I am going to take a detour today and write about a topic that is getting lots of press these days. Marriage. The citizens of North Carolina will go to the polls on May 8th to vote on a constitutional amendment that defines marriage between a man and a woman as the only legal union recognized by the state. The outcome of the vote is in little doubt. The latest polls show that the measure will pass with about 60% in favor of the amendment, but only God knows the result right now.
The question that I want us to consider is this... what if the outcome was reversed? What if the amendment was to legalize gay marriage and it passed with 60% of the vote? What would that change in your life? How would I react to that? (my guess is that one day it will pass and gay marriage will be the law of the land, so what then?) As a Christian, how do I respond to a law that is in direct conflict to God's word? That is the question that Christians face everyday, all around the world.
We must understand that something being legal does not make that thing right and something being illegal, does not make that thing wrong in certain circumstances. As a Christian, I am to live under that laws of the land. Romans 13:1-7 makes it clear that we are to respect governing authorities and abide by the laws where we live. That is easy for a Christian when the laws that exist do not violate God's law, but when they do... what then? Does God's word give us insight into our conduct when man's law violates God's law? Do we have examples that give us principles that enable us to respond appropriately?
Thankfully, God did not leave us to our own devices. Acts 4 contains the story of Peter and John being charged to stop speaking about Jesus. Their response is clear...But Peter and John answered them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard. Obedience to God is required when a law is in direct conflict with His will. Peter and John remained respectful of the authorities, but understood that submission to civil authorities ended when that authority was in opposition to God. They continued to be obedient to other laws of the land; only the laws that conflicted with God's laws were disobeyed. In other words, general civil disobedience is not found in the scriptures.
Another example of this disobedience is found in the book of Daniel. Daniel and his three friends disobeyed the specific laws that conflicted with God's will. They would not bow down to the statue. They would not discontinue the practice of prayer. Even in their disobedience, they continued to show respect and be law abiding citizens. They disobeyed the law that was in conflict with God's law, but continued to live in obedience to the civil authorities.
So, what does that have to do with gay marriage and the Christian. If an amendment ever passes that legalizes Gay marriage, the Christian must continue to abide by the laws of the land and be in subjection the civil authorities. Consider this, in some parts of the country, prostitution is legal. Does that mean that the Christian then approves of prostitution? Of course not! Does that mean that in those areas of the country the Christian can ignore all the laws? Of course not! The Bible makes it clear that God's design for marriage is that it be between a man and a woman. When man decides that marriage is to be between same sex couples, then that law is in direct conflict with God's teaching and the Christian will speak out against it and will not abide by it; the same way that the Christian speaks out against prostitution and does not abide by that law.
We are called to live lives filled with love for our fellow person. We are to live at peace with everyone, as much as it depends on us. I have many homosexual friends that I love dearly and would do anything for. One thing I would not do for them is let them think that God approves of their "lifestyle" choice. He does not. There are dozens of scriptures that deal with the sin (breaking God's law) of homosexuality. Romans 1:18-32 is a good example of these scriptures. I do not deny that same sex attraction exists any more than I would deny that some people are attracted to sex with children or some are attracted to drugs and alcohol abuse. The desire to do something does not justify the act of doing it.
As people, we have many things that attempt to draw us away from God, but we make the choice. I choose and when I choose to ignore God's will, I choose to sin. That is what we owe to our fellow person. We owe them the truth and we must in a loving and kind way tell them the truth found in His word. What they do with it is between them and God.
Regardless of the outcome of the vote on May 8th, God's word doesn't change. What is right does not change. If same sex marriage is wrong before the vote, then it is wrong after the vote. A society that changes it's plan does not change His plan. Christians that live under the laws of a land are to conduct themselves as Jesus did when He lived under the laws of Rome. He knew that Caesar was not god, but He obeyed the laws of the land and directed His disciples to do the same. He told the truth and confronted sin. That is our example. Let's live by it.
Monday, April 23, 2012
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Pray Like a King
(1 Chron 29:10-20)
David's time as king is almost over as he prepares to turn over the throne to his son, Solomon. I am sure somewhere down deep inside, he is disappointed that God has chosen to let Solomon build the temple. David worked and saved and designed and planned, only to hand over the entire project to his son. Sure, if you have to hand over the reigns to someone, better a son than a stranger. But still, there must have been some hurt, some disappointment in the situation.
That is what amazes me about the prayer that is contained in these verses. Take a moment to read and digest the setting and the words.
Therefore David blessed the Lord in the presence of all the assembly. And David said: “Blessed are you, O Lord, the God of Israel our father, forever and ever. Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and you are exalted as head above all. Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all. In your hand are power and might, and in your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all. And now we thank you, our God, and praise your glorious name.
"But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able thus to offer willingly? For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you. For we are strangers before you and sojourners, as all our fathers were. Our days on the earth are like a shadow, and there is no abiding. O Lord our God, all this abundance that we have provided for building you a house for your holy name comes from your hand and is all your own. I know, my God, that you test the heart and have pleasure in uprightness. In the uprightness of my heart I have freely offered all these things, and now I have seen your people, who are present here, offering freely and joyously to you. O Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, our fathers, keep forever such purposes and thoughts in the hearts of your people, and direct their hearts toward you. Grant to Solomon my son a whole heart that he may keep your commandments, your testimonies, and your statutes, performing all, and that he may build the palace for which I have made provision.”
