Tag Archives: Christianity

August 3, 2014 · 10:30

False Religion: Mormonism

But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed. (Galatians 1:8-9)

Mormonism, otherwise known as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS Church), was founded by Joseph Smith in 1820. The religion is of rather dubious origins. Allegedly in 1823, Joseph Smith was visited by the angel Moroni and told Smith about a book of golden plates containing “the fullness of the everlasting Gospel” (see our lead verse above). Four years later, Smith discovered the golden plates along with a special set of spectacles that allowed him to translate the hieroglyphics into what we now know as The Book of Mormon. Once his translation work was done, he conveniently buried the plates again at an undisclosed location never to be seen again. More could be said about the beginnings of this cult, its founder, and its early history, but my purpose here is to point out some of the fallacious teachings of this false religion.

As I pointed out in my last post, “False Religion,” three characteristics of false religions are: (1) deny or reject the God of the Bible, (2) deny the unique deity of Christ, and (3) reject the Bible as the inerrant, infallible Word of God. The LDS Church is guilty on all three counts.

If one is not paying attention, one might think that Mormons believe in God. However, their concept of God is nothing like the God of the Bible. To be sure, the Bible makes it abundantly clear that there is only one God.

Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD (Deuteronomy 6:4)

Ye are my witnesses, saith the LORD, and my servant whom I have chosen: that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I am he: before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me. I, even I, am the LORD; and beside me there is no saviour (Isaiah 43:10-11).

Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God … Fear ye not, neither be afraid: have not I told thee from that time, and have declared it? ye are even my witnesses. Is there a God beside me? yea, there is no God; I know not any (Isaiah 44:6, 8).

I am the LORD, and there is none else, there is no God beside me: I girded thee, though thou hast not known me … Tell ye, and bring them near; yea, let them take counsel together: who hath declared this from ancient time? who hath told it from that time? have not I the LORD? and there is no God else beside me; a just God and a Saviour; there is none beside me. Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else (Isaiah 45:5, 21-22).

The following comes from The Kingdom of the Cults (1985) by Walter Martin. Note how the Mormon concept of “God” is polytheistic, not monotheistic as the God of the Bible.

  1. “In the beginning, the head of the Gods called a council of the Gods; and they came together and concocted a plan to create the world and people it” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, 349).
  2. “God himself was once as we are now, and is an exalted man, …” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, 345).
  3. “The Father has a body of flesh and bones as tangible as man’s: the Son also; but the Holy Ghost has not a body of flesh and bones, but is a personage of Spirit…” (Doctrine and Covenants 130:22).
  4. “Gods exist, and we had better strive to be prepared to be one with them” (Brigham Young, Journal of Discourses, 7. p 238).
  5. “As man is, God once was: as God is, man may become” (Prophet Lorenzo Snow, quoted in Milton R. Hunter, The Gospel Through the Ages, pp. 105, 106).
  6. “Each of these God, including Jesus Christ and His Father, being in possession of not merely an organized spirit, but a glorious immortal body of flesh and bones…” (Parley P. Pratt, Key to the Science of Theology, 1965, p. 44). Martin, 202-203.

There are more, but the reader can readily see the pattern here. According to the LDS Church, “God” was once a man who was elevated to godhood, and apparently he is one among other “Gods.” Apparently, man, by following the practices prescribed by the Mormon Church, can also achieve godhood. Note here another principle of false religion: “salvation” is achieved through one’s own efforts, something the Bible rejects. “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9, emphasis added).

