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Cleaning God’s House

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The story of Jesus cleansing the Temple in John 2:13-16 is often cited as the basis and guide for righteous anger. Jesus was offended that the Priests and Rabbis had insulted God’s House with the traffic of animals and unethical business with money. So, appropriately, Jesus displays righteous anger and overturns the tables and sends the vendors away.

If you take some time to reflect on the passage, you will notice in verse 15 that Jesus makes a whip. If I had to make a whip, it might take me weeks. How long did it take Jesus? 2 minutes?   5 minutes? 20 minutes?

This verse tells me that Jesus did not act hastily and in anger. He had “time to cool off” so to speak; though it is hard for me to imagine the need for God Incarnate to cool down. While Jesus is clearly passionate about the events, He is not out of control. He takes time to make a whip. He gathers the materials and assembles them carefully. He knows the mission and purpose of the next few minutes and He carefully acts to deliver the right message about God’s House.

What message?

God’s House has a plan and a purpose. At that time, it was the place of intercession and prayer. The people needed animals for sacrifice and coins for offerings and taxes. The sin was placing the business enterprise above the spiritual enterprise. The goal of assisting people in their pilgrimage to a proper, redeemed relationship with God had been replaced by the objectives of business. Profit was the motive rather than reconciliation.

John also mentions that it is near Passover. Perhaps this is just a calendar reference to let people know something about the date in the same way a news reporter would today. I think there was more however.

Women the world over are familiar with the discipline of Spring Cleaning. It is likely that this tradition has roots in the Jewish preparation for Passover. Each year, Jewish families would clean, scrub, and launder their houses to rid the home of yeast in preparation for Passover. They were meticulous; even fanatical. Only when every cupboard and closet, every drawer and counter had been swept and dusted (multiple times if needed) would Mom allow them to rest from the labor.

What a contrast. Every Jewish home scrubbed and spotless. But the Temple of God dirty and filled with livestock. God’s Temple has literally been turned into a barn. No wonder Jesus throws everybody out. The Temple needed cleaning both physically and spiritually.

Perhaps you would take time to ask Jesus for cleansing in the temple of your life today.

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Should We Keep "In God We Trust"?

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In God We Trust - Faith and FactsHere’s your chance to let the media know where the people stand on our faith in God, as a nation. NBC is taking a poll on whether “In God We Trust” should stay on our American currency.

Please share your view and vote on this important subject. Perhaps you could pass it along to others as well.

“In God We Trust” poll

Post your view in the comments after you vote.

In God We Trust: The History

The Treasury Department reports that the motto, “IN GOD WE TRUST,” was added to coins around the time of the Civil War and was associated with increased religious fervor. Salmon P. Chase was the Secretary of the Treasury and he received thousands of requests from believers suggesting that the country express devotion to God by adding this phrase to our money.

The first request came in a letter on November 13, 1861 by Rev. M. R. Watkinson of Ridleyville, Pennsylvania. In a letter dated November 20, 1861, Secretary Chase instructed the director of the Philadelphia mint insert the motto:

In God We Trust - Faith and Facts “Dear Sir: No nation can be strong except in the strength of God, or safe except in His defense. The trust of our people in God should be declared on our national coins. You will cause a device to be prepared without unnecessary delay with a motto expressing in the fewest and tersest words possible this national recognition. It was found that the Act of Congress dated January 18, 1837, prescribed the mottoes and devices that should be placed upon the coins of the United States.”

Pollock suggested “Our Trust Is In God,” “Our God And Our Country,” “God And Our Country,” and “God Our Trust.” Chase picked “In God We Trust.” The motto first appeared on our coins in 1864 and by 1909 it was included on most all coins. During the height of the cold war, on July 11, 1955, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed Public Law 140 making it mandatory that all coinage and paper currency display the motto.

In God We Trust: The Motto

The National Anthem is usually sung with only the first verse. The last stanza of the The Star-Spangled Banner, written by Francis Scott Key in 1814 and later adopted as the national anthem, contains a variation of the phrase which became our motto; “…And this be our motto: In God is our trust. And the Star Spangled Banner in triumph shall wave, O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.” The words were shortened to In God We Trust.

Urban Legends: Removing The Motto From Our MoneyIn God We Trust - Faith and Facts

New US dollar coins are being designed without the motto, “In God We Trust.”

According to Snopes.com this legend is FALSE. The motto is inscribed on the edge of the coin but is not omitted.

Conclusion

President Thomas Jefferson wrote, “The God who gave us life gave us liberty at the same time” and asked ‘Can the liberties of a nation be secure when we have removed a conviction that these liberties are of God?’”

The Bible says:
“It is better to trust the LORD than to put confidence in man” (Psalm 118:8).

“It is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all thy works” (Psalm 73:28 NKJV).

