Eric E. Wright's Blog, page 27

Of Sunrises and Ebenezers

In a recent article Sandra McCracken writes about sitting in a west-facing [image error]window during a flight. The window faced the dark sky and got her thinking about troubling circumstances.

I can relate. Here in Southern Ontario, we’ve been through days of rain, gloom, and increasing cold. It makes it easy for me to list the problems. During the last month and a half, we’ve had three appliances pack it in. Then today the washing machine gave us a fit. Plus, Mary Helen has a persistent cough. And several friends have serious health problems.

But wait. Sandra continued to describe descending through thick clouds and from a window on the east side she saw the sun rise. It reminded her that its was easy to make a list of her anxieties, but she could just as easily list God’s good gifts.

[image error]She thought of the hymn, Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing, where the second verse talks of raising an Ebenezer. It recalls the story in 1 Sam. 7 where after defeating the Philistines, Samuel raised a stone and called it, Ebenezer, stone of help. The stone would remind them to remember God’s help.

We forget God’s blessings very easily. McCracken urges us to follow the advice of Robert Murray McCheyne who wrote, “For every look at yourself, take ten looks at Christ.” Perhaps we need to remember that every night ends with a sunrise, and through Christ we will graduate into everlasting light. He will be the light in that city.

Although, it may be gloomy outside and time to put on winter tires, the weather has no effect on the promises of God. “God has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3).

And so, let me go and raise an Ebenezer. (From , Finding Grace in the Sunrise, Sandra McCracken, Cty Today, Oct. 2019, p. 28) .

(Let me know your thoughts on this subject. Further articles, books, and stories at: http://www.countrywindow.ca Facebook: Eric E Wright Twitter: @EricEWright1 LinkedIn: Eric Wright ––)

Socialism, Capitalism and the Christian

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We need clarity. As Christians, like many in our societies, we seem confused about the differences between socialism and capitalism. On the surface, socialism appears to be the most Christian system due to the way it redistributes wealth to care for the most vulnerable in society. And capitalism seems the most anti-Christian because it seems to encourage and reward greed. And then there is the political system, democracy. What are we to make about these systems?

To approach this subject as a Christian we need to clarify several key points that must be accepted before we move on. Without agreeing on these points, we cannot hope to come to an understanding of these systems that will inform our role as Christians and citizens.

1. All humans are sinners with a propensity toward greed, power and selfishness. We cannot build a society on a fiction, that people are intrinsically good, benevolent, and compassionate. “The LORD looked down from heaven on the sons of men to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God. All have turned aside, they have together become [image error]corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one” (Psalm 14:2,3). “There is no one righteous, not even one;…for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:10, 23). “As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live…gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts” (Eph. 2:1,3).

2. Christians are those who are born again by faith in Christ not by good works. (John 3:7) (See also Romans 3:21-26; Eph. 2:4,5; Titus 3:5 and many other passages.)

3. Born-again Christians owe allegiance to two kingdoms. They are citizens of the Kingdom of God which is the invisible rule of Christ in the hearts of all those who own Him as Lord. Yet they are also members of the society in which they live. They are called to differentiate between their allegiance to God and allegiance to governments. When presented with a Roman coin and asked about paying taxes, Jesus said, “Render onto Caesar what is Caesar’s and onto God what is God’s” (Matt. 22:21). Christians have a responsibility, like all citizens of a country, to pay taxes and respect those in authority.

4. Christians owe allegiance to Christ first. They must obey His commands [image error]including the ten commandments. As individual Christians living in a civil society, they are expected to demonstrate Christ’s love and compassion toward their neighbours. They and their churches are meant to apply the principles of Christ in caring for the vulnerable. That may mean caring for orphans, widows, mentally challenged, etc. Christians are salt and light in society.

5. BUT we cannot expect a civil society or its citizens to embrace Christian principles unless widespread revival occurs. The best we can hope for in this world is a government that respects human dignity and freedom while instituting laws that moderate our natural tendency toward selfishness, the exercise of power over others, and greed.

