day no. 16,199: we are watching the wrath of God, not the winning of the wicked

We are not watching wickedness win, we are witnessing the wrath of God.

Romans 1:18-24

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves.

Out of control evil is not in the process of dominating, but of being dominated. Wickedness without brakes cannot avoid a collision. Unrestricted rebellion is an unraveling, not an arriving. There is no such thing as freedom from God. Those whom He lets go are not free, but forever enslaved. 

The fattened calf may fancy himself the guest of honor at the upcoming feast, but he is misreading his situation. Don't you go and do the same by giving a second thought to any of his boasts. Keep your eyes in your head. He isn't going to be on the guest list, he is going to be on the menu.

So fear not, we are not witnessing the rise of rebellion, but the reckoning of God. They are not accumulating trophies, but rather wrath for themselves. Wickedness is not winning ribbons, it is racking up fines. God is giving them over to themselves and all of their end zone dancing is merely wracking up excessive celebration penalties to be applied at kickoff when God in the end takes the ball back.

day no. 16,198: get the thorn out

"‘Well,’ said John, ‘I suppose you have found me out. Perhaps I did not fully mean to keep them—not all—or not all the time. And yet, in a way, I think I did. It is like a thorn in your finger, sir. You know when you set about taking it out yourself—you mean to get it out—you know it will hurt—and it does hurt—but somehow it is not very serious business—well, I suppose, because you feel that you always could stop if it was very bad. Not that you intend to stop. but it is a very different thing to hold your hand out to a surgeon to be hurt as much as he thinks fit. And at his speed.’ The Man laughed, ‘I see you understand me very well,’ He said, ‘but the great thing is to get the thorn out.’” -- C.S. Lewis, The Pilgrim's Regress

Get the thorn out.

God, whatever it takes, get the thorn out. Whatever the pain it causes, whatever the cost it requires, however long it takes... get the thorn out. Do whatever You must do to get it out. Make it hurt as much as you see fit, but no more. May it take as long as You determine, but not a moment longer. May it be as thorough and comprehensive as You require, but not any more so. Whatever You determine, however, and whatever You do, however You do it, whenever You do it, whatever You do... get the thorn out!

Amen.

day no. 16,197: we are not sick until proven healthy

Exodus 23:1-3

You shall not spread a false report. You shall not join hands with a wicked man to be a malicious witness. You shall not fall in with the many to do evil, nor shall you bear witness in a lawsuit, siding with the many, so as to pervert justice, nor shall you be partial to a poor man in his lawsuit.

We are not sick until proven healthy. 

No more pokes or prods. We are not guilty until proven innocent. Mind you, this isn’t because some aren’t sick or that some aren’t guilty, but because everyone is SO sick and SO guilty that no one person can be trusted to enforce the standard. We are sick and wrong and our native tongue is accusation. We speak fluent envy and resentment with perfect accent. Therefore, in matters of indictment, the burden of proof is placed upon the accuser, not the accused.

If I am tested and it comes back negative, you are confirmed in having born false witness. There was no reason to condemn me as sick before and the test results validate my health. That makes you guilty of false accusation. But even if the results indicate that I am or was previously sick, the data was obtained by an illegal search and seizure and therefore inadmissible in court. You cannot extract evidence against me by falsifying a charge on the front end in order to manufacture some shred of evidence that you can then use against me after the fact. That is manipulation, not justice. That is superstition, not science.

You cannot pull my ride over on spec. My healthy vehicle should be free to motor about without having to be pulled over and put up on a lift in order to try to find something unroadworthy.

day no. 16,196 continued... the Lord's Prayer (original, metrical rendering)

Father, God who art in Heaven

Hallow-ed here be Thy Name

Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done,

On earth, in Heaven, e’er the same

Our daily bread be pleased to give

And all our trespasses forgive

As we forgive those who trespass 

Our debtors all from first to last

And lead us not into temptation;

But from evil, us deliver 

Yours the kingdom and the power

And the glory till forever.

— The Lord’s Prayer

Postmillitant original rendering

... revised 2/27/23 while out on a walk ...

Father, God who art in Heaven

Hallow-ed here be Thy Name

Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done,

On earth, in Heaven, e’er the same

Our daily bread to us please give

And all our trespasses forgive

As we forgive those who trespass 

Of all their debts, from first to last

And lead us not into temptation;

But from evil, us deliver 

Yours the kingdom and the power

And the glory till forever.

— The Lord’s Prayer

day no. 16,196: we have had more than enough

Psalm 123:3-4

Have mercy upon us, O LORD,

have mercy upon us,

for we have had more than enough of contempt. 

Our soul has had more than enough

of the scorn of those who are at ease,

of the contempt of the proud.

