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Barack Obama, president of the United States, is not deity. What he says about any moral issue does not change anything about the morality of the issue. CNN posted on their site an “Open-Mic” video which had a lot of different people addressing Obama in reaction to his open declaration that gay marriage is all right with him: a lot of people expressed gratitude; one woman (with a very strong southern accent) expressed her dismay … the media strikes again!

We tend to develop love-hate relationships with mirrors. When we believe we are looking good, we don’t mind taking a look in the mirror. In fact, we might even be pleased with what we see. On the other hand, we sometimes deliberately avoid mirrors because we are afraid of what we might see, and that we might look worse than we fear we already do.

For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory.
—2 Corinthians 1:20—

We should, without hesitation, trust God—consider the best example as Abraham (Gen 12:1-4). He is our Creator; He knows what is best for us (Rom 8:28-30; Heb 12:10) and He has designed us for salvation, not condemnation (1 Thess 5:9-10).

The wealthy have many friends (Proverbs 19:4); and the bread of falsehood is sweet (20:17). We may get treasures by lying (21:6); and the rich rule over the poor (22:7). Sounds pretty good, doesn’t it? Sometimes those who should know better are jealous of the apparent gains of sinners. When we notice such an attitude we feel it is time to lock the door and hide the sugar bowl. We cannot consider a man very pious who looks longingly toward “the advantages” of the worldly.

Several years ago I preached a sermon I called, “Growing Old and Going Crazy.” It was spawned by my study of the Old Testament, in which I observed a few men losing it later in their lives, such as with Noah’s drunkenness, David’s adultery, and Solomon’s idolatry. Now, several years later, I am intrigued and encouraged by Paul’s work in Titus 2. He drills down from teaching to living and then to specific instructions for different age groups, including older men and women (Titus 2:2–4).


Quickly doing a word study I found it interesting, to the say the least, that the word “injustice” is not used but a handful of times in the Bible. However, God often speaks about “justice” (found 130 times in the NKJV; 135 times in the ESV). And the one book in the Bible that refers most to justice? Isaiah (29 times); then Psalms (21 times); and then Proverbs (16 times).

Sin is an equalizer. “There is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 3:22–24). “But the Scripture imprisoned everything under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe” (Gal. 3:22).

It is amazing how much of religion in general has left the Bible. Catholicism bears little resemblance to the Bible anymore, nor does Denominationalism. In fact, some of the congregations who wear the name “Church of Christ” are quickly abdicating biblical principles in preference for what the people want instead of what the Bible says.

Recently I had read a Twitter from someone who boldly declared the importance of using a particular Study Bible (the “Twitterer” was someone advertising for the company). The bottom line is that any study Bible of any publisher is a collection of fallible thoughts from fallible men—and we cannot depend our soul’s eternal destiny on what men think (1 John 4:1–6).

The assault of humanism upon the American mindset in the last half-century has taken a dreadful toll on our culture. Its atheistic tentacles have invaded virtually every facet of social life: politics, education, entertainment, medicine, industry, and yes, religion. The church has not eluded its grasp. Evidences of humanistic influence in the church may be seen in the fluctuating attitudes toward morality, authority, worship, and fellowship.