Tag: Pride

Reflection 5: Family of God – Economy of God

“Don’t acquire gold, silver, or copper. Carry no purse, no knapsack, no sandals. Don’t bring a second tunic or a staff. Don’t stop to greet people along the way.” Q29, Lost Gospel Q.

There are many people in today’s cynical world who write blogs, magazine articles, report various viewpoints on T.V. and radio, and even some who preach the word of God that would have you believe that God’s economy is the same as man’s economy. There are some who would tell the stories of the bible linking them to our current-fiscal crisis; the political storm which took over the United States Government and  which was successful in closing the Government partially and treating the world economy at large, all while linking these events to God. Some even use the bible to condemn rich people, the wealthy establishment, those who do not have to worry ever of where their next meal is coming from. But I tell you that money which fuels the United States Economy, and the world economy is not and has nothing to do with God’s economy for God has no use for those things of the this world for everything in this world will someday pass away. Jesus did not preach about how to collect wealth, but rather how wealth was to be used in this life to help those in need, for to transfer man’s earthly wealth to heaven cannot be done. Man’s creation or false sense of security we lovingly call our economy is just that a creation of man, not God, therefore nothing we make, build, or invent can be taken with you when you die no matter how hard one tries.  The ultimate example of man trying to take his wealth with him is found throughout the world in the great tombs of long lost Kings and Queens, most notably that of the Egyptian Pharaohs, of which great riches where buried and then later plundered.  But yet the economy of God in this posting refers to your relationship with God, his riches that which he shall bestow upon those who served him in this life and who proclaimed His name to all the Earth  in this life.  For Jesus stated quit clearly do not collect  gold, silver, copper, and in this he was telling those who believed in Him as the son of man that these Earthly things will not be of any value in the world yet to come.

The Command of “Don’t”!

“Don’t be blinded by the pursuit of food, clothing, and possessions. Stop worrying about these things. Only those who lack spirit and soul pursue them. You have a Father who knows what you need. Set your heart on God and these other things will be given to you.” Q53, Lost Gospel Q.

The word, “Don’t” is very clearly a command to “Not Do”, it is very clearly a, “Do Not”,  from the Lord!  He is guarding us from the same sin which took down Eve in the Garden of Eden, He is trying to keep us safe from the sin of Pride which Lucifer had fallen from grace over thus spawning original sin.  It is a sign-post to take exceptional note of and to obey completely and faithfully. Over and over in the Bible one can find the basic story of how mankind is corrupted by jealously, lust, and greed, all of which leads to violence and crime.  “Do Not build your wealth here on Earth”; “Do Not be blinded by money and wealth”; “Do Not acquire gold, silver, or copper”;  All are implicit commands to stay away from this most damning of temptations because those who fall to this sin will not be sharing the riches of Heaven, those people who fall to this sin are in Jesus’s words, “lacking in spirit and soul”.  So, I find it very troubling that man completely and utterly ignored this command from Jesus and instead created great wealth and through that wealth, (which continually grows for a small select few of the world’s population), that we now have great poverty thrust upon those who have not the same resources in-which to compete against a person of means. The sin is not in the act of acquiring  but rather in the larger picture of destruction it reeks upon the world at large; i.e. the rich man who does not spend his money to help the worlds hungry, or to educate the worlds illiterate, and / or the rich man who does not use his money to build homes for the homeless; all of this is in-fact the acts of the rich who are lacking in spirit and soul.  What good is there in giving to those who have while ignoring those who have not? How simple it is to keep building wealth while ignoring the abject poverty their lack of action in helping those lesser off than they creates!  Reaching further into the roots of this sin of wealth building for the sake of building wealth we find this guiding question; “What good would have come if those who are rich in economic resources had helped to build homes, schools, pantries and soup kitchens, and to care for the sick and elderly, what impact would this kindness have brought?”  But rather the sin is in the decision to willfully deny  God’s people by not sharing the wealth but rather using it to buy bigger and better homes for ones-self, to buy outlandish yachts to display ones-own wealth and personal power, to buy businesses for the sole purpose to fueling ones-own greed and to keep the money rolling into a singular coffer so as to be spend on foolish things which do not improve the world or it’s population by any degree of measure.  The sin is profoundly rooted in the question;  “What miracles could have been worked for the benefit of all mankind?”  For the repercussions of greed is rooted in the impoverishment we see worldwide, thus it is not that God hates rich people rather God hates the greed the rich are subjected too, God hates the lust for power that the massively wealth entertains daily!  God hates the politics which rich people endorse that leads to the buying of  a bigger home rather than to help in the purchasing of homes, (plural),  for the thousands who are homeless, the lack in soul which prevents and distorts that beautiful and graceful miracle of helping people of all walks of life to be feed, or educated, and / or to be cured of their life zapping illnesses. God hates the choice some of the most wealthy partake which serves ones-self, (in the singular), interest by commiserating in the blissful spending of wealth on selfish and self-serving things!

