Worst Storm in 100 Years

Maybe God is trying to tell our Nation Something...  I've heard people talk like electing Romney is our nation's way of "turning back to God".

Personally, I don't think so -- even though I would rather be wrong...

When I read the Bible, I see a pattern in how God treats nations.  

When the both the northern kingdom of Israel and then the southern kingdom of Judah turned their back on God, the same pattern revealed itself each time:

1) first the people turned their back on God and sought after other "gods"
2) God abandons the nation to allow them to engage in their wickedness to the fullest extent, so that it is obvious they deserve judgement 

3) then the people came under the rule of wicked leaders

4) then they were attacked by a foreign invader

5) then they were overthrown and their wealth and property went to foreigners  

6) those that survived were forced to live in a pagan nation under a pagan government

We only now waking up to the realize just how far along we are in the process.

Our nation has been in the process of turning its back on God for the last 100 years.  The rejection of God was popularized and formalized back in the 1960s and has continued growing.  What we are seeing now are just "tip of the iceberg" symptoms of a larger problem of the heart.

We chastise the democrats for removing God from their platform, and then putting it back under protest from the majority of their delegates.  However, has anyone thought about how God views the republican party and the way that it overrode and rewrote its own rules in order to block true Christians such as Bachman and Paul in preference of a mormon and catholic?

The fact of the matter is that we are already well into steps 5 through 6 in the process.  Our wealth and property is being stolen by international opportunists.  Our children are being sold into debt slavery to foreign nations.  

Those who live in a pagan nation should only expect to have pagan leadership.

So why should we be upset when the choice left to us is which pagan leader do we vote for?

They themselves will be enslaved by many nations and great kings; I will repay them according to their deeds and the work of their hands - Jeremiah 25:14

Strangers devour your land in your presence; And it is desolate, as overthrown by strangers. - Isaiah 1:7

Worst Storm in 100 Years Seen for Northeast U.S.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-10-25/u-s-east-from-washington-to-nyc-at-risk-from-hurricane-sandy.html

Obama fundraiser in Miami shut down after power knocked out by Hurricane Sandy

http://miamiherald.typepad.com/nakedpolitics/2012/10/obama-fundraiser-in-miami-shut-down-after-power-knocked-out-by-hurricane-sandy.html

AccuWeather.com Election Coverage: Sandy May Pose Threat to East Coast Voters

http://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/2012-election-coverage-battleg/282863

Could 'Frankenstorm' be a sign from God?

http://www.wnd.com/2012/10/could-frankenstorm-be-a-sign-from-god/

AccuWeather.com Election Coverage: Sandy May Pose Threat to East Coast Voters

Read more here: http://miamiherald.typepad.com/nakedpolitics/2012/10/obama-fundraiser-in-miami-shut-down-after-power-knocked-out-by-hurricane-sandy.html#storylink=cpy

Maybe God is trying to tell our Nation Something... I've heard people talk like electing Romney is our nation's way of turning back to God. Personally, I don't think so. When I read the Bible, I see a pattern in how God treats nations.

When the both the northern kingdom of Israel and then the southern kingdom of Judah turned their back on God, the same pattern revealed itself each time:

1) first the people turned their back on God and sought after other Gods

2) then they came under the rule of wicked leaders

3) then they were attacked by a foreign invader

4) then they were overthrown and their wealth and property went to foreigners

5) those that survived were forced to live in a pagan nation under a pagan government

We only now waking up to the realize just how far along we are in the process.

Our nation has been in the process of turning its back on God for the last 100 years. The rejection of God was popularized and formalized back in the 1960s and has continued growing. What we are seeing now are just "top of the iceberg" symptoms of a larger problem of the heart. We chastise the democrats for removing God from their platform, and then putting it back under protest from the majority of their delegates. However, has anyone thought about how God views the republican party and the way that it overrode and rewrote its own rules in order to block true Christians such as Bachman and Paul in preference of a mormon and catholic?

The fact of the matter is that we are already well into steps 4 and 5 in the process. Our wealth and property is being stolen by international opportunists. Our children are being sold into debt slavery to foreign nations.

Those who live in a pagan nation should only expect to have pagan leadership.

So why should we be upset when the choice left to us is which pagan leader do we vote for?

one world

Satan has been working to bring about a one world government since the beginning.

The world before the flood had been corrupted to the point that only Noah was perfect in his generations, and it (along with Sodom and Gomorrah) gives us a glimpse of what a satanically saturated culture would be like.

Nimrod and his city along with Babel's Tower was the first glimpse of what the anti-christ and a one world government would look like.

God purposefully confused the languages to prevent this from happening before the time set aside for it in the "last days".

Because of computer technology, mankind is once again uniting behind a single language as well as a single world economic, governmental, and religious system.

A debate is a conflict which clarifies a position. A dialogue is a conversation which compromises a position.

Pastor John E. Ashbrook

attractional

Seeker sensitive is now being rebranded as "attractional"...

interesting, they must have read "The Secret" and are now using the "law of attraction" to draw donors, er, i mean church members...

evidence

when you go to court, who do you present the evidence to?

the judge...

when you present evidence of God's existence to unbelievers you elevate them to the position of judge and put God on trial...

according to scripture, the unbeliever already knows in their heart that God exists, they are just suppressing the truth in unrighteousness. (Romans 1:18-20)

our job in defending the faith is to not to join them in their folly (by arguing evidence according to their rules), but instead to demonstrate the foolishness of their folly (Proverbs 26:4-5, 23:9, 29:9; Matthew 7:6 )

the place for evidence is to give evidence to believers to help them build their trust of scripture

seeker sensitive?

As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:

There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.

They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.


Romans 3:10-12




The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good.

The Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God.

They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one.

