Just Call Upon the Name of Jesus? That is it?

Rom 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved
The bible, which is the Word of God and the Revelation of Jesus Christ to man, promises that whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. Seems easy enough, but is that really all there is to it? Just name the name of Christ and tell him you believe and voila, you are saved from hell and death? I really don’t think that is what God had in mind when he said ‘call upon the name of the Lord and thou shall be saved’ I think it is a much deeper calling than just with the mouth confessing unto salvation. What does it mean exactly to call upon the Lord? Strongs and Thayer’s Greek Definitions defines the NT phrase ‘to call upon’ as:

‘4) to invoke
a) to call upon for one's self, in one's behalf
1) any one as a helper

2) as my witness

3) as my judge

4) to appeal unto

To call upon the Lord is an act of admission that one’s own provision is not sufficient and that you have been enlightened to the depravity of your own wretched soul. It requires great humility to Bow down to a Holy God and confess that you are a broken, sin-sick and perverted, wicked, vile being full of the devil in need of a Savior. It is to place your full confidence that Christ is King of King and Lord of Lords and is our Mediator-witness in heaven making intercession night and day for our souls. It is Christ who is the Judge and jury for all of humanity which will be weighed by the ultimate standard and proclamation of the Word of God. We must make our appeal unto the Father on that day in Christ Jesus who alone is our propitiation for sin. He alone is our mediator to the Father for all of eternity. We must call upon the Name of Christ in full and complete submission. It is impossible for carnal man to do this. For the natural man is proud, boastful, rebellious at heart. However, with God all things are possible. (Phil 4:13) It is by his spirit that man is able to Call upon his name. (John 6:44) Additionally, we must call upon his name not in word only, but God causes a change in the heart unto belief which, not only worships in word, but also in deed. The book of James declares that …..faith without works is dead……James 2:20. Dead faith is certainly no faith at all. Living faith is saving faith and active faith which propels you towards the prize of the high calling in Christ Jesus. This is the kind of faith that serves God in everything. This is the kind of faith that is self-sacrificial always abounding in the Work of the Lord.

2Co 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

This new man does not work to get saved, he works because he has been saved. His spirit has been reborn, his spirit nature is different in Christ for all things are made new. Not that all at once your whole attitude and actions change like magic. Sometimes God works miraculous deliverances instantly, others take some diligence and intestinal fortitude and resolve. Sanctification which is the cleaning up unto holiness in Christ, by putting off the old man and putting on the new in a daily walk with God in Christ, is a lifelong process. The Christian is forever involved in a state of temporary seclusion being changed from Glory to Glory as the Holy Spirit indwells and empowers the believer to bear fruit. That fruit being kindness, compassion, faith, forgiveness, Love, patience. This is not always’s comfortable or the easiest route to take. It is however, God’s will that we not grow stagnant but go on to maturity in Christ. So now we see it isn’t just by the words of our mouth which prove our salvation, it is the evidence of a changed life, fruit of the spirit, and our manner of character and integrity which either testifies for or against our lips proclamation of salvation unto Christ. It is important to know that not all who name the name of Jesus are his. Only those who, with the heart believeth unto righteousness, meaning: their actions back up their words not in reformation only, but newness of heart in Christ Jesus which comes about by the regeneration of the Holy Spirit indwelling in the heart of man.

Rom 10:10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. Rom 10:11 For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.

End Times Apostasy: Linking arms with evil!

(the following is an exerpt from a very sad, eye opening article which rends my heart and confirms the obvious marriage of Protestantism and Catholicism.)
THE 'HYPERMODERN' FOE
How the Evangelicals and Catholics Joined Forces


By LAURIE GOODSTEIN

In 1960, the last time a Roman Catholic ran for president on the Democratic ticket, evangelical Protestant leaders warned their flocks that electing John F. Kennedy would be like handing the Oval Office to the Antichrist.

So deep was the antipathy toward Catholics that the president of the National Association of Evangelicals sent a distressed letter to pastors saying: "Public opinion is changing in favor of the church of Rome. We dare not sit idly by - voiceless and voteless." The Rev. Billy Graham's magazine Christianity Today said in an editorial that the Vatican "does all in its power to control the governments of nations."

Forty-four years later, less than a fortnight in Christian history, evangelicals and conservative Catholics have forged an alliance that is reshaping American politics and culture.

Now another Catholic Democrat from Massachusetts, Senator John Kerry, is running for president. But this time evangelicals are cheering on the handful of Catholic bishops who have said they will deny communion to politicians like Mr. Kerry who support abortion rights. In an about-face, Christianity Today says in a June editorial that it is "certainly appropriate" for bishops to expect a Catholic president to submit to Vatican authority.

More than political expediency is at work here. Once blinded by suspicion, evangelical and some Catholic leaders have spent more than a decade laying the groundwork for a religious realignment. Though the old animus is not dead, there has been a rapprochement with both moral and theological dimensions, and broad political implications.

Coalitions of Catholics and evangelicals form the backbone in the fights against gay marriage, stem-cell research and euthanasia, and for religious school vouchers. Catholic and evangelical leaders who forged relationships in the anti-abortion movement, which the Baptist theologian Timothy George has called "the ecumenism of the trenches," are now working side by side in campaigns on other culture war issues, and for Republican candidates.
full article

U.S. Golf Assn. Will Now Accept Transgenders in Competition

By James L. Lambert
April 8, 2005

(AgapePress) - A professional golf association in America has adopted guidelines that open the door for athletes who were once the opposite sex to compete for championships.

The United States Golf Association announced a new policy March 21 under which "transgender athletes will be eligible to compete two years after having gender reassignment surgery." This policy was established along with "proof of gender guidelines" that a medical committee appointed by the Association will ultimately oversee. AgapePress confirmed the USGA policy change this week.

According to the USGA, both the International Olympic Committee and the Ladies Golf Union (in England) have also adopted policies that permit "female athletes who have undergone gender reassignment" to compete in their women's competitions.


Robert Knight
Robert Knight, director of Concerned Women for America's Culture and Family Institute, reacted strongly to the USGA's position. "The USGA has now surrendered to the decadence and political correctness that is sweeping over Europe," he says. "One would have thought that the USGA would have had more backbone. The women's golf tour should be about women, not castrated males."
read full article

Stage set for showdown at Temple Mount

A Jewish group plans to bring thousands of Israeli Jews to Jerusalem's Temple Mount Sunday for a mass prayer rally, despite a police ban on non-Muslims entering the compound on that day.

Israel's government and security forces have consistently caved to threats of Muslim violence in response to Jewish visits to and prayers at Judaism's holiest site.

Former Jerusalem Police Chief Aryeh Amit told Army Radio Thursday morning that Muslims view Jewish and Christian prayers at the Temple Mount as a provocation, and as such they must be prevented.

Yisrael Cohen, director of the Revava organization, also spoke to Army Radio, insisting it is unacceptable that Jews continue to suffer discrimination at the site of Israel's ancient and future temples.

