Friday Frenzy

     By now it’s old news–but the frenzy on Black Friday to kick off ‘Christmas’ shopping never ceases to amaze me.  And this year didn’t disappoint.

     We slipped in and out of a few stores last Friday to pick up some items we needed.  Every store was crowded.  In some places shoppers had lined up during the night or early morning to be the first in line for special pricing.

     Even grocery stores were jammed with people. It was like someone flipped a switch and, all of a sudden, everyone HAD to go shopping!

     Black Friday is the official start to the holiday shopping season.  It is so named because, for many retailers, it moves them from being ‘in the red’ to being ‘in the black.’  It makes the year.

     For shoppers, it’s a chance for big savings on Christmas presents.  With the ‘door-buster’ sales, some can purchase nicer gifts than they otherwise could have afforded.

     But you know what’s surprising? We live in a secular culture where even non-Christians go all out to celebrate what is essentially a religious holiday–Christmas.  Why is that?

     “Now hold on just a minute,” you say. “What’s wrong with everyone celebrating Christmas?”

     Nothing, I guess.  But it makes about as much sense as Americans going all out to celebrate the Queen of England’s birthday.  If we’re not her subjects, why bother?

     And if you’re not a Christ follower, if you’re not a member of God’s forever family through faith in Jesus Christ–why would you even want to celebrate Jesus’ birthday?  Seriously!

     Of course the answer is that, for many, Christmas is no longer about Jesus Christ.  It’s all about the presents.  Even in many families who call themselves ‘Christians.”

     You want proof?  Then think about this:  If you plan a party to celebrate someone’s birthday, your main concern is not whether the guests will like the party favors.  Your main concern is whether or not the guest of honor is pleased.  But how many holiday revelers are concerned whether or not Jesus Christ is happy with the celebration?  Very few, if any.

     No, our main concern is seen in our stress over whether someone will like the present we got him or her.  Or whether we can return a gift without the giver being offended.  It’s all about us.

     Jesus didn’t come so you could get an amazing deal on the latest electronic gadget.  He came to be the Savior of the world.  Just as the angel told Mary, “You are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

     He became the Savior of the world by dying for our sin on the cross and rising from the dead. Christmas, you see, really points to Good Friday and Easter. 

     Christmas is a God event.  It’s about God the Son entering our world as a man in order to change the course of human history.  Not politically or economically but spiritually.

     It’s approximately four weeks until Christmas Day.  I encourage you to get a Bible and read the Christmas story as recorded at the beginning of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke.  Read the Gospel of John for a good picture of Jesus’ life and ministry.  It won’t take long.

     Then for Christmas Sunday find a Bible believing, Bible teaching church.  Take your family and start a tradition of focusing on Jesus Christ as you celebrate his birthday.

     It’s about time Christians stood up and said, “Wait a minute!  This is OUR holy day and it’s about JESUS.  Can I tell you about Him?”  Some folks just might be interested.

     Enjoy the season and decorations. But why not skip the frenzy over gifts and focus on Christ?

     Listen to the Bible; it’s great for your soul!

Thankless to Thankful

     Tradition tells us it’s the week to be thankful.  But how many will actually thank God?

     If you listen to the average American, they can be more thankless than thankful. Complaints, gripes and grumbling seem to be the order of the day.  

     Times are tough.  Many are still unemployed.  Gasoline prices are sky-high.  It’s hard to sell a house or get a mortgage refinanced. The cost of everything is going up.  Children are ungrateful and won’t listen to their elders. And the NBA strike is delaying the start of the basketball season. 

     Plus there’s a seemingly endless war going on.  Many families will spend the holiday worrying about their loved ones who are in harm’s way.  Some Americans will wake up on Thanksgiving Day feeling like there’s more to be worried about to be thankful for.

     Life can look pretty grim at times.  But it doesn’t mean God has given up on us.

     The Pilgrims knew that.  So did Abraham Lincoln.  Do you?

     “Now hold on just a minute,” you may say.  “Why should I thank God if I’m depressed?

     If that’s true, you’re not the first American to feel less than thankful in trying times.  Consider the story of the first Thanksgiving in America.  The winter of 1620 was devastating.  The harvest was almost non-existent.  The cold was numbing.  Parents saw children die in their sleep.

     But then came the bountiful harvest of 1621.  The Pilgrims gathered to thank God for blessing them.  Things could have been better but they also could have been much worse.

     Now fast-forward 242 years after that first Thanksgiving feast.  Listen to the words of a man who faced a different, but no less devastating trial.

     Abraham Lincoln was the president of half a country involved in a bloody battle with the other half.  Yet in the middle of the Civil War, he declared there was much that the no-longer-United-States could be thankful for.

     On Oct. 3, 1863–just two weeks after more than 34,000 Americans were killed or wounded in the battle of Chickamauga–Lincoln issued a proclamation establishing a national day of Thanksgiving.

