What we need is humility

America is sprinting toward destruction and the only thing that can save us is humility and a fervent plea for God’s mercy and forgiveness. Without it, we will surely come to destruction. Solomon wrote in the book of Ecclesiastes that there is nothing new under the sun. This truth, while written thousands of years ago, is the same today just as it was back then. Who are we to think that somehow our nation is smarter and different than all the great, and not so great, nations of the past. Take a look at the history of great nations like Rome, Greece, England and others, why do we think that we are so different than them. It is true that America is, if not the richest, one of the richest nations that the world has ever seen, and more than likely the most powerful nation ever. Yet while we may be richer and stronger than those nations ever were, we are identical to them in one regard. Why did Rome fall, or Greece or England or the Persian empire? Why did they go from being the masters of the world to being just another nation? From having vast riches and mighty armies to nations that have neither? And why will America go from being the mightiest and richest nation ever to rule the earth, to being merely a couple of pages in a history book one day? It is because America, just as those other nations, is destroying itself from the inside.
America was started as a nation that feared and trusted in God. A nation that lived by Godly principles and truths, and because of this, God blessed this nation greatly. Now however, we are a nation that will do whatever it can to deny the very existence of God. For this reason, God is judging us and taking back all of those blessings he once bestowed on us. Right now, our economy is going down the drain, the middle east looks like it is about to explode and our government is spending our future out of existence. While things look very bleak and discomforting, we can remember what Solomon said, there is nothing new under the sun. We can learn from the mistakes that were made in the past and then not repeat those mistakes. We can look at the nation of Rome and how it came to destruction because it became very lax in its morals and opened its doors to all manner of evil and wickedness. The same happened to England and the other great nations that the world has seen. In all of these nations, Godly morals and ethics were thrown out and man’s sinful thinking and morals replaced them. But God judged those nations, and those once great nations are no longer so great. Now it is happening again, we as Americans have thrown out Gods law and replaced It with our own. We have become a lazy and complacent people who could care less about what is happening to us. Why is it that all of our doctors and inventors and mathematicians seem to be foreign? Why is it that the hardest working people in America are the illegal immigrants from the Central and South America? It is because they recognize the great opportunity that has been given to them to live and work in a nation like this and they are not going to squander that opportunity. However, Americans seem to have no problem with squandering that opportunity and the inheritance that has been given to us by past generations. We seem to have no problem with laziness and reliance on the government. We are being taught that if we have a problem, let the government fix it. Not, if we have a problem, learn how to solve it yourself. Besides the laziness, we have also thrown out all Godly morals. I saw a statistic that said that 40% of teenage girls have either been pregnant or are pregnant. Fifty million babies have been killed in the last thirty years. Homosexuality is a thing that should be tolerated now. Sex outside of marriage is so common that most people think you are weird if you haven’t done it. Tell me, how did America get to this point and why do we think that we will not go unpunished because of it? And believe me, it is not just the unrighteous that are acting wickedly here in America, but it is also the Christians. We seem to have no problem watching a movie that has sex and language and violence In it. Or watching TV shows whose whole premise is based on sex. We make up excuses for why we are watching it. We listen to songs that glorify sex and drugs and violence and all manner of wickedness. We are all responsible, and we will all be punished unless we beg God for mercy. Unless we get down on our hands and knees, and like the city of Nineveh, plead to God to forgive us of our wickedness. Otherwise, we will become like every other nation that has ever inhabited the earth, we will be judged and punished by a righteous God who will not tolerate such sinfulness to last. America is on the brink of destruction and without God’s help, we will most assuredly be destroyed.

How close, not how far

This week i am not going to talk about politics, instead i want to talk about a growing trend among Christians these days, one which i am guilty of as well. The trend is this, for many Christians these days, the question that they ask themselves when it comes to making decisions is, "how much can i get away with before i fall over the edge?" Now let me explain exactly what i mean by this. They ask themselves, whats wrong with the movies and TV shows i watch?I am not actually partaking in these sins myself. Or, why shouldn't i go to this party, it's not like I'm going to do anything bad at it. Basically what they are saying is, if there is nothing "technically" wrong with it, and as long as I'm not doing it myself, than what's the problem with it.

