Category: Shadows (Page 19 of 25)

There is a curiosity about human nature worth exploring. How did people, who had been part of Jesus’ ministry for years and only days before, call Him King, turn against Him in a day? Why could the crowd chant to free a criminal named Barabbas and call for the Romans to crucify Jesus?

In one of the rare moments documented on Jesus’ life, He became angry and became an activist. Shortly before His arrest, Jesus entered the Temple precincts to shouts of “Hosanna, son of David!“. He was viewed as the Messiah by the people. Jesus then immediately proceeded to commit a violent act against the authority of the Temple. He began overthrowing the tables of the money changers. Jesus was disrupting the illicit trade of sacrificial offerings needed during the Temple’s busiest holiday, Passover. (You can find more detail in our study called “Why the Anger?”) The temple authorities moved quickly. First, bribing one of his disciples, Judas, to betray Him. Arrest followed at night in the Garden of Gethsemane. After a late-night religious inquisition at the home of Caiaphas’ father-in-law (John 18:13), the Jewish leaders decided to hand him over to Rome on capital charges of treason. The Jewish leaders wanted Jesus dead!

Barabbas was no ordinary robber. He had been a leader of a group that had acted against Roman authority. The people in Jerusalem all knew Barabbas as well as Jesus. Some scholars believe that Barabbas was even a member of the Zealots or of the sicarii (dagger-men), militant Jews that sought to overthrow the Roman occupiers of their land by force. Barabbas was being held for the crime of treason against Rome. This is the same crime for which Jesus was also convicted. The penalty for treason was death by crucifixion.

Barabbas had already been imprisoned with his fellow rebels, and now Jesus was bound and brought to the Roman governor’s residence in Jerusalem. Thus, both Barabbas and Jesus came to find themselves facing the death penalty. Their fate was in the hands of Rome’s representative, Pontius Pilate. According to Christian tradition and the Gospel writers, there was a prevailing Passover custom in Jerusalem that allowed or required Pilate to commute one prisoner’s death sentence by popular acclaim. The crowd was offered a choice of whether to have Barabbas or Jesus released from Roman custody.

The stories in the gospels of Matthew (27:15-26), Mark (15:6-15), Luke (23:13–25), and the additional information in John (18:38-19:16), tell us that “the crowd” chose Barabbas to be released and Jesus to be crucified. John’s gospel makes the political ramifications of the decision more clear. “If you let this man go,” Caiaphas’ group argued, “you are no friend of Caesar. Anyone who claims to be a king opposes Caesar.” (John 19:12)

The question then becomes, how did the people of Jerusalem change their minds so quickly? What is this inherent flaw in humanity that could make people wish to save a criminal and murder their Savior? The answer lies in a human weakness called “Collective Phenomena.” When people are part of a crowd, they lose their individual consciousness and become more primitive and emotional. This is primarily due to the anonymity provided by being in the group. Barabbas might have been a well-known criminal at the time, most likely because of his involvement in uprisings against the ruling Romans. However, it was the Jewish religious authorities that stirred up the crowd (the group)  to demand for Barabbas’ release. The Jewish leaders were a special interest group that had been profiting from their corruption within the Temple. They held a special hatred for Jesus.

Is our society making these same errors today? Are special interests (the secular equivalent of the religious authorities), with the help of biased social media, influencing the choices made by our nation? Does the anonymity gained through social media and the diminishing visibility because of online communications, create the same group dynamics that we saw take place with Jesus?

How would you decide who to release? Here are seven rules that might be helpful to reflect upon:

1. Humans Are Not Great Decision Makers – We have bias, bigotry, and hatred, and typically suffer from a lack of information. What is your plan to be informed? Who are your groups? Who do you listen to and take advice from? Is it watching the news? God help us if it is!
2. Do You Make Decisions Quickly or Deliberately? – Time allows for a more balanced approach, acquiring greater information and using more reliable decision-making. Do you approach your choices carefully and not emotionally? Most fraud and deception that occurs today have an element of “urgency” embedded into it. Quick decisions are always risky.
3. What is your Track Record? – Do you generally make good decisions? Are your decisions aligned with your values? Do you know your values? Are your values aligned with God’s Values? Do you know God’s Values?
4. Where Do Your Facts Come From? – Our world is full of false information. Good decisions will always be consistent with God’s Truth. (See our study on What is God’s Truth) Are you a good fact-checker? Remember that on the Internet, both true and false information lives forever! 
5. What is the Impact of No Decision? – Too many people choose inaction, leaving important decisions to others. That is always a poor choice.
6. What is Going to Happen After You Decide? – The need for decisions is driven by “causes” and making decisions will have “effects.” Do you think about them in that way? Do you think about the future consequences of your decisions? Do you understand the risks and rewards?
7. Who is seeking the Decisions? Who is the group, who are their leaders? Why are the leaders pushing for the decisions, why do they want your support? Are they Impartial or Biased? Always take time to know this answer!

The Jewish people wanted a military king, to rid themselves of oppression from the Roman State. Jesus was not that kind of king. Yet through a little bit of prompting from a few corrupt Jewish religious leaders, the crowd chose Barabbas. In a passage found only in the Gospel of Matthew, the crowd says:

(Matthew 27:20-26)¹NIV New International Version Translations – “But the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to ask for Barabbas and to have Jesus executed. ‘Which of the two do you want me to release to you?’ asked the governor. ‘Barabbas,’ they answered. ‘What shall I do, then, with Jesus who is called the Messiah?’ Pilate asked. They all answered, ‘Crucify him!’ ‘Why? What crime has he committed?’ asked Pilate. But they shouted all the louder, ‘Crucify him!’ When Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere, but that instead an uproar was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd. ‘I am innocent of this man’s blood,’ he said. ‘It is your responsibility!’ All the people answered, ‘His blood is on us and on our children!’ Then he released Barabbas to them. But he had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified.’

The crowd not only made the wrong choice that day, but they also accepted full responsibility for it. They even made their children bear the responsibility for their decision! Like all decisions made in life, God holds us accountable. Where was God in their choice? Nowhere, only their own self-interests and the greed of the religious leaders. It was all about power and control. The people were tired of Rome and hastily chose. Need a reminder of where God should be in our decisions? Here is a study on the Ten Commandments. Let’s start here! (See: It Is All About Compromise)  God’s Truth always wins anyway, and His Truth comes out in the end!

(Luke 8:16-17) – “No one lights a lamp and hides it in a clay jar or puts it under a bed. Instead, they put it on a stand, so that those who come in can see the light. For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open.”

When people are in a group or a crowd, they have a strong tendency to conform to the norms of that group. This may be since, in many ways, groups offer protection. Groups protect people from loneliness and/or purposelessness. By conforming, people show their willingness to be a part of the group. Conformity can be a positive force if the group supports positive behaviors. But humanity’s conformity impulse is so strong that it can overwhelm better judgment.

All groups have leaders, and those leaders play a significant role in whether the group makes positive or negative decisions. Poor leaders gain personal power by exploiting people’s urge to conform. They use fear of ostracization (and worse) to motivate action. This normalizes unethical behavior to justify their own misdeeds. It stifles dissent making their opinions the only opinions. Good leaders, in contrast, can influence behavior to help group members improve themselves. Healthy groups improve an organization or society. Group behavior becomes more evident because of our growing dependence on communication technology. Anonymity is increasing. The Internet, use of social media platforms, distance learning and working at home, and even the subtle loss of visible facial expressions because of mandated surgical masks, push our populations into unintended groups. Many groups are led by leaders that we typically don’t even know.

The good news is that each of us is offered the opportunity to be part of an eternal group, Christ’s Church. Membership is open but there are membership requirements! Repentance, the hatred of sin, the love of God’s Truth, and the sharing of the Gospel are just a few of those requirements. Christ, the Incarnate God, should be the only leader we use for decisions, based on “What would Jesus Do?” All humanity has a second chance. Let’s all Choose Christ this time!

