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Day #1 – Found People Find People

Get wisdom and get understanding…!

Do you need some advice, some counsel – today?
… Quite probably …
We all need advice, help or counsel at some time,
… if not most all of the time!
Where are you going to go for good counsel today?
Depending on what advice or counsel you need …
You can go to …
… a Business Consultant, a Tax Consultant, a Marriage Counselor …
… and …
You could go to your local pastor, who will give you godly Counsel.
The Bible tells us …

Where no counsel is, the people fall: but
in the multitude of counsellors there is safety.
— Prov 11:14
Hear counsel, and receive instruction,
that thou mayest be wise in thy latter
— Prov 19:20

… But, in getting all this counsel … remember that …

Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom:
and with all thy getting get understanding.
— Prov 4:7
Through thy precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false way.
Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.
— Psalm 119:104-105

Where will you get wisdom and understanding? … from the Word!

There are many devices in a man’s heart;
nevertheless the counsel of the LORD, that shall stand.
— Prov 19:21

Where will you get the right counsel?
… from the Counselor Himself! …

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given:
and the government shall be upon his shoulder:
and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor,
The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
— Isa 9:6

Yes there is good advice to be had from consultants …
But we need to weigh that advice against a standard … God’s Word
… And …
… so that we know what to do with the counsel we have received …
… we need the counsel of the Counselor!

A man’s heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps.
— Prov 16:9

… Read …
Psalm 37:23
1Cor. 2:12-16

A wicked man hardeneth his face: but as for the upright, he directeth his way.

You show your heart by how you receive instruction. Wicked men rebel and purpose to continue in an evil course. Righteous men receive correction and alter their lives. Your response to instruction may tell more than anything else about your character and future.

A wicked man hardens his face. Here is a metaphor for a rebel who has purposed to reject teaching. He chooses rebellion rather than submission. Setting his jaw, steeling his eyes, frowning, or looking away are only symptoms of his wicked heart. He has resolved to ignore correction or instruction and stay put. See the comments on 28:9.

The Lord knows faces and how they reveal rebellion, so He warns about them (Is 48:4; Jer 3:3; 5:3). Rebellious hardening is also used of the neck and heart (28:14; 29:1; Acts 7:51). And He tells His ministers to ignore such faces and preach the unvarnished truth without apology or compromise anyway (Jer 1:4-10,17; 23:28-29; Ezek 2:6-7; 3:7-9).

Ministers learn faces. There is a huge difference between the hungry, submissive, cheerful, and godly face of the righteous and the bored, stubborn, unhappy, and carnal face of the wicked. Some faces crave and devour instruction; others resent and reject it. Both are in every church. They cannot hide from men or God.

Sometimes a minister will see by the faces that his instruction is “out of season.” The people do not want to hear what he has from the Lord. Sometimes it will be “in season.” But in either case he has only one duty: preach the word insistently (II Tim 4:2)!

A true man of God wages war against those faces, smashes through their walls, pulls down their strongholds, casts down their haughty imaginations, brings every thought into obedience to Christ, and sets himself to revenge any disobedience (II Cor 10:3-6). Do you understand this warfare, reader? Do you appreciate this kind of servant? It is a far cry from the effeminate, refined, cultured, and mannered man sought by most.

God hates stubbornness and rebellion. He considers them comparable to idolatry and witchcraft (I Sam 15:22-23). And He judges them severely. Think King Saul rejected from the throne! Think Judah in Babylon! Think women eating their children in 70 A.D.!

Righteous men hear and change. The Thessalonians heard Paul and turned from their idols to serve the living and true God (I Thess 1:9-10). Cornelius begged Peter to tell him and his family all of God’s commandments (Acts 10:33). Harlots wept at Jesus feet!

Dear reader, the Lord Jesus warned you about your hearing (Luke 8:18). Do you receive instruction and rebuke meekly and thankfully (Neh 8:1-18; Acts 17:11)? Or do you stop up your ears and wish you could stone the preacher (Acts 7:57)? Why do some people never learn or grow? Because the Lord is judging them for how they hear (Luke 8:18)!

