How come?
How come, that it is a victory for Obama over Hillary when he picks up more delegates in Nevada, even though Hillary won more Democratic votes statewide? When Dubya did the same thing nationally in 2000 [winning more electoral votes while losing the popular vote] Democrats and the print media squawked about injustice and fraud. Hmmmm?
Were the Founding Fathers wise only when it works for you?
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Monday, January 21, 2008
Thursday, January 17, 2008
That Isn't Natural
Mark 9:34-35: "But they held their peace: for by the way they had disputed among themselves, who should be the greatest. And he sat down, and called the twelve, and saith unto them, If any man desire to be first, the same shall be last of all, and servant of all."
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What our Lord requires of believers is not natural to them. A servant's heart can be pretended, and false humility can be worn like a Halloween costume, but the reality is beyond the reach of the flesh.
The flesh requires to be served, it will not willingly humble itself to serve. It wants the church to dance to its tune; it dances to no one's tune.
I have seen it often over almost fifty years of ministry: people want the church to "meet their needs," but not many have their eyes open to meet the needs of others. The same is true of families: families are broken up by divorce because somebody thinks his/her "needs" are not met. It is a consumer mentality and people want to get their "money's worth" out of every relationship.
Those who preach should preach to edify, not to entertain and win the praise of men, and certainly not to win fame and fortune. Those who teach must teach so as to be understood and to enable the weak to stand and the feeble to walk. Those who sing, should sing for edification, and not to please men and win praise from them.
In this we are like the people our Lord referred to in Lu 7:32: "They are like unto children sitting in the marketplace, and calling one to another, and saying, We have piped unto you, and ye have not danced; we have mourned to you, and ye have not wept." The rulers rejected Christ because He did not dance to their tunes nor wept to their dirges.
Solomon put it this way: "He that is first in his own cause seemeth just; but his neighbour cometh and searcheth him." Pr 18:17 The man who wants to rule others may make a good case why it must be so, but others see through him and realize the true motives driving his actions.
It is a good thing that our Lord did not have this attitude. "Being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross."
Mark 9:34-35: "But they held their peace: for by the way they had disputed among themselves, who should be the greatest. And he sat down, and called the twelve, and saith unto them, If any man desire to be first, the same shall be last of all, and servant of all."
------
What our Lord requires of believers is not natural to them. A servant's heart can be pretended, and false humility can be worn like a Halloween costume, but the reality is beyond the reach of the flesh.
The flesh requires to be served, it will not willingly humble itself to serve. It wants the church to dance to its tune; it dances to no one's tune.
I have seen it often over almost fifty years of ministry: people want the church to "meet their needs," but not many have their eyes open to meet the needs of others. The same is true of families: families are broken up by divorce because somebody thinks his/her "needs" are not met. It is a consumer mentality and people want to get their "money's worth" out of every relationship.
Those who preach should preach to edify, not to entertain and win the praise of men, and certainly not to win fame and fortune. Those who teach must teach so as to be understood and to enable the weak to stand and the feeble to walk. Those who sing, should sing for edification, and not to please men and win praise from them.
In this we are like the people our Lord referred to in Lu 7:32: "They are like unto children sitting in the marketplace, and calling one to another, and saying, We have piped unto you, and ye have not danced; we have mourned to you, and ye have not wept." The rulers rejected Christ because He did not dance to their tunes nor wept to their dirges.
Solomon put it this way: "He that is first in his own cause seemeth just; but his neighbour cometh and searcheth him." Pr 18:17 The man who wants to rule others may make a good case why it must be so, but others see through him and realize the true motives driving his actions.
It is a good thing that our Lord did not have this attitude. "Being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross."
Monday, January 14, 2008
Going By Principle Always "Works."
It is when we depart from following Christian principle that we go out of the way. It is not faith to follow whims, emotions, or dreams. The life of faith is a life of principle, for faith trusts in the faithfulness of God to keep His promises.
It is not easy to live by principle. Often the wisdom of the world would counsel us not to be rigid and unloving and to bend the principles that Christ taught us, but it is always results in us losing our way. The path that leads away from the strait and narrow may appear to be headed in the same direction and get to the same goal, but it never does.
