Would you be nervous if you met the president? Would you be a little scared? You probably should be. Every president, regardless of party, has been the subject of stories about people who weren't quite deferential enough and got "detained." Most of those are nothing more than an inconvenience, but don't you think if the president wanted you disappear, someone would make it happen? It doesn't usually happen. It doesn't even happen often. The president (every president) appears to be a basically good man who just wants what's best for everyone. The president wants your life to be better than it is. But he can make you go away. Permanently.
In the same way, God is good. He loves you, and he wants what is best for you. But he can make you go away permanently. And unlike a president, who would be at best bending if not breaking the law, God has every right to do it. And unlike a president, who would be doing this out of sinful pride or arrogance, God would be doing it in perfect holiness.
To borrow from Martin Luther, if the greatest commandment is to love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, then the greatest transgression is to not love the Lord properly — something we're all guilty of continually. And that's not all. We're selfish, prideful, and lustful. We've lied, stolen, and hated. We hurt people we love and ignore people who need our help all the time.
So it's no exaggeration to say we're wicked, filthy, shameful creatures who deserve any punishment our creator chooses to mete out. You might not deserve the mistreatment a president can heap on you, but anything God might inflict on you is totally just. In fact, anything short of total annihilation is mercy.
So should we be nervous to meet God? When desperately wicked creatures like ourselves come into contact with a holy and just God, shouldn't we be terrified that he might just wipe us out?
And then shouldn't we be amazed that, instead of eradicating us, he chose to die for us? Instead of pouring the just penalty for our sins on our heads, he poured his blood out to cover those sins. Instead of annihilating us, he liberated us. Then he went a step farther. He changed us from slaves of sin into children of God. We are no longer partakers of his wrath but heirs with Christ.
When we stand before God we should be terrified. And then we should be amazed.
Thursday, September 5, 2013
Wednesday, July 24, 2013
Fixing a Pro-Life Comeback
The American political left (and the media, to the extent there's a difference) lose their minds at the slightest hint of any abortion restrictions, and conservatively governed states have been making them crazy lately. The most recent offense comes from my own state of Texas where someone said, "If you can't figure out you want an abortion within five months, you're just going to have to give birth" or something to that effect. (Yeah, there was other stuff in the bill, but that's not what this is about.)
Whenever the topic comes up, someone helpfully suggests that you shouldn't say anything about abortion unless you're a woman. Yes, we all know it's stupid, but what to do about it?
A common rejoinder is "that's like saying 'you can't oppose slavery unless you're black.'"
But that's not anywhere near correct. That's equivalent to saying "you can't say anything about abortion unless you're a fetus." While that might make for a good policy, it's not going to allow for much conversation.
When pro-aborts say "you can't say anything about abortion unless you're a woman," the true abolition-equivalent is:
Whenever the topic comes up, someone helpfully suggests that you shouldn't say anything about abortion unless you're a woman. Yes, we all know it's stupid, but what to do about it?
A common rejoinder is "that's like saying 'you can't oppose slavery unless you're black.'"
But that's not anywhere near correct. That's equivalent to saying "you can't say anything about abortion unless you're a fetus." While that might make for a good policy, it's not going to allow for much conversation.
When pro-aborts say "you can't say anything about abortion unless you're a woman," the true abolition-equivalent is:
You can't say anything about slavery unless you're white.Perhaps that'll make them pause long enough for a conversation to occur.
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
Abortion Forever?
One of the few things we heard out of the mainstream media during the Gosnell hearing is "this is what happens when abortions are hard to get."
The argument must be aimed at bolstering their own supporters, because it's not an argument that will convince many pro-lifers. My brain always interprets this kind of logic as "if abortion isn't legal, people might die when they try to murder their children." Less than compelling.
The other argument I've heard a lot lately is "we've always had abortion and we always will."
It's true we've always had abortion. For centuries people have dealt with unwanted children by killing them — either before they were born or after. Does that make it OK? Of course not. Does that mean it will always be with us? Not necessarily.
There's something else we can say we've pretty much always had: slavery. It's existed in some form or another for thousands of years. It still exists, even in the United States.
But it's not what it once was. Once, slavery was normal. People thought nothing of it. It was a fact of life.
Today, it's recognized by 99% of the human race as a horror and a crime. We may never stamp it out, but we've relegated it to the shadows, and there's a good chance we can make it too risky, too dangerous to practice if we keep the pressure on. There may soon come a day when there is no slavery on this planet.
Abortion has always existed because there were people who said "my needs are more important than the life of this child." There is a chance that we can change things so that 99% of the human race will say "nothing is more important that the life of a child." That's a dream worth fighting for.
