Secret Sins of the Secret Service

Are you getting tired of the daily news coverage of the Secret Service sex scandal? One editorial read, “The word “secret” in ‘Secret Service’ will never be the same!” Their secret sin made me think of Paul's words, “For it is disgraceful even to speak of the things which are done by them in secret” (Eph 5:12).

But there is another meaning to the phrase secret sins, one more relevant to us. David says “who will acquit me of my secret sins [or hidden faults]” (Ps. 19:12). The common interpretation of “secret faults” is those that are hidden from the one who committed them, unconscious sins, sins of ignorance.

Augustine said: “Secret sins, sins which my conscience has been unable to detect, are like private conspirators. They must be hunted out or they may do deadly mischief; it is well to be much in prayer concerning them.” His words reveal the heart of a man who wants nothing to separate him from God. Likewise, David prayed “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me” (Ps 139:23-24). It takes faith to pray that way. And that’s no secret.

What’s in a Name?

Yesterday, I heard a woman on CNN promoting women’s health care. As she continued speaking, I realized she was talking about the importance of assuring that birth control and abortion would always be made available to women. Wow! I thought. She has remarkably neutralized the issues of abortion and birth control (hot button ‘words’) simply by re-naming, or re-wording them as “women’s health care.” It is indeed a unique use of what-we-call ‘euphemism.’

A euphemism is a word or phrase which is used in order to make something that may have a bad connotation sound better. For example, our military invasion of Iraq was called a “peace effort.” Pornography is called “adult entertainment.” An unemployed person is “between jobs.” A public bathroom is a “restroom.” When a lady uses the toilet, she is “powdering her nose.” Used cars are “pre-owned.” A prison is a “correctional facility.”

This issue of “re-naming” was first brought to my attention with the California debate over gay marriage. Conservatives framed it as a moral issue. But when gay activists were successful in reframing it as one of civil rights, i.e., "Gay Rights," I knew they would eventually prevail. A euphemism may simply be polite speech, but it can also be a powerful tool to influence attitudes and values. Whoever controls the meaning of words can can control the people who use them.

YouTube is a Terrible Place to Go to Church

As Millennial Christians find easy access to Bible commentary through websites, blogs and apps, you have to wonder what will happen to good ‘old fashioned’ Bible reading, study, and reflection and meditation.

When I was in school, my generation said, "Why read the book when you can read the Cliff's Notes?" There was no such thing as Bible Cliff’s Notes. Today you can purchase “The Bible for Dummies” anywhere. I am also concerned that daily online devotionals and Bible Q&A's are displacing sound teaching for Bible 'bites.’ Of course there’s a lot of good stuff on the internet, but there’s just as much bad stuff.

If they are not discerning, Millennials will be ripe for deception, easily intimidated by intellectual ‘scholars’ who despise the inerrancy of Scriptures. “in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons" (1 Tim. 4:1). And there’s plenty of that on the World Wide Web. Recent surveys show that many Millennial Christians do not participate in local church because they go to church online. I think Albert Mohler got it right when he said “YouTube is a terrible place to go to church.” Whatever happened to Sunday School and Wednesday night Bible study?

The Whole Economy could Collapse in One Hour

The Chinese are selling weapons to North Korea, and Russia to Iran and Syria. But that seems like small potatoes compared to the problems “across the pond.” Yes, Europe’s uncertain politics, weak economy, and unsustainable debt are front-page news again this morning—aggravating the stock market, a 100 point loss yesterday. “A crisis of apocalyptic proportions” is the way Poland’s foreign minister recently described the debt crisis in Europe. The Polish diplomat may be more precise than he realizes.

The whole world seems to be moving inevitably toward the apocalyptic “hour” described in Revelation, when the world’s entire economic system crashes: “for in one hour such great wealth has been laid waste, and the fruit you long for has gone from you, and all things that were luxurious and splendid have passed away from you and men will no longer find them” (Rev. 18:14, 17).

