The “Redistribution” of Wealth

The “Redistribution” of Wealth


Mr. Obama is one smooth speaker and he has carefully crafted his words and speeches to the point that it’s hard to figure out what he’s really saying. His first harmful slip came with Joe the Plumber when he told him he wanted to make it fair for everyone and redistribute the wealth. His campaign worked feverishly to claim it wasn’t what it sounded like, socialism. Then came the transcript from 2001, same man, same theme.....Obama is heard telling Chicago's public station WBEZ-FM in 2001 that "redistributive change" is needed, pointing to what he regarded as a failure of the U.S. Supreme Court under Chief Justice Earl Warren in its rulings on civil rights issues in the 1960s.

But, the Supreme Court never ventured into the issues of redistribution of wealth, and of more basic issues such as political and economic justice in society. To that extent, as radical as I think people try to characterize the Warren Court, it wasn't that radical. It didn't break free from the essential constraints that were placed by the Founding Fathers in the Constitution, at least as it's been interpreted, and the Warren Court interpreted in the same way, that generally the Constitution is a charter of negative liberties. Says what the states can't do to you. Says what the federal government can't do to you, but doesn't say what the federal government or state government must do on your behalf.

And that hasn't shifted and one of the, I think, tragedies of the civil rights movement was because the civil rights movement became so court-focused I think there was a tendency to lose track of the political and community organizing and activities on the ground that are able to put together the actual coalition of powers through which you bring about redistributive change. In some ways we still suffer from that.

Get the picture??? It’s pretty clear what Mr. Obama thinks about redistribution of wealth isn’t it? It’s economic justice! What about his comments about the Constitution? I find them particularly disturbing! Those “essential constraints,” as he calls them, were put there to keep tyrants from destroying our government and the government from taking control over every aspect of life. The entire purpose of the Constitution was to limit government and to maintain a balance of power within the government. It is a great concern to think that a man who feels this way about our Constitution and has strong views, that seem to indicate a leaning towards socialism, could actually be president.

Sound the alarm! Be informed, look beyond the rhetoric and talking points to what the candidates really believe and stand for. Remember “A man is known by the company he keeps”....Ayers, Khalidi, Resko, Olinski, Wright....to name a few.

I would be wrong to stop there, however, because I’m reminded that I’m a pilgrim here....this is not really my home. It is my responsibility to be informed and to vote, but always with the idea of eternity in mind. In our eternal home, now that’s where we can really talk about “Redistribution of Wealth.” As a follower of Christ, I am a co-heir with Him, all of His riches are mine. (Gal 4:7, Romans 8:14-17) We don’t need to be a afraid, we know who wins in the final event, and until that time we know the ONE who is “able to keep (us) from falling and to present (us) before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy—to the ONLY God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.”

Awareness

Awareness


Many of us live our lives unaware. Like the ostrich who buries his head in the sand or the young child who covers his eyes and doesn’t think you can see him, we tend to live oblivious to what’s going on in the world, hoping that if we ignore it, it’s really not happening. This is a dangerous way to live. Things are happening all around us and we need to open our eyes, get informed, and live in light of the reality of what’s happening.

Of course, this can be applied to us as we approach the final 2 weeks before the election, but my real purpose is the spiritual implication. We need to be aware of how the enemy of our soul is at work, not just in the world, but in his attempts to render us ineffective for the cause of Christ and the gospel. 2 Corinthians 2:10-11 uses the ideas of not being “outwitted” by Satan and not being “unaware of his schemes.” Yes, he is referred to as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may destroy, but more often than not, he’s scheming and outwitting us through deception and our own pride. When our pride keeps us from offering forgiveness, he has outwitted us and rendered us ineffective in our witness. When we allow anger to overtake us, he has gained a foothold in our lives. A foothold offers him an opportunity to establish himself by providing a base for further advancement. One of his most effective schemes is discouragement. Many years ago, I heard Chuck Swindoll tell this story:

The devil, according to legend, once advertised his tools for sale at public auction. When the prospective buyers assembled, there was one oddly-shaped tool which was labeled “Not for sale.” Asked to explain why this was, the devil answered, “I can spare my other tools, but I cannot spare this one. It is the most useful implement that I have. It is called Discouragement, and with it I can work my way into hearts otherwise inaccessible. When I get this tool into a man’s heart, the way is open to plant anything there I may desire.”