You can stay in your wicked rut received from childhood, the devil, your parents, tradition, religious training, or worldly education. Or you can eagerly desire the sincere milk of the word that you may grow thereby (I Pet 2:1-3). Wise men and great men say, “I thought on my ways, and turned my feet unto thy testimonies” (Ps 119:59).

Do you delight in understanding? Or do you delight in discovering your own heart? See the comments on 18:2. If you think your heart has even an ounce of light and wisdom, you will harden your face against godly instruction. God does not grant your heart even one ounce (Is 8:20; Jer 17:9). Wise men will hear and change (4:26; 8:33; 11:5; 23:19).

Some hearers do not harden their faces; they nod up-and-down in agreement; they tell the pastor it was a good sermon. They lie with their lips and their handshakes (Ps 144:8,11). But their hearts are hard and far away during the teaching and when they get home. How are they detected? Their lives are fruitless shells of hypocrisy. Their joy is gray death.

Jesus told of a father who told his two sons to work in the vineyard (Matt 21:28-32). One son said he would not, but later repented and went and worked anyway. The other son respectfully said he would, but he did not. Which one pleased his father? Consider it. If a wicked man will hear and turn from his wickedness, he shall live (Ezek 18:27-28).

Jesus Christ of Nazareth, the Lord of heaven and earth, kindly offers, “If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him” (John 14:23). But He also warns, “He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day” (John 12:48). Humble yourself today, dear reader!

Christians And Modern Myths
« The Faith that God Reckons as Righteousness (1) – Romans 4:18

Additional Sound Counsel from Dr. Gary Shogren.

Gullibility is not a fruit of the Spirit. Yes, Paul did once tell the Corinthians that a loving Christian “believes all things” (1 Cor 13:7), but what he meant was along of the lines of, “to whatever extent possible, believe the best about other people”.

It’s important to establish this up front, since Christians are regularly bombarded by rumors, many of which are false. Wait ‘til you hear this! someone breathlessly informs us:

They are banning all Christian radio! A guest preacher spoke in our church. “The famous atheist Madalyn Murray O’Hair is leading a movement to take away our freedom!” he exclaimed. “If we don’t act now, then Christian radio programs will be banned!” He gave some details of the crisis, and I signed the petition to the FCC to reject the atheistic petition RM-2493 and keep the gospel message on the airwaves.

The only trouble is, I was fifteen when I put my signature on the petition. Yet decades later, that same warning keeps circulating, given new life by email and then Facebook. For example, in 2003:

Dr. James Dobson pleads for our action! An organization has been granted a Federal Hearing…by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in Washington, DC. Their petition, Number 2493, would ultimately pave the way to stop the reading of the gospel of our Lord and Savior, on the airwaves of America. They got 287,000 signatures to back their stand!

The very same rumor is still circulating in a recognizable form, with the number 2493 and the name of Murray O’Hair attached to it, even though the petition (which had nothing to do with banning religious programming in any event) was denied in 1975 and Murray O’Hair has been dead since 1995.

More recent variations on the rumor state that President Obama is the culprit; or that atheists forced the cancellation of the TV show “Touched By An Angel”. The FCC has had to issue denial after denial, but the rumor simply will not die. Not even thisdisclaimer from Focus on the Family has stopped it!

Some circulating myths seek to prove that THE WORLD IS NOT AS IT SEEMS. Surely you have heard this one:

The Procter and Gamble logo is Satanic! After petition 2493, the second-place ribbon would have to go to the infamous Procter and Gamble legend. The rumor started that their old logo – which P & G long ago discontinued – was a Satanic symbol. Its owner had supposedly gone on TV to announce that he gave large portions of the company earnings to the Church of Satan (another version says that Liz Claiborne was in league with Satanism). This legend cost P & G some sales, and in 2007 they actually won a major lawsuitagainst four Amway distributers for circulating the slander.

The world is full of credulous people, but why do Christians seem particularly open to these rumors? My impression is this: One of our principles is that God has revealed to us that the world is not as it seems. Bad things have an explanation: the world is in darkness and susceptible to “every sort of evil that deceives those who are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved” (2 Thess 2:10). Our interpretation of the world is therefore by definition “alternative” and goes against the mainstream.

