“While thus careful to establish, protect, and defend religious freedom and equality, the American constitution contain no provisions which prohibit the authorities from such solemn recognition of a superintending Providence in public transactions and exercises as the general religious sentiment of mankind inspires, and as seems meet and proper in finite and dependent beings.”Thomas Cooley,Chief Justice, Michigan Supreme Court;Dean University of Michigan Law School; President, American Bar Association;Author: “Constitutional Limitations”
Author: Dr. Lloyd Stebbins
Author of new books: "Wake Up America or Die! YOU Must Save America and the Family," "Target America--Target YOU!" and "America--Dark Slide; Bright Future"
“I had to choose between your law and God’s law, and no matter how much power you have to enforce your law, it is inconsequential next go God’s. His laws are eternal, not merely for the moment. No mortal, not even you, may annul the laws of God.”
Antigone by Sophocles
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From Ripples to Tsunami—Religious Freedom is Lost!
There has been near saturation coverage of the brief incarceration of Kim Davis. Of course, she is the Clerk of Rowan County, Kentucky who was held in contempt of court after refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. Her Christian faith prohibited actions that would publically express her approval of homosexual or lesbian “marriages.”
There is no need to rehash the widespread news coverage of the event. Instead, mentally zoom out for a few thoughtful moments to consider the darker, far more widespread, and sinister cultural damage emerging from Kim’s experience and thousands of similar ones.
Often such incidents are reported by the press, including the Judeo-Christian press, ministers, and nationally known Christian leaders as “infringing on freedom of religion” or “encroaching on religious rights.” Words like infringing and encroaching suggest a nibbling away at the grander, bedrock, freedom of religion that has anchored America since its founding.
For a moment, let’s sidestep the obvious that an aggregation of nibbles eventually consumes the whole. No matter how much you may have overeaten during an annual Thanksgiving feast, you did it one bite at a time. However, there are far larger more insidious and enduring impacts.
Whenever a,
- judge issues and ruling contrary to Scripture,
- legislature passes a law that restricts religious freedom, or an
- executive (president, governor, or mayor) issues an order that interferes with the free exercise of religion,
the long-term impact on our nation, culture, and families contributes to a looming darkness.
Each of these seemingly narrowly-focused or targeted incidents unleashes ultimately the full, virtually unlimited might, of the federal government and often the full force of the best-known media to proclaim directly or indirectly any of several false and extremely alarming messages:
- God does not exist.
- If God does exist, he is somewhere in the cosmos unconcerned about our lives as individuals or collectively as a nation.
- The government is more important than God.
- The government has the authority to overrule God.
Essentially, the government is at war with God. The secular humanists (liberal/progressives) are, knowingly or unknowingly, fighting on behalf of the “‘prince of the power of the air,’ the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience…” [Ephesian 2:2 KJV] to amass as much temporal power as possible, at the expense of the people. “…because the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.” [Romans 8:7 NIV]
Meanwhile, Judeo-Christian believers have been largely shutdown by the cultural pressures of political correctness. They have become too timid to express the courage of their convictions. Far too many have lost the courage of their convictions and some have even lost their convictions. Many believers in the United States are no longer the salt of the earth or the light of the world, at least not visibly.
Apathy comes with a fearful price. Not only is the faith of believers weakened by the relentless pounding of government skepticism, but our children and grandchildren are routinely exposed to the same pounding, during the most vulnerable growing period of their lives. They are constantly exposed to the same alarming messages as everyone else.
Former President Ronald Reagan loudly proclaimed, “Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children’s children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.”
As free Americans, we must aggressively fight to protect our God-given freedom with,
- persistent prayer,
- careful voting,
- letters to public figures,
- alternatives to public schools, and
- civil disobedience, as necessary.
Kim Davis opted for civil disobedience. Her actions triggered a long overdue national and very public conversation regarding the concept of same-sex “marriage.” Organized resistance to restrictions on religious freedom is no longer an option; it is inescapable—unless we want to see America irretrievably broken, another sad relic of history.
Each case like Kim’s are the ripples in the war to save America. The growing might of the massive government is the tsunami. Are YOU willing to take a stand?
What does it take to wake up the body of believers?
What does it take to wake up the clergy?
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Devastation from Fatherless Homes Soars! Where is the Church?
The U.S. Census Bureau reports that, 43 percent of U.S. children live without their fathers. The impact on families and the American culture have been cataclysmic. Consider a few statistics:
- Ninety percent of homeless and runaway children are from fatherless homes (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Census Bureau).
- Eighty percent of rapists motivated with displaced anger come from fatherless homes (Criminal Justice & Behaviour, Vol. 14, pp. 403-26, 1978).
- Sixty-three percent of youth suicides involve individuals from fatherless homes (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Census Bureau).
- Eighty-five percent of children who exhibit behavioral disorders come from fatherless homes (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention).
- Seventy percent of juveniles in state-operated institutions have no fathers (U.S. Department of Justice, Special Report, September 1988).
- Eighty-five percent of youths in prisons grew up in a fatherless homes (Fulton County Georgia jail populations, Texas Department of Corrections, 1992).
Are these statistics shocking or are they becoming all too familiar—too familiar to capture meaningful attention? The numbers profile only the most serious aspects of a childhood without a father, the tip of the metaphorical iceberg.
Ninety-three percent of a real iceberg is underwater. Similarly, the crisis-burdened statistics mask a vast modern childhood culture that routinely exhibits uncivil behavior, immoral practices, underdeveloped character, and weak values, widely departing from Judeo-Christian standards. They are the harbinger of an even more ungodly future of the remnant of the American culture.
Little is reported about the chaotic childhood culture that is facilitated by a seriously broken government-run (public) school system and camouflaged by an endless round of nursery schools, day care centers, before school care, after school care, and all manner of babysitters. Absentee parenting does not work! It never has and never will.
All-too-often, fatherhood has shockingly dwindled to a source of sperm and a possible source of money. Others have written extensively about the importance of having a father and the specific responsibilities of a father. Of course the best source is always Scripture. Here is a link to 71 Bible verses about the responsibilities of fathers: http://bible.knowing-jesus.com/topics/Fathers,-Responsibilities-Of
The virtually out-of-control crisis of fatherless homes (absolutely absent-by-law, or by choice, or effectively absent by over-the-top commitments to non-family matters) begs the extremely serious question, “Where is the Church?” Consider the sad profile:
- 1962—Using a tortured interpretation of the “separation of church and state,” the U.S. Supreme Court banned prayer in the public schools. The Church was conspicuously silent.
- 1963—The U.S. Supreme Court banned Bible reading in the public schools. The Church was conspicuously silent.
- 1973—The U.S. Supreme Court legalized abortion (Roe v. Wade). The Catholic Church cried “foul” immediately. The Protestant Church was conspicuously silent for at least 5-8 years.
- 1970s/1980s—A wave of no-fault divorce laws swept the states. Previously required “grounds for divorce” were rooted in various interpretations of Scripture. The Church has been conspicuously silent.
- 1960s/2000s—A long series of evolution-related controversies engulfed the public schools. The Church has been conspicuously silent.
