April Fool

            This week some will observe April Fools Day, which is the first day of April.  No one has tried to make me an April fool in many years, but some still try to fool others.  One year, my late brother, Bill, on the phone with his oldest grandchild, then in grade school, had her believing that an airplane had landed in his back yard.  Well, you can’t blame a young girl for believing what her grandfather told her, even on April 1^st.  All of this is, of course, in fun.  And I suppose all of us have been tricked into being an April fool at some time or another. 

            But there are some people who are fools all the time.  In the Bible we are told of Nabal, whose name is sometimes translated as “fool.” (1 Samuel 25:25)   What a way to go through life.  Also in Psalm 14:1 we read, “The fool has said in his heart, there is no God.”  According to that, the number of fools in the United States is growing rapidly.  According to polls, more and more US citizens are reporting themselves as atheists or agnostics.  After this life they will regrettably discover their foolishness.

            But the biggest fool of all is the person who believes in God, but acts like there is no God.  They ignore His offer of Salvation through Jesus Christ.  Or they claim a relationship with Jesus Christ and then act like the devil.  Their surprise in eternity may be the biggest of all, when they cry out, “Lord, Lord” and Jesus says, “I never knew you.”  They will realize how big a fool they have been.

            On the other hand, Paul labels himself and his coworkers as fools, “We are fools for Christ’s sake…”  (1 Corinthians 4:10)  To the world, anyone who exhibits zealousness for the gospel looks like a fool.  Amen!  May their tribe increase!

Grace and peace.

In answer to some questions, I hope to post something new at least once a week.

Civility in Politics?

             Mark DeMoss, a prominent evangelical Christian who runs a public relations firm in Atlanta, is dropping his effort to get elected officials to sign a rudimentary “Civility Pledge.”  He and a friend, alarmed at the escalating incivility among politicians developed a simple pledge which says, “I will be civil in my public discourse and behavior.  I will be respectful of others whether or not I agree with them.  I will stand against incivility when I see it.”

            They sent out 585 letters asking every sitting governor and member of Congress to sign the pledge.  Mr. DeMoss said in an interview that he is now folding the project after spending two years and about $30,000 in expenses on the endeavor. Only three legislators had signed the pledge.  You read right, ONLY THREE members of congress and no governors would sign the pledge.  In fact, he reports receiving some very hostile emails using unbelievable language and some words he will not repeat publically.

            Most, if not all, of these elected officials are people of faith, a majority of which are Christian by profession.  You would think they would readily sign such a pledge.  Jesus said, “love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you.” (Matthew 5:44)  With some politicians the rule seems to be, “hate your enemies, curse those who disagree with you and spitefully assassinate their character.”  It can be debated as to whether current incivility in politics is greater than it was in the past, but whether it is or not, it is too great now. Some political pundits ranting in the media today will one day face the Lord to give an account of their incivility.  I’m glad I won’t be among them.

Grace and peace.

Christian Integrity and the Internet

I received a forwarded e-mail from an acquaintance not long ago which questioned the religious integrity of President Obama as well as making other negative points about him.  I knew the e-mail was false, but checked it out on Snopes.com anyway.  I replied to him and all his mailing list in a forward, bringing to their attention that the forwarded e-mail was false.  I was surprised when some on his list sent me e-mails questioning my integrity or my knowledge of the facts.

            For years I have tried to help people understand they should not forward a damaging e-mail or a political e-mail without checking it out.  One needs  to see if the facts contained therein are true or false.  If someone forwards an e-mail containing false information it is tantamount to lying.  It makes you a liar for you are spreading falsehoods.  Internet e-mail has made liars of more Christians than anything the world has ever seen before.  There has always been gossip which often did the same thing, but not to the extent of this internet gossip.

            There are some who will not take the word of fact checking sites like Snopes, or the result of investigative reporting by the media.  They become convinced that their false opinion is the truth and turn on anyone who challenges it.  Such was the case of those who disliked my pointing out the falsehoods in the e-mail mentioned.  This is particularly true in the realm of political debate.  I am severely disappointed by the number of Christians, otherwise good people, who pass on political falsehoods. Christian integrity demands that we be careful to know the facts and stick to them.

            Even better, the Christian imperative of love would lead us to heed what many of us were taught by our parents and Sunday School teachers, “If you can’t say anything good about someone, don’t say anything at all.”