Opus 2026-367: Uncharted Revelation: Seals and Altars

In chapter seven we have a pause in the opening of seals.  It will pick up again in chapter 8.

Verse one has four angels holding back the four winds.  Since the four winds are a poetic reference I would assume that the angels are also poetic.  Either way the point is that God is holding back the wind.  I don’t see any great theological truth here.

Verses 2-4 give more questions than answers.  After loosing the four horses to create mayhem we have another angel coming and telling them to hold off,

(Rev 7:3 KJV)  Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.

Then we have the 144,000, 12 from each tribe.

At the beginning of this series I said it would be uncharted but I am starting to see why people who have the final answer on Revelation need their charts and graphs.  I could use a big white board with arrows right now because things seem to be repeated and contradicting.  We have already seen the souls that were under the altar who were given white robes and told to go back to sleep.  Are they part of the 144,000 or part of the next group in chapter 7 which includes the whole world?  How come the seal is coming so late?  Are the ones under the altar sealed?

Am I the only one confused?

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-366: Monday Pulpit: Definitions Matter

I had to write it down on the fly so I may not have gotten it down accurately. What I thought I heard was,

“The law’s definition was that anything done outside of Christ is sin.”

That is an incredibly broad definition.  Does that mean eating breakfast is a sin unless I have had some spiritual experience that told me what cereal to eat?  I know I am stretching but the definition, coming from someone who claims to be Wesleyan, is a bit extreme.

Definitions of sin are varied.  I prefer one that defines sin as an action done deliberately, outside the known will of God.  This rules out many ignorant actions and mistakes.  If the definition I heard is accepted then it is no wonder that some people consider mankind so depraved.  Striking out in a baseball game would make you descend to a lower pit in hell.

This seems like a good time to remind people that Jesus did not die to see how many people He could send to hell.  He died to save as many as He could.  Think through your definitions.  Ask yourself what is the logical conclusion if followed out to the end.  You might be startled.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-365: Identity Crisis

Today, I thought I was going to have to identify as a family . I was at Costco looking for a bathroom.  The only entrance I saw that looked hospitable said family bathroom.  I have never thought of myself as a family but I was getting geared up.

Then I looked a little further down the side corridor and saw signs for the normal choices.  It always pays to take a second look.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-364: Cut and Paste

One indication of the facade of modern academia is plagiarism.  We have frequent revelations of the educational elites who do little but copy the work of others.  I experienced it teaching middle school.  It was easy to discover at that level because illiterate eighth graders have a very limited vocabulary and copy and paste the silliest things, including the references at the bottom of the page and hyperlinks.  With modern technology it is childishly simple to find out if something is copied.

A famous line of Margaret Thatcher was “The problem with socialism is that eventually you run out of other people’s money.”  I thought of that in regard to the plagiarism that goes on in the academic world.  You see where I am going with this, don’t you?  “Eventually your run out of other people’s ideas.”  

I find that many of the books I try to read may be honest in giving their sources but the end product is often just a chain of quotes with little original thinking.  I have heard it called “term paper style”.  You remember what those were like.  

Another face of the problem is a reliance on tradition.  I am examining that in my own life with the focus on theology.  It amazes me how people don’t listen to my ideas.  I accept they may be lacking in great wisdom but that is not why people don’t listen.  They just don’t want to hear and have a hard time grasping something outside their comfort zone.

One of the ideas that I am exploring is the proposition that the Jews of Jesus day did not teach the Torah.  They taught what would become the Talmud.  At that point it was the oral law which is a scholarly way of renaming the game of Telephone.  If you want an example of how the oral law is a joke read about the reforms of Josiah.  At that point the religious leaders had even forgot to celebrate the Passover.  How can you claim to have an unbroken oral law when you can’t remember one of the key points of Jewish history.

Keep thinking.  One way to know if you are being successful is that people won’t listen.  Of course that could also mean you are spouting nonsense.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-363: Strike Two

My heart goes out to Solomon.  First he is chosen to be king.  Sounds good but there seems to be a condition attached,

(1Ch 28:10 KJV)  Take heed now; for the LORD hath chosen thee to build an house for the sanctuary: be strong, and do it.
(1Ch 28:11 KJV)  Then David gave to Solomon his son the pattern of the porch, and of the houses thereof, and of the treasuries thereof, and of the upper chambers thereof, and of the inner parlours thereof, and of the place of the mercy seat,

David leaves Solomon with this tremendous burden.  It is not only a charge to build a temple but an expectation that he build it to David’s plans.  Solomon got the temple built.  He enriched the kingdom.  We have examples of his wisdom.  We also have a chronicle of him turning from the Lord and walking in the ways he was warned against.

I wonder if his failure in later life was because of the shackles put on him at the beginning.  The burden of living out someone else’s dream can be crippling.  How often has a son withered under the dominant dream of a father?  How many great men in history have sons that turn out to be useless?  It is hard to know but real leadership does not pick out hard tasks and assign them to others.  Leadership molds people and establishes conditions that motivate them to stretch and achieve.

We need more motivators and fewer people willing to assign work to others.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-362: The Benefits of B

As I try to figure out why my plans for life did not work out I come up with lots of speculations.  In reality that is all I have.  In trying to understand how life works, it is all any of us have.  I felt called to preach.  I struggled with it, gave in and put all my eggs in the basket.  Then came the day I had no place to preach.  Although I kept looking for chances I was forced into plan B.

Plan B turned out to be in education.  I taught middle school for the next 29 years.  I think I did a good job.  I never felt like it was a life calling.  I had chances to preach on occasion but nothing worked out to allow plan A.  B was it.  

I have many theories.  I know I never said “No” to anything God asked.  I was not living in disobedience.  I was frustrated but kept moving forward.  One of my theories is that if I had forced the issue I would have lost my children.  I think I would have put the church first and caused them to hate the things of God.  Another theory is that the struggle with plan B kept me on my spiritual toes.  I was not able to stick in my thumb and pull out a plum as the nursery rhyme goes.  

Think back over the people you know who have had “success”.  How many have lost their children?  How many have gone through divorce?  How many have abandoned the faith?  Does substance abuse figure into their lives?  One of the truths of life is that there are few people who can handle being on top.  The Bible character in my mind today is Solomon because I am reading about him in II Chronicles.  He started out so well.  Even today he is remembered for his wisdom.  Few bother to remember how he ended up.

Chronicles leaves out the bad part of his fall.  You need to go to Kings for that.  In the chapter after the visit by the queen of Sheba you find a chapter entitled “Solomon Turns from the Lord”.  That is not in the original Hebrew but it is a good summary.  A few key verses,

(1Ki 11:5 KJV)  For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.
(1Ki 11:6 KJV)  And Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and went not fully after the LORD, as did David his father.
(1Ki 11:7 KJV)  Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon.

I would suggest that Solomon started being impressed with himself and that became his downfall.  He needed a little more suffering and a little less praise.

There is a good reason for the paths that God leads us down.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-361: The Eternal Millennial

In reading John Adams diary, I came across an interesting spectacle.  He related the same experience two days in a row.

“I spent one evening this week at Billy Belcher’s.  I sat, book in hand, on one side of the fire, while Dr. Wendell, Billy Belcher, and Steven Cleverly, and another young gentleman, sat in silence around the card table all the evening.  Two evenings I spent at Samuel Quincy’s in the same manner.  Doctor Gardiner, Henry Quincy, Ned Quincy and Samuel Quincy, all playing cards the whole evening.  This is the wise and salutary amusement that young gentleman take every evening in this town.  Playing cards, drinking punch and wine, smoking tobacco and swearing, etc., etc., while a hundred of the best books lie on the shelves, desks, and chairs in the same room.  This is not misspense of time; this is a wise and profitable improvement of time – cards and backgammon are fashionable diversions.  I know not how any young fellow can study in this town.  What pleasure can a young gentleman who is capable of thinking, take in playing cards?” p. 62

While they were doing this, at least it seems that the narrative is, Adams was in a corner reading.  I’m not sure if he was reading because they didn’t invite him to play, he didn’t know how to play, they were playing a game involving gambling and money and he had none, or if he was just there because it was the only corner in town that had a good lamp.

Anyway you want to look at it, his comment about his contemporaries was not complementary. When you get down to it, there’s not that much difference between the younger generation of the 18th century and the millennials of the 21st-century.  There is very little about how these young men are earning a living.  Adams himself is always relating how he has dinner with this person, tea with another, and spent an evening in conversation at someone else’s house.  There is never any account of how he himself is generating income to pay for things like this at this point in his life.

That is the depressing news.  The good news is that he went on to become happily married, a pillar of society, a successful lawyer, Founding Father, and the second president of the United States.

May your time wasters be as valuable as his.

