An Examination of Biblical Precepts Involved in Issues at Hand |
Contents:
* Sanctity of Life
*Pagans
and Children *Be
Fruitful and Multiply *War
against Manliness *New
School Prayer *Personal *All lies *Perfect
obedience to Imperfect leaders *Prayer Letter, Joel Saripalli
Introduction:
I must admit that I am like the vast majority of people. We become like those whom we are around. I am now around those who feel that children are God's blessings upon a family. They also believe that home education is a key element in keeping the children in the ways of the Lord.
In the past, I knew these things to be true, for I knew what the Scripture taught, particularly about home education. (While I was still a pastor, I was saying that home education is the first choice, Christian Schools second choice, and locking up in the garage was the third choice.) However, I was not vocal in these things because of my surroundings. I felt many times like a lone voice in the wilderness. However, I did deal with the Scriptures in these areas through the Examiner, and had some of them republished by Rushdoony. But I was not near as firm nor vocal in my stand as I have become. Being around those committed in the Biblical areas of the family and education, I have become more vocal. Being in a fellowship with other believers who also see these things gives boldness to speak out.
Sanctity of Life
I am going to deal with the abortion issue from a different perspective than you have probably heard. Those of you who receive the Examiner know that I enjoy developing overlooked implications of Scripture passages.
Though we all know the facts about abortion, let me give a short overview.
A study released over ten years ago, 1996, found:
ABORTION COMMON AMONG ALL WOMEN EVEN THOSE THOUGHT TO OPPOSE
ABORTION
Women of all different ages, educational levels, racial and ethnic
groups, social and economic classes and religions find it necessary
to have an abortion when faced with accidental pregnancy, shows
a new survey of nearly 10,000 abortion patients conducted by The
Alan Guttmacher Institute in 1994-1995. About half of all U.S.
women will have an abortion at some point in their lives. While
abortion rates among young, unmarried, poor and minority women
are the highest, rates among those of religious, racial and ethnic
groups thought to oppose abortion are high as well. Key findings
include:
two-thirds of women having abortions intend to have children
in the future;
Catholic women have an abortion rate 29% higher than Protestant
women;
one in five women having abortions are born-again or Evangelical
Christians;
single women who live with their partner or have no religious
affiliation are about four times as likely as other women their
age to have an abortion;
nonwhites, women aged 18-24, Hispanics, separated and never-married
women and those who have an annual income of less than $15,000
or have Medicaid are twice as likely as women in the general population
to do so; and,
Hispanic women have a much higher abortion rate than white
women, but their rate is not so high as that of black women. (http://www.guttmacher.org/media/nr/prabort2.html)
In a 1998 article, Why the Christian Right Wages War Against Abortion, Joyce Arthur wrote:
Planned Parenthood of America has estimated that at least 15% of all abortions are performed on conservative Christian women, many of them anti-choice. I've heard first-hand reports from clinics about anti-choice women sneaking into back doors to get abortions, anti-abortion parents making an "exception" for their own teenage daughter, and even anti-choice women screaming things like "You murderers!" while they're on the table having the abortion they demanded. (http://mypage.direct.ca/w/writer/terrorism.html)
Thus we see that back in 1995, at least 15% of abortions were on Christian women. Not only is abortion a scourge among the unsaved, it is also far too common among Evangelical Christians. (Doug Philips, "Women's Role in the Church", points out that adultery, fornication and divorce rates among professing Christians now are almost identical as with the world.)
Let us look a little at the cause of abortions. I believe God's word is clear on two points:
First, the reason for a corrupt society is because of Christian corruption.
Second, in the context of Sanctity of Life Sunday, the Christian attitude toward children is acted out in the abortion mills.
First, the reason for a corrupt society is because of a corrupt Christian society. A commonly used passage is:
2 Chronicles 7:14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
We hear of all kinds of excuses to dismiss this passage as being applicable today. But when it is ignored, we must also ignore:
Galatians 6:7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever
a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
Romans 2:6, To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek
for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life: 8 But unto
them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey
unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, 9 Tribulation and anguish,
upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and
also of the Gentile; 10 But glory, honour, and peace, to every
man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile:
11 For there is no respect of persons with God.
Moreover, Isaiah 24:2 and Jeremiah 5:31 tell us that God gives leaders after the hearts of his people.
There is no way around the fact that the Christian's attitude toward every area of life must be reflected in the general society. When the salt loses its savour and the light goes out, the world fills the void.
Second, in the context of Sanctity of Life Sunday, the Christian's attitude toward children will be acted out in the general society that is, in the abortion mills.
Too many Christians see children as an inconvenience, or we would see many large families with many children, as many as the Lord permits. The Christian's view of children is reflected in the world's view of children, and the world now sees children as at least an inconvenience and at the most, a curse.
Psalms 127
This Psalm is commonly attributed to Solomon, the wisest man to ever live. Psalms 128 is so closely connected with this one that it was also probably written by Solomon. (I wish I had time to develop both Psalms, but as usual for any preacher, I have too much to say, and too little time to say it.)
Observe:
1) three of the five verses of this psalm deal with the joys of having a lot of children. So we can conclude that the basic teaching of this psalm deals with the glories of a large family. It also deals with the necessity of the Lord building and keeping the family.
2) Solomon's psalm here ends with Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate.
Solomon's Book of Ecclesiastes sums up both from personal experience and from careful observation, that there is nothing but vanity in the life and labors of man. Solomon comes to the conclusion that there is nothing better for a man in this life than that he should become less extreme or intense in his cares and labors, enjoy what he has, fears God and keep his commandments to this end he directs all that is debated in Ecclesiastes, Ecclesiastes 12:13.
Psalms 128:1 continues the theme of 127, opening with the whole duty of man is to fear god and keep his commandments. Chapter 128 goes on to tell us that the blessings of God of a large family which result in many children, and being able to see grandchildren, v. 6.
A logical conclusion we can make here is that Solomon himself said that a house full of children is better than a house full of gold and silver. How many Christians see children as an inconvenience. They see children as a hindrance to their being able to obtain the good things of life. They see children as a hindrance to being able to live a life style not possible with many children.
We must conclude that because Christians see children as an inconvenience, the world sees them as a curse to be killed at a rate of 1.3 million a year.
3) Psalms 127:2, He giveth his beloved sleep is understood by Thomas Brooks (1608-1680) to mean:
It is a peculiar rest, it is a rest peculiar to sons, to saints, to heirs, to beloved ones. "So he gives his beloved rest", or as the Hebrew hath it, dearling, or dear beloved, quiet rest, without care or sorrow. The Hebrew word akv, shena, is written with a, a quiet dumb letter, which is not usual, to denote the more quietness and rest. This rest is a crown that God sets only upon the head of saints; it is a gold chain that he only puts about his children's necks; it is a jewel that he only hangs between his beloved's breasts: it is a flower that he only sticks in his darlings' bosoms. This rest is a tree of life that is proper and peculiar to the inhabitants of that heavenly country; it is children's bread, and shall never be given to dogs.
Keeping the verse within the context of the chapter, which deals with the blessings of many children, it implies that many godly children will bring rest to the parents in their old age.
