American Greed?

 The America I grew up in was seen as the shining light on a hill.  We took pride in the inscription on the Statue of Liberty: "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

 Instead of decimating our enemies after World War II, we helped them rebuild.  Germany and Japan embraced freedom and prosperity and became two of our strongest allies.  

 We fought and died in the jungles of Vietnam, not for ourselves, but for others.  In its aftermath we welcomed Vietnamese and Hmong refugees who integrated into our cities.  Christian churches sprang up among various groups: Vietnamese, Chinese, Laotian, Thai, Korean, Liberian, Nigerian and many others.  Spanish speaking churches exploded and continue to thrive.  The Christian faith swept across South Korea until it became the second largest mission sending nation in the world.

 When I visited Brazil I was welcomed as a celebrity because I was an American.  Children ran through the streets and people crowded in the windows to see someone from the United States. When I served briefly as pastor of an English speaking church in Nuremburg Germany older Germans often expressed their gratitude for GIs who helped them rebuild their nation.  We thought of ourselves as a generous and welcoming nation, blessed by God to bless the nations of the world.

 But all of that seems to be changing.  We are well down the road of putting “America first.”  The question is no longer, what is best for mankind, for the world and for posterity, but what is best for us.  The MAGA has transitioned into a “me first” mentality.

 Instead of asking, how can we help out neighbor nations fight the gang violence and corruption that causes families to flee to our borders, we ask only, “how can we keep these people out?”   In our efforts to “make America great again” we seem to be losing the values that made America great in the first place.

 Our movies, our media and our politics portray us as a covetous people.  We seem to have adopted Gordon Gekko’s maxim that “greed is good.”  We have turned a deaf ear to the tenth commandment: “You shall not covet.” (Exodus 20:17).

 The Apostle Paul confessed that this commandment was his undoing. “I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, ‘You shall not covet.’  But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of coveting.’” Romans 7:7-8).

 When we start down this self-centered path we sow the seeds of future calamity in our communities, our nation and the world. Paul’s conclusion is applicable for all of us: “The commandments, ‘You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” You shall not steal, “You shall not covet,” and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’” (Romans 13:9).

Who Can You Trust

 There was a day when we felt we could trust those who spoke to us, the Presidents who led us and the journalists who interpreted the news.  We believed Washington “could not tell a lie.”  Lincoln was known for his honesty.  We always knew we could trust Walter Cronkite, whether he was reporting the assassination of JFK or describing the first lunar landing. But those days seem naive and far away. 

 The world has become much more complex.  The truth is far more difficult to discern.  Nixon’s claim that he was no crook and Clinton’s assertion that he “never had sex with that woman,” eroded our trust in the Presidency.  Today we feel caught between “fake news” and “alternate realities.”  Brian Williams and Matt Lauer left us disillusioned with journalists.  We hardly know who to believe.

 Former NY Mayor, Michael Bloomberg, speaking at Rice University’s commencement a few years ago, stated that we are facing “an epidemic of dishonesty … an endless barrage of lies and alternate realities.”  …“ The greatest threat to American democracy isn’t communism, jihadism or any other external force or foreign power,” he said. “It’s our own willingness to tolerate dishonesty in service of party, and in pursuit of power.” 

 NBC News reporter Andrew Rafferty said, “We live in a world where lying has become an art.  Politicians, celebrities, characters on the screen, all lie.  They do so convincingly and without remorse.  And technology has moved prevarication into a whole new realm.  The world where ‘seeing is believing’ has vanished.”

 The ninth commandment is essential to personal, relational and societal health. “You must not lie.” (Exodus 20:16 Living Bible).

 When we ignore God’s instructions on truthfulness and honesty, we sow the seeds of our own misery and destruction. Whether marriage, family, business or politics; in the home, the school, the work place and the world.  

 So, what should we do?  First, we must practice telling the truth to our children, to one another, in business and personal relationships.  Above all, we must be known to be honest. We must not lie.