Despite the increased police presence and ban on ascending the Mount Sunday, Revava urged Israeli Jews to join the prayer rally en masse to plead with the Almighty to prevent Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's plan to surrender Gaza and northern Samaria.

The gathered Jewish worshippers will be met by a presumably hostile mob of Arab Muslims being assembled by the radical Islamic Movement.

Full Article

Anti-Semitic Incidents at Highest Level

Anti-Semitic incidents in the United States have reached their highest level in nine years, according to newly released statistics from the Anti-Defamation League (ADL). The League's annual Audit of Anti- Semitic Incidents, issued today, reported a total of 1,821 anti- Semitic incidents in 2004, an increase of 17 percent over the 1,557 incidents reported during 2003.

Full Article

U.S. Military Wants Weapons In Space

The Bush administration is advocating the weaponization of space to sustain the global dominance of the U.S. military.

While the aggressive new policy aimed at making U.S. satellites capable of striking enemy targets both on the ground and in orbit may be scuttled by controversy or prohibited by cost, elements within the White House and the Pentagon will continue to stress the military's increasing dependence on satellite technology and the dangers associated with sharing more and more outer-space real estate with other nations not always in synch with U.S. interests, the Christian Science Monitor reported.

"Because we depend so heavily on space capabilities, we must be prepared when directed to confront adversaries on the high ground of space," former Air Force Secretary Peter Teets told Congress in March.

"If diplomatic or non-lethal measures fail, we reserve the right under international law to take defensive action against an adversary's space capability."
U.S. Military Wants Weapons In Space

full article

Chinese begin to worry U.S. militarily

While the American military is consumed with wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, global terrorism, and the threat of nuclear proliferation in North Korea and Iran, China is presenting a new and strategically different security concern to America in the western Pacific, as well as to Japan and Taiwan, Pentagon and military officials say.

China, these officials say, has smartly analyzed the strengths and weaknesses of the American military and focused its growing defense spending on weapons systems that could exploit the perceived weaknesses in case the United States ever needs to respond to fighting in Taiwan.

This rapid military modernization is the major reason President George W. Bush has warned the European Union not to lift its arms embargo against China.

A decade ago, U.S. military planners dismissed the threat of a Chinese attack against Taiwan as a 160-kilometer infantry swim. Now, the Pentagon believes that China has purchased or built enough amphibious assault ships, submarines, fighter jets and short-range missiles to pose an immediate threat to Taiwan and to any American force that might come to Taiwan's aid.

Even the most hawkish officials at the Pentagon do not believe China is preparing for an imminent invasion of Taiwan. Nor do analysts believe China is any match for the United States military.

But as neighboring North Korea is erratically trying to play the nuclear card, China is quietly challenging America's reach in the western Pacific by concentrating strategically on conventional forces.

"They are building their force to deter and delay our ability to intervene in a Taiwan crisis," said Eric McVadon, a former military attaché at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing. "What they have done is cleverly develop some capabilities that have the prospect of attacking our niche vulnerabilities."

Japan, America's closest ally in East Asia, and China's rival for regional dominance, is also watching China's buildup. Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi echoed Bush by warning Europe against removing the arms embargo. A think tank affiliated with Japan's Defense Ministry criticized China's increased military spending and warned it was rushing to prepare for possible conflict with Taiwan - an assertion China sharply denied.

The growing friction between Japan and China, fueled by rising nationalism in both countries, is just one of the political developments exacerbating tensions in East Asia.

In March, China passed a controversial new "anti-secession" law authorizing a military attack if top leaders believe Taiwan moves too far toward independence - a move that brought hundreds of thousands of people in Taiwan out in protest last month.

China's most recent military white paper also alarmed U.S. policymakers because it mentioned the United States by name for the first time since 1998. It stated that the American presence in the region "complicated security factors."

China, meanwhile, blamed the United States and Japan for meddling in a domestic Chinese matter when those two countries recently issued a security statement that listed peace in Taiwan as a "common strategic objective."

"The potential for a miscalculation or an incident here has actually increased, just based on the rhetoric over the past six months to a year," one U.S. intelligence analyst in Washington said.

full article

Judge orders UNC to recognize Christian fraternity

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill must recognize a three-member Christian fraternity as it challenges the school's nondiscrimination policy, a judge has ruled.

The preliminary injunction issued March 2 by U.S. District Judge Frank W. Bullock Jr. will remain in place until the case is resolved, possibly by trial.

Alpha Iota Omega was stripped of its status as an official campus group because the fraternity wouldn't accept nonbelievers or gay students or sign the school's nondiscrimination policy. Recognition gives the fraternity access to student funds and university facilities.

The fraternity sued last year, saying the university had violated the members' constitutional rights to free speech, free assembly and free exercise of religion.

In his order, Bullock wrote that the university's policy "raises significant constitutional concerns and could be violative of the First Amendment of the United States Constitution."

The fraternity's attorneys say they hope to force the university to rewrite its policy for recognizing student groups.

Prosecutors address polygamy issue in Utah meeting

ST. GEORGE, Utah (AP) - The attorneys general of Utah and Arizona told a two-state town hall meeting that they would not target polygamists solely for practicing plural marriage. Their remarks drew an angry reaction from polygamy opponents, who said the practice is criminal and the law should be enforced.

Still, Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff and Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard said they would pursue criminal charges against those involved in forced or underage marriages, sexual abuse and welfare and tax fraud.

The March 3 meeting drew both polygamous families and those who oppose the practice. Some wore suits and ties, while others wore the pioneer-like dresses and elaborate braids common in the polygamous communities.

Polygamists contend they have a First Amendment right to practice plural marriage because it's part of their religion. They also claim they've been unfairly targeted by prosecutors because they're different.

Shurtleff rejected the claim. "It's never been about religion, but we certainly won't sit back and let people commit crimes," he said.

The meeting was about 50 miles from the twin towns of Hildale, Utah, and Colorado City, Ariz., which are dominated by the several-thousand-member Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints - one of the largest polygamous sects.

Polygamy was once a tenet of the main Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but was abandoned in 1890. The Mormon church now forces out those who advocate polygamy. Still, it's believed that tens of thousands across the West continue to practice it.

Vermont legislature considers accommodating Muslim burials

BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) - The Vermont Legislature is considering a bill to accommodate the Muslim tradition of burying the dead in a shroud rather than a casket.

Some of Vermont's 210 Muslim families are upset that current state law requires the dead to be buried in a casket sealed in a concrete vault.

"I was shocked the first time I went to a funeral," said Muhaideen Batah of Waitsfield, a Palestinian native of Israel. "Really, personally, it bothers me," The Burlington Free Press reported.

Waell Murray, the Palestinian-born owner of Burlington's Global Markets, said a Muslim burial that strictly follows Shariah law calls for the body to be washed soon after death and never embalmed or adorned with makeup.

Ideally, burial should be hours, not days, after the person's death, Murray said, out of respect for the deceased. He said mourners can use a coffin to transport the dead to a specific burial ground. The shroud-wrapped body should be placed directly into the grave, Murray said, resting on its side and facing Mecca.

