The Real   
Highway to Heaven    

   
   Once, along the Pennsylvania Turnpike, there were seven tunnels through the mountains. Dad at the wheel, his son looked forward to each dimly-lit tunnel and minutes later emerging into daylight. 

   With this image in mind, consider great-grandpa's attempt to explain Hebrews chapter 10. We are born into a tunnel - okay, it's a very large tunnel. It is dimly lit, spiritually speaking; mankind sees poorly. 

Off to School 
   Out of all the travelers, God chose an ordinary man and made promises that only Almighty God could fulfill. Later, to teach the concept of sin, through Moses God laid down the law, itself a dim reality. 

   He directed high priests to sacrifice animals to atone for people's sins, knowing their guilt remained. God was preparing the way for the only sacrifice that would satisfy the demands of holiness.

   He revealed his perfect plan in Psalm 40:6-8. Through the prophet Jeremiah (31:33,34) God promised to write his laws on the hearts and minds of believers.
Jesus the Son, our High Priest, became the obedient, voluntary, sinless sacrifice...once for all time. 

   Unbelievers travel the tunnel with believers, sometimes causing harm. But, like Abraham, true believers trust God for better and lasting possessions, a rich reward in the city of God. They live by faith (Habakkuk 2:4; Romans 1:17; Galatians 3:11; Hebrews 10:38) always drawing near to God.

Let There Be Light
   At death, the Lord draws redeemed souls out of the tunnel and to their eternal homes. 

   For those who learn truth but continue to sin, there is no sacrifice. They show contempt for truth, disregard the blood that saves, insult the Spirit of grace, and trample the Son of God. 

   "It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God, leaving a fearful expectation of judgment and raging fire." 

   There is an end to this tunnel. The "rider on the horse" captures the beast and false prophet, and by his Word destroys the armies making war against himself. 
Birds will gorge themselves on flesh. (Revelation 19:19-21.)

Dr. Arnn, Part 4  

Priorities of Congress    

   The president of Hillsdale College finds it "hard to admire the > $2 trillion bill Congress passed."  

   It included $25 million...$75 million...$324 million...$25 million and $78,000 for programs having no connection to our health crisis. And that's not all. 

   Describing the bill as "unworthy of a great democracy in a time of crisis," Dr. Arnn adds, "We certainly need to provide a safety net for workers. After that the most important thing is to end the shutdowns and restart the economy as soon as possible." 

   He approves of Art Laffer's case ... "that the only sensible policy is to cut taxes." Laffer proposes protection for companies with extended lines of credit or loan guarantees. And second, to waive the payroll tax for employees and employers through the end of this year." If not the best thing, it is the best kind of thing, he says. 

   "It is heartening to see in (governments around the country) frustration at not being able to end the economic shutdowns," Dr. Arnns says. "It is sad to see others who lack that sense of frustration." 

   "Winston Churchill wrote grave warnings in 1936, as Hitler consolidated power. His calls for rearmament were not sufficiently heeded to prevent the worst war in history."  

Friday's conclusion: The word, "civilization." 

A President's Views, Part 3     
Why Not Science?     
   
  Among his thoughts, college president Dr. Larry Arnn calls the idea that scientific expertise should run our government "dangerous!" 
  
   "Why should we not want to be governed by science?" he asks. 

   "Expertise is necessarily narrow. It is rare for anyone to possess high expertise in more than one field. The problems we face are not in silos. There must be some art of coordinating the knowledge and forming a policy that addresses our problems in their entirety." 

   He continues, "The classical word is prudence. It is the common-sense capacity we have to pursue the proper ends of life amidst constantly shifting circumstances. We must of course listen to experts, but expertise cannot as a simple fact of principle tell us finally what is right to do."  

   "The experts with narrow points of view, backed by the media, urged the President to declare a national economic shutdown," Dr. Arnn notes. As the President "rightly points out, at some point the costs of devastating our economy will become worse than those of the virus." 

