November 10, 2024

     Unless you are living under a rock you are well aware that Donald Trump is once again the president of the United States. There are many things that could be said about Trump both his character or lack of it and his policy. These things are not the primary concern of this little note. What concerns me is the reaction of Christians. 

There are many Christians who are overjoyed by the election of Donald Trump. They say things like “finally there is hope for America,” I have heard some go as far as saying “God has appointed Donald Trump to this role.” 

     There are also many Christians who are deeply saddened and frustrated by the election results. I have read things like “This is the end of the American Dream.” They have said “There is no hope for this country.” Worst of all they have said terrible things about those who voted for Trump (just like some said about Bidden voters in 2020). They have been called Nazi’s and Racists, and Bigots among many other things. 

While we might unpack each of these statements from both sides they all point to something bigger. They are pointing to a scary truth that many won’t want to admit.      Many Christians are to worldly and more interested in worldly solutions than real ones. If you are looking for God to send someone to save the country and the world you can stop looking that has already happened. If your hopes and dreams are pinned on Donald Trump then I can assure you, you will be disappointed (even if he fulfilled every campaign promise). Further, looking to a man, any man, to deliver a nation is a huge mistake bordering on Idolatry. There is hope for the world, it’s Jesus not the president. 

     On the other hand if you think that this election is the worst possible thing that could have happened again your focusing too much on the wrong things. The worst thing that has ever happened was the fall and sin continues to be the worst plight of mankind. If you want to fight against something fight against the wiles of the Devil and the temptation to give in. 

     Whatever side you are on If you want to help people help them find the truth of the gospel and respond to it. 

     Whoever you voted for, while I may agree or disagree, we must all agree that what the world and what America and Canada need most is the Grace, Truth, and Love of God. God has done what no politician can ever do provided real freedom from sin and death. 

     If you think Donald Trump’s policies are good and helpful and based on that you voted for him then you can be happy that he won. If you think Democratic policies are best and based on that you voted for Kamala then its okay to be disappointed. What no Christians should do is to think that the most important thing in their lives or in the world is who gets elected president of the United States. Whoever the president is we are citizens of Heaven and must seek Kingdom matters first.

~ Kevin Cleary

November 3, 2024

We are reaching a point in the year that I always looked forward to as a child. Soon water will start to freeze. Lakes, ponds, streams, and puddles will soon be covered with a surface of hard frozen water. As a child, I looked forward to the chance to take a run and slide or put on my skates and go to the local quarry. Something as simple as ice though can actually reveal part of God’s planning. 

Normally when a substance goes form a liquid to solid state it becomes denser, so frozen or hard steel is heavier than the same volume of liquid steel. The same is true of almost all substances. Water however is different, when it freezes it forms a crystal structure which causes it to expand and become less dense. This simple chemical property of water is actually essential for life on this planet. Were water to behave like other substances it would freeze from the bottom up killing everything living in a body of water. The polar ice caps would be on the bottom of the ocean raising sea levels. And of course hockey would only be played by scuba divers. 

The fact that water has the unique property of freezing into crystals means that ice floats and life as we know it can continue. Why would this be true? Could it be that God had a plan to make the earth habitable for man? Could it be that he wanted to allow for life to flourish on our planet? We know the answer to these questions is yes. The Bible tells us that God cares for us and wants to make sure we have what we need, but this truth can also be attested to by the wonderful designs he has included in our world.

The Psalmist tells us that Nature declares the Glory of God, and Paul writes that His divine attributes are evident in the things that are made. I would challenge you this week to take time and notice the Glory of God that is all around you.

And the next time someone asks you how you know God cares for you take them to the ice rink.

~ Kevin Cleary

October 27, 202

     I can remember growing up, my mother’s last words as I was headed out the door would often be “stay out of trouble,” – no doubt many can remember parents saying that or something much like it. I took what she said seriously and tried not to do things which could land me in some kind of difficult situation. Her advice served me well (don’t tell her I said that). I didn’t get into any real trouble growing up and my life was certainly easier because of that. Now that I am grown, I like many others still try to stay out of trouble. Generally this is good advice but there are times when my desire to stay out of trouble conflicts with God’s expectations for my life.

     As I read through the New Testament, especially the epistles, I am struck by how often there was trouble and what was done about it. From sexual immorality, to pride, selfishness, divisiveness, and false teachers Churches had all kinds of trouble. When this happened contrary to my mother’s advice Paul, Timothy, Silas, or someone else would go and work to help their brethren with the trouble they were in. Timothy is told to gently correct his enemies (II Tim 2:25), to preach the word of God even to people who don’t want to hear it (II Tim 4:1-3). Titus is told that part of the work of elders was to silence rebellious men, who are empty talkers (Tit 1:10-11). Jesus on many occasions could have avoided conflict if he’d wanted to. He could have waited to heal the blind man in John 9. He could have toned down his claims of divinity in John 5, 6, 8 and 10. He could have kept his mouth shut about the hypocrisy of the Pharisees (Matt 23). He could have stayed away from Jerusalem in John 11 and Matthew 20 but he didn’t. Instead he got into trouble.

