Category: Blog

Christmas time! A time when the entire world is confronted with the birth of Jesus Christ! Even the most casual observer knows this season is about Him. He’s really at the root of the whole thing. Who was this Jesus Christ? God and man all in one; how could that be? A virgin birth; surely you jest! The King of kings entering humanity in a manger, the Creator of everything entering His own creation; that doesn’t make sense! What did Herod the Great have against this peasant baby? Why a manger, the shepherds, the angels, Bethlehem, the wise men? What’s the point of this whole story?

The world has to face up to the reality of sin, man’s fall and the need for a Savior. That’s what Jesus is all about, and He claimed He is the Savior.

My, what an opportunity to engage people in the true and eternal implications of Christmas! At the core of this story is sin, fallen sinners and sin’s consequences (both mortal and eternal), but the story doesn’t end there. It’s also about the love of God for lost, perishing sinners, about forgiveness and eternal life. Christmas is all about a Savior, a unique Messiah who could somehow satisfy the justice of almighty God. Christmas is about the love of God, but it’s also about the justice and judgment of God. It’s about poverty, hatred and injustice, giving and forgiving and faith. It’s about rejection and simplicity and hope for hopeless mankind. Beyond the grave! It’s about “the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9).

Christians, Christmas is our time, our holiday. Oh yes, the world exploits it: to sell everything from toys to cars, to drink more liquor, to party and to do a lot of things that no man should do. Brothers and sisters don’t be distracted or derailed by the exploitations and add-ons. Stay with the pure and beautiful realities of the Christmas story.

What a pity that some good, sincere Christians get caught up in a few pagan mixtures and get all blown out of shape by Santa Claus, Christmas trees, gifts and reindeer! In their distraction they miss a golden opportunity to spread the true message of Christmas! Brothers and sisters, we have the high ground. We have the message of hope; nobody else has it. Nobody! Christmas is ours! Rather than an ugly-spirited attitude, how much better it is to have a song on your heart and lips and a glow about you that reflects the difference a meeting with Jesus Christ makes in a life! Instead of a defensive stance about all that’s wrong with Christmas, it’s so much better to tell the truth about Christmas! And yes, there’s a lot of great truth in the Christmas story. It is truly beautiful, meaty and life-changing.

Tell your kids. Tell your friends at work; it’s still legal to do so. The Bible says, “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear” (1 Peter 3:15). If there ever has been a perfect platform for doing this, it’s Christmas time. Many of our peers are doing their best to kick Christ right out of Christmas. No carols in public schools, no manger scene on the courthouse square, Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas. God forbid that we sit idly by and squabble among ourselves while it happens!

Ours is the greatest story ever told. “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men” (Luke 2:11-14). Now that’s something to shout about! This is no time for political correctness. Go, tell it on the mountains; Jesus Christ is born! It is truly a life-changing story.

Draw a line from dot one to dot two then to dot three until you connect all the dots. The kids love it. While mom and dad eat lasagna and chat with friends, the kids get the picture. The exercise is not very difficult and it’s scientific enough to avoid debate.

Inherent in this kind of activity is the concept of cause and effect. For every cause there must be an effect. “Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap” Galatians 6:7.

There are connections between the seeds we sow and the harvests we reap: how we manage our money and our financial future, the education we get and our ability to compete in society, how we treat our bodies and our later health, our attitude toward God and the condition of our society and nation.

In 1932 John Dewey, who is regarded as the father of education in America, wrote The Humanist Manifesto. Its basic premise is that we’ve grown up and we know there is no God. We no longer need this ancient mythological belief and it should be removed from the educational process. America and the world bought it. Thirty years later prayer was removed from public education.

In the infancy of this country, Thomas Jefferson wrote a letter to the Danbury, Connecticut Baptists in which he affirmed that in America there would be no state church. Nothing in the letter hints that there would be no Christianity in American politics, government or public education. That letter has been blatantly misrepresented, abused and misapplied. It is commonly given constitutional status and is repeatedly misused to remove all vestiges of God and Christianity from all facets of American public life: public education, government operations, national parks and monuments, the pledge of allegiance and now the military.

