There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn’t true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true. —Soren Kierkegaard. "…truth is true even if nobody believes it, and falsehood is false even if everybody believes it. That is why truth does not yield to opinion, fashion, numbers, office, or sincerity–it is simply true and that is the end of it" – Os Guinness, Time for Truth, pg.39. “He that takes truth for his guide, and duty for his end, may safely trust to God’s providence to lead him aright.” – Blaise Pascal. "There is but one straight course, and that is to seek truth and pursue it steadily" – George Washington letter to Edmund Randolph — 1795. We live in a “post-truth” world. According to the dictionary, “post-truth” means, “relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief.” Simply put, we now live in a culture that seems to value experience and emotion more than truth. Truth will never go away no matter how hard one might wish. Going beyond the MSM idealogical opinion/bias and their low information tabloid reality show news with a distractional superficial focus on entertainment, sensationalism, emotionalism and activist reporting – this blogs goal is to, in some small way, put a plug in the broken dam of truth and save as many as possible from the consequences—temporal and eternal. "The further a society drifts from truth, the more it will hate those who speak it." – George Orwell “There are two ways to be fooled. One is to believe what isn’t true; the other is to refuse to believe what is true.” ― Soren Kierkegaard
When life feels unstable, we quietly wonder how close help really is.
“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” Psalm 46:1 (ESV)
This verse does not promise a trouble-free life. It speaks of help that is present within trouble. The refuge God provides is not distance from difficulty but support within it. Strength is given where strain is already felt.
Many of us share the fear that help will arrive too late or from too far away.
The psalm teaches us to think differently. God’s help is not delayed by geography or circumstance. It is already present. This does not remove the weight of hardship, but it steadies us within it.
Knowing God as refuge reshapes endurance. We are not left to hold ourselves together. The same God who knows us and remains near also sustains us. Trouble does not change His position toward us.
Christ stands at the center of this promise. He entered suffering rather than avoiding it. In Him, God’s help took on flesh and stayed. Because of Christ, refuge is not a concept but a relationship.
Life continues to bring moments of weakness. The promise here is not escape but presence. We are upheld before we ask and accompanied as we walk through what we did not choose.
This confidence grows quietly. Over time, we learn that help was nearer than we realized.
Today: When a concern surfaces, pause and acknowledge God as your present help before taking any further step.
I have seen another evil under the sun, and it weighs heavily on men: God gives a man wealth, possessions and honor, so that he lacks nothing his heart desires, but God does not enable him to enjoy them, and a stranger enjoys them instead. This is meaningless, a grievous evil.
Ecclesiastes 6:1-2
Immediately, the Searcher recognizes that to have abundance and possessions–all that money can buy–and yet lack the power to enjoy them is a heavy burden to bear. Many people suffer from this. They drive shiny new cars and own the latest electronic equipment in their big luxurious homes. They are trying desperately to enjoy these things, yet their faces have a hollowness about them; their eyes betray an emptiness inside. Observe the jaded lives of those who have everything but cannot enjoy anything they have.
Furthermore, the Searcher says, material wealth and abundance can be frustrating: imagine a stranger enjoying what you cannot enjoy. Can there be anything more frustrating than getting something you always wanted to have and then discovering that it has lost its luster; you no longer enjoy it so you pass it on to somebody else who cannot afford it, and that person enjoys it immensely? That would make one frustrated, even resentful: Why couldn’t I enjoy it? that person would be entitled to ask.
The key to all of this is in the words God does not enable him to enjoy them. That lesson is pounded home to our hearts over and over again throughout this book. Enjoyment does not reside in increased possessions; it is a gift that God must give. If He withholds it, no amount of effort is going to extract enjoyment from things. That is a difficult lesson for some to learn. Enjoyment is a gift of God.
How contrary this is to the spirit of our age! Shouted at us on every side today is the philosophy that we have a right to things. Advertisers hold up some alluring object that they want you to buy and accompany it with a propaganda line that says, in one way or another, You deserve this. That is the spirit of our age. Do we realize that this spirit contradicts the teaching that the Bible sets forth about our relationship to God? How can we have gratitude if we are only getting what we deserve? Gratitude only comes when we feel we do not deserve something, but we get it anyway.
All through the Scriptures we are told that the proper relationship of a believer to God, and that which pleases Him, is to give thanks for everything: Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus (1 Thessalonians 5:18). This book of wisdom exhorts us to receive everything with a grateful heart, realizing that we do not have it coming; it is a gift of God. Even if it is painful for the moment, there is a wise Father who has chosen it for you, and it will yield to you great and rich benefits. You can be grateful for the pain as well as the pleasure; that is the lesson of this book.
Lord. I have tasted the frustration of living for things that in the end do not fill me with joy but deprive me of it. Teach me to live gratefully, even when life is painful, knowing that You are still in charge and working out Your purpose in my life.
Life Application
Experiencing joy certainly pleases us. Faith and obedience based on faith is what pleases God. Have we assimilated where the enabling power to enjoy originates?
1 I have seen another evil under the sun, and it weighs heavily on men: 2 God gives a man wealth, possessions and honor, so that he lacks nothing his heart desires, but God does not enable him to enjoy them, and a stranger enjoys them instead. This is meaningless, a grievous evil.
3 A man may have a hundred children and live many years; yet no matter how long he lives, if he cannot enjoy his prosperity and does not receive proper burial, I say that a stillborn child is better off than he. 4 It comes without meaning, it departs in darkness, and in darkness its name is shrouded. 5 Though it never saw the sun or knew anything, it has more rest than does that man- 6 even if he lives a thousand years twice over but fails to enjoy his prosperity. Do not all go to the same place?
7 All man’s efforts are for his mouth, yet his appetite is never satisfied.
8 What advantage has a wise man over a fool? What does a poor man gain by knowing how to conduct himself before others?
9 Better what the eye sees than the roving of the appetite. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.
10 Whatever exists has already been named, and what man is has been known; no man can contend with one who is stronger than he.
11 The more the words, the less the meaning, and how does that profit anyone?
12 For who knows what is good for a man in life, during the few and meaningless days he passes through like a shadow? Who can tell him what will happen under the sun after he is gone?
We must likewise bewail our many actual transgressions, in thought, word, and deed.
I have sinned, Father, against heaven and before you: Luke 15:18(ESV) All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; Romans 3:23(ESV) for the God in whose hand is my breath and whose are all my ways, I have not honored. Daniel 5:23(ESV)
Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight; Psalm 51:4(ESV) neither have I obeyed the voice of the LORD my God by walking in his laws, which he has set before me, Daniel 9:10(ESV) though they are holy and righteous and good. Romans 7:12(ESV)
Who can discern his errors? Declare me innocent from hidden faults. Psalm 19:12(ESV)
As a well keeps its water fresh, so my heart keeps fresh its evil; Jeremiah 6:7(ESV) and this has been my way from my youth up, that I have not obeyed your voice. Jeremiah 22:21(ESV)
Out of the evil treasure of my heart, I have brought forth much evil. Matthew 12:35(ESV)
We must confess and bewail the workings of pride in us.
I have every reason to be humbled for the pride of my heart; 2 Chronicles 32:26(ESV) for I have thought of myself more highly than I ought to think and have not thought with sober judgment, Romans 12:3(ESV) nor have I walked humbly with my God. Micah 6:8(ESV)
I have sought my own glory more than the glory of him who sent me, John 7:18(ESV) and have been arrogant concerning that for which I should have mourned. 1 Corinthians 5:2(ESV)
Matthew 27:62-64 In this week’s lessons we look at various ways Christ’s enemies opposed Him, but that He rose victoriously on the first day of the week.
Theme
The First Day of the Week
Yesterday, we looked at the first two events that occurred on the first day of the week. Today we mention the other ones.
3. He appeared to the disciples for the first time on that first Easter Sunday and bequeathed to them His great benefit of peace. “Peace I leave with you,” He said. He gave them all of those blessings. They weren’t at peace. They were troubled men. They weren’t rejoicing. They were bothered and were filled with fear. He bestowed peace and gave them a cause of rejoicing.
4. Jesus first broke bread with His disciples on the first day of the week. It happened twice—once on the way to Emmaus where He met with the Emmaus disciples and was recognized by them with the breaking of the bread; and again that same evening back in Jerusalem as He met with the disciples.
5. On the first day of the week Jesus opened the understanding of the disciples to know what the Scriptures taught concerning Him. We see this in Luke 24 with the Emmaus disciples. Jesus took them to the pages of the Word of God, to the Old Testament, and began to show how it was necessary that Christ should suffer all of these things and enter into His glory.
6. On the first day of the week, Jesus commissioned His disciples to the task of world evangelism. He said, “As the Father has sent me, even so send I you.” In Luke He says, “You are witnesses of these things.”
7. On the first day of the week, Jesus breathed on the disciples, imparting to them the Holy Spirit.
8. On the first day of the week, seven weeks after the resurrection, at Pentecost, the Holy Spirit descended from heaven and began His ministry for the entire age of the Christian Church.
9. On the first day of the week, the Holy Spirit directed Paul to gather the believers together and preach to them (Acts 20).
10. The first day of the week was established by Paul as the day on which each believer was to lay aside as God has prospered him. That is, they were to take up offerings for the support of the ministry and the expansion of the Gospel.
