lead to the point of no return and judgment will fall. As happened to this ancient nation their misusing of the preachers of God, and rejection of his word brought them to the place where there was no remedy for their lifestyle, and more judgment fell.

Pray for spiritual, and moral, revival in America before it is too late for our land, before the equivalent of the king of the Chaldees brings destruction and judgment in response to the mockery of God’s word.

God please help America. Amen

 Numbers 35:34 was among the commands God, through Moses, gave to His people in preparation for their entrance into the land He was giving them. It is certainly an appropriate thought for consideration by Americans, and other free nations around the world,

Defile not the land which ye shall inhabit, wherein I dwell: for I the LORD dwell among the children of Israel.

There must be negative consequences when people defile their land. Don't you think?

 

They know not, neither will they understand; they walk on in darkness: all the foundations of the earth are out of course.  Psalm 82:5

Commentators are divided on the meaning of the term “gods” (Psalm 82:1,6). Some think it means heavenly beings (vs. 1). Some the mighty rulers (governments) of the earth (vs. 6). Others, like myself, think it somehow refers to both.

This verse says (no matter how we interpret it) that they do not understand that the whole world is off course, because the foundations are off course, out of alignment with history, morality, human compassion, anything that used to keep people on the right path. The leaders, or others, who have impact upon the direction of the world don’t realize or are OK with the foundations being out of course. Could that be true of the nations of our world today? You be the judge.

If it is true then the poignant cry of another Psalm writer speaks to society today. Wilt thou not revive us again: that thy people may rejoice in thee? (Psalm 85:6). Of course, the answer is: Yes he will. If we do the hard work of resetting the foundations. I think we all know what it takes: love your neighbor, honesty, do good work, care for your family, turn from sin that hurts individuals and society. Now that’s hard for a society that has thrown over the traces to do, but if we do it, God will revive us and we as a people will rejoice.

 Job 9:4b ...who hath hardened himself against him, and hath prospered?

The ancient beleagured, bruised and battered patriarch spoke of humanity's relationship with God this way: who hath hardened himself against him (God), and hath prospered?

While there are philosophical nuances to Job's question, the ultimate answer is, no one. No one who hardens his heart against God, and his will.

Egypt: Arab Spring or Persecution Winter

The cold wind of persecution or the warm spring breeze of freedom and democracy. What are the Coptic Christians of Egypt feeling? Their churches are being burned, their lifestyle disrupted, their very lives in danger. Why can't they be allowed to live free, at peace and safe?

Excerpt from Rick Warren's Inaugural Prayer, January 20, 2009

"May all people of good will today join together to work for a more just, a more healthy and a more prosperous nation and a peaceful planet. And may we never forget that one day all nations and all people will stand accountable before you."

I'll add a baptist "Amen!" to that.

In Quest of Barak Obama's Faith

In reading about Barak Obama’s faith in his own words in his #1 New York Times Bestseller The Audacity of Faith I come away with the following impressions.

1. Barak was nurtured in and by his mother’s lack of formal faith. He describes her life as “devotional” in that she saw the value and beauty of each individual and the world around her, but, as well, she was skeptical, secular and with an attitude toward the various faiths we might call broadly ecumenical.

2. For Senator Obama the Scriptures of the Judeo-Christian faiths are not inspired in the theological sense that traditional Christians believe them to be. Example: “…nor am I willing to accept a reading of the Bible that considers an obscure line in Romans to be more defining of Christianity than the Sermon on the Mount.” (p. 222). He does not see the texts of Scripture as complementing one another by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, but rather as differing opinions in opposition to one another requiring the interpreter to choose one and discard the other.

3. Whatever salvation means to the Senator he does not state it in terms of believing in Jesus as personal savior. Of course, I am responding here to the way he describes his faith in this one book, so he may have expanded his view of salvation in another book, on the stump, or in personal conversations with friends.

4. He basically views abortion as a “good thing” and stands opposed to those who, in good faith, cannot bring themselves to accept it even for the supposed good of the mother. He does not speak in terms of expecting the pregnant woman to make sacrifices on behalf of her baby, of bringing a new precious life into the world, or making their child’s life better than their own in spite of the influence of his mother who believed “in the ultimate value of this brief life we’ve each been given” (p. 206, italics mine).

5. Barak accepts his mother’s fundamental faith “in the goodness of people” (p. 205) essentially discounting the Bible’s theological doctrine of the nature of humanity. Here’s how he applies this view to the abortion issue; “I explained my belief that few women made a decision to terminate a pregnancy casually; that any pregnant woman felt the full force of the moral issues involved and wrestled with her conscience when making that heart-wrenching decision;…” (p. 197). Are abortion, war, criminal activity, or global warming, for that matter, just the unintended consequences of the mistaken actions of good people wrestling with their consciences? Will President Obama be able to look into the soul of Valdimir Putin (as “W” says he did) and see that he is a good man despite the Russian incursion into Georgia or her posture towards the nations of Eastern Europe?

6. Barak describes a foundational lack of assurance about matters of faith. In recounting a conversation with one of his daughters he says “I wondered whether I should have told her the truth, that I wasn’t sure what happens when we die, any more than I was sure of where the soul resides or what existed before the Big Bang” (p. 226).

Like most Americans, even those who disagree with some or all of his political, social, and religious ideas, I like Senator Obama. I am delighted that (despite continuing problems in our nation) his nomination for President by a major political party has witnessed to the progress in race relations that America has made since the days of Jim Crow. His book is very well written and entertaining, and I like the family role model that he, Michele, and their children are setting for the families of our nation. I will pray for him, and where possible agree with him and support him, if he is elected President. He will be, as I have felt about all Presidents in my lifetime, my President.

His unorthodox “Christianity” is his choice. For many in the American Baptist Churches in the USA his theological doubts and weaknesses are similar to their own. He is welcome among us and, if he is not officially settled elsewhere, I invite him to become part of the ABC, often described by our leaders as the most diverse group of Baptists in the country. But, I have to confess, I hope he will come to believe the Bible. I hope He will understand it is God’s Word and not simply the fantastic thinking of religious fanatics wandering in the desert somewhere. I hope he will find assurance of salvation through personal, sincere commitment of his soul to Jesus Christ. And, I hope he will understand that seeking the good of all people in the world requires a commitment to standing for righteousness whether one is President or not.