Letter to Editor About that Fiscal Cliff!

The letter printed below was sent to editors of the following newspapers: The Indiana Gazette in Indiana PA, The Punxsutawney Spirit in Punxsutawney PA, Mainline Newspapers in Ebensburg PA, and The Tribune-Democrat in Johnstown PA.

*** *** ***

Friday, December 14, 2012

Editor:

At present time the news arena is dominated with one subject that is summarized in the expression “fiscal cliff.” As the president and the Congress attempt to maneuver for positions of great influence in this debacle, the image of a 3-ring circus quickly comes to mind.

The tragedy in this is the failure to realize that the real crisis is not the possibility of falling over a fiscal cliff but the hard reality that we have already fallen over a moral cliff!

Our version of Holocaust has resulted in over 55 million unborn victims. Our idolatry is on a level comparable to the ancient Roman Empire. Our sexual immorality is now pandemic in nature. We continue to brainwash the majority of our young with the deadly doctrine that we have evolved from lower life forms, hence, there is no personal need for God if He really does exist.

Mounting evidence suggests that it is simply a matter of time until Almighty God, Who is calling us to repent of our personal and corporate sins, deals with our nation as He has dealt with others in the past whose ruins now pique the interests of archeologists!

Clayton D. Harriger, Pastor

*** *** ***

"You shall speak My words to them, whether they hear or whether they refuse, for they are rebellious. But you, son of man, hear what I say to you. Do not be rebellious like that rebellious house; open your mouth and eat what I give you." --- Ezekiel 2:7, 8

Will the "Plan" Really Work?

"Obama's plan: New Jobs proposals" --- headline for news article on August 18, 2011

One report mentions about "unemployment north of 9 percent" and the fact that there has been no incumbent president in recent times who has won a second term with the jobless rate near such a level as that. But with election fraud a very real and powerful possibility due to use of electronic voting machines it may not really matter if there is even a 10 or 11 percent rate or more in unemployment!

Will the O "plan" really work is the question. The answer is an obvious "No!"

First, a significant reason is that our republic is exhibiting a high level of defiance against the laws and principles which Almighty God has revealed to be absolutely necessary for peace, prosperity, power, prestige, and positive prospects for the future.

Elected officials, beginning with the president, have provided no evidence that they are seriously concerned about seeking the will of God not just in regard to their personal lives, but also in regard to the health and future survival of our republic. Anyone with a bit of sensitivity to God's special revelation is aware that the will of God must always be a top priority issue -- to ignore it is to invite furture disaster of unprecedented dimensions. The ruins and remnants of past civilizations provide explicit testimony of this fundamental truth!

However, the primary reason the "plan" is doomed from the beginning is the fact that the president with a good degree of support from members of the Congress is an aggressive advocate of the destruction of unborn children. His track record dating back to years in the Illinois legislature is unmistakably clear beyond question on this issue.

No nation with leadership such as that provided by Barack Obama and his supporters will experience the blessing of God nor will that nation have a secure and hopeful future.

The prophet Jeremiah was inspired to make a statement that is largely ignored in personal experience as well as in collective experience such as in the affairs of government. It likewise is too often ignored in church issues as well. Jeremiah said:

"O LORD, I know the way of man is not in himself; it is not in man who walks to direct his own steps." --- Jeremiah 10:23

We shall be hearing a lot about the "plan" in times ahead. But mark it down -- it is doomed to fail UNLESS there is genuine repentance from our national shedding of innocent blood, entrenched idolatry, pandemic sexual immorality, intentional and widespread profaning of the day of worship, deadly indoctrination of the young in regard to our origins, etc.

At this point in time the prevailing spirit is quite similar to a time of long ago in which a nation of people shared a common viewpoint as graphically described by the prophet Isaiah:

And in that day the Lord GOD of hosts called for weeping and for mourning, for baldness and for girding with sackcloth. But instead, joy and gladness, slaying oxen and killing sheep, eating meat and drinking wine: "Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!" Then it was revealed in my hearing by the LORD of hosts, "Surely for this iniquity there will be no atonement for you, even to your death," says the Lord GOD of hosts. --- Isaiah 22:12-14

A line from the works of the poet, Robert Burns, reads: "The best-laid schemes o' mice an 'men / Gang aft agley," An American translation words it like this: "The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry." Keep that in mind in the times ahead as the "plan" is implemented!

Moreover Manasseh shed very much innocent blood, till he had filled Jerusalem from one end to another, besides his sin with which he made Judah sin, in doing evil in the sight of the LORD. --- 2 Kings 21:16

Too Late to Pray for Our Republic?

The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, "Stand in the gate of the Lord's house, and proclaim there this word, and say, 'Hear the word of the LORD, all you of Judah who enter in at these gates to worship the LORD!'".......... Therefore do not pray for this people, nor lift up a cry or prayer for them, nor make intercession to Me; for I will not hear you." --- Jeremiah 7:1,2, 16

There are two very common assumptions about prayer.

One, that God always hears every prayer. That is, when anyone prays, then God is going to hear and respond to that prayer no matter who is doing the praying and no matter the nature of the request that is submitted.

Two, that God will always be around in a crisis when the time comes in which we need to be "bailed out" -- after all, is God not a God of love and He would never leave us stranded in a time when He is so greatly needed, would He?

Tons of books have been written on the subject of prayer. Further, there seems to be no end to a listing of persons considered to be "specialists" in the realm of prayer in times such as these.

And certainly there has at times been an emphasis upon praying for our republic and its leaders. There are solid Biblical grounds for engaging in such a practice.

However, the Bible also reveals that there are limitations regarding prayer. It's sort of like the proverbial "line drawn in the sand." There can be times when God Himself makes clear the fact that it is useless to pray any longer!

It happened in years just prior to 586 B.C. in the ancient Israelite kingdom of Judah. For the most part God's commandments and standards had been rejected by the religious and political leaders in the kingdom. With that kind of leadership it was simply a matter of time before the majority of the citizens followed the ungodly examples set before them. There was a small remnant which still held to the true faith but the influence of this group could not bring about a miraculous change so that the kingdom again was under the favor and blessing of Almighty God.

Now then, how about the United States of America -- the "land of the free and the home of the brave?" Are we in a postion to effectively call on God with assurance that as a nation we will be abundantly blessed and secure or have we "crossed the line" and if there is a response, it is worded something like this: "Therefore do not pray for this people, or lift up a cry or prayer for them; for I will not hear them in the time that they cry out to Me because of their trouble." (Jeremiah 11:14).

There is more than a tad of evidence to suggest that it could be the latter scenario! We continue to destroy thousands of unborn children every week of the year. As of this writing we have mutilated and murdered more than 54 million unborn children since the infamous Supreme Court decision in January of 1973. We are a nation of fools of the first magnitude if we believe that God is not going to respond to this massive shedding of innocent blood for which we are solely responsible!

We continue to follow our idols at a fervent pace with money being the #1 "god" and the pleasure "god" being a close runner-up. Idolatry can take many forms and certainly has done so in our republic over decades of time. It can be an object, a person, or a type of activity and involvement in the same.

