Thursday, November 27

This day of Thanksgiving

I realize, in my attempt to cover each and every blessing that I have received, that I may have miss sending this thanksgiving email to some of my blessings called friends.....it is my hope that I'll catch some of you that I've missed posting it here.

May God, who is the source of all of our thankful blessings, be with you and yours as you gather together this day.

In peaceful contemplation of the journey home,
Jim

Friends,
It is the beginning of the 'holiday season' and soon most of us will gather around the table with family and/or friends to enjoy some good food, good fellowship, and good rememberances of those things that we, as Americans and as believers, can be thankful for.

As I look back upon the year that has passed between last Thanksgiving and the coming one, I am amazed of all the changes that have taken place and the journey that has zigged-zagged through the landscape of this life. Some of it very sad, with consequences and results still playing themselves out in my life. It seems a few times, a unfortunately small few, were good things….monumental moments in the passage through this life…..funny, it is the sad times I treasure the most and am most thankful this holiday. In those moments when I didn't know what to do, where to go, and how to get there……God spoke, either directly or through one of His many children who have surrounded me in this journey home.

This Thanksgiving, as is my usual thought; I give thanks once again for the hope given, realized and etched in my very being, that comes from the sacrifice made by Jesus Christ upon the cross of wood and iron for all of us, even a wretch like me, so that once and for all the punishment of sin would be washed away through the blood given so that we could share in His inheritance.

I am thankful for those times that drew my faults and my sins to the surface, and the powerful healing given through the edification of others to repent and ask forgiveness for those things, for my brother Larry, for Kristina, and others. I am thankful for those times that drew me into realization of God's strength and mercy, and what He has given for me to do.

I give thanks for the ability to give love; whether returned or not…..to appreciate the people in my life for what they are (children of God) rather than what they do. I give thanks for the devotions I read, the ministers who wrote them, and the ones who have read mine. I give thanks for Pastors Bright, Cramer, Bauer, and Combs who have preached the Gospel in times such as these.

I give thanks for the brothers and sisters would stood with me in the troubling times of the past year; it is not the financial blessings that were given that gave the most blessing to me nor the other things that were freely given to the needs of me and my children. No, the blessing was so far greater than silver or gold…..God enabled me through the giving to learn to be truly blessed by the love and concern of others. To realize the depth of their faith, realized in their actions, and to overcome my pride to be humble in the acceptance. That is a greater blessing than any other. I look eagerly to the day when I can forward the blessings given on to another in such a position as I.

I give thanks for the brothers and sisters who have lifted me and my kids up in prayer, for the effect of having the multitudes echoing my cries of supplication to the Heavens was indeed heard by our Father and enabled my voice to lift up other's cries of supplication in return, strong and clear, as they were submitted to the will of the Father. There has been sorrow and joy in the prayers of the faithful this year, and I am glad for each tear cried and each victory fists raised in each and every one of those prayers I was blessed to be a part of.

I give thanks for the teachers in the schools, who brought the highest level of educating my children into their classrooms, for those I have known and those I have not. For the school systems of Walled Lake, and Holly……and those who daily give of themselves to ensure the generations to come.

I give thanks for the family that I still know and talk to at Orchard Grove Community Church, for those I knew at Soul Quest, and for the brothers and sisters that I am growing to know and love within the body at The River in Holly. God is on His throne and blessing each and every one of those who endeavour through to realize the mission that has been handed through the generations since the Twelve…..GO and preach the Gospel……

I give thanks for the brothers at Out of the Wild, though I have not met face to face with any of them….it isn't hard to imagine what that meeting would be like…..true brothers fighting for the cause of God, seeking and growing as men of God. Andrew, Garry, Matt, and a host of others have listened to the journey I've been on and cheered from afar, though loud enough to hear through the countryside!

I give thanks and humble appreciation for the experiences at M3, the men's ministry of Awakened Hearts (which became a full-time ministry this year). The message, calling men to be men of God….and showing them how, has been an increasingly disruptive thing…in a great and wonderfully powerful way, as I reach for that goal with both hands…..coming closer to God so I can see what He made me to be. For Scott, who is an powerful, impactful, and humbly real leader…speaking not for his own glory, but shining the light of God's truth through his words, actions, and teaching. For Mark, who quietly moves in the circles of men, encouraging and edifying….and making more impact than mere fellowship could ever have. For all the men who gather once a month at Able Men….brothers who by their very presense are strong warriors with tender hearts who move in a world broken for the sake of God's mission.

There are many other blessings and many other people that I could name by name and spend many hours naming specific times or actions where they have blessed me, blessed my kids, or blessed others who have impacted me…….but this is a quick email to remind us all of where our thanks-giving should lie….and that we all, not just on Thanksgiving, but each and every time….give our thanks to those who bless, bless those who give thanks, and seek out the ways that God invites us to bring others to the place of true thanksgiving.

As you gather around the table this Thanksgiving day, or travel delivering meals to those unable to have one, or reach out to your neighbor in fellowship; be a blessing to those near.

And remember those who are far away from home this Thanksgiving; those troops who spend thankless hours defending a country struggling to be free and realize its potential. Remember those who are home; broken by war's ravagings, and gave a bit of themselves for the sake of another. Remember those who have gone to their eternal home, spilling the blood of patriotic duty upon the tree of freedom for a people who never knew freedom's warm embrace. If you know a veteran this Thanksgiving that's near, simply say "Thank you" and they'll shine like a beacon in the darkest night; for their service was truly appreciated.

Remember those families who have lost jobs, homes, and possessions this Thanksgiving. Cherish the example they've set as they've kept their families together and faithfully struggled through the trials and tribulations that have been placed in their paths.

Remember the outgoing President, George Bush, who executed the office of the President of the United States for eight years. Remember with thanksgiving his faithful service and the ability to forgive his mistakes.

Remember President-elect Barrack Obama, the first African-American President. Give thanks that our political process still works and that the people still have a voice. Even if you didn't elect Obama, give thanks that our voice can still be heard as our new President takes this country through the difficult times ahead. Give thanks that we can lift him and his family up in prayerful supplication to the Lord and King.

Humbly, I submit to each of you, my thanks for all that you have done; for God, for the kingdom, and for me. No matter how material, or how spiritual that work was….I am thankful that I can bow before my Father and give heartful thanks for each and every one of you to His listening ears. And no matter if we don't meet or meet on a regular basis, I thank you for the ability to lift you up to our Father in praise…….

In Christ,

James Hutson
www.outofthewild.ning.com
www.chapel-michigan.blogspot.com
www.M3ministries.org
www.AHMministries.org
www.men2menministries.blogspot.com

Tuesday, November 25

Thresholds to cross......

"Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven." Matthew 18:4 (ASV)

"What then shall we say of that happiness to come which is promised to the saints, which we consider to be nothing else but the pure and unmediated contemplation of the Divine Essence itself?" - Eriugena, Periphyseon, Irish, 9th century

I have the priviledge of watching my son grow into the community of men, straining at the imposed limitations that his father, who in many aspects, isn't ready to let him dive into that world, though he is nearer and nearer to that realization of acceptance. As I watch him gaze into that world that I hopefully have represented to him well and truthfully, I can help but hope that I gaze at the future my Savior has promised me with such eagerness and impatience as well.

Soon, my son will take his place within the community of men, and begin another part of the journey home.

There is a set design to manhood, one created and implemented by the Creator God Himself, where man was purposed, and enabled to fulfill that purpose. Adam began the fall of all men since to fail to live up to that standard. Scott Engelmann, Mark Jackson, and the leaders of Awakened Hearts have been burdened to renew that call to all men to be godly men of godly design, boldly displaying the biblical model of masculinity with unabashedly Christian truths. This is the world of men that I want my son to join, this is the community where men grow men from boyhood to manhood to fatherhood and beyond.

It also has me reflecting upon the community of Christ, that godly community where the faithful grow from milk to solids, and are emboldened to be not merely broken humanity, but broken humanity striving towards God with an intensity that burns through the burdens and trials of this world.

T.M. Moore reflects, "One is a Christian who fears and loves God, believes in Jesus for the forgiveness of his sins, and lives increasingly the life of holiness, righteousness, and goodness which is the result of obedience to God's Law."
In the world of humanism, secularism, and universal 'interchangeable' truth, this is often times an unrealized goal of many cultural, and immoral Christians. It isn't a life most will subscribe to; to know you are bound to be 'this-short' of the achievement of godliness, predestined in a way to fail, but needing to try and strive for it anyway. It is like two men climbing a steep hill. One keeps slipping and sliding, up and down, in the loose damp dirt that defies his attempts at purchase. The other, a few feet away, barely leans into the incline, his feet steady eating ground away as he heads towards the top.

The Christian, of course, is the one who is struggling in the mire of life.....

Christianity isn't a laughing business; you can't put on the clothes just for Sunday service and consider yourself holy and just. You can't just drive meals to shut-ins once a month and consider yourself righteous. You can't just simply donate that 'extra' few dollars to a ministry and say you're an evangelist. Christianity is a lifestyle of constant and evolving changes, a permanent state of disruption and change.

It has to be a lifetime commitment, because we will never be what we are intended and designed to be in this lifetime.

It doesn't bounce from moments of great joy to utter dismay. It remains constantly pressing the ceiling of its limitations and finds the purest joy and peace in knowing that such a ceiling will always be notched higher and higher.

"Real Christians," T.M. Moore says, "endure every hardship and press on to know the Lord and follow Him, come what may."

"We are not free to be Christians on our terms," Moore concludes. Indeed, there is nothing within the Bible that mankind has determined is right and just that has not fallen victim to its own creators. As we step into the world of economic failures, world crisis, and wars; it is those who have developed the muscles from carrying the burdens for so long that will be there to pick up their brethren when they fall and help them towards home.

