Hypocrisy is Hypocrisy - Truth is Truth

My bio/about me in most of my socials may sound like hyperbole, but I don't believe it is:

57th-worst sinner who ever lived. Saved by the blood of Jesus Christ.

I'm not so self-loathing that I don't think there are at least 56 sinners worse than me. But I also don't think the sins from which I've been cleansed were less egregious or offensive to God than almost everyone else's. I've always tried to emphasize in my limited capacity as a preacher that I'm a sinner who was given a few good words to say by the grace of God. To put it whimsically, the Biblical figure I most resemble is Balaam's donkey - a hairy and dumb creature miraculously given some wise words to share.

The American Founding Fathers took up the herald that "all men are created equal." Still, many of them were slaveowners. Later generations cited this declaration of equality in their fight against slavery. "All men are created equal" is a stark example of how someone can say something that exposes them as a hypocrite, but the truth and sentiment of what they say remains intact.

One of the unique things about the Bible is that so many of its heroes or most important figures aren't so lionized as to make them seem flawless. The two most prominent examples lie in two of Israel's greatest kings, David and his son Solomon. David was a mighty warrior who was famously described as being "after God's own heart." But among the times he was disobedient to God was his Machiavellian plot of coercing Bathsheba, a married woman, into having sex with him, then conspiring to ensure her husband Uriah would be killed in battle. Even so, King David wrote many of the Psalms, some of the most key pieces of Scripture - including a psalm in which he expressed his contrition and anguish in repentance of these sins (Psalm 51). The Psalms are pivotal in Christian theology, many of them pointing to the coming Savior, Jesus.

David's son Solomon was hailed as the wisest man in the world, and wrote most of the book of Proverbs, the Song of Solomon, and possibly the book of Ecclesiastes. Yet toward the end of his life and reign as king, as 1 Kings chapter 11 tells us, his heart was turned away from Yahweh as a result of his lust for the flesh - and his disregard for an instruction in the Torah that forbids kings from having many wives (Deuteronomy 17:17). 

And yet with these marks on these men's records, their words are invaluable treasures in our holy texts. Their praise of God, their enthusiasm in pointing their readers to Him, is not made dim or erased by their glaring sins. This is a stunning example of God's grace - He allows us sinners to speak truths that reveal Him. Even Judas Iscariot, who was a thief and later betrayed the Lord, performed miracles with the Twelve. 

It's important to note that Scripture is Divinely inspired, a word meaning "God-breathed" - "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" (1 Timothy 3:16-17). The words these men shared flowed from the Holy Spirit and not their own personal whims. 

I've used this blog for many things, among them sharing the Gospel. This includes spiritual truths recorded by very flawed men, by Divine inspiration, truths from the holy Scriptures we've come to call the Bible. If my own many, many mistakes and misdeeds are ever scrutinized or magnified, I hope it's understood, if only so any good word I've shared wasn't shared in vain, that our sins don't negate the edifying things a Christian speaks about Christ. "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23), and as unfaithful Solomon (possibly) wrote before his own downfall: "there is not a just man on earth who does good and does not sin" (Ecclesiastes 7:20). The exposure of a Christian as an unrepentant hypocrite doesn't put an asterisk next to the truth he or she has spoken - even if it does cast a pall on their character.

A person steeped in unrepentant sin has no place to preach God's word. And yet it happens all the time - it's almost a trope that pastors and vocal Christians are caught committing some terrible indiscretion. But in your heartbreak and grief over that person's seemingly strong example being daashed to pieces by their hypocrisy, remember this one thing: a hypocrite is a hypocrite, but truth remains truth.

Think of it this way: if someone says Earth is round, but is caught at a Flat Earther convention, it doesn't change the truth that the planet is indeed round. Or, someone who advocates for the funding of advancement in medical science who's caught posting conspiracy theories on an anti-vax message board.

It's immensely difficult sometimes to focus on Christ when He's being spoken through people. It's easy to see only the person speaking about Him, to put them on pedastals for their eloquence or character. This is why it's important to latch onto the truth of Jesus in their words, and only Jesus, even if we think the speaker's character is unimpeachable. When we find that it's not - as we certainly will - we'll have grasped the truth of the Gospel from what they've said, and not an unhealthy reverence for the person relaying it. Anyone proclaiming Jesus will let you down - they're sinners like you and me. Even if those disappointments come not from sin or malice but some minor slight or disagreement, we'll always find some reason to be disenchanted, even if only slightly or briefly, by human beings. That disenchantment of course feels much heavier when the person who lets you down is a person from whom you've gathered some beautiful piece of truth.

But remember: a hypocrite is a hypocrite, but truth remains truth. That's one of the great things about God - He is unchanging and unchangeable; the truth He reveals to us never disappoints, even if the people sharing it will.

Israel & End-Time Prophecy: A Word of Caution

There's a tendency among Christians of a certain demographic to fall into a state of panic or joyous delirium (or a mixture of the two) every time a major conflict erupts in the Middle East - which, by the way, is all the time - especially one concerning Israel - which, by the way, is all the time. Many believers have a knee-jerk reaction to any developments in this area of the world, citing them as a sign of the beginning of the end-times and the Second Coming of Jesus. 

A word of caution: if you're a Christian, no matter what you believe as it relates to eschatology, or the role Israel as a nation will play in the end times, one thing you must remember: God will never require you to approve of wrongdoing. This includes unprovoked attacks on other countries, the bombing or degrading of civilians and children, or the misuse and exploitation of the faith by political leaders of any country, be they Israeli or American, to justify - and seemingly be drunk on - going to war. 

There are many different views of the end-times within Christianity. Those that involve some role played by, or in, the Biblical holy land must keep in mind that prophecy does not work thusly: Christians have to do something, to take some action - be it politically, militarily or otherwise - to precipitate Jesus' return, or else He won't come back. This is not prophecy, but a strange attempt to force the return of Christ according to our own schedule.

In the meantime, until the heavens roll away like a scroll and Jesus does indeed return, another exhortation to my fellow believers - opposing Benjamin Netanyahu doesn't make you a bad Christian. The meaning of Genesis 12:3 is not "implicitly support the modern-day nation state of Israel." In the days recorded in Scripture, God's prophets fervently rebuked Israel's leaders for their wrongs. Support of a specific political power is not obedience to God: it's an idol. 

You're not disobeying Him by not sharing an I Stand With Israel post.

Until the end does come, focus on showing kindness, mercy, love, and sacrifice to those around you, to show them the love of our Savior.

American Christians: Increase Your Tithing

Fellow American Christians: If you're of the theological understanding that one should tithe 10% of their income, and that tithing includes giving to individuals in need, and not just to one's local church fund, please consider this: the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" (I didn't name it) guts Medicaid and takes SNAP benefits away from thousands of people. It can only be imperative, then, that we increase our tithing to individuals.

I therefore propose that we each increase our tithing from 10% to 15%. 

20% if you voted for Donald Trump/Republican, who designed and passed the bill. 

"If our charities do not at all pinch or hamper us, I should say they are too small." -C.S. Lewis 

"If you don't want your tax dollars to help the poor, then stop saying that you want a country based on Christian values. Because you don't." -John Fugelsang

A Note on Forgiveness & Consequences

Without going into details, I'm currently in a situation where I'm dealing with the consequences of hurting someone.

(Not like, legal consequences or anything, just like...spiritual, emotional ramifications.) 

The pain and sadness that's come with this have been a good reminder to share this message with fellow Christians: God will forgive you, but He's not obligated to bubble-wrap you from the consequences of your sins. Under the New Covenant we're free from being condemned to eternity without God for our sins. But this is not a get-out-of-jail-free card, figuratively or literally.

