Example Of Two Brothers In Action

The Two Brothers, trans. by Karl W Broberg from Hermann Hesse

"If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?"  (1 John 3:17).

"If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his immediate family, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever"  (1 Tim. 5:8).


Once upon a time, there was a father, who had two sons. The one was beautiful and strong, the other was small and crippled, for that reason the big one despised the small one. This didn't please the younger one at all, and he decided to wander into the wide, wide world. After some time had passed, he met a carrier [Wagoner], and as he asked him where he was going, the carrier said, he must lead his treasures to the dwarfs in a glass mountain. The small brother asked him, what the reward was. He got the answer that the reward would be diamonds. Then the small one wanted all the more to go to the dwarfs. Then he asked the carrier if he believed that the dwarfs would accept him. The carrier said that he didn't know, but he took him with. Finally, they got to the glass mountain, and the overseer of the dwarfs rewarded the carrier richly for his efforts and released him. Then he noticed the small brother and asked him what he wanted. He told him everything. The dwarf said he should only follow him. The dwarf accepted him gladly and lead him to a grand life.

Now we will see about the other brother. It went good at home for him for a long time. But as he became older, he came to the military and had to go to war. He got wounded in his right arm and had to beg. Then the poor guy happened upon the glass mountain and saw a cripple standing there, he didn't suspect that it was his brother. The small bro recognized him at once and asked him what he wished. "O, sir, I am eager and glad for any crumb of bread, I am so hungry!" "Come with me," the small one said, and went into the cave, whose walls were glistening from diamonds. "You can take a handful for yourself if you can bring down the stone without any help," said the cripple. The beggar tried to do it with his one healthy arm, but naturally, he couldn't. Then said the small brother, "Maybe you have a brother, that I would allow to help you." Then the beggar began to cry and said, "Once I had a brother, small and misshapen, like you, but so good-natured and friendly, and I haven't known of him for a long time." Then said the small brother: "I am your brother, you shall suffer no want, remain with me."

Science Owes Christianity...

Science was made possible by the discovery of a rational universe, perceived by a rational mind, using rational modus operandi. Induction, deduction, experimentation, measurement, repeatability, theory and hypothesis make science possible. The Eastern religions don't believe in a rational universe, but in Maya or that the universe is a figment of our imagination and that it isn't really real. It was the Christian worldview of 15th century Europe that really got the scientific method off to its debut. Sir Francis Bacon is considered the "Father of the Scientific Method." All of the early great scientists (Galileo, Kepler, Copernicus, Newton, Pascal, Maxwell, et al.) were Christians. In fact, science owes its existence to Christianity. But the ironic thing is that now science seems to be thinking that religion, in general, is the "enemy" and incompatible with the scientific method.

Science is only one avenue to the truth. Some things are not verified by test tube, repetition, measurement or confined to laboratory conditions. E.g., you cannot take a pound of love and a pint of partiality nevertheless we affirm their existence.

All worldviews require presuppositions (propositions that cannot be proved), and so-called "natural science," as opposed to the supernatural, does too. In fact, it takes more faith to believe a naturalistic universe without any intentional design than it does to simply believe in a supreme being. The evidence is in favor of a deity, but people are not willing to take the leap of faith in the direction of the faith because of moral issues, not intellectual problems. They don't believe because they don't want to believe, not because they can't. "Even though he performed many miracles there, they would [not could] not believe in him" (John 12:37).  "The heart of the matter, is that it is a matter of the heart," says Rick Warren.    Soli Deo Gloria!

Common Sense On The Will

There has been debate over the will of man for centuries. Martin Luther debated Erasmus in a diatribe The Bondage of the Will, and Jonathan Edwards wrote the book The Freedom of the Will. Most of the problem lies with semantics because people don't understand the definitions. No one is saying we are automatons, chatty dolls, or robots, so to speak. But Proverbs 21:1 says, "The king's heart is a stream of water in the hands of the LORD; he turns it wherever he will." Jer. 10:23 says, "I know, O LORD, that the way of man is not in himself, that it is not in man who walks to direct his steps." Prov. 20:24 says, "A man's steps are from the LORD, how then can man understand his way?" "...Why does he still find fault? For who can resist his will?" (Rom. 9:19). There are numerous passages that seem to indicate that God is in control.