Psalm 14:1-3

heretics, apostates, and cultists

Error 
Everyone falls in this category on some point.  We see through a glass darkly and are in the constant process of learning and making course corrections as we mature spiritually.  The key is that we remain teachable and ready to change our minds, beliefs and opinions to conform to scripture under the guidance and discernment of the Holy Spirit.  We must be ready to correct or abandon the teaching of any tradition, personality, doctrine, or "revelation" that contradicts the full counsel of God's word.


Heresy
When error becomes doctrine.  Have unscriptural views on issues that may not directly interfere with salvation.  Considers those who don't agree with their beliefs as being heretics.  While they may sow doubt about the inerrancy of scripture and take scripture out of context, they still refer to scripture as the source of their beliefs even though they bend it to conform to their pet doctrines and traditions.


Apostasy
Heresy gone to seed.  Heresy to the point that they have departed from the faith to follow traditions of men and doctrines of demons.  Their apostate view is the basis of their salvation.  While they may refer to scriptures taken out of context, they look to other sources as being equal authority to or higher authority than the Bible.  These sources may include "new revelation", "spiritual experiences", traditions, commentaries, ancient wisdom, additional books, authority of an individual (prophet or apostle) or council of elders.  Apostates will also change the definitions of commonly used terms so that they sound "mainstream" in their public statements, documents and marketing materials, but then begin to incrementally introduce their true meanings to recruits over time.


Cult
An apostate group that is typically exclusive (they alone know the secret and everyone else is wrong or corrupted), is typically centered around a particular personality who is the ultimate authority, and they typically do not introduce their more controversial doctrines until after a recruit is first initiated into the group.  Often will seek to isolate members from those friends and family outside the group.

pastors

it is the job of pastors to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable...

the problem with attracting people with entertainment, you have to keep them with entertainment

if you get worldly people to sit in your audience using worldly methods, they will never stand for the offense of the Gospel

the Bible says that the Lord added to the church, not worldly entertainment and positive thinking

soccer

How often our kids rip out our hearts, kick them around like a soccer ball, and don't give a thought to how it makes us feel.

We are expected to just stand by with the stoic face and keep it together long enough to deal with them -- and then, be there standing by to pick them up when they fall?

How often have we done that to our own parents?

How often have we done that to our Heavenly Father?

carried away into babylon

When Israel turned its back on God, He allowed them to be overthrown by Assyria.

When Judah turned its back on God, He allowed them to be carried away into Babylon.

Being that our nation has turned its back on God, has He allowed us to be carried away into Babylon?

Is that why we have the leaders we do?

Is that why foreign nations now own or control more of our resources and finances than at any other time since we became an independent country?

Seventh Day Adventist

Are Seventh Day Adventists (SDA) a Cult?

Most people recognize adventists as being very adamant about observing the Sabbath, from sundown Friday through sundown on Saturday.  Many are also typically vegetarian, engage is foot washing, and other traits common to a "works based" view of salvation.

These things are neither forbidden nor supported by scripture as requirements for salvation.  While these activities may seem strange to some, these activities by themselves do not necessarily make them a cult.

A quick synopsis from watchman.org:

Adventism: Widespread trans-denominational movement inspired by William Miller's prediction that Jesus' "advent" (return) would take place in 1844. Even after the Great Disappointment (the date's failure), many people in the movement continued to believe. Some suggested revised chronologies and new dates, eventually forming groups such as the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society. Others, notably Hiram Edson and Ellen G. White, suggested that the 1844 date was accurate but that a heavenly (thus invisible) event had taken place. Their teachings became the basis of Seventh-day Adventism, which eventually spawned its own offshoots, including Armstrongism and the Branch Davidians.

Seventh Day Adventist Church (SDA), Washington, DC: The largest Adventist church. Ellen G. White, who claimed to have "the spirit of prophecy," was an important early leader of the movement and taught a number of distinctive SDA doctrines, including the Investigative Judgment and Sabbatarianism. While the church's official theology now appears to be generally in the tradition of evangelical Christianity, certain SDA claims and unique doctrines continue to raise questions. These doctrines include the SDA belief that Sunday worship will result in the "Mark of the Beast," imbalanced teachings on keeping the commandments (baptism, Sabbath observance) that often implies a kind of salvation by works, the "Remnant Church" doctrine that implies that the SDA is or will be God's only true church, and the doctrine of the Investigative Judgment.

To reiterate, our criteria for a cult:

Things that are critical to Biblical Christianity involve a right understanding of the nature of God, the nature of Jesus, and soteriology or salvation (we are sinners, wages of sin is death, Jesus died in our place, we need to repent and receive what Jesus did for us).

A cult is a perversion of any of those critical doctrines and are typically centered around the exclusivist teachings of a single man or organization.  Another common trait goes back to Satan's lie that we can become a god or be like God (Genesis 3:5).

So, to summarize, an examination of a group's beliefs along these points should lead to a conclusion.  The more a group strays from scripture on these points (especially points 3 & 4), the more likely it is to be a cult.

1) Authority of Scripture
2) Understanding of God's nature
3) Understanding of who Jesus is
4) Understanding of Salvation
5) Position and destiny of man

So, how does SDA rate based on these critieria?

1) Exclusive Authority of Man (or woman) over scripture

They revere their founding prophetess, Ellen G. White. They believe that her writings are equal with scripture. SDA  made this statement in their "Ministry" Magazine of Oct. 1981 and have never retracted it:

"We believe the revelation and inspiration of both the Bible and Ellen White's writings to be of equal quality. The superintendence of the Holy Spirit was just as careful and thorough in one case as in the other".

They not only revere the writings of Ellen G. White as equal to the Bible, but have also published their own version of the Bible, the "Clear Word Bible" that has her doctrines interspersed throughout the scripture as commentary.

