Christ & Culture

What Caused This Financial Crisis?

2008-09-24T23:11:00.002-04:00

Who is to blame for the recent fiasco in the financial sector of our economy? If you haven’t heard, the U.S. government is pledging hundreds of billions to bail out mortgage giants Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac and AIG (the nation’s largest insurance provider). Just this week, we witnessed the largest bankruptcy in American history (Lehman Brothers). Merrill Lynch — a premier brokerage firm — has been bought out, and several other financial companies now appear concerned about their own solvency.

All of the economic analysts on television admit that this was all triggered by the mortgage industry, but what exactly happened to the mortgage industry?

Ever since the mid-1990s, there has been a push to expand and extend mortgage loans into low-income and minority communities. In 2000, Fannie Mae announced an initiative “to provide $2 trillion in private capital for 18 million minority and underserved Americans.” Likewise, in recent years, Democrats in Congress and President Bush have pushed hard for more increases in minority homeownership.

While it is a certainly a noble goal to seek broader homeownership in America, the naïve liberal belief that everyone is entitled to everything has ultimately led us into this crisis. Quite frankly, some people simply cannot afford a home. For example, my family is still renting our home for that very reason. But that did not stop Fannie Mae from encouraging banks to push mortgage loans on millions of our Americans who are poorer than I am.

These mortgages came in all shapes and sizes. Some were made available to those who could pay “interest-only.” Other loans lured irresponsible borrowers with payments that would “balloon” over time. Still other mortgages were known as “NINJA” loans, because they required No Income, No Job, and No Assets. And now the liberals are furious at Republicans, because those same people cannot pay their mortgages — and the American economy is convulsing as a result.

In the words of my dad, “DUH!”

The entitlement philosophy of our nation makes it seem as though everyone is entitled to own a house. Impoverished communities were flooded with hundreds of billions in loans. People with unstable finances qualified for hundreds of thousands of dollars in loans. This excess and borrowed cash artificially drove the housing market through the roof, as too many dollars were chasing too few homes. Eventually, the housing market peaked, interest rates climbed, and the economy grew sluggish. ARMs (adjustable rate mortgages) began creeping north, and millions of poor people realized the obvious: they could not afford their homes.

As more and more poor people continue to default on their loans, our nation continues to set records for foreclosures. As a result of these foreclosures, houses have flooded the market, and the housing prices have plummeted. Now a bank, which originally loaned out $400,000 for a house, is lucky to collect $300,000 in a post-foreclosure sale. Multiply such losses by millions of unqualified borrowers, and you can understand why our economy is in deep trouble. Banks are suffering massive losses.

John McCain may not be an economic guru, but he is one of few politicians who spoke out about this problem over two years ago. In May of 2006, McCain was warning about problems with the mortgage industry giants — Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac. On the floor of the Senate, he declared, “These are entities that have demonstrated over and over again that they are deeply in need of reform.” Unlike Barack, this is not a new speech for him. He was ignored, and that reform never came in the Democratic-controlled Congress. Now, our economy is convulsing.

As Americans suffer the consequences of utopian liberalism, Obama and the liberal Democrats are now trying to claim that all of our problems stem from the GOP’s economic policies of deregulation and “favoring the rich.” WRONG, WRONG, WRONG. This financial “crisis” is due to the failed policies of liberalism that flooded poorer Americans with insurmountable debts.

Thirsting for Righteousness

2008-07-30T13:17:00.002-04:00

The 4th Beatitude listed in the Sermon on the Mount teaches us: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they shall be satisfied.”

What does it look like to hunger and thirst for righteousness as a believer? In the church, most people’s first instinct is to devise checklists to elevate our “holiness rating.” Thus, we think to ourselves that we need to pray more, read more, and go to church more.

However the entirety of Scripture presents a far different solution. Righteousness is not to be found in our actions; it is found in Christ alone! When Jesus encounters the adulterous Samaritan woman at the well, He promises her: “… whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst.” Later Jesus tells His own followers: “I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst.”

Ask yourself: what quenches our hunger and our thirst for righteousness? It seems that Jesus is quite deliberate in His choice of language. The answer is not to be found in our own duties, deeds, and strivings. To the contrary, the Gospel of John shows us that Jesus Himself is the very righteousness for which we hunger and thirst. He alone can satisfy us.

Jesus promises that those who seek after Him “will never thirst.” In light of this promise, how can we explain Christ’s words on the Cross? John’s Gospel tells us, “Later, knowing that all was now completed, and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, ‘I am thirsty.’”

This is like buying diet pills from a fat salesman. The One who claims to have a remedy to ensure that His followers “will never thirst” had declared that He was “thirsty.” How can this be? What are the Scriptures telling us?

His thirst must be significant. For eternity past, Jesus had existed in a state of perfect righteousness. He had no need of hungering or thirsting for righteousness, because He embodied true righteousness. Yet on the Cross, there was a beautiful exchange between mankind and Christ. He was cloaked in our sin, and He clothed us in His righteousness.

2 Corinthians 5:21 declares, “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”

On the Cross, for the first time in history, Jesus experienced what it was like to desperately thirst for righteousness. He suddenly knew the despair borne by an utter alienation from His Father. When Jesus cries out “I thirst,” He is not merely expressing a physical desire. Perhaps He is announcing that the beautiful exchange of the gospel was complete. He had taken our sin, and, with that, Jesus could declare, “It is finished.”

What a wonderful Savior! Jesus was willing to freely give His righteousness away and suffer thirst in order to fulfill His promise that we would never thirst again.

Obama: "No You Can't"

2008-07-26T20:52:00.000-04:00

In recent months, millions of Americans have listened to the empty rhetoric of Barack Obama. We have all heard his speeches and his vague promises of hope and change. We’ve listened to a man—who has been independently ranked as the most liberal politician in the U.S. Senate—promising that he can somehow bring both sides of the aisle rushing to follow him to the very farthest extreme of the ideological pendulum.

These are clever words and slogans—especially when so many Americans are dissatisfied and distrustful of government—but they are empty promises.

At this point in history, our President has very low numbers, and our Congress has even lower approval ratings. One recent poll found that Congress has recorded its lowest approval rating in the history of such polls. Yet all of Barack’s promises hinge on giving America’s bloated, ineffective, and unpopular government even greater control over American life. We’ve heard Barack lay out his solutions of big government, and we have seen him lead enthusiastic crowds in chanting: “Yes We Can.”

Perhaps there is no greater irony in this campaign than watching the disciples of big government and the welfare-state screaming, “Yes We Can!” The political philosophy of liberalism, which treats the American people as though they are utterly incapable of taking care of themselves, has the audacity to embrace a slogan of “Yes We Can.”

The entire foundation of liberal politics is built upon the premise of “No You Can’t.”

Conservatism believes that Americans CAN take care of their families.
Liberalism looks at the American people and screams: “No You Can’t.”

Conservatism trusts that Americans can wisely choose how to spend their own paychecks.
But the high-tax policies of liberalism say to the American worker: “No You Can’t.”

True conservatism believes that our citizens can thrive best when government regulation and the yokes of bureaucracy are lifted from their shoulders.
But the thousands of liberal bureaucrats in D.C. would tell you, “No You Can’t.”

Conservatives believe that America is unique because we can look to God as our source for liberty, not to government.
In recent decades, our liberal judiciary has told us: “No You Can’t.”

Conservatism believes that American law can be fair & equitable while securing our borders.
Liberalism says, “No You Can’t.”