Example:
My first wife's aunt had 9 children. The main thing I remember about her was that when it came time, all of her grandchildren got together and built her a debt free house where she could live on her own, as they took turns looking in on her.
My present wife had 3 children, and each of the three have a "quiver not yet full" of children21 total and counting. Her son has 6 thus far. He and his children are looking forward to when his grandparents can come live with them.
On the other end, my first wife's mother only had one child, so when it came time when her mother could not live on her own, her mother became dependant upon those who were not even related to her. She certainly had no rest in her children in her old age.
Thus, it was the many children, not the state nor insurance policy, that gave the aunt rest in her old age. God's welfare system for a Christian's old age is to have many children.
4) Psalms 127:3, how is the house of v. 1 built up? By leaving many descendants to keep our name and family alive upon the earth. Without the many descendants, what is the purpose of accumulating wealth? Why build a house if there is no one to keep the house after we are gone?
Spurgeon tells us that,
The great Napoleon, with all his sinful care on this point, could not create a dynasty. Hundreds of wealthy persons would give half their estates if they could hear the cry of a babe born of their own bodies. Children are a heritage which Jehovah himself must give, or a man will die childless, and thus his house will be unbuilt. (Treasury of David.)
5) And the fruit of the womb is his reward, or a reward from God. We could read it, is his the Lord's reward. Despite the prevalent thought of our day, even among Christians, God gives children not as a penalty nor as a burden, but as a favor.
No doubt the happiest moments for my wife, Bettie, since we have been married is to have all of her grandchildren around her (21 now, all under 12), which does not happen often since it is so difficult for her children to travel with their large families. Yes, it is close to chaos when they all get together, but they are basically well-behaved for young children. She does not see them as her old age security, but she certainly sees them as God's blessings upon her and her first marriage. She sees her grandchildren as the fruit of the womb, and praises God for them. She has said publically that the biggest mistake she and her husband made was to decide to stop having children after the three. Years later, they confessed that sin to their children.
Again, quoting Spurgeon:
They are a token for good if men know how to receive them, and educate them. They are "doubtful blessings" only because we are doubtful persons. Where society is rightly ordered children are regarded, not as an incumbrance, but as an inheritance; and they are received, not with regret, but as a reward. If we are over crowded in England, and so seem to be embarrassed with too large an increase, we must remember that the Lord does not order us to remain in this narrow island, but would have us fill those boundless regions which wait for the axe and the plough. Yet even here, with all the straits of limited incomes, our best possessions are our own dear offspring, for whom we bless God every day.
When expecting their fifth child, Bettie's oldest child, Jennie Chancie, was in crowded grocery store with her children. A Mexican lady came up to her and seeing her expecting another child with already with a good group of children, the lady asked if they were all hers. When Jennie said yes, the lady patted Jennie on the stomach and said, "You are a very blessed lady".
Latino Catholics see children as a blessing from God. Why cannot we who claim to believe Scriptures far more than do Catholics see children as a blessing from God?
It is sad that American Christians see it just the opposite, as they say in a derogatory manner, "Don't you know where babies come from?"
Christians see a large family as an inconvenience that prevents them from pursuing the lusts of their own hearts, rather than a blessing from God to be trained up in the ways of the Lord. The result is that the world around us sees children as a curse to be killed before they are born.
Illustration: We attended Bettie's 50th year college reunion in 2007, King College in Bristol TN. Of course, we met many of her former class mates. One couple stood out to us particularly. They said that as time passed, they "woke up" and found they had no children. They were not at all sad about that fact. In fact, were telling of the "joys" of being able to live their life together without the incumbrance of children.
I saw in a magazine a picture of a family taken in the early 1900s. It was a super large family with parents, children, grand children and great grand children. I did not take time to count all who were in it, but if there were less than 150 in the picture, I would be surprised.
Yes, Americans of the past, particularly farm families, had large families. Look at the old farm houses as you drive through the country.
But what happened to the Christian large family mentality? Where did we lose our large families of children to the world? Statist education made pagans out of the children, indoctrinated them with the world's philosophy and with the myth of overpopulation, and career women. Statist education made them consumer oriented. Being consumer oriented, they want nothing to hinder their consumption of various things that provide the good life, and children hinder the "good life".
Career women quite contrary to the word of God. I have been quite surprised at the pastors who will go part fellowship over finer points of doctrine, even grey areas, as they see them, yet will not stand against clearly unscriptural issues, such as career women and statist education. (Titus 2, Deuteronomy 6, Psalms 78, all of the Proverbs & Ephesians 5.) Strange indeed.
Maybe moms do not have to work outside of the home, but the parents have been convinced by the enemy that public education is best for their children. The result has been the removal of Christianity from society, indoctrination about a population explosion, over-population, global warming, the glories of socialism, and a society based upon the consumer mentality. (This is a message all in itself, which we will not go into now.)
Our society can be reclaimed if Christians will again see the blessing of children, and the requirement to give a truly Christian education in their homes.
6) Psalms 127:3, children are an heritage of the Lord implies that children are an heritage belonging to the Lord, given to parents in trust, to be trained in the ways of the Lord.
We must stand against the world's view of children. We must encourage those who can to have large families, and to trust God to supply their needs. If children are an heritage of the Lord, then there is no reason to be worried about God's supply for our needs. Adam Clarke said, "He who gave them will feed them."
Psalms 37:25 I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.
Note that children are an heritage of the Lord. Our materialistic society, even among Christians, believes that gold, silver, houses and land are the true heritage to be passed down from generation to generation.
Led by pastors, we must rejoice and joyfully welcome new babies into our families, into the families of Christian friends and into our gospel churches. Pastors and people must make parents feel they have the entire church behind them as they carry out God's purpose of marriage, procreation and populating the earth with many godly generations.
Do the math. Within three generations, Christians can take over our nation simply with the sheer numbers of large families, say 8 children per Christian family. However, those children must be faithfully trained in the ways of the Lord, which is where Christian home education plays such an important role.
I speak from experience: The church I started pastoring in 1983 had a Christian school when I went there. Less than half the children were our church children, and the church considered the school an outreach into the community. The situation was terrible. The second year I was there, we changed the requirements to children of faithful church members, not necessarily our own church, and over half the children were then our church children.
But that still did not solve the problem. The wrong kids were getting evangelized, so we shut it down completely, and encouraged them to go to a Christian school about 20 miles away. However, there has been only about 1 out of 5 or more students from that school that did not go to the devil, which was a better average than our Linden school had. There are exceptions, but a vast majority of Christian School kids go the same route as the public school children the way of the pagan world.
Certainly, not every Christian couple will be blessed by God with a quiver full, or they may see the importance of a quiver full too late to do anything about it, but every Christian family can encourage, pray for, support and help those couples who are blessed by God with many children. New babies must be accepted and treated for what they are GIFTS FROM GOD.
A real problem, however, is that Christian women, by choice and not by dire circumstances, work outside the home, so they do not have time to fulfill their Biblical responsibility to help other Christian women who have many children in their times of need.
7) V. 4. As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth.
