Taking God Out Of The Equation

"Woe to those who call evil good and good evil..." (Isaiah 5:20, NIV).
"O that they were wise, that they understood this, that they would consider their latter end" (Deut. 32:29, KJV).  
"There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death"  (Proverbs 16:18, KJV).  
"In those days there was no king [standards] in Israel.  Everyone did what was right in his own eyes"  (Judges 21:25, ESV).

In other words:  Without God, all values are up for grabs!  Everyone believes they are sincere and that sincerity is what matters; it is part of the equation, but not the whole solution, because you can be sincerely wrong--we need more than sincerity, we need to be absolutely right because there is an absolute standard and Judge that we are accountable to.  Man claims his goals or ends are justified, but the means to them must also be just in God's eyes!  The logical conclusion of academia indoctrinating students that we are evolved animals is that we tend to act like animals!  As atheist Albert Camus said:  "The absurd is sin without God."  Consequently, there is no basis for a moral compass! 

It is commonly assumed in academia that there is no absolute truth, and this proposition is widely accepted by students--but they confuse truth with belief:  There is no absolute belief, but there is, nevertheless, absolute truth, that is objective and remains true whether believed or not, and doesn't matter who believes it or who doesn't.  You just can't rule God out of the equation, like in eliminating variables in science or voting for some unobjectionable choice.  

Since Socrates claimed that "the unexamined life is not worth living," we must search our own hearts and find ourselves, as it were, to know what we actually do believe in and in what we base our faith, because everyone believes in something and everyone worships something, even if they don't believe in God.  Is there anything you will die for or stand up for and defend to the death, because of conviction and commitment?

Note that an opinion is something you hold, while convictions hold you and something you are willing to die for.  If you don't stand up for right and wrong, do you think you'll stand up for Jesus?  Edmund Burke, a philosopher, said that the only thing needed for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.  There is something everyone can do to neutralize evil in the world, even if it's being a prayer warrior!

Rome fell due to a collapse in morality, as perversion became the norm, and it has been wisely put that when a nation loses its gods it cannot survive--no matter the religion, religion is necessary for morality, for there is no need for it otherwise, when each man does what is right in his own eyes.  All truth is God's truth and meets at the top (Augustine and Aquinas), and all religion does have an element of truth, and even false religion is but a distortion of the truth and not the opposite of it; however, "no lie is of the truth" (cf. 1 John 2:21)!

When we take God out of the reckoning man loses his moorings and anchor to weigh in on society and to set standards to live by--ethics and values only become what society approves of, and are a matter of consensus and public opinion; however, often the voice of the people is the voice of the devil (Vox Popoli, Vox Diaboli)!

Today we see an absence of faith in absolute moral principles, and this is called moral relativism. No truth equals no virtue, according to Socrates, and Postmodernism has made truth a short-term contract and posits that there is no Truth with a capital T.  There is a reason why nihilism is the biggest fad or direction of today's young people, they really don't believe in anything!  This is dangerous territory according to Dostoyevsky:  "If there is no God, all things are permissible."  They will tell you that something just doesn't work for them and this is the ultimate test, not whether it's true (classic pragmatism).

William James was the founder of pragmatism, which was further delineated by John Dewey, said that you cannot test the truth of an idea, but only its usefulness--what matters is whether it works.  We have no basis of truth and principle without God and everything is up for grabs, as one says, that may be true for you, but not for me.  Caveat:  "If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?" (Psalm 11:3, ESV).

The ideas of skepticism, cynicism (the most prized modern virtue), and humanism, ( or homo mensura, i.e., man being the measure of all things, originated by the Greeks of antiquity) are not new--there is nothing new under the sun because the devil isn't creative, but only keeps recycling old lies, as the father of lies.  When you don't have some standard and put yourself as the standard, it is tantamount to making yourself God and becoming His judge by your personal standards, which are subjective and variable over time.

he very concept of justice and mercy must come from somewhere, and we all appeal to some standard to judge them by, just like Plato reasoned that God is the ultimate good. since there must exist something to judge goodness by. Beauty remains after the rose fades, and if we have these senses of right and wrong instinctively by nature, there must be a higher sense governing the universal moral order from which it originated:

In other words:  Where did good faith, fair play in sports, unselfishness, courage in battle, integrity in personal dealings, altruism, generosity with money, trustworthiness, honesty in relationships, genuine joy and happiness, etc. come from, if not some absolute standard?  How did we get these ideas?  We are essentially appealing to some divine standard or norm of moral right and wrong (like when someone buds in line and we are offended or upset at the injustice).  Appealing to a higher sense sounds a lot like appealing to God, a Higher Being, or Higher Power.