Conservatism believes that Americans can bear arms in accordance with the Constitution’s 2nd Amendment.
We have seen numerous liberal states and municipalities expressly declare, “No You Can’t.”

Conservatism believes that parents can be trusted to decide the best alternative for their child’s education.
Liberalism rejects school choice—shouting to parents: “No You Can’t.”

In short, conservatism believes that Americans CAN prosper apart from the long arm of big government, and liberalism whispers, “No You Can’t.”

Consider this. Barack wants higher taxes; socialized healthcare; increased regulation on American industries; more burdens on gas prices; dramatically increased pledges of international aid; a government bailout of the mortgage and financial industries; and a bigger role for government in virtually every conceivable arena of the political landscape. Now ask yourself … why does Barack want to expand the size and scope of our federal government? Is it not because at the base of Barack’s entire political philosophy is the belief that Americans CANNOT attain success apart from the crutches of big government?

At his core, Barack believes that the government MUST interject, because he believes that American people CANNOT succeed. Conservatism believes the opposite. We believe that time has proven that the government CANNOT outperform the American people, and therefore the American people CAN, MUST, and SHALL.

Obama has painted the repeatedly failed policies of liberalism (see LBJ & Jimmy Carter) as though they are new policies of hope and change. Government has grown wildly in recent years, but government has never been more unpopular with the American people. And Barack’s solution? MORE government! This is liberalism. It feeds on pessimism and a lack of faith in the American people to thrive apart from their addiction to government handouts, bailouts, and sellouts; whereas conservatism trusts in the ingenuities of American enterprise and the charitable nature of the American people.

Government has never lifted America to greatness; the American people have. When Barack says, “YES WE CAN,” he means an elite group of Washington politicians CAN, because they know better than you. But like Ronald Reagan and Barry Goldwater, conservatism believes that big government is a hindrance to success. It is not the answer to the problem; it IS the problem.

Beatitudes Mirrored by Woes

2008-07-26T15:23:00.004-04:00

Each of the eight beatitudes expressed in the Sermon of the Mount (Matthew 5) corresponds to an opposite declaration in which Jesus curses the Pharisees with eight woes in Matthew 23. Jesus is presenting his audience with two alternatives. Either you can live a blessed life that the Gospel calls us to follow, or you can live a cursed life like the Pharisees.

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
- Woe to you … you shut off the kingdom of heaven from people. (Mt. 23:13)

Being poor in spirit means recognizing how incomplete you are apart from Christ. It means a true realization that you are hopeless without Jesus. One biblical commentator explained that “the [ancient Greek] philosophers did not reckon humility among their moral virtues, but Christ puts it first. Self-denial is the first lesson to be learned in his school, and poverty of spirit entitled to the first beatitude. The foundation of all other graces is laid in humility.”
Question: Do you live your life as though you truly need Jesus?

Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
- Woe to you … you devour widow’s houses. (Mt. 23:14)

This mourning is godly sorrow over sin. This addresses the sincerity of a person’s repentance. The comfort promised to believers is realized in the prophecy of Revelation 21: “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain…”
Question: Does reflection upon your sins cause you to feel true sorrow?

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
- Woe to you … you travel the earth to win a convert, making them into hell-dwellers. (Mt. 23:15)

A meek person is both patient and humble. Matthew Henry describes the meek as “those who quietly submit themselves to God, to his word and to his rod [punishments], who follow his directions, and comply with his designs, and are gentle towards all men; who can bear provocation without being inflamed by it...”
Question: Do you often put other people ahead of yourself?

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
- Woe to you … you swear by the temple and offer up a false righteousness. (Mt. 23:16-22)

Each and every person on earth hungers after something—whether holiness or sin. If you are thirsting and hungering after things of the world, then you are neglecting the things of Jesus.
Question: Which do you spend more time thinking about … impressing your friends or pleasing God?

Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
- Woe to you … who neglect justice and mercy. (Mt. 23:23-24)

This is demonstrated by Christ’s parable of the wicked debtor (Matthew 18:23-35). We have been forgiven so much that we would be foolish and wicked not to forgive those who have offended us.
Question: Are you refusing to let go of a grudge against someone else?

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
- Woe to you … who clean the outside of the cup but are filthy within. (Mt. 23:25-26)

This claims that those who seek after pure holiness will be rewarded by God. Those who are clothed in the purity of Jesus Christ and treasure this holiness will finally be able to see the face of God without the fear of death.
Question: Can you honestly claim that purity and holiness are important to you?

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
- Woe to you … you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. (Mt. 23:31)

Christians should be peacemakers because we worship the Prince of Peace.
Question: Do you often work to resolve fights between friends or are you quick to take sides and stir it up?

Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
- Woe to you … you will kill and crucify the prophets that I send to you. (Mt. 23:34)

The history of the Christian Church is filled with wonderful stories of martyrs, who gave the last full measure of their lives to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ. These saints are blessed in the sight of God.
Question: Have you ever been persecuted or mistreated because you are a Christian?

Overcoming the Curse of the Woman

2008-06-09T23:13:00.006-04:00

The first utterance of the Gospel is recited by God in the third chapter of Genesis when God confronts Satan. The Lord curses the serpent promising, "I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; He will crush your head, and you will strike His heel" (Genesis 3:15).

After announcing that the hope of the world would require Eve to bring forth offspring, God then explained that Eve's curse would be to suffer in childbirth. The Bible explains, "To the woman He said, 'I will greatly multiply your pain in childbirth, in pain you will bring forth children...'" (Genesis 3:16).

Do not miss the irony of this situation. The hope of redemption came with a cost. God promised deliverance, but the only way Eve could see this promise come to fruition was to willingly endure the burden of her curse. Both Adam and Eve are faced with two options: (1) They can obey God's command to "be fruitful and multiply," or (2) They can perish without children.

- The first option offered eternal hope only through present suffering.
- The second option assured eternal death and worldly comfort.

Only faith would have led Eve to suffer the excruciating pain of childbirth in order to bring forth the promised Redeemer, and this Redeemer would take the curse of the woman upon Himself!

Just as you brought intense agony to your mother so that you could be delivered into this world , Jesus endured immeasurable suffering so that we could all be delivered into the eternal life of the next world. Jesus took the curse of the woman upon Himself and He brought forth mankind's spiritual rebirth.

In his letter to the Romans, the Apostle Paul explained that the redemption of the world would be like childbirth. "The creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God," he explained. "We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time" (Romans 8:22). The pains of this redemptive childbirth are laid upon the shoulders of Jesus Christ.

If you are hoping to get to heaven, Jesus instructs, "You must be born again" (John 3:7).

And how may we partake in this new birth? The Apostle John explains, "As many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God" (John 1:12-13).

A Race of Men Better Than Adam

2008-06-04T22:28:00.003-04:00

For a moment, imagine that you discovered a time machine and ventured back into the days just before the Fall. Upon arriving in the Garden of Eden, you were provided with two options: (1) You could emphatically warn Eve to resist the temptations of Satan in an attempt to prevent the Fall, or (2) You could quietly stand by and allow Adam & Eve to eat from the tree.

If presented with these options, most people would instinctively choose to prevent the Fall. Choosing this option might temporarily ensure that mankind would be free from the miseries of sin, suffering, sickness, death, and eternal judgment. This seems like a noble goal, but it also expresses a bit of distrust for God's ordained plan for mankind. The second option trusts in the wisdom and goodness of God. This option forces us to lean upon the promise that "God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God..." This trusts that the Cross will ultimately make a redeemed mankind who will far exceed the beauty of the original mankind.

