THE CONDITION OF SOCIETY IS...

            The twin decisions of the US Supreme Court on marriage are as clear as mud; they resolve none of the issues that drive the marriage debate in California or the nation.  But let’s talk about what they do – and what they do not do.

 

            With respect to DOMA – the federal Defense Of Marriage Act – they strike down only the section of the act forbidding federal benefits to same sex couples even where states recognize their marriages.  The Court upheld the primary intent to protect states’ rights to recognize only marriages that accord with their laws.  The Court reaffirms the right of states to enact their own laws and definitions of marriage.  California’s Proposition 8 is the action of a state defining marriage, although Prop 8 is not mentioned in the DOMA decision.

 

            With respect to Prop 8 the court did not overturn the measure.  It did rule that the defenders of the law lacked standing to defend that law in federal court; it overturned the decision of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals declaring Prop 8 unconstitutional, which means the case is sent back to the federal district court which also declared the act contrary to the US Constitution.  Here it gets really muddy – the California Constitution states clearly that state laws can only be overturned by appellate courts – state or federal.  No such overturn of Prop 8 has taken place now that the Ninth Circuit decision is voided. 

 

            The Alliance Defending Freedom – which defended Prop 8 in the courts – joins Focus on the Family’s Citizenlink, the Family Research Council, and SaveMarriage.org – led Andy Pugno – in claiming the measure remains the law of the land.  The media have misreported these decisions across the board.  Pacific Justice Institute – with which I am most familiar and connected – calls the odds on maintaining Prop 8 very long.  California officials have a long history of flouting the law and the federal Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals – whose jurisdiction was eliminated by the Supreme Court ruling – has ordered the resumption of gay marriages in California in direct violation of the rule of law which provides twenty-five days for petitioners to seek a re-hearing from the Supreme Court.  Gay marriages commenced in California on Friday, June 28.

 

            Let’s be clear.  A federal court having neither jurisdiction or authority with no case before it ordered California to violate its own constitution by sanctioning these marriages.  Lawless officials – governor, attorney general, and mayor of Los Angeles – acted on supposed strength of this order.

 

            Ugandan Evangelist Jackson Senyonga famously said, “The condition of society is the report card of the Church.”  When the Church is healthy the society is healthy.  When the Church is mired in bondage of her own making the society is likewise bound.  Where is the Church now?  Where are her pastors and other leaders?

 

            Many leaders do speak and act from within the liberating parameters of God’s Word and the laws and constitution of our state and nation.  But when nationally recognized leader Jim Garlow calls for pastors and leaders to assert their freedom to speak under the First Amendment less than half of one percent of the pastors answered from their pulpits.  When a local church was viciously attacked in our local paper I could not find one local pastor to publicly assert with me that church’s right to its own identity.  This is not okay.

 

            When King David engineered the murder of one of his own officers to cover the affair the king had with his wife Nathan the Prophet publicly confronted the king.  It was the same with Elijah and other biblical prophets.  When President Lyndon Johnson worshipped at Bruton Parish in Williamsburg, Virginia, in early 1967 the pastor confronted him about his lies and lawlessness in conducting the Vietnam war and began the process leading to Johnson’s decision not to seek re-election.  Courageous pastors, bishops, and business owners are challenging the Obama Administration on forced abortion coverage provided in Obamacare.  Will the Church rise up to confront government about its abuses of power across the board – and especially now in the issue of forcing a state to adopt same-sex marriage when its people have said yes to traditional marriage?  Will the Church set its own house in order at the same time? 

 

My next posting will feature recommendations – exhortations really – on how this should be done.  But whatever we do as a Christian community let us actively recall that we do not place our trust in the human protectors of constitution and community – how has that worked out on Obamacare and traditional marriage – but in the One who creates them both.

 

James A. Wilson is the author of Living As Ambassadors of Relationships and The Holy Spirit and the End Times – available at local bookstores or by e-mailing him at

praynorthstate@charter.net

 

              

 

A PASTOR'S PERSPECTIVE...

 A pastor/Christian attorney’s perspective on the two marriage decisions June 26, 2013 by the United States Supreme Court.

******

Proponents of same sex marriage and their friends in the media have claimed a huge victory and celebrations continue in the Castro District of San Francisco.  But reading the fine print of the two Supreme Court decisions, and seeing that both liberal and conservative Justices participated in rendering them, shows that the many intercessory prayers for the nine Justices were helpful, the spiritual battle is not over yet, and this may open a new healthy dialogue in the largely-dormant body of Christ.

 In short:  Keep the prayers coming!  Read the fine print.  God is still on the Throne.

