Tag: Bible

The War Against Christianity: A Question of Intolerance

On By kingsjesterIn Christianity, Politics1 Comment

 

American Christianity 2

There has been a lot of discussion the past couple of weeks, concerning the Constitutional Rights of Christian Americans versus the hypocritical use of the words “tolerance” and “discrimination” by the American Left.

Napp Nazworth, writing for The Christian Post, makes the following observation…

Businesses should not discriminate, liberals proclaimed loudly in explaining their opposition to religious freedom laws. Three recent actions supported by liberals demonstrate that is not true.

1. Bakeries Should Be Able to Refuse Bible Verses

Christian activist Bill Jack was denied service when he went to Azucar Bakery in Denver and asked for two cakes in the shape of open Bibles. He asked for the words, “God hates sin — Psalm 45:7,” “Homosexuality is a detestable sin — Leviticus 18:22,” “God loves sinners,” and “While we were yet sinners Christ died for us — Romans 5:8,” on each of the “pages” of the Bible cakes.

Azucar Bakery is in the same state where the bakery Masterpiece Cake was successfully sued for declining to make a wedding cake for a same-sex wedding.

In a January interview with The Christian Post, Jack explained that he supports Azucar Bakery’s right to deny him service because they oppose the values he wanted written on the cakes. He only made the requests to find out if Colorado would be hypocritical. It was.

In Colorado, if a customer wants a cake with Christian values written on it, bakers are allowed to decline service if they disagree with those values. If a customer wants a cake for a same-sex wedding, bakers are not allowed to decline service if they disagree with same-sex marriage.

2. Pharmacists Should Refuse Death Penalty Drugs

The American Pharmacists Association approved a policy last month discouraging its members from participating in death penalty executions by providing the drugs required for lethal injections.

The move was encouraged by a letter sent to the group signed by 31 anti-death penalty and liberal organizations, including Amnesty International, the NAACP, National Council of Churches, SumOfUs and the United Methodist Church.

Liberal websites, such as The Huffington Post, Democracy Now and Think Progress, wrote positive reports about the move. There were no critics mentioned in their reports arguing that pharmacists should not have the right to decline their customers.

These reactions contrast sharply with liberal reactions to the notion that pro-life health care workers should not be forced to choose between participating in an abortion and losing their job.

3. Businesses Were Right to Boycott an Entire State Because of a Religious Freedom Law

In reaction to a religious freedom law passed in Indiana, Liberals were not only supporting, but praising Apple, Angie’s List and Salesforce for threatening boycotts in the state over the new law.

These liberals appreciated these companies making business decisions based upon their moral convictions. This exposed a glaring contradiction in their position: those companies opposed the law because it could (in some circumstances) let businesses make based upon owners’ religious convictions.

At its core, the issue was about wedding vendors, like Masterpiece Cake mentioned above, who declined service for same-sex weddings due to their religious convictions. Essentially, this means the companies were opposing a law that could (but not necessarily would) give small business owners the right to decline business for a particular event, by declining business with an entire state.

More than that, Angie’s List, Apple and Salesforce were much more extreme in their position than the wedding vendors. While wedding vendors opposed to working same-sex weddings would have no economic impact (because there are plenty of vendors willing to work same-sex weddings), boycotts by large companies would hurt local economies and workers — even those workers who agreed with their position. Yet, to hear liberals tell it, those companies were heroic while same-sex marriage opponents are bigots.

In a Thursday article for The Federalist, The Acton Institute’s Jordan Ballor put it well: “The problem in this instance, then, is not that companies like Angie’s List threaten economic sanction, …. The problem, rather, is that the freedom to discriminate is claimed by such companies for themselves but not extended and recognized for others. Boycotts against discrimination as such thus depend on the very thing they oppose. In this sense, the discriminatory actions of businesses ought to be judged alike, whether they are based on religious convictions or secular morality.”

So, what is it that American Liberals want Christian Americans to do, concerning the fact that our Holy Scriptures, God’s Word itself, condemns homosexuality?

According to Dr. Michael Brown, writing for The Christian Post, one  for the New York Times, believes that there is a simple solution to the “problem.”

Simply rewrite the Word of God.

How can the religious community live in peace and harmony with the LGBT community? New York Times columnist Frank Bruni has the solution. Just rewrite the Bible.

In his April 3rd column, “Bigotry, the Bible and the Lessons of Indiana,” Bruni, himself gay, recognizes that Christian beliefs are not necessarily grounded in hatred. The problem, he claims, is that, “Beliefs ossified over centuries aren’t easily shaken.”

Bruni, for his part, wants to shake us free from our fossilized faith.

According to Bruni, who evidences little or no understanding of how believers view the Scriptures (namely, as God’s inspired Word), if we hold to the view that homosexual practice is sinful, this is our “decision” and “choice.”

So, ironically, whereas homosexuality was once considered a choice, now what we believe about homosexuality is a choice.

After all, he argues, the belief that homosexual practice is sinful “prioritizes scattered passages of ancient texts over all that has been learned since — as if time had stood still, as if the advances of science and knowledge meant nothing.”

So, Bruni thinks he can simply dismiss the Scriptures as “ancient texts,” explaining “all writings reflect the biases and blind spots of their authors, cultures and eras.”

But for devout Jews and Christians, the Scriptures are not just any writings, full of biases and blind spots.

If that were the case, there would be no basis for our faith whatsoever and no absolute moral foundations of any kind.

Forget about homosexuality. We would have no reason to hold to any of the fundamentals of our faith if Bruni’s description was accurate.

Not only so, but Bruni wrongly claims that for those of us who hold to the authority of the Bible, “the advances of science and knowledge” mean “nothing.”

To the contrary, all the scientific advances in the world cannot determine what is or is not moral, and there’s nothing we know today that changes our view that God did not design men to be with men and women to be with women. The new interpretations of Scripture that the “progressive” Christians are touting (and which Bruni applauds) are not based on new textual or archeological or linguistic discoveries. They are based primarily on emotional arguments, since there is nothing in the Bible that supports homosexual practice.

Bruni also repeats the common misconception that there are just a handful of “scattered” texts that deal with homosexual practice.

To the contrary, every law dealing with marriage and family, every positive example and precept, every illustration in the Bible about sexuality morality is based on heterosexual relationships (see, for example, Genesis 2:24; Exodus 20:12; Matthew 19:4-6; Ephesians 5:22-33).

That’s why there was not a need to condemn homosexual practice on every page. Everything in Scripture was against it. (To be perfectly clear, the Bible plainly teaches that God loves every human being, that all of us are fallen and in need of redemption, and that Jesus died for heterosexual and homosexual alike. The issue here is the meaning of marriage and the standard of sexual morality.)

Bruni cannot countenance this for a moment. Instead, he claims that our biblically-based faith “elevates unthinking obeisance above intelligent observance,” which is why “our debate about religious freedom should include a conversation about freeing religions and religious people from prejudices that they needn’t cling to and can indeed jettison, much as they’ve jettisoned other aspects of their faith’s history, rightly bowing to the enlightenments of modernity.”

So, those of us who hold to biblical morality are “unthinking” and “prejudiced” people who need to be “freed” from our antiquated beliefs.

It’s high time, Bruni opines, for us to catch up with the 21st century. How utterly primitive of us to believe that there’s anything wrong with homosexual relationships or acts!

Bruni, however, sees positive trends, pointing to a number of books by Christian authors who advocate a reinterpretation of the Bible, claiming that we have outgrown other biblically based views over time, like the justification of slavery or the nature of gender roles.

…Bruni cites with approval a quote from Mitchell Gold, a furniture maker and gay philanthropist who says, “church leaders must be made ‘to take homosexuality off the sin list.'”

And Bruni means it when he says “made to” – as in pressured to or forced to or coerced to. As he writes at the end of his column, “His [namely, Gold’s] commandment is worthy — and warranted. All of us, no matter our religious traditions, should know better than to tell gay people that they’re an offense. And that’s precisely what the florists and bakers who want to turn them away are saying to them.” (Of course, Bruni misrepresents the positions of these Christian business owners as well, but why deal with truth when caricature is so much more effective?)

So, rather than follow the biblical commandments, which are explicit and unambiguous when it comes to both the heterosexual nature of marriage (“from the beginning,” as Jesus said) and the sinfulness of homosexual practice, we should follow the new “commandment” of Bruni and Gold and simply rewrite the Bible.

Well, here’s a note to Mr. Bruni and The New York Times: A billion years from now, when the names of Frank Bruni and Mitchell Gold and the Times itself are long forgotten, the words of God will still stand (Isaiah 40:7-8; Matthew 24:35), and those florists and bakers whom you ridicule in this world will be highly esteemed in the world to come.

The fact is that churches and denominations and religious groups may come and go, but the Word of God is here to stay.

We do not sit in judgment on the Scriptures; the Scriptures sit in judgment of us. And while they call us to love our neighbors as ourselves, they also forbid homosexual practice.

That is not about to change.

