Author: John Page 11 of 159

Matthew 6:33-34 “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow; for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.”

Ecclesiastes 7:8 “Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.”

This year marks the 50^th anniversary of the Volkswagen Golf, an iconic car that has endured the test of time like its parent company. But nearly a decade ago, Volkswagen was on the ropes for severe ethical violations when it was discovered that they had intentionally designed automobile software to cheat on emissions tests.

In a September 2015 New Republic article, ethicist Edward Queen railed against Volkswagen for its recent “unmistakable malfeasance.” He described their actions in the following way: “This was an intentionally designed and executed violation of the law in both its letter and its spirit. It also was an ethical violation of the highest level.”

Interestingly, Dr. Queen traced the root cause of VW’s scandal back to a business school culture where “far too much of the world’s corporate leadership is driven by moral midgets who have been educated far beyond their capacities for good judgment.” These strong words and the corresponding shameful corporate moral lapses stem from one primary and repeated business school lesson according to Dr. Queen: “the only duty of a corporation is return on investment.” He contended that a focus on short-term greed and an attitude of immediate gratification were to blame for these substantial problems. In Dr. Queen’s mind, this culture had been “drilled into generations of business school graduates” driving “tsunamis of corporate malfeasance.” How shameful!

But wait … is it possible that some Christians today are following the same path? Every time we encourage short-term ministry or personal success without regard to long-term consequences, we are effectively saying “the only duty of our corporation is return on investment.” Every time we praise, reward, or promote those whose immediate accomplishments are magnificent even though they are unsustainable or may actually create long term problems, we are effectively saying “the only duty of our corporation is return on investment.” Every time we promote a myopic vision that seemingly solves immediate problems without due regard to enduring results, we are effectively saying “the only duty of our corporation is return on investment.”

May Christians never be labeled “moral midgets” and may we never play a role in creating “tsunamis of malfeasance.” Encouraging a longer-term perspective that rewards, promotes, and emphasizes sustainable performance and long-term mission success is an important lesson that should be emphasized for all Christians, and with ministry leaders in particular.

PLEASE PRAY FOR AMERICAN CHRISTIANS TO KEEP ETERNAL AND SUSTAINABLE ENDS IN MIND FOR GOD’S GLORY. Those results provide the return on investment that really matters.

Psalm 98:9 “For he cometh to judge the earth: with righteousness shall he judge the world, and the people with equity.”

Psalm 75:7 “But God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another.”

Matthew 18:7-9 “Woe unto the world because of offences! For it must needs be that offences come; but woe to that man by whom the offence cometh! Wherefore if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire. And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire.”

Psalm 19:9 “The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether.”

President Abraham Lincoln delivered his Second Inaugural Address on March 4, 1865, shortly before the end of the Civil War and before his assassination. It was laced with Biblical truths about the righteousness of God’s judgment.

Quoting Matthew 18:7, Lincoln stated: “Woe unto the world because of offences! For it must needs be that offences come; but woe to that man by whom the offence cometh!” Claiming slavery as one of those offenses, he continued on with the following: “ He gives to both North and South this terrible war as the woe due to those by whom the offense came.” The war may “continue until all the wealth piled by the bondsman’s two hundred and fifty years of unrequited toil shall be sunk and until every drop of blood drawn with the lash shall be paid by another drawn with the sword.” With up to 850,000 people dead (over 1 in 4 soldiers who fought) and $170 billion in direct and indirect costs, such a price was indeed paid.

Then President Lincoln ended this section with the second half of Psalm 19:9: “the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether.” In spite of the horrible price of the Civil War, Lincoln acknowledged the righteousness of the costs of God’s judgment.

In today’s society, we elevate offenses towards God, His plan, and His Word. We flaunt unrighteousness and celebrate sin. But God’s word still says “woe to that man by whom the offence cometh!” With whatever price God chooses to exact, His judgments are true and righteous altogether.

PLEASE PRAY FOR AMERICAN CHRISTIANS TO REGAIN OUR SENSITIVITY TO THE EXPECTED RIGHTEOUS PENALTIES OF SIN. Woe to that man who offends a righteous God.

Job 16:15-16 “I have sewed sackcloth upon my skin, and defiled my horn in the dust. My face is foul with weeping, and on my eyelids is the shadow of death”

Job 42:1-3 “Then Job answered the LORD, and said, I know that thou canst do every thing, and that no thought can be withholden from thee. Who is he that hideth counsel without knowledge? therefore have I uttered that I understood not; things too wonderful for me, which I knew not.”