 The same is true with great nations like the United States, Great Britain, the former Soviet Union, Nazi Germany, Britannia, Rome, Egypt, and the great Central American empires of the distant past. History records God’s wrath played out upon those people who refused to build better for the common good and defense of all, the sharing of resources and wealth, and who rather played the politics of man rather than to set their eyes upon God.  All these great empires with the exception of the United States lost their position because they rather set their collective sights on the power that their economics brought to them than the good they could have done with it.   Every single empire sought out war to increase their collective wealth, sacrificed millions of their own son’s to secure their dominance over their neighbors and to plunder resources which did not belong to them. The United States in some of these sins share an equal part of the over all punishment and damnation which all other nations have been burned by, and yet there is one specific sin which the United States vastly out weights every other nation on earth for, that sin is PRIDE!

The American Pride is exceptional in all the Earth, it fuels the American erogance which has brought low the economic worth of the dollar to the point which the United States Government shows off its complete and utter futility to fight against it’s self, to guard against it’s own self interest, and too in the greatest of political struggles manage to boast of how the world needs it’s security when in fact it was the security of the American Dollar that the American Government came so close to devaluing for a second time in the course of the past three years of infighting!   No other country would have allowed its currency to be devalued through it’s own governmental system or construct, for no other country is as erogant as the United States!  The American sin is illustrated in no greater way than the political hemorrhaging of the Republican Party from 2009-to  the current date due largely to an inflated ego that allows the American Federal Legislature to exhibit over confidence, the sin of wealth has produced unrivaled political brinkmanship, and all this has put on display before God and the world something which God does not tolerate, hypocrisy!  How can representatives spout that America spends to much if their own strategy spends more money in a 16 day period than the law it was trying to unfunded will spend in 10 years? How can representatives vote to destroy an economy their constituents voted them in to save? How can representatives justify putting millions out of work, keeping them from paying their bills and yet receive a pay check to do the same thing they have keep millions from doing and which by virtue of their actions prevented the nation from doing? This American hypocrisy runs so deep that it even allowed a small fraction of the House of Representatives, (The Peoples House), to take hostage the entire Federal Government, paralyzing the nation and the world, forcing millions to go without food, housing, education, medical care, and it was the sole cause of the shut down! Yet these 144 members blame the President who refused to allow them to continue playing this game, refused them from hurting more Americans, and possible the world economy!  In doing further investigations it is apparent their own hypocrisy spilleth over, for many use the government resources they fought to shut down for the masses, many of them have taken from the purse of the nation in support for their own families and constituents, while spouting the evils of big government!  It would seem that the Peoples House no longer serves all the people, it is in these deeds of man that God said to “Not Do”!

The 144 Hypocrites 

Aderholt, Amash, Amodei, Bachmann, Barr, Barton, Bentivolio, Bishop (UT), Black, Blackburn, Brady (TX), Bridenstine, Brooks (AL), Broun (GA), Bucshon, Burgess, Campbell, Carter, Cassidy, Chabot, Chaffetz, Collins (GA), Collins (NY), Conaway, Culberson, Denham, DeSantis, DesJarlais, Duffy, Duncan (SC), Duncan (TN), Ellmers, Farenthold, Fincher, Fleischmann, Fleming, Flores, Forbes, Foxx, Franks (AZ), Garrett, Gibbs, Gingrey (GA), Gohmert, Goodlatte, Gosar, Gowdy, Granger, Graves (GA), Graves (MO), Griffith (VA), Hall, Harris, Hartzler, Hensarling, Holding, Hudson, Huelskamp, Huizenga (MI), Hultgren, Hunter, Hurt, Johnson (OH) Johnson, Sam, Jones, Jordan, King (IA), Kingston, Labrador, LaMalfa, Lamborn, Lankford, Latta, Long, Lucas, Luetkemeyer, Lummis, Marchant, Marino, Massie, McCaul, McClintock, Meadows, Messer, Mica, Miller (FL), Miller (MI), Mullin, Mulvaney, Neugebauer, Noem, Nugent, Nunnelee, Olson, Palazzo, Pearce, Perry, Petri, Pitts, Poe (TX), Pompeo, Posey, Price (GA), Radel, Reed, Renacci, Rice (SC), Roby, Roe (TN), Rogers (AL), Rohrabacher, Rokita, Rooney, Ross, Rothfus, Royce, Ryan (WI), Salmon, Sanford, Scalise, Schweikert, Scott, Austin, Sensenbrenner, Sessions, Smith (MO), Smith (TX), Southerland, Stewart, Stockman, Stutzman, Thornberry, Turner, Wagner, Walberg, Walden, Walorski, Weber (TX), Wenstrup, Westmoreland, Williams, Wilson (SC), Woodall, Yoder, & Yoho

