The Savior is Born!

In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you."
Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end."
"How will this be," Mary asked the angel, "since I am a virgin?"
The angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God."
"I am the Lord's servant," Mary answered. "May it be to me as you have said." Then the angel left her. (Luke 1:26-38 NIV)

In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) And everyone went to his own town to register.
So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."
Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."
When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let's go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about."
So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told. (Luke 2:1-20 NIV)

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning.
Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it. (John 1:1-5 NIV)

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:14 NIV)
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16 NIV)

MERRY CHRISTMAS! JESUS IS THE REASON FOR THE SEASON!!!

Defeated!

On Wednesday December 2nd, history was made in the New York Senate. The controversial bill that would legalize same-sex marriage was brought to the floor for debate and an eventual vote.
Several lawmakers in the embattled Senate stood and spoke their approval of the measure, trying to convince the others in the chamber that this would be good for New York and its citizens.
After some heartfelt words and encouragement, it was time to vote. As the rollcall began and made its way down the list of Senators present, it became glaringly clear that this measure was dead in the water.
In the end, 38 Senators voted the measure down, while 24 vote to pass the bill. NYS Gay marriage 2009 died.

As I sat and listened to the tally of votes, I raised my hands triumphantly to the sky. It was a salute to the Maker of all life. I prayed hard that this measure would be defeated, I called His Word out to Him as if I was reminding Him what He wrote. Silly, I know. But it gave me encouragement and reinforced my faith.
He said that His Word would not return to Him void, and it didn’t! As I heard the votes, I distinctly heard "Be still, and know that I Am God."

VICTORY!

Now, let me get to the legal, constitutional and religious implications of all of this. First, as it stands in NY now, same-sex marriage is ILLEGAL! It came before the Senate and was DEFEATED.
Second, if you are gay, you STILL can go about your day in the US and NYS. You aren’t going to jail or an institution. You can vote, drive and join the military of you so choose. Sin can be forgiven by simply accepting Jesus' Sacrifice on the cross. You can be forgiven!
Thirdly and most importantly, the issue of gay marriage is 100% a religious issue. There is no way of getting around it, marriage is a union between a MAN AND A WOMAN sanctified by GOD HIMSELF. There isn’t one scripture in the entire text of the Holy Bible, Old or New Testaments, that say that same sex relationships are ok in God’s eyes.
In previous posts I have laid out what the scripture says.
Now we get to the social arguments.
I am no bigot. I accept everyone as an equal, just as Christ did with the sinful people He was with in His time.
Calling names is not tolerant either. I am not a "homophobe" or anything of the like. If you actually boil the word down it means that I’m afraid of homosexuality. Quite the opposite, homosexuality is a sin that was defeated at Calvary ’s Cross. What do I have to fear?
People will come and try to throw "inconsistencies" of scripture in our faces, trying to create doubt of it’s validity as God’s written Word. They will invoke memories of past transgressions made by people who came in the "name of God."
I have news for you, those same arguments come from the mouth of Satan himself. He’s been using the same M-O for millennia. He doesn’t change his tune, same ole-same ole.
He used similar tactics as the serpent in the garden of Eden. Did he not try to twist what God had said to Adam and Eve?

Now, for constitutional issues. I am not for government getting the authority to legally go in and change any definition that they see currently fit. Not a good idea, when we give them that authority they will systematically take away our rights. Before we know it, America won’t be America anymore.
I realize that they have been doing it for years, but it’s time to put a stop to it and not allow it any longer. Voters are the final checks and balances! We must act, speak and be heard!

I am not perfect. I am a sinner myself and continue to sin. I am human! I strive for perfection, but until I am out of this sinful body, that is unattainable. Only when I enter His kingdom will I get there.
Jesus said "But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart." (Matthew 5:28 NIV) If that’s true, then I’m done. I’m a guy! What guy (or girl) hasn't, once in their lives, looked at someone else and thought something impure? And following the logic of what sin is: separation from God, I am severed from God’s love because of one fleeting thought. If that's true, our thoughts damned us LONG ago!
Rough, huh? Bottom line, we are all sinful in one way or another. People will say, "I am a good person therefore I’m going to heaven."
Or "As long as I live and good life and don’t murder anyone, I believe that I’ll go to heaven."
Unfortunately, that is categorically WRONG! Sin is separation from God and no good deed will EVER get you to heaven!

Jesus said it Himself, "I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved…" (John 10:9 NIV)
He also said, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14:6 NIV)
Also: "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again." (John 3:3 NIV)

I didn’t write these words, someone far older and wiser is at the heart of these Words. For those who wish to disagree because you think it’s wrong, GET OVER YOURSELF! These Words have been around a lot longer than any of us and will remain long after we’re gone! They have been proven time and TIME AGAIN! He is the Author and Creator of life. Wanna argue with Him some more?

Moving forward, where do we go from here? The battle and attack on Godly values will continue, the devil doesn’t rest and will stop at nothing to get us all to succumb to his lies and deceit.
The issue in the State of New York having to do with same-sex marriage hasn’t gone away. The attacks on the righteous will intensify. The slander will get worse and more disgusting, and of course: personal.
The powers of darkness are regrouping for another volley, but we need to be ready and stand firm against them. We need our feet planted on the sure Foundation, the Rock. When the storms come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord will raise a standard against it.
I have the unique position of being able to be in direct contact of government. I once wondered why God put me here like I believe He did. I have my answer, I am to be a foot-soldier right in the trenches of battle. Enemy rounds whiz overhead, but I will continue to push forward until His righteousness abounds. I may not be a deadeye with all my return fire, but when they hit they hit HARD!
Twice, with the might of Christ I was in position to prayerfully attack the stronghold of gay marriage. And twice it fell hard.

History was made, let’s keep it going for Him!

Victory at the Capitol!

In a stunning vote, the NY Senate downed a marriage equality bill that would have legalized gay marriage in New York State. The final tally, 38 no-votes to 24-yes votes. It was bi-partisan, since several Democrats joined the Republicans to defeat the measure.

This is only the beginning of course, but for now the movement is halted! More to come!

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.--Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.
He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.
He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.
He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.
He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.
He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.
He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.
He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.
He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.
He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance.
He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.
He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.
He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:
For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:
For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:
For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:
For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:
For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:
For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences
For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies:
For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:
For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.
He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.
He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.
He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.
He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.
He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our Brittish brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

"Those who do not learn from history are condemned to repeat it."

Tune In!

Have you ever found yourself wondering why it seems at you and God aren't on the same page when it comes to life?

Christians tend to take God for granted. Because we have read His Word, gone to Church and prayed a lot we think we know what God has planned for our lives.

I have a bit of a revelation, we really have only scratched the surface. He has so much more for us.

I sometimes find myself listening for His voice only to question why it isn't louder. Some things aren't as clear as others. Decisions aren't always easy ones to make. Why is that? I confess His name, defend Him to co-workers and pray. So how is it I can seem like His voice is garbled and hard to understand?

Maybe we haven't properly tuned in to Him. Kinda like manually tuning into a radio. I work at a TV News station and run the live trucks for the news. We use microwaves to send the live signals back to the station.

I get to my location and put up the microwave mast. The way I get the signal strong is to turn the dish on top the mast 360 degrees until the stations "sees" me. We then fine-tune it slowly until the perfect signal is achieved. Then and only then, can we do our live broadcast from the field.

