Line Upon Line

morass: An area of low-lying, soggy ground; something that hinders, engulfs, or overwhelms.

I received the following Gallup Alert from The Gallup Organization, on May 21, 2004:

Democrats and Republicans Agree That U.S. Morals Are Subpar
One thing that most Americans, including Republicans and Democrats, can agree on is that moral values in the United States are less than good and are getting worse. Older adults are particularly critical of the state of moral values today. Overall, only 19% of Americans describe moral conditions in the country as "excellent" or "good" and 77% think they are getting worse. The outlook for morals has grown more pessimistic over the past year. But this dim view of morals is not new. Gallup polling at various points dating back to the mid-1960s shows that the majority of Americans have typically been dissatisfied with the nation's moral and ethical climate.

While it may be refreshing to see that Republicans and Democrats finally agree on something, their perception of the decline in moral values in our nation is, in fact, a grim reality.

The same day I received this polling data, I also received an email letter from the ministry of Francis Frangipane. Instead of his usual "Message of the Week," Francis published an essay by Pastor David Miller, senior pastor of Northbrook Baptist Church in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Pastor Miller has been a close friend to Pastor Frangipane for more than a decade, and is also a member of the local minister's group that prays together in Linn County. Francis thought this message by Pastor Miller was timely and very important--and so do I. With his permission, I share it here with you.

Culture of the Moral Negative
Isaiah 5:20
David Miller

America has now become a "Culture of the Moral Negative."

I am not talking about "negativity," the boogie-man of the new age. Actually, I am convinced negativity can be honorable, in fact, desirable. Of God's ten laws, eight of them are stated in the negative: "Thou shalt not." That is an 80% negativity rate. Flawed human beings need limits to inhibit our sinful behavior. But that is another topic.

I am talking about the kind of negative from which you develop a picture: On the photographic negative, dark colors appear as light and light looks dark. The image is reversed. A moral negative exists when right and wrong - moral light and dark - are reversed. When this moral negative dominates thinking in a society, you have a culture of the moral negative.

In Isaiah 5:20, God spoke through the prophet: "Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter." Woe to the culture of the moral negative.

Is America such a culture? When a Christian denomination denies the clear teachings of scripture and elects an active, unrepentant homosexual as a bishop, when that bishop beams into the cameras and gushes about the maturity it took to take such a step, we are becoming a culture of the moral negative. When the Massachusetts Supreme Court orders that homosexuals be allowed to marry, dark is light and light is dark. When any judicial nominee who opposes a woman's right to kill her unborn baby is viewed as unfit for office, you have a moral negative. When tolerance of all things is seen as the highest moral virtue, when a local clergyman calls evangelism "hate speech," when courts debate whether "one nation under God" is constitutional, our culture is becoming a moral negative.

Once this nation had a clear moral code. We were never the moral utopia some imagine, but America had a Judeo-Christian morality that was our nation's social foundation. Light was light and dark was dark. Sin was called sin and goodness was good. That moral foundation has slowly eroded.

How did it happen? The church did not do its job. We are called to be the salt of the earth, to inhibit the decay of wickedness. We are to be the prophets of God, confronting wickedness and presenting Jesus as the solution. But the church too often tries to fit in with its culture rather than exposing its depravity. Instead of letting God's word shape our minds, we shape our interpretation of scripture according to the whims of popular culture.

My own denomination is a sad example of this. In the 1840's, Southern culture embraced slavery. Instead of confronting this evil, Southern Baptists conformed to the mindset of the day. They twisted scripture and proclaimed slavery from the pulpit. I saw a book that "proved from the scriptures" that God created blacks to be subservient. I stood with thousands of Southern Baptists years ago to publicly repent of our forefathers' sin. When the church twists biblical teachings to conform to the ideas of popular culture, the moral negative develops.

Now other denominations are falling into the same trap. Our culture has embraced heterosexual promiscuity and homosexuality as normal, even admirable. No one would search the scriptures and come to those conclusions. Few ideas are as clearly presented in scripture as the idea that marriage is a man and a woman joined in a monogamous relationship, and that any sexual activity outside that relationship is sin.

But instead of confronting this wickedness in our culture, many churches are twisting scripture to conform to the popular notions of sexual morality. Promiscuity is normal; virgins are oddballs. So-called Christian clergy are blessing homosexual unions. How can a minister bless what God condemns? The prophets no longer challenge culture to conform to God's Word; instead they give a blessing to human depravity.

