Can the Church Exist in Harmony with LGBTQ+ Community?

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.” Matthew 5:9

When the Scripture speaks of being a peacemaker it is speaking of brokering peace between humans and God. The need for a peacemaker is to say that peace doesn’t automatically exist. It implies that peace is possible, but it also implies that there is a standard for that peace. Jesus is that standard. Not only is He the standard but He sets the standard. He is the peacemaker. He alone is our peace. Those who have experienced that peace are now to become peacemakers and thus partake of His family status, “sons of God.” The spiritual message of the peacemaker is that mankind is sinful and in need of a Savior who can save them from their sinfulness. Sinfulness is identified as a state of BEING rather than a behavior of DOING. That means we all sin because we are sinners and not just a sinner because we sin.

The path to peace with God is dictated by the whole of Scripture. From creation, to the Fall, to the Cross of Christ, to the empty tomb, to the Second Coming of Christ, the path to peace is laid out. In Jesus’ own words the path for each individual is determined by a work of the Holy Spirit. (John 16:8, 13) He convicts, woos, and provides the faith and grace to save and bring about a peaceful relationship between God and mankind. The one word that describes beginning this path is “repent.” Repentance is the turning point that begins the path to peace with God. That one word describes an awareness of fault and failure to be at peace and a recognition that Jesus is the only way to peace. It identifies a decision to become a follower of Jesus Christ and begin to be transformed into His likeness.

When that internal, spiritual peace becomes a reality in one's life it changes that person. And when that person shares that peace with another, they become a peacemaker. That peace changes the person and that person changes the culture they live in. In the Gospels and the Book of Acts the governing body, whether Jew or Greek, did what they did because they were afraid of the people (Acts 5:26). The Gospel of Jesus Christ was impacting so many and causing such a cultural voice that when they tried to stop its spread they couldn’t because there was a cultural restraint by the enthusiasm of lives being changed. Yet, opposition to the Gospel still brought about arrest, imprisonments, exiles, beatings, and executions.

“If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men.” Romans 12:18

“If possible” implies a standard in which interrelational peace is possible. It also indicates that outside that standard, there is no peace. The Greek word for “if” in this context establishes a reality that peace with everyone is never going to happen. “So far as it depends on you” states that the road to interrelational peace is a two-way street where one can be at peace but the other may not be at peace. It also implies that you don’t have to lay down your standards or give-up your convictions to accomplish peace. Peace at all cost is no peace no matter the cost. Trying to broker peace between two entities that are unequivocally diametrically opposed is neither possible nor wise. That is, unless one entity is gracious, and the other entity is repentant.

For example, fire and water are at odds with one another. They both cannot inhabit the same space at the same time. One will cease to exist in connection with the other. It is no mistake that the term “fight” is used when we identify a fireman as one who “fights” fire. The fireman is one who is trying to bring peace to the culture (structures, property, people, etc.) which the fire is trying to destroy. To insinuate that the fireman and water are antithetical to peace is to deny the reality that the fire demolishes or destroys that which it comes in contact with. If fire is contained (i.e. like a campfire) and water is controlled (i.e. like a cup of coffee) then, metaphorically, each can share the benefits of a pluralistic society where human dignity, civility, and respect is extended toward each other.

Another example could be trying to broker peace between the pedophile and a child so they can inhabit the same house. If the pedophile will not cease to behave as a pedophile the child will never be able to exist in peace in the same space as the molester. One must be removed from the house or there will be no peace. The pedophile will destroy the child unless someone steps in and protects the child. To bring peace to the child it is of necessity to identify the behavior of the pedophile as wrong, evil, sick, sin.

Just as the first century Christians lived a radically different life than the culture around them, believers are to live a radically different life in our culture. First century Christians paid a price for being peacemakers. The culture they lived in didn’t always accept their peacemaking message. Some of them paid with their lives and became martyrs. Some of them were cast into prison. Some were exiled from their home, family, and friends. Some were stoned or physically assaulted. Most, if not all, were shunned by the culture they lived in.

We must understand that the peacemaker is motivated by a spiritual reality and not a social movement. The message of peace with God is never dependent on the social environment. As history instructs it is possible to experience the peace of God while being persecuted for sharing the message of peace with God. The Prince of Peace was the embodiment of grace and truth and came as the ultimate peacemaker, yet, He was met with scourging, a crown of thorns, and the cross. In the fourth chapter of the Book of Acts, Peter and John acknowledged in open rebellion against the governing body that they must continue to speak the truth (5:27-32). So, whether the social environment is hostile or at peace with the message of the peacemaker, the character of the peacemaker is one of grace and truth, love and respect, dependent on the Holy Spirit to take the message and bear fruit.

In the Constitution of the United States of America, the 1st Amendment of the Bill of Rights established a society where the peacemaker could experience social peace while sharing the message of how to have peace with God. And, although the message is primarily spiritual in nature it can also bring about a social reform that identifies that the antithetical standard to peace is the sin of mankind. The message of peace with God creates a tension between behavior that is identified as sinful and the message of repentance that the peacemaker proclaims. It seems that as we embarked into the 21st century and the church growth movement of the past several decades along with the pressure to be politically correct the message of peace became more about social reform than spiritual in nature (think Moral Majority movement in the late 1970s-1980s, developing the church to be seeker sensitive, packaging the Gospel to be non-offensive, etc.). The message of the peacemaker became more about being practical and relative, lists of DOs and DON'Ts in behavior that brings about a desired result, rather than a spiritual conversion that identifies the need for repentance and brings about BEING at peace with God. This social gospel appears more about pop-psychology than it does about sound theology. The doctrine of the depravity of man is the beginning of the true Gospel of Jesus (Romans 3:10-18, 23). God established the church to be “the pillar and support of the truth” (1 Timothy 3:15) not only within the church but in the world, too.

What has happened in the past few decades in America is a shift where the society has not only rejected the social gospel but has rebelled against the need for repentance. Whether the community of faith recognizes it or not, the culture proves that there is a distinct difference between earthly kingdoms and the Kingdom of God. The idea that mankind is basically good in nature undermines the call to repentance (1 John 1:8-10). That is, society has demanded that the behavior that the peacemaker identifies as antithetical to peace with God no longer be identified as wrong and sinful. The social gospel has failed because it lacks the spiritual power (Romans 1:16) of personal conversion in repentance. Repentance is the recognition of not only DOING things that are wrong but a state of BEING wrong and the need to BE made right with God. Being made right with God is then the motivation to stop doing the things that God identifies as wrong (1 Corinthians 6:9-11).

