Queen Of Sciences

Theology is the "queen of sciences" and probably the first science since it formulated the basics of all we still know of God.  It is based on Scripture, the immediate revelation of God, and cannot be disputed by man's conjecture or speculation.  We are all theologians in a sense because we all have private ideas concerning God and interpret the Bible accordingly.  It's not that some people are just good at theology and are therefore theologians, but some people just take a liking to this avenue of knowledge--direct from God.

Someday even science will have to admit that the theologians were right and they will meet together where theologians have stood for centuries, contemplating the origin of the universe, of evil, of man, et al.  Theology is not an abstract science that is a fool's errand of speculation, rather it's an exact science based on the faith that God has revealed to us what we need to know.  It's not a matter of faith versus reason, but of faith in God versus faith in science, or which set of presuppositions you decide to accept as your starting point.  In other words, everyone has faith!

You can know all there is to know of theology and miss the boat spiritually, yet theology is necessary, though it's not sufficient.  You must have your heart in the right place and have faith in God, not just head knowledge or consent to a dogma.  We all need a sound theology to mature in Christ, and that is why theologians are necessary--those that devote themselves to this endeavor.  The reason is that you cannot avoid theology--we're all theologians (those who study the nature of God)!   However, you can get A's in theology class and hardly know the Lord, because it's just head knowledge--it must go down 18 inches to the heart.

Many people distrust theologians because they seem to be intellectuals with their heads in the clouds or on abstract ideas, but this is unwarranted because there are theologians who know the Lord and know how to apply theology to the Christian experience.  It's the immature believer who balks at learning the teachings of God in-depth and doesn't go on to know the Lord.  We must get an intellectual grasp on the concepts found in theology because something cannot be in your heart that's not first in your head!   That's why it's vitally important that our heart is in the right place, even before we get our thinking straightened out--which is commanded in 2 Cor. 10:5, ESV, to "take every thought captive to obey Christ."  Otherwise, we will be "carried about by every wind of doctrine" (Eph. 4:14, ESV).   When we are ignorant of basic doctrine we are vulnerable to the assaults of Satan and are led astray by false doctrine and even doctrines of demons.

The mistake is to be overly convinced that the primary goal is to be right in everything; however, it's imperative that our hearts be in the right place more so than our doctrine be "impeccably correct." There are some controversies worth the fight to see what the truth is; godless ones are not.  Sound doctrine must be ascertained and heresy denounced--this is the calling of polemics or of defending the faith.   Soli Deo Gloria!

Thought Control

The heart in Scripture refers to the innermost being of man, his affections, will, and intellect.  In Psalm 19:14, David prays that the thoughts of his heart be acceptable in God's eyes.  Man is whatever he thinks about all day, some poet has written.  Another has said appropriately, you aren't what you think you are, but what you think, you are!  Jesus said  (cf. Matt. 15:19) that "out of the heart comes evil thoughts." The lips reveal what's on the heart, that's why David prays that the words of his mouth and the meditations of his heart be acceptable in God's sight.  In Psalm 139:23, David prays, "Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts." We keep no secrets from God. Proverbs 23:7 is pertinent:  "As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he." Jesus said that all is open and laid bare to Him whom we must give account.  In other words, God wants us to get our thinking straightened out!  We are to love God with all our minds, too.

Why are thoughts so important to our walk?  They are to be godly and have a divine viewpoint.  We are not to think like the world, but to be transformed by the renewing of our mind (to conform to the image of Christ), according to Romans 12:2.  It is not sufficient to be content with Bible knowledge if it doesn't sink into our minds and make them in the image of Christ and to learn to think like He thinks, "we have the mind of Christ [Scripture]"  (1 Cor. 2:16). Our minds are finite and Christ's is infinite and we will never peg Him nor have a handle on everything He thinks, but we are to grow in the grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (cf. 2 Pet. 3:18).

The devil likes to destroy our thinking process with lies from the world, and only the study of Scripture can prepare us to fight them.  "For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does.  The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world.  On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ"  ((2 Cor. 10:4-5, NIV, emphasis mine).

Your worldview is your mental outlook (how you interpret the world around you and its events) and it must be Christian or what is known as the Judaeo-Christian worldview, as opposed to the Secular Humanist or Postmodern ones so prevalent in academia today.  It is a sad fact, for instance, that the average teen believer now actually believes truth is only relative and there is no "absolute truth." Jesus came to bear witness to the truth (cf. John 18:37-38).  "...Everyone on the side of truth listens to me" (John 18:38, NIV). Jesus claimed to be the incarnation, embodiment, or personification of the truth and He claimed you will and can know it:  "You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free" (cf. John 8:32). Man's learning can be called "true," but only Scripture is "truth." That's why truth transforms and has the power to change lives. That's why Jesus said:  "Sanctify them by the truth, thy word is truth"  (John 17:17, KJV).

This is where we must take our stand and show our colors--there is knowable absolute truth and we are responsible for it, as revealed in Scripture.  No one can claim ignorance and no one has an excuse (cf. Romans 1:20).  Just like Paul said in 1 Cor 13 that when he was a child he thought as a child, and so on; it is time to think like a man of God and this doesn't just imply being content to be impeccably correct theologically (it is far more urgent to have your heart in the right place), but thinking like Christ as it relates and applies to the world around us  (i.e., "to understand the times" per 1 Chronicles 12:32).  Our thoughts are vital, for Christ must first be in our minds before He can be in our hearts, likewise doctrine.


At the Ocean Grove Conference Center in New Jersey the inscription over the speaker's platform reads:

SOW ...                           REAP
a thought                           an act
a habit                               act
an act                                character
a character                        a destiny

IT IS OF PARAMOUNT IMPORTANCE TO PUT A PREMIUM ON THOUGHT CONTROL.

Soli Deo Gloria!

Repentance And Confession

"Therefore, repent and turn from all your sins, that you may be forgiven and times of refreshing may come from the Lord." Acts 3:19

When we get saved, it's by penitent faith, or believing repentance, because they go hand in hand as the Bible says, "Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate" in Mark 10:9. ("[Testifying] both to Jews and to Greeks of repentance toward God and of faith in our Lord Jesus Christ," says Acts 20:21).  The first of the Ninety-five Theses that Martin Luther made was that our penitence is a continual thing and renewed, an ongoing resolution it's not just a one-time event.  It is a mockery of repentance to confess without turning from the sin and not being sorry enough to quit.  As Job said, "... I will wait till my renewal comes" (cf. Job 14:14).  Indeed, even Job did find repentance: "[Therefore] I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes"  (Job 42:6, ESV).

Some believers are concerned that they confess the same sins over and over (this is called the "sin which easily besets [or ensnares] you" per Heb. 12:1).  "... And let no iniquity have dominion over me"  (Ps. 119:133, NKJV).  David says, "Keep back Your servant also from presumptuous sins; Let them not have dominion over me...."  What do they want?  New sins?  God is able to make grace abound toward us and give us the victory over sin because we are no longer "under the law" and "sin shall have no dominion over you" per Romans 6:14.

When we become believers we do not have permission to live in the flesh or become Antinomians living as our flesh desires, but we have the power to live in the Spirit.  As David says in Psalm 18:23 that he has "kept [himself] from [his] sin." We cannot achieve sinless perfection but we can overcome our easily besetting sin and not let it hinder our walk.  "Who can say, 'I have made my heart clean, I am pure from my sin [sinful nature]?'"(Cf. Prov. 20:9).   Note that the psalmist said in Psalm 119:96 that he had seen the "limit of all perfection."

We have to be on the alert, because "sin wants to destroy you, but don't let it [it's crouching at the door!]"  (cf. Gen. 4:7).  Hosea says that sin has been Israel's downfall (cf. Hos. 14:1).  Repentance was demanded of the woman caught in adultery:  "Go and sin no more!"[i.e., live in sin] (Cf. John 8:10ff).  Salvation is more than mere forgiveness at the point of salvation--it covers all sin, past, present, and future, but is not an easy believism or cheap grace that grants forgiveness without repentance.

We must confess and admit our faults and sins to God, calling a spade a spade, naming sin as God does and  calling it out, making no excuses, nor trying to justify ourselves.  "No one who abides in him keeps on sinning..." (1 John 3:6, ESV).   If we go on in our sin we will be disciplined or chastised of the Lord and we can be sure "our sin will find us out" per Numbers 32:23. Jeremiah writes:  "Why should a living man complain, A man for the punishment of his sins?"  (Lam. 3:39, NKJV).   

Remember, to feel remorse or regret is only half the formula; we must have faith and accept God's forgiveness, not living in guilt. It must be matched with faith.   Peter was forgiven, Judas wasn't because Peter had penitent faith/believing repentance and Judas just felt sorry for what he'd done or had remorse but lacked faith, his missing ingredient.   Soli Deo Gloria!

Coming Full Circle

Some Protestants have come full circle, in that they are no different from Roman Catholics in their study of Scripture and acceptance of its authority.  What they do is rely too heavily on the leadership or teachers of the church and fail to take the Word of God at face value for what God is telling them--in other words, they should become Bereans (cf. Acts 17:11), and search things out whether they are so.  The whole concept of being a Protestant is to question authority just as Martin Luther uttered:  "I dissent, I disagree, I protest!"  We must question authority, for no one is infallible, not even the Pope who claims to speak ex-cathedra.  Our authority from the Reformation was sola Scriptura, or the Scripture alone and this was one of its slogans during the drive to find its identity.

