The Morality of Ideas

I strongly suspect that we are wrong.  There is something fundamentally misleading in the way Postmodern people view ideas.  The Church has a tendency to reject the World as a whole, but to take certain parts of its ideologies and to cling to them as Biblical Truth.  From Postmodernism we have taken this thought: ideas are neutral.

This concept plays many roles in society; we "test" every thought and put it under the scrutiny of intellectualism, but we see the idea itself as unblemished, whereas the action which it lends itself to may or may not be righteous.

This idea may be difficult to explain, so I will get to the point in how it relates to society.  In the "abortion dialogue" which has permeated American culture, arguments are portrayed as intellectual discussion on a topic.  It is assumed that every person has "a right to their idea," but that idea may be either true or false, and based on the Truth, carrying out an abortion is either wicked, or amoral.  I am convinced however, that this is not the case.  To be a Christian is to be called out of darkness and into light.  The Christian has the Holy Spirit inside of them, which compels them to view things (no matter how imperfectly) in the same way God does.

Taking Hitler's genocide as an example, although rational dialogue on these sorts of topics should certainly occur, the believer should not be uncertain about whether or not the Holocaust was immoral or not.  After knowing the facts, the believer should not have to wrestle through endless speculations and conversations with Hitler's belated followers in order to reach a "probable certainty" of what is moral.  In the same way, I am more convinced daily that the "abortion dialogue" is not simply a discussion of logic and terms.  Rather, it is a righteous people (Jesus Christ's people) who morally disagree with an unrighteousness people over a thing which God hates.  The problem with the way the Church has approached the "abortion problem" is that the Church has speculated and dialogued when in reality it has known the Truth all along.  It is an impossible thing to inspire the non-believer to become a righteous person through logical argumentation.

Ideas are the most dangerous and morally loaded creatures in existence, and they should not be taken lightly; no matter how fixated a society is on free-speech.  The "idea" that a person has in not only a product of nature and nurture, but a product of a person's "new nature," or lack thereof.  We must not forget that the Christian is righteous, but the unbeliever--no matter how kind--is not.

Incomprehensible Joy

Four days ago I had a migraine.  It was the first migraine I have ever had (and I hope, last), and extremely profound.  There is something about excruciating pain which can cause a person to think deeply and soberly about life as a whole.

My first realization was this: depth, in all facets of life, usually comes through pain.  Depth of mind frequently comes when the daggers take their deepest course.  So-called "deathbed converts" are given a bad name, being portrayed as desperately grasping straws with their final throws of life.  It seems wise to consider, however, that after a life of relative ease, maybe these souls are being deepened in thought in a way they never had to before.  The sick, aged, and dying are not the shallowest of the human race by any stretch of the imagination.

This depth, is very likely the precise reason why the Fall was allowed to be part of the history of mankind.  Without our peoples' discombobulation, we never could have been reconfigured are something more beautiful, which knows its Savior all the more.  Similarly:

"A certain money-lender had two debtors.  One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.  When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both.  Now which of them will love him more?"  Simon answered, "The one, I suppose, for whom he cancelled the larger debt."  And he said to him, "You have judged rightly."

The second realization was this: incomprehensible things are outside of the realm of our imagination.  This seems obvious at first glance, but at the very least, it has never been obvious to me.  Due to a certain illness, I have faced an incredible amount of pain over the course of my life.  However, the migraine I experienced was more painful than any other pain in my life without comparison.  In many ways, a heightened form of the stab of brain-freeze, only for a period of around three-and-a-half hours instead of three-and-a-half seconds. A sickening, incapacitating pain which caused my teeth to chatter, arms to shake, and knees to (literally) knock together.

While the migraine was happening, I realized something significant: my imagination can barely carry me outside of the realm of my experience.  If the proverbial "scale of pain" ranges from 1-10, the greatest pain I had experienced before my migraine was perhaps a 5.  Anything beyond that was incomprehensible to me.  When watching "Master and Commander," while the little boy's arm is cut off with a saw, the greatest pain I could connect with that in my mind was a 5, when perhaps the pain itself was a 9.  I could understand it, but only to the extent that a person knows the look of the Sun by the shadows--it is beyond his experience.  Now that I have had my migraine however, when I watch "Master and Commander" again, I will be able to associate my 7 with the little boy's 9, and be able to comprehend that terrible scene in a much better light.

The significance of this principle, is that many things, good or bad, are not merely "more than we understand," but entirely outside of our realm of understanding.  The Christian is altogether incapable of knowing the joys of heaven, the love of God, or the pain of Hell.  These things are completely beyond our grasp.  So, when we preach to those who do not know the living God, it is our absolute lack of understanding which should drive us.  We know what will happen to them, but we cannot comprehend it.  Just the same, we should be pushed forward to serve Yahweh, not based on the 4 of joy we comprehend, but on the understanding that there exists a 10 which we have never grasped.  When we compare our present sufferings with the joy we have experienced in this life, it is toss-up whether or not it is worthwhile to bear the burden of the cross.  But, when we remember that the joys to come, when we see Him face to face, are indescribably greater than the greatest things we have experienced, we will have the strength to continue.

Dear Imagined Reader,

Well, I suppose I'm going to take another crack at writing to my imaginary audience on blogger.com.  I imagine that people love these sorts of things--writing them, that is--because it feels significant.  As though every thought I have is of enough importance for people to want to read about them.  Although I know this is not the case, I figure I will begin to write on here once again in order to collect my own thoughts, and if (God-forbid!) someone finds my thoughts significant, then they are here to be read.