Our sexual immorality is practiced at an unprecedented rate and the philosophy that "Sex is fun with anyone, or more than one anyone at the same time, anywhere and at any time!" is being adopted by all ages in U.S. culture. God has in His special revelation to us explicitly shown where the boundaries on human sexuality are drawn. The sacred gift of human sexuality is to be shared and experienced within the covenant of marriage between a man and a woman. Search all you want to -- you will not find even a hint that God has enlarged the boundaries to include additional sexual activity of different kinds involving males and females, same gender persons, adults with children and/or animals, or whatever bizarre perversion may enter a person's mind.

We are teaching millions of our young every year that we have evolved from lower life forms over millions and millions of years in time -- go ahead, insert however many millions of years you want to -- does it really make any difference? Perhaps the big difference in the millions of years is whether the forehead is sloped 3/4 inch backward or a mere 1/4 of an inch! Of course this also means that you have no need of a Creator and you are free to make your own "rules" in life with no real accountability after you die. Since it was convenient to ban God from the public classroom, it was also very convenient to deny that we are the focus of an act of creation in the past with a divine purpose and plan for each conceived human being. A godless theory filled the resulting vacuum and we are producing millions of young people who wander about day after day with no meaning to their existence!

And the church at large that claims to be "Christian" in faith has become corrupted over decades of time. The Bible is under assault and its truths denied by apostate renegades. Just a couple of many examples is denying the literal resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead following His crucifixion and that Jesus was indeed God appearing on earth in human form in the 1st Century! The United Methodist Church stresses that it is a "connectional church" due to its organized structure. What isn't recognized is the seriousness of the "infection within the connection." When a church leader says that we need to forget about going to other nations and converting the people to Christianity because they have their own religions and we ought not to interfere with that, then something is terribly wrong in light of Jesus' command to take the Gospel into all the world and confront all nations with His claims and call.

Pray for our republic and expect to be heard? It could happen if certain conditions are met. The main one is that the majority (including political and religious leaders) are willing to pray in a repentant spirit as did Daniel who found himself being carried away from his home and placed in a raw heathen environment known as Babylon! Consider the opening statements of his prayer: "Then I set my face toward the Lord God to make request by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes. And I prayed to the LORD my God, and made confession, and said, 'O Lord, great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant and mercy with those who love Him, and with those who keep His commandments, we have sinned and committed iniquity, we have done wickedly and rebelled, even by departing from Your precepts and Your judgments. Neither have we heeded Your servants the prophets, who spoke in Your name to our kings and our princes, to our fathers and all the people of the land.....'" (Daniel 9:3-6).

Anyone up to admitting that we are badly out of step with the Creator of this mighty universe and we are guilty of commonly accepted practices which have caused Him to pour out His undiluted wrath in the past on cultures that committed similar transgressions?

And what is this thing that is said about history repeating itself?

Then the LORD said to me, "Do not pray for this people, for their good. When they fast, I will not hear their cry; and when they offer burnt offering and grain offering, I will not accept them. But I will consume them by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence." Then I said, "Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, the prophets say to them, 'You shall not see the sword, nor shall you have famine, but I will give you assured peace in this place.'" And the LORD said to me, "The prophets prophesy lies in My name. I have not sent them, commanded them, nor spoken to them; they prophesy to you a false vision, divination, a worthless thing, and the deceit of their heart." --- Jeremiah 14:11-14

Taking Back America - Very Doubtful Indeed --

Organizations have been formed, "conservative" politics has been gaining momentum in anticipation of the November 2010 elections, books by the dozens have been written, and talk show hosts with a "conservative" reputation have been having a field day!

"Taking Back America!" has been a rallying cry for quite some time. The tea party gatherings were not the fly-by-night phenomenon that mainstream media people wanted us to believe. So then came the "labeling" of those involved in the movement to "take back America."

If you in any way disagree with or, horrors upon horrors, you dare to oppose the agenda being advanced by Obama & Co. then you are a bigoted racist filled with venom and undiluted hatred!

As of this date (Aug. 28, 2010) on which these comments have been written, Glenn Beck is at the center of a rally at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC. Preparation and accompanying publicity for this have been going on for months. Beck's TV program on August 27 featured some members of the clergy. Expressed in the course of their discussion was the opinion that another "great awakening" is now taking place. Some details were revealed in an effort to support the suggestion that this is truly happening around the nation.

Is it happening for real? Will America actually be "taken back" as many attempt to spell it out in light of the chaos that now rules in government, business, industry, education, and even too many church groups?

There will be some stirrings here and there perhaps and emotions will run very high, but for the healing and restoration of the republic as God defines a culture that is in right relationship to Him, the "taking back America" thing is very doubtful to say the least!

The reason is rather simple. In the midst of the activity and rhetoric spewed forth, including Beck announcing that we "need God," there is no serious consideration of the need to repent of all sin! This is an absolute must on both the personal and individual level as well as the collective level in all facets of our society.

There is no remorse and regret that we have brutally mutilated and murdered at least 52 million unborn children since January of 1973, or engaged in widespread idolatry with our version of homemade "deities," or engaging persistently in sexual immorality of pandemic proportions, or massively profaning what is supposed to be a day of worship and rest, or teaching millions of our young that we have evolved from lower life forms which existed millions and millions of years ago! But worst of all is the fact that Jesus Christ is ignored as the exclusive remedy and answer to one's personal salvation from sin and admission into the eternal Kingdom of God!

Until there is brutal honesty starting with leadership in our churches and in our government at various levels in admitting the aforementioned sins and abominations and the fact that such offenses have to cease immediately, then all the talk (and debate) about "taking back America" is in vain.

Perhaps the time has now come that the person who chooses to face reality in this republic needs to think and anticipate judgment at the hands of a God Who is holy and Who will not endlessly tolerate rebellion -- especially on the part of a nation which claims to be "one nation, under God...!"

I spoke to you in your prosperity, but you said, 'I will not hear.' This has been your manner from your youth, that you did not obey My voice. The wind shall eat up all your rulers, and your lovers shall go into captivity; surely then you will be ashamed and humiliated for all your wickedness. --- Jeremiah 22:21, 22

Truly Sorry for “transgressions” or Just Sorry for Getting Caught?

Tiger Woods said he let his family down with transgressions he regrets "with all of my heart," and that he will deal with his personal life behind closed doors. --- news release statement on Tiger Woods’ “confession”

It is a given – very, very few people can handle power, wealth, and fame responsibly! Great is the number of persons in professional sports, political office, and the entertainment industry who have given in to raging hormones. The common denominator is an attempt to keep all indiscretions concealed and often to continue immoral activity for one main reason.

That main reason is that the individual believes he or she is the exception to the laws and standards put in place by the Creator of this universe. Those laws and standards may apply to everyone else, but not to me – I can flaunt them because of who I am! So it is said (or at least thought) by a long line of high profile people over the centuries. Defenders of these moral alley cats will make the appeal that what they do in private is none of our business and we are not to do any "judging" in regard to the issue.