Then David said to all the assembly, “Bless the Lord your God.” And all the assembly blessed the Lord, the God of their fathers, and bowed their heads and paid homage to the Lord and to the king.
David rises above the human disappointment, puts aside his ego and praises God in prayer. Publicly! He stands before the assembly and proclaims God's goodness and power. Reread the prayer if you need to. Underline the words that leap from the page in worship to God. The thing that really inspires me is that these are the words of a great and powerful king. This leads me to some questions that I believe each of us should ask ourselves.
1. If king David was willing to step down from his throne to put God up there, am I willing to place the King on the throne of my life?
2. Am I willing, in the face of disappointment (when things didn't go like I wanted them to) to praise God for His goodness and power? Or do I pout and think badly of God who didn't conduct His business the way I wanted Him to do it?
3. Am I willing to (like David did) go totally public with my praise for God? Am I willing to let others see me pour out my heart before the LORD?
4. Am I praying for those around me? For God to direct their hearts? For Him to keep our children faithful?
5. Am I willing to thank God, in the midst of my own personal disappointment, for His provision and care in my life?
David was surely a man after God's own heart, but he was also a notorious sinner who struggled just like I do. His example is included in God's word for us to see that even though we are sinners (and we all are), even though we suffer the consequences of those sins, God is always there, always loving us and always ready to welcome us back to His house.
David's prayer is filled with worship and praise because he understood that life here is temporary and that his time as king was "like a shadow and there is no abiding". He looked forward to his home in heaven with God and so he prayed for those that he would leave behind. David left us with a great example in his prayer. May we determine to pray like a king, on our knees, lifting up our friends and family in prayer, praising His holy name. Amen? Amen!
David's time as king is almost over as he prepares to turn over the throne to his son, Solomon. I am sure somewhere down deep inside, he is disappointed that God has chosen to let Solomon build the temple. David worked and saved and designed and planned, only to hand over the entire project to his son. Sure, if you have to hand over the reigns to someone, better a son than a stranger. But still, there must have been some hurt, some disappointment in the situation.
That is what amazes me about the prayer that is contained in these verses. Take a moment to read and digest the setting and the words.
Therefore David blessed the Lord in the presence of all the assembly. And David said: “Blessed are you, O Lord, the God of Israel our father, forever and ever. Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and you are exalted as head above all. Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all. In your hand are power and might, and in your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all. And now we thank you, our God, and praise your glorious name.
"But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able thus to offer willingly? For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you. For we are strangers before you and sojourners, as all our fathers were. Our days on the earth are like a shadow, and there is no abiding. O Lord our God, all this abundance that we have provided for building you a house for your holy name comes from your hand and is all your own. I know, my God, that you test the heart and have pleasure in uprightness. In the uprightness of my heart I have freely offered all these things, and now I have seen your people, who are present here, offering freely and joyously to you. O Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, our fathers, keep forever such purposes and thoughts in the hearts of your people, and direct their hearts toward you. Grant to Solomon my son a whole heart that he may keep your commandments, your testimonies, and your statutes, performing all, and that he may build the palace for which I have made provision.”
Then David said to all the assembly, “Bless the Lord your God.” And all the assembly blessed the Lord, the God of their fathers, and bowed their heads and paid homage to the Lord and to the king.
David rises above the human disappointment, puts aside his ego and praises God in prayer. Publicly! He stands before the assembly and proclaims God's goodness and power. Reread the prayer if you need to. Underline the words that leap from the page in worship to God. The thing that really inspires me is that these are the words of a great and powerful king. This leads me to some questions that I believe each of us should ask ourselves.
1. If king David was willing to step down from his throne to put God up there, am I willing to place the King on the throne of my life?
2. Am I willing, in the face of disappointment (when things didn't go like I wanted them to) to praise God for His goodness and power? Or do I pout and think badly of God who didn't conduct His business the way I wanted Him to do it?
3. Am I willing to (like David did) go totally public with my praise for God? Am I willing to let others see me pour out my heart before the LORD?
4. Am I praying for those around me? For God to direct their hearts? For Him to keep our children faithful?
5. Am I willing to thank God, in the midst of my own personal disappointment, for His provision and care in my life?
David was surely a man after God's own heart, but he was also a notorious sinner who struggled just like I do. His example is included in God's word for us to see that even though we are sinners (and we all are), even though we suffer the consequences of those sins, God is always there, always loving us and always ready to welcome us back to His house.
David's prayer is filled with worship and praise because he understood that life here is temporary and that his time as king was "like a shadow and there is no abiding". He looked forward to his home in heaven with God and so he prayed for those that he would leave behind. David left us with a great example in his prayer. May we determine to pray like a king, on our knees, lifting up our friends and family in prayer, praising His holy name. Amen? Amen!
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