 Tomorrow: Priorities of Congress

Changes in America                                     <  😀  >
   
   A few insights by Christopher Caldwell in The Age of Entitlement:

1960s feminist revolution  
   "The GI Bill worked well for men, but women were left stranded in empty houses."

Johnson, McNamara and Vietnam  
   "President Johnson saw the war as an anti-poverty project. 'We're going to turn the Mekong into a Tennessee Valley.' McNamara was a numbers guy. The war was the sister movement to the Civil Rights Act and the Great Society." 

Reagan 
   "He changed the country's political mood for a while, but left its structures untouched."

Globalization's backlash
   "The main purpose of global value chains...was political. Sneaking a manufacturing operation out the door one stage of production at a time aroused less disruption and suspicion." 

Great Recession of 2007
   "Banks had trillions of dollars in loans on their books that would never have been made, absent government pressure." 

Decline in births
   "Bertrand Russell in the 1920s forecast what would happen if the government replaced fathers as protectors and providers." It would eliminate "paternity as a recognized social relation and tend to make men's emotional life trivial." 

________________________________________________________

    One potato, two potatoes              Three potatoes, four 

                    😀                                          😄

    Five potatoes, six potatoes             Seven potatoes

                    😀                                           😄  

    You're supposed to say more!          Sorry. I ate the eighth potato. 

                    😒                                           😔  

A President's View     
Part 2

   Dr. Arnn wrote that Dr. Anthony Fauci, NIH, "...as late as January 26, said that the American public shouldn't worry about the coronavirus outbreak in China. President Trump, much criticized at the time, stopped flights from China on February 2."   

   "One needed response..." Dr. Arnn said, referring to Sen. Cotton's legislation, is 
"to return pharmaceutical manufacturing to the United States. How many of us realized...the extent of our dependence on China for medical drugs and supplies? How many of us knew that China produces around 40 percent of total world supply of active pharmaceutical ingredients, 97 percent of the U.S. market for antibiotics, and 50 percent of the world's surgical masks?"

   Claiming these facts should have raised red flags at the CDC, Dr. Arnn quotes Winston Churchill in 1934: 
 

We cannot afford to confide the safety of our country 

to the passions...of any foreign nation... We must be independent. 

We must be free. We must preserve our full latitude and discretion of choice. 

   He adds, "We should look at how much money the NIH, CDC and other U.S. public health agencies give to China, and reconsider that largess. We should also reconsider our support of the World Health Organization. WHO spends two times more on travel than on medical supplies, and it has defended and parroted the lies of the communist Chinese government...as if it were a wholly owned subsidiary.  

   "Taiwan," he said, "reported concerns about the coronavirus to the WHO in late December but was ignored. Taiwan was barred from participating in the WHO in 2016 at China's insistence. Taiwan was excluded from attending, even as an observer, the Emergency Committee meeting convened by the WHO in January to determine the potential for a pandemic." 
 

Next week: Should scientific expertise run our government?

    

A President's View    

   Are we responding correctly to the Wuhan virus?

   Thanks to a neighbor, we have a 10-page message from the president of Hillsdale College in Michigan, Dr. Larry Arnn. His background includes studies in statesmanship, political philosophy, the Constitution etc. Off and on this week and next, we'll share a few of his facts and opinions. 

   Dr. Arnn "isn't confident all the economic shutdowns in the U.S. are necessary." He notes that, "We spend an enormous amount of money on a bureaucracy that operates top down from the (CDC, FDA, NIH) and other agencies." 

   "I am told" he said,"that our national stockpile of (kits, masks, ventilators etc.) was depleted during the swine flu of 2009 and never built back up. The FDA (took) five years to approve a new ventilator design." 

   The agency now called the Communicable Disease Center (CDC) was created in 1942. By the 2000s, Dr. Arnn says, the CDC had become largely independent of political control. It took on addictions, nutrition, school health, injuries and racial and ethnic approaches to health. 