How do I achieve the perfect signal? The station can't move, the receive site is fixed, so I have to be the one to move and change my orientation. Liken that to our Christian Walk with the Lord.

Does He change? No! He's provided His road map as to where we need to be. It's up to us to utilize it and get there. Some of us don't like to ask for directions, but we absolutely need to ask the One who made the map. We need to tune into what He wants for us.

How? Read and digest His Word. We need to put Him first. "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well." (Matthew 6:33)

If we have problems with not being able to hear God's voice, it isn't Him not being caring or listening. We just need to slow down and fine-tune Him in. He wants the best signal for us so we can hear Him better. So tune in today!!

Today is the eighth anniversary of the September 11th terror attacks on the United States. We need to remember what happened on that day and the resolve that we all had following those terrible events.

I find that one thing that we as humans have is an ability to blot out painful experiences. We definitely need to move on from such events, but we should never forget.

Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it. What a wonderful way of putting it. We learn from history. On a day that we mourn for those innocent lives taken in New York City, Washington DC and Shanksville, PA, we also look forward.

We look forward to the Glorious Appearing of our coming Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The day that all pain and suffering will be taken away forever. At the same time, judgement will be handed out to those who rejected His love and willfully brought pain upon others.

Do we look forward to the judgement seat? No. But we know that God is fair and just and whatever He decides will be right and good.

On this day, September 11th, we should reflect and be ever vigilant. Never Forget!

Stalemate at the Senate

I've delayed making any comment on the impasse at the New York State Capitol since the coup attempt on June 8th. I still don't know what to make of the whole thing and exactly where we go from here.

For those who don't know what happened, I'll try to sum up the events as concise as possible.

The way our laws are made in NY is that both the Senate and Assembly have to pass the bills, then and only then can the Governor sign them into law. One problem is that with whichever party has the majority, Democrat or Republican, bills may never make it to the floor for debate and vote. Good laws may never see the light of day and bad ones can be passed with the majority voting for them. In short, the people might have no say what-so-ever in what affects their daily lives.

Currently the Governor, Senate and Assembly are all Democrat. Laws can be passed through without a single vote from the Republicans, debate or not

On June 8th, the Republicans in the Senate teamed with 2 dissident Democrats to vote for new leadership in the chamber. This "coalition" made a motion and voted it in and the Democrats were stunned by the blindside. The Republicans seemed to take back the Senate with a 32-30 majority, but the struggle had just began.

One major issue was the fact that the 2 dissident Dems were not exactly the best examples of good public servants. One is under investigation for tax problems and the other is currently looking at an indictment for allegedly assaulting his girlfriend.

Another problem is also the fact that since former Governor Spitzer resigned and the Lt. Governor took over, the State has no Lt. Governor. In essence, if something were to happen to the Governor, the next in line of succession would be one of the 2 dissident Dems, according to the coalition vote. This scared both voters and lawmakers alike.

Shortly after the coup, which the Dems didn't acknowledge, one of the 2 Democrats jumped back to support his 30 other colleagues. This produced a 31-31 deadlock in the Senate. Weeks passed while the two sides battled over who was legally in charge. Nothing was getting done. Normally in situations like this, the Lt. Governor would be able to cast the deciding vote to bring the stalemate to a close. But with no Lt. Governor, that wasn't possible.

Fast-forward to now, the deadlock appears to be over. The last dissident jumped back to his conference. The Democrats now have the 32-30 majority again. The Governor appointed someone to fill the Lt. Governor's position, this is currently being debated whether it is constitutional or not.

What does this all mean? I can honestly tell you, I have no idea. Which brings me to a point, several actually.

Less than an hour before the coup attempt I was actually inside the Capitol Building. I had laid my hand on a pillar and quietly said ""In the Name of Jesus, the power of God inhabit these walls. All these walls, God you lead."

Little did I know that something would actually happen that fast. Whether the final position we're in was my intention or not, I cannot say. I just wanted the Spirit of God to move in that building. I'm going on faith that He did.

What happened, the gay marriage bill would not be brought before the Senate for a vote. The stalemate stalled the effort of the advocates, praise God.

Is that the final death blow of that movement? Again, I cannot say. But with things so delicate in that fractured chamber, something as controversial as gay marriage might bring more chaos again.

Another more important point to bring up is the plain-as-day fact that our votes might not mean ANYTHING! It became perfectly clear that our needs as citizens weren't factoring in the minds of the Senators. It was a blatant powergrab by BOTH political parties.

Laws were DEFINITELY broken by both sides and maybe even by the Governor himself.

My parting shot is this: Remember this mess! Remember what happened here when the polls open in 2010. We as Americans have the wonderful ability to put painful moments behind us. But we should never forget, especially when it comes to important decisions as electing our lawmakers.

The Senate clearly didn't care about us, the people. We need to remind them come election day who they work for. We are their bosses, not the other way around.

From the Federal level to the State and local levels, we need to retake what's Constutionally ours as taxpaying citizens who vote.

Pray that God continues to move in Government and that His will is done.

More to come on this story I'm sure.

Emotion and the Knee-jerk Reaction

Wow, things are happening at an alarming rate. This post was originally going to focus on the gay marriage debate, gun control and the economy. But now, with the tragic slaying of a Kansas Abortion doctor, it brings another facet to the discussion.

Emotion is can be our undoing. What do I mean by that? When we let our emotions to cloud our judgement, we allow a knee-jerk response to come into play. Decisions made at that point might not be the best. If we don't think before we speak or act, bad things happen.

Take for example, this recent event in Kansas. A man, who peers claim is anti-abortion, shoots and kills a well-known abortion doctor in coldblood while he's in church. Before we scream for the repeal of the Second Amendment, take a breath and think.

This murder was committed by someone guilty of not thinking before acting. You can't win against violence when you beget violence. Yes the doctor had performed late-term or partial birth abortions. He was guilty of murder himself, in the eyes of God. But abortion is legal in the US, so by killing the doctor, you are guilty of the same crime. God is no respecter of persons, sin is sin! Let God be God and let Him judge!

If I disagree with someone, I don't take out a gun and kill that person. That doesn't win an argument!
I am a Christian, I know that battles are fought in the minds and hearts of man. Ephesians chapter 6 explains that there is a spiritual war going on, that the battle is not of the flesh. So, my fighting has to take place accordingly.

How? By praying about it. By asking God to intervene with HIS power and wisdom. The Bible tells us to respect the laws of the land and its leaders. Thus, committing a crime and murdering someone will envoke His punishment.

The Bible tells us to "walk by faith and not by sight." (2 Corinthians 5:7) That means for us to go by what we KNOW and not by what we FEEL. Our senses can betray and fool us. I'd like to think I know the Bible well (and learn more and more every time I read its passages) so I have a grasp on what's right and what's wrong in this world and how to go about defeating it.

What are we supposed to so when something is brought before us that appeals to our emotions? Stop, take a breath and THINK!

When the gay marriage debate is brought before us how is it presented? With emotion! "Oh how the gay population is down-trodden and discriminated against!"

When anti-gun lobbyists hold up a picture of a murdered teenager, what happens? It's emotional.

Talking about how GM is too big to fail and appealing to our patriotism is emotional!

Anything presented well can tug at the heartstrings and make us believe that doing one thing in response is the right thing. We need to think things through before we act. Government needs to do the same thing before they enact new legislation. Ask if this is truly better for the people or not!