As I wrote earlier this week, the Far Left, have proven that they cannot stand Christian Americans. It is evident from their condescension toward us and derision of our traditional values and ethics in their propaganda. Our Constitution gives us Religious Freedom in its very First Amendment.

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
Please note that this amendment does not say “in some circumstances”.

I have said time and time again, that I find it funny that those among us who claim to be the most tolerant are actually the least tolerant of all.

However, this attack on our faith as Christian Americans, is not funny at all.

This Media Blitz, concerning the fact that Christian Americans refuse to support “Gay Marriage”, which was the impetus behind the President’s scolding Christian Americans about “not being loving enough” is not about discrimination, it is about control. Control of American Christians’ daily lives.

It is a rewriting and an attempted negating of God’s Word by those who cannot win a political or spiritual argument and are now trying to win a culture war by claiming that this law is something that it is not, and by rewriting Christianity by leaving out Individual Salvation through repentance of sin.

Joseph Goebbels, Adolf Hitler ‘ s Minister of Propaganda, once said that

If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it.

The current lie that Obama and his sycophants are telling the American Public is that, somehow, the less than 24% of Americans who feel the same way as the Progressives in the Far Left do, somehow outnumber the 74% of Americans who proclaim Jesus Christ as our Personal Savior.

And, that overestimation just doesn’t add up.

Not even in Common Core.

Until He Comes,

KJ

 

Whitney, Bobbie, and the Cost of “Generational Sin”

On By kingsjesterIn Christianity, Entertainment2 Comments

Whitney and KristinaRight now, a young woman lies in a coma in a hospital, in a medically induced coma, brought about by addiction.

How did this happen?

Have you ever heard of “Generational Sin”?

Deuteronomy 5:9b-10 states, “I do not leave unpunished the sins of those who hate me, but I punish the children for the sins of their parents to the third and fourth generations. But I lavish love on those who love me and obey my commands, even for a thousand generations.” (NLT)

How it works. When a person has sinned, that sin stands in need of being confessed. If the person doesn’t confess it, then his children must confess it in order to break the generational pattern. Like an “outstanding” debt, the person’s sin “hangs out there,” impacting his descendants, until it is addressed through confession and cleared away. We are not required to take responsibility for our ancestors’ sins, but we are to acknowledge and confess their sin. (We agree with God that they were wrong and that God was right.) God asks us to accept responsibility for our own sin and to repent and be humbled. Understand that the passing down of iniquity (sin) is just that – the passing down of iniquity (sin). My parents’ sin does not become my sin, until I have made the choice to sin myself in the same way.

And, even the children of the Rich and Famous are not exempt.

Pagesix.com reports that

The daughter of late pop queen Whitney Houston was found unconscious in a bathtub at her Georgia home Saturday — nearly three years after her mom died tragically in a tub in a Los Angeles hotel.

Bobbi Kristina Brown was clinging to life after apparently suffering a drug overdose, just as her mother had, “Entertainment Tonight’’ reported, quoting a source who insisted it was not a suicide attempt.

Whitney Houston accidentally drowned in a bathtub inside the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Feb. 11, 2012, with cocaine, Xanax, marijuana and muscle relaxant in her system.

A second source told the magazine it was “no coincidence’’ that the 21-year-old aspiring singer was found in eerily similar circumstances.

Brown’s husband, Nick Gordon, and a friend found her underwater in her home in the Atlanta suburb of Roswell, Ga., and administered CPR until help arrived.

Paramedics took her to a local hospital, where she was in a medically induced coma and breathing with the assistance of a ventilator, police sources said.

Brown’s father, R&B singer Bobby Brown, was at her bedside Saturday.

Brown had recently hinted at wanting to pursue her own music career.

“Promise to release some thangs for your enjoyment. . . One thing you CAN depend on is my mother taught me well,” she tweeted.

On Thursday, she added: “Let’s start this career up&&moving OUT to TO YOU ALLLL quick shall we!?!???!!!!!!!!” along with several music emojis.

She also appeared on the Lifetime reality show “The Houstons: On Our Own” in 2012. She inherited millions of dollars from Houston.

Nick Gordon and Bobbi Kristina BrownPhoto: ZumaPress

But Brown was battling demons of her own.

On her 18th birthday — as well as after Houston’s funeral — she was accused of doing cocaine, the Daily Mail has reported.

Months after Houston’s death, she got engaged to Gordon, whom Houston raised with Brown as an adopted brother.

But her family criticized the relationship, with grandmother Cissy Houston calling it “incestuous.”

And in November 2012, she was busted for speeding after slamming her Chevy Camaro into an embankment in Alpharetta, Ga.

Per additioninfo.org,

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, having a parent who is addicted to drugs or alcohol can lead to lifelong problems if the child or teen doesn’t receive help and support.

About 25 percent of U.S. children younger than 18 years are exposed to alcohol abuse or dependence through a family member, according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Exposure to drug abuse affects countless others.

More Likely to Become Addicts Themselves
Research shows that these children are more likely to develop depression and anxiety disorders during their teen years. And the likelihood that they will use drugs or alcohol early, and – for both genetic and environmental reasons – become addicted to these substances, is higher than those who do not grow up in these environments. In fact, this population is at the highest risk to become drug and alcohol abusers, according to the National Association for Children of Alcoholics.

Foster Care, the Juvenile Justice System, and Therapy
Children of addicted parents are also more likely to end up in foster care, the juvenile justice system, and – once they reach adulthood – therapy for mental health disorders, marital problems, and trouble parenting their own children.

Addicted parents often lack the ability to provide structure or discipline within their families, according to the National Association for Children of Alcoholics. They also tend to be less patient and to expect more from their children than do non-substance-abusing parents.

Child Abuse
The majority of child welfare professionals report that substance abuse is a factor in at least half of all child abuse cases. More than one-third of these workers say it contributes to at least 75 percent of the cases.

In today’s culture, more and more young people, usually raised in non-Christian Homes, and identifying themselves as “libertarians”, espouse the view, as frequently seen in their posts on Facebook, that drugs should be legalized., and the use of them has no effect on anybody but the user themselves.

And, they are very, very wrong.

Whether you are a Christian or not, one fact is certain, as study after study shows, parents are role models for their children, right or wrong.

If they see you drinking around them, they are more likely to take up drinking.

If they see you using drugs, including smoking pot, they will be more likely to model that behavior, as they get older.

I have always observed that alcoholics and addicts are very selfish people, consumed by a very selfish behavior.

This selfish behavior consumes them to the point where it becomes the priority in their life, requiring more attention that anything else in it, including their children.

In the case of Bobbi, now on Life Support, her self-involved parents, Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown, failed her.

Their sin became “Generational”, when she adopted their lifestyle of drug and alcohol abuse.

God’s Word admonishes us, as parents, to

Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.- Proverbs 22:6 (KJV)

If her parents had changed their lifestyle and publicly repented of their drug and alcohol abuse, perhaps Bobbi would not be lying in that Hospital Bed, floating between here and the Afterlife.

And, perhaps her mother would be standing with her father, guiding her in “the way in which she should go”.

Actions have consequences…to more than just the individual acting irresponsibly.

Until He Comes,

KJ

Living Under the “Tyranny of the Minority”

On By kingsjesterIn Christianity, Politics1 Comment

WashingtonPrayingAs I was trying to choose what to write about on this cold and wet Mississippi Sunday Morning after Christmas, a hard, cold fact struck my simple mind:  We are living in a country that continues to suffer under the tyranny of a minority. 

Not a racial minority, mind you, but an ideological one.

76 % of Americans still self-identify as being Christians.

And yet, we are under attack daily, from the Main Stream Media, Cable and Satellite Television Programs, Social Media, and the current President of the United States of America and his Administration.

As Rev. Franklin Graham, the head of Samaritan’s Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, declared in the August-September  Edition of Decision Magazine, “Heaven is not for cowards!”

“Christians cannot ignore parts of God’s Word because they are unpopular or cause division. Our commission is to proclaim Christ and all He stands for,” wrote Graham.

“This is what the church’s presence in the world is all about. We cannot sincerely proclaim the truth of God’s love while ignoring what He hates, and God hates sin.”

Graham also stressed the need for “godly courage” and for Christians to speak out against abortion and homosexuality.

“We are soldiers in God’s army, and we cannot stand down on biblical issues out of fear of being labeled a homophobe or judge,” wrote Graham.

“People make judgments every day. The world’s system passes judgments accepted by governments and citizens. But the world considers Christian judgment to be biased, judgmental and intolerant,” he added.

Rev. Graham was spot on.

I can testify from personal experience, having caught flack for sticking to my Christian American Conservative Principles, since beginning my daily posts on this blog in April of 2010.

My posts, concerning American Christianity, seem to “touch a nerve” in both Liberals and Atheists, alike. (But, in at least some cases, I repeat myself.)

Their reaction has hardly been unexpected.

Of course, one of the Hot Button Issues, which those Liberals and Atheists who responded, over the years, immediately denied, was that our Founding Fathers were Christians and that our country was founded on a Judeo-Christian Belief System.

