THINKING

I am thinking: that’s all, just thinking or, maybe, just trying to (think). That’s all I do, or so it seems to me whenever my wife comes into my “study” when I am “busy,” and she asks me a question and I can barely answer her. I am thinking, which, I understand, it appears as if I am doing nothing at all but staring into space. This is true: I do do a lot of staring into space but, then, actually I also do write a lot, which, sometimes becomes the subject of debate among some, if not many, people who argue over it. This, believe me, was, and is, not my intention, because, like every writer I like to have readers but also, of course, like every human being, I wish everyone would agree with me, or at least recognize my viewpoint.

I really don’t understand why this is, either, because I proclaim myself to be a Christian. And, after all, does not the majority of America’s population claim to be Christians? And, as Christianity is the world’s number one religion, it would seem that most of us would agree but, it appears to me that today for numerous reasons, we are an almost totally segregated society and that appears to be separating innumerable people to gather together in groups of variable sizes to worship, as well as to gather together for civil activities, such as games: bowling, baseball, basketball, croquet and other such sports, as well as get-together’s: cookouts, movies, swimming and, as with most groups of “like-minded” citizens they meet to discuss how they are going to address any problems they are having.

During these times, it seems to me as if the truth is in serious danger of dying it’s usually quick death as lies continue to be the first choice of the devil and all his minions, who are always trying to convince others that lying is far superior to the truth and will make them much happier. The majority of those who identify as one particular religion, sect, group, nationality, political group, etc, also appear to be known as, or referred to as: “like-minded people.”

These split groups also appear to be found in churches: After all, the World’s population is pushing 8 million inhabitants and one-third of the human beings on this planet identify themselves as Christians.

The hardest thing to understand for us human beings is that Jesus Christ, God Himself, is actually, the truth and cannot lie but must and does always speak, as well as demand, the truth. And so, why is it that the world lives on, thrives upon and continues to worship lies in place of the truth?

Personally, this has been my hardest “contest” to conquer: the fact that Satan, the devil, is the author, speaker and father of all lies. But, then God, is the Truth, He claims to be the truth: He is the truth, the way and the light of the world but was Himself accused by his own family: in Mark 3:20:30:

“Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered, so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat. When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, ‘“He is out of his mind.”’
And the teachers of the law who came down from Jerusalem said, “He is possessed by Beelzebub!By the prince of demons he is driving out demons.”

So Jesus called them over to him and began to speak to them in parables: “How can Satan drive out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand; his end has come. In fact, no one can enter a strong man’s house without first tying him up. Then he can plunder the strong man’s house. Truly I tell you, people can be forgiven all their sins and every slander they utter, but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; they are guilty of an eternal sin.”

He said this because they were saying, “He has an evil spirit.”

So, in Jesus’ time(s) on this earth, the teachers of the law were the most educated and were very wealthy and owned all of the lands on which they lived but, then, as now, they could not believe the truth: that is to say any truth that did not correlate with what they considered the truth: And let it be noted that their truths always corresponded to the enrichment of themselves and their families, which drew them together, where they all became very disingenuous and stuck together against anyone who threatened their power and prosperous way(s) of life, which separated themselves and their families from the poor, uneducated underclasses of workers: the laborers, the poor and needy persons: the unemployed, the sick and elderly, who were treated as slaves of the wealthy, aristocratic scions of this time, who could not accept Jesus Christ for the very same reasons that they cannot, to this day in 2018, accept immigrants from foreign countries, or financially-strapped human beings who lack the only thing(s) they understand: money and possessions: this then, being the final straw that broke them, totally, away from Jesus Christ, who not only cured people of their illnesses but also gave them hope that there was, indeed, a Promised Land, and one that would accept them all and there were no qualifications for them to be accepted for eternal life save their love of Him, and thereby, the entire human race, and he was offering this eternal life, as he did everything else: gratuitously.

Many people did not believe in the Lord and Savior and some, including his own family, also lost track of who he was: God incarnate. This included many of his own brothers and sisters, as this was, after all, a life where people were made of flesh and blood and got everything, literally, their food and drink, their homes, their clothing, their camels and livestock the same way most people to this day do also: money.

And so Jesus and his disciples went around preaching the gospel to thousands upon thousands of regular, working-class people, along with the poor, the sick, everyone he preached to, no matter their class, were taught by Jesus that He would accept them if they accepted him and if they accepted everyone else, loved them as their own family and rejected wealth, money, position, possessions and power by helping one another freely: even as He had, showing them the way to live their very short lives on earth for their eternal lives in Heaven. He taught them (and us) to respect, and love, all other human beings, to see their character and respect it, to see their honesty and respect it, even, while at the same time to realize that money itself, was meaningless, which he showed them many times: as He did one day, in Capernaum, when a tax collector approached Peter and asked for the Temple tax and Jesus told Peter in Matthew 17: 25: “What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth collect duty and taxes—from their own sons or from others?”

“From others,” Peter quickly answered.

“Then the sons are exempt,” Jesus said to Peter. “But so that we may not cause offense, go to the lake and throw out your line. Take the first fish you catch; open its mouth and you will find a four-drachma coin. Take it and give it to them for my tax and yours.” Doing this the Lord showed Peter (and us) how to pay our taxes by making a living?

There’s an old saying: ‘The only difference between a cat and a lie is a cat only has nine lives.’ Lies, to this day appear, so many times, to rule the moment, the hour, and sometimes the day or even week, or month but, eventually that cannot stand the test of time: for the thief of whom you should be most wary if the one who steals your time. As Moses was quoted of saying, in the old testament, “For a thousand years in your sight, are like a day that has just gone by or like a watch ( 3 or 4 hours) in the night.

Many times is is folly to hasten, while, at other times, folly to delay. The wise do everything in its own time; for there is a time for everything and, now is the time for me to stop this writing. For God’s sake, I have to think and, I only got so much time left.

For those that can believe in flying saucers and life on Mars but not the fact that God Himself came to this earth, as the son, and was born, raised and preached as a poor man to everyone, showing no favor and preaching that all, rich and poor could get into the Promised Land, I say this: being ignorant is not so much a shame as being unwilling to learn. And, please, remember this: This world of reality has it boundaries, the world of imagination has no boundaries. You can meet the Holy Spirit there.

And may the peace, grace, mercy and love of the Lord be with us all, in this Christmas season, and forevermore.