This is the headline of an analysis by Oxford professor Samuel Ramani warning that the weapons technology of our enemies is surging ahead of our own. His article comes in response to recent reports that President Biden ordered US forces last March to prepare for possible nuclear war with Russia, China, and North Korea. In Dr. Ramani’s view, the US must urgently modernize our nuclear capacities to deter these unprecedented threats.

In related news:

• Chinese government hackers have penetrated deep into US internet service providers to spy on us. A cybersecurity expert calls the latest attacks “an order of magnitude worse” than previous hacks.
• Russia and China are escalating their diplomatic relations with the global south, infringing on America’s influence in this vital region.
• Russia is claiming that America’s support for Ukraine risks World War III, which it warns would not be confined to Europe.

Meanwhile, Israel launched its biggest West Bank raid in two decades yesterday, killing at least ten Hamas militants. The move comes as the region on Israel’s eastern border is rapidly developing into a third battlefront alongside Hamas to the west and Hezbollah to the north.

Yesterday we discussed a paradoxical response to the anxiety of our age. Today, we’ll identify a second source of personal peace in a place most overlook.

Beware spiritual poison

On a recent walk, I noticed a dead tree surrounded by thriving trees. Nothing I could see could explain its demise. The nearby trees did not seem to crowd out its access to the sun. It was as close to the lake as other trees that were thriving. Since I am the farthest thing from an arborist, nothing I could see could explain this.

I therefore assume that the tree’s problem is what I cannot see—its roots. My observation illustrates a theological fact: you and I were made for a personal, intimate relationship with our unseen Lord (John 15:1–11). Nothing less or else will nourish our spiritual lives.

So, of course, this is where Satan attacks, for two reasons.

First, his strategy works. If you want to kill a tree or stunt its growth, poison its roots.

Second, we often don’t see the danger in time. No one will know or be hurt by our unseen sins, or so Satan whispers to us. But “the father of lies” is lying to us (John 8:44). And we end up committing public sins we would never have imagined when they were private transgressions.

This is why God warns us: “Desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death” (James 1:15).

So, allow me to ask: Do you find yourself facing temptations in private that you do not face in public? Learn to see them as poison your enemy wants to pour on the roots of your soul. They will corrupt your “tree” and stunt your growth.

And since the Holy Spirit must have a holy “branch” on which to manifest his “fruit” (Galatians 5:22–23), we forfeit God’s best by choosing what we want now over what we want most.

Three steps to spiritual victory

Our enemy is a defeated foe. Jesus died on the cross and rose from the dead to “destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil” (Hebrews 2:14). As a result, “We are more than conquerors through him who loved us” (Romans 8:37). You and I can say with Paul, “Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:57).

How can we experience this victory today?

First, see temptation for the threat it is. If you wouldn’t pour poison on the roots of a tree, you shouldn’t pour spiritual poison on the roots of your soul.

Henri Nouwen testified:

I am discovering the importance of naming the darkness in me. By no longer calling the darkness anything else but darkness, the temptation to keep using it for my own selfish purposes gradually becomes less. . . .

A hard task is given to me—to call the darkness darkness, evil evil, and the demon demon. By remaining vague I can avoid commitment and drift along with the mainstream of our society. But Jesus does not allow me to stay there. He requires a clear choice for truth, light, and life. When I recognize my countless inner compromises, I may feel guilty and ashamed at first. But when this leads to repentance and a contrite heart, I will soon discover the immense love of God, who came to lead me out of the darkness into the light and who wants to make me into a transparent witness of his love.

Second, give temptation immediately to God. Seek his power and victory. In this way, you will use Satan’s attacks against him. And you will experience that peace which is a fruit of the Spirit in the hearts of all who are right with him (Galatians 5:22).

Third, if you fall to sin, return to your Father. Confess your failure and claim his forgiveness and restoration in grace. You can still have his peace, but it comes at the cost of repentance.

Watchman Nee made today’s point simply but powerfully:

“If you would test the character of anything, you only need to enquire whether that thing leads you to God or away from God.”

Your soul is a bike on a hill: you are either advancing upwards or you are sliding backward.

Which is true for you today?

Thursday news to know:

• Supreme Court refuses to revive Biden’s latest student loan debt relief plan
• US consumer confidence rises in August as Americans’ optimism about future improves
• Parental stress is an urgent public health issue, US surgeon general says in new advisory
• Ancient 3,500-year-old Bronze Age jar shattered by young boy at Israeli museum
• On this day in 2005: Hurricane Katrina slams into Gulf Coast

*Denison Forum does not necessarily endorse the views expressed in these stories.