6. If we have the freedom to choose a system of government, we should choose one that produces the greatest good for the greatest number. We would be wise to find a system that:

a. Respects the dignity and freedom of individuals, (See Gen. 1:27)

b. Rewards initiative and does not stifle it, (See parables of talents and pounds; 1 Tim. 5:8)

c. Respects private property, (See 8th & 10th commandments; principle of [image error]stewardship in parables of Jesus, & that giving is to be free-will, without compulsion, 2 Cor. 9:7, etc.)

d. Realizes that people are all different with different skills, talents, etc., (See parables of Jesus, teaching on gifts in Rom. 12:3-8, 1 Cor. 12:-6, etc.)

e. Has some way to help those who are unfortunate without de-motivating those who generate wealth in a society.

f. Curbs absolute power lest the powerful tyrannize the weak.

7. As Christians living in a secular society, we will often need to choose between various distasteful options; that is, we often have to choose the lesser of two evils. Without compromising our central allegiance to Christ, we often have to compromise about lesser things. For example, are we going to pay taxes in a society where gay marriage and abortion are legal, or move to a place like Tanzania or Mexico or Saudi Arabia where these might be illegal? Jesus directed his disciples to pay taxes in the Roman Empire where child infanticide, idolatry, and slavery were legal.

What then should a Christian do while living in Caesar’s world? Promote a monarchy, a dictatorship, a democracy, a socialistic system, capitalism, or a combination? Fortunately, most of us can set aside monarchy and dictatorship. Let me define our three main options.

“Democracy is government by the people especially: rule of the majority. That is it is a government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodically held free elections.” (https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/democracy)

Consider the historic development of democracy which many attribute to Greece. But Greece was a slave-owning society, not a society in which all were equal. Democracy as we know it developed after the Protestant Reformation due to the renewal of belief in the dignity and equality of all people. Why? Because belief in equality is a fundamental biblical principle.; every individual has been endowed with dignity by the Creator who made men and women in His own image.

“Socialism is a range of economic and social systems characterized by social ownership of the means of production and workers’ self-management as well as political theories and movements associated with them.…There are many varieties of socialism and there is no single definition encapsulating all of them, with social ownership being the common element shared by its various forms.

…Originating within the socialist movement, social democracy has embraced a mixed economy with a market that includes substantial state intervention in the form of income redistribution, regulation, and a welfare state. Economic democracy proposes a sort of market socialism where there is more decentralised control of companies, currencies, investments, and natural resources.” (from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Socialism)

“Capitalism refers to an economic system in which a society’s means of production are held by private individuals or organizations, not the government, and where products, prices, and the distribution of goods are determined mainly by competition in a free market. As an economic system, it can be contrasted with the economic system of communism.” https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/capitalism[image error]

IMPLICATIONS:

This article is meant to give an overview of these competing systems. I welcome comment and correction.

• In our fallen world no system will perfectly promote human flourishing. Systems must be continually monitored.

• Democracy appears to be the best system since it is based on the inherent value and equality of all people. By spreading power throughout a population there is more chance of moderating evil through enacting laws that punish evil, limit business monopolies, protect private property, and through taxation finance defense and the extension of help to the needy.

• A free-market economy does the most to inspire and reward work, initiative, innovation, and prosperity. The introduction of this system in China is the main cause of its booming economy. Calling this capitalism tends to turn people off by conjuring up a picture of wealthy capitalists fueled by greed running roughshod over workers. But when a democracy rules a country while at the same time encouraging free enterprise, all benefit more. See the stats on the reduction in poverty over the years that free enterprise has been operative. https://ourworldindata.org/extreme-poverty

• While socialism, on the surface, looks more compassionate and Christian by re-distributing wealth with a goal of making all equal in income, it ultimately harms society by failing to reward initiative, innovation, and hard work. It limits private ownership and promotes big government. Bernie Sanders represents modern socialists by saying: “Let us wage a moral and political war against the billionaires and corporate leaders, on Wall Street and elsewhere, whose policies and greed are destroying the middle class of America. Let us wage a moral and political war against the gross wealth and income inequality in America, the worst in the industrialized world, which is tearing this country and our economy apart.” https://www.facebook.com/senatorsanders/posts/10150781969192908 But it is not billionaires like Bill Gates that is destroying America. Innovations such as his created wealth and jobs that blesses America. As far as making government deparments responsible to force redistribution of wealth, we all know how inefficient government departments are compared to private enterprise.