But it is easy to be deceived in this. Jesus warned that there were those who would kill the saints, thinking that they did God service. Many things that masquerade as principles are not at all. This is why a throrough knowledge of the Scripture is necessary and why it is wise and proper to listen to others. There is safety in a multitude of counsellors, Solomon said [Proverbs 11:14]. It is folly to trust in your own heart and rush madlong into ruin. The way of a fool is right in his own eyes: but he that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise. [Pr 12:15]
If a church is a true church, then there are wise and good people within it, for Christ is the head of the church and He sends the Holy Spirit to equip the members and to fulfill the will of the Father that we be conformed to Jesus Christ. We should seek out the counsel of such members and not allow ourselves to be carried away by the angry and bitter: "Make no friendship with an angry man; and with a furious man thou shalt not go..."Pr 22:24 "An angry man stirreth up strife, and a furious man aboundeth in transgression." Pr 29:22 Stay away from those who have grudges and those who insist on having their own way, for neither of these is the way of Christ.
"For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life..." [Pr 6:23]
Tuesday, January 01, 2008
Musings for the New Year
My wife and I attended the Colorado Springs Philharmonic Concert for the New Year last night. The program was a pleasant variety of excerpts from old musicals [The King and I], jazz ala Louis Armstrong, marches [Suppé’s “Light Cavalry Overture”] to “The Flight of the Bumblebee” and “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy of Company B.” Over two hours of tonal delight.
I did notice that each of the more than sixty musicians in the orchestra had a music stand in front of them and they all had sheets of music on the stands and seemed to be paying attention to them. There was also a conductor who waved his arms. The musicians seems to be paying attention to him, also. I also noted that before they began to play, the concert master stood up, played an "E" his violin and all the performers played an "E" also, to see that all the instruments were in tune. There lies the tale.
What if every musician decided to do his own thing and play his own song? Or suppose each one played the music in front of him but played it to his own beat and pitch and whenever it suited him? I spent some time meditating on that while engrossed in the music.
Do you suppose that any musician who tried such a thing, no matter how talented, would last long in the symphony? I suspect he would be fired. There may be a place for him on a street corner with a tin mug, I suppose, but not in any organized body of musicians. He might make a good living as a soloist, if that suits him, but there would be no place for him in the orchestra.
I am sure that God has as much sense as the directors of an orchestra. Even the devil has more sense than that and will not suffer his kingdom to be divided against itself with each devil doing his own thing. At least Jesus seemed to think so. One thing that is certain in every great musical performance is the discipline of the musicians.
God has provided abundantly for his church, including the way decisions are to be made. They are to be made decently and in order by those who are appointed by Him for the government of the church. Defiance of those decisions is defiance of God himself. The Bible provides for how such officers are to be chosen and guides the church in their selection.. There are various interpretations among Christian denominations as to the nature of the offices and how they are appointed, but only chaos and cacophony results if the government is defied. No church or any other organization—including those of the devil—can survive, if there are no consequences for that defiance.
To change the figure, I remember a big strong boy who came out for basketball when I was in high school. He was the best basketball player in the gym and he expected that everyone, even the coach, would respect him for it. The trouble is, he wouldn’t do what the coach told him to do, so he was kicked off the team, much to his surprise and anger. His pride kept him from playing basketball that year. He learned that there was a difference between being a coach and being a coach-ee.
Even basketball players have to work together in discipline and unity.
Paul put it this way for the church, "submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God" [Eph. 5:21] and the writer of Hebrews: "Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you." [13:7]
My wife and I attended the Colorado Springs Philharmonic Concert for the New Year last night. The program was a pleasant variety of excerpts from old musicals [The King and I], jazz ala Louis Armstrong, marches [Suppé’s “Light Cavalry Overture”] to “The Flight of the Bumblebee” and “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy of Company B.” Over two hours of tonal delight.
I did notice that each of the more than sixty musicians in the orchestra had a music stand in front of them and they all had sheets of music on the stands and seemed to be paying attention to them. There was also a conductor who waved his arms. The musicians seems to be paying attention to him, also. I also noted that before they began to play, the concert master stood up, played an "E" his violin and all the performers played an "E" also, to see that all the instruments were in tune. There lies the tale.
What if every musician decided to do his own thing and play his own song? Or suppose each one played the music in front of him but played it to his own beat and pitch and whenever it suited him? I spent some time meditating on that while engrossed in the music.
Do you suppose that any musician who tried such a thing, no matter how talented, would last long in the symphony? I suspect he would be fired. There may be a place for him on a street corner with a tin mug, I suppose, but not in any organized body of musicians. He might make a good living as a soloist, if that suits him, but there would be no place for him in the orchestra.
I am sure that God has as much sense as the directors of an orchestra. Even the devil has more sense than that and will not suffer his kingdom to be divided against itself with each devil doing his own thing. At least Jesus seemed to think so. One thing that is certain in every great musical performance is the discipline of the musicians.
