Hello, I am Sin

Hello, Humanity,

I can be found everywhere and you need not look far;

In your homes;

In your relationships;

In your lives;

And yes, in your hearts, thoughts and attitudes;

I have not disappeared; I am just known by many other names;

I am known as the right to choose as long as "No one is hurt";

I am known as as various disorders and illnesses;

On the Internet, my underlings and slaves have more tools to do their damage;

Children in public schools never found it so easy to learn my ways;

Without me, you would never see these: Jails, Prisons, Hospitals, Wars, Shelters, or Institutions;

Without me, you would not see people become: Cops, Military, Doctors, Nurses, Prison Guards, Judges, or Lawyers;

I offer you happiness, ease, fun, thrills, entertainment and life and don't forget wealth:

I offer all these to you without requiring any sacrifice or commitment from you;

As it has been rightly said, I hide the price tags;

You only find out later that I lied to you and that I ail to steal, kill and destroy:

I provide thrills and pleasure for you;

It is too bad that I cannot make these last;

I am an insidious, relentless, cruel, harsh master and my slaves hop at my beck and call;

I induce you to do my bidding and then I berate and accuse you;

I refuse to let go of my slaves and underlings without a huge fight;

Today, I have been able to do my most insidious, dirty, damaging and horrific work and who knows when I will stop?

In the good old United States I can get whole denominations to call certain sins good, yay for me!

To my Enemy's many people in the West, bring it on!

I have a much hated and terrible Enemy, the Holy One;

This Enemy hates me and loves my slaves though He hates their slavery to me;

I was so disappointed when I thought I defeated Him at His cross;

As it turned out He has defeated me and I am not taking this lying down!

I know full well that my time is short and I will not relax my guard day or night;

I aim to keep as many people from placing faith in my Enemy as possible and destroying the Enemy's people;

Place your faith in my Enemy and in what He calls His grace and I can assure you I will fight you;

I continue to hide in plain sight and come as an angel of light;

Go, live as I want you to and make my job easier or live this Enemy's way and I will do all I can to persecute you;

This enemy will destroy me when He comes so I'm doing all I can to destroy His people now and keep my people from becoming His!

Yes, I am known by an ugly three letter word that even many Pastors in churches that bear my Enemy's Name fear to use;

It is "too negative and judgmental" to talk about my existence and identity:

If you have not guessed by now call me S-I-N.

If you have not guessed it my Enemy is Jesus Christ.

What Will It Take to Purify the Church in the West?

When I often read about the lives and the testimonies of our severely persecuted brothers and sisters in Jesus worldwide, and then read Scripture, I see much that they share in common. When I survey the situation of so much of the modern Church in the West and of my own life and then read the same Scripture, I see a disconnect. Our severely persecuted brothers and sisters i Jesus, outside the West, often live life in the Book of Acts. They so often are much closer to Biblical Christianity than most of us followers of Jesus in the West.

On the other side of the world, followers of Jesus meet secretly in homes, forests, or wherever they will remain undetected by authorities or by others hostile to them. The Holy Spirit moves in power among them. God is known to move in power in countries outside the West. The faith of these followers of Jesus, tried by fire, enables them to take Jesus at His Word. They are open to the supernatural. There is minimal structure or control, though there is order. They are lost in the wonder of the holiness of God. The Gospel is preached in purity; both the love and severity of God are considered together. They do not hide the offense of the cross to get converts, and they don't tell you how to "live your best life now." They pray for strength to stand strong and not deny their faith, even in the face of death. These gatherings are largely inter-generational and diverse. They don't ever want this meeting to end, as they know when it does they will go back to hell. They have to be careful to discreetly worship to escape detection by those who would arrest them for this "crime" or who would attack them for this "alien religion." They literally take their lives in their hands to meet like this. They concern themselves more with what they look like to God than about impressing each other, as they are all in the same boat.

