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— Fawole Victor (@Fawole_victor) February 13, 2014

WHY DO PEOPLE MISUNDERSTAND THE BIBLE?

In Mark 7:14 Jesus said, “Hear Me, everyone, and understand.” Yet today people will dismiss plain Bible teaching about moral issues (such as homosexuality, divorce, or abortion) or about salvation from sin or the church because they say the teaching is too confusing or difficult to understand. Why don’t people understand? It is not because the Bible is so unclear. Jesus expected people to understand His teaching, and Paul said: “…do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is” (Ephesians 5:17; see also 2 Timothy 3:16,17). But some don’t understand because they do not study diligently. “You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures…” (Matthew 22:29). Others misunderstand because they accept teachings of men who disagree with the Scriptures. “And in vain they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men” (Matthew 15:9). Such teachings often come from false teachers dressed in sheep’s clothing who are really ravenous wolves (Matthew 7:13,14). But often people do not understand the Bible simply because they do not like what it says. “Their ears are hard of hearing, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, lest they should understand with their heart and turn, so that I should heal them” (Matthew 13:15). When the Bible does not say what some folks want to hear, they just conclude it is all too confusing and you cannot really understand it anyway! People who want to please God must “search the Scriptures daily” with an open mind, like the honest Bereans in Acts 17:11. To please God, we must know the truth, and that truth is found in God’s word.

OF WALKING AND DREAMS

My love for walks started with my father. When we still had money, I loved riding with him to buy petrol for the generator. We would sit there, not speaking, listening to all my favorite people on the radio. At the filling station, he would give me the money and ask me to get the keg out to be filled- I liked the sense of responsibility. But the walks. I loved them more. The walks started when the money went. We would take the short walk out of our small estate to the Malaam to buy candles because petrol became too expensive. But because there was no radio noise to fill the quiet, we spoke instead. We had long conversations of what I wanted to be; what he wanted to accomplish and what he wanted for us- each child. We would walk so slowly, walking past the bigger houses that were lit up with a thousand lights because they had money to buy petrol for their generators. Past the smaller houses like ours, some bright, some dark. Walked slowly as fast cars zoomed past and other pedestrians briskly overtook us. Till we stopped in front of our faded red gate. Father always looked a bit sad when we got back home. I didn’t figure out why until recently. I think Father got sad when we got back because it was a rude jolt back to reality. See, Father was a dreamer, he had these big aspirations for himself and the family; he had all these plans laid out and he spoke about them with such zeal, each time. But getting home was like a douse of cold water at three in the morning because the dreams were just that- dreams. Nothing was happening. His projects were still failing. We were still being called out at school because the fees hadn’t been paid. We were still eating meat only at night. We were still buying candles. So, whenever we stopped at that faded red gate, those palaces we had built with our words quickly faded into nothingness. But Father was such a sport; he’d bound into the house with jokes for mother and sweets for the little ones. We found other reasons to go on walks. Just him and I. And then, we stopped walking for reasons at all. We just did. I paint now. I was a sculptor a few months back. I was writing for a magazine last year and I was a freelance photographer before that. A boyfriend once told me I was a lot more like my father than I thought. Picking a project and then abandoning it in pursuit of another dream. We fought that day. Not because he was wrong, not because I did not agree with him; but because it had never been put to me that way. I fought against it. So cold but so true. Abandoning one to chase another. My younger siblings are grown now, working in banks and owning schools while I paint and write and play my guitar and take long walks. But I find that my walks do not end when I arrive at my tiny, cluttered studio apartment; it doesn’t end when I see my battered wooden door, I go on dreaming. I have translated it to what I call my art. I sing my dreams, I write them, I draw them. My life feels like a leisurely haze of pastel colors. Surely, this isn’t a bad place to be. None of Father’s dreams came true. I should probably say instead, none of Father’s dreams have come true because he hasn’t stopped dreaming. I visit him four times a month, every Sunday. My parents live now in the cute flat my sister bought them after her last promotion. We walk, even slower now that he’s supporting himself with a stick. We walk, past the houses that are all lit, because it is an upscale area. We walk as the faster cars cruise past. We walk on the lush lawns and neat pavements. We walk. We walk and dream.

THE UNREAD WILL

The Unread Will The richest man that ever lived wrote a will and instructed his lawyers to read the will on the television, radio, social networks, streets, public buses, cemetery, restaurants etc all over the world. The man further instructed his lawyers to codify the entire will in a single document so that everyone could have access to the will. Finally, the man declared that only those who re…ad the will and claim the assets in it should be given his property which were worth trillions of dollars. The lawyers did exactly as they were commanded. They went everywhere telling the people of every nation and tribe about the man’s will. But the people found the criteria to claim the will just too good to be true. The will was so strange to the hearing of the people that they beat up the lawyers in some places while in other places they were stoned and considered bizarre and insane. On a certain occasion, I met the lawyers and I was given a free copy of the will but I never read it. As I write, I have the will in my cupboard dusty and on my phone but I hardly read it let alone claim it. The unread will is the word of God. The bible is the most widely distributed book in the whole word but ironically many persons don’t read it. And the few who read it never bother to claim their inheritance in God. They bible is the only medicine that can cure all manner of illnesses and diseases only if we would read and claim our inheritance in it. The book of Joshua 1:8 reads “This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.” Dear father, help me and my friends to read your will so that we can claim our inheritance in you. Amen. Image

