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A Biblical Response to Open Homosexuality

2011-05-14T17:43:00.000-07:00

Watch this Video to be fair. Many who have watched this have lauded the young woman as brave, honest, forthright and in all those ways without hypocrisy as moral. It is important to give this fair hearing. In the video, this young woman declares that she is a Lesbian, a Homosexual.

It's hard not to have some sympathies for this young woman's plight. She is in a place she didn't choose. She tried NOT to be. She will be subject to significant rejection and even abuse because of her transparency. Her coming out was hard.

I want to be clear. I must only say what God says. Like Baalam, if I try to deviate, I will be shut up. So, it must speak the heart of God as revealed in scripture and by the Holy Spirit. I must ONLY say what God Says. People will interpret this as a teaching. NO, teaching is taking principles and meshing them against the world. I am taking the world and meshing them against the WORD of God. There is no relevancy, no cultural adjustment for hearers. That is teaching that holds a plum-line of the Word of God (in love) next to where the world is and by the Word demonstrate how far from the that center we have drifted.

I would also invite anyone who reads this to TEST, JUDGE and MEASURE if the this has been successful in revealing the heart of the matter. As I have allowed this to sort in the Spirit, this is what I See:

Every person on the planet that has ever lived or ever will live (other than Jesus the Christ) has sinned or carries the curse of a sin nature and therefore comes short of the perfection to stand in the presence of the Holy Perfect Glory of God. He cannot allow a person who is a sinner in HIS presence or HE would cease to be Holy and HIS Heaven would be stained by sin.

If you sin, you cannot enter heaven. If heaven's perfection is what is destined for you on earth as it is in heaven then any sin, big or small, open or secret is less than God's purpose for you.

We were all born with a twisted nature, iniquity. None of us were born with perfect obedience to the will of God to successfully live as HE purposed for us. I was born twisted in many ways and so were you. The good news is HE was bruised for our twisted-ness (Iniquities). So when people say, they didn't choose this, it was handed to them, that they were born this way, there is truth in what they say:

The meaning of “iniquities” comes from a Hebrew word that means “to twist, to distort or to bend”. Often times an iniquity will start as a bended version of the truth; a slight distortion of the real. An iniquity puts its own twist on life, values, mindsets, etc. Upon further study of God’s word it seems like iniquity is different from transgression in that it is something handed to you whereas transgression is something you personally do.

I have worked in prison ministry long enough to know the truth of this. Many of the men and women there are there because of generational iniquity, twistedness that came to them, some by bloodline. Breaking those generational twistednesses is NOT just deliverance, it requires a long discipleship process that untwists values and mindsets they were born with or developed.

The result of the twisted values and mindsets, no matter how acquired, is a propensity to sin. To bear the twisted nature is not a sin. To practice it is. Every person bears the twisted nature of some kind or another and is sinful by nature. If you deny that you sin, you are deceived and without truth in you.

The Laws of God and HIS Word is a light and a mirror for us to recognize the sin in our life and our need for the cleansing blood of Jesus. The list isn't that long. There are the ten commandments, and the revelations from the Gospel and writings of those after the day of Pentecost. Jesus makes it pretty clear and so do the apostolic utterances, that there are things that if we PRACTICE them are Sin and will condemn us to an eternal hell. Damnation may even be something that we will begin to experience on this side of the veil. In working with prisoners it is obvious that they are already living a hell that will intensify when they step from time into eternity. Those in bondage to sin know they are, even if they try to rationalize it. They know something is not right. If they suppress it for a while they are deceived by the deceiver.

Like lying. Everyone does. They know it's not right. They know it goes against the truth and laws of God. They know they should NOT do so. Yet they lie. We lie. I lie. You lie. If I tell a lie, does that make me a liar? If so there is no hope for me at all? According to the scriptures I am eternally lost, to be thrown into the lake of fire:

The cowardly, unbelieving, vile, murderers, sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, idolaters, liars, adulterers, male prostitutes, homosexual offenders, thieves, the greedy, drunkards, slanderers, and swindlers (Rev. 21:8; 1 Cor. 6:9,10; Gal. 5:19-21)

I am lost forever if this is true. Since this comes from the source of all authority, I should just give up, admit I am lost, become a bold liar and tell people I was born this way (it's true) and that I am hopeless; UNLESS...there is a redeemer. UNLESS there is a Savior. UNLESS someone else could make this wrong right for me. A psychiatrist helping me rationalize the reality of my untruthful nature can't. Society saying, "Everyone does it" doesn't justify it. An education system that tries to normalize lying won't change me. A social movement of Liars that encourages people to come out as liars and embrace how they were born will put me on a path that leads to hell.

SO, am I lost because I lie? NO. I am not a liar because I lie. I am a liar if I make peace with my sin, submit to, openly practice such things. The word of God is clear, it is not the sin repented of that condemns us, it is the PRACTICE of such things. I am not a liar because I lie, I become a Liar when I see that as my identity, my practice, my standard operation. The Blood of JESUS is enough to cleanse me from EVERY unrighteous act, even lying. BUT if I practice it without repentance I become a Liar and there is no remission of sin. I am condemned by my practice.

Jesus recognized the right of a crowd to stone a woman caught in adultery. He didn't stop them. He did something that made them stop. Then after they went away, He said,

“Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”

“No one, sir,” she said.

“Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.”

This is the story where "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone comes from". It is misused constantly to say we shouldn't judge those who have made peace with their flesh nature. When Jesus released her, she wasn't off the hook. SHE was instructed to LEAVE YOUR LIFE OF SIN.

If she had protested, "But Lord, I was born this way. I can't help it. I have these adulterous impulses. I like to sleep around. God made me this way". She would have walked away condemned, BY GOD. It was the practice of the sin that caused him to say what he did.
Certainly she sinned again in the rest of her life. Like you and I do. She MIGHT have even committed adultery again. BUT if she repented, fell on her face, she was instantly restored. God IS faithful and just to forgive our sins. BUT also to Cleanse us. It's that second part that must be seen in light of the video.

Sin is sin. The Practice of continual sin without repentance makes us a sinner, and will cost us our eternal soul if we don't turn around, repent.

I lie, but I am not a liar for I am not willing to give into the sin that trips me up. I will not make peace with my sin. I will fight against the impulses that would cause me to sin. I will run to the Cross and plead the blood when I fail. If I didn't I would be on the wrong side of the Cross.
I am therefore NOT a liar as Jesus described in:

John 8:54.55 says, "Jesus answered: “If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing. It is my Father that glorifies me, he who you say is your God; and yet you have not known him. But I know him. And if I said I do not know him I should be like you, a liar."

I know HIM and therefore am a Child of God who struggles with a Sin, Forgiven, Restored, Headed for a certain Heaven, but only as one who sins and repents rather than one who makes peace with a sin identity and says, I am a Liar, I lie, I was born a liar and therefore lie. It causes reproach to be a liar, but if I boldly admit my lying, you can't harm me any more, I have come into the light. My transparency protects me. Right? Wrong.

IS that the call of God? If this young girl gets to heaven (and I hope she will) will she be a lesbian in Heaven? Will a liar who embraces the Liar identity be a liar in heaven? Will Joni Erickson Tada be a quadriplegic in heaven? Of course not. So if we call out on earth as it is in heaven....?

An old Russian Proverb says: Make peace with man and war with your sins....

Our flesh and our Spirit are at war. Constantly. We may be overpowered even occasionally by the enemy, to have lost the battle sometimes. Sin and the devil have been defeated. That much is clear. The problem is satan didn't get the memo. He thinks he still has a shot. Sin Flesh and the Devil is in the world.

1 John 2:16

For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world.

Paul well knew the law of sin and death:

So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God's law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?"
--Romans 7:15-24 (NIV)

The issue with the young lady is not that she is a homosexual, trapped in a homosexual lifestyle that is as sinful as lying, but that she is headed for hell as an unbeliever and has bought a social lie that she has now embraced:

“As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: 7 Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. 8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. 9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. 10 And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:...” Colossians 2:6-10.

She has NOT received Christ Jesus and needs him. He will save her, deliver her, sanctify her. It isn't instant. It will take time. But she will be whole if she steps from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light. God doesn't want anyone to perish. She is on the road to certain perdition and for that we should pray that she find Jesus. Her homosexuality is a symptom of her lost nature and the deception she has given into. The shame she has felt, the rejection she fears will not be solved by her posting this video. It may in fact lead many to follow her in her quest for acceptance. He quest will be empty without Jesus.

In the words of Isaiah, “no one who believes in him will be put to shame” (Rom 9:33, 10:11). Peter reminded Christians of the same thing: “For it stands in scripture: ‘Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and he who believes in him will not be put to shame’” (1 Pet. 2:6).

“ Sin shall not be your master, for you are not under law but under grace" (Rom.6:14).

“Everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure” (1 John. 3:3).

Christ is “our wisdom and our righteousness” (1 Cor. 1:30). Our righteousness is not of ourselves, “for Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes” (Rom. 10:4)

“... we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” Please notice the word “but”, following the words “...we wrestle not against flesh and blood...” This is even in our own flesh......

