Some crises are beyond our control.
Hurricane Fiona strengthened into a Category 4 storm today as it headed toward Bermuda after striking the Turks and Caicos Islands yesterday and devastating Puerto Rico on Monday. Alaskan officials rush to provide aid to remote villages flooded by recent storms; Mexico was hit by a powerful earthquake on Monday; Uganda has declared an outbreak of the Ebola virus.
Other crises are solely caused by us.
Russian President Vladimir Putin today announced the partial mobilization of his country’s military and called up reservists as he escalates his war in Ukraine. A cheating scandal rocks the chess world. And California Gov. Gavin Newsom is promoting billboards in conservative states telling women who want an abortion that “California stands ready to help” and (ironically) quoting Mark 12:31, “Love your neighbor as yourself.”
Doesn’t he know that a mother’s closest “neighbor” is her unborn child?
However, lest Texans like me conclude that his state is godless and ours is more godless in the “Bible Belt,” let’s consider this news: A new index reports that Dallas, Texas, is the nation’s No. 1 in infidelity. Using data from the Census Bureau, the “most unfaithful cities in America” were identified. Fort Worth, Texas was second; Houston took third place.
In contrast, the “most loyal cities” were, in order: Pasadena, Torrance, Roseville, and Visalia, all of which are in California.
A mirror in the largest castle in the world
Whether religion is morally transformative depends on its object, not just its subject. We can go to church, but not meeting the risen and living Christ will not change much.
As British Prime Minister Liz Truss read at Queen Elizabeth II’s state funeral Monday, Jesus alone is “the way, and the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). His Spirit alone can change hearts (John 16:8). He alone can make us “a new creature” as children of God (2 Corinthians 5:17; John 1:14).
The uniqueness and necessity of Jesus became clear to me years ago when I first visited Windsor Castle, the site of the Queen’s burial. The castle was originally completed by William the Conqueror around 1086; Since then it has been expanded and renovated many times, most notably by George IV who died in 1830. It is the oldest and largest inhabited castle in the world.
The ceiling of St George’s Chapel, where the Queen was buried, is so ornate that I wanted to stare at it for hours. However, it is so large that this is difficult and an observer becomes dizzy from the exertion. As a result, a large mirror was placed on the floor, inclined towards the ceiling. If we look at the reflection below, we see the reality above.
In the same way, Jesus assured his disciples, “He who has seen me has seen the Father” (John 14:9). This is true of no other person in all of human history.
Does God Accept Worship of All Religions?
I make this point in response to a very disturbing report on The State of Theology in America that has just been published by Ligonier Ministries and Lifeway Research.
It finds that 43 percent of evangelicals agree that “Jesus was a great teacher, but he was not God.” That percentage has increased thirteen points in just two years. Similarly, and tragically, 56 percent of American evangelicals also agree that “God accepts the worship of all religions, including Christianity, Judaism, and Islam.” That percentage has increased by 14 points in two years.
Another study, this one by George Barna and Arizona Christian University’s Cultural Research Center, is even more disturbing: It reports that at least a third of senior pastors in the United States believe that a place in heaven can be earned by doing one simply a priest is good man.
No wonder our culture continues its slide into unbiblical immorality. Retired Congressman and my personal friend Frank Wolf is right: Politics is subordinate to culture and culture is subordinate to church.
If those who preach sermons and those who hear them don’t believe they desperately need a transformative relationship with Jesus Christ, we shouldn’t be surprised if their beliefs and their actions mirror those of our fallen society. The longer we avoid the light, the more our eyes get used to the dark.
The prayer of a genius
So let’s be clear: Jesus is who historical Christian belief says he is: the sinless Son of God who walked our planet, died for our sins, rose from our grave, is praying for us right now, and will come again one day as King of kings and Lord of lords (Revelation 19:16). (For evidence of the truth of each of these claims, see my website article Why Jesus? and my book Wrestling with God.)
If you base your life on His unique rulership, your house will stand when the hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, disease and temptations of life find you (Matthew 7:24-25). If you don’t do it, it won’t (verses 26-27).
A brilliant scholar at Edinburgh University was affectionately known to his students as Rabbi Duncan. The professor was a world-renowned expert on Hebrew and Aramaic. One day, some students started joking among themselves, wondering what language this famous genius was using in his prayers.
Knowing his meticulous daily routine, they made their way to his room at the nearby college and quietly knelt in front of his door. To their surprise, they could barely hear him whisper the words of Charles Wesley’s anthem:
Gentle Jesus, meek and gentle,
look at a little child
Pity about my simplicity
allow me to come to you
When was the last time you saw him?
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