Uncertainty Ahead: What Anchors You?

Toward the end of 2012, I wrote a post about the uncertainties the lie the head in 2013. Those uncertainties included the global economy, instability in the Middle East, and high unemployment.  Little did I know what other uncertainties lie ahead for me—chief of which was a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer along with its attendant ensuing activities, each with its own degree of uncertainty!

Is life less uncertain today than it was 16 months ago? Perhaps for me, but not for the global economy, Middle East, or the unemployed. One thing is certain though: continued uncertainty (John 16:33). Consequently, earthlings look for concrete, material things to make them feel secure, while the believer is anchored by an immaterial, but rock-solid faith and confident expectation that God purposes to make all things good for those who love and trust Him (Rom. 8:28). "Faith is the confidence of a sure and steadfast hope which anchors our soul; faith is the certainty of things we cannot see" (Heb. 11:1; 6:19, edited).

A House Built on the Sand

An old hymn declares “On Christ the Solid Rock I stand; all other ground is sinking sand”—this being a reference to Jesus’ parable of those who build their houses on the sands of human effort and short-sightedness, rather than on the eternal rock, Jesus Christ.

Though I wouldn't want to diminish the pain of anyone whose waterfront property was destroyed by Sandy, it’s impossible not to see a spiritual analogy, as you hear the words “We have lost everything.”  Earthlings are embedded in a world that is passing away, personally and corporately: the flimsy foundation underlying the integrity of the U.S. economy will be severely tested by Sandy's damage.

The Bible refers to God as a Rock (strong and reliable), and to Jesus as the Cornerstone the builders rejected (1 Pet 2:7). In the beginning, our nation was built on a solid foundation of Judeo Christian principles. That foundation is gradually being rejected, and replaced by the shifting sands of peoples' opinions, resulting in a spiritual 'housing collapse.'

Is Marriage on the Rocks?

I can’t tell you how many people have asked me if I think Glenn Beck (who converted from Catholicism to Mormonism) is a Christian. Most Americans refer to themselves as Christian. But what does that mean to them?  America has produced a plethora of Christianized groups professing a Christian worldview. But if you look close enough, you'll see they don’t have a “Biblical" worldview.

Researcher George Barna reports that while 80% of Americans consider themselves Christian, only 6% have a Biblical worldview. The distance between the two grows greater every day. Those who live by the Bible are seen as disconnected from the culture, and dangerously intolerant of its changes.

A recent poll shows that the institution of marriage is on the decline. A Pew Survey shows that in 1960, 68% of all twenty-something’s were married, but in 2008, just 26% were. Moreover, the survey finds that the millennial generation is inclined to view cohabitation without marriage and other new family forms, such as same-sex marriage, as a normal and acceptable part of the culture. Yet many of these would claim they espouse a Christian worldview, obviously not realizing how much they have been shaped by the culture. That’s why we must promote a Biblical worldview. If so-called Christians aren't firmly established on this Rock, their so-called faith will end up “on the rocks.”