"And what is there in me that could be hidden from thee, Lord, to whose eyes the abysses of man’s conscience are naked, even if I were unwilling to confess it to thee? In doing so I would only hide thee from myself, not myself from thee. But now that my groaning is witness to the fact that I am dissatisfied with myself, thou shinest forth and satisfiest. Thou art beloved and desired; so that I blush for myself, and renounce myself and choose thee, for I can neither please thee nor myself except in thee."
~ St. Augustine (Confessions Book X - translated by Albert C. Outler)
What is evil? Is there evil? Does evil exist in our postmodern world? Do we need to worry about evil? Do we need to be ready to fight against evil? Is evil a problem? Is evil an allusion? What is the real source of evil? Is evil really evil? How do we relate to evil? When is the last time you called evil evil? How should we respond to evil?
Many of us are deluded into thinking that life as a Christian is all hunky dory. Evil only happens to those who are evil, right? Should we, Christians, be concerned about evil? Is the word "evil" even relevant to those who have been saved by grace through faith? Do evil things happen to "good" people? First, we need to realize and acknowledge that God is completely sovereign. "I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things." (Isa 45:7) So how do we respond to evil?
Expect
“Do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you” (1 Peter 4:12). Evil should never surprise us and catch us off guard. God is going to test you. He loves you and He will cut and carve your character so as to make look more like Him. The cutting and the carving isn't fun but it is fulfilling to those who are faithful. Evil things are going to happen. Buckle up and be ready. Remember God is sovereign through it all.
Pray
Jesus taught us how to pray when He said, "Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil" (Matthew 6:13). The problem with many of us (not evil) is that we deliver ourselves into evil and then pray to be delivered from it. You can't drive yourself into a strip club (evil) and then pray to be delivered from evil. You can't pray "lead me not into temptation" when you really want and long to to be led there.
Hate
“Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good” (Romans 12:9). We are told to love and then to hate. If you don't hate than you don't really love. Love is not tolerance. If I love my own children then I wouldn’t tolerate those things that are destroying my children. As the Psalmist said, "Do I not hate those who hate you, O Lord? (Ps 139) Is prayer and hatred contradictory? Of course not. When it comes to evil we are told to pray and to hate.
Expose
“Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them” (Ephesians 5:11). We have a tendency to enjoy and be entertained by evil rather than exposing it for what it is. We are children of light in a dark, evil world. We are here to expose and to shine. We are supposed to be a city on a hill. Christians who do not shine are "thrown out and trampled under people's feet" (Mt.5:13) Exposing is never popular to those who love the darkness. We should, though, be seeking after righteousness not popularity. Shine on!
Overcome
“Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Romans 12:21). Don't given in or give up when evil entices or attacks. Evil is there for us to conquer. We are "more than conquerors through him who loved us." (Rom 8:37) The narrow road less traveled is difficult and sometimes lonely but it is the only path that leads to life. We must overcome by doing good "so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven." (Mt. 5:16) Is there evil around us? Then there is work ahead of us. It's time for us to overcome, have dominion and advance His Kingdom. John Piper wrote: "Never doubt that God is totally for you in Christ. If you trust him with your life, you are in Christ. Never doubt that all the evil that befalls you—even if it takes your life—is God’s loving, purifying, saving, fatherly discipline. It is not an expression of his punishment in wrath. That fell on Jesus Christ our substitute. “The Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives” (Hebrews 12:6)."
"So you don’t like problems, troubles, and frustrations? Join the babies; you will have lots of company. And buy yourself a pacifier and go to bed. Get out of the way. The rest of us have work to do."
Happiness and anger are God-given emotions that must be God-ordered and God-ordained. Anger is not something that Christians should be ashamed of. In fact, many believers today would probably be surprised to find out that we are commanded, in Scripture, to be angry. The apostle Paul says, “Be angry and do not sin…” (Eph 4:26) Right before Paul tells us to be angry he is talking about those who are “darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. But that is not the way you learned Christ!” (Eph 4:18-20) We need to be angry at sin when we see it but we shouldn’t sin in our anger.
There is so much corruption and sensuality in our culture that has been entertaining us Christians for so many years. There are scenes in movies that we, as Christian parents have seen, that would horrify us if our children were watching them. There are things I have seen on the silver screen, as entertainment, that I would be disgusted if my children had seen them. Rousas J. Rushdoony says “What disgusts God should disgust us.” Why would I be angry if my kids have watched something that I was entertained by? Where was my anger when I was laughing at something that should have made me furious? The response of parents should not be apathy but anger. We can’t cower under the fear of being labeled as hypocrites. Its one thing to stumble but it’s far worse to cause our little ones to stumble. Jesus said “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea.” (Mark 9:42)
The problem with America is that Christians are too nice. Christians have been so afraid of anger. Anger is a great and godly emotion as long as you do not sin. It is not a sin to be angry; it is a sin to sin out of anger. As a parent it’s always amazing to me how the same thoughts that would anger me coming from my kid’s mind would be ignored coming from my own. Words that easily slip out of my mouth with impunity are met with wrath if caught through the teeth of one of my kids. Am I saying that my kids should get a free pass? Not at all! I just need to be impartial with my judgment. I shouldn’t stop being angry; I should just be angry more consistently. What we need is an anger that moves us to solutions not to sin.
