Luke 17:2
“It would be better to be thrown into the sea with a large millstone tied around the neck than to face the punishment in store for harming one of these little ones.”
20
Mar
1 comment
15
Mar
Note: This is D.S. Martin considering the best way to stem the advance of the Visigoths. ‘I can do it, but will this snowball melt before reaching Alaricus, on his steed?’ (republished from a previous blog by D.S. Martin)
Why do we, humans, presume that we individually, have the solutions to the “world’s problems”?
It is the height of hubris that I should presume to have the answers to the errors of all human endeavors.
Yet, I do find myself pondering the mistakes of generals, presidents, religious leaders, prime ministers, peace activists, etc. etc. ad infinitum ad nauseum.
And it does not matter what the issue may be.
It may be socialist Marxism, or it may be free market capitalism. I could do each of these better than those who have had the reigns of power thus far.
Honestly, I will play scenarios out in my mind, concerning just about any issue, which I see as a “failed” attempt to “better” humankind.
I consider this, because I just watched a biography of Che Guevara. He certainly believed that he had the answers to human “mistakes.”
But, he could not see himself, critically, as he saw the rest of the movers on the world stage.
Is it better that a “great visionary” like Che Guevara put a bullet in so many skulls, rather than Fulgencio Batista? I doubt that those men and women, whose last moments of life, were spent looking up the barrel of Che’s gun, would feel that he was any “better” of a man than Batista.
How and why are we humans so blinded to our own failed attempts at perfection? Am I the only one who finds himself trying to “save the Titanic”, push back the barbarians from the gates of Rome, or stop the bloodbath on the streets of Baghdad? If only I had been there… If only I could tell them what they don’t understand… If only…
Why can’t I come to terms with the fact that human misery is utterly insoluble, at least so long as humans are the purported architects of the “final solution”?
Why can’t we all just get along?
God bless,
DSM
7
Feb
The POWER of the HOLY SPIRIT rests in God’s Unity
Published in Bible, Church, Jesus Christ, Kingdom, Love, Unity, purpose
(The painting is by Jacopo Bassano ca. 1550AD, entitled “The Purification of the Temple.”)
This article, that is hyperlinked under this paragraph, is about the unification of Christian disciples and all believers becoming one in Jesus Christ.
It was brought to my attention by my best friend. He published it on his Blog post here.
Nonetheless, I had a very good discussion at work today, with a fellow believer, who has been visiting this blog.
Our discussion reminded me of this published article.
Look at this paragraph.
- Barna also identifies a growing movement of what he calls “Christian Revolutionaries” -– believers who demonstrate much higher commitment to group worship, personal spiritual growth, Bible study and biblical beliefs, community ministry, evangelism and financial investment in Christian work.
- Even more than self-professed “born-again” or “evangelical” believers, “Revolutionaries” have a clear sense of meaning and purpose; consider their relationship with God the top priority in their life; strive to love Him with all their hearts; believe they will spend eternity with Him only because they have confessed their sins and accepted Christ as personal Savior; and have made a personal commitment to Christ as Lord.
My best friend, and fellow blogger who showed me this article, had been somewhat cynical, that the Church was not following its mission.
But the above story shows that many within the “body of Christ” are recognizing the purpose for the “body of Christ” [the body of Christ, is defined by the Holy Spirit, speaking through the apostle Paul at 1Cor. 12:27 "Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it."]
Even if I were to say, that the “big dogs” of Christendom are promoting these fractures (and I know that many are), this would not justify me, willingly ‘giving-up’ the the body of Christ to the power of Satan, who may be working through the “big dogs.”
In-fact, this makes it imperative that I, not give-up the bride of Christ, and abandon her to the evil-doers.
I must remain in the body, to work for God and serve His Son, for the sake of Jesus’ holy bride, i.e. the Church.
I love Jesus Christ, therefore I will not abandon His wife, to the will of Satan.
Think about this.
- If my buddy calls me “friend”, and yet, when he sees my wife being attacked by evil men and women, he says to himself… “I am getting out of here. I am not going to help her.”, is he, really, my friend?
- If he is truly my friend, he will ‘throw-down’ with the ‘bad guys’, and go to the grave, before leaving my wife to the thugs.
This is the same scenario with the Church.
We need to get into the fight and save the bride of Christ.
We may not be able to do it alone, but we are not alone.
We have God’s Holy Spirit empowering us. Right?
This is what I believe in my heart. And, through this blog, I am trying to encourage people to just allow God’s Spirit to work through them, to save souls.
- Folks can’t be saved, if they are never brought into the body of Christ.
- Folks can’t be saved, if the bride of Christ is given over to the men and women who are serving the world’s goals and not the Father’s goals.
Anyway, that is why we must all be together in worship to Him.
Remember Christ’s final prayer (John 17), He prayed for all believers to be unified as one, just as the Father and He are one.
You and I must be a part of the Holy Father’s answer to the prayer of His Son Jesus Christ, because we are integrated into it by Jesus very sacrifice on the cross.
If we say ‘No’ to the Church, then we have said ‘No’ to the power of the Father, to even answer His Son’s prayer.
Why would Jesus waste time with the prayer in John 17, if the Father was powerless to answer Him, in the affirmative?
I am, just as the article above describes me, a “Christian Revolutionary“.
But, praise God, so is my Lord Jesus Christ.
And if you are wondering about the painting by Jacopo Bassano at the top of this post, Jesus is a Revolutionary, and that is why He drove the money changers from God’s temple.
God bless,
DSM
I don’t respond to many worldly issues anymore, simply because they are not the “BIG idea” to me anymore.