This is highly ontological in that we would have no idea of a God if there was none--where did mankind get the original thought, which is so universal?  We see virtue as well as evil in every civilization, and this is collaborated by the biblical record of the war between the two and the ultimate triumph of good over evil--our sense of right and wrong demand there be a hell for wrongdoers, and if you've ever gotten angry at someone you may have wished he go there, even if you doubted God's existence!

Some believe in moral relativism because they conceive of a situation of being forced to decide between raping their daughter and witnessing her torture, but God doesn't hold us culpable for coerced choices but only freewill ones.   God is the one that allowed it to happen for His purposes and we must not doubt His long term witness seen in light of eternity.

Denying absolute morality goes nowhere since everyone would agree, that is of sound mind, that rape and incest are always wrong under all circumstances without exception (which lays to rest the theory of situation ethics, whereby someone could justify himself).  Hitler justified himself, and we don't want to absolve him of his "evil" in the process, by saying that his sincere belief that Jews were the problem and the "final solution" was the answer was justified.

There is no limit to the evil man is capable of and the only restraint is God's Holy Spirit, who will only stand for so much before judgment is inevitable. (Note:  2 Thess. 2:7 says, "... Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way.")  "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: Who can know it?" (Jeremiah 17:9, KJV).  The Bible says in Proverbs 14:34 that "sin is a reproach unto any people" and it doesn't matter whether they approve of it or not, God is the final judge and arbiter of how much He lets the man get away with (e.g., Sodom and Gomorrah).

Man needs a sense of "ought" and, without God, this is problematic; ethics become nebulous.  Man will always try to justify himself and his purposes and set standards he believes he can achieve:  He will say that he wants the greatest good for the greatest number (i.e., utilitarianism) and believes the ends justify the means in achieving it; or he can believe that it just doesn't matter whether something is true, for who can determine this?

But what matters isn't whether it works and is practical or not; and this is the crux of the problem: Christianity isn't true because it works, because many untrue things work (e.g., yoga and TM); but it works because it's true--"Taste and see that the LORD is good" (cf. Psalm 34:8); find out for yourself! And where I'm coming from, truth matters and is worth knowing and defending.  The New Morality of today is dangerous too, even though it sounds sincere, in saying that all that matters is the motive, such as being with the intention of love or helping someone when its none of their business. People think something is a responsible  decision if they can justify it!

What is the answer?  The world faced this issue at Nuremberg after WWII, when they were bringing the Nazi war criminals to justice because they claimed to be following orders and only doing what their society had approved of and they asserted sovereignty in determining this standard.  The only way they found they could convict them was to appeal to some "natural law" or what may be called "transcendent law" that we all know by nature and are responsible to beware of, regardless of what the government says or tells us to do--would you rape your sister if the government said it was sanctioned in their new morality?

The Bible confirms this principle in Romans 2:15 because it says clearly and dogmatically that God's law is written in the hearts of man, and he has a conscience to convict him by the gift of God--we are not unconscionable animals but in God's image!  We cannot act like animals observing the law of the jungle and believing in the survival of the fittest, but that the strong ought to help the weak as the humane thing to do--this is what we are meant to be (noble creatures that are in God's image).

The only solution to man's dilemma is to know the resurrection power of Christ, who is in the business of changing lives from the inside out or transforming them miraculously.  What He's done for others, He can do for anyone who seeks Him, repents, and taps into this supernatural power; the trouble is that Secular Humanists deny the supernatural as the foundation of their worldview and won't even go there or give Christ the opportunity in opening the door.  The doors of academia are basically closed with secular worldviews in control.

The Bible isn't just inspiring like Shakespeare is but can change lives and we don't need to defend it, no more than a caged lion, which can defend itself.  POW's during WWII on the Malay peninsula had resorted to savage-like living, until they found a New Testament and decided to read it, with the result that it civilized them.

