Problem In Big Eva (Systemic Racism, George Floyd, BLM, Police Brutality) | True Worldview Ep. 70

The cracks are showing in Big Evangelicalism. Part of the issue is confusion, as untold numbers of Christians are more influenced by our culture than the Scriptures. At the same time, some of our leaders have simply capitulated. We could certainly deal with any number of things including Revoice in the PCA or the muddy waters constantly flowing from the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission of the SBC. The crack du jour though is the further slide into the pit of Critical Race Theory, as Big Eva jumps on the woke bandwagon in the aftermath of the brutal murder of George Floyd.

Christians Issuing Statements

While some urge us to consider the hundreds of years of burdens our black brothers and sisters bear, and by the way, in their parlance our black brothers and sisters include unbelievers, our genuine black brothers and sisters tell them not to project that wokeness on them. African-American believers find their identity in Christ, not in their skin color or what happened to others in the past. On the other hand, one black leader in Big Eva said his identity as a black man outweighed his identity in Christ. That’s a crack a mile wide.

So Christians everywhere are issuing statements concerning what we owe our black brothers and sisters; how we can’t tolerate racism in our police force and our culture at large; and even how we stand with the protestors including rioters, pillagers, and looters. To be fair, some object to the beatings and murders we’ve seen on television or video in the midst of the chaos, and others object to the destruction of private property, yet, their objections are mitigated by the expressed sentiment that we whites just don’t understand their plight, and they therefore support the protests in general. 

Systemic Racism?

A large segment of evangelical leaders have bought the lie that America is racist at its core; that systemic racism means that whites are racists because they’re white whether they realize it or not. They see groups and not individuals. Police are racist. Whites are racist. Not individuals. And of course, the problem is not human depravity, but white privilege. What is the solution then in that construct? It’s not the gospel, because even Christian whites are still racist.

It’s interesting, and sad, how our leaders blow with the cultural wind. When Eric Garner was brutally murdered by the police six years ago, a number evangelical leaders defended the police officers involved and police methods in general. I called them out then: to defend the police in the Eric Garner case is idolatry. The man was brutally murdered by those in power, as he pleaded for his life telling them over and over again, “I can’t breathe.” Now, the police in the George Floyd case can’t be defended either. Once again, those in power brutally murdered a man when he was already subdued. But this time around, our leaders have played the woke card. The officers involved are racist they say. We must put a stop to racism in the police force. 

The Real Issue

Here’s the issue: as of this writing, we don’t know whether the officer in the George Floyd case is racist or not. Moreover, even if he is, racism is not the issue. The issue here is police brutality. That brutality is rooted in human depravity. The woke crowd would have us believe that black men are being hunted down in the streets. While every black man murdered by a cop is tragic and should be dealt with by the rule of law, the notion that blacks are being hunted is false. In fact, far more white men are killed each year by the police than black men, even though far less white men than black men are involved in the types of crimes that invite potentially violent altercations with the police. Check the CDC on that. We certainly need to reevaluate police methods and rid out bad cops -- those with a penchant for over-aggressiveness and violence. But to blame the problem on racism is to miss the real cause and thereby fuel greater problems including the increasing racial divide that leads to the violence we’re witnessing on our televisions right now. It’s only going to get worse.

As a side note, we must also understand that while racism is evil, it’s not a crime. Yes, we should seek to rid our world of racism, and the only way to do that is through the gospel. But to say that racism will not be tolerated in our culture -- I have to ask -- what does that mean? If it means we’ll work to eliminate it with the gospel or other kinds of messaging, then fine. If it means we’re going to somehow outlaw views and attitudes with which we disagree, then no. Freedom of thought, religion, and speech is sacrosanct, even thought, religion, and speech we abhor.

Black Lives Matter, Antifa, the State, and Lawlessness

Yet, what we are witnessing is the fostering of a race war, chaos, and lawlessness in our streets by bad actors, namely Black Lives Matter and Antifa. They’ve joined forces to create the mayhem. Their goal is to overturn the current social order. The leaders of these groups are of the same persuasion as others promoting woke ideology -- it’s rooted in cultural Marxism. Their goal is the destruction of the current order that a new socialist order can be put in its place. And Big Eva has fallen for the deception.

How can we condone in any way, shape, or form the murder of George Floyd? How can we condone in any way, shape, or form police brutality? How can we condone in any way, shape, or form, the rioting in our cities? How is it that the mayors of major cities have pulled the police back and allowed the destruction of private property to the tune of billions of dollars, not to mention the injuries and deaths of their citizens as a result? It’s all evil, and it all must be unequivocally called what it is. If we as Christians don’t speak the truth, who will?

What we’re experiencing is lawlessness. And that’s where the government should step in. The biblical role of government is to protect the citizens in their God-given rights including the rights to life, liberty, and property. Yet, it’s the government who put George Floyd to death. It’s lawlessness. It’s the government that’s allowing the destruction of our cities. It’s lawlessness. And don’t forget, it’s the government that’s locked down our entire nation and brought about even more death and destruction on untold numbers we don’t hear about who didn’t get the medical attention they needed, despite the fact our hospitals weren’t near capacity; or on those increased numbers who committed suicide; and on so many more. And yes, it’s lawlessness -- because they had no right to lock us down. No man and or entity has the right to do such no matter what the reason.

And that’s why I’m calling on Big Eva to repent. Racism is evil, but that’s not the problem. The problem in our culture is lawlessness. Let those who love God and man say so.

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Love Yourself or Die to Self? Biblical View of Self-Worth and Self-Care

You’re Enough?

The concept of self-care seems normal, wise, and even biblically prescribed. We’re to exercise, eat right, be good stewards of our bodies -- after all, they’re temples of the Holy Spirit. Yet, our culture uses the term in a slightly different way. Though they’ll include things like exercise and eating right, self-care actually refers to doing something just for you. It’s the notion that you’re worth it; you’re enough; you’ve got it going on, and you should think so to the max. Take that “me time,” after all, you deserve it. And, if you don’t have that bubble bath just for you, then you sure can’t be expected to do whatever else you need to do.

Self-Focus?

The world puts a premium on self-focus. We can’t escape cultural virtues like self-esteem, self-promotion, self-worth, or self-assertiveness. But God’s word says something very different. A focus on self is actually sinful. We’re to die to self and focus on God and others. To the Romans, Paul says, “Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another; not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer; distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. Be of the same mind toward one another. Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own opinion” (Rom. 12:10-16). It seems that God’s opinion is radically different from the world’s when it comes to the issue of self. To the Philippians he says, “Fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others” (Phil. 2:2-4). It seems that God’s ethic is radically different from the world’s. Paul goes on to tell us that we need the mind of Christ. He’s the One who humbled Himself and gave Himself for others in an ultimate way (Phil. 4:5-8). We need His mind.

Identity in Christ

Rather than a constant pat on the back, or affirmations that you’re enough, or aroma bubble baths every night, we need to overcome our preoccupation with self. The only way to do that is to find our identity in Christ. Whatever value we might have, it’s not inherent in us. It’s not owing to us in any way. It comes from God. I am what I am by the grace of God, period. When we get that figured out, we find our value, or better yet, our meaning, in Christ. That’s where it’s at. The antidote to a focus on self is simple: “Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory” (Col. 3:2-4).

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Rethinking Church and Mission | True Worldview Ep. 67

3 Simple Reasons Abortion Should Be Outlawed | True Worldview Ep. 62

Most Christians understand that abortion should be outlawed. At the same time, it’s good to have some arguments under our belt. Here are three reasons that are fundamental: it’s unconstitutional, uncivil, and unbiblical.

Abortion is Unconstitutional

First, abortion should be outlawed because it’s unconstitutional. America’s founding documents guarantee the right to life for all citizens. The Declaration of Independence is foundational for understanding the concept of rights in America. Genuine rights are not granted by government, but by God. “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” In the minds of the founders, there was no debate as to the special place human beings held in the world. Such truth is self-evident. Every human being possesses certain rights due to their God-given humanity. That concept from the Declaration is woven into the Constitution.

