Category Archives: Social Issues

The Three Lives of Abortion

There are three lives involved in the decision to abort an unborn child, and no law or political agenda addresses all three. The two dominant ideologies on this issue address only one of the three, to the detriment of the other two.

Mother. It is her body and life that will be most significantly affected, not only in the nine months of gestation, but in the months and years that follow. She will lose time at work and will incur medical expenses, and her lifestyle will be completely transformed. A pregnancy that is unexpected or unplanned could put the mother at great financial risk and be jarringly disruptive to her daily routine as well as her life goals. The laws that protect the child leave mothers who are disadvantaged at an even greater disadvantage.

Baby. Is it a person at conception? That is semantics. What is created will become a person, a human being. At what point does it become a human being? It has all the genetic material at conception that is required to grow into a self-sufficient person. If the mother has rights, so does the human being created by what the mother did to create it.

Father. The genetics inside those two initial cells that come together are half from the mother and half from the father, should he not be a part of the discussion? The human being that was created required two people agreeing to perform an act together (rape is the obvious exception), why should they not be required to make decisions together regarding the product of the act that they together agreed to do?

No law or political ideology addresses all the lives involved in an abortion. But what we value matters, and the laws reflect what we value. Click to Tweet

There is no such thing as “rights.” Unless there is a God or Ultimate Creator who establishes a moral standard and assigns rights, what we call “rights” are merely a decision regarding what we personally or our society collectively values. Therefore, the better question is: what do we value? You do not value “life” if you neglect the mother, the unborn child, or the father.

Choice. A conception happens when two consenting adults choose to have sex (rape is the obvious exception). This choice comes well before the decision to abort. Should we not be required to consider the consequences of sex? When I was a kid, HIV scared us all, and we all considered the consequences of sex. I have heard well-to-do young women speak on avoiding sex acts that could lead to pregnancy because they first wanted to get established, go to school, and get married and settled. A choice. Our culture values the right to have sex when and with who we want, and Christians are as culpable in this as anyone else, because we participate in this culture’s values. But if that “right” to make that choice has a consequence of creating a human being, that decision is a very weighty decision. We take it too frivolously.

Life. What law can be written that will be able to distinguish an abortion for convenience verses an early birth due to medical complications? Or a medical condition that endangers either mother or child necessitating an abortion? Why should doctors fear doing their job because of zealous idealogues pursuing a self-serving agenda? And it is self-serving, because the all-or-nothing anti-abortion campaigns are not pro-life at all. They are singularly focused on a narrow agenda that excludes the impacts on all the lives surrounding that child’s life. And the life of the mother matters, because if an unexpected pregnancy has a devastating effect on the mother, should not her life matter as much as the child’s? Those who are “pro-life” should put their money where their mouth is and pay for the expenses caused when the disadvantaged have an unexpected child.

Lost. The fathers are lost in all these ideologies. Except in rape, the mother made a choice to share an intimate experience with a man who becomes a father at the exact same moment that she becomes a mother. We can hold him financially responsible for the choice he made to have sex, and yet we exclude him from having any say in whether what is created lives or dies? My brother has six kids, but he also had two miscarriages. After the first one, I was talking with him on the phone and babbling on about my own nonsense when he snapped at me and said he was mourning the loss of a child. I had no idea, but a miscarriage has the same emotional impact on the parents as losing a child, both mother and father. I hear woman talking about their bodies and their rights, what about a father’s rights, a father’s soul? My three-year-old is half me and my wife: my choice matters, and my wife’s choice to have a child with me matters, and I have a say in my child’s life.

Rape. The perspective that the created child is a part of the trauma is just that, a perspective. It is also a valid perspective that the life created from that horrific experience can redeem that loss. What we value matters, and if the created life matters, it can become redemptive. However, I do not believe we should force a woman to have the child if it adds to her trauma. No law can contain the compassion needed to address the trauma and the healing process of rape.

No law or political ideology addresses all the lives involved in an abortion. But what we value matters, and the laws reflect what we value. Do we value our pleasure over the consequences of our decisions? Do we have a “right” to make laws that are completely unable to address all the issues and needs surrounding this huge event? And the creation of life is just that: huge.

Our society is wrestling with what it values, and the different sides are demonizing each other. But all I see are demons arguing against the value of lives that are unimportant to them.

This is a brief article touching on issues that obviously can be explored much more thoroughly than I have done here.

