why news?

[irishman]

I have been told by some good preachers that I need to keep up with current events. I do not read the newspaper; I don't often listen to the news, but I manage to catch many the rotten details of the scandals and betrayals, and the lives (or deaths) of Hollywood idols. Isn't that mostly what the news is all about? Oh, and politics! No more needs to be said of that! It is all simply local and "national gossip"!

I wonder where these things fit into the scheme of Biblical thought?

Phi 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

Many of the things we pore over in the newspaper and on tv are merely "thought stealers", they steal our thoughts away from what we should be keeping our minds on. We can dwell and speculate for hours on a certain serial killer, and yet, we have no solution to the prOBlem! We can get the scoop on the oil spill in the gulf and what have we been bettered by it? It is out of our hands, regardless of our opinion!

the Bible also tells us :

1Jo 2:15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
1Jo 2:16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
1Jo 2:17 And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.

One prOBlem is that these verses are so common that we tend to shove them aside and forget about them. We are looking for something "different", something "new", and yet there is nothing new under the sun!

I wonder how many men pore over their Bibles like they do the local news? I wonder which one does them the most good? I seldom read the news feeds on forums, if I wanted those, I would buy a paper!

(I have no one on this forum in mind, but I do have someone in mind!) A friend who buys three papers a day, to "stay informed". He can talk about the prOBlems of this world, but spends so much time reading about them, that he has little time to help solve them, by getting out the Gospel message all the more! I believe, if we are honest, that none of us can say that we have done our very best; I know I haven't. I could be out knocking on doors, street preaching, or at least giving out tracts all the time, now that I am retired, but I don't--too many other things to look after, so I speak also of myself here. But, to add to the prOBlem, why spend an hour or two in an easy chair, reading things that are none of our business, and if they are, we can do little about anyway--except fret!

Just rambling on, I suppose, but I hope we all "think on these things"....

[John81]

No doubt some folks do easily get caught up in "news overload". There are folks who will spend hours watching Fox News, listen to Rush, Hannity and others going over the news as they are in their cars, read several papers or surf the news online.

While it's good to know what's going on, is there really a need to listen to the same story repeated continually throughout the day on 24 hour news channels or talk radio?

Just as we should be careful what enters us through movies, TV programs, the radio and internet entertainment, we really need to do the same thing with news and all other things, such as sports, for example.

We have to be careful not to allow the things of the world to take away time we need to be spending in the Word and prayer.

[OFIB Preacher]

I have been told by some good preachers that I need to keep up with current events. I do not read the newspaper; I don't often listen to the news, but I manage to catch many the rotten details of the scandals and betrayals, and the lives (or deaths) of Hollywood idols. Isn't that mostly what the news is all about? Oh, and politics! No more needs to be said of that! It is all simply local and "national gossip"!

I wonder where these things fit into the scheme of Biblical thought?

Phi 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

Many of the things we pore over in the newspaper and on tv are merely "thought stealers", they steal our thoughts away from what we should be keeping our minds on. We can dwell and speculate for hours on a certain serial killer, and yet, we have no solution to the prOBlem! We can get the scoop on the oil spill in the gulf and what have we been bettered by it? It is out of our hands, regardless of our opinion!

the Bible also tells us :

1Jo 2:15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
1Jo 2:16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
1Jo 2:17 And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.

One prOBlem is that these verses are so common that we tend to shove them aside and forget about them. We are looking for something "different", something "new", and yet there is nothing new under the sun!

I wonder how many men pore over their Bibles like they do the local news? I wonder which one does them the most good? I seldom read the news feeds on forums, if I wanted those, I would by a paper!

(I have no one on this forum in mind, but I do have someone in mind!) A friend who buys three papers a day, to "stay informed". He can talk about the prOBlems of this world, but spends so much time reading about them, that he has little time to help solve them, by getting out the Gospel message all the more! I believe, if we are honest, that none of us can say that we have done our very best; I know I haven't. I could be out knocking on doors, street preaching, or at least giving out tracts all the time, now that I am retired, but I don't--too many other things to look after, so I speak also of myself here. But, to add to the prOBlem, why spend an hour or two in an easy chair, reading things that are none of our business, and if they are, we can do little about anyway--except fret!

Just rambling on, I suppose, but I hope we all "think on these things"....

Excellent post, Brother!
Thanks for the "ramblings!"
AMEN!

[OFIB Preacher]

No doubt some folks do easily get caught up in "news overload". There are folks who will spend hours watching Fox News, listen to Rush, Hannity and others going over the news as they are in their cars, read several papers or surf the news online.

While it's good to know what's going on, is there really a need to listen to the same story repeated continually throughout the day on 24 hour news channels or talk radio?

Just as we should be careful what enters us through movies, TV programs, the radio and internet entertainment, we really need to do the same thing with news and all other things, such as sports, for example.

