It is That Simple
with Larry Kutzler
The Simple Ideas of Profound Truths
What is the Meaning of Stupid?
It is not polite to call anyone stupid, but the question that should be asked is … are people stupid? The Prophet Jeremiah spoke these words, “My people are foolish and do not know me,” says the Lord. “They are stupid children who have no understanding. They are clever enough at doing wrong, but they have no idea how to do right!” The dictionary defines stupid as, ‘showing a great lack of intelligence or common sense.’ Calling someone stupid is not kind, but when God does, is it justified? The Prophet was evaluating how unwise it is to turn away from God and do wrong, when they had a choice to do right. God has made it clear, outside of Christ, there is no promise of eternal life without Him … yet people ignore it. I would call that stupid. It is That Simple.
Intimacy With the Gospel
Oswald Chambers uses the phrase, “We are called into intimacy with the Gospel.” There is a medical term called ‘intimacy disorder,’ defined as having trouble sharing an emotional connection. Most intimacy issues start with trust issues … if you don’t trust, you can’t get close to anything. Do we trust the Gospel? Trust can be eroded and caused by those who claim to believe in the Gospel … their actions have affected you to trust. Intimacy with the Gospel means we need to develop trust in others to accomplish for God, what we cannot do ourselves. Trust is the intimacy that is lacking in people who are afraid to commit. Many people have been hurt by Christians, but staying hurt will never bring healing. Trusting Jesus again brings healing … He becomes our intimacy with the Gospel. It is That Simple.
Hope for America
This caught my attention. A quote by author Jonathan Cahn, “Without revival, America as we know it, is gone.” We are seeing Islam growing in strength in America, socialists are slowly taking over a major political party, and people are weary of all the fraud, the lies, and the hatred for fellow Americans. We quit debating, we cancel and demonize our opposition. We let Social Media guide our conscience, and steer us into hating our parents because, somehow, they are now toxic. The wealthy are all bad because they have more than the rest of us. America is hard to recognize today, and I believe Jonathan Cahn has a point. Nothing rallies us anymore as Americans. Humans were designed for something greater than our divisions, and what is missing in America is hope, and that is found in God. It is That Simple.
All Will Cease
Someday, all the sports arenas will be silent. Wall Street will close and never open again. The political parties will have nothing more to say. Hollywood will stop all the cameras from rolling, and all the famous people will go home, never to make another movie. All the armies will disarm, and all the airports will be empty. Schools and universities will be closed, nothing more to teach. The news media has no negative things to report. The internet will have no updates, posts will disappear. Traffic will slow to a crawl, and freeways will seem useless … there is nowhere to go. All illicit sex, drugs, and alcohol will be irrelevant. Legislative bodies will cease to govern and rule. All normal will cease. Are you ready for it? The Day of the Lord has come. It is That Simple.
Our Personal Bias
There is a lot of bias in ministry today. Most pastors can identify major problems with false doctrine. What they don’t realize is how their own personal Biblical bias may also be false in the eyes of God. Does my bias about Scripture please God, or does it please me to make me comfortable? Recently, I learned something from an Orthodox Jew, who said, “I want what God wants from me, rather than what I want from God.” My bias is similar. When I read Scripture do I read my theological bias into the passage, strengthening my personal perspectives? Do we read into Scripture, or do we allow Scripture to read us? Emptying our bias and letting God get through to us what He wants, is better than reading into Scripture what I think. It is That Simple.
Infiltrate Them
An American Proverb says, “If you can’t beat them, join them.” Another rendition of this Proverb is, “If you can’t beat them, infiltrate them.” This is one reason that God forbid His people to marry outside of their culture … infiltration that comes in from the outside, brings in false gods, and customs that will replace God. This strategy is meant to corrupt. Satan infiltrates families with wrong values, infiltrates countries with fraud and strong delusions. Satan infiltrates the Church destroying the convictions of faith. Satan infiltrated Israel, assuring them that God’s Temple would protect them. This false security and indifference about their enemy destroyed Israel. Today, Satan’s infiltration convinces us that we are right in our own eyes, repeating the story of the Temple all over again. If you can’t beat them, infiltrate them, as they sleep. It is That Simple.
History Repeats Because There is No Change
Change is never easy … that’s why things remain the same. Habits are hard to break because stubbornness and attitudes scream, “I don’t need to change.” Perhaps that is why King Solomon wrote, “What is happening now has happened before, and what will happen in the future has happened before, because God makes the same things happen over and over again.” That is why change is so necessary. God reminds us repeatedly that change is not a one-time act … it is the constant process of learning, and re-learning to keep history from repeating itself. How many mistakes have we made that we have repeated many times? We have seen our world make the same mistakes which always repeats history, because there is no lasting change unless the heart changes, and only God can change the heart. That is why Jesus came. It is That Simple.
Evil Influences
A news commentator reported that Tik-Tok has put out 138,000 videos on how kids can disown their parents. Their message? Parents are toxic because of what they believe, or who they voted for, which has never been the case in my lifetime. Families have always disagreed over religion and politics, but they were never encouraged to disown parents. Jesus believed in demons … His ministry faced them all the time. In our culture, demons are never a diagnosis. What is behind kids disowning parents? It is an attack on God’s order of authority, and it dishonors God’s Fifth Commandment to honor thy parents. Satan’s attack on the family has been relentless. Jesus cast out demons repeatedly. Why? They made people sick in body and mind. Society’s diagnosis is always sociological, or psychological … never spiritual. Big mistake. It is That Simple.
Backsliders are Prodigal Sons
I heard a pastor say, “Jeremiah is a book of backsliders, and backsliders are those who were at one time close to God.” It was the Apostle Peter who said the devil “Prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour." That lion loves backsliders because he knows their will is weak, often wounded, and their guard is down. However, Jeremiah 3:14 says, “Return, O backsliding children,” says the Lord; “for I am married to you.” Jeremiah was referencing Israel who had drifted from God, yet even in a state of waywardness, God was still faithful to Israel. God loves the backslider, regardless of how far anyone has drifted from Him. Backsliders are prodigal sons, and the parable Jesus spoke about a father’s love for a backslidden son, is still true today. God wants to rejoice over your return. It is That Simple.
Those Holiday Relatives
Recently, I did a podcast on, ‘How do you survive the holiday tensions with relatives who do not respect your faith position.’ My conversation with a colleague, started with James 3:17 talking about the wisdom from God, which is perfect advice for holiday gatherings. That list outlines wisdom from God, which is the perfect counsel to guide you in awkward moments. The second way to be a non-threatening witness for God, is to share about the works you are doing to help people. My colleague plans to tell his relatives about the pop-up soup kiosk’s he plans to do in Florida for the homeless. This neutralizes the politics of Christianity, and elevates the needs being met to help people. Good works are signs you love people … who can argue with that? Jesus illustrates this in Matthew 5:16. It is That Simple.