Lollygagging Lies

Lamentations 2:11 My eyes fail from weeping, I am in torment within; my heart is poured out on the ground because my people are destroyed, because children and infants faint in the streets of the city. (NIV)

I have a confession to make: whenever those ads from UNICEF appear on my TV, I cannot bear to look at them. They usually depict children in foreign lands who are suffering from famine or disease, war or violence. When I see mothers struggling to feed their malnourished babies or watch children suffering from shell shock, my eyes water, a lump is felt in my throat, and my hearts breaks. I feel absolutely powerless to change their circumstances, so I curse the evil perpetrators of such inhumane and cruel things. My indignation is satisfied, my feelings are appeased, and my outrage is justified, so I just quickly move on when the next commercial appears.

Later that night, I wake up in the wee small hours of the morning, still bothered by those images and feeling guilty about my indolence. I recall Edmund Burke’s statement which is constantly quoted, “All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.” The words afflict my conscience and I feel terrible about being ineffective. I then congratulate myself for remembering the quote and that it was Edmund Burke who originally expressed them. After giving myself an academic pat on the shoulder, I turn over and get back to sleep.

The next day, life’s routine keeps me busy and I have forgotten about the plight of the shell-shocked kids and starving babies. I go about my work happily and deal with a flood of emails, messages, projects, and tasks. They immunize me from what is tragically happening elsewhere, so I get to conveniently deal with some First World problems which require my wisdom and skills, talents and time to resolve. At the end of the day, I feel quite satisfied with my accomplishments and sit down to enjoy a healthy meal while watching my TV. And then some little child is shown in high definition on the screen screaming for her mother and my delusional tranquility is gone.

This is our world, not my personal domain. This is the same planet, not my individual haven. This is the same nation, not my exclusive home. I am shell-shocked by my own shame. I am spiritually starving because of my lack of compassion. I am inwardly diseased because of my indifference. I need to curse myself because I am an agent of cruel insensitivity. I need to be cleansed because my dispassion has contaminated my soul. I need to be honest, deep within myself, and claim the blame for empowering evil by placating my powerlessness.

Like Jeremiah of old, I cannot be silent anymore. I cannot choose complacency over discomfort. I cannot allow self-righteous delusion to cover the multitude of sins that I cause. If I truly want things to change for those screaming children and malnourished babies, then those changes must begin with me – my lifestyle, my attitude, and my disconnectionalism.

Prayer: O Lord, forgive me for forgetting others who need my help and not my horror. In Your Holy Name, I pray. Amen.

John Stuart is currently the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would like to send him a question, comment, or message about this post, please email him at Traqair@aol.com.

Today’s image is one of John’s Liberty pieces called “Light of Liberty.” If you would like to view a larger version, please click this link: Liberty.

Short Devotions - A 21st Century Problem - Matthew 13:49-50

Today’s Bible passages:        Isaiah 32:1-7 & Matthew 13:43-52

Matthew 13:49-50      Jesus said: “This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

It’s culturally convenient for our 21^st century people to discard any weird religious notions that Hell exists. After all, in this marvelous scientific age where we are discovering new things about ourselves, the world, and the universe each day, quaint bronze age myths hold no terror for our sophisticated society. Hell may have been used over the centuries to control spiritually weak and sinful people, but in today’s cosmopolitan world and multi-cultural marketplace, Hell is no longer required.

But this leaves us with a problem: if there is no Hell and Jesus is sinless, then He must have been lying when He talked about angels throwing the wicked into the fiery furnace. Worse than that, because Jesus is God, He must have been intentionally lying. And if Jesus was lying, then He broke the Ninth Commandment and is therefore not sinless. If Jesus is not sinless, then He is not the Obedient Son of God and His Death on the Cross was not a pure and supreme sacrifice for our sins. We are therefore still under God’s condemnation and have no hope of any everlasting life.

You see, folks, we can’t have our theological notions about there being ‘no Hell’ without any consequences. If there is no Hell, then the whole point of our Christian Faith and the complete Truth about Jesus totally falls apart. We cannot have our Christological cake and eat it at the same time. Either Jesus told the truth, so we need Him to save us; or He told a lie and we are doomed to be separated from God forever.

This is why we need to read the Bible each day; this is why we need to carefully listen to what Christ said; this is why we cannot mold Jesus into our own godly guru or joyful genie. Christ is either the King of All Creation or He’s a comical character of our own creating. There is no middle ground or grey area, sitting on the fence or cozy Christianity. It’s all true or its nothing at all.

Prayer:                        Lord Jesus, You speak to us across the centuries through the Gospels. Your words contains unaltered truths about God, the Universe, and Everything. We seek Your Guidance and long for Your Love. Help us to truly and completely, faithfully and honestly follow You. Amen.

John Stuart is the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would like to comment on today’s message, please send him an email to pastor@erinpresbyterian.org.

