Refer to the Scriptures

I got to thinking about this topic because of something that happened today. Spouse and I had talked a couple of weeks ago about something, and I had pointedly stated that if we made the purchase we were talking about, there was a certain brand which I liked, and that the other brands I wasn't so keen on. So what happened today? Spouse, intending to be nice, makes the purchase - but purchases a brand I said not to purchase. And when I was displeased, suddenly I was the "ungrateful" person. It was a difficult moment, and the purchase as ultimately returned unopened.

But how often do we do this with God? He has given us the Holy Scriptures in which his will is recorded. The Holy Spirit speaks to us through our reading of these scriptures. Yet how often do we go directly against what God has told us, and still expect him to be pleased?

Here's a verse which can be troubling if one thinks about it and applies it their own life.

I have said all this to you to keep you from falling away. They will put you out of the synagogues; indeed, the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God. John 16:1-2 Revised Standard Version

In the past I have read this verse as referring solely to people seeking to kill me. Terrorists who bomb public places. Vigilantes who don't like my faith. And so on.

But could the reverse be true? What is my attitude about the killing of terrorists? Vigilantes? And so on? Am I happy about this? Do I think God is pleased? The answer is in the Bible.

But if a wicked man turns away from all his sins which he has committed and keeps all my statutes and does what is lawful and right, he shall surely live; he shall not die. None of the transgressions which he has committed shall be remembered against him; for the righteousness which he has done he shall live. Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, says the Lord God, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live? Ezekiel 18:21-23 Revised Standard Version

God is NOT pleased when the wicked die. So we shouldn't be either. And we need to be careful about ourselves. It is entirely possible to do things - believing we are pleasing God - that actually displease God very much.

It's Time to Return to Our Roots

We were watching "I Walk the Line" last night. At one point in the movie June Carter is in a mercantile store and is confronted by a haughty woman who remarks that June's parents are good Christian people. Then the woman says that she's surprised June's parents even talk to June. The reason? June was divorced.

I felt compelled to speak out loud at that point. The movie was quite correct in portraying the woman as judgmental and hypocritical. My comment was this: That's why people hate Christians. We like to think it's because we belong to God and they are against God, but that's not true. They hate us because we are such hypocrites. We received the free gift of forgiveness from God. And now we seek to cast everyone else away from his presence with hateful attitudes. We are such fools.

And it seems the more well known our name is in our community, region, or even in the world, the worse we are.

When Jesus was with us in the flesh he spoke often about forgiveness and acceptance. He accepted everyone who came to him for forgiveness. In fact, the only people Jesus ever spoke crossly with were "religious" people. People who thought - in their hearts - that they were better than others. Often, we are those people. We lie to ourselves and say we're not. But it is a lie. The tendency is to look down upon people who are doing things we don't do. But the truth is, we're no better than them. We may even be worse.

In Luke, Chapter 7, we read this passage about two people. One is a religious leader. The other is a confessed sinner. Read and listen with your heart to what Jesus is telling us.

One of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee's house, and took his place at table. And behold, a woman of the city, who was a sinner, when she learned that he was at table in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster flask of ointment, and standing behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears, and wiped them with the hair of her head, and kissed his feet, and anointed them with the ointment. Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw it, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner." And Jesus answering said to him, "Simon, I have something to say to you." And he answered, "What is it, Teacher?" "A certain creditor had two debtors; one owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. When they could not pay, he forgave them both. Now which of them will love him more?" Simon answered, "The one, I suppose, to whom he forgave more." And he said to him, "You have judged rightly." Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon. "Do you see this woman? I entered your house, you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair." You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet. You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little." And he said to her, "Your sins are forgiven." Then those who were at table with him began to say among themselves, "Who is this, who even forgives sin?" And he said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace." Luke 7:36-50 Revised Standard Version

We think we are doing God some big favor by lambasting others for the sins they commit. And for the sins we perceive they have committed. But we are wrong when we do this.

How did we received our forgiveness? Why? Was it because we straightened out our lives to the point where God came to us and said, "My, what good work you have done. You have certainly earned my forgiveness." Or was it because God saw that no matter what we did with the rest of our lives, our current status was hopeless. So he offered forgiveness free of charge. WE WERE FORGIVEN AS WE WERE AT THAT MOMENT IN TIME. Why do we seek to deny others this same gift? Are we jealous? What's wrong with us that we spew out such venomous feelings of hatred and intolerance at those we do not believe have forgiveness?

Get your bible and read this from the Gospel of Matthew.

Then Peter came up and said to him, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?" Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven."

"Therefore the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his servants. When he began the reckoning, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents; and as he could not pay, his lord ordered him to be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made. So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, 'Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.' And out of pity for him the lord of that servant released him and forgave him the debt. But that same servant, as he went out, came upon one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and seizing him by the throat he said, "Pay me what you owe.' So he fellow servant fell down and besought him, 'Have patience with me, and I will pay you.' He refused and went out and put him in prison till he should pay the debt. When his fellow servants saw what had taken place, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their lord all that had taken place. Then his lord summoned him and said to him, 'You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you besought me; and should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?' And in anger his lord delivered him to the jailers, till he should pay all his debt. So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive you brother from your heart." Matthew 18:21-35 Revised Standard Version

Did you pick it up? Someone who had received forgiveness was cast into prison because they would not forgive others. That is a scary thought.

And do you know what is most pitiful about the Christian's intolerance and lack of forgiving nature toward others? They haven't even sinned against us. They have committed no crimes against us. They simply live lives not in accordance with how we believe they should live them. And so we seek their misery and demise.

If we do not stop this, prison is what awaits us.

Let us leave off with intolerance and return to preaching forgiveness. And love. And acceptance. "Love covers a multitude of sins." Don't tell people what their sins are. They probably already know. Show them God's love and acceptance by loving and accepting them for who they are. Sins and all.