• Historically socialism has always resulted in more and more concentration[image error] of power in government or dictators to enable them to enforce income redistribution. The 20th century is a graveyard of socialistic hopes that has resulted in 100 million people murdered or starved to death in Russia, China, Viet Nam, Cambodia, Cuba, etc. Venezuela is the most recent example where the enforced implementation of socialism has resulted in the wealthiest country in South America becoming the poorest. It is said that the average Venezuelan has lost about 17 pounds due to food scarcities.

• While some say that these stats refer to communist dictatorships not socialism, the basic principles of the two are the similar. Some refer to the Scandinavian countries as an example of prosperous socialism. But the president of Denmark corrected this fallacy by pointing out that Denmark is not a socialist country but has prosperity based on a free-market system.

• Democracies such as Canada and those in Europe promote free-markets while instituting measures to care for needy. See Canada’s health care system and equalizing payments between the provinces. Although the US health care system is much more capitalistic, it does not promote equality and is astronomically expensive. Promoting a free-market system does not mean that there should not be measures to limit the power of corporations, and for-profit principles in certain essential areas such as health care.

While our current system of free-markets in a democracy has faults, and needs to be continually monitored and corrected, Christians ought to praise God they live in such a society. As Christians, it does not make sense for us to promote socialism.

In the meantime, while we await the return of Christ, let us do all the good we can to all the people we can as long as we can.

[image error](Let me know your thoughts on this subject. Further articles, books, and stories at: http://www.countrywindow.ca Facebook: Eric E Wright Twitter: @EricEWright1 LinkedIn: Eric Wright ––)

Interrupted Plans

Over a month ago we blocked out two weeks to do nothing but enjoy the delights of autumn colours and have[image error] thanksgiving with our family. During last week’s wonderful sunshine, we had two delightful drives through the slowly changing countryside. Last weekend we were to gather with family for thanksgiving at our daughter’s home.

Then, both of us came down with a virulent cold that sentenced us to house arrest. We had never missed a thanksgiving! It is one of the few times we get to gather with our kids and grandkids and hear about their lives. While Mary Helen has largely recovered, mine continues to linger. No thanksgiving church service. No men’s Bible study. No more drives into the golden countryside.

Well, we’ve had two days of rain that may knock the leaves from the trees anyway. But this week was to have shown the fall colours at their peak. And we love autumn…why? Yes, why?

[image error]This whole episode has reminded me again of that passage in James. “Now listen you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money. Why you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appear for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, ‘If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that’” (James 4:13-15).

We never can know what will happen tomorrow. There is only one sovereign planner in the universe. God. Of course, He expects us to plan. Our ability to make decisions and plan is part of the image of God in us. But He also expects us to acknowledge that our plans are tentative. They depend upon God’s over-arching plans.

Recognizing the uncertainty of planning, Robbie Burns in his poem about a mouse wrote: “The best laid schemes o’ Mice an’ Men. Gang aft agley, An’ lea’e us nought but grief an’ pain,.”

To acknowledge God’s sovereign right to foil or re-direct our plans calls us [image error]to be humble. It calls us to have a God-leaning bent in our character; to have faith in Him. To look to Him every morning and praise Him every evening. And unlike Burns, we don’t need to believe that changes in our plans will result in grief. I’ve found they often rescue us from grief and lead to a better future.

Throughout history Christians have appended the two initials, DV after their plans, programs, appointments. DV is the abbreviation of the Latin phrase, deo volente, meaning Lord willing. I’d be wise to use DV much more often.

And so we’ll conquer this cold and venture out later in the week. DV

(Let me know your thoughts on this subject. Further articles, books, and stories at: http://www.countrywindow.ca Facebook: Eric E Wright Twitter: @EricEWright1 LinkedIn: Eric Wright ––)

Is Being Boring the new Unforgiveable Sin?