If you just rely on one person for inspiration or instruction or drink of just one fountain, you will lose the power of discernment and could become vulnerable to the Jim Jones phenomenon, where the whole church decides it doesn't even need the Bible anymore, since they have God's voice on earth to pontificate it. One consequence of not searching things out is that the church tends to become set in its ways and loses balance and perspective of the influence of new ideas and reform:  Semper reformanda was another slogan of the Reformation and we should never become complacent and think we've "arrived" at the perfect church or orthodoxy--we are always in the process of reform--Martin Luther, et al. didn't finish the work and they would be the first to tell you this.

But note that Reformation is not just in doctrine or what is called the dogma of the church, but also in practice, worship, outreach, and missions because we should always be open to new ideas and applications. We are not to change the gospel message though since that would bring Paul's curse (cf. Gal. 1:6-9). But customs and norms of society change and, though we are not exhorted to keep up with the times, we will see that not only fashion but customs and what is acceptable changes through time; for example, in my day as a youth it was unheard of to go to church dressed in blue jeans!

There is no one-size-fits-all for worship nor for church order and government, and there are Roman Catholics who are better Protestants than Protestants, in that they regularly read the Bible, question the Pope and priest or clergy's authority and have more zeal and love for the Lord and His work.   One thing about Catholics that should be commended is their mission work (for they are responsible for bringing the message of Christ to all of Latin America) and all the outreach work they do in hospitals, schools, orphanages, and charities.

A Christian is not saved en masse, in that it's according to what church he attends--God will not ask us what denomination we were affiliated with at the Judgment Seat of Christ.  The problem seems to be the reverse, in that many believers are content just to be theologically correct and rule out the experience with Christ and the joy of serving Him, not to mention worship.  Catholics may seem to be disinterested in theology but what matters most to God is having your heart in the right place, more than doctrine being impeccably correct.

However, we are all theologians and have a slant on the doctrines, whether we realize it or not, and we cannot escape theology!  But knowledge about God must be translated into an acquaintance of God or a true relationship.  Knowledge is not just an end in itself but must lead us to a closer walk--to know Him more clearly, to follow Him more nearly, and to love Him more dearly (as Richard of Chichester said).   We are never to look down on our brother as a poor specimen simply because he's not in the know or doesn't know his way around theologically.  We may be quite conversant on Bible themes and hardly know our Lord at all, because it's all second-hand knowledge.

What God teaches us and what we learn for ourselves has much more impact on our souls.  The danger is intellectual pride in thinking we are a cut above other believers by virtue of knowledge alone.  You can know the Lord with little theological training, and you can be a stranger with much training.  But in the final analysis, we will desire to go on and know the Lord and to search things out and know the scoop when we come into a living relationship with our Lord.   Soli Deo Gloria!

Clear-thinking Prophets

"... But we have the mind of Christ"  (1 Cor. 2:16, ESV).  

Every generation has its voice and witness from God to warn His people and to interpret the times with divine viewpoint and insight.  We are all to "gird up the loins" of our minds and take heed to the signs of the times just as Jesus exhorted us.  Our attitude towards the world, our nation, and our entourage must be interpreted in light of God's truths.  The sign of the unbeliever, as well as practical atheist who believes, yet doesn't act like it, is that God is in none of his thoughts!

By way of definition:  Prophets aren't necessarily seers or those who speak for God and foretell, but those who tell forth the Word of God, and testify of needed messages from God to illuminate His people--to build up or edify the body of Christ as is so desperately needed.

What manner of media and news we expose ourselves to says a lot about our priorities and values. Our attitudes are shaped by our thinking, whether it is godly or not; influenced by the world-system or the Bible.  We need to have our mindset formulated by a Christian worldview and not the secular ones that are so predominant.  The world will squeeze us into its mold if we don't watch our step and keep in step with the Spirit and are clued into basic universal, objective, and absolute truths of Scripture.  We must rein in every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ per 2 Cor. 10:5.   If we are not careful and let the world influence us instead of vice versa, we will experience the phenomenon of GIGO or garbage in equals garbage out!

We must learn to "think on these things" referring to what is noble, right, and praiseworthy per Phil. 4:8.   After all, we are what we think about all day and we aren't what we think we are, but what we think, we are! (sources unknown).  Very few believers actually are equipped to discern good and evil in the events of history and current events, and we are to seek out these modern-day prophets (one was the late Charles Colson).

Ignorance is never an excuse unless we never had the opportunity to know it, and it's ignorance, not knowledge that binds us.   Humility is the order of the day, as we are to have the same mindset as that of Jesus Christ (cf. Phil. 2:5).  If you don't know the prevalent worldviews and the propaganda they disseminate, you are vulnerable to becoming its victim and being bamboozled by lies and deceit.   We are to be infants in evil, but in our thinking, we are to be mature (cf. 1 Cor. 14:20).

Unfortunately, the leading epistemology of today is relativism, whereas truth is only relative:  This is depicted in Alan Bloom's book The Closing of the American Mind.  This is antithetical to the absolute and objective truth of Scripture and one must be ready to oppose it wherever it arises.  Soli Deo Gloria! 

Wolves In Sheep's Clothing

"Enter by the narrow gate.  For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many.  For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few"  (Matt. 7:13-14, ESV).  

Jesus initiated His ministry the right way, by being baptized by John in order to identify Himself with the common Jews and to fulfill all righteousness, though John demurred--He did things the right way and didn't go against the order of the day.  If Jesus could humble Himself, how much ought we?  There likewise comes a day of reckoning and decision for believers, where they express solidarity with the body publicly in order to be accepted publicly.  

We are to beware of pseudo-believers or false brethren (for even the devils may seek to become accepted, if possible!) and those that sneak into the fellowship disapproved, who may "creep in unnoticed," as Jude writes, and are "marked out for condemnation" as "wolves in sheep's clothing," masquerading as angles of light (cf. 2'Cor. 11:4), as it were, and fooling even the elect, if possible (they come to "steal, to kill, and to destroy").  Who is he but one who doesn't enter by the door of the shepherd, but seeks his own way, door, or rules, for he seeks to "climb up some other way" (cf. John 10:1), and "he is a thief [proselytizer or even an apostate] and a robber."

If there's some initiation ceremony (e.g., baptism, testimony, classroom training, et al.) that the church has established, and a seeker or false brother rejects it, then he is going rogue and following his own whims or "inner voice", and not that of Christ. For in God's economy, the way up is down, and we must all humble ourselves in the sight of God first if we expect to be exalted in His eyes--you don't carry rank and privilege with you as you transfer from church to church, but must start at the bottom and work your way up all over again, respecting all in authority and seniority.

In order to get the "right hand of fellowship," and to be accepted as a member of the family of God one must show some fruit!  First we believe and works result and this comes by hearing of the Word of God, then we belong to the family in fellowship, and finally, we become what God intends by participation with the family and recognition of our charisma or gift and sharing it with others. Rick Warren describes our spiritual journey:  "believing (through worship), belonging (through fellowship), and becoming (through discipleship)."  We are always to be congenial and extend our good faith and love to all, regardless of where they are in the Lord, but there comes a day of reckoning when one must decide for or against the fellowship one is associated with and whether or not to endorse it and become a full-fledged member.  They are to "choose this day whom they will serve" per Joshua 24:15.

Our mission is to be "eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace" per Ephesians 4:3, ESV.  Remember the slogan:  "No perfect people need to apply!"  God wants real people, not ideal people and unity, not uniformity.  We don't find shortcuts to the top of the spiritual chain of command, or pecking order, as it were, but must admit our spiritual frailty!  We never "assume" someone is a believer or earnest in his motives, by mere virtue of regular attendance--some people are just "playing church" or are guilty of "Churchianity," not Christianity.

Pseudo-Christian cults and churches do not seek out souls to save, but to steal, they go where Christ is already named and say they have something to add to the truth or have a new and improved Christianity to offer.  These wolves spare not the flock and have no qualms to lead to false doctrine and are thirsty for power (David Koresh, and Jim Jones, et al.).  They are really not members of the church, but mock it and set out to go by their own tradition or belief, that is antithetical to the churches.  They are pushing something secret and claim to be in the know and privileged to be privy to this so-called false knowledge.

In contradistinction to a true shepherd, one ordained and called by God, one who enters by the door--not some secret way (i.e., by way of secret pledge, friendship, reference, handshake, vow, ordination service, et al.), the false teacher, who isn't always a teacher, but just seeks a following and to make a name for himself!

The sheep do not listen to the "voice of a stranger" and know their shepherd, according to John 10:5, and they follow the Lord through His shepherds and they listen to the truth because they are of the truth.  The danger is that factions in the church and party spirit can cause church splits, and nothing ruins a church more than sectarian spirit or a conflict over leadership and loyalty issues--"I am of Apollos!"  The reason we have heresy is so that the teachers approved by God can be made manifest, the church and body of Christ can be cleansed of evil, and it can be renewed in the image of Christ as its head and cornerstone.  Soli Deo Gloria!

God's Debut

"[W]ho, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.  And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross" (Philippians 2:6-8, ESV).  

How should the Son of God make his entree into our domain, but as one of us, so we could readily identify with Him, since we are in the image of God, after all?  If He came as a scholar, monarch, rich man, entertainer, scientist, philosopher, or any privileged, prestigious person we might not think we have had a chance, that the Messiah wasn't for us!  We can all relate to the so-called son of a carpenter, a working-class entrepreneur, and this means ultimately that His salvation is available to all.  "... Peace to those on whom his favor rests," as it is written in Luke 2:10, ESV).

