MAKING SENSE OF SENSELESS ACTS OF EVIL

Being human since the fall of Adam means two things, at least: limited knowledge and tainted reasoning. If we were morally perfect, we would still possess limited range of knowledge. Therefore, we do not have  ability to draw absolute conclusions that fully satisfy our questions. But since we are also affected by a nature that comes short of the glory of God, we struggle with making sense of all that life brings our way.

The senseless acts of a man terrorizing children, and adults, in a school setting are difficult for us to process. There is no one that has trouble calling the actions evil. Few would probably have trouble calling the perpetrator evil. Thankfully, we live in a culture that has not yet digressed to the point that we are desensitized to the horrible nature of such crimes.

But, it is interesting, as we begin to process the event and questions develop in our minds, our why questions often and quickly move from the perpetrator to God. It is because we believe that God is sovereign, and is certainly able to do whatever He pleases among the inhabitants of the earth, that we are challenged in our minds with His part in such tragedies. We know that He didn’t do it. We know He didn’t kill those children. But we also know that He is God, and therefore could have stopped it. Why didn’t He? Why did He permit it to occur?

Ultimately, I am sure there is no answer that will satisfy the unbelieving mind. But I am sure that whatever answer we give, it must not be an answer that humanizes God. Every act of evil in this world is an expression of man’s total depravity. God withdraws restraints at times to permit the ugliness of the human condition to be clearly seen. Such horrible acts of violence should humble our own hearts, as we remember that we are members of the human race, which collectively stands condemned under God due to our rebellion and violence against Him. Thank God’s restraining grace that expressions of evil are limited!

Can anything good come out of such tragedy? Is any good result really worth permitting such immense evil? Perhaps the best answer is found at the cross! There, wicked hands crucified and slew the very eternal Son of God. He was beaten and shamed! He didn’t deserve it! And for what? What good could have come from such monumental injustice? There is now good news for a world of sinners! It is possible for good to result from evil!

For those experiencing the grief and pain of this most recent tragedy, no good can be seen right now. We should not attempt to get them to see it. Can we see it? Probably not. But God is working by evil and good to bring about His purpose. It is best that we trust Him and wait upon Him to make things clear. And, as we wait and trust, be completely yielded to Him.       

ARE CHRISTIANS ESCAPISTS?

Have you heard it said that Christians believe in and talk about heaven to escape reality? While it is true there are those with an escapist mindset which helps them to justify their avoidance of present reality, it would be bigoted at best to conclude Christianity as the cause of such an attitude.

Anyone who has taken the time to read the gospel record of Jesus Christ knows that He faced reality. He never taught His followers to set their minds on some future hope and give no thought to the present. In fact, it was His thought of the present that led to His agonizing prayer in the garden of Gethsemane. It was His hope of future joy that gave Him strength to face the shame of the cross with endurance.

Biblical Christianity teaches us to live now, but not for now. In other words, there is a reality to which this brief time on earth is headed. Christians don’t ignore this future reality so to live now as if this is the only reality. Christians live now with the hope of what is coming. That hope affects us now. It liberates us from the bondage of a broken world and short-lived promises, and enables us to let go of controlling things that are quickly passing away. With this hope in the future filling our minds we are able to live now according to principles that are right before God, regardless of what advantage it may or may not bring us in this present life.

If we didn’t have this hope, then we would admittedly be quite miserable. As the Apostle Paul discussed the significance of the resurrection in 1 Corinthians 15, he noted that life lived as a follower of Christ in this world would be quite miserable if our hope died with us. In other words, if all for which we lived were to suddenly end with death, then the life of trials and tribulation associated with following Christ in this present world that largely discounts Him would be characterized as miserable. It is the hope of the resurrection that makes every form of suffering in this life bearable. Not only is every form of suffering made bearable, it actually works in us a greater sense of the glory that awaits us. This world as it presently exists is not intended to be the end.

Now, this leads back to the thought of reality. Who is the escapist? The one who lives now with great hope of receiving all that the risen Christ has purchased and prepared? Or, the one who lives now with all hopes riding on himself and what he may or may not accomplish in his lifetime on earth? The answer to a large degree depends upon the reality of the resurrection. If Christ is risen, then every soul will give an account to Him. Death does not end existence. Death ends existence as we presently know it, but opens the door to either everlasting punishment or eternal life.

