Uniqueness

Consideration:

Over the course of my investigation and reflection upon my faith and other world views, be they theistic or non-theistic, one (only one as there are many) of the unique aspects of the God of the Bible and the message of Jesus Christ that sets itself apart from all others is this:

The vertical relationship between man and God has to be set right in order for the horizontal relationships between person to person to function and express the fulfilment in their original purpose.

If the vertical is broken, destroyed, cut off or damaged, then so to the horizontal. The two are inextricably linked.

To think that one can “work out his/her relationship with another human without reference to the vertical, though he/she may succeed at times, is ultimately like a person fumbling around the dark trying to find the switch.”

What is the greatest commandment? A teacher of religion asked Jesus, and what did he say: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, and the second is just as important: Love others as you love yourself”.

Why is this unique? Because Allah is the God and man is his puppet, Allah dictates and decides on mercy while man is required to fulfil the law and “hopes” that his good works earn him mercy, because Buddha abdicates God and a personal God at that – there is no “personal” relationship with the Creator, Designer or Father, rather the higher consciousness, the impersonal, none relational consciousness becomes your ultimate reality through a mystic process of rebirth without the integrity of the original soul or personality following through with each rebirth. Hinduism requires man to follow rituals, customs and laws in order to appease the gods, lest they be unhappy, enraged and full of retribution if the sacrifices and rituals and penance has not been fulfilled – it is so complicated and contradictory that the gods are at war with themselves (often) and in as much you would never want to replicate their behaviour – in fact they act like mere mortals at times.  New Age falls into a vacuum of the self realization that the man is god, to find and “work out” their own “god-realisation” without an ontic reference – man becomes the god the measure of all things, self existing without a relationship outside of his own “god-realisation” – I may as well declare I am god and have found my ultimate reality and higher consciousness right now… and by the way who are you to tell me otherwise? !

What does a relationship require? What does a personal relationship require?

At least 2 persons, with a personality: thought (Intellect), emotions (feelings) and volition (capacity to make a decision). If any of those are absent, then a personal relationship can’t exist.  Feelings without intellect are like ants. Volition without intellect is incoherent as how does a person make a free will choice without the intellect to make them?

If I exist by myself independent of any other person, (God or human), will my thoughts have any consequence? Will my decisions mean anything? Who cares if I am happy or sad?  There is no other person to validate, reject, empathise or sympathise with me.

But I read Matthew chapter 5-7, Jesus outlines the foundation of what it means to be in relationship with God AND our fellowman, he unpacks the purpose of the vertical in context of the horizontal.  What Jesus does is state that he is fulfilling the law (the way to relate), not abolishing it.  If he did abolish it, then it would seem God was mistaken to set it up. And Jesus showed what the intent and purpose of the Law was – that actions are one thing, but the heart is what’s at stake, “as a man thinks, so is he”, “out of the heart, spring the issues of life” as Jesus said.

This is so subtle yet it actually is so foundational, true and unique.

For example, my wife knows that if my relationship with God is working, then my relationship with her will be working because of my reference to God.

Inversely if a person has no relationship with God, then his reference of how to relate to another is determined by his own measure, his own desires and whims.  It’s not to say he will not “get it right sometimes”, but fundamentally, he is making it up as he goes along. For example, what reference does he have to “love” if his parents induced hate or prejudice in him?

You might violently disagree with me on this, but I have yet to find a counter perspective that holds true.   

If I am in relationship with God, who has shown me, demonstrated to me and explained to me “how” to relate, “what” to do, “what” to say, “how” to think in a personal relationship, in the form of Jesus Christ, then how can I lie to my wife and think it’s okay?  How can I abuse her, neglect her, put myself first, speak ill of her, have sex or desire other women or men or children – yet still claim I am in relationship with God? I can not and that is exactly what Jesus shows and teaches me. What does Jesus demonstrate while being crucified: “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do” or in the Garden of Gethsemane: “Father if there be any other way, yet not my will, but YOUR will be done”.  The vertical relationship showing how the horizontal relationships should be.

