The Rise of Homosexuality and the Great Falling Away

By Jason Lovelace

Key Verses:

“Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.”

- 2nd Thessalonians 2.1~4

“Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.”

- Jude1.7

The Legislative passage and signing into law of the Gay ‘Marriage’ bill by the New York State Legislature and Governor Andrew Cuomo was a clear cut victory for homosexuals seeking their lifestyle to be legitimatized in Mainstream American Culture. It was also yet another of a string of defeats for the Church of Jesus Christ in the USA. Most glaring has been the Church’s response to this passage and signing of such a reprehensible bill and law: Silence. What are the reasons for this silence? Why has the church gone to sleep when it comes to issues such as this, especially with regards to the homosexual community’s push for special rights? What are we seeing in these days where sin and debauchery and depravity are heralded as acceptable and worthy of embracing, all the while the Church of Jesus Christ sits on its hands, covers its mouths and ears, and does naught to stem the flow?

The Failure of the Watchmen

Ezekiel the Prophet, in his written Oracle, presents believers with a stark and serious predicament: that of a sleepy and non-vigilant watchman. In ancient times, with cities of import having high and thick walls, it was the job of the watchmen to signal the rest of the city in case of enemy attack. Failure of the watchmen to carry out their job often led to a successful invasion and envelopment and investment of the city and all within it. The watchmen on duty in such a scenario were often treated in similar manner as traitors. Such is the case in Ezekiel 18 and 33, where the Prophet warns of the dangers of failing to warn those of the approaching sword. Those who died were not guilty on their own: the watchmen was indicted with the blood of their deaths on their heads and hands. In the Church of Jesus Christ, we have lost the watchmen. We have lost the vigilance that was the hallmark of the earlier centuries, particularly in the United States of America. Because we have not kept our guard up here in the USA, we have allowed every sin under the sun to encroach, gain a foothold, then a bridgehead, then a beachhead, and finally, inroads into the church hierarchy itself, to the extent that now, in several mainstream US Denominations, sin has gained a stronghold. It is believed and has been reported that in the church of Jesus Christ in the USA, divorce is now more rampant than in the secular world. It is also known that adultery -- once shunned and blasted as a sin worthy of the worst of shame -- is also reigning in the church. Abortion - the scourge and holocaust of the unborn being butchered in their mother’s wombs merely to appease the god of convenience - has gained such ground inside the church, that it is believed and rumored that there are more abortions performed among those in the Church, than those outside. Teenage sex, and premarital sex, is also on the rise in the church, with several mainstream denominations going so far as declaring premarital sex among teens and the college aged no longer sinful. Pornography - once relegated to the shady and embarrassed sectors of society - is a rampant problem in the church, with as many as 11% of all Protestant, Evangelical clergy admitting to being addicted. Alcoholism is also rampant, with Christians and even Church Leaders admitting to regularly imbibing, with the preaching against alcohol and its use and abuse falling to the wayside. With all of this is mind, it is no surprise that the Church of Jesus Christ in America has given up ground where it once held strongest.

A Compromised Message of Extremes

We, the Church of Jesus Christ in the United States of America, no longer preach against the damning and destructive nature of sin. In fact, in most of the popular and mainstream churches and church denominations, you would be hard pressed to find a church that still preaches or even uses the word “sin” at all, and of those that do, the message of sin is usually two-fold:

1.) Sin is an outdated, narrow, fundamentalist form of fear-mongering and is no longer valid and/or applicable in today’s society…at least, sin was we once knew it. “Sin” nowadays is more akin to failing to love our fellow man, upholding ideas that promote division, hate, and/or extremism, or failing to lend a hand to those who are downtrodden, disenfranchised, or marginalized form society. After all, this is what Jesus preached - a social gospel that is meant to heal the world’s ills - and carried out in his miraculous signs.

2.) Something we commit every day in word, thought, and deed. After all, nobody’s perfect, not even Jesus Christ himself. Did he not “sin” in his “relationships” with Mary Magdalene and/or Mary and Martha, the sisters of Lazarus? Did he not imbibe alcohol, even going so far as making the best kind at a wedding in Cana? Did he not vent his rage and uncontrolled anger when he whipped the money changers and the merchants out of the temple? If Christ himself is so besotted with sinful acts, how is it possible that we, God’s “children” can ever hope to be perfect and without sin?

