Dog Face Pony Soldiers, the remnant

Dog Face Pony Soldiers, the remnant.

Joe Biden used this phrase to derogatorily humiliate a woman questioning him about why people should vote for him. The phrase is actually a reference to an Indian scout working for the U.S. Cavalry in the eighteen hundreds helping military leaders find their way to the enemy. The term was  derogatory then, as it is now. Why he chose to use this phrase is anyone's guess, but you can't avoid recognizing the ignorance of putting someone in their place. Reducing their opinion to an insignificant level. Shutting them up from uttering the truth!

I make no political statement here, but the above phrase reminds me of how I have come to observe my fellow man from a spiritual or non-spiritual way. Oddly, dog face pony soldier describes a group of believers who have scouted, and found, the truest destination.

Any remnant (remember this word) of the truth in today's political climate must be kept by the light keeper, less it be snuffed out. And who is the light keeper? That would be Christ! "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." (John 8:12).

So, I ask, who follows Christ? And where is it that we follow him?

I am by no means a theologian. But, like so many of you, I have a super-hero ability to observe other humans in their natural habitats. I've even spoken to them and have been spoken at. My faith, not opinions, have created a stir at times. Some have taunted, others have threatened, many have called me a hater, and some spout occasional affirmations (My favorite). I must admit that in return, I have argued, cajoled, and screamed under the proverbial bridge to win conversions of heart and mind. Nothing works. There has been no movement back across the line. We can only pray, I'm told. After all, it is Christ who is the light keeper, not me.

Is that true?

In order to attempt an answer to this existential question, I turned on my superpowers of observation. Three distinct versions of man's religiosity or lack thereof come into focus.

The Unbeliever: "And this is the verdict: The light has come into the world, but men loved the darkness rather than the Light, because their deeds were evil." (John 3:19). Although  historical facts support man's faith, to an unbeliever there are no facts in faith. It's all a sham, a lie, a fool's imagination. Science can explain the miracles and science can dwarf creationism in a single big bang of scientific fact. Science has every answer you will ever need. A ready sword to destroy all other beliefs.

These are the Cavalry headed in the wrong direction. Science is the deceitful scout unable and unwilling to follow the clues along the path. It's this way, no it's that way.

I have observed a vicious hatred for even the slightest possibility of correction. Have you met them?  These types have managed to rise above us all and shout from their podiums and their positions of power--The media, scientist, politicians, socialist, communist--that we must follow them or suffer the consequence of suppression and annihilation. They believe in nothing but themselves--the god men. They love the darkness rather than the light, and strive to pull the covers over us.

And sadly, the scouts they follow will walk them into the flames of truth in befuddlement.

The Lukewarm: "Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a basket. Instead, they set it on a lamp stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house." (Matthew 5:15). Oh, contraire ... I have observed the many who know God, identify themselves in some Christian tagline, and yet, hide the lamp of their knowledge under their baskets. Is it embarrassment, laziness, or an attempt to appease the unbelievers who rule over their puny world? Politically correct, religiously correct, but spiritually uninhabited.

I have observed a mild self-incrimination when confronted. A certain sorrow, perhaps a promise for remission, but their words are seeds thrown upon infertile ground. As soon as the rope slackens, they slide back under the haze of worldliness: Homosexuals deserve love, Abortion is necessary or it will ruin careers (or casual sex), borders are unfair to immigrants, we're all going to heaven ... and the list is long.

They are unskilled scouts who appear to be in the wrong camp. "Because you are lukewarm-neither hot nor cold--I am about to vomit you out of my mouth!" (Revelations 3:16).

The faithful believer: "The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not grasped it." (John 1:5). I see them in the pew. I know them by their actions rooted in grace. The light of their faith rest on a lamp stand. These are the 'dog face pony soldiers' scouting for the Lord's Cavalry. Unloved and despised, but necessary remnants of the church Christ gave us. They (we) are now the light keepers inherited from Christ, the first (and lasting) light.

I observe the light keepers every day. We love one another, and beg others to do the same, but under the protection of faith. The truest beauty is our unwavering belief of an invisible God, for which no one can explain and no one can understand.

These dog face pony soldiers know their way and beckon all to follow them through the narrow gate.