Muppet Existentialism In Song?

Do We Really Want Canadian Health Care In The US?

They Are Simply Missing Out

Quoting A. N. Wilson:

“When I think about atheist friends, including my father, they seem to me like people who have no ear for music, or who have never been in love. It is not that (as they believe) they have rumbled the tremendous fraud of religion – prophets do that in every generation. Rather, these unbelievers are simply missing out on something that is not difficult to grasp. Perhaps it is too obvious to understand; obvious, as lovers feel it was obvious that they should have come together, or obvious as the final resolution of a fugue.”

Thomas Paine’s Letter To President Obama

Out-Of-Wedlock Births Increase

Nearly 40 percent of babies born in the United States in 2007 were delivered by unwed mothers, according to data released last month by the National Center for Health Statistics. The 1.7 million out-of-wedlock births, of 4.3 million total births, marked a more than 25 percent jump from five years before.

Tax And Spend Rap

Art Linkletter And The Kids

An American Christian Perspective

Shifting The Economic Blame

Without a doubt secular progressive Democrats lied before, during, and after the total collapse of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. They refused to face the truth regarding the inefficiency and insolvency of Fannie and Freddie’s operations. Democrats blocked regulatory correction and are now trying to shift the blame and responsibility on to former President Bush as well as the Republican Party as whole.

Ramos And Compean To Be Set Free

We rejoice with their families that this miscarriage of justice will soon be over.

Rush Limbaugh Interviews Ann Coulter

Are You Guilty Of Limiting God?

“With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.” (Mark 10:27)

Do you and your church give the impression to the world that with God all things are possible? Is it possible that your example tends to limit God in the eyes of other people? Have you never picked up a biography of one of the old saints of God and been astounded by what God accomplished through just one life committed to His service?

If you read the New Testament at all, you must see very clearly the power of God through Christian men and women. This is all elaborated upon in the books of the New Testament very clearly. The writers were constantly exhorting others to be conformed to the pattern of life that grace had made possible to them. Christians should not hesitate to ask themselves if they are conforming to this pattern or if they may be limiting what is possible in their lives.

Is communion with God real to you? Do you have a consciousness of the presence of God. This is meant to be a wonderful blessing to the Christian. Many know nothing of this because they have limited God’s work in their lives.

Do you delight in God and in His commandments? The Christian does because God has enlightened his mind so that he is no longer willing to live in darkness. There are, however, those who limit God by giving the impression that the Christian life is all about duty and fear. Christians should delight in the law of God.

A Christian must always beware of self-confidence and self-satisfaction. We have not arrived! We must never believe that man can organize the church of Christ better than the Holy Spirit can. When Christians begin to think this way, they cut off the flow of the blessings of God. God desires to bless the humble heart. If you hold on to Jesus Christ and trust in His strength to save, all things are indeed possible.

“Beyond Our Grasp”

Quoting C. S. Lewis:

“The next moment is as much beyond our grasp, and as much in God’s care, as that a hundred years away. Care for the next minute is as foolish as care for a day in the next thousand years. In neither can we do anything, in both God is doing everything.”

The Election Was More Like A Season Of American Idol!

A very large percentage of Americans are no longer interested in the facts when it comes to voting for candidates in elections. It has actually come down to desiring to have the appearance of being educated and enlightened. Secular progressive liberals have successfully portrayed themselves as the “in-crowd” when it comes to education and enlightenment. Therefore, by voting with the secular progressive left, one achieves instant intellectual status. You do not have to have a college degree or even be knowledgeable of the American political process and current national and international affairs. You simply find out who the Hollywood stars are voting for and vote the same way. Voila! You are an enlightened member of the elite.

Consider our recent national elections. John Ziegler, a talk show host, commissioned John Zogby to do a poll testing the knowledge of more than 500 Obama voters nationwide after the election. Almost all those surveyed had high school diplomas and over 50% had college degrees. The post election survey gauged Obama supporters’ knowledge of statements and incidents associated with the recent presidential campaign.

Some examples to consider are: 57% of Obama supporters could not name the party that controlled Congress. 88% had not heard that Obama said his policies would bankrupt the coal industry. 56% did not know that Obama started his political career at the home of two former domestic terrorists. 72% did not know that Joe Biden dropped out of a previous campaign due to plagiarism.

