Just Thinking.....#3

[Major]

Someone may be asking right now......Why are you posting this stuff???? Well, the simple answer is that since I retired from the ministry I have a lot of time on my hands now. I used to put model battleships together but my eyesight now will not let me, so I sit and watch Gunsmoke and "think".

So today my thought was....."What Has Happened To Standards" ??????

What do I mean by "standards"???? What I mean by that is rules to live by! External principles, separate from our own whims or personal opinions.
In other words.....a yardstick to measure actions of others and ourselves.

Some reading this are of my generation and that means the above explanation is not necessary and may even be insulting to them. People of my generation know very well what standards were. However we took them for granted and we didn't live up to them and now, life and things have changed. Allow me to list several examples of how "standards" have changed and not for the better...........

Now we use, and hear cursing and foul language without even thinking about it.

We hear the words now....."That sucks" and we pretend to be completely unaware what that really means.
We hear the words now....."what ever" and we pretend to not know what it means. "Whatever" literally means =SHUTUP!

We now accept cussing as normal speech. If you doubt it, go to any high school or college or pro baseball or football game and listen to all of those around you talking. Worse yet......go and stand in the hall way of any high school and listen to how the next generation talks.

We have lost the concept of Adulthood.

The generation that grew up watching MTV and Saturday Night Live and rock videos saw in real time adults whose idea of humor was public burping, and farting and using four letter words. We have a generation today that has no idea of decent language or decent behaviour. We hear things said now in front of women and children that used to be said in the locker rooms.

Then we sit and watch TV news at 6 PM and marvel at how a group of teenagers can rape and beat up a 10 year old little girl. WHY????? They do not see anything wrong with what they did because their STANDARDS are so low.

We have lost the ability to criticize without insulting or to disagree without hating.

Don't think so????? Go back and read through the posts on this forum. What do you see???? ANGER. HATE. Why??????? Because someone disagreed with us and insulted some one. Do you think that it is just this forum??????? THINK AGAIN! It is every single one of them.

Now there is NO condemnation because we see nothing to condemn. Twenty years ago someone threw a shoe at then President Bush. People every where laughed and then those same people think it is acceptable to hit a woman with a shoe or in the face.

We have lost our sense of proportion.

Many years ago, when preaching a revival in Orlando Fl. I was called a "Nazi" by someone after the service because I denounced the sin of Bill Clinton.
Now to be clear, I have and will do the same thing again because that is exactly what God does. He hates sin but loves the sinner and calls us to repent.
I can forgive that man for insulting me, but I can never forgive him for trivializing Nazism and what happened to 6 Million Jews. "Proportion"!

I could go on but I think you understand what I am saying. Folks......by lowering our standards to fit man's needs and emotions instead of lifting man up to fit God's standards has produced a society of spiritual weaklings. We have listened to "sermonettes" and now we are surrounded by "Christianettes".
This kind of lowering of standards has now filled every jail cell in America.

Today we want a man and yes, even a woman to give a sermon on THREE easy ways on how to be a wonderful successful person so that the world will love us. What is the result of that kind of attitude when the STANDARD OF ACCEPTANCE is lowered............................what has it done =

It has made the USA the number one country in the world in teenage pregnancies.

It has allowed those who beat up their wives and neighbors to get out of jail before their victims get out of the hospital.

It has allowed homosexual behavior to become a life style choice.

It has allowed pornography to be the number one money producing item on the internet.

My dear friends.....God's Standard is the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the standard of acceptance.

 

[LearningToLetGo]

I dare say, Major that standards are a side-effect. The issue is really about power, who has it, who wants it, and how to get it. Standards were not lowered per se, they were flipped in order to galvanize a perceived underclass against their so called oppressors. It is nothing less than global revolution, since it is not merely an American problem. It is spiritual warfare.

 

[Major]

I dare say, Major that standards are a side-effect. The issue is really about power, who has it, who wants it, and how to get it. Standards were not lowered per se, they were flipped in order to galvanize a perceived underclass against their so called oppressors. It is nothing less than global revolution, since it is not merely an American problem. It is spiritual warfare.

