More than I ask or imagine. . .

Chuck Baldwin on Romans 13: Christians and the Civil Government

 

Before I head off for 2 weeks of vacation, I wanted to post on Chuck Baldwin.  I thought about voting for him for President but he was not on the Ballot up here in Pennsylvania.  Baldwin was an outspoken critic of George W. Bush from the conservative side.  In the article below, he defends blind obedience to the Civil Magistrate that many Christians do with a view to Romans 13.  Granted, I, as a WCF guy, would probably do the whole Lex Rex thing and say if the government is not following God's law then there is cause for civil disobedience.   Let me know what you think about his stances.

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It seems that every time someone such as myself attempts to encourage our Christian brothers and sisters to resist an unconstitutional or otherwise reprehensible government policy, we hear the retort, "What about Romans Chapter 13? We Christians must submit to government. Any government. Read your Bible, and leave me alone." Or words to that effect.

No doubt, some who use this argument are sincere. They are only repeating what they have heard their pastor and other religious leaders say. On the other hand, let's be honest enough to admit that some who use this argument are just plain lazy, apathetic, and indifferent. And Romans 13 is their escape from responsibility. I suspect this is the much larger group, by the way.

Shame, Guilt, and a Confessional Liturgy

Here is an article by David Powlison on his homework for people struggling with guilt and shame.  I find it excellent, pastoral, and accessible. It is based on the rich tradition of the Book of Common Prayer.  Read what follows to see if you may need to work with it or use it yourself.

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When I counsel with people who struggle with deep feelings of shame, guilt, and regret, I sometimes suggest that they design a personalized liturgy. In what follows, I walk through the example of a woman who has had an abortion, and all that led up to that choice, and all that follows in someone whose conscience is alive. But you can tailor it to whatever struggle you or another person needs to deal with. Where is your struggle? Is it temper or bitterness? Sexual immorality? Amnesia toward God? Gluttony, laziness or greed? Judgmental words or thoughts? Gossip? Obsessive worrying? God welcomes all who are weary with sin.

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Designing your own liturgy of confession will help you to think through exactly what you need to bring to God, and what you need from God. It will give you serious words to express your sorrow, regret, guilt and pain over your abortion. It will lead you by the hand to God’s mercy and to his washing away of your sin and guilt. The parts of this liturgy in italics are taken and adapted from the General Confession of Sin in The Book of Common Prayer. Even when your thoughts and feelings are chaotic, these words can serve as your guide. They are a channel for honesty. Instead of wallowing in misery and failure, these words help you to plan how you will walk in the direction of honesty, mercy, gratitude, and freedom.

Worshiping God through the Arts

    Much of our discussion in the Reformed world of images and worship have tended to be discussions of pictures of Jesus or any person of Trinity.  So the question then becomes, what about abstract art?  Some think that abstract art is fine too but not comprehensible. How do we communicate through art, while keeping in mind that our hearts are idol-factories?

    The answer is creating as a service to God. The Sermon, music and the prayers are often products of people creating.  When we create as humans, we image God. When we do it to encourage the Body of Christ, it is part of living our 1 Corinthians 12.

    For our Missions Festival at New Life Presbyterian Church, we had a unique opportunity to use the gifts of our Body to encourage our Body.  In a serious economic downturn, anxiety is high for those who support missionaries who lose income and missionaries who have to depend on that support.  In the video below, Alex Pinguli and Jim Lovelady team up to encourage our body through music and art.  Let me know what you think.  For us as a Body, it was tremendously encouraging.

Freedom on Independence Day.

Today is our Independence Day!.  Please read the Declaration of Independence today and remember what it says.  Also, here is an article about the Rights of Life, Liberty, and Property that are really the same rights from Campaign for Liberty.  And finally, a Happy Fourth from Ron Paul.  I am so glad that I have been reading the founding documents recently, much of that has to do with Ron Paul and his campaign last year. I only took an interest in him last year after McCain was the presumptive nominee. Regardless of his political future, I am grateful for his perspective and love for our country.

May our comforts not lull us into losing our freedom.

JD tries some Rice Cereal at 6 months