Twitter Talk

Monday, October 27, 2014

Genetics

Did anybody else catch this exercise in human depravity? Are you equally disturbed by it? Sorry, the rebroadcast is filled with one annoying AARP ad after another; but I lived through them, so you can also survive, if you have a lot of patience. Let's take this apart.

Step One. Several embryos are harvested, artificially inseminated, and grown in a "test tube". In my world and life view, all of these are already living human beings, with developing human bodies and human spirits. In other words they are complete souls, already marked with the image of God. They belong to God, not to us.

Step Two. At a very early stage a single cell is extracted from each of these living human beings. Wait a minute, how many cells are involved? We started with one --- then two, four, eight, etc. At what point does this extraction cease to be critical? Certainly, one cell extracted from one cell will kill the baby. We have to believe that one cell extracted from two cells will seriously affect the developing baby. A single cell biopsied from me is of no apparent consequence. When and how do we know that this procedure does not cause or introduce flaws all of its own?

Step three. The developing babies are statistically evaluated from the samples taken. One baby is selected for implantation into the mother's womb. Even if all the others are put into a state of perfectly preserved suspended animation of some sort or other, they are virtually being murdered. This is not about stopping mother nature from taking her course (note the pseudo-scientific language used to sell the program). This is about killing a child, who belongs only to God.

Step four. The pseudo-parents/actors wrestle with the ethical/moral issues involved and emotionally draw the "correct" solution. This is not news reporting. This is a hard sell, disguised as science and pseudo-goodness. All these conclusions are drawn by folks who have the ethical/moral sensitivities of a block of concrete: because it is “scientific” it is necessarily good.

The line has already been crossed. The doctor has conspired, using his creative technology to invade living human beings; possibly damaging them with his own procedure; evaluated these babies with complicated computerized statistical routines; and on his/her own independent unilateral volition, selected one, and put the rest into an undefinable limbo. Make no mistake, this is playing God. This exactly what it means to play God. This is a conspiracy to commit murder, plain and simple.

The parents have also crossed the line. They have conspired with the doctor to murder their own children in their mad quest for the perfect child. They agree to select one for life and neglect the rest.

Ostensibly, this is justifiable, based on the obvious fact that all of us carry genetic defects. For the good of humanity, the inferior people are screened out, so that only an acceptable baby develops. It’s a good thing, right? We all ought to do it, right? Wait a minute!

Objection One. We have not protected babies from undeserved and unfair genetic defects and diseases. Instead, we have contrived to murder them because of these same defects and diseases. Moreover, the other babies not suffering with these defects and diseases are also murdered. This is no different from the barbaric ancient practice where babies were placed at the father’s feet. If the father picked the baby up, he/she lived. If the father refused to recognize the baby, he/she was left to die. Fortunately, concerned Christians stepped in to rescue many of these unwanted babies and raise them as their own. The only difference is the age of the baby.

Objection Two. We have not protected society from the painful care of undeserved and unfair genetic defects and diseases. Instead, we risk the introduction of new problems, problems that may not surface for decades, or centuries. Millennia from now, a new human defect or disease may very well surface that finds its cause here, in this procedure. Moreover, the very things that make us precious as individuals, the characteristics that make us loveable and loved, have now been screened out, to the detriment of society. What makes us individually precious? Is it not the very way that pathos plays out? If my ancestors died in painful suffering with cancer, isn’t this the very fact that indelibly implants and endears them in my memory? This is the very thing we seek to erase: that which makes life worth living.

Objection Three. This house of cards is constructed around a so-called, trumped-up, statistical probability: supposedly a form of breast cancer in the model. This supposed statistical probability is then generalized into the fact that everybody has genetic defects. Does anyone else see this logical flaw? It is the flaw of excessive generalization. In its reductio ad absurdum it becomes the genetic design of all human characteristics: the reduction of the human race to robotically identical non entities, devoid of individuality and lovability. Returning to the original model: Will this unfortunate woman be less loved because she has a tragic breast cancer? Or will she be loved all the more because of our memory of her suffering? Would we like to see this disease eliminated? Yes! Find another way.