 Second, we must practice discernment. We cannot believe everything we hear and see at face value, especially social media that has little or no accountability.  “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world,” (1 John 4:1).   “Do not be deceived,” the Bible says, “God is not mocked. A man reaps what he sows.” (Galatians 6:7). 

 Third, we must place our trust in the One who alone is truthful, honest and above reproach.  We must trust God, confident that He knows our hearts, our secret thoughts and every word we speak.  “Let God be found true, though every man be found a liar.” (Romans 3:4).  Jesus said, “If you continue in my word then you are truly disciples of mine; and you will know the truth and the truth will make you free.” (John 8:31-32).

Tinsley's book, Meditations in The Sermon On The Mount is FREE as an eBook on Amazon March 17-21. 

Theft and Things

 An Atlanta businessman boarded MARTA to make his daily commute to work.  He stood in the crowded car scanning the newspaper accounts of crime when he felt a stranger bump him.  He instinctively felt for the wallet in his back pocket and found it missing.  He folded the paper and kept his eye on the stranger who had moved to the opposite side of the car.  When the train stopped and the stranger exited, he followed.  His rage continuing to grow, he grabbed the stranger and threw him up against the wall.  His face crimson with wrath he demanded, “Okay Bub, hand over that wallet.”  The stranger, trembling, did a he was told. Without looking the businessman shoved the wallet into his pocket and stomped off to work.  When he arrived at his office his secretary stopped him.  “You  have a message from your wife. She said you left your wallet on the night stand at home!”

 I suppose all of us have been victims of theft.  Shortly after we married, we drove to Houston to visit my wife’s mother in the hospital.  I left our car parked on the street filled with our clothes on hanging rods. When we returned, the car was empty and we were clothes-less.  Most of us have lost bicycles at college. Some have had home break-ins with far more serious losses. My wallet fell out of my pocket at a theater once.  I found it a few days later, sans cash and credit cards.  Same thing for my laptop, stolen from my car.  The police found the computer bag, but no computer.

 Theft is widespread.   Every day the eighth commandment is broken: “You shall not steal.” (Exodus 20:15).

 The first step in respecting other people is respecting property.  It is one of the first lessons we teach toddlers.  Some toys belong to them. Some toys belong to their friends. It is not an easy lesson for a two-year-old, and some never learn it.

 A 2025 article in USA Today noted that self-checkout theft is on the rise.  In a survey by Lending Tree 27% of respondents confessed to stealing from self-checkout.  Almost half of those admitted they stole grocery items.

 The rich and the well-off are just as guilty as the poor, maybe more so. We only need launch a Google search for a list of celebrities who have been convicted of shoplifting. White collar crime is rampant. The National Retail Federation estimated stores lost $47.8 billion to retail theft in 2025. The Government Accountability Office estimated the government loses as much as $531 billion to fraud annually.

 As always, Jesus raised the commandment to another level.  We have not fulfilled the heart of the commandment when we refuse to take something that does not belong to us.  We fulfill the commandment when we move beyond seeing property and possession as primary.   People are primary. Jesus said, “If anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well … give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.” (Matthew 5:40-42).  We can keep the eighth commandment and still live a selfish and self-centered life.

 The Bible says, “Give generously and do so without a grudging heart; then, because of this the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to. There will always be poor people in the land.  Therefore I command you to be openhanded.” (Deuteronomy 15:10-11).

Exalting Marriage

 Young families embody the hope and dreams of our future.  Few scenes move me as much as young couples strolling through the neighborhood pushing a stroller; fathers splashing in the pool with their children while young mothers lounge in poolside chairs; children laughing in the park flying kites with their fathers, giggling on playgrounds with their mothers.

 It is this special bond that God’s seventh commandment seeks to nourish and protect: “You shall not commit adultery.”   Sex, in all of its beauty and pleasure, was given to men and women to celebrate the mystery by which human life is conceived, cradled and nurtured. According to Merriam-Webster, the strict definition of adultery is “voluntary sexual intercourse between a married person and someone other than that person's spouse.”

