This is a bit long but worth it…

My friend Mateen Elass, whom I wrote about recently, has written the book Fairy Tell Islam: Deceptions Masking a Dark Reality. Strongly recommend.

In it, he tells a great story about an exchange with one of his relatives over 25 years ago. She was a devout Muslim, upset that most of their extended family were irreligious. (Mateen says the conversation was real, but he made up the name “Nawal.”)

Feeling that we should “join forces” to make inroads against their metaphysical apathy, she asked me how we could get our relatives to become believers. “Well, Nawal,” I answered, “you and I don’t believe the same things about God, so I don’t think we would make a good team.”

“What do you mean?” this college-educated Muslim responded. “Of course we do. You believe in God and I believe in God. We honor Jesus and love him as one of the great prophets. We both pray and go to worship regularly.”

“Yes, but what you believe about Jesus is vastly different from what Christians believe about him.”

“How? What do you mean?” Nawal asked, with genuine surprise.

“Well, for starters, Christians believe that Jesus is not simply a human being called by God to be a prophet. Instead, we acknowledge him as eternally God, who came to earth two thousand years ago and assumed a human nature to live a fully obedient, sinless life before his Heavenly Father and then offer himself up as a sacrifice for the sins of the human race. That is why he was crucified and died. His resurrection three days later signaled the acceptance of his offering by God the Father and began a new era where human beings who put their trust in Jesus are made members of his eternal Kingdom, having their sins forgiven and being promised eternal salvation in heaven. We believe Jesus is King of kings and Lord of lords, before whom all human beings will bow in acknowledgment, even Muhammad.”

Wow. I’m not sure I could rattled off such a succinct description of Jesus’ uniqueness. His relative was stunned.

“You mean, you think that Jesus is God?” “Yes,” I said, “we believe Jesus is the second member of the Trinity, God the Son.”

Then this amazing assertion: Nawal thinks she knows more about what Christians believe than Mateen does.

“Christians don’t believe this,” Nawal declared. “The Qur’an tells us that Jesus was a great prophet, but only human. And that he did not die by crucifixion or any other way, but God took him to heaven. This is the truth. Christians don’t believe what you have just said.”

I love Mateen’s response, said in his usual quiet way, I’m sure:

“Nawal,” I countered, “I have been a Christian now for some twenty-five years. I have two master’s degrees in Christian theology and a PhD in New Testament studies. I can assure you that this is what Christians believe.” (Page 124 – 125)

Then Mateen, humble, as I wrote before, felt compelled to add a footnote that cracks me up:

Nawal already knew something of my academic history, but I highlighted these facts [about his academic degrees] only to assure her that I was not floating some private, hare-brained theories but rather what Christian orthodoxy and scriptures have always affirmed. I understand that academic degrees in religious studies are no guarantee of a person’s orthodoxy, or even sanity, but that’s another subject.

“Academic degrees in religious studies are no guarantee of a person’s orthodoxy, or even sanity.” I love it. But Mateen has those degrees and remains orthodox, sane, and remarkably humble.

That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life—the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us—that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. (1 John 1.1 – 3, NKJV)

For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures… (1 Corinthians 15.3, 4, NKJV)

I wrote yesterday that sometimes technology can be a good thing. It can also be used for evil. Here’s a brief article on North Korea that makes the point about technology and also chillingly reinforces my assertion that many government leaders want to be little-g gods. You don’t think so? What does this picture say?