Some have argued that babies in the womb are not persons, and are therefore not in view in the Declaration nor are they protected by the United States Constitution. Some would even argue for the immorality of abortion yet argue for its legality. As such, they would argue against an unborn baby’s right to life. Roe v. Wade is rooted in such an argument. Judge Andrew Napolitano noted, “Roe established that the fetus in the womb, notwithstanding human parentage and the possession of all the genomic material needed to develop into a full postnatal human, is legally not a person.”

But, he went on to note that such an establishment echoes back to an earlier Supreme Court decision that most would now reject, “Dred Scott v. Sandford, which was in the abolitionist era and effectively denied the personhood of African-Americans.” The issue today is this: “If the fetus is a person, then it is protected from abortion by the Fifth and 14th amendments to the Constitution, which command the government to protect equally the lives of all people.” So, “What about personhood? Isn't a living baby a person entitled to the equal protection of the laws? Under the natural law, yes. Under the Constitution, yes. Under Roe v. Wade . . . no.” The fact is that Roe v. Wade is unconstitutional as is abortion. Regardless of the philosophical gymnastics behind Roe, the Constitution is the supreme law of the land and protects the lives of all people.

Abortion is Uncivil

Second, abortion should be outlawed because it’s uncivil. In other words, it militates against the nature of civil society. The concept of unalienable rights rooted in America’s founding documents places a duty upon the government to protect those rights. The fifth and 14th amendments to the Constitution are examples of that. Civil government cannot be justified if its primary role is not protecting the rights of the people. If it doesn’t do that, we don’t need it.

The idea of civil society is just that; it is a group of people existing together in a civil manner. Some regard society as bigger than the individual. However, society is not some independent entity; society it is comprised of real individuals. When the welfare of the group becomes overarching, the rights of the individuals are lost. They are forced to submit to those with power regardless of their rights. When society is conceived of as a group entity, then government gives power to a few to coerce the rest of the people. But when society is viewed as persons who have unalienable rights, then government exists to protect the private pursuits of men and women acting freely, as long as they don’t violate the rights of others.

It follows then that abortion militates against the nature of civil society as composed of free individuals. When one segment of society has its rights taken away, the society can no longer be termed a civil society. It is a society that allows at least one kind of indiscriminate murder, and the government that allows it has become an accessory. If one group is no longer protected and safe, then no group is. 

Abortion is Unbiblical

Third, abortion should be outlawed because it is unbiblical. The bible says murder is evil. The primary reason is that it is an act of murder perpetrated against God because man is created in God’s image. “Whoever sheds man’s blood, by man his blood shall be shed; For in the image of God He made man” (Gen. 9:6). 

Some would argue that a pluralistic society like America can’t be governed by a set of morals derived from a particular religion. Yet, all religions forbid murder, at least to a certain extent. All societies forbid it. This reality is owing to the fact that people are created in the image of God. The evil of murder is written on our hearts (Romans 2).

Further, there are some issues that are moral only, and there are others that are moral and civil. Murder is both. While God prohibits murder in any context, He certainly prohibits murder in civil society to preserve such. He prohibits it to preserve the right to life He’s granted to all individuals.

Now think here: the fact is, there is no civil society apart from God. Once God is rejected, then relativism is the default position. On that worldview, the ones who have the power make the rules, and the concept of rights is rejected. Such is the case in America today. That’s why unconstitutional arguments have won the day in favor of legalized abortion. Only when the connection is made between a civil society, the rights of the individuals who make up that society, and the role of government to protect those rights, will persons see once again the concept of unalienable rights granted by God.

Abortion must be outlawed for the glory of God, the good of the unborn, and even the ultimate freedom of those who fight for its legalization. They fight for their own civil destruction without realizing it. Again, abortion is unconstitutional, uncivil, and unbiblical. Regarding pro-choice? We have no choice but to remove the scourge of abortion from our land, for the sake of everyone.

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Rethinking Social Distancing (Part 2) | True Worldview Ep. 61

Be Optimistic

Part of how we navigate the world God’s given us is through right thinking and right attitude. We suffer, life is hard sometimes, but Christians should basically be optimistic because God has redeemed us, has given us things to do, and is with us in those endeavors. Optimism drives how we plan and make decisions. At the same time, we must recognize we’re living under the sovereign and providential hand of God. We live in light of James 4: “Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit’;  whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. Instead you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.’ But now you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil” (13-16). So, we make our plans submitted to the sovereign decree of God. We’re optimistic in those plans: seeking to multiply the “talents” God has given us (Matt. 25:14-30) while resting in God’s providence for us. We must have a can-do attitude.

Be Proactive

Is our outlook one of fear, or confidence? Do we proceed on the basis of knowledge, or what is heaped upon us by the government or mainstream media? We know both of those entities routinely manipulate information to create their own narrative for a variety of reasons. Do we sit back and wait for the government to save us, or do we trust the Lord and seek to solve problems on our own? Think about Prov. 22:13: “The lazy man says, ‘There’s a lion outside! I shall be slain in the streets!” The point is clear: the lazy man sees a danger and shelters in place. He hunkers down in fear. But God has not given His people a spirit of fear, but of love, power, and a sound mind (2 Tim. 1:7). He’s given us the ability to think and reason soundly: to come up with solutions. The implication of the Proverb is that a righteous man sees the lion, the problem, and devises a plan to overcome it. We need to trust in God and figure out how to defeat the virus, keep the economy buzzing, and work in social community the way God has designed us to, all at the same time. Specifically here, we’re rethinking social distancing.

Nine More Reasons to Cease from Social Distancing (For the first seven, see Part 1).

Here’s an eighth reason to cease from social distancing: we’re fearfully and wonderfully made (Ps. 139:14), and our immune system is resilient. The current focus on the virus itself, the futile effort to halt it’s spread, and the dictatorial sentiments behind the production of a vaccine, all discount the “terrain” of our bodies. In addition to combatting the spread of the virus in other ways, we must focus on ensuring the health of our immune systems. The way Dr. Fauci and the mainstream media have discounted certain things like making sure we are not Vitamin C, Vitamin D, and Zinc deficient is criminal. Actual studies in the field, real numbers, tell us that Hydroxychloroquine, Zinc, and Azithromycin is an effective treatment for a majority of COVID-19 patients. Yet this treatment along with one or two others are demonized by Dr. Fauci, because they don’t fit their carefully constructed narrative. There is recent evidence that many routine procedures such as putting patients on ventilators when they shouldn’t, among other things, are leading to an increased number of deaths.

Ninth, extreme social distancing, like a lockdown, hinders the development of herd immunity. “Herd immunity is where enough people – most of whom will have very minor, or no, symptoms – contract COVID-19, develop antibodies against it, and recover. Since those who have the antibodies can neither get, nor pass on, coronavirus, it runs into more and more ‘dead ends’ as it tries to spread. ‘It finds it harder to get to a host where it can survive and it dies out,” Dr. David Katz says.

Tenth, in light of the way viruses spread through aerosolized particles, does anyone believe standing six feet apart is a real solution? As Dr. David Brownstein noted, even facemasks don’t work.

Eleventh, I mentioned a can-do attitude. Such an attitude is rooted in several biblical principles. Here are two. First, we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us (Phil. 1:13). That doesn’t mean we can’t get sick. But it does mean that we have the spiritual ability to handle whatever comes our way. That’s the attitude part. Second, we’ve been given a mandate to subdue the earth (Gen. 1:28; 9:1f). That’s the tackling the problem part. We’ve not only been given the mandate to find workable solutions that take into account fending off a virus while not tearing down the superstructure of civilization we’ve built up over the last six-thousand years, we’ve been given the brain-power and resources for innovation and efficiency. But old and political models have us cowered in a corner. It’s time to be image-bearers and get to work.

Twelfth, God has given all human beings certain unalienable rights. They include the rights to life and liberty. They’re enshrined in America’s founding documents. No one has the right to lock down entire groups of people, cities, or a nation. No one has the right to keep us from assembling with one another. Moreover, we have the right to make medical/health decisions for ourselves. While the spirit of technocracy is alive and well in our world, we must not succumb to its tyranny. Our basic freedoms including our religious freedoms have been trampled. Forced social distancing is nothing short of criminal.

