By Grace Through Faith

In Ephesians 2, we see a Scripture passage that shows the basis for our salvation and the proper
relationship between saving faith and certifying works:
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,
9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.
10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

Happy Reformation Day!  We celebrate today the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, and we can concentrate not only on the historical underpinnings of this dramatic moment in Church history, but on the internal workings of the Holy Spirit to reform our lives - reformation means change, and God wants to change us day by day.  We have already been given a new heart and declared to be new creations through salvation in Christ; now He wants to produce more and more of His nature in us.

+++++

On this day when Christians around the world are celebrating the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, the day when the monk Martin Luther nailed to a door in Wittenberg, Germany, 95 theses, pointing out areas of concern in the Church to which he adhered.  This became the basis for a sea change regarding the practice of religion and devotion to Christ.

I have made the point that we all need a personal reformation.  There is the story in the 8th chapter of Acts that depicts such a reformation.  It involves two men: a powerful preacher named Philip, whom we find effectively proclaiming God's truth to the "multitudes" in Samaria, as the Scriptures say. Then, he was sent to one man along a desert road between Jerusalem and Gaza.

We read in Acts 8:
27 So he arose and went. And behold, a man of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under Candace the queen of the Ethiopians, who had charge of all her treasury, and had come to Jerusalem to worship,
28 was returning. And sitting in his chariot, he was reading Isaiah the prophet.
29 Then the Spirit said to Philip, "Go near and overtake this chariot."

Philip found that the man was reading the book of Isaiah, a passage that pointed to Jesus, the Messiah - Philip helped him understand the Scriptures, and the man replied:
34 "I ask you, of whom does the prophet say this, of himself or of some other man?"
35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning at this Scripture, preached Jesus to him.
36 Now as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, "See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?"
37 Then Philip said, "If you believe with all your heart, you may." And he answered and said, "I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God."
38 So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him.

This picture reminds us of the so-called "five solas," which were truths embraced by the Church reformers and described by John Piper on the Desiring God website:

The five solas were their attempt to summarize biblical teaching on salvation. That God makes us alive and is completely for us: By God’s grace alone, on the basis of Christ alone, received through faith alone, to the glory of God alone, with Scripture alone as the only, final, decisive, authority on truth.

I wanted to present this story because it is related somewhat to an op-ed piece that ran on The Commerical Appeal website from a Church of God in Christ minister who is a professor at McCormick Theological Seminary.  His name is Dr. David Daniels.

He claims that in 1517, Luther had become fascinated with Ethiopian Christianity.  Daniels writes:

As an ancient church with direct ties to the apostles, the Ethiopian Church conferred legitimacy on Luther’s emerging Protestant vision of a church outside the authority of the Roman Catholic papacy.

As a forerunner of the Protestant Reformation, the Church of Ethiopia embodied the gospel message more robustly and faithfully.

In 1534, Luther met with a Ethiopian minister, Michael the Deacon. Daniels writes:

Recalling the dialogue with Michael the Deacon, Luther later stated: “We have also learned from him, that the rite which we observe in the use of administration of the Lord’s Supper and the Mass, agrees with the Eastern Church ... For this reason we ask that good people would demonstrate Christian love also to this (Ethiopian) visitor."

For his part, after having Luther's Articles of the Christian Faith interpreted to him, Deacon Michael proclaimed: "This is a good creed, that is, faith."

Daniels also states:

His reforms were based on more than the early church of his imagination. For Luther, the Church of Ethiopia was the historical proof that his reform of the Church in Europe had a clear historical and biblical basis.

The revelation that Ethiopian Christianity possibly had links to Protestant Reformation is a game-changer for what is generally thought to be an exclusively European phenomenon.

So, if things are as Daniels claims, it shows that Luther may have been influenced by a church that traces its roots all the way back to a passage in Acts.  Christianity Today reported in 2015:

Roughly two-thirds of Ethiopians are Christians. The majority of these belong to the ancient Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church; the rest primarily to Protestant denominations such as the Ethiopian Evangelical Church Makane Yesus (which recently broke ties with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America over theological concerns).

By the way, those concerns surrounded the ELCA's embracing of gay marriage, a bridge too far for the Ethiopian Christians.

The article states:

The Tewahedo church—like its Orthodox sister church in Egypt—celebrates its history of martyrdom. It claims descent from the Ethiopian eunuch converted by Philip in Acts 8, and dates formally to the preaching of Frumentius in the early fourth century and the acceptance of Christianity in A.D. 330.

This information can remind us of the growth of the Church throughout sub-Saharan Africa, a region that includes Ethiopia.  A Pew Research article from April of this year states:

If demography is destiny, then Christianity’s future lies in Africa. By 2060, a plurality of Christians – more than four-in-ten – will call sub-Saharan Africa home, up from 26% in 2015, according to a new analysis of demographic data by Pew Research Center. At the same time, the share of Christians living in many other regions – notably Europe – is projected to decline.

We can rejoice in what God is doing on the continent of Africa, as Christianity is spreading.

And, in a sense, we can trace a significant component of the spread of Christianity worldwide to a monk in Wittenberg, Germany who felt the church of his day had drifted from its Scriptural principles.  We can examine our own lives to see if spiritual drift has set in - are we attempting to live as a Christian based on our works, or by grace through faith?  Works don't save us, they are an outward sign of the inward change brought about by Christ.

Finally, as we consider the contention by this professor that Luther may have been influenced by a church that did not even reside in Europe, it can cause us to think about what influences us.  Certainly, our approach to matters of faith and life in general comes as the result of what we have allowed to influence us.  We have to make sure that in spiritual matters, that the Word is the measure. The Word, in fact, is the plumb line by which we measure ideas with which we interact and by which we measure how our lives reflect Christ.

Temporary Home

Ephesians 2 gives some insight into the definition of and the resident power within the Church, the
body of Christ:
19 Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God,
20 having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief corner stone,
21 in whom the whole building, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord,
22 in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.

We acknowledge that the Church, the body of Christ, is not defined by the building in which it meets, but it is described as a building in Scripture, established on our "chief corner stone."  Even though we are individuals and the Church is comprised of individuals, as the Holy Spirit gets involved, the work of God is expressed and we grow - together - in Him, as a strong entity, a force to exalt God in this world, to display His glory and to carry out His work.

+++++

In 1st Timothy 3, the apostle Paul is writing about church structure. He states:
14 These things I write to you, though I hope to come to you shortly;
15 but if I am delayed, I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.

A church in Sandston, Virginia, outside Richmond, ran into a unique predicament recently - what had been its place of worship, at a local hotel, had been shuttered.  The church's Facebook page recounted the story:

When we arrived for worship at the Econolodge on Labor Day weekend, there were signs posted indicating that the building was not to be occupied. We moved our equipment and began a search for a new worship space. We did hear from a Henrico County building official on Tuesday that we could have worshiped in the space that we had been using, because the issue was with other spaces in the building. My understanding is that as of the middle of last week the Econolodge had fixed the building issues. Due to a number of reasons, however, we are not currently planning to return to that space.

The post did express appreciation to the hotel for allowing the church to use the space - but it was time to move on.  So, where to go next?  According to a Fox News story, one of the church members called her boss - after all, that location she was calling about is not in use on Sunday...so the local Chick-fil-A opened its doors the next week - not to serve food, but in order for the church to serve its people.  The Fox story stated:

The fast food restaurant is allowing a displaced congregation from the White Oak Community Church to conduct its meetings inside the eatery until the group can find a more permanent solution, reports WTVR.

Fox reports that lead pastor Dave Wilde "was quick to add that there would be no food served during the meeting. '[But] if you’re a current or future attender, and you always wanted to worship in a restaurant setting, this is your lucky day.'"

