Opus 2026-396: Glorious Controversy

While listening to a lecture on church history the speaker was tracking about Paul’s being called into Europe and listed off the churches he started.  Berea stood out to me.  They were unique because the Jews of Berea were so open and solid in testing the scriptures.  It occurred to me that we don’t have any letters of Paul to the Bereans.  That should tell us something.

All the other churches seemed to have some issues for Paul to address.  If they had not then we would have not had any of the letters of Paul.  We should be grateful for all of the issues that emerged.

Is that true in our own lives?  My opinion is that we grow faster when we face opposition and temptation.  That does not mean I want more problems but I acknowledge how they can be a benfit.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-117: Survival Virtue

One of the rabbit trails that run through my head starts with a verse in Romans,

Romans 11:26 (KJV) And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:

This generates a question, “Who or what is Israel?”  This leads to the theory that the Israel mentioned here is not everyone throughout history with Jewish DNA but the true Israel who are highlighted earlier in the book as Paul quotes Isaiah,

Romans 9:27 (KJV) Esaias also crieth concerning Israel, Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, a remnant shall be saved:

What spoke to me today was a verse I read,

1 Kings 18:3 (KJV) And Ahab called Obadiah, which [was] the governor of [his] house. (Now Obadiah feared the LORD greatly:

Ahab was one of the most evil of the kings of Israel.  He was the one married to Jezebel.  Obadiah is called out as a faithful follower of God.  In spite of that he was allowed to serve as a high official in Ahab’s administration.  I found that encouraging.

Obadiah represents one form of God’s faithful remnant.  In this case he was in the middle of a pagan court and allowed to live his life.  I am not trying to make this a promise for us but it does point out that being faithful to God does not automatically produce a death sentence.

What does the future hold?  If the church does not stand up and become an agent of revival then it will not be a happy ending.  I think this points out that it will still pay off to be faithful.  It may be that when the evil elite gains control they will need a few honorable people they can trust. That might be you.

homo unius libri

Opus 2026-092: The Middle Ground

My thoughts were on being thankful for God’s beneficial providence.  I was marveling over how patient He is.  We hear a lot about God‘s wrath and forget that He would often withhold His correcting rod for hundreds of years before He would lower the boom.  He was definitely patient.

From there, my thoughts went to the antisemitism that we are hearing so much about.  I just finished reading a section in Durant’s “The Story of Civilization” in which he was dealing with the suffering that the Jews endured in medieval Europe.  It was widespread and brutal.  What impressed me, and honestly surprised me, was that the safest place to be a Jew was in the Papal Estates.  Were the Pope had the greatest authority the persecution was held at bay.  Throughout Europe, many church leaders did what they could to protect the Jews that were being harassed by Crusaders and others.

I fear that antisemitism is real and is on the rise.  By that I don’t mean all of the loud noise attacking certain talking heads.  I don’t listen to those people much anyway, but I’ve never heard them say anything I thought it was filled with hate.  Much of what we hear is just the left and the pseudo-right trying to defame them.  Hatred of Jews does not come from those who believe in the traditional America.  Historically it has come from the world of socialism and totalitarian governments.  Keep in mind that the communisst are also socialist and if you lump together the persecution between the communist and the national socialist, you have a perfectly brutal demonstration of what totalitarians have in store with the Jewish people.

What is ironic is that in our country the forces of socialism seem to be supported by the Jews themselves.  Is it a form of self hatred?  What kind of thinking has almost an entire ethnic group being supportive of the people who hate them the most?

We need to bend over backwards to make sure that we are not expressing hatred for Jews.  Whatever you’re feelings about the nation of Israel and the place of Israel in prophecy, Jews are created in the image of God, just like the rest of us.  They deserve the same courtesy and compassion that anyone else would deserve.  That middle ground is hard for people to walk.

Genuine Americans, and true Christians should be looking inward and preparing themselves in case we ever have the resurgence of the kind of things that happened in Nazi Germany.  What that means is that we will need to be ready to quietly and secretly practice resistance to the forces of tyranny.  That means sheltering the target of tyranny and risking ourselves in the cause of righteousness.  It means realizing that we may be that prey.

Pray and prepare.

homo unius libri

Opus 2025-118: All Pain Is Not Equal

As I was looking at a major struggle in my life the passage of scripture that talks about the thorn in the flesh came to mind.

2 Corinthians 12:7 (KJV) And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.

There are all kinds of applications to this.  We tend to often exaggerate the difficulties we face.  But there are some which qualify as thorns in the flesh.