Tiger Woods is the latest big name to try to get himself out of the moral quicksand pit into which he has sunk. So amid the mounting pressure that he attempted to elude, he finally has made a public “apology.” Too often it’s been a matter of not really being sorry for the alleged “transgressions” as it is that one got caught and couldn’t hide the offenses any longer. Further, if there had not been some revelation of some kind, the high profile transgressor would have continued to do what he or she had been doing all along!

Yes, forgiveness is possible – each of us is confronted at some point with the issue as to whether we will honestly confess that we are guilty of transgressions and seek the mercy of Almighty God, or try to excuse our offenses and shirk responsibility for our actions. Or worse, utter a feeble half hearted “apology” with the only regret being that we couldn’t keep our “secret life” a secret any longer!

God is extremely merciful – those who have truly repented of their sins and experienced God’s mercy and forgiveness through faith in Jesus Christ know full well what it is to live in a state of peace with God. With this comes an abiding assurance of having been forgiven because the regret and following acts of repentance were for real, not merely a charade!

Time will tell as to how it is for Tiger Woods – truly sorry for the “transgressions” with genuine repentance providing clear evidence of the sorrow or simply sorry at having been caught!

Even high profile people in pro sports, government, entertainment, and corporations need Jesus Christ more than anything or anyone else on the face of this planet though most provide evidence that they don’t believe this to be true!

"…you have sinned against the LORD; and be sure your sin will find you out. --- Numbers 32:23b

For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. --- Romans 5:7-9

They Deserve Much, Much Better!

Madison and Trevor with little brother, Owen, who had just been born a few hours earlier on July 19, 2007. Madison turned 5 years old during May 2008 and Trevor will be 7 years old early in July 2008.

Brianna just turned 3 years old in early June 2008.

Shalie will be 7 years old in early September 2008.

"Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one! You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might. And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart; you shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates." --- Deuteronomy 6:4-9

As Jean and I will be celebrating 55 years of marriage this Friday, June 13, 2008, a lot of memories will flood our minds. That is a considerable span of time in which a wide variety of experiences have taken place. Out of this we first and foremost give thanks to God for His abundant mercies and the demonstration of His love toward us constantly over these many years.

Many of the memories will involve family -- 5 children and spouses, 9 grandchildren and 2 great-grandchildren. There is a wide span of years in age between the grandkids -- the oldest will be 28 years old this coming November and the youngest, Owen, who is pictured above will be 1 year old come July 19, 2008.

It is these young ones for whom I am increasingly burdened -- what a country they have to grow up in that is becoming more hazardous than a Category 5 hurricane slamming into a coastal area containing a large city!

Stop and think for a moment how the adult generation has so miserably failed these young ones -- they are passing on a republic that is:

• guilty of widespread idolatry, with money the #1 deity in the lives of millions of U. S. citizens and their leaders! But many other "deities" have a death-grip on a majority of adults in all walks of life as well, ranging from those in high profile political circles, the professions and church circles to the average "Joe" and "Jane" who walk the streets in any city or town.
  
  
• guilty of massive immorality of the most perverted expressions with God's standards for moral behavior receiving a thumbs-down response by the majority!
  
  
• guilty of the destruction of tens of millions of unborn children over a period exceeding 3 1/2 decades so that human life in our republic is no longer considered unique and special as it was in the earlier decades of the 20th Century!
  
  
• the prominent teaching in the educational process that tells our young that we have evolved from lower life forms -- you know, the wriggly things in a pool of slime millions of years ago (add as many millions as you want because it cannot be any more fouled up and misleading than it is now, whether you talk 700 million or a million million or 35 quadrillion.)!
  

But what our little ones do deserve is this:

• Adults who will set a holy example by the grace of God in word and deed -- adults who make the will of God the top priority in every day living, regardless of what position they hold in life! After all, failure to do the will of God is to place oneself in a position of condemnation -- Jesus did have a lot to say about that issue.
  
  
• Adults who will provide evidence that Jesus Christ is the living Son of God and the One Who gave His life as a sacrifice for the sins of every human being ever born into this world. Further, that this Jesus is exclusively the only way of salvation, peace with God and hope for time and eternity. No other religious expression can guarantee such things.
  
  
• Adults who unashamedly and without apology believe the volume referred to as the Bible to be the inspired and authoritative Word of God -- the absolute authority on all matters having to do with the Christian faith and the living of that faith in all daily experiences and human relationships in this present world!
  

The responsibility rests on the head of every single adult -- no exceptions -- God has explicitly revealed that He will hold every adult accountable.

The hard reality is that the majority of adults will not take the responsibility to do what God expects in terms of the nurture and well being of the young.

So it comes down to this -- do you care enough for our young ones to do what God requires or shun that responsibility and pay a price later on that is so horrifying that the human mind cannot begin grasp even a particle of it?

We adults in our family will seek by example and teaching to show the little ones pictured above that Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life and that no one can come to the Father except through Him. Further that Jesus has a most glorious plan for their lives here on earth. Unfortunately, they will also be exposed to a big bunch of adults in their growing years who will be setting an example of traveling the broad road which leads to a Devil's Hell!

Homework assignment -- read in Luke 16:19-31 in the New Testament about one man who miserably failed in the responsibilities as outlined above and see the tragic details of the price he paid. Your life might never be the same again!

And Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, and said, "Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever receives one little child like this in My name receives Me. But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea." --- Matthew 18:2-6

Fences, Open-Range Ministry and The United Methodist Church!

"Wrangling over fences? Try open-range ministry." --- title of article by Eric Van Meter in 08/03/14 issue of the United Methodist Reporter

Mr. Van Meter seems to be upset with this fence thing in the United Methodist Church and has expressed the same in an article that has a scenario in which he expresses his frustration with an imaginary therapist.

He poses what some would view as a powerful illustration by relating an experience of helping a fellow tear out an old fence of rusted barbed wire and rotted fence posts.

What is the point of all this? It seems that Eric is suggesting that we need to get over this "fence wrangling" thing that is often prominent within the United Methodist Church -- especially at General Conference sessions with one scheduled to take place next month in Texas. The one high profile issue will be over homosexuality and lesbianism -- officially sanction these practices or not?

Open-range ministry? Is this suggesting that we get away from this thing of trying to maintain "fences" and no longer make any issue over what is right or wrong -- just go out and "make disciples for Jesus," whatever that is supposed to mean anymore in the UMC?

Wait a moment or so -- on this "fence" thing -- how did it get started in the first place?

Is Almighty God not the original fence builder? What was that which He put around a certain tree in the Garden of Eden?


No, it was not a literal barbed wire fence -- but the prohibition which in so many words said plainly, "Don't eat the fruit of that tree!" amounted to much the same thing as though it really surrounded the tree completely about 10 yards out from the trunk and had "No Trespassing" signs hanging on it!