I don't know how many weeks the church met in the restaurant, but they have re-re-located.  The church's website announces that it meets now on Saturday nights in another church building.  Its Facebook page actually has some video of the setup.  The church apparently is devoted to small groups, which can provide fellowship and growth opportunities.  And, they just concluded a community outreach earlier this month.

I think there are some great concepts that we can apply to our own lives and the collective life of the church.  For one thing, we continue to highlight that the Church is not a building.  You can hear a phrase such as "the church is located..." in such and such a location.  That refers to where the church meets, but we know the Church resides in the hearts of God's people, and where we are representing Christ, that's where the Church in located.

But, God does desire for us to meet together - for teaching, for fellowship, for outreach, and more. Why, just this weekend, and continuing perhaps tomorrow, churches will be sponsoring outreach events providing a Christian alternative to the celebration of Halloween.  These fall festival activities do give churches a chance to interface with their communities and to perhaps see people come into a saving knowledge of Christ.  For various types of outreach, churches can meet on their property, or perhaps do an outreach event in a special location where people are in need of ministry.  In those cases, the church meets in order to minister.

We can also look to God as our provider.  White Oak Community Church in Virginia lost its meeting place, but God provided another in the form of a local Chick-fil-A, which allowed the body to meet there.  This is indicative, by the way, of Chick-fil-A's commitment to serve its local community.  And, apparently, God has provided again with another location for that church.

We can reflect on our relationship with the living God, Who is at work in the hearts of His people, who testify to His greatness by living our lives in dependence upon Him.

Turning It Around

God is calling us to experience His wonderful forgiveness, to break free from the past, and to walk in
the power and love He offers in His Spirit. 1st John chapter 1 says:
7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.
8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

We can stand before the Lord absolutely clean - not because of anything that we can do; we cannot save ourselves.  But, we can know His forgiveness as we accept His free gift of salvation, acknowledging that we are sinners, believing on Christ, and confessing Him as Lord of our lives. We can confess our sins before Him - regularly - and allow His forgiveness to flow through our hearts, so that we are defined not by our past actions, but our present position in Christ.

+++++

God has brought us into a relationship with Himself through Christ, and has established a new covenent, an arrangement that is predicated on the death and resurrection of Jesus, that can bring us true forgiveness.  Hebrews 8 says:
10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws in their mind and write them on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.
11 None of them shall teach his neighbor, and none his brother, saying, 'Know the Lord,' for all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them.
12 For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more."
13 In that He says, "A new covenant," He has made the first obsolete. Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.

It's really unprecedented when a movie star expresses regrets for an appearance in a film - on moral grounds.  Yeah, you might have an actor talk about his or her involvement in a bad movie in the past, but what Mark Wahlberg has done is certainly worthy of attention.

Faithwire reported on a recent event, at which Wahlberg shared:

Actor Mark Wahlberg recently revealed the one movie that he’s prayed to God for forgiveness for starring in, telling a Chicago audience on Friday that it was his lead role in “Boogie Nights” that left him seeking absolution.

Wahlberg, who played porn star Dirk Diggler in the 1997 film, stood next to Cardinal Blase Cupich at an event aimed at inspiring young people to come back to the Catholic faith when he made the admission.

“‘Boogie Nights’ is up there at the top of the list,” he said when asked if he had any films in particular for which he sought spiritual clemency.

Wahlberg continued, “I just always hope that God is a movie fan and also forgiving, because I’ve made some poor choices in my past.”

The story linked to reports at the Chicago Tribune and People.

The Tribune story stated that Wahlberg "believed his own troubled adolescence, which included time spent in prison for a racist assault on a Vietnamese immigrant, might make it easier for Chicago youths caught up in violent crime to relate to how he turned his life around with the church's help." He said, "I've never been shy about sharing my past and the bad decisions I've made and being affiliated with gangs, being incarcerated, so absolutely I think they can identify with me on a personal level, and that's why I've continued to try to do as much as I can to help young people..."

Faithwire reported that the actor told People magazine last year, in a conversation about the movie about the Boston Marathon attack, Patriots Day, in which he starred: “I think the fact that I’ve been able to turn my life around and really make my mom proud and become a better person through focusing on my faith, it always gives me great sense of pride to come home..."

 Franklin Graham posted a response to Wahlberg's admission.  He stated on Facebook:

Mark Wahlberg is quoted in the news as saying he hopes God will forgive him for his “turn as a porn star” in a 1997 film. The answer to that for Mark or anyone else is—Yes, God will forgive, but it’s on God’s terms. The Bible says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” The Bible is very clear that it is “by grace through faith” not of works.

Franklin went on to include a sinner's prayer.

According to Fox News, the actor hosted an event in Philadelphia when the Pope visited the U.S. in 2015, and the Tribune reports that he had an audience with the pontiff.

Now, the Chicago Tribune story does point out that Wahlberg has a different point of view than Cardinal Cupich and traditional church teaching on gay marriage - the actor supports it.  His response: "I haven't spoken with the cardinal or the pope about that," adding, "I just think we have a lot more important issues to be worrying about. For me, I've got my own issues to deal with. ... I go to confession and I want to continue to work hard on myself."  Perhaps he can have an attitude adjustment on that issue, as well.

Faithwire, referring to a story at The Blaze, stated that "It was in 2012 that Wahlberg told Piers Morgan he either goes to Mass or church every day, stopping in for 15-20 minutes to say some prayers and get his day going."

So, what do we take away from this high-profile expression of faith?

Wahlberg stated, "I just always hope that God is a movie fan and also forgiving."  Well, we can, as Franklin Graham pointed out, have an assurance of God's forgiveness, not by works, but by faith in Christ.  We can be assured of our salvation - if we have trusted Christ as Savior, we can acknowledge that the old is gone, the new has come, and we don't have to live in the bondage of the past, but in the joy of the present, possible through a relationship with Christ.

Wahlberg is definitely owning his bad decisions and issuing a warning to young people.  And, yes, our choices do affect the trajectory of our lives.  We will face the consequences of our choices, but we also have the power to change our course through Christ.  It's not a case of mind over matter or trying to be good in our own human strength, but appropriating the power of the Holy Spirit.

Wahlberg's participation in the film about pornography has a degree of permanence - the film will likely never be erased or made unavailable for people to access.  And, there are decisions and maybe even work product of our own that never go away.  That's a great lesson, by the way, in the world of social media - be careful what you post or share; you can become marked for life.

The best thing we can do when confronted with our past is to ask for and accept forgiveness, to repent and go in a different direction - and we can point to our future in Christ.  We have to be humble, we don't have to try to justify bad behavior, and above all, we can show others who we are now in Him.

SBNR

When you look into the book of Acts, you see that there was supernatural activity all around, including the expression of the power and presence of God.  In Acts 19, we read about a man with an evil spirit who overpowered someone who was trying to drive the spirit out. This obviously terrified the witnesses, but in the aftermath, God was glorified, as we read:
18 And many who had believed came confessing and telling their deeds.
19 Also, many of those who had practiced magic brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted up the value of them, and it totaled fifty thousand pieces of silver.
20 So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed.

I believe we are living in times where there is significant spiritual activity, and we have to be incredibly discerning to determine what is of God, what lines up with His truth, and what doesn't. A person who is not reliant on God's Word and begins to investigate and experiment with other spiritual practices opens himself or herself up to the power of the enemy.  In this age of spiritual experimentation, we have to hold on to the one true God and model His truth.

+++++

As the early Church began to progress, ministers of the gospel ran into some errant spiritual practices. They encountered a sorcerer named Simon in Acts 8, who accepted Christ and was baptized, who tried to pay for the expression of the Holy Spirit and was told to repent.  Acts 16 talks about a girl
who made money for her employers under the influence of an evil spirit:
16 Now it happened, as we went to prayer, that a certain slave girl possessed with a spirit of divination met us, who brought her masters much profit by fortune-telling.
17 This girl followed Paul and us, and cried out, saying, "These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation."
18 And this she did for many days. But Paul, greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, "I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her." And he came out that very hour.