The message of the peacemaker begins with “Repent” (Romans 2:38). In the LGBTQ+ culture today the idea of repentance is rejected because there is nothing seen to repent of. Our culture has continued to blur the lines of immorality, whether that be lying, cheating, stealing, disrespect, sex outside of marriage, homosexuality, drunkenness, greed, jealousy, envy, selfishness, and a host of other behavior/characteristics the Bible identifies as sinful behavior/characteristics that will destroy human relationships and corrupt society. Yet, the peacemaker must resist the temptation to make their message a cultural matter. It is first and foremost an individual, spiritual matter.

While the peacemakers may work toward a political resolution to create a cultural milieu that allows them to live at peace within their society, the peacemaker must resist the temptation to make their message a political matter. It is first and foremost a personal, spiritual matter. While the government can and should establish legislation that encourages moral behavior and punishes immoral behavior (Romans 13), they can also direct a society that emboldens immoral behavior (legalizing LGBTQ+ behavior legitimizes immorality). Though Christian principles and values may be expressed in politics, the message of the Gospel must not be connected with any political movement of the day. Jesus is neither Republican nor Democrat. The peacemakers do not carry their message in order to change politics but to change the person.

The tension between individual rights and society’s responsibilities are at an all-time high. We know from history that when society abdicates their responsibility to identify some things as right and wrong, moral and immoral, in the name of personal, individual freedom that society is doomed to self-implode. When everyone does what is right in their own eyes, in the name of individual rights without a concern for social responsibility, that society is set on a course of destruction.

When the peacemaker is in a community that is hostile toward the message of repentance (because the message is an offense to that community) then the peacemaker must resist the temptation to try to bring about social reform based on behavior alone. The peacemaker’s message must remain focused and intentional on the state of BEING and not just behavior. At the same time, the message of the peacemaker must not become against any group of people in society. The message is a message of hope and not condemnation. The peacemaker represents the embodiment of truth and grace. So, the peacemaker must remain gracious with the truth. Yet, the example of Christ lets us know that when society rejects the truth, they will also reject the graciousness of the messenger.

“But even if you should suffer for the sake of righteousness, you are blessed. And do not fear their intimidation, and do not be troubled, but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence” (1 Peter 3:14–15).

The cities of Sodom and Gomorrah are identified in the Bible as an environment where the concept of homosexual and deviant sexual behavior was ruling over the cities. They were cities where unnatural sexuality (sexuality that goes against Nature and Natures God) were practiced, celebrated, and promoted. Immoral unnatural sexuality was being forced on the moral inhabitants. The residents that stood on the principled application of Natural Law were being humiliated because they wouldn’t pronounce as right that which is wrong. If they wouldn’t willingly give their guest over to the crowd of deviants to be raped, they were threatened with force. The homosexuals demanded that the man that was trying to protect his family and guest with moral values to give up their moral values and give in to the unethical behavior of the homosexual community. The threat of violence was used to try to intimidate the ethical inhabitants to accept the lifestyle of the sexual deviants.

America, as a whole, has been developed by the homosexual and sexual deviant community into an environment of Sodom and Gomorrah. The LGBTQ+ community has not only demanded the right to live out their unnatural sexuality but they demand the whole community to acknowledge, accept, and defend the idea that there is nothing wrong in their lifestyle. If you say you have a religious objection to homosexuality you are labeled a bigot. The threat of riotous behavior is being used to intimidate the historical position of morally righteous.

In our culture today there is the demand to accept homosexuality, gender identification issues, or any other belief/behavior of the LGBTQ+ community. Not only to accept it but to not label it as wrong and to not call it to repentance (see the Equality Act that Passed the House of Representatives May 17, 2019). The peacemaker’s message is laced with the Biblical truth that the belief/behavior of the LGBTQ+ community must be repented of in order to experience peace with God. The peacemaker’s message is seen as hostile to the LGBTQ+ culture even if the peacemaker is graciousness, gentle, and respectful.

The challenge to the church is not how to soft sell the Gospel to the LGBTQ+ community but to trust the Holy Spirit to speak the truth in love. God uses these words to describe how He feels about the sexual behavior of the LGBTQ+ community: Abomination and perversion (Leviticus 18:22). Gross immorality (Jude 7). Indecent acts (Romans 1:27). Wicked (Genesis 19:7). Degrading passions and unnatural (Romans 1:26). Unrighteous (1 Corinthians 6:9). Immoral (1 Timothy 1:10). Ungodly (Jude 15).

No matter how aggressive the LGBTQ+ community is in promoting their cause, the peacemaker must remain respectful of the persons involved in the LGBTQ+ community. The peacemaker must remain in an attitude of love, acceptance, and forgiveness when dealing with any individual.

Trying to bring peace between the LGBTQ+ community and the Christian community is like trying to bring peace to fire and water. No matter how much hostility the LGBTQ+ community exhibits toward the Christian’s message of gracious repentance, the Christian community must resist the temptation to become hostile toward the LGBTQ+ community. Likewise, the Christian community must resist the urge to change their message of repentance so they can live in a politically correct harmony with the LGBTQ+ community.

When the Christian community lays aside the message of repentance in order to be at peace with the LGBTQ+ community it is like the Old Testament prophets who were, “Saying, ‘Peace, peace,’ But there is no peace.” (Jerimiah 8:11) So, let the Christian community be the peacemaker in truth and grace, and let the chips fall where they may. Better to be persecuted for the message than to circumvent the responsibility to the One who gave us the message.

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” (Romans 1:16) The Jews could be identified as the ones who are moral in behavior and the Greeks could be seen as the ones who were immoral in their behavior. Both need the power of God to bring about their salvation. It takes the same amount of the power of God to save the homosexual as it does to save the heterosexual. It doesn’t take more grace or mercy or love to save the LGBTQ+ community than it does the adulterer. The ground is level at the foot of the cross.

“For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day. Retain the standard of sound words which you have heard from me, in the faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. Guard, through the Holy Spirit who dwells in us, the treasure which has been entrusted to you.” (2 Timothy 1:12-14)

Make no mistake. The Church cannot exist in harmony with the LGBTQ+ community. By their very nature (one proclaiming the need for repentance and the other proclaiming there is no need for repentance), one will try to destroy the other. I would that every last one of those in the LGBTQ+ community would repent and be saved. It is the kindness of God that leads to repentance (Romans 2:4). The most loving and the kindest thing believers can do is to try to destroy the LGBTQ+ community through the power of the Gospel.

