Posted on 10/22/2004 10:15:13 PM PDT by woodb01
Why Christians and the Church are unable to fight the culture war
although it's still not too late
October 23, 2004
http://www.nodnc.com
Often, in and out of church walls today, we hear about the apathy of the religious community. Hardly a month goes by that the church is not embroiled in some major controversy to the glee of the anti-christian left. The Church in America has lost its soul. The American church no longer fears God, and no longer loves God.
If this sounds like harsh criticism, I intend to fully support it in just a moment.
First, a little background. Since as far back as I can remember, I was raised in a Baptist Church, in my late teen years, after considerable rebellion, I had an "awakening" to what is meant by being "born again" after getting involved in the Pentecostal / Charismatic movement. Not the typical emotional "born again" experience that many people go through, but a true, life-changing, life-altering event that only an encounter with a living God could have initiated. This event led me to pour over the pages of the Bible for over 20 years, reading it cover to cover many times.
In a direct parallel to the church and our out of control culture today, I was on a roller coaster ride. On the wagon, off the wagon, running after God, running away from God, believing in a Heavenly Father and then having my doubts. Compromise, tolerance, foolishness, and sin were regular occurrences in my life, just like the American Church and American Culture today.
Then one day reading my Bible I stumbled on this:
Proverbs 8:13 The fear of the LORD is to hate evil...
That unnerved me because I didn't HATE evil. I was "tolerant," I was accepting just like all good little secular humanist citizens should be. I knew there was something wrong because if I didn't fear God, then how could I profess to truly be a Christian? Then other verses struck me:
Psalms 97:10 You that love the LORD, hate evil...
Romans 12:9 ...Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good.
Confronted with this harsh reality that I did not HATE evil and therefore did not love or fear God, I was forced to change. My realization forced me to concede that I was headed straight for hell--, just like today's American Culture, and frighteningly enough, the American Church.
HATE, is a passionate thing. HATE is an active thing. You can't be apathetic if you have that passion. Activism and involvement against the causes of evil are the obvious results. Am I advocating violence? NO! Absolutely not! What I am advocating is serious, sincere, and committed activism to confronting and changing the sick and twisted evil in this culture today.
For example, as prayer was taken out of the schools, and abortion became the judge made "law of the land," every pastor and Christian in this country should have been running for Congress for the sole purpose of impeaching the Supreme Court Justices. It should have been the American Church's passion to stop the evils of the anti-christian assaults of American religious tradition and to stop the butcher of innocent human life. But there was nothing.
Today, with the controversy surrounding gay marriage, it hasn't been the Protestant faiths leading the fight, but the Catholic church, family groups, father's groups, and the Republican Party. The American Church's protestants are eerily silent.
Recently the democrats in Congress attempted to pass new "hate crimes" legislation identical to Canada's. In Canada, it is a hate crime to preach against homosexuality, even if you take it directly from the Bible. Yet still the church and christians do nothing.
The church, the family, values, morals, ethics, our children and our country are under attack. A relentless assault is being waged on patriotism and America from treasonous traitors within and still the American Church stands idly by as a spectator. It's time for American Christians to find their passion and their souls. DEMAND that your pastor abide by the Bible and teach what the Bible says about hating evil and if that pastor refuses, that pastor does NOT fear the Lord, and does NOT love God! That pastor must be removed from that position. It's time for the American Church to clean house and once cleaned to stand face to face with the vile anti-christian beast that has arisen in American government and lop the 7 headed hydra's heads off!
For an eye opening expose of the "democratic" party's agenda, and how it is focused on destroying family, faith, and America, please see this recent 2003 Congressional Testimony.
http://www.noDNC.com/
Coming soon, interactive calendar to schedule your events, meetings, and other activities.
Largely because most people don't actually read their Bibles. Many teachings in churches have abadoned the truth of the Bible for their own interpretations of it. Sadly, most people are led by blind leaders.
Great article. I had a viscious reaction. A reaction to the evil that I allow myself to do and see. This article and versus should cause a viscious refutation of the evil in us. Before we can denounce the evil in the world, we need to look and strangle the evil within us with the power of the Almighty Jehovah. Whenever I see or hear reality shows, radio talk shows, or people around me act and talk in immoral ways, it reminds me of all the evil in the world, which makes me more resolute in my stand against evil.
I don't think I mind giving the boot to a liberal pastor that is willing to water down the Bible to be liked by everyone. Canada and Europe is enough proof on the failure of secular humanist.
God bless.
This article explzins my thoughts a little more clearer.
So like the zealots, you think Messiah came to overthrow the Romans? We are called to be a blessing to our society, but angry vitriole like this is more like a curse to our neighbors. We are called to live so purely and peacefully that no one can say anything bad about us.
Please note, I vote Republican and conservative, but I bristle at my fellow Christians who think that Jesus demands that we take control of the reigns of government and compel our neighbors into righteousness. While I believe that we need to be model citizens--and in a participatory democracy, that means speaking up and voting--we should be take care not to presume to speak for Christ in the polls, nor should we presume that outlawing sin brings anyone closer to salvation.
I'm sorry that you're so ignorant of American History and tradition.
Little known to most people is that our Founding Fathers, before the return of Israel to the world scene, thought this was "New Jerusalem"
One of the mottos of the Revolutionary War was "No King but King Jesus"... This was in reference to our Founding Fathers sincere desire to undo Israel's rebellion when they insisted on a King.