     I have no doubt that Jesus’ mother wished he had listened to her and stayed out of trouble as she stood at the foot of the cross. But as I look back at the cross and what it means for my life, I’m glad Jesus was willing to get into trouble.

     What about us? In the short time that I have been in ministry, there have been many times when I have thought how much easier it would be to listen to my mother and stay out of trouble. When I have wanted to avoid dealing with an unpopular issue, or just keep quiet about a bad choice someone is making. Times when preaching that I have wanted to leave out one of the points that scripture makes about a subject because I know people won’t like it.

     As I read and hear of all the trouble among brethren my heart breaks and I can hear Paul saying “Apart from such external things, there is the daily pressure on me of concern for all the churches”. What I have to ask myself and what I want you to ask yourself is do I care enough to get into trouble?

~ Kevin Cleary

 

October 20, 202

     I don’t like watching the news. When I do it I often feel frustrated and sorry rather than informed. When we hear of the things that go on in a fallen world, if we love as God does, it must sadden us. It should also encourage us. Not encourage our spirits but our actions. Society like nature abhors a vacuum, and as God is relegated to the sidelines of our society something will take his place. A few years ago Steve Turner wrote a poem expressing the heart of a people that don’t know God. The whole poem can be found on pg 42 of Can Man Live Without God by Ravi Zacharia.

Creed
by Steve Turner

We believe in Marx Freud and Darwin

We believe everything is OK as long as you don’t hurt anyone to the best of your definition of hurt,

We believe in sex before, during, and after marriage.

We believe in the therapy of sin.

We believe that adultery is fun.

We believe that sodomy’s OK.

We believe that taboos are taboo.

We believe that everything’s getting better despite evidence to the contrary.

Jesus was a good man just like Buddha, Mohammed, and ourselves.

He was a good moral teacher though we think His good morals were bad.

We believe that all religions are basically the same- at least the one that we read was.

They all believe in love and goodness.

They only differ on matters of creation, sin, heaven, hell, God, and salvation.

We believe that after death comes the Nothing

If death is not the end, then its compulsory heaven for all

We believe that man is essentially good. It’s only his behavior that lets him down.

This is the fault of society. Society is the fault of conditions. Conditions are the fault of society.

We believe that each man must find the truth that is right for him.

Reality will adapt accordingly.

We believe that there is no absolute truth excepting the truth that there is no absolute truth.

If chance be the Father of all flesh, disaster is his rainbow in the sky and when you hear State of Emergency! Sniper Kills Ten! Troops on Rampage! Whites go Looting! Bomb Blasts School! It is but the sound of man worshipping his maker.

When we are presented with evil it should encourage us to find ways to fill the void with God and his goodness.

~ Kevin Cleary

 

October 13, 2024

After considering the issue of abortion both biblically and scientifically it can easily be concluded that abortion is taking a human life and that it must be viewed as such. However there are two more important aspects of this subject that need to be considered. The first is the emotional impact that abortion has on the family. Any woman who has had a miscarriage knows the pain that comes from that experience. Soldiers recognize the emotional impact that arises from killing another human being. Police officers have to have counselling after lethal encounters with criminals. With regards to abortion people seem to think that the mother can somehow avoid the unavoidable emotions that go along with such a traumatic event. I know of women who have aborted children and non of them are left without emotional scaring that in some cases affects the rest of their lives. Imagine years passing knowing that in each one there should be a birthday that never comes. Imagine seeing other parents playing with their children and knowing that you were responsible for the death of one of these. Christians must be aware of this so that we can offer the loving arms of Jesus to mothers who are faced with a life of regret. We must also make people aware of the results of what they consider when they consider abortion. The negative impact that an abortion can have should serve as warning just as strong as the biblical and scientific reasons for not aborting a child. 

The second important factor that must not be overlooked is the ramifications of the logic used to justify abortion. Any time society takes it upon itself to decide who is human and who is not it is a scary thing. After deciding that only those with self-awareness, who are self-sufficient, and fully developed are human there is no end to the atrocities that can be committed against those who don’t meet societal standards. It is this kind of thinking that led to the holocaust or the slaughter of innocents in Rwanda. Human beings are created in the image of God and life is a gift from Him. We forget these truths to the peril of all but the strong. 

To conclude it can be said that there is no doubt that the taking of innocent life is wrong and that abortion is taking innocent life and therefore wrong. It is important to add that in the past many have done things that are anything but Christ like when interacting with those who believe in abortion. The fact is that women who have had abortions and the doctors that perform them have committed sin. We must understand though that as terrible as abortion is it is not worse than others sins and those who are involved in it need forgiveness just as all of us do. The Christians primary responsibility with regards to abortion are the same as they are to other sins and that is to help those entangled in them to come to Jesus for forgiveness and newness of life. Let’s know and defend the truth about abortion while reaching out in love to those who are in need.

~ Kevin Cleary