Thou Shalt Have No Other gods Before Me

Fellow believers in Christ, I felt an urgency to research and write a response to the growing call for all faiths to join in universal prayer with one another. Upon first glance, this may appear to be a good and worthwhile thing for all of us to take part in. However, upon looking into the Word of God, it is exactly the opposite of what our God would have us do, for it gives the appearance that all faiths are just as valid and equal to the teachings of the Judeo-Christian faith in the one true living God. I urge all believers to read what I have written and then check out its validity and truth through your own search into what the Bible would have us do and believe in relationship to the practice of interfaithism. God's word says that "my people perish for lack of knowledge." I believe this is but a taste of the beginnings of the roots of the future one world religion. Let us not succumb to being conformed by the world, but to be transformed into the image of Christ by remaining rooted and grounded in His Word. Again, consider what I have written and then search the word of God for yourselves. We can only be deceived when we do not renew our minds by the "washing of the water of the Word." May the Lord bless and keep each of you.

Love in Christ,
Ginger Rahn

There are those that assert that Christians are arrogant when they proclaim that there is but one way to heaven. How can it be arrogance, when Christianity is the only religion that does not exalt mankind, but rather places him in a position of humility and complete service to and need for an all supreme and sovereign God? Christianity proclaims that there is nothing that man can do to earn God’s favor or secure entrance into heaven by his own deeds? The foundation of Christianity is the opposite of arrogance, for it is based on humility and the knowledge that salvation itself is a gift from God because He first loved us even though we are sinners. There is not one of us that can live a perfect and sinless life no matter how hard we try. Foremost is the realization that if we keep every bit of the law all of our life, but then fail in keeping one small part, we are then just as guilty as if we had broken all of the law. Just as there is no such thing as being a little bit pregnant, there is also no such thing as being just a little bit guilty of sin. Because of this, there is only one who was ever completely sinless, and therefore qualified to be the sacrificial Lamb, to suffer the punishment and death that we so rightly deserve. Instead, Jesus took our place upon the Cross. Only His blood could wash away our sin, and restore us to a right relationship with our heavenly Father.

Yes, God is a loving God, but He is also a just God. Just as He provided the sacrificial lamb for Abraham so that his son Isaac would not have to die, He also provided the sacrificial Lamb, Jesus, His only Son, to die in our place. He alone paid for our redemption and entrance into heaven. Salvation is completely dependent upon what Christ did on the Cross. Salvation is gained by one’s faith in what Christ alone did upon the Cross to pay for our sins. We can not even boast about our faith, for even that is a gift from God and nothing that we created by our selves. God’s favor can not be earned. God chose to love us unconditionally even in our sinful state. That is why He asks us to come to Him just as we are; he does not require that we do anything except to recognize Him as God. God loves us so much that He sent His only Son to die upon the Cross to pay for our sins. Forgiveness is freely given IF we will only call upon His name, receive Him as Lord and Savior, and repent. He gave us the law to act as a mirror, that is to show us our sinfulness that we might recognize our need for Him and the power of His Holy Spirit to indwell us. He will then do the work of transforming us to be more like Christ, as we willingly give up our free will right to live independently of Him, in exchange for the greater joy of knowing Him as Lord and Savior and glorifying Him in thought, word, and deed.

There is no other name by which one can be saved except the name of Jesus. To think that there is any other way is to make the death of Christ on the Cross meaningless and useless. Yet that is exactly what many are so readily doing today. They will often assert that all beliefs are mere concoctions of the same theme; therefore, all paths or equal and lead to the same place. Statements like – “My god may be Allah, yours may be Christ, Buddha, or the Dahlia Lama, but we are all praying to and believing in the same god. (I have purposely used god, instead of God, as there is but one true God.) So let us put our minor differences aside and agree that we can unite together for the same outcome.” It is this kind of deception, known as Interfaithism, Universalism, or Syncretism which is being widely disseminated and even creeping into our evangelical churches today.

Let us take a brief look at just what is included in the list of these minor differences that we are expected to set aside in order to be a part of this new all inclusive religion known as Interfaithism. The following are but a few of the Christian doctrines that are to be considered minor differences, no longer important, and therefore should be easily discarded:

(1.) There is but one true God.

(2.) Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary.

(3.) The divinity of Jesus Christ.

(4.) Jesus is the Son of God.

(5.) Jesus died on the Cross and paid for our sins.

(6.) Jesus arose from the dead and ascended into Heaven.

(7.) Salvation is not earned but is a free gift of God through faith in His Son, Jesus Christ.

These are but a few of the doctrines of Christianity that we must be willing to toss aside as meaningless. So what have we to fear? This “new gospel” is no gospel at all, but the complete gutting of faith in Christ and what He alone did for us. This is the apostate church of the latter days as described in the Book of Revelations which has the appearance of religion but lacks the power of God Himself. Man has finally accomplished devising his own religion whereby he has no need for God and can change all the rules to suit him self, thereby making himself god.