The object of all the other long standing world views like Hinduism and Buddhism, like Islam and Judaism, like Jehovah Witnesses and Mormans, or Hare Krishnan or Enlightenment New Age, or Humanism or Atheism, all require the individual to “work out their own salvation by pulling themselves up by their own moral bootstraps” as it were. In order to obtain salvation, one needs to “follow the eight-fold” path, or follow the rituals and sacrifices to nirvana, or knock on doors evangelising Jehovah or God of the Celestial Kingdom, or practice transcendental meditation each day to clear the mind and soul in order to reach an enlightened state…

Though some practices may be useful and helpful for the body or mind, they can NEVER get you to heaven/nirvana/enlightenment/ultimate reality/transcendent peace. Why? Because as Jesus states and demonstrates so well, perfection of mind, body and soul is unobtainable in this life – the depravity of our heart and mind is always with us and through “works”, we can never get away from it.  Try and make yourself perfect (by whatever perfect standard you wish to dream up) and you’ll never get there.

Hence Jesus says, I have not come to condemn, but to save and to make you a new creation, to give you a new birth with a new heart.   And why is that significant? – so that first our “relationship” with God can be restored first in order that this informs our horizontal relationships. The vertical reference point to affect and instruct the horizontal.

“therefore there is now no condemnation for those that are in Christ Jesus” ‘I will give you a new heart”, “if anyone is to enter the kingdom of God ,he must be born again” ,“But God, being rich in mercy because of his great love with which he loved us, even though we were dead in our sins(failure to keep a moral code), made us alive together with Christ – by grace you have been saved…. – for grace you have been saved through faith and this is not from yourselves it is a gift of God. It is not from works, so that no one can boast”.

Interestingly, much of Christendom (myself very much included) have this innate desire to want to “do good works” to earn our way to heaven, or at least say we have “contributed” something toward getting through the pearly gates, especially so we can say to the man beside us “hey God, at least I wasn’t as bad as that guy”.  Which is exactly what all other main faiths and world views want to ascribe to: for the Buddhist: “At least I am on my way to Nirvana through my right thinking”, for the Hindu: “At least I am making my sacrifices to the gods every year”, for the Jehovah Witness and Mormon: “At least I am witnessing and door knocking enough to appease God to allow me in”, for the New Ager or Humanist: “At least I am seeking out my god realisation or my own humanistic code to be “good enough” compared to the rest of the word”… and on it goes.

It is a wondrous, simple and beautifully rational act and structure God puts to mankind, when He states my purpose for mankind is to be in relationships with Me and others that are made in my image. He then shows the fallacy of “working” your own way to fixing the brokenness of that relationship because of a corrupted heart and then demonstrates the way to fix it is only through the gift of Jesus Christ – grace (unmerited favour, unearned gift). And finally He wraps it all in Love – because love unbridled, unconditional without any reciprocation is not love, it is just indulgence and worthless for the receiver of it and meaningless for the giver.

Relationship - I thought I operated in a vacuum

Proposition: If my relationship with my heavenly Father has broken down, then my relationships with other people are also going to break down.

Proposition: if my relationship with my heavenly Father is functional, communicative and embodying love, then my relationship with other people are also going to be working.

That is to say, what is my point of reference of what a relationship is suppose to embody? What characteristics should it entail? How should I speak, think and act towards the other person? What do I feel, why and what should I do (if anything) with those feelings, thoughts and decisions? 

Basic question yeah? BIG ramifications. Get your point of reference from the wrong source and you're screwed - as is the other person/s.  Look around and see the couple in counselling  - she says he doesn't love her, he says he does but she doesn't recognise it,  they both speak poorly and rudely to each other and lust after other people....
"I just fell out of love" says another, like it was beyond their own volition. Much like Bob Hawke states about Hazel and his new love Blanche.

Can you see Jesus or God being so whimsical?

Ohh here's a better one closer to home: "my son I love you but I can't live with your mummy anymore, we're two different people, it's for the best'"

Here's another simple one: I can't stand a fellow worker, so what do I do  - gossip, speak badly of him, undermine him, try and get him fired or take him out for a coffee and try to find a point of commonality?

Better still WHAT EXACTLY IS THE ONTIC REFERENCE POINT OF LOVE? Love has context in a relationship. 

"For God so loved you and me that he gave his one and only son, so that whoever believes in him will not die but have eternal life"

"Lord, if there be any other way around this [crucifixion], yet not my will be done, but yours Father"

"I only do what the Father does"

"If someone strikes you, turn the other cheek"

"Love your enemies, pray for those that persecute you"

What are the requirements for a person: 

Thought (Intellect/intelligence)

Feeling (Emotion)

Volition (Decision)

(The materialist would also add a physical body)

What are the requirements for a relationship [between persons]:

There needs to be at least 2 people. 

