“The only true conqueror who shall be crowned in the end is he who continues until war’s trumpet is blown no more…. Christian, wear your shield close to your armor and cry earnestly to God, that by His Spirit you may endure to the end.” – Alistair Begg
Author Archives: Dan C.
Evangelism–God’s Part and Our Part
Adapted from "Crossing the Barriers", Truth For Life Ministries
“Even if I were utterly selfish, and had no cure for anything but my own happiness, I would choose, if I might, under God, to be a soulwinner; for never did I know perfect, overflowing, unutterble happiness of the purest and most ennobling order till I first heard of one who had sought and found the Savior through my means. No young mother ever so rejoiced over her first-born child, no warrior was so exultant over a hard-won victory.” – C.H. Spurgeon
Remember that ‘to evangelize’ is to present Christ Jesus to sinful people in order that, through the power of the Holy Spirit, they may come to put their trust in God through Him.
If we examine the above definition of ‘to evangelize’ we see that there are three ‘actors’; the one who presents Jesus Christ (that would be us), the Holy Spirit (God), and those who put their trust in God through Christ (those to whom we present Jesus Christ).
Given our three ‘actors’ then, we can say that evangelism is supremely God’s work in people in which He enlists human cooperation.
It naturally follows that, in order for us to fulfill our responsibilities in personal evangelism, we must first be clear as to what God alone can do, and what we, therefore, cannot do.
GOD’S PART
1. Conviction of sin is the work of God the Holy Spirit. (John 16:8)
Joh 16:8 And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment:
2. God alone can give repentance to men. (Acts 5:31; 11:18)
Act 5:31 "God exalted him at his right hand as Leader (Prince)and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins."
Act 11:18 When they heard these things they fell silent. And they glorified God, saying, "Then to the Gentiles also God has granted repentance that leads to life."
3. Only God can draw men and women to Christ. (John 6:44)
Joh 6:44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.
4. God alone can reveal Jesus. (2 Cor. 4:6)
2Co 4:6 For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
5. It is God’s unique prerogative to bring about the new birth. (John 1:12, 13; 3:3, 5)
Joh 1:12-13 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
Joh 3:3 Jesus answered him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God."
Joh 3:5 Jesus answered, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.
OUR PART
Our part in evangelism consists of 1) being prepared and 2) understanding what God requires of us.
Preparation for this work.
1. Our life needs to be open to God and cleansing sought for all known sin. (Psalms 51:10; 2 Tim. 2:20-21)
Psa 51:10 Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.
2Ti 2:20-21 Now in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver but also of wood and clay, some for honorable use, some for dishonorable. Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work.
2. We must be living in the fullness of the Spirit. (Ephesians 5:18; Acts 1:8; 1 Cor. 2:4)
Eph 5:18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit,
Act 1:8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."
1Co 2:4 and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power,
3. There needs to be an awareness of our own personal dependence upon Jesus for salvation. (1 Tim. 1:15)
1Ti 1:15 The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost.
4. There needs to be a humble recognition of God’s power. (1 Cor. 3:7)
1Co 3:7 So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth.
5. We must the know Scriptures.
6. We must understand the human predicament without Christ. (Matthew 9:36)
Mat 9:36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.
7. We engage in this task with sincerity of heart. (Romans 9:1, 2)
Rom 9:1-2 I am speaking the truth in Christ–I am not lying; my conscience bears me witness in the Holy Spirit–that I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart.
What God Requires of Us – Cooperation
1. Although the work of conversion is essentially God the Holy Spirit’s work, He calls us to work with him in achieving it. (Acts 26:15-18)
Acts 26:15-18 15 And I said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ And the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. 16 But rise and stand upon your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you, 17 delivering you from your people and from the Gentiles—to whom I am sending you 18 to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’
2. Our responsibility is to make known the Word of God. (Acts 16:14; Romans 10:14-17)
Acts 16:14 One who heard us was a woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple goods, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul.
Rom 10:14-17 14 How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? 15 And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” 16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” 17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.
3. We should urge men to seek God (Isaiah 55:6, 7; Luke 13:24), To repent (Matthew 4:17; Acts 17:24). To be converted (Matthew 18:3), and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. (Acts 16:31)
Isaiah 55:6, 7 6 “Seek the Lord while he may be found; 7 call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
Luke 13:24 “Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able.
Matthew 4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
Matthew 18:3 and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn (be converted [KJV[) and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
Acts 16:31 And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.”
4. In doing this we must be willing to display genuine friendship which will often be costly. (Luke 10:29ff; 2 Tim. 2:10)
Luke 10:25-30 25 And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” 27 And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” 28 And he said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.” 29 But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” 30 Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead.