Amazingly, however, 94% knew Sarah Palin had a pregnant teenage daughter. 86% knew Sarah Palin had received $150,000 in clothes. 87% said that Sarah Palin stated she could see Russia from her house when, in fact, Tiny Fey of Saturday Night Live made that statement. But, who’s interested in the facts?

Find out more at. . . .

Charles Thomson: “I Am A Christian”

Charles Thomson

“I am a Christian. I believe only in the Scriptures, and in Jesus Christ my Savior.” (Secretary of the Continental Congress; Designer of the Great Seal of the United States; Signed the initial Draft of the Declaration of Independence approved by Congress)

Angels, From The Realms Of Glory

Stanza 1:

Angels from the realms of glory,
Wing your flight o’er all the earth;
Ye who sang creation’s story
Now proclaim Messiah’s birth:

Chorus:

Come and worship, come and worship,
Worship Christ, the newborn king.

Stanza 2:

Shepherds, in the field abiding,
Watching o’er your flocks by night,
God with us is now residing;
Yonder shines the infant light:

(Chorus)

Stanza 3:

Sages, leave your contemplations,
Brighter visions beam afar;
Seek the great Desire of nations;
Ye have seen His natal star:

(Chorus)

Stanza 4:

Saints, before the altar bending,
Watching long in hope and fear;
Suddenly the Lord, descending,
In His temple shall appear:

(Chorus)

Lyrics by James Montgomery, 1771-1854

Music by Henry Smart, 1813-1879

Obama Inspired

From: The Desk of Larry Elder

In “Dreams from My Father,” Obama talks of attending the “Audacity of Hope Sermon” (pages 292-293). There is an audio book in Obama’s own voice reading this passage. Obama hears Wright speak of Hiroshima and Sharpeville as examples of acts of injustice. A personal aside: My dad, a former Marine, served as a cook in a segregated unit and was stationed on the island of Guam in anticipation of the invasion of Japan. The invasion never occurred because of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which military historians believe saved at least 1 million lives.

What is Sharpeville? In 1960, the South African apartheid government shot down unarmed protestors, killing 69 black men, women and children. Most of the dead were shot in the back, and nearly 200 more were wounded.

Obama felt no sense of outrage to hear Hiroshima and Sharpeville mentioned in the same breath. Indeed, he was so inspired by the sermon that he uses the sermon’s title — “Audacity of Hope” — for his second book, and as the theme of his campaign!

Finding Comfort And Communion In Christ By John Flavel

John Flavel

John Flavel (1627 – 1691) was a Presbyterian clergyman.  He was born at Bromsgrove, Worcestershire and studied at Oxford. A Presbyterian, he held livings at Diptford (in Devon) and Dartmouth. He was ejected from the latter and became a minister of a Nonconformist Church there.  He was a prolific and popular author.  Here is an excerpt from one of his sermons:

Since by conversion all true believers are admitted to the privileged state of communion with God, let them strive to have the greatest amount of communion with God that is possible in this world. They must not be merely content with just enough grace to keep them out of Hell, but should instead labor for as much grace and communion with God Himself that will make their life here on earth like living in the suburbs of Heaven.

It is greatly to our loss that we live at such a far distance from God and are so seldom having fellowship with Him. We ought to make communion with God the aim of our souls in all our religious duties. Let it be the very thing our souls most desire, let the desires and hopes of communion with God be the very thing that draws us to every sermon and prayer. Psalm 27:4 One thing have I asked of the LORD, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to inquire in his temple.

In all our approaches to God through the means of grace let us beg and plead earnestly with God for the manifestations of His love and further communications of His grace. Psalm 27:7-9 Hear, O LORD, when I cry aloud; be gracious to me and answer me! You have said, “Seek my face.” My heart says to you, “Your face, LORD, do I seek.” Hide not your face from me. You bid us to come Lord, therefore we ask that you do not put us off in your anger. You are our help and we have had sweet experiences of your goodness, do not turn us away empty.

We must not desire the comfort and refreshment of communion with God merely for our own sake, but instead for the sake of motivating us to duty and service. These times of refreshment and comfort in communion with God ought to strengthen us to cheerfully serve God in all things. Though great heights of communion with God are attainable on earth, most Christians live far below the privileges and comforts of True Christianity. (John Flavel: Sermons on Revelation 3:20)

Are You Using Your Gifts?