One may ask, “why single out the LGBTQ+ community over others that would be categorized as sinful by the Bible?” While it is true that the Biblical message of repentance is not limited to the LGBTQ+ community, it is also true that other groups of our society are not trying to demand and legislate their belief/behavior as protected by law. (The exception to this could be the abortion community.) Also, the nature of depravity behind the LGBTQ+ drives it to aggressively grow in its corruption and production of more deviant nature. Example: Acceptance of homosexuality rapidly went to legalized homosexual marriage and, now, even faster, has moved to Transgender, Queer, and the all-inclusive “+” that is attached to the movement. Over the past 3-4 decades the LGBTQ+ community has aggressively organized and pursued a legal status for their belief/behavior. They want to force society to recognize them as a civil rights community. To force society to cease and desist identifying their behavior as deviant. To make it illegal to speak against them whether that be in a public address (which could include preaching) or in private (counseling, family, etc). It is no coincident that the symbol of God’s promise (the rainbow) has been hijacked by the LGBTQ+ community as their symbol of their identification, love, and pride. It mocks God’s covenant, mercy, grace, and love. But, in the end, “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.” (Galatians 6:7-8)

The Equality Act of 2019 was first presented in 2015 but did not find enough votes in the House to pass. This Bill identifies just how aggressive the LGBTQ+ community is toward trying to force their belief/behavior on society as a whole and on the Church specifically. Not only does the Bill force public entities and privately-owned businesses to consent to their belief/behavior as a normal, viable lifestyle but by using identity-politics the door is opened to overburden free-enterprise with discriminatory lawsuits (https://www.eeoc.gov/data/lgbtq-based-sex-discrimination-charges) The Equality Act has the following included: “The Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993 (42 U.S.C. 2000bb et seq.) shall not provide a claim concerning, or a defense to a claim under, a covered title, or provide a basis for challenging the application or enforcement of a covered title.” That is, religious conviction or Biblical principle can not be used as a defense for any public or private judgment against the LGBTQ+ community. This kind of legislation undermines the First Amendment of Religious Liberty. ( A great article concerning this was written by Dr. Albert Mohler Jr., President of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Nashville, TN. Is Religious Liberty Truly In Peril? A Warning.) The extent of the reach of the demand of the LGBTQ+ community has been played out in the microcosm of Houston Texas in 2015. Emboldened under President Obama’s push for legalization of homosexual marriage, the city of Houston subpoenaed a group of Houston pastors to submit their sermons and communications concerning homosexuality to the mayor (an open lesbian). Fortunately, some 400 churches joined together to fight against this kind of censorship. Another kind of censorship is that Supreme Court Justice, Amy Coney Barrett, is being asked to recuse herself from cases that involve LGBTQ+ because of her Christian views. This is an attempt of cancel culture toward Christian views.

There is no doubt, if the LGBTQ+ community succeeds in their agenda the Biblical peacemaker will suffer persecution in the United States of America. Some will pay with their lives. Others will be cast in prison. Some will be separated from their homes, family, and friends. The Judeo-Christian values and mores that have been guiding America since her inception will become illegal.

The Apostle Peter writes under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, that God “condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction by reducing them to ashes, having made them an example to those who would live ungodly lives thereafter; and if He rescued righteous Lot, oppressed by the sensual conduct of unprincipled men (for by what he saw and heard that righteous man, while living among them, felt his righteous soul tormented day after day by their lawless deeds).” (2 Peter 2:6-8) Jude also instructs that “Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities around them” (Jude 7) were destroyed as an example of God’s judgement against the ungodly.

Interestingly, Jude, though he gives explanation as to the identifying behavior and characteristics of those “ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ” (Jude 4) he gives this illustration as instruction on how to relate to them: “But Michael the archangel, when he disputed with the devil and argued about the body of Moses, did not dare pronounce against him a railing judgment, but said, “The Lord rebuke you!” (Jude 9) We would do well to heed his instruction today in dealing with the LGBTQ+ community. The Christian community is not to hurl insults, be verbally abusive, or declare God’s judgement on them. According to God’s Word, even if we feel like Lot, that we are being harassed, verbally assaulted, called names, our soul is in anguish, and we are oppressed by what we hear and see on a daily basis we are to keep “building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life. And have mercy on some, who are doubting; save others, snatching them out of the fire; and on some have mercy with fear, hating even the garment polluted by the flesh.” (Jude 20-23)

The parenthetical insight into Lot’s character, 2 Peter 2:8, gives us an understanding into how oppressive it is to live in a society that has become so sensually corrupt that its public indecent acts are seen and heard daily. The righteousness of Lot was not enough to cause a restraint and curtail the open and unashamed public display of the sensuality of homosexual behavior. This is displayed in the fact that all the men of Sodom surrounded Lot’s house and demanded he turn over his guests so that they could rape them (Genesis 19). The homosexual community of Sodom had an expectation that Lot would let them rape his guest and they were willing to storm the house by force and take them if Lot didn’t hand them over. Living in this environment was tortuous, causing anguish to Lot’s soul. Maybe the anguish of soul was partly for what he saw in his own family. After all, some of his daughters and sons-in-law (assuming children too) refused to leave with Lot, his wife, and two of his unwed daughters. Those daughters and families were destroyed along with all the other inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah. Also, Lot lost his wife when she disobeyed and looked back as they were fleeing the cities and valley. That’s a lot of heartache, disappointment, and grief to bear. The Scripture implies that the anguish of soul was from the lawlessness of homosexual behavior that he saw and heard day-in and day-out. Yet, even as his soul grieved, he did not compromise the message that the behavior was wicked (Genesis 19:7). Lot confronted the ungodly mob with the words “Please, my brothers, do not act wickedly.” He refused to call it less than what it was. The homosexual community accused Lot of judging them and threatened to do more harm to him than they intended to do to his guest. This is the natural progression of the corruption of unbridled ungodliness. The more ungodly behavior is legalized the worse society will become. We see this playing out in every community in America.

Likewise, the Church in America must not compromise the message that identifies the behavior/character of the LGBTQ+ community as wicked in the sight of God. Also, the Church, must influence, as much as possible, the moral laws of the land so as to do what is best for society. God has established government to be “a minister of God, an avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil” (Romans 13:4). So, in faith, in love, in mercy, in humility, in hope, with gentleness and reverence/respect and in obedience to her Lord the Church must keep on sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ until He comes again. Just as in Houston in 2015, the Church must be the restraint to the foolishness of mankind. The Church must not give consent to those who practice immorality. The peacemaker must with love proclaim the truth that the LGBTQ+ need to hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ. If they continue to find their identity in LGBTQ+ behavior and community, they are denying Jesus as their Lord and Savior. It’s not their behavior that cause them to be lost, it is that they are denying Jesus that cause them to be lost. If they repent and believe they will find their identity in Christ. “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.” (2 Corinthians 5:17) In salvation they will no longer be identified by being LGBTQ+ because they will see that they are so much more in their identity in Christ. Identity in Christ destroys the LGBTQ+ community. My God bring about a spiritual revival in the LGBTQ+ community in the same way that He did in Nineveh through the proclamation of Jonah.

