A Response to a Pilot's Manifesto
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So, I read this 'manifesto' supossedly written by Joe Stark, the man who flew his private plane into an IRS building in Austin recently. In my personal opinion, the man was not crazy. I believe Joe Stark was angry, hurt, desperate, even at the end of his rope, but he was not just some vauguely 'insane' guy. I believe he made a bad choice, one that seems irrational, perhaps. But, I don't think that's the same thing. He was serious and he was committed. He was committed to standing up for what he believed in and he was serious about forcing others to hear what he had to say in a world that didn't care about his voice. Guess what? It worked. We're all talking about it, reading about it, and writing about it. Joseph Andrew Stark was a man of resolve, and whether you agree with his actions (would you dare?) or not, I don't believe you can just call him a nut and shake your head. He was serious about what he believed, deadly serious.
.As a side note, there are a lot of ways the accusations he makes feel true. I know that I don't feel like our government really cares about what regular people want, believe, or deal with on a daily basis. They (especially current leaders) are interested in securing power for themselves through intimidation, dependency, and 'entitlements'. I know the mainstream media has sold out to the socialist agenda. I know welfare is evil and patronizing. I know affirmative action is really just reverse descrimination. I even know that it's going to take drastic measures to bring about any change. (Hopefully drastic can happen without doing something stupid.)
But, my question (and the point of this blog) is not about the direction and future of the 'kingdom' of the United States of America (real Americans know we're on the verge of some sort of Revolution, and we hope it will be Tea-Party peaceful); my question is about the Kingdom of God. As believers in the Kingdom, do we have the resolve to give our lives for what we believe in? Do we have the resolve to bring about change by laying down our lives? Isn't that what Jesus did? Isn't that what we're called to do?
In his letter, Joe Stark wrote,
"I know I’m hardly the first one to decide I have had all I can stand. It has always been a myth that people have stopped dying for their freedom in this country, and it isn’t limited to the blacks, and poor immigrants. I know there have been countless before me and there are sure to be as many after. But I also know that by not adding my body to the count, I insure nothing will change." (empasis added)
So, when Christians look at the world around us... when Jesus' Disciples see hundreds of people every day believing the death-bound lies of the enemy about truth, sin, salvation, life, and death... when Believers know the reality of Hell and the hope of Heaven... How long will it be until we say "I have had all I can stand"? How long until we (the whole Body of Christ) decide that doing nothing only ensures that nothing will change?
Joe Stark also said,
"Nothing changes unless there is a body count."
We should be standing up for truth in government and the freedom our founders risked and gave their lives for, and it may even cost us. But, there is a greater, much more important battle being waged, one with eternal (not just temporal/temporary) consequeces, and we are all on the front lines. And, whether Joe's statement is true or not politically, it is certainly true spiritually. Will the Body of Christ be counted to see the Kingdom come as Christ prayed it would?
Just as physical exercise is of some benefit, so is temporal struggle for freedom. Yet, in both cases there is something more, something of greater depth and reality. Everything we see in this world will pass away. Ultimately, it doesn't matter if health insurance is a right or a comercial product. Historically, the United States of America is a biblical footnote amd not the be-all-end-all of earthly government. And, there is no IRS in heaven! These things may matter here, and they may matter now, but they are not eternal. In this sense, it is the spiritual world that is real (lasting). It is the world of God's Kingdom that matters most.
So, can we learn from Joe Stark's death, and be challenged to enter into our own? Yes. Am I suggesting we all crash into a government building. No. (That hardly seems like a good life choice.) Rather, I'm asking is we have what it takes to really stand up for what we say we believe. Are we (the Church) resolved enough to bring about change? Sure, it takes a lot to physically die for what you believe, but it's even harder to live for it and die to everything else. Will we die to self (pride, fear, arrogance, doubt, worldliness) so our neighbor will know Christ? Will we take time to reconsider your priorities and the things we have been given which are worth taking a stand for? Will we sacrifice so the Kingdom can advance? Or, will we do nothing and thereby continue to ensure that "nothing will change"?