Whenever I think about thorns in the flesh and how they fester and cause ongoing pain and discomfort my mind turns to the blessings of my life.  In spite of the thorns, blessings are still there.  I thought of those mornings years ago on my way to prepare for my day, stumbling into the walls, heading for the kitchen to turn on the coffee and asking myself, why am I doing this?  On the way I would have to go by the doors to my children’s bedrooms.  That would remind me why I would do this.

That made me think of how my children presented their own difficulties.  I don’t know how many times I shook my head about the way my children are acting.  I know I frequently threatened to take my son back to the hospital and get a refund.  Fortunately I never acted on it.

There is a big difference between a thorn in the flesh and a pain in the neck.  I know people who are not happy about how their children have turned out so far.  They have become a thorn.  If all goes well they are really only a pain in the neck which goes away in time.  When we are in pain we tend to focus on it and magnify it out of proportion.  Afterward it doesn’t seem so bad.

A thorn is a problem that needs to be removed.  If it is so deep that it can’t be removed it needs to be endured.  Dare I utter the phrase, “It builds character”?   A pain is a warning that there is a problem.  A pain in the neck could be anything from cancer to just sleeping wrong.  

Maybe we could make up a little sign that reminds us of the difference between a thorn and a pain.  THORN OR PAIN?

I hope that I am never a thorn and can keep from inflicting pain.

homo unius libri

Opus 2025-058: Stake Anyone?

It is interesting the way new ideas will pop up at different places simultaneously.  It is either coincidence or just that you were seeing them without being aware of them.  Currently it has been around the term “New Perspective.”  I am still not sure that I grasp the nuances but it is making some people go Rambo so it must have some interesting aspects.

As I first approached the term I was reading a book on theology called Reconsidering Key Biblical Ideas.  I was finding that the authors were mentioning a number of points I had been coming across.  I always like it when someone endorses my thinking.  After investigating some key points they dropped the term on me on page 39.  Okay.  A new theological term in a book about theology.  No big deal, or so I thought.

Shortly after becoming aware of the term the You Tube algorithm dropped a bit of click bait that had three theologians discussing the idea.  I could tell from the names, which I knew, and the way the title was written that there would be some disagreement.  “Disagreement” is a mild term.  
They drew you in by a clip of an interview of a scholar named N.T. Wright.  I have seen his name around but have not read anything he has written.  He fit into that category in my head of “Basically reliable but open to confirmation”.  What he said went along with the book.  The they switched to a different clip with a group of about seven men sitting on a platform and at the end was a man named R.C. Sproul.  I am familiar with Sproul.  I used to be on his mailing list and received a monthly newletter from his organization, Ligonier Ministries.  I knew I did not agree with him on some issues because he was a full-fledged Five-Point Calvinist.  In spite of that there was I lot I topics I could learn from him on.  

That acceptance ended when I was listening to a pod-cast in which he declared war on all Christians who did not embrace the total Reform theology.  Literally, he declared war.  He was taking off the gloves and going after the jugular.  I don’t remember the exact words, this was at least 20 years ago, but that was his point.

When the moderater asked him in this clip what he thought about N.T. Wright his response was, “He is a heretic.”  This was not one of those semi-humorous statements that we throw out when someone disagrees with us.  His accusation and the memory of his previous statement brought to mind the attitudes of John Calvin back in the days when they were burning heretics and drowning
Anabaptists.  He was deadly serious.  I keep forgetting that there are people like that out there.

I will continue reading the book and its “heresy”.  Part of that is because I totally reject Sproul’s theology.  If I had to pick a heretic I would choose him and the theology of John Calvin.  I would, however, stop far short of burning at the stake.

Forster, Roger and Marston, Paul.  God’s Strategy in Human History, Volume II, Reconsidering Key Biblical Ideas.  England:  PUSH Publishing, 2013,

homo unius libri

Opus 2024-302: Magnets for Persecution

As I contemplate what the Bible says about persecution, I keep wondering how that works together with the hand Providence for testing us and the promises of God about being protected.  It’s another one of those conflicting ideas that need to be worked out.  We delve into them by reading scripture, by thinking and by listening to the Holy Spirit.

One of the people in the Bible talks about persecution as the apostle Paul.

2 Corinthians 11:25 (KJV) Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep;

If you follow his narrative in the book of Acts, you find these some of these events disclosed, others we don’t know where they fit in.  The point is Paul went through serious persecution.