An anthropologist on Papua New Guinea asked what a native was reading while stirring his pot:  He said he was reading a Bible and the scientist said that modern man has rejected that book and he's wasting his time--the answer was that he'd be in the pot, were it not for that book! When someone asks you to prove that the Bible can change lives, just tell them that they can prove it themselves by only sincerely, with an open mind, willing spirit, and needy heart, to read it for themselves, and the results will speak for themselves.

In summation:  Only in Christianity do we see the synthesis of right motives and means unto right end results.  Soli Deo Gloria!

Finding Meaning In LIfe

"If we are to know how to live, we must find out what God is like"  (Plato).

Saint Augustine, Bishop of Hippo, concluded:  "Our hearts are restless until they rest in Thee."

"... The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love"  (Galatians 5:6, NIV).

"It's not what you do, but how much love you put into it"  (Mother Teresa of Calcutta).

"The only really happy people are those who have learned how to serve"  (Albert Schweitzer).  

There is meaning in life, in fact, the only worldview that offers meaning in suffering is the Christian one!  It is important what you believe because ideas have consequences and we are admonished by Paul in 2 Cor. 10:5 (ESV) to "take every thought captive to obey Christ [pursue divine viewpoint]."

When we ascribe to a so-called worldview, or mental outlook (i.e., Judaeo-Christian, Postmodernism, Secular Humanism, New Age, or even Marxism); i.e., we interpret reality, not as it is, but as we are. Only God is objective and all true knowledge must originate with Him because He is omniscient or pansophic.  If you assume evolution, for instance, and this is the linchpin that holds all secular worldviews together, then there is no God, no Lawgiver, nor Judgment Day, and no hell to shun, nor absolute moral values, and neither is there any absolute truth to boot.  This is commonly referred to as moral relativism and the denial of Truth with a capital T.  Just like the cynical Pilate who asked Jesus: "What is truth?" Jesus didn't just tell us the truth, like when He made pronouncements ("Truly, truly, I say unto you..."), but was the very personification of truth itself and made it knowable through Him.

You can never know anything by making man the measure of all things and the reference point or starting point of knowledge; you must begin with God and explain the universe, not with man and explain God away ("In the beginning God...").  Humanism deifies man and dethrones God, and Postmodernism considers all knowledge relative, except what relates to their metanarrative, interpretive framework, or worldview, i.e., Christian ideas!  All secular worldviews have this in common:  They are diametrically opposed to everything Christianity stands for.

Communists must affirm unequivocally that a "Supreme Being, Creator, or Divine Ruler [i.e., God] "does not, cannot, and must not exist."  Man has irrefutable evidence for God and is without excuse (cf. Rom. 1:20); however, he suppresses this fact for moral reasons--he simply doesn't want to believe, because it's uncomfortable.  "And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge..." (cf. Romans 1:28).  Augustine, in his Confessions, wrote:  "You made us for yourself, and our hearts find no peace until they rest in you."

They refuse to "let a divine foot in the door" and begin with the presumption that the supernatural is impossible, by placing ultimate faith in the scientific method and personifying science, bringing about "scientism," whereby pronouncements are declared that aren't related to science, but philosophy or religion, for example ("The cosmos is all that is or ever was or ever will be," says Humanist of the Year (1981) recipient, astronomer Carl Sagan).  Science has become a religion, with people only putting faith in the natural and the observable.

Without the church as the "pillar and ground of the truth" (cf. 1 Tim. 3:15), we lose the anchor and value system by which to judge right and wrong, and morality becomes elusive and truth becomes a short-term contract.  Truth is relative, they say, well relative to what or to whom?  No matter which belief system you ascribe to, it isn't a matter of faith vs. rationalism or reason, but of which set of propositions you are willing to accept by faith as presuppositions.  Both systems require faith--for "all knowledge begins in faith: Socrates said that "to begin learning you first must admit your ignorance." Augustine also said similarly, "I believe in order to understand."  When we have faith, God opens our eyes and illumines us, without God we would know nothing for sure.