She is lost forever if she doesn't find Jesus and come to him as broken as most of you have done. To praise her bravery might be a good thing for the moment, but we should mourn for her willingness to embrace a life of sin. Jesus stands ready to forgive her, without condemnation, but then he will say, "go then and leave your life of sin. Sin no more".

She is on the wrong side of the Cross of Christ. Let grace abound to her as her sin abounds. She needs Jesus....who will go? She can be healed of this affliction. She may always have the urges and impulses. She may even stumble. But she can be whole where she is broken.

All of this is drawn from the Word of God written down for us.

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2010-11-22T04:45:00.000-08:00

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Temperatures		Precipitation
91°F Record High Highest so far 80°F Lowest 26°F so far 57°F Avg. High 37°F Avg. Low 15°F Record Low		Month to Date 2.05 in. Average 2.63 in.

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Temperatures		Precipitation
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FORECAST: Updated Oct 23 09:13 p.m. CT

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Temperatures		Precipitation
100°F Record High Highest so far 79°F Lowest 34°F so far 69°F Avg. High 49°F Avg. Low 16°F Record Low		Month to Date 8.03 in. Average 3.62 in.

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2010-10-23T19:27:00.001-07:00

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FORECAST: Updated Oct 23 09:07 p.m. CT

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Temperatures		Precipitation
95°F Record High Highest so far 77°F Lowest 35°F so far 69°F Avg. High 48°F Avg. Low 23°F Record Low		Month to Date 7.23 in. Average 4.08 in.

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2010-10-22T04:03:00.000-07:00

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FORECAST: Updated Oct 22 05:08 a.m. CT

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91°F Record High Highest so far 80°F Lowest 30°F so far 57°F Avg. High 37°F Avg. Low 15°F Record Low		Month to Date 0.28 in. Average 2.63 in.

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Dealing with lies

2010-08-28T18:28:00.000-07:00

Matthew 26:63 But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest said to Him, "I adjure You by the living God, that You tell us whether You are the Christ, the Son of God."

Matthew 27:12 And while He was being accused by the chief priests and elders, He did not answer.

Mark 14:61 But He kept silent and did not answer. Again the high priest was questioning Him, and saying to Him, "Are You the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One?"

Mark 15:5 But Jesus made no further answer; so Pilate was amazed.

Luke 23:9 And he questioned Him at some length; but He answered him nothing.

John 19:9 and he entered into the Praetorium again and said to Jesus, "Where are You from?" But Jesus gave him no answer.

Entrepreneurial Development Program for the Community in Chicago

2010-06-03T15:51:00.001-07:00

The purpose of this training regimen is not to just inspire, as important as that is, it is to equip those who are driven to excel at something no matter what and to help them do it effectively legally and for a profit. The Kingdom of God is built in part with money. If the saints are broke, the tithe on nothing is nothing. Those who are leaders must start to help those in their congregations become what God intended them to become. I wrote on this recently.
The Kobe Bryant story is key.

The economic times we are in will get worse, not better. That means that unless something changes, giving will get worse not better. Jobs as we once knew them are about to disappear. Go away. Who will hire people? We can help those in our congregations who are so wired to fulfil the destiny they have in them. It's more than inspiration, it's preparation. Consider the program I believe the Lord is Birthing right now. This has been a massive download of the Spirit in just the last two weeks. I covet your input, your correction, your endorsement, your questions. This thing is FRESH but can offer HOPE. As a Prophet, Equipping is what I am supposed to be about. Is hiring others and making a profit to tithe on a work of the ministry? I think it is.

This is a Six Week, once a week for Three Hours program of development. It is sequential. You will have to make all six to benefit. It is workshop. Then after the six weeks, there would be a once a month mentoring program for four months. I would anticipate up to 100 people to be part of this. There is power in numbers. I have led such sized groups in ten years of training people in the Dale Carnegie organization developing people in personal relationship, marketing, management and business development. That takes a person thru half a year to launch into whatever business or plan that is hidden in them. Every person has a purpose hidden in them. Finding it and putting it into action is the key.

This is important. This would NOT be free. Participants must pay for this. What you get for free you don't value. I wouldn't even encourage churches to SEND people to this. Lend money, maybe. This is a principle of you must learn to invest wisely. There is no book. No tapes. This must be specific to the person. I would envision that this program should be a net generation of income to churches that participate. More on that later.

NOT everyone is hard wired to be in business for themselves. In fact a disservice would be to try to plug a square peg into a round hole of business where that is not their strength. A key part of this is each week bringing in one leader from the community who actually made this work. This person must be full on community identity. He must be one to whom the community can relate. He or she must not have received a grant, government help, cheated, inherited or any such. They must be a prime example of someone who made it work because they followed principles. I wouldn't want someone with a prepackaged program. Amway or such. Or a franchise holder. Not that they are bad of themselves, these must be people who followed a dream and succeeded. I would avoid anyone from Sports, Entertainment, Education or Government. I would also avoid someone from Churches. We are looking to take the Business Mountain here.

So, we begin the process week by week. Starting with Screening:

First Session 7:30-10:30
A welcome and a disclaimer. "We can't and won't guarantee you will become a millionaire by participating in this training. But we can guarantee you will have a better chance if you do. Not everyone is hard wired do this. Yet there are those among you who can become much more independent and self supporting by this kind of equipping. You can do much for the kingdom of God by becoming more capable and directed. Christians should be on top.

We are designed to take dominion. The 7 mountain Challenge. Lance Wallnau teaching on it.

Inspirational Talk from a Biblical Basis from someone who has made it.

Now that you are properly motivated, the question is this; Are you hard wired emotionally, spiritually, and in your personality to do this? Not everyone is. It's no shame. But to follow this path and find yourself wanting will cause you to fail.

First an analysis of your readiness to be in business for yourself. This is a written T/F test instrument that questions you and your emotional readiness.

Discuss the results. Those who are ready to do this need to be sure they are emotionally ready to tackle this. This road is hard but has great reward for those ready to win.

Second, involve an instrument to measure the personality traits of a person who is going to be in business for themselves compared to those who should not. I can by this test tell someone quickly IF they have the foundational needs and drives to do this or if they should defer right now.

This isn't about education. This is about your mental, emotional and personality motives.

Then a strong motivational talk from a spiritual leader.

Close and invite people to sign up. Make it hard. We only want those motivated to do so.

During this time, a brief discussion helping people understand why we Might NOT want them to sign up. If they insist, fine, but warn off those who are not well equipped. Not everyone should do this.

Second Session 7:30-10:30
Finding your unique factor. The Dream God placed in you long ago. Every person is wired with things they love. Things they have always had an interest in. Things that the thought about as a young person. This is the hidden dream. Discovering it isn't hard, but we have to take the time to do it.

Inventory all of the things we know how to do. Skills. Ability. Talent. Capacity. Everything that is part of the equipment you already have.

THEN. List Everything I have ever thought I would like to do. ANYTHING I ever visioned myself doing. Everything I was good at. Everything I loved doing.

Then, translate these things into two or three potential business pathways built around them. If you don't love it you will fail. Do the thing you love and the money will follow. That's an inviolable rule. If you chase the money over something you love, you WILL FAIL. Guaranteed. Show me the money is a myth.

Inspirational talk by someone from the community who has made it.

Inspirational talk on WHY. The Video.

Start to create a mission. A vision. A purpose. A plan. What it would look like. Creative thinking exercise. Workshop this. Help them work it.

Close by saying even if you never DO this you will have a roadmap to something you will probably do at some point.

Third Session 7:30-10:30

Finding the who what where when why and how of your vision. IF I did this who will buy it, why should they, where are they located, when in life do they engage this, what will they be getting, how would it happen.

This is taking the vision and purpose from last week and finding the needs it fills that are there.

Now that we have figured out the who what where why, it's time for the HOW.

Questions you must answer for those regarding your product or service before anyone will buy

Discovering the core motivation of your target customer base and how to address it right.

How this gets done, resources to do it.

Inspirational talk from someone in the community who made it and has a story to tell.

Exploring all kinds of marketing plans and programs.

Fourth Session 7:30-10:30
Creating a roadmap to get where you want to go.

Now that you know what you want to do, how and where. Now What?

Inspirational Talk from the Community by someone who made it.

Now, creating a solid business plan you can take to a bank, to a friend, to supporters if you need to. Who is involved. What it looks like. Expectations. Mission and purpose. Resources needed. Resources available.

Here's where the rubber starts to meet the road. Hard work starts now. This will require clear evaluation. The back of a business card purpose yet fleshed out so people will grasp it.

This means that at the end of this session each participant should be able to stand and make a brief presentation on what their business plan is. In fact they all will. This is the workshop.

It is during this time we start to introduce the principles of personal business placement. Human interaction skill. The ability to influence and deal with people effectively is the linchpin of business success. Introduce the top 5. Workshop it.

Inspirational talk.

Fifth Session 7:30-10:30
Now that we have a roadmap to what we want, where it is and how. What do we do now? How do we manage our success.

Every business has five significant functions. Plan, Organize, Direct, Coordinate and Control.

In the beginning, that all seems pretty self evident. The one man shop does it all. Yet, over time, as things grow, it become so much more. When a business grows, learning to lay off certain functions on others of character and caliber will be essential for growth.

A talk from someone in the community who made it.