Isn't that what God has done for us?

We are all Fools, And We Continue to Go Astray

It's been a while since I've posted. Posting here has become difficult. As much because this blog gets so few hits as because of weariness. But I just read something this morning which bothers me to no end, and I have to post about it. What is it? What else?

Religious Intolerance acting in the name of Christ.

If you are curious about what I read you may find it here. The blog is maintained by Lee Wind. It is a blog supporting the Gay->Bi-sexual->Lesbian->Transgender segments of society.

This hatred in the name of Christ has to be the most disgusting thing on the planet. It's worse than pedephilia, terrorism, murder, rape, or any other crime you can think of. Why? Because if you accept this kind of hatred - hatred in the name of God - then you are capable of ALL of those crimes - and much more.

Who in the Bible did Christ hate?

NOBODY!

He didn't even hate the Pharisees and Sadduces who plotted to kill him. He wept for them because of the horrors which were coming.

So how can anyone who claims to have Christ's spirit in them hate so much?

I was reading in Romans today.

For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. Romans 8:5 Revised Standard Version

When we focus our attention on banning books, or withholding social rights to others are we not focusing on the flesh?

When we create entire political action organizations using the name of Christ, have we not set our minds on the things of the flesh?

We do these things and we claim we are doing them for God. We claim we are representing God.

THAT IS A LIE!

Read what Jesus Christ himself said about governments and politics.

He said to them, "Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." Luke 20:25 Revised Standard Version

The laws of our society are NOT Christ's concern. How much, or even whether, we pay taxes. Where should speed limits be set? What books should be allowed here or there? These are the things of the flesh. They are NOT Christ's concern.

Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest's slave and cut off his right ear. That slave's name was Malchus. Jesus said to Peter, "Put you rsword into its sheath; shall I not drink the cup with the Father has given me?" John 18:10-11 Revised Standard Version

Jesus answered, "My kingship is not of this world; if my kingship were of this world, my servants would fight, that I might not be handed over to the Jews; but my kingship is not from the world." John 18:36 Revised Standard Version

We are NOT to fight. That is a direct order from Jesus himself. If he refused to allow it when he went to the cross, how much more will he refuse to allow it over the matter of books?

This is what Paul says.

But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blashpemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away! 2 Timothy 3:1-5 New King James Version

I hilighted the portions which come to mind when I see and hear people who talk and act like Christian Conservatives.

I can't think of a single person on the planet who associtates Christian Conservatism with love.

What did Jesus say to the church of Ephaesus?

I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them liars; and you have persevered and have patience, and have labored for My name's sake and have not become weary. Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left you first love.Revelation 2:2-4 New King James Version

God does not want us wasting our time hating other people who are different from us. Not even if we are absolutely convinced they are horrible, sinful, people. Because is that not what we are without Christ? Nobody is holy and pure except that God, through Christ, forgives their sins. There is no degree of sin to get in or be excluded from heaven. One sin. Any sin. Keeps us out. And we have all sinned. God says so.

You worried about worldly influences on yourself, your family, your children? Don't be. Hear what God has to say.

Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it. Proverbs 22:6 Revised Standard Version

Spend less time worrying about the "don't" and more time on the "do's".

The "do's" of God are love and forgiveness.

Please, Please, Please remember that. I wish I could only make the Political Religious understand this.

Which Master Do You Serve

"No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon." Matthew 6:24

The principal is true, and it doesn't only hold for God and money. It's true any time two or more priorities come into conflict. Sooner or later, in everything, you will be forced to choose one over the other. Spaghetti or roast beef for supper. Go to this movie or that. Go swimming or go to the zoo.

Those are minor decisions and the consequences of choosing one over the other seldom matter. But what happens when important things come into conflict?

Do I buy groceries or get my prescription filled? Do I go to daughter's soccer game over here, or son's soccer game on the other side of town?

At any given time we may find ourselves alternating between what is more important, but at any given moment one is more important than the other.

So what's my point?

Rules (laws) and people.

Which is more important to you? To me?

The Bible is replete with things identified by God as holy and as sinful. God cannot tolerate sin. He just can't. By definition sin is what is against God. The constant theme of scripture is that God loves people. People are sinners. All of us.

But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the law and the prophets bear witness to it, the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction; since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, they are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as an expiation by his blood, to be received by faith. Romans 3:21-25

So what about the law? I'm talking Biblical law. This is what Paul tells us in the first chapter of Romans.

18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and wickedness of men who by their wickedness suppress the truth.

19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them.

20 Ever since the creation of the world his invisible nature, namely, his eternal power and deity, has been clearly perceived in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse;

21 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 senseless minds were darkened.

22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools,

23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling moral man or birds or animals or reptiles.

24 Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves,

25 because they exchanged the truth about god for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed for ever! Amen.

26 For this reason god gave them up to dishonorable passions. Their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural,

27 and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in their own persons the due penalty for their error.

28 And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a base mind and to improper conduct.

29 They were filled with all manner of wickedness, evil, covetousness, malice. Full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malignity, they are gossips,

30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents,

31 foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless.

32 Though they know God's decree that those who do such things deserve to die, they not only do them but approve those who practice them.

Powerful words. Even frightening. But do you know what follows immediately after these words? Read on in chapter two.

1 Therefore you have no excuse, O man, whoever you are, when you judge another; for in passing judgment upon him you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, are doing the very same things.

Are you guilty of the entire list? No. Of course not. Who is? Hmm. Let's read what James has to say about that.

For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it. James 2:10

How can this be? Is it fair? Think of it this way.

There is a figure of a Bengal tiger on top of my computer monitor. Suppose I actually have two. Now suppose you come along and break off the ear of one. Someone else comes along and smashes the other into tiny pieces. How many of my tigers are broken? And who broke them?