 This year my wife and I celebrate our 58^th anniversary along with our friends who “pledged their troth” about the same time in 1968.  Marriage is worth holding on to, worth working through the difficulties, worth the investment.  The seventh commandment provides the foundation for trust and a love that lasts. It is the foundation of the family where children are born and nurtured.

 Somewhere along the way sex became recreational.  I guess this happened around the time birth control was introduced.  It revolutionized sex in the 1960s: free sex with whomever without the consequences of conception. 

 We are witnessing the consequences of the cavalier attitudes spawned over the last half-century. Women are speaking up.  Sexual misconduct and harassment is widespread. Matt Lauer, Bill Cosby and other household names that once commanded respect are gone leaving behind a trail of disgrace and embarrassment. Fallout from the Epstein files continue to dominate the news.

 But things “they are a changing.”  Gen Z, in particular, those born between 1997 and 2012 are having far less sex than their predecessors.  According to recent research by the Barna group, not only is Gen Z less likely to have sex or to drink alcohol, they are one of the most spiritually open and curious generations and they are attending church more often than older generations.

 As with other commandments, Jesus raised the bar.  “You have heard that it has been said, ‘You shall not commit adultery,’ but I say to you, he who looks on a woman to lust after her has committed adultery with her already in his heart.” (Matthew 5:27). That first look of lust takes root and bears its poisonous fruit.

 I like what Jeff Christopherson wrote in his book, Kingdom First, “The husband who faithfully and sacrificially loves his wife over a lifetime not only receives the personal blessing of a joyous marriage, but further, the Kingdom ripples of that union emanate through generations.  … Children, grandchildren, colleagues, friends, and neighbors are all secondary recipients of the grace experienced in a godly marriage.”

6th Commandment: The Value of A Life

 It didn’t take long to record the first murder in human history. The Bible’s first death was a homicide.  Cain, enraged with resentment, jealousy and anger attacked his brother and killed him.  Since that moment much of human history has been written in blood. 

 We are all too familiar with headline news for mass shootings, terrorist attacks and violent conflict around the world. The recent killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti have sent tremors through the political landscape.  Murders occur in every city in every region.  Globally more than one person dies every minute of every day as the result of violence. 

 Most of us abhor murder. On the other hand, most of us accept the necessity of killing in warfare.  We spend billions of dollars every year to make sure our young men and women are equipped and trained to kill on the battlefield.

 But, there are exceptions.

 Desmond Doss, who served in World War II,   was committed to honor the sixth commandment, “Thou shalt not kill.” He refused to carry a firearm or weapon of any kind into combat.  Instead, he served as an unarmed Medic.  Doss was twice awarded the Bronze Star for exceptional valor under fire in Guam and the Philippines.  At Okinawa he served on Hacksaw Ridge, a particularly vicious battle in which he personally saved the lives of 75 wounded GIs. He was wounded four times and survived with seventeen pieces of shrapnel embedded in his body. He became the first pacifist to be awarded the Medal of Honor.  His story has been captured in several books and a documentary, The Conscientious Objector, along with the movie, Hacksaw Ridge.

 Hacksaw Ridge was released on November 4, 2016.  It went on to receive six Oscar nominations including Best Picture and Best Actor.  It also received Golden Globe nominations for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor and was chosen as one of the ten best movies of the year by the American Film Institute.

 Jesus took the sixth commandment to a new level.  He said, ““You have heard that the ancients were told, ‘You shall not commit murder,’ and ‘Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, ‘You good-for-nothing,’ shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell.” (Matthew 5:21-22).

 Jesus dug beneath the surface and unearthed the significance of the sixth commandment.  It is all about how we see another human being.  Every person is valuable. Every person deserves respect. Regardless of culture, gender, age or race, every human life is to be treasured.

 Jesus was consistent in living out what he taught.  He embraced the outcast and the poor. Every person he met was precious in his sight.  When He was crucified he prayed that God would forgive those who nailed him to the cross and promised paradise to the dying thief.  To obey the sixth commandment, we must do more than refrain from inflicting harm on our enemy, we must treat every person as a precious creation of God. 

