I said in Part 1 that I'd be talking about Degrees of Sin. However, as I set out to write the post, I discovered that I had a whole post's worth of background to give before I could even begin on the subject. You see, I had quite a long thought process that led up to the topic of degrees of sin. So, bear with me here.
Part 2, like part 1, was triggered by a book I read. It was The Life of Lieut.-General Stonewall Jackson. I had read biographies of Stonewall and other Southern heroes of the Civil War before, but this book challenged me because the author was so blatantly...Southern. Published just a year or two after the end of the Civil War and written by Professor R.L. Dabney, the book challenged my long-held belief that the North was in the right. It sparked long discussions with some ardent pro-Southern southern friends and eventually it led me towards the topic of degrees of sin. I'd always been pro-North, because most of the books I'd read were pro-North, (though not all), and after all, who likes a loser? Before reading this biography, I'd never really thought about the rights and wrongs of the Civil War. Afterwards, I realized for the first time that even though the War occurred hundreds of years ago, many of the issues behind it are still valid today. Here's the question I asked after reading the book: Was it right, Biblically, for the South to secede? Now, that doesn't seem to apply today, but I'm getting there.
The issue is that of authority, and some of the applicable Bible verses are Romans 13, Acts 4:19, and Acts 5:29. Romans 13 covers the basic principle. 'Let every soul be subject to the higher powers. For there is no power but of God. The powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever resists the power, resists the ordinance of God...' The Scriptures in Acts deal with the second part of the principle. In Acts, Peter and John tell the rulers, or higher powers, that they must obey God rather than man. Here, it is clear that when the higher powers tell us either to do something that Scripture says is wrong, or not to do something that Scripture says to do, then, and only then, is it right to resist the powers.
It took me a long time to understand this. In fact, I didn't understand it until I heard some slight acquaintances discussing the fairly recent DADT policy. (Don't Ask Don't Tell) These people, Christians, ended up concluding that (a paraphrase here) 'aside from Scripture; taking Scripture out of the question, there is absolutely nothing wrong with the government supporting the issue and repealing the policy. They, quote, "could see no reason why it was wrong."
As I listened to the conversation, I couldn't help but screaming silently, 'no, NO, NO!' As Christians, (and there was only one person involved in the conversation who appeared to take this view out of five or six people) we cannot, and must not, take Scripture out of the picture when dealing with any issue. You can have all the legal rights in the world to do something, but if God says not to do it, then we cannot do it. Now, not being an historian, I won't bore you with the rights and wrongs of the Civil War that I thought about; it's the principle that we're dealing with here. Suffice it to say that the above bolded sentence helped me to understand the rights and wrongs of the Civil War much better.
Let's look at a few examples. Hopefully, you'll be able to begin to see how it led me to degrees of sin.
Legally, the issue dealt with in the DADT policy is OK. But the Bible says it's not. Therefore, we cannot endorse it.
Again, socially, if somebody tells a 'little white lie' we excuse it as OK. It wasn't a big lie or anything. But in reality, God does not discriminate between lies. A lie is a lie, and a lie is a sin. Therefore, we cannot even excuse a 'little white lie' because there is no such thing as a such a lie.
And what about getting mad. That too, we excuse as 'being good for clearing the system.' But the Bible says, 'whoever is angry with his brother without a cause is in danger of the judgement' in the same way that someone who kills is in danger of the judgment. (Matthew 5: 21-25)
These are specific, but mostly common, scenarios. I don't think any of them would merit the rising up of an entire people group/country against the government. We can oppose bad policies by speaking out and offering a positive alternative, but do bad policies mean we should overthrow the entire federal government? I would say 'no.'
So, what if the government is terrible, corrupt, and wicked? There appear to be two additional Biblical examples here besides the ones already mentioned. (Romans 13, Acts 4: 19, Acts 5:29) The first are those numerous Scriptures which speak about how it is the Lord who abases the proud and exalts the humble. In other words, it is usually not our prerogative to overthrow the government because of it's wickedness.