Thirteenth, Christians don’t run from people or trouble, they run toward it. While people ran from lepers, Jesus reached out and touched them. Christians in eras gone by ministered to the sick and dying and those who’d been abandoned in the streets when various plagues descended upon them. The pagans hid indoors, while the Christians demonstrated the love and power of Christ. Yes, many of them died as a result. But they actually knew and felt that living was Christ, and dying was gain (Phil. 1:21).

Fourteenth, Christianity is not about isolation but community. The gathered community of faith is mandated and puts God’s glory on display (Heb. 10:25; Hag. 1:8). The church breaks down barriers that divide people (Eph. 3:10). It doesn’t create or foster division. Christianity is about fellowship with God and with one another. You can’t experience that and social distance at the same time. We all know that livestreaming and zooming is not church.

Fifteenth, while we Christians can do all things through Christ who strengthens us, even bear with a lockdown, there are millions who cannot, because they don’t have Christ. Many have already died because of the lockdown by being hindered from getting needed medical treatment or by committing suicide. There will be many more. Some will die of starvation. The tragic results of the lockdown, and many predict it’s certainty, could be far worse than the virus itself. People don’t do well in isolation.

Sixteenth, the fact is that 99% of those who contract the virus recover. A majority of us may have already been exposed. Most who get the virus experience minor symptoms and many don’t even know they’ve had it. The lockdown and social distancing really makes no sense.

We weep with those who weep (Rom. 12:15). There are those who have died from COVID-19, and it’s truly tragic. And, if someone is in a high-risk category, or is sick and would endanger others, then by all means, they should take the proper precautions. But despite what we’re being told, that all of us are carriers of a virus that’s a death warrant for those who contract it, nothing cold be further from the truth. The facemasks, the fearful looks, the suspicious whispers, and the snitching neighbors all tell the tale. We’re not carriers of the plague. We’re not lepers, and we can’t treat each other as such. It’s time to rethink social distancing.

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The Move to Abolish Homeschooling | True Worldview Ep. 59

Harvard Magazine is out with a stunning piece calling for the outlawing of homeschooling. “Elizabeth Bartholet, Wasserstein public interest professor of law and faculty director of the Law School’s Child Advocacy Program, sees risks for children—and society—in homeschooling, and recommends a presumptive ban on the practice. Homeschooling, she says, not only violates children’s right to a ‘meaningful education’ and their right to be protected from potential child abuse, but may keep them from contributing positively to a democratic society.”

Twisting Terms

Part of Bartholet’s concern is that homeschoolers don’t receive meaningful education, despite the fact that most homeschoolers score higher than public schoolers in all testing metrics. But what she means is that homeschoolers don’t get the kind of education she deems meaningful. They’re not able to be indoctrinated in the academy’s worldview.

She likens this lack of meaningful education to child abuse. She’s redefining child abuse and equating it with the teaching of a Christian worldview. But more than that, she implies that physical child abuse goes unchecked in homeschooling families, and we need teachers to play watchdog. Since when does the State play watchdog with no evidence of wrongdoing? Since when are we allowed to throw out baseless accusations in order to demonize an entire group with whom we disagree religiously or politically?

Of course, that’s why she says homeschoolers won’t be able to contribute positively to a democratic society. What she means is they won’t vote the way she deems appropriate because they won’t embrace progressivism.

A Multi-Front Attack

And here’s the reveal from the piece: “But surveys of homeschoolers show that a majority of such families (by some estimates, up to 90 percent) are driven by conservative Christian beliefs, and seek to remove their children from mainstream culture. Bartholet notes that some of these parents are ‘extreme religious ideologues who question science and promote female subservience and white supremacy.”

Bartholet is a true ideologue herself in that she wants to remove the natural, constitutional rights that all persons have to educate their children as they see fit. She declares herself and others like her to know better than the parents to whom God has entrusted children. This declaration is the heart of technocracy – the notion that certain persons in society know better than the masses and therefore have the right and responsibility to dictate public policy for all.

The means she uses to make her case are just as nefarious as her ideas. Not only does she redefine terms in an effort to alarm her readers and shape public opinion, she says that “if you look at the legal regime governing homeschooling, there are very few requirements that parents do anything.” Such is certainly not the case. While regulations differ from state to state, many are quite strenuous, and all homeschoolers must pass standardized tests to gain entry into college. The fact is that the vast majority of homeschoolers score high on those tests and excel at the college and graduate levels. They are well socialized and make tremendous contributions to society. But Bartholet takes a shot at homeschooling parents: “That means, effectively, that people can homeschool who’ve never gone to school themselves, who don’t read or write themselves.” She goes on to say that parents in some states can simply keep their kids at home without providing education at all. Yet, the reality is that most homeschooling parents teach their kids at home because they are very interested in their education. These parents are typically above average parents who care very deeply about the educational, and yes spiritual well-being of their children. We’re not talking about absentee dads and welfare moms when we talk about homeschool parents.

In addition to the baseless fearmongering in which she engages, the Harvard Professor cloaks her arguments in the garb of children’s rights. She asserts that children have the right to be exposed to “community values, social values, democratic values, ideas about nondiscrimination and tolerance of other people’s viewpoints.” Of course, they are. It goes without saying that Christians champion these things, while a new paradigm of intolerance rooted in woke culture seeks to redefine these values, such that they come to be used in completely different ways than what they actually mean.

A Totalitarian Move

Bartholet goes further. She tips her hat to the rights of parents to raise their children with the religious beliefs they hold, but than adds this: “But requiring children to attend schools outside the home for six or seven hours a day, she argues, does not unduly limit parents’ influence on a child’s views and ideas. ‘The issue is, do we think that parents should have 24/7, essentially authoritarian control over their children from ages zero to 18? I think that’s dangerous,’ Bartholet says. ‘I think it’s always dangerous to put powerful people in charge of the powerless, and to give the powerful ones total authority.’” Those comments are chilling. Further, their ironic nature is only surpassed by their hypocritical nature. She’s calling for authoritarian control over the nation’s children: your children. As she says, that’s dangerous, to say the least. We all know if you win the hearts of the children, you win the culture. That’s her goal with her “six or seven hours a day.” There’s little chance for parents to combat that level of indoctrination, and she knows that.

We’re at War

Bartholet is not alone. And make no mistake, she, if not Harvard as well, has launched a Pearl Harbor attack on homeschooling, Christianity, parental rights. She’s broadsided the Constitution as well. Her article is not an isolated opinion piece. She’s launched a very real war. Sound the alarm – it’s time to enlist.

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Shelter in Place: Is This How We Want to Live? | True Worldview Ep. 53

Shelter in Place: Is This How We Want to Live?

When I saw the jets fly into the twin towers and those towers subsequently collapse, I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. It was one of those things I didn’t think possible. I was wrong. I also thought that moment couldn’t be surpassed in terms of shock. But I was wrong on that too. I’m living in one of those moments now. I never would have thought it possible to get the world to voluntarily shut down over night. It’s unimaginable that we would voluntarily tank our economy. But here we are.

The New Normal

Bretigne Shaffer describes our situation at the moment: “As I write this, I am no longer ‘allowed’ to frequent businesses the state has deemed to be ‘nonessential.’ Doing so has been prohibited by a man who has the power to shut down an entire economy with the stroke of a pen. Meanwhile, the mayor of a neighboring city has said that water and power will be turned off for any of these ‘nonessential’ businesses that do not comply with the order. . . We now have to stand in line to get into the grocery store, are only able to purchase limited quantities of food and other supplies, and the California National Guard has been activated. . . to help ‘distribute… food and medical supplies…’ among other tasks.”

This state of affairs raises what rises to the level of an ultimate question: is this how we want to live? According to Judge Andrew Napolitano, the State has no right to do what they’re doing. It’s unconstitutional. And yet, while I’m not confined to my home like my daughter and son-in-law are in another state, I went to four grocery stores yesterday before I gave up my search on the item I needed. There are some businesses that will be completely gone when this is over. That’s tragic for those business-owners, but it also affects the rest of us who’ll have to do without the goods and services we’ve come to count on from them. What possible reason is there to let others make decisions for us? What possible reason is there to give the State power to shut down your business?

