Good words from Kansas.
Servants of God,
“If you faint in the day of adversity,
your strength is small.”... View MoreGood words from Kansas.
Servants of God,
“If you faint in the day of adversity,
your strength is small.”
-Proverbs 24:10
Just about every Christian would admit to spiritual struggles from time to time. If we cast even a casual glance at the cultural chaos unfolding around us, we have reason for grave concern. What once was considered normal is now turned on its head. The cruelty of abortion, the insanity of transgenderism and the crisis of American cities being terrorized by foreign gangs pouring across our unguarded borders ought to alarm us all. But should Christians allow these troubling realities to cause us to give up hope? Never! The hard things of life are (in part) a gift because they can drive us toward our only true source of strength—God.
The scriptures instruct us in how to remain stable and hopeful in the midst of trouble. When King David was downcast, he encouraged himself to hope in God (Psalm 42 &43). The great armor of God passage in Ephesians 6 teaches us that in order to stay strong in the midst of life’s spiritual battles we must rely on multiple aspects of the Christian life. First, we must always be aware that life is a spiritual battle with a real and dangerous (though unseen) enemy who deploys all sorts of wicked schemes. Christians must not fall into the broken thinking pattern of an unbelieving worldview. We have to think straight in a crooked world.
Christians must not be surprised by evil or deluded into thinking evil does not matter. We must never forget that our strength to fight our spiritual battles comes to us graciously by way of God’s ordained means. We are to wear the belt of truth but that means we must hear, read, study, memorize and meditate upon the truth revealed to us in God’s Word. If we want the protection of the breastplate of righteousness, we must be led by God’s Spirit to act righteously. The helmet of salvation means we first must be born again and then operate in the assurance of our salvation. God’s truthful word is a mighty weapon of warfare but that requires we learn how to deploy it in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Few Christians can maintain adequate spiritual strength without the fellowship of the community of the saints. Church is far more than a meeting. Church is a people—those called out of darkness into a saving and holy relationship with God through trusting in Christ’s saving work on our behalf. None of us is as strong in isolation as we are when we function as part of the community of the saints. Being part of a congregation of Christians reminds us that God’s best for us comes when we are consistently reminded of our great weakness and the great strength of our savior and Lord—Jesus Christ. He leads us in the battle and we encourage one another to be faithful and to practice love and good works. There is a comradery among believers that transcends age or race or national identity.
In Ephesians 6 the Apostle Paul urges us to both pray in the Spirit and to pray for one another. Prayer helps keep us alert and engaged in the battle. Prayer keeps us dependent upon God for our strength. Prayer drives the spread of the gospel message that in Christ, God rescues sinners and gives us a new identity and a high calling. Prayer reminds us of the things we cannot do for ourselves. We cannot stay spiritually strong by our own will power. We desperately need God’s strength.
Proverbs 24:10 warns us that we are susceptible to losing our strength and fainting. Ephesians 6 reminds us of the nature of our struggle and the source of true spiritual power to live boldly in troubled times. Moses’ song of Exodus 15 reminds us the strength to conquer and advance God’s will comes from God. Dear brothers and sisters, do not give up. Do not faint when you face adversity and the tough times. God is the source of our strength. The enemy of our souls wants us to believe that God is losing the battle. How ridiculous! God is working to bring about His rule and reign in the entire universe and we are highly privileged to be a part of the great battle to restore all things under the proper authority of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Fight on and do not faint. God is sufficient in every circumstance. The resurrection of Jesus is the first sign of what is coming. The forces of evil can do what they may. Jesus is Lord and one day soon, every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord to the glory of God the Father!
Blessings,
Pastor
Coram Deo
Good words from Kansas about stolen Valor.
Servants of God,
“One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much,
and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much.”... View MoreGood words from Kansas about stolen Valor.
Servants of God,
“One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much,
and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much.”
-Luke 16:10
How important is it to tell the truth? One of the charges most often leveled against politicians is that of lying. Even in a time when almost everything is supposed to be relative, there seems to be at least some cultural memory that truth matters.
