Posts Tagged ‘politics’

Spiritual Training 20 November 2012

Posted: November 29, 2012 in Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, Romans, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command

Part 4

Homosexuality was a widespread in Paul’s day as it is in ours.  Many pagan practices encouraged it.  God is willing to receive anyone who comes to him in faith, and Christians should love and accept who comes to him in faith, and Christians should love and accept who comes to him in faith, and Christians should love and accept others no matter what their background.  Yet, homosexuality is strictly forbidden in Scripture (Leviticus 18:22).  Homosexuality is considered an acceptable practice by many in our world today-even by some churches.  But society does not set the standard for God’s law.  Many homosexuals believe that their desires are normal and that they have a right to express them.  But God does not obligate nor encourage us to fulfill all our desires (even normal ones).  Those desires that violate his laws must be controlled.

Lets Bring it Home: If you have these desires, you can and must resist acting upon them.  Consciously avoid places or activities you know will kindle temptations of this kind.  Don’t underestimate the power of Satan to tempt you, nor the potential for serious harm if you yield to these temptations.  Remember, God can and will forgive sexual sins just as he forgives other sins.  Surrender yourself to the grace and mercy of God, asking him to show you the way out of sin and into the light of his freedom and his love.  Prayer, Bible study, and strong support in a Christian church can help you to gain strength to resist these powerful temptations.  If you are already deeply involved in homosexual behavior, seek help from a trustworthy, professional, pastoral counselor.

Romans 1:21-23 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.  Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.

Romans: 1:24-25 Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another.  They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator who is forever praised.  Amen.   

Romans 1:26-27 Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones.  In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another.  Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion. 

 

Proverbs 20:30 Wisdom for the Soul

Posted: November 29, 2012 in Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command

Proverbs 20:30 Blows and wounds cleanse away evil, and beatings purge the inmost being. 

Corporal punishment works. Pain is an efficient deterrent and effective instructor. Do you believe both rules in spite of what effeminate fools and social do-gooders say today?

Why are you careful with fire? By studying the laws and theories of fuels, heat, oxidation, combustion, and thermodynamics? By theorizing why fire hurts and destroys? Or because you felt the biting sting of fire when you were young! Ah, yes, fire hurts!

If you want to be wise, and Proverbs was written for that, then submit to God’s word. Let God be true, but every man a liar (Rom 3:4; Ps 119:128). God and Solomon had more wisdom about modifying behavior than any man, group of men, institution, or theory on earth! Freely given without charge, they wrote it down for your great profit and success.

Foolishness and wickedness are terrible human traits, causing much pain and suffering, including ruined lives and estates and death. How can these traits be reduced? Sin is more than a bad habit; it is the inborn reaction of deceived rebels (Jer 17:9). Most men must be beaten, bruised, and wounded before they will change or improve. This is the lesson.

Do you wisely wound those who need it? Do you receive wounding well when you need it? Do not resist the wisdom taught here. Severe and wise punishment is far less painful than unrestrained self-will or obstinate rebellion. A fool not corrected will cost himself and those around him far more than the light sting of a whipping. This is the application.

Parents drive foolishness from children with the rod (Pr 22:15; 23:13-14); God scourges foolishness from His children (Pr 3:11-12; Heb 12:5-11); friends correct one another by verbal blows (Pr 27:6; Ps 141:5); and Jesus was bruised and wounded for our iniquities (Gen 3:15; Is 53:5,10). Corporal punishment greatly reduces crimes. This is the result.

Until recent decades of perverse thinking and loud talking by social engineers, everyone knew corporal punishment worked. They used to say, “Reading, writing, and arithmetic, taught to the tune of a hickory stick.” In a wise society, magistrates beat criminals (Deut 25:2-3), and employers beat offending employees (Pr 29:19; Ex 21:20-21).

Solomon’s inspired wisdom is despised today. Social dreamers and arrogant educators teach that flattery and freedom work better than corporal punishment. Read Benjamin Spock’s, Baby and Child Care. They do all they can to outlaw parental spanking of children, just as they have outlawed flogging for maintaining order and discipline in schools, the military, and society. But look at the results! They have miserably failed!

