Tag Archives: Christianity

Political Lessons From 1 Samuel

Posted by Tim on

religion-politicsThey say that you should never discuss politics or religion in polite company. I’m not sure who said this, or exactly what they meant by it. (I know there’s an old Peanuts special that said something along those lines, though. The Great Pumpkin, I believe it was.) Why even have religion or politics if not to discuss? I love learning about politics and religion, but spreading the message is the true joy in these areas. I know when to hold my tongue and when to let loose, and it can occur in polite or less-than-polite company.

I’ll go ahead and break that rule, and also break another – don’t mix religion and politics. That would make sense if the two weren’t already amazingly intertwined. Although I’m no expert on theology, I do try to read the Bible regularly, and I do truly believe that the answers to all of life’s most difficult questions can be found in the Good Book. Not just what is right and wrong, but advice on the best ways to deal with people, and how to address different situations. Perhaps the biggest thing I’ve taken away from the Bible is that there is always more to learn, and some things will forever remain a mystery. There is a plan, but much of this plan is given to us on a “need-to-know” basis.

One pillar of conservatism that separates it from liberalism is how it views government. While liberals tend to welcome government, anticipating relief from problems of the world of scarcity in which we live, conservatives believe otherwise. Our view of the world is the tragic view – there are no solutions; only trade offs. Because no solutions exist, giving anyone power is a bad idea. As Lord Acton said over 100 years ago, “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”

But warnings against government power have been around for ages, long before Acton spoke his famous line. Around 1100 BC, Samuel was judge over Israel, but when Samuel retires the people do not want another judge. Instead, they want a King – a ruler.

So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah. They said to him, “You are old, and your sons do not follow your ways; now appoint a king to lead us, such as all the other nations have.” (1 Samuel 8:4)

Samuel came to God with the request of Israel – to have a king. God, although unhappy with the request, granted it. But it came with a warning.

Now listen to them; but warn them solemnly and let them know what the king who will reign over them will claim as his rights. (1 Samuel 8:9)

Samuel told all the words of the Lord to the people who were asking him for a king. He said, “This is what the king who will reign over you will claim as his rights: He will take your sons and make them serve with his chariots and horses, and they will run in front of his chariots. Some he will assign to be commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and others to plow his ground and reap his harvest, and still others to make weapons of war and equipment for his chariots. He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive groves and give them to his attendants. He will take a tenth of your grain and of your vintage and give it to his officials and attendants. Your male and female servants and the best of your cattle and donkeys he will take for his own use. He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his slaves.” (1 Samuel 8:10-17)

These verses are a direct parallel to what happens in tyrannical countries around the world. Kings take children and use them for war. Notice that these children are put on chariots in front of the king’s chariots. The king doesn’t fight the battle – the soldiers do. Presidents and Congress don’t fight wars; instead they send young Americans around the world.

The king will take the fruits of your labor, the best of your fields, vineyards, and groves, and give them to his attendants. Sound like crony-capitalism at all? Sound like a president taxing some, and then giving it others – perhaps his own friends?

This post wouldn’t be complete without the most important line regarding kings.

But when they said, “Give us a king to lead us,” this displeased Samuel; so he prayed to the Lord. And the Lord told him: “Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. (1 Samuel 8:6-7)

The reason people always want a king, a dictator, a leader, a ruler, is because they are lacking a king in another part of their lives. People need something to have faith in, something to tell them that everything will be okay, something to save them. When there is a lack of God, people turn to something else – government. As Americans reject God, they will cry out for a King.

God or Government?

Posted by Tim on

Our nation was founded on the belief that men and women are created equal and are endowed by their creator with certain rights, among them life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. For these rights to live on, our government was set up with a complex system of checks and balances. No one person or party can govern against the will of the people, and even the will of the people is limited by our Constitution and the Supreme Court.

But our founders also knew that in order for our society to prosper our people would need to have good values, a strong work ethic, and a belief in God. Of course, there is a freedom of religion, and there is no national “God”. Our Founding Fathers also weren’t advocating a theocracy. What they were saying is that faith and religion were important. If liberty is limited by government, then we need something else to rule us. Our government isn’t here to tell us what is right and what is wrong. Much of what is morally wrong is perfectly legal. But to preserve the civil society, we need to have some kind of rule in place – God.

It is precisely when people lose their faith in God that they start looking for salvation in other places. Some people find their God in material things; houses, cars, fortunes in offshore bank accounts. Other people find their God in themselves; fame, admiration, power. The masses will many times come to replace God with government. The world is imperfect, and God doesn’t offer solutions nearly as quickly as government does. Many times we feel as if God is ignoring us, but government… government listens to us if we elect the right people.

