The river is up again, and the Violet Street bridge is closed. Nice ride on a cold morning.
Today’s Bike Ride
Quote for the Day
Transgenderism is a symptom, not a cause. It is not the reason why gender categories are now so confused; it is rather a function of a world in which the collapse of metaphysics and of stable discourse has created such chaos that not even the most basic of binaries, that between male and female, can any longer lay claim to meaningful objective status. And the roots of this pathology lie deep within the intellectual traditions of the West. Carl Trueman
Reflection on Judges 20:26-48
Scripture
And the Israelites returned and slaughtered every living thing in all the towns – the people, the livestock and everything they found.
Observation
The Israelites go up to Bethel, weeping and fasting. They ask the Lord if they should fight the men of Benjamin. The Lord tells them to go, and He will give them a victory.
So they again surround Gibeah. This time, they plan to draw the warriors of Benjamin away from the town and then send men in to burn the town.
So the men of Israel kill 25,000 strong warriors and destroy the people and livestock of the nearby towns.
Application
The righteousness of the land was restored at a terrible cost. Tens of thousands of people on both sides were killed.
While many wars in history have been of dubious worth, there is no doubt that the second world war was a just war. The Axis powers of Germany, Italy and Japan sought to impose dictatorship on most of the world along with abominable ideologies. Millions of people died, and the prosperity of the world was set back by 20 years or more, but it was right to destroy these awful powers.
Many christians like to think that we can live in comfort and separation from the evil of this world. The fact is that we are all impacted by the sin of ourselves and of others. When God’s Kingdom is fully established, we shall all be holy and righteous.
Prayer
Lord, when I look at the evil in the world, I am dismayed. I thank you that you will bring an accounting for all of this. Amen.
Today’s Bike Ride
Another overcast morning . Nice ride to Haire Drive.
Quote for the Day
To separate gender from sex or to define marriage as a union between two (or more) people of the same sex is not to expand the traditional definitions of these things; it is to abolish them in their entirety. And the most honest advocates of LGBTQ+ thought are very clear about this. Carl Trueman
Today’s Bike Ride
Cold and overcast this morning, but no rain.
Today’s Sermon
Quote for the Day
It is also clear that its drive to inclusion ironically involves significant elements of exclusion—for example, those who affirm the normative nature of heterosexuality and those feminists who consider the female body to be decisive for their identity. Carl Trueman
Quote for the Day
What nature has declared impossible—that two men or two women might conceive a child together—technology has made possible, and the sexual revolution has then made imperative. Carl Trueman
Reflection on Judges 20:1-25
Scripture
Then all the Israelites were united as one man, from Dan in the north to Beersheba in the south.
Observation
The whole country is united against the terrible crime that has been committed. 100,000 warriors from all over Israel assemble at Mizpah.
The Levite explains what happened. In unity of purpose, the Israelites march on Gibeah. They demand that the townspeople hand over the troublemakers to be put to death.
The people of Benjamin refuse to listen. Instead, they assemble 26,000 of their Fighters.
In the first skirmish, 22,000 Israelites die. The next day, they ask the Lord if they should go out to fight. The Lord tells them to do so, but it is another defeat with 18,000 Israelites killed.
Application
While the Lord always blesses us when we dwell together in unity, there are times when unity is not enough.
The Israelites were one in heart and mind, but they suffered a terrible loss, even after they checked in with the Lord, and even though they were fighting for a righteous cause.
We need to be united in the purposes and methods of God. It is not always enough to be right, we must also be doing God’s will in God’s way.
There is no guarantee that we will not suffer for the Lord, even when fighting for Him. Victory might be assured, but there are times when it is costly.
I believe that the churches in an area should be of one heart and mind, with love and honour being exercised towards one another. But this kind of unity is not enough, in itself, to defeat the enemy. We need to ensure that we show love to the community and must always be preaching the Good News.
Prayer
Lord, I pray that you will increase the unity in your church. Make us a genuine community of faith, serving one Lord and aware that we are one body in you. Amen