     “The year that is drawing toward its close has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies," he wrote. "To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added….”

     Lincoln went on to observe that America was at peace with foreign nations.  Farming and industry continued, as did international trade.  He said, “No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy.”

     “It has seemed to me fit and proper,” he continued, “that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and voice by the whole American People. I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States…to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens.”

     If Lincoln and the Pilgrims were able to thank God in the midst of the trials they faced, shouldn’t we be able to do the same?  Surely our difficulties are no worse than theirs.

     The Bible tells us to “Be Thankful.”  It reminds us to “Sing…with gratitude in your hearts to God.  And whatever you do…do it…giving thanks to God.”

     Listen to the Bible; it’s great for your soul!

Non-Prophet

     “I’m not a prophet or the son of a prophet–but I work for a non-profit!”  That usually brings a smile or a laugh when I share it in conversation. 

     However, not only do I serve a non-profit organization (a church), we are also ‘Non-Prophet.’  In other words, we do not believe that some kind of modern prophet is necessary to correctly understand the Bible, God’s holy Word.

     “Now hold on just a minute,” you may say.  “Then who decides what the Bible means?”

     Good question!  And the Bible can help us.  It is the best commentary on itself.  We are not free to change the meaning of the Bible to suit our opinions.  That’s why many churches require leaders to be trained to interpret the Bible correctly.

     Bible interpretation and application require great care and accountability.  Many times I have reminded people I teach, “If you wonder how I came to my conclusion or where I got it from, you have every right to ask me.  And if it’s my opinion, I will say so.”

     Suppose someone claims to be a modern prophet.  That they alone have God’s truth.  The Bible warns us to test such a person: “If what a prophet proclaims in the name of the Lord does not take place or come true, that is a message the Lord has not spoken.”

     In the Bible, the penalty for being a false prophet was death.  God is serious about his words.

     What if a ‘prophet’ claims to be called to ‘restore’ Christianity?  Then his claim requires a close examination in the light of the Bible.  It alone is the authority on Christianity.

     The New Testament declares that “In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things and through whom he made the universe.”

     The Bible tells us that Jesus’ “divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him.”  So why would another prophet be necessary?

     Paul, the Apostle, adds, “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned!”

     I encourage you to pick up a Bible and read it for yourself.  Not to prove a point or demonstrate that you’re right.  Read it like a child and ask God to speak to you through it.  The Gospel of John in the New Testament is a good place to begin.  And then keep reading.

     The Bible warns, “Don’t let anyone deceive you.”  It says that in the last days people will “perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.” It warns that many will “believe the lie” and be condemned by God. –Don’t let that be you or your family!

     If you allow a religious leader or church to determine your beliefs, here’s a question to ponder:  “Are you willing to stake the eternal future of your soul on your belief in that person or church?”  Have you done due diligence and made a careful investigation of what you’ve been taught to see whether it is true to the Bible?

    We must always be careful.  The Bible warns Christians, “Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them.  So be on your guard!”

     Why do people believe a lie instead of the truth?  Marilyn von Savant answers in her November 13, 2011 newspaper column.  She said it’s “because people get freaked out by the notion of being wrong about anything.  It makes them feel insecure.” 

     “After we leave school,” she writes, “we tend to head down one of two roads: (1) We close our minds to new or different information while becoming more and more sure of ourselves; or (2) we watch, listen and learn as we get older.  The second path, is also the path to wisdom.”

     Listen to the Bible; it’s great for your soul!

Busy Bees

     In the bee world, there’s no rest for the worker bees.  First they search for nectar and pollen and then make wax and honey.  In addition the worker bees feed the queen and larvae, build and repair the hive, keep it cool with their wings, and protect the hive against enemies.

     Their job isn’t to think–it’s only to work.  And in that regard, they’re like members of a cult.

     “Now hold on just a minute,” you may say.  “What’s wrong with keeping folks busy?”

     Nothing.  Unless it’s designed to keep them from thinking or asking questions.  Or worse.

     What could be worse?  Good question.  And it brings us to another mark of a cult.

     Cults multiply law-keeping requirements.  They may SAY they believe in salvation by grace, but then talk about ‘merited grace’ – a contradiction.   Or they talk about good works that are necessary to remain in God’s good graces or to ‘inherit’ salvation.

     ‘Grace’ means that salvation is an UNmerited gift from God. That is the clear teaching of the Bible.  It says, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast.”

     If you believe doing something earns salvation, then your salvation is based on works. What’s so bad about that? Well, God is so holy and righteous that the Bible says our good works are like “filthy rags.”  They can never earn salvation.  And being too busy to realize that is tragic.

     The reason God can offer salvation as a free gift through faith in Christ is because Jesus paid the price for us.  He lived the perfect life we should have lived and died the death on the cross that we deserve for our sins.