The argument must be aimed at bolstering their own supporters, because it's not an argument that will convince many pro-lifers. My brain always interprets this kind of logic as "if abortion isn't legal, people might die when they try to murder their children." Less than compelling.
The other argument I've heard a lot lately is "we've always had abortion and we always will."
It's true we've always had abortion. For centuries people have dealt with unwanted children by killing them — either before they were born or after. Does that make it OK? Of course not. Does that mean it will always be with us? Not necessarily.
There's something else we can say we've pretty much always had: slavery. It's existed in some form or another for thousands of years. It still exists, even in the United States.
But it's not what it once was. Once, slavery was normal. People thought nothing of it. It was a fact of life.
Today, it's recognized by 99% of the human race as a horror and a crime. We may never stamp it out, but we've relegated it to the shadows, and there's a good chance we can make it too risky, too dangerous to practice if we keep the pressure on. There may soon come a day when there is no slavery on this planet.
Abortion has always existed because there were people who said "my needs are more important than the life of this child." There is a chance that we can change things so that 99% of the human race will say "nothing is more important that the life of a child." That's a dream worth fighting for.
Friday, March 22, 2013
Links
I think these will be helpful sites for you to visit:
Do "contradictions" discredit the Gospels?
(This is part of a series of videos that, frankly, try to sell a DVD set, but the short video is still a useful piece.)
Forget About Evolution and Inerrancy (for a Minute)
Like this author, I have two little girls, and I'm appalled at what our culture wants to teach them about themselves, men, God, and life in general. There are a lot of good thoughts here.
Do "contradictions" discredit the Gospels?
(This is part of a series of videos that, frankly, try to sell a DVD set, but the short video is still a useful piece.)
Forget About Evolution and Inerrancy (for a Minute)
"The issue of origins and inspiration and inerrancy are very important. We eventually need to discuss them. But they arenot 'make or break issues.' And they can be used to sidetrack the Gospel into endless and fruitless debate."Raising Daughters in a World That Devalues Them: 7 Things We Must Tell Them
Like this author, I have two little girls, and I'm appalled at what our culture wants to teach them about themselves, men, God, and life in general. There are a lot of good thoughts here.
Friday, March 1, 2013
Slaying Giants
"How do we know there were giants?" my eldest daughter asked, out of the blue.
"Are we talking Jack and Beanstalk or the Bible?"
"The Bible."
The other one chimed in, "Because the Bible's God's word."
"I think what she's really asking is, 'Why do we believe the Bible is God's word?'
"We verify the things that we can. If those things stand up to scrutiny, we can trust the things we can't verify."
My youngest's approach is unfortunately common. She seemed scandalized the older one even asked such a question and wanted to take the "God said it, I believe it" approach.
I want them to know, though, that we don't take the Bible on blind faith. It's a reasoned faith, a trust in a trustworthy source.
We will never be able to verify every line of the Bible. But every year or so we find more reason to trust it. "The Hittites didn't exist." Oh, wait, yes they did. "There was no written language in Canaan during the bronze age." Yes, there very much was. "There was no King David." "Solomon didn't rule as much as the Bible claims." "Israel wasn't a powerful kingdom." The objections keep getting knocked down. And that's just the Old Testament. The NT case is much tighter.
Does this prove there were people two or three feet taller than what would consider "tall?" No. But if the records are reliable everywhere else, we have no good reason to doubt and every reason to accept the account.
"Are we talking Jack and Beanstalk or the Bible?"
"The Bible."
The other one chimed in, "Because the Bible's God's word."
"I think what she's really asking is, 'Why do we believe the Bible is God's word?'
"We verify the things that we can. If those things stand up to scrutiny, we can trust the things we can't verify."
My youngest's approach is unfortunately common. She seemed scandalized the older one even asked such a question and wanted to take the "God said it, I believe it" approach.
I want them to know, though, that we don't take the Bible on blind faith. It's a reasoned faith, a trust in a trustworthy source.
We will never be able to verify every line of the Bible. But every year or so we find more reason to trust it. "The Hittites didn't exist." Oh, wait, yes they did. "There was no written language in Canaan during the bronze age." Yes, there very much was. "There was no King David." "Solomon didn't rule as much as the Bible claims." "Israel wasn't a powerful kingdom." The objections keep getting knocked down. And that's just the Old Testament. The NT case is much tighter.
Does this prove there were people two or three feet taller than what would consider "tall?" No. But if the records are reliable everywhere else, we have no good reason to doubt and every reason to accept the account.
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