Because of regional (the EU) and international interdependence, a global marketplace, and digital interconnectivity, for the first time in world history, a “one hour” crash is possible. When the EU collapses, it will be like an economic sink hole that will pull every industrialized nation into it—and all within the course of “one hour.”

Evolution: the Greatest Paradigm Shift in Human History

Before Darwin introduced his ideas on evolution, there were few atheists. Men would look in to the Universe and see that everything had to have a supernatural origin. How else could you explain how things came into being? And that’s what Darwin did. He explained how man came into being without God. A product of the Age of Reason, he provided an alternative to God that gave people a reason not to believe. It was a paradigm shift unlike any other in human history. Satan had won a great victory. If there was a natural explanation for everything, how could anyone still believe in a supernatural God?

About the same time, Satan was raising up a generation of “enlightened” theologians who began examining the Bible through a “natural” lens.  No longer would rational men accept its supernatural stories.  Jonah swallowd by a whale, or the parting of the Red Sea were just primitive Hebrew stories, not unlike pagan mythologies. This, then, brought into question the reliability of all the historical records of the Old and New Testament. Their conclusion: the Bible was written by mere mortals—not by God-inspired authors. Score another one for the devil.

The Spirit-breathed inspiration and inerrancy of the Bible is no longer accepted in many Christian colleges and seminaries. Those that do are in the minority—and they are viewed as intellectual midgets. Within another generation or two, the remnant of people who still believe in the inerrancy and infallibility of the Bible will be so small that evangelicalism as we know it today may no longer exist.

Do you remember when Dancing was a Sin?

With the passing of Dick Clark, people my age are reminiscing over  his popular dance show “American Bandstand.”  I was not allowed to watch it.  Dancing was sinful. But it wasn’t just Baptist fundamentalists that feared gyrating rock ‘n rollers; many conservative people resisted it. But Dick Clark made it acceptable by bringing a clean-cut, non-threatening image into American living rooms; girls on the show couldn't wear slacks or tight sweaters, and boys had to wear jackets and ties.

Dick Clark knew how to change a culture: it's called normalizing the abnormal. Traditionalists are threatened by new ideas.  Just look at the resistance in countries under Islamic Law—Iran, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Pakistan.

In our society, on the other hand, "change" is normal.  Unfortunately, all too many believers are ignorant or ambivalent about the impact of change. Things once considered immoral are being normalized.  Couples cohabitating, even having children, without marriage, “hooking up”—the new phrase for promiscuity, and same-sex relationships are the norm. Looking back, dancing doesn't seem so bad after all.  God forbid we should ever reach the point where we say that about today's cultural changes!

Does It Feel Like Things are Getting Out of Hand?

This week a Japanese bank announced it will be installing about a dozen automated teller machines that will scan customers' hands for identity.  I have to hand it to the Japanese: they’ve certainly found a handy way to get cash. And besides that, no one will have to worry about their debit card falling into the wrong hands!

If this “hand scanning” thing catches on, it could change our vocabulary. For example, if your wife needs money to go shopping, she’ll say, “can you give me a hand?” And that homeless guy who sits in front of Lucky's will have a sign that reads, “I’m looking for a hand out.” And bank tellers may sound like cops when they say, “put your hands where I can see them.”

Now before this post gets completely out of hand, let me offer a more serious observation. It seems to me this biometric scan has a somewhat apocalyptic ‘feel’ to it. And while it may not be a chip implant, it could advance Antichrist’s agenda toward a global marketplace (“mark of the beast”). But it also occurs to me that the more things in this world get out of hand, the earthlings will be employing technology to take matters into their own hands.  But we have peace, knowing that our life and times are in His hand (Ps. 31:15), the one who opens His hands and meets our needs (Ps. 145:16).

And They Call Us “Unenlightened”

Reading “Dear Abby” in the Sunday paper (don’t laugh!), I was struck by the word she used to describe a man who disapproved of a friend's homosexual marriage. She said the man was “unenlightened.”