Yes I understand that's basic, but I guarantee you, you take this point for granted and even more so about what is your "ontic" reference point for what that relationship should embody/reflect. 

Don't be lazy here.

Love passages:

John 3:16  “For God so loved the world,that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

Romans 5:8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 8:37-39  No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

1 John 3:1  See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him.

Love One Another Bible Verses

Romans 13:8  Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.

Galatians 5:13  For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.

Ephesians 4:2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love,

1 Peter 1:22  Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart,

1 John 4:7  Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.

What Did Jesus Say About Love

Matthew 5:43-48  “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,  so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.  For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?  You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Matthew 6:24-25  ”No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.  “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?

Mark 12:28-30   And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’

John 14:21-24  Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.”  Judas (not Iscariot) said to him, “Lord, how is it that you will manifest yourself to us, and not to the world?” Jesus answered him,  “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not mine but the Father’s who sent me.

John 15:9-17 As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love.  If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full. “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. These things I command you, so that you will love one another.

Assigning yourself to where God is not

If one wants to put themselves in the position of God, then they have the right to assign themselves to a place where God does not live. To suggest that God wantingly damns people to hell is fanciful - any argument otherwise is destroyed by the Cross, the length of time and the coherence of His justice and forgiveness. The statement that God actively damns and wills people to hell  is akin to suggesting that a father proactively determines his daughter to a life of misery and torture.  Rather it is the person's choice and desire and freewill (as endowed by God) that he makes that choice of rejection himself. 

As CS Lewis says so eloquently: there are two types of people, one that bend their knees to God and say Your will be done and the other who refuses to bend their knee to God and God says your will be done. 

If God is not a personal involved relational God then we can rightly infer that He does not care and does not intervene in our lives. He is a sperm and egg donor and walks away. The pantheist, buddhist and new ager ascribe to that idea God is not personal or relational, rather he (or many its) is a consciousness or being that does not relate, but "just is". The objective of the buddhist is to reach nirvana, the nothing, the ultimate reality that subsumes your consciousness into a vapour of nihilism. 

Incoherent, unlivable, unreachable, unverifiable  and jettisons love.

Why is this relevant to Ironmen?

Because God is a relational God - to exist by oneself, means there is no expression and purpose of or toward anything. I may take it for granted that I am a being that is designed for relationships, but if there was no one else around, then I would not be able to have personhood - Intellect, decisions, emotion.
That is to think that God actively wants to damn you or I to Hell is just ludicrous - to do away with the very beings He wants relationship and communion with. If God is not relational, then humanity is one big lie.

I want to cross examine the thinking you might have that God is 1. A cantankerous old God 2. He is a live and let live God (anything goes airy fairy stuff)

If I do not have a relationship with God then I am like a blind guy searching for the switch in a dark room...

Recognizing A calloused Heart - Part 1

“The depravity of man is at once the most empirically verifiable reality but at the same time the most intellectually resisted fact.” Malcolm Muggeridge

“What one generation tolerates, the next generation will embrace.” John Wesley

The Unification Church Teaching: 

Teachings: Moon claims to be the messiah of the Second Coming and his wife is the Holy Spirit. He and his wife, called The True Parents where he is the True Father and his wife the True Mother, are the first couple to be able to bring forth children with no original sin. "The cross is the symbol of the defeat of Christianity." The Bible is considered scripture along with Moon’s work "Divine Principles." Sin is genetically based. It is not a moral issue. The thieves on the cross represent political movements. The thief on the right side of Jesus represents democracy. The thief on the left of Jesus is communism. Adam and Eve fell because of sexual sin. Eve had sexual relations with Satan. Jesus is a ‘true person’ though not God in flesh. The Holy Spirit is ‘the True Mother,’ or ‘the Second Eve." The church denies the doctrine of the Trinity.

http://carm.org/unification-church

Ravi Zacharias:

not one proponent of evolutionary ethics has explained how an impersonal, amoral first cause through a nonmoral process has produced a moral basis of life - especially as they simultaneously deny any objective moral basis for good and evil.

Until i comprehend and accept the depravity of man's heart including my own,  i will never be able to comprehend and accept the depth of redemption that is required to redeem  it. 

