Dr. Keith Ablow (foxnews.com correspondent) reports on a study from the Josephson Institute (an ethics think-tank). The study included a survey of 29,760 anonymous students from 100 high schools (randomly selected), and here is what is reported:

-- 64% admitted to cheating on a test this last year.

-- 30% admitted to stealing something from a store.

-- 1/3 admitted to plagiarizing written material from the internet and claiming it as their own.

-- and 93% indicated that they are satisfied with their ethics!

There is obviously something in our society that has allowed people to become comfortable with lying, cheating, and stealing. And I can tell you that I see the same trend among many who claim to be Christians. As a professor, I have been lied to, had tests cheated on, and had my share of plagiarized papers.

Somewhere along the line we have allowed a disconnect to occur between our understanding of Christianity and our philosophy of ethics. We want to claim to be Christians and enjoy the benefits of that, but then when it suits our purposes, or for the sake of convenience, we'll lie, cheat, and steal.

Dr. Ablow says that we need "a national program to address how we can return to our core selves, including our instincts about what is right and what is wrong." No. What we need is a return to God, to a recognition of Christ as Lord, and a true sanctification of Christ in our hearts. Only then will truly return to "our core selves" and learn to discern between right and wrong.

From the Associated Press: "Ads proclaiming, "Why believe in a god? Just be good for goodness' sake," will appear on Washington, D.C., buses starting next week and running through December. The American Humanist Association unveiled the provocative $40,000 holiday ad campaign Tuesday."

This is one of these more "in your face" efforts to promote atheistic thinking among the public. The AP also says, "Last month, the British Humanist Association caused a ruckus announcing a similar campaign on London buses with the message: 'There's probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life.'"

So it appears that some atheists are ramping up their efforts in a very evangelistic way. They aren't actually content with letting people live their lives. They want people to be influenced into thinking that there is no God.

But the idea of just being "good for goodness' sake," especially in the context of arguing against God, has a serious flaw. Who defines "good" and "goodness' sake"? Atheists? To what will they appeal to say that something is "good"? And what if others disagree with them?

It is a vacuous notion simply to say that we ought to be good, when there is no ultimate standard that actually defines goodness. Imagine trying to guess how long a line is, arguing with others about how long it is, but no one can actually pull out a ruler to measure that line? The arguments are meaningless. And so is the talk about "good" and "goodness" when there is no measuring stick for being able to say that something is "good" in the first place.

And this is one of the insurmountable problems atheists face. They will fuss about the issue, offer some humanistic, relativistic, and subjective approach to morality, but when all is heard, they really cannot tell us why we should actually be "good," whatever that is. They can appeal to no greater standard than another human. This is simply not "good" enough when it comes to defining goodness and morality. Surely they want to do better than that. But until they open their minds up to the possibility that there is One greater who actually does set the standards, they will continue to wallow in such meaningless, vague, and undefined concepts. It is the best they can do.

I am amazed at how superficial people can be sometimes. I watched as Mr. Obama was proclaimed the next President of the United States. Granted, this is a "historic event," as everyone recognizes. But as I was listening to the pundits, I heard various versions of this: "we don't really know who Obama is or what exactly he will do in office ... but we like him and he is, after all, the first black man to be elected to this office." Then they would show Obama's supporters celebrating, often focusing on well-known african-american leaders who were weeping. And why were they weeping? Not because the policies of Obama are so great, but because he is the first black man to be elected as President. What I have seen here is that, purely based upon his looks and charisma, people are going crazy for Obama. We don't know what exactly he'll stand for, but we like him. One interview asked an african-american woman if race played a factor in her vote. "Of course it did" was her response. If a "white" person said that he or she would be called racist.

Frankly, I don't care what "color" his skin is (racism is immoral, period), but I imagine that if he looked more "white" like his mother, we wouldn't be seeing such a reaction. It's a superficial reaction based on looks and charisma. That's what all the talk was about. That's what the excitement is about. Who cares what he actually stands for? Who cares about what he will support or stand against? We like his skin color and we like the way he can deliver speeches. So there it is.