Our Tripartate form of Government (Executive, Legislative, and Judicial) is formed DIRECTLY upon a BIBLICAL model.
Your pronouncements to the contrary do not change the scriptures. Nor do they change our Biblical admonishment to be salt and light. If we abdicate this nation's leadership, a nation FOUNDED upon Christian principles, then we are no longer salt and light.
The "peace and love" perversity is just that, perversion of the scriptures. There is NO SCRIPTURE that suggests Christians should not be involved in government, in fact our own Founding fathers said SPECIFICALLY that this county was designed with the Bible, the Ten Commandments, and Christianity in mind and that our form of government was incompatible with any other philosophy.
Abdicating our responsibility to take our government back is nothing short of a death sentence upon the morals, values, and character of future generations.
NON-INTERVENTION DOES NOT WORK! We have seen 40 years of buying into this lie right from the pit of hell about "peace and love"... Just like the flower children of the 60's.
Thanks for the ping. This deserves a more thoughtful response than I can put together tonight. I will "organize" my thoughts and get back to you. I generally agree, have a slightly different (or additional) angle.
I have said often on the Homosexual Agenda Pings that we social conservatives - especially those of us who believe in God - have only ourselves to blame for the power that secularists, atheists, and the destroyers of morality have gained. The reason for their ascendency can be directly attributed to our laziness, weakness, spinelessness, and ultimately, faithlessness.
BTTT
I agree with you. I was also raised in a Baptist Church, about 15 years ago, left it to find my own way. I ended up in the Episcopal Church because it was more "tolerant". I left that church 10 years ago because it was so tolerant it made me sick. Now I don't even go to church anymore because they are all big, lumbering corporate entities more concerned with raising money then saving souls. Where are today's church leaders? Why aren't they speaking out? You're so right, it's OK to hate evil, Jesus showed righteous anger when he overturned the merchant's tables in his father's house. Jesus said it was better to be hot or cold, than to be just lukewarm.
sounds like an understatement to me, why so defensive with this line?
The Democrat party is the party of satan and its members are satans demons. Every thing and every issue they stand for is evil. Basically what we have in the United States (and world wide) is a holy war with the forces of God pitted against the forces of satan. Unfortunately most Americans aren't aware of the scope of the battle or for that matter who the combatents are. Like you correctly point out, before we can succesfully join the battle, we as a people have to reject all forms of sin and evil and turn to God and live according to his laws. Once we cleanse ourselves, we will be fit to put on the armor of God and trample the forces of satan under our feet.
Amen, and I would just as soon stand before a righteous and holy God and answer that while I may have been wrong about this or that, that I sincerely believed in the son of God, and did everything I could in my lifetime to be salt and light...
Do you not think that people who believe in God should speak out strongly against social degradation and depravity and other ills that are condemned not only in the Bible but in every religion in the world?
The rejection of universal moral absolutes is what is turning our country and indeed the world into a living hell.
Being pure and holy is all very well, but doesn't necessarily help others if they don't hear the truth loud and clear. Jesus Christ was a perfect example - He was pure and holy Himself, He spoke the truth loud and clear (and was highly controversial, I might add) and also performed actions which might have been considered rough, such as overturning the money changers tables. I have read he also had a whip, which He used.
And His motivation was nothing but love for God, and mercy towards the fallen souls.
I think we should all take His example to heart, and stop being quivering cowards.
Jesus said, "those who hate me, love evil." I think that about covers it for Islam!!
The Episcopal church is a good example of the dying left protestant establishment. It is imploding like a black hole. Check out www. virtuosity.org.
The libs would rather destroy Christianity than have it be not in their image.
If this sounds like harsh criticism, I intend to fully support it in just a moment
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sounds like an understatement to me, why so defensive with this line?
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Writing style, more of a transition than anything else. A "lead in."
I have always wished I had the money to start a real activist conservative church.
It is important to note that Jesus Christ himself DIRECTLY challenged the leaders of Judaism of his day. I wonder how this fits in with the perverted and deranged "peace, love, and tolerance" teachings of the church today?
Mat 23:27 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness. Mat 23:28 Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.
Mat 12:34 O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.
Speaking to the Pharisees, the RULERS over Israel (under Rome) he called them the spawn of satan...
Joh 8:44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.
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I'm not sure these scriptures need any further comment... They speak pretty strongly to Christ's willingness to challenge Israel's government structure directly and aggressively.
Whether most people realize it or not, Roman conquest usually involved leaving most or all of the conquered's government in tact. They generaly had to pay tribute to Rome.
The liberals truly do "swallow a camel, but choke on a gnat". They are against the war in Iraq because "what did the Iraqi people ever do to us?" They are against the death penalty for vicious violent criminals, but think nothing of imposing a dealth penalty on an innocent unborn baby. They are against Halloween parties in grade school because it might offend the Wiccan religion, but they want to take the word Christ out of Christmas. They are against legal ownership of guns by law-abiding citizens, but they don't notice that criminals don't pay attention to the law & get their guns anyway. I could go on & on.......
The only conclusion I can come to is that Satan has dressed himself up in the cloak of "tolerance" and the American people are swallowing that camel whole.
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