Hypocrisy, Power, and Social Unrest

Hypocrisy, Power, and Social Unrest

(Possibly Civil War)

I affirm the right of every American to assemble in peacefully and civil protest. I condemned the lawlessness in riots since the election in 2016 and I condemn the lawlessness in the riot at the Capital on Wednesday, January 6, 2021. I condemn the lawlessness in the House of Representatives on Wednesday, January 13, 2021, in the impeachment of President Trump. I also condemn the manipulation of our Constitutional Republic in order to destroy it and establish a Socialistic government in its place. In my opinion, the only way this deceptive take over has been possible is because we have allowed professional politicians (Democrats and Republicans) to abuse their power and line their pockets with wealth. America’s system of government was never planned to have professional politicians. We would not be in this mess if we had term limits in the House and Senate. If politicians have to move back into society and live under the laws and regulations they pass they are much more likely to truly represent those they serve. If they had term limits they would not be able to build their own power kingdoms. If there had been term limits we probably wouldn’t be in the financial debt that we are. Like the theme song to the television series Monk says, "I could be wrong now, but I don't think so!"

Wednesday, January 6, 2021, at our Capital on the Ellipse, there was a legal rally to be followed by a peaceful protest called Save America Rally. Unfortunately, there were some bad actors in the protest whose actions were ungodly, illegal, and did not represent the Make America Great Movement. These actions led to a display of an attribute that was publicly broadcast across the airwaves and social medias. But the attribute of which I speak is not the one of the bad actors. The attribute I speak of is the shameless display of hypocrisy.

The shameless hypocrisy of those who condoned lawlessness when rioting and looting sieged the streets of cities across our land since 2016 (especially this past year) but, while condemning the lawlessness Wednesday at the Capital, are using it to create a tsunami of condemnation against all conservatives by characterizing conservatives as domestic terrorist. It is not just coincidence that the phrase “domestic terrorist” is being used by the left to identify what happened on last Wednesday. It is no accident that Speaker Pelosi said Saturday, “that there are people in our country, led by this President, for the moment, who have chosen their whiteness over democracy.” The left’s definition in The Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act of 2019, which 22 Senate Democrats introduced, focuses completely on “white supremacist and other far-right-wing extremists.” I’m not a terrorist, a white supremacist, nor a far-right-wing extremist but I am white, a conservative Constitutionalist and supported the policies of President Trump. To some that makes me a domestic terrorist.

The shameless hypocrisy of those who defended the reaction of those who lost the election in 2016 (i.e. Women’s March, Democrat leaders Boycott Trumps Inauguration, Democrat leaders Inciting Public Harassments, Inciting rebellion against the President of the United States of America, Speaker of the House publicly ripping up the State of the Union speech, etc.) while prosecuting the reaction of those who lost the election of 2020. After using the truth that no one is above the Law, they themselves have placed themselves above the law. Equal justice under the law is more than a motto over the entrance to the Supreme Court of the United States of America. The reaction of the left, and some on the right, has become more and more extreme over the past few decades to marginalize and silence those that disagree with them.

The shameless hypocrisy of those who have mocked transparency with known bogus investigation after bogus investigation since the 2016 election and now blocked the transparency of the 2020 election. Speaker Pelosi said in January 2017 that the election of 2016 was hijacked and called for investigation but when conservatives claims the election of 2020 was fraudulent and calls for investigation it is conspiracy theories, unfounded accusations, and an attempt to overthrow the will of the people. Wednesday, January 13, 2021, what Speaker Pelosi and those who voted for impeachment did is completely against the Constitution and the Laws of this Republic. It lifted emotions and personal vendetta above reason and rights.

The shameless hypocrisy of those who refused responsibility for fanning the flames of lawlessness since 2016 while accusing President Trump for inciting Wednesday’s (6th) lawlessness. Claiming that the President incited the riot with rhetoric of conspiracy theories and unfounded accusations of voter fraud and at the same time finding conspiratorial codes and meanings in his words is hypocritical. Look at how many of the left tried to incite open rebellion against the conservative movement. Not only that, but those who rode the President’s popularity to get elected or re-elected in the 2020 election and now are turning against him are typical career politicians more concerned about their power and paycheck than in doing what is right and legal for our nation.

The shameless hypocrisy of those who have spent the past 4+ years (and continue even now) disparaging President Trump while trying to destroy and overthrow the will of the people with covered up lies and deceptive actions, now declaring that the events of Wednesday (6th) was an attempted Coup d’état of the 2020 election. I have not been able to find one report that factually identifies one rioter brandishing a gun/weapon or firing a shot. Calling it an attempt to overthrow the affirmation of the Electoral College vote for Joe Biden seems to be an attempt to elevate an emotional frizzy in order to cancel President Trump and squelch the conservative movement of more than 70 million Americans.

The shameless hypocrisy of those who say we need a peaceful transfer of power but impeach the President with only days before the Inauguration of President Elect Biden. This show of abusive power came even after President Trump affirmed that there will be an orderly transfer of power with the Inauguration of President Elect Biden on January 20th. Those who are pushing this are leading us into further civil unrest. Their Trump Derangement Syndrome is obvious in their desire to try to completely destroy the man, Donald Trump, even if it destroys millions of Americans. They are not really against him per se but that he has disrupted their kingdom, saying out loud what most Americans already think, threatening to upset their power and wealth.

The shameless hypocrisy of those who have set out to fundamentally transform America from a Constitutional Republic with limited Governmental control to a Socialistic society with more and more Governmental control and now blaming the results of that transformation on those who never wanted it in the first place. Have you noticed that the more this transformation is promoted the more the foundational truths of America are propagandized as the problem and wrong? The more this transformation is promoted the more the rights of Americans are being threatened. The more this transformation is promoted the more of America’s history is being erased and/or rewritten.

What we saw and experienced Wednesday (6th) and since was the natural evolution of Socialism. There is a reason why we haven’t seen anything like this in 200 years. It’s because we have never been pushed more toward a Socialistic society than right now. It’s been 12 years since Barak Obama said he and his followers were on the verge of “fundamentally transforming the United States of America.” In June 2019 Bernie Sanders said, “we need a political revolution.” And it’s only been 8 months since Joe Biden said how COVID-19 could give them the opportunity to “fundamentally transform the Country.” They are using this virus to accelerate Socialism. He said that they could do things now that couldn’t be done even 2-3 years ago. We may not be a Socialist country right now but as we continue down this path, we will see more and more of the things you see in Socialistic societies. Class warfare, race division, power/control vs humble/servitude, force/coercion vs willingness/influence, oppression of labor vs freedom of capitalism, private property vs governmental seized property, etc. As one of my favorite singers, Luke Garrett, said in his song, Judgement in The Gate, “Our golden rule has changed – he who has the gold makes the rule.” Professional politicians are becoming wealthy in what was supposed to be a service to the public. In a Socialistic country the wealth is centered in the government.