They also practice exclusivity in their belief that all other churches are ruled by satan, and that Sunday keeping is the "mark of the beast".

2) Nature of God

At the early onset, they denied the Trinity.  They have since changed their official public position on this and now affirm the Triune nature of God (Father, Son, Holy Spirit), though it can vary from one fellowship to another.

3) Nature of Jesus

Ellen G. White wrote in Patriarchs and Prophets, page 761, "...He (Jesus) was revealed to them as the Angel of Jehovah, the Captain of the Lord's Host, Michael the Archangel".
While they claim to have changed position on the Trinity, they still have yet to deny Ellen White's belief that Jesus was the angel Michael, a creation of God, rather than God Himself (as one of three members of the Godhead).

4) Salvation

- Jesus on the cross was insufficient, so we have to earn salvation

According to SDA, receiving Christ as your Saviour only forgives your past sins, up to that moment are forgiven. From that point forward you must get to work to earn your salvation.  Since Ellen G. White saw the fourth commandment glowing in a vision, sabbath keeping became the litmus test for salvation.

They also believe that Jesus is currently conducting "Investigative Judgement" and has angels recording our every thought and deed for the purpose of determining if we have been good enough to earn salvation.

- Satan pays for our sins

According to the SDA, it will be Satan who will eventually bear your sins! Ellen G. White wrote,

"When Christ, by virtue of His own blood, removes the sins of His people from the heavenly sanctuary at the close of His ministration, He will place them upon satan, who, in the execution of the judgment, must bear the final penalty." (The Great Controversy pg 422)

"...so Christ will place all these sins upon Satan, the originator and instigator of sin...so Satan, bearing the guilt of all the sins which he has caused God's people to commit, will be for a thousand years confined to the earth, which will then be desolate...".(The Great Controversy pg 485)

According to the Bible, Christ bore our sins
1 Peter 2:24 says, "Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree...".


5) Man earns his own salvation

Like any works based religeon, SDA exhalts the works of man above the completed work of Jesus on the Cross.


Other items of note:

Sabbatarianism

Worship on the Sabbath is not a bad thing, but thinking it is something that helps you earn righteousness is.  The Bible just says not to forsake gathering ourselves together, it doesn't say when, how, or how often.

Col 2:16-17 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holy day, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ

Jesus fulfilled the Law and He is our Sabbath rest.


Vegetarianism

Ellen indicated that your very salvation could be dependent on giving up meat . She clearly said that no meat-eaters will be "translated" at Christ's coming (Counsels on Diet and Foods p. 380)

They seem to overlook this verse...
Romans 14:2 "... he who is weak in faith eats vegetables only ..."


Soul Sleep

They say that believers go to soul sleep in the grave until Christ's return.

Philippians 1:23 "I am in a straight betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ".

2 Cor. 5:8 "To be absent from the body (death), and to be present with the Lord." (in heaven).


Ellen G. White was a false Prophetess

  -- Recognized by SDA as Prophet
  -- Made over 2000 prophecies, the majority of which have been proven false
  -- Documented plagiarism of Joseph Smith's LDS writings (The White Lie by Walter Rea)
  -- Consulting the Dead (Necromancy): claimed to be in regular communication with dead husband



Conclusion

Seventh Day Adventism is a conflated mishmash of plagarized LDS, Jehovah's witness, and Puritan doctrines.  There are a lot of very nice and well meaning people associated with this group, and the leadership and marketing works very hard to appear as just another Christian denomination.  However, if they refuse to deny the writings of Ellen G. White they are complicit in a false religeon.

References and resources:
http://www.watchman.org/profile/sdapro.htm
http://mmoutreachinc.com/seventh_day_adventists/sda_facts.html

no private interpretation

2 Peter 1:20 Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.

Beware when any say they have an exclusive on God's "truth".  Gnostics are famous for luring people in with promises of "hidden" knowledge and access secrets.

The wisdom of God is a gift that is free for the asking.

James 1:5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all [men] liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.

Also, God's word is open to all who seek after it...

Luke 11:9 And I say to you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you.

Luke 12:2 For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known.

The Lord your God proves you

If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or the wonder come to pass, whereof he spoke to you, saying, "Let us go after other gods, which you have not known, and let us serve them;" 

You shall not listen to the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the LORD your God proves you, to know whether you love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul. 

Deut 13:1-3


And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.

2Cor 11:14



But though we, or an angel from heaven, should preach unto you any gospel other than that which we preached unto you, let him be anathema.

Gal 1:8

contrary doctrine

“Now I urge you, brethren, note those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the doctrine which you learned, and avoid them. For those who are such do not serve our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly, and by smooth words and flattering speech deceive the hearts of the simple.” – Romans 16:17-18

Whenever I speak the truth in love and identify false doctrine, I'm often accused of being divisive and part of this verse is quoted out of context: "Mark them which cause divisions".

Note however, the divisive ones are those who are touting the contrary doctrine and using flattery to tickle ears and win hearts away from the truth.


Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. - 1 John 4:1

the bride

Genesis 2:20-24

And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him.  

And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; And the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.

And Adam said, "This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man."

Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.



Notice how this is a foreshadow of Messiah, the second Adam (1Cor 15:45-47) and the "Bride of Christ" (Eph 5:22-33):

1) The "deep sleep" foreshadows Jesus's death
2) There is a wound in the side
3) Out of that wound a Bride is made (rib -> Eve; blood -> the congregation of believers)
4) The Bride is brought to Adam

same color

We are all the same color, brown.   We just all have different levels of melanin in our skin.

There is only one race, the human race.  Race is a concept born out of a mistaken and unfounded belief in evolution.

We are all of one blood, one family.  We are all descendants Noah, and further back, all descendants of Adam.

Through one man (Adam) sin and death entered the world and in this way death came to all people.