I have been watching with interest the rhubarb over the details of the military service of the Democrat candidate for Vice-President. A term often used in this argument is “stolen valor.” Tim Walz served in the Minnesota Army National Guard for 24 years. No one is contesting that. What has raised the hackles of military types (and plenty of others) is the fact that Governor Walz is on record claiming to have retired at the rank of command sergeant major. Military records show clearly, that he did not. Walz also is known to have made the claim that he “carried weapons of war in war.” Since Walz never served in a combat zone, that was not true either. The issue is not whether Walz served in the National Guard. The issue is whether he has made false claims to rank and combat duty in order to embellish his military service, particularly as he pursued political office. Walz is seeking to become the nation’s Vice-President. If, God forbid, he is elected to that office he would be one heartbeat away from being the nation’s commander-in-chief.
The Bible is such a wonderful help to us. Jesus clearly taught in Luke 16:10 that a person who is dishonest or unfaithful in small issues telegraphs that he will continue that pattern in larger, more important things. Proverbs 11:3 teaches that it is “The integrity of the upright” that guides his life. It also adds the warning that “…the crookedness of the treacherous destroys them.” We should not be surprised in days to come to see Governor Walz’s reputation and political capital take a beating as American voters find that he has consistently lied about his military service. What else is he lying about?
No political candidate is perfect, but one who lies about something like military service and refuses to admit to the falsehoods, could prove to be particularly untrustworthy. The military culture of “Duty, Honor, Country” generally shapes its members to value those three sacred virtues. It is a high honor to serve in the armed forces, but it is a grave responsibility to do so honorably and to be truthful about the service rendered.
As Christians, we need to be very careful both about condoning sin and about being too harsh in condemning others. We know that “all have sinned” and that fact makes the gracious redemption we have in Christ very precious. At the same time, Christians must not be fools. When we see a man like Walz claiming to be someone he is not, we should be on high alert with regard to the rest of his life. What else has he lied about? What standard does he live by? Does he have such a low opinion of American citizens that he believes he can lie about something like military service, and voters will not care? Perhaps he will survive this charade. Maybe (God forbid) he will get elected. One thing he will not escape is the righteous indignation of thousands who served in the military and did not lie about their accomplishments and experiences. Far more important is the fact that a righteous God promises that an unrepentant evil person will not go unpunished (Proverbs 11:21).
Christians cannot afford to play games about the 2024 election. Our nation has lurched dangerously toward totalitarianism under the Biden administration’s lawless reign. The United States is in real danger and no citizen—particularly Christians—should stick our heads in the sand hoping that placating evil will bring good results. Please be informed about the individuals running for office and cast your vote in the direction that is most likely to advance righteousness and deter evil.
Blessings,
Pastor
Coram Deo
Good words from Kansas.
Servants of God,
“We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the recti... View MoreGood words from Kansas.
Servants of God,
“We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved;”
-Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence is ironic. It declares rebellion against one order and speaks of the need for a new one. An honest assessment of 1776 can conclude that the concepts of law and order articulated in the Declaration of Independence are largely rooted in Christian thought. The New Covenant life is a life lived out of a heart that has God’s Law written on it (Hebrews 10:16). Life rightly ordered, yields blessings to humans. The Bible teaches that there is only one way for life to be rightly ordered (Acts 4:12 and John 14:6). When life is calibrated to the will of God, humans flourish. When humans make up their own laws or use good law in an unjust manner, they violate the nature of the universe that God has created. Unjust laws and lawlessness precede disaster.
America as a nation is living on the precipice of such a disaster. Denying human nature and trying to bring about a human-centered utopia brings about God-ordained disorder. Denying the sovereignty of God, flaunting His authority and disregarding His Law brings God’s just wrath upon any person or any group of persons who attempt to live that way.