If you commit a crime, God is faithful to forgive you when you repent, but the state will rightfully prosecute you.

There are even still consequences when the person(s) you've wronged has forgiven you. Consider someone who's been hit in the face with a cinder block (no, this was not my offense) - Christ has paid the penalty for that sin on the cross, but the face of the victim will take a long time to heal. Their forgiveness won't make their wounds any less painful or sensitive to the touch, any less swollen or blue. And their forgiveness certainly doesn't obligate them to trust you again, immediately or maybe ever.  

Let us strive to live under God's grace rather than trample upon it.

Jesus & Social Justice

I once read the claim that "If the point of Christianity is not social justice, it is ultimately useless."

The statement in itself is an unfair and quite arbitrary one. It could just as easily be claimed, "If the point of Hinduism isn't the protection of endangered species, it is ultimately useless." In making such a statement, one is burdening a stranger with a moral mission the stranger hasn't agreed to carry.  

But, giving the statement its due response, compelled to carry the Roman soldier's gear for the extra mile, as Jesus' metaphor goes - concerning the question of Christianity and its role in social issues, if I were directly asked, "is the point of being a Christian, a follower of Christ, to further social justice?", I would have to answer, unequivocally, no.

The first reason is, social justice can be easily molded to mean different things for different people. One person or one group's definition of social justice might include or exclude causes and concerns others' societal visions don't. A construct whose definition should be quite clear has, like many things, become subjective: one vision of it could include specific goals like racial equality and closing the income gap, while another's could consist solely of something as vague as "American values." And it would be rather unfair to any religion if one were to claim it must be judged by its dedication, or lack thereof, to American values (whatever those are) - this is in essence what the statement "If the point of Christianity is not social justice, it is ultimately useless" is doing, only measuring it using a different belief system.

A follower of orthodox Christianity does not view Jesus as subjective or open to interpretation. 

The second, and main, reason why following Christ is not simply a means to exact "social justice" is that the role of Christianity in the world is to spread the good news of the eternal salvation given to us by Jesus Christ. This is a clear and simple Biblical tenet. The role of a Christian is not to simply be kind and charitable. Kindness and charity are certainly characteristics of a life lived in Jesus, but they are not the point, the end, or the entire story. Societies are quite sufficient with those who instrumentalize Jesus as a poster boy of sorts for their causes, those who attempt to claim Him as their exclusive means to validate their views - in America especially, we're rife with conservative versions of Jesus, liberal versions, militia versions, apolitical versions, versions with added or subtracted spiritual aspects, and myriad others.

Jesus is not a spokesman we can rent to parrot our messages the way an actor can be paid to promote Pepsi or Dyson vacuums.

But, as for the relationship between Christianity as a religion and concept, and social justice, it has to be said that the desire for social justice is, if one abides in Christ's teachings and commands, an inevitable product of true Christian obedience. One who seeks to obey the inspired Scripture will abhor racism and delight in racial equity and the fight against systemic oppression; one who believes the Bible to be the Divine Word of God will give energy, time and resources to help the impoverished, and to bring attention to the institutions that put the poor under the thumb of a callous society; one who believes Jesus' claim "I am the way, the truth, and the life" will desire a crackdown on police brutality and abuse of legal authority, advocate for fair employment opportunities for recently paroled convicts, and for the rights, dignity, legal counsel, and living conditions of those incarcerated; one who loves Jesus will support better, more affordable healthcare and medical treatment for low-income parents, substance addicts, and mental health patients, no matter their orientation or ideologies. 

Jesus is not the property of nationalist conservatives or militant liberals. He tells us, "My kingdom is not of this world." No God who claims to be as all-powerful and all-knowing as the God of the Bible will be easily put into a box with our visions and versions of social justice, and He certainly can't be made to toe our party lines. The truth of a God as big as our God will contain things in which we find joy and comfort, but also things we hear with dismay and difficulty. 

If I could cram Jesus into my version of social justice, or yours, or anyone else's, I would doubt His divinity and sovereignty. 

"Open your mouth, judge righteously, and plead the cause of the poor and needy." -Proverbs 31:9

Life During Wartime: How Do We Pray About War?

There's a strange dichotomy to praying for victory in a war. Any war, really, with all of their moral nuances and intricacies, and their inherent wakes of disaster and death. I don't consider myself pro-war or anti-war: I discern on a war by war basis, or more particularly, by a judgment of the individual belligerents. After all, war is not a war without at least two opposing sides. Sometimes, one is right and the other wrong, and other times neither is right. A perfect example of the former is the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.

If Ukrainian forces had not fought back against the invaders, this would not be a war at all, but simply an invasion. And if Ukraine had, without resistance, given Vladimir Putin whatever territorial gains he desired by crossing this independent nation's borders, it would have been even less than an invasion, and more of an annexation. But, when Russian military forces invaded Ukraine this past February, the latter took up arms and fought. So, we have two belligerents with two opposite reasons for armed violence.

I'm in favor of Ukraine's war, but not Russia's (or, more accurately, Putin's) - I wholeheartedly support a peaceful, sovereign, and democratic nation's right to defend itself against "a wicked and unjust invasion," as my pastor described it. 

I have no doubt that a great a deal of Russian soldiers who've found themselves on the losing end (thus far) against Ukrainian troops fighting tooth and nail to protect their home don't want to be in Ukraine any more than frightened civilians want them there. I'm sure the same goes historically for just about any army ordered by its government to go to war under unjustifiable circumstances: there were obviously Germans soldiers who despised all the violence and Hitler's delusions, who just wanted to go home as much as a homesick American or Soviet soldier; there were no doubt Argentinian conscripts sent to invade the Falklands who hated the cold, miserable landscape, and knew themselves to be expendable pawns played by their dictator Galtieri to deflect from his military junta's dismal failings.

With all the complexities of war, it's no surprise that praying for a victor in a war is no easy task when you really think about it. When I pray for Ukraine to overcome Putin's evil aims, I'm essentially praying that they're successful in blowing up Russian soldiers - human beings - or at least sending them into retreat or surrender by use of fire and force. This is part of the reality of being a Christian: we trust in an all-powerful and merciful God in the midst of a world of weak flesh and merciless minds. This guarantees we'll find ourselves in situations where it seems there's no winning, no good or honorable way out, leaving us with no idea what to pray for. Fortunately for us, we serve a God who understands our predicament. He came to the earth in the flesh and suffered as we suffer, even to the point of death on a cross. When we go to Him in prayer, even when we don't know what to say, we have peace and confidence that we're talking to a God who understands.

It's easy to be morbidly amused at letters and speeches written by politicians and military personnel alike during various wars throughout history - almost invariably, each will claim God is on their side, that God is for right, therefore He will guarantee their armies' triumph. Of course, only one side "wins" (Clemenceau famously described war as "a series of catastrophes that results in a victory"). Thus, one side of the fight was obviously wrong when it declared they knew God to be on their side. Lincoln put it another way: "The will of God prevails. In great contests each party claims to act in accordance with the will of God. Both may be, and one must be wrong [...] In the present civil war it is quite possible that God's purpose is something different from the purpose of either party [...] The contest began. And having begun, He could give the final victory to either side any day. Yet the contest proceeds." 