Through one man (Jesus) we are justified and we can be born again into life; and, for those who receive this free gift, we are all of one "body" in Messiah. (Rom 5:12-20; 1Cor 12:12-20)

Armstrongism

I recently had some conversations concerning Armstrongism and the Worldwide Church of God (WCG) and here is some of the background concerning it.

The WCG was basically a cult up until the years following 1986 (after H.W. Armstrong died) when they began changing their doctrines to conform to more biblical doctrines and practices.

The modern WCG (now known as Grace Communion International) can no longer be considered a cult -- at least according to their public doctrinal statements.

Things that are critical to Biblical Christianity involve a right understanding of the nature of God, the nature of Jesus, and soteriology (we are sinners, wages of sin is death, Jesus died in our place, we need to repent and receive what Jesus did for us).

A cult is a perversion of any of those critical doctrines and are typically centered around the exclusive teachings of a single man or organization.  Another common trait goes back to Satan's lie that we can become a god or be like God (Genesis 3:5).

Other issues are good topics for study and discussion, but disagreement on those issues does not make for a cult or a reason to break fellowship.

What made Armstrong's WCG a cult was their unbiblical understanding of 1) the nature of God, 2) that man can become God, and 3) exalting the authority of a single man above scripture.

They believed that Armstrong was "The Apostle", the second coming of Elijah and that the Bible and all other churches had been perverted over time and that ONLY Armstrong and ONLY the WCG knew the truth.  Armstrong had the ultimate authority in the same way that the Pope is considered to have the ultimate authority over Catholicism.

They believed that man was completely mortal (do not possess an immortal soul).

They believed in the "Family of God", that the Godhead started out as God the Father and God the Son and that men can be "born again" into this family after the resurrection and become part of God.

Some family members (including myself) were reading WCG materials back in the 80's and we recently had some discussions about it.

One of the possible holdovers from the WCG that I did have a conversation about, was annihilation.  

Annihilation is the belief that when unbelievers are thrown in the Lake of Fire (Rev 20:14-15) they cease to exist.  It is something I believed for years, but repented of it when confronted with the truth in the Bible.

Annihilation, while not necessarily what I would call "heresy" or a "salvation issue", it is not supported by the Bible.  

Folks usually justify the belief by saying "God is so loving, He wouldn't punish someone forever...".  There are many answers to this, here are two quickies: 1) God created hell for Satan and his angels (Matt 25:41); 2) Our offense is against and Eternal God

There are also many scriptures (including Jesus' own words) that talk about an eternal hell (Matt 18:8; 2 Thess. 1:9; Jude 1:7, 12-13; Rev 19:3; Rev 20:10)

And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life (Matt. 25:46)

(More info here: http://carm.org/hell-eternal)

In any case, my intention is to inform and motivate folks to do their own research.  Don't believe me, read the Bible and trust the Holy Spirit to lead and guide to truth.

All that would live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution

2 Timothy 3:12

Yea, and all that would live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.

John 15:18-21

If the world hateth you, ye know that it hath hated me before it hated you.  If ye were of the world, the world would love its own: but because ye are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.

Remember the word that I said unto you, A servant is not greater than his lord. If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they kept my word, they will keep yours also.  But all these things will they do unto you for my name's sake, because they know not him that sent me.

Matthew 10:14-25 (excerpts)

And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, as ye go forth out of that house or that city, shake off the dust of your feet.  Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment, than for that city.

Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.  But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to councils, and in theirs synagogues they will scourge you; yea and before governors and kings shall ye be brought for my sake, for a testimony to them and to the Gentiles.  

And brother shall deliver up brother to death, and the father his child: and children shall rise up against parents, and cause them to be put to death.  And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that endureth to the end, the same shall be saved.

A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his lord.  It is enough for the disciple that he be as his teacher, and the servant as his lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more them of his household!  

Think not that I came to send peace on the earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.  For I came to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law: and a man's foes shall be they of his own household. 

surveillance society

God's attributes include omniscience and omnipresence, or that He knows everything, everywhere, all the time.

Satan is not all-knowing and he can't be everywhere at once.

Since it is part of satan's plan to "be like the Most High" (Isaiah 14), it makes sense that part of his new world order would be ubiquitous surveillance.

Camera's everywhere, UAVs/drones, TSA inspection points, all transactions made electronically (and tracked), all news and entertainment delivered electronically (and monitored), neighbors spying on neighbors (see something, say something)...

satan's five point plan

Isaiah 14:12-14

How are you fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How are you cut down to the ground, which did weaken the nations!

For you have said in your heart,

1) "I will ascend into heaven"
2) "I will exalt my throne above the stars of God"
3) "I will sit also on the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north"
4) "I will ascend above the heights of the clouds"
5) "I will be like the most High"

the only hope

As a nation, we get the government we deserve.  If we will not be ruled by God, we will be ruled by tyrants.

The only hope for America is repentance and turning to God.  This cannot be forced from without, it can only come from within.

Only the Gospel -- not social, political or religious movements -- can change people's hearts.

born this way

there's a popular song out called "Born This Way" that many folks are using as an excuse for their bad behavior.

In a sense, Gaga may be on to something...

It is true, we are all "born this way"...

We are all born with a fallen nature, we are all born into sin and are slaves to self-centered appetites and desires.

The thing is, we don't have to stay that way...

While we are all born a slave to sin and dead to God, through Jesus that sin nature can be nailed to the cross and then we can be Born Again dead to sin and alive in Christ.

genius

Genius is taking something complex and explaining it in a way anyone can understand.

Pretentiousness is taking something simple and explaining it in a way no-one can understand.

turned away?

I'm told again and again, "You come on too strong, your turning people away from the Gospel"

I have news for them...

The Gospel turns people away from the Gospel!

Matthew 7:13-14

"Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it."

fear of man brings a snare...

