WELCOME TO BIBLICALTHOUGHT.COM!
The purpose of this website is to interpret and discuss various issues of the day as much as possible through a Biblical lens. The site will be refreshed with new content weekly – specifically, you’ll find a new Bible verse of the week with comment, a quote of the week with or without comment, and a statistic, poll, or data item of the week, again, with or without comment.
As the main content on this site, you will find brief essays, starting with three and, typically, with one new essay a week added. Whether or not you’re a Bible believer, these essays may give you some new insights on a variety of issues.
Verse of the week
The Inerrant Bible
“All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
Comment: Note first that the verse says all Scripture is breathed out by God – not parts of it or just the Torah or just the New Testament, but all of it. Second, the idea that it is breathed out by God means it is inspired by God. Various authors – like Moses, Isaiah, Matthew, Paul, Luke, etc. – may have written it down, but it was God who was “whispering” the text in their ears, so to speak – a supernatural phenomenon. And third, the Bible is inerrant. Because God cannot be wrong, everything in Scripture is true, no errors.
The Bible consists of 66 books written down over a period of over 1400 years by at least 40 different authors, from all walks of life – fishermen, kings, shepherds, prophets, rabbis, and even a physician (Luke). We say “at least” 40 because no one is sure who wrote the Book of Hebrews – i.e., whether it was one of the 40 or someone else.
When we refer to inspiration by God, we mean the words are God’s words that He gave to man by means of these authors. Peter said in the book 2 Peter (1:21): “…holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.” Indeed, for those who are saved and have received the Holy Spirit, the Spirit is ready to instruct us through God’s Word, but we need to pick up and read the Bible to receive that instruction.
Churches also provide instruction in God’s Word. But in today’s world, too many churches and pastors have strayed from the teachings of the Bible, even twisting the life and words of Jesus to fit various political and social views. If you observe this in the church you attend, you might want to seek a “Bible-believing” church.
The fact is, there has been much archeological activity in Biblical lands in the last 100 or more years, especially in the last 20-25 years – and there have been a great many findings that have corroborated information and facts in the Bible – but none that show the Bible to be wrong. And in particular, the archeological activity in Israel itself has been significantly increased in the last few years. On that subject, you might read The Stones Cry Out by Dinesh D’Souza.
Quote of the week
The Cliff Looms Closer
“Federal debt held by the public now equals the size of the annual economy – and it is growing. Yet investors keep buying Treasury securities. No government bond sale has really failed, no one has suddenly refused to finance Washington’s spending, and no unmistakable moment has forced Congress to change course.”
Veronique de Rugy, economist, Chair in Political Economy, George Mason University
Comment: Looking at the fact that the size of our debt ($40 trillion) now roughly equals the size of our national annual economy, one might say, for example: “So what – my net income is $120,000 a year and my debts are about $175,000, including a $150,000 mortgage [on a house worth $250,000] – and I’m not worried.”
Unlike the speaker above, whose debt is secured by a saleable home with a value exceeding his debt, the US debt is in dollars not backed by gold or any other ready asset of intrinsic value, but only by a naked promise to pay when a Treasury bond becomes due. And when a bunch of T-bonds become due, we just sell more bonds – i.e., borrow more -- to pay them off.
Of course, a big reason our bonds continue to be saleable is that we keep upping the promised interest rate. Right now, for example, the annual net interest payments on our debt exceed our national defense budget. That should be at least somewhat frightening and could lead to a crisis. And if other government needs arise, like a need to shore up Social Security and/or Medicaid, we’d have to borrow even more.
However, even more damaging is that when investors are offered a high return on T-bonds, they typically gravitate to the government offer with money that might otherwise be invested in equities (stocks, funds) in the private sector. Here’s what Ms. De Rugy says:
“A bond market crisis is not the only danger. Government borrowing competes with private borrowers for the economy’s available savings, which is another way to end up with higher interest rates. It also means less private investment than we would otherwise have – in factories, software, housing and, yes, the very AI investments we are counting on to raise future growth.”
Actions have consequences. So does inaction in many cases. We can say it’s time to stop kicking the can down the road, but it was time to stop 25 years ago. How far are we now from the kick that knocks it over the cliff?
Statistic of the week
Vote, or Lose Your Country
According to surveys conducted prior to the 2024 elections, 49% of self-identified Christians said they had no plans to vote. That would add up to nearly 100 million Americans projected over the electorate. Moreover, FairVote.org reports that about 60% of registered voters typically turn out in presidential years, and only about 40% in midterm elections.
Comment: The excuses given to pollsters are things like “My one vote won’t make any difference,” or “It’s all crooked anyway,” or “I don’t like either (or any) of the candidates,” or “I’m not interested in politics.” There are probably other excuses, but these happen to be the main ones we’ve all heard before. Let’s take a little closer look at them.
For example, out of the 100 million who didn’t plan to vote, if half or even a third of them believed their vote wouldn’t make a difference, that number could mean the electoral votes in five to ten closely contested states. And that could tip a presidential election one way or the other. In a midterm, if a proportionate number of voters in a state stayed home, that could also make a difference – again, one way or the other.
How about “It’s all crooked anyway”? We can understand the distrust because there have been a relatively large number of incidents of cheating that have been proven. If the cheating does not go your way, your failure to vote gives the fraudulent vote double power. But if you vote, your vote will at least cancel out a fraudulent vote.
Then we have “I don’t like either (or any) of the candidates.” The main point here is that, in your opinion, one candidate will likely be a little better than the other(s) – or put another way, one candidate is less objectionable than the other, the lesser of two evils, if you will. Which do you want to represent you – a candidate that’s about 75% “evil” or one that’s about 50% “evil”? If you have a choice like that, go vote for it.
Finally, we have “I’m not interested in politics.” Another term for this is apathy, which has been the downfall of civilizations in the past – Greece, Rome, Germany, etc. When most people stop paying attention is when movements like socialism start making headway. If you want to avoid socialism here, the basic advice is simply to start paying attention – and vote.
Brief Essays Touching Issues of the Day.
Essays included on this website are divided into three basic categories – Spiritual Issues, Cultural Opinions, and Government Issues. There will be some overlapping, of course, but virtually all will relate to one or more Biblical principles that support the points of view expressed.
Versions of most of these articles were previously published in the Wisconsin Christian News from 2019 to 2023, but they have been edited and updated to better reflect current events. We are opening this website with three essays, one in each category – and typically, we will add one new essay a week. The latest title in each caregory will be in red letters.