Ooops! I almost forgot -- we need to realize that there are those clergy plus a batch of laity who write off about the first 11 chapters of Genesis as being myth -- fairy tale stuff, etc. They are not to be taken literally, so the fence idea probably has no application or meaning whatsoever in such cases. Maybe Eric is among that unfortunate group!

But let's move forward a bit -- God put up more "fences" later on in His dealings with the Israelite people. Ever hear of something called the Ten Commandments? But there were more than just a few statements forbidding certain types of behavior and relationships -- the "fence" God set up is a spiritual, moral and ethical code which enables His people to live at the highest level possible when it comes to peace, harmony, confidence and hope for the future!

But there are those who have come on the scene over time that look on these fences as being too "restrictive" -- we want to be "free" without being told what is right or wrong -- to do what we have judged to be best for us on basis of human reasoning and human "logic" which is always a deadly combination when God is placed on the bench as though He were a 3rd string quarterback!

We have been witnessing the tragedy within many church groups of a return to the ancient times of the judges -- those who want to tear out the fences that a few of us insist we must have -- this bunch is aptly described in the last statement of the book of Judges --

In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes. --- Judges 21:25

It appears that Jesus was also a bit concerned about the fence matter -- did He not say somewhere that not one jot nor tittle would pass from the law until all was fulfilled? I believe He said that in the Sermon on the Mount from which so many love to quote, except possibly that statement! (Matthew 5:18).

And "open-range ministry?" Well, how about Jesus' parting statement in Matthew 28 about confronting the entire world? This amounts to letting everyone know that He is the Son of God and the Savior of the world -- but there is a condition -- REPENT of all known sin and false religous practices, receive Him as Savior and Lord, and commit to a life of obedience to Him! Seems there are people who want to be "Christian" by way of identity but they don't want to quit their sinning, whether that involves immoral sexual conduct, the practice of false religion (of which there are many in this world), self-centered attitudes and desires, affection with idolatrous objects (such as money), or refusing to break with personal pride and vanity!

So it is -- there will be those of us around who may be accused of being "legalistic" and other rather negative labels, but we will continue to insist that we need the "fences" for our own good and the health and well being of the church -- break down and attempt to remove the fences and you'll have a church that goes into decline! By the way, what are the numbers involving membership in the United Methodist Church in the U.S. since the big merger of 1968?

Politics and Prostitution -- Now, There's a Marriage Made in the Good Old U.S. of A!

NEW YORK - As Gov. Eliot Spitzer faced mounting calls to resign, Republican legislators indicated they will seek to impeach him if he doesn't quit within 48 hours, a spokesman for a leading New York assemblyman said Tuesday.

"The governor has 48 hours to resign or articles of impeachment would be introduced," Josh Fitzpatrick, spokesman for Assembly Republican Minority Leader James Tedisco, told Reuters.... -- opening statement of MSNBC news release as contributed by AP and Reuters, March 11, 2008

Well now -- what have we here? This "marriage" between politics and prostitution -- why is it that some of us are not surprised? It's not as though things of this kind never happened before -- it's just that now, when it happens, it's a feeding frenzy for the media people -- same thing as throwing a bloody piece of meat into waters swarming with great white sharks!

There was a time when the media knew, but kept quiet -- remember Jack and Bobby? You know, those Kennedy brothers who had an overwhelming tendency to stray from their marital beds! But times have changed a bit since those days of long ago, when politicians who strayed were exempt from the media watch dogs.

But why all the fuss over Eliot's indiscretion, or how ever many times he chose to indulge in playing "house" with females other than his wife? This is simply a symptom of a far greater crisis -- a symbol of the moral and spiritual health of the whole republic!

But you will not hear the media giving headlines to this one -- the United States has played the role of an adulterous wife -- she has forsaken the God Who in mercy raised the her up from the beginning and blessed her abundantly through many decades. The tragedy can be best expressed in the words of a prophet who lived a long time ago and who addressed his generation in such words, as God directed, as the following:

"They say, 'If a man divorces his wife, and she goes from him and becomes another man's, may he return to her again?' Would not that land be greatly polluted? But you have played the harlot with many lovers; yet return to Me," says the LORD. Lift up your eyes to the desolate heights and see: where have you not lain with men? By the road you have sat for them like an Arabian in the wilderness; and you have polluted the land with your harlotries and your wickedness. Therefore the showers have been withheld, and there has been no latter rain. You have had a harlot's forehead; you refuse to be ashamed." --- Jeremiah 3:1-3

The Spitzer scandal is very minor compared to the national scandal of how we have in a sense given Almighty God that obscene gesture which is very popular with people of all ages, including the very young! What are we going to do when God makes His response -- and be assured, He will definitely make a response and when He does, no one will feel like partying! There is an outside possibility that large numbers will entertain the thought that maybe they ought to check in the neighborhood to see if any churches are open and whether or not there are any pastors around who might give an explanation as to what is going on! It may be that the experience will be a rerun of something that happened a long time ago ------

"And it shall be, when you show this people all these words, and they say to you, 'Why has the LORD pronounced all this great disaster against us? Or what is our iniquity? Or what is our sin that we have committed against the LORD our God?' then you shall say to them, 'Because your fathers have forsaken Me,' says the LORD; 'they have walked after other gods and have served them and worshiped them, and have forsaken Me and not kept My law. And you have done worse than your fathers, for behold, each one walks according to the imagination of his own evil heart, so that no one listens to Me.'" --- Jeremiah 16:10-12

JOB DESCRIPTION: Critical Responsibility with Guaranteed Failure!

"Therefore you shall speak all these words to them, but they will not obey you. You shall also call to them, but they will not answer you. So you shall say to them, 'This is a nation that does not obey the voice of the LORD their God nor receive correction. Truth has perished and has been cut off from their mouth.’” --- Jeremiah 7:27, 28

"For you are not sent to a people of unfamiliar speech and of hard language, but to the house of Israel, not to many people of unfamiliar speech and of hard language, whose words you cannot understand. Surely, had I sent you to them, they would have listened to you. But the house of Israel will not listen to you, because they will not listen to Me; for all the house of Israel are impudent and hard-hearted.” --- Ezekiel 3:5-7

How would you like to be told by an employer that your job requires a lot of effort and the best you can give, but you are going to totally fail! That is what happened to men such as Jeremiah, Ezekiel and others a long time ago.

And what was the “job” these persons were supposed to do? They were to call the people of their time to repent of all sin and turn to Almighty God for mercy and forgiveness. That in itself was no easy task – but to make matters worse – they were told in advance that their message would not bring about the desired results. After people have been living in their sin for an extended period of time, they do not want to be reminded of the need to quit their rebellion and they often will turn on the messenger as would a dog infected with rabies!

And what does all that, if anything, have to do with U. S. citizens living in the opening decade of the 21st Century? Didn’t you know, it has everything to do with us – in fact, every bit as much as back in the 6th Century B.C. when God was attempting to bring a nation of people back to Himself – His “employees” were told in advance, however, that the mission would be a failure! In fact, Jeremiah was told 3 times not to pray for the people -- that God would not hear him, nor the people when they cried out in their panic! You don't believe it could happen? How about taking a little side trip into chapters 7, 11 and 14 of the book of Jeremiah and look for those statements!