The Scapegoat

I know, some will say, because Coronavirus. Quarantining like we are has never stopped viruses from spreading. It might slow them down, but only good hygiene has been effective historically. Take a look at what Hong Kong is doing, and they seem to be proving the point. Regardless, as Shaffer points out, there is much debate over that issue and what the socio-economic cost will be and just how deadly COVID-19 actually is.

So again, we have to ask is this the kind of world we want to live in? Personal liberty is tossed aside as if it’s just a selfish luxury says Shaffer. But what’s selfish is the impulse to control others, whether personally or through the State. In fact, its pure evil. On cue, the red herring that saving lives is more important is run out there. Why don’t we ask the State to ban cars then? Or swimming pools? Or alcohol? Of course, when we banned alcohol, we learned that unintended consequences are often worse than the original problem. And that’s the case here. President Trump was right when he said the cure is worse than the disease. It’s too bad he’s done an about face on that.

The State, Our Enemy

“Do we want to live lives in which we get to make our own choices and decisions, or do we want to live the kind of lives where our choices are made for us, by some centralized authority?” We can’t live this way and honor God or one another. The rights to life and liberty are rights given by God. Violence against others like shutting down one’s ability to earn a living is evil and therefore dishonors God. In fact, it’s an attack on God Himself (Gen. 9:6). It’s unloving to our neighbor. What’s happening now is not only unconstitutional, it violates the two great commandments to love God and neighbor.

And now we learn the US Government is already making plans with Google, Facebook, and others to track our movements and our health status via cell phones and a nation-wide snitch network via phone apps in which people are asked to tag anyone they see exhibiting signs of illness or failing to social distance. Bill Gates is saying we’ll have digital certificates indicating our health and vaccine status. That certificate will be required to gain access to certain places and services. Is this how we want to live?

History proves that the State arrogates more power to itself during times of crisis. Essential liberties are suspended for the sake of resolving the crisis. Yet, the State never gives up the power its gained or the liberties it’s stolen. But that’s the world we’re being handed right now. As noted, we’ve never seen this big a power grab before. The question is, what are we going to do about it?

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Identity Politics and the Sovietization of America | True Worldview Ep. 52

Identity Politics & the Sovietization of America

Identity politics is more destructive than we realize. While the purveyors of woke culture tell us they’re seeking a level playing field, the reality is they’re making a power play. Intersectionality is rooted in the philosophy of might makes right, and the trickle-down is pervasive.

Turning Co-Workers into Enemies

Paul Craig Roberts talks about a college professor who came to the US from the former Soviet Union and warns us of the Sovietization of America. She’s not talking about economic socialism but the censure of reasoned discourse. She sounds the alarm that identity politics allows “people to hound and persecute with impunity. People love it because it allows a little person to completely destroy somebody who has done something great.” Where she teaches, they “have this bias response team that prowls the campus looking for signs of non-compliance. We had the same thing in the Soviet Union. Right now they’re on campus, but eventually, they’re going to be in every workplace. In the workplace as well as in the educational system, the culture created by diversity and sensitivity training turns co-workers into enemies.”

She’s right. One need only look at the “Me Too” movement and the underlying assumption that every woman must be believed regardless of the evidence or facts. The professor’s further point is that populations are easy to manipulate and control when people are set against each other. “That’s what it is like under totalitarianism.” 

In the Soviet Union, the government was built on an atheistic worldview. Controlling people was part of their function. So too now in our culture. Don’t miss that. It’s not merely governments moving to control people; our culture wants to do the same. That’s the power play. Identity politics is not about equality but power.

Turning Scholarship into Slogans

The professor also highlights the elimination of reasoned discourse in academia. In the “Soviet Union when you were a student and assigned to write a paper, you knew that the thing to do was to go straight to the correct books in the library and copy the relevant articles, word for word, with no deviations. ...When I entered the university in Canada, the teacher really did want me to think for myself…It was so weird, but so liberating. Now, I’m seeing young people who are just like we were in the Soviet Union. They are afraid to think for themselves. They only want to know what the “right” answer is, and repeat it.” She laments that graduate students are not able to produce scholarship but only a “collection of woke slogans.” Students are not only incapable of critical thinking, but they’re afraid. If they come to an out-of-step conclusion, they’ll only be cancelled. Woke culture is cancel culture. If you don’t repeat their mantra, you’re anathematized. That’s our future.

What we need instead of the Sovietization of America is the Kingdomization of America. In one sense, it’s the rekindling of the old concepts of freedom of speech, religion, and association. It’s the notion of a truly pluralistic society rooted in old-style tolerance and liberty and justice for all. These are Kingdom principles for civil society – the outworking of the gospel. For those things we must labor.

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What is God Doing in the Midst of the Coronavirus Outbreak? | True Worldview Ep. 50

Coronavirus and What God is Doing

We have questions. How dangerous is COVID-19? How far will it go? How effective is social distancing and the other drastic measures that have been imposed? Is the cost of shutting down public gatherings, restaurants, bars, and the like, resulting in businesses closing, massive lay-offs, the disappearance of personal savings, bankruptcies, supply chain derailments, and a lot more, or is the cost of simply taking ordinary precautions and letting the virus run its course greater? Knowing how viruses work and what COVID-19 is, some medical experts say the steps we’ve taken will actually make matters worse. Is that right or wrong, and how do we know?

And yet, there is still a more important question: a question of ultimate significance. What is God up to? None of this has taken Him by surprise. He’s doing something and we’d do well to ponder that.

God Is Sovereign

God is absolutely sovereign over all things including COVID-19, the economic disaster to come, and those actors who’ve added to the misery in one way or another. "If a trumpet is blown in a city, will not the people be afraid? If there is calamity in a city, will not the LORD have done it (Amos 3:6)?" This simple truth may shock the sensibilities of some, but who would want to worship a God who is not sovereign? God’s sovereignty does not negate His goodness and grace. His sovereignty is simply a fact. He governs all things, including our current situation. Isaiah agrees with Amos and could not be more clear when he quotes God Himself: "I form the light and create darkness, I make peace and create calamity; I, the LORD, do all these things (Isa. 45:7)." At the same time, Amos refers to a trumpet of warning. There is no doubt the Lord of all creation has many purposes in mind with a calamity of this nature and magnitude. 

Sanctifying His People

First, God is no doubt sanctifying His people. We can say this with certainty as the Scripture says, "We know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For whom He foreknew, He also predestinated to be conformed to the image of His Son, for Him to be the First-born among many brothers (Rom. 8:28-29)." Paul affirms that all things work for the good of believers. He then defines that good as being conformed to the image of God's Son that He might be glorified. Many believers are suffering and will suffer. While the situation itself is not good, the Lord will indeed work it for their good. That is His promise. 

Demonstrating His Power

Second, it is possible that COVID-19 was sent as a demonstration of God’s power before wicked men, whether the virus itself is a greater threat than other seasonal viruses or whether the virus was used to manufacture a crisis. God superintends over it all. In Ex. 9:14 we read, "For at this time I will send all My plagues to your very heart, and on your servants and on your people, that you may know that there is none like Me in all the earth." When men shake their fists in the face of God, He sometimes moves in a mighty way to remind them of who is King. His word is clear on this point. He wants men to know that there is none like Him in all the earth.

Exalting His Name 

Third, the Lord may have desired the exaltation of His Name in all the earth. God exists for His own glory and does what He does for His own glory. He alone deserves glory and honor and worship and praise and must have such in order to be true to His character. If He did not demand such, He would not be God, or He would be an idolater. As God, He cannot give up His glory, or He would not be God. Nor can He glorify another, for that would be to give glory to something that did not deserve glory which would be idolatry. God cannot fail to glorify Himself, as His character exudes glory. Thus, His glory, His reputation, and/or His Name, must be exalted in all the earth. That is why God says to Pharaoh, "But indeed for this purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth” (Ex. 9:16). The God of Heaven above and the earth beneath sent the plagues on Egypt in Pharaoh’s day, and He sent the plagues of viral and economic disaster in our day that His Name might be exalted in all the earth.