Contemplations

• Where have you experienced the group behaviors that are discussed here?
  • Ideas to Explore: Stadium sports? Political rallies? Large gatherings of some type?
• How have you seen fear used to control or influence group decisions?
  • Ideas to Explore: Pandemics, military threats, social justice, racism?
• Where have you seen the influence of hatred used in our society?
  • Ideas to Explore: Divisiveness in Politics? Media?
• Where have you seen special interests at work in controlling societal decisions?
  • Ideas to Explore: Elections? Education? Government?
• How can you protect yourself from the influences of special interests?
  • Ideas to Explore: Social media bias, search engine bias, and news media bias are all real – what is your secret to remaining open-minded? Can you change your opinion? How?
• What do you do to make sure you are not impacted by the dynamics of a group?
  • Ideas to Explore: Knowing leaders and their motives? Charters, mission statements of groups? Past track records of groups?

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  NIV New International Version Translations

It has been hard to watch the recent assault on our children. If you are concerned you might have missed it, here are a few of the issues that have been reported on over the last few months.

•  In Chicago, gunfire has killed or wounded more children this year than all of the children who succumbed to COVID in the US for the year. Many other cities have similar issues.
• Our FBI, Olympic committee, and the USA Gymnastics systematically covered up sexual abuse of hundreds of young female athletes for years. What compels a society to let this occur year after year with no concern to stop it?
• Trafficking of children for exploitation in the United States, especially through our unprotected boarders of those under 18, is estimated to be over 300,000 children annually. Millions more worldwide. Drugs are used once, and they are gone. Victims of child trafficking can be used and abused over and over. They recently found a 2 year old and 3 month old child abandoned in a swamp! You should be weeping for these children.
• In some jurisdictions, schools have begun teaching children as young as 5 years old about transgender lifestyles and gender fluidity. This is being done despite parent attempts to opt out their children. Are parents still responsible for their children or have we relinquished them to the perversions of our world?
• Sports, restrooms, locker rooms have become gender neutral and open to sexual perversion. Are there really more than two sexes? What is your stand on this!
• COVID policies have forced children into remote learning and wearing non-effective face coverings. Yet politicians travel, dine and party with little regard for their own restrictive mandates. Why are we sacrificing the future education of our children for the whims of the elite?
• God is missing from most educational systems. Truth has become subjective, opinionated, biased and misleading at best. God’s Truth is nowhere to be found in schools.
• History is being mocked. Statues that offend, cancel culture are reining supreme. We are no longer teaching the mistakes of the past, just the promises of the future. Are  our children relegated to make the same mistakes of the past?
• The percent of Single parent families continue to rise. Children are being denied the experience of a father, mother, or in some cases both. Gangs have stepped in to fill that void.
• Drugs are becoming legal in more and more states. Many of these drugs are a gateway to a life of despair. Our children are watching as adults lead the way. Is this what we want for our children?
• We now have many states that have legalized the aborting of full term births. This is murder in God’s eyes. How in the world did we get here? Is life no longer of value?
• And then there is the entertainment and social media industries. Video games that promote sex and violence. Do you wonder why our society, our cities are no longer safe? People can no longer walk down the street without fear!

The most unfortunate part about the list above, is that it is only a partial list. There is no doubt that anyone could keep adding more!

(Matthew 18:6) “If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.”

The disciples were gathered with Jesus when He made the above statement. Most use it to explain that the path to salvation is to have a simple faith, the faith of a child. There was an argument among disciples about the “pecking order” of heaven. Jesus might have answered the question, “who is the greatest?” by pointing to Himself. Instead, Jesus drew their attention to His nature by having them look at a child as an example. The fact that a child came when Jesus called says something about who He was. Jesus was the sort of man that children would come to willingly. Throughout Jesus’ life, children were always special to Him.

Jesus says, unless a person’s faith becomes like that of a child, they will not enter the kingdom of heaven. This was probably a great disappointment to the disciples. But then why would Jesus add a warning about hurting those with a childlike faith? Can we also assume that this would not only include adults but the children themselves?

A child was a person of no importance in Jewish society. They were subject to the authority of his elders, not taken seriously except as a responsibility. Children were the ones to be looked after, not one to be looked up to. Children were not threatening. They were not tough, intimidating like Jesus. Children were vulnerable. Jesus says, when we fulfill the humble place a child has in culture, we are finally on our way to greatness in God’s kingdom. Jesus declares that those who receive one little child in His name, they receive Jesus Himself. But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Him to sin, look out. Jesus declares, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea.

It is a bad thing to sin, but it is a far greater evil to lead others into sin. Jesus declares, leading the innocent into sin is the worst of the worst. Notice that the offense is described along with a millstone. The large stone, and anyone attached to it, would be sure to sink if thrown in the deepest parts of the sea. They would never come up again. Don’t miss the comparative part of Jesus’ statement. He is saying you would be “better off” if you were thrown into the sea. The sin of damaging a “childlike faith” is so heinous, so great, that it is better to undergo the worst of punishments which can only kill the body. For this sin, hell will be worse than the depth of the sea; for hell is a bottomless pit, and it is a burning lake. The depth of the sea is only killing, but hell is tormenting. In other words, judgement will be the most severe for sins against our children!

(Deuteronomy 6:6-7) – “These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.”

(1 Corinthians 8:10-11) – For if someone with a weak conscience sees you, with all your knowledge, eating in an idol’s temple, won’t that person be emboldened to eat what is sacrificed to idols? So this weak brother or sister, for whom Christ died, is destroyed by your knowledge. ‘

(John 17:15) – “My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one.”

Whether little in stature, age or faith, Jesus is someone’s only hope of salvation. The above verses in Deuteronomy, and by the Apostle Paul and John, clearly show us that our starting point must be the Truth of God. The Ten Commandments are the cornerstone to saving our children and society. Paul warns that when your children are weak in faith, they are first influenced by your actions. Then they are influence by the world at large. Leading a repentant life, avoiding the pitfalls of sin is a requirement to saving our world. What we do, how we live is paramount. And finally, we read in the Gospel of John that it is not our primary job just to “shelter” our children. Yes, we are to “protect” them, but the protection comes through educating them in God’s Truth. Children need to be prepared for the world at large. Satan is just waiting in our decaying world to gather them up. Your children, my children, our grandchildren, our friends’ children, children that we don’t even know, children that have not been born yet.

What we do know is that when children believe in Jesus, even though they are young, they are part of His Kingdom. Children who believe in Jesus, benefit from the Cross. They benefit from the forgiveness they receive from the Son of God. In God’s eyes, no matter how young some is, they should have the same opportunity for salvation as everyone else. No one should be discouraging them or prey upon them. Offending Christ’s little ones, even by omission, is also included in the dreadful sentence of the mill stone. Inaction, the sacrificing of our children to our world of sin, cannot continue. All, you and I, are called to take a stand and make a difference now.

Contemplations

• What would you add to the list of attacks on our children?
  • Ideas to Explore: Think about all of society and the problems within. Why are so many impacting innocent children? What about the breakdown of the family. Think beyond those who are single parent families. How are normal families failing their children?
• Is the church failing children?
  • Ideas to Explore: In what areas of Christian education? Are there periods of their life and development that we abandon them? Are we growing “Parents” for our children?
• Courts no longer punish the wicked, including crimes against children. Why?
  • Ideas to Explore: How is our modern society abusing children? By failing to punish crime, how does that impact our children? Why after numerous years of uncontrolled crime would a city like Chicago still have such issues? Is it that no one cares? What drives the lack of concern for children?
• Why would a government agency like the FBI totally fail to protect children?
  • Ideas to Explore: The bureaucracy of government has no accountability. Do we even know who is in charge of our country and society any more? Is it the lust for power and money?
• Would you want to relive your childhood in today’s world?
  • Ideas to Explore: If you are white, you are racist. If you are black you need the government to support your value. You may not have privacy or even sextual protections on basic things like showering for a high school sport. Your world is decreasing in human contact and increasing in social media contact. How will you hug over Facebook? How would you respond to being back in your youth?

