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This a just a great exersize to see where modern humanist thinking leads to. Also a a nice contrast showing what our founding fathers set up as compared to how Britian's government is organized. From Chalcedon.
Is Britain Finished?
by Lee Duigon
...The church had centuries in which to teach morality to the peoples of Britain. Although there were always individuals who broke the law, everybody knew what basic Christian morality entailed and most people voluntarily abided by the laws derived from it.
But with Christian morality cast aside, people don’t know what the new morality requires of them! Because it would be impossible to police the daily lives of millions of people—never mind the government’s action of setting up 10,000 closed circuit television surveillance cameras in London alone, an action that has nevertheless left 80 percent of London’s crimes unsolved—the humanist state must “teach” the new morality by making dramatic examples of what happens to transgressors. This is why the state sends four police officers after a little boy who spoke the word “gay” on the playground: it gets everyone’s attention. This is intended as a form of teaching, but it’s mere intimidation.
Why don’t the people understand what humanist morality requires of them? Rushdoony answers: “But if the ultimate source of law resides in humanity, and humanity is seen as divine, then man cannot be placed under law, because he himself is beyond law as the source of law.”[16]
In a nation whose people and leaders are consciously Christian, laws enacted by the legislature, man’s laws, must conform to God’s laws. If they conflict with God’s laws, the citizens will view them as invalid. Meanwhile, God’s laws are all written in the Bible, are accessible to everyone, and cannot be hanged by any future Parliament. Citizens will obey them voluntarily, without being cowed by lurid stories in the newspapers....Read the whole article
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
We are told...
For a lie to take on a form of truth, it just needs to keep being repeated with no one refuting it. We dont have the biblical understanding money and government. So the world has had a hayday of just putting whatever it wants onto the canvas and calling it good. From LewRockwell.com
Honeymooner Politics
by Gary North
...There are constant improvements generated by free men who raise capital in free markets. Invention by invention, improvement by improvement, our lives get better at the margin. But because this is a slow process, and because of the hedonic ratchet, we do not perceive that this is a happening. We therefore do not attribute are improving economic conditions to the free-market social order.
We are told by teachers in tax-funded schools, and we read in textbooks whose market is tax-funded schools, that Franklin Roosevelt saved capitalism from itself. We are told that the free-market economy is self-destructive. We are told that ever-increasing numbers of government regulations are mandatory to keep the free market from self-destructing.
We are never asked to read a single page in the Federal Register. This publication is published every weekday, and it usually is 200 pages long. Each page has three columns of fine print. These are new regulations imposed by the Federal government on the American economy. We adjust. We surrender our liberties day by day without a whimper or a protest.
While the free market delivers the goods, the critics of the free market deliver the propaganda. While we get richer as a result of the voluntarism of the free market, we are told we get richer because of the active government intervention into the voluntarism of the free market. We are told that government coercion in the name of the People is what makes our lives tolerable... whole article
Honeymooner Politics
by Gary North
...There are constant improvements generated by free men who raise capital in free markets. Invention by invention, improvement by improvement, our lives get better at the margin. But because this is a slow process, and because of the hedonic ratchet, we do not perceive that this is a happening. We therefore do not attribute are improving economic conditions to the free-market social order.
We are told by teachers in tax-funded schools, and we read in textbooks whose market is tax-funded schools, that Franklin Roosevelt saved capitalism from itself. We are told that the free-market economy is self-destructive. We are told that ever-increasing numbers of government regulations are mandatory to keep the free market from self-destructing.
We are never asked to read a single page in the Federal Register. This publication is published every weekday, and it usually is 200 pages long. Each page has three columns of fine print. These are new regulations imposed by the Federal government on the American economy. We adjust. We surrender our liberties day by day without a whimper or a protest.
While the free market delivers the goods, the critics of the free market deliver the propaganda. While we get richer as a result of the voluntarism of the free market, we are told we get richer because of the active government intervention into the voluntarism of the free market. We are told that government coercion in the name of the People is what makes our lives tolerable... whole article
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
American Taliban on the Move
Douglas Wilson is correct when he points out that these are a new form of blasphemy Law.
This is what we should label and call this new censorship thats appearing. When you hear people advocate or sound like they agree with this, call them "American taliban". To their face. You can do it nicely. Smile. They will recoil away and deny it. We must ask them "why are they so judgemental?" This will confuse them but it will take away what they thought was,logical,wise and a good position. They want to call it protecting against hate speach but it is only another form of Blasphemy Law and must be called as such. They are protecting and honoring their god. It would be good for them to realize it.
A jail cell with your name on it
This is what we should label and call this new censorship thats appearing. When you hear people advocate or sound like they agree with this, call them "American taliban". To their face. You can do it nicely. Smile. They will recoil away and deny it. We must ask them "why are they so judgemental?" This will confuse them but it will take away what they thought was,logical,wise and a good position. They want to call it protecting against hate speach but it is only another form of Blasphemy Law and must be called as such. They are protecting and honoring their god. It would be good for them to realize it.
A jail cell with your name on it
Monday, July 21, 2008
Freddie and Fannie,History of
I thought this was a great little synopsis of Freddie and Fannie Mac. History of, and what is happening.
From Mises.org. A free market website, Austrian school of economics. It goes against the party line and so you will never hear about them.
From Mises.org. A free market website, Austrian school of economics. It goes against the party line and so you will never hear about them.
Economic Egg on the Face
You have to just love this. From the Wall Street journal
FDIC Faces Mortgage Mess
After Running Failed Bank
Subprime Lender Made Problem Loans On Regulators' Watch
By MARK MAREMONT
Federal officials heap much of the blame for the subprime mortgage mess on lenders, claiming they recklessly made too many high-cost home loans to borrowers who couldn't afford them.
It turns out that the U.S. government itself was one of the lenders giving out high-interest, subprime mortgages, some of them predatory, according to government documents filed in federal court.
The unusual situation, which is still bedeviling bank regulators, stems from the 2001 seizure by federal officials of Superior Bank FSB, then a national subprime lender based in Hinsdale, Ill. Rather than immediately shuttering or selling Superior, as it normally does with failed banks, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. continued to run the bank's subprime-mortgage business for months as it looked for a buyer. With FDIC people supervising day-to-day operations, Superior funded more than 6,700 new subprime loans worth more than $550 million, according to federal mortgage data...
Read it all
FDIC Faces Mortgage Mess
After Running Failed Bank
Subprime Lender Made Problem Loans On Regulators' Watch
By MARK MAREMONT
Federal officials heap much of the blame for the subprime mortgage mess on lenders, claiming they recklessly made too many high-cost home loans to borrowers who couldn't afford them.
It turns out that the U.S. government itself was one of the lenders giving out high-interest, subprime mortgages, some of them predatory, according to government documents filed in federal court.
The unusual situation, which is still bedeviling bank regulators, stems from the 2001 seizure by federal officials of Superior Bank FSB, then a national subprime lender based in Hinsdale, Ill. Rather than immediately shuttering or selling Superior, as it normally does with failed banks, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. continued to run the bank's subprime-mortgage business for months as it looked for a buyer. With FDIC people supervising day-to-day operations, Superior funded more than 6,700 new subprime loans worth more than $550 million, according to federal mortgage data...
Read it all
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Are We are Watching a Train Wreck in Slow Motion?
NEW YORK (Fortune) -- Washington is tying itself in knots trying to shore up confidence in the financial sector.
In just the past week, officials have moved to curtail short-selling, promised a crack down on market rumormongers and cooked up a rescue plan for beleaguered mortgage companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac - while taking pains to argue that the institutions are sound even as investors dump shares.
Trouble is, banks and brokerage stocks aren't being done in by a cabal of bad guys on trading desks. Bankers who made increasingly reckless bets on the housing market engineered this train wreck. And the damage they wrought on their companies' balance sheets is going to take time - and a lot more pain - to undo.
"This is the unwinding of our bubble economy," says Euro Pacific Capital strategist Peter Schiff, a longtime critic of U.S. fiscal policy and credit market excesses. "Anybody can make loans. But banks are finding the problem right now is getting the money back."...whole article
In just the past week, officials have moved to curtail short-selling, promised a crack down on market rumormongers and cooked up a rescue plan for beleaguered mortgage companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac - while taking pains to argue that the institutions are sound even as investors dump shares.
