IQ scores among Americans are falling. The evidence seems to be that it is due to environmental changes, possibly due to social media consumption and screen time:

Peace in Christ.

Christ is the Lord of both the dead and the living. But what does that mean really?

The “living” do not mortally perish but believe into Him. They have an age-lasting life….living until the end of this present, evil age that He delivers them through.

John 3:15-16
(15) That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal (age-lasting) life.
(16) For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting (age-lasting) life.

But not everyone has found that life. They perish. We have witnessed a massive destruction of people being led down the broad way to their mortal destruction.

Those who have “died”…mortally perished…did not hear the gospel of truth because of the false teachings of false prophets. They believed in Jesus but did not get His message….the glorious gospel of their Lord Jesus Christ because their church leaders did not understand it.

But Christ is still the Lord of them....Lord of the dead.

The “dead” shall be resurrected at the last trump while the "living" will hear the gospel of truth and believe and shall have an age-lasting life for the duration of this present, evil age. They will continue to mortally live until the last trump where they will put on immortality without seeing death.

The death and resurrection of Christ covers both groups for He is Lord of both the dead and the living: those who mortally perish and those who will not.

2 groups: those who live and those who die.

Rom 14:7-9 KJV
(7) For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself.
(8) For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord's.
(9) For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living.

There are 2 resurrections being spoken of here by Jesus in John 11: one for those who die (who mortally perished and suffered age-lasting punishment) and those who do not die (those who have an age-lasting life who do not perish from this earth).

One resurrection is for the resurrection of the dead at the “ last trump” for those who believed in Jesus but have fallen “asleep”…those who have mortally died/perished.

The other resurrection is for the living…for those who do not fall “sleep” as they have an age-lasting life remaining here in this earth alive. They remain alive for the duration of this present, evil age that we are living in to the moment at the end of this age where they put on immortality.

Even though he may die, he shall live….as He IS THE RESURRECTION (of the dead). There is a distinction between the 2 groups (the dead and the living) being shown here in Jesus' response to Martha.

John 11:25-26
(25) Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:
(26) And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die (INTO THE AGE). Believest thou this?

Young's Literal Translation
Jesus said to her, 'I am the rising again, and the life; he who is believing in me, even if he may die, shall live;

He IS THE LIFE to the living.

The “living” shall not mortally die (perish) but shall have an age-lasting life. This is the “first resurrection” of the first-fruits of Christ. They live and believe into Him and shall not die into the age (this present age) but shall continue to live by their faith in Him. The living SHALL NOT DIE but will continue to live into this age...until the very end.

Young's Literal Translation
and every one who is living and believing in me shall not die -- to the age;

Those who believed in Jesus but have died/perished (being the flock of the slaughter): they believed in Jesus but were led astray by false prophets and have suffered loss- their mortal death.

They were led astray from the road that leads to an age-lasting life and went down the broad way that led to their mortal destruction. They did not hear the gospel spoken in the truth so that they may have an age-lasting life.

The “dead” shall live again though …at the resurrection of the dead….at the last trump. Jesus is the Lord of both the dead and the living.

This dove-tails into 1 Corinthians 15.

The “dead” who mortally perished from this earth shall be raised/resurrected incorruptible at the last trump…. while the living (who did not fall “asleep”…that is, did not mortally die/perish) shall not die and will put on immortality at that time.

The “dead” fell “asleep” while the living did not fall “sleep” in death.

1Co 15:51-54 KJV
(51) Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,
(52) In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

The first group...the "dead" (the corruptible)...shall put on incorruption. The second group....the living...shall have their mortal bodies (which haven't died) put on immortality.

(53) For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.

Both groups have victory over death. But the "dead" who mortally perished have then will have gone through an age-lasting punishment (being cut off from this earth)...while the mortal (those who did not die from this earth) will have had an age-lasting life until that moment.

Again, 2 groups being spoken of:

The "dead" = the corruptible shall have put on incorruption

The "living" = this mortal will have put on immortality.