Our tendency is to look at what someone else did and declare our offense wasn't nearly so bad. After all, we just broke off an ear. But we still broke it. Our error is ceasing to compare the tiger we broke with a perfect model. Paul talks about this.

But when they measure themselves by one another, and compare themselves with one another, they are without understanding. 2 Corinthians 10:12

So what do we say about people and the law? And what should our own attitude be?

We cannot love people and the law equally. God himself tells us this. So if we say we do we are liars. What should we do?

This is my opinion. I base it on Christ's forgiveness. God's forgiveness. I base it on warnings all through scripture, but particularly in the New Testament, about judging others without mercy.

I think the correct behavior is to love people and not worry about the law. God is not challenged by anything anyone does or say. His law will remain intact no matter what happens, and he will remain in charge. We need not fear for God or his law.

Our concern should be about people. We need to love them. Accept them as we hope to be accepted. I don't want to be punished for the things I am guilty of. That's why I rely on the forgiveness of God. Why should I wish for punishment for others. Especially when God keeps telling me that such an attitude will only guarantee my own punishment.

Let us not worry about who the sinners are. God has already told us they are us. All of us.

Which master will you serve? How about love? God is love. Let's serve him and not worry about the sins of others.

Wolf or Prophet

I was having a discussion with someone recently about my concern over how everyone is so filled with hatred, intolerance, and general animosity, that it's quite depressing to see. The topic of cults had come up and he had related that in his studies he had learned there were a frightening amount of cults just in the United States.

Eventually, I asked the question: But if we're nothing but vicious to these people, how are ever supposed to be encouraged to seek the real God?

He agreed in principal, but then he added this: There are people who simply wish to disrupt the people of God. They know what they are doing and they do it anyway. They are the wolves which rise up from among us.

The current 'official' (so-called) Christian thinking is this: Be intolerant. Put down the opposition. Win at all costs.

I disagree with that position. I speak out. I'm getting louder.

Am I a wolf?

I fear it. I really do. However, I cannot escape my conviction that intolerance and mean-spiritedness is simply WRONG!

Jesus was never intolerant. He was never mean. What he offered everyone, even the Pharisees and others of like mind, was acceptance. I think that is what the Bride of Christ needs to do again. We need to forget about our rights and what the law is and all that crap. We need to get back to Jesus, for it seems to me we have strayed away and are now doing everything by and for ourselves.

I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch of mine that bears no fruit, he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. You are already made clean by the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. John 15:1-5 Revised Standard Version

Then he said to them, "These are my words which I spoke to you, while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the law of Moses and the prophets and the psalms must be fulfilled." Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, and said to them, "Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be preached in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem." Luke 24:44-47 Revised Standard Version

And he said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to the whole creation. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe wil lbe condemned. And these signs will accompany those who believe in my name; they wil lcast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover. Mark 16:15-18 Revised Standard Version

What then shall we say to this? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, will he not also give us all things with him? Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies; who is to condemn? Is it Christ Jesus, who died, yes, who was raised from the dead, who is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us? Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, "For thy sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered." No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:311-39 Revised Standard Version

Murder is Not the Way of God

Was checking one of my email accounts on Yahoo and saw a link to a disturbing news story.

Abortion doc George Tiller Gunned Down at Church.

Now, to be honest, I'm not all that thrilled about people having abortions for reasons other than health but, guess what? It's the law of the land. That means it's legal people. You don't like it? Then ask the government to change it. They won't? Then live with it. And let others live with doing it!

The people who have been sinned against with this one hateful act are manifest.

There is George Tiller himself. Murdered.

There is his family, some of who probably witnessed it. There are the people who were in attendance at the church. There is society itself. And let's not forget God, which the murderer so clearly did. God is not happy when anybody commits murder. And doing it in His name doesn't make it any better.

Writtenwyrdd recently posted on her blog about banning books. (She's against it, by the way.) The general feeling of those who commented was that people who are in favor of such fascist thinking are people who do not live the faith they purport to support. And they're right.

Consider Jesus. Just yesterday I read in John 8 how religious hypocrites brought a woman caught in adultery to Jesus for judgment. This is the account.

Early in the morning he (Jesus) came again to the temple; all the people came to him, and he sat down and taught them. the scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery (where was the man?) and placing her in the midst they said to him, "Teacher, this woman has been caught in the act of adultery. Now in the law Moses commanded us to stone such. What do you say about her?" This they said to test him, that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, "Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her." And once more he bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. But when they heard it, they went away, one by one, beginning with the eldest, and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. Jesus looked up and said to her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?" She said, "No one, Lord." And Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you; go, and do not sin again." (parentetical pieces mine) John 8:2-11 Revised Standard Version

If you would follow Jesus - follow God - then act toward people in LOVE. Jesus did not condemn people, so you don't condemn people. Jesus accepted people for who they were/are. So you accept people - for who they are. Do they sin? Sure, they do. But guess what? So do you. And do you know what? Your sins, though hidden, might actually be worse.

Be careful about associating with those who speak hatred toward "those who sin". They are speaking against you, you know. Is that what you really want to be like? Is that how you wish to be judged? Had this man who committed this murder truly been thinking of God, and what God wants, and how God judges, I do not believe he would have done this deed. Is this how he wishes to be treated?

Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and the measure you give wil lbe the measure you get. Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when there is the log in your own eyes? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye. Matthew 7:1-5 Revised Standard Version

The message is clear. Why is it we so quickly forget it? And now a man is dead.

Render Unto Caesar

Lawyers and judges always seem to be talking in double-talk. Perhaps that's why so many of them enter into politics. Politicians are always trying to say opposite things.

