Pastor's Column 2/18/2024

PASTOR’S COLUMN

“He commanded our ancestors to teach them to their children, so the next generation might know them – even the children not yet born – and they in turn will teach their own children. So each generation should set its hope anew on God, not forgetting His glorious miracles and obeying His commands.” Psalm 78:5b-7, NLT

“Passing Our Truth Along!”

It is always refreshing to read a portion of Psalm 78, because it is one of the greatest defenses for understanding the enduring legacy of God’s great work among His people. We also hear perceptively the urgency of passing down a body of truth that can both preserve and perpetuate a culture. In the instance of Scripture, this passage speaks to people of faith who believe in the God of all creation; who has sent His Son as Messiah to our fractured world. We truly need some godly precepts and principles that can provide a moral foundation; and ethical guides, for a civilization that is constantly in a state of flux. How we live in this temporal world and relatedly how we treat each other, will determine our survival on this planet. Some time ago, when some of the civilians took what was billed as a commercial flight in orbit by non-astronauts; they were struck by the vastness of creation, from that altitude. They also reported seeing great fractures along the earth’s outer crust. The scientists say these fractures are examples of decay; the result of earth’s inhabitants’ inability to be good stewards of the environment. What is equally apparent by those of us who remain on earth, is the great fractures in our human relationships and systems. More than ever, we must seek the truth of God’s message to us in the sacred texts of Scripture. We must follow God’s teachings of love; forgiveness; reconciliation; justice; kindness; righteousness; godliness, and peace. These virtues we must bequeath to our children and to generations following. These truths we must pass along if we are to have a world that is blessed by God, and where all people can be reconciled to each other. The incessant cries we hear today which urge the “cancellation” of valid histories and cultural narratives that can enrich others, is contrary to the Biblical idea of passing down truth.