I recently watched a documentary on the tragedy of the mid-west “Dust Bowl.” A man who lived in the area his entire life scooped up a handful of dirt and exclaimed to the reporter, “Look, it’s upside down!” The tall, native grasses had been stripped from the land, exposing the dense top layer of sand; underneath, approximately 12 inches down, was dark, rich soil. The farmers, deceived into investing their blood, sweat, and tears, harvested the land by plowing deep into the soil and in effect, turning it upside down. The results led to the most catastrophic man-made disaster in all of US history—simply because we stripped the land of its protective God-given covering.
And yet, to this day, we continue to do the same thing. We have stripped our land of another God-given covering: His blessing and His Presence. We’ve driven Him out of the schools, out of the courthouses, and out of our government, failing to remember that our government was founded by men guided and committed to His principles and His laws. What was once sacred is now reviled; what was once reviled is now celebrated. In effect, we’ve turned our world upside down. “They exchanged the truth of God for a lie…Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done…Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.” (Romans 1:25, 28, 31)
And so here we are, in a world turned upside down and yet God, in His mercy, still offers hope! And get this: the solution appears upside down! While every other religion places the demand for restitution on the sinner, only the God of Christianity places the burden of restitution on Himself.
“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)
Shadia Hrichi
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Beautiful! And after yesterday’s “festivities” it is particularly appropriate. We have forsaken the values that created this great land and have eaten the apple of selfish, senseless sinfulness.
Elsewhere in the book, we are told that we reap what we sow. I shudder to think of the harvest we have planted.
Judith, so true indeed…
I am taking a Human Sexuality class to complete the Humanities requirements for my AA. It’s a Psychology course that teaches factual and scientific information regarding our sexuality.
One of the first things the book covers is the historical background and therefore discusses Christianity. It also informs us about Greek, Roman, Indian, and Chinese cultures and how they have reacted to sexual behavior. Of these cultures, Christianity is pinned – according to the text – as the culture that “allows” sex but only within a marriage and that St. Paul encourages celibacy as the preferred behavior. (And that Jesus is mostly quiet on the topic.) Since when did St. Paul become our Savior!! Haha.
I know that the author is just “sticking to the facts” but she has clearly taken His word out of context in the brief paragraphs that she writes about Christianity and misses so many other messages that its almost misguiding – thank goodness she quickly moves on to other topics. But I am keeping my eye out on any other place that she (or other college textbook authors) sprinkles misinformation about God and what He has intended for us.
Good for you, Erin!
It’s unfortunate that we will find endless examples of God’s Word being taken out of context. If she had really done her homework on what Paul taught and the culture of Christianity at the time, it would have been obvious to her that Paul (and Jesus) taught on the value and gift of marriage for society and individuals, while choosing to forgo it for himself in order to fully devote his energy to preaching. It’s a choice. Bless you, my friend! 
Hi Shadia, good post & I appreciated the comments. Jesus has a much to say about the sin of adultery in The Bible. And He addresses fornication in his interaction with the woman at the well, (“go and sin no more.”). Other sexual sins are covered thoroughly in several books of The Bible. The Bible says every other sin is outside a man’s own body. In another place, (I think Thessalonians), sex outside of marriage is referred to as “defrauding your brother, (or sister).” I am sure you know all of this – but with secular authors – ohhh, they don’t want to acknowledge this as sin. Good post. Thank you.
Brenna
Very true, thank you, Brenna!