Amos 5:13 Times are so evil that anyone with good sense will keep quiet. (CEV)

When Jesus was brought before Herod, he was questioned with many words. However, Jesus said nothing, nor did He answer charges against Him in front of Pilate. There are many theories why this was so.  Plain and simple, Jesus followed what the scripture said hundreds of years before.

Mark Twain is said to have stated that a lie can travel around the world and back while the truth is still lacing up its boots.

Today, we live in what many would call a perilous if not evil time. Nearly whatever is spoken can be taken out of context or picked apart to the degree where the original meaning becomes completely obscured.

As a society, we are undergoing constant name calling, accusations, insults, twisted comments, and outright lies.  Any response seems to magnify the problem and add fuel to the raging fires. 

Couple this with all the various forms of media that can make information and misinformation instantly available for our use and misuse.

More lies do not bring forth hidden truth.  That is even when the motivating behind the falsehood was meant for a perceived good.

Before we retort, tell a story, make an accusation, or retaliate, we probably need to carefully take every thought captive to make it obedient to Christ. (2 Corinthians 10:5).  It wouldn’t hurt to remember, before His accusers, Jesus was silent.

John 13:35 “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” (NASB)

Back in 2004, the movie “Hidalgo” came out. One of the major antagonists in the movie was a character named Lady Davenport. Lady Davenport was a liar, a cheat, a crook, and will pretty much would do anything to get her way. However, she is referred to as “the Christian Lady” by one of the main characters.

In real life, people carrying crosses (or burning them) often purport themselves as “Christian.” Yet, their actions are not in line with such a claim. Hey, they may go to church, they may pay their tithes, they may be the movers and the shakers in the church, they may even preach from the pulpit, but if the love of Christ is not in them, something is amiss.

According to “Global Christianity,” December 2011, the nations with the largest number of people who identify themselves as Christian (rounded to the nearest 10,000) are: (1) the United States with 246,000,000: (2) Brazil with 175,770,000; (3) Mexico with 107,780,000; (4) Russia with 105,220,000. No other nation has over 100 million.

Shouldn’t these nations be filled with the most Christ-like love both within each nation and toward each other? Of course, we can always blame “the other guy” and say that non-Christians or a handful of hypocrites are to blame for the hate, crime, rage, and division.

My Bible says that follows of Christ should love our enemies, bless them that curse us, do good to them that hate us, and pray for those that despitefully use us or persecute us (See Mt. 5:43-47). Jesus said that a tree can be identified by its fruit (Mt 12:33). As far as I know, the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Gal 5:25-26).

Yikes! It looks like there is a big gap in rhetoric and reality here. Most Christian denominations that I know, say that the Bible, in particular the teachings of Christ, is their final authority. If we are not known by our love for one another, then we need to take a good hard look at ourselves. If our religion is teaching something else, it may be a lot of things, but it would not seem to be “Christian.”

Joel 2:28 “And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions.” (NIV)
Normally, I’m not someone who will write about my dreams. Though I do keep a dream log. To tell the truth, I rarely write anything in it. However, recently, I’ve had a dream that I’d like to share.
In my dream, I was at the sink in my bathroom brushing my teeth. Suddenly, I saw in the mirror an angel was standing behind me. Being a dream, I was pretty nonchalant about it.
The angel did not say, “Fear not!” nor did he offer any salutations. Instead he said, “Do you remember the gold medal game in basketball at the 1972 Olympics?”
“Uh-huh,” I acknowledged. In real life I do remember the game. It was the first time the United States lost a basketball game at any Olympics. It was also quite controversial.
“Whose fault was it that the United States lost?” the angel asked me.
“Whose fault? It was terrible officiating! The officials gave the Soviets three chances to make a last second shot!”
The angel shook his head. “Actually there was supposed to be time on the clock according to the rules at that time. The officials were just trying to get it right. It just happened to give the Soviets three chances because the timekeeper wasn’t getting it right.”
“Well then,” I said, “It was the time keeper or the people who made the rules.”
“No…” The angel shook his head.
“You think it was the coach’s fault?” I asked doubtfully.
“No.”
“Then whose fault was it?” I really didn’t know what he was getting at.
“It was Bill Walton’s.”
“What?” I couldn’t believe what he said. At that time, Bill Walton was in the midst of being college basketball’s preeminent player. “Bill Walton wasn’t even there!”
“Exactly!”
With that I woke up. Now, let me say, I am not making a comment on the physical aspects of that 1972 game. However, what struck me about that dream was the notion that sometimes things occur that would (or otherwise shouldn’t) occur because we are not where we are supposed to be or doing what we should be doing. (That was a mouthful).
Sometimes less than desirable things happen because we are outright in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Of course, the flip side is true. Sometimes we are exactly where we are supposed to be, even in the most unpleasant and unfavorable situations.
I pray that the Lord give me the wisdom and the courage to follow my appointed path at the appointed time. Lord I thank all those who have chosen to follow the path you have set before them in the way you ordained.