We in the United States have had full access to God’s total revelation from the beginning in the 18th Century. Therefore we cannot plead ignorance when it comes to our widespread rebellion against His moral and spiritual standards. As a small spot of rottenness begins on a fruit or vegetable and is not removed, it is simply a matter of time before the whole fruit or vegetable becomes completely rotten and good for nothing but to be tossed into the garbage can!

Our national “rotten” condition is due to such things as:

• the increased tolerance within the ranks of those professing to be Christian in faith of many things which are contrary to God’s clear revelation – unbelief is spreading like a plague – that unbelief can simply be refusal to accept certain past actions and works of God as reported or a defiance in practicing a way of life which is explicitly condemned by God
  
• widespread idolatry in a great variety of forms of expression
  
• pandemic sexual immorality
  
• the trashing of the day of worship – less than half our population can make it to worship each week
  
• massive corruption of our young through many avenues of negative influence
  
• the greatest abomination of all – destruction of thousands of unborn children every week of the year!
  

God is calling persons to rise up, boldly bear witness to His truth, issue a clarion call to repent of sin (both individually and collectively) and commit to a life of obedience to His Son, Jesus Christ, as Savior and Lord!

Will you be one of them? A long time ago a man heard God ask, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?” Instantly Isaiah said, “Here am I. Send me!”

Are you willing to make a similar response? Remember, we are living in a setting that is identical to the ancient kingdom of Judah in terms of ethical, moral and spiritual conditions. So the response in all likelihood will be as you read above at the very beginning!

Remember too that Noah probably holds the record for keeping at it for the longest time with absolutely no success in the proclamation of his warning message beyond his immediate family of wife, 3 sons and their wives! He preached for 120 years while he and his sons prepared the ark. At the end of that time there came the moment when we are informed that “God shut him in.” That means that God had shut everyone else out and all they had to look forward to now was a devastating judgment and no hope of survival!

There will be a large number who will still insist that all of what has been discussed previously doesn’t have anything at all to do with us – this is a Christian nation and so, as the president has said many times over the years, God bless America!

"And as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man: they ate, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. Likewise as it was also in the days of Lot: they ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built; but on the day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all. Even so will it be in the day when the Son of Man is revealed.” --- Luke 17:26-30

There Was a Time When....!

"I brought you into a bountiful country, to eat its fruit and its goodness. But when you entered, you defiled My land and made My heritage an abomination. The priests did not say, 'Where is the LORD?' And those who handle the law did not know Me; the rulers also transgressed against Me; the prophets prophesied by Baal, and walked after things that do not profit." --- Jeremiah 2:7,8

There was a time in this republic when a majority of persons had exposure to the holy Scriptures and the Lord's Prayer. All students as they attended public schools for an average of 12 years engaged in the spiritual exercise of beginning the day with some portion of Bible reading followed by a prayer which began, "Our Father, Who art in heaven..."

Major discipline problems during those years consisted of such things as chewing gum in class, running in the hallways, whispering in class, shooting rubber bands and/or spit balls, etc. You know, the kinds of things which so disrupt school operations that the school has to cease operations for 3 or 4 days until the "crisis" is resolved!

Then came what has to be a first and foremost imbecile quality decision by the United States Supreme Court in which the reading of Scripture and prayer were ruled to be illegal! A few years later the nation's highest court sank to an even lower level than that of an imbecile by ruling that it is a "constitutional right" to mutilate and murder unborn children in the womb!

So then, what great benefits has the republic reaped as a consequence of the actions of 9 black robed people who chose to completely abandon all common sense and wisdom by declaring the public educational system totally off limits to the mighty Creator of this universe? And further, that in thousands of cases each week His work of forming human beings in the womb must be terminated?

Here is how it is:

• We are raising a large segment of our population to be heathen -- even unchurched students used to be exposed to a few minutes of Bible revelation and prayer to God but that has been no longer the case for decades! These in turn passed on their heathen unbelieving ways to their children and these children did likewise -- heathenism is very easy to pass on to the young!
  
  
• Along with the initial 2 rulings on the part of the Supreme Court which have pushed us down the road to sure and certain disaster, in the name of "freedom of speech and expression" our young began to be exposed to increased vulgarity, sexual immorality and graphic violence through many avenues. High profile individuals idolized by the young brazenly displayed their immoral lifestyles. Entertainment sunk to new lows with gutter level language, increased violence and sexually explicit images which leave absolutely nothing to the imagination -- after all, if you see two naked people in bed together, what is there to imagine?
  
  
• And the young have been encouraged in various ways to indulge in use of tobacco, alcohol and drugs. "Parties" will feature the foregoing plus engaging in a variety of sexual activities. One mother was extremely upset when informed by school officials that her junior high daughter "competed" with another girl on the school bus as to which could give oral sex to the most boys before arriving at school! A relative of mine is a junior high principal and told me of a recent incident in his school -- some 8th graders were caught smoking pot in one of their classes! This, of course, all carries over into the college and university level in greater intensity.
  

• Problems in the public school system have escalated somewhat since the days of dealing with chewing gum, spitballs, etc. Now it's a matter of assaults -- students against other students and students against teachers -- stabbings and shootings -- the necessity of having police on the premises to try to keep order in a number of school systems!
  
  
• And don't forget -- things are by no means a rosy paradise at the college and university level -- you know, those campuses are supposed to be "gun free" zones, but we have had some very tragic incidents on a few in recent times -- ah, times of progress and advancement -- it is great, but we haven't arrived have we?
  

Yes indeed -- since we told God He is no longer welcome in public schools and that we have the right to terminate His work of forming human beings any time we want to, we've really made progress, have we not? Or is it more proper to say that we have regressed to lower levels of depravity than any society claiming to be civilized would ever want to admit?

What's the point? Simply this -- no one can say that we have made great advances ethically, morally and spiritually since those 2 Supreme Court decisions in particular -- the dates of those decisions hold more than equal weight with the one F.D.R. said would live in infamy -- December 7, 1941!

Yes, some of us do remember back to a time when.... a time much superior in ways that count most as compared to how it is now!

"Therefore I will yet bring charges against you," says the LORD, "And against your children's children I will bring charges.... Has a nation changed its gods, which are not gods? But My people have changed their Glory for what does not profit. Be astonished, O heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid; be very desolate," says the LORD. "For My people have committed two evils: they have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, and hewn themselves cisterns; broken cisterns that can hold no water." --- Jeremiah 2:9,11-13

The "True" State of the Union!

President Bush gave his final State of the Union adddress on Monday, January 28, 2008 before the U.S. Congress, other government officials, special guests, and anyone who chose to listen and view by means of TV.

It was pretty much the usual pattern -- the effort by the president in saying that things are going rather well with some areas needing a bit of attention for improvement, the need for bipartisan cooperation in whatever is to be done for the well being of U.S. citizens, and the country does have a hopeful and bright future.