Law matters and it always has. As we near Independence Day, it is important to think about and understand both human law and the divine Law of God from which human law flows. Since the Garden of Eden, humans have needed to be instructed so they could live and flourish. The Creation ordinance spoken by God teaches humans who they are and how they are to live. All of human history is shaped by rules and regulations.
The Declaration of Independence begins with an explanation for what was about to happen. The body of the document is a list of complaints. It plainly states: “let the Facts be submitted to a candid World.” Then there is a list of 27 Grievances. At least 18 of them (perhaps more) have something to do with law or the violation of law(s). The document is filled with references to law, legislature(s), trials, judges etc. It is possible to say the Declaration is one long complaint about the misuse of law and/or legal power. The King of England, the document argued, had forfeited his right to rule over the thirteen states (colonies) who are now united and determined to launch a new and independent country. Law matters.
The American republic is breathing on one lung in large measure because God’s Law has been minimized and human laws have been magnified and multiplied. The American founders were swimming in a Christianized culture. The influence of the Bible was massive. Of course, the founding generation was not perfect but they had a solid grounding in biblical ethics and a great respect for the rule of law in general. The constitution, which came years after the revolution, has a preamble that makes it clear that ordered liberty was essential if the states were to “secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity.” There needed to be justice, domestic tranquility and a common defense if there was to be a way to promote the general welfare and secure the true blessings of liberty.
I hope that each of you might take time to read the Declaration of Independence and spend some time in reflection and prayer for the future of our nation during the next few days. Christians ought to be the best of citizens. That means we, like the founders, should know the facts about our time and our culture. Our nation may be too far gone to pull out of its moral nosedive, but it is never too late for Christians to do what we know is right before the face of our holy God. Only a person who has passed from spiritual death to new life in Christ can understand the joy of obeying God’s law in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Blessings,
Pastor
Coram Deo
Good words from Kansas.
Servants of God,
“It wasn’t no lucky catch.”
-Willie Mays... View MoreGood words from Kansas.
Servants of God,
“It wasn’t no lucky catch.”
-Willie Mays
“Do you see a man skillful in his work?
He will stand before kings; he will not stand before obscure men.”
-Proverbs 22:29
In every human endeavor skill matters. Willie Mays, one of the most skilled athletes of the twentieth century, died this week. Affable as well as gifted athletically, he was known as the “Say Hey Kid.” Mays was among the first wave of Black major league ball players and is often called the greatest center fielder in the history of the game. Of course, as in most of baseball, fans who are of contrary opinion argue for their own favorite candidate for the title. In the 1950s the city of New York was awash with talented center fielders. Was it Willie or Mickey or The Duke (as in Willie Mays, Mickey Mantle or Duke Snider)? Like noses, every fan had his opinion. What is generally not disputed is “The Catch.” Mays made an over-the-shoulder catch during the 1954 World Series that is considered one of baseball’s best plays ever. Mays was a complete player and played a long time. The game has lost a legend.
Willie Mays was not a boisterous player, but he was a confident one. When Don Mueller, who played right field next to Mays asked Willie “Is it true you’re the best center fielder in baseball?” May’s curt reply was, “Best right fielder too.” When folks hinted that his famous play in the 1954 World Series was somehow not a matter of skill and ability his reply was classic. “It wasn’t no lucky catch.” That sort of play does not happen by accident. Spontaneity grows out of discipline. He more than paid his dues in the negro leagues before he signed with the major league New York Giants. In the negro leagues players were expected to be both excellent players and noteworthy entertainers. Willie’s circus catches were possible because he had honed such skills for years before he ever put on a Giants uniform in the big leagues.
Discipline is a matter of hard work and countless repetitions. Discipline requires that we choose what we want most over what we want now. The Christian life is like that. It is a process of both divine grace and the hard work of righteousness practiced. The process of discipleship is discipline lived out. We love Jesus and want to do his will and bring glory to him. That means we have been both rescued from sin and hell and that we choose the hard work of hearing and obeying God’s word. It means working at killing sin and fostering holiness. We know that this life is preparation for eternity. We know that what lies ahead of us—the celestial city whose builder and maker is God (Hebrews 11:10)—is far more glorious and important than the pleasures and leisure of the here and now. As disciples we know there is self-denial and submission to God every step of the way.
