Elders

When they heard it, they went away, one by one, beginning with the elders.

 - From John 8 

The people of 2023 need to hear this. Read it. Reflect upon it. 

First of all, look at the behavior modeled by who?

 . . . The elders. 

There are so many gaps to this narrative of the woman caught in adultery. The Scribes and Pharisees bring a woman (drag her?) to Jesus . . . demanding that He tell them what to do about the woman "caught" in adultery. 

Where did this happen? What were the Scribes and Pharisees doing there? Who was she committing adultery with . . . and why is nothing done about that person?

There is a very real likelihood, just from reading between the lines and considering basic, predictable human behavior, that the man committing adultery with the woman was a respected member of the community; maybe himself a Scribe or Pharisee. When he got caught . . . it was very obvious, that something would have to be done about it. 

How like modern people, particularly modern leaders. They go about their corrupt practices. They commit their crimes. And then, before they can get caught, they blame their opponents. A group of American politicians collude with Russia . . . but before they can get caught, they blame their opponent for doing the same. 

There's a weird component to human nature, that makes this type of maneuver easy. For whatever reason, if I go on and on about how evil another person is - because they are doing, or will do, what I am already doing . . . you develop a sort-of teflon against being accused of doing the same. And you're the one doing it!

This is what the Scribes and the Pharisees were doing! If you point the finger enough, you are training people not to notice it, when you're the one doing whatever it is you're pointing at!

Perhaps this is the real lesson of the account of the Woman Caught in Adultery. And perhaps it has a lot to do with the mysterious words Jesus was scribbling into the ground. 

And notice that it takes a great deal of maturity to handle this concept. This is why the elders left first.

Remember Not aka "Forget"

Remember not our past sins . . . 

 - From Psalm 79 

Of all the things that God can do . . . and He can do anything . . . perhaps the most marvelous is His ability to forget something. Just as He can create something out of nothing, just by thinking about it, so can He send a wrong committed to oblivion, making it so that it had never happened in the first place. 

That's what is meant by the concept, that God forgets our sins. He forgives . . . but then He forgets. 

We talk about that when it comes to humans . . . "forgive and forget."

We act as if it's even possible. Hey don't worry about it. I have forgiven you, and I forgot it ever happened. But that's impossible. It is as impossible for us actually to forget a wrong someone committed against us, as it is for God to remember something that He has forgiven. 

So the practical solution is . . . to pretend like we have forgotten. In reality, we have not. We can not. But as we are to become imitators of Christ, we must will ourselves to behave as though the wrong done to us never happened. 

The result is: we become people of true grace. Even as grace means being forgiven even though we don't deserve it; so do we practice, by extending grace (forgive and forget) others, even when we can't. It is the path for imperfect humans to approach the throne of God. It's how we get ourselves into His presence - - - by doing what we do not want to do; what we cannot do - - - anyway. 

Changed

God changed his mind . . . 

 - From Jonah 3

The notion that God has inconsistencies is a particularly vexing one. We need Him to be consistent, because, I guess, that's what you would expect from omnipotent beings. In others places of Scripture, it will say that God "never changes."

How do we square it with this account from Jonah? God changed His mind. He did NOT wipe out Nineveh, as He said He would do. He left very little wiggle room for Jonah, in preaching the message to the Ninevites. Tell them that, in 40 days, everything and everybody around them, will be gone. 

But lo and behold . . . He changes His mind. They became particularly repentant, and moved God. His compassion got the best of Him. They might return to their wickedness one month from now. But lately, they have been my pride and joy. I will spare them.

So there remains these three: faith, hope and love. And the greatest of these is love. 

Inconsistent passages present us with exceptions. And the exception proves the rule. What would be an example of when God changed His mind (was inconsistent) and what exception to God rules would be the one that not only varies from the rule, but which one actually proves the rule?

The greatest of these is love. If God declares that He will wipe out an entire nation . . . but later on, reneges, what would be His reason?

In Jonah's case, the people actually did repent. They actually did change their ways. They had thumbed their noses at God, and He pronounced the death penalty upon them. He judged them . . . and an irreversible punishment was the apparent result. 

But God loves us. He wants us to turn around. He does not want us dead. And even though we may rebel again, later on . . . still, at this moment we are as He prefers us, as He made us. And for now all is well.

When God changes, it's because He loves us. And the greatest of these is love. 

Visited?

And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you? 

