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Posts Tagged ‘Jesus Christ’

Where Government Replaces God Suicide Increases

Posted in Commentaries of others, Culture Shifts, Faith & Practice, Life issues, tagged , , , , , , , on October 11, 2012| 3 Comments »

More Americans now commit suicide than die in car accidents.  “People are despairing in America,” writes Joseph Farah, “more than ever before.”

It would be easy, notes Farah, to blame the suicide epidemic on the economy.  But, that’s not how he sees it.  People may be struggling financially, but they’re not ending their lives because they lack food and shelter or toys and gadgets.

“I believe the trend reflects a deep and growing spiritual emptiness in a culture that is more depraved than ever before,” writes Farah.  “Too many people just don’t find any meaning in life.”

We should all, as Farah advices, “think about it.”  He continues:

We are told from the youngest age in state-run schools that human beings are merely the result of billions of years of evolution from lower life forms and random mutations.  There is no God who loves us and to whom we are accountable.  There are no laws higher than those that government imposes on us – no sin.  No ultimate, objective moral code.  In fact, human beings are a blight on the planet.  It would be better off without us – or at least with a lot fewer of us polluting the air with carbon dioxide and overheating the earth.

. . . Prayer and Bible reading are prohibited, but explicit instruction on how to have promiscuous sex without consequences is mandated.

Abortion is subsidized, while adoption is prohibitively expensive in the unlikely event you can find a child to adopt.

Increasingly, the state is sticking its nose into what we eat, what we say, how we raise our children – even what we believe.

Government is fine with pornography.  But purity and abstinence are discouraged.

In other words, right is wrong, up is down, black is white, left is right.  And we sit here and wonder why people are killing themselves.

When government replaces God in the lives of people, their lives become empty.  They become subjects of the state, rather than citizens endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights – among those being life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

When government becomes the ultimate authority in our lives and practices lawlessness, disregarding routinely the Constitution from which it derives its limited authority, I would suggest to you this is a much bigger cause for despair and powerlessness.

There is a solution to this problem.  But it’s not a top-down answer.  It’s a bottom-up solution.  Americans need to get right with God.

They need to find out what He requires of them, why He created them, and how much He loves them.

They need to have a genuine repentance for having turned away from Him and whored after false gods and pursuits.

If Americans did this, they wouldn’t be taking their own lives in record numbers.

Thank you, Joseph Farah.  It is a privilege to reprint a portion of your column.  May it be used to spark dialogue in families, neighborhoods, schools, places of business, law offices, and congregations.

Joseph Farah is a nationally syndicated columnist.
I excerpted  from his commentary,
“What happens when government replaces God”
which appeared in October 1 edition of The Washington Times

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Lord Jesus With Us Abide

Posted in Faith & Practice, Life issues, tagged , , , , on September 14, 2012| 1 Comment »

Thanks, Alicia, for reminding me of The Word that stands… no matter what.

“Lord Jesus Christ, with us abide, for round us falls the eventide. O let Your Word, that saving light, shine forth undimmed into the night.

In these last days of great distress grant us, dear Lord, true steadfastness that we keep pure till life is spent, Your holy Word and Sacrament.

To hope grown dim, to hearts turned cold, speak tongues of fire and make us bold to shine Your Word of saving grace into each dark and loveless place.

May glorious truths that we have heard, the bright sword of Your mighty Word, spurn Satan that Your Church be strong, bold, unified in act and song.

Restrain, O Lord, the human pride that seeks to thrust Your truth aside or with some man-made thoughts or things would dim the words Your Spirit sings.

Stay with us, Lord, and keep us true; preserve our faith our whole life through – Your Word alone our heart’s defense, The Church’s glorious confidence.”

Lutheran Service Book, 585

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The President and Gay Pride

Posted in Biblical manhood & womanhood, Faith & Practice, Identity, Parenting & Education, Relationships, Vocation, tagged , , , on June 17, 2012| Leave a Comment »

President Obama has been celebrating June as “Gay Pride month.”  He and his wife, Michelle, hosted a LGBT reception at the White House.  He stated that while some Americans are still “evolving on the issue,” he and Michelle “have made up their minds on this issue.”