“As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace: whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies-in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ.” (1 Peter 4:10-11)

I have often wondered who it was that said, “Lord grant that the fire of my heart may melt the lead in my feet.”  He certainly understood the nature of man or at the very least, the nature of one of my greatest struggles.  All talent is useless without an act of the will.  Jesus said, “For whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother.” (Mark 3:35) Spirituality results in action.

Perhaps the secret of spirituality is in doing.  For the Christian, even doing little things are important if they are done for God.  They are part of what unites us to Him.  We are saved by faith alone, but not by a faith that is alone.  True faith is accompanied by the determination to make right things happen.  The use of God’s gifts is not predicated upon the innate skills of the Christian believer, but upon his willingness to seek God’s glory in all that is done.  God does not create useless Christians.

Consider a sailing ship upon a windless, calm sea.  It has the ability to move quickly along the surface of the water by its sails.  Without wind, however, the sails are useless.  A Christian is much like a sailing ship when the sails are blown full by the wind.  Having been filled with the Holy Spirit, the Christian is not content to drift aimlessly.  He must fulfill the purpose for which was made.  He must answer the call upon his life.  He must use the gifts that carry him closer and closer to God.

Many of us look back upon our lives wishing we had done things we did not do.  For the Christian, this experience is particularly difficult when we recognize the opportunities we have had to honor God with the gifts He has given us and yet – so many times – we failed to act.  Lord, forgive us.  Martin Luther wrote:

“We are not made righteous by doing righteous deeds; but when we have been made righteous we do righteous deeds.”

What Really Gets You Going?

I once heard zeal described as a nervous disorder afflicting the young and inexperienced.  The Bible, however, reveals another perspective of zeal.  Paul wrote to the Romans: “Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord.” (12:11) Where there is a zeal for integrity, there is Christ.  Where there is a zeal for holiness, there is Christ.  Where there is no zeal for righteousness, Christ is not there.  Where there is no zeal in faith, Christ will not be found there either.  J. C. Ryle describes it thus:

“A zealous man feels that like a lamp he is made to burn; and if consumed in burning, he has but done the work for which God appointed him.  Such a one will always find a sphere for his zeal.  If he cannot preach and work and give money, he will cry and sigh and pray.”

It is a Christian’s duty to be zealous for the things of God.  Fill your heart with zeal for Christ and commit yourself to His service.  Do not be slothful in the calling given you.  Pursue it with all your heart, passion, and zeal.

Do You Possess Spiritual Power?

Oh!  For a closer walk with God,

A calm and heavenly frame;

A light to shine upon the road

That leads me to the Lamb!

So shall my walk be close with God,

Calm and serene my frame;

So purer light shall mark the road

That leads me to the Lamb.

(William Cowper)

Whatever ability I might have to overcome personal sin and the challenges of life truly depends on maintaining a close relationship with God.  We must abide in Christ and cling to Him alone.  Do you have a place for secret prayer?  It is there that you will find strength.  In this secret intimate communion is the school of the prophets.

“Live near to God, and so all things will appear to you little in comparison with eternal realities.” (Robert Murray M’Cheyne)

 

God will guide us in judgment and understanding.  Give Him your burdens.  “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.” (1 Peter 5:6-7)  Bind yourself to His Word and He will never fail you.  Cultivate and nurture this relationship.  Do not exalt yourself.  Seek Christ first and in all things.  There, alone, is real power over circumstances and sin.

What Is Behind The Curtain Of Atheism?

Is logical reason the primary objection of the atheist to the existence of God?  By this I mean, “Is the lack of objective evidence for God’s existence the foundation on which atheists rely for their conclusion that God does not exist?”  Also, one would have to ask, “Does there exist objective evidence that disproves God’s existence on which atheists rely for their conclusion that God does not exist?”

Having been an atheist from the time I was a teenager until the age of thirty-one, I personally look back and think that my objections to God’s existence may have been more than a pure intellectual exercise.  There was an emotional component to my objections that often blocked the unbiased pursuit of truth.  Possibly, it was the need to be in control or to seek status as a “modern intellectual.”

Dinesh D’Souza, in an article titled “Halting the Hitchens Express,” posted on ToTheSource.com, points out that there are other reasons besides faulty logic to try to erase God from our thinking:

“From Darwin’s own day, many people were drawn to his ideas not merely because they were well supported but also because they could be interpreted to undermine the traditional understanding of God. As biologist Julian Huxley, the grandson of Darwin’s friend and ally Thomas Henry Huxley, put it, ‘The sense of spiritual relief which comes from rejecting the idea of God as a supernatural being is enormous.’

