XXV. The Christian Politician

Can you mix religion and politics?  Yes.  Should a Christian really worry about the political world if they have the promise of being taken care of by the Father?  Yes.  God does not want apathic workers.  Here are some clarifications of Christians and politics:

1. Politics, although nowhere near the top priority of a Christian, should still not be neglected.
2. Although God is not a democrat or republican there is still a better choice when it comes to upholding Christian values.
   a. Voting for a candidate that stands for non-Christian values is not proper for a Christian
   b. There is no valid rationalization behind the thinking process of voting for a person standing for non-Christian values. It is still improper. Voting for Obama was wrong. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090123/ap_on_go_pr_wh/obama_abortion_ban
   c. Not voting is inaction and we are always called to action and thereby not the proper thing to do.
   d. The economy does not match morals. Voting due to the economy is okay when all things are constant, but not okay when values such as homosexuality, abortion and civil rights are on the list.
3. Setting high moral standards is a duty of Christians and politics can be used in that manner.
   a. "Forcing" people into our values is better than having them force theirs upon us!
   b. Yes, although moral standards have to be changed at the source before anything really happens, but having laws helping with that tasks is better.
4. High-moral leaders have always set the standard for countries, very biblical.
5. No matter who the leaders is, hopefully everyone prays that they make wise and moral decisions.
6. The US may not be God's gift to the world but it is by far the closest than any other in history.
7. The founding fathers may not have had complete Christian values set for this country but they by far closer than what we have today.

This should help all to understand and no one should put politics above faith.

XXIV. The Literal Bible

The Bible should be taken as literal, but not always literally taken. Everything in the Bible is truth. Nothing is false, contradictory, or fabricated. It is infallible. But not everything in the Bible could be verbatim to our lives. Yet everything is vital to our lives.

Some scripture is story telling. Y'shua (Jesus) used stories to tell his followers so we can relate and learn what He meant. The meaning behind the scripture in this case is accurate. The history behind the event is true. But the imagery is used for the weak human mind.

Some scripture is history telling. Mattiyahu (Matthew), Luke, Moshe (Moses), and others outline events that really happened. They are witnesses. They tell accurate events of history as told to them or as witnessed by themselves.

Some scripture is poetic. Shlomo (Solomon) and David write songs and their feelings down on parchment. These words help describe their feelings. Sometimes feelings use words we normally do not use in everyday life. However, what they write about is real. Their feelings are real. Their God is real. The event they describe is real.

Some scripture is futuristic. Yochanan (John), Dani'el, and others write what they saw in visions. Some visions were not of this world. They could not be described in their own words. But the visions are real. The prophecy is real. The event they speak about is real.

Some scripture is personal accounts for others to understand how to live. All of the books by Paul have a little bit of everything. The events of life are real. The imagery is meant for teaching. The point blank in your face accusations and encouragements are for us to be taken whole-hearted.

Scoffers do not understand this. They take one verse and misconstrue it to try and prove that the Bible is invalid. They try to lump all the imagery together and say that none of the Bible can be taken literally. They take the literal parts and twist them into words of hatred. They do not read the whole text. They do not know the story behind the story. They are the ones who spread falsehoods, make contradictions and fabricate what the Bible says. This is what children of the Adversary do. Don't believe? Read the Bible yourself.

XXIII. Why Church Anyway?

This is the result of last month's poll.

• 100% Church is for worship
• 100% Church is for learning
• 66% Church is a place to get re-energized spiritually
• 25% Church is a place to get saved
• 25% Church has some other reason as well
• 8% Church is a place to get financial help

It was good to see that not many said the Church was a place to get financial help. This idea has beaten the Church to a pulp. Need a place to stay? Go to the Church. Need food on your table? Go to the Church. Need bills to be paid? Go to the Church. Need morals to go out into the world? Nah...keep them in the Church. To say that the Church is a financial institution like a bank is to abuse what the Church is. Now that is not to say that the Church is not to go out and help financially. Because the Church is called to do that and it should help financially whenever they can. But the Church should not be a place where people should take advantage of others which is what happens in today's world. The Church should be out in the world helping others anyway before they have to come to the Church for help.

What is the 25% that said it is for other uses? What are those uses? Help if any has an answer.

It is a place to get spiritually energized. This should have been 100%, not just 66%. No one goes to church to get depressed. People go to get uplifted. People go to help others, which can energize you. People go because they are hurting and need someone to help them. Sometimes worship is not on the mind of some when they walk into the doors. Hopefully by the time they leave it will be because they have been re-energized. Worship teams...remember that! You have been given a huge load of burden.

Two things are for sure. Church is a place of worship and learning. The building, although not the Temple itself, is a place where people can come together and worship Christ. It is also a place to learn about Christ and His life, His love and mercy, His desires for us and His commands. It's not the only place but it is one of them. Why was the original "temple" built? It was so man, who although should be a spiritual being, could worship in a physical capacity. It was a place where man could meet with God. God did not need the building, man did. A true church will have so much geared towards these two things that people will be begging for more because it will light the Spirit's fire within them.

Notice the last piece here. Only 25% said it was a place to get saved. Here's a hint: IT'S NOT! The Church was built for believers. The church building was built for believers as well, as a place to go to again to meet WITH God, not to MEET God. Can it happen there? Yes. Sure. Was it made for that reason? No. Sidebar: This is one reason why scripture says that speaking in tongues when done around non-believers should not really be done. They will not understand it. It will be out of their element. It edifies the believer as a believer. Edify means to instruct.

Too many times churches become "seeker" churches. They focus on the non-believer during the service and only them. The church is not for the non-believer. It is no THEE place to get saved. The real saving comes when the Church goes out its doors and spreads the Word. This is not to say that some programs or sermons or lessons or anything of the sort can not be geared towards those of little or no faith, but there definitely needs to be something for those who are there for pure worship and learning deeper stuff.