Traditionally, Labor Day is a day off in tribute to, and recognition of, the workers in the U.S. who are the backbone of our society. In many ways it is associated in people’s minds with labor unions, which have also been a significant part of our society for many years.

Unions are a highly polarizing topic. To some, unions are the reason companies hesitate to hire as many people as they really need. They are the reason American-made products are often more expensive than those from other countries. They are the reason companies are struggling under the weight of salaries and pension funds they can no longer keep afloat.

These are all good points… but what about the other side of the coin?

Unions came about in response to horrendous sweatshop conditions being propagated by greedy managers, focused on lining their own pockets while the workers suffered. In the days when the U.S. government paid billions to bail out finance institutions whose officers were receiving millions in bonuses even as their companies failed, does anyone really believe corporations are less greedy today?

Here’s the point.

In a Christian world, there would be no need for unions. Every worker would work hard “as if for the Lord” as the Bible directs, and would be content with his or her wages rather than expecting unsupportable raises. Every employer would share generously with the workers who make business successful, and would treat them with honor and respect every day.

On this Labor Day, it is our prayer that Christians everywhere will consider whether we are being the kinds of workers, supervisors, and employers that God expects. Are we being diligent at whatever our hands find to do? Are we being generous with our resources, or are we busily foused on making enough to tear down our barns and put up bigger ones to store all our goods?

Whichever side of the labor equation you’re on, one thing is clear: there is no biblical support for greed, but great praise for contentment.

Let’s overlook for the moment the question of whether this particular change would make sense; I’m sure we all had a reaction to that first paragraph one way or the other. Instead, let’s look at something more significant.  The PETA folks implied that the NIV translation committee deliberately changed the text of the Bible–not to make it more accurate, but to satisfy an agenda of gender inclusiveness. The question is: Should agendas such as gender inclusiveness be part of any Bible translation effort?

Now before some who are in love with their favorite translation claim that no more translations or updates are ever needed, we should acknowledge that the English language changes. As the NIV translation committee says on their website: Who would have guessed in the 1970s that, within a few decades, an ‟alien” would mean, thanks to the influence of ET and other movies and TV shows, an ‟extraterrestrial being”? In the updated NIV, ‟alien” has been replaced with ‟foreigner” or similar words in order to communicate the intention of God’s Word accurately to contemporary English readers. See, for instance, Genesis 23:4: ‟I am a foreigner and stranger among you . . . ”

That’s a really good point.  For those in the Baby Buster or younger generations, the word “alien” has an entirely different meaning and it makes good sense to update a translation so it’s appropriate for them.  I’ll never forget hearing a pastor explaining what “divers diseases” were from the old King James.  Like many, he simply didn’t realize that’s how the word “diverse” was spelled in the 1600′s when the KJV was done.

What we’re talking about here are changes not driven by changes in language, but culture. On their site the translation committee also says: In general, much more often than not … “People” and “humans” (and “human beings”) were widely used for Greek and Hebrew masculine forms referring to both men and women. In other words, they deliberately changed passages in the new version to remove some references that were specifically masculine.  The question is whether the change today is genuinely based on a change in the English language, or a change in our culture’s expectations.

So what do you think?  Should Bible translators update editions, for example, to reflect the fact that homosexuality is much more accepted today?  Are there any Bible translations today that you think were driven by someone’s agenda to the point of being doctrinally unsound?  We’ve launched a discussion at https://www.facebook.com/PreachingU?sk=app_2373072738 and invite you to join in.

This raises some questions. For example, if all sin is unacceptable to God, what standard do we use to determine that their sins are worse than ours? If—assuming they are repentant—God has forgiven their sins, why do we think our judgment is better than his?

How many of us could pass this test: Suppose they ran the movie of your life up on the big screen in front of the church. Not one that showed a balanced view of your entire life, mind you, but one that just focused on your biggest, most spectacular sins—including sins in your mind. After all, the premise of the poll is focusing in on just one moment of dramatic sin. After the whole church saw your worst sin in front of their eyes, would they still want you as a member?