The viewpoint of youth today, and many do not know what they believe, is that Christians have kissed their brains goodbye, and are ill-prepared to answer the attacks on their faith; they don't even think it's defensible, and can survive in the open marketplace of ideas.  A worldview basically answers these three questions:  Where did I come from?  Why am I here? And Where am I going? The secular interpretation is that we came from blue-green algae or even nothing at all, and have no meaning or purpose in living but to seek fulfillment of instincts, and are headed toward oblivion or nothing but food for bacteria.  Jean-Paul Sartre said that "without reference to God, man is a useless passion."  Famed atheist and mathematician Bertrand Russell said that "unless you assume a God, the question of life's purpose is useless."  We were put on this planet for a purpose, to make a contribution, to leave a legacy that will outlast us.

The only worldview that gives man dignity and purpose is Christianity.  We are created in God's image and are not animals (they want to think they're animals so they can live irresponsibly like animals).  The very word "purpose" is repugnant to secularists, who deny the Anthropic Principle, for instance, that demonstrates purpose and design in nature that is perfectly suitable for mankind.  A life without purpose is lived in vain and is a waste, going nowhere!  God put us all here for a purpose as part of His plan and glory:  "The chief end of man is to glorify God, and to enjoy Him forever," says The Westminster Shorter Catechism (ca. 1646), which refers to Isaiah 43:7, which says God created man "for His glory."

We are here to make God look good and be fulfilled in Him. As Blaise Pascal, French mathematician said, "If man is not made for God, why is he happy only in God?   If man is made for God, why is he opposed to God?"  As Jesus said, "... I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly"  (John 10:10, ESV).  The eternal life with Christ begins at the point of entry into salvation (cf. John 5:24, ESV, emphasis added):  "Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has [present tense!] eternal life.  He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life."

The only way one can find true meaning in life is to know Christ because He is our Creator.  The Bible is our celestial beacon, divine GPS, and owner's manual and has everything we need to know for salvation and meaning.  We all need to know we are important, have an impact, and have an identity or are somebody that counts.  The Bible answers all these questions and gives us motivation to live to please others and God, not ourselves: A life lived selfishly is suicidal.  Pascal, famed scientist and philosopher, said that there is a "vacuum-shaped hole in our heart that only God can fill." You not only matter, but are more important to God than the whole universe or cosmos.

God is a person to be known, is personal, and gets personal and knows us personally as persons, so intimately that He numbers our hairs! We alone have a God that is knowable and not aloof and impersonal, like Allah. Muslims emphatically deny the capability of knowing God personally and of having a personal, living relationship and fellowship with Him, that inspires and motivates life and living in the here and now, but in the light of eternity.  Suddenly, when you see you have a divine purpose in being alive and can accomplish God's will, life becomes an exciting journey and relationship and even a challenge that other religions don't have.  We grow in our knowledge of God and never gain definitive knowledge of an infinite Being.  "The finite cannot grasp the infinite," says the classic maxim.

As a logical conclusion, when you deny God, you have no basis for meaning in life or to do anything but "eat, drink and be merry [cf. Isaiah 22:13]." Man then just exists, he doesn't live life to the full. Twentieth-century philosopher Will Durant asks:  "Can man live without God?"  This is the dilemma of the modern man who seems to think that "God is dead," as Friedrich Nietzsche falsely and shamelessly postulated; he was saying we didn't need Him to explain the cosmos or to find relevance--that God doesn't matter anymore.  Without God, there is no anchor on the soul, and man has but a bleak outlook and is hopeless.  We all need a sense of "ought" and understand the times to know what to do (cf. 1 Chronicles 12:32); who knows?  We may have been born "for such a time as this"  (cf. Esther 4:14).

The problem with man today: "Men have forgotten God," according to Alexander Solzhenitsyn, even if he professes a religion or even Christianity, he is a practical atheist or one who lives like one, despite a bogus profession of faith, he is only a nominal Christian or one in name only.  Man will find that there is no basis of ethics without Him, and man is free to make up his own value system or ethics as he goes along, to suit his own interpretation and situation, like:  "Listen to the God within!" Or, "If it feels like the truth to you, it is!"

Caveat:  We must beware of following Israel's footsteps in the time of the judges:  "Everyone did what was right in his own eyes"  (Judges 21:25, ESV).  It is similar today, in that people lack a moral compass, and think that morals are determined by convention, consensus, or community standards--and evolve over time.  God is the moral center of the universe and He is our Judge, we are not His judge--we answer to Him, He doesn't answer to us!  Yes, Isaiah was also right on and on the same page:  "All we like sheep have gone astray, we have turned each one of us to his own way"  (cf. Isaiah 53:6).