Shepherds were considered among the lowest scum of the trades, and many wouldn't even admit it publicly.  This was God's way of upsetting the religious apple cart. But the angels saw humility in these shepherds, who were not the typical thieves, like so many, and were raising lambs for the temple--God saw potential, and this means He saw potential in us, too.  We see Christ as the Good Shepherd in Scripture and God wants us to see the analogy.

No one can say they humbled themselves more than Jesus, who left His throne and gave up the independent use of His authority, and became "one of us" so that we see ourselves in Him, no matter what status we live in:  There is hope for all in Christ!   No one can charge Jesus with being aloof, indifferent, or disinterested, and that He doesn't feel our pains, struggles, and grief!  "For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses..." (Heb. 4:15, ESV).  He alone can say, "Been there," to any problem we have!

It is no insignificant fact that the angels chose to appear to shepherds, because they would understand the imagery of Christ being the Lamb of God, and thus our Savior.  The fear of the shepherds upon seeing the vision of angels transformed into joy and as they saw the Babe in the manger, they just knew it was true, as the joy of the Lord filled their hearts.

The given name, Immanuel, is not fortuitous, since God is present fully in Christ as His image or icon, and one felt the presence of God with Him, and in all that He did God was with Him.  As it is written:  "The Spirit bears witness with our spirit" (cf. Romans 8:16).  One job description of the Holy Spirit is to encourage us as our Paraclete or Comforter (in the Greek, entheos, or to put God into something!).  Just as it's written in Zech. 4:6 that it is "Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit..."(cf. Zech. 4:6, ESV).  We have the witness of the Holy Spirit in us to be a witness and testimony so that we "just know," like the shepherds "just knew." 

In summation, Jesus humbled Himself (it was voluntary) as a lesson and model for us ("Let this mind be in you"); whereas humility wasn't even considered a virtue before His time! Now being humble is considered a compliment due to Christ. In His humility we see an approachable God, referring to the veil being ripped upon His ignominious death. Seeing Jesus as an underdog (e.g., the son of a carpenter), gives us the courage and hope to identify with--everyone loves an underdog!  

Jesus truly illustrated the truth with His life that the way up is down in God's economy--"Humble yourself before the Lord and he will exalt you"  (James 4:10, ESV).  When He said, "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble," He has authority to say it as all authority has been given Him (cf. Matt. 28:18).    Soli Deo Gloria!

The Whereabouts Of God

"... While they say to me continually, 'Where is your God?'"  (Psalm 42:10, ESV).
"And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart"  (Jer. 29:13, KJV).  
"Seek the LORD while He may be found; 
Call upon Him while He is near"  (Isaiah 55:6, NASB).  
"... Why should they say among the peoples, 'Where is their God?'"  (Joel 2:17, NIV).
"... Why my enemies continually taunt me, saying, 'Where is this God of yours?'"  (Ps. 42:3, NLT). 

Have you ever felt abandoned by God like Job?  He wondered that, too:  "Oh, that I knew where I might find him, that I might come even to his seat!" (Job 23:3, ESV).  Job was desperate and was confident it wasn't his fault or that he deserved it, but God was MIA to his reckoning.  Sometimes God withdraws from us to see what is in our heart!  Our faith is more precious than gold and must be tested, to see if we are going by feeling or faith; faith is what pleases God, not feelings or sentiment! We must learn to walk by faith and not by sight (cf. 2 Cor. 5:17).

 Sin separates us from God (Psalm 66:18 says, "If I regard iniquity in my heart the LORD will not hear me"), and God is not the one who moved, you did!   Even Job didn't realize that his sin was self-righteousness if you look at his boasting in Job 31.  In the end, he found repentance at the revelation of God's greatness and it humbled him.

The fact of the matter is that "he is actually not far from each one of us"  (cf. Acts 17:27, ESV).  God is never further than the mention of His name, but even some believers don't know Him by name--His name isn't "God!"  People often mock believers because it seems like their God has abandoned them, but the fact is that He will never leave us nor forsake us (cf. Heb. 13:8).   Jesus said in the Great Commission:  "...I am with you always...." Jesus name is, in fact, Emmanuel, and that is interpreted as meaning that "God is with us"!  That God is nearby is called the immanence of God as per Isaiah 57:15, which says, "This is the high and lofty One [re the transcendence of God] says--he who lives forever, whose name is holy:  'I live in a high and holy place, but also with him who is contrite and lowly in spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the contrite.'" In short, God is above and beyond, yet approachable! 

People often sarcastically inquire where God was in a disaster like 9/11, but people who were there will testify that Jesus was there all the time.  When they ask you where God is, simply ask them where He isn't!  Where was the church?  We don't need a mirror to see that we are walking miracles and, since everything is caused by God, miracles are only unusual events caused by Him, or they'd be called "regulars." There is a God-shaped blank or vacuum in our souls that only God can fill according to Blaise Pascal, and when God lives in our hearts we can communicate and fellowship with Him--that's why we are created in the image of God!  (We alone have the will to obey, the heart to love, and the mind to know God.) Animals never wonder about the whereabouts of God, nor ask, since they are oblivious to the spiritual world and knowledge.

Pascal said that in nature we don't see the manifest presence of God, nor the complete absence of God, but the presence of a hidden God. God wants us to find Him and doesn't show Himself to triflers, but those who seek with their whole heart (cf. Jer. 29:13; Isa. 55:6).  Isaiah announced, "Truly, you are a God who hides yourself..."  (Isa. 45:15, ESV).   It is not a matter of God hiding, but of whether we are looking for Him and seeking His face (as Jesus said in Matt. 7:7, "...[Seek] and you shall find...")! Take comfort in Jesus' promise that whenever two or three are gathered together in His name, there He is among them (cf. Matt. 18:20)!  Sometimes you may honestly wonder where God, is but then you might be finding out where the devil is!

If you think that they had it good in Jesus' day when He was with them, or that some people are more blessed by having had visions, we have it better than they did because we have the resident Holy Spirit and the complete canon of Holy Writ to guide us and for God to speak to us through.  You can find God's presence:  "I permitted Myself to be sought by those who did not ask for Me; I permitted Myself to be found by those who did not seek Me, I said, 'Here am I, here am I,'...." (Isaiah 65:1, NASB).  Christianity is not belief there is a God, but believing in the God who is there!  As Francis Schaeffer said, "He is there and He is not silent!"  In sum, ponder the song:  "Surely the presence of the Lord is in this place...." (cf. Gen. 28:16).    Soli Deo Gloria!

Christ's Credentials

Was Christ who He said He was?  The thrust of His teaching was self-centered, on the theme of His identity:  "Who do men say, that I am?" This was the turning point of His ministry and Peter was inspired by the Father to accurately pinpoint that He was the promised One, the coming Messiah, who was to be the Son of the living God.  To believe in Him was to believe in God the Father, and to reject Him was to reject His Father.  He said, that the Father and He were One, that He is in the Father, and the Father is in Him.  This was a shock to the religious Pharisees, who knew what He was saying and charged Him with blasphemy, saying that He was equal to the Father, calling Him Abba, or Dad.

Anyone can say that they are who they choose, but do they have the credentials:  I mean the character that is consistent, that confirms, that doesn't belie the claim; the signs and wonders to accompany the claim and make it authentic that sets Him apart; the witnesses to verify that it is not on His own authority that He makes the claims.

Jesus claims were one of a kind:  His character unique; His conduct unprecedented; His credentials unequaled; His works and signs unmatched!  No one has ever surpassed or excelled, neither predecessor nor disciple, His qualifications and merits to deity.  He is the one and only Son of God and we cannot compare Him to any mortal; even if we called Him Jesus the Great or the greatest man who ever lived, that would not do Him justice, nor satisfy us.  We don't compare Him to others, nor contrast Him, for there is no equal in any category of personality--the greatest charismatic person who ever lived.  You cannot add to His name, simply Jesus will do, for He is the Savior and His purpose is to save us from our sins, as it is written in Matt. 1:21.

He made the claim that He was God in the flesh and had the moral authority to do it, for He even challenged the authorities to find fault with Him and charge Him with sin--at His trial the only charge that stuck was political and not moral.  The disciples, who were close to Him for three years (and normally familiarity breeds contempt), had the consensus that He committed no sin.  ("In Him was no sin, " says 1 John 3:5; "committed no sin," in 1 Pet. 2:22; "had no sin," in 2 Cor. 5:21.)

The closer you get to Him, the more you realize you are a sinner, not Him!  For instance, Peter confessed: "Depart from me, O Lord, for I am a sinner."  The leaders of other faiths are flawed in character, yet Christ stands out as the model of perfect manliness and godliness.  What they say is that He had no sin, He did no sin, He knew no sin!  If He were one, He couldn't save sinners!   His challenge was: "Can you prove Me guilty of sin?"  This was the greatest sign or miracle!

There is circumstantial evidence that is compelling, and this is evidence that is admissible in a court of law, we have eyewitness accounts of His resurrection and many facts cannot be explained apart from believing He rose from the dead.  The written records verify His life, secular and clerical--there is no doubt of His historicity, so you must come to terms with Him and not dismiss as fable, myth, or even legend. Psychiatrists have examined Him and find Him to be perfectly balanced and His sermons are not the rantings and ravings of a madman-quite the contrary--He is perfectly balanced and the ideal man, someone whom all of us can emulate.  Even intellectuals have called Him the model of mankind, and someone to imitate. Even the testimony of the close disciples cannot be dismissed so easily.