Trouble is, banks and brokerage stocks aren't being done in by a cabal of bad guys on trading desks. Bankers who made increasingly reckless bets on the housing market engineered this train wreck. And the damage they wrought on their companies' balance sheets is going to take time - and a lot more pain - to undo.
"This is the unwinding of our bubble economy," says Euro Pacific Capital strategist Peter Schiff, a longtime critic of U.S. fiscal policy and credit market excesses. "Anybody can make loans. But banks are finding the problem right now is getting the money back."...whole article
2008 AFHE home School Convention
Only went and heard the keynote speaker today. Unfortunately he had way to much to share. The first half was standard explanation and encouragement about how those with no professional training can out do the professionals when it comes to the education of our children. This is because God said I want the parents to do it.
His second half was on world view and how instilling a biblical world view is the ultimate goal God had in mind when it comes to education. Period. He had to skip over maybe half or more of his presentation on this portion of his message. Too bad, it was going good.
This theme God is bringing to the fore front all over the place. He wants us to get it. He also knows that we "think" this is what we have been doing. But we haven’t. It is starting to sink in though.
They also showcased the new DVD Trojan Horse, which it too, had Worldview comeponants and addresses a lack of understanding when we take $$$ from the govt for home schooling purposes. We watched it tonight and Voddie B is especially impactful in his choice of scripture and words to show we must be careful. It reinforced what the keynote was about.
Other wise we spent the day carefully canvassing the armory. Some shop. We are fitting out. More ammo. You can always carry one more grenade. Put it in the stroller under Nathan. Okay,okay my wife shops and its the vendor hall. But I gear up, gimme another claymore and a 200 round battle pack of 308 rounds please. No, I dont need it gift wrapped. My daughters seem to keep being attracted to the guns and swords?!?
We kept running into those Heritage people all over.
Found out the Latter Day Saints have their own support groups.
His second half was on world view and how instilling a biblical world view is the ultimate goal God had in mind when it comes to education. Period. He had to skip over maybe half or more of his presentation on this portion of his message. Too bad, it was going good.
This theme God is bringing to the fore front all over the place. He wants us to get it. He also knows that we "think" this is what we have been doing. But we haven’t. It is starting to sink in though.
They also showcased the new DVD Trojan Horse, which it too, had Worldview comeponants and addresses a lack of understanding when we take $$$ from the govt for home schooling purposes. We watched it tonight and Voddie B is especially impactful in his choice of scripture and words to show we must be careful. It reinforced what the keynote was about.
Other wise we spent the day carefully canvassing the armory. Some shop. We are fitting out. More ammo. You can always carry one more grenade. Put it in the stroller under Nathan. Okay,okay my wife shops and its the vendor hall. But I gear up, gimme another claymore and a 200 round battle pack of 308 rounds please. No, I dont need it gift wrapped. My daughters seem to keep being attracted to the guns and swords?!?
We kept running into those Heritage people all over.
Found out the Latter Day Saints have their own support groups.
These People are Christians? Conspiracies
Greg, even if your nutty, it doesnt negate that the world as a whole wants to do away with any remnant of biblical Christianity.
The best teaching I have ever heard on conspiracies was from Botkin from the history of the world conference and from his Hollywood talk on their favorite villain??? Bottom line, God does acknowledge that men “breath together” or as we call it conspire. God also says it is for nothing, that God uses them to bring about his purposes. Nothing can stay Gods hand and his purposes.
Along the way Gods people should not be helping or rooting for the conspirators!!! ?We should be standing for His principles and repeating back what God says about everything. Which brings you too, “what sayeth the scriptures?
Here is where Kevin Swanson is more concerned about getting the teachers to understand what God wants. Because we have had generations of elders and teachers who went to bible college, who were taught poorly to be generous and now have been teaching generations of believers that it is all about… the first commandment and loving God with all your heart ….but this law stuff would be legalistic and Jesus didn’t like that…. So it is for freedom you have been set free and don’t allow yourself to be burdened with a yoke of bondage again. That in a nutshell is the fallacy I believed. Basically you then miss it by a mile, or a thousand miles.
And people then wonder…? ”….I find it so difficult sometimes to understand how we can be living in the midst of a society of people, many who call themselves “Christian”,and yet do not know the first thing about the Lord they claim to serve…. they will be ever seeing but never hearing, comes to mind.
Somehow we got the notion, that when you get saved and you get the Holy Spirit …well… that supersedes this Old Testament stuff. Yes those areas that had to do with right standing before God. But we threw out the baby with the bathwater big time. So when I used to open a lot of the Old Testament all I heard were crickets chirping. It didn’t have anything relevant to say to me. Now I can find it as exiting as the new Testament.
Jesus kept saying ,to him who has ears to hear let him hear. Lord open our ears and eyes. Take off our cultural blinders we pray.
Thomas, I do think that the largest motivator and mover torwards allowing Government encroachment is that as a nation we do not want to suffer loss. Its not our fault. Someone didn’t explain it to us. We didn’t know… the women you gave me… the serpent came highly recommended … Only today the cry goes out to the State, “do something!!!” Save us! Its like we run to Pharaoh , “what good is it if we die, make us your slaves, but give us bread! So we move further from our heritage and further into captivity.
Let us be men and cry out to God, he is Lord. Psalm 59:8 But you o lord laugh at them: you shall have them in derision. I will wait for you, you o his strength, for God is my defense. We will make our camp around the one who laughs at them. And when, God looks down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there are any who understand, who seek God (Psalm 53:2) by his grace may he see us crying out to him, ”show us Lord!” and, “your ways are higher than our ways and we want to submit to your word!”.
Some men trust in the Fed and chariots, but we will trust in the name of the Lord!
The best teaching I have ever heard on conspiracies was from Botkin from the history of the world conference and from his Hollywood talk on their favorite villain??? Bottom line, God does acknowledge that men “breath together” or as we call it conspire. God also says it is for nothing, that God uses them to bring about his purposes. Nothing can stay Gods hand and his purposes.
Along the way Gods people should not be helping or rooting for the conspirators!!! ?We should be standing for His principles and repeating back what God says about everything. Which brings you too, “what sayeth the scriptures?
Here is where Kevin Swanson is more concerned about getting the teachers to understand what God wants. Because we have had generations of elders and teachers who went to bible college, who were taught poorly to be generous and now have been teaching generations of believers that it is all about… the first commandment and loving God with all your heart ….but this law stuff would be legalistic and Jesus didn’t like that…. So it is for freedom you have been set free and don’t allow yourself to be burdened with a yoke of bondage again. That in a nutshell is the fallacy I believed. Basically you then miss it by a mile, or a thousand miles.
And people then wonder…? ”….I find it so difficult sometimes to understand how we can be living in the midst of a society of people, many who call themselves “Christian”,and yet do not know the first thing about the Lord they claim to serve…. they will be ever seeing but never hearing, comes to mind.
Somehow we got the notion, that when you get saved and you get the Holy Spirit …well… that supersedes this Old Testament stuff. Yes those areas that had to do with right standing before God. But we threw out the baby with the bathwater big time. So when I used to open a lot of the Old Testament all I heard were crickets chirping. It didn’t have anything relevant to say to me. Now I can find it as exiting as the new Testament.
Jesus kept saying ,to him who has ears to hear let him hear. Lord open our ears and eyes. Take off our cultural blinders we pray.
Thomas, I do think that the largest motivator and mover torwards allowing Government encroachment is that as a nation we do not want to suffer loss. Its not our fault. Someone didn’t explain it to us. We didn’t know… the women you gave me… the serpent came highly recommended … Only today the cry goes out to the State, “do something!!!” Save us! Its like we run to Pharaoh , “what good is it if we die, make us your slaves, but give us bread! So we move further from our heritage and further into captivity.
Let us be men and cry out to God, he is Lord. Psalm 59:8 But you o lord laugh at them: you shall have them in derision. I will wait for you, you o his strength, for God is my defense. We will make our camp around the one who laughs at them. And when, God looks down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there are any who understand, who seek God (Psalm 53:2) by his grace may he see us crying out to him, ”show us Lord!” and, “your ways are higher than our ways and we want to submit to your word!”.
Some men trust in the Fed and chariots, but we will trust in the name of the Lord!
Gods Law Is not The Same as Rules
I hope this adds clarity or gives us something better to grab onto in our minds. I don’t want to pick apart what Greg wrote, but use it, to stand on, and reach a little higher I hope.