2 Tim. 2:10 Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.
5. We are to be ready to do this work anytime and anywhere. (Acts 1:8;James 1:2; Romans 10:1; Acts 4:29)
Act 1:8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."
Jas 1:2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds,
Rom 10:1 Brothers, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for them is that they may be saved.
Act 4:29 And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness,
FINAL STATEMENT
The implications of these truths are far-reaching. They ought at least instill in us a renewed sense of dependence upon God and an increased confidence in God which will be demonstrated largely in our prayers.
Eisegesis Unplugged – Psalm 37:4
Exegesis and eisegesis are two conflicting approaches in Bible study. Exegesis is the exposition or explanation of a text based on a careful, objective analysis. The word exegesis literally means “to lead out of.” That means that the interpreter is led to his conclusions by following the text.
The opposite approach to Scripture is eisegesis, which is the interpretation of a passage based on a subjective, non-analytical reading. The word eisegesis literally means “to lead into,” which means the interpreter injects his own ideas into the text, making it mean whatever he wants.
Obviously, only exegesis does justice to the text. Eisegesis is a mishandling of the text and often leads to a misinterpretation. Exegesis is concerned with discovering the true meaning of the text, respecting its grammar, syntax, and setting. Eisegesis is concerned only with making a point, even at the expense of the meaning of words.
The Passage
“Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” (Psalm 37:4)
I remember when this was an often quoted passage with the primary focus on the last half – “and he will give you the desires of your heart”. All I have to do is delight in the Lord and he will give me everything my little heart desires! It was a given that I delighted in the Lord, since this prodigal had come home to Jesus.
When I wasn’t seeing ‘the desires of my heart’ actualized however, it was necessary to rethink the matter a bit, in spite of other believers ready and willing to affirm my chosen interpretation of such a wonderful promise. What was going on? Were we guilty of a wrong interpretation, or what?
I’ve concluded, wisely I think, that our interpretation wasn’t wrong, but our focus on the last half of the passage is not what the original author (David) intended. Let’s put the passage into context, shall we?
1Fret not yourself because of evildoers;
be not envious of wrongdoers!
2 For they will soon fade like the grass
and wither like the green herb.3 Trust in the Lord, and do good;
dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.
4 Delight yourself in the Lord,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.5 Commit your way to the Lord;
trust in him, and he will act.
6 He will bring forth your righteousness as the light,
and your justice as the noonday.7 Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him;
fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way,
over the man who carries out evil devices!8 Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath!
Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil.
9 For the evildoers shall be cut off,
but those who wait for the Lord shall inherit the land.
From just the first few verses of this Psalm it’s not difficult to see that rather than a prescription for obtaining our personal wishes and desires, what we have is a contrast between evildoers and the righteous. As the ESV Study Bible explains:
The opening stanza sets forth the overall theme: “fret not yourself because of evildoers” (esp. when it seems that they are prospering), “trust in the Lord, and do good.” The reason not to fret is the assurance that justice will come in the end: the evildoers “will soon fade like the grass” (v. 2) and “shall be cut off” (v. 9), while the faithful—those who “wait for the Lord”—“shall inherit the land”
Rather than worrying about evildoers and unjust seeming to prosper all around us, we are told ‘delight in the Lord’, but not in order to satisfy the desires of our hearts, but so that our hearts will desire the right things!
To ‘delight’ in the Lord is to find happiness and pleasure in “the perfections of God, his power, goodness, faithfulness, wisdom, love, grace, and mercy; in his works of creation, providence, and redemption; in his word, his Gospel, the truths and ordinances of it” (John Gill).
When we truly find our ultimate delight and happiness in our Lord, our still flawed and selfish hearts will be so wonderfully changed that many of our heart’s desires will become dim, if not vanish entirely, as we are conformed to the very image of God’s own Son!
The contrast between the two outcomes, those who shall be cut off and those who shall inherit the land, recurs throughout the psalm: vv. 11, 22, 28–29, 34. “Cut off” generally refers to divine judgment, which removes a person from the people of God (e.g., Gen. 17:14; Lev. 7:20); in this psalm, it looks forward to the “future of the wicked” (Ps. 37:38), which likely refers to his afterlife (since it contrasts with one’s “hope” in Prov. 23:18; 24:14 (ESV Study Bible)
Have you ever found yourself envious of those around you who seem to prosper in spite of being unrighteous, unjust, or who even blaspheme our Lord and God? In all honesty, I can only plead guilty. I have at times needed an attitude adjustment, however those times have become fewer and fewer as I have grown spiritually through the years.
So rather than worrying about those around us who know not Christ yet are prospering, let us pray for God to open hearts to receive the message of the Gospel and for opportunities to share the only truth that gives hope to mankind!
And may Philippians 2:13 become more of a reality in our lives every day.
“. . . for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.”.