What His enemies said:  They tried to trap Him in His words and accuse Him of blasphemy and couldn't believe He associated with known sinners and publicans, their favorite command, the Sabbath, was the main thrust of their attacks, for they could not bear someone breaking the traditions of the elders, but Jesus called Himself the Lord of the Sabbath--mind-boggling to them.   The way He came eating and drinking they accused Him of gluttony and of being a drunkard and that His religion was frivolous.  They accused Him of having a demon, but He had authority to cast them out and said that Satan would not be divided against himself, casting demons out.  Three unlikely enemies (Pilate, Judas, and the centurion) all concluded that He was innocent blood and righteous ("Truly this was the Son of God!").

Look at the way He taught:  As one having authority (cf. Matt. 7:29).  He never footnoted His sermons nor quoted the authorities:  He didn't speak by authority, but with authority.  His only source was Himself (what the Father told Him to say) and the Scripture.   He illustrated His teachings with signs and wonders or miracles to do lessons and proof that He was the Son of God in the flesh: Like feeding the multitude to prove He's the bread of life or raising the dead to prove He's the resurrection and the life.

Now anyone can claim to be God, for instance, Father Divine did, but can you prove it:  The ultimate proof of Christ's claim is His resurrection which has many infallible proofs (Acts 1:3) and is the one sign that sets Him apart as the incarnation of God, who demonstrated victory over death and hell. The prime difference between His claims and those of others is the caliber of His life and that He offered proof to verify it.

For instance, if I claimed to be born of a virgin, you might think I'm unbalanced, but if the caliber of my life demonstrated no sin, you might take me more seriously.  Not only His sinless morality, but His witnesses of John the Baptist, the most popular prophet of the day, and the over 500 who say Him rose from the dead, even what His enemies conceded unbeknownst to them, and the signs of His miracles (for if He had performed none, He would have ended up a mere footnote in history), and if you take away these miracles His witness is not credible, but the teachings themselves are such sublime words that only God could have originated them.

He came teaching and preaching (practicing what He preached and preaching what He practiced) but He upset the whole religious apple cart (the establishment) and the Pharisees were jealous of His influence and power over the people.  What can you say, but that there is no hypothesis that fits the facts better than the one that He is indeed the Son of God, who came to visit and save man, by becoming one of us.   Soli Deo Gloria!

The Shrine Of Almighty Chance

People who play the lotto or gamble compulsively don't realize that God micromanages the cosmos and superintends every creature and event under the sun as His divine sovereignty dictates; i.e., there is no such thing as chance, but a mathematical probability and it's blind, whereas God sees all--it is not an entity and it's corollary, luck, is dumb (whereas God is omniscient), and fortune is a way to avoid the word blessing!   I realize some people's retirement plan is to win the lottery, but this is vain and contrary to the Word, where we should be wise in stewardship and plan ahead while trusting in God, not our money to save and provide for us!

Is your security in your portfolio or in Providence?  God is in control, for what kind of God wouldn't be:  There is not one maverick molecule in the universe!  Fate, by the way, is impersonal and even blind, whereas God is personal and involved with care in our lives. There's no such entity as good fortune, but God is good to all and blesses them either directly or by association.  Do you ever say to yourself, "Let's not meet by accident [referring to a collision]!"  Or even, "Fancy meeting you here!" We make mistakes and have accidents as humans, but God overrules and puts meaning in them--there's even meaning in suffering, which is God's megaphone to speak to us.  God's cosmos is not random, but intricately designed and under control.  It has been said that the entire universe is like one vast mathematical equation form God's mind.

God even works through diabolical events (cf. Acts 2:23, 4:28) such as the crucifixion to bring about blessings out of curses, and Joseph met his brothers and told them that, though they meant it for evil, God meant it for good! There are no flukes of nature or accidents of history--we must realize God's wisdom in allowing or causing them to happen.  Wycliffe said, "All things come to pass of necessity." "The steps of a man are established by the LORD" (cf. Psa. 37:23).  God's answer to happenstance is Providence and this is meant to be comforting and assuring that God reigns and rules overall.  "In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will"  (Eph. 1:11, NIV).

Nothing happens by chance or coincidence: There is no fortuitous event, but everything under the sun has purpose and meaning in God's eyes, even if we don't fathom it (cf. Prov. 16:4; Prov. 16:33; Eph. 1:11).  Purpose is a naughty word for the modern man who believes in random chance and even denies there is purpose in life itself.  But it behooves us to realize the reasoning behind God's blessings and His providence in our lives--don't shrug off something as getting lucky or fate smiling on you, but give the glory to God who has blessed you and sees and knows all possibilities and can coordinate and orchestrate our lives with utmost care, having written them down before we were born (cf. Psalm 139:16).  

NB:  the providence of God.    "LORD, I know that people's lives are not their own; it is not for them to direct their steps"  (Jer. 10:23, NIV). "A man's steps are directed by the LORD.  How then can anyone understand their own way?"  (Prov. 20:24, NIV).

We really shouldn't accommodate the secularists by using these words in our vocabulary, but boldly witness and testify of the providence and blessings of God on our behalf, who watches over us to provide us all our needs.  Ben Franklin observed and gave the testimony:  "I have lived a long time, and the longer I live, the more I'm convinced that God governs in the affairs of men."

Note:  God is the sole primary cause of the cosmos, who either directs or permits all events:  Nothing just happens according to the law of causality (cause and effect); and if God caused it, it must have purpose, because He's a God of purpose and design, known as teleology.  We are secondary causes and agents of God being used for His ultimate will. 

The conclusion of the matter is this:  "The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the LORD" (Prov. 16:33, NIV).  This implies there are meaning and purpose in everything to God (cf. Prov. 16:4), but we are not capable of discerning or deciphering it all the time--just take it by faith that God is with you.   Soli Deo Gloria!

Humanism, An Idea From Antiquity

You may believe that Secular Humanism is something "new under the sun," but it was an idea in the Aegean Sea area of classical Greece. Protagoras said, "Man is the measure of all things" (homo mensura).  It goes earlier than that to the plain of Shinar in Gen. 11:4 where men sought to "make a name for themselves."

"For though they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God or show gratitude.  Instead, their thinking became nonsense, and their senseless minds were darkened claiming to be wise, they became fools..." (Romans 12:221-22, HCSB).  


The essence of humanism:  glory to man in the highest:  the deification or exaltation of man, and dethroning of God.  Humanism 101:  "Up with man; down with God, because we can do good without Him!"  What they mean is to start with man as the measure or standard and judge everything accordingly:  Instead of starting the rationale with God--"In the beginning God..," they commence with man and his finite cerebral capacity, whereby God is infinite and the Greeks said that the finite cannot grasp the infinite--how ironic!

"In all his scheming, the wicked arrogantly thinks: 'There is no accountability since God does not exist" (Psalm 10:4, HCSB).  "...[All] is thoughts are, 'There is no God'" (Psalm 10:4, ESV).  (God is in none of his thoughts!)  When you take God out of the reckoning man becomes depraved without limit and God gives them up to go their own way--yes, even man's brain or intellect is depraved and is incapable of spiritual apprehension:  "No one understands" (cf. Rom. 3:10f).   "...My people do not understand" (Isaiah 1:3, NASB).   "...So the people without understanding are ruined"  (Hos. 4:14, NASB).  "...The whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint"  (Isaiah 1:5, ESV).

Secular Humanism is defined as a religion without God in the equation.  It is completely incompatible with the Judeo-Christian worldview. Humanists do not believe that there is a supernatural and deny any deity or divinity of any notion in their reckoning.  When you take God out of the equation man loses focus and orientation, and has no moral compass to guide him and sees a distorted reality: such as Eastern religion seeing all reality as Maya or an illusion.  Humanism is a religion with high priests, meetings, and even has the Humanist Manifesto of doctrines to adhere to. And John Dewey was one of the early proponents who introduced the ideas into our educational system and is the so-called father of American public education.  They even have "Secular Humanist of the year" awards!  Their chief tenet is that there is no absolute moral code to live by and we are capable of concocting our own morality.

America is entering the New World Order (or era):  Trump vows to keep God out of it [politics]. Humanists want a world without God and any religious influence--even banning signage of the Ten Commandments in courtrooms and schools, taking the motto "In God We Trust" off our coins, and "One nation under God" off our pledge of allegiance (they have already banned Bible reading and classroom prayer in public schools in 1963, when infamous atheist Madalyn Murray O'Hair protested and litigated).  Will we have a National Day of Prayer and a prayer breakfast at the White House? They are opposed to Christianity because they cannot stomach the fact that some people are "lost" and need salvation, and they believe in their Humanist Manifesto II of 1973:  "No deity will save us, we must save ourselves."

Their faith is in science, or should I say "scientism," which is using science for non-scientific purposes such as finding ethical, philosophical, and religious truth (an example is saying that the cosmos is all there is and all there was and all there ever will be--Carl Sagan). They are people of faith too--in the scientific method to solve our problems and lead to all truth.  There are not people of faith and people of reason or rationale, because everyone has faith and starts with some presupposition they cannot prove.

The building block of the "religion" is evolution and they regard any encroachment upon this dogma as heretical and intolerable. For example, Carl Sagan said that evolution is a "fact", not a "theory." Note:  It's unproven and unprovable since history is nonrepeatable, there are no witnesses, they cannot account for the origin of life nor the arrival of the fittest,  and a new species has never been observed to evolve in either the fossil record or in real time.