God has provided abundantly for his church, including the way decisions are to be made. They are to be made decently and in order by those who are appointed by Him for the government of the church. Defiance of those decisions is defiance of God himself. The Bible provides for how such officers are to be chosen and guides the church in their selection.. There are various interpretations among Christian denominations as to the nature of the offices and how they are appointed, but only chaos and cacophony results if the government is defied. No church or any other organization—including those of the devil—can survive, if there are no consequences for that defiance.
To change the figure, I remember a big strong boy who came out for basketball when I was in high school. He was the best basketball player in the gym and he expected that everyone, even the coach, would respect him for it. The trouble is, he wouldn’t do what the coach told him to do, so he was kicked off the team, much to his surprise and anger. His pride kept him from playing basketball that year. He learned that there was a difference between being a coach and being a coach-ee.
Even basketball players have to work together in discipline and unity.
Paul put it this way for the church, "submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God" [Eph. 5:21] and the writer of Hebrews: "Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you." [13:7]
Monday, December 24, 2007
By What Authority?
11 Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection.
12 But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. 1Timothy 2:11,12
Mt 21:23 And when he was come into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came unto him as he was teaching, and said, By what authority doest thou these things? and who gave thee this authority?
The words sound strange to the the modern ear, because everyone thinks his civil right to freedom of religion is a right and authority sanctioned by God Himself.
The biblical fact is otherwise.
The question asked by the chief priests and elders was a very serious one and posed great peril for Christ.
The law given by God to Moses was very clear: those who took it upon themselves to teach religion without authority were condemned to death. Through the prophet Jeremiah God said, "I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran: I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied." Jer 23:21
Jesus did not dodge the question. He took the question of authority very seriously. He knew that everyone was not authorized to enter into the temple and throw out the moneychangers and drive out the cattle. "30 Therefore, behold, I am against the prophets, saith the LORD, that steal my words every one from his neighbour. 31 Behold, I am against the prophets, saith the LORD, that use their tongues, and say, He saith. 32 Behold, I am against them that prophesy false dreams, saith the LORD, and do tell them, and cause my people to err by their lies, and by their lightness; yet I sent them not, nor commanded them: therefore they shall not profit this people at all, saith the LORD. Jer 23:30-32.
But Jesus did not answer them according to their folly, to become like them. He answered them according to their folly in order to expose their hypocrisy and folly.
"What about the ministry of John the Baptist?" he said. "Was it of God?" What wisdom this was! The priests were on the horns a dilemma, and they knew it. If they said the John's ministry was not of God, they knew they would cause a riot, for all the people know that John had come from God. On the other hand, if they said that John hand come from God, Jesus would ask why they did not hear John.
So they said, "We cannot tell," seeking to avoid the dilemma. So Jesus said, "Neither do I tell you by what authority I do these things." They tried to avoid the issue, but He in His divine wisdom had answered his opponents.
Everyone standing there that day knew that John had claimed to be the purifier, come to prepare the way of the Lord, to present the Messiah to the people of Israel. Jesus was the One sent by God to be the Savior of the world. Jesus, among all those who have lived on the earth, was endowed with authority and right to do whatever He pleased in the house of His Father in Heaven. The temple was His and He had the right to rearrange the furniture if He liked. They must bow to His authority; as we all must.
The church is the body of Christ, and He alone has the right to decide how it is to be governed. Not by women, not by children, not by slander, not by usurpers, not by dreamers and those who consult their own hearts. A man's heart will always tell him not to submit to the Scripture, and his own heart will lead to hell, for he that trusts in his own heart is a fool, no matter how piously he wraps the package.
Rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, as Samuel told King Saul so many years ago. It is still so today. Jesus did not duck the question of authority, and neither must we.
Of course, the penal sanction of the law of Moses for death to ursurpers is not to be applied today, for in the age of the Spirit, the harshness of the law is replaced by the sweetness of the mild yoke of Christ. But the principle remains: let those who presume to teach the church be ready to explain their authority, as Jesus did. If you have no John the Baptist to attest to your "ministry," then you must be prepared to walk on the water and rise from the dead. Jesus had both.
11 Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection.
12 But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. 1Timothy 2:11,12
Mt 21:23 And when he was come into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came unto him as he was teaching, and said, By what authority doest thou these things? and who gave thee this authority?
The words sound strange to the the modern ear, because everyone thinks his civil right to freedom of religion is a right and authority sanctioned by God Himself.
The biblical fact is otherwise.
The question asked by the chief priests and elders was a very serious one and posed great peril for Christ.
