The King of Glory May Come In!

Christ is the King of Glory! He is the One Who has clean hands and a pure heart. He is the Suffering Servant who laid down His life for His sheep.

No other was capable of atoning for the sins of sinners, so let us be thankful that the LORD strong and mighty died upon a cross to set men free.  May we never take for granted the burden that Christ lifted from His people: their sins.

Integrity & The Lack Thereof In America

George Washington along with many Christians prized integrity for several centuries in both colonial and republican (our cconstitutional rrepublic) America.  That does not need mean that these men were perfect nor does it mean that America is without blemish, for she has many.  However, when someone took an oath or vow in which integrity was on the line, it was serious because that vow or oath was in the name of The God of the Bible. They were not made rashly, and they were not made on unBiblical grounds. 

However, integrity is an after thought today. Why?

As America has left its Christian base, its moral compass has been abandoned for relativism and situational ethics.  For this reason, integrity means very little to most people, and the results are enormous.  Not only does this affect the court system in cases of perjury, but it affects everyday life, especially marriage.  American citizenry looks for ways out of honesty instead of binding its conscience to that which is honorable.  Ironically, to be honorable today is to be outdated and old-fashioned. 

How shall we then live?

As Christians, we are held to a higher standard no matter the era or culture we live in.  We must not let the wiles of the world, the flesh, and the Devil deter us from that which good, loving, holy, and just.  We are to honor parents, spouses, etc., and we must do this with great fervor in the realm of integrity. 

Therefore, let us walk in Biblical honesty and be circumcised of heart that our praise maycome from God and not merely men from religiosity and a culture that is steeped in dishonesty.

Gossip: A Deadly Sin

Gossip is a despicable sin that each of us succumbs to. The human heart is deceitfully wicked, and we are constantly attempting to build ourselves up by tearing others down. Even if we are not the ones speaking the gossip, our ears often perk up just to listen to it, and, by attentively listening, we endorse it.

Ironically, the same measure we use to judge others (done quite a bit through gossip) is the same measure others will judge us. In this way, if one gossips about someone to another, that same person is most likely to then gossip about the gossiper. In a vain attempt to build oneself up through demeaning another, one has actually torn oneself down even further as the next man gossips to others about the gossiper!

Prayer gossip is a more subtle form, for, we often make a prayer request about someone not because we care but because we want to tear someone down. "Please pray for such and such; they have a bad marriage, and I heard that Jim's been drinking again." Now if the person asks for prayer and also asks that it be made known to others, then that's legitimate, but we must be careful in handling such sensitive matters.

When confronted with gossip, it is important at once to immediately change the conversation to something more fruitful. If tempted to gossip, then take that thought captive to Christ, and think upon Him and His glory and refuse to gossip.

To Him be the glory! Amen!