How do we laugh at the things that crushed our Saviour? How are we entertained by the things that caused our Lord to suffer? How can we joke about the things that nailed God’s Son to the cross? Why are we amused by the things that caused Jesus to be accursed? There are so many things in our culture that should anger us and move us to faithful Kingdom service. We need to be angry at sin and sin not. The very things that have been attractive to us are the things that are trying to steal, kill and destroy our children. There is a battle for the hearts and minds of our kids. The enemy in the battle has been masquerading around as our friend for years. We need the kind of anger the Psalmist had when he said “Do I not hate those who hate you, O Lord? And do I not loathe those who rise up against you? I hate them with complete hatred; I count them my enemies.” (Psalms 139:21-22)
"We are called to the enjoyment of the ever blessed God: as if a man were called out of a prison to sit upon a throne.... What is the glory among men, which most so hunt after, but a feather blown in the air? What is it to the weight of glory? Is there not great reason we should follow God's call? God would have us part with nothing for Him, but that which will damn us if we keep it. He has no design upon us, but to make us happy. He calls us to salvation, He calls us to a kingdom."
Compare, in this commercial, the symptoms of the disease with the risks of the side-effects. The cure is worse then the disease. Maybe nutrition is a better option here. This commercial almost seems fake but it isn't.
The TV is my Shepherd, I shall not want. It maketh me to lie down on the sofa. It leadeth me away from the scriptures. It destroyeth my soul.
It leadeth me in the paths of immorality, For the sponsors' sake. Yea, though I walk in the shadow of my Christian duties, There will be no interruptions, For the handheld TV is with me. Its cable or wireless controls, They comfort me.
It prepareth a commercial before me, In the presence of my carnality. It anointeth my head with humanism. My coveting runneth over.
Surely laziness and ignorance shall follow me, All the days of my life, And I shall dwell in the house of TV forever.
That last quote was a from Augustine and before I had a chance to post it Kaila got on my computer and added the last part. Oooo someone's busted. Payback is torture.
"Our hearts were made for You, O Lord, and they are restless until they rest in Thee."
I have to admit that Kaila is my FAVORITE daughter! Favorite child for that matter :) and I think I shall get her a puppy fro Christmas. Don't you all agree?
Here are some distressing and disturbing statistics taken from Mark Driscoll message a while back.
"So I sought for a man among them who would make a wall, and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found no one." (Ezekiel 22:30)
• There are 11-13 million MORE women Christians in the US than men
Women are:
100% more likely than men to be involved in DISCIPLESHIP
56% more likely than men to be involved in CHURCH LEADERSHIP
54% more likely than men to be involved in SMALL GROUPS
39% more likely than men to HAVE A NORMAL DEVOTIONAL/QUIET TIME
33% more likely than men to VOLUNTEER AT CHURCH
29% more likely than men to READ THEIR BIBLES
29% more likely than men to ATTEND CHURCH
29% more likely than men to SHARE THEIR FAITH
29% more likely than men to GIVE FINANCIALLY TO A CHURCH
This is a good encouraging reminder to us parents who are home educators. We want to build strong Christian character in our children so that their lives will bring honor to God. We are raising world-changers who will advance the Kingdom of God in the earth. This quote comes from the pen of John Adams to his wife:
"Education makes a greater difference between man and man, than nature has made between man and brute. The virtues and powers to which men may be trained, by early education and constant discipline, are truly sublime and astonishing… It should be your care therefore, and mine, to elevate the minds of our children, and exalt their courage, to accelerate and animate their industry and activity, to excite in them an habitual contempt of meanness, abhorrence of injustice and inhumanity, and an ambition to excel in every capacity, faculty, and virtue. If we suffer their minds to grovel and creep in infancy, they will grovel and creep all their lives."
"And what is there in me that could be hidden from thee, Lord, to whose eyes the abysses of man’s conscience are naked, even if I were unwilling to confess it to thee? In doing so I would only hide thee from myself, not myself from thee. But now that my groaning is witness to the fact that I am dissatisfied with myself, thou shinest forth and satisfiest. Thou art beloved and desired; so that I blush for myself, and renounce myself and choose thee, for I can neither please thee nor myself except in thee."