Unfortunately that also means that when we hear a rumor which seems to confirm our view of the world, we are tempted to accept it as true, whether it is well-founded or not. We reason: “Here is an idea that is not mainstream; therefore it is probably true.” That is a fundamental error of logic. It would be like saying “The gospel is for those who perish, foolishness, according to 1 Cor 1:18; therefore, if a thing is regarded by some as ‘foolish’, Christians should feel obligated to accept it as true.” Therein lies our downfall.

We talk about “Doubting Thomas”, who refused to believe in Jesus’ resurrection until he had proof. His unbelief was wrong; nevertheless, let’s give him credit for not believing in mere rumor. We too should be stingy with our acceptance of hearsay, unless we have solid proof. Otherwise, do you know what the world will say about us? That we Christian fanatics believe any story that comes along. And if we’re the kind of people who pester the FCC for four decades with letters against RM-2493, why should they believe us when we say that Jesus most definitely rose from the grave?

How I wish that we could just list a couple of “Christian rumors” and be done with it; unfortunately, they keep multiplying. Here are a few important ones under the same category, THINGS THEY DON’T WANT YOU TO KNOW!
Russians dug so deep they reached hell, and heard the screams of the damned! Click here to read.“Russian scientists conducting deep hold drilling experiments in Siberia break through the earth’s crust at more than 14 kilometers. They find it is unusually hot at that depth (2,000 degrees F)…they drop a microphone into the drilled hole and are horrified when they realize they are hearing the voices of millions of people crying out in torment. Terrified, they decide to abandon the project…” This story had its start in a tabloid newspaper – in fact, I still remember seeing the headline about 20 years ago, while in line at the supermarket.

If you buy food with this mark on it, part of the revenue is a secret tax to the Jews! Well, it would hardly be the world of myths and legends if there wasn’t some sort of rumor against Jews. You know how on food packages you often find an encircled U or K or the word Pareve? According to one rumor: “major food companies throughout America actually pay a Jewish Tax amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars per year in order to receive protection. This hidden tax gets passed, of course, to all non-Jewish consumers of the products. This scam is to coerce the companies to pay up or suffer the consequences of a Jewish boycott”. The writer suggests that non-Jews boycott all these products. This is an example of centuries-long anti-Semitic rumors, which reached their cruelest form inMein Kampf = Jewish businessmen secretly pull the strings behind business, they manipulate world history and they must be rooted out. The truth of these symbols is that the products were inspected by a rabbi, who certifies to observant Jews – and only a small minority are strictly observant – that they are kosher. No-one is using them to funnel “hundreds of millions” a year to “Zionist” causes.

Some myths have to do with the ancient past. Here are someHISTORY HOAXES:

They found Noah’s Ark! Every few years, somebody “discovers” the remains of Noah’s Ark. The down side is that hardly any two explorers agree on where it is located, or even if it is on Mount Ararat. The latest discovery was supposedly by a group of Chinese Christians in 2010.

Of course, this would be a wonderful confirmation of the Bible if the ark were really located, but when scholars say that it is doubtful that they have discovered anything, we should remember that these are not “atheistic or worldly” people who reject Noah’s Ark because, of course, they would never admit of its existence. Rather we are speaking of scientists who take scientifically rigorous steps to confirm or deny a theory. In the case of Noah’s Ark, it’s either sad or amusing to know that local hiking guides near what is today called Mt. Ararat apparently know all about the quest for Noah’s Ark, and they are not above charging the naïve to go visit any old piece of timber high on the mountain. That is, local entrepreneurs make a good living as “Noah’s Ark Finders”.

Skeletons of an ancient race of giants have been discovered! I’ve blogged on this before (see HERE): supposedly in India (or Greece, or Egypt) they discovered skeletal remains of giants, which confirm the existence of giants in the days before the Flood (see Gen 6:1-4).

In fact, the picture that circulates was digitally altered by a man who entered it in a photo contest. Nevertheless, when I have seen emails or postings about the supposed giants, people say “Well, they’ll never get away showing THIS on CNN”. This man (clickHERE) claims that the Smithsonian is involved in an ongoing cover-up, but he offers no proof.