The LDS Church also rejects the unique deity of Christ. Note the qualifier “unique.” The Mormons do indeed believe that Jesus Christ is “a God” – one among many others. They also recognize “Elohim” as Jesus’ father, albeit in a “carnal” way, i.e., as from the union of a man and woman. Martin [p. 212] quotes Brigham Young: “When the Virgin Mary conceived the child Jesus, the Father had begotten him in his own likeness. He was not begotten by the Holy Ghost. And who was the Father? He is the first of the human family; and when he took a tabernacle [body], it was begotten by his Father in heaven, after the same manner as the tabernacles of Cain, Abel, and the rest of the sons and daughters of Adam and Eve; from the fruits of the earth, the first earthly tabernacles were originated by the Father, and so on in succession … Jesus, our elder brother was begotten in the flesh by the same character that was in the garden of Eden, and who is our Father in Heaven” (Journal of Discourses, Vol. I, pp. 50 and 51). From the Mormon perspective, the “Father” was Adam who came down from heaven with one of his wives, Eve, and populated the earth. This same “Father” begat Jesus through the Virgin Mary. Even the least studied student of the Bible can see through this fallacy. Not only is Jesus the only begotten Son of God; He is in every way the only God in human form (John 1:1; Philippians 2:5-8; Colossians 2:9; Revelation 4:11).

The LDS Church denies the inerrancy and infallibility of the Bible and elevates The Book of Mormon and other Mormon writings (as quoted above) over the Word of God. Indeed, Joseph Smith said, “…it was apparent that many important points touching the salvation of men, had been taken from the Bible, or lost before it was compiled” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 10, cited at “The Plain Truth About Mormons”). The LDS Church accepts the King James Version of the Bible as “part” of God’s Word “insofar as it is correctly translated,” but in addition to that, they give higher regard to The Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants (Brigham Young), and The Pearl of Great Price. While the Bible has never been scientifically, historically, or archeologically falsified, The Book of Mormon fails miserably on all three counts, and yet the LDS Church reveres The Book of Mormon and their other writings above the Bible. “There is a great wealth of information concerning the material contained in the Book of Mormon and the various plagiarisms, anachronisms, false prophesies and other unfortunate practices connected with it” (Martin, 186). Martin (pp. 186-187) goes on to list a series of corrections made to The Book of Mormon since it was first published in 1830. Martin comments that “…it appears that either God made a mistake when He inspired the record or Joseph [Smith] made a mistake when he translated it. Mormons will admit to neither, so they are stuck, so to speak, with the contradiction” (Martin, 186). Similar allegations have been levied against the Word of God, but none have been proven true. “The record of Scripture [the Bible] rings true. The Book of Mormon, on the other hand, is patently false in far too many places to be considered coincidence” (Martin, 187).

These are only some of the problems with the false religion of Mormonism. For a more complete study, I highly recommend The Kingdom of the Cults by Walter Martin, but here in brief I have shown that Mormonism is a false religion. It denies the God of the Bible. It denies the unique deity of Christ, and it rejects the inerrant, infallible Word of God. In addition, like all other false religions, salvation is dependent on the works of the believer. Mormonism does not even qualify as “Christian” even though “Jesus Christ” is part of their name. Do not be fooled by this false religion. Mormons are very nice people, and they live exemplary and admirable lives; but according to the Bible, they are self-deceived, and they are lost. Treat them accordingly with all due love and respect.

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July 27, 2014 · 10:30

False Religion

coexist

But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed. (Galatians 1:8-9)

In my last post, I attempted to point out some broad characteristics that distinguish “True Religion.” In the article “I Am A Christian,” I went into greater detail on what it means to be a Christian, which is the only true religion. But in order to distinguish between true religion and false religion, one must be able to recognize false religion on sight.

First of all, a false religion denies the God of the Bible. Immediately that includes all pagan religions that worship multiple gods (polytheism), or believe that everything is god (pantheism). By the way, evolutionism or naturalism is a form of pantheism in that it attributes to nature creative abilities and intellect. Evolution/naturalism in turn gives rise to secular humanism that, for all practical purposes, bestows upon mankind a divine nature. They perhaps would not go so far as to call themselves gods (although some have), but the ideology attributes value to mankind apart from God, so in essence, man is God. Romans 1:23 encapsulates false religion this way: “And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things” (emphasis mine). This list would include Hinduism (which is both pantheist and polytheist), Buddhism, and a variety of others (the list is too long for this post). Islam would also be included here. Although many may argue that Islam’s god, Allah, is the same as the God of the Bible, a close comparison reveals that they are not the same. See my article “God Is Not Allah.”