The law given by God to Moses was very clear: those who took it upon themselves to teach religion without authority were condemned to death. Through the prophet Jeremiah God said, "I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran: I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied." Jer 23:21
Jesus did not dodge the question. He took the question of authority very seriously. He knew that everyone was not authorized to enter into the temple and throw out the moneychangers and drive out the cattle. "30 Therefore, behold, I am against the prophets, saith the LORD, that steal my words every one from his neighbour. 31 Behold, I am against the prophets, saith the LORD, that use their tongues, and say, He saith. 32 Behold, I am against them that prophesy false dreams, saith the LORD, and do tell them, and cause my people to err by their lies, and by their lightness; yet I sent them not, nor commanded them: therefore they shall not profit this people at all, saith the LORD. Jer 23:30-32.
But Jesus did not answer them according to their folly, to become like them. He answered them according to their folly in order to expose their hypocrisy and folly.
"What about the ministry of John the Baptist?" he said. "Was it of God?" What wisdom this was! The priests were on the horns a dilemma, and they knew it. If they said the John's ministry was not of God, they knew they would cause a riot, for all the people know that John had come from God. On the other hand, if they said that John hand come from God, Jesus would ask why they did not hear John.
So they said, "We cannot tell," seeking to avoid the dilemma. So Jesus said, "Neither do I tell you by what authority I do these things." They tried to avoid the issue, but He in His divine wisdom had answered his opponents.
Everyone standing there that day knew that John had claimed to be the purifier, come to prepare the way of the Lord, to present the Messiah to the people of Israel. Jesus was the One sent by God to be the Savior of the world. Jesus, among all those who have lived on the earth, was endowed with authority and right to do whatever He pleased in the house of His Father in Heaven. The temple was His and He had the right to rearrange the furniture if He liked. They must bow to His authority; as we all must.
The church is the body of Christ, and He alone has the right to decide how it is to be governed. Not by women, not by children, not by slander, not by usurpers, not by dreamers and those who consult their own hearts. A man's heart will always tell him not to submit to the Scripture, and his own heart will lead to hell, for he that trusts in his own heart is a fool, no matter how piously he wraps the package.
Rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, as Samuel told King Saul so many years ago. It is still so today. Jesus did not duck the question of authority, and neither must we.
Of course, the penal sanction of the law of Moses for death to ursurpers is not to be applied today, for in the age of the Spirit, the harshness of the law is replaced by the sweetness of the mild yoke of Christ. But the principle remains: let those who presume to teach the church be ready to explain their authority, as Jesus did. If you have no John the Baptist to attest to your "ministry," then you must be prepared to walk on the water and rise from the dead. Jesus had both.
Sunday, December 23, 2007
Savior or Saboteur? - New York Times: "As the Arkansas journalist Max Brantley told the Billary biographer Sally Bedell Smith, 'He’s always evangelizing for the church of Bill.'"
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Just wait long enough and prevaricators will reveal themselves. Example: Maureen Doud has now exposed herself completely. The article in the link above is essentially saying, "I have known all the time the truth about Bill and Hillary, but I pretended something else about them all the years they were in power because I have an agenda that includes abortion rights, anti-male, socialism, anti-capitalists, liberal, anti-bible planks and they were useful to my agenda. It is ok for me to lie and to use liars like Bill and Hillary because they are useful to me."
In other words, don't believe anything Doud writes. If she lied to promote Billary, might she also do so to promote someone else that seems more useful [Obama?]
Maybe Bill's worst mistake this time out is to think that his former supporters really believed and admired him.
-----
Just wait long enough and prevaricators will reveal themselves. Example: Maureen Doud has now exposed herself completely. The article in the link above is essentially saying, "I have known all the time the truth about Bill and Hillary, but I pretended something else about them all the years they were in power because I have an agenda that includes abortion rights, anti-male, socialism, anti-capitalists, liberal, anti-bible planks and they were useful to my agenda. It is ok for me to lie and to use liars like Bill and Hillary because they are useful to me."
In other words, don't believe anything Doud writes. If she lied to promote Billary, might she also do so to promote someone else that seems more useful [Obama?]
Maybe Bill's worst mistake this time out is to think that his former supporters really believed and admired him.
Sunday, December 16, 2007
Usually during this time of year you see bumper stickers or hear comments about a desire to get "Christ back into Christmas."
It might be even a better idea to get Christ back into church.
If you don't know what that means, I would suggest that it might be a good idea to get better acquainted with Him yourself, so that you would know what you are missing. The site Basketoffigs might be a good place to start. There is a lot of information there about the doctrine of Christ,His government of the church, and His commandments.
It might be even a better idea to get Christ back into church.