Workshop each of these. Lead on what will I do to accomplish these things. Start to create an action plan. A to do list. ABC priority.

Working from priority. Avoiding the Urgent over the Critical. Highest and best use.

Learning what to do with the money. Basic banking and money skills training.

Learning this truth from it, the most important person I can manage is ME.

Recommend the Success System that Never Fails as a source.

Espouse good personal discipline for success. Managing ourselves.

Becoming a student of success, not failure. MANAGE ME!!

Sixth Session 7:30-10:30
Share my own deconstruction, reconstruction. Success Failure. By now I will have earned the right to do so.

YOU WILL FAIL SOME. It's not a sin. It's not punishment. It's a process. Introduce the idea of failing UPWARDS. Building on your successes and building up from the failures.

The Author of Harry Potter. J C Penny. KFC.

When things go badly, and they will, you can make them work FOR you not against you.

Have a person from the community who made it, failed and started again to succeed come and speak.

Forward.

Learn to analyse your defeats. Learn to grow from your failure. Learn to get up when you are beaten down. Sometimes volunteering, working as a trainee, working as a student of the business will give you the best background.

Training on Creative thinking. Destructive reinvention. The capacity to be self critical yet without defeat.

Learning the power of a clear goal.

Have each share once more, what they will do, how they will do it. What is the NEXT step.

Inspirational talk regarding not quitting.

Covenant for Mentoring.

Close. Present a certificate of completion.

Four Mentoring Sessions once a month are conducted after this. Meeting with them to create way around over or thru obstacles they have come up against.

This will bring a person to six months of development. Some will really make it. Many will be motivated to try and eventually will do better. Without this they may never make it. Let's see if we can help them.

fc

2010-04-18T19:32:00.000-07:00

What Rush Limbaugh REALLY Said and didn't say

2010-01-15T14:57:00.000-08:00

I'm confident everybody in this audience knows what I said and what I didn't say. Even the Washington Post says without the context, "What Limbaugh said is horrible." All I said was, if you paid your income taxes, that's how you donate to government for aid, and sure enough, here comes Obama announcing $100 million from the government for aid to Haiti, fine and dandy. But, you paid for it, it's your taxes. All I said was if you're going to donate do it outside the government, pure and simple. I was attacked, folks, because I am the leading voice of mainstream conservative views, not for any other reason. And this outrage is totally feigned, just as Tony Blankley said, all this outrage at me is totally faked up. They know exactly what I said, and they know for a fact that I would never tell people not to donate to any charitable cause like this, so it is what it is.

David Brooks today in the New York Times is basically saying what I said yesterday and was attacked for, that giving aid money to countries does not help them grow. Here it is right here in the New York Times, and nobody's mad at them. Do I need to read it? Yeah, let me. "On Oct. 17, 1989, a major earthquake with a magnitude of 7.0 struck the Bay Area in Northern California. Sixty-three people were killed. This week, a major earthquake, also measuring a magnitude of 7.0, struck near Port-au-Prince, Haiti. The Red Cross estimates that between 45,000 and 50,000 people have died. This is not a natural disaster story. This is a poverty story. It's a story about poorly constructed buildings, bad infrastructure and terrible public services. On Thursday, President Obama told the people of Haiti: 'You will not be forsaken; you will not be forgotten.'

If he is going to remain faithful to that vow then he is going to have to use this tragedy as an occasion to rethink our approach to global poverty. He's going to have to acknowledge a few difficult truths. The first of those truths is that we don't know how to use aid to reduce poverty. Over the past few decades, the world has spent trillions of dollars to generate growth in the developing world. The countries that have not received much aid, like China, have seen tremendous growth and tremendous poverty reductions. The countries that have received aid, like Haiti, have not." Oh, my gosh, this is deja vu, except I'm the one that said it. Using our own war on poverty, how much money have we given to the poor in this country, and we still have the same percentages of poor people -- and we're never supposed to examine the results, right? Only the good intentions of the givers!

And, of course, the givers are us. Our back pockets are looted by our own government, and the money is redistributed -- and as Mr. Brooks is saying here, there is no upside to this. "In the recent anthology 'What Works in Development?,' a group of economists try to sort out what we've learned. The picture is grim. There are no policy levers that consistently correlate to increased growth. There is nearly zero correlation between how a developing economy does one decade and how it does the next. There is no consistently proven way to reduce corruption. Even improving governing institutions doesn't seem to produce the expected results. ... . More than 10,000 organizations perform missions of this sort in Haiti. ...

"The second hard truth is that micro-aid is vital but insufficient. Given the failures of macrodevelopment, aid organizations often focus on microprojects. So we have "more than 10,000 organizations perform[ing] missions of this sort in Haiti." It's exactly what I said: We've got charities on the ground 24/7, 365 in Haiti. By some estimates, Haiti has more nongovernmental organizations per capita than any other place on earth. They are doing the Lord's work, especially these days, but even a blizzard of these efforts does not seem to add up to comprehensive change. Third, it is time to put the thorny issue of culture at the center of efforts to tackle global poverty. Why is Haiti so poor? Well, it has a history of oppression, slavery and colonialism." Yeeeees, all the things we pointed out this week: Dictatorships! "But so does Barbados, and Barbados is doing pretty well.

"Haiti has endured ruthless dictators, corruption and foreign invasions. But so has the Dominican Republic, and the D.R. is in much better shape. Haiti and the Dominican Republic share the same island and the same basic environment, yet the border between the two societies offers one of the starkest contrasts on earth — with trees and progress on one side, and deforestation and poverty and early death on the other. "As Lawrence E. Harrison explained in his book 'The Central Liberal Truth,' Haiti, like most of the world's poorest nations, suffers from a complex web of progress-resistant cultural influences. There is the influence of the voodoo religion, which spreads the message that life is capricious and planning futile. There are high levels of social mistrust. Responsibility is often not internalized."

"Child-rearing practices often involve neglect in the early years and harsh retribution when kids hit 9 or 10. ... In this country, we first tried to tackle poverty by throwing money at it, just as we did abroad. Then we tried microcommunity efforts, just as we did abroad. But the programs that really work involve intrusive paternalism. These programs, like the Harlem Children's Zone and the No Excuses schools, are led by people who figure they don't understand all the factors that have contributed to poverty, but they don't care. They are going to replace parts of the local culture with a highly demanding, highly intensive culture of achievement -- involving everything from new child-rearing practices to stricter schools to better job performance," and none and none of these programs are sponsored by government and certainly not by liberal government.

So the things that end poverty are cultural, and they start bottom-up, and they're done by citizens and real people who can't take it anymore. Throwing money at it accomplishes nothing! It's been demonstrated all across the world, but most near to us it's been demonstrated in Haiti. I mention all this as a rebuttal to all of the feigned outrage at me, the lying note that I urged people not to give to charity for Haiti. Nobody in their right mind would ever believe that about me or anybody else, for that matter. However, I did say find some way to do it other than giving it to Obama, 'cause I know he's going to eliminate the charitable deduction. He wants to wipe out individual charitable giving. He wants the government to be the go-to person for all charities. That's the only reason you wipe out the deduction for charitable contributions.

Let's See If I Have This Straight

2009-11-22T19:47:00.001-08:00

We're going to pass a health care plan written by a committee whose head says he doesn't understand it.

Passed by a Congress that hasn't read it but exempts themselves from it.

Signed by a president that also hasn't read it, and who smokes.

With funding administered by a treasury chief who didn't pay his taxes.

Overseen by a surgeon general who is obese.

Financed by a country that's nearly broke..

What possibly could go wrong?

Pictures of the Church who uses the same speakers we have at Lord of life in a different configuration

2009-11-15T11:38:00.001-08:00

This is the platform area. You can see that the speakers are well ahead of the platform over the congregation. Even when I spoke I stood on the steps and still had the speakers in front of me.

They are the very same speakers we have and they moved them down to be more out front of the congregations, lower. The sound was great. The soundboard was in the corner of the room on the floor. The room was about the same size as Lord of Life.

Note too that the put the woofers facing "Out" at the top.

Ours face DOWN. Feedback city. That's the sound spectrum where much feedback happens.

Consider what this might mean. Moving the speakers we have would accomplish a lot for not a lot of money. And, moving the sound folks to the floor would solve the rest. For the cost of a complex "Snake" we have it done.

If it becomes a problem, we are out the price of the snake only. Moving the speakers including the woofers would solve a LOT of our sound issues.

What think ye? CLICK on the PICTURES and the will become full sized.

PS, I really like worship Banners. Wish we were free enough to use them. Maybe some day.