Lincoln was being quite the realist in his assessment of the will and work of God in a war. And so too must a Christian be in their prayers when they bring to Him their petitions concerning this or any war. It's very much possible - even necessary - to be a realist as a Christian, as much of an oxymoron as that may seem to many. We know that we live in a fallen world, so we must work with things as they are, not as they ought to be. We retain the hope that things will someday be made new, and that hope gives us strength to endure things as they are. The Christians of the early Church who were being killed by Rome for proclaiming Christ did not pretend everything was fine. It was okay for them to acknowledge the misery and horror they were put through. Admitting a terrible thing to be terrible is not denying God to be powerful. 

As Christians we sometimes equate labeling a situation as bleak with resigning to doubt. This is not the case. The Bible is full of passages that detail how dark and unjust this fallen world can be. In such a chaotic environment, we're bound to find ourselves facing situations where it seems any and all outcomes are attached to some terrible caveat. Just like my prayer that Ukraine will repel Putin's invasion: being a realist, I don't believe God will suddenly strike the Russians with sunshine-filled minds that cause them to drop their guns and return to their own country in peace; I don't believe each side will say "nuts to this," shake hands, and leave each other be; and I doubt Vladimir Putin will humbly acknowledge he was morally in the wrong and withdraw his troops without first suffering a string of military defeats (nor do I hope Volodymyr Zelenskyy sets a dangerous precedent for Eastern Europe by giving Putin what he wants if he'll just stop the attacks). This all certainly can happen, as God is capable of any such miracle, and I'd be delighted to eat my words if that were the end result. But until then, I must accept that my prayer for Ukraine's restored peace and the safety of its citizens includes a victory of firepower over another army of human beings, made as much in the similitude of God as anyone in this violence-ridden world.

In all of this, I'm abundantly grateful for the words the Holy Spirit speaks through the apostle Paul: "In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And He who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God" (Romans 8:26-27).

King David cries out to God in Psalm 139, but ultimately rests in His omnipotent power and knowledge: "You have searched me, LORD, and You know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; You perceive my thoughts from afar. [...] Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting" (Psalm 139:1-2, 23-24).

We say it so much that it can ring with cliché, but no matter how often something is repeated, it never loses its strength if it is the truth, spoken in sincerity: "God's will be done." No matter what we pray for, no matter how confused - or confident - we are when we go to Him, may we seek God's will and not our own. God's sovereignty outweighs that of any sovereign nation. A day is coming when all will be restored, and He will judge with righteous judgment.

Money and Your Local Church: A Layperson's Thoughts

It's amazing, but it's also not very amazing, that there are those of us in the body of Christ who can go so long not knowing what the Bible has to say about certain topics. Many of us even blindly believe there are things in the Bible that are simply not there - "this too shall pass" comes to mind, "God will never let you go through more than you can handle," and even "It is better to cast your seed onto the belly of a whore, than to let it fall to the ground" (yes, there are people who think that's a Bible verse).

But it's even more challenging when a piece of actual Scripture is misquoted, misrepresented, or manipulated in such a way that Christians and non-believers alike develop a false idea of what the Bible says on certain matters. These are more challenging because of the difficulty in separating what the verse actually says from the way it's paraphrased - it's easy to do a word search on biblegateway.com and show someone there's no "belly of a whore" verse. But if a paraphrased and distorted version of Scripture becomes embedded in someone's memory, it's difficult to put that verse or passage back in its proper order and gather again what was taken out, or take out what was added.

The best example I can give is the idea that the Bible says: "Money is the root of all evil." This is so often repeated that it's even a cliche amid secular circles of the world. Even my favorite band Pink Floyd gets it wrong in their classic song "Money."

In fairness to Pink Floyd, however, the actual verse contains much more substance and wouldn't fit the meter of the music. The quote in question is from 1 Timothy 6:10, which actually says:

"The love of money is a root of all kinds of evil" - that's the first part, the part that's become shortened and changed - and continues, "for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows." (NKJV) 

The actual verse, and the context of Biblical teachings on money and finances, reveal far more than our pithy paraphrasing: that money itself is not the root of evil, much less all evil, but rather the worship and idolatry that develops when one loses sight of the good God desires for us to do with money. This verse even expounds on how destructive that greed can be to one's faith and general life.

If money was the actual root of all evil, a lot of things wouldn't make sense. People who live by the false paraphrase and not the actual Scripture are faced with some tough questions. For example, how do sins not related to money or greed have their root in money when none is involved? If two people commit the sin of, say, fornication, or if one person takes the Lord's name in vain, how can this be traced back to money?

A social media post that reeked of the ignorance sparked by misquotation of Scripture asked, "If money is the root of all evil, why do churches ask for it?", implying that if a church claims to teach from the Bible, it displays hypocrisy in asking for tithes and offerings. But as we've seen from the actual verse, this philosophy is not a Biblical one. This would contradict the teachings of the epistles in the New Testament, wherein the apostle Paul instructs believers to help their local churches in many ways, among them materially, while also warning leaders not to become greedy. 

Also, if one believes "money is the root of all evil," and seeks to avoid such evil, that person then sins against their own conscience by accepting a wage from their employer. Fortunately, the amended form of this verse is a lie to which no Christian is bound.

As a sinner myself, I'm certainly not immune from ignorance of the Scripture. In my case, it's usually willful. I used to scoff at the idea that a pastor should be paid for his work. I glossed over Paul's instructions to the various churches, and was blissfully unaware of the apostle's words in 1 Corinthians, chapter 9: he elaborates that, though he has not used this privilege among the Corinthians, those who preach the gospel have a right to be supported by the church(es) to whom they preach.

Speaking of making a living as a pastor of a church, as my edgelord attitude toward a minister's wages faded in light of what Scripture teaches, I began to see just how perilous an honest preacher's position can be. If a pastor preaches only the truth, that pastor runs the risk of unsteady job security. I speak this from experience within my own local church during the past two and a half years.

During the height of the pandemic, my church implemented a mask mandate: worshipers were required to wear masks. This greatly offended certain congregants, who left our church because of it. Their ire wasn't eased when my church began a campaign to help get as many people vaccinated as possible.

Then came 2021. My pastor bravely, publicly condemned the January 6th Insurrection in no uncertain terms. This caused more exiles from our congregation. Then, this year, he released a book denouncing Christian nationalism, and explored nationalism as an entity itself. The book has received much attention, though you certainly wouldn't know it if you'd never attended my church before, as my pastor has upheld his conviction that he should not use our pulpit to promote his literary work. Not all of the attention was positive, however, as - you guessed it - the book's message (and even its cover) rubbed some people the wrong way.

Less congregants means less tithing, which means the threat of a preacher - and church staff, from sound engineers to janitors - being without a salary. Our church also uses its tithes for mission work, including a program that teaches English to refugees settling in America, planting multicultural churches, and supporting children in Kenya and drilling water wells there. If our church had suffered a catastrophic loss of membership, certain people in Kenya may not have access to water. 

Tithing also helps those within the local church who are in need. As one of our deacons preached just this morning, the "loner Christian" is not a Biblical Christian. There are no instances in Scripture of an apostle or disciple going it alone, the misunderstood lone wolf. "A man who isolates himself seeks his own desire; he rages against all wise judgment" (Proverbs 18:1). The idea that one doesn't need to go to a building once a week, and can "worship in their own way" is tough and edgy on the surface, but it's a philosophy built on sand and not a stone; it is not a Biblically founded Christian life. Thus, if a church is a community of believers, that community will inevitably have needs and troubles, to which their brothers and sisters can minister with their tithes and offerings. We forget this in our isolation, which so often leads to a worship and serving of self rather than God.

Fortunately, however, despite the backlash my pastor received for his preaching of the truth, God was faithful to protect us from fiery arrows, and our church thrives. We have even grown since the departure of so many whose sociopolitical ideologies outweighed their spiritual priorities. 