If you don't know what that means, I would suggest that it might be a good idea to get better acquainted with Him yourself, so that you would know what you are missing. The site Basketoffigs might be a good place to start. There is a lot of information there about the doctrine of Christ,His government of the church, and His commandments.
Friday, December 14, 2007
Newsmax.com - Thompson Made the Most of Opportunities: "It's the kind of story you could write a book about: A 35-year-old single mother of three is fired from her state job after refusing to go along with a scheme to pardon criminals who bribe aides to the governor."
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This is not an endorsement. This is a story, however, that every Christian conservative should consider before they make their voting decision. There just may be an authentic human running for President of these United States of America.
The picture above is of ice sparkles in the early morning on Sunday morning a few weeks ago. There is beauty if you look for it. If you click on the image you can get an enlarged picture.
Thursday, December 13, 2007
FOXNews.com - Study: Part of Global-Warming Model May Be Wrong - Science News Science & Technology Technology News: "The study, published online this week in the International Journal of Climatology, found that while most of the models predicted that the middle and upper parts of the troposphere -1 to 6 miles above the Earth's surface - would have warmed drastically over the past 30 years, actual observations showed only a little warming, especially over tropical regions. 'Can the models accurately explain the climate from the recent past? It seems that the answer is no,' said lead study author David H. Douglass, a physicist specializing in climate at the University of Rochester"
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My, my, my. But experts have an instinct, you know, and must not allow stuborn things like facts to sway them from the appointed conclusion. Forget the anomalies! Full speed ahead!
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My, my, my. But experts have an instinct, you know, and must not allow stuborn things like facts to sway them from the appointed conclusion. Forget the anomalies! Full speed ahead!
Friday, November 30, 2007
Excite News - Calls in Sudan for Execution of Briton
Excite News - Calls in Sudan for Execution of Briton: "KHARTOUM, Sudan (AP) - Thousands of Sudanese, many armed with clubs and knives, rallied Friday in a central square and demanded the execution of a British teacher convicted of insulting Islam for allowing her students to name a teddy bear 'Muhammad"
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What a great religion this is! Don't get your own way; throw a fit; take to the streets; make a mob; demand execution for naming a teddy bear.
Why don't we call for killing everyone that doesn't honor the name of Jesus Christ?
Because we are better than that. We are better because our Prophet is better. Jesus Christ is vastly superior to Muhammad in person, in morals, in history, and in power.
Don't believe it? Well, Jesus is patient and has forbidden us to seek revenge. He will honor and protect His kingdom and His power, but He does not need thugs in the street to do it. His kingdom is not of their world, but that doesn't mean that He does not act in the world, for He does.
Some Christian act far below their profession, we admit. There are Christians who throw fits when they don't get their own way, but they don't know what spirit they are of. Mature Christians deplore this kind of behavior.
Where is the outcry of the Mullah's against the thugs in the Sudan? Hm????
=======
What a great religion this is! Don't get your own way; throw a fit; take to the streets; make a mob; demand execution for naming a teddy bear.
Why don't we call for killing everyone that doesn't honor the name of Jesus Christ?
Because we are better than that. We are better because our Prophet is better. Jesus Christ is vastly superior to Muhammad in person, in morals, in history, and in power.
Don't believe it? Well, Jesus is patient and has forbidden us to seek revenge. He will honor and protect His kingdom and His power, but He does not need thugs in the street to do it. His kingdom is not of their world, but that doesn't mean that He does not act in the world, for He does.
Some Christian act far below their profession, we admit. There are Christians who throw fits when they don't get their own way, but they don't know what spirit they are of. Mature Christians deplore this kind of behavior.
Where is the outcry of the Mullah's against the thugs in the Sudan? Hm????
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Student claims she was fed question for Clinton - CNN.com
Student claims she was fed question for Clinton - CNN.com: "The college student who was told what question to ask at one of New York Sen. Hillary Clinton's campaign events says 'voters have the right to know what happened' and she wasn't the only one who was planted."
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Hillary's dream cannot stand the hard evidence.
Humanism and sorcery are very closely related. Because reality is the enemy of both systems the true believer in them must seek to manipulate reality to fit the imaginations of their own hearts.
The humanist does it by lies and cheating, whether it is the student who cheats on the test; the professor who plagiarizes; or the politician to pretends to be something other than he is; or the pseudo-scientist who fakes the evidence to make global warming or evolution appear to be true.
The sorcery does it by magic spells and incantations and runic rhymes.