I have a pastor friend with 8 children, and another with 10. They send their older, single daughters out into the community to help families in need. They effectively shoot forth their arrows into the heart of the world.
Note: children of the youth. God commonly encourages early marriages.
There was a businessman in the church where I was on the staff in Maryland in the early 70s. When I met him and his family, he had a crop dusting business, as well as several hundred acres of "truck garden" in NJ. He even purchased a helicopter to fly back and forth to church, and a DC3 so he could get contracts for spraying forests. He was also "uneducated," dropping out of school after the sixth grade. He married quite young, in his teens. He told me of purchasing his first plane, which he and his wife had to refabric. With his helpmeet's help and encouragement, he became very successful, even in the world's eyes.
A young man should be prepared for his life's work by his late teens, and ready to marry.
18 Let thy fountain be blessed: and rejoice with the wife of thy youth. 19 Let her be as the loving hind and pleasant roe; let her breasts satisfy thee at all times; and be thou ravished always with her love. 20 And why wilt thou, my son, be ravished with a strange woman, and embrace the bosom of a stranger? (Proverbs 5)
Nevertheless, to avoid fornication, let every man have his own wife, and let every woman have her own husband. (1 Corinthians 7:2.)
The McClintock & Strongs Cyclopedia implies under the Marriage entry that when a young man is old enough to be strongly influenced by thoughts of being with a girl, he is old enough to seriously start seeking a wife. (Marriage of 14 & 15 year olds was not at all uncommon even in the early days of this nation.)
Wardlaw says that "Where there are the means at all of anything like comfortable subsistence, there is not a more desirable preservative from personal and diffusive vice, than early wedlock."
Charles Bridges says on Proverbs 5:19, "Tender, well-regulated, domestic affection is the best defense against the vagrant desires of unlawful passions."
Throughout the Old Testament period, marriage was regarded as the indispensable duty of every man. There was no hindrance seen in marriage to reaching the highest degree of holiness. In the interval between the Old and New Testament periods, a spirit of asceticism (strict self-discipline, avoiding any sensory pleasures or luxuries) evolved, probably in response to surrounding pagan influences of unbridled lusts. Celibacy is strongly spoken against in Colossians 2:16-23, and specifically in 1 Timothy 4:3.
Writing in 1876, Alfred Edersheim tells us that in Christ's day, ordinarily a young man was expected to wed at the age of 16 or 17, with 20 being the upper limits, unless he was absorbed in study. Still, it was thought better even to neglect study that to remain single. (Sketches of Jewish Social Life, Mothers, Daughters, and Wives in Israel, p. 147. Or, chapter 9, Online Bible.)
Again, quoting Edersheim (p. 105)
There is a passage in the Mishnah (Aboth. v. 21), which quaintly maps out and, as it were, labels the different periods of life according to their characteristics... "At five years of age, reading of the Bible; at ten years, learning the Mishnah; at thirteen years, bound to the commandments; at fifteen years, the study of the Talmud; at eighteen years, marriage; at twenty, the pursuit of trade or business (active life); at thirty years, full vigour; at forty, maturity of reason; at fifty, of counsel; at sixty, commencement of agedness; at seventy, grey age; at eighty, advanced old age; at ninety, bowed down; at a hundred, as if he were dead and gone, and taken from the world."
What does God say about the matter?
And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him. (Genesis 2:18.)
We understand from Adam's example in the Garden, with extremely few exceptions, that a young man is not equipped for his life callingoccupationwithout a wife. He needs the wife of his youth to help him continue his study, or encourage him as he starts in his occupation. It is common to read of successful men who had wives who said, "Honey, though it didn't work this time, don't give up. I am with you all the way!"
Is this not what Solomon said:
Live joyfully with the wife whom thou lovest all the days of the life of thy vanity, which he hath given thee under the sun, all the days of thy vanity: for that is thy portion in this life, and in thy labour which thou takest under the sun. (Ecclesiastes 9:9.)
Obviously, we do not have here instructions to marry motivated by youthful lusts. Rather, those lusts are to be brought under control by God's Spirit. (2 Timothy 2:22.) What we do have is encouragement to work toward maturity for a godly marriage as soon as is possible and practical. As we saw above, such a marriage should be a young man's number one goal.
This writer can attest to the fact that a man later in life, 30 or so, is pretty much independent, can care for himself, and is saddled with bad habits that can cause problems.
8) Ver. 5. Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them
Obviously, a large number of children means a large number of trials, and very hard work, but it also means a large number of joys.
The eldest grandchildren in Betties three children's families pretty much take care of the household duties, the oldest being 11.
9) They shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate.
The picture I saw with a multitude of family members in it who would want to cross even one of those family members, if the family was close knit? Of course, our mobile society has scattered families world wide.
A lady in our church in Linden was from a family of 12 children, and almost all of them settled in the Crawfordsville area. (She is now close to 90.) So there are cousins by the dozens, all with good reputations. Thus, the family is very will known in the community. One of the nephews became upset with the political climate, so he ran for State Representative from his district. He was total politically unknown and, to everyone's surprise, came in third in the race with very minimum expenditure. He then ran for local County Council, and won it hands down.
Why? Because he came from a large family, well known in the gates, and now he is helps control the gates of the enemy.
And we must also apply this psalm to a large number of spiritual children. Converts are also the heritage of the Lord, and the Lord's reward for the Christian's hard work and travail.
Just three generations of Christians with large families families who will train the children in the ways of the Lord can take over a community and the nation itself.
Is it any wonder that the enemy must work to keep Christian families small by whatever means possible? He not only uses pressure from expected sources, the world, flesh and the devil, but he uses pressure from the very source that should be encouraging and supporting large families, the Christian community. "Don't you know how many children are enough?" "You need a rest." "Enough is enough."
However, even as Christians might have large families, they many times turn them over to the state to be raised as you would raise a bunch of hogs. The result is that the children turn out to be a curse, for they have been raised by the Greek pagans. Thus, if the children are going to be left to the State to be trained in Greek paganism, then the fewer children the better.
Sanctity of Life Sunday. It is a day to remember the Roe v. Wade decision that "legalized" the murder of unborn babies in the US. The US has exported its murdering ways throughout the world by financing Family Planning.
Yes, we as Christians must stand against murder of the unborn. However, Abortion is the logical implication of the Christian's attitude toward children. Many Christians see children as an inconvenience that prevents their pursuit of money and of their personal peace, prosperity and happiness, so they frown on large families. There can be no change in the world's view of Children, resulting in abortion, until there is a change in the Christian's view of children.
What can we do?
First, examine our own attitude toward children. Start believing God, and recognize that children are a blessing only God can give. And the more children in a family, the more that family is blessed by God.
Second, though not every Christian couple will be blessed by God with children, every Christian couple can encourage, pray for, support and help those couples who are blessed by God with many children. That includes helping the mother with many children in her home. Offer your services so the moms can have a break, even if it is a simple break so mom can go grocery shopping without all the children while the fathers earn the living.
Third, new babies must be joyfully accepted and treated for what they are GIFTS FROM GOD.
Fourth, treat the parents of many children as being specially blessed by God.