A First Step to Health and Wholeness

As Maxim Naumov waited for the results of his figure-skating performance at the Winter Olympics, he held up a photo of himself at age 8 standing between his mother and father.  His parents were 1994 world champion pairs skaters.  They died last year in the Potomac River crash, passengers on the ill-fated American Eagle flight 5342.  Maxim stated, "I would not be sitting here without the unimaginable work, effort and love from my parents.”

 Jordan Stolz won his second gold medal with an Olympic record in the 500-meter speed skating event. His parents, Dirk and Jane, introduced Jordan to skating at age 5 on a frozen pond near their house in  Kewaskum, WI. He credits his parents, who are born again Christians, for instilling him with discipline and faith.

 Athletes in every sport give credit to their parents. Regardless of nationality or ethnicity; regardless of whether we are rich or poor, most of us have this urge to keep the fifth commandment: “Honor your father and your mother.” It is, as the Apostle Paul reminded us, the first commandment with a promise: “that your days may be long upon the earth.”

 My father died of multiple myeloma when he was 53.  I held his hand as he drew his last breath. He never held an office. Never taught a class. He operated the elevator at our church, ran the sound system and served as a deacon.  More than 800 attended his funeral.

 I never heard him speak one word of profanity. He loved our mother and he loved us.  He was always full of laughter. I saw him choose to be wronged rather than risk wronging others.  The night before he died, he sent a get well card to a friend who was on another floor of the hospital. 

 My mother likewise loved God and sought to serve others. She lived as a widow after my father’s death for 35 years.  She chaperoned special-needs kids on the bus and sat with them at church. She volunteered at the local hospital. The day before she died my children gathered around her bed.  We prayed together and she blessed them.

 Of course, not all fathers and mothers are good.  The relationship between parent and child can be the source of life’s greatest joy as well as its greatest pain. Some live their lives haunted by resentment and anger toward their parents. 

 We somehow sense, as witnessed by our obsession with the parent-child relationship in books and movies, that this relationship is essential to health and wholeness. We hear it in King Lear’s complaint, “How sharper than a serpent’s tooth is a thankless child!”  We find it in John Steinbeck’s East of Eden, Luke Skywalker’s discovery that Darth Vador is his father, or Ray Kinsella building a baseball diamond in his Iowa corn field to “ease his pain.”    All of these stories, and thousands more, reflect our urge to be reconciled to those who gave us birth. 

 Health and wholeness for each of us starts with the fifth commandment, “Honor your father and mother.” Regardless of past hurts, oversights or failures, regardless of our parents’ response, we are to honor mother and father. 

Rest for the Weary - The Fourth Commandment

 Somewhere along the way we reduced the ten commandments to nine. A half-century ago, businesses were closed on Sunday and sporting events recognized Sunday as a day for worship. All that has changed. Today our calendars are filled up to a 24/7 frenzy. We effectively eliminated the fourth commandment as irrelevant and archaic: “Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy.”

 A report from the American Psychological Association stated, “Chronic stress is increasingly eating away at our overall well-being.” … “The psychological and physical toll of stress in America will undoubtedly continue to snowball if something doesn't change.”

 In his book, Living the Sabbath, Discovering the Rhythms of Rest and Delight, Norman Wirzba writes, “Put simply, Sabbath discipline introduces us to God’s own ways of joy and delight. … When our work and our play, our exertion and our rest flow seamlessly from this deep desire to give thanks to God, the totality of our living --- cooking, eating, cleaning, preaching, parenting, building, repairing, healing, creating --- becomes one sustained and ever-expanding act of worship.”

When Jesus said that man was not made for the Sabbath but the Sabbath was made for man, he affirmed the need for the Sabbath in our lives. He underscored the importance of the Sabbath to all of us for mental, emotional, spiritual and physical health. 

In 1924 Scotland’s Eric Liddell, the fastest runner in the world, refused to compete at the Olympics on the Lord’s Day.  When the King of England commanded him to run for his country on Sunday, Liddell respectfully replied he had a higher king.  The Academy Award winning movie, Chariots of Fire portrays Liddell reading Isaiah 40:31 to a congregation on Sunday while young men stumble and fall on the mud-splattered track. “Those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not faint.”  The next week, Liddell ran the 400 meter, a race for which he had not trained, won the gold and set a new world record.