Adams, John.  The Works of John Adams, Volume 1.  Norwalk, Connecticut: The Easton Press, 1992.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-360: A Moment Is Not Forever

There is a danger in spiritual snapshots.  We know that is true in our own lives but it is also true in the Bible.  Take for instance Solomon.  He is remembered for his wisdom.  When God gave him the opportunity to choose any gift he wanted, that is what he asked for.  It worked well at first.  Later on, not so much but that is the topic of another day.

What I want to recognize as wisdom and humility comes early in his reign.  He had been told he was to build the temple and was embarking on that challenge.  What hit me as I read was this observation of Solomon:

(2Ch 2:6 KJV)  But who is able to build him an house, seeing the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain him? who am I then, that I should build him an house, save only to burn sacrifice before him?

He had a realistic understanding of the greatness of God and the futility of trying to build Him a house that would contain Him.  In fact, notice the real purpose he lays out for the temple.  It was a focal point for us to come to so that we could offer our sacrifices.

I know there are lots of pictures in the Bible of God’s presence in the temple.  You can’t take away from that but Solomon wisely points out that God was making allowance for our needs rather than His own.  That is typical of the God we serve.  His majesty is beyond us.  His glory would consume us.  His knowledge would trip all the circuit breakers in our brain.  Yet He knows that we need something within our comprehension to grab hold of.  In His plan the temple was that place for Israel.  Since Pentecost the Holy Spirit has been available.  Some say we become the temple.  In Revelation we have this,

(Rev 21:22 KJV)  And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.

Will the temple be rebuilt?  I am not sure why it would need to be but I am not a member of your brand of eschatology.  I can live with these simple Bible statements.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-359: Sudden Letdown

It’s a good thing that I’m not in the dating market anymore.  I never was a great success at it but that is not the issue.  I am afraid that as what I have to offer has gone down my standards have gone up.  

As I was doing some shopping at the grocery store I was doing my usual people watching.  It is amazing how many strange people there are out in public.  There are others who stand out in a pleasant way.  I saw one young lady who was attractive at first glance.  As I was heading for the cashier she showed up again.  She seemed to have everything until she walked in front of me and I saw the back of her arm where she had a tattoo.  I suddenly developed a real pity for her.  Why do attractive people decorate themselves with ugliness?

I know it is a hangup I have.  In my daughter’s church there are many godly people with more tattoos than should be legal.  They are still good parents and productive citizens.  You would think I would learn by that but it doesn’t seem to be happening.

Maybe I should get one as a form of penance.  

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-358: How Do You Explain the Red Baron?

As I was feeding my grandson we were discussing all the characters on his Charlie Brown glass.  He recognized Snoopy but could not remember the birds name.  He claims he never knew.  I think I knew but I can’t remember.  It will probably come back to me in the middle of the night.  (Such prophetic ability: Woodstock.)

I was naming the characters I recognized but mentioned that I didn’t see the Red Baron.  This, of course, brought up the question of the Red Baron and who he was.  This generated the question of, “Was he a good guy or was he a bad guy?”  How do you explain such complexity to a six year old?

The Red Baron was on the losing side.  That automatically makes him a bad guy.  When he wasn’t shooting at you he was probably quite gracious.  That makes him a good guy.  Explain that to a six year old.  In the real world even adults have trouble with such things.

We tend to want to paint with a broad brush and only use black and white.  The world is really full of tiny brush moments and is either shades of gray or a whole palate of colors.  Many choices we have to make are multiple choice, not true/false.  As much as I want things to be simplified, I accept it isn’t going to happen.

That being said, it is still necessary for us to make choices.  Sunday when talking about voting the pastor pointed out how we often have a choice between two evils and many people don’t want to vote for evil.  His advice, vote for the lesser evil.  Utopia isn’t and won’t be but we can be salt.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-357: Past the Peak

I’m noticing a serious deterioration in some of the new sources that I have been reading and feeling like I could interpret.  I’m getting more and more of what turns out to be Clickbait for what they call a Promoted Post.  A promoted post is simply an advertisement that they try to get you to watch to sell you something.  They sandwich them within the other articles.

Another scam that goes on is they will link you to a news article in a source that requires you to register if you want to read it.  Sometimes in their nefarious plotting, they actually let you read down past the first page so you think you are getting somewhere and suddenly it fades out, and you are given the opportunity to subscribe.  If I wanted to subscribe, I would have subscribed already.  The reason I come to these aggregate sites is to find news that I would want to listen to and be able to digest.

Another way this manifest itself is on the radio.  I don’t generally listen to the radio, but on our cross-country trip, my wife, when she doesn’t insist on talking, insist on looking for something on the radio.  I find myself listening to many things that I would not normally pay attention to.  What gets me is I will be listening as they move along discussing something and suddenly without any change in the tone of voice or the pace they start on a commercial.  Usually, it only takes a couple sentence for me to realize where they are going and tune them out, but it is very frustrating when people take the trust that they have built with the listener and use it to get them to listen to something they would normally not paying attention to.

Every day it gets harder to get a feel for what is going on in our world.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-356: The Purpose of Prophecy

Years ago I heard prophecy defined two ways: Foretelling and forth telling.  One had to do with declarations about the future and the other focused on repentance.  We tend to think of them as two different goals and in that we err.  Even the promises of restoration have the goal of bringing Israel to the place of obedience.

Too often the prophecy buffs focus solely on the fulfillment aspect because their theology requires the restoration of Israel to all fit together.  The purpose of prophecy was not to force feed us on the end times.  It was to motivate Israel to turn back to their God.

It is dangerous to take writings loaded with figurative language and make them literal.  It is dangerous to ignore the conditional promises, emphasize the unconditional promises and act like they are the same.  It is dangerous to substitute the future of someone else for the clear directions on how you as an individual are to live.

Read and enjoy but keep your priorities straight.  The promise of the resurrection does not hing on a red heifer or a rebuilt temple.  Paul does not say we are without hope if the temple is just a vison, but our faith is useless if Jesus was not resurrected. 

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-355: Read with Discernment

I’m almost finished with a book that was given to me.  The title is Horse Soldiers.  It deals with the early involvement of the United States in Afghanistan in trying to drive the Taliban out.  It’s a good story, told by a good writer.  I’m just not sure how accurate it is on all of its details.

It was written, I believe in 2009 so that was 15 years ago before the disaster of abandoning all that military equipment to the Taliban by the Biden administration.  I’m now to the epilogue and one gets the feeling in reading this that all of the sacrifice and suffering that went on was worth it because we had won the war against the Taliban.

I wish.

There was always a certain sense the author projected writing of nobility and a sense of calling.  I accept that with no difficulty, but there was also this sense that we actually could win this thing and that the people of Afghanistan were actually on our side.

Sandwiched in were insights into the culture of Afghanistan.  When the battle waged you would find the different tribes working together to defeat the Taliban.  Somehow in the pauses that occurred now and then that unity disappeared, and they started shooting at each other, killing each other and so forth just as they have done for centuries.  Victory was always one opportunity away from defeat.  At key moments, various warlords and leaders would switch sides because they felt like it was temporarily to their advantage.  You could never trust anybody beyond the last bullet.

We tend to forget that about many cultures in the world.  It goes double for the cultures of Islam and double that for the cultures of Afghanistan.  Your first loyalty was to your family and as long as there was nothing serious in the way, your next loyalty would be your tribe.  Loyalty to the nation was simply a matter of pragmatics.  What was good for you today might not be good for you tomorrow.

While the author often brought this out in relating what was going on he failed to connect the dots.  We as Americans have no understanding of tribalism.  The Marxist, who are trying to destroy the country are working hard to bring back a sense of tribalism to Americans, which was abandoned when we left Europe.  They are making progress.

We need to be always discerning of the motives of people and try to keep our heads above water and move towards being one nation under God and out of many, one.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-354: The First Two Questions

We are all philosophers.  I know.  I know.  You say you get bored by philosophy but that does not keep you from criticizing the behavior you see going on all around you.  I does not keep you from pondering whether it is time to move out of California, or way past time.  The fact is we are all philosophers and we all do philosophy.

Do you mean to say you have never pondered the meaning of life?  How about, “Why should I go to work instead of signing up for welfare?”  Again there are philosophical questions we ask on a moment by moment basis.  Some are more important than others.  Some impact what you buy and where.  Others determine the future of your children.

Two questions are more important than any others and form the foundation for answering the others.

First and most important, “What must I do to be saved?”  This is generated by other questions such as “What is wrong with the world?”  Modern society tries to say what is wrong is in society.  That is a philosophical position.   It is always someone else’s fault.  The victim culture thrives.  Of course when you blame society the answer always seem to be more government and more oppression.  