Blessings! – Shamar Covenant

Pure and Faultless Religion

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Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. (Jam 1:27 NIV)

Ever wonder if the Church is what it should be? I do, probably because I have been conned and bullied by those wearing pastor’s clothes. This verse in James is an explicit statement about what the Christian Church should be. It is not all-encompassing or exhaustive, but it very clearly and concisely describes what we should be doing. Let us consider it carefully, word by word.

James begins with the word “religion,” which is a bad word to some people. Years ago, I frequently heard that our faith is not about religion but relationship, and that is true and false at the same time. Religion is the actions of people that originate from a faith in something, and everyone puts their faith in something. Organized religion tells us what to believe, and then how to live according to that belief. Individuals also have varying personal religion, their actions betraying their beliefs: themselves, the world system, a vain hope for a vague deliverer, or money or power or sex or community, or whatever.

We all have faith, we are all trusting in something, and the acts that come from that belief are what constructs and shapes our religion. If we truly believe Christ and the Bible, then our faith is in a relationship with God Almighty (John 1:10-14, Rom 8:12-17), and hopefully this is reflected in our life. In his letter, James is telling us how to live according to this faith.

It should be obvious that we desire a religion God finds acceptable, since we are trying to please him in this relationship. He is the author of life and the determiner of our eternal destination. Yet James describes our “acceptable” religion as pure and faultless, so let us examine these words.

Pure has to do with Old Testament cleanness, which is holiness (Lev 10:8-11). God is holy, which means special and set apart, and we must also be holy and clean to approach him (Lev 19:2, 22:31-33). To be clean means you are able to approach God and be a part of his community. Lepers were unclean, possibly due to no fault of their own, and were unable to enter the temple or even be a part of the holy community (Lev 13:44-46). Thus, acceptable religion is what makes us able to approach God and his community as holy.

Faultless, also translated undefiled, refers to having filth removed, making us pure and clean. For this, our sins must be atoned for, which was accomplished by Christ’s death on the cross (Lev 17:11, Heb 9:22, Col 2:14). Christ-believers show our faith when we respond to his act of sacrifice by being self-sacrificing (2 Cor 5:14-15), by denying ourselves and living for others (Phil 2:3-4).

One commentary explained pure and faultless this way:

“Pure” expresses the positive, “undefiled” the negative side of religious service; just as visiting the fatherless and widow is the active, keeping himself unspotted from the world, the passive side of religious duty. (JFB)

Next, James very clearly specifies two things which demonstrate this pure and faultless faith: looking after orphans and widows, and keeping oneself from being polluted. As pointed out above, a positive and a negative, what you do and what you do not do.

The “do” part of this regards orphans and widows, which refers to those who could not provide for themselves, the poor and possibly oppressed. I believe this is hugely significant, and is the reason why Christians have always been first to reach out to the poor, creating orphanages and hospitals and missions that sought to care for those who need it most.

Who are the “orphans and widows” that need help today? Some are obvious, some are not. Today, because we live on debt, it is easy to fall behind on payments after an illness or other interruption in work, and then become homeless. Many who have low paying jobs make too much to qualify for aide but still cannot afford health care. My wife recently went looking for a clinic and discovered that there were no longer many options for free or low-cost health care. And what about those fleeing war-torn countries? Some call them refugees, but others call them illegal immigrants trying to get a free handout.

Yes, I am getting a little political, but the goal is not politics, the goal is to be right with Jesus. Do our actions reflect Biblical descriptions of true God-fearing faith? Do we care for the poor? (Exo 22:21-27, Deu 10:16-19, Deu 14:28-29, Deu 24:14-15, Jer 7:2-8, Jer 22:2-3, Acts 2:44-45, Acts 4:32-35, Gal 2:9-10). I wrote more about this in my article Faith and Politics.

Next, the “do not” part, James says we must keep ourselves from being polluted by the world. To do this, we must recognize how much of what surrounds us is drawing us from the things of God and into depravity, and then we must make war against these heart influencers (Pro 4:23, 2 Cor 10:3-6, Eph 6:10-20). We are not to be monks and hide from the world, rather we are to live as exiles among the Babylonians (Jer 29), building and multiplying and praying for the city around us, and at the same time keeping ourselves pure and holy. This is challenging!

We wake up and read the news, which draws our hearts into the muck of divided politics and the nastiness of the murderers and enslavers of our souls, and we get discouraged. We turn on the radio as we drive to work and are influenced by the words of the devil in the music, telling us that we can be free of any restraint and live for pleasure, while still being right with God. By the time we get to work, our minds have created a new religion that shapes how we work and play and treat our families.

