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

Opus 2026-316: What Is in a Name?

I am constantly surprised when I come across places which I think should be secure from the woke crowd and see that they are penetrated even beyond what I thought were strong walls.  What I’m looking at now is a hymnal that as a general rule I think it’s a great tool for worship and learning music.  It has a good spread of hymns and contemporary type music.  It’s in large print.  It has the chords above the line which helps us guitar players.

So as I turned the page this morning and looked at the song that was the next on my playlist.  It said, “Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory”.

Maybe you don’t see the problem.  That is the first line of the song which is common for naming them.  I’ve seen this before, and it didn’t register.  But this morning, as I was looking towards the Fourth of July weekend, I said to myself, “Isn’t the title of this ‘The Battle Hymn of the Republic?’”   I looked at the bottom of the page where it tells you the name of the tune, and the tune is called Battle Hymn.  So I went, and I got an old hymnal off the shelf and looked it up and, sure enough, the title in the older hymnal is ‘The Battle Hymn of the Republic.”  The new one is more politically correct, and made less offensive to those who are triggered by any reference to turbulence in life by calling it, “Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory”.

The political correct crowd strikes again.  I’ve noticed this in the wording of hymns where they remove offensive words or change the words to fit the doctrine of the editors.  I don’t know that I’ve seen it this blatant in a title before.

Be on the alert.  Keep your memory engaged because there are people out there trying to slowly transform you’re thinking until it matches theirs.

Get ready to celebrate.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-315: Who Decides?

The debate over the conflicting concepts of God’s sovereignty and man’s free will continue on many fronts.  People who believe in free will also believe in God’s sovereignty.  The other side claims that man is still responsible, which to me implies free will.  Some of the disagreement is over semantics.  Some is foundational.

All would agree that God makes provision for our salvation.  This involves grace.  If you are a Calvinist you may have the understanding that Arminians don’t believe in grace or the fact that we are saved by grace.  All Christians do.  I have even approached Roman Catholics and they have not problem with that.  God is the one who extends saving grace.  That is not the question.  The question is, “Why does He extend saving grace?”  The Calvinist believes that it is an arbitrary decision by God and the input of the sinner is determined by God.  Arminians believe that God, again through His grace and the work of the Holy Spirit, gives sinners the ability to chose to believe and desire to live as God wants them to.

I am responsible for the initiation of my salvation.  I am the one who must decide to believe.  I am the one who must continue to belief and live in obedience.  If God just plugs a faith chip into my brain and it takes over from there the results are the same that God could have gotten by having me be born in heaven without the mess of life.  In fact you could take four of the five Solas and put them back on the shelf.  If I don’t have to make a decision then let grace do the whole thing.

God is reliable for the implementation of my salvation.  He started it by creating the world and Adam in His image.  When Adam brought sin into the world God kept introducing steps that would lead men back to God.  For a long time the sacrifices in the temple were said to bring atonement.  I feel that was just a type as a shadow of Jesus shed blood on the cross.  God provided the perfect sacrifice.  He provides the indwelling Holy Spirit.  He has seen to it that we have the written word.  God is willing to take every step with us but we must be willing to take those steps. 

I am sure the debate will continue.  Ultimately it doesn’t matter if I am right or wrong as long as I am trusting in the sacrifice of Jesus to be adequate for purging my sins and understand that His resurrection was the promise of mine.

homo unius libri