Thinking about eternity.

A while back I finished reading ‘Reach for the Sky’, the biography of Douglas Bader, and now I am reading Henry Fielding's ‘Tom Jones’. Linda and I read more than many, but still I find there’s not enough time to read all that I would like to. For example, I’ve not read Milton’s Paradise Lost or Paradise Regained, nor have I read anything of William Wordsworth.

Meanwhile, my sister travels to many places around the globe, she has walked on every continent – yet there remain many places even she has not yet seen.

Now I don’t know about you, but I find that sometimes I wish I had more time to do all those things I’ve not yet been able to do (like read Milton).

But my cousin’s husband directed me in a helpful line of thinking a few years back, when he and the family came for Christmas. Yes, we can get frustrated by not being able to do all we’d like to do, but this frustration stems from the fact that we live in a fallen world separated from the Lord and his perfect ways. If I were not subject to death and the advancement of time, if I were able to live forever, I would not be frustrated by not having visited ever county in England nor read every work of classic literature. I wouldn’t be frustrated because I would be able to say, and rightly so ‘there will be time for that.’ However, because I am bound by time and a finite number of days, frustration arises, because I cannot do all I want to do.

The Bible alludes to these frustrations, particularly in Ecclesiastes.

Eccl. 3:10 I have seen the business that God has given to the sons of men to be busy with. 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time; also he has put eternity into man’s mind, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end.

Eccl. 12:11 The sayings of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings which are given by one Shepherd. 12 My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh.

The Bible tells us that God has set eternity in our hearts, and that of making books there is no end. It is impossible in this life to do all we would like to do, the world is too bountiful, the opportunities too many for us to do them all.

So should I be disillusioned? No, not as a Christian. Because the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus. This means that one day I will enter God’s kingdom where I’ll be able not just to read the books I haven’t time for now, I’ll actually be able to meet many of the authors who wrote the books I never had time to read (those who were Christians anyway).

There is a kingdom coming where time will not be an issue. It’s only an issue now because our world has been cursed, because we are conscious that time is passing, that we are like flowers of the field, and the sun is moving overhead…

Part of the peace of Christ therefore, is the knowledge that one day there will be time to do everything.

Phil. 4:7 And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Phil. 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

That’s worth thinking about, isn’t it?

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Fearing God or fearing man?

Last Monday a 16-year old boy was killed while at school. It wasn’t an accident, it seems there was a massive brawl in which Kyle Rees was a casualty, killed by a blow to the head. No doubt the details will become clearer over time (click here for the story).

Assuming for the moment that it be true that there was a brawl between some 40 students, if I were a parent whose child went to Portchester school, I would be considering very seriously whether I wanted my child to continue there. One of the first things a school must do is ensure that the children are safe. They need to be physically safe from outside predators (drug dealers at the school gate), and from internal threats, such as bullies and gangs.

I cannot help thinking that the school system in England is now pretty much rotten to the core. The curriculum is increasingly watered down (click here for an example of ‘O’ level exams taken in the 1950s), and teachers are now often frightened of aggressive children, because they have no effective way of controlling them.

Part of the problem lies in the difficulty of expelling unruly children. If there’s a nasty kid in class, and you’re scared of him, you’re likely to do all you can to keep in his good books. So if he starts making fun of the teacher, you’ll be tempted to as well. Otherwise you’ll get a good thumping in the playground, won’t you? If bullies were quickly expelled, and not required to attend another school, behaviour would improve dramatically. This was the approach Thomas Arnold took when reforming Rugby. He used the cane, but he wrote to parents telling them not to send their son again next term if their son was an evil presence in the school. He often suggested the boy be given a private tutor or, in some cases, proceed straight to university.

Part of the problem lies in increasing the leaving age of school-leavers. Some teenagers really shouldn’t be at school, they should be working on farms or in kebab shops with their dads (I knew a kid whose ambition was to work in the kebab shop with his father - and he would have done well there, but he was a nightmare in class). A class can only advance as quickly as the average ability of the members in it. The longer you keep youngsters in school who shouldn’t be there, the slower you allow the class to advance. For this reason I predict English education levels will drop, relative to other countries, in the years ahead. Its crazy to keep children in school until they are 18. Let them leave at 14 if they want to.