Rick Warren lists four purposes to live for:  as a member of His family; a model of His character; a minister of His grace; and a messenger of His good news.  We all need a philosophy of life and an interpretative framework to view the world around us and put things into perspective.

If you've ever pondered:  "Who am I?" Or, "Do I matter?" Or even, "Am I important?"  The answer is in knowing God through His revelation in Christ.  In my day people used to take time-outs and "find themselves."  You can never get found if you don't admit you're lost! You were born to fit into God's intricate plan, not for God to approve your plans--you have the destiny to be realized in Christ!

A word to the wise is sufficient:  Psalm 11:3, ESV, says, "[I]f the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?" Without God as our reference point, we lose all footing and orientation in society, and no civilization has ever been able to maintain ethics without the aid of religion, and "no society has ever survived the loss of its gods," according to playwright George Bernard Shaw. No nation has been able to maintain morals without the aid of its religion, according to Will Durant. Has the rise of Secular Humanism, which is a religion without God, eradicated Christianity from the public arena and marketplace of ideas;?

Have we come full-circle from the 1925 Scopes Monkey Trial, in which it was argued that the minds of children should be kept open and they should be taught about the theory of evolution, just to be fair?  Now, they won't let the Christian view get its point across as a viable belief system and worldview that gives meaning to all of academia and its disciplines. We must not concede everything away and lose to the Postmodernist and Secular Humanist by default and give up the ship without a college try and fight.

Let me conclude with a quote from scholar Carl F.H. Henry: "The Christian belief system, which the Christian knows to be grounded in divine revelation, is relevant to all of life." Soli Deo Gloria!

Finding Our Calling

The following verses are pertinent to finding God's will for your life:

"One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much..."  (Luke 16:10, ESV).

"... Well done, thou good and faithful servant..."  (cf. Luke 19:17, KJV).

"Therefore, do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is"  (Eph. 5:17, ESV). 

"For I know the plans I have for you, ' declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future"  (Jeremiah 29:11, NIV). 

"It's in Christ that we find out who we are and what we are living for.  Long before we first heard of Christ, ... he had his eye on us, had designs on us for glorious living, part of the overall purpose he is working out in everything and everyone"  (Ephesians 1:11, The Message).

"For everything, absolutely everything, above and below, visible and invisible, ... everything got started in him and finds its purpose in him" (Colossians 1:16, The Message). 

"Commit your work to the LORD, and your plans will be established" (Proverbs 16:3, ESV).

"There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death"  (Proverbs 16:18, ESV).

"Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the LORD that will stand"  (Proverbs 19:21, ESV).  

"Unless you assume a God, the question of life's purpose is meaningless."  (Bertrand Russell, mathematician, philosopher, atheist, author of the famed book, Why I Am Not A Christian).


God has uniquely gifted everyone for the ability to know His will, but it isn't an automatic given to know it, though Acts 22:14 says it has been granted Paul to know His will.  We must search for it and be willing to do it or we will never know it.  "If any man wills to do His will..." (cf. John 7:17).   Obedience and willingness are provisos to finding out God's plan.  If we are not obedient in what He has revealed, we will not be given more light.  Most people blindly go through life, the blind leading the blind, and never find their true calling--they exist, but don't live. We are meant to live for something bigger than ourselves and for something that will outlast our lives--every chord we play strikes some note that will vibrate throughout eternity, but some of us march to the beat of a different drum than the light of Scripture.  "When a man's folly brings his way to ruin, his heart rages against the LORD" (Proverbs 19:3).  Man ruins his life, then blames God, or he is a success and congratulates himself!

This life is but a dress rehearsal and a tryout for the real thing in heaven, or a stage set for eternity, and we are meant to find out what we are here for. People who don't know their purpose attempt too much! Attempt great things for God, and expect greater things from God!  The Bible is our Owner's Manual and has everything we need to know for fulfillment in life!   Many people live as if they will never die, and die as if they never lived, and don't find purpose until their later years!  What a pity that the common man sees nothing more to live for than the Epicurean philosophy of "eat, drink, and be merry for tomorrow we die" (cf. Isaiah 22:13) school of thought.  We are not to live just in the "here and now," but in "light of eternity," and "it ought to be the business of every day to prepare for our final day," according to commentator Matthew Henry.  We have the ability to see and expect the future, but with that comes the downside or drawback of being capable of worry.  We should never live in the past of regret, nor in the future of worry (paying dividends on bills we don't owe): These are the two thieves of our time and when we don't live life to the fullest it is usually this to blame.

