Those Claiming To Be Wise Become Utter Fools

Last night, I watched a movie with my sons Tim and Matthew entitled, "Ben Stein — Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed." It's a documentary interviewing several brilliant, rational scientists and professors (as well as several others who were mindless and irrational) concerning Darwinism (aka evolutionary theory). It was shocking to hear firsthand accounts of American scientists and professors who have been publicly ridiculed, denied tenure, and even fired, never to be hired again by another university, because they dared question the evolutionary theory and mentioned only the possibility of intelligent design.

Meanwhile, as Ben Stein calmly interviewed the evolutionists, it was frightening to see how they would become upset, angry, rude, and even hostile towards him. It was also unbelievable to hear how the evolutionists would defend their beliefs (they certainly weren't scientific facts) using hateful, denigrating language coupled with idiotic ideas that were completely illogical. It was almost like they were insane. The Bible is right when it says that those claiming to be wise became utter fools.

"Claiming to be wise,

they instead became utter fools."

Romans 1:22 (NLT)

What's even scarier is that these powerful evolutionists and atheists who have no godly morals to govern them are the ones training the minds of young people in schools and universities today. The scientific world is nothing less than a breeding ground to raise the forthcoming anti-Christ.

They Speak Not, But Their Message Is Heard

The seven colours of the rainbow paint our world with brilliant beauty. They reveal the glory of God's handiwork in creation. That is why I love gardening so much. I love to see all the different colours God created in my own garden and yard.

This year I decided to add even more colour to my yard. I recently painted my rocking bench red and my wooden lawn chairs green. (These chairs are the ones that God surprised me with last year.) Here are some pictures I took this morning:

My yard even received a compliment from a neighbour last night. I was excited because I hope even my yard is a testimony of God's glory and goodness.

"The heavens proclaim the glory of God.

The skies display His craftsmanship.

Day after day they continue to speak;

Night after night they make Him known.

They speak without a sound or word;

Their voice is never heard.

Yet their message has gone throughout the earth,

and their words to all the world."

Psalm 19:1-4 (NLT)

My flowers, shrubs, trees, and yard do not speak, but I believe their message goes forth throughout the neighbourhood and reveal the glory of God and His craftsmanship.

The Lost And Lint-Covered Mate

My son Matthew wears Vibram FiveFingers on his feet. He likes them so much that he actually has two pairs. With Five's, you need special toe socks that are only sold at certain sports stores. However, the cheapest toe socks Matthew could find were $20 a pair. Matthew bought two pairs. If he bought any more, I would have probably hit him over the head to put some sense into it.

I know this is not going to come as a surprise, but less than a week later, Matthew lost one of his socks. He was quite upset. "Mom, that's a ten dollar sock!"

When the sock didn't turn up over the following week, I decided to go look for it. (I mean, really, can you picture a man looking for his sock, no matter what price he paid for it? )

Well, the good news is I did find his sock. It was covered in lint behind the dryer.

The laundry basket is on a shelf above the dryer, so I guess Matthew must have missed. It's a good thing Matthew is a runner, not a basketball player.

The moral of this story is: a sock is useless without its mate. I find this true of married couples, particularly in ministry. When a pastor, evangelist, or missionary is married and does not acknowledge or appreciate the importance of his/her partner, that partner is like the lint-covered sock: lost and forgotten. Eventually, this will lead to failure in the ministry.

God tells us in His Word that when a man and woman marry, the two become one.

"This explains why a man leaves his father and mother

and is joined to his wife,

and the two are united into one.

Since they are no longer two but one,
let no one split apart what God has joined together."

Mark 10:7-9 (NLT)

A married pastor should always sit with his/her wife/husband in church, and they should always work together in their ministry as a team.

The Church Of God Is Not A Building, But People

If one desires to reach for Jesus Christ the homeless in the centre of a city, which does one build: another church or a dedicated mission.

Although I have pondered this question for over a week, I haven't been able to rationalize choosing to build another church. If we desire to reach the homeless, then caring for their physical needs should be our first priority. The homeless need a home. They need food. They need protection. They need clothes. They need physical care. They don't need another church building. They need people with the heart of Christ to reach out to them and meet their foremost needs. Then the Gospel of Christ can be shared with them and His power can be used to deliver them from drug, alcohol, and other addictions. Jesus told us to care for the homeless, and the most effective way to do this is to build a dedicated mission where they can live and experience the love of God in a real, practical way.

"For I was hungry, and you fed me.

I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink.

I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home.

I was naked, and you gave me clothing.

I was sick, and you cared for me.

I was in prison, and you visited me."

Matthew 25:34b-36 (NLT)

Today in our Western society, churches are spending far too much money on beautifying, modifying, and amplifying their building. Churches talk about expanding and multiplying their buildings when there are already a multitude of unfilled churches around. The Church itself is not a building. It is a group of people who love God and want to serve Him.