As with hoaxes in general, evidence tends to “conveniently” disappear – and as in most conspiracy theories, the lack of tangible evidence in itself is taken as proof of a cover-up! In fact, in many of our examples, the stories depend on second-hand information from someone now dead, or data in a file that went missing; there is little that an objective third party could verify or negate – that is, the fundamental points that distinguish good science from bad.

NASA proved the Lost Day of Joshua! “So, what happened is, NASA scientists fed all the data of history into a big computer program, and it turned out that there was a day missing. It turns out that NASA proved that the earth stood still for Joshua, and also that a sundial went backwards during the reign of Hezekiah, as recounted in Isaiah 38.”

Although the story was long ago discredited, this blogger states it as a fact (click HERE). He implies that NASA covered it up, but provides no evidence. My friend Robert Newman – who has a PhD in astrophysics from Cornell, that is, not a phony one – has a full, detailed study on this rumor and many other articles on the Bible and science.

They found Egyptian chariots and horse skeletons under the waters of the Red Sea! Or the Ark of the Covenant or who knows what else; we might classify these objects as Stuff that Ron Wyatt Claimed to have Found. The late Ron Wyatt, according to his own testimony, was pretty much the greatest archaeologist who ever lived. He claimed to have found Noah’s ark, Noah’s house, Mrs. Noah’s grave, human and horse skeletons and the remains of Pharoah’s chariots under the water of the Red Sea; the original Ten Commandments that Moses brought down from Sinai; the lost Ark of the Covenant (under the temple site in Jerusalem); the blood of Jesus on the ark. He “proved” from the blood’s DNA that Jesus was born of a virgin, by some method so far unknown to real genetic experts.

There is an analysis of Wyatt’s claims HERE. Wyatt claimed that he had done doctoral work in antiquities and was able to read inscriptions in all (all!) ancient languages; it turns out that this was a complete snow job. Nevertheless he made a career out of making outrageous claims – backed up with fuzzy photographs and vague data – and speaking before mesmerized groups. He seems to have been one of these sorry, deluded people who create their own personal universes and convince even themselves of their grandeur.

They’ve discovered pre-Flood human remains!Some Christians still state that there are fossilized prints of dinosaur and human feet in the Paluxy River; they cross back and forth, proving that dinosaurs existed just a few thousand years ago, not millions.

The evidence for this is sketchy, enough so that prominent creation scientist John Morris stated that it should not be used as evidence for a young earth and the co-existence of dinosaurs and humans (click HERE). Another example which apparently is a hoax is the hammer found in London, Texas, supposedly in rock that was dated as millions of years old.

This is an example of poor science, where a person claimed to have seen the this hammer in a certain place, who removed it and showed it around as evidence for a young earth. Legitimate scientists are careful not to remove objects, since part of their significance comes in seeing where they were when found; the technical term is in situ. This is why Indiana Jones would be an outcast from the scholarly world – a pirate who plunders gold and shiny objects, destroying any chance to understand them. Real scientists also allow other scholars to examine their finds; the hammer has been hidden away and no-one has been allowed to perform tests on it.

We used to live in Scotland, and we’ve visited Loch Ness many times; it’s a wonderful place of natural beauty. I’ve even been to the Loch Ness Monster Museum, where all of the supposed evidence is displayed. I’m not a believer: in fact, in 1993 it was discovered that the most famous photo of Nessie was a prank played by some local men. Now, if someone wants to believe the lake contains a sea serpent, I think that’s a harmless idea. What saddens me is when Christians, who should be “wise as serpents” turn out to be gullible when it comes to more important truths.

END-TIME RUMORS
We’ve talked about History and Hoaxes; now let’s turn to another type: rumors which indicate that we are close to the end times.

The Beast Computer in Belgium has all your personal information! There is a supercomputer in Belgium that contains all the data of everyone on the planet. Its nickname is “the Beast” because it fills several stories of a building. It will be used in the end times to keep track of all people, and it’s the fulfillment of the “first beast” of Rev 13.