If people are honest they will eventually start wondering what is wrong within themselves.  They will then seek out all kinds of therapists to help them find the inner flaws.  Some with genuine disorders may find help.  Most, after many years and thousands of dollars, will see that approach as worthless.  

Eventually they will start listening to their grandparents or the radio preacher and realize that the problem is that they are sinners.  They will then decide if they really want to answer that question or just ignore it.

The second, and equally important in God’s eyes I think, is “How then shall we live?”  If you reject the Biblical solution to the first question you will still have to deal with this but you will have no foundation to answer it.  If theft if only wrong if you get caught you will keep trying to plan the perfect crime.  If you are a child of God you know what He expects.  To be honest, this path is clearly laid out and easy to follow.  You may not like the path but it is there.  How well you follow may not keep you out of eternal life but it may influence whether your children go to hell or heaven.  It may also determine whether God lowers the boom on the country you live in.

Knew the first two questions and make sure you answer them correctly.  This is pretty much a pass/fail quiz.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-353: Uncharted Revelation: An Aside

I recently was seduced by click bait of a Bible teacher who proposed to explain Revelation 20.  It was generally interesting and I plan on finishing it but it brought a question to my mind: Why?  That is a “why” in “Why bother?”  If you are a die hard dispensationalist or a Revelation junky you may be angry or puzzled by the question but something occurred to me as I tried to puzzle my way through the study being presented.  I asked myself what the down side was of never understanding Revelation.  To be honest I could not find any serious consequence.

It seemed like an addiction to cross-word puzzles or an addiction to win a lottery with a prize of 10 cents.  A lot of Revelation addicts seem to think that coming up with the right eschatological plan will insure that Israel will be guaranteed a place at the table in the end.  They have the idea that if one single point is out of order it will condemn the mistaken to hell.  It reminds me of some of the computer games I used to play.  The first few levels were interesting but they would eventually get to a point where progress could only be made by investing more of my life than I was willing to give up.  And what was the pay-off?  You got to buy their next game.

I think that it will be interesting to know what the Seven Eyed Jesus means but I am willing to wait for the resurrection to find out.  Until then there are other issues like the gifts of the Spirit or defining agape.  I would submit that understanding Romans 12:1-2 is more important than knowing if things will be pre or post.

What did John say?  

(Joh 20:31 KJV)  But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.

I am going to trust that Jesus will not overlook me at the resurrection.  I am committed to not having to worry when I stand before Him.  That being said have you ever calculated the size of the New Jerusalem?  

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-352: On the Road: Turn the Coin Over

I just returned from a road trip.  At the turn-around point I spent three full days in dialogue with my MAD (Mid-Acts Dispensationalism, his acronym not mine) friend.  I use the term “dialogue” a bit tongue in cheek but it will suffice.

It was three days of frustration and well as three days of stimulation.

The frustration comes from trying to understand someone who has a very narrow understanding of the Bible and who seems at times to be bordering on heresy if not fully commited to nonsense.  We have some basic foundational differences that are hard to get beyond.  I believe that the central point of scripture is the cross followed by the resurrection.  He is adamant that the entire Bible is about the restoration of Israel in the final age.  I believe that Paul meant all scripture in II Timothy 3:16 while he maintains that if Paul did not write it then it does not really apply to us.

The stimulation comes from being forced to reinvestigate my memory and assumptions.  So far I have not found myself in error on the foundations.  I have in the process had sudden serendipity moments when I see things I had not noticed.  This usually happened as he droned on after saying, “Will you let me finish my sentence?”  Unfortunately his sentence is a run-on that sets new records in how long you can speak without taking a breath.  I also found that when he would cast some pejorative accusation I would start by denying it and, as I found out what he meant, realized that his put down was a back handed compliment.  At first I denied being into “replacement theology”.  When I learned what he meant I embraced the concept and began to explore it.

My family wonders why I continue.  I sometimes ask myself the same question.  That is because they only see the frustration side while I have both.  We all can benefit by someone who does not agree with us.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-351: Intellectual Spectrum

The Bible gives us an outstanding spectrum of intellectual challenges and rewards.

At one end, you have the very solid foundation given to us by the attributes of God.  He is dependable and, in the sense of His attributes, unchanging.  That means that we can investigate the world around us, not to question God’s authority, but to try to understand how He put it together and how it works.  This is the basis of all scientific inquiry.

At the other hand, we have the mysterious realms of the impossible.  Let’s face it.  We cannot even begin to understand the meaning of infinity, let alone the awesome reality of an eternal God.   Recently, I had a discussion with a friend about what the Bible teaches about heaven.  We pretty much started out agreeing that it doesn’t really say much in describing what it will be like.  At the same time we agreed that it was glorious beyond our comprehension.  What little we did have was just a courtesy call by God to give us something to hang onto.  We rejoiced as we speculated.

In between you’ve got the gradual morphing of certainty chemistry.  If you build on that which provides a solid foundation you can make progress.  If you start to speculate based on your own assumptions and theories the edifice gets wobbly and crashes.  This is what we see happening in much of scientific “progress”.  

That is one of the glorious things about the word of God and following Jesus Christ.  You may not know the details of your goal or exactly where the path leads, but you can be sure of the rock beneath your feet.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-350: Uncharted Revelation: Literally Figurative

The fifth seal was hiding the martyrs who had been “slain for the word of God.”  They are anxious to get out, as you would expect, but are given white robes and told there would be more to join them before the end came.  You might ask yourself how this relates to the tribulation and also how it relates to the final resurrections.  If you interpret Revelation literally you have issues.  Figuratively the world is your oyster.

The sixth seal initiates a series of earthquakes and falling stars.  For some reason the entire population of the earth goes to hide in caves because they are afraid of the Lamb.  I don’t know about you but the last place I would hide in an earthquake is in a cave.  

When I read this,

(Rev 6:12 KJV)  And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood;
(Rev 6:13 KJV)  And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind.

My mind goes to a friend who claims that God will never break His covenant with Israel.  As part of his arguement he quotes this,

(Jer 31:35 KJV)  Thus saith the LORD, which giveth the sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by night, which divideth the sea when the waves thereof roar; The LORD of hosts is his name:
(Jer 31:36 KJV)  If those ordinances depart from before me, saith the LORD, then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before me for ever.

It would seem to me that the events in the sixth seal would go a long way to fulfilling this impossible requirement.  I wonder if this would convince him that Israel has broken the status of chosen.

This is all very dramatic but I fail to understand what it has to do with us today.  Tomorrow will be too late.  For those who insist on taking Revelation literally it has always been too late.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-349: Firsts: Debugging

Moving to Texas has been in some ways learning a new way of life.  When I was younger, I read through the western adventures of Louis L’Amour.  I enjoyed them immensely.  Certain pictures stuck in my mind.  One of them was how every morning when a cowboy would get up the first thing he would do, after putting on his hat of course, was to shake his boots so that any bugs or snakes who had taken up residence would be removed or shaken out.  Since moving to Texas, I have adopted this custom.

When we first moved here, I remember having to stomp a couple of centipedes which were five or 6 inches long.  This was in my bedroom.  They were at least long enough to stick out an inch on both sides of my foot and I have a very big foot.  They took a lot of stomping.  In addition to that you have scorpions who make their periodic appearances.  I remember one night I woke up with something crawling on me and somehow managed to slap it to the floor without getting stung and it turned out to be a scorpion.  I have several times found scorpions climbing up the shower curtain in the bathroom.  Such as the richness of living in Texas.

As a part of this, I have begun to shake out my shoes to make sure there are no bugs inside.  This week, for the first time, I actually found a bug that had gotten in.  It was not a scorpion or anything that looked dangerous, but it was a bug.

So now I join all those rugged frontiersmen who experienced the joy of finding bugs in their shoes.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-348: It Occurred to Me

Recently I was thinking about going to Sunday school and going to church and it occurred to me that I am getting the wrong terminology. The Sunday school hour is more of a prayer-Bible study time.  I don’t have a word for that.

The second hour is not church.  It is worship.  I need to get in the habit of talking about going to worship rather than church.  I might even add a modifier and call it corporate worship.  Either way it’s a good way to frame the experience and it might even be a helpful way of witnessing.  When you say “Go to church” most people have a lot of preconceived notions.  They think of a building.  If they have a liturgical background, they might think of some fancy reciting and ritual.  The term corporate worship might make them stop and think a little bit so that’s what I’m going to try for.  We’ll see how it works.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-348: Energize the Routine

Part of our worship service very week is the Apostle’s creed. The pastor regularly reminds us to only recite it if we believe it.  It covers a lot of ground.  At the same time it misses certain points.  It does not spell out the divinity of Christ.  It does not make clear the importance grace.

