Is life supposed to be like this:
House Set to Subject 64,000 Household Chemicals to Regulation
Of course not.
So why do so many people reject the chance to have a better life?
When I first read the headline on msn.com news –
House Set to Subject 64,000 Household Chemicals to Regulation
– my first thought was about how much money that was going to cost.
Then I wondered how the chemical companies ever let this get considered, let alone approved.
Then I read the article (Sorry, this article is apparently no longer available), and understood why the chemical companies were not only OK with it – but would support it.
Then I thought about how eventually – this won’t be a problem.
Finally – I thought about the issue of – So why do so many people reject the chance to have a better life?
A better life?
Yes – a better life. Let’s look at that and see how. And why so many will reject the opportunity.
First of all – the 64,000 chemicals that are going to be regulated. And these are just the ones to be regulated. I would never have thought the number would be that high – let alone consider the very real possibility that there are a whole bunch of others that are in our homes – but aren’t even being considered for regulation. Wouldn’t it be awesome to live in a world where there wasn’t even one dangerous chemical in our homes?
Some will say – yes, it’s bad. But we’re taking care of it.
But are we? Are we really “taking care of it”?
Not really. Actually – not at all.
Let’s read the fine print – and see why the chemical companies were willing to support this legislation that claims to be going after their products – cutting their income – and maybe even threatening their continued operation as a company.
Here’s some background into why it hasn’t happened before – and why the chemical companies are all of a sudden OK with this legislation that will regulate them –
Efforts to tighten the law have stalled for years, in part because of opposition from the chemical industry. The bipartisan authors of the bill say their breakthrough represents a pragmatic, politically viable compromise between better environmental standards and the demands of industry. In particular, Senator Tom Udall, Democrat of New Mexico, worked closely with the American Chemistry Council to come up with language that would win the support of the industry and pass through the generally regulation-averse Republican Congress.
So what changed that made regulation of their core business products OK?
Here’s one thing that must have made the chemicals absolutely delighted –
It would require the agency to be conducting tests on about 20 chemicals at a time, with a deadline of seven years per chemical.
Think about that. At a maximum rate of 20 chemicals being tested at one time, that would be 3,200 groups of testing. With the maximum of 7 years per chemical, that’s 22,400 years before the testing would be complete!!! If the testing agency were to go slowly, and test only 10 chemicals at a time, we’re up to 44,800 years before the testing is complete! And, in the worst case, but certainly not unlikely, if they were to test 1 chemical at a time (claiming budget constraints) – taking the full 7 years for each test – the number of years goes to a mind-blowing 448,000 years!
OK – so you say those are worst case numbers and they’ll never happen.
What of they were to do the maximum 20 chemicals – and really push the process to finish each test group in 1 year. You have to admit – 1 year is very fast, and probably not achievable. But let’s calculate it anyway. In that case, it would still take 3,200 years to finish the testing!
According to research done on pesticides at Oregon State University, the first “important synthetic organic pesticide” was DDT, discovered in 1939.
Chemheritage.org says the first synthetic polymer (plastic) was invented in 1869. But it’s been within the last 50 years that they really saturated our lives.
So it’s all relatively recent – at least in large quantities.
So what we are seeing is that a problem that really came into existence in a big way over something less than the past 100 years – is going to be regulated and “fixed” over a period ranging between 3,200 and 448,000 years.
No wonder the chemical companies are OK with it. Does anyone think that any chemical being investigated won’t be replaced long before the testing ends? And guess what – that new chemical won’t be on the list!
But it gets worse.
In the event that some chemical is still being used when the testing has been completed, there’s this other clause that will take effect –
It would also allow the agency’s regulations to pre-empt stronger state-level rules.
So people who live in a state where there is already protection against some of these chemicals, may very well lose some (or most) of that protection – depending on how strict the federal regulations are.
Where is this better life?
The better life is in the Kingdom of God – which Jesus spoke of in Luke –
Lk 13:18 Then Jesus asked, “What is the kingdom of God like? What shall I compare it to? 19 It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his garden. It grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air perched in its branches.”