An historic ruling has just been made in California. Sarah Laurenson posted about it on her blog, Short Stuff. I don't even pretend to understand the legalese with which the California Supreme Court declared its ruling, but according to what Sarah says, the English translation is that gay and lesbian couples can be legally married in California. They just can't call it marriage.

While my reaction to the court is that it didn't have the guts to stand up for what it believed in, it is also possible the court doesn't believe in anything and so had nothing to stand up for.

But the GOOD news is that Sarah is still legally married. Well, no, that's not true. Sarah is still legally "wedded". She can't be married. Even though she is.

Like I said, I have trouble with legal double-talk. It's like listening to religious fanatics talk. They can take any sentence from anywhere and make it mean whatever they want. That's my opinion of lawyers, too. I don't have much faith in our judicial system anymore. But there's no other system which works better, so what do you do?

As long as people like Sarah and her spouse (we can still say that, can't we) are left alone to live their lives as they wish. They aren't out to hurt or defraud anybody. Leave them alone. I think that's what this ruling is saying. Stop harassing the innocent.

Those of you who are religiously conservative, I note that you spend a lot of time b*tching and moaning about gays and lesbians, but you haven't had a word to say about Wall Street Tycoons destroying the country with greed and avarice. You b*tch and moan because some Democrat politician supports some legislation which will take money from your pockets, descrying them as immoral and evil. But you never have anything to say about torture, civil rights, or any sins of the Republican Party.

You who seek to be ultra conservative live your lives in fear. That's what you're all about now. God told us about you. Predicted it thousands of years ago.

And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; men's hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Luke 21:25-26 New King James Version

Fear is the big motivator, isn't it? We're afraid of everyone and everything. Yet we claim to trust God. The truth is, if we really trusted God we wouldn't be nearly so afraid.

There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. but he who fears has not been made perfect in love. 1 John 4:18 New King James Version

When it comes to our faith, we need not fight. Jesus told us this.

Jesus answered, "My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here." John 18:36 New King James Version

Why do you wish to fight in the world over our faith? Jesus says the kingdom of our faith is not of the world, so the battle is not here. Stop fighting flesh and blood over your faith.

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Ephesians 6:12 New King James Version

Our battle is not with gay and lesbian people here on earth. They are just like us: human. They need God just like we need God. We need God just like they need God. But the only God we ever tell them about, show them through our behavior, is a God of hatred and intolerance. No wonder they want nothing to do with the God we talk about and demonstrate. I don't want anything to do with that thing either. Give me the real God. The God of love and forgiveness and acceptance.

It is said that one of the chief motivations for Judas Iscariot was impatience with Jesus for not bringing about the kingdom as Judas expected. Are we not guilty of the same sin when we attack gays and lesbians? Are we not the true sinners when we attack people for being in love? How anti-God can you get?

Partly I think we attack those who demonstrate our own sins. Look how often those who seek the demise of this person or that is secretly engaged in the same behavior?

Let us quit hating people and start living the lives that Christ told us to live. That he made possible for us to live by putting God's spirit into our hearts. Who did Jesus ever blast when he walked this earth? Religious hypocrites, that's who. He didn't even blast the Roman Empire. His word on that was, "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." (Matthew 22:21 New King James Version)

Caesar has said it is all right for Gays and Lesbians to be wedded. Let's put this foolishness of harrassing these people away now. We have much bigger and far more important battles to fight anyway. The real war rages in our hearts. With our own sinful natures. Let's not worry about what other people are doing. They're better people than us anyway. They at least love.

To What Does God Belong

Politics.

Jesus once said it is "easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." (Matthew 19:24)

Is it any easier for a politician?

I doubt it. Consider. Has not politics become synonymous with falsehood, deceit, bribery, corruption? That is not to say that every politician is guilty of these crimes, but in all honesty, who believes that many are not? It is an acceptable prejudice.

I saw a bit of a blurb on television regarding how the amount of dishonesty in financial matters is greater in New York City than in any other place in the world. A psychologist was explaining how this is so.

They had done an experiment in which they put several bills of currency in a refrigerator in a workplace. The bills were all left alone. Then they put in a six-pack of soda pop. One by one, the hidden camera showed people taking pop that didn't belong to them. Why so? The explanation was that few people will actually steal "cash", but if the money element is removed one or more places, people will steal. In this case, the money was converted into soda pop. Suddenly, it was much easier to rationalize one's behavior. That is what happens in the banking industry. People don't take money from the vaults. They take stock dividends, vacations, and other things which cost money, but are not money.

That is what happens in politics. Ideals of honesty, integrity, and openness are abandoned for some "greater good".

I knew someone who had a friend who ran for congressional office because he wanted to make a difference. He won the election. However, when it came time to decide whether or not to run for re-election the man opted to retired from public office. Why? Because the system is so corrupt that, in order to accomplish anything, he had to sacrifice what he believed was honesty, integrity, and general character.

It is no secret I have never care for, nor respected, politics much at all. It is more than annoying to listen to people spout phony words of caring and compassion. The more earnestly they speak, the less I believe them.

But what irks me more than anything is how the Republican Party has convinced so many idiot Christians that God is a Republican. That infuriates me. Why? Because of all political parties, the one which LEAST resembles God is the Republican Party.

They are mean, intolerant, hateful, unforgiving, exclusionary, uncooperative, uncaring - the list goes on.

And yet so many Christians think they have to be Republican because that party is officially against abortion. No wonder God keeps calling us sheep. We're about the most stupid things he created.

If you are upset about my blasting Republicans - good. But be upset enough to read your Bible and check out what God says. If you are honest, you will see that God is no more in favor of Republicans than he is of Democrats. And that's the other thing that torks me off. Being against one political party doesn't automatically mean I support another. In no way do I mean to state, or even imply, that I think God is a Democrat. Or has any other political affiliation. God is God. He's above it all.

