ACCORDING TO FACEBOOK, LOVE SHOULD REPLACE JUSTICE, THE POLICE, AND THE MILITARY

Breitbart just announced that:
         

·       Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has spoken out against the “fear and distrust” caused by recent Islamist terror attacks and has called for more “love” as a means of stopping them.

Wondering if more love could truly stop ISIS and the many other Islamic terror groups and whether Zuckerberg really uttered these words, I turned to his Facebook post to read:

·       Each of these attacks [in Belgium, Pakistan, Nigeria, Paris, San Bernardino] was different, but all had a common thread: they were carried out with a goal to spread fear and distrust, and turn members of a community against each other. I believe the only sustainable way to fight back against those who seek to divide us is to create a world where understanding and empathy can spread faster than hate, and where every single person in every country feels connected and cared for and loved. That's the world we can and must build together.

I guess that the 70 innocent Christians just slaughtered and the 300 others maimed in Lahore failed to love their Muslim neighbors enough. And the six million Jews slaughtered in the Holocaust were also evidently love-deficient.

Instead, it doesn’t seem that Muslim terrorists are love-deficient, as they go raping their way across infidel lands or simply kidnapping non-Muslims as sex-slaves. I was wondering, “How much more love will they need before they can become love-satisfied?”

Meanwhile, I am still waiting for Facebook to show some of that love to me. I have been blocked by Facebook on numerous occasions. Fortunately, they would provide me a window to ask “why.” Of course, I eagerly availed myself of these windows so I could learn of my misdeeds and rectify my ways according to their loving standards. However, I never once got a reply from them. Hmmm?

Perhaps Facebook’s style of love is the silent-treatment. They will surely win me into compliance through their loving silence, but Facebook has left me in a state of total ignorance, unable to comply with their standards.

Silence is golden. I wonder whether Facebook will issue a plea to open our prison doors and simply require our offenders to sit together with their prison guards and share love. Or perhaps we should bring together the victims of rape with their rapists and encourage them to just love each other.

Evidently, we have misunderstood the concept of justice for the centuries of human existence. Instead, Zuckerberg would have us eliminate the entire criminal justice system in favor of a massive love-fest. Gee, why hadn’t we thought of this before?

Spineless Secularism

Modern secularism, having rejected any eternal, transcendent values and ideals, is strictly pragmatic. It is, therefore, exclusively concerned about what works, what give desirable results, at least for the secularist.

Secularism is also parasitic. It invades economically healthy societies, compromising them economically, morally, legally, and even spiritually, making them vulnerable to an assortment of pathogens – hedonism, moral relativism, and Islam.

How does this happen? Well, for one thing, Islam allows no criticism:

• [33:57-58] Those who insult God and His Messenger will be rejected by God in this world and the next—He has prepared a humiliating punishment for them—  and those who undeservedly insult believing men and women will bear the guilt of slander and obvious sin.

• [33:59-61] Prophet, tell your wives, your daughters, and women believers to make their outer garment hang low over them, so as to be recognized and not insulted: God is most forgiving, most merciful. 60 If the hypocrites, the sick of heart, and those who spread lies in the city [Medina] do not desist, We shall arouse you [Prophet] against them, and then they will only be your neighbors in this city for a short while. 61 They will be rejected wherever they are found, and then seized and killed. (Haleem) 

• Bukhari (59:369) - This recounts the murder of Ka'b bin al-Ashraf, a Jewish poet who wrote verses about Muslims that Muhammad found insulting.  He asked his followers, 'Who will rid me of this man?' and several volunteered.  al-Ashraf was stabbed to death while fighting for his life.

• Bukhari (4:241) - Those who mocked Muhammad at Mecca were killed after he had retaken the city and asserted his authority.

Consequently, even in moderate Malaysia, “Cops seek duo [two people] over Facebook insults on Islam,” (Bernama, April 17, 2015).

How do secularists deal with the Islamic intolerance of free speech? Do they proclaim, as Patrick Henry did, “Give me liberty or give me death?” Or do they take the pragmatic path of least resistance, claiming that “Islam is a religion of peace” and criminalizing anyone who claims otherwise or creates a cartoon or book critical of Islam. In fact, one influential secularist goes a step further to proclaim, “The future must not belong to those who slander the prophet of Islam.”

