MASTER'S International UNIVERSITY of Divinity

Bi-Monthly Information and Teaching Journal

 

"And they said one to another, did not our heart burn within us, while He talked with us by the way, and while He opened to us the Scriptures?"

 

Luke 24:32

 

ONE to ANOTHER ~ October - November 2016 ~ Volume II ~ Issue 5

In This Issue

One Nation | What is Man | Facing Giants | Book Review | A Churh for All | Shooting the Messenger | Texas Bluebonnets | Lessons From the Sky | Feathers in the Wind

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Past Editions Archive

Give Thanks to the Lord

  • Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, For His lovingkindness is everlasting.
  • Give thanks to the God of gods, For His lovingkindness is everlasting.
  • Give thanks to the Lord of lords, For His lovingkindness is everlasting.
  • To Him who alone does great wonders, For His lovingkindness is everlasting;
  • To Him who made the heavens with skill, For His lovingkindness is everlasting;  Psalm 136:1-5 NASB

 

One Nation Under What Kind of God?

 

Dennis D. Frey, M.Div., Th.D., President

 

First, let me say that I thank the God of the Bible that I am an American; a U.S. Navy veteran (1964-69); and a conservative Christian clergyman (licensed in 1973, and ordained in 1978).  I have traveled and lived abroad.  I fly the American flag on national holidays.

 

Therefore, when I express a deep concern for the direction my country is taking, I speak as one who knows well her history, and prays for her future.  I speak as a patriot.

 

The United States Pledge of Allegiance contains the phrase "One nation under God."  The word "God" is capitalized making it a proper noun - the name of a person, and the Person referred to is the God of Bible.

 

However, since the end of WWII the God referred to in our national motto has increasingly become the object of liberal theological revisionism.  How have we come so quickly to this time in American history when the God of the Bible is viewed increasingly through the lens of revisionist Deism? 

 

As but one of many answers to that question we can turn to an example from the modern history of another nation that once trusted in the same God in the same way, but lost its national soul aided largely by liberal theological revisionism.

 

It's a nation from which tens of millions of Americans can trace all or some of their ancestry (myself included).  And, like the America of my childhood, it was at one time a beacon of Christian light to the rest of the world.  It was the nation that gave birth to the Protestant Reformation - Germany.

 

The national motto of the German Empire (1871-1918) through the end of the Third Reich in 1945 was "Gott mit uns" (God with us).  But what God?  The God of the Bible or the Deist God of liberal theological revisionism?

 

In the aftermath of World War I, because of the political and social turmoil that took hold of Germany, conservative church leaders had to contend with Social Democrats who mostly held to strict separation of church and state.  Beginning in 1919, the Weimar Republic attempted to implement a number of plans, which included:

  • cutting government subsidies for the church,
  • confiscation of church property,
  • abolition of theology as a course of study in universities,
  • banning school prayer,
  • banning compulsory religious instruction in schools,
  • and prohibiting schools from requiring attendance at 
  • worship services.

Upon Hitler's rise to power the Nazis' attempted to further co-opt the German Protestant church by extending government reach through:

  • the removal of all pastors unsympathetic with National Socialism,
  • the implementation of the Aryan Paragraph church-wide,
  • the removal of the Old Testament from the Bible,
  • the removal of "non-German" elements from religious services,
  • the loss of privileges for nonconformist churches including being  forbidden to take collections,
  • the adoption of a more "heroic" and "positive" non-Jewish interpretation of Jesus,
  • and the publication of a dejudaized version of the New Testament titled "The Message of God," released in 1940 with about 60% fewer words than in Luther's NT.

There was opposition from the Confessing Church movement, but powerful government sanctions blunted much of its influence.  Confessing Church leaders such as Martin Niemöller and Heinrich Grüber, were sent to Nazi concentration camps. While Grüber and Niemöller survived, not all did: Dietrich Bonhoeffer was sent to Flossenbürg concentration camp, where he was hanged at age 39.  Hundreds of other pastors were persecuted, fined, prohibited from taking collections, imprisoned, tortured, and executed (as well as numerous lay leaders both men and women).