There are certain days where I wish I could go to every Christian who lives on the earth, sit them down, and tell them what is on my heart about this God we serve.  Today is one of those days, however un-profound, and I wish I could sit with you, my dear imagined reader, and tell you what there is to be found in Christ Jesus.  I was on my knees just minutes ago, weeping in the presence of the Lord.  The reason why is not especially profound: two people who I love very much are being bound together in marriage soon.  But in the end, these things are not ends in themselves, are they?  Rather, simply means.  Means pointing back towards the reason for all joy and strength and peace in this world: the goodness of God.  How I wish I could have such a thing to celebrate every day so that I could see the goodness of God so clearly in every moment!  Or rather, maybe I wish that in every moment I could see the goodness of God which is already so magnificently evident.

My Testimony

I am in Christ.  Because my mind is set on the things of the Spirit, I can know that I am in Christ.  There is no condemnation for me; I will never pay for so much as one part of one of my sins.  If I were to do so, Hell would be my dwelling place forever.  Christ however was wrapped in this sinful flesh just as I am, but He, altogether unlike me, was tempted but never succumbed to the things of the flesh.   Had He done so, He too would have been hostile towards God and treated as an enemy.  He however was perfect and perfectly fulfilled all of the righteous requirements of the law.  That which should have been death for me was rather conformed to be the fulfilment of the law within me.  I did not fulfill the law, but the righteous requirements of the law were fulfilled within me by my Savior through whom sin was condemned for my sake, rather than me being condemned for the sake of sin.  I have transgressed every commandment of God's law, but the creator of the universe is altogether pleased with me.

In Christ,

Every Christian

The Humanization of Discipline

Turn your eyes upon Jesus

Look full in His wonderful face

And the things of earth will grow strangely dim

In the light of His glory and grace

Most people would agree that the modern western Christian Church is extremely carnal.  So books are written, blogs are updated (there's a little bit of irony here I guess) and twitter accounts buzz with enthusiasm about each day's new self-help guide to holiness.  The only problem is that just like almost everything else that is done in the United States, the very foundation of these things is Humanism.  

We qualify Jesus with man-made using justifications like "some people just don't work that way," or "all those things are true, but you have to be practical."  The practical and simple truth is that the moment you try to make people holy through any means separate from the Bible, it's Humanism.  According to statistics, the world and the Church have the same exact morals.  The reason for this is that the world and the Church are using the same tactics.  We use small-groups, self-help books, and the 'power of positive thinking' in order to keep people from sin.  

What we no longer stress however is that in becoming a Christian, every person has the power through Jesus Christ to not sin, and more importantly, that is the expectation.  Every Christian will inevitably sin, that is shown in Scripture, but that is meant to be the exception, not the norm.  A Christian is different from a person in the world.  They have the power of God inside of them.  This is what saved a believer from sin, and it is the only thing which has power to keep a person from sinning again.

So a believer must every morning crucify themselves to the world and choose to follow Christ.  They must 'look full in His wonderful face.'  Nothing has the power to save besides Jesus Christ alone.

Remember Your Leaders

Dear leader, bear your burdens well.

Dear follower, understand the burdens your leader bears.

Due to the nature of things, the vast majority of people in the world are followers.  Due to that fact, a follower is naturally spoken to throughout the course of their life on what they should do.  How should this sort of person spend their time?  How should this sort of person spend their money?  All the things which we view as so terribly important in this present age are taught according to the majority.  Unfortunately, this leaves a precious minority is a state of incredible difficulty.

To a man who grows up knowing full well that the Lord desires him to do something which other people deem 'great,' he must pave his own way and learn from a great deal of mistakes.  I suppose that in many ways this is simply how life works, and it is through these difficulties that a leader is formed.  But due to the incredibly distinct life the leader lives, he requires a great deal from those around him.

Dear leader, not everyone shares your responsibilities

Dear follower, your leader bears an incredible weight

Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account.

-Hebrew 13:17-

This is the burden which the leader bears; to watch over your soul.  This is the sort of responsibility which keeps men awake at night.  The desperate urge for men and women to grow closer to Christ drives them.  So dear follower, obey your leaders and submit to them.  Do not aggravate them in the midst of their responsibility but rather do whatever you are able to lighten their yoke.  Dear leader, imitate Christ and joyfully serve the Church.

Dear leader, look ahead

Dear follower, imitate your leader's faith

I Need Thee

There are so many things in this life.  Many things to do, and others to avoid.  Many things to uphold, and others, Oh Precious Lord, are so diminished.  Many wars to fight, tears to weep, and joys to relish.  Oh how these things can grow to consume.  Oh how they may convince the person that in and of themselves they are of value.  Oh, the deceitfulness of life.

I need Thee, oh I need Thee

Every hour I need Thee

Oh bless me now my Savior

I come to Thee

Oh Papa, I know I have desired so many things...  This life You've given me Lord, it consumes me, Papa.  Oh how quickly I forget Lord, that You are my desire.  I love You Lord.  Read it on my heart.  Read it on my lips. In my action, inaction, strength and weakness.  I need Thee!  Oh consume me now my Savior.  One day I will see You Lord, and what would you have of me 'til that precious day?  If you would have me die for Your glory oh Lord I would love it.  So soon I would see You.  If you have me toil and strive to build Your kingdom all the days of my life, oh Lord for You I would.  Only show me Lord, every breath, step and moment what You would desire; that will I do my precious Savior.

Consume me, oh consume me.  In this way make my heart like Yours, oh Lord so that others may love You as well.  Oh Lord, this my only heart, that they would learn to love You all the more.  That every one would come to love You more.  I love You Lord.