11. Finally, on the first day of the week the Lord Jesus Christ appeared to the apostle John on the island of Patmos and revealed to John His heavenly glory. This revelation outlined Christ’s plans concerning the future, the Church age, and the details of His second coming.
You see how significant that day is? You see how important it was in God’s economy? All that we do on Sunday as Christian people is because of those events. We do not do these things on a whim or because it seems that it might be nice to do them. All of our worship—gathering ourselves together, giving attention to the preaching and teaching of the Word, listening to the Scriptures being read, taking an offering, observing communion as we remember Jesus’ sacrifice for us—is based on what the Lord Jesus Christ did and set the pattern for us.
And there’s something else, too. We do it expectantly. We gather for worship at the Lord’s command. And when we gather to worship, we do so knowing that He is not a dead Lord but a risen Lord who is active in the midst of His people through His Holy Spirit doing His works even in our time.
We rejoice in hearing of people becoming Christians, learning of people moving from mere understanding of the facts of the Gospel and going beyond that to saving faith in the one who did what He said He would do and rose triumphant, in order that He might live in His church by His Spirit and draw men and women to Him in this age of God’s grace.
Study Questions
What various events happened on the first day of the week?
How does all this impact our meeting together with God’s people for worship each week?
Application
Application: This week’s devotionals impress upon us the importance of the local church, and that God has blessed each of us with a church family. How does the teaching from this week stimulate you toward a greater degree of love for your brothers and sisters in Christ, and the desire to serve together for God’s glory?
Key Point: We gather for worship at the Lord’s command. And when we gather to worship, we do so knowing that He is not a dead Lord but a risen Lord who is active in the midst of His people through His Holy Spirit doing His works even in our time.
For Further Study: Download for free and listen to James Boice’s message, “Watch Out for the Pharisees.” (Discount will be applied at checkout.)
“Sine dominico non possumus” (“We can’t do without the Lord’s Day”). This was the answer of a group of 49 Christians (31 men and 18 women) who were arrested for participating in a Lord’s Day service. They lived in or around Abitina, a city in today’s Tunisia which was at that time under Rome. It was the year 304, and Emperor Diocletian had launched an empire-wide persecution against Christians, forbidding their meetings, destroying their churches, and demanding them to hand over (tradere) their Scriptures.
Defying the emperor’s orders, this group, led by their presbyter Saturninus, continued to meet secretly for worship in private homes. Discovered and arrested, they were sent to Carthage, about 50 miles away, to be tried by proconsul Gaius Annius Anulinus.
Commenting on this arrest, the author of the Acts of the Abitinian Martyrs[1] – most likely an eye-witness – wrote: “As if a Christian could exist without the Lord’s Day, or the Lord’s Day exist without a Christian celebration! Do you not know, Satan, that the Christian is based on the Lord’s Day, and the Lord’s Day is based on a Christian, so that the one cannot survive without the other? When you hear the phrase ‘Lord’s Day,’ understand that it means the assembly of the Lord. And when you hear the bell ring, recognize that it is the Lord’s Day.”[2]
On their way to Carthage, the Christians encouraged each other by singing hymns. Once there, they unanimously refused to renounce their faith. Imprisoned, they were denied food, while any supporter who tried to bring supplies was sent away. This measure gave way to a small brawl outside the prison.
A Collective Decision
When an eager relative, Fortunatianus, rushed to rescue his sister Victoria by claiming that she and a few other women had been deceived, Victoria rose in protest. She had attended worship of her own free will and with full knowledge of what she was doing, she said. Fortunatianus should have known better. She had previously refused an arranged marriage by escaping through a window.
Moved by this family exchange, Anulinus tried to convince Victoria to listen to her brother. “I am a Christian, and my brothers are those who keep God’s commandments,” she replied. “These are my convictions, and I have never changed them. If I have participated to the Sunday service with my brothers and sisters, it is because I am a Christian.”[3]
Augustine of Hippo, writing a century later, gives a specific date for their trial: February 12, 304. This leads us to think he had seen a copy of the proconsular acts. But the account that has been passed on through the ages includes details that Roman officials did not normally record, particularly the spontaneous cries of the martyrs during torture.
The first person to be tortured was the senator Dativus who, due to his position, was thought to have been an instigator (Fortunatianus had placed the blame on him). While Dativus was being prepared for torture, another Christian, Thelica, stepped forward to clarify that the meeting was a collective decision: “We are Christians. It was we who came together.”
As expected, Thelica was the next to be placed on the rack. While torn apart by iron claws, he alternated prayers for his persecutors with exhortations: “God most high, do not regard these deeds of theirs as sins. … You [persecutors] should do what the Most High God commands. You are being unjust, poor men; you are torturing the innocent. We are nor murderers, we have committed no fraud. … God, have pity on them.”[4]
As most of the other Christians, he prayed for strength. “For your name’s sake, Lord, give me the strength to bear what I have to bear. Deliver your servants from the prison of this world. Thanks be to you. I cannot thank you, God, enough. … It is for the glory of God. I thank God for it, the God of all royal powers. The eternal kingdom is in sight, the kingdom that knows no corruption. Lord Jesus Christ, we are Christians, we are your servants, you are our hope, the hope of Christians. God most holy, God most high, God almighty, we praise you, we praise your name.”
In spite of his prayers, Thelica had a moment of weakness. Under torture, when asked who had organized the meeting, he gave the name of Saturninus. But he hastened to add, “and all of us.”[5]
When Thelica looked as though he was about to die, Anulinus told him: “You would have done better to keep the commandments of the emperors and Caesars.” But Thelica had not lost his determination: “I care for nothing but the law of God that I have learned. That is what I keep; for that I will die; in that I shall be perfected, and there is none beside it.”
He was then taken back to prison and the record stops mentioning about him. But Saturninus was tortured so badly that his bones were visibile. Under excruciating pain, he asked God to move his torturers to end his life. “Listen to me, Christ, I beg you. O God, thanks be to you. Tell them to behead me. I beg you, Christ, have pity on me. Son of God, help me.”[6]
Moved by Saturninus’s cries, another Christian, Emeritus, stepped forward, claiming the blame should fall on him, since the meeting had taken place in his house. The persecutors then tortured Emeritus, while Saturninus was executed. “I have only a short time to suffer,” Emeritus reminded himself. “May I have no cause for shame.”[7]
Most of the other Christians are mentioned just by name. They include Saturninus’s four children. Most of them were grown, but even the youngest, Hilarion, refused any invitation to dissociate from his father and siblings, as he replied, quite simply: “I am a Christian, and I participated in the assembly of my own free will, together with my father and my siblings.”[8] He laughed when the proconsul threatened to cut off his ears and nose.
Today, these martyrs continue to be remembered for their courage and their unswerving conviction that no “Christian could exist without the Lord’s Day.”
[1] The Acts were probably composed by an eyewitness, since some of the martyrs’ cries would not have been recorded in the official government acts. They were later revised, possibly around the time of the Council of Carthage in 411.
[2]Acts of the Abitinian Martyrs, XII, translated from Latin by David Noe.
[8] Acts XVII, quoted in Giuseppe Laiti, “Sine dominico non possum. La singolare testimonianza dei martiri di Abitina”, Esperienza e Teologia 20 (2005), 63, my translation from Italian.
Grief is part of the human experience. It cannot be escaped, and yet people try to conceal their grief with pleasure, mask pain with substances, or avoid it with busyness. But grief will not be denied. C. S. Lewis wrote, “No one ever told me that grief felt so much like fear.” He was reflecting that grief, because it is so uncontrollable, provokes in us a terror of the unknown. We cry out: What is next?Early Christians in Thessalonica faced a grief that required special instruction. Living a few short years after Jesus ascended, they faced the difficulty of watching their loved ones die before Jesus came back. This was disconcerting. They expected to see Jesus return in their lifetime and now faced the realization that their loved ones would not be alive to see Him.Paul answered their grief with truth: “For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him” (v. 14). They did not need to fear or grieve as those who had no hope (v. 13). The dead in Christ are more alive than ever! Their bodies lie in the ground awaiting Christ’s return to be reunited with their souls. And anyone alive at Christ’s return will participate in the experience (v. 17)! Together we will meet the Lord and enjoy His presence forever.Rather than conceal, mask, or avoid their grief, Paul instructs them to be encouraged that both dead and living Christians will be reunited with Christ. While we grieve now, we are not like people who don’t know God and His plan. We grieve with hopeful anticipation of Christ’s return—the joyful reality of being reunited with believers who have died and being “with the Lord forever” (v. 17).
Go Deeper Do you grieve with certain hope? We sometimes forget to turn to the Word of God, to good theology to address our grief. How does Scripture change the way we grieve? Extended Reading:1 Thessalonians 1-5
Pray with Us Loving God, thank You for the encouragement from the book of 1 Thessalonians! Thank You that even in the midst of suffering, we have hope—a sure hope in Christ and in His resurrection.
