October 13, 2024

GOD’S WORD FOR TODAY:

“On that day I [AM] will make the clans of Judah like a firepot in a woodpile, like a flaming torch among sheaves. They will consume all the surrounding peoples right and left, but Jerusalem will remain intact in her place. The Lord will save the dwellings of Judah first, so that the honor of the house of David and of Jerusalem’s inhabitants may not be greater than that of Judah. On that day the Lord will shield those who live in Jerusalem, so that the feeblest among them will be like David, and the house of David will be like God, like the angel of the Lord going before them.  On that day I [AM] will set out to destroy all the nations that attack Jerusalem.” (Zechariah 12.6-9)

REFLECTION ON GOD’S WORD:

I can only pray that those who may perchance read these reflections on God’s Word stop to consider the value which God has imparted in them for our consideration as to not only what we believe, but why, how, when and where we believe. In fact, the height, depth and breadth of “what” we believe, is determined and exposed by the “why, how, when and where” we believe what we believe. It is not so nearly complicated as people make it out to believe. That reality [parameter of accountability] exists for any religion, philosophy, theology or political platform upon the measure of those four aspects.

Why? Why do we believe what we believe? The question itself exposes the premise of purpose, intent, desire and motivation. No one “just believes.” Believing is an innate part of our intellect and existence. We cannot exist without knowing we are alive. We may not know any greater purpose at the beginning of life other than we live but we know at least that much. Something inside of every living being “wants to live.” Its reason for living is “to live.” I believe this matters a great deal especially as we delve deeper and deeper into the “right to life” issues that have been engaged for sixty years on the political scene. I find it incredibly challenging to see that in the 1960s when rebellion against the government by a generation “coming of age,” we begin to see two debates rise up. Both of these debates are internal. Both of these debates argue the point for and against the meaning of life. On the one hand, we have the spiritual argument. In the sixties there was the question (Is God dead?) echoed by the answer (God is dead!) The question framed observations most often categorized by “If God is omniscient, omnipresent and omnipotent and “all caring,” then why do bad things happen to good people or at all and why do good things happen to bad people seemingly at the whim or merely based on works whether good or bad. The lack of understanding of free will and agape (God’s love) opened the proverbial Pandora’s box to the extremes of options for living being normalized. On the other hand, we have the physical argument. The physical argument speaks more to when does life begin? Does it begin at conception as the sperm engages the egg and creates the bio-chemical reactions that result in an evolutionary process of single cells transforming into complex cell structures with varied and multiple organs and, as determined by the DNA, becomes a form of living being? Does life begin at the conception of the idea of entering into a physical relationship out of which is the possibility of engaging the process (intentionally or unintentionally, meaning “what was I not thinking about” as there are no accidental pregnancies) by which life is formed. Whether of the body or of the mind, the internal debate (dare we say “of the head, mind, body and soul”) rages on. What is the purpose of these debates? The question of why is then of survival of the species and the very definition of what makes for living in the moment and the moments yet to come. Why do we believe whatever it is we believe? The answer is meaning and purpose. We are always in the process of finding and expanding, defining and refining our existence individually, corporately and communally. “Because” cannot satisfy the question “WHY?”

How? Do we actually frame “what we believe” by how? Of course, we do. We can easily apply one of Newton’s law of physics to best explain it. That law says, “for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.” What would the first action be? It is, of course, the action of the brain seeking its meaning in time and place that is the first action. No one does anything without a reason. They may say it in the moment but with careful investigation, the purpose (regardless of validity) is exposed, revealed and thus evaluated. It is the “reaction” that presses us forward to answer the question of “How?” How we do something is determined by the initial “why” which drives us to express the meaning and purpose of our own lives in any given moment. And don’t think that you can’t make such “quick” decisions. The brain makes millions of calculated decisions a second gathering and processing all types of input from internal and external sources. “Thoughts” become actions. In the Christian life we hear these words “faith,” the why and what we believe, without “works” is dead. “Dead” in this pearl of wisdom does not mean lifeless. “Dead” means without meaning and purpose. If we do something without thinking, unless there is an intervention of a higher power, it rarely if ever accomplishes what we would have desired of it if we had been thinking. Our actions, those non-verbal expressions of the inner and outer verbalization of our thoughts, reveal what we believe and why? Many may desire to deny they had any intentions at all and we simply “acting” out. Let’s posit that this way: to not decide is to decide. Or now we could say: to act without thinking is to say someone else is in control of our thoughts and now our actions which we have decided to allow. Our “how we believe” is always exposed by our actions or our inactions (which are thus an extension of our actions which we decided upon to have no physical reactions; I say that is impossible even for the most “poker-faced” individual.) Our thoughts and beliefs will be revealed and known when called into question. Of course, this is why so many believe that we do not have to question others about their actions or beliefs. They do not because they do not which their own called into question. No accountability is demanded so that no accountability is required. In the midst of that there is no authentic denial possible nor plausible as to the “why and how” of “what” we believe.

