"People are difficult to govern because they have too much knowledge." Lao-tzu, The Way of Lao-tzu, Chinese philosopher, founder of Taoism

Information leads to knowledge, and knowledge is power.

I was perplexed when I first heard the term "Information Age." Now I get it. The Internet has been the greatest weapon against ignorance in the history of mankind. (By the way, the inventor of the Internet was Tim Berners-Lee.)

When I was first elected in 1996, there weren't many ways for constituents to know what was going on in the Capitol. In fact, the only way was reading articles in the local papers written by the Tallahassee press corps. Having seen how the print media reporters and editorial boards 'filtered' the news during my campaign, I knew that direct communication with constituents was going to be essential.

I began to spend about half of my monthly House expense allotment on postage for the thousands of letters and updates mailed to the folks in my District. At one point the House administration cut off my allotment of House letterhead and envelopes!

When I became Speaker, I reassigned a number of House staffers to form a communications department to assist the House Members in communicating directly with their constituents through TV, radio, direct mail and email. Of course, the Tallahassee print media corps went ballistic when they realized I was doing an ‘end run’ around their ability to ‘filter’ what news got out of Tallahassee. In fact, that was the old print media’s main source of power – controlling what information came out of Tallahassee. Until this day, when I run into former legislators they thank me for the ability to speak unfiltered to their constituents.

Today, I am pleased to see that the information age has completely washed the foundation from under the heretofore powerful, and biased, print media. Suffice it to say that the advent of the information age confirms the age-old notion that power needs to control information.

The art of communicating ideas is no new thing. In 2 Corinthians 10, Paul continues to defend his ministry with the church he started in Corinth by clearly addressing the ancient Greeks’ ingrained acceptance of the art of rhetoric as an end unto itself. To the Greeks the medium was the measage. The Greeks at Corinth knew Paul’s oratorical skills were lacking, but ... Read More...

Tags: Rhetoric, Paul, 2 Corinthians, Tenacity

In the State Legislature I learned early on that there are two opposing ideas about the role of government in society. Conservatives believe in limited government – that there is a place where the government’s role in a your life ends, and your faith, family and friends begins. Liberals believe that government can do it all – that government can be your faith, your family and your friend.

Not only do conservatives believe in limited government, we are convinced that allowing the government to be the ‘middle man’ for social welfare has damaged the national physic of both the giver and the recipient. For example, out of the misguided respect for the ‘dignity’ of welfare recipients, we do not require them to do anything for what they receive, much less acknowledge that the payments they receive come from the blood, sweat and tears of other Americans, most of whom are trying to stay afloat financially from payday to payday.

What would happen if Washington got out of the social welfare business?

In the days of Second Corinthians, social welfare was not considered a core function of government. Yet, there were examples of government-sponsored programs, such as “Alimenta” which was the Roman Emperor Trajan’s version of a basic welfare program for children and widows championed by.

The early Christians had to look to themselves for support. Paul spent a significant amount of his time as a fundraiser for the needy churches he had founded.

The final passages of Second Corinthians are devoted to inspiring the church at Corinth to move on from its internal squabbles and focus on raising an offering for the church in Jerusalem. Writing from Macedonia, Paul artfully inspires the Corinthians to act upon the generosity they once professed.

1 Now I want you to know, dear brothers and sisters, what God in his kindness has done through the churches in Macedonia. 2 They are being tested by many troubles, and they are very poor. But they are also filled with abundant joy, which has overflowed in rich generosity.
3 For I can testify that they gave not only what they could afford, but far more. And they did it of their own free will. 4 They begged us again and again for the privilege of sharing in the gift for the believers in Jerusalem. 5 They even did more than we had hoped, for their first action was to give themselves to the Lord and to us, just as God wanted them to do. 2 Corinthians 8:1-5

Paul raises the following questions:

Who was the source of the Macedonians’ generosity?
What emotion follows sacrificial giving, and why?
Why did the Macedonians consider it a privilege to give to the Christians at Jerusalem?
Who wants you to give more than is hoped for?