     All God asks is for us to come to him on the basis of what Christ has done, not on the basis of what we have done.  That’s faith.  That’s trust.  And that’s the message of the Bible.

     A cult talks about having faith, but it’s always faith PLUS obedience to their group’s laws and ordinances.  And if good behavior is necessary to earn any part of one’s eternal salvation, then they cannot say, as the Bible does, that through faith in Christ, God “forgave us all our sins.”

     That a cult requires loyal obedience for salvation is not surprising.  Most religions do.  Probably because the default mode of human religious thinking is legalism.  But Jesus came to change all that.  His goal was to help us establish a personal, one-to-one relationship with God.

     Several people that once belonged to cults related to me that busyness was part of the plan to keep members from thinking.  Some people in a cult develop doubts but they just ‘put them on a shelf’ in the back of their minds.  For the fortunate ones, the shelf eventually ‘breaks’ causing a crisis of faith and driving them to seek for the truth.

     The Bible warns us, “Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.”

     If you want a simple test to identify a cult, remember the four math operations: Add, Subtract, Divide and Multiply.  Do they insist on adding to the Bible?  Do they subtract from the Bible’s description of Jesus as the virgin born Son of God who is God in the flesh?  Do they divide loyalty to God by demanding unquestioning devotion to their ‘church’ for salvation?  And do they multiply law-keeping requirements that must be obeyed to be ‘saved’?

     If the answer is “Yes,” it’s a cult.  Stay away!

     Then look for a friendly, Bible teaching, life-giving church where you’re free to ask questions, where your faith will be encouraged and where you and your family can serve God.

     Listen to the Bible; it’s great for your soul!

True Believers

     Are you a ‘True Believer’?  A ‘True Believer’ believes that what they’re told is true, with no doubts.  Their source is usually a teacher or someone they see as an ultimate authority.

     Not only that, but to some ‘True Believers’ the facts may be secondary, if they matter at all.  Their belief, philosophy or religion makes them feel good–so it’s right, no matter what.

     Such an approach may be comforting and assuring but it is not Christian.  In fact it is another mark of a cult.  Christians have always compared what they believe with the Bible.

     “Now hold on just a minute,” you may say.  “What’s wrong with being sure of yourself?”

     Not a thing if your beliefs rest on solid evidence.  But how many people bother to check?

     I was raised in a God-fearing Christian home.  But, when I was in college, I remember my father challenging me with these words: “It’s time you lost your parents’ faith and got one of your own.”  And I knew exactly what he meant.  Up until then I was living on my parents’ faith.

     Fortunately I attended a college that encouraged people to honestly examine their beliefs.  I learned that convictions arise through our doubts, not in spite of them.  Our doubts drive us back to the evidence.  And after thoroughly examining the evidence, the result is convictions.

     A person that’s never done that believes what is convenient.  They may even become dogmatic when asked to defend their views because they have no evidence to back them up.

     In a previous column, “Cult or Christian,” I observed that two marks of a cult are that it adds to the Bible and subtracts from the person of Christ.  Cults also divide people’s loyalty between God and their group.  One must unquestioningly trust God AND the group’s teaching. 

     Usually this means that a follower is not permitted to doubt the group’s teachings or read books and watch anything contradictory to what they believe.  Just believe it because they say so.

     Christians have often been accused of that approach, but the opposite is true of genuine followers of Christ.  Jesus said, “You will know the truth and the truth will set you free.”  Jesus’ followers are not afraid of the truth. 

     Even the physician, Luke, who wrote a record of Jesus’ life in the New Testament, did due diligence.  He wrote, “Many have undertaken to compile an account of the things accomplished among us.  It seemed fitting for me as well, having investigated everything carefully from the beginning, to write it out for you.”

     In the Old Testament book of Job, God never condemned Job for questioning him.  To the prophet, Isaiah, God said, “Come now, let us reason together.”

     Even the great Apostle Paul encouraged an examined life.  He said, “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves.”

     So if you are part of a group that has added to the Bible or constantly ‘corrected’ their own ‘Testament’ in many places, ask yourself “Why?”  The Bible says, “Every word of God is flawless.  Do not add to his words or he will rebuke you and prove you a liar.” 

     Remember, no one has ever come up with something that Jesus should have said.

     Do you attend a ‘church’ that talks about Jesus but does not consider him ‘God the Son’ as well as the ‘Son of God’?  Do they elevate another ‘prophet’ up to his level?  If so, beware.

     And if your ‘church’ demands unquestioning loyalty, be careful.  That’s a mark of a cult.  Find a church where your questions are welcome and answered honestly from the Bible.

     If you haven’t done so, I encourage you to get a Bible and read the New Testament.  But read it as a child.  Without any pre-conceived notions.  Let the Bible speak for itself.

     Listen to the Bible; it’s great for your soul!