Kingdom Paradigms

Is Human Nature Inherently Good?

Dr. Mike Kingdom Paradigms , ,

Mark 10:18

And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.

Ecclesiastes 8:11

Because the sentence against an evil deed is not executed speedily, the heart of the children of man is fully set to do evil.

Matthew 15:19

For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander.

Luke 6:45

The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.

Matthew 12:34

You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.

God is the standard of goodness. Even Jesus acknowledges this when he was called a good teacher. He pointedly stated only God is good. Yet there are many in today’s culture who believe humans are naturally, inherently good. They claim evil is the exception. But is this true?

What does history reveal? Nation’s dictatorships killing innocent people by the millions. Nations hating other nations for no other reason but jealousy or being different. Adults being predators of children. Thieves who would rather steal from others than work for a living. People lying to cover up their shortcomings. Gangs selling destructive drugs to others. Organized criminals looting stores. We could spend the day listing all the ways evil resides and is expressed in and through people.  

What does the Bible reveal about the natural inclination of people?

The emotional heart is the central organ of evil. The spirit that influences the heart needs to be changed for goodness to shine. Only after Satan is removed from the scene as pictured in the Book of Revelations, and humans receive the Spirit of God as outlined in Gospel of John, will goodness become the central core of a person’s life. Until then, the battle to control one’s behavior is a never-ending proposition.   

Thankfully, until that time totally arrives, God has provided us with HIS truth of values and goals as outlined in the Bible which help us to continually reposition ourselves unto the path of proper behavior; plus HE continues to shower us with HIS amazing grace that embraces us with HIS favor until that time arrives.

HIS biggest favor is sharing HIS life with you by living HIS life in you and through you. When we accept the Triune God’s authority in our life, HE comes to live in us. The Bible identifies HIM as the Holy Spirit.  The Spirit enriches us with HIS presence and shares HIS fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control. All are the basic values which leads a person to experience the richness of life as God created us to enjoy.

The longer we live, the more we see man’s natural inclination is to lean toward evil. Only when the heart has been changed towards accepting God’s authority (Truth) and HIS Spirit merges with ours, is there a semblance of good. Yes, you can be ignorant of God’s ways and still live them out. (Mankind implementing the Ten Commandments in their lives is a good example). But humans still need to learn good; it doesn’t come naturally. All of us are endowed with the internal struggle to channel good over evil. Its not easy. But the reward of being free to express oneself without harming self or others is the outcome. Otherwise, society will suffer and burn while one person indulges themselves into narcissistic behavior until eventually they find them self, alone, miserable, and empty of any emotional happiness. Which would you prefer?

Rooting For You in Christ!

Dr. Mike

Encourager & Founder of
Vocational Leadership 360
Author of e-Books:

 *  Dancing With God: Life-Giving Theology Explained
 *  Great Business Emulates a Good God
 *  Be Radical…Follow Christ!
 *  Simply The Messenger
 *  Unequally Married

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Copyright 2013-2020 Abbaco LLC | All Rights Reserved

Look at the Evidence

Dr. Mike Kingdom Paradigms , , ,

Proverbs 18:13

Spouting off before listening to the facts is both shameful and foolish.

We live in a world of in-your-face social and institutional media that everything we read and see and hear is quickly digested and generally believed without facts. A 10-second video clip is shown and conclusions quickly drawn. People and actions are immediately judged and condemn on hearsay, gossip, and tribal affiliation. The Bible identifies people who act this way are foolish and immature.

One of my early mentors taught me the importance of gathering all the facts before being swayed by the initial story. One time an employee presented us with an accusation of another associate. The event if true would be grounds for termination. When I initially heard the story, anger arouse, and I wanted the person immediately removed from the company. But my mentor remained calm, thank the person for the information, and proceeded to complete his work for the day. I was dumb-founded. Wasn’t he going to act on this manner?

He did. He finished the task in front of him, then scheduled meetings with several of the people involved. After meeting with each person, and interviewing several other people involved, the whole story became known. The facts showed otherwise. The accuser’s perception of the events was an error. A person’s reputation and job were saved. And when all the real evidence became known, everyone involved could breathe fresh air again.

The moral of the story – don’t jump to conclusions until you gather all the facts from as many sources as possible. And like Steve Covey always said, First understand, then be understood.

When you allow your feelings to lead, you will fall far short of your goal. Instead, gather the evidence, study the facts, and reach a rational decision which you can uphold before others.

Facts don’t lie, feelings do. Liars may distort and twist facts toward their personal agenda, therefore the importance of you knowing the facts in their pure form becomes more necessary if you truly want to know the truth.  

When 10 facts overwhelm one fact, the answer is obvious. Yet many people know one fact of the situation and ignore the nine. They are people with a hidden agenda and don’t want the truth. They have a personal crusade and don’t care of the truth. The rational person though will want to take the whole picture into account. They will look at the entire evidence before reaching a conclusion.