Then I think of one of the other great figures in Bible history, Moses.  Moses went through a lot of things that we would considered difficult, but there is no evidence that I can think of where he was outright persecuted.  He lived in the desert for much of his life.  That was just a normal way of life in those days.  He was denied the promised land.  But nowhere can I think of any out and out persecution.

Why the difference?  Is it significant?  In fact, I have a hard time coming up with any other Bible personality, other than possibly the prophets who went through any persecution for spiritual reasons.

The thought occurred to me that Paul was persecuted because he went looking for it.  Think about it.  Paul was definitely a Type A personality.  Before he was converted, he was out hunting down Christians.  He went to the Sanhedrin to get permission to jail them. Then if you follow his life as he went out as a missionary, he was very very aggressive and confrontational.

Paul could not even get along with Barnabas, who is known as the Son of Reconciliation.  They had a falling out over John Mark whom Paul also didn’t get along with.  We don’t see these kind of complex in Barnabas, who also went as a missionary.  Timothy, who served as a pastor seem to have been free from persecution.

Moses on the other hand did everything he could to keep from becoming the leader of Israel.  He suggested Aaron.  He came up with all kinds of excuses.  He was generally not a Type A personality, and was only serving in leadership, because God forced the issue.

Both men were used of God.

This is not intended as a final statement about persecution, just an observation.  There are other words such as affliction and tribulation which speak to us also.  It is an indication though that being sent off to the gulag may not be a done deal.  The really good news is that even if we are sent up the river, He will be with us.

homo unius libri

Opus 2024-274: Baking Bread

Recently at church we were discussing the providence of God.  One of the people came up with a rough paraphrase of this verse,

Psalm 37:25 (KJV) I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.

His paraphrase made it seem like we had a promise from God that we would never lack bread.  We contrasted that with other scripture that seemed to indicate that we would be persecuted and all that involved.  We did not resolve the seeming contradiction.

There is an important consideration that was missed by not actually looking up the text being quoted and studying it.  If you read it over it is not God making a promise.  It is David the king saying that he had not seen any such thing.

First consider the life of David and what you know about it.  When he says he has never seen the righteous forsaken that does not mean they were never persecuted.  Think about how many times Saul tried to kill David.  Remember him hiding in the cave.  Think of his son rebelling and driving him out of Jerusalem.  He was persecuted but he was not forsaken.  That would be consistent with the teaching of the New Testament.  

(2Co 4:9 KJV)  Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed;

As for begging for bread.  If you have time look at chapters 20 and 21 of I Samuel.  David was on the run from Saul and stopped at the tabernacle.  He and his men were hungry.  He asked, or begged, for bread.  After telling a few lies and pressing his luck he was given the shewbread.  Not only would I call this begging but I would point out that the bread was consecrated and he was not supposed to eat it.  

The first issue I have an answer for, the second, not yet.  Maybe you do.

homo unius libri

Opus 2023-013: The Habit of Holocaust

How would we rank the Holocausts or attempts at genocide of history?

I am not thinking of the common movements of tribes and peoples who pushed weaker cultures off their land.  The group pushed off tends to move a bit and push another bunch off.  That has been going on around the world since God pushed Adam and Eve out of the Garden of Eden.  I am talking about the organized, systematic annihilation of a weaker group by the dominant culture.

Most people who know which end of straw to drink out of have heard of the Jewish Holocaust.  They may be deniers.  They may have been in the cheering section.  They still know about it.  If we were going to rank these tragedies the Jewish Holocaust is mainly useful in setting a standard for the others since it is the best known.

The Noble Savages of North America were participants.  The Iroquois destroyed at least eight other tribes in their area.  I think it is possible that the Cherokee ended up in Georgia to escape the depredations of their indigenous brothers.  Then came the Trail of Tears.  Some groups face repeated problems but it is not genocide.  

We have the Armenian holocaust of the early 20th century.  According to the Turks who did the honors, it didn’t happen, or, if pushed, will say it wasn’t as bad as portrayed.  I think the methodical murder of over a million people qualifies as more than just a misunderstanding.  

When you think of mass murder don’t leave the Communist party out.  Which one?  It doesn’t really matter.  It could be the kulaks of Ukraine, the peasants of China or the middle class in Cambodia.  Dead is dead.  In shear numbers the Communist version of socialism dwarfs the efforts of the Nazi version.  Both tried hard.  If you show up on their radar at the wrong time it is the end of the road.

