731-America-the-Land-of-the-Foolish-p1-transcriptpdf
731-America-the-Land-of-the-Foolish-p1-transcriptpdf
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  1. America, The Land of the Foolish - Part 1 Transcript of FLOT Line Episode 731 aired on August 25, 2019 Good morning and welcome to the FLOT Line. I’m your host Rick Hughes. FLOT (Forward Line of Troops) is all about learning the unique problem-solving devices taught in the Bible so you can establish a main line of resistance in your soul. By using those unique problem-solving devices, it’s possible you can stop the outside source of adversity before it ever becomes the inside source of stress. Building a FLOT line is a wonderful way to live. It relieves all the pressure in your life - no worry, no fear, no bitterness, no animosity. Actually it’s accumulating the mind of Christ - thinking like our Lord Jesus Christ thought. He had a FLOT line in His soul, although He never needed to confess any sin like we do. This is problem-solving device #1, rebound. “If we confess our sin, He is faithful and just to forgive us and purify us from all of our wrongdoing” (1 John 1:9). Building a FLOT line is what this show is about. God gave you two ends. One end to sit with and one end to think with. Success in your life depends on which one you use. Heads you win, tails you lose. Remember bad decisions limit future options and if you make enough bad decisions you are not going to have any options left. The worst decision anyone could make in their entire life is to reject Jesus Christ as Savior. You leave God no choice when you do that because you rejected the love of God. “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son” (John 3:16). When you reject the gift God gives you, His Son, you leave the justice of God no choice but to judge you and that will occur at the Great White Throne of judgment - you don't want to be there. The Bible says, “He that believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life, and he that believes not, the wrath of God abides on him already” (John 3:36). You know, living in the devil's world, living in the presence of this great country of ours, there’s a lot of stuff going on. There is, as a pastor friend of mine says, a spiritual climate change happening. We are going to talk about that for the next few shows. By the way, you can access a podcast of these shows on Spotify. You can also go to our website, rickhughesministries.org, and access the radio shows and listen to them or you can contact us through the website and we will send you MP3s of the shows. Let's talk about the spiritual climate change in the United States of America. The frantic search for happiness that we see today in this country, leaves a cluttered trail of destruction and despair. I read the other day that on the average, there are one hundred twenty-three suicides committed every day. Why do people do this? I’ll tell you one of the reasons, because everything appears empty. ‘What’s the use of going on,’ they may think. Many young people, teenagers, are used up at an early age and they wind up ending it all because they see no future, no hope. They spend money they don't have, to buy things they don't need, to impress people they don't even like. They do all of this to deaden the pain of an empty life. I think hopelessness is a national disease. There are so many people that are hopeless today. These are two words I want you to key in on - loneliness and hopelessness. In an article in the National Post:
  2. “Headlines suggests we've become consumed by loneliness. A new generation of Eleanor Rigbys half a century after the Beatles lament for the lonely: Why are 30somethings lonely? What you need to know about the Loneliness Epidemic. Loneliness is a human catastrophe. A recent Angus Reid Institute survey found that nearly half of Canadians sometimes or often feel alone. In the U.S., the number of Americans who feel they have no one with whom they can speak to has tripled since 1985. ‘...life is loneliness, despite all the opiates, despite the shrill tinsel gaiety of parties with no purpose, despite the false grinning faces we all wear,’ Sylvia Plath wrote in journals published nearly four decades ago. Today, people across the West are reporting higher levels of persistent loneliness than ever before.” Don't worry about it, they are going to get a chill pill for loneliness. Did you know that? According to Randy Rieland, in another article: “A University of Chicago scientist thinks that the hormone pregnenolone might reduce lonely people's fear of connecting and their risk of serious health problems. For the past year and a half - the study is scheduled to end this June - 96 lonely, but otherwise healthy subjects, have been receiving 400-milligram oral doses of pregnenolone, a hormone primarily produced by the adrenal gland. It has been associated with memory enhancement, but also stress reduction. If the research ultimately leads to a pharmacological treatment for loneliness, it would be a timely breakthrough.” That’s the world's system of solving the lonely problem. Listen to what Robi Ludwig, a nationally known psychotherapist, says: “As a society, we have not been adept at helping young men manage their feelings of hopelessness and emasculation. We need to educate our