Category: Christianity

The Anglican Communion has suspended the Episcopal Church of the United States. In a move that should have happened when the 1928 Prayer Book was dumped in favor of a watered-down, modern language one (i.e. the 1970’s), nevertheless, the worldwide group has finally acted.

For the first time, the global organizing body of Anglicans has punished the Episcopal Church, following years of heated debate with the American church over homosexuality, same-sex marriage and the role of women.

The Anglican Communion’s announcement Thursday that it would suspend its U.S. branch for three years from key voting positions was seen as a blow to the Episcopal Church, which allows its clergy to perform same-sex marriages and this summer voted to include the rite in its church laws.

It was also seen as a victory for conservative Anglicans, especially those in Africa,, who for years have been pressing the Anglican Communion to discipline the U.S. body.

“The traditional doctrine of the church in view of the teaching of Scripture, upholds marriage as between a man and a woman in faithful, lifelong union,” the leaders of the Anglican Communion, which represents 44 national churches, said in a statement during a meeting in Canterbury. “The majority of those gathered reaffirm this teaching.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2016/01/14/anglican-communion-suspends-the-episcopal-church-for-3-years-from-committees/

The article goes on to report that since 2003, ECUSA

“has lost more than 20 percent of its members since it consecrated Robinson, and new statistics suggest that membership continues to fall, dropping 2.7 percent from 2013 to about 1.8 million U.S. members in 2014.”

What is happening is that the faithful part of the church—which is showing exponential growth—has isolated the malignant tumor that is the American Church. Were it not for hundreds of millions in trust funds and endowments, ECUSA would be extinct. This large cache of money has insulated them from having to hold to biblical orthodoxy in order to survive.

It’s sad when wolves like Gene Robinson are the Shepherds of the flock. When lay people need to pray for the repentance and salvation of their church leaders, in my world it’s time to go elsewhere. No wonder today’s youth are so pagan. Many people are in hell today because of Robinson and his fellow liberals but they’re ok with that because they don’t believe in hell anyway.

Since believing the words of Jesus is not necessary to be a Christian as Robinson defines it, I’m not sure why he would even call himself a Christian. Gene, if you don’t believe in the Bible, be honest enough to get out of the church. Heretics, heathen, and hypocrites are leading ECUSA beyond apostasy. Scripture promises that leaders like you should be fitted with a millstone and put out to sea.

Instead of repenting, look for the ECUSA leadership to double-down on their rebellion.

I was hoping just to post something light in honor of Christmas and then take a few days off but then I went to World Net Daily and saw an article that really got me upset.

‘Fairy tale’: Many pastors don’t believe Jesus born of virgin

More people might come to church if Christians would drop “fairy tale” tidbits like the Nativity story.

That’s the belief of a minister in Cairns Church in Milngavie, Scotland.

According to Scotland’s Herald, Rev. Andrew Frater wants Christians to “move on from the ‘fanciful, fairy tale’ Nativity story and ‘disentangle the truth from the tinsel.’”

The report said Frater believes telling the traditional story of the birth of Jesus “had the effect of keeping people with doubts about their faith away from the church, as the Nativity was too easily dismissed.”

Christian preacher nativity story just fairy tale

With the widespread rejection of a six-day creation in favor of evolution, it’s no wonder that the Virgin Birth of Christ should be so easily rejected. To reject one and hold to the other is a logical contradiction. What this also means is that once you reject Creation and the Virgin Birth, then you logically must also reject the Resurrection of Christ. Once you reject the Resurrection, then you are no longer a Christian.

Which brings us to the next part of the article.

According to a 1998 poll of 7,441 Protestant clergy in the U.S., the following ministers said they didn’t believe in the virgin birth:

• American Lutherans, 19 percent

• American Baptists, 34 percent

• Episcopalians, 44 percent

• Presbyterians, 49 percent

• Methodists, 60 percent

With so many clergy rejecting the authority of Scripture, is it any wonder that the Church is becoming increasingly irrelevant in the West? Wolves in sheep’s clothing are the norm in many denominations. If clergy are willing to publicly disclose their disbelief, it seems likely that others doubt but are afraid to say so. These statistics are gathered by religious tolerance.org Virgin Birth Surveys

I’m sure the heresy in these denominations has grown worst since 1998. Can you say “gay marriage”?

What is interesting on this website is that more regular people believe in the Virgin Birth than clergy by a wide margin.

Some ministers think they can deny the clear teaching on such core issues such as the Virgin Birth and Resurrection and be Christians but Scripture contradicts such nonsense.

The Virgin Birth is not optional; it is the core of the Incarnation. If God did not become man then there is no hope for us. Creation, the Virgin Birth and Resurrection are all core doctrines of the historic Christian Creeds.

The Biblical account is not ambiguous. The Virgin Birth is an historical fact. Here are some passages supporting this core doctrine:

This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.  But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.  She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”—which means, “God with us.” When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. But he had no union with her until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus. Matthew

1:18-25 emphasis added

Luke, a physician by train, wrote not only the Gospel bearing his name but also the book of Acts, begins his narrative by stating that he interviewed eye witnesses and investigated the facts to write his account of the life of Christ.

Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word.  Therefore, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus,  so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.

Luke 1:1-4 emphasis added

Contrast this with Rev Frater, “For me, it’s time to travel beyond the literalists’ landscape; time to acknowledge that Luke and Matthew were not newspaper reporters. Although facts were for them significant, they were also secondary.”

So we have a choice, believe the written account of eyewitnesses or the rambling of a Scottish hypocrite who swore an oath of fidelity to a God he doesn’t believe in.
Like Matthew, Luke is not ambiguous.

“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 2:34-38 emphasis added

There are other mentions of the Virgin Birth in the Gospels that are beyond the scope of this article that create even more problems for Frater and other doubters.

Likewise the Resurrection is not an optional doctrine for Christians.

But the one whom God raised from the dead did not see decay. Acts 13:37

And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. 1 Corinthians 15:14

And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. 1 Corinthians 15:17

Paul, an apostle—sent not from men nor by man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead— Galatians 1:1

I would like to close this blog with some portions of the Athanasian Creed that are relevant to this topic. There are 44 lines to the complete Creed.

1. Whosoever will be saved, before all things it is necessary that he hold the catholic faith;

2. Which faith except every one do keep whole and undefiled, without doubt he shall perish everlastingly.

29. Furthermore it is necessary to everlasting salvation that he also believe rightly the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ.

30. For the right faith is that we believe and confess that our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is God and man.

31. God of the substance of the Father, begotten before the worlds; and man of substance of His mother, born in the world.

32. Perfect God and perfect man, of a reasonable soul and human flesh subsisting.

33. Equal to the Father as touching His Godhead, and inferior to the Father as touching His manhood.

34. Who, although He is God and man, yet He is not two, but one Christ.

35. One, not by conversion of the Godhead into flesh, but by taking of that manhood into God.

36. One altogether, not by confusion of substance, but by unity of person.

37. For as the reasonable soul and flesh is one man, so God and man is one Christ;

38. Who suffered for our salvation, descended into hell, rose again the third day from the dead;

39. He ascended into heaven, He sits on the right hand of the Father, God, Almighty;

44. This is the catholic faith, which except a man believe faithfully he cannot be saved.

emphasis added

I saw this headline today, “Evangelical preacher on trial after branding Islam ‘satanic’”

LONDON (AP)—An evangelical preacher from Northern Ireland who branded Islam satanic has been charged with spreading a “grossly offensive” message.

In a May 2014 sermon, James McConnell told worshippers at the Whitewell Metropolitan Tabernacle in Belfast: “Islam is heathen. Islam is satanic.”

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EU_NIRELAND_PREACHER_CHARGED?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2015-12-14-10-21-20

Let’s look at the facts, Islam denies the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus.

Here is a sample of Biblical quotes:

Who is the liar? It is the man who denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a man is the antichrist—he denies the Father and the Son. 1 John 2:22

Many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist. 2 John 1:7

That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. Romans 10:9

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Colossians 3:1

OK so should I believe the testimony of 1,600 years of prophecy and its fulfillment with a promise of life or a cult of death stuck in the seventh century?

If the Bible is from God then Islam is from something not God and therefore has its origin in Satan. The followers of Islam are deceived and without intervention will end-up in hell. Sounds like the preacher is preaching the Gospel to me.

On the 50th anniversary of Vatican II, the Roman Catholic Church has affirmed its agreement of a basic tenant of dispensational theology. Namely, the Catholic Church should not actively work to convert Jews.

The document also states “…God never annulled his covenant with the Jewish people…”

“Dr. David Kessler…said it was the first time a repudiation of active conversion of Jews had been so clearly stated in a Vatican document.”
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/dec/10/vatican-tells-catholics-not-to-attempt-to-convert-jews

Contrast this with Jesus’ own words to a Jewish audience, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6

“Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.” John 3:18

“Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! For if, when we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!” Romans 5:9–10

The New Testament affirms that salvation is only through Jesus. This is true for both Jew and Gentile. Salvation is not different for different folks.

The apostle Paul, a Jew by birth and Pharisee by training wrote, “Brothers, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved.” Romans 10:1

All have sinned (both Jew and Gentile) and fall short of the glory of God. Romans 3:23

Contrast this with another quote from The Guardian article, “The report also said that while it is only thanks to Christ’s death and resurrection that all people have the chance of salvation, Jews can benefit from this without believing in him.”

“But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” John 20:31

Paul the Jew wrote, “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?” Romans 10:14

Paul wrote to the Church in Galatia, “Does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you because you observe the law, or because you believe what you heard?” Galatians 3:22

“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” Hebrews 11:6

“He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.” I John 5:12–13

Clearly this teaching of Roman is heresy and stands at odds to the core message of the Christian Gospel. Somehow Rome has been confused.