FC Video

2009-06-15T11:11:00.000-07:00

FCTV Announcements 06.14.09 from Faith Center | Rockford, IL on Vimeo.

hbomb

2009-06-04T06:11:00.001-07:00

Torture seems to be normal if you look at the surface

2009-05-18T20:05:00.000-07:00

Sometimes you just need to beat people for their own good.: The blueness of a wound cleanseth away evil: so do stripes the inward parts of the belly. Proverbs 20:30
Some people should be beaten as as a punishment for their crimes.: And it shall be, if the wicked man be worthy to be beaten, that the judge shall cause him to lie down, and to be beaten. Deuteronomy 25:2
It's always a good idea to beat fools. Beat them whenever you find them.: A fool's lips enter into contention, and his mouth calleth for strokes. Proverbs 18:6; Judgments are prepared for scorners, and stripes for the back of fools. Proverbs 19:29; A whip for the horse, a bridle for the ass, and a rod for the fool's back. Proverbs 26:3
And slaves may be beaten, as long they survive for at least a day or two after the beating.: If a man beats his male or female slave with a rod and the slave dies as a direct result, he must be punished, but he is not to be punished if the slave gets up after a day or two, since the slave is his property. Exodus 21:20-21
Beating your children is a sure sign of parental love.: He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes. Proverbs 13:24
And don't stop just because they cry.: Chasten thy son while there is hope, and let not thy soul spare for his crying. Proverbs 19:18
Beating your children will make them less foolish.: Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child; but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him. Proverbs 22:15; The rod and reproof give wisdom: but a child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame. Proverbs 29:15
So beat them hard and often. Don't worry about hurting them. You may break a few bones and cause some brain damage, but it isn't going to kill them. And even if it does, they'll be better off. They'll thank you in heaven for beating the hell out of them.: Withhold not correction from the child: for if thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die. Thou shalt beat him with the rod, and shalt deliver his soul from hell. Proverbs 23:13-14
The Bible has many examples of a good and proper use of torture. For example, David was "a man after God's own heart" (1 Samuel 13:14, Acts 13:22) and "did what was right in the sight of the Lord ... save only in the matter of Uriah the Hittite" (1 Kings 15:5). Since he tortured the inhabitants of several cities, torture (at least in certain situations) must be okay with God.: And he brought forth the people that were therein, and put them under saws, and under harrows of iron, and under axes of iron, and made them pass through the brick-kiln: and thus did he unto all the cities of the children of Ammon. 2 Samuel 12:31; And he brought out the people that were in it, and cut them with saws, and with harrows of iron, and with axes. Even so dealt David with all the cities of the children of Ammon. 1 Chronicles 20:3
Nehemiah, who is considered a good leader in the Bible, beat people and pulled out their hair.: And I contended with them, and cursed them, and smote certain of them, and plucked off their hair, and made them swear by God, saying, Ye shall not give your daughters unto their sons, nor take their daughters unto your sons, or for yourselves. Nehemiah 13:25
At times, Jesus seemed to look favorably on torture.
In his parables, for example, Jesus often spoke of torturing his enemies.: And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors. Matthew 18:34; And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless. Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness, there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Matthew 22:12-13; The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of, And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Matthew 24:50-51; The lord of that servant will come in a day when he looketh not for him, and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in sunder, and will appoint him his portion with the unbelievers. And that servant, which knew his lord's will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. Luke 12:46-48
The devils expected Jesus to torture them. (And Jesus didn't deny that he planned to do so.): And, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? art thou come hither to torment us before the time? Matthew 8:29; Jesus, thou Son of the most high God? I adjure thee by God, that thou torment me not. Mark 5:7; What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God most high? I beseech thee, torment me not. Luke 8:28
God uses a rod to beat those who disobey his commandments.: If they break my statutes, and keep not my commandments; Then will I visit their transgression with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes.Psalm 89:31-2
At the end of the world, God will torture people until they want to die. But he will not let them die so that he can continue to torture them.: And to them it was given that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months: and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion, when he striketh a man. And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them. Revelation 9:5-6
But the ultimate use of torture, a torture a greater than which can not be conceived, is hell.: The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Matthew 13:41-42; If thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire. Matthew 18:8-9; Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels. Matthew 25:41; ...hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. Mark 9:43-48; And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. Luke 16:22-24; The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever. Revelation 14:10-11

Historical Evidence About Jesus Christ

2009-04-10T05:15:00.000-07:00

Historical Reactions to Jesus

Throughout history many people have examined the evidence regarding the life of Jesus of Nazareth. To any unbiased observer who is willing to evaluate it without prejudice, the accumulated evidence regarding the Gospel record is truly overwhelming. As an example, Otto Betz, a respected scholar, stated in his book, What Do We Know About Jesus? that "No serious scholar has ventured to postulate the non-historicity of Jesus."

However, some writers have suggested that there is little historical evidence regarding the life of Jesus. For example, the writer Solomon Zeitlin wrote, "Even Paul's epistles have awakened the question, Does he speak of a real historical personage or of an ideal? The main sources for the historicity of Jesus, therefore, are the Gospels." However, Zeitlin then dismisses the Gospel historical accounts and concluded: "So we are right to assume that even the Gospels have no value as witnesses of the historicity of Jesus. The question therefore remains: Are there any historical proofs that Jesus of Nazareth ever existed?" Another critic Salomon Reinach has contemptuously declared that he refused, "to consider writings founded upon the memory of a collection of illiterates as historical evidence for Jesus." Scholars such as Zeitlin and Reinach also casually dismiss the strong extra-biblical historical evidence from both Pagan and Jewish sources that validates the Gospel accounts about Jesus. The real reason to reject the evidence is that it contradicts the opinion they tenaciously hold that rejects the Bible's accuracy. If liberal scholars applied the same arbitrary standard of rejection of all historical evidence to other ancient historical personages, such as Julius Caesar or Alexander the Great, they would be forced to reject all history as myth.

The famous German theologian Rudolf Bultmann has declared, "IÊdo indeed think that we can now know almost nothing concerning the life and personality of Jesus." Incredibly Bultmann states, "the early Christian sources show no interest in either, are moreover fragmentary and often legendary; and other sources about Jesus do not exist." (Rudolf Bultmann, Jesus and the Word. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. 1958, p.8). However, the evidence in the details of events and conversation of Jesus by all four gospel writers demonstrates convincingly that Bultmann is wrong.

An example of the arbitrary rejection of historical evidence about Jesus by modern skeptical theologians is found in Bultmann's often stated theory of "double dissimilarity." This strange theory states that any Gospel saying of Jesus that can be found paralleled in either Christian and Jewish sources (First Century) must be rejected as "inauthentic" or "invented by Christian editors." The absurdity of this double disimilarity argument can be demonstrated by imagining applying the same rejection of quotations to someone like Winston Churchill. This technique would require us to reject as inauthentic any quotation from Churchill that found any parallel in English literature or any statement that was quoted by Churchill's biographers or admirers. Bultmann's theory, if applied to other historical personages, would virtually eliminate historical study.

One of the key points missed by the agnostic and liberal critics of the literal Gospel record is that the Jews of the first century of the Christian era possessed a unique ability to remember and record the statements of Jesus of Nazareth that would be deemed almost impossible by modern readers. The ancient Jews of Israel had developed sophisticated memory techniques to remember every word of a discourse by their rabbi. Their ability to recount verbatim long speeches or teaching would astonish modern teachers and critics of the Gospel record. Over the centuries the religious leaders of Israel had developed advanced memory techniques to enable their students to remember in remarkable detail every single statement of their religious teachers. An example of this oral memory technique can be found in the specially trained Maori tribesmen of New Zealand can remember and recount for several days during annual festivals a verbal rendition of their 4,000 year old tribal history.

However, a careful unbiased analysis of the historical sources as demonstrated in this book will convince many readers that Jesus of Nazareth is the Messiah of both history and prophecy. In his book, The New Testament Documents: Are They Reliable? historian F. F. Bruce wrote, "The historicity of Christ is as axiomatic for an unbiased historian as the historicity of Julius Caesar."

President Abraham Lincoln was an agnostic until he reached the age of forty. Then he read Dr. James Smith's brilliant examination called The Christian's Defence, that established the historical reality of the events in Christ's life. The evidence from this book convinced Lincoln of the truth about Jesus, and he became a genuine Christian. "My doubts scattered to the winds and my reason became convinced by the arguments in support of the inspired and infallible authority of the Old and New Testaments." (Quoted in Sir Lionel Luckhoo's book, Evidence Irrefutable Which Can Change Your Lives).

In addition to the contemporary archaeologists, scholars, and historians, who confirm that Jesus Christ existed, there are also a number of ancient historians who have recorded excerpts and events from Jesus' life. These individuals often acted as secular historians, and although they did not accept Jesus as the Son of God, they did acknowledge his life, death, and teaching.

The scholar, John P. Meier, wrote about the historical evidence that has survived about Jesus of Nazareth in his recent book A Marginal Jew: Rethinking the Historical Jesus. "When we look for statements about Jesus from non canonical writings of the 1st or 2nd century A.D., we are at first disappointed by the lack of references. We have to remember that Jews and pagans of this period, if they were at all aware of a new religious phenomenon on the horizon, would be more aware of the nascent group called Christianity than of its putative founder Jesus. Some of these writers, at least, had direct or indirect contact with Christians; none of them had had contact with the Christ Christians worshiped. This simply reminds us that Jesus was a marginal Jew leading a marginal movement in a marginal province of a vast Roman Empire. The wonder is that any learned Jew or pagan would have known or referred to him at all in the 1st or early 2nd century. Surprisingly, there are a number of possible references to Jesus, though most are riddled with problems of authenticity and interpretation." (John P. Meier, A Marginal Jew: Rethinking the Historical Jesus, Volume 1).