In the Bible, the primary responsibility for educating one’s children is placed upon the parents. I notice in the United Kingdom that a lot of weight is placed on the advice of ‘professionals’, in this case the teachers and the teaching unions. But nobody knows my children better than me and my wife. We need to make responsible decisions on their behalf. For us, that means educating them at home. But other options exist, get a private tutor, send them to a private school (that is only an option in theory, we couldn’t afford it in practise), or send them to a local school. I reckon a lot of school children would do better if their parents thought more carefully about how their children should gain their education. No system of education is perfect, and I can see the huge amount of hard work my wife has to put in to ensure the children are learning. But God requires of parents, especially fathers, that children should be brought up to know Him and fear Him - and that certainly isn’t happening in state schools in her Majesty’s United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

And fearing God means placing more stock on God’s commands and His opinion of us, than worrying about what others think of us. That’s the difference between fearing God and fearing man. Now think about it yourself, what is more important to you? God’s opinion of you, or your colleagues at work, your parents, or your in-laws?

Who do you fear most?

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.

In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord, and depart from evil.

It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones. (Proverbs 3: 5-8)

Thanks for stopping by.

Age discrimination?

Quite a lot in the news today about age discrimination. Apparently the elderly are not treated with dignity in care homes, and more compassion is needed. You can read the BBC's take on it here. Interestingly, my son's Bible memory verse this week is from Ephesians 4:34, which begins, 'Be kind to one another, and compassionate...'

What a shame that the simple concept of compassion is not being learnt by many 'carers.' But the issue of care for the elderly does raise questions for those of us with ageing parents.

With our government spending this year at least £170 billion pounds more than it is receiving in tax revenue, the country simply can’t afford to keep paying state pensions to people, nor can it afford to pay for the care of an ageing population. This is why it has been necessary to encourage elderly folk to keep working. Of course, it would be political suicide to spell this out in its simplest terms ie. We've so mismanaged the budget that we can no longer afford to pay state pensions, so you'll just have to get out and work. (To see my comments on our state of debt - as long ago as 2009, click here or alternatively, here). As far as paying for old age care is concerned, who should pay for it?

What is the Biblical solution to this problem? Who should look after the aged? The apostle Paul dealt with this situation in his letter to Timothy.

1Tim. 5:3 Honour widows who are real widows. 4 If a widow has children or grandchildren, let them first learn their religious duty to their own family and make some return to their parents; for this is acceptable in the sight of God. 5 She who is a real widow, and is left all alone, has set her hope on God and continues in supplications and prayers night and day; 6 whereas she who is self-indulgent is dead even while she lives. 7 Command this, so that they may be without reproach. 8 If any one does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his own family, he has disowned the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

God says it is perfectly fair that children should make some return to their parents. Unfortunately, even Christians are too easily tempted to think ‘I worked hard for this money, why should I have to give up my money to look after mum and dad – the state should do it.’

No, God says, the state shouldn’t do it – the children should.

It is well that our parents didn’t take the attitude ‘the state should pay for our children and look after them’ in the first 18 years of our lives. I wonder, looking back on it, how much I cost my parents when I was growing up.

As Christians we have a wonderful opportunity to demonstrate the love of God in our lives, towards our parents. We have an instruction which, if followed, will cause us to be distinct from our non-Christian neighbours. Children loving and taking care of their parents in their old age (of course this may be demonstrated in different ways. Perhaps mum comes to live with the family, perhaps a full-time nurse is paid for, perhaps mum goes into care - preferably a Christian care home).

In cases where there are no children, that is when the church should step in and voluntarily assist widows. Its part of demonstrating compassion to those who are now vulnerable, principally because they don't have a husband to look after them.

In the meantime, if we have children of our own, the Lord tells us in his Word that we should be laying aside money now (ie saving) for the future, in order not to be a burden to our children, and indeed to leave something for them after we die.

2 Cor 12:14 …for children ought not to lay up for their parents, but parents for their children.

The government may be confused about how to care for the elderly (Jeremiah 10:21), but Christians (and any others reading this blog) needn't be. Our God, the creator of heaven and earth, has thought of this already, and told us what to do. The only question is:

Are we listening?

The fig tree.

In our garden we have an olive tree and a palm tree. Both of these types of tree appear in the Bible, but one type of tree often mentioned in the Bible, the fig tree – is one we don’t have. Have you ever wondered why Jesus cursed the fig tree?

Mark 11:12 The next day as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry. 13 Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to find out if it had any fruit. When he reached it, he found nothing but leaves, because it was not the season for figs. 14 Then he said to the tree, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard him say it.

I think the reason is that the fig tree represented Israel, and the Lord was saying ‘I find no fruit here, therefore you shall be cursed.’ Note what Jeremiah said in Jeremiah 8.

Jer. 8:13 “‘I will take away their harvest, declares the LORD. There will be no grapes on the vine. There will be no figs on the tree, and their leaves will wither. What I have given them will be taken from them.’”

It just goes to show the importance of being fruitful for our Lord. As he says in Luke 13:

Luke 13:6 Then he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree, planted in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it, but did not find any. 7 So he said to the man who took care of the vineyard, ‘For three years now I’ve been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven’t found any. Cut it down! Why should it use up the soil?’

