Just a Thought - 08/25/2020

Greetings to all in the Name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Yesterday's shooting in Wisconsin is such a heartbreaking event. Although all the facts pertaining to the shooting have not yet been released, the few seconds of video airing seem to indicate that it was not absolutely necessary. We pray for the recovery of Mr. Jacob Blake; we pray for peace for his family; we pray for self-control for the citizens of Kenosha, Wisconsin; and we pray for God to take full control of that situation. We trust that the full investigation being currently conducted would lead to justice for all involved.

Now my thought for today centers on that often misunderstood and misconstrued word - tolerance.

If you know me, you would know that rarely am I interested in dictionary definitions of words and would rather decipher word meanings from contexts in which they are used. The biblical understanding of tolerance can be gained from a statement from Jesus Himself:

"Whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets" - Matthew 7: 12. This is a Christian principle and advises that we must treat all people humanely even when we disagree with them. Our depraved and warped culture often uses the word tolerance to mean approval, acceptance and even favor for those who are deemed worthy, and disapproval, rejection and disfavor for Christians who seem to often disagree. That is clearly NOT tolerance! Obviously, we cannot all agree on everything, or else, tolerance would not be necessary. Whenever Christians are faced with morally challenging issues, there are three possible options from which we can choose a response.

1) We can stay silent, not share our biblically supported view and make Jesus ashamed of us - Mark 8: 38. Clearly, this is not an option for bible believers as we are called to establish distinctions between good and evil, as defined by scripture. If those around us are encouraged to ignore, discredit or violate God's council, we are responsible to God for pointing them towards the right pathway. Not to fulfill that duty is to refuse to 'call out' sin and injure the fellowship we foster with our Lord.

2) We can depend on our own human reasoning and foolishly reject God's truths - Proverbs 3; 5, 1 Corinthians 3: 18 - 20. Once again, our allegiance is with the infallible word of God. Human reasoning, personal philosophies and world view are secondary to "Thus saith the Lord." Christians cannot afford to pretend ignorance, turn a blind eye or distance themselves from discomforting realities under the guise of trying to stay "holy." We will be held accountable.

3. We can love and honor Jesus enough to stand for His truth, regardless of cost - 1 John 5: 3. This is the only option we have as Christians. In Matthew 5: 14, our Lord likened us to the "light of the world." If we do not allow the light of God to shine through us and illuminate the dark corners of hidden or camouflaged sin, we are not useful lights at all and should be put out.

Nothing about God's truth and principles are ever hateful, unloving or wrong.

We cannot force God on the world, but we must be careful not to allow the world to force its shtoot (Hebrew for foolishness) on us.

Just a Thought

Pastor Chandroo