Proverbs 29:25
The fear of man brings a snare: but whoever puts his trust in the LORD shall be safe.



Is it possible that our fear of Obama will snare us with Romney?

Manufactured Dialectic

Evan-jellyfish

How much of "christianity" has traded salt for sugar because we lack the backbone to tell the truth?

watchman

Ezekiel 33:6

But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come, and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman's hand.

a cup of trembling

“The burden of the word of the LORD for Israel , saith the LORD, which stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him. Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem . And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it” (Zechariah 12:1-3).

the problem with ecumenism

Ecumenical charitable efforts seem really great on the surface.

I agree that we need to cooperate on some things and that it is good to help people.

The thing is, it does no good to help people without presenting them the gospel.

It is great to give food, comfort, shelter, and clothing to those in need.  However, to give people these things without the gospel only makes people more comfortable living in their sin.

It is akin to giving someone a glass of icewater on their trip to hell.

How loving is it to give someone a pair of shoes when they are fixing to walk off a cliff?

Fine to give them a pair of shoes, but also turn them in the right direction while doing it.

The problem with ecumenical efforts comes when it is time to present the gospel...

Which gospel do you present?

Do you tell them they need to confess their sins to a priest, take the euchrist and perform seven sacraments in order to maybe reduce the time they spend in purgatory?

Do you tell them they need to be a good person, wear special underwear, baptise the dead, have lots of kids, and tithe every penny faithfully so that they can get access to the temple and maybe someday get to one of the levels of heaven or even become a god?

Do you tell them that, since God loves everyone, that everyone who is a "good person" is going to heaven and it doesn't matter what you believe?

Or, do you tell them that we have all sinned against an eternal, Holy, and Perfectly Just God and that the only way they can pay for their sins themselves is death and an eternity in hell.  That God Himself, because of His Perfect Love, made a way out for them by becoming a man, Jesus, and paying their debt for them, then rising again in victory over sin and death.  That they need to repent (turn) from their sin, turn to Jesus, accept what He did, and live for Him.

positive

People who say they want to be "positive" all the time will have to tell something other than the truth.

The truth is not always "positive".

Look at what people do, not what they say

Look at what people do, not what they say.

For example, Obama has made more affirmations to being a Christian and believing in Jesus than any other President in American history. Yet how many people believe him? And, why should anyone doubt him? It is because of what he has done, not what he has said.

You who claim to love freedom and support the Constitution, are you carefully examining the voting records of the people you are supporting?

Politicians will say anything to get elected. What these people do with the power they are entrusted with is what matters, not what they say.

they had a good start...

Saul had a good start.  He was humble and merciful in his dealings and was annointed by God to be king over Israel.  However, in time he began to concern himself with what people thought of him.   It got to the point that he started doing things to please the people instead of obeying God.  Saul went back on his word and even broke his own laws against necromancy.  The final result was the loss of his son, his kingdom and ending his own life in suicide.

David had a good start.  Even as a boy he was a good shepherd and able to face down bears and giants because of his trust in God.  However, in time he became complacent and self serving in his success.  Because of this, David committed adultery and then murder to try and cover it up.  The effects of David's sexual sins and permissivness with his sons led to incest, rape, and murder within his own family as his sons rebelled against him.

Solomon had a good start.  He sought after Godly wisdom rather than riches and is to this day regarded as the wisest man (second only to Jesus).  His kingdom knew peace and prosperity that was unmatched.  However, he began to compromise for the sake of peace by taking wives of the surrounding nations.  His ecumenism extended to building temples to appease the desires of his many wives to worship their pagan gods and idols.  The result of this was that the kingdom if Israel was divided and later overthrown and the people taken captive by a succession of pagan empires because of their idolotry.

We get in trouble when we put too much stock in personalities.  Leaders may start out really good and in the right direction, however, it is important to know when NOT to follow them if they begin making wrong turns.

Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them;
Eph 5:11

Spiritual -vs- Mystical

There is a danger in mistaking the mystical for the spiritual. The "mystical" is satan's poor facsimile and substitute for God's true spirituality.

political spectrum

This is what is taught in a lot of schools and popular media concerning the "political spectrum"

It creates fallacious paradigm of the “Left-Right” dialectic (basically, the two sides of the argument are positioned in such as way as to point to a predetermined outcome).  This spectrum is designed to give students the idea that Communism and Fascism are some kind of extreme bogey-man and Socialism is the "not so bad" happy medium.

This diagram reveals the truth that it is really the spectrum of socialism.  Far left results in Communism (International Socialism) and far right results in Fascism / National Socialism (NAZI).

This still occludes the true roles of Communism, Fabian Socialism, and Fascism.  They are just the IDEOLOGIES by which Socialism is established.

The goal of Communism, Fabian Socialism, and Fascism is the establishment of SOCIALISM.

Communist, Fabian, and Fascist ideologies are the MEANS by which Socialism is established.

Communist ideology is a bottom-up revolution that throws out the old ruling elite and replaces them with a new group of bureaucrats  who are supposed to make sure everything is distributed “fairly” and “scientifically”.  The problem is, these bureaucrats will tend to treat themselves a little “more fairly” than others and they become the new ruling elite oligarchs.

Fascism is top down imposed transformation.  There is a point at which mega-monopolies use the government to squash all free-market competition and ultimately merge with the state in control over all of the markets, goods, services, and property.  The end result is the same ruling oligarchy you get with communism.

Fabian ideology, also known as “The Third Way”, “Communitarian”, or “Progressive”, is working within the existing system like a virus to implement socialism through incremental steps.  The goal is to incrementally bring a society to a point of critical mass where it is ready for a revolution and/or transformation to a completed socialist model.

Socialism is not the means, it is the goal.  The end result is always the same — SOCIALISM.  THE GOAL IS ALWAYS SOCIALISM!!!!