Bringing Temporal Judgment 

Fourth, is it possible that God has brought temporal judgment on a wicked country in particular, or the whole world, or perhaps even the church as part of her chastening? While we must be careful not to make statements of possibility into fact, and while we must not think that any particular people deserve punishment any more than any other human being lost or saved, we may say that it is possible that God brought temporal judgment for certain reasons. Peter warns us: "[God turned] the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, He condemned them with an overthrow, setting an example to men intending to live ungodly (2 Pet. 2:6)." Conditions of this magnitude are an example to those who intend to live ungodly lives. 

What about believers in hard-hit areas or circumstances? Some were like Lot. "And He delivered righteous Lot, oppressed with the lustful behavior of the lawless. For that righteous one living among them, in seeing and hearing, his righteous soul was tormented from day to day with their unlawful deeds (2 Pet. 2:7-8)." And others were like some of the saints listed in Hebrews 11 who “had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings; yes, more, of bonds and imprisonments. They were stoned, they were sawed in two, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented (36-37)." This text is a call to faith regardless of the state of affairs. Our problem is that we so often fail to take God seriously, even in the church. 

Highlighting His Grace

Fifth, by these events, God certainly affords us an opportunity to put the grace and power of Christ on display through ministry. Our Lord gives us that opportunity both for our sake and the sake of those to whom we minister. Jesus said, "For I was hungry, and you gave me food; I was thirsty, and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger, and you took Me in; I was naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me (Matt. 25:35-36)." At the same time, as noted, His glory is on display. There are and will be countless opportunities to share the love of Christ both now and in the coming days. At least part of what God intends is that people would fear Him that they might get a sense of their own lost and helpless condition, fly to Christ, and be saved. 

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COVID-19: Danger, Hype, Opportunists, and God | True Worldview Ep. 49

COVID-19: Danger, Hype, Opportunists, and God

Danger

There is a real threat upon us with this Coronavirus. We all know that people have died, and it’s spreading. We also know that the virus is most dangerous/deadly to people who are older, who have underlying health problems, or who are immunocompromised. For most however, the virus appears to pose no greater threat than seasonal flu. More people have been infected and died with seasonal flu than COVID-19 this winter, and there are other more serious threats to some. Over one million die each year from tuberculosis for example. 

Hype

And yet, we’re all experiencing the media’s frenzied hype. There is much misinformation due in part to the drive for ratings and perhaps in part due to some who can’t resist embellishment for whatever personal reasons. One government official when on television said COVID-19 is ten times more deadly than seasonal flu. The same official stated to Congress that it’s no more deadly than seasonal flu. Of course, the media has played up the first statement. Leaders on both sides of the political aisle have run the gamut from dismissal of a threat, to making jokes about who they wished would contract it, to excoriation, to near-panic. And the media has puffed it all.

Opportunists

And then there are the opportunists. We may wonder at the differing motivations for different actors across the globe in this thing. Regardless of your political leanings, there’s one thing we can all agree on: it’s an election year, and those who have a visceral hatred of the President are using this crisis against him every way they can. As Rahm Emanuel quipped, “You never let a serious crisis go to waste. And what I mean by that, it's an opportunity to do things you think you could not do before.”

Some have offered credible and troubling thoughts based on different kinds of evidence. Certain insiders have speculated this whole thing is a hoax to take away more of our liberties. Others have averred it’s a test to determine how easily populations can be controlled. Some say the virus came from a Chinese lab by accident, and still others assert it’s a US bio-weapon inadvertently released. Financial experts have warned of economic collapse for some time and see global actors using the virus as cover for their failing. The fall-out for economic policy-makers would be horrendous if they were to blame and not something like a pandemic.

God  

And yet, in the end, we can trust God. We know He’s in control and that He loves His people. We know He does all things for our good – to conform us to the image of His Son. Regardless of the virus or those who would use it for hidden purposes, none of it has taken the Lord by surprise. And remember, God will keep you in perfect peace, when your mind is stayed on Him, because you trust in Him (Isa. 26:3).

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Are Plants Alive? Death, Adam, and Billions of Years | True Worldview Ep. 48

Are Plants Alive? Death, Adam, and Billions of Years

Too many Christians believe the universe is billions of years old despite also believing that God created it in six literal twenty-four-hour days. The billions of years part is the problem. They believe such because of “science” and what it says about the rock layers that must have taken millions or billions of years to form. The problem there is that there are fossils in those rock layers. If those layers took millions of years to form, there was death before Adam and the fall. Humans, according to evolutionists, didn’t arrive on the scene until close to two-hundred-thousand years ago. 

Some theologians have tried to reconcile this irreconcilable conundrum by saying that there was in fact death before the fall: the death of plants and animals. When the bible says that death entered the world through Adam, it only refers to human death they say. But such is not the case.

Plants Are Not Alive

The bible is clear: there was no death before Adam and the fall whether human or animal, but plants did die before the fall. What about that? Answer: we often use language loosely when we ought to be more technical. We refer to plants as being alive and dying, but the bible doesn’t refer to them that way. Dr. Jonathan Sarfati points out that vertebrate animals are described by the Hebrew phrase nephesh chayyah which is translated living creature or in the case of humans as living soul. Plants are never referred to this way. In fact, they don’t die, they wither (Ps. 37:2). Further, the bible teaches that plants, herbs, fruit, etc. are given prior to the fall for humans and animals to eat. “And God said, ‘See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food. Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food;’ and it was so. Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good’” (Gen. 1:29-31). Note also that the beasts, birds, and creeping things are referred to as having life in them, not plants. Humans didn’t eat animals before the fall nor did animals eat humans or each other. They both ate plants as designed by God.

No Death Pre-Fall or Post-Consummation

Further, consider Isa. 11:6-9 and then 65:25: “The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall graze; their young ones shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. The nursing child shall play by the cobra’s hole, and the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper’s den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. . . The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, the lion shall eat straw like the ox, and dust shall be the serpent’s food. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, says the Lord.” Now, Isaiah is talking about the final state. It’s a restoration of the conditions in Eden. It’s paradise restored. It’s what was before the fall and what will be after the consummation. Notice that predators and prey are reconciled and eat the same food – plants. The enmity between the serpent and his seed and the woman and her seed (Gen. 3:15) is removed. God’s holy mountain is Mt. Zion – the church, the kingdom, the restoration of all things – and there is no killing there. The point is that there is no death in the final state, and there was no death before the fall of Adam.

Prior to the fall, God declared that His creation was very good. He couldn’t have said such if there was violence, bloodshed, death, and misery. Those things are the result of sin entering the world through Adam.

The Issue of Authority

As Dr. Sarfati points out, the real issue is not one of interpretation, but one of authority. Is our authority ever-changing-science interpreted through the lens of atheistic assumptions; or is it God’s word? Science is something we should embrace and pursue. But when science and Scripture conflict, Scripture must trump science, not the other way around. We wouldn’t entertain the thought of an earth billions of years old if we weren’t bowing to science. The bible is straight forward on the issue of creation. 

There’s also a difference between observational science and historical science. Observational science can be tested over and over again in the here and now. We think of technology for example. But historical science seeks to determine the past by looking at thigs in the present. We draw conclusions based on our presuppositions. For example, when the atheist looks at the Grand Canyon, he assumes there is no God and concludes that it must have formed by erosion over millions of years. The Christian assumes that God is real, and therefore the canyon was formed by the global flood of Genesis 6. Neither has proved their case at that point. But they have come to different conclusions based on different assumptions. Both are engaging in historical science, and both are making faith claims, because neither was here when the Grand Canyon was formed. The evidence within the canyon itself points to the biblical explanation. But even prior to analyzing the evidence, we take it on faith that it was formed by the flood of Genesis 6. It couldn’t have been formed by erosion; the earth isn’t old enough for that to happen. The bible is our authority. Our job is to submit to it.

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Transgenderism Up 1500% | True Worldview 46

Transgenderism Up 1500%

Here’s a shocker that’s not so shocking to those who think: transgenderism has grown by 1500% among Swedish girls between thirteen and eighteen over the last ten years. What is truly stunning is the comment from Peter Salmi, an investigator at the national Board of Health and Welfare, who said, “Yes, that the increase is clear, there is no doubt, however, we do not know what the increase is due to.” Wait, what?