We have had more than enough. We have had the contempt of the proud and the scorn of those who are at ease ad nauseam. But lest we request what we deserve and go down with them, we cry out for mercy. Mercy is not getting the bad that you deserve. Mercy is having earned discipline and not receiving it. Lord, we acknowledge our part in what has gone wrong and recognize that if everyone got what they deserved, we'd all get more than we bargained for. So God, we cry out for mercy. Please do not treat us any longer as our sins deserve. As repentant sinners, we pray you end open rebellion against You: either through the conversion of the corrupt or through the obliteration of their establishments. Have mercy, Lord. May Your mercy arrive sooner than we deserve and may it be more comprehensive and redemptive than any have even dared to desire. Have mercy, O Lord. Have it upon us. Have it soon. We have had more than enough, but may we have as much more as You command. But may that amount soon arrive at its end. Amen

day no. 16,195: honor your ancestors, bless your descendants

Ephesians 6:1-3

Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right. Honour thy father and mother; which is the first commandment with promise; that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.

We teach our children to honor their father and mother by showing them how. When we honor ours, we show them how to honor theirs. This applies to biological parents as well as historical ancestors. The idea of honoring your father and mother in the Lord contains more than merely liking your mom and dad. It includes gratitude for the shoulders upon which they stood and you now stand and a duty to those who will someday stand upon yours.

Honor your ancestors,

bless your descendants.

"A people which takes no pride in the noble achievements of remote ancestors will never achieve anything worthy to be remembered with pride by remote descendants." — Lord Thomas Babington Macaulay

You cannot raise a generation of noble characters by pulling down the statues of their grandfathers.

day no. 16,194: gov't schools are secular boot camps

Government schools are secular boot camps.

Ephesians 6:4

And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.

If you want to provoke your kids, give them two, competing standards to adhere to. Enforce them both and watch them smolder. Nothing provokes frustration like trying to obey conflicting orders.

Government schools are antithetical to Christian education. They are dogmatically opposed to a Christian understanding of who we are, where we're from, where we're going, and how to get there. When you willfully subject your kids to forty hours of weekly instruction that contradicts what you teach them at home, you are provoking them to wrath.

Your children are being trained by someone to something. If you preach pacifism at home, but send them off to military boot camp forty hours each week, you cannot be shocked when your child returns a warmonger. Government schools are secular boot camps. Your children are spending eight hours a day, five days a week learning to fight their battles. They are being trained with their weapons and focused on their objectives. 

Government schools are the church of the state. It shouldn't shock you if they come home converted. Classes are secular church services. They practice catechism, say their prayers, confess their sins, and listen to sermons all day, every day. One hour of worship at your local church with your family each week cannot keep up with forty hours of worship at another church with all their friends each week. You can tell your kids that the one is more important than the other, but you cannot keep them from seeing that one is less than forty.

day no. 16,193: contentment is the best riches

1 Timothy 6:6-8

Godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content.

Contentment the only currency capable of purchasing not needing whatever's being advertised.

“Contentment is the best riches.” -- C.S. Lewis

Money cannot buy the kind of luxury that only contentment can afford. If one of things you have in your bank account is contentment, you can afford to be happy without much else. 

Philippians 4:11-13

I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Contentment has it all, regardless what it has.

Contentment is sales resistant.

You cannot sell discontent to a content man.

What can you sell a content man? What can you convince him to forfeit in order to gain what you have to offer if that man already has everything he wants?

day no. 16,192: Jesus came to dismantle the death cult

Hebrews 2:14-15

Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.

Jesus came to dismantle the death cult 

The fear of death is the kind of slavery that seeks to enslave others. It is the kind of fear that is not afraid to terrify others. It is an anxiety that gladly assuages itself by doing to others what they fear could happen to them. The death cult kills a child because it could ruin his mother's life. The death cult euthanizes the elderly for their own good. The death cult quarantines the healthy so that the sick can roam freely. The death cult is at war with death. They fear it. So much so, in fact, that they are willing to kill you if they think it will help them avoid it. They fear the climate changing so they advocate reducing your emissions by eliminating you. They fear overcrowding so they advocate abortion. They fear a virus so they advocate spreading tyranny. They fear a lack of resources so they take yours just in case. The death cult is predicated upon fear. They fear death and are willing to do whatever it takes to try to avoid it. Their only standard is "we don't want to die." They measure everything against that. If it helps their cause, it is on the table, especially if and when it is you on a coroner's table. 

The death cult is right to be afraid, but they are wrong to fear death more than God. God is inescapable. Death does not keep anyone from Christ, it introduces them. 

Jesus came to crush the death cult. He came to end it. He came to overcome and conquer it. Those who fear God more than death have Him as their standard. So much so that some are even martyred because getting familiar with death is preferable to being disloyal to Christ.

