7:10 p.m. – I read this article in my local newspaper concerning the 40th anniversary of the Internet –
The Internet: 40 years old, more than 1 billion strong - Inside Bay Area.
I realized as I read this article that this news article applied to this writing as well as to “Idol that Provokes Jealousy.” I believe the Lord is showing me that the specific idol to which he is referring is the Internet. The Internet can be useful, obviously, because God uses it to get out his messages, to provide Christian support groups, to give us news, etc., as well as it is a library. Yet, it also contains a world of evil that is right at the fingertips of most American households. So, this goes with the reference of our wealth leading us to sin, because we are a wealthy nation and computers are a common household item now. Even many poor or low-income American families have computers and Internet access.
The Internet has become an “idol” to many Americans and American households and thus it not only opens the potential for a world of evil right in our homes, but it also has the potential for interfering in our relationship with Jesus Christ. These quotes from the article stood out to me:
That brought to mind this scripture verse from Ezekiel 7:10: "The day is here! It has come! Doom has burst forth, the rod has budded, arrogance has blossomed!
Also, when I read the word “Web” in this article, what immediately came to my mind was “spider web.”
The article continued…
The flowers blooming that they were referring to were all the applications available on the Internet, but when God is speaking here of “blossoms,” he is speaking of arrogance that has blossomed. The reason the Internet could blossom in this way is that it was free of regulatory constraints. When we are free from regulatory constraints of the teachings of God’s Holy Word, then we also have that ability to “blossom” into something that is harmful. The reason that so many people, especially believers and ministers of the gospel struggle with addictions to porn and the Internet is that they have no or little accountability; there are no constraints put upon them and they have “open access”.
I thought this was particularly good and a great parable at that:
I thought this portrayed a great spiritual truth. When we lack barriers, i.e. definite rights and wrongs, then we have the potential to create larger problems, such a porn and Internet addiction. God gives us barriers to protect us because he loves us. When we fail to follow those barriers, then sometimes he has to erect stronger barriers via divine discipline in order to help us to not get into sin. We all need accountability and we need to, as brothers and sisters in Christ, hold one another accountable. I see too many believers more concerned with being liked by everyone than they are concerned about whether or not a brother or a sister in Christ has fallen into the depths of sin. We have to be willing to have people not like us in order to encourage our brothers in Christ toward moral purity.
Lastly was the issue of the “twin sticks” – rods of judgment – that were connected by a chain. This could have various forms, but what I saw were these swine flu vaccines that will come with “two sticks” to the arm that are three weeks apart from each other, so they are joined by a chain. And, that chain has to do with government control of the people, I believe.
Return of swine flu: What's ahead for Americans? - Yahoo! News
The Internet: 40 years old, more than 1 billion strong - Inside Bay Area.
I realized as I read this article that this news article applied to this writing as well as to “Idol that Provokes Jealousy.” I believe the Lord is showing me that the specific idol to which he is referring is the Internet. The Internet can be useful, obviously, because God uses it to get out his messages, to provide Christian support groups, to give us news, etc., as well as it is a library. Yet, it also contains a world of evil that is right at the fingertips of most American households. So, this goes with the reference of our wealth leading us to sin, because we are a wealthy nation and computers are a common household item now. Even many poor or low-income American families have computers and Internet access.
The Internet has become an “idol” to many Americans and American households and thus it not only opens the potential for a world of evil right in our homes, but it also has the potential for interfering in our relationship with Jesus Christ. These quotes from the article stood out to me:
That brought to mind this scripture verse from Ezekiel 7:10: "The day is here! It has come! Doom has burst forth, the rod has budded, arrogance has blossomed!
Also, when I read the word “Web” in this article, what immediately came to my mind was “spider web.”
The article continued…
The flowers blooming that they were referring to were all the applications available on the Internet, but when God is speaking here of “blossoms,” he is speaking of arrogance that has blossomed. The reason the Internet could blossom in this way is that it was free of regulatory constraints. When we are free from regulatory constraints of the teachings of God’s Holy Word, then we also have that ability to “blossom” into something that is harmful. The reason that so many people, especially believers and ministers of the gospel struggle with addictions to porn and the Internet is that they have no or little accountability; there are no constraints put upon them and they have “open access”.
I thought this was particularly good and a great parable at that:
I thought this portrayed a great spiritual truth. When we lack barriers, i.e. definite rights and wrongs, then we have the potential to create larger problems, such a porn and Internet addiction. God gives us barriers to protect us because he loves us. When we fail to follow those barriers, then sometimes he has to erect stronger barriers via divine discipline in order to help us to not get into sin. We all need accountability and we need to, as brothers and sisters in Christ, hold one another accountable. I see too many believers more concerned with being liked by everyone than they are concerned about whether or not a brother or a sister in Christ has fallen into the depths of sin. We have to be willing to have people not like us in order to encourage our brothers in Christ toward moral purity.
Lastly was the issue of the “twin sticks” – rods of judgment – that were connected by a chain. This could have various forms, but what I saw were these swine flu vaccines that will come with “two sticks” to the arm that are three weeks apart from each other, so they are joined by a chain. And, that chain has to do with government control of the people, I believe.
Return of swine flu: What's ahead for Americans? - Yahoo! News