Then the practitioner, whether of the humanist or sorcerer denomination assents to his imagination and pretends that his artifice has created a new reality, and gives his life and strength to his dream. Sorcery and the occult were important aspects of the Third Reich, of communism, and increasingly, of American politics.
"Follow your dream" can be a mantra of the occult and sorcery if the dream has no basis in reality.
History and creation and hard facts are the enemies of humanism and sorcery, so they must be denied, manipulated, or misrepresented in order for the vanity of the dream can be attempted.
Won't work, of course. History and reality and creation are alike the work of God. When the storms come, the houses built upon the sand of man's imagination will come tumbling down.
"The prophet that hath a dream, let him tell a dream; and he that hath my word, let him speak my word faithfully. What is the chaff to the wheat? saith the LORD." Jer. 23:28
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Hillary's dream cannot stand the hard evidence.
Humanism and sorcery are very closely related. Because reality is the enemy of both systems the true believer in them must seek to manipulate reality to fit the imaginations of their own hearts.
The humanist does it by lies and cheating, whether it is the student who cheats on the test; the professor who plagiarizes; or the politician to pretends to be something other than he is; or the pseudo-scientist who fakes the evidence to make global warming or evolution appear to be true.
The sorcery does it by magic spells and incantations and runic rhymes.
Then the practitioner, whether of the humanist or sorcerer denomination assents to his imagination and pretends that his artifice has created a new reality, and gives his life and strength to his dream. Sorcery and the occult were important aspects of the Third Reich, of communism, and increasingly, of American politics.
"Follow your dream" can be a mantra of the occult and sorcery if the dream has no basis in reality.
History and creation and hard facts are the enemies of humanism and sorcery, so they must be denied, manipulated, or misrepresented in order for the vanity of the dream can be attempted.
Won't work, of course. History and reality and creation are alike the work of God. When the storms come, the houses built upon the sand of man's imagination will come tumbling down.
"The prophet that hath a dream, let him tell a dream; and he that hath my word, let him speak my word faithfully. What is the chaff to the wheat? saith the LORD." Jer. 23:28
Saturday, October 20, 2007
Excite News - AP: Sexual Misconduct Plagues US Schools
Excite News - AP: Sexual Misconduct Plagues US Schools: "Lindsey's case is just a small example of a widespread problem in American schools: sexual misconduct by the very teachers who are supposed to be nurturing the nation's children."
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Statists should abandon their sanctimonious hand-wringing over the sexual misconduct of priests in the Roman church. The misuse of the religious offices of the Roman church is equaled by the misuse of the religious offices of the established church of America, the public school system.
Don't think that public education is not a religious system. It has it theory of origins (evolution), its ultimate authority (experience0, an epistemology (scientific method), its fideism (blind faith in evolution), its licensed priesthood with tenure, its sacraments of condoms and abortion, its Inquisition to silence opposition, and its theory of salvation (self-esteem and suppression of guilt).
What on earth do you expect from a teaching staff that was trained in the licentious atmosphere of public universities staffed by tenured professors and professorettes who grew up in the free love, let it all hang out, spirit of the sixties and seventies. They go to churches that denounce the "old" theology and worship, and insist on feel-good worship, happyhappyhappy religion, and don't-get-in-my-face religious assurance. Sexual indulgence cannot be turned on and off like a light-switch. An undisciplined student who fornicated his/her way through teacher training will not likely curb the passions in the junior high or senior high school. Who are you kidding?
But we won't change a bit, because it would disrupt my own carefree lifestyle. We will flood the Internet with pornography and bring it into our homes by cable and wireless channels.
But then, we are not the first generation who sacrificed our children on the altars of our false gods. After all, everyone must find his own way, right? Let the kids beware of these priest and priestesses of the public school establishment.
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Statists should abandon their sanctimonious hand-wringing over the sexual misconduct of priests in the Roman church. The misuse of the religious offices of the Roman church is equaled by the misuse of the religious offices of the established church of America, the public school system.
Don't think that public education is not a religious system. It has it theory of origins (evolution), its ultimate authority (experience0, an epistemology (scientific method), its fideism (blind faith in evolution), its licensed priesthood with tenure, its sacraments of condoms and abortion, its Inquisition to silence opposition, and its theory of salvation (self-esteem and suppression of guilt).
What on earth do you expect from a teaching staff that was trained in the licentious atmosphere of public universities staffed by tenured professors and professorettes who grew up in the free love, let it all hang out, spirit of the sixties and seventies. They go to churches that denounce the "old" theology and worship, and insist on feel-good worship, happyhappyhappy religion, and don't-get-in-my-face religious assurance. Sexual indulgence cannot be turned on and off like a light-switch. An undisciplined student who fornicated his/her way through teacher training will not likely curb the passions in the junior high or senior high school. Who are you kidding?