Republicans clapped and cheered at points while Democrats did not -- what a sight -- Dick Cheney clapping while beside him at the same time Nancy Pelosi remained motionless with a look on her face as though she had half a lemon in her mouth!

Once in a while the camera focused on new bosom "buddies," Barack Obama and Ted Kennedy -- this pair looked like their menu for the last few days had been limited to dill pickles! And maybe they had shared some with Hillary Clinton, or was it vice-versa?

And as usual -- responses and the media "autopsy" after the address was completed -- E. coli is not the only thing that can cause one's digestive system to bring on a myriad of trips to the bathroom!

Let's get to it -- what is the TRUE state of the union?

The president, along with all others who hold elected or appointed office in the federal government, blindly overlooks or refuses to address the ethical, moral and spiritual crises that are causing our republic to resemble a cancer victim in the terminal stages of that deadly disease!

There are at least 8 monumental problems which are taking this country on a path to unprecedented disaster unless sure and certain corrective measures are taken very soon. These are:

• a confounded love
  
  
• a conceding church
  
  
• a contradictory government
  
  
• a contagion of idolatry
  
  
• consigned children
  
  
• a conflagration of immorality
  
  
• contaminated sabbaths
  
  
• contrived origins
  

These are described in detail at Driving the Final Nails! A link at the bottom of that area will bring you back here.

Will a true spirit of repentance, rescue and full recovery take place with the nation getting back from its capsized and sinking position and thus gain the favorable blessing of Almighty God? How do you answer that one?

Most cultures over the centuries failed and experienced total collapse. For a number there was a total disappearance from ongoing existence. For instance, where can you go in this world and find a Babylonian, a citizen in what was once known as one of the greatest and most powerful empires in human history!

The tragedy for us is at least two-fold -- too many assume we shall always be on top in this world -- the richest and most powerful country in the world -- and second, that nothing such as a downfall or major collapse/defeat would ever happen here!

But a very small minority of us look at it this way -- the potential of judgment at the hands of a holy God is increasing with the passing of time! A review of "Driving the Final Nails!" mentioned above supports the position that God does hold this country, which claims to be "under Him" fully accountable and will deal with it according to the fruit of its doings!

"But this is what I commanded them, saying, 'Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be My people. And walk in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well with you.' Yet they did not obey or incline their ear, but walked in the counsels and in the imagination of their evil heart, and went backward and not forward. Since the day that your fathers came out of the land of Egypt until this day, I have even sent to you all My servants the prophets, daily rising up early and sending them. Yet they did not obey Me or incline their ear, but stiffened their neck. They did worse than their fathers. Therefore you shall speak all these words to them, but they will not obey you. You shall also call to them, but they will not answer you. So you shall say to them, 'This is a nation that does not obey the voice of the LORD their God nor receive correction. Truth has perished and has been cut off from their mouth.'" --- Jeremiah 7:23-28

The One Withdrawal Nobody Wants to Seriously Consider!

“Withdraw the troops from Iraq soon!” – varied quotes of this kind come from some politicians as well as other persons holding some type of position somewhere within the United States.

Yes, indeed – it is a very hot topic these days throughout the United States with politicians speaking out boldly – persons holding different positions in the mass media – celebrities, ever the self appointed authorities on human behavior, do not hesitate to tell us how it should be – a high pitched chorus that shouts out endlessly that we should withdraw our military people from Iraq!

But there is a far more serious issue on the subject of withdrawal and it doesn’t involve the U. S. military. And that is when God withdraws from a people due to massive rejection of His standards and laws by which a culture must live if it is to remain sane, serene, sensible, stable, and secure for the future.

The deadly assumption by the majority of persons in the United States is that we are under the blessing and special favor of Almighty God. Do you not hear the phrase, "God bless America!", repeated time after time, especially by politicians? Some persons go so far as to say, “We are a Christian nation!”

The Israelites of ancient history demonstrate the fallacy of assuming the nation is in good standing with God when in reality it is far, far from such favor and blessing. The adoption of false idols, child sacrifice, sexual immorality, profaning the day of worship and allowing a spirit of greed and selfishness to dominate their lives paved the way to national suicide!

God stated explicitly that He had withdrawn from them and would not hear their prayers when He brought judgment upon them as a consequence of their determined rebellion against Him in many forms of expression!

We are treading the same path and are guilty of our own brand of idolatry, the destruction of children, a potpourri of sexual immorality, the profaning of the day of worship (less than half our population is in a place of worship each Sunday morning) – and it is plain to see that greed and selfishness often play a major role in the way life is lived on both the personal and corporate levels in the “land of the free and the home of the brave!”

If you haven’t done so, take a look at how we are driving the nails into the coffin of a republic known as the United States of America – go to Driving the Final Nails! -- a link at the bottom of that area will bring you back here.

And if you have seen it before, maybe it would be well to review it again and then go out and sound the warning trumpet! (Isaiah 58:1).

What’s that -- a hammer in your hand?

With their flocks and herds they shall go to seek the LORD, but they will not find Him; He has withdrawn Himself from them. --- Hosea 5:6

Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; nor His ear heavy, that it cannot hear. But your iniquities have separated you from your God; and your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He will not hear. For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, your tongue has muttered perversity. No one calls for justice, nor does any plead for truth. they trust in empty words and speak lies; they conceive evil and bring forth iniquity. They hatch vipers' eggs and weave the spider's web; he who eats of their eggs dies, and from that which is crushed a viper breaks out. Their webs will not become garments, nor will they cover themselves with their works; their works are works of iniquity, and the act of violence is in their hands. Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood; their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction are in their paths. --- Isaiah 59:1-7

"Therefore I also will act in fury. My eye will not spare nor will I have pity; and though they cry in My ears with a loud voice, I will not hear them." --- Ezekiel 8:18

Then they will cry to the LORD, but He will not hear them; He will even hide His face from them at that time, because they have been evil in their deeds. --- Micah 3:4

Are You Among Those Special "Reserves?"

"Yet I have reserved seven thousand in Israel, all whose knees have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him." --- 1 Kings 19:18

He found himself in the pit of deep despair – he was on the run and trying to hide – a very powerful and wicked woman was after his head, literally!

Elijah had just won a major victory over the false prophets of a heathen deity named Baal. A part of that victory involved the execution of those false prophets. Queen Jezebel, who had been instrumental in importing Baal worship into the northern kingdom of Israel, had vowed to remove Elijah’s head from his shoulders due to the major blow he had inflicted on the institution of Baal worship!

And so as the prophet engaged in a major self-pity experience and felt the best thing for him now was to simply die and have his miserable existence terminated, God dramatically revealed that Elijah was not the only faithful one left, as he had led himself to believe. "Yet I have reserved seven thousand in Israel, all whose knees have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him," said God! In the midst of all the confrontations which had taken place and the challenging of the heathen prophets, Elijah had failed to recognize the existence of God’s “reserve” force.

