What lens? "Reality Check"

A few seasons ago I started this blog to continue conversations with men that had begun at our church. A number of us really wanted to look at all aspects of life with God's eyes as best we could, and that meant that we had to examine the world around us through the lens of God's word, the Bible. Apart from that sure foundation, all is mere conjecture.

This past weekend, my eldest son, Jeremy Pond, wholly apart from this blog and any impetus from me began an audio blog, Reality Check, with much the same purpose.  His first piece introduced the concept in just under two-minutes. His second dives right into the deep-end and provides a clear, concise seven-minute synopsis of what's been happening between Israel and Hamas, Egypt, the Palestinians, Gaza, etc. You can find them both at www.realitycheckcommentary.com. I invite you to bookmark the site. You'll want to check back from time to time.

So what is the lens through which you look at the world? You do, you know. Something informs the way that you look at things. If you call yourself a Christian and have never before considered examining all things through the lens of God's word, let me encourage you to start now. The best place to begin is with God's word. You've got to know it to be able to seeing things through such a matrix. While my son's audio blog and this written blog intend to assist you to that end, even these must be considered from the sure foundation of God's word.

Give Reality Check a listen. It's worth your time.

Evidence

Amidst my ponderings of the continued ebb (just ebb, no flow) of Christianity's moral and cultural influence in the United States especially in light of Election 2012, I kept hearing folks quoting G. K. Chesterton in various contexts. He said in his usual blunt manner,

"Christianity has not been tried and found wanting;
it has been found difficult and not tried."

Makes sense. When I can scratch any itch in 50 million different ways and when my government will not hold me culpable for my bad decisions but will continue to provide me the sticks for my itch scratching, why should I consider a religion that appears to have run its course? Many folks still consider Jesus a pretty decent philosopher for his day, but did he really intend for Paul to go so far as to have wives submit to husbands? This is the 21st century, after all. And what did Jesus mean anyway when he suggested plucking our eyes over lust? Really? So rather than pursue and investigate, we're content to pluck passages from their contexts rather than our eyes.* Christianity is labeled ridiculous, and its adherents are painted as uneducated, flat-earth, science-damning hillbillies. It's much easier to dismiss someone with the sweep of an insult that to examine their arguments.

But here's the problem: the Bible is true.

Because of the easy dismissals and primary-colored caricatures, few today wade into the deep waters of biblical claims to investigate for themselves. Biblical study is unsettling. It's difficult. And like Augustine near 1700 years ago, the agony one encounters as he comes face to face with the truth becomes unbearable for he must answer the question "If it is true, shall I live the rest of my life in the delusion of my own will, or shall I pursue the One who has created me for his good purpose and given all that I might be restored in relationship to him?"

So let me throw out a few reasons you might consider that point to the cornerstone truth that, yes, Jesus Christ is your Savior, your God, and your King.

1) THE TESTIMONY OF WITNESSES. Matthew and John, two of the gospel** writers, were among the twelve of Jesus closest followers, and they recorded the relevant happenings of Jesus' life and ministry. The earliest extra-biblical testimonies credit these writings as those of these men despite the attempts of modern scholars to push the writings beyond the time of these men. Mark, while not a disciple of Christ, became a close assistant first to Paul and Barnabas and ultimately to Peter in Rome. If anybody knew Jesus, it was Peter. Lastly, as Paul emphasized the importance of the resurrection of Jesus to the church at Corinth, Greece, he indicated that there were 500 folks who saw the risen Jesus at one time and many of them were still alive to corroborate the account.

2) INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING. Luke was not a disciple of Jesus during his earthly ministry and perhaps never saw him. He was a physician by trade and from the manner and style of his writing, he was a well-educated man. In his bio of Christ, he scoured the testimonies of those still alive, he separated the wheat from the chaff, and attempted to present the most accurate account he could to a friend of his, Theophilus, that he might have certainty about the things he was taught (Luke 1:1-4). In the book of Acts, the book immediately following the four gospels, he provides one of the most geographically detailed accounts of the Mediterranean region and of first century seafaring in his account of the spread of the early church.