Philippians 4:8 says: "Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."

Folks, the question should not be how far can i get away from the bulls eye, which is Jesus and His Word, but the question should be, how close can i get to it. Well sure i may not be actually committing any of the acts that are going on in this film, or, well of course i would never be committing the sinful acts that others are caring on at this party. But does that really matter, does the Lord not judge our hearts and our minds as well as our actions? We should ask ourselves, is there anything good or wholesome in this film? Is there anything honorable going on at this party?
Why do we always race to the question of whether we can technically get away with it and justify it to ourselves in our minds? The obvious reason is sin, but it goes deeper than that. We get to that point when we are no longer delving into God's word on a daily basis, when the Word of God is no longer our water and bread, our source of life. If we were to look at the life of Paul, did he sit and wonder what he could get away with? NO, he was asking himself what he could do to get closer to God. In closing, i know i am far from perfect on this issue, but let us all start afresh and shoot for the bulls eye, not the outer ring.

A few questions

This past Monday, March 02, 2009 I had the amazing opportunity to volunteer with the Justice For All (JFA) exhibit. For those who have never heard of JFA, what it is, is a pro-life group that goes to college campuses all across the country talking to college students about abortion. What is particularly amazing about this group though is that they set up a twenty feet tall triangle exhibit with graphic pictures of what abortions actually look like and other things of that nature. While I was there volunteering with the group, I had the opportunity to talk to a lot of different people about abortion. Now for those who told me that they were very pro-life and thought that all abortion was wrong, I asked them a simple question. Well, what are you doing to try and stop this genocide? Are you a member of the pro-life group here on campus? Every single time the answer was no. I than asked them one more question. When are you going to care enough to do something about it? When the death toll reaches 100 million? 200 million? That is the question that I ask everybody that reads this blog post, when are we going to care enough to rise up and stop the injustices and abuses that are going on in today’s society? When America crashes and burns? When the death toll of those tiny infants reaches 100 million? When Christ is completely thrown out and rejected by our entire society? Now I want to make something clear, we may not be able to stop our economy and our Country from completely crashing and burning. We may not be able to stop America from completely rejecting Christ and we may not be able to stop the genocide of infants. However, that gives us no excuse to not be active in fighting back against those who would seek to destroy us. When Paul was beaten and persecuted for the sake of Christ, he did not give up, but kept right no fighting. When the Romans tried to blame the destruction of Rome on the Christians, St. Augustine fought back and wrote one of the greatest books ever, The City of God, in defense of the Christians. So let us not be apathetic in the fight for our country and our God. Rather let us do all we can to bring this country back to where we came from, for only there will God once again bless us as a nation.

Scripture, Pragmatism, or Neither?

In 1945, a series of trials began which would deal with one of the most important questions on ethics that would be raised in the twentieth century. This trial would look into the activities of 24 men and 6 different organizations, who killed thousands of people. The killing was legal under their laws. They followed the orders of their superiors. Why were they convicted? Why could the court judge the standard for their laws and say that they were wrong? If you have not already guessed, I am referring to the Nuremberg trials. This trial, which convicted the Nazi leaders of murder, stated that it was wrong to kill the millions of people despite laws which allowed such action. The question that this trial bring to mind is, "What is the standard for judging the legitimacy of any policy decision? In several discussion online and in person, many individuals questioned whether or not we should use the scriptures to argue our positions. That is the question I wish to answer.


First, we must realize that whether we like it or not, we will argue with a standard either assumed or stated outright. The problem is when we don't argue with the scripture as our authority, we stoop to rationalism and ultimately we can't defend our beliefs exclusively from a rationalistic mindset. I am not saying that rationalism will never convince someone of your views, but when it comes down to the actual reason for supporting or opposing a position we must know and be able to defend our standard for truth. Why was it wrong to kill millions of people? Why is it wrong to discriminate against a particular race? Why is it wrong to take money from one person and give it to another?


We can say, "It's not our life to take." I ask, "Why?" We can say, "Everyone is equal." I ask, "Why?" We can say, "The citizen earned the money and they should spend it." I ask
"Why?"
Ultimately, if God's commands are not the standard then there is no reason to oppose any of these views. We are left with nothing, except what man decides is best.



