DEATHS OF DESPAIR
Tuesday, April 04, 2017
1Corinthians
GW 1:18-21 [Paul exhorting] The message about the cross is nonsense to
those who are being destroyed, but it is God's power to us who are being saved.
Scripture says, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise. I will reject the
intelligence of intelligent people." Where is the wise person? Where is
the scholar? Where is the persuasive speaker of our time? Hasn't God turned the
wisdom of the world into nonsense? The world with its wisdom was unable to
recognize God in terms of his own wisdom. So God decided to use the nonsense of
the Good News we speak to save those who believe.
“Dear brothers and sisters, when I was with you I couldn’t talk to
you as I would to spiritual people.“ (NLT 1Cor.3:1) Unlike the Apostle
Paul I believe I can communicate with you as fellow travelers, spiritual
people.
“deaths of
despair” is one of the descriptive terms now used to explain the since 1990 nearly
doubling of the death rate among non-Hispanic whites aged 50-54; now 80 per
100,000 largely involving suicides, drug overdoses, and results of heavy
drinking. An EMT friend tells me that drug overdose calls for them now exceed the
sum total of all others not just in her county. One USA state rings the
drug-death knell at 41.5 deaths per 100,000. The USA average is 16.3.
A number of sociologists
attribute the despair to an olio of reasons: lack of having higher education; resultant
employment issues; many, if employed, having to work depressing drudge jobs,
the USA splintered along class lines, increased levels of anger, and more.
Thinking
Biblically, considering my own life and the many I’ve known in 81+ years of experiencing
and observing the rich and poor and in between I believe there is a far deeper reason
for despair that may result in decisive action to choose death or instead opting
to go on plodding among the desolate. Do we not all know poor and downtrodden individuals,
families, groups that don’t choose death, or give up to mere existence, but do
live a thriving life? And also know those with wealth and health but do live in
a depressed hungering condition.
Those
non-despairing people I’ve observed and continue to see have one thing in
common: a sense of purpose regardless of their station or condition in life. Said
purpose having various reasoning, most of which are temporal and fleeting.
There is however but one solid foundation with present and eternal purpose. Some
50+ decades ago I agreed with God and began building on the only viable present
and eternal foundation, Lord Jesus Christ. The Word granting me understanding with
its choice.
After all, no one can lay any other foundation than the
one that is already laid, and that foundation is Jesus Christ. People may build
on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, or straw.
The day will make what each one does clearly visible
because fire will reveal it. That fire will determine what kind of work each
person has done. If what a person has built survives, he will receive a reward.
If his work is burned up, he will suffer the loss.
However, he will be saved, though it will be like going through a fire. Don't
you know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you? If
anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him because God's temple is
holy. You are that holy temple!
Don't deceive yourselves. If any of you think you are
wise in the ways of this world, you should give up that wisdom in order to
become really wise. The wisdom of this world is nonsense in God's sight. That's
why Scripture says, "God catches the wise in their cleverness." Again
Scripture says, "The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are
pointless. [Ps.94:11-12]" (GW 1Cor.3:11-20)
He is my foundation. I pray Jesus is yours.
EBB4
No comments:
Post a Comment