Evidently, they had never read anything, except what their like-minded, non-believing soothsayers, allowed them to.  Or else, they would have read historical documents like President George Washington’s Thanksgiving Day Proclamation, written on November 1, 1777, and found at wallbuilders.com:

The committee appointed to prepare a recommendation to the several states, to set apart a day of public thanksgiving, brought in a report; which was taken into consideration, and agreed to as follows:

Forasmuch as it is the indispensable duty of all men to adore the superintending providence of Almighty God; to acknowledge with gratitude their obligation to him for benefits received, and to implore such farther blessings as they stand in need of; and it having pleased him in his abundant mercy not only to continue to us the innumerable bounties of his common providence, but also smile upon us in the prosecution of a just and necessary war, for the defense and establishment of our unalienable rights and liberties; particularly in that he hath been pleased in so great a measure to prosper the means used for the support of our troops and to crown our arms with most signal success:

It is therefore recommended to the legislative or executive powers of these United States, to set apart Thursday, the 18th day of December next, for solemn thanksgiving and praise; that with one heart and one voice the good people may express the grateful feelings of their hearts, and consecrate themselves to the service of their divine benefactor; and that together with their sincere acknowledgments and offerings, they may join the penitent confession of their manifold sins, whereby they had forfeited every favor, and their humble and earnest supplication that it may please God, through the merits of Jesus Christ, mercifully to forgive and blot them out of remembrance; that it may please him graciously to afford his blessings on the governments of these states respectively, and prosper the public council of the whole; to inspire our commanders both by land and sea, and all under them, with that wisdom and fortitude which may render them fit instruments, under the providence of Almighty God, to secure for these United States the greatest of all blessings, independence and peace; that it may please him to prosper the trade and manufactures of the people and the labor of the husbandman, that our land may yield its increase; to take schools and seminaries of education, so necessary for cultivating the principles of true liberty, virtue and piety, under his nurturing hand, and to prosper the means of religion for the promotion and enlargement of that kingdom which consisteth in righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Ghost.

And it is further recommended, that servile labor, and such recreation as, though at other times innocent, may be unbecoming the purpose of this appointment, be omitted on so solemn an occasion.

Of course, the Poster Boy for the claim by Liberal/Atheist responders, concerning the Founders’ lack of  Christianity, is Thomas Jefferson.

Atheists like to bring up the fact that he wrote a version of the Bible which left out Christ’s miracles.  What they are reluctant to do, though, is explain why he wrote his book that way.  David Barton explains on wallbuilders.com:

The reader [of a newspaper article which Barton is replying to], as do many others, claimed that Jefferson omitted all miraculous events of Jesus from his “Bible.” Rarely do those who make this claim let Jefferson speak for himself. Jefferson’s own words explain that his intent for that book was not for it to be a “Bible,” but rather for it to be a primer for the Indians on the teachings of Christ (which is why Jefferson titled that work, “The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth”). What Jefferson did was to take the “red letter” portions of the New Testament and publish these teachings in order to introduce the Indians to Christian morality. And as President of the United States, Jefferson signed a treaty with the Kaskaskia tribe wherein he provided—at the government’s expense—Christian missionaries to the Indians. In fact, Jefferson himself declared, “I am a real Christian, that is to say, a disciple of the doctrines of Jesus.” While many might question this claim, the fact remains that Jefferson called himself a Christian, not a deist.

The Eight Per Centers (Atheists) and young and/or misinformed Liberals, who replied to my blogs, insisted that Crosses and other Christian symbols have no place in the Public Square.  They wish for Christians to remain unseen and unheard from, worshiping in private.

Unfortunately for them, The First Amendment to the Constitution still holds.

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

So,  y’all can wish for a unicorn to magically appear in your backyard…but that ain’t gonna happen, either.

As a free nation, all you who are non-believers have every right to your lack of faith…which, is actually a faith unto itself.

And, the overwhelming majority in this country, Christian Americans, will continue to exercise ours.

God of our Fathers, whose almighty hand
leads forth in beauty all the starry band
of shining worlds in splendor through the skies,
our grateful songs before thy throne arise.

Until He Comes,

KJ

Muslim Sympathizer-in-Chief About To Sanction Israel?

On By kingsjesterIn PoliticsLeave a comment

americanisraelilapelpinPresident Barack Hussein Obama’s distressing pattern of alienating our friends and embracing our enemies may be about to achieve a new high…err…low.

Freebeacon.com reports that

The Obama administration is refusing to discuss reports that emerged early Thursday claiming that the White House is considering imposing sanctions on Israel for continuing construction on Jewish homes in Jerusalem.

State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf dodged several questions on Thursday when confronted with reports that the administration had held secret internal meetings to discuss taking action against Israel for its ongoing building in East Jerusalem.

The classified meetings were reportedly held several weeks ago and included officials from both the State Department and White House, according to the Israeli daily Ha’aretz, which firstreported on the meetings.

The possibility of sanctioning Israel for its ongoing construction sends a signal that the Obama administration is willing to go further in its denunciations of Israel then any previous White House.

At the same time, the White House is vigorously pushing Congress against passing new sanctions on Iran.

When asked to address the reports Thursday afternoon, Harf declined to take a stance.

“I’m obviously not going to comment one way or another on reported internal deliberations,” she said. “We’ve made clear our position on settlement activity publicly and that hasn’t changed.”

When pressed to address whether the White House has reached a point at which it believes its harsh rhetoric against Israel is not enough, Harf again demurred, stating that she would not “address hypotheticals.”

A White House National Security Council (NSC) official also would not comment on the report when contacted Thursday by the Washington Free Beacon.

News of the supposed meeting leaked to the press though Israeli officials who were apparently apprised of the discussion.

Senior Israeli officials told Haaretz “that White House officials held a classified discussion a few weeks ago about the possibility of taking active measures against the settlements,” according to the report.

The discussion about levying sanctions on Israel reportedly began after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s October meeting at the White House and the subsequent battle between Washington and Jerusalem over settlement construction.

The thought of the White House leveling sanctions on Israel as it works to lessen those already imposed on Iran prompted consternation on Capitol Hill and throughout the pro-Israel world.

One senior congressional aide who works on the issue of Israel expressed shock that a White House could even discuss such action.

“If these reports are true, this would mark a new era of unprecedented hostility from the White House against our strongest ally in the Middle East,” the source said. “It’s impossible not to notice the irony of the administration mulling sanctions on Israel while threatening to veto new sanctions against Iran.”

The aide added: “The president should be forewarned that taking such action against Israel would yield tremendous pushback from Congress.”

Those in the pro-Israel world expressed a similar view when reached for comment.

“Even this administration, which has been historically hostile to our Israeli allies, even as they worked overtime to bomb the enemies of Iranian proxies across the Middle East, could not possibly be so aggressively committed to undermining our alliances as to levy sanctions against Israel at the same time they’re lifting them on Iran,” said one senior official with a pro-Israel organization who agreed to speak only on background.

Others took a more critical view.

“The Obama administration is against sanctions on Iran, but for them on Israel,” said Noah Pollak, executive director of the pro-Israel organization Emergency Committee for Israel. “Is [White House deputy national security adviser] Ben Rhodes wearing a green headband to work these days?”

One of the perks of having written over 1,600 blogs, is that , sometime over the last 4 years, chances are I have gathered some pertinent background information on the subject I am writing today’s Blog on. This time, I hit the jackpot.

Per wnd.com, posted 11/11/2008:

Hamas held a meeting in the Gaza Strip several months ago with aides to President-elect Barack Obama, but the terror group was asked to keep the contacts secret until after last week’s elections, according to a senior Hamas official.

Ahmed Yousef, Hamas’ chief political adviser in Gaza, told the leading Al-Hayat Arabic-language newspaper Hamas has maintained regular communication with Obama aides that even continued during the past week.

“We were in contact with a number of Obama’s aides through the Internet, and later met with some of them in Gaza, but they advised us not to come out with any statements, as they may have a negative effect on his election campaign and be used by Republican candidate John McCain (to attack Obama),” Yousuf told Al-Hayat.

Yousuf said Hamas’ contact with Obama’s advisers was ongoing, adding that relations were maintained after Obama’s electoral victory last Tuesday.

Then, on 6/25/10, ynet news.com reported:

A senior Hamas figure said Friday that official and unofficial US sources have asked the Islamist group to refrain from making any statements regarding contacts with Washington, this following reports that a senior American official is due to arrive in an Arab country in the coming days to relay a telegram from the Obama Administration.

The Hamas figure told the London-based Al-Quds Al-Arabi newspaper that the Americans fear discussing the talks publicly would “rouse the Jewish lobby and other pressure groups in the US and cause them to pressure the administration to suspend all talks with Hamas.”

The Hamas figure, who is close to Ismail Haniyeh, the prime minister of the government in Gaza, added, “This is a sensitive subject. The Americans don’t want anyone to comment on it because this would catch the attention of pressure groups (in the US) and cause problems.”

He said Hamas’ exiled leadership in Damascus is overseeing the contacts behind closed doors.

