The Desire for a Christian Nation

John 15:20
"Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours."

Matthew 10:22
"and you will be hated by all for my name's sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved."

The Bible is very specific in many places, telling Christians that they will be hated and abused by non-believers. But those of us who live in the United States have become so used to a "Christian Government" that we tend to freak out any time we think that a non-believer may get elected.

In Romans 13:1 the Apostle Paul tells Christians that regardless of who is leading our country, we are to submit to that civil authority, with the exception that we will only disobey if that authority tells us not to follow God's Word.

We see this in the ministry of Jesus and the Apostles; they placed themselves under the authority of the law, going to court when ordered, spending time in prison, being punished, paying taxes, and following myriad other laws. However, they broke the law to preach the Gospel when they were told they could not. This is the example that Christians should follow: do those things that the Lord says do and in all other matters follow the law.

Most Christians want Godly leaders but then break any civil laws that they don't want to comply with. Jesus said in Matthew 22:21 to render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's, meaning, in this case, to pay his taxes in full. Today's Christians are looking for ways to pay less than they are supposed to, even if they have to lie about it.

Let's take for instance speed limits; I guarantee you that if the Apostle Paul was here today, he would never drive over the speed limit. Why? Because he took very seriously what God had shown him about following the law. Other than some type of medical emergency, there is almost no reason to speed.

The big problem, though, is that U.S. Christians have gotten so used to a government that supports them, that they go all to pieces when they are met with an elected official that does not share and promote the same beliefs. The truth is, though, that most of the time governments will not be in agreement with Christian principles.

In fact, Christ and the Apostles told us that we should expect to be persecuted for our beliefs. Within this are two issues; first, those people professing Christ in the U.S. are not persecuted and they believe this is a result of this being a "Christian Nation", which it is not. Second, the lack of persecution for the "average" Christian has led to a group that cannot handle any real persecution.

Today's "Christians" in the U.S. are rarely persecuted because they barely fit the definition of a follower of Christ. When someone truly attempts to live by the Bible, they are persecuted, not only by the world, but by all the supposed Christians who barely follow Christ at all. Persecution of Christians is very real in the United States. The persecution of those few leads the masses of Christians to operate below the level that would cause persecution.

The entire system uses behavioral reinforcement to teach Christians to be as soft and moderate as they can be. Don't call sin, sin; instead call it something softer that does not make the person feel like they are doing something wrong. Instead, make them feel like it is the fault of the systems they live under.

When persecution starts for those who only speak the name of Christ, you will find out who is really a Christian!

Thoughts on Justice

The world today is overrun with concerns about "justice"; we have social justice, environmental justice, lifestyle justice, reparations, socialism, and many others, all promising "justice" without the common user of the word understanding what justice really is.

Going back to one of the last true dictionaries ever printed, Webster's 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language, Justice is defined as:

"The virtue of giving to everyone what is his due; practical conformity to laws and to principles of rectitude in the dealings of men with each other; honesty; integrity in commerce or mutual intercourse."

I asked CoPilot to reword this in modern day English, and it gave me to two versions, one verbose and one succinct:

“The virtue of treating every person with the fairness they are owed; consistently acting in accordance with moral principles and just laws in all dealings with others; honesty and integrity in business and everyday interactions.”

 “Upright conduct that gives others what they are due, guided by fairness, honesty, and moral integrity in all dealings.”

 On the surface this sounds like modern-day justice; the idea of giving each person what they are due and what they deserve, whether it be reparations, recognition of alternate lifestyles, or help in overcoming personal issues.

These concepts on the happy side of justice have been a part of the scriptures for many years.  For example:

King David had sworn to take care of Jonathan's family, and 2 Samuel 9 is the record of David seeking out Mephibosheth, Jonathan's son, and restoring to him land, titles, and having him live at the palace and eat at the King's Table.

Jesus Christ's coming to earth to bear the sins of the world so that we could deserve, through Him, something better than what we were due on our own.