What a job, the ministry. It's such a strange position, when adhering to the truth is a risk to your employment and livelihood. "Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution" (2 Timothy 3:12). There are many megastar evangelists we can all name whose aversion to strict Biblical truth and the needs of the underprivileged puts them in no danger of the unemployment line. I'm grateful God has given me a community whose leaders are brave and faithful enough that they would risk such hardship. Therefore, a church's response to God's generosity is to in turn be generous to its own, so that they as a local body might spread the Gospel and minister to the needs of the suffering. And it starts with a wise and godly understanding of the role of money - and of good and evil - in a Christian's life.

The Exhausting Legalism of the Secular World

I'm a religious person. My chosen religion is Christianity. I sometimes get flak from fellow Christians for using the terms religion/religious; those words seem to imply a sense of strict dogma, not to mention the word itself being originally tied to the word bondage. But I don't mind that. I want to be "a bondservant of Christ," forever tethered to Him, unable to escape.

Now that my attempt at piety is out of the way, here's some cynicism.

I've long been amazed - and confounded - by how similar the "secular" world is to the "religious lifestyle" (or, what many people think of a religious lifestyle). The rigorous regulations and rituals that are used to caricaturize we religious folk are abundant in a society that claims no official civil faith.

My mother, father, grandparents, teachers, and every pastor I've ever had - combined - have never imposed on me such a stringent and lengthy list of things I'm not allowed to say for fear of condemnation (a more modern term for condemnation being "cancellation"). The list of these forbidden words and terms is always changing and expanding, making it hard for one to keep up with what's linguistically kosher and what is not. 

I don't have that problem in my dirty little spiritual life. I believe the Scripture, that collection of ancient documents and epistles we came to call the Bible, to be the Divinely authored, Divinely edited word of God, and therefore in no need of addition. And, I certainly consider it blasphemous to propose subtractions, e.g. The Jefferson Bible. In this Book, I'm taught that if I were to say something terrible - something truly terrible, something that breaks down and berates others - my sin is forgiven through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. I'll not be condemned to hell, or cancelled from His love (apologies for such a sappy analogy, but if it fits it fits). And, my brothers and sisters in this faith, should they abide in it, will be true to edify and encourage me to do better, not to distance themselves from me like I'm ripe with moral Coronavirus (unless of course I unrepentantly persist in such sins).

Along with this list of naughty phrases is a tight and non-negotiable list of places I cannot go and businesses I mustn't engage without compromising my soul (at least, my metaphorical soul if one looks at it from the secular point of view). I've been commanded by secular voices that I shall not enter Hobby Lobby because of its owners' stance on birth control, that eating at Chick Fil A is unclean because of its owners' position on same-sex marriage, that if I went to the theater to see Mulan I'm supporting oppression in Asia and should be cast into darkness, that Colin Kaepernick is a wolf in a sheep's disguise because he sat down during the National Anthem, profaning a Sunday football game, making Nike shoes an abomination fit for nothing but the fire.

Oprah have mercy on you if you need gluten free buns to feed your three kids on a hectic afternoon and Chick Fil A is the closest and most convenient option. Your ideological salvation and purity is at stake. Perhaps there's some loophole in the sociopolitical manuals that will allow this, as long as a sacrifice is made to a gold calf, blue donkey, or red elephant. Or one of those weird Green Party carved images.

Speaking of devils, in conversations with non-religious friends, I've noticed something interesting: the ratio of times I've warned them about the wiles of Satan to the number of times I've been warned about the snares of Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk is probably 10:1. In fact, I can't remember the last time I told an unbelieving friend how ensnared they are by the devil. That's either a reflection on my part of how tactful I am when it comes to discussing matters of religion, or a reflection of how bad I am at preaching such truths.

I thank God that He's never cast me aside if I stray from His commandments, and that His commandments are lovingly crafted for my growth, not to exalt myself as more woke or more patriotic than my neighbor. I'm grateful that He is faithful to love me and teach me to do better should I do wrong. That His grace and understanding permit me to shop at Amazon. That He's set my feet upon a rock and not on eggshells. That He keeps me from being drafted to fight in the Culture Wars, as He's already brought eternal victory through the Cross.

The secular world can follow its own bulls and codes and gods. I'm simply not pure enough, progressive enough, patriotic enough to do so. I wasn't born so holy. It's not in my DNA, I suppose. I'm weak - I need a God of grace and love.

Poem: "Amen, Bad Luck To You"

The day after I was Saved

after the congratulations and

we're proud of yous and you're so braves

and my mother's relief and elation

and delicate voices to playfully chide me

I felt the sensation 

of something writing inside me

It wasn't the finger of God

writing His laws on my heart

It wasn't some warm and happy feeling

tracing across my being

or a psalm full of fresh air and art

I'm not sure what piece of me

it was writing on,

this thing not a threat, not a treaty

Something not quite as bloody and meaty as a rib

But some just as tangible part

just as touchable

Not quite the soul

Not quite the heart

or some other piece just as glib

It was something dark, for sure,

something separate from God

Not competing for room

or to regain its domain

or proclaim my failure and doom

or map out my guts to forever trod

Whatever it was, all the same

it was only there to write

Amen, bad luck to you.

and leave me as quickly as it came,

at no exceptional time of night

It left its fingerprints 

in its scratchy, scribbled cursive

Though I'm sure it has no power itself

It has no unholy possession or hold

No aim so subversive,

nothing nearly so bold

or bursting with spite and pride

But the message is there

somewhere inside

Amen, bad luck to you.

I can't be persuaded otherwise

that the message wasn't deliberately timed

It came just after Jesus advented

just after the drying of weeping eyes

just after everyone at that potpourri scented

Baptist church told me warm and lovely things

Just after I was Saved

I wasn't gripped by a demon

or met with beginnings of birth pangs

I didn't froth at the mouth and fall in the fire

or so much as double over in pain

When it etched its words inside 

my miscellany and mire 

Amen, bad luck to you.

That was all, and it was gone

unheard from since that day

Like whoever scrawled Sodoma Gomora

on the walls of Pompeii

to tell them they were going to hell

Or whoever painted Viva Cuba

and the last lovey dovey note

of a revolutionary song

on the walls of a prison cell

They were there, inside, they wrote,

and were gone – 

Amen, bad luck to you.

from the book Amen, Bad Luck To You

Permission To Plagiarize Me

I noticed something interesting on the Twitter recently. A fellow expressed his concern and disapproval of  preachers who plagiarize other preachers' sermons. I honestly had no idea this was such a problem in Christian ministry. But I do admit there was a time when I myself was very concerned about my own religious writings being stolen. 

Years ago, when I still held the heady but modest title of "lay chaplain," I published a book of sermons, Sheep Named Spike. I'd be happy to autograph it for if you buy a copy. Most of what's in the book is based on my cheaply produced YouTube sermons, but there was also plenty of material that simply came from a flow of creative writing. 

I decided not long ago, however, that I shouldn't pursue "Christian writing" anymore, at least not until I overcome my tendency toward vanity. That is, I noticed so much of what I wrote to proclaim the Gospel was dangerously close to becoming "The Captain Bud Sturguess Show." I found much more of an emphasis on the absurdity and self-deprecation that I used to illustrate whatever point I was making, to the point that Christ was almost a background Player in the sermons. 

So, though I feel the things I published as religious works are still solid proclamations of the truth of Jesus Christ, I think it's best I don't continue writing straight-up sermons, lest I put myself at the forefront. 