It is in this vein that we have seen the rise of so-called preachers such as Robert H. Shuller and Joel Osteen (preaching a self-help gospel of works), Jim Bakker and Jimmy Swaggert (preaching a gospel of riches and wealth), Benny Hinn and Kenneth Copeland (preaching a “name-it, claim it” gospel of false faith and questionable “healings”), Rick Warren (heralding despotic dictator Bashar Assad as “Christian” and his dealings with the Church of Jesus Christ in Syria as “right” and “good” despite Assad jailing Christians while Warren was in Damascus), just to name a few. No longer do we hear from these men or their churches anything having to do with sin. In fact many preachers, such as former Spiritual Advisor to President Obama Jeremiah Wright, Jesse Jackson, and al Sharpton, preach directly against such sins as abortion on demand, all the while preaching the evils of “America” rather than that of true and real sin. Gone are such spiritual giants, such as Charles H. Spurgeon and D. L. Moody and their messages directly against sin; Jonathan Edwards and his “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”; Billy Sunday, and his outspoken stand against Alcohol; Increase and Cotton Mather and their messages against debauchery and depravity; George Whitefield and his sermons castigating sin in all its forms; and John Bunyan and his hard hitting literary work Pilgrim’s Progress. Even such spiritual giants such as Jerry Falwell, D. James Kennedy, David Wilkerson, Zola Levitt, and Billy Graham have, either through passing form this world or age, have fallen silent with few taking up their standards, though Franklin Graham, in his father’s footsteps, has continued to preach rightfully against the evils of this day and age; Zola Levitt’s prophecy organization is also continuing to grow and go strongly under the sound leadership of Dr. Jeffrey Seif. Nowadays, we hear messages on how true sin is failure to help our fellow man, having an attitude of judgment rather than love, and marginalizing those who only want to live in peace and are “really hurting no-one”. We’ve thrown away the truth of creation and have embraced Darwin’s idea of evolution - whether theistic or not - insomuch that even in the Church creation is down trodden, and evolution upheld. And holiness and preaching of such is a thing of the past; any kind of holiness preaching is marginalized and declared as unacceptable and fundamentalist extremism. The message of the true Gospel of Jesus Christ is now rejected in the church, and a compromise with sin and message of love, acceptance, and “feel good” all the rage. We have churches in the tens of thousands, where crowds gather for coffee, a doughnut, and a message with wistful and “touchy-feely” songs and a shallow self-help outline. Stadiums and arenas are filled with people seeking “help for today’s problems” rather than a lifeline away from sin and an escape route from hell. Mega-church buildings are built with the latest technology, the most up-to-date tools, and the most fashionable interior design to attract and enthrall those who enter, but entirely without substantive messages, clear stands against sin, or the warnings and the eternal nature of the Lake of Fire.

Enter Homosexuality

Is it any surprise that, with all of the above and afore mentioned running wild in the Church of Jesus Christ in the USA, we hear news stories of the United and Free Methodist Churches accepting and ordaining Gay and Lesbian pastors and clergy? Should we at all be astonished when the Episcopal Church of the USA ordains first an openly gay bishop, only to follow such an action up a few years later by ordaining and openly lesbian bishop? Should we be at all stunned when we see how the Homosexual Community has not only established a “gay” church (in the Metropolitan Community of Churches), not only entered in and gained a strong relationship in most mainline US Denominations, but has, effectively, silenced the Church of Jesus Christ when it comes to their plans for “legitimacy” and their quest for special rights? Yet such is happening exactly as this article is being typed up. In December of 2010, homosexuals were granted the “right” to openly serve in the United States Military with the overturn of “Don’t Ask; Don’t Tell” (DADT) by both houses of the United States Congress (and one of the VERY few campaign promises fulfilled by President Obama). How was this “historic” decision met by the Church of Jesus Christ? With Silence: not one word of dissent was heard by or from any major church leader when the overturn of DADT was passed nor later at the President’s December 23rd signing of the overturn into law. And there has been no word from the church or from Major Church Leaders since it took place. On June 24th, 2011, the New York State Assembly passed a “gay ‘marriage’” law that is set to take effect in 30 days from the signing by the Governor, Mr. Andrew Cuomo (who signed the law shortly after midnight on June 25th). Again, as in the previous DADT overturn, what has been the response from and by the church to this passage of bill and singing into law? What has been the reaction from Church Leaders to this latest development? Again, it has been almost complete silence. Not one word of dissent has been heard an any sector in the days since, most deafeningly by the Church of Jesus Christ in the USA. No leader whatsoever has uttered one word of dissent since this law passed last Friday and was signed into law.

The Great Falling Away: The Beginning, or…?