The Bible makes this clear.

The Apostle Paul wrote, "The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven.... Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven."

The Apostle Peter explained how Christians are far better off than a pre-fallen Adam: "In His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade — kept in heaven for you ... For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God."

Now we are to "become partakers of the divine nature."

None of this would have been the case if mankind had succeeded in maintaining our own innocence, and our relationship with God would have remained conditional upon our obedience. We would be wound in the thin threads of our own deeds, instead of being adorned in the royal robes of Jesus Christ.

In his book Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis wrote, "[God] will make the feeblest and filthiest of us into a god or goddess, a dazzling, radiant, immortal creature, pulsating all through with such energy and joy and wisdom and love as we cannot now imagine, a bright stainless mirror which reflects back to God perfectly (though, of course, on a smaller scale) His own boundless power and delight and goodness. The process will be long and in parts very painful; but that is what we are in for. Nothing less."

One may not always understand the reasons for God's brushstrokes, but a Christian can trust that Christ's masterpiece will be far more beautiful than anything we could ever imagine!

Loving Beyond the Auction Block

2008-06-02T20:47:00.002-04:00

The woman’s figure is disgusting,
It is wretched on display.
Purity? Beyond her reach!
Condemned by our dismay.

One look at our society
And the red lights burn your eyes.
The hopelessness that’s bred today
Is treated like a prize.

Yet, she stands without expression,
And her shame is buried deep.
Her life has grown so worthless,
And her love is now so cheap.

Her face is chalked in make-up,
Any beauty is a fraud.
Forsaken by the world she hates,
Too ashamed to seek her God.

Each day she spews her venom,
Her despair is up for sale.
She rejects the hope of love,
She has trashed her wedding veil.

Yet, there’s one who shows compassion,
And will treat her like a queen.
This whore is His beloved.
To us, she is obscene.

Like Hosea bid for Gomer
Upon the auction block,
The Lord poured out His blood
To bring sheep back to His flock.

The woman is a trash heap —
Cast out by all who see.
She has failed to meet the standard.
Apart from Christ, that whore was me.

Let me not look away,
Teach me to love her face.
A hypocrite can cite Your law,
Help me to live Your grace.

So when we’re in Your Kingdom,
And You gaze upon Your bride.
I will have shown compassion
To Your beloved — for whom you died.

Sam & Laura - Our Life Together

2008-05-09T17:22:00.001-04:00

This video offers glimpses of our life together--from our very first picture in the parking lot at Pompano Park and our engagement night to our wedding and the birth of Caleb James. God has been so good to us!

Announcing Caleb James Kastensmidt

2008-04-29T21:40:00.005-04:00

We would like to announce the birth of Caleb James Kastensmidt. He entered the world on April 27, 2008 at 10:23 pm — weighing in at a whopping 9 lbs. 15 oz. and measuring twenty-two inches. And my wife managed to do it all the old-fashioned way ... no C-Section! The nurses told us that our baby is literally “off the charts” in all of his measurements. It is quite apparent that the steroids, which were given to him two months ago to counter the effects of a potential premature delivery, paid off. He’s a real bruiser!

Laura and Caleb are now at home and they are doing great, though both still need lots of recuperation and rest. Our whole family cried after the delivery. Life is such an amazing gift from God, and we really appreciate the many prayers that not only ushered Caleb past the threats of premature birth, but even one day past his due date. Your prayers worked … maybe even too much! God is so good.

Now our prayers are that our son would follow after his biblical namesake, whom the Bible says “followed the Lord fully.”

How God Finds Glory In Our Fall

2008-04-26T15:04:00.001-04:00

The Westminster Shorter Catechism is oft-considered to be one of the best doctrinal statements of Presbyterianism. It explains that "man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever." In a similar vein, John Piper, a famous Baptist minister, is a leading proponent of an interesting philosophy called "Christian hedonism." This worldview teaches that "God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him."

Unfortunately, it is difficult to keep our eyes on Christ in a fallen world. Our worldly instincts lead us to desire all of the glory for ourselves. Even our most noble actions are laced with our own selfish interests. The Prophet Jeremiah wrote, "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?" Indeed, we are in desperate need of a Savior!

Often times, people will ask, "Why is it like this? Why would God ever have allowed the Fall to happen?" In their minds, there is disbelief that a loving God could have ever ordained (or even allowed) the Fall to happen. The Scriptures promise that "God will not act wickedly," but some people point to the Fall and question God's goodness.

So why would God have allowed the Fall?

In order to answer this question, perhaps it may prove valuable to consider another question. If Adam had managed to maintain his own righteousness and innocence, then who would have received all of the glory for his accomplishment? The answer: Adam would have received the glory, and the relationship between man and God would have never been elevated to levels of unthinkable love.

Through Christ, the Fall has been transformed into an amazing story of our redemption. This story has brought matchless glory to God and unthinkable honor to mankind. God receives more glory as a Redeemer than as a Creator. Likewise, mankind is elevated and honored by the immeasurable demonstration of God's love on the Cross. All of redemptive history centers around the amazing fact that God has loved us to death -- literally.

Thus, it should not surprise us that God is most delighted when we recognize the cost of His affection and we rejoice in the gift of His righteousness.

God has chosen to be glorified by suffering a fate worse than any man in order to redeem us. He is the source of all of our goodness, and we have nothing of which to boast. In the book of Isaiah, He declared, “Then all your people will be righteous ... that I may be glorified.” Some may curse God for allowing the Fall, but a Christian can view the Fall as the means by which Christ has revealed our value in His sight. We are worth the very life and blood of God's own Son!

God's Good Order Turned Right-Side-Up

2008-04-24T07:53:00.005-04:00

In the beginning when God created man and woman, He established a clear order to creation. God had authority over man. The man was given authority over his wife (the woman), though both were created in the image of God and given equal dignity. Finally, all of mankind was called to "rule over ... every living creature that moves on the ground." (Genesis 1:28)

There was a clear pattern of authority.

(1) God, (2) Man, (3) Woman, and (4) Creature

For as long as mankind lived in accordance with God's good order, Adam and Eve flourished in the garden. At the Fall, God's natural order was overthrown and mankind was cursed with death. The serpent tricked the woman. The woman then led the man to eat of the tree of knowledge, and the man rebelled against God--blaming Him for creating the woman. Everything had been turned upside-down!

(1) Serpent, (2) Woman, (3) Man, and (4) God

The responsibility for sin entering the world fell at Adam's feet (Romans 5:12), despite the fact that Eve was the first to eat from the tree. In God's eyes, the man was not only guilty for partaking of the cursed tree, but he had failed to protect his wife from the temptations of the serpent. Like Eve, Adam placed his hopes in the deceptive promise of Satan: "You shall be like God."

Thankfully, God did not leave us to perish in our sin. His only Son took on the flesh of mankind, so that He could redeem us from the failures of the first man. Jesus is the heavenly man who has fulfilled the calling of Adam ... He restored the natural order -- showing us how to honor God, love our brides, and reign over the created things.

- Adam failed to protect his bride from the serpent.
- Jesus came to crush the serpent's head beneath His feet.

- Through Adam, sin and death came to all men.
- Christ took our sin upon Himself and destroyed death.

- In a garden of smiles, Adam betrayed God at the whim of Satan.
- In a garden of tears, Jesus resisted Satan for God's sake.

- Adam ate from the tree in hopes that he would be like God.
- Jesus "existed in the form of God, [but] did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped."