 

Yet, in spite of this it is estimated that only about 20% of German protestant pastors supported the Confessing Church movement.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confessing_Church

 

Does any of this sound unsettlingly familiar?  Is America today "One Nation Under God?"  If so, which God?  Liberal theological revisionism works its work only if the gatekeepers of Biblical Theology allow it (or participate in it).  The gatekeepers are pastors - not members of the government - pastors.

 

How might our world be different today if instead of only about 20% of German protestant pastors supporting the Confessing Church movement, the numbers had been reversed - 80% supporting, and only 20% apathetic or consenting?

 

Surely someone will cry "STOP!  Are you actually comparing the United States of America to Nazi Germany?  Are you crazy?"  No, I am not (on either count).  What I am suggesting is that when liberal theological revisionism is allowed to redefine the God of the Bible, Deism will be the first step toward agnosticism which leads ultimately to atheism. 

 

Deism, agnosticism and atheism are theologically and philosophically compatible with socialism, and socialism can only survive in the polluted environment of a Godless society. A Godless society is a monstrous society with checks and balances, freedoms, and rights dictated ultimately by an oligarchy - an oligarchy of the Godless.  It happened in Luther's Germany.  If it could happen there, and if we are following even a slightly similar path, why could it not happen here?

 

George Washington, the founding father of the United States said, "It is impossible to rightly govern a nation without God and the Bible."  The God he refers to is not the god of today's liberal theological revisionism.  The god of liberal theological revisionism will fail our nation, because he is no god at all, and will sooner rather than later be acknowledged as nothing more than a myth.  Once he is accepted as a myth, he will cease to have influence, and every man will do what is right in his own eyes (Judges 17:6, 21:25, Proverbs 12:15).

 

History has proven that the only real hope of living in a free and prosperous society is to live in a nation "whose God is the LORD" (Psalm 33:12).  All others become instruments for evil.  Look to history - look to our day - what do you see?

 

I speak now to my fellow pastors.  I urge you to be Confessing Church clergy.  What are the hallmarks of a Confessing Church?  While there are many, they all flow from three cardinal hallmarks:

 

1.  The full Deity of Jesus.
2.  Salvation only in Christ.
3.  The Bible as the supreme authority in all matters of doctrine and practice.

 

Sounds simple?  Sounds easy?  Those who live it know otherwise.  It has always been so.  This is why Jesus said “Therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven"  (Matthew 10:32-33 NASB).

 

Pastors, to be confessed before the Father in heaven we must confess the Son on earth.  We must confess Him from the pulpit; we must confess Him in the privacy of our home; we must confess Him in the privacy of our own mind; we must confess Him in the public arenas of life; we must confess Him in the company of our friends and family; we must confess Him when behind the wheel of our car stuck in a traffic jam; we must confess Him in the choices of our entertainments; we must confess Him in the financial decisions we make; and if we are citizens of the United States of America we must confess Him when we step into the privacy of the voting booth on Tuesday, November 8, 2016.

 

Our vote, and our influence will determine what God our nation is under not in the distant, but in the near future - the very near.

 

What Is Man?  Is Man A Creature? Was He Created?

 

David M. Tyler, Th.B., Ph.D.,
Dean, Biblical Counseling

 

Continued from the previous edition.

 

The theory of evolution maintains that man evolved out of chaos and by chance.   Man has no meaning and purpose because chance has no meaning and purpose.  Chance has no plan because there is no Planner.  If there is no NASA scientist to explain and interpret the meaning and purpose of the large object then it is impossible to know.  The object has no meaning and purpose. The man can hypothesize and guess, within the context of a man living a thousand years ago, however, all that the man will know for sure is that the object is; it exists.  Why, because it is there.  But what it is and what it does, he will never know.


Man will never understand himself apart from God who created him. To deny God and then attempt to gain knowledge of man, as psychology professes to do, is an attempt to do the impossible. It is impossible because God made man with meaning and purpose.  Psychology ignores man’s real meaning and purpose and presupposes a false meaning and purpose. The result is man’s behavior, disturbing moods and uncomfortable feelings are confusing and difficult to explain; hence the reason there are hundreds of conflicting theories of psychology.