Words combined with actions can be a powerful witness in our world. When someone says they will do something, others expect them to do what they say. Lately, our society is giving us more and more examples of people who say something that people want to hear. You guessed it; then they don’t bother to follow through. If the inconsistent behavior continues, one might conclude that such a person is untruthful. What does the Bible say about keeping our word?

(James 5:12)¹NIV New International Version Translations “Above all, my brothers and sisters, do not swear—not by heaven or by earth or by anything else. All you need to say is a simple “Yes” or “No.” Otherwise you will be condemned

James, Jesus’s half-brother, brings things into perspective. Don’t promise what you are not willing to do. Once promised, God considers your words an oath. Like God, His oath, our oath should mean something. Scripture has many examples to look at. One is an “in your face” example, the story of Jephthah. This story illustrates the foolishness of making vows, promises without understanding the consequences. Jephthah appears in the Book of Judges as a judge who presided over Israel for a period of six years (Judges 12:7). According to the Book of Judges, he lived in Gilead. His father’s name is also given as Gilead, and, as his mother is described as a prostitute. Jephthah was described as a mighty man of valor. Before leading the Israelites into battle against Ammon, he made a rash vow. That he would give to the Lord whoever first came out of doors to meet him if he returned home as the victor. When the Lord granted him victory over the Ammonites, the one who came out to meet him was his daughter. Jephthah remembered his vow and offered her to the Lord (Judges 11:29–40).

Ammon, also known as Ben-Ammi, was the son of an incestuous union of Lot with his younger daughter. He was the brother of Moab, who was also a child of Lot’s incestuous relationship with his eldest daughter. Both were conceived after the destruction of Sodom. Ammon became the ancestor of the Ammonites. When Jephthah’s daughter was the first to come out of the house, he immediately regretted the vow. This required him to sacrifice his daughter to God. Jephthah then carried out his vow.

The Talmud is a collection of writings that covers the full gamut of Jewish law and tradition. It was compiled and edited between the third and sixth centuries. The Talmud is Hebrew for “learning.” The Talmud characterizes Jephthah as a person of poor judgment. He was someone who made “unfitting” vows without proper consideration for consequences. If Jephthah had read the laws of vows in the Torah, he would not have lost his daughter. It is not hard to see that making a bad oath can be as wrong as honoring a bad oath. God’s advice, don’t make them without understanding the consequences!

Jesus also taught about vows:

(Matthew 5:33–37) – “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord.’ But I tell you, do not swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne; or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. Simply let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No ,’ ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one”

The religious leaders of the day advocated keeping a vow if it was a public vow using God’s name. However, if the vow was made during everyday conversation, referencing only “heaven” or “earth” or “Jerusalem,” it was not really binding. People had a loophole. They could lie or exaggerate in their conversations and lend themselves an air of credibility by saying, “I swear by heaven that this is true!” The religious leaders taught that people would not be held to account because they did not specifically swear by “God’s name” and the vow was private. Jesus countered that idea. If you swear something, it had better be true, He says. In fact, all you need to say is “yes” or “no.” Your word should be good. There’s no need for covering your tracks.

Psalm 15:4 describes a righteous person as one “who keeps an oath even when it hurts and does not change their mind.” Oaths, promises are to be binding, even when spoken in jest or privately as part of everyday conversation. A promise is a promise, and there is no loophole in God’s eyes to allow a person to renege on a promise. When we hear others make promises, whether friends, politicians, etc., our expectations should align with God’s expectations. People are to be held accountable to their promises (oaths). Why, in this age of the Internet and its army of professional and amateur fact-checkers, do people make promises they have no intention of keeping (lie)? Here are some clues that might help the next time you are listening to someone make a promise:

1. Narcissists are arrogant, self-important. They see themselves as special, need excessive admiration, have a sense of entitlement, and are exploitative. Avoid them if you can! They were crafters of the Talmud’s “Fine Print.”
2. We have a built-in bias. We hear what we want to believe. Fight the urge, fact check everything against God’s perspective.
3. Very few people want to hear the truth. Truth often hurts. Truth threatens our own beliefs, makes us uncomfortable. If we know God’s Truth, this should never be a problem.
4. The Internet never forgets. The problem is that information, true or not, lives on forever. Information lives on even in the face of contradictory evidence. Use many sources. Use common sense. Let the Holy Spirit help you.
5. Cognitive biases. We seek out information that supports our own preconceived notions. To be open-minded requires discipline.
6. If a lie is told enough times, people assume it to be true. So people hear the same untruth, over and over. Learn to spot it and then ignore it.
7. People no longer care what God thinks. This is the final thought on this point. If people don’t care about God, they don’t care about their oaths, promises!

Contemplations

• What do you do when a person has made a promise to you and then broken it?
  • Ideas to Explore: Does such an action, a lie, affect how you view the person? If it is a politician, do you change your opinion?
• How do you determine if someone is truthful?
  • Ideas to Explore: Do you use opinions of others to form your own opinion? Do you “fact check?” Where do you get your facts?
• If media and the Internet should not be viewed as reliable sources, where do you get your information?
  • Ideas to Explore: It is not about politics any more. Truth seems to be waning . How do you use the Bible and God’s Truths to sort out facts?
• What is the role of the church in all of this?
  • Ideas to Explore: Should the church address issues of truth? Should the church focus more attention on skill building such as the use of reason and revelation?
• What is the role of common sense in all of this?
  • Ideas to Explore: Common sense fails if bias is present. How is common sense practiced? How is common sense taught?

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  NIV New International Version Translations

There is nothing more disturbing than having enemies pursuing your destruction. Whether they are societal, governmental, personal, or unseen, to be pursued by evil is a terrible thing. David, before he was king, was pursued by King Saul. Jonathan was the eldest son of King Saul and a close friend of David. He would warn David that his life was in danger.

(1 Samuel 19:1-3)¹NIV New International Version Translations – Saul told his son Jonathan and all the attendants to kill David. But Jonathan had taken a great liking to David and warned him, “My father Saul is looking for a chance to kill you. Be on your guard tomorrow morning; go into hiding and stay there. I will go out and stand with my father in the field where you are. I’ll speak to him about you and will tell you what I find out.”

One of the great legacies of King David is his Psalms. When all seemed to be failing in his world, David could pray like few people could pray. Psalm 35 is one of David’s prayers that offers valuable lessons. It is also an excellent prayer to use yourself as part of your prayer life. David is under a death sentence from Saul. He prays for his safety (Psalm 35:1-3). The prayer takes an interesting turn, and David prays for the confusion of his enemies (Psalm 35:4-8). His confidence in God is reinforced (Psalm 35:9-10). Most striking is that in Psalm 35:11-16, David prays for kindness to those who had rewarded him with evil for his good. His prayer then takes the form of an appeal to God against them (Psalm 35:17-26). David prays for those who befriended him and praises God for His goodness (Psalm 35:27-28).

David begins his psalm by asking God to intercede on his behalf. Plead his cause! Shield him, confuse his enemy’s skills in battle, and block the spears they use. The Psalm does not take the form of a personal attack against David’s enemies. He is asking God to do all the “blocking and tackling.” This is one of the essential lessons for all of us. We don’t have to defend ourselves alone!

Next, he does not disparage the souls of his enemies. Psalm 35 is not a personal attack against anyone as a person. Instead, David asks that God confuse their schemes and plans. The idea of a net and pit resonates with David’s sense of entrapment. David is asking God to use their own traps against them. He asks that shame and confusion be placed upon his enemy’s plans. He is not asking for their direct death or destruction.