Having said that, if in those sermons I wrote something pure, something Gospel-centered, something aligning with Scripture, something with the true zeal of preaching Christ, then I have to acknowledge that it came not from me, but from the Holy Spirit. The front of the book may list my name under the copyright notice, but it's far more accurate to say that anything truly good I wrote is the intellectual property of the Spirit. 

I certainly don't speak for other preachers, but it can only follow that if someone copies my sermons, even word for word, I have no more room to object than I would if a musician rips off Back In Black - Back In Black is not my intellectual property, not the product of my creativity, therefore only AC/DC and their lawyers have a right to file suit against the plagiarist. 

It's the same with my sermons. Again, I emphasize that I only speak for myself, not only as part of the royal priesthood of believers, but also as a writer. If another Christian desires to proclaim our Savior from a genuine conviction and longing to bring the Gospel to others, I have no qualms if they Xerox my work and recite it in their own diatribes. Reaching the hearts of our neighbors is far more important than letting everyone know how clever, creative, and original I am.

So, let this blog be a binding contract of sorts - I will not sue, I will not complain that my genius has been ripped off. If something I wrote or recorded for Christ is found to be pure and unadulterated truth, it makes no difference if my name is attached to it. The Name above all Names must be first, and mine not at all. I'm content being a creation rather than a creative.

I'd be lying if I said I wouldn't rather preachers be creative and labor over their own sermons rather than recite someone else's work. But truth is truth, and I claim no copyright for it. Let truth abound.   

Common Questions About Hell

What is hell?

Simply put, hell is eternity without God.

Fire and torment are things we often associate with the concept of eternal damnation, and they are indeed Biblical descriptions – Jesus Christ says, “there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Luke 12:38), and the apostle John writes of his vision of the Judgment before the Great White Throne, “anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire” (Revelation 20:15). But what makes hell truly hell is the complete and irrevocable absence of the love, mercy, and Spirit of God.

In that respect, hell is an extension of how one lived his or her life on Earth. So too is eternal life in heaven. If a person gives their life to Christ and lives and abides in Him in their temporary, mortal life, they will share that same fellowship with Him, in His eternal presence, in “a new heaven and a new earth” (Revelation 21:1). On the flip side of this coin, one who lived their mortal life on Earth in an unrepentant state of disbelief and rejection of the salvation offered to them by Jesus Christ, accomplished through His blood on the cross, will continue to live without Him and the light and love for which He once suffered to attain for them. This absence of God's love is manifested in the form of everlasting agony. The non-believer continues to have it their way – an existence without God.

The phrase “hell was not made for humans” is often used. This refers to Jesus’ words about those who will be turned away from entering heaven. He describes a place “prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matthew 25:41). It’s not necessarily as if God has said, “let there be a place of torment for people who don’t believe in Me.” But even so, there remains a hideous place of everlasting anguish to which the wicked and unbelieving will go.

Where is hell?

The caricature often painted of hell is a pit at the center of the earth. In fact, many Christians who lived during the first century and the years following believed that Sodom and Gomorrah were still burning far below the earth's surface.

But if we look at this from the eternal viewpoint, we see that this cannot be the case. Eternity for those who accepted Jesus Christ involves, again, “a new heaven and a new earth” in the eternal city of New Jerusalem. Being that the currently existing planets, galaxies, and their elements will be no more when Jesus returns to judge all souls, hell cannot exist under the earth's surface, not even in its very molten core. So we must think of hell as another realm, so to speak, not unlike the concepts of “Hades” or “the Netherworld.”

A notable difference between the Biblical concept of hell and those of pagan religions is that hell is not simply a “land of the dead” – not only will the dead rise for the Judgment, but so too will those who are alive at the unknown hour when Jesus Christ returns: “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad” (2 Corinthians 5:10). Concerning the Lord's second advent, the apostle Paul comforts believers who despaired at the thought of their fellow believers who had died: “I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus. For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air” (1 Thessalonians 4:13-17).

This makes it clear that Jesus' return will not be seen only by the dead, but by the living as well.

A place of spiritual torment exists while we on Earth still live. Jesus says just as much in a harrowing tale He tells found in Luke, chapter 16, wherein He describes what happens after the deaths of a sinful rich man and a poor man named Lazarus. (This passage is often incorrectly thought of as a parable, but unlike other parables, the text never indicates that Jesus means this story as a fable or a metaphor, as the New Testament so often does with His actual parables; it does not conclude with Jesus Himself speaking a coda or summary of the parable or its meaning, as that is found in the words of the people involved in the story themselves – including one Jesus refers to by his specific name rather than strictly “a certain beggar.”)

In this story, the merciless rich man finds himself in fiery damnation. The rich man, realizing he has no hope of escape, begs Abraham, to whom he speaks from his agony, to send Lazarus to warn his brothers of this danger: “'I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father’s house, for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.'”

(It is also worth noting that Abraham tells the condemned rich man, “between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us”).

Who goes to hell?

The answer to this question is not: gays, addicts, suicide victims, or saved people who backslide or make mistakes. 

It has often been erroneously said that suicide in the “unpardonable sin.” This is not true. The Biblical “unpardonable sin” cannot be committed today, as it applied to the Pharisees in Jesus' generation who attributed His power to demons rather than to God. Jesus proclaims, and Mark commentates, in Mark 3:28-30: “'Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation' – because they said, 'He has an unclean spirit.'”

As that sin cannot be committed today, as the Pharisees of that day are all dead, the “unpardonable sin” is more of an unpardonable state – the state of disbelief, the denial of Jesus Christ as the Son of God, the only way to salvation. This rejection come by atheistic means, by the denial of Jesus through the worship of other, false gods, or empty-hearted or heretical use of His name (those who unrepentantly blaspheme God by teaching false doctrines that are not found in Scripture, those who twist and distort God's word and teach lies. Revelation 22:15 mentions “whoever loves and practices a lie” as among those who are “outside” New Jerusalem).

It should be noted that when “sinners” are mentioned as those condemned to hell, this refers to unrepentant sinners: those whose flagrant disregard for God's warning attempts to make a mockery of His commands; those who have been rebuked and taught many times, but deny that God is against their doings and continue in them with abandon and delight.

Those who use the name of Jesus in an empty and insincere manner for personal gain, but whose hearts are far from Him, will find themselves in hell. Jesus declared, “Hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying: ‘These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men’” (Matthew 15:7-8).

Jesus describes those who emptily use His name but do not heed His commandments, and what awaits them at the final Judgment: ““Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked” and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’ “Then they also will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’ Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life”” (Matthew 25:41-46).

How can a spirit feel physical agony?

This question comes from our limited perception of spiritual things. We cannot help this limitation as we are in our current condition, spiritual but bound by flesh and elements, though we look forward to a day when we will be free of our earthly limitations and understand wonders and mysteries of God. As Paul writes, “For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known” (1 Corinthians 13:12).

Paul later writes, concerning this dichotomy and rigor of living spiritual lives in physical bodies, “For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven, if indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found naked. For we who are in this tent groan, being burdened, not because we want to be unclothed, but further clothed, that mortality may be swallowed up by life. Now He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who also has given us the Spirit as a guarantee” (2 Corinthians 4:1-5).

We, being so used to thinking of things physically and materially, are often baffled by the idea of a spirit – in theory not limited to physical things – experiencing pain. Pain, which we only know in physical and psychological ways. But we forget that torment is not limited to the physical. Think of the worst emotional times of your life. Did it not feel as though something deeper than just a psychological, chemical reaction was happening? Did it not feel as though your very being was held in the grip of pain? Did you find yourself thinking a physical ailment would be a relief compared to your sorrows, regrets, fears, and anxieties?

Think of this and multiply it by eternity.