youth and help them identify and deal with their uncomfortable emotions. We must teach them that feeling vulnerable or weak doesn't make them failures. There needs to be a way to provide emotional management to all young boys, especially the troubled ones. It is extremely important to help them identify and recognize their anger as it arises. We must help these young men handle feeling weak and desperate in a more effective and non-destructive way. We must ensure they are not fueled by hateful rhetoric or xenophobia. We also need to expand what it means to be ‘a man,’ so the disenfranchised don't choose killers as their idols.” This is all human viewpoint thinking. We’ve kicked the Word of God out of our homes, out of our schools and out of the public agenda. Young people today are victims of cosmic thinking. They have no choice. They don’t even see the difference. Their parents don't give them any Scripture to give them any background and a choice in life. They grow up falling sucker and victims to the cosmic system. Dr. Ludwig wants to know what it means to be a man? I’ll tell you what a man is. A man has momentum in his life. Jesus Christ, our Lord said, “Happiness belongs to those who hear My Father's Word and keep it” (Luke 11:28). Hearing and keeping the Word of God on a consistent basis relieves loneliness for the believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. A man has momentum in his life and he has authority orientation. Where does he get it? He gets it at home from his parents. “Children obey your parents, honor your father and your mother” (Ephesians 6:1-2). When they don't obey, they get disciplined. It has to be that way; if you don't discipline your children then you bring them into the world as undisciplined maniacs doing what they want to do. We have to have authority orientation. That's gone today. They sneer
  3. at the police officer. They laugh at the police officer. They don't obey the police officer. They cheat on their tests. They cheat on one another. They lie to their parents and their friends - no authority orientation. Finally a man has nobility and virtue and honor. Great character is what God is looking for and that's what makes a real true man [or woman] - nobility and virtue. A male, on the other hand, is minus any momentum in his life. He may have the body of a male, but he doesn't have the mind of a man. He doesn’t have any momentum. He doesn't hear God's Word. He doesn't keep God's Word. His frame of reference is totally cosmic thinking. He is anti-authority. He doesn't obey authority. He does what he wants to do when he wants to do it and gets away with it. He’s a loser. A loser in life and a loser in eternity if he rejects Christ as his Savior. A loser in life can't handle responsibility. A loser in life can’t handle routine. A loser in life can’t handle unfair testing. Their emotions take over and they go goofy on you. A male gets into emotional override. He lets his emotions control him, rather than his thinking. The Bible says, “Let this mind be in you that was also in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:5). Not these emotions. Emotions are bona fide and wonderful and a great appreciator of the soul, but they are not designed to dictate policy. Yet so many people today live by emotional revolt of the soul. They let their emotions dictate policy. You can see it on the interstate. You can see it on the highways. You can see the rage and frustration and the loss of temper - it's emotional override. So what does the Bible say about this sort of thinking? About this cosmic system thinking? About this human point thinking? We need a pill for loneliness, or that we need to counsel our young boys and teach them to be real men? Here’s what the Bible (NIV edition) says, Ecclesiastes 10:2-3, “The heart of the wise [the person who wants wisdom] inclines to the right, but the heart of the fool to the left. Even as fools walk along the road they lack sense, and they show everyone how stupid they are.” They show everybody how stupid they are because they live by human viewpoint thinking. They have rejected the Word of God, the plan of God and the assets that God gave them. They stuck their nose up at it and rejected all of that and bought in to some sort of cosmic system thinking. I’d like to title this message “America 2019, the Land of the Foolish.” Why do I say that? Because of the change in values in this country, the change of the insight, the change in the future. We've changed. Everything that used to be evil is now sorta good and everything that used to be good is now almost evil. If we continue on the course that we are headed in this country we will have no future. What is a solution to this problem? I can highlight the problem, but is there a solution? The answer is, yes. In Ecclesiastes 9:11-12 (one of the wisdom books of the Bible) Solomon wrote, “I again saw under the sun that the race is not one by the swift, and the battle doesn't always belong to the strong, nor does food always come to the wise, nor wealth to the brilliant, nor favor to the learned; for time and chance happen to them all. Moreover, no one knows when their hour will come: as fish are caught in a cruel net, and birds are taken in a snare, so people are trapped by evil times that fall unexpectedly upon them.” That's the thing you can count on. There are times that evil will fall on you unexpectedly and if you don't know how to handle it you will be trapped. Trapped in loneliness, hopelessness and despair. One of the things that happens to everybody is death. There is no way around it. “It