Quote for the day:

“I know of no other way to triumph over sin long term than to gain a distaste for it because of a superior satisfaction in God.” —John Piper

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Deriving purpose from the problems of life

Sometimes our greatest dangers are the ones we cannot see: an Indiana man has admitted that he tried to kill his wife by poisoning her Coca-Cola with cocaine and other drugs so he could marry her daughter.

Other examples:

• A rare but deadly mosquito-borne virus is forcing a Massachusetts town to shut its parks, playgrounds, and fields from dusk to dawn. A New Hampshire man died from the disease yesterday.
• Walmart is recalling their apple juice due to potentially harmful levels of arsenic.
• A cyberattack disrupted service at the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport over the weekend.
• Subsea fiber-optic cables carry more than 95 percent of international data, but they are vulnerable to tampering, damage, and disruptions.

If stories like these cause you anxiety, you might consider this unusual solution: people in Lagos, Nigeria, are paying to smash electronics and furniture with a sledgehammer in a so-called “rage room.” For $5, you are given protective gear and a sledgehammer or a bat for a thirty-minute session with the items, which are later recycled.

One woman who used the room admitted it is not a cure but said, “Right now, I feel very light.”

Allow me to suggest a different approach today.

Our five crowns in heaven

God’s word reminds us, “Here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come” (Hebrews 13:14). David similarly prayed, “I am a sojourner with you, a guest, like all my fathers” (Psalm 39:12).

How are these facts relevant to the anxiety of our day?

The Bible describes five crowns given to believers in heaven:

1. The “crown of rejoicing” (1 Thessalonians 2:19–20 NKJV) is awarded to those who lead people to Jesus.
2. The “crown of righteousness” (2 Timothy 4:8) is given to those who “fought the good fight” of faith (v. 7).
3. The “crown of glory” (1 Peter 5:1–4) is for Christian leaders who serve with integrity and compassion as “examples to the flock” (v. 3).
4. The “crown of life” (James 1:12) is given to the one who “remains steadfast under trial.”
5. The “imperishable” crown (1 Corinthians 9:24–25) is awarded to the one who “exercises self-control in all things.”

Here’s my point: Crowns are awarded in heaven for doing what benefits others on earth.

1. Winning souls is obviously to their eternal good.
2. Fighting the “good fight” of faith encourages others to do the same.
3. Serving with integrity benefits those we serve and invites them to follow our example.
4. Remaining steadfast under trial demonstrates the relevance and power of our faith to those who need to know our Lord.
5. Exercising “self-control in all things” displays the character that honors Jesus and serves others with integrity.

As a result:

Doing what is rewarded in heaven is the best way to live with purpose on earth.

And, as psychologists note, living with purpose is significantly associated with lower levels of depression and anxiety.

“Hasten where eternal joy abideth”

In The Imitation of Christ, Thomas à Kempis warned us:

It is vanity to desire a long life, and to have little care for a good life. It is vanity to take thought only for the life which now is, and not to look forward to the things which shall be hereafter. It is vanity to love that which quickly passeth away, and not to hasten where eternal joy abideth.

By contrast, in The Strangest Secret, motivational speaker Earl Nightingale observed:

Success is the progressive realization of a worthy ideal. If a man is working towards a predetermined goal and knows where he is going, that man is a success. If he’s not doing that, he’s a failure.

What ideal could be more worthy than living for heaven on earth in a way that leads others from earth to heaven?

Walking past a historic cemetery

My wife and I enjoy walking together early in the morning. Our path takes us past a cemetery with the remains of some of the early pioneers of our area, reminding us that “you do not know what tomorrow will bring” (James 4:14).

Commenting on this fact, Billy Graham observed: “Every cemetery testifies that our days on this planet are indeed numbered.”

In light of this truth, the apostle John prayed, “Come quickly, Lord Jesus!” (Revelation 22:20).

Can you say the same today?

Wednesday news to know:

• Hostage rescued by IDF from tunnel in south Gaza after 10 months of Hamas captivity
• Jack Smith files superseding indictment against Trump in Jan. 6 case
• Iran’s supreme leader opens door to negotiations with United States over Tehran’s nuclear program
• Ohio bill would allow parents to claim “conceived children” on income taxes
• On this day in 1963: Martin Luther King Jr. delivers his “I Have a Dream” speech at the March on Washington

*Denison Forum does not necessarily endorse the views expressed in these stories.

Quote for the day:

“Jesus Christ, by coming into this world, has changed the sunsets of time into the sunrises of eternity.” —Clement of Alexandria

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Elon Musk’s SpaceX is delaying its Polaris Dawn launch, scheduled for today, until tomorrow morning due to a helium leak. The mission will send four people into orbit for five days. On day three, two of them will perform the first spacewalk ever conducted on a commercial mission. In related news, NASA announced Saturday that it will use SpaceX’s Dragon capsule to bring two astronauts home from the International Space Station. They have been stuck there since June because the Boeing Starliner spacecraft that carried them to the station has been plagued by thruster problems and helium leaks.

