The previous post in this series is WHOSE SIDE ARE THEY ON? — PART 1. That post argues that Atheists believe in God too, but they deny the truth. What is this post about?
When It Is All About Me, The Truth Doesn’t Matter
What happens when we choose not to worship God? Paul observed that we create our own gods. We manufacture idols we manipulate with sacrifices to get the things we lust in our hearts to have, and we worship these idols instead of God.
In Paul’s day, instead of worshipping God, Pagans worshiped idols made of wood, stone, and metal. They even idolized their leaders. And in return for sacrifices they asked their gods to give them that which they most wanted: pleasure, wealth, knowledge, power, and adulation. The Pagans of our day have not changed much. They just skip the idols. Modern Pagans worship sex itself, the stuff they want, science that confirms what they wish to believe, a state that promises them what they want, and their self.
What happens when we become so deluded? What happens when we belief falsehoods? What happens when we see ourselves instead of God as the most important person? God punishes us by allowing us to pursue our desires. Hence we have seen a string of awful news stories.
- We abort the unborn by the tens of millions. We even use government funds to pay for the death of the unborn. Then, with scientific jargon we assert a lie. The unborn are not human beings. They are embryos and fetuses.
- Our president abandoned Afghanistan to the Taliban and opened up our southern border to potentially millions of illegal aliens, including terrorists, criminals, and those infected with.
- To reward special interests and and to buy votes, our political leaders signaled their inestimable virtue by spending other people’s money. Amazingly, our leaders are so virtuous they are now contemplating paying illegal aliens for the emotional harm they suffered if we separated them from their children until we could verify their parental status.
- Our economy threatens to go shipwreck on the rocks. Inflation took off because Congress is just printing money to pay for wasteful programs. Since these programs include paying low wage earners not to work, we also have supply chain problems. Because our government is deliberately undermining the domestic production of fossil fuels, our leaders are begging producers overseas to increase their production.
- The public schools are a mess. Instead of teaching the 3R’s, the godless are using the public schools to promote their so-called secular beliefs. Apparently, the godless seek to corrupt our children and encourage our children to worship of their idols: sex, stuff, science, state, and self.
- Our system of justice is being corrupted. That is, we have different systems of justice for Conservative/Republicans and Progressive/Democrats. The latest example is the trial of Kyle Rittenhouse, which is in its final stages. Rittenhouse, was 17 years old when he defended himself during the 2020 riots in Kenosha, WI with a semi-automatic rifle. Compare the reporting. Look at both the Conservative and the Liberal media. Then contemplate how Democrats deployed the Department of Justice against Donald Trump’s presidency.
- Thanks to the COVID-19 vaccination mandate, people are quitting their jobs. That includes people who already had COVID-19 and don’t want to take a vaccine that would be useless to them.
- And so forth. It isn’t difficult these days to find endless examples of the abuse of government power.
More and more our society begins to resemble the ancient Roman Empire. Why did the Roman Empire collapse? Instead of caring about the welfare of the Roman people, the leaders of Rome just cared about getting what they wanted from their gods: sex, stuff, science, state, and self. The Roman Empire died because the people who ruled the empire just cared about their own personal advancement. They had insufficient concern for the people they ruled. So in their struggles with each other, a game like King of the Hill, they tore the empire apart..
The leadership’s indifference to people — and justice — is typified by the attitude of Pontius Pilate, the Governor of Judea who ordered the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.
John 18:33-40 New American Standard Bible
33 Therefore Pilate entered the Praetorium again, and summoned Jesus and said to Him, “You are the King of the Jews?” 34 Jesus answered, “Are you saying this on your own, or did others tell you about Me?” 35 Pilate answered, “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests handed You over to me; what have You done?” 36 Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this realm.” 37 Therefore Pilate said to Him, “So You are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say correctly that I am a king. For this purpose I have been born, and for this I have come into the world: to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to My voice.” 38 Pilate *said to Him, “What is truth?”
And after saying this, he came out again to the Jews and *said to them, “I find no grounds at all for charges in His case. 39 However, you have a custom that I release one prisoner for you at the Passover; therefore do you wish that I release for you the King of the Jews?” 40 So they shouted again, saying, “Not this Man, but Barabbas.” Now Barabbas was a rebel.
Pilate knew Jesus was innocent and Barabbas was guilty, but he had Jesus crucified anyway. After all, “What is truth?” Therefore, when confronted with a choice between an inconvenient riot and the execution of an innocent man, Pilate chose to have an innocent man executed. Nevertheless, even though the soldiers he commanded crucified Jesus, Pilate sought to satisfy appearances. He washed his hands before the public.
