Signs of God's Presence

This week, in our sermon series Conversations with an Athiest, I will be addressing the problem of suffering. That message will be posted in just a few days. In the meantime, some of you may want to check out Mel Gibson's movie Signs. It has just come out in Blu-Ray format, or you can get it in the bargain bin at your local movie rental store. The story this intense movie tells is set against the backdrop of an alien invasion. But, the story is really not about space aliens. The keen observer will discover that the story is really about the question, where is God when we suffer. The answer is subtle but profound. If you can take the rise in blood pressure, this one is worth your time. However, it is not suitable for small children.

Don't Censor Me!

In his inaugural address, President Obama said, “To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history.” I would like to believe he meant what he said. However, many in his party, including former president, Bill Clinton and U.S. Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., are calling for the very thing Obama said would put governments and leaders on the wrong side of history; “silencing dissent.” The means of silencing the voices of dissent is through the resurrection of the so called ‘Fairness Doctrine.’

The thinly disguised motive of those seeking resurrect this arcane assault on the First Amendment is the destruction of Conservative Talk Radio. Now, whatever you may think of Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh, ask yourself, is it the business the government to decide what you and I can and cannot listen to. Even more frightening, Waxman has verbally toyed with idea of regulating Internet content as well.

In the early 90’s local officials in one city decided to take off the shelves of music stores the Album by 2 Live Crew, called As Nasty as We Want to Be, because it was said to violate local profanity laws. You would have taught the whole constitution was under attack. For weeks, liberal talking heads on MTV, and in main stream editorial writers talked non-stop about the dangers of censorship. But where are those of liberal spirit now? Where are the classic liberals, who like Voltaire, were willing to say: “I disagree strongly with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it."

Will today’s freedom fighters come out in defense of 2 Live Crew but not for the right of millions of Americans to listen to opinions that differ from the current administration? Perhaps you, the reader, do not like what I and other American’s listen to on the radio. So what? I may not like what you listen to; but, I have no intent on using the Federal Government to regulate your listening choices.

But if none of these arguments make any difference to you, then let me appeal to you in the words of the hippie movement: “Hey man, don’t censor me,” or my radio.

Conversations with an Atheist: part four

Conversations With An Atheist Part Four
“The Bible’s Disturbing Stories”