In a 21st Century republic known as the United States of America God has His “reserves” that have refused to bow the knee to the modern Baals, which are manifested in many forms. Consider some of those Baals in our culture to which millions of knees are bowing every day -----

• the Baal of pleasure which now dominates the weekends, including the day which was set apart for the worship of the true and living God Who created this mighty universe by spoken command and Who loves us humans so much that He gave His own Son, Jesus Christ, as a sacrifice for our sins so we could be forgiven and be citizens in His Kingdom forever. Less than half of U. S. citizens are willing to go to a place of worship on Sundays!
  
  
• the Baal of money which now enslaves a huge multitude of individuals as well as a growing number of corporations. This brand of Baal has the unique power to fan into raging flames a vicious appetite called greed. But it’s not limited to individuals nor corporations headed up by CEO’s who are driven by a desire to chalk up record breaking profits year after year, but elected officials enjoy sticking their thumbs into the public money pie with constant scheming as to how the citizens can be bled for more and more revenue!
  
  
• the Baal of entertainment, talk-show, mass media and political celebrities. There is a wide variety of personalities here as well as the subject matter which may be expelled from the mouths of the same. The problem is that millions follow this one or that one and regard every word spoken by the one to whom they are ever loyal as “gospel truth.” Devotees of these celebrities are much more concerned about what their “idols” have to say about anything than what Almighty God has to say – and He does have a lot to say about the most critical issues of life on a personal level as well as on the collective level! Even among those who profess to be Christian in their faith there is all too often a confession that they do not spend the time studying the Bible as they feel they should! It is the God-inspired record of the Bible which is the measuring stick as to whether members of the aforementioned group are true or false in whatever statements and claims they make about anything.
  
  
• the Baal of sexual immorality which is a very cruel and merciless deity as it exploits the part of our being that expresses its cravings at a very young and tender age. Thanks to perverted thinking, reasoning and example setting by adults over time, our young are now constantly exposed to damnable teachings that sexual experiences under just about any condition are good – you, and you alone determine what your sexual preferences should be and how to be sexually intimate with whoever and whenever! God’s revelation about the boundaries of expressing and experiencing our sexuality are totally rejected. The evidence is overwhelming that our culture is resolved to take a fatal plunge into the pool of disaster when it comes to handling God’s sacred gift of human sexuality!
  
  
• the Baal of humanism which attempts to convince each one of us that we humans can handle all the issues of life be they personal and individual, or at the collective level. At times scientific advancements coupled with new breakthroughs in technology have been quite impressive and a person can be persuaded that we no longer need a “crutch of superstition” consisting of belief in a “higher power” which has whatever name you may give to that deity. However, along the way as we choose to travel this road, human life often becomes very cheap and expendable. And so there is no real moral sensitivity at the national level and no real concern that we have destroyed millions of unborn children over the past few decades!
  
  
• the Baal of “church-ianity” – the word is probably not in the dictionary, but it’s a way of best describing the infiltration of the church by forces of compromise, “political correctness,” unbelief and brazen immorality! Those in a number of church groups who hold to a Bible based faith are being pressured to compromise the faith (e.g. that Jesus is NOT the exclusive way of salvation), to speak a certain language so that no person is ever offended, to doubt the mighty acts of God in times past as well as what God has specifically planned for the future, and to accept without question sexual behavior patterns which God has clearly condemned! Constantly through legislative actions or declarations from church leaders the exhortation is to bow to the modern Baal and kiss him!
  

Somewhere scattered throughout the 50 states that comprise this republic is a minority number of persons – the ones who have not bowed the knee to the 21st Century version of Baal in its many grotesque forms – they are God’s special “reserves!” Are you one of them?

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing. --- 2 Timothy 4:7,8

What If We Are Told Not to Pray Any Longer?

"Therefore do not pray for this people, nor lift up a cry or prayer for them, nor make intercession to Me; for I will not hear you."

"Therefore do not pray for this people, or lift up a cry or prayer for them; for I will not hear them in the time that they cry out to Me because of their trouble."

Then the LORD said to me, "Do not pray for this people, for their good. When they fast, I will not hear their cry; and when they offer burnt offering and grain offering, I will not accept them. But I will consume them by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence." --- Jeremiah 7:16; 11:14; 14:11, 12

There has been a very deadly assumption down through the centuries to the present time -- that God always answers all prayers. It seems to be especially entrenched as a society of people get careless and very sloppy when it comes to spiritual, moral and ethical responsibilities. The more lax they become when it comes to the issue of seeking to obey God and fulfilling His divine plan, the more insistent they are that God always answers prayer and all we need to do is ask Him for whatever we have in mind and He will just pour out a ton of blessings in response! Some professing Christians are about willing to engage in a "knock down, drag out fight" over this thing of God answering prayer.

Jeremiah the prophet lived at a time when the spiritual and moral climate of the nation in which he lived was shockingly very much the same as what we are witnessing in the United States. There was a lot of noise generated throughout the country that just about everyone "believed in God." The major problem was the wide gap between what was claimed by way of belief and performance in conduct that provided credibility to that profession of "believing in God!"

There had been the adoption of idolatry, immorality, the "shedding of innocent blood" (child sacrifice to heathen deities), the profaning of the day of worship, and the corruption of the teaching of God's Word -- that is, if it even qualified as "teaching," since the revelation of God to which they had access didn't really mean much to them any longer. For instance, when something is considered vitally important you give attention to it, but when it is not a priority, then it is mainly ignored!

Finally God revealed that the time for praying and being heard had passed -- even a godly person such as Jeremiah was told to pray no longer, because God would no longer listen. He had sounded the warning for years and no one took him seriously, and then it happened -- his nation was invaded and totally destroyed!

Want to think on a troubling question -- how long do you think it will be before God begins to reveal a similar instruction -- "Don't pray any more for your country because I won't hear you!"

For further thought -- when the calamities began to really hit, the people began to say, "Why is God doing these things to us -- what have we done?"

Take a slow and very prayerful walk through the book of Jeremiah and then follow through with the book of Ezekiel -- after you finish, do it again a few more times and see how very up to date these two really are!

Moreover He said to me, "Son of man, eat what you find; eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel." So I opened my mouth, and He caused me to eat that scroll. And He said to me, "Son of man, feed your belly, and fill your stomach with this scroll that I give you." So I ate it, and it was in my mouth like honey in sweetness. And He said to me: "Son of man, go to the house of Israel and speak with My words to them. For you are not sent to a people of unfamiliar speech and of hard language, but to the house of Israel, not to many people of unfamiliar speech and of hard language, whose words you cannot understand. Surely, had I sent you to them, they would have listened to you. But the house of Israel will not listen to you, because they will not listen to Me; for all the house of Israel are impudent and hard-hearted." --- Ezekiel 3:1-7

Through another prophet God said He was going to return to His place until there was honest recognition of having sinned against Him -- the implication was that if they prayed and called on God without repenting and turning from their wicked ways, He was not going to hear them! Ah, you can check that one out in Hosea 5:15 -- yes, it's in the Old Testament -- you might have to hunt a while, but he's there. He lived quite a number of years before Jeremiah and Ezekiel but the spiritual "cancer" was already at work, and God gave Hosea a command to marry a harlot -- a rather dramatic object lesson spelling out how the country had betrayed God in constant acts of spiritual infidelity! If Hosea were living in Washington DC or some other section of our republic today, he would be given the identical "marching orders!" And it is more than an outside possibility that God would say the same today as He said through Hosea a long time ago -- "I will return again to My place till they acknowledge their offense. Then they will seek My face; in their affliction they will diligently seek Me." --- Hosea 5:15

The Importation of Garbage!

