Advancing Christian Faith and Values,
Defending Religious Liberty for All,
Supporting Civility and the Common Good
through Preaching, Teaching, Writing, Activism and Reasoned Conversations

www.donaldshoemakerministries.com

Best Humor of the Season So Far

Seen by our daughter at a supermarket in Corona, CA (Sorry, Santa!)

Thanksgiving Reflection 2018

One hundred years ago, November 11, 1918, the Great War ended. Filled with optimism, many hoped it would be “the war to end all wars.” * It was not to be, for the human capacity to do evil runs deep, and when evil people come to power the world shudders.

Just five years later, on November 8, 1923, Adolf Hitler would launch his bid for power in what came to be known as the Beer Hall Putsch. Though seemingly a failure, it was actually a launching pad:

“The failed coup turned out to be quite a boon for Adolf Hitler. His trial brought him more attention and publicity than ever before. With a crowd of thousands—including press from around the world—watching the proceedings, Hitler made the most of this opportunity by going on the offensive.” (history.com)

And he used his year of imprisonment “profitably” to write Mein Kampf.

In 1933 Hitler came to power. In 1939, just 21 years after Armistice Day, the world was into what would be an even worse war. Nazism and much of Communism are gone as systems today, but our world is still fraught with “wars and rumors of wars.” Because of the still-dangerous times in which we live, we must pray, intercede, and give thanks earnestly for our leaders and for peace in our troubled world (1 Timothy 2:1-2).

We must pray thankfully for those in our armed services today—their protection and the success of all just missions. For we need to be a strong nation as well as a good nation, and we should pray we will always be both.

Long may our land be bright with freedom’s holy light,
Protect us by Thy might, Great God our King.

* This optimism emanated especially from President Woodrow Wilson. Wilson’s Presbyterian Christianity would be, I believe, in step with today’s optimistic post-millennialism, expressed in many of the contemporary praise choruses we uncritically sing (my, we’ve come a long way since Hal Lindsey and the Jesus Movement!).

Bible Insight for Advent

“John the Baptist—the Most Unusual Evangelist You Could Ever Meet”

“…the word of God came to John, son of Zechariah, in the desert. He went into all the country around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. As is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet:
A voice of one calling in the desert,
Prepare the way for the Lord”
—Luke 3:2-4 New International Version)

The Christmas Story really begins with John and his godly, elderly parents. Zechariah was a priest, and at the appointed hour the angel Gabriel appeared to him with a message of promise: Zechariah and Elizabeth would have a son who would be named John. He would be a forerunner to Jesus the Christ, pointing to him and preparing the people for his life and ministry. We call him “John the Baptist” because water baptism was a key part of his ministry. It was in water baptism that converts would confess their sin and receive God’s forgiveness.

What was John like? He was a most unusual prophet, indeed! Still, he was “God’s man” for one of history’s most important roles. Here’s what his father Zechariah was told:

“He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, for he will be great in the sight of the Lord.” (Luke 1:14-15a)

John would bring joy—to his parents and to the world. How? By being “great in the sight of the Lord.” Simply put, John’s life would please God greatly. So would Jesus’ life, but that comes later in the story (Luke 2:52, 3:21-22).

I’d like to think that anyone who wills to do so can be “great in the sight of the Lord.” We do this by obeying God’s two Great Commandments: Love God with all our hearts; love our neighbor as ourselves. If we do these, we will fulfill God’s commandments. From this we will bring joy to others.
Sons and daughters who bring joy to their parents and to others are fulfilling a vital purpose for their lives, indeed.

“He is never to take wine or other fermented drink…” (15b)

John’s life was that of an ascetic. He lived in the desert, wore a garment of camel’s hair and ate locusts and honey. His lifestyle fit his “end of this age” message: “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!”

I must stress that Jesus lifestyle was almost the opposite. He drank and dined with “sinners” (Matthew 11:18-19). In my mind, I picture Jesus reclining at a table eating and drinking with sinners while John preached on the street corner nearby.

This reminds us that God does not create “cookie cutter” followers. He brings many people of many lifestyles into his service for many purposes, so long as godliness is practiced by all.

“…and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is born.” (15c)

What made John’s experience unique is that he was filled with the Holy Spirit before he was born! In the Bible, “filling” may be prolonged or ad hoc.

The Holy Spirit of God would empower John throughout his entire life. God’s Spirit empowers God’s followers to do the tasks he wants them to do and to bring the message he wants them to bring.

“He will bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” (16-17)

John’s message would call people to reconciliation—getting right with God and getting right with others. Reconciliation between fathers and children is of the highest importance. In our own day we see the results of “failed fatherhood” when little or no effort is made by so many fathers to mold their children wholesomely and to bless them with love.

John’s message is needed more today than ever before.