Willie Mays was confident, not because he was insecure, but because of massive amounts of mundane practice and a long record of game day performances. Over his long professional career he proved that he was capable of a level of excellence that only a handful of players ever achieved. Willie, more than anyone else, understood his level of skill. He remained a humble man but he chafed when others hinted that his play was a matter of luck and said so. Another baseball great, Dizzy Dean, famously opined “It ain’t bragging if you can do it.”
The Christian life is a matter of pursuing excellence in the things of the spirit. No Christian has anything to brag about. We have nothing except what we have received from God (1 Corinthians 4:7). We can be sure of one thing. Holiness and growth in righteousness is a matter of both working out our own salvation with fear and trembling and of God working supernaturally through us (Philippians 2:12,13). If we want to be excellent in anything, it should be in the pursuit of holiness—being set apart from the world and set apart to do the will of God. To paraphrase Willie Mays, we must realize that the Christian life “is no lucky thing.”
Blessings,
Pastor
Coram Deo
Good words from Kansas
Servants of God,
“The reason I play golf is, I am trying to glorify God
and all that he’s done in my life,... View MoreGood words from Kansas
Servants of God,
“The reason I play golf is, I am trying to glorify God
and all that he’s done in my life,
and so for me, my identity isn’t a golf score.”
-Scottie Scheffler
Is the Christian faith merely a personal choice? Is it a religious preference? Is “what Jesus means to me” the measure of faith? Was Jesus’ death on the cross mostly about providing me a personal ticket to heaven and an escape from hell? Could it be that the American church has missed the point that God, in Christ, is not just saving individual persons but reclaiming the entire cosmos? Do we really believe that the day is coming when every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord? And do we believe that what we do daily (right here and right now as individual Christians) will impact how and when that glorious day will come?
I rarely watch golf on TV, but if I do it is usually the final round of the Masters Tournament. Having lived in Georgia, the scene at Augusta floods me with warm memories of how beautiful and lush that part of the country can be—especially in the Springtime. Being a bad golfer, I can truly appreciate how consistent and profoundly talented professional golfers are. The Masters is one of the four major tournaments of professional golf. The winner being awarded the green jacket is among the most iconic moments in professional sports. On Sunday, Scottie Scheffler was awarded his second green jacket in three years. It is a remarkable feat. Golf at the professional level is incredibly competitive and profoundly difficult. Scheffler is clearly, for the moment, the best golfer in the world. It is rare for pro golfers to stay at the top of their game for more than three to five years. That is what makes an Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus or Tiger Woods so very special. Interestingly enough, the aging Woods, who is probably the most famous pro golfer in the world, barely made the cut for this year’s Masters and finished 60th out of 60.
Scottie Scheffler, a twenty-seven-year-old Texan, is a Christian and says that he plays golf to glorify God. He is one of a handful of professional sports figures who are very open about the fact that they believe Jesus is the Lord of all life—including sports. He has made it clear that he has worked at glorifying Jesus through his golf and that in the past he was not fully pleased with his personal testimony. He said that two years ago, after winning the Masters, he had not articulated his faith in Christ as clearly as he might have. Since then he has boldly announced that his identity is not that he is a golfer. He makes it clear that he finds his identity in Christ and what Jesus purchased on the cross.
What if ordinary Christians understood as clearly as Scheffler seems to, that who they are and what they do or accomplish is to be ruled by Christ? He has made it clear that no matter what his golf score might be, he is obligated to do his best to bring glory to God. Does the plumber or taxi driver or nurse or computer programmer have the same obligation?