There are two kinds of free will. The will to do the divine and to do the mundane or temporal. We have not lost the free will to do a secular activity. We do not have the desire or inclination to choose Christ apart from a work of grace. "No man can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him..." (John 6:44). Our destiny is ultimately in God's hands and He chose us according to His foreknowledge before the world began. (This refers to the doctrines of election and predestination.) Cf. Rom. 9:16, "So it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God who has mercy."

Is His sovereignty limited by man's freedom? The most fanatic Calvinist will admit that man is free to do what he desires to do. God never forces anyone to do anything he doesn't want to do--that would be coercion or determinism. He feels no outside force but God is still able to influence Him to do His will. "For it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure" (Phil. 2:13; cf. Col. 1:29; Heb.13:21).

The will is defined as that by which the mind chooses and is the referee, as it were. Finally, Prov. 16:9 says, "The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps." He is "Lord of all."NB:  THERE IS A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MORAL/SPIRITUAL FREEDOM AND MUNDANE FREEDOM.   Soli Deo Gloria!

How Depraved Are We?

Man is depraved through and through, as bad off as he can be, but not as bad as he can be. It is like being pregnant; you can't be a little pregnant. Note that this is God's estimation of man, not man's estimation of man. Sin affects every aspect of our being which means we have a radical corruption or total depravity. Rom. 7:18a says, "For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is in my flesh."

I don't mean utter depravity (that we are as bad as we can be), but total depravity (every aspect of our being is spoiled by sin). We all have feet of clay (we all have weaknesses not readily apparent) and can't "clean up our act;" nor ingratiate ourselves to God. We show our solidarity in Adam when we sin--we sin because we are sinners, we are not sinners because we sin. It is not okay to "fudge a little" because we a diabolically alive--we all are like a moon that has a "dark side" no one can see. We may be a run-of-the-mill sinner compared to Hitler and see ourselves as saints in comparison; but Christ is the standard and exemplar, not Hitler.

We are inherently bad, biased to evil, having lost our inclination to good at the fall. Evil permeates our nature and we are defiant volitionally. This is all God's estimation of man, not man's estimation of himself. This is called original sin by some. Augustine of Hippo said we can only do evil (non posse non peccare). But Jesus sees through the veneer and our facade. We are "by nature children of wrath" and enemies of God before we are saved.

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. There are many verses that support depravity including Jer. 17:9 ("The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked, who can know it?"); Isa. 1:5-6, 64:6; Jer. 13:23; Rom. 8:8; Gen. 6:4-5. The law shows us how we are: "Indeed, it is the straightedge of the law that shows us how crooked we are" (J. B. Phillips trans. of Rom. 3:23).  Soli Deo Gloria!

Do We Need "Big Brother?"

Many people are enraptured with the TV show "Big Brother" and have a negative attitude towards what it represents. I am a big bro myself. I played a roll growing up with three younger siblings that I don't regret. Today many people see the government as a big brother, as it were, interfering in our lives and telling us what to do. When we depend on the government for everything and have forgotten personal responsibility we are using the government as a big brother. Many people today are dependent on the government for welfare, entitlements, and employment. Government is ordained of God and we are to submit unless it contradicts Scripture, and Israel had mandatory welfare set up  (see Deut. 15:4).

God wants us to ultimately trust in Him and not in government--He is our Provider. The best way to acknowledge this is to give thanks and trust him to give us our daily bread. In the Bible, a big brother is called a "kinsman-redeemer" and is an example of someone in the family buying back or redeeming a relative who is a slave or destitute. The book of Ruth shows a kinsman-redeemer marrying Ruth. In analogy, Christ is our kinsman-redeemer. He is our big brother! Everyone is dependent in some sense but don't forget God is the Provider and is only using the government or job, etc., (you don't owe your soul to the company store, as they say).   Soli Deo Gloria!