I first heard of this at a prophecy conference – in 1974, if I remember correctly! It’s amusing to think now, that the computer was pictured as a massive object, reminiscent of the one in the scary sci-fi thriller, “Colossus: the Forbin Project” (1970); watch the movie some time and you’ll see what I mean. Today, my Dell laptop, which isn’t even new, probably has more storage space and calculating power than any “Beast” that could have been built in 1974. Almost four decades later, the Beast story is still circulating, sometimes with the name of a “Dr. Eldeman” as the creator of the system, sometimes linking this with an invisible tattoo with three numbers of six digits each (666!).

Some people claim to know that it’s located in a particular castle. The only problem is that such a computer never existed, and even if it had, would today be ludicrously out of date. As for the idea of tracking every person in the world, give some thought to people groups who have never been counted, let alone entire tribes that the modern world doesn’t know exist: their names are not registered in any central computer. It is now known that the rumor had its origin as part of a movie script called “The Rapture”, written in 1970. Today we are rightly concerned about identity theft and wonder if the government has too much information on us. But the Beast lives only in rumor.

Chip Implants are around the corner! I’ve seen a number of versions of this one, none of which pan out after close inspection. A few years ago, it was said that everyone would have a chip implanted under their skin, so that the government could track them and their purchases. Lately there is scarier rumor, stating that according to HR Bill 3200 (an early version of the Obama health-care law), every American would have to have a chip implanted in them by March 23, 2013! The rumor even cites the supposed paged number of the bill, although that pages deals with such implants as pacemakers, not a memory chip. This is a rumor that will not go away! The next time you see it – and you will, you will – remember to check the facts before panicking.

[Added thought: I must have missed this one, but in 2010 there was a rumor going around that Google was going to give us all chip implants]. Micro-implants are the topic of the moment; of course the Bible says nothing about anything of the kind.

Christian pilots are paired with non-Christians by the airlines, in case the Rapture comes! (clickHERE) According to this story, some airlines will not pair two Christian pilots on the same flight, just in case the rapture happens and they both disappear. Instead, a Christian is always partnered with a non-Christian.

This story has been around at least since 1993. It was given a further push by a similar plot in the Left Behind series of books. Nevertheless, neither the FAA nor any airline know anything of such a policy. There are other rumors about the end times and other topics, which take the form of “urban legends”; see the sequel to this essay, “Christian Urban Legends” (click HERE). One of the most famous has to do with a hitchhiker who predicts the soon coming of Christ, just before he disappears from the back seat.

I know how it is when you hear a rumor, one that seems to confirm what you believe about the world – so isn’t it true? Plus you might object: “But my friend told me about it, and she’s very reliable!” I’m sure she is in most things. But if you ask her, she’ll say, “my pastor told me, and he wouldn’t lie!” And the preacher will say, “I heard it on the radio program, and it’s more dependable than the mainstream media!” And so on. Whoeveryou tell the rumor to will say the same thing: “He or she is a good Christian and so I’m sure it’s so!” You can see how stories keep going – the rumored ban on Christian radio has been passed from one “dependable” person to another for almost four decades.

If someone is a Satanist, that’s worth knowing. If they want to give you a mark on your right hand or forehead, refuse it. But in everything, let’s follow the wisdom Prov 14:15: “The simple believes everything, but the prudent gives thought to his steps.” There is plenty of evil in the world to go around without inventing more.

“And it came to pass, before he had done speaking…and he said, Blessed be Jehovah?who hath not forsaken his lovingkindness and his truth” (Gen. 24:15, 27).

Every right prayer is answered before the prayer itself is finished–before we have “done speaking.” This is because God has pledged His Word to us that whatsoever we ask in Christ’s name that is, in oneness with Christ and His will. and in faith, shall be done.

As God’s Word cannot fail, whenever we meet those simple conditions in prayer, the answer to our prayer has been granted and completed in Heaven as we pray, even though its showing forth on earth may not occur until long afterward.

So it is well to close every prayer with praise to God for the answer that He has already granted; He who never forsakes His loving-kindness and His truth. (See Daniel 9:20-27 and 10:12). –Messages for the Morning Watch

When we believe for a blessing, we must take the attitude of faith, and begin to act and pray as if we had the blessing. We must treat God as if He had given us our request. We must lean our weight over upon Him for the thing that we have claimed, and just take it for granted that He gives it, and is going to continue to give it. This is the attitude of trust.