The Jews then were astonished, saying, “How has this man become learned, having never been educated?” So Jesus answered them and said, “My teaching is not Mine, but His who sent Me. (7:15–16)
As they listened to Jesus’ unequalled teaching, the Jews, as so many had been, were astonished. His mastery of Scripture surely amazed them, as it had earlier to those who heard the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. 7:28–29), those in His hometown of Nazareth (13:54), and those in Capernaum (Mark 1:22). His preaching would even astound the temple police sent to arrest Him (vv. 45–46). It was most likely the indignant and hostile Jewish authorities, who continually felt threatened by Jesus, who led the attack on Him by questioning His credentials. They exclaimed, “How has this man become learned, having never been educated?” (Later, they would be similarly stunned by the powerful preaching of the “uneducated and untrained” Peter and John [Acts 4:13].) Their point was not that Jesus demonstrated ignorance, but that He had received no formal training in the prescribed rabbinic schools. In today’s terms, He had not been to seminary or been ordained by any formal ecclesiastical body. Since they could not refute Jesus’ teaching, they questioned His credentials—challenging His authority to teach because He lacked an authorized education and legitimate right to teach. The implication was that His words should be disregarded as merely the opinion of a self-styled intruder who had no true connection to the established and authoritative fraternity of teachers. The Lord’s reply was direct and devastating. He answered them and said, “My teaching is not Mine, but His who sent Me.” It was true that His knowledge was not derived from any human institution and His teaching opposed that of the teachers in Judaism. But that did not mean that it was merely His own personal opinion, as the authorities implied; in fact, it came directly from God the Father who sent Him. (Jesus was always conscious of having been sent by the Father; cf. vv. 28–29, 33; 3:17; 4:34; 5:24, 30, 36, 37; 6:38–39, 44, 57; 8:16, 18, 26, 29, 42; 9:4; 11:42; 12:44–45, 49; 13:20; 14:24; 15:21; 16:5; 17:8, 18, 21, 23, 25; 20:21; Matt. 10:40; Mark 9:37; Luke 4:18; 10:16.) “When you lift up the Son of Man,” Jesus declared in John 8:28, “then you will know that I am He, and I do nothing on My own initiative, but I speak these things as the Father taught Me.” And in 12:49–50 He added, “For I did not speak on My own initiative, but the Father Himself who sent Me has given Me a commandment as to what to say and what to speak. I know that His commandment is eternal life; therefore the things I speak, I speak just as the Father has told Me” (cf. 8:26, 38, 40; 14:10, 24; 17:8, 14). That Jesus’ teaching was directly and immediately from God was also an indictment of the Jewish leaders. By disagreeing with Him, they revealed that their teaching was not from God (8:47). Since only Jesus has perfect knowledge of the Father (Matt. 11:27; cf. John 10:15), only He could speak directly from Him. The Lord’s teaching, being directly from God, was thus radically different from that of the rabbis, who generally drew their teaching from other rabbis as their source of authority. Matthew records that at the conclusion of the Sermon on the Mount, “the crowds were amazed at His teaching; for He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as their scribes” (Matt. 7:28–29). Jesus was also different from the Old Testament prophets, even though they, like Him, were sent from God and proclaimed His truth. But whereas they said, “Thus says the Lord” (e.g., Isa. 7:7; Jer. 2:2; Ezek. 2:4; Amos 1:3; Obad. 1:1; Mic. 2:3; Nah. 1:12; Hag. 1:2; Zech. 1:3; Mal. 1:4), Jesus authoritatively declared, “I say to you” (e.g., John 5:24; 6:32, 53; 8:51, 58; Matt. 5:18, 20, 22, 28, 32, 34, 39, 44; 6:2, 5; 8:11; 10:15; 11:22, 24; 17:12; 19:9; 21:43; 23:36; Mark 10:15; 11:24; Luke 13:35; 18:17, 29–30).
HIS SURETY
If anyone is willing to do His will, he will know of the teaching, whether it is of God or whether I speak from Myself. (7:17)
Throughout His ministry, Jesus was often asked to perform additional and unnecessary signs to prove His authenticity, as if it were open to honest question (cf. Matt. 16:1; John 2:18). Yet, He consistently denied such requests, because He knew that they came from hard-hearted unbelievers. No matter how many miracles He performed, the Lord understood that such people would refuse to believe. Nonetheless, Jesus promised the person who honestly seeks the truth revealed by God, the one who is willing to do God’s will, that he will know the truth about Christ’s teaching, whether it is of God or whether it is not. The Lord’s challenge to the crowd was simple: If they would humble themselves before God’s Word (wherein His will is revealed) to know and obey it, they would come to a sure realization that His teaching was true. That challenge still stands two millennia later. The assurance promised in this verse is available to all genuine believers. Such confidence comes through the Holy Spirit, who confirms the truth about Christ to the willing heart (1 John 2:20, 27), both internally, through His testimony (1 Cor. 2:10–15; cf. Rom. 8:16), and externally, through manifestations that demonstrate the truth of the gospel (John 3:2; 5:36; 10:38; Acts 2:22). Jesus’ challenge was bold, but it was not without precedent. Similar promises are given throughout the Old Testament. In the book of Deuteronomy, God promised Israel, “You will seek the Lord your God, and you will find Him if you search for Him with all your heart and all your soul” (Deut. 4:29). David counseled Solomon, “As for you, my son Solomon, know the God of your father, and serve Him with a whole heart and a willing mind; for the Lord searches all hearts, and understands every intent of the thoughts. If you seek Him, He will let you find Him; but if you forsake Him, He will reject you forever” (1 Chron. 28:9). In Psalm 119:2 the psalmist wrote, “How blessed are those who observe His testimonies, who seek Him with all their heart.” “You will seek Me and find Me,” God said through the prophet Jeremiah, “when you search for Me with all your heart” (Jer. 29:13). The personification of wisdom in Proverbs 1:20–33 illustrates the clear-cut challenge Jesus made in this verse—one no false messiah would dare make. Those who heed wisdom’s call, who are willing to do God’s will, will receive further knowledge:
Wisdom shouts in the street,
She lifts her voice in the square;
At the head of the noisy streets she cries out;
At the entrance of the gates in the city she utters her sayings:
“How long, O naive ones, will you love being simple-minded?
And scoffers delight themselves in scoffing
And fools hate knowledge?
Turn to my reproof,
Behold, I will pour out my spirit on you;
I will make my words known to you.” (vv. 20–23)
But verses 24–33 reveal the fate of those who harden their hearts and are unwilling to turn to God:
Because I called and you refused,
I stretched out my hand and no one paid attention;
And you neglected all my counsel
And did not want my reproof;
I will also laugh at your calamity;
I will mock when your dread comes,
When your dread comes like a storm
And your calamity comes like a whirlwind,
When distress and anguish come upon you.
Then they will call on me, but I will not answer;
They will seek me diligently but they will not find me,
Because they hated knowledge
And did not choose the fear of the Lord.
They would not accept my counsel,
They spurned all my reproof.
So they shall eat of the fruit of their own way
And be satiated with their own devices.
For the waywardness of the naive will kill them,
And the complacency of fools will destroy them.
But he who listens to me shall live securely
And will be at ease from the dread of evil.
Accepting or rejecting the claims of Jesus Christ is never a purely intellectual decision; there are inescapable moral and spiritual implications that are also involved. Those who willingly seek and obey the truth will find it and will be set free from their slavery to ignorance and sin (John 8:32). But those who reject the truth prove themselves to be children of their “father the devil, [who] want to do the desires of [their] father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him” (v. 44). Unless they repent, they will share his fate.
MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (2006). John 1–11 (pp. 289–292). Moody Press.
Man’s Doctrine, God’s Doctrine
John 7:14–18
Not until halfway through the Feast did Jesus go up to the temple courts and begin to teach. The Jews were amazed and asked, “How did this man get such learning without having studied?” Jesus answered, “My teaching is not my own. It comes from him who sent me. If anyone chooses to do God’s will, he will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own. He who speaks on his own does so to gain honor for himself, but he who works for the honor of the one who sent him is a man of truth; there is nothing false about him.”
We come in this chapter to a second important question raised about the Lord Jesus Christ. The first question, which we looked at in the last study, concerned his person. It was expressed in the form: “Who is he?” In answering that question we saw that Jesus of Nazareth cannot be either a good man, a deceiver, or crazy. Hence, he must be God. The second question concerns his teaching: “Is it true? Can it be trusted?” This question was raised by Christ’s contemporaries. “Not until halfway through the Feast did Jesus go up to the temple courts and begin to teach. The Jews were amazed and asked, ‘How did this man get such learning without having studied?’ Jesus answered, ‘My teaching is not my own. It comes from him who sent me. If anyone chooses to do God’s will, he will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own. He who speaks on his own does so to gain honor for himself, but he who works for the honor of the one who sent him is a man of truth; there is nothing false about him” (7:14–18). We realize from these verses that so long as Jesus was hidden from the crowds, as he was for the first half of the feast, the questions of the people concerned him personally. However, when he suddenly appeared and began to teach, the questions shifted from who he was to what he was saying. These were marvelous teachings. The people had never heard anything like them. They were coming from one who had never received formal training in the rabbinical schools. “Where did he get this teaching?” Hidden within their question was the deeper question as to whether or not anything so radical and new could be trusted. We see the importance of this question when we realize that many persons ask it today when they hear true Christian teaching for the first time.