   In 2007, a review showed that the CDC "has spent hundreds of millions for failed prevention efforts, international junkets, and lavish facilities, but cannot demonstrate it is controlling disease." In recent years CDC has studied prevention of gun violence, how parents should discipline children and chronic health conditions among lesbian, gay and bisexual populations. In 2017 alone it spent more than 1.5 billion on purposes addressed by other federal agencies. 

   "The communist government of China...deserves the harshest criticism...for letting the crisis get out of control," he wrote. "The doctor who first sounded the alarm  (and later died of the virus) was disciplined...for 'spreading rumors' injurious to the state." The head of emergency at the Wuhan hospital condemned the government for its lies - specifically its denial that the virus was transferable between humans - and she has since disappeared, he said. 

Tomorrow: Fauci, Trump and China

         Jimmy

   

Drifting Away..........    
    
   North of here sits the small community of Weeki Wachee, a rustic park around a natural spring - known for mermaid shows - and a creek flowing west from the spring to the Gulf. 

   We've rented canoes to paddle lazily down the picturesque little stream. The water is clear for a few miles, revealing fish and maybe a manatee or two. Once, where the current is faster, my son and I overturned and became separated. We survived.

   The main instruction given to renters is this: If you drift past the take-out, your canoe will be considered "stolen." 

   The take-out place isn't particularly visible, but if you pay careful attention you will see it. A van with trailer comes to the rescue, returning canoes and renters back to the launch site. 

~ ~ ~

   We must pay careful attention...to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away (Hebrews chapter 2). 

   As the message of the Old Testament was "binding" to its hearers, the gospel  of Christ is obligatory for Christ-ians. There is no escape for drifters. 

   Through suffering, Christ became author of the "great salvation." By his death and resurrection, He destroyed the devil's power to make us fear death, and He freed us from that "slavery." Also, having taken human nature and experienced temptation, Christ is "able to help those who are being tempted." 

   Faith is more than two hours on Sundays. We can be tempted any day or night of the week.

   We can drift from our prayer life and time in the Word, allowing the world to distract. Satan comes to kill, steal and destroy (John 10:10). He steals those who drift away. 

   If I miss the Savior's take-out, consider me stolen.

       Jimmy

Who Said We Ended Slavery?                                < ☺ >

   The potential value of slave-made laptops, computers and mobile phones imported into G20 countries is $200.1 billion. 

   The potential value of slave-made garments imported into G20 countries is $127.7 billion. 

   The number of slaves per 1,000 persons in North Korea is 104.6 (10 percent), highest of modern slavery. 

   The number of slaves per 1,000 persons in Eritrea is 93, second highest.

   The number of slaves in the world is 40.3 million, according to the Walk Free Foundation. This includes 24.9 million working in forced labor (including those trafficked for sex) and 15.4 million persons in forced marriages. 

   The United States is rated "low" in terms of numbers of slaves and "strong" in terms of government response. However, the U.S. ranked highest in imports of products at risk of being produced by slave labor, with $144 billion in such imports.

Maybe the computer we're using to write and

send this blog was made by slave labor in China. 

(?) 

___________________________________________________

Ready to go?           Not yet. Lucy has to put on her make up.

                   👴                                     👵             ☺

   

Citizenship in Heaven     
    
   Rain on earth. 

   If you are a Christian, or mystified by people called by that name, here's our view, based on the Word of God.

   Without question...God! There is no way infants develop, birds know to build nests, and short-lived butterflies go to the same unknown place every year, if all was chance. The several connections between our brains and our lenses could never appear all at once by destructive mutations, or survive one by one over indeterminable years until the eyesight chain was complete.  

   Still, we are to live by faith, and we do.

   God is God.

   He created earth, all that is in it and on it. Finally, God formed a man and his wife. The Garden of Eden was paradise, complete with a "tree of life." 

   The woman believed a voice that was not God, and both helped themselves to forbidden fruit and lost their innocence. He would not allow them access to the tree of life, so He banished them to the "cursed ground" outside the garden. 