“And from Julian’s brother Aldous Huxley, also a noted atheist, we have this revealing admission: ‘I had motives for not wanting the world to have a meaning; consequently I assumed that it had none, and was able without any difficulty to find satisfying reasons for this assumption…For myself, as no doubt for most of my contemporaries, the philosophy of meaninglessness was essentially an instrument of liberation. The liberation we desired was…liberation from a certain system of morality. We objected to the morality because it interfered with our sexual freedom.’

“As the statements of the two Huxleys suggest, the reason many atheists are drawn to deny God, and especially the Christian God, is to avoid having to answer in the next life for their lack of moral restraint in this one. The Huxleys know that Christianity places human action under the shadow of divine scrutiny and accountability. Christianity is a religion of love and forgiveness, but this love and forgiveness are temporal and, in a sense, conditional. Christian forgiveness stops at the gates of hell, and hell is an essential part of the Christian scheme. The point here is not that atheists do more evil than others, but rather that atheism provides a hiding place for those who do not want to acknowledge and repent of their sins.”

D’Souza’s entire article may be read at ToTheSource.com.  His conclusions draw us back to the explanation of man’s need to suppress the knowledge of God given by Paul in Romans:

“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.  For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them.  For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made.  So they are without excuse.  For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.  Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.

“Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.” (Romans 1:18-25, ESV)

In an attempt to escape the reality of our accountability to an all-powerful Creator, we ineffectually hide behind the fig leaves of atheism.  We are like small children who believe that because their eyes are shut and they cannot see – neither can they be seen.  Therefore, even though “what can be known about God is plain to” us, we do not acknowledge Him because to do so requires our  admission of responsibility to Him.  So, we deny Him or we redesign and morph God into a more acceptable form and character who provides us with more flexibility concerning our moral behaviors.  The later strategy is still a type of practical atheism only it is dressed with “religious” form.

Someone once said that, “The atheist can’t find God for the same reason that a thief can’t find a police officer.”  The most frightfully relevant comment on this topic for our generation may come from the words of Nicolai Berdyaev: “We find the most terrible form of atheism, not in the militant and passionate struggle against the idea of God Himself, but in the practical atheism of everyday living, in indifference and torpor.  We often encounter these forms of atheism among those who are formally Christians.”

Hogs To The Slaughter by Charles H. Spurgeon

Rowland Hill illustrated the folly of sinners by the story of a butcher who was followed by the swine right into the slaughterhouse. As pigs are not usually in the mind to go where they are wanted, it seemed a mystery how these animals were so eager to follow their executioner; but when it was seen that he wisely carried a bag of peas and beans with which he enticed the creatures onward, the riddle was solved at once. Unsuspicious of impending death the hogs cared only for the passing gratification of their appetites, and hastened to the slaughter-and in the same manner ungodly men follow the great enemy of souls down through the jaws of hell, merely because their depraved passions are pleased with the lusts of the flesh and the pleasures of sin which the devil gives them by handfuls on the road. Alas, that there should be such likeness between men and swine!

The joys of sin are so short and so unsatisfactory, that they can never be thought of for a moment as a fitting inducement for a rational being to lose his immortal soul. Will a few hours’ foolery, gambling, drinking, or wantoning, compensate for eternal fire? Is the momentary indulgence of a base passion worth the endurance of flames which never can be quenched? To moan in vain for a drop of water! To be tormented by the never dying worm! To be shut out from hope for ever! To be eternally cursed of God! Is any sin worth all this? Can any gain make up for this? O ye who delight in the poisonous sweets of sin, remember that though pleasant in the mouth for the moment, sin will be as wormwood and gall in your bowels for ever. Why will ye swallow the bait when you know that the hook is there? Why will ye be lured by the satanic fowler? Surely in vain is the net spread in the sight of any bird; but you are more foolish than the birds and fly into the snare when you know it to be there. O that ye were wise, and would consider your latter end. Let that one word Eternity ring in your ears and drive out the giddy laughter of worldlings who prefer the present joys of sense. “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life by Jesus Christ.” Jesus receiveth sinners. Go to him and he will in no wise cast you out. (Sword and Trowel -Tract #6)

Is Your Church Making Disciples?