Some push the reality of life after death out of their minds. This is a form of escapism. It allows for some measure of peace now. But reality will one day disturb that peace!

Christians embrace the reality of life after death and live with hope because of Jesus Christ. This allows them to escape the lure of this present world and look beyond the sufferings of this present life. This brings a measure of peace now, with the hope of immeasurable peace forever.

I am thankful to be a Christian. Call me an escapist if you will. I prefer to be called a realist.

Help for Hopelessness

I have noticed that the top downloaded sermon from the messages that I have preached and loaded on to Sermon-audio is one regarding hope. There may be more than one way to interpret that little piece of data, but it directs my mind to conclude hope is one of the great needs of our day.

Hopelessness is an awful feeling. It can come for various reasons. It can be as brief as a passing sense at the thought of an enormous task facing you, or  the dark abyss into which one tumbles who has entered a season of depression. A season of depression also has numerous causes, from hormonal or medical roots to a devastating personal or family loss. The sense of guilt over one's sinful choices, or the sense that one is too great a sinner to ever be accepted by God can cause a sense of hopelessness. 

When hopelessness is the result of something other than a medical root, the solution must always be sought through means other than medication.  Hope is a by-product of faith, which is able to latch on to the possibility of that which seems impossible. When faith grips truth, hope will be kindled and increase until one is once again living with a positive sense that there is a way out!

Hopelessness will be exaggerated in one who places his faith in speculation rather than truth. Once speculation has been uncovered as a deception, or a lie, faith is weakened and hope fades. But when truth is the object of faith, then come what may, hope is kept alive and despair or depression is kept away.

Thy word is truth are words spoken by Jesus. He is the One who also said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. The word is the revelation of Jesus Christ. If you are listening to Him, you are listening to truth. Faith in Jesus Christ is faith in the truth. He is an anchor to the soul of every one who believes in Him. 

Despair and depression, kinfolk to hopelessness, are best dealt with by looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. Listening to Him as the wonderful counselor we hear, come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Jesus Christ gives hope to the struggling soul. 

Are you struggling with hopelessness? Jesus says, come unto me! Ignore the voices of detractors and naysayers who prefer to create questions and stumbling-blocks, and keep you in a place of hopelessness. Don't let doubts and questions lead you away from Him who is the truth. Hope will increase as your confidence in Jesus increases. 

I know! I've been in the dark place of doubt, where nothing seems right and all is confusing-a place of hopelessness! Hope is found in the God of hope. Trust in Him and hope is sure to increase. With the increase of hope there will be increase of peace and joy! 

If you are going through a dark night of the soul, keep looking unto Jesus. You can't see Him? Keep looking! This is the way of faith. You will see Him clearest at the cross! Run to the gospel and hope will return and grow. Don't stop looking. Endure to the end! We are saved by hope!

What is the Bible to you?

THY WORD IS UNTO ME…

What does God’s Word mean to you? Christians talk about how significant the Bible is, yet I wonder if our attitude toward it and relationship to it corresponds to our declaration about it?

As I was conversing with a Muslim recently, he spoke of the devotion of a true Muslim to the Koran (their holy book). He said they read it daily and hide it in their hearts. He mentioned that in month of Ramadan they read the entire Koran. Their holy book is the central part of their lives. He noted this as a point of difference with Christians, who, according to his take, have multiple “Bibles” and are not devoted to reading it.

After the initial reaction of, “that’s not true for all Christians”; and, “I bet all Muslims don’t read the Koran faithfully”; you may have cause to reflect on the possible truth of what this Muslim is saying. Faithful Muslims are devoted to knowing and living by their book. Are you as devoted to your book—the Bible?

What is the Bible to you?

• Could you say as Jeremiah: thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart?
• Could you join David is saying: Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path?
• Do you grasp the significance of God’s word in overcoming sin? Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.
• Do you find God’s word to be satisfying to your taste: How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!

It is possible to dutifully read a holy book and be devoted to its laws and yet not see beyond the duty and devotion. The holy book that you possess as a Christian reveals much more than a way of life. Your book reveals the way, the truth and the life!

The sweetness of the Bible comes to those who see not only a righteous way of living, but the righteousness of God that comes through Jesus Christ. When He is seen, will not our hearts burn within us?