So, what happens moving forward?
Pray Pray PRAY! Pray for the family of the murdered doctor. Pray for the shooter's family. Yes, because they're coming under fire now as well. What he did was reprehensible, but guilt isn't with all the family.

Get involved in the community! Let your voice be heard. Vote when the polls are open, do our duty as citizens and Christians!

We are in the world, not of it! We are Christ's mouthpiece while we're here. Proclaim the truth and don't let the world pass by without hearing the Good News of Salvation through Jesus!

The devil's spokesmen are out there now proclaiming their message, we need to stand firm and do the same for Jesus. Drown out the evil message with truth and maybe, just maybe some hearts will be softened to the point of listening to the One True God.

We need to do what's right and what the Bible tells us. That doesn't include doing violence against others in the name of God.

Remember: hate the sin, not the sinner!

Rainbow Revisited...an update

There is an update on the current fight to legalize same-sex marriage. The California Supreme Court has upheld Proposition 8 that the voters passed last November. The law upheld a ban on gay marriage in the state. The people spoke and, against gaining momentum lately, the advocates of gay marriage were handed a serious blow to their fight.

California Chief Justice Ron George said "In a sense, petitioners' and the attorney general's complaint is that it is just too easy to amend the California constitution through the initiative process. But it is not a proper function of this court to curtail that process; we are constitutionally bound to uphold it."

Bravo! Thank you for doing your job and upholding the Constitution. The people spoke and the people were heard!

That's ultimately what this debate boils down to. The same-sex advocates want the same rights as heterosexual couples. However, we cannot allow government to go in and change the definition of the word "marriage." It's more than just a word! By law it defines a union between a man and a woman.

If we allow the definition of words to be reinterpreted or redefinied, where does it stop? Marriage here, right to own guns later. What about the freedom of the press and speech? We cannot allow the Constitution to come under fire. It defines who were are. To simply change words here and there brings us to the brink of losing all of our rights.

That's why we need to be informed about what our legislators are doing. VOTE and make your voice heard.

For more on this subject, read: http://repellingtheenemy.blogspot.com/2009/04/great-rainbow-controversy.html

The Right to live...or not

The news world is a buzz with the story of a 13 year old boy who is in desperate need of life-saving cancer treatment. The boy from Minnesota has Hodgkin's lymphoma received a chemotherapy treatment but stopped when he became violently ill.
To make a long story short here, the boy and his mother fled because the court wanted to make him continue with the treatment. The mother refused, claiming her religion prohibited it. She wanted to use alternative treatments, one of which could include a ritual from her religion.
They eventually returned and are compliant, the boy will receive his treatments to help get rid of the deadly disease.

Why am I tackling this? I listened to the radio this morning as the talkshow hosts argued over this issue and whether is was right for the courts to step in and override the mother's wish to have the boy treated by doctors. Each had the opposing opinion. It got me thinking.
This is complex issue, with no clear answer. I just want to just discuss this as a Christian American.

I am a parent, I love my children. I pray that I'm never faced with this issue in my life. In Jesus' Name, I never will! Amen! But if I were, I would trust the doctors' diagnosis and then get a second opinion. I would listen to their advice, THEN seek the Lord's council. I would then go with His plan.
I believe that the Lord works through people, as I am His ambassador and witness. By that thinking, I believe that He can work through the hands of doctors also. Therefore I would not forbid the treatment of the child.
The mother's idea of her religion is flawed in my opinion, God doesn't want her child to die. Quite the opposite! He came to wipe out the power of sin and death! Thank God, He did on the cross. So, I'm guessing she wasn't following the voice of the Great Physician when she cut and ran. I could be wrong, maybe God wanted her to do this in order for him to heal the boy and have the world witness it. I don't know for sure.

My issue here is more about the role of the court. Should it be the right of government to step in and MAKE the child undergo chemotherapy? Clearly it makes the boy very sick, which I'm sure cuts to the heart of the parents and was a contributing factor in the decision to flee.
Should we agree to let government make the parenting decisions for us? This is the issue I was wrestling with as I listened to callers on the radioshow voice their opinions.

As I stated, this isn't as easy as black and white. Or is it? I said I would tackle this as a Christian AMERICAN. Here's what I mean: Goverment, GET OUT OF OUR CHILDREN'S LIVES! I am the parent of my children, not you. You are public servants, elected by US and beholden to US!
For the court to disregard the woman's wish, according to her religion and force the boy to undergo cancer treatment is a clear violation of the FIRST AMENDMENT OF THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION!

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."

Lets look at the text here: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or PROHIBITING THE FREE EXERCISE THEREOF;" What is happening when government steps in and ignores a religion and imposes its will? Free exercise is prohibited! It is no longer free!

While I don't agree that this woman should run away and let her child die without treatment, she shouldn't be charged with a crime if she is following her religion. Obviously there are serious perversions to this logic as well. What if someone wanted to perform a human sacrifice, using their child? The list could go on and on, and people in their perversion will claim religious freedom when they are faced with prosecution.

I guess the point here is that government is getting way TOO BIG. They want to tell us what to eat, what to drink or not drink, what kind of car to buy, what bank to go to and now they want to tell us how to parent. I don't know about you, but I am sick and tired of it. Get out of my child's life, I know what's best for them, not you!

To the right of these blog posts there are some links. I added links to the websites of the US Senate and House of Represenatives. Go there, see what our lawmakers are up to. We as citizens need to know and be informed. Our rights are being stripped away from us slowly and surely. It's like a chess match, they're getting all their pieces in position. Sooner or later, Checkmate!

Make your voice heard, let them know where you stand on the issues. We're called to ACT, not just take. When Jesus gave the Great Commission, He said "GO YE," so we should listen and act.
When election day comes around, VOTE! Make sure that the right people are in the right positions. If they're not, VOTE 'EM OUT!!! Don't let Big Brother turn the United States into the "Nanny State."

About the 13 year old boy and his family, pray for them. Pray for his healing and that through it all, God Almighty is glorified somehow. Pray that they come to repentance and the truth. Pray that they become living witnesses of the Coming King! Amen!

Divide and Conquer

"Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour." (I Peter 5:8 KJV)

Division, it's one of the oldest tricks in Satan's bag of tricks. He can't defeat the body of Christ. We have the power given to us from On-High. Even though he can't prevail against us and will lose miserably in the end, he still tries to take us out.

How? Division, take the believers out of the equation. We can't be as effective in the war for souls if we aren't relevant.

More over, Satan has a huge problem with several believers together. He believes that by pulling us apart, we aren't as strong as the whole. You know what, he's right.

Jesus speaking to the Pharisees said "Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand." (Matthew 12:25 NIV)

I mentioned this tactic while discussing the tax day "tea parties" that took place not so long ago. The purpose was to protest high taxes, unnecessary wasteful spending and the fact that current government fails to listen to the people, even though that's who elected them. The result: slander and false claims from the media making the protestors seem to be extremists or nut-jobs. It isn't true, but again, the devil is the father of lies (John 8:44.) It shouldn't surprise us when some lies are told.

What's the result of the original purpose of the protests? Time will only tell. But ask a liberal what they think about the protest and the people that attended it. That showcases the division. They don't realize that the protests were not Republican, Democrat or anything else. It was good people advocating for All the people.