- 1960s/2000s—Political correctness movement has successfully applied plausible euphemisms to all manner of sinful activities, enabling an explosive increase in the activities. The euphemisms use language as a powerful tool to create the appearance of taking the evil out of sin. The Church has been conspicuously silent.
- 2015—The U.S. Supreme Courts rules that same-sex “marriage” is a Constitutional right. National Christian leaders have been boldly outspoken, but the Church was conspicuously silent.
As a result of the long series of milestones-of-decay, along with the additional cultural pressures of radical feminism and multiculturalism, it may not be surprising that the role of the American male in the family has diminished and the role of fatherhood nearly collapsed. Yet, aside from an individual’s personal relationship with our Creator, God through Scripture assigns the roles of fathers, mothers, and families the highest of all life’s priorities.
Josh McDowell has confirmed that “If a child doesn’t accept Christ by age 12, there’s only a 4 percent change he or she [ever] will.” It is far less likely to happen among fatherless children or in homes with absentee parents.
Today, with a greater urgency than ever before, the churches, the synagogues, and the clergy in charge must embed in the believing culture a strong sense of the evilness of sin and the terribleness of Hell as well as the incomparable glories of God and Heaven to come.
The greater the gap between dark, despicable, evil and our majestic God, including the grand glories of Heaven, the greater the likelihood that people will flee from the former and relentlessly pursue the latter. Life choices, major and minor, that conform to Biblical commands inspire the most exciting life in the universe.
What does it take to wake up the body of believers?
What does it take to wake up the clergy?
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Same-Sex “Marriage” Ruling is a Cultural Tsunami!
Most people are already aware that Dr. James Dobson has soundly condemned the recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that established a nationwide “right” to same-sex marriage. While much of the commentary focuses on the gay marriage issue, he contends that the intentional impact is far larger. We are not talking about a ripple effect. The consequences will be a spiritual and temporal tsunami.
In a recent newsletter, Dobson explains, “We are convinced that this unconstitutional decision, issued by five unelected, unaccountable and imperious justices, will ultimately prove to be as catastrophic as Dred Scott v. Sanford in 1857 and Roe v. Wade in 1973. It will touch every dimension of culture…This court decision is not about same-sex marriage, except only tangentially. Many gay and lesbian groups have admitted that marriage has never been their primary objective. Instead, it is about everything else.”
“What’s at stake is the entire culture war.” Dobson characterized the decision as an “expression of hostility toward people who take their Christianity seriously.”
“As you probably know, certain groups and organizations hate us. It is about weakening the church of Jesus Christ and limiting what pastors and ministers can say and do publicly…It is about undermining the religious liberties of Christians that are guaranteed by the Constitution. It is about attacking Christian schools, Christian non-profit organizations such as Family Talk, and Christian businesses, hospitals, charities, and seminaries. It is about Christian colleges and universities, and about whom their leaders choose as professors and what their students will be taught. It’s about government funding and accreditation.”
“There is almost no limit to what will be imposed on the American public as a result of Obergefell. There is every indication that a barrage of court cases has been pre-planned and will be implemented against those who dare to disagree with the government’s view of marriage. Some will lose their jobs for failing to knuckle under…Some will lose their professional licenses. Some will be persecuted, ridiculed and fined. Some will go to prison. After all, the Supreme Court has ruled that same-sex marriage is an inviolable constitutional right that will trump other liberties considered untouchable for more than 200 years.”
Dobson expressed a particular concern for the children. “I grieve over what will happen to kids in public schools. They will be taught that right is wrong and wrong is right, and that the teachings of Scripture are unreliable and inaccurate.”
“How unthinkable it is that in some states kindergartners, barely out of babyhood, are being taught adult perverse behavior that should never be discussed in the classroom. Soon, publishers of public school textbooks throughout the country will have to re-write and re-illustrate materials to make them conform to the demands of Obergefell. It matters not that these revisions will contradict the beliefs and convictions of Christian parents. It has already become the law of the land in some states.”
Dobson chillingly warns that anything activists “can dream up could be imposed on our children by liberal judges.”
“LGBT propaganda will be blatantly taught to wide-eyed kids who are too young to understand how they are being manipulated. There is no consideration that the messages given will contradict the beliefs and convictions of millions of parents. The wishes of moms and dads will have been overridden and superseded by five justices who have a better plan for their kids,” he writes.
It all has a familiar ring. Remember that Adolf Hitler said, “Your child belongs to us already … what are you? You will pass on. Your descendants, however, now stand in the new camp. In a short time they will know nothing but this new community.”
Quoting Rod Dreher, senior editor at the American Conservative, Dobson adds, “The alarm that the four dissenting justices sounded in their minority opinions…Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Antonin Scalia were particularly scathing in pointing out the philosophical and historical groundlessness of the majority’s opinion. Justice Scalia even called the decision ‘a threat to democracy,’ and denounced it, shockingly, in the language of revolution.”
It is up to the pastors to lead, warn, and prepare the body of believers. “…if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet to warn the people and the sword comes and takes the life of one of them, that man will be taken away because of his sin, but I will hold the watchman accountable for his blood.” [Ezekiel 33:6 NIV]
What does it take to wake up the body of believers?
What does it take to wake up the clergy?
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Storm Clouds are Gathering—Again!
The ACLU has filed complaints against four schools in Indiana, California, New Jersey, and Oklahoma and New Jersey. Their crime? The have used a sign with “God Bless America.” The complaints demand that the schools remove the words “God Bless America” from their signs, alleging that the phrase is hurtful, divisive and a violation of the constitution.
How far can America implode? Recall that just a few years ago, all of Congress stood outside the Capitol and sang, “God Bless America.” The occasion was just after the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. After that infamous date, the song was heard often. It has been only 14 years!
Irving Berlin composed that song in 1918. It sat in his desk drawer for twenty years until 1938. Here is the original:
God bless America, land that I love
Stand beside her and guide her
Through the night with a light from above
From the mountains, to the prairies
To the oceans white with foam
God bless America
My home sweet home
The song was popularized by Kate Smith after a preamble was added. Here’s the complete version:
While the storm clouds gather far across the sea
Let us swear allegiance to a land that’s free
Let us all be grateful for a land so fair
As we raise our voices in a solemn prayer:
God bless America, land that I love
Stand beside her and guide her
Through the night with a light from above
From the mountains, to the prairies
To the oceans white with foam
God bless America
My home sweet home
Notice that the song, so often sung in a celebratory mood today was popularized as a “solemn prayer.” Why? World War II had not yet broken out, but the rapidly gathering dark clouds of war were unmistakably clear, especially to families who had already lost loved ones in World War just twenty years before.
Famed singer Kate Smith introduced the song in her Armistice Day (now called Veteran’s Day) radio broadcast, November 11, 1938. It was just a day after the senseless, tragic Kristallnacht, a series of deadly Nazi attacks on Jews throughout Germany and Austria.
Estimates vary widely, but hundreds died during that horrific two night period. Another 30,000 Jews were arrested and sent to Nazi concentration camps. Over 1000 synagogues were burned and over 7,000 Jewish businesses were destroyed or damaged.
