A Pastor Struggles with ISIS

Even as I type this, I painfully recall the video of those 21 men being led down the beach. I wonder where their minds were...

        "Should I try to dash away?"

                                          "Will my children understand my sacrifice?"

                       "Is my faith strong enough for this moment?"

Even now I get angry at ISIS. I picture those cowards hiding behind veils, and I want to pray the fire of God to wipe them from the face of the earth. 

And then the words of Jesus ring in my ears from my recent sermon

"Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you." 

Matthew 5:44

And so I admit my struggle: how to pray for both the destruction AND salvation of an enemy. 
And this week, I appreciated a thought from Russell Moore's recent blog on this exact issue. Moore states: 

"The main problem is that we sometimes forget that we are called to be a people of both justice and justification, and that these two are not contradictory." 

So now I replay that video in my mind's eye again and I wonder about the faces under those executioner's veils. Are they all stone? Are they all fully resolved? Are there one, two, three, who see the faith and peace in these Christian men and think, "I wish I had that"?

The situation remains unchanged, but my perspective is. I will pray for the the God of justice to execute His judgement against those who violently oppose believers and innocents. And at the same time, I will pray for witnesses to come out of ISIS who echo Paul's words of thanks to Jesus that,

"though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent... I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief." (1 Timothy 1:13)

So I will now pray for the destruction of the entity of ISIS.
So I will now pray for the salvation of the souls of ISIS.

The Great Mystery Solved?

It's ok Big Bang. The first step is admitting you have a problem, and your's is bigger than a Cubs fan with World Series tickets.

Bill Nye calls it "The Great Mystery." Namely, the Big Bang doesn't solve the problem of where the stuff came from to fuel such a bang! Well, no worries because physicists have a new explanation for the origin of our universe.

According to a new theory (see also: guess, shot in the dark), the universe existed prior and then expanded outward with the Big Bang. So the idea of an eternal God who created everything is ludicrous, but the idea of an eternal universe creating a system with a perfectly placed earth and complex life makes complete sense.

Scripture is clear that "In the beginning God created." He was created by no one and and has existed for all time. And the reason we see an intentionally and intelligently created universe is a result of an intentional and intelligent Creator.

For years Creationists have been scoffed at for calling the Big Bang into question. And now those who cling to the Big Bang in hopes they will not have to cling to God have recognized their biggest problem: apart from God, no satisfactory explanation exists for the universe we see all around us.

In simple terms, science has now made the universe their eternal and all-knowing god. 

So let us as Christians refuse to cower in the face of intellectual snobbery. Let us instead continue to declare the consistent message of Scripture that reveals a God who has created us with a purpose that can only be found in Jesus Christ. 

A Lifetime Vs. A Second

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Playing basketball for Mizzou was the highlight of my college days. I hit a couple of game-winners here and there, but it was always more about the team than any individual accomplishment. That's me, number 15

Or maybe I was number 24.

     Wait now...it has been a few years since I was in college, so let me think for a second. Oh, actually I didn't play on the team, but I did play with some of the players at the Student Rec Center a couple times. I guess it's been so long, I got a little mixed up. Honest mistake.

     Now if I told you that story, you'd be unlikely to ever believe me again. But Brian Williams of NBC news tells a fabricated story (in kindergarten we called it a lie), and we're supposed to believe the passage of 12 years can cause someone confusion about whether the helicopter they were riding in was shot down or not. My daughter was born 12 years ago and I was in the delivery room. I have never once confused myself for the doctor who actually delivered her. 

     America is broken. We have allowed truth to become absolutely meaningless for journalists, politics, and even marriage. We teach our children at a young age to tell the truth, but adulthood has turned us into a bunch of Pontius Pilates asking: 

"what is truth?" (John 18:38)

     It takes a lifetime to build your testimony and only a second to destroy it. Brian Williams will forevermore be known as a man who was willing to put a good story before the truth. Is that how you want your kids to describe you? Or your friends? You may jazz up your stories a bit, but you will kill your testimony for Jesus. 

Satan's Buffet

     "How do I know that Christianity is right, and everyone else got it wrong?" I'd imagine that every Christian has wondered this at some point in their lives, but for me it happened in seminary! In spite of all I was learning, and all that God was doing, this annoying question was rattling around in my brain during my daily 90 minute drive home from class.

     It was around Tunica, Mississippi that I finally asked God to field my question. Tunica has two parts: real Tunica (where the people live) and fake Tunica (where the casinos live). And as I passed through fake Tunica, God responded to me,

"Did you ever think that there aren't actually thousands of religions, but just two?"
(I've always imagined that God speaks in Bold Helvetica)

     Now math isn't my strong point, but I could think of at least three "isms" off the top of my head that seemed to contradict that answer (Mormonism, Hinduism, Buddhism). But the Holy Spirit elaborated on the response. He reminded me of John 8:44 that gives us a clear picture of the character of Satan:

                  "he is a liar and the father of lies."

     So what are the two choices when it comes to "religion"? Quite simply, it's either God or not God. But Satan is way too cunning to provide us with only one alternative. Instead he dishes out a religious buffet, consisting of thousands of choices. Suddenly Christianity just becomes another dish under the heat lamps. It's notable that God made this point to me on a stretch of highway filled with billboards for casino buffets.

     As I continued to drive that stretch of Hwy 61, God confirmed both my faith in Christ and my call as a minister. So today I encourage you to remember there are only two choices: God or not God. Not God is easy. Just keep living as if thousands of contradictory faiths can somehow all be true and equal.

     The choice for God is easy as well. It simply requires you to admit what is already evident:

• there is a God
• you are a sinner
• you don't deserve Heaven. 

     Confessing these things and accepting Jesus as the Lord and Savior of your life will give you an eternity worth waiting for and a life worth living. If you have any questions about God, faith, or placing your trust in Jesus Christ, email me from my profile and I would consider it an honor to discuss these questions with you.