Bailout Costs Will Top $10 Trillion

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Bailout cartoonsA quick note to let everyone know that I have updated some financial figures on “The Real cost of the Bailout.” You will be stunned when you see how this thing is spiraling out of control.

Valentines Day Trivia

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valentines day complicated

Valentine’s Day is big business. Consumers will spend an average of $77.43 on Valentine’s Day gifts this year.

E-commerce retailers expect to rack up about $650 million in sales of food, candy, flowers, and other Valentine’s Day gifts. Of that amount about $350 million will be for gifts and flowers and another $45 million will be spent on food (including chocolate) and wine. About 1 billion Valentine’s Day cards are exchanged each year. That’s the largest seasonal card-sending occasion of the year, next to Christmas.

15% of U.S. women send themselves flowers on Valentine’s Day.

About 3% of pet owners will give Valentine’s Day gifts to their pets.

The oldest known Valentines were sent in 1415 A.D. by the Duke of Orleans to his French wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London. It is still on display in a museum in England.

California produces 60 percent of American roses, but the vast number sold on Valentine’s Day in the United States are imported, mostly from South America. Approximately 110 million roses, the majority red, will be sold and delivered within a three-day time period.

February 14, 270 A.D. – Roman Emperor Claudius II, dubbed “Claudius the Cruel,” beheaded a priest named Valentine for performing marriage ceremonies. Claudius II had outlawed marriages when Roman men began refusing to go to war in order to stay with their wives.

Hallmark has over 1330 different cards specifically for Valentine’s Day.

In the Middle Ages, young men and women drew names from a bowl to see who their valentines would be. They would wear these names on their sleeves for one week. To wear your heart on your sleeve now means that it is easy for other people to know how you are feeling.

In the United States, 64 percent of men do not make plans in advance for a romantic Valentine’s Day with their sweethearts.

In the 17th century, a hopeful maiden ate a hard-boiled egg and pinned five bay leaves to her pillow before going to sleep on Valentine’s eve. It was believed this would make her dream of her future husband.

In Victorian times it was considered bad luck to sign a Valentine’s Day card.

It wasn’t until 1537 that St. Valentine’s Day was declared an official holiday. England’s King Henry VIII declared February 14th a holiday.

Only the U.S., Canada, Mexico, France, Australia and the U.K. celebrate Valentine’s Day. Oops! Many more countries are celebrating Valentine’s Day than I realized though not all have official holidays.

Teachers will receive the most Valentine’s Day cards, followed by children, mothers, wives, and then, sweethearts. Children ages 6 to 10 exchange more than 650 million Valentine’s cards with teachers, classmates, and family members.

valentines day hearts

Girl Selling Virginity Online

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Natalie Dylan is selling her virginity via online auction.

The Moonlite Bunny Ranch in Nevada, the brothel that is arranging and hosting the deal, is especially gung-ho about Dylan. “Natalie is a virgin and would like to sell this priceless and rare commodity in a very exclusive and private setting,” says Bunny Ranch owner Dennis Hof.

While any reasonable person should question the commodity’s rarity, more than 10,000 bidders have stepped forward to bid for Dylan’s … ah … purity.  If the Bunny Ranch’s owner is to be believed, someone has offered $3.7 million.

What does the feminist community have to say about this outrageous exploitation of this young girl? Not much so far.  Searching Google yields only the faintest and infrequent article suggesting that a feminist is uncomfortable with this sexploitation. I, for one, am nearly speechless.

My friend Sarah is a reliable monitor of Feminism from a Christian perspective. She writes,

The lack of moral outrage by feminism doesn’t surprise me as contemporary feminism has discarded the good it once represented in order to promote a completely unfettered lifestyle. Women are free to be exploited themselves, and this is somehow empowering. In fact, I’d go so far as to suggest that by creating a culture where women’s bodies, eggs, and chastity are up for sale, ‘created’ is a pleasant (euphemism) for human trafficking. There is no need for restraint in a world where individuals willingly put a price tag on what is priceless.

What about the FBI? What about the police? Can the FTC do anything? No. No. and No.

Legal experts seem agreed that this is a First Amendment issue. Since prostitution is legal in Nevada, the services may be advertised in areas where it would be illegal so long as the service is performed in a state where it is legal. (I feel a little dirty just writing that sentence.)

One does not have to a prude or a stereotypical Puritan to take offense at this advertisement. Let us call this what it is; Sex for Sale. Whether to pay for college or perform some perverted socialogical experiment, tolerating such behaviour can only harm future generations of young women.

Obama Inauguration

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It seemed as if the entire nation turned out for the inauguration of Barack Obama. After a hotly contested election, even some ardent conservatives have been swept up in the tide of enthusiasm. Commentators and pundits struggled for new and creative ways to say, “Historic.” Preceded by the standard array of parties and gatherings, accompanied by the pomp and pageantry befitting the office, at 12:05 today, Barack Obama completed the oath of office as President of the United States.