A legal overview follows, but first a prayer---

 “Abba Father, in Yeshua/Jesus’ Holy Name, we uphold and we will continue to pray for Your definition of marriage to be the law of the land and the foundation of families in this and every other nation.  Lord Jesus, You clearly stated the definition of marriage in Matthew 19:4-6: “ And He answered and said to them, ‘Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh? So then, they are no longer two but one flesh.  Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.” In those Words You cited Genesis 1:27 “So God created man in His own image; in the image God He created him; male and female He created them.”  You also cited Your Truth found in Genesis 5:2: “He created them male and female, and blessed them and called Mankind in the day they were created.”  You also cited Your Truth found in Genesis 2:24: “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.”  And Lord Jesus You also repeated this definition of one man, one woman marriage in Mark 10: 6-9 where You said, in verse 6, “But from the beginning of the creation, God made them male and female. For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh, so then they are no longer two, but one flesh.  Therefore what God joined together, let not man separate.”  And, dear Lord, You said in Isaiah 40, verse 8: “The grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever.” So, dear Lord, we stand on Your Word.   Please give us Your Wisdom as we go forward standing up for Godly marriage. In Yeshua/Jesus’ Name, Amen.”

***********

Here’s the good news: Contrary to the media headlines, in both cases there was no clear ruling nation-wide on the redefinition of marriage.  That was what same sex marriage proponents sought. At the heart of their desire to “normalize” same sex marriage is the deeper longing to have our nation through all laws and through the media declare as “normal” all life in the lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender culture. 

So there was no pronouncement nation-wide on same sex marriage.  There was no ruling as to some Constitutional right to marry someone of the same sex. In fact, in the Defense of Marriage [“DOMA”] case the court specifically said it was not requiring States to adopt same sex marriage.

That DOMA case held by a narrow five/four decision that federal benefits have to be paid to a same sex spouse if the marriage took place in a State where same sex marriage was provided. There was a stinging dissent by Justice Scalia claiming that the Court was going beyond its proper role in ruling on an issue which Congress clearly had decided without any animus towards homosexuals which the Court now assumes took place. The Family Research Council’s President Tony Perkins issued this statement about the DOMA decision: “ "We are encouraged that the court learned from the disaster of Roe v. Wade and refrained from redefining marriage for the entire country. However, by striking down the federal definition of marriage in DOMA, the Court is asserting that Congress does not have the power to define the meaning of words in statutes Congress itself has enacted. This is absurd. The Defense of Marriage Act imposes no uniform definition of marriage upon the individual states. However, the states should not be able to impose varying definitions of marriage upon the federal government. The ruling that the federal government must recognize same-sex 'marriages' in states that recognize them raises as many questions as it answers. For example, what is the status of such couples under federal law if they move to another state that does not recognize their 'marriage?' This decision throws open the doors for whole new rounds of litigation.”

New rounds of litigation---- and more opportunities for prayer, fasting and repentance, awakening the body of Christ, awakening the Bride as part of our getting ready for the Bridegroom---- may also be in store under the Proposition 8 California voter initiative case which same sex proponents have already said they have “won.”

In the Proposition 8 case five members of the Court—a mix of both liberals and conservatives, including Mr. Justice Scalia---- found that the plaintiffs----proponents of Prop 8 but not State officials--- had no “standing” to bring the case up to the Supreme Court.  They avoided ruling on the merits. The Court sent it back to the District Court in San Francisco where initially the District Court judge [ who later admitted he was himself “gay”]  ruled that the Proposition 8 voter initiative discriminated against homosexuals and was a violation of their equal protection rights.

The Supreme Court held that, since California's government officials refused to defend Prop 8, the “private party” which then took up the defense, the Prop 8 marriage initiative team, had no direct “standing” under federal law, and thus there was no "case" for the Court to decide.  The minority opinion (by four judges) dissented, agreeing with an earlier opinion by California Supreme Court that the official proponents of Prop 8 should be allowed to give Prop 8 a defense. Thus the Supreme Court in the Prop 8 decision did NOT accept the opponent's pleas to change the definition of marriage, nor did it declare a constitutional right to same-sex "marriage." The Supreme Court "vacated" (erased) the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal's previous ruling against Prop 8.  In so doing the language of that decision favoring same sex rights now provides NO legal precedent for same-sex "marriage.

Here is part of the text of the Prop 8 decision today: “The Court does not question California’s sovereign right to maintain an initiative process, or the right of initiative proponents to defend their initiatives in California courts. But standing in federal court is a question of federal law, not state law. No matter its reasons, the fact that a State thinks a private party should have standing to seek relief for a generalized grievance cannot override this Court’s settled law to the contrary. Article III’s requirement that a party invoking the jurisdiction of a federal court seek relief for a personal, particularized injury serves vital interests going to the role of the Judiciary in the federal system of separated powers. States cannot alter that role simply by issuing to private parties who otherwise lack standing a ticket to the federal courthouse. “

Christian attorney Bob Tyler had this key point on the Proposition 8 ruling: “The Court's decision today has failed the people of California because it has the potential effect of nullifying the Citizens of their lawful vote. While we recognize that certain members within our society think that justice has been served, they should consider how they will feel one day when their rightful vote is stripped of meaning on some future issue just because the ruling political party disagrees with the people's vote and chooses not to defend the law. Dangerous precedent has been set that threatens the original intent of a government that exists 'for the people and by the people.'”