Are you excited? Are you living an entertaining life? Television, Netflix, and You Tube present us with exciting entertainment 24-7. Boring shows die on [image error]the drawing board. We have become a generation that demands entertainment—entertainment that is beyond interested—that is exciting, engrossing, enrapturing, absorbing, enchanting, fascinating, enthralling, entrancing and sometimes captivatingly scary.

To keep us continually engrossed we have our cell phones, our tablets, Facebook, Instagram, etc. Why embrace long-term projects that require long term concentration and boring details? Shouldn’t life be one exciting incident followed by another?

When we bring this attitude to our work place we face a problem because much of our work may require tedious slogging. But when we bring the expectation of excitement to church, it can affect our whole approach to [image error]God and the Christian life.

Consider Christian living, for example. Patience and perseverance have no place in a life where excitement is the criterion of success. But the Bible instructs us; “We do not want you to become lazy, [through expecting ease and excitement] but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.” (Heb. 6:12). “We rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance, perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, who he has given us” (Romans 5:2-5. Suffering is not exciting, and yet with the right attitude it is used by the Spirit to produce character—over time. That is an inspiring and encouraging truth that brings deep joy even if it is not exactly exciting. James 1 and 1 Peter remind us of similar truths.

Growth in godliness takes time and requires us to deal with the difficult things of life. Pioneer missionary, William Carey said, “I can plod.” That’s often what we need to do.

Take faith, for example. Faith may excite us but as Hebrews 11 reminds us, more often faith gives us the endurance to press on toward the promises over long periods of time. Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham; “all these people [image error]were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth” (Hebrews 11:13) To have the faith to press on one’s whole life requires stick-to-it-iveness more than excitement.

Take prayer. If we expect excitement at the church prayer meeting, we’re likely to be disappointed. In fact it can be a real downer. Leading a vibrant, prayer meeting where attendees interact with God and each other is probably the most challenging job in the church. We don’t pray because it is exciting. We pray because God calls us to His throne. Have we developed the habit of prayer? Do we have a daily ‘quiet time’ of Bible study and prayer? If so, we’ve learned to persevere when we’d rather to something else.

[image error]Take worship for example. I know there is a whole branch of evangelical Christianity that believes that for worship to be valid it must be entered into by enthusiastic, upbeat worshipers. But some of us are sad and suffering. Our hearts are broken. Sometimes we need slow and solemn hymns that remind us of eternal verities. And did not Jeremiah, the weeping prophet worship? Did Daniel’s three friends worship in the fiery furnace and Daniel in the lion’s den? Are not the doleful, imprecatory psalms also part of worship? I love “Joyful, joyful We Adore Thee;” but also “Be Still My Soul.”

Can I make a plea? That we banish the word exciting from our descriptions of worship and Christian programming and replace it with inspiring, encouraging, and uplifting.

(Let me know your thoughts on this subject. Further articles, books, and stories at: http://www.countrywindow.ca Facebook: Eric E Wright Twitter: @EricEWright1 LinkedIn: Eric Wright ––)

Flower Where You Are Planted

While waiting to meet a train at the Cobourg station, I looked expectantly [image error]down the tracks and saw, not a train, but a flower. I walked closer. Sure enough, a yellow flower grew right next to one of the steel rails, its roots sinking down into the hard gravel.

During our wait several freight trains thundered by. The flower, inches from destruction, ignored the monsters and just kept lifting its face toward the sun. Where did it find the nourishment and water to endure in such a [image error]sterile environment? Beauty in the midst of barrenness.

What a symbol of perseverance in spite of tribulation and danger!

Most of us live relatively comfortable stress-free lives. Until economic privation, marital difficulties, a frightening diagnosis or a struggle with daily pain rocks our world. Is it possible to thrive and even flourish in dire circumstances?

We admire those who demonstrate spiritual strength in the midst of privation or persecution. I’ve been much impressed by some of the books I’ve been reading lately; the story of a Dutch woman growing up in wartime Holland, a family suffering in occupied France, and the amazing testimony of a couple arrested and held without cause in China. (Two Tears on the Window).