“I Must Tell Jesus”
The author of this hymn writes on how this hymn came about as follows:
There was a woman to whom God had permitted many visitations of sorrow and affliction. Coming to her home one day, I found her much discouraged. She unburdened her heart, concluding with the question, “Brother Hoffman, what shall I do?” I quoted from the word, then added, “You cannot do better than to take all of your sorrows to Jesus. You must tell Jesus.”
For a moment she seemed lost in meditation. Then her eyes lighted as she exclaimed, “Yes, I must tell Jesus.” As I left her home I had a vision of that joy-illuminated face…and I heard all along my pathway the echo, “I must tell Jesus. I must tell Jesus.”
Hoffman wrote these words after reaching home.
This great hymn reminds us of the need to rely on our wonderful Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, in each and every situation and trial in life. May the Lord help us. Amen.
Lyrics and Music: Elisha A Hoffman
I must tell Jesus all of my trials,
I cannot bear these burdens alone;
In my distress He kindly will help me,
He ever loves and cares for His own.Refrain:
I must tell Jesus! I must tell Jesus!
I cannot bear my burdens alone;
I must tell Jesus! I must tell Jesus!
Jesus can help me, Jesus alone.I must tell Jesus all of my troubles,
He is a kind, compassionate Friend;
If I but ask Him He will deliver,
Make of my troubles quickly an end.Tempted and tried I need a great Savior,
One who can help my burdens to bear;
I must tell Jesus, I must tell Jesus:
He all my cares and sorrows will share.O how the world to evil allures me!
O how my heart is tempted to sin!
I must tell Jesus, and He will help me
Over the world the vict’ry to win.
Will the Pentagon Prohibit the Great Commission?
[Note: This is the first in an occasional series examining and assessing potential threats to religious liberty in America and around the world.]
The Situation: According to the Associated Press, a group called the Military Religious Freedom Foundation is urging the Pentagon to court martial officers whose subordinates feel they’re being proselytized. MRFF founder Mikey Weinstein says even a Christian bumper sticker on an officer’s car or a Bible on an officer’s desk can amount to "pushing this fundamentalist version of Christianity on helpless subordinates." Weinstein and other leaders of his foundation met with top officials at the Pentagon last week.
The Backstory: Weinstein and his group met privately with Pentagon officials on April 23. He told Fox News that U.S. troops who proselytize are guilty of sedition and treason and should be punished to stave off what he called a "tidal wave of fundamentalists." "Someone needs to be punished for this," Weinstein told Fox News. "Until the Air Force or Army or Navy or Marine Corps punishes a member of the military for unconstitutional religious proselytizing and oppression, we will never have the ability to stop this horrible, horrendous, dehumanizing behavior."
"If a member of the military is proselytizing in a manner that violates the law, well then of course they can be prosecuted," he said. "We would love to see hundreds of prosecutions to stop this outrage of fundamentalist religious persecution."
"[Proselytizing] is a version of being spiritually raped and you are being spiritually raped by fundamentalist Christian religious predators," Weinstein told Fox News.
The Pentagon confirmed to Fox News that Christian evangelism is against regulations. "Religious proselytization is not permitted within the Department of Defense, LCDR Nate Christensen said in a written statement. He declined to say if any chaplains or service members had been prosecuted for such an offense.
Threat Level: Unclear. Michael L. "Mikey" Weinstein, who served as White House Counsel in the Reagan administration and general counsel to H.Ross Perot, is an anti-religion extremist who is not taken seriously by anyone that is not on the secular political left. But if Pentagon officials become convinced that his peculiar anti-evangelism perspective is indeed within the bounds of military regulations, it could mean that members of the military could be prosecuted from sharing their faith—or even having a faith-based bumper sticker on their car.
Why It Matters: In a recent article for The Huffington Post, Weinstein provides an example of his bizarre hatred of Christianity,
I founded the civil rights fighting organization the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) to do one thing: fight those monsters who would tear down the Constitutionally-mandated wall separating church and state in the technologically most lethal entity ever created by humankind, the U.S. military.
Today, we face incredibly well-funded gangs of fundamentalist Christian monsters who terrorize their fellow Americans by forcing their weaponized and twisted version of Christianity upon their helpless subordinates in our nation’s armed forces.
And as with most threats to religious freedom, at the core is the incompatibility between Christianity and normalization of homosexuality:
We should as a nation effusively applaud Lt. Col. Rich for his absolutely correct characterization of anti-gay religious extremist organizations as "hate groups" with no place in today’s U.S. military. But we are compelled to venture even further. We MUST vigorously support the continuing efforts to expose pathologically anti-gay, Islamophobic, and rabidly intolerant agitators for what they are: die-hard enemies of the United States Constitution. Monsters, one and all. To do any less would be to roll out a red carpet to those who would usher in a blood-drenched, draconian era of persecutions, nationalistic militarism, and superstitious theocracy. Human history is all too festooned and replete with countless examples of such bleak and forlorn tragedies.