(54) So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.

We...the living....shall not sleep as the "dead".

Lazarus “slept” in death….and was awakened out of sleep. The dead shall be resurrected at the end of this age while the living will continue to live through out this age and will never mortally perish and will reach the last trump moment alive where they will then have their mortal bodies changed into immortal. They will not have "slept". Not all will sleep.

Joh 11:11-14 KJV
(11) These things said he: and after that he saith unto them, Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep.
(12) Then said his disciples, Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well.
(13) Howbeit Jesus spake of his death: but they thought that he had spoken of taking of rest in sleep.
(14) Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead.

MANY have gone in the way that leads to destruction….their mortal bodies have perished from this earth because of the false prophets that they were to beware of. They are the "dead".

But Jesus is still Lord of them…He is the resurrection (of the dead) and the LIFE (of the living)of those who find the way that leads unto life in this earth.

Mat 7:13-15 KJV
(13) Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:
(14) Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
(15) Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.

Pray that Slovakia's Prime Minister immediately & completely is healed of all injuries & wounds caused by the assassination attempt on his life:

https://www.bbc.com/news/live/world-europe-69016687?src_origin=BBCS_BBC

Schillinger made national headlines last year when Buckingham Police broke up an out-of-control underage drinking party at the Liz Circle home where she was living at the time. She held the gathering for her daughter’s 17th birthday party.

Witnesses reported that Schillinger punched an underage partygoer several times in the face during a series of outbursts by drinking adults including her then-boyfriend and mother.

Schillinger gained public attention after she ran unsuccessfully for lieutenant governor as a Republican in 2022. She has also played an instrumental role in a political action committee that has poured more than $800,000 into Pennsylvania school district races since 2021, including in Bucks County.

The PAC has focused on supporting school board candidates who opposed COVID-19 lockdowns and argue left-wing ideologies are invading the education system.

When I came to Christ the Pentecostal Holiness church offered...

1. Sunday morning services
2. Sunday evening services
3. Wednesday evening services
4. Saturday evening prayer services
5. Regular revivals with excellent evangelists
6. Many quality and enjoyable retreats

Our pastor (who was a lot like Charles Stanley) back then was once an evangelist and he really knew how to find good evangelists for revival. The old timers use to tell me that they had something that would take them to heaven and I believed them. It seems like ministries these days feel they can go all online or on radio.

24 And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:
25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching. - Hebrews 10

The lack of quality fellowship post Covid is affecting the church and it is my main concern these days. Noting the Apostles.... And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart. - Acts 2:46

Brutal Bible Bloodbaths is now available on Steam Early Access. It has a ridiculous amount of blood though otherwise the graphics are like Minecraft since they are not very realistic.


It is based on Deuteronomy 20:16-20 - and some boys talk about it - I was wondering if Christians thought the humor was offensive...
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From the video:

Kevin: So, in this game God said we have to kill everything that breathes in those cities?

Justin: Yes

Kevin: Even babies?

Justin: Yeah

Kevin: Cool.

Kevin: Is it bad for me to love that command?

Justin: No, you're just being enthusiastic about God's perfect plan

Kevin: That's good, I was worried I might be a psychopath

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Though I thought the boys seemed to be pretty respectful of God.

This shows footage of a sacrificed toddler being sliced up, worshipping a foreign goddess idol causing soldiers to kill you, chopping clothed temple prostitutes, ordering soldiers to go on a killing spree, a cow corpse spilling blood onto flowers, receiving a quest, being told to chop living chickens' legs but their head was chopped instead of their legs:

This shows the player chasing people around houses in order to kill them, tidying up after the soldiers by pushing chopped bodies into a pit, and skilfully chopping animals.

Here is the Bible passage it is based on:
Deuteronomy 20:16-20

But what about the cities the Lord your God is giving you as your own? Kill everything that breathes in those cities. Completely destroy them. Wipe out the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. That’s what the Lord your God commanded you to do. If you don’t destroy them, they’ll teach you to do all the things the Lord hates. He hates the way they worship their gods. If you do those things, you will sin against the Lord your God.

