Saturday, March 16, 2013

The Cross

Christians around the world are celebrating Easter in a couple weeks.  A lot of people, non-Christians and Christians, might ask: “What’s the big deal?”  Well, aside from being reminder of  the most important event in history, going through the religious traditions serves to remind us of who exactly this God of the Bible is and what He has done.
So, if you really and truly want to know who this God is, then you have to start at The Cross.  If you have ever asked yourself “How could a loving God let all these bad things happen to good people?” or “Why did God kill all those people in the torturous way of the great flood?”  These questions can only be answered in the light of The Cross.  If you want to know who God is, then you have to start at The Cross.  Nothing about Him will make any sense to you apart from The Cross.
Sure, God created everything, you and me included, but if there is no Good Friday and Easter Sunday, then it is all for not.  Suppose God did come down to earth in the person of His Son Jesus with all this great information on how to live and all the spectacular miracles but “the cup pass away from Him”, then it is all for not.
You want to know God, pick a Gospel (Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John) and read the account.  Then ask yourself: “Why did He do that?”  If you go through the line of questions and Biblical answers that will ensue, then you will come to know the God of the Bible.  On the contrary, if you start at the loaded question: “How is it fair that God hardened Pharaoh’s heart and then punished him for a hard heart?”; then you may be hindered by your own hardness and never get to The Cross.  The light of who God is, as shown at The Cross, illuminates God’s encounter with Pharaoh.  If you don’t understand God at The Cross, then you can’t understand God at the Red Sea.
“It is finished!”  If you want to know what is finished, then you are going have to start at the event that finished it.  I hope you will.  Feel free to contact me or any other born again Christian for encouragement along this journey to know God.

Saturday, March 9, 2013

Entitlements: Parental Unit Smith and CEO Jones

Parental Unit Smith lives in the US and works at a department store and makes minimum wage getting an average of 39 hours per week and will continue there in this capacity for the foreseeable future.  This breaks out to less than $15,000 a year.  Parental Unit Smith lives in a single income home where there are two young children.  This money can’t cover the basic requirements of the household (food, shelter, transportation, healthcare).
CEO Jones lives in the US and is the Chief Executive Officer for a large reputable corporation.  CEO Jones has amassed a personal wealth that would last ten people ten lifetimes.  CEO Jones earns $10,000,000 per year.
Question:  Is Parental Unit Smith “entitled” to some of CEO Jones’ money?  We are not talking about CEO Jones giving Parental Unit Smith money out of the goodness of CEO’s heart.  We are not talking about what a good and moral society ought to do.  We are asking, “Does Parental Unit Smith have a “right” to some of CEO Jones’ money regardless of what CEO thinks and regardless of what society ought to do?  If so, how much and why?  Why isn’t CEO Jones entitled to the money?
Is it because a Smith entitlement “promotes the general welfare” of the country and a Jones entitlement does not?  I can see that a Smith entitlement might put the required basics in the hands of Smith’s family.  I can also see that a Jones entitlement might create a better job for Smith and so put the required basics in the hands of Smith’s family.  What can you see?