However, the next Dragon return flight is not scheduled until February. As a result, their stay, originally intended to last eight days, will extend to about eight months. The Starliner capsule will return to Earth, likely in September, without anyone on board.

The Starliner project cost more than $5 billion. When the empty capsule travels back to Earth, I doubt many people outside of Boeing and NASA will be watching. If astronauts were on board the troubled craft, millions of us would travel vicariously with them.

In other words, the Starliner capsule’s true value is based not on what it is but on whom it contains.

Let’s learn today to see ourselves in the same way.

Elon Musk believes in “the principles of Christianity”

Sociologist Philip Rieff observed: “No culture has ever preserved itself where it is not a registration of sacred order.” He then made an important statement our secularized society needs to hear: “The notion of a culture that persists independent of all sacred orders is unprecedented in human history.”

However, for a culture to flourish, it needs the right “sacred order.” The Taliban recently codified morality laws requiring Afghan women to cover their faces and men to grow beards. I doubt this will help with the escalating humanitarian crisis raging in that country, with poverty afflicting more than 90 percent of the population.

We see a similar story in the Old Testament, where we read that “the sons of Eli were worthless men. They did not know the Lᴏʀᴅ” (1 Samuel 2:12). And so these sons of the high priest, while externally religious, committed grave sins leading to their demise (1 Samuel 4:17).

Elon Musk recently made headlines with his statement, “I believe in the principles of Christianity like love thy neighbor as thyself (have empathy for all) and turn the other cheek (end the cycle of retribution).” But even the “principles of Christianity” were not intended by themselves to effect the change we need.

Jesus testified: “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5, my emphasis). We need the indwelling power of Christ to obey the teachings of Christ, and so accomplish the purpose of Christ, in our lives and our world.

“Not good doing, but God-likeness”

Tragically, many prefer self-sufficiency over Spirit-dependence. Even religion can become transactional as we pray and act so that God will bless us in return. But this is far from the abundant life Jesus came to give (John 10:10).

1. S. Lewis lamented, “Human history is the long terrible story of man trying to find something other than God which will make him happy.” According to Lewis, here is why this doesn’t work:

“God cannot give us a happiness and peace apart from himself, because it is not there. There is no such thing.”

Conversely, “God makes people right with himself through their faith in Jesus Christ. This is true for all who believe in Christ” (Romans 3:22 NCV). Consider the difference an encounter with the living Lord Jesus can make:

• Peter was transformed from cowardice before a servant to courage before the Sanhedrin.
• Saul of Tarsus was changed from a persecutor of Christians to our greatest theologian, missionary, and evangelist.
• John, on the prison island of Patmos, was given the Revelation.

So it can be for any of us. Oswald Chambers noted:

The expression of Christian character is not good doing, but God-likeness. If the Spirit of God has transformed you within, you will exhibit divine characteristics in your life, not good human characteristics. God’s life in us expresses itself as God’s life, not as human life trying to be godly.

“In Christ, I am already victorious”

How can we experience such transformation today?

1. Settle for nothing less than an intimate, daily communion with the living Christ. This is his intention for every one of us (Philippians 3:10).
2. Position yourself to experience his presence by submitting to his Spirit (Ephesians 5:18), speaking with him in prayer, and listening to his voice through his word and Spirit.
3. Expect the Enemy to attack your relationship with Jesus through temptation, distraction, and discouragement. Turn each attack over to your Lord, thus using Satan’s tactics to advance God’s purpose and power in your life (cf. 2 Corinthians 2:11).
4. Live as if you were in close proximity to Jesus, because you are (Matthew 28:20).

Watchman Nee wrote:

Outside of Christ, I am only a sinner, but in Christ, I am saved. Outside of Christ, I am empty; in Christ, I am full. Outside of Christ, I am weak; in Christ, I am strong. Outside of Christ, I cannot; in Christ, I am more than able. Outside of Christ, I have been defeated; in Christ, I am already victorious. How meaningful are the words, “in Christ.”

Are you “in Christ” today?

Tuesday news to know:

• After Hezbollah–Israel exchange, Lebanese wary conflict could drag on
• Russia strikes Ukraine’s power grid in “most massive” attack of war
• Harris and Trump squabble over muted mics at upcoming debate
• Telegram CEO arrested over probe into child porn, drug trafficking on app
• On this day in 1908: Lyndon B. Johnson is born

*Denison Forum does not necessarily endorse the views expressed in these stories.

Quote for the day:

“With complete consecration comes perfect peace.” —Watchman Nee

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