The world sees children as a curse, many times to be killed. Yet Christians see children as an inconvenience that prevents their pursuit of the good life that can be purchased with two incomes.
How can we expect the world's view of children to change when we are unable to see the blessings of God in large families, particularly when the children are being trained in the ways of the Lord?
Last year (2008), the Lord added 6 babies to our church in Hyderabad. It is a blessing to see God adding to the church in more ways than one. We pray for the families and for the children that the Lord would give them grace to be raised in the nurture and admonition of our God and Savior.
They say that every 5 minutes - 67 babies are born in the U.S., 274 are born in China and 395 in India. The population in India, is no doubt, the fastest growing in the world! This is mainly due to the traditional family values that our culture still upholds. The Government is trying to influence and even discourage families from having more than one child, but thankfully, there are no forced abortions. The average Indian family still has 4 or more children per home.
The end result of the above mentioned statistics is that the 25% of India's population with the highest IQ's is greater than the total population of the United States. There is strength in numbers. And yes, there is still plenty of room for more on God's good earth.
It is sad indeed when the heathen, the Hindus and the Muslims, regard life and choose to have more children in order to keep their traditions, their religions and their family names alive; whereas, on the other hand, in the so-called "Christian" culture of the west, the family is diminishing. And this they call "Pro-Choice." Choosing to become extinct, I guess.
In India, the Hindus and the Muslims would fight to the end
in order to uphold their family values and size. They see the
family as the nucleus of society and know the importance of bringing
up children in their own beliefs. Oh, how Christians need to realize
their obligation to do the same!
With the birth control and abortions that are rampant in many
parts of the world, it is mainly because most people don't see
the "big picture." They only bother with what affects
them and how it affects them. When we approach life with this
attitude, we are not far from making ourselves extinct.
Abortion is definitely not a friend' to mankind. I am reminded of Proverbs 16:25 when I think of all the babies being murdered in this world. "There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death."
I pray that this year, those who claim to be Christians, would stop and look at the "bigger picture" and know that there is a Sovereign God who knows how to take care of His creation. The words of our Lord Jesus in His Sermon on the Mount are apt even for today Matthew 6:25-30: "I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?"
Finally 1 Peter 4:19 "Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator." May God bless the children and those who are striving to bring up godly families! For that is the hope of the world as time moves on. The legacy that we leave behind.
Editor's note:
How sad: Pagan Hindus and Muhammadans care more about having children to carry on their false and corrupt fath, and they will move heaven and earth to keep their children in the faith, while so many professed Christians seem totally unconcerned about having children. Then how many of those who do have children will make the sacrifice to rear them in the faith? Rather, they let the state train them up in the way the state wants them to go, anti-Christ humanism, or a "child care provider" take over their responsibility as parents.
Why do not Christians have the same love for their families, faith and children as do the Hindus and Muhammadans? Obviously, the pagan love is quite contrary to Christian love, but the fact remains there is generally more family concern in the pagans than in the Christians.
Review by Bettie Need. Reprint from TBE, Feb, 2004
by Nancy Campbell
The January 25, 2004 edition of The Washington Post contained an interesting section about population growth among Muslims in Europe:
Western Europe's 15 million-strong Muslim community is growing in both power and size. The birth rate among Muslims in Europe is three times that of non-Muslims. While the Muslim population could double by 2015, the non-Muslim population is expected to shrink by 3.5 percent. And this is not a community that lives in the shadows. As it grows, it is also flexing its political muscle. France's Muslim population... numbers upwards of 6 million, or 10 percent of the population. Within 20 years, according to some estimates, half of all people under 18 in the Netherlands will be Muslim.
I had just finished reading Nancy Campbell's book on the Genesis Mandate when I spotted the article above. My first thought was, "Wow! What if the Christian population were increasing like the Muslims?"
Over my lifetime, I have seen Christians compromise the Genesis mandate to "Be fruitful and multiply" by limiting the size of their families, and some even deciding not to have any children at all. Many of the reasons for not having children include: not wanting to bring children into this evil world; not being able afford to provide for so many children; unable to afford to send them all to college; wanting to get a good job and a house first; fearing that they could not handle more than one or two children the wife would have a nervous breakdown, etc.
Nancy Campbell powerfully shows through the Bible that God is dogmatically pro-family, considering children a source of great blessing, not only to their parents and family, but also to the whole world.
P.201: When we refuse to have more children, we deprive many people. We deprive:
1. God. This is most serious. We deprive Him of the purposes and plans that He has for the children that He destined to be born.
2. Eternity. God wants to fill His house. He not only wants to fill the earth, but He wants to fill His eternal kingdom. We fill eternity with those who are born on earth. [that are saved, Ed.]
3. Ourselves. We deprive ourselves of being blessed by God. Every child is a blessing. Once we receive the blessing of a child from God, we wonder how we could ever live without that child. When Onan destroyed his sperm, he was deprived of being in the lineage of Jesus. Judah then received this privilege in his place.
4. Grandparents. We deprive our parents of their "glory and honor" which are grandchildren. Read Proverbs 17:6. The Living Bible translation says, "An old man's grandchildren are his crowning glory." Why should we deprive our parents of their reward and glory in their older age?
5. Our Children. We deprive our present children of more brothers and sisters. Children love to have more children in the family. They love to have another baby brother or sister. I often sadly think of the brothers and sisters that I could have had. More brothers and sisters are always a blessing. If my parents had been willing to have more children, not only would I be more blessed, but also my children would have more uncles and aunts. If my siblings had trusted God for more children, my children would be blessed with more cousins, and I would have more nieces and nephews. Remember, God wants our families to be "like a flock."
(In large families, there are fewer opportunities for children to be self-centered and spoiled. Each one has to share with others, and has greater opportunities to learn selflessness.)
6. Our Church. The church today would be fifty to one hundred percent stronger if we, the people of God, had not limited the godly seed. There would be more apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, and evangelists.
7. The World. We deprive the world of the blessings of a godly seed. We deprive the world of being illuminated with light. We deprive the world of being "salted." We deprive the world of more godly young people and men and women. We deprive the world of more godly mothers and fathers who will build strong families that will build a strong nation.
If the Muslims are growing in population and taking increasing power in the world, why not Christians? After all, God gave Christians the mandate to "be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth... and have dominion over the earth."
"When God spoke to the children of Israel, He did not speak only to their generation, but always included future generations."( p. 94) It is sad that most in our generation think only of the present, and do not consider building for the future. The Humanists have had a long range plan of taking dominion of our world with their worldview through the education system. Why should not Christians obey God's mandate and fill the earth with godly offspring as He desires?
By abdicating our responsibility to obey God's Genesis Mandate, we are allowing the Muslims and others to populate the world with their pagan offspring.
Estrogen
Estrogens (U.S., otherwise oestrogens or strogens) are a group of steroid compounds, named for their importance in the estrous cycle, and functioning as the primary female sex hormone.
Estrogens are used as part of some oral contraceptives, in estrogen replacement therapy of postmenopausal women, and in hormone replacement therapy for transwomen. ["Changing" males to females.]