On the other hand however, we have the entire book of Judges. Over and over, God punished the people of Israel by putting them under the authority of other, wicked, nations. The same goes for the Babylonian Captivity. (Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Jeremiah, Daniel, etc.) In each case, God was punishing the Israelites for the Israelites wickedness, not the wickedness of the other nations. In the book of Judges, we also see the Israelites repenting many times of their sin. When this happened, God raised up judges in Israel who usually gathered together an army and overthrew the ruling government.
In the case of the Babylonian Captivity, we see that God did not have the Israelites overthrow the government. Instead, God delivered them by the aid of the government. In Ezra and Nehemiah, the Babylonian kings decreed that some of the Israelites could return to Jerusalem. In Esther, the king of Babylon decreed that the Israelites could slaughter their oppressors (led by Haman). In these instances, God 'turned the heart of the king where ever He desired' (Paraphrase, Proverbs 21:1) God used the ruling government to deliver the people from captivity. In the Babylonian Captivity, the Israelites' deliverance was a fulfillment of God's promise. God promised that they would only be in captivity for seventy years.
In the Egyptian Captivity, the Israelites merely spoiled the Egyptians and then left the country. The Egyptians were oppressive, but the Israelites did not just take over. Instead, they fled.
Now, as I see it, these are the options we have when the government is wicked, corrupt, and oppressive.
1st, we can leave the country. It may not be possible, but if it is, then we can. That's why America has so many refugees from Russia for instance.
2nd, we can stay, speak out, non-violently act against bad policies, and pray hard. God can and does change minds. A corrupt government could easily turn around if He wants it to and if we pray. We could also go undercover, like the Russians who stayed and the Chinese Christians. Mind you, going undercover doesn't mean we should stop sharing the Gospel.
As for the examples in Judges. In this case, I believe this was God's especial manner in delivering His people. I would take a lot of convincing before I believed we have the Biblical basis for gathering together an army and overthrowing the government.
So, those are my thoughts on the subject of authority. Part 3, hopefully, will go into more depth on degrees of sin. Let's pray for our country!
(This has been: Fountain of Thoughts. Look in next time to read, A Day in the Life of:__)
Disclaimer: Rest assured, these opinions and conclusions have been formed and arrived at after considerable discussion with my pastor and father. I am not intending to teach doctrine! These are only my thoughts and beliefs on the subject after my personal encounter with the book on Stonewall Jackson.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Monday, March 7, 2011
Tidbits of: Michigan
Five pieces of random Michiganian information, three major Michiganite events, and one story of Michigan's people. It is my hope that these will leave us fairly knowledgeable about the character of the Michiganders, their accomplishments, and general history. And yes, they do call themselves by all those names. Enjoy!
Random Info. #1: William Boeing Sr. was from Michigan. Boeing was originally spelled without the 'E' so that it would originally have sounded like 'boing!' William Sr. was a wealthy mining engineer who made his money off of taconite iron ore deposits. His son, William Boeing Jr., is that famous Washingtonian who pioneered in the aviation industry.
Random Info. #2: The Michigan State Mammal is the Painted Turtle. The painted turtle, so called because of it's beautiful, multi-colored, and usually striped skin and shell, is the only turtle that can
be located from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean. The pictured turtle is one of the two western species.
be located from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean. The pictured turtle is one of the two western species. Random Info. #3: The University of Michigan is the University in Michigan. It was founded in 1817 in Detroit. It was moved later to it's current location in Ann Arbor.
Random Info. #4: While rarely mentioned in historical accounts of the Civil War, Michigan actually contributed thousands of men and tens of thousands of supplies, mostly to the North.
Random Info. #5: From Michigan came one, and only one, President of the United States. To make up for the lack of numbers, he was at least fairly well-known since he came immediately after the infamous Richard Nixon. Gerald Ford was the 38th U.S. President. He was not a descendant of the famous Henry Ford. In fact, Gerald was born Leslie Lynch King, Jr. He legally changed his name in 1935.