(Tan, Paul Lee: Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations : A Treasury of Illustrations, Anecdotes, Facts and Quotations for Pastors, Teachers and Christian Workers. Garland TX : Bible Communications, 1996, c1979)

I have thought of it often and have found it to be true in my life. When I get discouraged, my focus turns inward and I’m totally ineffective in my ministry and service for God.

Let’s not be unaware of his schemes. Don’t let him outwit you or get a foothold in your life. Don’t allow discouragement to make you ineffective for the cause of Christ. Ephesians 6:10-18:

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.

Our fight and struggle is not against flesh and blood, even though it sure looks that way to us, but it is against the rulers, authorities, powers, and the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Let’s not be outwitted by his schemes against us, but let’s be aware, aware of anything in our lives that can make us ineffective in our service and ministry to our Lord.

The Economic Distraction

The Economic Distraction

Unless you’re living in a bubble, you are aware of the current economic crisis we are facing, not only as a nation but globally. Easy credit and our insatiable desire for more were building a time bomb that has finally reached its last tick before exploding. If it hasn’t affected you directly yet, as in your retirement account, I’m sure it will in the very near future. I think it’s safe to say that this crisis is going to impact us all.

This crisis has gotten our attention and many of us are mad. We’re mad at the financial institutions, banks, Wall Street, mortgage lenders and our governmental leaders who let it happen. When you listen to all the talk, you get the idea that it’s the “other guy’s” fault. It’s rare to hear anyone come out and say, “I was wrong, it was my fault.” When it comes to the current political debate, it looks like the Republicans are going to bare the brunt of the blame. But is this right? Are the Republicans really the ones to blame?

It’s time that we as individuals take responsibility for the economic mess we’ve made in our own lives and homes. We have bought into the idea that “you deserve this....,” “you owe it to yourself to have.....” and so we’ve borrowed and mortgaged ourselves well beyond our means. Our god is our appetites for more and more and we have become slaves to those appetites. (Philippians 3:19; Romans 16:18) They own us. We have put our hope in our wealth, rather than the God of all hope. (I Timothy 6:17; Romans 15:13) Our greed, the desire for more and more, is our idol. (Ephesians 5:3-7) And now, when it looks like we’re going to all be affected by this economic crisis, we want to point the finger, to blame someone, without looking at what we’ve done ourselves to contribute to this mess.

This crisis has become a distraction because it has caused us to ignore some very important issues that will impact the direction of our nation when it comes to electing our next president. Because this crisis has hit us “in the pocket book” where our treasure lies, we’re not looking at other issues that will have an even greater affect on the freedoms we enjoy. Issues of life and death, the value of life, the freedom to worship the One True God, the value of marriage between a man and a woman, government intrusion in our lives, these are all issues that have taken a back seat to the economy. We need to stop looking at government to solve our problems and start looking to the only One who can really help us.

As I have been pondering this whole mess, I was thinking of Proverbs 22:7, “...the borrower is servant to the lender.” I’m not sure if there’s anything that describes what we’re going through any better than that statement. We have become servants, slaves, to our greed. But something else also struck me, and I’m just throwing this out as food for thought......I’ve always wondered how the anti-christ could control buying and selling. (Revelation 13:17) I think we may now have the answer because “the borrower is servant to the lender.” With the economic bailout package, the banks are in the position of being servants to the government.....the government has the potential to control who buys and sells.....