Principle is routinely sacrificed for short-term comfort. Liberty and freedoms of speech and religion are sold in exchange for pleasure. Justice is a commodity freely replaced for a fleeting measure of peace.

What will happen if Muslims attack the offices of Facebook, as they had Charlie Hebdo, because Facebook allows articles critical of Islam? Would the secularists stand against this or would they declare, “The future must not belong to those who slander the prophet of Islam?” I think we already know the answer.

Society cannot consistently be nourished by modern secular pragmatism and stand. It will fall to those of conviction, even malevolent conviction. Instead, society must re-embrace its eternal foundation of truth.

Why they Hate us

A Facebook Friend posted this: 

I couldn’t resist responding: “Well, it seems that you too are quite judgmental.” This response created a storm. One person responded in his defense:

•  He is not judgmental; he is just making an observation!

This is the way that the media usually responds when accused of conducting a war-against-Christians. At first, my friend refused to admit that he too was judgmental. However, I knew him to be a bold straight-shooter, and so I responded that I was disappointed in him, because he wouldn’t answer my question. Then he admitted:

• Daniel...I really don't give a shit whether you are disappointed in me or not. I hope that is clear. Was it my intention to demean church-goers? No...not in this post. This post was pretty clear...an observation… The most judgmental people I have met have been regular church goers. Now...I can certainly demean church goers, in a number of ways. But in this post, I was simply demeaning judgmental people who go to church.

My “friend” is a sharp and intelligent man, and so I was surprised at his incoherent response – denying but yet affirming that he had been judgmental. He later declared himself “a sworn enemy of the organized/patriarchal/religious system.” 

A “sworn enemy” generally has both closed mind and heart. The attacks against me became increasingly vicious, not only from my friend but also from others. This made me reassess what I had written and why the dialogue became what it did. “Why are we hated,” I asked myself. My “friend” thinks that we are judgmental. I have no doubt that he sincerely feels this way. But what makes him think us more judgmental (and condemning) than others? True Christians are forgiving and compassionate, aren’t we?

Jesus explained that since we belong to Him, we will be hated as He is hated:

• “Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; children will rebel against their parents and have them put to death. You will be hated by everyone because of me.” (Mat. 10:21-22)

•     “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.” (John 15:18-19)

As with Jesus, they will even put us to death, convinced that they are doing the right thing:

•  “All this I have told you so that you will not fall away. 2 They will put you out of the synagogue; in fact, the time is coming when anyone who kills you will think they are offering a service to God.” (John 16:1-2)

Progressives – the communists – exterminated Christians with the justification that we are regressive elements that need to be destroyed in order to create a better world. Did they really believe that? Perhaps! But what is at the core of such a distorted belief?

Jesus explained that He was hated because He revealed the truth about others (John 7:7).

The more I pointed out my friend’s inconsistencies, the more incensed he became. Why? Jesus explained:

•  This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.  Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God. (John 3:19-21)

Jesus is the light, and He is hated for this. We too are the light (2 Cor. 5:19-21), and so we are hated. I know that this sounds arrogant, but we must arm ourselves with this awareness so that we do not suffer self-castigation when confronted with hatred. It goes with the turf, as Paul had warned:

• In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evildoers and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. (2 Tim 3:12-13)

If we refuse to embrace this uncomfortable truth, the deception of this world will embrace us. It will then become even more difficult to live the Christian life. We will retreat and blame ourselves and the church that we had been overly judgmental.

Also, if we shy away from the Bible’s teachings about the depth of sin and spiritual darkness, we will fail to understand what we are confronting and blame ourselves instead. Meanwhile, Paul warned:

• For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are an aroma that brings death; to the other, an aroma that brings life. (2 Cor. 2:14-15)

We are a stench to those who have rejected the light, but our experience gives us a different message. It insists that our colleagues are really good people, even truth-seekers. We, therefore, are prone to see things from their point of view and accept their disdain for the church.

Meanwhile, Jewish writers inform us that the Pharisees had been the most respected class of people in Israel, and it seems that they were, but this was only show. It was a show that Jesus exposed:

•   “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full… And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others.” (Mat. 6:1-2, 5)

What looks good to us is hypocrisy to our Lord. Instead, the best of us are just like you – self-seeking at our core. We therefore need to be born-again and don’t forget that so do they!

My Facebook Friend – he’s kind-of a guru - hates me. I too have become his sworn enemy. However, knowing the root of his hatred, I don’t take it personally and therefore just want the best for him.