Now, most people never even find out what they are good at, much less, their true calling in life: "God in heaven appoints each man's work" (John 3:27, NLT).  It is often said: "You missed your calling" with tongue-in-cheek.  The best we can hope for in life is to find out His will and plan for our lives, and it is never too late for God's best--He is in the business of changing lives and transforming them into the image of Christ. "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come" (2 Cor. 5:17, ESV). Christ is still in the resurrection business and can change our lives from the inside out--we don't just turn over a new leaf, but start afresh with Jesus in charge--we are changed from the inside out.

There is no greater joy, than in doing the Lord's work, but there is a curse on anyone who is slack in doing it (cf. Jeremiah 48:10).  The happiest people, it has been put, are those who are too busy trying to meet other's needs and make them happy, that they don't have time to worry about their own.  The sure recipe of a wasted life is to live it for yourself--get your eyes off yourself and live for God's will, whatever the calling--there are many callings, but the same Spirit (and that's what counts!).

Many people experience a dramatic conversion and their whole life turns around or heads in a new direction after finding Christ:  Look at how prison radicalized the life of Chuck Colson (dirty-tricks and hatchet man for Pres. Nixon, turned philosophical apologist for the faith), for instance! God puts us through the fires of adversity to make us better people, and no one is exempt, not even Christ exempted Himself. Our crosses pale in comparison to His and we should be aware that adversity, trials, sufferings, discipline, and misfortune happen to all of us and are meant for our good, and Christ can turn even the most diabolical atrocity into something good:  "You meant it for evil, but God meant it for good" (cf. Gen. 50:20). God orchestrates all events, even historically, and never loses control of His Plan. (Romans 8:28, ESV says:  "And we know that for those who love God, all things work together for good....")  We can do nothing to thwart His intentions and make God resort to a Plan B.

The most important link to finding God's will is seizing the day (going for it!), or carpe diem, or seeking God's will and recognizing it when you see it in the light of Scripture.  God will open doors, we just have to be ready to step into His will (cf. Isaiah 22:22).  When God opens a door, the impossible can become possible, because all things are possible with God (cf. Luke 1:37).  When I first became a believer, I didn't understand why my brothers in the Lord were so concerned about what God's will was:  "What would Jesus do?"  As we mature we have a greater desire to please God and live for Him and His glory: "The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever" (cf. The Westminster Shorter Catechism, ca. 1646).  "[E]veryone] who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made"  (Isaiah 43:7, ESV).  We must learn to live for Christ and not ourselves, to please others, not ourselves!

How do you know that you were not "born for such a time as this?" (Cf. Esther 4:14).  Living on purpose is the only way to live, says Rick Warren, and life makes no sense without purpose.  Life is an intricate plan of God and we are to fit into God's plans, not ask Him to fit into our plans! This is the origin of the Protestant work ethic.  When we are engaged and engrossed in God's work everything else is put into the right perspective:  "... I am doing great work, so I cannot come down..." (Nehemiah 6:3, KJV).  Motivation is primed by the right orientation:  "... [F]or the people had a mind to work" (Nehemiah 4:6, NKJV).  We want to be like Jesus at the end of our lives and be able to confess:  "... I have finished the work which You have given Me to do"  (John 17:4, NKJV).  MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!   Soli Deo Gloria!

Where's The Joy?

"But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold"  (Job 23:10, NIV).  

"I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete"  (John 15:11, NIV).  

"He also brought me up out of a horrible pit,
Out of the miry clay,
And set my feet upon a rock,
And established my steps"  (Psalm 40:2, NKJV).

If you are a melancholy believer, or one who seems glum, sullen, or dejected, in the pits, in a depressed funk, despondent, or have the doldrums, and don't know how to snap out of it you are a bad advertisement for Christianity, if you're really happy and full of joy, tell your face!  There may be periods of depression when one wallows in self-pity, has a pity party, or withdraws, (even Elijah got depressed), but one must learn how to bounce out of it.  Paul exhorts us in Philippians 4:4 to "rejoice in the Lord always."  " Nehemiah says "... [The] joy of the LORD is your strength." There are some key elements to finding joy amidst the hard times--and He does make us experience hardship:  "You have fed them of the bowl of tears, You have given them tears to drink in great measure"  (Psalm 80:5, NKJV).