What a beautiful proverb! Here you see the nature of proverbs as clearly as anywhere.  The words are chosen and arranged to create maximum beauty, force, and rhythm; but the sense is slightly hidden for you to discover and enjoy. Can you find a few metonyms?

This beautiful and wise proverb teaches God’s ordinance of corporal punishment. But today’s enlightened world prefers the darkness of the perverted speculations of educators. They will suction a million screaming babies into pieces in their mothers’ wombs, while protecting teenagers and criminals from ever being touched! These perverse persons are the devilish corrupters of nations, and the results of their policies are visible everywhere.

With only a few proper lessons from a rod, children will grow up into mature and wise adults (Pr 22:6,15). Feed them for 17 years without this tool, and you will have a child that brings you shame, ruins his life as well, and is a burden to those around him (Pr 23:13-14; 29:15). The self-restraint needed to prosper and succeed in life is brought by the rod and reproof. Correct children, and they will give you rest and delight (Pr 29:17).

Let parents remember the rule – the rod works. Let school principals and magistrates consider – the rod works. Let friends recall – sharp reproofs work. The wise use of corporal punishment will correct fools and sinners and reform the heart. This is not fanciful advice of the ignorant: these are inspired rules of the wisest man ever! Are you wise enough to grasp who is right? God and Solomon or Ben Spock and UNICEF?

Let every man gratefully and humbly receive wounds from God and man, for they are designed for his learning (Pr 3:11-12; 9:7-9; 27:5-6; Ps 141:5). Without them, there is no evidence that either God or men love you, and there is no hope for your improvement or perfection. You should look for a church where you are wounded weekly by preaching!

Some natural men limit this proverb to foolish medical advice. They say the blue color around a wound is evidence that infection is being purged from it! And they say that developed abdominal muscles (“a six-pack” of stripes on your belly) promote the health of your lower internal organs! What an ignorant travesty of interpretation! Forget it!

God hates sin but loved His elect, so He severely bruised and wounded the Lord Jesus by the Jews and Romans. During the hours leading to His death, He turned blue from many wounds, and many stripes covered His back. Why? Because He was wounded for our transgressions, bruised for our iniquities, chastised for our peace, and by His stripes we are healed (Is 53:5,10). His blue wounds and many stripes cleansed us from all evil!

Proverbs 16:27 Wisdom for the Soul

Posted: November 16, 2012 in Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command

Proverbs 16:27 A scoundrel plots evil, and his speech is like a scorching fire. 

Many today love to find others’ failures. They then must share the gossip with yet others. But God and Solomon declare that such people are ungodly. Are you one of them?

If your goal is to be noble and virtuous, hate the thought of digging up evil in someone else’s life, and also hate the common desire to spread these findings. Such perverse persons are far from wisdom and success. God and good men hate these talebearers.

Wicked people love the sins of others. They look for them; they listen for them; they dig for them. They are drawn to them like sharks or hyenas to blood. They rejoice when someone falls. They hunt for sins; they eavesdrop on conversations; they snoop. They recall ancient sins. They spread the failures by backbiting, talebearing, and whispering.

Today’s investigative reporting hunts the sins of as many as possible, especially those in authority. They dig up evil, buy betrayals, and extort witnesses. They pervert facts, twist motives, stalk victims, and reward tattlers. They rape reputations and race to publish lies. Why? To feed the insatiable appetite of a generation of self-righteous leeches! They have picked their niche to make a buck – to publish faults of the famous for lustful readers.

Many publications today spread as much muck about others, pictorial or verbal, as they can find. Think paparazzi. Think England. Think Princess Diana. Any fault, failure, or sin she or any other person has is between God and herself and her family. It is not your business or anyone else’s. But the wicked are always dredging, looking for any filth they can sensationalize and spread for a dollar. These media whores should make you sick.

