Metanoia

 

It’s that time of year when resolutions are made.  When we make commitments to do better and be better.  Workout, eat healthy, lose weight, get more sleep, reduce time spent scrolling on the smart phone, read books, listen more, talk less, go to church, study the bible, pray, mend fences, save money, stop cursing, give up alcohol, learn a new language, clean up the garage, say you’re sorry and mean it. 

Pick one or more of these and just do it, right? This year it’s going to be different, you’re serious. But in a matter of weeks, or in a couple of months if you were really serious, old habits and patterns of behavior creep back into your life. Resolutions are revised, goalposts get moved and motivation fades.

Often Christians treat repentance like resolutions.  We feel guilty about something bad we’ve been doing or something good left undone.   As with resolutions, repentance tends to be pretty much hit or miss, mostly miss.  But ultimately our sins will find us out and betray us. We might claim to “hate” sin, but mostly we hate other peoples’ sins. We may even claim to “hate” some of our own sins.  But until we see them clearly and completely, we will keep going back for more.  Even after our sins have harmed us or the people we love, we make excuses and drift back into them.

The Greek word “metanoia” is found throughout the New Testament. It translates as repent or repentance and literally means “a change of mind”.  Christians tend to find themselves in a vicious cycle of changing their minds: turning away from sin and then returning to it. Even the great Apostle Paul found himself struggling: “I want to do what is right, but I can’t. I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway.” Romans 7: 18b-19

He then goes on to say, “But if I do what I don’t want to do, I am not really the one doing wrong; it is the sin living in me that does it.” Romans 7: 20

While it may sound like Paul is letting himself off the hook, he’s actually making the point that as long as we are in these earthly bodies we will forever struggle with sin. He goes on to say, “Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord. So, you see how it is: In my mind I really want to obey God’s law, but because of my sinful nature I am a slave to sin.” Romans 7: 25.

What Paul is not saying is to just give up and give in to your sinful nature. It is a war that we’ll be fighting as long as we live. But we can win a few more battles if we are honest about our sins and, more importantly, the consequences of those sins. By the grace of God, we have eternal salvation but make no mistake our sins are still doing damage in the here and now and will be judged in the hereafter.  So perhaps it’s never too late to try a bit of “metanoia.”…and mean it this time.

It's Another Brown Christmas in Texas

(TO THE TUNE OF WHITE CHRISTMAS...I CAN HEAR BING CROSBY NOW)

 

I’m dreading a Brown Christmas

Just like the ones all Texans know.

Where the wind is blowin’

But it ain’t snowin’…

Just one big turd wrapped in a bow.

 

I’m dreading a Brown Christmas

With every gift card that I send.

I will go where snow can be found,

For this Christmas here in Texas will be Brown.

Worth Reading Again

 

“To believe in personal responsibility would be to destroy the whole special role of the anointed, whose vision cast them in the role of rescuers of people treated unfairly by “society”. – Thomas Sowell, The Vision of the Anointed” - 1995

“Today it is the elites…those who control the international flow of money and information, preside over philanthropic foundations and institutions of higher learning, manage the instruments of cultural production and thus set the terms of public debate—that have lost faith in the values, or what remains of them, of the West.”- Christopher Lasch, “Revolt of the Elites and the Betrayal of Democracy” - 1995

Thomas Sowell’s “The Vision of the Anointed” and Christopher Lasch’s “The Revolt of the Elites and the Betrayal of Democracy” were both published in 1995.  If you have never read them, you should.  If you have read them, you should read them again.  What they wrote in 1995 was true then and even more so now.

Lasch describes the Elites (whom Sowell calls the “Anointed”) as “rootless” world citizens with no sense of responsibility or commitment to their communities. He suggested that globalization had resulted in an “elite class” having little or no engagement with local communities, focused more on personal gain and power. He argues that the Elites had abandoned moral values; relying more on a “self-esteem” rooted in higher education and wealth.  

In “The Vision of the Anointed”, Thomas Sowell describes the Anointed as the intellectuals, politicians and activists who believe they know what’s best for society, but whose policies tend to ignore real-world evidence and result in negative outcomes.  He provides specific examples of policies promoted by the “Anointed” which have made things worse for families, lowered the quality of education and increased criminal activity.

In different ways, both Lasch and Sowell warned us in 1995 that Western Civilization in general and America in particular were headed in the wrong direction. Now some thirty years on, their warnings ignored, we have continued the steady march downhill.  Christopher Lasch is long passed on, sadly dying before the “Revolt” was published.  Thomas Sowell, now in his late 90’s, remains sharp of mind and wit but no doubt has grown tired of saying I told you so.