This news article by Elizabeth Russell, World Magazine, September 12, 2005, also contains this paragraph on technology:

The report also found that the government was using more of its citizens for forced labor, and that advances in technology made surveillance of its citizens much more pervasive. (emphasis mine)

It’s not the first time a leader thought of himself as a god:

The word of the LORD came to me: “Son of man, say to the prince of Tyre, Thus says the Lord GOD: “Because your heart is proud, and you have said, ‘I am a god, I sit in the seat of the gods..,’ yet you are but a man, and no god, though you make your heart like the heart of a god….” (Ezekiel 28.1, 2, ESV)

And it’s not the first time that government used something benign for evil purposes:

Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him.”…Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had ascertained from the wise men. (Matthew 2.7, 8, 16, ESV)

Yes, it’s October 4, so what? Regular blog readers might remember that I always recognize October 4…1957, but since we just celebrated our 57th anniversary, I have 57 on the brain. For example, this lovely vehicle was parked at our anniversary celebration hotel:

I’m not a car buff, but I recognize a ’57 Chevrolet when I see one. I remember when it came out, in an era when you could tell one car from another and one car’s model year from another.

However, its license plate gives one pause:

How does it feel when the license plate on a car I remember well is labeled “antique”? I know…old.

I was 10 years old, and in the sixth grade on October 4, 1957, the day the world’s first earth-orbiting satellite was launched by the Soviet Union. It was called, simply, Sputnik, the Russian word for satellite.

Less than twelve years later, July 20, 1969, the United States put a man on the moon. Thirteen years later I was tracking Sputnik’s successors from a radar site in Turkey. Today, we carry in our hand a device that picks up signals from a constellation of satellites and tells us exactly where we are and how to get to where we want to go.

King Solomon was a very wise man, and he was right about a lot of things. I don’t think he was right about this one:

That which has been is what will be, That which is done is what will be done, And there is nothing new under the sun. Is there anything of which it may be said, “See, this is new”? It has already been in ancient times before us. (Ecclesiastes 1.9, 10, NKJV)

Smart people continue God’s work of creation, and in many ways we are better for it. Let’s celebrate technology today. Another day we can bemoan some of the problems.

Behold, I will do a new thing, Now it shall spring forth… (Isaiah 43.18, NKJV)

If you’re following this year’s reading program on the Wisdom books, you’ll know that we’re just starting Song of Solomon. Here’s the first paragraph of Eugene Peterson’s introduction as found in The Message bible:

We don’t read very far in the Song of Songs before we realize two things: one, it contains exquisite love lyrics, and two, it is very explicit sexually. The Song, in other words, makes a connection between conjugal love and sex—a very important and very biblical connection to make. There are some who would eliminate sex when they speak of love, supposing that they are making it more holy. Others, when they think of sex, never think of love. The Song proclaims an integrated wholeness that is at the center of Christian teaching on committed, wedded love for a world that seems to specialize in loveless sex. (Emphasis mine)

So the book begins:

The Song—best of all songs—Solomon’s song!

Kiss me—full on the mouth! Yes! For your love is better than wine, headier than your aromatic oils. (Song of Solomon 1.1, 2, MSG)

And off we go.

How’s this for she stands out to him, and he stands out to her?

The Woman

I’m just a wildflower picked from the plains of Sharon, a lotus blossom from the valley pools.

The Man

A lotus blossoming in a swamp of weeds—that’s my dear friend among the girls in the village. (SOS 2.1, 2, MSG)

The Woman

As an apricot tree stands out in the forest, my lover stands above the young men in town. All I want is to sit in his shade, to taste and savor his delicious love. He took me home with him for a festive meal, but his eyes feasted on me! (SOS 2.3, 4, MSG)

A pastor once explained that “apricots and raisins” was sexually suggestive talk, which, if true, means that she wants to get on it!

Oh! Give me something refreshing to eat—and quickly!

Apricots, raisins—anything. I’m about to faint with love! His left hand cradles my head, and his right arm encircles my waist! (SOS 2.5, 6, MSG)

The text even spells out one way to lie together. Sex was God’s idea! Give thanks.