A more accurate representation of the political spectrum.

It is not about “left” or “right”.  It is about Liberty or Tyranny.

The end goal is to eliminate the middle class and have a two class system of the super wealthy who are supported by a manageable number of working class economic slaves.  The oligarchs have a front man who catches all of the flak for things being bad.  The general public feel they have a say in matters because they get to “throw the bum out” with an election.  However, the oligarchs have already hand picked any and all of the candidates “competing” for office, so regardless of who gets in office, the status quo will be preserved.

Power is being centralized at the apex of the executive branch of the federal government.

This concentration of power makes a dictatorship inevitable.

Those who control the president, indirectly gain virtual control of the entire country.




A better way...

1. For liberty to thrive, we start with the presumption that man has a fallen, sinful nature and that man’s wisdom is fallible and incomplete.

2. Because of this fallen nature, without anything to stop it, there would be anarchy, lawlessness, and mob rule.  Government is then necessary in order to preserve life, liberty, and property.

3. At the same time, while government has a necessary function, man’s fallen nature also means that any form of government where men are in leadership will have those same sinful attributes.  The very nature of government means that a few men will have power over other men, and those who covet this power will be the most depraved among us.

4. So, the ideal form of government is one that is only big enough to protect the life, liberty, and property of its citizens; but, not so big that the government itself begins to violate the life, liberty, and property of the very citizens it is supposed to protect.

5. To protect this balance, there must be checks and balances, division of powers, limitations on government, and rule of law--where the law applies the same to everyone whether they are a politician, judge, entertainer, businessman, farmer, or factory worker.

compromise

Compromise is a good thing when it comes to sharing toys, but not when sharing the truth.

reformed or re-packaged?

Why anyone attempts to be an apologist for "Reformed Theology" is beyond me.

Instead of reformed theology, it should be called "Anti-Semetic Re-Packaged Catholic Theology".

Any "theology" that has its basis in anything that came after the syncretism of gnosticism and paganism that was the foundation of the doctrines of Augustine and Roman Catholicism is sorely corrupt.

True, many of the "fathers of the reformation" did get it right in criticizing popery in the areas of soteriology. However, they failed to reject the rest of the pagan practices and gnostic doctrines that continue to this day in many "reformed" churches.

Personally, I'm more interested in what scripture actually says, rather than what a bunch of "reformed" catholic priests have to say any day.  Their major accomplishment in their criticism of Catholicism was to convieniently not get burned at the stake they way that true Christians (who totally rejected popery) had been murdered for hundreds of years both prior to and during the reformation.

Some things to keep in mind as the days get darker...

- The darker it gets, the brighter even the smallest light shines.

- The majority of people who call themselves "christian", are not.  Most people who call themselves christian are false converts to a godless religion of works or they think is christian spirituality is really new age mysticism repackaged as spirituality.

- Persecution will first come from fellow "christians" because we are not tolerant, we are too dogmatic about the Bible, and we don't accept just anything as "christian".

- Teaching from the Bible is already considered "Hate Speech" because it allegedly causes "Hate Crimes", and eventually even "Hate Thoughts" will be a crime.

- We need to be very strongly grounded in truth, or we too can fall for the lie.

- We need to be proclaiming the gospel as loud as we can for as long as we can.

myth of inevitability

One thing that the enemy would like you to believe is that his agenda is inevitable and "you might as well give in to it".

It is true, if we do nothing, then it really is inevitable.

However, we can fight back, we can slow it down, we can stop it and even reverse it.

To do that, it is important to get informed and get involved.

In the process, let us not forget our reason for standing against the tide.

We lobby for liberty not so that we can do whatever we want, we lobby for the liberty to exercise our commission to preach the Gospel.

The enemy's ultimate goal is to silence the Gospel and replace it with his own false gospel.

While we are here and actively resisting, the enemy's plan is restrained from coming to full fruition.

We need to keep our lamps full, remain vigilant, and sound the shofar any time the enemy approaches the gates.

slaves in our own land

What is the big deal about the Federal Reserve being "private", international bankers, and all that jazz?

What does they have to do with anything?

The issue is not every corporation or every bank.

The Federal Reserve is "backed" by international banks and international investors.  Every dollar printed in the United States is "backed" by a loan from the Federal Reserve.  Every dollar the government spends increases this debt.  The collateral for the loans are taxes collected from the American citizens.  Your taxes do not go to pay for government services, taxes collected by the IRS go to pay interest on these loans to foreign financiers.  When the people cannot pay their taxes, their labor and property is forfeit to pay these debts.

This is how the globalists end up owning and controlling American citizens. 

We become slaves in our own land to a foreign power.

This is not without precedent.  We have ample warning of this from scripture.

While nothing has "replaced" Israel (no, not America, the church, or any other entity), there are still lessons to be learned concerning how God meets out judgement against nations.

There are some insightful passages from Nehemiah on the subjects.  The thing to keep in mind, even while in the process of rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, they were still subjects to the Persian emperor, King Artaxerxes.

Nehemiah 5:4-5 NAS
"We have borrowed money for the [foreign] king’s taxes against our fields and vineyards ... we are bringing our sons and daughters into bondage as slaves. Some of our daughters have gone into slavery already, and it’s beyond our power to do anything about it, because other men have our fields and vineyards.”

Further passages reveal that this is part of the judgement against Israel for the people turning their back on God and worshipping foreign gods.  The people had become slaves in the very land that was to be their inheritance.  The fruit of their labors went to foreign kings.  They were being sold into bondage to pay thier taxes.

Nehemiah 9:33-37 NAS
For You have dealt faithfully, but we have acted wickedly.

For our kings, our leaders, our priests and our fathers have not kept Your law
   Or paid attention to Your commandments and Your admonitions with which You have admonished them.