A Jewish historian, Joseph Klausner, examined the historical record regarding Jesus in his book Jesus of Nazareth and concluded that "In his ethical code there is a sublimity, distinctiveness and originality in form unparalleled in any other Hebrew ethical code; neither is there any parallel to the remarkable art of his parables" (Joseph Klausner, Jesus of Nazareth, New York: Macmillan Company, 1926.). The great German philosopher and writer of the last century, Goethe, expressed his opinion of the Gospels. "I esteem the Gospels to be thoroughly genuine, for there shines forth from them the reflected splendour of a sublimity, proceeding from the person of Jesus Christ, of so divine a kind as only the divine could ever have manifested upon earth." (Goethe, Conversations With Eckermann, iii, 371).

The following pages will include a number of Roman and pagan historical manuscript records from the early centuries of this era about the life and influence of Jesus Christ; these documents have survived for almost two thousand years.

Cornelius Tacitus - Governor of Asia

Cornelius Tacitus was a Roman historian and governor of Asia [Turkey] in A.D. 112. He was a personal friend of the historian Pliny the Younger. In his Annals, written after AD 64, he referred to Emperor Nero's persecution of the Christians. This attack was caused by Nero's false accusation that the Christians had burned the city of Rome. This monstrous lie was intended to cover the truth that the evil emperor himself had ordered the capital set on fire. Tacitus wrote:

To suppress therefore the common rumour, Nero procured others to be accused, and inflicted exquisite punishments upon those people, who were in abhorrence for their crimes, and were commonly known as Christians. They had their denomination from Christus [Christ], who in the reign of Tiberius was put to death as a criminal by the procurator Pontius Pilate. This pernicious superstition, though checked for a while, broke out again, and spread, not only over Judea, the source of this evil, but reached the city [Rome] also. (Annals of Imperial Rome, XV 44).

Tacitus, as a Roman government official and historian with access to the government archives of Rome, confirmed many of the historical details in the Gospels, as well as the books of Acts and Romans. He confirmed that Jesus was executed as a criminal under the authority of Pontius Pilate (who ruled Judea under the reign of Emperor Tiberius). He also declared that the Christians, who began in Judea and were now spreading throughout the empire, derived their worship and religion from the person known as Christ. He verified the explosive growth of this new religion within 32 years of Jesus' crucifixion despite the fact that its founder suffered the death penalty as a criminal. Additionally, Tacitus confirms that the Christians were despised, hated, and falsely accused of crimes, yet they rapidly grew to become a "vast multitude" in Rome itself (Annals XV 44). The reason Tacitus and many other Romans hated the Christians is because of the Christians refusal to worship the pagan gods, and Emperor Nero himself.

Suetonius - Roman Historian

Caius Suetonius was the official historian of Rome during the reign of both Emperor Trajan and Adrian. He was also a friend of Pliny the Younger, and was referred to in several of Pliny's letters. Suetonius wrote a book on the Lives of the First Twelve Caesars. In the section on the Emperor Claudius (who ruled from AD 41 to 54) Suetonius referred to the Christians causing disturbances in Rome which led to their being banished from the city. Suetonius wrote about Claudius: "He banished the Jews from Rome, who were continually making disturbances, Chrestus being their leader." He identified the sect of Jewish Christians as being derived from "the instigation of Chrestus" which was his curious spelling of the name Christ (Life of Claudius 25.4, written in A.D. 125). This statement provides powerful evidence that there were a significant number of Christians living in Rome before A.D. 54, only two decades after Jesus. This passage confirms the statement of Luke (in the Book of Acts) about the exiling of the Jews from Rome during the reign of Claudius. The Apostle Paul found, "a certain Jew named Aquila, born in Pontus, lately come from Italy, with his wife Priscilla; (because that Claudius had commanded all Jews to depart from Rome:) and came unto them" (Acts 18:2).

Suetonius also wrote about the persecution of Christians during the reign of Nero. "The Christians were punished; a sort of men of a new and magical superstition." His criticism of the early Church affirms that this was a "new" religion that had recently appeared (in confirmation of the Gospels and the book of Acts). Furthermore, his reference to "magical superstition" confirms that the Christians were known to produce miracles and healing. The new faith of Christianity was based on the resurrection of their Messiah Jesus of Nazareth which would certainly qualify as a "magical superstition" to a pagan Roman historian.

Pliny the Younger

Caius Plinius Secundus, known as Pliny the Younger, was born near Milan, Italy in A.D. 62. The historian Pliny, a close friend of Tacitus, served as a consul during the reign of emperor Trajan and was later appointed governor of the Roman provinces of Pontus and Bithynia [Turkey] in the period A.D. 101 to 110. He wrote to the emperor to request specific instructions about the interrogation of the Christians whom he was persecuting. In his Epistles X 96, he states that these Christian believers would not worship Emperor Trajan and would not curse their leader, Jesus Christ, even under extreme torture. Pliny wrote that the Christians were:

in the habit of meeting on a certain fixed day before it was light, when they sang in alternate verse a hymn to Christ as to a god, and bound themselves to a solemn oath, not to any wicked deeds, but never to commit any fraud, theft, adultery, never to falsify their word, not to deny a trust when they should be called upon to deliver it up.

Pliny described the Christians as people who loved the truth at any cost. It is difficult to believe that these people would willingly die for Jesus Christ if they knew and believed it was a lie. The martyrdom of thousands of these Christians was based on the fact that they knew the truth of the statements in the Gospels about Jesus and were willing to die as martyrs rather than deny their faith in Jesus as the Son of God.

Lucian of Samosata

Lucian lived in Samosata in Syria during the reign of Emperor Adrian in the century following Christ. In the later years of his life he served as a government official in Alexandria, Egypt. In Lucian's book, The Passing Peregrinus, he wrote the history of a well known Greek traveller named Proteus who was forced to flee his country after several crimes; he traveled the world under the name Peregrinus. He met some followers of Jesus in the early Church. Lucian wrote,

At which time he learned the wonderful doctrine of the Christians, by conversing with their priests and scribes near Palestine... they spoke of him as a god, and took him for a lawgiver, and honored him with the title of master... They still worship that great man who was crucified in Palestine, because he introduced into the world this new religion... Moreover their first lawgiver has taught them, that they are all brethren, when once they turned, and renounced the gods of the Greeks, and worship that master of theirs who was crucified, and engage to live according to his laws.

Lucian has provided an independent confirmation of numerous historical facts that are mentioned in the Gospels including: the crucifixion; that Jesus was considered a lawgiver; that Christ was worshipped as God; and that His followers committed to follow Christ's laws.

The Letter From Mara Bar-Serapion

A Syrian named Mara Bar-Serapion wrote a curious letter from prison during the first century. The letter was written to his son, Serapion, to encourage him to follow the example of various esteemed teachers of past ages. This letter is listed as Syriac Manuscript number 14,658 in the British Museum. His father reminded him:

What advantage did the Athenians gain from putting Socrates to death? Famine and plague came upon them as a judgment for their crime. What advantage did the men of Samos gain from burning Pythagoras? In a moment their land was covered with sand. What advantage did the Jews gain from executing their wise King? It was just after that that their kingdom was abolished. God justly avenged these three wise men: the Athenians died of hunger; the Samians were overwhelmed by the sea; the Jews, ruined and driven from their land, live in complete dispersion. But Socrates did not die for good; he lived on in the statue of Hera. Nor did the wise King die for good; he lived on in the teaching which he had given.

The historical value of this Mar Bar-Serapion letter is that it provides strong independent pagan corroboration that Jesus was considered to be the "King" of the Jews. This letter may refer to a Gospel statement about the written statement that was placed above the cross. "And set up over his head his accusation written, This is Jesus The King Of The Jews" (Matthew 27:37). The writer of the letter also states that Jesus was executed illegally by the Jews, who then suffered the judgments of God for their misdeeds in a possible reference to the well known tragic destruction of Judea and Jerusalem by the legions of Rome in A.D. 70. It is fascinating to note that the writer considered that Jesus was in some sense immortal because His teachings "lived on" after His death. In addition Mara Bar-Serapion refers to Jesus as "a wise and virtuous man." As a pagan Mara Bar-Serapion considered Jesus to be a great philosopher together with Socrates and Pythagoras.

Julius Africanus, Thallus, and Phlegon

A very early confirmation of the truth of the crucifixion of Jesus is found in the writings of the pagan historian Thallus, in his Third History. The significance of this account from the middle of the first century relates to the fact that it one of the earliest historical records of an event connected with the crucifixion and may have been written at the very time the first of the Synoptic Gospels were being composed by Matthew, Mark, and Luke. One of the most miraculous aspects of the crucifixion was the supernatural darkness that covered the land during the three hours while Jesus hung on the Cross. This miracle was recorded by several pagan historians. Matthew recorded this event in his Gospel: "Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour" (Matthew 27:45). This remarkable event was also recorded in Mark 15:33 and Luke 23:45, 45.