The October 7 slaughter is fresh in our minds.  Compared to other atrocities in history the numbers are a bit small.  It comes into this discussion only because it is one step in the historic jihad holocaust.  If you go back in history this has been a 1400 year effort to eradicate the Jews.  We ignore it at our peril because it isn’t really just the Jews.  Everyone who is not a Muslim is on their list.  

How many other holocaust can we think about if we range through history?  My guess is that the list would be long and most we would not even know about because the receiving group of genocide does not write the history books.

Stay alert and pay attention.

homo unius libri

Opus 2024-003: On the Street: Dog Collars

As I approached the turn-about point on my daily walk one of the dogs on the corner came through the fence and after me.  I wasn’t really threatened.  It was a small dog and not super aggressive, and I had a nice walking stick with a heavy head.  But I worried about the dog becoming road mush, so I went up to the door on my way back and had a talk with the owner.

In our discussion he pointed out that several of his dogs had huge collars, big balloon type things around their neck.  He said that was to keep them from going through the fence.  He was aware of the problem and I assume he will deal with it.  Since I have no emotional attachment to the dog that is good enough for me.  And I will always have my walking stick.

My thoughts went to what the Apostle Paul called his thorn in the flesh.  I am sure that the dogs felt that way about their clown collars.  Could it be that a thorn in the flesh given by God is really a collar to keep us from going places we’re too stupid to avoid?  No, I am not implying that you are stupid.  I am stating that you probably do things that are stupid.  Make whatever application you want.  I know it applies to my life but I may be the only one.

May your thorns be gentle enough to bear and sharp enough to get your attention.

homo unius libri

Opus 2023-092: Mandate of Heaven?

The New Testament has several places where our attitude toward government is discussed.  We can start with the words of Jesus,

(Mat 22:21 KJV)  They say unto him, Caesar's. Then saith he unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's.

Paul addresses the issue and so does Peter.  Peter probably makes it the clearest.  You can also check out Romans 13:1ff and Titus 3:1.

(1Pe 2:13-14 KJV)  Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake: whether it be to the king, as supreme; Or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well.

At first that would seem clear.  Notice though, it also give us the role of government.  It is there to punish evil and by inference, if not direct, to protect us from evil.  Proverbs also has something to say about the king being righteous.  If you know anything about history you might wonder how Paul and Peter could be telling people to obey the Roman government.  Were they not the source of persecution?  Yes, at times, but most of the time they were the source of a stable society that believed in the rule of law.  Paul was protected by the Roman legal system more often than he was harassed.  Pilot tried to let Jesus go but was not strong enough to stand against the Jewsish leaders.  Keep in mind it was during the Roman Empire that Jesus came in what is called “the fullness of time”.

How are we to respond when we find that the government is the source of evil?  I don’t mean just an occasional bit of harassment.  I mean, what do we do when the government becomes focused and motivated to destroy anything that reflects righteousness.  Call to mind the way in which people who stand for moral behavior are targeted by the IRS and FBI.  Remember the early morning SWAT team raids to arrest pro-life family men for trumped up charges.  This is the government that is endorsing the entire homosexual agenda by whatever alphabet you want to use.

Is there a place where the government loses its mandate of heaven?

Hard questions for what are becoming hard times.

homo unius libri

Opus 2023-010: Easy to Say

I recently heard the story of what I will call “undercover missionaries” reporting from their work in the world of Islam.  The first part of the narrative was encouraging.  They reported that they were making a lot of converts to Jesus in the world of Mohammad.

The second part is where I start to be concerned.  The word was that the new converts continued to live as Muslims because they knew they faced persecution at best if their new faith became known.  A more likely outcome would be death.

My concern is voiced from the security of a home in the hill country of Texas.  That means that I am safe and secure and it is easy to talk.  I confess that.  I still think of a couple of scriptures.

From the Sermon on the Mount,  

(Mat 5:11 KJV)  Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.

And other words of Jesus,

(Mar 8:38 KJV)  Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.

I have not read Foxes Book of Martyrs but I did read Eusebius since I have been to Texas.  He gives examples of the kinds of persecution Christians faced in the early days of the church.  I have quoted him before in other places.  Here is another passage that shows the price being paid by two young men.