3) FULFILLED PROPHECY. To Blaise Pascal, this was the most compelling aspect of the entire Bible. No other religion so audaciously hangs its existence on things to come. It was a keynote to Israel that God had actually spoken through specific men.

Isaiah 45:21 - "Who told this long ago? Who declared it of old? Was it not I, the Lord? And there is no other god besides me, a righteous God and a Savior; there is none besides me."
Isaiah 48:3 - "The former things I declared of old; they went out from my mouth, and I announced them; then suddenly I did them, and they came to pass."
Isaiah 48:5 - "I declared them to you from of old, before they came to pass I announced them to you, lest you should say, ‘My idol did them, my carved image and my metal image commanded them.’"

Because prophetic fulfillment is one of the most compelling aspects of the entire Bible as the previous verses show that God intended it to be so, scholars have gone through the contortions of a Chinese acrobat to move the writings of the Bible all centuries later than the Bible itself indicates. They believe that because prophecy ranks with the supernatural, it cannot be. Therefore what had to have happened is religious leaders took the events of the day, events that had taken place, and they wrote prophetic stories to make it look like they had been fulfilled, that God loves his people, and that he can see the end from the beginning. The gymnastics required to neuter prophecies pales in comparison with the lies required to post-write prophecies. Any child knows the difficulty of maintaining a single lie. Now imagine trying to maintain the thousand of fulfilled and yet to be fulfilled prophecies. Such deception cannot be historically substantiated.

As one reads through the gospel of Matthew, you can't help but notice his emphasis on the sheer number of prophecies that Jesus Christ's advent fulfilled, a few he could have tried to fulfill to try and make people believe he was the Christ (i.e. riding into Jerusalem on a donkey) but most he had no control over (his place of his birth, the means of his death, and the events surrounding that event to name a paltry few).

The evidence for the veracity of the Bible is overwhelming. But will we take the time to read and assess what it says for ourselves? As Chesterton notes, few are willing to wade in past the preconceptions and challenges to glean the truth. Perhaps today you might consider taking a challenge from the very lips of God, "Taste and see that the Lord is good" (Psalm 34:8). As Augustine discovered, it's a life-altering consideration.

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* I have to do it because some will take me out of context. I am NOT advocating eye-plucking for those struggling with lust. Hyperbole, people. Jesus had figures of speech mastered.

** Many do not know any longer what a "gospel" is. The word means good news. What have become known as the gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) are the first four books of the New Testament of the Bible. Even "New" Testament is something of a misnomer. Rather than Old and New, consider them the first and second Testaments, or as we would say, Part I and Part II of the book. The gospels are in essence biographies of Jesus life. Some are more chronological than others, but all tell of the historical events of Jesus' life, ministry, death, and resurrection.

How's your traction?

For the Bible-believing Christian, Tuesday's election brought a splash of sobriety to life in these United States. Some troubling issues (two of which I highlighted in yesterday's post):

** America is turning from God's design for marriage.
** We seem to be ho-hum about drug use.
** It appears we desire a socialist model (I deserve some of yours) as opposed to a capitalistic model (keep your mitts off mine; I'll share if you are truly in need and then whole-heartedly).
** National defense has taken a back seat to an international group hug.
** The above applies to all nations but Israel, who we have hung out to dry.
** Expect to see any restrictions to abortion loosed.
** The flavor of the Supreme Court will certainly see a change.

That's the tip of the iceberg. Each of these leads to other issues that exposes a trend in our country that moves us away from conventional morality (i.e. biblical morality*) toward a "whatever, dude!" morality. To me, this is a heartbreaking thing to see. There are two absolutely wrong attitudes to take in the wake of this election.

First, we must avoid a Kumbayah mentality. I caught some posts about how now is the time to come together as a nation. That sounds very nice, but might I ask around what? A gaping moral divide exists in our country that cannot simply be skipped across. This is not to say that I should hate those opposed to God and biblical values. By no means! Nor should I build a Christian monastery and head for the hills. We are to be salt and light in a fallen world, and the United States 2012 surely falls into that category. But being salt and light means holding God's truths high. Those will bring conviction to some and hatred from many others. As we uphold the truth, part of that is the truth of the gospel, that while man stands in stark and abject rebellion before a holy and righteous God, that same God has provided the means of man's redemption, the completed work of God the Son, Jesus Christ.