But what about America? Who cares if Thomas Jefferson had a slave-mistress, If he did, it is between God and Thomas Jefferson. How does that affect his learned opinion against central banks? What if Bill Clinton smoked marijuana at Oxford? What if Nancy Reagan resorted to astrology at times? What if George W. Bush drank too much during and after his Yale years? This list could be multiplied indefinitely.

The political vetting process, if limited to public conduct in public office, may have some value for evaluating a candidate and estimating future performance. But what he or she did privately in high school or college years is quite irrelevant, especially with decades of mature conduct following those youthful years when foolishness is bound in the heart (Pr 22:15). What could be dredged from your youthful past to be published to discredit you?

A fire burns in the lips of these ungodly wretches: they must spread the sins they discover (Ps 39:1-3). The desire to backbite, tattle, whisper, and slander overwhelms them. They love to expose others’ failures. They have no conscience. They enjoy destroying peace and reputations. They are brute beasts with twisted hearts. The blackness of their souls is matched only by the blackness of their eternity (II Pet 2:17; Jude 1:13; Rev 21:8,27).

Envy, self-righteousness, and cruelty control these persons. They live in constant envy, for they resent the superiority of others. They are losers, and they can only justify their existence by destroying the reputations of others. They think themselves righteous, when they can reveal the secret sins of another, though their hearts have more wickedness than any of their victims. They are cruel without regard for the pain and damage they cause.

Solomon warned often about wicked talkers (Pr 6:12-19; 12:18; 16:28; 17:9; 18:8; 26:20-22). So did other Bible writers (Ps 52:2-4; 57:4; Rom 1:29-30; II Cor 12:20; I Tim 6:3-5). God’s repetition and emphasis tells you it is a common and serious sin. Isaiah ripped those that make a man an offender for a word or for a minor fault (Is 29:20-21). James called the tongue a world of iniquity set on fire of hell (Jas 3:6). Are you one of them?

These perverse persons see David’s adultery and ignore his 60 years of astute wisdom, noble character, and great passion for God. Saints have loved David for 3000 years in spite of his sins, because they were exceptions. Jesus was even named after David.

These brute beasts see Peter’s denial of Jesus in His hour of need and ignore the Lord’s forgiveness of Peter and His promotion of Peter among the apostles (Luke 22:32; Jn 21:15-19; Acts 1:15-26). How many of them have their name on two books of the Bible?

Two lessons can be taken from this proverb. First, you should scrupulously avoid ever sharing negative information about another person unless it is absolutely necessary, as in a court case where you are sworn to reveal to proper authorities a person’s actions. Any sharing beyond this should be carefully examined as to motive and consequences, so that you will not be guilty of damaging another’s reputation or hardening your conscience.

Second, if you observe or hear someone spreading faults about another person, you have found an ungodly man. Shut his mouth with righteous anger, as Solomon taught you (Pr 25:23). Reject him from your company, as David would (Ps 101:1-8). God hates these scoundrels, and so should you (Pr 6:12-19; Ps 15:1-5; 139:19-22). Make sure you diligently try to protect the reputations and souls of others at all times. God bless you.

Proverbs 13:08 Wisdom for the Soul

Posted: November 13, 2012 in Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command

Proverbs 13:8 A man’s riches may ransom his life, but a poor man hears not threat. 

What will you do for money? How much do you want to be rich? Will you hear a warning about the desire to be wealthy? Test your character and wisdom. Read on.

Here is one of the more difficult proverbs of Solomon. But you can find a wise lesson and warning, if you look carefully and diligently. Do you desire wisdom enough to take the time to read this proverb, consider it soberly, and grasp the following comments? The love of money is the root of all evil, and it destroys men’s lives, but the poor still crave it!

Commentators see two options. Either, a rich man can buy himself out of trouble, but the poor avoid most dangers by having nothing to attract enemies. Or, the wealth of a rich man attracts thefts and threats, while poverty protects the poor from such violence. In the first option, both riches and poverty are good; in the second option, riches are bad, and poverty is good. These interpretations are obscure; there is a clearer and simpler lesson.