Most interesting, California's Constitution says that only an appellate court, not a single trial court judge, can stop a proposition's enforcement statewide.  As of today, there is no such ruling.  Nevertheless, the Governor and Attorney General have rushed forward with plans to make same-sex "marriage" licenses available throughout California in the next three or four weeks.  Almost certainly the team fighting for the Prop 8 Biblical definition of marriage will seek an injunction to stop this implementation if there is any real possibility to make an appeal to another court.

***********

So, after these two decisions, where do we stand in the body of Christ? First, we must pray and give thanks to God that His Word on marriage has not been violated. What nation can long avoid judgment if it directly opposes the Word of the Living God on holy matrimony? Thank God for the prayers of intercessors on this key national issue for the soul of our nation.  The spiritual battle against principalities will continue.  Litigation will continue. Legislation may come forward.   One positive result is that the issue of same sex marriage is now more out in the open than ever before. There is more time for the body of Christ to be activated around this vital issue of Biblical versus same sex marriage.  Apostate or lukewarm congregations can finally awaken to God’s line in the sand, His precepts on this key issue. We can learn about, and support, Christian ministries that support ex-gays, [such as pfox.org] confirming the truth that with the help of the Holy Spirit the spirit of the flesh can be overcome in any person.  There’s no gene at birth forcing homosexuality. Those that have come out of the lifestyle now need our support. 

Most important, especially as pastors and priests or in leadership positions in our communities, we need to stand for Christ’s position on sins of the flesh as set forth in John 8:11.   In addition to the Lord saying “Neither do I condemn you” the Lord then said to her “ go and sin no more.”  Clearly all forms of sexual immorality are sins for which repentance is required to enter His Kingdom (Revelation 22:15).

In gentleness and love, wise as a serpent, gentle as doves, with information on these two key Supreme Court cases, we now have a new way to breach an awkward subject.  With courage from the Holy Spirit we have now a great opportunity to reach out in love to our neighbors, to speak with the teachers of our children in our community, with members of our local media, frankly dealing with the bigger issue of same sex attraction from a Biblical perspective.  As the salt and light in a culture increasingly clueless about Him, you and I are His Ambassador to witness to everyone-----at school board meetings, during political debates, one on one as neighbors--- about the love and transformation only Jesus Christ provides.  How else will they come into the Kingdom and be saved if you and I don’t witness to them---gently and boldly-- in the Liberty and Love of the Living God? 2 Timothy 2:23-26 states: “But avoid foolish and ignorant disputes, knowing that they generate strife.  And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth, and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will.”

          Jesus Christ is the Bridegroom and we are His Bride.  To water down marriage is to attack Jesus Christ directly and to attack us Christians as His Bride.  With these two Supreme Court decisions we now have a new opportunity to correct misunderstandings and bring His love and His standards forward to protect and restore the soul of our nation.  And we have the assurance that the battle is the Lord’s-------it’s His Word on marriage.  Even when our leaders lead us astray, the Lord comes in to judge on our behalf. He ALWAYS has “standing”!    Isaiah 3: 12-14 says: "As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them.  O My people! Those who lead you cause you to err, and destroy the way of your paths.  The Lord stands up to plead, And stands to judge the people.  The Lord will enter into judgment With the elders of His people, and His princes. “

 

 

 

 

Pastor Jeff Daly

Jesus Christ Fellowship

Post Office Box 1302

Middletown CA  95461

www.dayofrepentance.org

A GOD OF TRUMPS IS A GOD OF LOVES

            A favorite recollection from my recent trip to Norway and Germany comes from stories told during a walking tour of areas formerly divided by the Berlin Wall.  The communist leader, Walter Ulbricht, erected a massive television tower as a monument to the superiority of communism – a system of living that denies the very existence of God at the same time it denies human dignity – let alone obligation to obey Him.  The tower included the largest glass disco ball in the world and it stands in the eastern sector of Berlin to this day.  The problem was that each time the sun came out enormous crosses of light shone down from his tower in four directions.  (Of course they are still visible and I saw them myself!)  When no amount of re-positioning of the glass panes inhibited the crosses Ulbricht and his government became the laughing stock of Eastern Europe.  Father God trumps in the love of His Son through the light of His Cross.

             For those who cry there is no proof God speaks I must ask what credible alternative explanation is offered.  God invented both speech and light; I am pretty sure He can employ either at will.

 

            The second story concerned the far more somber “zone of death” that extended back into East Germany from any point on the wall.  Persons entering this zone were shot on sight and some two hundred died in the years of the wall.  Buildings standing in the zone were dynamited to leave a clear field of fire; one was a church that butted against the wall and included several towers.  When the blast charges were detonated the church crashed to earth – excepting one of the towers – which was unscathed and was dubbed the “extended middle finger of God” to the East German government.  True, some Christians might object to the idea of God lifting a bird finger but let’s back the truck up.  He also invented fingers and – although we know He loves everyone from communists to Egyptian pharaohs – it looks from Berlin like He responds with a wry sense of humor to efforts to dethrone Him.  God trumps again.