God said that we are to have no other gods before Him for He is a jealous God. The word jealous, as used here, means that He is vigilant and zealous in His care for us not to be corrupted and deceived by Satan, false teachers, or false gods. He does not want any of us to perish, or die in our sins, but desires that all would come to the saving knowledge of faith in His only Son whom He sent to pay for our sins. There is no other religion that offers the gift of salvation. All other religions are based on the idea that somehow, if one seeks to be as good as he can, he can save himself, thus becoming his own god and thereby having no need of God or His forgiveness.

It is said that the last virtue of a decaying society is tolerance. The original meaning of tolerance was – “sympathy or indulgence for beliefs or practices differing from or conflicting with one’s own.” However, now it has been revised to mean that now not only must one be willing to indulge the differences in beliefs, practices, or lifestyles, but in addition, one must also accept those values as being equal to and just as valid as one’s own. By this revised definition, those who will not accept them as being equal, are now labeled as being intolerant bigots. A bigot then is one who believes that there are Biblical truths of absolute right and wrong and will not compromise the Word of God; Refusing to believe that everything is relative, and therefore always subject to change, as man decides for himself what is right and wrong, based upon his own opinions and whatever is easy and comfortable to him.

According to this definition, God Himself is an intolerant bigot. Of course, He is tolerant in that He grants us free will to choose to follow Him, or to go our own way independent of Him and His ways. But He is not tolerant in that, if we choose to be His, we are commanded (not a suggestion} to follow no other gods but Him. This is not because He is a domineering tyrant, but because He is an all knowing and loving God that seeks our very best and wants to protect us from the corrupting and ultimately destructive results of following after false gods. A false god is any other god but Him. False gods include Baal, Allah, Buddha, Hindu gods, earth, wind and fire gods, self, etc., etc., etc. What part of “no other gods” do we not understand? Did any of these other gods give their very life that we might be redeemed and have eternal life?

Yet Satan is still working his old craft of deception. Just as he said to Eve: “And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” (Gen. 3: 4, 5) He is still in the business of trying to draw man away from the knowledge of God to destroy and devour mankind. He knows his time is short so he is steadily seeking to insert his lies of – “Surely a little bit of Buddha, and Allah and a little less of that useless nonsense of the blood of Jesus and the Cross shall not do you any harm.”

Yes, Christianity is not an inclusive religion, but rather an exclusive religion in its assertion that there is but one true God. Therefore, Christians are easily declared to be intolerant bigots. In reality, Christianity is not a religion, but rather a personal relationship with Christ. There are those that scoff and proclaim that it is impossible to have a relationship with a dead person. They, of course, do not understand that Jesus is NOT dead. He arose and is more alive than ever, and has sent His Holy Spirit to indwell all of those who trust and believe in Him as Savior and Lord. He never leaves us or forsakes us. While there is still time, it is my daily prayer and my heart’s desire that many others may be drawn to the Lord to know Him, love Him, and serve Him as Lord and Savior. This is the day of salvation, for none of us is guaranteed a tomorrow.

Christians, “Be not deceived; God will not be mocked.” Don’t be drawn into the lie that we should join together in prayer with members of any and all other religious faiths. By doing so, one is denying the Lordship and deity of Jesus Christ. God is not indecisive in His requirement that we are to place no other gods before Him. “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord: and thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: and thou shalt teach diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them en thou when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.” “Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God, and serve Him, and shalt swear by His name. Ye shall not go after other gods, of the gods of the people which are round about you; (for the Lord thy God is a jealous God among you) lest the anger of the Lord thy God be kindled against thee, and destroy thee from off the face of the earth.” “And thou shalt do what is right and good in the sight of the Lord: that it may be well with thee..” “And the Lord commanded us to do all these statutes; to fear the Lord our God, for our good always, that He might preserve us alive, as it is at this day. And it shall be our righteousness, if we observe to do all commandments before the Lord our God, as He hath commanded us.” (Deut. 6: 4-7, 13 – 15, 24, 25) Note that all of His commandments are not meant for our harm, but for our good and His protection over us. Also notice that He is very explicit that we are not to even recognize any other gods, much less pray to them. He tell us in no uncertain terms that, if we want to remain under the wings of his care and protection, that we must not stray into the realm of any other gods. Other faiths do not worship or pray to the same one true living God that we know and serve. They worship and follow other strange gods that we are not to have any thing to do with. That’s why God’s Word tells us to resist the devil and give no appearance of evil. Why in the world would any of us want to reject the redemptive power of such a loving God, and place ourselves in the same rebellious realm of Satan and his demons that are surely headed for the pit of Hell? God never created Hell for mankind, nor does He desire any of us to go there. He sent His Son to die on the cross that we me may have eternal life in Heaven with Him. He sends no one to Hell. We send ourselves there by our own rebelliousness and rejection of His plan for our salvation.

Christians, be not deceived. Do not be led astray by the apostate lie that there are many paths to God. Hold onto your faith in Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord, for He alone has provided for your way to God the Father. Remember His words: “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life. No man comes to the Father but by me.” He is the “good Shepherd, and we are His Sheep.” Do not be intimidated by the politically correct atmosphere of the world. Do not be conformed by the world, but be transformed into the image of Christ by the renewing of our minds through the Word of God by the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit. Stay rooted and grounded in Christ that you may not be led astray. Endure to the end!!