But they, in their own kingdom,
   With Your great goodness which You gave them,
   With the broad and rich land which You set before them,
   Did not serve You or turn from their evil deeds.

Behold, we are slaves today,
   And as to the land which You gave to our fathers to eat of its fruit and its bounty,
   Behold, we are slaves in it.
Its abundant produce is for the [foreign] kings
   Whom You have set over us because of our sins;
They also rule over our bodies
   And over our cattle as they please,

So we are in great distress.

501c

Next time you get a chance, ask your pastor if they are prepared for a time when they will need to give up their 501c non-profit status...

God declares the end from the beginning...

Isaiah 46:9b-10
... I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things which have not been done, Saying, 'My purpose will be established, And I will accomplish all My good pleasure'

I've recently heard this misquoted twice recently and had to look it up to make sure I was remembering the verse correctly.

man's fallable government

Looking to government to solve your problems is making government a "god".

Government seeks to eliminate all "gods" before it.  Otherwise, you can believe what you want, as long as government is the ultimate authority.

when you care enough to tell the truth

Giving people a helping hand is great. 

However, how helpful is it to provide temporal assistance to someone without sharing the Gospel of turning away from sin (repentance) and turning toward salvation found only in Jesus the Messiah?

So often, when we help someone it is just so that we can feel better about ourselves.

Most of us are helping others to alleviate our own sense of guilt.  That is not love.

Once the guilt is assuaged, we then pat ourselves on the back and smugly reflect on how "good" we are.

Assistance without the Gospel is is akin to giving someone icewater on thier way to hell.

Heaven forbid that we should share the truth with someone.  Telling someone the truth is more likely to alienate you and make you the target of ridicule.

The truth does not make us any friends.  If we tell someone the truth, well, it might offend them and they may not like us. 

So, for selfish reasons we hold back the truth and try to selfishly assuage our guilt by throwing money at the problem. 

Always maintain an eternal perspective.  Ask yourself, how much will this temporary circumstance really matter 10,000 years from now?

If you truly love and care about someone, then you should be VERY CONCERNED about where they will be spending ETERNITY before you concern yourself with where they will spend the night or get their next meal.

Providing food, clothing, and shelter to those in need is a great draw for getting people's attention.

But, the assistance should not be a goal in and of itself.

It should be an avenue to the goal of sharing the Gospel.  That should always be the drive and focus.

my criteria for charitable giving

1.  Must be used toward a biblical purpose (ie: taking care of widows and orphans, feed and cloth the destitute and hungry)

2.  Sharing the Gospel of turning from sin and turning to the salvation found only in Jesus the Messiah must be the central purpose, the food and other items are just the draw.

3. Over 95% of the funds collected must verifiably go toward #1 and #2 and not to "administrative  costs" (someone's pocket)

The Harbinger

I just completed listening to the Harbinger on audiobook.

Some have criticized Cahn's book, but their criticism makes it clear they have not thoroughly read the book or listened to the author's explanation of it.  I have yet to find a solid criticism, and instead have only seen circumstantial and knee jerk attacks by those who are trying to hock their wares.

I strive to be someone who is very picky about what I read and quick to point out the rampant apostasy, false prophets, and misinformation that clouds the truth.  I did not get the least impression that this book was trying convince anyone of replacement theology.

Cahn, himself a Jew and Messianic Rabbi, has stressed several times both in the book and in interviews that he does not believe in replacement theology (that America, the church, or anything else has replaced Israel) or that the Isaiah 9:10 is a prophecy written just for America or anything of the sort.

What he is uncovering is that there was a pattern in Israel's judgement that seems to be repeating itself in actual recorded events surrounding 9/11 (and yes, they are all verifiable in news stories, pictures, and video of actual events).

While I agree that the fictional backdrop might cause confusion for some, the point was to arouse people to investigate further for themselves, repent, and turn to God -- not make a "thus says the Lord" declaration.

(NOTE: I don't receive anything for my comments on this book)

freedom and liberty

Is there a difference between freedom and liberty?

Often the words freedom and liberty are used interchangably.  From time to time, they may carry with them different connotations or distictive definitions based on an author's intent.

Typically, if a distinction is drawn, freedom is typically tied to a person's belief or feeling about their circumstances.

In contrast, liberty is typically tied to a person's ability to perform certain actions.

Some progressives might say that "We want to protect freedom to worship".

This may sound good, but a freedom to believe something or worship is something is quite different than the liberty to act on those beliefs.

For example, you may have the freedom to believe that "Jesus is the only way".

However, as currently exists in many countries, you do not have the liberty to share that belief with others.

essentials

I have heard it said: "Let us unite on the essentials and have grace on the non-essentials"

I agree with that. But, then the discussion turns to the question of "What are the essentials that we are supposed to unite on?"

The Bible may not tell us everything there is to know, but it does tell us everything we NEED to know.

My observation thus far has been that there are many things in the Bible that are crystal clear.

There are also some things that require time, study, and spiritual discernment to understand. These things best understood by "getting to know" God and His nature.

Additionally, there are some things that are prophetic and "sealed" (their meaning is not clear) right now, but will become clearer as we approach the in the time for which they were written.

The more essential it is, the clearer it is stated and the easier it is to understand. Since we are to recieve the kingdom of God as a little child (Luke 18:17, Mark 10:15), then the essentials should be simple enough for a child to understand.

If you have to really do some hard core gymnastics to stretch it beyond its obvious meaning, your doing it wrong. We get into trouble when we put our own pet theories, traditions of men, and doctrines of demons ahead of the simplicity of God's Word.

We must unite around the truth, even if the truth is sometimes hard to take.  The key is for us to submit ourselves to the truth as reavealed in the Bible.