But where do you see the Republicans in this?

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Galatians 5:22-23 Revised Standard Version

If you want to know which verses of Scripture make me think Republican, here you go:

But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of stress. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, inhuman, implacable, slanderers, profligates, fierce, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding the form of religion but denying the power of it. Avoid such people. (emphasis mine) 2 Timothy 3:1-5 Revised Standard Version

To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: 'The words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lampstands. I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear evil men but have tested those who call themselves apostles but are not, and found them to be false; I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name's sake, and you have not grown weary. But I have this against you, that you have abondoned the love you had at first. Remember then from what you have fallen, repent and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent. (emphasis mine) Revelation 2:1-5 Revised Standard Version

In essence, it is my conviction that any religion/faith which is political in nature is a harlot religion/faith. God is independent of human conventions.

That is what I believe.

Breaking the Chain of Hatred

Just did something for which I suppose I should feel some sense of pride about. Only I don't.

I was forwarded an email this morning. Didn't pay attention to who originated it. I only concerned myself with the person who passed it on to me.

The email references an alleged email sent by an engineering professor at Michigan State University to the Muslim Students' Association. In it, the professor complains about the protests against a Danish cartoon which portrayed the Prophet Muhammed as a terrorist. He goes on to complain about beheadings, suicide bombings, rapes, and other atrocities. He concludes by telling the Muslims to leave the country.

Now, my personal opinion is that ALL protests are stupid and useless. They're events designed to make people feel good about something, and bad about something else. They're for the powerless to feel like they're powerful. They can also turn into riots, in which the powerless become dangerously powerful.

That Muslims protested the cartoon means nothing to me. Neither do protests against nuclear power, taxes, gay rights, abortion rights, something stupid somebody said, or anything mean anything to me. I am not impressed with protests. A waste of time.

I was concerned, however, with the email's hateful sentiment. In the past I should have ignored it, filing it away with other emails. This time I felt obliged to speak out and sent a return email explaining why I believed the email was not only hateful, but went against everything Jesus taught. God does not want his creation fighting with itself. And as to complaining about the behavior of Muslims, I found myself complaining about the behavior of fellow Christians. For every atrocity committed in the name of Islam there has been an atrocity committed in the name of Christianity. We are not without our own guilt.

I sent the email and soon received a response. The person was thankful for being reminded of what is true and what is right. Perhaps they are through forwarding such hatred. I hope so. Perhaps one day they will respond to whoever sends them the emails and another link in the chain of hatred will be broken. But I am not pleased with myself.

The world is so full of hatred and strife. It spills out like water being poured from a bucket. When it strikes the hard pavement it splashes, reaching even those who want nothing to do with it. Without realizing it, we who wish to be like God find ourselves sullied by petty jealousies, hatreds, and the like. We begin to criticize those who do no worse than ourselves. Our eyes go blind to our own sins and we worsen ourselves by embracing powerful emotions of violence and hatred.

I can pretend to others, and perhaps they may even be fooled. But I cannot truly fool myself. In my heart of hearts I know I am no better than those I try to correct. And certainly God knows the truth.

Romans (chapter seven) Revised Standard Version

[7] When then shall we say? That the law is sin? By no means! Yet, if it had not been for the law, I should not have known sin. I should not have knwn what it is to covet if the law had not said, "You shall not covet."

[8] But sin, finding opportunity in the commandment, wrought in me all kinds of covetousness. Apart from the law sin lies dead.

[9] I was once alive apart from the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died;

[10] the very commandment which promised life proved to be death to me.

[11] For sink, finding opportunity in the commandment, deceived me and by it killed me.

[12] So the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and just and good.

[13] Did that which is good, then, bring death to me? By no means! It was sin, working death in me through what is good, in order that sin might be shown to be sin, and through the commandment might become sinful beyond measure.

[14] We know that the law is spiritual; but I am carnal, sold under sin.

[15] I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.

[16] Now if I do what I do not want, I agree that the law is good.

[17] So then it is no longer I that do it, but sin which dwells within me.

[18] For I know that nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh. I can will what is right, but I cannot do it.

[19] For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do.

[20] Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I that do it, but sin which dwells within me.

...

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Romans 8:1

The Trumpet Blows For Each of Us

I have often written about how my grandmother was a writer. Many of her works were published in newspapers and certain magazines. I do not believe she was ever paid. She also self-published a book of poems, and was part of at least two collaborations in which a writers' group self-published a book.

What I had forgotten is that my mother also writes, and has also been published in newspapers and magazines, and also had collaborated with other writers to self-publish. I just came across a book in which my mother's poem leads the way.

When I hear the Trumpet Call
by Helen Delger

Oftentimes I wonder where I will be when I hear the trumpet call.
Will it be in spring when flowers bloom
Or when leaves turn in fall?
Will it sound for me in summer,
Or in winter when cold winds blow?
No matter what the season, when I hear the call I will go.
I just hope that I will be ready to take that chariot ride
To cross over into His kingdom with Jesus by my side.
There to meet all my loved ones who made the journey long ago.
I await a glorious reunion with all the saints I know.
We will be clothed in garments beautiful,
Heavenly angels will sing.
Until joy will fill our hearts when our spirits then take wing.
A heavenly home awaits us there, no down payment is due.
The precious blood of Jesus has paid the price for you.
I still have tasks on Earth to do;
It is not for me to name the date.
Until the trumpet sounds for me, I will trust in Him and wait.

My mother is now the oldest living member of our extended family. All my grandparents have gone. I have one aunt and uncle left (plus their spouses), but they are my mother's younger siblings. Everyone else is gone, including Daddy.