Major Michiganian Event #1: The Metz Fire. I'll be talking more about this in another post. In 1908, the small town of Metz, located almost at the tip of the lower peninsula, burned to the ground in a series of major wildfires. Incidentally, it occurred on the same date as the great Chicago fire; October 8th.
Major Michganian Event #2: The Erie Canal. Completed in 1825, the canal connected Lake Erie with the Hudson River. It was a breakthrough for industry in Michigan since the Hudson River empties into the Atlantic Ocean. The Canal was the first in America to have locks.
Major Michiganian Event #3: The Model T. The invention of the Model T, also in October 1908, changed history because of it's innovative production methods and travel abilities. Previously, it could take as much as a whole day to travel forty miles. Henry Ford, the inventor, is thought to have said this about his invention:
"We can paint it any color as long as it's black."
Which leads me to the story about the people of Michigan. Actually, it's placed in Canada, but it's about how two men met Edsel Ford from Michigan. It's an example of the character of Michigan's people.
Michgan Story #1: The Sky Blue Model T. In 1942, Charles Foster and Harold Hetherington were given a car; a Model T. The two men were in Canada learning how to fly airplanes for the Royal Airforce. They were given their car in Bowden, Alberta. After two weeks of fixing it up so that it would work and after painting it a brilliant sky blue, they continued to Calgary where the flying school was located. Unfortunately, because of World War II, gasoline was rationed. To make the 80 mile journey, they purloined airplane fuel for their car. Airplane fuel worked, but left a tell-tale stream of smoke. A little way outside of Calgary, the two met a stranded man standing next to his broken down, non-Ford car. The man asked to be driven into Calgary. On the way he commented on their car. 'I rented my car. You fellows have good sense to be driving a Ford, but you're not doing it any good with that airplane fuel.'
The man asked to be dropped off at an expensive hotel. There, Charles and Harold learned that the hitchhiker's name was Edsel Ford, President of the Ford Motor Company Inc. After Ford left town a few days later, Charles and Harold discovered the truth of the statement, 'One good turn deserves another.' Not only did Edsel Ford pay for their hotel bill, but he sent a Ford Company Plane to the flight school. On board were two mechanics. The mechanics fixed up the pilots' car --which had been damaged by the airplane fuel-- until it purred like a happy cat. The mechanic liked the color of their car. 'One day,' he said, 'everyone can order a car in the color they want. You guy's are just a little ahead of the crowd.'
Charles Foster eventually got up the courage to ask the mechanic a question. 'Why in the world wasn't the President of Ford Motors driving a Ford?'
The mechanic laughed. 'Mr. Ford,' he replied, 'is an intelligent man. Can you imagine the stories that would have spread if he had been found stranded next to a broken down Ford?'
Charles and Harold later learned that Edsel Ford became ill shortly after his unexpected gift. Ford never recovered.
So, now you know. An act of gratitude can change the lives of those around you. Charles and Harold never forgot Edsel Ford or his gift. They later gave the Model T to their friend, Dave MacMillan. Dave was the man who had supplied them with their airplane fuel for the car. He used the car to take his bride on a honeymoon.
I discovered many other stories of the character of the Michiganites. Each story portrayed kindness, determination, resilence, and love for fellow man. It is, or was, the culture, and we ought to take note.
Which leads me to the story about the people of Michigan. Actually, it's placed in Canada, but it's about how two men met Edsel Ford from Michigan. It's an example of the character of Michigan's people.