What’s the answer? REPENT! As I read through Revelation, I’m struck by the number of times I read, “....they still did not repent.” God is looking for repentence, individual and corporate. “Let us examine our ways and test them, and let us return to the Lord. Let us lift up our hearts and our hands to God in heaven, and say: ‘We have sinned and rebelled....’” (Lamentation 3:40-42) He will indeed hear our prayers and forgive us, and maybe even postpone the impending judgment we so deserve.

King Jesus and the Election

I received a comment to my post on "The Truth" and my response turned into this blog. The blogger asked me to read his blog and I responded with the following comments. You can check out his blog at: thinkinginreality.blogspot.com

Jesus is King, and I believe He will reign on earth for 1000 years just as the Scriptures declare. You are so right that our responsibility as followers of the King is to pray. Governments are legitimate institutions that are in the hands of our Sovereign God. Jesus acknowledged their role when He said "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's." (context Matt 22:15-22) When we look at the Old Testament, once God chose for Himself a people, there was most generally someone to whom He appointed and gave the authority as His representative to lead the people. Abraham, Isaac and Jacob were the initial Patriarchs, serving as heads of the Hebrews. God spoke to them and their descendants followed them. Under the leadership of Moses, and the advice of his father-in-law, he appointed judges to settle the disputes of the people. Joshua followed Moses as leader of the Israelites. The time of the judges was marked by everyone doing what was right in their own eyes. Eli and Samuel both led the people of Israel until the appointment of Saul, Israel’s first King. All this to say, God has ordained rule and order, without it, chaos and confusion coexist.

As I see it, the problem exists when the leader forgets that he is merely God’s representative, when he begins to believe his own press release about his own greatness. He forgets that it is the Sovereign God who placed him in that position and it will be the Sovereign God who will remove him. One of the best examples of this is King Saul. When Saul is first introduced In I Samuel 9, he is called “An impressive young man without equal among the Israelites....” He really didn’t think he was worthy of being anointed king as he protested to Samuel, “"But am I not a Benjamite, from the smallest tribe of Israel, and is not my clan the least of all the clans of the tribe of Benjamin? Why do you say such a thing to me?" (I Sam 9:21) In I Samuel 10, as Samuel publicly appoints him king, he was no where to be found, for “he had hidden himself among the baggage.” (I Sam 10:22) But by the time you get to I Samuel 13, you can already see his slide into disobedience and the Lord finally rejects him as king. (entire context I Sam 9-15) But I’m also often reminded that Scriptures clearly confirm that God places the “heathen” kings in their positions for His bidding. He called Cyrus “His anointed.” (context Isaiah 44:24-45:1-25) He also used Nebuchadnezzar to do His bidding with Judah.

Our responsibility is to pray for wisdom and insight, to be informed and with the information we have, to make wise and discerning decisions. Where does the candidate stand on issues that are important to the heart of God? Value of life?... marriage?... ability to worship the One True God without fear of ridicule and retaliation?....I agree whole heartedly that we shouldn’t vote for someone just because they claim to be a Christian, however, I also know that the “fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,” and He gives wisdom to those who ask for it. I also know based on Scripture, although I cannot explain the how of it, that when we ask of God, when we confess, repent and humbly ask Him to intercede on our behalf, He does and sometimes that even means the postponing of judgment. There are several instances of this, but Jonah and the Ninevites serves as a good example of this.

One big mistake we make is to think that we are voting for the president....no, God, our Sovereign King, has already determined, before the creation of the world, who would win this election in November of 2008. It will come as no surprise to Him, but will all fit perfectly into His plan. Isaiah 46:9-11: “I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say: My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please. From the east I summon a bird of prey; from a far-off land, a man to fulfill my purpose. What I have said, that will I bring about; what I have planned, that will I do.