Luke 13:8 “‘Sir,’ the man replied, ‘leave it alone for one more year, and I’ll dig around it and fertilize it. 9 If it bears fruit next year, fine! If not, then cut it down.’”

The point is this, all humanity is called to glorify God and bear fruit for Him. We only have a limited time in which to bear fruit, for one day the Lord will say ‘that’s it, time is up for Ian Cameron. It’s time to make the world an ‘Ian Cameron’ free zone.

Time and time again, the Lord speaks of his disciples needing to be fruitful, of how we will be known by our fruits.

So how is the fruit-growing going?

Gal. 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. 25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.

Thanks for stopping by.

Why can't we pray at Council meetings?

An article on the BBC website today tells us that Baroness Warsi has spoken against the increasing secularisation of Great Britain. I have for some time felt the BBC is generally anti-Christian, and I note they cite a survey by the Richard Dawkins organisation at the bottom of their article. You can click here for the full story.

It seems to me that in a truly tolerant country, we ought to be able to pray before council meetings. Especially since all authority is derived from God (not from the consent of the governed, as the 'state' would love you to believe.) For if it is a question of the consent of the governed, then violent overthrow (such as the riots we saw last year) take on a certain legitimacy. After all, if I didn't vote for the current government (and I didn't), then I don't consent to their rule. But, if I see governments instituted by God (which I do, for the Bible tells me so) then I have to obey the government, even if I didn't elect it. I remain faithful to her majesty the Queen, but more importantly, to the Lord God of all creation, who has established governments principally for the restraint of evil.

A few years back, when we first ran a Christianity Explored course at the church I work for, one of the participants was very angry at the then Prime-Minister, Tony Blair, because he had said that Britain was no longer a Christian country.

Sadly, it is obvious that Tony Blair was right. Great Britain could only be described as a Christian country if:

a) The majority of it’s citizens listened to, and obeyed Jesus Christ, and;

b) the majority of our laws were based on God’s moral laws – specifically the Ten Commandments.

Now the fact that far fewer of her Majesty’s subjects acknowledge Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour contrasted with those who deny him as their Lord and Saviour stands as testimony to the truth of Jesus Christ, and his remarkable ability to see into the future. For he clearly said:

Matt. 7:13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

Few British subjects are walking the path to eternal life. Very few are following Christ with unswerving faith and complete confidence in Him.

And this is reflected in our legislation. If we consider the Ten Commandments as a good legal code for a civilised society, it is to our deep and lasting shame that only one of those commandments is recognised in our statute books. The only command the British Parliament recognises as being worthy of upholding is ‘Thou shalt not steal.’

Stealing is still considered a crime in Britain, although police action will only be taken if the theft is of a certain value.

Lets look at the others:

Thou shalt have no gods before me. In Britain all religions are encouraged, and all are said to have equal value.

Thou shalt make no graven images. In Britain this is perfectly acceptable – certainly not illegal.

Thou shalt not take the Lord’s name in vain. Well, one only needs watch a TV show or walk the streets or in the supermarket to hear ‘Christ’ used as a blasphemy. And recently the blasphemy laws were repealed.

Thou shalt work six days and rest on the seventh. Many people think it’s perfectly acceptable not to work and expect the tax-payer to pay for their upkeep. As for resting one day in seven, the pursuit of business now means that shops are open seven days a week.

Thou shalt honour thy mother and father. The British state does not believe that a family unit needs to comprise a mother and a father. It is said that ‘two loving people’ will do. Indeed, there need not even be two, as the state pays young women to have children and raise them without fathers.

Thou shalt not murder. But abortion is legal and euthanasia is paraded as glorious on various BBC documentaries. There appears to be a push in some sectors to allow the killing of the aged.

Thou shalt not commit adultery. Clearly this is not illegal, but if it were the divorce rates would be much lower.

Thou shalt not steal. This is still upheld in some respects, although taxation is so high in Britain now that most employed people are having their pockets picked by the state long before they get home.

Thou shalt not bear false witness. The current Murdoch case and News of the World suggests many people are happy to lie, and on a regular basis.

Thou shalt not covet. What is the purpose of TV advertising, if not to encourage us to covet things we do not have?

So Britain is a non-Christian country, and becoming increasingly hostile towards those who openly acknowledge Christ as Lord. All of which just goes to show us, yet again the importance of listening to Jesus:

Matt. 16:24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done.

God’s kingdom is still coming, it’s certainly not here yet.

But it is definitely coming. Are you ready? Are you part of it?

On 'Quantative Easing.'