The problem with the modern day version of justice is that for most it ignores the reality of the "flip side"; as justice means giving people the good things that they are due, so justice also means meting out punishment to those deserving it.  This is the first issue with modern "justice".

The word integrity is used in this definition and means:

"Integrity is moral reliability — the alignment of character and conduct so that a person acts consistently according to what is right, regardless of circumstance."

Without integrity, justice becomes simply the fulfilling of desires.  If the only justice meted out is that which people desire, then society in general will fail.  Integrity demands consistent action, and consistent action means applying both rewards and punishment.

The idea of justice has become so bastardized that people demand, for the sake of justice, what the Bible tells us to avoid seeking: money, land, houses, fine foods and drink, and all the other trappings of a worldly life.  The Legacy Standard Bible translates Matthew 6:24 as:

"No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other.  you cannot serve God and wealth."

This seems very clear; the seeking of worldly gain through "justice" is a turning from God, whether if is with direct money sent to you or through complicated environmental schemes.

True Christians need no more money that what it takes to pay the bills and live a simple life; seeking more is turning from God.

"Justice" becomes just an excuse that attempts to bypass what God's Word says, and grasp after worldly things.

True Christians realize they are ambassadors living in a foreign land, and look forward to Jesus Christ setting up his Kingdom here on earth.

Next we will look at ways to determine if you are truly saved...

Godlessness in the Last Days

*Second Timothy 3:

1-But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. 2-For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3-heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, 4-treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5-having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. 6-For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, 7-always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth. 8-Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men corrupted in mind and disqualified regarding the faith. 9-But they will not get very far, for their folly will be plain to all, as was that of those two men.

Upon reading a news article this morning on Fox News about the LA Dodgers Team celebrating Pride Month this verse came to mind.  One person on the team, who is a Christian and supported Charlie Kirk, did not wear the pride hat.  But that is really not what caught my attention.  Scrolling down to the bottom of the article, they had to include a photo of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence.

There are plenty of articles out there both for and against this group, but I am not here to rehash all of that.  What I do want to say is that this group demonstrates several Biblical Concepts.

First, to all those preachers who tell a woman not to wear a little makeup, you need to look at these pictures, for this is what Jezebel did.  The point in *Second Kings 9:30 is to speak against the sexualization of the face; granted there can be a fine line between making yourself look a certain way, and attempting to draw attention in a sexual way.  The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence want to draw sexual attention in the very worst way; cross dressing with exaggerated painted faces that point to wanton and degraded sexual desires.  This goes beyond the makeup that is used, sometimes inappropriately, to look "nicer".  This makes a mockery of God's greatest creation, human beings, by presenting a "living idol" as preferred to what God has made in His image.

Secondly, they are mocking an order of women have have dedicated themselves to God and the service of their fellow man.  Where Roman Catholic Nuns have provided comfort, nursing, food, and general care for those who need it, in situations from war to famine, these miscreants only seek to server their own selfish desires.  There organization is not about truly helping others, but about drawing attention in the most craven ways.

In *Romans 1:18-26, Paul speaks of those that God has given over because of their unnatural desires.  If anyone fits this description it is these men.  Knowing what Nuns are, knowing the work they do, knowing their commitment to God, they choose to mock them and make caricatures of them that serve their evil ends.  There is such a thing as searing your conscience until you cannot hear from God, and they are very well at this point.

Like an exclamation point after the statements on these vile Sisters, another article was there detailing how the Presbyterian organization has an internal revolt because they are considering making it so that ordained clergy cannot be in polyamorous or polygamous relationships.

While many many read *First Timothy 3:2 as speaking of divorce, a careful reading of the scriptures and the languages shows that this is not what it speaks of. While divorce is frowned upon, and a pastor who leaves his wife for another woman and gets a divorce is in error and facing judgement, the fact that someone was divorced years ago, possibly before their conversion to Christ, has no bearing on their work after their salvation.  (This would be another whole article that I may do someday along with some other misconceptions)  People who committed fornication, adultery, rape, and homosexuality, even after they are saved, are forgiven and can take on church leadership positions, but someone divorced cannot?

