There is a way that seems right to a man,
but its end is the way to death.
-Proverbs 14:12
The Book of Proverbs is one of the most beloved books of the Bible. Hundreds of Proverbs covering topics ranging from finance, to time management, to interpersonal relationships, to raising children, the words we use, and the importance of hard work.
I think it’s easy to take Proverbs as pithy statements. They are that but they’re also so much more. Proverbs are profound statements that point us to the wisdom of God and the reality of the world he has made and the best way to live is in accordance with God’s creation. Proverbs are meant to be internalized.
Trying to view the world with Godly wisdom should be the pursuit of our lives. There is a way that seems right to man, but its end is the way to death.
There are two ways to go. There is a way that is in accordance with the wisdom of men, there’s a way that’s what we want to do, there’s a way that’s enticing. In the end, that way leads to death, to destruction, to ruin, to sin.
Which way are you going?
Thanks for reading! I’d love to hear what you think, and don’t forget to subscribe!
Josh Benner is the associate pastor at Cornerstone Evangelical Free Church in Fergus Falls, Minnesota and has a Master of Divinity from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He enjoys writing about faith and culture. He lives with his wife Kari in Minnesota.
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons @Frank Licorice
Pastor and theologian Tim Keller had an op-ed in the New York Times last week entitled “How do Christians fit into the two-party system? They don’t.”
In the piece, Keller outlines the complexity of the situation for Americans in the political arena. Keller argues (and I agree) that neither political party perfectly encompasses Christian teaching. This can be a challenging view for people because the temptation can be to look at whatever their party is and think “THIS is where real Christians belong. Honestly, I don’t even know if a person can be a Christian and vote for the other side.”
The conservative platform certainly has elements which more closely align with Christianity including traditional marriage values and a pro-life stance.
It is problematic that the democratic party holds to unbiblical beliefs on these issues.
But they’re not entirely wrong and the republican platform is also not perfectly aligned with Biblical teaching. For instance, the Bible does have much to say about care for the poor, those who society looks down upon, and aliens. Now there is room for disagreement on the extent to which social welfare programs should go, but it’s a conversation where there is often greater empathy on the left side of the political aisle.
Both parties have major flaws. One of the unfortunate issues in our society is that we’re losing the ability to see anything good or any redeeming qualities in the political party we oppose.
That’s why I like Keller’s article (and he’s said similar things elsewhere). Because Christians are doing life in a fallen world and that fallenness most certainly carries over into political philosophies.
Some have opted to go a third route which is to remove oneself from the political process. But even being apolitical is to be political. Not taking a stance on major moral evils is taking a stance.
I’ve been saying for a long time that political values are a common idol in our society. Politics matter. But they’re not the end all, be all. And politics are not our hope for a better world. The gospel is.
Again, the point isn’t to totally withdraw from politics. But I think we need to keep our priorities straight. And for Christians, the objective is not to politically conquer our enemies but to love and serve, to spread the gospel and make disciples. And for those who politically disagree, I think we must be respectful and humble. Another key point that Keller makes is that if we get too concerned about prioritizing political beliefs and giving them gospel importance, we are then adding requirements to the gospel. And that’s wrong.
At the end of his piece, Keller says:
The Gospel gives us the resources to love people who reject both our beliefs and us personally. Christians should think of how God rescued them. He did it not by taking power but by coming to earth, losing glory and power, serving and dying on a cross. How did Jesus save? Not with a sword but with nails in his hands.
Thanks for reading! I’d love to hear what you think, and don’t forget to subscribe!
Josh Benner is the associate pastor at Cornerstone Evangelical Free Church in Fergus Falls, Minnesota and has a Master of Divinity from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He enjoys writing about faith and culture. He lives with his wife Kari in Minnesota.
Rape is one of the worst things that a person can do to someone.
As I consider the allegations against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, there’s something that bothers me. The narrative has been spun as if a person doesn’t care about sexual assault or doesn’t care about women if they want evidence a crime actually happened.
The penalties for these crimes are sickeningly lenient. It’s a major societal problem.
Tim Allen’s hit sitcom Last Man Standing, premiered on Fox last week to an audience of 8 million viewers. The show had previously had a six season run on ABC before being cancelled in 2017.
Spoiler alert
In the return episode, Allen’s son-in-law is so fed up with President Trump that he wants to move his family (Allen’s daughter and grandson) to Canada. The family disapproves. During the episode, Allen’s grandson Boyd turns up missing.
In spite of all of the arguing and disagreement, they all unite to find Boyd (who had wandered to his grandfather’s store to work on a project).
I do appreciate shows that do take a sincere look at the unity that we need. The political divide in our nation is extreme.
Relationships and friendships have ended and families have been divided just because of differences of opinion.
It’s one thing to have strong opinions on politics, but the division that can happen gives the role of politics an unnecessarily high priority in our lives. Yes these things matter. But so does faith, family, friendships, and unity.
Before Roseanne was cancelled, that was stated as one of the goals for the return of that show.
With Last Man Standing, I do hope that the show can continue to be a voice for the importance of love of family in spite of differences. It’s an important conversation that I think the entertainment industry largely ignores. It can have a tendency to get too caught up in wanting to make its own political statements rather than addressing the overarching political conversations we’re having in this country.
Many were critical of the cancellation given that Tim Allen (and his character Mike Baxter) is conservative and paints conservative politics in a positive light. The show was still popular and fans thought that the cancellation was politically motivated.
Thanks for reading! I’d love to hear what you think, and don’t forget to subscribe!
Josh Benner is the associate pastor at Cornerstone Evangelical Free Church in Fergus Falls, Minnesota and has a Master of Divinity from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He enjoys writing about faith and culture. He lives with his wife Kari in Minnesota.
Popular rapper Kanye West was the musical guest last night on the season premier of Saturday Night Live. At the end of the show, he invited the cast back up on stage.
West was wearing the Donald Trump red and white “Make America Great Again” hat. As the show was ending, West gave a political commentary. It’s been removed on Hulu and was cut off on the live broadcast (to be fair, it was the closing credits of the show).
West has publicly supported Trump on multiple occasions. He met with Trump to discuss issues including the murder rate in West’s hometown, Chicago. He has said he loves Trump.
That doesn’t mean he has to love everything Trump does but he is an interesting voice in the political arena. It seems that part of his support from Trump is also disapproval of democrats. West talks about how the show producers bullied him about his MAGA hat.
He turns and thanks the cast (some of whom look very uncomfortable) for giving him this platform.
West talks of how there should be a natural balance to things, yet he suggests 90% of news is liberal, 90% of television is liberal. He talks of how major entertainment hubs like Los Angeles and New York are overwhelmingly liberal, as well as in the music industry. “It’s easy to make it seem like it’s so so so one-sided,” West says. He’s exactly right on that front. So much of what we are experienced to in the media is liberal. In these large media formats, it can be hard to get other voices into the conversation and that isn’t productive.
I’m sure people will mock West, people will (and have) said it’s for publicity. But for almost two years, West has been supportive of Trump. West has caught a lot of flack. The media and entertainment industries he is criticizing will dismiss what he’s saying (while at the same time, proving his point).
Thanks for reading! I’d love to hear what you think, and don’t forget to subscribe!
Josh Benner is the associate pastor at Cornerstone Evangelical Free Church in Fergus Falls, Minnesota and has a Master of Divinity from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He enjoys writing about faith and culture. He lives with his wife Kari in Minnesota.