As previously mentioned, what makes hell truly hell is the permanent absence of God. And that would truly render any soul in a state of eternal agony.

If there are already people in hell,

why will they be judged again?

Much like the heaven that exists now, the hell that exists now is not the “ultimate version.” Jesus tells the believing thief who was crucified with Him, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise” (Luke 23:43). In the aforementioned story of the rich man and Lazarus, He describes in beautiful terms what happened to Lazarus upon his death: “So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom” (Luke 16:22). This is a "temporary heaven," so to speak, that will be immensely overshadowed by the final residence of those saved by Jesus Christ, that is, New Jerusalem: “I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light. And the nations of those who are saved shall walk in its light, and the kings of the earth bring their glory and honor into it. Its gates shall not be shut at all by day (there shall be no night there). And they shall bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it. But there shall by no means enter it anything that defiles, or causes an abomination or a lie, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.

“And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him. They shall see His face, and His name shall be on their foreheads. There shall be no night there: They need no lamp nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light. And they shall reign forever and ever” (Revelation 21:22 – 22:1-5).

The afterlife for believers that exists now is no doubt a beautiful place, but it surely pales in comparison to the one where all believers will ultimately live forever. This New Jerusalem comes after the Judgment at the Great White Throne.

But those souls for whom a true Christian should weep are likewise in a temporary place: a horrible form of torment indeed, but their current place of agony will be outdone by the “lake of fire,” the ultimate and everlasting punishment, as mentioned earlier. This fate too comes after the Great White Throne.

It must be stressed that the “temporary hell” is not purgatory. The false doctrines of purgatory and other similar ideas imply that these lost souls can be refined or purified after death, or prayed for and saved after death, and that their spiritual state is more of intermediacy than agony. However, there is absolutely nothing in Scripture to suggest such a state after death for the atheist, agnostic, or unrepentant sinner. Death is permanent, as are one's choices and beliefs they held at the time their soul departed. These cannot be atoned for in the afterlife. One must accept Christ while they live on Earth.

What happens between death and final Judgment?

The notion of purgatory brings us to a question often asked and debated among Christians and non-believers alike: when we die, are we in a state of “spiritual sleep,” a kind of unconsciousness in which our souls are reserved for the Day of Judgment? Or are we, as described, sent to bliss or banishment?

Ecclesiastes 12:7, after describing the difficult final days of a human being and their approaching death, states, “the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it.” Paul, as we have already seen, refers to the dead who lived in Christ as being “asleep.” Chapter 12 of the book of the prophet Daniel tells us, while describing an end and a rising of the dead, uses similar language: “many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting contempt.”

These verses certainly suggest that bliss or damnation are not found immediately after death, but rather that the soul is kept in a sort of rest or reserve until Judgment. Other verses however, support the notion that one's soul tastes their ultimate eternal fate right away. Jesus' account of Lazarus and the rich man, which the author has already asserted to be a true story and not a parable, describes a complete consciousness and torment while those who still live on Earth continue to do so - the rich man mentions his brothers who have not yet died.

This debate could go on for days between two Christians, or between a Christian and a non-believer, but debating and arguing never led a soul to Jesus. Whichever scenario is correct, the bottom line is made clear by Scripture: there is an eternal paradise and an eternal damnation that exist for the believer and the non-believer respectively. Whether the soul is taken to the bosom of Abraham or to the bosom of fire as soon as its body ceases to live, both are permanent, one is amazing, the other is abhorrent.

What this author believes on the debate is clear, but there are things in Scripture that even a believer cannot be absolutely dogmatic about. However, this does not apply to issues of salvation – that God's Word is inerrant and Divinely Authored, and that repentance from sin and acceptance of His Son Jesus is the only way to eternal life. Christians can disagree on non-salvational points in Scripture without having to accuse one another of heresy: “is the soul conscious after death?”, “did Jesus die only for 'the elect'?” “is the 'behemoth' described in Job an elephant or a dinosaur?” These are not core issues of the doctrine of Christ.

Is the soul simply destroyed in hell?

The Scripturally unsound “annihilationist” view of hell contends that, after a punishment equal to one’s degree of wickedness, the soul simply “dies” and ceases to exist, or that the afterlife for unbelievers is simply the annihilation of the soul. Proponents of this view will note that the lake of fire described in Revelation is referred to as “the second death,” or will twist the meaning of Romans 6:23 to make a summary of their view of the contrast of hell and heaven – “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

But what the annihilationist fails to understand is that this verse, with the rest of the fifth and sixth chapters of Romans (and Bible verses must be understood in context, as with any other document), is not telling us a life lived in unrepentant sin leads to merely the end of one’s soul after physical death. It is actually describing the result of sin on Earth; that the reason death reigns in our world is because of the transgression of Adam and Eve (Romans 5:12-21). These passages tell us that sin and death go hand in hand; it was a result of sin in the Garden of Eden that death came into the world – “but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.” This did not mean Adam and Even would instantly drop dead, but rather that they would surely become subject to decay and death, contrary to the life God had given them in His Garden.

But as Romans 6:23 tells us, it was as a result of sin that Christ died to atone for our wrongs, to offer us the free gift of everlasting life.

The death described in this verse does not refer to a simple snuffing out of the soul. Jesus Himself refers to eternity for the unrepentant as “everlasting punishment” (Matthew 25:46).

In fairness, I would be remiss if I didn't mention Jesus' words in Matthew 10:28. Though I don't believe it describes the soul's end, the text is as follows (NKJV) - "do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell."

Are there “levels” of hell?

Concerning a question many people ask, “is hell the same for everyone who goes there?”, I’d have to say no. There are different rewards in heaven, and I believe there are different degrees, so to speak, of hell. Jesus tells the village of Capernaum, because of their unbelief even after the miracles He performed, that it will be “more tolerable” for Sodom and Gomorrah than for Capernaum on the Day of Judgment.

I don’t believe the average agnostic or atheist will experience the same kind of torment as people like Nero or Stalin. Some people, like Osama bin Laden or Hitler, might find themselves cast into a much more agonizing form of eternal damnation.

This is another non-salvational issue that does not affect the doctrine of Christ or His Scripture. I could very well be wrong about different “degrees” of suffering in hell.

But, again, the bottom line is that hell is eternal, unbearable anguish for anyone who goes there, be they the passive one who never found time or reason to repent, or the tyrant who suppressed the name of Jesus and killed their own citizens. And the reason, again, is the absence of God and His rich mercy.

Is Satan in charge of hell?

No. Satan will be cast into the lake of fire and be subject to eternal torment: “The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever” (Revelation 20:10).

He will not reign in hell. The Bible says that Satan's dominion is actually our world. Paul mentions the devil's spiritual activity in this world: “And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience...” (Ephesians 2:1-2). “The prince of the power of the air” refers to Satan and his demonic influence and battles against those in Christ.

Paul also calls Satan “the god of this age” (2 Corinthians 4:4). John says, “We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one” (1 John 5:19).

Addressing the church in Pergamos, Jesus refers to the evil spiritual dominion Satan has established: “I know your works, and where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is. And you hold fast to My name, and did not deny My faith even in the days in which Antipas was My faithful martyr, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells” (Revelation 2:13).

It must be remembered that God is not the “good God” and Satan “the bad god.” Satan is a created being, and is subject to the will of God, who is sovereign. The devil can only go so far as God allows, and is only given what God allows. See the beginning chapters of the story of Job for an example.

Did Jesus mention hell?