Luke 12:4-5

I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do. But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has authority to cast into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him!

The death cult has an appointment with the Divine. It can kill the body, but it cannot kill body's Maker. They can cancel you, but they cannot cancel the appointment with the Coroner.

day no. 16,191: spare no arrows

"Spare no arrows." - John Knox

Owen Strachan posted a photo the other day of shirts with the words, "Spare No Arrows," written on the back. In his description, he mentioned this was one of John Knox's favorite phrases. I did a quick search and discovered its origins are Biblical -- not surprisingly given Knox's penchant for Scripture.

Jeremiah 50:14

Set yourselves in array against Babylon all around, all you who bend the bow; shoot at her, spare no arrows, for she has sinned against the LORD.

The admonition is to fight as hard as you can against that which you know worth fighting against. If you choose to fight, you must also choose to win. If you decide to hit, you must hit as hard as you can. It is also a charge to fight to the very end. Spare no arrows. Do not stop assaulting the enemy until you are out of ammo. And even then, one would assume to take to hand to hand combat if there were any remaining assailants. 

"We will accept nothing less than full victory." - Dwight. D. Eisenhower

Christians need to adopt and employ a healthy dose of pursuit. I became familiar with this concept through reading the MCDP 1: Warfighting and Jim Wilson's Principles of War.

Pursuit is the difference between a battle won and a war ended.

Pursuit is finishing what you began. Pursuit is refusing to dampen passions at the first off ramp provided. It is follow through. It is perseverance. It is loving that which is behind you so much that you refuse to allow anything that is coming against it to survive. 

"Failure to pursue frequently reveals that the objective in the campaign was not victory, but rather some version of the 'upper hand.' Once we have fought to the point where we might be left alone for a while, we stop. This often happens because Christians are peace-loving people, and this sometimes gets them into trouble. Too often we drag a problem out and make the whole thing last ten times longer than it has to last. But when the principle of pursuit is employed, it is clear that victory is the objective." -- Douglas Wilson, Rules for Reformers

"Spare no arrows!" is a battle cry for those committed to victory. It is a promise to mortify sin wherever it rears its ugly head. It is a call to keep going. It is a reminder of what's at stake.

"We are not to fight to the point of predominance, we are to fight to the point of complete victory... Pursuit is the principle neglected by the currently strong. Many wars have been prolonged because the victorious army did not press its advantage in the immediate aftermath of a critical battle."  -- Douglas Wilson, Rules for Reformers

"Spare no arrows!" is a kindness to those recruited for the cause. It may seem harsh to refuse a respite, but the peace provided by the final push in pursuit is incomparable. Taking the advantage is not the time to take a break.

"Willingness to pursue when pursuit is a possibility reveals, like nothing else reveals, what the true objective was. An unwillingness to pursue is equally revelatory."  -- Douglas Wilson, Rules for Reformers

Arrows spared are ulterior motives revealed. Some fight only for personal peace and quiet and stop the pursuit once they have what they want. But rest assured, that kind of peace and quiet won't last for long. Unless you pursue the enemy, he will come back. As long as he exists, he will never stop coming. He understands pursuit and never stops prowling like a lion looking for someone to devour.

day no. 16,190: ripe, raw, or rotting?

"The ripest are kindest to the raw." — C.S. Lewis, Surprised By Joy

Those who have arrived often give the best welcomes. Who better to greet newcomers than someone already admitted? The more mature you are, the more patience you have for immaturity.

Ephesians 4:32

And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.

Refusing forgiveness to those who refuse forgiveness is not a sign of moral superiority, but being forgiven and forgiving in like manner is.

"When you think you're ripe, you're rotting and when you think you're green, you're ripening." — Ray Kroc

Impatience with the impatient is not a sign of your patience anymore than your irritability with immaturity is a sign of your maturity. The wise have more tolerance of foolishness than fools do of wisdom.

Luke 6:35

Love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for He is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil.

Superiority is gracious to inferiority; and Christ, who is beyond ripe, is beyond kind to the raw.

Romans 15:1

We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves.

So if you imagine yourself strong... prove it.

Put up with more than you deserve. Be like God and bear up under the insubordination of those who owe you honor and respect. If you’re strong, you owe the weak your patience; unless, of course, that’s too hard for you, in which case you’re actually the weak one whose failings need to be borne up by others.

day no. 16,189: men are better than gates

"Men are better than gates, and no gate will endure against our Enemy if men desert it.” ― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King

A gate is only as good as the men behind it. Because a gate is designed to help discriminate between what gets in and what gets out, it is useless without men to oversee it. Without men, it swings back and forth indiscriminately. Men are better than gates. They are better gatekeepers than unmanned mechanisms. 