Matthew 27:15-26 New American Standard Bible
15 Now at the Passover Feast the governor was accustomed to release for the people any one prisoner whom they wanted. 16 And at that time they were holding a notorious prisoner called Barabbas. 17 So when the people gathered together, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release for you: Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?” 18 For he knew that it was because of envy that they had handed Him over.
19 And while he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent him a message, saying, “See that you have nothing to do with that righteous Man; for last night I suffered greatly in a dream because of Him.” 20 But the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowds to ask for Barabbas, and to put Jesus to death. 21 And the governor said to them, “Which of the two do you want me to release for you?” And they said, “Barabbas.” 22 Pilate *said to them, “Then what shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?” They all *said, “Crucify Him!” 23 But he said, “Why, what evil has He done?” Yet they kept shouting all the more, saying, “Crucify Him!”
24 Now when Pilate saw that he was accomplishing nothing, but rather that a riot was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this Man’s blood; you yourselves shall see.” 25 And all the people replied, “His blood shall be on us and on our children!” 26 Then he released Barabbas for them; but after having Jesus flogged, he handed Him over to be crucified.
Right in front of the crowd, Pilate lied. To their faces Pilate lied, and then he washed his hands of Jesus’ death. Then, even as he declared the innocence of Jesus, he ordered his soldiers to cruelly murder Jesus. The people’s demanded Jesus’ death, but Pilate ordered the foul deed done.
What Pilate did, washing his hands, is nothing new. Pilate did not invent lying any more than our modern leaders invented blame shifting or spinning the news. However, as Christians we do have fewer excuses for accepting such nonsense. As Christians we know the Truth. We know God is real! As Christians, we must obey God, love each other, and work for each other’s good. Instead of working just to elevate our self over others, we must strive to put each other’s welfare ahead our own. As Christians, we must pray for wisdom so that we can discern the Truth and choose the good over the evil.
Citizen Tom 
Reblogged this on boudica.us.
Thanks for reblog.
Tom,
I linked your post in a comment to Doug in response to my post today about the Rittenhouse trial … as follows:
Doug,
Thanks for your comment. I read your post and apparently you have been actively engaged in following and gathering details more than me. I just listened to the summations and believe we both may have come to the same conclusion you stated”
“It’s a sick state of affairs.”
Again, I recommend anyone interested not to read any news opinions and instead listen to the summations.
As after listening, I agree if anyone wants to consider why everyone is buying guns, it is as you said.
Because of “a sick state of affairs,”
all the result of a Nation idolizing the wrong Gods as Citizen Tom is explains in his current posting in his latest post, we are listening to, in my opinion.
WHOSE SIDE ARE THEY ON? — PART 2 – Citizen Tom
Regards and goodwill blogging.
Good examples Tom of of how people replace God in their life with modern day idols. Another major one is thinking we can somehow control the climate. Today’s environmental movement is very religious and its zealots think nothing of destroying lives or making things very difficult (sky high energy prices, supply chain eruptions) in the name of saving Mother Earth.
@Tricia
Yep!
One the strange things about the Liberal Democrat party is the way it uses guilt. Their religion is all about guilt and the impossible task of eliminating that guilt.
Global Warming is an excellent example, but it is quite odd. We are suppose to treat the planet as some sort of goddess, but we are suppose to treat the unborn is things.
Instead of regarding the unborn as human beings, we must arbitrarily feel guilty if we don’t respect the right of a woman to control her body.
Of course, this right to control one’s body does not apply to COVID-19 vaccinations. The only thing that matters with respect to COVID-19 is that we must get the sacred jab, or that proves we don’t care about others (even if they have already had COVID-19).
Yet illegal alien can flood across our southern borders without getting vaccinated for COVID-19. In fact, the Biden administration enthusiastically provides these lawbreakers free transportation to our interior. And if we don’t approved of Biden administration’s contradictory immigration policies, that makes us racist and uncaring for the poor.
Perhaps the high regard Liberal Democrats for illegal aliens can be explained by the high regard they have for all lawbreakers. Lawbreaking is the fault of society. Those of us who observe the law are at fault because we did pay enough in taxes for endless social programs….. and so it goes. Because it is all connected by guilt, we can go from one thing to another.
The Liberal Democrats who deride Christianity because they don’t like repenting of their sins would have all of us consumed with guilt.