I do not have time here to explain in detail how to live this life unpolluted by the world, except to say we must continually be in the word studying and learning from it, in fellowship with other like-hearted believers, and in prayer, constantly working more of Christ into us and getting the world out of us. We must find ways to get the word of God into us every day, to start our day with God’s truth and prayer, to keep a hold of his Ways as we go to work and do our jobs and interact with people, and then after work, how we play and manage our family life (Josh 1:8). We must take off the world by putting on Christ (Eph 4:22-24). And make sure our closest friends, the ones influencing us, have the same goal of pure and faultless religion (1 Cor 15:33, Heb 3:13, Heb 10:24-25).

It is significant that the “do” part of our religion is caring for the poor, and this should shape what outsiders see in us. Is it what people see in our actions and words? Does the world see us mingling with it or keeping pure? What does our religion look like, and does it match what we proclaim as our faith?

Blessings! – Shamar Covenant

(1) (JFB) Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown Commentary, 1871, Public Domain

Faith and Politics

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I am neither conservative nor liberal, Republican nor Democrat. I grew up in a very conservative environment, and for many years I believed the conservative way was the most good and that it made the most sense. However, I never really understood the liberal perspective, because the TV channel was always changed when a Democrat was talking. It was not until I left home that I was able to listen to other perspectives, but even still it was not until I was in my thirties that I truly sought to understand other political perspectives.

In listening to other perspectives, I heard things that made sense. I heard people who genuinely believed the best thing for the country and for people was a perspective that differed from what I had always believed. I began questioning my beliefs about political policy, everything from economics and immigration to welfare and even abortion. What policies really worked? Was there data to show what was really beneficial?

I doubt the numbers we hear that “prove” one perspective or another are clear, because the talking heads that espouse their side of the argument do not really care about facts, only about being right, and they are very good at sounding smart and making the opposing arguments seem foolish.

Yet as a Christian, I do not need to trust political commentators, I do not need to know for certain which news outlet gives the most unbiased information, and I do not need to fully understand what really goes on in the power struggle at the highest political and financial levels in this country or the world.

I just need Christ and his word to guide me.

What does the word say, then? What is the perspective of Christ? What does the Bible say is the responsibility of politicians and leaders, including the wealthy who wield and influence power over many? What sort of policies should I, as a Christian, support?

Start with the obvious: God demands that rulers and judges pursue and execute justice and righteousness:

You shall appoint judges and officers in all your towns that the LORD your God is giving you, according to your tribes, and they shall judge the people with righteous judgment. You shall not pervert justice. You shall not show partiality, and you shall not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and subverts the cause of the righteous. Justice, and only justice, you shall follow, that you may live and inherit the land that the LORD your God is giving you. Deu 16:18-20 ESV

This is what the LORD says to you, house of David: “‘Administer justice every morning; rescue from the hand of the oppressor the one who has been robbed, or my wrath will break out and burn like fire because of the evil you have done—burn with no one to quench it.’” Jer 21:12 NIV

The laws in Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy not only teach of sacrifices to atone for sin, but laws regarding justice and moral living. In these laws, we see the heart of God, and that the intent of rulers and judges executing justice was for them to protect the poor from the oppressor. Looking a little past one of the verses above, we see what is truly on God’s heart:

Hear the word of the LORD, O king of Judah, who sits on David’s throne, you and your servants and your people who enter these gates. Thus says the LORD, “Do justice and righteousness, and deliver the one who has been robbed from the power of his oppressor. Also do not mistreat or do violence to the stranger, the orphan, or the widow; and do not shed innocent blood in this place. Jer 22:2-3 NASB

In God's O.T. laws, we see the heart of God, and that the intent of rulers and judges executing justice was for them to protect the poor from the oppressor. Click to Tweet

The charge is to do justice and righteousness, but what does that look like? The charge continues in explanation: Rescue those robbed from their oppressor, do no wrong or violence to the stranger (also translated: foreigner, sojourner) or the fatherless or the widow. Elsewhere, there is another added to the list:

Thus says the LORD of hosts, Render true judgments, show kindness and mercy to one another, do not oppress the widow, the fatherless, the sojourner, or the poor, and let none of you devise evil against another in your heart. Zech 7:9-10 ESV

Either the “one another” includes or is an addition to the sojourner (foreigner, stranger), the fatherless, the widow, and the poor. In ancient society, orphans and widows would have no means to provide for themselves, being without father or husband; therefore, relatives were charged to provide for them. This would surely be a burden on family without means, while those with means would easily be able to provide for relatives.