The apparatus of a gate is beneficial to a man in assisting his ability to enforce his discernment, but it is worthless without the man. It either remains closed to all or open to any and both of those are just as good as not having a gate. In the one, a wall would suffice, and in the other, an opening accomplishes as much.

Men are better than doctrines. No doctrine will endure against our Enemy if men desert it. But doctrines brandished in the hands of good and godly men are better still. God bless us with men who have eyes in their head and heat in their hearts, holiness in their souls and hardihood in their bones. Men who stand their ground. Men who are strong and courageous who defend the hot gates by putting themselves between the danger and their beloved.

day no. 16,188: syncretism and the guise of mutual compromise

Genesis 3:15

And I will put enmity between thee and the woman,

and between thy seed and her seed;

it shall bruise thy head,

and thou shalt bruise his heel.

Enmity and imposition are inescapable.

Galatians 5:17

For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.

Syncretism is insanity. It doesn’t work because it cannot work. The Coexist crowd imposes Unitarianism on all world religions. Imposition is inescapable. It is not a matter of whether, but which; not if there will be imposition, but who is imposed upon. Christianity and Islam cannot create Chrislam anymore than Aslan and Tash could create Tashlan. Either you destroy both in the process or just the one survives under the guise of mutual compromise.

To sign a peace treaty with sin is to sign your own death warrant. Peace with evil is only possible through compromise. Purity cannot cut a deal with promiscuity and remain pure. If it gets in bed with the enemy, it becomes the enemy.

Only in covenant can two parties create a unified diversity. Only in God-honoring, Christ-centered, covenant can God and man be brought together without conflict. Only in covenant can man and woman be joined together without annexation. But even in covenant, we see an agreement that presupposes an imposition. God became a man in order to bring man to God. He imposed on Himself the limitations of the flesh in order to conform man to the limitless grace of God. A man is unified to a woman by asking for her hand in covenant and she takes his last name and reorganizes herself under his headline.

day no. 16,187: anything that can't go on forever

Proverbs 29:16

When the wicked increase, transgression increases,

but the righteous will look upon their downfall.

Everywhere you look, it looks like wickedness is on the increase. It is growing in number and intensity.  Enrollment is up and grades are getting better at the university of sin. It is a state university and the alumni are in a giving mood. Fanfare is high and home jersey sales are up. Foam middle fingers and painted faces dominate the landscape. And it just keeps escalating and it’s right on your doorstep.

But the bigger they are, the harder they fall and the righteous will watch it from a front row seat. The righteous will look upon their downfall.

Anything that cannot go on forever, won't. Everything is going somewhere, and sooner or later it's going to get there. Insanity doesn't work. You can only resist reality for so long before it all comes crashing down. The meek will inherit the earth on which they're doing their end zone dances. In the middle of their celebration, they will fall... and they will never again get up.

Nothing is new under the sun. Men have attempted this kind of thing before. In the days of Noah, they tried to take over the world by forming a super-race of angelic giants. God interrupted their regularly scheduled programming with a world wide flood that dashed their dreams against the rocks. A few turns of the page later and men attempted to take over the world through a one-world government punctuated by a tower touching the heavens like a giant middle finger out of the earth. This time, God intervened with the curse of Babel. He confused their language and they turned on each other and abandoned the entire project.

That hideous strength waned.

That steam evaporated.

That muscle atrophied.

May God again send the curse of Babel upon those in cahoots to control His world. May He look down, laugh, and scatter their anthill. May they turn on each other and abandon their project and their plans altogether. God, have mercy on us and may we stand righteous in Your sight, by grace through faith in Christ alone, come what may.

Ephesians 6:10-13

Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

day no. 16,186: if fear is the new faith, don't be afraid to be excommunicated

Philippians 4:6-7

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Fear and anxiety are faith in a negative future. It is an indomitable belief that things are going badly and about to get worse. Fear and anxiety are the new orthodoxy and those lacking sufficient shock are being shunned.

So, be a heretic.

Be an unbeliever.

Do not rehearse their catechism.

Do not join in their dirge.

Better to be banished from the synagogue of Satan than to be embraced by it.

If fear is the new faith, don't be afraid to be excommunicated.

Skip this church.

Don’t tithe to it.

Don’t sign the guestbook.

Don’t eat their sacraments and don’t get baptized into their communion.

Do not recite their prayers or participate in their feasts or fasts.

Keep the feast of faith in Christ.

Let’s ride

"The act of defending any of the cardinal virtues has today all the exhilaration of a vice." — G.K. Chesterton

day no. 16,185: believers do not need justice lessons from unbelievers

Proverbs 28:5

Evil men do not understand justice,

but those who seek the LORD understand it completely.

Believers do not need justice lessons from unbelievers.