It is those soliders who have fought that battle constantly over the flesh who have that thousand-yard stare, focused solely upon the heavenly gates of our final destination.

As my son gathers himself to begin the journey from boyhood to that greater challenge of manhood, he leaves behind childish things....well, most childish things....as he stands before the group of men and gains acceptance into the community of manhood. The only child-like thing I hope he carries on with him is the humility he's had as a child and has taught me to realize as a man.

As I gather myself to begin the next part of the journey home, as a man of God and face the gathered throng of critics, supporters, and the indifferent....I hope that I can carry that child-like humility too.

I don't know when I'll cross that threshold....but I know how I want to cross it when I get there.......

"Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus." - Revelation 14.12

Monday, November 24

Son of encouragement

"After the news about Antioch reached the church in Jerusalem, Barnabas was sent to Antioch. When he arrived there, he was pleased to see what God had done for them out of kindness. So he encouraged all the people to remain solidly committed to the Lord. Barnabas was a dependable man, and he was full of the Holy Spirit and faith. A large crowd believed in the Lord. Then Barnabas left Antioch to go to the city of Tarsus to look for Saul. After finding Saul, Barnabas brought him back to Antioch. Barnabas and Saul met with the church in Antioch for a whole year and taught a large group of people. The disciples were called Christians for the first time in the city of Antioch." Acts 11:22-26 (GWT)

Barnabas, Son of Encouragement (Acts 4:36), left Antioch...the Antioch (Antiocheia) that was on the river Orontes and the capital city of ancient Syria. In time, it would stand as the 3rd Patriarchal see of the early Church, after Rome and Jerusalem and would be destroyed by the Persian invasion of AD 538.

Fourteen years after the Jerusalem church sent Saul to Tarsus, after his inciting 'murderous responses', Barnabas would come seeking this individual whom he had vouched for to the original eleven disciples in Jerusalem in a city second only to Antioch in economically, culturally and politically in the region. Tarsus was a bustling seaport where the ancient religion of the god Mithras was prominent. This has led many anti-Christian theologians and historians to compare the religions and find what they claim are co-opted myths, blended into the new found movement of Christianity by Gaius Julius Paulus (some claim his name was).

"What part did his stay there play in his later effectiveness?" one researcher asks, "I expect that a time of tempering, including growth in humility, ……. time is essential for the ingredients of something to blend properly. Tea has to be steeped, wine has to be aged……changes in life have to be assimilated and lived out."

We know that Paul's character was drastically changed even before he departed the Jerusalem church at the behest of the leadership. The Encyclopedia Britannica describes him before his conversion as an intolerant, bitter, persecuting, religious bigot - proud and temperamental. After his conversion he is pictured as patient, kind, enduring, and self-sacrificing. Paul's combative relationship with the followers of Jesus Christ was so changed with the help of Barnabas' introduction that he had received the 'right hand of fellowship', which meant that the leadership considered him as an equal.

According to most theologians, Saul likely didn't remain idle while he was in a 'place of higher learning' in Tarsus, which hosted a Jewish population evidenced by several archaeological records. After inciting such violent feelings among the Jerusalem Jewish population, he may have avoided most of the Jewish thoughts and instead listened in on the current philosophical arguments of the Greeks, although he probably did visit with relatives and family. He may have traveled home to gather linen for his trade as a tentmaker, which he used so as to 'not become a burden' to the congregations he founded and visited, though it would seem he got sidetracked for a period of time.

The explosive growth of the church in Antioch, which Barnabas was sent to pastor most likely led to his decision to seek out help, but it is interesting that Barnabas went seeking Saul in Tarsus instead of calling for some of the apostles to help him with the growing Antioch church. Barnabas always sought God’s direction in his decisions and often exercised his leadership abilities in the support of others who, not necessarily were better than he is, but more suitable for the work at hand. Since he knew of Saul’s desire to bring the gospel to the Gentiles, he went to seek him out.

The story between these two apostles would span a long time, a disagreement over John Mark and the endorsement of the Jerusalem church of Paul and Silas no doubt bothered Barnabas to some degree, but never to the point of contention. He simply moved out on his own, taking whom God led him to take, and would never speak with Paul again, at least according to the biblical accounts.

Paul, upon his final imprisonment, would speak of his foolishness concerning John Mark, in 2 Timothy…….

“Do your best to come to me quickly, for Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me and has gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia. Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry.” 4:9-11 (NIV)

Barnabas would remain true; never forgetting the apostle he introduced to the leadership in Jerusalem, whom he taught a growing number of believers with in Antioch, and whom he helped found numerous churches through their missionary journeys. When Paul was sent away for inciting bad feelings to Tarsus, it is Barnabas who came to seek him out. When it was time to go on missionary trips, it was Barnabas by Paul’s side. And, when it was Paul’s pride that got in the way of the mission to proclaim the gospel, it was Barnabas who stepped out and took John Mark with him.

He never stopped believing in Paul; in the journey that God surely showed him that this once-persecutor of the faithful would travel. He never turned his back upon Paul, even with fourteen years between seeing him and most likely never stopped praying for him.

How many of us in the church are Barnabas? Very few, unfortunately, although we are all called to be such an impactful leader, not for our glory but God’s.
I miss my Barnabas, that one son of encouragement that God blessed me with when I was just starting out on this journey towards God, who never laughed at the Call, never questioned God’s impact, and never stopped believing in this young upstart whom he called friend and brother.

I know that, in the passage of time that my Barnabas (whether he wears a new face or an old one) will come and draw me out of the quiet contemplative place I am in, observing and learning, to help fulfill my Call where God directs him to bring me.

Thursday, November 20

"Put me in!"

"A faithful man will be richly blessed, but one eager to get rich will not go unpunished." Proverbs 28:20

I keep hearing that song, I think by Cheap Trick......you know the one, "Put me in Coach, I'm ready to play...today!" At least, that's how it goes in the replay of my mind. It has been a consistent, up until recently, utterance during my prayer time, my meetings with the leadership group, and other activities that I have participated in my journey towards home.....amongst the faithful and like-minded family of the faithful.

Nothing has happened much, at least until recently, regarding that consistent cry and any attempts of my own humanity to make it happen. In fact, it seems to have gone backwards, not towards the goal of working in ministry as I believe God called me to waaaaaay back in October of 2004.

So much opposition, even within the community of believers. You have to have a seminary degree, be attached to a denomination, or subscribe fully to a doctrine that is espoused by the Lead or Founding Pastor. You have to be 'perfect' in your home, financial, and spiritual journey....there is no room for mistakes like a dropped football or a missed pass. Human standards abound even in the world of Christianity.

Someone told me that now, on what seems like the verge of achievement, that I've backed off my relentless pursuit of ministry. Even here, in this blog, I've expressed time and time again that determination to jump when God calls.

I've missed that call; the persistent one that keeps telling me to stop sitting on the bench and come practice; practice faithfully, consistently, and hard. Until recently, those passion-driven pursuits have been in my own efforts to make it happen. Even when I would try to relax and let God work.

But, my mind has turned and I'm now that player who shows up to practice every day and gives his best in the tests, play running, and skill improvement exercises. No, God hasn't impressed upon me that the call is going to be realized at the church I'm at, in the ministries I am involved in, or even out in an adventure of my own.........

That's the point, I guess. It is not in the achievement of the goal of ministry full-time that God wants me involved in....It isn't even going to garner me a pat on the head from Him once I walk upon the stage in front of a congregation for the first time, a desire and passionate calling fulfilled.

It's in the practice, without expectation of playing on the field the following Monday. It's suiting up on Game Day and cheering those who stomp out onto the field of dreams and hear the accolades of the cheering fans......and being one of the loudest as I watch this epic battle between the usurper of this world and the Lord of All.

Oh, the song still beats in my heart of hearts....."Put me in Coach....."

But, as I sit on the bench.....I am so caught up in the game that I don't even think I'll respond right off the bat when the call comes in that I am going into the game........if it comes this side of heaven.....

It doesn't matter what I do, for my efforts are wasted and futile. But I'll continue to show up for practice and faithfully work hard, consistently stretching my faith, and on game day will show up in full uniform, with the enthusiasm for the Team......for the victory of the Lord and His children in this battle on the gridiron of this world.

There's no quick path to the richness of God's mercy, grace, and love.....in terms of our understanding. But there is much to be said about the reward of being faithfully consistent in the pursuit of it's realization.

For God is always faithful and will show Himself to those who seek after Him.
Faithfulness, consistency and hard work bless a man with the revenue and riches to be a blessing to his family, his friends, and his community.

Are you putting the same drive into your pursuit of God that you do in your job?

Are you truly ready to play?

Wednesday, November 19

An awesome benefit package

"Then I heard a mighty voice from the throne and I perceived its distinct words, saying, See! The abode of God is with men, and He will live (encamp, tent) among them; and they shall be His people, and God shall personally be with them and be their God.(A) God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and death shall be no more, neither shall there be anguish (sorrow and mourning) nor grief nor pain any more, for the old conditions and the former order of things have passed away."(B)

Cross references: .(A)Revelation 21:3 : Ezek 37:27 .(B)Revelation 21:4 : Isa 25:8; 35:10


With the increased gloom concerning the outlook of the "Big Three", of which my job is intricately tied too, there is often a discussion I get into concerning the possibility of job loss in the coming months. Typically the New Year is when the changes come in, as we return from the 'holiday week layoff." The atheist that resides in the bay next to my own seemed to be surprised about my lack of concern over the increased scrutiny from the 'big bosses' in our area.

"With the job market the way it is, how can you not be concerned?" is his question. If laid off, I would lose benefits, etc., alot more than just a paycheck.