Cultural Conditioning

So here we have something that is not merely a minor deviation from the norm over thousands of years of recorded history. It’s not something in the water. It’s not drug-induced. Let’s just throw this in: it’s not a product of natural selection. Alex Newman got it right when he observed, “The brainwashing and Swedish government peddling of gender confusion starting even before Kindergarten is obviously working.” That’s the reason; children are being taught. Gender dysphoria is the result of cultural conditioning. The larger culture has followed suit. For example, one news program “portrayed a confused young girl as some sort of hero for impersonating a boy, complete with adults showering the confused child with praise for her ‘bravery.’” 

Cultural Consequences

What are the implications? For one, “in virtually any other context, encouraging people to irreversibly mutilate themselves in a futile effort to make reality conform to their delusions would be regarded as cruel, if not criminal.” To subvert biology, history, and indeed reality is to impose a certain kind of death on the individual as well as the larger culture. 

Second, future consequences for the individual and society are ignored in favor of the latest political fad. Politics not rooted in principle are tantamount to slavery – or possibly murder – depending on the outcome. 

Cultural Chaos

Moreover, per Newman, “literally every cell in their body testifies to the fact that they are either male or female. By contrast, the last thing in the world they need is dishonest and insane adults cheering them on as . . . ‘doctors’ pump them full of hormones and surgically mutilate their genitals . . . It is time for the madness to end . . . As the American College of Pediatricians explained, brainwashing children to believe it is normal and healthy to impersonate the opposite sex with hormones and surgery is child abuse.”

These are strong words, but appropriate words – attention-getting words – the type of words warranted in desperate times. Ultimately, nothing short of a return to a full-orbed biblical worldview will end the madness. When there is no God, as Greg Koukl pointed out, your feet are planted firmly in mid-air. When your feet are planted there, mutilating children is brave. It’s braver still when one considers that children can’t think for themselves. Huxley’s brave new world was frightening, but not this frightening.

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Who Built the Hospitals Caring for China's Coronavirus Patients? | True Worldview Ep. 45

Coronavirus and China’s Hospitals

Everyone’s talking about Coronavirus, and rightly so. The number of those infected along with those who have died is only increasing. But let’s think about a particular issue at a worldview level. Gary Brumbelow asks, “Who built the hospitals treating China’s coronavirus patients?” The answer is that “hundreds of China’s hospitals were built by Christian missionaries.”

Hospitals Didn’t Come from Atheism

Brumbelow rightly points out that China’s hospitals didn’t come from the worldview of China’s atheistic, communist leaders who’ve been in power since the rise of Mao Zedong prior to the midway point of the last century. We needn’t be reminded of the millions he slaughtered in the “Great Leap Forward” or China’s long-term one to two-child policy imposition. As a worldview, atheism has a low view of human life. It’s only valued in terms of what it can do for the collective. Life is cheap and expendable. And on that worldview, there’s no reason to build hospitals as long as you have enough replacement parts. 

Hospitals Come from a Christian Worldview

It's the Christian worldview that values life. The world has co-opted Christian initiative including health-care, the university, stewardship of the environment, the arts, and so much more. How grievous then when Christians accept the status quo of our culture and fall in line like sheep. Our calling is to image God in the world in a multitude of ways. Hospitals, universities, environmentalism, and the arts are no longer driven by a biblical worldview and they have suffered in devastating ways. We must re-engage to preserve that which is good and create what is needed.

The Communists evicted the missionaries from China long ago. “Except for the government-sanctioned Three-Self Church, Christian congregations have been underground ever since.” Major hospitals founded by those missionaries are now run by the government and “party bosses are scrambling to deal with the Coronavirus. It’s a task made more difficult by years of atheistic influence.

We must be reminded that salvation is ultimate, but God cares about the here and now too. Part of our calling is to bring kingdom values and principles to bear on this world. Much of this world will burn up one day, but that which is done for the glory of Christ will remain. God cares about this world or He wouldn’t have given us the Dominion Mandate (Gen. 1:28). He wouldn’t have told us to do our work as unto Him. He wouldn’t have admonished us to be Good Samaritans.

Pray for the Church in China

And one last thing. You can start with the gospel and change one’s worldview. Or, you can talk about worldview and get to the gospel. I think Brumbelow has that in mind: “In the midst of the suffering and chaos brought on by the virus and exacerbated by atheistic lies, may China learn its long-lost Christian history, from the Tower of Babel dispersion to the present reality of Christian service and influence. May China’s people come to realize that Yahweh is more than merely a “western God.” May China’s church rise up in courage to serve their neighbors in the name of Jesus Christ in this hour of need.”

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Education Crisis in American Schools: Training Teachers to Fail | True Worldview Ep. 43

Education Crisis in American Schools: Training Teachers to Fail

There’s a literacy crisis in American schools as reading scores plummet. Part of the problem lies in newly minted teaching methods. The prevailing mindset includes this piece of wisdom: “The worst thing a teacher can do when students ask questions is answer them…Students only want to write about what they’re interested in.” Teaching the basics of phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension is a thing of the past. When students struggle in reading, teachers are instructed to “. . . utilize shortcuts to ‘increase engagement’ like leveled reading, technology, audiobooks, and graphic novels.” 

The Intrusion of PC Culture into Education

The PC culture has intruded into education at all levels. To force students into so-called rigid models of learning or impose so-called dominant ideas upon them is anathema. It doesn’t matter that students are not learning, and are therefore relegated to a future filled with struggle and failure. A common sense approach in education basics is a must, but we won’t get it. 

The Stifling of Independent Thinking

No doubt that rigidity is not always good. Students need to be taught to think, to analyze, to extrapolate, and to forecast. Critical thinking is a must. So too is independent thinking. But that’s all the more reason we need effective teaching methods when it comes to reading and writing. And the only way to engage and develop thinking “muscles” is to broaden a student’s horizons and provide answers to their questions.

The Need for Right Assumptions

Of course, critical and independent thinking can’t be rooted in relativism if one is to be truly educated. It’s God’s world, and one must think through His lens in order to see things rightly whether the issue is related to ethics, science, math, history, literature, art, or whatever. We all analyze everything with our own assumptions – our own worldview. There is but one true worldview – God’s. All others are false.

Finally, it’s not inappropriate to point out the inefficiency and even oppression of government education. When education is removed from parents, so too is freedom. When education becomes a matter of prevailing, political opinion, education itself is removed. We’re just a country of useful idiots.

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Understanding the Times | True Worldview Ep. 42

Understanding the Times

Along side the high work of exegeting the Scriptures is the great task of exegeting the culture. A chief example is “the sons of Issachar who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do” (1 Chron. 12:32). Further, Paul was able to connect with the gatekeepers of Athens on Mars Hill and effectively share Christ by being aware of certain of their poets and philosophers (Acts 17). He was familiar with the prophets of the Cretans and was able to judge certain things about their character as a result (Titus 1:12-13). We should be committed to understanding the times.

Os Guinness observed, “American views today are weak, confused, and divided. On one side, many progressive liberals still think that we humans are essentially good and getting better and better. On the other side, many postmoderns actually think it is worse to judge evil than to do evil. And in the middle, many ordinary folk plaster life with rainbows and smile buttons and wander through life on the basis of sentiment and cliches.” His analysis is not comprehensive, but it’s certainly helpful.

The Progressives

Indeed, progressives think that humans are essentially good and getting better. The Anglican Priest who fought against the atrocities of Apartheid once declared, “The most important thing for me now is reminding people that they are good. We are all essentially good...Being good also explains why we are appalled by evil, by what is wrong...It might not appear to be the case, but the truth is that eventually goodness will prevail.”