When? In increasing levels of difficulty, we move through this discussion of “what” we believe. This is where we truly begin to grasp the hypocrisy of “what we believe. It comes in the “when” do we believe what we believe, why we believe it and how we believe it that our integrity or lack of it is seen by others. Trust me on this, someone does see it even if we do not think anyone is looking. I am not speaking about “God sees it,” when I say that. I am speaking of the consequences of our actions over time. The example of falling dominoes is good here. The tripping of one dominoes begins a chain reaction to knock down the rest. Someone does not need to see when the first domino was knocked down nor who did it nor why to know that someone did it for a reason and at a certain time. The book titled “The Butterfly Effect” speaks to this as well. I can also imagine how a stone skipped across the water speaks to this, too. We might see only the big skips at the start or the smaller ones at the end until there is no more. We might see them from start to finish. But when it is completed, there are still ripples in the water reaching out across the face of the water which indicate something happened and for a reason. The opposite would be true in seeing someone standing by the water with a stone in hand but the water is never disturbed. We know that something has happened and there is evidence to prove it. “What” we believe is exposed by when we put that belief in action, even if it is inaction. Such inaction is as much an action because there is a reason to withhold it. As Christians, we see this expressed in the word and action called “grace.” In grace, we do not receive what we deserve because of our sinful actions. Equally, we may not receive what we are led to believe we deserve because of right actions. Such “deserving” thinking may be the wrong action and result in a consequence we never even possibly imagined. Equally, when we say we believe something and then in another moment act in that equal and opposite way, then we expose the lack of integrity in “what” we believe. Well, perhaps what we believe is only partial and exists in the partiality of our thoughts and actions based on what we say we “need, want and/or deserve.” The question of when is critical in defining and refining “what we believe.”

Where? The corollary of “when” is where. Sometimes it is a matter of convenience as to when and where we decide to “show our faith” or “hold our faith back.” It may be a decision based on what we believe in the moment might give us the momentary survival opportunity, but does it do so in the long term? The question of “where” we believe has to include the “end result” of where will we be when it is all done. The maxim “from dust we came and to dust we shall return” is a common saying even among “church” attenders who belief in the resurrection of Jesus Christ and that which is promised to believers. Is our life merely dust of the earth? Is our life more? If the end result is returning back to the soil, then what is the purpose in believing there is a Heaven except for those who will never “taste” death in this world on this earth? And since we never do know when “that” moment shall be that either we die or are gathered up to Heaven upon the return of Jesus Christ, where is that hill we are willing to die on? Do we each have a Golgotha? It could be the dinner table, a school desk, a street corner, a hospital corridor or in the workplace (and numerous other examples) that we will find ourselves thinking about and expressing our belief. Some of those places may be our choice and some will be because of choices we refused to make (which then are choices we made) or because we live in a fluid and complex world of intersecting conversations of words and life. How we see ourselves in the moment “where” we are will speak volumes about “what” we believe, “how” we believe it and “when” we will choose to reveal what it is that we believe.

Mighty ones of God, it is our duty and opportunity to be engaging believers in Jesus as the Christ. We will not be able to avoid the accountability of the gifts of faith and salvation which have been presented to us by God and by Christ in the midst of God’s Word. We each are and will be held accountable for how we live, when we live, where we live and what we live as believers in Jesus Christ or as non-believers. We know the day will come when EVERYONE will bow before the King of kings and Lord of lords and confess that He is Lord. But there will only be a few, in comparative numbers, who will be able to profess that He is their personal Lord and Savior. It will happen on “that day” just as was revealed to Zechariah and what was said would happen then (in the past perfect voice) will happen then (in the future perfect voice) as it will be on “that day” which will be the inescapable present voice that says “Well done, My good and faithful servant. Welcome!” What if “that day” was TODAY and the “what, why, how, when and where” questions were expected to be answered without equivocation? Are we ready?

TODAY’S PRAYER IN RESPONSE TO GOD’S WORD:

Father, before we were conceived in the womb, You had already formed us in Your love and by Your Spirit brought us into being. Each one of us is blessed with the opportunity of doing right, being good and producing the fruit of the Spirit in order that others be fed the truth of that same love so that the two will become one. It is our soul’s sincere desire to embrace the oneness You have in mind so we would know we are Your people and You are our God. Lead us in that discovery of the truth and the manifestation of that love for us all. In Jesus’ name, we pray. AMEN.