For example, a can opener was created with meaning and purpose; to open cans. I decide to impose a false meaning and purpose on a can opener. I tell you I am going to use it to clean my carpet. Can you imagine how difficult and convoluted my explanations are going to be trying to explain how a can opener can clean carpet?


It is the same with psychology. The Bible teaches us that man was created in the image of God. Man is a spiritual and material being. Man is a sinner and his problems with anger, immorality and so on are heart issues. Psychology teaches man is an animal. Man is material only, and his problems are health issues. As man continues to evolve he will become physically and ethically better and better.


No matter what explanation I put forth as to how a can opener can clean carpet the explanation will never fit the experience of cleaning a carpet. I will have to give another explanation. However, it won’t fit either. And so I will have to resort to another and another and another explanation.


Getting back to the man looking at the space shuttle - the NASA scientist interprets its meaning and purpose.  He explains the landing gears, wings, booster rockets, etc.  It all makes perfect sense.  If the man rejects the scientist’s explanation and imposes his own erroneous explanation then he will never know the meaning and purpose of the space shuttle.  For example, the man observes it has wheels therefore, it rolls. It is large and very heavy therefore; it must be pulled by horses.  It is long and has a protruding nose on the front therefore, it must be a modern day battering ram used to break down fortified walls.  The platforms (wings) are where soldiers ride.  And the man’s theories about the meaning and purpose of the space shuttle, just like in psychology, go on and on.

 

To be continued in the next edition.

 

HOW TO FACE GIANTS - I Samuel 17:45-50; Galatians 3:2-3

 

Raymond L. Parker, M.R.E., Ph.D., V.P. Academic Affairs

 

We begin this article with a powerful reality. You and I do not have natural ability to be successful Christians. Our approach to the Christian life must not be, “Oh if I try harder I am sure that I can do better at living the successful Christian life. I am sure that I can learn to love others or to control my tongue or to manage my temper or to be more kind or to have more self-control.”   The list could go on.

 

Recently I saw a rerun of The Andy Griffith show that illustrates this point – you probably remember the show. Andy was the Sheriff of Mayberry; his deputy was Barney Fife. Barney often thought he could do things he actually could not do; singing was one of those things. Barney could not sing. His lack of ability threw everyone else off key.

 

Barney joined the town chorus. The first practice session, however, revealed his total lack of musical ability. He could not do it. The director decided to recruit someone else to do Barney’s part because Barney could not sing.

 

Now Barney could have said, “Oh but I will work hard. I will be dedicated. I will be at every practice. I will help set up the chairs for practice. I will give out the programs at every event. I will drive the bus to transport the choir. I will be active in all our fund raising activities. I will pass out program invitations in the neighborhood. I am sure that I can do it!”

 

If Barney said that, he was not getting the message. Barney did not have the ability to sing. Trying harder and doing more was not going to change the truth; he lacked the ability!

 

We must face the same truth in the spiritual realm. We do not have the ability to produce the successful Christian life. Trying harder and doing more will not change that fact. A key principle is this: The same way we began the Christian life is the way we live the Christian life.

 

I. A Moment of Review

 

We noted in our last article the beginning of the Christian life. The Holy Spirit convinces us of sin, righteousness, and judgment (John 16:7-11). The Holy Spirit brings us to faith in Jesus and at the moment of faith, the Holy Spirit gives us new birth (3:5-8). Thus we do not come to Christ because of our intellect, our reasoning abilities, our logical thinking, or even because of religious rituals. We come to faith in Christ due to the ministry of the Holy Spirit. He draws us to faith in Christ. We live the Christian life the same way.

 

The Apostle Paul gave this challenge to the Galatians, "Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh" (Galatians 3:3)? Paul guided them to the obvious conclusion that what you experienced at the beginning of faith is what you are to experience in the continuing of faith and that is the ministry of the Holy Spirit.

 

Three truths accepted by faith are fundamental here: (1) The Holy Spirit indwells every believer; (2) The Holy Spirit is the life of Christ in every believer; (3) the Holy Spirit is able to produce the character of Christ in every believer.[1] Let us believe these truths. Let us cling to these truths. As we allow these truths to control our thinking about the Christian life, we will be transformed (Romans 12:1-2).

 

II. A Biblical Example

 

The Old Testament provides a unique example of approaching life in this way. I call your attention to David and Goliath – you remember the story. Israel was at war with the Philistines (I Samuel 17). Both armies faced each other for battle; between the two armies stood the Philistine hero, the giant Goliath. He mocked the God of Israel and challenged some Israelite champion to step forward and fight him.

 

David arrived at the field of battle to visit his brothers who were in the Army of King Saul. David heard the taunts of Goliath and David said, "Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should taunt the armies of the living God" (I Samuel 17:26)? David knew that God could take care of Goliath, so he acted in faith.

 

There were hundreds of trained and equipped soldiers on the battle field that day, but when they saw the enemy they were filled with panic and fear. David on the other hand operated in faith. He knew he could not overcome the giant that faced him that day but he knew God could. David focused on God’s power and provision.

 

We know the end of this faith journey. Goliath went down! He went down because a young shepherd boy trusted his God and not his own ability. He faced the giant in what God could do rather than what David could do.

 

III. The Meaning of it All

 

Now let’s face it: You and I come up against giants every day – oh, not Philistine giants on a battle field, but spiritual giants that would defeat us as the children of God.

 

It could be the giant of lust … or immorality … or anger and emotional rage … or a bitter spirit … or an unforgiving spirit … or alcohol and drugs … or covetousness … or lack of commitment to the things of God … of unfaithfulness in a marriage – the list could go on and on. We face these giants every day. When we face them, let us face them with faith – faith that God will do what He has promised to do.

 

“The Holy Spirit dwells in you and is ready to work producing the character of Christ through you. His green light is your willingness to say, ‘Holy Spirit, I cannot handle this. I’m not even going to try. Respond through me. Give me your perspective on all of this. I trust you’”[2]. Then do what you know to do and trust the Holy Spirit to fill in the gaps.

 

John Gowans wrote:

 

Who is it tells me what to do

And helps me to obey?

Who is it plans the route for me

And will not let me stray?

Who is it tells me when to speak

And what I ought to say?

That’s the Spirit! Holy Spirit!

That’s the Spirit of the Lord in me.


[1] Charles Stanley. The Wonderful Spirit Filled Life (Nashville, Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1992), p. 71.

[2] Ibid., p. 79.

 

The Holy Epistle to the Galatians: Sermons on a Messianic Jewish Approach 

by D. Thomas Lancaster Marshfield, FFOZ 2011, ISBN 978-1-89212459-3. 280 pages, 2011.

 

Cheryl A. Durham, M.Min., Ph.D., Dean of Students

 

 

D. Thomas Lancaster’s Holy Epistle to the Galatians is a collection of 26 sermons on the epistle of Paul to the Galatians. They are organized in chronological order to the epistle and they attempt to put Paul’s writing in context so that the reader may see what the first audience understood. This context radically alters the traditional view of the text and would be a great resource for pastors attempting to preach on Galatians.

 

In his introduction, Lancaster states “this book should not be considered a complete commentary on Galatians or an academic analysis of Pauline scholarship.” “This is merely a collection of sermons intended for Christians, Messianic Jews, and anyone curious about a Messianic Jewish perspective on Galatians.” (p.9). 

 

The author achieves his purpose by creating a resource for the growing group of believers who not only recognize the fact of the “Jewishness of Jesus” and His Apostles, but also seek to understand the implications of such for the believing body; even the Church.

 

I would recommend this book, as the author posits, “to the curious”. It’s an excellent beginning. 

 

A Church for All People

 

David W. Anderson, Ed.D., D.B.S.; Program Developer and Director for the Master of Arts Certificate in Disabilities Ministry

 

Christian churches often assert that everyone is welcome to worship with them, but do they really mean it? In many evangelical churches there is a notable absence of people who have a disability. This absence can be attributed to many factors, including architectural barriers which limit accessibility, and theological and attitudinal barriers which overtly or covertly communicate disinterest in individuals and families affected by disability. Some churches have even “disinvited” these persons from their fellowship. Using the World Health Organization’s estimate that 15% of the world’s population have some form of disability and adding their family members, those affected by disability represent the largest unreached people group in the world! 