With His help, I choose to trust the Lord to deliver me from evil. I trust in His Holy Spirit to lead me and guide me into all truth that I may endure to the end. I trust in His Word that I may know His truth and not be deceived. I am His, and He is my God. I am carved in the palm of His hand, and those who are His can not be taken away, for “Greater is He who is in me
(& them) than he who is in the world.” I am not saved by my works, but I am saved that I may do good works that will forever magnify and glorify my Lord and Savior. I praise the Lord, and thank Him for His grace and mercy. He is faithful to reveal my sin, and forever merciful to forgive me. He allows me to come before His throne of grace to repent and ask His forgiveness. God forbid that I should ever knowingly be willing to compromise, add to, or set aside any part of God or His Word. May I ever proclaim, even with my last breath, that Jesus is Lord, boasting only in the Cross, and salvation through faith in the saving works of CHRIST ALONE. God is so wonderful! He alone makes life worth living. Won’t you too heed His call?

I thank you Lord for blessing me and my husband by making us one in you, and one with you. Oh the joy of knowing that “We are your people, and You are our God.” “Thy Kingdom come; Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven.” May the love of God be shed abroad in our hearts! Let us praise His name forever. Amen.


There is a little song that always brings joy to my heart, and I hope it does the same for you
(Even though you may not know the melody, here are the words.)

Heaven is a wonderful place
Full of glory and grace
I wan’na see my Savior’s face
Heaven is a wonderful place
I wan’na go there!!

Ginger Rahn

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Islam And Shari'ah

          My intention in writing this is not to disrespect the religion of Islam.  My overriding intention is to enable Christians to be knowledgeable when dealing with Muslims.  There is a wide chasm[1] between those who worship the God of the Bible and those who worship Allah.  For instance, there is no personal relationship available with Allah in Islam as there is with God in Judaism and Christianity.  In Islam, there is no salvation by grace.  In Islam, you have to earn your way to paradise.  

 

Just as points of reference, I will define some disciplines of Islam below:

 

HUDNA - Muslims can make treaties with non-Muslims with no intention of keeping them.

WAQF - once a territory is Muslim it is Muslim forever

JIHAD - holy war

DEATH - is preferable to life if obtained in the cause of Allah

SHARI’AH - the laws of Islam: “Shari’ah (law) travels with a Muslim wherever he goes and is expected to be enforced universally over and above the law of any land.”[2]  To Muslims, Shari’ah supersedes all other laws. 

KORAN – The Muslim ‘Bible’ ascribed to be a continuation of the Bible

HADITH – Secondary book of Islam, mostly about their laws

 

          A Muslim has to lie in order to become an American citizen.  He also has to lie in order to become a police officer, testify in court, and serve in our armed forces as well as any other position that requires an oath to be taken.  A true Muslim cannot be a party to any oath that displaces his religion in any way, thus Hudna allows a Muslim to misrepresent himself if it furthers his cause.  Because of Hudna, a Muslim feels there is nothing wrong with taking an oath of any kind as he is in full knowledge of his overriding allegiance to Islam.  There is no ‘render unto Caesar’ in the Islamic religion because government and religion are one and the same.   

 

          In Christianity and Judaism, Lying is forbidden, whereas in Islam, hudna allows one to lie if deemed necessary to further the cause of Islam.  Realistically, how can we trust someone whose belief system allows him to  lie, even under oath?

 

 

          “Jihad is a term used in the media.  The most commonly understood meaning of jihad is ‘to war against non-Muslims’[3].   The term jihad derives from the word mujahada, which signifies the use of warfare to establish religion.[4]  Islamic jurists maintain that there are three distinct forms of jihad.[5]  The first form is the ‘greater jihad’ of battling against the inner-self to attain private holiness and devotion to the path of Allah[6].  The second form of jihad is da-wah, or the invitation to non-Muslims to convert voluntarily to Islam and follow Shari’ah law[7].  The third, most well known form of jihad is the violent use of the sword in physical conflict with non-Muslims (“unbelievers” or “infidels”)[8].  The ultimate of the three forms of jihad, collectively, is to convert all unbelievers to Islam (either voluntarily or forcibly), and to subject all non-Muslim territories to Islamic rule and government, i.e. Shari’ah.”[9]  Do unto others as you would have them do unto you[10], does not apply in Shari’ah and Islam. 

 

          It has been estimated that there are more Muslims in England than Methodists, and more Muslims in the U.S. than Episcopalians.  We must realize that this ‘foreign’ culture is quickly expanding in our country, and has no intention of becoming American by assimilation.  I don’t know how you feel about this, but my ancestors came here to lead their lives differently than they were able to where they came from.  My English ancestors came here before 1630, and my German strain came in 1870; The German ones assimilated to what the English ones had established.  If they don’t want to assimilate, why did they come to a country that is so easily provable to be a Christian nation?  Perhaps they wish to conquer America for Islam.  What a great feather in their cap, if they could conquer the most Christian nation in the history of the world that they call the ‘Big Satan’.