In modern parlance, we might say that Paul is ‘calling out’ the Corinthians to finish what they promised. Paul is putting the Corinthians to the test. He is laying down the gauntlet.

The Corinthians needed to finish what they started. They had everything else - faith, good preaching, knowledge and love for Paul - but something was missing. Genuine commitment means putting some ‘skin in the game’ and Paul was not about to let the Corinthians out of their prior commitment to conribute. Paul was not ordering them to give, but using the more financially challenged Macedonians as an example to prick the consciences of the Corinthians.

Today, the recent world wide financial meltdown has hit everyone from the highest to the lowest social strata. Everyone is hurting. We simply cannot afford our previous lifestyles. If you are depressed about your finances and recent losses, and the bleak prospects ahead, God has a message for you: This is no time for the church to let down all those who are suffering around the world and in your own community. The government can only do so much, and should only do so much. Let’s take some joy in giving of what we have, not what we don’t have, and sacrifice for others as Christ sacrificed for us in the days ahead.

The government cannot put hope in someone’s heart or give purpose to their life. Only God can do that. Now is not the time to take a ‘time out’ on helping others.

So, if you have made a financial commitment to the church, but have been ‘hammered’ by the recession, at least do something in accordance with your current means. Listen to Paul:

10 Here is my advice: It would be good for you to finish what you started a year ago. Last year you were the first who wanted to give, and you were the first to begin doing it. 11 Now you should finish what you started. Let the eagerness you showed in the beginning be matched now by your giving. Give in proportion to what you have. 12 Whatever you give is acceptable if you give it eagerly. And give according to what you have, not what you don’t have. 2 Corinthians 8:10-12

Isn’t it remarkable how God has a word for every situation? Let’s finish what we started.
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Tags: Paul, 2 Corinthians, Giving

11 Knowing, then, the fear of the Lord, we persuade people.

Recently, a friend asked me, “Johnnie, what do you know now, that you didn’t know before you got involved in politics?” It’s a great question. I think he meant was “What is the curse that comes with being a politician?”

At first blush, I would say knowing how inside politics really works is a curse of sorts. When I hear someone mouthing off about politics, I want to say, “Pal, you don’t know the half of it.”

Yet, the inside political experience is more than never seeing things the same way again. It’s the haunting knowledge that I am compelled to fight for the conservative movement every day for the rest my life - I have been persuaded.

Truthfully, I didn’t know that I would be come an ideologue, a ‘believer’ in the righteousness of the conservative cause, convicted to share the message of personal freedom and free market economics with others. It is life changing indeed, and being convicted, I try to persuade people.

Part of persuasion is telling your audience that they are going to be ‘glad to hear’ your message and that the listener will be ‘proud’ of his or her commitment to the cause. That is why the Ronald Reagan, the father of modern conservatism, became know as the ‘great communicator.’ The dynamic combination of his star power, self-effacing humor and palpable belief that government was not the answer, persuaded his listeners to believe and take pride in the conservative movement.

In 2 Corinthians 5, Paul continues to prove that he was the Christian ‘great communicator.’ Paul had established the church at Corinth, but in Paul’s absence dynamic, but shallow, group of teachers filled the void. As is typical, these false teachers attacked everything about Paul, even saying he was out of his mind. Beginning in verse 11, Paul is speaking mainly to those Corinthians who continued to follow his leadership, building them up and equipping his friends to defend Paul against the accusation that he was a crazy ideologue.

11 Because we understand our fearful responsibility to the Lord, we work hard to persuade others. God knows we are sincere, and I hope you know this, too. 12 Are we commending ourselves to you again? No, we are giving you a reason to be proud of us, so you can answer those who brag about having a spectacular ministry rather than having a sincere heart. 13

Thousands of ‘how to’ books on the ‘power of persuasion’ line the shelves of bookstores and pop up on an Internet search, but it doesn’t take an expert to know that sincerity is the key to persuasion. (That’s why Bill Clinton was a powerful persuader – because he was absolutely sincere about whatever he said at the time he said it, maybe not later, but when he said it!)
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Tags: Paul , Bill Clinton, divisions in the church, Persuasion

“I actually did vote for [it] before I voted against it.” U.S. Senator John Kerry

Bad men are false; good men are fickle; but God is true, neither fickle nor false. Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary.

