Jack Pelham

There are the core faults of self—
Which are seen in matters
Of honesty and rationality
And responsibility and love—
And then there is that secondary business
Of frustration with others for such faults—
To which even Jesus himself succumbed.

What sweet relief when at long last
She is done with blaming herself
For not being able to make up
For the failures of others—
When finally she has
Called it like it is
In her heart
And has
Simply
Let it
Be!

I have seen enough to conclude
That I have yet more pride
Than a proud man
Would realize
In himself.

And I wonder
At whether I shall
Ever be emptied of it all,
And how I could know if I were.

If America were to wake up tomorrow—
Suddenly under the reign
Of a righteous and powerful king,
Having been charged by God himself
To set things straight without partiality—

And if, by some chance, that king were me—
God having somehow figured me righteous enough
For such an undertaking, and having given me
No other instructions but to do what seems best
In view of what I have learned so far from the Bible
And from my study of history and of our Constitution—

The righteous person thinks
That the main battleground
In the fight between good and evil
Lies in his own heart.
And he will see to his own righteousness first,
No matter the cost.

But the unrighteous person is apt to think
That the main battleground
Lies somewhere outside of him—
Such as in politics or in church
Or in the hearts of others.
And he will excuse his own sins
As of secondary importance
To these.

I am not afraid to study the Bible—nor to know what it means. I’m not afraid to ask the hard questions. I’m not afraid to ponder it, to talk about it, or to look into it. I’m not afraid to read the extrabiblical works from the same culture that produced the Bible. I’m not afraid to read the writings from other ancient cultures, either. I’m not afraid to ask about how we’re so sure the Bible’s Table of Contents includes and excludes exactly what God would want it to include and to exclude.

To me, these are everyday considerations, while to others, they are extremely upsetting, and are probably prompted by none other than Satan himself. I can’t get enough of it, and they can’t get too little of it. And what a difference of philosophy that is!

Many think that the love of Jesus is quite a big deal. And they’re right, of course.
But it’s a bigger deal than they realize, and not as easily grasped as they suppose.

Am I responsible before God for knowing all the things in the Bible that they won’t teach at church?

He mistakes his own talking for thinking,
His believing for knowing,
His assuming for understanding,
And his silence for listening.

And he is content with his own self-view,
And has no interest in getting these right.

They are taught to make their religion
The priority in their lives,
But not to make Jesus
The priority of their religion.