There Are None Ignorant, No Not One

God speaks generally to every man and woman, boy and girl on earth. No one can claim ignorance when they stand before God. It doesn't work with the cop and his radar gun, so why do we think it will work with God? Solomon writes:

Does not wisdom call? Does not understanding raise her voice? On the heights beside the way, at the crossroads she takes her stand; beside the gates in front of the town, at the entrance of the portals she cries aloud: "To you, O men, I call, and my cry is to the children of man. (Pro 8:1-4 ESV)

The Wisdom of God is pictured as a woman, and Solomon claims she calls to all and is readily available. Proverbs 1 confirms this truth:

Wisdom cries aloud in the street, in the markets she raises her voice; at the head of the noisy streets she cries out; at the entrance of the city gates she speaks: "How long, O simple ones, will you love being simple? How long will scoffers delight in their scoffing and fools hate knowledge? If you turn at my reproof, behold, I will pour out my spirit to you; I will make my words known to you. Because I have called and you refused to listen, have stretched out my hand and no one has heeded, because you have ignored all my counsel and would have none of my reproof, I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when terror strikes you, when terror strikes you like a storm and your calamity comes like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come upon you. (Pro 1:20-27 ESV)

God's wisdom is seen once again as a woman, and her testimony is that no one paid attention. She condemns us by saying: "you have ignored all my counsel and would have none of my reproof." Paul utters a similar indictment against mankind:

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. (Rom 1:18-20 ESV)

There is no one that has ever trod this earth that can stand before Almighty God and claim that he turned away from Him because God never provided any understanding of His existence or His power and works among men. The witness of God has been in His creation and acts of goodness, and for over six thousand years has been through His Word.

Romans 2:14-15 presents yet another claim of God that voids mankind's excuses:

...For when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law. They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them ...(Rom 2:14-15 ESV)

Deep within everyone, regardless of race or location, is a God-given awareness, a consciousness, not only of His existence, but even of some of the basics of what He requires, things written in God's biblical law. Despite all of this evidence, we universally reject Him. So thorough is mankind's rejection of God that, when He came as a man, we killed Him!

Am I Bonkers? Kids Always Made Fun of my Big Ears

I remember getting upset when kids made fun of my 'big ears'. They wondered if I could listen in on the Chinese. I remember trying to tape them down so they wouldn't stick out so much. Thankfully I grew into my ears (maybe a little too much). I have grown to accept the way God made me. Words that people say don't upset me like they use to. I have learned the importance of understanding why they say what they say.

But I did read something this morning that brought back those memories of having 'big ears' . I felt like I was being made fun of all over again. Andy Klein was quoted in praise of Bill Maher’s new film “Religulous” in the Pro-Con section of the Kansas City Star’s Opinion page. Andy said

“For many of us, it makes about as much sense to take the Bible (or any of the other religions’ texts) as absolute truth as it does to regard The Lord of the Rings (or Gulliver’s Travels or The Story of O) as Holy Writ. The Bible’s exceptional status is more an accident of history than a proof of divine origin. And thinking God is actually speaking to you is, well, a little bonkers, whether you’re Moses or Joan of Arc or the guy on his knees praying, right down the street.”

Andy is a film reviewer for www.lacitybeat.com. And yes, he represents a growing number of people in America who define “bonkers” as thinking that God speaks to you. Such a view is widespread because we have raised an entire generation of children without teaching them the reality and authority of God’s Word. Nor have we DEMONSTRATED the reality of God’s Word. Sure people have a knowledge of God, even a desire to worship Him. But they only love the “concept” of a traditional God. What this generation loves is actually an idol, a god of their own making. He might as well be a voiceless statue if to hear Him speak is “bonkers”.

To know the true God is to listen to His words. To understand the true God is to believe that He in fact speaks to us. Hebrews 1:2 says that God has spoken to us through His Son. John 1 says that “The Word” (God’s message to us) was with God in the beginning, and in fact is God. In him appeared life and this life was the light of mankind. The light still shines in the darkness and the darkness has never put it out.

People like Bill Maher and Andy Klein will always make fun of people who “listen” to the Word of God. They would have made fun of my "Big Ears". They are like the kids who make fun of blind people and other kids with disabilities.

John 1:11 says even when He came to his own (the Jews) His own people did not receive Him. And the Jews believed the Word of God! So why should we expect an entire generation of Americans who have grown up without a Biblical foundation to believe that God really does speak to people? The problem with the Jews who believed the Word but rejected the physical manifestation of the Word (Jesus) was their hearts of stone.