"I've work for God, regardless of where He sends the money from," I quip to my friend, "So,I already am gainfully employed. And you know what, God has an awesome benefit package."

George, of Worthy News Ministries, posted this as his devotional verse for today. He explains further.....

"To give you an idea of how God is working according to the Hebrew calendar, when Messiah broke bread in the upper room with His disciples, it was in the beginning of the feast of Unleavened bread. When He was crucified, and became the Lamb of God for the world, it was on Passover. When He rose from the dead, it was precisely on the feast of first fruits." George writes. "After His ascension to heaven, and 50 days after Passover was the outpouring of the Holy Spirit during Pentecost or the Hebrew feast of Shevuot. This indicated the beginning of the harvest season. We have been in the midst of the great harvest for the past 2000 years."

Secular job aside, God is already my major employer. He issued the Great Commission through His Son, Jesus Christ who imparted it to the twelve before He departed for the right hand seat at the Throne. The disciples passed it on to those who followed in the Church after them. You and I.

So, whether God provides for me with a secular job to provide the income to do His spiritual job, that's up to God and the plan He set into motion the day I was born. And, last time I checked…….

God was the only employer with an awesome benefit package……………

Tuesday, November 18

The gospel of Jesus Christ (the Kingdom of God)

“As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.” (Galatians 1:9)

It is increasingly hard for me to understand, if there are millions of people that claim to be followers of Jesus Christ in the 250,000 churches, why the morals and values of the Christians of this time are increasingly suspect; the young are abandoning the 'faith' in growing numbers, saying that they are 'good teachings' but not reality.

Any one in the world today that utters biblical teachings are increasingly under the gun of intolerance, hatred, and 'anything goes' secularism that is rapidly coming to a violent conclusion for those brave (or stupid) enough to speak Scriptural truths with definitive and authoritative declaration.

T.M. Moore, of BreakPoint, believes he has the reason. "It harks back to a Chesterton comment back around the turn of the 20th century. It's not that the Gospel of Jesus Christ has been tried and is simply found wanting. It's that the Gospel of Jesus Christ----the Gospel of the Kingdom-----has not been tried."

According to Moore, the Gospel of the Kingdom is the message the Christ came to give the people of His generation. "The Kingdom of God" was the primary focus of Christ's ministry, Matthew 4:23; 9:35. This is what the gospel writers, according to Moore, refer to as "the Gospel of the Kingdom." This kingdom, in Moore's words, is "a realm of power, real spiritual power, in which, increasingly, all things are made new and every aspect of a person's life is reconciled with God, unto the praise of the glory of His grace (1 Corinthians 4:20, 2 Corinthians 5:17)."

It is when we enter into that Kingdom that we begin a change that has taken root in our heart, transforming us into new creatures with renewed spiritual power. Moore says that it is totally believable then, that "the sum of Jesus' preaching and teaching is often reported as consisting in the words; 'The Kingdom of God is at hand; repent, therefore, and believe the Good News.

Maybe that is why despite the millions of "born-again" believers that populate the world today are not really following the true gospel, but being led astray. Paul, in his letter to the Galatians, expressed his shock at the congregation there, "I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel." As in those days, today the believers of Jesus Christ seem to have only enough desire to have a 'sense of forgiveness, the accompanying peace of mind, and a tentative hope that they will be going to heaven when they die.'

It's almost as if they don't want the power to transform their sinful lives into a reflection of holiness, goodness, beauty, and truth...that would defy the false doctrines of the 'near Christianity' that have become the staple of the Church. As Moore continues, "They simply chose to minimize the power of His saving grace by adding to the Gospel in certain ways and detracting from it in others. So, their professions of faith notwithstanding, Paul said that they were deserting the true Gospel, the Gospel of the Kingdom."

So, how do we know whether or not we are true subscribers to the Gospel of the Kingdom, the true faith that Jesus Christ spent His three years in ministry upon this earth professing?

'Near Christianity' is our fail-safe.....we've said the prayer, attend regularly, and are generally 'nice' people who give to 'those in need' at least the dollar store gifts at Christmas, give our dented and expired cans to the local food pantries, and find the easiest way to live in the shadow of the example Christ set for us. Roderick C. Meredith, author of Do You Believe the True Gospel?, gives the 'near Christian's beliefs' in a nutshell,

"Just give your heart to the Lord. Jesus was born in the manger as the Christ, the Son of God; to save as many souls in this age as would accept Him into their hearts. When He grew up, He went around performing miracles and forgiving people. He kept God’s harsh law for all of us before finally being nailed to the cross along with that old law. He rose from the dead on the third day and appeared to many witnesses. Then He returned to heaven and began to set up His Kingdom in the hearts of men. He’ll forgive your sins and come into your heart—just as you are—if you’ll only accept Him. Jesus saves! Just believe on Him, and you’ll be saved—born again. And, when you die, you’ll go to be with Him in heaven—forever!”

There is much more, Meredith warns, that just such a process as described above. "It can easily be shown from the Bible that the Gospel does not revolve solely around the personality of Jesus, the Son of God. Of course, Jesus is our Messiah who shed His blood so that our sins might be forgiven. We need to deeply appreciate and proclaim this Truth.'

Meredith tells us, "But that in itself does not constitute the complete Gospel. Certainly, we need the understanding of Christ’s sacrifice. The Bible says, “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). Consequently, the name of Jesus Christ is absolutely vital. Yet it is absolutely false to say of Jesus, as many now do, “He is the Gospel. He is the Kingdom of God.” There is much more to the true Gospel message preached by Jesus Christ."

“There is clear agreement among the synoptic Gospels that the kingdom of God was the principal theme within Jesus’ message," according to the Oxford Companion to the Bible. Meredith adds, "The true Church is to preach both elements: first, the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and, second, the true name of Jesus Christ."

There is a change, fundamentally, at the core of who, what, and why you are. It isn't simply a prayer said that shows the true repentance, the turning away from towards something else and a burning desire, unquenchable, that grows to know God, understand God, and be transformed by God in each and every way not just on the surface, but at a sub molecular level.....a spiritual level......that leads you to follow Christ, proclaiming with such astounding boldness the Good News, where even the threat of death does not deter you............

Near Christianity removes our responsibility to our faith and lays it upon Jesus Christ, by whom we get the 'free ride'. It denies that we have to continually 'put on' Jesus Christ and deny the flesh by identifying with the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ and submitting our foolish, limited, and self-protecting will to that of Christ.

Near Christianity doesn't deny self, the picking up of our Cross and following Christ. It allows that we can express our desire to follow Christ in our own way, for our own chosen allotted time, and then drop the mini Cross carried in the pocket of their jeans and rocking to the tunes of the latest heavy metal bands, regardless of their lyrics; continues at work to cheat the system, talking shop with the same coarseness of language; or decides against attending church because the latest college game is on, professional sports are playing at the same time, or relatives are in town who really aren't 'religious.'

It is 'near Christianity' that is found in the 3,000 plus "mega-churches" that dot the landscape, because in such an environment it is easy for the "country-club" Christian to hide....and feel 'spiritual'. The 'born-again' game is played in these places, where such 'near' Christians are biding their time until the "Return" and there is nothing else that has to be done: a gift to a missionary there, perhaps; a new building 'for the youth' over there; and the occasional foray out into the community 'enmasse' to do a charitable work for 'those in need' ---whatever it is to get that temporary 'good feeling' before returning to our previously interrupted lives.

So, what is this "Kingdom of God" that Moore and Meredith speak of? The Bible describes it “.................a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever." God Himself promises to set up this kingdom Himself, in the last days of the earthly kings. When is this day to come?

In Luke, Christ tells his disciples, “Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near."Then He spoke to them a parable: ‘Look at the fig tree, and all the trees. When they are already budding, you see and know for yourselves that summer is now near. So you also, when you see these things happening, know that the kingdom of God is near. Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away’”

In Matthew 24:14, Jesus said: “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.” As Christ told His disciples in Matthew's account, only the Father knows the day, hour and time in which the Kingdom of God will come.

So, the Gospel of the Kingdom, referred to as "the Gospel of Jesus Christ" or the Good News is so much more than a simple prayer, a stop-gap belief in Jesus Christ for the sake of salvation, or acknowledging the logical authority of the Biblical text.

The message and true Gospel is this:

The Gospel is about pursuing God in a relationship; to gain understanding that defies human understanding about a God that is holy, sovereign, love, righteous, merciful, a consuming fire, omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent who is Spirit revealed as a Trinity; three distinct persons in one. And believing why we would have to pursue such a relationship.

That Adam and Eve disobeyed God's law, and introduced into our humanity a spiritual and physical death because of the just punishment of sin, which is death. God had designed mankind to serve God and glorify Him, through the balance of relationship between man and woman; both images of God...half of the whole.

Mankind, due to the action of sin, now lives in a dysfunctional state, against the intention of the Creator's design, and there is no human capable of being righteous, without sin...because it is inherited and part of our born nature since the Fall. Our best 'good' is viewed by God as 'filthy rags' and therefore is rejected justly and righteously by God.

Man was given the Ten Commandments, to be obeyed absolutely without exception, and the greatest of them were the first and second. If man broke one commandment, all were broken. It's purpose was to reveal our sin and the inability in keeping such perfect laws, creating within sinners who love their sins a desperation to be delivered from the just penalties of such violations.

There are only three constants in our lives; life, death, and judgment. We are as a grain of sand upon the shores of this world......insignificant and small compared to the wondrous works of God.....and the pursuits of life in this world is vain and futile, due to its fragile nature......no labor can prevent our death.....and we cannot take our gains; possessions or riches with us. The only thing we can count on when we die is the judgment that lies before us at the White Throne.