Jesus has established the life of perfect righteousness. As a man, He was everything that Adam was supposed to be. Jesus submitted to the Father; He cared for His bride; and He destroyed the serpent whose venom threatened us with death.

In the Fall, Adam turned everything upside-down. In his life, death, and resurrection, Jesus has turned everything right-side-up.

Three-Day Cycle of Creation

2008-04-22T23:42:00.006-04:00

Genesis 1 describes the first six days of creation:

Day 1: Let there be light.
Day 2: Separation of waters (sky & sea).
Day 3: Emergence of land and life
Day 4: Sun, moon, and stars
Day 5: Birds and sea creatures
Day 6: Mankind and animals

Each of the first three days of creation lays the foundation for those things which are brought into existence three days later.

On Day 1, God's creation of light gave purpose to the things which were created three days later -- the sun, moon, and stars (sources of light). The separation of sky and sea on the second day provided a sanctuary for birds and sea creatures, which were created three days later (on the fifth day). Finally, the third day's creation of land offered a footing for mankind and animals, which were created on the sixth day.

The first events of creation were essential for the survival of those things created three days later. The sun, moon, and stars are without purpose apart from light. Birds cannot survive without the sky; fish cannot survive without the waters. Mankind and animals cannot survive apart from the land.

So why would God choose to pattern His creation on a three-day cycle? Why would He choose to bring forth organic life on the third day? Only God knows for sure, but one cannot help but think that this is a shadow of a greater creation that is to come through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. His sinless life established the possibility of His resurrection on the third day. And without this "new creation" established by the third-day resurrection, we are all utterly hopeless, much like a fish apart from the sea. We depend upon Christ's resurrection.

The Apostle Paul wrote, "For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures ... If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men."

In other words, we are all hopeless unless Jesus has truly accomplished the first and most essential part of our new creation -- his death & resurrection. Only if Jesus is truly raised from the dead may we follow Him into eternal life. If our hope is grounded in truth, then we may share in the promise of the prophet Hosea, who declared, "After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will restore us, that we may live in his presence."

The resurrection is the Christian's only sure footing for life in the new creation. Commenting on Hosea 6:2, John Calvin wrote, "His resurrection is a mirror of our life; for we see in that how God is wont to deal with his own people: the Father did not restore life to Christ as soon as he was taken down from the cross; he was deposited in the sepulchre, and he lay there till the third day. When God, then, intends that we should languish for a time, let us know that we are thus represented in Christ our Head..."

Matthew Henry rightly explains, "As the Redeemer was raised from the grave, so will He revive the hearts and hopes of all that trust in him."

The Tree of Life

2008-04-20T14:36:00.007-04:00

In the center of the Garden of Eden, there were two trees: (1) the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and (2) the tree of life.

Genesis 2:9 tells us, "Out of the ground the Lord God caused to grow every tree that is pleasing to the sight and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil."

Adam and Eve were free to live in the peace of God's presence with only one condition. God commanded, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden, but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die."

The tree of life fed Adam and Eve so long as they were content to rest in the provision of God. On the other hand, the tree of knowledge was a temptation toward arrogance and the belief that mankind deserved to share the throne with God. Pride was mankind's ultimate path to death, and Satan already knew that path very well. He whispered to Eve: "God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."

The consequence was massive. Genesis 3:24 declares, "So He drove the man out; and at the east of the garden of Eden He stationed the cherubim and the flaming sword which turned every direction to guard the way to the tree of life." Thus, this sin-drenched couple was expelled from God's holy presence. God chose to guard the tree of life, because He was too merciful to allow all of mankind to live eternally in this corrupted state.

God had already ordained another way for men to recover the tree of life. Jesus is the way. His Cross is our tree of life. It not only cures us of our corruptions, but it leads unto everlasting life. The Apostle Peter wrote, "He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls."

The tree of life is a major theme of the Bible. It was the prized object in the Garden of Eden, and so it will be in Heaven. In the last chapter of the Bible, Jesus made a promise: "To him who overcomes, I will grant to eat of the tree of life which is in the Paradise of God." There are 1,189 chapters in the Bible, and the last chapter promises that we will once again be able to eat from the "tree of life" in the Paradise of God.

Today, we often wonder why our first parents chose to mar the world with sin. Surely we would have chosen differently. Yet these two trees are still in front of us daily. Will we choose to be content in the goodness of God's provision, or will we arrogantly assume that we could do better with our own destinies? Even today, we face this decision; will we eat from the tree of life, or will we partake in the leftovers of Adam's error?

Created in the Image of God ... Again

2008-04-18T12:02:00.004-04:00

In the first chapter of Genesis, the Bible declares, "God created man in his own image..." Mankind was given tremendous dignity in God’s new creation! They were created free from the plagues of sin and death. Man was elevated above all else in creation — completely unblemished in their emotional, mental, and spiritual identities. Adam and Eve were free to walk in an unhindered communion with God.

They knew no depravity, no dread, and no depression. Yet, at the very moment that they ate from the cursed tree of sin and death, they were consumed by the terrible realization of just how wretched they truly were apart from the righteousness of God. The gift of God’s unblemished spiritual image was destroyed, and mankind became unable to bear the presence of the holy and fearsome God. When God calls upon man, His beloved Adam replied, “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid.”

Many heroes of the faith have experienced the terror of standing before God.

- “Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look upon God.”
- The Jews cried out, "Let not God speak with us, lest we die."
- God told Moses, “No man shall see Me, and live.”
- The Psalmist wrote, “My flesh trembles for fear of You...”
- Isaiah wrote, "Woe is me ... for my eyes have seen the King.”
- Daniel tells us, "my vigor was turned to frailty in me.”
- Peter cried out, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.”
- The Apostle Paul fell to the ground “trembling and astonished.”
- Peter, James, and John "fell on their faces and were greatly afraid.”
- The Apostle John "fell at His feet as dead.”

Even the greatest heroes of our faith could not bear to stand in front of the veiled glory of God. Do we think that we could fare any better? The Bible promises us that unless mankind's souls bear the unblemished image of God, we will all stand condemned at His throne. Thus, the great question of mankind is this: How can we be remade into the image of God?

Our only answer is Jesus Christ.

The Gospel is not only the story of how Jesus paid the penalty for our sins upon the Cross; it is also the story of how Jesus freely gives his righteousness and purity to all who trust in Him. Thus, we can clothe ourselves in the image of Christ, which is the image of God! The infallible Word of God teaches us, “As we have borne the image of the man of dust [Adam], we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man [Jesus].” You can recapture the image of God if only you will trust in Jesus.

Paul’s epistle to the Romans confirms that, by faith, the people of God have been “predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son.” Elsewhere, Paul tells us that those who "were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.”

If you hope to make it into God's new creation, then you need to be remade into the image of God. You cannot do it alone; you must embrace Jesus Christ.

A Blood Better Than Abel's

2008-04-15T15:10:00.008-04:00

The story of Cain and Abel provides us a glimpse into the soul of man and it offers insight into two key concepts of the Gospel... namely the power of blood and the importance of faith. Cain and Abel (the two sons of Adam & Eve) both seem to be born with an inherent desire to please God. Yet they sought to please Him in two completely different ways. Cain brought the fruit of his labors from the field (vegetables), and Abel brought the fat of an animal sacrifice. Interestingly, the Lord favored Abel's sacrifice over the fruit of Cain's labors.

At face value, this does not seem fair. After all, it seems that Cain worked much harder than Abel. In fact, the Scriptures tell us that Cain "worked" for his offering, and the book of Hebrews declares, "By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did."