In the past few decades, there has been an intense political revolution to takeover and fundamentally transform the United States of America. The only thing that can mean is to politically takeover America and change the basic ideology that made it what it was. Though I have a hard time believing that the majority of Americans are willing to surrender our freedoms, it appears that the majority of the voting populace have voted for Socialism. That’s Democratic Socialism. They want more and more Governmental power and control. They are willing to give up more and more of their rights and responsibilities in order to rely more and more on the Government to provide them what they think they need. This Socialistic government promises to those who will follow, “free” everything. Free healthcare, free college, free childcare, free housing, cancelation of student debt, reparations to blacks, and reparations to LBGTQ are all seducing some Americans. Since the government has no money except that which it takes from others, the promise of redistribution of wealth appeals to the covetousness, envy, and jealousy of Fallen humanity. Governmental forced redistribution of wealth is nothing more than stealing. Just ask those immigrants that came from those Socialistic countries.

Sometimes a hostile takeover is done in the streets with people in fatigues and sometimes it is done in the halls of government with people in business attire. Sometimes it is done in a military coup and sometimes it is done in the voting booth. Regardless of how it happens, is it not still a hostile takeover? A Coup d’état is defined only by the one who is in power. When you rise up while someone else is in power it is called the right of peaceful protest but when someone rises up when you are in power it is an insurrection. The destruction of public and private property by ANTIFA and Black Lives Matter is characterized as “mostly peaceful protest” while what happened at the Capital by a very small element is characterizing the whole group as an insurrection trying to take over the government.

History has shown that there is always a revolution that comes with a political take over. Just remember there was a General George Washington (American Revolutionary War 1775-83) before there was a President George Washington (1789-1797). The American Revolution began with words and British governmental Acts for control. Among the words was a phrase that showed the revolt against too much taxation without any of the Colonies having a seat at Parliament. “No Taxation without Representation.” When the British government doubled down on the taxation with different Acts, political protest increased with things like the organization of the Sons of Liberty and a rebellious act called the Boston Tea Party. As a result, the British government passed more Acts as a punishment against the Colonies, which was called by the Colonist the Intolerable Acts. Twelve of the thirteen Colonies replied to this punishment with the First Continental Congress, a boycott of British goods, and petition to the King to repeal the Intolerable Acts. The British’s answer to this reply was an order to disarm the rebels and arrest their leaders. History has proved that those who desire freedom are willing to fight to achieve it for themselves, their posterity, and to share with others that want it. History has a way of repeating itself.

Nearly one hundred years later, The Civil War in America (1861-1865) began after several decades of building tensions between ideologies that the Constitution provided. Mainly, the ideology of slavery vs freedom drove the War, primarily the enslavement of black people but the ideology “that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness” was the conviction that was worth fighting for. After failure of Congress to bring about harmony through compromises, several Southern States Succeeded. As with the American Revolution, the Civil War was first fought for decades with words in the halls of government and when words failed, bullets prevailed.

Make no mistake, this is no longer just about Republicans and Democrats, Libertarians and Greens, Conservatives and Liberals, Left and Right. It is not just about a difference in philosophy of how to best accomplish the same goals. This is not just a renovation of some outdated ideals. This is about the tearing down of one and the building of another. Understand that this has never been about a man, Donald Trump. He is just the one that has been used to bring into the light that which has been in the shadows. The forces that want to destroy America and replace her with Socialism put all the spotlights on him in order to keep themselves and their movement in the shadows. Proof of this is in the left now trying to shut down any free speech that disagrees with them. With the Democrats winning control of the House, Senate, and White House they have become embolden in destroying the Right with calls for expulsion of certain leading Republicans and eradicating any who supported President Trump. They have made the election a matter of personality instead of about policies. President Trump’s personality played into this strategy completely. He is openly boisterous, ego-centric, insulting, and unpresidential (not a politician). But what he said was America first, called for an American pride, and to bring back the greatness of America. He may not have been politically correct according to some standards, but he did what he said he would do. The left is able to look politically correct while all along being un-American.

While I am in no way calling for a taking up arms and a literal war against those who are trying to take over our Nation, I am saying that under the current leftist leadership we are headed to a conflict of some kind. The patriotic movement will not be silenced. America will not become a Socialistic nation without a war. What I am calling for is prayer. America has a rich history of calling upon God. The final phrases of our National Anthem, The Star-Spangled Banner, along with other patriotic songs which shows how Americans have always called upon God to preserve us as a nation of freedom.

“Praise the Pow'r that hath made and preserv'd us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause is just,
And this be our motto: "In God is our trust"
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!”

The patriotic prayer put to music, “God Bless America”, was written in the midst of WW1 and leading us into WW2.

“God bless America
Stand beside her and guide her
Through the night with the light from above.”

The patriotic folk song, America the Beautiful, also testifies:

America! America!
God mend thine every flaw,
Confirm thy soul in self-control,
Thy liberty in law!

Oh my Lord God Almighty Sovereign may the words of this war for America not fail. May our governmental representatives fight the good fight resolutely, fairly, and honestly. May they be steadfast and founded with convictions based on the principles that are true to our Constitutional Republic. May You keep them safe. May You miraculously change the hearts of those whose egos cause them to abuse the power entrusted to them. Open the eyes of the blinded and thwart the deception of evil. Help all of us, especially our politicians, to let civility rule. Spare us of a war that causes bloodshed and the loss of life. Yet, and only as a last resort, if words fail to protect that which we have been entrusted with, please, give us the patience, grace, fortitude, and courage to be willing to follow our forefathers and let bullets prevail. Freedom is worth fighting for.

The Battle of The Wills

1 Corinthians 15:50-58

As we struggle through a friend dying of terminal cancer there is something that happens that we don’t completely understand. There is a battle going on between life and death. The will to live is inherent in the nature of man. It is not necessarily a conscious willfulness choice. Sometimes a person slips into a coma and the will to live is still there. The body hangs on to life as long as it possibly can.

But there is one thing that is certain in this battle of the wills. Death will defeat the will to live at some point. It will happen to us all. Yet, it is a necessity for the follower of Christ to experience the ultimate victory of the life of Christ.

Now I say this, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.

51 Behold, I tell you a mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed,

52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.