Note however that no other religious or philosophical group could endorse this.  The very idea of God being personal and active in creation would rule it out for the Eastern religions.  Jesus being God’s son and the personhood of the Holy Spirit would rule out Muslims.  Some groups that consider themselves churches would refuse it because it mentions the virgin birth and the resurrection.

The Nicene Creed goes into more detail but is a bit long for reciting in an hour Protestant service.  It provides a serious place to begin and gives plenty of material for discussing what we believe with others.

Recite it with joy.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-347: Boiler Plate Mansions

In the King James Bible Jesus tells his disciples He goes to prepare a mansion for them.  The actual word has to do with simply dwelling place, not glorious, gold plated mansions but most people tend to think what they want to see.

A mansion means a different things to different people.  I remember an old story about an American Indian talking to a Christian missionary, and the missionary was criticizing his idea of a happy hunting ground.  The Indian reportedly replied that his idea of eternity matched his joy in this world just like the missionary.  Whereas the missionary was consumed with gold and buildings thus, streets of gold, the Indian likeed the outdoors.

I’m wondering, if for some people the idea of a mansion or a place prepared for them might simply be a home with their own bedroom.  If you’re sharing a room with a couple of siblings, you might understand what I’m talking about.  For them their own room would be paradise.  Or someone else they might need a gym, a spa and a library.  Many different meanings to the word mansion.

I think the idea is a place that is in the same neighborhood with Jesus so we can spend time with Him.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-346: Two First Two Questions

We are all philosophers.  I know.  I know.  You say you get bored by philosophy but that does not keep you from criticizing the behavior you see going on all around you.  I does not keep you from pondering whether it is time to move out of California, or way past time.  The fact is we are all philosophers and we all do philosophy.

Do you mean to say you have never pondered the meaning of life?  How about, “Why should I go to work instead of signing up for welfare?”  Again there are philosophical questions we ask on a moment by moment basis.  Some are more important than others.  Some impact what you buy and where.  Others determine the future of your children.

Two questions are more important than any others and form the foundation for answering the others.

First and most important, “What must I do to be saved?”  This is generated by other questions such as “What is wrong with the world?”  Modern society tries to say what is wrong is in society.  It is always someone else’s fault.  The victim culture thrives.  Of course when you blame society the answer always seem to be more government and more oppression.  

If people are honest they will eventually start wondering what is wrong within themselves.  They will then seek out all kinds of therapists to help them find the inner flaws.  Some with genuine disorders may find help.  Most, after many years and thousands of dollars, will see that approach as worthless.  

Eventually they will start listening to their grandparents or the radio preacher and realize that the problem is that they are sinners.  They will then decide if they really want to answer that question or just ignore it.

The second, and equally important in God’s eyes I think, is “How then shall we live?”  If you reject the Biblical solution to the first question you will still have to deal with this but you will have no foundation to answer it.  If theft if only wrong if you get caught you will keep trying to plan the perfect crime.  If you are a child of God you know what He expects.  To be honest, this path is clearly laid out and easy to follow.  You may not like the path but it is there.  How well you follow may not keep you out of eternal life but it may influence whether your children go to hell of heaven.  It may also determine whether God lowers the boom on the country you live in.

Know the first two questions and make sure you answer them correctly.  This is pretty much a pass/fail quiz.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-345: On the Road: Off the Road

Home at last.  Two weeks on the road is enough to make you appreciate home more than ever. As an introvert, a road trip can be torture if someone else is with you.  There is no place to hide. The female questions keep coming and sometimes an answer is expected.  How did I feel about the trip?  How do you summarize the variety of feelings emerging over two weeks?

Two weeks on the road help to remind me of what a great country we have both in size and in quality.  At one point we had a three hour drive and most of the way we saw no evidence of humanity except for fences and an occasional cell tower and of course the road.  We saw little box houses next to spreading ranch style homes.  Macho hot dogs would try to run us down and the next minute someone is totally polite.  In short periods of time you can go from arid flatland to hilly forests.  In the middle of the sage you come across irrigation systems that hover over lush fields.

The fools that worried about over population need to get out more and drive from central Texas to central Wyoming.  Of course such people might not notice that most of it is empty.  Those who worry about the world starving would hopefully notice that the lack of food is political, not potential.  Water can make the desolate productive.

All that said, it is good to be home at last.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-344: Learning to Listen

I think I’m learning to listen to the preaching with a little better attitude.  I keep wanting the pastor to do it my way.  I keep wanting to him to research things my way.  I keep wanting him to actually preach out of the text that he reads.  It ain’t gonna happen.

At the same time just about everything he says is biblical.  Just about everything he says I do agree with.  It’s just that I have this idea that the preaching should actually be drawn out of the text instead of out of our background noise.

I’m going to be trying to focus on the things that he says and for my benefit use those as starting points for my own weekly worship and study.  There are times when he makes statements that just make me shake my head.  I need to get used to that and make sure that I’m shaking my head in mystery not shaking my head in negation.

I think this is called growing pains.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-343: Words Matter

I continue to contemplate the conflict between Bible statements that seem unconditional at times and other places are clearly conditional.  One of the explanations is the use of figures of speech.  Contemporaries understand them but other times and cultures may not.  What are some examples in modern America of this reality?

Nice to meet you.  Really?  How do you know?
How are you?  Do you really care?
Fine.  Actually your life is falling apart.
It is raining cats and dogs.
I am starving.
I couldn’t eat another bite.
This is the last time I am going to tell you.
Good sermon.
This is the best day ever.

I am sure I could go on.  Others will come to me.  Some of these are polite conventions that we used to be civil.  Others are hyperbole.  Some are total fantasy.  All are clearly understood by the person of average intelligence.  How many of the “forever’s” and “everlasting’s” and “all’s” that we see in the Bible were clearly understood by the people of the day as figures of speech?  One indication is a statement that is impossible or contradicted in another place.  

People tend to be selective in their interpretation.  They have a theological system and they are going to stick with it.  They ignore the built in contradictions.  For instance many people take the repeated promise of the land to Israel as a truly forever thing.  If you disagree they quickly move toward accusations of heresy.  You are denying the clear teaching of scripture.

Those same people will look at this,

(Joh 3:16 KJV)  For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

And deny that “whosover” means whosoever.  Why?  Because their theology demands that only the elect, chosen at creation by God, will be saved.  One place they demand literal and when it is clearly literal it become figurative.

I wonder if I amaze other people as much as they amaze me.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-342: Global Warming Rather Than Tsunamis

As I watch the joy and sense of celebration that has come with Independence Day this year I am encouraged and hoping that we will be able to ride the crest of this to get our country back.  Then I started thinking in metaphors and similes and realize that maybe we don’t want to catch the big wave.  When I used to be young and foolish, we would go to the beach and do body surfing.  It was a lot of fun, but we noticed that the waves tended to come in a series. There would be a big one after several small ones.  You learned the pattern.  You learned to ride the big one in and then maybe take a slight break or relax a little bit until the next big wave came.  If we are going to simply ride the crest of enthusiasm generated by the celebration, then we are going to come crashing down on the sand and have nothing left, but a mouthful of seashells.  I’m thinking that instead of hoping for a tsunami or a tidal wave, we sould embrace the concept of global warming.  In the imaginary global warming scenario, the polar ice caps melt, the glaciers melt, our refrigerators are turned off and all our ice cubes melt, and ultimately the oceans rise.  What people forget and ignore about past times when we’ve had global warming and oceans rising, it’s a better time of life than we have now.  If you go back to the last warm spell around the year 1000 and beyond you had in North America longer, growing seasons, more water, better crops, and a booming population because of global warming.  If you go to what is now the Gobi desert, you would find forests and lakes and rivers.  I’m guessing also that you would find northern Africa was had much less desert and much more sahal and land that could be farmed.  In other words, the global warming brought about a change in the atmosphere that was beneficial, not only for man, but for life in general.

So as we look at our celebrations, we need to somehow anchor ourselves in this and keep the warmth going so that we can raise the political waters and make all the boats float.  We are surrounded by people who are ignorant of their history, know not much of anything and are basically modern pagans.  They need to be reacquainted with the God of the Bible, the principles of liberty that He gives and the standards of morality that He demands.  Let there be moral global warming.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-341: Blue Collar Heaven

I tend to get off contemplating how glorious it’s going to be in eternity.  I’ve come to peace with the idea of singing Holy, Holy, Holy in a celestial choir.  The joy of mixing voices and praise in the presence of Almighty God is pretty overwhelming.

Other times I think I’m sitting down and being able to interview with the apostle Paul or the prophet Habakuk or who knows who else and having great in-depth discussions.

And then there’s the picture of the celestial library.  I guess I get to check out as many books as I want to keep them for as long as I like, and each book will have built-in search engines and so forth.  Glorious.