The President often refers to himself as a Christian.  I wonder.  Does he believe that God has changed His mind about the practice of sodomy?  Is God “evolving?”  Will He soon be as enlightened as the president?

Mr. President, do you have confidence in a god who changes his mind?  Does it give you peace of mind to think that the Creator is “evolving” to be as enlightened as His creation?

Something more troubles me.  Why would we want to set aside a month that celebrates sexual behavior?  Any sexual behavior?  What kind of civilization does that?

Think of it.  “Gay pride month.”  Let’s be honest and call it what it is.  Pride in being a man who is sexually attracted to another man.  But, why stop there?  Why not set aside a month for “man-boy pride?”  Or, let’s just keep it “normal” and celebrate “man with woman pride.”  Do you follow what I’m saying?  We’ve become a culture that wants to celebrate sexual behavior.  The right to sexual behavior.  Unlimited, prideful, sexual behavior… no matter the consequences that follow.

How does this come to be?  How is it that a U.S. President can comfortably set aside a month of the year to celebrate “gay pride?”  To go on record in support of “marriage” between two women or two men?  This can happen only when the created raises itself above the Creator.  When we worship at the altar of self.  When we puff with pride and live the way we please as “sexual beings.”

This is not how God defines us.  God calls us human beings created in His image as male or female.  To be human is to be a steward of all that God has made, including our own bodies, minds and souls.  A good steward does not seek after his or her own desires, but lives in the way that glorifies God.  All of humanity is better for it.

The sexual component of humanity relates to completeness and procreation.  It was “not good” for man to be alone.  Man needed a helper.  No animal or other man would be suitable helpers.  Only woman would be a good steward together with man.  Equal, yet different, male and female are the two eyes of the human race.   And, from their procreational act of sex, life goes on.  In the perfect fit of the sexual act, man and woman become more than stewards but also fathers, mothers, and children.  It is because of sex that we can celebrate not our “gay” pride or even our “heterosexual” pride, but family life with its anniversaries of weddings and birthdays.  It is within family that sons and daughters learn the patience and selflessness that influences society and generations to come.

The Fall into sin complicated everything for stewards, male and female.  It changed our relationships with each other and with God.  After sin, and throughout Old and New Testaments, God tells us to flee from sensuality and the ways of our sinful flesh, but never once does He tell us to flee from our identity as male or female stewards.  In fact, out of pure mercy for His fallen creation, He gives male and female a more noble identity as treasures of Jesus Christ.  And that, Mr. President, is what we are.  Treasures of Christ who gave His life as the sacrifice for our sin. Think of how that should affect our behavior.

And so, Mr. President, please take care not to puff with pride.  Not “gay” pride; no, not human pride.  Instead, think of how you and your wife can be the best stewards over all that has been entrusted to you.  Think of your own daughters and how they came to be.

Mr. President, you may have evolved in your thinking.  But, what if God does not see this — or any other issue — the way you do?

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What Does It Mean to Love Our Neighbor?

Posted in Biblical manhood & womanhood, Citizenship, Culture Shifts, Faith & Practice, Identity, Parenting & Education, Relationships, Vocation, tagged , , , , , on June 8, 2012| 2 Comments »

In 2009, after taking office, President Obama declared the month of June “Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Pride Month.”  Now he has endorsed so-called same-sex “marriage.”

On June 1, a group of African-American pastors requested a meeting with the President to discuss their concerns with his “endorsement of gay  marriage as a civil right.”  These pastors believe that when government works to promote sin, Christians cannot be silent.

Aren’t we compelled to ask: 1) What are the basic rights of American citizens?  2) When God’s Word calls a particular choice or behavior immoral and, therefore, a sin, should it be celebrated as a basic right under the guise of “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness?”  3) What happens when a government such as ours creates “rights” based on changeable or controllable behavior?

