The Death of Outrage

I lament the death of outrage.  Without a sense of outrage we run the serious risk of being ordinary when God created us to be extraordinary.  Outrage makes you do things that are out of the ordinary.  Without it we run the risk of becoming nice people in a nice church.  To be honest, that makes me want to reach for the nearest bucket.  That may seem a bit harsh but we do get an echo of this in the Book of Revelation where God vomits over lukewarm believers.  God only gave us ten commandments; there is no eleventh that says, "Thou shalt be nice."  Jesus, the head of the church, is no Mr. Nice Guy.  Christians seem to have bought into the sickening idea that niceness is the essence of goodness.  No more of this insipid niceness.  A nice soldier is an oxymoron.  Nice soldiers do not win wars.

Mick Duncan, Who Stands Fast?

Hearts of Men

Learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow's cause.  Isaiah 1:17

 

The Lord is a stronghold for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Psalm 9:9

Whoever oppresses the poor to increase his own wealth, or gives to the rich, will only come to poverty. Proverbs 22:16

 

These are just a few of many scriptures that deal with the oppressed.  Take a moment to watch this video and prayerfully consider supporting the efforts of these brothers-in-Christ who have decided to obediently follow the commands given us from our Maker.  You may support them through prayer, finances, spreading their cause, showing the  movie at your mens group or all of the above. 

 

 

Hearts of Men Movie

 

 

 

¹⁶ And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read. ¹⁷ And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written,

 



“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives
and recovering of sight to the blind,
to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
¹⁹ to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.”

 

²⁰ And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. ²¹ And he began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”

 

Luke 4:16-21

2014 Resolution

Our presuppositions will have a profound effect on the course of our lives.  It is a valuable practice to ask ourselves what we believe and why.  Paul challenges us in 2 Corinthians 13:5 to "examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves."

God has miraculously wired our brains to observe, make deductions, store information and act.  It's a staggering and ever-changing process.  We can change our minds.  The oft-cited Romans 12:2 speaks directly to this process:  "Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.  Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will."  This requires action on our part.  A changed mind equals changed actions.

As we strive to be more Christlike and conformed to his image, we will find it profoundly rewarding to make it our habit to simply ask what a circumstance or piece of information means. 

Warren Walsh, Living Intentionally