Time – to measure or record the speed, duration, or rate of (dictionary.com)

Chance – a possibility or probability of anything happening (dictionary.com)

Time and chance – both being simply a means to measure something and neither, in and of themselves, containing any power or control.

Time is nothing more than a measuring stick.  Chance is nothing more than a measuring stick.

Time = 0.  Chance = 0

0+0 = 0

Evolution = time and chance

According to USLegal.com, “to constitute depraved indifference, the defendant’s conduct must be ‘so wanton, so deficient in a moral sense of concern, so lacking in regard for the life or lives of others, and so blameworthy as to warrant the same criminal liability as that which the law imposes upon a person who intentionally causes a crime.’ Depraved indifference focuses on the risk created by the defendant’s conduct, not the injuries actually resulting.” (http://definitions.uslegal.com/d/depraved-indifference/)

To put this in my own words, depraved indifference is when someone does something that is highly dangerous to the life and lives of others and is done with an absolute disregard for such an impact.  This act is so dangerous that someone can be held accountable for their actions to the same level of the law as someone who actually DID commit a crime.

Perhaps the best example, and situation most commonly used of this term, is in a DWI case where someone drives a vehicle while knowing they are impared due to alcohol or drugs.  Another example might be if someone gives a young child a loaded gun with no safety mechanisms, instruction or warnings.  Notice that the definition given at USLegal.com does not state that actual injury has to occur before someone can be charged with depraved indifference but rather it focuses on the risk of the activity, not the result.  In both of these examples, nothing has to happen before the charge can be made.  If something were to happen, then the accusation changes to manslaughter or murder.  But until then, the argument can be made of depraved indifference.

With this in mind, I ask you….when was the last time you shared the Gospel of Jesus Christ with someone?  Could a case be made against you that you are guilty of depraved indifference?

Progress:
Pronunciation: \ˈprä-grəs, -ˌgres, US also & British usually ˈprō-ˌgres\
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French progrés, from Latin progressus advance, from progredi to go forth, from pro- forward + gradi to go — more at PRO-, GRADE
Date: 15th century
1 a) 1): a royal journey marked by pomp and pageant 2): a state procession b): a tour or circuit made by an official (as a judge) c): an expedition, journey, or march through a region
2: a forward or onward movement (as to an objective or to a goal) : ADVANCE
3: gradual betterment; especially: the progressive development of humankind

When I hear the word ‘progress’, the overall idea that comes to my mind is a combination of definitions 2 and 3 – a forward movement producing betterment.  There are a couple of interesting things worth noting in this definition.  First, there is movement, meaning change.  Things are not staying the same.  Second, this movement is forward in direction, not backwards.  By ‘forward’ it is meant that the change is to new things, not a return to old or previous paradigms.  And third, the result of the forward change is a production of something beneficial.

For the most part, these ideas embodied in the word ‘progress’ hold true.  As it applies to the automotive industry, we see progress leading to automobiles that are safer, more fuel efficient, and more comfortable.  In the technology world, progress leads to cheaper devices that are faster, smaller, and more capable.  And the list can go on and on – better cleaning products that are environmentally safe, new clothing materials that are more durable and longer-lasting, new building materials that are stronger and lighter, etc, etc, etc.  It’s all progress!

However (you knew that was coming, didn’t you?), there are things in which forward change is not beneficial or produce things that are better.  Things that rely on or are based on absolutes, when changed, do not produce things that are better.  Take the recent financial meltdown, for instance.  When the absolutes of financing are not adhered to, calamity ensues.  There are reasons for the rules and regulations.

What does progress look like in the realm of politics?  The Constitution is written with the presupposition that it is an absolute.  It is the foundation upon which all is built and against which all is measured.  To move away from the ideas it embodies is to move toward detriment.  Take the First Amendment, for instance.  The First Amendment reads:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

The plain reading of the first part of this (Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion) means that Congress (the guys and gals in Washington, D.C.) cannot make a law (the rules that are debated, agreed to, and then signed by the President that determine what is and is not permissible in this country) that establishes (creates) a religion.  It means exactly what it says.  To say that the phrase ‘separation of church and state’ summarizes it is not accurate.  To then apply this inaccurate phrase to say we cannot pray before a football game or have the Ten Commandments on the courthouse lawn is a slippery slope on which several steps have already been taken and actually does what the next phrase ( prohibit the free exercise thereof) says not to do!  For sure, this is not progress.  The Constitution does not need progress – it needs adherence.