 

Our first amendment, in the Bill of Rights, gives us the right to criticize the scriptures of any religion.  This same amendment gives us the right to practice our religions without any impedance, and the free exercise thereof without abridging our freedom of speech about them.

 

          In Islam it is perfectly acceptable for Muslims to claim that the Bible is corrupted and contradictory, but not allowable for us to question their scriptures in any way.  I have read many parts of the Koran and find it to be disjointed, fragmented and quite nonsensical.  I can’t take much of it at a time as it so hard to read and also offensive.  It is, however, a must read if you want to know what the other camp is thinking and planning.  Keep your friends close, and your enemy closer.  We must remember that Mohammad said the Bible (both old and new testaments) was the Word of God.  I guess that was important because it seems that he copied a lot of it, such as the Old Testament laws and punishments.  If the Bible should ever be proved to be wrong, it would bring down the Islamic texts with it.  Islam recognizes Jesus (Isa – the Arabic name for Jesus) as a great prophet.  Islam teaches that in the end times Jesus will return and recant his divinity and call for all Christians to convert to Islam or be killed.  If a prophet was found to be a liar it was necessary to kill him.  By this reasoning, Islam believes that Jesus was a false prophet and yet trusts in what He will say.  Is there any greater blasphemy than blatantly lying about the One True and Living God and Savior of the world? 

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[1] a marked division, separation, or difference  Merriam-Webster on line

[2] “SHARI’AH LAW: Radical Islam’s Threat to the U.S.Constitution” ACLJ 2011 (Shari’ah-ACLJ)

[3] Supra note 15, at 599

[4] Supra note 15, at 599

[5] Supra note 23, at 56-57

[6] Supra note 15, at 599

[7] Supra note 23, at 96 “attempts to convert an unbelieving populace to Islam is a prerequisite to violent jihad”

 7 Supra note 15 at 599-603 and supra note 23, at 55-93

[9] Supra note 9, at 327

[10] Matthew 7:12

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Politics, The Lord And Us

         Congress, U. S. House Judiciary Committee, 1854 – “Had the people, during the Revolution, had a suspicion of any attempt to war against Christianity, that Revolution would have been strangled in its cradle... In this age, there can be no substitute for Christianity... That was the religion of the founders of the republic and they expected it to remain the religion of their descendants.”        

          The Bible says that we should give to the government what belongs to the government, but to God what belongs to God.[1]  The Bible does not say to give to the government what belongs to God.[2],[3]  Our founding fathers, in the majority of their writings, indicated that our nation was established by God and is therefore His.  Our rights and liberties are given by God[4] and therefore are not to be infringed on by the government.  If anyone tells you there is a separation between church and state they are lying.  Liars cannot enter the kingdom of God. 

          When you vote, you are making a covenant contract that you will be responsible for the decisions made by the person you vote for.  A parent who loves his child will discipline his child.  A God who loves us will discipline us. A pastor doesn’t love his flock if he doesn’t tell them the whole truth.  You don’t love yourself, if you don’t face the truth.  If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray, means we Christians are responsible for this praying.  We are the ones that are called by His name – Christians. According to Derek Prince, the government officials are not the actual rulers of our land, “they only seem to be”.  The actual rulers are those who pray.  Have you done your share of praying for our government?[5] Mr. Prince also said, “there is an obligation to pray for it”[6].  All it takes is for good men to do nothing.

          In Joshua[7] we read that it is not only the crime but also the cover up and the lies that cause damage to a nation.  Nixon and Watergate, Clinton and the Lewinski affair, Bush and Obama in their rejection of the constitution were all crimes against the Lord that reflected against our entire nation.  The Lord will not be mocked.  He set up our nation[8] and we have plundered His work through crime, lies and cover up.  Just as in Joshua 7, we need to purge ourselves from those whom would bring harm to us.  Just because we can’t fully understand God’s holiness, doesn’t mean we can ignore it.  In this country we don’t stone people to death, but rather punish them by rejection. In this same manner we will be rejected by Jesus if we try to enter Heaven without His grace. 

 

          In today’s world, “many people would like to destroy Christians.”[9]  The environmental movement, along with its counterpart, the new age movement, has developed into a religion.  Dangerous at worst, pagan at best, it goes back very close to the worship of “Mother Earth” (Mother Gaia) the earth goddess and “Nature Spirits”.  Marlon Maddoux said, “while ‘the confused sects of Bible thumping Christianity celebrate the myth of Easter’, the world is being prepared to find true rebirth in the thrilling effort of protecting the planet.  And in the process, millions are discovering ‘The Devine Life’ that infuses all rocks, plants, dust, trees and themselves.  Out of self preservation the planet is awakening to its own divinity.  At last, the ‘New World Order’ is coming into view.”  The Bible talks about those who worship the creation rather than the creator.  Lucifer wants to be worshiped in lieu of God. I guess he is having his way with the ‘New Age’ movement, by getting folks to worship anything but God. 

          We are at war on many fronts.  The ‘new age environmentalists, the ‘New World Order’, the ‘Radical Moslems’, the ‘Socialist-communist-Marxists, the invasion through our boarders, the ‘Secular Humanists’, the Secular-Progressives, the ‘New Age’ religionists and those who are against God’s people (from within as well as from without).  Many in the world are jealous of what we have; however, they don’t want to work for it like we did.  They want to take it from us by ‘Social Justice’ and redistribution of wealth. 

