Today’s Scripture Reading (April 22, 2017) Jeremiah 28
Maybe the most damaging aspects of our society is the existence of “fake news.” Let me make this clear. Fake news stories are not mistakes in opinion. A good friend of mine used a CNN report on September 11, 2001, and that the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center would not fall after terrorists crashed two planes into them as an example of the fake news that is common on CNN. But that isn’t fake news. At the time, according to the expert opinion available, that is what we believed. It wasn’t until the towers fell that we realized the extent of our error. It was a mistake, not fake news. Fake news is news written from a particular point of view, without facts or masking key elements of the story, in order to elicit a reaction from certain segments of society. No news is objective; I am convinced that objectivity is impossible. But fake news peddles lies in a world where clicks of a mouse can make people an incredible amount of money. I am confident that most major news networks are at least attempting to tell the truth. Fake news doesn’t even bother to try to speak truth.
Have you ever wondered what the truth is? I read an article the other day (written by some experts) that said weight loss is a strictly a calories in and calories out proposition. This idea seems to go against the idea that weight loss is about the time that you eat and the type of foods that you eat. In weight lifting and body building, the traditional way of training is to work different muscle groups one at a time on different days – and yet there is a belief more recently that says, for most of us, our workouts would be better if they more reflected the normal activities of life. That means working multiple muscle groups and at a faster pace than has been traditionally done. So, which idea is right?
We are continually being persuaded of the truth. So called experts try to tell us their version of reality – advertisers try to sell us on the idea that their products will make our lives easier. All of their claims are probably exaggerated – most are simply prophets attempting to get us to trust in lies.
Hananiah had a message for Israel. The message was one of comfort and prosperity. Everything was going to be all right. But while the message was a good one, it wasn’t from God – and it worked against the purposes that God had for his children. God’s plan was about strengthening and teaching his chosen people, as well as blessing the world – and the world included the nation of Babylon.
We have a tendency to bring God down to our level – to make him about our needs and wants. Our definition of a blessed life is something very different from God’s ideas of being blessed. Our idea is often the easy life when we don’t feel the need for God’s help. And God’s idea of blessed is that time when we find ourselves in situations where we are in need of him.
There are a lot of Hananiah’s that surround us every day. They preach a message that is most accurately described as “fake news.” They bring us to a place where we don’t need help from anyone. But you are truly blessed when you wake up in the morning and know that the way the day is going to go – you stand in need of God.
Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Jeremiah 29
No comments:
Post a Comment