Kopp Disclosure
(John 3:19-21)
@#Blessings and Love!
@#$%
Scratching the Surface of the Psalms
#56
“Word”
An honest to God undershepherd to the Good Shepherd has a love for the people entrusted to him that exceeds his need to be liked by them and understands Frederick Buechner’s conclusion in Wishful Thinking: “A prophet’s quarrel with the world is deep-down a lover’s quarrel. If they didn’t love the world, they probably wouldn’t bother to tell it that it’s going to hell. They’d just let it go. Their quarrel is God’s quarrel.”
When we really love someone and want His best for them, we sacrifice our weak though quite natural need to be liked by them.
It takes a lot of courage bolstered by ultimate allegiance to God to love without needing response, regard, or reward.
When a person cares more about perks, pensions, plaudits, and popularity than being an oak of righteousness with Jesus as the Master and the Bible as the manual, that person is no heaven good to America and her churches, children, spouse, school, job, or anyone else.
The only way to get better and save anybody is to get back to God.
That’s the constant theme of an honest to God undershepherd to the Good Shepherd.
Sometimes, the message comes inconveniently.
Colloquially, we can think of it as tinkling on the parade.
Jude comes to mind: “Though I wanted to talk to you about our common salvation and celebrate our unity, it is necessary to urge you to contend for faith because certain unGodly men have slithered into the community and its churches and are turning the grace of God into promiscuity while denying Jesus as our Master and Holy Scripture as our manual.”
Moving from that principle of fidelity to its practical implications for America, have you noticed the striking parallels and connections in the decline of America and her churches?
We have women and men who have slithered into the race to become President in 2020 that believe the Constitution of the United States with its Bill of Rights is outdated as the guiding principles for America; and do not miss their thinly veiled anti-God efforts to undermine the Constitution because of its roots in Holy Scripture.
We have woman and men who strut around America’s pulpits without having ever read or maybe read but not heeded or ignored or not understood or defied our Lord’s disdains in Matthew 23 that are making people twice as fit for hell as they are themselves - Jesus’ conclusion with which I agree - that believe the Bible may be “enlightening” but not necessarily absolutely authoritative on all issues of faith and morality.
If I have to explain that to you, as bikers say, you wouldn’t understand anyway.
It means you’re already drinking their Kool-Aid and under their spell.
Pero here’s how they view their “leadership” in America and her churches: “I know that’s what the Constitution says but I think…I know that’s what Jesus and the Bible say but I think…”
If you hear anyone talking like that in government or church or classroom or courtroom or anywhere two or three are not always gathered in His name, it’s a wolf trying to fit into sheep’s clothing.
Anyone that is conscious knows America and her churches are falling ergo failing and increasingly no heaven good to anyone.
Anyone familiar with the Bible knows God’s patience with infidelity is not eternal.
While we love ‘em and He judges ‘em, the Bible is categorically clear beyond any measure of contention that God’s ultimately eternal judgment is certain.
Anyone that doesn’t know that is Biblically illiterate and personally arrogant.
Fortunately, God made a promise to Abraham so long ago that I believe portends hope for America and her churches: “For the sake of 10 faithful people, I will not destroy everything.”
Praise God for the faithful remnant of people in America that still believe in Jesus by the book!
As long as the remnant holds, America and her churches will not drown in the cesspools of their increasingly arrogant, flamboyant, and shameless insults to God’s holiness.
That’s because the remnant embraces a prominent theme in David’s 56th psalm: “I trust God. I trust God’s Word.”
Contextually, we understand God’s Word to have been enfleshed in Jesus and explained in Holy Scripture; meaning fidelity is marked by allegiance to God in Jesus by the book as enlightened by the Holy Spirit that never contradicts Jesus by the book.
David repeats familiar themes in Psalm 56.
He prays for deliverance from his enemies because they are God’s enemies.
He laments the lying, oppressing, predatory, and lethal character of those enemies.
He rejoices in God who saves him from those enemies with this ringing note: “My enemies will lose because God is for me.”
David lives triumphantly amid the meanness, madness, misery, and miscreance of life in a fallen world because He trusts God’s Word: “When I am afraid, I trust God. I praise His Word. What can anyone do to me? I don’t fear anyone. I have the Word!”
David knows God’s Word saves.
The remnant knows God’s Word can save America.
How do we get that Word into America and her churches, courtrooms, classrooms, and government?
Jerry Kirk explained the game plan to me back in the early 80s: “When people ask me what we’re supposed to do, I tell them that we’re supposed to do everything that Jesus and the Bible tell us to do.”
Word.
Wake up! Look up! Stand up! Speak up! Act up for Jesus!
Word.
Shatter the sound of silence!
Word.
Salt! Shine! Leavenate!
Word.
It doesn’t always mean being liked.
It always means salvation.
Salvation for America and her churches.
Salvation for souls.
Word.
Blessings and Love!
@#$%
@#$%
@#$%
@#$%$%
No comments:
Post a Comment