President Obama has often referred to his Christian faith.  In this case, it is reported that he told the African-American pastors that he knows that he should treat others as he wants to be treated.  Well, that leads me to another question:

What does it mean to love our neighbor as ourselves?

Sometimes, our neighbors make choices different from ours.  Sometimes they offend, irritate, or intimidate us.  Nevertheless, they remain our neighbors.  We are called to love God by loving and serving the best interests of our neighbors.  This does not mean we must endorse their choices or behaviors, especially if those behaviors offend God.  It does mean that we are to support and care for our neighbors even when we cannot support a behavior that God labels sinful.

We love our neighbors best when we fear, love, and trust in God first.  Knowing God and His design for our lives as male and female helps us to serve our neighbors, not by approving of wrong things, but by seeing them as real people who struggle (as I do) with real challenges and temptations.  Martin Luther wrote, “We should fear and love God so that we do not tell lies about our neighbor, betray him, slander him, or hurt his reputation, but defend him, speak well of him, and explain everything in the kindest way.”

The Word — Jesus Christ — is Truth.  When he calls something a sin, it is so.  Our vocation as Christians is to be faithful to the Word of Truth and, at the same time, be kind in how we contrast deception with truth, darkness with light, evil with good.

For those who want to be kind to their neighbors, may I suggest:
Exodus International and Parents & Friends of Ex-Gays & Gays

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Dan Savage, Bullying & the Bible

Posted in Biblical manhood & womanhood, Culture Shifts, Faith & Practice, Identity, Life issues, Parenting & Education, Relationships, tagged , , , , , on May 9, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Dan Savage is a gay activist who speaks to students across the country.  Recently, he was invited to address the National High School Journalism Conference about the need to prevent bullying.  He launched a vicious attack on the Bible and Christian beliefs.  As he put it, “We can learn to ignore the bull **** in the Bible about gay people . . . .”  He also stated that the “Bible is 100% wrong on sexuality.”

Please watch the short video clip here.

Does the fact that Dan Savage is invited to speak to students concern any of you parents?  Grandparents?

Does it concern you Christians who hold the Bible to be the very Word of God?  The Word that invites us to choose life rather than death so that we might have blessings rather than curses?

If we say that we believe true marriage is only between one man and one woman, we’re now accused of bullying.  If we say that homosexuality is a sin, we are accused of being intolerant.  You and I need to be aware that changes in word definitions are being used as weapons against Christians in a spiritual battle.

How do we — who believe that Jesus Christ is the Word on marriage, family, sexual behavior, and all matters of life — respond?

In this spiritual battle, may we never compromise the Word of God.  May we rightly use the Law and Gospel of the Word — Jesus Christ — in all circumstances.  May our speech and action show respect for all people, no matter our differences.

May we demonstrate kindness to those caught in the chaos and confusion of sinful choices.  May we volunteer to give blood for patients with HIV and others suffering AIDS.  May we exhibit compassion, not by tolerating lifestyles that bring harm, but by asking questions that help people think about their behavior and why they defend it.  May we, as Chuck Colson so rightly said, “never impose anything, but instead propose — propose an invitation to a better way of living.”

May we pray for people like Dan Savage who may be bold in an effort to cover anger and hurt.  May we pray for courage and never be bullied into silence.

Several students walked out during the savage attack on Christianity.  May we see hope in their courageous conviction.  May we see such conviction worthy of our nurture and defense.

Precious souls are at stake.

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My Thanks to Chuck Colson

Posted in Citizenship, Faith & Practice, Life issues, tagged , , , , on April 22, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Today, April 21, the man who taught me much about worldviews in conflict was called home.  I never had the privilege of meeting Chuck Colson, but I mourn his death as if he were a best friend.  I signed the Manhattan Declaration because I trusted Chuck’s perspective on this culture.  An entire shelf or more in my library holds books and Bible studies authored by Chuck.  I quoted Chuck regularly in a human care publication I write called Christian Citizenship. How blessed the people who worked beside Chuck must have been.