Sabbath requires time for rest, silence, solitude and worship, but it is more than a day of rest. It is a way of life that is filled with wonder, worship, awe and delight. When Jesus declared himself the Lord of the Sabbath, he offered to us a better way. He said, “Come unto me all you who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn of me, for I am gentle and humble in heart and you will find rest to your souls.”

Tinsley's Civil War Novel, Bold Springs, is free Feb. 10-13 as an eBook on Amazon. Chosen Best Christian Historical Fiction by Reader's Favorite, 2022. 

Regarding the Refugee

 We have always thought of ourselves as a nation of courage and hope.  Few statements reflect our identity better than the quote affixed to the Statue of Liberty, “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses.”  There is something sacred about Ellis Island, the entry point for so many who came in response to the beacon of life and liberty.  Most of us are descendants of those who came.

 I served the churches of Minnesota and Wisconsin for eight years, 1993-2001.  I watched the people of Minnesota open their arms and their homes to refugees from around the world. I came to love them for their courage, courtesy, kindness and tenacity.

 Facing severe persecution in the civil wars that swept across Liberia, thousands fled to the United States. A few years ago I attended the building dedication for Ebenezer Liberian Church in Brooklyn Park, MN.  More than a thousand people showed up.  They filled the auditorium and spilled over into corridors and classrooms.  I was inspired by their hymns, songs and testimonies to God’s goodness and grace.

 In Minnesota I met Hmong Christian leaders.  The Hmong were Animists from the hill country of Laos and close allies to the U.S. during the Vietnam War.  Following the fall of Vietnam, they fled brutal persecution and sought refuge in America.  More than ¼ million now live in the U.S. Many have embraced Christ. There are now more than 140 Hmong Christian churches in the United States, most in Minnesota, Wisconsin and California.  Their children are attending college and moving into professional ranks.

 Five decades ago I visited Vietnamese refugee camps in central Texas.  Most were “boat people” who fled persecution and poverty after the fall of South Vietnam. We picked them up with buses and brought them to our church, even though most spoke little English. A few members in our church resented their presence, but most reached out with the compassion of Christ. Today more than 1.5 million Vietnamese call America home. The largest Christian Vietnamese church has over 4,000 members and the number of Vietnamese Christians is growing.

 When Jesus introduced himself to the synagogue in his hometown at Nazareth, he infuriated the crowd by stating that God loved the Syrians. He reminded them that Elisha healed a Syrian leper when there were many lepers in Israel. They were so enraged they tried to throw Jesus off a high cliff.  (Luke 4:16-30).

 We are always afraid and suspicious of people who are different than we are. But “perfect love casts out fear.”  Isaiah says, “Hide the fugitives, do not betray the refugees.  Let the fugitives stay with you; be their shelter from the destroyer. The oppressor will come to an end, and destruction will cease; the aggressor will vanish from the land.”  (Isaiah 16:3-4).

What's In A Name?

 Shakespeare’s Juliet posed the question:  “What’s in a name? A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.”. Maybe so.  But we have to wonder how Marilyn Monroe would have fared as Norma Jeane Baker, Bob Dylan as Bob Zimmerman, Elton John as Reginald Dwight, Lady Gaga as Stephani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, or Adolph Hitler as Adolph Schnicklgruber.  Names can make a difference.

 Names are important to us.  When we someone calls our name we turn, look and listen. They have our attention. Nothing compels like the sound of our name. When we give someone our name, we open the door.  We invite them into relationship.

 When God commissioned Moses to deliver his people from Egypt, Moses asked, “Whom shall I say has sent me?”  God responded, “Tell them, I AM THAT I AM has sent you.”  The Israelites captured this name with the Hebrew letters YHWH.  The name was too holy to be spoken.  When they came to God’s name in Scripture, they inserted the word, “Adonai” meaning “Lord.”

