Sunday, August 23, 2009

For your Law is my delight

…..there is no way to listen to the apostle Paul in the right way, learning from him as a faithful Christian should, without opening yourself up to the accusation that you are following him in the wrong way. There is such a thing as bibliolatry, of course, as John 5:39 reveals, but we also need to remember that it would be pretty easy to accuse some faithful soul of bibliolatry if he was doing anything so foolish as living by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. It looks bad, you know?...... from Blog and Mablog

So when I read things like…
165 Great peace have those who love Your law, And nothing causes them to stumble. Psalms 119:165 (NKJV)

And…
77 Let Your tender mercies come to me, that I may live; For Your law is my delight. Psalms 119:77 (NKJV)

And…
7 Oh, how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day. 98 You, through Your commandments, make me wiser than my enemies; For they are ever with me. 99 I have more understanding than all my teachers, For Your testimonies are my meditation. 100 I understand more than the ancients, Because I keep Your precepts. 101 I have restrained my feet from every evil way, That I may keep Your word. 102 I have not departed from Your judgments, For You Yourself have taught me.Psalms 119:97-102 (NKJV)

Look at that last one… I pray that, like that author someday I could say that I am… wiser than my enemies…. I have more understanding than all my teachers….100 I understand more than the ancients…. I have restrained my feet from every evil way…..102 I have not departed from Your judgments…. I wish! Glory!, But to my shame I do not know his law like I should!

These are the things that God said to make the cornerstone of your children’s education. To work on them morning noon and night. By inference they should just be oozing out of us to the next generation. This is the foundation for understanding the world and life, to be able to even understand principles of right and wrong and seeing a foundation for real truth.

You cannot find God communicating anything with more intensity than when speaking of his law.

…it would be pretty easy to accuse some faithful soul of bibliolatry if he was doing anything so foolish as living by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God…. Legalist!

Much of the modern church is like some old seafarer from the 1300’s holding an incomplete map of the waterways and just where the known areas disappear on the map is a written warning…Here be sea monsters!

It doesn’t matter what Gods word says…here be monsters.

Using all of the word,not just the verses in the "Bread" basket

This is a fun free page at Gary north's,starts with his extended responce to jim Wallis and Obama care

....Humorist P. J. O'Rourke has described the ethics of welfare state.

There is no virtue in compulsory government charity, and there is no virtue in advocating it. A politician who portrays himself as "caring" and "sensitive" because he wants to expand the government's charitable programs is merely saying that he's willing to try to do good with other people's money. Well, who isn't? And a voter who takes pride in supporting such programs is telling us that he'll do good with his own money -- if a gun is held to his head....

No New Testament account of Jesus offers evidence that He recommended such a view of Christian civil government. This inconvenient fact is regarded as a slight impediment by Social Gospelers, but nothing too serious. They insist that this is what Jesus really meant to say, even though He never actually said it, and despite the fact that the Old Testament adamantly denies such a view of civil justice. God through Moses warned:

Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment: thou shalt not respect the person of the poor, nor honour the person of the mighty: but in righteousness shalt thou judge thy neighbour. (Leviticus 19:15)...

The Social Gospel movement is committed to guns and butter: the government's guns and your butter. The more guns the government has, the less butter you will have.

The Social Gospel's version of Jesus is a long-haired guy in sandals leading a mob of newly registered voters. He is packing a .44 magnum. His motto: "Go ahead, taxpayer. Make my day."

The Social Gospel asks this question: What Would Jesus Steal? Its answer: "As much as He can convince politicians to vote for."...




Why Is the Social Security Tax (FICA) a Biblical Requirement, When the Bible Speaks of Taking Care of Our Own Parents?

Why Is It God's Way to Allow the Government Control Over Health Care -- Life or Death -- by Taxing and Rationing?

How Do You Determine What Is a Person's Fair Share of Taxes, Other Than by the Ballot Box and a Gun?

Why Is an Additional $787 Billion Federal Government Deficit the Christian Way of Helping the Poor?

Saturday, August 22, 2009

Steyn...they want to nationalize our bodies

Control Your Own Body, Aye
by Douglas Wilson

.....Mark Steyn has pointed out, quite aptly, that in the health care debate we are now discussing the nationalization of your body and mine. But he needs to press the argument one step further....

This is just like that other popular saying on the Left -- keep the government out of bedrooms. Okay, I'm for that. Currently the governments tells us how far apart the sheetrock screws have to be, how big the windows have to be for egress in case of fire, how far apart the electric outlets have to be, what kind of chemicals can be in the paint, and whether or not we can cut that tag off the mattress without getting the FBI involved. Sure, let's get government out of our bedrooms. Oh, you didn't mean that? You just meant you wanted them to be mute where God actually revealed something to us (as in, no, you can't marry your sister), and having begun the disobedience there, to legislate endlessly and like crazy about everything else, dictating the most minute details about your bedroom?

If this foolishness makes sense to you,.....

Friday, August 21, 2009

Who Knew? State rights

Reading things like this are just so strange to us today, there is no reference point to put it with. We have lost our heritage.


HT to Lew Rockwell

The States’ Rights Tradition Nobody Knows

In 1798, the legislatures of Virginia and Kentucky approved resolutions that affirmed the states’ right to resist federal encroachments on their powers. If the federal government has the exclusive right to judge the extent of its own powers, warned the resolutions’ authors (James Madison and Thomas Jefferson, respectively), it will continue to grow – regardless of elections, the separation of powers, and other much-touted limits on government power. The Virginia Resolutions spoke of the states’ right to “interpose” between the federal government and the people of the state; the Kentucky Resolutions (in a 1799 follow-up to the original resolutions) used the term “nullification” – the states, they said, could nullify unconstitutional federal laws....whole article

Self Defense is part of being a well rounded Christian

HT to lewrockwell. I will be looking for this book.

Armed Response

...In the Foreword, Massad Ayoob writes, “If there is a crime of violence, the potential victim needs the wherewithal to stop the deadly danger and stabilize the scene by himself…” And that’s just what Armed Response lays out for the reader. The book covers what you need to know before, during, and after a life threatening encounter including what to ask yourself before deciding to carry a gun, how to choose a gun that’s right for you, what to look for in holsters, how to carry a concealed gun, proper training techniques, and the legal issues and implications of using lethal force....

Christian myths

I received a birthday card this year that read “ God has promised happiness and he is always faithful to His word.” Another reminder of how many Christian myths I have believed in.

Listening to Voddie’s “a thoroughly Christian education” and hearing him destroy the myth of the “let your light shine” verse was the most recent.

Gary Norths book on Westminsters Confession talked of the myth of Christian religious pluralism. He has made the point that things, if repeated enough, become believed as if they had been exegetically proven. He points out that many, for a long time, have said the New testament teaches a pluralistic pattern of civil government and that most contemporary churchs believe this. Hence we as Christians can be neutral about government today. Roger Williams first pushed this in the 1640’s. North says no such book exists that shows this exegetical task has ever been done by anyone. “..People write as if there is a large body of published material that shows exegetically that this is the view of the New Testament …” Pg110-111 He mentions that the pluralists are always deeply offended when this is pointed out to them.

Herbert Scholssberg warned ( Idols For Destruction)….that idols are hard to identify after they have been a part of society for a long time. It became normal for the people of Jerusalem to worship Molech in the temple, and it seemed odd that people calling themselves prophets should denounce the practice…” pg111

That’s the lesson for all of us. Lest we find ourselves opposing what God is trying to correct. What are the basic foundational suppositions we stand on, and have they been tested against the Word? We do not need to be offended if someone is touching something that was settled in our mind.

We should all be quick to defend the Orthodox faith. But we have to be cognizant that the Lord is going to continue to point out high places that must come down. I no longer think I have the goods. So it is easier and quicker to leave what was once a “truth”.

I have long trail of counterfeit currency on the ground behind me. The bills all had picture of Jesus on them so I thought it all must be true. Once over my embarrassment, I am truly, very thankful.

Obama Care

Obamacare

My Christian experience has come from the shallow end of the pool. So to me, this type of perspective seems like its from the moon. It is Gary North addressing a well meaning persons (I hope they are well meaning) attempt to stick the name of Jesus onto national health care. Here is an exerpt...

.....Christians believe in personal responsibility before God. This has to do with the doctrine of final judgment: heaven and hell.
Jesus healed a few people. He did not heal everyone. To heal even a few people for free led to huge crowds lining up to get free health care from Jesus. So many came that Jesus withdrew to the wilderness to pray (Luke 5:15). He could not heal the entire nation, let alone the whole world. Your slogan does not limit concern to one nation. It is universal: "all people."

Christians affirm that the world is under a curse (Genesis 3:17-19). This curse involves death. It also involves thorns and thistles. It affirms, loud and clear, "There ain't no such thing as a free lunch." The economist says, "At zero price, there is greater demand than supply."

It was Satan, not Jesus, who suggested turning stones into bread (Matthew 4:3)......

Nothing can heal everyone except God. The State is not God.....Read the whole thing

Back on the 13th at my blog, I linked to Douglas Wilson adressing this issue on multiple occasions here. Good food for thought. Christian thinking, looks different than humanistic emoting. We have been trained as evangelicals to respond in sympathy with passionate emoting. Whether or not something was biblical had nothing to do with it. For example see any of the last centurys moralistic crusades that Christians jumped into with both feet. We would have put Jesus in jail for turning water into wine.

Restoring the Center

I am noticing some repeating patterns…..

The family made it up to the mountains, read some good stuff, and am listening to Voddies talks from the convention again. Whoa! Voddie B just obliterates so many of the typical Christian responses that are used to justify living the Christian life, in a man centered fashion. That he uses the very same verses we hide behind is the corker.

What happens when the center doesn’t hold? Everything else will give up ground eventually. There will also be nothing to build upon, that’s the worst!

I have noticed that every speaker that stands with Gods law is able to use the rest of scripture in tangible fashions, applications, directions. They actually have teaching that can be called discipling. As compared to sharing, or reacting against something. This is discipling in a manner that is applicable to the nations. It becomes culture transforming, just like the impact the reformers had. The purpose of all, becomes to glorify God. So far I have seen this true for every teacher who accepts Gods Law. The teaching has an outward, instead of an inward bent.

For if you cannot see how the very Law of God applies to us, then how can you find much of anything else that is solid and applying to us. It gets really hard.

When Voddie says that pastors tell him not to talk about homeschooling, etc , because they follow a kind of pragmatic, live and let live, just love one another attitude in their churchs and teach that all “schooling choices” are viable. This is a screaming example of how the center is just plain gone. ( my wife recently related how a well known man, a famous author to those of us who have no use for dating, and is a pastor, was stressing this very policy to his church!) So they know they need, and now want world view teaching, but want Voddie to be silent about THE WAY that God wanted the world view to be imparted. We cannot see that our stinky, anemic, lack of biblical understanding is exactly because of how, we were educated.

Much of the modern church can see that something is wrong. Focus on the Family made a great effort with their Worldview Series, but it fell short as it stayed inside the context of modern evangelicalism, which means apart from Gods Law. We have been taught to expect it our way, as individuals. That becomes a corporate expectation, as a body of believers. You cannot give, free range chickens, purpose. They will never build, a city on a hill.

Wilson describes how you can have “someone with man centered doctrines, but still be an individual who tries to live a God centered life. “ I think these people are going to have hearts breaking for God, turning ever sharper inward, always examining their own hearts , but frustrated, because they cannot see how a lot of this energy was meant to translate out through our lives to everything around us, in how we think and act.

I for one just love it, and find it so fulfilling, to just have stopped walking in those circles, and now going in a direction! To see how there is no topic that Gods grace cannot be seen in and explored! Every thought captive!

Those who miss the Law can have a partial God centered theology but it will still end up with humanistic fruit. Because the default starting point for most of, everyday, you know , ”normal” life, will be a humanistic position. Errr I mean a neutral starting point, where there are common areas , that all men can rationally see, and accept. Ha! As opposed to “what sayeth the scriptures?” 8 "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways," says the Lord. 9 "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:8-9 (NKJV)

Gary Norths book, Westminster Confession shows how if you dismiss Gods law, the Christian faith turns into exhibit A of “when the center does not hold”. He doesn’t call it that, but it fits. He lays out just way , way , more levels of how much of the surety of the Word itself , just turns to mist.

