God Is A Very Strict Parent

 

According to an investigative article by Eli Hager published in the Washington Post, March 2, 2017, entitled “Your child’s been sent to jail. And then comes the bill,” many states bill parents when their juve­nile children are in the legal system. One woman in California was charged $30 a day, while her son waited for 300 days to be tried. In this case, all the charges were dismissed because someone else had com­mitted the crime.

Many parents of adolescent children are poor and can barely afford to live by themselves. Many never pay, many others are threatened and harassed by attorneys for the state, while others are turned over to debt collectors. States typically spend well over 50 percent of what they collect in collection procedures alone.

Laws were passed a number of years ago to allow what I’ve just described. The state thought that many parents were dumping their children in the juvenile justice system and the system of paying for your children’s jail time was an attempt to prevent dumping. Perhaps it was a deterrent for some parents, but children of poor parents are paying for the sins of their children. And one of the un­intended consequences was found to be that the children once released from custody had learned to be more unruly.

Aren’t you glad that God has a different philosophy regarding the responsibili­ty for sin. Ezekiel records God’s thought processes in this matter. “Behold, all souls are Mine; The soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is Mine; The soul who sins shall die” (Ezekiel 18:4). “The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not bear the guilt of the father, nor the father bear the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself” (Ezekiel 18:20). In God’s eyes, parents don’t pay for the sins of the children. While there is no excuse for sin, God also offers for­giveness. “Cast away from you all the transgressions which you have commit­ted, and get yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. For why should you die, O house of Israel? For I have no pleasure in the death of one who dies,” says the Lord GOD. “Therefore turn and live!” (Ezekiel 18:31-32).

[Exodus 20:3-11] God had just finished the giving of the first four commandments relating to the love we should have for Him. He then turns His attention to the love we are to have for others, and begins with, “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be prolonged in the land which the Lord your God gives you” (Exodus 20:12). We have heard this command many times and it is even repeated in the New Testament by Jesus (Matthew 15:4) and by the apostle Paul (Ephesians 6:2). But what exactly are we talking about? When one honors his or her parents he does so in the following ways: (1) Obeying them (Deuteronomy 21:18-20); (2) speaking respectfully to them and about them (Leviticus 19:3); (3) not cursing or striking them (Exodus 21:15, 17; Leviticus 20:9); and (4) providing for their needs when they are no longer able to provide for themselves. Jesus indicated that “honoring” parents included this fourth meaning in Mark 7:9-13. Honoring fathers and mothers involves more than just one or two days a year. It is to be a daily practice of obedience, respect, kindness, patience, understanding, etc. I’m glad there has been a day set aside to honor our parents. I pray that we practice honor each and every day.

Mom’s, Happy Mother’s Day! We honor you for your sacrifices over the years. We honor you for the example of Christian faithfulness shown in your daily lives. We thank you for the little (and big!) life lessons taught us from the earliest days of our life on this big planet. We thank you for the endless love given to us, in spite of our shortcomings.

Don't Be An Airhead

The nineteen-year-old female student was driving back to her apartment after a game and was caught in a really bad hailstorm. Her car was covered with dents, so the next day she took it to a repair shop. The shop owner had a tough time explaining to her what had to be done to remove the dents and recognized her as an “airhead” and decided to have some fun at her expense. He told her if she wanted to save some money to go home and blow into the tailpipe really hard to see how many of the dents would pop out. That would result in less dents he would have to fix and less money out of her pocket. So, she went home and got down on her hands and knees and started blowing into her car’s tailpipe. Nothing happened. So, she blew a little harder, and still nothing happened. Her BFF saw her and asked, “What are you doing?” The first told her how the repairman had instructed her to blow into the tailpipe in order to get all the dents to pop out. Her girlfriend rolled her eyes and said, “Duh! Hello! You need to roll up the windows first!”

When tragedies and disasters occur it’s not long before conspiracies abound. The temptation to believe them is strong because they make sense of an otherwise senseless event. They grant us the power to place blame at the feet of someone, rather than remain a victim of confusion. They provide comfort in the calamity by legitimizing themselves with partial truths and creating a common enemy (usually a corporation or government). Our present culture is rife with false news stories which appear legitimate. We cling to them because, often, they solidify our prior suspicions and make us feel superior to others who aren’t “in the know.” Our post-modern world has fashioned a society where there is no shared truth, no normative sources of information – you have your facts, and I have mine.

At times there are facts staring us all in the face and our “airhead” thinking keeps us from seeing the truth. Just one example appeared in the recent “demonstrations” on our university campuses across the nation. Amazingly we are told that all these demonstrations were spontaneously developed by concerned students wanting their voice heard. (Most of whom weren’t even students and had no real concept of what they were demonstrating for.) The strangest thing was observed by trained eyes about these demonstrations. Every “encampment” that sprung up, on every campus, consisted of the same exact tents organized in the same exact way on the campus grounds. Did hundreds of students, all on different campuses across the United States, go to the same sporting goods store to purchase the same exact tent for their individual demonstration? And then set them up in a military type organized encampment? I think not. These “demonstrations” were bought and paid for by those who are “gaslighting” the American patriot into doing something stupid. Be vigilant in what you see and how you react. Pray we can stop this illiterate nonsense.

[Isaiah 8:12-13] “Do not say, ‘A conspiracy’ concerning all that this people call a conspiracy, nor be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled. The Lord of hosts, Him you shall hallow. Let Him be your fear and let Him be your dread.” Yet, however legitimate you may feel a conspiracy is, as God’s people we must examine them closely. We should use our time wisely to discipline our intellects for holy pursuits, so that we are better prepared to display a dignified, sober, and joyful life before the world. The last thing the world needs is for Christians to become consumed with conspiracies. They need hope, clear-headed thinking, wisdom, and charity. They need to recognize the church as the Kingdom of Heaven. “Hide me from the secret plots of the wicked, from the rebellion of the workers of iniquity” (Psalm 64:2). Oppressed by the wicked but rejoicing in the Lord (Psalm 64).