A Verse to Meditate Upon: John 12:26

John 12:26—"If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my father honor."

Political Humor for Today

I heard this one from a friend today.

Three doctors are sitting at a table relaxing: One each from Canada, the United States, and Mexico.

The Mexican doctor says, "In Mexico, we can take out both kidneys, put new ones in, and within a month the patient is ready to go back to work."

The others nod approvingly, but the U.S. doctor replies, "In the United States, we can take out both lungs and the heart, transplant new ones, and within two months the patient is ready to go back to work."

The Canadian doctor then says, "In Canada, we can take a blonde, take out her brain, send her to Michigan, and then everybody will be looking for work."

It's the Most "Politically Correct" Time of the Year

Today, I was working at a warehouse filling order after order for Kmart. (Good news: Monotony now has a definition.) Each identical order contained a number of what I, and many of you, would refer to as "Thanksgiving" dinnerware, napkins, table covers, etc. But is that what the labels say?

No. We had the "Fall Harvest" platter and plates, and products called "Autumn Splendor" and "Harvest Festival" (that one had your traditional turkey-and-cornucopia look). Thanksgiving? Nowhere to be found.

Admittedly, it will be autumn time when these products go on display, and the colored leaves and crops do indicate the time of year. Snow-draped fir trees indicate winter, as well. But be on the lookout as always: Many in our country today don't want to acknowledge Thanksgiving and Christmas (except re: Time off of work) as Christian holidays, thanking Jesus Christ for everything He has done for us and for the entire world. Let us be thankful, and let us meditate on the reasons for the holidays—not merely that we get opportunities to miss work and eat.

Thinking Like a Christian, Week 11: Review & Summary

Why Should We Understand Other Worldviews?

It is important to understand other worldviews for some significant reasons. Most importantly, so that we can better reach others who believe other worldviews with the Bible's Gospel message. Being ignorant of other worldviews makes communication of biblical truth more difficult. Notice the examples of Stephen (speaking to Jewish leaders in Acts 7) and Paul (speaking to Athenians in Acts 17)—each directed his message about Christ and salvation in a way easily understood to his audience. We also need a knowledge of other worldviews to better counter what other worldviews are teaching in our society about theology, politics, ethics, and so forth.

"Yet Christ directed His followers to provide a "salt and light" influence on society (Matthew 5:13-14). This means getting outside the confines of the church building and taking an active part in the social, political, and intellectual life of our communities. In order to have this kind of influence, Christians must gain an understanding of the times in which we live which means, at a minimum, discerning the competing worldviews that vie for our souls and the future of civilization." David Noebel, Thinking Like a Christian, p. 158.

There are three primary worldviews discussed briefly in the Thinking Like a Christian book at this point. These are summarized here:

• Marxism-Leninism: Although this has shown to be a failure in many countries during the past century, it is still a reality in some parts of the world today. It is indeed a well-defined worldview about which many books have been written. Its major tenets include an atheistic view of God with a corresponding evolutionary view of origins; behaviorism as a psychological perspective (e.g., Pavlov); statism (communism) as a political system, and scientific socialism as an economic system. In America, you will be most likely to find its adherents in secular universities, where some estimate as many as 10,000 serve as university professors.
• Secular Humanism: This is clearly the most dominant worldview in America and most of the western world today, especially in classrooms and governments. It is also a well-defined worldview, including among its teachings an atheistic view of God and evolutionary view of origins; an emphasis on self-actualization (see: Maslow); liberalism as a political system, with an emphasis on secular world government; and moral relativism in ethics and elsewhere. American public education is dominated by this worldview, which simultaneously seeks to thrust out a biblical worldview. Many famous and influential Americans are secular humanists (Ted Turner, Carl Sagan, Abraham Maslow, and John Dewey are just a few proud examples) who wish to "spread their gospel" to your children and mine.
• Cosmic Humanism: Of the four worldviews discussed here, this has probably the smallest percentage of adherents in the United States, but is probably also the fastest-growing. By its very nature, it is less-defined than the others, but perhaps its most basic tenet is that truth resides in the individual—every man decides truth for himself. Whatever you decide for yourself is right....just don't be too narrow-minded or exclusive about it! Most have a pantheistic view of God (although who or what God is is not always agreed upon), and believe that the godhood of man is our evolutionary bequest. Moral relativism pervades in nearly everything, including a belief in "karma." Self-government and a "New World Order" are frequently espoused.

So what should we Christians do? There are several things:

• Go on the Offensive: Be salt and light in this present, evil, troubled world (Matthew 5:13-16). Take the message to the world—don't wait for the world to come to you asking.
• Spread the Word with courage and conviction (1 Peter 3:15-16). The world needs the gospel; without it, we cannot hope for much improvement.
• Pray (2 Chron. 7:14; Col. 1:9-11), asking God how He can use you to impact the world for Himself.
• Rebuild the foundations, and remain dedicated to a biblical, Christian worldview (Psalm 11:3) Our country once followed the biblical worldview; do your best to get it pointed back in that direction.
• Study the Word (2 Tim. 2:15), and also study other books written from a Christian worldview. These can help you to both understand what God teaches and understand how the world thinks.
• Understand the Times (1 Chron. 12:32): Follow the news, read current books, and see what Scripture says about them.
• Teach and Mentor others (2 Tim. 2:2), and begin with your own family.

In every one of the ten areas we have studied, Christians (with God's help) have the potential to reclaim and redeem each for God's glory!

"In other words, in every discipline, the Christian worldview shines brighter than its competition, is more realistic, better explains man and the universe, is true to the Bible, is more scientific, is more intellectually satisfying and defensible, and best of all, is in keeping with and faithful to the one person who has had the greatest influence in heaven and on earth—Jesus Christ." David Noebel, TLAC, p. 171.