Michgan Story #1: The Sky Blue Model T. In 1942, Charles Foster and Harold Hetherington were given a car; a Model T. The two men were in Canada learning how to fly airplanes for the Royal Airforce. They were given their car in Bowden, Alberta. After two weeks of fixing it up so that it would work and after painting it a brilliant sky blue, they continued to Calgary where the flying school was located. Unfortunately, because of World War II, gasoline was rationed. To make the 80 mile journey, they purloined airplane fuel for their car. Airplane fuel worked, but left a tell-tale stream of smoke. A little way outside of Calgary, the two met a stranded man standing next to his broken down, non-Ford car. The man asked to be driven into Calgary. On the way he commented on their car. 'I rented my car. You fellows have good sense to be driving a Ford, but you're not doing it any good with that airplane fuel.'
The man asked to be dropped off at an expensive hotel. There, Charles and Harold learned that the hitchhiker's name was Edsel Ford, President of the Ford Motor Company Inc. After Ford left town a few days later, Charles and Harold discovered the truth of the statement, 'One good turn deserves another.' Not only did Edsel Ford pay for their hotel bill, but he sent a Ford Company Plane to the flight school. On board were two mechanics. The mechanics fixed up the pilots' car --which had been damaged by the airplane fuel-- until it purred like a happy cat. The mechanic liked the color of their car. 'One day,' he said, 'everyone can order a car in the color they want. You guy's are just a little ahead of the crowd.'
Charles Foster eventually got up the courage to ask the mechanic a question. 'Why in the world wasn't the President of Ford Motors driving a Ford?'
The mechanic laughed. 'Mr. Ford,' he replied, 'is an intelligent man. Can you imagine the stories that would have spread if he had been found stranded next to a broken down Ford?'
Charles and Harold later learned that Edsel Ford became ill shortly after his unexpected gift. Ford never recovered.
So, now you know. An act of gratitude can change the lives of those around you. Charles and Harold never forgot Edsel Ford or his gift. They later gave the Model T to their friend, Dave MacMillan. Dave was the man who had supplied them with their airplane fuel for the car. He used the car to take his bride on a honeymoon.
I discovered many other stories of the character of the Michiganites. Each story portrayed kindness, determination, resilence, and love for fellow man. It is, or was, the culture, and we ought to take note.
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Stories of My Life: Peace and Pieces
Life, or so I've been told, is like a puzzle. Each event that happens is a different puzzle piece. As you experience each thing, it can be like turning over an up-side down piece, or maybe even putting a piece together with another one. At any rate, it's exciting. Unless, of course, you put a piece on that you only think belongs in that spot. Lately, I've had pretty much all of the above. In fact, I've had to remove a puzzle piece out of my picture. It was a little painful. I figure it must have been like those puzzle pieces that are a really close fit and yet not quite the right one. However, by removing it, God has blessed me with an inner peace that is beyond words. (If you can find out what's wrong with the italicized sentence before I tell you, Congratulations! You get a brownie point!)
Proverbs 18:24 says: 'A man that hath friends must show himself friendly; and there is a Friend that sticketh closer than a brother.' (KJV) And that last half of the verse leads me to the big puzzle piece I was talking about. I am so grateful for how close God sticks with me even when I'm totally off track. And I've definitely been off track.
Have you ever put together a puzzle, found a piece that 'goes together' and kept on trying the piece over and over and over insisting that 'it's got to be the right one' and all along, it's not? The scenario described my life.
You see, when I graduated early, I had all sorts of goals and plans and expectations. I was going to do this, go there, learn that. And really some things were good things to have as goals. You know, 'get involved in a ministry,' 'spend more time in the Word.' I was sure that I could easily pursue my various goals without a problem. And yet, as time passed, absolutely nothing happened, even when I tried. Certain 'leads' for both getting a job and participating in a ministry petered out before they even got started. (These leads are indirectly referred to in Stories of My Life: My Advice. A previous post from this January). I could sort of understand that getting a job might be harder than I had anticipated, but, to my mind, working for a Christian ministry was a worthy goal. I didn't understand why God seemed to be stopping me at every single turn, even the 'good' things.