The Bible teaches us that God expects us to thrive in all circumstances; like[image error] Abraham, Joseph, Moses, and Peter. Paul exhorts us to “rejoice in our sufferings because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character hope” (Rom. 5:3,4). James takes up the theme, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds” (James 1:2).

But how is this possible to shine in the midst of trials? “Because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us” (Rom. 5:5). Built into our salvation is the promise of the indwelling Holy Spirit who can provide the spiritual nourishment for us to persevere.

All of Scripture reiterates this theme. God is with us to build iron into our feeble constitutions. Psalm 23 talks of the Shepherd who walks with us through the valley of the shadow of death. Jesus bids his disciples farewell with the promise, “Lo, I am with you always.”

[image error]But it seems so counter-intuitive to thrive in tribulation. And yet all over the world from the Middle East, through Africa, and into the farthest reaches of China, believers are demonstrating faith, hope and love in dire circumstances. Persecuted Christian take to heart the lesson given to the Church in Smyrna. “These things says the First and the Last, who was dead, and came to life: I know your works, tribulation, and poverty (but you are rich)…do not fear…you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life” (Rev. 2:9,10).

Our culture has led us to believe that we can pass through life without undue pain. Would that it were so. But it is not. Although some of us may [image error]escape physical suffering, no one completely escapes emotional trauma, which in many ways is worse. Lord, you said, “In the world we will have tribulation.” Forgive me for expecting a bed of roses. Forgive me for complaining about my minor trials. Help me rather to flourish like that flower—right now, where I am. And remind me to intercede for persecuted saints.

(Let me know your thoughts on this subject. Further articles, books, and stories at: http://www.countrywindow.ca Facebook: Eric E Wright Twitter: @EricEWright1 LinkedIn: Eric Wright ––)

Sailing With The Spirit

[image error] Andrew Wilson asks; “How can we obey a passive verb?” ‘Be filled with the Spirit’ (Eph. 5:18). That is like saying, ‘Be phoned by your mother.’

He goes on to comment that the Spirit is the dynamic that energizes the Christian life. We often understand this in terms of filling a glass with water…but how to we keep, “be you, being filled,”(the Greek meaning)? Does the glass leak or what?

He helpfully points out that since the word for Spirit is breath or wind, thinking in terms of a sailboat is helpful. He asks if this filling is an experience or a habit and comments that it’s a bit of both.

I find this image helpful in thinking in terms of the acts that a sailor takes to see that the sail is raised and turned to the wind. Without the wind, the sailboat goes nowhere. But by raising the sail, turning the boat in the direction to catch the wind, and then steering, it moves ahead.

[image error]So, we should develop the habits that move the Holy Spirit, who already dwells within us as believers, to propel us onward in the faith. Lift the sail of forgiving others all the time, spend time every day and throughout the day in prayer, expose ourselves daily to the liberating content of Scripture, enjoy the fellowship of believers, and so on. Spirit of life, we lift our sail to you, propel us onward to mature holiness. (Article, Sailing with the Spirit, Cty Today, July/August 2019)

(Let me know your thoughts on this subject. Further articles, books, and stories at: http://www.countrywindow.ca Facebook: Eric E Wright Twitter: @EricEWright1 LinkedIn: Eric Wright ––)

The Real Source of Our Help

[image error]In this day of agnosticism and indifference to spiritual realities, we are prone to seek help from professionals. Doctors. Psychiatrists. Police. Army. Financial planners. Government. And this is not wrong in itself. We should all express our gratefulness for the skill doctors and surgeons, counselors and first-responders exercise.

King David, however, who had access to unlimited resources, realized that real help is ultimately found elsewhere. He had an unconquered army, but he wrote, If the LORD had not been on our side—let Israel say—when men attacked us…they would have swallowed us alive (Psalm 124:1-3). He could have reveled in Israel’s victory over its enemies. After all, Israel had achieved the largest extent and the most victories up to that point in history. He could have cried, “Look what we have done!”

[image error]Instead he was realistic, something rare today. He said, “Our help is in the name of the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth” (Psalm 124:8).