Honor marriage, and guard the sacredness of sexual intimacy between wife and husband. God draws a firm line against casual and illicit sex. (Hebrews 13.4, MSG)

Now, getting down to the questions you asked in your letter to me. First, Is it a good thing to have sexual relations? Certainly—but only within a certain context. It’s good for a man to have a wife, and for a woman to have a husband. Sexual drives are strong, but marriage is strong enough to contain them and provide for a balanced and fulfilling sexual life in a world of sexual disorder. (1 Corinthians 7.1 – 3, MSG)

Let’s finish out Psalm 106, where the people of God are doing a fine job (unfortunately) forgetting the works of God. What are the other lowlights from the wilderness journey and after? Psalm 106 seems to capture a lot of those lowlights:

• Envy – Numbers 16

When they envied Moses in the camp, And Aaron the saint of the LORD, The earth opened up and swallowed Dathan, And covered the faction of Abiram. (Psalm 106.16, 17)

• The Golden Calf – Exodus 32

They made a calf in Horeb, And worshiped the molded image. Thus they changed their glory Into the image of an ox that eats grass. They forgot God their Savior, Who had done great things in Egypt, Wondrous works in the land of Ham, Awesome things by the Red Sea. (Psalm 106.19 – 22, NKJV)

• Failure to enter the land – Numbers 13 and 14

Then they despised the pleasant land; They did not believe His word, But complained in their tents, And did not heed the voice of the LORD. Therefore He raised up His hand in an oath against them, To overthrow them in the wilderness, To overthrow their descendants among the nations, And to scatter them in the lands. (Psalm 106.24 – 27, NKJV)

• Orgies – Numbers 25

They joined themselves also to Baal of Peor, And ate sacrifices made to the dead. Thus they provoked Him to anger with their deeds, And the plague broke out among them. Then Phinehas stood up and intervened, And the plague was stopped. And that was accounted to him for righteousness To all generations forevermore. (Psalm 106.28 – 31, NKJV)

• More grumbling and Moses’ disobedience – Numbers 20.2 – 13

They angered Him also at the waters of strife, So that it went ill with Moses on account of them; Because they rebelled against His Spirit, So that he spoke rashly with his lips. (Psalm 107.32, 33, NKJV)

• Conforming to the nations – Judges 2

They did not destroy the peoples, Concerning whom the LORD had commanded them, But they mingled with the Gentiles And learned their works; They served their idols, Which became a snare to them. They even sacrificed their sons And their daughters to demons, And shed innocent blood, The blood of their sons and daughters, Whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan; And the land was polluted with blood. Thus they were defiled by their own works, And played the harlot by their own deeds. (Psalm 106.34 – 39, NKJV)

• Judgment! (See the rest of Judges – 2 Chronicles!)

Therefore the wrath of the LORD was kindled against His people, So that He abhorred His own inheritance. And He gave them into the hand of the Gentiles, And those who hated them ruled over them. Their enemies also oppressed them, And they were brought into subjection under their hand. Many times He delivered them; But they rebelled in their counsel, And were brought low for their iniquity. (Psalm 106.40 – 43, NKJV)

Recall that the purpose for God’s miracles as recorded in Psalm 105 was simple:

He gave them the lands of the Gentiles, And they inherited the labor of the nations, That they might observe His statutes And keep His laws. Praise the LORD! (Psalm 105.44, 45, NKJV)

“…that they might observe his statutes…” And they didn’t do it. Psalm 106 documents the failure and the resulting judgment. Yet how does Psalm 106 close? With a prayer and praise:

Save us, O LORD our God, And gather us from among the Gentiles, To give thanks to Your holy name, To triumph in Your praise.

Blessed be the LORD God of Israel From everlasting to everlasting! And let all the people say, “Amen!” Praise the LORD! (Psalm 106.47, 48, NKJV)

Psalm 106 is an amazing counterpoint to Psalm 105. Psalm 105 focused on good things God did in the exodus and wilderness journey. Psalm 106 focuses on Israel’s poor response. As with Psalm 105, I think we’ll need two blogs for Psalm 106. We start hearing about the problems in verse 6:

We have sinned with our fathers, We have committed iniquity, We have done wickedly. Our fathers in Egypt did not understand Your wonders; They did not remember the multitude of Your mercies, But rebelled by the sea—the Red Sea. (Psalm 106.6, 7, NKJV)