Burlington Parks and Recreation Director Wayne Gross, who oversees the city's three public cemeteries, said they observe state law and require a cement vault, without which the ground above the grave sinks as time passes.

As April 15 approaches, chastened pastor preaches tax righteousness

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - With April 15 looming, the Rev. Larry Miles is advising colleagues that failure to file federal income tax returns could land you in jail.

He knows from experience. Miles, pastor of Fresh Anointing Cathedral Church of God in Christ, was released Feb. 18 after serving 24 days in a federal detention center for failing to file and is taking the warning to fellow pastors and church meetings, the Richmond Times-Dispatch reported.

His troubles began in 2000 when Internal Revenue Service agents questioned why he hadn't filed returns the past four years.

"It was just procrastination and overload, as I explained to my congregation," Miles said. Besides leading his own growing church he is active with Richmond's Faith Leaders Initiative, which seeks to attack root causes of violent crime.

Miles said his wife, who normally did their taxes, was involved in two car accidents, one of which left her permanently disabled. Tax preparation fell to him and he kept putting it off.

Last year he was charged with three misdemeanor counts of willfully failing to file returns on total income of $319,000 for 1997, 1998 and 1999. The 1997 and 1998 counts were dropped in exchange for a guilty plea for 1999.

The Times-Dispatch said that last year the IRS won criminal cases against 194 persons who served time in prison, a halfway house or home confinement.

LONDON - The leader of Roman Catholics in England and Wales rejected what he called the "specter" of an American-style mixing of religion and politics

Associated Press



Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor said in an interview with GMTV that it's "perfectly legitimate" for church leaders to raise political issues, but he wouldn't tell Catholics which party to support.

With a national election approaching, probably in May, Murphy-O'Connor was accused of interfering in politics when he praised opposition Conservative Party leader Michael Howard for saying he favored reducing the legal limit on abortions from 24 weeks to 20.

The cardinal said it's "perfectly legitimate" for religious leaders to raise issues like abortion. But "I certainly was not saying that Catholics should vote for any one particular party," he said.

"Now the specter has been raised that we're going to have an American style. No, I want a British style. We do things differently here."

Prime Minister Tony Blair made a similar statement last month. "I do not want to end up with an American style of politics, with us all going out there beating our chest about our faith," he said. Blair said it's "a bit unhealthy" to use religion in the political process.

Michigan church criticized over "Porn Weekend"

SUMMIT TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) - Westwinds Community Church has run into criticism for a widely publicized "Porn Weekend" to promote an anti-pornography campaign.

Church spokesman Randy Shafer told The Jackson Citizen Patriot that Porn Weekend would educate the community on the effects of the sex trade in magazines, movies, TV and the Internet and offer help for those caught up in it.

Shafer said "pornography is such a huge issue and usually is not discussed in church." He said Westwinds sought to "hit it head-on and get people talking about it."

The program included talks by Craig Gross of the anti-pornography www.xxxchurch.com and showing of an R-rated documentary on the industry the church said wasn't suitable for children.

The church first created a stir by renting three billboards to promote the event. The billboards later came down. Angela Kitchen of Family and Minor Empowerment said the intention was good but the billboards went too far.

U.S. Muslims form nonprofit council

ROSEMONT, Ill. (AP) - Responding to the shutdown of two dozen charities and nonprofit groups since Sept. 11, 2001, Muslims announced formation of the National Council of American Muslim Non-Profits to provide oversight and transparency that will protect Muslim institutions.

The council was launched by the Islamic Society of North America and Muslim Public Affairs Council during a meeting outside Chicago.

Juan Zarate, U.S. Treasury Department assistant secretary for terrorist financing, told the meeting that the council "can empower the American Muslim and Arab communities to establish and implement a global standard of accountability and effectiveness in charitable giving."

Zarate said good relations between the U.S. government and Muslims is "acutely necessary" to keep zakah - mandated religious giving among Muslims, typically an annual 2.5 percent of net worth - and other Muslim charitable contributions out of the hands of terrorist groups like al-Qaida.

The announcement said the new arrangement would help donors who have been fearful about donating due to past scrutiny of Muslim groups.

The council plans to create a "community-based certification process."
source

Judaism violates scriptural law

MOSCOW - The World Union for Progressive Judaism condemned Russia's Chief Rabbi Berl Lazar for a magazine article in which he said Reform Judaism violates scriptural law and "can't be labeled as a religion."

The union responded to an article by Lazar, who comes from the Orthodox and Lubavitch-dominated Federation of Jewish Communities. Lazar was writing in a federation magazine.

According to the union's translation, Lazar also said "Reform Judaism treats the Torah as an anthology of laws created by man for his own convenience. God has no place. What Reform Judaism is are clubs to meet their interests and it seems odd to me that the directors of these clubs call themselves 'rabbis.'"

World union executive director Rabbi Uri Regev replied: "It is regrettable that (the Lubavitch movement) ... so easily returns to its old, hateful bashing of Reform Judaism."
source

Conservative Jewish panel moves toward decision on ordaining gays

BALTIMORE (AP) — The only major branch of American Judaism still debating the role of gays in rabbinical schools and synagogues is preparing to take up the issue in a closed-door meeting that could change the direction of the movement. Experts in religious law for Conservative Jews planned to gather this week in a retreat center outside Baltimore, where they will reconsider their 1992 decision opposing both ordination for gays and commitment ceremonies for same-gender couples. The vote of the Committee on Jewish Law & Standards, if taken at this conference, will not be binding, nor will it resolve disagreements over homosexuality among Conservative Jews. But it will send a strong message to the wider community about how far the Conservative branch will go in reinterpreting traditional understanding of Jewish law. “It will be an important symbolic case for the Conservative movement,” said Jonathan Sarna, an expert on American Jewish history at Brandeis University.

Falwell is ‘steady and strong’

Aide says hospitalized Falwell is ‘steady and strong’
LYNCHBURG, Va. (AP) — Rev. Jerry Falwell spent a comfortable night in the hospital but the Moral Majority founder remains critically ill and on a ventilator, a top aide said last week. “He’s very stable. His vitals are steady and strong,” Falwell’s executive assistant, Ron Godwin, said. Falwell, 71, was admitted to Lynchburg General Hospital in “respiratory arrest” late on March 28. Following the November election, Falwell announced he was forming the Faith & Values Coalition to push a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage.

Mich. Catholic church rejects lesbian couple as members

MOUNT CLEMENS, Mich. — A lesbian couple say they are soured by the experience after a Catholic church refused to accept them as members, the Macomb Daily reported. Mary Horon and her partner Cheryl Mathers were turned away from St. Joan of Arc Catholic Church in St. Clair Shores and later accepted for membership in St. Basil the Great Catholic Church in Eastpointe, according to the newspaper. Rev. Michael Bugarin of St. Joan of Arc said lesbian couples would not be accepted, Horon said. “He called us ‘sinners.’”

