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February 2017

TRUTH MUST DISPLACE HUMANISM

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“I will stir up your sons, O Zion, against your sons, O Greece, and wield you like a warrior’s sword.” (Zechariah 9:13b)

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD, and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones.” (Proverbs 3:5-8)

In the days that immediately followed President Trump’s inauguration, I had some Christian friends who were totally excited, others who were cautiously optimistic and yet others who were deeply concerned. I prayed for God to give me revelation as to what was really happening in our nation, and He gave me Zechariah 9:13.

When I opened my Bible to that scripture, I found that it had already been circled in ink. Written in the margin next to the scripture were the words, “Truth vs. Humanism”.

Zechariah is a prophetic book. I had concluded in an earlier study that the sons of Zion prophetically represented the Judeo-Christian world view – God’s truth revealed in God’s Word – while the sons of Greece represented the pride in human intellect that defined Greek philosophy and eventually led to the world view of humanism.

The Lord was reminding me that personalities come and go, be they Donald Trump, Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton. For both individuals and nations, the ultimate key is what you believe to be true, what you believe to be important, and what you believe to be right and wrong. Those are the principles that will direct your path for good or for ill.

Otherwise put, the truth will set you free. (John 8:31-32). The father of lies kills, steals and destroys. (John 8:44, 10:10)

Merriam-Webster defines humanism as: “an outlook or system of thought attaching prime importance to human rather than divine or supernatural matters. Humanist beliefs stress the potential value and goodness of human beings, emphasize common human needs and seek solely rational ways of solving human problems.”

The most aggressive form of humanism is secular humanism, which expresses either denial (atheism) or doubt (agnosticism) about the existence of God. Religious humanism has been around even longer, seeking to blend teachings of faith with rationalism (trust in human reason) and empiricism (trust in what man can prove to be true).

In all of these expressions, the focus is on how mankind will successfully use intellect, education and science to solve all our problems. You can believe in God, but make sure those views don’t get in the way.

The Bible makes it clear that humanism will lead to disaster. Proverbs 3:5-8 tells us not to lean on our own understanding or be wise in our own eyes. God, our Creator, knows what is good and what is evil, so trust what He says.

Yet from the very beginning, we humans have desired to be wise like God and determine for ourselves what is good and evil. (Genesis 3:1-6) Humanism is as old as the Garden of Eden. Ever since then, mankind has repeatedly been taken captive by vain philosophies and traditions that scratch the itching ears of our deceitful hearts and allow us to do whatever we want to do. (Deuteronomy 12:8; Jeremiah 17:9; Colossians 2:8; 2 Timothy 4:3)

Our universities have for many decades been the bastions of humanism. As a result, humanism saturates our public education system, news media, entertainment, and the “think tanks” that provide expert advice to our governments and businesses on how to deal with social, economic and international issues.

Humanism is the foundation for: (1) relativism, which denies absolute truth and absolute morality, including sexual morality; (2) religious pluralism, which declares many religions can be equally valid even if inconsistent with one another; and (3) socialism, which dishonors hard work and promotes coveting the property of others. Karl Marx was a humanist, and so is Senator Bernie Sanders.

Margaret Sanger, founder of Planned Parenthood, was Humanist of the Year in 1957. Her own writings reveal her desire to use abortion and sterilization to exterminate or greatly reduce America’s black population, among others, for the “greater good”. Abort73.com estimates 17,000,000 unborn black children have been killed since the 1970’s. God, help us!

Our nation was founded by sons of Zion – men and women with a Judeo-Christian worldview and morality. Today’s Democratic Party platform represents the sons of Greece – totally defined by humanism. President Trump and the Republican Party are far from perfect, but they were the only available option to stem the tide.

So, what do we do now? The tragic truth is that we Christians have allowed humanism to steal our mission, and we must take it back! We are called to make disciples of nations, including our own nation. (Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 1:8) We are to be the salt and light that preserves and improves our culture. (Matthew 5:13-16) Instead, humanism has taken over that role, and even invaded the Church with liberal theologies that are really humanism “in the name of Jesus”.

Reason, intellect, education and science are all very good things, but they must be submitted to our Creator and His Word or they will fail. Truth, shared in love, must displace humanism in America, starting with the Church. (Ephesians 4:14-16) Then we will be the one nation under God we have pledged ourselves to be!

God bless you, and God bless America.