When the wife is married, she at once falls into a new attitude, and acts in accordance with the fact; and so when we take Christ as our Savior, as our Sanctifier, as our Healer, or as our Deliverer, He expects us to fall into the attitude of recognizing Him in the capacity that we have claimed, and expect Him to be to us all that we have trusted Him for. –Selected

“The thing I ask when God doth bid me pray,
Begins in that same act to come my way.”

… If Jesus came to visit today …
Would you have time for Him?
Would you stop doing what you are doing and spend the time with Him?
I am sure everyone’s answer would be …
Of course! No question about it!
… Are you sure ?…

Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village:
and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house.
And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus’ feet, and heard his word.
But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said,
Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone?
bid her therefore that she help me.
— Luke 10:38-40

Martha received Jesus into her house …
… and Jesus ministered to everyone who was there in her house!
But what about Martha? … Did she stop and spend time with Jesus?
No! … but she had a good excuse … She had to prepare food for Jesus!
Good reason?
Well let’s see what Jesus said about that!

And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha,
thou art careful and troubled about many things:
But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part,
which shall not be taken away from her.
— Luke 10:41-42

Sure everyone needs to eat, but get your priorities right …
… Jesus said to Martha …
Look at Mary, she has chosen the good part,
and it will not be taken away from her ….
What was Mary’s choice?

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness;
and all these things shall be added unto you.
— Matt 6:33

What was Jesus saying to Martha?
Take your eyes off your problem, and trust Me for an answer?
Spend time with Me instead of with your problem!
Stop trying to make it work in your own strength, let Me do it!
Put aside all of those things that are stealing your time, and spend it with Me!
Let Me in, like Mary did … I want to help!

… If Jesus came to visit today …
… would you try to impress Him, or just receive from Him?
… would you be running around doing for Him … or simply just listen to Him?

… If Jesus comes to visit today, and He will …
… throw aside all that keeps you busy and away from His presence …
… spend time with Him … TODAY!
… and receive from Him … TODAY!

Help Your Teens Achieve Their Dreams

The king’s wrath is as the roaring of a lion; but his favour is as dew upon the grass.

Respect and submission to leaders is a rule of wisdom. They can hurt you badly or help you greatly (16:14-15). A lion’s roar, audible at over five miles in the African night, causes terror in men’s hearts like an angry king can cause in his enemies. As the dew nourishes grass to grow and prosper, so a king’s reward can bring success. The lesson is a reminder to honor and obey civil rulers and all in authority for the obvious advantages.

If you rebel against a ruler, you are begging for pain and trouble, because he has power and strength (16:14). Rebellion is as wise as taking on a lion in the night without weapons (20:2)! Of course, some fools are so arrogant, ignorant, and rebellious that they resist or slander most authority they meet. But their end is as certain as the poor native caught by a man-eater in the dark! God and men will chew and devour them (17:11).

If you obey and serve a state or ruler, you secure the peace, protection, and provision that can assist and promote you and your endeavors (16:15). He can help and nurture you as much as moisture supplies grass with the sustenance necessary for life and growth. Friends in high places are one of the simplest rules of wisdom for your success. It is only pride and stupidity that causes men to squander this opportunity by offending authority.

Honoring and obeying civil government is practically wise. But it is also a law of God. He chose the word gods for civil rulers, and He demands men respect them and submit to them (Ex 22:28; I Sam 24:6; 26:9; Eccl 10:20; Acts 23:5; Rom 13:1-7; Titus 3:1-2; I Pet 2:13-17). Speaking against political rulers marks a reprobate, and the best cure for such perverts is to put them down like rabid dogs (II Pet 2:10-12; Jude 1:8-10).

What should you do when a ruler is angry at you? Humbly submit with soft answers and correct whatever he dislikes. Solomon wrote, “The wrath of a king is as messengers of death: but a wise man will pacify it” (20:2). And, “If the spirit of the ruler rise up against thee, leave not thy place; for yielding pacifieth great offences” (Eccl 10:4). And further, “By long forbearing is a prince persuaded, and a soft tongue breaketh the bone” (25:15).