Not of Human Origin
It is interesting to note how Christ replied, for his reply stressed the enormous gulf that exists between all human teaching and that which is divine in origin. If we had been in this situation, we might have been inclined to stress our own originality, which, in a sense, Jesus himself might have done. However, if he had done that—if he had said that he was self-taught or that he needed no teacher—he would have been discredited at once. For no one in Christ’s age prized originality. The rabbis taught by quoting other rabbis, particularly those who had lived before them. The Jewish Talmud today is composed largely of such rabbinic quotations. So Jesus did not do that. Instead, when he was questioned about it he replied, not by denying the need for external authority but by citing the highest authority of all. “My teaching is not my own,” he said. “It comes from him who sent me.” The tradition out of which Jesus spoke was God’s. This being true, however, it follows that there is an enormous gulf between human traditions and the revelation of God: in other words, between man’s doctrine and God’s doctrine. These are not the same. They are not even variations of the same basic principles. They are opposed. Consequently, in all spiritual things we need revelation. And we need to be suspicious of any teaching that originates in man.
Many Differences
God says, in speaking to men, “My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways” (Isa. 55:8). This is true, and it can be seen by comparing the teaching and views of the world with God’s teaching on all the great spiritual issues. Take the doctrine of God himself. What does the world think about God? Well, the world has differing views. Some of them have been cited by the English writer and Bible translator J. B. Phillips in the book Your God Is Too Small. There is God the Policeman, God the Parental Hangover, the Grand Old Man, God the Managing Director, and so on. If we turn to the books of philosophy, we find definitions that are more carefully constructed but no better. God is the Ideal. He is the Prime Mover. In more modern terms he is the author of the “big bang” that got the expanding universe expanding. Basic to all these ideas, however, is the thought that God is not particularly involved in life now or that, if he is, he is not particularly righteous or fair in the way he goes about it. How different this is from the Christian view. According to the teaching of Jesus Christ, God is the holy and sovereign God of all eternity and all history. He planned the world from before its creation. He brought each thing into being according to a perfect plan. He sustains life now and guides history. He came in the person of his Son to redeem a fallen humanity. He constantly intervenes to save men and women as an expression of his grace. Moreover, he will one day conduct a righteous and final judgment. We may also see the difference between the views of human beings and the truth of God in regard to the doctrine of Scripture. What is the Bible? Many will answer that the Bible is a record of man’s seeking after God and of his views about God—if indeed they do not say something worse. But God tells us that the Bible is his word about man and to man in his lost condition. Is the Bible human in origin? If so, it is dispensable. Is it divine? If that is the case, it is the only sure foundation for us in a faltering universe. Unfortunately, even Christians sometimes get off the track on Scripture. This is true of enthusiasts, for instance—those who feel that fervor is the important thing and that teachings do not matter. But they do matter. Those who think this way are a bit like a couple who bought a house shortly after World War II. Houses were not being built too well in those days, but this couple finally thought that they had found a good one. Besides, they noted, it had a fireplace. That was a rare thing in a new home then. The first night in the house was a chilly and windy night, so the husband decided to build a fire in the fireplace. He did, and they watched it burn. Suddenly the fire dropped through the floor into the basement, and when they examined the fireplace they discovered that it had no base. There was nothing for the fire to rest upon except the floor. There is similar waste and uselessness for anyone who attempts to kindle the fires of religious enthusiasm on any other base than the firm teachings and principles of the Word of God. Man’s doctrine and God’s doctrine also differ where man himself is concerned. Man’s doctrine rates man by man’s standards, and by man’s standard he is not too bad. At any rate, most people are not too bad, and almost everyone can take comfort from the fact that he is better than someone else in something. If we were to express morality in inches, we would all acknowledge that there are Wilt Chamberlains as well as midgets, and take courage from the fact that we are (at least in our own opinion) somewhat above the average. But God does not look at man from man’s perspective. He looks from his perspective, and from that point of view all persons fall woefully short of his requirements. To return to the illustration of physical height, it is as though God were looking down on us from the top of the Empire State Building in New York. Down on Thirty-eighth Street people might be four, five, or six feet tall and that might seem important. But from God’s perspective they all seem like midgets. The Bible says, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23). If you doubt God’s verdict upon you and question his evaluation of your character, you need to present your case before the bar of Scripture. Study the law. I am convinced that if you do you will accept yourself after the examination as being far more sinful than you previously imagined. Sometime ago a San Francisco policeman stopped a car for having a noisy muffler. He found that it was not registered. When he called up the warrants bureau he found that there were fifty-nine parking violations registered against the car and that the total charges were $1,217. Finally, he also learned that the driver was the son of Joseph Alioto, the mayor of the city. When word of the unpaid tickets reached the mayor he exploded, but he also ordered a check on the rest of his family. Imagine his surprise when he learned that eight different Aliotos—including the mayor himself, his wife, and four of his sons—owed $422 on twenty-two separate violations. He paid them. In the same way the law exposes our sin and teaches us our true standing before God. The differences between human opinions concerning the Lord Jesus Christ and the Father’s teaching about him are another example. The present chapter of John’s Gospel is full of such human opinions. We find some calling Jesus “a good man” (v. 12). This is the most impossible view of all. Some called Christ a “deceiver” (v. 12). Others were willing to call him a “prophet” (v. 40). Some said he was possessed by a demon, another way of saying that he was crazy (v. 20). Some felt that he was very courageous (v. 26) and that he was what we would call a “spellbinder” (v. 46). The truth of the matter is that Jesus is God. We turn to the death of Jesus Christ, and we find the same variation. Some say that the cross was a tragedy; others, an example of brave suffering. The Bible teaches that the cross was the place of vicarious sacrifice, that Jesus died there for sinful men, and that from before the foundation of the world this great sacrifice was planned as the means by which God would save those whom he had previously determined to save. You say, “But that is hard to understand and accept.” You are right, and that is the whole point. These things are hard to understand and accept. But for that reason God has taken time to explain them. It is why, in the case of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, God the Father began to teach about it back in Old Testament times. The Jewish people were no more prone to accept the idea of vicarious sacrifice than we are. But God used the animal sacrifices, which he established and regulated, to teach that one day the perfect Lamb, his Son, would come and die for the sin of the world. Finally, we think of judgment, and we find that men scoff at it. “The only hell we shall ever know is the hell we make for ourselves on this earth,” they argue. But the Bible says, “In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead” (Acts 17:30–31). Can you dismiss this doctrine? Must you not rather receive it as the teaching of Christ and of the whole Word of God?
No Satisfaction
The tremendous difference that exists between man’s doctrine and God’s doctrine leads to a few conclusions. First, it is only God’s doctrine that satisfies. There is no comfort in the speculations of men, at least not in the moments of crisis. If we can be shaken, that which is the product of our minds or hands can be shaken also. The story is told of a Roman Catholic sculptor who lived in Europe years ago. He was dying, and so was visited by his priest. The priest talked to him and then, seeing how ill he was, prepared to give him final unction. “You are dying,” he said. He held up a beautiful crucifix. “Look upon your God, who died for you.” The sculptor looked and then cried out, “Alas for me; I made it.” There is no satisfaction in that which is the fruit of our own hands. Human theories will not satisfy in the hour of death. Only divine truth will stabilize.
Satisfaction
The second conclusion is that we can be sure of God’s doctrine even though it is strange to us. How? Jesus told how in these verses, showing that the key is to be found in a willingness to obey God and follow in the direction that true doctrine leads, even before we know what it is. He said, “If anyone chooses to do God’s will, he will find out whether my teaching is from God or whether I speak on my own” (v. 17). God does not give assurance in spiritual things merely to satisfy curiosity. He does not teach divine truth to those who will not live by it. However, if a man determines in advance that he will live by it—that he is serious with God—then God will disclose the truths of his Word to him. In particular, he will disclose the truth concerning the Lord Jesus Christ to those who determine that they will follow him. Harry Ironside tells of a young man who did that. He was a cowboy out in Arizona, and he had gotten away from God. For years he had ridiculed and rejected the Bible. But at last, when he was under deep conviction of sin, someone said, “Why don’t you just go to God yourself and ask him to make it clear to you?” He took these words to heart. One night by the side of his bed he knelt and prayed, “O God, if there is a God and if you can look down on a poor lost sinner like me and if you can hear my prayer, if Jesus Christ is your Son, reveal this to me; for if you do, I promise that I will serve you for the rest of my days.” The cowboy then began to search the Bible. Afterward he said that, although he could not explain it, a change took place and within three days he knew beyond a doubt that the Lord Jesus Christ was indeed the Son of God and his Savior. This man became a faithful servant of the Lord for many years, until God finally took him home to heaven. If you say, “But I can’t believe the Bible,” I will tell you why you cannot. You have not yet determined to go the way God’s truth leads. However, once you determine to go God’s way, you will know these things are true. What will it be for you—God’s doctrine or the doctrines of human beings? Will it be truth or error? Make truth your guest. God’s truth is the best of all guests. Entertain it, and it will bless you as Abraham was blessed by the visiting angels.
Boice, J. M. (2005). The Gospel of John: an expositional commentary (pp. 559–564). Baker Books.
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)
Of all the stars in the sky, the polestar is the most useful to the mariner. This text is a polestar, for it has guided more souls to salvation than any other Scripture. It is among promises what the Great Bear is among constellations.
Several words in it shine with peculiar brilliance. Here we have God’s love with a “so” to it, which marks its measureless greatness. Then we have God’s gift in all its freeness and greatness. This also is God’s Son, that unique and priceless gift of a love which could never fully show itself till heaven’s Only-begotten had been sent to live and die for men. These three points are full of light.