Another example, very controvercial one at that is the ongoing mess with Miss California and the Miss USA pageant. I covered this with the previous post, but this is getting ridiculous. Miss California was asked about her views on gay marriage. She gave an answer she believed to be right and from her heart. She didn't win the crown and then was demonized by the gay community and the liberal mainstream media.

Now, they have dug for dirt and have found it. Apparently, when she was seventeen years old, she posed for some very erotic and questionable pictures. Should she have done that then, nope. That's not the point here.

My point here is the division. Taking her out of the equation. When asked the question on national television, she gave account for God. She did what was right in HIS eyes, not the eyes of the popular culture.

This infuriated the devil, so he went to work. If you can't attack the message, attack the messenger's credability. The fiery darts began to fly immediately and Miss California Carrie Prejean fought them off. Unfortunately it seems that division is starting to take its toll.

Christian organizations that supported her originally are starting to back off with the revelation of the questionable pictures. She is being left all alone by some other Christians.

Now is not the time for us to be divided! STAND UP AND FIGHT! Take your Shield of Faith, put it up and cover your neighbor if theirs is down. UNITE O' PEOPLE OF GOD! Recognize that there is a sinister agenda at work. Division!

Lift up Miss California in prayer, she needs it now more than ever! Who cares what her past is, none of us were ever good enough on our own to get into heaven! We were dead in our sins. Christ came to save us ALL!

I can't help but think about a song by contemporary artist Carman, "Revival in the Land." The beginning shows a conversation between Satan and one of his demons. They discuss their business such as abortion, television violence, suicide and such. But a problem arises when Christians began to pray for revival. Satan is forced to go on the offensive.

"Satan: Then I’ll come in like a flood

Demon: But they say the Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against you.

S: Ooh

D: It’s written in the Word.

S: I’ll form weapons against them.

D: Sir, no weapon formed against them shall prosper, that’s in the Bible too

S: Yes, I’ve heard. I’ll hit them with every filthy lusty thought you can imagine.

D: But its written resist the devil and he must flee.

S: Obviously the enemy is taking the battle more seriously than we are.

D: And that’s very dangerous Sir…. Especially for me.

S: It’s time to launch my final most vicious attack. I’ll remind the saints of their pasts, how they were liars, cheaters, manipulators and moochers.

D: But Sir, you know what will happen if you remind the saints of their pasts…

S: And what is that?

D: Sir… they’ll just remind you… of your future.

S: NOOO!" (Carman "Revival in the Land" from The Absolute Best)

Time to rise, Saints of God. Stop letting the devil remind us of our past. MAKE him flee, remind him of his future!

God has forgiven us of our pasts by the Precious Blood of Jesus. If He has forgotten it, so should we.

When the devil tries to divide and conquer we should do the opposite: UNITE AND STAND!

The Great Rainbow Controversy

I really find it ironic that the symbol that is currently used to show support for gay rights, is the very same symbol that God Almighty created in the sky as a reminder that He wouldn't allow the flood waters to cover the Earth again to rid it of sin. (Genesis 9:12-16)
Imagine, homosexuality was one of the rampant sins around the time of Noah and here we are now, having similar discussions about how to go about it.

As many of you know, the issue of gay marriage has come around in the news yet again. Most notably, in the Miss USA pageant.

I actually missed this, but I heard all about it the next day. I'm sure that this won't go away for a while. Let me summarize, Miss California Carrie Prejean was asked a question by Perez Hilton. For those who don't know who he is, he's a well known gay Hollywood insider. He asked Miss California her take on gay marriage, citing recent state laws accepting the practice as his base. She seemed to stumble, then she apparently spoke from her heart.
Her response was "marriage should be between a man and a woman." The response illicited some boos from the crowd, the scorn of Hilton on his blogs and maybe even cost her the crown. Miss North Carolina ended up winning the pageant.
Miss Prejean claims to be a Christian and defended her answer after the dust settled. I watched her say that she will pray for Hilton, even though he called her a number of vile names on TV and on the internet. It seems that she gave the current unpopular answer.
For the record, I'm proud of her for speaking her heart and not what cave into the pressure of winning a pageant. Her story is currently overshadowing the actual winner. In way, this public spat is a microcosm of the whole gay marriage issue in this nation as a whole.

Just this past week, New York's governor propose his own legislation for the approval of gay marriage. Advocates rejoiced because this is the first time in a very long time that the Governor, the Senate and the Assembly are democratic giving the proposal a good chance of passing and becoming state law.

For the second time in a month, the Lord woke me up out of my sound sleep and had me go into another room to pray in private. This issue is apparently something that He deems important and therefore it is important to me.

But what does the Lord have to say about homosexuality? Critics claim that because God is love, having two people love eachother, regardless of sexual orientation, is acceptable in His eyes. They couldn't be farther from the truth.

Yes, God is love. (I John 4:16) But He is also a just, jealous and vengeful God. (Isaiah 45:21; Exodus 34:14; Romans 12:19)

Let's examine a few passages in the Old Testament concerning homosexuality. Keep in mind, that was the Old Covenant. Jesus brought the New Covenant, which I'll explain later.

First we see how things were in Noah's day. God had no choice but to allow the flood waters come and wipe out the sinful people, save for Noah and his family, and of course the paired animals (female and male so they could repopulate, by the way.) God vowed never to allow that to happen again. (Genesis 9)

Not too long after that Abraham's brother Lot, who lived in Sodom, was greeted by two angels. They came from God to test the city and also to warn Lot of the impending judgement against Sodom and Gomorrah. Before they could deliver their message the two angels were met by the men of the town.
"...all the men from every part of the city of Sodom—both young and old—surrounded the house. They called to Lot, "Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can have sex with them." (Genesis 19:4-5 NIV)
Lot's family was evacuated and fire rained down from heaven because the sin was so great. Sodom and Gomorrah was wiped from existence.

The laws in the book of Leviticus also addresses homosexuality. "'If a man lies with a man as one lies with a woman, both of them have done what is detestable. They must be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads. " (Leviticus 20:13 NIV) The passage is layed out even more clearly in The Message: "If a man has sex with a man as one does with a woman, both of them have done what is abhorrent. They must be put to death; they are responsible for their own deaths."

Pretty clear eh? As I said that was all under the Old Covenant. What does that mean? It means that the principles are the same, but the punishment was paid once and for all. Jesus Christ paid the penalty for the sins of the world, so we don't have to. He shed His Holy blood, and in doing so created the New Covenant (1 Corinthians 11:25) that would trump the Old Covenant. All of our sins were taken to the grave with His death, and were wiped away upon His resurrection, PRAISE GOD!

Does that mean that because Jesus paid the price, gays can still marry and be right with God? NOPE! But that goes for ALL sin.

The New Testament speaks about it, even after Jesus' perfect sacrifice. "Don’t you realize that those who do wrong will not inherit the Kingdom of God? Don’t fool yourselves. Those who indulge in sexual sin, or who worship idols, or commit adultery, or are male prostitutes, or practice homosexuality, or are thieves, or greedy people, or drunkards, or are abusive, or cheat people—none of these will inherit the Kingdom of God." (I Corinthians 6:9-10 New Living Translation)

The book of Romans, concerning Christians sinning says this: "What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means!" (Romans 6:1-2) It goes on to remind us that we are DEAD to sin and no longer its slave.