53 For this perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality.

54 But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, “Death is swallowed up in victory.

55  “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”

56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law;

57 but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.

In this passage the author uses a literary style called anthropomorphism or personification. He presents death as having characteristics, qualities, or behavior of something alive. He speaks to death as if it is a being with its own will. “O Death, where is your victory? O Death, where is your sting?”

In this passage God presents the ultimate bait-and-switch scenario. There is a battle personified between physical life and physical death. The battle of the wills is between the will of life and the will of death. In Genesis 2:16-17 God pronounced the result of the Fall of Man:

The Lord God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely;

17 but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.”

Death is the result of man’s choice to disregard the life God gave. On the day that man ate of the forbidden fruit death was given reign over man. Man will surely die. Death is a reality. In its personification death believes it is the victor over man. Death believes itself to be the victor in the war of life and death.

In Christ, God uses death to benefit man but death doesn’t know this. Death is baited with what it perceives to be the victory. Yet, at the very moment of defeat God switches the results on death and defeats it with eternal life.

Our passage in 1 Corinthians tells us that death must win the physical battle of the wills in order for the “brethren” to “inherit the kingdom of God.” Flesh and blood cannot inherit it. The perishable must put n the imperishable. The mortal must put on immortality. At the very moment that death wins the battle of the wills the victory mocking of the ancient rings out on the other side:

“Death is swallowed up in victory.

“O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”

For the believer the battle is fought until the bitter end. But death is nothing more than a doorway into the ultimate dimension of the kingdom of God. Death opens the door for us to receive our inheritance. For the believer there is no fear in death. In the book of Revelation 1:18 Jesus tells us that he alone holds the keys of death. The door of death cannot be opened without Jesus unlocking that door.

“Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades.

The Kingdom of God has many dimensions. The unbeliever stands outside and cannot see or understand the things of God. Only with the influence of God can man enter into the kingdom. By grace through faith man is influenced and becomes a believer and, as a believer, man enters into a dimension of the kingdom where he sees and understands as God’s Spirit gives him illumination. On this side of death “we know in part and we prophesy in part…we see in a mirror dimly.” 1 Cor. 13:9&12

For the believer, death, in thinking it is winning the battle of the wills by defeating the will to live, is the door to eternity. When Jesus unlocks that door, the victory death thought it would experience is defeated. “Death is swallowed up in victory.” The sting death thought it was inflicting is not felt.

Verse 56 says, “The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.” The battle of the wills begins at a very early age. Sin is inherent in our nature and the battle begins when we see and understand that we are sinners. That is, we start choosing death over life. That is what sin is. God says, “Here is life, my life. I want to give it to you, for you to experience its fullness. I want you to have life with me, to exist with me, to interact with me, to know me. This is life and I want you to chose it over the alternative, death.” Then the serpent, Satan, comes along and says, “Are you kidding me? That doesn’t look like life at all. It looks restrictive. It looks like going without something that is pleasing to the eyes and sweet to the taste. It looks like a don’t. Doesn’t it seem reasonable that life would be do’s?”

Thus begins the battle of the wills. The word ‘sin’ doesn’t mean “doing something wrong.” It literally means, “missing the mark.” When we chose sin we are choosing death over life. We are choosing:

Flesh and blood over the Spirit.

The perishable over the imperishable.

Our mortality over our immortality.

Sin is not so much doing wrong as it is missing out on the life God has for us and wants us to experience in Him. Sin is when we don’t believe that what He has for us is life and we miss the mark by choosing to believe the lie. Death is disguised in a costume of life.

Though we fight this battle between life and death all our lives, because of sin, death will win the battle of the wills. That is, at least physically. Yet, we are promised there is no sting in death and death will have no victory. Death is deceived by its own doing in thinking that he will be victorious in defeating physical life. When in reality all it does is open the door into eternal glory. It opens the door to our inheritance. It ushers us into the ultimate dimension of the kingdom of God.

The scripture says God gives the believer the victory over death through our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus blazed the trail for us in defeating death. He died on the Cross and was buried in the tomb. Death thought it had won the victory and celebrated for 3 days. Then came the resurrection and death was defeated. We, as believers, have our identity in Christ and are included in His victory. God ‘gives’ it to us. It is a work of grace. A gift given and not earned.

Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.

When in scripture we see a “therefore” we know that it is ‘there for’ the reason just stated. Therefore, based on the fact and gratitude of the victory over death that God has given to us through Our Lord Jesus Christ, we are to “be” the following. Notice that it doesn’t say ‘do’ the following as if He is concerned with our behavior or performance. No, He says “be” because His desire is for our being. The Law is all about doing. Sin is all about doing. Life is all about being and being is all about life.

Knowing the reality and certainty of death and that its sting and victory has already been conquered for us, we chose life in Jesus. What does that choice look like? It is a “steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord.”

To “be steadfast, immovable, always abounding” is fairly easy to define. Stay with it, don’t get distracted, stay focused, constantly be engaged, be an overachiever, actively pursue, in all circumstances be proactive followers of Christ.

“In the work of the Lord” is a little more difficult to define. Starting out, notice that it does not say ‘work for the Lord.” To work ‘for’ someone is to spend our energy so as to accomplish something that is not already completed. When Jesus died on the cross He said, “It is finished.” The work for which He came to do was completed and needs no further accomplishment. To work ‘for’ Christ is to labor with an expectation of being recompensed. The idea of working ‘for’ Christ is saying I earned something from Christ. Yet, the scripture says,

by grace you have been [are being and shall be] saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. Eph. 2:8-9

No, we do not work ‘for’ the Lord since there is nothing of the Lord that we need to accomplish nor is there anything of the Lord that we can earn. To ‘be’ in the work of the Lord is to rest in what He has already done and to be a servant to Him in what He is doing.

we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. Eph. 2:10

When the disciples came to Jesus in John 6:28-29 and asked, “what shall we do, so that we may work the works of God?” Jesus answered them and said to them, “this is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.” To be in the work of the Lord is to believe in Jesus Christ. Salvation is the work of the Lord. Sanctification is the work of the Lord. Glorification is the work of the Lord. “Being transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Rom 12:1) is the work of the Lord. “To be conformed to the image of His Son,” is the work of the Lord.

For each of us the work of the Lord is to be engaged in what He is doing in and through us as individuals. Do not let anything in life or death move you from this objective. As we go about living our lives remain steadfast, immovable in what God is doing. Always be abounding in this work. As we go about living our lives be in the work of the Lord.

★He never ask us to be something or do something that He first does not cause us to become and empower us to do.