After being humbled by his own failings in political leadership, Chuck was “born again” in Christ in 1973.  I remember that year.  It was the year that Roe vs. Wade handed down a death sentence to any inconvenient boy or girl in the womb.  As a believer, Chuck became an ardent supporter of the sanctity of human life.  1973 was also the year I became engaged to my husband.  We married in 1974.  I gave little thought to Chuck at that time, knowing him only as someone sent to prison for his part in the Watergate scandal.  But, growing in my own faith as a wife, mother, and involved pro-life and family advocate, I began reading Chuck’s books.  I often carried one or two with me when speaking around the country, offering them as resources for men and women who wanted to make their faith real in action.

I became a modest supporter of Prison Fellowship, the ministry founded by Chuck.  He had promised to remember the incarcerated and share the transforming love of Jesus with them and their families.  He kept his promise.  “I could never, ever have left prison and accomplished what has been accomplished but for God doing it through me,” Chuck said.

In 1991, Chuck began broadcasting BreakPoint Radio, educating Christians not only to grow in faith but live it in the public square.  I’m not sure how many reams of paper I’ve used to print Chuck’s BreakPoint articles.  For a number of years, I kept Chuck’s articles in a three-ring binder.  One binder, two binders, three… .  Oh, the weight of Chuck’s words!  This saint and sinner helped me see that two worldviews — perspectives on life — are daily at odds.  There are only two: God’s and all others.

Chuck Colson was the set of working clothes the Spirit chose to wear for nearly 40 years.  He is proof that, no matter the circumstances and failures of life, God is faithful.

Robert P. George and Timothy George, co-authors with Chuck of the Manhattan Declaration, wrote, “The two of us are committed to devoting our lives to carrying forth the vision and advancing the cause to which Chuck gave himself with unstinted vigor.  His life stands as a testimony to God’s power to transform culture and make a difference.”

Together with literally millions of others, I celebrate the life of Chuck Colson — a man of true faith, integrity, and humble service.  Even as Chuck rejoices in the presence of God, I will continue to be encouraged by this man’s refusal to be silent.  To defend the rights of conscience.  To obey God rather than men.

Won’t you sign the Manhattan Declaration, in honor of God’s servant Chuck?

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Prayer to Molech from Planned Parenthood

Posted in Biblical manhood & womanhood, Faith & Practice, Life issues, Parenting & Education, tagged , , , , , , , on April 16, 2012| 1 Comment »

Jesus Christ never asks for or demands the sacrifice of children.   Instead, Jesus wants us to teach children about Him so that they might love and trust Him.  He tells us to never put anyone — father, mother, or child — in harm’s way.

It is for this reason that people who defend mother and child gather for 40 Days of Prayer in front of abortion clinics across the country.  Many working inside the clinics are already struggling with their conscience.  They’ve grown weary of hopelessness and death.  They have felt the movement of a yet to be born child, seen the look of fear and sorrow on the mother’s face, and tried to find some peace in what they’re doing.  But, peace alludes them.  That’s because abortion is unnatural.  Ripping new life from the womb puts the physician at odds with his profession and the mother at odds with her child and her soul.   It is an act of desperation.

Christ, seeing us all caught in sin’s desperation, offered Himself as the only sacrifice necessary.  He suffered persecution and death so that all of us — born and unborn — might have eternal life.  Yet, mocking the Giver and Savior of life, Planned Parenthood (PP) has put out a pro-abortion prayer guide called “40 Days of Prayer Supporting Women Everywhere.”

PP has set its altar in place.  It is at the foot of Molech.  PP’s Prayer of “Thanks for Abortion Providers” and their “Sacred Care,” reads like this:  “Today we pray for all the staff at abortion clinics around the nation.  May they be daily confirmed in the sacred care that they offer women.”

PP’s 40 days of prayer began March 18 and continues through April 27.  Here are a few more of their prayers:

“We pray for elected officials, that they may always support a woman’s right to make her own medical decisions [i.e. abortion].”

“We pray for women who have been made afraid of their own power [of choice, i.e. abortion] by their religion.  May they learn to reject fear and live bravely.”

“We pray for a cloud of gentleness to surround every abortion facility.”

