“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel. “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean. “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness. Matthew 23:23-28 NIV
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. Matthew 7:5 NIV
~And as to all the great "conspiracies" in America today~
How long will this continue in the hearts of these lying prophets, who prophesy the delusions of their own minds? Jeremiah 23:26 NIV
Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I have come here from God. I have not come on my own; God sent me. Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say. You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. Yet because I tell the truth, you do not believe me! John 8:42-45 NIV
Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 1 John 4:1 NIV
The lies, deceptions, counterfeit truths, and conspiracy subversions of Satan and the world have been alive and well since God's creation of humanity. Even the Bible records Satan's attempt to discredit Christ's resurrection with a conspiracy theory:
While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened. When the chief priests had met with the elders and devised a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money, telling them, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep.’ If this report gets to the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” Matthew 28:11-14 NIV
Christ-followers and Bible-studiers should be the last to be swayed by the deceptions, corruptions, and subversions of the truth and the first to expose them as such. Yet, as history has shown, beginning in the Garden of Eden, humankind has been easily swayed from the truth, even when directly in Truth's presence. Gullibility has been our downfall.
And when did justifying the means for the sake of the desired results become part of our Christian doctrine? I always thought we lived by the adage expressed by Grantland Rice, “It's not whether you win or lose, it's how you play the game.” I like to extend that to the game of life and rephrase it as, "To bring about noble causes through ignoble means is futile." If a drug cartel gives blood money to the poor, has a noble cause been fulfilled? You can only "win" one way -- by the biblical measuring rod of God's Word.
I don't recall that Jesus used deception, coercion, psychological manipulation, exploitation, or forceful and disruptive means as methodologies to bring His message of salvation to the world. Why would we believe those tactics to be acceptable to promote His kingdom now? We have compromised our character, our integrity, and our ethical and moral standards to promote America and supposedly Christian ideals--all in the name of Jesus. I don't think these actions will receive His blessing of "Well done, good and faithful servant." We have painfully lost our way.
We should be Christ-followers and living-Bibles -- God's imagers on earth. We should certainly be proud to be Americans, honor and respect our Constitution, Amendments, and laws, and honor and respect our flag and national anthem. As a young man, I still remember proudly and respectfully stating the words of my Boy Scout Oath:
On my honor, I will do my best
To do my duty to God and my country and to obey the Scout Law;
To help other people at all times;
To keep myself physically strong, mentally awake and morally straight.
This is the patriotism that I know. Not the appalling militant nationalism that we've seen on display. I do not personally consider myself a Democrat or a Republican, but I strongly adhere to the democracy of America. And as Americans, we should also know what "Freedom of Speech" really means. Here is an excerpt and an internet link to clarify this frequently confused freedom:
The First Amendment gives citizens the right to peaceably assemble and petition, but you do not have the right by word or deed to potentially harm a person or property. That's breaking the law, not exercising your freedom!
Freedom of speech does not include the right:
To incite actions that would harm others (e.g., “Shouting ‘fire’ in a crowded theater.”). Schenck v. United States, 249 U.S. 47 (1919).
(Does "Storm the Capitol" ring a bell?)
Finally, here are two more articles online that every serious Christ-follower must read:
It’s time we evangelicals have a talk about Christian nationalism
Christian nationalism is not patriotism, which can be a moral good, nor is it Christianity.
By Ed Stetzer and Andrew MacDonald
The Dallas Morning News 1:31 AM on Jan 31, 2021
AND
Trump-supporting evangelicals must repent after turning blind eye to his evil
BY MARTIN GRIFFITH
SPECIAL TO THE SACRAMENTO BEE JANUARY 31, 2021
Martin Griffith cites the following Scriptures:
Proverbs 6:16-19
There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a person who stirs up conflict in the community.
Proverbs 6:12-15
A troublemaker and a villain, who goes about with a corrupt mouth, who winks maliciously with his eye, signals with his feet and motions with his fingers, who plots evil with deceit in his heart—he always stirs up conflict. Therefore disaster will overtake him in an instant; he will suddenly be destroyed—without remedy.
[email me for a clean document copy of the articles if you'd prefer]
Now is the time for much prayer, introspection, deep contemplation, and meditation on God's Word and obedience to the still small voice of the Divine Whisper, the Holy Spirit, as He guides us back to the right path of peace, love, righteousness, and truth.