Inside the First Amendment - The high court and the incredible shrinking free-exercise clause

By: Charles C. Haynes, First Amendment Center Senior Scholar 04/08/2005


Like the very air we breathe, most Americans take religious freedom for granted - until, of course, someone starts to cut off our supply.
That's exactly what has happened over the past 15 years. With little attention from the press and no outcry from the public, the U.S. Supreme Court has handed down rulings that many legal scholars believe have largely erased long-standing protections for the free exercise of religion.
Tomorrow, the justices hear another case - Cutter v. Wilkinson out of Ohio - and the outcome could be the most devastating blow yet to religious liberty in America. If the Supreme Court upholds the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, the establishment clause of the First Amendment would be interpreted to mean that government can't pass laws to accommodate religious freedom.
How have these cases gone largely unnoticed in a nation where so many people say they take religion seriously - and where so many are pressing for religious symbols in the public square?
Let's start with the fact that most of the religious-liberty cases decided by the Supreme Court involve minority religious groups that most people don't understand (or don't like). Cutter, for example, won't win friends and influence people for the First Amendment because it involves prison inmates who follow unconventional (to put it mildly) religions such as Asatru (a polytheistic faith) and Satanism.
So what if prisoners don't have access to religious literature or worship - didn't they commit a crime? Who cares if Native Americans can't use peyote in their religious services - don't we have a drug problem in this country? And why worry about the freedom of Jehovah's Witnesses to solicit door-to-door - aren't they a nuisance?
Most people in majority or mainstream religions don't pay much attention to free-exercise cases - until some law or regulation strikes close to home. Then they are first in line to invoke the First Amendment. When zoning laws, for example, are used to prevent church construction or expansion, some of the largest religious groups quickly re-discover the free-exercise clause.
Now add to the mix the convoluted nature of the legal arguments over the meaning of "free exercise" these past 15 years. Most of the news media has little patience with complexity - and many Americans tune out the legalese.
Truth be told, the free-exercise clause has long been the poor step-sister to the establishment clause. Symbolic church-state battles over "under God" in the Pledge and displays of the Ten Commandments get all of the attention because of the emotions they stir on all sides. But if you care about religious liberty, the free-exercise cases are the ones to watch.
To understand what's at stake in Cutter, we need to return briefly to 1990 when the Supreme Court's ruling in Employment Division v. Smith greatly reduced protections for free exercise of religion. In Smith, two Native Americans were denied unemployment benefits by the state of Oregon because they were fired for using peyote in their worship. Under a test used by the Supreme Court for decades before Smith, Oregon would have been required to show a "compelling state interest" in denying Native Americans a religious exemption from the anti-drug laws.
But in deciding the Oregon case, the Court changed the test. No longer would the government have to show a compelling state interest before denying a request for accommodation regarding a law that applied to everybody (as long as the law didn't target religion). In other words, as long as Oregon bans peyote use for everyone - not just Native Americans - the state doesn't have to grant or even consider an exemption for religious use.
Since most readers probably don't need a religious exemption for drug use, let's look at another scenario. Nathan Diament of the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations offers this stark example: "If a state outlawed all alcohol consumption for those under age 21 and made no exceptions for wine at Mass or Sabbath, a devout Catholic or Jew could not succeed in challenging that lack of exception as infringing on their Free Exercise rights."
Alarmed by the sweeping implications of the Smith decision, Congress in 1993 passed the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) in an effort to restore a high level of protection for free exercise. RFRA required all levels of government to show a compelling state interest before denying a claim for religious exemption from a general law. Four years later, the Supreme Court struck down RFRA as it applies to states, ruling that Congress had over-reached its powers.
Not to be outdone, Congress (supported by a broad coalition of religious and civil liberties groups) tried again with another law in 2000 - the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act with the unpronounceable acronym RLUIPA - narrowly targeted to apply the compelling-interest test to zoning laws and the rights of prisoners and other institutionalized people. The Ohio prisoners in the Cutter case invoked RLUIPA, arguing that prison officials had no compelling reason (such as safety or discipline) to deny them access to religious literature and the opportunity to conduct worship services.
Last year, the 6th Circuit ruled in Cutter that RLUIPA violates the establishment clause because "by enacting RLUIPA, Congress itself has advanced religion by giving religious prisoners a preferred status in the prison community."
If the Supreme Court upholds the 6th Circuit and strikes down RLUIPA, many other laws passed by all levels of government to accommodate religious practice could be invalidated under the establishment clause. In other words, laws designed to protect religious freedom could be struck down as violations of the First Amendment - a strange twist that would render the free-exercise clause almost meaningless.
Do you enjoy breathing the sweet air of religious freedom in America? Then inhale deeply - while you still can.
Charles C. Haynes is senior scholar and director of education programs at the First Amendment Center. He writes and speaks on religious liberty in public schools, religion and values in American public life, and First Amendment issues in education
source

Young Earth' Scientist Ken Ham

'Young Earth' Scientist Has A Bone to Pick With Evolutionists
Tyrannosaurus Rex thigh bone contains well-preserved soft tissues, including blood vessels.
By ALLIE MARTIN


(Agape Press) The president of Answers in Genesis says the recent discovery of a dinosaur bone in Montana supports the biblical creationist theory of a young Earth.

According to an article published in last month's Science magazine, in 2003 scientists found a Tyrannosaurus Rex thigh bone during an archaeological dig. The research team had to break the bone in pieces in order to fit it into a helicopter, and when they did so, they discovered the fossil contained well-preserved soft tissues, including blood vessels.

Ken Ham, president of the creationist group Answers in Genesis (AiG), says this important find supports the biblical view of the Earth's timeline. "The reason this is such startling news is because you just wouldn't expect soft tissue and cells like this in a bone supposedly 70 million years old," he says.

The general consensus among scientists prior to the find was that such soft tissue could not survive for tens of millions of years. Now, the dinosaur remains have many evolutionists scrambling to accommodate their evolutionist ideas about origins.

But what AiG scientists would say about the find, Ham observes, "is that it's totally consistent with the fact that these bones aren't that old and probably date back to the time of the flood just a few thousand years ago." However, he doubts evolutionists will give consideration to the possibility that the T-Rex bones are only thousands rather than millions of years old.

"Nothing has been found, nothing in observational science, that contradicts what the Bible says," the AIG spokesman contends, "but over and over, it does contradict the ideas of evolutionists."

Still, because evolutionists' beliefs about the past are so entrenched, he predicts they will just look for ways to explain away the contradictory evidence.

"Instead of questioning their beliefs they just come up with secondary and tertiary explanations," Ham says. "'Well, given enough time ...' or 'Well, we think there is a process somewhere' or 'Well, even though we don't know why' -- In other words they'll do anything but question their beliefs."

Ham is convinced proponents of the theory of evolution will not allow the Montana find to change their minds. Even though, he contends, the recent discovery supports the young Earth theory of origins, he believes evolutionists will say anything rather than admit that the biblical account of creation is true.