The Truth

The Truth

I don’t know about you, but I’ve had it with all the political talk, debate, and ads that have been filling the airwaves lately. Does anyone out there know the truth? Can anyone running for political office simply tell the truth even if it makes them look bad or the other guy good? I really like Sarah Palin, I can relate to her, she’s as much like me as anyone I’ve seen run for office, but I have to be honest, I was disappointed to hear her make so many factually incorrect statements in the debate. As soon as the debate was over, you could read article after article relating how both candidates misrepresented the facts—I call that lying. Is that what politics is all about, distorting the facts, lying, to make you look good and the other guy bad? That’s exactly why so many of us are so totally disillusioned by our government and its politicians. Would someone step to the forefront and tell the truth? If they voted the wrong way, admit it, and help us see what they would do differently. I guess I really don’t have a problem with someone changing their mind...in fact, that is a good thing especially after honest research, fact finding, and reflection there is good reason for a changed mind. Stubbornness or inflexibility isn’t always the most admirable way to handle complex situations. Is there a way for us to stand up and call for truth and integrity, even if the truth is hard to take?

As I was reading Jeremiah, it occurred to me that the people of Judah experienced a similar situation. They had many prophets telling them that God was going to turn everything around for them. The Babylonians were going to be run out of town, so to speak. But there was this one prophet, God’s prophet, who actually did get his message from God and the message wasn’t easy to take. His message was that unless the people of Judah repented, Nebuchadnezzar was indeed going to take them captive. The people chose to hear the message that pleased them, the message that came from the false prophets. God followed through on His plans because the people refused to listen to the truth and because He is Sovereign over the affairs of men.

What saddens me the most is that so many of us have taken a relativistic view of truth even though we claim to be children of the King. I have come to expect the truth twisting we see so often in the world, in politics and business, but in the Church of Jesus Christ? There is no excuse for that! God’s Word is ABSOLUTE TRUTH. As Followers of Christ, speaking the truth should be one of our greatest personal goals. We should seek to speak the truth every time we open our mouths. The truth of the Gospel, YES....but also, the truth about whatever we’re talking about—without exaggeration, partial facts, or any other type of “spin” that would lead someone to an incorrect conclusion about the what really happened. If we, in our personal lives, participate in relativistic truth, should we expect anything less from those who don’t claim to be Followers of Christ? We must set the standard for truth in our own lives first.

As usual, my blogs always point back to me and my accountability to God. Am I known for telling the truth? The Truth of the Gospel? An honest, forthright, truthful mouth? I want to be known as a person whose words are filled with truth, the Truth of the Gospel and true and honest words, whenever I speak.

Generous Grace

Generous Grace

Ephesians 1:3-8: Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.

It’s an amazing thing to think about isn’t it, His amazing, glorious, freely given, lavished upon us grace? I have to admit that there are times, when I take an honest look at my heart and its deceitfulness and I can’t help but say, “His amazing grace, that saved a wretch like me.”

• Unmerited favor....in His choosing me. I bring absolutely no goodness or merit to the table of His grace. He chose me before I had a chance to do anything even remotely deemed as good. He chose me, before the creation of the world.

• Unmerited favor...in His saving me. Ephesians 2:8-9 tells us “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--not by works, so that no one can boast.” Saving grace is from God and by God. He’s the author and perfecter of our salvation.
  

When we really begin to understand what we were apart from His grace it can’t help but transform us. Once I was dead in my transgressions and sins, living only to gratify my sinful desires and fully deserving of the totality of God’s wrath. But because of His grace and love for me, He provided the perfect substitute; One who would willingly take the punishment I deserved, take the wrath of God that I deserved, and in addition in that transaction, give me His righteousness that I did not deserve. A total win-win for me. The realization of His amazing, glorious, freely given, and lavished upon us grace should make us graceful people, graceful in the way we treat others. I have heard Beth Moore say that to the measure we believe we have been graced, we will grace others. When I realize how much His grace has forgiven me, I should be quick to extend the grace of forgiveness to others. His loving kindness is an expression of His grace, as are the bountiful blessings He has given us. So I must ask myself, “Do I extend genuine loving kindness to others, not just those who are my family and friends? Do I bless others in word and action? Or am I only thinking about what others are giving me?” Generous grace...a grace that gives to others as it has been given and received, freely and abundantly lavished upon grace. That is making our theology and reality collide head on.