I suppose Mother thinks often about her time to leave. She is well past eighty now. Gone are the days of youth when eternity was that far away. Now it's near the doorstep, and making even the most stoic consider what lays ahead.

We were not big into church when I was young. I do recall attending a Lutheran Church when I was five. But when we moved away Daddy quit going to church. Mother tried to bring us to various churches in the area, but we never continued for long. First Mother would quit going. Then she would quit bringing us. Once, two of my sisters and I were kicked out. We were teenagers. Need I say more?

But I knew God was important. I just didn't know who he was. To me, I visualized him as an old man with a beard - eager to catch me in a wrong so he could send me to Hell. I resolved to live a perfect life.

My definition of perfection was according to my own rules, which were flexible to suit occasions. Thus, I maintained my self-deception for years. Until I was nineteen. Not long before the morning of my nineteenth birthday I had done something which violated my person rules for right and wrong. There was no rationalizing it away. I was haunted. God had me now. I had "sinned". And I was caught. So on the morning of my nineteenth birthday I fell to my knees in the darkness of 4:00 a.m. and asked for a miracle. I asked for forgiveness. It was a Saturday.

For some reason, the message of forgiveness had never come to me. I must have heard it. It just never registered. All I knew of God was that he was demanding to the impossible degree. He wanted to send people to Hell.

The following day I went to church with my brother and heard and understood for the first time that God forgives. It was such a relief! And then I went right back into my self-righteous ways. Until I found myself in the same predicament three years later.

The message of God's forgiveness is preached all over the world. Yet the message most receive is that God is unforgiving, demanding, hard, old, unfair, uncaring, and a host of other horrible things. For this reason many people deny God, or even doubt he can exist. For even the most hardened person eventually must conclude that there can be no such God.

How do we make people understand that God forgives? I struggled with that for a long time. I have now discovered the answer.

We can't.

That is God's job, and he will do it in his own way, and in his own time, with each person individually. For some that means learning it as a child. Others must wait until they are much older. Even old, perhaps. To us that may seem unfair, but God is not unfair in anything he does. He not only factors in everything about a person when deciding what and when to do something, but he factors in everything about everyone and everything else, too.

Our job is to trust. Trust in God. Trust in his forgiveness. Trust in his mercy. Trust in his answers to prayer. Trust that he cares. Trust that all he has said is true and will come to pass. Trusting is how we run the race. It's how we finish the race.

Therefore do not cast away your confidence, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise: "For yet a little while, and He who is coming will come and will not tarry. Now the just shall live by faith; but if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him." Hebrews 10:36-38 New King James

Ephesians (chapter six) New King James Version

[10] Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.

[11] Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

[12] For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

[13] Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. (emphasis mine)

[14] Stand therefore, having girded yo waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness,

[15] and having shod your feet with the preparation of hte gospel of peace;

[16] above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench the fiery darts of the wicked one.

[17] And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;

[18] praying always with all prayer and supplication in the spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints -

I understand that some readers object to my calling Jesus, God - and vice versa. But there is only one God, people. Just the one. So no matter what name you call him, he is still God. Call him what you are used to calling him. He will hear, I am sure. Call in in the honesty of your heart, and he will hear. I do not doubt that at all. God forgives. Not because he doesn't care about the sin, but because he cares more about you and me. Before he even created the world he made it possible for all of us to be forgiven for the sins we had yet to commit. My Bible says he did that by becoming Jesus Christ. You call him what you will. But do accept that God is offering you forgiveness, and a future.

Not on Our Own

Had my morning reading today. Read Luke Chapter Twenty-One. Also read fifty verses from the Quran. It began with the widow's offering and finished with an admonition to watch. (My daily reading is done with the Revised Standard Version Bible.)

[1] He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury;

[2] and he saw a poor widow put in two copper coins.

[3] And he said, "Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them;

[4] for they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all the living that she had."

That is a great passage. And it is not a parable, either. It really happened. Someone gave everything they had. I've never even come close to that.

[34] "But take heed to yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a snare;

[35] for it will come upon all who dwell upon the face of the whole earth.

[36] But watch at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these thintgs that will take place, and to stand before the Son of man."

When I first became a Christian, way back in August of 1975, I would read these passages and feel so good. Oh, I knew I would give my last two coins if I had the chance. What a stupid thing to say. Of course, I never did.

I also was so pleased with myself because I didn't get drunk, and I wasn't caught up in the cares of the world. Didn't even know what dissipation meant.

What I realize now is that I had accepted forgiveness, but then launched out on my own. My pride had not truly been broken. Only slightly humbled as I had come to realize I was not so perfect as I thought. But having received forgiveness I seem to have returned to a sense of self-righteousness. Paul wrote of this in Galatians, Chapter Three. (New King James Version)

[1] O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified?

[2] This only I want to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?

[3] Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh?

It is almost a paradox, isn't it? It's all about faith. And yet our behavior says so much.

Like small children, we get confused over things. We see the evidence of faith and the imitation of faith and we can't always tell them apart. There is real butter. There is margarine. There is real wood. There is veneer. There is the real diamond. There is the piece of glass.

We do this with others, but mostly we do it with ourselves. We don't like to admit when we're phony. We don't like being hypocrites. We don't want to walk around with our heads bowed in shame.

God doesn't want us walking around with heads bowed in shame all the time either. But he does want us to acknowledge when we're being phony and hypocritical. By faith we have been saved, and so we can hold our heads up by reason of faith. Not self-righteousness. We have none - except in our own eyes.

We think to please God, and so we undertake self-assigned adventures and quests to destroy God's enemies, not realize we have set ourselves against God in the process.

Ezekiel (chapter eighteen) New King James Version

[23] "Do I have any pleasure at all that the wicked should die?" says the Lord GOD, "and not that he should turn from his ways and live?