Our democratic system however is designed specifically to hinder progression. All those checks and balances really get in the way when we’re trying to move things along. Of course this is done on purpose. New laws shouldn’t be passed willy nilly. The government’s power to do bad is infinitely greater than its power to do good. But nevermind all of that. People want their “progress” and they want it now!

F.A. Hayek wrote in The Road to Serfdom,

Yet, agreement that planning is necessary, together with the inability of democratic assemblies to produce a plan, will evoke stronger and stronger demands that the government or some single individual should be given the powers to act on their own responsibility. The belief is becoming more and more widespread that, if things are to get done, the responsible authorities must be freed from the fetters of democratic procedure.

F.A. Hayek

F.A. Hayek

Hayek was talking about people becoming frustrated with the slowness of the democratic process and believing that government’s powers shouldn’t be as limited as they are. In fact, some people may want to give powers to a single authority and count on that person to just “do what is best”. They are ignorant of the fact that they are demanding a dictator.

This is happening today. Cries from both sides of the aisle (although more so from the left) are telling politicians to just “do what needs to be done” without worrying whether they actually have the power to do such things. During the debates over whether or not to raise the debt ceiling, people wanted the president to just issue an executive order that would raise the debt ceiling regardless of what congress says. These people are asking for one person to have all the power – a dictator, a God.

If we want liberty, we need something to govern us other than government. God is the answer. How is it that we survived so long without government passing new laws everyday? We didn’t need all of these laws before. But God has slowly been kicked to the curb, and people are crying out for government to rescue us. The security government gives us is a trade off with liberty. The security God gives us is not.

The battle with overpowering government is not just with Washington. It is a battle of good and evil; of light and darkness. If we live in a world without God, we live in darkness. It is in this darkness where totalitarianism lives. For limited government, and our liberty, to prevail, God must win in America. If God is struck from our schools, from our media, and from our everyday life we have little hope. It is a choice between God or government.

Thoughts on 1 Timothy

Posted by Tim on

I just finished the book of 1 Timothy again. I really like both 1 and 2 Timothy, but I kind of wish it wasn’t so. I feel lame telling people that my favorite book of the Bible is 1 Timothy when my name is Timothy. I guess I was just named correctly. It could be worse; I could be named Amos. I’m sure I’d have to undergo horrible ridicule as a child – “Amos anus” and so forth. Always look on the bright side, right?

Putting aside what could have been, I found it rather comforting to learn what 1 Timothy was all about – Paul giving instructions to a young man who was looking to be a leader of the church. Timothy looked up to Paul, and Paul gave him excellent advice in the two letters he wrote – 1 Timothy and 2 Timothy.

While I’m no Bible thumper, and I’m hardly an expert in theology, I do enjoy reading this stuff and sharing what I learn. Although many people are much smarter than I am when it comes to religion, please bare with me as I share a few great verses I read recently. Maybe this is a repeat for you, maybe you’ve forgot it, or maybe you’ve never read it yourself. Take it or leave it.

“Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance; Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners – of whom I am the worst.“
1 Timothy 1:15

Paul says upfront – this is important. What he’s about to say needs to be taken seriously and literally. Jesus came to the world to save sinners. There are a number of ways to look at this. First, Paul doesn’t specify which sinners Jesus came to save; he just says “sinners”. Isn’t that ALL of us? We’re all sinners, and Jesus came to save everyone, not just people of a certain background or certain heritage.

Secondly, Paul wants Timothy to learn from Jesus. If we look back into Jesus’ time, he wasn’t hanging out with the kings of the land. He wasn’t hanging out with celebrities and rockstars. He was having dinner with the poor, the elderly, the sick. Too often today we think that to be a follower we need to push away people from our lives. Thats not what Jesus did. What we ought to do is reach out to the people who need Jesus most, even if they are seen as horrible people. Jesus had a number of personal conversations with prostitutes, did he not?

“For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.“
1 Timothy 4:8

Did Paul seriously just smash the meaning of my life to pieces? I’ve spent so many hours on exercise and diet and all of that stuff – just to have Paul say it isn’t important? Well, no. Paul admits that there is value in training your body; keeping it healthy and so forth. What he’s saying is that we shouldn’t be short sighted and overlook the most important thing – training our hearts. We all die – our bodies will turn to dirt. Our souls, on the other hand, last forever.