The rapidly gathering dark clouds of war were inescapable. That is why “God Bless America” was a solemn prayer.
But today, it is 2015. There is some saber rattling going on in North Korea. Terrorists from a variety of organizations are wreaking worldwide havoc and causing unspeakable violence, without much apparent opposition. Certainly, those are dark clouds of our time.
But there are even darker clouds with even more formidable consequences. They are the dark clouds of America’s apostasy. America has increasingly abandoned God and the Judeo-Christian principles that made America great.
Others have said that judgment follows desecration. Scripture proclaims, “For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every hidden thing, whether good or evil.” [Ecclesiastes 12:14 NIV] Also, “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin condemns any people.” [Proverbs 12:34 NIV]
Now is a good time to go back and read the lyrics (no music please) of the expanded version of “God Bless America.” Read it; pray it as a heart wrenching “solemn prayer.”
While you are at it, pray for the ACLU!
What does it take to wake up the body of believers?
What does it take to wake up the clergy?
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Childish Workplace Behavior Elicited by “Offended” Culture
Mass murders or extreme violence are often reported in the national news. Such extremes mask the growing mass of coarse and uncivil behavior not considered newsworthy. But now, growing national immaturity has become an important story. Consider this from CBS News:
“According to the poll (conducted by CareerBuilder) of over 2,500 hiring and human resources managers as well as more than 3,000 adult employees across a wide spectrum of industries and companies, “adolescent” behaviors such as whining, pouting and temper tantrums are an all-too-common occurrence in U.S. offices and other work spaces.
More than three-quarters of the employees polled said they’ve witnessed some type of childish behavior among their colleagues. More than half, 55 percent, said they’ve dealt with whining, and 46 percent have watched other employees openly pout over events that didn’t go their way.” http://www.cbsnews.com/news/the-rise-of-childish-workplace-behavior/
For the last 50 years, a growing body of common law has unleashed the brute force of government to require people to do this… or not do that…, because somebody, somewhere “might” be offended.
Anyone who has ever been married knows that it is nearly impossible to get through more than a few days without offending your spouse—the one who is closer to you than anyone in the universe. If occasionally offending your spouse is inevitable, it is not possible to live life without occasionally offending people, whether it is intentional or inadvertent.
Most of the time, being offended is a mark of immaturity or childishness in this context. A mature person of good character will deliberately choose NOT to be offended, regardless of what others say or do.
I have often told groups of people that my joy comes from the Lord and nothing anyone says or does will deprive me of that joy. The comment can be very disarming and allows people to relax and enjoy a conversation free from anxiety.
Sadly, the American culture has, for decades, rewarded claims of being offended. If one or a group whines loud enough, they are often given what they want to shut them up or maintain an uneasy peace. Our culture has learned to reward weak character.
The government set the pace; business sheepishly followed. Anyone in business knows that you get more of whatever is rewarded. Childish behavior is often rewarded. The result is that it grows. Today, it is careening out of control.
The childish behavior and its rewards continue to grow because today many managers have grown up in the same dysfunctional culture as their usually younger employees. In addition, there has been a growing popularity of 360-degree evaluations in business, education, and government. The well-known concept provides a formal mechanism for employees to evaluate their peers, bosses, and subordinates. Consequently, the mangers become Neville Chamberlain peace-at-any-price supervisors, rewarding whiners to shut them up or risk a negative evaluation.
Is there a solution? Of course there is! As always, it is found in the Holy Scriptures. We cannot stop others from whining or complaining, but the Bible is very clear about how we should respond:
“The mouth of the righteous man utters wisdom, and his tongue speaks what is just.” [Psalm 37:30 NIV] “Do not forsake wisdom, and she will protect you; love her, and she will watch over you. Wisdom is supreme; therefore get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding.” [Proverbs 4:6-7 NIV] “Whoever would love life and see good days must keep their tongue from evil and their lips from deceitful speech.” [1 Peter 3:10 NIV]
A mature manager or employee knows that, “Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires.” [2 Peter 3:3 NIV] Proverbs 3:34 says that God “scoffs at the scoffers, yet He gives grace to the afflicted.” [ESV]
Scripture proclaims God’s ideal behavior, “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.” [Ephesians 4:29 ESV] Finally, “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” [1 Thessalonians 5:18 ESV]
But citing Scripture verses is not sufficient. It is merely an intellectual exercise. The passages do not incite action until they are soul-deep. When they are instinctively and routinely acted upon, we call it maturity.
There is not instant road to maturity. In each person, it must begin during earliest childhood. Real biological parents who are not absentee parents and the clergy must together instill positive character, beginning with small children and continuing throughout their lifetime. The very survival of the American culture depends on it. The American culture depends on YOU.
What does it take to wake up the body of believers?
What does it take to wake up the clergy?
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Will the Church Rise Up to End Abortion?
One of the delights of blogging is the relationships built with other bloggers. Below is an excerpt from a blog, posted by Brian Fisher, regarding the recently-released series of videos exposing the hideous work of Planned Parenthood:
What is new is the undercover videos showing what has previously been hidden from the public eye. Will Americans finally have enough of this barbaric nonsense? Will they compel their elected officials to continue the fight to defund Planned Parenthood and treat preborn humans with some dignity?
It depends on our national attention span. We Americans have a nasty habit of moving on from bad news pretty quickly. We needn’t look any further than the murder trial of abortionist Kermit Gosnell, which after some prodding from pro-life organizations was covered – albeit with a pro-abortion slant – for about one week in 2013. Two years later, both Gosnell and his murderous slaughter of full-term, delivered babies have been long forgotten and our nation lulled back into its apathetic slumber.
The Church’s Watershed Moment
Yet the ultimate outcome of the undercover Planned Parenthood video is dependent on the Church. And as best as I can tell, aside from a few engaged, the Church has been eerily quiet about Planned Parenthood’s horrific, and potentially illegal activities.
…to my dismay – few evangelical leaders are using the videos as an opportunity to decry the abortion holocaust, defend preborn humans, and speak out against this human rights atrocity.
On the other hand, ironically, politicians are speaking out. When the politicians are ahead of the Church on a moral issue, you know we have problems.
The Catholic Church has been and continues to be a vocal opponent to abortion. And the national director of Priests for Life, and our friend, Fr. Frank Pavone has been speaking out against Planned Parenthood and these videos on a regular basis. But not enough Protestant leaders have publicly condemned the activities uncovered by the videos.
The Protestant Church’s profound silence about the evils of abortion is starting to drive me crazy (and I’m Protestant). If there was ever a time in the last 10 years for the Protestant Church to step up, use these videos as an opportunity to educate their congregations, and make enormous headway to cause abortion to become unthinkable and unavailable in our country, now is that time.
“But Brian, abortion is a political issue. Churches shouldn’t talk about it.”
Hogwash. Abortion is a spiritual issue. It’s a decision to kill a precious, innocent human being who was created by God in His own image. The Church should be the primary, vocal, consistent, vehement protector and defender of preborn children. Indeed the Church’s silence regarding the abortion holocaust has undoubtedly contributed to the death of almost 60 million preborn children since 1973.
“But Brian, this just isn’t at the top of the list of issues for my church.”
