Obama's Coin

From the start of his campaign, Barack Obama promised change for America. During the first few months, no one could really say what the change was. One could argue that the change he was referring to, was nothing more than skin color. But keep that to yourself. Pointing out that Barack Obama has done nothing (but write two books and vote in the Senate) could get you labeled as a racist.

It is hard for me to imagine a junior "white" senator with NO executive experience ever getting a nod for the highest executive job in the country. (Even JFK had 13 years of congressional and senatorial experience before taking office.) Barack Obama is a very intelligent, articulate, and charismatic guy. Though I don't agree with everything he SAYS, I do enjoy hearing HOW he says it. But like the poetic, captivating, and sometimes hypnotic words of the Mad Hatter, the logic can leave you wanting.

Over the past few weeks, Obama's economic plan for America has come into focus, courtesy of "Joe the Plumber". Obama's plan is not to FIX the economy, but to CHANGE it. He'll start by giving a tax rebate to 95% of Americans. The obvious problem is that only 53% of Americans pay taxes. If Best Buy installed Obama's plan, it would look like this.

Suppose you run out and buy a $1200 television set, that came with a $200 mail-in rebate. What would happen is that Best Buy would send you $100 and send the other $100 to someone else. So under Obama, the people buying TVs would pay more so that the folks NOT buying TVs would also get rebates. Sounds fair, right? Obama would basically stamp a "No Purchase Necessary" on the income tax code. So why I am NOT worried? Because Jesus said so.

The religious leaders of Jesus' day were notorious for asking Him political, and tricky questions. On one occasion, they wanted to get his take on the extremely high taxation of Caesar. When asked, Jesus responded by asking his own question.

Jesus said, "Show Me the tax money." So they brought Him a coin. And He said to them, “Whose image and inscription is this?” They said to Him, “Caesar’s.” And He said to them, “Give therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” Matt. 22:19-21

It is my vote, prayer, and hope that America doesn't CHANGE into the socialist country Obama and his cronies desire. However, If Caesar wants to "redistribute" his money, Jesus said it isn't His, OR mine to argue over. A nation's currency belongs to its government. The Earth is the Lords. God didn't create the numerous monetary systems throughout its history. It is worth noting that the Jews were prohibited from using currency (gold/silver coins) to pay the the tithe. God didn't want a tithe of Pharaoh, Nebuchadnezzar, or Caesar's money. He wanted a tithe of His own creation. The Bible says that God provides all my needs, and He is the keeper and sustainer of my life. God is not bound by the economic health of America. I have faith that if Obama wants more of his money, then God will provide.

Jesus said, "Go down to the lake and throw in a line. Open the mouth of the first fish you catch, and you will find a large silver coin. Take it and pay the tax for both of us.” Matt.17:27

I don't think Obama will win. But IF I am wrong, we are in for some tough financial times. (Google Herbert Hoover and the Revenue Act of 1932) With that being said, It's not my money to worry about. All I can do is vote, pray, and bait my fishing pole.

Evil

There is a popular “question” among atheist that goes like this; “If God is good, then why does evil exists?” I have to admit. This is a very good question, but we are not allowed to answer ALL questions.

Don’t answer the foolish arguments of fools, or you will become as foolish as they are. Be sure to answer the foolish arguments of fools, or they will become wise in their own estimation. Proverbs 26:4-5

There you have it. Clear as mud.

Have you ever had someone ask you a question, but they asked in such a way that it was clear they were looking for an argument, NOT an answer? I have taken that bait many times, and those are hours of my life I can never get back. I have flushed time (and brain cells) down the toilet dealing with people like this. Jesus knew how to deal with them. He perceived their motive, and would just offend them. I was asked this question recently. The person WAS looking an answer, so let’s take a stab.

How can a God, who contains no evil, create a world that seems to have so much of it? Even the Bible records this paradox.

There are three things that amaze me—no, four things that I don’t understand: How an eagle glides through the sky, how a snake slithers on a rock, how a ship navigates the ocean, how a man loves a woman. Proverbs 30:18-19

Using this metaphor, the Bible asks the same question. How do you reconcile evil (snake) operating so freely in God’s created world (rock)?

To help answer this question, we have to define evil. What is evil? Did God create it? Let’s say I gave you a delicate and beautiful piece of glass. After taking it, you accidentally drop it. It is now hundreds of sharp jagged pieces. Did I create that? No, YOU did. Understanding evil requires you to understand free will.

As a child, I remember receiving a Lego set for Christmas. Immediately after opening it, my dad began building his masterpiece. After consuming all the pieces, the spaceship was complete. He was so proud of his creation, that he set it on top the television for 2 days. And for those 2 days, I was banned from playing with my Lego set. You see, though the Lego set was mine, I could not be trusted with it. I received my Lego set on Dec. 25Th. I received the freedom to play with it (destroy his ship, to create my own) on Dec. 28Th.