There were the plagues followed by leaving Egypt but they didn’t get far before unbelief set in:

They said to Moses, “Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us in bringing us out of Egypt? Is not this what we said to you in Egypt: ‘Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.” (Exodus 14.11, 12, ESV)

When God parted the Red Sea, let them through, and killed the Egyptians…

The waters covered their enemies; There was not one of them left. Then they believed His words; They sang His praise. They soon forgot His works; They did not wait for His counsel, But lusted exceedingly in the wilderness, And tested God in the desert. (Psalm 106.11 – 14, NKJV)

“Then they believed…they sang His praise (see Exodus 15)…They soon forgot…” We don’t even get out of Exodus 15 before they’re grumbling again.

When they came to Marah, they could not drink the water of Marah because it was bitter; therefore it was named Marah. And the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?” (Exodus 15.23, 24, ESV)

Tomorrow we’ll look at the rest of the lowlights from the wilderness journey and after. For now, let’s consider the cure for these memory lapses. It’s at the beginning of Psalm 106:

Praise the LORD! Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. Who can utter the mighty acts of the LORD? Who can declare all His praise? (Psalm 106.1, 2, NKJV)

It takes intentionality to focus on God’s good works and not get drawn into complaining about current circumstances.

Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me. (Philippians 4.11 – 13, ESV)

We were going through Psalm 105, which is as succinct a summary of Genesis – Joshua as you’ll find anywhere when we stopped to meditate on Moses’ reluctance. The psalm skips over that saying simply:

“He sent Moses his servant…” (Psalm 105.26, NKJV)

Instead of including one of Moses’ initial responses:

Lord, please send someone else. (Exodus 4.13, NKJV)

Ever how long it took, Moses is sent. So now let’s finish it out. What did God do?

He sent the plagues (see Exodus chapters 7 through 12):

He sent Moses His servant, And Aaron whom He had chosen. They performed His signs among them… He sent darkness… He turned their waters into blood, And killed their fish. Their land abounded with frogs, Even in the chambers of their kings. He spoke, and there came swarms of flies, And lice in all their territory. He gave them hail for rain, And flaming fire in their land. He struck their vines also, and their fig trees, And splintered the trees of their territory. He spoke, and locusts came, Young locusts without number, And ate up all the vegetation in their land, And devoured the fruit of their ground. He also destroyed all the firstborn in their land, The first of all their strength. (Psalm 105.26 – 36, NKJV)

He brought them out of Egypt (the exodus – see Exodus chapter 13, 14) and guided them with the pillars of cloud and fire:

He also brought them out with silver and gold, And there was none feeble among His tribes. Egypt was glad when they departed, For the fear of them had fallen upon them. He spread a cloud for a covering, And fire to give light in the night. (Psalm 105.37 – 39, NKJV)

He took care of them in the desert:

The people asked, and He brought quail, And satisfied them with the bread of heaven. He opened the rock, and water gushed out; It ran in the dry places like a river. (Psalm 105.40, 41, NKJV, see Exodus 16 and 17)

He gave them the land. The actual conquest is recorded in the book of Joshua. Here’s all Psalm 105 says:

He gave them the lands of the Gentiles, And they inherited the labor of the nations. (Psalm 105.44, NKJV)

It’s fun to compare verse 44 with verses 11 and 12:

Saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan As the allotment of your inheritance,” When they were few in number, Indeed very few, and strangers in it. (Psalm 105.11, 12, NKJV)

God said he would give them the land, and he did.