In the Bible, God, speaking through the pen of the Apostle Paul, warned of a coming Great Falling Away. He spoke of this falling away being one of the means in which the Antichrist is ushered into the world stage. Could it be that this overwhelming silence, the embracing of Homosexuality, and the glaring compromise of the Church on such key issues is a signal of that falling away taking place? Is this the beginning of the Falling Away….or are we already well on our way, and underway towards final destruction? Folks, this silence by the Church is simply inexplicable in any other light! The Bible speaks clearly against practicing homosexuality. The Old Testament shows time and again the demise of cities and nations that give into the practice and recognition of homosexuality as legitimate, acceptable, and worthy of being embraced. The New Testament makes it crystal clear that homosexuality will not only be judged as sinful, but those who partake are damned to an eternity without the presence of Jesus Christ. The total non-response and “ho hum” attitude of the Church in such a crucial point of society is not only surprising, but deeply troubling! If we, as the church, can so casually and blithely give up ground on such a key issue, what other strongholds of the church could be next? The Bible again gives ample proof that the acceptance and embracing of homosexuality is a sign of the worst of depravity. The only glaringly worse area of society’s acceptance that is worse than homosexuality is the shedding of innocent blood (see Proverbs 6), and, much akin to the blithe and casual acceptance of homosexuality in society, the Church has begun to accept abortion on demand as the status quo. Yes, the church has been in the thick of the fight against abortion “rights”, but -- as we have seen with homosexuality and the gay and lesbian community -- if we can so easily give ground on one issue, how much more easily will it be to accept a practice that has been on the law books for the last nearly-forty years?

America’s Manasseh is On the Throne and Judgment is Coming

The king who did more to provoke God to wrathful action against Judah was King Manasseh (see 2nd Kings and 2nd Chronicles), the son of the Great (probably greatest next to David) King Hezekiah, who - through his faithfulness to God - led Judah to victory against the Assyrians. King Manasseh did and promoted such things as we are seeing in these days in Judah and Jerusalem, insomuch as sacrificing his own son to the grotesque and grisly idol Molech. He set up idols inside of the Temple of Jerusalem, worshipped the sun, moon, stars, and the false gods from the nations around Israel and Judah. Though Manesseh later repented and basically turned around his pagan reign into one of the godliest, the damage was done: Judah was judged, sentenced, and within three generations after the passing of Manasseh, Judah had been conquered and erased as a national entity by the Babylonian Empire and Armies under King Nebuchadnezzar. Friends, the same can be said for the USA. We have had a President that was akin to Ahab for Israel in President Clinton. We had our Josiah/Hezekiah in Presidents Reagan and Bush, in which the church and belief thrived. We now have our Manasseh in the form of President Obama who -- while claiming Christ -- has acted and carried himself about in any way but, and whose spiritual mentor is a rabid, raging “preacher” and purveyor of hate and destruction. The fact that President Obama has supported Gay “Rights” albeit quietly is proof positive that he is - as Manasseh - setting up idols to the sun, moon, stars, and gods of the neighbors of Israel, both ancient and modern. We have learned naught from the September 11th, 2001 terror attacks, a day in which God, fulfilling his Word and promises in Leviticus and Deuteronomy, pulled is hand of protection away from us, and allowed the USA - a population of 300 million - to be controlled for the better part of a day (directly), and in our actions ever since (indirectly), by a mere 20 men (including the late Osama bin Laden). Friends, worse than 9/11 is in the offing if we, as a nation and a s the Church of Jesus Christ in the USA, continue to blithely stumble along, allowing deviant groups and chosen lifestyles to gain not only unprecedented rights, but to do so in the face of an Almighty God who has promised that those who sow to the flesh will reap destruction (see Galatians 5).

The Bottom Line - Homosexuality is SIN!!!

Like it or not, folks, homosexuality is NOT natural. Despite Lady Gaga’s song, people are not born gay. Homosexuality is as much a choice as deciding whether or not to eat a doughnut for breakfast, or an omelet. The science is lacking, the medical proof is non-existent, and the proof is vacant concerning homosexuality being “natural”. Quite the contrary, homosexuality is a sin, something the Lord himself has spoken out against time and time again in the Bible. Those who practice homosexuality - just like those who practice bank robbing or practice murder or practice lying - will not enter into heaven. No matter how Hollywood portrays it, no matter how television makes it look acceptable, no matter how many homosexual-led talk shows crop up, no matter how many gay and lesbian comedians become popular, the fact remains: homosexuality is a sin. Period. And God - like it or not - will one day judge sin (including homosexuality) with a heavy hand.