If these fundamentalist Christian monsters of human degradation, marginalization, humiliation and tyranny cannot broker or barter your acceptance of their putrid theology, then they crave for your universal silence in the face of their rapacious reign of theocratic terror. Indeed, they ceaselessly lust, ache, and pine for you to do absolutely nothing to thwart their oppression. Comply, my friends, and you, too, become as monstrously savage as are they. I beg you, do not feed these hideous monsters with your stoic lethargy, callousness and neutrality. Do not lubricate the path of their racism, bigotry, and prejudice. Doing so directly threatens the national security of our beautiful nation.
There was a time—just a few years ago, in fact—when we could laugh off such views by extremists like Weinstein. But the political climate has become increasingly hostile to religious liberties and all threats must be watched more carefully.
The issue, of course, is not that Weinstein’s views will be adopted wholesale by the military. The concern is that when the outer boundary of what is considered legitimate opinion expands, what is considered the "center" shifts away from commonsense and rationality. When folks like Weinsten are taken seriously when they call evangelicals "pathologically anti-gay, Islamophobic, and rabidly intolerant agitators" it makes it easier for the public to say, "That’s going a bit far. Why not just call them bigots?"
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Online Source: The Gospel Coalition
Evangelism Corner #1 – What is Evangelism?
Adapted from “Crossing the Barriers”, Truth For Life Ministries
If we are to arrive at an answer to the question ‘What is Evangelism?’ we probably should begin by defining terms.
1. To evangelize (euangelizomai)
This verb is used fifty-two times in the New Testament, including twenty-five by Luke and twenty-one by Paul. Its essential meaning is simply to announce or proclaim good news. Some examples of its use are listed below.
Luk 4:18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
Luk 8:1 Soon afterward he went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with him,
Act 8:12 But when they believed Philip as he preached good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.
Act 10:36 As for the word that he sent to Israel, preaching good news of peace through Jesus Christ (he is Lord of all),
2. The gospel (euangelion)
The noun form, which means simply ‘good news” occurs seventy-two times in the New Testament, fifty-four of which come in Paul’s writings. By examining passages where the word ‘gospel’ is used, we learn some important things about the gospel.
It is the gospel of the Kingdom .
Mat 4:23 And he went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people.
Mat 9:35 And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction.
It is the gospel of God.
Mark 1:14 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God,
1Th 2:2 But though we had already suffered and been shamefully treated at Philippi, as you know, we had boldness in our God to declare to you the gospel of God in the midst of much conflict.
1Th 2:8 So, being affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you had become very dear to us.
1Th 2:9 For you remember, brothers, our labor and toil: we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you, while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God.
The gospel of God is the Good News about God, who He is, how He came, and what He’s done, as well as the Good News from God – God has revealed Himself and it is His Good News.
It is the gospel of Christ.
Mark 1:1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
2Co 9:13 By their approval of this service, they will glorify God because of your submission flowing from your confession of the gospel of Christ, and the generosity of your contribution for them and for all others,
Not only did Jesus bring the Gospel, he also embodied it.
It is a gospel that people, by nature, cannot see or understand.
2Co 4:4 In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
It is a gospel for all nations.
Mar 13:10 And the gospel must first be proclaimed to all nations.
Mar 16:15 And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.
Rom 10:11-13 For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
It is a gospel that must be personally received.
1Co 15:1-2 Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you–unless you believed in vain.
Mar 1:14-15 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”
The notion that since Jesus died upon the cross all men are automatically forgiven cannot be squared with the biblical insistence upon a wholehearted personal response to the gospel.
Rom 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
Having looked at a number of biblical words let us set down a working definition as to what it means to evangelize.
To evangelize is to present Christ Jesus to sinful people in order that, through the power of the Holy Spirit, they may come to put their trust in God through Him.
Finally, let us consider a number of statements alongside this definition in seeking to answer our original question.
1. Evangelism is the normal life of the healthy church and can never been regarded as an optional extra.
2. Evangelism is the privilege and responsibility of every member of Christ’s body.
3. While the gift of evangelism is unique to some, the responsibility of witnessing falls to all without exception
4. Evangelism is supremely God’s work in people, in which he enlists human cooperation
5. Evangelism is essentially a process rather than a program.
Does America have a prayer?
Thursday, May 2, 2013, is the National Day of Prayer. Yet things are not right in the land. We pray, “May God bless America.” But perhaps it should be, “May God have mercy on America.”
As we survey the modern American landscape, we see many examples that things are not right: more than 55 million abortions in America since 1973, rampant pornography, mass shootings, promotion of “gay marriage,” dissolution of marriage in general, runaway debt that will enslave our children and grandchildren, threats to our religious liberty like never before.
