The "New Norm" and changes ...

[Tigger56]

A changing world does not mean that we must change along with it.

We live in days of great changes and there are many new choices that we face as individuals and as a nation. Some changes are required in a changing world but many things must be unchangeable and remain the same.  Those of us who belong to Jesus, we are the children of the light and we have a strong foundation of light and truth and we must base our choices on that foundation and upon that which we know to be good, just, and holy. A changing world does not mean that we must change along with it.

It amazes me how our world has changed in just a few months. I am faced with choices I never considered. Until this year I never considered controversy over whether to wear a mask or not. I never would have believed that crowds in Chicago would hate Christopher Columbus statues, or in Portland they would burn an Elk statue or that our history would be so under attack. I do believe the world has gone mad!

My father is 85 years old and he will speak of the times in which he lived. He use to pick cotton and he lived during World War 2, my grandfather served as a marine during that time and faced battles in the Pacific. My father remembers the first time they were rationed margarine, He remembers the war bonds and still has some. He remembers the time that they would only use the battery on their big old radio to listen to the Grand Ole Opry once a week. 

As a child, I remember being shown to hide under a desk during the Cuban Missile Crisis, I remember only getting three channels on TV, I remember being at school when they televised the landing upon the moon. So in my time as well I have seen many changes. In this time of turmoil I am very thankful for an unchanging God and a truth that will remain truth whether people believe it or not. The phrase the "new norm" is one that I truly hate. I refuse to accept what many now call "normal" for much that is happening to our nation and the nations across this earth is anything but normal.

[shortangel]

you do have a great perspective here,  i remember when America was a good nation & we had free speech in this country, now if you say something that other people don't like they will either target you or follow you home,  this country is getting very sad,  America needs a revivial,  violence has gotten worse

[missmuffet]

Yes, there are many changes. I just stay focused on Jesus Christ. He is in control and knows what is coming. I don't. 

[R. Hartono]

Nations need to bring back economy at the cost of new normal, either people or economy die instead of both.??????????????

[bittersweet]

I find it all very frightening.  

[JTC]

On 7/27/2020 at 11:50 AM, shortangel said:

i remember when America was a good nation & we had free speech in this country, now if you say something that other people don't like they will either target you or follow you home,

Are things really this bad? I mean being targeted or followed home for saying something others don't like? I live in a small neighborhood with maybe 10 to 20 other people I see on a weekly basis and we do have occasional violence but I never hear of folks being attacked for what they said. But I am far off the beaten path.

I believe America can still be a great place but it will take some effort, and probably from almost everyone of us. Those of you who have input or influence with the younger folk must speak up and tell them what America once was. Beyond that, we must tell them about how God said we are supposed to live. You can read some of this in the NT but most of God's advice for a decent life is found in the OT. Try Proverbs and Psalms, I listen to these books every morning when I get up. God is our answer and our only hope.

Back before radio & TV people would gather in town to discuss the latest news. Now we do this on social media but we can still follow God's advice. One pertinent piece of advice is that we should speak about God to each other when we're gathered. We can still do this, but when we do we must not sound like we are superior because in truth we are not. I had a 21 yr old home health care aide last year for 2 weeks. She was an intelligent girl, and a nursing major at a local collage. One day I asked her about God and in a sheepish voice she said God is a topic that just doesn't come up. Honestly, God rarely came up when I was in collage too. I lost her as an aide after 2 weeks but if she had stayed I would have gradually taught her what I know.

We must do this.

[Fidei Defensor]

Amen. As Christians we are “counter-cultural.” It was so under the Roman Empire, which persecuted the Church (The History of the Church, Eusebius). Rome thought our forerunners in the faith were odd, a peopke who professed their God was crucified on a cross by the Romans and rose from the dead; when Romans were told by Cicero, “orators. Cicero, for example, described crucifixion as "a most cruel and disgusting punishment",^[24] and suggested that "the very mention of the cross should be far removed not only from a Roman citizen's body, but from his mind, his eyes, his ears.” (Crucifixion, Wikipedia). 

This brings the meaning of “preach Christ and Him crucified, ..foolishness to the Gentiles.”(1 Corinthians 1:23) Romans couldn’t fathom the power of the cross, “For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power” (1 Corinthians 1:17), but in time Rome came around and adopted Christianity as its religion. Those who crucified our Lord God Jesus Christ, who forbade the message of the cross on their lips according to Cicero, then embraced the Gospel of the Cross of Christ.  

[JTC]

1 hour ago, Fidei Defensor said:

Romans couldn’t fathom the power of the cross,

I also couldn't understand the meaning of the cross until only recently. Oh, I know the story and I have known since I was 6, but why, that I didn't fully comprehend. Then last year I got into Michael Heiser and eventually started listening to his podcasts. In one of his podcast's he discussed 1 Cor. ch 2 starting where it says ^"6 We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. ⁷ No, we declare God’s wisdom, a mystery that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began. ⁸ None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory."  Dr. Heiser went on to explain a most confusing topic. He spoke of how by killing Jesus the people allowed God to resurrect Him which took the power of death away from the devil. Dr. Heiser also said that if Satan had realized what God was doing the devil would have not inspired the Romans to kill our Lord. I admit that this whole topic seems nonsensical but when Heiser explained it I thought it made perfect sense. Even now I can't remember exactly what Dr. Heiser said, which is why my post is obscure. However, Heiser backed up all his points with scripture and he is correct.