Faithful and non-believers will all be judged by a just and righteous King. It is our true response to the Good News that will determine our fate; not our works, which are useless and soiled by our sins or our declarations, lukewarm and temporary.

Through our 'new birth', by which we are assured salvation, we become a new person producing new fruit, that which is pleasing to our God. It is not through our own ability that we gain this new birth, but by the grace, unmerited and undemandable, of Christ that we have been offered salvation.

The only way we can receive Christ's gift is to repent of our sinfulness, turning away from the flesh, and confess our sins to our King openly, exposing our covered sins as well as our iniquities. Because of His mercy, He has given to us, upon this step of faith and expressed understanding, the Counselor of the Holy Spirit to produce fruits worthy and pleasing to God.

Without faith, which is given in measure to all of us alike, gives us the ability to please God, by seeing the unseen, and become justified through our faith.

Jesus is the most important part of the Good News; because He is the way, the truth, and the life through which we can have life through Him. There is no other avenue for salvation, and Christ actively seeks our attention to His gift of eternal life by knocking on the door to our hearts. All we have to do is answer the knock, calling upon the name of the Lord and we will be saved.

What is the difference between the expressed doctrine of those 'born-again' believers of the 'near Christianity' faith movement and the true gospel of the 'evangelical' believers of the Christian faith?

One relies on the humanity of humanity and the other on the grace of a King who was fully human and fully God.

Which do you think is the logical choice, the right gospel?

One that corrupt humans created, express, and describe or one that defies humanity's attempts to change it for their own benefit?

How can we be compassionate in a broken world?

Can we be a people who form compassionate convictions about God, people and life which gives us categories to listen/direct people to places other than relief when they talk to us about 'undeserved' suffering? Is there something we can believe in very deeply that allows us to freely move in the direction God is moving in as we listen to the disappointments and tragedies of another man's story? In the midst of real hurt, is it possible to really get excited about something bigger that God is doing?

Job was a moral and blessed man, but full of human-born fear. He was blameless, without consistent sin in his life, practicing good deeds, and shunned evil. He had good relationships, possessions in abundance, and was afflicted with no real pain; either health-wise or spiritual.

Yet he feared for his children, sacrificing for them on a daily basis and operated under the assumption that God’s kindness coupled with his moral carefulness would not cause him to lose his blessings.

God has a development plan for His children, one borne of suffering beyond our human endurance, to cause us to question our very faith, which relies upon the assumption of the unverifiable, the illogical, and the absence of provable reliance.

Satan’s agenda, challenging our belief that God’s promise that He loves us, is used by God to bring us into stronger belief in those things; in essence God uses the evilness of the fallen one to bring about His desire for us to know Him.

This is where the prosperity, emergent, and work doctrines fall into the false assumptions, placing human understanding and characteristics upon a God that is beyond our feeble and corrupt human comprehension and will in fact perform the opposite of the desired effect; such doctrines deny us the ability to grow in the furnace of suffering to greater understanding of who God is and what purpose to which His agenda is served in such brutality.

It is not wrong for us to want to end suffering, to bring about peace and joy within the corruption of the world, until it becomes our mission; to reduce suffering by bringing about blessings through servicing the needs abundant around us.

In the absence of blessings, we too often turn away from God’s agenda for humanity and ourselves individually. Life is unpredictable, simply because we try and control it as far as we humanly can and it refuses to cooperate, being under the temporary authority of the fallen one.

It is when we reach the vision of how God sees us that we can walk into the world of suffering and tribulation with joy and loving mercy, and the outer influences of the broken world cannot reclaim our hearts. Thus, the agenda of Satan is thwarted and the furtherance of the Kingdom is promoted.

“…for he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete what was lacking in your service to me.” (Philippians 2:30 ESV)

Epaphroditus, who had fallen deathly sick during his time with Paul, was grieved when his brethren learned of it. Not because it seemed that he was weak, rather because of service for Christ, Epaphroditus had recklessly hazard his life for that service….not caring for his own welfare but placing the welfare of another above his own.

Such early Christians were known as ‘parabolani’, or reckless people.

It is in such service, as parabolani, that Christians can find such compassionate convictions regarding God, people and life that causes them to reflect upon the larger agenda of God within ‘undeserved’ suffering. It is within the ‘sphere of mystery’, as discussed by Dr. Larry Crabb, that we truly find movement towards that agenda despite unpredictable and unharnessable order because we rely solely upon God to guide us into the midst of the storm, trusting that if the ship sinks that it is because of God’s best plan for us even as we disappear beneath the waves.

We lash ourselves to the solidness of God’s promises and laugh in the face of the unpredictable chaos of an unforgiving world.

In such recklessness, we cease trying to explain undeserved and indescribable pain that haunts our journey as we walk closer to God. We stop trying to ‘grasp’ control to never be hurt again, by people or circumstances, and become uncaring of the ‘damage’ that happens to our hearts as we are buffeted by the harsh waves of a world increasingly violent.

And, in the movement into unexplainable and undeserved suffering, we truly realize God’s promised rest; the rest gained in salvation for the journey in this life, and the eternal rest that awaits us in the heavenly realm of our home.

As Parabolani, we rejoice in suffering –albeit a weaker suffering than Christ was visited upon by the rejection of this world. Christ suffered….to the point of death, not so He could fulfill His own agenda but rather that He would fulfill the agenda of His Father, to be a perfect sacrifice therefore eliminating the penalty for sin that condemned all of mankind.

Through our ‘eager’ suffering, however it manifests itself in this world, we promote the welfare of another and become the means by which the Holy Spirit can affect true repentance and salvation for the lost, which we once were and for which Christ died upon a Cross of wood and iron.

Adam Clarke reflects in his works that “The humiliation and exaltation of Christ are subjects which we cannot contemplate too frequently, and in which we cannot be too deeply instructed.

Our faith is about humility, and humility is ‘the effect of the action of God, circumstances, other people, ourselves, or of any and all of these on our lives.” It is freedom from pride, and is despicable in the world of control, management, and self-service. In the humility of our faith, we find ourselves reliant upon God’s favor, not our own understanding.

Christ’s humility and passion were a vital component of His sacrifice upon the Cross, otherwise it would not have been necessary and another way would have been affected in the plan of God’s redemption of His children.

Without our own process of humility, by which we cast ourselves upon the righteousness of our sinful condemnation, punishable by death, we oppose God’s agenda and rely upon ourselves for freedom from that justified punishment; pride and self-confidence which are the cornerstone of humanistic religion. God destroys such notions with the requirement of the opposite extremes; humility and self-denial.

As Christians, called to bring understanding of God’s hidden agenda to those who truly seek it, we must understand this theology of suffering that Christ exposed us to in His ministry upon this earth.

If we consider that Christ’s suffering and death were sufficient in the eyes of God as payment in full for the punishment of man’s failure to trust and rest in God’s purpose, we can contemplate the unlimited power, glory, and authority of Christ and God in the undeserved and undesired suffering to which we are called to experience in true joy and expectation.

Through this realization of ‘joyful suffering’, we develop the inner spiritual eyes to see ourselves as God sees us; redeemed and restored.

Then sin has no lasting claim upon our human flesh.

We realize that by the authority of God, we are cleansed and made perfect, and walk within a manner that Christ walked as He spoke to a world that did not hear Him.

Then we no longer give voice to the human desire for the reduction of such suffering and an increase in blessings as we define them.

We become true lights in a world darkened by man’s desire for such things and give not an answer to suffering deserved and undeserved, but give release that is eternal, because the suffering one is experiencing becomes something both unexplained and yet understood.

It is then that we become a walking testimony, for we lack the prideful boast of our own wisdom and prudence and shun such labels as ‘wise’ or ‘esteemed’ men. We face reproach and persecution with the eagerness of fulfilling God’s agenda for such causes and embrace such labels as ‘fool’ and “unworthy’ because we are called such for the sake of Christ.

“We are made to seem foolish for Christ, but you are wise in Christ; we are feeble, but you are strong; you have glory, but we have shame. Even to this hour we are without food, drink, and clothing, we are given blows and have no certain resting-place; And with our hands we do the hardest work: when they give us curses we give blessings, when we undergo punishment we take it quietly; When evil things are said about us we give gentle answers: we are made as the unclean things of the world, as that for which no one has any use, even till now.” (1 Corinthians 4:10-13 BBE)

We stop looking at our brethren and those still lost within the Body, or outside the body, that may suffer less (though not in their own estimations) than we do. We stop trying to control through our actions and words the agendas of others that come within our sphere of life; seeking only to show constancy and patience that confounds and entices others to seek out what we have found.

We rejoice in the ‘poverty’ of our possessions, finances, or persons and understand with proper prospective the contempt of others for what our faith is. We stop promoting our own agenda, that of relief of suffering and the promotion of blessings either for ourselves or others, and rest upon the understanding of God’s authority and wisdom for those we once held so close.

And in the midst of suffering, in our own eyes, at the level of Job; where we would be blameless, upright, abhorrent of sin, and fearful of God; we find God revelation of Himself to us.

A God who is much larger than we can humanly realize, who is more powerful than we can ever emulate, and who has no reason or responsibility to explain Himself to us.
It is then, as Christians leaders, that we realize the fullness of God through the denial of ourselves in service to others, despite the agendas to which we are exposed.

We can then answer the question that should haunt the minds of the elders as they hear the stories of others;

“What is God up to in this person’s life that led God to allow this painful cruelty to happen with or without His intervention?”

We no longer offer theological excuses for the undeserved or understood suffering of those we face with compassionate relationship, but offer instead the promotion of understanding God’s ulterior motive.

We seek not our own agendas or become entrapped in the agenda of another as we hear the pain in the story told. We become excited by the opportunity presented to guide our fellow brethren into the deeper understanding of God through the representation of Christ’s ministry.