Getting closer to home, we have a far different picture. Churchgoers get all dressed up to go to meet with may others in a building. This building is called a church. It works best if that building has a steeple, and the service has either a choir in a sanctuary or a band in an auditorium. The Pastor makes sure to keep his sermon to about 20 or so minutes. You hear much about the love of God, exhortation you "can live your best life now," but much is left out. God forbid that we mention Hell or God's wrath. Usually prayers, readings and worship is all structured. We dare not commit any breach of etiquette in what is considered this holy place. Everyone is largely out to impress everyone else, or at least to look "respectable." The Holy Spirit has little room to move in this atmosphere. In more "progressive" fellowships, the atmosphere is more relaxed but the same principles apply and still, the worship service runs more like a business than a fellowship of believers in whom God lives. We have may have groups, but they are homogenized and age-segregated, for the most part. After an hour of "worship," we are eager to leave, maybe after having some "fellowship" over coffee and doughnuts.

What is the disconnect here?
The first example is based on much research as to what a typical worship service looks like in many closed countries or conflict areas where religious freedom does not exist. The second example is what a typical worship service in the West, especially America, looks like. I ask you, dear brothers and sisters in Jesus, which example of a worship service looks more like the New Testament and like Biblical Christianity? Which example is more conducive to challenging us to bearing much fruit and to spiritual growth, as Jesus expects? Which example is more costly but also more rewarding?

If we are honest with ourselves and each other, we must make some admissions about much of the Church in the West. We may not face overt, blatant enemies like swords, threats, bombs, wars, or physical persecution, but our enemies are just as real. They are just as bad for our souls as these other blatant enemies are to our severely persecuted brothers and sisters in Jesus worldwide. I'm talking about things that we tend to readily let slip in the "back doors" of our local fellowships and influence us. I am talking about enemies such as materialism, individualism, secularism, relativism, traditionalism, and consumerism. How does that work? you may wonder.

Think about it.

We are to follow Jesus in the context of our cultures and we certainly cannot change the enemies we face, short of leaving our lands and taking residence outside the West. But I don't think most of us are called to do that. We can, though, prayerfully work to resist our subtle enemies and partner with nonprofits that serve the persecuted. We can do what we can to live more simply and sacrificially. We can stand with our severely persecuted brothers and sisters in Jesus in prayer and through giving to nonprofits that serve them. Or we can continue to "sleep in the light" and wait for God to purify us in the same way He has purified and tried so many of our brothers and sisters in Jesus outside the West. Some Christian leaders are predicting that severe persecution is coming to the West, especially America. Only God knows that for sure, but what will we need to purify us?

While no one wants severe persecution to befall us, what weapon does God have left to wake us up?

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Is God A Republican or A Democrat?

I have made an observation and it is pretty much across-the-board, among many Christian people in so many Christian denominations. I'm talking about how so many Christians are identifying themselves as Republicans because of their conviction that Republican values are more closely aligned with Biblical values than Democratic values. For the most part, they base their support of the Republican party on deep-seated convictions of the sanctity of life of all human life, including lives that may be seen as "better off dead." Also, they often base their support on the deep-seated conviction of the sanctity of traditional marriage as created by God to be between a man and a woman. And the Bible clearly addresses these issues, in both the Old and New Testaments. God clearly declares that He sees us as already alive from conception on (Jeremiah 4: 4), (Luke 1: 41-44) and that homosexuality as a lifestyle, is against His plan for us and unnatural Leviticus 18: 22), (Romans 1: 26-27) There are many others, who call themselves "progressive Christians," who support marriage equality and are neutral about abortion. They try to address the issue of homosexuality by redefining GLBT (Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender) by declaring that this lifestyle is not sinful and that we should just accept and affirm GLBT persons. They may deplore abortion as evil but believe that it should be available to women as an option. Progressive Christians place priority on caring for the socioeconomic needs of the poor, children, women, those with disabilities, and others who are vulnerable. The Bible clearly addresses our social responsibilities to our neighbors in need, in the Old and the New Testaments Nehemiah 5: 14-18), (Matthew 25: 34-45).
These are just two of countless verses from cover to cover!