Like all steroid hormones, estrogens readily diffuse across the cell membrane; inside the cell, they interact with estrogen receptors. Additionally, estrogens have been shown to activate a G protein-coupled receptor, GPR30. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
Estrogen's place in the war against manliness:
To keep from being inconvenienced by children, how many Christian women take the "pill"? The pill is made up of estrogen, as is hormone replacement therapy. (My first wife used that therapy. After she got breast cancer, which can be "motivated" by estrogen, we asked the doctor, and he admitted that cancer was a possible side effect of that therapy.)
Though the fact is well hidden from Americans, the estrogen from the "pill" and from the therapy has made its way "big time" into the water supply. As we see below, the estrogen stays in the water supply, even in the rain. (Why will not the radical environmentalists mention that estrogen is one of the most dangerous of pollutants?)
The result? An overabundance of estrogen intake by all. Estrogen pollution (soy also has an abundant of estrogen) results in increased breast cancer and the feminazation of boys and men.
Thus, not only do Christians generally despise children, but in their effort to avoid children with the "pill," they are doing their part to destroy manhood in America. With soy products and estrogen being forced upon the male population, is it any wonder that sodomy is a growing "curse" against men and boys? No doubt some males are more sensitive to estrogen than are others. Thus, those sensitive ones are telling the truth when they say they feel like a woman trapped in a man's body, understanding that estrogen is used as a "sex-change" hormone. (One of the men in our church is extremely sensitive to MSG. He can eat the same thing I eat that contains MSG; I am not affected, but the MSG will make him sick.)
[I see no need to reinvent the wheel, so I reproduce this older article. Though outdated, it is still good, and to the point. Things are far worse now]
Japan makes most of our birth control pills. Japan doesn't use birth control pills. The estrogen from birth control pills ends up in our water supply, evaporates right along with normal water evaporation, rains back into our water supply, and just continues to accumulate. I think this is why some American "men" [read: feminists] act more like women than women:
Sperm count decreases from 113 million per ml in 1938 to 66 million per ml in 1990. Male patients at a fertility clinic on the edge of London were more likely to have fewer, less active sperm if they drank water from the Thames Water company than if they drank water from outside London.
The drinking-water coming through the taps in London is reputed to have been through the system (including the toilet) 16 times before it makes it to the sea. And they call that progress and science - JAH.
1 Timothy 5:20 O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane [and] vain babblings, and OPPOSITIONS OF SCIENCE (knowledge) FALSELY SO CALLED: 21 Which some professing [to have] have erred concerning the faith. Grace [be] with thee.
Our science, so called, is killing us.
* Estrogen causes memory loss in women.
* Estrogen lowers IQ of women.
*Exposure to excess estrogenic compounds can cause developmental and reproductive problems in both sexes, but especially males.
* Declines in sperm counts might be occurring because of a complex interference with hormones involving the hypothalamus in the brain and the pituitary gland.
* Contraceptive pill ethinyloestradiol causes male fish to behave physiologically like females.
* Endocrine disruptors are chemicals suspected of interfering with the normal functioning of sex hormones in humans.
* Extra estrogen causes a 32% higher risk of breast cancer.
* Compounds may persist within an individual or a population, or they may persist globally.
* Average body weight of Americans increases almost 30 pounds.
Warring Against Ourselves En Route To Banning Yo-yos
I note without surprise that we wage war not just on Islamic terrorists, but on little boys who play cops-and-robbers. Yes. Listen:
(CNSNews.com, March 20):
"From California to New Jersey, public schools are banning the children's game of 'cops and robbers' and threatening students with expulsion. For example, at Lewis Elementary School in Fort Irwin, California, one father removed his nine-year-old son from class after the school principal threatened to expel the boy if he didn't stop playing cops and robbers on the playground."
Sheer idiocy. But there is more.
"[We have] suspended play when they're using imaginary weapons until the guidelines can be developed to help the staff differentiate between dangerous and imaginary play." This pearl of lucent sanity from Gary Thomas, the District Superintendent, who doesn't know the difference between "imaginary" and "imaginative."
This rigid, hostile, puritanical control of little boys is now national policy. Very, very bad, cops and robbers. It could be worse, though. Little boys might play Cowboys and Injuns. (They certainly couldn't call it that. Perhaps "Genderless Animal Care Technicians and Preternaturally Noble At-One-With-Nature Role Models" would do.)
One laughs, having no recourse, but it isn't funny. There is at work here something somber and ugly. It isn't just the schools. The country is eating itself, as if it had an autoimmune disease, as if undergoing cultural apoptosis. The political classes, using the minorities as bludgeons, and appeals to virtue as pretexts, seek to eliminate boyhood, the pursuit of excellence, the rewards of achievement, sexual identity, the family, religion, standards of honesty and civility, and personal responsibility.
Half-educated teachers practicing playground Stalinism are just a part of it, one front in a larger war.
What do we think we are doing?
It isn't politics as usual. Nor is it liberalism. In my lifetime, liberals have wanted to end apartheid, allow women to become chemists if they chose, ensure equal opportunity, permit the Pill, guarantee decent treatment of farm labor, and tone down a sometimes puritanical morality. None of this is evil?
European nations have embodied most of these ideas without ill effects. Practice has fallen short of theory, as happens in politics. Measures have perhaps been taken too far or not far enough. Civilized politics consists largely in fine-tuning the reasonable. Yet it hasn't been evil. [http://jahtruth.net/politics.htm]
Current policy has become a twisted caricature of reasonable impulse. Affirmative action, an understandable if ill-advised idea, has led to the sclerotic hierarchies of a permanent caste system. Welfare has produced an eternal underclass. To ensure that things be decided without regard to race, creed, color, sex, or national origin, we insist that nothing be decided except according to race, creed, color..
To raise blacks, we lower academic standards for whites. Being against violence, we let Hollywood bathe children endlessly in moist brains-on-the-ceiling violence, treated with loving sadism. Then with an almost prurient squeamishness, we expel kids for playing "violent" boy games -- meanwhile encouraging girls to go into combat.
The nation has become a milkshake of confusion, hostility, and sexual antagonism, always disguised as something else. Note that while the schools punish little boys for playing soldier, adventure movies now routinely show women slugging men, kicking them in the crotch, or becoming naval commandos. The opposition isn't to violence, but to masculinity. [http://jahtruth.net/men.htm]
We become a nation of unmen and half-women. A man who publicly worries because a child says "bang," and then calls the police, must have painful problems of sexual identity. A normal adult who sees a boy doing something he shouldn't, which does not include playing cops and robbers, says, "Bobby, stop it." A male who can't do this, who has to have police support and sends the child for psychiatric treatment, has something wrong with him. So does a society that permits it.
The Soviet Union placed dissidents in mental institutions and drugged them into conformity. We do it to our children. The difference is?