And yet our national motto is still “In God We Trust.” I always remember the sign in the ice cream shop (by the cash register) that said: “In God we trust. All others pay cash.”
Prayer is deep in the American tradition – even national prayer. We can see multiple examples of this in Bill Federer’s great book, “America’s God & Country.” During the days of the American War for Independence, the Continental Congress often put out the word for all the citizens to pray and fast, such as May 17, 1776 – a National Day of Humiliation, Fasting and Prayer.
On that day, the Congress prayed, “that we may with united hearts confess and bewail our manifold sins and transgressions, and by a sincere repentance and amendment of life appease God’s righteous displeasure, and through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ obtain His pardon and forgiveness.”
At Valley Forge, Gen. George Washington gave this order on April 12, 1778 (speaking of himself in the third person): “The General directs that the day [April 22, 1778] shall be most religiously observed in the Army; that no work shall be done thereon, and that the several chaplains do prepare discourses suitable to the occasion.”
Even some of the less religious Founding Fathers, like Ben Franklin, saw the importance of prayer. He made an impassioned plea during the constitutional convention that they pray, and a variation of his request was adopted. He once said, “Work as if you were to live 100 years; pray as if you were to die tomorrow.”
Samuel Adams, the lightning rod for American independence, later became the governor of Massachusetts. On Oct. 14, 1795, he declared a day of fasting and prayer, which included this petition: “That God would be pleased to guide and direct the administration of the Federal government, and those of the several states, in union, so that the whole people may continue to be safe and happy in the constitutional enjoyment of their rights, liberties and privileges, and our governments be greatly respected at home and abroad. …”
John Adams, signer of the Declaration of Independence and second president of the United States, in proclaiming a national day of prayer asked that God “would smile on our colleges, academies, schools, and seminaries of learning, and make them nurseries of sound science, morals, and religion …” (National Day of Humiliation, Fasting, and Prayer, March 6, 1799).
John Jay, co-author of the Federalist Papers and first Supreme Court chief justice, said, “The most effectual means of securing the continuance of our civil and religious liberties is, always to remember with reverence and gratitude the Source from which they flow” (June 29, 1826).
James Madison, co-author of the Federalist Papers, fourth president of the United States, who was a major player at the Constitutional Convention, issued a national day of prayer (July 9, 1812) during our second war with Great Britain (the War of 1812).
Madison proclaimed that a day “be set apart for the devout purpose of rendering the Sovereign of the Universe and the Benefactor of mankind the public homage due to His holy attributes; of acknowledging the transgressions which might justly provoke the manifestations of His divine displeasure; of seeking His merciful forgiveness, and His assistance in the great duties of repentance and amendment. …”
Various presidents have often declared national days of prayer and of thanksgiving to God. Abraham Lincoln said of prayer: “I have been driven many times to my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go.”
Since the Truman administration, there has been a National Day of Prayer. Ronald Reagan made it the first Thursday of each May. President Reagan once said about our nation and prayer: “We can’t have it both ways. We can’t expect God to protect us in a crisis and just leave Him over there on the shelf in our day-to-day living.”
Of course, there are many today who scoff at the notion of prayer, corporate or individual. Some view it as accomplishing absolutely nothing. Liberal activist Saul Alinsky said as much.
But prayer can be very hard work. Besides, prayer is not nor should ever be an excuse for doing nothing. It’s not an either/or. It’s a both/and.
Many times in many municipalities we find that at noon on the National Day of Prayer, right outside of city hall, various people of good will gather to pray. Sometimes the mayor will even join the participants. All are welcome.
Of course, we should pray without ceasing – not just on one day of the year. But it’s nice to have an annual reminder on the National Day of Prayer of our great need for God’s help, all year round.
My wife has a needlepoint she made hanging up in our front hall. It sums it all up: “Life is fragile. Handle with prayer.”
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Jerry Newcombe, D.Min., is the co-host of "Truth That Transforms with D. James Kennedy" (formerly "The Coral Ridge Hour")
The Providence of Jesus
The feeding of the five thousand, recorded in Matthew 14:13–21, is probably the most well known of all of Jesus’ miracles. It is the only one recorded by all four of the gospel writers (see Mark 6:30–44; Luke 9:10–19; John 6:1–14). It is also one that skeptics have most often tried to explain away. A common explanation is that the little boy’s example of generosity in giving his bread and fish to Jesus prompted others to share the food they had brought along, so that there was enough for all.
That this was an amazing miracle is beyond doubt. To use a contemporary expression, it was “over the top.” It is impossible to visualize in our minds what it must have looked like, and the extreme brevity of the account tempts us to fill in the details. But we should refrain from doing so, knowing that the Holy Spirit guided the gospel writers to give us only as much detail as He wanted us to know.