Certainly we need to have a measure of responsible caution with convicted criminals. But how can a person (again, assuming this is a repentant person) ever rebuild his or her life if we don’t give them that chance? Any good, experienced leader will tell you that people tend to live up—or down—to our expectations of them. So it makes no sense to tell these people we expect them to continue to be untrustworthy.

We preach and teach that God forgives. That he loves us so much he wants to forgive us and bring us into his family. That’s the whole message of Christianity. Yet with our actions and attitudes, as shown by this survey, we’re proving that we don’t believe that.

Or is it just that we’re not as repentant in our own hearts as we should be, so we assume others aren’t either?

Good news, Ted: a church based on denial should be a rousing success in our society.

In an interview with the Denver Post yesterday, Haggard said, “St. James is a church for sinners – for people who have hit rock bottom and people who want to help people who have hit rock bottom. Everybody is welcome: Democrats, Republican, Independents, gays, straights, tall, short, addicts and recovering addicts." Those all sound like good things, so why are many unhappy?

First, questions have been raised about his recovery from the drug and sex issues that caused his downfall in 2006. At the time, a team of counselors came together to help him through recovery and restoration. Fourteen months later, Haggard ended his relationship with the team against their wishes. At the time, H.B. London, vice president of pastoral ministries for Colorado Springs’ Focus on the Family and a member of the oversight team, said that the process of restoration was incomplete. The Christian Post reported that London and the others wished Haggard would have followed their counsel rather than doing what he was doing.

Second, rather than continue with an accountability program Haggard and his wife began making paid public appearances–raising the question of whether he was more concerned about fame and fortune than spiritual recovery. He said all the right things during those appearances, but without the support of an accountability group who knew what was really happening in his life. Quotes like, "People love a good comeback story" run the risk of making it sound more like the appeal of a showman than a humbled person. (Anybody remember Steve Martin in Leap of Faith when the local sheriff revealed his crimes?)

Finally, there is the air of deception created by multiple denials that he was starting a new church–one as recent as three weeks ago. That isn’t the climate of transparency and sincerity that Haggard needs to reclaim an image of spiritual integrity.

We all need second chances. It would be truly fantastic and a testament to God’s healing power to see Ted Haggard completely repentant, changed, and restored. But Haggard’s actions are making it more difficult to accept that that’s where he’s at.

Reverend Daugherty was one of America’s best-known and most charismatic pastors. He preached that “God loves you, sin separates you from God, Jesus died for your sins, you can be saved by confessing Jesus is Lord.”

The Oklahoma State Legislature celebrates the life and legacy of Pastor Billy Joe Daugherty, a dedicated family man, a gifted leader, a tireless spokesman for the gospel, a great Oklahoman, and a great man of God.

This resolution was passed by politicians! Who want to be re-elected! Where’s the outcry? Where are the church-state people demanding that this sort of thing stop? In short, what makes this situation different?

No doubt part of it is because Oklahoma is a Bible belt state.  One imagines that there might have been more reluctance to pass such a resolution in some other states.

But would there be?

The fact is, this case is different because it isn’t about giving a canned perfunctory prayer before a government meeting. This resolution isn’t about trying to legislate morality or what to teach in schools. This resolution is a recognition of a life well-lived. It has nothing to do with what Daugherty claimed or taught. It’s all about what he did—help people.

The world gets upset by many things people are saying in the name of Christ. They especially take note when our lives don’t match up with what Jesus taught. But you never hear the American Civil Liberties Union filing suit against a church group for running a homeless shelter. You never a public outcry against Christians running a non-profit job placement service.

One of the things the Oklahoma resolution said was, “In 2005, Reverend Daugherty was assaulted during an altar call, which produced a black eye and cut that required several stitches. Reverend Daugherty visited his assailant, forgave the man, and authored a book about the incident: ‘Knocked Down But Not Out.’ ”

His life had impact because of its integrity and love. It makes you wonder whether Christianity might be better off if more of us were known for our integrity and love. Apparently that can even overcome a politician’s fear of public opinion.

The repercussions from the “name it and claim it” folks have begun already, as someone announced to me (as if I was an ignorant heretic) that, “the Bible says He will give you the desires of your heart.”  God wants to give us what we want.