The understanding that this center used to be known is forgotten, and the idea that it can be found and stood upon seems threatening and legalistic. It is Gary’s probing questions that he asks the university to answer that shows how deep the rot is. It was an eye opener to me, I had no clue at how much is really at stake and given up, with the “no Gods law” crowd. This whole argument was ignored by the Christian press in the 70’s and 80’s. It had to be ignored as it cut right against the grain of modern accepted Christian thinking. You cannot call it an argument though, because only one side was talking, the other side just tried to pretend they were not there.

So when Voddie, Phillips, Swanson, Wilson, Sproul etc speak….. it is like a hot knife through butter, just a bracing experience for many Christians…” this man speaks with authority.” Too many Christians have been enjoying this butter that the culture serves, and some are not too keen to see the butter get handled like this.

We have no boasting except for what He has done. God opened the King of England’s eyes, surely we can confidently pray that he will have mercy and open more eyes of his people! That Voddie kept calling people to the authority of Gods Word and his Law, and that his talks stayed full is a sign that God is at work restoring the center.

That His will, will be done, on earth, as it is in heaven! Amen!

Saturday, August 15, 2009

Tattoos,Legalism

disclaimer: this is mostly a good slapping for myself, its been stewing in me for awhile …

I was listening to Voddie B. this week from the home school conference and noticed how he, without saying it, does not grant neutral ground to those who disagree with him on different issues. ….theres no biblical basis for that…., thats not in the word…. He uses this everywhere that he lays out the biblical case for something. This showed up in his question and answers and in his “the centrality of the home in evangelism.”

This method of Voddies denies the neutral ground that so much of the modern church tries to stand on, that God leaves it up to us, etc. This has allowed massive synchronizing with the culture. And it is rationalized as a way to be relative and to reach the culture.

Along the same vein Nancy and Doug Wilson had some very thought provoking posts with lots of comments from readers on the subject of tattoos, piercings, etc. (good stuff) What Nancy puts forward here ties in with Voddie.

From Nancy Wilson's blog on the tattoo subject....
"...here’s something to think about. My husband raised a great point in a recent talk he gave on pop culture. Christians should say, “Why should I get a tattoo?” but we always rush to ask instead, “Why can’t I get a tattoo?” The burden should be on why we should rather than why we should not. In other words, give me a good reason why a Christian should get a tattoo. But we always want reasons why we should not or cannot. We are usually leaning the wrong direction, which is with the world rather than against it."

This phrase is so true!!!! But we always want reasons why we should not or cannot. We do this because we believe in the myth of neutrality and we are addicted to being the standard. We are supposed to be His ambassadors , bond servants, for the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, its not about our conscience not having a problem with something, but rather what does our Lord want? What sayeth the scriptures?

This would torpedo about 90% of the Christiany sounding, but non biblical presuppositions that are floating all over the place. If I had a nickel for all the times I have been given the “but what about” humanistic thinking masquerading as Christian nuance! My Bad because I kept giving, way to many people, a free ride.

North’s book” Westminster’s Confession” is one long request to the Dr’s and professors of Westminster ,these men who gave cover fire for most of the modern church to believe that Gods Law was non operative. By what standard? who says? If not Gods law then which God are we obeying? Who are we acknowledging as having authority? Deafening silence, If you cannot answer, ignore the questioner. That’s just those theonomy people…….with a dismissive wave of the hand, marginalize Gods word.

It is always theonomy. The only question is…. who or what is the theo of this system? For the Christian, there should be only one answer.

For some reason this is where we drag out the straw man concerns about legalism. But do you always expect the correct change back when you buy something? Legalist. Is it always wrong to abuse the widow and orphan? Legalist. Will you only sleep with your own wife? Legalist. Is the truth,always true? Stinking Pharisee.

Why do you call me Lord, Lord and do not do what I say? Because I don’t want to be a legalist?!?

Botkin was dead on when he said the new educational systems were meant to keep us from being able to correctly think and articulate what’s happening around us.

God has shown a new generation of Christians how to cut through all the baloney and Christian myths!