On May 22, 2011, President Obama said,

A strong and secure Israel is in the national security interest of the United States not simply because we share strategic interests … America’s commitment to Israel’s security flows from a deeper place — and that’s the values we share.

A deeper place? As in piled higher and deeper?

Mr. President, if something happens to Israel, or Iran gets taken out by a preemptive strike from Israel, that blood is on your hands.

And, if this treatment of God’s Chosen People continues, I am afraid we are going to find out why America is not mentioned in The Book of Revelation.

Until He Comes,

KJ

Glorifying the Darkness: Michael Brown, Phil Robertson, and Me (A KJ Op Ed)

On By kingsjesterIn Christianity, Politics2 Comments

PhilRobertsonCartoon

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. – Ephesians 6:12 (ESV)

Back in May, the Patriarch of the Mega-hit Television Program, Duck Dynasty, Phil Robertson sat down with Fox News’ Sean Hannity, and, as usual, Brother Phil told it like it is…

…HANNITY: So we got to win those political battles, too. I think they’re just as important.

ROBERTSON: Yes. I just feel a little more comfortable dealing in the spiritual realm, even with the persecution of whatever comes with it, I’m just — I have a task to do and I go forth across America. I’ve been doing this, most people don’t realize, I’ve been doing this for 35 years.

HANNITY: Yeah.

ROBERTSON: I’ve been all over the United States backwards and forwards, and my message is always the same, god loves you, sent Jesus to die for you.

HANNITY: When the controversy arose were you surprised?

ROBERTSON: Surprised, not at all. Blessed are you when men hate you, when they exclude you, when they insult you and reject your name as evil, Jesus said, because of the son of man. Leap for joy because great is your reward in heaven. It goes with the territory, spiritual warfare. There is a Satan out there, an evil one, and if anyone that looks at our culture doesn’t believe it, I would simply say, what, are you blind? It’s pretty rough out there.

HANNITY: I wrote a whole book “Deliver Us from Evil.”

ROBERTSON: Yep.

HANNITY: How do you explain Pol Pot and the killing fields, Adolf Hitler, Nazi Germany, fascism, communism, imperial.

(CROSSTALK)

ROBERTSON: Evil.

HANNITY: And then how do you explain murder, and pedophilia, and rape – – evil.

ROBERTSON: Yes, yes.

HANNITY: See, when you use these spiritual terms some people get, you can’t say that.

ROBERTSON: We took the 10 commandments now and removing them from the courthouse and we’re getting them out of our psyche. We took God out of our schools. Well, if you started with young people and you taught them, you rebuke them, you corrected them, you trained them, you instructed them to obey their father and mother, honor their father and mother, don’t murder, don’t lie, don’t steal from a young age, is anyone trying to tell me that we wouldn’t have a better society? I mean, it’s nuts.

What causes somebody to “wig out”, or to have what psychiatrists call “a break with reality”? Is it caused by some genetic abnormality? Is it caused by socialization? Or, it Brother Phil right? Does the Devil make them do it?

As I was fulfilling my “Honey Dos”, yesterday, in assisting my bride, the Queen of Christmas, in putting up the tree and all the accouterments which come all with it, I started thinking about the Ferguson Riots and all of the Savagery perpetrated by rioters, paid and unpaid, supposedly in the name of avenging a young thug, who bullied a shop ower and stolle cigarillos, in order to stuff his marijuana in them, before he attack a police officer, attempting to take away his gun, forcing the officer to put him down.

These people were actually defending EVIL in the name of “Civil Rights”!

…And, in a secret meeting on November 5th, they were encouraged by the President of the United States of America, Barack Hussein Obama, to “stay the course”!

Brother Phil is right about how widespread evil is in our society.

A short while back, while I was pursuing one of my favorite activities, perusing Facebook to see what was going on, I was on one of my favorite political pages, when I noticed that an anonymous poster had posted an anti- American Armed Forces message, just to get some attention. In fact, this guy was so far around the bend, that he posted that our military deserve to die because of the interventionism and nation-building foreign policy of the United States. When he became cornered and was asked to account factually for his comments on Facebook, this loon even suggested that the Japanese attacked the US Military at Pearl Harbor, because of things they had already done, and bore no ill will toward the American people.  When I asked him whose sons and daughters did he think that the US military consisted of, he went strangely silent.

Of course, this guy wound up getting banned from that Facebook Page. Then he came back under a phony profile, and got banned again.

We later found out that this troubled soul had been banned from several Facebook Pages for posting under phony names, posting incessantly, and threatening female posters.

By now. you’re probably asking, “So what do these two examples have to do with each other and with what Phil Robertson said to Sean Hannity?”

There is a reason that we don’t all go out killing another and there is also a reason why we’re not all fruitcakes who go around looking for attention, threatening people on Facebook.

Now you can call it genetics, you can call it socialization, you can call it the proper alignment of the moon and stars…I choose to call it the Grace of God.

It is a comforting old saying which states

There, but for the grace of God, go I.

We are given free will by our Creator will to make choices and decisions on the direction of our lives. Being human, we often don’t make the right decisions and being human, those decisions have the potential to lead us down a dark path.

Whether is in reality or strictly in the close quarters of our own consciousness, the path we choose to follow is up to us. However, our parents, family, and friends can make a difference in our journey and I thank God that through His Grace I was given a Father who made sure that I received loving instruction in The Way in which I should go.

We still live in the greatest country on the face of the earth and we still have a responsibility to one another.

The Light or the Darkness. The choice is up to each and every one of us.

Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. 1 John 4:14 (ESV)

Until He Comes,

KJ

Obama’s Amnesty: What Is Our Duty As Christian Americans?

On By kingsjesterIn Christianity, PoliticsLeave a comment

American Christianity 2PROLOGUE: This past week, I have gotten into several “discussions” on Political Facebook Pages with several Liberal “friends”, concerning the news out of Washington that President Barack Hussein Obama was going to grant amnesty to 5 million criminals, who have broken into our country, via Executive Order. They all jumped on me, giving me instructions as to how I should think and act, due to my unashamed pronouncement of my Christian Faith. While answering them back as best as I could at the time, I felt that they deserved a more complete answer, so that I would not be misunderstood.

So, hold on to something. Here we go.

(Romans 13:1-7) This Biblical passage leaves no doubt  that God expects us to obey the laws of the government. The only exception to this is when a law of the government is in opposition to one of God’s commands (Acts 5:29).

America’s current invasion by illegal aliens, including the recent influx and distribution of underage Latin American Minors, who were transported up to our southern Border by the Drug Cartels, is an example of Roman 13: 1-7.

Illegal immigration is the breaking of a governmental law. There is no scripture in the Holy Bible that contradicts a nation having immigration laws. Therefore, it is a sin, rebellion against God, to illegally enter into another country.

Illegal immigration is definitely a controversial issue, not only in the United States, but in European countries, as well, as they are being invaded by Muslims who are setting up Sharia Law in countries such as the United Kingdom, Sweden, and Denmark.

The fact of the matter is, Romans 13:1-7 does not give any Christian permission to violate a law just because it is unjust. Again, the issue is not the fairness of a law.

Judge Roy Stewart Moore (born February 11, 1947) is an American judge and Republican politician and the former Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court. He is noted for his prior refusal, in 2003, as Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, to remove a monument of the Ten Commandments from the Alabama Judicial Building despite orders to do so from a federal judge. On November 13, 2003, the Alabama Court of the Judiciary unanimously removed Moore from his post as Chief Justice.

On November 6, 2012, Moore won election back to the office of Alabama Chief Justice, defeating replacement Democratic candidate Bob Vance.

During his swearing-in ceremony Moore told an overflow audience, some of who watched from another room on closed circuit television,

We’ve got to remember that most of what we do in court comes from some Scripture or is backed by Scripture.

The following is an Opinion Piece he has written, which is as good a one on the subject of this blog, as I have read.

Immigration and Christian Duty

Just last week a reporter covering the annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention asked me about the debate in the Christian community over the treatment of illegal immigrants: should we demonstrate Christian love and concern for their salvation or should we oppose amnesty legislation and enforce the immigration laws? The answer is yes: we can and should do both. America is a nation of immigrants. From the beginning, people have come here for freedom and prosperity. As early as 1783, George Washington wisely explained the privileges and duties of those seeking to become citizens of our Country: The bosom of America is open to receive not only the Opulent and respectable Stranger, but the oppressed and persecuted of all Nations and Religions; whom we shall welcome to a participation of all our rights and privileges, if by decency and propriety of conduct they appear to merit the enjoyment.

…The Statue of Liberty still beckons from the New York Harbor, “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.” We should never turn our backs to those who show by their “decency and propriety of conduct” that they deserve to live here as an American citizen. But as Washington explained, citizenship entails not only the rights and privileges which flow from it, but also the duties and responsibilities which entitle an individual to its enjoyment.

Immigration is the legal means by which one becomes a citizen of the United States. It has historically required an application process for citizenship, including a test, an investigation, and an oath of allegiance to our Country and Constitution. To call those illegally residing here “immigrants” is an insult to those who have demonstrated the patience, responsibility, and fortitude to immigrate here legally.