             What finally brought the wall down – following wave upon wave of demonstrations in 1989 by (mostly) Christians who refused to live in fear any longer – was yet another exercise of God’s love of a good joke.  Gunter Schabowski was the highest ranking spokesperson for the communist government and a more dedicated communist would not be found.  When the politburo voted to (slightly) ease travel restrictions on East Berliners Schabowski missed the meeting even though he was to address a news conference about these decisions that very evening.  He also failed to study the minutes that were thrust into his pocket later that day, although he was known for his meticulous attention to detail.  When asked he mistakenly reported that all restrictions were lifted – effective immediately.  This was broadcast all over the nation and world and the guards had no choice but to permit the exit of thousands over the next few days.  The wall – and the Iron Curtin in Germany – fell within weeks.  God trumps one more time with the aid of His amazing sense of humor.  The joke was transmitted through the spokesperson least likely to utter the words he indeed spoke under the influence of the Holy Spirit.

 

            We can be grateful that we do not have a God whose iron fist is His default, even against governments who think the fist an appropriate tool for social improvement.  We can more easily appreciate a God with a sense of humor who remains relentless in loving us into His Kingdom.  This is precisely the God we have and are invited to serve by reciprocating His love, His justice, and even His sense of humor.  So how then might we of the community of faith – and any others who might choose to join us – show the fruit of repentance during this season of both wonders and horrors?

 

            We can view someone we think wrong to the bone through the lens of Him who died for that one.  We can speak and stand for truth of some issue in the personal, political, spiritual dimension of our lives, disregarding the disapproval that will result.  And we can lighten up on ourselves and on others, asking God to show us how funny we look to Him as we focus our attention on ourselves and our agendas.  None of these things is remotely possible without a major refocus on God’s face.  With it nothing is impossible, thanks to the God who trumps us with His love.

 

James A. Wilson is the author of Living As Ambassadors of Relationships and The Holy Spirit and the End Times – available at local bookstores or by e-mailing him at

praynorthstate@charter.net

 

We are about to Breach the Wall

There is a day on the Hebrew Calendar known as “The 9^th of Av.”  It is the darkest day in Jewish history.  On this SAME DATE in history, the Jewish Temple was destroyed twice:

 

First in 586 BC

And again in 70 AD
 

Remember…History Repeats itself. 

 

This year in 2013, the 9^th of Av falls on July 16^th.  Like Israel, the United States is a “bridal nation.”--A nation who willingly placed herself under the Covenant of God Almighty.  This covenant is written like a contract…IF you do this: (obedience)…you will receive this: (blessings).  IF you do this: (disobedience)…you will receive this: (curses/sudden catastrophes). 

 

We clearly know what obedience looks like.  God laid this out for us in his Word a summation of which is the 10 commandments.  Of course, all of these sins are committed on a daily basis by individuals.  But the danger to a nation’s existence arises when these sins are broken in their entirety by a nation. 

 

Here’s how the United States has broken the Covenant and why America is on the precipice of a sudden catastrophe; a devastating National Disaster. 

 

There are three national sins that have always preceded judgment in Ancient Israel.  They are:

 

1)      DESCECRATION of the altar.

2)      REMOVAL of God worship from the Temple.

3)      REPLACEMENT of God with an idol. 

 In ancient times, these three sins manifested differently than in modern times.  The altar was desecrated by Israelites tossing their newborn infants into the fire as a sacrifice to the demon God Molech.  They removed the traditional worship of God through the use of Temple female prostitutes and sexual abominations performed by male priests in the Temple.  Then, they replaced God by physically creating a graven image of the god “du jour” such as Baal, Ashteroth and Molech.

Here’s what few people know…PRIOR to the 9^th of AV (three weeks prior to be exact) there is another date that very few Americans have ever heard of.  It is called the Fast of Tammuz.  This year, 2013, this date will be June 25^th.  On this date in history:

 

1)      Moses broke the two tablets of stone in anger on Mount Sinai after he found the children of Israel worshipping the Golden Calf.

2)      The daily olat tamid offering ceased to be brought

3)      The walls of Jerusalem were breached prior to final destruction

4)      The Torah was burned

5)      An idol was erected in the Temple

Amazingly, The United States of America is on this exact same pathway…

 

We have fully accomplished DESECRATION of the altar through our wicked abortion laws.  We are symbolically “tossing our infants into the fire.”  When you think that these precious infants may ultimately end up in trash incinerators, maybe we are literally tossing them into the fire as well.  Currently, America has the dubious distinction of legally allowing abortions through to the 9^th month of gestation.  We are also encouraging and importing abortions throughout the entire world by our targeted funding.  After the horrific Gosnell trial, no one in America can claim, similar to the protesting German public during WWII, that “we just didn’t know.”  We have “seen the smokestacks” and the body parts that clogged the sewer drains.  We have seen the little feet cut off and put in jars as a display trophy.  Just like the Nazis, America is complicit in removing the body parts of precious human beings in a diabolical display of evil.  The question is:  “What have we done about it?”  The answer:  very little has changed since Gosnell.  In the last few weeks, an Arizona court case AFFIRMED that we have the “right” to kill babies after their 20^th week of gestation.  It STRUCK DOWN a “fetal pain” law as “unconstitutional.”  In another disturbing case, the Supreme Court recently upheld an Indiana ruling that the state could not block Medicaid funding for Planned Parenthood.  This means our tax dollars will continue to fund this hideous practice.  All of us, in essence, have innocent blood on our hands.  This week the Supreme Court REFUSED to question the Constitutionality of a case from Colorado that banned the use of graphic fetus photos in protest. 