Suppose you surround a city and get ready to attack it. And suppose you fight against it for a long time in order to capture it. Then don’t chop down its trees and destroy them. You can eat their fruit. So don’t cut them down. Are the trees people? So why should you attack them? But you can cut down trees that you know aren’t fruit trees. You can build war machines out of their wood. You can use them until you capture the city you are fighting against.

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I have this extreme fear of sleeping. Of course, I fall asleep, but I do my best to stay awake. I have this fear that I'm going to not wake up. Of course, it is impossible to stay awake that long. I end up falling asleep. But I just have this fear of not waking up. I hate nights sometimes. That's not the only thing that I am afraid of. I have this fear that somebody's going to break into my apartment and kill me. I'm looking into other security measures right now. But it's becoming an obsession of mine. I want to be able to buy a gun, but my apartment has a firearm free zone. I could get kicked out of my apartment. I live completely alone and I am constantly afraid. I live in a safe place and there has never been someone breaking into these apartment buildings except for when somebody knows the person and they're just trying to get their stuff back. Of course there has been domestic disputes here but that's about it. I just don't get why I'm so afraid all the time.

Please pray for me

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey (R) announced Monday that she has signed a bill into law punishing employers that make it easier for their employees to bargain collectively.

The law, known as Senate Bill 231, bars companies from receiving state economic incentives if they voluntarily recognize their workers’ unions, rather than forcing them to vote on whether to unionize in secret-ballot elections. Affected companies could lose grants, loans and tax credits starting next year.

Some think I'm a Russian Propagandist, and I am not.
Then I saw this at the bottom of my topic,

Russian Successes Admitted by Ukraine Mil.​

Sounds like TASS otchet o rassledovanii

This just came across my feed.


Before the Big Bang, there was no up there was no down there was no side to side.

There was no up there was no down there was no side to side, there was no light, there was no dark, no shape of any kind. There were no stars or planet Mars or protons to collide, there was no up there was no down there was no side to side. And furthermore, to underscore this total lacking state, there was no here there was no there because there was no space. And in this endless void, which can’t be thought of as a place, there was no time and so no passing minutes, hours days. Of all the paradoxes that belabor common sense, I think this one’s the greatest this time before events, because how did we get from nothing to infinitely dense from immeasurably small to inconceivably immense. But before we get unmoored from the question at the start, let’s take a breath and marvel at when math becomes an art because we don’t have to understand it to know there was a time when there was no up there was no down. There was no side to side

Pray that I will make lots of new friends at the event I am going to today Amen

Hello brothers and sisters

Today something was revealed to me. I will not tell you the full secret as of yet. I want to see if we can get the same conclusion.

Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.​

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Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.​

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Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.​

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Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.​

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Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.​

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Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.​

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Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.​

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Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.​

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I have been reading the Bible for 14 years, and this passage multiple times of course. Normally, I would just consider them pretty words. They sure do give the reader some hope. But only some. The rest of the meaning is actually conveyed between the lines, where the full hope and understanding is.

Now a person poor in the spirit will not pride himself in his own works, and for complete poverty, he will never do it again. Blessed are you indeed if you come to this point in your life, for now you can seek his kingdom, never turning back, forsaking everything else, and, like the general who counts his resources before entering a battle, you can be sure you have what it takes to be a hier of the kingdom.

You will not know what mourning is, until you suffer His Grace, and you will indeed be comforted.

Blessed are the meek, who do not make flesh their strength. For no other can inherit the earth.

We may not doubt that God is righteous, and not only that, his perfect righteousness will be manifested to us, that we may never doubt again, when we see His Work unfold before us.

Blessed are the merciful, not only because we do not want to be measured with the same measure, or worse yet, not even hold up to our own standard, but because we see the mercy already given to us.