We think we can fix it through 4 noble truths and the 8 fold path or through more rituals and sacrifices or through more door knocking or through monastic lifestyles or through more therapy and counselling or through more scientific discoveries and medicinal antidotes - but nothing, nothing naturally  can redeem an evil heart and it is only through a supernatural event and cause demonstrating the power to overcome a natural one that has the power and the motivation to fix such a mess. 

Even if i wanted so desparatrly and wholeheartedly to "do better" i would still only reach the second floor on my stairway to heaven.

Matthew 5-7

New International Version (NIV)

Introduction to the Sermon on the Mount

5 Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2 and he began to teach them.

The Beatitudes

He said:

3 

“Blessed are the poor in spirit,
    for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4 

Blessed are those who mourn,
    for they will be comforted.

5 

Blessed are the meek,
    for they will inherit the earth.

6 

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
    for they will be filled.

7 

Blessed are the merciful,
    for they will be shown mercy.

8 

Blessed are the pure in heart,
    for they will see God.

9 

Blessed are the peacemakers,
    for they will be called children of God.

10 

Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
    for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Salt and Light

13 “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.

14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

The Fulfillment of the Law

17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. 19 Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.

Murder

21 “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder,[a] and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ 22 But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister[b][c] will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, ‘Raca,’[d] is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.

23 “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, 24 leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift.

25 “Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still together on the way, or your adversary may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. 26 Truly I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.

Adultery

27 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’[e] 28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.

Divorce

31 “It has been said, ‘Anyone who divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.’[f] 32 But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, makes her the victim of adultery, and anyone who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

Oaths

33 “Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not break your oath, but fulfill to the Lord the vows you have made.’ 34 But I tell you, do not swear an oath at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne; 35 or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. 36 And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. 37 All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.[g]

Eye for Eye

38 “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’[h] 39 But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. 40 And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. 41 If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles. 42 Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.

Love for Enemies

43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor[i] and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46 If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? 47 And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? 48 Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Giving to the Needy

6 “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.

2 “So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

Prayer

5 “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 6 But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 7 And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

9 “This, then, is how you should pray:

“‘Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,

10 

your kingdom come,
your will be done,
    on earth as it is in heaven.

11 

Give us today our daily bread.

12 

And forgive us our debts,
    as we also have forgiven our debtors.

13 

And lead us not into temptation,[j]
    but deliver us from the evil one.[k]’

14 For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

Fasting

16 “When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 17 But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, 18 so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

Treasures in Heaven

19 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

22 “The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy,[l] your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if your eyes are unhealthy,[m] your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!

24 “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.

Do Not Worry

25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life[n]?

28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Judging Others

7 “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2 For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.

3 “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4 How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

6 “Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.

Ask, Seek, Knock

7 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

9 “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11 If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! 12 So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.

The Narrow and Wide Gates

13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

True and False Prophets

15 “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. 16 By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17 Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.

True and False Disciples

21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ 23 Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’

The Wise and Foolish Builders

24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

28 When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, 29 because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law.

The purpose of morality - not what you think

Ironmen

How do I know if something is broken?

(The purpose of morality) 

Jesus doesn't come to make bad people good, he came to make dead people alive ( RZIM) 

Every time I break the moral code, like the nervous system responding to a cut in my skin, my spirit alerts me to something broken. Every time I walk in truth to that moral code I am walking in the purpose for which I was designed for. 

My prayer to Jesus is to teach and show me how to embody love. 

"It never fails, always hopes always perseveres, does not hold to grudges, is not easily wronged, is not bitter" 

The response is not to try and be a more morally right person so that I can earn and acclaim favour and reciprocated love based on my level of "goodness", rather that I may be transformed from the inside out from an intrinsic  desire to walk in truth and love and in doing so, walk WITH my Heavenly Father's presence than away from it. 

A man who continues to break that moral code and in doing so numbs his soul to the distance from God's presence eventually says in his heart - there is no God, and i am the measure of all things.  Eventually like leprosy, he cuts off his body and self destructs - his wife leaves him, his children don't want to be with him, his friends are scarce or even worse he has devastated his children's lives to a similar lifestyle. 

But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. (Romans 5:8 NLT)

"Why does a man honor his vows? Why does a woman honor her vows? Is it to earn the love of their spouse, or is it to demonstrate the sacredness of their love? True love engenders a life that honors its commitment. That is the role of obedience to God’s moral precepts—putting hands and feet to belief, embodying the nature of what one’s ultimate commitment reflects—the very character of God."

 http://www.rzim.org/just-thinking/threads-of-a-redeemed-heart/

I want us to rethink morality and the purpose of it, so that (hopefully) we understand it's function and the outcomes of it. It really is one of the most unqiue metaphysical aspects to humanity above all species. 