No argument from me.

 

[BibleLover]

Someone may be asking right now......Why are you posting this stuff???? Well, the simple answer is that since I retired from the ministry I have a lot of time on my hands now. I used to put model battleships together but my eyesight now will not let me, so I sit and watch Gunsmoke and "think".

So today my thought was....."What Has Happened To Standards" ??????

What do I mean by "standards"???? What I mean by that is rules to live by! External principles, separate from our own whims or personal opinions.
In other words.....a yardstick to measure actions of others and ourselves.

Some reading this are of my generation and that means the above explanation is not necessary and may even be insulting to them. People of my generation know very well what standards were. However we took them for granted and we didn't live up to them and now, life and things have changed. Allow me to list several examples of how "standards" have changed and not for the better...........

Now we use, and hear cursing and foul language without even thinking about it.

We hear the words now....."That sucks" and we pretend to be completely unaware what that really means.
We hear the words now....."what ever" and we pretend to not know what it means. "Whatever" literally means =SHUTUP!

We now accept cussing as normal speech. If you doubt it, go to any high school or college or pro baseball or football game and listen to all of those around you talking. Worse yet......go and stand in the hall way of any high school and listen to how the next generation talks.

We have lost the concept of Adulthood.

The generation that grew up watching MTV and Saturday Night Live and rock videos saw in real time adults whose idea of humor was public burping, and farting and using four letter words. We have a generation today that has no idea of decent language or decent behaviour. We hear things said now in front of women and children that used to be said in the locker rooms.

Then we sit and watch TV news at 6 PM and marvel at how a group of teenagers can rape and beat up a 10 year old little girl. WHY????? They do not see anything wrong with what they did because their STANDARDS are so low.

We have lost the ability to criticize without insulting or to disagree without hating.

Don't think so????? Go back and read through the posts on this forum. What do you see???? ANGER. HATE. Why??????? Because someone disagreed with us and insulted some one. Do you think that it is just this forum??????? THINK AGAIN! It is every single one of them.

Now there is NO condemnation because we see nothing to condemn. Twenty years ago someone threw a shoe at then President Bush. People every where laughed and then those same people think it is acceptable to hit a woman with a shoe or in the face.

We have lost our sense of proportion.

Many years ago, when preaching a revival in Orlando Fl. I was called a "Nazi" by someone after the service because I denounced the sin of Bill Clinton.
Now to be clear, I have and will do the same thing again because that is exactly what God does. He hates sin but loves the sinner and calls us to repent.
I can forgive that man for insulting me, but I can never forgive him for trivializing Nazism and what happened to 6 Million Jews. "Proportion"!

I could go on but I think you understand what I am saying. Folks......by lowering our standards to fit man's needs and emotions instead of lifting man up to fit God's standards has produced a society of spiritual weaklings. We have listened to "sermonettes" and now we are surrounded by "Christianettes".
This kind of lowering of standards has now filled every jail cell in America.

Today we want a man and yes, even a woman to give a sermon on THREE easy ways on how to be a wonderful successful person so that the world will love us. What is the result of that kind of attitude when the STANDARD OF ACCEPTANCE is lowered............................what has it done =

It has made the USA the number one country in the world in teenage pregnancies.

It has allowed those who beat up their wives and neighbors to get out of jail before their victims get out of the hospital.

It has allowed homosexual behavior to become a life style choice.

It has allowed pornography to be the number one money producing item on the internet.

My dear friends.....God's Standard is the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the standard of acceptance.

What happened to objective standards? In a word: POSTMODERNISM. In the last half century this philosophy has wormed its way out of academia and into almost every facet of secular society, and now it's sneaking into churches.

 

[synthplayer]

I see the deterioration of standards as a result of excluding God from public life. Our country was founded by Christians - there is ample evidence of this fact. Thus, our concept of right and wrong was derived from scripture. This was still evident even into the 1950s. Many times, the protagonist in movies and TV would say something akin to, "That's not very Christian" to admonish someone to develop a better attitude. Caring about others doesn't make much sense speaking from a purely logical point of view, but because of our Christian heritage, caring about others is just "the right thing to do."