Second, and my entire reason for this post we must not despair. Certain verses rang in my ears all day yesterday.

"Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."

Paul gave this challenge, these commands, to the church in the town of Thessalonica, a high-octane, low-morality port city in Greece, a major cross-roads for the Roman empire. This was a church in the midst of tough persecution, but dwell upon what he told them:

REJOICE ALWAYS

"But...but...but..." Sorry, that won't fly. Why can I rejoice? God remains sovereign over all his creation. God's plan cannot be thwarted by man or 60 million men. Tuesday's election did not startle him. All things will work together for good for those who love God and are the called according to his purpose. Christ will come again, one day. God will set all things aright, one day. He loves me.

How do I know all these things? The Bible tells me so, and I believe it. I believe him for the Bible is God's word to us, to me. Saint, this is where the rubber meets the road. Will I trust him? Do I believe him? Satan has tried from the Garden of Eden to undermine what God has said. "Did God actually say..." He's working overtime in our day and age to portray God's word as irrelevant and outdated or unknowable and subject to diverse interpretations. Really, God's word reads pretty plainly in most parts. This one's hard to get around. Rejoice always!

PRAY WITHOUT CEASING

Another one that doesn't require a Rosetta Stone to figure out. Commune always with your God. As with abiding with your wife you should communicate with her always. Sometimes you just abide together in silence in a room but you are comforted by her presence. Sometimes it's just a text to tell her you love her or need her to pick something up for you. Other times, you date her with purpose or take a long walk with her to talk and to hear her voice. It should be no different with God.

My prayer from before the election has not changed. While I think a different vote would have stemmed the demise of our nation, a president will not change our heading. If we as a people reject God, will he not give us our desire? That terrifies me. As such, my prayer unceasing has been that God would bring a heart of repentance upon our nation that we might then turn to him and be healed. There is much to pray about and for regarding our country, so pray without ceasing.

GIVE THANKS IN ALL CIRCUMSTANCES

Yeah, that means Tuesday's election, too. Saint, can you grieve and give thanks that Barack Obama was elected? I've already provided a number of reasons to grieve, but give thanks?! Yes, indeed. Give thanks. "Why??" I hear you screaming. Because God will do amazing things through this election that we do not yet see.

If you knew right now that the dismantling and disintegration of the United States of America would mean that millions would come face to face with their sin and turn to salvation in Jesus Christ, would this not be better than dying with a fat wallet and an eternity in hell facing you on the other side? America has been a phenomenal political experiment proving that a nation founded upon God's principles can thrive and flourish, but if the people have come to the point of rejecting God, can we expect any less than that they will reject his principles, too? So while I do not know what God will do through Election 2012, I will thank him for it and trust him for what he will do through it.

So, sibling, are our wheels steady on the road? Do we really believe what God has said in his word? If so and especially in light of the past few days, we must rejoice, pray, and ooze thanksgiving. These are, after all, the will of God for you in Christ Jesus.

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* John MacArthur gave two outstanding messages on the demise of biblical morality in our political process. You can find them here and here. From the link, you can read, listen to, or download the sermons in their entirety.

Dangerous places to live

After last night, Election 2012, the two most dangerous places to live in all the world have not changed and will not change: Israel and the mother's womb.

God calls his saints to pray for the peace of Jerusalem (Psalm 122:6). Now would be a very good time to take this to heart for Israel now has no national ally.

God calls us to be a mouthpiece for those who have no say and to be a defender for the poor and needy (Proverbs 31:8-9). Now would be a very good time to pray for the unborn child as the most pro-abortion president in our nation's history has attained a second term. Things will only get more dire.

Serve in your community at local pregnancy care centers. You don't have to be a counselor. They need administrative help, yard work to be done, and maintenance work almost every day of the year. Write letters to your congressman and local officials. A simple letter to the editor speaking out for the sanctity of human life is a good and easy thing to do.

No doubt folks in Israel are not comforted by the vote. If the unborn only knew, their terror would be greater still. Yet we press on trusting our God and King and laboring endlessly until the day of his appearing. The darker the night, the brighter will his light shine in and through us (Matthew 5:16). Let it shine!