Conclusion - The Church Needs Revival and Needs to Take a Stand

We, the Church of Jesus Christ, need ot wake up and smell the coffee. This world around us is decaying by the minute, and we can either be salt and light, or we can be cast out and spewed out (see Matthew 5 and Revelation 3). So long as we, the Church of Jesus Christ in the USA, stand idly by and allow sin to have reign in our land and nation, so too we will be counted as not only irrelevant by an unbelieving world, but God, too, will withdraw his glory and his lamp stand, and will give it and his Spirit to someone else. As Esther did, we, too, need to decide to follow God wholeheartedly, or we need to get out of his way and let him work through someone and/or something else. So long as we try to get along with the world, we are, in actuality, going along with the world. Silence is not an option. Standing blithely by is not an option. Throwing up our hands and saying “It can’t be done!” and “My little will have no impact!” and “We can’t save the world!” is also not an option. We need to fish or cut bait. It is my prayer that we, the Church of Jesus Christ, will hit our knees, and beg God for forgiveness, as Daniel did in Daniel 9, and experience a revival the likes of such hasn’t hit our shores in generations. The alternative is not pretty…

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we need revival. We need revival today! Start in this life and this heart, O Lord! Save our Nation and stay the judgment that is surely and certainly coming! Bring full and free salvation to each and every self-professing homosexual in the USA and in the world! May they come to know the saving, freeing grace of Jesus Christ! We pray this in Jesus’ Precious Name, Amen!

Verse to Remember:

“For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of that obey not the gospel of God? And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?”

- 1st Peter 4.17~18

What Love Really Is

Key Verses:

“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”

--John 15.13

“For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.”

--Hebrews 12.6

“Thou shalt also consider in thine heart, that, as a man chasteneth his son, so the LORD thy God chasteneth thee.”

--Deuteronomy 8.5

Recently, this writer was accused indirectly of not being loving nor of having an attitude of love when commenting on the recent passing and signing into law of a Gay “marriage” bill by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. This accusation stated the two laws that Jesus stated when questioned by a lawyer:

“And Jesus answered him, ‘The first of all the commandments is, “Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength:” this is the first commandment. And the second is like, namely this, “Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.”’”

--Mark 12.29~31

What constitutes Biblical love? Is it the kind of love that is permissive and allows an “anything goes” attitude? Does (and should) love come with rules and guidelines?

“Shouldn’t Christians Be Loving?”

Invariably when commenting concerning some social ill (read: Social Sin) and showing dissent and opposition, the unbelieving world, and usually those in support of whatever social “advancement” is being scrutinized, ultimately rise and ask the above question that heads this section, or some question similar to it. Said Christians - such as this writer - are also invariably lectured by an unbelieving world on how Jesus Christ was loving and compassionate and kind and that we need to act as He lived on earth. This writer will be the first to admit that there are elements inside the Church that take, and have taken in the past (this writer included), an attitude that was decidedly NOT Christlike. As such, this writer has taken great steps to try and come across with a more loving attitude. However, there are also elements of the world that seem to miscategorize the love of Jesus Christ, and rather mean that Christians should have no opposition to whatever social sin that is being promoted. In reality, these statements really seem to be designed to silence Christians in our opposition, rather than to remind us of any kind of love. Normally, in the same breath or sentence as the one in which Christians are deemed unloving, we are also told that we shouldn’t judge (again, a misnomer in that those opposing [themselves, quite literally, actually {Acts 18.6; 2nd Timothy 2.25}] Christians on social sins generally want the likes of us to “shut up”). Yet the fact of the matter is, love isn’t about being liberally permissive. Love isn’t about letting sin reign and wickedness destroy the things and people that we love. Love is about caring for people enough to, literally, die for them.

The Love of Jesus Christ

We hear a lot about the Love of Jesus Christ. It is amazing to this writer that those who follow Him the least should be so quick to point out His Love. All that aside, it is a quite revealing thing to read the Bible and see what the Love of Jesus Christ is. Many people and scholars seem to believe and think that Jesus was misunderstood, a Rabbi who went against the grain, and that is why he was crucified. The actual truth is probably too much to swallow, because it wasn’t radical theology, going against the grain, failing to understand Him, nor anything else (save perhaps jealousy on the part of the Sanhedrin and High Priest) that put Jesus Christ on the cross; it was Love. This love can be seen in two forms: first, in Christ’s desire to pave the way for Sinners to be able to enter heaven as forgiven, repenting, Holy Ghost filled believers. Christ even states it this way in his inerrant, written Word:

“Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.”

--John 10.17~18

Nobody took Jesus’ life from him, and no man could:

“Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels?”

--Matthew 26.53

What Christ gave on the cross was given because of his love for us. The second factor of Jesus’ love dealt with the way he approached the evil of the day in which he walked the earth. By the time Jesus was born, the Jewish Faith had become extremely corrupt, and Jesus’ message not only to the Jewish Leadership, but also to the people of Judaea struck a chord, and it was a message of love. His warnings to repent, his message to his followers to leave the life of sin, and his warnings concerning Jerusalem were borne out of love. When Jesus healed the sick, cast out devils, and preached, he did so out of love. When he raised the dead, made the lame to walk, the blind to see, and the leper to live again in society, he did so because of his compassion. When he fed the 5,000 and then later the 4,000 he did this because he had compassion and love for them. When Jesus, on two occasions, cleared the temple with a homespun whip, he did so out of love: love for his Father and love for the people coming to worship in spirit and in truth. Even when Jesus was speaking of the horrors and eternal dangers of hell, and the fiery lake, he was doing so out of love. Again, it was because of this love that Jesus Christ gave himself up to the cross. His words cut and angered the Jewish Leadership, but they were borne out of love, just as his words to the adulteress, the Samaritan woman, Matthew, Zacchaeus, those wanting to bring their children to him, and to his apostles were also borne out of love. All that Jesus Christ did and said were done out of love, both for the Heavenly Father and for people.