Job 42:10 “And the LORD turned the captivity of Job, when he prayed for his friends: also the LORD gave Job twice as much as he had before.”

Job 42:12 “So the LORD blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning: for he had fourteen thousand sheep, and six thousand camels, and a thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand she asses.”

Job went from the darkest despair in his life to a triumph of success. While at one point, things seemed impossible, God turned them around into a miraculous result. It’s because He can do the impossible!

Job’s challenges are heart-wrenching, but yet relatable. Apart from God, he saw no way out of his daunting predicament. Insurmountable problems were exponentially piling up on top of one another, and man-made solutions were inconceivable. Then, God stepped in and did what only He can do.

Job rightfully recognized that God “canst do every thing.” While Job himself “understood not”, God had “things too wonderful” for his thoughts or imaginations that were waiting in the wings. The results were multiples of what Job had before the costly trials that had taken away so much from him. He can do the same for you and me. He can do the same for our culture and our society. He can do the same for our nation!

PLEASE PRAY FOR AMERICAN CHRISTIANS TO CLING TO THE IMPORTANT MOTIVATIONAL TRUTH THAT OUR GOD CAN DO THE IMPOSSIBLE. May our prayers constantly acknowledge that “Thou canst do every thing!”

Matthew 19:26 “But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.”

Ephesians 3:20-21 “Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.”

Hebrews 12:1-2 “Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us. Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured he cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

Ecclesiastes 3:1 “To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven”

In early October, I announced my candidacy for U.S. Senate, and included some of my thoughts in the following post:

Running the Race

Yesterday, I announced that I was ending my candidacy, and wanted to provide a few thoughts here about the Lord’s leading throughout this journey. This is a sliver of the whole story of God’s magnificence in this endeavor, but I wanted to capture and share these nuggets while they were still fresh in my mind and tender in my heart.

God called me to run this race. In spite of the long odds, I firmly believed that it was possible to win the election. I’m not stopping because I gave up that hope. After all, with Him all things are possible. I ended this portion of the race because I know that the Lord would have me to stop. It was a decision bathed in prayer and informed by wise counsel. As I told people constantly during this journey – we are responsible for the faithfulness, and God is responsible for the results. It is up to us to follow His direction, wherever that leads us, and it is His business to use it in whatever way He sees fit. I did my best to do my part, supported by an amazing team, and I fully trust Him to use it for His purposes that I may never know this side of heaven.

I embraced Hebrews 12:1-2 throughout this journey, with an emphasis on running the race while looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of my faith. We committed to running in the right way, regardless of the outcome. I described it as winning the campaign, something completely in my control. Winning the campaign meant that we would do it with honor and with integrity, while raising the level of the dialogue and inspiring, encouraging, and informing people along the way. We did our best to do so from beginning to end, and I firmly believe that we won the campaign for God’s glory.

It was an amazing journey and a season of my life that provided priceless opportunities to serve our great nation and our matchless Lord. This was not my season to become a United States Senator. But, I expect many more seasons left in my life; all of them are appropriate for faithfulness that is left up to me and results that are left up to God.

PLEASE PRAY FOR AMERICAN CHRISTIANS TO FOLLOW THROUGH WITH FAITHFULNESS IN ALL THE SEASONS OF OUR LIVES. In our own contexts, may we run our races well and win the campaigns that God has assigned us.

Hebrews 11:6 “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.”

Hebrews 11:32-34 “And what shall I more say? For the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets: Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.”

Luke 1:37 “For with God nothing shall be impossible.”

Matthew 19:26 “But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.”

Hebrews 11 is often known as the Hall of Fame of Faith. We see the refrain repeated frequently – “by faith” – followed by a great act that was accomplished by one of God’s choice servants by faith and through faith. Impossible results were unlocked with God and for God. Yet, importantly, the list does not stop at v31 with Rahab. Instead, God’s Word goes on to remind us that the power of faithful service was carried out in the lives of the faithful through acts that would be too lengthy to describe.

We are to be an extension of that list. We are to follow in their footsteps. We are to carry on the legacy of the Hall of Fame of Faith!

In heaven, when time will not limit the telling of the entirety of that list, our stories of faithful impact are to be told alongside of those of Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sara, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses and his parents, Joshua, Israel, and Rahab.

But the impossible only happens by faith!

PLEASE PRAY FOR AMERICAN CHRISTIANS, BY FAITH, TO DO THE IMPOSSIBLE IN A WAY THAT IS FITTING OF THE STORIES OF HEROIC AND MIRACULOUS IMPACT OF HEBREWS 11. May our faith make our legacies worthy of the Hall of Fame of Faith.