 

As in Matthew 9: 35–36, many who sought Jesus were physically exhausted, fatigued from the hardship of daily life, and troubled by an awareness of their sinfulness. Others may have been weakened by disease or infirmity and burdened by oppression from those in positions of power or authority. These people were marginalized, assigned a place at the outer edges of society, hidden from view — just like many individuals and families who deal with disabling conditions do today. Compassion for the oppressed such as Jesus demonstrated calls for a similar response from his followers, bringing comfort, lightening their load, seeking justice for the poor, and upholding the cause of those in need (cf. Psalm 140:12).

 

Jesus’ command to his disciples was to “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone” (Mark 16:15, NLT). As long as churches neglect this critical portion of the world’s population, the Great Commission will never by fulfilled and, rather than carrying out its mission, the church denies its God-given purpose. Jesus explained his mission as announcing good news to the poor, liberty to captives, recovery of sight to the blind, and release to the oppressed, and proclaiming the year of the Lord’s favor (Luke 4:18–19). The Great Commission constituted Jesus’ authorization of his followers to continue his mission until he returns. Churches throughout the world, by ignoring those affected by disability, add to the marginalization of people who need love, compassion, forgiveness, and acceptance just as do other people groups. 

 

Ministry flows out of our desire to love and serve God. Jesus has chosen us to be his hands, feet, and voice in the world, proclaiming through word and deed his truth and his love for all peoples. People with disabilities are everywhere, though we are often “blind” to their presence. As a church, we must be diligent in reaching out to these individuals and their families, bringing them into the fellowship of the family of God. We should go with the same urgency as the master in Jesus’s parable demanded when seeking to have his banquet hall filled (Luke 14:21–23). It is significant that in this parable, those who were to be compelled to come were the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.

 

My hope is that the church becomes a model for the world of a place where people of all races and cultures, abilities and disabilities find a place to be, to worship in community, to use their gifts to glorify God, and to serve one another in love. Jesus said “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore,  to send out workers into the harvest field” (Matthew 9:37–38, NIV). How can your church become “harvesters” among those whom religious society has neglected for so long? The substantial number of people and families affected by disability in the world should serve as a catalyst to make our witness more effective, more “real.”

 

We must see people and families affected by disability as an opportunity to be and to show Christ to the world; an opportunity to model Christian love as well as to obey Christ’s command to take the gospel to every creature. Our commitment to the whole gospel is a commitment to see God’s wholeness, health and restoration come to all the peoples of the world. In the words of Newman and Tada (1993, p. 24), “A ministry to the disability community affords the church a wonderful opportunity to display God’s magnificent, unconditional, and impartial love before the watching world.”

 

Reference: Newman, G., & Tada, J. E. (1993). All God’s children: Ministry with disabled persons. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.

 

Their Version of Shooting the Messenger

 

Bradley Mattes, M.B.S. Adjunct Faculty; President and CEO of Life Issues Institute, Inc.

 

 

[Brad Mattes has written previously] about the dwindling number of doctors who after spending years in medical school and are burdened with obscene student loans want to sully themselves as abortionists. Because they and a growing number of medical professionals don’t want anything to do with the killing of preborn children, pro-abortion activists adopted an alternate strategy.

They jettisoned “choice” in favor of “force.”

 

But that’s just one of two changes in tactics. And the second is just as ominous as the first.

 

The fact that human life begins at the moment of fertilization is a well-established and documented medical fact. It’s also an undeniable truth that abortion is the brutal and savage killing of an innocent child in the womb. This is why we’re slowly but surely winning America’s hearts and minds on abortion.

 

And the impact is being felt on the bank accounts of the remaining abortionists.

 

Pro-abortion activists are at a loss of how to stop this shift in public opinion. What do you do when you can’t effectively debate abortion on the facts? Besides lying—and they do plenty of that—they attempt to silence the opposition.