 - From Matthew 25

On this day, February 27, 2023, I am making public my plan to do actually this. God has placed a burden upon my heart for decades, to serve people such as Christ mentioned in Matthew 25. Except, the focus will be on family members. I will seek out any relative of mine, that is in my generation or prior, going all the way back seven generations.

I am looking for those in prison. For any lacking basic healthcare. For the children of single parents, that cannot afford music lessons, soccer club dues, nice presents for Christmas. For our elders, especially widows, that need a roof repaired or reshingled; that need a ride into town for groceries; that would love to receive Christmas cards every year. 

We will look for such people, and then act. The impact is enhanced, because they are family. Love is offered to them; unmerited, unexpected . . . because they share DNA, they are family. And we will take care of family. Our vision will grow, and it will overflow . . . and we will begin to offer it to others, non-related to us, representing other races and cultures. The gifts and service will be offered, as from an entire extended family group.

Come . . . you who have no family . . . and join ours. 

I post this now, because it is Lent. And Matthew 25 is in today's reading. And God has recently taken care of a big part of why I have delayed in implementation, all these years. He got tired of dropping hints, and finally just provided me with a decisive nudge. 

God rolls out His plan for the ages, via families. And while families are the paradigm of the Old Testament, which has been displaced . . . still, families remain as the chief platform upon which to practice unconditional love. As my cousin Louise once said, of a very difficult aunt: "I don't care. She's family, and I love her."

Perhaps this is my Lenten mission for 2023: to launch this faith-based mission to my family. And therefore, to the world. 

Impostors

We are treated as impostors, and yet are true . . . 

 - From 2 Corinthians 5 & 6

One of the sickest practices of fallen humanity, is the way that phonies and fakes invest so much energy into convincing everybody that the real people, the simple, genuine, authentic people, are the phony ones. Rather than just look at themselves honestly, realize that they are fallen and imperfect, own it, and work on themselves, they waste time, damage their own health, by stirring up vitriol against others - against the actual good people. 

Why?

It catches up to you eventually. And when it does, it becomes way costlier than it would have been, if you just nipped it in the bud initially.

The Regents of the University of Michigan, and Dr Robert Anderson, are a case in point. The U of M ignored decades of students asking questions, reporting on practices of Dr. Anderson, that seemed unnecessary and possibly criminal. They looked the other way. But they also maligned hundreds, thousands of students that sought answers. They could have done something along the way, to correct the problem. They could have clarified to Dr. Anderson, way back in the 1970s, that the practices had to be stopped. They could have gotten him help - provide simple and inexpensive reparations to the few students who, at the time, had come forward. But they kicked it down the road, insulted the student-victims, and ultimately were require to dole out hundreds of millions of dollars in damages. 

Usually, you will have two sides in opposition to each other, each labeling the other as the phony.

Does this sound familiar?

It gets very confusing. But here's the "siren song" that I personally believe we all should be the most aware of:

The "intellectuals" are the ones you need to watch out for. Since the time of Christ, and His constant run-ins with the Pharisees, the Romans, and other well-educated groups, the "upper crust" has always been a problem. Christ went straight to blue-collar fishermen without college degrees, to build His church. 

But the Old Testament has analogues as well. Moses dropped all of his elitist pretentions, and became the brother of slaves. He squared off against the paradigm of evil for his time (for all time?) - the Pharaoh and all of his "experts" that ran the world's greatest empire of its time: Egypt. 

Who are the true fakers in 2023? Which side is it?

I can draw a straight line from Scripture, to the most sincere and humble people of modern times: and it is not the experts from academia. It is not the celebrities in Hollywood. And it is not the swamp creatures operating inside the DC Beltway. 

You have to go to fly-over country to find the real people - them that are the most genuinely "good." The plant workers. The gardeners and landscapers. The artists piecing together an income. The teachers that do not prioritize union dictates. The mechanics and farmers. The retired NCOs from the military. 

2023 wants to confuse all of us, and divide us from each other. 2023 is obsessed with pointing out some group of people that must be stigmatized for spreading "disinformation." But who are the real people? Who really can we trust?

Look no further than right down the road. 

Look not at the "leaders," or people that successfully got their moment of fame, on tonight's news. And certainly, look not at all . . . not at all . . . at successful politicians. They are good only at being good fakers. Their life itself is misinformation. 

You family. Your friends. The people that would take a bullet for you. Listen to them. Heed them. 