Blessed are the pure in heart, for no lies will deceive those, who have nothing left to hide, and no thing left on the earth, to put before God.

Blessed are the peacemakers, for God is not willing, that anyone should perish.

Blessed are those who are persecuted for rightousness' sake, for just like those who are poor in spirit, we have counted, and we have entered battle, and we are just at the finish line.


Now If I were to turn that upside down, what kind of man would I get?

A prideful, unregretful, boastful, unrighteous, merciless, foul hearted, reviler-fence sitter?

Sound familiar?

Behold, I have not told you the secret yet.

A Reprobate Mind, or the Mind of Christ, An Introduction​

Proverbs 16:3 Commit your works to the Lord, and your thoughts will be established.

Your thoughts-[H4284] mahasabha=plans, devices, intentions, creativity.

This strikes at the very heart of redemption for fallen man to be re-established
in the image of the Son, through the mind of Christ.

Genesis 6:5 Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth,
and that every intent(frame) of the thoughts(mahasabha) of his heart was only evil continually.

Fallen man became unable to frame his thoughts in accordance with the divine
mind of which he had been created, but had now corrupted.

Isaiah 55:
7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts(mahasabha):
and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God,
for he will abundantly pardon.
8 For my mahasabha are not your mahasabha, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.
9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways,
and my mahasabha than your mahasabha.

In order to accomplish His intentions for the congregation in the wilderness, the Lord
had to provide a special dispensation of grace upon chosen men to receive His mahasabha.

Exodus 35:
31 And he hath filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding,
and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship;
32 And to devise mahasabha, to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass.
33 And in the cutting of stones, to set them, and in carving of wood, to make any manner of mahasabha.
35 Them hath he filled with wisdom of heart, to work all manner of work, of the engraver,
and of the cunning workman, and of the embroiderer, in blue, and in purple, in scarlet,
and in fine linen, and of the weaver, even of them that do any work, and of those that devise mahasabha.

By the time of Jeremiah, the people of Jerusalem were completely of a reprobate mind,
and unable to receive correction.

Jeremiah 18:
11 Now therefore, speak to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying,
Thus says the Lord: Behold, I am fashioning a disaster and devising My Mahasabha against you.
Return now everyone from his evil way, and make your ways and your doings good.
12 And they said, That is hopeless! So we will walk according to our own mahasabha,
and we will all obey the dictates of an evil heart.

And yet, through it all, the Lord remained faithful to His future plans for His people.

Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the mahasabha that I think toward you, says the Lord,
mahasabha of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.

From CNN Politics:


Yes - Joe is making Trump look good

I am an Eastern Orthodox woman, looking for a freelance editor/proofreader to help edit, format, and self-publish my memoir.

Since I was about ten years old I’ve had glimpses into the unseen side of things. Visions, premonitions, and the like have been, if not commonplace, then at least unsurprising. I used to think all of these experiences came from benevolent realms. But now I see that some of them came from less than heavenly origins.

This memoir chronicles the peaks and valleys of my spiritual life, from my Roman Catholic upbringing, through the four decades I thought of myself as spiritual but not religious, to my arrival into the heart of Orthodox Christianity. Though I’ve made countless mistakes, the years I spent outside of the Church weren't fruitless, but provided a solid foundation for my journey toward God. They also gave me an inside view into the mindset of much of the audience I’m writing for: those who conceive of themselves as spiritual but not religious, and are taking a serious look at the Orthodox Church for the first time.

Question - if it took him fives time to get a 14 second comment out - how on earth will he handle a debate with no teleprompter?

please pray I can get to sleep and sleep well and do a good job tomorrow thank you

The shooting took place after an off-site government meeting in Handlova. Fico was first transported to a local hospital and then taken by helicopter to a major trauma center in Banska Bystrica, about 30 kilometers away.

“There was an assassination attempt on R. Fico. He was shot multiple times and is currently in a life-threatening condition. The next few hours will be decisive,” said a statement on Fico’s official Facebook page.