Of course, we should ask why we’re appalled by evil. Being created in the image of God comes to mind. At the same time, in a fallen world, the image of God in man is marred, and we don’t all agree on what’s good and what’s evil. In a progressive culture, the definitions are always changing. Progressives think humans are becoming increasingly enlightened. Our culture now not only affirms the normalcy of homosexuality, for example, but it openly celebrates it. We recognize with revelry the first openly homosexual mayor of a city, draftee in the NFL, or candidate for President. It’s progressives who champion pre-pubescent genital mutilation in an effort to mainstream transgendersim. Polyamory is next in the dock. Indeed, our culture is now woke to the racism, sexism, homophobia, xenophobia, and a host of other ills inherent in being white. We are more enlightened than old white men who represent a darker time. How dare Michael Bloomberg and his ilk earn the obscene amount of money they do when others deserve it more despite their penchant for waiting on the next welfare check.

The Postmoderns

A second cultural cluster is the postmoderns who think it’s worse to judge evil than to do evil. In their rejection of objective authority; their placement of perception over what’s real; their assertion that nothing is really knowable; they’re willing to affirm anything as proper for the one who deems it proper. While there might not be any truth at all, there are things to affirm as truth for you and different things to affirm as truth for me. Thus, concepts of good and evil lose their meaning on such a worldview. There is no real basis for law, contracts, or personal property. Moreover, on such a worldview there is no basis for human rights, ethical farming, the fair treatment of animals, or a host of other goods being championed today. 

The Sentimentalists

And then we have the ordinary people in the middle who “plaster life with rainbows and smile buttons and wander through life on the basis of sentiment and cliches.” You don’t have to look long to find people willing to say things like all good people go to heaven; I know Mom’s looking down on me; if you can dream it, you can do it; trust the vibes you get, energy doesn’t lie; or any number of other empty platitudes designed to numb us to reality.

The Answer

Those three positions represent a good swath of our culture: a culture in trouble. But it’s a culture looking for truth, though their spiritual blindness keeps them from finding it. People need a reality check. If we’re good and getting better, how do the progressives explain the fact that humans propagate as much evil today as they did in the past? I wonder what the postmodern would say if someone put a gun to his head. Is morality really relative? And let’s ask the sentimentalist a few simple questions: how do you know Mom is looking down on you? What if she’s not? And what good does it do anyway?

We need to understand the times. When we do, we can take the roof off as Francis Schaeffer used to say. We can deconstruct the faulty worldviews that people cling to like lifelines in an effort to lovingly demonstrate those lifelines are tethered to nothing. We can set forth the true worldview, the biblical worldview, that actually makes sense out of our experience. And then we can proclaim the gospel that they might be delivered from their soul-destroying notions and come to know Christ, whom to know is life eternal.

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Hollywood and Our Children | True Worldview Ep. 41

Hollywood and Our Children

Here's more poisoned fruit produced by a culture that’s rejected the true worldview. “Over the course of the last few years, there has been a ‘dramatic change’ in Hollywood. According to the Parents Television Council, it’s been a very ‘dangerous turn.’ ‘Instead of children just being collateral damage in the way of whatever explicit content they want to deliver to adults, Hollywood now seems to be directly marketing some of the most explicit stuff to children’. . . Such shows . . . include HBO’s ‘Euphoria,’ which focuses on a drug-addicted teenager; Hulu’s ‘PEN15’; and Netflix’s shows ‘Sex Education’ and ‘Big Mouth.’ These are shows that are overtly teen-targeted and are very troubling, very pornographic, very toxic in nature,” PTC said. Interestingly, PTC also noted the “FCC publicly confirmed what the PTC has been saying for years about the TV content rating system and its inaccuracies, inconsistencies and lack of oversight in really serving the needs of parents as opposed to protecting the financial interests of Hollywood.” 

Money Talks

Sadly, this state of affairs is not surprising. Not only are kids less discerning, they’re a massive target market, and once they’re won over, they’re customers for life in most cases. Hollywood doesn’t care about the destruction that ensues in the form of bad decisions, broken relationships, std’s, depression, and the like. Money talks. 

Be Involved

Our response is to be hands-on proactive in our children’s lives. We have no excuse how they’re influenced if we’re not. Someone will train your children. Will it be you or Hollywood? You have to engage.

Create Culture

Beyond that, we need to talk to the next generation, not about withdrawing from the world into our fortresses, but about exerting influence in the world. God gave us a dominion mandate in Gen. 1:28 and repeated it after the flood. By way of application to this context, we subdue the earth through creation and cultivation – the creation and cultivation of good culture. We certainly seek to supplant bad culture like Hollywood’s destructive product. We do that by promoting Christ, His gospel, and the application of the gospel in our culture. We also do that by creating better culture. It’s part of how we’re to be salt and light. We need Christians to make movies with Hollywood quality and with better messages – not movies that are second rate at best. God deserves better, and so do our children.

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The Profanation of Our Culture: Clapbacks, Foul Language, and Immorality | True Worldview Ep. 39

The Profanation of Our Culture

Some Love to Hate Haters

Have you noticed that almost anything a celebrity says about anything passes for news these days? Lebron James commented on Kobe Bryant’s death. Shaquille O’Neal commented on Kobe’s death. King James commented again on Kobe and his death. Magic Johnson weighed in on Kobe’s tragic helicopter crash. Lebron said something else about Kobe and the crash. But it’s worse. Not only do we get those breaking stories, but anytime someone claps back, it’s a news story. No matter who said what, no matter how irrelevant, it’s a news flash. But it gets worse still. The clap back is usually hate-filled and foul. Never mind the irony of the PC culture cancelling haters. It’s lost on them; they love to hate haters.

Recently, Josh Brolin posted a revealing picture of his wife online. Someone commented: “Why show your wife’s body off on the internet? It’s not good, God wants her to cover her body and not expose her body.” Brolin’s comeback? “I just spoke to God and God asked me to please ask you to shut the ____ up and go take a shower.” Here we have a snapshot of what our culture has become. He could have replied thoughtfully, judiciously, or simply ignored the comment. Yet, his response was juvenile, blasphemous, vulgar, and abusive all at the same time.

When There’s No God, Anything Goes

When the Christian worldview goes, civility goes with it. Civility is rooted in the existence of God, a standard of right and wrong, and a resulting sense of decorum. Heretofore, it was an unspoken assumption that we’re civilized people dealing with the same. We’re people created in the image of God dealing with the same. But no more. Without God, we have no reason to be civil. We can act on impulse; feelings; hatred; and the like. And what’s more, we don’t have to limit our clap backs to mere words. When there is no God, there are no rules. Some have already figured that out.

Our culture has become profane. It wasn’t long ago that one would never find foul language in news items. Today, I can hardly read a news item without some of the worst profanity. It goes without saying the profane is everywhere. 

The Church is Not Immune

Sadly, it’s crept into the church. Major Christian leaders tout scatological language as having no consequence despite the fact that cultures do assign meanings to words. The notion that the Paul’s use of the word dung in Philippians is akin to the s____ word in our culture is as offensive as it is wrong. It might have been graphic, but not foul. Those are two different things. God may be more graphic than some of us in communicating certain realities. But, He’s not profane. Such is the exact opposite of His very nature.

Our culture is verbally abusive. I object to overusing concepts like abuse as it undermines the weightiness of genuine physical abuse. But if there is such a thing as verbal abuse, our culture has found it. Brolin is a mere copycat.

The Categorical Imperative

The rejection of God affects everything from salvation to civility; from ethics to manners; from words to invectives. That’s why it’s imperative we keep speaking: that we keep speaking the truth in love; the truth about everything. Because that’s what God is about. Let’s trade the profane for the praiseworthy, and maybe others will do the same.

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Is There a Gay Gene? | True Worldview Ep. 26

I often quote Lady Gaga; “I was born this way.” I’m usually referring to total depravity: the biblical reality that all of us are born dead in sin. We’re not as sinful as we can be, but we’re sinful in every aspect of our being: totally. But that’s not what Lady Gaga is talking about, though she does invoke God: “’Cause God makes no mistakes, I’m on the right track, baby I was born this way.” She’s right about God not making mistakes, and she’s right about being born this way, but she’s wrong about being on the right track. And she’s wrong about what it means to be on the right track – essentially loving yourself for who you are. And who are you? “No matter gay, straight, or bi, Lesbian, transgender life,” says she. Lot’s of confusion.

