Evil

You can quote statistics about how violence is down in schools over the course of history.  While that may be true, we need to notice that the character of the violence has changed dramatically.  Two people getting into an argument of some kind and one of them ending up shot is a very different kind (and in many ways a lesser form) of evil from the randomness of shooting up a classroom of kindergartners.  Perhaps we need to admit, at least on some level, that the Christians are right and that the real problem is within the human heart.  Laws will not fix the problem.  Law enforcement will not fix the problem.  Armies will not fix the problem.
Love is the most potent arrow to strike the heart.  In wounding it heals.  In tearing it makes whole.  In destroying it rebuilds.  There is only one who can fire such an arrow.
What we need to realize is that the darkness that repulses us in others is the same darkness that resides within us.  It is the darkness that refuses to welcome the light and chooses instead to become its own light, its own guide.  Such a light is darkness indeed!  If we recognize the darkness within ourselves, we can love when faced with the darkness of others.  This is the beginning of the solution.  The end is to step into the light that is light and chases all of our dark corners away.  It searches the house for every corner of darkness and removes it entirely.
God grant us light, love, and healing.  Give us all the humility to turn to you so that we may have our dark places brought to light so that we may live in your peace.  Amen.

Separation of Church and state, the IRS, and dual citizenship.

   There has been a fair amount written in the news about churches and the U.S. tax code.  The IRS tax codes forbids religious tax-exempt organizations from engaging in the political arena.  The U.S. constitution declares the separation of church and state.  Neither in spirit nor in letter does the constitution make such a statement. What the constitution says is that the state will not run the church and vice-versa (in effect at least).  There is a lot of concern from non-religious people that allowing the church a place in the public sphere is a violation of their rights as American citizens.  To a certain extent this is a valid concern.  After all, though the founding fathers were not thinking in non-religious terms, they were essentially promoting a country where the government would not tell you how to believe.  This freedom to believe (and act) as you choose is absolutely fundamental to the dream of America.
  On some level, the IRS tax code makes a little bit of sense.  Religion is something that is difficult to define, so this essentially puts a restriction on what the government sees as a religious institution.  But there are a couple of problems with this view.  For one, PACs are also tax-exempt.  So the idea of keeping politics from the tax-exempt crowd doesn't really apply here.  But also, religions, regardless of their nature, are in some sense a political venture in that they affect the way we relate to each other and how we act in the public sphere.  If your religion doesn't change the way you behave in public, then you don't really believe what you think you do.
  There is another issue that becomes apparent here.  The IRS tax code is blatantly unconstitutional.  "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof."  You could make the argument that it wasn't congress that made the law, but then you would have to declare all IRS laws unconstitutional since they weren't made by congress.  The IRS rule clearly prohibits the free exercise of religion.  The gospel is our religion, and the gospel clearly has political implications.
  What we see here is that we do not live in a Christian nation.  Perhaps we once did, perhaps not, but that is irrelevant.  You can no longer make a case for this being a Christian nation.  So does this mean that Christians should storm Washington D.C. and take back this country for Christ?  I don't think so.  What we are seeing here is that our government has been twisted away from what it was originally intended.  This should not be surprising given that governments are a human institution, and human institutions will always falter.  (Yes, I know in the new testament that Paul talks about governments being of God, but that's not exactly the point he was trying to make.  We have to remember that way back when Israel wanted a government, God told them that it wouldn't end well, they didn't need it.)
  Remember what Paul wrote in his letter to the Ephesians: "For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places."  Given that our struggle is against the rulers and authorities, should we really be looking to them for a handout such as tax-exempt status?
  There are a few things that we need to realize.  For one, to preach and practice a religion that is primarily internal is to deny the gospel, and deny God.  Second, we can realize that the politics of the gospel indicate not a way to vote or for our American government to function, but a way to exist as a kingdom whose borders are not bound by oceans and fences.  Third, we are too dependent on the idea of being a legal entity from the standpoint of the government.  This in turn makes us ultimately dependent on the government itself, which is odd for a people who are to rely on God.  Fourth, we need to admit that deep down we feel we are entitled to special status since we are religious.  If we're going to build a multi-million dollar facility that employees dozens if not hundreds of people, why on earth shouldn't we pay taxes?
  If we don't want to pay taxes as a church, we should de-organize.  It's impossible to tax an entity that doesn't exist.  If we stop owning stuff, paying people, and charging people, there's nothing for them to tax.  Then guess what?  You would be absolutely free to discuss whatever you wish in your church setting, because the enemy would have no foothold in your door.
  One last thing we need to realize.  We are living in a day and age where people are not only apathetic towards Jesus Christ and his church, but at times hostile.  If we become the people of God that Jesus intended, we will be a fortress that can withstand any onslaught, even death.  But when we try to dabble in the American kingdom and the kingdom of God, we get hung up between two worlds.  Jesus tells us to choose him or the world.  Church, which is it going to be?