Jeremiah 2:19 (AMP): Your own wickedness shall chasten and correct you, and your backslidings and desertion of faith shall reprove you. Know therefore and recognize that this is an evil and bitter thing: [first,] you have forsaken the Lord your God; [second,] you are indifferent to Me and the fear of Me is not in you, says the Lord of hosts.

The Jewish leaders (Pharisees and Sadducee's) were self-serving and corrupt. Their hearts had become hardened to the voice of God. They had rejected the message of John the Baptist (the Voice of one crying out in the wilderness), and now they rejected the message of Jesus of Nazareth. As Jesus proclaimed on the Temple steps:

15 The Jews therefore marveled, saying, “How is it that this man has learning, when he has never studied?” 16 So Jesus answered them, “My teaching is not mine, but his who sent me. 17 If anyone’s will is to do God’s will, he will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own authority. 18 The one who speaks on his own authority seeks his own glory; but the one who seeks the glory of him who sent him is true, and in him there is no falsehood. 19 Has not Moses given you the law? Yet none of you keeps the law. Why do you seek to kill me?” John 7:15-19 (ESV)

If people of this day and age desire to do the will of God, they will listen to His Word. If they only desire their own authority, they will worship a god of their own making, a god who is speechless and without impact on their lives. They will continue to think their virtues of generosity, kindness, and sincerity will be sufficient to live moral upright lives of significance. They will continue to call listeners to the Voice of God “bonkers” as they continue to cover their heart and ears to the call of His Word. Jesus is calling all to the Salvation He has provided. As the Voice of God says:

17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. 19 And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. John 3:17-19 (ESV)

Go ahead and call me bonkers. You do so because you love darkness and your works are evil. Paul affirms this in Romans 3:10-11 when he quotes Psalms 14, “There is none righteous, no not one; there is none who understands; there is none who seeks after God”. If you desire to seek after the true God, and hear His Voice, you must allow the Son of God into your life. You must worship Him as your Savior. He will speak to all those who call upon His name and give their hearts to Him as Savior and Lord. “whom having not seen, you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith-the salvation of your souls. (1 Peter 1:8-9)

Hearing the Word, seeing the Word, believing the Word, is the key to knowing the true God.

Jesus Christ is the Word. He in the flesh was the visible manifestation of the invisible God. As 1 Peter 1:21 says: “who through Him believe in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.”

I am bonkers

according to this ‘new-age’ definition of those who believe God speaks to them. I hear the voice of God in His Son and the Words He spoke as recorded in the Bible. I hear the Voice of God in the Scriptures when I read them. I hear the Voice of God when the Holy Spirit speaks to my heart. My God is not a speechless statue. My God is not a god of my making. He is real, He is intimate, He lives in me. He lives in me through Jesus Christ His Son, my Hope of Glory!

What Would Jesus Do About America's Economy?

The big debate between Palin and Biden was on last night. If we believe the candidates our salvation is just around the corner. Our economic and banking woes will be over come January when the evil Bush administration is cast out.
"What would Jesus Do?" is an over used and vilified statement that is more mocked than taken seriously anymore. Yet one day Christ will reign from Zion. He will rule over the economies of the nations. What would King Jesus Do?
I believe the most important thing Jeus would do is deal with mankind's greed. We are basically greedy people. We covet what we do not have, and we hold tight to what we do have. It is so obvious that GREED motivates our Congressmen as revealed by what it takes to get votes on an important piece of legislation like the banking relief (bailout) bill. Congress failed to pass the 3 page legislation last week. But now tha the Senate version has added over 400 pages and $105 Billion in "Pork", it will probably pass. This "pork" is nothing more that bribes to get certain Representatives and Senators to support the Bill. It is GREED at its worst.
The reason we got in this mess in the first place is our greed.

As Martin Wolf wrote in the Financial Times:

I suggest we should take a broader view of events. The aggregate stock of US debt rose from a mere 163 per cent of gross domestic product in 1980 to 346 per cent in 2007. Just two sectors of the economy were responsible for this massive rise in leverage: households, whose indebtedness jumped from 50 per cent of GDP in 1980 to 71 per cent in 2000 and 100 per cent in 2007; and the financial sector, whose indebtedness jumped from just 21 per cent of GDP in 1980 to 83 per cent in 2000 and 116 per cent in 2007 (see charts). The balance sheets of the financial sector exploded, as did the sector’s notional profitability. But leverage, alas, works both ways.

Since US net international debt was 39 per cent of GDP at the end of 2007, virtually all of this debt is an asset of another domestic entity and would net out to zero. But when the gross debt stock is huge and economic conditions difficult, the chances that many entities are bankrupt is high. When people fear mass insolvency, lenders stop lending and the indebted stop spending. The result can be the “debt deflation”, described by the American economist, Irving Fisher, in 1933 and experienced by Japan in the 1990s.