 

See no evil, Hear no evil, Speak no evil.

 

So, while there has been a huge public outcry…AMERICA, as a government or nation, has openly RE-AFFIRMED abortion since the outrages of Gosnell.  Even if we don’t personally agree with these court cases…we are captive passengers on the Titanic and she has hit the iceberg.  I’m sure there were many Christian German citizens that didn’t like what was happening to the Jews in Germany during WWII.  This DID NOT stop the country from being pounded into rubble by the wrath of Almighty God for the sin of genocide.  January 22^nd, 2013 marked the 40-year anniversary of the Roe v. Wade abomination in the United States.  We have seen our highest elected official sanction this procedure and even, astonishingly, say “God Bless Planned Parenthood”…asking God to bless EVIL.  God MUST and WILL answer this challenge to His Authority.  If He were to do nothing…the silence would be tantamount to His AGREEMENT or implicit “blessing” of this statement. 

We are well aware of America’s historic REMOVAL of GOD from the “Temple.”  Guess what day June 25^th is?  It is the 17^th of Tammuz on the Hebrew calendar.  It is also the 51^st anniversary of the REMOVAL OF GOD from Public Schools. The #51 signifies either serious epic judgment OR repentance in the Bible.  The 51^st Psalm is the repentance prayer by David after he committed adultery with Bathsheba.  “Jubilees” years occur every 50 years in the Bible.  Jubilees signify “setting the captives free.”  The 51^st year is a “cosmic do-over” when everything gets leveled and God renews a fresh start.  Almighty God will set the captives free one way or another—with our willing approval or without.  America has two choices:  Repent or face destruction.  Repent or face serious judgment.

 

Eerily, we are about to have a very public example of physically REPLACING God with an idol on our American soil.  In ancient times, the Israelites installed a graven image or monument in honor of a false god.  Frighteningly, we plan to do this VERY SAME THING on or before June 29^th in the State of Florida. On June 29^th, an Atheist group is having a 1500 pound granite monument installed on the grounds of a courthouse in Tallahassee, Florida.  This group sued the Bradford County courthouse to remove the 10 commandments.  When they lost that case, they demanded that their atheist monument also be placed next to the 10 commandments.  In a shocking first for America, the county agreed to allow this.  It will be the VERY FIRST TIME in American history that such a godless monument will be installed on PUBLIC GOVERNMENT property!  Make no mistake…this is an historic event in the spiritual world.  America is thumbing her nose in the face of Almighty God.  Do we seriously believe God will continue to bless the United States when our nation openly commits such confrontational acts against God Almighty?  It’s like we are saying:  “I DARE You to do something about this.”  Or “We WANT to publicly embarrass You.”  Make no mistake…God will not be mocked.  Whatever a man reaps, that shall he also sow.   Incredibly the name “Tallahassee” is an Apalachee Indian word meaning “abandoned fields.”  If we want to make a public statement that we have NO GOD…then God will allow us to see what America looks like without Him.

 

Dear God help us…it will not be pretty.

 

So look at this list once again regarding the 17^th of Tammuz in history: (or June 25^th, 2013)

 

1)       Moses broke the two tablets of stone on Mount Sinai

The U.S. is “breaking” up the laws of our Judeo-Christian heritage rock solid foundation.

 

2)       The daily olat tamid offering has ceased to be brought

We have removed the “daily offering” of prayer from our schools

 

3)      The walls of Jerusalem were breached

The abundance of natural disasters (tornados, wildfires, storms) is physical evidence that our “walls have been breached.”  The protective hedge of the Holy Spirit has been removed AT OUR INSISTENCE.

 

4)      The Torah was burned

No more Bible reading in our schools.  We’ve symbolically “burned the Torah.”

 

5)      An idol was erected in the Temple

And…with EERY timing, the Atheist monument is being erected for the FIRST TIME EVER on government soil in the entire 50 states on or before June 29^th.  I wonder if it will actually touch down on June 25^th before its official unveiling on the 29^th.  I suspect this will be the case.  The timing of this makes my hair stand on end.   

 

If the Supreme Court rules against Proposition 8 and DOMA before June 25^th …we will have committed the final and ultimate abomination.  We will have an official government monument AND a Supreme Court law…WORSHIPPING OURSELVES or total GOD REPLACEMENT…the final step in the apostasy process.    

 

So what happens next???

 

With the “restraining influence” of the Holy Spirit removed (at our official request)…I predict all HELL will break loose in America.  Expect ramped up natural disasters, more terrorist attacks and quite possibly the beginning of World War III.

 

We must REPENT and REPENT NOW!

