Sunday, October 31, 2004

How about those Packers?

You know what I think about the outcome of today’s game between the Washington Redskins and the Green Bay Packers? Hm... Does it have any bearing on the election? “Eh... budeep, budeep, budeep, Poppycock!” The outcome of Tuesday’s election is still in the hands of you, the voter. If you’re registered to vote, there’s no excuse for not voting! Not even the Redskins’ loss! If you don’t vote and Kerry wins, you have only yourself to blame! Don’t let this game have a chilling effect on your plans to vote, even if you must take time off of work. This is the most important election in recent memory, and the outcome hasn’t been determined yet. Hey—the Red Sox won the World Series and no one expected that to happen, did they? So remember: God, not game results, is in control. Obey Him. And get out and vote. Besides, a bad call by a ref may have been what cost Washington the game. So vote. Vote for Bush. May the best man win.

Thursday, October 28, 2004

Curse? What Curse?

Three words about the Red Sox: “Four... game... sweep.” Need I say more? OK, “Final... game... shutout.” ’Nough said.

Wednesday, October 27, 2004

If you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything.

Now, I take my faith very seriously. I maintain that the principles I believe in are timeless and apply to all people everywhere, not just myself. So I beg to differ with someone who says, “My religion is my own business. And yours is up to you to decide. After all, truth for me may not be truth for you. Who am I to judge you, as long as you’re sincere in your beliefs and practices?”

Actually, it does matter what you believe, even if you are sincere. And truth is true whether it’s believed or not. God is real, whether His presence is felt or not. And Heaven and Hell are real, not because we think they exist, but because God has said that they do. Belief of the truth has consequences, and so does the failure to believe. Jesus did not come to preach tolerence and an end to social ills; He came to give His life for our sins, and then to take His life back again. The world can be changed only through belief in the truth of the gospel, and that is why Jesus called us the salt of the earth and the light of the world.

Monday, October 25, 2004

Is Marriage Worth it?

You’re probably thinking, “He probably thinks that it would have been better if he’d stayed single. He’s gonna say that marriage is not for the faint of heart.” Well, while marriage may not be for everyone, still I would recommend it to anyone. Even with the problems that plague certain marriages, it’s still 100% better than being alone, in my opinion. Just make sure your values are in order first—if you’re doing this for your own benefit, forget it, but if you’re doing it for the other’s, then you’ve already laid a solid foundation.

Of course for those of you who entered into marriage to salve your consience, to right a wrong, or because you were lonely or wanted to be loved, it’s not too late to confess your selfish motives to God and begin to truly give to the other person from the heart. Don’t ever let anyone tell you that divorce is better. It just isn’t so.

Friday, October 22, 2004

Will you be voting?

You should, because there’s a lot of family issues at stake. Consider the candidates: the President supports a constitutional amendment that, once and for all, defines marriage as being between a man and a woman. John Kerry does not. Why is this significant? Because there is a push in several states, in the courts of all places, to force the recognition of “same-sex marriage,” which is really not marriage at all. John Kerry does not believe in same-sex marriage, but yet he will do nothing, if elected, to interfere with it or stop it. Bush will continue to champion traditional Christian family values, including Biblical marriage. All of you who agree with him should be at the polls on November 2nd voting for a second term in office. It’s your priviledge; it’s your right; it’s your civic duty.

Thursday, October 21, 2004

So, how about those Red Sox?

If you’ve been following the American League Championship Series, you know that the Boston Red Sox are now headed to the World Series. This they did by first losing 3 games straight to the New York Yankees. Tough team they are, and perhaps now the “curse” is broken. Maybe they’ll go all the way to win the World Series, too! Hey, if there’s hope for the Boston Red Sox, there’s certainly hope for a lot of struggling or dead marriages! heh, heh.

But seriously, the Yankees were getting too big for their own good. Curse or no curse, “God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble” (James 4:6 b; cf. 1 Peter 5:5 b, Proverbs 3:34).

Wednesday, October 20, 2004

Effects of Modernist Doctrine on Marriage

There is in some circles today a creeping mistrust for the Holy Scriptures. “Oh, the Bible is unreliable,” some say. “It’s full of mistakes and internal contradictions. It is simply the opinions of fallible men, written down in another time, long after it was spoken, and possibly in a different language than it was originally spoken in. Besides, even if it could have been trusted for its time, times have changed. How can we expect a book thousands of years old to be relevant to us today? How do we know that the copies we translate from closely match the originals?” etc., etc., etc.

Well, you already know which side I am on. I believe that the Bible is the infallible, inerrant, inspired word of the living God, and we can not only trust its account of history to be correct, we can also trust its timeless principles to govern our lives, and most important, we can trust its gospel over man’s personal opinion of how to reach God. Ok, I’m biased, but I can afford to be; the evidence is in my favor.

But I digress... My point is: your view on the inerrancy of the word affects in turn your yardstick by which you measure truth. Either truth has a source outside of yourself, or it is determined by subjective perception of it, each person having a differing perspective, and though contradictory, equally true as another’s. This latter world view slowly erodes a society by attacking absolute standards. And it is to marriage in particular that I wish to apply it, and show you where it is leading us.

Marriage was instituted by God in the Garden of Eden when He took a rib out of Adam, made Eve, and presented her to Adam (Genesis 2). Several basic principles were established at that time:

  1. Man needs a helper suitable for him.
  2. The only helper suitable for a man is a woman.
  3. Marriage must be a lifelong commitment of one whole person (spirit, soul, body) to only one other whole person.

But by tearing away at the credibility of Scripture, we are eroding the significance of the oldest institution in the history of mankind. Then we start to wonder why marriages and families and homes are falling into ruin, why nearly a quarter of households are cohabitants with children out of wedlock, why about half of those who do decide to marry end up divorcing, why a very large percentage of them should have known better than to live together first, and why an increasing number of couples of the same gender are seeking to “marry”?

Of course this all makes perfect sense to the particular person who makes one of those choices based on his/her own subjective view and reasoning, to his/her own personal advantage, or so he/she supposes. But the soundest way to go is to obey the truth and advice of the timehonored word of God.

Saturday, October 16, 2004

Respect

Respect on both sides is necessary for a good solid bond to form. I’m talking to both husbands and wives here. The wife is to “reverence her husband” (Ephesians 5:33), and the husband is to be “giving honor unto the wife” (1 Peter 3:7). This means respect is given, even if it is unearned. I once had a double standard: when I was married, I thought that my wife owed me her respect, and I demanded it, but I supposed that my respect of her was contingent upon behavior. I was dead wrong.

Listen to your mate, and share honestly, not throwing cheep verbal jabs or bringing up old offenses. Let bygones be bygones, and move forward with respect and praise for your spouse. Guys, you’ll soon find that you love her more than you did when you married her.

Friday, October 15, 2004

Guys, appreciate your wife

Find out what your wife likes, what makes her happy, what makes her feel loved; and then do it. Do a lot of it. Make her feel so loved that she’ll never want to leave you. It may be a kind word, spoken in sincerity. It may be a gift. It may be a thoughtful act on her behalf. It may be personal attention. Or it may be a loving touch. But if you see what makes her light up and light into you, don’t ignore it like I did. What pleased my wife was when I would take the initiative to help tidy up around the house. I was young and foolish at the time, and so I let it pass and did nothing in response; now I’m not so young, and by the Grace of God, maybe not so foolish as I once was.