Showing posts with label free society. Show all posts
Showing posts with label free society. Show all posts

Monday, 4 May 2020

A Moral Code

A Moral Code
In the book of Deuteronomy we read,
“Hear O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one! 
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, 
with all your soul, and with all your strength.
                                                          Deuteronomy 6:4,5
Abba Hillel Silver writes,
"Faith in God is the strongest bulwark of a free society.  Human freedom began when men became conscious that over and above society and nature there is a God who created them...who fashioned them in His likeness, and that they are, therefore, possessed of intrinsic and independent significance and are endowed, as individuals, with original and irrevocable rights and authority." Abba Hillel Silver.
I think it can safely be said that no atheist group has ever come up with a moral code anywhere equivalent to that of the Bible. 
Within the Bible we have a moral code that instructs mankind how to live with ones fellow man and with God.
It lays down everything from a six day work week. Exodus recording,
"Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. Exodus20:9,10
To providing food for the poor. Leviticus 19: 9,10 stating,
"‘When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest.  
Do not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the alien. I am the LORD your God." Leviticus 19: 9,10.
To Jesus telling us,
"So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets" Matthew 7:12.
 Without the moral code laid down in the Bible, mankind would fall into the abyss of anarchy or worse extinction, with survival of the fittest or most violent, ruling.
History shows us that when the truths of the Bible are ignored society declines. We just have to look at what happened to those people the Nazis conquered and ruled during world war two. Close to sixty million men, women and Children dying needlessly at the hands of a despotic ruler. Who ruled using his own moral code.
The bottom line is man needs an absolute moral code without it society will fail. Frankly it is beyond my comprehension that somewhere along the line in ancient history a group of men and women sat down and agreed on a universal moral code.
I firmly believe that God has placed in the hearts and minds of everyone who is living or has ever lived His moral code. Each person knows instinctively what is right or wrong and has the choice of which way to go.
I also believe ultimately that God will hold us all to account for our actions. The writer of Ecclesiastes telling us,
“Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole  duty  of man. 
For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.”Ecclesiastes 12:13,14.
Please think about it.

Thursday, 26 September 2019

Over and Above

Over and above
The Psalmist writes,
Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth. 
Worship the LORD with gladness; 
come before him with joyful songs. 
Know that the LORD is God. 
It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, 
the sheep of his pasture. 
Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise;
 give thanks to him and praise his name. 
For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; 
his faithfulness continues through all generations. 
                                                                                Psalm 100
The Bible is written to believers. It therefor does not debate the existence of God. Believers know that God exists. Believers also recognize that there is a need for God within our society.
Abba Hillel Silver at the height of world war two wrote,
"Faith in God is the strongest bulwark of a free society.
Human freedom began when men became conscious that over and above society and nature there is a God who created them...who fashioned them in His likeness, and that they are, therefore, possessed of intrinsic and independent significance and are endowed, as individuals, with original and irrevocable rights and authority." Abba Hillel Silver.
History has shown us that when people turn from the basic principles God has laid down for mankind society suffers. We only have to look at world war two to see this. Hitler and his henchmen had no fear of God. They turned away from God and lived by their own rules. The result was world war two, the worst conflict in human history with upwards of 60,000,000 men, women, and children killed senselessly.
The same thing is happening today. There are many terrorist groups around the world that are murdering people. Some even having the audacity to say they are doing it in the name of God.
That being said it is not only terrorist groups doing the killing. On the streets of our cities there are men and women murdering others daily.
The murdering aside. There are many more things happening that are against God’s laws.
The apostle Paul wrote,
But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. 
"People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God—”2 Timothy 3:1-4.
This is happening today and our society knows it. And society is looking for solutions to it’s problems. I firmly believe that turning back to the God of the Bible. Turning back to the teachings of Jesus and the apostles is the solution to much of mankind’s problems.
Please think about it.

Saturday, 1 June 2019

The Strongest Bulwark

The strongest Bulwark
The writer of Ecclesiastes states,
“Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole  duty  of man. 
For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.”Ecclesiastes 12:13,14.
Abba Hillel Silver wrote,
“Faith in God is the strongest bulwark of a free society.  Human freedom began when men became conscious that over and above society and nature there is a God who created them...who fashioned them in His likeness, and that they are, therefore, possessed of intrinsic and independent significance and are endowed, as individuals, with original and irrevocable rights and authority.” Abba Hillel Silver.
When God is forgotten by society, society runs the risk of falling apart. While God in creating man gave him complete freedom to do as he wished. He, I believe placed in mans heart rules to live by. Devine rules that allow a free society to function well. Those divine rules in a nutshell being the ten commandments.
When man disobeys those rules and refuses to believe in God, or fear God, society can fall apart. We only have to look at Nazi Germany in the 1930's and during world war two to see this in its extreme.
Hitler and his supporters did not fear God. Instead they lived by their own rules that led to the death of millions of men women and children in the death camps. In a world war that claimed in excess of fifty-six million people, soldiers and civilians.
The same is true on a smaller scale around the world today with respect to terrorist groups. Most do not fear God. Some even have the twisted belief they are doing God’s work.
Throughout our society we see murderers, rapist, thieves and others who commit crimes who do not give God a second thought.
Whether mankind wants to admit it or not. Mankind needs God and the basic set of rules for living life to it’s fullest. Mankind needs to acknowledge that the writer of Ecclesiastes is right when he said,
“Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole  duty  of man. 
For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.”Ecclesiastes 12:13,14.
Please think about it.