You Don't Say? Really?

For NASA, space is still a high priority. - Dan Quayle

You don't say, Dan? Space a priority for NASA? For real? I never would have guessed.

No, I'm not picking on VPs in this blog. Although you have to love them. The press ate Quayle's lunch, but noboby even realizes that Joe Biden makes Quayle look scholarly. I mean, Biden is the one who said,

"Look, John's last-minute economic plan does nothing to tackle the number one job facing the middle class, and it happens to be, as Barack says, a three-letter word; jobs. J-O-B-S."


And who could forget this....

"Stand up, Chuck, let 'em see ya." --Joe Biden, to Missouri state Sen. Chuck Graham, who is in a wheelchair, Columbia, Missouri, Sept. 12, 2008

That's funny right there!

Listen, it would be easy to keep the quotes coming but that's not my aim here. What I really want to do is share some famous understatements in history and also look at the most dangerous one of all time. So here we go....

Understatement is one of the funniest forms of speech when used appropriately. Unfortunately, for Dan Quayle and many others, understatement comes too naturally and lands closer to stupidity rather than humor. This form of speech has been around forever. Just take a look...

Jesus had been with the disciples in Galilee. He had been teaching and ministering to the people. Alone with the disciples, He began to speak of His coming Kingdom. To exhibit the glory of which He spoke, Jesus took Peter, James and John up a mountain and was transfigured before them. Matthew 17:2 says, "His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light." To add to the spectacle, "Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him." (Matthew 17:3)
One can only imagine the scene. The glory of the Lord on display to the 3 disciples. What majesty! Our minds cannot fathom what was happening. Then Peter steps into history with the most amazing understatement of all time in Matthew 17:4..."Lord, it is good for us to be here." You don't say, Peter. Really?

So many times I have failed in the same way. You know, thinking that I could possibly add something to the moment with my words. Sometimes words ruin the occassion. In this glorious scene, Peter's words make for a tremendous understatement.

Next, we see Jesus taking a trip through Samaria in the gospel of John. He was leaving Judea and headed north and I love what the Bible says in John 4:4, "But He needed to go through Samaria."

Wow. Sidebar here ---To see the King of Kings choose a route because he has an appointment with a certain woman at a well shows Jesus' unmatched compassion for the lost. 'He needed to through Samaria.' Wow. -----Sidebar stop.

Many things can be learned from Jesus interaction with the woman at the well. But I want to skip down to John 4:17-19. Jesus has just offered the woman the living water that He possesses. She asks for the water and Jesus asks her to get her husband. Then we see John 4:17-18...

The woman answered and said, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “You have well said, ‘I have no husband,’ for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that you spoke truly.”

To which the woman replies in grand understatement fashion.."Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet." (John 4:19) You don't say. Really? A prophet? Jesus has just given her a complete error-free rundown of her life. Someone she had never met before knows all about her past and her present situation. Prophet? Yes! God in the flesh? Without a doubt!

Finally, this last understatement in the Scripture is seen in Matthew 21:12-15. It is the first Palm Sunday and Jesus enters Jerusalem on a donkey. Some gather to welcome the King with palms branches and shouts of "Hosanna to the Son of David." Upon entering the city, Jesus heads straight to the temple and confronts the wickedness in it. Boldness unlike any other! Upon entering the city, Jesus heads straight to the temple and heals the blind and the lame that came to Him. Compassion unlike any other!

These two qualities combine to enrage the leadership of Isreal. In fact, Matthew writes in the last part of 21:15, speaking of the chief priests and scribes....."they were indignant." Quite an understatement. Just how indignant were they? Enough to call for Jesus' life at the hands of the Romans in a few short days!

This all leads to me to the most dangerous understatement of all time. Occassionally as you talk to people about the Lord, you will hear something like, "Yeah, my relationship with the Lord is important." Really? You don't say? Not trying to be sarcastic here. But the word 'important' is not really sufficient in that regard. To say it in that way implies that there are other things in life that are comparable to your relationship with God. What else compares? Your job? Your family? Your education? What?

Let me be clear. Nothing is as important as your eternal destination. And your eternal destination is determined by your relationship to God. And your relationship to God is determined by what you do with Jesus Christ. Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." John 14:6. No understatement there.

Lion or Lamb?