God’s Currency

“Don’t pile up your treasures here on earth. They will be destroyed by moths and rust and stolen by thieves. Store your riches in heaven where moths and rust are powerless and thieves cannot break in. Wherever your treasures is, your heart will also be.” Q 54, Lost Gospel Q.

God’s economy is vastly different than the examples of the economy of man above.  God’s economy is anchored upon principals that build faith in God.  This economy is in general one of faith, obedience, loyalty, love, forgiveness, mercy, and is secured upon the corner stone of  God’s grace.  Therefore, Jesus instructs us to not build up treasures hear on earth, rather store your riches in heaven. The riches Jesus is talking about is not currency that comes from earthly materials but rather the love and grace you bestow upon those less fortunate than yourself.  God’s currency is your obedience, your willingness to set your sights on Him alone.  Through this Jesus also uncovers a mystery of how God measures this obedience for Our Lord states quit clearly, “For wherever your treasure are, there to is your heart”, and God lives within your heart, He breaths in the same air you breath if you willing accept His presence in your life.   God promises to never let you down, to always be with you and to guide you, and most importantly to love you no matter what.  This does not mean that He agrees with everything you do, or endorses everything you endorse, but He promises to mold you into a more perfect person if you allow Him too.  Thus, the 144 Congressman who voted to keep the United States Government shut down and to ruin the economic power of the United States and to destabilize the world economy, God does not endorse their politics or political brinkmanship, but God still loves them and is open to forgiveness  even though the vast majority of Americans will not.  That in and of its-self is the best example of Gods grace in action.  In this Jesus is also adamantly expressing the totality of treasures awaiting us in heaven, for it is better to be loved by family than to have a million dollars of man’s gold, silver, platinum, or a million acres  of prosperous crops, for the real reward is rooted in the deep love of family and this love is eternal even during periods of fighting and name calling.  In this way to be called a son of God, a brother or sister of Jesus Christ is ultimately the best treasure anyone could ever hope for because this at its core means God so loves you that he sees you as one of His sons or daughters, and this implies by all of God’s promises that you shall eat from the table of the Most High God. This treasure cannot be destroyed by moths or rust, nor stolen by thieves, and God never takes back something which he has given in good faith. The attainment of Heaven is in and of it’s self the full embodiment of the victory of the cross, for even death cannot permanently take away what God has blessed you with.  The economy of God is not fickle and never will it sway in the wind.  God knows every one of your needs and he places those needs above your wants, taking good care to love you and to provide for you those things that will sustain you.  The treasure of God’s love exceeds all known currency of man, it is priceless among the measures of men, it over shadows all nations wealth and power by such an amount there is no way for man to completely comprehend what is truly gained for such a small act of faith in God.   All of this might sound lofty but the proof has already been shown within the life and times of Our Lord Jesus Christ, proof has been exhibited by the conversion of the Roman empire to Christianity by a small group of believers.  The word of God is the expenditures Our divine Lord has made on our behalf, it is the greatest of purchases for it redeemed the entire world forever and ever.   By stark contrast one cannot be a true believer if one votes to destroy something which God has granted, or to act for the benefit of a small group who wants to enrich themselves and impoverish the entire world within the same selfish act.   Jesus called these people lacking is spirit and soul, and His proof is found within His own deeds and beliefs as He took on the sin of the world.  For I shall argue that there could not have been salvation without the obedience of Jesus Christ, there could have been no salvation if Jesus had not been willing to die for it.  Likewise, Jesus was not dying to save man so that man could boast, or quibble about silly power which in and of it’s self is an illusion cast over mankind’s eyes by Satan, but rather Jesus saw the fruits of His efforts in their full and absolute entirety which is something that Satan nor man could ever do.  God’s currency freed us, helps and guides us, and is ever present in every action we take when we accept His will in our own lives, just like Jesus did.

The Importance of Being On Guard

“If the owner of a house knows when a thief is coming, he will be on guard and not let anyone break into the house. You too must be prepared -the son of man will arrive when you least expect him.” Q55, Lost Gospel Q.