Jesus talks about hell more than other figure in the Bible. A term often translated “hell” when spoken by Jesus in the New Testament is “Gehenna.” Gehenna was once the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, and became a synonym for abomination and wickedness. It was there that two of Judah’s most wicked kings, Ahaz and Manasseh, sacrificed their children to the false god Molech. Gehenna became a place for burning refuse, a landfill, and in Jewish apocalyptic literature, a synonym for hell itself. In the ninth chapter of Mark’s account, Jesus, speaking to Jews who would be familiar with the connotation of the name of the valley, says that the fire of hell (“Gehenna”) “shall never be quenched.” Also in this chapter, Jesus quotes from Isaiah 66:24, describing a worm that does not die, and a fire that is not quenched.

Jesus also describes eternal torment in His condemnation of those who proclaimed Him but did not love Him: “And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life” (Matthew 25:46).

Perhaps most stirringly, He says in John 5:28-29: "for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth—those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation."

How should a Christian feel about hell?

Unrelenting sorrow. Not delight or glee at the thought of anyone spending their eternity there. To get to hell, one must deny and never know Jesus. And why would a Christian want that for anyone?

How should a Christian tell others about hell?

They shouldn't. A Christian's focus should be sharing the good news – that is, the Gospel – of Jesus Christ. Our focus should not be the damnation that awaits those who reject this Gospel. Undoubtedly, in conversations about Jesus and the Bible, the subject of hell can arise, and a Christian should not be hesitant to be honest about the reality of hell. But no one will listen to those who only rave about fire and brimstone.

The center of Christian evangelism must be centered on Jesus and the light and life He offers, both on Earth and in eternity.

"Conscience: Judas" by Nikolai Ge

Jesus Dreams of Egypt

 A strange thought occurred to me. 

About when You were in Egypt. When Joseph and Mary took You and fled to Egypt because of Herod and the massacre of the innocents. When You were there, on Earth, in the flesh, in the form of a small Child, in Egypt - what did You think about?

I mean, there You were, a helpless Child in the place You once...just, ravaged with plagues and death. More than once, actually. Egypt felt Your wrath many times. Maybe not always in the form of frogs and hailstones, but always in death. But that first time, the big one, the time everybody remembers, when You slew the firstborn of Egypt...and now, there You were, kept safe, harbored like a fugitive, by the people You terrorized.

It made me think about myself. We're like that here. You know that. I thought of You as a Child, stirring on a bed of straw or something, dreaming...did You ever dream of Egypt? Did You ever dream of when You turned the river to blood? 

Did You think about it when You were wide awake? Maybe when You were playing in a field or something. Maybe You saw some place, some barren little patch, and remembered some Egyptian child You struck down on that spot a thousand years before?

I thought about myself, like I said. And how You have the divine right, the sovereignty, to absolutely obliterate me if You saw fit. Just like You had the right to drown Pharaoh's army. Just like You had the right to slay the firstborn. You give power and You take it away, and You had the right to send the Persians and anybody else You saw fit to conquer Egypt. 

And there You were, snug and secure, safe from that madman Herod, safe in Egypt. Of all places. Knowing You'd broken them in pieces so many times. Knowing someday somebody might say You were the madman.

I think of Your right to destroy. I think of Your right to destroy me. Not just my body, but to send me to hell. I know they say I'm not supposed to say that, that You send people to hell. They tell me I'm supposed to say, "people send themselves to hell when  they choose to reject Jesus." And I get it, but it just makes it sound like I'm apologizing for You. Like I'm apologizing for the whole idea of hell. But I just can't bring myself to believe You're wrong. There are plenty of people long dead who it would make me very upset to know they're not in hell right now. 

So I don't apologize for You. And if You're not wrong, then You wouldn't be wrong to harden my heart and abandon me to evil. To just stop giving me strength, to cut off all Your help. 

The Calvinists like to talk about it a lot. About how You "predestine" some people for hell. Like they don't ever have a chance. I don't think I agree. But I know You'd have the sovereign right to do such a thing. 

I'd dread telling the Calvinists I think they're right. Knowing how they are, they'd probably tell me, "yeah we already know."

A guy told me once that when You drowned Pharaoh's army, the angels rejoiced, but You rebuked them. You told the angels that the Israelites could rejoice, because the Egyptians had tried to destroy them, but that You, You didn't want to rejoice over drowning the army - they were people You'd created, people You'd given life. And You mourned having to destroy them. 

Is that true? Or is it just some extra-Biblical thing, like a fable? I like to think it's true. After all it, it does fit You. You mourned a lot. You mourned on the mountains by Yourself, You mourned when they killed John the Baptist, You mourned when Lazarus was dead. 

And You mourned on the cross. Talk about sovereign choices. You chose to suffer and die for me. For everybody, even for Egypt. 

Did You weep while You slept on Your bed of straw? Did You dream of how many Egyptians You'd destroyed, and it knotted up Your guts, Your very human guts, to dream of those slain firstborn? Did You mourn when You woke up from the dreams, knowing what You'd do when You were grown up, knowing what they'd do to You on that cross, knowing it was the only way You'd never have to brutalize anybody again?

Unless, like I said, You send them to hell for rejecting You. In Egypt, did You dream about everybody, Egyptian, Jew, Gentile, that someday You'd destroy in hell? Did You dream of someone somewhere two thousand years later, screaming at the sky that You don't have any right? 

What did You dream? I wonder. But I know I don't really want to know. 

I'd go mad if I knew the things You had to bear in Your dreams.

Poem: "Rebel Scum"

I searched the bars for my friend Billy Yank -

Maggie had been missing for days, and he might

know where to find her if he could only think.

I averted my gaze from the dancers and when 

I saw my blue bellied friend, I went to beg him

for answers. But to my horror, before Billy could

even belch, I saw beside him Jefferson Davis 

himself. 

"Billy Yank, you're in Union blue, in the sight 

of unbelievers! Chumming with a traitor in full 

public view, buying bourbon for the grayest of

Gray deceivers!" 

I dragged Billy to the stall, Jeff Davis not 

seeming to notice me at all; Billy threw up 

on my shoes and I reminded him again of

his sin, and that he wore the Union blue.  

"Captain, calm your fuse" Billy replied, "Old Jeff 

and I are both patrons here. We're just talking 

Predestination; who am I to refuse such sincere 

conversation?"

"He's Rebel scum," I insisted,

"his ears are deaf and dumb to reason -

he's Mississippi's son, unrepentant of his

treason."

"We're both Rebels too, you and me,"

Billy slurred; "we were born in Alabama

amongst that damnable Rebel herd. Our fathers

owned the men we died to set free. The 

only difference is," Billy wiped his bleeding 

mouth, and fell to the floor, "when Cain broke

loose in the South, we were gambling in

Baltimore."

I was indignant; I had no time for rebuke, 

especially by a man I'd once defended, 

now covered in fluid and puke.

"Either you know where Maggie's gone,

or you don't," I said real flat. "I've got to find

her fast." Billy Yank shook his head before 

he breathed his last, and that was that.

At HQ I shook off what Billy said. 

I'm no Rebel, I was born no such

thing; I would much rather be dead and 

swallowed by muck and mud, would

much rather hang, than admit there's 

treason in my blood.

I'll prove it any day  

I'll submit to 23 & Me

and provide my DNA, I told myself;

Then everyone would see I'm more

pure a patriot than Abraham Lincoln himself.

Love is a Battlefield

A brokenhearted friend once told me in his frustration that the feeling of love is merely a chemical process in the brain and the rest of the body. Mere physiology, or some other technical mumbo jumbo. I hoped he didn't truly believe this: 

If love is a mere chemical process, then so is hate, and therefore hate should not be taken any more seriously than love. It could even be excused. And if those things are only medical goings-on, so are empathy, compassion, and the outrage against injustice that causes so many brave people to speak out against it. 