The suspected gunman was detained at the scene by law enforcement officers, according to Slovakia’s state news agency TASR.

Ok, so the title is slightly misleading.

In my specific case, I was falsely accused of being homosexual. After several attempts to correct this, I've realized that I should have given up on this long ago.

So I'm thinking that maybe my best option is to move to a church somewhere on the east coast that has an LGBT recovery ministry, just like there are similar programs for believers suffering from substance abuse, etc.

Any suggestions?

Dress made of 200 dahlia flowers – by Anita Lee-Archer / SWNS

A mom created a fairytale dress made of more than 200 fresh flowers she grew herself, as part of her university studies in art and design.

Anita Lee-Archer created the dress on her daughter, Bella, spending around two hours arranging multi-colored dahlias, hand-picked from her garden in Australia.

The mother-of-five is pursuing a fine arts degree at the University of Tasmania at age 48. She decided to go back to college four years ago to pursue her dreams of a career in art.


Continued below.

So I have an incredibly hard time making friends because brain issues and i would like If you could pray that I would find friends that are understanding of my condition.

And it would mean alot if you could start a prayer chain who would be willing to pray for me as I Minister to people who have 10× more brain capability and also healing of my brain. I pray God blesses each one of you!
Thanks for your prayers
-Jay-

So my step mum raised me since I was about 10 years old. My real mum moved away and has remained in my life but we don’t speak often. I became a born again Christian a few years ago and while I don’t support the Mormon church (I am aware that their baptism isn’t a true Christian baptism), I feel bad to not be there for my step mum since she wants me there. I am also worried it will make her hesitant to attend my own events if my faith is involved. I don’t want to cause division between us so I am confused about what to do… any biblical advice appreciated Sorry if this is the wrong thread/forum for this question.

Francis Schaeffer I believe prophesied here in 1980, because a lot of what he talks about here has now happened to a far greater degree than what he mentions. Having read some of the old school Presbyterians like Horatius Bonar, Thomas Boston, John Flavel, Timothy Cruso, and Ebenezer Erskine, and Francis Schaeffer I did read some back in the 1980s, I get the feel for how the Church is supposed to be, and seen where many have gone, so I think there are more splits now than when Schaeffer preached this....

Francis A. Schaeffer, founder of the L'Abri Fellowship, author of 21 books, and principal in the "How Should We Then Live?" and "Whatever Happened to the Human Race?" film-seminar series, was the featured speaker at the 1980 "Consultation on Presbyterian Alternatives" sponsored by the Presbyterian Church in America. His counsel, excerpted here from the full transcript of his Pittsburgh messages, was heard by participants from several Presbyterian communions.

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Two biblical principles must be practiced simultaneously, at each step of the way, if we are to be really Bible-believing Christians. One is the principle of the practice of the purity of the visible church. The other is the principle of an observable love among all true Christians.

Those of us who left the old Presbyterian Church USA (the "Northern" Church) 44 years ago made mistakes which marked the movement for years to come. The second principle often was not practiced. In particular we often failed to manifest an observable love for the fellow believers who stayed in that denomination when others of us left.

Things were said which are very difficult to forget even more than 40 years later. The periodicals of those who left tended to spend more time attacking the real Christians who stayed in the old denomination than in dealing with the liberals. Those who came out at times refused to pray with those who had not come out. Many who left totally broke off all forms of fellowship with true brothers in Christ who did not come out.

What was destroyed was Christ's command to love each other. And what was left was often a turning inward, a self-righteousness, a hardness, and, too often, a feeling that withdrawal had made those who came out so right that anything they did could be excused.

Further, having learned these bad habits, they later treated each other badly when the new groups had minor differences among themselves.