   What is outside along with thorns and thistles? Viruses and other troubles.

   Jesus said, (God) causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. Matthew 5:45. What does "rain" include? COVID-19 and so much more. 

   We relate not only to God but God's earth, even if "earth is not our home."
Yes, there are miracles. Often, Christians suffer the rain. The larger issue is who ends up where...heaven or hell?   

   We are also related to neighbors (could be strangers), whom we're commanded to love.

   If you don't believe in God, or in God but not his Son who suffered the rain (judgment) you and I deserve...and rose again...today is the day to put your faith in the One who loves you and will save you. And follow him.

      Jimmy

PS. Is "mother earth" unfair? If you and I were the first humans, we would have done the same thing. 



   

Similarities, 2020 vs. 1945    
     

Following are expressions from author James Lee Burke,

whom we quoted yesterday in Differences.

   "We're faced now with a situation that bears many similarities to the war years in which I grew up. For that reason I think we need to remind ourselves of who we are. In 1945 we were the only country in the world in possession of atomic weapons. 

   "We could have turned the earth into a slave camp with barbed wire and machine gun towers. Instead, through the Marshall Plan, we rebuilt the countries of our enemies and turned them into democracies. No country in human history ever acted with such generosity. 

   "There is no mystery to who people are. They are what they do. We are the same people we were when I was pulling the red wagon with my friend.

    "We don't let fear into our hearts

     We do not turn on our brother or our sister

     We do not shirk sacrifice

     We do not compromise our role as the leader of the free world

      or as the country whose Constitution is a model for emerging democracies. 

   "This is still the greatest country in human history; it was, it is, and it will remain so, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

   "Keep the faith, and grin and walk through the cannon smoke. It drives the bad guys crazy. You're the best people in the world."  

   Views isn't sure Burke is exactly right on all points.

But we add, don't let politicians take us down the

road to ruin in the name of equal outcomes.

Jimmy

Differences: 2020 vs. 1941    
     
   Two wars: one military, one invisible. America wasn't fully prepared for either sneak attack. Both threatened our nation's well being, and both brought out the best in people. Both produced heroes. 

   One difference is our response. Author James Lee Burke was about 4, on December 7, 1941 he and his parents were eating in a cafe. At 1:15 p.m., the cafe's radio program was interrupted - the Japanese had bombed Pearl Harbor. 

   "No one moved or spoke," he remembers. He saw fear in faces of adults. 

   Our 2020 crisis arose gradually, but but quickly enough to catch us off guard. 
A couple mayors and governors and a U.S. House leader initially did their best FDR impressions: Like, there's nothing to fear. 

   Shocked by Pearl Harbor, angry Americans lined up to volunteer. Industries switched to wartime products. Today some companies and even individuals make face masks and other personal protective equipment. 

   In 1941, we were still in the Great Depression. People not in the military sprang into action, many homeowners planting "victory gardens." Today - a great economy now interrupted - most people stay home and avoid catching or spreading the enemy virus. The fight mainly belongs to brave medical people, including retirees and military medics.

   Burke remembers that food and gasoline were rationed, and tires were simply unavailable, as was sugar or butter. (Today, it's toilet paper!) At age 8 he spent almost a year in bed with either polio or rheumatic fever, or both. There was little diagnosis as we have today.

   He survived, and with a friend took a red wagon from house to house, collecting old newspapers, coat hangers, rubber bands and bacon grease. The latter was used to make nitroglycerin. Individuals voluntarily sent their guns to England for the expected Nazi invasion.

   People learned names like Guadalcanal, Midway, Corregidor, Normandy and Ardennes. Today, the name is Wuhan. 

     Jimmy


   


   

Driving Drowsy or Drunk_______ 

Same Thing?          

     

   While most of our vehicles are sitting idle, this may be a good time to consider our fitness to drive before the rat race resumes. And we don't mean going to the gym.