Just a short blog to remind everyone today is March 1st. Ok. Here I go. It's March 1st. As a child, that meant hearing adults use the phrase, "In like a lion, out like a lamb," when referring to this third month of the year. Normally, March was a transition in weather in my home state of South Carolina. Often a good time to fly kites. Often a good time for tornadoes. Often a good time to start on your tan. Often a good time to dig out the gloves and scarf. A real mixed bag of weather.
For the record as I write, I am looking out my front window at the lamb of March entering. Clear morning with no breeze but quite cold. No lion this morning.
This all got me to thinking. Obviously there is not necessarily any truth in this saying. Yes, March can begin as a lion, but so could September or May or any month for that matter. And any could begin as a lamb. Or end likewise. No this is not a Ben Franklin beat down blog. Sayings are what they are. Sometimes true. Sometimes not.
However, let me offer one that you can trust. Jesus Christ entered the world as a lamb. A peaceful night in Bethelem unnoticed by the world ushered in the greatest news to the history of the world. No parades that day. No violent demonstrations in the streets. The Lamb that would take away the sins of the world entered in truly 'lamb-like' way. His life and ministry followed in the same fashion. Although his ministry gained popularity and momentum, He chose not the way of a lion. He could have established the earthly kingdom that many wanted. He could have roared into history, but no the Lamb went to the slaughter. He said not a word even to death. The Lamb exited the world in the same way he entered.
Wait a minute, Bud. You are not making sense. Lamb in, Lamb out. Where's the lion? Where's the comparison?
Where's the Lion? Oh, He's coming. If human history were March, it would be the 30th. The Lion is coming. Many people believe that the Lamb is who will return when Jesus again enters the world. They mistakely believe that forgiveness still awaits on that day. They continue to live a life unacceptable in His sight, prepared to ask the Lamb for mercy on that day. Wow. What a fatal mistake.
The Lamb in the Bible is offered today. Salvation is here. Salvation is now. Salvation is today. On that day, don't show up to pet the Lamb and be eaten by the Lion.

As I finish this blog, the clouds have arrived to cover the sun. I may have spoke too soon. Maybe the lion of March is coming today........or maybe it's the Lion of Judah.

Bud Moss on Death Row

Opened up the Internet this morning to see Johnny Depp pleading for the lives of 3 men imprisoned in Arkansas. Seems the group were convicted of murdering three boys in 1994. According to Depp, the men in prison are innocent and only the victims of a rush to justice. As a result, he will appear on an episode of 48 Hours this Saturday to make an appeal for a new trial. After reading more about the case, it turns out, "Depp joins such celebrity activists as Eddie Vedder, Henry Rollins, Dixie Chicks, Margaret Cho, Winona Ryder, South Park's Trey Parker, Marilyn Manson and even Demi Lovato calling for the West Memphis Three's release."

Now listen, I know what you're thinking. 'Bud's a blogger. He likes to hit home runs in the blogosphere. Here is a hanging curveball of a story. This one is going to end up in the cheap seats.' Ok. I admit it. At first glance, this is too easy. Hollywood celebrities 'acting' like Supreme Court justices. How many times have we seen this? Sean Penn starring as secretary of state. Michael J Fox portrays a political activist. The list goes on and on. As much as I want to comment, I will let that pitch pass me by.

However, I want to use this story to illustrate a bigger point. An eternal point. The point that I hope we all must get.

Of the three convicted murderers, one received a death sentence while the remaining two got life. Depp actually mentions that man by name, "Damien Echols is on death row to be killed by lethal injection." He has been on death row for 15 years. Now lets be clear, these men were convicted by a jury of their peers. They were not put in prison without a trial. It is certainly possible that they are completely guilty. Or completely innocent. I have no idea. Nor does Johnny Depp for that matter.

With that in mind, let me share one truth that might not be evident to all, "Bud Moss has been on death row for over 36 years today." What?! That's right, death row. Just like Damien Echols, death hangs over my head every day. How did you get such a sentence? I sinned against a Holy God. Although there are multiple counts on this charge, one sin led to the death sentence.

How was the trial on those charges? Fast. One day, I read this in the Bible, "For the wages of sin is death..." Since I had obviously sinned numerous times, death was the inevitable result. You say, "Bud, everybody sins." Yeah, and everybody dies.