Rather than puzzling over omitted details, we need to ask of any portion of Scripture what it teaches us. Without claiming to have plumbed the depths of this passage, let me draw out one obvious lesson: Jesus controls the physical universe, and He exercises that control for His people.
Scripture teaches us that the Son of God was not only the agent of creation, but that He also upholds the universe and holds it together by the word of His power (Heb. 1:1–3; Col. 1:16–17). That is, He who created the universe in the beginning also sustains and directs it moment by moment on a continual basis. We know, for example, that ordinarily the physical laws of the universe operate in a consistent and predictable manner. The reason they do is because of the consistent will of Christ causing them to do so. They do not operate on their own.
This helps us understand why Jesus could perform miracles; in this case causing five small barley cakes and two small fish to multiply so dramatically that they fed more than five thousand people. Jesus, who created the physical laws and stands outside of them and over them, could, as He purposed, change or countermand any of them. In fact He could, if He so willed, create an entirely new law of multiplication for that specific occasion so that the bread and fish multiplied.
We really don’t know what Jesus did, or what the multiplication process looked like. We only know the results, and we know that the Lord of the universe could, in whatever way He chose, produce those miraculous results. Miracles were no problem for Jesus.
Today, at least in the Western world, we seem to see few miracles, and certainly none the scope of the feeding of the five thousand. What we do see, however, are the results of God’s invisible hand of providence. Setting aside the theological definition of providence to keep it simple, we may say that providence is God’s orchestrating all events and circumstances in the universe for His glory and the good of His people (Rom. 8:28).
Scripture teaches us that just as the Son of God was the agent of creation and is its present sustainer, so too is He also the agent of God’s providence. Jesus is in sovereign control, not only of the physical laws of the universe, but of all the events and circumstances in the universe, including those that happen to each of us. If you have food today in your cupboard and refrigerator, that is as much the result of Jesus’ care for you as was the feeding of the five thousand.
Just as the physical laws of the universe ordinarily operate in a consistent and predictable manner, so providence ordinarily operates in a predictable cause and effect relationship. “A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich” (Prov. 10:4). That’s cause and effect, and it is generally predictable. But just as Jesus intervened in the physical laws during His time on earth, so He intervenes in normal cause-and-effect relationships. Sometimes from our perspective His intervention is “good” and sometimes it’s “bad.” In either case He is in control “Is it not from the mouth of the Most High that good and bad come?” (Lam. 3:38).
The good news, however, is that Jesus is not only in control of all the events and circumstances of our lives, He is also compassionate. In the record of the feeding of the five thousand, the text says “He had compassion on them and healed their sick” (Matt. 14:14). At the subsequent feeding of the four thousand, Jesus said, “I have compassion on the crowd because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat” (Matt. 15:32). Whether it was healing the sick or feeding the multitude, Jesus was moved to act by His compassion. On other occasions throughout the Gospels we see Jesus acting as a result of His compassion. And what He was while on earth, He is today in heaven: a sovereign and compassionate Savior who works all things for His glory and our good.
Pentagon Taps Anti-Christian Extremist for Religious Tolerance Policy
by Ken Klukowski, Breitbart.com
“Today, we face incredibly well-funded gangs of fundamentalist Christian monsters who terrorize their fellow Americans by forcing their weaponized and twisted version of Christianity upon their helpless subordinates in our nation’s armed forces.”
Those words were recently written by Mikey Weinstein, founder of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF), in a column he wrote for the Huffington Post. Weinstein will be a consultant to the Pentagon to develop new policies on religious tolerance, including a policy for court-martialing military chaplains who share the Christian Gospel during spiritual counseling of American troops.
Weinstein decries what he calls the “virulent religious oppression” perpetrated by conservative Christians, whom he refers to as “monstrosities” and “pitiable unconstitutional carpetbaggers,” comparing them to “bigots” in the Deep South during the civil rights era.
He cites Dr. James Dobson—the famous Christian founder of Focus on the Family—as “illustrating the extremist, militant nature of these virulently homophobic organizations’ rhetorically-charged propaganda.” Regarding those who teach orthodox Christian beliefs from the Bible, Weinstein concludes, “Let’s call these ignoble actions what they are: the senseless and cowardly squallings of human monsters.”
Weinstein then endorses the ultra-left Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), who publishes a list of “hate groups.” Alongside truly deplorable organizations like the KKK, the SPLC’s list includes a host of traditional Christian organizations (for their support of traditional marriage) and Tea Party organizations (for supporting limited government). Weinstein says SPLC correctly labels them all as “hate groups.”
Floyd Lee Corkins—the first person ever convicted of domestic terrorism in federal court under the laws of Washington, D.C.—told the FBI that he chose his intended shooting spree targets from the SPLC website’s map. Corkins was arrested at the offices of the Family Research Council (FRC) after shooting a security guard in August 2012. His court documents state that Corkins intended to kill as many people as possible.