Then there is the simple requirement of believing, which graciously points to a way of salvation suitable for guilty men. This is backed by a wide description—”whosoever believeth in him.” Many have found room in “whosoever” who would have felt themselves shut out by a narrower word. Then comes the great promise, that believers in Jesus shall not perish but have everlasting life. This is cheering to every man who feels that he is ready to perish and that he cannot save himself. We believe in the Lord Jesus, and we have eternal life.
One of the biggest myths about mental health that I encounter among Christians is that God doesn’t care about mental health issues. Perhaps this myth has continued because the church has been so silent that most people assume it’s true.
But God does care.
Of course he does, because he cares about you.
God cares about mental health issues, which may be why they show up so much in the Bible, especially in the book of Psalms.
The Psalms: Songs of Praise and Despair
The psalms make up the biggest book of the Bible and are the prayers and songs of God’s people. Some have themes of praise and thanksgiving. They make for some of our favorite verses in the Bible. I’m sure you’ve seen delicate, decorative coffee mugs with inspiring verses from Psalms on them in beautiful fonts.
May he give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed. —Psalm 20:4 (NIV)
The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. —Psalm 23:1 (NIV)
I keep my eyes always on the Lord. With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken. —Psalm 16:8 (NIV)
But even more psalms describe feelings of anguish, anxiety, anger, despondency, and depression. We see God’s people expressing their despair. Yet you will never see any of these verses on coffee mugs.
I sink in the miry depths, where there is no foothold. I have come into the deep waters; the floods engulf me. I am worn out calling for help; my throat is parched. —Psalm 69:2–3 (NIV)
How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and day after day have sorrow in my heart? —Psalm 13:1–2
Strike all my enemies on the jaw; break the teeth of the wicked. —Psalm 3:7 (NIV)
I have no refuge; no one cares for my life. —Psalm 142:4 (NIV)
You find these (and other) difficult and despondent expressions of misery, fear, and anger throughout the Psalms. But I want to show you one that is almost never highlighted.
Psalm 88: ‘An Embarrassment to Conventional Faith’?
Psalm 88 has been called “an embarrassment to conventional faith,”1 likely because it challenges the neat, tidy narratives that suggest everything will be okay if one just trusts God. It starts out, “For the director of music.” (Remember that phrase.) This is a song God’s people sang to him in their worship gatherings and was popular enough to make it into their songbook of the Psalms.
The songwriter of Psalm 88 was a guy named Heman. If you’re a certain age, you may remember a cartoon character named He-Man, whose girlfriend was She-Ra, both of whom were very muscular and neither of whom were very modest in how they dressed. To be clear: He-Man did not write Psalm 88, Heman did.
Here’s what we know about Heman from the Bible. He was:
Recognized for being a great parent because he had exceptional children (1 Chron. 25:5–6)
Respected for his faithful service to the king (1 Chron. 25:6)
What are we saying? Heman was a good dude whom everyone looked up to. He had been appointed and was respected as a worship leader of God’s people.
So let’s check out this song he wrote, which the Israelites sang together in their worship gatherings.
I am overwhelmed with troubles and my life draws near to death. I am counted among those who go down to the pit; I am like one without strength. I am set apart with the dead, like the slain who lie in the grave, whom you remember no more, who are cut off from your care. You have put me in the lowest pit, in the darkest depths. Your wrath lies heavily on me. —Psalm 88:3–7 (NIV)
Wow. Tell us how you really feel, Heman.
When reading a Christian book or article, sometimes it’s tempting to skip over the Bible verses. You may have already read the Bible today, and after all, you’ve heard it all before, right?
Can I encourage you to read those verses again? Because I’m guessing you haven’t heard Psalm 88 read or preached in church.
If you keep reading, you’ll find more of the same. And the tone does not change. It does not get encouraging.
Heman ends with these words:
Why, Lord, do you reject me and hide your face from me? From my youth I have suffered and been close to death; I have borne your terrors and am in despair. Your wrath has swept over me; your terrors have destroyed me. All day long they surround me like a flood; they have completely engulfed me. You have taken from me friend and neighbor— darkness is my closest friend. —Psalm 88:14–18 (NIV)
That’s it. A dark, disturbing prayer with no positive ending and no hint of hope from a renowned, respected man of God.
And remember, this is a worship song the people sang together. Picture them belting out, “You have put me in the lowest pit, in the darkest depths. Your wrath lies heavily on me! Why, Lord, do you reject me and hide your face from me?” A worship song like that today might have the lyrics, “My life sucks. No, really, it’s the worst. My only friend is darkness. I blame it all on you, God. I don’t know if I can believe in you anymore.”
What Does It Mean That This Psalm Was Inspired by God?
Here’s something else to remember: Psalm 88 was inspired by God.
But it’s important we know that even beyond merely caring about our pain, God understands what we are going through.
You might doubt that. In your more honest moments, you might pray pain-filled prayers like, “God, you don’t get it. You don’t know what I’m going through. You can’t understand what it’s like to be me.”
But he does.
God Understands Your Pain
I said earlier that we struggle like we do because we are human. Because of his love for us, God chose to become one of us and live a human life to go to the cross, where he took our sins. But he also became human so he could understand. We are encouraged about Jesus, our high priest, in Hebrews 4:15–16 (NIV): “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are — yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”
Jesus went through the same kinds of things we go through, and he understood emotions. Some Bible scholars estimate that in the Gospels, we see Jesus experiencing thirty-nine different emotions.2 We see Jesus deal with frustration, fear, disgust, distress, empathy, joy, anxiety, and anger.
What does all that mean? God understands your pain and he’s inviting you to come close. This verse says you can approach him, with confidence, to receive his mercy. He wants you to come close because he loves you and because he can help.
According to Hebrews, that’s another benefit to us of Jesus’ having lived a human life. “Therefore, it was necessary for him to be made in every respect like us, his brothers and sisters. … Since he himself has gone through suffering and testing, he is able to help us when we are being tested” (Heb. 2:17–18 NLT).
God can help you with your mental and emotional issues. That’s one of the reasons he sent Jesus.
In Heal Your Hurting Mind, pastor and New York Times bestselling author Craig Groeschel opens up about his most personal journey yet — one shaped by deep emotional pain and raw honesty. With vulnerability and hope, Craig shares his story while guiding readers through a transformative path of healing, growth, and lasting change.
You don’t have to keep living under the weight of mental and emotional pain. God longs to bring healing and relief to your life. Break free from what’s been holding you back, and let Heal Your Hurting Mind show you how.
Footnotes
Walter Brueggemann, The Message of the Psalms: A Theological Commentary (Minneapolis: Augsburg, 1984), 78. ︎
I reflect on God’s love with His righteous wrath, using Daniel’s compassion toward Nebuchadnezzar. The essay argues that the Gospel begins with wrath against sin and ends with redeeming love, urging believers to love enemies while warning that repentance is essential for salvation.
We just passed the Christmas season a bit ago. The Christmas season is one where we call for peace on earth and goodwill to men. It is the season of love and joy and harmony. We pray and hope that we display the best qualities of these things to one and all throughout the year and not just those weeks in December.
Do we realize just what a radical love Jesus has called us to?
We think of the sweet babe in swaddling clothes, the still night broken by heavenly glory lighting the fields, angel choruses, and the grace of God. And it is, but these thoughts and visions in our mind are or should be counterbalanced by the reason for them: His wrath.
The reason He sent Jesus is to rescue us…from His wrath.
I’d like to contrast Godly love with Godly wrath in the lives of two Bible people: Daniel and Nebuchadnezzar. Daniel was taken as a captive away from his homeland as a youth or early teenager. He was trained and put to work in Nebuchadnezzar’s court. He was threatened with death, his three closest friends were thrown into a fiery furnace, and he had to serve a pagan king with all its godless disgusting practices around him every minute. Yet, Daniel was compassionate and he loved Nebuchadnezzar as God would want us to love our enemies.
When it came time for Daniel to reveal the interpretation of a particularly fearsome dream to the king, Daniel gave a disclaimer first. Here is the scene:
“Then Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, was dismayed for a while, and his thoughts alarmed him. The king answered and said, “Belteshazzar, let not the dream or the interpretation alarm you.” Belteshazzar answered and said, “My lord, may the dream be for those who hate you and its interpretation for your enemies!” (Daniel 4:19).
Daniel knew that the dream meant God was going to cut Nebuchadnezzar down like a tree and make him go insane for seven years. The king was going to be crawling around on all fours eating grass like an animal. Daniel’s level of compassion was such that not one ounce of chortling, glee, or gloating came over him. He was troubled, dismayed, and didn’t even want to tell the king because he did not want the king to be troubled himself.
How many times do we get a bit of news where someone else was going to be cut down to size, and we cannot wait to share it? If it is an enemy all the better. Yet Daniel was compassionate toward the king, who was holding him captive and at any time could take his life for any reason or for no reason. THAT is Godly love.
Now the wrath. Why did God cut Nebuchadnezzar down and make him go insane for seven years? At the end of the interpretation, Daniel said to the king, “O king, let my counsel be acceptable to you: break off your sins by practicing righteousness, and your iniquities by showing mercy to the oppressed,”
God’s wrath always comes because of unrepentant sin. Romans 1:18 says, “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.”
