[Faith-talk] Daily Thought for Monday, October 7, 2013

[Paul]

Hello and good day to all my fellow readers.  Well, for once in the Baltimore-Washington DC metro area, the weather forecasters got it right in that we are experiencing rain in our area.  Unfortunately as I write these lines, there is a tornado watch in five counties in Maryland, mainly on the Eastern Shore, that part of our state east of the Chesapeake Bay.  I think it extends to 9 p.m. eastern time, but am not sure about that.  Please pray that the watch remains just that, a watch only, and that no tornado touches down or, worse yet, kills people or destroys property.

And now for the article for today.  As many of you probably know, Robert Rathbun is the editor of the Gospel Messenger magazine, the official publication of the Gospel Association for the Blind and has been the pastor of the First Baptist Church in Lowell, Massachusetts for over 40 years.  Today he presents us with his challenging article entitled "Humanism Versus God," rendered as follows:

In the twentieth century and carrying over into this present century is the teaching of humanism.  Put simply, it is the teaching that ultimate good must be determined by what is good for man.  God is left out of the picture.  The whole universe must center around man.  The welfare of man is the determining factor in judging a behavior to be right or wrong.  Homosexuality is thus judged to be acceptable, for it is pleasing to men without, supposedly, causing harm to people.  Murder is declared to be bad because it harms society.  Abortion is declared to be acceptable behavior for it, supposedly, does no harm to anything living.  Child molestation is considered bad because it harms society.  Cohabitation without marriage is considered acceptable for it, supposedly, does no harm to society.

Humanism has no real concept of sin, for sin relates to the violation of God's laws and character, and humanists deny, or at best consider irrelevant, the existence of God.  When man determines what is right and wrong, there will be a noticeable bent toward sin, for this is a part of man's very nature.  Those behaviors which are pleasing to man are likely to gain humanism's approval.  The obvious opposition to Biblical Christianity by the humanistic media of today is because the Christian faith brings God into the picture, and with God comes a standard of right and wrong at variance with that of humanism.

John Dewey was the leading spokesman for humanism in the United States.  Humanism declares itself to be a religion, not a philosophy; and the Supreme Court in a 1961 decision recognized humanism as a religion.  Its position is thoughtfully stated in the Humanist Manifestos of 1932 and 1973.  In the Humanist Manifesto II of 1973, we read, "We believe that traditional, dogmatic or authoritarian religions that place revelation, God, ritual or creed above human needs and experience do a disservice to the human species.  We find insufficient evidence of a supernatural--it is either meaningless or irrelevant to the question of the survival and fulfillment of the human.  No deity will save us; we must save ourselves." Humanism starts with man, not God.  It teaches evolution.  Faith in man and in his ability to solve his problems through human intelligence and scientific technique fills the humanist with optimism.

Through Dewey's influence, humanism became entrenched in our educational system.  Thus, God soon exited the schoolhouse, and man cast a longer shadow.  The poet declares:
"When small men cast long shadows,
The sun is sinking fast.
When wrong is enthroned
And the truth is in shackles,
The day is almost past."

In this humanistic society of ours, this poem may provide some comfort and encouragement for the Christian, for it implies the soon coming of the Lord.  And yet, even the Christian has had his thinking colored by humanism.  Man's chief sin is pride, and humanism drinks deeply at this fountain.  The Christian, however, drinks more deeply at this fountain more than he might believe or want to admit.  You need go no further than our prayers to confirm this.  Are our prayers generally about God and His purposes, or are they about us and our wants and needs? After a minute or two of praising and thanking God, our prayers drift off into petitions and intercessions dealing with ourselves and our little circle of friends.  We do not generally pray for God's glory or for His purposes to come to pass.  Yet, are not God's glory and His purposes His will? Should we not be praying in accordance with His will? If we were to be brutally honest about the matter, we would have to admit that our prayers are very self-centered, and this smacks of humanism.

Even our worship service tends to focus on man more than on God--how we can be better witnesses, Christian parenting, and messages to encourage the discouraged child of God.  We come to church dressed in clothes comfortable to us, we sing music that we enjoy singing, and we see that the service ends when we would like it to end.  Gospel invitations assure the repentant sinner a happier, more fulfilled life, the blessedness of having your sins forgiven, the joys of heaven forever.  It appears that, often in our worship services, God becomes simply a means to our joy and satisfaction.

I heard a song recently (2006), and part of its lyrics declared:  "Its not about us; it's all about Him." That's a foreign thought to many Christians today.  We know that God is the great Creator and the center of the universe.  However, when it comes to the way we pray and worship, it seems to be much more about us than about Him.  Even the salvation of man is ultimately for His glory more than for man's good.  Everything God does is for His glory, and man should seek to glorify God in everything he does.  It's not about us; it's all about Him.

The moral laws God has given us are in accordance with His perfect nature.  God's laws are reflective of His character and being.  This is why they cannot be changed to conform to man's desires.  To do that would require a change in God Himself.  God is perfect, so any change in Him would be a change from perfection to imperfection.  The Scripture says:  "For of Him, and through Him, and to Him, are all things:  to Whom be glory forever. Amen" (Romans 11:36).  "Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power:  for Thou hast created all things, and for Thy pleasure they are and were created" (Revelation 4:11).  It's not about us; it's all about Him.

Humanism is the religion of many today, but it is in direct conflict with Christianity.  This is why Christians have such a hard time accepting the changes taking place aroud us today--they are changes brought about by humanism.  God is omitted, and when you leave God out, you invite trouble in! In the United States, humanism and Christianity are on a collision course.  Christianity will ultimately prevail.  We know that, but which will prevail in our immediate future has yet to be seen.  Christians should be praying--praying for God's will to be done and for His name to be honored and glorified.  Remember, it's not about us; it's all about Him.

And there you have Pastor Rathbun's article written way back in 2006.  I know that we have two pastors who get these daily thought messages.  Do any of you two have anything to say about Brother Robert's article? I personally think that he wrote it like it is, not like we would want it to be.

And now may the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob just keep us safe, individually and collectively until tomorrow when, Lord willing, another daily thought message will be posted.  Your Christian friend and brother, Paul