This brings us to the poor, which is really what all of these words refer to. Those with means do not need protection or provision from the government.

The word for poor refers to the afflicted, humble, lowly, needy, and poor (from the Olive Tree Enhanced Strong’s Dictionary, h6041), and I believe each of those words points to an important group that God wants us to look after.

Finally, there’s the stranger or foreigner or sojourner, which requires a more lengthy definition:

Sojourners are not like foreigners visiting some other country; rather, they have settled in the land for some time and live there, even though they are not native to that area. Abraham was a sojourner in Hebron (Gen. 23:4), Moses in Midian for forty years (Exod. 2:22), Elimelech and his family in Moab (Ruth 1:1), and the Israelites in Egypt (Exod. 6:4; 22,20). (Mounce’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Word)

It should be obvious why God wants us to care for the poor, orphans and widows, but why the foreigners? The answer is in the law itself: “Do not mistreat or oppress a foreigner, for you were foreigners in Egypt.” (Exodus 22:21, NIV). This refers to the same category as the others, the poor and oppressed foreigners among them, because the Hebrews went to Egypt to flee famine and years later were oppressed by the government and made to be slaves.

I also believe the focus on foreigners is meant to include non-Jews in God’s salvation, but that is a different discussion. Interestingly, the Hebrews were enslaved by the Egyptians out of fear of their numbers, which seems very similar to the immigration problem in America today.

Foreigners, orphans, widows, the poor – all of these are people without the means to defend themselves from those who do have means, from those who abuse their power and take advantage of the social and economic difference between them. Who does this refer to in today’s society? It probably differs from country to country, and even within each country there may be differences state to state and city to city, so I will refer to my specific experience.

Recently, my wife and I went to court against someone who was a criminal, who had a criminal income and connections, a man with means and influence beyond our own. We were unable to afford an attorney at the time, so after trying in vain to get multiple law enforcement agencies to pursue this criminal, we represented ourselves in court. Despite ample circumstantial evidence showing what this man was doing, despite the judge believing us, neither law enforcement nor the court acknowledged that this man was a criminal, nor did they give us justice. The system was unable to provide justice to those without the means to spend money on attorneys and without the influence to get law enforcement to do their job. And we are comfortably in the middle class!

This is why I do not believe capital punishment is a good option for this country, because it seems only the poor will ever end up being executed for their crimes. While I believe capital punishment is Biblical (Gen 9:6, Rom 13:4) (I acknowledge this is debatable), it is not Biblical to have laws that are only enforced on those without means to defend themselves.

This is what I believe God intended the rulers and judges of nations to consider in their execution of justice and righteousness. It is easy enough to say that stealing is wrong and that those who do so should be punished in some way, it is much more challenging to ensure that the poor man stealing because he is starving (Pro 6:30-31) is not punished more severely than the stock broker who steals to increase his already substantial wealth (Jam 5:1-6). When a judge sentences a white man to a few years for embezzling millions while sentencing a black man to decades for embezzling a couple hundred thousand, he may be adhering to the laws of the land, but he will fall under the judgment of God.

God’s provision for the poor applies not only to laws and courts, but to social services like welfare, housing assistance, financing education, but there is not time here to explore all of this. And while I do not see any indication in Scripture that the wealthy and those with means and influence need any special protection or provision from the government, I do see God commanding fairness even for them: Do not show favoritism to a poor person in his lawsuit. (Exo 23:3 HCSB)

From here, I would like to address a handful of specific issues, exploring how I can use the Word of God to guide my support of the various political issues and debates, but in separate articles. In conclusion, I see the Bible being very clear about the role of government as well as those with power and influence, that it is to protect those without means and those who are suffering.

Blessings! – Shamar Covenant

Fetters of Debt

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My debt used to feel so oppressive and I let it dictate so much of what I did and how I felt. Previously, I believed debt was extremely evil, a tool Satan used to control me. As a Christian, I felt I had a duty to get rid of it quickly.

This perspective caused me no end of stress and worry, which also affected those around me and caused friction in my marriage. I now see the Bible offering a different perspective, one that is more freeing.

Debt is like slavery in that it limits options, is very difficult to overcome, and feels quite oppressive, thus it makes a great analogy. Slavery was legal in New Testament times and was addressed in the epistles. It may be surprising that Christian slaves were told to serve even oppressive masters well.

