Jesus sees every act...and every inactivity...

I went to see "Sound of Freedom". Many people say they cannot go see it because of the emotional toll it would take on them. I ask, (emphasis on ask, not tell) "What about the emotional toll on the children who are sold into such slavery?"

No compassionate person who sees the movie should ever be emotionally impervious to that truth. It was made to force your face into seeing just how SICK this world is. Hiding our heads in the sand will not make it go away. Ignoring it will only prolong it. "Trafficking" is too nice of a word for it and America is guilty yet again of slavery.

Eric Metaxas wrote "Letter to the American Church", saying the American Church is WORSE than the churches in Germany in 1933 who put their heads in the sand. Why? Because the Germans had no idea what evil would come as a result of their silence.

We need only look back a mere 90 years into the past to see our future, our future if we are silent.

We saw what happened when the church refused to act when there was time to stop the millions who would later perish as a result of their inactivity. Yet again, on their hands, doth the church sit!

The solution of the German church was to sing hymns louder so they would not hear the wails of the Jews on the boxcars going to gas chambers, to their deaths. Is your solution of not seeing this movie because of the emotional toll it would take on you any different? Sing louder, Americans. Watch Harrison Ford and Tom Cruise.

Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin was meant to expose the evils of slavery in 1851. To provoke emotions. If you were living in the 1850s, would you have simply ignored her book and hope the atrocities of slavery would just go away.

I ask you who say you cannot see it because it would evoke emotions, "Do you think we who have seen it are devoid of emotions?" It sickened me and so should it sicken every decent person. It should make us weep and wail. Perhaps seeing "Sound of Freedom" will provoke you pray, to act, to pull your head out of ignore-ance and to open your eyes to ghastly things against which these children cannot shut their eyes tightly enough.

Explain to me Harriet Beecher Stowe's line, “Scenes of blood and cruelty are shocking to our ear and heart. What man has nerve to do, man has not nerve to hear.”

Men (and women as the movie depicts) have the nerve to do these atrocities to children. Should we have the nerve to hear and see it, even though those portraying these things are mere actors. And yet their stories are true.

Tim Ballard saw these things not with actors but in real life. It moved him to action, to give liberty to the captives. What if seeing this movie would move you to action? Please wait until the very end when Jim Caviezel speaks. You will be moved to action.

Jesus sees every act but He also sees every inaction. “The Spirit of the Lord is on Me, because He has anointed Me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free,” (Luke 4:18). Can we not be like Christ?

Someone prayed to God, "Why do you let these things happen?" Would it not be appropriate for God to reply, "I was just about to ask you the same thing!"

Substance of Hope, Evidence of Unseen (Hebrews 11:1)

    A lot of people want to go to Heaven, especially in comparison with the alternative of hell, but sadly many Christians are more interested in laying up treasures on earth, even though Jesus said that’s where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal (Matthew 6:19). 

    An avid fisher-woman told me that she wasn’t too excited about going to Heaven, saying if Heaven was better than her sitting by the water with her fishing rod, she just didn’t think she could handle it. 

    Another Christian I know was defending his lifestyle of not glorifying the Lord. His response was he was saved by grace and didn't care anything about living for Christ now and laying up rewards in Heaven. "I don't care about a mansion in glory," he said. "As long as I have a tiny little shack on the outskirts of Heaven, that would be fine with me." 

    Such a low view of Heaven and a high view of Earth is not Biblical, especially in light of Hebrews chapter 11. One way to keep our focus on Heaven is to first define what it means to have faith and second to see what faith in action looks like. 

     Hebrews chapter 11 defines faith in verse 1 and demonstrates faith throughout the rest of the chapter. Hebrews 10 introduces chapter 11 with words like “full assurance of faith” (10:22), “confidence” (10:19, 35), and “not shrink back”. Since we are saved by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8-9), the question of “What is faith?” is a good one. 

    King James and New King James versions use the word "substance" to translate the word hupostasis of what is "hoped for". That word is similar in sound and spelling but in in sharp contrast with two similar words for “shrink back”: hupostoles and hupostello in the previous two verses of chapter 10. Let's look at how the writer leads into the wonderful chapter 11, or what many call the "Hall of Faith".

 

    "Shrinking back" leads to destruction, but the “certainty” and “assurance” of faith leads to the testimonies in chapter 11.

     The word "substance" in 11:1 is translated into English in several ways, including "substance" (KJV, NKJV), "confidence" (NIV11, YLT, NLT, TCNT), "assurance" (NASB95, ESV, LSB), "being sure" (NIV84, NET, NCV), "certainty" (NASB20, Adams), "reality" (CSB, HCSB, CEB). All those words mean basically the same thing with a little different nuance. Those words describing and defining "faith" are the basis for our “hope”. Paul gives a great explanation of unseen but eagerly anticipated “hope” in Romans 8:20-25.

²⁰ For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in HOPE; ²¹ because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. ²² For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. 23 Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body. ²⁴ For we were saved in this HOPE, but HOPE that is seen is not HOPE; for why does one still HOPE for what he sees? ²⁵ But if we HOPE for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance.

     After the certainty of things hoped for, we see that Faith is also the conviction of “things not seen”. This thought found also found in a similar passage in James 2:18, when the writer said he would “show his faith by his works”. Faith is unseen, but the proof of faith, seen in its actions, is undeniable.

Still in need of prayer

I am so appreciative of people who have expressed their prayers for me in this endeavor of 

Seven Portraits of Prayer. 

I am also amazed that this is taking so long, so please pray and read through these pages and send me an email (not a message here as I often do not see these messages) if you find any improvements I can make before this goes to print production.

Even if you have already gone through these devotionals, click on them again, as you will find these prayer devotionals have been updated, now going seven days a week, morning and evening, for seven weeks.

 Click here to discover "Portraits in Prayer"