Objection Four. Does this unfortunate young woman have the right to reject the means that God has chosen for calling her home to Himself? She has not escaped death. Nor have her children escaped death. She, running away from cancer, ran in front of a speeding vehicle. He, returning unscathed from combat, was killed by a stray bullet, fired by accident blocks away. We cannot cheat death. In attempting to postpone the inevitable, at what point are we found to be waging war with God? Is life so dear that we will ignore every other value in order to cling to it?

Objection Five. Who decides what is imperfect and inferior; or what is neither imperfect nor inferior? Is it the doctor? Is it the parent? Or is it God? If we assume that human copulation is nothing more than random chance, breeding, we will draw the wrong conclusion. Human copulation involves more than a man and a woman. Human copulation is a sacred act involving a man, a woman, and God Himself.

Objection Six. It won’t work. The doctor has cleverly disguised his discussion around the supposed existence of a disease cause by a single genetic marker, a single recessive defect. Statistically this means that both parents must have the defect. Bb mating with another Bb will statistically produce one BB (defect free individual), two Bb (carriers), and one bb (with the disease), which he calls 50/50. His math is a little off: its actually 75/25. If B and B mate, there can be no defect. If B and b mate there can still be no defect because of the recessive trait. If b and b mate, the defect will necessarily take place. Still not 50/50 unless you predetermine and load the B to b population ratio. Only when Bb mates with bb are the results, two Bb (carriers) and two bb (defects): 50/50. All of this clouds over the fact that very few, if any diseases depend on a single genetic marker, or if markers merely render the individual susceptible to a disease, while the actual cause lies elsewhere. In reality the genetic marker may merely indicate a susceptibility, not a necessity. Experimentation is usually confounded by overlapping and inseparable competing causes. Moreover, in reality, most, if not all diseases have several markers: now the math becomes unbelievably complex. With as few as eight markers the odds could be as low as one in 65,536: indicating a susceptibility, not a certainty. This is pseudo-science. Genetics is still too young and too difficult to draw these conclusions with certainty.

Objection Seven. Public editorials and news render no service to mankind when their opinions are boldly presented as sales campaigns and heart rending dramatizations. None of these things is necessarily the Truth. God holds the Truth, men do not. It is not only the doctor, and the parents, who are playing God in this scenario. The editorial and news teams have done a lot of God playing as well. They pose themselves as disinterested parties, but they are far from it; they are advertisers promoting murder.

Not only are we doomed to fail in this process. We, having conspired, are now saddled with the guilt of being accessories to the murder of many more babies. In the “digital” test the sample size was one hundred. I’m here to tell you that if the necessary digital sample size was one hundred, then the real life sample size would be on the same order. That implies roughly ninety-nine babies murdered with every test. This is a decision that only God has the right to make.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/breeding-out-disease-with-reproductive-genetics/

Friday, October 24, 2014

Polarization

We live in an increasingly polarized, divided, and even schismatic society. The so-called middle class is all but gone, a dinosaur, a lost relic from a bygone era. We are especially divided over money with 40% of the nation’s wealth in the hands of 1% of the population; while 90% struggle in a shared poverty consisting of some of the remaining wealth. In between, lie the 90 to 99% which could be thought of as the middle class: 90 to 95%, lower middle class; 95 to 99%, upper middle class.

Mind you, our lower 90% appear to be quite wealthy when contrasted with the rest of the world: at least in terms of things like houses and cars. However, are houses and cars real indicators of genuine wealth? Or is this a bogus evaluation? Or is the whole idea that 40% of all wealth resides with the 1%, is that idea also bogus?

This looks like class warfare to me, and it is class warfare. Yet, is it the kind of class warfare a rational person might expect? Moreover, we must ask, is it all bad? Is it all bad? Or, rather, is it indeed good?

I would suggest that these two Titans have been clashing for a long time: at least since 1850 in the United States; perhaps earlier than 1550 in Europe. Does it in fact dawn from Creation and the Fall of Man? Is it, in fact, the logical outcome of God’s clash with Satan and the wicked angels, as well as man’s choice to side with wickedness, rather than with God?