[24] But when a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and does according to all the abominations that the wicked man does, shall he live? All the righteousness which he has done shall not be remembered; because of the unfaithfulness of which he is guilty and the sin which he has committed, because of them he shall die.

[25] Yet you say, 'The way of the Lord is not fair.' Hear now, O house of Israel, is it not My way which is fair, and your ways which are not fair?

[26] When a righteous man turns away from his righteousness, commits iniquity, and dies in it, it is because of the iniquity which he has done that he dies.

[27] Again, when a wicked man turns away from the wickedness which he committed, and does what is lawful and right, he preserves himself alive.

[28] Because he considers and turns away from all the transgressions which he committed, he shall surely live; he shall not die.

[29] Yet the house of Israel says, 'The way of the Lord is not fair.' O house of Israel, is it not My ways which are fair, and your ways which are not fair?

[30] Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways," says the Lord GOD. "Repent, and turn from all your transgressions, so that iniquity will not be your ruin.

[31] Cast away from you all the transgressions which you have committed, and get yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. For why should you die, O house of Israel?

[32] For I have no pleasure in the death of one who dies," says the Lord GOD. "Therefore turn and live!"

God does not want us dead, so don't be killing yourself. God does not want others dead, so don't be killing others.

It comes down to faith, people. Faith in God. Faith in God to take care of himself and his reputation. We do not need to fight for God.

Jesus answered, "My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here." Pilate therefore said to Him, "Are You a king then?" Jesus answered, "You say rightly that I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice." John 18:36-37 New King James Version

I think we would all do so much better if we could just remember that God does not want us hating, hurting, killing, and otherwise oppressing each other. But we try to do it on our own all the time. And then we get it wrong.

Where are You Beautiful

I subscribe on YouTube to the communitychannel. That's where I watch videos posted by a young woman named Natalie from Australia. What I like about her films is the way she takes everyday things and expands them to show us how funny we all are.

This particular video is about another group of people who deserve to have someone look out for them. I happen to belong to this group. "Ugly" people.



She did this to be funny, but I kind of think she was also making a point. She has two comments which I find so revealing about our societies:

"There's something really surprising about someone ugly being able to do anything."

"You sound like an attractive person."

Isn't that often how we tend to look at people? "Attractive" people get listened to. They get promotions. They get all kinds of things "ugly" people don't get. And yet, are they attractive?

Some are. Incredibly, there are many people who have the physical attributes to qualify them as "attractive" and are still attractive people. By that I mean nice. Loving. Caring. Too often, though, they tend to be a bit arrogant.

I recently told someone that one of the sexiest women I ever met was over one hundred pounds overweight. But she was such a dear. She would go out of her way to help even people she didn't like. She was sensitive, caring, and totally loving. And yet people made fun of her because of her weight. More than once I had to close our office door while she cried because some insensitive clod had made fun of her appearance. Personally, I found her to be quite sexy.

The other day while driving to an appointment with my heart doctor I was listening to the radio. The DJs were interviewing a woman who specialized in relationship training for lesbians. After the interview concluded the male DJs began making fun of the women who availed themselves of the new law in Iowa which allows them to marry women. They made several snide remarks about how "ugly" the women were. I very much doubt the women found each other "ugly" at all.

And do you know something else? I'm finding that I look less at the "shell" people are wearing when I first meet them now. So many people are so beautiful inside a shell which dares us to look for them. My shell is not exactly something people fall over to look at, so I suppose it's only natural that I take this attitude. But I think we need to start seeing people as God sees them, and not as humans do. The eyes of our body don't see nearly so well as the Spirit of God. Let's let Him guide our vision. Okay?

Where are you beautiful? Outside but not inside? Inside by not outside? Both? Neither? If you're not pretty on the inside, go talk to God. He can - and will - change that for you.

Confessions of a Reformed Hypocrite

I wonder about myself. A lot. There is no doubt in my mind and heart that should most Christians see my life as it really is, in my home, every day, my thoughts and such, they would probably wonder if I even am a Christian.

Well, if being a Christian means thinking thoughts they say I should think, and doing things they say I should do, and not doing things they say I should avoid, then I'm not. Used to be. Kind of.

When I existed in my cloister of like-minded creatures it was easy to see everything and know everything. But I slipped and fell, and in so doing left that cloister and found myself in the real world, where real people live with real problems. People have real feelings. Their hurts are no less real than my own, and often are more so.

One of my very dearest friends (whom I have never met) was hurt recently. It's been a long time (to me) since I've heard from her. I'm fearing now that I will never hear from her again. That is such a lonely feeling, despite the fact I have other friends. It brings home the parable of the lost sheep and coin.

Matthew (chapter eighteen) New King James Version

[12] What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying?

[13] And if he should find it, assuredly, I say to you, he rejoices more over that sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray.

My friend has not "gone astray". She's just gone. From me. But I have no doubt she continues to live an honorable and happy life with her family, as she did before. I just miss her.

These are the kinds of things I became exposed to when I left my cloister. I fell in love with people I used to think I should not fall in love with. I'm not talking about sex. I'm talking about love. Loving someone from the heart and not wishing to possess them. Only seeking their happiness and good will. I've met so many people like that. Most are women, yes. But that's just because I relate better to women. But there are men within my circle of influence.

Several of my friends happen to be lesbian, or bi-sexual. This, I know, would cause great consternation from my old cloister friends, who do not seek me out, by the way. Not since I fell. I suppose they always had their doubts about me anyway. I wonder about me, too.

But I can't bring myself to criticize gay people anymore. I've met too many now to return to what was. No longer do I view them as "those people", and talk about them as though they were characters from a novel and therefore had no feelings or spirits to concern. Now they're my people, because I call them friends. I don't know them well, but I know them. And when they cry because people stand in hatred against them and say they can't be married to the person they love, I find myself crying with them. I find myself wishing I were a lesbian so I could stand with them, arm in arm, and cry together that there is nothing wrong with love! I see their love for each other and I am ashamed of things I said a long time ago.