While Muslims are drawn to their book as part of their duty-bound religion, Christians are drawn  by the Spirit to their book because there we see God, and His will made known through Jesus Christ! While our devotion is motivated differently, may it be no less!    

Confidence in God

Meditation Upon

Proverbs 16:33

For those who are satisfied to be what God has made them, it is a great joy to be informed that The lot is cast into the lap; but the whole disposing thereof is of the LORD. What contentment is worked into the heart of one who is willing to be content with whatever God determines.

Obviously, the Spirit of God is not telling us that we have nothing to do. It takes effort to cast the lot into the lap. This effort is preceded by the exercise of one’s will in decision making. But there is also that hint that a decision is being made without knowing for sure what the outcome will be. In reality, doesn’t this include most of life’s decisions?

How many times have you known two individuals who have made the same decision? From all that you can see there is little to no difference in the details surrounding the decision. Yet, the outcome is very different. In one case there seems to be flourishing at every turn. In the other case difficulty, or even tragedy (think Job). No good explanation can be found to determine why the results differed. The lot is cast into the lap. Each person made decisions and proceeded with life based upon those decisions. The outcomes were not the same.

But the whole disposing thereof is of the LORD. We are very aware that God has established laws of sowing and reaping in His world. Not all results, good or bad, are always a mystery. There are times in which we suffer consequences of sinful choices. There are times when we reap great blessings from choices of obedience. Yet, in the end of the day there is a principle at work that must control our expectations in all circumstances of life: the whole disposing thereof is of the LORD.

Every single detail relating to our casting the lot into the lap, including the casting and the results thereof, are under the sovereign control of our God. He has not turned His back upon us in hopes that all will work out! He is directing the whole matter with us! There is nothing that is happening that does not fit into His specific design for our lives.

This reality is troubling to one who has no confidence in God, or who is not satisfied with what God is doing. But when our hearts are humbled before the God who is responsible for our very existence, and we are convinced that He has our best interest in view, then our hearts are calmed. We can make decisions, even uncertain decisions, with full confidence that whatever happens is of the LORD. It will be OK!

When my mind is full of these kinds of meditations, it is amazing how the tensions in the torso dissolve. So, I will purpose to do according to all God reveals to me, even casting the lot, trusting Him to bring about the result that He determines is best. That sure takes a load off of me! Would it help to change things if I continued to carry the anxiety, fear, or tension that comes with trying to control the lot?

Relax, the whole disposing thereof is of the LORD!

DON’T APOLOGIZE FOR GOD

There are passages in Scripture that make most of us rather uncomfortable. For example, when God says, as part of His judgment against Judah, He would cause them to eat the flesh of their sons and the flesh of their daughters, and they shall eat every one the flesh of this friend in the siege and straitness, wherewith their enemies, and they that seek their lives, shall straiten them (Jeremiah 19:9). We cringe when we read such statements. We hope that no one else, especially our unbelieving friends (or enemies), will find those passages and ask us about them.

It was reported that the infamous atheist Richard Dawkins offered to put up money to buy Bibles for children in the schools in England. He wanted them to read it from beginning to end. He wanted them to see what the God of the Bible was really like. He spoke with certainty that having read all the Bible they would certainly reject the God it proclaimed.

Christians, knowing that such thinking exists in the world, often set out to defend and debate the revelation God has given of Himself in Scripture. In an attempt to answer objections, they often dull the cutting edges of certain Scripture to the point that it may as well have not been written. Do you suppose that God wants us to know Him just as He has revealed Himself? Is it possible that we actually do not know what we are doing when we attempt to either conceal harsh sounding Scriptures, or explain them in such a way that the true nature of God is not revealed? Do we really want to hide the fact that God is holy and just, and that He will indeed punish the wicked?

If God did not want Himself known in the light that Scripture reveals Him, He would have had His prophets speak in another way. He is the one who said, I will cause them to eat the flesh of their sons… It is true the cause would be by way of the siege and the siege was due to God lifting His hand of protection from Jerusalem. Yet, it is clear that God wants us to know He is behind the judgment. In the book of Jeremiah this point is made in an almost exhausting manner. It is as if God wants us to know that He will indeed punish sinners!