“We give thanks and celebrate that abortion is still safe and legal.”

But, abortion is not safe.  The grim procedure kills a human child already named by God and places the mother’s life at risk physically, emotionally, and spiritually.  The only cloud of gentleness is outside the abortion clinic where those willing to help women in times of difficulty lift their voices in prayer not to Molech, but to Jesus Christ.

PP has partnered with a group called Faith Aloud to write these pro-abortion prayers.  Perhaps you should visit the web site of Faith Aloud.  Contrast their worldview with that of God.  If our choices and behavior are to be blessed because they are right in our own eyes, they why do we need Jesus Christ?  If taking the life of another human being — no matter how small or seemingly inconvenient — is not evil, then what is?  Why did Jesus, when tempted by evil, say, “Be gone, Satan!”  Of what evil does Jesus ask us to be delivered in the prayer He taught us to pray?  And why did Jesus give His life on the cross and rise again to victory over evil?  Calling abortion a “good” thing is giving in to evil.  It is bowing at the altar of idols.  Those idols are more than the stone god Molech.  They are our own fear, selfish desire, and uninhibited sexuality.

I know of a woman who called abortion “the sacrifice she had to make for herself.”  But, not once — not in all of His Word — does the Triune God ask for such a sacrifice.  Recently, the woman president of the Episcopal Divinity School attempted to get her audience to join her in a chant: “Abortion is a blessing and our work is not done.  Abortion is a blessing and our work is not done.”  But, not once — in all of His Word — does the Triune God ask us to choose death.  Instead, He says,

. . . I set before you life and death, blessing and curse.  Therefore, choose life, that you and your offspring may live, loving the Lord your God, obeying His voice and holding fast to Him, for He is your life and length of days . . .  (Deuteronomy 30:19-20)

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Abortion After Rape

Posted in Faith & Practice, Life issues, Parenting & Education, tagged , , , , , on April 15, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Laura was raped by her alcoholic father.  She remembers the shock when the doctor told her she was pregnant.  “He told me that my only choice in a situation like this was to have an abortion.  He was very kind.  He held my hand and comforted me.”  After the abortion, Laura cried nearly every night.  “I could find no peace.”

Encouraging a woman who has become pregnant through incest or rape to have an abortion may seem the compassionate thing to do.  But, is it?

Some have observed that abortion is the solution for the people we don’t want.  Or, in the case of rape or incest, the people we can’t bear to love.  You would think that God could not bear to love tainted and sinful people like me.  Or anyone else in the whole human race.  “I am a Holy God who cannot abide the unholy.  I will abort you all!”  That’s what God could have said.  But, He didn’t.  He chose, instead, to sacrifice more of Himself.  The Holy came to live among the unholy.  To love the unloveable.

Only God in Christ Jesus can look full in the face of ugliness and despair to bring healing and hope.  “Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light” (Jesus in Matthew 11:28-29).

Dr. Sandra Mahkorn, author of Pregnancy and Sexual Assault: The Psychological Aspects of Abortion, alerted me to the fact that abortion is an additional trauma for the girl or woman who has first been victimized and is then encouraged to victimize her unborn child.  Consider the symptoms of rape.  The woman feels dirty, guilty, sexually violated, of low self-esteem, angry, fearful or hateful of men.  Now consider the symptoms of abortion.  The woman feels dirty, guilty, sexually violated, of low self-esteem, angry, fearful or hateful of men.  Instead of curing the problem, all the same symptoms are intensified.  Martin Luther once said, “Even the heathen say it is better to suffer wrong than to do wrong.”

In a 1979 study, Dr. Mahkorn identified 37 pregnant rape victims.  Of these, only five chose to have an abortion.  The other 32 victims gave several reasons for not aborting.  Some felt that abortion was another act of violence.  Some saw an intrinsic meaning or purpose for the life of the child.  Some even believed that if they could get through the pregnancy they would have conquered the rape.  For them the selfless act of giving birth helped them to reclaim their self-respect.