  4. is appointed unto man once to die after that the judgment” (Hebrews 9:27). We will all eventually get there sooner or later. No one gets out of it. That’s part of the wisdom of Solomon. He notes here that all people share the same distribution of adversity, prosperity and eventually the same ultimate fate. They will all eventually join the dead. The question is, how do we handle what appears to be coming our way since we have no idea of what we might be facing? We have the example of the importance of wisdom and how even when the wisdom is lifesaving, the giver of such wisdom will be forgotten. Wisdom is what we need. The New Testament calls it sophia.I’ll show you why wisdom is important, but here's the issue. Even the person full of wisdom, the person who knows the answers and the solutions to the troubles of life will soon be forgotten because somebody else wants to take credit for it, someone else thinks they're smarter or someone else appreciates the gift but goes down the my-way-highway as soon as the trouble is gone. This is not very good news for pastors who hope to be remembered for their teaching of Biblical wisdom. The wisdom that I'm speaking of is found in the Bible, something the majority of Americans have forsaken. In another book of wisdom, Job 28:12-28,“Where can wisdom be found? Where does understanding dwell? No mortal comprehends its worth, it cannot be found in the land of the living. The deep says, ‘It is not in me’ and the sea says, ‘It is not with me.’ It cannot be bought with the finest gold or its price be weighed out in silver. [we are talking about wisdom] Neither gold nor crystal can compare with it, nor can it be had for a vase of gold. Coral and jasper are not worthy of mention, the price of wisdom is beyond rubies. The topaz of Kush cannot compare with it, it cannot be bought with pure gold. Where then does wisdom come from? And where does understanding dwell? It is hidden from the eyes of every living thing, concealed from the birds of the sky. Destruction and Death say, ‘Only a rumor of it has reached our ears.’ God understands the way to it; and He alone knows where wisdom dwells. For He views the ends of the earth, and sees everything under the heavens. When He established the force of the wind, and measured out the waters, when He made a decree for the rain, and a path for the thunderstorm, when He looked at wisdom and appraised it, He confirmed it and tested it. And He said to the human race, ‘The fear of the Lord, that’s wisdom; and to shun evil is understanding.’”Proverbs 3:7 says, “Do not be wise in your own eyes; [that’s human viewpoint thinking] fear the Lord [respect Him] and depart from evil [Satan’s cosmic system].” In the New Testament, Paul wrote in Ephesians 5:17, “Do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” To be foolish is lack of knowledge; the inability to use knowledge wisely. What's the difference between knowledge and wisdom? The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 8:1, “A little bit of knowledge puffs up.” The Greek word for knowledge is gnosis and the Greek word for wisdom is sophia. There's a difference in the two. Knowledge is something you've heard and you've understood but you haven't applied it. Wisdom is something you've heard, understood, believed and applied. “Do not be foolish” means don't have a lack of understanding, “but understand what the will of the Lord is.” The word foolish denotes simple stupidity but it’s also ignorance and willful rebellion against God and His will. As an example, you can read Romans 1:18-32 which talks about those who “suppress the truth in unrighteousness; professing themselves to have wisdom,
  5. they became fools; because they did not like to retain God in their knowledge.” Read Romans 1:18-32 and you’ll see where a lot of our problems come from today. God has given you and me the opportunity to understand His wisdom; it comes through the mind of Christ. In Proverbs 1:7, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.”The fool is not interested. America is the land of the foolish. By and large, most Americans are not interested in what the Bible says about marriage, what the Bible says about family, what the Bible says about freedom, what the Bible says about internationalism. They're not interested. They’re only interested in what they want. There are some Americans who are interested in what the Bible has to say - some really great Americans - but most could care less about the Bible. They’ve got one. It’s a good luck charm. Some of them put it in the back window of the car hoping they don't get hit. Some of them have it under the coffee table at home but they don't ever read it. They don’t go to church. They don't get instruction from God. Not at all. Will the America that you and I know today survive if it continues on the current path? What kind of path? The path made by the decisions of fools. Most of our leaders reject the notion that God's wisdom is found in Christ. Most leaders in Congress and in the government don't want to know about that. They reject the idea that God's wisdom is found in Jesus Christ. In my own state they threw the Ten Commandments out of the courthouse and out of the capital. They said, ’It’s offensive to people.’ That shows how stupid and foolish we really are. We are so stupid that we actually think we are smarter than God. As a nation, we are so foolish that we actually think we don't need God's instructions, that we can handle it all on our own. You can see we’re doing a pretty good job of messing it up. We are a divided nation today. Satan is really good at dividing and conquering. If we continue on the path we are on there will not be a free America in the future. Most of our leaders reject the idea of God's wisdom concerning divine institutions like marriage. God has been replaced with humanism and diversity. They are not interested in what the Bible says about marriage between a man and a woman. No, we’ve gone for humanism and diversity. The family as an authority structure is now denied. There's no discipline allowed. If you punish your child they’ll call some sort of government agency that will take your children away from you. Our freedom is surrendered for some sort of temporary security. They want somebody to take care of them. Many politicians today promise free college, free healthcare, free this and free that - that’s all a farce. Nationalism is rejected for internationalism; thinking we need to be friends with the world and we need to be grouped together and we all need to have the same currency and we need one guy to lead us all across the world. The Bible says eventually that's going to happen with the antichrist but not now. The words of Solomon are just as true today as they were when he wrote it. Proverbs 1:22-33, “How long will you who are simple, love your simple ways? And mockers delight in mocking, and fools hate knowledge? Repent at My rebuke [God said], and then I will pour out my thoughts to you; I will make known to you My teachings. But you refused to listen when I called, and no one paid attention when I stretched out My hand; and you disregarded all My advice, and did not accept My rebuke; [the Lord said here in this passage] then in turn I will laugh when disaster strikes
  6. you; I will mock when calamity overtakes you, when calamity overtakes you like a storm, and disaster sweeps over you like a whirlwind, when distress and trouble overwhelms you. Then they will call on Me, but I will not answer; then they will look for Me, but they will not find Me, because they hated knowledge, and they did not choose the fear the Lord [that’s wisdom]. They would not accept My advice, they spurned My rebuke. Now they will eat the fruit of their own way, and be filled with the fruit of their schemes. For the waywardness of the simple will kill them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them. But whoever will listen to Me will live safely, and be at ease without fear of harm.” Man, you talk about a critique of America today. This is us. We refuse to listen. We are not interested in listening. We are interested in doing it our way. We don't want to offend anybody. We want to stay in the middle of the road, so to say, and we are filled with the fruit of our own schemes. Our nation is being divided. Our nation is falling apart. People are killing themselves. They're unhappy, they’re lonely, they're miserable, they're empty. Is there anything you can do about it for the future of this nation? Yes, there is one thing you can do. You can be a man or woman with wisdom because sooner or later people are going to need it. You can be the one who has wisdom - wisdom from the knowledge of Christ and the claims of Jesus Christ. Wisdom is the simplicity of faith alone in Christ alone; not trying to work for your salvation, not trying to earn it or buy it. Faith alone in Christ alone is wisdom. You can't buy that wisdom and you can’t inherit that wisdom; you have to acquire it for yourself before you can have any sort of impact in the world. In Ecclesiastes 9:14-15 (I encourage you to read it) there was one man with wisdom that delivered an entire city from a king. One man with wisdom. That’s all God needs - one person with wisdom, one person with the Word of God in their soul, one person who thinks divine viewpoint, one person who is committed to the cause of Christ with objectivity. That's what God is looking for. Wisdom comes from knowledge and when you have the knowledge of the Word of God it produces insight and discernment. Wisdom is acquired as a byproduct of personal love for God.“If you love Me you will obey Me and My mandates are not grievous” (John 14:15). What exactly am I supposed to obey? Psalm 34:12-16, you can read it for yourself. Do you want to really live? Would you like to live a long happy life? Then make sure you don't speak evil words or use deceptive speech. That’s wisdom. There is so much more to say about this but my time is gone. I hope your are interested. I hope your are listening. I hope you’ll come back next week. I will continue this and we will press on in this study of America, the Land of the Foolish. Until then, this is your host Rick Hughes saying thank you for listening to the FLOT Line.
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