In the fourth chapter of Genesis, Cain and Abel were involved in the first-ever church dispute concerning whether salvation comes through faith or works. Faith won out, and God showed favor toward Abel. Consequently, Cain grew furiously jealous, ignored the counsel of God, and murdered his brother Abel out in the field. The marring effects of Adam's sin had already become apparent in the murderous rage of his firstborn son.

Genesis 4:10-11 reveals God's reaction to the world's first murder: "And [the Lord] said, 'What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying to Me from the ground. And now you are cursed by reason of the earth, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother's [shed] blood from your hand.'"

The first homicide in history left the victim's blood crying out from the ground, demanding justice and vengeance.

Like Cain, we too have murdered our brother, Jesus. Because of our sin, Jesus died and His blood painted the ground at Calvary. Thankfully, the blood of Jesus does not cry out for justice and vengeance. It cries out for grace and mercy. As Hebrews 12:23-24 declares, "You have come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel."

The Cross of Christ covers us in the "blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel." Jesus is our offering to God, and it is only by faith that we can receive His embrace and favor. The Scriptures are abundantly clear! The book of Hebrews amplifies the lessons learned in Genesis 4. The Word of God instructs us that "without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness," and it also teaches us that "without faith it is impossible to please God."

We must not try to be like Cain who labored to impress God through sheer effort. Rather, we must come to the Father by faith alone, trusting that the blood of Christ will cry out, "Father, forgive them!" Hebrews 10:4 tells us that "it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins." In other words, God was not pleased with Abel because of his animal sacrifice. To the contrary, God was pleased because Abel was not trusting in his own works, but chose to live by faith.

The Gospel of Creation

2008-04-12T20:41:00.002-04:00

The first four verses of Scripture lay out the pattern of our redemption in Christ. They are historically accurate, and yet beautifully fashioned in a manner that reveals the romantic heart of our God.

These verses declare, "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters. Then God said, 'Let there be light'; and there was light. God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness."

These profound and yet simple verses provide us with a glimpse of both the Trinity and the biblical pattern of redemption.

How do these verses offer us a glimpse of the Trinity? We are told that God created. Then we are told that the Spirit moved. And finally the Word (which would later become flesh) was spoken. In each of the first three verses of Scripture, a person of the Trinity is introduced as present and working in the story of creation.

Yet even more striking than this is the fact that the pattern of creation mirrors our own stories of redemption from sin. We too were once surrounded by darkness; our lives seemed empty of meaning and void of purpose. Yet the Holy Spirit moved within the depths of our souls, and we were called from the darkness. The Word, who called Himself the Light of the World, was spoken into existence within our hearts, and we were forever changed. At that moment, we became the light which separated from darkness!

The transforming manner in which the Gospel operates seems to be an echo of the story of creation. It is as if God is winking to us, declaring that the Gospel is bringing forward another creation, and we are the firstfruits of Christ's new creation. (1) We were first in darkness. (2) The Spirit moved in the depths of our soul. (3) The Word was spoken to us, and brought forth the light of Christ in our lives. And (4) light separated from darkness.

This is a concept captured by the Apostle Paul. Through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Paul explains that "if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come" (2 Corinthians 5:17). And just how does this creation take place? In his letter to the Ephesians, the Apostle Paul points out, "You were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light for the fruit of the Light consists in all goodness and righteousness and truth..."

Just as light marked the first day of God's creation, so too are we (the church) among the first of Christ's new creations.

Night Leads to Day

2008-04-11T16:00:00.008-04:00

If I were to ask people to chronicle the events of a typical day in their diaries, most every human being would begin their day with waking up or getting out of bed. In our way of thinking, the morning always precedes the night. Our typical day would read something like:

- First, I woke up and got out of bed this morning.
- Next, I conducted my affairs X, Y, and Z during the afternoon.
- Finally, I laid down to sleep this evening.

However, this is not the biblical view of a normal day. In the fifth verse of the Bible, we are told that "there was evening, and there was morning—the first day."

According to God's calendar, a person should chronicle his day by starting in the eveving as a person lies down to sleep. Then he rises from his sleep and lives out his life. Should this pattern surprise us? We serve a God of resurrection and redemption, for whom sleep always comes before resurrection! We serve a God Who brings morning from night, light out of darkness, refreshing vitality from slumber, and life after death.

The Gospel of Genesis 3

2008-04-10T08:51:00.004-04:00

Where in the Bible would you find the first expressly written statement offering the hope of the Gospel? Hint: It is not in the New Testament. Would you believe that it occurs in Genesis?

In Genesis 3, we are told that Adam and Eve failed to obey the command of God (not to eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil). Consequently, all of mankind was condemned. A physical deformity is often passed on through genetics; so too are the tainted spiritual genetics of Adam passed on to us. We are all fallen and in need of a Savior.

Yet the curses unleashed upon Adam will eventually fall upon Christ. Consider the curses that were poured out upon both man and Satan at the Fall. Even Genesis proclaims that Jesus is the only cure for our curse!

In Genesis 3:17-19, God issued the curse of the Fall upon mankind. He told Adam, "Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return."

Just prior to this, in Genesis 3:14-15, God had told Satan, "You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel."

God declares that mankind was condemned to return to the dust, and Satan was condemned to eat the dust. God is telling us that Satan will devour the remains of the dead, but He graciously promises that One would come who would crush the serpent's head. Indeed, God would bring ultimate death to the wicked one who thrives upon death. This is the first clear promise of the Gospel. Mankind would be saved from the wicked one who would otherwise swallow us up in death.

Instead, because of our Lord, we do not need to fear death as the end. Instead, death is our ticket to true life! It is our ticket into the arms of the One who conquered death! Thus, a Christian can mock death alongside the Apostle Paul who said, "When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: 'Death has been swallowed up in victory.' Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?"

Jesus has turned everything right-side-up. He has taken the worst curse upon mankind (death), and He has made it into a doorway to true life. Jesus has borne our curses. We were cursed to suffer thorns, yet on the Cross, Jesus took our curse upon Himself and He made it into His crown. We were cursed to sweat and suffer for our bread, yet Jesus willingly faced the agony of the Cross -- fretting with sweat of blood -- so that He could freely offer Himself to us as the Bread of Life. We do not have to toil and sweat for this Bread; it is a free gift of grace. We were condemned to return to the dust (the spiritual food of Satan), and yet Jesus has stomped the head of this devouring serpent. We have been freed from the plague of death!

Jesus has reversed our curses!

Seeing the Gospel in Adam

2008-04-06T18:57:00.021-04:00

ADAM & EVE

The book of Genesis tells us, "God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being." Scripture then tells us that "the Lord God said, 'It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him.'"

It seems to me that God chose a very peculiar manner in which to create Adam's bride. Most of us know that God chose to create Eve from Adam's rib. Yet those who were not already familiar with this story might wonder why God did not simply grab another handful of dust, form her from the dust, and then give her the breath of life as well. Whatever the reason ... this is not the course that God chose for Adam.

Instead, Genesis 2:21-22 declares, "So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then He took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh at that place. The Lord God fashioned into a woman the rib which He had taken from the man, and brought her to the man."

What may have been God's purpose in ordaining the world's first marriage in such a manner? I would contend that God was painting a beautiful image of the Cross by ordaining this story of Adam and Eve.