Bottom line: Gay marriage is NOT OKAY with God! It is a sin and sin, by definition, is separation from God. Therefore it isn't something that we would want to be caught in when the Lord returns.

Marriage by definition, is the union consecrated by God between a MAN and a WOMAN. There isn't a gray area when it comes to this. Popular culture would have you believe otherwise, but just like Jesus, truth never is popular.

So people of God, we are being called to be the light shining in the darkness. We are the beacons that God has left behind to light the path back to Him. We need to pray! Pray for our lawmakers, that they hear the Lord's voice and obey it. And we need to pray for the people caught up in homosexuality. Pray that Jesus comes across their path and that they turn from their wicked ways.
Pray that we would be ready at all times to give testimony for Christ, just as Miss California did on an international stage in the face of fierce criticism.

We, like Jesus, should love the sinner but hate the sin. Again, that goes for every sin.

As I said earlier, God is just. At some point, His wrath will be released and when it does, there will be no pleading or excuses. Judgement Day will be here, and the wages of sin will be dealt with once and for all.

Someone's TEA-d Off!

Don't Tread On Me! I saw numerous flags with this printed on it on Wednesday, April 15th. This was Tax Day for Americans. But it was also the same day many Americans came out, in unity, to show their displeasure with the way their government is heading.

Many of the things they were addressing included: paying high taxes only to watch their leaders flush them down the toilet with wasteful spending; the systematic stripping away of Constitutional Rights; and just plain disrespect from lawmakers who refuse to acknowledge that they are, BY LAW, beholden to the voters that they represent.

This symbolic protest was attended by many thousands of concerned citizens, Republican or Democrat, who wanted to voice their opposition to the current trend in America. I was at one of these "Tea Parties," though I was working of course in my role in the local media. I did my job, objectively. I was keeping an eye out for anything that betrayed the message that was supposed to be relayed. There wasn't any where I was. From what I could see, this was a peaceful protest.

I have to say that I was impressed by what I saw and heard. I took pride in the fact that there are a whole lot more people out there that feel the same way I do than the mainstream media cares to say.

So, let's get some things straight when it comes to the media. As a Christian and a conservative, in the media I am outnumbered incredibly. Most would agree that there is a definite slant to coverage. Certain major "news" networks aren't hiding it anymore. With the last Presidential election they showed their true colors and clearly backed one candidate over the other. That's their right, however when it comes to defaming the other view or even creating lies, you've crossed the line.

This brings me to the tea parties. Some of the news outlets, nationally and even locally, categorized the rallies as: "Anti-government, Anti-Obama, Anti-tax paying." The list goes on and on. This infuriates me, not because of my views, but because it is FALSE!!! I WAS THERE!

The tea parties were not organized by the GOP, if they were they were getting as much blame for the current mess as the Democrats. President Bush took flack as much as I heard the name of President Obama come under scrutiny. It wasn't a rally against government or the President, it was a rally against all those ideas that reject the United States Constitution and the rights contained therein.

That was the true meaning of the rally. I personally talked with people angry with both political parties. The system is broke, and people came out to voice their opposition.

But still, some people missed the whole point. This isn't about Democrat versus Republican, or right-wing versus left-wing, this is about RIGHT versus WRONG! The rallies were for ALL Americans, put on by Americans. Regardless of your party affiliation, you were represented.

Whatever side you claim to be on, remember this: For every right and left wing, there is a whole body that needs attention too. We are Americans! Let's stop the bickering and take a look at the big picture. We are one body!

I've said it before, if we don't watch out and be vigilant, what George Orwell wrote in the book 1984 will come to pass before our very eyes. It's already happening!

It's time to unite under One God and under the flag of Freedom. America, the land of the free and the home of the brave. Let's make sure those words don't die while we bicker amongst ourselves.

Divide and Conquer: This is the most effective weapon the enemy uses against us. He's done it for thousands of years and is still using it now. Division! If an army is too tough to defeat as is, split it up and pick off the smaller parts before going in for the kill. A lot easier then, right?

Jesus Christ Himself said: "Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand." (Matthew 12:25 NIV)

Be proud America! Be proud of what you accomplished on Tax Day. You roared loudly and the enemy's gates shook. Do I advocate violence of any kind, absolutely not. But these peaceful protests showed what motivated Americans can do with a cause they can ALL get behind.

So, keep roaring: praying and believing and eventually the walls will come down, like they did in Jericho. (Joshua 6; Hebrews 11:30)

United We Stand, divided we fall!

It is Finished...Easter Sunday

While Jesus was crucified and hanging on the cross:

"Later, knowing that all was now completed, and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, "I am thirsty." A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus' lips. When he had received the drink, Jesus said, "It is finished." With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit." (John 19:28-30 NIV)

What happened here? More than the mortal men and women watching that scene could see with their naked eyes. I discussed on the Good Friday post about Jesus paying the price for sin, for all of us forever, by dying on the cross. He traded places with man and went to the place of suffering and punishment instead of us! Jesus went to Hades. (Acts of the Apostles 1:31)

For three days, Jesus remained in Hades, tormented by the complete separation of God. Jesus, by dying on the cross and becoming sin for us, had to go to the place made for separation. He wasn't alone, there were others there paying their price for sin as well. And of course, Satan and his minions were present. The Savior Christ was defeated, and was now in prison.

Something happened after three days. God's Holy Spirit quickened and empowered Jesus. He was loose in the prison, and He was on a mission. The scriptures aren't very clear exactly what took place, but I'm willing to bet that the devil, Satan, never took a beating quite like he took that day.

Thus began the greatest prison break in history! Jesus emerged from the place of suffering and then EMPTIED IT! Then, after the three days had passed:

"After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.
There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.
The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: 'He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you."
So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them. "Greetings," he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me." (Matthew 28:1-10 NIV)

HE IS ALIVE!!! The Man that knew no sin, and became sin for US, defeated the grave and was now the risen Savior. Jesus walked, talked and even ate with His disciples.

This is the true meaning of Easter. Jesus was crucified and died, then rose from the grave three days later. All for YOU! God wants you part of His family, that's why He sent Jesus to die on the cross.

Here's the rub, salvation is all up to you. You can choose to accept it or reject it, just as the people in Christ's time did. I wouldn't wait, time is short and His return to this Earth is imminent. It could happen at any time. Don't be left behind when the world gets turned on its head and hell is released.

Accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior on today. Acknowledge the perfect sacrifice and live eternally!

It Is Finished...the Ultimate Sacrifice

The Ultimate Sacrifice...made for us!