          At first glance, there seems to be little hope; however, with God’s help, nothing is impossible.  Let me use Israel as an example.  Many times God’s people seemed to be in hopeless positions against their enemies.  When the Lord stepped in, they were triumphant.  We should not have fear as the Bible tells us that in the end God will have His way.  If you are with the Lord, you know that He will work everything out.  God told us to fill the earth while the environmentalists tell us we need population control.  I guess they think the Chinese have the right idea.  The fact is that since there have been over 53 million abortions in the United States; we are already headed down that path.   If we really are only equal to the stones and trees, they could be right.  I would rather take the word of the one who made the stones, the trees and us.  “Thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven.” 

          How are we going to be controlled by those trying to override our rights?  As we know, there are those who would have us believe we don’t need to have firearms.  “…One of the basic conditions for the victory of socialism is the arming of the workers and the disarming of the bourgeoisie’.[10]  “Before a standing army can rule, the people must be disarmed…”[11]  “Americans need never fear their government because of the advantage of being armed,…”[12]  “The Constitution preserves the advantage of being armed which Americans possess over the people of almost every other nation where the governments are afraid to trust the people with arms.”[13]  “No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms.”[14] “The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government.”[15]  “Communists, socialist’s, bureaucrats, and criminals have no desire to be shot—they prefer to deal with an unarmed citizenry.  And what is equally important is that both the communists and the criminal element have long proven that they can and will obtain firearms, no matter what the government restrictions to the contrary may be.  The Communists have taken over nation after nation when the number of communists in that country numbered less than three percent of the population.  How could that happen?  Because they were the ones with the guns.”[16] "The beauty of the second amendment is that it will not be needed until they try to take it.”[17]  “The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government.”[18]  George Washington didn’t use his right to free speech to defeat the British, he shot them.  An English attempt to confiscate guns from Americans triggered a successful revolution.

          Thomas Jefferson said in 1802:“I believe that banking institutions are more dangerous to our liberties than standing armies. If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their currency, first by inflation, then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around the banks will deprive the people of all property - until their children wake-up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered.”  The people are against monetizing the debt, yet the FED does it anyway.  The people say don’t just print money with nothing to back it up and the FED does it anyway.  We can thank the FED that everything costs more because they have devalued our dollar by their practices.  Congress wants to examine their books and the FED says no.  What control do the people have over those who control our money?

          We all should be religiously concerned about facts.  People are condemned, not for what they don’t know but for what they do with what they do know.  Those who know God’s will, (from the Bible) will be judged by it.  Those who don’t have the knowledge of the WORD will be judged by their knowledge of right and wrong trough the conscience that God gives us all[19].  In my response to a friend saying that the Catholic Church says that Jesus is a liberal I replied: There is no way that Jesus was a liberal.  Since conservative Christians believe in the absolutes of the Bible [like Jesus did] and liberals believe that everything is relative, there seems to be a difference of opinion.  I'm not saying that Jesus was a conservative, but I am saying that He was, and still is, an absolutist.  He is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow.

          In his book, ‘Don’t Think of an Elephant’, George Lakoff said, “Liberal Christians need to move away from Jesus, to a broader vision of God and salvation.”  This book is the Secular-Progressives handbook and strategy guide.  Just as God has been taken out of Christmas in many public areas, He has also been taken out of most of our government; against everything said about the inclusion of God, as intended by our founders.  The phrase “taken out”, infers that God must have been there in the first place, or else how could He have been removed.  Our country was better off when He was in both areas, and we would be better off today if He was returned to His rightful place.

          In the case of the Israeli’s, when they were traveling through the desert, out of approximately two million people, about three thousand caused the problem with the ‘golden calf’.  You’ve heard that a ‘rotten apple can spoil the whole barrel’.  Judgment is often brought on the many by the few. “As nations cannot be rewarded or punished in the next world, they must be in this.  By an inevitable chain of causes and effects, Providence punishes national sins by national calamities.”[20]

          Derek Prince said that “today is controversial”.  Man doesn’t let the truth get in his way.  In his own mind he is right.  He says there are no absolutes and everything is fluid and ever-changing.  The world says the Bible is just a bunch of stories written by men.  When you question these people, they get feisty in defense of their unbelief.  The truth is that everything is, in one way or another, an absolute.  You have heard that “for every action there is a reaction”.  This would not be true if not for absolutes.

Do not be deceived; God will not be mocked, His counsel will stand!

          As we can see, American foundations and Traditionalism is under attack from many forces and many directions.  We must become active in the debate, or we stand to loose the country we love.

