One More Gone, But Hope

Shim Sung-min, not a household name in the West, is well-known in his native South Korea, as a martyr for Jesus. He is the second man killed by the Taliban. The picture above is from his memorial service.

This is not a good situation, with the other 21 hostages still very much in danger. However, God works even bad situations for good for those who love Him.

One of the good things happening here is that Muslims are beginning to speak out against the Taliban. Why is that good? Because Muslims in general seem hesitant to speak out against atrocities done to Americans or Jews or Western Europeans. I don't know why, but when terror happens to these groups, there is little public outcry from the Muslim communities of the world. However, for some reason, Muslim organizations are stepping out and saying that what the Taliban is doing with these South Koreans is wrong and against the teachings of their faith.

For that, I am grateful. Perhaps religious freedom will get a foothold among the Muslims. Lack of religious toleration, indeed, is what stops Muslim countries from being just and fair places.

On Friday, the chairman of the 30-million strong Muhammadiyah Muslim organization in Indonesia labeled the Taliban’s action as “in violation of Islamic principles and teaching,” according to Agence France-Presse. He criticized the Taliban for undermining the image of Islam and Muslims around the world.

This Is A Great Post

Warning, it is political.


Check it out here.


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What Do We Say To This

This man, Bae Hyung Kyu, has lost his life to the Taliban. He was leading 22 other South Korean Christians on a trip to Afghanistan. His crime was telling people about Jesus. Should we hate the Taliban for this? No, for Jesus said of his own killers, "Forgive them, they know not what they do."

What do we say to this, then?

First, we should not be surprised. The Taliban will kill any "infidel" they view as in their way, and all the more so Christians who are preaching a faith other than Islam. But also, Bae Hyung Kyu's Master told him this:

"For this reason also the wisdom of God said, 'I will send to them prophets and apostles, and some of them they will kill and some they will persecute,

and also this:

"Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves. But beware of men, for they will hand you over to the courts and scourge you in their synagogues; and you will even be brought before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles. But when they hand you over, do not worry about how or what you are to say; for it will be given you in that hour what you are to say. For it is not you who speak, but it is the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you."

Jesus promised persecution for those He sends out to new places with the news of Jesus. This brother was persecuted, arrested, brought before the governors of many, and even killed, for the name of the Person he represented. For this, he has not lost his reward:


"And they overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb and because of the word of their testimony, and they did not love their life even when faced with death.

However, for the sake of sorrow in this world, let us remember in prayer the family he left behind and the lives of the other 22.

Pray For Boldness and Courage

20 South Korean Christians have been kidnapped by the Taliban in Afghanistan. Why? Because of telling people about Jesus. Please pray for them. (By the way, the picture above is NOT the people kidnapped. I couldn't find a picture of them. But it is a picture of a group of Korean missionaries).

Pray for boldness. The Taliban has claimed that they will interview these people. This is an opportunity for the gospel to go to members of the Taliban. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is sufficient to convert Taliban members, and so let us pray for good opportunities for these people to speak of the Savior.

Let us also ask God for their lives.

The Right to Suspend

Okay, students, sit up straight and get ready for 6th grade civics. I have been hearing on sports talk radio that Michael Vick should not be suspended because in this country we are innocent until proven guilty and that the NFL has no right to suspend a man who has yet to be convicted of a crime.

Pay attention all you victims of public school in the 90s (fortunately, I had 6th grade in the early 70's, before modern educational theory messed everything up). Michael Vick is innocent until proven guilty so HE CANNOT BE SENTENCED FOR A CRIME BY THE GOVERNMENT.

However, and this is the important part, being innocent of a crime does not mean you cannot be fired by your employer.

Allow me to draw and analogy to Don Imus. Imus committed no crime (except against good judgement and good manners), and yet was removed from his job by his employers. At the time, some of my conservative friends said, "We must stop this, for it is the first step to ending free speech." But they were wrong. His employer also has the right to free speech and doesn't have to pay Don Imus to say something else if he doesn't want to. In this case, Don Imus's product for public consumption became less valuable to his employers than did keeping him. So they fired him, and they were within their rights.

Likewise, NFL football is an employer that makes it's money --and quite a bit of money-- by producing a product for public consumption. That product is football games played for the joy of spectators who pay through their ticket sales, their support for sponsoring products, and their purchase of licenced NFL merchandise. The NFL is not required to employ every human capable of playing professional level football. Like it or not, Michael Vick is not guaranteed a job because of his talent. If the NFL decides that the product he gives for public consumption (that is, his football skills) has become less valuable than what he costs in public good will, they are free to fire him.

Now, they are not free to forbid him to play football. He may buy a football --he probably owns one already-- and go in his yard and play all he wants. Perhaps he can even throw a ball to his dogs who can retrieve it for him.

Thus ends the lesson. Class dismissed.

While I Was Away, The Pope Made News

Pope Benedict made the news last week by declaring publicly that the only way to salvation was through the Roman Catholic Church. I was away in Queens, with 44 other people, doing some urban missions stuff, so I was not able to comment. Forgive me my tardiness, for this is one of my favorite stories ever!

Why?

Because the Pope told what he believed to be true, nothing more, nothing less. Why is that a problem?

"It's insensitive to other denominations," say some and again. "It is offensive to all and rude to the Muslims," say others.