Weinstein also supports Lt. Col. Jack Rich, the Army officer who wrote to subordinate officers that soldiers who hold traditional Christian beliefs agreeing with organizations on SPLC’s “hate group” list are incompatible with “Army values" and should be carefully watched and excluded from military service.
According to Weinstein, “We should as a nation effusively applaud Lt. Col. Rich.” He adds that the nation should “venture further” than Rich’s recommendations, saying, “We MUST vigorously support the continuing efforts to expose pathologically anti-gay, Islamaphobic, and rabidly intolerant agitators for what they are: die-hard enemies of the United States Constitution. Monsters, one and all. To do anything less would be to roll out a red carpet to those who would usher in a blood-drenched, draconian era of persecutions, nationalistic militarism, and superstitious theocracy.”
Many media outlets are silent on this disturbing new alliance between fanatical secularists and leaders in the Pentagon appointed by President Barack Obama and Secretary Chuck Hagel, under which the U.S. military would officially consult with someone with such foaming-at-the-mouth passionate hostility toward traditional Christians, including Evangelicals and devout Catholics. The military—America’s most heroic and noble institution—includes countless people of faith, and this represents a radical departure from the U.S. military’s warm embrace of people of faith in its ranks.
Yet the little coverage this story is getting is positive, such as this Washington Post column that somehow manages not to carry any of these frightening quotes from Weinstein and instead actually endorses the Pentagon’s meeting with him. Sally Quinn’s Post column also approvingly quotes MRFF Advisory Board member Larry Wilkerson as saying, “Sexual assault and proselytizing, according to Wilkerson, ‘are absolutely destructive of the bonds that keep soldiers together.’”
Did you get that? They say having someone share the Christian gospel with you is akin to being raped. Weinstein makes sure there are no doubts, being quoted by the Post as adding, “This is a national security threat. What is happening [aside from sexual assault] is spiritual rape. And what the Pentagon needs is to understand is that it is sedition and treason. It should be punished.”
Another MRFF Advisory Board member, Ambassador Joe Wilson (the far-left husband of CIA employee Valerie Plame from the Iraq War’s yellow-cake uranium scandal a decade ago), said a military chaplain “is to minister to spiritual needs. You don’t proselytize. It’s a workplace violation.”
In other words, it should be the official policy of the United States to decree what a human being’s spiritual needs are, and punish for violations a military officer who is an ordained clergyman who attempts to share his own personal faith with another service member when discussing religious matters. You cannot imagine such a thing ever happening under any previous president.
Weinstein goes on:
If these fundamentalist Christian monsters of human degradation … and tyranny cannot broker or barter your acceptance of their putrid theology, then they crave for your universal silence in the face of their rapacious reign of theocratic terror. Indeed, they ceaselessly lust, ache, and pine for you to do absolutely nothing to thwart their oppression. Comply, my friends, and you become as monstrously savage as are they. I beg you, do not feed these hideous monsters with your stoic lethargy, callousness and neutrality. Do not lubricate the path of their racism, bigotry, and prejudice. Doing so directly threatens the national security of our beautiful nation.
God help us now when someone with such visceral hatred of conservative Christians—literally tens of millions of Americans—who says sharing this gospel is “spiritual rape” is helping develop policies for how to deal with Christians in the military.
Weinstein says those guilty of this “treason” must be “punished.” Under federal law, the penalty for treason is death. And the Obama administration is sitting down to talk with this man to craft new policies for “religious tolerance” in our military.
Breitbart News legal columnist Ken Klukowski is senior fellow for religious liberty at the Family Research Council and on faculty at Liberty University School of Law.
Same-Sex Marriage as a Civil Right: Are Wrongs Rights?
Albert Mohler, President, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
We should have seen it coming. Back in 1989 two young activists pushing for the normalization of homosexuality coauthored a book intended to serve as a political strategy manual and public relations guide for their movement. In After the Ball: How America Will Conquer its Fear and Hatred of Gays in the 90s, authors Marshall Kirk and Hunter Madsen argued that efforts to normalize homosexuality and homosexual relationships would fail unless their movement shifted its argument to a demand for civil rights, rather than for moral acceptance. Kirk and Madsen argued that homosexual activists and their allies should avoid talking about sex and sexuality. Instead, “the imagery of sex per se should be downplayed, and the issue of gay rights reduced, as far as possible, to an abstract social question.”
Beyond Kirk and Madsen and their public relations strategy, an even more effective legal strategy was developed along the same lines. Legal theorists and litigators began to argue that homosexuals were a class of citizens denied basic civil liberties, and that the courts should declare them to be a protected class, using civil rights precedents to force a moral and legal revolution.