THE JOYS OF MOTHERHOOD

Some women today think of family life as an unbearable drudgery. Many feminists tell women that they cannot find fulfillment by being wives and mothers, so instead they should leave home and pursue careers. It has gone so far that women who do stay home almost feel inferior and guilty. But Titus 2:4,5 says that young women should be taught “to love their husbands, to love their children, to be … keepers at home.” Surely it is difficult for young mothers to stay at home and lovingly care for their families. It often requires hard work, tears, and many sacrifices. But excelling at anything worthwhile in life takes hard work. Consider the joys and rewards of the job. Psalms 127:3 says: “Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is his reward.” What other job produces a final product to compare to that of motherhood: loving children who will someday mature to productive, God-fearing men and women? If women will not sacrifice in their younger years to raise children, they will not have those children and grandchildren to hug their necks, love them, and care for them in their older years. 1 Timothy 5:3,10 says: “Honor widows that…have brought up children…” Years ago, before modern philosophies prevailed, motherhood was an honorable profession. It ought to be the same today. Proverbs 31 includes the following statements: “Who can find a virtuous woman? For her price is far above rubies … Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her” (verses 10,28). Let us show our appreciation for our wives and mothers. Let us speak out for the joys of motherhood. May it again become honorable for a woman to be “a joyful mother of chi1dren” – Psalms 113:9.

SEPARATION OF GOVERNMENT AND RELIGION?

Some people say Christians should stay out of government issues (applying this, of course, only against religious conservatives, not against religious liberals). I agree that local churches should not endorse or finance candidates, but the issue goes much deeper. Consider some practices that government officials currently debate: homosexuality, abortion, gambling, divorce, pornography, and contraceptives for unmarried teens. Who can deny that all these involve deep spiritual principles? Our Lord commands: “Those who are sinning rebuke in the presence of all…” – 1 Timothy 5:20. How can we obey our Lord if we remain silent about fundamental issues affecting morality and marriage? Many faithful servants of God instructed government officials regarding such issues. Nathan rebuked David for adultery and murder (2 Samuel 12:1-15). John the Baptist spoke against Herod’s improper marriage relationship (Matthew 14:1-4). Paul warned Felix about his immoral conduct (Acts 24:25). Modern Christians can imitate these examples by public statements, by letters to elected officials, and by our vote. The apostle Paul often appealed to his rights as a Roman citizen as a means of protection from evil (Acts 25:10-12; 22:24-29; 23:12-33; 16:35-40). Why should American Christians not likewise seek to protect ourselves from evil by exercising our rights to vote and to write our representatives? Many current government decisions have major impact on families. But God commands parents to protect their families and provide a wholesome upbringing for our children (1 Timothy 5:8; Ephesians 6:4). If my vote can help protect my family by providing a more wholesome environment in which to raise my children, why should I refuse to vote? To claim that Christians should keep out of politics is to misstate the issue. Christians are not the ones who have left our sphere of interest. The problem is that politicians have made a full-scale invasion into the realm of religion and morals! In that realm Christians are not only permitted to act, they are obligated to act.

ARE YOU GUILTY OF LYING?

Proverbs 6:17 says that “a lying tongue” is an abomination to God. “Lying” means telling a deliberate or intentional falsehood. There are many forms of lying. Could it be that we are guilty without realizing it? For example, hypocrisy is a form of lying. 1 John 2:4 teaches that, if a person says “I know God” but does not keep God’s commands, that person is a liar. Yet many religious people profess great dedication to God all the while knowing they have sins in their lives that they have no intention of correcting. God says they are liars! Another form of lying is making false promises that we could keep but simply choose not to. Numbers 23:19 says, “God is not a man, that He should lie … Has He said, and will He not do it?” The implication is that, when a person makes a promise he could keep but refuses to do so, he has lied. God does not do this, but people often do. What about you and me? Then there is the half-truth, in which a person tells things that are technically correct but deliberately leaves out important facts or tells the story in such a way that leads people to reach a false conclusion. In the Old Testament, for example, Joseph’s brothers sold him to be a slave. Then they took his coat, dipped it in animal blood, took it to their father Jacob, and said that they had found this coat. Jacob, of course, concluded that Joseph had been killed by a wild animal, which is exactly what the sons wanted Jacob to believe, though they never came right out and said so (Genesis 37:31-33). Nevertheless, they had deliberately deceived their father to believe a falsehood. Are you guilty of lying like this? Ephesians 4:25 says we should put away lying and speak the truth to our neighbors. Revelation 21:8 says that “all liars” will have their part in the lake of fire, which is the second death.