God placed Adam into a very deep sleep and wounded his side. From this sinless man's wound, God created a beautiful bride (Eve). Then God raised Adam from his deep sleep, and he presented him with the bride that was created via his wounds. Do you hear the echoes of the Gospel? Adam was completely innocent and sinless, and yet God determined that he should endure a deep wounding for the sake of his bride.

Likewise, God has determined that Jesus must have a bride (the church). We are the fallen seed of sinful parents, and yet God has promised to redeem us from the fate of destruction. Thus, God sent His only begotten Son (another sinless man) into this world to die for our sins. He suffered a vicious death, but His sleep of death was only temporary. As Jesus slept in death, His side was pierced by the Roman's spear, and from this wounding poured forth the blood that would serve to make His beloved bride (the descendants of Adam & Eve) completely new and pure.

Even from the creation of man and woman, God has ordained history to magnify the beauty of His work on the cross. Like Eve, the church of Christ is the bride who was created from the wounding of her Groom.

Because of Adam, humanity fell into sin and death. We were cursed by God to return to the dust. But thankfully, we serve a God who will not leave us to perish as dust. He loves us too much. Instead, when God provides us with our new eternal bodies, we will not be hastily refashioned merely from the dust of the ground. Instead, like Eve was fashioned from Adam's wounds, God has decided that we should be made radiant and new from the imperishable purity and power of Christ's own blood. What an awesome God and Redeemer!

1 Corinthians 15:20-22 declares, "But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep [or as the Message paraphrase Bible says: 'the first in a long legacy of those who are going to leave the cemeteries']. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive."

Your Tax Dollars Support Genocide in America

2008-04-05T21:33:00.009-04:00

In recent weeks, the American people were stunned to hear Barack Obama's pastor (Jeremiah Wright) condemning America, disparaging white people, and making several outrageous assertions. In one such claim, "Reverend" Wright screamed, "The government lied about inventing the HIV virus as a means of genocide against people of color. The government lied."

Few people -- apparently not even Barack -- would argue with the fact that "Reverend" Wright is a nutty, racist crackpot preacher.

Yet how would you feel if I told you that the U.S. Congress truly has been funding a societal cancer even more deadly than HIV/AIDS? In 2005, this cancer was so deadly that it killed more Americans than breast cancer, diabetes, HIV/AIDS, leukemia, melanoma, ovarian cancer, prostate cancer, homicide, and suicide -- all combined.

This cancer is the Planned Parenthood Federation of America (the nation’s largest abortion provider), and it boasted in performing 289,650 surgical abortions in 2006. Recently, the organization released its 2006-2007 annual report, revealing an increase in both annual abortions and government funding. During the past decade, Planned Parenthood's network of abortion slaughterhouses snuffed out the lives of 2,208,182 unborn babies, while the organization received a stunning $2.41 billion in government grants and contracts.

In typical big-government fashion, our elected congressmen have apparently concluded that a murderous organization that has mounted profits in excess of $583 million since 1997 is a worthy recipient of government subsidies. Its most recent annual report shows that the organization made more than $1 billion in annual revenue, amassing profits in excess of $110 million. Still, America's taxpayers (YOU) provided the abortion giant with $336 million.

And what do we have to show for our financial gifts to Planned Parenthood? For starters, the abortion provider killed nearly 290,000 babies. It distributed millions of condoms. It operated a semi-pornographic website (Teenwire.com), which counsels children on crucial subjects like whether “swallowing sperm makes you fat” or how to "enjoy anal sex." It used our tax dollars for conducting additional fundraisers. It lobbied Congress, filed lawsuits to abolish abortion laws, and it also served as a very loud voice in the election cycle. The Planned Parenthood Action Fund recently announced that it plans to spend $10 million to ensure that pro-abortion candidates get elected in the November 2008 election.

Our tax dollars at work! Despicably, Planned Parenthood is already lobbying the leading Democratic officials, demanding an increase in government subsidies for next year.

Nearly 50 million unborn babies have been slaughtered in America's abortion clinics. Post-1973 generations, who are lucky enough to have survived the womb, we will be burdened with trillions of dollars in government debt. Our decimated numbers will be forced to carry the tax burden required to fund the baby boomers' retirement expenses.

These legislative decisions reveal how callous today's politicians have become to the thought of 50 million dead babies and the dire economic circumstances facing our nation. Incredibly, today's elected officials fight doggedly to ensure that the fruits of our labors are used to perpetuate America's greatest travesty.

Unless there is another conservative revolution in America, your hard-earned tax dollars will continue to fill the coffers of the most wicked enterprise of our time.

*** Information has been compiled from previous PPFA Annual Reports.

Cohabitation: Wisdom or Folly?

2008-04-02T10:38:00.020-04:00

"Let marriage be held in honor by all, and let the marriage bed be kept undefiled; for God will judge fornicators and adulterers." (Hebrews 13:4)

Is cohabitation (living together before marriage) a good idea? The Bible clearly teaches that it is wrong in the sight of God. Ephesians 5:3 tells us that we should avoid even the slightest hint of sexual sin (e.g. premarital sex). Yet our cynical worldly instincts scream, "Test the waters before you jump in." Thus, many young people have bought into the idea that living together before marriage will somehow strengthen any potential future marital commitment. In 1995, a nationwide survey of high school seniors found that 66% of boys felt that “it is usually a good idea for a couple to live together before getting married in order to find out whether they really get along.”

With this attitude, many young people sprint from relationship to relationship, giving themselves to others hoping to somehow determine whether a prospective mate is suitable before they are ever willing to make a permanent commitment. The popularity of cohabitation has grown rapidly in recent decades. In the 1960s, there were less than five hundred thousand American couples living together out of wedlock. By 1980, that number grew to 1.5 million; in 1990, three million couples were living together before marriage. In 2005, the U.S. Census Bureau found that 4.85 million couples were living together out of wedlock.

Whose advice has yielded better results: God's or the world's?

It may be a shock to some, but study after study has affirmed the wisdom of biblical purity. And there is now ample evidence that cohabitation has had a very destructive influence on the institution of marriage. The Discovery Health Channel reported, "Many studies have found that those who live together before marriage have a considerably higher chance of eventually divorcing. The reasons for this are not well understood… There is some evidence that the act of cohabitation itself generates attitudes in people that are more conducive to divorce, for example the attitude that relationships are temporary and easily can be ended.”

One such study, which was published in a 1988 edition of the American Sociological Review, revealed that the risk of divorce for couples who had previously lived together out of wedlock was 80% higher than the risk of divorce for those who waited. A number of other studies have found similar studies.

Cohabitation affects more than just divorce rates. In August 2005, Psychology Today magazine published an article titled "The Cohabitation Trap: When 'Just Living Together' Sabotages Love." The article explained, "Couples who move in together before marriage have up to two times the odds of divorce, as compared with couples who marry before living together. Moreover, married couples who have lived together before exchanging vows tend to have poorer-quality marriages than couples who moved in after the wedding. Those who cohabited first report less satisfaction, more arguing, poorer communication and lower levels of commitment."

Unfortunately, many young people are buying into the world's brand of wisdom, which teaches: don't commit to anything unless you know for sure that it will be easy. Those who insist upon finding a perfect spouse (on this earth) will always be disappointed. They will want to flee at the first sign of trouble. This world always wants you to find a technique that serves yourself. God wants you to give yourself away to another, just as He gave Himself to us.

The Hysteria of the Global Warming Debate

2008-04-01T21:45:00.010-04:00

Global warming has garnered a great deal of media attention. Certainly, Christians have a duty to care for the environment, but hypothetical scenarios of global disaster should not be used to manipulate believers into embracing a dangerous brand of environmentalism.