All these kings and their land Joshua took at one time, because the LORD God of Israel fought for Israel. (Joshua 10.42, NKVJ)

At the end of Joshua, Joshua reminded the people:

Then you went over the Jordan and came to Jericho. And the men of Jericho fought against you—also the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. But I delivered them into your hand. I sent the hornet before you which drove them out from before you, also the two kings of the Amorites, but not with your sword or with your bow. I have given you a land for which you did not labor, and cities which you did not build, and you dwell in them; you eat of the vineyards and olive groves which you did not plant. (Joshua 24.11 – 13, NKJV)

And both Psalm 105 and the book of Joshua make the same point:

Now therefore, fear the LORD, serve Him in sincerity and in truth…Serve the LORD! (Joshua 24.14, NKJV)

He gave them the lands of the Gentiles, And they inherited the labor of the nations, That they might observe His statutes And keep His laws. Praise the LORD! (Psalm 105.44, 45, NKJV, emphasis mine)

The purpose of God’s rescuing his people and giving them the land is that they might demonstrate what following God looks like (“Observe his statutes and keep his laws”) and serve him.

It should sound familiar:

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2.8 – 10, NKJV)

Psalm 105 is a succinct summary of Israel’s history: Genesis – Joshua! A lot of ground but the theme is clear:

Remember His marvelous works which He has done, His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth. (Psalm 105.5, NKJV)

Remember his works, his wonders, and his word.

He made a covenant with Abraham:

He remembers His covenant forever, The word which He commanded, for a thousand generations, The covenant which He made with Abraham, And His oath to Isaac, And confirmed it to Jacob for a statute, To Israel as an everlasting covenant, Saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan As the allotment of your inheritance,” When they were few in number, Indeed very few, and strangers in it. (Psalm 105.8 – 12, NKJV)

“I’ll give you the land…when they were few in number, indeed very few…”

How?

Moreover He called for a famine in the land; He destroyed all the provision of bread. He sent a man before them— Joseph—who was sold as a slave. (Psalm 105.16, 17, NKJV)

God sends Joseph to Egypt who will prepare the way for the fledgling nation (only about 70 people!) to grow.

The king sent and released him, The ruler of the people let him go free. He made him lord of his house, And ruler of all his possessions, …Israel also came into Egypt… He increased His people greatly, And made them stronger than their enemies. (Psalm 105.20 – 24), compare Genesis 37 – 50 and Exodus 1.1 – 8.

Then God raised up Moses:

He sent Moses His servant, And Aaron whom He had chosen. They performed His signs among them, And wonders in the land of Ham. (Psalm 105.26, 27, NKJV)

I think we’ll finish the Psalm 105 story tomorrow so we can meditate briefly on “He sent Moses his servant…” It takes two chapters of Exodus (3 and 4) for God to send Moses! Amanda Armstrong, whom we are leading through a discipleship program, captures the problem:

Moses is speaking to God Himself through the burning bush – GOD HIMSELF! And what does Moses say?  “Pardon your servant, Lord – please send someone else.”  We’re ALL called by the Lord to do things we are unready or uncertain or unwilling to do. But the Bible tells us that some of the most legendary of God’s servants were also unready, and He can help us to see and answer His call. 

A good word, Amanda! God does a lot, and we’ll finish looking at Psalm 105’s summary tomorrow, but God normally uses people, even those who are “unready, uncertain, or unwilling.” Maybe especially those who are unready, uncertain, or willing.

But Moses said to the LORD, “Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.” Then the LORD said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the LORD? Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak.” But he said, “Oh, my Lord, please send someone else.” (Exodus 4.10 – 13, NKJV)

This is long but worth it…

I wasn’t familiar with Charlie Kirk. My son Mark told me listened to some podcasts but found it difficult because the questions people asked Charlie were so inane. Mark’s observation was that Charlie was “blessed with more patience than I’ll ever have.” Yes, Charlie was a spokesman for conservative, Republican values. He was also, from what I understand from many sources, a strong spokesman for Jesus and Christian values. And there’s no question he was killed for his ideas. Disagree with someone? Kill them! It’s not a new idea:

And Stephen, full of grace and power, was doing great wonders and signs among the people. Then some of those who belonged to the synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called), and of the Cyrenians, and of the Alexandrians, and of those from Cilicia and Asia, rose up and disputed with Stephen. But they could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking. (Acts 6.8 – 10, ESV)

“They could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking,” so they did the only thing they could do. They killed him.