There are two rather different meanings to the word “enlightened.” The first is “to give information or understanding to someone in order to free them from ignorance, prejudice, or superstition.” According to this definition, an “enlightened” person would embrace religious pluralism while anyone holding to 'Jesus only' exclusivity would be “unenlightened.” (Call me “unenlightened.”)

For this, we are indebted to the “Age of Enlightenment” when it was presumed that man’s power of reason was better at explaining the world than an outmoded theistic, biblical worldview.  Ever since, Christians have been relegated to the status of the "unenlightened" (still living in the “Dark Ages”).

But the second meaning of the word “enlightened” is “to give spiritual or religious revelation.”  Accordingly, Paul prays we will be enlightened by the Spirit's revelation of God. (Eph. 1:17-18). In contrast, Paul describes people who walk according to the values of this world as blind and darkened in their understanding (Eph 2:2; 2 Cor. 4:4; Eph. 4:18).  And they call us "unenlightened"?

She never worked a day in her life

The U.S. presidential campaign got a jolt yesterday when Democratic strategist Hilary Rosen set off a national debate by saying that Ann Romney, the mother of five, had “never worked a day in her life.” The next day Ann Romney tweeted back: “I made a choice to stay home and raise five boys. Believe me, it was hard work.” Is it just another day in the life of American politics, or is it something more?  I think the issue of a how a woman defines herself has touched a nerve.

You see, I don’t think Hillary Rosen meant that “mothering” is not work. But Ms. Rosen’s definition of “work” is tied to her sense of a woman’s worth—evidently by paychecks, promotions, and professionalism. Another famous Hillary (Clinton) touched this nerve with her emotionally-charged statement: “I suppose I could have stayed home and baked cookies, but what I decided to do was fulfill my profession.”  You can see how these Hillary’s define a woman’s worth—professional fulfillment.

This identity crisis is not new. In 1975, in her book “A Woman’s Worth,” Elaine Stedman wrote: “The American woman remains in crisis. The propaganda designed to incite restlessness, if not revolution, is continually being repackaged to appeal to her insecurities, sense of worthlessness, and covert or overt desire for power...” How prophetic of Elaine. This may seem like just another skirmish in the culture war, but I believe it is more. This issue is a major component of the war against Christian values in America.

Is Your Head in the Clouds?

Do you feel like you’re living “under a cloud” or that there is a “cloud hanging over you?” The idea of these ‘cloud’ idioms is darkness, confusion, fear and dread. I know there are people reading this who feel like they are living under a dark cloud covering that will never let up.

Do you remember the account of Jesus’ transfiguration? Peter’s reaction at seeing Jesus with Moses and Elija was to “do” something: "Let us make three tabernacles." But he had hardly got the words out of his mouth when he, James and John were overshadowed by a cloud, from which they heard the voice of God saying, "This is my Son... Listen to him!" (Matt. 17:5).  God told Peter it was not a time for doing; it was a time for listening.

While that was a uniquely “divine” cloud, I see an analogy. When you are in a cloud, God is with you, and will speak a word of encouragement. Though I can't tell you your cloud will be lifted, I can say the darkness will fade when you hear His voice. And you will have joy.  Think about this: Jesus ascended to heaven in a cloud, will return in a cloud, and will take us to heaven in a cloud (Acts 1:9; Luke 21:27: Rev. 11:12). Now that’s a cloud you want to get your head in.

I thought I knew

Last week I just happened to stumble across the story of Naaman, the account of a Syrian army captain who had acquired leprosy.  Having travelled far to see Elisha, he thought he would receive royal treatment; he thought he would be healed dramatically. Instead, Elisha sent a servant out to meet him who told him to plunge in the muddy Jordan 7 times. Naaman refused. It was beneath him. Fortunately for him, his servants convinced him to do what Elisha had required (2 Kings 5:13).  He was healed.

Naaman’s story has taught me something about having preconceived ideas. Before his cleansing, Naaman “thought he knew” how God works.   And in that, he almost lost God's blessing. We can get into a lot of trouble thinking we know.