There continues to be a marked departure from organized religious practice among the Millennial generation, and young adults are getting a spiritual "fix," it seems, from a variety of other spiritual practices that do not involved the worship of a deity.  Liberty McArtor of The Stream calls attention to a MarketWatch story that includes information on the so-called "psychic services industry." That story states:

...more than half of young adults in the U.S. believe astrology is a science. compared to less than 8% of the Chinese public. The psychic services industry — which includes astrology, aura reading, mediumship, tarot-card reading and palmistry, among other metaphysical services — grew 2% between 2011 and 2016. It is now worth $2 billion annually, according to industry analysis firm IBIS World.\

The statistic relative to astrology being a science comes from a 2014 study by the National Science Foundation, as reported at UPI.com.

McArtor quotes from a 2012 Pew Research Center poll that found that "a third of millennials have no religious affiliation. But that doesn’t mean they’re atheists. Of that group, one third identify as spiritual but not religious (SBNR). One in five pray every day. Two-thirds believe in God. Over half feel a 'deep connection with nature and the earth.'"

And, MarketWatch reports on a Pew study released last week that says that, "The majority of Americans now believe it is not necessary to believe in God to have good morals...The percentage of people between the ages of 18 and 29 who 'never doubt existence of God' fell from 81% in 2007 to 67% in 2012."

The opening statement in the Pew summary states:

Most U.S. adults now say it is not necessary to believe in God to be moral and have good values (56%), up from about half (49%) who expressed this view in 2011. This increase reflects the continued growth in the share of the population that has no religious affiliation, but it also is the result of changing attitudes among those who do identify with a religion, including white evangelical Protestants.

McArtor, in her article, also explores what some academicians are saying about the so-called SBNR movement (which stands for "spiritual but not religious").  There are those that have their theories about the departure from organized religion, which would include Christianity. But, two things stand out from her article. One is: "millennials still want meaning. " She quotes Matthew Hedstrom of the University of Virginia: “They also want to be a part of something larger — a spiritual belief … a movement to improve the environment, or social justice.”

Another comes from Casper Ter Kuile, a "ministry innovation fellow" at Harvard Divinity School, a 30-year-old religious "none." He told the PBS News Hour, “We aren’t young people who hate religion,” adding, “It’s a growing group that feel like they have been left behind by religious institutions.” He talked about how community is important in filling a void.

McArtor writes:

As examples he named The Dinner Party, which brings people together to share a meal and grieve a lost loved one. He also mentioned CrossFit. The fitness brand has communities across the nation. In June, The Atlantic talked with Ter Kuile on how CrossFit and other gyms function like a church.

Ter Kuile said these kinds of communities are more than “simple entertainment.” He noted how members help each other in times of need, much like a religious congregation.

I think there are several concepts that come to mind here:

It's a bit discomforting in this context to refer to Christianity as a "religion." We really can't put our faith into a sociological box; our practice of faith is more than a ritual or religious expression - it is to be vibrant relationship with a living God.  In a sense, Christianity is in a class all by itself, and that is consistent with Jesus referring to Himself as "the way, the truth, and the life."  The Christian who is following Christ as His disciple, outside the survey world, could be considered SBNR (spiritual but not religious).

But, Christianity, in a demographic sense, fits more with theistic religious practices than these rogue spiritual experiences such as astrology and the so-called "psychic services industry."  But, we can look around and identify that young adults are seeking out a sense of spirituality, which is consistent with that "search for meaning," a sense of something greater than themselves.  That is where the Church has a chance to present the true Jesus, the One who comes to redeem our lives, who invites us to experience His love, and who will bring purpose and direction to our lives.

The Church also has the potential to provide community - an environment in which people can grow in fellowship with God and one another.  Millennials are apparently desiring authentic relationships, rather than, as Ter Kuile says, "simple entertainment."  And, it's important that the Church not become just another entertainment source driven by the consumer culture.

We also can stay away from spiritual practices that do not exalt God.  Astrology puts faith in the stars, it's a diversion from the truth of the Word.  And, it's certainly not harmless.  According to John Ankerberg: "astrology is related to the occult in four main ways." They are: 1) "dictionaries often define astrol­ogy as an occult art because the practice employs occult divination." 2) "astrology appears to work best when the astrologer himself is psychically or mediumistically sensi­tive, what most astrologers term 'intuitive.'" 3) "prolonged use of astrology leads to the development of psychic abilities and the contact of spirit guides." 4) "astrology often becomes the introductory course to a wider spectrum of occult practices."

You have occult practices and witchcraft which offer a spiritual experience, but they stand opposed to the truth of God and open people up to demonic influences.  That is why elements of the practice of Halloween have become concerning to Christians, and why the Church has sought to provide alternatives to the immersion in negative spirituality.  We have to recognize that there is a spiritual realm and there are practices and influences that can be damaging to the spirit of a person.

Solutions

Paul opens up the fourth chapter of Ephesians with a strong exhortation about pursuing peace:
1 I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called,
2 with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love,
3 endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

In the body of Christ, with Jesus as the head, we are held together by a common bond, sealed by the Holy Spirit, who enables us to remain in a spirit of unity.  We are called to seek ways, regardless of our backgrounds, to display unity to a dying world that needs to see the love of Jesus.  The enemy would try to use our unique identities as sources of division, but God wants to take us individually and mold us together into a diverse expression of His love.

+++++

In Galatians 3, we see a wonderful picture of the body of Christ - unified not in spite of our racial and cultural backgrounds, but as a result of God using our uniqueness as individuals to mold a unique and effective body. Here are some verses to consider:
26 For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.
27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
29 And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.

So, we are called to be one in Christ. The enemy recognizes that when the Church is of one mind and one purpose, we are unstoppable and undefeatable.  Now, as it's been said, unity is not uniformity - God doesn't expect us all to act the same, and we will bring different approaches to the Scriptures based on our experience and our capacity to reason.  And, that can be healthy - or detrimental.

So, we have to work at being unified, as representing Christ's body.  Racial divisions within the body of Christ will diminish our work.  And, in culture at large, racial wedges will harm our capability to function as a society.

Two U.S. Senators, who are Christians, get that.  They are James Lankford from Oklahoma and Tim Scott from South Carolina.  Lankford is white, Scott is African-American. The Gospel Coalition website reports on their effort called "Solution Sundays."  The article says that the concept was explained in TIME Magazine last year:

Americans do not really get to know their neighbors and fellow citizens at a rally or a big event, we get to know each other typically over a meal, especially in our home. What if Americans intentionally chose to put our prejudice and broken trust on the table by putting our feet under the same table? If it seems too simple and obvious, let me ask you this question . . . have you ever had dinner in your home with a person of another race? Many Americans have not.

They write: "we challenge each family to give one Sunday lunch or dinner for building relationships across race, to literally be part of the solution in America."

The Gospel Coalition article states that "Lankford says the idea for Solution Sundays arose from his disdain for hearing people say, 'We need to have a national conversation on race.'" He told Focus on the Family: "People perceive ‘a national conversation’ as being a group of politicians sitting around a table, with a bunch of media cameras around them, as those individuals talk about race and try to resolve things,” adding, “That’s not how we resolve anything in America.”

Scott and Lankford just released a video about the concept, inviting people to "venture into someone else’s territory and learn as much as you possible can about someone else.”

The video includes Senate Chaplain Barry Black, who is quoted as saying, "...it may not be the solution, but it’s certainly the beginning of a solution.”

A few observations here:

Number one is that we have to talk with each other.  Not about each other.  And, not necessarily just going to events with each other.  Understanding one another's perspective and background and even approach to God can be helpful in working to solve some of these enormous dilemmas in the area of race relations.  We can't withdraw from each other - not now.  We've come so far, but there is plenty to go.