 

Therefore be zealous and repent

~Rev 3:19

 

"A patriot without religion in my estimation is as great a paradox as an honest Man without the fear of God. Is it possible that he whom no moral obligations bind, can have any real Good Will towards Men? Can he be a patriot who, by an openly vicious conduct, is undermining the very bonds of Society?....The Scriptures tell us "righteousness exalteth a Nation."

~Abigail Adams

 

“I apprehend no danger to our country from a foreign foe... Our destruction, should it come at all, will be from another quarter. From the inattention of the people to the concerns of their government, from their carelessness and negligence, I must confess that I do apprehend some danger. I fear that they may place too implicit a confidence in their public servants, and fail properly to scrutinize their conduct; that in this way they may be made the dupes of designing men, and become the instruments of their own undoing. Make them intelligent, and they will be vigilant; give them the means of detecting the wrong, and they will apply the remedy.”

 — Daniel Webster, June 1, 1837

“[I]f we and our posterity reject religious instruction and authority, violate the rules of eternal justice, trifle with the injunctions of morality, and recklessly destroy the political constitution which holds us together, no man can tell how sudden a catastrophe may overwhelm us, that shall bury all our glory in profound obscurity.”

— Daniel Webster

 

~Posted by permission of Pastor Jeff Daly

 

THE MYTH OF THE UNFORGIVABLE

Among my favorite memories of recent trips to Malaysia and the Eastern Sierra of California are the people who approached me after I taught to say they believed they had done things that permanently separated them from God.  They believed this lie until they heard my stories about the permanence of God’s love – and I praise God that they listened.

            Truth is we do possess the awful power to separate ourselves from God.  But the larger truth is nothing can separate us indefinitely beyond a stubborn refusal to accept His forgiveness and be reconciled in Christ. 

            There are passages in Hebrews 4 and 10 in which the author says sin after baptism leaves no going back, and persisting in sin places one outside the Kingdom for which Christ once redeemed him. Jesus Himself says in Matthew 5 that if salt (us) loses its saltiness it is nothing.  But the Hebrews passages use sin in its Greek noun form; it is a no-brainer to see that there can be no contact between a state of sin and a state of grace.  It should be just as much a no-brainer to see that repentance – turning back to face and re-focus on Jesus Christ – is all He has ever required to cross over from the state of sin into the state of grace.  The over-riding word against the Matthew passage is always Jesus’ other word that what is impossible for men is possible for God; he who abides in Christ will never be forsaken or overthrown.

            One of the stories I told that so moved these estranged children of God was of the bridesmaid who approached me at a wedding rehearsal years ago.  She said she could not bear to be in church.  I asked her why and she explained that she had been so strung out on heroin at one time that she prostituted herself to get money for the drug.  At this point, although she had been clean and sober for some time, she was convinced that God could not stand the sight of her.  When I asked her if she wanted to come home she burst into tears of YES.  When I said, “In the Name of Jesus welcome home,” she fell into my arms – really the arms of her Lord Jesus as represented by this priest – just like the prostitute who washes His feet with her tears in Luke 7:36-50.

            Another concerns the elderly woman with such serious arthritis in her hands that her fingers could not be uncurled from the twisted claws they had become.  She confessed that she had been in a state of unforgiveness with members of her church for more than twenty years.  It was not that she wanted or accepted that condition; she found herself helpless to leave it after stating she had forgiven her friends over and over.  When I, speaking as a representational leader of the Body of Christ, released her from her unforgiveness, she too burst into tears of joy.  Before I could reach down to touch her hands in prayer her fingers were already uncurling as God’s healing spread through her body.  God’s love trumps all our inadequacies.  All He expects of us is that we stay in the game until He catches and releases us.

            The most helpful illustration in the scriptures addressing that crossing over from the state of sin to the state of grace occurs in John 8 with the story of the woman taken in adultery and dragged before Jesus in the Temple courts.  As Jesus listens to the Pharisees’ incompetence – they mis-read and mis-apply the Law in Deuteronomy 22 – and being unable to certify themselves as the sinless witnesses the Law requires – He says (in multiple albeit later places) they remain in their sin even though they retreat after being unmasked as hypocrites.  What He waits for is those of us who are so hungry to hang with Him that we will step across the line He has drawn in the dust of the Temple floor – sometimes known as the Line in the Sand.  He waits on people so hungry for His company that they don’t care who else they stand beside as long as they can stand beside Jesus.

            The only unforgivable sin – the sin against the Holy Spirit – is the refusal to accept His forgiveness and step across that line.  Even that sin is forgiven once we stop committing it.  He is always ready to do the heavy lifting in forgiveness; all He asks of us is that we stay in the game.

 

James A. Wilson is the author of Living As Ambassadors of Relationships and The Holy Spirit and the End Times – available at local bookstores or by e-mailing him at

praynorthstate@charter.net.  These stories, and many more, are chronicled in his books.

EXPOSING HEARTS, CREATING DIVISIONS

Exposing hearts, creating divisions

Taking a biblical stand for the Jewish people sometimes results in strife and division. Does that mean that there is something wrong with our zeal? Why do blowback, opposition or negative feedback sometimes accompany our preaching of God’s heart for Israel? What is the cost of standing with the Jewish people and how can we count it accurately?