“Do not rebuke an older man harshly, but exhort him as if he were your father. Treat younger men as brothers, older women as mothers, and younger women as sisters, with absolute purity.”
1 Timothy 5:1

Isn’t this the key to having great relationships? Paul is telling Timothy that if he wants to be a leader he needs to be worthy of respect, and they only way you get respect is by giving it. Treat your elders well, and treat those younger than you as though they were your siblings; look after people. If we are to be leaders we need to look after those in our life the way a shepherd looks after his flock of sheep.

Meh. Just a few things I took away from that book. Its some really great reading, and I encourage everyone to pick up their Bibles soon and read it. Only a few chapters long – a half hour of reading should be enough to get through it, but I recommend more. Its good to sit and think about what is being said, and realize the deeper meaning.

The Seven Deadly Sins (Part III)

Posted by Tim on

About time for part III of this series. I must admit I almost forgot about it. Whenever I can’t think of something to write I’ll go back and reread my old posts, looking for ideas. Well – here’s an idea for ya, Tim! – Finish what you started!

In case you’re unfamiliar with the last two posts, this is a series of blog posts on the “Seven Deadly Sins”. The sins are pretty simple, and they’re things that are ridiculously common in the world today. Already discussed are wrath, greed, sloth, and pride. You can find the earlier posts here >> (Part I, Part II). That leaves only three left – lust, envy, and gluttony.

Lust is pretty much rampant in 90% of guys in America, myself included. Lust not only includes the random one night stands, but also just the lustful thoughts that so many of us have. Women are guilty of it too, by the way. Instead of looking at the opposite sex as individuals with value, we often look at them as sex objects. I know I’m guilty of judging a book by it’s cover. Look good? Ok. Not so good? Eh… Stay over there. How many problems does this produce? I bet the whole feminist movement would have been drastically different if it weren’t for men and women being so lustful. And think of the countless marriages that lust destroys. Lust, although it can be fun – can be dangerous.

I don’t know if any of the sins has received more news coverage in the last year than envy. Maybe you missed it, but it had to do with 99% vs 1%. Oh sure, “income inequality” was the guise, but envy was the reality. Some people were jealous of other people’s money. But where does this kind of talk get us? Instead of looking at what other people have, look at what they don’t have. Someone may earn a bigger salary than you, but they also might have a bitter ex-wife, and estranged kids because of their awesome paying job. Jealously leads to friendships ending, marriages getting tangled up over money and houses, neighbors fighting, and just unhappiness all the way around. Envy is a leading cause of hate, and hate is a leading cause of unhappiness.

And how could I forget. My favorite sin – gluttony. Well, America (and Australia too, actually) have taken this to a whole new level. In general, gluttony is just consuming too much. It doesn’t need to be food, but that’s just what everyone thinks of when they think of gluttony. Nickelback came out with a song late last year titled When We Stand Together. One line says “We could feed a starving world with what we throw away.” How true! But it’s worse. We could feed a starving world with what we overeat! Take some of your fat and give it to a starving kid in Africa. Do you really need 3 Big Macs?? Our health problems, many of our money problems, and once again, our happiness problems would be solved if we cut down on the gluttony.

As I’ve said before, I don’t mean to sound preachy. These are sins that we’re all guilty of. The point of this is to bring these sins to the front of our brains. Perhaps if we actually think about what we’re doing we’ll try to not do it so much. We’re always going to have sin in this world, but if we minimize the sin in our own lives, we can not only set an example for the rest of the world, but we can change our own lives for the better.

Non-Denominational Churches

Posted by Tim on

Before I get started, I’d like to draw your attention up a bit, right below the header. There you’ll see a new link titled “Recommended Reading”. There you’ll find a few books that have had an effect on me, and that I’d love for everyone else to read. Just two sections right now – Politics/Economics and Exercise/Diet. More to sections as well as more books to come later. I’ll continue writing Recommended Reading blog posts, but just in case you’re looking for something to read, and don’t want to ask me – click the link and pick something out.

Now, today’s topic – Non-Denominational Churches. This style of church has been popping up a lot in modern America. They’re becoming more and more popular, and they’re not only attracting new members, but members from other churches. What’s the deal? Why have these churches caught on? As always, I believe the answer is more likely to be simple, than not.

Whenever I talk to someone about church, (which doesn’t happen that often, by the way) I often get the same kind of responses. There are two main ones – either a) “I don’t like church and I don’t go. But I believe in God.”, or b) “I go to a non denominational church”. To me, that’s both odd and scary.