It was the speech I was looking forward to. President Obama is one the most gifted orators in our world today. He also has gifted speech writers and delivered a series of brilliant speeches on the campaign trail. I wondered if he would deliver at the Inauguration. Would he make the speech of a lifetime? A speech for the ages?

The President gets mixed reviews in my opinion.

The language was soaring but metaphors came so fast and so frequently the content suffered. The themes of humility, sacrifice and gratitude were welcome and heart-felt. While not everyone embraced the more somber Obama, the tone of the speech seemed befitting of the moment to me. One of his best moments was when he said:

What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility — a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.

The enduring image of the day, for me, is not from the speech itself. It is the repeated image of a black man and his wife and children. A role model for young black men and young black families. A smart man. A hard working man. A man that can be respected and admired.

I did not support him in the campaign and I will oppose many of his policies and ideals. But Barack Obama is my President and I will pray for him, encourage him, and hope he delivers on the best of his promises.

Rules of War According to Gaza

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Faith and Facts Israel and GazaVictor Hanson, of the Hooer Institue wrote the following article, The Gaza Rules which captures my view of the conflict in Gaza.

For several prior weeks, Hamas terrorists had been launching rockets daily into Israeli towns that border Gaza. The recent volleys of missiles had insidiously become more frequent – up to 80 a day – and the payloads larger. Iranian-backed Hezbollah terrorists were reportedly supplying their own training and expertise.

These terrorists point to the Lebanon war of 2006 as the template for provoking an Israeli counter-response that will bog down the Israeli Defense Forces in the streets of urban Gaza and ensure that Palestinian civilians are harmed on global television.

Watching both this week’s war and the world’s predictable reaction to it, we can recall the Gaza rules. Most are reflections of our postmodern age, and completely at odds with the past protocols of war.

First is the Middle East doctrine of proportionality. Legitimate military action is strangely defined by the relative strength of the combatants. World opinion more vehemently condemns Israel’s countermeasures, apparently because its rockets are far more accurate and deadly than previous Hamas barrages.

If America had accepted such rules in, say, World War II, then by late 1944 we, not the Axis, would have been the culpable party, because by then once-aggressive German, Italian and Japanese forces were increasingly on the defensive and far less lethal than the Allies.

Second, intent in this war no longer matters. Every Hamas unguided rocket is launched in hopes of hitting an Israeli home and killing men, women and children. Every guided Israeli air-launched missile is targeted at Hamas operatives, who deliberately work in the closest vicinity to women and children.

Killing Palestinian civilians is incidental to Israeli military operations and proves counterproductive to its objectives. Blowing up Israeli noncombatants is the aim of Hamas’ barrages: the more children, aged and women who die, the more it expects political concessions from Tel Aviv.

By this logic, the 1999 American bombing of Belgrade – aimed at stopping the genocide of Slobodan Milosevic – was, because of collateral damage, the moral equivalent of the carefully planned Serbian massacres of Muslim civilians at Srebrenica in 1995.

Third, culpability is irrelevant. The “truce” between Israel and Hamas was broken once Hamas got its hands on new stockpiles of longer-range mobile rockets.

Yet, according to the Gaza rules, both sides always deserve equal blame. According to such morally equivalent reasoning, World War II was only a tragedy, not a result of German aggression. Once the dead mounted, it mattered little what were the catalysts of the outbreak of fighting.

Fourth, with instantaneous streaming video from the impact sites in Gaza, context becomes meaningless. Our attention is glued to the violence of the last hour, not that of the last month that incited the war.

Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005 to great expectations that the Palestinians there would combine their new autonomy, some existing infrastructure left behind by the Israelis, Middle East oil money and American pressure for free and open elections to craft a peaceful, prosperous democracy.

The world hoped that Gaza might thrive first, and then later adjudicate its disputes with Israel through diplomacy. Instead, the withdrawal was seen not as a welcome Israeli concession, but as a sign of newfound Jewish weakness – and that the intifada tactics that had liberated Gaza could be amplified into a new war to end the Zionist entity itself.

Fifth and finally, victimization is crucial. Hamas daily sends barrages into Israel, as its hooded thugs thump their chests and brag of their radical Islamic militancy. But when the payback comes, suddenly warriors are transmogrified into weeping victims, posing teary-eyed for the news camera as they deplore “genocide” and “the Palestinian Holocaust.” At least the Japanese militarists did not cry out to the League of Nations for help once mean Marines landed on Iwo Jima.

By now, these Gaza asymmetrical rules are old hat. We know why they persist – worldwide fear of Islamic terrorism, easy anti-Westernism, the old anti-Semitism, and global strategic calculations about Middle East oil – but it still doesn’t make them right.