The Bible - God’s Love Letter to Man

In fact, the entirety of the Bible is a book of love to people. It is a document of God’s love and his desire for relationship with his creation. This may sound crazy in light of some of the harsh punishments that were demanded and meted out for the seemingly slightest infraction against God’s commandments and his words, but keep in mind that God had these laws, commands, and rules written down precisely because he loved and still loves people, and wants them to live in holiness, truth, and freedom. While many who condemn God for the wiping out of the Canaanites and of the antediluvian civilizations, people also fail to remember that God patiently waited for thousands of years for the antediluvian people to return to him, and for nearly a thousand years for the Canaanites. Who but a Loving God would wait so long? Even God’s ordering to - or doing so himself, as in Exodus with the firstborn of Egypt - destroy children was an order born out of love. Again, this may read insane, but it is the truth. Leviticus 18 and 20 get pretty graphic when it comes to the descriptions of what the Canaanites were doing to themselves and to their own children. 1st Kings describes this love and this reasoning very clearly:

“At that time Abijah the son of Jeroboam fell sick. And Jeroboam said to his wife, Arise, I pray thee, and disguise thyself, that thou be not known to be the wife of Jeroboam; and get thee to Shiloh: behold, there is Ahijah the prophet, which told me that I should be king over this people. And take with thee ten loaves, and cracknels, and a cruse of honey, and go to him: he shall tell thee what shall become of the child. And Jeroboam's wife did so, and arose, and went to Shiloh, and came to the house of Ahijah. But Ahijah could not see; for his eyes were set by reason of his age. And the LORD said unto Ahijah, Behold, the wife of Jeroboam cometh to ask a thing of thee for her son; for he is sick: thus and thus shalt thou say unto her: for it shall be, when she cometh in, that she shall feign herself to be another woman. And it was so, when Ahijah heard the sound of her feet, as she came in at the door, that he said, Come in, thou wife of Jeroboam; why feignest thou thyself to be another? for I am sent to thee with heavy tidings. Go, tell Jeroboam, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Forasmuch as I exalted thee from among the people, and made thee prince over my people Israel, And rent the kingdom away from the house of David, and gave it thee: and yet thou hast not been as my servant David, who kept my commandments, and who followed me with all his heart, to do that only which was right in mine eyes; But hast done evil above all that were before thee: for thou hast gone and made thee other gods, and molten images, to provoke me to anger, and hast cast me behind thy back: Therefore, behold, I will bring evil upon the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel, and will take away the remnant of the house of Jeroboam, as a man taketh away dung, till it be all gone. Him that dieth of Jeroboam in the city shall the dogs eat; and him that dieth in the field shall the fowls of the air eat: for the LORD hath spoken it. Arise thou therefore, get thee to thine own house: and when thy feet enter into the city, the child shall die. And all Israel shall mourn for him, and bury him: for he only of Jeroboam shall come to the grave, because in him there is found some good thing toward the LORD God of Israel in the house of Jeroboam. Moreover the LORD shall raise him up a king over Israel, who shall cut off the house of Jeroboam that day: but what? even now. For the LORD shall smite Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water, and he shall root up Israel out of this good land, which he gave to their fathers, and shall scatter them beyond the river, because they have made their groves, provoking the LORD to anger. And he shall give Israel up because of the sins of Jeroboam, who did sin, and who made Israel to sin. And Jeroboam's wife arose, and departed, and came to Tirzah: and when she came to the threshold of the door, the child died; And they buried him; and all Israel mourned for him, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by the hand of his servant Ahijah the prophet.”

--1st Kings 14.1~18

The Bible also has this to say concerning the destruction of anyone:

“The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”

--2nd Peter 3.9

“Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?”

--Ezekiel 33.11

“For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord GOD: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye.”

--Ezekiel 18.32

“Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? saith the Lord GOD: and not that he should return from his ways, and live?”

--Ezekiel 18.23

And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and to the fourth generation.

--Exodus 34.6~7

“Thou shalt not make thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the waters beneath the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me, And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments.”

--Deuteronomy 5.8~10

“Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.”

