Steeple Friends,

Please pray for me and my family. My mom died unexpectedly on Tuesday. I miss her so much already. I will be speaking some words at her memorial service on Saturday. Please pray for the Lord to be honored by this entire weekend, as friends and family from all over the country will be coming in to celebrate my mother's life. Most of all, please pray that the gospel will go forth into the hearts and lives of all those who do not yet trust Christ.

The part of the gospel about sin and death and judgment is particularly unsavory to the lost during a funeral.

At peace, because He has overcome the world,

B8 (B9 in time, Lord willing)

Matthew 10:26-33 

26 “So have no fear of them, for nothing is covered that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. 27 What I tell you in the dark, say in the light, and what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops. 28 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. 30 But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. 32 So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, 33 but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.

Proverb 3:5-7

5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
and do not lean on your own understanding.
6 In all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make straight your paths.
7 Be not wise in your own eyes;
fear the Lord, and turn away from evil.

For me, this has been a very personal and practical instruction from the Lord. In my new business, I will acknowledge the Lord. This means I will speak of Him and His goodness and love toward me in Christ. I will share that I started this practice for the glory of God. I will openly declare that our daily activities are to be governed by the words of the Lord Jesus: "Love your neighbor as yourself."

God has planted this flag in my heart. I was afraid because I was being "wise in my own eyes" and "leaning on my own understanding" and "fearing those who can [only] kill the body". I was fearful that this open acknowledgement of Him would hurt my business. Now, I don't care what others say about this practice. I am at peace with leaving the results in His Almighty Hands as I walk the path He has revealed in His Word, the path of acknowledging Him in ALL my ways, which I know cannot exclude my business life.

May He plant this flag in all of us, that we may do the same in all our workplaces, retaking what has been slowly surrendered.

B8

So much of this section of Scripture is grand beyond measure, almost too beautiful to risk maligning with merely human reflections. Too high to be scaled, this pinnacle of glory glimmers with rays of sublime power, ever drawing us in for a closer look, yet the infinite immensity, seen ever more clearly, only intensifies the awe and wonder of the scene. The closer look does not satisfy the industrial, clinical, mechanical, scientific, purely hermeneutic eye. Oh, but, draw near with the eyes of faith and a heart alive to His mystery, wonder and beauty, and the clarity of proximity to these wondrous truths, the fragrance of the essence of beauty filling your soul, will squeeze forth soul-song in gladness that human tongue cannot rightly or fully express. This is the knowing of that which is beyond comprehension. This is the knowing root, plunged ever more deeply into the soil of Him, that grows the tree of genuine worship, that MUST grow this giant, glorious tree of always overflowing worship of Him. To know Him is to worship Him. Who must this God be in order to do such things? How is it that I can be His? What wonder to my soul.

            Sure, we have to know the facts given to us in the doctrinal systems. Good Christians who love God will learn their catechism. But, all this does is get the mountains in view. The looking at mountains has no effect on the climbing skills. Go, live according to His glorious grace at work in your life. Go, act as if He is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Spend your days declaring His praises. Ponder anew each day His mercies to you in Christ. Think on the death of Jesus. Meditate on Him constantly as you mingle with others continually. Submit to the power of New Life as you walk amidst a world of old death. Stop trying to measure the dimensions of predestination, grace, election and mercy. Stop testing the waters. The flood, the deluge shall lavish itself upon you. Swim. Drown. Be rescued. He is always with you.

Genesis 18: 17-19

 The Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice, so that the Lord may bring to Abraham what he has promised him.”

God chose Abraham to be the father of a great and mighty nation, and God chose that all the nations of the earth would be blessed in Abraham. This great missionary and evangelistic passage shows God's choice to work through a single sinner, Abraham, to bring worldwide blessing.

What strikes me is the way God chose to accomplish this foreordained plan. How does God plan to "bring to Abraham what He has promised?" How does God plan to accomplish "all the nations of the earth" to be "blessed in [Abraham]?"

Answer: By "...command[ing] his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice."

Abraham's fatherly faithfulness did not earn him a mighty nation as offspring. Abraham's fatherly faithfulness did not earn him the position of worldwide evangelist. Abraham's fatherly faithfulness was God's appointed means to carry out God's immutable plan for Abraham to be a mighty nation and a blessing to all the earth, ultimately and fully accomplished through Jesus Christ, the Seed of Abraham.

I hope this will encourage every man who reads this. Abraham, really, in many ways, was a great sinner. He had a problem with courage and truthfulness. His kids were an awful mess at times. But, in the end, Abraham believed God, and this faith, ultimately, led Abraham to many acts of righteousness and justice that God used to accomplish His plan in Abraham's life. God even used Abraham's sin and failures to accomplish His plan.

May each of us fathers, with joy and gladness under the favor of Christ our Redeemer and Friend and Lord, and under the compassionate eye of God the Father, and empowered by the very real presence of the Holy Spirit, press on to be the fatherly evangelist demonstrated to us by Abraham, commanding our children and our household after us to keep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice, rejoicing in the knowledge that in this way, we, too, can be a blessing to all the nations of the world, through the power of God, the great Gospel of Jesus Christ, the humble crucified carpenter, resurrected, ascended and reigning over all, Who is and ever shall be, King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

B8

"3:1 Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, 2 to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people. 3 For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. 4 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. 8 The saying is trustworthy, and I want you to insist on these things, so that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works. These things are excellent and profitable for people. 9 But avoid foolish controversies, genealogies, dissensions, and quarrels about the law, for they are unprofitable and worthless. 10 As for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him, 11 knowing that such a person is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned."