We seek in those circumstances not to be as The Corinthians were presenting themselves….wise, strong, and giants amongst men but rather seek the glory of foolishness, weakness, and shame for the sake of Christ.

To suffer those things to which we are allotted in our journey for the greater benefit of representing Christ to a fallen and broken world of lost souls.

Monday, November 17

Renew the true hope....God is on His throne....

“The wicked plots against the righteous and gnashes his teeth at him, but the Lord laughs at the wicked, for he sees that his day is coming. The wicked draw the sword and bend their bows to bring down the poor and needy, to slay those whose way is upright; their sword shall enter their own heart, and their bows shall be broken. Better is the little that the righteous has than the abundance of many wicked. For the arms of the wicked shall be broken, but the LORD upholds the righteous. The LORD knows the days of the blameless, and their heritage will remain forever; they are not put to shame in evil times; in the days of famine they have abundance. But the wicked will perish; the enemies of the LORD are like the glory of the pastures; they vanish--like smoke they vanish away.” (Psalm 37:12-20 ESV)

The world has erupted, seeming to spin into chaos and destruction; not only with the election of our 44th President but a host of legal passages in several states that have gone against the ‘homosexual agenda’; state constitutional amendments have affirmed those states’ citizenry define marriage as between ‘one man and one woman.’

Gay rights supporters waving rainbow colors marched, chanted and danced in cities coast to coast Saturday to protest the vote that banned gay marriage in California, gathering in cities like Boston, San Francisco, Chicago and Fargo. In Florida, violent protestors struck and stomped a homemade cross carried by a silent elderly supporter of Prop 8. They say it’s simply a matter of ‘get[ting] the rights we deserve as Americans.’

From California to Maine, police have documented a range of alleged crimes, from vandalism and vague threats to at least one physical attack. Insults and taunts against African-Americans and the President-elect have been verbalized, at least according to the Associated Press.

Mark Potok, director of the Intelligence Project at the Southern Poverty Law Center said he believes there is "a large subset of white people in this country who feel that they are losing everything they know, that the country their forefathers built has somehow been stolen from them."

This is not the America that will, as our President-elect proclaimed in his weekly address via internet, “resolve to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves, but each other…”

As I posted in my pre-election blog, “Obama….” Thursday, October 2, 2008, John Ortberg brought to my attention that the perfect government is far from a realization, as is the perfect world, because we are flawed, sinful human beings, and the our governing institution is a human one.

As Christians, we are called to preach the Gospel; simply…..Jesus Christ came to the earth, was crucified upon the Cross, died, and rose again three days later to bear the punishment for our sins. We are called to live lives reflective of God’s grace and mercy….and to hold ourselves accountable to His commandments and teachings.
We ‘lost’ the election, and protected in several states the biblical standard of marriage.

This doesn’t mean that the Kingdom will be ushered in, that we will become better parents, or that marriages will reflect agape love. Greed and pride, as we see evidenced in the chaos in our own country, won’t become illegal or passé, humanity will not jump on the ‘servant’ bandwagon, and we will not be the created creatures we were designed to be.

We held true, at least most of us, to the standards we were supposed to in the political election; We voted, in an educated way, in a civil and respective manner. Voting our morals and our values, as biblically defined, was reflective as Pastor Ortberg said, to be redemptive; to bring this nation back into a God-fearing, God-honoring state.

President-elect Barrack Obama is the 44th President of the United States. There is no call among Christians for attacks on those who bear the same or more melanoma colorization as he does. There is no reason for the name-calling, protest walking and racial taunts that haunt the airwaves, and I don’t believe true Christians are doing so.

Because those who so believe know that God is still on His throne and these things too must come to pass.

Now is the time, in the winter of our discontent, to stand upon what we preach, what we say, and what we hope. We stand, as Christian-Americans, and read about the issues, debating them in a respectful manner, and learn about the policies our President will implement. We pray, and speak our beliefs in the public square with respect and dignity. We preach about God’s loving concern for all; His standard of peace, justice, and righteousness."

Too many Christians are engrossed in ‘comfortable theology, good music, activities for their children, and the promise of no mediocre potluck fare at the annual picnic’ than biblical truth, teaching, and reflective public display of our faith.
Our President-elect calls for a change, and tells us that ‘doing all this will require not just new policies, but a new spirit of service and sacrifice.’

I would say to our President-elect that new policies aren’t needed because policies are just one opinion that like-it-or-not we, the governed people of America, have to follow unless and until we either elect another President or impeach him.

I would say it is not a ‘new’ spirit of servant sacrifice that is needed, nor a renewed sense of our fellow man"….but the reawakening of that biblical hope realized in the midst of a chaotic world that transcends the hopelessness of human invention.

To see what our eyes cannot see, and to hope beyond the realization of human possibilities.


“Are those then sane who cannot obtain any certainty of the divine favour, because the carnal eye is now unable to discern it from the present appearance of the world? But, they say, it is rash and presumptuous to pretend an undoubted knowledge of the divine will. I would grant this, did we hold that we were able to subject the incomprehensible God to our feeble intellect.” John Calvin wrote, “[We] simply say with Paul, “We have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.” (Book III, Chap II, pp502-503 Institutes of Christian Religion.)


I spoke out against Obama and Senator McCain. I pondered why, if an historical nomination and election of an African-American was so important to African-Americans, Allan Keyes was not nominated and elected. I have warned against policies and influences of socialistic and liberation theologies. Before the election. And in the election, I voted my values and my candidate was not elected.

After the election, I expressed the attentiveness that I feel all Christians should have, regardless of who is President……

Am I afraid? No, as I mentioned to a brother today……the Devil can ‘bring it on.’
Am I racist? No, for I believe that a ‘man’ should be judged not by the color of his skin but by the contents of his character as the great American Martin Luther King spoke in his memorable speech, “I have a DREAM.”

I will serve the President-elect as a citizen of this nation; offering my opinion via my vote, my correspondence, and my voice concerning the policies which he presents, and accept the governance of the human institution as I walk this world, for God is still upon His throne. My body belongs in this world and will die with it, but my heart belongs to my Savior and will live beyond any human invention. We have nothing to fear from those who can kill the body, for God has our eternal life in His hands.

If I stand upon what my fragile and human eyes can see in this world, I allow myself to become prey to temptations to push it a bit farther, until the scriptural message becomes my own wounds speaking for protection, for acceptance, and for love (according to me).

What ‘little’ I have; be it possessions, finances, or freedom…they all come from a God that is righteous, mighty, and all-encompassing; far beyond any elected official or the policies of the human institutions. My wealth is far better than the wealth of this world, for a peace that this world cannot give falls upon my shoulders each day.

I know that God has His eyes upon my days, and the actions I take in His name for His glory and for the Kingdom.

I will use my rights as a citizen to uphold those values and morals that God has given; and I believe. If this world continues to slide into the human condition of self-government, it doesn’t change my days upon this world….they were numbered before Obama or I were born….it will not change my happiness that comes from the heavenly hope and promise. That shall last far beyond such days as these.

So, I am satisfied that I voted according to my beliefs, and I was in the minority. That work is over, and the governance of another not chosen is in the future. I shall render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s. But God still calls me to a good work, the Great Commission is still in place, and it shall not end until the moment Jesus Christ rides across the skies in triumphant return.

So, as the world falls in upon its own devices stand alone and pray. When confronted with an anger that comes from the wounds of another’s broken humanity, have grace with your words and speak truth in love. Don’t confront, but refuse to move from the values and morals that God ordained and spoke into the hearts of all.

You have felt the thirst and know it shall not be satisfied upon this landscape. So, if one strikes you upon the left cheek, offer the right also.

And love them anyway.

Christ told us that we would know persecution and tribulations. A faith untested is a faith that is weak and unsure. So welcome the torment of those who don’t accept Christ as your due, and answer them with the assurance that comes from an eternal hope. For if we can suffer but a little bit for the sake of the Savior, we should consider ourselves honored and blessed to do so.

My faith is strong, and I welcome the opportunity to grow it even stronger in the light of persecution.

For though they may come after us with 'swords and spears', and victory seems to fall upon their shoulders as easily as the morning dew…..they are no more sinners than we and in no need of salvation greater than ourselves are.

We are all fallen far short of the glory of God, we are all incapable of our own salvation, and we are all beholding to the One who stood in our place to die a perfect sacrifice for our sinful need.

May God bless our 44th President, burdened with an historical mandate not of his own….but God’s.

May his term or terms in office be honoring to God, and a blessing to the people to which he was elected to govern.

May God speak words of mission to him, and give him the power to perform the tasks to which he is called.

And may God bless my country, my homeland, and my fellow citizens.

God bless the U.S.A.

"Let us be satisfied that God will make all to work for good to us. Let us not discompose ourselves at what we see in this world. A fretful, discontented spirit is open to many temptations. For, in all respects, the little which is allotted to the righteous is more comfortable and more profitable than the ill-gotten and abused riches of ungodly men. It comes from a hand of special love. God provides plentifully and well, not only for his working servants, but for his waiting servants. They have that which is better than wealth, peace of mind, peace with God, and then peace in God; that peace which the world cannot give, and which the world cannot have. God knows the believer's days. Not one day's work shall go unrewarded. Their time on earth is reckoned by days, which will soon be numbered; but heavenly happiness shall be for ever. This will be a real support to believers in evil times. Those that rest on the Rock of ages, have no reason to envy the wicked the support of their broken reeds." Matthew Henry….

A Firstborn with full birthrights!!