Cult watch

HILDALE - The Rumors of hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people moving from Hildale and Colorado City to Eldorado, Texas, by April 6 to help dedicate the first temple for the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints have proven to be unfounded.That is, unless everyone left their homes and left the lights on.Twin City Power Co. records from the past month, through 1 p.m. Wednesday, show that although there is some dip in power usage, the drop-off isn't extreme.
http://www.thespectrum.com

Favored to Become Next Pope

Bookmakers say Nigerian and Italian Favored to Become Next Pope (RNS) Irish bookmakers are making a Nigerian and an Italian co-favorites, at 11-4 odds, to replace John Paul II as the next pope. -- Robert Nowell

Quote of the Day:

Quote of the Day: Southern Baptist Theological Seminary President R. Albert Mohler Jr.
(RNS) "We want to be faithful to our own convictions, but we recognize that we will inevitably be doing business with companies and individuals whose convictions on some of these issues may differ from our own. ... This is not a surprising phenomenon."
-- R. Albert Mohler Jr., president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky., on his school's decision to lay off close to 100 employees and start a maintenance agreement with Sodexho, a gay-friendly company that is rehiring most of the workers. He was quoted by The Courier-Journal.

Amendment Banning Gay Marriage

Conservative Christians Hail 18th State Amendment Banning Gay Marriage (RNS) Seeing a trend, conservative Christian groups are hailing a vote by Kansans in favor of a constitutional amendment that affirms heterosexual marriage. -- Adelle M. Banks
http://www.religionnews.com/

Murdered Bible Translators

Christian Organizations Mourn Murdered Bible Translators in Guyana (RNS) As they prepare for a Friday (April 8) memorial service, two Christian organizations are grieving the loss of a missionary couple in southwestern Guyana. -- Celeste Kennel-Shank
http://www.religionnews.com/

Spiritual Drought: Judgment for sin

2Ch 7:13 If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I command the locusts to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people;
2Ch 7:14 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.
No rain, No Life
Water is commonly known in scripture to represent the Holy Spirit and it’s cleansing power in the Word of God. Without the water of the Holy Spirit, the land of the heart becomes parched, and dry unable to sustain new life. Throughout the bible God has withheld his favor and blessing for disobedience. He has shut up the heavens time and time again causing the crops to fail and famine to permeate the land. Today we are living in such a land. The preaching is largely dry and parched. It is void of vital nutrients and full of vanity and great swelling words of carnality tickling itching ears and wayward hearts. The preaching power of the past has been replaced with the crackles and thunder of rainless clouds. They resemble the real thing, but they contain no substance. They are not producing what they naturally should be producing, life giving water. Instead, a putrid, acid foul mist of deception has crept over our land beguiling many and causing great harm upon the spiritual landscape known as America. Not only in America, but also around the world is felt the harmful, eroding presence of a putrid doctrine called self-indulgence. The feel good gospel of prosperity and wealth has replaced the Holy Spirit powered preaching of the past. Today’s hipsters permeate our TV’s with false hope, false visions, and false prayer all with the aim of separating the naïve from their money. Somebody needs to pray for rain, Holy Ghost rain from heaven and revival with power from on high! America is largely in a spiritual drought.
2Ch 7:13 If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I command the locusts to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people;
Notice the judgment God pronounces upon a disobedient people, a judgment, which removes the health and prosperity of the Land. God is sovereign over the creatures of the earth and they move at his command. Once he causes the locusts to move in, they devour the crops and leave the land barren and useless. Death and disease is soon to follow without the life giving substance of water on the land. Then comes the pestilence of disease to kill, steal and destroy men’s souls and drag them into everlasting destruction. Can you smell the stench of death in America? It is no wonder the world largely views us as a money hungry, wicked nation because we have gone the way of Rome! We are self-indulged, sensual, perverted and vain! Judgment has come to America long ago and we are now seeing the consequences of it. God shut up the heavens and spiritual drought has taken the land. The locusts have brought their moneybags and filled them up with substance stolen from the simple minded who are ignorant of truth and void of understanding. These false teachers tell fabricated stories of great spiritual visions and happenings and woo audiences with their magnetic personalities. They work their crowds like a smooth snake charmer works his serpents. They weave their spell of manipulation upon the masses they cast their black magic and voodoo. It is true, God hates all workers of iniquity. But he also uses what the devil does to kill, steal and destroy to try our faith and purge the land. Do not be mistaken, God is not happy with America. As a nation our filth stinks in his nostrils. I am not a gloom and doom preacher and I am not condemning any and all religion and believers in this land. But the large part of the United States has gone astray and our churches are filled with false professions, easy-believer conversions without repentance. They come as they are and leave just the same way. They peddle the gospel of universal love and acceptance and put on plays and concerts to entice sinners to come among them. Once they attract them, the teach them God loves them just as they are. That is not the truth! He loves them where they are at, but he doesn’t love them as they are. He proved this essential by dying on the Cross that we may be changed. These so called ‘seekers’ need to be taught repentance from sin. Some would have you believe repentance is a work of man and not needed for salvation. The bible teaches just the opposite. We are commanded in Acts 17:30 and warned in Luke 13:3 that unless we repent we will perish. The bible has much to say about repentance being a requirement and prerequisite to salvation. The forerunner of Christ, John the Baptist taught that all men should repent everywhere and be baptized. He also taught another would come after him which would baptize in the Holy Ghost. Notice what came first, the baptism of repentance. The law convicts men unto death, for without the law we have no knowledge of sin and transgression. The law came and we are without excuse and apart from Christ, destined to hell. But then came the savior to save the repentant sinner from hell and death. Jesus Christ promised eternal life unto all who would believe on his name. John 3:16-17 Peter commanded men in the book of Acts 2:38 to repent and be baptized and only then would they receive the Holy Ghost. We become a child of God when we receive the Holy Spirit.
Rom 8:9 ……….. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.
You can’t get to the cross unless you pass thru the gates of repentance. You can’t drink of the Holy Water of the Word of God without first being cleansed in the baptismal waters of repentance. Do not misunderstand me, I am not preaching baptismal regeneration, I am preaching the doctrine of repentance from sin and faith unto God. This doctrine has all but perished in America. The doctrine of repentance has been shelved and called legalism, works of men and a false gospel by the proponents of easy believism. This false teaching is causing many to miss out on true conversion and in many cases, sending men to hell in ignorant bliss. Truly, the pestilence of false doctrine, false worship, and false conversion has eaten up our once great country. This great judgment on America has come about due to our disobedience and complacency. We kill babies in the name of freedom of choice. America’s children live lawless lives and are taught from a young age to look out for number one. They respect no one not even themselves and have turned away from God to Wicca and self-worship. What a great tragedy which has befallen America. She has become the haunt of every unclean bird.
Some believe America is not mentioned in bible Prophecy, but I am here to tell you all workers of iniquity shall be judged. America’s day is coming, and what a fear-filled day it shall be. We have to look at this thing objectively. The bible says the Roman Empire will be revived in the last times and is one of the signs of the end spoken of by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Let’s face it, The Revived Roman Empire ruling the world has to either include America as it’s head, or America has to be taken out of the way for the empire to come to power. I am just a simple minded kind of guy, so forgive me for my backwoods thinking, but there is no way our nation is going to relinquish power to the Third world entities united under one great global empire. America will have to be at its head or America will have to be out of the way. The 18th chapter of Revelation speaks of a city, which is very similar to America and speaks of a once great city that falls in one hour. A great and powerful nation once feared by the whole world and marveled by all for her wealth and prosperity, and great exploits is left a burning shell of it’s former self in 60 minutes of time. Years and years of prosperity and mercy ends with the resounding echoes and fallouts of what seemingly appears to be a secret nuclear attack. The whole nation is left is flames and ashes and across the seas the whole world weeps and laments at such terror come upon such a great nation in such a short period of time. In the time it takes to go grocery shopping, the whole nation is wiped out without warning.
God has an antidote for those who wish to escape such a tragic end. Let’s look at our text again and find the solution.
2Ch 7:14 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.
We must repent, it takes great humility to admit you have wronged someone, our pride just doesn’t wish to bow down and surrender it’s place on the throne of our hearts and minds. But God says he will resist the proud, and give Grace only to the humble. We must humble ourselves and pray, seek God’s face fervently that God would heal our land. Perhaps we cannot stop the prophetic future of America and it’s eventual demise, but we mustn’t remain complacent with so many yet to repent and be converted. Shall these lost souls be blood on our hands? Not so we should rise up and bow down together in haste beg God to forgive us for our self-indulgent materialistic lifestyles. We should pray that God forgive us for the grave sin and disobedience, which has taken our once Great Nation from favor to condemnation. May God have mercy on our souls. God’s Grace is our only hope and his Grace comes from the fruits of repentance. May God help us to surrender to the testimony of the Holy Spirit’s conviction in our hearts and seek his forgiveness to heal our land.
Rev. Charles Peterson