Dr. Lisa Albright is Professor and Chief of the Division of Genetic Epidemiology in the Department of Medicine at the University of Utah School of Medicine and is a researcher in the areas, among others, of cancer and predisposition gene identification. She and her team discovered a statistical correlation between certain genetic markers and risk for breast cancer and developed the BRCA Test. A number of years ago, she told me there is no such thing as a gay gene, nor could there be. Of course, Lady Gaga and many in the gay and lesbian community believe otherwise. That’s what they mean when they say “born this way.” They can’t help being who they are. A lot of people assert that something is universal, objective truth based on how they feel or what they personally experience with no scientific or theological basis for such assertions. Such is the nature of being born totally depraved.

The reality is that slew of factors play in to why people are the way they are. On one side of my town most of the folk like country music and pick-up trucks, while those on the other side of town like BMW’s and preppy clothes. While there is no pick-up truck gene, and while some might argue they were born to love F-150s, they just can’t help themselves, it’s fairly obvious to most that one’s preference for F-150s has more to do with where you’re born than how you’re born. Katy Perry said a mouthful when she announced that she kissed a girl and liked it. As our culture drifts from God, more people are willing to try things because of that culture than persons in previous generations. Depravity produces openness to sinful ideas and behaviors, and that same depravity allows some to enjoy those behaviors once experienced. Some girls like F-150s and some girls like kissing girls. But neither were born that way in the Lady Gaga sense.

 Darrow Miller notes, “Now science has said that there is no merit in the LGBT claim that sexual orientation is rooted in biology. A 143-page report published by two John Hopkins University scholars, Lawrence Meyers and Paul McHugh, asserts that ‘The belief that sexual orientation is an innate, biologically fixed human property — that people are ‘born that way’ — is not supported by scientific evidence. … Likewise, the belief that gender identity is an innate, fixed human property independent of biological sex — so that a person might be a ‘man trapped in a woman’s body’ or a ‘woman trapped in a man’s body’ — is not supported by scientific evidence.’” Further, “The largest study to look for the ‘gay gene’ drew a similar conclusion. The research, published in the August 29,, 2019 edition of the esteemed journal Science, was performed on almost half a million people. A large ‘international consortium’ cooperated for this comprehensive project. The study’s lead author, Andrea Ganna, a geneticist at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard in Cambridge, Massachusetts, concluded: “There is no ‘gay gene.’”

Aside from the science, we’re all born dead in sin, and we all have differing tendencies when it comes to sin. It’s no surprise that while some are born with tendencies toward murder or greed, others are born with tendencies toward same-sex attraction. That doesn’t mean there is a gay gene or they can’t change. And, even if there is a gay gene, God says they’re responsible to change. He provides the way of change through the gospel. 

There’s a move in evangelical circles to adopt the world’s stance on these issues, at least to some degree. But we have the word of God, the ultimate authority on the subject. “9 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, 10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God” (1 Cor. 6:9-11). It’s the gospel that overcomes our sin. It’s the grace and power of God. May we love others enough to tell them the truth and point them to Christ. And remember, the real question is not whether you were born this way or that, but whether you’ve been born again (Jn. 3:1f).

Smartphones: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

A group of students at Adelphi University gave up their smartphones for one week in an effort to break them of their near universal addiction. It was an experiment conducted by their professor that yielded some predictable results. The students talked about getting sounder sleep and increased productivity along with improved relations with their friends. They saw the world in a different way than normal; they experienced their surroundings in a way they had not prior to their smartphone fast. 

Certainly, smartphones are one way we’re pushing back the fall. God told us before and after the fall to image Him, take dominion over the earth, and create. That’s what He does, and we do the same, although in a different way. We have speed limitations, so we create bicycles, cars, and jets. We have communication limitations so we create mail, telephones, and smartphones. The younger generation has much less appreciation for the astounding things a smartphone can do. I talk to people all over the world, access information all over that same world, conduct business, pay bills, purchase goods and services, listen to music, watch football, trade stocks, read books, power giant televisions and speakers, and so much more.

Of course, smartphones offer certain opportunities for sin in various forms. Smartphones give us great opportunity to waste time, ignore persons with whom we could otherwise be engaged, miss the beautiful diversity of God’s world as it goes by without our notice, and so much more. Bad can turn downright ugly when one uses his smartphone in a voyeuristic, invasive, or combative way. We can fall into the trap of comparing ourselves to others in a haughtiness that works both ways. We either gloat over our successes or become jealous of the good fortune of others.

Be Smart with Your Smartphone

The simple fact is that we just need to be smart about our smartphones. Such a statement is no mere piece of practical advice, but rather a principle rooted in the call of God upon our lives. We’re to do all that we do for the glory of God. How we use our smartphones and how much time we give to them matters to God. Here are some foundational precepts that will help us to do that – to be smart for the glory of God.

First, make sure you redeem the time. We need to distinguish between a legitimate use of time vs. an illegitimate. That doesn’t mean we can’t use our device for entertainment some of the time. But it does mean that we can’t use it for entertainment most of time. There are many, many things God has given us to do, and appropriate time must be allocated for each one of them. Think of those things as spokes on a wheel. Each spoke represents something we must do as we live in God’s world. At the center of the wheel if the glory of God. How do I do this thing that I’m doing for God’s glory? That’s your question.

Second, be present when you’re with others. Not only do you miss out on what’s real, or the enrichment of relating to a loved one, but you hurt those you ignore. You say to them your phone is more important. And then when you wake up down the road, whether its weeks, months, or even years, the regret can be overwhelming. God’s grace is sufficient for even that, but you don’t want to miss out on what’s best regardless of how good your web surfing may be.

Third, enjoy God’s world to the max. Don’t miss out on the beach, the mountains, or a sunny day in the park. Don’t miss out on that concert, that evening walk, or the tennis outing with your doubles partners. Don’t miss the fullness of God’s multifaceted, vibrant, and stunning world. 

Now, that’s smart.

Resources: 12 Ways Your Phone is Changing You by Tony Reinke

Is College for Everyone? | True Worldview Ep. 18

I don’t like jumping through other people’s hoops, and I don’t think you should either. I don’t like it, not because I’m a curmudgeon, but because I want to do all that I do for the glory of God, and part of that means understanding the world in which we live, something the Bible refers to as the world, as in the evil world system. We have to live in this world, but that doesn’t mean we have to like the evil part of it nor do we have to embrace it. On the contrary, we’re to transform it, but that’s another issue. 

I don’t like jumping through the world’s hoops in any area, but I especially don’t like jumping through their hoops when it comes to education. And I’m not speaking as someone who doesn’t have an education. I have four earned degrees including two masters and a doctorate. I say that not because I’m proud of it, but because I want you to understand I’m not just throwing apples from the cheap seats. I may throw an apple or two, but it’s cost me a lot to be able do so.

Forbes is out with a piece saying that college may not be for everyone. Many college grads end up earning less income than those who never go to college. In fact, half of all college grads have an average income right out of school of only $28,000 per year. Some real concerns are raised including the fact that persons are strapped for years with heavy debt, in many cases upwards of $200,000. An increasing number of college graduates work in a field different from their degree. In short, more often than not, college has become a great time and money waster.

For Christians, the concerns are even greater. College is a rite-of-passage in American culture. To put it nicely, it’s one long break from reality. The put it accurately, it’s one long drunken orgy with a little bit of study in between. And speaking of study, students take a lot of interesting classes that have nothing to do with fostering one’s ability to earn an income. Beyond that, philosophically speaking, there is no neutrality. Every class, every professor, and every word spoken in those classes by those professors comes from a worldview that is, way more often than not, diametrically opposed to God and a true worldview derived from Him. Christians, and people in general, are forced to take classes that some progressive group deemed to be important – more important than the vast store of knowledge that could be pursued if college were structured differently. Those are the referenced hoops. No hoop jumping, and no degree.

Of course, while that degree might be necessary in some fields, and important in others, it’s not as important in many fields as it once was. With the advent of innovative business models, the demand for different lifestyles than previous generations, and new modes of education, an increasing number of people don’t need to go to college. The truth is, for the reasons outlined here, and a wealth of others, most of us really shouldn’t go to college, and that goes double for the saints.

How ‘bout them apples?