First Amendment Vigilance –

“The law knows no heresy, and is committed to the support of no dogma, the establishment of no sect.”
– U.S. Supreme Court, Watson v. Jones, 1871
“Go and make a careful search for the [Christ] child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.”
– King Herod to the Maji (Matthew 2:8)

King Herod was conniving to kill Jesus, fearing he might someday become a competitor to his rule. (The more all-pervasive the government, the more religious freedom is threatened and people of faith risk oppression.)

Thank God, in America we do not look to the government to enforce or defend our doctrines. Nor do we expect the government to come out against us for what we believe and practice (though this is happening increasingly). Rather, we look for religious freedom to be secured.

Here are two modern examples of religious freedom being denied:

1. Asia Bibi in Pakistan

In June 2009, Asia Bibi was accused of blasphemy after an incident with co-workers. She was harvesting berries with a group of other women farmhands in a field. She stopped to take a drink with an old metal cup she had found lying next to the well and was told it was forbidden for a Christian to drink water from the same utensil from which Muslims drink.

Bibi recounts that when they made derogatory statements about Christianity and demanded that she convert to Islam, she responded, “I believe in my religion and in Jesus Christ, who died on the cross for the sins of mankind. What did your Prophet Mohammed ever do to save mankind? And why should it be me that converts instead of you?”

She was subsequently arrested and imprisoned. In November 2010, a judge sentenced her to death by hanging for blasphemy.

Human rights groups came to her defense. Minorities minister Shahbaz Bhatti and Punjab Governor Salmaan Taseer were both assassinated for advocating on her behalf and opposing the blasphemy laws.

On October 31, 2018, the Supreme Court of Pakistan acquitted Bibi. She was released from jail on November 7. But on November 2 the Government of Pakistan signed an agreement with the Tehreek-e-Labbaik political party (TLP), which was leading protests. This agreement barred Asia Bibi from leaving the country. (Source: “Asia Bibi Blasphemy Case,” Wikipedia)

Surely her life and her family are still in grave danger.

2. “E.S.” – an Austrian woman and the European Court of Human Rights

In 2011, an Austrian court convicted E.S. of “disparaging” Islam and fined her 480 euros. At a seminar, she called Muhammad a pedophile because of his marriage to a girl named Aisha, who was just 6 years old at the time.

Her case went before the European Court of Human Rights. E.S. fought the conviction on several grounds. For one, she said her statements about Muhammad were true. She also claimed that she wasn’t defaming the prophet but rather contributing “to a public debate” about him.

The ECHR ruled E.S. is not protected by the right to freedom of expression and her statements represent “an abusive attack on the Prophet of Islam which could stir up prejudice and threaten religious peace.”

“Whether it’s called ‘blasphemy’ or ‘hate speech’ the idea that speech can be punished merely because it offends someone is something that comes as a shock to anyone raised in the United States where the First Amendment has, thankfully, been interpreted to protect even the most offensive forms of speech.” – Doug Mataconcis, “Europe’s Crackdown On “’Hate Speech’ Making Blasphemy Laws Cool Again,” Outside the Beltway, November 4, 2018

My Commentary

Several years ago I attended a meeting of clergy in Long Beach to hear a Muslim scholar (Ph.D., Harvard) argue in favor of “anti-blasphemy laws.”

My responses were that this wouldn’t pass a constitutional challenge in America and the answer to bad speech is better speech, not banned speech. Furthermore, I said that since the instance the speaker referenced was in Great Britain blasphemy could only pertain to words against the Christian deity since Great Britain was officially (though very nominally) a Christian nation and the Queen is the head of the Church of England.

Is the European Union going to reintroduce some form of Inquisition to enforce a particular view of deity and religious truth, or punish those who disparage any religion?

As a Christian living in the US, I do NOT have a right NOT to be offended.

Nor does the government owe it to me to come and defend my faith.

Don’s Upcoming Ministries

December 2 – The First Sunday of Advent
Speak in morning worship services (8:00, 9:30, 11:00) at Grace Community Church of Seal Beach on John the Baptist, forerunner of Jesus. Sermon title:

“The Strangest Evangelist You Could Ever Meet”

February 28, 2019 – Speak on “Evangelicalism” as part of the “Religion 101” series sponsored by the South Coast Interfaith Council (7:00 p.m. at the LDS Institute of Religion, 6360 E. State University Drive in Long Beach).

A Father’s Prophecy to John the Baptist

Luke 1:76-79

“And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,
to give knowledge of salvation to his people
in the forgiveness of their sins,
because of the tender mercy of our God,
whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high
to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace.”

A very Meaningful and Merry Christmas to all!

And a Prayer for a Wonderful Season pondering the Birth of Jesus and all it means to a troubled world.

My Website: www.donaldshoemakerministries.com

Contact me at: donaldshoemakerministries@verizon.net