I became frustrated and took it out, sometimes internally and sometimes externally, on my family, myself, and God. I almost took my frustration out on one of my dear friends. Thankfully, I never got around to finishing and sending the letter.
I eventually ended up having an all-around complaint session with God one night. (Some of the issues that came up are very obscurely mentioned in Fountain of Thoughts: Bread Making. A previous post from last October). I still don't understand it, but that night, God chose to call a truce. I'm sure it wasn't me. All I did was complain and beg not-so-humbly for peace in my life over the issue of 'nothing is happening and it's supposed to be, so why aren't You allowing me to do anything?' I'm pretty sure I even quoted Scripture at God. So why in the world He granted a truce to me is more than I'll ever understand.
There should be an emphasis on 'truce' rather than peace. A truce, by definition, is a 'suspension of hostilities for a specified period of time by mutual agreement of both warring parties.' Peace on the other hand, has two pertinent definitions. 1: 'an agreement between warring parties to end and abstain from further antagonism.' And 2: 'untroubled, tranquil, and content.'
While for the first day or two I thought, wished, and hoped that I had been given peace, I knew deep down that it wasn't peace, but only truce. Sure enough, after a week or two, I blew up; again. Hostilities, at least on my side, were renewed with a vengeance.
Then, I randomly decided that I been reading too much fiction. I abruptly switched to reading non-fiction. I began with George Mueller, (A Day in the Life of: George Mueller. Posted in February.) From there I went on to Hudson Taylor, Borden of Yale, and With Christ in the School of Prayer by Andrew Murray. Each of these books had a common thread in them. Faith, and the giving up of everything for God. I particularly noticed the second part of the thread.
If you'll look back at the beginning of this post, I wrote a sentence in italics. 'I've had to take a puzzle piece out of my picture.' Remember I said there was something wrong with the sentence? It should read, 'God had to take a puzzle piece out of His picture.' As I read those books, I began gradually to realize that my plans and goals were just that; my plans, my goals. I'd been trying to take things into my own hands; I'd been grabbing a puzzle piece out of God's hands and trying to fit it in where it didn't belong. The process of trying to put the piece in where it didn't belong effected not only myself, but also the puzzle pieces around me as my frustration grated on my family and my relationship with God.
So, a couple of weeks ago, I gave up my plans, all of them, even the 'good' ones. I finally realized that those 'good' goals were merely thrown in there in an attempt to be 'righteous.' God had blocked my efforts to become involved in ministry because my motives were not right.
What's the result? I can't get over it. Over the past couple of weeks, God has blessed me with His peace, not just a truce. I'm beginning to realize the truth of the verse that says 'it's a peace that passes all understanding.' I don't understand it. I now feel more 'tranquil, untroubled, and content' than I've ever felt in my entire life. It's...indescribable. Not only that, but just a day or two after, God, out of the blue, sent me a ministry to be involved in. It's not just a random ministry either, in fact, it's exactly the kind of thing I enjoy. I am now responsible for coordinating and gathering together 25 apple pies for the Annual Home School Day at the Capital in Olympia on March 15th. Wow! And I didn't even ask for it! God is so amazing! (If you're interested in making a pie, let me know).
I now have absolutely no clue as to what God wants me to do with the rest of my year and life. But in spite of that, every day I wake up and I can't help but saying, 'Thank you, God.' And, 'Wow, God, You're so...COOL!
Proverbs 18:24 says: 'A man that hath friends must show himself friendly; and there is a Friend that sticketh closer than a brother.' (KJV) And that last half of the verse leads me to the big puzzle piece I was talking about. I am so grateful for how close God sticks with me even when I'm totally off track. And I've definitely been off track.
Have you ever put together a puzzle, found a piece that 'goes together' and kept on trying the piece over and over and over insisting that 'it's got to be the right one' and all along, it's not? The scenario described my life.