Julius Africanus was a North African Christian teacher writing in A.D. 215. He recorded the writing of a pagan historian by the name Thallus who wrote his book in A.D. 52 only twenty years after the resurrection of Christ. Thallus wrote that the darkness totally covered the land at the time of the Passover in A.D. 32. Julius Africanus records, "As to [Jesus'] works severally, and His cures effected upon body and soul, and the mysteries of His doctrine, and the resurrection from the dead, these have been most authoritatively set forth by His disciples and apostles before us. On the whole world there pressed a most fearful darkness; and the rocks were rent by an earthquake, and many places in Judea and other districts were thrown down. This darkness, Thallus, in the third book of his History, calls as appears to me without reason, an eclipse of the sun. For the Hebrews celebrate the passover on the 14th day according to the moon, and the passion of our Saviour falls on the day before the passover; but an eclipse of the sun takes

place only when the moon comes under the sun." (Thallus (Samaritan, 1st century) -Julius Africanus, Extant Writings 18, Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol 6).

Julius Africanus explained that Thallus' theory was unreasonable because an eclipse of the sun cannot occur at the same time there is a full moon. The moon is almost diametrically opposite the sun during full moon which would make a solar eclipse impossible at that time. This historical reference by the pagan historian Thallus confirmed the Gospel account regarding the miraculous darkness that covered the earth when Jesus was dying on the cross.

There are other ancient historical references to this supernatural darkness which occurred at the death of Christ. Modern astronomers confirm that Julius Africanus was right in his conclusion that a normal eclipse could not possibly occur at the time of a full moon, which occurred at the time of the Jewish Passover. The high priest carefully calculated the position of the full moon to the smallest degree because their whole Jewish liturgical calendar, especially Passover, depended on determining the precise lunar position. There are two important points here. First, the pagan Syrian historian Thallus, who was alive at the time of Jesus' death occurred has confirmed that darkness covered the earth at the very time recorded in the Gospels. Secondly, the fact that there was a full moon present makes it certain that this darkness was not an eclipse but that it was a supernatural event.

Another remarkable historical reference to this supernatural darkness is found in the manuscript of another pagan historical writer from Lydia named Phlegon who was granted freedom by the Emperor Adrian. In approximately A.D. 138 he noted the astonishing fact that this "great and extraordinary eclipse of the sun distinguished among all that had happened" occurred "in the fourth year of the two hundred and second olympiad" which was the nineteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar as emperor of Rome. The Christian historian Eusebius (A.D. 300) in his Chronicle quoted from Phlegon's sixteen volume Collection of Olympiads and Chronicles as follows:

All which things agree with what happened at the time of our Saviour's passion. And so writes Phlegon, and excellent compiler of the Olympiads in his thirteenth book, saying: ÔIn the fourth year of the two hundred and second olympiad there was a great and extraordinary eclipse of the sun, distinguished among all that had happened before. At the sixth hour the day was turned into dark night, so that the stars in the heavens were seen, and there was an earthquake in Bithynia which overthrew many houses in the city of Nice.' So writes the above named author.

Furthermore, Phlegon indicated that the darkness that covered the earth began at the sixth hour, which is equivalent to our noon hour, is precisely the same time period as recorded in the Gospels in Matthew 27:45. The Christian writer Tertullian indicated that this supernatural darkness was recorded in the Roman archives that could still be consulted. "At the same time at noonday there was a great darkness. They thought it to be an eclipse, who did not know that this also was foretold concerning Christ. And some have denied it, not knowing the cause of such darkness. And yet you have that remarkable event recorded in your archives." Another writer, the martyr Lucian, spoke of the public archives which recorded these supernatural events as follows: "Look into your annals; there you will find that in the time of Pilate, when Christ suffered, the sun was obscured, and the light of the day was interrupted with darkness."

A Roman Government Inscription From the Reign of Emperor Nero

In my research I found a fascinating report of an inscription that was discovered in the ruins of Marquofiae in the Roman province of Lusitania (ancient Portugal) that is clearly dated to the reign of Emperor Nero who died in AD 68. This inscription reads as follows:

NERONI. CL. CAIS AUG. PONT. MAX.

OB PROVINC. LATRONIB

ET. HIS. QUI. NOVAM

GENERI. HUM SUPER

STITION. INCULCAB

PURGATAM.

The translation reads:

TO NERO CLAUDIUS CAESAR,

AUGUSTUS, HIGH PRIEST,

FOR CLEARING THE PROVINCE

OF ROBBERS, AND THOSE

WHO TAUGHT MANKIND

A NEW SUPERSTITION.

This inscription almost certainly refers to the new faith of Christianity because this was the only popular new religion that appeared throughout the Roman Empire during the reign of Nero. While Nero's heaviest persecution fell upon the Christians, a number of early Church writers (including Tertullian) affirm that the persecution was carried out throughout the provinces as well. The Roman accusation that the early Christians taught "a new superstition" was related to the Gospel's claim that Jesus had risen from the dead and that He was the Son of God. If this inscription is genuine it would represent the earliest pagan inscription that refers to the new faith of Christianity as having an impact throughout the empire only thirty-five years after the death and resurrection of Jesus.

The Christian Writer Hegesippus

The historian of the early Church, Eusebius, wrote about A.D. 325 about the persecution of the Christians by the Roman emperors in his book Ecclesiastical History. He quotes from another Church historian Hegesippus who wrote about an interview with the descendents of the brothers and sisters of Jesus of Nazareth. Speaking of Caesar Domitian who ruled from -A.D. 81. to A.D. 96 he wrote,

The same emperor ordered the execution of all who were of David's line, and there is an old and firm tradition that a group of heretics accused the descendants of Jude - the brother, humanly speaking, of the Saviour - on the ground that they were of David's line and related to Christ. Himself. This is stated by Hegesippus in so many words:

And there still survived of the Lord's family the grandsons of Jude, who was said to be His brother, humanly speaking. These were informed against as being of David's line, and brought by the evocatus [veteran] before Domitian Caesar, who was as afraid of the advent of Christ as Herod had been. Domitian asked them whether they were descended from David, and they admitted it. Then he asked them what property they owned and what funds they had at their disposal. They replied that they had only 9,000 denarii [$5,000] between them, half belonging to each; this, they said, was not available in cash, but was the estimated value of only twenty-five acres of land, from which they raised the money to pay their taxes and the wherewithal to support themselves by their own toil.

Then, the writer continues, they showed him their hands, putting forward as proof of their toil the hardness of their bodies and the calluses impressed on their hands by incessant labour. When asked about Christ and His Kingdom - what it was like, and where and when it would appear - they explained that it was not of this world or anywhere on earth but angelic and in heaven, and would be established at the end.

Regarding the brothers and sisters of Jesus the Gospel record is clear that Mary and Joseph did have additional children after the virgin birth of Jesus. The Gospel writers refer to the brothers and sisters of Jesus on several occasions including the following: "And when he was come into his own country, he taught them in their synagogue, insomuch that they were astonished, and said, Whence hath this man this wisdom, and these mighty works? Is not this the carpenter's son? is not his mother called Mary? and his brethren, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas? And his sisters, are they not all with us? Whence then hath this man all these things?" (Matthew 13:54-56).

The Crucifixion of Jesus

Both the Gospel record and the writings of the Jewish historian Flavius Josephus declare that Jesus was crucified by Roman soldiers after a religious trial by the Jewish Sanhedrin court and a capital trial in front of the Roman procurator Pontius Pilate. Luke's Gospel records this as follows: "And when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified him, and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and the other on the left" (Luke 23:33). Josephus wrote: "Upon an indictment by leading members of our society, Pilate sentenced him to the cross" (Antiquites).

Crucifixion was the cruelest forms of execution ever developed by diabolical minds to dehumanize their victim and prolong their terminal sufferings as long as several days before death mercifully ended their agony. Crucifixion was first developed by the Scythians of southern Russia and later used by the Assyrians and Carthoginians of north Africa. The Roman Empire probably adopted this brutal form of execution from their constant enemies, the Carthoginians. Even the blood thirsty Romans were so appalled by this horrific punishment that they utilized it only against slaves or foreign enemies. Roman citizens were legally immune from crucifixion, which explains why the Apostle Paul, as a Roman citizen, was beheaded as opposed to being crucified like Peter. (Tillemont, Memoires, i, P.324). During the slave revolt of 71 B.C. led by Spartacus the Romans crucified six thousand slaves on the roads outside Rome to place fear in the hearts of the slave population throughout the empire. During the final months of the terrible siege of Jerusalem in AD 70 the Roman legions crucified hundreds of Jewish citizens each day who attempted to escape the horrific famine within the starving city.

The Gospel record of Christ's crucifixion refers to the Roman practice of breaking the legs of the victims to hasten death. However, the Gospel of John asserts that the legs of Jesus were not broken because He had already died. John states: "But when they came to Jesus, and saw that he was dead already, they brake not his legs" (John 19:33). Several German theologians have cast doubt on the historical accuracy of this account because they felt John simply created this imaginary detail to be able to show that Jesus fulfilled the Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah as a type of the Passover Lamb of which God commanded:Ê"neither shall ye break a bone thereof" (Exodus 12:46). King David had directly predicted this event when he wrote: "He keepeth all his bones: not one of them is broken" (Psalm 34:20). However, a recent archeological discovery in Israel of skeleton of a crucified man provides remarkable proof that the writer of the Gospel account must have been a knowledgeable eyewitness of the crucifixion of Jesus.