A ransom is the price paid for freedom from captivity, to remove a penalty, or restore a previous condition (Pr 6:35; Ex 21:30; 30:12; Job 33:24; 36:18). Many men lose their souls by not giving up the pursuit of riches. Ambition and wealth become the ransom price of their lives. The desire to be rich and successful is the price, or cost, of their lives. When dying on their beds, men who have chased riches all their lives have an empty life!

They will not redeem their souls by choosing contentment over covetousness and greed. They sacrifice their lives for money, and then they go to the grave with nothing (Eccl 5:10-17). A rich man could enjoy life, naturally and spiritually, if he did not love money. He could be peaceful and quiet, but he chooses the obsession of acquiring yet more. This foolish and destructive fascination with riches is a common disease (Eccl 6:1-6).

Paul warned, “But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content. But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have stumbled from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows” (I Tim 6:6-10).

The danger is clear – riches can destroy you. If a man loves money, he will sacrifice his soul and anything else to get it (Pr 15:27; 11:17,29; Hab 2:9-11). Riches are the ransom cost of his life. He could buy his freedom and peace, but he will not pay the price, which is giving up his pursuit of riches and being content with what he has. He remains a slave.

Jesus loved a rich, young ruler, who would not give up his riches to follow the Son of God. He would not ransom, or buy back, his life (Matt 19:16-22). Jesus knew the choice was as hard as a camel going through the eye of a needle (Matt 19:23-26), but He also taught that men should be willing to pay any price to save their own souls (Matt 16:26).

What about the poor? How does the second clause of the proverb relate to the first one? You know that it relates, or it would be a separate proverb. But you also see the disjunctive “but” connecting it. Therefore, there is a related contrast in the second phrase.

The poor live without many of the fears, worries, and burdens the rich endure – they even sleep better (Eccl 5:12). They watch the rich in their vain and troublesome pursuit of wealth (Ps 39:6), and they see the rich man die just like a low-class fool (Ps 49:6-13). But they will not learn from the object lesson, and they will not hear the wise testify that riches are vanity. They complain about their poverty and wish for the wealth of the rich.

How can you trust the interpretation given above, rather than the two popularized by commentators? The two clauses are related; the two clauses are disjunctive; rebuke is not the same as danger or trouble; and the poor refuse rebuke rather than never hearing any. And you can find related or similar instruction in other proverbs (Pr 10:15,22; 11:4,28; 13:7; 14:20; 15:27; 18:11; 19:1,4,7; 22:1,2; 23:4-5; 28:3,6,11,20,22; 30:7-9).

If you are rich, you are in great danger of missing the kingdom of God (Matt 19:23-26). The rich have generally been persecutors, rather than patrons, of Christians (Jas 2:6-7). It is your duty before God to resist trusting your riches, and it is your privilege before God to be willing to give your money away in order to lay hold on eternal life (I Tim 6:17-19).

If you are poor, be content with it (Jas 1:9-11; Jas 2:5; I Cor 1:26-29). Realize that godliness with contentment is truly great gain (I Tim 6:6; Heb 13:5). Remember and believe Solomon’s many rebukes of riches in Proverbs and Ecclesiastes (Pr 10:22; 15:16; 16:8; 28:6; Ps 37:16; Eccl 1:16 – 2:11). If you need more, pray wisely for a moderate increase, and make any godly changes the Bible approves (Pr 30:7-9; I Thess 4:11-12).

Riches are usually a curse. You arrived with nothing; you will leave with nothing; and God does not care how much you gathered during your life. Redeem your soul from this world’s mad worship of materialism and success, and hear the rebuke of wisdom instead. Seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness first, serve only one master, and lay up treasure in heaven (Matt 6:19-21,24,33). You will soon be glad you did.

Proverbs 13:10 Wisdom for the Soul

Posted: September 13, 2012 in Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command

Proverbs 13:10 Pride only breeds quarrels, but wisdom is found in those who take advice. 