Second, a false religion rejects the deity of Christ. All those listed above fall into this category, but now the list broadens to include the Jewish religion. While the Jewish religion accepts the God of the Bible, their Bible ends with the book of Malachi. (Technically, the Hebrew Scriptures end with Chronicles; it is only a matter of how the books are arranged.) Jews reject the Messiah that was prophesied in their own Scriptures. The New Testament is clear: “Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son” (1 John 2:22). “Christ” is the Greek rendering of “Messiah” which means “anointed one.” John would say that the Jews who deny that Jesus is the Christ are liars. It is a false religion.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (the LDS church otherwise known as the Mormons) while associating their religion with Jesus Christ, denies the unique deity of Christ. To the Mormons, Jesus is one of many “sons of God.” In their belief system, Jesus is brother to Lucifer. LDS adherents believe that they too will become gods and be in charge of their own worlds. Of course, when the young “Elders” come knocking on your door, they will not willingly volunteer any of this information. The Bible teaches that the “Word,” by whom all things were created (John 1:3), became flesh, and John testifies that “we beheld his glory, the glory of the only begotten of the Father” (John 1:14, emphasis mine). “No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him” (John 1:18, emphasis mine). The moniker “only begotten Son” (see also John 3:16, 18; 1 John 4:9) clearly indicates that there is no other. That automatically disqualifies Lucifer and all others that the Mormons might want to add to the list.

The Jehovah’s Witnesses also deny the deity of Christ. These too are fervent “evangelists” for their cause and they are very well trained in the use of Scripture taken out of context. They are not well trained in Scripture; they are trained in Watch Tower literature. One of the verses they like to use as proof text to deny the deity of Christ is John 1:1: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” In their mistranslation of the Scriptures the verse ends: “and the word was a god.” They attribute this to the fact that in the Greek, theos (god) is not preceded by the definite article. However, the same construct appears again in John 1:6: “There was a man sent from God, whose name was John,” but here they render it correctly. So, why is there an inconsistency? They cannot tell you. They have other problems as well, but denial of Christ as God is their greatest problem.

Muslims, while they acknowledge Jesus as a great prophet second only to Mohammed, and even accept His virgin birth, also deny the deity of Christ. So, not only is Jesus not God, but He is less than the human prophet Mohammed.

Finally, false religion minimizes or altogether rejects the Word of God, the Holy Bible. Many pagan religions, like Hinduism, and Buddhism have their own holy books. Islam, while it acknowledges the Holy Bible and affords it some value, has the Koran (Quran). The Mormons accept and give verbal assent to the Bible, but in practice they prefer the Book of Mormon and The Pearl of Great Price. In doing so, they have overlooked Paul’s stern warning in Galatians 1:8-9 that even if an angel (like Moroni) preach any other gospel than what is preached in the Bible, that one should be accursed. The Jehovah’s Witnesses violate the Word of God by rewriting it to conform to their preconceptions. They ignorantly disregard the admonition from Scripture against tampering with the Word of God (Deuteronomy 4:2; Revelation 22:19). The Roman Catholic Church venerates the Bible, but in practice they prefer the edicts of the Pope over the teachings of the Bible. In fact, the Roman Catholic Church teaches that the Bible cannot be understood by the common layperson, or even the priests. Only the Pope has the authority to give proper interpretation and meaning to Scripture. Worthless as it may be, at least they claim some authority. Many mainline Protestant denominations with their liberal theologians have divested Scripture of all authority and set their adherents aimlessly adrift on a sea of relativistic humanism and existentialism. Recently I heard a Methodist minister base his sermon on Ephesians 6:3-4 (two completely unrelated verses regardless of their proximity). He never addressed the Scripture, but instead built his sermon on Harry Chapin’s “Cat’s In the Cradle.” Build your theology on that!