Michael Craven, writing in a CrossWalk.com column, asks the question “What Ever Happened to Discipleship?” According to Craven:

“The ‘modern’ idea of church, or ecclesiology, it seems is that the church exists only as a venue to ‘attract’ the lost through dynamic programs, performances and events – the more dynamic the better. What one pastor friend of mine referred to as ‘theo-tainment.’ The problem with this approach exclusively is that a disproportionate amount of the church’s time and resources go into these efforts at the expense of discipleship and training the already saved. The result is the proverbial church that “is a mile wide and inch deep.” Yes the church grows in numbers but rarely in spiritual maturity and the witness of the Church is often rendered lackluster.”

The Church seems to have forgotten Christ’s words, “And Jesus came and said to them, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.’” (Matthew 28:18-20)  We are to make and teach disciples.  A Christian disciple is an active adherent who embraces and assists in spreading the teachings of Jesus Christ.  This type of disciple does not develop in a church that “is a mile wide and an inch deep.”  It does happen, however, in churches where the focus is on the preaching and teaching of God’s word.  Craven continues to write:

“Scripture is full of admonitions on this point. One of the most direct in my mind is Romans 12:1-2 which challenges us ‘by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.’

This passage speaks to the fact that the resurrection of Christ and our adoption into the family of God demands a wholly new way of understanding the cosmos and the human situation in the cosmos. EVERYTHING relative to our view of reality must change and this new view must be integrated into every aspect of our lives and thinking. This is the role and necessity of Christian discipleship in producing this new way of thinking accompanied by obedience, i.e. presenting the entirety of our being as a living sacrifice.”

In other words, the church is not to assimilate the worldview or moral values of the current culture, but – “as salt and light” – the church is to permeate the culture with a Christian worldview and moral values.  Far too many churches have caved in to the former and neglected the latter.  This sort of compromise fails to produce true Christian disciples.

Read Michael Craven’s entire article by going to CrossWalk.com.

How Serious Is Wickedness?

“None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God.  All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.” (Romans 3:10-12, ESV)

We do not speak much about wickedness anymore.  Surprisingly, we do not even talk about it much in church.  We do talk about love and self-esteem a lot, and it is true that the love of Christ is something worth talking about.  I am afraid, however, that the love we are so glibly speaking of denies the genuine necessity of forgiveness and salvation from sin.  We downplay our faults and moral failures as if wickedness is not a serious matter to a holy God.  Perhaps we think that God is just happy to have us.

Roger R. Nicole speaks of Christ’s view of human evil in his lecture titled, “The Doctrines of Grace in Jesus’ Teaching.” This lecture may be read in the book, Our Sovereign God: Addresses Presented to the Philadelphia Conference on Reformed Theology, James M. Boice, editor.

Our Lord Jesus Christ, with all the concern, compassion and love which he showed to mankind, made some very vivid portrayals of man’s condition.  He did not mince words about the gravity of human sin.  He talked of man as salt that has lost its savor (Matt. 5:13) . . . as a corrupt tree which is bound to produce corrupt fruit (Matt. 7:7) . . . as being evil (Luke 11:13) . . . an “evil and adulterous generation (Matt. 12:39) . . . out of the heart proceed murders, adulteries, evil thoughts and things of that kind (Mark 7:21-23). . . .

He saw in man an unwillingness to respond to grace – “You will not come to God” (John 5:40), “You have not the love of God” (v. 42), “You receive me not” (v. 43), “You believe not” (v. 47) . . . “The world’s works are evil” (John 7:7); “None of you keeps the law” (v. 19).  “You shall die in your sins,” he says (John 8:21).  “You are from beneath” (v. 23); “Your father is the devil, who is a murderer and a liar” (vv. 38, 44); “You are not of God” (v. 47). . . .

The people who were most readily received by the Lord were those who . . . did not come to him with a sense of the sufficiency of their performance.  The people he received were those who came broken-hearted and bruised with the sense of their inadequacy.

We preach and teach the love of Christ through the Word of God which the Holy Spirit uses to save the wicked (us) from their sins.  Without the grace of God, you and I are not OK.  Without grace, we will continue to choose a wicked lifestyle and spend an eternity in hell.  Our need for forgiveness should be admitted with humility and pursued with immediate haste.