I was touched by Stephen Mansfield's comments about race relations on yesterday's Meeting House.  He attends a predominantly African-American church and called for a measure of understanding. He said that we need to "gentle up" (never heard that phrase, but it works) with one another.

We have to also acknowledge the enemy's modus operandi to drive wedges between us.  He will do that in any number of ways, but the goal is to keep us separated - if we view each other as separate groups, at the expense of preserving the unity of the Spirit, and then parade that online for all the world to see, we make the Church look like a family feud.  It's not attractive. We have to present a unified, passionate front in order for the world to see Christ.

I also like the term, "Solution Sundays."  Scott and Lankford have a very specific initiative here, but shouldn't Sundays, our day of worship, be a time when we do find solutions - solutions for our individual lives: a greater devotion to God, help to overcome sin, wisdom to deal with relationships, and an enhanced sense of God's healing that is available.  Collectively, in our proclamation and fellowship, we can find and radiate hope and develop a Biblical mindset to affect the world for Christ.

Call for Clarity

The Bible is very clear about God's standards, how we have not and can never meet His standards, but how Christ has come to redeem us so that we might have fellowship with God the Father.  Titus 2
says:
11 For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men,
12 teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age,
13 looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,
14 who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.

So, how do we define "lawless deed?"  The Scriptures show us what pleases God and what violates His principles.  And, we have the guiding and convicting power of the Holy Spirit.  So, if we're are open as we come before the Lord, we can depend on Him to illuminate areas that He wants to transform.  But, we cannot go in with preconceived notions, making the determination ourselves about what is and isn't OK; we are not to withhold any area from Him - in humility, we allow Him to do His desired work for His glory.

+++++

Jesus invites all to come before Him and experience His truth, His mighty power, and His ability to
forgive a person's sin and to experience His redemption. Colossians 1 says:
13 He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love,
14 in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.

There's a new rating service for churches, and on the surface, it seems to be something that would be useful. But, considering the background of the leaders of it, it does raise some important concerns.

It's a website called ChurchClarity.org.  Jonathan Merritt of Religion News Service has already spotlighted it - basically the "clarity" is on one issue: a church's response to LGBT individuals.  Merritt states:

Today, a new organization, Church Clarity, launched an online database that will score churches’ positions on the issue and rate each congregation as either “affirming” or “non-affirming.”

The organization claims to be neutral on the issue, but visitors will be excused from assuming otherwise based on the organization’s leadership. Two of CC’s co-founders — Tim Schraeder, who identifies as gay, and Sarah Ngu, who identifies as queer — are clearly more progressive on the issue. The third, George Mekhail, identifies as straight but serves at the LGBT-affirming Riverside Church in Manhattan.

Merritt believes "CC’s mission is one that many conservative Christians should embrace. Many evangelicals have decried the theological ambiguity of some churches and have called for greater clarity on the matter."  The Church Clarity website has four scores: Clear, Unclear, Undisclosed, or Actively Discerning.  What's unclear is how these are actually determined: it looks like the church's website is a tool for determining the score, as well as submissions to the site.

The question becomes: is a church really going to put an "LGBT policy" on its website - isolating just that one area? To me, it seems to place a greater emphasis that one matter than it deserves.  After all, Jesus Christ died for ALL sin, not just for one!  But, we do have to consider this has become such a contentious issue, even among Christians, not to mention the relationship of the Church and society at large.

Rod Dreher of The American Conservative, author of the book, The Benedict Option, agrees with the concept of the website.  He quotes David Gushee, whom he calls a "liberal evangelical," who wrote at ReligionNews.com:

It turns out that you are either for full and unequivocal social and legal equality for LGBT people, or you are against it, and your answer will at some point be revealed. This is true both for individuals and for institutions.

Neutrality is not an option. Neither is polite half-acceptance. Nor is avoiding the subject. Hide as you might, the issue will come and find you.

Dreher states:

It’s pretty clear that Church Clarity is interested in policing churches from the Christian left. If this were a conservative Christian website, there would be no end of caterwauling from the media and elsewhere about these horrible conservative inquisitors, blah blah blah. This site will be greeted by those same people as a tool for advancing social justice. I can live with that hypocrisy, and still be glad for the clarity this site provides, and compels congregations to embrace.

It’s important. This matters. This winnowing is sad and painful, and is going to be even sadder and more painful. But it can no longer be avoided. The differences are significant, and irreconcilable.

He adds, in response to a reader comment: "...this website starts out as a consumer service (it claims), but as others say, it will be ultimately be used to pressure, shame, and ultimately to persecute dissenting congregations — all in the name of social justice." He adds, "I welcome the Church Clarity site because it clears away the obfuscation and wishful thinking about what’s really going on in this struggle, and what’s really at stake in trying to be a faithful Christian in our time."  

And, in a chilling update, the Church Clarity blog says that "they are going to use this data to make sure that churches “earn” their tax-exempt status. Translation: data collected will ultimately be used in a federal civil rights lawsuit against dissenting churches. There it is. This was always in the cards. It was never about tolerance, but coercion. With Church Clarity, we now have, well, clarity."

Well, I still contend that "clarity" is in the eye of the beholder.  But, I do think that churches and individual Christians need to be clear on where they stand on issues surrounding homosexuality and the LGBT agenda, including same-sex marriage.  Dreher mentioned the importance of the Nashville Statement, which incorporates Biblical principles about sexuality.  

But, I also contend that a person can be "welcoming" toward LGBT people without being "affirming."  Issuing a "warning" about a particular church can thwart the work that the Holy Spirit wants to do in the life of a person by connecting with a congregation.  We should all be eager for all who are sinners, and that includes all of us, to enter into a life-changing encounter with the living Lord.  We should be desirous to see all, including those who identify as LGBT, come into the presence of the Holy Spirit as the Word is preached, as His people worship together, and as they fellowship together.  

Bottom line: all are welcome.  Those who commit sin are invited into the presence of God; but we do not tolerate sin; rather we are to appropriate the redemption for which Jesus died.  God wants to forgive those in sexual sin, those who are addicted to life-controlling substances, those who have committed crimes against others or crimes of the heart.  But, when you come to church, when you submit to the Word, you can expect to be changed.  Unfortunately, those who adhere to the LGBT lifestyle apparently don't want to change; they want their lifestyle to be accepted - that's not the role of the church.

Boast

In Jeremiah 9, there is a passage that reminds us how we are not to be prideful in our human ability,
but to understand the power of God:
23 Thus says the Lord: "Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, Let not the mighty man glory in his might, Nor let the rich man glory in his riches;
24 But let him who glories glory in this, That he understands and knows Me, That I am the Lord, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight," says the Lord.

We can become consumed in ourselves and think about our human accomplishments, what we have done in our own effort.  But, God wants us to become consumed with Him.  When we think of what He has done: creating us and providing us a way through the cross for us to come to know Him, anything we try to accomplish by human effort pales by comparison. He calls us to humble ourselves before Him, so that He can make us who He desires for us to be - in Christ.

+++++

In the last two verses of 1st Corinthians 1, we can read:
30 But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God--and righteousness and sanctification and redemption--
31 that, as it is written, "He who glories, let him glory in the Lord."

A number of translations use the word "boasts" rather than "glories," as in "boast in the Lord."

We can rely on the power of God's Word to keep us on track with our lives and our walk with God.  Some have chosen a "life verse," perhaps a series of verses, that they have personalized in order for the purpose of motivation and clarity.  There is also great value to committing to memorizing Scripture. Whatever the tool, whatever the platform, we can all admit that the careful absorption of Scripture in our consciousness can help to mold us to the image of Christ.

My wife shared with me the other day about something she heard about the great evangelist Billy Graham.  I found the story on the ChristianHeadlines.com website.  The story says that his son, Frankin, shared in a Facebook post that his father "has a particular Bible verse displayed all over his North Carolina home."