 The third of the Ten Commandments recognizes that God has entrusted to us something special, something precious. “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.” (Exodus 20:7) He has invited us into relationship with Him.  He has given us His name.  We must not take this for granted. For this reason, Jesus taught us to pray, "Our Father who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name." David sang, “Therefore I will give thanks to you among the nations, O Lord, and I will sing praises to your name.”  (Psalm 18:49).

 Isaiah looked forward to a new name God would give us.  He wrote, “For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will ^[rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6).

 Isaiah’s prophecy was fulfilled when the angel announced the Messiah’s birth to Mary and Joseph and instructed them, “You shall call His name Jesus for He shall save His people from their sins.”    God has chosen to redeem and transform us through that “name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:9-11).

 This is an awesome thing.  The God of the universe, who created the expanse of the galaxies, who designed the sub-atomic particles, who gave breath and life to every creature, God, who made us in His own image, has given us His name that we might know Him, honor Him and adore Him.

 How then could we possibly use His name as an expression of amazement, consternation or anger? These verbal expressions reflect a deeper underlying flaw,  at best an ignorance of God’s presence or arrogance in our self-confidence. At worst, a contempt for the Creator and Saviour who gave us life and loves us.  How can we possibly live without thought of the greatness, goodness and grace contained in His Name?

Surviving the Image Culture

 Images bombard us constantly on smart phones, tablets, TVs and laptops.  Images influence our thinking and our actions.  According to Time Magazine, an app to generate AI imaging for social media was the most downloaded app in Apple’s App store during its first week. An article by Andrew Chow in Time Magazine stated, “What was supposed to be a revolutionary medium for maintaining friendships and relationships has now become a fake content generation machine—where it’s impossible to tell what’s real and what’s not.”[i]  We have become addicted to images in the image culture.

 God wants to free us from the image-makers who seek to control our minds and distort our values. The second of the Ten Commandments states, “You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. You shall not worship them or serve them,” (Exodus 20:4-5).

 Images for idol worship have always been about manipulation, attempts to manipulate gods to control our circumstances and to control others around us.  Our current image culture is no different.  We create images to control our destinies and to control others.  But God will not be manipulated.  He will not be used for our personal advancement or the control of other people. 

 The image culture invades our churches when we assume that worship requires the assistance of sound systems, amplifiers, video screens, special lighting and special effects, when we create our own Christian pop-culture complete with celebrities. We ought to be reminded that in Jesus’ day authentic worship took place on hillsides, seashores, and in houses where two or three were gathered together in His Name.

 The author of creation made us in His own image. When we know Him we are truly free to know ourselves and others as we truly are, created in His image with unlimited potential for love and good works. For this reason, God sent His Son, so that we might know the only image that can set us free. “He is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of all creation.” (Colossians 1:15). 

 This is the definition of sin: attempting to live life on our own terms in our own image and becoming addicted to our man-made idols.  N.T, Wright put it this way, “Since sin, the consequence of idolatry, is what keeps humans in thrall to the non-gods of the world, dealing with sin has a more profound effect than simply releasing humans to go to heaven. It releases humans from the grip of the idols, so they can worship the living God and be renewed according to his image.”

 When we believe in Jesus and place our trust in Him, we are empowered to become like Him.  We are set free from the image makers that lead down paths of addiction and depression.  “Those whom He foreknew he predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son.” (Romans 8:29).  

Putting God First

 The first of the Ten Commandments is God’s invitation for us to know Him.  “You shall have no other gods before me,” (Exodus 20:3). This is amazing. The creator of the universe wants to have a personal relationship with us in which He alone takes first place.  If He is not first in our life, He is not God. Everything starts here.  Life comes into focus when God becomes the priority of our life.

 Sometimes we are drawn away from God by personal pleasures. Sometimes we are drawn away by things that simply make us too busy for God.  We think we know what is best and we pursue our goals and dreams without taking time to submit those goals and dreams to God.  