The mere fact that the United States Government could be brought low by a handful of Republicans is a sign that the House of the People is not on guard, that its eyes are not set upon God!  In fact this could easily be said about every government in the world who has succumb to such faithlessness that it would allow it’s actions to bring such harm to it’s population.  The same can be said of individual people who have allowed their lives to be controlled by a radical family member, or the harlot who allows her body to be defiled every night by different men in the pursuit  of money or pleasure, or the greedy man who has allowed his heart to be hardened so that his mind can be eased by the deceitful act of murder, theft, or slander for the pursuit of personal gain. The powerful among us have available to them many pleasures, but they like the poor shall be judged by God’s perfect measure of the heart.  The faithful man or women will be ready as their house will be in order, all things in it’s proper place ready for the Son of Man.   There will be no thief that will be able to break in the house of the person devout in spirit and of soul, for there is no rule of law that could take their children away, no spouse that could take away the responsibility to always love and to forgive, and there is no child that could hate their own parents so completely they would through their parents to the wolves.   For those who practice such evils are not the children of God, but the devils belonging to Satan.  For being ready means to never give evil an foothold, to never turn the blind eye to evil deeds, and to always stand up for truth and justice even at the risk of a high personal cost or damage to personal reputation and popularity.  For surely God does not reward the unrepentant, the unloving, the unfaithful, nor will he condemn the repentant heart who openly accepts the responsibility of their own sins.  God is just in all measure and shall use your own methodology you use to judge others on yourself justly so.  For in this is a sinful heart never taken nor be unprepared and not ready for the Son of Man when he knocks at the front door.   For the wise would argue emphatically  “Yes”, and so the wise never ignore, never close and eye, never loose faith, never spreads misinformation or bolsters lies. No the wise are the children of God who are always ready to do good, never tiring, never running away, never handing out false hope, but rather giving love and spreading mercy everywhere they go.  This too is the currency of God exhibited through mankind in all the deeds God works through those who are faithful and who are on guard.

Amen

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Brian Keith

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Reflections 1: The Sin of Pride

” 1 And God spoke all these words: 2 I am the Lord thy God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. 3 You shall have no other gods before me” (Exodus 20: 1-3, Zondervan NIV Study Bible, p.116-117).

I begin this new series of reflections this Sunday, April 18, 2010 called the Sin Series with this most basic, but important of commandments delivered to Moses by God, to illustrate how we are fooled into sinning in the first place. I want to introduce you to a world that is at war, but one we do not see with our own eyes, one that is fought for the ownership of our immortal soul. God clearly stated who he was, and what he wanted within the commandments which he delivered to Moses. God stated clearly through profits that were to follow in the many years since what he wanted from us. God has clearly warned us not to believe in anything other than his words, his promises, which he has faithfully kept. He tells us like we tell our own children not to do this, or that, but like our children we rarely listen. We are all guilty before God, we are all unworthy before God, and that also includes Lucifer, hence the need for Lucifer to go to war against God. To prove who is truly greater, but the one thing Lucifer forgot in starting this war was one very simple thing, he is not God, and Lucifer was created, God was not. Nevertheless Lucifer is remarkable in that he has a silver tongue, one which fooled one third of all the angels in heaven to rebel against God. (For a visual that would be like looking up at the night sky and watching one third of all the stars in the heavens fall before your very eyes.) So it is no wonder why we sin, if we are consistently tempted by Lucifer the great deceiver, right? But wait, before you get to righteous in this defense, remember you are held accountable for all your sins before God.

“10 You, then, why do you judge your brother? Or why do you look down on your brother? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat. 11 It is written: ‘As surely as I live’, says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will confess to God”  (Romans 14: 10-11, Zondervan NIV Study Bible, p.1768).

“1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2 ‘Honor your father and mother’-which is the first commandment with a promise- 3 ‘that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.’ 4 Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord” (Ephesians 6: 1-4, Zondervan NIV Study Bible, p.1768).

Within these words of the Bible, God has commanded all of us to obey him, male and female, adult and child alike. But Lucifer within the creation of sin, through pride, stood opposed to God, thus paving the way to convincehumanity to rebel also out of pride. This is his first and most favorite trick, that of pride and it is the sin which turned him form an archangel into Satan. Interestingly there is a list found in the Bible of all the things God hates, the chief thing among them is that of being too proud;

“16 There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to him: 17  haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, 18  a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, 19  a false witness who pours out lies, and a man who stirs up dissension amoung brothers”  (Proverbs 6: 16-19, Zondervan NIV Study Bible, p.967).

