Never Trust A Person Who Is Full Of Hate

                                             When The Door Slams

Do not be surprised, my brothers and sister, if the world hates you. We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love each other. Anyone who does not love remains in death. Anyone who hates a brother or sister is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life residing in him (1 John 3:13-15 NIV).

              Resentment is the hate of emotions. It causes our blood to pump and our energy level to rise. But, also like hate, it demands increasingly larger and more frequent activity. There is a dangerous point at which anger ceases to be an emotion and becomes a driving force. A person bent on revenge moves unknowingly further and further away from being able to forgive, for to be without the anger is to be without a source of energy. 

            That explains why the bitter complain to any who will listen. They want--they need--to have their needs fanned. That helps explain the existence of the KKK,  the Proud Boys, the Skinheads, and other hate organizations. Members of these groups feed each other's anger. And that is why the resentful often appear unreasonable. They are addicted to their bitterness. They don't want to surrender their anger, for to do so would be to surrender their reason to live.

            Think about this: Take bigotry from the racist and what does he have left? Remove revenge from the heart of a zealot, and her life is empty. Extract chauvinism from the radical sexist and what remains? Resentment is like hate in another way, too. Hate can kill the hater. Anger can kill the angry. It can kill physically. Chronic anger has been linked with elevated cholesterol, high blood pressure and other deadly conditions...Hatred is the rabid dog that turns on its owner. Revenge is the raging fire that consumes the arsonist. Bitterness is the trap that snares the hater. 

            And mercy is the choice that can set them all free. In the words of Paul: "We know that in everything God works for the good of those who love him..." (Romans 8:28). God will not permit any troubles to come upon us, unless He has a specific plan by which great blessing can come out of the difficulty. 

            Affirmation: Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. Such "wisdom" does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice                                                                  (James 3:13-16 NIV). 

Ask the Holy Spirit to search your heart and reveal any areas of unconfessed sin. Acknowledge these to the LORD and thank Him for His forgiveness.

                                                        Never Rest Ministries  

       

The Humanitarian Theory Of Punishment

                                            When The Door Slams

I will turn my face away from the people, and robbers will desecrate the place I treasure. They will enter it and will defile it. "Prepare chains! For the land is full of bloodshed, and the city is full of violence. I will bring the most wicked of nations to take possession of their houses. I will put an end to the pride of the mighty, and their sanctuaries will be desecrated. When terror comes, they will seek peace in vain.           Ezekiel 7:22-25

            As a Christian, I most certainly believe in punishment. Biblical justice demands that individuals be held accountable. Throughout the history of ancient Israel, to break God's law was to invite swift, specific, and certain punishment. When a law was broken, the resulting imbalance could be righted only when the transgressor was punished and thus made to "pay" for his wrong. 

            Though modern sociologists take offense at this elemental concept of retribution, it is essential: If justice means getting one's due, then justice is denied when deserved punishment is not received. And ultimately this undermines one's role as a moral, responsible human being. 

            C.S. Lewis summed this up in his brilliant essay  "The Humanitarian Theory of Punishment," which assails the view that lawbreakers should be "cured" or "treated" rather than punished. "To be punished, however severely, because we have deserved it, because we 'ought to have known better,' is to be treated as a human person made in God's image," says Lewis. In this Biblical sense, punishment is not only just, it is very often redemptive-to the offender, the victim, and society at large.

            Think about this: This is why the distinction between prison and punishment is so crucial. Prisons, though necessary to confine violent offenders, can hardly be considered redemptive. And while punishment is clearly Biblical, American penal philosophy is not based on the Biblical principle of just due or payment, that it is founded on a humanistic view that crime is an illness to be cured.

            Confession: Have you not brought this on yourselves by forsaking the LORD your God when he led you in the way? Now why go to Egypt to drink water from the Nile? And why go to Assyria to drink water from the Euphrates? Your wickedness will punish you; your backsliding will rebuke you. Consider then and realize how evil and bitter it is you when you forsake the LORD your God and have no awe of me; declares the Lord, the LORD Almighty (Jeremiah 2:17-19).

Ask the Holy Spirit to search your heart and reveal any areas of unconfessed sin. Acknowledge these to the LORD and thank Him for His forgiveness. 

                                                Never Rest Ministries

                   

      

28 Spiritual Understandings

                                   When The Door Slams  

* Proverbs 28                                                                                                                                        (1) The Wicked run away when no one is chasing them, but the godly are as bold as lions. (2)  When there is moral rot within a nation, its government topples easily. But wise and knowledgeable leaders bring stability. (3) A poor person who oppresses the poor is like a pounding fain that destroys the crops. (4) To reject the law is to praise the wicked; to obey the law is to fight them. 

(5) Evil people don't understand justice, but those who follow the LORD understand completely. (6) Better to be poor and honest than to be dishonest and rich. (7) Young people who obey the law are wise; those with wild friends bring shame to their parents. (8) Income from charging high interest rates will end up in the pocket of someone who is kind to the poor. (9) God detests the prayers of a person who ignores the law.

(10) Those who lead good people along an evil path will fall into their own trap, but the honest will inherit good things. (11) Rich people may think they are wise, but a poor person with discernment can see right through them. (12) When the godly succeed, everyone is glad. When the wicked take charge, people go into hiding. 

(13) People who conceal their sins will not prosper, but if they confess and turn from them, they will receive mercy. (14) Blessed are those who fear to do wrong, but the stubborn are headed for serious trouble. (15) A wicked ruler is as dangerous to the poor as a roaring lion or an attacking bear. (16) A ruler with no understanding will oppress his people, but one who hates corruption will have a long life.

(17) A murderer's tormented conscience will drive him into the grave. Don't protect him! (18) The blameless will be rescued from harm, but the crooked will be suddenly destroyed. (19) A hard worker has plenty of food, but a person who chases fantasies ends up in poverty. (20) The trustworthy person will get a rich reward,  but a person who wants quick riches will get into trouble. (21) Showing partiality is never good, yet some will do wrong for a mere piece of bread. (22) Greedy people try to get rich quick but don't realize they're headed for poverty.

(23) In the end, people appreciate honest criticism far more than flattery. (24) Anyone who steals from his farther and mother and says, "What's wrong with that?" is no better than a murderer. (25) Greed causes fighting; trusting the LORD leads to prosperity. (26) Those who trust their own insight are foolish, but anyone who walks in wisdom is safe. (27 Whoever gives to the poor will lack nothing, but those who close their eyes to poverty will be cursed.

(28) When the wicked take charge, people go into hiding. When the wicked meet disaster, the godly flourish (Proverbs 28).-  

Affirmation: All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16-17). We also have the prophetic message as something completely reliable, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shinning in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your heart (2 Peter 1:19 NIV).    

Ask the Holy Spirit to search your heart and reveal any areas of unconfessed sin. Acknowledge these to the LORD and thank Him for his forgiveness.             

                                                 Never Rest Ministries 

        Happy New Year