“Maturus, however, and Sanctus, again passed through all the tortures in the amphitheatre, just as if they had suffered nothing at all before, or rather as those who in many trials before had defeated the adversary, and now contending for the crown itself, again as they passed, bore the strokes of the scourge usually inflicted there, the draggings and lacerations from the beasts, and all that the madness of the people, one here and anther there, cried for and demanded; and last of all the iron chair, upon which their bodies were roasted, whilst the fumes of their own flesh ascended to annoy them.  The tormentors did not cease even then, but continued to rage so much the more, intending if possible to conquer their perseverance.  They could not, however, elicit or hear anything from Sanctus, besides that confession which he had uttered from the beginning.”  pp. 175-6

As I said, I write from a safe zone.  I am also aware that the safe zone is being whittled away by American Progressives*.  I expect to see the day when I am going to be forced into the same choices that face my brothers in the world of Islam.  I hope not, but that is not the same thing I mean when I speak about my hope in Christ.  The first is a desire; the second, and assurance.

My desire would be that they would be free to worship and that I would not lose that freedom.

But as my parents kept telling me, I don’t always get what I wish for.

Eusebius.  Ecclesiastical History.  Grand Rapids:  Baker Book House, Reprinted 1989.

*(Liberals, educators, the media, socialists, communists, crony capitalists, elites, Rinos, Democrats, leftists, Never Trumpers, Antifa, BLM, MSM, Deep State, etc.  Synonym for swamp dwellers)

homo unius libri

Opus 2022-253: Progressive Happiness

I have not yet had the honor of being banned by any of the social media.  One big factor in that is I am not involved in the popular forms.  If you don’t join you can’t be unjoined.  Probably a bigger factor is I am not important enough to make them worry.  Or maybe I have not written anything worth worrying about.

Take you pick.

The day is coming though when the government will get directly into the act.  They have computer algorithms that can pick up on having a flag in your background.  They can probably read the titles on the shelf behind you.  When they get to cancelling it will be in the Soviet model where they show up with a paddy wagon and toss you into the back.  It seems to be the goal of the present Proregressives*.

They will not be happy as long as anyone they can’t control is happy.

Speak up while you can.

*(Liberals, educators, the media, socialists, communists, crony capitalists, elites, Rinos, Democrats, leftists, Never Trumpers, Antifa, BLM, MSM, Deep State, etc.  Synonym for swamp dwellers)

homo unius libri

Opus 2022-137: Worse Than Facebook Jail

On the topic of persecution.  I believe it is coming.  The easy life we have known as Christians is under attack and I expect it to get nasty.

We talk about persecution but we really don’t know what it means.  Some people think getting put in Facebook Jail is persecution.  I guess it is in a sense but it is a long way from watching your children being fed to lions.  And let’s face it, it is also a badge of honor.  I am sometimes humiliated that I have never written anything to get me banned from Facebook.  One problem might be that I don’t have a Facebook account.  

Much of the persecution we face is so far off the radar that we don’t even know it happened.  I remember that I almost did not get a teaching job because I was a Christian.  I didn’t find out about it until years later but they seriously thought about saying, “No thanks.”  Unfortunately for them they were really desperate so I hung around 29 years.  There is no way of knowing how many other times in life we have been denied something we were qualified for because of our faith.  Does that qualify as persecution?  It brings to mind the old question about the tree falling in the forest with no one around.

I think that the first thrust of felt persecution will come from within the church.  The pagan pastors and church leaders will lead the charge to purge their church social clubs of anyone that actually believes the truths that mark the Christian.  If you are a pastor in some denominations and preach against homosexuality then you will be in trouble with both the DA and the bishop.  My wife is convinced that some denominations are cooperating with the government by turning over membership lists and associated data.

The vaccine mandates came close and that battle doesn’t seem to be over yet.  I remember reading about people advocating a need for proof of vaccination in order to buy food.  Think of New York City.  I don’t know how accurate the reports are but without “the card” you were not allowed in many businesses.  

Can it be avoided?  I think so.  All it would require is for the church to get back to being the church and for revival to break out.  God has held back His judgement before.  He might do it again.  

Or this could actually be the end times.  Finally.  

homo unius libri

Opus 2022-132: Zoom: Don’t Forget the Difference

I am part of a group of old men who meet on Zoom twice a week.  We are from several states though most live in California.  We have a wide range of education and experience.  The discussion this week was not optimistic.  I would venture a guess that you don’t need to ask, “Why?”

I found myself wondering if we are moving into the end times.  I am not a big proponent of prophecy and signs.  I believe that the end will come.  Jesus will return.  There will be a rapture and a New Jerusalem.  My general attitude is that there are more important things to focus on.  We should live such a way that we are ready to go but plan in such a way that it isn’t now.  If you look back through history the hysteria about the end is very common.

