Matthew 13 13; 16-17 (NKJV) Jesus said, "But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear; for assuredly, I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it."
"The voice of my Savior needs to be louder than the voice of my accuser!".
When Pastor Reid said those words in his sermon, it really got my attention. I knew immediately that God had a message for me in those words. I am one of those people who follows news, politics, sports...just about anything the world wants to throw at me. Not only do I follow current events, but I also have opinions about most everything I hear (or see). Now I have some very smart friends, as evidenced by the fact that most of them recognize the brilliance of my opinions and I know they would support me if I pursued a political office. Full disclosure and confession....I want the acceptance and agreement of friends and family too much! I'm quick to get their approval and honestly don't give much thought to the other side of arguments/ opinion when they don't line up with mine.
Not only am I dismissive of others opinions, but honestly I'm dismissive of the people offering these opinions as well. I see them as less intelligent, less informed, lacking enlightenment, and less caring and compassionate. Full disclosure and confession...My pride is surfacing.
With the words of Pastor Ronnie, I recognize that instead of listening for God to speak through the news, the debates, the chaos that the world bombards us with, I parrot the world. It doesn't matter which side of issues you are on, the world supplies the talking points, the re-posts, the headlines, the photos to share.
The Holy Spirit's "Still Small Voice" is available to us if we tune out the world and listen for and seek God's voice. God's word will draw us to be more loving, more patient, kinder, more faithful and joyful. We will discover that peace can be experienced not by winning the argument but by being right, and that only comes by giving God a voice.
Discover and Proclaim the Truth of The Bible which is: "For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him may have eternal life." (John 3:16 NRSV). Jesus came to humanity to proclaim and give evidence to that love and He has commanded us to do the same. We, who believe, must not merely be followers, but we must be proclaimers of the Gospel Message and we can only do that by being filled with the love of God.
Sunday, September 15, 2019
Friday, April 19, 2019
Commandment #9...Exodus 20:16 “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor".
My son just returned from a vacation in Europe where he enjoyed the history and the discovery of cities in France, Spain, and Portugal. Of course vacationing overseas put him out of touch with U.S. news and events. When he returned I asked him if he was glad to be home and he made an interesting comment. He said that the problem coming home is that he is constantly being lied to. He said that here in the United States with all the TV advertising and the 24/7 "news"/ commentary programs, we are bombarded with lies and deceptions Sadly, I have to agree with his observation.
God gave us His Ten Commandments because He wants us to be in relationship with Him and to live in peace with one another. The first four Commandments draw us into a relationship with Him that enable us to keep or return to keeping the other six Commandments. With my son's comment about the lies we experience, Commandment #9 came to mind; “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor".
What is False Testimony? The phrase bearing false testimony is commonly described as lying. However, it is more specifically referred to giving false testimony as a witness. In other words, it is the act of telling a falsehood about something or someone to others in a legal context. In my opinion, it includes telling half-truths (lies), deceiving people to believe untruths, and sharing the deceptions with others even if you were not the original source.
Who is our neighbor? Jesus makes it clear in the story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10: 25-37) that everyone we encounter is a neighbor. In this world of Facebook and Twitter, we can spread lies, deceptions, falsehoods through posts, re-posts and re-tweets, and just by being wrong in our opinions and understandings. I honestly have to confess that probably the most truthful thing I can say is "I don't know." God will give us discernment if we seek it, however we are usually so quick to embrace opinions that agree with our thinking, that we don't question the truthfulness.
As Christians, I have to wonder what kind of impact we can have in the world, if we collectively and deliberately refuse to re-post or re-tweet lies, falsehoods, and half-truths and consciously refuse to participate in deceiving others. Satan introduced sin into this world through lies and deception. Let's not join him in his work.
God gave us His Ten Commandments because He wants us to be in relationship with Him and to live in peace with one another. The first four Commandments draw us into a relationship with Him that enable us to keep or return to keeping the other six Commandments. With my son's comment about the lies we experience, Commandment #9 came to mind; “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor".
What is False Testimony? The phrase bearing false testimony is commonly described as lying. However, it is more specifically referred to giving false testimony as a witness. In other words, it is the act of telling a falsehood about something or someone to others in a legal context. In my opinion, it includes telling half-truths (lies), deceiving people to believe untruths, and sharing the deceptions with others even if you were not the original source.
Who is our neighbor? Jesus makes it clear in the story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10: 25-37) that everyone we encounter is a neighbor. In this world of Facebook and Twitter, we can spread lies, deceptions, falsehoods through posts, re-posts and re-tweets, and just by being wrong in our opinions and understandings. I honestly have to confess that probably the most truthful thing I can say is "I don't know." God will give us discernment if we seek it, however we are usually so quick to embrace opinions that agree with our thinking, that we don't question the truthfulness.
As Christians, I have to wonder what kind of impact we can have in the world, if we collectively and deliberately refuse to re-post or re-tweet lies, falsehoods, and half-truths and consciously refuse to participate in deceiving others. Satan introduced sin into this world through lies and deception. Let's not join him in his work.
Tuesday, March 12, 2019
WHAT IS THE SOURCE OF YOUR HOPE?
Jeremiah 17:7 New King James Version (NKJV)
“Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord,
And whose hope is the Lord.
And whose hope is the Lord.
I was watching the news the other morning and I heard a young man who was sitting on a panel (I believe it was a college campus setting) say that unless young people have hope for a bright future, they will disrupt the status quo and fight for change. I remember my younger days when I embraced the same tenet and felt empowered to pursue the changes that were self-prescribed or served up by society. The problem with this pursuit became clear over time and experience as I discovered that I was placing my HOPE in people and systems that were not trustworthy.
The world encourages us to place our HOPE in people, political parties, governments, social programs, and our own abilities. The reality is that if these are where we place our hope we will always be disappointed because all of these are constantly changing.
When a society places itself between people and God or attempts to completely obscure God, that society is nurturing hopelessness. Hopeless people become more and more dependent on others or on government and their downward spiral continues.
The good news is that God has set His followers (Christians) apart from society. In us the hopeless can find a light in the darkness. 1 Peter 3: 15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear God will use us to bring hope to the hopeless, to speak wisdom to the confused and to reveal the trustworthiness of God. God is steadfast in His love and His plan is good. That is the message the world needs.
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