Then your church’s list of issues is incorrectly prioritized. About one-third of the women in your church have likely had an abortion and are probably still suffering from it. Moreover one-third of the men in your church have actively or passively participated in killing another human being. And as I lay out on pages 116-117 of my recent book Deliver Us from Abortion, many post-abortive men and women struggle with substance abuse, divorce, spousal and child abuse, depression, suicide, and a long list of other human sufferings. Truly, abortion is at the root of many of the problems in your church.
It’s time for the Church to face reality. Abortion is the leading cause of death in America. Abortion tears apart families. Abortion kills preborn children in your own city, your community, and your neighborhood.
“But Brian, our church doesn’t engage in culture.”
Then you should consider finding another church. We are commanded to teach ALL that Jesus taught, and my Bible touches on every facet of human existence. It also deals quite extensively with social justice, life and death, mercy, compassion, and providing for the least of these.
“But Brian, are you suggesting that American churches should be activists?”
Of course that is what I’m suggesting. That doesn’t mean every church should be picketing the local abortion clinic, but it does mean every church is intentionally, deeply, and passionately involved in culture-changing community work. And that work MUST involve intentional, passionate efforts to end abortion.
Read Proverbs 24:11-12 (NIV)…“Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering toward slaughter. If you say, ‘But we knew nothing about this,’ does not he who weighs the heart perceive it? Does not he who guards your life know it?” In these two verses, there’s a command to protect innocent lives and a warning about what will happen to us if we don’t. Does your church take that warning seriously? Do we?
If we view church as somewhere to go to hear a nice sermon, give to missions, and sing a few songs on Sundays, then we don’t understand true Christianity. True Christianity is an every moment, intimate relationship with Jesus that, by the very nature of that relationship, results in everyday, passionate engagement with the world around us. And that passionate involvement must, because of the demands of our faith, result in our protection of those “being led away to death.”
Now is the time for churches to talk about abortion, social justice, protecting the preborn, and the entirety of the gospel. The Planned Parenthood videos provide context—we are now seeing with our own eyes the atrocities committed against preborn children. The public is more aware of abortion now than they have been since the Kermit Gosnell trial. People who are on the fence about abortion are open to conversations because of what they are seeing, and Christians are the right people with whom they should have those conversations.
Not all churches are silent, of course…There is a large Bible church in the Dallas–Forth Worth area that Online for Life was introduced to a few months ago. They came and visited us and, within just a few weeks, decided they were going to act on their convictions to help end abortion.
They are leading the effort in their community and joining forces with OFL to build a definable, measurable strategy to end abortion in their county within the next five years. In all my years in this effort, I’ve never seen a more dedicated, passionate, forward-thinking church. I love it.
Their leadership is inspiring a handful of other local pro-life churches to do the same. Dallas–Fort Worth, where Roe v. Wade originated, may well be the first city to see abortion die. And it will die because of the Church.
Jessica Schuessler is a mom from Illinois with a powerful story of God’s redemptive work in her life. After reading Deliver Us from Abortion, she felt convicted to get the book into the hands of every pastor in her city. Then she realized God was calling her to get the book into the hands of every pastor in the STATE. Over the past few months, she has covered over 30 cities, mobilized a team to work in other parts of the state, and been interviewed by the media; now she is being invited to speak at various church events. See her story and campaign here. One woman is awakening the Church in Illinois to the horrors of abortion. And some pastors are beginning to take notice.
These undercover Planned Parenthood videos provide a phenomenal opportunity for the Church to help accelerate our mission of making abortion unthinkable and unavailable in America. Let’s not let it go to waste. Be sure to visit the blog again in the coming days, as we’ll announcing a site that provides resources that will equip pastors, church leaders and congregants in defending a pro-life position. Of course you can always financially and prayerfully support Online for Life in our mission to provide abortion-determined a grace-filled alternative to Planned Parenthood and their affiliates.
P.S. If you, your church, or your church leadership IS sounding the call to advance against Planned Parenthood in light of these videos, please share that with me in the blog comments. I’d love to hear what’s happening in your world.
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Words Are More Powerful Than Nuclear Weapons!
The following summarizes an e-mail from a Liberty University history professor to Jason and David Benham (The Benhams have graciously provided a strong endorsement for my book.). It highlights the incredible power of words:
Words are powerful tools. They can be used to build up or tear down. To inspire or incite. To encourage or defeat. To cause trouble or create calm. To unite or divide. To liberate or enslave. Words can, and often are, used to divert, deflect, deceive, or hide the true motives of the one speaking. Words are powerful.
For a people to come together, form a culture, and live in peace and safety, they must be able to communicate with each other. Language, which involves the use of words, is the tool that serves that purpose. And for communication to take place, words must have commonly understood and generally accepted meanings.
All manner of problems emerge when language breaks down. Let me give you an example. What do you hear me saying in this statement? “I am a perfect gay liberal man who can do nothing to stop abortion.” This would be a rather startling announcement from a conservative. But let’s take a look at what I just said.
Some of you may be thinking, “What is he, a homosexual left-wing guy who supports the deliberate killing of unborn babies?” If that is what you think I said, communication between us did not take place. Because I used those words according to their standard and historically accepted meanings; that is, the meaning those words conveyed prior to the time when radicals began deconstructing the English language.
Radicals among us have been busy tearing down our language for more than a hundred years. They disregard the generally accepted meaning of words and use words in ways that are contrary to their intended meanings. The end result of this subterfuge is to make language ultimately meaningless. Justice Antonin Scalia said in his dissenting opinion in the latest Obamacare ruling, that “words no longer have meaning.”
Let me tell you what I meant when I said I am “a perfect gay liberal man who could do nothing to stop abortion.” What I was attempting to communicate to you through the use of those words was this, “I am a mature, happy, liberty-minded man who is unable to prevent expectant mothers from suffering miscarriages.”
Hmm.
Let’s break those words down. “Perfect” means mature, “gay” means happy, “liberal” means the maximizing of liberty, and “abortion” means miscarriage. That was the clear and commonly accepted meaning of those words before radicals started using them for their own purposes.
Did you know that in the first trimester, approximately 20 percent of known pregnancies unfortunately end in miscarriage? However, the medical word for a miscarriage is “spontaneous abortion.” Yes, a miscarriage is called an abortion by the medical community. The deliberate killing of an unborn child is not an abortion. Abortion is the term used by medical professionals, whereas miscarriage is the word used by the general culture to describe the same thing.
The deliberate act of killing an unborn child is a feticide or an aborticide. Just like insecticide is the killing of insects, herbicide is the killing of weeds, homicide is the killing of individual people, and genocide is the killing of a political, or cultural group of people, infanticide is the killing of an infant. So the deliberate killing of a preborn child is a feticide or an aborticide. The English root “cide” comes from the Latin “cidium,” which means the act of killing.
Whenever a group of radicals seeks to mainstream a deviant, disturbing or evil practice, they must first desensitize the general public as to the gravity of their deviancy. To do so, they steal an upright word and by repetitious use superimpose that word on that which the general public finds abhorrent. Their objective is to attach some new meaning to the word in the minds of their hearers and thereby transfer that good feeling people previously associated that word to their diabolical practice.
