Kingdom over Democracy

The mayor of Indianapolis Greg Ballard had a meeting with religious leaders today to discuss issues that have been happening in the city. Many issues that were brought up were issues that plague almost every U.S. major city such as crime, racial disparity, and transportation. Some issues that were brought up were very specific in nature. Two issues that were mentioned several times were about recent police behavior concerning one drunken police officer who ran over and killed a motorcyclist, and a beating of a young unarmed African-American.

Undoubtedly issues of injustice, brutality, racial profiling, and the like need to be addressed. Certainly there are many steps local government can take to better the lives of citizens and as members of a free nation it is our right and duty to hold our government accountable. I saw passion, conviction, and good leadership but I also saw far too much blame.

Too many people were asking “what are you going to do.”

As I said it is our responsibility and calling to point out injustice, to raise a voice against indecency, but it is also our responsibility to do something about it. Too often we are willing to raise our voice in accusation, but we are not willing not raise our hand and volunteer to action.

The question cannot be “what are you going to do” but “what are we going to do?”

Every government system is going to fall short of fulfilling the needs of the people. No matter the mayor, the governor, or the president. I do not care if you are Republican, Democrat, Tea Party, Green Party, Libertarian, or Undecided, all fall incredibly short of having the necessary means to adequately protect, transform, and educate. If we want change, if we want peace, if we want equality, the change starts much smaller than politics; the change starts in the heart.

Jesus came not to usher in a new political party but a new kingdom, the Kingdom of God (Mark 1:15). Christ has said that His body is not represented by the government, but by the church (1 Corinthians 12:27). It is the believers; it is the church that is the Body of Christ! There is a great mystery, a divine power, a limitless reality found within the church. This mystery, this power, this reality, has been too often forgotten, but it is still in work today. What this world needs is not more laws, better politicians, or better programs, we need better people and we get that by having more Jesus.

The question then is what are we as the Church doing? We change cities by changing communities, by changing neighborhoods, by changing people, by changing hearts, by giving them Jesus Christ. Is the church doing this? If not, then the government, politicians, and the people, should start accusing us of inaction, not the other way around. This world belongs to God and His children; it is time to start acting like it.

All Rights are not always right

In the United States we are guaranteed certain unalienable rights, which have been endowed by our Creator. That is what the Declaration of Independence says, and it is a belief that many have fought over, died over, and gave great sacrifices over. No doubt we all have rights, but just because they are our right does not make it always right to exercise them.

We have the rights to free speech; bear arms, vote, and many more. However, we have made the mistake of thinking because they are our rights; they are always right and proper to exercise. Now I am in no way saying that we need to somehow create laws to limit these freedoms.

Laws always muddy the waters, and never eliminate the problem. In fact, a friend of mine pointed out the absurd, yet true notion, that “if you have no laws, then you have no crime.”

This idea of rights is that they are there to use when we need to. However, we have interpreted rights as something we should practice despite their consequences. Just because you have the right to free speech does not mean there are not times when it may be best to keep your mouth closed. Just because you have the right to bear arms, does not mean there is never a time when you should lay down and surrender all your guns to humility and peace.

The Declaration of Independence was written to declare independence from an outside governing body. Unfortunately many of us approach the document thinking that it means we have complete individual independence to do what we want. As a result we see many exercising their “freedom” in complete disregard for others or consequences. We hear people say “it is my yard and therefore, it is my right to put up an electric fence even though you have 5 year old kids running around in the background. We see people drinking themselves to death because it is their body and frankly there is no law limiting alcohol consumption over the age of 21 (unless you are driving). We see people running their mouth with hateful words and inciting accusations because it is again their “right.” But just because it is a right does not make it right.

We need a better ethic, an ethic that is not simply based on following laws or rights. We need an ethic that is based on love. This was Jesus’ point when he pointed out the greatest commandment was

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these. – Mark 12:30, 31

We also see the importance of love in 1 Corinthians 13. If we exercise our rights, and do not infringe on others rights, but have not love, we have failed to keep the purpose of the laws. Love is how we define everything we do as good or bad. The Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, Hammurabi’s laws, and Aristotle’s virtues are all meaningless because love of God and others defines where our heart stands.

Do not make the mistake because all you do is considered a right and you have no criminal record that you are righteousness.  Sometimes the worst crime we can make is doing the right thing for the wrong reason.  Follow not manmade laws our rights, instead follow the way of love which is found in Jesus Christ.

“Everything is permissible”-but not everything is beneficial. “Everything is permissible” -but not everything is constructive. Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others. – 1 Corinthians 10:23, 24

Burning the Koran burns bridges

What do fire, the Koran, and Jesus Christ have in common?...well nothing. But according to the irreverent Rev. Terry Jones, it’s the perfect combination of the expression of faith. Jesus = Koran in Fire. However, something does not add up. We cannot simply commit everything that we disagree with to fire and brimstone. Imagine a group gathering together and having a fire to throw in politicians, lawyers, or the New York Yankees. We have seen people burn flags, yet they still fly, we have seen people burn Harry Potter, but it still remains a best seller. The only things worth burning are marshmallows, hotdogs, and the Real Housewives of New Jersey DVD series.