“Slaves, in reverent fear of God submit yourselves to your masters, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh.” (1 Peter 2:18, NIV)

This is not what I would expect to be told if I were in an oppressive situation! Yet Peter makes it clear that oppressive circumstances do not excuse bad behavior. Rather, we are blessed if we do good despite harsh circumstances.

“For it is commendable if someone bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because they are conscious of God….To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps….But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed.” (1 Peter 2:19, 21, 3:14, NIV)

Peter says there is a blessing in these humbling circumstances, and I believe we can apply this to being in debt as well. I want to qualify all this before continuing, though. The New Testament writers did tell slaves to gain their freedom if they could:

“Were you a slave when you were called? Don’t let it trouble you—although if you can gain your freedom, do so.” (1 Corinthians 7:21, NIV)

And Paul also makes it clear to not let yourself be enslaved:

“You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of human beings.” (1 Corinthians 7:23, NIV)

This definitely applies to debt, we should avoid getting into it and do what we can to get out of it. However, having gotten yourself into an unfriendly situation, there is no need to go crazy trying to free yourself from it. “Do not be anxious about anything” (Phil 4:6).

For Christians, there is freedom. The circumstance of debt is humbling, and we should respond to it obediently and with joy, the way the New Testament writers instructed us.

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds.” (James 1:2, NIV)

Trials bring us closer to God because they force us to rely on his strength rather than ours. A slave who fights or rebels against a harsh master does so in their own strength and gives up an opportunity to see God work in their life, and any victory will bring pride in oneself.

But a slave who is obedient, refusing to give into anger, resentment or worry, this one is forced to cry out to God for strength. In submission they are able to see God do the work for any relief that comes, and in humility and sacrifice will identify with Christ’s journey to the cross. For a Christian who desires to draw near to their Savior, such a trying circumstance leads to this unexplainable joy.

This is a challenging perspective to grasp, but one every Christian should spend time considering.

Regarding debt, I have given up worrying over it. I do my best to make good decisions, but I trust that the circumstance is well within God’s powerful and merciful hands. When it seems insurmountable, I cry out to God and feel joy! Because the only way I get through it is with God near me, something I long for, and I know he is near me in this. I do not pinch every penny or track every expense or refuse myself every small pleasure. Yet, time and time again, I have seen my finances go further than they should, and I continue to tithe and be generous with my tips and find other ways to give to others.

While I am still trapped in the fetters of debt, I am free and full of joy in the Lord, and I feel closer to God than ever before in my life.

Blessings! – Shamar Covenant

The Refugees – 10,000 Chances to Choose Faith

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Tired and Poor and Hungry and Hurting
© Anchels – Fotolia.com

I want to comment on allowing Syrian refugees into America, but from a Christian perspective not a political one. As a Christian I strive to be guided by Christ and the Bible, not by conservative or liberal political ideas. Too many Christians allow a political affiliation determine their beliefs, and consequently their actions. The only filter we should have for political arguments is our faith.

President Obama wants to bring 10,000 refugees from the conflict in Syria over to America, but ever since the Paris attacks occurred, this plan has become a political weapon for conservatives to attack liberals. Politics is politics, and some politicians are playing into the fears of the people to get attention. What bothers me is seeing Christians using the exact same rhetoric as the politicians in arguing against bringing over refugees from this conflict. My point is not to call anyone out specifically, so I will not cite any examples. I simply want to examine this issue from a Christian perspective.

These refugees are fleeing exactly what we are trying to keep out of America: the war and terror and lawlessness, the killing and death and bombs and gunshots. These refugees are tired and poor and hungry and hurting, they are persecuted and desperate and have no where to go but places that don’t want them or can’t handle all of them. They are what James, the brother of Jesus, meant when he wrote this:

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. (Jam 1:27, NIV84)

When James wrote this, orphans and widows were those who were unable to provide for and protect themselves. They survived off the generosity of others. Do not these refugees of the conflict in Syria qualify? Especially since there are so many trying to get into Europe that Europe cannot handle all of them. We absorb millions of illegal immigrants, what is 10,000 more who will be vetted before coming over? Was not John, the close friend and disciple of Jesus, referring to just this circumstance when he wrote,

If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. (1 John 3:17-18, NIV84)

Should not Christians be rushing to help these refugees, rather than joining with those who are yelling for them to be kept out?