But what about the people who really don’t enjoy singing and who want to work with their hands rather than in books.  I think that there may be a plan that God has set up to where they will be enlisted to work on the next creation.  Or if there’s not going to be another creation, then they can work on building mansions now or expanding mansions or doing all kinds of hands-on projects which would bore me to tears but would get them giggling and jumping up and down with joy.

I must say that I have no biblical evidence for this.  At the same time most of the ideas that we have about heaven are rather incorrect.  Even the term heaven doesn’t really work well because it’s going to be an eternity spent on the new earth, not floating around in the cosmos.  So don’t criticize me.  I can have weird ideas if I want to.  And when I think of members of my family that are hands-on people, who love to build who always have a long list of projects and they look forward to them with delight, I think there’s gonna be a place for them.  I don’t say I understand them, but I understand what brings joy.

If I can see that I’m sure that God hasn’t even better insight.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-340: If It walks Like a Duck…

I am sure that you have heard that one before.  The problem is that it does not always work out that way. You see, it might be a marine in boot camp.  Some bits of wisdom are wise as long as you don’t push them too far.

It is often hard to put people in categories.  That is good in some ways and not in others.  If I know that someone is a compulsive thief I don’t want to make them the church treasurer.  You laugh.  We had a young woman who was known to abuse children and they wanted to put her in charge of the nursery.  At the same time you need to be slow with the slot filling.

What brings this to mind is Joe Rogan.  Until the last six months I knew nothing about him but then one day the algorithm brought him up doing an interview with someone that I thought was significant.  I ended up watching the entire episode.  Granted it took me several days but I got through it.  Over time I have seen him interview Donald Trump, Wes Huff, Steven Meyer and have started several more.

I think I have learned how to know if I will benefit from watching the whole experience.  The first clue is whether Joe is smoking a cigar or not and whether the air is hard to see through.  That is not final, just an indication.  If the conversation rarely has a sentence without a four letter word or “f” bomb it is likely that the time will be wasted.

I am looking for a nitch for Joe Rogan.  In some areas he seems to have common sense.  In other areas he comes across as a typical pot head.  It is significant that he seems to be able to have a conversation with almost anyone.  I decided he is neither fish nor fowl.  I will label him marsupial.  He has characteristics of many different species.

Discernment and freedom of choice means that I can listen to him when he has something to say and pat him on the head the rest of the time.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-339: Monday Pulpit: The Worship Experience

What makes worship more powerful some days?  A recent Sunday was one of those days.

It made me think of a comment about the actress Sophia Loren.  I heard it years ago and for some reason it stuck in my memory, emerging on an very irregular schedule.  Whoever it was said that each of her features taken by themselves were faulty.  The example I remember was he said her nose was too big for classical ideas of beauty.  But he said when you put them all together it produces a stunning result.

Transfer that idea to a worship service.  I am sure that someone could find fault with everything that took place last Sunday.  It would vary with the individual.  Since I am so good at finding fault I make conscious choices not to look for them.  When it all came together we had a powerful time of worship.

The unmeasurable ingredient would be composition and charisma in the case of an actress.  In worship it would be the Holy Spirit stirring memories and waking up responses.  I rejoice in the desired but not always achieved excellence.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-338: On the Road: Vocabulary Lessons

Travel broadens.  If I had been at home I would have missed this news item of national significance.  I was taking advantage of our motel’s breakfast which had the down side that I was forced to listen to the morning news.  At least it was Fox instead of CNN.

The news had to do with a man who was chased and tossed by a bison.  Most of us would have called it a buffalo but tha is not technically collect.  Somehow Bison Bill Cody would not have the same ring.  It was full of great advice like stay away from buffalo bulls during mating season.

The greatest line was the guy from the government who told us, “You have to give them respect.”  No.  Woke choice of words.  I don’t give a bison respect.  I just keep my distance and make allowance for him being an animal.  That is a long way from giving respect.  

Our language is being attacked by the deconstructionist philosophy which is based on removing meaning from words.  It was rampannt in the textbooks I had to use when I was teaching.  It is migrating into common language.  When you take “respect” and apply it to an animal you remove the idea of looking up to values and powers that are above you.  It is a first step to removing God from His throne and sin from our voaculary.  

Respect that which deserves it.  Run away from blind animal rage.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-337: The Laws of God and the Lies of Man

As I’m driving home from church I noticed signs that I often ignore when I’m coming up to a certain curvy part of the road and it tells me to slow down to 45 miles an hour.  I’ve seen these signs on other road trips.  Generally I’ve found that it’s pretty safe to add 20 mph on that without even having to worry about it.
 
There is a difference between the laws of bureaucracy and the laws of physics.  Bureaucracy wants to slow you down to keep you safe, and to get personal satisfaction of exercising control over your life.  Physics deals in unchanging reality.  It’s based on what happens when certain conditions are met.  It doesn’t have much to do with your attitude or your focus or your health or anything else along those lines.  It’s a matter of what it is.

Too often our government runs on the basis of what will make them feel good and what they can get away with.  God on the other hand has certain moral standards that don’t vary.  He acquaints us with them.  He let us know that there will be consequences if we violate them.  Don’t fall into the trap that God is like any other authority figure.  He will not be mocked and cannot be gamed.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-336: No Thank You

Sitting as a passenger in one of those newfangled electronic digital automobiles I was offered the experience of having my seat warmed.  I said no thank you.

There may be a lot of pleasant things in the world, but I don’t need to get used to them so that I actually desire them.  Think of all the “needs” we have that were once “wants”.  Do you really need a smart phone?  Do you need power windows?  Cash?  

I sill concede that certain inventions make life easier.  I think the zipper is a game changer.  The microwave is awesome for reheating coffee even if coffee snobs disagree.  Free long distance calls are wonderful.  I would not want to go back to candles and oil lamps.  I like hot water on demand.  If necessary I could get by without them but I am willing to call them needs.

Those needs also come with a price.  One of the reasons it is so expensive to live in America is that we are used to all these “needs”.  One of the marks of totalitarian tyrants is to reduce the quality of life.  There is a certain ego satisfaction in depriving others of the things that make life enjoyable.  It may be sick but then so are the elites of Europe that are taking away air conditioning.

Freedom improves life not only in the abstract but also in the daily application.  

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-335: More Salt, Please

What do you do with a piece of meat that has gone bad?  I am sure you have had the experience of finding something in the back of the fridge that is slimy, green and disgusting.  We tend to throw it out, or at least I do.  You may make it into a haute couture delicacy and convince people it will change their lives.

I was shocked to learn that before refrigeration people did not throw out a side of beef that was turning green.  I was told that they would find a sharp knife, remove all the green and cook up what was underneath.  In other words, you did not need to throw out the entire side.  What was underneath could be salvaged.  That is what God did repeatedly with Israel.  They had gone bad.  They were slimy and disgusting.  Picture a group of people who had bought into the idea of throwing their babies into a raging furnace.  Not a pretty picture.

God cut them off.  He would repeatedly find that He needed to cut again and cut deeper.  That is the bad news which we should take seriously today.  The church thinks of themselves as the body of Christ.  That body does not include the slimy decomposed gunk on the outside.  God will find it necessary to cut that off.

There is a point in preserving meat where adding salt will allow it to last longer.  America has been in that status for a long time.  True believers have provided enough salt for God to withhold His hand of judgement.  I am not sure how much longer we will be salty enough.

The good news is that not only will God bring us into eternity with Him but His promises still apply to the faithful remnant that remain.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-334: Nexus

I’m thinking that we need to start a series of meditation centers around the country.  Have you ever seen someone trip or stumble and they turn around and stare at the spot where they tripped as if they’re going to see something significant.  They have a puzzle look.  Some might be angry.  We could set up cameras and see if we could locate certain spots around the country where this event happened over and over again.

If, on investigation, we found that people were tripping because there was a raised crack in the sidewalk, we could fix it.  Or we could just leave it there and set up a candid camera to watch people trip.  If we found that there was no visible reason for this phenomenon and people kept tripping in the same spot, then it’s time to take action.

At that point we would begin to set up small monuments to honor the nymph or gremlin that was causing people to trip.  Perhaps we could make them look like wishing well.  And at these spots, people could come and throw in a few coins and think a few positive thoughts toward whatever it was at that spot that was causing people to trip.  Not only with this honor the little spooks that are playing games, but it might also keep people from falling down in public.

If the republicans are in charge, we could have local teams of volunteers to maintain these spots.  They could collect any money, dropped into the slot and channel it to the local charity.  If the Democrats are in charge, then we will probably need a federal czar, who will be in charge of a large team of federal employees to make sure that each of the points of meditation is maintained at federal standards.  Any money that was donated with mysteriously disappear.

Maybe this could be a campaign issue in 2028.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-333: Keep the Entire Promise in Mind

What does it mean to be God’s chosen people?  Not what you think.