Prayers can include the use of one’s imagination. David imagines the angels of God removing the chaff (the useless part of a grain harvest) as if an invisible wind blows his enemies away. His imagination and prayer see his enemies retreating through darkness, through a morass of thickets and bushes. Remember, thickets and bushes tear at your skin as you run through them. His enemies in their fearful retreat are being snagged by their own hidden snares (traps). This is the justice David is seeking from God.

David foresees God’s success. He shares his forthcoming joyfulness, knowing that God is going to save him. He also knew that there would be an onslaught of unfounded charges brought against him. Charges that he had never even heard of, and false witnesses who would be ready and willing to corroborate his enemy’s lies. This is much like what happened when Jesus was brought before the Jewish church and Roman state for blasphemy (See Matthew 26:59, Matthew 26:60). It still happens today in our world. Agendas, fake facts (lies), and corrupt witnesses are a few of today’s hurdles to get over. David is confident that God can handle this as well.

David does a bit of introspection. He looks at how he has treated his enemies. David re-states that when they were sick and weak, he humbled himself with fasting and prayer. What did his enemies do? They rejoiced in David’s adversity. Some of these verses seem prophetic of Christ’s treatment. In a moment of sorrow, David asks God, How long will you let this go on before you save me from destruction? It should be the prayer of every Christian today. How long, God, how long?

David closes his psalm with his promise that “many people” will hear the story of God’s victory on his behalf. In his summary, he is asking God not to give his enemies something to rejoice about. David restates that his enemies do not seek peace. They are deceitful, contemptuous. David restates his faith that a resolution is in God’s hands. “Let my friends shout for joy and be glad for me. Let my enemies be confounded.” Most of all, David praises God for his mercy and kindness to him.

Now, what would you call our enemies, the evil that attacks us today? Is it the elimination of borders that brings in drugs, trafficking of children? Is it the removal of voter integrity laws that will assure evil wins at the polls? Perhaps it is the prosecutors who send criminals back to the streets repeatedly? Do you feel like David, insecure, fearful for your safety? How about the war on our law enforcement? Want more? What about an educational system that teaches against our constitutional republic? Does printing trillions of dollars scare you? It should! What about the war on life itself, where thousands of unborn are killed daily?

It is time for all to pray like David prayed. We are being placed under a death sentence. You are being asked to adopt political, economic, and social principles and policies that your parents and grandparents fought to eliminate. Psalm 35 asks God to turn the enemy’s own nets and pits, their traps, against them. It worked for David, it will work for us today!

David never witnessed the defeat of the Israelites under Saul. The Philistines mortally wounded Saul. His sons, including Jonathan, were killed. In a last act of heroism so that he, the king of Israel, would not be captured, Saul committed suicide by falling on his own sword.

Contemplations

• What does your list of enemies against humanity, against Christianity, against you look like?
  • Ideas to Explore: Is the lack of respect for life itself being promoted by the attitudes toward abortion? What do the violent movies and war games teach our children? Has removing God from our society made it a more fearful place?
• Do you think that there is a difference between just hating your enemies and praying for them to fail in their plans?
  • Ideas to Explore: What is causing the hatred of today? Is it really all about a person’s color or religion? Does this hatred blind us in our choice of people for leadership roles? Do outside forces spread the hatred? How do we sort through the lies of a wicked world?
• Christ came in peace. They hated what He had to say. Why does Truth cause hatred?
  • Ideas to Explore: How does the world’s truth differ from God’s Truth? Is the truth different today? How do we teach our children what the truth is?
• Do you see the confusion, the incompetence of our enemies as a sign that God is working on our behalf?
  • Ideas to Explore: What changes poor behavior in people? Do you think what we are seeing today in our society is punishment from God? If not, what is causing it? The world says it is the conservative Christian views that are to blame!

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There was a social media post that I received. It had a picture of two very old Civil War veterans, sitting, shaking hands as friends. The caption under the photo was: “If two enemies could forgive each other and get along following a Civil War, I don’t understand why so many Americans can’t get along following an election?” The question is good. However, our society has somehow made the argument about compromise. It has nothing to do about compromise. If you have two glasses of water, one clean and one contaminated, you will never think to mix them. The question should be about which ideas are of God and which of Satan. Are one set of beliefs godless, filled with hatred for anyone who disagrees with the ideas of the other. This is much more like the old proverb, “Oil and Water Don’t Mix.” Are we being asked to tolerate or accept godlessness? Re-read the message, it is not about getting along. It is all about forgiveness! To forgive requires repentance, a change. To forgive requires Jesus!

(Romans 12:2)¹NIV New International Version Translations – “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”

To understand the question of tolerance and compromise, one must understand the idea of testing for God’s approval, God’s will. God does not have an opinion; He has a will! Whether society likes it or not, there are specific beliefs and behaviors that we must follow to be “right with God.” In other words, what is contaminating the one glass of water? What makes the other glass of water clean? Repentance is the removal of what is abhorrent to God so that we become “clean water,” pleasing to God. To answer this question, the best place to start is God’s first social media message post to humanity:

(Exodus 20:3-17) – The Ten Commandments of our God

1. “You shall have no other gods before me.

2. You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.

3. You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.

4. Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

5. Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.

6. You shall not murder.

7. You shall not commit adultery.

8. You shall not steal.

9. You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.

10. You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”

Let’s create a quick report card on how humanity, society is doing with the 10 commandments. Here is a list of ideas to contemplate, in the same order as God’s own list to us:

1. Notice in the 1st commandment that the “g” in god is lower case. The dictionaries of the world capitalize the “G.” Their definition reads: the Being perfect in power, wisdom, and goodness who is worshipped (as in Judaism, Christianity, Islam, and Hinduism) as creator and ruler of the universe. Yet our world has replaced our God with materialism, narcissism, the pursuit of human pleasures, power, selfishness, and the list goes on. It is hard to argue the point that our society no longer holds our one true God above all else. Our world has made God, just a lower case “g,”  god!

2. The 2nd commandment is about images, the human mind and heart. When we seek to find identity and security in something besides God, we have made it an idol. John Calvin said, “The human heart is an idol factory.” We often search for peace or identity through relationships, substances, money,  entertainment, or power. Even good things can become idols if we are not careful. Ministry, hobbies, charity work, or even family can take the place of God our lives. This commandment also contains a warning for future generations. God is saying that, if society doesn’t deal with idolatry in its generation, it will be passed down to our children and to their children.

3. The 3rd commandment is much more than cursing. Honoring our God is paramount. The entertainment industry, the media, and the educational systems no longer honor the one true God. The same can be said for many leaders, judges, businesses, etc. Rarely are children raised to consider the 3rd commandment.

4. Rest is not the only goal of the 4th commandment. The “busyness” of humanity requires that time be spent to refine a proper relationship with God. It takes time to know Him, to learn to love Him, to worship Him, and to communicate with Him. This has eternal implications. It is time well spent!

5. We often misunderstand the full meaning of the 5th commandment. Yes, honor is due to parents, the prior generations of our society. The very disciplines of life should be learned at home! It is the history of  God, life and the world that are critical to children’s relationship with God. Where do you learn to love God? To lose honor for the past generations is to lose touch with the visible proof of our Creation. It is God, who as a Father, sent his Son to us to save us. We owe Him all the honor we can muster. The war on history shows us the lack of concern for the 5th commandment.

6. If there ever was a place humanity fails, it is the 6th commandment. War, crime, drugs, abortion, human trafficking, lust, and the pursuit of physical pleasures are some of the ways society murders. Life itself is being devalued.  The hatred being spread today is not only divisive but dangerous. There is no “reset button” on life. Life is not a video game! God has given each one life, one opportunity to exist. Yet, the value of life is diminished daily. Do we really think that removing God from our country helps us with the 6th commandment?