One of my colleagues in the Florida Legislature was a Republican before she was a Democrat before she was a Republican! Go figure! To say the least, as a representative she was not the model of consistency. Unfortunately, she was not a loner in that respect. I saw a whole lot of folks telling anybody and everybody just what they wanted to hear. One would think that sooner or later these slippery politicians would figure out that they can't have it both ways, and at some point they would have to vote one way or another on a bill. Well, believe it or not, there is a way to vote one way AND the other. Here's how it's done.

When a vote on final passage takes place, a member's vote is recorded in the 'machine' which tallies the vote with the results announced by the Speaker. However, the House Rules allow a member to file a 'change of vote' form with the clerk of the House so that his or her vote is changed in the House Journal. If was truly shameful to see a stampede of representatives running down to the clerk's desk right after a controversial vote so that they could switch their vote on paper in order to later argue that one or the other vote was their real vote, depending on who they happened to be with at the moment.

Consistency takes a lot of courage and conviction some days. Thus, the saying in the Legislature is, "You can put all the courage in Tallahassee in a thimble!"

In Second Corinthians, Paul continues to deal with one of his churches at Corinth in ancient Greece. This church was built from both Jews and gentiles who were subject to the constant whiplashing of false teachers and the notorious immorality in Corinth. Assaulted from within and without, these new Christians had begun to believe some of the vicious rumors spread about Paul in an attempt to discredit his ministry and the Gospel.

One of the most vicious charges against Paul was that he 'talked out of both sides of his mouth.' That he said what was convenient at the time - that his message was not consistent. Paul not only rebuts this assertion but, as always, turns his response into a lesson for the new Christians about the character of Christ.

12 We can say with confidence and a clear conscience that we have lived with a God-given holiness and sincerity in all our dealings. We have depended on God’s grace, not on our own human wisdom. That is how we have conducted ourselves before the world, and especially toward you. 13 Our letters have been straightforward, and there is nothing written between the lines and nothing you can’t understand. I hope someday you will fully understand us, 14 even if you don’t understand us now. Then on the day when the Lord Jesus returns, you will be proud of us in the same way we are proud of you. ...

Do you think I am like people of the world who say “Yes” when they really mean “No”? 18 As surely as God is faithful, my word to you does not waver between “Yes” and “No.” 19 For Jesus Christ, the Son of God, does not waver between “Yes” and “No.” He is the one whom Silas, Timothy, and I preached to you, and as God’s ultimate “Yes,” he always does what he says. 20 For all of God’s promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding “Yes!” And through Christ, our “Amen” (which means “Yes”) ascends to God for his glory.

 21 It is God who enables us, along with you, to stand firm for Christ. 2 Corinthians 1:12-21

Paul put off a visit to the Corinthians because he knew that he would have to chastise them for going astray. He put off the visit because he decided to give them some time to work through their problems. They did, but for this change of plans Paul was criticized by his detractors as being 'inconsistent' and fickle. So, Paul used this as another learnable moment for the Corinthians.

Paul first emphasizes that he is confident of his sincerity and straightforwardness in all of his dealings, trusting in God's consistent and unwavering wisdom, not the ways of the worldly man who is likely to say 'yes' when he means 'no' and vice versa. (We need a few more like Paul in politics!)

Paul drives the real point home by pointing out that not only is Paul consistent and faithful, but that Jesus does not waiver between 'yes' and 'no' because Jesus is the very embodiment of God's ultimate 'yes' to us. The important thing to these new Christians is not whether Paul is guilty of inconsistency or unreliability, but knowing and believing and having faith that God always says 'yes' to those who will draw near to him.

Take a strong stand with Christ and consistency will not be your issue. Read More...

Tags: Paul, Consistency