In Christianity, we see ‘progress’ producing similar results.  The Bible is the foundation and the rule.  When we get away from it and what it says, we are on a slippery slope.  To proclaim a new gospel is to profane and pervert the true Gospel.  To tell people to invite Jesus into their hearts instead of calling them to repentance is to create false converts that become twice the sons of Hell.  To minister with those of other faiths is to endorse their beliefs.  To allow and even condone homosexuality is to ignore God-given truth.  To add works to the cross is to steal Christ of His due reward.  Christ does not require progress – He requires obedience.  Paul wrote to Timothy:

As I urged you upon my departure for Macedonia, remain on at Ephesus so that you may instruct certain men not to teach strange doctrines, nor to pay attention to myths and endless genealogies, which give rise to mere speculation rather than furthering the administration of God which is by faith.  But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.  For some men, straying from these things, have turned aside to fruitless discussion, wanting to be teachers of the Law, even though they do not understand either what they are saying or the matters about which they make confident assertions.  But we know that the Law is good, if one uses it lawfully, realizing the fact that law is not made for a righteous person, but for those who are lawless and rebellious, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers and immoral men and homosexuals and kidnappers and liars and perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound teaching, according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, with which I have been entrusted. -1Timothy 1:3-11

For all who preach and teach, we would be wise to follow Paul’s advice.  Call doing otherwise progress if you want, the Bible says it’s progress to Hell.

Do you know who the president is?  Sure….Barack Obama, right.  He lives in the White House on Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C.  I doubt any adult that has lived in the U.S. for any amount of time or even in most parts of the world would not be able to answer that question.  But then again, recalling Jay Leno’s “Jay Walking” segments makes me wonder if this is indeed true.  Anyway, let’s assume that it’s true, at least for you.

So you know the President.  But have you met him?  There are some that might say they have; possibly even have shaken his hand.  But I’m not talking about a brief encounter on the campaign trail or something along those lines.  I mean….have you MET him?  In the grand scheme of things, few have.  Even for the President of the United States, there are few in the U.S. and the world that can say they have truly met President Obama.

So, if any one of us were to travel to D.C. and were to tell the guard at the gate that we are there to see the President, we will be told, in no uncertain terms, to go away.  Indeed, we might even be detained for questioning to ensure that we are not mentally ill.  But why?  We know him.  Why couldn’t we gain an audience with him?

The answer to that comes from a different question.  It’s not a matter of whether we know him.  The question is: Does he know us?  If the President knows us, then we will be granted access to him when we come to visit.  There will be no questioning of why we’ve come or what we’re there to do; he will know us and those things will be known through our relationship.

So how do relationships get started?  At some point, the parties involved have to have met.  From this initial meeting, the relationship grows and matures with the parties involved becoming more familiar with each other.  This growth sometimes occurs slowly over time.  In other instances, things advance more rapidly.  But regardless of the pace of the relationship, those involved are changed due to having been in it.  Perhaps in small, subtle ways, perhaps in larger, more profound ways, all of us have an effect on the others we come to know.

Let’s consider a dramatic, perhaps absurd, scenario.  If someone was to step out into the middle of a freeway in front of a semi-truck, the two would have a meeting and they would become quite intimate very quickly.  Neither would come away from the meeting unaffected.  Were he to survive such an encounter, his life would be profoundly different afterwards, I’m certain.

So let me ask you – Do you know Jesus?  Do you have a relationship with Him?  Have you met Him?  Did you come away from the encounter changed?  Is your life different since the meeting?

I assure you, meeting the God of the universe is infinitely more profound than stepping in front of a semi.

The following appears written on a slab in Lübeck Cathedral in Germany.  The author is unknown.

Ye call Me Master and obey me not,
Ye call Me Light and see Me not,
Ye call Me Way and walk not,
Ye call Me Life and desire Me not,
Ye call Me wise and follow Me not,
Ye call Me fair and love Me not,
Ye call Me rich and ask Me not,
Ye call Me eternal and seek Me not,
Ye call Me gracious and trust Me not,
Ye call Me noble and serve Me not,
Ye call Me mighty and honor Me not,
Ye call Me just and fear Me not,
If I condemn you, blame me not.