Obviously the story of Jesus isn't meant for every human ever born or it wouldn't be so hard to understand. Even so, we need not understand the mystery of the cross to be saved. First we have to  believe it, and then we have to start putting it into effect in our lives. This is why anyone can be saved. But especially today, with all the New Age people and their various explanations of how and what God is, the Bible does explain the meaning of the cross. The meaning of the mystery is not something we can understand on a human level, the meaning is spiritual. What I mean is if I talk about when God parted the Red Sea for the Jews to walk through, that makes no sense from a human pov. The meaning of the mystery of the cross is similar.

[Fidei Defensor]

35 minutes ago, JTC said:

I also couldn't understand the meaning of the cross until only recently. Oh, I know the story and I have known since I was 6, but why, that I didn't fully comprehend. Then last year I got into Michael Heiser and eventually started listening to his podcasts. In one of his podcast's he discussed 1 Cor. ch 2 starting where it says ^"6 We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. ⁷ No, we declare God’s wisdom, a mystery that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began. ⁸ None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory."  Dr. Heiser went on to explain a most confusing topic. He spoke of how by killing Jesus the people allowed God to resurrect Him which took the power of death away from the devil. Dr. Heiser also said that if Satan had realized what God was doing the devil would have not inspired the Romans to kill our Lord. I admit that this whole topic seems nonsensical but when Heiser explained it I thought it made perfect sense. Even now I can't remember exactly what Dr. Heiser said, which is why my post is obscure. However, Heiser backed up all his points with scripture and he is correct.

Obviously the story of Jesus isn't meant for every human ever born or it wouldn't be so hard to understand. Even so, we need not understand the mystery of the cross to be saved. First we have to  believe it, and then we have to start putting it into effect in our lives. This is why anyone can be saved. But especially today, with all the New Age people and their various explanations of how and what God is, the Bible does explain the meaning of the cross. The meaning of the mystery is not something we can understand on a human level, the meaning is spiritual. What I mean is if I talk about when God parted the Red Sea for the Jews to walk through, that makes no sense from a human pov. The meaning of the mystery of the cross is similar.

I love your first paragraph. Heiser is basing his argument on Hebrews 2: 

“Because God’s children are human beings—made of flesh and blood—the Son also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could he die, and only by dying could he break the power of the devil, who had the power of death. Only in this way could he set free all who have lived their lives as slaves to the fear of dyi” (Hebrews 2:14-15)

Your second paragraph, I  however believe Christ and the message of the cross is for all mankind, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,” (Matthew 28:18) and “This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.” (2 Timothy 2:3-4), albiet not everyone believes it like we Christians do. 

Mankind likes to make sacrifices. There is a pride in human nature that wants to appease God with a sacrifice, a hardship, a struggle of piety. But all of this is a war on grace, “How much more severely do you think someone deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified them, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace?” (Hebrews 10:29). There is no need for sacrifices anymore! Jesus has replaced the old system of making offerings of blood sacrifice with His once for all sacrifice on the cross. 

I love what Oswald Chambers [disclaimer there is much I disagree with Chambers on] said: 

“The gospel of the grace of God awakens an intense longing in human souls and an equally intense resentment, because the truth that it reveals is not palatable or easy to swallow. There is a certain pride in people that causes them to give and give, but to come and accept a gift is another thing. I will give my life to martyrdom; I will dedicate my life to service— I will do anything. But do not humiliate me to the level of the most hell-deserving sinner and tell me that all I have to do is accept the gift of salvation through Jesus Christ." (Utmost For His Highest, November 28th). 

Oswald explains the hubris that causes this reaction in people who want to do a service to please God when God has pleased Himself via His death on the cross. 

Edited July 29, 2020 by Fidei Defensor

[JTC]

7 minutes ago, Fidei Defensor said:

Your second paragraph, I  however believe Christ and the message of the cross is for all mankind,

You are quite correct that the message is for anyone but not everyone can or will accept it. And I emphasize accept it, not understand it. Many a New Ager can't understand the mystery of the cross so they turn to Eastern beliefs which are more human in many ways. I had a cousin I was as close to as a brother who became New Age in 1990. I had to refute his theories until he finally passed away in 2014. I understood his ideas but I never believed them. I consider that to be the proof of the presence of the Holy Spirit in me. Because from a logical pov Eastern and scientific theories of God make more sense than the Bible does. Nevertheless, they're wrong. One issue nonbelievers often cite is how can an all loving God allow so many people to be lost. This is a whole different issue and I'm not going to try and answer it in this thread. I will only say that part of the problem (and answer) is the erroneous pagan belief that man has an immortal soul. The Bible never says that man's soul will live forever. Quite to the contrary, the Bible says man can only have eternal life through the Lord Jesus. Only by accepting Him and then doing our best to obey Him can we hope to have our soul's live forever. (this is hard to believe especially for ex-Catholics who are taught we have eternal souls as children. This confused me for decades until I read up on the early Church fathers and learned most of them were pagan before they were Christian)

But I have gone completely off topic.