Why the Government Fears Veterans

It has been a recurring theme in history that a government uses the youth of a generation as tools to further its own agendas and protect the wealth of the elite. Once the veteran is no longer useful, the government is quick to break its promises of pensions, health care, and benefits to those who have given so much.

http://www.historyplace.com/unitedstates/revolution/revwar-77.htm

March 15, 1783 - General Washington gathers his officers and talks them out of a rebellion against the authority of Congress, and in effect preserves the American democracy.

June 24, 1783 - To avoid protests from angry and unpaid war veterans, Congress leaves Philadelphia and relocates to Princeton, New Jersey.


1894 - Coxey's Army was a protest march that included disgruntled Civil War veterans who marched on Washington to claim benefits. It was the second year of a four-year economic depression that was the worst in United States history to that time. It was the first significant popular protest march on Washington and the expression "Enough food to feed Coxey's Army" originates from this march. Named after Jacob Coxey, a Civil War veteran.


1922 - Mussolini, a former socialist coalesced the Fascist party around a cadre of disgruntled war veterans and nationalists, organized into paramilitary gangs, known as squadri fascisti, who fought in the streets with communists and socialists and protested against the peace treaties and the weakness of the parliamentary government.

German Workers Party (DAP) was made up primarily of disgruntled World War I veterans. The DAP would later evolve into the National Workers Socialist Party (Nazi) and would recruit former World War I soldiers, to whom Hitler as a decorated frontline veteran could particularly appeal.

1932 March of the Bonus Army - a group of disgruntled World War I veterans marched on Washington, D.C., to demand a "bonus" promised to them for their military service, few could have foreseen the turbulence that lay ahead. Determined to ensure that the military would make good in delivering the funds promised, the 45,000 war veterans set up camp and refused to budge. When two tense months had passed and Congress refused to immediately pay the bonus, general Douglas MacArthur and officers Dwight D. Eisenhower and George S. Patton Jr. led the U.S. Army in driving the veterans from Washington with tear gas, tanks, and saber-wielding cavalrymen before burning the protestors' camp to the ground. Though the bonus would be paid off four years later to the benefit of some four million veterans, the historical march on Washington, D.C., laid the groundwork that would eventually influence the WWII GI Bill, cement the rights of citizens to assemble, and petition the government, and serve as one of the first occurrences of large-scale integration in a time where racial relations were an extremely sensitive issue.

Isaiah 9:7-21

The Lord sent a word against Jacob,
And it has fallen on Israel.
All the people will know—
Ephraim and the inhabitant of Samaria—
Who say in pride and arrogance of heart:

“The bricks have fallen down,
But WE will rebuild with hewn stones;
The sycamores are cut down,
But WE will replace them with cedars.”

Therefore the Lord shall set up
The adversaries of Rezin against him,
And spur his enemies on,
The Syrians before and the Philistines behind;
And they shall devour Israel with an open mouth.

For all this His anger is not turned away,
But His hand is stretched out still.

For the people do not turn to Him who strikes them,
Nor do they seek the Lord of hosts.
Therefore the Lord will cut off head and tail from Israel,
Palm branch and bulrush in one day.
The elder and honorable, he is the head;
The prophet who teaches lies, he is the tail.
For the leaders of this people cause them to err,
And those who are led by them are destroyed.
Therefore the Lord will have no joy in their young men,
Nor have mercy on their fatherless and widows;
For everyone is a hypocrite and an evildoer,
And every mouth speaks folly.

For all this His anger is not turned away,
But His hand is stretched out still.


For wickedness burns as the fire;
It shall devour the briers and thorns,
And kindle in the thickets of the forest;
They shall mount up like rising smoke.

Through the wrath of the Lord of hosts
The land is burned up,
And the people shall be as fuel for the fire;
No man shall spare his brother.
And he shall snatch on the right hand
And be hungry;
He shall devour on the left hand
And not be satisfied;
Every man shall eat the flesh of his own arm.

Manasseh shall devour Ephraim, and Ephraim Manasseh;
Together they shall be against Judah.

For all this His anger is not turned away,
But His hand is stretched out still

unity

Unity is a good thing, but compromising the truth for the sake of unity destroys your foundation and leaves you standing on the shifting sands of incomplete and fallible human "wisdom".

If we are to have unity, let us be united around the truth.

tolerance

We go around proudly touting of how "tolerant" we are.  We stick our noses in the air with smug superiority and look down on anyone who is not as refined, intellectual, hip, and tolerant as we are.

Tolerance, in the classical sense, is not a terribly bad thing.  Basically, the concept of not shooting someone in the head just because you don't agree with them is a good thing.  Classical tolerance did not prohibit people being critical of other beliefs, it just meant that you wouldn't beat up or kill someone just because of those differences.

Today, it is not enough to have the civil freedom (at least for the time that we have it) to believe what you want and live without fear of being imprisoned or killed just for your beliefs.

The problem comes in that the modern definition of tolerance has become more about permitting, accepting, affirming, encouraging, experimenting with, and even adopting what someone else believes or how they behave rather than just live and let live.

This just demonstrates how well we have been indoctrinated and trained to believe that tolerance is a virtue.


The wrong understanding and overemphasis on tolerance is by design.  It destroys our willingness and ability to take a stand for the truth out of fear of being ridiculed and accused of being "intolerant".

If you will not stand for the truth, then you will fall for any lie.

Neo Babylon

European Parliment building in Brussels

Artist conception of Tower of Babel

Coincidence?


And curious that they would choose symbolism from Revelation 17 concerning a woman riding a beast...

Five Stages of Persecution

Stage one: Label the opposition

Stage two: Marginalize the opposition

Stage Three: Vilify the Opposition

Stage Four: Pass laws criminalizing the activities of the opposition

Stage Five: Enforce the new laws against the opposition

- John Loeffler