You see, when I graduated early, I had all sorts of goals and plans and expectations. I was going to do this, go there, learn that. And really some things were good things to have as goals. You know, 'get involved in a ministry,' 'spend more time in the Word.' I was sure that I could easily pursue my various goals without a problem. And yet, as time passed, absolutely nothing happened, even when I tried. Certain 'leads' for both getting a job and participating in a ministry petered out before they even got started. (These leads are indirectly referred to in Stories of My Life: My Advice. A previous post from this January). I could sort of understand that getting a job might be harder than I had anticipated, but, to my mind, working for a Christian ministry was a worthy goal. I didn't understand why God seemed to be stopping me at every single turn, even the 'good' things.
I became frustrated and took it out, sometimes internally and sometimes externally, on my family, myself, and God. I almost took my frustration out on one of my dear friends. Thankfully, I never got around to finishing and sending the letter.
I eventually ended up having an all-around complaint session with God one night. (Some of the issues that came up are very obscurely mentioned in Fountain of Thoughts: Bread Making. A previous post from last October). I still don't understand it, but that night, God chose to call a truce. I'm sure it wasn't me. All I did was complain and beg not-so-humbly for peace in my life over the issue of 'nothing is happening and it's supposed to be, so why aren't You allowing me to do anything?' I'm pretty sure I even quoted Scripture at God. So why in the world He granted a truce to me is more than I'll ever understand.
There should be an emphasis on 'truce' rather than peace. A truce, by definition, is a 'suspension of hostilities for a specified period of time by mutual agreement of both warring parties.' Peace on the other hand, has two pertinent definitions. 1: 'an agreement between warring parties to end and abstain from further antagonism.' And 2: 'untroubled, tranquil, and content.'
While for the first day or two I thought, wished, and hoped that I had been given peace, I knew deep down that it wasn't peace, but only truce. Sure enough, after a week or two, I blew up; again. Hostilities, at least on my side, were renewed with a vengeance.
Then, I randomly decided that I been reading too much fiction. I abruptly switched to reading non-fiction. I began with George Mueller, (A Day in the Life of: George Mueller. Posted in February.) From there I went on to Hudson Taylor, Borden of Yale, and With Christ in the School of Prayer by Andrew Murray. Each of these books had a common thread in them. Faith, and the giving up of everything for God. I particularly noticed the second part of the thread.
If you'll look back at the beginning of this post, I wrote a sentence in italics. 'I've had to take a puzzle piece out of my picture.' Remember I said there was something wrong with the sentence? It should read, 'God had to take a puzzle piece out of His picture.' As I read those books, I began gradually to realize that my plans and goals were just that; my plans, my goals. I'd been trying to take things into my own hands; I'd been grabbing a puzzle piece out of God's hands and trying to fit it in where it didn't belong. The process of trying to put the piece in where it didn't belong effected not only myself, but also the puzzle pieces around me as my frustration grated on my family and my relationship with God.
So, a couple of weeks ago, I gave up my plans, all of them, even the 'good' ones. I finally realized that those 'good' goals were merely thrown in there in an attempt to be 'righteous.' God had blocked my efforts to become involved in ministry because my motives were not right.
What's the result? I can't get over it. Over the past couple of weeks, God has blessed me with His peace, not just a truce. I'm beginning to realize the truth of the verse that says 'it's a peace that passes all understanding.' I don't understand it. I now feel more 'tranquil, untroubled, and content' than I've ever felt in my entire life. It's...indescribable. Not only that, but just a day or two after, God, out of the blue, sent me a ministry to be involved in. It's not just a random ministry either, in fact, it's exactly the kind of thing I enjoy. I am now responsible for coordinating and gathering together 25 apple pies for the Annual Home School Day at the Capital in Olympia on March 15th. Wow! And I didn't even ask for it! God is so amazing! (If you're interested in making a pie, let me know).
I now have absolutely no clue as to what God wants me to do with the rest of my year and life. But in spite of that, every day I wake up and I can't help but saying, 'Thank you, God.' And, 'Wow, God, You're so...COOL!
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