Saturday, April 16, 2011
"Spiritual Foundations"
First From Julie's keyboard:
This morning I was thinking on that Scripture passage from the Sermon on the Mount where Jesus tells us to:
"Lay
not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth
corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for
yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth
corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where
your treasure is, there will your heart be also." Matthew 6:19-21
As I thought about the condition of our world about us and how people seem to approach the way we live in it, I wonder how well Jesus feels that we are keeping this instruction. It just seems so easy to be busy about taking care of the business of this life.
It's almost as though the matters of eternal significance are pushed aside because "there's no time for them." But according to this Scripture, it's seriously unwise to get so sidetracked with the cares of this life.
Just how does one "lay up treasures in heaven?" We know we can't send tangible items that seem to matter so much to us here in earth. Gold and Silver, Bass Boats nor Yachts, Man made mansions, nor even great amounts of clout with prominent earthly people, amount to any thing
in our eternal existence. But, what about precious souls that will be in that eternal kingdom with us?
If the spirit of man is what lives on, and we know it is. Why aren't we concerned with taking as many of our relationships with us to heaven as we can possibly convince. Could this possibly be one way to to "rich toward God?"
If Americans could simply get back to the basics of life, seems it would make a great stride in this endeavor. An act of simplifying and realizing that we've veered off course for far too long, could begin to steer us in a right path. The act of humble and thorough repentance would take us the farthest in this quest.
Are we indeed, "the light of this world?" How great is this "light?" When He comes, and He will soon, will He find us about this business, or something else?
John 5:39 "Search the Scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me."
I John 2:15 "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him."
Blessings,
Julie
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http://spiritualheritage.blogspot.com/
"Spiritual Foundations"
"The whole inspiration of our civilization springs from the teachings of Christ and the lessons of the prophets. To read the Bible for these fundamentals is a necessity of American Life." - - - - Herbert Hoover. Charles E. Jones, The books you read (Harrisburg, PA: Executive Books, 1985), p. 116.
If you will carefully examine this blog you will discover I have no original idea. You will not find me presenting something new I believe will work or improve our society. Some could say that because I am a Christian I am selectively posting quotes that support my view.
If that were so, I would have to suppose I would soon run out of selective quotes. I have been doing this blog for years now, and I have yet to struggle for my selective quotes to post.
It runs through the fiber of our history, it's woven into our society, it manifest itself in the writings of our Founders, in their documents, in our Constitutions of government. The effect the Bible and the Christian faith has had upon us is unmistakable and inexhaustible.
In this blog I simply expound and comment upon the words and idea's that have already been spoken by those before us. Sad to say, if they were here with us now, it would be improper to speak such things. They would be chastised by the media, called religious fundamentalist by the left, and their comments would be challenged as unconstitutional and divisive.
Yet they were the ones who by the hand of God gave us this freedom. They debated and developed a Constitution of Government to provide freedom such as the world had never known. They did this all the while and during the next hundred and fifty years, professing their faith publicly, acknowledging God in their documents and constitutions, reading the Bible in their schools, taking their oaths upon it, proclaiming fast and times of prayer during political office, and authorising prayer in official meetings and speeches.
They did all of this within the bounds of their understanding of the Church and State issue.
Their understanding of the Church and State was a Biblical understanding. God instituted the separation of the Church and State, it was not an original idea with our Founders or Jefferson in his letters. It was already established as a Biblical principle ordain by God and they instituted that principle into our society.
In the Bible God instituted their religious society, he also instituted their civil society, each had their own unique responsibility, each influenced the other, each supported the other. When that line was crossed there were usually harsh consequences.
Our balance is all but gone now, the religious scale of weight is all but diminished. Does the Bible mean anything to us anymore? Very little it seems when it comes to our political ream. Very little when it come to our educational ream. Very little when it come to our personal ream.
The result is a political ream without religious influence leaving only the reasons of a carnal mind to govern. An educational ream without religious influence leaving only the reasons of a carnal mind to teach. A personal ream leaving only the carnal mind to react and relate to life.
As a result we have seen in the name of freedom our freedoms diminish. Our dependence upon government grow, the intellectual mind of our students lower, and our ability to accept the responsibility of our own lives dissolve.
Once again I am in agreement with those before us, " . . . we must seek revival of our strength in the spiritual foundations which are the bedrock of our republic."
May God bless each of you,
David
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