The argument for refusing these refugees has to do with our security. Americans want to feel insulated from the killing and explosions and the resulting fear and instability. I understand the concern, but this argument is allowing fear to trump love, and God commands love. If we are to fear, we should be fearing God, not terrorists. Jesus said this,

Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. (Matt 10:28, NIV84)

Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah provided an example of this faith, the proper kind of fear, when they said this to Nebuchadnezzar,

If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or woship the image of gold you have set up. (Dan 3:17-18, NIV84)

I for one trust that our American vetting process will keep out all the terrorists, a process that takes one and a half to two years! But if our process fails, I will accept the risk of harm to me and my family to give 10,000 hurting and suffering people the opportunity to experience the same freedom from war and death that I enjoy here in America.

We Christians should be calling for much more than a mere 10,000 of these refugees to be allowed over, and the Christian community alone can absorb every one of them. Let me know what you think.

Blessings! – Shamar Covenant

That Distant Darkness

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What awaits you in that distant darkness ahead?
© laszlolorik – Fotolia.com

I recently changed (day) jobs and the transition has not been as smooth as I anticipated. This is causing me stress that is sapping my energy and joy, which affects my family life.

My wife encouraged me last night to listen to the advice I gave her a couple months ago when she changed careers. This was: to let go of the past and all my mistakes, to focus on today, and to do so trusting in the Lord for the results (the future). This is good advice that gave me instant peace, because it is true.

This morning she pointed me to a couple Bible verses that say exactly what she reminded me of.

Mat 6:33-34 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. (NIV1984)

This is actually a memory verse of mine, one of the first verses I clung to over 15 years ago, and for good reason. It is a common struggle of mine, and probably many others. It is difficult to let go of our need for food, shelter, and clothes, for provision and protection. As a man, I feel obligated to maintain a good job so that I can provide for and protect my family. Going through a rocky transition always creates fear over what will happen tomorrow, whether I will be able to pay the bills and keep us in a home. It is an act of faith to trust God with the results of my decisions and actions.

In seeking God, I am not lazy but hard working. I am not rebellious but a good servant who listens to instructions and attends to the needs of management and customers. I am not wasteful but a good steward of resources. I am not disrespectful but polite to everyone, even when I am upset or offended. (All of these come from a heart guided by Matt 5:3-10, not a legalistic list of do’s and don’ts.)

And when I fail in these or other areas, this is still true: I am not perfect but a work in progress, and God is my judge not the critics (including my inner voices) who intentionally or unintentionally bring me down.

Here is another verse she pointed me to, one I was not familiar with.

Deu 29:29 The Lord our God has secrets known to no one. We are not accountable for them, but we and our children are accountable forever for all that he has revealed to us, so that we may obey all the terms of these instructions. (LASB:NLT Bible)

We are only accountable for what we know, this I knew. But the future is an unknown, which means it is in God’s hands, and this I never thought of! Is this not encouraging? It still takes great faith to move forward today without knowing what will happen tomorrow, especially when so much of my past screams out my potential to fail. But I want to be a man of faith, so I must take this challenge head on and press forward into the future, in faith, seeking God’s kingdom first and trusting that my decisions are in his hands.

One more verse that many are probably familiar with.

Psa 119:105 Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light on my path. (HCSB St)

It was pointed out to me that a lamp only provides light for a few footsteps ahead of you in the dark, but you cannot see the distance ahead of you where you are going. That distant darkness that you cannot see, that is what you trust to the Lord, whether it is good or bad, favor or correction, life or death, prosperity or poverty. I can trust in God for that darkness because I know the end of that darkness is being in heaven, in the glorious presence of my God.

Blessings! – Shamar Covenant

God’s Creatures

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My mom’s adorable bundle of playful energy, Zippy! Zippy © Photos by Terri

Do you have a pet? The picture above is my mom’s dog Zippy, and she loves that little guy. Do you have an animal you love? I wonder about what God thinks of our pets. Do dogs go to heaven? Will my mom get to enjoy the company of Zippy in the big upstairs? What about the animals we eat and use for clothing and such, does God care about them and how we treat them?