In studies of incest victims, the vast majority choose to carry the pregnancy to term.  Those in the minority who have an abortion appear to do so only under pressure from their parents to conceal the incestuous relationship.

For some incest victims, carrying their pregnancy to term is a way to break out of an incestuous relationship with their fathers, whom they may still love despite their confusion and resentment about the way they have been used as sexual objects.  Since they still love their fathers, having the child not only exposes the incestuous relationship, but also gives hope of beginning a truly loving relationship.

Reason holds that if God has a watchful eye on us and loves us, He will prevent all evil and let us suffer nothing.  Luther reminds us to look to the Word, not reason.  When a mother acts as though she is about to drop her child, the little one throws its arms about her neck and holds on all the tighter.  Similarly in times of trouble and desperation, God wants us to cling to Him and trust His Words and promises to us.

“I was pushed hard, so that I was falling, but the Lord helped me.  The Lord is my strength and my song; He has become my salvation” (Psalm 118:5-6).

The Lord is the song of salvation for all of us who have been wronged.  And for all of us who have wronged others.

His compassion is true.  It is new every morning.  Great is His faithfulness.

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Purity Cannot Be Stolen

Posted in Biblical manhood & womanhood, Identity, Life issues, Parenting & Education, Sexy or holy?, tagged , , , , , , on April 12, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Tara had been raped.  She had been violated by a man who had no respect for her personhood.  For her physical or emotional well-being.  She felt dirty.  Degraded and filthy.  A sense of uncleanness rose up from the very core of her being.

Was she to blame?  No.  The man who assaulted and raped her was to blame.  He, and he alone, was responsible for his behavior.

Tara took care with her dress and behavior.  She didn’t allow herself to be in places she knew were unsafe.  Yet, one night, on her way home from the house of a friend, a man appeared from nowhere.  He had evil on his mind.  The deed was done.  And she was left to grieve the loss the loss of something she considered of great value.  The pureness of her identity was stolen away.

Or, was it?  Purity is not something that can be stolen.  We, ourselves, can determine to give up our purity or consciously turn from a life of purity, but no one can steal this virtue from us.  Purity, it has been said, is not so much of the body but of the soul.  In Tara’s eyes, much had been lost.  But, in the eyes of God, Tara – who had not compromised her virtue – was still pure.

On Good Friday, Tara attended church with her family but she did not go home with them.  Instead, she lingered in the quiet sanctuary.  There, she asked: “Why, God?  Why did this have to happen?  Will my future husband consider me spoiled?  Will there be a wedding for one so shamed?”  Tara wept.  Tears of sorrow quickly became tears of anger.  Then fear.  Had evil ruined her life?  Thoughts began to swirl in her head.  Strangely, Tara remembered a day in the kitchen with her grandmother.  It was the place where lessons in cooking often turned to lessons for life.  More clear than the image of her grandma’s face were the words she often spoke:  “Dear one, when you are in doubt, look to God’s Word.  It will not fail you.”

Tara sighed.  Looked around.  There was a Bible in the pew.  She flipped through the pages with fumbling fingers, embarrassed that she felt so awkward with the book her grandma knew so well.  Her eyes came to rest upon Psalm 25:20.  “Oh, guard my soul, and deliver me!  Let me not be put to shame, for I take refuge in You.  May integrity and uprightness preserve me, for I wait on You.”

Tara looked up to the Cross over the altar.  Again, she heard her grandmother’s voice.  “Tara, when you cannot find the words, God’s Spirit speaks them for you.”  Now, more confident, Tara turned the pages to Psalm 56.  “You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle.  Are they not in your book?  Then my enemies will turn back in the day when I call.  This I know, that God is for me.  In God, whose word I praise, in the Lord, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid.  What can man do to me” (8-11)?

Later, at home, Tara wrote in her journal: Today, I am thankful for my Grandma who, years ago, reminded me that I can trust God with my life.  I am angry with the man who hurt me.  I will never forget what he did.  But, I don’t have to let this evil thing define me.  The man did wrong.  I did not.  The man sinned against God.  I choose not to sin against God by turning away from Him.  Dear Jesus.  Hold me close.  Move me forward… out of darkness into Your light.”