You see, radicals of all stripes have no principles – they only have goals. Their goal is to destroy everything this country and culture stand for … and to rebuild anew on a man-made foundation. They will twist, distort and misuse language if it advances their agenda and moves them closer to their goal. It is the end that is all-important to them, not the means. Changing language, words and their meanings is a major weapon in their arsenal in doing so.
We must ever be mindful that whoever controls the use and meaning of words comes to control the cultural and political agenda, as well as the emotions of the masses. Right now, more than ever in history, emotions control the agenda far more than facts. So more bluntly stated, “he who defines the terms always wins the debate.”
If we want to be victorious and see liberty restored and preserved, we must retake command of the words we use and thereby reframe the argument. When we do so, we will win every debate.
I close with a quote from Sam Adams, that revolutionary firebrand, and defender of liberty in the late 18th century. He said, “How strangely will the tools of a tyrant pervert the plain meaning of words.”
http://www.wnd.com/2015/08/a-perfectly-gay-liberal-man-who-cant-stop-abortion/#qy8isQx4kE3dC2Rl.99
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Coming Soon to a School Near You: Sponsored by NEA!
Nearly 10,000 delegates attended the recent national convention of the National Education Association in Orlando, Florida. Here’s a sampling of what is coming soon to a government (public) school near you:
- New Business Item A: “The NEA will develop educational materials for its state affiliates and members about the potential dangers of so-called ‘Religious Freedom Restoration Acts’ or RFRAs, which may license individuals and corporations to discriminate of the theory that their religious beliefs require such actions.” Potential dangers? License to discriminate?
- New Business Item 30: Schools must provide “transgender student and staff access to facilities consistent with his or her gender identity, irrespective of the gender listed on the employee’s or pupil’s records.” Coed rest rooms? Locker rooms? Sports teams including close-contact sports?
- New Business Items 45 & 74: Schools must allow students to dress as the gender they choose without being required to “obtain a court-ordered name and or /gender change as a prerequisite to being addressed by the name and pronoun that corresponds to their gender identity.” Cross-dressing is now desirable?
- New Business Item B: “We acknowledge the existence in our country of institutional racism,” which “manifests itself in our schools.” Institutional racism? In the schools? This one was so important that it was introduced by the Board of Directors. It was passed unanimously. Schools were called upon to partner with groups sharing this view “particularly in areas of cultural competence, diversity, and social justice in order to address institutional racism.”
The implications are staggering! The government schools will build and amplify ever increasing gender confusion. Interpersonal relationships will become increasingly stressful and sometimes violent. The institution of the traditional Biblical family will become further weakened, dissipated, and ultimately destroyed.
“Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience. Be not ye therefore partakers with them…have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.” [Ephesians 5:6, 7 & 11 KJV]
Christian families must have an affordable alternative for educating their children!
“Therefore shall ye lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes. And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of the when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.” And thou shalt write them upon the door posts of thine house, and upon thy gates. That your days may be multiplied, and the days of your children, in the land which the Lord sware unto your fathers to give them, as the days of heaven upon the earth.” [Deuteronomy 11: 18-21 KJV]
“Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old he will not depart from it.” [Proverbs 22:6 KJV] The government-sponsored public schools are doing everything possible to overrun and overturn everything a child learns or should be learning from the Judeo-Christian family, the Church, and God. Of course there are many hardworking Christian and Jewish teachers in the school systems, but their worldview has been largely shutdown by political correctness. Christian families must have an affordable alternative for educating their children!
What does it take to wake up the body of believers?
What does it take to wake up the clergy?
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Heartwarming or Heart wrenching?
A few minutes ago, I watched a short video on The Christian Post. It was billed as a heartwarming reunion of parents and child. Many would agree and even become a bit teary-eyed. I cried because I saw tragedy.
Julia and Brian Woodburn are married and have a daughter, Addison who appears to be 3-4 years old. The difficulty arises because Mom and Dad both serve in the military and have both been deployed. Result? Mom, Dad, and little Addison have been in three different parts of the world for an extended period.
Their surprise for Addison was a reunion during a school-sponsored magic show in a gymnasium. The magician enabled Mom to pop out of an apparently empty box; Dad was costumed as a mascot bear, serving as the magician’s assistant. Just before the unveiling of the parents, the host “magically” selected Addison from the audience and briefly interviewed her. He asked Addison if her Mom was present. Gesturing panoramically, he asked if Addison’s mother was anywhere in the audience. Another off-camera child shouted, “SHE DOESN’T HAVE ONE; SHE’S DEPLOYED.” My tears flowed freely, not because of the reunion, but because the reunion never should have been necessary in the first place.
I have a great deal of respect, appreciation, and admiration for those serving in the military and regularly post Facebook messages to underscore that appreciation. Understandably and regretfully, it is necessary for a parent, often the father, to be deployed for a long period of time. But a young child should never have to be deprived of both parents, for extended periods, even if both are serving in the military. Such a tragic long-term separation is a serious indictment of our falling culture today.
What do YOU think?
If you’re curious, here’s the link: http://www.christianpost.com/buzzvine/soldiers-surprise-their-daughter-with-a-heartwarming-return-at-a-school-magic-show-142626/
Where is the body of believers today?
Where are the clergy?
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What Did the First President George Say?
“If I could have entertained the slightest apprehension that the Constitution framed by the Convention, where I had the honor to preside, might possibly endanger the religious rights of any ecclesiastical Society, certainly I would never have placed my signature to it.” Founder & President George Washington, May 10, 1789
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Constitution and Religion Cannot be Separated!
These fundamental objects of the constitution are in perfect harmony with the revealed objects of the Christian religion. Union, justice, peace, the general welfare, and the blessings of civil and religious liberty, are the objects of Christianity and always secured under its practical and beneficent reign.”
“The state must rest upon the basis of religion, and it must preserve this basis, or itself must fall. But the support which religion gives to the state will obviously cease the moment religion loses it hold upon the popular mind. The very fact that the state must have religion as a support for its own authority demands that some means for teaching religion be employed. Better for it to give up all other instruction than that religion should be disregarded in its schools. The state itself has a more vital interest in this continued influence of religion over its citizens than in their culture in any other respect.” Benjamin Franklin Morris (1864)
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Past/Present Jews and Christians Saving Each Other from an Earthly Hell!
Recently, I posted a message about a 95-year old Jewish Holocaust survivor who is personally arranging to rescue over 2,000 Middle East Christians fleeing ISIS. The elderly British man was a child in Austria who was part of a group of children rescued by British Christians and transported to England just before the breakout of World War II. He is flying the Christians to other countries and providing a fund that will support them for 12 to 18 months.
Meanwhile, 28 Iraqi Christians arrived in the United States legally, carrying all the necessary paperwork. They voluntarily reported to the immigration authorities, because they wanted to follow all the proper procedures. They requested sanctuary as refugees fleeing terrorism. How were they treated by the United States government? They have been detained at the Otay Detention Facility in San Diego for 4-6 months. Despite the euphemism, does that sound a bit like incarceration? Most of them have family in the United States and jobs waiting for them. Despite their efforts to honorably follow the rules, it was reported today that at least a dozen of them will be deported back to Iraq. The disposition of the rest remains unknown.
Along the same lines, there is an extraordinary docudrama on Netflix. This is a must see:
If you have access to Netflix, watch Nicky’s Family and keep the tissue nearby. It’s a factual story about Nicholas Winton, a young Brit who, during the run up to WWII, engineered the evacuation of about 669 Jewish children (babies to teenagers) from Czechoslovakia to England. The risks were extraordinarily high; the obstacles were enormous. The parents, knowing that war was coming, anguished over sending their children away—perhaps forever—but were simultaneously eager to save them. Some of the evacuated children received letters from their parents for a time. At varying intervals, the letters stopped. Apparently, all the parents and other adult family members perished in the Holocaust. Although valiant efforts were exerted, there is no evidence of any reunions after the war.
The act and anguish of the parents sending their children away is reminiscent of Moses’ mother placing the baby Moses in the basket along the Nile River. Surely his mother experienced the same indescribable anguish as the Czech parents. It’s difficult to imagine the extent of the anguish in both cases.
When the War broke out, Nicky’s efforts to save the children were forcibly blocked by the Nazis. He said the only thing left for him to do was to defend his country. Nicky joined the British Royal Air Force. He never had any contact with the children he saved. The children never knew who it was that saved their lives. Until now! Fifty years after the war, Nicky’s wife found an old scrapbook in the attic that told the story. After repeated efforts to publicize the story, it was picked up by the BBC. Many of the now aging children along with their children and grandchildren were rounded up on at least two occasions to honor Nicky—50 years after the war and again 70 years after the war (Nicky’s 100th birthday party). It’s truly amazing how many of the children and grandchildren of the original 669 have been driven to lives of extraordinary service, inspired by the earthly savior of their parents or grandparents. The story continues even today.
NOW THAT’S GOD’S LOVE IN ACTION!
The movie is an incredibly powerful and gripping docudrama. Don’t miss it!
Where is the body of believers today?
Where are the clergy?
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Secular education … demands that the student have a good knowledge of the Bible.
“Better known works which rely on allusions from the Bible include Milton’s Paradise Lost … Shakespeare … and Melville’s Moby Dick. … Secular education … demands that the student have a good knowledge of the Bible.”
Crockett v. Sorenson,
U.S. District Court (1983)
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Who Needs Love? by Michael Clark and Susanne Schuberth
This message complements my recent blog, “It’s Shocking that Sin No Longer Shocks.” Among other things, it deals with a decades-long trend toward wimpy messages from the pulpit.
GOD IS LOVE
(Source: http://www.anaheller.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/58860011.jpg)
It is not the loveable person that needs to be loved. It is the unlovable person, the clamoring child, the rebellious adult, the nasty friend, the raging parent, in a nutshell, it is the SINNER that needs to be healed. If we react to misbehavior by speaking mere words only, they might be able to bring across what we mean, but without love they will never touch the heart of someone who has gone wild. Well, “words” alone are based on knowledge… what we think we know or what we feel. But if our words are not tempered with grace, they can kill and wound. For it is written,
A hot-tempered man stirs up strife, but he who is slow to anger quiets contention.
(Proverbs 15:18 RSVA)
Know this, my beloved brethren. Let every man be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger…
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It’s Shocking That Sin No Longer Shocks!
Sin is still sin. It has not gone away. The overarching message of the Bible from Genesis to Revelation is God’s provision for redemption from the ravages of sin. The utter depravity of sin is the baseline from which we are extracted or redeemed, ultimately to experience the fullness of God’s love. Yet, today we seldom hear much about sin from the pulpits of America.
The low level of preaching about sin tacitly communicates to believers that sin has a low level of priority or is even unimportant among many Biblical messages. The decades-long decline in the apparent importance of sin encourages believers to flirt with, compromise, or participate in sinful thoughts and activities. The believers’ minds rationalize the compromises, in part, by sugar coating their lives with regular attendance at church or synagogue.
Putting distance between us and sin moves us closer to the Lord. While it is important to keep our eye on, “…the goal to win the prize of God’s heavenly call in the Messiah Jesus,” [Philippians 3:14 Aramaic Bible in Plain English] we must be fleeing from sin every moment along the way.
Consider one definition of sin. In its simplest form, sin is just doing things my way instead of God’s way. My way is pride-driven, self-indulgent, self-centered and therefore evil, because it is antagonistic to God. God’s way is other-centered and an expression of His infinite love. My way and God’s way are diametrically opposed and cannot co-exist for very long.
In short, sin is a man or woman’s private war with God. It is the equivalent of shaking an angry fist in the face of God, effectively saying, “I don’t care what You want; I’m going to do it my way, anyway.” Does that form a revolting and unacceptable mental image? Good! Then, we’re getting somewhere. Read on.
Sin should always shock, but may not always be surprising. If sin is not shocking, some contemplative self-reflection is in order. We should and must always be shocked by each new disturbing, public revelation about same-sex marriage, abortion, assisted suicide, cohabitation, divorce, or anything else contrary to the plain reading of scripture.
The recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling on homosexual or lesbian marriage should be a huge shock and wake-up call. Although the decision may not have been surprising in today’s culture, a believer must not confuse shock with surprise.
- Surprise is emotional. Shock is soul-deep
- Surprise may provoke anger or joy. Shock inspires action, corrective action if sin is involved.
- Surprise is temporary. Shock is, or should be, enduring.
If you did not understand the difference between surprise and shock, with abundant clarity, before reading this, it may be because many believers (and clergy too) underestimate the depravity of sin, God’s utter revulsion of sin, and impact of sin on every area of life.
Light cannot shine in the daytime. It is over taken by the brilliance of the sun. Similarly, the light of the believer cannot shine while basking in the glory of God. He is infinite light. His light overtakes the light of the believer, when he or she is in God’s particular presence such as in the protected environment of a place of worship. The light of the believer shines in times and places of spiritual darkness. That is when the believer lights the way for the unbeliever.
The clergy and the body must continually sensitize each other to the evil, disgusting, and relentless nature of sin. We have tended to lose sight of even the definition of sin.
The spirit of believers has become numbed by a secular culture that does not believe the spirit exists. Good preaching lights the way for the believers. But preaching about sin has dwindled in recent decades implying God’s approval through the tacit approval of the clergy. Focused, convicting messages have been replaced by feel-good or how-to messages—with an invitation at the end in conservative churches. Of course, the invitation is important, but the new believer needs enormous support to reach spiritual maturity.
A tree can only grow to a height that matches the depth of its root system. Similarly, our sense of the joy of the Lord can only rise to a height that matches the depth of our conviction of sin. Consider the data: After two years of research, George Barna reported:
“What we’re finding is that when we ask them (pastors) about all the key issues of the day [90 percent of them are] telling us, ‘Yes, the Bible speaks to every one of these issues.’ Then we ask them: ‘Well, are you teaching your people what the Bible says about those issues?’ – and the numbers drop … to less than 10 percent of pastors who say they will speak to it.”