"Woe to those who call evil good and good evil." The morally negative culture is sick and depraved, teetering on the brink of collapse. Our nation is in deep trouble. The problem is not political, economic or educational. The problem is moral and spiritual. No society can prosper, or even survive, in a culture of the moral negative. How can we stand without a moral backbone?

Are things hopeless? Not at all. Israel, at the end of the period of the Judges, had embraced debauchery in a way that would make Larry Flynt blush. They were a culture of the moral negative. But, Israel's greatest days were 50 years in the future.

How did things change? One man, a prophet named Samuel, gave himself to God and His ways. He faithfully proclaimed truth for many years. Israel returned to God under his ministry, then climbed to glory under the leadership of the king he anointed, David.

America is in danger, but is not hopeless. Men and women of faith need to stand strong and refuse to compromise truth to please our culture. We confront the moral negative with the brilliant color of God's light. The power of God still changes hearts.

I pray that in this election year, God might raise up in this land leaders with clear moral vision - who see right as right and wrong as wrong. But the light of God will not shine in this land through politicians alone. It will shine through people like you and me: Christians who surrender to God and allow His Word to shape their convictions, and who let their light shine bright.

May the full color of God's truth replace the culture of the moral negative!

I don't want you to miss this one important observation by Pastor Miller:

Once this nation had a clear moral code. We were never the moral utopia some imagine, but America had a Judeo-Christian morality that was our nation's social foundation. Light was light and dark was dark. Sin was called sin and goodness was good. That moral foundation has slowly eroded.

How did it happen? The church did not do its job. We are called to be the salt of the earth, to inhibit the decay of wickedness. We are to be the prophets of God, confronting wickedness and presenting Jesus as the solution. But the church too often tries to fit in with its culture rather than exposing its depravity. Instead of letting God's word shape our minds, we shape our interpretation of scripture according to the whims of popular culture. (emphasis added)

You can't blame the Republicans. You can't blame the Democrats. You can't even blame the Devil! Our nation is in the state it is in, because the church has failed to be "conformed into the image" of Jesus Christ. It's time that every one who names the name of Christ begin to walk like Jesus walked and live as He lived.

Reversing the moral decline and realizing a revival of righteousness begins with you and me. I pray that God will grant us wisdom and grace in this day and hour to be the people He has called and created us to be!

think on these things...

Matthew 5:13-16 (NKJV)
"You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men. You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven."

1 Peter 1:13-20 (NLT)
So think clearly and exercise self-control. Look forward to the special blessings that will come to you at the return of Jesus Christ. Obey God because you are his children. Don't slip back into your old ways of doing evil; you didn't know any better then. But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God-who chose you to be his children-is holy. For he himself has said, "You must be holy because I am holy." And remember that the heavenly Father to whom you pray has no favorites when he judges. He will judge or reward you according to what you do. So you must live in reverent fear of him during your time as foreigners here on earth. For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And the ransom he paid was not mere gold or silver. He paid for you with the precious lifeblood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God. God chose him for this purpose long before the world began, but now in these final days, he was sent to the earth for all to see. And he did this for you.

Francis Frangipane Ministries
Pastor Dave Miller's Website

And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to live in obedience to him. Let your roots grow down into him and draw up nourishment from him, so you will grow in faith, strong and vigorous in the truth you were taught. Let your lives overflow with thanksgiving for all he has done. Don't let anyone lead you astray with empty philosophy and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the evil powers of this world, and not from Christ. Colossians 2:6-8 (NLT)

There are a lot of voices out there. A multitude of messages can be heard on radio, TV, and the Internet, and read in books, magazines, and newspapers (this includes "Christian" media, too). So, if you're not established in God's Word and "taking heed to what you hear," it's possible--no, make that probable--that you will stray away from the Truth. Paul expressed this concern for the believers in the Corinthian church when he wrote:

I hope you will be patient with me as I keep on talking like a fool. Please bear with me. I am jealous for you with the jealousy of God himself. For I promised you as a pure bride to one husband, Christ. But I fear that somehow you will be led away from your pure and simple devotion to Christ, just as Eve was deceived by the serpent. You seem to believe whatever anyone tells you, even if they preach about a different Jesus than the one we preach, or a different Spirit than the one you received, or a different kind of gospel than the one you believed (2 Corinthians 11:1-4 NLT).