   Drowsy driving is responsible for tens of thousands of injuries and hundreds of deaths every year. One agency believes drowsy-related fatalities may be closer to 6,000/year.

   Get this: About half of adult drivers in the U.S. admit to consistently getting behind the wheel while feeling drowsy. Some 20 percent admit to falling asleep (!) over the past year. (We share the road with them every day.)  

   Like drugs, alcohol, eating or texting while driving, drowsy drivers have less ability to recognize and avoid hazards. Driving after being without sleep for 20 hours is equivalent to driving with a blood-alcohol reading of 0.08 percent. 

   Experts advise reading medication labels, looking for side effects.

   If we drift out of lane, miss road signs or turns or have trouble maintaining speed, we could pull over and take a break.

   Most of us consider ourselves to be "good drivers." But............  

Sources:

National Highway Traffic Safety Admin.

National Institute of Medicine 

National Sleep Foundation

AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety

      Jimmy

Not the Sacrificial Lamb    
Your Lamb, My Lamb    

Look, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! 

Destroy this temple and I will raise it again in three days.  

Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.

And Our Shepherd   

I am the Good Shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.

And I lay down my life for the sheep and take it up again; 
no one takes it from me but I lay it down of my own accord. 

I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies...
but if it dies it produces many seeds. 

He gave up his own Spirit, in triumph 

at the time of the evening sacrifice.

Finally the other disciple...also went inside. He saw and believed.

John 1:29;  2:19;  3:14;  10:11,15,17;  12:24;  20:8 

Hot Tempers; Cold Temps      
    
   Scolded by Jesus for their hypocrisy, religious figures wanted to kill him. All that stopped them were crowds of people who flocked to him. 

   Caiaphas, the high priest, solved a debate by declaring that one should die for the people and the nation. John 11:49-52; 18:14. 

   Judas the disciple solved the problem of crowds. He knew where Jesus would be at night.

   Jesus took a beating under the direction of the conflicted governor, Pilate, who thought that would satisfy the mob. It's been said that ordinary men would not have survived such punishment. Who knows? 

   To mock their victim, they removed his clothes and covered him with a purple (royal) robe and a crown of thorns. According to Mark 15:20, they put his clothes back on. 

   We don't know how much time elapsed between the beating and the cross. But his warm clothes were removed once again.

   All this winter and spring we have checked Jerusalem's weather out of curiosity. Daytime highs may have been in the mid-50s (or lower; there was no sun for three hours) and nighttime lows in the mid-40s. That's why Peter was warming himself by a fire. John 18:18. 

   How did two "criminals" manage to share the occasion? Mocking continued. But one, perhaps hearing Jesus' last words, got the message. 
No confession. No repentance. No baptism. No sanctification. No good deeds.

   At his "eleventh hour" he asked and received.

       Jimmy

The last 33 words summarized from WORLD magazine.

We're not suggesting it's that easy for everyone.
But neither do we put the Lord in a box of rules.

Easter Approaches      

111 Failures

We don't expect you to read all the sins we found in New Testament verses. 

Just scan the whole and remember that our Lord Jesus took all these failures of commission and omission upon himself, nailed them to the cross...
and rose again on the third day. Glory to God. 