In an audio book I was listening to, Myth in Human History (The Great Courses), the instructor Professor Grant L. Voth was discussing the Christian creation myth told in Genesis chapters 1-3. He differentiated this myth from others by pointing out that it makes humans “lords of creation,” and further expands on this by stating that it leaves no room for animal rights. This is what he said:

“This story gives us pretty much carte blanche to do what we want with nature since God isn’t in it, outside it, it exists for our use and he gave it to us to use however we wanted. The ecological consequences of this are obvious now. We can sometimes wish that we had been heir to a tradition that required us at least to apologize to a buffalo when we had to kill it or to a mountain when we had to level it, and do as little of this as we possibly could get by with. There was an 18th century clergyman whose sermon I read once who argued in the sermon that the only reason that animals were given life at all was to keep their meat fresh until we killed it. This is the days before refrigeration. There is no sense of animal rights here. There are no rights except ours, and that is inherent in this Genesis account.” (Part I at 2:33, or 26 minutes into lecture 5, “Hebrew Creation Myths”)

There are a number of inconsistencies with his analysis of Christian “myth,” but I want to focus on the animal rights issue. The Bible does not, in any way, promote cruelty toward animals, nor is it condoned, nor is the Bible apathetic on this topic. The professor quoted a number of verses throughout the Bible during the course, so he had to have read it, and I assume a professor would read it through more than once. He seems to have focused more on the verses that supported his view of it as myth and the paradigms he was using to analyze myths.

First, I would like to cite the verse in the Bible that explicitly states God gave animals to humans for food. This did not occur in the creation part of the story, chapters 1-3 which the professor was discussing, but after the flood that only Noah, his family and his animals survived, which is in chapter 9 of Genesis.

Genesis 9:3, “Everything that lives and moves will be food for you. Just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything.”

The Bible says we can eat meat. Or animals, rather. But does it say we can treat them negligently or even cruelly? Let’s start with Deuteronomy and the Ten Commandments, the fourth one in particular.

Deuteronomy 5:14, “but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your ox, your donkey or any of your animals, nor the alien within your gates, so that your manservant and maidservant may rest, as you do.”

Notice animals are required to get the same day of rest as humans. That seems rather…humane. Another regulation found in the same part of the Bible is about the agricultural process.

Deuteronomy 25:4, “Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain.”

Animals should be able to eat the grain as they work. There is a very similar regulation prohibiting Israelites from reaping to the edge of their field, or gathering the gleanings of the harvest, or what falls to the ground. Rather they are to leave these leftovers behind for the poor and the foreigners (Lev 19:9-10). God cares for the poor, he cares for the estranged, and in much the same way, he cares for the laboring animals.

Does the Bible ever state explicitly that we are to treat animals decently? To provide for and protect them? To not torture them? Yup.

Proverbs 12:10, “A righteous man cares for the needs of his animal, but the kindest acts of the wicked are cruel.”

The contrast within this proverb not only points to the righteousness of caring for an animal, but also to the wickedness of cruelty toward animals. Also, from the prophets:

Habakkuk 2:17, “The violence you have done to Lebanon will overwhelm you, and your destruction of animals will terrify you. For you have shed man’s blood; you have destroyed lands and cities and everyone in them.”

For me, knowing that God’s justice extends to those who “destroy” animals warms my heart. Once, while working on an overseas military base, I saw a soldier and a fellow contractor murder the puppies of a stray dog living in the gate of the base. In my questioning of the contractor on this, I called him a “puppy-killer.” This title disturbed him, and he quickly became uneasy about what he had done. Too bad he did not think of that before he murdered them.

How does God feel about these animals he has created? Does he care for them like he cares for humans? Or are they simply food he provided for us, carriers of meat? Let us take a look at Jonah’s story. The following verse is God speaking to Jonah, who is very depressed that the city of Nineveh was spared from God’s wrath after repenting of their evil ways.

Jonah 4:11, “But Nineveh has more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well. Should I not be concerned about that great city?”

This verse is the end of a story of a man who was sent to preach to a people he did not want to see saved. Jonah wanted the people of Nineveh to burn in hell for what they had done. The details of their violation against Jonah are not mentioned in the story, but apparently Nineveh at this point in history was known for their violence and lust.

God felt differently than Jonah. Despite the terrible reputation of this city, God calls it “great” in the verse above. What made it great? I do not believe God was referring to their ability in war or trade. Their greatness was due to there being 120,000 of his creations living in it! Their abilities and accomplishments did not matter. This is an amazing point, and deserves its own blog post, but I want to point out the mention of cattle in there. Yes, what made the city of Nineveh great in God’s eyes was not only the 120,000 people, but also the cattle! God did not want to destroy the people or the cattle, but to save the cattle as well. This, I believe, expresses how God feels about animals.