Very few skeletons of victims of crucifixion have been found by archeologists. However, Israeli archeologists discovered an ossuary at the excavations at Giv'at ha-Mivtar, near Jerusalem, which contained the skeleton of a man who had been crucified. The ossuary which was inscribed with the name of the victim "Jehohanan" included two heel bones which were transfixed by a single six and a half inch spike. Interestingly, the heel bones contained minute particles of olive wood which might be the remnant of a foot support used by the victim to push himself upward to enable his distended diaphragm to inhale air.

Significantly the leg bones of the victim were crushed with a violent blow that would have made it impossible for the criminal to continue raising himself up. This would cause him to quickly drown, due to the accumulated fluid in his lungs. The scientist who examined the bones, Dr. Nicu Haas, declared that the evidence from the fractured bones suggested that the blows were delivered while the victim was still alive. Dr. Haas wrote: "This direct, deliberate blow may be attributed to the final Ôcoup de grace'." [Haas, N., Anthropological Observations on the Skeletal Remains from Giv'at ha-Mivtar (Israel Exploration Journal 20, 1970, pg 38-39)]

Did Jesus Actually Exist?

"The name of Jesus is not so much written as plowed into the history of the world."

Ralph Waldo Emerson

In light of the wealth of historical evidence about Christ it is surprising that there are learned professors and authors who seriously deny that Jesus of Nazareth ever even lived. However, numerous books have appeared in the last two hundred years that have made this assertion, in spite of the ample biblical and non-biblical evidence referred to in this book. For example, Professor John Allegro of Manchester University wrote a book entitled The Sacred Mushroom and the Cross in 1970 which suggested that the earliest Christians were actually a secret cult group that used sacred mushrooms and utilized the name "Jesus" as a code word to avoid letting outsiders know about their activities. Not surprisingly, Allegro's thesis was criticized immediately by almost every major historical scholar. For example, The Times newspaper of London, UK, printed a letter signed by fifteen scholars in Semitic languages who dismissed his conclusion stating that it was "not based on any philological or other evidence that they can regard as scholarly."

Another scholar, Professor G. A. Wells of Birkbeck College, London, has produced three books in the last decade that deny that the Jesus of the Gospels existed. Wells argues that the first New Testament statements about Jesus were created by the Apostle Paul who didn't know any details about the historical Jesus. The professor suggests that the Gospels were written much later (at some point before A.D. 120) and represent a basic fabrication of stories about an imaginary Jesus.

As this book will demonstrate, there is powerful historical evidence that confirms many of the details of the life and death of Jesus both in the historically reliable Gospels and numerous non-biblical sources. C. S. Lewis addressed the question of the historical accuracy of John's gospel:

I have been reading poems, romances, vision literature, legends, myths all my life. I know what they are like. I know that none of them is like this. Of this text there are only two possible views. Either this is reportage - though it may no doubt contain errors - pretty close to the facts; nearly as close as Boswell. Or else, some unknown writer in the second century, without known predecessors or successors, suddenly anticipated the whole technique of modern, novelistic, realistic narrative. If it is untrue, it must be narrative of that kind. The reader who doesn't see this simply has not learned to read. [C. S. Lewis, quoted by Ian Wilson in Jesus: The Evidence, p. 49, Harper and Row, Publishers, San Francisco, 1984]

Nicholas Sherwin-White commented on the authenticity of the historical statements of the Gospel writers in his book Roman Society and Roman Law in the New Testament::

... it can be maintained that those who had a passionate interest in the story of Christ, even if their interest in events was parabolical and didactic rather than historical, would not be led by that very fact to pervert and utterly destroy the historical kernel of their material.

The Town of Nazareth

Christ was often called Jesus of Nazareth and the early Christians were identified as Nazarenes. The origin of the name "Nazarene" may mean "of Nazareth." It may be directly derived from the town of Nazareth in which He grew up, worked with His father, and taught. However, it is also possible that "Nazarene" is derived from the Hebrew word "netzer" which means "a branch," a title that is often applied prophetically to the Messiah in the writings of the ancient Jews. In Isaiah 11:1 we read "And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots." Again in Zechariah 3:8 we read: "behold, I will bring forth my servant the BRANCH."

Some have suggested that the town of Nazareth did not actually exist in the first century when the Gospel record indicates Jesus and His family lived there. It is true that the Jewish historian Flavius Josephus does not mention Nazareth in his Jewish history. Fortunately an archeological discovery made in 1955 under the foundations of the Church of the Annunciation in Nazareth indicated the town was inhabited before the Christian era. A third century marble inscription found at the seat of Roman government in the city of Caesarea appears to be a tablet naming the town of Nazareth.

The Lives of the Apostles as Historical Evidence

There is a considerable amount of historical evidence about the lives of the disciples within the writings of the early Church. Jesus Christ chose the twelve apostles whose role was to confirm by their words of witness and their lives the reality of the life, death, and resurrection of Him. He commanded these fishermen and tax collectors to abandon their previous lives and follow Him to a destiny beyond that of any other men in the history of mankind. Two thousand years later, millions of parents still name their sons by the names of the apostles who followed Christ. Jesus' choice of disciples was not based on their previous character or accomplishments; none of them had risen to prominence in the society of Israel in the first century. It is interesting to note that Jesus did not choose the type of men most modern leaders would choose for such a task as preaching a revolutionary message to the world. None of the twelve disciples were religious scholars or professional men of distinction before Christ chose them. None of the disciples were wealthy; none were natural leaders within the Jewish society during that first century. None of the personal qualities of the disciples at the time Jesus chose them suggested that they would ultimately prove to be great men of faith who would stand the test of time. However, after three-and-a-half years in the daily presence of Jesus, these men were transformed into great men of God who would stand unflinching against the imperial power of Rome, the greatest power on earth.

Jesus apparently chose His disciples in the same manner that the sculpture Michelangelo chose the rough marble for His projects; because of the possibilities hidden within the uncut stone. A story about Michelangelo tells about a young girl who watched the great sculptor as he produced his masterpiece of King David in his workshop in Rome. As she watched him chisel into the huge block of marble she asked Michelangelo how he knew that the figure of David lay hidden within it. The answer, of course, was that Michelangelo saw in his imagination the possibility of what the marble could reveal if he removed the unnecessary material. Jesus Christ chose His band of disciples, not for what they were in themselves before He met them, but for what they could become after the touch of the Master's Hand.

The Martyrdom of the Apostles

Most of our information about the deaths of the apostles is derived from early church traditions. While ancient tradition is unreliable as to small details, it very seldom contains outright inventions. Eusebius, the most important of the early church historians wrote his history of the early church in A.D. 325. He wrote, "The apostles and disciples of the Savior scattered over the whole world, preached the Gospel everywhere." The Church historian Schumacher researched the lives of the apostles and recounted the history of their martyrdom.

Matthew suffered martyrdom in Ethiopia, killed by a sword wound.

Mark died in Alexandria, Egypt, after being dragged by horses through the streets until dead.

Luke was hanged in Greece as a result of his tremendous preaching to the lost.

John faced martyrdom when he was boiled in a huge basin of boiling oil during a wave of persecution in Rome. However, he was miraculously delivered from death. John was then sentenced to the mines on the prison island of Patmos. He wrote his prophetic Book of Revelation on Patmos. The apostle John was later freed and returned to serve as Bishop of Edessa in modern Turkey. He died as an old man, the only apostle to die peacefully.

Peter was crucified upside down on an x-shaped cross, according to church tradition because he told his tormentors that he felt unworthy to die in the same way that Jesus Christ had died. The tradition of the early Church recorded that as Peter was being led to his crucifixion he was heard to say, "None but Christ, none but Christ."

James the Just, the leader of the church in Jerusalem, was thrown over a hundred feet down from the southeast pinnacle of the Temple when he refused to deny his faith in Christ. When they discovered that he survived the fall, his enemies beat James to death with a fuller's club. This was the same pinnacle where Satan had taken Jesus during the Temptation.

James the Greater, a son of Zebedee, was a fisherman by trade when Jesus called him to a lifetime of ministry. As a strong leader of the church, James was ultimately beheaded at Jerusalem. The Roman officer who guarded James watched amazed as James defended his faith at his trial. Later, the officer walked beside James to the place of execution. Overcome by conviction, he declared his new faith to the judge and knelt beside James to accept beheading as a Christian.

Bartholomew, also known as Nathanael, was a missionary to Asia, in present day Turkey. Bartholomew was martyred for his preaching in Armenia when he was flayed to death by a whip.

Andrew was crucified on an x-shaped cross in Patras, Greece. After being whipped severely by seven soldiers they tied his body to the cross with cords to prolong his agony. His followers reported that, when he was led toward the cross, Andrew saluted it in these words: "I have long desired and expected this happy hour. The cross has been consecrated by the body of Christ hanging on it." He continued to preach to his tormentors for two days until he expired.

The apostle Thomas was stabbed with a spear in India during one of his missionary trips to establish the church in the sub-continent.

Jude, the brother of Jesus, was killed with arrows when he refused to deny his faith in Christ.

Matthias, the apostle chosen to replace the traitor Judas Iscariot, was stoned and then beheaded.

Barnabas, one of the group of seventy disciples, wrote the Epistle of Barnabas. He preached throughout Italy and Cyprus. Barnabas was stoned to death at Salonica.