Second, we see that the founders themselves had this mindset when they brought this country into existence. Here are just a few of those quotes:


"It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. For this very reason peoples of other faiths have been afforded asylum, prosperity, and the freedom of worship here."--Patrick Henry

"Suppose a nation in some of distant region should take the Bible for their only law book, and every member should regulate his conducts by the precepts there exhibited! Every member would be obliged in conscience, to temperance, frugality, and industry; to justice, kindness, and charity towards his fellow men; and to piety, love, and reverence toward Almighty God... What an Utopia, what a Paradise would this region be."--John Adams


"God who gave us life gave us liberty. And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure, when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the mind of the people that these liberties are of the Gift of God? That they are to not be violated but with His wrath? Indeed, I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just; that His justice can not sleep forever."--Thomas Jefferson


"Where as it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor..."--George Washington


Today, we are faced with a question, "Will we stand on God's Word and not be ashamed, or will we stoop low and argue pragmatically and lose the real battle in the process?" The political and theological issues we face today are very important, but if we are ashamed of using the only infallible source and standard on the face of the earth, because people don't believe them, then what have we won? In reality, we have lost! There was once a gentleman who went on a talkshow to discuss the legitimacy of homosexuality. The man was a Christian. He believed the Word of God should be the standard in all areas of life, but when it came to this radio talk show, he decided that it would be better to not bring up the scriptures. When the radio talk show host asked him why he opposed homosexual marriage he said, "I don't support homosexual marriage because the couple is not able to reproduce." The host smiled and said if that is your reason then why should men and women be allowed to marry if they are not able to reproduce? The host had won. In fact, I would argue that he had won before this gentleman ever entered the studio, because he had left the only weapon which could win the battle at the door. Once again, I am not saying that we should not use rationalism at all to support our points, but we should use it within a framework of Biblical reasoning. The question I leave you with is "Will we as Christians refuse to use the Word of God and "win" the battle or will we refuse to compromise and win the war?"

Nationalizing of banks

I recently read an article about how the government is seeking to stem bank fears. In this article, Robert Gibbs, a White House spokesman, said that the Obama administration "continues to strongly believe that a privately held banking system is the correct way to go." But what exactly does the Obama administration consider to be a private bank? One in which the bank is completely free of all government help? Or a bank which calls itself private and even has a board of directors and stock holders but, in all actuality, is almost completely run by the national government? For that is the type of bank that Obama, and even his predecessor George Bush, seem to favor. In the midst of this recession, the national government has bought controlling stock in most major banks around the country with the promise to sell back those stocks once this crisis is over. But will they? What reason have we to believe that they really will sell back those stocks and hand control back over to the banks? All we have ever seen from the liberals and this type of government is a want for power. Almost every single government institution that has been put in place since the Great depression has taken power away from the states and people and given it to the national government. So while Obama claims that he believes in a private banking system, one has to wonder how he is defining private.

Here is the article: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123515866806935383.html

A Call to Arms! Encouraging Young People to Enter the Trenches of Political Activism.

A young man stepped across the gang plank and onto the shores of London.  From his handsome appearance and age, no one would have guessed what the last year of his life had looked like, nor what was in store for him in the future.  At the age of 15, he had traveled to Russia  as the secretary to the American diplomat to Catherine the Great.  After five months of intense negotiations, a treaty was signed, and the young man found that he would have to wait six months before a ship would arrive to take him home.  Instead of waiting, he single handedly journeyed on foot across Europe in six months and  negotiated a trade agreement with Sweden in the process.  All of this being done at the age of 15!  This young man was John Quincy Adams.  He would later in life be appointed as the youngest diplomat of the United States at age 26 to the Netherlands, then diplomat to the Portugal, Prussia, and Russia, US senator from Massachusetts, member of the House of Representatives, Secretary of State, and finally President of the United States.  While it is certainly not the role of every young person to enter politics, it does raise an important question.  Can young people accomplish great things at an early age and can they be an influential group in the realm of politics through activism?