I would submit to you that our present polarization is exactly that, an increasing division between the decision to follow evil, and the decision to follow God. This is a division in which the lines of battle become more clearly painted every day. Still, some confusion remains as some still struggle to bridge the widening gap between two really distinct worlds.

In the one world, only one factor is worth measuring: profitability. All decisions are based upon their impact on profitability. Nothing else matters. Within such a world loyalty is an adversary, while avarice, corruption, oppression, and war are all virtues. War, the kind fought with physical weapons, not this war, the war for minds and souls; war is a virtue. This is a world in which a successful person is defined as one who conquers and dominates others; a world in which all human virtue has no remaining value; a world in which human virtue is considered the concern of fools.[1] Usury and debt reign supremely. Growth is the oft paraded mantra of goodness. This is the world that must serve mammon rather than God. Nevertheless, this world has failed to deal rationally with the fact that all its wealth is fiat wealth, having no intrinsic value. This world lives in a foggy state of denial, refusing to admit that it is running out of energy. This world is doomed and doesn’t know it: so self-conflicted and self-confident that it cannot know it. This world believes that profitability is actually good: the ultimate good. Thus profitability is worshiped as God.

In the other world, other things are valued: having a wife and children, being able to come home to them, putting a roof over head, and meals on the table; going to church on Sunday and thanking God for His marvelous good and overflowing bounty. Virtues like kindness, love, mercy, patience, and peace are held as prized possessions. Rejoicing in the welfare of others is a crown jewel. A gentle rain is the gift of our kind God. This world increasingly realizes that mammon is at the core of its evil problems. Desires for gain, profitability, and wealth are enemies that must engaged and defeated. Here, growth is an adversary.[2] Debt is an opponent. Increasingly, the citizens of this world realize that they cannot have both profitability and virtue. Profitability must be sacrificed in order to give customers better, higher quality products, fair prices, and the like. Profitability means nothing, but a happy customer means everything: making someone else happy means everything. Life revolves around serving, rather than being served; around giving, rather than getting. Sharing is more important than keeping. Eventually, the realization strikes, takes hold, flourishes. This life is the life of poverty, and it must be embraced to find true life and real wealth. Poverty is not something for a handful of priests, it is the way of life for anybody. “He who loses his life will save it.”[3]

These two worlds are at war. As long as this earth remains they shall continue at war. This war cannot be possibly be concluded until Jesus returns. Until then, the so-called middle class is a myth. No one can live in both worlds. It’s time to decide. Chose profitability and death; or chose poverty and life. There is no middle ground.

I submit to you that this is a good thing, very good. Let go of the struggle. Stop trying to hang on to both worlds. Embrace life, real life.

[4]

[1] For example, the oft repeated refrain, “Religion is the opiate of the masses.”

[2] Unless it is family growth, or plant growth, or beauty.

[3] Luke 9:23-26; 17:26-33

[4] If you have been blessed or helped by any of these meditations, please repost, share, or use any of them as you wish. No rights are reserved. They are designed and intended for your free participation. They were freely received, and are freely given. No other permission is required for their use.

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Education

With so much being said about education nowadays, a lot of folks are fed up with the whole debacle.

1. Education is not a toy for the Federal Government or even State governments. Education is a protected jurisdiction of States, best totally administered at the smallest local level, without any interference from either the State or the nation. Education is a village matter.

2. The goal of education is maximized cognitive creativity: the ability to move past rote into fresh new ideas and art; the ability to think, to dream, to invent, to be.

Compulsory algebra is not conducive to either thought or creativity. In fact compulsory much of anything is destructive of both thought and creativity: for thought and creation require space to explore. Compulsory algebra will not produce a creative engineer or scientist: it can only produce a mentally crippled dunce who is able to plug, shove, and crunch numbers, nothing more --- a fool in a lab coat.

Neither is the "No child left behind law" conducive of thought and creativity. All such mandated programs, by their very lack of creativity and inventiveness, are destructive of creativity and inventiveness.

A test cannot teach creativity and inventiveness unless it is an extremely creative and inventive test, as say with "Blind Man's Bluff" which calls for ever increasing inventiveness in places to hide, and in which no two individuals can possibly hide in the exact same place. Mind you, I've faced some marvelously creative and inventive tests. However, penciling in circles, squares, or parallel lines were never among them. On the other hand the tests that began with “compare and contrast” always taxed me to empty every creative and inventive thought from my sweating mind. The very process of emptying, paved the way for refilling with fresh explorations, and ideas.