Is wrath of God too much for your mind to contemplate? It is a fearsome thing, but does it trouble you because you wrongly believe “My God would never be this angry, He is a God of love!”
Yet, “This is how Paul begins the message of the Good News of Jesus Christ:he wrath of God is revealed against all ungodliness,” as John MacArthur said. (source)
The good news begins with wrath. It ends with love.
MacArthur again, “Our Lord had more to say about judgment, more to say about destruction, more to say about damnation, and more to say about hell than anybody else recorded in Scripture. And if you think it unusual that this great epistle on the doctrine of salvation opens with this statement about judgment it’s because you really haven’t thought very long about how the whole New Testament opens.”
Daniel’s radical love of Nebuchadnezzar was Godly because God loves the sinner. His grace saves the repentant sinner and when we convert, we remember His love and the fact that there but for the grace of God go I. So Daniel loved even his enemy, and wanted the best for him. And what a glorious thing that was, because in each chapter Nebuchadnezzar the king gets closer to the dramatic moment when finally, finally, he converts.
Note that when Daniel shared the news about God Daniel did not say, “God loves you and has a great plan for your life.” He urged the king to stop sinning. Eventually Nebuchadnezzar did:
“Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, for all his works are right and his ways are just; and those who walk in pride he is able to humble.” (Daniel 4:37).
And the second part of Daniel’s message was the multiplying part- stop sinning and show mercy to those who are.
Wow. That is what Godly love does. It multiplies, and we continue in that love because we remember His wrath. We love because He first loved us, (1 John 4:19), but we remember that sin brings wrath. The whole story must include those two bookends- wrath and love.
“Vengeance is mine, and recompense, for the time when their foot shall slip; for the day of their calamity is at hand, and their doom comes swiftly.” (Deuteronomy 32:35).
The Lord will punish the sins of His people in due time. His wrath will be unleashed but He sent Jesus as the love offering and rescue from that wrath. How can any part of the Good News omit that?
The effect of the entire Gospel story is one of multiplying miracles. Leave off the wrath and you only have a smarmy story of an invisible God who saves us for some reason. Don’t leave off the reason.
The universe is an incredibly complex, finely tuned environment—so precise that carbon-based life like ours can exist at all. This point isn’t just made by those who believe in God; it’s widely recognized, even by critics and naturalists who try to account for the remarkable, razor-edge calibration of cosmological constants like the weak and strong nuclear forces, as well as electromagnetism. These are set within the narrowest tolerances. Just a slight deviation, and our universe would not be capable of sustaining life—yet, here we are. That’s the first clue in this cosmic mystery: both skeptics and believers perceive the striking appearance of design, but their explanations differ.
As a detective, I am trained to notice subtleties that others might overlook. In every crime scene, there’s a question lurking beneath the surface details: why did things end up this way? The universe presents a similar challenge. The laws that govern it could have taken countless forms; theorists have shown that the universe could have been quite different, yet the particulars are arranged “just so.” The fundamental forces of nature dance in perfect harmony. The upshot is clear: If things were any different, life would not emerge. That’s not a conclusion forced by physical necessity—it’s almost a clue left behind by a fine-tuner.
So, how do we make sense of this? One way is, indeed, to see the fine tuning as evidence for a Fine Tuner. The best, most reasonable explanation is that an intelligent cause stands behind the precision we observe. But of course, alternative theories have been proposed. Some suggest the multiverse—an infinite sea of universes, each with its own settings for the physical laws. On this view, ours is simply the lucky one in which all the dials happened to be set “just right.” But let’s examine that claim forensically. If there are infinite universes and only a tiny fraction are finely tuned for life, that fraction quickly balloons—anything that can happen will happen, and not just once but infinitely. There’s even a universe where Elvis is still alive! That’s how wild multiverse speculation becomes when actually followed to its logical end.
If there are infinite universes and only a tiny fraction are finely tuned for life, that fraction quickly balloons—anything that can happen will happen, and not just once but infinitely. Share on X
Other skeptics resort to what’s known as the “observer effect.” They’ll say, “Of course things look tuned to life—otherwise you wouldn’t be here to notice.” You just happen to exist in a universe that permits your existence, and so aren’t surprised by the tuning. But as a detective, I recognize that calling something “unsurprising” doesn’t mean it isn’t suspicious. At a crime scene, if people die from poisonous gas, the fact that there’s a gas leak doesn’t eliminate the need to ask why the leak exists in the first place. It’s not enough to shrug and say, “That’s just how things are when people die from gas.” One must press deeper and ask, “How did this situation come to be?” The story lies in the cause, not just the observation.
That’s why, when it comes to the universe, we must ask not just how we can observe such fine tuning, but why it exists in the first place. If multiple universes, or all manners of physical law, are possible, why do we find ourselves in one so exquisitely patterned for life? It’s in the deliberateness—the apparent intentionality—where the true mystery resides. As an investigator, I’m compelled to look for clues, for reasonable explanations, and I believe the most compelling cue is the evidence of a deliberate Designer. The existence of order, purpose, and life isn’t just a matter of chance observation. It’s a calling card—an invitation to dig deeper and consider that behind the tuning stands a mind.
And so, I close as I began: the universe’s extraordinary specificity demands investigation. It’s not simply a backdrop for life; it’s evidence. We owe it to ourselves to ask the deeper questions—not to settle for convenient or evasive answers, but to recognize the clues and pursue the truth to its logical end. For me, all the evidence points toward a purposeful beginning—a universe designed with intention and care, crafted for discovery, relationship, and meaning. That is the real story written in the stars, and it’s one worth exploring, wherever the facts may lead.
Unto thee will I cry, O Lord my rock; be not silent to me: lest, if thou be silent to me, I become like them that go down into the pit.
Hear the voice of my supplications, when I cry unto thee, when I lift up my hands toward thy holy oracle.
Draw me not away with the wicked, and with the workers of iniquity, which speak peace to their neighbours, but mischief is in their hearts.
Give them according to their deeds, and according to the wickedness of their endeavours: give them after the work of their hands; render to them their desert.
Because they regard not the works of the Lord, nor the operation of his hands, he shall destroy them, and not build them up.
Blessed be the Lord, because he hath heard the voice of my supplications.
The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him.
The Lord is their strength, and he is the saving strength of his anointed.
Save thy people, and bless thine inheritance: feed them also, and lift them up for ever.
5:19 gift of God. The ability to enjoy earthly labor comes not from stoic human strength, but from God-given grace, granted to rich and poor (v. 12) alike.
Sproul, R. C., ed. (2005). The Reformation Study Bible: English Standard Version (p. 929). Ligonier Ministries.
5:19 he also empowers him to enjoy them God does not simply give away wealth and possessions; instead, He gives the ability to enjoy them and be satisfied. Wealth alone is not fulfilling (vv. 10–12; 4:7–8; 6:2, 7).
accept his lot, and to rejoice in the fruit of his toil The ability to accept and enjoy what God gives is a recurring theme in Ecclesiastes. Since their lives are in God’s hand (9:1) and human wisdom is limited (8:16–17), people should be satisfied with God’s provision—whether good or bad (7:14).
Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., Whitehead, M. M., Grigoni, M. R., & Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife Study Bible (Ec 5:19). Lexham Press.
5:19 — As for every man to whom God has given riches and wealth, and given him power to eat of it, to receive his heritage and rejoice in his labor—this is the gift of God. God allows certain amounts of wealth and possessions to come into our hands so that we might use them to bless others. We are to be a funnel for God’s blessings, not a container in which to hoard them.
Stanley, C. F. (2005). The Charles F. Stanley life principles Bible: New King James Version (Ec 5:19). Nelson Bibles.
Wealth in a secular context (for the word God is absent throughout 5:8–17) may lead to misery. But not all wealth is thereby condemned. The possibility is held out of wealth combined with power to enjoy it. Secular-minded men may assume the two invariably go together; the Preacher regards them as distinct. The secret of such a life is God’s will, for all depends on whether God gives the wealth and the power of enjoyment. On man’s side it depends on acceptance of the style of life God apportions, and awareness of the God-given nature of all wealth. The Hebrew (‘God … makes a master/gives mastery in order to enjoy …’) suggests that a man must be in control of his attitude to wealth rather than his attitude to wealth in control of him (cf. Phil. 4:12).
Eaton, M. A. (1983). Ecclesiastes: An introduction and commentary (Vol. 18, p. 119). InterVarsity Press.
Ver. 19.—Every man also. The sentence is anacoluthic, like Ch. 3:13, and may best be rendered, Also for every man to whom … this is a gift of God. Ginsburg connects the verse closely with the preceding one, supplying, “I have also seen that a man,” etc. Whichever way we take the sentence, it comes to the same thing, implying man’s absolute dependence upon God’s bounty. To whom God hath given riches and wealth. Before he can enjoy his possessions a man must first receive them from God’s hands. The two terms here used are not quite synonymous. While the former word, osher, is used for wealth of any kind whatever, the latter, nekasim, means properly “wealth in cattle,” like the Latin pecunia, and thence used generally for riches (volek). Hath given him power to eat thereof. Abundance is useless without the power to enjoy it. This is the gift of God, a great and special bounty from a loving and gracious God. Thus Horace, ‘Epist.,’ i. 4. 7—
“Di tibi divitias dederunt artemque fruendi.”