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[1] Matthew 22:21

[2] Acts 4:19

[3] Acts 5:29

[4] Declaration of Independence

[5] 1 Timothy 2: 1-4

[6] 2 Chronicles 7:14

[7] Joshua 7:19-11

[8] As expressed by the founders and writers of our founding documents

[9] Derek Prince “Prayer Warrior”

[10] Vladimir Lenin

[11] Noah Webster

[12] James Madison, Father of the Constitution

[13] James Madison

[14] Thomas Jefferson

[15] Thomas Jefferson

[16] Donald S. McAlvany “Toward a New World Order”

[17] Thomas Jefferson

[18] Thomas Jefferson

[19] Romans 2: 12-16

[20] George Mason ‘The father of the Bills of Rights. 1787

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Salvation

          What is it that I have written to you, if not the salvation of Christ?  What is the salvation from, if not sin?  What is it that separates us from God, if not sin?  All of us have sinned and come short of the glory of God.  Because we have all come up short and are sinners, God sent His Son to deliver us from what separates us from Himself.  God is perfection and through Christ we are made perfect before Him; not of our efforts but through Jesus Christ, our Savior. 

          There are many in this world that would mislead you[1] with a different gospel than that contained in the Bible.  Repentance unto salvation through Jesus is the only way to become acceptable to the Father.  “Am I therefore your enemy, because I tell you the truth?”[2] 

          My purpose, as I see it, is not to offend you, but to challenge you to think about the free gift offered by the Lord.  Thomas Jefferson said that freedom of thought was a gift from God.  Guidance, from someone who cares, is also a gift.  It is the Holy Spirit who is the guide to all truth.  My attempts in writings, is to guide you to the Holy Spirit.  As a biblical learner,

(Notice I didn’t call myself a biblical scholar, because I am not) I believe that I have gained some insight into the will of God.   It’s not that I have all the answers, because I do not.  What I do have is over forty years of study.  I make mistakes, just like we all do; however, I strive to live the life that God wants me to.  I am not yet perfected, but I will be when I leave this earthly life.  Because of the relationship I have with the Lord, through Jesus, I have already been perfected in the Fathers eyes.  If you repent (change your mind) and comply with John 3:16 and Romans 10:9, you can also obtain this relationship.  The time for this relationship is now.  Don’t wait until the last minute, as circumstances may sneak up on you and you loose your chance. 

          My father entered into the kingdom of God, two days before he died.  What if the circumstances that brought him to his relationship had been delayed by just two days? 

          God knows all that is, that ever was and all that ever will be.  He already knows if you will receive His free gift of salvation or not.  Is your name written in the book of life?  You won’t know, in this life, unless you come to Him, but you will have that knowledge in the next life.  We are all going to live forever whether we believe it or not.  Our only choice in the matter is our future address.  As I remember the old movies, the kings and pharaohs used to say: ‘so let it be written, so let it be done.”  Where is your name written and what have you done?  The King of heaven knows; do you?

 

          There once was a poor family consisting of a grandfather and a grandson.  They were so poor they didn’t even have enough to eat.  The only asset they owned was an old mule named Heiney.  They decided, at last, to take Heiney to market and sell him.  As they started on their way the young boy rode the mule while the old man walked beside.  They came across a group of people who berated the boy for making the old man walk so they switched; putting the old man on the mule and the grandson walked.  They came upon a group of people who told them they should both ride the mule so they did.  They came upon another group of people who berated them for making the old mule carry such a heavy load so they both walked beside the mule.  Then they came across a group of people that told them the mule was so worn out they should carry him to market so that it would still be alive and able to be sold.  They lifted poor old Heiney and started off again.  They came to a narrow swinging foot bridge and started across.  They lost their footing and dropped Heiney into the canyon, killing him.  The moral of this story is that if you try to please everybody, you are going to loose your Heiney.[3]

          There are many distractions in this world, but there is only one way to salvation.  It doesn’t cost you anything; but sometimes your pride. Which way will you travel, with God or leave things to what man tells you?

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[1] Galatians 1:8

[2] Galatians 4:16

[3] Story from Rev. Jim Delp

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Holiness

          Wikipedia says: “The holiness movement refers to a set of beliefs and practices emerging from the Methodist Christian church in the mid 19th century. The movement is distinguished by its emphasis on John Wesley's doctrine of "Christian perfection" - the belief that it is possible to live free of voluntary sin - and particularly by the belief that this may be accomplished instantaneously through a second work of grace.

          The holiness movement seeks to promote a Christianity that is personal, practical, life-changing, and thoroughly revivalistic. The key beliefs of the holiness movement are (1) regeneration by grace through faith, with the assurance of salvation by the witness of the Holy Spirit; (2) entire sanctification as a second definite work of grace, received by faith, through grace, and accomplished by the baptism and power of the Holy Spirit, by which one is enabled to live a holy life.

In the context of the holiness movement, the first work of grace is salvation from sin, and without it no amount of human effort can achieve holiness. People are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ who made atonement for human sins.

The second work of grace refers to a personal experience subsequent to regeneration, in which the believer is cleansed from the carnal nature, and is empowered by the Holy Spirit to lead a holy life. Most teach that it is still possible for the sanctified to sin, and one grows in grace after this second spiritual experience and should strive for perfection.