Too often i can droop into a falsehood of propping myself up by my viewpoint that being a morally right person is "good enough" or like the prodigal son's brother, subtley but erroneously thanking God that i do not act like "them" and have earned favour and righteousness with God. 

This is where the alternate religions or the East and Middle East are poles apart concerning morality. For them morality is a demonstration something is broken but that one can "work" their way out of the mess they are in or by hoping thay "God the merciful" is having a good day and is merciful that your good deeds outweight your bad ones. 

And then there is the atheistic world where on one side they get very angry about injustices yet jettison that morality when it comes to their own life and state "who are you to judge me!?!" It's as if it's a play thing. Whimsical as teenage love. 

This kinda sums up the purpose of morality: 

As the Scriptures say, “No one is righteous— not even one. No one is truly wise; no one is seeking God. All have turned away; all have become useless. No one does good, not a single one.” “Their talk is foul, like the stench from an open grave. Their tongues are filled with lies.” “Snake venom drips from their lips.” “Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.” “They rush to commit murder. Destruction and misery always follow them. They don’t know where to find peace.” “They have no fear of God at all.” Obviously, the law applies to those to whom it was given, for its purpose is to keep people from having excuses, and to show that the entire world is guilty before God. For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are. But now God has shown us a way to be made right with him without keeping the requirements of the law, as was promised in the writings of Moses and the prophets long ago. We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are. For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past, for he was looking ahead and including them in what he would do in this present time. God did this to demonstrate his righteousness, for he himself is fair and just, and he declares sinners to be right in his sight when they believe in Jesus. Can we boast, then, that we have done anything to be accepted by God? No, because our acquittal is not based on obeying the law. It is based on faith. So we are made right with God through faith and not by obeying the law. (Romans 3:10-28 NLT)

Leadership

Greg French asks : is your life worth following? 

It's a great question right?   I mean is it?

Here's another one: who's life are you following? Who's life are you trying to model - be it actively or passively? 

For men, leadership is it not about being the example and taking people to a higher place, but before they arrived they did not want to go there. 

Is my life worth following for my wife, my kids, my team, my church, my friends and my community?  if it's not worth following, then how I can expect them too? Or have I abdicated my responsibility and purpose as a man of God? 

I have been contemplating this question for several weeks now asking myself if I were able to stand outside myself, would I follow me? If not, why and because of which traits?

Moreover, if I as a Christian man have the mind of Christ who is all wisdom, truth, faith and love, then what am I missing? 

I was watching a doco/reality TV  on people going through a rehab centre from sex addiction.  It shows a short snippet of the initial background to the patients and the initial interview with the doctor as they check in. They're all crying and laughing nervously and looking away trying to not answer the questions. 

And they have bravely come to address the debilitating dysfunction in their lives - and i am thinking there is no way on God's green earth i would want to follow their lives.

They can't hold a relationship, they have to cheat on their partners, they can't have emotional connection with people and they will be admitted to prison eventually. 

But let's draw this closer to home. 

How do i speak to my wife? 

How do i speak to my kids? 

How and what do i think about my wife and kids? 

How do I speak to my boss and more so, what do I say about him when he is not around? 

How do i spend my time? 

How do i spend my money? 

How do i respond to others under duress and pain? 

How do i overlook and forgive a wrong? 

How do i treat my clients? 

How do i treat and commune with God? 

Is my life enough of an example, that others would want to follow or be influenced by - for the better? 

Better still, what is the benchmark, the "objective example of leadership?" that I should be following myself? 

When I think of Jesus I think of this about his leadership: 

He was as hard as nails and spoke fearlessly, because he was the embodiment of truth. But He expressed and enacted the absolute nature of love to every person. Some would say tough love at times, others would say he was as gentle as a butterfly to others. 

Why do I follow Jesus? Apart from the a priori that he is the Saviour, even if you didn't ascribe to that, He lifts me up to be a better man, to be the man I long to be - in every facet of my life. Now that tells me something. 