Job Creation

In all of this talk about job creation, there is a point that seems to get lost from time to time.  We talk all the time about skill development and education being the keys to jobs.  The reality is that we are not all wired to work in a job that comes from an education.  Many people are wired to work with their hands in ways that do not rely on a formal education to make a living.  But here is the point that is worth noting: This does not mean that a person is somehow lesser or lower than someone with an education. More importantly, and here is the point many will disagree about, this fact does not mean that they deserve to earn less.  That will rub many people the wrong way.  People assume they deserve to earn more because they went to college and got an education.  But that is simply not true.  For the very least of reasons, one thing an education does is allow you to work with your mind in a way that doesn't break down your body.  At the very least, this seems a fair trade-off for four years of college and some student loan debt.

Christian Business

So what is the best choice in the business world?  Is it to allow capitalism free reign or to support social laws that limit it?  If the former, it is easy to see that working conditions will degrade, wages will fall, and profits will soar.  If the latter, costs will soar, profits will climb, and working conditions will maintain themselves.  Soaring costs are a legitimate problem, since rising costs do weaken the economy and cause a lot of pain for everyone.  In the former case, soaring profits helps grow the economy, creates jobs, and economic prosperity for at least some.

Jesus did say that we will always have the poor among us, and so in some ways, I suppose this position is justifiable.  Of course, people can find scripture and other ways of justifying just about anything.

The question ultimately is whether or not it is right for the boss to live in a mansion surrounded by luxury while their employees struggle to live in a trailer park?  We could say all kinds of things like, “everyone has an equal opportunity to better themselves.”  Quite frankly that is not true, and besides, not everyone can be a boss.  Not everyone can own their company.  Some people are given the opportunity to have such a position.  It is not, however, “given” in the sense that Obama would have us believe.  Obama would have us believe that what we have is given to us by the country or worse—by the government.  Ultimately, for the Christian, the only thing we can rightly believe is that what we have was given to us by God. 

If we believe that, then it must also follow that we are given these things in the same sense that the master gave his servants the money and expected them to invest it and grow it for his purposes.  So the point then is that a business owner is given stewardship over what they have, not ownership.  (The same is absolutely true of all of the resources we have, whether we are a business owner or not.)  To that end, they are ultimately responsible for the living they grant to those in their care.  Does this mean that it doesn’t matter how hard a person works—that they should be given a wage irregardless of their effort?  Certainly not.  Good work should be rewarded.   But think about this from the perspective of the kingdom of God.  What we are really saying is that should a person be proven responsible over a few things, they will be given responsibility over many things.

Even a negative action such as firing/laying off must be seen in a loving way.  It may be that saying, “you need to try harder at your work, and so I am laying you off so that you will eventually be more responsible” is the most loving thing that you can do. 

Ultimately we are responsible for not only our own actions, but the actions which we support.  When you spend a dollar, what do you support?  Are you supporting slave labor whether in this country or others?  Are you putting someone else in poverty so that you may have your luxury?  Most of us are ignorant about the ramifications of our buying choices.  But those of us who are given knowledge and the ability to choose must choose wisely and with the knowledge that our master will return soon.

