PTM WEEKLY UPDATE -- SEPTEMBER 15, 2008
What our readers and listeners say
Does God choose the president?
I don't think your answer to "Does God make the ultimate decision about who is elected president?" in the last PTM Weekly Update was complete. You said, "There are many times when humans receive the kind of leader they want," and you used King Saul as an example. Yet God chose Saul as king of Israel. -- email
• While it is true that God picked Saul as king of Israel (1 Samuel 9:17), this was because Israel had demanded a king like that nations around them (1 Samuel 8). Prior to the monarchy, God's government provided Israel with immense freedoms compared to the despotic rulers and brutal religions in the rest of the ancient world. God warned the Israelites that a human monarchy would result in opression, military conscription, forced labor and heavy taxation. Nevertheless -- the Israelites demanded a human king, and God gave them exactly what they wanted. The history of Israel bears out what God foretold -- with only a few exceptions, the kings of Israel and Judah were failures far worse than Saul. Even the righteous kings, such as David and Asa, abused their power at times. In general, Israel's kings either rejected the worship of God and replaced it with pagan religion, or they abused God's Old Testament religion and used it to their own political advantage. The end result was the enslavement of the people of Israel -- but only because they made the wrong choices when they had the freedom to do so.
"We would not have made it without your teaching. You made us feel normal and accepted by God and taught us that we were in a religious institution -- not in a relationship with our Lord and Savior."
PTM helps bring freedom from religion
Thanks for your ministry. My husband and myself were caught up in a religious system and didn't realize it until we read your articles. We attended a church for 15 years of dedicated service, proving our allegiance to God. We faithfully attended services every time the door was open and we were involved in many ministries. One day the pastor called us into his office and yelled at us for missing a couple of Sundays, for not attending a concert he put on, and for not being submissive enough. We felt if he treated us like this, he shouldn't pastor us -- so we left the church. We were totally devastated and sick at heart. It was like being lost and having no one to help you find your way. Its been two years now and it is a slow process of healing. We would not have made it without your teaching. You made us feel normal and accepted by God and taught us that we were in a religious institution -- not in a relationship with our Lord and Savior. I now know about God's grace and mercy and am so thankful for the knowledge of his freedom. Thank you so much! -- MinnesotaPrayer warriors
FABULOUS UPDATE THIS WEEK!!!!!!!! I wish I could send your update to everyone in the church that we once attended! Your comments about the question over "prayer warriors" made me think of something that happened not long ago.
I immediately thought of a family issue, involving siblings, both of whom see themselves as Christians, who discussed alternatives for their aged parent. The issue concerned two care homes. One was safer and cleaner and newer, and by all physical accounts seemed to be the place their father would be happiest. The other one was owned by people who claimed to be Christians. This home, however, was on a busy road, had no fence around it, was next to a lake and park, and had very few activities. It was dark, too.
Taking everything into account, one sibling felt the parent would be happier and safer at the newer home, even though it was not run by "Christians."
The other sibling didn't agree, and decided to ask a friend from her church for advice. This was someone she considered, in her own words, a "real prayer warrior." This person agreed with the one sibling that the parent should be placed in the home that didn't seem as safe as another one. The decision became, based on being a "prayer-warrior" a "a no brainer." The one sibling decided that God was making his will known -- but from the other sibling's point of view, the "prayer-warrior" consulting siblilng seemed to lose all sense of reason.
When the other sibling brought up reservations, like the fact that the seemingly divinely appointed home, via the advice of a "prayer warrior," wasn't suitable for Alzheimer's patients -- was on a busy road -- was without a fence so that the father could easily wander away and become lost in the nearby park -- didn't have an activity program -- the reply was that "maybe God knows Dad's time is up and this is where he wants our father." The other sibling was stunned. Isn't it our Christian duty to look after our parents -- not to usher in their demise based on some superstitious sign that leads us into an unsafe option?
The conflict ended well, but only when the one sibling's "prayer warrior" advisor relented, saying "both homes could be a blessing from God." So the safer home was chosen.
This is how far and how dangerous this whole "prayer-warrior" business can go. It's a dangerous road to go down, putting that much emphasis on someone because they appear to or claim to have more access to God and therefore insight -- which seems to surpass principles of wisdom and common sense. -- AnonymousI grew up in a sect (orthodox enough to be considered part of the Christian Church, but not in the mainstream of denominations) that also preached that we were "saved by grace." However, the unspoken, unwritten second half of that doctrine was that we were "kept by good works." Like the person who wrote the letter in the September 8th PTM Weekly Update we also had a long list of "rules and regulations" which would certainly announce to all we met that we were "real" believers. We didn't drink, smoke, dance, swear, use makeup, go to movies or plays, gamble or commit any other "sin of the flesh." On the other hand, we were careful to go to church on Sunday (morning and night, of course), Wednesday evening and any other time a special meeting was announced. We dutifully prayed for the unsaved and did our best to "shine the light of Jesus" wherever we went. And -- we were oh, so proud of our humility!
The first time I heard (at a high school classmate's church) the notion of Christians being both "saint and sinner," I thought it was a heresy and that my friend was headed straight for hell. The whole notion of freedom in Christ was terribly hard to grasp. Was it okay to do this or that? To go here or there? What did I need to do to BE SURE of my salvation? The answer? I needed to stop TRYING TO BE a Christian and rejoice in the fact that I AM A CHRISTIAN because of God's great love and grace. The truth -- it was out of my hands. I was saved not because I held onto Jesus, but because he held onto me. After much prayer and study, I embraced my friend's denomination.
After 45+ years of this new way of believing, I'm still haunted by cobwebs of the old ways. The writings of Martin Luther, who often doubted his own salvation, have encouraged me, along with sermons that focus on God's mighty works, rather than on my futile attempts at holiness. I consider the religion I grew up with to be counterfeit -- it looked like the real thing, but it was just an imitation. -- WashingtonRETURN TO PTM WEEKLY UPDATE CONTENTS PAGE
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