--Exodus 20.4~6

It is entirely amazing that agnostics and self-proclaimed atheists will pound the pulpit (no pun intended) in demanding answers from God and from his followers concerning the destruction of children at the hands of the Israelites, yet are either glaringly silent or obtrusively ignorant of the fact that the Canaanites and the antediluvian civilizations were killing their own children -- often in gruesome, grisly, grotesque fashion (such as roasting them alive in the metal or stone arms of Baal, the ancient god of the Middle East) -- with far more suffering than God ever allowed the Israelites to carry out in the Bible. In fact, god DIDN’T allow the Israelites the opportunity to force their enemies to suffer, unlike other ancient Near and Middle Eastern cultures and civilizations. The patience and eventual wrath of God were and are borne out of his love for people. This is what God’s written Word is all about: Love. You see, we are given the Bible - both Old and New Testaments - to peruse, study, read, and live because God wants us to know his love for us. God’s chastisement, as well - as we have seen in the Key Verses above - are borne out of his love for us. If God didn’t love his people, his creation, is it logical that he would even talk to people, let alone send us his word, and his Only Begotten Son? If God didn’t love us, he wouldn’t have bothered. It is in fact because of God’s unconditional love for us that he came down, took human flesh, spoke the truth in love, and stretched out his hands on the cruel Roman Cross and died…and then rose again form the dead.

Christians - No Different than Christ Himself

You see? All of the above is why Christians stand and warn the unbelieving world of the dangers of sin. We are really continuing the work of Jesus Christ when we take a stand for what is right and good. When we stand and speak out against the social sins that pervade and invade society as they have done, we are doing no differently than Christ did when he was walking physically on the earth. Christ spoke these words as recorded in Matthew:

“Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.”

--Matthew 5.13~16

As we already know, salt is a cleanser. We hear the idiom “salt in a wound”, but in reality salt in a wound is a good thing, as salt eradicates infection and prevents the wound from festering. Light does similarly: it is a cleanser and a purifier, as it brings impurities and perfections out to be seen, and, given time -- especially sunlight -- will cleanse them away. Salt is also a preserving agent. In the past, before refrigeration - and in places where refrigerators are either a luxury or non-existent - people used salt to preserve meat and to keep it from spoiling. Pickling is simply preserving food in a heavy salt brine. Light in a similar fashion preserves vision, and makes things easier to see. This is what Christians are doing when we speak out against the moral decay all around us, with the added caveat that we are doing so out of love. If we didn’t love people, we wouldn’t bother. If we didn’t love you and wanted you, reader, and your friends and loved ones to suffer the eternal heat and forever fires of the fiery lake, we wouldn’t utter a word to you nor to anyone else. It is this love that compels us to oppose things such as the New York Gay ‘Marriage’ law. This law will do naught but bring about further decay and destruction for the USA. While it is painful to hear and/or read -- just as is salting a wound or looking into light after being in darkness for a lengthy amount of time -- words of opposition to gay ‘marriage’ and other sins found in society are done out of love. It may seem hateful to say and speak out in opposition to something such as this, but it is no more hateful than a doctor salting a wound in order to preserve life.

Christians Hate…But Never People

We hate. There, it has been said: Christians hate….but we do not hate people: we hate sin. Just as Jesus came and spoke out against sin, changing lives in the process, we, too, his followers, also hate sin. That’s because sin brings death, both physical and eternal. We hate sin, but we love people. Notice that the word “should” isn’t being used: this is because love for people isn’t an option. Hating sin isn’t an option, either. Reader, we love you. More importantly by a factor of infinity is the love of Jesus Christ for you. These words and this article are written to let you know that we love you. If we didn’t love you, we’d pass blithely by and let you continue on your way to the flames. It is no different than a scenario in which your home is on fire and you and your family are all asleep. If we passed idly by, seeing the fire, seeing the smoke, yet did naught to help you or your family, would we be showing you love? If we know that a bridge is out, and see you and your family driving by on that road, would we be loving you if we let you and yours pass on to certain destruction? No, rather, we will do everything in our strength and power to keep you from falling off of the broken bridge, and we will do whatever it takes to rescue you from your burning house. It is no different in this case. Believe it or not, gay ‘marriage’, abortion on demand, alcohol consumption, drug use, sex aside from marriage, and lusting are the flames of the house that is on fire all around you. We see these flames, and when we speak the Name of Jesus Christ, when we warn you of the impending doom that awaits not only homosexuals, adulterers, whoremongers, alcoholics, liars, and other practicing sinners, but also for the USA as a whole, we are attempting to see that you get rescued from your burning house; we are trying to warn you that the bridge of eternity is out, and that travelling down a busted-bridge road will only end in disaster for you. This is why we hate sin, because sin brings death, and death is the enemy of life and of Jesus Christ (an enemy he has defeated).