Greg, thank you for sharing. I think you laid out the perfect, defacto, default understanding of what Gods Law is to the modern Evangelical. You nailed me perfectly as I read it and I bet most of those who read it had it resonate with them too. What you wrote was the sum total I ever had to consider about Gods Law, it is all that was ever “taught” concerning it, in the circles I ran in.
The biggest comeponant would be that the whole discussion was around our relationship or standing before God.
I’m gonna add two mites worth where things jumped out at me. Gregs writing is in blue still…..The scriptures are so clear throughout that the law was put in place to remind us that we could never achieve it. That no matter how much we tried, the law would be out of our reach…. True, when we are talking of Gods Law making us right before him. But it’s the other side of the coin that I keep trying to see clearly.
…So I guess my “two cents” (better than a farthing maybe?) on the issue is whether we believe completely in the old testament laws or if we try and establish which of those still apply today, the greater question I believe on the issue is what is the greatest commandment and how do we stack up?
Let me say Amen Amen! We know which is the greatest commandment, I hope. But In the past, I then lived like that meant that I don’t need to even worry about the rest of his Laws….Which doesn’t logically follow but that’s what my mind did with it.
…the issue is whether we believe completely in the old testament laws or if we try and establish which of those still apply today…
I objected to calling Gods Law “rules” the other day. We played a new game last night. Rules are like for a game, “high roller goes first and then the turn goes to the person on his left…” But nothing is any different if you change the rules so that it is the “low die roller who goes first and then the turn goes to the person on his right”. There is no moral comeponant violated and the game can play the same no matter which ever rule you want to use.
When in Psalms it talks of…. Therefore all your precepts concerning all things I consider to be right… the entirety of your words is truth, … I do think it is refering to Gods Law as it pertains to ….“which of those still apply today,” These Laws not only wont change, but cannot change, as they reflect Gods perfect order.
We have to understand that parts of Gods Law is like talking about the Law of gravity. Here we are no longer talking about our relationship to him, per say, but rather our relationship to how he has ordered the universe . You cannot change that. Jesus didn’t change it either. Jesus death and burial and resurrection changed our relationship to the father. Our nation and most of the world is gonna have some serious heartburn for using a monetary policy (system) that ignored, disregarded and disobeyed Gods Laws concerning money. You wont find monetary policy in your concordance. But God has a lot to say about money.
Gods Law laid out a distinction for authority in the Family, Governemt and the Church. I let Wilson cover that here in july 07
It is in this regard that so much of the modern church looks like free range chickens.
I will stop now , but there is gold in them there hills!
Greg, thank you for sharing. I think you laid out the perfect, defacto, default understanding of what Gods Law is to the modern Evangelical. You nailed me perfectly as I read it and I bet most of those who read it had it resonate with them too. What you wrote was the sum total I ever had to consider about Gods Law, it is all that was ever “taught” concerning it, in the circles I ran in.
The biggest comeponant would be that the whole discussion was around our relationship or standing before God.
I’m gonna add two mites worth where things jumped out at me. Gregs writing is in blue still…..The scriptures are so clear throughout that the law was put in place to remind us that we could never achieve it. That no matter how much we tried, the law would be out of our reach…. True, when we are talking of Gods Law making us right before him. But it’s the other side of the coin that I keep trying to see clearly.
…So I guess my “two cents” (better than a farthing maybe?) on the issue is whether we believe completely in the old testament laws or if we try and establish which of those still apply today, the greater question I believe on the issue is what is the greatest commandment and how do we stack up?
Let me say Amen Amen! We know which is the greatest commandment, I hope. But In the past, I then lived like that meant that I don’t need to even worry about the rest of his Laws….Which doesn’t logically follow but that’s what my mind did with it.
…the issue is whether we believe completely in the old testament laws or if we try and establish which of those still apply today…
I objected to calling Gods Law “rules” the other day. We played a new game last night. Rules are like for a game, “high roller goes first and then the turn goes to the person on his left…” But nothing is any different if you change the rules so that it is the “low die roller who goes first and then the turn goes to the person on his right”. There is no moral comeponant violated and the game can play the same no matter which ever rule you want to use.
When in Psalms it talks of…. Therefore all your precepts concerning all things I consider to be right… the entirety of your words is truth, … I do think it is refering to Gods Law as it pertains to ….“which of those still apply today,” These Laws not only wont change, but cannot change, as they reflect Gods perfect order.
We have to understand that parts of Gods Law is like talking about the Law of gravity. Here we are no longer talking about our relationship to him, per say, but rather our relationship to how he has ordered the universe . You cannot change that. Jesus didn’t change it either. Jesus death and burial and resurrection changed our relationship to the father. Our nation and most of the world is gonna have some serious heartburn for using a monetary policy (system) that ignored, disregarded and disobeyed Gods Laws concerning money. You wont find monetary policy in your concordance. But God has a lot to say about money.
Gods Law laid out a distinction for authority in the Family, Governemt and the Church. I let Wilson cover that here in july 07
It is in this regard that so much of the modern church looks like free range chickens.
I will stop now , but there is gold in them there hills!
Someone asked...Tell us what Freddie Mac and Fannie May are... I read it from Gary's
newsletter, but I sometimes need an interpreter for his stuff...
They are a quasi govt/private company, more than the who, it is the what they do thats of interest, they handle home mortgages. Here is a paragraph From Gary about them today.
....I think the housing sector is going to fall next year. The only thing keeping it going today is the assumption of government money behind Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. They are making 80% of all the mortgage loans in the country. If they go under, mortgage interest rates will jump dramatically, which means that very few people will be able to qualify for loans at the entry level. This will push down prices throughout the entire housing industry. Yet housing is a disaster zone already, not just in the United States, but also in Europe. This is a worldwide phenomenon. It is even hitting Shanghai. The bubble has popped. A few brave souls -- or shills -- say housing is near the bottom. This was before Paulson's emergency announcement on Sunday...
You can wikiepedia them for more nuts and bolts about them.
Last year as things got bad on the housing front congress told these two companies to com'on step up and fill the gap. Commentators like Gary at the time said they are telling them to cut their own throats. No one wants to buy this stuff so you guys should.
Gary had a great overview yesterday on his member side. Im thinking it will show up at Lew Rockwells tomorrow and will link to it if it does. Something is happening in front of us that the likes hasnt been seen since the days of the great depression. The Republic is finaly realizing it if you saw the paper today.
newsletter, but I sometimes need an interpreter for his stuff...
They are a quasi govt/private company, more than the who, it is the what they do thats of interest, they handle home mortgages. Here is a paragraph From Gary about them today.
....I think the housing sector is going to fall next year. The only thing keeping it going today is the assumption of government money behind Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. They are making 80% of all the mortgage loans in the country. If they go under, mortgage interest rates will jump dramatically, which means that very few people will be able to qualify for loans at the entry level. This will push down prices throughout the entire housing industry. Yet housing is a disaster zone already, not just in the United States, but also in Europe. This is a worldwide phenomenon. It is even hitting Shanghai. The bubble has popped. A few brave souls -- or shills -- say housing is near the bottom. This was before Paulson's emergency announcement on Sunday...
You can wikiepedia them for more nuts and bolts about them.
Last year as things got bad on the housing front congress told these two companies to com'on step up and fill the gap. Commentators like Gary at the time said they are telling them to cut their own throats. No one wants to buy this stuff so you guys should.
Gary had a great overview yesterday on his member side. Im thinking it will show up at Lew Rockwells tomorrow and will link to it if it does. Something is happening in front of us that the likes hasnt been seen since the days of the great depression. The Republic is finaly realizing it if you saw the paper today.
We Dont Talk Enough About Gods Law In Gods Church
For we wrestle not with flesh and blood but with pieces of laminated flooring that we have cut too short. Sigh.
Note I have never advocated that we embrace Gods law apart from its entire biblical home. I am repeating back what God says about his law. He doesn’t stutter. I was making specific reference that to be a Berean, men who were praised, they were only equipped with the OT.
…”can you then divorce and remain within God's standard…”, I think you already answered this in your letter. J 1)at the beginning , Jesus said the two would become one flesh. 2)That the purpose was to have Godly offspring, this is defined as doing by training the next generation up with a understanding of Gods standard, his Law for all of life, 3)with the view that this was a multi-generational dominion task. Divorce would make it about impossible to do what all three.