Hell (gehenna, or the lake of fire) is the eternal punishment that God has promised to all who are not saved, or rescued, by the Lord Jesus Christ. Interestingly, gehenna is connected to the valley of the son of Hinnom found in Jeremiah 19. This is the valley that Jeremiah prophesies would be turned into a valley of slaughter (vs. 6). It is the valley that became a perpetual smoldering pit for trash, dead criminals and animals. Gehenna, translated hell in the KJV, is the word Jesus used to refer to the place of eternal punishment.

But hell is future. No one has seen it. Could it be that the graphic terms of Old Testament punishment against sin are given to assure us that the graphic terms of future eternal punishment are for real. God told Israel in graphic details what would come of them if they continued in rebellion. For the most part they didn’t believe God. Surely, He wouldn’t do such a thing. God is not like that! Yet, He did do it!

As to the gory thought of cannibalism in a city under siege, prophesied through Jeremiah in 19:9 - it really happened! Lamentations 4:10, The hands of the compassionate women have cooked their own children; they became food for them in the destruction of the daughter of my people. (NKJV) God is letting the world know that hell is no more beyond Him than the awful judgments predicted and carried out in the OT time period.

You can’t believe in a God like this? Well, you can make up your own god. Or, you can deny there is a god. Many have followed their own imagination and feelings before you and come to various conclusions. God reveals Himself very clearly in Scripture. It is in your best interest to bow before Him and heed what He says. Those who do not will be punished with everlasting destruction from His presence (2 Thess. 1:9). He is a consuming fire. You need to know this!

Christians, don’t hide the truth concerning God. It may be uncomfortable. But it is necessary that the world know who the true and living God really is. If they conclude they cannot believe in a God like this, then they will have to deal with their conclusions. But if you misrepresent God, and someone believes in your misrepresentation; you will have God to answer to! God is not ashamed of His revelation. Should we be?

Prayer and the Ordinary

There are times when God suspends the laws of nature, those laws that are in place to establish certainty and rule in His world. These times are normally referred to as miracles – something extraordinary. These are not the rule or the norm. It would be a very difficult world in which to live if there were no fixed laws in nature and randomness was the rule. Nevertheless, God is pleased at times to overrule or suspend some ordinary natural law in order to accomplish His purpose at any given time. Thus, while there are those events in Scripture and throughout history that defy natural explanation, most of what occurs in this world is observable and explainable.

This does not mean it is not amazing! Most of us don’t stop to really observe that which we take for granted every day. Isn’t this something of what God was teaching Job by way of questions as He took him on a survey of the universe? Nature is a testimony to the greatness and power of God! We really shouldn’t miss that due to familiarity!

How does this relate to prayer? Sometimes folks think of prayer primarily as a means to provoke the supernatural. If something supernatural doesn’t result, then prayer is not considered successful or impressive. Such thinking is similar to viewing the ordinary function of the natural world as unimpressive!

While there are supernatural things that occur in the context of prayer, this is not the primary fruit of prayer. Prayer is the means by which created humans, saved and indwelt by the Holy Spirit, are enabled to petition God and know that all things, including the ordinary things, will function together to bring about the will of God: Romans 8:27,28. 

Prayer is not a way to attempt to get God to do what we don’t want to do; or to get God to do so that we don’t have to.  Prayer is the way to seek God to direct us and to enable us and to bless what He has already given.

Jesus taught us to prayer this way: Give us this day our daily bread. But we also read in another place in the NT, if any would not work, neither should he eat. (2 Thess. 3:10) As we are praying for the provision of God, He blesses with the means! We pray for healing…and then we pursue every means that God provides (including diet, rest, exercise, surgery, etc.) trusting that God will bless the normal healing process He created! We pray for increase in the knowledge of God…and then we dig for fine gold, and work for sweet honey from Scripture! We pray for souls to be saved…and then we preach the gospel! Why? Because Jesus said, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. And, 1 Cor. 1:21, For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.

Prayer does not eliminate ordinary means. Prayer seeks God’s provision and blessing upon the means made available. Understanding this principle enables us to give thanks in all things and to bless Him continually – not just for that which we perceive to be “miraculous” or supernatural.

Interacting With Providence Through Prayer

It is helpful, and proper, to interact with providence through prayer. God has created us to think and reason and respond. With creative minds, an aspect of His image that we possess in a finite way, we are expected to think about life as it happens. It is with our minds that we engage in relationships. Relationship with our fellow created humanity, and fellowship with our Creator.