However, these critics reveal their over-sensitive, politically correct, historically ignorant point of view.

The Roman Catholic church believes it is the only way, and it always has. That shouldn't be news. The Eastern Orthodox denominations would disagree and have since 1100 A.D. (around there) when they decided that their pope was the true pope that went back to Peter and the Romans disagreed. Of course I disagree, as a reformed protestant. But, this is not news. It has been this way for centuries.

The Pope told the truth of what his church teaches. What's wrong with that? Palestinian and Arab leaders are constantly talking about how they need to push the Jews into the seas and murder all the infidels. We are VERY TOLERANT of such violent points of view. But let a Christian state what he believes and oh what a ruckus!

Do you want to know why the whole world gets more stirred up when Christians speak up than when Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists, secularists, and others say what they believe? I know the answer. It is because Jesus Christ really is the Son of God. He really is the only way to heaven. And it just makes people mad who don't want to follow Him.

The opponents only confirm the truth. Jesus said that He came not to bring peace, but a sword (figuratively --He's not Mohammed!) --dividing people into two camps. There are those who are for Him, and then there are those who hate him. There is no middle ground.

Go, Pope, Go! I don't agree with you, but there is nothing wrong with telling the truth about what you believe.

We Thank God

I have a friend, who, whether things are going well or not, sums up just about every situation with the phrase, "We thank God."

Although this friend now lives many miles away from me, I hear his voice in my mind often. I hear it today.

I am thankful for America. I thank God that I was born here. I thank God for the men who died that we may be a nation, and for the women and children who had to give them up. I thank God for the wisdom of that moment in history when men honored the existence of God and His Laws as being the absolute standard on which human freedom is based.

There are many today outside of America who wonder if we are good people or a good nation. We are regular people, like people anywhere else. But our nation is not ordinary. It is indeed the greatest nation on the earth, filled with freedom and opportunity and good will. I did nothing to deserve to live here. I can only thank God.

Happy Independence day to all. We thank God.

Jesse Jones' Speaks

The picture above is of soldiers in Iraq celebrating the 4th of July by re-enlisting. Many of them celebrated by becoming naturalized citizens. Hats off to our brave men and women who understand better what is going on in Iraq than our pundits and agenda driven politicians. We thank God that we have a military that fights not only for our safety but for the freedom of those in Iraq also. Such nobility is not recognized often in our strange world. An Army that fights for freedom is a good and virtuous, if not highly unusual thing.

Thanks to God for each and every American Soldier.

Speaking for these soldiers in Iraq today, Jesse Jones, Sgt from Olympia, Washington, stationed near Boquaba Iraq: "Today I'm just basically relaxing and refitting, getting ready to go back into the city," he said. "As much as I want to be home, I don't regret being here. This is a good place to celebrate the Fourth of July. Not only are we celebrating independence, we're fighting for independence, too."

Warning. These are the Bad Guys

In theory bad guys should be sneaky about their plans to destroy you. However, in our day of passive American lethargy, our enemies prance about, smiling for cameras and make no apologies for their plans for our demise.

Here is Chavez, who is simply Castro all over again, and President Tom of Iran. Guess what? They are forming an economical unity. Furthermore, they are "against" the US, formally. They are gathering other nations to join them. Chavez, I know you probably didn't hear about this in the news, visited Russia in the last few weeks. I'm sure those talks were in our best interest, aren't you?

It's not like they have to hide it. Americans are busy at their bar-b-Q's.

Chavez: "Those who try to convince the world that in Iran there are a bunch of barbarians are barbarians themselves."

Well, now. There's a piece of brilliance if I ever heard one. I don't think we are barbarians. I do think we are sleeping while our enemies dance and sing about our destruction.

What a Man Thinks in His Heart, So He Is

Car bombs in England are disturbing. What is more troubling is that recent arrests are pointing towards Muslims in the medical profession who were responsible. Actual doctors, in fact. What kind of ideology encourages medical doctors to plant car bombs? Think about that contradiction for a moment.

To save lives through medicine is seen as a good deed. As Westerners, we tend to think that doctors are on the side of all people in need. However, that is because we retain the framework of Christian worldview (even though we don't acknowledge it). In the history of man, the practice of medicine is not always so noble. It ebbs and flows in its morality.

In India, for example, many in the medical field do not treat the lower castes of society, believing that they're karma resigns them to a lower level of value. In America, to our shame, in decades past, some white physicians (not all, nor even most, of course) would refuse treatment to minorities.

But has anyone seen an ideology so vicious and so convoluted that the hands that heal are also the hands the blow up cars? (I know, some of you are thinking about abortion in America, and you have a point, however, very few doctors in America are performing abortions, thank God; the ones who do at least hide from their crime by rationalizing about feminism, the rights of women, et al. It doesn't justify their crime, but it at least it shows a desire to show at least a minimum respect for morality.).

This is not to say that all Muslim doctors blow up cars and people. But the fact that some do, and say they do it in the name of Allah raises issues. These are not renegade doctors. These are mainstream, respectable members of the medical community.

Islam is an ideology of conquest. It has been from the beginning. Islam holds the belief that infidels are unworthy of life and to be killed or conquered. This is not a twisting of their theology, it is in their holy books, taught by their Imams, and begun by their founder, Mohammed.

What a man believes about God truly matters.