I think you next paragraph you make some leaps…
…See, when I look at Jesus--blessed be His name--I have to deal with the fact that He much elevated the Law, thereby making the Old standard subservient to the New. In the Old Covenant you didn't glean, however in the New, you might have to sell your house if a Brother is in need. The Law didn't go away, of course not, it exploded into this New and wonderful thing….
Before Jesus righteous standard for living explodes into something new, you had better have a very clear understanding of what it was first. I don’t think that we do. So we have exploded it into something more after our own image in many, many, ways.
In the Old Testament Jesus gave us His standard, not rules. From the begining it was a heart thing, love God with all you heart and soul and mind, do not covet, do not hate your neighbor in your heart. Jesus said to the pharasee’s right at the start of his ministry, that not one jot or tittle would go away. He then took a chain saw to all of the man made traditions that they were engrossed in.
When he would say “ you have heard …. But I say…” that was (always? Usually? ) in reference to their Talmud, etc interpretations, and rules, and not Gods Law. He called all back to the heart that was always represented by His Law. Not one jot or tittle means, not one jot or tittle . Our access to God did explode into something wonderful and new. But Jesus himself said he came to fulfill the Law. How we moderns then use that sentence to say that he changed his Law, his standard, is just more testimony to how wicked our hearts are.
Again this is what I can see dimly. I am not the Bible answer man. I would be much more comfortable answering questions on those areas where I have been wrestling and rolling around already. I don’t know diddly about Chinese food either. J
I am sticking with Jesus, the Standard is still his Law and word revelation.
Note I have never advocated that we embrace Gods law apart from its entire biblical home. I am repeating back what God says about his law. He doesn’t stutter. I was making specific reference that to be a Berean, men who were praised, they were only equipped with the OT.
…”can you then divorce and remain within God's standard…”, I think you already answered this in your letter. J 1)at the beginning , Jesus said the two would become one flesh. 2)That the purpose was to have Godly offspring, this is defined as doing by training the next generation up with a understanding of Gods standard, his Law for all of life, 3)with the view that this was a multi-generational dominion task. Divorce would make it about impossible to do what all three.
I think you next paragraph you make some leaps…
…See, when I look at Jesus--blessed be His name--I have to deal with the fact that He much elevated the Law, thereby making the Old standard subservient to the New. In the Old Covenant you didn't glean, however in the New, you might have to sell your house if a Brother is in need. The Law didn't go away, of course not, it exploded into this New and wonderful thing….
Before Jesus righteous standard for living explodes into something new, you had better have a very clear understanding of what it was first. I don’t think that we do. So we have exploded it into something more after our own image in many, many, ways.
In the Old Testament Jesus gave us His standard, not rules. From the begining it was a heart thing, love God with all you heart and soul and mind, do not covet, do not hate your neighbor in your heart. Jesus said to the pharasee’s right at the start of his ministry, that not one jot or tittle would go away. He then took a chain saw to all of the man made traditions that they were engrossed in.
When he would say “ you have heard …. But I say…” that was (always? Usually? ) in reference to their Talmud, etc interpretations, and rules, and not Gods Law. He called all back to the heart that was always represented by His Law. Not one jot or tittle means, not one jot or tittle . Our access to God did explode into something wonderful and new. But Jesus himself said he came to fulfill the Law. How we moderns then use that sentence to say that he changed his Law, his standard, is just more testimony to how wicked our hearts are.
Again this is what I can see dimly. I am not the Bible answer man. I would be much more comfortable answering questions on those areas where I have been wrestling and rolling around already. I don’t know diddly about Chinese food either. J
I am sticking with Jesus, the Standard is still his Law and word revelation.
Friday, July 18, 2008
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
New, From Vision Forum, Christian Manhood
New from Vision Forum,whoopee
...The fact is that our boys are confused because their fathers are confused. The gender-blending of the last twenty-five years is reaping an alarming toll on men, and the worst is yet to come.
The answer to the problem of effeminacy in boys and leaderless men is not going into the forest and beating a drum. Nor is the answer found in psychologically driven behavior modification theory.
Christian manhood must prevail. But for it to prevail we need a generation of men and women more concerned with the biblical vision of manhood than the prevailing view presented in the government schools, on MTV, and in too many pulpits across America. And we need men and women willing to stand — sometimes alone — against the wave of androgyny and social confusion....
Order your Cd today
they will send you the cd for any donation during the month of july or order for $10
...The fact is that our boys are confused because their fathers are confused. The gender-blending of the last twenty-five years is reaping an alarming toll on men, and the worst is yet to come.
The answer to the problem of effeminacy in boys and leaderless men is not going into the forest and beating a drum. Nor is the answer found in psychologically driven behavior modification theory.
Christian manhood must prevail. But for it to prevail we need a generation of men and women more concerned with the biblical vision of manhood than the prevailing view presented in the government schools, on MTV, and in too many pulpits across America. And we need men and women willing to stand — sometimes alone — against the wave of androgyny and social confusion....
Order your Cd today
they will send you the cd for any donation during the month of july or order for $10
The Economic Chickens Keep Coming Home To Roost
Tonight I read this from Swansons The Second Mayflower, as we read it, it was seeming prophetic.
…Economies cannot survive where the preponderance of the hearts are consumed with leisure and where men work for the primary purpose of enjoying leisure and retirement. Because their hearts are in the wrong place, they will live for the present and debt will drive the nation into the ground…..
As I read this tonight I thought of the Pictures I saw today of the lines of people trying to get their money out of the Indymac Bank and how over the weekend even more debt will be put on us to save both Freddiemac and Fanniemay. Has everyone noticed that every solution involves more debt? Yup every rabbit that the goverment pulls out of its hat looks the same.
We as a nation are just coming off of the largest spending binge in the history of the world. But we have mostly borrowed what was spent for the lifestyle of trying to aquire heaven on earth.
That even as what seems unbelievable, slowly unfolds in front of us, the most amazing part is that the US government which is at the root of this problem, ok the hearts of sinful men really, people will turn back to them for the solution.
We must not be among them. We need to keep confessing our own sins and cry out to God to make a way in the years ahead. That we would be able to lead our families in His paths no matter what happens to this nation. For we ultimately serve a different Kingdom and our primary purpose is not leisure and retirement but to glorify God.
…Economies cannot survive where the preponderance of the hearts are consumed with leisure and where men work for the primary purpose of enjoying leisure and retirement. Because their hearts are in the wrong place, they will live for the present and debt will drive the nation into the ground…..
As I read this tonight I thought of the Pictures I saw today of the lines of people trying to get their money out of the Indymac Bank and how over the weekend even more debt will be put on us to save both Freddiemac and Fanniemay. Has everyone noticed that every solution involves more debt? Yup every rabbit that the goverment pulls out of its hat looks the same.
We as a nation are just coming off of the largest spending binge in the history of the world. But we have mostly borrowed what was spent for the lifestyle of trying to aquire heaven on earth.
That even as what seems unbelievable, slowly unfolds in front of us, the most amazing part is that the US government which is at the root of this problem, ok the hearts of sinful men really, people will turn back to them for the solution.
We must not be among them. We need to keep confessing our own sins and cry out to God to make a way in the years ahead. That we would be able to lead our families in His paths no matter what happens to this nation. For we ultimately serve a different Kingdom and our primary purpose is not leisure and retirement but to glorify God.
Legalism: But the Bible Doesnt Say We Have To do That pt3
Proposition 1: The traditions of men are hiding behind the skirt of “ but the bible doesn’t say we have to do that”
Proposition 2: "the Kingdom of heaven suffers violence and the violent take it by force." (note i will not make the case for this proposition since the bible just plain ol says it. More than once I think. To the King and his Kingdom!)
I meant to sit down and thank Marc this am and correct myself but pretty quick I shove my hand all the way up the hornets nest. Please read twice if your hair stands on end.
Marc I forgot to thank you for asking questions and poking, prodding and stirring the pot a little. I know it keeps things from sticking to the bottom of the pan and helps to clarify.
I need to correct myself. When I wrote this…. The issue is that their big argument isnt to point torwards a more biblical way, or to show how you are biblically incorrect but rather.... " but the bible doesnt say we have to do that!" I guess Im calling into question their standard!?! Or lack of it?!?
It was that last sentence…. “ I guess Im calling into question their standard!?! Or lack of it?!? To intimate that they lack a standard is to say someone has found some neutral ground. A place of no rules or standards. No such realm exists anywhere. But there are lots and lots of pretenders!!!!