A question remains.  It is for the grandmothers of young women like Tara.  Are we reminding our granddaughters that their identity is not shaped by what happens to them, but by the Lord Jesus who died for them?

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No Heckling Someone Different

Posted in Biblical manhood & womanhood, Faith & Practice, Identity, Life issues, Parenting & Education, Relationships, tagged , , , , , on January 28, 2012| 5 Comments »

“Myinnermostthinking” responded recently to “Religion, Sex & Biology.”  It would seem that he wants very much for his god to approve his chosen lifestyle.  Christian or not, how many times do any of us try to make God in our image?  Tell ourselves that He, the Creator of life, would certainly accept our self-shaped world… and make us happy in it.  Imagine that!  The pot telling the Potter the way things should be.

Taking the time to respond may not be as productive as I’d like because “Myinnermostthinking” and I don’t speak the same language.  I trust that the Word of God is what God says it is.  “Myinnermostthinking” does not.  Regardless, I’d like to take a stab at this.

Three women, so far, have responded to “Myinnermostthinking.”  What strikes me about their responses is that none of them are heckling a man who thinks and lives very different from them.   Each one of these women have uttered not a single word that could be interpreted as “hate speech.”  Each one has taken the time to study God’s Word and respond in a way that honors that Word.  Each one has responded to a person different from them with patience, kindness, and words of hope.

These women speak from a worldview “Myinnermostthinking” seems to reject.  It is the worldview that determines how I identify myself and make the choices I make.  That worldview — the Biblical worldview — is this: Creation — The Fall — Redemption.  That worldview explains the origin of my life, why things go wrong in my life, and where I’m going when this life is over.  The Biblical worldview trusts that God really did say what He said, when He said it, to whom He said it, and why.

There is one thing that I would like to clarify based on this worldview.  There is a fine line between saying God created us the way we are and saying that He allows us to be the way we are.  MommyLiberty stated that, personally, she thinks “God did allow for some people to be straight and some people to be gay . . . some to be prone to addiction and others not . . . some to struggle with anger, pride, gossip and worry.”  My husband appreciated her husband’s observation: “He gave everybody a different car to drive.  Some  people’s cars are harder than others’ to steer.”  🙂  But, here’s the thing.

God’s original creation was perfect.  Happily, joyfully perfect.  Anything imperfect, unhappy, or without joy is the opposite of God.  God would not create us to be in opposition with our own anatomy.  To be tortured by feelings we shouldn’t have.  To be at risk physicially, emotionally, and spiritually.  But, after the first man and woman sinned, everything changed.  The relationship between God and His creation changed.  The relationship between men and women changed.  We live in a sinfully changed world.  A struggling world.  An unhappy world.  Unhappy, not because God doesn’t want us to be happy, but because we keep doing the things that put us at odds with Him.   Hetero.  Homo.  Bi.  Trans.  Focusing on our “sexuality,” our flesh side, we are hard pressed to find happiness.   Because of sin, we all die. 

But God, in spite of sin, chooses life.  He allowed Adam and Eve to go on living.  He allowed them to do so, — not by changing His design and intent for them, not by throwing all warnings and caution aside — but by mercifully covering their new emotions of embarrassment and shame.  Never before had their nakedness embarrassed them.  Never before had they felt shame.  God covered their embarrassment with clothing (neck to knee) and their shame with the promised Robe of Righteousness, the Savior Jesus Christ.  All of the Old Testament points to the Christ who did, indeed, come to be our Robe of Righteousness.  To cover the sins of the world (all of us) and then ask: “Will you follow Me?” 

Jesus Christ died.  Conquered death.  And returned to the right hand of God.  But, God in Christ will return.  Will He find us striving to follow Him… or doing what is right in our own eyes? 

“My ways are not your ways,” says the Lord.  So, I guess it comes down to this: How we see the Lord Jesus — who calls Himself the Word for life — determines how we choose to live.  Do we seek His way to happiness… or our own?

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