When a person – from any country – enters our Country illegally, makes no application for citizenship, does not learn our language, does not care for our customs, and seeks only the benefits of living in America, they have not “immigrated” here at all. They are not “immigrants,” but rather, “illegal aliens.” Recent “May Day” demonstrations by illegal aliens that feature Mexican flags, anti-American slogans, and racist statements against “gringos” only confirm the intentions of many illegal aliens to not assimilate into our culture and way of life, but to displace it with their own. Their lack of “decency and propriety of conduct” show they neither desire nor deserve to be legal citizens.

…Unfortunately, too many Christians have been deceived to think that our duty to love and care for illegal aliens means that we should ignore immigration laws and disregard our borders. But as President Ronald Reagan once said, “A nation without borders is not a nation.” Our borders are compromised by illegal immigration, infiltration of terrorists, and by government policies of regional partnership that actually dilute the sovereignty of the United States. The choice is not between our Christian duty and our border laws,  it’s a matter of life or death for our nation. The same God who commands that we treat aliens and “strangers” with righteousness and justice also clearly defined the physical borders for the nation of Israel, in detailed geographical terms, in Numbers 34. Israel, then and today, would not exist without borders?and neither will America. We should love and care for “the stranger among us” and always be mindful of their need for salvation. But we also have a duty to apply all laws equally and fairly without regard to race, creed, color, or national origin. Our immigration laws must be strictly and justly enforced. It’s not only a matter of national survival. It’s our Christian duty.

The vast majority of illegal immigrants in the United States have come for the purpose of having a better life, providing for their families, and escaping from poverty. These are good goals and motivations. However, it is not biblical to violate a law to achieve something “good.” Caring for the poor, orphans, and widows is something the Bible commands us to do (Galatians 2:10; James 1:27; 2:2-15). However, the biblical fact that we are to care for the downtrodden does not mean we should violate the law in doing so. Supporting, enabling, and/or encouraging illegal immigration is, therefore, also a violation of God’s Word. Those seeking to immigrate to another country should always obey the immigration laws of that country. While this may cause delays and frustrations, these reasons do not give a person the right to violate a law.

So, what is the biblical solution to illegal immigration? Simple…don’t do it; obey the laws.

Liberals tend to attempt to set the boundaries and to change the teachings of Jesus Christ to fit with their “political collective” mindset. The turning of political situations, such as “Obamacare, “The Mexican Munchkin Migration”, and now, Amnesty, into “humanitarian catastrophies” are just the most recent examples.

Their claim concerning salvation is framed in similar terms. Liberals, including President Barack Hussein Obama, put forth the opinion that Salvation is a group experience, , likening it to a political movement, which could not be further from the truth, couching their political ideology-driven benevolence behind the term “Social Justice”.

I do not believe that Jesus would be a part of the social justice movement. His was and is a soul-saving movement. One that still brings hundreds of thousand of people to salvation on this terrestrial ball every day. A movement that, in fact, was embraced by the Founders of this cherished land.

It is interesting to me, that the “most caring people in the room”, whom, under normal circumstances, want Conservative American Christians to sit down, shut up, and limit their faith to Sunday mornings from 10 a.m. – Noon, now are lecturing us about how we should support their fallen messiah’s plan to grant Amnesty to 5 million Illegal Aliens.

I will wrap up this post by quoting  Dr. Albert Mohler, President of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary:

Regrettably, there is no shortage of preachers who have traded the Gospel for a platform of political and economic change, most often packaged as a call for social justice…

The church is not to adopt a social reform platform as its message, but the faithful church, wherever it is found, is itself a social reform movement precisely because it is populated by redeemed sinners who are called to faithfulness in following Christ. The Gospel is not a message of social (collective) salvation, but it does have social implications.

Luke 20:25 

And he (Jesus) said unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which be Caesar‘s, and unto God the things which be God’s.

Until He Comes,

KJ

Christian Americans, Homosexuality, and the Bible (A KJ Sunday Morning Op Ed)

On By kingsjesterIn Christianity, PoliticsLeave a comment

PhilRobertsonCartoon9 Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men 10 nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. – 1 Coringthians 6:9-10 (NIV)

While sitting in my car, in the parking lot of a Walmart last night, waiting for my wife to come back from grocery shopping, I started thinking about America and God’s Providence.

Is the decayed position our society finds itself in the result of God’s taking his hand of protection off of the nation he built?

I don’t think so. As the popular movie, “God’s Not Dead”, pointed out so well, God is still moving in America.

And, Americans still know, in their hearts, the difference between right and wrong. Please refer to Tuesday’s Midterm Elections, for an example.

Earler this week, a Cincinnati Appeals Court upheld the ban on Gay Marriage, which had been overwhelmingly voted for by Americans in four states.

As I have written time and again, American is still an overwhelmingly Christian-Majority Natiion, as 76% of our countrymen and women, proclaim Jesus Christ as their personal Savior, per Gallup.

That being said, is homosexual marriage a “Civil Right, or the use of a word, defined as the union of one man and one woman to glorify and normalize a sexual sin?

Shane Idelman, the founder and lead pastor of Westside Christian Fellowship in Lancaster, California, just North of Los Angeles, just released his 7th book, “Desperate for More of God”. Shane’s sermons, articles, books, and radio program can all be found at http://www.wcfav.org. He recently wrote the following thought-provoking opinion piece, “Gay Marriage: What Does the Bible Really Say?” for The Christian Post.

I have nothing but compassion for those trapped in sexual sin. My hope is that readers will read the entire article before drawing conclusions. Those who strongly believe in the Bible and God’s will regarding sexual behavior also strongly believe in unconditional love and forgiveness. To say that authentic Christians hate or fear those trapped in the homosexual lifestyle demonstrates a gross misunderstanding of the Christian faith.

To “confront in love” simply comes from a desire to honor God and to truly love and care for others. The ability to relate to people on their level, show genuine concern, and love them regardless of their lifestyle is the mark of true Christianity.

In case you don’t continue reading, let me offer some encouragement: If you’re hopeless, depressed, and confused, look to the One who created you. He has the answers. No matter what you have done, you have the ability to turn to Christ and start anew. “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9). “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

It’s no surprise that the Church, and our nation, desperately need to hear “the voice of one crying in the wilderness” to awaken, convict, and restore. It was not so long ago that we were concerned about “the fall of America.” America cannot fall because she has already fallen. We are now picking up the pieces of a broken nation reflected in our laws, lives, families, and children. America’s moral heartbeat has ceased because we cut off the source of life. We need resuscitation, renewal, and revival of the truth.

Unfortunately, those who are sounding the alarm are often categorized as irrational, judgmental, bigoted, and intolerant. But how can we warn if we won’t confront, correct if we won’t challenge, and contend if we won’t question? We must speak the truth in love…the Bible is crystal clear on sexual sin, including homosexuality.

Why is there a lack of conviction today? The reason may not be only in the pew, but in the pulpit as well. Pastors focused only on feel-good messages, pleasing the masses, and not being controversial, are in a dangerous spot. God’s Word does not call us to make the truth popular, but to make the truth clear.

The majority of the churches in America are seeking to please the masses rather than convict. Judgment is never mentioned, repentance is rarely sought, and sin is often excused. We want to build a church rather than break a heart; be politically correct rather than biblically correct; coddle and comfort rather than stir and convict. This leaves people confused and deceived because we teach and live a form of Christianity void of repentance…void of truth.

Many reject the Bible as absolute truth because absolute truth, by definition, is exclusive. But they fail to realize that relativism is also exclusive—it excludes those who hold to absolutes. People will accept numerical truth such as 2 + 2 = 4, but they don’t like “moral” truth.

They want the freedom to do what they want, when they want, how they want, to whom they want, which, according to Scripture, leads to their our own destruction. God’s Word says to confront, confess, and turn from our sins, whereas relativism encourages us to ignore, overlook, and continue in them. Relativism says, “If it ‘feels’ good, do it.” If you doubt this, simply read all the negative comments that will occur after this article is posted. When darkness is exposed, it lashes out (cf. Romans 1).

Consider the following in light of God’s truth:

1. The “moral” laws in the Old Testament such as killing, stealing, lying, adultery, sexual immorality, and so on are all valid today. Jesus referred often to the Old Testament, and said that He didn’t come to abolish it, but to fulfill it. Although many of the ceremonial and dietary laws of the Old Testament do not apply today, the moral laws do. They are as significant today as they have been throughout history. For example, Leviticus 20:13 states, “If a man lies with a male as he lies with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination….” To suggest that this verse is invalid today is to advocate the dangerous practice of redefining or deleting what God has said. Jesus referred to the Old Testament often in regard to moral behavior.

The consequences of wrong actions may have changed, but the moral implications remain the same. For instance, even though we no longer stone to death those who commit adultery, this does not mean that adultery is acceptable or any less dangerous. Adultery is wrong even though there aren’t legal consequences.

