"Not-So-Astute Observation"

 "Not-So-Astute Observation"

By:  Pastor Jack Schneider

“All Scripture is God-breathed, useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness…able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.”  [2 Tim.3:16,15, NIV]

Blew my mind the other day when I read the following comment by a supposed Christian pastor here in Dallas: “I cannot say exactly what we believe except that experience is a higher authority than Scripture.  I do not believe the Bible is the Word of God…” [Pastor Danielle Shroyer, Journey Church]

Say what??  Oh, my!  I wish I could tell you this person is one lone twisted voice in a sea of Biblical orthodoxy, but that’s not the case.  More and more we’re finding human experience and reason as the foundation for faith, not the written, living Word of God.  In fact, says the world, the Bible is but one of many collections of myths, rituals and stories of religion, and all have value.  It doesn’t really matter what you believe, we’re told, so long as you’re sincere.

Oh, really?  Paul encountered this numerous times in his ministry, having traveled across a cosmopolitan landscape and numerous seaports of the wisest mankind had to offer.  Listen to what he had to say… 

“God shows His anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people who push the truth away from themselves.  For the truth about God is known to them instinctively.  God has put this knowledge in their hearts.  From the time the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky and all that God made.  They can clearly see His invisible qualities -- His eternal power and divine nature.  So they have no excuse whatsoever for not knowing God.  Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship Him as God or even give Him thanks.  And they began to think up foolish ideas of what He was like.  The result was that their minds became dark and confused.  Claiming to be wise, they became utter fools instead.  Instead of believing what they knew was the truth about God, they deliberately chose to believe lies.  So they worshiped the things God made but not the Creator Himself, who is to be praised forever.” [Rom.1:18-22,25, NLT]

In 1943 Thomas J. Waters, Chairman of the Board for IBM, made this sincere, not-so-astute observation, “There is a world market for about five computers.”  His failure as a business prognosticator pales, however, in comparison to the social convictions of Cordell Hull, U.S. Secretary of State, who stated emphatically in 1933, “Mistreatment of Jews in Germany may be considered virtually eliminated.”

  Y’know, you can be mistaken in this life, or you can be mistaken for all eternity..

- Jack

"Consider Your Heritage."

"Consider Your Heritage."

By: Pastor Jack Schneider

“I will utter things hidden from of old -- things we have heard and known, things our fathers have told us.  We will not hide them from their children; we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord.”  [Ps.78:2b-4a, NIV]

Tragedies and world events have a way of challenging us to ask, “What’s important enough in your life to pass on to your children?”  Ultimately our kids [and others] will remember us not because of what we’ve accomplished but for being the person we are in Christ.  If you don’t believe it, just ask who it is you admire and consider a model for your own life.  Seldom is it someone known for his/her worldly success.  Instead, those of the most significance in our lives are those who model specific principles worth living -- living examples of Christ. 

Here are some of those principles, with definitions added.

1.                 Responsibility.  Pick up your own toys, help with family chores, and learn to cooperate.  Don’t blame others for your own failures.

2.                 Work ethic.  You don’t get something for nothing.  Do a job right. Take time to play, but finish work first. Work to live, not live to work.

3.                 Determination.  Stick to it! If at first you don’t succeed, try again. A stone can be broken by drops of water. Genius is 10% inspiration and 90% perspiration.

4.                 Attitude.  Have a good one; the world doesn’t owe you anything. A positive person has stronger friends and more success than a negative person.

5.                 Potential.  Build up others, encourage them, and instill a desire to be all God would have them be.  The best leaders are encouragers.

6.                 Stewardship.  Malachi 3:10 says to bring the whole tithe to God.  Manage the remaining 90% wisely to His glory. Children learn miserliness by example.

7.                 Relationships.  Use things and love people, not the other way around.  When people come first, circumstances follow. Better to be hurt than not know love.

8.                 Honesty.  Thomas Jefferson called it “the first chapter in the book of wisdom.” Let words and actions be consistent. Avoid lies and manipulation; live with integrity and transparency.

9.                 Generosity.  The richest people are those who give, expecting nothing in return.  True generosity depends not on the amount but the attitude in heart.

10.              Dependence on God. This is the most important of the ten.  “Cast your cares on the Lord, and He will sustain you.” “My salvation and my honor depend on God.” [Ps.55:22; 62:7]

Consider your heritage.  Do others see Jesus Christ in you?  Are these ten principles

evident in the way you live, or do your actions negate the witness of your life?  To use the tag-line old sermon from years ago, if you were on trial for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?  Think about it…or, better yet, ask your children.

- Jack