That which motivates us to “be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord” is a knowledge that comes from experience.  “Knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.” If there is no knowledge of the victory given to us there can be no steadfast, immovable, always abounding. The knowledge is not only in the victory won by Christ but is also in the timing of experiencing that victory in its completeness. Until Jesus takes the keys and unlocks the door of death we toil in the Lord.

The fact that we work from a position of victory does not negate the hardness of the work. It is a ‘toiling’: hard labor, strenuous exertion, exhausting effort. The battle of the wills is a ‘battle’. To continuously chose life over death is not always easy. Especially when we are watching a loved one who is fighting the final battle against death. Our emotions are on high alert. We want them to continue in physical life and it is easy to lose sight of the victory in death. We grieve the loss of our personal present face-to-face relationship. We grieve for the now and in the midst of it we don’t understand the suffering, the pain, and the heartache. It is at this point that we hold onto the truth that our “toil is not in vain in the Lord.” It is times like this that the forging of our faith is processed.

I can explain this scripturally and theologically but emotionally and in this present reality I have no answers. What I know to be truth is comforting and gives hope for eternity. But for right now all I know is that this friend is suffering. His precious wife with their 2-month-old baby girl is in indescribable pain. His dad, mom, and brother are in the depths of grief that is deeper than the deepest ocean. As his friends, we are in deep sorrow. And my heart breaks for us all.

God's Role in Tragedies

There are tragedies in the news every day. All around the world there are children who suffer and die. A little boy drowns in his family’s swimming pool. An elderly lady is raped and robbed. A wife murders her husband. A drunk driver or a texting driver causes a wreck that kills a family. A doctor has to tell a patient that he has terminal cancer and there is no medical treatment that will help. A middle-aged man dies of a sudden massive heart attack or he lives on in disability.

I struggle with it myself. Maybe it’s how we have been taught. Maybe it’s our own natural preservation. Maybe it’s just human nature. I don’t know what it is but it seems to be prevalent in the Christian culture of America. Why is it that Christians think God is more unnaturally concerned about our health and heartaches than He is an unbeliever? Why do we get mad at God when bad things happen to our loved ones or us? Why do we blame God when our loved ones or we suffer? Why is it that when tragedy strikes it is always God’s fault? There seems to be this idea in America that as a Christ follower God owes us good health. I know it is prevalent in what is called the health, wealth, and prosperity preaching but it appears as an undercurrent in most every Christian group I’ve ever been around or heard of in America. Also, there seems to be a belief that in being a Christ follower God is suppose to build a force field around us that will protect us from tragedies and heartaches.

Understand, I’m not questioning a belief in God or about God. What I’m questioning is our belief system in a God who is supposed to protect us from tragedies. Or maybe it is our expectation of God in this belief system. In this belief system we portray God as master of the universe and, especially, master of our universe, which is totally true. Yet in this belief system He is either the cause of our problems or He is the passive spectator over our problems. So, we question why God would do this thing that has brought sorrow or we are confused as to how He could allow this thing to happen. Either way, how can we reconcile a God who would cause tragedy or passively allow it to happen with a God who loves us and wants what’s best for us?

I don’t think it is intrinsically wrong or bad to question God with why or how. The Bible is full of great people of faith who ask God why and how. The issue is, it seems to me, to be the preconceived ideas behind the whys and hows that predetermine our response unless God does what we ask Him to do i.e. heals or reverses tragedy.

For example, someone has been in a horrible automobile accident and was not killed. In fact they make a full recovery and you may hear something like, “It was only by God’s grace.” A little girl wanders from her home onto a busy highway and is hit by a car and killed. No one ever says, “It was only by God’s grace.” Is not all of life somehow an extension of God’s grace? When Paul said, “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain” (1 Co 15:10) was he only speaking of the good things in his life? Wasn’t he also the guy who would later say that he suffered “a thorn in the flesh” and rather than removing it, healing it, or doing something miraculous that took the suffering away, God said, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness” (2 Co 12:9)?

Is God’s grace only something that we measure when something good happens (at least something we judge as good)? When something good happens it is by God’s grace. When something bad happens it is God’s fault. I’m just struggling with those two paradigms. Someone may say that God uses bad things happening to get our attention, wake us up, discipline us, or even punish us. Does our God cause the pain, suffering, and death of our loved ones as a means to get our attention? If He does, wouldn’t that make Him some kind of sadistic masochist?

When Paul spoke of his “thorn in the flesh” he did not say it was God’s fault. He said “there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me—to keep me from exalting myself!” (2 Co 12:7). Here are some mixed concepts that are hard to reconcile. First, the idea of something “given” carries with it the idea of being for ones benefit, something received through favor, and implies a giver. It is the same word as is used in what is commonly called The Lord’s Prayer: “Give us this day our daily bread.” (Matt 6:11) Second, he describes the thorn as “a messenger of Satan.” A “messenger” is an angel sent with a message. Third, he tells us the mission of this “messenger” is to “torment” him. The word used is one that describes to be beat up. It literally means to “strike with the fist.” Figuratively it means “to cause injury or weakness or possibly a circumstantial difficulty.”^[1] Lastly, he gives us a known purpose of this thorn: “to keep me from exalting myself!” Whatever the thorn is its purpose is to produce humility.

So, there are several different interpretations as to what the thorn is that Paul was writing about. Yet, even if figurative language was used with metaphorical meanings the concepts of 2 Co 12:7 are just not easy to reconcile with our American Christian culture. Literal or metaphorical, how do we reconcile a God of love and goodness with a God who reveals something magnificently great to Paul, and then in order to keep him from getting the big head God sends an angel of Satan to beat him up.

When we struggle with the idea of health, tragedies, and heartaches and God’s role in these we need to have as our foundational understanding the fact that God is never at fault. He is not faulty. We are. So, if we don’t get the answer we want, God is not at fault. When tragedies happen (and they will) they are not God’s fault. We live in a fallen universe where sin has corrupted every degree of its existence. God is no more to blame when tragedy strikes than He was when the first sin infected the entire universe. Jesus taught in the New Covenant that the reason we should not despise or curse our enemies is because “He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” (Mt 5:45) That is, there is a sense of equality in this life where God is not prejudice in His provision or protection. Also, there are things in this life that are experienced by Christ followers and those who are in opposition to Christ alike. His sun rising can be a good thing but in a land that is parched it can be another day of devastation. Rain can be a good thing, too, but in a land that is flooding it is a thing of more destruction. Beneficial or bad it comes to the evil and good, to the righteous and unrighteous.