Now, that does not mean that believers do not need any justice lessons in general. They do, but they need to enroll in Scripture's curriculum in order to learn wisdom on the matter. Taking graduate classes from the godless cannot lead to learning godliness. 

Those who seek the Lord understand justice. Following God is its own education. Trusting the Father is a comprehensive course in righteousness. The faithful do not merely begin to get the gist of it, they understand these things completely. It isn't a simple glimpse of wisdom, but an opportunity to stare at and meditate long and hard upon it. 

Understanding is given by grace. It is not acquired by applying one self, but by denying one self and sitting at the feet of the Father to receive it.

Understanding is revelation.

Speculation goes up.

Revelation comes down.

Wisdom is not obtained by those who merely know that there is a Lord, but by those who know and seek Him; not by those merely interested in justice, but by those interested in God; not by those pursuing equity for its own sake, but by those pursuing the Lord for Christ's sake.

Matthew 6:33

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

When you seek Him, you get everything else, including an understanding of justice. Trying to understand justice without wanting to understand Him is like trying to read without wanting to learn letter. Trying to know right from wrong without trying to know, love and obey Jesus is like trying to pull the horse with the cart. It doesn't work that way and leads to a great deal of frustration... and injustice.

day no. 16,184: hypercrisy

James 1:22

But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.

Hypocrisy was once a useful. albeit shameful, way to get what you wanted without getting anything that you didn’t. It could be use to attempt to obtain the rewards of obedience without having the obligation of any of the hard work. It was a way to trick others without fooling yourself. Everyone else was a sucker because you knew you weren't. But what if you're the sucker and don't even know it?

1 John 1:8

If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

But what happens when two-facedness no longer responds to getting caught with shamefacedness? What happens when you weaponize hypocrisy to get what you want, but justify your hypocrisy because it got you what you wanted? In other words, what if you are the kind of hypocrite who says that hypocrisy is ok for you, but not for others? What if you believe it is ok for you to lie, but insist on being told the truth?

"They lie to us, we know they're lying, they know we know they're lying, but they keep lying to us, and we keep pretending to believe them." - Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

When this is taking place, it has gone beyond hypocrisy -- it is hypercrisy. It is lies leaned into, lies as a means of conduct, lies in broad daylight, lies, lies, and more lies. It is deceit and devilry employed on a daily basis with no attempt to cover it up. It is blatant disregard for the standards you hold others to. It is taking liberties precisely where you're depriving others of theirs. It begs the question, "What you going to do about?" It is bald-faced and bold. Hypercrisy is deliberately doing and saying different things. It is hypocrisy without embarrassment or reservation and double-mindedness without cognitive dissonance. It is calling lies "truth" while calling the truth that exposes it "a lie." This is dysinformation.

“Doublethink means the power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one's mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them.” - George Orwell, 1984

Hypocrisy is so last season, hypercrisy is now all the rage… literally.

Faced with this, we must refuse to deal in lies and refuse to participate in the lies of others.

"You can resolve to live your life with integrity. Let your credo be this: Let the lie come into the world, let it even triumph. But not through me." - Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

We must refuse to play along with it, refuse to shake its hands, refuse to show it hospitality, refuse it quarter, refuse its peace treaties, refuse to entertain it or to be entertained by it. Do not exchange the truth for their lies. Do not conduct business in their form of commerce. Do not change your truth coinage into their incoherent currency. Refuse to buy or sell their deceit. Do not accept it as a means of exchange and do not use it to purchase anything. Sit the system out. Speak the truth. Deal in facts. And do not, for the love of God, buy or sell any of it.

"The simple step of a courageous individual is not to take part in the lie. One word of truth outweighs the world." - Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

We must hold on to the truth and proclaim it -- come what may.

"Violence can only be concealed by a lie, and the lie can only be maintained by violence. Any man who has once proclaimed violence as his method is inevitably forced to take the lie as his principle." - Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

The liars will insist that you confess their truth. They will make you complicit in their conceit. They won't allow any other take on truth to exist. The coexist-stickered cars will be the first to run over the fish-symboled sedans forgetting that the coexist crowd was permitted to exist under the reign of God's truth, yet God's truth will not be permitted to exist under their reign of terror. They will resort to physical violence because in the world of ideas, they cannot win. Their philosophy is impotent. It is self-defeating and founded on lies. It cannot hold there, so they take hold here. But even here, they cannot win. Ideas have consequences and idiocy cannot be contained to brains. Insanity is not a strategy. Anything that cannot go on forever, won't. It's only a matter of time.

So, stay true to the truth. Wisdom is justified by her children and the woke have none of their own. Their fruitless philosophy cannot produce biological offspring. The meek will inherit the earth, in part, the old-fashioned way, by being fruitful and filling it.

day no. 16,183: return according to the benefit done to us

2 Chronicles 32:25

But Hezekiah did not make return according to the benefit done to him, for his heart was proud. Therefore wrath came upon him and Judah and Jerusalem.