"The LORD said to her, "Two countries are in your womb. Two nations will go their separate ways from birth. One nation will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger." When the time came for her to give birth, she had twins. The first one born was red. His whole body was covered with hair, so they named him Esau [Hairy]. Afterwards, his brother was born with his hand holding on to Esau's heel, and so he was named Jacob [Heel]. Isaac was 60 years old when they were born. They grew up. Esau became an expert hunter, an outdoorsman. Jacob remained a quiet man, staying around the tents. Because Isaac liked to eat the meat of wild animals, he loved Esau. However, Rebekah loved Jacob. Once, Jacob was preparing a meal when Esau, exhausted, came in from outdoors. So Esau said to Jacob, "Let me have the whole pot of red stuff to eat-that red stuff-I'm exhausted." This is why he was called Edom. Jacob responded, "First, sell me your rights as firstborn." "I'm about to die." Esau said. "What good is my inheritance to me?" "First, swear an oath," Jacob said. So Esau swore an oath to him and sold him his rights as firstborn. Then Jacob gave Esau a meal of bread and lentils. He ate and drank, and then he got up and left. This is how Esau showed his contempt for his rights as firstborn." Genesis 25:23-34 (GWT)

I would recommend, if you have the opportunity, to go to www.hisriver.net and download the audio for last Sunday's sermon given by Pastor Jim Combs, jr. At first, as is usually the case with most preachers and ministers I meet and respect, they at first alienate me, then show me where my humanity alienated the powerful membership I can claim within the Body of Christ.

You see, Pastor Jim is the firstborn of his family and he spoke of the firstborn 'specialness' in both the Old and New Testaments. I was born the second, or third (depending on the story and who is telling it) in my family. The second, third, or anything passed the first really isn't all that special within the community mentioned in the Old Testament stories. The firstborns were everything....and got everything. The birthright, which was essentially everything the father had to leave, or at least the best of everything in abundance. And the blessing, essentially the father's spiritual passing on of the leadership of the family.

The firstborns were also recognized as important by God Himself. In Exodus 13:2, He santicified the firstborn...making them special. In Numbers 3:13, He called the firstborn hallowed (holy). In Numbers 8:18, there is a connection between the priesthood and the firstborn. In Numbers 18:16, God said that a special price was paid for the first born....a special redemption. And, the most important figure in the 'firstborn' hall of fame is Jesus Christ, firstborn child of Mary, as mentioned in Matthew 1:25.

Firstborns......who cares!!!!?

God apparently does and adapted a culture of an entire nation to reflect that special place for the firstborns. So, my older brother Larry---a missionary with the Navigators in Germany, is the firstborn of the our family and therefore was in line (at least by biblical standards) for the best of everything, and the blessing of the leadership of the family.

Being second-born isn't all it seems to be cracked up to be......oh, I know I still have the chance of salvation (taken) and the opportunity to do the Lord's work (which I currently am 'enroute' for), but gee, nothing like getting the top of the birthright and the blessing....leaving the 'droppings' for the rest of the family........at least, that was some of the thoughts passing through my head as I listened to this firstborn preach.....

and I wasn't too happy with his 'flaunting' of his status............

yes, I was jealous!

Pastor Jim wanted to let us know, not of his specialness (though, by discussion such was declared), but of why it is mentioned that Esau 'spurned' his inheritance.....he gave up all the specialness of the birthright AND the blessing...later in Genesis (27:35-38) Esau is cheated again by Isaac for the birthright...and Esau gets upset, because it is the second time! Maybe the birthright was something Esau wasn't willing to wait for....with his belly so hungry and famished it felt like he was near death.......but the birthright, in his mind, might have been the 'coup-de-grace' and would not leave him empty of anything...

And Isaac took it from him.......

In my mind, I was thinking....'serves him right! maybe the firstborns aren't so special after all......!"

Heck, there is even a 'special' church, mentioned in the chapter of Hebrews declaring Jesus' importance....chapter 12, verse 23 "to the general assembly (all of us) and church of the firstborn, which are written in Heaven (see even special notation!), and to God the judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect....." who got to sit with 'immeasurable' numbers of angels for this declaration.....

Of course, Pastor Jim was saving his zinger for just that particular moment.
Yeah, as the pastor began to speak, I whispered....."We've been duped!!"

Jesus, remember, is the highest of the firstborns.....the 'first' of the firstborns and worthy indeed of such status and distinction. But, as we know....in the study of God's word, we aren't seen once we are covered in the blood of this firstborn as sinful, broken human beings but as Christ Himself, who covers all of our sins by the death He died upon a cross of wood and iron.......and other verses in the text tell us that we inherit everything that Christ Himself is allotted by His Heavenly Father...............we become firstborns.

We are the Church of the Firstborn!!!!!

We are special, santicified by the declaration of God Himself! We are hallowed, made holy by the desire of God! We are connected to the priesthood...those who utter and remember God's words, covenants, and laws.........and especially....we are redeemed especially in a spectacular way by the first of the firstborn!!!!

Unfortunately, we are treating this birthright and blessing from our Heavenly Father much in the same way that Esau saw it. Our birthright is being cast aside for the immediate satisfaction of the moment....we give our birthright away when we walk into those things which are earthly and temporary....far in contrast to the eternal satisfaction and best of the best which await us...an eternal perspective.................

We surrender our birthright for that which we think will quench the thirst that parches our throats, we give it up for the sake of trying to quell that overwhelming need........immediate gratification for that which will not be satisfied on this earth until the 'First of the First" comes or we head to Him. The brokenness of this world cannot be filled by the 'red soup'.

We allow Satan to steal our birthright.....because we believe such things aren't as important as the immediate quelling of our thirst....it drives us insane with the parchness of our throat.

And we're letting him steal our blessings too.............

God has given us special status, special consideration and the ability to do greater things than we could have ever imagined.....so let's take our 'firstborn' status and do the things God intended us to do with our blessings and our birthright. As we declare ourselves the "Church of the Firstborns"....let us use our blessings to bless those outside the circle, and draw them into their birthrights under the authority and gifting of Jesus Christ Himself.

Let's not let the Devil convince us that we are about to die from thirst and need to sell out on our birthright as Firstborns under Christ.

There is a famous Christian song in which the chorus is….."Hold the fort, for I am coming, Jesus signals still; Wave the answer back to heaven, By Thy grace we will!"

Let's be those valiant warriors in God's Army holding the line until He comes upon that White Horse!!!!

Never give up, never surrender!

Thursday, November 13

A Christian nation....

"Like a roaring lion or a charging bear is a wicked man ruling over a helpless people. A tyrannical ruler lacks judgment..." Proverbs 28:15-16a (NIV)

I am sure, as one of my close friends remarked the other night, that most of us are tired of hearing of the 'danger of our President-elect' and his liberal policies. Especially from a 'move-on' attitude.

As a Christian, I offer prayers up for the transition of Presidents and the crisis that the majority of Americans are now experiencing, along with the rest of the world. I know that God is God and that hasn't change, even with the approval of the liberal, socialist agenda by the American people, at least the majority.

With cries of 'stop being racist' and 'get over it', I've penned an article that grew and grew...large enough to post on www.faithwriters.com/article-details.php?id=89715, It is entitled "The new division" and speaks of what I think was hiding underneath the 'racial equality' line.

The election was a symbolic step towards the biblical mandate of 'brotherhood', but in taking that step, we've exposed the true culprit to any sinful expression within our humanistic culture.

One of the columnists for WORLD Magazine, Inc., said that conservative Christians should go to our African-American brethren and find out how it feels to be a pernenial minority, for our time has come in the movement of society to be labeled such. I would contend that we have been a minority for some time, with an estimated 7% evangelical Christians living in the United States of America.

The Barna report I wrote about in my faithwriters article, "A New Division", brings that into sharp focus and brings anew the ability of the liberal left to use previously 'racial' terms to blight the difference between born-agains and evangelicals.

Many born-agains voted for Obama, separating the meager and culturally sensitive expression of their faith from the biblical mandates for leadership; often saying that abortion was the one thing they disagreed with him on, but that it was time for change......... the evangelical in me says, "But???"

Dr. Alveda King, pastoral associate of Priests for Life and niece of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., said Obama’s policies will increase the number of abortions. “Pro-lifers must promise to redouble our efforts to resist anti-life proposals, speak up for the babies and, above all, pray,” King said. "The elections are over. The pro-life battle begins anew.”

My article quotes some of our founding fathers, those men who were responsible for the birth of this once great and successful Republic. I was looking into other quotes to maybe include in my blog today and found this one by Ben Franklin:

"If we look back into history for the character of the present sects in Christianity, we shall find few that have not in their turns been persecutors, and complainers of persecution. The primitive Christians thought persecution extremely wrong in the Pagans, but practiced it on one another. The first Protestants of the Church of England blamed persecution in the Romish Church, but practiced it upon the Puritans. They found it wrong in Bishops, but fell into the practice themselves both there (England) and in New England."

Of course, there are those who are attempting to intellectually rewrite history, so that the liberal and socialist historical argument that our founding fathers were nothing more than secular religious....often mislabeled as Dietist (believe in God, who has left us to our own devices) a early form of emergent and universalist faiths.

They often quote Madison, who's angry quotes dot the documents of the time such as "A memorial and Remonstrance" penned in 1785;

"Experience witnesseth that ecclesiastical establishments, instead of maintaining the purity and efficacy of religion, have had a contrary operation. During almost fifteen centuries has the legal establishment of Christianity been on trial. What has been its fruits? More or less, in all places, pride and indolence in the clergy; ignorance and servility in the laity; in both, superstition, bigotry and persecution."

And there is also Thomas Paine, who is often referred to as a atheist, who penned The Age of Reason;

“All natural institutions of churches, whether Jewish, Christian, or Turkish, appear to me no other than human inventions, set up to terrify and enslave mankind, and monopolize power and profit.”