2. Jesus condemned “all” sexual activity outside of marriage between a man and woman when He said, “Out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications…these defile a man” (Matthew 15:19). Jesus was implying that all sexual activity outside of marriage between a man and a woman is harmful and immoral. The word “fornication” in the Greek is porneia; where the word “pornography” comes from. We cannot say, “But I was born this way,” because we were all born to lie, cheat, lust, and deceive, but this doesn’t make it right…it makes us sinful and in need of a Savior.

3. An argument cannot be based solely on silence. To suggest that Jesus approved of homosexuality simply because He did not use the term “homosexual,” is to imply that He approved of necrophilia, pedophilia, incest, and bestiality. But, of course, we know better.

4. Other passage in the New Testament are clear on this issue as well. Romans 1:18-32 and 1 Corinthians 6:1-20 are good places to start. In short, mankind did not see fit to acknowledge God and they suppressed the truth; therefore, God gave them over to a depraved mind-to do those things which are not proper. Homosexual behavior, and sexual sin in general, is comparable with dishonoring the body and turning from God. “The sexual disordering of the human race is a judgment of God for exchanging Him for the creature, said theologian John Piper.

5. Jesus said that since the beginning of creation, God created them male and female in order that they would be joined together and become one flesh. He adds, “Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate” (Mark 10:9). Marriage between a man and a woman is God’s plan since creation. No matter how many laws are passed in favor of gay-marriage, it will not change God’s mind. Man often rebels against God; this is nothing new.

In closing, Jesus would often speak out against sin, but His love and mercy also reached out to those who regretted and hated their condition. Forgiveness is a mark of genuine faith. We should have compassion for those who struggle with same-sex attraction because we all struggle with sin, but at the same time, we should not condone or excuse this type of sin any more than we condone or excuse any other sin.

I believe the position that America finds itself in, is a result of a lack of moral guidance from generations before. The Bible tells us to lead children in the ways in which they should go. As humans, we are fallen creatures, who often do not do the right thing. Being good parents is one of those things which God requires of us.

Now, I’m not saying that homosexuality is the result of failed parenting. As most of you are aware, homosexuality can have several causes. In college, when I took the class, “The Sociology of Deviant Behavior”, back around the late seventies, the professors at that time theorized that homosexuality was caused by any number of social and psychological causes. Whether it be a dominant mother, an effeminate father, or some sort of deep shock to the system when the individual is young, they theorized that homosexuality could come from a myriad of experiences in each individual’s life.

The only thing that I can say for certain is that it is not a biological predisposition.

Why do I say that?

The reason for my comment, is the fact that scientists have tried to identify a gene or some genetic marker that causes homosexuality. And, as of today , in 2014, they have been stymied in their attempts to find a biological cause for homosexuality.

In recent years. Liberals have pushed homosexuality as normal sexual behavior. They have featured it on television shows, in movies, books, and encouraged mass demonstrations of it, in public, if you will, as Professional wrestler Dusty Rhodes used to say.

However, try as they may, a majority of Americans still view it as abnormal behavior. And, as demonstrated in the last few years by popular vote, the majority of Americans remain against Gay Marriage.

In confrontations with homosexuals,, concerning their behavior, our opposition to their sexual lifestyle, as Christians, is based on Christian concern and compassion for their very souls.

However, what gets in the way of Christians’ efforts to reach out to homosexuals, is the fact that God gave us all free will.

And yes, if you are homosexual and reading this, it is your right as an American and as a human being to exercise the free will which the Lord gave you, when he made you. However, do not expect him to approve of your sin, or expect me as a Christian American, to give you free license to engage in your sexual sin.

Because, you see, God gave me free will as well, and being American born, I have the Constitutional Right to speak my mind…in the street, behind a pulpit, or in the voting booth.

I don’t hate you. As an acquaintance or if  you are  with a family member, I love you. I will pray for you. I will work with you. I will invite you inside my home. I will be your friend.

However, I will, out of Christian love, tell you straight to your face that what you are engaging in is wrong.

As the author says in the article, confronting the sinner is not an act of hatred, it’s an act of Christian Concern.

If you are an American Liberal, one of the 23 percent of our population who believe that political ideology, do not attempt to tell me that my ideas about traditional marriage and about what is acceptable and unacceptable behavior, are wrong.

Someone possessing a higher pay grade than you, is Whom I listen to.

And, He left me a guide to make sure that I get it right.

Until He Comes,

KJ

Shining the Light? Or, Just a Quixotic Folly? Why Do I Keep Blogging? (A KJ Sunday Morning Reflection)

On By kingsjesterIn Christianity, Politics3 Comments

American Christianity 2I am an anachronism.

I have been told that,  by “Libertarians”,repeatedly, on Internet Chat Boards, on the World Wide Web.

Dictionary.com defines an anachronism as

something or someone that is not in its correct historical or chronological time, especially a thing or person that belongs to an earlier time.

I suppose that’s me.

I started this Blog as a way to vent my frustrations with the ever-evolving “societal norms” and political mayhem around me. A lot of things just grated on my nerves. They still do.

I was “reared” (as we say in Dixie) by a Mother and Daddy (Southern colloquialism for a Male Parental Unit) who were members of the Greatest Generation. In fact, I was born 3 days before my mother’s 40th brithday. To this day, I believe that they were going to name me “Oops”.

My view of the world around me was shaped and nurtured by my Daddy, a Christian American, and the finest man I’ve ever known, who served with an Army Engineering Unit, as a Master Sergeant, in World War II, and who jumped off of a perfectly good boat into a hail of gunfire to join his American Brothers in the tide-turning American Victory known as “D-Day”.

Between him and my Mother, they taught me what it was to be a hard-working, Middle Class Christian American Conservative….and, to be proud of it.

But now, at 55 years old, trying to survive the presidency of an anti-American, Muslim-sympathizing, political-pandering, class warfare-preaching, card-carrying Communist, who went golfing yesterday, while sending more than 3,000 of our Brightest and Best, to Africa to be exposed to a disease which has now landed on our very shores, threatening our citizenry, I wonder if at times, if my self-assigned duty of writing this blog everyday, is actually worth the effort.  I’m beginning to feel like I’m beating my dadgum head against the wall until it’s bloody, and for no cotton-pickin’ reason at all.

Why am I feelng that way?

Well, there are several reasons.

1. This country re-elected an idiot. Now, I realize that’s been done before. But, they all paled in comparison to this guy. I believe that “Scooter”, my pet name for Barack Hussein Obama (mm mmm mmm), burnt up the vast majority of his gray matter during his “Choom Gang” days in Hawaii, and now, as an old friend, a former Meth-head, who, sadly, later committed suicide this time of year, used to tell me, he has “2 brain cells left and they’re fighting to the death”. I pray we survive the next 4 years.

2.  Evidently, Americans, at least the majority of the ones that actually got up off the couch (Pookie, included) to vote on November 6th, want the Federal Government to take care of them, cradle to grave. Rush Limbaugh labelled this symptom, “The Baracky Claus Effect”.  I pray, that, just as the Proletariat eventually figured out in the old Soviet Union, Americans are going to wake up one day, to find that mega-dependence on The State to run your life, leads to the loss of personal freedom. And those, who believe that they are “the most enlightened people in the room”, will be the first ones hollering, when they discover that their freedom has been taken away.

3. America seems to be devolving into a collection of Libertines. Notice, I did not say “Libertarians”, although, both descriptive words come from the same root word. A Libertine is, per Merriam-Webster.com,

a person who is unrestrained by convention or morality: one leading a dissolute (lacking moral restraint) life

Being a Libertarian used to mean you wanted less Government in your life and less restrictions on your personal happiness. Notice I said used to mean. Now, Libertine and Libertarian both seem to mean the same thing to the majority of posters self-identifying as members of the latter group on Internet chat boards.

Caligula’s Horse approves.

I suppose I could pontificate on the fallen nature of Man at this point, but, that’s fairly self-evident…and, as the late Freddie Prinze used to say, “Ees not my yob, man.”

4. Finally, I was told the other day, during the before-mentioned “discussion” on that Facebook Page, that my blog was considered a “joke”. I allowed this to hurt me very deeply. You see, since April of 2010, I have devoted a lot of time and effort to putting my ideas, however old-fashioned and cornball they are, down on paper. I truly enjoy doing it. I must. I haven’t made a dadgum dime off of it.

A while back, I was asked to define what it means to be a Christian American Conservative.  After all, that’s how I identify myself and that is what it says on the top of this blog, since I began this exercise in ranting and raving in April of 2010.

Let’s perform a dissection, shall we?

First word:  Christian – A follower of Jesus Christ.

I was raised as a Christian by my parents and accepted Christ as my personal Savior many years ago.

Here are some interesting things about Christianity to consider, written by Dr. Ray Pritchard and posted on christianity.com:

1) The name “Christian” was not invented by early Christians. It was a name given to them by others.
2) Christians called themselves by different names—disciples, believers, brethren, saints, the elect, etc.
3) The term apparently had a negative meaning in the beginning: “those belonging to the Christ party.”
4) It was a term of contempt or derision.
5) We can get a flavor for it if we take the word “Christ” and keep that pronunciation. You “Christ-ians.”
6) It literally means “Christ-followers.”
7) Over time a derogatory term became a positive designation.
8) Occasionally you will hear someone spit the term out in the same way it was used in the beginning. “You Christians think you’re the only ones going to heaven.”
9) There was a sense of suffering and reproach attached to the word in the New Testament.