Hezekiah did not make return according to the benefit done to him. What was the benefit done to him? God saved him from death's door. He was dying and had been told to get his house in order. God healed him and gave him more time. How did Hezekiah repay God? He didn't.

Now, in one sense, he could not have. After all, what can a man give for his life? What could you give to God that He doesn't already possess? That said, there is an orientation of energy and prioritization of time that appropriately corresponds to what is called gratitude. There is a return that matches the investment. There is a behavior that accords to the beneficence. There are good works that complement grace.

God gave Hezekiah more time and Hezekiah gave God ingratitude. He did not turn the benefit he was given into a benefit for others. He did not say grace over the grace he received. He pleaded for it on the front end and squandered it on the back end. 

Matthew 25:26-29

But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.

Everything we have is on loan. We are tenants, not landlords. We are renters, not owners. We will have to turn in everything we've had access to and square our accounts with Him whom we have to do.

Hebrews 4:13

Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things arenaked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.

Let us make a good return according to the good benefit that has been done to us. 

day no. 16,182: do not bear false witness against yourself

“If you haven't done anything wrong, do not apologize.” — Dr. Jordan B. Peterson 

You shall not bear false witness against yourself. You cannot produce true relational intimacy or heal actual relational tension by lying. It may "work" in the moment, but it lays down a foundation of deception as its basis of relational stability; and it should go without saying that unstable bricks do not a sound structure make.

Exodus 20:16

You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

You should do unto others as you would have them do unto you. If you are a Christian, you should not want to be lied to. You should rather not get your way than get it that way. 

Proverbs 6:16, 19

There are six things that the LORD hates, seven that are an abomination to him… a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers.

God hates a false witness. It destroys unity. You cannot sow discord and expect harmony. The kicker is that those who lie in order to smooth things over end up actually sowing discord. Apologizing for a crime you did not commit in order to appease a party oversensitively offended does not produce peace between you, it sows division. It may have the appearance of peace in the moment since it produces a temporary cease fire, but it lays the foundation for future battles and guarantees greater conflicts yet to come. That kind of momentary peace only manufactures the munitions of perpetual malice.

Proverbs 25:18

A man who bears false witness against his neighbor is like a war club, or a sword, or a sharp arrow.

day no. 16,181: always measuring up

2 Corinthians 10:12

For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise.

Two questions that need to be regularly asked are: "Which?" and "By what standard?" The first question teaches us to see the inescapable that God has embedded into a binary universe. We get distracted by debates oriented around whether anyone's morality should be imposed upon anyone else, when we should be presupposing that morality is inherently an imposition and asking the question "Which morality will be imposed upon whom?" instead of debating the question of "Will morality be imposed?"

The second question teaches us to see the indomitable, eternal standards of God that underlie all judgments. All judgments are an appeal to a standard. Again, the question isn't "Is there a standard?" the question is "Which standard are you using?" or shorthand "By what standard?"

Proverbs 11:1

God hates unjust measures and partial scales. Any measurement outside of His will always involved someone putting a thumb on the scales. 

Those who measure themselves by themselves find a favorable outcome -- they always measure up, as it were. Those who compare themselves only to those like themselves cannot arrive at wisdom. Only those who measure themselves against an objective standard outside of themselves have any gauge of where they're at, how they're doing, and where they're going. You cannot track or examine progress without an outside standard by which to measure distance either from or to.

day no. 16,180: easter eggs everywhere

Psalm 119:64

The earth, O LORD, is full of your steadfast love

Everywhere you look, there are signs of God's never-ending love. They are buried in the depths of the sea and hanging beyond the balance of the clouds. They are bound up in every blade of grass and liberated in every laugh.

Genesis 2:11-12

The name of the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold; and the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone.

We worship and serve a God who hides gold in the hills. He places cream inside of cows and cheese inside cream. God loves to give us good things and to make their revelation an adventure. He has placed Easter eggs everywhere and given us a heads up to search for them. The joy of discovering hidden missions is only eclipsed by the joy of working hard to mine out even one.

day no. 16,179: the joie de vivre of each jot and tittle

Psalm 119:54
Your statutes have been my songs.

Christians should sing the Scriptures. His words are honey and His commands are hymns. The Logos is lyrical. God's Law is our soundtrack. The Scriptures are always providing the score to our daily scripts. The Bible is always keeping the beat for us and it is always on time. Every jot and tittle provides joie de vivre and timbre.

day no. 16,178: all Christs are not created equal

2 Corinthians 11:3-4

But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.

