Dripping Springs Weekly Bulletins

"Caught Between a Rock And a Hard Place" It’s not unusual for us to find ourselves faced with a tough situation. Life often presents such difficulties, and a Christian is even more likely to do so. Years ago a young woman came to me seeking help to solve a problem. A friend had asked her to participate in a ceremony that would require her to compromise her convictions. She was looking for a way out of the situation without hurting the feelings of her friend – and without really having to confront the issue before her. Looking at the ceremony and what the Bible teaches on such matters it was clear that the right thing to do was to say “no” to the friend. If she said “yes,” she would be violating a clear Bible principle. Facing such challenges in life is not unusual. We learn early that some of our decisions will test the true depth of our commitment to Christ. Do I ignore what God has said in order to do what I want to do? This is a common problem for people today. Every decision, every choice can place us in a situation that tests the strength of our promise to follow Jesus. In 1952 a man was running for a seat in the United States Congress. In a press conference he was asked his opinion of alcoholic beverages. It was a loaded question, but he did not know the prevailing viewpoint of the city in which he spoke. If he opposed the sale of alcohol while most people approved of it, he would be in trouble. But, if they opposed it and he approved it, he was in trouble also. How did he answer? His answer is a classic illustration of someone who will say whatever he thinks others want him to say: “If you mean, sir, the devil’s brew that causes an untold number of fatal automobile accidents each year which kill and maim thousands, that costs the American public billions of dollars through loss of work, that causes wives to leave their husbands, men to lose their jobs, their self-respect and dignity, then I, sir, oppose the sale and use of alcohol with all my being and every ounce of strength in me!” He waited for a response to see if they agreed with his answer – but their response was not obvious.  So, he continued: “But – if you mean the bottled spirits that give men some temporary relief from the cares of the world, ease the aches and pains of the aged, put the bounce in an old gentleman’s step, provide work for many thousands of farmers, shippers, distillers, and storekeepers, that bring in millions in taxes and helps pay for defense, education for the little children, and many other things, then I, sir, will fight for it with every measure of my time and my ability!” Now some may call that diplomacy, political expediency or whatever, but if you call it what it really is you have to use such words as cowardice, lying, a form of “situation ethics” at its worst, and a “gutless politician who just wants a job.” Why is it so hard for Christians to stand up for our convictions? Why do we have such a strong urge to please everyone but the Lord? Why not follow Jesus’ example when He faced similar circumstances? In Acts chapters 4 and 5 Jesus’ apostles found themselves in a similar dilemma. Those in power demanded that they cease to preach about Jesus. They had the authority to put them in prison if they refused. What did those Christian men say? Read their reply in Acts chapters 4:8-12 and 5:17-32, but they can be summarized in Acts 5:29: “We ought to obey God rather than men.” A person with no convictions has the respect of no one. If others disagree with you on a matter of Bible teaching they can at least respect you for not caving in when pressure comes. No one respects a coward, someone who fears to offend anyone, a person who is afraid to reveal and stand by his convictions. No one! The young lady’s story? Yes, she went along with her friends. Her reasoning was, “God will be more understanding than my friends.”  I wonder…..? It saddened me then – and it must sadden the Lord, too.    Carl Garner

“The people to fear are not those who disagree with you, but those who disagree with you and are too cowardly to reveal it to you” Napoleon “If I profess with the loudest voice and the clearest exposition every portion of the truth of God, except precisely that little point which the world and the devil are at that moment attacking, I am not confessing Christ, however boldly I may be professing Christ. Where the battle rages, there the loyalty of the soldier is proved, and to be steady on all the battlefield besides is mere flight and disgrace if he flinches at that point.” Martin Luther, 16th century reformer

Did God Make Mosquitoes? Buzzzz. Ouch! Smack! Yes, those sounds usually are heard when Ms. Mosquito pays you a visit. And I say, “Ms. Mosquito,” because only female mosquitoes “bite.” There are more than 2,500 species of mosquitoes in the world. A species is generally defined as a group in which males and females produce offspring that are fertile, i.e., are capable of reproducing themselves. They are not “sterile”—as in the case of the mule, a hybrid cross between a male donkey and a female horse. The fossil record reveals that the ancient ancestors of the modern mosquito were about three times as large as their present day offspring. This is another example of how nature has degenerated. It is not evolving from the less primitive to the more sophisticated, contrary to the claims of modern Darwinians. Some ancient pagans believed that mosquitoes are reincarnated humans who were evil in the way they lived. Though there is no truth to the notion of reincarnation, there are some blood-sucking humans who would make good mosquitoes in another world! Mosquitoes are specially fashioned little flies. “Little flies” is what the name means. The term “fly” is a generic word for insects that have only two wings. Mosquitoes can beat their tiny wings at a rate of about one thousand times per second! Their wings are so thin that even the blood vessels show. Only God could have designed this amazing and minute system. But mosquitoes can be dangerous. They can carry germs that cause harmful diseases in humans—sicknesses like malaria and yellow fever. Many people wonder, therefore, just why God would create potentially noxious little insects like these. Critics of God and his word are ever anxious to lash out and appeal to what they call the “incongruities of nature” as arguments that a benevolent God could not have designed and implemented the universe around us. Thus there is no God behind earth’s environment. There are just “too many examples” that do not meet their standard of how things ought to be. They have endowed themselves with omniscience and thus are confident they know how it “should have been done.” Let us take the mosquito, for example. There are two important points that need to be taken into consideration. First, our original parents, Adam and Eve, were not bothered by disease until they disobeyed God. Because of that disobedience, the human family became weak and vulnerable to diseases—and even death (Romans 5:12; 6:23). In the beginning, the Lord did not intend for any of us who have been made in his image to be hurt by his animal creatures, but this is the price we pay for not following the Creator’s instructions. Every mosquito bite ought to be a reminder to obey God. Second, mosquitoes actually are a valuable source of food for many creatures that were made to benefit mankind. For example, frogs, lizards, and some fish eat mosquitoes. These insects are an important link in the animal food chain, thus ultimately they are for our benefit as well. There is a balance in nature that we sometimes do not recognize or appreciate. Third, there are numerous mysteries in nature we do not understand. There are more things we do not understand than those we do. We must humbly recognize and acknowledge our limited knowledge, and not speak irreverently of God in our frustration. That is the epitome of arrogance. This was precisely the problem of Job as he questioned the wisdom of God in governing the universe. The Lord humbled the patriarch and brought him to his knees by a barrage of interrogation that yet baffles the keenest of minds (see Job 38-39). We may occasionally wonder why our heavenly Father made certain things. We should be confident there was a good reason for so doing, whether we understand the intricacies of such or not. We praise him for the things we comprehend, and for those we do not. Such is true reverence!    Wayne Jackson