 Peter discovered that putting God first meant surrendering his personal prejudices.  Following a vision on a rooftop in Joppa in which God instructed him not to consider anything unclean that God had declared clean, Peter was invited to visit a Roman Centurion in Caesarea. When he arrived, the Centurion had assembled his family and friends to welcome Peter.  Peter said, “You yourselves know how unlawful it is for a man who is a Jew to associate with a foreigner or to visit him; and yet God has shown me that I should not call any man unholy or unclean,” (Acts 10:28).  After Peter explained to them what God had done in Jesus Christ, they immediately trusted Christ, received the Holy Spirit and were baptized.  When Peter shared this experience at the Jerusalem Council in Acts 15, the early church immediately opened its doors to receive believers from all nations.

 We are living in a day when racial, religious and cultural prejudice have become widespread. If we put God first, like Peter, we must surrender our prejudices and accept others who differ in language, culture and ethniciy.

 The best-known Christian hymn of all time is Amazing Grace. It is the one hymn that is almost universally known and sung. We all know the lyrics, “I once was lost, but now am found, was blind, but know I see.” The song was written by John Newton, who captained several slave ships, and invested in slavery until he came to faith in Christ.  When God became first in his life, he renounced his former life, became an evangelical pastor and a staunch abolitionist.  We cannot obey the first commandment without surrendering our prejudices.  

 John wrote, “If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen,” (1 John 4:20).

 Jesus set the example.  He purposely entered Samaria and welcomed the adulterous Samaritan woman.  He accepted lepers, tax collectors, and said of a Roman centurion, “I have not seen such faith in all of Israel.”  In The Revelation, John described Heaven, “After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb,” (Revelation 7:9).

Our Moral Foundations

 For centuries Western Civilization has embraced the Ten Commandments as the bedrock for law and conduct. But, in the twenty-first century, such an assumption no longer holds true. Bit by bit the Ten Commandments are being chiseled from their central position in our culture.

 In 2001, after a two-year legal battle, a 5,280 lb. granite Ten Commandments monument was removed from the rotunda of the Alabama State Capital.

 In 2004 the Sixth District Court of Appeals in Kentucky ruled that the Ten Commandments could no longer be displayed in public schools and courthouses. To do so, the court ruled, would be an endorsement of religion.

 In 2014, followers of the pagan faith, Wicca, sued the city of Bloomfield, N.M. over a 3,000 pound Ten Commandments monument that stood in front of the City Hall. The court ruled the monument had to be removed as a violation of First Amendment rights.

 In June 2015 the Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled that the presence of the Ten Commandments on the capitol grounds was unconstitutional. On October 5, under cover of darkness, the 4,800 lb. slab of stone was moved from the Oklahoma State Capitol grounds to a private location.

 

In 2025 at least 3 states passed laws requiring the Commandments be displayed in school classrooms. District courts ruled the laws unconstitutional. The issue appears headed to the Supreme Court.

 

These reflect sensitive legal issues in our nation that values freedom of religion and separation of church and state. But what is more disturbing than the removal of monuments is the removal of the Ten Commandments from our consciousness.  Few can name them. Stop for a minute and see if you can recall all ten of the commandments?  Can our children or grandchildren quote them?   If we don’t know the Ten Commandments, how can they guide us in our values and action?

 Jesus said, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” (Mathew 5:17-19). He went on to apply the Commandments at a deeper level than anyone imagined.

 The first four of the Ten Commandments tell us how to have a healthy relationship with God.  The next six tell us how to have healthy relationships with each other. 

 Zhao Xiao, a leading economist in China, researched America’s secret to prosperity. He concluded, “... the key to America’s commercial success is not its natural resources, its financial system or its technology but its churches.  ... The market economy is efficient because it discourages idleness, but it can also encourage people to lie and injure others.  It thus needs a moral underpinning.”  Xiao’s conclusions are remarkably similar to Alexis de Tocqueville’s in 1840. Democracy survives and thrives where moral values prevail.

Tinsley's book, The Jesus Encounter is FREE Jan 6-8 as an eBook on Amazon.  Stories of people in the Bible who met Jesus: Mary Magdalene, Zacchaeus, Nicodemus, etc.