7. Adultery is commonplace. Humanity not only accepts it, but it also encourages it. The 7th commandment was not given as a suggestion. Many families exist as single-parent homes. The idea of divorce was relegated to simple roadway signs advertising it for $99. Humanity has missed the point. Honor and commitment must be for life. This is the glue that holds a society together.

8. Theft is interesting. Many cities now have removed the penalties associated with crimes like theft. Our leaders do not hesitate to profit from insider information or bribery. Is it OK to ask why our political leaders all become wealthy after serving? Theft has evolved to include Internet fraud. The anonymity of our world has accelerated the theft of property, information, money, and even personal rights. Your information, who you are, is stolen daily. God notices! You need to notice too!

9. Bearing false witness, the 9th commandment, has become commonplace. Follow the news. There is no longer accountability for the failure to be truthful. Deceit is celebrated. Unless we all become our own “Fact Checkers,” there is no hope for God’s Truth.

10. What can be said about the 10th commandment? We are a consumer society. Every day, billions of dollars are spent telling everyone to covet what your neighbor has. This is so prevalent that even our children are being trained to covet. Do we really think that redistribution of wealth and socialism fixes this problem? God’s Truth fixes this problem!

It is hard to give us anything but a failing grade. The solution has never been to take the clean water and mix it with the contaminated water. That philosophy is based on the theory of “dilution.” If you can dilute the bad to low enough levels, it will not hurt you. Here is what Solomon says:

(Ecclesiastes 11:3) – “If clouds are full of water, they pour rain on the earth. Whether a tree falls to the south or to the north, in the place where it falls, there it will lie.”

Solomon points out that these are absolutes, common sense things that cannot be ignored. To think otherwise is absurd! God’s Kingdom has never been a democracy. He gave us 10 rules. Humanity cannot even get those right. The point behind the 10 commandments was to make our world worth living in, make it God’s world. Yes, we have Jesus. We are all forgiven! But to have a relationship with Jesus, we still need to be repentant. Society needs to change directions. The road we are currently on is destructive. People need to take responsibility for their actions. The photo of the two Civil War soldiers commented, why can’t we all get along? The men were old, closer to God than most. That usually happens with age. What the world told them about hate was long forgotten. It has never been about compromise. Look at God’s list, it is about changing direction and then forgiving!

Contemplations

• Who is to blame for the lack of progress toward improving society?
  • Ideas to Explore: First, look at yourself. Are you supporting ideas that lead others away from God and toward sin? Next, look at the others around you. Where do you see them abandoning God’s Truth?
• This should be a sobering assessment of humankind. What is your idea to help?
  • Ideas to Explore: Society as a whole is not fixable. What is your list of ideas to at least make it better? How do we improve our leadership? How to we instill Godly values in our children?
• Take the list of ten commandments and identify at least one area that you can help with.
  • Ideas to Explore: The Apostle Paul reminds us that we need to live and survive in our world as it is. What is your plan? How will you help the upcoming generations? 
• Jesus is quoted as replacing the Ten Commandments with only one, love one another. What do you think that means?
  • Ideas to Explore: John 13:34-35 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples if you love one another.” Make a list, one through ten of one thing you can do for each commandment that will honor what Jesus is asking us to do.

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Most scenes of Christ’s crucifixion include Him with a crown of thorns. The crown was meant to mock Christ. The Roman soldiers who carried out Pontius Pilate’s sentence were no different than those in our own world today. They added their own spin to the punishment. The story of the crown of thorns was recorded in all four Gospels. The crown was a symbol of disgrace. It was meant to make fun of Christ’s claim that He was the anointed King who would bring forward God’s kingdom on earth.

Contemplations

• What external evidence to you consistently see that re-enforces your belief there is a God in our world?
  • Ideas to Explore: Living things? Nature? The imperfections of humankind? The Bible?
• Do you think that Christianity can ever separate itself from the Bible?
  • Ideas to Explore: Why do so many people hate it? Why are so many people trying to re-write it? How is it that we reassure ourselves that God is the author of the Bible?
• Most open-minded people agree that humanity is flawed – Can you think of a better plan than Christ?
  • Ideas to Explore: What society without a belief in God has succeeded? Why don’t people just accept the Bible as God’s Word?
• Pick your favorite “ism.” Will any succeed forever?
  • Ideas to Explore: How long does any society last? Why do they fail? Do any current successfully societies exist that are atheistic? Of the societies that are on your  list, are people trying to get into them or out of them? Why?
• Assuming the basic needs of human survival are being met, what else would you want to see that would bring joy and happiness to your life?
  • Ideas to Explore: Does humanity need freedom to be happy? Can someone else force happiness? What does it really take to be happy? Is it all about things?
• If you are of the opinion that the world is a mess, what is your plan to fix it?
  • Ideas to Explore: Can humankind  fix it? How does humanity ignore the evidence (thorns and thistles) of a broken world.  How should our society change to stop the death, destruction, fix the poverty, end pain? 

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If you were asked, “What is eternity,” would you have a good answer? Eternity is forever or you might even say eternal life is the ultimate promise of almost every religion. Once you enter eternity, what would be like? Is there some type of instant perfection that never goes away? Will we ever get bored in eternity? What is there to keep the inquisitive mind of a human active and stimulated, forever?

Apologetics is often called the defense of the Christian faith. The word “apologetics” is derived from the Greek word apologia, which means an answer given in reply. In ancient Athens, it referred to a defense made in the courtroom as part of the normal judicial procedure. For those who are seeking eternal life, are you ready to defend the concept of eternity, timeless existence? Once time is removed, can you defend eternity without including God in the discussion? Is there or was there a Creator of our Universe and all that is in it? Is the Universe we live in everlasting?

All discussions on eternity usually include the idea of a Creator. Creationism, the idea that our universe somehow happened, is a hard concept to understand. The idea of randomness should be tested against the idea of purpose and design. Because randomness is generally chaotic, evidence of purposeful design should lead us to the idea of a masterful Creator. God, as an eternal being exists without the concept of time. To be eternal, God must be absolute. God, by human definition, always existed and always will.

(Genesis 1:1)¹NIV New International Version Translations – “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”

The very first verse of the Bible that Christians subscribe to reinforces the point: God was there before our world, before us. It was God who established the boundaries and concept of time. The world subscribes to the idea that our universe is nothing more than an improbable and spontaneous set of matter and anti-matter that just happened! If that is the case, humanity is nothing more than a subset of the randomness, lacking purpose, and design. Watching today’s news may lead you to believe that yourself!

If we are to ever understand the idea of “forever,” there are two areas to consider:

• Purpose – What is the purpose of our Universe, our world? What is the purpose of God and of humanity itself?
• Design – Are our universe, our world, and our humanity on earth part of a purposeful, useful design? Is it the result of a random collision of particles in the absence of time?

Purpose

To help understand the purpose, all things should be compared against each other. Within that view, the interrelationships of dependence and service to each other become clearer. Let us take a simple example:

A single-cell amoeba exists, it moves and is a predator to bacteria, protozoa, and algae. It can eat almost any organic nutrients in its habitat. As for what eats an amoeba: they are preyed upon and eaten by small fish and crustaceans such as tiny shrimp. Larger fish, birds, and reptiles eat crustaceans and shrimp. This trend of purpose continues and creates a chain of purpose that leads right through the plant and animal kingdom. It ends with us, human beings. Is this a purposeful design or a result of randomness? Did we really evolve from the amoeba?

(Genesis 1:26-28) – Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”

It would be narcissistic to think that the chain of purpose ends with humanity. It is reasonable then to ask what is the purpose of humanity. Our Bible tells us that humankind’s chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.²This is the first question of the Westminster Shorter Catechism asks “What is the chief end of man?” God’s purpose for humanity is then by definition, something eternal. We were conceived by God in His eternal past with the intent to create something that will remain in His eternal future. Whatever God wants, intends, and desires are His plan according to His will. God is absolute. When He wills to do something, when He resolves to do something, He will do it. God’s purpose then becomes part of God’s design, His plan. His pleasure is always good. His will is always good. His intentions are always good. God’s plan is always perfect!

