Posted on 06/18/2014 7:11:18 AM PDT by Gamecock
The evangelical movement is about to divide.
Nothing could be clearer.
It’s true that we have often disagreed over things like church government, views of the Second Coming, baptism, lifestyle habits, worship style and musical preference. But those differences, though deeply felt, were intramural debates over secondary issues.
This time we are going to divide over a primary issue.
It is isn’t just about homosexuality or even about gay marriage, though that is the most obvious factor. When all the cards are out on the table, it will be clear that we have divided over biblical authority. Some of us will say, "We accept the 2000-year-old teaching shared until recently by every branch of the Christian movement that God designed marriage for one man and one woman.” We will also say that all sexual activity outside of marriage is sin. And we will continue to insist that homosexual behavior is always sinful.
Evidently not everyone will agree with us. That includes some folks who graduated from our leading Christian colleges and seminaries.
For a variety of reasons, they will insist that the church has been wrong about this for 2000 years and that we must extend Christian fellowship to openly homosexual men and women. They must be allowed to join the church, sing in the choir, teach Sunday School, and if they are otherwise qualified, they could be chosen as deacons, elders and pastors.
As Al Mohler has recently insisted, there is no middle ground on this issue. We aren’t going to be able to paper over the difference or to "agree to disagree” as if this issue is like disagreeing on the timing of the rapture or whether or not we should sing more hymns.
This is a deal-breaker. Can’t we all just get along? No, we can’t.
The people who argue for full inclusion of gays and lesbians in the church are going to go one way, and the rest of us are going to go another. This will mean splitting denominations, leaving churches, and in some cases, it will divide families.
No one can be happy about the very real pain involved. But better that we should separate than stay together and pretend at a unity that does not exist.
A few years ago I would have thought that most evangelicals would stay true to the biblical teaching about marriage. Today I will hedge my bets on that issue. We hear seductive voices calling us to "rethink” our position while other influential leaders admit to "struggling” over this issue. Clearly those voices are having an impact.
But in one sense it doesn’t matter. The people who think it’s okay for two guys or two girls to get married and then come and lead Awana on Wednesday night will never be accepted by the rest of us.
We aren’t buying what they are selling.
Because our culture has shifted on this issue, the price for fidelity to biblical teaching is rising all the time. Christians who openly stand for one man-one woman marriage will face increasing opposition in the days to come. It may be that we will be the ones leaving some churches because we are the minority.
So be it.
The divide is coming and in some senses is already upon us. We all get to decide where we will stand.
You can’t straddle the fence forever. Pastor, you’ll have to take a stand. Church leaders, you’ll have to take a stand. Christian friend, you’ll have to take a stand.
Years ago I heard Don Cole say that "it is better to divide over truth than to unite around error.” He was right, and because of that we will soon be going in different directions.
Eve disobeyed; Mary obeyed.
Eve cooperated with the Serpent; Mary brought forth a Son who crushed the Serpent.
Eve is described as the Mother of all the living; Mary is described as Mother of all the faithful:
Revelation 12:17
Then the dragon was angry with the woman, and went off to make war on the rest of her children, those who keep the commandments of God and hold the testimony of Jesus.
This is a brilliant thing about the Bible: this amazing prophetic use of "types" and the thematic coherence all the way through.
Well, let's see what the Bible has to say about this instead of RCC "tradition".
In Revelation chapter 12, John sees a vision of a woman "clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars" (Revelation 12:1). Note the similarity between this description and the description that Joseph gave of his father Jacob (Israel) and his mother and their children (Genesis 37:9-11). The twelve stars refer to the twelve tribes of Israel. So the woman in Revelation 12 is Israel.
Additional evidence for this interpretation is that Revelation 12:2-5 speaks of the woman being with child and giving birth. While it is true that Mary gave birth to Jesus, it is also true that Jesus, the son of David from the tribe of Judah, came from Israel. In a sense, Israel gave birth—or brought forth—Christ Jesus. Verse 5 says that the woman’s child was " a male child, who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron; and her child was caught up to God and to His throne." Clearly, this is describing Jesus. Jesus ascended to heaven (Acts 1:9-11) and will one day establish His kingdom on earth (Revelation 20:4-6), and He will rule it with perfect judgment (the “rod of iron”; see Psalm 2:7-9).
The woman’s flight into the wilderness for 1,260 days refers to the future time called the Great Tribulation. Twelve hundred, sixty days is 42 months (of 30 days each), which is the same as 3 1/2 years. Halfway through the Tribulation period, the Beast (the Antichrist) will set an image of himself up in the temple that will be built in Jerusalem. This is the abomination that Jesus spoke of in Matthew 24:15 and Mark 13:14. When the Beast does this, he breaks the peace pact he had made with Israel, and the nation has to flee for safety—possibly to Petra (also see Matthew 24; Daniel 9:27). This escape of the Jews is pictured as the woman fleeing into the wilderness.
Revelation 12:12-17 speaks of how the devil will make war against Israel, trying to destroy her (Satan knows his time is short, relatively speaking—see Revelation 20:1-3, 10). It also reveals that God will protect Israel in the wilderness. Revelation 12:14 says Israel will be protected from the devil for "a time, times, and half a time (“a time” = 1 year; “times” = 2 years; “half a time” = one-half year; in other words, 3 1/2 years).
Read more: http://www.gotquestions.org/Revelation-chapter-12.html#ixzz352YQjexZ
You said we need more conservatives. Behold, I present Mormons, one of the most conservative voting blocs in America. So do you or do you not want an increase of Mormon voters in America?
If you want to discuss the Mormon religion, you should search for a thread, maybe you can find a thread on “illegal” immigration at the same time, rather than immigration.
If you support bringing in millions more pro-abortion Catholic democrat voters, well, I think you have said enough.
No He didn’t. He said to take it to the “assembly” that they met locally with. There was no such thing as an organized organization called a “church”.
>>Paul says the Church of God is the pillar and foundation of the Truth.<<
Once again, the word used is “assembly”. Those who are “called out”. The organized “church” is a perversion of that concept. Every believer who has accepted Christ as their only hope is part of that “called out assembly”. That “called out assembly” consists of every true believer regardless of where they “assemble” to worship and study.
Revelation 12:17 is talking about Israel NOT Mary.
Ah that Sola Scriptura crwod, proving again that Sola is simply not sufficient.
LOL! The ballot box was rendered moot long ago so you're fighting yesterday's battle. And if the survival of the nation is pinned to whether TX goes red or blue then we've already lost that battle. Time for the next phase.
It sounds like you really put a great amount of thought into that, thanks for the enlightenment and getting us all up to speed, especially on voting being “yesterday’s battle” and no longer relevant, nor are Texas’s electoral votes particularly important to GOP presidential hopes, I didn’t know that.
You're welcome. Will you now dazzle with how Texas electoral college votes = Presidency = USSC nominations + GOP congressional control = USSC justices = salvation of the nation? Is that the mathematics we've got going here?
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