The church institution

The problem is church.  See, the thing is, that people don’t want to be committed to an institution.  They, at least in American culture, don’t really wish to be committed to anything other than what might bring fun, power, glory, or money.  But the kingdom of God doesn’t work that way.  Those who seek power, fun, glory, or money will find it, but they will lose their life because of it.  When the church becomes an institution, there is no reason to be committed to it.  It would be like committing yourself to a particular bar of soap.  You might prefer a certain brand, but you wouldn’t go to huge lengths to get it.  Well, that may not be entirely true, but for them we can only shake our heads.
The reason this is coming up now is that we have more than ever in our lives to distract us and to bring us pleasure, so why be faithful to an institution.  Remember when Jesus says that they will know you are my disciples by the love you have for your organization?  No, because he didn’t say it.  He said that they will know you are my disciples by the love you have for each other.  But we have forgotten that these 2000 years past.  We have made the church into a business instead of a family joined by a collective will to see the kingdom of God realized here on earth.  And so when that institution—that business no longer serves as the center of community life, people back away from it.
This is not an invention since the 1950s, as some would suspect.  Christendom which placed the church at its religious, social, and political centers allowed the maintenance of the illusion that all was well.  But it wasn’t.  People broke away in droves from the church to either leave altogether or to start their own institution.  If people had been committed to each other as a natural family, this wouldn’t have happened.  If indeed the church had been the church, the protestant schism would not have happened, flawed though the Catholic church was at the time.
For a long time (I would guess since Constantine wooed the church into an unholy marriage) the people of God who are the living kingdom of God here on earth was more concerned with the institution than the people within its walls.
It is much harder to leave your loved ones.  If there is one thing that Jesus makes perfectly clear, it is that your family consists of all who call God “Father.”  But the bride of Christ is no longer a family joined by a common love and goal.  It is a group of individuals labeled into the same group for only as long as situations or preferences allow.
But this cannot be.  She must and shall go free.  The church cannot and will not remain in bondage by institutionalism.  She is a living breathing temple of God’s presence here on earth and nothing will stand in the way of her final victory.  She will be presented spotless and blameless to the son of God, cleansed by his own blood and made whole by the grace of the Father.
And these questions remain: Are we going to take the words of Jesus seriously?  Are we going to live as he would have us live instead of serving ourselves and our dying institutions?  Is God our master or is the world?  Do we believe Jesus when he promises to protect and provide for us?  Do we live our lives counting on our future resurrection to justify our actions in this part of our life?  Are we banking on the promises of God or are we, like Ananias and Sapphira holding something back in case it’s all a sham?
If we do not step out on faith, we will sink like Peter, but if we have faith we will walk high on the waves as Peter did before he began to sink.  We will laugh at the storms and waves, dance in minefields and live without fear or hesitation.  We can live this life with God if only we will believe.
BELIEVE!

The Government's Role in Society

On the right side of the political spectrum, we have people saying that it is not the government's job to provide for the poor.  On the left side we have people saying that we need to take care of those who cannot take care of themselves.  These are not opposing positions.  For anyone on the right to speak in such terms, they must add without any pause whatsoever that they themselves will be the ones responsible.  For those of us in the church, it is us who are charged with the care of the poor, orphans, and widows.  No, for my part I do not believe it is the government's role to take care of people.  I believe it is my job as a follower of Christ to take care of my neighbor, whether they be next door or in the next town, or the next country.  No, I cannot do it on my own, but I am just one member of a larger body.  It is this body that is charged with spreading the kingdom of God throughout the world in word and deed.  It is not even on the lowest realms of our agenda to promote our own wealth.  In fact, to do so is to deny our savior.

Keeping sexuality in its place

One of the great issues that our culture will live or die on is the issue of sexuality.  To be sure sexuality is a powerful force in nature.  But it is our willingness to let it dominate our identities and actions that is causing such a problem.  One of the chief causes of this is, of course, biological.  Most humans are born with the desire to reproduce.  Thus we have a desire for sex.  We also have an innate desire for love.  This is nothing new of course, but what we have difficulty understanding is that sex does not necessarily equal love.  Don't misunderstand, sex is emotional and involves love but love does not in itself necessitate sex.  The fact that we believe it does is to give our sexuality too much credit for its role in our lives.  Do we really want to be dominated by our sex instinct?  Do we want that to be making the decisions for our lives?
I would hope for most people the answer would be no, and in fact, I believe it is, at least on some level.  God's love for us is unconditional, whether we be sinners, saints, or a mixture of the two.  There is so much love that comes to us without involving our sexuality.  Quite often when people feel devoid of love from other sources, they will seek to fill that void by fabricating love through a sex act.  This equation of sex and love has to be resolved in our culture, because it is threatening so much of our existence.  "Free love" (meaning sex) sounds great until you deal with all of the unwanted babies, diseases, and emotional trauma involved.  As Phil Vischer says, "we worship at the altar of romantic love" in this culture and because of this we have a lot of social issues to deal with which we wouldn't if we didn't place such monumental importance on eros.
The problem here is that even romantic love takes a back seat to other forms of love.  Even the love of a longstanding marriage isn't necessarily always a romantic one.  Obviously it is often romantic, but any good couple will tell you there are times they love by choice rather than instinct.
But our culture's desire to have romance at any and all costs is destroying too much, and it is time we stood up and took notice.  Marriages are lost to romance, families are torn apart, teenagers are lost to it, and indeed every area of society is affected by it.  Even a non-religious humanist would have to admit that allowing one force, which should be a lesser one in our lives, to dominate our lives with no recourse to responsibility, commitments, or even prudence is ultimately a destructive force.  This is how we have to frame our discussions about love.  Romance and affection, while great, is not the most important thing in life. Ultimately, while it is a gift from God, it is not meant to be enjoyed however or whenever we want.  To do so throws the life out of balance.