Rev. Dr. Eddie Bromley Grace Church 22 February 2009

The Word of God, as it comes to us from Judges 19 and continuing with the first 11 verses of chapter 20.
Judges 19
A Levite and His Concubine
1 In those days Israel had no king. Now a Levite who lived in a remote area in the hill country of Ephraim took a concubine from Bethlehem in Judah. 2 But she was unfaithful to him. She left him and went back to her father's house in Bethlehem, Judah. After she had been there four months, 3 her husband went to her to persuade her to return. He had with him his servant and two donkeys. She took him into her father's house, and when her father saw him, he gladly welcomed him. 4 His father-in-law, the girl's father, prevailed upon him to stay; so he remained with him three days, eating and drinking, and sleeping there.
5 On the fourth day they got up early and he prepared to leave, but the girl's father said to his son-in-law, "Refresh yourself with something to eat; then you can go." 6 So the two of them sat down to eat and drink together. Afterward the girl's father said, "Please stay tonight and enjoy yourself." 7 And when the man got up to go, his father-in-law persuaded him, so he stayed there that night. 8 On the morning of the fifth day, when he rose to go, the girl's father said, "Refresh yourself. Wait till afternoon!" So the two of them ate together.
9 Then when the man, with his concubine and his servant, got up to leave, his father-in-law, the girl's father, said, "Now look, it's almost evening. Spend the night here; the day is nearly over. Stay and enjoy yourself. Early tomorrow morning you can get up and be on your way home." 10 But, unwilling to stay another night, the man left and went toward Jebus (that is, Jerusalem), with his two saddled donkeys and his concubine.
11 When they were near Jebus and the day was almost gone, the servant said to his master, "Come, let's stop at this city of the Jebusites and spend the night."
12 His master replied, "No. We won't go into an alien city, whose people are not Israelites. We will go on to Gibeah." 13 He added, "Come, let's try to reach Gibeah or Ramah and spend the night in one of those places." 14 So they went on, and the sun set as they neared Gibeah in Benjamin. 15 There they stopped to spend the night. They went and sat in the city square, but no one took them into his home for the night.
16 That evening an old man from the hill country of Ephraim, who was living in Gibeah (the men of the place were Benjamites), came in from his work in the fields. 17 When he looked and saw the traveler in the city square, the old man asked, "Where are you going? Where did you come from?"
18 He answered, "We are on our way from Bethlehem in Judah to a remote area in the hill country of Ephraim where I live. I have been to Bethlehem in Judah and now I am going to the house of the LORD. No one has taken me into his house. 19 We have both straw and fodder for our donkeys and bread and wine for ourselves your servants—me, your maidservant, and the young man with us. We don't need anything."
20 "You are welcome at my house," the old man said. "Let me supply whatever you need. Only don't spend the night in the square." 21 So he took him into his house and fed his donkeys. After they had washed their feet, they had something to eat and drink.
22 While they were enjoying themselves, some of the wicked men of the city surrounded the house. Pounding on the door, they shouted to the old man who owned the house, "Bring out the man who came to your house so we can have sex with him."
23 The owner of the house went outside and said to them, "No, my friends, don't be so vile. Since this man is my guest, don't do this disgraceful thing. 24 Look, here is my virgin daughter, and his concubine. I will bring them out to you now, and you can use them and do to them whatever you wish. But to this man, don't do such a disgraceful thing."
25 But the men would not listen to him. So the man took his concubine and sent her outside to them, and they raped her and abused her throughout the night, and at dawn they let her go. 26 At daybreak the woman went back to the house where her master was staying, fell down at the door and lay there until daylight.
27 When her master got up in the morning and opened the door of the house and stepped out to continue on his way, there lay his concubine, fallen in the doorway of the house, with her hands on the threshold. 28 He said to her, "Get up; let's go." But there was no answer. Then the man put her on his donkey and set out for home.
29 When he reached home, he took a knife and cut up his concubine, limb by limb, into twelve parts and sent them into all the areas of Israel. 30 Everyone who saw it said, "Such a thing has never been seen or done, not since the day the Israelites came up out of Egypt. Think about it! Consider it! Tell us what to do!"
[Continuing with Judges 20:1-11]
1 Then all the Israelites from Dan to Beersheba and from the land of Gilead came out as one man and assembled before the LORD in Mizpah. 2 The leaders of all the people of the tribes of Israel took their places in the assembly of the people of God, four hundred thousand soldiers armed with swords. 3 (The Benjamites heard that the Israelites had gone up to Mizpah.) Then the Israelites said, "Tell us how this awful thing happened."
4 So the Levite, the husband of the murdered woman, said, "I and my concubine came to Gibeah in Benjamin to spend the night. 5 During the night the men of Gibeah came after me and surrounded the house, intending to kill me. They raped my concubine, and she died. 6 I took my concubine, cut her into pieces and sent one piece to each region of Israel's inheritance, because they committed this lewd and disgraceful act in Israel. 7 Now, all you Israelites, speak up and give your verdict."