__________________________________________________

murder   false worship   self-centeredness   anger  lust

adultery  unfaithfulness   retaliation  hate   unforgiveness  worry

trust in treasure  love of money   judgmental  false prophecy 

ignoring commands    loving family more than Jesus 

disowning Jesus   careless words  callous heart  unbelief  doubt

theft   false testimony   dishonor   betrayal  pride

greed  self indulgence   unfruitful  injustice  hypocrisy   deception

failure to watch  failure to use talent   lying  blasphemy 

deceitfulness of wealth   reliance on traditions  immorality  malice

lewdness  envy  slander   arrogance  folly   mocking   insulting

false accusation   discontent  ungrateful  dishonesty 

self-righteous  betrayal  drunkenness   indecency   destruction

bearing no fruit  godlessness   wickedness  unnatural relations

depravity   strife   gossip  slander  insolence  arrogance

boasting  senselessness   faithless  heartless  ruthless

stubborness  self-seeking   cursing  idolatry

swindling   pagan revelry   grumbling  corruption  rash

treacherous  conceited   impatience   favoritism  deception

yoked with unbelievers   enslavement   obscenity  foolish talk 

coarse joking   disobedience  false humility  abusive

ungrateful  slanderous   brutal   idleness 

arrogance  godless chatter   false ideas   faithless

rebellious   worldly passion  divisive  grumbling   meddling

false prophecy  enticement   covetous   scoffing

_________________________________________________

The righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe ... for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God ... and are justified freely by his grace ... God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood.     Romans 3:21-25 

Tomorrow:  Hot Tempers; Cold Temperatures

 The Unbelievable Truth  

Isaiah 53. Comments by the late Dr. Warren Wiersby

Who has believed our message?
     Relying on human intellect, men refuse to believe an unbelievable person.

He grew up...like a root out of dry ground.
     Earth has no spiritual aspect. Its produce is visible, explainable.

He had nothing in appearance that we should desire him.
     Joining himself to our nature, he chose not to attract us by his looks.

He was despised and rejected by men.
     His brothers, many early disciples and the nation refused to believe him. 
     "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"

Surely he took up our sorrows...he was pierced for our transgressions.
     He paid an unbelievable price...a crushing weight of our sins.

We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way. 
     It's our nature, our choice to go our own way.

Yet it was the Lord's will to crush him and cause him to suffer. 
     Justice was satisfied. 
         Holiness was satisfied. 
             Sinners were justified.
                 God was glorified. 

After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light of life. My servant will justify many and he will bear their iniquities. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors. 
     He was unbelievable, but truth. 
          Human, but divine. 
               Humble, but exalted. 
                    Hated, but he loves. 

From China to Rattlers    
  
   Chinese leaders lied about initial virus cases and other matters. Round the clock incinerations tell another story. Slave labor to prop up the economy is another indicator that all is not well.  

   An Italian physician, an atheist, now says, "We have reached our limits. We begin to feel that God begins where man ends." 

   A man in Beirut, Lebanon: "I worry more for my family about hunger than corona." 

   Some infected people with no symptoms can transmit the virus as many as 48 hours before before symptoms appear.  - the CDC 

   Around the world, animals and birds are invading public places in greater numbers, being more comfortable without normal human presence. In St. Petersburg, FL a large Eastern Diamondback did likewise. 

   In Philadelphia, a 14-year-old is using 3D equipment to make face shields for healthcare workers.

   North Korea's claim that they have no virus cases (1) may be due to the fact that few outsiders care to go there, or (2) they just shoot those infected. 

   
       Jimmy



   
   

Palm Sunday   

Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a colt that never had been ridden.

That normally doesn't happen. 

The people, having seen or heard about miracles,

laid palm branches in his path and shouted Hosanna! 

Hebrew: hosh'ah-nna

meaning "save us." 

They joyfully praised God:

Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord.

Psalm 118:26

They may have wanted him to save them from Roman control.

Jesus was not there to be praised.

He wept and said: 

If you had only known on this day what would bring you peace

 - but now it is hidden from your eyes. 

Luke 19:41

Jesus had to suffer our judgment before He could save us.

We must acknowledge our desperate need...

to receive his forgiveness and salvation, life and peace. 

Hosanna!

If You Missed WWII                                       < 👨 >
    
   You're getting a taste of national "all hands on deck."  

   Twenty NY City hotels now are hospitals for non-virus patients. 
The U.S. is close to 7 million unemployment claims. 

   Years ago, we were satisfied to disembark a cruise ship after five days. 
Nine ships are still at sea after about four weeks. 

   A trooper in Minnesota stopped a woman going 85 mph. When he learned she is a cardiologist rushing from Boston to Duluth to serve a need there, he gave her five N95 masks and sent her on her way.