It is the promise, for sure.  God offered blessings, physical and spiritual.

It was also the reality.  God made it all available, gave them access and opportunity.  At the same time He knew that His second gift after life, free will, would open avenues of choice that would drag most of them into perdition.

Some like to focus on God’s promises to Israel.  For the moment set aside if they were conditional or unconditional.  The pattern that developed after the first round of promises was that Israel almost unanimously chose to ignore the expectations of God and try to take advantage of the riches offered as God’s people.  They did it by ignoring Him and living lives of evil and self gratification.  

God says they will eventually return to Him.  Again I don’t care if He forces the issue of repentance or if it comes before the restoration.  Under either scenario there is also the assurance of massive destruction.  To make that clear:  Almost all of Isreal will be killed by violence and suffering.  Take you pick.  You can have the sword, disease, starvation or natural disaster.  This is portrayed as extinction level although it seems that some will always survive.  

We have no comprehension of what this means.  We apply our comic book view of a battle.  We play video games where we can gain extra lives.  When we hear about massive casualties we are usually referring to 10% or less and that includes the walking wounded.  Picture the massive invasion of D-Day in this Biblical rendering.  Out of the hundreds of thousands of troups who stormed the beaches picture a dozen being able to walk out at the other end.  That would be the nature of the preservation of Israel.  All were invited, few survived to celebrate.

Is the modern state of Israel the fulfillment of prophecy?  Except for the name and a small percentage that are serious about the things of God, there is nothing that correlates to the descriptions in the Prophets.  In both types of predictions, conditional or unconditional, there is a return to faithfulness and righteous living.  That has no indication of being in the cards after all these years.  The land?  The parameters of Solomon’s kingdom are still not reached.  

Either way, unless you are Jewish, it does not make any difference in your life or mine.  Pray for the peace of Jerusalem but trust in the blood of Jesus.  

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-332: The Long Haul

Genuine home schooling parents are committed to the longview of educating their children.  My oldest grandchild is only eight and my daughter is already squeezing me on books and authors that she thinks I would recommend for when they get to high school age.  It’s hard to remember books that have made any lasting imprint.  Many of the ones that might be worth reading are no longer on the shelves and many of them are not even in print.

What is a parent to do?  We discussed reading certain classics such as Plato and Augustine.  The general consensus at least among us laymen is that much of that is a waste of time.  When Plato was alive and Socrates was writing down what he had to say he was original and the first one to come up with a lot of this.  Nowadays, most of what they have to say is something we have been either embracing or rejecting for all of our lives and so it’s not as exciting as it might be for an ancient Greek teenager listening to Plato.

Our hope is that the children will be readers and not just button pushers.  We read to them.  My daughter’s older child is old enough now that she’s starting to read to us.  She got her first library card this week and had to sign her name on the back.  That was an exciting moment for her and an exciting moment for her parents and her grandparents.  Children need an example set and they also need expectation set.

I can remember as a child, but my father in the evening would be reading much of the time.  We did have certain television programs we watched, but we didn’t just sit down at the TV and watch whatever came in front of us.  He subscribed to several magazines.  One of our favorites was the Readers Digest back when it was actually a readers digest.  He also subscribed to their edited books, the ones that came with all the extra fluff cut out.

My father was a blue-collar worker all of his life.  He worked with his hands.  He worked outside in the sun.  He struggled with polio from his childhood.  And yet he set an example of reading for his children that has endured to this day.

Set the example.  Turn off the TV.  Turn off the computer.  Put away your iPad.  Find a good book.  I may change your children’s lives.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-331: A Place for the Law of Moses

The purpose of the law was to civilize barbarians not offer eternal life.

Human beings take a lot of training.  Think back to when your children were born.  What would our country look like if they were not trained and civilized?  In fact, we have video of the results.  Go to the many cities that have been overrun by Antifa and BLM in the past decade.  This is what happens when you have a large group of people who never were taught to fear God or deny themselves.  It isn’t utopia, it is dystopia.  

If God had drawn His chosen people out of the middle class of Omaha, Nebraska in 1950, most of the Law of Moses as we know it would not be necessary.  Those people knew how to maintain a culture and give stability to family, city and nation.  But they would not be going to heaven.  Jesus still would need to go to the cross.

Don’t confuse the purpose of the law and the place of faith.  Read the Psalms.  David would praise the law but he was clear that it was not the law that saved him but his trust in God’s faithfulness and mercy.  The law will always have a place.  Some people will need it more than others.  Salvation still remains a gift we cannot earn.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-330: Is the Confusion Deliberate?

I have read the Koran, cover to cover, in a language I can understand, translated by Muslims so I can at least say it is what they want me to believe it says.  I have yet to meet an American who has done the same.  Most Americans have no idea what the Koran actually says.  When I say that I include American Muslims.  They also have not read the Koran in a language they can understand.

This is one of the important secrets that people don’t stumble across.  Most Muslims can recite portions of the Koran but even the parts they have memorized they do not understand.  Picture being a typical Catholic before the mass had Latin replaced by the local language.  For almost 1,200 years Roman Catholics only had the Bible in Latin.  When Jerome translated it into the Latin Vulgate most Catholics had already left Latin behind.  I remember attending Cathoic mass and following along in the missal.  I could kind of handle the Latin.  I recognized a few root words.  I had no idea what I was reading.  Picture that in medieval Europe with illiterate peasants and much of the clergy also illiterate.  That is modern Isalm.

What got me off on this was a meme that was titled, “This Is What Muslims Believe”.  As I looked down the list it seemed accurate.  I had heard all of the claims many times but being who I am I wanted a little more confirmation.  What do you do?  Look up what they claim is the source.  And then comes the hard part, thinking through what you have read.

The first item in the meme was “Rape, Marry, and Divorce Pre-pubescent girls.”  The source from the Quran was 65:4.  Surah 65 is titled “Divorce”.  My problem came when I went to read verse 4 and found this,

“4.  As to such of your wives as have no hope of the recurrence of their times, if ye have doubts in regard to them, then reckon three months, and let the same be the term of those who have not yet had them. And as to those who are with child, their period shall be until they are delivered of their burden. God will make His command easy to him who feareth Him.”

Even if you don’t pick up the theme it seems that this has nothing to do with what was claimed in the meme.  What I have printed is from what used to be the standard text, translated by an Englishman.  I checked my printed copy what was printed and endorsed by Muslims.  I then checked my most current translation, again by a Muslim.  It wasn’t until I had read the last one several times that the meaning of what I was reading became clear.

Just for clarification, this is saying that when you divorce a woman you must wait three months to make sure she is not pregnant.  Where do we get the treatment of pre-pubescent girls?  It is to some degree a reflection of the culture of the translator.  The key is in the phrase above, “... let the same be the term of those who have not yet had them.”

Rodwell’s translation was done in the time period of Queen Victoria.  Referring to body parts or body functions showed a lack of culture.  “The term” or “their times” refers to a woman’s menstrual period.  That initially flew under my radar.

My second source was a translation by Mohammed Marmaduke Pickthall.  He was raised in the home of an Anglican pastor and later converted to Islam.  His translation is dated in 1930, a period that was not known for the restraint of the Victorian Age.  He uses the term menstruation in this verse but muddies the refernce to pre-pubescent girls by using the phrase, “...along with those who have it not.”  QII, p. 402.  I would imagine he knew England was still not ready for child brides.

I did not see it clearly until it was waved in my face in the third translation.  When it got to this portion it said, “for such women who have not menstruated (for some other reasons)”.  QIII, p. 646.  The other reason would be that she was not mature enough to have a menstrual period.  This kind of brings it home.  Not only is it accepted to marry a young girl and be sexually involved with them, but you can then divorce them before they reach maturity.  Most of us would consider this sick.  Evidently there are a number of Muslims who feel the same.

Any way you want to cut it, this is what the Koran is teaching.  I have not spoken to many Muslims, never on this level but the people I am listening to would say that Muslims deny that this is what Islam teaches.  When you meet someone like that keep in mind church attenders you know who claim the Bible says nothing about homosexuality.  I had that discussion on the platform of a Methodist church with the worship leader.

Read and think.  Do your homework.  The truth can be hard to swallow but it is there.

All Koran quotes unless otherwise identified are from the translation by Rev. J.M. Rodwell, M.A. provided by the Gutenberg Project.

QII, The Glorious Qur’an Translation.  Translated by Mohammed Marmaduke Pickthall.  New York:  Tahrike Tarsile Qur’an, Inc., No date.

QIII, The Holy Qur’an, Based on explanation of ‘Allamah Nooruddin, First paperback edition, 2010.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-329: Don’t You Remember?

I saw a recent announcement that a site was being reinstated.  I didn’t even know they had been banned.  Two days later I got nothing at their domain.