I was talking with an atheist one time, and she was telling me about all the charity work she does and supports. I asked her why she does it, and she said, "It's the right thing to do." I asked her, "Says who?" She responded, "Everyone knows that!" I said, "I know, but where did the idea originate?" She was stumped. She started to become defensive when I told her about Jesus saying to His disciples, "When you did it unto the least of these, you did it unto me." But, I told her, our Founding Fathers were devout Christians and their values were gleaned entirely from the teachings of Christ. Whether or not you believe in Jesus doesn't affect the truth that America's traditional values were shaped by the teachings of Jesus.

As Christians, we VALUE human beings and one of the manifestations of that is treating people with respect and being willing to make allowances for them. The further away from God our society goes, the less value we place on our fellow man. And, if I don't value you, I'll find a lot of your behavior just annoying.

 

[bobinfaith]

I dare say, Major that standards are a side-effect. The issue is really about power, who has it, who wants it, and how to get it. Standards were not lowered per se, they were flipped in order to galvanize a perceived underclass against their so called oppressors. It is nothing less than global revolution, since it is not merely an American problem. It is spiritual warfare.

Hey LearningToLetGo;

Standards are a side-effect? I was thinking standards in a Christian sense but standards come in all kinds of flavors.

Reading your post got my attention. Please share more what you mean by this?

God bless you, and thank you, brother.

 

[bobinfaith]

Someone may be asking right now......Why are you posting this stuff???? Well, the simple answer is that since I retired from the ministry I have a lot of time on my hands now. I used to put model battleships together but my eyesight now will not let me, so I sit and watch Gunsmoke and "think".

So today my thought was....."What Has Happened To Standards" ??????

What do I mean by "standards"???? What I mean by that is rules to live by! External principles, separate from our own whims or personal opinions.
In other words.....a yardstick to measure actions of others and ourselves.

Some reading this are of my generation and that means the above explanation is not necessary and may even be insulting to them. People of my generation know very well what standards were. However we took them for granted and we didn't live up to them and now, life and things have changed. Allow me to list several examples of how "standards" have changed and not for the better...........

Now we use, and hear cursing and foul language without even thinking about it.

We hear the words now....."That sucks" and we pretend to be completely unaware what that really means.
We hear the words now....."what ever" and we pretend to not know what it means. "Whatever" literally means =SHUTUP!

We now accept cussing as normal speech. If you doubt it, go to any high school or college or pro baseball or football game and listen to all of those around you talking. Worse yet......go and stand in the hall way of any high school and listen to how the next generation talks.

We have lost the concept of Adulthood.

The generation that grew up watching MTV and Saturday Night Live and rock videos saw in real time adults whose idea of humor was public burping, and farting and using four letter words. We have a generation today that has no idea of decent language or decent behaviour. We hear things said now in front of women and children that used to be said in the locker rooms.

Then we sit and watch TV news at 6 PM and marvel at how a group of teenagers can rape and beat up a 10 year old little girl. WHY????? They do not see anything wrong with what they did because their STANDARDS are so low.

We have lost the ability to criticize without insulting or to disagree without hating.

Don't think so????? Go back and read through the posts on this forum. What do you see???? ANGER. HATE. Why??????? Because someone disagreed with us and insulted some one. Do you think that it is just this forum??????? THINK AGAIN! It is every single one of them.

Now there is NO condemnation because we see nothing to condemn. Twenty years ago someone threw a shoe at then President Bush. People every where laughed and then those same people think it is acceptable to hit a woman with a shoe or in the face.

We have lost our sense of proportion.

Many years ago, when preaching a revival in Orlando Fl. I was called a "Nazi" by someone after the service because I denounced the sin of Bill Clinton.
Now to be clear, I have and will do the same thing again because that is exactly what God does. He hates sin but loves the sinner and calls us to repent.
I can forgive that man for insulting me, but I can never forgive him for trivializing Nazism and what happened to 6 Million Jews. "Proportion"!