A couple other verses:

Psalm 36:6, “Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, your justice like the great deep. O Lord, you preserve both man and beast.”

Psalm 145:16-17, “You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing. The Lord is righteous in all his ways and loving toward all he has made.”

God’s righteousness, justice, provision, and his love are all directed toward the animals of the earth as well as the humans. It seems to me that the Bible makes it clear that we are not to be cruel to animals. Rather, we are to care for them, provide for them, protect them, and love them! Since being a Christian is to be Christ-like, my mom loving her Zippy is a very Christian thing to do.

Do dogs go to heaven? I do not know. But, clearly God wants us to care for them because he cares for them, and if he cares for them, do you think maybe we will get to enjoy our pets in heaven like we did on earth? I believe so. I think my mom will get to enjoy Zippy’s crazy playful energy in heaven. God created animals for his pleasure, and for ours, and it makes sense to me that they would continue giving us pleasure in heaven. This is only my opinion, though.

In Matthew 6:26, Jesus said, “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.”

God provides for the birds of the air, because he cares for them. But Jesus continued, “Are you not much more valuable than they?”

Jesus did not die on the cross for animals, not even the cattle in Nineveh that Jonah apparently preached to. Jesus died for people, and that is the real message of the Bible.

God loves animals, but he REALLY loves us! So much so that he humbled himself and lived as a common man, then let us beat him up, insult him, and kill him. Receiving Jesus as God and believing in his life and death and resurrection (John 1:12) opens the door to a relationship with the most loving, kind, understanding, and compassionate person, Jesus Christ. I encourage you all to be kind to animals, and to get to know this man Jesus.

Blessings – Shamar Covenant

(All Bible quotations are from the NIV84 translation.)

The Rot of Atheism

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There was this guy at a church I attended for a period of time who had a story; it went like this. He was an accountant who entered into a partnership with another, but one day federal agents came and told him one of the deals he and his partner conducted was illegal. This was strange to him, because he did not know anything about this deal. It was his partner’s, but the partner’s name was not on the documentation. After years of being harassed by federal agents and taking his case all the way to the Supreme Court, he learned that his partner was actually connected to organized crime and had dumped the illicit business on his shoulders. However, the courts were so convinced he was a well-connected gangster that they initially denied his request for court appointed counsel, which he required since his assets had been frozen; his fate was sealed when the appointed counsel did not call any witnesses to his defense. The counsel apparently also believed he was a gangster. He spent four years in prison and can no longer practice his profession. That business partner, who truly was a gangster, died peacefully in his bed without ever experiencing justice.

Switching gears, I was watching a TV interview of an atheist group promoting their viewpoint at a booth (or rather, opposing the Christian perspective), when they were asked, “What happens when you die?” Their response was, “You rot.”

I think this is significant. If there is no God, no ultimate Creator, no Supreme Being looking out for us, then when we die, we rot. There would be no judgment, which some people would cheer about, but there also would be no justice.

I have another example, something that affects us all. A few years ago America went through an economic crisis that we, and the world, are still recovering from. Why did we have this crisis? The political and financial leadership of this country knew what would result from the risky lending and yet they allowed it to continue. None of the leadership elite suffered from the economic crisis, it was the poor and the middle class who suffered, and continue to suffer. The 10% of the country that is without work, the families that lost their homes, those driven to complete homelessness, these all suffered because the leadership of this country failed to do their job and interrupt something that was completely preventable. None of them will ever be punished for doing that to us. Not in this life, and if the atheists are correct, not after they lay to rot in the dirt.

I read a quote from a secular humanist society that went something like this, “What makes our belief so unattractive is that it is just so bad.” What this was referring to is that if there is no God then there is no morality, no punishment of the wicked, no vindication of the oppressed, and ultimately no hope. You are all on your own.

My point is that justice does not always happen in this life and often the wicked persevere, living comfortably while their innocent victims suffer until their death. These two examples of mine are about socio-economic suffering, but what about all those children kidnapped every year who are never found, possibly taken across borders to be forced into prostitution? Rape and murder victims whose assailant is never caught? How about the tens of millions of Chinese who died because of Mao Zedong’s screwy policies and political maneuvers, and other victims of self-serving dictators? There are copious examples that are even more extreme.

Apart from God, we are all on our own, destined to struggle and rot.

My book The Rage is about redemption, because I believe there is Someone looking out for us. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B009F7D2VS

Be Blessed — Shamar Covenant