Last year, Time magazine reported that 88 percent of Americans believe that global warming is a threat to future generations. Climate change is an issue that is near and dear to Time magazine. It has been warning about “global climate upheaval” ever since 1974. Only then, the magazine warned of a coming ice age.

“[A]n average of temperatures around the globe … has been growing gradually cooler for the past three decades,” Time warned. “The trend shows no indication of reversing…. [T]he weather aberrations they are studying may be the harbinger of another ice age.”

Thankfully, we missed out on the ice age, but now, alarmists are warning of man-induced global warming. David Legates, Delaware’s state climatologist, told reporters, “There’s a lot more money to be made by saying the world is coming to an end than to say that [man-made global warming] is a bunch of hooey.”

Hooey? That is exactly what Reid Bryson, the “father of scientific climatology” and the world’s most oft-cited climatologist, has called the hysteria surrounding the global warming debate. “If you want to be an eminent scientist,” he says, “you have to have a lot of grad students and a lot of grants. You can’t get grants unless you say, ‘Oh global warming, yes, yes, carbon dioxide.’”

Hundreds and hundreds of scientists are skeptical of the global warming hysteria. Even the founder of the Weather Channel is now speaking against Al Gore and his recently annonced three-year $300 million propaganda campaign.

However, there are natural explanations for climate change — like changes in the sun’s radiation. A NASA-funded study found that the sun’s radiation has steadily increased in recent decades. This helps to explain warming trends observed elsewhere in our solar system. Dr. Jeffrey Plaut, scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, discovered “indications of recent global climate change in Mars.” Are we to assume that SUVs are to blame there too?

A fair review of the evidence reveals that radical environmentalists and celebrities are likely lining up to fight the sun. They ignore the mounting evidence showing that the earth's temperature has always been cyclical, and the latest temperatures are well withing the normal range. Nevertheless, the alarmists are lining up with some pretty ridiculous conclusions and solutions.

Just this week, Ted Turner warned that that the government's inaction in fighting global warming would ultimately lead to cannibalism. "In 30 or 40 years," he warned, "basically none of the crops will grow. Most of the people will have died and the rest of us will be cannibals. Civilization will have broken down. The few people who are left will be living in a failed state."

Pop-star Sheryl Crow, while on tour with Laurie David (co-producer of Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth) — suggested a “limitation be put on how many squares of toilet paper can be used in any one sitting.” Pets Across America, the nation’s largest pet adoption agency, claimed that global warming was a “contributing factor” in the sudden population increase of stray cats. In his op-ed in the Washington Post, U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon even blamed global warming for the genocide in Darfur.

The moral of the story? Maybe if we ration our use of toilet paper, we will prevent a cannibalistic society, and the world's problems with stray cats and genocide will finally stop. After all, the planet is freezing! The planet is melting! The sky is falling!

Breathe in ... breathe out.

Usurpation of Church by State: Part Three

2008-03-31T08:06:00.015-04:00

This is the third part in a series addressing how the government has overtaken the church in the role of shepherding the American people.

Draining the Coffers of the Church
The burdens of taxation during the Johnson era utterly strangled the role of charity in America. As the government expanded to perform virtually each and every function of society, the role of the Church was reduced to Sunday sermons and bake sales. The call to be salt and light was lost on an entire generation, and within a matter of decades, the American Church had lost its voice to shape the nation's ethics. In today's society, Americans freely give 10-35 percent of our income to the federal government. Yet according to the Barna Group, just 3% of Americans tithe to their church.

Then we question why our government is now collapsing under its own weight and why the church has been deemed so irrelevant to our culture. It is largely because we have commissioned Caesar to do the work that should be reserved for the church. Bigger government is not the cure for a sickly society; it is the toxin!

The Legacy of FDR & LBJ
Today, America is left with a skyrocketing debt over $9.4 trillion. Roosevelt’s Social Security program cost American taxpayers $586 billion in 2007, and Johnson’s Medicare and Medicaid programs cost $671 billion -- nearly four times as much as the entire budget during Johnson's last year in office. Government is like a rapidly growing virus. In 1925, the entire budget for the federal government was $3 billion. This year, President Bush proposed a budget of more than $3 trillion.

Soon this appetitive behemoth will begin to swallow its own tail. In 2007, with some of the lowest interest rates in recorded history, the federal government was forced to allocate more than $243 billion just to pay the interest on our nation’s debt. Thank God that our interest rates are low. If interest rates on the national debt were to reach double-digit levels comparable to the late 70’s or early 80’s, the nation could be forced to spend nearly $1 trillion just to keep up with the interest on our debt. This is lost money with nothing to show for it.

The Search for Leadership
And while President Bush supports conservative social values, he too has failed to rein in the federal spending behemoth. President Bush has shown no fiscal discipline whatsoever — from his failure to veto a single appropriations bill during his first six years, to his $1.2 trillion prescription drug plan. His legacy will burden our children.

Today's Democrats look like full-blown socialists, and those of my own party (the Republicans) do not seem far behind. Gone are the days of President Reagan, who understood the dangers of an appetitive big government. He once said, "Government is like a baby. An alimentary canal with a big appetite at one end and no sense of responsibility at the other." In Reagan’s first three years in office, he cut the budgets for nine of the fourteen federal departments. Unfortunately, the Republican Party has betrayed its credo of fiscal discipline. Sadly, according to the Heritage Foundation, "Non-defense discretionary spending has grown twice as fast under President Bush as under President Clinton."

A Christian worldview demands more consideration for those who will inherit our national debt. Truth is: our enormous debt is not going to disappear. Current projections estimate that the national debt will exceed $10 trillion ($10,000,000,000,000) in 2010.

The Crisis We Now Face
David Walker, former Comptroller General of the Government Accountability Office (GAO), recently released a report, revealing that America's promised liabilities have now reached a staggering $52.7 trillion. The GAO estimates that the gross debt per person now exceeds $175,000 per man, woman, and child — and more than $410,000 for every full-time worker … and this continues to grow. According to Mr. Walker, America will not survive if Congress does not cut the role of government in America ... and soon!

As America's top accountant, Walker is not alone. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke recently warned Congress to pull back on its entitlement programs. "The longer we wait," he warned, "the more severe, the more draconian, the more difficult the adjustment is going to be."

Yet today's politicians are more interested in building their own political careers on the backs of our unborn children than showing true leadership! They are not heroes; they are thieves. These politicians realize the perils that await future Americans, but they are too cowardly to be candid. They not only ignore the warning signs, but they are all too eager to promise even more expansions of the government's role in America. The life of our nation's solvency is quickly ticking away, and liberal politicians are mortgaging our children's future for votes.

Unfortunately, few people care about tomorrow's generations. Americans are content to keep their hands out, hoping that our politicians will promise us even more "free" money, all of which is borrowed from the sweat and tears of those not yet born. I pray that Americans will wake up before it is too late ... before Caleb James Kastensmidt (my own unborn son) finds himself in a collapsing country that has finally been strangled by the burdens of our extravagance and laziness.

Usurpation of Church by State: Part Two

2008-03-31T08:00:00.003-04:00

This is the second part in a series addressing how the government has overtaken the church in the role of shepherding the American people.