“The gods have given you wealth, and (what is more)
Have given you wisdom to enjoy your store.”
(Howes.)
Spence-Jones, H. D. M., ed. (1909). Ecclesiastes (p. 118). Funk & Wagnalls Company.
Inflation rate slows: The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released the latest inflation numbers this morning, showing that prices rose at a 2.4% annual rate in January compared with the year prior. The good news is that the inflation came in lower than economists had anticipated, though, unfortunately, it remains stubbornly above the Federal Reserve’s 2% target. In January, certain food items saw price increases, led by coffee, which rose 18% from last year, followed by beef, which rose 17%. Overall, grocery prices increased by 2.9% from the year prior.
Another partial government shutdown expected: Democrats are defunding ICE! Or so they think. In fact, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act secured funding for ICE. A spokesman for Senate Majority Leader John Thune explained, “It seems like Dems are defining ‘progress’ as ‘agree to all of our demands.’” Democrat demands for DHS are quite reasonable, explains the Leftmedia, echoing Senate Democrat Leader Chuck Schumer. All they want is for ICE agents to remove their masks — opening them up for targeted harassment from masked protesters — for agents to wear bodycams, which is in progress, and for ICE to be barred from a litany of locations full of illegals like “medical facilities” and “childcare facilities.” Since Democrats won’t accept anything short of ending immigration enforcement, a bill is unlikely to pass before funding lapses on Friday night, leading to a partial shutdown.
Making Obama a poster boy for voter ID: In an effort to hoodwink Americans into believing the lie that voter ID laws are “racist,” Democrats called on Barack Obama to pitch their public opposition to the Republicans’ SAVE Act, which would require an ID to vote. On Wednesday, Obama posted on X, “Republicans are still trying to pass the SAVE Act — a bill that would make it harder to vote and disenfranchise millions of Americans.” He urged voters to tell lawmakers to vote against the bill. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt responded, “You know how badly the Democrats are panicking when they bring out Obama to spread lies about voter ID. The fact is that nearly 90% of voters support.” To expose the Democrats’ hypocrisy, she posted an image of Obama from 2012, where he is showing a driver’s license at a polling station prior to casting his vote.
Judge Boasberg placates TDA: U.S. District Judge James Boasberg isn’t content with letting one wife-beating MS-13 gang member back on the streets; now he wants to import and unleash 137 more gangsters. For some reason, the phrase “enemy of the people” springs to mind. Boasberg actually cited his own importation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia from this same El Salvadoran prison as precedent for his decision. He has ordered the federal government to submit a status report by March 13. The Department of Justice is expected to appeal this decision, as it has nearly every decision by this activist judge.
Self-deportations rise: In 2025, 28% of completed immigration removal cases among detainees ended in voluntary departure, a new record. That number rose to 38% in December. Just 30% of rulings on a bond for release went in favor of illegal immigrants, down from 59% in 2024. From 2022 to 2024, over half of asylum requests were granted each month, but that has since plummeted to 29%. The Leftmedia, of course, is desperate to spin these facts as a bad thing, so they intermix actual reporting on these numbers with a sob story about an illegal who was denied asylum under Barack Obama giving up hope and voluntarily self-deporting last year. CBS explained that her family lost their asylum case over a decade ago, yet she thought she was abiding by the law and was shocked to be detained as an illegal immigrant.
Stop auto start/stop: One of the most hated elements included on automobiles over the last decade is the auto stop/start “feature.” Thankfully, this week, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced, “As I traveled across all 50 states this past year, I heard from countless Americans who not only dislike the start-stop feature but passionately advocated for this mechanism to be a thing of the past. Not only do many people find start-stop annoying, but it kills the battery of your car without any significant benefit to the environment. The Trump EPA is proudly fixing this stupid feature at Trump Speed.” This is part of the EPA’s repealing of the Obama-era “endangerment” finding, which the EPA claimed gave it authority to regulate non-pollutant greenhouse gas emissions.
Gallup nixes presidential approval: Gallup has announced it will stop tracking presidential approval ratings, more than 80 years since it began doing so. The polling giant explained that it remains committed to “long-term, methodologically sound research” and that the change represents “an evolution” in its research practices. Vagaries aside, there is no clear reason for the company to end what many considered the gold standard of presidential approval measurements.
FTC warns Apple against suppressing conservative news: Following the Federal Trade Commission’s “comprehensive review” of Apple Inc.‘s Apple News app, FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson sent a letter to the tech company’s CEO, Tim Cook, warning him “to take corrective actions swiftly” as the company looked to be in violation of the FTC Act. The FTC’s review found that Apple News “has systematically promoted news articles from left-wing news outlets and suppressed news articles from more conservative publications.” Of 620 top stories featured on the app in January, “not a single one was from a right-leaning media outlet.” Those media outlets Apple News favored included The Washington Post, NBC News, Associated Press, The New York Times, NPR, Politico, and USA Today. In the letter, Ferguson also observed that, “based on the perceived ideological or political viewpoint of the article or publication,” Apple was likely violating its own terms of service.
Canada proposes expanding MAiD to newborns: Unsurprisingly, Canada’s government-run medical system has embraced eugenics. A decade ago, Canada introduced its Medical Assistance in Dying program as a “humanitarian” way for those with terminal illnesses to end their suffering by killing themselves. Over the years, it was expanded to veterans, the mentally ill, teenagers, and the poor. Hurtling down the slippery slope, the Canadians are now looking at extending the program to disabled newborns. The Quebec College of Physicians recently said that “medical assistance in dying may be an appropriate treatment for babies suffering from extreme pain” and that “parents should have the opportunity to obtain this care for their infant.” Killing is not “care.” When you have a socialized healthcare system, it becomes more about what the government can afford and less about the value of human life.
Headlines
U.S. smuggled thousands of Starlink terminals into Iran after protest crackdown (WSJ)
Washington, DC, has spilled 250 millions gallons of raw sewage into the Potomac (Not the Bee)
Two Pakistani nationals indicted in $10 million Medicare fraud scheme (Washington Examiner)
Nicki Minaj urges fans to call on senators to pass SAVE Act (Washington Times)
The Executive News Summary is compiled daily by Jordan Candler, Thomas Gallatin, Sterling Henry, and Sophie Starkova. For the archive, click here.
It’s 2026, and Democrats are still the party of masking. Now, of course, they oppose masking because U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers often wear masks in the field. From 2020 to 2022, Democrats loved masks so much that Anthony Fauci told everyone to wear two. Well, after he said there was no reason to wear them. Democrats were also the party of the masked KKK, and they still are the party of masked antifa goons.
In other words, Democrats are just as hypocritical and inconsistent as ever.
Senate Democrats just torpedoed a full-year funding bill for the Department of Homeland Security, which includes ICE, meaning we’re headed for another partial government shutdown tonight at midnight ahead of a weeklong recess.
After the shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis, Democrats ramped up their litany of demands for reforms of ICE. One of them is to “prohibit ICE and immigration enforcement agents from wearing face coverings.”
They say the masks shield agents from accountability for their actions, and that’s a somewhat sympathetic argument. It is unsettling to see masked and militarized federal agents in physical conflicts with American citizens. Provoking those confrontations is the Left’s strategy precisely because it yields the desired emotional response.
There should be proper and full investigations of Good and Pretti’s deaths, and accountability where appropriate.
“They want our law enforcement to be totally vulnerable and put them in a lot of danger,” Trump asserted.
Still, Chuck Wexler, the director of the Police Executive Research Forum, rightly notes, “There are two competing interests. The public’s right to know who police officers are, and the ICE agents’ fear for their own safety and that of their families.”
For now, that argument is about to shut down DHS.
Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons told the Senate yesterday, “I would work with this committee and any committee to work with holding individuals accountable that dox ICE agents because ICE agents don’t want to be masked. They’re honorable men and women. But the threats against their family are real.”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer seems to care a lot more about the people who are in our country illegally. “We will not support an extension of the status quo,” he thundered on the Senate floor, “that permits masked secret police to barge into people’s homes without warrants, no guardrails and zero oversight from independent authorities, a rogue police force that doesn’t obey the rules that every local police force and sheriff’s office must obey.”
Schumer’s sudden respect for the Rule of Law would be welcome if it weren’t so theatrically political.
“State law enforcement, local folks don’t [wear masks],” argued Representative Bennie Thompson, the top Democrat on the Committee for Homeland Security. “What’s so special about an ICE law enforcement agency that they have to wear a mask?”
Well, replied House Speaker Mike Johnson, “Unlike your local law enforcement in your hometown, ICE agents are being doxed and targeted. We have evidence of that.”
It seems to me we have a bit of a standoff. ICE agents have to wear masks because of the violent resistance of left-wing agitators. Those leftists say they’re resisting, in part, because ICE officers are wearing masks.
Who backs off first?
Despite Democrat hysterics, Republicans and Donald Trump’s administration are not fascists deploying jackbooted ICE/Gestapo thugs to round up innocent people. The primary targets for ICE and Border Patrol raids are illegal aliens with a criminal record beyond entering or staying in the country illegally. Every illegal alien is a criminal. Many have committed additional crimes, some of them violent and deadly.