Well, yes and no.  Instead of pulling a few words out of context, let’s look at the whole passage she misquoted. Psalm 37:4-5 says, “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.  Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act.”

By just quoting part of the verse, people are leaving out some significant things.  The first part of the passage tells us to delight ourselves in the Lord.  The word “and” sets this up as an if/then.  IF we delight ourselves in the Lord THEN he will give us the desires of our heart.

What gives you delight?  Probably many things.  At church yesterday (Palm Sunday) we got genuine delight from watching the little ones waving their palm fronds and singing—and frequently whacking each other with the fronds (unintentionally, of course).  There’s certainly nothing wrong with that.  Many find delight in other areas, such as satisfying greed and materialism.  Is that wrong?

The Bible actually gives us a clear definition of what we should and shouldn’t be delighting in in Philippians 4:8-9 where Paul says, “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me–practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.”

So if we delight ourselves in the Lord, if we have focused our thoughts on that which is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable… then God will give us the desires of our hearts.  The key here, of course, is that when we truly delight ourselves in the Lord then what our hearts desire will be radically different.  And there’s another subtle trap; the most beautiful and commendable of things can actually become an idol if we love it more than God; if we spend more time with it than we do God.

And the passage she misquoted goes on to say, “Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act.” Once again we see an if/then construction.  If we want God to act on our behalf, giving us the desires of our hearts, then we need to have our lives committed to him and trust in him.  This doesn’t mean, “I prayed the sinner’s prayer so I committed my life to him.”  This means day in, day out, living in a way that is committed to his principles.

Do you gossip?  Then don’t bother expecting him to give you the desires of your heart.  (And today, gossip doesn’t just mean the conversation in the living room or on the phone.  It also means the “prayer request” that is an excuse to pass on stories about someone.  It also means forwarding the email with rumors that you haven’t personally confirmed as truth.)

As April 15 approaches, are you planning to “tweak” the numbers?  Did you snap at your spouse over something?  Do you… oh come on, you don’t need me to go through the list.  Are you committed to personal holiness?

And then the verse gets to trust.  Do you truly trust in God?  There’s an easy way to tell: do you worry?

So yes, I do believe God wants to give us the desires of our hearts.  But the Bible makes it quite clear that before he does so he expects us to find our delight in him, commit our lives to living consistently by his instructions, and trusting in him rather than ourselves.  When we do that, then the desires of our hearts will align with the things he wants to give us.

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Suppose you have a vision to launch a new campus. You decide to do so in a movie theater. It would be a significant mistake to tell people that God’s vision is for you to launch a new campus in a movie theater. What happens when you discover no theaters in your area are available? If you told people that was part of the vision, then all enthusiasm for a new campus goes away!

Instead, keep in mind that the vision is launching a new campus. Doing so in a movie theater is just your initial plan. If that falls through, so what? You’ve learned that that was the wrong plan. So you think and pray some more and develop a new plan–but your vision didn’t change.

It can be hard letting plans go–especially if we were the ones that came up with them. But isn’t the vision really what matters? Sometimes we can hold onto a plan to avoid sacrificing some credibility in the short-term. But all that does is ruin our credibility over the long haul. Bite the bullet and say, “You know what, my plan wasn’t the best idea.  We’re going to drop that. But our vision hasn’t changed, so how are we going to get there?”

Great research–wrong conclusion.

Romans 1:19 tells us “What may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them.” We didn’t invent God to explain our consciences, God built consciences into humans when He created us. Romans 2:15 says, “They demonstrate that God’s law is written in their hearts, for their own conscience and thoughts either accuse them or tell them they are doing right.”

It’s interesting that the Church of England this past week issued a statement encouraging their leaders to emphasize to people that religion and science are compatible. The Harvard researchers gave a great demonstration of that. Unfortunately, some are determined to try to find explanations of their own research that deny religion.

Science is not our enemy. All truth is God’s truth. And we sometimes hold too tightly onto unbiblical dogma, as when the Church persecuted scientists for saying the earth revolved around the sun rather than vice versa. But when we hear scientific “results”, we do have to keep in mind that the interpretation of the data is made by humans with their own biases.