Paul was afraid that the believers in Corinth had lost sight of the simple, yet powerful, truths of the gospel, and he used the seduction of Eve by the serpent as an example.

"But [now] I am fearful, lest that even as the serpent beguiled Eve by his cunning, so your minds may be corrupted and seduced from wholehearted and sincere and pure devotion to Christ" (AMP).

How was Eve seduced? First, she listened to the serpent's lies--lies about God's integrity, lies about what God had said, and lies about the benefits of eating the forbidden fruit. Eve believed those lies, and finally, she acted on them.

Adam and Eve lived in Paradise (literally)--a perfect place of unsurpassed beauty and abundance. They enjoyed the glory of God's presence and fellowship with Him. They had been given authority to rule over all the earth. There was one restriction placed on them, however--they were told not to eat of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. When Adam and Eve disregarded and disobeyed the commandment of God, it cost them everything. They lost their focus--they forfeited their lives.

"People Makes Me Complicated"

Bible teacher Norvel Hayes recalls the time God spoke to Him and said, "People makes me complicated." No, that's not a misquote; that's what Norvel said the Lord said to him (God speaks to each of us in language we can understand). Bad grammar aside, the message is an important one to hear and take to heart. What God has made simple, people tend to complicate.

Advertisers and marketers are familiar with K.I.S.S. (not the rock group). K.I.S.S. stands for Keep It Simple, Stupid. It serves as a little reminder that people tend to accept new ideas and products that are easy to understand and simple to use. If you want people to "get it," you've got to keep it simple.

God's done that very thing with the gospel--He's made it easy for a person to be saved. "And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Acts 2:21). Look, He had to make it simple--because if He'd made it any harder than believing in our heart that He raised Jesus from the dead, and confessing with our mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord, none of us would ever be saved (See Romans 10:8-13).

But, even in regard to salvation, we complicate the thing that God has simplified. That's what religion does--and does extremely well. Most religious instruction and religious traditions serve to redirect our focus from simply trusting, worshipping, loving, and serving God, to a catalogue of meaningless observances and empty obligations.

Obscuring the Obvious

In his book, The True Believer: Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements, social philosopher Eric Hoffer stressed the importance of doctrine as a motivating force of any movement. Hoffer made an interesting observation, one I have found to be true in the Church, too. He wrote,

When some part of a doctrine is relatively simple, there is a tendency among the faithful to complicate and obscure it. Simple words are made pregnant with meaning and made to look like symbols in a secret message. Thus there is an illiterate air about the most literate true believer. He seems to use words as if he were ignorant of their true meaning. Hence, too, his taste for quibbling, hair-splitting and scholastic tortuousness.

I have heard more than one Bible teacher preface his comments on a passage of Scripture by saying, "Now, this isn't exactly what this verse means, but...." Whoa, wait a minute, here! Is it the work of the teacher to invent revelations--to make God and the Scriptures say things God has not said, and mean things He has not meant? I think not! It's the teacher's job (ministry, gift, calling) to explain the truth of God's Word so that it can be understood. I have sat in more than one meeting and shaken my head in disbelief at the "mysteries" expounded upon by teachers who show their ignorance of God and His Word. Mesmerized congregations marvel at the "deepness" of such instructors--but are none the wiser in the end.

Yes, we have a way of making things more difficult than they are--and, like Eve, we are most apt to do so when we are either ignore or forget what God has said. It's vital that we stay focused on the important truths of God's Word. Maybe we should consider getting back to the basics of the faith, instead of running after every "new" thing that comes along. Just a thought...

Remember Eve.

Stay focused--stay faithful!

think on these things...

1 Timothy 4:1 (NKJV)
Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons.

Ephesians 4:11-15 (NLT)
He [Jesus] is the one who gave these gifts to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God's people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ, until we come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God's Son that we will be mature and full grown in the Lord, measuring up to the full stature of Christ. Then we will no longer be like children, forever changing our minds about what we believe because someone has told us something different or because someone has cleverly lied to us and made the lie sound like the truth. Instead, we will hold to the truth in love, becoming more and more in every way like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church.