4 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful;[b] 6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

The (un)Sacredness of Sex

The (un)Sacredness of Sex
Let us go back to first premises: what is the purpose and function of sex?
Why bring this up in Ironmen? Becuase apart from taking the "old fashioned" traditional christian morality of "becuase God says so", what is clearly occuring today is the irrationality and nonsensicalness of today's school of thought on sex.
If you and i as men, fathers, husbands and leaders are to lead our community through the fallacies that exist on the subject of sex, then we need to not only have the correct moral stance but understand the premises behind that morality rather then just saying "becuase God says so".
So back to the question: what is the purpose and function of sex? Given it is a finely tuned, delicate and intrinsic part of our species that is unique amongst all other animals, begs the question.
If as the evolutionary naturalist states: it is for propogating DNA (which assumes a premise from irrational and mindless origins - but that is a whole other problem with naturalism for another day) then sex is just a physiological, chemical and material action. What differentiates this act from say eating or breathing? If we are to propogate DNA then would it not also mean then we should be impregnating as much as we can, as we do eating and breathing and sleeping? The naturalist says: well that's exactly what we do, but fails so monumentously to include very important aspects to sex that are undeniable. Just a simple example: sex is an expression of love. Sex has a moral code: to force sex with a minor (or anyone) is wrong. The animal kingdom does not have any such attributes.
So if sex is not just propogating DNA and is not just mechanisitic, and that it is a finedly tuned and designed thing, what is it's purpose and function?
If we know the answerto that question then we can understand if we are misuing it and abusing it.
The analogy is: giving a person on the street a manual of how to fly an A380 while they sit in the cockpit isn't going to work, becuase it assumes the person understands the purpose and function of a plane. Just as teaching a teenager the instruction set on how to have safe sex won't work becuase the function and purpose of sex hasn't been defined.
The world hasn't answered it, and here's proof:
Excerpts from: http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/07/06/1057179217224.html
She is, as it turns out, simply here to have sex. This is, she believes, consenting adults at their most consenting � a sexually-charged visit to a land of take-what-you-want. Well, as long as you ask nicely. Freedom from petty jealousies and a share and share alike attitude that, the way she tells it, is a higher form of sexual evolution than most couples are ready to explore.
Barry, 29, and Tina, 32, have been doing this for eight months. He introduced the concept to her three years ago and, after initial refusal and subsequent discussions, she re-introduced the idea almost a year ago.
�It has spiced things up a bit,� Barry says.
Could it get complicated?
�If you�re not careful, yes it could,� he admits. �You have to be very clear with each other about what you do and don�t do. We always tell each other where we�re going and who we�re going with. Always have safe sex � use a condom � and no anal sex.�
�Some people can be really judgmental,� Greg says. �That�s what I like about the people we�ve met swinging. They�re really lovely people, really open-minded.�
�We�ve been coming here for about four years. This is the nicest party,� Peter says. �The attraction for me? It keeps the marriage exciting.�
While he chats to me, Melissa and Brad excuse themselves, hand in hand. �We�ll just go off and have a play,� Melissa tells her husband.
He smiles, nods, sips at his drink. It wasn�t always this way.
It was Peter�s idea to swing. His wife was not so open.
�No, she cried for a week,� he says. �Thought it meant I didn�t love her anymore. Thought it was threatening. It was a long process.�
The complex relationship with Brad did, Peter admits, take a while to develop.
Excerpts from :
http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/life/blogs/citykat/can-sanctioned-affairs-improve-a-marriage-20131003-2uuqp.html
Not quite swinging, not quite cheating. This was a story of something in between. Something apparently growing in popularity – something arranged between husband and wife that ensures the longevity of a marriage while essentially rewriting the rules.
Rather than excluding other parties from the intimate aspects of a long-term relationship, this approach follows the "more is merrier" rule. You might have a lover, I might have a lover, we both still love each other, and so what's the problem?
Well, it seems there isn't one. Not for the couple at the heart of the situation, at least. They get to keep their family home, their joint savings account, the wealth of memories and sentiment of a life shared together, and probably on occasion the intimacy and understanding that followed their original romance. Plus, they get to enjoy the pleasure of another's company without fear of spousal retribution.
To use the vernacular: Winning.
And, when you consider how much longer we're living, and how expensive divorce is – not to mention how traumatic for the family – it's fairly clear why this trend might just catch on. Even if countries like America, Britain and Australia, presumably, tend to have a pretty dim view of extramarital fraternising. According to The Independent article more than 90 per cent of Americans and 80 per cent of Britons condemn extramarital affairs as wrong. This compares with just two in five people in Italy and France.
Interesting.
Before jumping on the European bandwagon, we should consider why the idea of adulterous behaviour is so summarily frowned upon. Why are affairs an issue? Should we really update our view?