So, before you jump into the shadow of your feelings, be rational, gather the evidence, and then reach your conclusion on the matter. It always sounds true when the first person speaks, but after you hear from the other side, you will most often find your initial impression is not the real picture of the entire event. The more you do this, the better you will become in evaluating the situations in your life – It’s called maturing in wisdom.    

PS: If you haven’t yet included the Book of Proverbs into your devotional reading time, you may want to practice reading a chapter per day for one month on an annual basis. There is a whole lot of practical wisdom waiting to be digested between those pages that is very applicable for the 21st century.

Rooting For You in Christ!

Dr. Mike

Encourager & Founder of
Vocational Leadership 360
Author of e-Books:

 *  Dancing With God: Life-Giving Theology Explained
 *  Great Business Emulates a Good God
 *  Be Radical…Follow Christ!
 *  Simply The Messenger
 *  Unequally Married

Encourage a Friend…Share Today’s Message!

Copyright 2013-2020 Abbaco LLC | All Rights Reserved

What Type of Government Do You Want?

Dr. Mike Kingdom Paradigms , ,

1 Samuel 8:4-9

Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah 5 and said to him, “Behold, you are old and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now appoint for us a king to judge us like all the nations.” 6 But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us.” And Samuel prayed to the Lord. 7 And the Lord said to Samuel, “Obey the voice of the people in all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them. 8 According to all the deeds that they have done, from the day I brought them up out of Egypt even to this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are also doing to you. 9 Now then, obey their voice; only you shall solemnly warn them and show them the ways of the king who shall reign over them.”

How often does history repeat itself because human nature fails to learn the lessons of yesterday?

Back when the nation Israel was ruled by Judges, the people were basically being self-governed. They had the Ten Commandments and the Torah (first 5 books of the Bible) as their constitution and bill of rights. The people though weren’t happy with the way things were and their solution was to become like the other nations around them. They wanted a king.

They wanted someone else to handle their problems and were willing to surrender their freedom of self-government. Like most governments today, they reject God as their binding authority and think they have a better solution for governing the nation.

Samuel explained to the people what will result from their decision and yet the people were willing to exchange their life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness for servitude to a king. The king will take their sons and place them into armies for war; make them work for the king rather than for themselves and their families. The king will take the choice land and have the people plow it for his sake. He will take whatever is yours and use it for his own ambitions and plans. Read 1 Samuel 8:10-18 and you capture a glimpse of people relinquishing their freedom and rights to become servants and serving at the pleasure of the king.

Today people struggle with similar ideologies. Rather than accept personal responsibility for making their life more fruitful, they want their cake without making the effort to bake one. Rather than accept personal responsibility to govern oneself, they want others to tell them how to think, work, and have fun as long as they are taken care for.

There are those who want big government without realizing what they are asking for. History continues to show the larger a government grows; the less freedom people experience. Governments need to be fed. When 50% of the nation’s workforce is producing wealth so the other 50% can get paid, something eventually breaks. And like the frog sitting in the kettle of water simmering in slow rising heat, until one day the frog finds itself being cooked, people slowly are taxed until there is nothing for them to live on. Then when their eyes are open to realize they are working only to subsidize the lifestyle of others without anything left for themselves, then its too late. They have become slaves of a government plantation with no one to rescue them.

This is why government and religion are constantly battling with each other. You have to decide who you are going to serve. Do you want a large government which needs to be fed and makes life’s decisions for you? Or a small government built upon King Jesus and his eternal values which operates through the individual’s heart in service for others? Earthly governments coerce you to comply. God’s way is built upon law and order for both the individual and community to flourish and share their wealth with others without persuasion.     

When people allow the Triune God to be the center of their life, they respect and govern themselves and others knowing they are answerable to Him. They welcome open discussion without fear always searching for the truth of the matter. They are learning to govern under the tutelage of Jesus Christ understanding all humans are made in the image and likeness of their Creator. They build their foundation upon the values and attributes of God. Yet they recognize evil in themselves and others. But also accept the finish work of Jesus Christ who gracefully forgives the sins of their parents, their grandparents, their children, and their own personal caveats. They allow their individual character to reflect the glory of God which magnifies the light on their community.

In today’s world, most governments replace God’s role in people’s lives. Yet imagine a world where the Triune God is the governing agency. How large of a government would be needed? Now you can understand my longing for Jesus Christ to return and establish his government throughout the land. But today it is always a battle to choose the best of “what is available.” As a people, we need a government to keep law and order and protection from evil forces. The question always seems to be – which one?

Rooting For You in Christ!

Dr. Mike

Encourager & Founder of
Vocational Leadership 360
Author of e-Books:

 *  Dancing With God: Life-Giving Theology Explained
 *  Great Business Emulates a Good God
 *  Be Radical…Follow Christ!
 *  Simply The Messenger
 *  Unequally Married

Encourage a Friend…Share Today’s Message!

Copyright 2013-2020 Abbaco LLC | All Rights Reserved