“I was wrong” or “I need advice” are difficult phrases to utter because they require humility.  Pride is an ingredient in every quarrel.  It stirs up conflict and divides people.  Humility, by contrast, heals.  Guard against pride.  If you find yourself constantly arguing, examine your life for pride.  Be open to the advice of others, ask for help when you need it, and be willing to admit your mistakes.

Spiritual Training 12 September 2012

Posted: September 12, 2012 in Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Judges, Personal Growth, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command

Judges 17:5-6 Now this man Micah had a shrine, and he made an ephod and some idols and installed one of his sons as his priest.  In those days Israel had no king, everyone did as he saw fit. 

Today, as in Micah’s day, everyone seems to put his or her own interests first.  Time has not changed human nature.  Most people still reject God’s right way of living.  The people in Micah’s time replaced the true worship of God with a homemade version of worship.  As a result, justice was soon replaced by revenge and disorder.  Ignoring God’s direction led to confusion and destruction.  Anyone who has not submitted to God will end up doing whatever seems right at the time.

Lets Bring it Home: This tendency is present in all of us.  To know what is really right and to have the strength to do it, we need to draw closer to God and his Word.

Proverbs 27:18 Wisdom for the Soul

Posted: August 27, 2012 in Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command

Proverbs 27:18 He who tends a fig tree will eat its fruit, and he who looks after his master will be honored. 

With all the problems and concerns a leader has, it can be easy to overlook the very people who most deserve attention-faithful employees or volunteers (those who tend the fig trees).  The people who stand behind you, who work hard and help you get the job done, deserve to share in your success.  Be sure that in all your worrying, planning, and organizing, you don’t forget the people who are helping you the most.

Spiritual Training 23 August 2012

Posted: August 23, 2012 in Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command

Samson: His story is told in Judges 13-16

 Samson: It is sad to be remembered for what one might have been.  Samson had tremendous potential.  Because Samson wasted his strength on practical jokes and getting out of scrapes, and because he eventually gave it up altogether to satisfy the woman he loved, we tend to see him s a failure.  We remember him as the judge in Israel who spent his last days grinding grain in an enemy prison, and we say, “What wasted potential!”

Yes, Samson wasted his life.  He could have strengthened his nation.  He could have returned his people to the worship of God.  He could have wiped out the Philistines.  But even though he did none of those things.  Samson still accomplished the purpose announced by the angel who visited his parents before his birth.  In his final act, Samson began to rescue Israel from the Philistines.

Interestingly, the New Testament does not mention Samson’s failures or his heroic feats of strength.  In Hebrews 11:33, he is simply listed with others “who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised,” and in other ways were given superhuman aid.  In the end, Samson recognized his dependence on God.  When he died, God turned his failures and defeats into victory. 

 Samson’s story teaches us that it is never too late to start over.  However badly we may have failed in the past, today is not too late for us to put our complete trust in God.  

Proverbs 21:03 Wisdom for the Soul

Posted: August 21, 2012 in Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command

Proverbs 21:03 – To do what is right and just is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice.”

Sacrifices and offerings are not bribes to make God over-look our character faults. We can’t exchange good behavior in one area for bad behavior in another. If our personal and business dealings are not characterized by justice, no amount of generosity when the offering plate is passed will make up for it.

Spiritual Training 20 August 2012

Posted: August 20, 2012 in Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Judges, Personal Growth, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command
Samson and Delilah

Judges 16:21 Then the Philistines seized him, gouged out his eyes and took him down to Gaza. Binding him with bronze shackles, they set him to grinding in the prison.

Samson, the mighty warrior, became a slave. Rather than kill him, the Philistines preferred to humiliate him by gouging out his eyes and making him grind rain. Samson now had plenty of time to wonder if Delilah’s charms were worth spending the rest of his life in humiliation.
Although God did not completely abandon Samson (16:28-30), he allowed Samson’s decision to stand, and the consequences of his decision followed naturally.

Lets Bring it Home: We may choose to be close to God or to go our own way, but there are consequences resulting from our choice. Samson didn’t choose to be captured, but he chose to be with Delilah, and he could not escape the consequences of his decision.

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