8 All the people rose as one man, saying, "None of us will go home. No, not one of us will return to his house. 9 But now this is what we'll do to Gibeah: We'll go up against it as the lot directs. 10 We'll take ten men out of every hundred from all the tribes of Israel, and a hundred from a thousand, and a thousand from ten thousand, to get provisions for the army. Then, when the army arrives at Gibeah [a] in Benjamin, it can give them what they deserve for all this vileness done in Israel." 11 So all the men of Israel got together and united as one man against the city.
L: The Word of God for the People of God.
P: Thanks be to God!
The Bible contains some rough stories. When you read an unedited copy of the Bible, it is not quite like children’s Sunday School. The Church has always considered important to expose children to the Bible’s stories in age appropriate ways. And thus, there are some stories, like the one read today that do not make into the typical children’s Bible.
But sooner or later, as Christian matures and grows, they hopefully learn to read the Bible in its entirety; which brings them into contact with stories like the one read for us this morning. It is a shock to some people when they first encounter these stories, and some atheists have tried to make the point that the very presence of stories like these discredits the Bible, and thus Christianity and a belief in the Christian God.
In order to talk about the Bible’s difficult stories, I decided to choose pretty hard story, to which we turn in a minute. Each of the Bible’s difficult stories raises different issues; but I wanted to a least deal with pretty tough one and the issues it raises. But before turning to this story, I want to deal with the topic generally.
Some general thoughts about the Bible’s difficult stories:
1. The Bible deals with life, not only as it should be, but as it really is. Thus Bible looks at life in all its beauty and ugliness. As to the ugliness, the Bible looks at life, as it really is, ugliness and all without flinching. If it did not, the Bible would be of no use to us. If the Bible treated on the subjects of sweetness and light, what would have to draw from in the bitterness and pain? The Bible is willing to see life as it is.
2. The Bible is not interested in providing us with idols to worship. Even the heroes of the Bible, those saints that are held up for our instruction are shown with all their warts and blemishes. The Bible has no problem in talking honestly about King David’s adultery and his betrayal of a loyal man. It has no problems with letting us known that father Abraham was a bit of a liar. It doesn’t try to hide from us that the Peter the Rock was at one time a coward, or that some of the female followers of Jesus had a shady past. The Bible has no problems showing us that these people were real men and women just like us, because they are not the main character of the story. God is. The Bible has no interest in lifting any of these people as idols to worship, but perhaps lifting them us so that we might learn from them, not only in what they got right, but also in what they got wrong. And the Bible never gives a blanket approval for all that these people do. Some of what they do is condemned by the Bible itself. And probably most important, since these people were regular men and women like us, not angles who floated off the ground, then perhaps like them we too can learn to walk with the Lord; even if we, like them, are sometimes on a real slow learning curve.
3. Some of the things a holy God does will simply get on the nerve of sinful people who think everything, including God should go by their rules.
I’m talking about judgment here. We don’t like it when God judges our sins. But as God, he has the right to say that some things are right and some things are wrong, no matter what popular opinion says about the topic. God is slow to judge and punish sin; but when he does, there is a tendency in our broken hearts to respond with disapproval.
On the first day teaching his class of 250 college freshmen, R. C. Sproul carefully explained the assignment of three term papers. Each paper was due on the last day of September, October, and November. Sproul clearly stated there would be no extensions (except for medical reasons). At the end of September, some 225 students dutifully turned in their papers, while 25 remorseful students quaked in fear. "We're so sorry," they said. "We didn't make the proper adjustments from high school to college, but we promise to do better next time." He bowed to their pleas for mercy, gave them an extension, but warned them not to be late next month.
The end of October rolled around, and about 200 students turned in their papers, while 50 students showed up empty-handed. "Oh, please," they begged, "it was homecoming weekend, and we ran out of time." Sproul relented once more but warned them, "This is it. No excuses next time. You will get an F."
The end of November came, and only 100 students turned in their papers. The rest told Sproul, "We'll get it in soon."
"Sorry," Sproul replied. "It's too late now. You get an F."
The students howled in protest, "That's not fair!"
"Okay," Sproul replied, "you want justice, do you? Here's what's just: you'll get an F for all three papers that were late. That was the rule, right?"
"The students had quickly taken my mercy for granted," Sproul later reflected. "They assumed it. When justice suddenly fell, they were unprepared for it. It came as a shock, and they were outraged."
Matt Woodley, in the sermon "The Grieving Heart of God," PreachingToday.com