The nation is still quite divided. And we are still looking for something substantive. Who knows what an Obama presidency will bring. We wanted "change," but no one knows exactly what kind of change we are really in for. I suppose that, at the end of the day, between the President and Congress, it will be politics as usual. The ebb and flow of a country moving right to left, then left to right, will continue as it has since its beginning.

What do we do? Christians should not be "doom and gloom" type of people. While we recognize that God will bring judgment on every nation that forsakes Him, we are quite content with letting God make that determination. It is not our job to signal the end. In the meantime, we should do what we should always be doing: teach the gospel and pray.

Pray for Mr. Obama (1 Tim. 2:1-2). He is not inheriting the greatest of situations. There are wars and there are major financial issues. Pray for him. But pray, even more, that the gospel will have free course in this world. Our ultimate concern should not be what happens to any human government. Rather, our main concern should be with God's kingdom, wherever we are and in whatever government we find ourselves. God is still in control. He still rules in the kingdoms of men. What need do we have to lose heart?

I participated at USF in a panel discussion on the Resurrection evidence on Tuesday (14th). Marty Pickup gave an hour lecture on it, then we had a question-answer session with Marty, David McClister, and yours truly. Someone (likely an atheist, as the "freethinkers" like to turn out for these things in order to make some lame points then leave before listening to answers) asked a question about why we don't believe in aliens, given the alleged sightings in South America, etc. In a nutshell, I said, without trying to sound mean, "So what -- whether there are or aren't aliens has nothing to do with the historical evidence for the resurrection. Even so, we'd have to evaluate evidence and not just swipe something off the table because our presuppositions won't allow for it." The point, of course, is that each event, and the evidence for the event, needs to be independently evaluated. The atheist thinks that if we believe in an incredible claim like the resurrection, then we must necessarily accept all ridiculous claims. One of the atheists asked if we believe Josephus when he said that a bull gave birth to a lamb at the temple. Their thinking? If you believe one, you must believe them all. No, we are not gullible.

Nevertheless, unable to get the point I made, one of them later accused me of believing in aliens. This same person argued, too, that Muslims believe in the resurrection of Jesus and accept that he is the Son of God. The moral? When you have your mind made up, don't let the facts get in the way.

In other news...

Laurie and I finally visited the "Holy Land Experience" in Orlando today. It was actually kind of interesting seeing modern evangelical performance in an attempt to re-enact ancient temple festivals. You never knew that the High Priest sounded so "pop."

Seriously, though, the Scriptorium alone is worth the visit. There are several ancient manuscripts and works that are fascinating. Unfortunately, you can't just go through at your own pace to examine them -- it's all part of a "program" that takes you through various rooms that have different manuscripts through time. That takes almost an hour, so we went through it twice instead of going to some other shows.

From where I sit I can see the blue of the mighty Pacific Ocean. I can hear the bellowing waves as they cast their foam upon the pebbly beach. I see the excitement of children at play. Boys are playing baseball and tossing frisbees. A dog is scampering to catch the frisbee before someone else can. All this is a part of God’s beautiful day that contains a small segment of the riches that He has showered upon us. All of this beauty along with the rain and the food that fills our bodies and gladdens our spirits is only a token of His care for us. Far more is the grace which He has lavished upon us through our Lord Jesus. We look at nature and see God’s power and care. We look at His word and see His overwhelming love and grace. Why is it that we can accept His physical endowments and yet reject His saving grace? We know that we must reach out to lay hold on the physical gifts; how do we not see the need of grasping the spiritual? I have taken so much from the natural world. O my God, please help me to receive Your riches from the spiritual world. Help me not to drown in tears of sorrow nor die in the depths of despair. Help me to see Your smile of acceptance and to walk in the lingering light of Your love.

Let Your waves continue to break over the rocks and on the shore. Let the children continue to share in the excitement of play. But, please let me reach the sure mercies of Your kindness and love.