On top of that, I sit on death row awaiting a new trial on the same charges. Whew. Glad to hear that. I was about to call Johnny Depp. Just like last time, this verdict is final. However, this sentence lasts forever. No chance of appeal. Innocent means eternity in heaven. Guilty means eternity in hell. I can't blow this trial.

You are innocent right? I mean this new trial will clear you of all charges, right? Nope. I am guilty as charged. I did sin multiple times. Hell should be my destination. I need a good defense strategy. Ok, Bud we can help. Listen, God is a forgiving God. Just tell him you are sorry and he will forgive you. Easy enough? Well, I don't know. Let's try that with the above mentioned case. Lets suppose the Memphis 3 get a new trial. This time they walk into the courtroom and say to the judge, "We killed those 3 boys, but we are truly sorry. We were young. We didn't realize we could get a death sentence for that. Please let us go." Would they be released? Absolutely not. A fair judge would demand that they pay for the crime. So there goes that plan. Being sorry won't work.

Ok, I got it. Tell God about all the good things that you do. You go to church. You help people. You pray. You are a good person overall. Hey...that might work for other folks on trial in America. Tell the judge that all the good things you have done in life should cause him to overlook the murder you committed. I mean the scales in their minds are probably tipped to the 'good person' side. Sound ridiculous? Just recently in South Carolina, a church deacon was convicted of robbing a bank and sent to prison. It would have sounded absurd for him to ask the judge to let him go because he was a deacon. But many people will play the good person defense with God on that day. It won't work either.

Only one defense will work on that Judge. He will demand punishment and payment for my crimes. He is the perfect Judge. He shows no partiality. He hears no excuses. He demands justice. The scene will feature me and the Judge. No witnesses will be needed. My guilt will be evident. What can I do? Say I'm sorry? No. Say I'm really a good guy? No. That won't work with an imperfect judge on Earth. Surely won't work with a perfect Judge in heaven. What to do? Hope Hollywood shows up to defend me? No. I will be undefendable. I will need Someone to literally swap lives with me on that day. You know, give me their life without crime and take my life full of crime. An exchange would work. A trade. A barter. Something like that. Not gonna happen. I mean who would trade places with the Memphis 3 if they are really guilty. Who would trade places with any guilty criminal? Who wants punishment for a crime they did not commit? Who wants a lethal injection in place of the real criminal? That's unimaginable to any of us. Impossible.

What a God we have who provides the Substitute! "Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us. for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree" Galatians 3:13.

That day in that courtroom, Jesus will be my Deliverer! He will walk in and I will walk out a free man into heaven.

Indescribable joy. Underserved freedom. Unbelievable mercy.

I don't know the fate of the Memphis 3. They may be innocent. Maybe Johnny Depp will win their freedom. Maybe not. But I do know those three men and the rest of world will stand before God one day, and on that day, a man named Johnny will be no help. Only a man named Jesus will.

The Wrong Battle

During the invasion of Normandy on D-Day, many landing crafts beached miles away from their destination at Omaha Beach. The boats apparently had difficulty navigating in the rough seas that night. Often doors dropped down to reveal little or no resistance, while other doors dropped to an assault that was overwhelming. Many died on that day beacuse they showed up to the wrong battle.


For many years of my Christian life, I fought the same wrong battle. Filling my crosshairs on most occassions was the world of politics. "If we can just get the right people in office, we would change the country." That was my battle cry. Write your legislators. Call their office. Sign the petition. Outlaw this. Ban that. Pass a law. Commands were given. Orders were followed. I thought that this was my Christian duty. I wanted to honor the Lord. That was my motivation. Seemed right. I mean our country continued to fall off the mountain of morality. Economic policy was no better. Just listen to the Christians. We got the answers. Listen to us, I begged.


Needless to say, no one listened. What am I doing wrong, Lord? Why does no one get it? My patience began to vanish. Maybe I'll try harder. Nothing changed. Even my own party beagn to disappoint. We became the spenders. Our morality at times was no better. We lied. We stole. We nominated a moderate. I could no longer defend them. What was wrong? As always the Bible provided the answer.