I am not sure if we are in the end times.  I am not saying we aren’t.  There is some strong evidence in the existence of the nation of Israel.  I am convinced that we are definitely heading for a time of persecution.  Perversion and selfishness are rampant.  The people with power are into themselves instead of serving the country.  The church as the church is almost non-existent.  The preachers and church leaders are into feeling good and fitting in rather than declaring truth.  I expect to see the day when churches are shut down and believers arrested for believing and speaking about what the Bible says.

At the same time I felt a sense of excitement.  We may face persecution.  Let me reword that, we WILL face persecution.  I do not look forward to it but I believe it will be a time when we will find out what we really believe.  Always remember that we persecution comes repeatedly while the end only comes once.

Don’t confuse the two.

homo unius libri

Opus 2022-040: Modern Anne Franks

What would it be like to be an honest person trapped in the heart of the FBI?  I still have this illusion that there are some good people, serving their country as best they can, and finding it harder to do that each day.  

What are your options in a situation like that?  You watch what happens to people who become whistle blowers.  They know about the strange, mysterious deaths associated with certain political crime families.  They may have processed the paperwork that put innocent people in jail.

What do you do?

I don’t know because I am not there.  What can we do?  We might begin to prepare to hide some of them when they try to come out.  Think of people fleeing the midnight police of 1939 Germany.  Jews were hidden in attics, basement and sheds.  Think of downed airmen being moved across Europe so they can get home and fly again.  The people hiding them took their lives into their own hands in the process.  We may be coming to that time again.  Maybe we should begin considering where we could put up a false wall to conceal a fugitive.

We live in interesting times, Chinese style.

homo unius libri

Opus 2021-338: Love in Action

I seriously question the sanity of animal lovers.

Don’t get me wrong, I am not an animal hater.  I am an animal tolerator.  That has become necessary because my wife and daughter are cat lovers.  I attribute it to the taint of French blood.  It gets really serious because my granddaughter is also a cat lover, at three and a half.  I am resigned to my fate.

I watch this cat I am tasked with.  It belongs to my granddaughter.  We have it with us to make their move from the east coast a bit easier.  There was no question of caring for it.  The little one wants it.  It is done.  The cat seems to have adopted me.  It follows me around and sleeps on my bed.  It seems to think I actually care about it.

Yes, I pet it and scratch its chin.  I feed it and now I am responsible for the litter box.  It pays me back by throwing up on the carpet and yowling at the most irritating times.  I thought about adding cat allergy to my prayer list but the one to go might not be the cat.

Animal lovers probably leave the baking powder out of their cookies too.

homo unius libri

Opus 2021-325: Aha Moments: The Anti-Semitism Behind CRT

 

 

A few years ago I decided to start reading through the Bible, cover to cover.  It is not something I would recommend for new believers because you spend so much time on what amounts to genealogy and census numbers.  I am old enough in the faith to appreciate the overview aspect.  Occasionally I come across things that seem to relate to the day.  I will make an effort to share them.  It may not change your life but it helps me release what bugs me.

I am currently reading through the book of Esther.  In the third chapter we come across a man named Haman.  For reasons not specified Haman is given immense power.

(Est 3:1-2 KJV)  After these things did king Ahasuerus promote Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, and advanced him, and set his seat above all the princes that were with him.  And all the king's servants, that were in the king's gate, bowed, and reverenced Haman: for the king had so commanded concerning him. But Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence.

It seems that the king, whom you might know better as Xerxes I of the Persian Empire, gave the order that everyone was to bow down to Haman.  This was probably not the simple type of saluting that goes on in the military.  Bowing often meant prostrating yourself on the ground with your face in the dirt.

If you have ever been pulled over by a cop having a bad day you understand how power goes to the head of people in authority positions.  It is bad enough when it is a DMV clerk but picture a guy who has the power of life and death over you.

Mordecai refuses to bow.  Notice the end of verse 2.

“But Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence.”

It wasn’t a matter of ego or pride.  It was a matter of obedience.  He refused because he only bowed to God.  He was a Jew and ancient custom tended to bestow divine status on monarchs so that bowing was submission to a god.  As a Jew he was aware of the first commandment that he was to have no gods before God.  Jews took this very seriously.  

Evidently this went on for quite a time.

(Est 3:3 KJV)  Then the king's servants, which were in the king's gate, said unto Mordecai, Why transgressest thou the king's commandment?