This is to develop our character to mold it after Christ's image, which cannot mature without adversity, hardship, discipline, trials, and even temptation--but remember Christ was honest enough to warn us and they are inevitable as a "coming of age" spiritually.  Christ didn't exempt Himself from trouble, and our "crosses" pale in comparison to His.   If you don't know why you are suffering or you think you don't deserve it, be like Job and throw a spiritual fit and cry out to God with your case and complaint.  It's okay to throw a spiritual temper tantrum or fit! Some people are just more vulnerable to getting the blues or even depression, but this doesn't need to define who you are.

There is a methodology or method to the madness, for rebounding from depression, when it is time to seek the Lord and His presence--there is a time and season for every purpose under the sun.  God is in the business of sharing His joy!  When we sin and grieve the Spirit it can show and spread like wildfire.   Every believer has been called to do God's work and if he knows his calling, he can find joy in doing the Lord's will and in being in the Lord's will. There's always joy in doing God's work with a smile and finding fulfillment in that.  When you live for something bigger than yourself you will have a different perspective on life.  Real living begins when we commence serving others and get our eyes off ourselves.  We shouldn't just exist, but live!  Work for something in life that will outlast it.  If you know how God uses you and what your spiritual gift is, you are on the way to finding joy in the Lord and knowing how to spread it as a messenger of the good news with a positive testimony.

When we are in a depressed funk, or "downcast" as Psalm 42 and 43 call it, God seems to be MIA and we need to seek the face of God. We are to seek the Lord and His face or presence.  The whole business of the Christian life is to seek God, not just when we feel down.  Even Job wondered about the whereabouts of God: "Oh, that I knew where I might find Him"  (cf. Job 23:3).  God is never far from each one of us according to Acts 17:27.  He may be no further than the mention of His name! Did He not promise:  "... Behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age" (Matt. 28:20, ESV). Remember that where ever two or three are gathered together in His name, that Jesus promises to be among them (cf. Matt. 18:20).  The Holy Spirit dwells in us to be our Comforter and Enabler to live in His power and to overcome trials and the enemy.  Jesus is the Good Shepherd who seeks His lost sheep and brings them to green pastures and to give them rest.

It is a joy to see God at work in others and to share in the blessings by association.  This is an encouragement for us to do the Lord's will and to be profitably engaged in spreading the Word. There is vicarious joy, just like parents relive their childhoods through their children. Remember, we are all on the same team and we must know the real enemy, the devil, who prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour (cf. 1 Pet. 5:7).  We learn to "rejoice with those who rejoice" (cf. Romans 12:15).

We really must learn to find joy despite our circumstances and to be strong in our faith, for the Lord must test our faith:  "Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tried you in the furnace of affliction" (Isaiah 48:10, ESV).   God wants to see if it is genuine and will stand the test of time, and isn't a facade, sham, or masquerade--only sincere, even if imperfect, faith will do.  Learn to rise to the occasion and above your circumstances:  Experience is not what happens to you, but what happens in you! Paul was in prison and rejoiced in the Lord with such testimony with Silas that the jailer got converted in Acts 16.

Joy is contagious and a great testimony, and that is more motive to seek it to be a light and river of life to others, who need to be encouraged.  This is so that we acknowledge joy in the Lord, not in circumstances, which can change.  Joy is something on the inside that is not dependent on happenings like happiness is.  Paul learned to be content in whatever situation he found himself in (cf. Philippians 4:13).

When you know God is with you, everything becomes bearable and that is one of Christ's names:  "God with us." Also, it is written in Isaiah 43:2 (ESV):  "When you pass through the waters, I will be with you ...."   We are to seek the Lord and His presence "as a deer pants for flowing water, so my soul pants for [God]" (Psalm 42:1, ESV).  Mother Teresa of Calcutta, now canonized, says that "true holiness consists of doing God's will with a smile." That is, if we are happy, we should tell our faces!  Soli Deo Gloria!