Good Things

He satisfies you with good things, and your youth is renewed like an eagle's. 

 - From Psalm 103

For over a a week now, the world of Christendom has marveled at the unfolding drama at Asbury University. 

A revival started quite innocently and simply, via a prayer meeting of some students. It continued. It grew. It flourished without a break. And God willing . . . it will begin to spread. 

What families could not do. What schools could not do. What law enforcement could not do. What politicians could not do . . . God is now making happen, with just a thought. 

For me, at least, the shooting last week, at Michigan State University, was the last straw. One MSU student is a young woman that I have known since she was a pre-schooler. Her roommate was one of the fatal victims of the shooter. That's too close. 

Other developments in the world are equally troubling . . . and they too may reach a point that is too close. I have known the action that I may take, for some time, but have stalled. God patiently works with me. He quietly provides. He opens doors. He closes doors. And today, here we are . . . 

Within a twenty-four hour period - the final straw, for me, of shooter horrors, happened; but so did the launch of a revival, the likes of which America has not seen, for decades. We are getting a true side-by-side comparative view of how God acts, versus the crazy random violence of humanity. 

In the end, God wins. And when God wins, good things happen to people. We get fed, clothed, housed, and we get treated to nice things. We get beauty and plenty. We get eternal life. When God acts, good things happen. When humanity messes things up enough, God acts. 

God is youth. And God is life. God is everything that humanity has ever yearned for. Immortality. Quality of life. A future. True freedom from want. God is the answer. Jesus is the answer. 

We all know what we need to do. When we do what we are called to do, shooters disappear. Prayer, and action, are all it takes to get us through all of this. And on the other side of this . . . are good things. 

2023, Anyone?

He whose throne is in heaven is laughing . . . 

 - From Psalm 2

Recently, I shared that the reading of the day included one of my top ten favorite verses. This Psalm contains another one of them.

The phrase grabbed me the first time that I purposefully read it. It was probably during the Summer of 1980. I remember seeing it: "He who sits in the heavens laughs . . . " And when I first read it, I remember laughing out loud. 

God is like a doting Parent. A condescending Big Brother. He sees our behavior and shakes His Head. 

As a teacher, when I catch a student throwing something across the room, my first impulse is to smile inwardly. "Yeah, I would have tried that too, once." 

My ex had a memory she would share, that became one of my favorites: When she was younger, perhaps a pre-teen or teenager, she got in trouble with her mother, who got so mad at her, she began chasing her around the house with a broom, to swat her with. Her mom was normally very permissive and patient. But this time my ex had gone too far. As she evaded her mother's swinging broom and stayed several steps ahead of her, she began to laugh. This made her mom more angry, to a point. But finally her mom also burst out laughing and the thing was over. 

Our misbehavior can be funny. Our parents may laugh. Our teachers may chuckle inside. You think to yourself "They're just kids." And their deeds may remind you of your own days of foolishness as a youngster; and how over the course of time the memories may transform into warm, even happy thoughts. 

But when you look at the first three verses of Psalm 2, you see a description that has 2023, of all earth's years, nailed. 

In 1980, as a nineteen-year-old, I laughed because even then, I could see the craziness in the world, the foolishness of world leaders, and conclude that "yep, we're pretty messed up, and God finds it all partly amusing." 

But 1980's got nothing on 2023. 1980's world's leaders may have been narrow-minded and misguided. But compared to today, they were adults with some gravitas. They were the oldest kids in the family exerting their unprepared independence. But 2023's leaders are the babies of the family. The "kid brother" and "kid sister." They're the spoiled brats whose parents were too tired or pre-occupied to discipline. They're the generation that permissive parents and society looked the other way for, as they experimented with every kind of mind-altering substance and sexual adventure. They were protected from consequences and emerged into adulthood with underdeveloped brains and lack of wisdom. They are reckless, vain, and totally devoid of historical perspective and empathy. Their god is their belly, and their long-term view goes out about two weeks.

They make ridiculous threats against each other. They gather together in their global "forums" to plot the fate of the entire world. They seem determined to cast off any vestige of what we would call godly practices: responsibility, charity, service, selflessness, ethics, morality. 

If it feels good, do it. And if it feels good, it must be love. 

When criticized for cracking so many jokes in the middle of a terrible, violent war, President Lincoln said "I have to laugh. For I must not cry."

God laughs right now. And it's serious.