We would be wise today to ponder his conclusion. For ultimately, our help is in the name of the LORD who created hung the earth in space at an exact distance from the sun that we might not freeze into icicles or burn into cinders. He is the one who created the sun, the moon, the stars. He heaved up the mountains, created the rain cycle, gathered waters into lakes and oceans. He is the one who deposited gold and silver, aluminium and iron, oil and gas in the earth. He is the one who created the plants, the insects, the animals—you and I. He created wheat and corn, apples and mangoes, fish and shrimp.

So, while we enlist the help of police to protect us, doctors to heal us, and [image error]government agencies to maintain order, our ultimate help is from the LORD. He gives skill. He gives the knowledge that was enshrined in the world to be discovered by men using the brains He gave them. Kepler, Galileo, Newton and others were wise enough to credit the source for their scientific discoveries.

Are we humble enough to admit our dependence on God? Are we wise enough to seek God’s help whatever might be our problem? Or is He a last resort when doctors and the government and our army have failed?

We would be wise to read over Psalm 124 and meditate on the wisdom and power of the Maker of heaven and earth.

(Let me know your thoughts on this subject. Further articles, books, and stories at: http://www.countrywindow.ca Facebook: Eric E Wright Twitter: @EricEWright1 LinkedIn: Eric Wright ––)

Life Is Waiting

Life at this age is waiting. Waiting on the phone to get an appointment. Waiting in doctor’s offices. Waiting at the lab to get a blood test. Waiting to hear the results. Waiting for the back pain to ease. Waiting at the therapists. Waiting at the Pharmacy.

Yesterday we waited at a lab for Mary Helen to get a blood test. The room was full when we arrived about 9:30. By 10 it was packed and people were [image error]coming, peeking in the door and leaving.

What an interesting cross-section. A bearded old-timer with his long grey hair done up in a pony tail. What a story he must have to tell. A slim teen with green hair. Matrons staring into space. A grizzled senior reading novel. A fashionable senior with a Louis Vuitton look-alike purse pacing up and down, in and out, unable to sit. Seniors predominated; some with canes, one or two with walkers.

Today we waited at the physical therapists. Life is waiting.

This week-end brings Good Friday and Easter. But as Mary Helen found out by using the ancient greeting, He is risen, no one seems to know what this holiday is about. Easter eggs and bunnies?

But to those who believe, this Easter is another statement of affirmation. He [image error]has come. He taught. He healed the sick. He delivered from demons. He raised the dead. He was crucified. He rose again and is alive for ever more.

Easter, however, introduces another kind of waiting. Waiting for the Return of Christ. How long O Lord? Please come soon.

(Let me know your thoughts on this subject. Further articles, books, and stories at: http://www.countrywindow.ca Facebook: Eric E Wright Twitter: @EricEWright1 LinkedIn: Eric Wright ––)

Why Does Christ Have Such A High Standard For Marriage?

In the previous blog on this subject, I objected to our unchristian habit of [image error]stigmatizing divorce more than other kinds of behaviour. This is especially hypocritical when we restrict divorced people from serving in the church when they have demonstrated by their life the transformation redemption brings.

Why is this hypocritical? Simply because every single Christian is a sinner by action and intent. Whether a person is the guilty party in a divorce or not, he or she is the object of God’s love and a candidate for transforming forgiveness.

Does my outrage at this hypocrisy mean I do not value marriage as instituted by God? By no means.

The marital standard of Jesus Christ is commitment of a man and a woman to a lifelong covenant of love with each other. Having made that clear, I must add that the subject is complex.

During his final journey to Jerusalem, the Pharisees sought to trap Jesus on[image error] this very subject. They said, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any cause at all?” Jewish interpreters held two opposing views; Shamei held that divorce was only possible if adultery had taken place while Hillel and his followers felt that even serving slightly burned food could be grounds for divorce. What would Jesus say?

Jesus rebuked them for their emphasis on divorce instead of marriage. “A man shall leave his father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife; and the two shall become one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.” (See Matthew 19:1-12). Marriage is a divine gift that is meant to be indissoluble.

