I recently attended a
Seminar/course in which the overall topic was child abuse. Also
attending were policemen, doctors, many teachers, social workers
and foster carers (which is how I came to be there.) It was quite
a long and demanding day with many speakers, but my feelings
about certain inherent flaws in our society were very much
confirmed by what I heard there. Of the number attending,
probably few would have claimed to be 'Christian' or indeed,
would have claimed to be followers of any other religion. There
is no way that one was in the position to test this conclusion,
its just what one frequently finds in modern secular Britain. But
one thing powerfully came across as I listened to leading
teachers, social workers, police representatives, and the rest,
speak. It is this;
NOW OUR SOCIETY HAS CAST GOD ASIDE, WE NOT ONLY HAVE NO IDEA WHAT
CAUSES CRIME, BUT WE EVEN SEEM PARALYZED IN OUR ATTEMPTS TO
DISCERN EXACTLY WHAT CRIME IS! EVEN MORE, WE ARGUE AS TO HOW IT
CAN BE TREATED!
I use the word 'treated' since many now believe that punishment
and correction have little place in how we handle offenders! The
approach so often is to spend large amounts of money in setting
up unwieldy committees or panels who may be set the task of
providing answers to such questions as;
Why do youths steal cars?
Why do so many young teenage women now become pregnant?
Why do people break into cars to steal items they can see
inside?
Why are a few prepared to batter an elderly person senseless just
to rob them of a 'tenner'(£10)?
Oh, it goes on and on. The final conclusions from these 'research
teams' are seldom dogmatic, but will often contain such phrases
as, 'it appears as though these behavioural problems may arise
from various facets of social deprivation' Oh yes, here we see
another major problem which is rife in secular Britain; nobody,
apparently, is responsible for anything any more! Rather, various
factors have led to certain psychological grievances, so society,
parents, schools - all of these will have to shoulder some
blame.
A lot of this, frankly, seems not only bizarre but often just
plain daft to the committed Christian. We would say that the
problems all started in the Garden of Eden a long time ago and
while Mankind remains in its consequential state of 'falleness',
we are going to see crime. We can soon define crime by looking at
the laws of God, the Bible also teaches us that punishment must
have a place and although many of today's social liberals would
hate to admit it, experience certainly shows that the presence of
a deterrent does prevent a lot of crime. It also seems odd to us,
as believers, to note how our modern societies refuse to tackle
root CAUSES! No, as far as materialistic secularism goes, don't
touch causes, just tackle the effects. Of course, many of these
people can often be heard to make such comments as 'We simply
don't know the causes'- I believe that they frequently know full
well that that is simply wrong. No, CAUSES ARE NOT TACKLED
BECAUSE OUR SOCIETY HAS BECOME AFRAID TO MAKE MORAL JUDGEMENTS!
This is why we are seriously told, for instance, that the answer
to those who will break into your car to steal valuables, is to
hide them, so passers-by cannot see them!
Making moral judgements is wriggled out of time after time!After
all, if one is going to make decisive moral judgements, how can
one - for very long - refuse to acknowledge that our societies
are in a mess and that a very large part of this has been caused
by following paths which our leaders have actively encouraged? No
modern politician, to take just one of several possible examples,
dare question the huge presence of women in the work place.
Rather, any concept that a woman's best place is in the home is
now quickly shouted down as our modern permissive liberal quickly
becomes a yelling, intolerant despot! It is not that it is wrong
for a woman with a family and home to ever go out to work, but
the absolutely massive presence of women in the work force (which
nobody believed would happen, probably, even in the original
'burn your bra' era) has had a massive impact on family lives.
The family home is suddenly a much more unstable place. This is
inevitable with both parents (where there are still two parents
living together!) dashing here, there and everywhere in order to
make as much money as possible. Again, quite frequently
politicians will admit this in private conversation, while not
being prepared to deliver a public speech on the subject because
of the 'fallout' - especially from the liberal media.
The massive and ongoing tragedy of abortion in which large
numbers of tiny and unwanted babies are simply destoyed every
year, continues even while large sums of money are regularly
collected for the 'Children in Need' appeal! Here is a perfect
example of the moral confusion which paralyzes our people. That
particular appeal also regularly props up our modern mythological
belief that money can solve all of our problems!
Against such terrible confusion, the words of the Shema thunder
across the centuries from the Book of Deuteronomy;
"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 might. And these words which I command you
today shall be in your heart; you shall teach them dilligently to
your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house,
when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise
up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand (symbolic of
everything one does) and they shall be as frontlets between your
eyes (symbolic of everything one thinks.)"
(Deuteronomy 6: 4-8)
The laws of God provide a light to our paths so that there is no
need of moral confusion. And those principles from Deuteronomy,
while at that time pointing to the mosaic code of the Old
Covenant, apply even more to the law of Christ, as outlined in
the Sermon on the Mount. Here is a very sweet way of life in
which those called of God can walk as brothers and sisters of the
Lord Jesus Christ. We soon learn, as Christians, that the more we
pray and study the Word and contemplate and meditate on the Law
of Christ, the happier we can be, even though living in this
troubled and confused society! As Paul said, the Holy Spirit
gives us a vivid perception of sin so that we can quickly see
through this liberal and permissive society and its flaws; we do
not get taken in by its propagandists who we know are, at root,
simply men and women in 'fallen' rebellion against God! (Though,
undoubtedly, mostly ignorant of this fact.) Yet, as Paul also
said, we, who are in Christ,
"...(are) rightly judged by no one. For who has known the mind of
the Lord that he may instruct Him?...we have the mind of Christ"
(1 Corinthians 2: 15-16)
The Holy Spirit grants us some of God's eternal perspective right
now! This makes sin clear to us, even though those around us may
not even believe in the concept of sin!
Let us rejoice that the return of Christ is assured, as is the
eternal joy and happiness of the New Heavens and New Earth to
come!
Robin A. Brace
2002
MUSELTOF
COUNTERCULT AND APOLOGETICS
MY
CHRISTIAN WORLD
WITNESS
TO THE WORD