 

Censoring the pro-life message is growing in popularity and taking on multiple forms. Let me share a few documented examples with you.

 

The most prolific instances of pro-life censorship are in academia, a place where censorship in any other form would be fiercely condemned to the likes of drowning puppies. We’ve long ago lost count of how many high school students were told to turn their pro-life T-shirts inside out or go home. Or the number of public displays on university campuses like the white crosses that have been viciously vandalized, with very little response from campus authorities.  The censorship also exists inside the buildings of higher learning.

 

Lia Mills was attending a class conducted by a raving pro-abortion feminist who used inflammatory language to describe pro-lifers. When Lia diplomatically stood up for her beliefs, she was castigated by most of the class and actually banned from a class Facebook group based solely upon her opinion.

 

A columnist for The New York Times (surprise) took the Big Apple to task for dolling out intolerance when those with the most political muscle witnessed a message contrary to their own.  A pro-life group called Life Always paid for a billboard in SoHo. It depicted a young black girl with the following caption: “The most dangerous place for an African American is in the womb.” This is a factual statement.

 

The pro-abortion powers-that-be were incensed, and in the words of the author, the billboard came down “likety-split.”

After boarding an United Airlines plane Lila Rose, president of the pro-life group Live Action, wanted to browse her website but found it was blocked, even though Planned Parenthood and NARAL’s sites were readily accessible. Later United said it was just a big mistake but I don’t believe that for a New York-second. You may recall United’s top executive once held a posh Planned Parenthood fundraiser at his personal home.

 

Local city governments often extend the long arm of censorship. A case that went to the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals resulted in a ruling against Ft. Wayne, Indiana city officials who had censored pro-life advertisements. A local pro-life women help center that provides free critical resources to pregnant women in need posted ads inside city buses only to have them removed, while at the same time running similar ads by the United Way. The court sided with the center.

 

There’s no place where free speech is feared more than in front of abortion facilities. Rev. Walter Hoye, II and others often stand outside an Oakland, California abortion mill offering free assistance to pregnant women going in for abortions. Their presence was so successful; it cut into the profits of the abortion business, so city officials passed the Bubble Ordinance which prohibited sidewalk counselors within eight feet of women entering the facility. The law only applied to pro-life advocates and Rev. Hoye was arrested for violating the law. A court ruling vindicated him and other pro-lifers, protecting their right to free speech. You can watch our TV episode of Facing Life Head-On featuring Rev. Hoye’s ordeal.

 

Both Twitter and Facebook have recently been accused of censorship when it comes to the free speech of conservatives by blocking posts the social media kingpins oppose. Bryan Kemper, the Youth Outreach Director for Priests for Life, and Andy Moore created a pro-life graphic that went viral. Bryan quickly received a message from Facebook informing him that the image had been taken down and ordered him to remove it from any other posting on their site.

 

However, Facebook had a decidedly different approach with abortionist Rebecca Gomperts who posted do-it-yourself instructions for a chemical abortion. This post remained accessible to the public even though the action is illegal and that she urged women to lie to pharmacists as to why they were purchasing the drugs.

 

I’ve often quoted my pro-life colleague Father Frank Pavone who said, “America will not end abortion until it sees abortion.” Both the human tragedies of slavery and the holocaust were ended when enough people were exposed to the ugly, brutal truth of what was happening. And it will be the same with abortion.

 

So I, along with tens of thousands of my fellow pro-life advocates, will not stop educating Americans to the ugly, brutal truth of abortion until it’s eradicated from our shores.

 

We need every foot soldier we can get, so whether your ability is to join in our advocacy efforts or financially support the troops, we need you now to help bring abortion to an end.

 

For more information.

 

Texas Bluebonnets Are Tough as Texas, Exhibiting God’s Bioengineering Artistry

 

James J.S. Johnson, Th.D., J.D.
Chief Academic Officer, The Institute for Creation Research

 

 

“So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.  Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith" (Matthew 6:28-30 KJV)?