Reader, are you wise in this matter of authority? Beginning with civil government, are you impeccably clear of tax fraud, disrespectful language, or violating any ordinances? Do you also honor and obey your employer, because God expects that as well (I Tim 6:1-2; Titus 2:9-10; I Pet 2:18-22)? Wife, do you reverence your husband (Eph 5:33; I Pet 3:6)? Church member, do you esteem your pastor (I Thess 5:12-13; Heb 13:7,17)? Child, do you honor your parents, even in your facial expressions (20:20; 30:17; Eph 6:1-3)?

The rule of wisdom in the proverb applies to all these spheres of authority. If you rebel against the authority, you will be eaten alive! If you humble yourself to respect and obey the authority, you will find favor and blessing from God and men. You do not protect yourself by rebelling against authority: you protect yourself by submitting to authority and securing both the ruler’s favor and God’s blessing. This is wisdom. Learn it!

Authority originated with God. All other spheres of authority are by His appointment and ordinance (Rom 13:1-7). The devil through pride would not submit to God, and he will spend eternity in hell for his rebellion. From the authority of a king down to the authority of a pastor and every office in between, God will defend the offices of authority and the persons in those offices. You are crawling naked through a lion-infested jungle when you oppose God’s appointed authorities. You will be eaten alive! And you will miss the blessing, pleasure, and prosperity of submitting to them by faith and trust in God.

There is also an indirect lesson here. If you are a ruler, you should remember the terror your disapproval causes and the joy your approval brings. Kings must practice mercy (20:28). Employers must be fair and equitable (29:21; Col 4:1). Pastors must be true and impartial (Ezek 13:22; I Tim 5:21). A husband should not beat down a wife through bitterness (Col 3:19). Fathers and mothers should avoid destroying a child by critical and overbearing parenting (Eph 6:4; Col 3:21). Consider these reminders well.

Reader, you have a king, even if your nation does not! Nebuchadnezzar, by God’s providence, was the most glorious and fearful king in world history. He changed the religion of his empire and enforced total compliance with the penalty of being burned alive (Dan 3:1-7). He could take dishonest cabinet members or rebellious citizens and chop them into pieces and turn their houses into a pile of dung (Dan 2:5; 3:29). But he was nothing compared to the soon arrival of Jesus Christ, the King of kings! Reader, kiss the Son today or perish (Ps 2:1-12; II Thess 1:7-10; I Tim 6:13-16; Rev 19:11-21)!

The fear of the Lord leads to life, and whoever has it rests satisfied. (Proverbs 19:23)

Franklin D. Roosevelt coined one of America’s iconic maxims in his first inaugural address: “the only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” It’s not true.

Roosevelt was trying to quell the national panic of financial crisis, urging Americans not to succumb to “unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts.” It is true that irrational fear must be resisted. But it’s not true that fear is the only thing we need to fear.

In fact, fear itself is not wrong. God actually designed us to be fearers. Fear is a faith-revealer. What we fear reveals what we trust. It’s a strong response to a perceived threat commanding us to protect our hope. In that way it governs our behaviors.

That means fear really isn’t our problem. If we fear the wrong things it’s because our faith is in the wrong things.

There’s the real issue for you and me. We have a lot of fears because we have a lot of unbelief.

Every time we are sinfully fearful — fearful of something God tells us not to fear — it is a moment of unbelief exposure. It is a place in the kingdom of our souls that has not yet been conquered; not yet fully under the rule of Jesus Christ.

Israel’s conquering the Promised Land is God’s metaphor for us in fighting unbelief. In the face of Canaan’s fortified cities and giants the Israelites were told:

Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the LORD your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you. (Deuteronomy 31:6)

They were called to face their fears because it would train them to put their trust in the right Hope. “It is the Lord your God you shall fear” (Deuteronomy 6:13). Learning to fear the One Right Thing would free them from the tyranny of fearing a myriad of wrong things. The same is true for us.

Today, if the Lord has you facing fortified cities and giants of unbelief and you find yourself fearful, hear his words and be encouraged to press on:

“Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you” (Deuteronomy 31:6).

“The fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding” (Job 28:28).

“Oh, fear the Lord, you his saints, for those who fear him have no lack” (Psalm 34:9)!