Humanism is indeed a religion, though they say it is not because they don't believe in "God." But even John Dewey said in A Common Faith that you can be "religious" without having "religion." Atheism has been declared a religion by the Seventh Court of Appeals!   Humanism is more than disbelief in God; it's anti-God and, as a worldview, interprets everything without God in the picture, which is contrary to the rise of Western civilization.  We might call Secular Humanism a post-theological worldview and they are in the process or rewriting history--a red flag!

A fundamental repercussion of their worldview is that God never intervened in history (Jesus is seen as a legend, myth, lie, etc.), and worse yet, man is not created in the image of God with a soul and spirit, but is a materialistic, naturalistic hodgepodge of atoms colliding with no divine purpose--life has no meaning or purpose (words anathema to them), and, since we are animals in heat avoiding pain and seeking pleasure, we can feel free to live without moral restraint, hell to shun, nor judgment to fear, just like animals and feel no "guilt," which comes only from religion. Note:  We are not a freak biological accident or some fluke of nature!  In scientific parlance, they are monists, not believers in dualism like Christians, in that they don't believe we have a mind, separate from our brain, but it's only a projection of brain activity and there is no soul or spirit within us.

The whole point of Secular Humanism is to be good without God and to be religious without so-called religion! They deify and exalt man and dethrone and ignore God, making a name for man and blaspheming God's name! Idolatry is not giving God His rightful domain!

So what?  Secular Humanists want Christians in their camp, but they must be willing to privatize their faith, not flaunting it or making it public--keep it in church!  What we are beholding is the secularization of our society where "man has forgotten God" (Will Durant, humanist historian).  The Constitution guarantees the free expression of faith or religion with no State interference or regulation.  Playwright George Bernard Shaw said that "no nation has ever survived the loss of its gods."  Dostoevsky said that "without God, all things are permissible:"--this is our future?  Caveat: Secular Humanists pin the blame for our problem on man's preoccupation with the spiritual element and mostly fault Christianity!  Soli Deo Gloria!

Our Brother's Keeper

"Oh that you were like a brother to me..." (Song of Solomon 8:1, ESV).

Cain denied being his "brother's keeper," but he should have observed the law of love and not to be envious or have the evil or jaundiced eye.  Brothers are "born for adversity" according to Prov. 17:17 and we are blessed to know brotherly love as an affectionate and loyal one. There is a kind of love that is natural just because of being related, but brotherly love is seen as a model of the kind we should have for our Christian brothers (not called that for no reason).  "Let brotherly love continue" (cf. Heb. 13:1).  Note that friends can be more intimate than brothers:  "... [B]ut there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother" (Prov. 18:24, ESV).

Deut. 23:7 says not to "abhor an Edomite, for he is your brother"--this means we should never despise, look down, or resent our brother, who is own flesh and blood.  Brothers can disagree but they should find areas of commonality--they can agree to disagree and disagree without being disagreeable.  Proverbs 6 lists sowing discord among brothers as one of the things that are an abomination to God.

Most arguments aren't worth the adrenaline and they generate more heat than light!  According to Patton's Principles: A Guidebook for Managers Who Mean It, we should never engage in an argument we have nothing to gain from--some are just trivial; on the other hand, there are godly controversies and we are called to engage in them (but don't split hairs!).   Abraham didn't want any discord with his brethren and in Gen. 13:8 (ESV) he says, "Let there be no strife between you and me ... for we are kinsmen."  But there is always a challenge from an equal and "iron sharpens iron" as Proverbs 27:17 declares.  Caveat:  "A brother offended is more unyielding than a strong city..." (Prov. 18:19, ESV).

We are to see our brother in need and to volunteer our time, resources, talents, and finances:  "But if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him?   (1 John 2:17, ESV).  Paul says in (1 Tim. 5:8, ESV):  "But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever."   Soli Deo Gloria!

Real Humility

"He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God"  (Micah 6:8, ESV, italics added). 

"For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy; 'I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite"  (Isaiah 57:15, ESV, lowly means humble!).

"Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness, you who seek the LORD:  look to the rock from which you were hewn, and to the quarry from which you were dug"  (Isaiah 51:1, ESV, remember your roots and from whence you came!). 

Christ is said to have "emptied Himself" when He became man, which really is another way of saying He laid aside His omniscience, omnipotence, and omnipresence to take the form of man and relate to us on our terms--such as finding out what tears felt like, or sweat on the brow.  He didn't cease being God the Son, though!  Jesus saw things through the eyes of man for the first time and now He can relate to us as a faithful high priest, tempted in every way as we.  Philippians 2 uses the word kenosis in Greek to mean emptying, but He didn't empty Himself of His deity, but merely restrained the independent use of it and served the purpose of the Father.

Jesus humbled Himself by leaving His throne, to being born in a manger because there was no room at the inn, suffering the humility of a crucifixion between two malefactors.  We must, therefore, keep on eyes on Jesus (cf. Heb. 12:1), as it is said:  look at the world and distressed; look at yourself and be depressed; look at Christ and be at rest ("Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose thoughts are stayed on Thee," says Isa. 26:3).

Humility gets down on its knees and nothing is beneath it, much the way Jesus did in the Upper Room in the servile act of washing His disciples' feet.  John the Baptist said that Jesus must increase, and he must decrease.  "...[He] crowns the humble with victory [salvation]"  (Psalm 149:4, ESV).  He understood that the way up is down in God's economy! "...[A]nd humility comes before honor"  (Prov. 15:33, ESV).   "Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he will exalt you"  (James 4:10, ESV, italics mine).   Jesus was asked who would be the greatest in His kingdom:  He who humbled himself as a child (cf. Matt. 18:3)!  We, too, can empty ourselves of all pretense and stoop to help those in need that God brings our way or into our sphere of influence.

If Jesus could humble Himself, it's not beneath our dignity to do any "foot-washing--in public or private." He said we ought to do likewise, instituting the "order of the towel." "In his humiliation justice was denied him..." (Acts 8:33, ESV). A good example of a humble mind is George Whitefield saying, "There but for the grace of God, go I," when seeing a criminal going to the gallows.  We are to prefer one another and honor one another in Christ (as Romans 12:10, NKJV says, "....in honor giving preference to one another"), not thinking more highly of ourselves than we ought (cf. Romans 12:3).

There is no caste system in the church, as each of us is one in Christ and all brethren in the family of God. Service is where it's at:  The more you serve, the greater you are, not the more who serve you! Albert Schweitzer said that the only really happy people are those who've learned to serve.  A non-serving Christian is a contradiction in terms, as we are called to serve one another in Christ.   We must be willing to follow Jesus in humility and serve Him in whatever capacity possible.

True humility is not having low self-esteem or thinking less of yourself, but not thinking of yourself at all. When you think you've arrived at true humility, you have lost it! "...' God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble"" (cf. James 4:6; 1 Pet. 5:5).   Therefore, we all have the tendency to have pride in ourselves and to think highly of ourselves (more highly than we ought!), wanting to be seen in the best possible light (with a good reputation), but with Christ in our heart, we see things through His eyes and lose all pretense of our own self-importance.

No one is ever truly humble a la Christ, (for example, only Jesus and Moses are called humble or meek in Scripture!).  When we think we're humble or that we've arrived, we have missed the boat!  Humility means that all we are is servants of God and the most we can hope for is to hear with joy the words:  "Well done, thou good and faithful servant enter thou into the joy of the Lord!" To reiterate:  Our greatness is not in how many people serve us, but how many we serve--just the opposite of human insight or viewpoint.  We should not desire to be number one as Diotrephes did in 3 John, but esteem others with all due respect.  One statement that humbles me is from Mother Teresa of Calcutta (now canonized):  God doesn't call us to success, but to faithfulness!   Never lose sight of the fact that it's not about you! 

The conclusion of the matter is: The best leaders are those who've learned to follow, the ones with servant's hearts know their Lord and aren't power-hungry or lustful, but see leadership opportunity as stewardship possibilities.  God's purpose is to keep us from getting a big head!   Soli Deo Gloria!  

Looking For A Loophole?

"[Since] they show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts now accusing, now even defending them"  (Romans 2:25, NIV).

By definition, conscience is an innate sense of right/wrong and the ability to apply it to conduct in situations. 

W. C. Fields was said to peruse the Scriptures on his death bed and when asked why he quipped: "Well, it occurred to me that I might be wrong, so I'm looking for a loophole?"  Everyone is in the same boat, susceptible to error (to err is human!).  Only God is infallible or incapable of error and His divine impeccability is one of His traits.  We can be inerrant, but not infallible:  For example, if you scored 100 percent on a spelling test, you were inerrant; but you're not infallible!

Some Christians similar to claiming infallibility (which is pontificating from the chair of St. Peter called speaking ex-cathedra in Latin).  We are to trust no human as infallible, but hold only the Holy Scriptures to that standard, as Augustine wrote Jerome on his convictions.

We all have a conscience or the ability to relate standards to conduct and situations and make judgments of right and wrong.  We are held to be responsible to our conscience, and it either accuses or excuses us  (cf. Rom. 2:25).  But we can indeed have a clear conscience and be in sin or be dead wrong at the same time because you can be sincerely wrong, but this is no excuse to go against conscience as our guide as Martin Luther said, "To go against conscience is neither right nor safe." Jiminy Cricket said to always let our conscience be our guide--but it should be enlightened by the Word of God.