 

This verse from the Gospel of Matthew (Matthew 6:28-30), which is complemented by a similar passage in the Gospel of Luke (Luke 12:27-28), quotes the Lord Jesus Christ using an imperative verb to direct His then-immediate audience to intensively and thoroughly study and learn about wildflowers of the fields, in order to better appreciate what kind of Creator our God is. Having done so, we should better appreciate how much purposeful planning and providential working God has employed to prepare us for life – abundant life now and everlasting life to come!

 

But do we care how much care God has designed in the flowers of the fields, most of which will never receive a passing glance by any human, during its ephemeral life cycle, much less any prolonged and detailed-observation-based study? As the parallel passage recorded by Luke indicates, our study of wildflowers should include very serious analysis. If we really think through how much planning and bioengineering work God has invested in wildflowers – and He has! — we will much more easily appreciate how much planning and providence God has programmed and orchestrated into our own lives.

 

For just one example of God’s handiwork in a wildflower, consider – consider with serious attention and appreciation – what God has put into the hearty category of leguminous lupine wildflowers that we collectively call the Texas Bluebonnet (Lupinus spp.), the official flower of the Lone Star State. In the process of learning about these prairie ornaments – more glorious than any garment Solomon wore on his best day – we can recognize these simple yet important facts:

 

(1)  More is needed, for Texas Bluebonnets to survive, than sowing their seeds.
(2)  Even planted properly, Texas Bluebonnets have very specific growth needs.
(3)  Texas Bluebonnets contain potential diversity, yet only within boundaries.
(4)  Texas Bluebonnets show God’s big-picture care for ecologically healthy soil.
(5)  Texas Bluebonnets require fine-tuned design and maintenance, not just luck.

 

To start with, God invented plants (on Day 3) with their necessary seeds contained within all of the original ancestor plants. There would never be any plant reproduction if God had not designed the mechanics for successful plant progeny from the very beginning. So, with proper seeds, life can be reproduced, one generation after another.

 

Consider how utterly implausible it is to imagine that Texas Bluebonnets “accidently” invented themselves, somehow, with their various and unique genetic bioengineering blueprints, physiological traits (and beauty!), and ecological interactions (such as helpfully fertilizing Texas soil with nitrogen compounds). Blind, impersonal, evolutionary “luck” cannot explain the etiology or survival of the wildflowers we call Texas Bluebonnets. 

 

These pretty flowers (of any hue) are difficult enough for humans to establish and maintain (even when they start with the right kind of seeds, which God invented from scratch!) — so you can forget about bluebonnets “evolving” their way into real-world existence, via any imagined mixture of fortuitous “luck” and material “accidents”.  In other words, Texas Bluebonnets grow and stand in opposition to all animistic genes-in-magic “natural selection” fairy tales:  materialistic “luck” scenarios can never explain the natural glory of Texas Bluebonnets.

 

No wonder the Lord directed His followers to study, to learn about, and to thoughtfully analyze His providential programming, as it is daily displayed in His marvelous and multifarious (and artfully painted) wildflowers, such as Texas Bluebonnets.

 

Read Dr. Johnson's full article.

 

Post-script:  This article, about Texas Bluebonnet flowers, is dedicated to the author’s wonderful wife — because she is a patriotic native Texan.  (The author, admittedly, is merely a “carpet-bagger” who calls Texas his earthly home.)

 

Living Lessons From the Sky

 

Gary K. Fair, M.Min., D.P.Th.,

Vice President

 

“Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls forth each of them by name. Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing” (Isaiah 40:26 ESV).


The sky above us is a fascinating body. If we take the time to just look up and gaze upon it, we will see some very amazing changes taking place. The sky goes through many changes during a day or evening. Look up now, the sky is clear. In a few moments clouds will appear. Not just clouds, but various types of clouds. Look away, then up again, and the cloud formations have changed again or even may have disappeared. 

 

I live in the city where it is almost impossible to capture an amazing sunrise or sunset. Occasionally, as I am driving I see God’s paint brush begin to paint a beautiful sunset. I may try to change my course, attempting to get to the river or other wide open space to get a picture of that masterpiece. Alas, by the time I arrive, the glow of the sun has completely disappeared from the sky. So, the sky goes through constant changes.