The Pharisees pounced on His response. “Why then did Moses command to give her a certificate and divorce her?”

[image error]Why? Jesus explained that it was because of their hard hearts. He went on to clarify God’s standard; “Whoever divorces his wife, except for immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery.”

The disciples were aghast at this high standard. They should have been prepared. In the Sermon on the Mount He had already raised the bar, for example, from a prohibition to murder to condemning anger. But they responded, then, “It is better not to marry.” In today’s context they might have said; “But what if two become incompatible? What if two stop loving each other? What if the husband or wife is abusive?

In seeking to understand the Christian approach to marriage and divorce we need to address four questions. This blog cannot do more than touch these areas.

1. Why is maintaining a high standard of marriage important?
2. What can be done to decrease the incidence of divorce?
3. Under what conditions may Christian divorce occur?
4. How should divorced believers be treated?

First, maintaining a high standard is not designed by God to make life hard on married couples. Nor it designed to keep people from all the supposed fun of sleeping around. The LORD cries out to Moses, “Oh, that their hearts would be inclined to fear me and keep all my commands always, so that it

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might go well with them and their children forever.…Walk in all the ways that the LORD your God has commanded you, so that you may live and prosper and prolong your days in the land you will possess” (Deut. 5:29,33). Abstinence from sex before marriage and faithful love in marriage leads to greater enjoyment in marriage.

The moral laws of God, including those concerning marriage, were given to promote blessing, prosperity, harmony in society and general happiness. As I’ve already quoted in the previous blog, “Divorce breeds poverty, particularly for women and children. With fewer economic resources, most children of divorce experience disruptions—changes in child care, living arrangements and schools—that create turmoil in their lives. Long-term effects of poverty from divorce are most obvious in girls.” (https://info.legalzoom.com/effects-divorce-society-20105.html) Divorce injects an enormous array of problems not only into the lives of the husband and wife and their children but into society. Society’s stability and harmony itself is affected.

[image error]No-fault divorce, which currently results in the break-up of almost 50% of marriages harms society. By contrast, stable marriages promote a healthy and stable society.

Secondly, the incidence of divorce and marital unhappiness can be reduced by teaching young people the joy of maintaining godly standards, by careful pre-marital counseling, and by the counseling of those in troubled marriages. In choosing a partner, wisdom beyond a passionate sense of romantic attraction is vital. Proverbs is right, “in the multitude of [godly] counselors is safety.” Couples need to realize that consciences polluted by affairs hinder the enjoyment of marital intimacy.

Churches need to have a support-structure in place. While we can do little to change society, we can ensure that those in our churches commit themselves to wholesome marriages. Churches can also work toward the restoration of damaged marriages. After all, redemption and healing are the hallmarks of a genuine church.

Thirdly, Jesus said, “Not all men can accept this statement” [about indissoluble marriage]. (See Matthew 19:6-12). In the text He points out that some have been created for singleness. In the case of the adultery of one party of a marriage, divorce and remarriage is permissible for the innocent [image error]partner. Paul also explains, “To the married I give this command (not I, but the Lord): a wife must not separate from her husband but if she does, she must remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband…But if the unbeliever leaves, let him do so. A believing man or woman is not bound in such circumstances” (1 Cor. 7:10,11,15).

In most cases of tension or separation in marriage, reconciliation should be sought. However, Christians have grounds for divorce in the case of adultery or abandonment by one spouse.

When abuse occurs in marriage the victim has a right to seek divorce. Why?[image error]  Among the moral commands of God, the threat of murder or harm trumps the threat of marital breakup. Civil authority has a responsibility to protect its citizens. Abused spouses cannot be protected if they are not urged to separate from their abuser.

Fourthly, Christians who are divorced should be treated like any other sinner being sanctified. Divorce is not the unpardonable sin. That Jesus deals compassionately with our failures and offers to forgive us is seen in His tender treatment of the woman caught in adultery. In our churches we must not vilify the forgiven divorced any more than we do the forgiven thief, liar or cheat. All of us are sinners taking the cure through the application of the blood of Christ who bore our sins on the cross.