Lk 13:20 Again he asked, “What shall I compare the kingdom of God to? 21 It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough.”
Whatever we think of it, it will be bigger / better.
So what’s the problem? Why will so many reject the opportunity being offered in this better life?
Jn 3:1 Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling council. 2 He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him.”
Jn 3:3 In reply Jesus declared, “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.’”
Jn 3:4 “How can a man be born when he is old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb to be born!”
Jn 3:5 Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
Jn 3:9 “How can this be?” Nicodemus asked.
Jn 3:10 “You are Israel’s teacher,” said Jesus, “and do you not understand these things? 11 I tell you the truth, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our testimony. 12 I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things? 13 No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven—the Son of Man. 14 Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, 15 that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.
Jn 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. 19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.”
Here’s what is probably the biggest part of the problem for many people –
“I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.”
They think that Christians are not “inclusive” – that we are somehow preventing people from this better life – saying that they cannot enter the Kingdom of God because of rules that we made up.
The thing is – it’s not us making this up. It’s not us making this decision. It’s the King of the Kingdom of Heaven Himself who says this.
We are the messenger – delivering the good news – that all may enter the Kingdom of Heaven – this life where, among other things, there will not be one single dangerous chemical.
It’s not us telling someone that they cannot enter this Kingdom. It’s the person making their own decision that they do not want to enter. That they do not want to be born again. that they do not want to do the one thing necessary to enter that Kingdom. They they do not want to and will not believe that Jesus is the Son of God.
Jn 6:28 Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?”
Jn 6:29 Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”
Anyone who refuses to do this – refuses to believe in Jesus as the Son of God – also chooses to not enter His Kingdom. It’s their own choice.
And look at the impact of that choice – just from the simple point of view of 64,000 dangerous chemicals –
- We complain about this world – where so many things that were supposed to help us, end up being things that lead to an unhealthy life and even an early death.
- We complain about the companies that bring these dangerous chemicals into our lives, just so they can make money.
- We complain about the government that allows these companies to do these things. Maybe or maybe not even realizing that this happens because the people in our government take money from these very same chemical companies – and that’s why legislation like the stuff above gets passed – and why it’s proclaimed as a really important thing – even though it’s little more than meaningless.
- We want things to be better. But we refuse to do the thing that would allow us to live this better life – forever.
There’s are lots of reasons to start to believe in God. Lots of reasons to believe that Jesus is truly His Son. Lot’s of reasons to want it to be true. Lots of reasons to start our own investigation into the truth of these things.
It really doesn’t matter why we start looking into Christianity. What matters is that we do it.
If this is the issue that makes you want to know more – makes you want to live in the Kingdom of God because it won’t have these problems –
then you’ll learn about the parables of the mustard seed and the yeast in the dough.
Then you’ll get the thing you wanted – a chemical free world –
but so much more.
If you need it, here’s a couple more parables –
Mt 13:44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.
Mt 13:45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. 46 When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.
Why would someone not want this?
If we want a world without the chemicals – without the greed that drives people to make / allow these chemicals – it is available to us. Along with so much more. More than we can even imagine.
If you don’t already have Jesus in your life – start your own investigation. It’s more than worth the time and effort.
And if you openly / honestly do this investigation, you will see the truth in what Paul wrote –
Ro 1:18 The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, 19 since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 20 For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.
Yes – this talks about how the wrath of God. But that wrath is for the people who see what should be obvious – and yet deny it.
However – it also says that evidence of God’s existence is obvious and always has been. What’s interesting to me is that as we become more “advanced” in areas like science and technology – God actually becomes even more obvious. And yet people still choose to deny that He exist. But for those who check things out – again open / honestly – we will see that clearly God must exist. To believe that everything in this world exists because of random events – it’s beyond belief. It takes a level of “faith” far beyond what it takes to believe that God does exist.
And to those who don’t fall into the category of people who choose to deny God’s obvious existence – we are promised eternity in the Kingdom of God –
Jn 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
Again – who wouldn’t want that?
For reasons given above – many wouldn’t.
I want it.
Do you?