“Then shall we know, if we follow on …”

By: Bill Johnson

There is distress in the land! And, it is not going away any time soon. Another way of saying it is – the world is on fire.

“But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived.” – 2 Timothy 3:13. One wonders how we are ever going to get through this, or if we ever really will.

There are some that still say, “Well, other oldsters in times before us were wringing their hands before us and so it goes.” Yes. That is true. And, oldsters like me and some of you are – I wouldn’t say necessarily wringing our hands – but we are deeply troubled. We see no one in a high leadership position that is speaking truth or leading wisely! We hunger and thirst for truth; for it is truth that heals, truth that will lead to right thinking, right living and truth that will set us free.

As one of my daily devotional readings points out: “Truth is vital for our lives. If people in a given culture are not broadly committed to telling the truth and honoring commitments, the entire fabric of society will disintegrate. Should our science and technology not be based on what is true about the world, the consequences would be deadly. Our vehicles would probably not have working brakes because we ignore the law of physics, we might ingest poisons thinking they are safe because chemical companies do not bother to give us warnings or do not test the safety of their products first and so forth.” [Tabletalk Magazine, The God of Truth, January 31, 2022]

We’ve all had reason to think about this recently; some because experts tell us that even our little children (5 and under) need to be vaccinated and vaccinated now! – when the truth is that less than 0.1 percent of young children have died of Covid19 and the vaccine has known, dangerous side effects. We are troubled when the government and leading corporations are pressing us toward embracing electric vehicles – ostensibly because of their distaste for fossil fuels, although the methods used for mining lithium are actually less environmentally friendly (and the lithium market is under Chinese control).

Increasingly they enforce their green agenda although it has already proven to be foolhardy, as their wind farms are made profitable only by government grants and the production of which also damages environments, wildlife, and landscapes. Are the facts about electric cars compelling enough to replace gas engines with electric cars? You do the research.

What about our medications? We gave over the manufacturing and distribution of our medications to the Chinese long ago. Was that really wise? Was it based on a belief that China is our friend? China is our ally? Is that truth or a lie? Doesn’t that leave us vulnerable to having lifesaving and preserving drugs withheld from the citizens our agencies are sworn to protect?

It’s obvious that these kinds of economic and geopolitical decisions must be based on truth, at least if our leaders have their constituents’ best interests at heart.

What about the efficacy of the shutdowns? Masking? Social distancing? It’s all been proven a fraud.

What about the public schools? Are they disseminators of truth? Are they training our youth in the way of knowing the difference between the truth and a lie? Sadly, we all know that the answer is no.

As Christians, we seek to be truth-tellers and pursuers of truth. To us, truth is more than just useful and beneficial. Turning again to Tabletalk Magazine, “Scripture of course places much of its emphasis on the fact that God is a God of Truth. As with His other attributes, when the Word of God tells us that He is the God of Truth, as it does in Isaiah 65:16 and in many other passages, it does not mean simply that the Lord possesses truth. Instead, it means that God is truth itself. Truth is not something that the Lord could have or not have and still remain God. It is essential to His very existence. Jesus, who is God incarnate, helps us understand this when He says, ‘I am the … truth’ (John 14:6,7).”

In his book “Art & the Bible,” Francis Schaeffer wrote: “The ancients were afraid that if they went to the end of the earth they would fall off and be consumed by dragons. But once we understand that Christianity is true to what is there, true to the ultimate environment – the infinite, personal God who is really there – then our minds are freed. We can pursue any question and can be sure that we will not fall off the end of the earth.”

One of our great concerns in our day is that those who are leading us are not operating as either truth seekers or truth tellers but rather as people with a nefarious agenda. At the center of that agenda is not to uphold the U.S. Constitution as they pledged to do, but to undermine it and the Christian ideals that constructed it.

One tragic case that makes the point is the capitulation to the Taliban in Afghanistan – walking away from millions of dollars of military hardware: machine guns, grenade launchers, night vision goggles, even tanks and airplanes and the powerful and strategically located Bagram Air Base. More importantly, thousands of American citizens and international support staff were left behind to be hunted down and in many cases slaughtered.

Those in command are not stupid, they are corrupt! Their agenda isn’t ‘ill-advised,’ but wicked – to lead in a way that weakens America, one day at a time, until they can move with greater angst and speed.

But God!   One of the highest joys of being in Christ is being in Christ and knowing that with each passing year that He LIVES and that He loves to hear our prayers and to answer them.

The happenings we see and hear about are so discouraging and troubling. But Puritan Preacher Samuel Ward wrote: “Make use of your faith.  This is the chief mystery of our spiritual life. Stir up your soul to talk with Christ. Consider the promises and privileges you enjoy. Think of them, roll them under your tongue, chew on them until you feel their sweetness in your soul. Consider how wonderful that your debts are canceled, and how wonderful that God’s wrath is satisfied. Unstirred coals do not glow or give heat. The beauty of faith is its use. Don’t just have muscles, use them. Let a man diligently and thoroughly improve his faith and the joy it will bring to him will be great.”

One “muscle” that often is not utilized is making use of our faith through PRAYER, as I recently had the privilege of discussing with a faith leader from Traverse City, Michigan – Pastor Dan Gilmore.

Dan has much to say about our need not only for prayer but for fervent prayer. We invite you to listen in on our conversation at https://rumble.com/vum6nh-interview-with-dan-gilmore.html.  In our troubling times, I’m sure you will find it to be an encouragement. “Unstirred coals do not glow or give heat.”  We hope that you can use Dan’s and my chat to “stir the coals.”

 

To view this article in your browser, Click here

For more information, articles and newsletters, please check out our website at https://americandecency.org/

You can support ADA financially by visiting: https://give.cornerstone.cc/americandecency

 

---