"They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, and then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on his head. They put a staff in his right hand and knelt in front of him and mocked him. "Hail, king of the Jews!" they said. They spit on him, and took the staff and struck him on the head again and again. After they had mocked him, they took off the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him.
As they were going out, they met a man from Cyrene, named Simon, and they forced him to carry the cross. They came to a place called Golgotha (which means The Place of the Skull). There they offered Jesus wine to drink, mixed with gall; but after tasting it, he refused to drink it. When they had crucified him, they divided up his clothes by casting lots. And sitting down, they kept watch over him there. Above his head they placed the written charge against him: THIS IS JESUS, THE KING OF THE JEWS. Two robbers were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left. Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads and saying, "You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! Come down from the cross, if you are the Son of God!"
In the same way the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders mocked him. "He saved others," they said, "but he can't save himself! He's the King of Israel! Let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him, for he said, 'I am the Son of God.' " In the same way the robbers who were crucified with him also heaped insults on him.
From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land. About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?"—which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"
When some of those standing there heard this, they said, "He's calling Elijah."
Immediately one of them ran and got a sponge. He filled it with wine vinegar, put it on a stick, and offered it to Jesus to drink. The rest said, "Now leave him alone. Let's see if Elijah comes to save him."
And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.
At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split. The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. They came out of the tombs, and after Jesus' resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many people.
When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, "Surely he was the Son of God!" (Matthew 27:28-54 NIV)



"Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted.
But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.
We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.
By oppression and judgment he was taken away. And who can speak of his descendants? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was stricken.
He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth.
Yet it was the LORD's will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the LORD makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand.
After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light of life and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities.
Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors." (Isaiah 53:1-12 NIV)

So, what exactly happened on that fateful day so many hundreds of years ago? Was just a man put to death for Crimes, or was there more to the story? As you probably guessed, there was more that happened than a simple man being judged and subsequently executed for said crimes.

The first fact, already discussed in earlier posts: Jesus was the Word of God made flesh. (John 1:14) He was God, Himself. The second part of the Holy Trinity. He came as a servant and lived as and lived among men. He allowed Himself to be tried and convicted, and ultimately executed.

Why? Because He had to! For without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness for our sins. (Hebrews 9) Man's sin was so great that a simple blood sacrifice of an animal would no longer do, there needed to be something more. Enter: Jesus!

God sent in His own Lamb for the sacrifice. Jesus Christ paid the ultimate price for all of our sins: past, present and future! He bore everything for us. Why did He do that? Simple, God loves us and doesn't want us to go to hell. Thats where the unredeemed will go without accepting His Son, it HAS to be that way. Sin has NO place in the presence of God Almighty, it CAN'T exist there.

Second fact: Jesus went to Hades! He HAD to. The scriptures tell us He became sin through the crucifixion. (2 Corinthians 5:21) If sin, by definition, is separation from God: then deductive reasoning concludes that Jesus died and went to be punished because He was sin. OUR sin! Hades was made for sin. Some sacrifice, the Man that knew NO sin becoming what He hates because He loves us so much. Deep, huh?

Bottom line: Good Friday is the day where we remember and recognize the Ultimate Sacrifice, the Perfect Sacrifice: the death of Jesus Christ on the cross. But it didn't end there. We will discuss Easter on Sunday and what Jesus meant when He cried out "It is finished!" For all the tears of sadness flowing today, there will be more tears of joy for what happened on that Easter. Stay tuned!

God loves you very much, that's why we observe Good Friday. But where there's sorrow, there comes a hope. Meet that Hope and be saved today. (John 3:16)

Take a breath and remember

What a violent weekend! First there was the shooting rampage in Binghamton, New York that left a lot of families and a community grieving.

Then in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania three police officers gave the ultimate sacrifice while on duty.

Finally, in Washington State a man killed himself, but not before taking the life of his five children.

I'm sure that there were more acts of senseless violence that occurred, but these are just three that stood out among the news headlines.

Normally, I don't comment on happenings like this, but I feel compelled to say something. These are tragedies that shouldn't have ever happened. Lives lost for no more of a reason than someone being upset with something.

We need to pray for these families right now. The loss is almost too much to bear for these victims. They need to know that God has a plan for them and to yield themselves to Him for comfort.

What happened can never be changed and nothing but the Love and Grace of the Lord can fill the void that they most certainly feel inside of them. Pray that the Holy Spirit will make Himself known and minister to them.

Also, let us pray that events like the ones this weekend don't repeat themselves. Satan has taken enough blood, no more!

Don't be caught sleeping!

Wow, what a difference a couple of months make. I stated before that people need to be aware of who they elect into office. Once in office, we need to continue watch their actions like hawks. They need to be held accountable, afterall they are public servants right?

Bear with me a bit. In the recent topic of the Mark of the Beast, we talked about a "Big Brother" type of government that would eventually give way to the rise of the Antichrist. The man that will eventually come to lead the world to Armageddon will rise out of this government. But millions of souls will be lost at this man's whim.

Before we go further, we aren't there yet. As I said earlier, that man CAN'T come to power without the Holy Spirit being taken out of the way first, ie: the Rapture. (II Thessalonians 2) That hasn't happened yet, so for right now we are good.

However, I'm seeing some disturbing signs that show me that we are headed that way rapidly. The stars are aligning themselves, to quote a cryptic pun.

First, we see the massive bailout of Wall Street by the US Government. Was this a good move? I honestly don't know, that remains to be seen. What disturbs me about this most is the fact that the US Government is pouring money into commercial private banks. Thus getting their hands in it. This shouldn't be happening.

Another new example is the news story about the CEO of an automaker pressured by the Fed to resign. The said company had indeed taken bailout money from the government. Here's another example of interference in private businesses by the lawmakers.

The government at the time of the Antichrist is involved in EVERYTHING. Even to the point of dictating personal behavior and responsibility.

A recent and silly example of this is the story (that was eventually dropped by popular demand) in NY State that the government would tax soda drinkers because it is "bad for you." WE KNOW THAT! But is it government's responsibility to dictate our behavior and tell us what they think is right or wrong to drink and eat???

Some state governments are actually considering putting a mileage tax on the books. The way it will work, if it passes, is that a GPS tracking device will be installed onto your vehicle. They will then calculate how many miles you travel in a given time and then tax you accordingly. I don't know about you, but I don't want anyone adding a GPS to my car without my blessing. I don't want anyone to be able to track me like that. What I do and where I go is my business. But of this does pass, it will open the door for the Mark, just like I said.

Going along with GPS and people's rights, do an internet search a case in New York concerning a man convicted of a crime where police installed a GPS device on his car without a warrant. The Supreme Court upheld the conviction because the device was "in plain sight." This case was recently heard by the State Court of Appeals. Stay tuned for their decision.

There will eventually be a one-world economy. This has to happen for the Mark of the Beast to be truly controlling. I can hear the whispers from Capitol Hill where some are unbelievably calling for a world monetary unit. It appears to be working in the European Union, it might only be a matter of time for the US.

With banks buying out other banks, this might be around the corner if the value of the Dollar keeps falling like a brick.

Am I saying that somone in our government is the Antichrist? No. Could they be? Maybe, but that isn't for me to say. This isn't the time for fingerpointing. The time is for people to wake up and see what is going on around them.

It is indeed very possible that the people in power right now don't have your best interests at heart. There is an agenda at work, and it is bringing about changes to our way of life. If we aren't careful, the Bill of Rights won't exist anymore because it was erased under our very noses.

It's not instant, it's a process

Have you ever taken a vacation where you drive to your destination? I've taken several over the years. You know what I find sometimes? The journey is sometimes more eventful than the actual destination.
I find that you learn more with your companions, share things with them that you normally wouldn't if you had just flown and got there quicker.
Life is kinda like that. Everything is a journey. We're in a constant state of travelling to our destination, learning new things along the way.

Our spiritual lives illustrate that more than anything. When you become saved by accepting Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you begin a new journey. You are now on a different road than you were originally travelling on.