If we wish our children to learn to think and create, the very most advanced of all cognitive skills, we must expose them to art, and music; yes, and even the risk of danger: for it is these things, seemingly without rules or boundaries, that are truly thoughtful and creative. Children need shop, cooking, recess, and other hands-on learning exposure. For the child who finds such pleasure in books, let it be books. For the child who finds such pleasure in sandbox, let it be sandbox.

I once had a teacher who loved murals and papier-mâché. We could count on doing at least four, cover-the-class-room-floor-size murals, plus several papier-mâché objects, as well as numerous posters in the school year. In spite of the fact that I was the prototypical algebra kid, she was the best thing that ever happened to us: she opened our young minds to exploration and real education. We also had music teachers, and scoutmasters with similar commitments. Consequently, I was fortunate to grow up in a climate, a village of maximum creativity.

The best thing we could do to education is to kneecap the Federal government's education overtures, and smash the fusty fingers of State meddling. The most damning words I've ever heard flow from a politician's mouth are, "Have I got a program for you?" or "My program will fix education."

[1]

[1] If you have been blessed or helped by any of these meditations, please repost, share, or use any of them as you wish. No rights are reserved. They are designed and intended for your free participation. They were freely received, and are freely given. No other permission is required for their use.

Sympathy

That’s what I get for trying to be sympathetic in 140 characters or less.

Of course “Doctrine is [the] substrate of all ritual, liturgy, spirituality, prayer, theology, etc.” Tell me something I don’t already know. But many churches are already playing with a felt “need for doctrinal evolution.”

At the risk of telling you something you already know,[1] theology does not simply evolve. Theology is forever settled in heavenly places in Christ: thus it never changes. Nor is it negotiable. Indeed, it cannot change: because the love between the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost; as well as the love of the Son as God, together with the love of the Son as man is perfect and complete. No issues of distrust or misunderstanding can ever arise within the Trinity, or within Theanthropos. Theology has been perfect from the foundation of the world; since long before Creation in the infinity of eternity past. The Λόγος[2] never changes. Theology never changes.

Man, on the other hand, is blinded and dead because of sin. So dead man must be brought back to life, still groping in the dark to learn anything. To this end: God has promised the Holy Ghost to lead and teach us. This is truly a new light in the world, so that man is no longer compelled to grope in the dark; provided that individual men and women recognize their need as children, and ask the Father for His gift of this Holy Ghost.

Doctrine does not evolve either. Doctrine grows as the Holy Ghost teaches man the unchangeable and unchanging theology of heaven. Man, however, is dull witted, so the teaching process is slow and tedious. This means that even the Magisterium is not somehow or other wrong; rather it is incomplete: it cannot be completed until Jesus returns.

What men and women are all too willing to call “doctrinal evolution” is all too frequently self-willed doctrinal revolution: just another example of angry man shaking his fist at God. Man persists in a war against God that he cannot possibly win; a war pitted against the only Person, Who truly loves him, even in his misery of blindness and death.

This “doctrinal evolution” is usually introduced by some sort of subterfuge. “We’re so glad that the Holy Ghost has led us to this change.” “You are not being loving.” “Science has now discovered that….” And so on, and so on, ad infinitum, ad nauseam.

Doctrine does not evolve. Doctrine is taught by the Holy Ghost, and learned by those men and women who have been baptized by the Holy Ghost into The Church.

As I noted before, “I see the need for more careful application of absolution.” While many churches have denied the need for penance, others are now grasping to find any means of kindly accountability. It is true that priests or pastors have no way of knowing that a confessor has a truly penitent heart. However, priests and pastors have every right in the conduct of their office to demand and expect accountability for sin. This is nothing more or less than observing that penance is a necessary and vital step in the process from confession to absolution.