It is called book banning.  I will call it that in an attempt to get around the algorithms.  Not that I am important enough to be noticed.

The book banning has been going on under the radar for decades.  The servants of Satan by whatever name and rationale they chose to be called have been culling the book shelves of libraries ever since my children, now in their 40's ,were young and beginning to need things to read.  For us the timing was great.  For the rest of America it is a tragedy.

It came in the guise of Friends of the Library book sales.  Mixed in with the donated books were volumes from the shelves.  If you got there early you could find some real treasures.

Some well known series were replaced with updated versions.  We learned to check and see if what we were looking at was the original series or an edited edition.  One of the qualities of those was the removal of reference to the God of the Bible.  In the old series people went to church and prayed over meals.  Not happening in the new ones.

Think of popular series over the years that have mysteriously been cancelled.  Every once in awhile you see a video explaining where something went.  I remember watching the one about Zorro.  

Today we are self-censoring.  How many times have you read comments that have * instead of the middle letters of a word?  How many times have you heard the bleep of deleted words?  How often are videos and written work of certain people edited to say what they did not say?  We are doing half of the work for the book banners.  They can look innocent and say, “What did I do?”  As one video I watched said, “Make them censor you.”

I see this going on in places like classical literature, hymns and even in the Bible itself.  It may be time to stop worrying about turning the clock back.  It is time to take the clock in for repair so it will be right more than twice a day.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-328: A New Step

Why do I spend so much time listening to others talk and debate?  Why do I always seek out books of interest?  It is because I intend to always be a learner and you never know when or how something new will develop.  Sometimes it is totally new and other times it is a reminder of what has slipped your mind.  On occasion it is expressing something you know in a better way.  Listening to the debate between Steve Gregg and James White on Calvinism was the last type.

During the debate White trotted out one of his proof texts, quoted it and said, “So there.”  For most people that would be solid because it said what he said it said.  You would think that would decide the issue.  The problem is that Gregg was able to bring out another passage which was a little longer and those few words changed the whole meaning.

If you are a Bible student and discuss things with people of strong conviction you have run into this.  For instance take the account of Jesus and the gentile woman.

(Mat 15:24 KJV)  But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

My dispensationalist friend is always quoting this because one of his articles of faith is that the message of Jesus was just for the Jews and He only came to the Jews.  Since Jesus was born in Bethlehem, raised in Nazareth and did all of His teaching to Jews that seems to make sense to some people.

For some reason he never quotes the parallel verse in Mark,

(Mar 7:27 KJV)  But Jesus said unto her, Let the children first be filled: for it is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it unto the dogs.

Notice that the concept of “first” is inserted.  That means that yes, Jesus came to a Jewish culture but that His message will go beyond that.  Is it significant?  It is if you believe John 3:16 means that Jesus came to the whole world but if you are convinced that He only came to the Jews you don’t want anyone to read the second part.

Steve Gregg used a different example but his point was that when you have two verses that are expressing generally the same basic thought, one of the principles of hermeneutics, or interpretation, is that the extra is a deeper explanation of the shorter passage.  You can’t just ignore one and only teach the other.

You will find many places where the different gospels or prophets express things differently.  Your job as a believer with your brain connected is to put them together in a meaningful and consistent way.  It is not to ignore the one that doesn’t fit your system.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-327: Lasts: On the Road Again

I thought I was finished with long road trips.  It seems I am wrong.  We are on our way to Reno via Wyoming.  I am not sure how I let myself get talked into this. 

I am always impressed with how big America is and how varied the landscape can be.  At the end of our first day we ain’t seen nothing yet.

I am going to try to keep in touch.  I can schedule posts but might fall behind on my response to comments.

I would say, “Never again” but I have said that before and here I am.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-326: Lasts: Office Supplies

Yesterday I bought a case of copy paper.  Our supply seems to have mysteriously been used up.  Since we have been in Texas 9 years and bought the last box well before coming, I guess it isn’t going too fast.  My son pointed out this may be enough to last me the rest of my life.  I am inclined to agree so that makes this the last time I will buy copy paper.

In a world perspective it doesn’t rank too high.  I could be totally wrong but the things I may do for a last time keep popping up.  Some I don’t notice.  As I was thinking about this I realized that I may have changed my last diaper.  You never know when a crisis may develop but my youngest grandchild is well on the way to self control.  The milestone passed unnoticed.  I am hoping I have had my last trip to California.  I hope I never have to go to work again.

Time passes.  There are fewer firsts daily and a steady stream of lasts, noticed and ignored.

The the joy continues.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-325: The Mysterious Second

Does the first resurrection in Revelation have any match with the rapture in Matthew 24:30-31 and I Thessalonians 4:13ff?  That was my starting question but I soon ran into something I wasn’t expecting.  The term “second resurrection,” which I have always heard about and accepted, is not in the Bible.  I could have sworn I have had that read to me “somewhere”, as they say.

The word “resurrection” (386), both in Greek and English, only appears twice in Revelation, both in Chapter 20.  Both cases precede the word with “first”.

(Rev 20:5-6 KJV)  But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.  Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

As I look at Matthew 24 I do not see any reference to the resurrection as such.  The passage that describes the gathering of the elect is,

(Mat 24:30-1 KJV)  And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.  And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

It would seem that this would involve a resurrection but it does not say so.  In Thessalonians, Paul is clear in declaring the dead being raised.

(1Th 4:15 KJV)  For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.
(1Th 4:16 KJV)  For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
(1Th 4:17 KJV)  Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

That seems clear, but again this is not about a second resurrection.

We know we will be raised again.  “When” is the subject of debate.  The number is vague at best.  Rejoice in what we know and save the unknown for when you get bored.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-324: Need to Know

Sometimes it is a good thing we don’t know how complicated life is.  I have been warned about reading the label on the bologna I used to eat in quantity.  I think I did a few times and I distinctly remember reading the phrase “pig snouts”.  Usually, you don’t want to know.

Watching a discussion of geopolitics set me off on this path.  I am constantly amazed at how my impressive wisdom can be derailed by simply listening to people who obviously know more than I do.  There are times when I am impressed.  Should I be?  I don’t know.  It is very possible that the talking heads with the degrees on the wall and tenured positions are making things up as they go.  Remember the way in which Margaret Mead convinced the world of the promiscuity of primitive people.  All the while they were laughing at her.  Or take the Kinsey Report.  The research was so flawed that it would not have even made a good porno movie.  In spite of that it was lapped up by the cultural gurus.  Or picture the book, The Population Bomb or Gore’s Inconvenient Truth.  People still believe them instead of their own lying eyes.

None of that takes away from my need for humility and being aware of what I don’t know.  This works in politics.  It applies in history.  It is an avenue to greater truth in theology.  There is much we can know and much we can’t.  To be honest the things we can’t know are probably not going to influence anything important.  Is there a multiverse?  Only in science fiction and college text books.  Is America a flawed nation?  Obviously but keep in mind that a slow minivan is of more use for hauling lumber than a fast Tesla.  Can anybody spell Utopia?  Can anyone point to one.

Keep learning and keep sifting what you learn.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-323: Glad You Asked

If you attend any format where the Bible is being taught and people can ask questions you know that some of the same topics keep coming up.  I came across a verse in my reading that addresses one of those.

(1Ch 16:26 KJV)  For all the gods of the people are idols: but the LORD made the heavens.

Think back to the Ten Commandments.  What is the first demand of God?

(Exo 20:3 KJV)  Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

The question that arises is, “Is this a declaration that He is the only God in existence or simply a declaration that you are to make Him the top god?”

Of course the answer to that often seems to simply be, “Yes.”

Than we come to passages like I Chronicles which seems to get into more detail.  Other gods are just idols.  That is explained in further detail when you look in Psalms.  Look at Psalm 115 and start in verse 4.  Oh, you don’t have a Bible with you?  All right.  I will print it out.

(Psa 115:4 KJV)  Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men's hands.
(Psa 115:5 KJV)  They have mouths, but they speak not: eyes have they, but they see not:
(Psa 115:6 KJV)  They have ears, but they hear not: noses have they, but they smell not:
(Psa 115:7 KJV)  They have hands, but they handle not: feet have they, but they walk not: neither speak they through their throat.
(Psa 115:8 KJV)  They that make them are like unto them; so is every one that trusteth in them.

Notice how idols are described.  This appears in several places.  The earliest I could find was,

(Deu 4:28 KJV)  And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men's hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell.

So, are the other gods really gods or just wishful thinking on the part of men?  My vote is on wishful thinking.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-322: Mini Declarations

Our minds are on the 250th anniversary of the country.  I’ve urged you to read the Declaration of Independence.  Millions of Americans will go out and shoot off fireworks.  Thousands of policeman will be out writing citations on those Americans who are celebrating their liberty without permission of the central government.  We live in interesting times.  One of the reasons why people might celebrate important events less is because those who are in charge of regulating our behavior, make it harder and harder to express enthusiasm or commitment.

