Friday, July 8, 2011

When Too Much Information Is A Bad Thing

In this age of information access many people find themselves overwhelmed and confused about many things. Technology has brought us to the point of being able to investigate almost everything on our own and that is great. It has gotten to the point where students do not need to ask questions in the classroom because they can find the information on their own, in various manners they can understand. However, due to the fallen nature of this world, wherever we find truth we will find lies; wherever we find information we will also find mis-information; wherever we find the genuine, we will find the phony.

Most people who use the internet for information do not realize that there are good sources of information but there are also plenty more bad sources. They are "junk" sites, made up of people's opinions and most exist to generate a vehicle for advertising. Anyone can make a web site, it doesn't make it a legitimate source of good information. People need to be careful.

This is true as well for our young people and the weak willed when it comes to spirituality; there is the authentic and the fake, and the fake is dressed up in some pretty little philosophies of man. Perhaps it is the fault of Twitter but I suspect it existed long before then, that we seem to be drawn to catchy, intelligent, short sayings. We love to read and use these sound-bite pieces of "wisdom". They sound good but when we really look at them they are pushing things like humanism or some other -ism. We have to be careful because there is a lot of "junk" out there that would try to distract us from the truth:

For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all men—the testimony given in its proper time. (1 Timothy 2:5-6)

The one insistent voice I hear making itself heard a lot through the mis-information of the Internet is that there are many ways to God. People are trying to teach that the Muslim god is the same as the Christian's is the same as the Buddhist's is the same as the Hindu's. This is the same as saying that the great "I AM" was the same as Baal. Only people of great ignorance and ones who want to sow mis-information for Satan would perpetuate this teaching. It doesn't take much investigation to uncover the truth that there is only one Jesus and he made it clear that there was no other way except through him. He came specifically to create the way for us and without him we have nothing:

“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 16:6)

Notice that Jesus said that it is "through" him. He is the door by which we pass, the great hidden secret that has now been revealed to man. He did not leave it open for debate or negotiations. It is a route of love and obedience that was opened for us by his great love for us. It is no more difficult then trusting because that is what is required of us, that we would trust what he has taught and what he has done to be the truth. But that is also the greatest challenge because most of us only trust the work of our own hands. This is the choice we have, to believe or not, to obey or not, to follow or not. There is no third choice or multiple routes.

The fact is that there is only one mediator between us and the Father, only one way to God, only one correct choice that will see us through, only one manner in which to gain peace, joy and love, only one person who makes us complete; his name is Jesus. Don't allow yourself to be cut off by misinformation, counterfeit products, lies and half truths. Stay the course with Jesus, the only one who truly love us.

  

No comments: