"I urge you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teachings you have learned. Keep away from them. 18) For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the minds of naive people." ...
(Romans 16:17-18) .......
Are you watching this?! .. Are you seeing what I am seeing?! .. It is simply amazing to watch the political circus that is currently taking place in this nation. .. In fact, at times it feels like a dream. .. It's simply mind-boggling as to just how fast all this craziness has happened - how people once considered moral & decent are selling out their principles simply for the cause of notoriety & political power - how many of our prominent Christian leaders are compromising their values, hiding behind the veil of nationalism. .. When Jesus spoke of how these evil things would accelerate like 'birth pains' in these last days, this current political process taking place before our very eyes is a classic example of what He meant. ... (see Matthew 24:8) ..
For anyone who even has an inkling of biblical truth, it has to be obvious that the spiritual downfall of America is now nearly complete. ... It seems that almost everyone, political & religious, are selling out to the current madness that is overtaking this land! .. The teachings of the Apostle Paul come to mind ... "For a time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. ..4) They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths." (2 Timothy 4:3-4) ...
I know what I'm about to say is going to irritate those who still favor the nationalistic approach as the answer to all our problems - it has in the past - but I'm going to say it over & over until I can no longer. ... I'm deeply saddened to watch our religious leaders selling out to this increasingly wicked system! .. Just this week, we witnessed another big-time Christian leader endorse Donald Trump! ... We've also seen leaders before this telling us that we should vote for 'the lesser of two evils' - that we must vote, no matter what. .. Again, I will say this until I can no longer - evil is evil, no matter how you try & water it down! ... I know that I, as a disciple of Jesus Christ, cannot in any way justify this compromise. ... Also worth mentioning, we also have several professing 'Christian' politicians endorsing the likes of Donald Trump. .. Once again, it cannot be explained without considering the 'itching ear' desires of our day. ...
This week, I want to elaborate a bit more about the 'political' part of this narrative. .. Then next week, I will follow up with what I believe is the civic responsibility of a 'true' follower of Jesus Christ as it relates to this world we live in. .. So, without further adoo, let's talk about this political stuff. .. For those of us who follow this process, we already know the Democrats sold out to the sinful ways of the world long ago, most all under the labels of 'inclusion' & 'diversity' - basically fancy titles for sinful lifestyles. .. So that basically left the other party, the Republican one, as the only alternative to be involved with. .. And until recently, this party had adopted some parts of their platform that coincided with many Christian values. .. But that all seems to be rapidly disappearing right before our very eyes. .. Having said that, I want to share an article that was posted on Redsate, a conservative news outlet. .. It was posted on July 22nd & the author's name is 'Streiff' ....
*Trump's New GOP Cheers Homosexuality And Boos God. I'm Done*
"The RNC Convention has turned out to be pretty much the Star Wars bar scene that a lot of us thought it would be. It was Totalitarianism on parade. The convention of the party that defeated Soviet communism threatened dissenting delegates with physical violence. Parliamentary procedures that were worthy of a Third World s***hole potemkin legislature were used to ram through rules that ensure the Republican party remained an oligarchy.
"But it wasn't the abuses of power that was the final straw. It was the repudiation of the founding principles of the nation and everything the GOP has told us it stands for that is the most stunning achievement of the past week.
"In the early days of the Republic, John Adams famously wrote, 'Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.' The logic was clear. Without a firm grounding in Christianity, the US Constitution simply can't work. That common language has to exist in the electorate otherwise we descend rapidly into a society where we are governed by our base instincts, not by our better angels. The Democrats fell here years ago, adopting sexual license and perversion and covetousness of the wealth accrued by others as planks of their party platform.
"Now the GOP is there.
"Last night, Peter Theil spoke. I don't know a lot about him other than I refuse to use PayPal because of the egregious political causes it underwrites. (Here's Theil's statement) '... Now we are told that the great debate is about who gets to use which bathroom. This is a distraction from our real problems. Who cares? Of course, every American has a unique identity. I am proud to be gay. I am proud to be a Republican. But most of all I am proud to be an American. I don't pretend to agree with every plank in our party's platform; but fake culture wars only distract us from our economic decline, and nobody in this race is being honest about it except Donald Trump.'
"The culture wars Theil derides are not 'fake.' Theil knows this. Theil is an active and enthusiastic warrior himself. Theil's own company, PayPal, is happily involved in harassing and punishing anyone who will not agree that sexual perversion is the new black. The same people that think it is fine to have an adult male using the same locker room as your daughter are the same people who call 50-plus million dead babies a 'choice.' The are called Democrats. Many nations Have come back from economic collapse. Never has a nation recovered, absent major trauma, from moral collapse. Without morality a society stops being trust-based and at that point the 'rule of law' becomes the 'rule of the judge you own.' What Theil is advocating, as is Trump, is the rule of money, by money, and for the money. What Theil is advocating , and you will see Trump do this too because he has never signed onto anything to do with religious freedom, is using the power of the federal government to advance the cause of immorality by demanding that anyone opposed unilaterally disarm. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Theil was wildly cheered.
"Compare and contrast the behavior of the audience when Ted Cruz spoke. When Cruz said this, he was booed. ... 'And to those listening, please, don't stay home in November. Stand, and speak, and vote your conscience, vote for candidates up and down the ticket who you trust to defend our freedom and to be faithful to the Constitution.'
"Think about the implication. The delegates knew that a) they are not voting their conscience, b) that they don't trust Trump to defend our freedom, and c) they know Trump will not be anymore faithful to the Constitution that he has been to any of his battalion of wives and mistresses. But they are voting for him anyway and they are offended that they are being called out for their craven cowardice and amorality. And instead of being shamed into silence at the magnitude of their own betrayal of the nation, they try to shout down the messenger.
When Cruz ended his speech, Erick Erickson made this observation .... 'Listen for yourself. They're chanting "Endorse Trump" until Cruz says "God bless you," at which point they start booing.'
"It is hard to listen to this and not recall the words of Philadelphia Archbishop Charles Chaput: ... 'Evil talks about tolerance only when it's weak. When it gains the upper hand, its vanity always requires the destruction of the good and the innocent, because the example of good and innocent lives is an ongoing witness against it. So it always has been. So it always will be. And America has no special immunity to becoming an enemy of its own founding beliefs about human freedom, human dignity, the limited power of the state and the sovereignty of God.' ...
"This is a party that is unmoored from the history of the nation and its own history and from common decency. This is a party that worships nothing but celebrity, wealth, and ephemeral power that is held not for the purpose of moving the nation forward but for merely the sake of holding power. This is a party that has decided it is tired of being the 'stupid' party and it wants to be another 'evil' party.
"Until this party rids itself of Trump and his acolytes, I'm done with them."
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While I realize that this has gotten a bit lengthy, I thought it necessary that you see 'one of their own' with obvious Christian leanings observations. ... And sadly, one, when even scanning the surface, knows that most of what he has observed is totally correct. ... With this in mind, how then can all these so-called 'Christian' leaders & politicians endorse this kind of an agenda? .. To me, it is a complete 'sell-out!' .. and the issue that upsets me the most is the 'witness' they've become when representing a Lord & Savior that would have NEVER bought in to such ways. .. Simply, these 'leaders' are leading many once- innocent sheep down a path that will ultimately lead to their destruction.
OK ... Enough for now ... Again, next week I will talk about what I believe is a true follower of Christ's civic responsibility. ... Trust me when I say, it is NOT what we are witnessing from so many of our so-called leaders of today. ... Isaiah 5:20-21 explains the reality of our day ... "Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter. 21) Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight."
Until next time,
Red