Good heavens! Why? If the clergy fail to speak forcefully and convincingly to the issues, the people are without direction. The clergy are the ones primarily responsible for applying Biblical truths to today’s culture, in an uncompromising way.
Not many decades ago cultural pressures encouraged right, moral living. Today, relentless, merciless cultural pressures push people nearly irresistibly toward the lures of all manner of sin. The flocks need the collective support of other believers. They also need the strength of their shepherds constantly contrasting the disgusting, evil nature of even so-called minor sins with the glories of God’s infinite love and redemption. It is the starkness of the contrast and the enormity of the gap that inspires.
One cannot fully experience the mountain top without knowing the depth of the valleys. One cannot experience the fullness of God’s love without understanding the utter depravity of sin at a soul-deep level. An intellectual understanding is not sufficient. A transient emotional impression is not sufficient.
It is not necessary to personally experience sin, though to some extent it is driven naturally by the sin nature. Maturity is the lifelong effort to minimize sin in the life of the believer. The Spirit of God will provide conviction through the Bible. The spiritual energy produced must be regularly harnessed and directed by the clergy.
A soul-deep understanding of sin propels the spread of God’s word by lifestyle example and direct evangelism. Witnessing follows conviction (internal) far more than exhortation (external).
Replace milky messages with meaty ones. “I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it…” [1 Corinthians 3:2 KJV] Believers are begging for the meat of the Word. They are ready for it.
Too much preaching today begins at a neutral point, urging people to love God. When neutrality is the starting point there is a reduced perception of a need for God, especially if everything seems to be going well for now. People sense a need for God and experience His love to the extent that they understand the depth and evilness of sin.
God, in His Word, commands us to flee from sin (evil). Various translations of Romans 12:9 order us to:
- Hate evil
- Recoil from what is evil
- Detest evil
- Abhor evil
We can hate, recoil from, detest, or abhor only those things which God hates, recoils from, detests, or abhors, which of course is sin. 1 Corinthians 6:8 requires us to “flee immorality.” [NAS] 1 Corinthians 10:14 adds the mandate to “flee from idolatry.” [NAS]
We flee only from what we fear. We must fear evil (sin) for its relentless destructive effect on:
- us,
- our interpersonal relationships,
- our children and descendants, and
- our relationship with God.
Unless believers collectively flee from evil, it will destroy our culture and our nation as well.
Sin always separates. Love unites. Sin or evil is the opposite of love. Sin is self-centered and antagonistic to God’s nature. Sin cannot coexist with God’s love, which is other-centered. “For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness: neither shall evil dwell with thee. The foolish shall not stand in thy sight: thou hatest all workers of iniquity.” [Psalms 5:4-5 KJV]
“Let me never forget that the heinousness of sin lies not so much in the nature of the sin committed, as in the greatness of the Person sinned against.” [Puritan prayer]
What does it take to wake up the believers?
What does it take to wake up the clergy?
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“It should bother us as a society that we have use for aborted human organs, but not the baby that provides them.” Michael Wear
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We Are Sacrificing Our Children to Molech!
Many people were shocked, or should have been shocked, this week when two horrifying videos were publicly released. They exposed casual luncheon conversations with people at the highest levels of Planned Parenthood leadership. They were discussing the harvesting and sale of organs from aborted babies, adding that they were feverishly developing “less crunchy” abortion techniques that would kill the baby without damaging the organs. The emphasis on retrieving in-tact organs itself confirms the personhood of the unborn baby.
One presidential candidate claimed that Planned Parenthood would deny life-confirming ultrasounds to pregnant mothers, but would use the ultrasounds to preserve the organs of dead babies.
We have finally exceeded the depravity of the ancient Israelites who strayed and sacrificed their children to the pagan god, Molech, “Do not give any of your children to be sacrificed to Molek, for you must not profane the name of your God. I am the LORD.” [Leviticus 18:21 NIV]
“You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way, for every abominable thing that the Lord hates they have done for their gods, for they even burn their sons and their daughters in the fire to their gods.” [Deuteronomy 12:31 ESV]
“Any one of the people of Israel or of the strangers who sojourn in Israel who gives any of his children to Molech shall surely be put to death. The people of the land shall stone him with stones. I myself will set my face against that man and will cut him off from among his people, because he has given one of his children to Molech, to make my sanctuary unclean and to profane my holy name. And if the people of the land do at all close their eyes to that man when he gives one of his children to Molech, and do not put him to death, then I will set my face against that man and against his clan and will cut them off from among their people, him and all who follow him in whoring after Molech.” [Leviticus 20:1-5 ESV]
Of course, we do not talk about Molech today. We’re modern. We sacrifice our babies and children to:
- The pagan god of money
- The pagan god of materialism
- The pagan god of personal convenience
- The pagan humanistic god of our own pride
Astonishingly, the ghastly practice of selling “baby parts” has apparently been common practice at least since 1998, according to a price list uncovered by a pro-life organization. Even the post-abortion procedures are horrific. If you can stomach the read, the details are explained at http://www.wnd.com/2015/07/20-years-fresh-and-frozen-baby-parts-sold-across-u-s/ The gruesome practice is reminiscent of the cruel, inhuman, and excruciatingly painful “research” conducted by the notorious Dr. Mengele of the Third Reich.
Rather than simply recoil at a few sick news items, view them in the cultural context of another controversial current event. Our President and his team recently negotiated an apparent nuclear agreement with Iran. It is so shallow, incomplete, extremely one-sided, and lacking in accountability that the President has been compared with Neville Chamberlain, the notorious pre-World War II appeaser. He attempted to appease Adolph Hitler, by negotiating a shamefully failed treaty with the vicious dictator. Appeasement failed then and it will fail now.
Far worse however, is that we have become a nation of citizen appeasers in the name of political correctness. Children used to chant a jingle, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but names will never hurt me.” Today, we cower in fear that somehow we might offend someone or even worse be called an unkind name. It is ironic that the name callers are the authors of the cancerous political correctness. They do not seem to mind offending others. While screaming “tolerance,” they have developed name calling into a finely tuned weapon.
Given current conditions, cultural appeasement might be understandable to some extent within the background secular culture. But the body of believers has compromised so much that many would rather appease sin, or even participate in it, than publically confront it. Such astonishing spiritual weakness is evident in every major controversy including abortion, infanticide, divorce, same-sex “marriage,” assisted suicide, euthanasia and many others. Such shocking news events should drive every believer to his/her knees in prayer, arising afterwards with a powerful conviction to take action.
What does it take to wake up the body of believers?
What does it take to wake up the clergy?
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The Decline and Fall of America as Prophesied in the Congressional Record, 1963
Today, I discovered something surprising. Perhaps disturbing, troubling, or even terrifying would be better descriptors. The discovery was published in the Congressional Record, January 10, 1963, fifty-two years ago. What was so terrifying? It was a list of “Current Communist Goals.” The shock is that today, in 2015, most of the goals have been achieved.
The list, published in the Congressional Record, was abstracted from a wildly popular book, “The Naked Communist,” by Cleon Skousen. Mr. Skousen was a Washington, DC attorney who passed away in 2006. By then, he had published 23 books, including, “The 5000 Year Leap.” It was book about the principles of freedom that President Reagan wanted taught in all of the nation’s schools. It did not happen, but Reagan’s desire attaches great credibility to Skousen and his work.