[image error](Let me know your thoughts on this subject. Further articles, books, and stories at: http://www.countrywindow.ca Facebook: Eric E Wright Twitter: @EricEWright1 LinkedIn: Eric Wright –– )

Divorce and the church

As humans we have an irrational habit of inflating our own image and [image error]rationalizing our actions while denouncing the conduct of others. That seems to be why, even in our churches, we single out certain kinds of behaviour as particularly bad. Consider, for example, divorce.

Before I approach this touchy subject, let me remind ourselves of a sobering statistic. One hundred per cent of us are lawbreakers; that is, we are sinners. We have broken the moral laws of God. “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God,” the image of God in which we were created. (Romans 3:23) We have fallen short of His standards. A sincere re-reading of the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7 will demonstrate this reality. Without exception, we all need redemption and transformation.

Christ came to earth to establish a redemptive community. It is called, the Church. Those whom by the Holy Spirit are imbued with faith in the redemptive death of Christ are ushered into the mystical body of Christ, the Church universal. All such become the object of God’s sanctifying work.

[image error]Redeemed addicts, for example, become the focus of God’s sanctifying work. Likewise, gossips, thieves, liars, adulterers, gluttons, murderers, idolaters, the promiscuous, deceivers, hypocrites, the greedy, and even abusers. The list is almost unlimited.

And yet in spite of being part of a redemptive community, those who are divorced Christians are often stigmatized. Many evangelical churches will not allow a divorced person to become a deacon, elder or pastor. But why? Divorce is not the unpardonable sin nor is it as clear-cut who is at fault as it would be in the case of a thief or a glutton. Divorce may be precipitated by the adultery or abuse of a spouse. No one but the cruel or foolish expect a person to stay in a relationship where they or their children live in danger and fear.

Some years ago, a gifted man in a church we know was forced to step down from his ministry after his wife abandoned him for another. While determining guilt or innocence is difficult in a two-sided relationship, in this case, his innocence was quite clear-cut. I’m still struggling to understand this church’s decision.

I’m not arguing for us to lower the marital standards of Jesus Christ. (I will consider in the next blog.) All God’s laws are good and written for our individual and social benefit. The free society where divorce is rare is, in [image error]most cases, a blessed society with fewer social ills than others.

The breakup of the nuclear family, has a very debilitating affect not only on those affected directly, but on society at large. Ever since “no-fault divorce” became legal, the rate of marital break-ups has sky-rocketed. In Canada 38% of marriages end in divorce. The average length of a marriage is 14 years. In the US it is estimated that 50% of marriages will eventually end in divorce. In both Canada and the US, 10% of households are led by a single parent.

Of course, lawlessness of any kind, sends hurtful shivers through society. But marital break-up adversely affects children and thrusts single parents into a crucible. Divorce makes problematic children’s education, a family’s health care, the earning capacity of the single parent, the mental health of the family as well as their spiritual development. “In the first 18 months following divorce, between 77 and 83 percent of mothers and their children live in poverty.”(https://info.legalzoom.com/effects-divorce-society-20105.html)

“Divorce breeds poverty, particularly for women and children. With fewer economic resources, most children of divorce experience disruptions—changes in child care, living arrangements and schools—that create turmoil in their lives. Long-term effects of poverty from divorce are most obvious in girls.” (Ibid)

[image error]Clearly, we must do everything in our power to encourage couples to believe in and work toward indissoluble marriages. We must discourage divorce.

BUT, as Christians we are to go out into all the world and make disciples of all people, all sinners. That includes those who are divorced. And instead of ostracizing those who are stigmatized by being in this particular state, we should offer them the love and support of Christians who have learned to forgive. There is no Christian grounds for stigmatizing forgiven sinners, including those who are divorced. So, let’s embrace them and their contributions to the Church.

But what about the teaching of Christ on divorce. It may seem severe. I’ll deal with that in the next blog.

[image error](Let me know your thoughts on this subject. Further articles, books, and stories at: http://www.countrywindow.ca Facebook: Eric E Wright Twitter: @EricEWright1 LinkedIn: Eric Wright ––)