The Bible tells us that God’s Word is eternally trustworthy. “For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven” (Psalm 119:89). “Thy word is true from the beginning: and every one of thy righteous judgments endureth for ever” (Psalm 119:160). “The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever” (Isaiah 40:8). God says, “So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it” (Isaiah 55:11). Jesus said, “For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled” (Matthew 5:18). Any religion that rejects any part or the entire Bible has nothing on which to stand and has built a house on shifting sand (Matthew 7:26-27).

Any one or all of these characteristics identify a false religion. False religion will reject the God of the Bible. False religion rejects the deity of Christ. False religion rejects the authority of the Bible.

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July 20, 2014 · 10:30

True Religion

Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world. (James 1:27)

Not long ago, a couple of Mormon missionaries knocked on my door and attempted to engage me in conversation. Now, I understand that these kinds of conversations seldom lead anywhere, but I am not one to turn away such opportunities, so I engage. On this particular occasion, these “elders” (I think it’s cute these young men, no more than 18 or 19, call themselves “Elder” so-and-so), brought up the question of “Why are there so many religions?” By that, of course, they meant “Christian” religions. They pointed out that Jesus wanted all His followers to be united (John 17:11, 21-23) as one. I agreed and jokingly said, “I think all Christians should be Baptist!” They were not sure how to respond to that. They naturally wanted to make a case for the LDS church. Had I been serious in my quip, I would have been just as guilty as they in giving allegiance to a “brand” rather than to the “person” of Jesus Christ.

All world religions, including all Christian “denominations” are man-made and therefore subject to the fallacies of men, granted some more than others. So what is true religion? According to Dictionary.com, “religion” is:

  1. a set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe, especially when considered as the creation of a superhuman agency or agencies, usually involving devotional and ritual observances, and often containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs.
  2. a specific fundamental set of beliefs and practices generally agreed upon by a number of persons or sects
  3. the body of persons adhering to a particular set of beliefs and practices
  4. the life or state of a monk, nun, etc.
  5. the practice of religious beliefs; ritual observance of faith
  6. something one believes in and follows devotedly; a point or matter of ethics or conscience (emphasis mine)

Notice the emphasis on “practice,” “conduct,” “adherence,” and “ritual observance.” All religions designed by man employ some kind of merit system to gain eternal rewards for the adherents, but none offer any security for the same. Instead the adherent gets “Do your best and perhaps your good will outweigh the bad.” Frankly, I would find little comfort in that.

Jesus does not offer religion; He offers a personal relationship with the Creator. In our beginning verse above, James seems to confirm the usual pattern for man-made religion – care for the widows and orphans and keep yourself unspotted from the world. In other words, do all of the right kind of stuff, and you will have “pure religion.” One must understand that James was speaking to Christians. His instruction was not for the purpose leading one to heaven, but rather to demonstrate the life conduct of a person that is heaven bound. The fact that one is “born again” should result in altered behavior that demonstrates a changed life. This change in life should not be rote ritualism as suggested in the dictionary definition above, but rather, because of a new nature (Galatians 2:20), such behavior should “come natural” for the genuine believer. It should not be a forced act.

Another characteristic of man-made religion is that the adherent constantly strives – works – to gain the favor of his god. (I plan to show specifics of how this is done in future posts.) True religion understands that God, the transcendent Creator, is infinitely offended by sin – man’s rebellion against God. True religion understands that man is incapable through his own efforts of being reconciled to God. True religion understands that only God can bridge the divide that separates God from man. To do so, God became man (Philippians 2:5-11), and did what man could not – pay restitution for the offense. Herein lies the difference between man-made religion and true religion. In man-made religion, man does all the work and gains nothing in return; in true religion, God does all of the redemptive work, and “as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name” (John 1:12).

The old saying that “You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink” applies here. God has done all of the work of redemption, and He freely offers reconciliation to everyone who will receive it; but it must be received, and He will not force it on anyone. The choice is yours.