No Christmas carols or mention of Jesus in a school Christmas program, no prayer or mention of God at a graduation ceremony, no prayer or mention of Jesus Christ to a dying soldier on a battlefield, no display of The Ten Commandments in a school or public building! America desperately needs a moral compass, dying men need comfort and men need the hope that is in Jesus Christ.

Yet there is a surge in our country to rewrite our history and abolish our belief system. A classic example is origins. Don’t let our kids know that on the issue of origins there is a viable option to Darwinian Evolution and that the alternative position is loaded with factual, empirical evidence. Hide the numerous and gaping gaps in the evolutionary hypothesis. The correct answer is obvious: just tell the truth. Isn’t truth the heart of academic freedom and true science? Present all the evidence; let the facts speak for themselves. Draw conclusions based on the evidence, not preconceived notions.

This rewriting of our history makes it appear to our kids that America is the brainchild of a group of money-hungry capitalists who have greedily exploited the rest of the world. It hides the mass of documented evidence that America came into existence as a direct result of desperate Christians who fled here from Britain and Europe to avoid the cruel oppression and persecution of state church governments. Many of them came here at great personal sacrifice and paid with their blood and lives to establish an America free of a state church and where freedom and individual liberty were every person’s rights. Instead of telling the truth about America’s godly heritage, the current wave is play down her real heroes and exalt her shady, dark-side characters. A godly heritage made America a great nation with enormous blessings. From across the globe people risk their lives crossing our borders to get here. In our histories why not simply tell the truth about the Christian beliefs and practices of our founders and forefathers?

The Bible is the core document that framed our Constitution and molded our society, yet there is a stampede to downplay and eradicate the Bible from our society. Relegate the Bible to the status of all other ordinary books and through translations water down the copies you keep. Replace the Bible with video games and Nintendos. The fact is that the Bible has proven its worth. No document has come even close to having as great an impact for the better upon humanity as has the holy Bible. This day it has the answers to man’s deepest needs and for society’s ills.

We have exalted sports and violence, made heroes out of Hollywood’s vilest, ridiculed people of good character and those who have firm convictions and high standards. Somehow we have made good evil and evil good.

Then we wonder! We wonder why our child doesn’t mind and are so disrespectful. We wonder why there is so much purse-snatching, an increasing number of home invasions and bank robberies and school shootings. We wonder why our politicians can’t handle our tax dollars and about our sea of political corruption at every level. We wonder why violence threatens every American, why life is so cheap that America murders over 10,000 unborn babies every day and why America is financially ruined in spite of a greater tax burden than this world has ever known. We wonder why homosexuals are glamorized while moral people and Christian families are demonized, why law-abiding American citizens are forced to provide free medical care, food stamps and a plethora of free services for multitudes of people who are here unlawfully while responsible working people are forced to subsidize them.

Dot, dots, dots!  Connect the dots. It’s not rocket science. There’s a clear-cut connection between cause and effect, between decisions and consequences. There is generally a lapse of time between the planting of a seed and the harvest, but the harvest comes. America is feeling the harvest. A few generations ago the people of this country decided to remove God out of their lives. Some rejected Him totally; others give Him lip service, but for all practical purposes He’s gone. With His removal from the daily fabric of American society has come the consequences. Connect the dots; the picture is not pretty.

As long as the move away from God continues, the picture will get worse; but it does not have to continue. We can repent, turn around, go back to our roots, return to our God. “Righteousness exalteth a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people,” Proverbs 14:34. Without a return to God, America is certain to perish, but He can save us. He can restore us. We cannot ignore the dots. We must return to Him. “Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteousness man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon,” Isaiah 55:7.

A handy way to extend your authority beyond yourself is to invoke the name of God. God told me. I command you in the name of Jesus! I’m sure God understands. Just let a chap hit the wrong nail with a hammer, stump his toe or get into a heated shouting match. How quickly the tongue gets loose on both ends and the name of God flies out like bullets. Most big movie stars are really good at it and little children pick it up like candy. It’s quickly integrated into their language. Somehow a mouth full of GD’s and JC’s make them feel big, mean, impressive and tough.

It was God Himself who said, “Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain,” Exodus 20:7. No cussing! There was a day when a sizeable amount of soap was used in cleansing foul-mouthed boys. God-fearing people know cussing is wrong.