The article relates that:

According to ChristianToday.com, the younger Graham called it his father’s life verse. "Still today, my father Billy Graham has a Bible verse pinned up on the wall in his bedroom, printed in VERY large letters. In fact, it's in the dining room, his bathroom, and several other spots around the house! Back before his 95th birthday, he was working on a sermon based on this key Scripture. It was his passion to memorize it, to saturate his heart and mind with it. He made it his life verse," Graham wrote in the recent Facebook post.

The verse, which Franklin describes as "a great verse for us to live by," is Galatians 6:14: "But God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world."

The famous evangelist will turn 99 on November 7, which is two weeks from tomorrow.  The ChristianHeadlines.com article states that, according to Franklin Graham, his father "continues to focus on Scripture and also enjoys visits from family members and close friends."

Oh, by the way, Franklin Graham recently concluded his series of 7 special meetings throughout the state of Texas last week.  The BillyGraham.org website reports that the cities Franklin visited were: Lubbock, Midland, Corpus Christi, San Antonio, Round Rock, Waco, and Longview.

There are several words that I want to concentrate on...

For one thing, Franklin Graham says that even at age 99, his father continues to focus on Scripture.  This is key.  Mr. Graham has a life verse; one that can provide direction for his life.  And, there are numerous resources available in order to help us to digest God's Word better.  But, the starting point, I think, is to make time to be in the Word.  That could take the form of a one-year Bible reading plan, or some sort of daily directed study, or just setting up time to read the Word sequentially and take notes.  Perhaps you use, or have used, the Topical Memory System or other resource in order to help you to memorize Scripture.  If we get the Word into us, it can help assure that the Word is lived through us, out of us.

Now, let's think together about the content of the verse itself.  Galatians 6:14.  It speaks of boasting of nothing except the cross.  I think of the words of Jesus, the Savior of the World, who said in John 15 that without Him we can do nothing.  So, we are not called to highlight our own human ability, but to rely on and call attention to the ability of God to work through us.  And, the relationship comes as we die to self, recognizing we are crucified to the world and the world to us, and surrender to the Lord in the power of the cross.  We don't need to regard how great we are according to human effort, but how great He is!

Spiritual Smorgasbord

We live in a day when pure expressions of faith in Christ are so necessary. However, there are other ideas that permeate our culture.  2nd Timothy 3 warns against those who possess a "form of godliness," but continue to way in the ways of the flesh.  After listing a number of manifestations of this concept, Paul writes:
5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!
6 For of this sort are those who creep into households and make captives of gullible women loaded down with sins, led away by various lusts,
7 always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

We have to make sure that our stated Christianity isn't a way to try to cover up actions that are not pleasing to God and inconsistent with our public persona; i.e., the double life.  Hypocritical Christianity becomes a "form of godliness."  There are those, including people in celebrity culture, who want to "talk spiritual," but whose lives also display characteristics or ideas that contradict Scripture.  Christianity is not one of many spiritual ideas to make one feel better about himself or herself: it is a relationship with the true, loving, holy God through Jesus.

+++++

In Acts 4, we find Peter under siege from those who were so skeptical of his faith that they turned the occasion of the healing of someone into an opportunity to ridicule his faith. He responded by calling attention to the one true way of salvation. We can read:
10 let it be known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by Him this man stands here before you whole.
11 This is the 'stone which was rejected by you builders, which has become the chief cornerstone.'
12 Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."

There doesn't seem to be a whole lot of hope coming out of Hollywood these days - the entertainment industry has been rocked by the scandal involving studio mogul Harvey Weinstein and the astonishing number of women having claimed to be assaulted by him.  The #MeToo Twitter campaign has featured a host of women of who have experienced the pain of sexual assault.

Oprah Winfrey describes it this way, quoted in a CBS News article:

"This is what I do know for sure: When something this major happens, when you have the fallout, 50 women coming forward, that it's a watershed moment. And what I do believe is actually happening is that, first of all, it's triggering a lot of unreleased pain, repressed anger, guilt and suffering that a lot of women have had," Winfrey said Wednesday on "CBS This Morning."

The "60 Minutes" special contributor and author of newly-released book, "The Wisdom of Sundays: Life-changing Insights from Super Soul Conversations," said she was on set with actresses who had not slept for two or three days. "I was like, what is that? Oh, you guys are suffering from PTSD," Winfrey said.

Oprah added, "I know being a victim of child sexual abuse that when you feel like you cannot be heard and then other people start speaking out, it makes you feel like, 'Oh, now, I can speak out too..."

It would be great to hear about how the life-transforming power of Jesus Christ is working in the broken lives in Hollywood, who have been so caught up in the search for success; many intimidated into silence because they felt that by speaking out against despicable behavior that they will never attain the dreams they have.  

But, I'm not sure that Oprah's curious mix of spirituality - I am careful not to say Christianity, because her approach to spiritual matters encompasses a wide range of thoughts.  According to another CBS News article:

Winfrey said spirituality to her is the "desire to fulfill the highest expression of truth in ourselves," and that it is "the essence of who you are."

Her book is described as "a collection of moments from the two-time Emmy Award-winning series, 'Super Soul Sunday,' where Winfrey has in-depth conversations with spiritual thinkers, including life coach Tony Robbins, television producer Shonda Rhimes and Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh."

And, yes, there have been guests identified as Christians who have been on the program.  That makes sense, because in the world of Oprah, Christian ideals are part of an overall spiritual grid.  But, it's not exclusive.  And, that's where celebrity religion misses the mark.

Ken Baker of E!News has just released a book called, The Ken Commandments: My Search for God in Hollywood.  Don't let the title fool you, though - it doesn't appear that Baker has found true Christianity, although elements are part of his spiritual smorgasbord.  Baker, as an entertainment journalist, relates to ReligionNews.com that his amount of worry has been diminished and that he has greater peace.  About his faith perspective, he says:

I would identify as a believer in the grace and power of faith in a higher power. I started off on this midlife search for faith and meaning thinking maybe I will walk away with a label. Maybe I’ll be a Buddhist, or reconnect with my Christian roots, but really what I have walked away with is a reluctance to put any label on where I am.

And I am at total peace with that. I have a sense of being connected to God and any denominational label would not do that justice. So I would say I am a believer, I am faithful, I am centered, I am calm. I have what I think is the powerful spirit of God — as I know God — within me, that gives me focus and strength and a sense of peace I didn’t have before.

His current spiritual practice looks something like this:

I meditate everyday. My core practice is primordial sound meditation — the mantra-based meditation I learned from Deepak Chopra that is similar to Transcendental Meditation. I occasionally go to Bible study with pastor Judah Smith and I have a very good relationship with pastor Brad Johnson of California Community Church, which the Kardashian family attends.

So, here's another celebrity who has added Christianity as an item on a spiritual menu.

And, that can challenge us to think about what Biblical Christianity actually is.  Certainly we have the choice whether or not to follow Jesus, but once we are followers, the way of discipleship actually involves doing what He says and adhering to His principles.  Sure, we have free will to do what we want to to grow as close to God as we wish, but that's not the Biblical approach to God.  Once we become a Christian, we are called to pursue a life of righteousness and holiness, a life that reflects the glory of God and devotion to Jesus - but to add other ideas to the process that contradict the teachings of Scripture, well, that diminishes what God has in store for us.

Because, the life devoted to Jesus is the life of a follower, an acknowledgement that He is the way, the truth, and the life.  We come to the Father through Him; no one comes to God any other way. Sure, there are many who claim to follow God and talk about God in their lives, and this is very common in celebrity culture.  But, it seems to me there is a tendency to seek for a self-styled god, whose religion allows you to blend a variety of spiritual elements.  That's not the walk to which Jesus is calling us - once we decide to surrender our lives to Him and are born again, then the expectation is to follow His principles, and not rely on spiritual ideas that contradict His own in order to experience a better life.