It is true that God is sovereign. It is true that God’s will is determinative. If God wills a matter, the matter will be. He has clearly informed us that He does whatever He pleases and that none can stop Him from accomplishing what He has determined (Psalm 115:3; Daniel 4:34,35). This is providence: God ruling over that which He has created. This is why the Apostle Paul spoke of doing certain things, if God will (Acts 18:21). James also teaches us that we should say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.

Yet, it is clear from numerous Biblical examples, recording for our learning, that God wants us relating to providence, not simply accepting it. Oh, it is true that we should accept God’s providence. With Job, we should say in the face of disaster: the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD. Jesus taught us to pray, not my will, but thine be done. We should always prefer the will of our all-wise, loving heavenly Father to our own will. His plan is perfect. We should never charge God with unrighteousness.

Yet, I repeat, God has clearly demonstrated through examples left for our instruction that He wants us approaching Him with reason and petitions that may argue against what it may seem providence has ordained. Case in point: the account of Elijah who intercedes on behalf of the widow woman who has tragically lost her son to a devastating sickness. The account is found in 1 Kings 17:17-24.

Elijah’s response to the grieving mother and the dead child is not a cold-hearted, calculated theological answer. He seems stunned by the news of his death. He takes the child to his room. It seems like he is attempting to collect himself and determine just what to do. He doesn’t simply chalk it up to providence. He doesn’t react as if there is nothing that can be done: “Providence has spoken. We must bow to God’s will and trust Him to help us through the grieving process.” This, in fact, may be the conclusion that he ultimately would come to, but that is not where he began.

Elijah, burdened that perhaps what was obviously the providence of God to that point was not the final word, cried unto the LORD. He prayed fervently. He reasoned with God, asking if this evil that was brought upon the widow woman’s son was really what He intended. Elijah was not convinced that this was the end of God’s providence in this case. He sensed that this was something he should cry out to God to correct or to change. He cries out for the soul of the child to return to his body.

Incredibly, Scripture clearly reveals this event to us in such a way that we are left encouraged that all is not simply sealed in some dark, cold fate. And the LORD heard the voice of Elijah! He heard him and responded by returning the soul of the child! The freedom of God’s will in providence was not violated. He is the One who chose to hear and respond to Elijah. There are other instances, such as David praying for the life of his sick and dying child, in which God’s will was the death of the child.

The lesson, for the purpose of this blog entry, is simply this: do not give up too quickly and easily in the face of hard providences. Cry out to the Lord, if your heart is so burdened to do so. Who knows but that your fervent prayer may be exactly what God intends in the process of carrying out His will. His providence may have brought hard things. His providence may include answering your fervent prayer. So, interact with God’s providence through prayer.

Ultimately, we must be satisfied with whatever God chooses to do in answer to our cries. This is the response of faith. This is the response of all who are convinced that God does what is best in response to the cries of His children. Our God is not a cold, inanimate force! He is the living God Who seeks worshippers.

Introduction

I am husband to Jodi, father to six boys and two girls, grandfather to five, step-grandfather to one, and Pastor to a great bunch of sinners saved by God's grace. Reading, learning, thinking, evaluating, experiencing and seeking to communicate helpful counsel to others is what I spend the majority of my time doing. My first love is the triune God. I long to see others helped in knowing and loving Him. If this blog can be of some assistance to fellow sojourners, then the time spent putting it together will not be wasted. 


Through many testings in life God has burned some truths into my being at a level that I would not have learned otherwise. I am sure that some of those lessons will come to light through this blog. How it all will come forth remains to be seen. I have no definitive plan. For any who wish to follow, I do hope to share some of the truths God has given to me through very difficult trials of life. Few have learned anything very well apart from trials. I am no exception. Truth and faith is tested in the crucible of trials. Who you really are and what you really believe will come to the surface in the process of life impacting trials. 


So, welcome aboard. For what it's worth, these are my thoughts and I take full responsibility for the content. This blog has not been filtered through any other minds or board of overseers. So, if you object to what you read, please place all the blame upon me. If you read something that is out of line, you are welcome to give feed back in the spirit of love. If you have something helpful to add, feel free to chime in. I assure you that I do not think of myself as having figured out all of life's difficult questions. Maybe we can grow together!


Welcome to My Blog,


Kyle White