Well, It’s another Sunday morning. Joel 2:10 (ESV) “The earth quakes before them; the heavens tremble. The sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining.”
I have been reading in Joel, a minor Prophet according to biblical scholars, and I find his writing very interesting. Joel refers to a lot of what we are seeing right now. He talks about earth quakes and the blocking out of the sun and the stars. See, no one really knows the day and the time the Lord will appear, we just know that by His word, He will return. I for one am ready for it to happen, This place is getting crazier by the day.
Highly paid sports figures teaching disrespect to all of the youth throughout this nation, violence in the streets, wild storms, earth quakes, fires, volcanoes, division of beliefs world wide, and so many turning their back on the only thing that can save them, Jesus Christ.
I read a while back where a youth football team all took knees during the National Anthem. The fact of the matter is, if I would have pulled that when I was young boy my dad would have walked out on the field, taken me by the back of the neck and stood me up, then we would have gone home for a lesson in respect. Trust me when I say it would never have happen again.
I believe all this is a part of the big picture that will soon be revealed to us. See, even Joel gave us, as followers of Christ Jesus, hope for this to be corrected, He said this in Joel 2:1 (ESV), “Blow a trumpet in Zion; sound an alarm on my holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the LORD is coming; it is near. The signs are here, don’t make light of them, but instead take them to heart.”
I believe, these kids that are taking a knee didn’t really understand what they were doing. I believe they just thought it was cool because they seen a famous person do it. See, these young people are impressionable, they are being influenced by people they look up to. 1 Peter 3:15 (ESV) Teaches us this great lesson, “But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect.”
What we should be teaching our youth is the loving and gentle ways of Christ Jesus. What they should be learning is this, families all over this great nation set quietly by and watch these children knowing that they have the right to make the choice of taking a knee because of their family member has died for them to do just that. Taking a knee disrespects each man and woman that died for that flag and that song. If we read on in 1 Peter 3:17 (ESV) we learn this very thing. It tells us this, “For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God’s will, then for doing evil.”
Here is the thing, since the beginning of time there have been disagreements on equality. What I say is this, if we were all blind we would argue over the way a voice is different from someone else or how the accent of someone in the South offends someone from the East. It is never ending, until we put Jesus Christ in the middle and at that point everything changes. The love of Christ can change everything. A brick in the window of some innocent young woman’s flower shop is not love or a peaceful protest, it is vandalism. I think Jesus said it best in Matthew 5:43-45 (ESV) where he tells us this truth, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.”
Here is the thing, I preach every week about spreading love to everyone. I hope you are doing just that and share the good word of our LORD and Savior, these are the important things. If we all love as Jesus loves us all this other stuff will simply fall in place. As you go through your week know this, you are loved. Our great God loves each and every one of you and so do I.