All Christs are not created equal; in fact, one wasn’t. The created ones are, granted, all equally unequal to the title. Only inferior christs can be created, for the superior One is the one that wasn't. The actual Christ is begotten, not made. 

I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ,

the only-begotten Son of God,

begotten of the Father before all worlds,

God of God,

Light of Light,

very God of very God,

begotten, not made,

being of one substance with the Father;

by whom all things were made.

- Nicene Creed, 325 AD

The one, true Christ is the Creator of every other thing, even of those who go and create counterfeit christs. These created "christs," however, cannot hold a candle to the One who created their creators.

John 1:1-3

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.

Jesus made men in the image of God and they, in turn, made images of their imaginations. Sometimes they even named these images "Christ," in similar fashion as to when Aaron called the golden calf  he created,"Yahweh." The issue is not calling on the name of Christ per se, but on what you call "Christ." You cannot sanctify rebellion by calling it "righteousness." You cannot eat the poison and have health too. In short, you cannot split the difference by calling evil "good," darkness "light," or your idols "Christ." I mean, you can do that, and some in Corinth clearly had, but it doesn't fly. God is not obligated to receive whatever you call, "Christ."

Isaiah 5:20-21

Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight!

All this to say, be careful about what is presented to you as "Christ." Consider the claims. Some use this name as a way of baptizing their own fancies. But there is one way to the Father and it isn't an incantation, it is a Person. There is one truth and it isn't simply a monosyllable, but a Savior. There is one life and it isn't in knowing the right words to say, but in knowing the Father through the Son.

John 14:6, 17:3

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me... And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent."

day no. 16,177: do not be thermostatic or thermocentric

Do not be thermostatic or thermocentric.

The thermostatic cannot function anywhere outside of their preferred temperature zone. The thermocentric cannot think about anything other than finding a temperature zone in which life is always bearable. Do not limit your life and livelihood to 70 degrees and do not orient your entire life around getting everything to 70 degrees.

Be effective in whatever environment and adversities God determines for you.

Learn how to live through the cold of winters and the heat of summers.

Philippians 4:13

I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Be lethal in any environment. Be more dangerous than any danger you can face

day no. 16,176: we are not saved because we think that we deserve it, but because we know that we don’t

Isaiah 64:6

But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.

Our best attempts cannot escape our worst qualities.

Philippians 3:7-8

But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ.

Our best must be abandoned and our worst brought to Jesus in order to be saved.

Romans 9:30-32

What shall we say then? That the Gentiles, which followed not after righteousness, have attained to righteousness, even the righteousness which is of faith. But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness. Wherefore? Because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law.

Righteousness is imputed to those who do not have it, not earned by those who think they already do.

Romans 10:2-3

For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.

We are not saved because we think that we deserve it, but because we know that we don’t. We are not saved when we think that we deserve it, but when we know that we don’t.

The Lord saves sinners.

That is to say, He saves those who know that they need saving. He saves those that agree with Him about who they are and what they ought to have been. He saves those who openly confess their sin and just as openly confess Him as their only hope.

The Lord saves sinners.

You already are a sinner by nature and by choice. The question isn't if you are a sinner, but are you saved one? To be saved is to say that you are a sinner and expect to be saved by Him because He isn't. To err is human, but to forgive is divine.

day no. 16,175: as long as you have ammo, you always have a shot

Galatians 6:7-10

Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not. As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.

As long as you have seed to sow, there's always hope. Even if it's your last seed, there is hope that it could take root and be fruitful and provide food and more seeds. But only if you sow it. Only if you trust in the power of resurrection.

Ecclesiastes 6:1

In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.

Seeds that are not sown, do not grow. But those that are buried are given a chance.

As long as you have ammo, you always have a shot. It may be your last bullet, but it may not be your last stand. The enemy isn't afraid of the bullets you don't fire or the ammo you don't use. 

You lose all the bullets you don’t shoot. You miss all the shots you don't take. It is better to be without a bullet because you shot it than because you sat on it.

Bullets are made to be shot. Seeds are made to be buried.

All seeds will be lost. Either in faith in the ground or in fear in hand.

You forfeit all the fruit you are afraid to sow.

Sow the seed.

Take the shot.

Watch and wait and live and die by faith.

day no. 16,174: thus far, but no farther

2 Chronicles 26:16-18

But when he was strong, he grew proud, to his destruction. For he was unfaithful to the LORD his God and entered the temple of the LORD to burn incense on the altar of incense. But Azariah the priest went in after him, with eighty priests of the LORD who were men of valor,  and they withstood King Uzziah and said to him, “It is not for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the LORD, but for the priests, the sons of Aaron, who are consecrated to burn incense. Go out of the sanctuary, for you have done wrong, and it will bring you no honor from the LORD God.”