Heavenly Sports

Some wonder if there will be losers in heaven. There will be no sore losers or bad sports. We won't be depressed if our team loses because we did our best and it was fair and there is nothing to be bitter about. In other words, no bittersweet results. We will be free to enjoy the sport per se and for its own sake, for the love of the game, not just because we won.

We will be in a win-win situation in which we can't lose because what is important is how we play the game and the effort you put forth and what we learned about Jesus and fair play. There are so many things to learn from sports that apply to life. We will be generous in defeat and humble in victory. The old saying that says it's not whether you win or lose but how you play the game will ring true. But there will be an honor to whom honor is due and there will be no jealousy to ruin it. Losing a game doesn't make you a loser--a loser is one who gives up and doesn't try. 

I really wonder if hockey can be the same game in heaven because of the violence which would have to be eliminated. And football without being mean-spirited or tough on the opponent physically--but remember we will have resurrection bodies and will not feel pain. Some sports like tennis would not have to be changed because they are inherently non-violent and fair. We would probably have instant replay and there would be no umpire or referee errors to worry about. No one would get kicked out of the game because of tempers. I'm sure there will be sports and games in heaven and the rules will be perfect with nothing to complain about.  Soli Deo Gloria!

Are You A Sabbatarian?

Sabbatarian is defined as one who religiously and strictly keeps the Sabbath holy (defined as making separate or consecrating to the service of) as unto the Lord per the fourth commandment. There is no hard-and-fast rule as to what a Sabbath should be and Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath--it is His day. According to the law of Moses, breaking the Sabbath was a capital offense. Sabbath doesn't mean "seventh" but "rest." We owe our concept of a weekend to our Judeo-Christian heritage. Going to church every Sunday doesn't make you a Sabbatarian. Deciding that you need one day a week to rest is not being a Sabbatarian unless you keep it holy. Going to the ballgame or mowing your lawn on Sunday is not a violation for non-Sabbatarians.

My pastor has gone to games on Sunday. If you work on Sunday and you're taking another day off does not make you a Sabbatarian. Ministers, who work on Sunday often take Mondays off are by my definition not Sabbatarians. Taking a break is not necessarily keeping the day holy. Jews were forbidden from pursuing "pleasure" on the Sabbath (Isa. 58:13). The principle of "rest" is in effect still and God warns in Hebrews that Israel failed to enter into His rest.

The Sabbath day was given as a sign to Israel ( Neh. 9:14; Ezekiel 20:12,20). Christians are not to be judged as regards a Sabbath (Col. 2:16). The only one of the Ten Commandments or the Decalogue not repeated in the New Testament is the fourth about the Sabbath. The principle of rest still applies but "the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath" (Mark 2:27). We owe our concept of the weekend to our Judeo-Christian heritage. Christians enter into His rest (Heb. 4:3). Rom. 14:5 makes it clear that we are to be convinced in our own mind and not to judge some who consider one day more sacred than another. To some, all days are equally holy.

Seventh-Day Adventists consider the Sabbath still in effect and insist that this implies that it should be Saturday which the Jews keep holy and that the earliest Christians actually didn't change the Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday or the Lord's Day as John calls it in Revelation. It is reported in Didache 14:1 that early Christians met on the Lord's day by the end of the first century A.D. We do have a day set aside to worship and gather together to break bread and collect offerings (Acts 20:7; 1 Cor. l6:2). This is circumstantial evidence and there is no command in the New Testament to observe the Lord's Day. In conclusion: you have the freedom to be a Sabbatarian or not one if you will, but not to judge others.   Soli Deo Gloria!

Is The Bible Anti-gay?