Christianity does not represent one of a stream of spiritual ideas or set of spiritual ideas in order to make us feel better about ourselves; nowt, it's about an encounter with a loving, living God, Who gave His life so that we can live His life; or so that we can have Him live His life through us.

Speak

Peter and John, according to Acts 4, are great examples to us of two men who were not intimidated to speak out for Christ.  Empowered by the Holy Spirit, they confounded the authorities, who sought to
silence them. We can read:
18 And they called them and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus.
19 But Peter and John answered and said to them, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge.
20 For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard."

So what have we seen and heard?  We can think about what God has done in our lives, and be motivated to speak out about it.  We can also speak out about what we have seen in the Scriptures; reliant on the Holy Spirit to give us the words to say and the boldness to speak them. We can be ready to speak truth to whoever we encounter, grounded in the Word and devoted to presenting a Biblical perspective on issues and situations.

+++++

There is a Biblical concept of reliance on the Holy Spirit to give us words to say, especially in
difficult situations. Luke 12 says this:
11 Now when they bring you to the synagogues and magistrates and authorities, do not worry about how or what you should answer, or what you should say.
12 For the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say."

When you consider the complex and sometimes uncomfortable relationship that the faith community has with President Trump, you can find a certain amount of comfort in his stated commitment to religious liberty.  At the Values Voter Summit last week, an annual event sponsored by Family Research Council, Trump said this about an executive order he issued on religious freedom on the National Day of Prayer, according to the White House website:

Among many historic steps, the executive order followed through on one of my most important campaign promises to so many of you: to prevent the horrendous Johnson Amendment from interfering with your First Amendment rights. 

That was greeted by applause. He added, "We will not allow government workers to censor sermons or target our pastors or our ministers or rabbis. These are the people we want to hear from, and they're not going to be silenced any longer."

Just this week, the Alliance Defending Freedom, according to its website, sent a letter to members of Congress on behalf of 4,000 religious leaders that ADF says are in favor of repealing the Johnson Amendment, which places limitations on what pastors are allowed to say on political issues.  Included in the letter are some results from a LifeWay Research survey.  The site states:

The LifeWay Research poll of 1,000 Protestant pastors, conducted Aug. 30 to Sept. 18, shows that 91 percent agree that “pastors should have the right to speak freely from the pulpit without the fear of being penalized by the government.” In addition, 73 percent agree that “Congress should remove the IRS’s power to penalize a church because of the content of its pastor’s sermons.” The poll has a margin of error of approximately 3.2 percent.

The letter says:

It’s time for Congress to restore a pastor’s right to free speech.

The Free Speech Fairness Act does just that. This bill stops the IRS from being speech police, and allows pastors to speak—or not speak—as their conscience requires. America’s pastors have asked for this legislative fix, and you have the opportunity to restore their First Amendment freedoms by including this bill in tax reform.

Earlier in the letter, it states:

For over sixty years, Section 501c(3) of the Tax Code (the “Johnson Amendment”) has forced churches to surrender First Amendment freedoms in exchange for a tax status and empowered federal bureaucrats to dictate what pastors may not say from their pulpits. Simply mentioning biblical issues—like the sanctity of life and marriage—too close to an election could risk intrusive IRS audits, incur steep fines, and even jeopardize a church’s tax-exempt status.

George Barna of the American Culture and Faith Institute alludes to that framework as an intimidation factor for pastors speaking out on a Biblical viewpoint on current issues.  In a 2015 article on the Institute website, he says, "The corollary information in our studies indicates that theologically conservative pastors are refusing to teach biblical principles related to current issues because they are concerned about being seen as political, not wanting to risk the loss of numbers of people or donations, and concern about the status of the church’s non-profit designation..."

His research showed that willingness to preach on social issues declined between 2014 and the 2016 election cycles.  For instance, in 2014, 63% of pastors said they had addressed or planned to address the topic of religious freedom - that was 36% in 2016.  Abortion: 48% in 2014, 26% last year.  And, immigration: 17% in 2014 and 8% in 2016 - no wonder there is confusion in the Christian community about that issue!

Barna also relates that, based on research, "A large majority of Christian conservatives are actually eager to learn and to be challenged how to think biblically about today’s issues. If they do not receive that teaching from their church, they are not likely to receive such insight at all. It certainly won’t come from the mainstream media, which is their primary source of news about the elections and the state of America. Conservative churches have a biblical mandate to teach these things but are choosing to ignore the opportunity in favor of remaining safe in their teaching and practices.”

I don't believe we as Christians are called to exit the political realm - the decisions made by our lawmakers can affect our lives and our families for bad or for good.  That is why we need to be engaged.  And, that will involve speaking up from time to time.  Addressing current issues Biblically, I don't believe, is politicizing the pulpit; rather it is being a good steward of applying the truth of the Scriptures to the times in which we live.

I also think this intimidation to speak up extends beyond our churches.  It affects the willingness of the Church to speak in the public square.  We see this in our schools, where officials misunderstand and misapply the rights of students, and even teachers and administrators.  We also see this in our military, where brave people of faith have found their freedom of expression curtailed.  Why, just recently, according to ChristianHeadlines.com, WORLD News Service reports that:

U.S. Air Force officials have suspended a decorated officer and revoked his recommendation for promotion to brigadier general because he would not sign an unofficial document affirming a retiring subordinate’s same-sex marriage.\

I think it's helpful as we examine and wrestle with our place in the culture to recognize how the Bible speaks to the issues that confront us.  We all have media sources that we turn to, but we have to be discerning in what we allow to influence us.  We can rely on the direction of the Holy Spirit to shape our views - and our responses.

Flames

When we are surrounded by trouble and our hope is waning, we can draw strength from the presence
of the Lord. In Psalm 32, we can read:
7 You are my hiding place; You shall preserve me from trouble; You shall surround me with songs of deliverance. Selah
8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye.

When times in our lives occur when our faith is challenged and we experience weakness in withstanding the difficulties of life, we can choose to focus on the problem, or to focus on the Lord, who provides strength and solutions.  We can rely on Him to give us instruction, to provide the direction we need in order to navigate those troublesome times.  We can hide ourselves in Him and allow Him to fight for us and advance His cause.

+++++

In our times when it seems like the challenges or spiritual threats might outweigh our resources and
our resolve, we can look to our Redeemer, and in Him we can have hope. Isaiah 43 states:
1 But now, thus says the Lord, who created you, O Jacob, And He who formed you, O Israel: "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; You are Mine.
2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, Nor shall the flame scorch you.

Dozens have died in those tragic California wildfires, with thousands of firefighters and first responders battling the flames.  John and Jan Pascoe have a unique survival story that was reported on the Faithwire website, integrating content from a Los Angeles Times article.

Over a week ago, the Pascoes had recognized that there might be a limited amount of danger.  Around bedtime on Sunday night over a week ago, they received a call from their daughter who said that her father-in-law's home 40 miles away from the Pascoes had burned down.  John and Jan began to take some precautions, including putting some of John's paintings and two Dale Chihuly glass bowls in their pickup truck.

Their daughter called a couple of hours later and begged for them to get out.  They tried, but upon driving down their driveway, they encountered a wall of flames.  They drove back up the driveway and began to strategize.  The place of rescue - a neighbor's pool; they headed for it and waited until the last possible moment in order to jump into the 50-degree, soot-covered water.

The Times article said that, "To stay warm, they held each other. They stood back to back. They spoke about their deep love for each other and their family."

Faithwire reports:

By first light, the Pascoes had been in the pool for about six hours. With the worst of the fire seemingly behind them, they emerged from the water and fashioned what remained of their tattered clothing and melted shoes into a loincloth. They trudged back up the hill to where their house once stood and found nothing but ashes in its place. At their neighbor’s home, only a life-size statue of a cherubic angel made it through the fire unscathed.