So what about this passage?

To understand this passage, you have to understand the message of the Book of Judges. The Book of Judges tells the story of a portion of Israel’s history in which there was no central leadership. Moses and Joshua were gone and there was no central leader, or government, plan by which the people could structure their lives together. Four times, Judges tells us, “In those days, there were no kings and the people did what was right in their own eyes.”

The claim of the Book of Judges is that when there is no blueprint, no map plan, no central leader, or path to fallow, the result will be the deterioration of society. Yes, throughout the book of Judges, God from time to time sends an inspired or woman to provide leadership; but, this at this point in history of God’s people, this inspired leadership is always very temporary and lacks a certain structure to it. And thus, an inspired messenger from God only slows the deterioration; it does not stop or reverse it.

The claim of the book of Judges is this: Even God-inspired leadership is not enough without a structured way forward. Wherever and whenever a culture experiences a moral free-for-all in which everyone is simply making up the rules as they go along, the results will always be same: the culture itself will unravel.

So, who is the King which the book of Judges anticipates: Is it David and Solomon? Well, yes and no. David became the pattern of what good king should be like. He ushered in the golden age of Israel. But even David fell far short of the real idea. The King which Judges really anticipates is Jesus. And Jesus is the only one who can take a culture full of wayward men and women and lead them along the path of life.

Conversations with an Atheist: part three

Today’s Message
Conversations with an Atheist
Part Three “Religious Wars and Violence”

Rev. Dr. Eddie Bromley Grace Church 1 February 2009
Ephesians 6:10-18 Luke 22:47-53
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Kelley and Tom, I have given some suggested words for our lectors. Some do a really good job, but some rather stumble on how to introduce the Scripture and what to say in between readings. They do not have to say these exact words, but they would be preferred to them not knowing what to say. Do ask them to be sure to use the responsive reading at the very end.

Hear the word of God as it comes to us, first from Jeremiah chapter 17.

Jeremiahs 17
9 “The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is? 10 But I, the Lord, search all hearts and examine secret motives. I give all people their due rewards, according to what their actions deserve.”

And from the book of Ephesians, chapter six.

Ephesians 6

10 A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. 12 For we[c] are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.
13 Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. 14 Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. 15 For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared.[d] 16 In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil.[e] 17 Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
18 Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.
And finally, from the Gospel according Luke, chapter 22

Luke 22

47 But even as Jesus said this, a crowd approached, led by Judas, one of the twelve disciples. Judas walked over to Jesus to greet him with a kiss. 48 But Jesus said, “Judas, would you betray the Son of Man with a kiss?”
49 When the other disciples saw what was about to happen, they exclaimed, “Lord, should we fight? We brought the swords!” 50 And one of them struck at the high priest’s slave, slashing off his right ear.
51 But Jesus said, “No more of this.” And he touched the man’s ear and healed him.
52 Then Jesus spoke to the leading priests, the captains of the Temple guard, and the elders who had come for him. “Am I some dangerous revolutionary,” he asked, “that you come with swords and clubs to arrest me? 53 Why didn’t you arrest me in the Temple? I was there every day. But this is your moment, the time when the power of darkness reigns.”
L: The word of God for the people of God.
P: Thanks be to God!
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A Careful Distinction

I need to make a careful distinction this morning as we prepare to talk about war and violence. While people of good will, Christians and non-Christians alike, decry the terrors of war and long for a day when violence will no longer be part of the human experience; I think it would be overstepping to say that every act of force is wrong. Officers of the law must sometimes use force to protect the innocent. This is regrettable, but nonetheless, a given reality that must be faced. Likewise, when foreign enemies threaten freedom or helpless masses of innocent people, it is sometimes necessary to deploy armed forces to stand against injustice and evil. This too is regrettable but a reality nonetheless. We salute officers of the law who uphold their pledge defend and protect their communities by enforcing the law. Likewise, we salute the honorable men and women who wear the uniform and are often called upon to fight for and defend freedom and liberty here and around the world.

But I think most of us know that that is not what we are talking about this morning. We are not so much concerned with the idea of restrained and restricted uses of force to stop criminals. Neither or we so much concerned with use of force to stand up against terrible regimes like the Nazi’s.

Instead, we are talking about violence general. Why does the human race seem to have such propensity to violence at all? And what part does religion play in violent behavior?

According to some atheists, religion has caused more suffering, wars and violence than any other single cause. Is this true?

Since 9/11 we in the West have become painfully aware of fanatical Jihadists who are more than willing to use violence to spread their understanding of Islam. Jihadists inflicted America with terrible tragedy as our World Trade Center and Pentagon were struck by planes being used as weapons. England, France, and most recently India too have become targets of radical Jihadists.

We also know that Hindu extremists have at times been a source unrest in India, fueling xenophobic hatred against Christians and Muslims.

As hard as it is for some Christians to admit it, there have been…

Some disgraceful moments in Church history

We know the stories pro-life advocates who have shot abortion providers as a way of promoting the agenda of life. The crusades were a barbaric blood bath at the expense of countless innocents. We know the stories of the 30 year’s war in which Protestants and Catholics killed each other. But…

Does religion have a monopoly on brutal wars?