When we look in the life of Christ in the New Testament, one thing seemed to be missing. Certainly, God's chosen writers had forgotten to include it. It has got to be there. Read. Reread. Can't find it. Where in the Scriptures did Jesus lead his followers to Rome? I mean, they must have went there to protest the policies of Caesar. Taxes were outrageous in that day. What? No tea parties from the disciples. No letter writing campaigns? No petitions? Are you kidding me? Actually the words of Jesus would ruffle the feathers of even Christian conservatives today. "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” (Matthew 22:21) Render to Obama? No way. Let's protest. That's our motto. Paul reinforced Jesus' teaching in Romans 13:1-7. He urged submission to all government. Peter wrote about submission to government in 1 Peter 2:13-16 in spite of the fact that Peter would die at the hands of his government.



Graciuosly, the Lord began to show me my error. The church was never called to that battle. Oh sure, we had marching orders. Clear instructions and clear battle lines were before us, but I had failed to understand. Soon, I realized many believers were in the same boat. Jesus had left the church with one battle, one mission and one clear enemy. The church's mission was to go with the gospel and make disciples. Nothing more and certainly nothing less. Wow. Too simple. Can't be that easy. Can it?



Well if you look at many churches and Christian organizations, you would certainly not see that singular focus that Jesus commanded. They seem to believe that Jesus commanded so much more. Feed the hungry, house the homeless, cure AIDS, and many other 'causes' become the rallying cries. Effort, time and money are directed toward these efforts often in the absence of the gospel. "We need to meet their needs first," some say. May I say for the record....There is no greater NEED in a person's life than the truth of the gospel and the eternal life it offers.



That all leads to the motivation behind the post. Focus on the Family garnered must attention leading up to the Super Bowl with its 30 second spot starring Tim Tebow and his mom. Christians cheered, "Way to go. We need a voice. Nice job." The news articles abounded. People lined up on both sides. I was on neither one. You see, Focus on the Family is one of the organizations that fights the wrong battle. For years, their battle has been the political world. Their resources are spent on the culture war. Abortion, homosexual marriage, drug issues, and the like are the focus. And yes, before you stone me, I detest these evils as well. The damage they inflict runs throughout our society. But you must understand, these issues arise from one source- sin. And the only cure for sin is the gospel, not the political process.



So when I learned that Focus on the Family was sponsoring a Super Bowl ad, I was not as excited as most. I questioned the content and certainly doubted the gospel would even be a part of the commercial. I mean if you plan to spend 3 million dollars, surely you would share the glorious good news that your sins can be forgiven. So I checked out what Focus on the Family had to say prior to the commercial being aired. This quote by their CEO, Jim Daly, struck me. "Focus on the Family is about ... strengthening families by empowering them with the tools they need to live lives rooted in morals and values." Let me be clear here. A strong family is a wonderful testimony for a Christian. It should be an attraction to a lost world. There is no doubt about that, and in the lives of Christians, close families are a by-product of walking with the Lord and obeying His Word. However, when you think that families with strong morals becomes the objective of the Christian walk, the lines gets blurred. Let's say a Mormon or a Jehovah Witness or even a Muslim hears that quote. They think, "Well my family is strong and moral, so I must be pleasing to God." Wow. Imagine that. They leave and never realize they are under the condemnation of God. What a disservice has been done to these unbelievers! Not only do they not hear the true gospel, but they actually are encouraged in their unbelief!

So the Super Bowl ad finally aired with much amazement from both sides. Nothing controversial was said. Just a brief moment with Tebow and his mom. No pro-life slogans. Even no bible verses under his eyes. And certainly no gospel. Just the short message....Celebrate Families. Celebrate Life. And then an encouragement to see the Tebow Story at the Focus on the Family website. I was not shocked. Par for the course for Focus on the Family. However, I visited the site with anticipation that I would finally hear the gospel message and salvage some hope in the company. I watched the entire Tebow story. Touching story. Nice family. Much sacrifice. But no gospel message. For the record, I know the Tebows share my passion for the gospel because their entire lives have been built around that central truth. I'm also certain Tim Tebow embraces the message because his ministry has been well documented. However, in this instance, Focus on the Family chose not to share the greatest news in the history of mankind. What a stage they had. What an incredible amount of money had been spent. What an opportunity passed by.

Again let me stress, I would love to see no abortions. I would love to see families strong. How do we get there? Through the glorious gospel, not through good government.