No. This scripture speaks to exactly what the Presbyterian organization is doing. They ordain men and women, gay and straight, and have allowed the clergy to be married to multiple partners of any sex, or to have sexual relationships outside of their marriage as long as it is consensual with their spouse(s).  As shown in Paul's writing to Timothy (again in First Timothy 3:2 and other verses), and from history, we know that polyamory and polygamy were rampant in the Roman Empire, and will become a big part of the Revived Roman Empire during the Great Tribulation.  The Clergy going this way is a sign of the End Times.

Everything is being set up for the antichrist, the man of sin, the lawless one, to come in and allow all of these things worldwide to appease the masses; a "do what you want" system that restrains Christianity as "hate speech" and promotes spiritual lawlessness.

*Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

There Are Not That Many Christians

Matthew 7:21–23 (ESV*)

21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’

A simple truth not much spoken of in modern churches is the small number of people who will actually make it to Heaven. In fact, the number may be so small that those missing after the Rapture can be easily explained away.

This is an uncomfortable truth that most do not want to hear as it will cause anxiety over their eternal state, and well it should. Most pastors do not want to speak of it as it is counterproductive to "church membership building". And yet, churches today are totally ineffective at anything other than building membership and raising money! This is mostly due to pews full of sinful people.

Jesus also said in Matthew 7, a few verses up:

13 “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. 14 For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.

Let's take a closer look at this; what is Jesus telling us?

Quite simply He is stating that "many" will not make it into Heaven, even though they proclaim Him to be Lord, and even perform miracles in His name? How can this be? How can those who appear to be His not be? This answer to this is simple and is found in Philippians 2 where the Apostle Paul says:

8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

As this scripture verse tells us, the name of Jesus has been exalted by God the Father so that everything is subject to His name. This is how those who cast out demons in His name may still miss Heaven. It is not by our salvation that God performs miracles, but by the power of His exalted Son's Name alone.

Note that the last part of verse 11 ties back to Matthew 7:21: everything is for the Father's glory even those things done outside His Will. No action taken on earth in the name of Jesus is outside the Father's Glory but may be outside His Will.

The true Christian is led by the Holy Spirit and is performing the Will of the Father, not their own will. Note what Jesus told the seventy-two in Luke 10:

17 The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!” 18 And he said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. 19 Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you. 20 Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” (serpents & scorpions are various demons, refer to Genesis 3:15 and Romans 16:20)

When the seventy-two who were sent to tell of Jesus returned, they were happy that they were able to cast out demons in Jesus' name. Jesus replies that He was there when Satan and his angelic followers fell, and that this authority comes from and by Him. Jesus then tells them that instead, to rejoice that their "names are written in Heaven".

Add to this that most people gloss over scriptures such as Romans 1, 1 Corinthians 6:9–10, Galatians 5:19–21, and Ephesians 5:5 that explicitly state that those who participate in many sins have no place in the Kingdom of God. The true Christian seeks not to commit these sins and as Paul says in Philippians 2:12 "work out your own salvation with fear and trembling".

This "fear and trembling" is missing in most churches and Christian lives; to be afraid to sin and to tremble at the thought of God the Father being unhappy with us is an untaught and unheard concept in most churches today.

James, the brother of Jesus, tells us this in James 2:

18 But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. 19 You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder!

We see from this verse that true Faith brings about the works of the Spirit. If there are no works, or the works are ones that are listed in Paul's writings as sins, then there is great doubt that the person is truly a Christian.

This is a hard truth for both professing Christians and those who love professing Christians. Just because someone goes to church, sits in a pew, and calls Jesus Lord does not make them a Christian. In fact, many are not.

Christians are those who are broken up over their sins, reborn of the Spirit, fearing to fail God, begging His forgiveness, trembling at the thought of offending Him, and doing His Will which are acts of love and kindness as led by the Holy Spirit.