We have to be careful not to allow the things of the world to take away time we need to be spending in the Word and prayer.

How true!
AMEN, again!

[chev1958]

In the interest of full disclosure, I am a journalist by trade and a pastor by calling, so I may be a little biased in my response.

While I agree that one can overload on news and politics, I do think it's important for Christians to know what's going on in the world. Having a Christian worldview requires knowing what's going on in the world. Pastors should address the big-picture issues of the day to help folks sort through the mess, remind them that Christ's coming is ever closer, and that these events are occurring according to God's plan. But we must be careful that the issues we address are the issues Christ cares about. Too many preachers, such as Chuck Baldwin, preach politics instead of God's word.

Now, I'm not a 24-hour-a-day newshound like I used to be; after all, it was my jOB once. But I try to get some news in each day. It's a great way to get sermon seeds and illustrations - truth can be stranger than fiction when it comes to news.

[John81]

In the interest of full disclosure, I am a journalist by trade and a pastor by calling, so I may be a little biased in my response.

While I agree that one can overload on news and politics, I do think it's important for Christians to know what's going on in the world. Having a Christian worldview requires knowing what's going on in the world. Pastors should address the big-picture issues of the day to help folks sort through the mess, remind them that Christ's coming is ever closer, and that these events are occurring according to God's plan. But we must be careful that the issues we address are the issues Christ cares about. Too many preachers, such as Chuck Baldwin, preach politics instead of God's word.

Now, I'm not a 24-hour-a-day newshound like I used to be; after all, it was my jOB once. But I try to get some news in each day. It's a great way to get sermon seeds and illustrations - truth can be stranger than fiction when it comes to news.

[bzmomo7]

In the interest of full disclosure, I am a journalist by trade and a pastor by calling, so I may be a little biased in my response.

While I agree that one can overload on news and politics, I do think it's important for Christians to know what's going on in the world. Having a Christian worldview requires knowing what's going on in the world. Pastors should address the big-picture issues of the day to help folks sort through the mess, remind them that Christ's coming is ever closer, and that these events are occurring according to God's plan. But we must be careful that the issues we address are the issues Christ cares about. Too many preachers, such as Chuck Baldwin, preach politics instead of God's word.

Now, I'm not a 24-hour-a-day newshound like I used to be; after all, it was my jOB once. But I try to get some news in each day. It's a great way to get sermon seeds and illustrations - truth can be stranger than fiction when it comes to news.

I agree. There IS a certain amount that we need to know about. We need to be aware of new laws they are passing as well. So often in the last few years they have been trying to introduce new laws that do affect Christians directly. If no one ever spoke up and they had passed everything that the liberals had had on their agenda, many Christians could have found themselves in hot water real fast. We just need to make sure that we don't get out of balance. Our primary OBjective in life is spreading the Gospel.

[irishman]

Well, not being a pastor, I don't feel I "Need to know what's going on". Most things are going to happen according to the plans of "principalities and powers in high places (Eph 6:12)" and we all know how little our vote counts when it stands for right! Besides, most of the "news" today is depressing; murder, mayhem, terrorism, ungodliness everywhere we look, and we already know it exists without reading more about it! I just think it's a waste of time, and an unnecessary burden we lay upon ourselves.

As for the political scene, when have Christians stood up for anything lately? Whether they knew about "House bill so-and s0", or not, we have not made much headway in the political realm so far! (Prayer in public schools; abortion laws; homosexual "rights", etc.) Our protests fall on deaf ears anyway!

Edited August 19, 2010 by irishman

[amblivion]

These guys do a lot! http://www.aclj.org/

I love listening to Jay Sekulow when I get a chance. How can we stand up if we don't know what is going on?

[bzmomo7]

Well, not being a pastor, I don't feel I "Need to know what's going on". Most things are going to happen according to the plans of "principalities and powers in high places (Eph 6:12)" and we all know how little our vote counts when it stands for right! Besides, most of the "news" today is depressing; murder, mayhem, terrorism, ungodliness everywhere we look, and we already know it exists without reading more about it! I just think it's a waste of time, and an unnecessary burden we lay upon ourselves.

As for the political scene, when have Christians stood up for anything lately? Whether they knew about "House bill so-and s0", or not, we have not made much headway in the political realm so far! (Prayer in public schools; abortion laws; homosexual "rights", etc.) Our protests fall on deaf ears anyway!

You know, years ago when we were in a more liberal church, (before we knew better and grew in the Lord enough to know we needed to seek out some place that preached the whole Word of God) I will tell you.....that church and others like it were much more involved politically than anyone I've ever seen in the different IFB churches I've known. Their focus is different, to be sure. They particularly are standing up for parental rights and putting out a good fight against abortion. They do this to the exclusion of much spreading the Gospel, which is not right. However, if it were left to the ultra conservative, I fear we would quickly be over-run because many do not ever speak up thinking that what will be, will be. Balance. We need to remember our calling, but speak up when necessary. It may not make a difference politically, but it not only lets people know where we stand, it shows we are never condoning the world's wrong-doing.

