- Apr 25, 2011
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It matters not where you get updated as to the news that is happening in the world around us....whether it be secular or a Christian site - the VAST MAJORITY of the news is NEGATIVE. There is VERY LITTLE to uplift the mind or the spirit, in the news.
I'm 60 years old and have never lived with a TV in my house. Over the years, when we have gone on vacation, there has been a TV where we have stayed and we would watch the news. After just a few days, I could sense a real depression of mind come over me.
Just as we've been told, as Christians, by God Himself, what our PHYSICAL DIET should consist of, so God has not left us in the dark as what our MENTAL DIET should consist of.
If we are honest, we must admit that MOST of the news does not fit into this category.
At the same time I don't believe Christians should be OSTRICHES and stick their head in the sand, being oblivious to all that is happening around us in our world. We are called to be "wise as serpents and harmless as doves" and it's impossible to be "wise" if you don't know what is going on. But that doesn't mean we have to spend time EVERYDAY pouring over the events taking place in the world.
The life of John the Baptist sets a good example for us. There are many wonderful //'s with John's time and our time. Remember, he was anticipating the FIRST coming of Jesus, just as we are anticipating the SECOND coming of Jesus. And just as we are called to be separate from the world, John was, too. John was a TYPE of God's last day people today. I believe the following commentary shows us how we should relate to the news and the world today.
It was John's choice to forgo the enjoyments and luxuries of city life for the stern discipline of the wilderness. Here his surroundings were favorable to habits of simplicity and self-denial. Uninterrupted by the clamor of the world, he could here study the lessons of nature, of revelation, and of providence. The words of the angel to Zacharias had been often repeated by his God-fearing parents. From childhood his mission had been kept before him, and he accepted the holy trust. To him the solitude of the desert was a welcome escape from society in which suspicion, unbelief, and impurity had become well-nigh all-pervading. He distrusted his own power to withstand temptation and shrank from constant contact with sin lest he should lose the sense of its exceeding sinfulness. Counsels to Parents, Teachers & Students, pg. 445.3
But the life of John was not spent in idleness, in ascetic gloom, or in selfish isolation. From time to time he went forth to mingle with men, and he was ever an interested observer of what was passing in the world. From his quiet retreat he watched the unfolding of events. With vision illuminated by the divine Spirit, he studied the characters of men, that he might understand how to reach their hearts with the message of heaven. Counsels to Parents Teachers & Students, pg. 446.1
Our main intellectual focus needs to be, as Philippians 4:8 says, on POSITIVE, UPLIFTING things. If that is our focus, we'll be able to take in enough of the negative news to know what is going on in the world, and we'll know HOW we should understand and relate to the news. The news then, will not depress us and bring our spirits down.
Like John the Baptist, we will see the events taking place in our world today and realize that the Bible has predicted much of these evil things to happen before Jesus returns the SECOND time....so instead of allowing the news to cast us down, we should REJOICE that the news is telling us that Jesus is coming soon!
I'm 60 years old and have never lived with a TV in my house. Over the years, when we have gone on vacation, there has been a TV where we have stayed and we would watch the news. After just a few days, I could sense a real depression of mind come over me.
Just as we've been told, as Christians, by God Himself, what our PHYSICAL DIET should consist of, so God has not left us in the dark as what our MENTAL DIET should consist of.
"Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things." Philippians 4:8.
If we are honest, we must admit that MOST of the news does not fit into this category.
At the same time I don't believe Christians should be OSTRICHES and stick their head in the sand, being oblivious to all that is happening around us in our world. We are called to be "wise as serpents and harmless as doves" and it's impossible to be "wise" if you don't know what is going on. But that doesn't mean we have to spend time EVERYDAY pouring over the events taking place in the world.
The life of John the Baptist sets a good example for us. There are many wonderful //'s with John's time and our time. Remember, he was anticipating the FIRST coming of Jesus, just as we are anticipating the SECOND coming of Jesus. And just as we are called to be separate from the world, John was, too. John was a TYPE of God's last day people today. I believe the following commentary shows us how we should relate to the news and the world today.
It was John's choice to forgo the enjoyments and luxuries of city life for the stern discipline of the wilderness. Here his surroundings were favorable to habits of simplicity and self-denial. Uninterrupted by the clamor of the world, he could here study the lessons of nature, of revelation, and of providence. The words of the angel to Zacharias had been often repeated by his God-fearing parents. From childhood his mission had been kept before him, and he accepted the holy trust. To him the solitude of the desert was a welcome escape from society in which suspicion, unbelief, and impurity had become well-nigh all-pervading. He distrusted his own power to withstand temptation and shrank from constant contact with sin lest he should lose the sense of its exceeding sinfulness. Counsels to Parents, Teachers & Students, pg. 445.3
But the life of John was not spent in idleness, in ascetic gloom, or in selfish isolation. From time to time he went forth to mingle with men, and he was ever an interested observer of what was passing in the world. From his quiet retreat he watched the unfolding of events. With vision illuminated by the divine Spirit, he studied the characters of men, that he might understand how to reach their hearts with the message of heaven. Counsels to Parents Teachers & Students, pg. 446.1
Our main intellectual focus needs to be, as Philippians 4:8 says, on POSITIVE, UPLIFTING things. If that is our focus, we'll be able to take in enough of the negative news to know what is going on in the world, and we'll know HOW we should understand and relate to the news. The news then, will not depress us and bring our spirits down.
Like John the Baptist, we will see the events taking place in our world today and realize that the Bible has predicted much of these evil things to happen before Jesus returns the SECOND time....so instead of allowing the news to cast us down, we should REJOICE that the news is telling us that Jesus is coming soon!
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