It is obvious that God is a God who cares a lot about right and wrong and He has gifted us with a moral compass as a guide to behavior in all situations (you instinctively know not to bud in line, for instance, unless you've hardened your conscience--if you ignore it, it'll go away!).  Where do we get a sense of fair play, good faith, altruism, courage, good faith, frankness, objectivity, integrity, and sportsmanship?  It's obvious that this is a reflection of God's character.  This is why we learn a lot about life playing sports and through the wisdom of the school of hard knocks in life's spiritual journey.

There is a natural or higher law that all people know, which is supreme over the law of the government.  Being legal doesn't mean it's right, ethical, or moral!   We are responsible for this moral code, whether we admit it or not.  We have a built-in sensitivity to evil and all of us have eaten of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, by virtue of being Adam's progeny.  None of us can claim innocence!  We are moral creatures responsible for our actions and that's where sin comes in; animals are not moral creatures.  We alone are designed to communicate with God with a heart to love Him, a mind to know Him, and a will to obey Him.

Mark Twain was said to say that it wasn't the Scriptures he didn't understand that bothered him, but the ones he did!   We all have some manner of inner moral compass and fabric to convict us.  "If there is no God," Fyodor Dostoevsky's dictum goes, "everything is permissible," and up for grabs, and we are without a moral compass as animals and can act like them, not being accountable and not awaiting judgment.   We all have a sense of "ought" however, and this is evidence for God's existence.

God alone is the moral center of the universe and everything's is relative to Him.  In sum, there is no loophole, all of mankind will be judged by Christ if they are not found in Him, and they will be condemned by their own words and conscience!  In the meantime, judge nothing before the time (cf. 1 Cor. 4:5).  We don't want to be like Israel in Judges:  "Everyone did what was right in his own eyes"  (cf. Judges 17:6; 21:25).  The cross is the only way out by faith in it as the propitiation of our sins, being God's satisfaction or propitiation of justice on our behalf.   Soli Deo Gloria!

The Heart Of Contrition

"And this is the condemnation [verdict], that light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil"  (John 3:19, NKJV). 

The sinner flatters himself too much to hate his own sin (cf. Psalm 36:2).

"... Repent!  Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall" (Ez. 18:30, NIV).  

"In the pride of his face, the wicked does not seek him; all his thoughts are, "There is no God"  (Psalm 10:4, ESV). [God is in none of his thoughts!]
"Return [repent] ... Your sins have been your downfall" (Hos. 14:1, NIV). 
"Then you will remember your evil ways and wicked deeds, and you will loathe yourselves for your sins and detestable practices"  (Ezek. 36:31, NIV).

"Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts, Let him turn to the LORDS, and he will have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will freely pardon"  (Isaiah 55:7, NIV).

We must come to the end of ourselves, a spiritual wake-up call is in order, even have a mental breakdown of sorts in which we realize in a rude awakening the vileness of our own sin, and evil and stop blaming God for our problems--we are only reaping what we've sown or got what we deserve, and even less at that.  When Peter realized his sin he said, "Depart from me O Lord, for I am a sinful man." And Ovid said, "I see the better things and approve them, but I follow the worst." Even Paul said, "What a wretched man that I am..." (cf. Romans 7:24).  "... [P]our out your heart like water in the presence of the LORD"  (Lam. 2:19, NIV).


Man naturally believes he can do something for his salvation, some work that is pleasing to God, but he must try to stop saving himself, as it were, and accept salvation as a free gift of grace.  He throws in the towel and upon the mercy of God:  the only qualification for salvation is to admit you're not worthy of it. We cannot clean up our act or get our house in order--only the grace of God can change us!  We are never good enough to be saved; we are bad enough to need salvation!  

We cannot work ourselves up into a spirit of repentance or do any pre-salvation work, but must just throw ourselves upon the mercy of God and realize our destiny is ultimately in His control.  We are literally "sinners in the hands of an angry God," according to Jonathan Edwards, and the Scripture says our foot shall slip in due time and our calamity is near if we don't repent (cf. Deut. 32:35).

Repentance, then, like faith, is the gift of God (cf. Acts 5:31, 11:18; 2 Tim. 2:25)--for we can do nothing apart from Christ's work in us (cf. John 15:5 ).   Caveat:   "[Not] knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?" (Romans 2:4, ESV).   God transforms the hardened heart, turning it from a heart of stone to flesh (cf. Ezek. 36:26).  God will then cause us to walk in His ways (cf. Ezek. 36:27).  A changed life is the only evidence of salvation:  "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.  The old has passed away; behold, the new has come."  (2 Cor. 5:10, ESV).

"For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death"  (2 Cor. 7:10, ESV).  There is being sorry you got found out with your hand in the cookie jar and feeling sorrow and remorse enough to change your ways.  David said, "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise" (Ps 51:17, ESV).

We must declare spiritual bankruptcy because the good news only comes after the bad news is accepted.  C. S. Lewis said this catch-22:  "We must see how bad we are to be good, and we don't know how bad we are till we've tried to be good."  Thankfully, we are bad, but not as bad as we can be by virtue of the restraining ministry of the Holy Spirit; we are as bad off as we can be, though, in our total depravity.  Total depravity doesn't mean utter depravity; we are not as bad as possible.  We are as completely depraved as possible, our whole being (intellect, emotions, and will) and we cannot be a little depraved no more than a woman can be a little pregnant!

We all have an inner conscience or moral compass that either accuses or excuses us (cf. Romans 2:15).  It is good to feel bad about our sin (guilt is therapeutic) and we must realize we are bad--but not too bad to be saved.   If sin were yellow, we'd be all yellow; there is no island of righteousness in our being--our wills, minds, and emotions are all evil, corrupt and depraved.  Our righteousness is God's gift to us, not our gift to God!  (cf. Isaiah 45:24).   We are born sinners and in sin:  "We are not sinners because we sin, but sin because we are sinners" (theological axiom).  The Anglicans express sin in their Anglican Book of Common Prayer as follows:  "We have done those things we ought not to have done, and we have left undone those things we ought to have done."  That means they are sins of omission as well as of commission.

In true contrition, we own up to our wrongdoing, do an about-face, a 180-degree turn, or a U-turn from our sin.  It's imperative to come clean, hiding nothing and openly admitting and confess all sin and remember that confession, or homologeo in Greek means to say the same thing as. It is progressive, in that it continues throughout the Christian experience and fellowship.  We are not just afraid of hell, or regretting the results we have reaped, but want to change our life to please God and hate sin for what it is:  an offense to God's nature.  We feel we haven't just broken God's laws, but His heart.  When we sin we don't break God's laws, they break us; and sin is only "pleasure for a season" (cf. Heb. 11:25). Contrition says goodbye to our former life without looking back, burning all the bridges to make it impossible to return.

We don't need to turn over a new leaf or make a New Year's resolution, but to repent of our sins and put Jesus in charge to change us from the inside out--i.e., make us new persons in Christ.  We will then find forgiveness from what we've done and deliverance from what we are (justification and sanctification). In sum, we must renounce sin and not just feel sorry for its consequences and ask God to change us.  Soli Deo Gloria!

Judge No Man

It's not our prerogative to judge someone's soul status because we don't have all the facts, and only God sees the invisible heart and motives.  Scripture says to judge nothing before the time (cf. 1 Cor. 4:5), and that means that we are not to condemn each other's ministries because they don't suit our fancy or understanding of doctrine.  Jesus, himself, is the sole authority on the quality of each man's work and will test it whether it stands the test of fire (cf. 1 Cor. 3:12-15), and should be rewarded at the Judgment Seat of Christ. We are to minister as God calls us and let no man judge us but Christ himself.

Someone may say that Christians shouldn't be involved in politics or express worldview, but they are making presumptions that they hold the standard in their hands.  Every Christian is designed to reach out to a different group or category of people, and we are not to look down on someone's ministry because it doesn't have the outreach we think it should have.  For example, take the Christian Motorcyclists Association, an evangelical organization that seeks unity through reaching out to a certain ilk of individuals often looked down upon or misunderstood as rebels.  We are not to say, "Jesus wouldn't drive a Harley!" because we are biased against them.  On the other hand, we should not say, "Jesus wouldn't write an editorial to the paper on politics!"

We have to realize that we are not Jesus, we are only working for Him in the capacity for which the door has been opened.  Jesus wouldn't do this (like smoke, drink, dance, party, watch TV, go to movies, go on vacation--you name it, some people insist they alone know what Jesus is like and they fit the mold!    Everyone is at a different stage and we are not to judge them, for they are the servant of another man as Paul says in Romans 2.  Soli Deo Gloria!

A Dangerous Knowledge

We all need to know the scoop, the lowdown, or the skinny in the world of theology to navigate faithfully through the Word, i.e., to know our way around the block in the Word with correct interpretation and application.  In the last days, according to 2 Tim. 4:3, many will bail out theologically and in 1 Tim. 4:1 it says even believers will give heed to seducing spirits, or doctrines of demons.

Today's Eastern philosophy predominates with New Age (the Age of Aquarius) and it's many Buddhist and Hindu applications are stealing people away from the truth of Scripture by an experience with the occult or Eastern religion.  We need to be informed of a balance of doctrine, and know what we believe (the problem with today's youth is that they largely don't know what or why they believe).  A little knowledge can be a dangerous thing and when we think we've cornered the market or have an exclusive mindset (no one has a monopoly or has all the truth!) or if we seek knowledge for its own sake, we've misused it. Knowledge must not remain theoretical but must have an application and become real to the person's experience.

