Salvation Summaries

Warren Buffett, the “Oracle of Omaha,” is known as one of the greatest investors of all time. In his first ever interview broadcast on national television years ago, he was asked about the most important quality of an investment manager. He said it’s temperament not intelligence; that one needs a stable personality, and a temperament that neither derives great pleasure from being with the crowd or against the crowd. He went on to say that this (investing money) is not a business where you take polls; it is a business where you think. To support this, Buffett then quoted legendary investor Ben Graham, who said, “you are not right or wrong if 1,000 people agree with you. You are not right or wrong if 1000 people disagree with you. You’re right because your facts and your reasoning are right.”

I believe far too many people are being swayed into believing what a segment of society is telling them is true rather than what is actually true based upon facts and reasonableness. Let me give you one obvious example.

Whether you are a Christian or not, everyone knows, and has known, that there are only two biological sexes or genders: male and female. We ALL know this. But despite this, a quickly growing percentage of our society has chosen to downplay if not disregard this truth, and portray if not claim that one’s gender is something you choose. Has this been true in the past? No. Can it (therefore) be true now? No (truth doesn’t change).

How do we know it’s not true? Let me give you three reasons.

First, there are obvious physical differences between male and females. Men have a larger skeletal size, more bone mass and more muscle mass then women. This is why men and women have traditionally not competed against each other in physically demanding sporting events. Also, men and women have distinct sexual features, and these allow them to take on different roles in bearing children.

Second, there are underlying cellular differences between males and females. One is in the area of sex chromosomes. Females have 2 X chromosomes (X come from their mother). Males have 1 X and 1 Y chromosome (Y comes from their father). This is an immutable trait. If you are born with an X and Y chromosome, you will always have an X and Y chromosome. If you are born with 2 Y chromosomes, then you will always have 2 Y chromosomes. You can’t change this even if you wanted to.

Third, and indicated above, the Bible clearly tells us that God created two sexes, male and female. Genesis 1:27 God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. This was by God’s design, and for His purpose for humanity, which was to “…be fruitful and increase in number; multiply on the earth and increase upon it.” (Gen 9:7). One man, and one woman, was all that God needed for His command to be fulfilled. If God had instead created two men, or two women, there would have been no offspring, and thus no increase in humanity. Also, with one male and one female, a third gender was not needed, and thus not created.

Assuming you agree that there are only two genders, why are so many disputing this? How can they be so wrong? I believe it stems from their worldview.

Society’s worldview has increasingly become anti-Christian, or anti-Biblical, and thus been moving away from truth. As Christians, we know that the Bible is true and has never changed. Worldviews that stray from what the Bible says is true move into what is untrue even if it may be portrayed as fact.

We need not look back too far into history to see how this has developed. Society’s anti-Biblical worldview started with denouncing God’s creation of the world and everything in it, and replaced it with man’s theory of evolution without any need for God. It then moved into denying God’s creation of life – a separate human being in the womb – and replaced it with a non-living fetus that can be aborted whenever the mother chooses to. From there it attacked God’s view of sexuality by normalizing homosexuality, God’s view of marriage by promoting the “marriage” of two men or women, and more recently God’s creation of only two genders to promote multiple genders and transgenderism. A byproduct of this latest development is society’s desire to want male athletes (who identify as female) to compete against female athletes and to dress and undress with them in female locker rooms. This movement has also sought to groom young children into accepting sexually deviant lifestyles by exposing them to pornographic material in schools and libraries, and coercing them to attend drag queen story hours.

So, what are we to do in our formerly sane world that now that seems to be spinning out of control?

For starters, we can heed the advice of Warren Buffet (and Ben Graham), for accordingly to worldly standards, he is a wise and well respected man. According to him, you should not seek or derive pleasure from being with the crowd or against the crowd. Instead, base your views upon what YOU believe is reasonable and true rather than what others say is true.

If you are believer, you can also heed Warren Buffet’s advice, but better yet, why not seek God’s word about what you should do? Here are three recommendations based upon a review of several relevant verses.

1. Don’t accept advice from those who promote sinful lifestyles, as they can lead you astray. Psalm 1:1-2 Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. 2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. Proverbs 13:20 He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm.

2. Pray for and seek wisdom and understanding from the source of all wisdom and understanding. Proverbs 4:5 Get wisdom, get understanding; do not forget my words or swerve from them. Proverbs 23:23 Buy the truth and do not sell it; get wisdom, discipline and understanding.

3. Follow Him daily. Proverbs 23:17 warns us, “Do not let your heart envy sinners (who live godless lives and have no hope of salvation) but live in the fear (reverent, worshipful) of the Lord day by day.”

To conclude, you are not right if a large part of society agrees with you. You are not wrong if a large part disagrees with you. You are right when your facts and your reasoning are right. God’s word is factual, reasonable and true; stand on it.