Would division, violence, and war go away if religion were to cease? Have there been any large scale experiments in trying to live as if there were no God? The answer of course is yes. And results have been deadlier than anything theocrats could ever have imagined doing. One college professor writes the following:

As a History Professor at a Junior college I challenge my classes to comment on the following statement:
Organized religion has caused more suffering, wars and violence than any other cause.
Almost all the students raise their hands in agreement. I then demand that they provide dead bodies as evidence. They usually mention the Crusades and one or two other religious wars they might have heard of but in none of their examples can they come up with a million deaths. (Some scholars used to teach that the Thirty Years’ War in Germany resulted in 8 million deaths, but modern scholars have demonstrated it was more like 200 thousand and in fact the population of Germany actually increased during that war.) I then point out that most of the people who have died as a result of war, have done so in the Twentieth Century and that most of the killing was done in the name of secular ideologies. I then ask them who is the “baddest” of them all. Most guess Hitler. I then tell them that he is rated #3. Some then guess Stalin and I inform them that most scholars place him at #2 with 20 million killed. Almost no one gets #1 who, of course, is Mao who starts with an estimated 40 million. I then point out that the top two were Communists and Hitler was a radical proponent of Social Darwinism. All of these ideologies are based on atheistic systems.
Someone once said, “Mao killed more men in afternoon than were killed in 600 years of inquisition.

We fight not against flesh and blood

We have already admitted that Christians can go off in bad way. However, there is built into the very philosophy of Christianity a corrective against violent behavior; a corrective that stands in judgment whenever Christians choose the way of violence. That corrective is the Gospel itself.

Jesus taught us to turn the other check and to love and pray for our enemies. Paul reminds us that our enemies are not flesh and blood, not men and women, but spiritual forces and powers. Our reading from the Gospel of Luke reminds us that Jesus kingdom is not the sort of thing that can be advanced and secured by military means. Christians can get as tangled up as anyone in the mess of violence and division; but, when we do there stands within our very message a judgment against us.

Atheism has no such corrective within. Darwinism as a philosophy only provides a scenario of limited resources in which the week and strong compete for survival. Please don’t hear me as saying that I reject all the marvelous insights Darwin’s theory provides for understanding the mechanics of life. I do not such thing. But a life philosophy Darwinism provides nothing for resisting the path of violence.

This of course does not mean that atheists cannot be moral. Many are. They too have been created in the image God. However, there is nothing in the theory of Darwinism to encourage such morality. At Christmas time, Atheists ran ads telling Americans that God is not necessary for living the moral life. The ads stated, “Be Good for Goodness Sake.” Fascinating, because Darwinism provides no raw material for such thinking. Mein Kemp is much more consistent with philosophical Darwinism. In this work, My Struggle, Adolf Hitler carefully works out the implications of Nietzsche and of social Darwinism. In it, he urges the German people to snuff all the other people groups that might keep them from becoming all that they could and should be.

Is this to say that all atheist are potential Hitlers, Maos, and Stalins? NO! Not any more than all Christians being potential abortion clinic bombers or crusaders. Neither do I believe the flip side of the statement about religion being the cause of all violence and division. I do not believe we would make any progress in eliminating violence by getting rid of atheism. Because…the Bible has taught me to ask…

What is wrong with the human race?

See, the Bible teaches a very complex understanding of human nature. On one hand, we have all been created in the image of our very good God. But on the other hand, we have all been severely damaged by sin. Meaning, even the very best among us are capable of doing some awful things. This is what our Jeremiah passage is about.

This is why I have come to so appreciate the founders of the United States. Not all of the founders were Christians. But all of them had been influenced by a Christian world view. And having been so influenced, they designed a constitutional government in which certain rights would always be protected and guaranteed. They built a government with careful checks and balances, because they knew that no president, congress, judge, preacher, group, minority, or majority should ever be trusted with absolute power. They knew what the Bible said about the human heart; how, that even the best among us are capable of doing evil.


No man/woman is an angel

Writing on the subject, James Madison said:

What is government itself but the greatest of all reflections on human nature? If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary. James Madison

Until Jesus returns and completes his work in humankind, there will always be a tendency toward violence. And we can work to limit this tendency only as we recognize it, not only in others but even within ourselves. Until that time, we pray that the Holy Spirit will continue to apply the grace of Christ to our hearts until our hearts look like HIS.