What if every ordinary Christian felt the same obligation to appropriately witness to the victory that Christ won on the cross? Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross was not merely about rescuing humans from hell. Romans 8 makes it clear that the whole creation groans and waits eagerly for the day that the universe will be liberated from the presence and power of sin. The Apostle Paul penned that in the grand scope of redemption “…the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.”(Romans 8:21).
Average Christians—people like you and me—have been set free from “the law of sin and death” by the wonderful work of the Holy Spirit. Christ won a great victory on the cross and every believer can proclaim “I am free from the power of sin and you can be too!” The victory that Christ won on the cross is being consolidated as the body of Christ grows across our world. Things might look dark and dangerous. Because we are in Christ, we can know who we are. We can tell the gospel story of redemption and a new identity in Christ. And we, like Scottie Scheffler and other believers can make it clear that Jesus is Lord of all!
Blessings,
Pastor
Coram Deo
Good words from Kansas.
Servants of God,
“These bills attack our most basic American values:
the freedom to be yourself, the freedom to make your own health care decisions, and even the right to r... View MoreGood words from Kansas.
Servants of God,
“These bills attack our most basic American values:
the freedom to be yourself, the freedom to make your own health care decisions, and even the right to raise your own child.
It is no surprise that the bullying and discrimination that transgender Americans face is worsening our Nation’s mental health crisis,
leading half of transgender youth to consider suicide in the past year.”
--from President Biden’s Proclamation of Transgender Visibility Day
“For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes
and the pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world.
And the world is passing away along with its desires,
but whoever does the will of God abides forever.”
-1 John 2:16,17
The world can be a dangerous place and even more so if we cannot adequately identify the dangers. When the Biden White House made the outrageously insulting proclamation lauding “Transgender Visibility Day” and bragged about the president’s many actions to promote sexual perversion, Christians ought to have taken notice. Just a few days earlier, Candace Owens, a conservative commentator lost her job at the Daily Wire. She has been vilified as an anti-Semite largely because she dared to utter the phrase “Christ is King.” Both of these events highlight how important it is for Christians to know, believe, proclaim and fight for truth.
President Biden ought not to have been proud of spreading perversion and Candace Owens ought to have the right to proclaim Christ as king. Both incidents deserve the attention of Christians. Both are rooted in what Henry Morris, the great champion of biblical Creationism, called “The long war against God.”
The Biden administration’s full court press for sexual perversion reveals that the American left thinks the time is right to fully take down traditional American values. Those values are rooted in the Christian faith and Christ-exalting worldview that Christianity fosters. It is no accident that the proclamation came during the holiest of Christian celebrations—the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus. Hello!
The struggle to complete a full-fledged rebellion against God is a long one, but even a cursory view of history will note that the story of the Tower of Babel gets repeated over and over. Satan and his demonic minions want to cast off any restraint that God might place on human behavior. They know that humans were created to bring honor and glory to God by being God’s image bearers. The enemy of God and humanity cannot abide humans being fruitful and multiplying and spreading the truth about God to the ends of the earth. The sad truth is that many who claim to be Christians seem to have less Bible knowledge than the demons. People who call themselves Christian trot behind the current cultural Pied Pipers trying to bring their lives and churches into line with the demands of the enemies of God. News flash to those trying to please the world: the world and its ancillaries are passing away and have no real future (1 John 2:15-17).
The magnificent design and creative power of God is perceived in the glorious union of a man and a woman in marriage. When the union of a husband and a wife yields a child, a God-exalting event has occurred. Children are a heritage from God (Psalm 127:3). Little wonder that abortion, chemical poisoning to thwart birth and the abuse of children once they are outside their mother’s womb are all so prevalent in a world that rejects God.
Christians must fight against the dangerous philosophies that dishonor and insult God and His risen Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. The saints of God are on the winning side of this struggle. God will not allow lies to triumph. God will not fail to bless those who are obedient to Him in their sexual thoughts and behaviors. He will not forsake those who claim Christ as their true, risen, and soon-to-return King.
Blessings,
Pastor
Coram Deo
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