But we won't change a bit, because it would disrupt my own carefree lifestyle. We will flood the Internet with pornography and bring it into our homes by cable and wireless channels.
But then, we are not the first generation who sacrificed our children on the altars of our false gods. After all, everyone must find his own way, right? Let the kids beware of these priest and priestesses of the public school establishment.
Monday, October 08, 2007
Sunday, September 30, 2007
Did you ever notice that the "History Channel" very often isn't? Isn't the history channel, I mean. Even as I write this my tv is turned on and a segment is running on "Mega Disasters." I don't have the sound on, but I don't need to hear it to know what is going on. There are segments about the glaciers melting and coastal cities being destroyed. Right now there are tidal waves, volcanoes, and earthquakes and civilization sinking into complete chaos.
Ain't history, you know. Just stuff that people make up. Right now they are showing ice breaking off and falling into the water. They show before and after pictures of glaciers, indicating that they are shrinking--they don't indicate what time of year the pictures were taken, just the year. All looks very scientific, but then Freud, Mead, and others falsified their data in order to make the results of their "investigations" come out the way they wanted, just like Michael Polanyi boasts--just ignore the data that you know "instinctively" is wrong. We are geniuses, you know. Trust us, not the Bible. We are scientists, and you will be safe in our hands.
In a pig's eye.
After Dan Rather and Al Gore, who knows what. Whoops, now they are showing Florida being overwhelmed with water.... o dear o dear o dear. We're all going to DIE.
Bogus, bogus, bogus.
Judgment is coming, little children, but you cannot imagine what form it will take. It will have to do with moral and spiritual transgression, not the stuff these people wring their hands about. It will be about idolatry and the worship of power.
Ain't history, you know. Just stuff that people make up. Right now they are showing ice breaking off and falling into the water. They show before and after pictures of glaciers, indicating that they are shrinking--they don't indicate what time of year the pictures were taken, just the year. All looks very scientific, but then Freud, Mead, and others falsified their data in order to make the results of their "investigations" come out the way they wanted, just like Michael Polanyi boasts--just ignore the data that you know "instinctively" is wrong. We are geniuses, you know. Trust us, not the Bible. We are scientists, and you will be safe in our hands.
In a pig's eye.
After Dan Rather and Al Gore, who knows what. Whoops, now they are showing Florida being overwhelmed with water.... o dear o dear o dear. We're all going to DIE.
Bogus, bogus, bogus.
Judgment is coming, little children, but you cannot imagine what form it will take. It will have to do with moral and spiritual transgression, not the stuff these people wring their hands about. It will be about idolatry and the worship of power.
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
ABC News: China Factory Recycled Dirty Chopsticks: "A lack of business ethics and a spiritual vacuum after China embraced economic reforms in the late 1970s have been blamed for unscrupulous business practices and corruption."
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Yep. So they send poisoned dog food; leadened toys; and now unwashed chop sticks. What in the world are we thinking of? Why trade with gangsters?
But the business ethics and the spiritual vacuum are not the fault of the limited capitalism that "China...embraced in the late 1970s." If they were ethical and moral they would not have embraced the theivery of communism to begin with. A robber nation that confiscates wealth debases and corrupts its people; A condition that only the fear of God through Jesus Christ can transform. A corrupt Christianity will not do it [see following next two items].
The residue of business ethics and morality that remains in the West is the direct result of the Ten Commandments and the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The sooner we realize that, the sooner we will be able to counteract the corruption that is in the world.
May God open our blind eyes. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. Without Him the world is lost, deceived, and dead.
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
FOXNews.com - Barack Obama Predicts 30 Percent Hike in Black Vote if He is Democratic Nominee - Politics | Republican Party | Democratic Party | Political Spectrum: "Barack Obama predicted that black voter turnout would swell by at least 30 percent if he wins the presidential nomination, giving Democrats victory in Southern states that have been voting Republican for decades."
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How come he gets to say that and get a pass from the media? What if some white guy said, "The whites will vote for me." Or, "Christians will vote for me."
But why do I ask. I know the reason, and you do, too. It isn't pretty.
Here we go 'round the prickly pear....
Apologies to T. S. Eliot. We still have hollow men, though.
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How come he gets to say that and get a pass from the media? What if some white guy said, "The whites will vote for me." Or, "Christians will vote for me."
But why do I ask. I know the reason, and you do, too. It isn't pretty.
Here we go 'round the prickly pear....
Apologies to T. S. Eliot. We still have hollow men, though.