The fact is that 52 of the 55 signers of "The Declaration of Independence" claimed provable orthodox Christianity as their faith and were deeply committed to its promotion and growthh. The remaining three expressed the belief of the Bible being the Divine truth of the God of Scripture and that He personally intervened in the affairs of men.

Congress formed the ABS (American Bible Society) after the Declaration was penned and voted to purchase 20,000 copies of Scripture for the American people. Even the very same Thomas Paine, who I've quoted above, said:

"It is by the exercise of our reason that we are enabled to contemplate God in His works, and imitate Him in His ways. When we see His care and goodness extended over all His creatures, it teaches us our duty toward each other, while it calls forth our gratitude to Him. It is by forgetting God in His works, and running after the books of pretended revelation, that man has wandered from the straight path of duty and happiness, and become by turns the victim of doubt and the dupe of delusion."

As I said before, we have been a minority for much of this Republic's history....it's just been 'by turns' that the American people have turned a nation comptemplative of God's hand and proper imitation of His ways into a victim of doubt and duped by delusion.

We have allowed the society to emerge that would cause someone like President-elect Obama an easy path to the White House. I was wrong to think that Barrack Obama wasn't represenative of the emergent American culture, population, and faith. He is, as proven by the ease in which he gained several 'christian' leaders to follow his agenda to promote the liberal, big-government entitlement policies of the Democrat party.

Patrick Henry in 1776 wrote that "It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great Nation was founded not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. For that reason alone, people of other faiths have been afforded freedom of worship here."

Of course, those who would rewrite the religiousity of our founding fathers call upon modern historians's interpretation of their religion. Robert T. Handy, one such historian, points to the fact that no more than 10 percent of the population of early America were members of a congregation and fails to consider that the movement of the early colonists were to meet in communities; homes and businesses with their neighbors and friends.

The commonality of the expression of Christian thought peppers the papers; both personal and public, of our first citizentry of those days. As Henry stated, it was because of the persecution of Christianity that allowed the freedom of even false doctrines. It was the human invention of denominations that caused rifts to occur in the religious experiment of the Republic and was often the frustration written by the founding fathers.

As James Madison expressed, "All men having power ought to be mistrusted. Do not separate text from historical background. If you do, you will have perverted and subverted the Constitution, which can only end in a distorted, bastardized form of illegitimate government. I believe there are more instances of the abridgment of freedom of the people by gradual and silent encroachments by those in power than by violent and sudden usurpations. If Tyranny and Oppression come to this land, it will be in the guise of fighting a foreign enemy. It is a universal truth that the loss of liberty at home is to be charged to the provisions against danger, real or pretended, from abroad. Knowledge will forever govern ignorance; and a people who mean to be their own governors must arm themselves with the power which knowledge gives. No nation could preserve its freedom in the midst of continual warfare. Of all the enemies of public liberty, war is perhaps the most to be dreaded, because it comprises and develops the germ of every other. The essence of Government is power; and power, lodged as it must be in human hands, will ever be liable to abuse. The purpose of separation of church and state is to keep forever from these shores the ceaseless strife that has soaked the soil of Europe with blood for centuries."

It wasn't the separation of the true church from the state that Madison is talking about but the human endeavour of the creation of religion through the forced application of the government that "soaked the soil of Europe with blood for centuries."

In the Supreme Court's 1892 Holy Trinity Church vs. United States, Justice David Brewer wrote that "this is a Christian nation" 'in dicta', meant as a personal opinion that has been taken out of context according to the secular historians by Christians. Justice Brewer explained this opinion later, "But in what sense can [the United States] be called a Christian nation? Not in the sense that Christianity is the established religion or the people are compelled in any manner to support it. On the contrary, the Constitution specifically provides that 'Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.' Neither is it Christian in the sense that all its citizens are either in fact or in name Christians. On the contrary, all religions have free scope within its borders. Numbers of our people profess other religions, and many reject all."

In the sense that Christianity was the 'established' religion of the United States, as Brewer says, there is no such nation. The very lifeblood of the Constitution, the governing document of the young nation says as much....not against the promotion of Christianity but against its human establishment according to human means as a law of the land. Which is reflective of the design of the Designer.

We were given free will, and in the acknowledgement of Christianity and the mandate of the Great Commission, we aren't called to force conversion, as is often the case when religion is a human invention or coopted by human forces, but to allow a choice to be made upon the informed and debating conversation of free men.

One of the scholars discussed in one of the articles I read below concludes "neither strict separationists of today nor those who argue that the U.S. was founded as a "Christian nation" get it right. The truth is in the middle, the founding fathers affirmed religion's importance and most practiced their faith publicly, but they created a nation where faith would not be polluted by politics, and politics would have no say in an individual's faith."

I would take it one step further....the Founding Fathers affirmed the vitaliness and importance of any nation's or individual's pursuit of the True God, written and discoverable in the Scriptures as I AM, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, visible through the public and private practice of its expression in their lives and warned of the danger of humanization of such religious beliefs due to the danger evidenced in history of the destructive power of mankind in the handling of divine power.

It's a truth that is evident clearly within our borders even today. So what is our mandate, our calling, our destiny for these days?

Will we walk as the heroes of old, steadfast after God? Because in our day prophecy spoken by Jesus himself concerning the last days seems to be coming true: "because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold." [Matthew 24:12]

We can follow the paths of Moses, Josiah, and Paul all who walked amidst incredible idolatry and sin in the world, but instead of catering or yielding to it, we can use all the authority given to us in the Constitution and our governing laws to stop its spread and redeem a nation.

We have to be fearless in our hatred of sin due to an intense love of God and not let that love grow cold, for it will allow us to bring those lost in sin's embrace to the light of God's love as we accurately reflect it into the dark world.

Sin abounds in the world, around us and to some extent IN us, but Christ tells us we can triumph with the intensity of the love God gives to us.

Keep the passion of God true, pure, and unblemished by human inventions. Each Christian is alive for such times as these.

Shining for the world tossed in darkness reflecting the love of our Heavenly Father to all who would look for solace and comfort in such troubling tiems.



Resources:
http://discuss.infidels.org/showthread.php?t=244904
http://www.earlyamerica.com/review/summer97/secular.html
http://www.mccoolportraits.com/TrueHistory.htm
http://www.citizenlink.org/content/A000008659.cfm
http://www.onenewsnow.com/Politics/Default.aspx?id=315364
http://www.barefootsworld.net/founding.html

A letter from God to Women.....

This was emailed to me from a friend. It is a great expression of God's design for a woman....

When I created the heavens and the earth, I spoke them into being. When I created man, I formed him and breathed life into his nostrils. But you, woman, I fashioned after I breathed the breath of life into man because your nostrils are too delicate. I allowed a deep sleep to come over him so I could patiently and perfectly fashion you.

Man was put to sleep so that he could not interfere with the creativity. From one bone, I fashioned you. I chose the bone that protects man's life.

I chose the rib, which protects his heart and lungs and supports him, as you are meant to do. Around this one bone, I shaped you....

I modeled you. I created you perfectly and beautifully.

Your characteristics are as the rib, strong yet delicate and fragile.
You provide protection for the most delicate organ in man, his heart.
His heart is the center of his being; his lungs hold the breath of
life.

The rib cage will allow itself to be broken before it will allow damage
to the heart. Support man as the rib cage supports the body.

You were not taken from his feet, to be under him, nor were you taken
from his head, to be above him. You were taken from his side, to stand
beside him and be held close to his side.

You are my perfect angel.....You are my beautiful little girl.
You will or have grown to be a splendid woman of excellence, and my
eyes fill when I see the virtues in your heart. Your eyes......don't
change them. Your lips-how lovely when they part in prayer. Your nose,
so perfect in form. Your hands so gentle to touch I've caressed your
face in your deepest sleep. I've held your heart close to mine. Of all
that lives and breathes, you are most like me.

Adam walked with me in the cool of the day, yet he was lonely. He could
not see me or touch me. He could only feel me. So everything I wanted
Adam to share and experience with me, I fashioned in you; my holiness,
my strength, my purity, my love, my protection and support.

You are special because you are an extension of me. Man represents my
image, woman my emotions. Together, you represent the totality of God.

Monday, November 10

It doesn't matter who is President......

"After Jehoiachin son of Jehoiakim king of Judah and the officials, the craftsmen and the artisans of Judah were carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the Lord showed me two baskets of figs placed in front of the temple of the Lord. One basket had very good figs, like those that ripen early; the other basket had very poor figs, so bad they could not be eaten. Then the Lord asked me, 'What do you see, Jeremiah?' 'Figs,' I answered. 'The good ones are very good, but the poor ones are so bad they cannot be eaten.' Then the word of the Lord came to me: 'This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: 'Like these good figs, I regard as good the exiles from Judah, whom I sent away from this place to the land of the Babylonians. My eyes will watch over them for their own good, and I will bring them back to this land. I will build them up and not tear them down; I will plant them and not uproot them. I will give them a heart to know me, that I am the Lord. They will be my people and I will be their God, for they will return to me with all their heart. But like the poor figs, which are so bad they cannot be eaten,' says the Lord, 'so will I deal with Zedekiah king of Judah, his officials and the survivors from Jerusalem, whether they remain in this land or live in Egypt. I will make them abhorrent and an offense to all the kingdoms of the earth, a reproach and a byword, an object of ridicule and cursing, wherever I banish them. I will send the sword, famine, and plague against them until they are destroyed from the land I gave to them and their fathers." Jeremiah 24:1-10 (NIV)

The United States of America made 'history' through the decision of its governed people in the nomination and election of the first African-American President, the 44th one elected, Illinois Senator Barack Hussein Obama; son of a Kenyan father and Caucasian mother. The streets of Chicago, Detroit, and other major cities were overcome with joy and celebration. Black fists raised in the air, comments of 'Finally!' and so on as the African-Americans find vindication in the election of a 'black' leader.