As Rob taught on last Sunday in Luke….Jesus said, you are with me or against me. No fence sitting with Jesus. No innocent bystander. They couldn’t get him on the cross fast enough.
In this case the standard really is, what the rest of the culture is doing. For the believers it is what everyone in the modern church is doing. I want to call this “soft humanism.” For the most part we Christians have been doing the same thing, tagging along, trying to use Jesus to put a happy face on the pagan behavior patterns. J
I think that a motivation that puts us in error is a rampant fear of being legalistic. We think it is the unpardonable sin. We think it was a main reason Jesus came, to put those pharasee’s in their place for being legalistic. They were so judgemental!!! Gods word shows many times, that Jesus took the fire hose to the Pharasee’s, “because you make law of Gods to no effect by your traditions of men.” Was it that they were judgemental or was it the standard that they used that really ticked off God? Gods law brings us freedom!
The traditions of men is what we should be afraid of! It will be the same charge God brings against us today. Because we have not studied all of the word and worked at applying it we fall prey to “neutral” traditions of men, they seem to make sense and we don’t see alternatives and a real truth is they appeal to our flesh because WE get to make the call or we can be innocent bystanders and avoid conflict. The First church of the Manpleaser. Hey I have been very guilty.
Example of a modern tradition men. Because we had lost the old paths. For the most part the church didn’t question Dating between men and women, let alone boys and girls, the last 75 yrs in the church. We have tried to make it safer and have railed against the natural outcomes of putting men and women in these situations. We have thought, that there was no alternative… So can we find a way to minimize the casualties? Which you cannot do because the whole premise is outside of Gods design. The father abdicates his protection of his daughter is just the tip of the iceberg.
Legalism. Again this column From Doug Wilson called infinity at the top helps give another angle to look at the area of standards and not become legalistic. His "But A is not A" is just great background for this topic too.
What I wrote today could be easily misinterpreted, if you read infinity at the top and understand that I can see what he is talking about you will feel better if this has made some nervous.
Proposition 2: "the Kingdom of heaven suffers violence and the violent take it by force." (note i will not make the case for this proposition since the bible just plain ol says it. More than once I think. To the King and his Kingdom!)
I meant to sit down and thank Marc this am and correct myself but pretty quick I shove my hand all the way up the hornets nest. Please read twice if your hair stands on end.
Marc I forgot to thank you for asking questions and poking, prodding and stirring the pot a little. I know it keeps things from sticking to the bottom of the pan and helps to clarify.
I need to correct myself. When I wrote this…. The issue is that their big argument isnt to point torwards a more biblical way, or to show how you are biblically incorrect but rather.... " but the bible doesnt say we have to do that!" I guess Im calling into question their standard!?! Or lack of it?!?
It was that last sentence…. “ I guess Im calling into question their standard!?! Or lack of it?!? To intimate that they lack a standard is to say someone has found some neutral ground. A place of no rules or standards. No such realm exists anywhere. But there are lots and lots of pretenders!!!!
As Rob taught on last Sunday in Luke….Jesus said, you are with me or against me. No fence sitting with Jesus. No innocent bystander. They couldn’t get him on the cross fast enough.
In this case the standard really is, what the rest of the culture is doing. For the believers it is what everyone in the modern church is doing. I want to call this “soft humanism.” For the most part we Christians have been doing the same thing, tagging along, trying to use Jesus to put a happy face on the pagan behavior patterns. J
I think that a motivation that puts us in error is a rampant fear of being legalistic. We think it is the unpardonable sin. We think it was a main reason Jesus came, to put those pharasee’s in their place for being legalistic. They were so judgemental!!! Gods word shows many times, that Jesus took the fire hose to the Pharasee’s, “because you make law of Gods to no effect by your traditions of men.” Was it that they were judgemental or was it the standard that they used that really ticked off God? Gods law brings us freedom!
The traditions of men is what we should be afraid of! It will be the same charge God brings against us today. Because we have not studied all of the word and worked at applying it we fall prey to “neutral” traditions of men, they seem to make sense and we don’t see alternatives and a real truth is they appeal to our flesh because WE get to make the call or we can be innocent bystanders and avoid conflict. The First church of the Manpleaser. Hey I have been very guilty.
Example of a modern tradition men. Because we had lost the old paths. For the most part the church didn’t question Dating between men and women, let alone boys and girls, the last 75 yrs in the church. We have tried to make it safer and have railed against the natural outcomes of putting men and women in these situations. We have thought, that there was no alternative… So can we find a way to minimize the casualties? Which you cannot do because the whole premise is outside of Gods design. The father abdicates his protection of his daughter is just the tip of the iceberg.
Legalism. Again this column From Doug Wilson called infinity at the top helps give another angle to look at the area of standards and not become legalistic. His "But A is not A" is just great background for this topic too.
What I wrote today could be easily misinterpreted, if you read infinity at the top and understand that I can see what he is talking about you will feel better if this has made some nervous.
Is Gods Law the Ideal standard?
Any we and you’s should be used in generic sense.
Marc asks… As I was driving the other night, I began to ponder something: Is God's Law the ideal standard?? That is the question!!!.... Now, we can agree that the Ten Commandments are pure, good, and right. But taking the Law in totality, how do we find the perfect???
I will stand as a Berean and answer thus, watch, nothing up my sleeve except Old Testament…
...the law of the Lord is perfect converting the soul… therefore I love your commandments more than gold, yes than fine gold. Therefore all your precepts concerning all things I consider to be right… the entirety of your words is truth, and every one of Your righteous judgements endures forever,
…And David said to Gad. I am in great distress. Please let me fall into the hand of the Lord, for his mercies are very great: But do not let me fall into the hand of man.
Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path…
Psalms 19:7 Psalm 119: 126,127 Psalm 119:160 & I Chron 21:13 Psalm 119:105
Any alternative will have to be by definition, humanistic. Any other standard would be counterfeit. Any other plum line would be crooked and any other weights would be inaccurate. There is no second choice that is not a wrong choice. All else is wood hay and stubble.
Marcs second point...Also, let us not forget the Sabbath Day! It seems to me, that one is always on the back burner. But, you might respond, that was fulfilled in Jesus the Christ--Blessed be His name--I agree, but the rest was also fulfilled in Jesus-Blessed be His name!! You can't discount, Thou shalt not commit adultery, so how can you--I use the term YOU, generically--so how can you rid yourself of the Sabbath?? Seventh day of the week, Saturday, and no servile work shall be done therein!!!
Last weekend I started laying down a laminate floor. The pieces lock together and the whole floor flows together and looks great when done. I have to use pieces from the same manufacturer, same style and preferably from the same lot or they won’t fit, or partly fit and be a mismatch in its coloring. The ways of God are much the same. If you use Gods presuppositions and his word as the starting point and are consistent, then there is nothing to compare it to. We have not done that.
Unfortunately From within the stream of Christianity that I have been raised in, Gods Law was lost. I do feel like my son Nathan. He is 20 months old and two days ago started climbing onto sofas and chairs. I turned around and he was standing up on the chair and just nonchalantly walked off the edge of the chair. Oops.
Two years ago Jason refered to me as “Oh, your the Theonomy guy”, at the Uniting Church and Home conference in St louis, when I first met him. I didn’t know what he meant. I went out into the Lobby and bought Einwetchers book , An introduction to Theonomy.
Now I still feel like I am walking off chairs all over the place. The world is happy to say,” since you don’t have it all figured out we must reject it all.” The Church and the world both don’t mind the water being muddy on the issue Of Gods Law. We can be free agents then. I don’t understand it all. But I am implementing what I can understand. That article from Wilson about ” A and not A” is perfect. I am at the letter L and trying to get back to the letter J, I must show myself a faithful steward at j and not demand of God, no I want to know about this A, B, C,and D first. Be faithful with what God has given you and then he gives you more. Line upon line, precept upon precept.
I admit that I do not understand the trinity in its totality. But I have been around that concept for a long time and just accept it and don’t worry about it.
On the whole I am more focused right now on understanding the evangelical phobias and bias’s against using all of Gods words. I know that in the years to come God will continue to send his people this direction. The better we understand “the what and the why “ of modern evangelicalism, and its relationship with Americana, it will help us see our own weak spots. And we will be better prepared to help shorten the learning curve for those coming behind us.