The Bottom Line - Jesus Wants to Be Your Father

This is the simple truth of the Bible. Just as good Dads discipline their children, so God must needs discipline his children from time to time. And this statement ought to cause us all to wonder: if we are believers and we haven’t been corrected nor disciplined, it’s time to take a look at our heart. Is there unrepentant sin? Is there enmity with god? Reader, if you know not Christ, do the words of Christians cut deeply? It is Christ trying to get your attention. Are you listening? He wants you -- so much more than we do -- to avoid hell insomuch that he laid down his very life in order to give you the opportunity to be in heaven with him. Essentially, Christ would rather die than have you miss heaven (and it is exactly what he did). Christ wants to be your Father, your Brother, your Savior, your Best Friend. This is the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. This is why he came!

Conclusion - We Love Because He First Loved Us

The Apostle John is crystal clear:

“We love him, because he first loved us.”

--1st John 4.19

We love Jesus because he first loved us. We love you because Jesus first loved us. We love your family and your friends because Jesus first loved us. We speak out against sin and stand up for the things that are right because he first loved us! Yes, our words may seem harsh; yes, they may seem narrow; yes, they may seem difficult…but we speak them out of love. Reader, if we hated you, we’d not utter a single word. We love you, Christ loves you! Won’t you come to him today?

Prayer

Heavenly Father, help us to love in the same manner as your Son, Jesus Christ. Help us to speak the truth no matter the cost, and help us to do so lovingly. We pray this in Jesus’ Name, Amen!

Verse to Remember:

“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”

--John 15.13

The Silence of What’s Right

Another “Gay ‘Rights’” vote, another “victory” for “Gay ‘Rights’” advocates, and yet the silence from the Church and from those in opposition is deafening.

I came home from classes and teaching on Friday evening to read about an historic vote in one of the most populated states in the USA:

New York governor signs law approving gay marriage

By Dan Wiessner Dan Wiessner- Saturday, June 25th, 2011

ALBANY, New York (Reuters) – Governor Andrew Cuomo made same-sex marriages legal in New York on Friday, a key victory for gay rights ahead of the 2012 presidential and congressional elections.

New York will become the sixth and most populous U.S. state to allow gay marriage. State senators voted 33-29 on Friday evening to approve marriage equality legislation and Cuomo, a Democrat who had introduced the measure, signed it into law.

"This vote today will send a message across the country. This is the way to go, the time to do it is now, and it is achievable; it's no longer a dream or an aspiration. I think you're going to see a rapid evolution," Cuomo, who is in his first year of office, told a news conference.

"We reached a new level of social justice," he said.

Same-sex weddings can start taking place in New York in 30 days, though religious institutions and nonprofit groups with religious affiliations will not be compelled to officiate at such ceremonies. The legislation also gives gay couples the right to divorce.

"I have to define doing the right thing as treating all persons with equality and that equality includes within the definition of marriage," Republican Senator Stephen Saland said before the bill was passed. He was one of four Republicans to vote for the legislation.

Cheers erupted in the Senate gallery in the state capital Albany and among a crowd of several hundred people who gathered outside New York City's Stonewall Inn, where a police raid in 1969 sparked the modern gay rights movement.

"It's about time. I want to get married. I want the same rights as anyone else," Caroline Jaeger, 36, a student, who was outside the Stonewall Inn.

But New York's Catholic bishops said they were "deeply disappointed and troubled" by the passage of the bill.

"We always treat our homosexual brothers and sisters with respect, dignity and love. But we just as strongly affirm that marriage is the joining of one man and one woman," the state's Catholic Conference said in a statement.

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, an advocate for gay marriage who lobbied state lawmakers in recent weeks, said the vote was an "historic triumph for equality and freedom."

"Together, we have taken the next big step on our national journey toward a more perfect union," he said in a statement.

Full Story: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110625/ts_nm/us_gaymarriage_newyork <http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110625/ts_nm/us_gaymarriage_newyork>

As this story has played out since this homosexual marriage bill was signed into law on Friday, it is again troubling to hear the great silence from those who stand in opposition to homosexual ‘rights’, especially concerning homosexual ‘marriage’. In the nearly-two days since New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the “Gay ‘Marriage’” bill into law, following a final vote in Senate of the New York State Legislature, nobody -- I repeat, NOBODY -- has bothered to comment or dissent on the passage of this bill and law. Not one person, Christian or otherwise, has bothered to state anything in opposition to this law, save the few law makers in New York that opposed this bill-turned-law.

And this, friends, is the kernel of the tragedy.