Excerpts taken from: http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/life/sex-in-the-schoolyard-20130924-2ubwi.html
Yet the mention of teenage sex often sparks moral panic among older generations, convinced today's youngsters are more lascivious, morally looser and less responsible than they were. Urban myths abound, like rainbow parties where girls wearing different-coloured lipstick perform fellatio on the same boy, or sex bracelet parties where different-coloured bangles signify what you're up for (anything ranging from a hug to anal sex, apparently).
So what's it really like to be a sexually active teen today? They're having sex younger. They're having it more often. They're doing it with more people. And they're doing things we've never heard of – or at least we certainly hadn't when we were their age.
Advertisement
PORN
The single defining characteristic of teenage sex in 2013 is porn. Graphic, hardcore sex, free for anyone with a smart phone to watch. It's so ubiquitous that the average age of first exposure to porn is now just 11 years old, warping kids' ideas of what normal sex is years before they are likely to try it themselves.
But Anne Mitchell, deputy director of the Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health and Society at La Trobe University, argues that for many adolescents "the chance to see any sexual activity is really important and valued". Many kids now use online porn as a "how to" tutorial. "I gave head one day when I didn't know how to do it," says Malina, 17, "so I went home before and watched porn just to see how to do it."
Natalie's father probably wished he hadn't seen what was going on when he walked into the 16-year-old's bedroom to find her masturbating in front of her computer for the benefit of her boyfriend watching via Skype. "It was a little awkward," Natalie giggles.
But technology can make things worse than awkward if intimate encounters are recorded and broadcast for mass consumption. Spare a thought for the 14-year-old who had sex in the back of a maxi taxi with her boyfriend one Saturday night, unaware her friends were filming it on their phones. "By the time she got to school on Monday, everyone had seen it," says Liz Walker. "The trauma from that is huge, and there is this ripple effect through the school."
Fred didn't try oral sex with his girlfriend until months after they lost their virginity together. "She's the only one I've ever done [oral sex] with," he says. "I find it a very personal thing; you're crossing a serious line."
AND NOW FOR THE GOOD NEWS
"Most young people mostly have the sex they want, and they're having it in a fairly safe way," stresses Anne Mitchell. "Any teen lives a good sexual life if they're not stressed or threatened or unhappy about it." More than 90 per cent of teenagers in the La Trobe survey wanted the last sex they had.
Excerpts from the Bible:
“You have heard the commandment that says, ‘You must not commit adultery.’ But I say, anyone who even looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart. So if your eye—even your good eye —causes you to lust, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your hand—even your stronger hand —causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. (Matthew 5:27-30 NLT)
Now regarding the questions you asked in your letter. Yes, it is good to abstain from sexual relations. But because there is so much sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman should have her own husband. The husband should fulfill his wife’s sexual needs, and the wife should fulfill her husband’s needs. The wife gives authority over her body to her husband, and the husband gives authority over his body to his wife. Do not deprive each other of sexual relations, unless you both agree to refrain from sexual intimacy for a limited time so you can give yourselves more completely to prayer. Afterward, you should come together again so that Satan won’t be able to tempt you because of your lack of self-control. (1 Corinthians 7:1-5 NLT)
You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is good for you. And even though “I am allowed to do anything,” I must not become a slave to anything. You say, “Food was made for the stomach, and the stomach for food.” (This is true, though someday God will do away with both of them.) But you can’t say that our bodies were made for sexual immorality. They were made for the Lord, and the Lord cares about our bodies. And God will raise us from the dead by his power, just as he raised our Lord from the dead. Don’t you realize that your bodies are actually parts of Christ? Should a man take his body, which is part of Christ, and join it to a prostitute? Never! And don’t you realize that if a man joins himself to a prostitute, he becomes one body with her? For the Scriptures say, “The two are united into one.” But the person who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with him. Run from sexual sin! No other sin so clearly affects the body as this one does. For sexual immorality is a sin against your own body. Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body. (1 Corinthians 6:12-20 NLT)
I would argue that sex is a sacred, just as marriage is just as property is just as our words and thoughts are and time. Which is what the 10 Commandments are stating.
Sex is for marriage and finds it's full expression, worth and value in marriage. It is so much more than for procreation and we know this becuase God says the two become one. One in mind body and soul. Sex is for the emotional bonding, assurance and connection that is unique apart from every other act. We intrinsicly know this. A simple answer is to ask: if sex has no value beyond a physical procreation and pleasure then why get upset if my wife or partner goes off and has sex with others? Why does the age of the partner matter?