I could go on but I think you understand what I am saying. Folks......by lowering our standards to fit man's needs and emotions instead of lifting man up to fit God's standards has produced a society of spiritual weaklings. We have listened to "sermonettes" and now we are surrounded by "Christianettes".
This kind of lowering of standards has now filled every jail cell in America.

Today we want a man and yes, even a woman to give a sermon on THREE easy ways on how to be a wonderful successful person so that the world will love us. What is the result of that kind of attitude when the STANDARD OF ACCEPTANCE is lowered............................what has it done =

It has made the USA the number one country in the world in teenage pregnancies.

It has allowed those who beat up their wives and neighbors to get out of jail before their victims get out of the hospital.

It has allowed homosexual behavior to become a life style choice.

It has allowed pornography to be the number one money producing item on the internet.

My dear friends.....God's Standard is the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the standard of acceptance.

Hello Major;

Thank you for sharing from your heart, walk with Christ and Pastoral ministry. Standards involve our Christian behavior in the way we live.

Our standards today are not perfected especially in the areas of grace and consistency, but God provides disciplines that can turn us back to the standards, warn us of disobedience while entrusting His followers with the responsibilities to Him and one another.

The 4 points you mentioned are huge areas that we seriously need to think about.

God bless you, brother.

Bob

 

[LearningToLetGo]

Standards are a side-effect? I was thinking standards in a Christian sense but standards come in all kinds of flavors.

Reading your post got my attention. Please share more what you mean by this?

Perhaps I should have said the degradation of Christian standards is a side effect.

What we are witnessing is a demonic power grab. The demons have standards, but not ours. For example, see how quickly you are publicly denounced if you criticise LGBTQ. That is their standard. It's just not the Christian standard.

The world rests upon Christian values (beginning in Europe starting in the 4th century and spreading worldwide in the 19th and 20th centuries) and the demonic wants it (the world). Undoing Christian values is not their goal per-se but a step toward their goal.

 

[bobinfaith]

Perhaps I should have said the degradation of Christian standards is a side effect. What we are witnessing is a demonic power grab. The demons have standards, but not ours. For example, see how quickly you are publicly denounced if you criticise LGBTQ. That is their standard. It's just not the Christian standard. The world rests upon Christian values (beginning in Europe starting in the 4th century and spreading worldwide in the 19th and 20th centuries) and the demonic wants it (the world). Undoing Christian values is not their goal per-se but a step toward their goal.

Hello LearningToLetGo;

Good post. Thank you for clarifying.

 

[Major]

I see the deterioration of standards as a result of excluding God from public life. Our country was founded by Christians - there is ample evidence of this fact. Thus, our concept of right and wrong was derived from scripture. This was still evident even into the 1950s. Many times, the protagonist in movies and TV would say something akin to, "That's not very Christian" to admonish someone to develop a better attitude. Caring about others doesn't make much sense speaking from a purely logical point of view, but because of our Christian heritage, caring about others is just "the right thing to do."

I was talking with an atheist one time, and she was telling me about all the charity work she does and supports. I asked her why she does it, and she said, "It's the right thing to do." I asked her, "Says who?" She responded, "Everyone knows that!" I said, "I know, but where did the idea originate?" She was stumped. She started to become defensive when I told her about Jesus saying to His disciples, "When you did it unto the least of these, you did it unto me." But, I told her, our Founding Fathers were devout Christians and their values were gleaned entirely from the teachings of Christ. Whether or not you believe in Jesus doesn't affect the truth that America's traditional values were shaped by the teachings of Jesus.

As Christians, we VALUE human beings and one of the manifestations of that is treating people with respect and being willing to make allowances for them. The further away from God our society goes, the less value we place on our fellow man. And, if I don't value you, I'll find a lot of your behavior just annoying.

Agreed.

Abortion is the exact example of the de-valuation of life.