Uzziah was the king and had sway in his jurisdiction in that capacity, but in the sanctuary, he was a congregant. His royal robes did not transfer to clerical robes. He could not carry his authority from one arena to another. It was not right for him to perform the duties of a priest. It did not matter who he was per se, it mattered that he wasn't a priest. Azariah and his eighty priests rightfully withstood Uzziah's overreach and firmly said, "Thus far, but no farther." Uzziah was in the wrong and Azariah let him know about it. Something do not belong to Caesar and sometimes he needs to be reminded.

Jehoiada and Azariah both opposed tyranny and refused to allow tyrants to go unchecked. May God provide us more men of valor with steel in their spines and purity in their hearts that they too may ferociously oppose those who presume authority illegitimately either in its acquisition or in its application.

This episode highlights what Kuyper called, sphere sovereignty. Jesus commanded us to give Caesar what is rightfully his; and one of the things that is NOT his is deciding what belongs to Caesar. Those spheres are set by the Sovereign God.

day no. 16,173: an act of "treason!"

2 Chronicles 23:11-15

Then they brought out the king’s son and put the crown on him and gave him the testimony. And they proclaimed him king, and Jehoiada and his sons anointed him, and they said, “Long live the king.” When Athaliah heard the noise of the people running and praising the king, she went into the house of the LORD to the people. And when she looked, there was the king standing by his pillar at the entrance, and the captains and the trumpeters beside the king, and all the people of the land rejoicing and blowing trumpets, and the singers with their musical instruments leading in the celebration. And Athaliah tore her clothes and cried, “Treason! Treason!” Then Jehoiada the priest brought out the captains who were set over the army, saying to them, “Bring her out between the ranks, and anyone who follows her is to be put to death with the sword.” For the priest said, “Do not put her to death in the house of the LORD.” So they laid hands on her, and she went into the entrance of the horse gate of the king’s house, and they put her to death there.

Athaliah had no issue with treason per se as evidenced by her having committed it to obtain her position. She was not opposed to treason in principle, but was opposed to being opposed. She was guilty of usurping the throne. She was an illegitimate authority sitting in a authoritative seat. The seat, however, retained its real authority even she did not. She did not acquire it lawfully and so her occupation of the authoritative seat was lawless. When Jehoiada was presented with the legitimate heir to the throne, he did the right thing and anointed him and then led the charge to unseat the lawless squatter, thus bringing that tyrant to justice. And what did that tyrant do when confronted? To what standard did she appeal? She cried, "Treason!" She expected justice to come to her aid, but justice was coming for her head. Athaliah did not oppose treason for treason's sake, but opposed being deposed. Hers was only an act of, "treason!" for true treason she cared nothing for. She feigned a desire for justice because she defined injustice as anything that opposed her.

The very thing some imagine will save them will, in fact, secure their death. The goodness of God is not a safety net for sinners, it is a guarantee of their demise. The Lord saves sinners by separating them from their affections of their former ways. That isn't to say that anyone who still wants to sin sometimes can't be saved, but to say that only those who sometimes wish they didn't sin have any reason to believe that they actually are saved, while the one who wants to be left alone to his sinning has good reason question to his confession -- but he never does.

If Athaliah had been asked before this episode what traitors deserve, she would have said death! She would have said this because she did not see herself as a traitor even though she had single-handedly been responsible for executing every other heir apparent. Mind you, she missed one; but she thought she had killed every last one. It had been her intention to eradicate every ounce of royal blood from existence. So what would somebody deserve who tried to do that to her and her bloodline? She would say, "Death to traitors!" not seeing the hypocrisy of her double-standard. She despised traitors once they traded places

Finally, note that Jehoiada was right. He was the one pursuing justice and respecting the throne. And what was he accused of by the powers that be? Treason! Illegitimate authorities will always appeal to the standards of legitimate authority in order to secure their illegitimately acquired authority. In other words, tyrants gonna tyrant. All that to say, Jehoiada was accused of being wrong for doing the right thing by a person wrongfully occupying a rightful authority.

day no. 16,172: do not let your hands be weak

2 Chronicles 15:7

But you, take courage! Do not let your hands be weak, for your work shall be rewarded.

Faith can never be content with slack handedness. Faith is encouraged and strengthened by being reminded of God's generous and meticulous bookkeeping. God doesn't owe anyone anything.

1 Corinthians 15:58

Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.

The Lord keeps track of every effort you make and pays out to the penny. He is no skinflint. Nor is He a spendthrift. He doesn't throw His compliments away. When He rewards, He means it and He is always looking for ways to reward those going hard with as much as they can handle... and more. He gives heavy harvests to shoulders exhausted from sowing. He hands tons of joy to backs gladly bearing the burden of responsibility. God is a good master.