The apostle Paul was tortured and then beheaded by the Emperor Nero at Rome in A.D. 67. Paul endured a lengthy imprisonment which allowed him to write his many epistles to the churches he had formed throughout the Roman Empire. These letters, which taught many of the foundational doctrines of Christianity, form a large portion of the New Testament.

The details of the martyrdom of the disciples and apostles are found in traditional early church sources. These traditions were recounted in the writings of the church fathers and the first official church history, Ecclesiastical History, written by the historian Eusebius in A.D. 325. Although we can not at this time verify every detail historically, the universal belief of the early Christian writers was that each of the apostles had faced martyrdom faithfully without denying their faith in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Another great leader of the early Church was Polycarp who was martyred at the age of 86 by being burned alive before an audience of thousands in the amphitheatre in the city of Smyrna. When the Roman governor demanded that the aged bishop deny his faith in Jesus and worship the emperor to save his life. Polycarp refused the invitation to save his life by blaspheming Christ and denying his faith in these timeless words, "Eighty and six years have I served Him, and He never did me wrong; and how can I now blaspheme my King who has saved me?"

Henry G. Bosch described the enormous influence of Jesus of Nazareth on the course of western history, philosophy, theology, and society. Bosch wrote:

Socrates taught for 40 years, Plato for 50, Aristotle for 40, and Jesus for only 3. Yet the influence of Christ's 3-year ministry infinitely transcends the impact left by the combined 130 years of teaching from these men who were among the greatest philosophers of all antiquity; yet, some of the finest paintings of Raphael, Michelangelo, and Leonardo da Vinci received their inspiration from Him.

Jesus wrote no poetry; but Dante, Milton, and scores of the worlds greatest poets were inspired by Him. Jesus composed no music; still Haydn, Handel, Beethoven, Bach, and Mendelssohn reached their highest perfection of melody in the hymns, symphonies, and oratories they composed in His praise. Every sphere of human greatness has been enriched by this humble Carpenter of Nazareth.

Lou Engle sees Abortion and his Commission as Wilberforce saw his

2009-01-05T18:00:00.000-08:00

The Unborn Still Cry Out

How should pro-life Christians view the 2008 election?

Many people in America, including some of my best friends, would probably not agree with what I say here. Most have been conciliatory regarding the results of the recent presidential election and have counseled unity and peace.

But I stand by the words of Dutch politician, journalist and theologian Abraham Kuyper: “When principles that run against your deepest convictions begin to win the day, then battle is your calling, and peace has become sin; you must, at the price of dearest peace, lay your convictions bare before friend and enemy, with all the fire of your faith.”

I have not been afforded the option of debating politics and reason around election results. Five years ago while I was reading the biography of British statesman William Wilberforce, God supernaturally apprehended me and called me to raise up a prayer movement for the ending of abortion, and I am under divine restraint to obey that commission.

I understand my friends’ conciliatory responses, but when I consider that 50 million babies have been killed since the ruling handed down in Roe v. Wade that legalized abortion and that the incoming president plans to ensure the ongoing legality of this march of death, I cannot live in peace. It is easy to counsel peace when you are not the object of the abortionist’s forceps and scalpel. But for me, peace with the legal killing of unborn children becomes sin, and battle is my calling.

Hundreds of years of equivocation over the issue of slavery brought us into a divine collision with heaven’s justice in the civil war, and I believe this nation is headed toward another collision. Why? Because much of the church has for years halted between two opinions over abortion. In this election we have bowed the knee to Baal and chosen prosperity over posterity.

Wilberforce argued concerning the murderous slave trade of his time: “There is a principle above everything that is political, and when I reflect on the command that says, ‘thou shall do no murder’ believing the authority to be divine, how can I dare to set out any reasoning of my own against it? And when we think of eternity and of the future consequences of all human conduct, what is there in this life that could make any man contradict the dictates of his conscience, the principles of justice, the laws of religion, and of God?”

I believe we have reasoned around God’s command, “Thou shall not murder,” in this election. And I believe there are eternal, individual and national consequences that will rest upon us all because of it. None of us can point the finger; the cry for mercy must sound louder now than the cry for change.

In the days of the biblical characters Ahab and Jezebel, the culmination of wickedness came when the government set up altars to Baal, legalizing the sacrifice of children to Molech and sanctioning state-sponsored sexual immorality. Both of these altars were at the forefront of our recent election: the altars of abortion and same-sex marriage.

In electing Barack Obama as president, we have strengthened the first altar of Baal. We have chosen a man with a 100 percent NARAL and Planned Parenthood pro-abortion rating who has promised to pass the Freedom of Choice Act, which would outlaw any interference in providing abortion at will. He has also said he will reverse President Bush’s executive orders on abortion, orders that have prohibited U.S. finances from supporting abortion internationally. Now we will be funding worldwide abortion, thereby incurring further national guilt.

Obama has stated that he wants to make abortion rare, but the executive orders he plans to implement say otherwise. In fact, the language he has used in declaring the plans to make abortion rare is the same type of language that Martin Luther King Jr. decried as gradualism. To King, gradualism always meant never, and so it will be with the ending or limiting of abortion.

With our choice of president, we have also strengthened the second altar of Baal. Obama supported same-sex marriage in the recent ideological battle in California. For those who voted for the marriage amendment in that state and also voted for Obama, take note: You have chosen a man who has promised to appoint judges sympathetic to the gay agenda—the very thing you thought you were voting against.

But I am not in despair. When Ahab and Jezebel rule, God raises up an Elijah company: Yahweh separatist prophets whose allegiance is not to Republican or Democrat, to race or gender, but to the Word of God. God will not turn a deaf ear to 50 million cries from aborted children and the cries from millions of women who have suffered the effects of abortion. If it takes us 50 years to end this thing, as it did Wilberforce to end slavery in England, then so be it.

In May 1789, Wilberforce spoke to the House: “I confess to you so enormous, so dreadful, so irremediable did its (Slave Trade) wickedness appear that my own mind was completely made up for Abolition. … Let the consequences be what they would, I from this time determined that I would never rest until I effected its Abolition.”

Like Wilberforce, Elijah was raised up with a burning zeal to confront an apostate government and a vacillating church. Let this be the spirit of the pro-life revival movement today. No retreating from the battlefield—we must continue the fight.

But how? What can we do to wage the war against abortion in our nation?

We must follow the pattern of Elijah’s revolution. First, carrying a spirit of love, not hate, we must be exceedingly zealous for the Lord. We must allow the crisis to drive us to desperation and a holy passion for God and His purposes. We must shake off materialistic slumber. The future of our children and our society is at stake.

Second, we must think generationally. It became obvious to me during this election that we have lost the next generation to moral relativity.

It took Elijah’s revolution two generations to overthrow the reign of Ahab and Jezebel. We must actively train a new generation of leadership and not entrust the discipleship of our sons and daughters to the morally relativistic professors in our Christian universities. We must raise them in the furnaces of prayer and fasting. We must anoint a generation of Elishas.

Third, we must let this election be a call to prayer and fasting such as we have never seen in America. Abortion is a spiritual battle. The blood of babies is not another sociopolitical issue. Blood fuels the demonic realm, and before heaven it demands a day of reckoning. We must have a spiritual awakening to turn the hearts of this nation—and I believe we will have it if we pray.

As my friend Allen Hood prophesied, “Let it be said that in the days of the rule of President Obama, stadiums were filled with prayer and fasting.” We must raise up a grass-roots prayer and activism movement among the young. Bound4LIFE ( http://www.bound4life.com )is a movement we launched four years ago that is spreading across the country carrying this youth mantle for the ending of abortion.

We must pray for Obama. He is not our enemy. My heart has been going out to him in prayer because racism is raising its ugly head, and he has received many death threats.

Pray for his protection. Pray that God would give him wisdom. If God could change Nebuchadnezzar by haunting him with dreams, He can change Obama. Our mandate is not to curse but to pray for those in authority (see 1 Tim. 2).

Fourth, we must return to the basic commandments of the laws of God for society to flourish. Our pulpits must preach them and train a generation to vote according to them. God’s remedy to the social decline in Malachi’s time was first of all remembering the Law of Moses.

Fifth, men must stretch themselves out in fasting and prayer over their “dead children” and raise them from the dead. The book of Malachi declares that Elijah will come and turn the hearts of the fathers to the children. The church must arise with an explosion of adoptions.

Today, homosexual couples are adopting thousands of children. This is their time and their moment, they believe. Who wants the babies more in America? The pro-life movement must take this on as their main mandate. Every church must adopt a Crisis Pregnancy Center. We must fuel the compassion movement with our finances by raising up pregnant mothers homes.

Finally, we must raise our voices and speak out for righteousness. We must preach it, pray it, prophesy it, praise it and print it until the forces of hell cannot hold back the Word of life.

Of his God-given mandates Wilberforce declared, “God has set before me two great objectives, the abolition of the slave trade and the reformation of morals.” God has set before me two great objectives as well: “God, end abortion, and send revival to America.” Let this be the battle cry of the pro-life movement in America today.

Lou Engle is founder of The Cause USA and co-founder of TheCall, an international prayer and fasting movement.

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