NowTHINK!AboutIt

Avoiding Hackneyed...Making Sense

One-Worldism From A Different Perspective

by Leave a Comment

One-Worldism isn't the problem, the world controlled by one person is.

The Outcome Of Loving Your Neighbors
Especially The Ones Who Are Enemies
Is One World

The topic of One-Worldism among evangelical Christians is considered anathema. Rather than an interesting topic for discussion, it’s an evil to be avoided at all cost.

On the odd occasion when the topic is broached, it’s spoken of from one side only and is associated with behind-the-scenes manipulation by Satan and endless conspiracy theories. Anyone tagged as a one-worlder loses all standing among Christian folks.

Pat Robertson’s book, The New World Order (which abounds with conspiracies and gives far more credit to Satan than he deserves), is a good example of how this concept is treated among evangelicals. Robertson’s approach is common and is the reason Christians are loathe to approach this topic in any other way than arms-length.

But is there a way to see a positive side to the issue?

I would suggest that social/political ideas are neither good nor bad and should be discussed openly and often if we’re to gain a useful perspective. The Devil is no more involved with one idea than another, is very willing to distort issues at the cost of humanity and he will gladly use evangelicals to advance his goals whenever he can.

If anything, the Devil loves to breed insecurity and provokes us to think emotionally, which is really just non-thinking. Pat Robertson’s book fuels that outcome. [Read more…] about One-Worldism From A Different Perspective

The Difference Between Clever and Smart

by Leave a Comment

Clever is inborn. Smart is the result of hard work.

Clever Becomes Smart
When It Develops Character

We’ve all come across people who impress us with their cleverness.

These people never lack for words and often sound quite sophisticated.

They read quickly and have instant recall.

They can be a whiz when it comes to math.

They always have an answer. Not just a response, but an intelligent sounding answer to open questions and they say what they think with confidence.

They are so good at this that they walk into every room mouth first. This may well be the motivation behind so many podcasts.

These are the people who easily made high grades in school and this apparent brilliance gave them a confidence, and occasional charm, that others find appealing.

This person is both easy not to like and difficult to resist at the same time. [Read more…] about The Difference Between Clever and Smart

Reasons To Believe Jesus Cares More About People Than Issues

by Leave a Comment

Instead of obeying those in authority, Christians would rather become those in autority.

Jesus Exemplified
A People-First Approach
To Ministry

There is no question that Jesus cares. He endured great difficulties during His short life and that alone gives us a measure of His interest.

Just being born exposed Him to humiliation, inconvenience and threat, and then later He was buffeted by insult, doubt, rejection and finally crucifixion.

And none of that was a surprise. He knew this would happen but it didn’t deter Him.

All of that is to say He’s invested. He cares but the question is what exactly does He care about?

He had to have a good reason to willingly subject Himself to these abuses and we need to ask what that was. [Read more…] about Reasons To Believe Jesus Cares More About People Than Issues

Trumps Methods Reveal His Motive

by Leave a Comment

Bad qualities like lying, cheating, stealing and womanizing can't be formulated in any way that leads to presidential.

Trimming The Government
Is One Thing
Annihilating It Is Another

Here’s what I believe are the facts based on what is happening now.

Trump Is Definitely Colluding With Putin

It is true that the FBI’s investigation into collusion came up with nothing conclusive but that doesn’t mean it isn’t a reality, it only means that it hasn’t been proven. Yet!

Suspending the investigation was a temporary stay, not an acquittal.

But we have to get real here. Can there be in any doubt that Trump has great respect for Putin, styles his leadership in the same way and makes decisions that favor Putin’s invasion of Ukraine?

  • He’s accused Zelensky of starting the war with Russia.
  • During his first term in office, he threatened to withhold congressionally allocated aid for Ukraine unless the Ukrainian government began investigations into Joe Biden’s son, Hunter, and that was done for no other reason than to bolster his efforts to win reelection.
  • He is now strong arming Zelensky into giving away rights to Ukraine’s mineral resources without guaranteeing protection against Russia.
  • Instead of declaring his opposition to Putin’s dictatorship, and all the abuse that goes with it, he makes admiring remarks about Putin’s skills and leadership.

How can you interpret this in any other way than to conclude the two leaders are in league.

The old saying applies. If it looks, sounds and walks like a duck.

Maybe the reason Trump speaks out against war is because he doesn’t want to be put in a position where he might have to do battle with his buddy, Putin.

Trump Now Has Control Of The FBI

It’s a weird state of affairs at the moment, not because Trump’s intent isn’t clear but because it is. He is slowly but surely eliminating legal barriers to his agenda and we aren’t as worried as we should be even though we see it happening. [Read more…] about Trumps Methods Reveal His Motive

From The Dark Ages To The Modern Era, Catholics Have Come Full Circle

by 2 Comments

Neither the leopard nor the Catholic can change their spots.

The Supreme Court
Has Become The New Tribunal

In the colonial years of American history religion was very prevalent. Several denominations were represented: Lutherans, Presbyterians, Baptists, Anglicans, Quakers and even Catholics. This plurality was only grudgingly accepted, however, as every colony adopted an official religion.

Puritans and Anglicans were the most prominent but States like Pennsylvania and Rhode Island accepted and encouraged a pluralistic approach.

Historically, that level of religious diversity usually ended in a dog fight. Europe’s Thirty Years War (1618-1648), motivated largely by Catholic attempts to reseize political control, was a good reason for Protestants to escape to the New World.

But abuse wasn’t committed only by Catholics. Even when Catholics weren’t scheming for political advantage the Protestants were killing each other in an attempt to gain power. For Europeans it seemed there was no end in site.

It’s as if the religious in Europe were trying to bring Matthew 10 to everyday life.The best option was to cut and run.

Religious freedom (aka the desire to escape religious persecution) was one of the main reasons immigrants gambled on the long and fraught journey to settle on American soil.

But the abusive nature of religion didn’t fade easily. It’s a strange thing but religious aggression immigrated to America too.

The Puritans (aka Congregationalists), the first Protestants to settle in America, dominated the New England colonies. Their first order of business was to combine church law with civil law and the entire community was held to that standard. Anyone who didn’t show up at church regularly was in trouble. [Read more…] about From The Dark Ages To The Modern Era, Catholics Have Come Full Circle