Eventually the word was passed to Haman, along with the reason,

(Est 3:4 KJV)  Now it came to pass, when they spake daily unto him, and he hearkened not unto them, that they told Haman, to see whether Mordecai's matters would stand: for he had told them that he was a Jew.

So the die it cast.  Mordecai is in defiance against the cultural god of the day and it was because of the community of faith he belonged to.  

Haman set out to destroy Mordecai and all of his people.

(Est 3:5-6 KJV)  And when Haman saw that Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence, then was Haman full of wrath.  And he thought scorn to lay hands on Mordecai alone; for they had shewed him the people of Mordecai: wherefore Haman sought to destroy all the Jews that were throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus, even the people of Mordecai

Isn’t history wonderful?  And of course you have heard about how history repeats itself.  This chicken is coming home to roost.  We see the same thing happening in the Proregressive* power grab of today.  We see an active campaign that is billed as an attack on white privilege and institutional racism, whatever that is.  The reason they are after the deeply rooted values found in European culture is that much of it is based on the Bible and we live in a culture where many people have lived in security putting God before government.  It isn’t because people are white.  It is because they believe in things like hard work, honesty, monogamous marriage, two genders, and the worst thing of all, our rights come from God not Washington D.C.  The fact that it isn’t white has forced them to come up with Multiracial Whiteness.  

It does not matter that much of “Christianity” has bowed down to the power of the elites, there are still a few who defy them and must be destroyed.  In the process of purification many of the warm fuzzy church attenders will be caught up in the grind, but the Proregressives* are big on the Marxists belief that the end justifies the means and you can’t make an omelette without breaking a few eggs.  

The big question is, “Whom do you serve?”  If the answer is anything but the state then you are not only expendable but a chronic liability.  

Anti-Semitism and Anti-Christian are based on the same root:  Acknowledging God as God.

So get ready.  Either fish or cut bait, whatever that means.  Or just put it the way Joshua did,

(Jos 24:15 KJV)  And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.

*(Liberals, educators, the media, socialists, communists, crony capitalists, elites, Rinos, Democrats, leftists, Never Trumpers, Antifa, BLM, MSM, Deep State, etc.  Synonym for swamp dwellers)

homo unius libri

Opus 2021-269: You Ain’t Seen Nothin’ Yet

One of the worries the remaining free and thinking Americans have is that the federal government will mandate everyone be vaccinated.  This, of course, could become a reality by simply having the grocery stores refuse to sell you food unless you had The Passport.  I am sure I am not the only one who has been watching this develop ever since they started requiring masks and the threat that no one should be able to buy or sell if they did not have a mask.  I wrote about it.  Others wrote about it.  This kind of talk brought to mind the Biblical concept of the Mark of the Beast.

Many of you will be familiar with the Bible verse,

(Rev 13:17 KJV)  And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.

Add to that the idea of how the mark will be issued,

(Rev 13:16 KJV)  And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:

Prophecy is funny that way.  It predicts the most unusual things.

For a number of reasons I am not convinced this is the Mark of the Beast.  It could be but there are certain requirements involved.  What is on my mind at this point is the persecution that is coming.

Americans have funny ideas about persecution.  We think we are going through hard times when the power goes out for a day.  We think we are going to die when toilet paper gets cleaned off the shelves.  We wonder if Satan is out to get us when our property taxes are raised.

We have a lot to learn about persecution and I am afraid that the lessons are on the way.  One of the books I am reading is Ecclesiastical History by a man named Eusebius Pamphilus.  He wrote in the fourth Century A.D.  Although the book is not specifically about persecution he cannot tell the history of the early church without talking about the martyrs.  These were Christians who were arrested and persecuted simply because they refused to bow down to Caesar and say a simple prayer to him.  

Most people have heard about Nero feeding Christians to the lions.  I have seen it dealt with in movies and there are a lot of political cartoons that follow the meme.  As many popular ideas about history, this picture comes far from the whole truth.  It seems that the encounters with the lions were after assorted other tortures and that often the animals were not fatal so there was more that came after.  One victim, Blandina, went through this,

“And thus, after scourging, after exposure to the beasts, after roasting, she was finally thrown into a net and cast before a bull, and when she had been well tossed by the animal and had now no longer any sense of what was done to her by reason of her firm hope, confidence, faith and her communion with Christ, she too was dispatched.” p. 179

And this was after she watched her two children tortured and killed.  

You say this could not happen to us today.  Really?  I think you have a higher opinion of your fellow man than is being demonstrated by the videos on You Tube.  The mob had a place then.  Take the case of Pothinus who was over 90 and sickly.  I won’t go through the torture aspect, but get a feel for the mob.