Some leaders within the Christian community decry those who say that people voted because of race instead of change. They ignore the comments of several voters throughout the political landscape, who spelled such motivation bravely and proudly, after the endorsement partially because of the same reason by ex-Secretary of State Coleman Powell. The claim that the winning of the Latino vote proves race was not a factor is onerous, because the Latino community typically identifies with the African-Americans in this country. Of course, such is not the only reason; this country has become a shadow of itself and the liberal, socialistic ideologies of the American people are the dominate majority in the country.

Regardless of the reason, the American people elected by the majority our 44th President in the history of the United States of America, Barack Hussein Obama, ex-Senator from Illinois.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said in his first state of the nation speech that Russia will station short-range missiles near its border with Poland if Obama proceeds with Bush’s plan to station missile defense systems in Poland and the Czech Republic.

The global economic crisis could limit Obama’s flexibility in defense and foreign affairs, and while foreign leaders may chose not to fulfill Vice-President elect Joseph Biden's prophecy of an Obama trial by fire, Richard Haass, President of the Council on Foreign Relations, says,

"One thing I'm sure of is, events will test him. There will be coups....genocide.....terrorism."

This President, untested in foreign affairs, faces such an unsettled and anti-American global scene unseen since the 1930s and 1940s. Beyond the economy and the wars, there's the need to address what most believe are climate changes of a disastrous nature, improve America's energy independence from foreign oil, taxes, reformation of health care, immigration and solve a budget deficit made bigger by the government's socialistic move to prop up businesses

We can complain about the election; offering claims of 'buying the White House', that Obama used 'race' to win, or a host of other possibly legitimate reasoning behind it all. Or we can look at our culture, our society, and our faith to discover a possibility beyond such petty human reasons. We have been living in the days before Noah for some time now.

"Now it came about, when men began to multiply on the face of the land, and daughters were born to them, that the sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful; and they took wives for themselves, whomever they chose. Then the LORD said, “My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, because he also is flesh; nevertheless his days shall be one hundred and twenty years.” The Nephilim were on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of men, and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown. Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. The LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. The LORD said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the sky; for I am sorry that I have made them.” But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD. These are the records of the generations of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his time; Noah walked with God. Noah became the father of three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Now the earth was corrupt in the sight of God, and the earth was filled with violence. God looked on the earth, and behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way upon the earth. Then God said to Noah, “The end of all flesh has come before Me; for the earth is filled with violence because of them; and behold, I am about to destroy them with the earth. Genesis 6:1-13 (GWT)

It is glorious that an African-American has been elected President of the United States. Slavery was a sin of the Republic and racism remains the bitter experience of too many Americans; of all races and, while such an historic election doesn't end racism, it does bring the country in a positive, symbolic step in that direction. But, unfortunately, racism is not the only culturally destructive tendencies that we, as a people, have engaged in for the 'modern-day pre-Noah' depravity.

"For the last two millennia, the Christian community, educated with ideas drawn from Scripture and applied to every area of life and reality, has been the most powerful culture-forming agent. In other words, the church is the instrument by which God brings forth His kingdom and as the kingdom spreads, the culture is Christianized." S. Michael Craven, of the Center for Christ & Culture, says "In a world of false ideas competing to explain the world, it was Christians, armed with the energy of an all-embracing life-system (i.e., Christian worldview) that shaped Western culture. This energy–now severed from its historic understanding–has been depleted in recent generations through spiritual sloth, theological ignorance, anti-intellectualism, and cultural apathy."

For a country established upon the Gospel message, and led by the foundational inclusion of such biblical strengths as the Ten Commandments, it is such supposition and assumption that because of our exposure to and the material blessings resulting from the Gospel; far beyond possibly any other nation in the history of this world, that has caused us to be in a far more perilous place before God than we ever may have realized with the continued decline of our society.

Barack Obama, the liberal Senator of Illinois, may have caused deception and lies to sway enough Americans to vote him into office; may have taken foreign donations, gaining world opinion, and profited from a poor performance from the Republican choice of President. But, if society was not a reflection of what Obama represents, we would be giving the oath to another nominee who gain the majority of the vote.

God wants to have mercy upon us, if only for the sake of the faithful that reside within this nation's borders. God wants to bless and bring honor to a nation that brings Him glory. But He can also withhold that blessing, mercy, and grace from a nation that turns its back to Him. We cannot claim ignorance, acting as if God hasn't given us His direction and His desires for us individually and nationally. We do not have the excuse of modern-day Ninevahs; who 'could not tell their right hand from their left.' (Jonah 4:11)

Our fate doesn't lie in the hands of President-elect Obama, nor the government he forms. It lies within our conduct, our expression of faith, and the testimony of that hope established upon a cross of wood and iron.

Jesus established our conduct and relationships as necessary components to our witness on behalf of God to the world, dark and fallen in a deadly state of sin. It is because we have continued to fail to bring our conduct within the biblical context; allowing 'the devil we know' to be nominated, failing to uphold a moral ethics, and refusing to elect those who don't represent our values, that will spell our doom; as a people and a nation, leading us into the ruin of history as so many societies and nations that have fallen before us.

"We are going to see, I think, unprecedented attacks against our faith through measures like the hate crimes [legislation] to the Employment Non-Discrimination Act," Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, says. "We're going to see attacks on innocent human life through the Freedom of Choice Act, trying to erase all the gains that have been made in the pro-life movement. And I think even our freedoms are going to come under attack."

God holds all nations in His plans as evidenced by the Scriptures: He gives nations to those whom he wills, Isaiah 41:2, reigning over all of them, Psalm 99:2, and at the end of all time, all nations of this world will worship Him and their people declare His praise, Revelation 15:4. The United States of America holds no distinction from the rest of the world and the nations that inhabit it; beyond being once more knowledgeable of God's will and direction.

As our mothers used to say, "You know better."

Once a small core group of British subjects living upon a colonial shore rose up against their mother country and said, "No more." They had to bear arms against an army with more soldiers, battle-hardened and trained, to stand upon their declaration. Many gave their blood upon that famous 'tree of liberty' and came together 'under God' to form a grand experiment all the world was certain would fail; a Republic of the people and for the people. The leadership of this country has fallen from the path of that once-grandeur path, and it is time for the true patriots to rise again from the villages and towns of this country. A call to arms, not unlike the one given so long ago, resounds throughout the countryside; galloping steeds bearing loud, boisterous riders shouting the cry.

"The enemy is coming! The enemy is coming! To your knees!"

It is not for these new patriots, possibly soon to be labeled criminals (as were our founding fathers), to grasp weapons of humanity; those tools of warfare. To gain a coup on the human effort of military overthrow or personal threat against our leadership. That is not the way of the Lord God and it cannot be our way as His followers.

No, the modern-day patriot, following the principles established by those patriots found in the Old and New Testaments, seize upon the weapons of God; prayer, established law, and their principles of faith to drop to their knees.

Not to call for the destruction of the presidency of Barack Obama, nor an unfortunate demise to fall upon the government that he forms.

No, as in Jeremiah 29:7, where God told the Israelites to pray for Babylon, their captors (Seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper) and as Paul commanded us, in his letter to Timothy, to pray for "kings and all who are in authority." The principle of God's people praying for the welfare of the governments over them, regardless of their sinful nature or biblical following, is a foundational weapon in the arsenal of the faithful and is called to be used.

God can touch an unbeliever, a deceived and wayward follower, and even the humanistic confusion of a false doctrine. He can use the prayers of the faithful to destroy, redeem, and lead to repentance even the most foul of nations. He allows us to nominate our leaders and expects us to bring those leaders under prayerful supplication regardless of our vote for or against.

President-elect Barack Obama doesn't know me from the multitudes that gathered around him that night of his historic victory in Chicago Illinois and has no idea of my political views, morals, and hopes; though he opposes them, at least according to the words of his mouth, the push of his finger upon the voting buttons in the Senate, and the written doctrine of his campaign. He will never call my cell and ask for me to offer him counsel and prayer for the enormous task of leading this nation.

But God calls me to do so; to pray for Barack Hussein Obama to feel and listen to the voice of God, to be guided by His hand and to bring this nation into repentance. God tells me to pray for Obama's health, far beyond the human physical health, in the spirit, that he will know of the need for salvation and grasp upon Christ's offer freely given. God allows for me to use legal means of expressing myself and my views to my Commander-in-Chief through my elected officials, whether I voted for them or not, and the Constitution that allows me to address my government concerning things I oppose. God tells me one thing that I must do, regardless of what our 44th President will do.

Pray for him, that his leadership would bring glory and honor to God, that this nation be led to repentance and redemption through his leadership, and that God would bring His hand to bear in the answering of such prayers; withholding judgment from those who are repenting, to judge those who aren't and who are falsely leading many astray, and to show His will for a nation fallen from His path.

Whatever the next four years bring, I will pray for God to reveal Himself and His will to President Obama and that He have mercy for those he governs as well as those who govern us. Through this action, I know, that God will use whatever happens to bring His faithful closer to Him and will not abandon them to the wages of sin that befall those who oppose God. I will pray for the political process and a restoration of its lofty goals; the election of leaders to lead this country in a Godly manner.

I will pray for those who guide us at all levels of government; that they will faithful execute the duties of their offices in a manner bringing God glory and honor through their servant leadership. And that God will hold them accountable as He holds me accountable.

Whatever trials I may face are nothing as those who face the wrath of the Almighty God, who have turned away willingly and with malice, from His path.

May God have mercy upon their souls.