Anything less, any easy path, will result in you hearing the words ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’

*Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

What We Have Become

I want to talk about Charlie Kirk's assassination; not the man himself, as he is well known as a Christian and a Conservative that has done much good work from a deep conviction and dedication to God.  No, I want to talk about the person, or people, that killed him and the ones who celebrated this tragic event.

Occasionally God sends a man that is to preach or teach to the masses; his calling will be to witness about Christ and to point out sin.  Such a man was Charlie Kirk; a man who did not condemn people, but condemned actions while hoping those people would come to know Jesus Christ as their savior.  A man who cared enough to take all the abuse to try to help people, especially young people, and keep going, always showing the love of God in his life.

In 2 Thessalonians 2:8 the Apostle Paul refers to the antichrist, and both the ESV and the NIV translate this as the lawless one.  John told us that the spirit of the antichrist was already in the world (1 John 4:3) and that all who do not confess Jesus Christ as Lord are of that spirit.

Charlie Kirk was sent as the last messenger to many people.  Those who wished him dead, those that killed him, and those that celebrated his death, have had their last chance.  There may be a few confused souls that the Holy Spirit will call to, but most of these are reprobate humans, their consciences so seared that God no longer calls them to himself.

Romans 1:18 tells us that God's wrath will fall on those who suppress His truth or hold it as evil sayings.  Charlie Kirk's message came from God, and the multitudes who suppressed that truth and held it as evil will feel the wrath of God fall on them.  Verses 29 & 30 of Romans 1 tell us that murderers, haters of God, and inventors of evil have lost their chances with God.  People hated Kirk for speaking the truth that we all knew and understood a few years ago:  a boy who thinks he is a girl does not need to be turned into a girl; he needs guidance to help him come to terms with being a boy.  The problem is not that he is the wrong biological sex, but that he thinks he is the wrong sex.  He needs to change his thinking, not his body.  In every other instance the progressive left tells people to love themselves the way they are, but for this issue they say change yourself.  This is the delusions of Satan, that men can become women and women can become men.

Charlie Kirk did not condemn these people but wanted to show people the way of God's Word and to get them the help they truly need.  Those who shot him have sealed their fate; I believe that only the wrath and judgement of God await them.  They hate God, they murder His witnesses, and they will pay a heavy price when they stand before Him

Science and the Scripture #1: Fearful Sights and Great Signs in the Heavens

 Four interesting things were presented in the news in the last few weeks.  First, the discovery of a comet type body that is from outside our solar system is fast approaching.  There is some speculation as to what it could be, as we have never seen a cometary body that emits light in front of it.  Cometary bodies heat up as they pass closer to the sun, causing melt and ice crystals to form a tail that catches the light.  This body is either emitting light or is so smooth and shiny that it is reflecting light while still a great distance from the sun.

The second item is that a large, dark planetary body, possibly as large as Jupiter, is going to pass through our solar system.  Depending on where it passes, there will be various effects from it.  The gravity from a body that size could change wave patterns here even if it passes well outside the orbit of the moon.  It could literally pull the moon out of its orbit if it came close enough.  To do that would probably destroy a large part of our satellite capabilities.

Scientists using the James Webb telescope found the third anomaly which is a huge lighted area at, or just past, the edge of our universe.  This area is putting out an amazing, unmeasurable amount of light.

And fourth, experiments continuing with the large hadron collider are showing that other dimensions may well exist, and that our gravity, for one type of energy, may be leaking over into this other dimension.

In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus says this:

⁸ And he said, Take heed that ye be not deceived: for many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and the time draweth near: go ye not therefore after them.⁹ But when ye shall hear of wars and commotions, be not terrified: for these things must first come to pass; but the end is not by and by.  ¹⁰ Then said he unto them, Nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom:  ¹¹ And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.

Jesus tells us here that there will be "fearful sights and great signs" in heaven.  All the things that we are currently discovering seem to point to this being the beginning of the end times.