It is sad to observe that many of those “God-fearing people” are good (really good) at using God’s name in vain in other ways. It happens in bull sessions. They stand around a water fountain and out comes the opinions about God, church and what’s right and wrong. Seems that everyone is his own authority on God and what God thinks. On virtually everything!

Churches are notorious for it. In the name of God the Baptists are teaching things that contradict the Church of Christ, the Lutherans are on another page and the Pentecostals are somewhere else. The Methodists and Catholics are far apart and the Presbyterians are sure they are all wrong. They’re as far as the east is from the west, but ironically they are all invoking the name of God to support their positions.

Preachers have refined the name of God in support of whatever they want to a fine art. God is leading me in this direction. I’ve prayed about this and it’s the will of God. Building programs, new worship styles, new twists on ancient biblical doctrines, new ideas on standards! They’re quick to point out: I’m God’s man. It’s as if I have a direct line to God; nobody else knows what God wants. Yes! God is the BIG GUN. His name is invoked so I can get my way and prevail over all others. Even when their way destroys a church they hide behind a fig leaf and say, “God is in control; this was His will.” What a cop-out! Blame it on God; take no personal responsibility. A lot of dirt has been swept under the carpet in the name of God.

What is Islamic Jihad? It is holy war in the name of God: planes into the World Trade Center, suicide bombers, the wholesale slaughter of innocent women and children, hatred, terrorism! All in the name of God! Across the board of society the name of God is to justify everything. Talk about misuse and abuse! It’s not surprising that multitudes hate religion.

Taking the name of God in vain is far, far more than nasty cuss words. It’s also invoking the name of God to support things and positions that are not at all of Him. In fact, He has gone on record in His Word that He is in opposition of much of what is done in His name. Invoking the name of God in support of anything He does not support is taking His name in vain.

It seems that nearly everybody has an opinion about God and what He thinks. Never confuse opinions with His stated positions. They are expressed quite clearly in His Word which is the Bible, and the Bible is provable. It will stand inspection. The way it came into existence, its 100% prophetic track record and its perfect harmony all prove it to be the work of God, not man. Give the Bible a chance. See for yourself. To know God’s position go to His Word, to the place where He said who He is and what He thinks on the issues.

Whether in a pulpit or at a pool table think twice before you invoke the support and backing of God for what you say and do. God has a position on everything: sex, homosexuality, same-sex marriages, abortions, child rearing and discipline, money management, morality, church life, who He is and how to go to heaven. Before you proceed to say what He thinks on any subject, be sure you express His position and not your own opinion. He doesn’t like being misrepresented. Thou shalt not!

Before you put yourself in the position of spokesman for God, be sure you get it right. And, do not be intimidated or influenced by anyone who comes to you in the name of the God, but whose message does not match the Bible.

Ambassador! What’s that? “An official of highest rank sent to represent his government in a foreign country. Any person sent as a representative or messenger.” (Webster). A survivalist! A person with a very different mindset! The central idea is survival, continuing to exist. We’re all familiar with the new wave of Survivor television shows. Be the last one standing. Survive at any cost. Deceive, cheat, hide, bully, kill, sell your soul, do anything it costs. It’s okay as long as you survive. Now TV has gone a step farther and there are the Doomsday Preppers. They remind me of a good many Christians I know.

As blood-bought, born again believers in Jesus Christ, is that all we are? People just trying to hold out and survive till the end? Is getting saved, waiting for the rapture and holding out till we die all there is to being a Christian? Is Christianity nothing more than a ticket to heaven? Even a kindergarten Bible student knows better.

Yes! We’re in an increasingly hostile world. A large percentage of this world hates Christianity. They do not like Christians. Christianity runs counter to the survival of the fittest and rule by raw force. It’s for freedom and liberty of conscience and is an affront to dictators and totalitarian regimes. Christianity is for the sanctity of life and stands in the way of murder, whether it is citizens killing other citizens, mothers killing their unborn babies, the euthanizing of the infirmed or elderly or the way Adolph Hitler did it. Christianity is pro family and defines a legitimate marriage as a legal union between a man and a woman; and that puts Christians in harm’s way with homosexuals, advocates of same-sex marriages and polygamists. Christianity is about wholesome, moral living. Promiscuous people, thieves, drug abusers, bullies, adulterers and child abusers have a problem with that. Christianity is about truth and honesty, doing good rather than evil, giving and forgiveness, loyalty, patriotism and law-abiding lifestyles. Christianity offers hope (in this life and the world to come), but it says hope is only in one person, Jesus Christ. One must have a personal relationship with Christ and that relationship comes only by grace through faith in Him. All other religions are offended that Christians would claim to have the only way of salvation.