The next person who says to me….“ we have to be careful not to fall into the legalistic ditch on the other side of the road” is gonna get it.
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Wilson also had a awesome follow up on the tattoo topic which also touched this aspect again of…. We are usually leaning the wrong direction, which is with the world rather than against it." .....”the Bible never urges women to strive for, as in "edgy." Or "provocative, but not too skanky for an evangelical."
I am having a great time laughing at this stuff! David

Some thoughts

174 I long for Your salvation, O Lord, And Your law is my delight. Psalms 119:174 (NKJV)

Thomas, I listened to and enjoyed that talk from Jasons old professor last Saturday! Working from home has allowed me to listen to a lot of mp3's and if anyone comes across anything (mp3) they thought was notable, pass it on please.

God continues to bless the home auto repair and I am loving it! It has cut in on my writing time for sure, a blog post here and there has been it, but I continue to mentally work through so much! Less of me and more of Him.

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I have noticed that as the administration of Obama, rants and complains at those who are getting in his way, it is with a disappointed heart that I notice, it is not powerful preaching from Americas pulpits that has them miffed. Wilson is right, the modern church is like a house broken puppy that has been trained to not pee on the furniture. The enemies of Christ do not even see a need to glance at what the bride of Christ is doing.

Compare to 250yrs ago when the status quoi was being shaken, the British complained about how America had run off with a Presbyterian parson. (Whitherspoon) and with derision they spoke of the black regiment,(Presbyterian pastors in their black robes) The focus was not on man, but on what Gods word declared for every segment of life. Outward orientation of man to all of creation. Dominion.

The Church today, continues to examine its heart with more and more introspection. Self focus to irrelevancy.

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I was actually wondering for awhile…. why was it?…. that the reformation was never talked about and celebrated within modern Christianity? You know…. we are Protestants, part of the “protesters”…. and then I realized how most of Christianity would now stand opposed to the reformation and would link arms with the Papists! Yikes! No...... I dont know, what i was thinking.

Wilson once commented that if William Tyndale was alive and visited all the institutions that have his name on their ministry title or on their buildings he would be horrified at what they are doing in his name. He himself would be thrown out on his ear! Do you, and your kids know who Tyndale is?

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I just listened to Botkins talks from the history of the world conference again and he stressed how the social engineers at the turn of the century aimed to undermine Christian manhood. As he listed off those traits that they wanted to expunge from men, through mandatory schooling, I thought it must of worked pretty good, because they were not traits that I saw for all my years in the church. In other words, if those men were still alive they would see nothing in the modern church that would be in the way of their social planning. So of the dozens (and dozens?) of programs I helped to lead, over the years...... I don’t remember any of them trying to instill these traits back into men.
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The Gary North book called “Westminsters Confession” was very interesting. The historical perspective was great, North has a doctorate in history. He makes a point of comparing old and new covenants within the accepted paradigm of modern Christianity, IE the law isn’t for us, get men saved, God doesn’t care about how societies are ordered, bus stop theology, etc

Only the old covenant participants had direction on where they were going and how to comport themselves. An absolute standard of right and wrong. Directives from the God who loved them on how to live.

So, even though the Bible say’s the new covenant is better than the old. The modern Christian, in spite of the ascension of Christ to the right hand of the father, and that he has been given all authority on heaven and on earth, the people whom Christ loves and is preparing as his bride….”supposedly never enter the promised land on earth and in history: our marching orders are to march in circles until Jesus comes again.”

The Roman catholic church felt it had the corner on mans relation to God. Today we have shoved aside this error, and passed out miter hats to everyone, and say its up to the individual.

His grace to us and for us is without bounds....amazing.

Monday, August 3, 2009

How should we then think?

Doug Wilson has recently run a string of columns with his reflections on thinking biblically when it comes to interacting with the governments never ending offers to just help us. A Christian perspective on welfare and government healthcare.

These follow one after another and build upon the former, good to think about.

Just One More PigletTopic: Obama Nation Building

The Sticky Mass of Federal HelpsTopic: Obama Nation Building

The Bubble Wrap of Our GrumblesTopic: Obama Nation Building

Terrible at MathTopic: Obama Nation Building