How can I, having spoken against real people, claim to be in God's blessing? I read from Luke this morning. It was the passage about the Pharisee and the publican. I read it and find myself wondering which man I really am.

Luke (chapter 18) Revised Standard Version

[9] He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and despised others:

[10] "Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.

[11] The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, 'God, I thank thee that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.

[12] I fast twice a week, I give tithes of all that I get.'

[13] But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me a sinner!'

[14] I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other, for every one who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted."

I know which man I should be, but am I really that man? Or am I deluding myself with false humility?

What I have found in going on-line and meeting all of these people, is that I care about them. I get to know them and they matter to me. And the more people matter to me the less I find I can speak judgment over things they might be doing. For one thing, I am seeing my life as far worse than anything I can accuse others of. And I don't want to accuse others of anything. Not anymore. They're my friends now, and I love my friends. I want to make their lives better. Not by telling them what to do and not do and how to live their lives. But instead by just accepting them for who they are today, and not worry about the rest. I just want to love them, and hope that that makes their lives better. At least a little.

And when I lose them, it hurts. It hurts so very bad. And it's lonely. Too many friends are silent. And one may be gone forever now.

"Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?" Mark 15:34 (a portion) Revised Standard Version

The words of Jesus when he was rejected by God.

It's not too unlike that to lose a friend. The Cloister will call that blasphemy.

What Time is it Anyway

Choose your battles. In order to win a war you must decide which battles you will fight, and from which you will retreat.

The Allied Forces won in World War II because God wanted them to win. That is true. If it weren't, they wouldn't have won. But the Allies didn't fight every battle. They retreated from Operation Market Garden (where the Germans handed it to them pretty bad). They held back from a full invasion of Japan. Top Command even allowed innocent people to die in order to hide the fact that the code-breakers had broken the German code.

They didn't fight every battle. Maybe they should have fought some they didn't, and maybe they should have retreated from some they fought. But the point is, they consciously chose not to fight every battle. Why? Because they knew they could not win every battle.

It's like that with civil rights, discrimination, harassment, and things like that. Be careful which battles you fight. Some just cannot be won. Of course, some need to be fought despite having no chance for victory. (Remember the Alamo?)

It has been my observation that nothing hurts a cause so much as its members going overboard to proclaim the innocence of one of its members when that member is actually guilty. Prejudice and hatred may be the motivation behind the opposition's assault, but if the member is guilty, be careful how you defend. Concentrate on the real prejudice without demonstrating your own. Remember, the member is actually guilty. Let that stand on its own, and seek forgiveness if need be. But don't claim innocence by reason of someone else's hatred. Their prejudice and hatred doesn't change what was done.

Don't find yourself arguing a lie in order to crush prejudice and hatred. That only hurts your cause in the long run.

Through Solomon, God confirms the concept of choosing battles.

Ecclesiates (chapter three) New King James Version

[1] To everything there is a season, A time for every purpose under heaven:

[2] A time to be born, and a time to die; A time to plant, and a time to pluck what is planted;

[3] A time to kill, and a time to heal; A time to break down, and a time to build up;

[4] A time to weep, and a time to laugh; A time to mourn, and a time to dance;

[5] A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones; A time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

[6] A time to gain, and a time to lose; A time to keep, and a time to throw away;

[7] A time to tear, and a time to sew; A time to keep silence, and a time to speak;

[8] A time to love, and a time to hate; A time of war, and a time of peace.

So the real question is this: What time is it?

So How Do You Wish to be Treated

So many of us struggle with what is right and what is wrong. What is God's will in this situation? We know someone is committing sin. What do we do? What should be our attitude toward them? What does God say?

Believe it or not, the answer is actually quite simple, and God gives us the answer in plain words. And when you consider God, and what we know and understand about him, it makes such perfect sense.

Luke (chapter 10) New King James Version

[25] And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?"

[26] He said to him, "What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?"

[27] So he answered and said, "'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,' and 'your neighbor as yourself.'"

[28] And He said to him, "You have answered rightly; do this and you will live."

Of course, the lawyer then seeks a way out of this by asking who is neighbor is. Jesus then tells the story of the Good Samaritan.

Since God has placed us in a such a small place in the universe He considered us all to be neighbors. This is true. Do we not tend to view people in other towns and villages as a single entity? They are neighbors, despite the fact that many of them never meet each other. To us, this planet Earth is a large thing. But in consideration of the vast universe, it's hardly a street in a suburb. We are neighbors.

So. Back to our original questions.

We know someone is committing sin. What do we do? What should be our attitude toward them? What does God say?

Well, God says we are all neighbors. Even those on the complete opposite side of this planet. Even those who hate us and want to kill us. We are neighbors.

Next. What should be our attitude toward them? Well, what would we want their attitude to be toward us were our positions reversed? Be honest. For this reason:

Matthew (chapter 7) New King James Version

[1] "Judge not, that you be not judged.

[2] For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you."

Finally, what should we do? Again, what would we want others to do were our positions reversed? And answer intelligently. Would you really want them to encourage you in your sin? Would you want them to help you guarantee eternal separation from God? If so, then that's what you do. If not, then look for ways to encourage them to cease sinning. But be careful. God, himself, allows freedom of choice. Don't take that from people unless what they are doing is endangering lives.

It's easy for me to write all of this. It's easy for me to say. The truth is, it's not always easy to follow this practice. That does not excuse the not following, but it is difficult sometimes. It comes down to this: What's important to you? God? Love? If so, then look to God and love when making these decisions. That's all I'm saying.