In working my way toward an answer to “What is a Christian?” I decided to check out the dictionary. I found these two definitions:

1. One who professes belief in Jesus as Christ or follows the religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus. 2. One who lives according to the teachings of Jesus.”

That’s actually quite helpful because it gives some content to the word. To be a Christian means that you . . .

Believe Something
Follow Something
Live Something
A Fully Devoted Follower To borrow a contemporary phrase, we could simply say that a Christian is a “fully devoted follower of Jesus.” As I think about that, two insights come to mind.

1) It doesn’t happen by accident. You are not “born” a Christian nor are you a Christian because of your family heritage. Being a Christian is not like being Irish. You aren’t a Christian simply because you were born into a Christian family.
2) It requires conversion of the heart. By using the term “conversion,” I simply mean what Jesus meant when he said that to be his disciple meant to deny yourself, take up your cross and follow him (Luke 9:23). The heart itself must be changed so that you become a follower of the Lord.

Second word: American – A citizen of the United States of America.

Stephen M. Warchawsky, wrote the following in an article for americanthinker.org:

So what, then, does it mean to be an American? I suspect that most of us believe, like Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart in describing pornography, that we “know it when we see it.” For example, John Wayne, Amelia Earhart, and Bill Cosby definitely are Americans. The day laborers standing on the street corner probably are not. But how do we put this inner understanding into words? It’s not easy. Unlike most other nations on Earth, the American nation is not strictly defined in terms of race or ethnicity or ancestry or religion. George Washington may be the Father of Our Country (in my opinion, the greatest American who ever lived), but there have been in the past, and are today, many millions of patriotic, hardworking, upstanding Americans who are not Caucasian, or Christian, or of Western European ancestry. Yet they are undeniably as American as you or I (by the way, I am Jewish of predominantly Eastern European ancestry). Any definition of “American” that excludes such folks — let alone one that excludes me! — cannot be right.

Consequently, it is just not good enough to say, as some immigration restrictionists do, that this is a “white-majority, Western country.” Yes, it is. But so are, for example, Ireland and Sweden and Portugal. Clearly, this level of abstraction does not take us very far towards understanding what it means to be “an American.” Nor is it all that helpful to say that this is an English-speaking, predominately Christian country. While I think these features get us closer to the answer, there are millions of English-speaking (and non-English-speaking) Christians in the world who are not Americans, and millions of non-Christians who are. Certainly, these fundamental historical characteristics are important elements in determining who we are as a nation. Like other restrictionists, I am opposed to public policies that seek, by design or by default, to significantly alter the nation’s “demographic profile.” Still, it must be recognized that demography alone does not, and cannot, explain what it means to be an American.

So where does that leave us? I think the answer to our question, ultimately, must be found in the realms of ideology and culture. What distinguishes the United States from other nations, and what unites the disparate peoples who make up our country, are our unique political, economic, and social values, beliefs, and institutions. Not race, or religion, or ancestry.

Third word: Conservative -A person who holds to traditional values and attitudes.

J. Matt Barber wrote in the Washington Times that

Ronald Reagan often spoke of a “three-legged stool” that undergirds true conservatism. The legs are represented by a strong defense, strong free-market economic policies and strong social values. For the stool to remain upright, it must be supported by all three legs. If you snap off even one leg, the stool collapses under its own weight.

A Republican, for instance, who is conservative on social and national defense issues but liberal on fiscal issues is not a Reagan conservative. He is a quasi-conservative socialist.

A Republican who is conservative on fiscal and social issues but liberal on national defense issues is not a Reagan conservative. He is a quasi-conservative dove.

By the same token, a Republican who is conservative on fiscal and national defense issues but liberal on social issues – such as abortion, so-called gay rights or the Second Amendment – is not a Reagan conservative. He is a socio-liberal libertarian.

Put another way: A Republican who is one part William F. Buckley Jr., one part Oliver North and one part Rachel Maddow is no true conservative. He is – well, I’m not exactly sure what he is, but it ain’t pretty.

Even the Brits understand what American Conservatism is.

Per blogs.telegraph.co.uk:

Conservatism is thriving in America today because liberty, freedom and individual responsibility are at the heart of its ideology, one that rejects the foolish notion that government knows best. And its strength owes a great debt to the conviction and ideals of Ronald Reagan, who always believed that America’s best days are ahead of her, and for whom the notion of decline was unacceptable. As the Gipper famously put it, in a speech to the Conservative Political Action Conference in 1988:

Those who underestimate the conservative movement are the same people who always underestimate the American people.

In conclusion, I, a Christian American Conservative, am a follower of Jesus Christ and a citizen of the United States of America (by the Grace of God), who holds to traditional values and attitudes.

So, where do I go from here? Do I run away, with my tail between my legs, and live out the rest of my days in quiet desperation?

To any of you who repled, “yes”…you don’t know me very well.

Greater is He who is in me, than he who is in the world.

My Creator, while endowing me with certain inalienable rights, also endowed me with an indomitable will. Then, somewhere along my journey, He gave me the gift of being able to express my thoughts and feelings on this computer keyboard.

I will not give up. I will not surrender my Christianity, my love of the greatest nation on God’s green Earth, or my Conservatism, to appease those who wish everybody would just get in line and acquiesce to the prevailing “societal norms”.  I follow another set of guidelines, written a long time ago, but which remain as relevant as the moment in which the Hand of God guided those who wrote them down.

Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, – Colossians 3:23 (ESV)

I pray that you, the reader, are able to glean that from my blogs.  Because, as Matthew 6:21 tells us:

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

May God bless you and yours,

KJ

Of Politics and “Pharisees” [A KJ Sunday Morning Op Ed]

On By kingsjesterIn Christianity, PoliticsLeave a comment

American Christianity 2A wise man’s heart inclines him to the right, but a fool’s heart to the left. – Ecclesiastes 10:2

We have all known for sometime that this is not our fathers’ Democrat Party. Conservatives have been driven out and “Moderates” are an endangered species.

Today’s Democrats embrace a Far Left Poiltical Ideology, in which there is no room for a Supreme Being.

Don’t believe me? Remember what happened at the last Democratic National Convention?

Delegates and members of the Democratic party booed after former Gov. Ted Strickland (D-OH) discussed God and moved to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Convention chairman Antonio Villaraigosa, mayor of Los Angeles, had to ask for the Yea and Nay vote several times before declaring the motion passed.

C-SPAN cameras captured the dissatisfaction among members after the motion passed.

More information from the Associated Press:
Democrats have changed their convention platform to add a mention of God and declare that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel.

The move came after criticism from Republicans.

Many in the audience booed after the convention chairman, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, ruled that the amendments had been approved despite the fact that a large group of delegates objected.

He called for a vote three times before ruling.

The party reinstated language from the 2008 platform that said “we need a government that stands up for the hopes, values and interests of working people and gives everyone willing to work hard the chance to make the most of their God-given potential.”

The platform also now includes what advisers said was Obama’s personal views on Jerusalem.

Now that we’ve established that, there seems to be a misconception among “the Smartest People in the Room”, American Liberals, about Christian American Conservatives.

American Liberals seem to believe that because we are strong in the Faith of Our Fathers, that we are somehow gullible or less intelligent than they are.

And, this hubris reaches all the way up to the White House.

When Obama was campaigning for the presidency, he appeared in April of 2008 at a fundraiser in Pennsylvania, where he talked about and made fun of all of us “ignorant” Conservative American Christians clinging to our Bibles and guns.

You go into these small towns in Pennsylvania and, like a lot of small towns in the Midwest, the jobs have been gone now for 25 years and nothing’s replaced them. And they fell through the Clinton administration, and the Bush administration, and each successive administration has said that somehow these communities are gonna regenerate and they have not.

And it’s not surprising then they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy toward people who aren’t like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations.

After Obama took office, he made a point of stating several times that America was not just a Christian nation anymore.

And, while that is true to a certain extent, it is also true that the overwhelming majority, 76% of Americans still proclaim themselves to be followers of Jesus Christ. And even beyond that, 92% of Americans still believe in God.

What is amazing to me, though, is how, during this administration, American Christianity has been attacked on all fronts:  militarily, culturally, and even within organized religion, itself.

From illegal immigration to abortion to homosexual “rights”, Americans who follow the teachings of Jesus Christ on these issues have been under fire by Liberals, who insist that they know more about what is in the Bible and what Christ says, or would say, about these topics, then those of us who actually read God’s Word.

Claiming to be wise, they became fools. – Romans 1:22

When you enter into a facebook “discussion” with these “new Pharisees”, and you counter their arguments on these topics with Scripture, Liberals are initially slow to respond.

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, – 2 Timothy 3:16 ESV 

Most Liberals will start “Googling” these topics, looking for any Scriptures that will substantiate their position.