Avoiding Pain

This really is an interesting topic. I haven’t really thought and prayed through a lot of what this implies for men’s lives, but let’s give it a crack as we are just scratching the surface. 

I think this is a good one for me and therefore must be a good one for men, because I am a man....  go figure….

pain

  [peyn]  Show IPA

noun

1.

physical suffering or distress, as due to injury, illness, etc.

2.

a distressing sensation in a particular part of the body: a back pain.

3.

mental or emotional suffering or torment: I am sorry my news causes you such pain.

4.

pains.

a.

laborious or careful efforts; assiduous care: Great pains have been taken to repair the engine perfectly.

b.

the suffering of childbirth.

5.

Informal. an annoying or troublesome person or thing.

Origin:
1250–1300; Middle English peine  punishment, torture, pain < Old French  < Latin poena  penalty, pain <Greek poinḗ  penalty

Note that we can be the recipient or giver (originator) of pain. 

Is pain a good thing? Is it necessary?

Alternatively, what would happen if pain was not existent in the world we exist in today?

Would we survive?

Would we have enjoyment?

Would love in all its expressions be felt and comprehended as much?

Would justice have any value?

Would morality have any worth?

One of the arguments that I have been conjecturing is why is it, that the world that you and I live in (mainly English Western Scientific Culture) we are so focused on pain avoidance at every level, that like leprosy, we are so numb to it we don’t even know when we’ve hurt ourselves, sooner or later our arm falls off.

Hear me out on this: if you and I as men, husbands, sons, fathers and friends, pursued a painless life, what would that look like?

To some degree, the world around us is feeding our culture to pursue pleasure (opposite of pain) at the expense of all other things including morality and the trespass of that moral code.   See, pain involves the trespass of a code or law.  You can apply that to relationships, communities and the natural world. 

For example: I can have sex with a prostitute  - pursue pleasure, avoid the painful reality that I am not intimate with my wife because she won’t explore new things or have sex as often as I want. Now the prostitute affirms this thinking and the she and I are just exchanging a transaction.

http://www.smh.com.au/comment/why-im-happy-to-be-a-sex-worker-20130913-2toi6.html

“I've met, spoken to and sometimes worked with sex workers from across Australia. Sex workers provide sexual services. It is a pure and legitimate economic transaction.
……

Sex workers are not interested in clients for intimate relationships. Like the woman working in your local hardware store, sex workers are purely involved in a business. They are there to make money. Not to find a husband”

Now pain is involved in either course. Yet we want to avoid it, but we just delay it…

“Buy now, pay later”

“Do what you want do, be what you want to be – yeah!”

“Pain killers for this, pain killers for that…”

“Take something to dull the pain….”

I have family member, in a spiral of destruction, numbing the pain of not knowing that he is loved, thought well of, validated as a man of character, integrity and walks in truth, and is avoiding the elephant in the room.

What of myself: So I am asking myself, do I avoid pain? Another way to put it, do I avoid the truth about a situation / relationship / financial circumstance / work ?

Do I avoid the painful reality of accepting that at times my heart is terribly broken with pride and unsympathetic thoughts and need to sit at the foot of the Cross and seek patience and forgiveness?

It’s painful to accept the truth about myself at times. It really is.

3”For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you.” Romans 12:3.

Isn’t it interesting that the body, mind and soul have the DNA of “pain” receptors intrinsically built in to them? Why is that?

To me the clearest point about why we as men need to “toughen up” and embrace pain, is Jesus Christ’s example.

“Father forgive for they know not what they do….”

“Yet Father is there is another way, yet your will be done….”

Did you know the word “Excruciating” is derived from the work Crucifixion.

Crucifixion was a most heinous form of punishment (Pain) that the Romans did not allow it’s citizens to die that way and abolished it in the 2 or 3rd century.

Imagine if Jesus walked away from pain, yet he embraced it head on in so many situations, to the point he wept – over Lazarus, Jerusalem and the Cross.

I guess my summary point to this, is to counter the world’s approach of avoiding pain and accept it with the spirit of James and Paul:

“Consider it pure joy my brothers when you face trials of many kinds…

and “that all things work together for good for those that love God”