[The Mayor]

July 20, 2005

Living Stones

Read:
2 Corinthians 3:1-6

You are an epistle of Christ, . . . written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart. —2 Corinthians 3:3

Bible In One Year: Isaiah 40-42

I've seen a number of recent reports about efforts to remove monuments with the Ten Commandments from public places in the US. It's regrettable, for the monuments celebrate righteousness, and "righteousness exalts a nation" (Proverbs 14:34). I believe that removing these reminders is a reflection of our crumbling moral foundations.

There is one enduring monument to righteousness, however, that cannot be removed: the truth of Christ, written on human hearts by the Spirit of God (2 Corinthians 3:3).

Those who have the law of God written on their hearts love the Lord with all their mind, soul, and strength. They demonstrate this love to the world by showing honor to their parents, faithfulness in their marriage, and integrity in their work. They respect human life and treat all men and women with dignity and honor. They don't speak evil of anyone, no matter how much evil has been done to them. They are content with God and what He has given them, and they want nothing more. These are the outward signs that God's law is alive, written on our hearts "by the Spirit of the living God" (v.3).

You and I are living monuments to His grace. We must stand tall. The world is watching. —David Roper

You're writing a "gospel," a chapter each day,
By the deeds that you do, by the words that you say;
Men read what you write, whether faithless or true,
Say, what is the "gospel" according to you? —Gilbert

God's laws engraved on our hearts can never be removed from the public arena.

FOR FURTHER STUDY
How Do You Live The Christian Life?

[Iris7]

"How do you live the Christian life?"

As for me, I remember Orde Wingate. General Wingate was raised strictly in a Plymouth Brethren family. He knew the Gospels and Psalms mostly by heart.

I remember Douglas MacArthur. A devout Christian man.

Very much I remember La Pucelle, Saint Joan of Arc.

Robert Edward Lee.

---

There was a certain Chaplain, Howell Forgy, aboard the U.S.S. New Orleans during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. He was a Lieutenant (j.g.) on that Sunday morning in December, 1941.

Another Lieutenant who had been in charge of an ammunition line on the USS New Orleans during the attack remembered.

" I heard a voice behind me saying, "Praise the Lord and pass the ammunition". I turned and saw Chaplain Forgy walking toward me along the line of men. He was patting the men on the back and making that remark to cheer them and keep them going. I know it helped me a lot, too", he said.

---

Let us remember Chaplain Howell Forgy.

Let us remember Maximillian Kolbe, Catholic Priest and Saint and Martyr, who died for another at Auschwitz.

Let us remember that the Nazis could have been stopped in their tracks as late as 1936 by being willing to do what was needed. What was needed required bloodshed.

Reflect that a serious attempt to support the Whites (including the Poles) against the Reds in 1919 to 1924 would have stopped the Soviet Union cold.