I am not motivated to cynicism, nor am I motivated to “nationalism”. Therefore, I am not motivated to the physical (carnal) arguments that shall continue in perpetuity.
My recent reading of two Alfred Lord Tennyson’s poems has opened my eyes to some thoughts on war/anti-war issues, that are at least as old as the Victorian age.
Many ideas if not the exact words within the varied anti Iraq War blogs are ‘one and the same’ from Tennyson’s Locksley Hall Sixty Years After (1886).
So, what has changed, in the last 100 plus years? The poet is long since dead.
But, his words are replayed,over and over through the so many wars that have taken place since his pen left the paper. His words are my words also.
The unique thing about this poem of Tennyson’s is that he wrote prior to the USA being considered a world power. In fact, the USA was not a world player in any measurable sense, until after the Spanish American War.
Yet, Tennyson is able to point to “USA prototypes” through ancient history, up to and including the UK of the Victorian age.
Do we need to save/restore the USA? Is that what we are supposed to do? I ask, I have an answer that I believe is right, but I don’t force that answer on any. I just ask.
Did Tennyson see his mission as saving/restoring the UK? I don’t know, but my assumption is that he did. Most poets and literary figures that I’ve studied in English Literature do have a “mission” of reformation or restoration of the Nation and political system that they cherish.
Tennyson’s speaker, in this poem, did not omit any human ethnic group from his criticism on war and death.
All are “man” and all are equally ‘fallen’ stars with varying degrees of stripes. (lines 93 and 94 from Locksley Hall Sixty Years After)
- 93 Have we grown at last beyond the passions of the primal clan?
- 94 ‘Kill your enemy, for you hate him,’ still, ‘your enemy’ was a man.
This is the crux of the issue for me, my vision, sees far beyond carnal national policies of ‘who kills who’.
Death is not the enemy in the crucial fight, the real “ultimate fight”.
The enemy, to me, is fear of death or possibly even just the forestalling of death and thinking that this has defeated ‘him‘ in some tangible way.
We shall not defeat death by forestalling death for 100 million people for thirty years. Death is still coming to those 100 million souls. If they are not prepared for their conference day with him, he will rule over them for eternity.
Caesar shall be Caesar.
No one shall prevail in convincing Caesar to be something less than Caesar. This is not a profound statement; it’s just the way of carnal man.
God bless,
DSM
31
Dec
Look at the Does God Exist? website. Mr. Clayton makes a bold claim that he can scientifically prove that God exists.
I want to get back to my answers to Matt, about what I believe and why I believe. (This is the 3rd or 4th part of this answer series, depending on if and/or how you might be counting the parts.)
What do you think about this photo? Is it beautiful? Peaceful? Graceful?
I say God is majestic!
Some say “nature” is awsome!
Did anyone catch the personification of Nature, in the quote from the Scientist, Russ George? About nuclear fusion within our Sun and all other stars in the universe, Mr. George said “Nature, however, does not seem to use it on a very large scale…”
So, you must understand that Mr. George has simply taken the word “God” and replaced it with the word “Nature.”
Nature is personified and given a personal will.
I don’t know Mr. George’s theology, but this same issue arises with many publicly avowed science atheists.
Therefore, simply replacing the word “God” with some other word does not get rid of God, it rather just gives Him a new title.
It is, ultimately, up to each individual to know ‘what’ he/she really believes and ‘why’ he/she has been convinced of that thing.
We may not want to work out our beliefs because the answer is inconvenient.
This issue happens in the news every week.
The story might go something like this: A mother’s “little Johnny” is caught in a tragic incident on a “joy ride” or with a trunk load of illegal drugs or “You Name It”, and the mother goes on Channel 8 news and tells the reporters that her son is a perfect angel.
We choose to believe or disbelieve for many reasons.
But, truth and lies do not exist without leaving their mark. Often times the mark is clearly present, but the evidence is simply ignored because the required action may be too painful.
It is a failing of the individual to not desire the truth.
And when this happens we make ourselves to be fools, by believing our own made-up lies.
We actually see people who can fabricate lies out of whole cloth and then begin to believe the thing they’ve just made-up. We could laugh, it weren’t so sad. This is the very thing that the Apostle Paul wrote concerning in Romans 1:18ff. Look at the following passage and think about what Paul tells us about God and humankind.
18 But God shows his anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people who push the truth away from themselves. 19 For the truth about God is known to them instinctively. God has put this knowledge in their hearts. 20 From the time the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky and all that God made. They can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse whatsoever for not knowing God.
21 Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. The result was that their minds became dark and confused. 22 Claiming to be wise, they became utter fools instead. 23 And instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they worshiped idols made to look like mere people, or birds and animals and snakes.
Humans are the same today as they were then, “Wicked people who push the truth away from themselves.”
Pushing truth away about a rebellious and disobedient child will condemn that son or daughter to a life of misery. And yet, we do it.
Pushing truth away about a tire that has a bulge on one side will result in tragic consequences on the highway. And yet we do this too.
Dealing appropriately with either of these two examples will certainly result in personal discomfort, but the alternative is far more lasting and ugly.
My 2nd essay on this subject, posted on December 21 2006, deals with the subject that Paul outlines in the Romans 1 passage above. I made the same point that Paul made. I used specific hard evidence of the 2nd Law of Thermodynamics, but even non-technological folks from two thousand years ago saw the same truth that remains today.
Please, read Romans 1:19-20 again, and I will meet you up in my next post, to conclude this thought. But, you have got to follow me there.
TO BE CONTINUED…
God bless,
DSM