1 Timothy 6:20-21 (NLT)
Timothy, guard what God has entrusted to you. Avoid godless, foolish discussions with those who oppose you with their so-called knowledge. Some people have wandered from the faith by following such foolishness. May God's grace be with you all.

2 Timothy 3:1-17 (NKJV)
But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away! For of this sort are those who creep into households and make captives of gullible women loaded down with sins, led away by various lusts, always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

Now as Jannes and Jambres resisted Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, disapproved concerning the faith; but they will progress no further, for their folly will be manifest to all, as theirs also was. But you have carefully followed my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, love, perseverance, persecutions, afflictions, which happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra what persecutions I endured. And out of them all the Lord delivered me. Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. But evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived.

But as for you, continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

Regular readers of Line Upon Line may have noticed that I haven't posted anything for a few days. "Other things" have demanded my attention, so the blog has had to wait. I've got a couple of essays in mind, and you'll likely see them soon. But here are a few thoughts until then...

National Day of Prayer
I traveled to Flint, Michigan, last Thursday for the First Annual Metropolitan Flint National Day of Prayer Breakfast. The event was coordinated by the Genesee Valley Men of Christ, and held at the Riverfront Character Inn in downtown Flint. Former Detroit Lion and Pro Football Hall of Famer, Lem Barney, was the scheduled speaker, but he was unable to make the event. Community leaders offered up prayers for Government and Judiciary, Community and Education, Business and Labor, and for the Church. There were a number of outstanding musical specials, too. Great stuff!

At noon, I joined 35 or 40 others on the front lawn of the Flint City Hall for prayer. If you know Flint, you know that Flint needs prayer. Some time back, Money Magazine declared Flint, Michigan the worst city in the U.S. to live. Self ranked Flint the 3rd worst place for a woman to live--and another publication rated it the 8th most dangerous overall. (Still, it can't be nearly as bad as Baghdad or Brazzaville.)

A Heart for Flint
I was born and raised in Flint. My wife and I left Flint 30 years ago, and have since lived in Lansing, Michigan, Tulsa, Oklahoma, Lenox, Tifton, Dublin, and Ft. Oglethorpe, Georgia, and, for the past 15 years, in Port Huron, Michigan. But, this past January, God began speaking to me about ministering His Word in Flint. So, right now, I am praying about what God would have me do in regard to taking His Word to Flint. Stay tuned...

Back in Port Huron
Later Thursday evening, I joined about 40 other believers at the Municipal Office Center in downtown Port Huron for a time of prayer. I helped out by leading worship with my guitar. God's presence was in the place, as we turned our hearts to Him and prayed for our nation and community. There was an emphasis on the Freedom Five--five points of prayer for government, education, family, church, and the media. You can read more about the Freedom Five at the National Day of Prayer website.

The Greatest Threat to America
I've said this before, but I'll say it again, the increasingly hateful political rhetoric in this nation presents more of a threat to the security and future of the United States than any foreign terrorist. I'm serious about this. Remember what Jesus said: "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand."

Tough Times Test True Faith
It's times like these that try our souls--and reveal our faith or lack thereof.

think on these things...

Titus 3:1-8 (NLT)
Remind your people to submit to the government and its officers. They should be obedient, always ready to do what is good. They must not speak evil of anyone, and they must avoid quarreling. Instead, they should be gentle and show true humility to everyone. Once we, too, were foolish and disobedient. We were misled by others and became slaves to many wicked desires and evil pleasures. Our lives were full of evil and envy. We hated others, and they hated us. But then God our Savior showed us his kindness and love. He saved us, not because of the good things we did, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins and gave us a new life through the Holy Spirit. He generously poured out the Spirit upon us because of what Jesus Christ our Savior did. He declared us not guilty because of his great kindness. And now we know that we will inherit eternal life. These things I have told you are all true. I want you to insist on them so that everyone who trusts in God will be careful to do good deeds all the time. These things are good and beneficial for everyone.

We know [positively] that we are of God, and the whole world [around us] is under the power of the evil one. 1 John 5:19 (AMP)

There were about ten or twelve of us guys who traveled from Dublin, Georgia, to Fort Mill, South Carolina, to visit Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker's Heritage Village, U.S.A. We went to check out some of their buildings--one barn-like structure in particular--that one of the men thought might give us some ideas for the new church building we were about to construct. In 1981, Debbi and I moved our family and belongings from Tulsa, Oklahoma, to Dublin, and founded Dublin Christian Fellowship. The congregation had grown from 59 to 300 people in two Sunday morning services. We had run out of space in our downtown storefront buildings, so we purchased 28 acres of property out near I-69, and we were making plans for a new ministry facility.