Every stand of bravery would be meaningless.

[James 1:17] 

Religion vs. Being a Good Person

In discussions about why a person needs or doesn't need religion, the point is often brought up that, "you don't need religion to be a good person." This is absolutely true.

I don't speak for other faiths, but I was abundantly relieved when I learned the focus of Christianity was not to "become a good person," or even a "better" person. The aim of Christianity is to take dirty rotten sinners like myself and sanctify them in Jesus Christ. Its purpose is not to turn its adherents into Mr. Rogers, or even Mother Teresa. If becoming a nicer person was the goal in receiving Jesus, I would have long ago found a different religion, like Scientology or Republicanism: I know I could never attain such an enlightened state of niceness. It works out tremendously well for me that the only qualification I needed to come to Jesus was to be a broken sinner.

The center of Christianity is the acceptance of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior; to be refined, re-defined, and sanctified by His truth in an unbelieving, fallen world. We are restored to peace with God and a relationship with Him through Jesus' death and resurrection. This is Christianity. Kindness and charity are certainly among His commandments, but they are not simply a means to an end, that end being "becoming a good person." And, even if one abides in Christ's commandments of love, compassion, and selflessness to the utmost devoutness, another of His commands is to spread His Gospel - which requires proclaiming and demonstrating He is the only way, truth, and life, a statement that grates and appalls many others. To many secular mindsets, this is not "being a good person."

Though one can be an atheist and a charitable and loving human being (atheism and kindness are not mutually exclusive, obviously), these ideas and concepts of compassion come only from God, from a Higher Power: we human beings have proved in our existence that we are incapable of any sustained amount of goodness. And, not being so deluded that I could become a good person without tremendous help, I accept that I need the love and strength of the only blameless Man who ever lived if I hope to approach righteousness.

My hat goes off to those who can muster being good, decent, honorable people by their own inherent, genetic powers of goodness, decency, and honor. But I know I'm not that strong or noble; my weakness in those areas is so egregious that I need something as outrageous as the supernatural to be holy. The Christ - the "religion" - I need in order to achieve this says it thusly: "I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance" (Luke 5:32).

"Do not enter into judgment with Your servant, for in Your sight no one living is righteous." -Psalm 143:2

When My Fellow Christians Act Like Absolute Butt-Pheasants

There was an incident at a Bible study some time ago that very much disturbed me. Jeremiah 29:11 was brought up. The verse that says, "'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'"

This is a well-known verse, as many Christians hold it as a reminder of God's love, and will often post it on social media, wear it on a T-shirt, or carry it in their wallet. But to my Bible group, that sort of thing was absurd; something only a total noob would do.

"Ha!" one scoffed. "They think that verse is about them!"

"They don't even get the context!" another remarked.

"Hey, hey - I'm gonna put a Bible verse out of context on a coffee mug just like those Christians do, but it'll be one of the dark ones. Like 'I will dig your grave, for you are vile!' Lolololol!"

And on they went like that.

Context is very important in Scripture. Not understanding that leads to a lot of unfair, and without citing proper context, hollow and inaccurate, criticisms and misunderstandings about the Bible. It can also lead to the schemes of the Joel Osteens of the world. This particular verse in Jeremiah expressed God's love for those of Judah who had been exiled to Babylon in the sixth century BC as punishment for their unrepentant idol worship.

However, it is important to note that verses written to a specific person or group of people in the Bible can parallel and echo God's truth that applies to all of us today.

Even a verse like that in Nahum, when God tells Nineveh, "I will dig your grave, for you are vile," though written as a warning to a violent kingdom oppressing the Jews, is still a reminder that vengeance is the Lord's, and He will bring unrepentant evildoers to punishment.

Heaven forbid a Christian read a Bible verse like Jeremiah 29:11 and be reminded of God's love and faithfulness, and know that He still holds those same qualities in the twenty-first century. 

What if a new believer had heard my Bible group say these snarky, condescending things? They would most likely be confused and hurt, maybe even driven away from the Gospel completely, as is the case with many new Christians whose fellow believers acted so snobbishly.

If anyone reading this has ever been hurt by Christians who have made arrogant remarks such as these, or have done worse, please don't judge the Gospel, or even God, by their deeds. He loves you, welcomes you, and His Holy Spirit longs to guide you and love you - without the butt-pheasantry of the more self-assured and pompous of your brothers and sisters in Christ.

The Unfair Gospel of Jesus

Infamous serial killer, cannibal, and necrophiliac Jeffrey Dahmer accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior just two years or so before he himself was murdered in prison in 1994. For a life lived in disbelief, for well over a decade of murder and gruesome, vile acts upon other human beings, Jeffrey Dahmer served just over three years in custody before, according to the facets of the Christian Gospel, he was sent to the eternal bliss of Paradise. A saint simply being one who is in Christ, Jeffrey Dahmer holds the same title as Billy Graham.

This is unfair. The families of Dahmer's victims, who hoped to see him locked behind bars - and worse - received less than an ounce of justice when you consider Dahmer's short prison term on Earth, and the Gospel's promise that he, having accepted Christ, has been given eternal life with God.

The Gospel is a beautiful Gospel, but it's also a difficult one, a gritty one, a gory one, and by the standards of us fleshly creatures, a very unfair Gospel.

Jeffrey Dahmer's crimes may be unique in their exceptionally bizarre and heinous nature, but his circumstances as a whole are not. Multitudes and multitudes of sinners like Dahmer, like me, like you, have accepted the salvation offered by Jesus Christ through His sacrifice on the cross, and our crimes have been washed away, expunged from our records. We were not punished, we were not stoned to death by the congregation, not swallowed up by the earth, not plundered and torn apart by Babylonian invaders.

I, as the 57th worst sinner who ever lived, am not sorry for this. I feel no guilt or shame that I've been rescued from my sins while having paid no price for it to be so. I regret the price I made others pay in my sinful behavior, but the One who removed those crimes from my record doesn't desire that I wallow in shame and misery over it. He is faithful to give me tasks and duties to glorify Him, to live a life in light rather than the one I lived in darkness. But He's not required me to roll in ashes and beat my breast, declaring what miserable, rotten things I've done; He's not required me to pay a monetary tax as penance to keep me in His embrace.

This is grossly unfair. But if it's any consolation to the outside observer, God played by His own unfair rules when He came to Earth in the flesh and suffered just like you and I do.

He endured temptation, but was without sin. He faced scorn, ridicule and plots against His life, though He had done no wrong, though He had brought an abundance of good in His ministry. He endured every day frustrations and agonies like you and me. And, He was tried and condemned, though without sin, and executed in the most agonizing way possible. A true criminal, an insurrectionist named Barabbas, was meanwhile set free.

While He was fastened by nails to that ominous cross, slowly dying, a criminal crucified next to Him groaned in his own agony that this Man from Galilee had done nothing wrong, and asked the He remember him when He came into His kingdom - if the criminal even knew just what that meant.

The condemned sinless One declared to the condemned rotten one, "Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise."

For all his years of habitual offenses and recklessness, a few hours of faith in the One who shows grace and mercy brought the unknown criminal to eternal life where there is no more pain, decay, sorrow or death.

There is no way around it - the Gospel of grace is an unfair Gospel.

drawing by Albert Servaes

"'Take what is yours and go your way. I wish to give to this last man the same as to you'...So the last will be first, and the first last. For many are called, but few chosen."
-Jesus Christ, Matthew 20:14, 16