They Hate Me!

No one likes to be hated. I don’t like being hated, but hatred comes as naturally as breathing. One typical Facebooker just wrote me:

• Daniel, you are one of the worst people I have ever come across. You are a joke.

What horrible thing had I done that had elicited such a reaction? I defended traditional marriage! You might think, “People have differences of opinion all the time. You must have crossed the line!”

Not at all! Hating God and those who represent Him comes as certainly as Arctic ice. For one thing, we intuitively know that, if we haven’t received His mercy, we are condemned (Rom. 1:32; Rom. 2:14-15). The great reformer, Martin Luther, knew this in a very personal way. In his Commentary on the Book of Galatians, he wrote,

• Although an impeccable monk, I stood before God as a sinner troubled in conscience, and I had no confidence that my merit would satisfy Him. Therefore I did not love a just and angry God, but rather murmured against Him.

Luther had felt himself condemned by a God he could never be good enough to please. He therefore hated Him. However, unlike Luther, most try to deny Him or at least to construct a more user-friendly God – one who validates them. Alas, it never works! As hard as they try to convince themselves that they are worthy, deserving, and righteous, their conscience continues to indict them, as Paul wrote:

• They show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts now accusing, now even defending them. (Romans 2:15)

Humanity can reject God, but they can’t escape their implanted conscience. It continues to cry, “guilt and condemnation.” What then to do? Suppress the indictment and promote self-righteousness through moral attainments! Nevertheless, the awareness of guilt, shame, and judgment remain. Therefore, this “awareness” must be hated and degraded, as Jesus explained:

• “This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.” (John 3:19-20)

Jesus is the light, and we are His light bearers. We, therefore, must be discredited, as He explained:

• "If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. 19If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. 20Remember the words I spoke to you: 'No servant is greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also.” (John 15:18-20)

Those who hate the light not only hate Christ and those who represent Him. They also hate the light within! They will not find peace, because they are at war with themselves.

What then is the answer? Receiving the peace that comes as a gift of Christ’s mercy:

• "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." (Matthew 11:28-30)

Luther sought and eventually found that “rest”:

• I grasped that the justice of God is that righteousness by which, through grace and sheer mercy, God justifies [forgives] us through faith. Therefore I felt myself to be reborn and to have gone through the doors into paradise.

Incivility, Polarization and Death

I am shocked by the level of hatred I find on the net. Here’s one example of a dialogue based upon an Atheist Facebook posting:

• Prayer is like masturbation. It feels good for the person doing it, but does nothing for the person they are thinking about.

Sometimes, I just like to inject an alternate point-of-view. Here’s my response:

ME: It depends on to whom you are praying!

ATHEIST:  In case you haven't noticed; you're not welcome here! This is an atheist page, you can go elswhere if you don't like it! Why don't you go to your own dumb christian page and fucking stay there? How about that? And stop stalking us like some retarded internet pervert, you're even worse than them! Noone cares for what you have to say, so just go away!

ME: I am sorry to be the cause of consternation. Either you un-friend me or I'll un-friend you if that's what others want.

ATHEIST: First of all, we're not friends, second, which part of get the hell out don't you understand? This is no place for you, none wants you here, so go preach on your own page and leave us alone.

ME: You're speaking for others, but where are they?

This is not unusual. Actually, it’s almost representative. Interestingly, the respondent is a woman.

What does it suggest? Well, for one thing, it reflects the growing antagonism towards our faith. Jesus warned us about this:

• "All this I have told you so that you will not go astray. They will put you out of the synagogue; in fact, a time is coming when anyone who kills you will think he is offering a service to God.” (John 16:1-2)

It also reflects something else – the disintegration of our once great civilization. We are a body fighting against itself – no, warring against itself. In contrast to this, the late French scholar, Alexis De Tocqueville, wrote (cir. 1830) about the strong sense of mutual responsibility, common morality, and cohesiveness that the American people shared. He tried to fathom the basis of what he observed:

• I sought for the key to the greatness and genius of America in her harbors...in her fertile fields and boundless forests; in her rich mines and vast world commerce; in her public school system and institutions of learning. I sought for it in her democratic Congress and in her matchless Constitution. Not until I went into the churches of America and heard her pulpits flame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power. America is great because America is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great. (Democracy in America)