Most people who I talk to who go to church go to a non denominational church. These are the people who classify themselves as Christians; not Catholics, Lutherans, Methodists, Baptist, or any of the other “denominations”. It’s usually a Bible based service, with talks about God and practical ways of applying Christianity to our lives. At least at my own church, it doesn’t come off as judgmental, preachy, or boring. There’s some prayer, and sing-a-longs too, of course. There are also a lot of off-shoot ministries; small group settings for women battling cancer, veterans, single men, etc. Sounds like a pretty great place, right? There isn’t much to not like about it.

But then there are the other people, who are Christians, believe in God, but hate church. I’ve met a number of good people who hate religion almost solely because they went to private Catholic schools as kids. The entire idea of church has been so greatly damaged that they now see nothing good about it. God – good. Religion – bad. Interesting, right?

It’s a true shame that so many people have actually been turned away from God by their churches. That’s probably why people developed these new non denominational churches. They skip a lot of the traditions and rituals, get down to basics, and really reach out to people who need them.

I’m not saying that all other churches are bad. In fact, for some people the very strict teachings of Catholicism may be exactly what they need. We have all kinds of different churches, and that’s great because we can attract all kinds of different people. However, (at least from what I hear) this can be a big turn off for people. Which one to chose? Why are there so many? What are the differences? That’s where non denominational churches come into play, and just like the rest – they have a role in the bigger scheme of things.

The Bible is Alive

Posted by Tim on

Ever since I started reading, or more so studying, the Bible I’ve had a few profound moments. It’s like whenever you pick it up, no matter what page you turn to you’ll find something that pertains to whatever is happening in your life. It’s kind of a mysterious book that way. It’s more than a book – it’s spiritual.

The most recent odd Bible reading experience happened a few nights ago. I usually go to church on Saturdays, but this Saturday I’m working until 5:00 – exactly when the service starts. I usually get there 10-15 minutes early too, so this kind of put a fold in my plans. I also have a gig this Saturday about 45 minutes away. I have to get off work, shower, and head up north. So, I thought I had a legitimate excuse to skip church this week.

It just so happens that I was reading Hebrews later that night. A lot of the book has to do with Christianity breaking many of the old Jewish traditions, rituals, and rules. However, Hebrews makes a point of saying that church is still very important, whether you’re a Jew or a Christian. In the notes section below, the book explained that we should try harder to go to church when it’s inconvenient. How weird is that? I think about skipping church, and then I read that verse. So, that settles it. I’ll leave work a little early, make it to church, and just hustle to get to the gig.

I was talking about this with a coworker and he shared a weird Bible experience with me. One day he was talking to his wife on the phone and she was having some troubles. He told her to pick up her Bible, and he picked up his. When he asked what chapter she turned to she told him and he said…. seriously? That’s the exact same chapter I just turned to! How does stuff like that happen? Two people open their Bibles to the exact same book and chapter while on the phone. Kinda creepy, almost.

It’s just a little way of knowing that there is really something special about the Bible. It’s like it has a mind of it’s own. God works in mysterious ways…

 

Saul vs David

Posted by Tim on

This past Saturday I went to my home church for the first time since Christmas. It was a refreshing feeling. Some people think that since the church is categorized as a “mega-church” that it doesn’t have a strong sense of community. It really does, and to me it feels like home. This visit was also important because instead of going with my family as I normally would, I went with a friend. This friend is caught somewhat between Christianity and Islam, but wanted to go to church. I mentioned that I was going on Saturday, and he said, “hey, let’s go together.” It really worked out pretty well.

The sermon this week was a comparison between two main characters in the old testament, Saul and David. Both ended up being kings of Israel, but their differences are important. While Saul was physically strong, and an experienced leader, he lacked the most important thing – reliance on God. He thought he knew it all, and never let God into his heart. Over time Saul became cold and hardened.

David, however, was chosen by God, and had a strong relationship with God before he was even named to be the next king. David was small, weak, inexperienced, but he had something Saul didn’t have – God. David’s humility was shown when he refused to kill Saul, even as Saul was hunting him down. David would have certainly had an excuse to kill Saul in self defense, but he let him go.

This story is important, because it shows that God knows best. Our own plans in life can change in an instant, and it’s important to trust God. David had no idea what he was in for as king of Israel, but he had confidence in God. It’s also good to know that God doesn’t judge people the same way we do. While we look at someone’s physique, someone’s money, someone’s intelligence; God looks at their heart.

VIDEO: Chip Ingram

Posted by Tim on

Once again I’m going to puss out and post a video instead of typing anything. I’ve had a busy week – full of working and spending too many hours in a recording studio. So, instead of thinking of something interesting to write, I’m going to eat, lift some heavy ass weights, and hang with a friend. I do want to make a point to thank the handful of people who have started commenting and following my blog. Even a couple followers and “likes” makes this a lot more enjoyable. Have a rockin’ Friday everyone!