Then they secretly instigated men who said, “We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God.” And they stirred up the people and the elders and the scribes, and they came upon him and seized him and brought him before the council, and they set up false witnesses who said, “This man never ceases to speak words against this holy place and the law…” But they cried out with a loud voice and stopped their ears and rushed together at him. Then they cast him out of the city and stoned him… (Acts 6.11 – 13, 7.57, 58, ESV)

I have read many editorials from a variety of people on Charlie Kirk’s Christian qualities and how we should respond. None is better than this piece by a second-career pastor in rural Missouri, Rich Bitterman. I offer it in its entirety without further comment: The Cross Still Offends.

The bullet tore the air in half.

A folding chair rattled. A Bible dropped. A young man slumped sideways beneath a white event tent, eyes wide with the weight of eternity.

It was supposed to be a conversation. A “prove me wrong” segment. But this time, rebuttal came not with words, but with a rifle.

Charlie Kirk didn’t get to finish his sentence.

I got the news just before prayer meeting. I contemplated this death as I prepared to lead the saints in prayer. But I didn’t feel like praying. Not tonight. My hands were still. My mouth was ready. But my soul was pacing. Angry. Grieving. Tempted.

Tempted to grow quiet.
Tempted to sit this one out.
Tempted to wonder if any of this, faith, boldness, public gospel witness, is still worth it.

Because hatred in this country isn’t simmering anymore. It is boiling.

Europe is trembling. Israel is burning. Rockets lit the sky over Gaza again. And now, here on American soil, the blood of a Christian apologist paints the pavement of a university quad.

What do you do with that?

What do you say when courage gets gunned down in daylight?

---

Charlie Kirk was no perfect man. None of us are.

But he had backbone where most of us don’t anymore. He was a believer. Unashamed. Unafraid. He understood that real conversations only happen when truth is welcome at the table. And the truth he carried most was Christ.

He brought the gospel into public space on purpose. Because the gospel isn’t supposed to stay in church basements and private Bible studies. It is meant to confront. It is supposed to offend. It was not made for safety.

The Word became flesh and they nailed Him to a tree.

So of course they came for Charlie.

Of course they reached for a gun.

This is what evil does when it runs out of arguments. It doesn’t reason. It kills.

---

That’s the part that catches in my throat. Not just the sadness, but the strategy of hell behind it.

The Enemy wants us afraid.
He wants us to see what happened to Charlie and backpedal.
He wants the rest of us to whisper, to soften the message, to believe the lie that faith should stay private.

But Christ never whispered.
He preached in temples, on hillsides, in courtrooms, at dinner tables.
And when they told Him to be quiet, He picked up His cross.

Not a symbolic one.
A real one.
Heavy. Bloody. Splintered.

When Jesus said, “Follow Me,” He didn’t hand out maps. He handed out crosses.

---

That’s what I remembered tonight.

I sat in our prayer space, surrounded by saints who had brought prayer lists and worn Bibles. And I realized I didn’t want to lead them in mourning. I wanted to lead them into battle. Not with banners or fists, but with open Bibles and tear-stained prayers.

The kind of war that kneels in gravel beside the wounded, hands them living water, and refuses to leave. The kind that speaks both mercy and judgment without flinching. The kind Charlie died for.

This world is not a friend to grace. But grace isn’t fragile.

---

“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?”
Paul didn’t leave that question unanswered.

“Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?”
—Romans 8:35

He piles up every fear you and I carry and then sets them on fire.

“No. In all these things we are more than conquerors.”

That means bullets don’t win. Slander doesn’t win. Prison bars don’t win. Death doesn’t win.

You can lose everything in this world and still walk into glory with your head lifted high. Because the love of God in Christ Jesus isn’t suspended by headlines or gunfire.

---

There are two worlds unfolding right now.

The one you see.
And the one you don’t.

One is filled with chaos. The other is filled with crowns.