In the campaign of cultural self-mutilation, stated motives are seldom real motives. The news media lavish attention on child-molesting by Catholic clergy, while simultaneously advocating acceptance of homosexuality in Scoutmasters. A contradiction? No. They aren't against homosexual clergy because they oppose pederasty, but because they dislike Catholicism. They do not [sic] want homosexual Scoutmasters because they favor pederasty, but because they don't like the Boy Scouts. [http://jahtruth.net/darth.htm]
If memory serves, the Scouts when I was one long ago said that a Scout should be: Trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent. Does that not have a sun-lit, Fifties-ish, Normanrockwellian sanity that is a total reproach to our ghetto zeitgeist? A retro wholesomeness that makes the political classes cringe? [http://jahtruth.net/politics.htm]
The desire to treat homosexuals decently was perhaps a manifestation of liberalism. To force the children of people you don't like into intimate association with homosexuals is a manifestation of hostility. Or are homosexual Scoutmasters thought to have a restraint that we deny in Catholic clergy?
On and on it goes. Are we nuts?
All of this is of course done in the name of this or that moral imperative justice, equality, fairness, what have you. The country reels under the onslaught of malignant goodness. But do the metaclasses seek to put women in combat because they think women want to be in combat or because they detest the military, hate its conservatism and (once) unapologetic masculinity, and want to humiliate it?
The unspoken agenda to bring down the former United States as a cultural entity sluices through metagovernmental policy. Do they truly like blacks, or merely want to shove them down the throats of the hated white Europeans? To judge by policy rather than protestation, the political class holds blacks in contempt. Note that racial policy invariably assumes that blacks are helpless, shiftless, require hand-feeding, and cannot be expected to achieve. Our managers simply use them as a weapon for destroying the society.
All of this ties into the diffuse anger that eats away at the country. We are not a happy people. Racial animosity runs deep. Blacks don't like whites don't like Latinos. The hostility of women toward men corrodes society. The breakup of the family leaves children angry at they aren't sure what. It adds up. Over years one sees the public mood change. Road rage is rage expressed on the road, not caused by traffic. More and more I see people walking against street lights, deliberately forcing cars to stop. Manners deteriorate.
I think we're on the way out.
Posted May 25, 2003 by Fred Reed, www.fredoneverything.com
Now I sit me down in school
Where praying is against the rule
For this great nation under God
Finds mention of Him very odd.
If Scripture now the class recites,
It violates the Bill of Rights.
And anytime my head I bow
Becomes a Federal matter now.
Our hair can be purple, orange or green,
That's no offense; it's a freedom scene.
The law is specific, the law is precise.
Prayers spoken aloud are a serious vice.
For praying in a public hall
Might offend someone with no faith at all.
In silence alone we must meditate,
God's name is prohibited by the state.
We're allowed to cuss and dress like freaks,
And pierce our noses, tongues and cheeks..
They've outlawed guns, but FIRST the Bible.
To quote the Good Book makes me liable.
We can elect a pregnant Senior Queen,
And the 'unwed daddy,' our Senior King.
It's 'inappropriate' to teach right from wrong,
We're taught that such 'judgments' do not belong.
We can get our condoms and birth controls,
Study witchcraft, vampires and totem poles.
But the Ten Commandments are not allowed,
No word of God must reach this crowd.?
It's scary here I must confess,
When chaos reigns the school's a mess.
So, Lord, this silent plea I make:
Should I be shot; My soul please take!
Amen
Seeing as how we did our last hard copy not long ago, not much has taken place since.
The visit with the folks in AZ was very good. I was able to meet a good number of friendly, godly and large families. Sadly, the AZ opportunity did not work out.
My wife had an intern with us for about 10 weeks. She, Cadie, was 17, wanting to learn pattern making. She got that and "so much more": gardening, canning, cider making (someone gave us an abundance of "organic" apples from their old apple orchardwe did not die because it was not pasteurized), housework, sewing and pattern making. Two more young ladies are looking to come as their time permits. See http://www.practicallyprettydesign.com
We were able to go see Bettie's youngest daughter and their 7 children in Ohio between Christmas and New Years. We plan to go see her oldest daughter and their 8 children at the end of January.
Surprisingly, we have not had much snow here on our mountain. It seems that the Allegheny mountain range west of us deflects the storms north and east of us. The Eastern Centinental Divide is maybe 50 miles West of us. Even the east side of the Allegheny mountains, about 40 miles east, has received more snow than we have. Several times this winter, I-66 coming west out of DC, on the other side of the Allegheny from us, has had some very hazardous driving conditions. But it has been windy and quite cold several times. I am sure thankful for "global warming," or it would have been really cold.
God blessed us with 3 new grandchildren in 2008, and we have been able to see them all.
Gold and stuff
I read the other day that the gold mines cannot keep up with the demand. The South Africa mine it quoted said they could not get enough people to work 24/7. They also pointed out that because of the shortage, they have stopped filling bullion orders, and are minting only Krugerands.
I sure do not know how in the world they are doing it, but the price of the metals is being kept artificially low. However, if you try to purchase, there will be at least a 15% premium on gold and about a 45% premium on silver. Example: Silver at $10 will sell for 14.50. Strange indeed. The powers that be are doing their best to keep the lid on the dollar. How much longer can they do that? Then what?
I heard the porno people are also seeking a bail out because the weak economy is hurting their business. Where have we fallen to? Did not God judge his people with Assyria and Babylon because of their evil ways? It looks like he is sending China and the Muhammadans against us. He is selling us to China, and has placed a Muhammadan over his disobedient people.
What a wonderful day we are in.
Isaiah 10:5 O Assyrian, the rod of mine anger, and the staff in their hand is mine indignation. 6 I will send him against an hypocritical nation, and against the people of my wrath will I give him a charge, to take the spoil, and to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets. 7 Howbeit he meaneth not so, neither doth his heart think so; but it is in his heart to destroy and cut off nations not a few.
Assyria did not realize it was doing God's will; Assyria thought it was acting on its own when, actually, it was God's "rod" of chastisement against his people. Who is his "rod" today?
Jeremiah 16:21 Therefore, behold, I will this once cause them to know, I will cause them to know mine hand and my might; and they shall know that my name is The LORD.
Zephaniah 3:8 Therefore wait ye upon me, saith the LORD, until the day that I rise up to the prey: for my determination is to gather the nations, that I may assemble the kingdoms, to pour upon them mine indignation, even all my fierce anger: for all the earth shall be devoured with the fire of my jealousy. 9 For then will I turn to the people a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the LORD, to serve him with one consent.
We can rejoice in what we know for sure God,s judgment brings repentance and salvation. Herein, lies our hope.