Jesus is not for burning, in fact fire retardant was His life mission.

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. - John 3:17

Jesus came to save us all from fire. If Jesus came not to condemn, then who are we to condemn? I do not quite understand Rev. Jones intention for burning the Korans. I have tried to call him (phone for some strange reason seems to be off the hook) and I tried to email him (his email is currently broken).

If Jones is trying to portray the message of love, grace, and salvation through the sacrificial act of Jesus Christ, than he needs more help than thought. If Jones is trying to stir up anger, hate, and violence well he is accomplishing the mission by abandoning Christ.

I do not believe in the Koran. I have read it, and believe that it is curiously disturbing at times. But no one who believes in the Koran will forsake it because it is burned, and anyone who is a nominal Christ believer, a fence sitter, or an undecided, will be sickened by Jones's act, just as I am.

Jesus Christ is real. Jesus Christ is powerful. Jesus Christ died on the cross and paid the penalty for sin, so that if we believe we may have new life in Him. I know this, and do not need to burn the Koran to prove it; instead I only need to love.

By this all people will know that you are my [Jesus] disciples, if you love one another.
          – John 13:35

Science: The New Religion

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20100902/lf_nm_life/us_britain_hawking

New physics research fronted by Stephen Hawking has come across a new discovery….the universe can and was created out of nothing! Stephen Hawking says in his new book “The Grand Design” that God was not needed for the creation of the Universe. It is said the Universe created itself out of nothing. The scientific evidence for such a groundbreaking discovery is, well nothing. There is no irrefutable evidence for such a claim. The best Hawking and other scientist can say is that the world and galaxy point to the possibility of the Universe creating itself out of nothing. However, nothing in nature has ever been made out of nothing, therefore, the conclusion that the Universe made itself out of nothing is not a natural conclusion but a supernatural conclusion. Scientists demand that all conclusions must be proven with evidence and cannot be taken upon presumption. However, with these latest conclusion science has no longer separated themselves from religion, but has become their own religion. If you think this is an absurd statement, just follow me for a little bit.

Christians understand that creation was created by a creator which they cannot irrefutably prove, but are certain that creation testifies to such a truth (Romans 1:20). Hawking understands that creation was created by creation, which he cannot irrefutably prove, but is certain that creation testifies to such a fact.

Christians understand that everything is made from God and that God had always existed and was not made by anything. Scientist understand that everything is made by excited atoms that happened to run into each other in a way that created a highly organized universe, and that these atoms were not made, they just always existed.

Christians understand that there is enough evidence to lead someone to believe, but ultimately it comes down to faith. Hawking has no evidence and can point to nothing else in science that has ever created itself out of nothing, therefore, he is asking people to take his conclusions on faith.

Hawking says the universe does not need God because for Hawking creation itself is his god.

Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools…They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator--who is forever praised –Romans 1:22, 25.

Hawking better be weary lest God decides that he does not need Stephen Hawking.

The most upsetting aspect is not that Stephen Hawking refuses to believe in God. I believe in God and have seen evidence of His working and have experienced love, peace, and freedom that comes from Him. What makes me upset is that Hawking is using science and intellect to examine the workings of the Universe and then creating false conclusions about God. If Hawking wants to study the universe and come up with theories of creation that is one thing, but to even pretend that these studies prove or disprove the existence of God is obsured and unprofessional. Hawking has taken his power, which is his intellect, and has abused it. It is unprofessional, and inappropriate to make statements of faith in a book about scientific theories of creation.

Scientists have too long demanded that faith surrender their assumptions on science, well its time that science surrender their assumptions on faith. Do not be misled science cannot prove or disprove the divine. God has made the wisdom of the world foolishness; you must decide for yourself what to believe. The most important things in our life are things that we cannot see or prove. Love, friendship, faith, and hope are outside the scientific observable field, but do not make the mistake to think they do not exist.

Fashion Faux Pas

$50 shirt, $365 pair of jeans, $20 undershirt, and $150 pair of shoes. The total amount for this wardrobe is $585. At Goodwill the same purchase would cost you around $18 (if you are brave enough to wear the shoes). At Salvation Army that might cost you around $15. At the Lynhurst Baptist Church Community Center the same items would cost you $1.00. That means you could buy 585 shirts, 585 pairs of jeans, 585 undershirts, and 585 pairs of shoes all for the same price of one shirt, jeans, undershirt, and shoes. If you wore each set just 5 times that would last you over 8 years. To get the same amount of use out of the one expensive set, you would have to wear it over it 2,920 times (that’s one smelly set of clothes). I am not marketing our Community Center, but simply pointing the degree of absurdity we go for clothes.

Since Adam and Even were escorted out of the garden, clothes have been an essential item for every society. However, what once served as basic necessity has now become an explosive tool for “self-expression.” We live with this idea that “The clothes make the man/woman.” We use clothes as an expression of who we are on the inside. That is why there is a brand catered to surfers called Billibong, and clothes that are for skaters called Tony Hawk. You would not see a surfer or skater caught dead in Aeropastle.

