If the Foundations Are Destroyed

It was my intention to preach on Romans 4 this morning. But as I did my preparations it became clear to me that the Spirit had other ideas. Today’s sermon is going to be a look at what’s going on in our world and what that has to say to us. My goal is to help you to understand our situation better. Out of that will, in time, come things to do in response. Psalm 11 has some helpful insights on this for you to consider. Listen.

In the Lord I take refuge; how can you say to my soul, “Flee like a bird to your mountain, for behold, the wicked bend the bow; they have fitted their arrow to the string to shoot in the dark at the upright in heart; if the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?” The Lord is in his holy temple; the Lord’s throne is in heaven; his eyes see, his eyelids test the children of man. The Lord tests the righteous, but his soul hates the wicked and the one who loves violence. Let him rain coals on the wicked; fire and sulfur and a scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup. For the Lord is righteous; he loves righteous deeds; the upright shall behold his face. Psalm 11

Aphorism

One of the major themes of my forthcoming book How to Think is the fruitlessness of arguments badly conducted. When we treat those we disagree with as necessarily wicked or stupid, when we forbid to “their side” practices that we cheerfully allow to “our side,” when we recklessly (and sometimes quite intentionally) misconstrue those who disagree with us, then genuine argument never happens: we descend into shouted recriminations.

Alan Jacobs

The Light of the World

Our world is changing. It is changing rapidly, and it's not changing for the better. A good question to ask is simply this. What in the world is going on? That's an important question for us to consider. Let me remind you of the definition of wisdom that I've given you. Wisdom is understanding God, other people, yourself, and your situation. It's as we understand our situation accurately that we will be able to respond wisely to it. And we really do need to respond wisely.

So, what in the world is going on? But let make the question - and thus the answer - clearer. I'm going to re-phrase it. What in the world is Jesus doing? He is, after all, Lord. And He is guiding history to its proper goal. So, stating the question this way is better. And I think that we can come up with a good answer to that question. Jesus is letting us know that we are failing. He has given us a task to pursue, but we have not been pursuing it. He gave us a target to shoot at and hit, but we have been missing it. And the result? The world around us is falling apart.

So, what is this task that Jesus has given us that we are failing to accomplish? Here's one expression of it.

Coercion

There has been quite the response among many conservative Christians to recent political/legal events in our nation, especially the decision by the Supreme Court on gay marriage. And while I've not read any Christians using this word, I think that 'coerce' works for how they are feeling. They are now forced to do - or fear that they soon will be forced to do - what they don't want to do. They feel coerced, and they don't like it.

I think that it's helpful to remember that many of the goals of the 'moral coalitions' and 'Christian majorities' of the past had to do with passing certain laws, laws that would, shall we say, coerce people to live in ways that they didn't want to. But now, the shoe is on the other foot.

I don't think that we Christians should be surprised.

The strategy of those now lost culture wars focused on politics. The plan was to vote in 'the right people' and exert pressure on politicians who weren't quite 'the right people'. That plan was pursued in such a way that it became an idol. The hope of 'the good Christian people of America' was a political hope. That was to be the way that we were going to fix things. And God noticed.

He wasn't keen on His people of old when they gave themselves to idols. And nothing has changed on that score. And just as He sent hard times to the Church of that era, it appears that He is doing the same with the Church in America today. And the solution for today is the same as then. Repentance. It will only be as we Christians repent of that idolatry that God will relent.

Jesus said, 'All who take the sword will perish by the sword'. We tried to change our world by the sword of political power and now it is being used against us. We were warned.

Gender

This starts out looking like cultural commentary, but the point is actually about an important question that Christians need to answer.

The other day during a conversation that I was having with my son, Seth, we touched upon the topic of gender as understood by more and more in our culture. As a result, he sent me a link to a website presenting a new book about how a person can choose various characteristics, some more masculine and others more feminine, in order to create one's own gender identity. It's a little bit like mix and match. Your body might be of one sort or the other, but your sense of yourself, your gender, is something you choose.

I would disagree. (But remember, this post is about prodding Christians.) Because I believe the Bible to be God's revelation, I am obligated to say that God has defined each of us as male or female. That's not news to most Christians. But for too many, this next thought is. Being male or being female is not just about the body. It's also about the soul. This person is a male, body and soul. And that person is a female, body and soul. There are differences that go deep because of how God has made each of us, body and soul, - which is why we can't choose our gender identity.

So, here's the question. What do these differences, differences in body and soul, have to say about what it means to live as a man or to live as a woman? Are there any differences beside things like who has a uterus? If there aren't, then why can't we choose our gender identity? 'My sex is male, but I've included many feminine qualities in my gender.' Or to say it differently: What is uniquely male and what is uniquely female, and how are those qualities supposed to show? 

Once you answer that you're ready to wrestle with the very large question of male and female roles.

Islam

As I write this, the western world is up in arms about the killing of 12 by Muslims because of the publication of a satirical cartoon about Muhammad.

Some thoughts.

These Muslims understand that there are implications to their belief that Allah is the only God. And one of those implications is that all people everywhere are to submit to Allah according to what Muhammad, his prophet, has written. There are consequences for any who refuse to submit to him. They have a world view that takes in the whole world. Christians today need to develop a world view that takes in the whole world. At the heart of this world view is our belief that Yahweh, the God of the Bible, is the only God. There are, likewise, consequences for any who refuse to submit to Him. 'The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.' (Acts 17.30-31)

We are in a war, and one of the enemies that we face is Islam. Unlike some of the other religions that we oppose, this one is aggressive, and violently so. Thus, we need to be prepared for the possibility of offending a Muslim and paying for it with our lives. This will not be because we ridicule Islam. It will be because we state very clearly this truth: Jesus is Lord and not Allah. We state it, and live it. 'If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it.' (Mark 8:34-35) 

However, we fight this war in ways that are unlike these Muslims. 'For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ.' (2 Corinthians 10:3-5) They have AK-47s and RPGs. We have the Holy Spirit. Who do you think will win?

Education Bubble

This is something I bumped into this morning.

The budget for education in the United States was $972 billion in 2007, according to the 2009 Statistical Abstract of the United States — all of this money and all of these people for the promise that a life of employment success follows. Just as buying a house was the surest of investments, investing in an education is thought to be a sure bet. But the housing bubble has popped, and the education bubble is afloat, looking for a needle, according to PayPal founder and Facebook investor Peter Thiel.

"A true bubble is when something is overvalued and intensely believed," says Thiel. "Education may be the only thing people still believe in in the United States. To question education is really dangerous. It is the absolute taboo. It's like telling the world there's no Santa Claus."

In an article for TechCrunch, Sarah Lacy accentuates Thiel's point, writing, "Like the housing bubble, the education bubble is about security and insurance against the future. Both whisper a seductive promise into the ears of worried Americans: Do this and you will be safe."

Read the whole article.