I believe that when Charlie Kirk’s body slumped to the concrete, his soul stood upright in heaven. Not limping. Not silenced. Not stunned. But crowned.

He didn’t fall.
He crossed.

The great cloud of witnesses gained another voice.
And I wonder if Stephen met him there.
The first martyr.
The man who got stoned for preaching what the crowd didn’t want to hear.
The man who, in his final breath, saw the heavens open.
The only time in all of Scripture we see Jesus standing at the right hand of God, rising to receive one of His own.

I like to believe He stood again.

---

Are you afraid?

Do you feel the tremble in your spirit?

Do you wonder if it’s still worth it to speak boldly, to carry your Bible, to preach the gospel in a world that doesn’t just disagree but wants you gone?

You’re not alone.

You’re not weak for feeling that.
But you are called to something stronger than silence.

Don’t let fear become your theology.

The cost is high. But the reward?

The reward is Christ. And He’s not a concept. He’s a King.

---

Heaven is not empty.

It is filled with scarred saints who refused to bow to fear.
Men who were stoned.
Women who were burned.
Children who sang while the flames climbed.

And every last one of them arrived.

There is no difficulty that can cancel the promise of God.
There is no persecution that can derail your destination.
There is no sniper’s bullet that can separate a soul from Christ.

Your life is not measured by how long you live on earth, but by how much of it was spent pointing to heaven.

---

Paul said, “I have fought the good fight… I have kept the faith.”
Then he looked toward the reward.
Not a monument. Not a mention in history books.
But a crown.
Handed to him by the One with nail marks still in His hands.

So let me say this clearly.
We do not mourn like the world mourns.
We do not write eulogies dripping with sentiment.
We sing songs of resurrection.
We carry the banner of a Kingdom that does not tremble.

Charlie Kirk did not die for nothing.
He died carrying the same message you and I must now carry forward.

The cross stands tall.
The tomb is still empty.
And the gospel has not lost one ounce of power.

---

So pick up your cross.
Wipe your eyes.
And keep going.

The crown is worth it.
The King is coming.
And there’s still time to speak.

Even if they shoot.

---

Lord, give us courage.
And if not safety, give us joy.
For we carry not just the message, but the marks.
And You are worth every bruise.

Amen. – Pastor Rich Bitterman, September 11, 2025

I frequently find practical, actionable advice in Sahil Bloom’s newsletters. The last time I shared something from Sahil was August 30, 2025, the third in a series of three blogs.

Here’s something I’m still processing from 34 Short Lessons on Money. These are the first three:

Being Mega-Rich is wildly overrated. There are really only four basic levels of financial wealth: Poor, Not Poor, Rich, and Mega-Rich. Each incremental leap has significantly deteriorating benefits. Being Not Poor is dramatically better than being Poor, but being Mega-Rich may actually be worse than being Rich. This has to do with the types of problems at each level and the ability of money to solve them. All the major money-solved problems are eliminated at the Rich level, but all the major money-created problems seem to pop up at the Mega-Rich level.

There are a lot of rich people who spend all their time trying to impress even more rich people. It strikes me as one of the dumbest games you can play, but I’m willing to bet very few people realize they’re playing it.

The best uses of money are those that create one of four things in your life: Time, experiences, purpose, or health. Above a certain level, money is best viewed as a tool to create those other things, not a goal in and of itself.

“All the major money-solved problems are eliminated at the Rich level, but all the major money-created problems seem to pop up at the Mega-Rich level.”

Wow. Solomon seemed to know that:

He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves wealth with his income; this also is vanity. When goods increase, they increase who eat them, and what advantage has their owner but to see them with his eyes? Sweet is the sleep of a laborer, whether he eats little or much, but the full stomach of the rich will not let him sleep. (Ecclesiastes 5.10 – 12, ESV)

So did Jesus:

Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? …And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? (Matthew 6.25 – 30, ESV)

Paul did, too:

But godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content.

But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs. (1 Timothy 6.6 – 10, ESV)