But let us think about the clothes we wear. There are hundreds of thousands, and even millions of people expressing themselves with the exact same Brand that we are wearing. What does that say about our own uniqueness? How insane have we become over labeling ourselves. Cattle are branded to show who owns them, not who they own, so when we wear brands, what are we really saying? I know this may sounds harsh, and you may not agree, but I am just asking you to think about it.

Clothes are not an appropriately expression of our identity. Faded shirts and catchy logos do a miserable job of announcing who we are. 2 Corinthians 4 says that it is not the outside that expresses our inside, but the inside that expresses the outside. Clothes are nothing, and even our bodies are just clay jars, but what is inside is the mysterious reality of the divine and powerful God Jesus Christ. Our cars do not matter, our clothes do not matter, even our bodies do not matter, for it is the presence of God living inside us when we ask Jesus into our heart that matters.

So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. – 2Corinthians 4:18

There is no doubt that those who have served in the armed forces have courage, and the willingness to sacrifice. Courage and sacrifice are noble traits, and are certainly necessary to win a war. However, these two traits left to themselves can become very dangerous. If we have only courage and sacrifice, than we fall dangerously short of God’s desire. We see evil rear its ugly head using courage and sacrifice. Muslim extremists preach courage and sacrifice as they charge into crowds and buildings as suicide bombers. It is also evident that Nazi soldiers were led into battle under the disciplined practice of courage and sacrifice. For courage and sacrifice to have any positive impact we must first ask, why, or for what purpose are we displaying these two character traits?

Courage and sacrifice has been used to defend a people group. When the Jews defended themselves from the Amalekites they used both courage and sacrifice (Exodus 17:8-16). However using courage and sacrifice for a people group is not sufficient enough of a reason. Again Hitler and his Nazi regime used courage and sacrifice to defend the Aryan cause. Courage and sacrifice cannot be good if simply used for country, because we have seen many countries do horrible evils under such guise. We cannot even say that courage and sacrifice ought to be used for religion alone because Christianity, Islam, the Caste System, and almost every religion have used these to instigate unspeakable violence against other peoples.

Courage and sacrifice are only noble when used for God under the ambition of love. To use courage and sacrifice for any other purpose is to pervert these great qualities that God has given us through his Spirit. Courage and sacrifice that is not directed towards giving God glory falls utterly short of the purpose of these qualities, and leads us into the danger of using them for sin. Let us then have courage as scripture commands us:

I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death (Philippians 1:20).

Let us no longer be afraid to share the love of God and his message of his Son who was sacrificed on the cross. Like Peter in Acts, let us boldly proclaim Jesus and his message of salvation. Let us be willing to endure great sacrifice as our Lord and Savior sacrificed his own body for us:

This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers – 1 John 3:16

Let us be willing to suffer for Christ and even lay down our life for him. Let us practice courage and sacrifice not with sword but with the power of the gospel. Let us offer our courage, let us offer ourselves, for God and God alone. Anything less would be falling into the hands of the evil one.

He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore. – Isaiah 2:4

Have you ever ordered a Non-fat half-caff triple grande quarter sweet sugar free vanilla non-fat lactaid extra hot extra foamy caramel macchiato at Starbucks only to find out with great frustration that they forgot to make it extra foamy? What an incompetent barista! In a world of endless choices and infinite preferences we find ourselves discontent with luxury, and content with meaninglessness. What I mean is that we get too irate over being cut off from traffic, having to wait longer than 10 minutes in line at the store, an incorrect order, a mistaken official’s call, a store selling out of an item in a particular color, gas that has raised two cents, and parking spots more than two rows back, that these cause us to demand rectification immediately or for perpetrators to suffer dire consequences. If you are honest with yourself, or if I am honest with myself we get angry, down right angry over small mistakes and small inconveniences. We have become discontent with the excess in our lives. We are angry because these are the things that are supposed to bring us happiness, they are the very products that promise us fulfillment and acceptance, and we find them lacking.

Perhaps the reason for this is simply because we are selfish spoiled westerners with a chip on our shoulder. Or it could be that we have pursued meaning and truth in all the wrong places. Perhaps we need to be looking less at what is seasonable and more at what is eternal. Perhaps we need to worry less about what our color wheel is, and look more at what our ultimate purpose is. Maybe we need to agonize less about what is the latest invention, and focus more on what is the ever-lasting truth. Maybe this rambling is a bunch of malarkey, but I don’t think it is. If we find ourselves discontent with the way our life narrative has turned out, then it is time we become discontent with the truth that the world has been selling us. It is time that we turn to a truth that delivers on its promise, that offers real contentment, life, love, peace, joy, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control. It is time that we as a people find a truth that we do not simply apply to our skin, but a truth that penetrates much deeper and applies to our souls.

I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want – Philippians 4:12

Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you - Hebrews 13:5