Justification by Faith: The new reformation need

Gal 1:6 I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:
Paul the Apostle here gives the Galatians strong rebuke for allowing themselves to be seduced into believing a lie and slipping back to the weak and beggarly elements of the law. There was a mixture of converted Jews and Gentiles which made up the Galatian church. Apparently, after Paul had been away for a bit, he heard reports of Jewish law being added unto the Grace of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Justification by faith alone was the main thrust of the Book of Roman's, the first new testament book after the 5 gospels. (counting the book of Acts as a continuation of the Book of Luke as most notable scholars do) However, either way you cut it, right out of the gate the Holy Spirit of God burdened Paul's heart with the exhortation and edification of the doctrine of Justification by Faith alone in Christ alone. God knows the hearts of men, and these men, having not been far removed from a works based system of law were bound to begin to add requirements of the law unto the Gospel of Grace. It was the battle cry of the reformation and coming out of the false system of religion of Rome. Justification by Faith alone, in Christ alone.

Justification by Faith alone was the spark that set the reformation fires ablaze!

Martin Luther is quoted:
“We have to fear as the greatest and nearest danger, lest Satan take from us this doctrine of faith, and bring into the church again the doctrine of works and of men's traditions. Wherefore it is very necessary that this doctrine be kept in continual practice and public exercise, both of reading and hearing. If this doctrine be lost, then is also the doctrine of truth, life and salvation, lost and gone.”
The devil hates the life giving power of the True Gospel of Christ. He has proved it over and over thru the ages by his not so subtle attempts to stamp out this foundational doctrine. Once man is removed from Grace unto a works based system of redemption, he has again entangled himself in the weak and beggarly elements of the law. The law was never meant to save men's souls. There is no righteousness in the law, nor is there redemption in the law. The law was added because of transgression. Without the curse sin and death on the consciousness of men, the law serves no purpose whatsoever. It was our schoolmaster according this passage:
Gal 3:24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
Without the law, there is no knowledge of sin. Without knowledge of sin, there is no reason for redemption. Without redemption, man is destined to hell for all eternity. The law serves the purpose to show us our need of a savior. Take the ten commandments for example. If you were to go down the list it wouldn't be long before you stumbled upon a commandment which you have in your lifetime, transgressed. It is impossible for man to keep the commandments of God, it is that simple. There is none righteous according to the book of Romans, all have transgressed the law of God. The law was added because of transgression. It's purpose, to bring us to the knowledge that we have all sinned and come short of the glory of God.(Romans 3:23) When Christ came, he came to redeem us from the curse of the Law.
Gal 3:25 But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.
Faith has come my friend! God himself, came to earth, was born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, died on the cross, resurrected, was seen by many, and ascended up into the clouds to be received at the right hand of the Father. He will come back in like manner one day. On that day we shall be judged by our belief, by our faith in Jesus Christ alone. Our justification will and is by faith alone in Christ alone. But there are some even today, many who pervert the True Gospel of Jesus Christ and the doctrine of Justification by faith alone in Christ alone. These men tell you that they must intercede for you before the throne of God. These men wear long robes and love to be called father. They prescribe superstitious ritual and ask for money that they might absolve sin on your behalf. They have added unto the gospel the traditions of men. They are wicked and perverse and their hearts are black with the depths of hell. They deceive many into thinking they have to work their way to heaven. They oppress the widows and the fatherless and commit unspeakable acts upon children because they burn in their own lust! They forbid to marry and indulge in worldly pleasures hiding behind the Mother Church when they are caught in hideous sexual misconduct with minors. This is nothing new my friend. Paul warned the Galatians 2000 years ago the dangers of bringing the law back into the gospel. It would bring weakness and oppression into what is supposed to be the pillar and ground of the truth. The truth is where the Spirit of Christ is, there is liberty. There is no liberty in the works of the law of man, only oppression and wickedness.
Gal 3:1 O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?
The Greek word for foolish is anoētos (an-o'-ay-tos) it means unintelligent, sensual. This is the wisdom of the world, the foolish and sensual, carnally minded man thinks void of spiritual truth. In Galatia, some false, legalistic converts had cast a spell upon the church at Galatia and convinced them thru humanistic reasoning, that the law and Christ fit together cohesively. They sold them the lie that Christ and the Law go hand in hand and are one in the same. Yet, in reality, the law pointed to Christ and foreshadowed, especially in the sacrifices and daily temple worship and offerings, Justification by Faith.
Can you imagine the blood that flowed upon the altar in the temple during a single day of worship and service by the Levitical Priests in the wilderness? Some have concluded that the regular sacrifices required by God in a given year (360 days) was 1,260. That is 3.5 sacrifices a day only on the required, ceremonial sacrifices. These were the requirements for the feasts and Sabbaths and all the ceremonial blood sacrifices. In addition to that, there were 2 million souls all committing sin pretty much on a daily basis probably, who were commanded to make offerings for the Priests to sacrifice on their behalf to atone for their sin. This was carried out daily. Can you imagine the blood that flowed just to keep the people alive and clean before a Holy God? It was a continual blood bath in the wilderness of sin. They most certainly became weary and had to desire a permanent sacrifice to atone for sin once and for all. That was the purpose of the Law, to show the need for a permanent Redemption. That atonement is Jesus Christ and all the law and the prophets pointed to the Grace which would afford complete, eternal atonement in the shed blood of Christ on Golgotha's hill up on Calvary's Cross. When he cried "it is finished" it was finished and all who believe in him shall not perish. We don't have to get saved over and over. We don't have to work for our salvation. We are justified by Faith alone in Christ alone.
It is time to raise up this banner of truth again. It is time to proclaim the cry of the reformation all over again. Justification by Faith alone, in Christ alone!
Anything less, is a false gospel and unable to atone for men's souls. Anything else leaves a lost sinner destined for hell for all eternity and God will have no mercy on those who take part in the destruction of men's souls. Stand fast in the liberty which is in Christ. Allow no man to preach unto you another gospel which is no gospel at all. For all these shall have their part in the lake of fire. "......obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, ....." for he is our portion.