If you look closely all these things come from pride, all of these things are an accurate description of the original sin of Lucifer which turned him into Satan. Saint Thomas Aquinas wrote a book called Summa Theologica, though unfinished it explores this chief of all sins, in which he writes; “I answer that, some say pride is to be taken in three ways. First, as denoting inordinate desire to excel; and thus it is a special sin. Secondly, as denoting actual contempt of God, to the effect of not being subject to His commandment; and thus, they say, it is a generic sin. Thirdly, as denoting an inclination to this contempt, owing to the corruption of nature; and in this sense they say that it is the beginning of every sin, and that it differs from covetousness, because covetousness regards sin as turning towards the mutable good by which sin is, as it were, nourished and fostered, for which reason covetousness is called the “root”; whereas pride regards sin as turning away from God, to Whose commandment man refuses to be subject, for which reason it is called the “beginning,” because the beginning of evil consists in turning away from God” (Aquinas, T. , Summa Theologica: Part I of Second Part Q. 84 Art. 2). Thus through reason, the exact opposite of pride is humility, within that you have Satan as the opposite of Jesus Christ.

St. Augustine of Hippo wrote, “‘Pride is the commencement of all sin’6 because it was this which overthrew the devil, from whom arose the origin of sin; and afterwards, when his malice and envy pursued man, who was yet standing in his uprightness, it subverted him in the same way in which he himself fell. For the serpent, in fact, only sought for the door of pride whereby to enter when he said, ‘Ye shall be as gods.'”7  (Shaffle, P., Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, 1887, p.132).

I know in my life when I have got a bit full of myself, I have always felt a change take place, a transition of internal control from myself, to Satan. When I have become prideful I get caught in whatever I am doing. God has always been quick to send someone who points my false belief out in spades. I am always quick to respond, and ask for forgiveness, and offer my gratitude in his wisdom and patience. Likewise God has always been quick to bless me, and to show mercy. This interaction with God is unique only to God, as Satan on the other hand is incapable of forgiveness, or mercy, because Satan turned away from God in rebellion, we to turn away in rebellion. Pride ushers in though more than just an act of rebellion, or thinking oneself better than God, but allows the heart to become drowned in other emotions such as, arrogance, impatience, intolerance for others, and the lack of forgiveness. All which attack the heart squeezing from it every ounce of God given love. This is typically known as the hardened heart, and a baron, fruitless, lifeless place where there is no happiness, or joy, leavening behind instead a soul which is in pain and starving. It is an absolute take over, and Satan does not take prisoners, nor does he give back what he has stolen, and the sin of pride comes from within us, but originates from Satan.

“(In saying this, Jesus declared all fools “clean”), 20 He went on: “What comes out of a man is what makes him ‘unclean’. 21 For from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22 greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. 23 All these evils come from inside and make a man ‘unclean” (Mark 7: 20-23, Zondervan NIV Study Bible, p.1539).

Knowing these things then how does one keep from this sin, keep from falling into this trap set by Satan?

The most important thing to remember  in dealing with pride issues, is the acknowledgment that nothing is truly yours as God gives you everything, from cloths on your back, to the food on your table, the money you earn, to your wife, husband, children, friends and family. There is nothing God does not have something to do with in your life. Each accomplishment was granted by God, each achievement was his blessing to you.

“9 To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself; ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men-robbers,evildoers, adulterers-or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’ 13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even lookup to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God have mercy on me, a sinner.’ 14 “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted” (Luke 18: 9-14, Zondervan NIV Study Bible, p.1607).

The exact opposite of pride is humility.

“Those who praise themselves will be humbled. Those who humble themselves will be praised.” (Lost Gospel Q: Q 67, p.67).

There is a fine line between being to prideful and being proud in the good things God does for us, celebrating and glorifying God. There is a difference between saying you did this or that, giving yourself praise, believing in your heart that you made the accomplishment happen, and that of saying God gave me this accomplishment, he allowed it in my life. The difference is that one gives glory to self, and the latter gives praise to God. The first is pride fullness, the second is humility. It is easy to be prideful; it is easy to destroy and to celebrate self. It is much harder to believe God grants all things, and to fall upon your knees and give him praise for your good fortunes in life. It is much harder to create and maintain your relationship with God; it is way too easy to turn away and to celebrate self, which is a sin.

Amen

If you have been moved by this blog I humbly invite you to leave a message telling me your thoughts and how this reflection has touched you. May peace and love be with you all the days of your life.  May God keep you and bless you. Amen.

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For more information about sin and Lucifer please purchase the book Listening Faithfully: Sin Series now available on Amazon Kindle Edition.