The world is ratcheting down on those who believe and practice true biblical Christianity. Yes! Right here in America! Discrimination seems to be the leading tool of choice. Failure to fall in line and accept all that is politically correct (especially homosexuality) is considered discrimination. Because they stand for Bible positions Christians are considered intolerant. In the eyes of a growing number of legal ways that intolerance cannot be tolerated. (Go figure out that stance.) Remember the photographers in New Mexico who politely declined to photograph a same-sex marriage because it contradicted their deeply held Christian convictions! The New Mexico Human Rights Commission fined them for violating the state’s anti-discrimination laws. Yes, anti-discrimination! The case went all the way to the New Mexico Supreme Court which decided that New Mexico’s anti-discrimination law “compels” people “to compromise the very religious beliefs that inspire their lives.” The court explained that this is simply “the price of citizenship.” In Missouri the National Parks Service recently required churches to obtain a special uses permit in order to baptize in public waters. After an uproar and intervention by an elected representative the Park’s Service backed off; however, similar efforts have been tried in other states. Have you noticed the anti-Christian wave in the U.S. Military, particularly the Air Force? Fox News reported that the Pentagon directed an Air Force Base to remove a video tribute to First Sergeants because it mentioned the word “God.” The Pentagon said the word might be offensive to atheists or Muslims. Todd Starnes reports that Senior Master Sergeant Phillip Monk at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio was relieved of his duties after he disagreed with his openly gay commander when she wanted to severely punish an instructor who had expressed religious objections to homosexuality. His commander said his position is discriminatory. This case demonstrates the growing trend of government to punish those who refuse to openly agree with anti-biblical positions.

Do not imagine that you will be immune, that this trend will not ultimately reach you. It will: where you work, when you buy or sale your house, on your income tax return, through what you say to a friend or neighbor. When Hitler was doing his thing many fine Christian Germans thought it would never reach them. It did. Christian, the trend that is escalating in America will one day reach you. Especially if you are an Ambassador for Christ!

Yes! You can go into survival mode; many are already there. Maybe you can stay under the radar a little longer. Though the centuries, many who named the name of Christ have crumbled under pressure. Peter did it on that infamous night when the Savior was tormented and sentenced to die. Even a shallow dive into the pages of Christian history following the days of Christ will show you multitudes of Christian pretenders, those who spent their lives in survival mode. We are getting very close to a purge of Christian ranks. Already I am seeing more and more a survivalist mentality: Christians who are afraid to stand and speak up (except in their little circles). I don’t like controversy. I don’t want to get involved. I really don’t know what to say or do. It’s the blend in, stay under the radar, go with the flow, survivor mentality.

What a sad commentary on Christians! According to the Bible, we are ambassadors. “Now then we are ambassadors for Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:20). We are “strangers and pilgrims” (1 Peter 2:11) here on earth; our real citizenship is in heaven. “For our conversation is in heaven; for whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ” (Philippians 3:20). Awesome! God saved us from eternal damnation in the lake of fire, gave us heavenly citizenship and chose us to be His representatives here on earth for the duration of our lifetimes. What an honor and privilege! “Ye are the salt of the earth” (Matthew 5:13). “Ye are the light of the world” (Matthew 5:14). Don’t hide your light, your influence and testimony; maximize it! “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 5:16). This is no time for God’s people to be hiding in the stuff or in some closet. “Let the redeemed of the LORD say so” (Psalm 107:2). It’s time to stand up! Let the positions of our great God be heard and seen in our voices and lives! The apostle Paul said, “Now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed” (Romans 13:11). Jesus said, “Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning . . . Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching” (Luke 12:35-37).