I see too many pastors who want to glorify themselves by the appearance of a building. God is the only One to be glorified, and we elevate God by doing, not by making us or our church look good.

Of the money God gives us, let's serve God by using more of it to do what Jesus asks us to do: to house, to feed, to clothe, and to care for the lost, wandering, and unloved souls in our society.

Love Is A Choice

"And above all these put on love,

which binds everything together in perfect harmony."

Colossians 3:14 (ESV)

Two words in the above verse stand out: "put on." These words indicate that love is an action, not a feeling. In other words, love is a choice, and for harmony to exist between two people, a decision must be made by each of the two to put the other person first. This kind of love is what binds everything together in perfect harmony.

In today's world, if each on us learned the art of unselfishness, there would be a lot less divorces, failed relationships, split churches, and discorded families, all of which lead to heartbreaks, life-long hurts, and depression.

Truly loving one another brings the greatest amount of pleasure and happiness to all people. Love is an unselfish act that intensely satisfies both ourselves and the other people we love. Love is of God and a wonderful gift we can give and receive back.

A Look From The Past To The Future

Last night, my sons Tim and Matthew and I watched a movie called "Tim Changer" that had a profound effect on all of us. It was about a Bible professor and theologian in the 1890's who goes forward into the future to the early 21th century.

As soon as he arrives, this doctor of theology is absolutely shocked and horrified at how depraved the world has become and what the churches are like. He is overcome with grief. His heart is broken and his stomach is sick. Near the end of the story, he is asked to speak at a local church and, with tears in his eyes, he desperately pleads with the people in the congregation to genuinely commit their lives to God. However, his heart-felt message has no effect on either the pastor or the congregates. The professor's call is dismissed and his moral views are considered legalistic.

The church is large in number. Its programs are various and numerous. Yet, only a handful of people show up at the church's weekly prayer meeting, and, even worse, there is no evangelism — just a desire to increase numbers. The church people don't care about the unsaved spending eternity in hell because most of church-goers are also living for themselves and not for Christ. If Christ were in their hearts, they would feel His love and pain for those who do not know Him and they would share His earnest desire to see every one of them come into His Kingdom.

The best part of the movie is when this professor meets the owner of a dry-cleaner. The professor tells the owner about the love of God and His salvation message. At first the dry-cleaner pays little attention to what the professor is saying and finds him annoying. However, the professor refuses to give up. He continues to see the unsaved man and gives him a Bible. Finally, at the end, the professor wins him over. As a result, one more precious soul will spend eternity with Jesus.

The Bible theologian wasn't able to reach the church goers. Their eyes were blind, their ears were deaf, their minds were deceived, and their hearts were empty. But the Bible theologian was able to reach one man: a man who recognized his need for a saviour and understand the true message of being a child of Christ and living for Him.

At the end of the movie, you are left with the urgency to tell as many as you can about Jesus because His return is close — closer than any of us realize! Churches shouldn't be spending thousands to millions of dollars on new church buildings or remodeling their old ones when their own buildings are half empty. Instead, churches need to concentrate on using the money that God gives them for evangelistic outreaches to fill up all the existing churches in the area with souls who would otherwise go to hell. Time is short. Money and energy are being wasted on material things to construct new church buildings or make existing churches look better on the outside while, on the inside, they are in desperate need of repair.

We all need to have the heart of Paul and do everything we can to save the lost. It is our heart that wins the unsaved, not our church buildings, fancy sound equipment, or neat, little sermons that are preached without the passion and love of Christ.

"When I am with those who are weak,

I share their weakness,

for I want to bring the weak to Christ.

Yes, I try to find common ground with everyone,

doing everything I can to save some."

1 Corinthians 9:22 (NLT)

The Comfort In Familiarity

This is the time of year when, as you stroll through your neighbourhood, a sweet-smelling perfume fills the air. Lilac bushes of a variety of colours and petal shapes display their beauty in people's yards and along the walkways, emitting their distinct, but familiar, comforting fragrance.

This lilac bush has pale pink blossoms that are are cuped, making them appear like tiny tea cups. The blossoms are also double-layered, which contrasts the traditional single-layered purple lilacs.

There is comfort in familiar fragrances, like the cologne your beloved grandfather used to wear, or the talcum powder you used to use on your precious babies, or the fresh home-made bread you make on quiet afternoons, or the turkey you cook in the oven on Christmas day, or the coffee you or your spouse brews first thing in the morning.

But the greatest comfort anyone can experience, especially in the midst of a trial, a struggle, or unrest, comes from reading the welcome and familiar words of the Bible.

"Jesus answered, 'It is written:

"Man does not live on bread alone,

but on every word that comes from the mouth of God."'"

Matthew 4:4 (NIV)

None of us can live on just the things of this world. We live by every word that comes from the mouth of God, and the Bible is God's Word.