This is a loaded question that assumes that it is alright to be homosexual and you are wrong to judge (the official name for this deviant behavior is homosexual not "gay"). The Bible per se is not against any type of person individually, but warns all sinners to repent and that God has provided a way of salvation for sinners. We believe the Bible is the Word of God and this is what is so offensive to them: they cannot admit they are perverted when the Bible plainly tells us so: (Rom. 1:26-27; 1 Cor. 6:9; 1 Tim. 1:10; Lev.18:22, 20:13). Speaking of being against something: Calvin Coolidge heard a sermon and his wife asked him what it was about and he said sin, and when she asked again he said I think he was against it! God is, by definition, against sin, and cannot co-exist with sin any more than matter can exist with anti-matter.

Perverted means this was not the original plan for man. He created Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve. God meant for sex to be between a man and a woman who were committed in love to each other, i.e. marriage. Otherwise, the kids would grow up insecure and abnormal. It is alleged that boys who grow up without a father image develop deviant behavior or even criminal behavior e.g., Nietzsche and the many blacks in America that grew up with only mothers. Now, I'm not against mothers bringing up children, but God intended for there to be a father figure.

So the Bible is the antidote to sin, as it were; all sin that is, including alcoholism, theft, murder, rape, lying, cheating, etc. Jesus can cure of any addiction or sin problem. "Such were some of you," Paul says in 1 Cor. 6:11. Both the Old and New Testaments clearly define homosexual behavior as wrong, but homosexuals claim they are born that way and therefore cannot help it. Well, a heterosexual was born that way too, and that is no excuse for lust or rape, et cetera.

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" (2 Cor. 5:17). Churches should welcome homosexuals just as any other sinner and show them the love of Christ in forgiveness and cleanliness. Remember how he told the woman caught in adultery, "Go and sin no more! We love the sinner but hate the sin! We are not to single out homosexuals and hate them or become homophobic. Amen!  Soli Deo Gloria!

Are We 100 Percent Spiritual?

Everyone has heard of the expression "so spiritually minded and no earthly good." Some Christians talk of their favorite sports team with the enthusiasm that should also belong to the Lord. It is a shame if we cannot praise God with equal zest. Now there is nothing wrong with sports that teaches so many valuable life skills and lessons, but it is not to be an idol or a religion as it were. They say the second biggest religion in the State of Hockey (Minnesota) is hockey. This is not really a compliment.

I believe we will play sports in heaven, though with fair play in all aspects I would add. (No checking or free-for-alls in hockey, but our resurrection bodies won't feel pain. Baseball is a gentleman's sport and I believe we can play it in heaven and we won't be depressed if our team loses--we will praise the Lord anyway!) If we can show great enthusiasm for sports we should also be able to do it for the Lord.

All of our time in heaven won't be occupied with worshiping God per se, though we will praise God continually in what we do, work, leisure or play. There are special angels that spend all their time worshiping God, but we will have duties to do and responsibilities to attend. So don't let anyone tell you not to talk of mundane subjects because they are not "spiritual." "Whatsoever you do, do to the glory of God" (1 Cor. 10:31). Brother Lawrence wrote a book Practicing the Presence of God in which he wrote about work being worship and finding God's fellowship in everything you do. Martin Luther taught that work is worship when done to the glory of God.   Soli Deo Gloria!

Friends Of Jesus

Abraham was the "friend of God" so we are grandiose to think we are exclusively the "buddy" of Jesus by the same token. I don't believe in any exclusive thinking for the believer or building of barriers or dichotomies between fellow brethren. Some Christians imagine that they are "buddies" with the Lord. We are servants. Paul calls us doulos or slave. John MacArthur says we are not His "sidekicks." ("Well done good and faithful servant.") Jesus called us all "friends" in the sense that we know His will and what He is doing. We cannot be egotistical in thinking we are above other Christians or a cut above others, because Christianity is egalitarian and we are all one in Christ. There is neither male nor female, et cetera.

If we are not His friends we are His enemies; there is no middle ground. Let's not let it go to our heads that we are all as believers the "friends" of Christ. He said that "Whoever is not with Me is against Me..." (Matt. 12:30). There is no dichotomy of believers whereas some are carnal and non-spiritual and others are mature. We are all works in progress but nevertheless "friends" and "brethren" of the Lord himself.   Soli Deo Gloria!