After retiring from my government career nearly 4 years ago, I thought my life would follow a certain familiar pattern. But God had other plans. I wish I could tell you I was quick to embrace God’s way, that I didn't see it as an interruption of 'my' plans. But God was graciously pushing me to new heights by introducing things beyond my control; I was kept from “resting on my laurels” by carefully calculated “divine disturbances,” that interfered (thank God) with 'my' plans. I thought I knew. Ha!

Small Things

“Do not despise small beginnings” (Zechariah 4:10). You may be familiar with this verse without knowing the back story. At the end of Israel’s 70-year captivity, Zerrubabel returned with a small group of Jews to re-build the Temple.  It was harder than he expected; he got discouraged. And, people disparaged a structure that would never be as grand as Solomon's. For 12 years, the work stopped. Then the word of the Lord came to him through Zechariah to start again, saying, do not despise small beginnings, or small things.

Our generation loves BIG things—monster houses, mammoth malls, and mega churches. No one talks of doing “small things” for God.  We like big, attention-grabbing projects and campaigns. But if we despise (regard as negligible or worthless) small things, we may miss the very thing God is doing around us.

The life and ministry of Jesus demonstrates the significance of small. Born in a small shed, surrounded by chickens, sheep, cows, donkeys—despised things—He would confound the wise. Hailing from the tiny town of Nazareth, with a small group of provincial men from a politically insignificant nation, Jesus changed the world, saying, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you can move mountains (Matt. 17:20). Do not despise small things.  That seems to be where God does some of His best work!

If you speak the truth, you will be hated

When Kirk Cameron (Growing Pains, Fireproof), a conservative evangelical Christian, was a guest on Piers Morgan’s show last month, he was asked about his views on homosexuality. Not surprisingly, Cameron said it is unnatural and detrimental to the foundations of civilization, alluding to gay marriage. His comments were immediately condemned by GLAAD as hate speech.

Hate speech is defined as any communication disparaging a person/group on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, gender, disability, sexual orientation, nationality, or religion. In an increasingly secular (amoral) world, our biblical morals are becoming more offensive.  Thankfully, however, saying offensive things is protected by the First Amendment, unless the words are considered defamation, in which case, hate speech becomes a hate crime (a felony). And therein lies the danger: in a culture that is hostile to the Bible, expressing our biblical beliefs may some day become a hate crime.

Albert Mohler says, “Without a doubt, many Christians manage to be offensive for reasons other than the offense of the gospel. This is to our shame. Nevertheless, there is no way for a Christian to avoid offending those offended by Jesus Christ and His cross (1 Cor. 1:23). The truth claims of Christianity, by their very particularity and exclusivity, are inherently offensive.” (Culture Shift) To Mohler's remarks, I would add this: whatever we may say, we must always be sure we are “speaking the truth in love.” (Eph. 4:15).

Easter Eggs, Bunnies and Beautiful Crosses

It's that time of year for the Seeker-Friendly churches to have their annual Easter Egg hunts.  What the Easter Bunny and Easter eggs have in common is a mystery to me.  I believe these icons of Easter must be terribly offensive to our Lord: they make a mockery of this holyday.  Do most Christians think these things are harmless?

In the same vein, jewelry stores offer special seasonal sales on diamond and ruby studded silver and gold crosses—shiny symbols of Christian faith. But are they?  The cross of Jesus' day was an instrument of torture and death.  When Jesus told His followers they needed to pick up their crosses, they understood His meaning.  

How many nominal Christians wear a cross to identify their faith without fully understanding its significance?  It seems to me a glamorous jeweled gold cross can be as much an offense to Christ as the Easter Bunny.  In speaking of those who do not take the death and resurrection (and the blood) of Jesus seriously, the writer of Hebrews says they have insulted the Spirit of grace for treating the blood of the covenant as a common thing. (Heb. 10:29)  Is the Easter Bunny harmless?  I don't think so.