Rejecting the Cross

One of the things about being on Facebook is that, during my time on there, I've watched a handful of friends abandon Christianity who I never would have thought would. You then watch as they try to manipulate the thought of others who they're friends with. They make excuses for their actions, they outright lie, they try to make themselves out to be the good guy in relationships they've destroyed, they plead for sympathy. But when I look at the Cross of Christ, the Cross they have rejected, all their whining shows up for what it is. Jesus came into a world He didn't have to come into. He took on sinful human flesh when He didn't have to. He didn't own a home or any possessions to speak of. Everybody rejected Him and hated Him, even His friends. He told them the truth, and they killed Him for it. He bore the sin of humanity, a greater suffering than any other man has or will ever know. And you want to act as if God owes you something, as if you deserve constant happiness. If you're an American, you have more blessings than most of the people who have lived throughout history, and more earthly blessings than Jesus Himself knew while on earth. But at least you've followed your thought out consistently. You didn't want the Cross, His or yours, so you rejected it. You know what the end result will be, though. No earthly cross means no heavenly blessing. In fact, it means hell. I'm sorry for any real pain you've gone through, and I pray for you. But God did everything necessary to show His sympathy for your suffering. If you reject that, your excuses are lame. God owes you nothing. No matter what you think, you don't deserve better than Jesus.

For 9/11

On the first Sunday after 9/11, churches across the country were filled to the brim. This lasted for a few weeks, but soon we were back to where we were before. As we had already been doing, we treated God's Church as a temporary fix. We weren't there to serve God, but to get Him to answer our questions and serve us. So after 9/11, are we any better off spiritually? Are we a holier nation? Do we know God's Word better? Do we have greater knowledge of and respect for how he has operated in His Church over the past two thousand years? Do we love God's Law and strive to walk in obedience to it? The answer to all of those, I believe, is no. We may fly the flag, and remember those who died on that day. But it's equally important to realize that God chastened us, and we didn't learn. God sent us a wake-up call, and we turned over and went back to sleep. If there is anything important to know today, it is this - we had better wake up soon, or we might just find a worse thing to come upon us.