The reason our debt rose astronomically was because we wanted more. Consumers wanted more toys, bigger homes, banks wanted to make more money. Now it is all crashing down around us and people want quick solutions. We are still GREEDY.

When King Jesus reigns He will observe the Law of God. God's Law says "Thou shalt not covet." There were provisions for behavior in the Law that mitigated against coveting. Harsh penalties, a Sabbath day of rest and cessation from business, a Year of Jubilee when all debts were forgiven and land returned to the original owners, limits on interest rates (usury). He will once again place God's Law in effect.

I realize we must do something about the short-term crisis in credit and banking. As usual Governemtn will get bigger and the middle class will get squeezed. The rich will get richer. This is the American Way. But without dealing with America's GREED Factor, this problem will not go away. In fact, I believe God is at work in such a way that He is calling America to repentance. He is going to stop at nothing to bring this Nation to our knees. He wants us to acknowledge our GREEDY hearts and confess that it all belongs to Him. We must enter a period of Godly Stewardship of our possessions and wealth. As Psalms 2 states, we must "Kiss the Son lest He be angry".

I like this little tidbit from John Cochrane. There is a link to his entire article. This problem will not go away no matter which candidate is elected President. There are fundamental problems that must be addressed, and it will take time.

The Treasury Plan

The treasury plan is a nuclear option. The only way it can work to solve the central problem, recapitalizing banks, is if the Treasury buys so many mortgages that we raise mortgage values to the point that banks are obviously solvent again. To work, this plan has to raise the market value of all mortgage-backed securities. We don’t just help bad banks. We bail out good banks (really their shareholders and debt holders), hedge funds, sovereign wealth funds, university and charitable endowments – everyone who made money on mortgage-backed instruments in good times and signed up for the risk in bad times. This is the mother of all bail-outs.

There is a storm out on the lake, and some of the boats are in trouble. Commodore Bernanke has been helping to bail water from some boats until they can patch themselves up, encouraging other sound boats to help, and transferring passengers on sinking boats to others. But it’s getting tough and the storm is still raging. Someone has a great idea: let’s blow up the dam and drain the lake! Ok, it might stop the boats from sinking, but there won’t be a lake left when we’re done. That’s the essence of the Treasury plan.

Short of that, it will not work. Suppose a bank is carrying its mortgages at 80 cents on the dollar, but the market value is 40 cents. If the Treasury buys at 40 cents or even 60 cents on the dollar, the bank is in worse trouble than before, since the bank has to recognize the market value. Unless the Treasury pushes prices all the way past 80 cents on the dollar up to 90 or even 100, we haven’t done any good at all. And $700 billion is a drop in the bucket compared what that would take.

There is a lot of talk about “illiquid markets,” “price discovery,” and the “hold to maturity price;” the hope that by making rather small purchases, the Treasury will be able to raise market prices a lot. This is a vain hope – at least it is completely untested in any historical experience. Never in all of financial history has anyone been able to make a small amount of purchases, establish a “liquid market” and substantially raise the overall market price.

Since the Treasury will not be able to raise overall market prices, it will end up buying from banks that are in trouble, at prices fantastically above market value. This is transparently the same as simply giving the banks free money. Make sure the taxpayers get a thank-you card.

There is other talk (reflected in the Senate bill) of abandoning mark-to-market accounting, i.e. to pretend assets are worth more than they really are. This will not fool lenders who are worried about the true value of the assets. If anything, they will be less likely to lend. Conversely, if prices are truly artificially low, then potential lenders to banks know this and would lend anyway. We might as well just ban all accounting if we don’t like then news accountants bring. No, we need more transparency, not less.

Many of the changes in new versions of the Bill make matters worse, at least for the central task of stabilizing financial markets. The Senate adds language to protect homeowners – “help families to keep their homes and to stabilize communities.” That’s natural; a political system cannot hope to bail out shareholders to the tune of $700 billion dollars without bailing out mortgage holders on the other end. But it makes the bank stabilization problem much worse. Mortgages are worth a lot less if people don’t have to pay them back. This will directly lower the market value of mortgages that we’re trying to raise.

Yes, we need to do something. But “doing something” that will not work, with potentially dire consequences, is not the right course, especially when sensible and well-understood options remain.

We must pray for America and our leaders. We must confess our greed and covetousness. We must dedicate ourselves to Godly Stewardship of our money and assets. Only then will there be healing in our economy.