   Dr. Anthony Fauci is becoming so famous he may need a security detail. He did get a bobblehead. Cities try to get the homeless off the streets. Taiwan is donating 10 million masks, 2 million of them coming to the U.S. 

   Assisted living facilities are coping. Some residents are confused. 

   Prisoners find it impossible to socially distance. Cook County prison (Chicago) went from two cases to 101 plus 12 employees in four days or so. Rikers Island freed 650, temporarily. Cuyahoga County (Cleveland) released half of their inmates. Federal prisons are not releasing. Inmates are confined to cells or quarters. (And we think we have it tough.) A women's prison in McLoud, OK has sewn more than 1,000 masks for the cause.

       _____________________________________

                Okay, kids. It's census time. 
          Line up and stand still while I count you.
                                  👨      
        xxx  xxxx  xxx x x x x   xxx xxx x x   xxx    
            xx 👦 xxxx   👦 xx x xx x x  x  xxx  xx  xx
                 xxx xx  x x  x  x  x xx  👦 xx xx  xx 👧 xx
               x x   xxx x   x x x  x xx  xxx   xxx x x x xx
            xx x  xxxx  xx 👧 xxx x xx x x 👧 xxx  xx x 
               xx x   x x x xx  xxx x xxx x x  x x x x  x 

A Lifestyle in Progress     

   To the young pastor, Timothy, Paul began by warning him about false teachers...those who taught false doctrines and myths, rather than the truth of God's Word...which is by faith. 1 Timothy 1:4.  NIV 

   Of those who rejected the gospel, he said they had shipwrecked their faith. v. 1:19. 

   In verse 5, Paul wrote, The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. 

   At least two years earlier, the high priest and companions went before Felix accusing Paul of being "a troublemaker, stirring up riots all over the world." Paul told the governor...as a follower of the Way...I strive always to keep my conscience clear before God and man. Acts 24:14.

Our Bible commentary in 1 Timothy: 

   The supreme goal of all instruction from God's Word is not Bible knowledge in itself, but an inward moral transformation that expresses itself in love, purity of heart, a clear conscience and faith without hypocrisy.  

   (1) The Biblical concept of teaching and learning is not primarily to impart knowledge or to prepare oneself academically. It is to produce holiness and a righteous lifestyle, conforming to God's ways. 

   (2) The teacher must be someone whose life illustrates perseverance in truth, faith and holiness. 1 Timothy 3:1-13. 

We can press on toward the goal - God help us - 

while the corona virus runs its course.

Let there be no shipwrecks among us.

Jimmy

We Have it Bad       
Others Have it BAD!   
    
   Coronavirus has hit hard in Iran and other Middle Eastern states. While they battle the virus, aid workers also protect victims of war and displacement. 

   More than 12 million refugees and other displaced people live in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Turkey. These countries share borders and other ties to Iran, which itself hosts a million refugees.  

  New fighting between Turkey and Syria has forced another million or so from their homes, over half of them children. 
  

Report from Mindy Belz

WORLD magazine  

  

   People living in tents faced subzero temperatures this winter. Small aid groups deliver food to families without cook stoves or heat. Children wear flip-flops. 

   Then came COVID-19. Protections are next to impossible in substandard conditions, while humans are weakened to begin with.

   As if warfare, border closings and government upheaval aren't bad enough, street protests have limited banking in Lebanon and Iraq, two main areas for staging relief work in Syria. Aid workers backpack cash into the region to purchase supplies.

   Lebanon, in serious debt, could default and lose its banking system.

   A team in Syria is using a container-built mobile hospital where surgeons and other medical personnel treat trauma and diseases. Medics are available because their Syrian hospitals have been destroyed. 

   Heart for Lebanon, working among Syrian refugees, handles health, security and safety measures. Workers say they have "an unprecedented opportunity to show the love of Jesus Christ." 

     Jimmy