Not many are mighty in the Scriptures, but we all need to train to show ourselves approved unto God (cf. 1 Pet. 3:15).   The Bible warns that "knowledge puffs up!"  (Cf. 1 Cor. 8:1).   One of God's peeves is that man perishes through lack of knowledge or ignorance (cf. Hos. 4:6). Ignorance is not bliss, but it binds you and opens you up to being led astray.  Don't you sometimes just thirst for the unadulterated truth of God: sometimes there's no knowledge of God in the land as Hos 4:1 says.

The biggest error Christians have in acquiring knowledge is to be over-influenced by one teacher and drink of only one fountain, as it were--this is a good way to lose perspective and to be led into error.   Indeed, there are Christians who are like bulls in china shops, or more accurately, like Dennis the Menace!  Their middle name is trouble and their head knowledge is way above their application of it.
Soli Deo Gloria!  

Popular Perceptions/Experiences Of God

"Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons"  (1 Tim. 4:1, ESV).


Virtually every spiritual experience of Christianity is duplicated and counterfeited by false religions.--don't be fooled by mystics of any faith!  The Buddhists claim visions and to "see the light of God;" the Hindus and other faiths claim to "speak in unknown tongues;" the Muslims claim to experience the "spirit of Muhammad" and that he lives in their heart! Transmigration, as anything, or reincarnation, or as a person ("better luck next time!") replaces evolution or sanctification, whichever the case may be.  Pantheism, or that the universe is God and all is God or that we are all One replaces theism.

The concept of yin/yang replaces the biblical concept of evil being the corruption/perversion/deviation/negation of good. It's a parasite on goodness.  There isn't much daylight between believing all is God and there is no God.  The incarnation of Christ becomes the latest of many avatars or personifications of the gods.  The experiences of Eastern religion have begun to replace illicit drugs such as LSD.  Prophecy is replaced with tarot cards, palmistry, and mediums. Hearing voices is most likely a sign of an experiment or an opened door with the occult, drug world, or mental illness, then a sign of a spiritual encounter with God on a personal level--it's too subjective to trust.   Faith in karma, which replaces Judgment Day, is then the Eastern answer to Providence.  The goal is to be freed from the law of karma (i.e., reunion with Brahma or extinction of desire or being in some kind of Nirvana).  In Buddhism enlightenment replaces salvation.

People generally perceive God in one of five ways:  a critic who is detached and impersonal and even judgmental and harsh; a life coach that is a positive influence and encouraging; a projection of some person we see a need for such as a father figure or friend; a force that is impersonal and we cannot know or have a relationship with and cannot love us; or a principle to live by and code of conduct to make us feel good about ourselves. 

Christian Science downgrades Jesus to just a divine principle and no more divine than we can be. While the Unity School of Christianity believers say that Jesus is a force.   New Age adherents such as Shirley MacLaine--as the life-giving cosmic energy of the cosmos.  George Lucus, the originator of the Star Wars sagas, believes all religions are right, and that God is just some impersonal force to be tapped into, either the good or dark side (there's no yin/yang-like struggle of equals).  If all religions are right, that is saying none are right:  all can be wrong, but logically, with the contradictions (Islam denies that Jesus was crucified and rose from the dead), they all cannot be right!  The Baha'i faith believes that all religions basically teach the same thing concerning God--another cop-out from facing the real issue of sin and salvation, which is the crux of the problem. They can have things in common and be contradictory at the same time. 


The Holy Spirit, the animating principle agent in creation and salvation, is not some blase, passive force, but a living personage equal with the Father and the Son in the deity.  Some Christians do believe that the Holy Spirit is just the Spirit of God or a manifestation of Him, but the Bible clearly teaches that the Paraclete, Counselor, and Comforter is a person who has a will, thoughts, and emotions. When you say tongue-in-cheek or not, that you wish the "Force" to be with someone, you are relegating God (which is idolatry) to a blind force like the blind kismet or impersonal fate of Islam and this force cannot love you, and it's an impersonal fate, or the fatalism of Stoicism.  The unbeliever cannot share in the power of God and the nature of the Divinity--for he is dead spiritually!

Where am I headed here?  We are not to witness based upon subjective feeling or experience, nor to base our assurance upon it--there is too much false assurance out there!  The thing that makes Christianity unique is not our experience in Christ, but that it is based upon objective, the historical fact--the resurrection!  Christianity is the only faith-based upon history and evidence that can stand up in a court of law when before unbiased jurors.  Christianity is history or it is nothing!  We are not mystics who claim some surreal experience, but a transformed life in Christ that cannot be matched by counterfeit experiences.

When you say, "The Force be with you!" we are welcoming and approving the devil's work and inviting danger by the flirtation with it.   The whole point in Christianity is that you can know God on a personal level, which is denied by all other faiths except Judaism--an impersonal force or God cannot love anyone.  Our faith is not measured by our experience but by our obedience.   The issue is not what kind of experience you had, but do you KNOW God?   Soli Deo Gloria!

Flirting With Satan

"But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil"  (Heb. 5:14, ESV).
"Woe to those who call evil good and good evil..." (Isaiah 5:20, ESV).

Some Christians think it's cool to dabble in the occult and experiment with its luring temptations. The most popular and largest segment of the occult is astrology, which has been around for at least 4,000 years, as an adventure into supernaturalism.  It seems "innocent" enough, but it opens the door to satanic activity in your life, such as using Ouija boards, palmistry, Yoga, TM, crystals, seances, tarot cards, or channeling.

Paul encountered sorcerers in Ephesus in Acts 19 and, when they repented, they brought all their sorcery texts and burned them publicly. Remember, Simon the Great had been a sorcerer and, after believing, sought to buy the gift of God with money, and today this heresy is known as simony.   King Saul sought advice from the witch of Endor, a medium, and was punished with death with his sons as a result. 

Of course, they don't see the harm, but a mature believer realizes that this domain belongs to the devil and will steer clear of it--it's no joke!  You cannot partake of the Lord's Table and the table of demons!  The Bible clearly condemns astrology and any type of star worship in Isaiah 47:13 as follows:  "You are wearied with your many counsels; let them stand forth and save you, those who divide the heavens, who gaze at the stars, who at the new moons make known what shall come upon you."

Contrary to popular thought, the magi were not astrologers but noticed a sign in heaven and knew the Scriptures were being fulfilled from a prophecy of Jacob.  Nowhere does God condone astrology and a believer in Christ is disobedient to lend it any credence.

Why is this so serious?  Even if you don't take it seriously and are just playing around, your testimony is jeopardized and it speaks of your lack of faith in God.  Also, you have a responsibility to obey Scripture and not to do anything that makes your brother stumble (cf. 1 Cor. 8:12).  We don't play around with Satan but take him seriously as our adversary.  Anyone who is into occult practice, such as consulting the stars for advice, is doing the work of the devil and in league with him, and will be judged--i.e., we are not to call evil good (cf. Isa. 5:20).  If you don't worship God, you'll still find something or someone to worship--it's our God-given nature!  Soli Deo Gloria!

Are You Cashing In or Enduring?

"Endure hardship as discipline..." (Hebrews 12:7, NIV).  
"But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship..."  (2 Timothy 4:5, NIV).
"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith"  (2 Tim. 4:7, NIV).

Some believers seem to be deluded about the cost of discipleship and the suffering that comes with the package.  God doesn't promise to make us all rich, famous, influential, or powerful:  We are not worshiping at the altar of Almighty Chance trying to cash in our spiritual lottery ticket and live a balanced, successful life; we're here to do God's will: to know Him and make Him known (cf. Jer. 9:24).  We are just vessels of honor used by God, which should be seen as a privilege of grace, and are just servants to whom we hope God will say at that day:  "Well done, thou good and faithful servant."

It is by discipline, suffering, trials, tribulation, and adversity that we build character and these are our crosses to bear, but they pale in comparison to Christ's.  Philippians 1:29 says that it has been granted unto us "to suffer for his sake."  Christ was honest enough to warn us of this and didn't exempt himself from any humiliation, persecution, shame, suffering, nor temptation.   Paul also expresses the desire to rejoice in the fellowship of His sufferings in Phil. 3:10.  Contrary to what Joel Osteen writes about in Your Best Life Now, our reward is in heaven and we are only spiritual pilgrims on green cards with citizenship in heaven only passing through!

Some of us have more hardship than others, but none of us gets a free ride or a bed of roses; it's an affliction that shapes our character and makes us Christlike.  Sure, God blesses us and makes our work in the Lord a success if we keep the faith and endure, but success in the eyes of the world is not what's meant--they have their reward in this life (cf. Psalm 17:14), but ours is in heaven.  We are, therefore, to endure with patience the race set before us, keeping our eyes on Jesus (cf. Heb. 12:1).

The doctrine of the perseverance of the saints guarantees that we won't lose our salvation, but it doesn't ensure we won't lose our full reward or be disqualified (cf. 1 Cor. 9:27; 1 Cor. 3:15).  "We must never, never give up" (in the words of Winston Churchill) and never quit but endure the hardship we are faced with, though it be a bucket of tears--it's always too soon to quit!

We may be tempted to compromise our integrity or to break faith, but we must go on from faith to faith (cf. Rom. 1:16).  That means faith is the essence and we believe that God is working on our behalf and we cannot lose or are in a win-win situation.  We may be tempted to deny Christ, or not to take a stand on His behalf, but we must keep the faith regardless.  No matter what the world dishes out we must be able to roll with the punches; we're not called to grin and bear it like a Stoic, but to see the reward hopefully, and to endure joyfully.