OK, so I have asked the Lord to help me to really be all the good things mentioned in this passage from Titus 3. I admit that I have not been careful to communicate in ways that are gentle, with perfect courtesy toward all, especially in communication with Wesley and Joe. Please accept my sincerest apologies, forgive me, pray for me and hold me accountable to a form of interaction that sincerely honors Christ. May I never speak evil of others or be quarrelsome. May my manner never be irritating or ugly. If my views are unpleasant to ponder, then may my manner and demeanor make reading them surprisingly pleasant.

On the other side of a new leaf here in this little corner of cyberspace, where theology as "blood sport" is strictly refused.

B8

"I demand your decision now and whom do you suppose that I am now addressing? Every impenitent sinner in this house -- everyone. I call heaven and earth to record that I have set the gospel before your today. Will you take it? Sinner, the infinite God waits your consent!" - Finney.

"For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified." - Paul, in Holy Scripture

God needs the consent of no human, neither in Creation or in Providence or in His Sovereign act of Redemption unto eternal life. Thus, Finney-ism mischaracterizes God as neither sovereign nor almighty in the realm of soteriology. This, my dear friends, is nothing less than the doorway into idolatry- false worship hidden in the disguise of Christian religion.

B8

http://www.visionforum.com/hottopics/blogs/dwp/2008/05/3725.aspx

Now, that's what I'm talkin' about.

B8

Point is NOT: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof"

Point IS:

"The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized."

"In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defense."

I know, I am nowhere near as eloquent as Joe.

B8

Obama really wants to be the U.S. President.

Hillary and others have been (for various reasons) focusing on Obama's known ties to hate-filled, vitreolic extremist Jeremiah Wright and known terrorists of the Weather Underground, Ayers and Dohrn. This is worthwhile news. It has been effective in causing many sane Americans to reject Obama's slick talk and categorize him as a very dangerous man, potentially a real wolf in sheep's clothing, with hidden plans to destroy America.

Rozita Swinson is a pledged Obama delegate. See precinct 269. http://www.peakdems.org/obama_state_del.asp It appears as though she is connected to the phone call tips that led to the recent Fundamentalist Mormon family raids in Texas.

Swinson was arrested on April 16th, accused of intentionally reporting false allegations under a fake name, in an unrelated abuse claim. The anonymous tip in the Texas Mormon case was from her phones and appears to also be fraudulent.  http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/23/AR2008042303551.html?hpid=sec-religion Here is the most dangerous idea from that article: "On Wednesday, officials at the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services said that the facts surrounding the first phone call had become irrelevant because the raid turned up independent evidence that underage girls had been impregnated." So, now, the 4th Amendment to the Constitution is "irrelevant." THIS IS DANGEROUS. The 4th Amendment was equally abused by the Patriot Act, just using a different form of fear to trick us into giving away our hard-earned freedoms.

So, one way to explain this whole mess is that Swinson (with Obama's knowledge??) was motivated by a desire to distract Americans from Obama's ugly past. The more the media talks about the Texas Mormons, the less time the media can spend looking at Obama. This is the key to distraction. There is only so much time in the day.

But, it gets worse. This form of distraction is also deceptive. It works to stereotype Christians who are different from the surrounding culture. This event in Texas has not only distracted Americans; it has duped Americans, as well. Many well-meaning Americans now believe that counter-cultural living, modest dress from the past, agrarian lifestyle separated from the modern world and homeschooling are to be categorized as probably abusive, criminal and worthy of state intervention without appropriate evidence of wrongdoing.

Now, it gets even worse. Yes, Americans are distracted away from Obama by this event. Not a major deal because it is only temporary. And, yes, Americans are duped by a false stereotype of some Christians. But, now, Americans have become dangerous, and I mean bright, well-meaning Christian men and women who sincerely want to see the Kingdom of God advanced. They have become dangerous because THEY are now propagating this stereotype, and by doing this they work to validate the most dangerous idea of all: The 4th Amendment is "irrelevant" as long as you find some sort of wrongdoing after raiding the home/family, especially if the family is wierd, like those "women in pioneer dresses...dressed like Laura Ingalls."

Here is an example of a well-meaning Christian man who is distracted, duped and dangerous on this issue: http://steeplemedia.com/blogs/son_of_liberty/archive/2008/04/08/zombie-pioneers.aspx

Make no mistake, I am in no way arguing in favor of the Texas Mormons. If there was evidence of criminal activity, they should have been investigated. If then proven guilty, they should be punished according to the law. This discussion is really not about their strange and ungodly ways.

B8

Oh yeah, and Joe, I am still wating for your promised reply to my questions regarding God's Law, which I can only assume you are really working on. You know, the reply that you removed from your blog, never re-posted and never responded to. http://steeplemedia.com/blogs/son_of_liberty/archive/2008/02/18/let-s-not-mince-words.aspx#comments

OK, steeple friends, I would like your serious (well, ok, some jokes allowed) input regarding a name for a medical practice. And, if you can't think of a name, give me the principles you would use to name a medical practice.

Thanks in advance.

B8

www.battleforcivilization.com

B8