There’s been many a time they have come back at me with Old Testament Scripture. It is then that I explain to them about the sacrifice that Christ made for us sinners, freeing Christians from Jewish Law and taking the punishment for our sins , creating a New Covenant by covering Christians through the shedding of His blood.

At that point in the “discussion”, there is a long pause, as they are trying to figure out a comeback.

The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.- 1 Corinthians 2:14

This misconception, which I have been trying to explain, involves Liberals’ belief that American Christians will not fight back against them and the things they want to do in our society.

If there’s one thing during the six and a half years of anti Christian bias, which we have experienced during the Obama administration, that the Liberals should have learned, is the fact that Christian American Conservatives will fight back.

It is funny though…that when we begin fighting back, the Liberals have a tendency to label us as uncaring, mean , divisive, and intolerant.

I believe Liberals react that way because internally, they are having a kicking and screaming temper tantrum, because they cannot get their way.

This week, on October 3rd, the movie “Left Behind” starring Nicolas Cage, premieres.

Based on the immensely popular novel series of the same name, the movie tells about the rapture, an event believed by Christians to happen before a horrible period , known as the Tribulation, in which Christians will be tortured and put to death, along with millions of people worldwide, as famine, pestilence, and war spread throughout the world.

Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.- 1 Thessalonians 4:17

This period will end with the glorious reappearance during which Jesus Christ will return to work and defeat the forces of evil.

I believe that this movie will do well at the box office and that Redbox will also profit well from it.

Lately, all Christian movies have done well. Recently, I and my bride rented the movie, “God is Not Dead”. We found it to be both well written and well-acted.

Thinking about America’s reaction to these Christian movies caused me to think about their reaction to Liberal-themed movies during the Bush administration, such as “Redacted”, which was a movie about the Iraq War which disparaged our Brightest and Best.

It bombed terribly because it did not reflect the feelings and values of the American public.

The point which I’ve been trying to make today is that this is still a majority Christian nation.

And, while God indeed, tells us to be meek, He also instructs us to be wise.

Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.- Matthew 10:16

That is the reason why Liberals have failed to convince the majority of Americans to foreswear our traditional American Faith and Values System and our Christianity.

And, it frustrates them when they realize that we continue to hold fast to our Traditional American Faith and Values.

What they don’t understand, is that we have read the back of the Book. We know how all this ends.

Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.- Mathew 24:42-44

Until He Comes,

KJ

The War Against Christianity: Putting On The Full Armor Of God

On By kingsjesterIn Christianity, Politics1 Comment

American Christianity 2As I was scrolling through my Facebook Newsfeed yesterday afternoon, thinking about the events of the week, international, national, and personal, I saw several advertisements for the movie, “Left Behind”, starring Nicholas Cage, based on the popular Christian Novel Series, based on The Book of Revelation, which I have read in its entirety (both novels and scripture), and I started thinking about the Plan that the God of Abraham has for all of us, Believers and non-Believers, alike.

Internationally, as I write this, a Marine sits, neglected by our Administration, in a Mexican Jail, guilty of the horrendous crime of committing some sort of traffic violation.

Halfway around the world, in the Radical Muslim Rogue Nation of Iran, an American Pastor, jailed for preaching the Word of God, and refusing to worship a pedophile, sits languishing in horrible conditions, while his wife and children petition our leaders to get up off their duffs and bring him home.

In Iraq, Christians and innocent Muslims are being killed by barbarians, who have sworn to hoist their flag above our White House.

And, finally, this week, Congress voted to hand over to those who have sworn to kill us in the past, the means to do so now, by proclaiming them to be “Moderate” Muslims, sending them military weaponry, and trusting them to fight alongside us against ISIS/ISIL.

Nationally, America’s economy remains in the tank, with more and more Americans choosing to drop out of the work force, in disgust and humiliation. 37.2% of America’s Work Force, to be exact.

A lot of these “drop-outs” are Americans over 50, like myself, who are being intentionally ignored, because of our age, which seems to matter more than our business acumen and wealth of experience.

Meanwhile, the very fabric of our society is being torn asunder, through the dissipation of morality and the glorification of evil.

Satanists, Vampires, and Zombies…oh, my!

And, of course, legalizing marijuana has no consequences. So what if elementary school kids are being caught selling their parents stash? And, DUI accidents are up?

Yep. No consequences at all.

What we seem to be heading for is not simply an immoral society, but, an amoral one, whose concept of right and wrong is “Whatever Gets You Through the Night (It’s Alright. It’s Alright.)”, and whose ultimate authority is not the God of Abraham, but a Godless Central Government, whose credo is

From each according to his abilities, to each according to his needs. (Karl Marx)

Just as Marxism has failed wherever it has been tried before, so will it fail here.

Just as amorality and licentiousness led to the destruction of the Roman Empire, so, if unchecked, will it lead to America’s.

The galling thing is the fact that, even though American Christians remain 76% of the population, we are propagandized and suppressed in both the Old and New Media, to make it seem as if WE are the Minority, when, in fact, WE are the overwhelming Majority.

It is this New Generation of Amoral Socialists, who are in fact, just a tiny, albeit vocal, Minority of America’s population.

So, what can an average Christian American, like you and me, do about this “Tyranny of the Minority”?

As the Apostle Paul tells us in Ephesians, we can STAND.

However, you cannot stand without “the full armor of God”. I have found, as have my family and friends, that the better that you are doing, in terms of your Christian Walk, the harder that you will be attacked.

10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. 11Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. 12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.…- Ephesians 6:10-12

The more we stand up for the Triune God, the harder the Enemy attacks…in all areas of our lives…including our political beliefs.

I have been attacked time and again, over the past 4 years, by non-Believers, who replied to my blogs insisting that Crosses and other Christian symbols have no place in the Public Square.

They expect Christian Americans to be “sacrificial lambs”, to meekly allow our Constitutional Rights to be stripped from us, remaining unseen and unheard from, and worshiping in private.

Well,  y’all can wish for a unicorn to magically appear in your backyard…but that ain’t gonna happen, either.

Our Lord and Savior stood up and got angry for Righteousness’ Sake. Do you seriously expect Christian Americans to do no less?

13 It was nearly time for the Jewish Passover celebration, so Jesus went to Jerusalem. 14 In the Temple area he saw merchants selling cattle, sheep, and doves for sacrifices; he also saw dealers at tables exchanging foreign money. 15 Jesus made a whip from some ropes and chased them all out of the Temple. He drove out the sheep and cattle, scattered the money changers’ coins over the floor, and turned over their tables. 16 Then, going over to the people who sold doves, he told them, “Get these things out of here. Stop turning my Father’s house into a marketplace!” – John 2:13-22 (NLT)

As a free nation, all you who are non-believers have every right to exercise your “faith”.

However, as Orthodox Rabbi Daniel Lapin of the Jewish Policy Center clearly explains:

[I] understand that I live . . . in a Christian nation, albeit one where I can follow my faith as long as it doesn’t conflict with the nation’s principles. The same option is open to all Americans and will be available only as long as this nation’s Christian roots are acknowledged and honored.

…Without a vibrant and vital Christianity, America is doomed, and without America, the west is doomed. Which is why I, an Orthodox Jewish rabbi, devoted to Jewish survival, the Torah, and Israel am so terrified of American Christianity caving in. God help Jews if America ever becomes a post-Christian society! Just think of Europe!

Is the Rabbi prophetic? I pray that he isn’t. 

I have, however, noticed in the last six and one-half years, a propensity among those who have not been raised in a Christian home, to be boldly intolerant toward those who have….an intolerance shared by the individual who sits at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, DC.

Americans’ Christian Faith, has been the Solid Rock upon which our nation was built. To deny that, is to deny reality, to re-write history, and, to, quite frankly,commit “the Shining City on a Hill” to the same fate as every other empire and nation, which the God of abraham removed his Hand of Protection from.

As President Ronald Reagan said, 

If we ever forget that we are One Nation Under God, then we will be a nation gone under. 

So therefore, fellow Believers, it is time to take a stand for Righteousness’ Sake. To put on the “full armor of God” through the reading of His Word, through fellowship with other Believers, and most importantly, through a personal relationship, strengthened through an active prayer life, with the God of Our Fathers.

I leave you with a prayer written by America’s Pastor, the Reverend Billy Graham. May God Bless you all.

Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask your forgiveness and to seek your direction and guidance. We know Your Word says, ‘Woe to those who call evil good,’ but that is exactly what we have done. We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and reversed our values. We have exploited the poor and called it the lottery. We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare. We have killed our unborn and called it choice. We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable… We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building self-esteem. We have abused power and called it politics. We have coveted our neighbor’s possessions and called it ambition. We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called it freedom of expression. We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and called it enlightenment. Search us, Oh God, and know our hearts today; cleanse us from sin and Set us free. Amen!’

With the Lord’s help, may this prayer sweep over our nation and wholeheartedly become our desire so that we once again can be called ‘One nation under God!’ AMEN

Until He Comes,

KJ