The magnet of sin!

A sermon by: Rev. Charles Peterson 03-28-2005
2Ti 4:3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;
2Ti 4:4 And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.
I have imagined a church full of false converts and a powerless Gospel infiltrating the entire world. It is not a pretty sight, yet; nonetheless, the bible predicts or rather, Prophecy’s of such a time as this. A church full of itself and the world. A place where all the right things are said, but not a speck of Holy Spirit power is present. This is the place where men and women of society find programs and performances that tickle their ears. This is the place the consumer driven market of Christianity has crossed over into apostasy. No longer is God’s purpose and plan on the front burner. No longer is sin the problem, and Christ the answer. No, in this Laodicean church of the last age, the congregation is catered to. They feed them chocolate and coffee and pastries, they produce mass media with cutting edge graphics and special effects, they create programs and classes aimed at pleasing the consumer. They dangle the carrot of toleration and acceptance in front of them with the promise that God Love’s them and so do they. They encourage them to come as they are and they leave just the same way. Doctrine is a four-letter word and Love is the guiding light of the new millennia. This is the man-centered mega-mall church mentality of the 21st century. This is the apostate church spoken of in the book of revelation 3rd chapter. Neither cold nor hot, absolute truth is a myth and not ‘cool’. Their gospel is a mixture of half-truths and sound doctrine mixed in a dangerous potion that is not easily detected by the average church goer. Church is about feelings and felt needs. Words are changed to reflect the non-combative approach to religion. Sin is downplayed and identified with and even accepted as part of the process. Men and woman are not rebuked, chastised in the Name of Christ, nor are they given the truth about their own sin-sick state for which they are in need of a savior. The ideology seems to be that Man needs no redemption, he needs liberation from self-destructive tendencies and ego centered programs to puff him up to par. Then, and only then, can he go out into this mean, unfair world and achieve great things for himself and those around him. All of this in the name of God. This is the church age of the 21st century. These are the days of our lives.
The problems with the new evangelical seeker-friendly philosophy are numerous. First of all, the bible says God chose the foolishness of preaching to save men’s souls.

Rom 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
Rom 10:14 How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?
Rom 10:15 And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!
Rom 10:16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah saith, Lord, who hath believed our report?
Rom 10:17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
To be saved one must call upon the name of the Lord. But, the problem with that is somebody has to tell him or her about the wonderful plan of Redemption. To understand the plan of redemption, one first must understand the need for redemption. This takes us all the way back to the beginning. That is where we begin to explain the Good news. We don’t need another illustrated play or movie to do this. That is the way of man and not the way of God. Man’s way is to gauge the consumer’s wants and desires and cater to them. In effect, to dangle the appearance of tolerance to sin in front of them to draw them in. But God’s way is the preaching of the Cross.
1Co 1:21 For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.
I am here to tell you that the foolishness of preaching still saves souls today! It is not the polished productions of the baby boomer generation seeker-sensitive programs of church growth. It is the power of God unto salvation to them that believe! The Word of God is still powerful! It doesn’t need to be packaged in 21st century methods or rearranged and blended together with the Psyco-babble heresy entrenched in our American culture! Men as still saved by Grace thru Faith, and Faith comes by hearing the Word of God, Period. The preaching of the Gospel saves men! It isn’t by watching a play about the Word of God or some other type of production or movie with the intent of drawing sinners into the church so they can be exposed to Jesus. The sinner has no need for Jesus, who is the Light, because he will expose them. No, that idea is backwards, the saved attend church because they are saved and seek fellowship with God’s people but the sinner does not. The sinner avoids church because it exposes his sin! He is too uncomfortable to regularly attend church in his lost condition. There is no such thing as a Lost man seeking God. He is a sinner, and blind unless God opens his eyes and draw him unto himself he will perish in ignorance.
Rom 3:11 There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.
So the whole seeker sensitive mentality is a lie and a doctrine of demons! It seems the business world has capitalized on the consumer driven niche and infiltrated Protestantism with programs and ideologies straight from the pits of hell to attract the masses. Why? Because more people mean more money. Big business does it all the time, they find out what people want and provide it. Then cash in on the demand and laugh all the way to the bank. They promise liberty and prosperity and health, but in reality, serve road-kill and disease in pretty packages called mass media. They cater to the visual appeal of dressed up sin to hide it‘s presence.
2Pe 2:3 And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not.
The word feigned is defined in Thayer’s Greek Definitions as:
1) moulded, formed, as from clay, wax, or stone
2) feigned
Basically, they fabricate their own ideology aimed at appeasing the hearer to win his affection, the part him from his money, possessions etc.
Today, they are more subtle than ever in their methods and it would appear almost legit to the casual observer. Many are drawn away of their own lusts by promises of wealth, prosperity and health which seems to be the modern bait to hook the naïve. Back in my youth, I lived on the banks of the Caney Fork River. I could almost jump off of my back porch into the river to swim. I loved to fish back then because the world made so much more sense. Bait the hook with a katabi worm turned inside out, and toss him out into the river near the rock ledges and wait. Before long I would catch a nice sized Brim, hook him on my stringer with his brothers and repeat the process. Sometimes I would use artificial bait aimed at catching the bass in the river. Each liked a certain kind of bait. There is nothing different about today’s church growth ideology. If you want to attract masses of people, dangle something in front of them which is appetizing and they will bite. Today’s society is all about self-indulgence. Cater to their self-indulgent tendency and you will have plenty of fish to scale, filet, and eat. Bait the hook with sin, and you will catch a multitude of sinners time and time again. The bait looks like the real thing but hiding behind the bait is the hook of self-indulgence and the consequence of sin is death. Will this mentality fill the churches with Christians? Or has the plate of apostasy been sprinkled with the seasoning of tolerance and set with the utensils of seeker-sensitive, loving outreach?
You have to ask yourself what attracts a sinner anyway? The answer is clear! Sin attracts the sinner. So the more we can put up the front that sin is ok the more attracted the sinner will become towards the church. You can tell when you are effective by the numbers of false conversions and sinners who are comfortable in their sin in attendance. I am not saying all huge churches are compromised and teach a false gospel, what I am saying is that appearances are deceptive. Numbers are not how God gauges the effectiveness of a ministry. Some will do anything to get more bodies in the church and keep them there. To get them in, some dress down, play the world’s music and talk about personal problems and how to solve them with the bible using whichever translation minimizes the sin in any given situation to lessen the blow. These type have sold out the true gospel in favor of the business model which produces numbers and mega-millionaire pastors and staff. These truly are dire straights my friend.
A Holy Spirit filled church won’t attract the world, this type of church will need to continually knock on doors to make converts and fill it’s pews in order to grow. We have to go out and compel them to come. They are not coming to us! They do not want the light in their eyes exposing their sin for what it is. I don’t know a single sinner sitting around talking with his buddies and wishing somebody would just bust down the door and expose him for what he truly is. Yet, that is what happens when a man is confronted with the True Gospel of Jesus Christ. That is also what happens when a sinner attends a Holy Spirit filled Church that preaches the whole counsel of God. He converts or just gets so mad he never comes back. He can’t sit there week after week without either changing or leaving. That is the ministry of the Holy Spirit, to convict the world of sin, righteousness and judgment. Listen to the words of Jesus Christ right before his ascension into heaven.
Joh 16:7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.
Joh 16:8 And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:
Joh 16:9 Of sin, because they believe not on me;
Joh 16:10 Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more;
Joh 16:11 Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.
It makes perfect sense that a spirit-filled church would not be a haven for habitual sinners to congregate. Where the spirit of Christ is, there is liberty. In Christ, there is liberty and deliverance from sin and death. The problem is not bad circumstance, bad luck, dead-beat parents, addiction etc. The problem is manifest in those ways, but the real problem goes all the way back to the Garden of Eden. Sin is the real problem, and the answer is Jesus Christ. Beware of teachers who only talk of God’s love continually but never warn you about sin, righteousness and the judgment to come. These are those spoken of here in 2nd Peter
2Pe 2:1 But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.
2Pe 2:2 And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of.
2Pe 2:3 And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not.
Make no mistake about it, these teachers cater to the needs and ‘felt’ needs of the congregation. They are after things, which the world applauds. Power, success, riches, fame and fortune are the prize for these apostates. The sad part is the many sincere Christians caught up in their error living defeated, deluded lives apart from the true relationship in God’s Word. But it is partly their own fault for not searching out the whole counsel of God and running after the things of the world.