“After this, he was unmercifully dragged away and endured many stripes, whilst those that were near abused him with their hands and feet in every possible way, not even regarding his age.  But those at a distance, whatsoever they had at hand, every one hurled at him, all thinking it would be a great sin and impiety if they fell short of wanton abuse against him.  For they supposed they would thus avenge their own gods.” p. 174

Here was an old man, being manhandled by the police, already beaten and the mob was getting their jollies by kicking, slapping and throwing things.  If you can’t see that happening in modern America then you have not been watching.  Notice that they were avenging their gods.  Christians today are at odds with the gods of our culture, so expect the worst.

Two outcomes I wish for.  First, that the violence and persecution that seem to be coming would not happen, and second, that when it does I would stand tall for truth and righteousness.  Both are tall orders.

Eusebius.  Ecclesiastical History.  Grand Rapids:  Baker Book House, Reprinted 1989.

homo unius libri

Opus 2021-241: Political Palette

Since it is hard to define a conservative and no one wants to admit they are a liberal we seem to have begun to talk about blue states and red states.  There are a lot of differences.  It might be better to talk about cities and country since even a state like California would be red if it were not for the big cities.  Texas is red in spite of its big cities.  So let the colors be the marker.

If I had to pick out a difference between a red and a blue it would come down to control.  One wants to be left alone, the other wants to get everyone up to their level of superiority.  This must be done by force if the reds don’t comply willingly.

Reds generally want to be left alone.  That is much of their definition of liberty.  The specific areas that they are concerned about are summarized in the Bill of Rights.  They are quite content to live their lives without anyone making up a bunch of rules about everything they think of.  They tend to accept that their situation is a result of their actions, or at least wish the blues would leave them alone so it could be that way.

Blues, on the other hand, need to be in control.  I would call them busybodies who know what is best for everyone.  They tend to think that their values and opinions are best for the lest privileged.  They can’t understand why the reds don’t see what is so obvious.  What is even more insidious is there desire to control the way reds think.  That is where we get such nonsense as hate crimes.  If a person is murdered it would seem to me hate could be involved.  It doesn’t make the person any more dead to label it a hate crime.  Not only do they want reds to act like blue but to think like blues too.

You have all heard the line, “Just because you are paranoid doesn’t mean they aren’t out to get you.”  Believe it.  They are out to get you.  They are like a bossy little sister and the stereotype Jewish mother combined.  It may be that the only solution is separation.  Let them try to straighten each other out.

homo unius libri

Opus 2021-050: Let Me Reword That

I think the author of The Manhattan Contrarian understands the mistake he is making in the following statement,

“Note to Biden and/or whoever comes after him: you can’t keep a divided nation together by force and coercion -- not for long. If Americans want to live in a united country, we need a renewed sense of common ideals and principles. The principle of maximizing human freedom is the best option available, because it has the potential to create cohesion while also allowing for disagreement.”

I just don’t think that is his point at the moment.  He will probably address it later.

Since he is not here, let me address it.  One of the popular delusions perpetuated by our media overlords is that the Progressives in control of the sources of power and influence want a “united country”.  No, the do not want a “renewed sense of common ideals and principles.”  What they want is the destruction of the United States.  If that were not the plan they would not be doing everything they can to cause the insurrection they say they fear.  

The massive peaceful protest in Washington D.C. was totally ignored with the mantra that there was a violent riot in the Capitol.  Really?  Show me the destroyed buildings.  Show me the destroyed businesses.  Where are the fires?  Where are the many examples of vicious violence perpetuated by Antifa and BLM as they destoryed a number of American cities in what was constantly referred to as “mostly peaceful” protests.

List the “panicked” talking heads of Congress:  Pelosi, Schumer, McConnell, et. al.  They were not panicked.  They were disappointed that they were not yet able to prod the sleeping giant of American into a place where they can use the Insurrection Act.

Yet.

They will keep trying.  They are going to have a Kangaroo trial to remove a man from office who has already left.  He followed the procedure as is provided by the rule of law.  They are moving to remove from office every elected official who does not agree with their program.  They are mobilizing big business to make it impossible for non-party business to do banking or communicating.  I would laugh if the fools were not so self-righteous:  Students at Harvard are agitating to rescind the diplomas of everyone they disagree with.  Some day soon you may find that your bank or credit card company has decided not to do business with you.

They will just keep pushing.

homo unius libri