John is quoted as saying: "We lost everything, and we have to start over. We’ve been here for 35 years. That’s a little hard to get my head around, but… we’ll be fine,” adding, “We have each other, and that’s something we found really came out of all this: We have each other, and we’ll be fine.”

Obviously, this is a harrowing survival story, and while you don't get an indication of the Pascoes' faith perspective, they were able to draw strength from one another, and it is an inspiring tale of how the bonds of a married couple and their reflection on the good times they had experienced together kept them going.

This story can certainly provide inspiration and instruction for us when the flames of fiery trials seem to be encircling us.  When there seems to be no way out, we can turn to our powerful friend, who will comfort and sustain us.  And, we can look for a way of rescue, a plan of escape - for the Pascoes, it was a pool; for us, it will likely be something different, but we can make sure that we are looking for God's wisdom and depending on His Spirit.  But, when it seemed like there was no way out, a plan emerged.

We can reflect on a powerful lesson for us concerning faith and determination, powered by God's Spirit. There will be the flames that come into our lives, and we may find ourselves surrounded.  But, rather than be discouraged by the challenges, we have the credible option to focus on the hope, to concentrate on God's resources and His provision.  We can find our encouragement in Him.

Satisfaction

The apostle Paul accepted the call of God on His life and the purpose that the Lord had intended for
him even before Paul was born. Galatians 1 states:
15 But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother's womb and called me through His grace,
16 to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood,
17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; but I went to Arabia, and returned again to Damascus.
18 Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter, and remained with him fifteen days.

And, that's what God wants to do through each of us - to reveal His Son.  He wants us to coming into a saving knowledge of Himself so that the nature of Christ might be displayed in our lives.  There are those who would deny the hand of God on them and reject His design, even to the extent that they identify as a gender other than the one that He has created for a person. We recognize that He has formed us; that we are, as Psalm 139 states, "fearfully and wonderfully made."  Who are we to attempt to override His design and try to alter His purposes?

+++++

God is our creator, and each human being is created in His image; we bear His mark, we reflect His
image. Isaiah 44 says this:
24 Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, And He who formed you from the womb: "I am the Lord, who makes all things, Who stretches out the heavens all alone, Who spreads abroad the earth by Myself...

There are those who have been duped by the promise of a new gender identity are expressing regrets for what they have done to themselves.  That's according to a piece on the Liberty Counsel website quoting from a story on The Telegraph site.

The Liberty Counsel story states:

Professor Miroslav Djordjevic has seen a high number of “transgender” people who have undergone sex-change surgeries later express regrets and experience crippling depression and suicidal thoughts. Djordjevic cites two reasons: a lack of robust research on the topic and a lack of psychiatric evaluation and counseling before the surgeries.

Djordjevic requires a year of psychiatric evaluation, followed by hormone therapy and evaluation. The professor also notes that the age of his patients has dropped - he will not perform the surgery on anyone under 18.

A psychotherapist in England named James Caspian attempted to do research on what has been termed, "detransitioning," but, as the story says: "his proposal was rejected after his preliminary findings revealed that an increase of young people, particularly women, were regretting 'gender reassignment surgery,' according to The Guardian."

Walt Heyer attempted to fix his gender dysphoria through gender reassignment surgery. The good news is that, "after he experienced restoration and healing from a relationship with Jesus Christ, Heyer reverted back to his biological gender as a man." He's quoted as saying, "I see the tragic consequences of polices to expand gender/sex beyond male and female, in the desperate letters I receive from those who regret gender transitioning and from the families of those who are still caught in the transgender delusion...”

As the story says:

Liberty Counsel has been instrumental in defeating proposed laws in numerous states which sought to prohibit counselors – including pastors, teachers, and parents – from providing counsel to any minor (including a parent’s own child) about the child’s unwanted same-sex attractions or gender confusion.

Mat Staver, Founder and Chairman of Liberty Counsel, says, “To suggest that people can change their sex like they change clothes or dye their hair is dangerous,” adding, “People’s discontentment with their birth sex cannot be solved by hormones and body mutilation..."

We can always take efforts to improve ourselves, but I believe that gender is a non-negotiable element of our lives.  The Bible teaches us that we have been created by God with certain biology - male or female.  Now, that's not to say we cannot or should not take medical steps to correct certain irregularities, but it is outright dangerous to try to change our God-given gender.  And, as this story suggests, we are seeing people who have now expressed regrets for their efforts to alter what God has not intended to be altered.  Attempting to identify as another gender is denying His design.

But, what He does intend to be altered is the condition of our hearts.  While we can be satisfied with certain aspects of our human identity, especially concerning physical characteristics, we should seek to find our true identity in Christ and depend on Him to conform us to His will through salvation and the sanctification process.

We are uniquely created by God; fearfully and wonderfully made - and through the presence of Christ, He can take the canvas of our lives and infuse each of us with His Spirit, His nature, so that we become who He wants us to be.  We are vessels crafted by Him, designed to be filled with His Spirit, so that He might be glorified.

Light Unto My Path

Psalm 119 contains a great amount of content regarding the Word of God. It tells us of the reliability and the power of the Word. We can read:
103 How sweet are Your words to my taste, Sweeter than honey to my mouth!
104 Through Your precepts I get understanding; Therefore I hate every false way.
105 Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path.

The Bible even tells us that our steps can be ordered by the Lord.  There is a challenge that we have each day, in the everyday flow of our lives, to either navigate life our own way or allow God's Word to shape our paths.  We can decide whether or not we allow the authority of the Word to govern how we walk.  Sure, there are certain routines that we have, but even in our regular schedule, we can turn to the principles of the Word to determine our actions and attitudes within those contexts.

+++++

I want to open up with this Scripture today - it has quite a bit of significance in light of yesterday's Talladega race.  Billy Irvin had shared about this story, and it was featured on the FOX Sports website yesterday.

But, first - to the Word...Lamentations 3, verses 22-24:
"The unfailing love of the Lord never ends!  By His mercies we have been kept from complete destruction. Great is His faithfulness; His mercies begin afresh every day.  I say to myself, 'The Lord is my inheritance; therefore I will hope in Him.'  The Lord is wonderfully good to those who wait for Him and seek Him."

(That appears to be from the New Living Translation.)

That verse was posted on the dashboard of the pole-sitting car in yesterday's race - the 88 car driven by Dale Earnhardt, Jr., racing for the last time at the Alabama oval.

It was a special weekend for Dale Jr.  The speedway had given him a special gift. Autoweek reports:

Remarkably, given the success of the Earnhardt family at the massive track in the heart of Alabama, Earnhardt had no poles to show for his previous 34 attempts. But a day after proudly driving the No. 2 Rod Osterlund Chevrolet his father, Dale Earnhardt Sr., piloted to his first series championship in 1980, Earnhardt Jr. found his mojo.

After Friday’s practice, Earnhardt took a lap in the vintage car, a gift from the speedway to commemorate his contribution to the iconic track and to the sport.

And, then he earned the pole for the Alabama 500 - for the first time in 35 tries at Talladega.  Sunday was also Dale Earnhardt Jr. Day in Alabama, proclaimed by Gov. Ivey.

It was many years ago when the wife of racing great and now FOX sportscaster Darrell Waltrip gave Dale Jr.'s father a special gift.  As the story goes, Stevie Waltrip had been sharing Scriptures with Darrell to post on his dashboard.  One day, after Dale Sr. had been invited to join a prayer meeting following the death of Neil Bonnett, he saw Stevie hand Darrell his Scritpure, and Earnhardt asked Stevie where his verse was.  That began a tradition that continues to this day...from 1994 until Earnhardt's death in 2001, and now in the car of Dale Jr.  Stevie passes the Scriptures to Junior's wife, Amy, and she, by popular demand, posts them on her Twitter feed.  Today's verse from Lamentations was no exception.  And, the hashtag is #SteviesVerse.