I can't tell you what such a death looks like to you (I'm still learning my own). However, I can tell you it is well past time for real action. It's time to add say, "Enough!" and add our lives to God's count (i.e. Hebrews 11). For one man almost 2000 years ago, this dying looked like this...
"I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me."
So, I read this 'manifesto' supossedly written by Joe Stark, the man who flew his private plane into an IRS building in Austin recently. In my personal opinion, the man was not crazy. I believe Joe Stark was angry, hurt, desperate, even at the end of his rope, but he was not just some vauguely 'insane' guy. I believe he made a bad choice, one that seems irrational, perhaps. But, I don't think that's the same thing. He was serious and he was committed. He was committed to standing up for what he believed in and he was serious about forcing others to hear what he had to say in a world that didn't care about his voice. Guess what? It worked. We're all talking about it, reading about it, and writing about it. Joseph Andrew Stark was a man of resolve, and whether you agree with his actions (would you dare?) or not, I don't believe you can just call him a nut and shake your head. He was serious about what he believed, deadly serious. .
But, my question (and the point of this blog) is not about the direction and future of the 'kingdom' of the United States of America (real Americans know we're on the verge of some sort of Revolution, and we hope it will be Tea-Party peaceful); my question is about the Kingdom of God. As believers in the Kingdom, do we have the resolve to give our lives for what we believe in? Do we have the resolve to bring about change by laying down our lives? Isn't that what Jesus did? Isn't that what we're called to do?
In his letter, Joe Stark wrote,
"I know I’m hardly the first one to decide I have had all I can stand. It has always been a myth that people have stopped dying for their freedom in this country, and it isn’t limited to the blacks, and poor immigrants. I know there have been countless before me and there are sure to be as many after. But I also know that by not adding my body to the count, I insure nothing will change." (empasis added)
So, when Christians look at the world around us... when Jesus' Disciples see hundreds of people every day believing the death-bound lies of the enemy about truth, sin, salvation, life, and death... when Believers know the reality of Hell and the hope of Heaven... How long will it be until we say "I have had all I can stand"? How long until we (the whole Body of Christ) decide that doing nothing only ensures that nothing will change?
Joe Stark also said,
"Nothing changes unless there is a body count."
We should be standing up for truth in government and the freedom our founders risked and gave their lives for, and it may even cost us. But, there is a greater, much more important battle being waged, one with eternal (not just temporal/temporary) consequeces, and we are all on the front lines. And, whether Joe's statement is true or not politically, it is certainly true spiritually. Will the Body of Christ be counted to see the Kingdom come as Christ prayed it would?
Just as physical exercise is of some benefit, so is temporal struggle for freedom. Yet, in both cases there is something more, something of greater depth and reality. Everything we see in this world will pass away. Ultimately, it doesn't matter if health insurance is a right or a comercial product. Historically, the United States of America is a biblical footnote amd not the be-all-end-all of earthly government. And, there is no IRS in heaven! These things may matter here, and they may matter now, but they are not eternal. In this sense, it is the spiritual world that is real (lasting). It is the world of God's Kingdom that matters most.
So, can we learn from Joe Stark's death, and be challenged to enter into our own? Yes. Am I suggesting we all crash into a government building. No. (That hardly seems like a good life choice.) Rather, I'm asking is we have what it takes to really stand up for what we say we believe. Are we (the Church) resolved enough to bring about change? Sure, it takes a lot to physically die for what you believe, but it's even harder to live for it and die to everything else. Will we die to self (pride, fear, arrogance, doubt, worldliness) so our neighbor will know Christ? Will we take time to reconsider your priorities and the things we have been given which are worth taking a stand for? Will we sacrifice so the Kingdom can advance? Or, will we do nothing and thereby continue to ensure that "nothing will change"?
I can't tell you what such a death looks like to you (I'm still learning my own). However, I can tell you it is well past time for real action. It's time to add say, "Enough!" and add our lives to God's count (i.e. Hebrews 11). For one man almost 2000 years ago, this dying looked like this...
"I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me."
~ Paul, Galatians 2:20
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