(Ephesians 3:11-12) – “according to his eternal purpose that he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord. In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.”

Design

The world we live in may look like a world built of chance and chaos. Yet, our world began with a purpose. It is being sustained for a purpose. God has an ultimate eternal purpose for our world in mind. This is God’s world, and His rule is purposeful, not capricious, and arbitrary. An English theologian, William Paley, summarized it in 1807:

“In crossing a heath, suppose I pitched my foot against a stone and were asked how the stone came to be there: I might possibly answer, that, for anything I knew to the contrary, it had lain there forever; nor would it perhaps be very easy to show the absurdity of this answer. But suppose I had found a watch upon the ground, and it should be inquired how the watch happened to be in that place; I should hardly think of the answer which I had before given, e.g. that, for anything I knew, the watch might have always been there. Yet why should not this answer serve for the watch as well as for the stone? Why is it not as admissible in the second case, as in the first? For this reason, and for no other, viz. that when we come to inspect the watch, we perceive (what we could not discover in the stone) that its several parts are framed and put together for a purpose, e.g. that they are so formed and adjusted as to produce motion, and that motion so regulated as to point out the hour of the day; …This mechanism being observed (it requires indeed an examination of the instrument, and perhaps some previous knowledge of the subject, to perceive and understand it; but being once, as we have said, observed and understood), the inference we think is inevitable, that the watch must have had a maker: that there must have existed, at some time, and at some place or other, an artificer who formed it for the purpose which we find it actually to answer: who comprehended its construction, and designed its use.”

Humans are not the originators of the physical world. We can only be credited with discovering and copying a few parts of it. In the fields of engineering, chemistry, ballistics, and aerodynamics, and in almost every area of human endeavor, God has been there first. We observe, then create, and then seek credit. It is the Apostle Paul who states it most succinctly:

(Romans 1:20) – “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.”

Eternity

Therefore, if God exists, eternity exists. Add to this thought that Christ, the Incarnate God, came to earth to show us that both God and eternity existed. Christ came to show us that humanity would be part of God’s eternal plans. What then will it be like to be in eternity with God?

(Revelations 21:2-8) – I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life. Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children. But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”

God is planning to establish a new heaven and a new earth, where Christ will spend eternity among His redeemed people in perfect and constant communion. There, we will enjoy a new heaven and a new earth, living with God. Sin and its horrible effects on humanity will be gone. Hallelujah! Our experiences will be assured by the promises of God. And the best news, we live as God’s children without the fear of a second death.

Paul reminds us in Philippians 3:20, “But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ,” Hebrews 12:22 affirms our eternal joy. “But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly,”

Eternity is our future home and our future hope. That ought to make a difference in our lives today. Until sin is defeated along with death, there is no way humanity will ever fully understand eternity. Our definition is limited by the temporal intellect of humanity. Your faith must tell you that eternity is true. To spend “forever” with our God and with our Savior will be better than to spend it with the sin of our world, a second death. Our limited view of the world seems to tell us that eternity is real. That being the case, it appears that the choice is not whether you will be part of it. You already are! The choice is who you will spend it with!

Contemplations

• What do you think about when discussing eternity?
  • Ideas to Explore: Finding people that we love that have died? Reuniting with our past pets? Asking God a list of questions as to why there were injustices on earth.
• Do you believe that we can ever fully conceptualize eternity?
  • Ideas to Explore: Can anything temporal ever conceive eternity?  Is a peaceful eternal existence worthy to pursue? What happens if there is no eternity? What happens if there is? What happens if you are with the wrong group forever?
• If God is eternal, if eternity and our joy are predicated on our relationship with God, why do so many people neglect their relationship with God?
  • Ideas to Explore: Is a relationship with Christ the keystone to the relationship with God? How do we get to know God and Christ better?
• How does the world lie to us about God?
  • Ideas to Explore: Creationism? Worldly pleasures? Deceit? Fear? 
• How would you explain eternity to a child?
  • Ideas to Explore: Use your personal testimony. Search for the child’s fears and try to elevate them. Be their living example of what a good relationship with God looks like. Share your hope and joy.
• As a Christian, are you already in an eternal relationship with God?
  • Ideas to Explore: Once we accept Christ as our savior, there should be no fears to be concerned with.

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  This is the first question of the Westminster Shorter Catechism asks “What is the chief end of man?”

The Bible is filled with references to helping those who are poor and in need of our charity. There is a caution for clarity here. The Apostle Paul was quite specific in his letter to the Thessalonians when he said:

(2 Thessalonians 3:10)¹NIV New International Version Translations– “For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: ‘The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat.’”

The verse above is set in the context of 2 Thessalonians 3:6–15. It warns believers against idleness and laziness. The focus of the command is against those who refuse to work rather than those who are unable to do so. The verses preceding the instruction to those unwilling to work gives a positive example:

(2 Thessalonians 3:7-9) – “For you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example. We were not idle when we were with you, nor did we eat anyone’s food without paying for it. On the contrary, we worked night and day, laboring and toiling so that we would not be a burden to any of you. We did this, not because we do not have the right to such help, but in order to offer ourselves as a model for you to imitate.”

Paul and his companions did not come to the people of Thessalonica to take their food, or money. They came to share Christ with them. They were willing to work a side job to provide for their own food. Paul points out the importance of sorting out those who can work from those who have a real need for help. If any Christian worker came to a church and refused to work, Paul says not to offer him food. This instruction also had application to people within society.

(2 Thessalonians 3:11–12) – “We hear that some among you are idle and disruptive. They are not busy; they are busybodies. Such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the food they eat.”

Believers are to be known for working hard, not for a lazy attitude. It is fair then to seek a clear understanding of poverty. The world defines poverty as those who do not have enough income. Our world also assigns additional conditions to poverty such as oppression, isolation, or injustice. Because economic poverty is often a catalyst of other forms of poverty, it is one of the nonnegotiable elements in our definition of poverty. Insufficient food, debt, or the inability to clothe or to have shelter are the results of poverty. Circumstances and causes associated with poverty are complex. Paul seems to be stating that in some instances, however, the state of poverty is self-inflicted. Poverty can also exist in a person whose moral/spiritual condition has degraded:

(Proverbs 23:21) – “for drunkards and gluttons become poor, and drowsiness clothes them in rags.”

(Proverbs 28:19) – “Those who work their land will have abundant food, but those who chase fantasies will have their fill of poverty.”

The Apostle Paul is talking about idleness. Our world defines idleness as inactivity; slothfulness; uselessness; profitableness; worthlessness; foolishness. It is an aversion to exertion. Scriptures take this condition straight on.

(Proverbs 18:9) – “One who is slack in his work is brother to one who destroys.”

(Proverbs 19:15) – “Laziness brings on deep sleep, and the shiftless go hungry”

Solomon set the stage long before the Apostle Paul. He clearly linked not working to poor living conditions.

(Ecclesiastes 10:18) – “Through laziness, the rafters sag; because of idle hands, the house leaks.”

The Bible is consistent in its view of both poverty and the Christian attitude toward poverty. Those unwilling to work are not the “poor” that our Bible mentions. Jesus talks about the poor over 400 times. The poor are those who are unable to work. There is a difference. James 1:27 defines evidence of a true religion as “look[ing] after orphans and widows in their distress.” These are the needy children and widows, the disabled, those with special needs, the elderly, and others who, through no direct fault of their own, cannot earn a living. These are the people most deserving of help.

Work is a gift from God. Since the beginning of our world, work has been part of God’s plan for humanity. Remember, He created our world. God worked Himself as part of that creation process. That means you can view the act of working as a direct gift from God Himself!

(Genesis 2:15) – “The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.”

