A Revelation of My Heart

Last Saturday evening I attended the 2^nd annual Christmas dinner-theater production at First Baptist Church, Moriarty, NM. It was so enjoyable to be back with my church family and see folks I had not seen since my “retirement” at the end of August. Congratulations to the church and its choir for a wonderful production and a Christ-honoring evening. The church is progressing well as it moves into its future without me as its pastor.

Therein lies the revelation of my heart. My emotions were mixed that evening. As much as I celebrated the advance of the church, I could not help but wonder if they missed me. The question is not so much if they missed me as a friend. Of course they do. But I wonder if they missed me as their pastor,  if they missed my leadership. This is not a questioning of God’s leadership. I am very assured that God led the church and me into this new phase. What it does reveal is my continued desire to be appreciated, even glorified. I remember a line in the movie “Hoosiers” when Gene Hackman exclaimed that everyone wants to be a god even for just a little while. That pretty much sums up what I was feeling last Saturday.

My Fallen Heart

This is the essence of the fallen human condition that we inherited from Adam and Eve. We all want to be like god. Instead of acknowledging, worshipping, and glorifying the One, True God, and enjoining others to do the same, we all want to usurp his place in our own lives and the lives of others. As I travel to see my kids this week for Christmas, likely I will suffer this malady again. My desire for my kids to love and appreciate me as an earthly father so easily morphs into wanting them to appreciate me as a god—the one they cannot get along without. I am under no illusions as to the idiocy of that desire. One day—coming much too quickly—I will pass from their lives. But the desire to be worshipped as a god by my family, friends, and fellow human beings is much too prevalent in my heart.

I wish this ugly part of me would just go away. But like my continual struggle with eating too much of the wrong things for the wrong reasons, the desire to be god tenaciously clings to my being. What a wretched man I am! Some might say that there is nothing wrong with wanting to be appreciated. I agree with that somewhat. However, when that desire dominates me and my relationships with others, it bring inestimable harm to all. Self-serving leadership always does harm whether in families, churches, communities or countries.

While that ugly part of me is far from dead, I rejoice that it is declining. God has done everything needed to overcome that depraved part of me. He sent Jesus Christ to not only forgive my sins, but to give me an entirely new nature. 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NIV) Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!  I now possess a new nature that really desires God to be God in my life. Secondly, God sent His Spirit to live in me so that I can move from this wretched condition to a God-honoring life. This work of God is described in Romans 7-8, climaxing in Romans 8:37 (NIV) (In all things) we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. Finally, in His Word God offers promises through which His power actually flows to transform me into true godliness. 2 Peter 1:4 (NIV) He has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. God is at work in me and will complete me someday (Philippians 1:6). John the Baptist claimed, “He must increase, I must decrease.” With God’s help that is becoming true of me too. Merry Christmas.

When Atheists attack Christmas

Here we go again! Right in the middle of the Christmas season, the new, more militant, atheists in our land organize attacks against Christmas displays. Here are two cases from today's news. http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/12/13/atheist-messages-displace-california-park-nativity-scenes/?test=latestnews & http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/12/10/atheist-group-seeks-banner-to-join-christmas-display/?intcmp=obinsite#ixzz1gDJ9pKir. 

I believe it would be fair to say that the new atheists would like to silence Christmas altogether. The proposed atheists’ banner in Elwood City, PA seems to indicate this radical agenda: "At this season of the Winter Solstice, LET REASON PREVAIL. There are no gods, no devils, no angels, no heaven or hell. There is only our natural world. Religion is but myth and superstition that hardens hearts and enslaves minds." One who believes this message would be compelled to remove all children from any religious influence. If religion truly hardens hearts and enslaves minds, then adults that teach religion to children are child abusers, even parents.

How should we react to such ardent atheists? First, we should not try to silence them. When we refuse to listen to another person’s point of view, that refusal comes from fear that we cannot argue reasonably with them. Look again at the banner message. There is no reason involved in their message. They make an unsubstantiated claim that cannot be proven. It takes as much, or more, faith to BELIEVE there is no god as it takes to BELIEVE that God exists. Even our Founders, including Thomas Jefferson called the existence of a Creator self-evident. We have nothing to fear. Let atheists display their banners and make their arguments. Reasonable men and women will ascertain the truth. Their banner is also an indirect ad hominem attack—attacking the person of anyone who practices religion. Reasonable men and women refuse to resort to ad hominem attacks, because they have sound arguments.

Second, we should not rollover for them. What our Founders envisioned was all religions—atheistic, Christian, or other—having voice in the public square. To rollover and play dead in the face of atheistic pressure is to allow secularism to be the state-advocated religion, which is unconstitutional. Let’s seek a voice in the public square, not an exclusive one, as the atheists seek, but an equal voice. Reasonable men and women will ascertain the truth.

Third, we should grieve for them. The Apostle Paul stated  quite well in Philippians 3:18-19 (NIV) For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. ¹⁹ Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. When the Apostle Paul talked about the enemies of Christ, he spoke forthrightly but not with hatred or anger. Rather, he grieved for them. We should too. What is the cause of our grief? We grieve because the creature has rejected the love and grace of his or her self-evident Creator. How sad God must be! We grieve because the atheist’s conclusion that earthly existence is all there is leaves them with such a meaningless, self-absorbed, existence. Despite their claims to the contrary, if death is the end of our existence, then death mocks everything that makes life meaningful. “Let us eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die,” is the only reasonable approach to life for the atheist. What a sad way to live! Lastly, we grieve that men and women who claim to be so reasonable ignore the preponderance of evidence before them. Even children know that the design of nature points to (not proves) the existence of designer. I have lived over 60 years and have never seen order come from chaos without a designer doing it (i.e. children mess up, mothers clean up). Have you?

I am not angry with atheists and never will be. What are they to do? If I were one of them, I would resort to the same tactics. But I will not rollover for them either, no matter how vitriolic their attacks. I refuse to rollover for three reasons. First is the glory of God. God deserves the worship of all human beings. Second, I refuse to rollover for the sake of the atheist. There is a better way to approach and practice life than the one he or she self-constructs. Self-construction ultimately leads to self-destruction. The way of Christ leads to life itself, full, abundant, and free. Third, I refuse to rollover because I stand on firm ground. Romans 8:38-39 (NIV) For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, ³⁹ neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. The poor atheist possesses no such assurance or hope.

In closing, I call the atheist to be reasonable. Look at all the evidence. Look at alternate presuppositions. Both atheists and Christians have presuppositions. Which ones fit the evidence more clearly? As the Founders said, reasonable men will see the self-evident truth. If you are an atheist, I am praying for you.