2Ti 4:3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;
2Ti 4:4 And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.
Also, you have to ask yourself what attracts a sinner anyway? The answer is clear! Sin attracts the sinner. So the more we can put up the front that sin is ok the more attracted the sinner will become towards the church. You can tell when you are effective by the numbers of false conversions and sinners who are comfortable in their sin in attendance. To draw them in, some dress down, play the world’s music and talk about personal problems and how to solve them with the bible using whichever translation minimizes the sin in any given situation to lessen the blow. This is the ‘I’m ok you’re ok mentality. These are dire straights my friends.
Stay strong, and preach the whole counsel of God. Lead the sheep in all truth and righteousness. Don’t become part of the problem, make the solution known plain and simple. The problem is sin, the answer is Jesus Christ.

Who is this man they call the Pope?

The stage is set; darkness closes in on a well-known public figure. John Paul II was a man who is credited largely with the peaceful tearing down of communism. A man who is claimed to be infallible when speaking on doctrine from the chair or authority in the Holy See! This is the man who will answer to God for leading a billion Catholics in apostasy and blasphemy. I fear for John Paul II’s soul. His soul is in grave danger of hellfire and brimstone. Eternal punishment for teaching the false works religion of Rome. I fear there is no hope for the Pope of repentance for his hour of consciousness has passed. It is one thing to perpetrate a fraud upon another man in order to obtain his possessions and admiration and undying devotion. It is quite another to sit in the seat of holiness as God’s representative on earth, and defy the Holy Scripture’s doctrine of “The priesthood of believers” I certainly do not wish hell upon John Paul but realistically, I have no power to commit to hell any soul. The fate of men’s souls is in the hands of the creator. Jehovah God, The Great I Am! Almighty God wishes that none would perish, but that all would come to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. The just shall live by Faith, and by Grace you are saved thru faith. But the Holy See and the blasphemy of Rome preach much falsehood’s including purgatory, penance, indulgences, and prayers for the dead. The list goes on and on. Each false teaching is directly opposed to the clear rendering of scripture and is most certainly a false gospel. This is what the Apostle Paul had to say about ‘another Gospel’

Gal 1:6 I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:
Gal 1:7 Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.
Gal 1:8 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.
Gal 1:9 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.
Gal 1:10 For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.
Gal 1:11 But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man.
Gal 1:12 For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.
Paul is rebuking the Galatians for departing from the true faith and accepting in its place, a false Gospel. The Galatians had added the requirements and traditions of men unto the Gospel. They in effect, had denied the justification by faith in Christ alone and slipped into the observance of ceremonial law keeping. Adding unto the faith certain rules and regulations as a requirement which was the Judaism’s manner of observance and the weak and beggarly elements of the world. They did not stand fast in the liberty, which was given them in Christ Jesus. The Gospel of Rome is such a ‘Gospel’, which is no Gospel at all. The gospel meaning the ‘Good News’, has no Good news to tell concerning the apostasy of Rome. The bible says we are saved by Grace thru Faith, The Gospel of Rome says if any man says we are saved by Grace thru faith alone, let him be accursed. That is not good news my friend, that is just a bold face lie and perversion of the True Gospel of Christ. The gospel of Rome says you must confess to the priests who will intercede on your behalf and prescribe certain rituals, which must be carried out specifically in order to absolve the sins from your account. The bible says this about the mediator.
1Ti 2:5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;
1Ti 2:6 Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.
The man they call the Pope and the Holy Father is nothing but a fraud and an impersonator of Christ Jesus on earth. I pity John Paul on judgment day. How would you like to stand before a Holy God and explain why you perpetrated such a fraud and led so many in error to destruction of their souls? Christ is the only mediator; he is the Way, the Truth and the Life, no man cometh to the father but by him. The Levitical Priesthood was done away with and consummated in Jesus Christ. Now we are all afforded audience with the Father thru the Son, by Grace thru Faith. The priesthood is in Christ Jesus who has sealed us with his Holy Spirit and made us Kings and Priests. For Christ lives to forever make intercession for the believer unto the father. It is Christ who defends us against the charge and accusation of sin and unrighteousness. He alone is our mediator and not the Pope or any priests. It was Christ who gave the ransom not the Vatican, or the Holy See, which cannot see very well at all the Danger; they have placed 1 billion souls in. You have heard it is against the Law to impersonate a federal agent or a policeman, a senator or any other public official including the President of the United States. Can you imagine the fate of the one who impersonates the Holy Lamb of God as the ‘vicar of Christ’ meaning in the place of, or Christ’s representative on earth? Who is this man they call the Pope? The bible says he is a son of the devil, a child of Lies in whom God hath reserved unto damnation for all eternity. There is no hope for the pope escaping an eternity of suffering for leading a billion souls in the false gospel of Rome. May God have mercy on his soul as he realizes the truth of his own falsehood in the depths of eternal hell. May God have mercy on all who are in Christ Jesus that we not be removed from the simple truths of God’s Holy Word.
Rev Charles Peterson,
http://www.crownoflifeministries.org