Where is the Church of Jesus Christ on this issue? Where are our church leaders, who are supposed to be leading form the front? Where are our men and women of the cloth who, having been called to speak out against sin in all of its forms, are supposed to be standing up for Biblical and Christian principles? Where are our watchmen on the walls? Where are Christian Journalists and Commentators, Pundits and Opinion writers, in this story? Why is there this inexplicable, uncharacteristic silence form the Church, and form Conservative Media? Where are our famous names and celebrated champions of freedom on this issue? Where is Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh? Why is the radio voice of G. Gordon Liddy silent? Where is Laura Ingraham? Why no comment on this?

A similar thing happened in December, when the “Don’t Ask; Don’t Tell” policy of the United States Military was resoundingly overturned on both houses of the Congress of the USA, and signed into law by the President in December. As was then -- when naught but a few stood up and opposed this decision to undercut our military by the U.S. Congress was passed and signed -- so it is now…and even worse: this time, NOBODY is writing in opposition to this law passed by New York.

"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."

--Edmund Burke

It seems that those in opposition to the recent “Gay ‘Marriage’” and “Gay ‘Rights’” decisions are follwoign this to the letter…..and allowing evil to prevail in their silence.

Ezekiel 33 is more succinct:

“But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come, and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman's hand.”

--Ezekiel 33.6

As was asked in December, when the “Don’t Ask; Don’t Tell” policy was overturned and later signed by the President, so it must be asked now:

WHERE ARE OUR WATCHMEN?

Why is the church silent? Why are Christians -- again, as has happened throughout the last 50 years since Administration- and Faculty-led prayer to Jesus Christ was ousted from public school -- rolling over and simply accepting what is being dictated to us? Is there not 76% of the U.S. population being Christians? Are we failing to read our Bibles, failing to see the handwriting on the wall, as literally is spoken of in Daniel 5?

Though this writer is simply a teacher and professor, and is hardly famous by any stretch of the imagination, he, for one, will stand and speak in opposition to this law and this movement by homosexuals.

We are being force-fed and forcibly led down a path to destruction. The Bible is crystal clear that sin -- and yes, folks, homosexuality is a sin (see Romans 1.18~32; Leviticus 18.22; 20,13; Jude 1.7; Genesis 18.17~19.29; Judges 19.12~20.48) -- brings death:

“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

--Romans 6.23

“Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death. Do not err, my beloved brethren.”

--James 1.13~16

“Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned…”

--Romans 5.12

“Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?”

--Romans 6.16

“Was then that which is good made death unto me? God forbid. But sin, that it might appear sin, working death in me by that which is good; that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful.”

--Romans 7.13

“The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law.”

--1st Corinthians 15.56

This death that the Bible speaks of is far greater than simply individual or physical death. First and foremost, it brings eternal death. Secondly, it brings societal and national death. Thanks in large part to the influence of homosexuality in their respective societies, the civilizations of Ancient Rome and Greece fell. Face it folks: the less that people procreate naturally and create children in the normal manner -- in a two-parent home -- the less likely it is that such a society will last very long. Already we are seeing the decay and downward slide of Western Europe thanks to the decaying mores of Western European Society, where cohabitation and homosexuality are now considered the norm, and a committed, married man and woman are quickly becoming antiquated notions of the past. Is it any surprise that Arabs and Immigrants into Europe are quickly changing the laws, the norms, and the traditions of Western Europe?

Friends, we are playing with fire. Our government and our national leaders are leading us to destruction. God doesn’t play games. September 11th was the wake-up call that we failed to answer, and because of Friday’s (June 24th) decision, we are stepping ever more forcibly towards the righteous judgment of God’s Sentence being carried out on us as a nation…and as a Church. Yes, Folks, the Church of Jesus Christ in the USA will certainly be held accountable for their silence concerning this and the “Don’t Ask; Don’t Tell” decision of last December:

“For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?”

--1st Peter 4.17

Seeing that none of the leaders of the Church in the USA will take such a stand; realizing that there are no nationally-known pastors or preachers taking up the clarion call against this travesty of a law, and understanding that God wants men and women in his church to stand and deliver, this writer will not remain silent. This “Gay ‘Marriage’” Law as passed by the New York Legislature and signed into law by Governor Cuomo is wrong. It is sinful, it is wicked, it is a sign of the USA’s slide into horrible and wretched decadence and we as a nation and a civilization here in the USA will pay the price from God if we fail to reverse course. God doesn’t play games, friends, and this law, if it isn’t at the very least vociferously denounced by the church in the very near future will only end badly for the USA and for the church in America. As this writer has written before, Nuclear 9/11 is just around the corner, and with every “victory” gained by sodomites of American Society is a step towards that as-yet-unknown date with God’s Righteous Judgment and wrath.

We need to get right with God, and we need it today.

This “Gay ‘Marriage’” Law is wrong, sinful, and wicked, and as God states in his written and inerrant Word…

“…God is angry with the wicked every day.”

--Psalm 7.11