Say to those who have an anxious heart, “Be strong; fear not! Behold, your God… He will come and save you” (Isaiah 35:4).

He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things” (Romans 8:32)?

For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39).

“Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom” (Luke 12:32).

“Do not fear, only believe” (Mark 5:36).

There is only One Thing we have to fear, and it is not fear. It is the Lord. Through fear he will teach us faith.

Americans, Daniel Boorstin once observed, suffer from extravagant expectations. In his much quoted 1962 book The Image, or What Happened to the American Dream, Boorstin observed that Americans “expect the contradictory and the impossible. We expect compact cars which are spacious; luxurious cars which are economical. We expect to be rich and charitable, powerful and merciful, active and reflective, kind and competitive. . . . We expect to eat and stay thin, to be constantly on the move and ever more neighborly, to go to a ‘church of our choice’ and yet feel its guiding power over us, to revere God and to be God.”

Boorstin argued that “ever enlarging our extravagant expectations we create the demand for the illusions with which we deceive ourselves. And which we pay others to make to deceive us.”

Having, Consuming, Achieving

The Image was about the way the American entertainment, journalism, and advertising industries create and sustain our illusions (usually with our implicit consent). Everything from the meaning of the universe to the deep well-being and confidence we can expect from eliminating various unpleasant (if natural) odors emerge from the mist. The grand pattern of illusion fostered by the media magi is that ultimate satisfaction is obtainable by having (the right car, the trophy wife), by consuming (the smoothest liquor, the sexiest movie), or by achieving (the perfect body, the corner office).

But in reflecting on the shape and substance of American Who-Says-You-Can’t-Have-It-All-ness, I wonder if Boorstin doesn’t have it wrong. I wonder if we actually have been conditioned to expect too little from life, not too much. In the exhausting pursuit of happiness acquired, we miss the greater possibility of happiness of being. Living in a culture which insists that something we do will finally fulfill us, we are distracted from the truth that what we are (as created and redeemed) matters much more. We may reject belief in works-righteousness while unknowingly we have embraced a sad sort of works-happiness.

We expect too little, not too much. John Piper, in his bracing book Desiring God, reminds us that our problem is not that we are hedonistic, but that we are not hedonistic enough: we are not seeking the greatest of pleasures, the truest of joys.

Faux-Joy

Worldliness atrophies our pursuit of joy. Clutching our shabby stake in the city of man, we cannot lift our sights high enough to take in the glories of the City of God. We are really pathetic figures, heirs to heavenly wonders, scrabbling about in the bargain basement for some tawdry scrap of faux-joy.

Can a society such as ours possibly have any idea what joy is? James says that joy is known when we encounter suffering. Suffering produces perseverance, and that makes us mature and complete. Joy is the prospect of spiritual maturity before God. Joy is the anticipation of a new mode of being-in-Christ. For our culture, something called joy is more often associated with the immediate, happy-face experience of materialistic immaturity.

The deepest source of Christian joy is neither in what we can obtain or accomplish, nor even in what God obtains and accomplishes on our behalf. Our call is to enjoy God forever, not just His blessings for us. The blessings, like the gifts of any lover, are not ends in themselves.

God Is the Gospel

Surely one of the reasons that deep, abiding Christian joy is such a rarity is because we haven’t progressed from taking delight in what God has done to taking delight in who God is. Our culture stresses doing more than being, and the church follows its lead. Sermons typically stress what God can do for us, instead of preaching about who God is. This is often done with the good intention of making preaching “practical.” Of course, we need to put the Word into practice. But surely we need practice in being still and knowing that God is God. Without this discipline, we will almost certainly be tempted to use God.

Some may suggest that all this talk about reflecting on the being of God is far too esoteric, and may be fine for obscure mystics, but not for modern Christians with full schedules. John Piper, however, insists: “The pursuit of joy in God is not optional. It is not an ‘extra’ that a person might grow into after he comes to faith. Until your heart has hit upon this pursuit your ‘faith’ cannot please God. It is not saving faith. Saving faith is the confidence that if you sell all you have, and forsake all sinful pleasures, the hidden treasure of holy joy will satisfy your deepest desires.”

Of course, we could always insist on being satisfied with less, on being much more easily pleased.