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July 6, 2014 · 10:30

Knowing the Will of God

Image Credit: Lightstock.com

Image Credit: Lightstock.com

For whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is my brother, and my sister, and mother. (Mark 3:35)

What is God’s will for me? That is a questions many Christians ask. Volumes of books have been written on the topic and yet the question persists. If I had the time or the inclination, I might set out on a project to answer that question from yet another perspective. But the question is not that difficult to resolve. Do you want to know the will of God for your life? Great! Read, better yet, study the Bible. “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works. (2 Timothy 3:16-17, emphasis added)

God has made His will clearly known from the beginning. To begin with, God gave dominion over all of His creation to man and wanted man to fill the earth (Genesis 1:26-28). For us, that means that God wants man to exercise stewardship of all that He has placed at our disposal, from the individual managing his “personal” possessions to the stewardship of the planet and all its resources by the whole of mankind. It also gives us an inkling of the value God places on human beings.

In Genesis 2, God again makes His will known: “But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die” (v. 17). This was only one prohibition, but the message was (and is) clear: God expects obedience. Later, God codified His law through the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:3-17) and the rest of what is known as the Mosaic Law. The first three of the Ten Commandments are of utmost priority: (1) You shall have no other gods before Me. The English word “before” is actually two Hebrew words, ‛al and pânı̂ym meaning “against my face.” In other words, God does not want you putting anything in your life that obstructs your vision of Him. (2) You shall not make for yourself or worship any idols. The list is long, but basically, anything you value more highly than God. (3) You shall not use God’s name carelessly. That includes, but is not limited to, using Gods name as an expletive, using it as a curse, or using in an oath, especially to legitimize a lie. Jesus summed all of the Old Testament Law down to two: (1) Love the LORD your God with all your heart, soul, and mind, and (2) love your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 22:36-40). So, there you have it, God’s will for your life, but there is more.

God’s will is that you deal with integrity in all that you do including in your work. “Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ; Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart” (Ephesians 6:5-6, emphasis added). God’s will for your life is sanctification, i.e., “set apartness” – set apart and distinct from the world. “For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication: That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel [i.e., your body] in sanctification and honour; Not in the lust of concupiscence, even as the Gentiles which know not God: That no man go beyond and defraud his brother in any matter: because that the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also have forewarned you and testified” (1 Thessalonians 4:3-6, emphasis added). This passage specifies sexual purity, but it also addresses defrauding or dealing dishonestly with someone.

God’s will is that you be thankful in all things (1 Thessalonians 5:18). God’s will is that you not lose heart as you await His return (Galatians 6:9; 2 Thessalonians 3:13; Hebrews 10:35-37). God makes no promise that our lives will be free of trouble simply because we follow His will. “Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator” (1 Peter 4:19, emphasis added). His will is that we trust our souls – our lives – to Him who is our faithful Creator.

God’s will is for all to be saved. “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9, emphasis added). Of course, not all will be saved. Jesus said, “Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 7:21, emphasis added.). That will is that you repent from your sin and accept Jesus as Lord and Savior. At the end of his gospel, John wrote: “But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name” (John 20:31, emphasis added). That is the will of God.

Oh! Wait! What about my career? What about my mate? What about the school I should attend? What about God’s will in what church I should attend? Well, God does have a will for every one of those things in your life, but you will not find them hidden in some secret code in the Bible, and He probably will not tap you on the shoulder and tell you what choice to make. The answer is in following His will as He has made it known in His Word. When you practice obedience to God’s Word, your “super” natural inclination will be to please and honor God in all that you do. When you are doing that as your standard method of operation, you will find that He will “guide” you in the right direction. Jesus said, “Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name [according to God’s will], he may give it you” (John 15:16, emphasis added.). If you are following God’s will as revealed in Scripture, you will not be making foolish requests, and He will guide you. Just try it and see. “Without faith, it is impossible to please Him” (Hebrews 11:6)

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June 29, 2014 · 16:48

Don’t Pray For This People!

Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them, neither make intercession to me: for I will not hear thee. (Jeremiah 7:16)

The 238th anniversary of the birth of our nation quickly approaches, and I find my enthusiasm waning as the day draws near. Actually, it has been waning for quite some time now. Please do not misunderstand. I am about as patriotic as the next fellow, perhaps even more than most. Since the Obama Administration ascended to power, I have watched in amazement as the foundations of our nation crumble before our eyes and the Constitution systematically gets dismantled. Obama is not totally to blame. The foundations have been cracking for a long time now – removal of God’s Word and prayer from public schools, the wholesale ejection of God from the public square, the establishment of the Welfare State, the legalization of infanticide (abortion on demand legitimized by the pseudonym of Planned Parenthood and Pro-Choice), the dissolution of the traditional nuclear family (husband, wife, offspring), and the acceptance of homosexual unions as equal to heterosexual marriages. But the downward pull of the vortex has increased with the rise of the current administration.

I find little for which to celebrate. Some would be quick to remind me that we are to pray “For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty” (1 Timothy 2:2). That is true, and I believe we should, but even God has a limit as indicated by our starting verse. At that time, the people of Judah had fallen into idolatry. Whatever worship they did offer to God was substandard and merely rote ritualism. God was sick of it, and He told Jeremiah, “pray not thou for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them, neither make intercession to me: for I will not hear thee” (Jeremiah 7:16). There comes a time when a people, as a nation, has so hardened their hearts against God that He will not even entertain an intercessory prayer for them. In fact to do so is to pray against God’s will. I think we have reached that point.

How can I be so sure about that? Romans 1:18-32 describes the downward spiral:

  1. They hold God’s truth in unrighteousness (v. 18)
  2. They reject the “clearly seen” natural revelation of God (vv. 19-20)
  3. They knew God but did not glorify Him as God (v. 21)
  4. Consequently their heart is darkened (v. 21)
  5. They profess themselves to be wise and become fools (v. 22, Psalm 14:1)
  6. They create gods of their own imagination (v. 23)
  7. God gives them over to physical perversions (v. 24)
  8. They turn God’s truth into a lie (v.25)
  9. They value the creation more than the Creator (v. 25)
  10. Consequently, God gives them over to sexual perversions – women with women and men with men (v. 26-27)
  11. As an additional consequence, God gives them over to “reprobate mind,” i.e. a mind that cannot think rationally (v. 28)
  12. They decline into a long list of increasing perversions (vv. 29-31)
  13. Finally they take joy in their perversion and encourage others accept their ways (v. 32)

Is that not the state of our nation? Think about our President praising a professional basketball player for “coming out” and expressing his homosexuality. Think about how he has stifled DOMA (the Defense of Marriage Act) and has removed all restrictions from homosexuals serving in the military. Think about the culture of lies he has engendered in his administration: the IRS scandal, the VA scandal, the Benghazi scandal, Fast and Furious, and on and on. Then we have the mainstream media that offers its support with silence and the entertainment industry that sings his praises as though there is something praiseworthy.

This Sunday morning, Todd Starnes, author of God Less America, spoke at our church. He points out many of the same things I have listed here, but he is far more optimistic than I. I do not believe there is any turning back for this nation. Someone will remind me that God said, “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14). Allow me to point out that the oft quoted verse is taken out of context. It is specific to the Jewish Temple, Jerusalem, and Israel, and it does not have a general application for the Church. The Church is NOT Israel even though some who preach “replacement theology” insist that it is. Let me also point out that God’s people, the Church, possess a heavenly citizenship, not an earthly one (Philippians 3:20 NASB). Our concern should not be for an earthly nation, but for a heavenly one. More often we are exhorted to be law-abiding citizens except for where a human law violates the Law of God (Acts 5:29). There is only one exhortation for us to pray for our leaders (cited above). Beyond that, may God’s “will be done in earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10). Our nation has been judged. Should we pray for its healing against God’s will? Although it grieves me to say it, I think not.

What then are we to do? We should remain true to the faith. We must be bold in our witness. And we should never put more faith in our government than we do in God. Our citizenship, our loyalty, and our devotion must be to Christ above all else. Jesus Christ is Lord and our King!

For what it’s worth, Happy Independence Day!

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