We cannot stress both of the principles simultaneously in the flesh. Sometimes we stress purity without love. Or we can stress love without purity. In order to stress both simultaneously we must look moment to moment to the work of Christ and to the work of the Holy Spirit. Without this, a stress on purity becomes hard, proud, and legalistic. Without this, a stress on love becomes compromise. Spirituality begins to have real meaning in our lives as we begin to exhibit (and the emphasis here is on exhibit, not just talk) simultaneously the holiness of God and the love of God. Without our exhibition of both, our marvelous God and Lord is not set forth. Rather, a caricature is set forth and He is dishonored.

We paid a terrible price for what happened in those early days. As some of you now come out of your denominations, please do learn from our mistakes. Each pastor, each congregation must be led by the Holy Spirit. If some disappoint you, do not turn bitter.

One of the joys of my life occurred at the Lausanne Congress (the 1974 International Congress on World Evangelization in Lausanne, Switzerland). Some men from the newly formed Presbyterian Church in America asked me to attend a meeting they and others had called there. When I arrived I found that it was made up of Southern men who had just left the Presbyterian Church US to form the PCA and some Christians who were still in the PCUS. Someone from each side spoke. Both said to me that the meeting was possible because of my voice and especially my little book, The Church Before the Watching World (published by InterVarsity Press). I must say I could have wept, and perhaps I did. It is possible for us to do better than we would naturally do. It is not possible if we ignore the fleshly dangers and fail to look to our living Lord for his strength and grace.

Those of us who left our old denomination in the Thirties had another great problem, as I see it. It was confusion over where to place the basic chasm which marks off who we are. Does that chasm mark us as those who are building Bible-believing churches and that on this side of the chasm we hold the distinctives of being Presbyterian and Reformed? Or is the primary chasm that we are Presbyterian and Reformed and that we are divided from all who are not? The answer makes a great deal of difference.

When we go to a town to start a church, are we going there with the primary motivation to build a church which is loyal to Presbyterians and the Reformed faith, or are we going there to build a church which will preach the Gospel which historic, Bible-believing Christianity holds, and then on this side of that chasm teach that which we believe is true to the Bible in regard to church government and doctrine? The difference makes a difference to our mentality, to our motivation, and to the breadth of our outreach. I must say, to me one view is catholic, biblical and gives good promise of success; the other is introverted and self-limiting, yes, and sectarian. I spoke of a good promise of success. I mean on two levels: First in church growth and a healthy outlook among those we reach; second, in providing leadership in the whole church of Christ.

We alone do not face this problem of putting the chasm at the wrong place, of course. A too zealous mentality on the Lutheran view of the sacraments is the same. A too sectarian mentality in regard to the mode of baptism is another. The zeal of the Plymouth Brethren for an unpaid ministry is often the same. No, it is not just our problem. But it is our problem. To put the chasm in the wrong place is to fail to fulfill our calling, and I am convinced that when we do so we displease our Lord.

Those who remain in the old-line churches have their own set of problems. In contrast to the problem of hardness to which those who withdraw are prone, those who remain are likely to develop a general latitudinarianism. One who accepts ecclesiastical latitudinarianism easily steps into a cooperative latitudinarianism which can become a doctrinal latitudinarianism and especially a letdown on a clear view of Scripture.

This is what happened in certain segments of what I would call the evangelical establishment. Out of the evangelical latitudinarianism of the Thirties and Forties grew the letdown in regard to the Scripture in certain areas of the evangelical structure in the Seventies. Large sections of evangelicalism today put all they can into acting as though it makes no real difference as to whether we hold the historic view of Scripture or the existential view. The existential methodology says that the Bible is authoritative when it teaches "religious'' things but not when it touches that which is historic, scientific, or such things as the male/female relationship.

Not all who have stayed in the liberal denominations have done this, by any means, but it is hard to escape. I don't see how those who have chosen to stay in (no matter what occurs) can escape a latitudinarian mentality which will struggle to paper over the differences on Scripture in order to keep an external veneer of unity. That veneer in fact obscures a real lack of unity on the crucial point of Scripture. And when the doctrinal latitudinarianism sets in we can be sure from all of church history and from observation in our own period of church history that in just a generation or two the line between evangelical and liberal will be lost.