Celebrate Family. Celebrate Life. That is not the gospel. In fact Jesus said, "“If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple." Pretty stunning words in light of what Focus on the Family promotes.

There is only one life to celebrate and it belongs to Jesus Christ. It is the perfect life that he lived to satisfy God the Father and it is the perfect sacrifice for sin that he offered through His death. We celebrate because that perfect life can be credited to our account when we repent and place our trust in Jesus life, death and resurrection. Celebrate that life and that life alone.

"For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." 2 Cor 5:21

Me? Blog? Are you kidding?

My wife is tired of my rants. I got plenty. Thought I would write some down from time to time. No one will read them on here, but I will 'feel' better. And truly, life is all about 'feeling' good isn't it? We live in a world that pursues feeling good.And if something makes them feel bad, they ignore it or ridicule it to the point until they 'feel' better.

Since this is my first post, let's lay the groundwork. The Bible is sufficient for all aspects of life and death. No error in the Scriptures, no possibility of untruth in them as well. Every word in the Bible is settled in heaven without the possibilty of being revised. The authority of the Scriptures is unmatched and directly from God. God is truth. God is unchanging. God is trustworthy. Therefore, so is His Word to us in the Bible.

Seems elementary to any believer, right? Certainly, if we trust the way of salvation contained in the Scriptures, we should by default trust everything else in the Bible, right? I mean, if God gives a clear picture of salvation in the Bible (which He does), then it would follow that all other aspects of scripture would be as clear as well (which they are). Not so fast, my friend.

We live in an era of the life of the church where many people would disagree with that observation. Many say that the Bible is a book that can never be fully understood. They say that over the 1000s of years since the Bible was written, many things have changed and that the Bible must be understood in light of the culture in which we live. Therefore we need a new interpretation of the Scriptures. You know, an interpretation that is relevant to people today. Don't believe me? Check out some 'church' websites around the world. You will find all kinds of gimmicks to attract people. One church is even starting a 'Biggest Loser' series of messages. They are offering free health screenings and even a 'biggest loser competition' to attendees. Check it out ( alittleleaven.com). Just one of many examples out there.

Here is the glaring error of all these schemes. They are assuming the God of the universe must be caught off guard by our culture today. He must be wondering himself how to reach these people. Are you kidding me? God is wondering what to do?! What an outrageous notion!! God is sovereign over the affairs of men at all times. Even the times in which we live. Even the times in which we live. Do you get it? He is eternal. He transcends time. So you ask, how do we reach the people of today? Once again, the Bible is crystal clear. God designed the method to reach people. Even wrote it down. Here you go.

Paul in 1 Corinthians 1&2 must have been dealing with the same issues. The wise of that day must have been hammering Paul because he wasn't as cool or intellectual or as 'in depth' as they were. How could such a 'foolish' message of salvation be true? Cmon Paul, that is too easy. The cross? Are you kidding me? God could not possibly be that simple. We need to relate to the culture Paul. No one will embrace that message. We are a face pace society Paul. We need something that sells.

Then Paul launches into one of my favorite passages in the Bible with this simple idea, "For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 1 Cor 1:18. He goes to talk about how God destroys the so called 'wisdom of the world.' The same 'wisdom of the world' that rears its ugly head in many of these supposed churches. They wring their hands trying to get others to come. Hey I got an idea. Why not teach Christ and Him crucified? Seems to easy. Seems to simple. But you say, people will get bored with the Bible? Yes, the lost will be bored. No way around that. They cannot understand them. However, the remnant of believers will be sanctified, encouraged, empowered, and excited to attend. And some of the lost will be saved. Not by a 'Biggest Loser' competition by the power of the Word preached.

I know, I know. This is not a popular notion. We would rather use our creativity to devise methods to attract people rather than sit down and understand the meaning of a passage to share with these same people. We want to appear 'in touch' with the culture, instead of being 'in touch' with the right interpretation of a verse. Let's be logical. If a man convinces you to listen due to his creativity, he must continue to be creative in order to keep you. However if the Lord attracts you, then His Word will keep you and nothing else. Once again Paul explains, "And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God." 1 Cor 2:4-5

Wow, I already 'feel' better. I like this bloggy thing. Gotta go for now. Need to hit the gym. Headed to an arm wrestling competition at church.