Put bluntly, when we were dead in our sins, we were on the road to destruction. Maybe not right then or there, but eventually we would face your Maker as a lost sinner. When you get saved by the mighty power of Jesus, you take the fork in the road and start the trip anew. The slate is wiped clean!

But the journey isn't over. You still have a life to live. Something that should be pointed out is the fact that there will be bumps along the road. It isn't all straight driving ahead. The road will wind and turn, and we now more than ever have to be watchful. We need to mind our surroundings and watch out for hazards along the way. We can't click on the auto-pilot and sit back and relax.

Why? Because it is a process getting to our destination. That's why we live our entire lives. Every twist and turn causes us to react differently than we did to the one before it. We learn along the way.
I'm sure that most of us learned the hard way not to touch a hot pot. Children learn lessons like that. Cause and effect, there are consequences to every action and decision that we make. That's what life is, one big lesson for us to learn.

So what is the point here? You need to know that the only instant thing that happens when you become saved is where your soul ends up. How and when you get there is your choice. It is a journey that we MUST travel.

That's what I was getting at earlier when I talked about driving to your destination as opposed to flying there. You tend to learn more about yourself on the trip. Although, life is more of a walk than a drive. However you look at it, it takes a while.

When you are saved, does that mean that you instantly stop sinning? Absolutely not! Unfortunately we still live in a mortal body that is riddled with sin. Jesus Christ died to save us from those sins. We are forgiven forever because of His perfect sacrifice, but we have to make the choice not to act on sinful thoughts.
The mind is a battlefield! That's where the fight begins. Satan whispers thoughts into your ear and you now have the choice to act or not. We are supposed to throw scripture right back into his face and reject the thought.
That's what Jesus did when He was tempted in the desert by Satan. (Luke 4)
For everything that the devil said to Jesus, He spoke the Word of God to counter the argument.
That's what we're supposed to do!
"Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage- with great patience and careful instruction." (2 Timothy 4:2 NIV)

The Word needs to be on our tongues, ready to roll off when the time comes. But how do we get to that point? By reading and meditating on the Word of God. Take it in and eventually you will recall the Word for every situation. It doesn't happen instantly, it is a process.

The Bible tells us to renew our minds (Romans 12:2; 2 Corinthians 4:16.) Each day, every day we need to obey His teaching. We train ourselves to be ready.

We run the race (Hebrews 12:1-2) and eventually when the twists and turns come, we are ready for them. But as the journey progresses, so do we in our spiritual walk with God. We will become more like Him. That's the goal!

We will never be without the twists and turns, but we will know how to deal with them according to His will. We will be stronger with every trial and tribulation.

So let's continue on the road and see where it takes us. It will never be dull!

The Right Side of the Tracks

A lot of people tend to have problems with the Bible. One of these problems is a very simple diagnosis, they pick and choose what they want to accept from it.

"I believe in the Bible is a nice book with a nice set of stories that tell us how we should act. But I don't agree with everything."

Why not? How can you choose to believe one thing, but not another. Do you think the Author was a bit delusional in certain parts? If that is so, how can you believe any of it.

In a way, it's kind of like listening to the liar say "I am a liar, trust me," and then trusting him. How can you do that? If you believe he is a liar, how do you accept what he says as truth?

The Bible is a book of absolutes, period. One side of the train tracks or the other. There is a middle of the tracks, but that's reserved for the train only. So, we as readers of the Bible, have to read it and choose what side of the tracks we need to be on. Or more to the point, actually accept what side of the tracks God wants us on and get there. Preferably with some haste and sense of purpose.

The Bible was written with an all or nothing mentality: you can't have one with out the other. Or here's one: you can't have your cake and eat it too! It's all or nothing!

Here are some of the simple arguments that become stumbling blocks for themselves.

"I believe that God is love. He loves everyone equally and won't send anyone to hell."
While true on all counts, someone can and will eventually go to hell.
God is indeed love. (I John 4:8 KJV)
God is no respecter of persons. (Romans 2:11 KJV)
God doesn't send people to hell, people send themselves to hell. (John 3:17, 2 Peter 3:9 KJV)
As we have seen in the earlier mark of the beast discussion, the Bible clearly states that people will go to hell.

"I don't believe in hell."
Really?! One believes in the almighty power of God, that He created heaven and the earth, yet that small part about a place of judgement was a misprint?
I got some news for you, hell exists and you don't want to go there.

"Jesus was just a good teacher. Similar to Ghandi and Mother Teresa."
Did either one of these others go to the cross for the sins of the world and die for you? Did they heal people simply by touching them or speaking a word to them?
It is a historical FACT that Jesus died on the cross as a form of execution.
But again, if you believe that the Bible speaks the truth about the life of Jesus, why won't you believe what is says about His death and resurrection?

"I don't believe in the devil."
Got more news for you, he doesn't care! Actually, he would prefer that you didn't even acknowledge him. It will make it easier for him to accomplish his mission (John 10:10 KJV.)

Do any of these arguments sound familiar? I've heard them hundreds of times from many different people. I tell them the same thing: Believe it or don't. Take it or leave it! It's your choice.

The Bible wasn't made into what it is today for people to go through and cherrypick the good stories and morals. It was meant to be taken as a whole (2 Timothy 3:16 KJV, Revelations 22:18-19 KJV.)

There is a reason for this. God wants us to be on the right side of the tracks when the train comes through. If your on the wrong side, you won't be able to get to the correct side then. It will be too late.
And of course, if you're walking down the middle of the tracks you'll get pulverized by the train itself. No coming back after that one!

The point I'm trying to make is that there is no middle ground. You're either hot or cold, not lukewarm. You need to be committed, enough of the lacksidasical approach to God! Wake up and realize that there is a war going on and we're right in the middle of it. Like it or not, it's happening.
It's time to just allow yourself to accept His Word and move forward. You can never get anywhere when all that you do is spin your tires. Put the vehicle in gear and get going to your destination.

It's okay to ask questions and not understand everything. That is natural when dealing with an incomprehensible God and His majesty. But we have been given the Holy Spirit that will lead us to the truth. Sometimes we just need to be still and listen for His voice. Believe me, I don't know everything and learn something new everyday. It is a constant process of learning.

Allow yourself to open up. Take the first few steps and get on the right side of the tracks. Don't wait, train's a'coming!

The Bad Apples and the Gospel of Hate

You all have heard the expression concerning the "one bad apple spoiling the whole bunch." That analogy relates to so many different facets of our lives.

No more is this true than with so-called "Christian organizations" out there that preach the gospel of hate.

The reason I'm addressing this is because one such group is making noise again. I don't really want to name them because I don't want to bring anymore credability to their cause. Let's just say that they hail from a town in Kansas.

Anyway, they come preaching the "Word of God" and claim to speak for Him. They have protested at funerals for our brave fallen servicemen and women, saying that "God killed them because gays are allowed in the military." How sick and perverse! Apparently shame isn't something they were taught in their "church."

Are these people followers of Jesus? No! The proof is in what they preach.

Jesus Himself said "Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them." (Matthew 7:15-20 KJV)

Jesus is saying that you can tell His followers by what fruits that they produce. What kind of feelings does their message produce? Rage, hatred, defiance...these are not the good fruits that Jesus wants us to sow. Just by their own message, they are corrupt.

I guess I just want to bring to people's mind that these people can be considered the "bad apples." Their message of "God hates gays" isn't one of Jesus Christ.

