Rage Against The Machine – Part II

Yesterday I blogged about the new security measures in U.S. airports that offer the traveler the option of essentially appearing naked to a TSA employee or being groped by one.

I suggested that if Kingdom citizens object to such treatment they do so not only because of its striking similarity to pornography and sexual assault but because it represents an erosion of our freedom, and Christians should be the champions of freedom.

Besides, there is an alternative.

Some history may be helpful here.  You may recall, Islamic terrorists used box cutters to hijack planes on 9/11, so we prohibited fingernail clippers and butter knives on planes. Continue reading “Rage Against The Machine – Part II”

Rage Against The Machine – Part I

Image from new TSA scanner

The new security measures in U.S. airports offer the traveler the option of a full body scan that presents a naked picture of the traveler to the TSA employee paid to gawk (see image). And yes, if you are a guy, they can see your junk, and in remarkable detail.

If you choose not to appear naked before strangers, you have the option of being groped by the government.

This gawk or grope strategy is the latest from the government for catching Islamic terrorists.

Christians are right to be offended by gawk and grope but not just because it is smells like pornography and sexual assault. In fact, I apologize if the image on this blog post offends you. I debated whether to use it but decided that people being informed on this issue outweighed any offense.

Still, the larger issue here is one of freedom and at what point one is willing to trade it for security.

I would like to offer Kingdom citizens some perspective, a view from 35,000 feet, and suggest a better reason for  Christians to be offended.

I’ve heard many say, “If it means I can fly without worrying about the plane being blown up I’m fine with it.” So, what happens when Islamic terrorists start putting bombs in their anuses where they are shielded from the new scanners? Will we then submit to full body cavity searches? If it meant flying safely would you be willing to do it?

People prefer freedom to tyranny. There is no surprise there. But throughout history people have made the choice to give away their freedom. The choice is usually not between freedom and tyranny, but between a little less freedom and a little more tyranny in exchange for a little more safety or security. That is the trade being offered right now.

To those who hope only in this life, the trade seems a reasonable one. If death is the end, then trade all to avoid it, even one’s freedom.

Christians should not suffer from such shortsightedness. Their hope is not in this world only. Christians therefore should be the quickest to draw the line against tyranny, the staunchest defenders of freedom, even if it means incurring a greater risk to their safety.

When Christians are willing to do that, they will begin to wear the mantle of freedom intended for every citizen of the Kingdom of God, and they will be seen by the world as protectors of freedom.

I’m not suggesting where you should be willing to draw that line, but I do want to suggest why you should be willing to draw it. “It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm…” (Galatians 5:1). GS

Economics For Dummies (Quantitative Easing)

I had decided maybe I was just dumb, but the more I read about the “quantitative easing” our government has been involved in of late, the less it made sense.

You see, I’m a saver and I hate debt.  When the Bible says to owe nothing to anyone except to love them (Romans 13:8), I take it literally.  We have lived well within our means for years so we could save and avoid debt.

So, when I read about quantitative easing I get confused. They say quantitative easing is necessary to avoid deflation and that deflation is bad, but deflation means prices go down and people who have saved can buy things cheaper.

They say they would rather have inflation, where the money you have today is worth less tomorrow. This means people who are in debt today can pay back their debt tomorrow with cheaper money. Inflation rewards people who are in debt and punishes people who aren’t and who have saved.

I thought the government was to support virtuous conduct (saving and moderate, frugal living) and discourage profligate and presumptious conduct (debt-driven lifestyles). I decided maybe I was just dumb, until I saw this video, and now it all makes sense.

Well maybe not, but it’s better to laugh than cry.  GS

Disciple or Student?

The Stoic philosopher Seneca wrote, “…the road is long if one proceeds by way of precepts but short and effectual if by way of personal example.”  Seneca knew something about discipleship.  He was the tutor for the infamous Roman Emperor Nero.

He once told Nero, who was intent on killing everyone he thought wanted his job, “However many people you slaughter you cannot kill your successor.”  He was a smart guy.

Seneca understood what modern educators and many Christians have not: the difference between making disciples and merely conveying information.

Attending law school lectures day after day didn’t teach me how to practice law; at best it taught me how to think.  I learned how to practice law working under two fine attorneys and watching what they did. It was much more personal and a better education relationally, intellectually and ethically than I ever got out of a law school lecture.

A law school lecture to a class of 60 students is more expedient and seems more effective than one student being apprenticed by two lawyers.  However, just as symbols and metaphors convey information on many more levels than mere description, apprenticeship imparts more information more than class room lectures, or weekly Sunday sermons.

Jesus’ parting words are significant, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations…” (Matt. 28:19).  Weekly sermons were never intended by the Master to be even the primary means by which Christians grew spiritually.

Jesus preached to the crowds to be sure, but He sowed His life into His disciples. Jesus wasn’t fooled into believing that if He just had bigger crowds He could achieve greater change.  Jesus went from town to town preaching, but His disciples were always with Him and it was to them He revealed the meaning of what He said to the crowds.

Jesus told His disicples, “To you has been given the mystery of the kingdom of God, but those who are outside get everything in parables…” (Mark 4:11).  Jesus apparently wasn’t even that concerned that the crowds understood everything He said to them.

The disciples lived with Jesus, watched Him and learned from Him, and they would later disciple others, who discipled others, and so on and so on.

So, here is the question: Are you a disciple or merely a student? GS

On Discretion

Discretion is of late an unheralded virtue.  To give the virtue its due, I herald it here.

The definition of “discreet” is “[m]arked by, exercising, or showing prudence and wise self-restraint in speech and behavior; circumspect.” (The American Heritage Dictionary, 4th Ed.).

Here are some aphorisms on discretion from the Bible, some from me and one from a portly Brit:

(c)iStockphoto.com/fambros

“As a ring of gold in a swine’s snout, so is a beautiful woman who lacks discretion.” (Proverbs 11:22).

“A man’s discretion makes him slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook a transgression.”  (Proverbs 19:11).

“When wisdom enters your heart, and knowledge is pleasant to your soul, discretion will preserve you…” (Proverbs 2:10-11).

“Imprudence speaks then thinks; discretion thinks and remains silent.”

“Discretion is a friend to the wise, but a stranger to the foolish.”

“He who exerecises discretion exercises wisdom.”

“Tact is the unsaid part of what you think.”  Winston Churchill