The article also mentions, “The council, widely known as Vatican II, disowned the concept of collective Jewish responsibility for the crucifixion of Christ, decried antisemitism, emphasised the shared heritage of the two faiths, and launched a theological dialogue that traditionalists have rejected.”

Yeah, you knew the Holocaust was in here somewhere. Somehow, certain folks have twisted the Scriptures related to the crucifixion of Jesus where the Jews says, “All the people answered, ‘Let his blood be on us and on our children!’” Matthew 27:25

Secular historians have concocted this idea that people like Martin Luther—citing this verse—evolved into a justification for the Holocaust under Hitler. This is a perversion of the Scripture and history. Hitler was not a Christian. His Eugenics, National Socialism, and other ideas have roots in Darwin not Scripture. Some of these ideas might have been wrapped in the language of patriotism and faith but they are neither.

“Let his blood be upon us…” was fulfilled in 70 A.D. Both the prophecy of Matthew 24 and most of the book of Revelation describe the fulfillment of the Jews being punished for their disbelief.

Look at the chronology of Matthew. In chapter 24, the judgement of Israel is foretold, the reason why occurs three chapters later. Its fulfillment was within the generation that heard Jesus speak the words just as he foretold. “I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.” Matthew 24:34

To perpetually blame the Jews as the reason Jesus died is just wrong. It was part of God’s Plan. The Bible is clear that the Jews may have wanted Jesus to be crucified but only the Romans had the power to make it happen. Furthermore, the Gospel is that we deserve to be on the cross because of our sin but Jesus—who was innocent—died in our place; a sacrifice that was pleasing and acceptable to God. The Gospel is that we died with Christ and are raised into his Life.

Contrary to what many folks think, December 25th is not the twelfth day of Christmas; even if the days preceding it are called the Twelve Daves of Christmas—as a local television station likes to call it while doing live remotes from various brightly lit homes in the broadcast area.

No, December 25th is the first day of Christmas and January 6th is the last. January 6th is also known as Epiphany, as it celebrates the arrival of the wise men to the manger to worship the baby Jesus and give him gifts. Epiphany is the inclusion of the world into the promises of the Jewish Messiah.

The period leading up to Christmas is known as Advent. This time is not supposed to be a time of intense retail therapy but a time of reflection about the need that we have of a Savior. Here I think is the real problem of our society, we don’t really think we need a Savior. We have so much “stuff” that we are distracted. We miss the fact that human beings are damaged and broken; left on our own, chaos and death follow.

Pascal said that within the heart of every man is a God shaped vacuum. We just keep trying to fill that hole in our lives with so much “stuff” in hopes we will not be confronted with the reality of our fatal condition.

I think this—at least in part—explains the materialism of Christmas. Christmas says you need a Savior but we try to save ourselves or at least deny the reminder that we need saving. Materialism is just our way of screaming, “La, La La, La, I can’t hear you God.”

I don’t really know why, but today my fifth grade son sent the following email to those in his address book:

I got this a year or two ago and I thought I could share it again.

1. The partridge in a pear tree was Jesus Christ.
2. Two turtle doves were the Old and New Testaments.
3. Three French hens stood for faith, hope and love.-
4. The four calling birds were the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke & John.
5. The five golden rings recalled the Torah or Law, the first five books of the Old Testament.
6. The six geese a-laying stood for the six days of creation.
7. Seven swans a-swimming represented the sevenfold gifts of the Holy Spirit—Prophesy, Serving, Teaching, Exhortation, Contribution, Leadership, and Mercy.
8. The eight maids a-milking were the eight beatitudes.
9. Nine ladies dancing were the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit—Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self Control.
10. The ten lords a-leaping were the Ten Commandments.
11. The eleven pipers piping stood for the eleven faithful disciples.
12. The twelve drummers drumming symbolized the twelve points of belief in the Apostles’ Creed.

So there is your history for today. This knowledge was shared with me and I found it interesting and enlightening and now I know how that strange song became a Christmas Carol…so pass it on if you wish.’

Merry Christmas Everyone

It’s nice to know the children are listening.

As time goes on, it seems that the Republicans are becoming more like the Democrats. There is less and less difference between the two parties.

Ronald Reagan famously said that he didn’t leave the Democrat Party, they left him.

I‘ve been feeling that way about the Republicans for the last few years. In our current political climate does anybody think Reagan could get the nomination of either party? NO. Most Republican office holders claim the legacy and heritage of Reagan but the reality is that they despise everything that he stands for.

As part of a study at church, I had to dust off my copy of Schaeffer’s Christian Manifesto. Ironically, it was written early in the first term of the Reagan Presidency. Thirty odd years after it was written, it seems a summary of where we are today:

“…we must remember that although there are tremendous discrepancies between conservatives and liberals in the political arena, if they are both operating on a humanistic base there will really be no final different between them.”
Francis A Schaeffer
Christian Manifesto Chapter 6; 1982

Schaeffer’s thesis is that Christianity is in a struggle with Humanism over the hearts and minds of men—especially in the West. It’s worth a read if you want to know what went wrong.