Today’s image is one of John’s latest Epiphany/ nativity drawings. It’s called “King of Kings” and features the wise men worshiping the Christ Child. If you would like to see a larger version, then please click the following link: http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7148/6507913925_81a1f32f9e_b.jpg

Daily Devotions: Sinful Shadows - 1 John 1:6 & 10

1 John 1:6        If we claim to have fellowship with Him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth.

1 John 1:10      If we claim we have not sinned, we make Him out to be a liar and His word has no place in our lives.

The problem with sin is this: we don’t want to recognize that it takes place in our own lives. It’s far easier to point out the sinfulness of others rather than take stock of our own spiritual weaknesses and shameful demons. I know that when I was an active alcoholic I totally believed that I did not have a drinking problem. Other people around me were concerned and voiced their worries, but as far as I was concerned, they were absolutely wrong. I could handle my liquor and if I got wasted every night, then so what? I still managed to get my act together and went to my work every morning.

But no matter how much I deluded myself, the issue was still there. Alcohol was wasting my life, my relationships, and my personality. I had a serious problem, but was unwilling to admit to it.

Some people have the same sort of issue with sin. Within themselves, they know that what they are doing or whatever lifestyle choice they are living is wrong. But rather than surrender their spirits to God and seek Christ’s forgiveness, they aggressively justify their sinful ways and expect everyone else to accept, tolerate, and even celebrate their wrong decisions. In other words, rather than turning to the light of God and love of Christ, they want to glory in their darkness and expect everyone else to embrace their sinful shadows.

There came a day in my life when I had to admit I was an alcoholic. Without that self-admission, I could not be healed of my broken ways. The work of the Church is to help people reach that level of self-awareness and to recognize that God does not always approve of His children’s ways. If He did, then Christ would never have had to die on the Cross.

We are all sinners in need of daily and constant forgiveness, but the work of forgiveness and restoration can only begin when we step outside of our sinful shadows and into the holy light of God.

Prayer:                        Lord Jesus, save us from our pride and delusions. Open our hearts and minds to God’s Word and Your Way. Keep us from molding You into our own misconceived Messiah; help us instead to be reshaped and restored by Your love and grace. In Your Holy Name, we humbly pray. Amen.

John Stuart is the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would like to comment on today’s message, send him an email to pastor@erinpresbyterian.org.

Today’s drawing is one of John’s stained glass designs. It’s called “Crossfull of Promises” and features a wooden cross with a rainbow behind it. If you would like to view a larger version of the drawing, please visit the following link: http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1365/536728152_10feaf58bd_o.jpg

Daily devotions: Same Kind of Suffering? - 1 Peter 5:9

1 Peter 5:9 Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

Sometimes I wonder if we as Western Christians really do know about the sufferings of  our brothers and sisters throughout the world. Compared to 99% of the Earth’s population, we live in the lap of luxury. All we need to do is turn the tap on to get cold running water. Our stores are filled with goods and groceries. We can practically go anywhere we want to across our land. These blessings we take for granted.

However, billions of people on this planet have limited access to water which is usually not clean. If there are any stores, most of them have depleted shelves. And as for going anywhere they want, billions of people are trapped in areas of poverty and oppression, enslaved from the moment they were born to the very second that they die.

This morning I want to tell you about a brave brother in our faith who is suffering in Iran. His name is Youcef Nadarkhani, a 34 year old Christian pastor who has been in prison since October of 2009. He was arrested for objecting to the Iranian policy that all children, including his own 8 & 9 year old sons, would be required to study the Quran at school. Youcef protested that the constitution of Iran allows for the freedom of religion. Originally he was charged with protesting, but then the local secret police and Iranian revolutionary court amended the charges to apostasy and evangelism. He was sentenced to death in November 2010.

Yesterday, the appeals court upheld that Youcef was guilty of these charges and should be sentenced to death. His family is being cared for by relatives. His execution may take place today because the Iranian government does not want an international outcry, which may bring unrest among the Iranian people. If Youcef is executed, he will be the first Christian in twenty years to be hanged for his faith.

So now we are aware of the suffering of one of our brothers. How does our faith then, compare to Youcef’s? Are we really Christians who are ready to give all for The Way? Or are we just spiritual people, stumbling along in our own way?

Prayer:                 Lord Jesus, we say that we love You because it’s easy to think, say, and do that. If our circumstances were different, if our lifestyles were more restricted, if our faith was being persecuted, would we still love You? The blessings that we experience and often take for granted are gifts from God. Forgive us for being ungrateful and pardon us for being ignorant about what’s happening to real Christians around the world.

We pray for Youcef and his family. We ask for mercy and clemency. We hope for a way to be found for Youcef to be set free and to return to his family Allow him to be a pastor of Your people again. In Your Holy Name, we humbly pray. Amen.

John Stuart is the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would like to comment on today’s message, please send him an email to pastor@erinpresbyterian.org.

If you would like more information about Youcef Nadarkhani and other Christians who are in prison for their faith, please visit the following website at www.prisoneralert.com

Daily Devotions: If God Lied... Titus 1:2

Titus 1:2   …a faith and knowledge resting on the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time…

It all comes down to one thing: does God lie?