After winding up our tour, we loaded ourselves into the van and hit the road for the 250-mile trip back to Dublin. It wasn't too long before someone started singing, and the others joined in. I was riding shotgun, and enjoying the spiritually charged atmosphere. But something interesting happened when the guys began singing, "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands." As they all joined in and sang that familiar Sunday school chorus, a verse of Scripture popped into my mind: "We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the power of the evil one" (1 John 5:19). I thought, the whole world is not in God's hands; it's in the Devil's hands! One Bible translator expressed it this way: "the whole world lies in the embrace of the evil one."

We Are Not of This World

Now wait a minute before you run off yelling, "Heresy!" It's true that everything, including Planet Earth, is absolutely under God's control. There is no power that's not subject to Him. But at the same time, the reality is, this present world system is under the control of the "god of this world" (2 Corinthians 4:4). That's why the Apostle Paul tells us not to be conformed to this world, but to be transformed by the renewing of our minds (Romans 12;1,2). In another place he instructs us that, "If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth" (Colossians 3:1,2).

I realize that I've written quite a bit lately about the spiritual battle that we're in; but, I think we tend to forget just what we face each day when we wake up in this world. Jesus said, we are "in the world, but not of it." At least that's the way it's supposed to be. Yet, too often we are influenced by the world, and end up thinking the way the world thinks. As a result, we become ineffective in our witness on behalf of the Kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ.

Greater Is He That Is In Us

Back in the days of the Charismatic Renewal, there was a lot of talk about the Devil. There were debates as to whether or not a Christian could be obsessed, oppressed, or possessed by the Devil. Sometimes, all the attention paid to the Devil caused fear to arise in God's people. The truth is, "greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world" (1 John 4:4). That's a good thing to remember!

Consider the following observations by E.M. Bounds from his book, Guide to Spiritual Warfare:

'The whole world lieth in the evil one' means that the world is in the power of the Devil, is held in subjection by him, and is fixed and established. The Devil is pictured not only as trying to kindle into a flame the desires that may remain in a good man's heart after conversion, but also as enfolding in his arms the whole world and making it subject to his power and submissive to his absolute control.

In these statements from the Bible about the world and the Devil, we see why the world opposes heaven. We realize the enmity between the two. Heaven is Christ's place, the place where He is, and to which He wants men to come. The world is Satan's place. His power is here. To fix our hearts on the world is to be loyal to him. To fix our hearts on heaven is to be loyal to Christ.

Here we have the reason for the world's cruel hatred of Jesus, and why it has so bitterly persecuted His followers. We see why the 'flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh' (Galatians 5:17). We see why these are not only contrary to one another, but also at war with one another. The Devil is in the flesh and rules it. Christ is in the Spirit. This world leads away from Christ.

The Christian is called to renounce his allegiance to the world. By his very relationship to Jesus Christ, he is lifted out of the world's deadly embraces, and its polluting charms are broken. In this subserviency of the world to the Devil, we have the reason for the world's intense hatred of Jesus Christ. We can see why the world has armed itself with all its forces under the power of the Devil to destroy the cause of Christ.

Guard Your Heart and Mind

It's not my intention to alarm you, but rather to sound an alarm--to awaken you to the reality of the warfare in this world. The battle is a battle for your soul. You need to watch what you see and listen to what you hear. You need to guard your heart and mind, and fix your thoughts on things above--not things on the earth. Remember, we're just passing through this place, so don't get too attached to anything here. Our treasure awaits us in Heaven, where Jesus Christ is sitting at the right hand of the Father in glory!

think on these things...

John 17:15 (AMP)
I do not ask that You will take them out of the world, but that You will keep and protect them from the evil one.

1 John 4:4 (NAS)
You are from God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.

Luke 10:19 (NKJV)
Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.

1 John 2:14-17 (NKJV)
I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the wicked one. Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.

"The devil is not terribly frightened of our human efforts and credentials. But he knows his kingdom will be damaged when we begin to lift up our hearts to God." Jim Cymbala