WALKING IN THE TRUTH
Today's Scriptural Truths *
"Do not put your trust in princes, in mortal men who cannot save. When their spirit departs, they return to the ground; on that very day their plans come to nothing. Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God, the Maker of heaven & earth, the sea & everything in them--the Lord who remains faithful forever." Psalm 146:3-7"Then Jesus said to them, 'Give to Caesar what is Caesar's & to God what is God's.' And they were amazed at Him." Mark 12:17 [You might find it very helpful to read the entire context in Mark 12:13-17.]
"Jesus said [to Pontius Pilate], 'My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, My servants would fight to prevent My arrest by the Jews. But now My kingdom is from another place.'" John 18:36 [Jesus says this to Pilate toward the end of the extraordinary conversation between the two of them when Jesus is on trial for His life. It's found in John 18:28-37. I think you can probably look it up w/o the need for my link . . . Oh, all right . . . I give in . . . Here is the link.]
"Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved." Acts 4:12 [This verse is found in the Apostle Peter's sermon to the masses on the first Pentecost.]
Today's Devotional Thoughts
I get to the point sometimes when political news & commentary make me despair . . . They make me despair almost to the point of throwing up my hands & praying, "Lord, take me to be with You now, & while You're at it, take my spouse & children & grand-children, too, because the world is already a stinking, filthy, corrupt place, & I fear for the world they will be experiencing in the years to come." [Yes, I am serious. Yes, I think this is most likely a sign of weak faith. No, I do not recommend this to you as sound, theological, prayer practice.]This year's political landscape seems especially depressing. I'm tempted to start citing examples, but it would detract from what I hope is a worthwhile message [& no doubt make me even gloomier].
Here are my thoughts, which I pray are guided by the Truth of Holy Scripture:
- While we as Christians have a responsibility to exercise our citizenship in a Christ-like & responsible manner, we also need to remember that our first & foremost responsibility is to the Lord . . .
- And we are called upon to love our neighbors, not just as ourselves, but as Christ has loved us . . . and He also told us to pray for those we consider to be our enemies . . . Kind of raises the ante, doesn't it?
- While we may be tempted to speculate that a specific political candidate . . . a political party . . . is truly the hope for our country . . . for our children & for our children's children . . . only God has been blessed with omniscience.
- Contrary to popular belief--also a very popular teaching in some evangelical circles--America is not the new Israel . . . is not the new Kingdom of God . . . and don't get me started on whether we are a Christian nation or not.
- This does NOT take away our responsibility to stand for God's Truth & do whatever we can within His commands to see that His justice prevails. Therefore, we can & should continue to do whatever we can to oppose, hinder, & prevent the abortion "holocaust," abortion industry, abortion proponents . . . but bombing abortion clinics . . . murdering abortion providers . . . trying to forcibly prevent women from entering an abortion clinic? I'll quote my pastor from his sermon at Grace Lutheran in Norfolk on SUN 4:17, "Laws & rules do not change persons' hearts." [My pastor is way more wiser & knowledgable than I am. Of course we want to discourage & stop sinful behavior, including our own, but it is only a true change of heart that leads to forgiveness & salvation--true peace with Christ.]
- While some political leaders--many, I hope & pray--are godly men & women, who seek to serve the Lord & follow His vision--there is only one who can save us . . .
- And, I might add, true salvation has everything to do with forgiveness of our sins & faith in Jesus Christ as our Lord & Savior . . .
Today's Prayer Thoughts
My suggestion for all Christians--including you & me--is for Christ to guide His people with an extra measure of discernment as we use our God-given reason & intellect to learn as much as we can about political candidates & political issues, work on behalf of what we truly know to be God's Will, & strive to elect godly men & women who also are blessed with such discernment & seek God's approval & the honor of God first & foremost over the approval & honor of humankind.* A Disclaimer
I know I've mentioned this before, but I don't think it hurts to remind. The overall title I give to my on-line devotionals is "Walking in the Truth," but it's not because I think that God has blessed me with a special dispensation of discernment or holy inspiration by the Holy Spirit. I believe that only Holy Scripture is inspired by the Holy Spirit, & I believe that Scripture itself testifies to this. It is always my hope & prayer that my insights are guided by my reading of Scripture & the prayers that accompany my writing, but Truth can only be found in Jesus--the Way, the Truth, & the Life . . . Jesus--the Living Word, as revealed in Scripture.- That is why I try to quote extensively from the Bible.
- That is why I call Scriptural "excerpts", Scriptural "Truths" . . .
- That is why I include links, which are lengthier--usually--than my excerpts--& provide what I think are important context in helping to discern & pray over the Biblical texts . . .
- I think prayer that accompanies the reading of Scripture & meditating over it is indispensable . . . at least it has been for me in my own spiritual journey . . .
- And, finally, that's why I call my devotional thoughts "devotional thoughts or meditations" but stop short of calling them the Truth.
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