“God’s in control!” How many times through out the Trump presidency have I heard this exclaimed as the be-all, end-all answer to whatever new revelation of abject lawlessness had arisen that week. (For clarity, the lawlessness to which I am referring is not the [proven] baseless accusations against the POTUS, but rather the [proven] lawlessness of the incessant Trump-haters fabricating serial accusation after accusation.)
It seems to me that anyone who is informed, and has a pennies worth of objectivity would be and should be outraged. God is in control. It is true in every sphere of life. But--"Because the sentence against an evil deed is not executed quickly, therefore the hearts of the sons of men among them are given fully to do evil." (Ecclesiastes 8:11)
You have probably seen some iteration of a list of the top ten “problems” teachers had to deal with in the 50’s compared to latter decades. In the 50’s I was sent to the principal’s office for talking in class, throwing snowballs on school property, and having a fight—with my brother. A few years later, first day student Gini D., a new student from California, was kicked out of sophomore geometry for wearing a mini-skirt and Mrs. Wienberg worked the halls separating boys and girls who had their arms around each other.
Parents became advocates for their child’s “rights” to wear whatever they wanted with the ACLU joining in even filing lawsuits on behalf of the child. Not surprisingly discipline of any stripe became another form of child abuse. In a few years, instead of smoking in the bathrooms, kids were dropping acid, popping pills, and shooting up a few years later. Instead of concern for arms around waists, condoms were readily available from the school with practical life lessons on numerous “how-to’s” to make it all “safer.” And the times they keep a changin!
Richard Nixon was my commander in chief when Watergate became a household word. The clarion cry of the 70’s was, “No one is above the law!” President Richard Nixon resigned in ignominy and rightly he should have. But looking back, the “crime” of the 70’s that brought down a president in merited disgrace is truly laughable when compared to the scurrilous conduct of presidents that followed. Evil has only escalated in both volume and depravity. Oh but God is in control…
Well God is indeed in control. A sweep of biblical history removes any doubt about that. But what does that mean? In facing the troubles of our times whatever the epoch do we cue up Doris Day singing Que Sera, Sera, [look it up] put on the coffee, remain aloof of the machinations of a culture run amuck with boundary-less autonomy, godlessness, and relativism? Explaining the messy transfer of power from King David to Solomon Donald Carson affirms, God is in control--BUT:
“The sovereignty of God works through the complicated efforts of his people. When David is informed of the problem, he does not throw his hands into the air and pray about the situation: he immediately orders that decisive, symbol-laden, and complex steps be taken to ensure that Solomon ascends the throne. Trust in God's sovereign goodness is never an excuse for inactivity or indolence. Long years of walking by faith have taught David that whatever else “walking by faith” means, it does not warrant passivity. If we are to avoid acting in defiance of God, or in vain efforts to be independent of God, we must also avoid the pietism that is perennially in danger of collapsing trust into fatalism.”
D.A. Carson For The Love of God
No comments:
Post a Comment