(Colossians 3:23-24) – “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.”

According to 2020 U.S. Census Bureau, there are about 11 million single parent families with children under the age of 18. Eighty percent are headed by single mothers.²https://singlemotherguide.com/single-mother-statistics/ Over one half of the mothers were never married. Approximately one third of them were divorced. One third of the 11 million households live in poverty. Government cannot fix this problem! The government created the problem. Government has taken God out of schools and homes. It is government that has weakened family relationships by substituting themselves through entitlements for what God had intended families to do.

(1 Timothy 5:8) – “Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”

U.S. has the world’s highest rate of children living in single-parent households. Would you still call us an advanced society? List any of your favorites: drugs, crime, child trafficking, or homelessness. We lead the world in most of them. Is it our own government that is removing the incentives to work? Who is the blame? Is it biased media,  governmental educational systems, or growing entitlement programs? When is enough, enough? God calls us to live FOR Christ, OBEDIENT to God’s Word, as WITNESSES against the corruption in our world. Either our government is growing poverty or society is abandoning God. What do you think our God is calling us to do? It is time to make a choice!

Contemplations

• Does our society view parenting as a career?
  • Ideas to Explore: Do you think that governmental policies are encouraging men to abandon their families? How are fathers held accountable to their children? Are our entitlements encouraging mothers to have children out of wedlock? 
• Can government ever be the foundation that replaces God?
  • Ideas to Explore: Where are the examples of Godly behavior within government?  Is government growing more generous citizenry in our country? 
• Are we individually responsible for the consequences of a sinful nation?
  • Ideas to Explore: Is it the role of government to instill Godly behavior? Can government instill Godly behavior in society? What is society’s role in responding to the consequences of sin? Where does accountability begin and charity end?
• Is it possible for a nation to survive without the blessings of our Creator?
  • Ideas to Explore: Can any type of “ism” be a replacement for a nation of Godly people? 

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Isaiah¹https://www.gotquestions.org/life-Isaiah.html is best known for his prophecies about the Messiah. Prophecies were made hundreds of years before Jesus was born. Matthew quotes Isaiah when describing John the Baptist’s ministry. Jesus quoted Isaiah’s prophecies when speaking in parables. The apostle Paul also refers to the same prophecies when he is in Rome. The Gospels quote more from Isaiah’s writings than from any other Old Testament prophet. What made people sit up and take notice of Isaiah was that he foretold the judgment of God upon Judah. The Bible speaks more about the tribe of Judah than any other single tribe of Israel. After the death of Solomon, the nation of Israel became divided. Jesus, our Savior, is the Lion of the tribe of Judah. Jesus’s lineage and the Church He established would come through the tribe of Judah.

We study Isaiah because he had a direct link to our God. Isaiah received God’s instructions to share with the people of Judah. There is no doubt that our nation today needs Isaiah’s messages. There are those who doubt that our nation was founded upon Godly principles. They are wrong! If you have doubts, read the Federalist Papers²https://guides.loc.gov/federalist-papers/full-text. The Federalist Papers are a series of 85 essays written by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison between October 1787 and May 1788. The essays were published anonymously, under the pen name “Publius,” in various New York state newspapers of the time. They form the foundation of our Constitution. In them, you will find that we are a country created on the foundation of being a nation under God.

Woe means “grief, anguish, affliction, wretchedness, calamity, or trouble.” The dictionary defines the word woe as “an exclamation of judgment on others.” The Bible uses the word to describe misfortune on oneself. Isaiah had specific concerns about the nation of Judah. These are known as the “Four Woes of Isaiah.” Isaiah was concerned for this nation because the people would not repent of their sins and turn to the LORD (Isaiah 5:20-23, 26-30). Three of the woes address the nation of Judah. The fourth woe was foretold after Isaiah had witnessed God sitting on His heavenly throne. The woes are about the character of a nation that had rejected God, His Laws, and Commandments. Is Isaiah talking to us today? Should we contemplate whether the spiritual condition of Judah parallels that of our nation?

The first woe condemned Judah for rejecting God’s Laws. The issue with Isaiah is that the people had no moral absolutes, and no moral compass to follow.

(Isaiah 5:20)³NIV New International Version Translations – “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!”

The sin defined here is that of “perverting and confounding” things, especially in the areas of morality and religion. Isaiah defines a nation that preferred fake doctrines to those that were true. He called out people who preferred evil instead of upright conduct. The nation of Judah was busy removing all the distinctions between right and wrong. The people’s preferences were to pursue what was wrong! Judah had become a nation without God, without a direction. By removing God, they removed all common sense. The winds, the trends, and the “isms” of the world were about to destroy God’s people.

Isaiah’s second woe described the people as unteachable.

(Isaiah 5:21) – “Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent⁴wise, shrewd in their own sight!”

Paul’s letter to Rome describes that same spiritual problem in these words: “Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools” (Romans 1:22). It is not that our world lacks teachers or schools. Isaiah knew very well that the source of the material used was critical to the success of the instruction.

(2 Timothy 3:16-17) – “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

Most people think that the sole purpose of teaching is to impart knowledge. Imparting knowledge or facilitating learning is only one of the responsibilities of teaching. We live in an age where parents are shirking their responsibilities in raising their children. Students are being empowered by society to seek their knowledge from sources other than God. When is it that desirable characteristics or moral values get established? If it is not through family, if not by education based on God’s Laws, have we turned over our instructions to social media, a secular educational system, the government, and the Internet? God help us if that is true!

Isaiah’s third woe highlighted the selfish nature of the people of Judah and their loathing of the righteous.

(Isaiah 5:22-23) – “Woe unto them that are mighty to drink wine [drunkards], and men of strength to mingle strong drink⁵boasting of their drunkenness: Which justify [acquit] the wicked for reward [bribe], and take away the righteousness [innocence; justice, rights and liberties] of the righteous from him!”

This is worth a bit of decomposition. Isaiah was lamenting that the people of Judah now hated the righteous, and loathed the righteous. Is this the biblical equivalent of “cancel culture” at its worst? If someone followed God, and did not support the recklessness of Judean society, they were loathed. The meaning of loathing is to “find repugnant.” The word is filled with hatred and bigotry. If the people of Judah had social media, they might have had a “secret review panel” to make sure that only the contemporary views of society could be posted. Righteousness is an attribute that belongs to God, the Lawgiver, and can only be found in His Laws. No man can be justified by his works apart from God’s Laws. Therefore, righteousness is a wonderful gift from God to humanity. It is granted by Grace through God’s love for us despite our imperfections. It is the God-given quality imputed to man when we believe in His Son Jesus Christ.

The fourth woe is one Isaiah stated about himself. Shaken by a vision of the LORD sitting on His heavenly throne (Isaiah 6:1-4), Isaiah saw the man he was and was overwhelmed by his sinfulness.

(Isaiah 6:5) – “…Woe is me! for I am undone [dumb; silent; perish]; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean⁶defiled; polluted lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.”

Isaiah’s lament for himself was that he could see the people needed to be shown the errors of their ways. Yet, Isaiah viewed himself not as righteous but as a sinful person. God was looking for a man who would declare His final warning to Judah before effecting His judgment. God responded to Isaiah by purging his lips of sin:

(Isaiah 6:6-7) – “Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched my mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.”

Isaiah answered, saying, “Here am I; send me” (Isaiah 6:8).

The sinful conditions of Judah in Isaiah’s day are the same as those in our nation and world today. The world has rejected God and His Commandments. Society is morally bankrupt (no right or wrong), removing God from public places, and becoming unteachable. Our nation worships temporal pleasures. The media and entertainment industries boast of vices and despise righteousness through the products they produce and release to our nation. Recklessness is called courage, and prudence is timidity. Treachery is shown as cleverness, and honesty somehow has become stupidity. There is never enough stuff! Isaiah’s warnings were to tell the people of Judah that once God’s judgments were made, God would not disturb them in their pleasures. Why, because they prefer their reasoning to the counsels and commands of God. Isaiah did add that their pleasures would be temporary in this world, and there would be consequences, and judgments forthcoming. We have had our sins purged by the Cross of our Savior. God is calling out, “Whom shall I send!” 