 

Think about what God has placed in the heavens. The sky, the sun, the moon, the stars, the planets. While the clouds may come and go, the rest of the elements remain the same. 

 

Can you just imagine in the beginning, as God was creating the heavens, how He would uniquely create each individual part? When Isaiah says He brings out the starry host one by each star and naming each one as He creates it. Think of it. God knows each star He created by name. He knows each one intimately. 


Unlike the sky, with the ever changing clouds and disappearing sunrises and sunset, the stars which He named one by one never change. They are constantly there. Constellations are always where they should be. This should not surprise us, because as Isaiah says, “Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.”

 

Just as God knows each of the stars by name, He knows each of us by name as well. The Lord spoke to Jeremiah saying that before He formed him in the womb He knew him. “Before you were born I set you apart” (Jeremiah 1:5  ESV).

 

Each star is set aside for a purpose. Jeremiah and the other prophets were set apart for a specific purpose, as were the apostles. In the same manner, we, as followers of Jesus Christ, have been known by God before we were formed in our mothers’ wombs, named by God, and set apart of a particular purpose. And again, because of His great power and mighty strength, not one of us is missing from His memory.

 

Like Feathers in the Wind

 

James B. Solberg, M.Div., D.D.,

Adjunct Faculty; U.S.A. National Director, Bridges for Peace International

 

Continued from the previous edition.

 

The teaching from the previous edition is that you both pollute your own thoughts by focusing on the evil, and you also tarnish your image, as people come to know you as one who spreads a bad report—a gossip.

 

Also, you hurt the person you tell. You pollute their mind and their image of the other person, and you tempt them to continue the gossip train and share this same evil report with others. Remember, all three people are damaged, even if the evil report is true!  Is there any Scripture to back this up?

 

Absalom’s Rebellion

 

First let’s consider the story of Absalom in 2 Samuel, chapters 15–18.  Absalom’s rebellion begins by sharing subtle implied evil about his father King David.  “Now Absalom would rise early and stand beside the way to the gate. So it was, whenever anyone who had a lawsuit came to the king for a decision, that Absalom would call to him and say, ‘What city are you from?’ And he would say, ‘Your servant is from such and such a tribe of Israel.’ Then Absalom would say to him, ‘Look, your case is good and right; but there is no deputy of the king to hear you.’ Moreover Absalom would say, ‘Oh, that I were made judge in the land, and everyone who has any suit or cause would come to me; then I would give him justice.’ And so it was, whenever anyone came near to bow down to him, that he would put out his hand and take him and kiss him. In this manner Absalom acted toward all Israel who came to the king for judgment. So Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel" (15:2–6).

 

Essentially, Absalom was saying that David was not fairly dispensing justice, and that he would do much better job than his father. Was this true?  We aren’t told.  It is possible that David did not have a well organized system in place for hearing complaints.  It is even possible that Absalom would have done better.  But, what is clear is that Absalom was spreading an evil report about his father, making those who had no such thoughts think poorly of David and reinforcing the complaints others already had. 

 

So where did this example of lashon hara end? The people who heard the evil speech were hurt—20,000 died in a needless battle: “So the people went out into the field of battle against Israel. And the battle was in the woods of Ephraim. The people of Israel were overthrown there before the servants of David, and a great slaughter of twenty thousand took place there that day” (2 Samuel. 18:6–7).

 

The evil speaker was killed: “Then Joab said, ‘I cannot linger with you.’ And he took three spears in his hand and thrust them through Absalom’s heart, while he was still alive in the midst of the terebinth tree. And ten young men who bore Joab’s armor surrounded Absalom, and struck and killed him” (vv.14–15). 

 

And the one spoken of was also deeply hurt: “And Joab was told, ‘Behold, the king is weeping and mourning for Absalom.’ So the victory that day was turned into mourning for all the people. For the people heard it said that day, ‘The king is grieved for his son.’ And the people stole back into the city that day, as people who are ashamed steal away when they flee in battle. But the king covered his face, and the king cried out with a loud voice, ‘O my son Absalom! O Absalom,
my son, my son!’”
(19:1–4). 

 

To be continued in the next edition.

 

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