Priests and pastors, in the privacy of the confessional, are under no obligation to announce absolution to a murder, who refuses to denounce and renounce the sin of murder, vowing never to murder again. It is perfectly reasonable to expect the murderer, after denouncing and renouncing all such murders, to then work out his full penance by admitting and by pleading guilty to such murders before lawful civil authorities. Then and only then, when the ex-murderer has happily accepted the due punishment of the law, should the priest or pastor announce absolution.

Similarly, adulterers and adulteresses must denounce and renounce the sin of adultery, vowing to break off the relationship and never commit adultery again. Anyone returning with a second confession of adultery should expect increased pressure in the form of penance. Priests and pastors have every right to enquire if this is the first incidence of adultery. If the behavior is oft repeated, part of the penance might include public exposure, as with murder, even if no punishment is attached by law.

Homosexuals must denounce and renounce the sin of homosexuality, vowing to break off the relationship and never commit homosexual acts again. Priests and pastors are under no obligation to commune two males, or two females coming arm and arm to the table. Deacons should firmly guide them away from the table and explain the nature and the necessity of confession before communion.

In like manner, sins of Sodomy may not be simply excused in marriage or in solo. Masturbation is a serious sin. Priests and pastors have every obligation to assure themselves that the confessor experiences healing. So called “69” or “going down on it” is also a serious sin, even in marriage. The sinner must be healed if absolution is to have any meaning.

God did not design either male or female genitalia for the anus, hand, or mouth under any condition. God only designed male or female genitalia for each other within the state of holy matrimony: as we learn when God brought Eve to Adam and blessed them.

Hence, all marriages, whether civil or clerical, or even common law, are holy marriages, not to be trivialized by man. So yes, divorce is a great evil, and ought to be forbidden. Yet, even Moses, was so overwhelmed by the wickedness of man that he tolerated divorce, seeking a greater good. In other words, if genuine remorse was possible, Moses granted an “economia”, even though divorce is strictly forbidden in the Law: as are idolatry, usury, slavery, and dozens of other sins, at which we no longer cringe. Shame on us.

The key to this is a “need for more careful application of absolution.” Which is to say, we all need to do a great deal of learning and thinking about the ways we apply accountability in our lives and in our churches. We need to listen more carefully to what the Holy Ghost has to teach from the Word of God.

I have every prayer and sympathy for the pain of many or our churches as they struggle to be faithful to God.

I have no sympathy for those so-called churches or individuals that have deliberately set themselves against God: I may only pray for their genuine repentance and healing.

However, the penalty that they now experience; this they willfully and deliberately brought upon themselves.

Nevertheless, it gives me no comfort to observe that they will get what they deserve, since I am a person who has experienced the kindness and absolution of God, and will not get what I deserve. My penance will continue to be earnestly sought and maintained by God’s infinite grace, which is also my hope and prayer for you.

YOS

[3]

[1] I apologize if I am doing this. I have no desire to talk down to you, or anyone else. My only desire is to address you as brother or sister, complete equals in our standing before God. However, I must strive for completeness. I really don’t know where you are in your journey before God, as you don’t know where I am on mine. So perhaps my wisecrack, “Tell me something I don’t already know,” was uncalled for. I apologize for that too.

[2] The Logos, Jesus is the ultimate expression of God’s Word.

[3] If you have been blessed or helped by any of these meditations, please repost, share, or use any of them as you wish. No rights are reserved. They are designed and intended for your free participation. They were freely received, and are freely given. No other permission is required for their use.

Saturday, August 9, 2014

Psalm 113:1-9 rA

... in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen. Through the prayers of our holy Fathers, Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy on us and save us. Amen. Glory to You, our God, Glory to You.

O Heavenly King, the Comforter, the Spirit of truth, You are everywhere and fill all things, Treasury of blessings, and Giver of life: come and abide in us, and cleanse us from every impurity, and save our souls, O Good One.

Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us (three times).

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost, as it is now, was in the beginning, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Psalm 113:1-9[1]

Praise the Lord.

Praise, servants of the Lord. Praise the name of the Lord. Blessed be the name of the Lord from this time forth and forever. From the rising of the sun to the going down of the same, the Lord’s name [is] to be praised.

The Lord [is] high above all nations. His Glory [is] above the heavens.[2] Who [is] like the Lord our God, Who dwells on high, Who humbles[3] [Himself] to behold [things] in heaven, and in the earth!