The Silencing of the Church
In the decades following the Roosevelt era, the role of America's courts and legislatures was radically transformed. The next blow to the Church’s role in American society came in 1954. Five months before the November elections, Senator Lyndon Johnson (D-TX) was being targeted by nonprofit organizations that felt that he was too sympathetic toward communism. On July 2, 1954, in an effort to silence these groups, Johnson proposed an amendment to major tax code legislation banning tax-exempt organizations (i.e. churches) from engaging in political activity. Without public debate or explanation, Congress had suddenly forbade the nation’s pastors to educate their congregations on the potential dangers of candidates or pending legislation.

Threatened with burdensome taxation if they chose to speak out, most pastors opted to remain silent. Churches were removed from the political equation for the first time in U.S. history.

The Impact of Unelected Judges
In this silence, the courts utterly abandoned the bedrock of America's liberty and virtue. A nation that had been uniquely founded upon the belief that all rights were unalienable because they came from God (not government) had begun a vicious mutiny to remove God from our national consciousness. In direct conflict with the will of the American people, the U.S. Supreme Court:

- Prohibited school prayer (Engle v. Vitale)
- Barred the Bible from public school lessons (Abington v. Schempp)
- Mandated Darwinian evolution in classrooms (Epperson v. Arkansas)
- Legalized abortion-on-demand (Roe v. Wade)
- Removed the Ten Commandments from schools (Stone v. Graham)
- Barred Creationist science lessons (McLean v. Arkansas)
- Struck down prayers at graduation ceremonies (Lee v. Weisman)
- Created a constitutional right to sodomy (Lawrence v. Texas)
- Utilized foreign laws to decide cases (Lawrence v. Texas)
- Forbade public displays of nativity scenes. (Allegheny v. ACLU)
- Barred moments of silence as unconstitutional (Wallace v. Jaffree)
- Abolished laws against child porn (Free Speech Coalition v. Ashcroft)
- Overturned a ban on partial-birth abortion (Carhart v. Stenberg)

The Judicial branch has all but ensured that our children will grow up in a godless and immoral culture. Meanwhile both the Executive and Legislative branches have buried this nation in a financial abyss. Now, America is on the path toward both moral and financial bankruptcy.

The Great Society and The Welfare State
Lyndon Johnson is guilty of more than silencing the church. Following the assassination of John F. Kennedy in 1963, Johnson was sworn in as President. During his first three months in office, he declared an “unconditional war on poverty.” Less than one year later, Johnson campaigned for the 1964 Presidential election, promising his "Great Society" of social programs — another mammoth expansion of the federal government’s welfare role. Between 1965 and 1968, federal spending rose 68.4 percent — up to $178.13 billion.

In addition to escalating America’s involvement in the Vietnam War, President Johnson was responsible for massive government programs including Medicare, Medicaid, and a huge expansion of federal housing subsidies. He created a myriad of governmental bureaucracies including the Job Corps, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Department of Transportation, and the National Endowments for the Humanities and the Arts.

The scope of the Great Society was so enormous that Johnson was forced to reverse the tax cuts of President Kennedy — increasing the top marginal federal income tax rate to 75.25 percent. In addition to draconian federal taxes, American citizens and businesses were yoked by state income taxes, property taxes, sales taxes, and even death taxes. America’s small business owners, entrepreneurs, and philanthropists were crippled by the gluttonous Washington spending machine.

Thus, the feud between limited government Republicans and big government Democrats was born. Barry Goldwater, a father of the conservative movement, warned, "Government big enough to supply everything you need is government big enough to take everything you have."

Usurpation of Church by State: Part One

2008-03-30T15:16:00.007-04:00

This is the first part in a series addressing how the government has overtaken the church in the role of shepherding the American people.

In his Inaugural Address, Thomas Jefferson proclaimed, "A wise and frugal government ... shall restrain men from injuring one another, shall leave them otherwise free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned. This is the sum of good government."

As April 15 approaches, we can all attest that the government is no longer hesitant to snatch bread from the mouths of working Americans. In this article I hope to show how this radical transformation of governmental philosophy has crippled America's churches and catapulted our country toward collapse.

Government to the Rescue?
At one time, Americans were hard-working, self-reliant, and capable of shame. The seeds of today's shameless culture of entitlements were planted in 1932 during the Great Depression. President Franklin Roosevelt was elected to office promising to rebuild the U.S. economy with “a new deal for the American people.” His plan consisted of a series of government programs designed to increase employment and offer financial security to those struggling in poverty.

Less than twenty years after the 16th Amendment (1913) was ratified giving Congress the power to impose a federal income tax, Roosevelt and the Congress began to raid the public treasury in an attempt to revive our nation via massive government bureaucracies. These programs (e.g. Works Progress Administration) and expensive promises (e.g. the Social Security Act) were designed to serve as safety nets for the elderly and the impoverished.

Roosevelt’s programs may have helped to bring this nation out of the Great Depression, but these New Deal programs thrust a number of financial drains upon the American taxpayer. For good or bad, America had abandoned the desires of our nation's Founders that we should have a government limited in power and responsibility.

The Obituary of Fiscal Restraint
During the four terms of President Roosevelt (1932-1945), government spending rose more than 2500% — from $3.58 billion in 1931 (the year before he took office) to well over $92 billion in 1945. And though World War II accounted for a large percentage of 1945 government spending, one thing was clear: the days of limited government and fiscal restraint were gone.

These rapidly expanding government programs began to usurp the traditional roles of the Christ's Church — feeding the poor, educating children, caring for the elderly, and other forms of charity. At one time, the church was largely responsible for establishing schools, universities, hospitals, shelters, and rehabilitation programs. With the introduction of the New Deal, the impoverished no longer sought helping hands from family, neighborhood churches, or friends. Instead, many grew comfortable receiving "free" handouts from impersonal entitlement programs that require absolutely no accountability.

Packing the Court With Liberals
Roosevelt zealously championed each of his social programs. As a result, a vicious feud developed between Roosevelt and the Supreme Court when it struck down a few of his initiatives. From that point forward, Roosevelt was determined to pack the Court with liberal judges who would support his proposals for big government. In fact, he went so far as to propose the Court Packing Plan of 1937, asking Congress to increase the number of Justices on the Court — just so he could ensure that there were enough Justices to create a majority in his favor.

Thankfully, Congress rejected his court-packing plan. Regardless, during his 13-year Presidency, Roosevelt managed to appoint eight associate justices and one Supreme Court Chief Justice. With the exception of Washington, no single president has ever wielded such an enormous influence on the federal judiciary, as did Franklin D. Roosevelt. In the years to come, an enormous transformation would take place in the history of American jurisprudence.

A Radical Departure From America's Foundation
In 1931, only one year prior to President Roosevelt’s election, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its decision in the case of United States v. McIntosh. The Court wrote, “We are a Christian people… according to one another the equal right of religious freedom and acknowledging with reverence the duty of obedience to the will of God.”

By 1947, when the Court considered the case of Everson v. Board of Education, every single Justice serving on the U.S. Supreme Court had been appointed by either Franklin Roosevelt or Harry Truman — both Democrats. In the Everson case, the Court considered the constitutionality of a New Jersey law allowing financial reimbursements to parents who chose to send their children to Roman Catholic parochial schools on public buses. In a 5-4 decision authored by Hugo Black (a former Alabama Klansman), the Court ruled, “The First Amendment erected a wall between church and state. That wall must be kept high and impregnable. We could not approve the slightest breach.”

In only sixteen years, America’s judiciary was transformed from a self-consciously Christian Court into a secular oligarchy—abandoning “the duty of obedience to the will of God” in exchange for a pledge to maintain a “high and impregnable” wall between religion and the public realm.