Rushdoony, Bahnsen , Doug Wilson, Swanson and many others from Vision Forum handle these types of questions in beautiful fashion and I defer to them.
Marc asks… As I was driving the other night, I began to ponder something: Is God's Law the ideal standard?? That is the question!!!.... Now, we can agree that the Ten Commandments are pure, good, and right. But taking the Law in totality, how do we find the perfect???
I will stand as a Berean and answer thus, watch, nothing up my sleeve except Old Testament…
...the law of the Lord is perfect converting the soul… therefore I love your commandments more than gold, yes than fine gold. Therefore all your precepts concerning all things I consider to be right… the entirety of your words is truth, and every one of Your righteous judgements endures forever,
…And David said to Gad. I am in great distress. Please let me fall into the hand of the Lord, for his mercies are very great: But do not let me fall into the hand of man.
Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path…
Psalms 19:7 Psalm 119: 126,127 Psalm 119:160 & I Chron 21:13 Psalm 119:105
Any alternative will have to be by definition, humanistic. Any other standard would be counterfeit. Any other plum line would be crooked and any other weights would be inaccurate. There is no second choice that is not a wrong choice. All else is wood hay and stubble.
Marcs second point...Also, let us not forget the Sabbath Day! It seems to me, that one is always on the back burner. But, you might respond, that was fulfilled in Jesus the Christ--Blessed be His name--I agree, but the rest was also fulfilled in Jesus-Blessed be His name!! You can't discount, Thou shalt not commit adultery, so how can you--I use the term YOU, generically--so how can you rid yourself of the Sabbath?? Seventh day of the week, Saturday, and no servile work shall be done therein!!!
Last weekend I started laying down a laminate floor. The pieces lock together and the whole floor flows together and looks great when done. I have to use pieces from the same manufacturer, same style and preferably from the same lot or they won’t fit, or partly fit and be a mismatch in its coloring. The ways of God are much the same. If you use Gods presuppositions and his word as the starting point and are consistent, then there is nothing to compare it to. We have not done that.
Unfortunately From within the stream of Christianity that I have been raised in, Gods Law was lost. I do feel like my son Nathan. He is 20 months old and two days ago started climbing onto sofas and chairs. I turned around and he was standing up on the chair and just nonchalantly walked off the edge of the chair. Oops.
Two years ago Jason refered to me as “Oh, your the Theonomy guy”, at the Uniting Church and Home conference in St louis, when I first met him. I didn’t know what he meant. I went out into the Lobby and bought Einwetchers book , An introduction to Theonomy.
Now I still feel like I am walking off chairs all over the place. The world is happy to say,” since you don’t have it all figured out we must reject it all.” The Church and the world both don’t mind the water being muddy on the issue Of Gods Law. We can be free agents then. I don’t understand it all. But I am implementing what I can understand. That article from Wilson about ” A and not A” is perfect. I am at the letter L and trying to get back to the letter J, I must show myself a faithful steward at j and not demand of God, no I want to know about this A, B, C,and D first. Be faithful with what God has given you and then he gives you more. Line upon line, precept upon precept.
I admit that I do not understand the trinity in its totality. But I have been around that concept for a long time and just accept it and don’t worry about it.
On the whole I am more focused right now on understanding the evangelical phobias and bias’s against using all of Gods words. I know that in the years to come God will continue to send his people this direction. The better we understand “the what and the why “ of modern evangelicalism, and its relationship with Americana, it will help us see our own weak spots. And we will be better prepared to help shorten the learning curve for those coming behind us.
Rushdoony, Bahnsen , Doug Wilson, Swanson and many others from Vision Forum handle these types of questions in beautiful fashion and I defer to them.
I Will Instruct You and Teach You In The Way You Should Go
Think about these verses, it portrays a heart, ready, no eager to do what God wants...
Psalms 32:8.9 I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go: I will guide you with my eye. Do not be like the horse or the mule which have no understanding. which must be harnessed with the bit and bridle...
Psalms 40:8 I delight to do your will o my God and your word I have hid in my heart.
And contrast it with the statement..... "but the bible doesnt say we have to do that"
Can God direct us with his eyes? Or do we need a bit and bridle ?
Psalms 32:8.9 I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go: I will guide you with my eye. Do not be like the horse or the mule which have no understanding. which must be harnessed with the bit and bridle...
Psalms 40:8 I delight to do your will o my God and your word I have hid in my heart.
And contrast it with the statement..... "but the bible doesnt say we have to do that"
Can God direct us with his eyes? Or do we need a bit and bridle ?
Monday, July 14, 2008
Jeusu Recomended Good Banking
This is from the free side of Gary Norths blog. Its just great to see Biblical principles applied to what governments do. They are not above Gods standard. That the church has been silent, because it had no clue of how to speak to these issues, is testament to our spiritual poverty. The modern Evangelical Christian has lost the hsitorical foundation of our faith. There is no time like the present to rebuild the walls.
Monetary Reform: What, Who, When?Gary North
There is nothing wrong, morally ore economically, with banking. In a free market social order, bankers take deposits from investors and then seek out entrepreneurs to finance. They ask the entrepreneurs to pay more interest than the banks pay depositors. The bank makes its money from offering banking services. There are no free lunches and no free services in a banking system that does not use fractional reserves.
When a bank promises to allow depositors to withdraw their money on demand, the bank cannot lend money without resorting to fraud. If the money is loaned out, it cannot be withdrawn on demand. Any time a bank offers such a promise to depositors, it has moved into fractional reserve banking. It issues money to borrowers, but the money supposedly is also available to depositors.
The effect of this practice is to increase the money supply. This is monetary inflation. This process is described best in Murray Rothbard's textbook in money and banking, The Mystery of Banking.
So, there is good banking (morally and economically) and bad banking (morally and economically). Jesus recommended the first. He described God at the final judgment as saying to the unfruitful servant: "Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury" (Matthew 25:27). The word translated as "usury" comes from the root Greek word usually translated as "bring forth." It means "increase." There is nothing wrong with an increase honestly attained. What is wrong is fraud....Whole article
Monetary Reform: What, Who, When?Gary North
There is nothing wrong, morally ore economically, with banking. In a free market social order, bankers take deposits from investors and then seek out entrepreneurs to finance. They ask the entrepreneurs to pay more interest than the banks pay depositors. The bank makes its money from offering banking services. There are no free lunches and no free services in a banking system that does not use fractional reserves.
When a bank promises to allow depositors to withdraw their money on demand, the bank cannot lend money without resorting to fraud. If the money is loaned out, it cannot be withdrawn on demand. Any time a bank offers such a promise to depositors, it has moved into fractional reserve banking. It issues money to borrowers, but the money supposedly is also available to depositors.
The effect of this practice is to increase the money supply. This is monetary inflation. This process is described best in Murray Rothbard's textbook in money and banking, The Mystery of Banking.
So, there is good banking (morally and economically) and bad banking (morally and economically). Jesus recommended the first. He described God at the final judgment as saying to the unfruitful servant: "Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury" (Matthew 25:27). The word translated as "usury" comes from the root Greek word usually translated as "bring forth." It means "increase." There is nothing wrong with an increase honestly attained. What is wrong is fraud....Whole article
The Debt Bombs are Going Off
You can ignore Gods principles for only so long. For elected officials, its so long as you are no longer in office. Until then whatever it takes and too bad for future generations.
Freddie, Fannie, and Curses on FDR by Llewellyn H. Rockwell, Jr
Ludwig von Mises had a theory about interventionism
It doesn't accomplish its stated ends. Instead it distorts the market. That distortion cries out for a fix. The fix can consist in pulling back and freeing the market or taking further steps toward intervention. The State nearly always chooses the latter course, unless forced to do otherwise. The result is more distortion, leading eventually, by small steps, toward ever more nationalization and its attendant stagnation and bankruptcy.
When you think about the current Fannie Mae-Freddie Mac crisis,...Whole article
Freddie, Fannie, and Curses on FDR by Llewellyn H. Rockwell, Jr
Ludwig von Mises had a theory about interventionism
It doesn't accomplish its stated ends. Instead it distorts the market. That distortion cries out for a fix. The fix can consist in pulling back and freeing the market or taking further steps toward intervention. The State nearly always chooses the latter course, unless forced to do otherwise. The result is more distortion, leading eventually, by small steps, toward ever more nationalization and its attendant stagnation and bankruptcy.