This is already observable in that the liberals largely have shifted to the existential methodology and have expressed great approval that the "moderate evangelicals" have done so. The trend will surely continue. Unless we see the new liberalism with its existential methodology as a whole, and reject it as a whole, we will, to the extent to which we tolerate it, be confused in our thinking. Failure to reject it will also involve us in the general relativism of our day and compromising in our actions.

The second major problem of those who stay in the liberally controlled denominations is the natural tendency to constantly move back the line at which the final stand will be taken. For example, can you imagine Clarence Macartney, Donald Grey Barnhouse or T. Roland Phillips being in a denomination in which the battle line was the ordination of women? Can you imagine these great evangelical preachers of the Twenties and Thirties (who stayed in the Presbyterian Church USA) now being in a denomination which refuses to ordain a young man whose only fault was that while he said he would not preach against the ordination of women yet he would not say he had changed his mind that it was unbiblical? Can you imagine that these leaders of the conservative cause in an earlier era would have considered it a victory to have stalled the ordination of practicing homosexuals and practicing lesbians? What do you think Macartney, Barnhouse, and Phillips would have said about these recent developments? Such a situation in their denomination would never have been in their minds as in the realm of conceivable.

The line does move back. In what presbytery of the Northern Presbyterian Church can you bring an ordained man under biblical discipline for holding false views of doctrine and expect him to be disciplined?

Beware of false victories. Even if a conservative man is elected moderator of the general assembly (as Macartney was in 1924), it would amount to absolutely nothing. Despite the jubilation among conservatives at Macartney's election, the bureaucracy simply rolled on, and not too many years later conservative leader J. Gresham Machen could be unfrocked. Nelson Bell was elected moderator of the Southern Church later (in 1972), and nothing changed. The power centers of the bureaucracy and the liberally-controlled seminaries were unmoved.

There are always those who say, "don't break up our ranks ... wait a while longer ... wait for this ... wait for that." It is always wait. Never act. But 40 years is a long time to wait when things are always and consistently getting worse. And (with my present health problem) I tell you soberly, we do not have forever to take that courageous and costly stand for Christ that we sometimes talk about. We do not have forever for that. We hear many coaxing words, but watch for the power structure to strike out when it is threatened. If the liberals' power is really in danger or if they fear the loss of property, watch out!

What of the future? We live in a day that is fast-moving. The United States is moving at great speed toward totally humanistic orientation in society and state. Do you think this will leave our own little projects, our own church, and our own lives untouched? Don't be silly. The warnings are on every side. When a San Francisco Orthodox Presbyterian congregation can be dragged into court for breaking the law of discrimination because it dismissed an avowed, practicing homosexual as an organist, can we be so blind as to not hear all the warning bells go off? When by a ruling of a federal court the will of Congress can be overturned concerning the limitation on the willful killing of unborn children, should not the warning bells go off as to the kind of pressures ahead of us?

Who supports these things? The liberal denominations do, publicly, formally, and financially. And it puts into a vise those of us who stand for biblical morality, let alone doctrine. Beyond the denominations, it is their councils of churches that support not only these things but also terrorist groups. They give moral support and money. Should we support this by our denominational affiliation? We may seem isolated from the results for a time but that is only because we are too blind to see.

I don't think we have a lot of time. The hour is very late, but I don't think it is too late in this country. This is not a day of retreat and despair. In America it is still possible to turn things around. But we don't have forever.

I grew up in the church, got baptised, had my confirmation (calvinist). However, I've never really felt a passion for Christ. I pray, but I rarely read my bible. I go to church and donate, but I don't really evangelise or spread the gospel. Every time I try, it's like the seed on the rock, quickly growing and quickly dying.
Has anyone else experienced this? Does anyone have any suggestions on how to overcome this?
Please pray for me.