The experience of sanctification enables the believer to live a holy life. Most holiness people interpret this as living a life free of willful sin or the practice of sin. The motive is to live a Christ-like life, to be conformed to the image of Christ and not the world. Since holiness is the supernatural work of a transformed heart by the Holy Spirit, many holiness churches are careful to follow moral principles and what they perceive as the conviction of the Holy Spirit. Most followers of the holiness movement believe as Christ said; that love fulfills the entire law of God.”[1]

           J. C. Ryle said: “A man may go great lengths and yet never reach true holiness. It is not knowledge—Balaam had that; nor great profession—Judas Iscariot had that; nor doing many things—Herod had that; nor zeal for certain matters in religion—Jehu had that; nor morality and outward respectability of conduct—the young ruler had that; nor taking pleasure in hearing preachers—the Jews in Ezekiel’s time had that; nor keeping company with godly people—Joab and Gehazi and Demas had that. Yet none of these were holy! These things alone are not holiness. A man may have any one of them and yet never see the Lord.

What then is true practical holiness? It is a hard question to answer. I do not mean that there is any want of scriptural matter on the subject. But I fear lest I should give a defective view of holiness and not say all that ought to be said, or lest I should say things about it that ought not to be said, and so do harm. Let me, however, try to draw a picture of holiness, that we may see it clearly before the eyes of our minds. Only let it never be forgotten, when I have said all, that my account is but a poor imperfect outline at the best.

a. Holiness is the habit of being of one mind with God, according as we find His mind described in Scripture. It is the habit of agreeing in God’s judgment, hating what He hates, loving what He loves, and measuring everything in this world by the standard of His Word. He who most entirely agrees with God, he is the most holy man.

b. A holy man will endeavor to shun every known sin and to keep every known commandment. He will have a decided bent of mind towards God, a hearty desire to do His will, a greater fear of displeasing Him than of displeasing the world, and a love to all His ways. He will feel what Paul felt when he said, "I delight in the law of God after the inward man" (Rom. 7:22), and what David felt when he said, "I esteem all Your precepts concerning all things to be right, and I hate every false way" (Ps. 119:128).

c. A holy man will strive to be like our Lord Jesus Christ. He will not only live the life of faith in Him and draw from Him all his daily peace and strength, but he will also labor to have the mind that was in Him and to be conformed to His image (Rom. 8:29). It will be his aim to bear with and forgive others, even as Christ forgave us; to be unselfish, even as Christ pleased not Himself; to walk in love, even as Christ loved us; to be lowly–minded and humble, even as Christ made Himself of no reputation and humbled Himself. He will remember that Christ was a faithful witness for the truth; that He came not to do His own will; that it was His meat and drink to do His Father’s will; that He would continually deny Himself in order to minister to others; that He was meek and patient under undeserved insults; that He thought more of godly poor men than of kings; that He was full of love and compassion to sinners; that He was bold and uncompromising in denouncing sin; that He sought not the praise of men, when He might have had it; that He went about doing good; that He was separate from worldly people; that He continued instant in prayer; that He would not let even His nearest relations stand in His way when God’s work was to be done. These things a holy man will try to remember. By them he will endeavor to shape his course in life. He will lay to heart the saying of John: "He who says he abides in [Christ] ought himself also so to walk, even as He walked" (1 John 2:6), and the saying of Peter, that "Christ . . . suffered for us, leaving us an example that you should follow His steps" (1 Pet. 2:21). Happy is he who has learned to make Christ his "all," both for salvation and example! Much time would be saved, and much sin prevented, if men would oftener ask themselves the question: "What would Christ have said and done if He were in my place? "

d. A holy man will follow after meekness, patience, gentleness, patience, kind tempers, government of his tongue. He will bear much, forbear much, overlook much and be slow to talk of standing on his rights. We see a bright example of this in the behavior of David when Shimei cursed him, and of Moses when Aaron and Miriam spoke against him (2 Sam. 16:10; Num. 12:3).

e. A holy man will follow after temperance and self–denial. He will labor to mortify the desires of his body, to crucify his flesh with his affections and lusts, to curb his passions, to restrain his carnal inclinations, lest at any time they break loose. Oh, what a word is that of the Lord Jesus to the apostles: "Take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life" (Luke 21:34), and that of the apostle Paul: "I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway" (1 Cor. 9:27).

f. A holy man will follow after charity and brotherly kindness. He will endeavor to observe the golden rule of doing as he would have men do to him and speaking as he would have men speak to him. He will be full of affection towards his brethren, towards their bodies, their property, their characters, their feelings, their souls. "He who loves another," says Paul, "has fulfilled the law" (Rom. 13:8). He will abhor all lying, slandering, backbiting, cheating, dishonesty and unfair dealing, even in the least things. The shekel and cubit of the sanctuary were larger than those in common use. He will strive to adorn his religion by all his outward demeanor and to make it lovely and beautiful in the eyes of all around him. Alas, what condemning words are the thirteenth chapter of 1 Corinthians, and the sermon on the mount, when laid alongside the conduct of many professing Christians!

g. A holy man will follow after a spirit of mercy and benevolence towards others. He will not stand all the day idle. He will not be content with doing no harm; he will try to do good. He will strive to be useful in his day and generation and to lessen the spiritual wants and misery around him as far as he can. Such was Dorcas: "full of good works and almsdeeds, which she did"—not merely purposed and talked about, but did. Such a one was Paul: "I will very gladly spend and be spent for you," he says, "though the more abundantly I love you, the less I be loved" (Acts 9:36; 2 Cor. 12:15).