"We the people of the United States in order to form a more perfect Union, establish justice..., and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America."  These words found in the preamble to the Constitution, summarize the reason for every citizen's civic duty.  I believe there are three essential reasons for young people being involved in the political process.

First and foremost, we are young people who are servants of the Almighty.  We must realize that politics is not simply an area that Christians should not be concerned with, but instead is an area which we should seek to influence for the glory of God.  2 Timothy 3:16-17 says "All scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, reproof, correction, for training and righteousness so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work."  Scripture speaks of every area of life needing to be grounded in scripture, including government.  In fact the first part of Romans 13 is specifically dedicated to what Biblical government should look like and the Old Testament is full of principles as well.  If the Lord included whole chapters on government and what it should look like, we must not be disobedient by being absent from politics.  So as the creation and servants of God we should strive to glorify him in government.  

Second, as potential leaders of the next generation, the government policies of today will create and mold the world we and our children will live in tomorrow. In the course of our nation's history, we have allowed the slaughter of 40 million innocent babies, amassed a 10 trillion dollar debt, restricted our 2nd amendment rights to keep and bear arms, allowed millions of illegal immigrants to enter our country, and watched the steady infiltration of socialism into our country until now we are considering a bill which will use American tax-payer dollars to pay of other people's mortgages!  This is ridiculous! Have we gone this far in weeks, months, or even a years?  No, this change in America has been slow and gradual.  Not as a result of a single moment of failure, but instead because of decades of neglect.  As young people we must be willing to take action not just for our own sake, but for the sake of our children and the generations that will come after us.

Third, it is easy to be involved in the political process and be responsible in our civic duty.  The key to doing this is being (1) informed about legislation or elections, (2)active   on legislation and elections, (3) being able to defend your views in a persuasive and winning way, and (4) conscious that there must be a standard for our beliefs in my case the Constitution and the scriptures.  In 2007, the amnesty bill presented to Congress was struck down.  The media attributed this largely to the massive amounts of emails and phone calls that bombarded the capital in the weeks previous to the vote.  Being able to defend our views persuasively will give us many opportunities to share with others and even see some people change their minds.  Finally, we must stand on the principles and standards of our beliefs.  If we choose to compromise or back down, we are putting on our views on the same playing ground as the liberals.  We are in essence basing our views on pragmatism and not on the principles of the Constitution or the scriptures.

In closing,  I would encourage everyone to be active in politics and to strive for reform, because it has been the efforts of minorities, not majorities who have caused change to take place.  Take the Revolutionary War for example.  It is estimated by historians that only a small minority actively supported the revolution and yet they accomplished tremendous feats.  George Washington said in 1788, "No Country upon Earth ever had it more in its power to attain these blessings.... Much to be regretted indeed would it be, were we to neglect the means and depart from the road which Providence has pointed us, so plainly; I cannot believe it will ever come to pass.  The Great Governor of the Universe has led us too long and too far.... to forsake us in the midst of it....We may, now and then, get bewildered; but I hope and trust that there is good sense and virtue enough left to recover the right path."  We are in one of these periods of bewilderment, but will our generation, a generation of young people, rise up and reclaim this area of our country or will we let it fall to the ground never to rise again because of our neglect?  No!  May it never be.  May our generation rise up and say we will not settle for these policies of destruction, but instead will return to the paths which have allowed our nation to be the most powerful in the world for these last 200 years. 

Apathy

The greatest danger facing America today is not our weakening economy or terrorist attacks or anything else. While those are dangers that we do face, they are not the greatest dangers that we face. No, the greatest danger that America faces today is apathy. Apathy on the part of those who have the power to do something and apathy on the part of those who should start doing something. Now you may wonder, what are we being apathetic towards? I believe that we as Americans are being apathetic towards the direction that our government is bringing us. What I mean by that is that our government is racing towards socialism and communism and we as Americans are doing nothing to stop them. We seem to be fine with just letting the government do whatever it feels like and enact any law that it feels like enacting. We just sit back and say, oh the government doesn’t affect my life at all, why should I care about politics and what those in Washington are doing. That is the kind of apathy I am talking about and unless that apathy is curtailed we will go into socialism and our constitution and everything that our founding fathers fought for will be for naught.