The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association website ran a feature last year on Stevie Waltrip. Her husband, Darrell, is quoted as saying: “It’s so gracious and kind of the Lord to use a little act like that and expand it to that point,” adding, “That just makes me really happy..." He said for Junior and Amy, his then-fiancee, "to have that kind of platform and to use it in that way is so valuable, so significant; it’s a great thing for the kingdom.”

When Earnhardt won the 2014 Daytona 500, his Scripture verse was Isaiah 40:28-31...the card rests on the trophy to commemorate the win.  

The story quotes Stevie as saying, "I believe God’s Word is living and powerful and life changing so I put Scriptures on the dash of his car not for any other reason than to just help him focus on what truly was most important to give him encouragement..."

This story can inspire us with a number of elements:

We can think together that God's Word is living and active.  We can consider how God wants us to keep His Word in the forefront of our minds.  I would dare say that those that are familiar with this arrangement between Stevie altrip and the Earnhardts recognize that this practice should be more than just a mere ritual or superstition.  There is life in the Word, and for the believer in Christ, it become a lifeline for us.

We can also cling to God's Word and recognize that it will not return void.  No matter what the motivation might be, that Word can mean something to so many people.  And, we should never take His Word for granted in our lives.  The Word as it is spoken, or posted, has power from which people can draw.

Finally, we can be assured that God's Word will provide us with direction, hope, and comfort.  So many of us need wisdom in our lives today; we can turn to the Scriptures, rather than human understanding, to discover what God has to say in various situations.  When we need an anchor to bring hope to us, His Word is there.  And, when we need to know the peace of God that passes all human understanding, we can turn to the Bible and find comfort.

Permission to Speak Freely

In Proverbs 15, we see some wise words about the proper use of the tongue:
1 A soft answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger.
2 The tongue of the wise uses knowledge rightly, But the mouth of fools pours forth foolishness.
3 The eyes of the Lord are in every place, Keeping watch on the evil and the good.
4 A wholesome tongue is a tree of life, But perverseness in it breaks the spirit.

The Bible teaches us that our words are a reflection of what is abundant in our hearts, and we also are told that we, in our human strength, cannot tame our tongues.  The tongue is powerful, and it has to be guided through the power of the Holy Spirit.  We are told to be slow to speak and quick to listen. And, we are to guard against idle words.  So our tongue can be used to build up or tear down, for God's purpose or our own.  We have the power to use our words to bring about powerful outcomes.

+++++

The Bible has plenty to say about our demeanor as believers in Christ, and the quality of our speech, consistent with His character. Ephesians 4 says:
29 Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.
30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
31 Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice.

The celebrities are out and responding to public pressure to denounce the offensive ways of Harvey Weinstein, even in light of his contributions to their own personal success.  One of the most outfront victims of his alleged assaults is an actor whom I have to admit I have never heard of - Rose McGowan.  She has been very active on Twitter denouncing the studio mogul, except for that time period during which she was banned by the social media service.

According to a CBS News report...

...McGowan said late Wednesday that Twitter had suspended her from tweeting after the social media company said she broke its rules. On her Instagram account, McGowan said "there are powerful forces at work" and pleaded for others to "be my voice."

Twitter issued a statement late Thursday morning explaining the decision. It said McGowan's account "was temporarily locked because one of her Tweets included a private phone number, which violates of our Terms of Service."

She's been restored and Twitter made a conciliatory statement, according to the article.  It said: "Twitter is proud to empower and support the voices on our platform, especially those that speak truth to power," adding, "We stand with the brave women and men who use Twitter to share their stories, and will work hard every day to improve our processes to protect those voices."

McGowan has been back in full force over the past day or so, taking aim at Amazon founder Jeff Bezos for, according to CNBC, "allegedly ignoring her warnings about Harvey Weinstein."

The Weinstein allegations are difficult to talk about and very serious.  But, so are the issues being raised by a member of Congress from Tennessee who is a favorite to win the Senate seat to be vacated by Bob Corker.

Seems Rep. Marsha Blackburn wanted to run an ad on Twitter, which, according to Fox News, said:
"I'm 100% pro-life. I found Planned Parenthood, and we stopped the sale of baby body parts — thank God."  Twitter claimed the ad included "an inflammatory statement that is likely to evoke a strong negative reaction" and originally stated it would, according to Fox, "air the Senate candidate's ad, but only if the line about 'the sale of baby body parts' was removed."

The story notes that Twitter has now changed course and decided to allow the ad. According to the Fox story:

Blackburn said she believes Twitter reversed its decision because "the American people rose up."

"I think what has happened, the American people rose up. They are sick and tired of the liberal elites and the liberal media telling them what they're going to listen to, and what is going to be pushed forward and broadcast and what is not, and in this example it was Twitter," Blackburn said.

Two pro-life groups are demanding that Twitter not block their ad content. In a press release from the Susan B. Anthony List, it is stated:

Twitter has arbitrarily blocked advertising from Live Action and Susan B. Anthony List (SBA List) in recent years, just as the company did recently with a political advertisement submitted by Rep. Marsha Blackburn in which she discussed her efforts “to stop the sale of body parts” by Planned Parenthood, the nation’s largest abortion business. Twitter reversed its decision after receiving widespread criticism.

The press release also includes this morsel: 

In an interview with Axios this morning, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg said her company would have run Rep. Blackburn’s ad and that “When you cut off speech for one person, you cut off speech for all people.”

Oh, by the way, Sandberg gave $1 million dollars to Planned Parenthood earlier this year and is a longtime donor, according to The Daily Signal.

And, her statement is a bit laughable - you might ask Kirk Cameron, who experienced his content being blocked concerning his 2013 movie release, Unstoppable.  A release on the Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry website quoted Kirk's Facebook page:

Facebook has officially "blocked" me and you (and everyone else) from posting any link to my new movie at UnstoppableTheMovieDOTcom, labeling the content as "abusive", "unsafe", and "spammy"!

Facebook ultimately allowed the link.

Or, how about Elizabeth Johnston, also known as The Activist Mommy.  According to CBN News:

She argued that the Bible does not condone homosexuality and quoted scriptures from the Old and New Testament to support her. Facebook quickly removed the post and suspended Johnston's account on three separate occasions. Facebook told Johnston her post did not "follow the Facebook Community Standards."

"They are muzzling me and my biblical message while Mark Zuckerberg claims that FB is unbiased," she said in a statement. "The post Facebook deleted included no name-calling, no threats, and no harassment. It was intellectual discussion and commentary on the Bible."

Facebook finally apologized and reinstated Johnston's account after coming under heavy fire from the media.

And, didn't Facebook recently introduce a feature that allows users to label content as "fake news?"

We recognize the lay of the land: there are those who will want to shame Christians into silence.  Intimidate us because of our views consistent with the Scriptures.  People claim to support free expression of ideas, but when it comes right down to it, there is a tendency that humans have to shut down speech with which they do not agree.

Certainly, I do think that there are types of expression that are culturally and morally inappropriate, and should not be available for mass consumption. There are forms of content, such as pornography, that are so harmful that they should be rooted out at all costs. And, you can't hide behind free speech when lives are being destroyed.

Funny thing is, there are those who are so hostile to faith and religious expression that they would like to see those elements erased from our culture.  I think they would be hard-pressed to admit that they would like to live in the anarchy that would result from an absence of Christian ideals in our culture.  God's principles still provide us with the restraints that are necessary in order to facilitate order and to build quality relationships.  The lack of awareness of common decency and the recognition of humans as having value has enormous negative implications; unfortunately, we are already seeing that occur.

To those who are hostile to faith, we hopefully can say to them, "look at me!"  Not in a narcissistic way, but saying to the world, "follow me as I follow Christ."  The way we live, the way we love, could send a strong message to the world about who Jesus is.