Contemplations

• What moral compass do you think our society follows today?
  • Ideas to Explore: Sports, entertainment industry, media, political leaders? Which groups that are providing direction are godly? Do you think that a nation can survive without God? What is the role of the church?
• Where do you see the parallels between Judah and our nation today?
  • Ideas to Explore: The Removal of God from Society? The focus is on race instead of God. The perversions of life? The insanity of politics? The bigotry and hatred of God-fearing people?
• Where do you see the dangers in a culture that cancels freedom of expression?
  • Ideas to Explore: Why is the current focus of the “cancel culture” on conservative views? Can a free society survive without freedom of expression?
• Has the COVID crisis exposed any new thoughts you might have about our educational system?
  • Ideas to Explore: Is online learning exposing any issues? Why is there such a focus on color and race? What do you think the children will be like if they grow up with dozens of self-declared genders? How do we teach children to “want to learn?”
• How would you describe a “functional home?”
  • Ideas to Explore: Is God in the home? Are there two parents? How are the parents involved in the education of the children?
• What has been the impact of the liberalization of drugs in our culture?
  • Ideas to Explore: More states legalize drugs – Is this a growing problem for society? How do drugs interfere with a person’s ability to learn?

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  https://www.gotquestions.org/life-Isaiah.html
• 2
  https://guides.loc.gov/federalist-papers/full-text
• 3
  NIV New International Version Translations
• 4
  wise, shrewd
• 5
  boasting of their drunkenness
• 6
  defiled; polluted

Society has become more politicized in recent years. When we hear the terms “right” and “left,” people line up to immediately disagree. Even before they know the topic! What are the origins of the political terms “left” and “right?” One story begins in France in 1789. As the French Revolution gained momentum, an angry mob had just stormed the Bastille. The French National Assembly gathered to act as the revolution’s government. They were to write a new constitution. The key issue was how much power the king should have. Those who believed that the king should have absolute power sat to the assembly’s president’s right. Those who thought he should not, the more radical view, sat to the left.

There is an earlier event in history that is also worth noting, with similar references to “right” and “left.” The Gospel of Luke tells us that during Jesus’ crucifixion, two other men suffering the same death were on either side of Him. The one to Jesus’s right has become known as the “Good Thief.” The one to His left is referred to as the “Unrepentant Thief.” Our good thief acknowledged the true King, like the example in the French Revolution. The unrepentant thief on the left, mocked our Savior, which was a more radical view to take. What is most interesting about these stories is that our world seeks to make us pick sides. Lines are drawn that we are never to cross. Can something be done instead to understand why the thief on the right received Grace? He received forgiveness and eternal life. What were the mistakes made on the left?

Both thieves were already on their crosses in Luke’s Gospel. We can discount any “good works” as part of the equation of salvation. Neither could be baptized. For all practical purposes, the last few moments of their lives would determine their eternal fate. Their lives of thievery and sin were over. Both men would soon die. It is this part of the story that all people should take great hope in. God’s Grace is enough for all those who seek Him, even up to the moments before death.

(Luke 23:32-38)¹New International Version Translations – “Two other men, both criminals, were also led out with him to be executed. When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him there, along with the criminals—one on his right, the other on his left. Jesus said, ‘Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.’ And they divided up his clothes by casting lots. The people stood watching, and the rulers even sneered at him. They said, ‘He saved others; let him save himself if he is God’s Messiah, the Chosen One.’ The soldiers also came up and mocked him. They offered him wine vinegar and said, ‘If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself.’ There was a written notice above him, which read: this is the king of the jews.”

It is remarkable that, while in the excruciating and mind-numbing torment of the cross, the Son of Man had the heart, mind, and will to pray for others. Both men began their time on their crosses by mocking and blaspheming Jesus. They were no different than many of the spectators. Even His disciples were busy abandoning Him. One thief, while in agony himself, heard the Spirit of God call to him to repent. He accepted the forgiveness God was about to provide. One man, the thief on the right, answered the call. His sins were forgiven, including his blasphemy against the Son of God (Luke 5:31-32, 12:8–10) just a few minutes earlier.

The thief on the left, at the point of death, rejected Jesus. While being tortured himself, he joined his torturers in insulting the Savior of the world. He most likely did so because he wanted his torturers to think he was like them. A man of the world! Many like him are proud of their hatred of God (Matthew 27:44). It is hard to give either man any excuses. Not only were they next to the Savior, but they could also hear Jesus pray. Both men could hear the testimony of Jesus as He was dying and as they were dying. Both men could see the world go dark. The humility of repentance saved one, while the sin of pride condemned the other.

What can be learned from this story is that we are all sinners in need of a Savior. No matter how great our sins are, no matter if we or the world think our sins are minor or extreme, it is never too late to repent and accept the gift of salvation (Ephesians 2:8–9; Revelation 22:17). It takes a mind and the will to choose life over death (Hebrews 9:27) It is also never too late to proclaim the Gospel’s message to someone else.

Repentance is a change of mind, a change of purpose, and a change in direction. Repentance is turning away from previous sinful behavior, attitudes, or opinions. True repentance goes beyond saying we are sorry for something. True repentance results in a new behavior pleasing in God’s sight. Repentance, however, does not always shield us from the consequences of our actions. The good thief died that day.

(Romans 6:23) – “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

The Gospels do not mention specific names for the thieves. In the Catholic faith, by tradition, they are given names. The good thief is named Saint Dismas and the unrepentant thief is named Gestas. While both men were suffering the same gruesome execution and both were in the presence of Jesus, their reactions to their situation were quite different. Gestas, the unrepentant thief, mocks Jesus, “Aren’t you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!” (Luke 23:39) Gestas asks Jesus to come down from his cross.

The good thief, Dismas, does not ask to be taken down from his sure and painful death. Instead, he rebukes Gestas and proclaims Jesus’ innocence. He asks, instead, to be taken up with Jesus, saying, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” (Luke 23:42). Jesus replies, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”

Our lesson is not about placing hope in this world but in the promise of the next. Which man do you relate to? Will you hang with Jesus on the right or the left side? All must make that choice one day! Will you be on the “right,” supporting the One and Only King, or to the “left,” taking up the radical views of our world?

(2 Corinthians 7:10) – “Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.”

Conclusion

Solomon, who is considered the wisest man to ever live, gave us this final thought to ponder. He may very well have set the stage for the final categorization of political parties.

(Ecclesiastes 10:2) – “The heart of the wise inclines to the right, but the heart of the fool to the left.”

Contemplations

• What do you think of when you hear that someone is on the “right” side of an issue or the “left” side?
  • Ideas to Explore: Why have these words become political, and so polarizing? Can someone from the right of an issue and the left of an issue ever agree? Is agreement even a good idea?
• We do live in a binary world. There is a right and wrong answer to all issues. How do you decide your position?
  • Ideas to Explore: Right seems to be staying the course, while Left seems to take the more controversial position – Does this always mean you must choose a side? Is middle ground ever a wrong conclusion?
• Who wins if we stop common-sense discourse?
  • Ideas to Explore: Divisiveness itself is not new, but the addition of hatred is – Why? Who wins when we hate each other? How do two people, one placing their faith in Jesus and the other placing their faith in the world, come to common ground? Is that a reasonable expectation?
• Even close to death, one thief did not seek Jesus as the Savior – Why do you think that some people just will not accept Jesus as the Son of God?
  • Ideas to Explore: The world is very enticing. Some may not believe in eternal life. Repentance is not always easy. Fear of consequences of the world more than consequences from God.

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  New International Version Translations