The hell with bipartisanship
Forgive the cuss word, but is anyone else fed up with "bipartianship"
politics destroying this country? I continue to get emails from
the herd who say Barack Hussein Obama aka Barry Obama or whatever
his real name might be, is now the president and we should support
him. Support a Marxist? Support an impostor who is constitutionally
ineligible to serve as president? I don't think so. You see, for
me the U.S. Constitution matters, as well as all the sacrifices
and blood spilled on the battle field to birth this republic........
http://www.newswithviews.com/Devvy/kidd427.htm
by Devvy Kidd
A "Missouri Plan" to Contract the Debt Bubble
The accelerating expansion of this burden of debt over the last
two decades has exhibited the classic characteristics of a "bubble"­or,
perhaps more descriptively put, a veritable "feeding frenzy"
among the insatiably avaricious loan-sharks and speculators of
high finance. To be sure, had not all too many common Americans
become all too extensive borrowers all too quickly, this problem
might not have occurred­or at least not have emerged as early
and as devastatingly as it has. Yet, no.......
http://www.newswithviews.com/Vieira/edwin190.htm
by Dr. Edwin Vieira, Ph.D., JD
The Rockefeller Plan
In fact, there are so many Clinton administration officials named
by Obama to his administration that it appears the Power Elite's
"alternation of power" scenario is still operative (George
H.W. Bush followed by Bill Clinton followed by George W. Bush
now followed by Clinton administration officials with Obama as
a figurehead). The reason I say Obama is a figurehead is that
presidents are extremely dependent upon their advisors and department
heads, and Obama's great lack of experience makes him especially
dependent upon the information those around him choose to give
to, or withhold from, him........
http://www.newswithviews.com/Cuddy/dennis146.htm
by Dennis Cuddy, Ph.D.
All lies
We knew it was typical political "new-speak."
"Our challenge is going to be identifying what works and
putting more money into that, eliminating things that don't work,
and making things that we have more efficient. But I'm not suggesting,
George, I want to be realistic here, not everything that we talked
about during the campaign are we going to be able to do on the
pace we had hoped," Obama told me in his first interview
since arriving back in Washington, DC as president-elect....
http://blogs.abcnews.com/george/2009/01/obama-calls-for.html
Note: Hussein has the office; now, let the truth be told.
By Thomas Williamson
(Though written before the election, it equally applies to the new president.)
It is a Presidential election year, and predictably there are Christians who say they cannot conscientiously vote for either major party candidate, including the conservative Republican nominee, because the candidates are less than perfect in their policy positions and personal lives.
I have no big problem with that, and no desire to tell anyone how to vote. How you vote, or whether you vote at all, is a matter of your Christian liberty with which I dare not interfere.
I would offer this suggestion to Christian voters - you can, if you wish, vote for the major party candidate who is the better of the two, and then feel free to express disagreement with him after he is elected, and to urge him to improve his policy positions.
We must respect the convictions of those who choose to try to "send a message" by not voting, or by voting for a 3rd party candidate. But some of the 3rd party candidates are not such great bargains themselves, either. Check out the Wikipedia articles on Bob Barr, Libertarian Party candidate, or Cynthia McKinney, running with the Green Party.
(As for those of you who choose not to vote at all, I am sure that supporters of the liberal, pro-abortion candidates in this election cycle will appreciate it!)
Part of our ambivalence about supporting a less-than-perfect candidate may be attributed to the emphasis by the Christian Right in recent years on support for the current President, George W. Bush. Having painted ourselves into a corner by emphasizing obedience to Bush, especially with regard to supporting his war in Iraq, we are reluctant to have any part in electing any President that we feel that we cannot support 100%.
It should be pointed out, however, that our policy of loyal support for Bush has not been consistent. Many fundamentalist preachers, who have told their congregations that it is their duty to support Bush's war in Iraq because it is the will of the President, nevertheless have not publicly supported Bush's call for an independent Palestinian state.
Many Christian Right leaders do not support Bush's policy in favor of civil unions for sodomites, nor his call for amnesty for illegal aliens. Some fundamentalists, even after Bush stated that opponents of his amnesty plan were "against what is good for America," continued to oppose that plan and to endorse radio entertainers who were blamed for torpedoing Bush's amnesty plan.
Popular Independent Baptist preacher Jim Vineyard of Oklahoma City declared that the flooding in the Ohio River Valley in the early part of 2008 was due to God's displeasure against Bush's policy of supporting the Israeli pullout from the Gaza Strip in 2005. Vineyard remains popular with many Independent Baptists who regard him as the Lord's anointed, in spite of his saying that Bush should go to hell (and in spite of his habit of talking dirty to his teenage female parishioners under the guise of "counseling)."
Any casual observer of the fundamentalist movement can see that we are not consistent in our proclaimed allegiance and obedience to Bush. Why then should we publicly align our movement to one of the most unpopular politicians of modern times, and risk losing converts and supporters as a result of our alliance with Bush, when we ourselves do not bother to practice what we preach about obedience to the President?
As for the moral argument for keeping the war in Iraq going because our obedience to Bush requires it, that argument is undercut when anyone can see that we obey Bush only when it suits our fancy, and that we ignore or oppose Bush whenever he fails to agree with our agenda. (Now that the democratically elected government of Iraq has officially asked us to leave, with a vast majority of voters in democratic America supporting such a withdrawal, do you suppose it would be okay to declare victory and bring the boys home?)
Drop the Baptist Name to Avoid Identification With Bush?
The Washington Post, June 8, 2008, quotes David Roozen, director of the Hartford Institute for Religion Research, as saying, "The word Baptist is such a turnoff. There is a kind of national skepticism about evangelical Christianity because of the religious right and the connection to the Bush administration. You say Baptist' and people almost think conservative."
Has it really come to this, that we have to drop our Baptist name and convictions, in order to avoid driving away people who do not share the reverence for Bush that we have?
I have a better idea. Let's keep our Baptist name and convictions, and stop giving people the impression that they must adore Bush in order to be a Baptist. Bush will only be President for a few more months anyway. Isn't it time to move on to bigger and better things, such as the Great Commission and the preaching of the whole counsel of God?
It makes no sense for us as fundamental Baptists to identify ourselves too closely with Bush. Bush is not one of us - he is a member of the liberal United Methodist Church who has expressed admiration for the Pope and who celebrates Muslim holidays while proclaiming Islam to be a "religion of peace." We do ourselves no favors when we give the world the impression that a man with this type of weak Christian commitment is representative of the true spirit of fundamentalist Christianity.
Christians are Not Obligated to Identify With the Ruling Party
When Christ was on earth, the ruling political party was the Herodians. If Christ and John the Baptist had been interested in going along in order to get along, they would have aligned themselves and their "Religious Right" movement with King Herod. They conspicuously failed to do so.
John the Baptist could have been Herod's court preacher. He could have gone golfing with Herod and spent luxurious nights in Herod's ancient equivalent of the "Lincoln Bedroom." But he blew it when he condemned Herod's personal peccadillos, Matthew 14:3-4.
Christ, instead of toadying to Herod, contemptuously referred to him as "that fox," Luke 13:32, and warned His disciples against the leaven of Herod, Mark 8:15. We see in Luke 23:6-12 that Christ could have avoided being crucified, and perhaps could have ended up in Herod's cabinet as Minister of Religious Affairs, had He been willing to perform a miracle for His Royal Highness. Like His forerunner John, Christ refused to sell out Himself and His movement to the powerful politicians of His day.
The teachings of Paul and other New Testament writers are conspicuous for the absence of any exhortations for Christians to identify with emperors Caligula, Claudius and Nero and to lobby in favor of their "pre-emptive wars" against the pesky barbarians and insurgents of that time.