Friends and God

Posted by Tim on

They say that you’re the average of the 5 people you are around most, in terms of personality. I suppose that might be true, and I guess it’s a good thing that most of my best friends don’t hang out with each other. It’s become sort of an advantage, being that my friends aren’t all the same. While I get a hearty dose of testosterone driven, all-man, put-up or shut-up from one person, I get a relaxing, calm, deep intellectual conservation from another.

Among the differences in friends is their view on religion, God, and all of that crazy stuff. While I find it refreshing to sometimes just talk about worldly things like weightlifting and politics, sometimes it’s almost invigorating to talk about faith for a change.

Among the beliefs out there, the most popular in my circle is some form of Christianity. These people believe in the Christian God, but don’t really read the Bible or go to Church. They also don’t really like the whole “organized religion” thing. The rituals of the Catholic church scare them off, and the typical church-going choir boy epitomizes everything they hate about feminized men. So yeah – they believe… sort of.

The next most popular group is the atheists and/or agnostics. They either brush religion off as something for the weak of heart, or they just don’t care at all. I’ve found that for a lot of these types that they were introduced to religion as a child. Many of them had religion almost forced on them via a private religious education. I find it such a shame that a school designed to fill a young heart with God ended up turning them off of religion forever.

There are also a few of the “other” category. There are a couple of Jews, a buddhist or two, etc.

I’ve found it pretty enjoyable to talk about religion and God with all of these people over the last few months. Religion doesn’t have to be something that we keep to ourselves and only think about when we go to church on Sundays. It should be something that is really a part of our lives; something that resonates through our actions, our speech, and the way we treat others. Sometimes just a few chapters of the Bible each night before you lay down can be enough to change your outlook entirely.

Have a conversation, friends.

Kwanzaa Isn’t Real

Posted by Tim on

I remember being a kid in elementary school and learning about the different holidays that different cultures celebrate this time of the year. For all us white Christian kids we get to celebrate the best holiday – Christmas. There also happened to be a couple of Jewish kids in the school (not any in my class or even my grade if I remember correctly), and they get the whole Hanukkah thing. And the kids with parents that never felt like teaching them about religion or faith – well, they get the “winter solstice”. And yes, we had to learn about the “traditional” African holiday – Kwanzaa.

It wasn’t until a decade later that I figured out Kwanzaa isn’t real. By that I don’t mean that it’s not a real holiday, or that people don’t celebrate it, but that it’s not traditional, and didn’t come from Africa. I was led to believe that Kwanzaa was the “Christmas” for people in Africa. The English get Christmas, the Kenyans get Kwanzaa. Turns out Kwanzaa isn’t celebrated anywhere but America. (Kind of like Mexicans not celebrating Cinco de Mayo. Wait, you didn’t know about that either?)

Kwanzaa was developed in the mid 1960s by Maulana Karenga, leader of the Black Nationalist group, “Organization Us”. Organization Us, in case you haven’t heard of them, was (and is) the rival to the Black Panthers. Back in 1971, Karenga was convicted of the assault and torture of two of women. Karenga’s defense was along the lines of sanity – a psychiatrist told the court that Karenga suffered from hallucinations, schizophrenia, and paranoia. Sounds like a stable guy, right?

Karenga’s limited mental ability may very well be why he was given only 4 years for his crime. After he was released from prison he went right back to managing his group, Organization Us. But while all that black supremacist stuff was going on, Karenga did develop Kwanzaa. Karenga taught that Jesus and Christianity were only for white people. Christmas should be shunned by the black community, and that instead of celebrating the holiday of the evil white people who enslaved them, they ought to celebrate their African roots, by celebrating a holiday he made up – Kwanzaa.

There are “7 Principles” that surround Kwanzaa, and they are pretty good, if you take them at face level. Principles like creativity, purpose, and unity. But these words have all been turned and twisted to separate people. Unity is only for black people. One of the principles is “collective economics”. Sounds a bit like socialism, doesn’t it?

While I’m sure that most people think of Kwanzaa as a happy, fun, harmless holiday, many of the underlying facts behind it and it’s origin are downright disgusting. It was developed by a violent, racist, man, in order to give an “alternative” to Christmas. He clearly didn’t understand Christianity or Jesus, or he would have known that Christianity is not a “white” religion. While Christmas celebrates the birth of the Christian savior, Kwanzaa celebrates a culture and a people. Christmas was developed on religion; Kwanzaa was developed on politics and racism. Bet you’ll never hear that being taught in school…