It seems to me that with just a cursory reading of the Bible, even the New Testament, we find all kinds of people experiencing tragedies and heartaches. John the Baptist was beheaded. I wonder how that affected his loved ones? Jesus suffered more than we can imagine. He died with the question “why” on His lips but I wonder if in the cry were there blame, anger, and disappointment toward the Father? Stephen was stoned to death, Paul was beaten, John was exiled to an island, and these are only some of the ones we know. What about the countless other followers of Christ who remain nameless with a few simple sentences in Acts 8:1-3 that describe a mega attack on Christ followers in Jerusalem with massive destruction of lives? Men and women being thrown in prison separated from their families, children who lost their parents, parents who had to watch their children murdered, siblings who saw their brothers and sisters being tortured, families being scattered throughout the world losing everything they owned and being cutoff from their loved ones. How many stories of tragedies and heartache are written between the lines of Scriptures? Fox’s Book of Martyrs is a history of tragedies and heartaches of those who were followers of Christ. There were husbands having to watch their wives raped, children being sold into prostitution, wives and mothers watching their husbands and sons burned at the stake.

My struggle listing these who suffered tragedies and heartaches is that they did so because they were followers of Christ. Then it hit me. EXACTLY!!! If these suffered because they were believers then why would we who are believers think that we would be exempt from sufferings of any kind? They suffered and/or died for their faith. Their faith didn’t exempt them and our faith doesn’t exempt us. In the American culture when we experience tragedies and heartaches it is probably not because of our faith. (At least not yet are we being martyred for being a follower of Christ.) It is most likely in-spite of our faith. That is, these tragedies and heartaches are just a part of life. They are like the sun that rises on the evil and good or the rain that falls on the just and unjust.

If this were our understanding and built into our belief system as followers of Christ, when tragedies and heartaches come upon us our faith would not falter because we wouldn’t have an expectation of God to protect us from such things. Would we still ask God why and how? I assume so. After all, He is the all knowing and our faith would have us turn to Him for understanding, comfort, hope, peace, etc. We may even express anger but it probably wouldn’t be toward God as the cause or the passive spectator. Maybe this was the scenario of Paul’s account in 2 Co 12. Maybe he suffered some kind of physical ailment and in the midst of the third time of asking God to remove it God let him in on the mystery of the ailment. Maybe it was because he wasn’t blaming God or so angry with God for doing this or allowing this that he was prone to hear God’s mystery.

In our American Christian culture we don’t really grasp the mystery of God nor God’s mysteries. We spend our energy crying out to God because life isn’t fair. For instance, one-person cries to God that it’s unfair because his father dies at 70 years of age just when he was starting to really enjoy retirement. Another person says, “Well, at least you had your dad until he was 70. Mine died when he was 52.” Still someone else says, “My dad died when he was 36. I was 13.” Yet another says, “I was conceived just before my dad went off to war. He was killed in battle before I was born. I never met my dad.” Then a mother chimes in saying, “My son was murdered in a high school shooting. He never was able to have children.” In sadness a dad says, “At least you had your son until high school. My daughter died of cancer at the age of 2.” Then a woman says, “My first child was a girl, carried full term, but still born.” Expressing deep grief another couple expresses, “At least you had children. We were never even able to conceive.”

As we focus on how unfair life is with our blame and anger toward God we miss the mystery of God in His sovereignty working in and through the frailties of life. I don’t mean to imply fatalism at all. God is in control. He is sovereign. He even sometimes miraculously delivers some from the heartache of tragedy. He sometimes heals the body and extends the life. In fact, maybe life itself is the miracle. Do we still ask for healing, deliverance, and to escape tragedies? Absolutely. The Scriptures implore us to. Yet, in all of this there is still a mystery that remains known only to God Himself. Even after revealing all that He did to the Israelites who wandered in the wilderness and preparing to go into the promise land Moses declared, “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our sons forever.” (Dt 29:29).

Someone once said, “prayer is not man trying to bend the will of God to our wishes but to align our wishes to His will.” That is where the mystery is. In crying out to God we find the mystery of God and the mystery of faith. So, in sickness, if healing happens we rejoice in and praise God for what He has done. If death happens, in grief we praise God that the life He graced us with is now in heaven. When we approach tragedies and heartaches with this mindset we are released to grieve in a healthy way. Grief is not a place we are to live but a process we are to go through. Sadness is a necessary part of life, for without it we would never realize the joys. Rather than life being unfair, maybe it is more inline with scripture to say, life is unpredictable. Without life’s unpredictability we would never find the mystery of God. Without the tragedies and heartaches we would never find the faith, understanding, strength, courage, hope, peace, ect. that we so desperately seek when we are in the midst of those tragedies and heartaches.

Life happens! Every experience of life is an expression of God’s grace. The experience may be wrapped in mystery but we can trust that He will give us His grace and He will be with us in the midst of the experience. Birth, death, and everything in-between is just life. Live it to its fullest. Experience the highest highs and the lowest lows. Experience the joy and the grief to the fullness. Worship Christ in all of life. When death comes it has no sting and it has no victory. When tragedies and heartaches happen, cry out to God with all the emotions and questions deserved. Grieve in the depth of your being. Shed tears of misery.  Yet, reserve your anger toward the true culprit: sin. When I say sin I’m not talking about particular sins that someone may have done to bring about the tragedies and heartaches, although, those sins may have been directly a cause of sorrow i.e. someone takes an overdose of drugs and dies. I’m talking about the being of sin that is set loose on all humanity and the universe and is actively reaping havoc and destruction. Pray with all your might for God to preform a miracle to stop or, at least, reduce suffering. If the miracle doesn’t come then we must trust God and His mystery. Draw close to Him in humility and know that God cares for you. He inspired Peter when he wrote,

God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.

6               Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time,

7               casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.

8               Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

9               But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world.

10            After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you. (1 Pe 5:5–10)

This is not to be construed as an answer to those suffering. Nor is it a ‘should’ that implies I’m right and if you disagree you are wrong. I have written this over several weeks and months as I have been working through some of my own tragedies and heartaches over the past few months. I have had dear friends, a husband and wife, killed in a car accident. I have had friends, who are followers of Christ; see their marriages crumble in divorce after up to 49 years of marriage. I have watched dear friends, a young couple and their families, rejoice in cancer being in remission and chose to get pregnant, only to be devastated to have the cancer return 2 days before the birth of their first child and the families first grandchild. I myself have suffered severe declination of health. Working through this writing has helped me deal with my emotions and grief. I hope it helps you, as well.

My faith will not falter.

My hope will not be diminished.

I will trust in my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, until my last breath.

My Love for Him and people will not shrink.

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^[1] Louw, J. P., & Nida, E. A. (1996). Vol. 1: Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament: Based on semantic domains (electronic ed. of the 2nd edition.) (230). New York: United Bible Societies.