[irishman]

This "balance" that people talk about, is it a balancing of the world with the Lord? Newsworthy stuff will captivate hearts if we aren't careful; Case in point: The Moral Majority (Jerry Falwell); Jack Van Empe, etc, these used to be considered IFB, soul winning, and on fire men that did great things for the glory of God. What happened? Politics.

I personally do not know if I believe in marching and picketing at the Capital Building, or any other organized protest in politics. I lean toward not getting involved to that extent. Not because it does little to no good, but because the entire thing is of a worldly system nowadays, and I sort of wonder if Jesus had reason to protest the Roman leadership of His day? He did not seem to keep up with the Jerusalem Times, nor did Paul, one would think.
Are we pilgrims here, just passing through, or are we running the place? I guess that is the gist of it.

Edited August 19, 2010 by irishman

[JerryNumbers]

This "balance" that people talk about, is it a balancing of the world with the Lord? Newsworthy stuff will captivate hearts if we aren't careful; Case in point: The Moral Majority (Jerry Falwell); Jack Van Empe, etc, these used to be considered IFB, soul winning, and on fire men that did great things for the glory of God. What happened? Politics.

I personally do not know if I believe in marching and picketing at the Capital Building, or any other organized protest in politics. I lean toward not getting involved to that extent. Not because it does little to no good, but because the entire thing is of a worldly system nowadays, and I sort of wonder if Jesus had reason to protest the Roman leadership of His day? He did not seem to keep up with the Jerusalem Times, nor did Paul, one would think.
Are we pilgrims here, just passing through, or are we running the place? I guess that is the gist of it.

Right on!



It seems within the pages of the New Testament, that Jesus did not mean for us to be involved in politics, if He had surely He would have gotten His 12 involved to protest against the evil government that persecuted Him and His followers. It seems the only thing He taught them was to deny self and walk in His way, and be fisher of men in order to save their souls from hell, in other words, go, teach, baptize, teaching them to OBserve all things He has commanded us.

[trc123]

Right on!



It seems within the pages of the New Testament, that Jesus did not mean for us to be involved in politics, if He had surely He would have gotten His 12 involved to protest against the evil government that persecuted Him and His followers. It seems the only thing He taught them was to deny self and walk in His way, and be fisher of men in order to save their souls from hell, in other words, go, teach, baptize, teaching them to OBserve all things He has commanded us.

Jerry, Are you saying we are all called to be Apostles and that we have the same Biblical status as they? We should be healing, speaking in other languages that God miraculously translates for us, etc.?

[John81]

I believe Jerry is saying the bulk of our time should be spent serving the Lord and expanding His kingdom rather than in political matters.

One of the greatest tragedies of the Moral Majority and other "conservative Christian" political groups was they ended up turning many Christians eyes from Christ to the Republican Party.

A Christian can vote for godly men, can speak out about ungodly politicians and policy (John the Baptist confronted Herod for his adultery), can run for office, can promote a godly man for office, etc., without putting more time into that than in the Word and church.

The prOBlem is, many Christians who get involved in politics find themselves jumping in the deep end and devoting much more time to politics than to the things of God.

The Republican Party has let down Christians for years, decades even, yet most political Christians continue to support them; often giving more money to Republicans than they do their church, giving more of their time and talent to the GOP than to their church.

What has this got us? Not one step closer to a godly country, not one step closer to a restoration of the Constitution. All along, whether Dem or Repub in power, American has continued to move farther from God, farther from the original intent of the Founders.

Imagine if all these Christians actually spent that much time and money supporting the expanding of the Kingdom of God! Look back in history to the great changes which took place through the preaching of the likes of Whitefield, Edwards, Sunday and others. Not only were many won to Christ, but entire communities were transformed and society at large changed for the better.

[chev1958]

When Iowa was getting ready to issue marriage licenses to homosexuals, I wanted to write a personal letter to every county recorder (99 counties), encouraging them to take a stand on what is right and refusing to issue the licenses. When I call a seasoned pastor for advice on wording the letter, he said my time would be better spent on witnessing. The only way to change the direction America is going is to get more Americans saved.

Even my own county's recorder, who claims to be a devout Catholic, said none of the recorders were going to fight the law. Even though they were elected officials, they could be removed for refusing to follow the law. She assured me that she wasn't about to risk losing her jOB, and since the Bible "says" we are to follow the laws anyway, then her hands were tied.

When I pointed out that Christians were to follow man's law until it contradicts God, she just turned and walked away. BTW, I didn't send the letters and went door-knocking instead.