The Bank of England announced today that it was going to ‘inject’ another 50 billion pounds into the economy (read it here). What that means for you and me is that our bills are going to keep going up, as more ‘money’ will be spent on pretty much the same number of goods. You don't have to be an economist to know that in a village with 100 loaves of bread, and 100 gold coins, the price of bread will go up if suddenly another 100 coins are introduced to the marketplace, while the number of loaves of bread remains the same.

In our household we have, for four years now, managed to keep bread prices fairly low by using a bread maker and just buying flour. Of course we won’t be insulated from the increasing cost of wheat, but it does help the budget by making our own bread.

It’s a curious state of affairs but have you noticed that money consistently keeps being able to buy you less than what it previously could? In the 1930s a man could get by on £200 a year, now many people make that kind of money in a day (or even an hour). Nobody could live in Britain on £200 a year now, which means the English pound has lost a lot of value over the last 80 years.

Part of the problem lies in borrowing, because invariably one has to pay interest to the lender, which means the real cost of the product is higher than the list price. It’s interesting to note that our Prime Minister and his deputy have spoken much about the importance of saving money and reducing the deficit (which, sadly, isn’t the same as the national debt – that just keeps on growing).

In times past money was coined, so you had to have the silver, or the tin, or the gold in order to make your money. Nowadays we just hand bits of paper around, so a five pound note implies you could go to the bank and exchange it for five pounds sterling in silver – but sadly Britain (along with most countries) moved off the gold standard years ago.

Now then, why all the financial discursive? Well understanding why things don’t work is half of the solution to a problem. The reason people invest in gold or property is because these are ‘real assets’, they are hedges against the future. So even if money can’t buy as much in 10 years time due to the ravages of inflation, I can still sell my gold for whatever its worth then, or increase my rent to the correct market level in 2020, but the money shoved under the mattress will have only lost its value.

But there’s another reason why its important to consider the inherent lack of long term value in money. And that reason is found in the words of King Solomon.

Eccl. 5:10 Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is meaningless. 11 As goods increase, so do those who consume them. And what benefit are they to the owner except to feast his eyes on them? 12 The sleep of a labourer is sweet, whether he eats little or much, but the abundance of a rich man permits him no sleep.

And Jesus warns us about storing up riches on earth, perhaps even alluding to the above verse (11) in Ecclesiastes, when he says where our treasure is, there our heart will be also:

Matt. 6:19 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go and pay my credit card bill.

Thanks for stopping by:

Cap in hand?

There’s an interesting article on the BBC website today (click here) in which the former Archbishop of Canterbury, Lord Carey, criticises some bishops in the church of England because they have sought to prevent the government from introducing a benefits cap.

I haven’t read Lord Carey’s comments in full, but I agree with him inasmuch as the BBC report tells the story. It is scandalous that idleness, slothfulness, laziness – call it what you will, is encouraged through the benefit system. No family ought to be able to receive more in benefits than the average salaried family in the country, because that will encourage people to give up working and take the benefits instead.

Speaking as one whose salary is less than the national average (£26,000 p/a), I find it morally disturbing that people who do nothing can receive more than me, someone who works as best I can for the money I earn, contrasted with those who sit around doing nothing.

Its also disturbing that Church of England bishops would oppose setting limits on how much families can receive in funding from those who are working. Especially in light of God’s word which clearly states:

2Th. 3:6 Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is living in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us. For you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us; we were not idle when we were with you, we did not eat any one’s bread without paying, but with toil and labor we worked night and day, that we might not burden any of you. It was not because we have not that right, but to give you in our conduct an example to imitate. For even when we were with you, we gave you this command: If any one will not work, let him not eat. For we hear that some of you are living in idleness, mere busybodies, not doing any work. Now such persons we command and exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work in quietness and to earn their own living.

The apostle says he was not idle when he was with them, they didn’t eat anything without paying for it, they toiled and laboured and expressly taught that ‘if any one will not work, let him not eat.’

We all agree that people who are unable to work ought to receive assistance in some form or another. But most men are able-bodied and ought to work at something. A welfare system must never encourage the sin of idleness, nor promiscuity (because it should be recognised that some girls specifically have babies in order to get the welfare cheque), because that leads to a lazy people and children without fathers.

As long as the state sponsors sin, sin will grow. As Christians we ought always to love our neighbours, but we’re not doing that if we actively encourage our neighbours pocket to be picked (by the tax-man) so that others can sit around and do nothing all day. A cap on the amount a family can get in benefits is not only practical, it strikes me as morally right. Who in their right mind would give someone money so they can squander it on themselves, without ever lifting a finger to earn the things they are enjoying?

Our Lord teaches that we will always have the poor with us, and we can help them whenever we want to. And that is very true. But there is a clear distinction between those who are poor because their circumstances have made them so, and those who are just plain idle.

Now such people we command and exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work in quietness and to earn their own living.

Thanks for stopping by.