Land o’ Goshen!

At the dawn of Jewish history, in the land of Egypt, YHVH spoke to Pharaoh through Moses, regarding one of the Ten Plagues, “But on that day I will set apart the land of Goshen, where My people are living, so that no swarms of flies will be there, in order that you may know that I, YHVH, am in the midst of the land. I will put a division between My people and your people” (Exodus 8:22-23).

The purpose of division was to throw the spotlight on the people whom YHVH had chosen, to show which nation had God’s approval and which nation was standing against the purposes of God.

The Apostle Paul says something quite similar when discussing divisions in the Messianic congregation of Corinth: “For, in the first place, when you gather together, I hear that divisions exist among you; and in part I believe it. For there must also be factions among you, so that those who are approved may become evident among you” (1 Corinthians 11:18-19). Paul is referring to the age-old dynamic of ‘truth or consequences.’

Messianic division

Messiah Yeshua clearly proclaimed that one of the purposes of His ministry among the sons and daughters of Adam is to bring division: “Do you suppose that I came to grant peace on earth? I tell you, no, but rather division; for from now on five members in one household will be divided, three against two and two against three. They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law” (Luke 12:51-53). The preaching of the truth often has consequences: “This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and man loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil” (John 3:19).

Years ago I had the privilege to study under a rabbi of Montreal’s Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue, who taught a class for Concordia University called “The historical encounter between Judaism and Christianity.” This rabbi quoted Luke 12 and then waxed eloquent about how Yeshua’s words seemed to violate the spirit of Judaism as the rabbi understood it.

“Excuse me, Rabbi,” I asked, “Isn’t Jesus quoting here from the prophet Micah 7:5-6, where the prophet grieves over the spiritual state of some Jewish people?” A quiet rustling of pages among all present commenced, after which the rabbi, not quite sure how to respond, quickly changed the topic of conversation. It did not fit the rabbi’s worldview, it seemed, for Yeshua to be seen as a kosher champion of the prophetic tradition.

Ø Obedience to the prophetic tradition and to Messiah the greatest prophet who ever lived, will usually bring with it blowback, opposition or negative feedback, divisions and strife. We have it on the Highest Authority!

Yeshua King of Israel – a sign to be opposed

A prophetic word spoken over Joseph, Miriam and Yeshua by Shim’on (Simeon) in the Temple precincts adds depth to this subject: “And Shim’on blessed them and said to Miriam His mother, ‘Behold, this Child is appointed for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and for a sign to be opposed – and a sword will pierce even your own soul – to the end that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed’” (Luke 2:34-35).

The New Covenant reveals that the coming of the Jewish Messiah to the people of Israel would bring division. It was YHVH Himself who purposed this division – “to the end that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.”

Ø If the first coming of Messiah brought division to even the Jewish people (and salvation – let’s not forget that as well!), will not His second coming and the events surrounding that also test the thoughts of many hearts, both Jewish and Gentile?

Israel – standing up to be counted

Years ago I listened in to a conversation of some zealous seminary students discussing Romans 13:1-7. One of them declared that if he had been a believer concealing Jews in his home in Nazi-occupied Holland, he would have surrendered them to the tender mercies of the Gestapo. God would have honored his decision not to disobey the powers that be, he opined. My response was to the point, “This Jew will never take refuge in your home!”

Certainly Corrie ten Boom’s Hiding Place (www.corrietenboom.com) would have been seen by the Nazis as treasonous, for at that time saving Jewish lives was considered ‘politically incorrect.’ Her father died in a Nazi prison, while she and her sister Betsie were sent to Ravensbuck concentration camp, where Betsie died of typhus.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer (www.ushmm.org/museum/exhibit/online/bonhoeffer/?content=1) was a Lutheran theologian who had to walk a fine line in Nazi Germany. He saw that believers were being called not only to clarify their own attitudes toward Judaism and the Jewish people, but even more to properly discern and respond actively against the Nazi state’s actions against the people of Israel. His actions (which included smuggling Jews out of Germany, and involvement in a plot to assassinate Hitler) led to his imprisonment and eventually his execution by the SS on the gallows at Flossenbürg concentration camp.

In the 1930’s a believing Officer (later Major-General) in the British Army, Orde Wingate (www.ordewingate.net) helped to train the fledging Jewish special operations forces during the time of the British Mandate. He rallied his Jewish troops (the future leaders of the Haganah), regaling them with biblical strategies of Joshua and Caleb, Gideon and the Maccabees. His strengthening of the Jewish people’s restoration in their hour of need was considered politically incorrect by the British High Command. He was later transferred to Ethiopia and then to India/Burma to train the chindits against Imperial Japanese forces, where he was killed in a military plane crash.

Ø Ten Boom, Bonhoeffer and Wingate were believers in Yeshua who defended the Jewish people, each in their own way. The fact that most of these Jews were not believers in Yeshua in no way hindered the believers’ activism.