In fact, that message is diabolically opposed to the teaching of Christ. If you read the Bible, you will see clearly that Jesus didn't associate with the "religious zealots" of the time. He didn't hang out with the uppity, in-crowds. Most of the time, He hung with the sinners. Why?

Because Jesus came into the world to save it! Jesus said:
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved." (John 3:16-17 KJV)

That is powerful! Did He say that it was ok to sin and continue in it? No, of course not. He reproved them. But Jesus knew what His role was and how men could find their way back to God through Him.

This is clear when the woman accused of adultery was before Jesus in the Book of John chapter 8. The people were ready to stone her according the old law. Jesus stopped them and turned the tables on them saying "If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her." (John 8:7 NIV)
Jesus went to say "Then neither do I condemn you," Jesus declared. "Go now and leave your life of sin." (John 8:11 NIV)

God hates sin! But God loves us more than He hates sin. The reason we need to be forgiven is because we can't enter into His Holy place while sin still is a part of us. Sin, put simply, is separation from God.
God sent His only Son Jesus to die on the cross for our sins because nothing that we could ever do would be enough to blot out the sin from our souls. Jesus was the perfect sacrifice!

Let's bring this all back to our topic at hand. God hates sin, not the sinner! He doesn't laugh when tragedy falls upon us. We were created by Him so He could love us forever.

This is the true message of the love of God through Jesus Christ. Remember that when faced with ignorant people that twist His precious name into something terrible. Take heart in knowing that they are some bad apples that need the same saving power of Jesus that the defiant people that shake their fists at God need.
They don't speak for other Christians. In the words of Jesus, "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do."

Pray for them, that's what Christ wants us to do for people like that. Pray that the scales fall from their eyes and that their understanding is opened.

"The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance." (2 Peter 3:9 NIV)

Big Brother and the Mark of the Beast

"He also forced everyone, small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on his right hand or on his forehead, so that no one could buy or sell unless he had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of his name." (Revelations 13:16-17 NIV)

This part of scripture tends to confuse or even scare people so much that they skip the entire book of Revelations altogether. You shouldn't, it is a book of hope!

However, as we discussed earlier about the Rapture, darkness will have to fall first before good triumphs. Take this as a warning of things to come.

What people tend to focus on with this part of scripture is the following continuation:

"...This calls for wisdom. If anyone has insight, let him calculate the number of the beast, for it is man's number. His number is 666." (Rev. 13:18 NIV)

We won't focus on this because it is a little confusing. What I want to focus on is verses 16 and 17.

Imagine not being able to buy or sell without approval of the government. Imagine wanting to get some food but not being able to unless you have some sort of ID tag. Far fetched, hardly!

You see, Revelations is written chronologically. The Mark of the Beast doesn't come into play until the beast is unleashed upon the earth. That hasn't happened yet! The rapture has to take place first: http://repellingtheenemy.blogspot.com/2008/11/breaking-news.html

Then and only then can Antichrist come to power. Then there is a seven year peace pact made, but half way through someone breaks it and attacks Israel. Martial law is instituted and then the Mark of the Beast is implemented in a George Orwell-1984 way. (That is the short version of course.)

So what is the Mark and how is it used? Let's see.

The Mark, in my opinion, won't be a tattoo with the number 666 on it. People would be able to recognize that immediately and would rebel. It has to be something subtle, something that people would want to take or use. But it will also be a way for you to be tracked everywhere you go. And everything you do will be known to the authorities.

But why would anyone knowingly take this Mark? Deception! You will be told that it is something else, something that is for the best. Imagine that, government telling us what they think is best for us!?! WOW, sounds like some of the things floating around nowadays.

The Mark, in my opinion, will be a microchip or something like it. There are plenty of tiny microchips that are capable of being implanted under your skin. Look at the following link: http://www.doomedamerica.com/rfidforced.jpg Look at the size of those things!!! And with technology progressing like it has been, it won't be long before GPS tracking those chips become a reality.

Anyone with pets can attest to that. You can have your pet implanted with a GPS tracking chip in order to easily find them if they wander off. See, that's how it will start. Something benign enough. I don't give it long before people will call for their children to be implanted with chips like this. Kidnappings will be a thing of the past with these new chips!

Ok, so now we can see how they can track us with chips, but how does that prevent buying or selling?

I'm sure some of you know all about the new credit or debit card readers that they have out now. You don't even have to swipe anymore, you just simply pass your card over the reader and the transaction is made.

But those cards can be stolen, ID theft is a huge problem now. How can that be prevented forever and all of my bank information made safe? Have all of your information put on a chip and have it implanted. Again, I don't see this that far off in the future.

Because of terrorism in the world, people are screaming for a national ID card to prove you are who you say you are. But those cards can be faked, how can we truly get around that? You got it, implant our population with the new "National ID Chip." Again, this is just around the corner, just wait!

There will be great pressure to willingly take this Mark, or chip. The prospect of not being able to conduct business, work or even buy food can be very compelling. Here's another reason people will take the Mark, execution.

There is a clear picture of people being executed for not taking the Mark of the Beast and worshipping his image. Beheading to be exact. Not a pretty picture at all.

So what happens to those who do take the Mark? Let's find out.

"A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: 'If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on the forehead or on the hand, he, too, will drink of the wine of God's fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. He will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment rises for ever and ever. There is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and his image, or for anyone who receives the mark of his name.'" (Rev. 14:9-11 NIV)

WHAT?! How can they be judged if they just take the Mark in order to survive? Here's the reason, it won't be just a financial or patriotic decision. It will also be a spiritual decision. In order to receive the Mark, you have to profess that the Antichrist is God Himself. Think of it as a twisted perversion of being born-again.

The devil wants your soul, and he will have it if you take the Mark of the Beast willingly and worship him as God.

Now, do you see where God's wrath is coming from? Once you willingly take the Mark, you are doomed for eternity. Think of it as God's Scarlet Letter.

So, what's the point here? As earlier discussed, I believe that people that accepted Jesus as their Savior will miss this part of history in the future. Those left behind may have to make a decision: Take the Mark and live for a while or refuse the Mark and lose your head. Not a choice I would want to face. Keep in mind, the choice will affect where you go for eternity.

I did say though that Revelations is a book of hope, didn't I? Here it is: you can be saved right now. Accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior and you won't even be a part of that terrible future known as the Great Tribulation.

But if you are left behind, you need to know that God hasn't abandoned you. He still wants you in heaven with Him. Accept Jesus now and refuse to take the Mark of the Beast, in whatever form it comes in. Run to the hills, run for your life and your eternity.

As I said, we aren't there yet. But if you read the news and listen you can clearly see government slowly trying to take our rights away. Freedom is taking on a new meaning. The Constitution is being eroded away ever so slowly and sneakily.

The right to bear arms is under fire, conservative talk radio is being threatened. Those are listed in the Bill of Rights, 2nd and 1st Amendments respectively. Yet some want to change all that and have Big Brother government take your hand and lead you to the promise land. We, the people, aren't capable of living our lives to the fullest without someone else stepping in and dictating what is best for us. Or so some think and say.

Be watchful and informed. Don't be caught unaware.

"Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh." (Matthew 25:13 KJV)

This isn't some conspiracy theory, it is happening right now as you read this. The technology of the future is aligning itself with Bible prophecy of old. The Lord is coming back soon. Please be ready!