He raises up the poor from the dust. [He] lifts the needy from the dunghill: so that He may set [him] with princes, with the princes of His people. He makes the barren woman keep house, a joyful mother of children.

Praise the Lord.[4]

[1] This delightful Psalm of Praise gives no author or date; it focuses on the Glory of God. We remember that the Glory of God is not an abstraction, but His real presence in talking flame and smoke, seated on the Ark of the Covenant, and resident in the most holy place within the Tabernacle or Temple. The Psalmist moves on to observe that God’s real presence is simply His visibility; His real Glory is greater than the Universe (heaven) itself; but He stoops (humbles) to give special loving attention to humanity: this looks forward to the Incarnation of Jesus, which is God’s greatest act of humbling, actually becoming complete and true man. Hence, as Theanthropos or Theandros (God-man) he humbles Himself to forgive, heal, and justify the poor, needy, and barren.

We note with astonishment the emphasis on fruitfulness. This could be a reference to Samuel and his mother, Hannah, or a prophecy concerning John (the Baptist) and his mother, Elisabeth. It draws attention to the fact that for both men and women, spiritual fruitfulness is among the most important things in our lives. These noblewomen did more than merely give birth; they themselves were great servants of God: thus, they gave birth to great servants of God. Both Samuel and John introduced the King: David, the type of the Incarnation; Jesus, the reality of the Incarnation.

[2] The True Sh^ekinah, not merely the earthly visible Sh^ekinah. The Glory on earth is simply a visible icon to teach the Israelites and us about the reality of God’s existence: so He presented Himself in visible form. But the heavenly Glory of God is infinitely greater.

[3] Humility is of the nature of God and of godliness. Pride is of the nature of man and manliness. To become godly in this world, men and women must put pride and every vestige of self. I must finish my course with Paul (2 Timothy 4:6-8), but not without being poured out as a drink offering; not without taking up my cross every day (Matthew 16:24-28; Mark 8:34-38; Luke 9:23-27).

Psalm 112:1-10 rA

Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us (three times).

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost, as it is now, was in the beginning, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Psalm 112:1-10[1]

Praise the Lord.

Blessed [is] the man [who] fears the Lord, [who] delights greatly in His commandments. His seed shall be mighty on earth.[2]

The generation of the upright shall be blessed. Wealth and riches [shall be] in his house. His righteousness endures forever. To the upright there rises light in the darkness. [He is] gracious, full of compassion, and righteous. A good man shows favor, and lends. He will guide his affairs with discretion. Surely he shall not be moved forever. The righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance. He shall not be afraid of evil tidings. His heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord. His heart [is] established. He shall not be afraid, until he see [its desire] on his enemies. He has dispersed. He has given to the poor. His righteousness endures forever. His horn shall be exalted with honor.[3]

The wicked shall see, and be grieved. He shall gnash with his teeth, and melt away. The desire of the wicked shall perish.[4]

[1] The unnamed psalmist moves from the topic of the blessed man to the upright or righteous man; and finally, to the wicked man. The phrase, “His righteousness endures forever,” shows us clearly that these first two are one and the same. Less clear is that Jesus is the perfection of this blessed-righteous man.

Nor is this the sort of self-righteousness that flows from human works-righteousness: for the core of this righteousness is the fear of the Lord. This fear, Jesus perfects, and then produces in us. The lending spoken of, is really giving: for nothing is expected in return. Jesus freely gives His body and blood. His only repayment is that we trust, love, and are grateful to Him for His immeasurable gift.

It is this perfection in the crucifixion and resurrection that results in Jesus coronation and seating on the throne of David (Acts 2:29-36). Jesus is the horn because He is the King. We will be exalted with Him and also reign with Him.

The wicked, who want Him dead, cannot stand or understand the fact of the resurrection of Christ from the dead. Their rage is very self-destructive. “Judas goes out and hangs himself.”