Democrats aren’t terribly bothered by that, though. You won’t see them wearing pins for Laken Riley, Rachel Morin, or many other Americans killed by illegal aliens. They’re just ticked that the ICE agents rounding up the perpetrators are wearing masks. That’s because their real agenda is undermining immigration enforcement entirely.
Douglas Andrews: Judge Greenlights Demo Sedition — A district judge sided with Sen. Mark Kelly in his lawsuit against the DOD for having infringed on his apparent First Amendment right to undermine the commander-in-chief.
Emmy Griffin: Missing Migrant Minors Found in Minnesota — Tom Homan says ICE has recovered thousands of Joe Biden’s missing unaccompanied minors, which his PR team should be bellowing ad nauseam.
Thomas Gallatin: Corporate Fear of LGBTQ Bully Dries Up — The Human Rights Campaign is losing influence as more Fortune 500 companies are unwilling to participate in its Corporate Equality Index.
Brian Mark Weber: Climate Conjecture and Rising Insurance Premiums — Companies have been pushed into a state of fear over a climate that’s not producing any more fires, floods, or hurricanes than it has in the past.
Mark Alexander: Profiles of Valor: CAPT Williams and SSG Ollis — Ordinary men faced with extraordinary circumstances, they summoned the greatest measure of courage to place their lives in imminent peril to save others.
Ron Helle: Dropping My Pack — Bear your pack as you serve God and be ready to respond when you hear the trumpet call of a believer in need of assistance.
Satire: How to Avoid Getting Shot by ICE — In such trying times, it’s important to heed these tips to minimize your chances of being shot by this modern-day Gestapo.
SHORT CUTS
Hot Air
“Today, the Trump administration repealed the endangerment finding: the ruling that served as the basis for limits on tailpipe emissions and power plant rules. Without it, we’ll be less safe, less healthy and less able to fight climate change — all so the fossil fuel industry can make even more money.” —Barack Obama
Demagogues
“Ending this operation is not enough. We need justice and accountability. That starts with independent investigations into the murders of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, economic restitution for businesses impacted, abolishing ICE, and the impeachment of Kristi Noem.” —Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) celebrating the end of immigration enforcement operations in her state
“No American, regardless of party, supports having their taxpayer dollars fund a secret police force.” —Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) calling ICE secret police
The Enemy Within
“We were going to serve a criminal warrant [in Aurora, Colorado] on an apartment complex of known TdA gang members that was full. We tried to work with state and local government. They made notifications that the operations were ongoing, so when tactical teams arrived, protesters were already there and the apartment complex was empty.” —Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons
For the Record
“Even if Republicans agreed to Schumer’s conditions — which we would NEVER do — he wouldn’t be able to deliver the votes to keep DHS open. The Karen wing of his party has Chuck’s hands tied because they want to defund ICE. That’s why he’s wandering around like a Roomba right now.” —Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA)
The Bottom Line
“Unless ICE deports a large number of those who entered the country unlawfully, overstayed visas or were paroled during the Biden presidency, these migrants will cost America $1.5 trillion over their lifetimes. Immigrants ages 18 to 24 without a high school diploma cost taxpayers the most, each consuming an average of $332,000 in lifetime welfare and health benefits, according to the Manhattan Institute.” —Betsy McCaughey
Plain and Simple
“This SAVE AMERICA ACT debate has revealed a truth about the Left: they think black voters, married women, and rural voters are too stupid to figure out how to vote. What a wild, condescending argument.” —Scott Jennings
Double Standards
“Democrats and the media, who lick their chops to pounce on ‘racist’ Trump, are silent about [Hakeem] Jeffries’ record of antisemitism and indifferent about the allegations of [Chuck] Schumer’s anti-black racism.” —Larry Elder
American Spirit
“Under 4 years of the Biden Administration, Sleepy Joe, not a single permit was approved for a new coal mining project… but in one year of Trump, we’ve already approved over 70 permits for very big, very powerful mines.” —President Donald Trump
Zeitgeist
“There are, of course, real conspiracies. They involve identifiable people, specific actions, and evidence. What dominates American discourse today is something far more corrosive: the belief that everything is rigged, nothing is within individual control, and violence or pseudo-revolution is the only path forward. That belief is spreading quickly — and not by accident. This wave of nihilism is being actively cultivated by influencers and politicians who practice ideological arson and then market themselves as firefighters.” —Ben Shapiro
What Happened?
“Reading between the lines on the El Paso airport closing, there was likely a credible threat from a cartel drone against commercial aircraft. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy issued a statement to that effect, but it was deemed too alarming and may have spilled something classified. As a cover, other agencies then attempted to divert from his error with the explanation that the closure was for ‘military testing.’ For the record, there are no abrupt 10-day closures and NOTAMs at busy commercial airports based on adjacent military testing — which can be done at many military ranges nowhere near airports.” —Mark Alexander
And Last…
“The California ‘jock tax’ is so unfair and punitive that the National Football League should not hold another Super Bowl in California until it is rescinded.” —Jim Geraghty
ON THIS DAY in 1635, the nation’s oldest public school, Boston Public Latin School, was founded. And in 1795, the University of North Carolina became the first public university. The concept of public education isn’t wrong, but the takeover by left-wing statists absolutely is.
Tune in as we cover the President and First Lady’s travel to Fayetteville and the Military Engagement Event. Join RSBN LIVE at 12:30 p.m. ET on February 13, 2026
Mary welcomes back Gary Kah for a timely discussion on Iran, Islam, elections, and Jewish emigration to Israel. What is next for Iran, everyone is waiting impatiently. As much as we might have expected Trump to make a decision on that by now, it is so complex that regime change could effectively make things worse for the people there, in that it is a nation of 95 million people who may get something worse. And Israel, not exactly a wild card, might get involved if things drag on. But someday we may wake up to a Persian earthquake, politically. Then we talk about our leftist cities, how Islam is shaping elections and cities, and how urban life is perilous to the Jews these days. We look at Operation Exodus USA and their work in getting the Jews back safely to their homeland. Finally, some free-range chat about Bible prophecy.
The Democratic Party has transformed into an increasingly liberal entity that is leaving many old-time party members behind, according to a CNN analyst. In a video posted to X, data […] The post appeared first on The Western Journal .
U.S. Sen. John Fetterman speaks during a hearing on oversight of the Department of Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee in Washington, DC on Feb. 12, 2026. (Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images)
The Democrats are making a major stand against Immigration and Customs Enforcement enforcing immigration law by doing a soft shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security.
If only that would actually affect ICE — as the usual voice of sanity on the left, Pennsylvania Democratic Sen. John Fetterman, pointed out.
On Thursday, as The Associated Press noted, both the House and Senate left town for a 10-day break without funding DHS.
The Democrats, the AP said, “want curbs on President Donald Trump’s broad campaign of immigration enforcement” and “demanded better identification for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and other federal law enforcement officers, a new code of conduct for those agencies and more use of judicial warrants, among other requests.”
Trump, meanwhile, said on Wednesday that the Democrats’ demands would be “very, very hard to approve.”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, meanwhile, said that his party’s proposals would represent “an end to the chaos.”
“The White House and congressional Republicans must listen and deliver,” Schumer said.
Except that it won’t do anything of note, as Fetterman noted on social media.
In a video he posted Thursday evening, Fetterman noted that ICE still has $75 billion in funding, thanks to the Big Beautiful Bill. That’s not the part that a soft DHS shutdown will affect.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency? That’ll be affected. Transportation Security Agency? That too. And not only that:
Which is, you know, accurate.
“The impact of a DHS shutdown is likely to be minimal at first. It would not likely block any of the immigration enforcement operations, as Trump’s tax and spending cut bill passed last year gave ICE about $75 billion to expand detention capacity and bolster enforcement operations,” the AP noted.
“But the other agencies in the department — including the Transportation Security Administration, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Secret Service and the Coast Guard — could take a bigger hit over time.”
So, in other words, in order to stop ICE from enforcing immigration law and to end activist rioters from causing “chaos,” you have to wait longer on TSA lines and stop FEMA from responding to emergencies during winter storm season. Nice work.
And what’s worse is that basically, both sides are resigning themselves to a relatively lengthy DHS soft shutdown, with Politico reporting ” the soonest any resolution would be reached is in the political hothouse around Trump’s State of the Union address on Feb. 24.
“The lack of progress has even raised the prospect that Trump’s speech to Congress might be postponed, and some Democrats are mulling a boycott,” the outlet noted.
“This ‘nyah nyah’ is going to go on for a while,” GOP Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana said, adding that if there was a deal between the White House and Democrat leadership, “I’m not entirely convinced that anybody would vote for it.
“I can’t see the Dems voting for anything because they’re not going to get pounded for funding ICE. And the Republicans on my side are not going to get pounded for hurting ICE.”
And for right now, that’s not who’s going to be hurt. Fetterman is pointing out what will become too obvious to ignore: Far from hobbling the immigration-enforcement apparatus, the Democrats are inconveniencing us all and putting people in danger to get their way.
These aren’t the priorities of sane people. Yet again, the Democrats should be listening to the last voice of sanity remaining, the last Joe Manchin type remaining in their party. Which means, almost certainly, they’ll do anything but.
Lara Logan examines the media blackout on Iran. MEDIA BLACKOUT ON IRAN: Why Thousands of Deaths Are Going Unreported On this midweek episode of ROGUE ROUNDUP, Lara Logan and Producer/Co-Host … Read more
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