God created this world, and it WAS good. It was good, because He created it that way. But that all changed shortly after signing it over to us. Adam and Eve dropped it, and it hasn’t been the same since. God didn’t create evil, we did. God created a delicate, beautiful, but fragile world. And we broke it. When we try to pick up the pieces, we are in essence, doing GOOD. It is a GOOD thing to feed the hungry and give to the poor. By doing those things, we are repairing this ALREADY broken world.

Evil is an illusion in the since that, it doesn’t exist. Evil is just a word we use to describe a place where there is NO GOOD. Darkness doesn’t exist either. You can’t measure darkness. Darkness is term we use to explain the absence of light. Cold also doesn’t exist. We determine how cold it is by measuring how much HEAT is present. Cold is a word we use to explain how little heat there is. At -459.67 degrees Fahrenheit, there is absolutely NO heat. You can’t get colder than that. They call this Absolute Zero.

In Exodus 4, God gave Moses a powerful lesson about evil. God tells Moses to go into Egypt and lead His people of out of the hands of Pharaoh. Moses protested and told God that they would never believe him. God told him to immediately throw down his staff. As soon as the staff was thrown down, it became a snake. The Lord then instructs Moses to grab it by the tail. When Moses reached out and grabbed the tail, it became a staff again.

When God created the world, he created it perfect, good, and straight. It wasn’t until man dropped it, that it became broken and bent. God didn’t create evil. Evil is the result of God giving us a world and us throwing it to the ground. All it takes is someone with the courage to pick it up by the tail. We are here to fix the world. We are here to repair it. We are here to restore it. EVIL is an effect resulted by GOOD not having an affect.

"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing." (Edmund Burke)

Why do we allow snakes to slither on rocks? Obviously, we’re afraid we might get bit.

Rock The Vote

This game is called, "Who Should I Vote For?" It is very simple. I'll give you my top 3 election issues, and where I stand on each of them. Your mission, if you choose to accept, is to find a presidential candidate who fits my bill. I'm counting on you.

LIFE

I believe life begins in the womb. To be exact, I believe it begins 18-21 days after conception. This is when the heart begins to beat. And when you have a beating heart, you have blood.

For the life of the flesh is in the blood. Lev 17:11
For it is the life of all flesh. Its blood sustains its life. Lev 17:14

So I want a candidate who chooses life.

This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live. Deut. 30:19

I also want a candidate who will overturn Roe v. Wade. Because most abortions are in the name of convenience, they are flat out murder.

Whoever sheds the blood of a human, by humans his blood will be shed, because in the image of God, God made humans. Gen 9:6

All scripture is inspired by God. However, the punctuations are NOT. In the original Hebrew texts, there are no punctuations. In fact, in certain passages, there are NO spaces. The punctuations were added later, because they were necessary for translation. Though the English language is conceptually rich, it is not spiritually rich.

There is an axiom in Hebrew study, that if you can punctuate a verse in scripture in more than one way, then all of those ways are valid. So if a punctuation can change the meaning, then it is accepted that all meanings are applicable and intended. This is what makes the Hebrew language spiritually rich. It allows for the coding and compression of information into a finite text.

There are two ways to punctuate Genesis 9:6, in Hebrew. And by changing the punctuation, you get the following English translation.

Whoever sheds the blood of a human inside of a human, his blood will be shed, because in the image of God, God made humans. Gen 9:6

FAMILY

I believe a family starts with a man and a woman.

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. Gen. 1:27

As for you, be fruitful and increase in number; multiply on the earth and increase upon it. Gen. 9:7

Do not practice homosexuality, having sex with another man as with a woman. It is a detestable sin. Lev 18:22

I want a President who supports the family and will hold the public school system accountable for Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic. I don't need a diversity curriculum that attempts to bring balance to my Christian parenting. If I think it's important for my kid to know why "Heather Has Two Mommies", I'll run point on that one.

FREEDOM

I believe Jesus IS the only way to God. I'm not the only one who believes it. In fact, let me quote the bigoted author myself.

Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. John 14:6

I want a President who supports free speech. I want someone who will uphold my right to quote Jesus ANYTIME I want. I have a mandate from God, and I want to do my part, without being labeled a hater.

Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Matthew 28:19

I support free speech, not fair speech. I want a President who opposes the "Fairness Doctrine". When you "force" fairness, you forfeit freedom. And you insult my intelligence by concluding I'm too stupid to change the radio station.

If you don't agree with the Bible, then "man up" and stand by your decision. Don't take an offense, where one wasn't given.

I know what you're thinking. There are dozens of important issues, and THESE are your top 3? Yes, they are my top 3 because I believe they are elementary. Something tells me, George Washington didn't have to go on the record for these.