When you think about the current Fannie Mae-Freddie Mac crisis,...Whole article
What is a fixed income?
Its not what you have been trained to think.
Who Really Lives on a Fixed Income?
Mark A. Pribonic
After months of higher fuel and food prices, I would have expected the outcry to happen sooner than the past week. Usually screams of despair about the cost of living come from special-interest groups representing the aged or the poor. But the siren came this time from my 88-year-old father-in-law. When the topic of the economy surfaced during a recent conversation, my wife's father groused how his retirement checks, which include a company pension and Social Security, do not buy what they did just a few months ago. His sentiment echoed those that have been heard repeatedly over the years from the self-appointed spokesman for the elderly. General price rises impose a harsh penalty on those who live on a fixed income. In an almost instantaneous response, my wife shot back that all of us live on a fixed income.
I thought immediately that she was right — but then again, maybe not. As with many falsehoods, the untrue becomes fact when repeated often enough....Whole article
Who Really Lives on a Fixed Income?
Mark A. Pribonic
After months of higher fuel and food prices, I would have expected the outcry to happen sooner than the past week. Usually screams of despair about the cost of living come from special-interest groups representing the aged or the poor. But the siren came this time from my 88-year-old father-in-law. When the topic of the economy surfaced during a recent conversation, my wife's father groused how his retirement checks, which include a company pension and Social Security, do not buy what they did just a few months ago. His sentiment echoed those that have been heard repeatedly over the years from the self-appointed spokesman for the elderly. General price rises impose a harsh penalty on those who live on a fixed income. In an almost instantaneous response, my wife shot back that all of us live on a fixed income.
I thought immediately that she was right — but then again, maybe not. As with many falsehoods, the untrue becomes fact when repeated often enough....Whole article
The economy and what has happened to it
From Gary North via Lew Rockwell.com
Recession: With War or Without It?
by Gary North
The world's economy has been in growth mode at least since 1991. China has been in growth mode since 1979. The American economy had a sharp recession in 1991. Asia had a financial crisis in 1998. America had a very brief, very shallow recession in 2001. The Federal Reserve System pumped in money at an accelerating rate after mid-2000 through 2004, and did not go to tight money until the month Bernanke took over: February 2006. Inflation overcame the recession of 2001, and it overcame the crisis of 9/11, but it created the housing bubble and the commodity bubble.
The housing bubble has popped. This is going to take the price of housing in the United States lower than it is today. I think 20% lower is a conservative figure. We are nowhere near the end of this popped bubble.
The commodity bubble is still in full force. It is a worldwide bubble. The price of energy and the price of rice and other food commodities have received most of the attention.... whole Article here
Gary has been dead on as to what was coming and I think what he and others warned about is happening in fron tof our eyes. The debt culture that the bible warns about is dropping fruit all over.
Recession: With War or Without It?
by Gary North
The world's economy has been in growth mode at least since 1991. China has been in growth mode since 1979. The American economy had a sharp recession in 1991. Asia had a financial crisis in 1998. America had a very brief, very shallow recession in 2001. The Federal Reserve System pumped in money at an accelerating rate after mid-2000 through 2004, and did not go to tight money until the month Bernanke took over: February 2006. Inflation overcame the recession of 2001, and it overcame the crisis of 9/11, but it created the housing bubble and the commodity bubble.
The housing bubble has popped. This is going to take the price of housing in the United States lower than it is today. I think 20% lower is a conservative figure. We are nowhere near the end of this popped bubble.
The commodity bubble is still in full force. It is a worldwide bubble. The price of energy and the price of rice and other food commodities have received most of the attention.... whole Article here
Gary has been dead on as to what was coming and I think what he and others warned about is happening in fron tof our eyes. The debt culture that the bible warns about is dropping fruit all over.
Saturday, July 12, 2008
But the Bible Doesnt Say We Have To Do That part2
Responding to marcs comments....
And as for change for your penny, I can give you half a farthing.
Your email made me think of all the warnings in scripture to teachers,elders etc, from both old and new testament. The warning is because they can lead HIS people astray and or be led astray with the wrong teaching. You can be discipled wrong. Being born again doesnt innoculate oneself from wrong teaching. Otherwise... why give a warning if his people cannot be led astray? Being led astray doesnt mean your salvation is in question. Maybe your just an American. :)
The Bereans didnt get the kudos from Paul because they were born again, so they couldnt miss it, but rather that they went to the scriptures to see if it was so. Which of course was the Old testament. I just love that! ( So technically you can tell someone, that unless they go to the Old Testament to "see if it was so" they are not a Berean. Ooh, oooh , you can tear out your New Testament and still be qaulified to be a Berean.(?) That will twist some knickers.)
And of course you have the Galatians and Corinthians where Paul didnt write back to them going, "you know I didnt think you guys were saved anyway."
So I dont disagree that we might have a lot of confused lost people around. But on this issue that Rob brought up ( he is such a trouble maker) we are very comfortable, that they really do love the Lord and yes, are among the numbered.
But I might raise my eyebrows at how they(I) were discipled. HHHmmmm. I admit that a lot of these areas didnt stick with me at the start. I do think some of us kick and scream along the way more than others. It also says something when someone will risk the relationship with you because they think you are becoming a cult. At leaste they care, right? That should be a blessing to us I think. But of course then you want to slap them.
The issue is that their big argument isnt to point torwards a more biblical way, or to show how you are biblically incorrect but rather.... " but the bible doesnt say we have to do that!" I guess Im calling into question their standard!?! Or lack of it?!?
I have some more to add, but not tonight. Im still throwing it at the wall in my mind to see if it sticks. Some of it is hanging pretty good.
And as for change for your penny, I can give you half a farthing.
Your email made me think of all the warnings in scripture to teachers,elders etc, from both old and new testament. The warning is because they can lead HIS people astray and or be led astray with the wrong teaching. You can be discipled wrong. Being born again doesnt innoculate oneself from wrong teaching. Otherwise... why give a warning if his people cannot be led astray? Being led astray doesnt mean your salvation is in question. Maybe your just an American. :)
The Bereans didnt get the kudos from Paul because they were born again, so they couldnt miss it, but rather that they went to the scriptures to see if it was so. Which of course was the Old testament. I just love that! ( So technically you can tell someone, that unless they go to the Old Testament to "see if it was so" they are not a Berean. Ooh, oooh , you can tear out your New Testament and still be qaulified to be a Berean.(?) That will twist some knickers.)
And of course you have the Galatians and Corinthians where Paul didnt write back to them going, "you know I didnt think you guys were saved anyway."
So I dont disagree that we might have a lot of confused lost people around. But on this issue that Rob brought up ( he is such a trouble maker) we are very comfortable, that they really do love the Lord and yes, are among the numbered.
But I might raise my eyebrows at how they(I) were discipled. HHHmmmm. I admit that a lot of these areas didnt stick with me at the start. I do think some of us kick and scream along the way more than others. It also says something when someone will risk the relationship with you because they think you are becoming a cult. At leaste they care, right? That should be a blessing to us I think. But of course then you want to slap them.
The issue is that their big argument isnt to point torwards a more biblical way, or to show how you are biblically incorrect but rather.... " but the bible doesnt say we have to do that!" I guess Im calling into question their standard!?! Or lack of it?!?
I have some more to add, but not tonight. Im still throwing it at the wall in my mind to see if it sticks. Some of it is hanging pretty good.
But the bible Doesnt Say we have to Do That
Anyone have different thoughts,or two cents on this topic?
From Sunday. Rob triggered me to pondering about this phrase today..."But the bible doesnt say we have to do that" No, Rob wasnt saying it to me.
If seems if you start applying Gods word in a manner that affects how you live, many believers, rather than trying to show from the word how maybe a different way of living life, or showing a different application, is also biblical. They will instead shoot that phrase back as a responce. Or a defense?
More times than not it appears it is used to protect the status quo as much as anything. We can rub that phrase on as a topical ointment to keep from changing or having to wrestle through the implications of Gods word. The status qou, the accepted dogma(1. see below), the way we have always done things always seems to be behind the curtain labled... "But the bible doesnt say we have to do that"
Like its not polite to lift up the curtain and say "why do we do this?" How rude!
You dont even have to ask. You become suspect just because what your doing is different than other believers?
Today Wilson kind of had a column that sort of touches, "certain aspects", on this subject. Sort of. Its part of the mix I think.