A few reminders: The book Thinking Like a Christian (ISBN 978-0-8054-3895-6) has been the basis for nearly all of the material in this series of Sunday School lessons. If you want to find the summaries of these on my blog, please click the links below:
Week 10: History
Week 9: Economics
Week 8: Politics
Week 7B: Law
Week 7A: Law
Week 6: Sociology
Week 5: Ethics
Week 4: Psychology
Week 3: Biology
Week 2: Philosophy (Part 1, Part 2, Conclusion)
Week 1: Theology
Introduction to the Series

Hymn of the Week: Holy, Holy, Holy

None of us meditate on the holiness of God as we should. If we did, we would undoubtedly realize how sinful and base our flesh is in His sight. Thankfully, the holy sacrifice of His Son, Jesus Christ, supplied the atonement for our sins.

Holy, Holy, Holy

Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!
Early in the morning our song shall rise to Thee;
Holy, holy, holy, merciful and mighty!
God in three Persons, blessèd Trinity!

Holy, holy, holy! All the saints adore Thee,
Casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea;
Cherubim and seraphim falling down before Thee,
Who was, and is, and evermore shall be.

Holy, holy, holy! though the darkness hide Thee,
Though the eye of sinful man Thy glory may not see;
Only Thou art holy; there is none beside Thee,
Perfect in power, in love, and purity.

Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!
All Thy works shall praise Thy Name, in earth, and sky, and sea;
Holy, holy, holy; merciful and mighty!
God in three Persons, blessèd Trinity!

Why My Children Don't Go To Public School

There are actually many reasons why....here is one of them.

Today, for the first time since I completed my student teaching in December 1992, I spent an entire day in a public school classroom. As I will likely do a number of times in the days and weeks ahead, I was a substitute today in a local, fairly rural public high school, where I subbed for a teacher of World History [2 sections] and Health [2 sections] and (for those of you who know me, feel free to laugh—I think it's funny, too) Weight Training [just one co-ed section].

Although my day as a substitute went reasonably well, it was very sad to see the social condition of most of the students. Not being an expert on this particular school's rules, I do not know how much of the following is in violation of those rules, but judging by the widespread occurrence of these things, my guess is that they are not violations or simply not dealt with:

• Horrendous dress, both in terms of modesty (girls in particular, showing far too much of themselves), sloppiness (ripped clothing, especially), and messages (irreverence to authority, rock groups, general foolishness)
• General lack of manners. Although the students were generally friendly to the total stranger now among them, their manners could be classified as relatively crude. Apparently boys wearing hats in the classroom is an acceptable practice.
• Unacceptable behavior between boys and girls (unacceptable to God, that is). Having a co-ed class in weight training while in gym clothes isn't very healthy, either.
  
• Bad language. Two particular words, both of which start with "s", were heard more times today than I can remember.
• And just a miscellaneous: Since when were flip-flops over bare feet considered acceptable school dress? I had always been told there were health-related reasons for requiring feet to be covered (and, FYI, it was about 55° this morning)

These are not acceptable ways for my children to behave. I and my wife, as parents, have a God-given responsibility to bring them up to be Christ-like—to be salt and light in a sinful world. To put them in an environment where they are both influenced by so many kids like these, and implicitly taught that such things are acceptable, is to have the opposite effect.

Although some will argue that one can be a Christian, and still be Christ-like, while a public school student (and, yes, there are examples of this), I cannot in good conscience put my children where both the implicit teaching and the numerous examples of their peers influence them in that direction.

See the York Fair!!

For ways to demonstrate the folly of not obeying the rules and trying to take a shortcut, it will be hard to beat this:

The full story from the York Daily Record is here (the beginning is given below); it was also reported on Foxnews.com.

No need for man to jump

Sep 14, 2007 — The talk of the York Fairgrounds on Thursday was the man who impaled himself on a wrought-iron fence Wednesday night.

Rumors rippled through the concession stands.

One was that the man had a ticket to get into the fair but chose to climb the fence.

Turns out that was true, according to West Manchester Township Police.

Aaron C. Fry, 19, tried to take a shortcut to the fair by jumping the fence because he did not want to walk to the Carlisle Avenue gate, Detective Sgt. Jeff Snell wrote in a news release. The gate is less than a block from where Fry tried to climb the fence.

Fry, of Washington Boro, Lancaster County, and others he was with Wednesday night had admission passes to the fair and tickets to the concert that night, Snell wrote.

But, while trying to scale the fence, Fry's left thigh was pierced by a spike atop the 12-foot structure on Carlisle Avenue, just north of Texas Avenue, fire officials said.

About 40 firefighters, emergency-medical workers and police officers responded at 6:30 p.m. and used hydraulic cutters to snap the fence. They did not lift Fry off the fence; instead, they took him to York Hospital with several feet of the fence still attached.

The New York Times: How Liberal Must They Be?

Perhaps you heard that the venerable (but, to most of us, obnoxiously liberal) New York Times gave Moveon.org a huge discount for their scandalously untrue ad earlier this week. If it is true, it is a disgrace to their name.

Read the Foxnews.com headline here and the original New York Post's story here.

As the story concludes:

Citing the shared liberal bent of the group and the Times, one Republican aide on Capitol Hill speculated that it was the "family discount."

"I'm surprised they had to pay anything at all for the ad," the GOP staffer said. "They could have just asked the editorial page to run it and it wouldn't have cost them a cent."

College Football Scores of Note

These bring joy to my heart...especially the first one.

Penn State 31, Notre Dame 10

Oregon 39, Michigan 7