Conservative Christians and progressive Christians have this in common, that God has spoken about what government's role should be and what our roles should be as Christians. Where conservative and progressive Christian differ is what they see that the role of government should be. Christians who support Republicans lean toward government's role in our lives being kept as small as possible, our personal liberties and responsibilities maximized, and that the government should be focused on protecting life and freedom and not spending money on government programs for "the underserving poor." Progressive Christians lean toward the government taking care of all vulnerable citizens while in no way denying personal responsibility or choice. There are factions in the Christian Church about which party we should support and which party more closely subscribes to Christian values. I think that this is based on where Christians come from and what they most value.

I grew up in a denomination that is staunchly conservative and that attracts many parishioners who support the Republican party. My observation of so many of these persons who I have encountered, whether in person or online, is that they prioritize moral issues like abortion and homosexuality, and do not see all the other issues as quite as pressing though they agree that these issues are important. These church people so often don't seem to put much priority on so many issues that the Bible clearly speaks to, especially our responsibility to the poor and vulnerable. Many years ago, when my spouse and I were members of the congregation that were married in, we were getting ready to pull out of our parking lot. I saw a bumper sticker that declared, "Friends do not let friends vote Democrat." Over and over, I have seen bumper stickers that have espoused "Republican" issues, particularly the right of the unborn to live, even when they are inconvenient to those around them. Years ago, on the weekend before one Election Day, our Pastor admonished all of us listeners to go to the polls and to "protect the unborn with our votes." I knew that this meant that we were to vote for Republicans.

Frankly, I felt politically alienated in the staunchly conservative Christian congregations that my spouse, daughter and I had been members of. I felt that we did not have much in common with so many fellow parishioners who supported the Republican party. So many of them seemed unaware of, even indifferent to, many moral issues which they seemed not to deem as priority as the sanctity of life and of traditional marriage. I agreed, and still do, that life begins at conception and should be protected from conception to death. I also agree that marriage, as God set it up in the Old Testament (Genesis 2:24) was meant to be between a man and a woman and He has not changed His mind about that (Matthew 19: 5,6). Frankly, I have never felt comfortable going to vote. I have often handled it by voting split-party, voting for a mix of Republicans and Democrats. I want my votes to protect ALL I value, not just a some! But I would hear, and still hear, conservative Christians shame their brethren who support Democrats, declaring, "God will hold you accountable for supporting candidates who endorse killing the unborn through abortion and who celebrate homosexuality!" I know no easy answers to this problem. Both the Republican and the Democratic parties embrace values that the God hold dear. Both parties also neglect values that God prizes. I'm bothered and offended when Christian leaders and pastors implicitly or explicitly endorse political parties or political candidates. Men like Rev. Franklin Graham, son of Rev. Billy Graham, has appeared on MSNBC to defend his conservative views and their superiority. Prolife groups have come out asking supporters to oppose President Obama and the Democratic Party.

I have heard it suggested that we Christians support "the lesser of two evils." The issue, as I see it, is what each of us sees as "the lesser of two evils." For many, that means voting straight Republican or straight Democrat. For some of us, it means voting a split-party ticket. I see nothing in the Bible that tells us which party or which politician  we should support. Christian leaders like Ron Sider and Jim Wallis lean are advocating for a consistent life ethic that would merge the best of both political parties.We are told to "Render to Caesar what is Caesar's, and render to God what is God's." We are told to pray for all politicians. Who should we support? The Bible does not tell us how to vote or which candidates to support. Of course, many Christians will disagree with me, but that is the way I read my Bible.

When Jesus lived among us as God made man, the reason so many rejected Him is because He would not get on any political soapbox, and stood up to the most rejected religious leaders of His day. I wonder what He would say about the factions in the Christian Church today?

God is not a Republican or a Democrat. He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords! Praise Him. Photo courtesy of MorgueFile.com. Photo by Krosseel. This photo can be found here.