(1.) today Gary north had this comment on the word Dogma. Really he was commenting on central banking but his use of the word and his observations fit nicely with the soup we have on the table.
There is no more widely believed dogma in Western universities business and economics programs then faith in the central bank. No criticism of central banking is tolerated in American universities. You can always find the central dogma of any institution by looking for that idea or institution that is never criticized. Central banking in Western universities is never criticized.
I would add "what cultural institutions are just accepted or left alone?" Would you people sit down your rocking the boat!!!
From Sunday. Rob triggered me to pondering about this phrase today..."But the bible doesnt say we have to do that" No, Rob wasnt saying it to me.
If seems if you start applying Gods word in a manner that affects how you live, many believers, rather than trying to show from the word how maybe a different way of living life, or showing a different application, is also biblical. They will instead shoot that phrase back as a responce. Or a defense?
More times than not it appears it is used to protect the status quo as much as anything. We can rub that phrase on as a topical ointment to keep from changing or having to wrestle through the implications of Gods word. The status qou, the accepted dogma(1. see below), the way we have always done things always seems to be behind the curtain labled... "But the bible doesnt say we have to do that"
Like its not polite to lift up the curtain and say "why do we do this?" How rude!
You dont even have to ask. You become suspect just because what your doing is different than other believers?
Today Wilson kind of had a column that sort of touches, "certain aspects", on this subject. Sort of. Its part of the mix I think.
(1.) today Gary north had this comment on the word Dogma. Really he was commenting on central banking but his use of the word and his observations fit nicely with the soup we have on the table.
There is no more widely believed dogma in Western universities business and economics programs then faith in the central bank. No criticism of central banking is tolerated in American universities. You can always find the central dogma of any institution by looking for that idea or institution that is never criticized. Central banking in Western universities is never criticized.
I would add "what cultural institutions are just accepted or left alone?" Would you people sit down your rocking the boat!!!
Sunday, July 6, 2008
Again, Nothing is Neutral
We keep poking at this topic at Legacy. Can we see the religous under pinnings of our modern American culture. It is the sauce that keeps being poured over us,flavoring us.
From Blog and Mablog
Topic: Devil in a Blue Dress
Cultures Are Always Loyal by Douglas Wilson
"Culture always comes from religion . . . Culture always becomes a servant of the birthing religion, and its very raison d’etre is to protect, further explicate, and expand the influence and control of the mother religion . . . If you understand the relationship between religious belief and culture, you’ll understand clearly what’s happening in our world at large. Cultures are by their nature loyal to their source religion. To change a society’s culture, it is only necessary to change its religion" (Steve Schlissel, Christian Culture in a Multicultural Age, p. 97).
From Blog and Mablog
Topic: Devil in a Blue Dress
Cultures Are Always Loyal by Douglas Wilson
"Culture always comes from religion . . . Culture always becomes a servant of the birthing religion, and its very raison d’etre is to protect, further explicate, and expand the influence and control of the mother religion . . . If you understand the relationship between religious belief and culture, you’ll understand clearly what’s happening in our world at large. Cultures are by their nature loyal to their source religion. To change a society’s culture, it is only necessary to change its religion" (Steve Schlissel, Christian Culture in a Multicultural Age, p. 97).
Evangalizing your Children,RC Sproul jr
As I have said before Rc Sproul jr used to drive me nuts. Now I really enjoy him and his ministry From the Highland Study Center. From within the realm of modern Christianity it is usaully slim pickings on finding someone who isnt another captive of our culture.
We listened to Rc Sproul Jr on a previous trip to the mountains on the subject of Evangelizing our Children It was very good. you can watch an online video of his talk here.
Every believing parent thinks about this topic and Rc has a nice contribution here.
We listened to Rc Sproul Jr on a previous trip to the mountains on the subject of Evangelizing our Children It was very good. you can watch an online video of his talk here.
Every believing parent thinks about this topic and Rc has a nice contribution here.
Henty....I have not hidden your righteousnes psalm 40:10
Someone asked a question about Henty...
“I love reading Henty -- I do have a question for you -- what do you think about some of the books where Henty's characters, Christian and Muslim, come to the idea that they worship the same God? I finished reading the book "With Kitchener in the Soudan, A Story of Atbara and Omdurman" where there is a brief interchange about this thought.”
Use the Henty books like a tool, to help bring out understanding on areas that you want to reinforce.
But Gods Word trumps everything. When we come across something that is at odds with God, I point it out. I may say “Henty was wrong about that.” In this case while reading “The race for Karhtoum” the same issue came up, I mentioned that we serve the Triune God and Muslims serve a singular false god. I have pointed out to my family that Henty’s culture had been shaped by Christianity to a far larger extent than our culture is. So honor, bravery, loyalty, faithfulness, protecting women, selflessness and a “no apology made conviction” that some things are right and some things are wrong.
But at the same time during this period Christianity was being gutted in many ways. Pietism was on the rise, and there were heavy elements of the romantic period permeating all over. Which show up when two characters at the end of a Henty book will just profess to have been in love with each other for a long time, thought they had almost no interaction in the book, and they are just ready to be married.
Now I would rather deal with that, then with a bunch of romantic sections in the books. As the Word says “…do not awaken Love before its time”. I am working at protecting my daughters hearts. Our wives have just oodles of baggage from our modern culture that can be so confusing. That can seem instinctively correct, but it can be so at war with what God says. While on this subject of women…
On Sunday night most of Legacy was at our house and Marc was doing a great job of stirring the pot over some verses from Gods Law. No fur flying or anything but a good exorcize at really trying to see what God says and trying to understand the why. We have this HUGE handicap of being washed in Americana and trying to make Gods word fit on our terms, to our understanding. As with everything, it will only really fit and make sense by Gods terms and conditions. At one point a couple of the Ladies said “that would be so hard”, when we read about what God said to do in a certain circumstance, it didn’t seem right to our Americana mind. But the more we talked about it, we started to see that Gods care and love seemed to appear through our Americana fog. At that point the ladies start going ok, ok, but it was so counterintuitive till then. The word Lovingkindness comes to mind.
Psalm 40:10… I have declared your faithfulness and your salvation: I have not concealed your lovingkindness and your truth from the great assembly
“I love reading Henty -- I do have a question for you -- what do you think about some of the books where Henty's characters, Christian and Muslim, come to the idea that they worship the same God? I finished reading the book "With Kitchener in the Soudan, A Story of Atbara and Omdurman" where there is a brief interchange about this thought.”
Use the Henty books like a tool, to help bring out understanding on areas that you want to reinforce.
But Gods Word trumps everything. When we come across something that is at odds with God, I point it out. I may say “Henty was wrong about that.” In this case while reading “The race for Karhtoum” the same issue came up, I mentioned that we serve the Triune God and Muslims serve a singular false god. I have pointed out to my family that Henty’s culture had been shaped by Christianity to a far larger extent than our culture is. So honor, bravery, loyalty, faithfulness, protecting women, selflessness and a “no apology made conviction” that some things are right and some things are wrong.
But at the same time during this period Christianity was being gutted in many ways. Pietism was on the rise, and there were heavy elements of the romantic period permeating all over. Which show up when two characters at the end of a Henty book will just profess to have been in love with each other for a long time, thought they had almost no interaction in the book, and they are just ready to be married.
Now I would rather deal with that, then with a bunch of romantic sections in the books. As the Word says “…do not awaken Love before its time”. I am working at protecting my daughters hearts. Our wives have just oodles of baggage from our modern culture that can be so confusing. That can seem instinctively correct, but it can be so at war with what God says. While on this subject of women…
On Sunday night most of Legacy was at our house and Marc was doing a great job of stirring the pot over some verses from Gods Law. No fur flying or anything but a good exorcize at really trying to see what God says and trying to understand the why. We have this HUGE handicap of being washed in Americana and trying to make Gods word fit on our terms, to our understanding. As with everything, it will only really fit and make sense by Gods terms and conditions. At one point a couple of the Ladies said “that would be so hard”, when we read about what God said to do in a certain circumstance, it didn’t seem right to our Americana mind. But the more we talked about it, we started to see that Gods care and love seemed to appear through our Americana fog. At that point the ladies start going ok, ok, but it was so counterintuitive till then. The word Lovingkindness comes to mind.
Psalm 40:10… I have declared your faithfulness and your salvation: I have not concealed your lovingkindness and your truth from the great assembly
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