That revolution has happened, and it has been stunningly successful. The advocates for the normalization of homosexuality and the legalization of same-sex marriage have used legal arguments developed from the civil rights era to their advantage. Arguments used to end the scourge of racial segregation were deployed to normalize homosexuality and homosexual relationships. Over the years, these arguments have led to such major developments as the decriminalization of homosexual behaviors, the inclusion of homosexuals within the United States military, and the legalization of same-sex marriage in some states.
What should Christians think about this? We do believe in civil rights. Taken at face value, civil rights are those rights that a person should be recognized to possess simply because he or she is a citizen. Christians should welcome the recognition of civil rights, understanding that the very notion of such rights is based on a Christian worldview and the affirmation that every human being is made in God’s image, and therefore possesses dignity and certain essential rights. In the language of the Declaration of Independence, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
Even as secularists do their best to establish some grounding for civil rights without reference to God, the founding language of our nation — in agreement with biblical principles — clearly affirms that these liberties are given to all people by the Creator.
Beyond this fact, we must be thankful that an expanding understanding of civil rights has led our nation to address wrongs and to make moral progress in ending wrongful discrimination. The civil rights movement of the late twentieth century saw America come face to face with the reality that, as a nation, we were not living up to our own commitment to those rights.
The key question we now face is this: Does recognition of civil rights for all people require the normalization of homosexuality and the legalization of same-sex marriage?
That is precisely what gay rights proponents have been claiming for the past thirty years, and their arguments have gained much ground. In 2003 the Supreme Court struck down criminal laws against homosexual behavior in the decision known as Lawrence v. Texas. Writing for the majority, Justice Anthony Kennedy argued that the Constitution does not allow for the criminalization of homosexual acts, since such laws would deny a specific class of persons their basic civil rights. A series of similar court decisions has followed, with several courts ruling that outlawing same-sex marriage is a similar denial of a civil right.
When Rights Are Wrong
At this point Christians have to think very carefully. We do not want to deny anyone his or her civil rights. To do so would not only violate the Constitution but also deny the rights that are granted, not by the government, but by the Creator. But is same-sex marriage such a right? The answer to that question must be no.
Marriage laws always discriminate. Current laws discriminate on the basis of age, marital status, and gender, as well as a host of other issues. The law itself necessarily discriminates. For instance, married people pay fewer taxes and women enjoy maternity leave. The question is whether such discrimination is right or wrong.
Discrimination on the basis of an unchangeable characteristic such as skin color would be wrong. But Christians cannot accept the argument that homosexuality is an immutable characteristic. While recognizing the complexity of issues related to sexual orientation, we cannot define a behavior as an intrinsic characteristic. On that basis, why not grant theft or other sinful behavior the same civil rights protection?
Furthermore, we recognize that marriage, like human rights, exists prior to the law. Christians understand that marriage was instituted by the Creator, who designed marriage and the family as the foundational social unit of human society. Marriage unites a man and a woman in a holy covenant that should last as long as they both live.
From the very beginning, marriage was designed as the union of one man and one woman. Every human society has recognized this meaning of marriage, and all successful civil societies have honored, protected, and defended heterosexual marriage as the union that should govern human sexuality, reproduction, intimacy, and rearing of children.
Those pushing for the legalization of same-sex marriage have been tremendously successful in convincing many people — and several courts — of their argument that same-sex marriage is a civil right. But this is a confusion of categories that Christians cannot accept.
The argument for the legalization of same-sex marriage fails in terms of any constitutional logic that our nation’s founders would have conceived. Beyond this, faithful Christians cannot accept such arguments because an even greater authority — the authority of the Bible as the Word of God — binds us.
The Bible is clear in terms of its teachings on both sexuality and marriage. As Jesus Christ declared, God intended marriage as the union of one man and one woman “from the beginning” (Matthew 19:4–6). The legalization of same-sex marriage would confuse and greatly weaken the single institution that is most central to human society and most essential to human flourishing.
Christians responding to demands for the legalization of same-sex marriage cannot accept the argument that the right to marry a person of the same gender is a civil right.
We are living in an era of moral revolution and seismic cultural change. Christians must remember that our ultimate authority is the Word of God. We are thankful for the recognition of civil rights, but we also understand that these rights will be confused in a sinful world. We must understand that the claim that same-sex marriage is a civil right reveals more than constitutional confusion — it reveals the need of every human being for nothing less than the forgiveness, healing, and redemption that can come only through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
At the end of the day, the argument over same-sex marriage is never just about same-sex marriage, and debates about civil rights are never just about civil rights. Deeper truths and worldview implications are always at stake, and it is our responsibility to make certain that we know what those are and stand humbly and compassionately for those truths, regardless of the cost.
The Battle Cry 