It Is Not a Sin For Christians To Disagree With Our Rulers
President Bush has publicly stated that in our system of American democracy, it is permitted for Americans to disagree with their President and to express that disagreement publicly. Therefore, we do not violate the teaching of Romans 13, concerning obedience to government, if we express disagreement with Bush or with his successor who will be elected in November.
Not only that, but we see in the Old Testament theocracy that God's inspired prophets frequently, openly and publicly expressed their disagreement with the policies of their kings, and lobbied for changes in those policies.
In 1 Samuel 13:10-14 and 15:14-23, the prophet Samuel openly rebuked Saul for his failure to follow God's instructions. David openly criticized Saul's policies in 1 Samuel 24:12-15 and 26:18-19. Saul's own son Jonathan attacked his father for his unwise military strategies in 1 Samuel 14:29.
David was rebuked by the prophet Nathan for killing Uriah and having an affair with Bathsheba, 2 Samuel 12:7-12. Joab criticized David's domestic policies in 2 Samuel 19:5-7, 24:3-4 and elsewhere.
Shemaiah the man of God protested against Rehoboam's proposed war against Israel. He delivered this anti-war message publicly, "unto Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and unto all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the remnant of the people," 1 Kings 12:23. It sounds like that message reached just about everybody.
Hanani the seer criticized king Asa for his alliance with Syria, 2 Chronicles 16:7-9, and suffered imprisonment as a result.
Jehu the son of Hanani rebuked good king Jehoshaphat for his alliance with Ahab, 2 Chronicles 19:2.
Zechariah and other prophets attacked king Joash for his religious policies, 2 Chronicles 24:17-20.
Uzziah's church-and-state policies were publicly opposed by Azariah the priest and 80 of his assistant pastors, 2 Chronicles 26:16-20.
The prophet Isaiah rebuked the king of Judah for his alliance with Egypt in Isaiah 30-31.
Hezekiah was one of the best and most godly kings of Judah, yet Isaiah rebuked him for his alliance with Babylon, Isaiah 39:3-8.
The prophet Jeremiah opposed the foreign policy of the King, and led a public demonstration against the King's policies in the presence of the ambassadors from Edom, Moab, Tyre, Sidon and Ammon, Jeremiah 27:1-11.
Many other examples can be given, in which God's people publicly stood against their rulers (including the opposition of Elijah and Elisha to the kings of Israel).
Of course, when the Bible records the words and actions of men, this does not necessarily constitute a divine stamp of approval on all those words and actions. But in most of the instances mentioned above, it is clear that those who registered their opposition to the king's policies were speaking under the direction and inspiration of God.
I don't understand where we get the idea that we are obligated, as Christians, to actively support and endorse all the actions of our President and/or government, and that we are not permitted to withhold such support. I don't find this teaching in the Word of God. Even in Old Testament times, under the leadership of kings in the Davidic dynasty who sat on the throne of David, God's true believers were still permitted to publicly point out errors in their rulers and to oppose those errors.
The moral of the story is this: whoever we choose to support for President in the November elections, and whoever is ultimately elected, our consciences as Christians will not be bound to support all actions and decisions of that President. We are followers of a higher allegiance: "We ought to obey God rather than men." (Acts 5:29).
Dear Pastors, churches and prayer partners,
NEW YEAR GREETINGS to you all in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Who alone is Altogether Lovely. It has been a privilege to serve His Majesty in the county of India, throughout the year 2008 and we look forward to greater blessings from Him in 2009.
Let me briefly recap some of the victories that God has wrought in our ministry and lives, last year:
1) Amidst much persecution in the states of Orissa and Chattisgarh,
where more than 50 native pastors were killed, the Lord has seen
us through some "near misses." The Lord has kept us
from adversities from the government, the tribes and also Hindu
militants.
2) We've seen the Lord deliver two young ladies, in particular,
who were under the spell of several witch doctors. We praise the
Lord for answered prayers. The Lord wrought a mighty victory in
that tribal settlement, where we now have an open door to proclaim
the Good News of our Lord Jesus Christ.
3) By God's grace, we have been able to start another New Testament
church in the village of Kora Konda, where we baptized and organized
over 40 believers. The Lord raised up Bro. Prem Kumar, who, himself
being from that village, is now the pastor of that little church.
4) We have been able to establish contact with the tribes of the
Bondo and the Didoish. Very savage tribes, living in the Eastern
Ghats, who have never heard the name JESUS in all of their life.
Can you imagine the tragedy?
5) Besides this, we praise the Lord for keeping our family and
ministry through another year, for His care and grace given to
us in continued fellowship with Him. "To GOD be the glory,
great things HE hath done!"
Besides the accomplishments, there are also the needs, for which we continue to covet your prayers and help. With the global economy being on a downturn, I pray that it will not affect the furtherance of the Gospel. And although many who were billionaires in 2008 have now been reduced to millionaires, we serve a Sovereign God, with whom all things are possible. May the motto of William Carey, who was a faithful servant of God in India amidst much opposition, give us encouragement. "Attempt great things for God and expect great things from God."
I had not expected to return to the U.S. so soon, but the will of God has once again brought me to this land, due to the financial lack that we are facing. I pray that, as you contemplate this letter, that you would take up missions, not as a burden, but as a calling and by the grace of God, do your part in sustaining the furtherance of the Gospel in India. Allow me to share only 2 specific needs at this present time:
1) We are in desperate need of a mode of transportation. We
are praying that the Lord would help us raise $ 25,000 to $ 30,000.
Some have already contributed to the Van Fund and presently we
have $ 5,000 in the fund. A Van is essential, as it allows us
to travel as a larger team and also reduces the risk of attacks,
as we move among the tribal settlements. What usually takes us
5 days of travel by depending of public transportation and walking,
can be reduced to 3 days, if we had our own transportation.
2) Last but not least, this is a major need. As much as there
are several who have sent gifts our way, the monthly support has
not been consistent. We praise the Lord for the gifts that we
have received, but are looking to the Lord that the support may
be on a more consistent basis. We need around $ 3,500 to $ 4,000
per month so that we may budget our travels, T.V. ministry, etc.
Often, we have planned and had to cancel our ventures due to the
lack of funds. So far we have only a handful of churches supporting
us.
I am presently in the U.S. and plan to be here through March 2009. If you would like to contact me or have me come and personally present the ministry to your church, I would be glad to do so. You may find out more about me, my family and the work that we are involved in, at the following Web addresses:
1) www.biblicalexaminer.org
2) www.localchurchpa.com
3) www.sovereigngraceinmechanicsville.org (Winter 2008 issue)
Cell # till March - (240) 899-3288
E-mail address - joelsaripalli@msn.com.
May the God of all mercy cause His face to shine upon you and His grace to abide upon you as you consider the ministry in India.
By His Grace In His Service,
Bro. Joel Saripalli and family
(Gaynor, Conrad, Cameron, Christian and Carlton)
Field Address: Plot 99, Road 2, Mathuranagar Colony, Secunderabad
500056, Andhra Pradesh, India.
E-mail: joelsaripalli@msn.com
Bro Need's note: My wife and I would like to visit Bro. Joel's work in India, if we can get the funds. The plane fare will be about 2,000 each, unless we can find a sale on the air fare at $1,000 ea.
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