But how could it happen? We haven’t heard much about communism in a long time. Younger generations cannot even relate to, what to them, is a strange sounding word. Fast forward 53 years. Today, we do hear a great deal about the liberal/progressive movement. The goals of the modern liberal/progressive movement and those of the old communist movement are virtually identical. The differences are indistinguishable Only the names have changed. The modern movement has relentlessly pursued the goals for decades.
That is how most of the goals have been achieved, but at a fearful price. The cost of achieving the goals has been an enormous loss of freedom.
In a recently published piece, I observed that Freedom is a Gift from God, Not a Grant from Government. Only Judeo-Christian believers know, or should know, that freedom is a gift from God. Only Judeo-Christian believers understand, or should understand, at a soul-deep level the preciousness and fragility of that freedom. As a gift from God, freedom carries huge responsibilities for the believer:
- Guard it jealously
- Protect and defend it zealously from within and without
- Use it wisely
Since freedom is undeniably a gift from God, we are accountable to Him for it. One day He may ask of each of us, “What did you do with My incomparable gift of freedom?”
Throughout most of world history, mankind has repeatedly been the tragic victim of his own uncontrollable pride. “Man’s inhumanity to man,” need not be further documented here. Nevertheless, in the midst of man’s morass, God had provided at least two spectacularly noticeable chances for real freedom. The first was the Exodus of the ancient Israelites from Egypt, an event sometimes referred to as the birth of freedom. They enjoyed that freedom for most of the 400-year period of the Judges, until they demanded a king like other nations. That demand precipitated a centuries-long downfall.
God granted a second spectacular chance at freedom to the settlers that came to America seeking freedom to worship Him. After several hundred years, freedom was temporally secured by the Revolutionary War. Freedom was anchored by the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution. After the completion of the Constitution, a lady asked Benjamin Franklin, “What do we have, Dr. Franklin, a monarchy or a republic?” He replied, “A republic, if you can keep it.”
We kept the republic for about 200 years, until Judeo-Christian believers lost touch with their responsibility to protect God’s awesome gift of freedom. It is time to wake up and appreciate what we have lost.
The following list has been copied directly from the Congressional Record, January 10, 1963. No changes have been made; no editorial comments have been offered. Please—I beg of you, take the time to read all 45 items. The high percentage of these goals that have been achieved, is a measure of how far America has fallen. The only possible push back can come from Judeo-Christian believers or direct intervention by God.
Read them; read them all. You may find yourself shedding tears, getting angry, or even inspired to take action—hopefully and prayerfully, all three.
CURRENT COMMUNIST GOALS
- U.S. acceptance of coexistence as the only alternative to atomic war.
- U.S. willingness to capitulate in preference to engaging in atomic war.
- Develop the illusion that total disarmament [by] the United States would be a demonstration of moral strength.
- Permit free trade between all nations regardless of Communist affiliation and regardless of whether or not items could be used for war.
- Extension of long-term loans to Russia and Soviet satellites.
- Provide American aid to all nations regardless of Communist domination.
- Grant recognition of Red China. Admission of Red China to the U.N.
- Set up East and West Germany as separate states in spite of Khrushchev’s promise in 1955 to settle the German question by free elections under supervision of the U.N.
- Prolong the conferences to ban atomic tests because the United States has agreed to suspend tests as long as negotiations are in progress.
- Allow all Soviet satellites individual representation in the U.N.
- Promote the U.N. as the only hope for mankind. If its charter is rewritten, demand that it be set up as a one-world government with its own independent armed forces. (Some Communist leaders believe the world can be taken over as easily by the U.N. as by Moscow. Sometimes these two centers compete with each other as they are now doing in the Congo.)
- Resist any attempt to outlaw the Communist Party.
- Do away with all loyalty oaths.
- Continue giving Russia access to the U.S. Patent Office.
- Capture one or both of the political parties in the United States.
- Use technical decisions of the courts to weaken basic American institutions by claiming their activities violate civil rights.
- Get control of the schools. Use them as transmission belts for socialism and current Communist propaganda. Soften the curriculum. Get control of teachers’ associations. Put the party line in textbooks.
- Gain control of all student newspapers.
- Use student riots to foment public protests against programs or organizations which are under Communist attack.
- Infiltrate the press. Get control of book-review assignments, editorial writing, policymaking positions.
- Gain control of key positions in radio, TV, and motion pictures.
- Continue discrediting American culture by degrading all forms of artistic expression. An American Communist cell was told to “eliminate all good sculpture from parks and buildings, substitute shapeless, awkward and meaningless forms.”
- Control art critics and directors of art museums. “Our plan is to promote ugliness, repulsive, meaningless art.”
- Eliminate all laws governing obscenity by calling them “censorship” and a violation of free speech and free press.
- Break down cultural standards of morality by promoting pornography and obscenity in books, magazines, motion pictures, radio, and TV.
- Present homosexuality, degeneracy and promiscuity as “normal, natural, healthy.”
- Infiltrate the churches and replace revealed religion with “social” religion. Discredit the Bible and emphasize the need for intellectual maturity which does not need a “religious crutch.”
- Eliminate prayer or any phase of religious expression in the schools on the ground that it violates the principle of “separation of church and state.”
- Discredit the American Constitution by calling it inadequate, old-fashioned, out of step with modern needs, a hindrance to cooperation between nations on a worldwide basis.
- Discredit the American Founding Fathers. Present them as selfish aristocrats who had no concern for the “common man.”
- Belittle all forms of American culture and discourage the teaching of American history on the ground that it was only a minor part of the “big picture.” Give more emphasis to Russian history since the Communists took over.
- Support any socialist movement to give centralized control over any part of the culture–education, social agencies, welfare programs, mental health clinics, etc.
- Eliminate all laws or procedures which interfere with the operation of the Communist apparatus.
- Eliminate the House Committee on Un-American Activities.
- Discredit and eventually dismantle the FBI.
- Infiltrate and gain control of more unions.
- Infiltrate and gain control of big business.
- Transfer some of the powers of arrest from the police to social agencies. Treat all behavioral problems as psychiatric disorders which no one but psychiatrists can understand [or treat].
- Dominate the psychiatric profession and use mental health laws as a means of gaining coercive control over those who oppose Communist goals.
- Discredit the family as an institution. Encourage promiscuity and easy divorce.
- Emphasize the need to raise children away from the negative influence of parents. Attribute prejudices, mental blocks and retarding of children to suppressive influence of parents.
- Create the impression that violence and insurrection are legitimate aspects of the American tradition; that students and special-interest groups should rise up and use [“]united force[“] to solve economic, political or social problems.
- Overthrow all colonial governments before native populations are ready for self-government.
- Internationalize the Panama Canal.
- Repeal the Connally reservation so the United States cannot prevent the World Court from seizing jurisdiction [over domestic problems. Give the World Court jurisdiction] over nations and individuals alike.
What does it take to wake up the body of believers?
What does it take to wake up the clergy?
Dr. Lloyd Stebbins 