Jesus never encouraged people to follow Him; in fact, He did all He could to discourage them and to count the cost of signing up for life.  It wasn't something you give a whirl or make a short-term contract with, but a permanent transaction of becoming a child of God with all the consequences as well as blessings (divine discipline or chastisement and reward).  You don't just "try Jesus" but you must be willing to commit your life to Him much like a marriage where you commit to a lifelong contract. You don't experiment with Him or accept Him on a trial basis!  Jesus wasn't looking for admirers or sidekicks, but followers and worshipers who love Him and prove it by obedience.

The final goal is the smile of God, and He does so when we joyfully walk in His will and are obedient.  "True holiness is doing the will of God with a smile," (Mother Teresa).  The "joy of the Lord is [our] strength," according to Nehemiah 8:10; it's something the world cannot take away, as we are commanded to rejoice always.

The choice is clear:  We are either for Christ or against Him; there's no middle ground of neutrality. Persecution is part of the deal or the package that we signed up for and the deal is for a lifetime:  All who are godly shall suffer persecution.  It's like a  feather in your cap or crown on your head when you've been mocked or ridiculed for your faith and you know you've spoken out for Christ as His witness to a dark world.

 The goal is to please God; "The LORD takes pleasure in his people..." (Psalm 149:4, ESV).  We ought to rejoice in tribulation:  Cf. Rom. 5:3!   The caveat in tribulations:  Keep your eyes on Jesus, not yourself, the world, nor others--no matter how tempting.  Soli Deo Gloria!  

Hearing God's Voice

"For God speaks again and again, though people do not recognize it.  He speaks in dreams, in visions of the night, when deep sleep falls on people as they lie in their beds.  He whispers in their ears and terrifies them with warnings"  (Job 33:14-16, NLT).

"My sheep hear my voice..." (cf. John 10:27).  Jesus speaks to His children through any means, even the voice of a child, as in the case of St. Augustine.  God speaks once, yea, twice, and man hears Him not, according to Job:  "Indeed God speaks once, Or twice, yet no one notices it.  In a dream, a vision of the night, When sound sleep falls on men, While they slumber in their beds, Then He opens the ears of men, And seals their instruction"  (Job 33:14-16, NASB).  No one can claim they've never been the recipient of God's messages, no matter how limited--when he reacts positively, he opens the door to more opportunity.  C. S. Lewis has said that God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks to us in our conscience, and shouts to us in our pains!

Mystics claim a special ear to God's messages like Joan of Arc did, and to put some trust in them is not in the one firm foundation--this is how cults begin.  If God speaks to you on a personal level for encouragement, that's between you and God, and is personal--don't feel you should share it.  To prophesy to the church is another gift of communication.  In these last days, the Word of the Lord is rare and, since we have the complete revelation of God in the Bible, it is not needed--the Word is all we need, clear and sufficient!  If God speaks to you, you must test it with the truth of Scripture.  We are not receiving new revelations anymore since God's Word is complete and the canon is closed, and to add to His Word brings on a judgment of God.

Now, to the point of God speaking to everyone:  God woos His elect to open their eyes to the truth of the gospel message and to soften their hearts--no one would otherwise believe.  If you believe that God woos everyone, you must also ask if He woos everyone equally.  If He woos everyone equally, why do some respond and others don't?  You are faced with either believing in the sovereignty of God's grace in salvation or the necessity of some kind of merit of the person getting saved.

The Arminian will not admit that God doesn't even woo some, but he doesn't know why some people respond to the gospel, and others don't!  Romans 5:21 says that grace reigns through righteousness. Grace is sovereign and efficacious, in other words, and that means that God gets the desired effect and it works for His purposes, not being wasted.  God isn't frustrated and doesn't say,  "Well, I tried to save you, but you were too far gone!"  We are all bad, but not too bad to be saved!

Some people do need greater wooing and more intense grace to become believers, but they are not a bigger challenge to God, just more opportunity to demonstrate His grace and how effectual it is.  God doesn't destine people to hell as if they had no choice in the matter like some blind fate or kismet; however, He does let some go their own way without His intervention of grace--He doesn't owe grace to anyone, or it would be justice; God doesn't have to save anyone!

Point in fact:  Distinguish between the inward and outward call of the gospel; the inward one is from God and is effectual, and the outward call from man sometimes falls on deaf ears and can, therefore, be ineffectual.   God's Word says that He's never let the world without a witness (cf. Acts 14:17)--everyone has had the opportunity to hear from God!  Paul says He is not far from every one of us!

In summation, we are not to seek "voices" or special revelation, and we shouldn't feel left out if we have no extra-biblical experience, such as a vision, divine voice, or visitation.  The existence of Scripture as God's written Word does not preclude God's audible voice or any oral communication.  God has promised to speak to us in His Word which is all He has to say to us and need not be improved upon.  We must be faithful to the Word first, though other forms of communication are not retired!  The sheep hear God: "... Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice"  (John 18:37, ESV).   Soli Deo Gloria!

Evil's Facade

"... [Y]ou hate all evildoers"  (Psalm 5:5, ESV).  "... I will fear no evil..." (Psa. 23:4, ESV).
"The fear of the LORD is the hatred of evil..." (Proverbs 8:13, ESV).
"What sorrow for those who say that evil is good and good is evil..." (Isaiah 5:20, ESV).
"Don't let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good"  (Romans 12:21, ESV).
"Against you, and you alone, have I sinned; I have done what is evil in your sight"  (Psalm 51:4, NLT).  "Will those who do evil never learn?" (Psalm 14:4, NLT).
"There will be trouble and calamity for everyone who keeps on doing evil..." (Rom. 2:9, NLT).
"... 'All who belong to the LORD must turn away from evil'"  (2 Tim. 2:19, NLT).
"The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually"  (Gen. 6:5, ESV). (According to St. Augustine:  Man has the inability not to sin or non posse non peccare in Latin.)

Man is not basically good, but inherently evil to his core and is radically corrupt through and through and must be redeemed by God to be able to do anything good; in his fallen state, he cannot do anything but sin and evil.  "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?"   (Jer. 17:9, ESV).  Isaiah 1 says:  We are to cease to do evil, and learn to do good! ("Depart from evil, and do good..." (Psa. 37:27, ESV).

Evil doesn't advertise or promote itself by that moniker but tries to convince one of its good intentions to bring about the greater good as the end result.  If something is not done God's way, it's the devil's way.  God is able to work with evil and tolerates its existence because He can turn it into good (like curses into blessings), and there is a lot more evil to work with!  What evil is, is not what people would suppose:  It's goodness without God in the picture or the equation (like humanism that deifies man and makes him the measure of all things, the starting point of the equation, and dethrones God as dead and no longer relevant.  God turns evil into good:  "You meant it for evil, but God meant it for good"  (cf. Gen. 50:20).  There is no yin/yang or an equal balance of good and evil; however, Satan masquerades as an angel of light (cf. 2 Cor. 11:4).

We must become familiar with our common foe, or we will become like him, a do-gooder, who is trying to save humanity his way.  There is only one person who is good, God.  We do not have the power to harness the power of evil for good, like in Star Wars where they use the powers of the dark side.  Christ annihilated evil and defeated it in toto at the cross and we are only here to proclaim His victory and to claim His authority.  There is no such thing as pure evil, for evil, depends on good for its very existence; it's the privation of good; the deviation from good; the negation of goodness; and the perversion of goodness.

Satan was once good with no evil, but then pride was found in his heart and he fell and was booted out of heaven and his place of authority.  Satan is not coequal with God, such as a yin/yang type working arrangement, but only a servant of God who must obey.  There is now a cosmic battle or angelic conflict going on between Satan and his minions, and Christ, the church, and the elect angels on the other side.

We all have eaten of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in a sense, and are not innocent in God's eyes and are responsible for the light we have to be faithful and fruitful.  It is good to be innocent of evil as much as possible and to be wise to what is good.  Don't practice the occult nor magic arts and don't experiment with evil in any way, shape, or form.

It all started when Satan challenged authority and asked Eve, "Hath God said..?"  By her own volition Eve took of the forbidden fruit and the result of the so-called proverbial apple saga still goes on as it epitomized all sin in that one act of obedience--they only had one rule to obey and couldn't do it!

Today's youth are concerned more about what works than what's true, and they believe the test of an idea is not its truth value, but its results.  The sorry result is that something can work and not be true or good, e.g., Yoga, or TM.  These are not forbidden activities in Scripture, but nevertheless evil in that they circumvent the goodness and wisdom of God.  Christianity is not true because it works, it works because it's true!   Youth are concerned if something works for them and is practical or pragmatic, while God demands obedience and loyal faithfulness not to experiment with other religions or philosophies.

For example, to the innocent bystander or outside observer Yoga may seem innocent enough, but Yoga is a Hindu art that means union with God, and you learn to get in touch with one of their gods.  People are lured and enticed into Eastern philosophy and religion, by such innocent-like practices that have mass appeal to man as being "good."

Heed the following caveats of 1 Thess. 5:22 (ESV), Job 28:28 (ESV), 1 Pet. 3:12 (HCSB); and Rom. 12:9 (ESV) respectively:  "Abstain from every form of evil";  "...'Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding'";  "... BUT THE FACE OF THE LORD IS AGAINST THOSE WHO DO EVIL"; "... Abhor what is evil; hold fast what is good."  Soli Deo Gloria!