We live in very evil times, and it is getting worse by the day. There are so many liars and deceptions and deceiving spirits that it is hard to know if anyone still exists who tells the truth consistently and who does not practice telling lies, even what are called “white lies,” which are still lies. For liars exist within human governments, politicians, the media, the newscasters, preachers, evangelists, missionaries, people who profess faith in Jesus Christ, actors, husbands, wives, children, teachers, and the list goes on.

So we must not be people who just believe whatever we are told by whomever just because “so and so” said it. For “wolves in sheep’s clothing” and charlatans are among us, probably in droves, if truth be told, and they are disguising themselves as Christians and as preachers and evangelists and missionaries, and as authors of Christian literature and songs, and as “Christian” politicians, and as servants of righteousness when it is the devil and the flesh that they serve, instead. So be wise and be discerning.

And these people use all sorts of means and trickery and deception in order to get us to listen to them and to believe them and their lies. And some of us baby boomers (post WWII) were taught all sorts of lies which we believed as children, which some of us, since we have become adults, have been able to see for what they are, by the grace of God, so that we have been able to reject the lies and to see the truth (perhaps not all of it, though). For we have been given discernment by God to sift through the lies, to see truth.

The biggest area of concern, though, is with the message of the gospel of our salvation which so many people today are diluting and altering in order to make God/Jesus and his gospel message more acceptable and less offensive to the people of the world. So many have shortened the gospel message to just say that if we “believe” (rarely biblically defined) in Jesus that now all our sins are forgiven, heaven is guaranteed us when we die, and that it can’t be taken away from us, but regardless of how we live.

But that is not the gospel that Jesus taught, and it is not the gospel that the NT apostles taught, either, if read and understood in context, and if not defined by Scriptures taken out of context and made to say what they do not say if taught in context. For so many people are quoting Ephesians 2:8-9 absent of verse 10 (which is critical to the message). And they are quoting John 10:28-30 absent of verse 27 which tells us to whom verses 28-30 apply. And so they are applying them broadly where they don’t apply.

So, we need to be people of discernment who walk in the wisdom of God and under his direction, who have died with him to sin, and who have been raised with him to walk in newness of life in him in freedom from slavery to sin and in holiness and in righteousness and in obedience to our Lord. And then we need to look carefully at how we walk, that our habits and our character and how we conduct our lives line up with the teachings of the Scriptures with regard to how we are to live to please God.

For Jesus Christ gave his life up for us on that cross to buy us back for God (to redeem us) out of our lives of slavery to sin so that we will now follow the Lord Jesus in obedience to his commands in holy living, and thus be those who are honoring God with our bodies. But if obedience to our Lord and holy living are not what we practice, and if sin is still what we practice, then the Scriptures teach that we will not inherit eternal life with God, regardless of what professions of faith we make with our lips.

So the encouragement here is to be aware of the evil times in which we live, to seek the Lord for wisdom and discernment to separate truth from lies, and then walk according to the Spirit and no longer according to the flesh. For making the best use of our time has to do with our lives fully surrendered to Jesus Christ to do his will, for this is not about what our flesh desires, but what God desires for us according to his will and purpose. So our lives are now to be under the control of God, and not out-of-control.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; Acts 26:18; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Co 10:1-22; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-24; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:1-17; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Pet 2:24; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]

For Our Nation

An Original Work / September 11, 2012

Bombs are bursting. Night is falling.
Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.
Trust Him with your life today.
Make Him your Lord and your Savior.
Turn from your sin. Follow Jesus.
He will forgive you of your sin;
Cleanse your heart, made new within.

Men betraying: Our trust fraying.
On our knees to God we’re praying,
Seeking God to give us answers
That are only found in Him.
God is sovereign over all things.
Nothing from His mind escaping.
He has all things under His command,
And will work all for good.

Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.

Men deceiving: We’re believing
In our Lord, and interceding
For our nation and its people
To obey their God today.
He is our hope for our future.
For our wounds He offers suture.
He is all we need for this life.
Trust Him with your life today.

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