I’ve written for months about the struggle that our church is currently experiencing. Very soon changes are going to occur which will alter who we are and what we believe. If find it very disconcerting and am deeply troubled. I’m far from perfect and nowhere near as sinless as I should be, but there’s one clear truth that I have believed in no matter how much of a faithless failure I have been: God does not lie.

In recent times, we have become so used to compartmentalizing truth from feelings, integrity from interpretation, and honesty from our emotions that we’ve deluded ourselves into thinking that God is okay with what we choose to do. So what if God called something abominable in the past, He needs to loosen up and get with the 21^st century program. Who cares if some sins once affected our salvation, God needs to get over it and get on board society’s band wagon!

In other words, God lied. Or He was mistaken or misguided. Or He wasn’t being serious or meant to be taken literally. God lied; He might not have meant it, so we’ll forgive Him and let Him join us.

This is why I am unsettled and troubled. If God lied in the past, then He is capricious and not worthy of our worship. If we are deluding ourselves, then we are on the road to perdition where only repentance can save us.

If God lied, then Christ was forsaken on the Cross and there is no salvation.

If God lied, then Christ’s body turned to dust and there was no resurrection.

If God lied, then we are the most pitiable of fools and there is no point in having or sharing faith.

If God lied, then Christianity is a curse and there is no life after death.

Maybe now you understand my struggle.

Prayer:                        Lord Jesus, You told us that You are the Way, the Truth, and the Life. If that is certain, then we are guilty of leading ourselves astray, away from the Truth, with no hope of Life to come. Break down the walls of our convenient compartmentalized choices and make us see the stupidity of our erroneous ways. In Your Holy Name, we pray. Amen.

John Stuart is currently the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would like to comment or ask questions of today’s message, please send him an email to pastor@erinpresbyterian.org.

Today’s image is John’s latest drawing called “Happy Place.” It’s a rendering of sunrise at Ormond Beach in Florida. If you would like to view a larger version, please click on the following link: http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5186/5561482881_b0270db4e6_b.jpg

An 8x10 inch print is also available which you can view on Ebay at http://tinyurl.com/4h3z468

Daily Devotions: Tennessee's Biggest Idiots

One of our local radio stations has a talk show host who devotes a section of his program to what he calls “Idiot of the Day.” In the last 24 hours, I’ve come across several people who would easily win that title.

Last night, when I was driving home from church, I got stopped at the traffic lights at a busy intersection, right next to the interstate. I happened to glance over at the car on my left side and was totally shocked at what I saw. A middle aged couple was in the front of the car with no seat belts and laughing carelessly.

Shocking? Surely not, John, I hear you say. But it gets worse. In between the couple was a small ten year old boy. His right hand was on the steering wheel whilst his “Dad’s” left hand held on to it, too. When the traffic lights turned to green, the young boy was actually steering the car! No seat belts, no signals, and no common sense. These idiots were all over the road and all three of them were laughing away. If I could have spotted their license plate, I would have called the police.

But just when I thought I had never seen a more idiotic trio of idiots in Tennessee, this morning I saw someone who topped them all. I was driving to church along the busy five lane interstate, when all of a sudden all the vehicles in the five lanes of traffic had to apply their brakes. A guy was running across the five lanes of traffic to get to the median where he would have to run across another five lanes in order to get to the other side. Totally unbelievable!

John 14:15 If you love me, you will obey what I command.

You know there are some scary people out there folks, and their stupidity endangers the rest of the community. And that’s also the message for this morning. Jesus says that those who love Him will obey His commands. But we’re living in a society where church members believe that it’s okay to love Jesus, but we don’t have to follow His commands. And the trouble is this: those who stupidly and sometimes brazenly discard Christ’s commands are endangering the souls of the whole Church community. Instead of sticking to the rules, teachings, and words of God through Christ, foolish theologians, prideful pastors, and completely misguided church members are heading down a dead end path that leads to oblivion, instead of heaven. It may be alright for these careless individuals to follow their own ways and end up separated from God, but the Biblical ignorance and Christian superficiality of some in Christ’s flock is causing them to stray away.

I think that’s why Christ’s emphasizes this in His teaching: “If you love me, obey my commands.” This is not unconditional love, as some misguided preachers and teachers would have us believe.  This is a love that has responsibilities placed upon it. We cannot say that we love Jesus and then go and do what we want. It may not be popular to preach or make people happy about their faith, but then again we have to ask ourselves these questions: does our faith shape us or do we shape our faith? Do we love Jesus freely without His conditions, or are we willing to love Him faithfully and serve Him responsibly?

Personally, I think if the Church has any future in the World, then it has to rediscover its backbone of Christ’s commands and teachings.

 Prayer:                        Lord Jesus, it’s getting harder to be a Christian in the world. We’ve let things slide and we each have failed to live up to Your commands. We want to love You truly, but we are afraid to love You conditionally. Forgive our foolish ways and help us to reclaim our spiritual strength through Your ways, words, and works. In Your Holy Name, we contritely pray. Amen.

 John Stuart is the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would like to comment on today’s message, please send him an email to pastor@erinpresbyterian.org.