Ø These true heroes of the faith did not stand on the sidelines doing nothing. Neither did they simply declare that anti-Semitic attacks were understandable because “the Jewish people were under divine discipline.” On the contrary, these men and women threw themselves into the battle, and were mightily used of God to help restore the Jewish people to their Promised Land.

When Messiah Yeshua returns, He will judge the nations based on how they treat the Jewish people (Matthew 25:45; Hebrews 2:11-16) and how the nations divide up the land of Israel (Joel 3:1-2; Zechariah 14:1-4). At that point in time, it will be too late for believers to decide that the “prophetically correct” time has come to be more activist in furthering the restoration of the Jewish people. Now is the time.

Ø Standing with Israel certainly involves praying the prayer of faith today about Israel’s destiny tomorrow. But let us not be deceived – it also involves the necessity of works today on behalf of the Jewish people’s protection and salvation (see James 2:14-17). “God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love and sound judgment” (2 Timothy 1:7).

Israel – not standing up to be counted

I have noticed that some believing leaders exhibit a measure of fear when discussing Israel. They are afraid of being typecast by other believers as having gone overboard in their love for Israel, as not being balanced, as ‘going beyond the Bible’ in their expression of biblical convictions about Israel.

It is certainly true that even good causes can have some advocates who are out of balance. Yet these false fears must be confronted head-on.

For someone to have God’s heart for Israel:

ü It means that one accepts Israel’s priority (Deut. 21:15-17; Exodus 4:22-23; Romans 1:16; 2:5-11; 9:1-5; 11:28-29) in intercession, in evangelism, in international affairs and in rescuing Jewish lives.

ü It means that one feels the same pains and joys about Israel that YHVH feels (Isaiah 63:9; Hosea 11:1-4,8-9).

ü It entails night and day passionate intercession for Israel and God’s purposes to be birthed through her (Isaiah 62:1-9).

Ø People who do these things will face a measure of opposition, of blowback, of negative feedback, of divisions and of strife.

When you are willing not only to embrace God’s heart for the Jewish people, but also to share the same fate as the Jewish people, even in the present –

ü People may accuse you of having a primary loyalty to Israel and not to Yeshua. This is due to the fact that they do not understand or embrace the high priority that God places on the Jewish people.

ü People may accuse you of ‘being for Israel in a way that God is not for Israel.’ This is because they do not understand how deeply God’s heart is for Israel.

ü People may accuse you of ‘getting lost in Israel.’ This false charge is based on a profound misunderstanding of God’s prophetic heart and ways. A helpful corrective is found in something Mike Bickle told me years ago – that that one day the body of Messiah will begin to get so much revelation about God’s heart for Israel that it will fill their field of vision – it will seem as if they can see nearly nothing else.

Sentiment versus conviction

Some people are afraid that if they stand firmly with God’s heart and purposes for Israel, they will be accused of being motivated by sentiment and not by Scripture. This fear is usually expressed by male theologians, and is often based on a misunderstanding of the divine origins of emotions.

Human emotions are part of the package called “being created in the image of God.” This means that YHVH has divine emotions, and not only divine intellect. The God of the Bible is not an unflappable and distant Greek deity. He expresses deep emotions for Israel. He longs for Israel, as expressed in passionate avowals like “How can I abandon you, Ephraim? How can I give you up, Israel?” or “In all Israel’s afflictions He was afflicted” etc.

Ø Let’s not be embarrassed by God’s emotions. God’s sentiments toward Israel are enscripturated, and the result is divine convictions which are both solidly biblical and deeply emotional.

Standing for Israel’s king and for the King of Israel’s people

Rees Howells (free download at www.inspirationalchristians.org/biography/rees-howells), a warrior among intercessors, saw intercession for the restoration, protection and salvation of Israel as an essential calling for all believers. His school prayed for the defeat of Nazi Germany, the protection and victory of Allied forces, and the protection of Israel. Howells was not afraid of being seen as ‘political.’ He was more concerned about being faithful to the heart of the Lord and to the fulfillment of His word regarding the Jewish people.

Ø Israel’s King cares about His people Israel. When you care about Israel’s King, you also care about the King’s Jewish people. When you stand for Israel’s King, you will find yourself standing for His people as well.

The mystery of Israel (Romans 1:25; Ephesians 3:3-6) truly is about Israel. It is about the God of Israel, the people of Israel, and how YHVH adds multitudes from among the nations to share in what He calls “the commonwealth of Israel” (Ephesians 2:12-13).

Do not be afraid to take your stand in these matters, both in the spirit and on earth. Pray, reach out and extend your hand of rescue to the seed of Jacob. You have it on the Highest Authority!

Ø Pray for yourself, your friends, and your congregational leaders – that the God of Israel will grant greater revelation of His heart and greater courage to stand for and with the Jewish people.

Ø Pray for this revelation to spread throughout the body of Messiah as we prepare for the coming days.

Your prayers and support hold up our arms and are the enablement of God to us in the work He has called us to do!

In Messiah Yeshua,

Avner Boskey