We also have the prophetic word made more sure, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed. --- 2 Peter 1:19 - 2:2

It happened back in the 19th Century with Germany being one of the main spawning grounds for it. The United States was still a bit young, but growing and developing. It was blessed from its beginning because of the "foundation" which had been laid by our founding fathers. Woven into the foundational documents were statements which acknowledged the existence of Almighty God and the need to trust Him. And the Bible was held to be a very special book -- it was God's inspired Word and completely trustworthy -- what was revealed was true and humans were to conform to that truth so revealed and live lives which demonstrated conformity to that revelation which had come from the Creator of this mighty universe!

However the Bible was not so regarded in some other parts of the world --- things were quivering a bit in the continent of Europe with Germany being one of the main nations involved. The "theological" kettle was being stirred fervently with something called "Higher Criticism." It basically boiled down to the fact that certain persons became self-appointed "authorities" regarding the Bible and began to do a detailed "autopsy" on it which resulted in a Bible you would barely recognize and really wouldn't want to believe!

Miracles didn't really happen as reported, Jesus wasn't really born in the manner as reported (miracle of the virgin birth), didn't really do those miracles attributed to Him, didn't really come back from the dead after crucifixion, and isn't going to return to this world again as claimed! There's a host of other "stuff" the "theologians" came up with which won't be detailed here such as the authorship of the first 5 books of the Old Testament and other off-the-wall junk.

By the way, a good definition of a theologian to keep in mind when you begin to confront some of this stuff as it is spread around by a pastor or church leader in the area where you live, is this -- "A theologian is a blind man in a dark room at midnight looking for a black cat that isn't there!"

The great tragedy is that the stuff which was spawned in Germany and a couple of other countries or so was imported to the United States! Controversy broke out in the United States in the early 1900's over the reliability and integrity of the Bible.

This thing acted like a cancer -- it began to grow and spread -- a number of seminary professors had become "infected" -- this theological "garbage" began to be taught to students who would become future ministers in churches and evidence is overwhelming that a lot of them bought into it.

If we are not in harvest time as a result of the "rebel" seed sown for well over a century, we are certainly close to it. And God will see to it that we will indeed reap as we have sown over the decades!

By their own admission many who profess to be Christian in their faith also admit to neglecting the reading and study of the Bible. But why take time to explore it if it is full of contradictions and you never can be sure whether it is true or not?

The result is that it's a bit like a super buffet -- you just kind of wander through and pick out what might have some special meaning to you and sort of hope for the best. But you can never really be sure!

Mainline denominations have really been ravaged with this theological garbage imported from the European continent plus the damage done from those who rose up from within our republic. These also fired a few salvos of pure unadulterated unbelief into the Scriptures.

The cracks in our nation's foundation are becoming more obvious due to our growing acceptance of sexual immorality in a variety of expressions, establishment of our own special brands of idols, unethical and dishonest practices, and a decaying spirituality which makes God sick!

If as a nation we refuse to repent and turn to God seeking forgiveness and mercy, there is nothing else left to expect but to be on the receiving end of His wrath. One thing sure, nobody will feel like dancing in the streets when that happens. Oh, by the way, have you read the book of Revelation lately?

All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. --- 2 Timothy 3:16,17

Keeping Pace with Morality & Apologies!

“I believe that homosexual acts between individuals are immoral and that we should not condone immoral acts.........I do not believe that the armed forces of the United States are well served by a saying through our policies that it’s OK to be immoral in any way.” --- Marine General Peter Pace, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, The Pentagon - March 12, 2007

He's a jewel -- one of a kind -- a breath of fresh air in a very stagnant room -- a magnificent keystone in the social arch of our republic -- a bright light shining in a very dark and dismal place -- he's Marine General Peter Pace, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in the U. S. of A!

He is also under very intense fire for the statements quoted above in which he stated that homosexual acts are immoral.


Also -- another tragedy -- here is a man in a very high profile position who has chosen to align himself 100 per cent with the moral position as outlined by Almighty God our Creator and he gets shot down for it.

It is added proof as to the fact that this nation is now dominated by a spirit of defiance regarding God's established boundaries for sexual expression and experience!

Voices of protest against General Pace for his remarks are coming from elected officials and other "high profile" persons who have intentionally chosen to exhibit their ignorance on sexual morality by running the mouth without engaging the brain.

Great example -- Senator John Warner who said, "I respectfully but strongly disagree with the chairman's view that homosexuality is immoral." John speaks for a huge number of other people as well, who likely add an "Amen!" to his statement.

General Pace has said he will not apologize for such remarks -- that is good, because he does not have to. The reason? God has never in the past nor ever will in the future apologize for declaring the following to be an abomination or a sin (an abomination is sin intensified many times over):

• homosexuality (sexual activity between 2 persons of the same gender)
  
• fornication (sexual activity between a male and female who are unmarried)
  
• adultery (sexual activity between a male and a female, at least one of which is married to another person)
  
• incest (sexual activity between immediate members of a family)
  
• rape (sexual activity in which a person is forced to engage in such activity against his/her will - victim can be of any age from that of a small child to an adult)
  
• bestiality (sexual activity with animals)
  

By the way at the top of the listing is sexual activity which spawns a very large number of STD's (Sexually Transmitted Diseases) -- some of which are incurable and a few others that are fatal! And if all of the aforementioned "activity" is so good and not immoral as so many claim, why all those ravaging diseases? And why, for instance, is there a push on to vaccinate very young teen-aged girls with a drug that is supposed to prevent a certain virus from bringing on cancer of the uterus in later years due to sexual activity while still in the young stages of life?

Go ahead, search the holy Scriptures from Genesis to Revelation and see for yourself how many of the above mentioned sexual activities are presented in a positive manner and given sanction by Almighty God. What's the matter -- disappointed?

Certainly there are any number of efforts made to declare sexually immoral acts as "good" because we are committed and "love" one another very much -- therefore it just can't be wrong for us, and people such as General Peter Pace are narrow-minded and bigoted -- homophobes who have not seen the "light" in the 21st Century in which we are now a diverse and tolerant culture!

And so, as a culture that is dominated and controlled by that spirit of defiance mentioned earlier, we give God an obscene gesture, jump on our toboggan, and slide toward inevitable disaster! For a few of us, this is no surprise due to a solemn prediction made by Jesus Christ Himself! (see Luke 17:26-30).