Religion beat became a test of faith - Los Angeles Times: "Clearly, I saw now that belief in God, no matter how grounded, requires at some point a leap of faith. Either you have the gift of faith or you don't. It's not a choice. It can't be willed into existence. And there's no faking it if you're honest about the state of your soul."
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Please Note:
This story is a heart-breaking account of a reporter who abandoned his evangelical faith because of the shenanigans that he observed while reporting on evangelical "Christianity."
1. Christians must "Make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed. Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:" (Heb 12:13-14 AV) Jesus announced a great apologetic for the faith: "By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." (Joh 13:35 AV) We are to seek the weak and lame, not abuse them.
2. It is proper that all "ministries" done in the name of Christ be under the supervision of the elders of the church, who must require accountability. We are commanded to "Recompense to no man evil for evil. Pro-vide things honest in the sight of all men." (Ro 12:17 AV)
3. William Lobdell was abused by evangelical Christianity from the beginning, for his experience of being "touched by Jesus" at the mountain retreat and the "Mariner Church" was a result of evangelical experiential manipulation, rather than the work of the Holy Spirit impressing the truth of the Gospel upon his heart and mind. Faith that is created by people can be destroyed by people. Not so the faith of God’s elect, which is not grounded upon experience, but on the certain promises of God. True faith does not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. [1Cor. 2:5]
The evidence that this is true of William Lobdell's experience is that he sees no essential difference between Rome, Saddleback, Mariner's, Presbyterianism, Mormanism, etc. Where is truth? What about doctrine? What about the Scriptures? Is all of this irrelevant, and the only thing that matters is what goes on in worldly, apostate, money grubbing churches? There is plenty of honest, true Christians in this country, but you won't find them if you look in the wrong places, and the Los Angeles Times has a history of not looking in the right places to find the story.
4. The "ministries" that conceal the truth because they want to maintain their position will answer to God for their dishonesty and compromise. So also must William Lobdell answer to God for looking to people for the assurance of his faith. "...Let us run with patience the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds." [Heb 12:1-3] Any faith that looks to men rather than to Jesus is a false and dead faith, for only in Christ is there life.
The brightest part of this sad story of Lobdell's experience is in the quotation above. He is right about faith being the gift of God. It is good that he has abandoned what he thought was his faith, because it was not faith at all. Sometimes the rubbish has to be swept away to make room for truth. Let us pray that he finds it in the Lord Jesus and Him crucified.
--------------
Please Note:
This story is a heart-breaking account of a reporter who abandoned his evangelical faith because of the shenanigans that he observed while reporting on evangelical "Christianity."
1. Christians must "Make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed. Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:" (Heb 12:13-14 AV) Jesus announced a great apologetic for the faith: "By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." (Joh 13:35 AV) We are to seek the weak and lame, not abuse them.
2. It is proper that all "ministries" done in the name of Christ be under the supervision of the elders of the church, who must require accountability. We are commanded to "Recompense to no man evil for evil. Pro-vide things honest in the sight of all men." (Ro 12:17 AV)
3. William Lobdell was abused by evangelical Christianity from the beginning, for his experience of being "touched by Jesus" at the mountain retreat and the "Mariner Church" was a result of evangelical experiential manipulation, rather than the work of the Holy Spirit impressing the truth of the Gospel upon his heart and mind. Faith that is created by people can be destroyed by people. Not so the faith of God’s elect, which is not grounded upon experience, but on the certain promises of God. True faith does not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. [1Cor. 2:5]
The evidence that this is true of William Lobdell's experience is that he sees no essential difference between Rome, Saddleback, Mariner's, Presbyterianism, Mormanism, etc. Where is truth? What about doctrine? What about the Scriptures? Is all of this irrelevant, and the only thing that matters is what goes on in worldly, apostate, money grubbing churches? There is plenty of honest, true Christians in this country, but you won't find them if you look in the wrong places, and the Los Angeles Times has a history of not looking in the right places to find the story.
4. The "ministries" that conceal the truth because they want to maintain their position will answer to God for their dishonesty and compromise. So also must William Lobdell answer to God for looking to people for the assurance of his faith. "...Let us run with patience the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds." [Heb 12:1-3] Any faith that looks to men rather than to Jesus is a false and dead faith, for only in Christ is there life.
The brightest part of this sad story of Lobdell's experience is in the quotation above. He is right about faith being the gift of God. It is good that he has abandoned what he thought was his faith, because it was not faith at all. Sometimes the rubbish has to be swept away to make room for truth. Let us pray that he finds it in the Lord Jesus and Him crucified.
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