h. A holy man will follow after purity of heart. He will dread all filthiness and uncleanness of spirit, and seek to avoid all things that might draw him into it. He knows his own heart is like tinder and will diligently keep clear of the sparks of temptation. Who shall dare to talk of strength when David can fall? There is many a hint to be gleaned from the ceremonial law. Under it the man who only touched a bone or a dead body or a grave or a diseased person became at once unclean in the sight of God. And these things were emblems and figures. Few Christians are ever too watchful and too particular about this point.

i. A holy man will follow after the fear of God. I do not mean the fear of a slave, who only works because he is afraid of punishment and would be idle if he did not dread discovery. I mean rather the fear of a child, who wishes to live and move as if he was always before his father’s face, because he loves him. What a noble example Nehemiah gives us of this! When he became governor at Jerusalem, he might have been chargeable to the Jews and required of them money for his support. The former governors had done so. There was none to blame him if he did. But he says, "So did not I, because of the fear of God" (Neh. 5:15).

j. A holy man will follow after humility. He will desire, in lowliness of mind, to esteem all others better than himself. He will see more evil in his own heart than in any other in the world. He will understand something of Abraham’s feeling, when he says, "I am dust and ashes," and Jacob’s, when he says, "I am less than the least of all Your mercies," and Job’s, when he says, "I am vile," and Paul’s, when he says, "I am chief of sinners." Holy Bradford, that faithful martyr of Christ, would sometimes finish his letters with these words: "A most miserable sinner, John Bradford." Good old Mr. Grimshaw’s last words, when he lay on his deathbed, were these: "Here goes an unprofitable servant."

k. A holy man will follow after faithfulness in all the duties and relations in life. He will try, not merely to fill his place as well as others who take no thought for their souls, but even better, because he has higher motives and more help than they. Those words of Paul should never be forgotten: "Whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord": "Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord" (Col. 3:23; Rom. 12:11). Holy persons should aim at doing everything well and should be ashamed of allowing themselves to do anything ill if they can help it. Like Daniel, they should seek to give no "occasion" against themselves, except concerning the law of their God (Dan. 6:5). They should strive to be good husbands and good wives, good parents and good children, good masters and good servants, good neighbors, good friends, good subjects, good in private and good in public, good in the place of business and good by their firesides. Holiness is worth little indeed if it does not bear this kind of fruit. The Lord Jesus puts a searching question to His people when He says, "What do you more than others?" (Matt. 5:47).

l. Last, but not least, a holy man will follow after spiritual–mindedness. He will endeavor to set his affections entirely on things above and to hold things on earth with a very loose hand. He will not neglect the business of the life that now is; but the first place in his mind and thoughts will be given to the life to come. He will aim to live like one whose treasure is in heaven and to pass through this world like a stranger and pilgrim traveling to his home. To commune with God in prayer, in the Bible, and in the assembly of His people—these things will be the holy man’s chief enjoyments. He will value everything and place and company, just in proportion as it draws him nearer to God. He will enter into something of David’s feeling, when he says, "My soul follows hard after You"; "You are my portion" (Ps. 63:8; 119:57).”[2]

            I can’t say that I agree with there being a second work of grace as I believe that Jesus covers everything in His offer of salvation, when we make Him the Lord of our lives.  What I define as holiness is our attempt, after receiving our salvation, to live for Jesus as best we can.  It is our attempt to live a holy life that pleases Him.  He knows that we are still human and sometimes subject to failure.  As we grow in the knowledge and admonition of the Lord we become more holy.  This is a continuing work of faith, and effort on our part.  The Lord is the only judge of our state of holiness.

          In Hosea 11:9 we can see that the Holy One is in the midst of us.  The Holy Spirit is given to us by the Father to instruct, strengthen and encourage us.  Leviticus 19:2 tells us that God wishes us to be holy, as He is holy.  In Exodus 19:6 we see that God prefers a holy nation.  In 1 Peter 1:15-16 he said:”But as He which has called you is holy, so you should be holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.”

          A Bishop of the Roman Catholic Church was traveling on a large ship when the crew told him about some holy men living on an island near where they were.  The bishop insisted that they get him to the island, so he could determine if these men were truly ‘holy’ men.  When they rowed to the island he found the men and questioned them about their faith.  He found that they didn’t even know the “Our Father” (The Lord’s Prayer) and so he set about instructing them.  After he finished their instruction, through much effort on his part, he returned to the ship.  He was convinced that the men on the island were not really holy men after all.  After they were under way quite a while the man in the crows nest shouted that there were people approaching the ship.   As the bishop looked in their direction he saw the men from the island running across the water calling to him and saying – please help us bishop, we have forgotten how you taught us to pray.

Eloi, Eloi, Boruck HaShem, Adonai, Amen.  (Father, Father, praise the name, my Lord. Amen)

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[1] Wikipedia

[2] “Holiness” by J. C. Ryle  (1816 - 1900)

 

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