Do you live in a city that has outlawed fireworks?  I’m sure it was done for your safety.  I’m sure it’s because they didn’t want you to burn your house down.  I’m sure they knew that you were one of those people who would not realize you were supposed to let go of firecracker after you lit the fuse.  Such people to exist.  I’m not sure if sifting out the jean pool isn’t worth a little freedom in danger.  All people are not known for their common sense.  I think of one relative of a student I had who evidently shot himself three times while cleaning his gun.  My guess is he’s a bad shot.  Most people would learn the first time, if they missed.  They would learn another lesson if they struck home.  I’m still asking myself:  How do you shoot yourself cleaning a gun when the first thing you work on is the barrel?

That having been said, we need to say more.  We need to be constantly on the alert to speak up.  A Declaration of Independence doesn’t mean much when all the talking is done in the hall in Philadelphia.  The document had to be delivered.  The document had to be lived out on a daily basis.  We need to take that seriously.

As we watch the forces of Marxism penetrate into all areas by culture, we see them doing everything they can to take away the liberties that were given to us by God and recognized in the first 10 amendments to the constitution.  We have a three standards given in the declaration of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.  A good number of the laws that come out of your local city councils, county seats, state capitals, and of course Congress are designed to take away those liberties.  We need to get in the habit of constantly speaking up while we can still hope that that speaking up might do some good.

It’s kind of like witnessing and doing evangelism though.  You’re not going to get a lot of visible response.  Many people will turn you off.  You might lose friends.  You will get invited to fewer parties.It still needs to be done.  I wrote recently about going into a store which had a sign saying no concealed carry and informing the manager that I would not be shopping at his store.  I don’t think I made any big splash. I  asked him to pass it on up the chain.  I doubt if he did.  But we need to make people aware that the default of the masses of Americans is not that of sock puppets.  We need to speak up while we still can.  We need to ask people when they’re shooting off fireworks, what are you celebrating.  We need to ask people if they’re gathered on the hill watching the official government agency, shootout fireworks, why aren’t we doing this ourselves?

Short comments.  Penetrating questions.  A smiling countenance.  And add to that the concept that the apostle Paul gave us a praying without ceasing.  Our hope is that we can get the country back on the right track without having to resort to violence.  Make the little declarations so that the big declaration has some significance.

Opus 2026-321: Cultural Appropriation

There are times when my guilt just sits on my shoulders.  I’m thinking here of wearing a cowboy hat.  I am appropriating the culture because I am not, nor ever have been, a cowboy.

My childhood was full of this atrocity.  I was in the French Foreign Legion.  I was a whole variety of sports stars.  I was the nemesis of Zorro when I wasn’t Zorro himself.  I was a Roman legionnaire.  Pick a culture and I am sure I insulted it somewhere along the line.  

I was a terrible person.

We used to call this creativity or imagination.  It was a sign of a well balanced, happy childhood.  Now it is a sign of evil.

I will not ask for your forgiveness.  It isn’t necessary.  You are the one who need mercy for your shriveled little world.  I will continue to enjoy Mexican food, Italian food and even Mediterranean cuisine.  I will however draw the line at pickled pigs feet.  I am not sure what culture claims them.  I tried them once at the behest of a pastor with a Mexican heritage.  Never again.  You can stick to your cultural background.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-320: Keeping God in His Box

I continue listening to the debate between Steve Greg and James White.  I think I’m in the third part at this time.  One of the statements that White made that I found on one side amusing and on the other side disappointing was his criticism of a theory that I myself would come up with.  I believe I came up with it on my own.  I am certainly not aware of reading it anywhere else.

The topic under discussion was whether man has free will or whether God decrees everything.  The illustration being given had to do with Jesus confronting the apostle Paul on the road to Damascus.  My point here was that the apostle Paul was free to say “no” to God.  He was not compelled in the sense of God taking over his brain and planting a faith chip that programed him how to respond.  His response was genuine and heartfelt.

On the other hand, if Paul was having a bad day and it said no thank you to Jesus, would God have then inserted the faith Chip and proceeded with His plan or would He have gone to Plan B?

I’m not sure how good my memory is, but I think that White even used the phrase “Plan B”.  Now to me, it seems that God in His wisdom and His infinite knowledge, and many ways to manipulate history without violating man’s free will probably had his eye on a couple of other likely candidates.  It would seem to me that God actually gave man free will when He created us in His image and that is the way He would operate.

James White seems to think that giving God this option is us trying to limit God.  He thinks it’s us telling God what He can do and what He can’t do.  I would respond that actually it’s just the other way around.  God, if He is sovereign in the sense that the Calvinist claim, should be free to do anything He wants to do.  The Calvinist, however, claim that God is locked into a box and can in no way allow for free will in man because that would make it possible for man to say no to God.

I’m sure that White has many different cherry picked proof texts that he could have pulled out and applied.  Whether this is a lack of intelligence, careful study, or lack of honesty is a question that only God can answer.  Taking a position like this means that you have to ignore almost the entire history of Israel.  It means that you have to ignore much of the teachings of Jesus.  I imagine I could even say you would have to ignore much of the teachings of Paul.

If God is at the top of the food chain, is capable of imposing His will on anyone at any time, is He free to change His mind, or is He locked into a box that the Calvinists built?

I think you can tell by the way I frame the question which side I land on.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-319: I Am One-Upped

I like to vary my response when people ask me how I am doing.  I don’t think I have said, “Fine” in a long time.  I prefer things like “marvelous”.  Last week the pastor asked a guy older than me and on oxygen and his response was, “Rejoicing!”  I had never heard that before.  I like it.  I have already used it.

Rejoice

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-318: Patriotism, American Style

I was just listening to a song that came up on my MP3 player.  The song was God Bless America.  It was done southern Gospel style.  It was very inspirational listening to it.

As I listened, I got to thinking about how we is Americans can sing this song, but we could make some very small changes possibly and allow anybody from another country to sing it about theirs.  I don’t say this to belittle the greatness of America in any way.  I don’t say that we should be praising other countries above our own.  Utopia does not exist, but the United States of America is as close as mankind has ever come.

At the same time I accept the fact that a citizen of Germany might be able to sing their national anthem, except for the fact that I think it’s title is Deutschland Uber Alles, which means Germany above all.  That sentiment I would reject.  But then again I’m not sure if that’s actually their anthem.  For that matter, this is not our national anthem, yet.  God bless America is not a statement that we are better than anybody else, although I think we are.  It is a statement calling upon Almighty God and His grace to extend that grace towards us.  I would be not particularly offended if we added a verse for each country in the world.  God bless Namibia.  God bless Uganda.  God bless China.  I have no trouble with that.  God’s grace and God’s blessing are big enough that nothing we say and hope for other countries belittles what we want Him to do for us.

So sing with joy in your heart as you call upon God’s blessing.  Rejoice with an awareness of what grace is all about.  Embrace our heritage.  Understand the foundations.  And God bless America.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-317: Casual Observations

I was thinking about the many different identical approaches to contemporary worship.  I was wondering if I had come from outer space and was attending a church that bragged about its entertainment team, or rather ego team, whoops, I guess that should be worship team, and how they go about whatever it is they’re doing.  I would find myself watching them and making certain observations or forming certain questions.

One observation is that you don’t seem to be able to sing this kind of music with your eyes open.  It also seems to help to move your head back-and-forth.  There must be something to it because everybody seems to do it.

A question, do microphones work better when you hold them upside down and above your mouth that nose level?  I’m just asking for a friend.  I’ve noticed that this is something very common although it is not universal.  It may be that if you actually kiss the microphone as you sing and it’s on the stand that it works just as well as holding it upside down.

And how about those guitarist?  Does a guitar resonate better if you hold a head below the body and lean forward over it?  Maybe dropping sweat on the strings gives you a clear tone.

And how about the drummers?  My observation in the little bit of drumming on things that I’ve done is that the harder I hit the louder it resonates.  Is this not true when you have a whole set of bang boxes?  Why is it necessary to build a glass cage around the drummer?  If the object is to see him, you don’t need a cage.  If the only object is to hear him, then you don’t need it made out of glass.  There must be some mystical element of contemporary worship, which draws people closer to God by being able to watch someone totally out of control banging on a bunch of drums.

Is the word “just” a secret worship formula?  Is it a theological term that has missed the church for ages?  It seems to be one of the more common words used in contemporary worship when the guy with the upside down microphone is going on and on sharing the great insight he has into the mind of God.

Just some observations, just some questions, just getting it off my chest.

homo unius libri