[2] The nature of the consummated kingdom of God between the Advents is one of steady growth (Daniel 2:34-35; 44-45; Philippians 2:5-11). In a world that has just passed the seven and a quarter billion population mark (August, 2014), The Church claims about one billion members. Since the promise of God is certain, we may be sure that this growth continues during perilous times, even when it appears that The Church is waning in this post-modern era. Indeed the open persecution of the post-modern age may prove to be the final era of greatest Church growth: for it is persecution that calls forth the most noble of Christian behavior.

[3] The nature of the consummated kingdom of God between the Advents tends toward kindness and prosperity. It is not that being a Christian is about accruing wealth. On the contrary, Christian life is about humility and humiliation: embracing poverty, tribulation, and even crucifixion (Matthew 10:22-23; 16:24-28; Mark 8:34-38; Luke 9:23-27; Acts 7:54-56; 9:3-6; Philippians 1:29-30; 3:17-21; 2 Timothy 3:12; Revelation 1:10-11; all of Revelation). On the other hand, Christian life is about giving, not getting; about building rather than about razing; and that tends toward a prosperity shared by the whole world (1 Corinthians 5:3-17). I may not realize any gain in this life, but my fellow men and women shall, if they come to believe.

Friday, August 8, 2014

Psalm 111:1-10 rA

Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us (three times).

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost, as it is now, was in the beginning, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Psalm 111:1-10[1]

Praise the Lord.

I will praise the Lord with whole heart, in the assembly of the upright, the congregation.

The works of the Lord [are] great, sought out by all those who have pleasure in them. His work [is] honorable and glorious. His righteousness endures forever. He has made His wonderful works to be remembered. The Lord [is] gracious and full of compassion. He has given food to those who fear Him. He will be ever mindful of His covenant. He has showed His people the power of His works, so that He may give them the heritage of the heathen.

The works of His hands [are] reality and judgment. All His commandments [are] sure. They stand fast forever and ever. [They are] done in truth and uprightness. He sent redemption to His people. He has commanded His covenant forever. Holy and reverend [is] His name.

The fear of the Lord [is] the beginning of wisdom.[2] A good understanding have all those who do [His commandments].

His praise endures forever.[3] [4]

[1] The great works of God are: His creation of the Universe; His ongoing provision for that creation; and His Law given through Moses. These great works are administered on earth by an eternal covenant, which unfolds in history: Noah, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the tribes of Israel, Moses, David, Solomon, and Jesus. Yes, all these are pictures pointing to Jesus. Solomon employs a latter verse of this Psalm, “The fear of the LORD [is] the beginning of wisdom,” as the motto of Proverbs, where he unfolds the wise nature of Jesus in great detail.

[2] This is already, or will become the motto of Proverbs. Either this Psalm is written by Solomon, or Solomon will quote David (or some other psalmist) in Proverbs. Because the argument of the book of Proverbs revolves around the father-son relationship, we would be inclined to believe that David wrote this Psalm, while Solomon quotes David in Proverbs.

[3] From the human perspective, all the covenants were broken: covenants between Yahweh Noah, Abraham, Moses at the Exodus, Moses in Deuteronomy, and David. These covenants were usually ratified and sealed in the presence of the Sh^ekinah. From the Divine perspective, all these covenants continue in full effect and reach their culmination and ultimate fulfillment in the blood of the new covenant. Because this Everlasting Covenant cannot be broken, we now see each of the broken covenants as a type of death, followed immediately by new birth or resurrection. Each covenant discloses some new facet of the kingdom of God. The blood of the new covenant is both Old and New Testament in nature (Jeremiah 31:31; Matthew 26:28; Mark 14:24; Luke 22:20; 1 Corinthians 11:25; 2 Corinthians 3:6-7; Hebrews 8:7-8, 13; 9:15; 12:24).

The Church is not a new work of God; it is the redemption, resurrection, and revival of the true Israel of God, which is now re-clothed with the righteousness of Christ by the power of the Holy Ghost within Her (Jeremiah 4:4; Romans 2:29). Until physical Israel returns to Christ she is cut off and has no future with God (Romans 9-11); Israel must be grafted in again to the tree of life by embracing her True Messiah. The blood of the new covenant cannot be terminated. All of the covenants of God are expressions of the Eternal or Everlasting Covenant, and each of them is identified as such.