THE PASTOR AND JOHN 3:16

 I ran across the website of a conservative, Bible-believing church in our area. I came across it because I was searching for something else. The church had a page which instructed the reader on "How to Accept Christ Into Your Life", so I thought I'd ck it out. I did and found "Four Steps" to accept Christ into your life. You and I know that when we read something like that, the article is off in the wrong direction. Here are the 4 steps:

1. Admit your need. (I am a sinner)

2. Be willing to turn from your sins. 

3. Believe that Jesus Christ dies for you on the cross and rose from the grave.

4. Through prayer, invite Jesus Christ to control your life through the Holy Spirit. (Receive him as Lord)

 

We suggest praying the following prayer to accept Christ as your Savior and Lord.

 

"Dear God,

I know I'm an [sic]sinner, and I ask for your forgiveness.

I believe Jesus Christ is Your Son. I believe that He died for my sin and that you raised Him to life again.

I want to trust Him as my Savior and follow Him as Lord, from this day forward. Guide my life and help me to do your will.

I pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen"

If I were to go to the pastor and say, "I'm considering joining your church but before I do, I need to know, do you know and believe Jn. 3:16?" No doubt about it, he would answer with a resounding,"YES!" as he pounded the Bible on his desk. Then I would ask him, "Please tell me, where do you see that I must "be willing to turn from my sins" in Jn. 3:16?

I would continue, "Pray and invite Jesus into my heart?"  Then, politely, I would ask, "Where do you find that I must "pray, and invite Jesus Christ to control my life through the Holy Spirit?" Another question, "Where in any gospel invitation in the book of Acts (or anywhere else) do we find the Apostles telling anyone "to ask God to forgive them to be saved?" Where do we find that the person to be saved has to pray a prayer, even something called "The Sinner's Prayer?"

If he were honest, he would have to say, "I don't see any of them in the verse. I see only one requirement which is, "whosoever believes."

I could reply,  "Then you don't believe John 3:16, do you?"

 

 

HE ACTUALLY SAID THIS?

The philosophical system that is Calvinism can, at times, force the Calviist to say some ludicrous things. 

A case in point is an answer one of the leading Calvinists, R. Sproul, gave to this question: "How can I be be happy in heaven if my mother isn't there but is in Hell?" That's a good question and one we'll answer in our coming study on "Heaven." Sproul's answer floored me.

He said, "When you look down from heaven and see your mother in Hell, you will rejoice!" 

We need to stop here and remind ourselves that oneof the peals of TULIP is "Unconditional Election" which means  "God chose certain individuals for salvation based entirely on His grace, irrespective of their actions or choices. This decision reflects God’s sovereign will, established before the creation of the world."

There it is: God did not chose that person's mother to be one of he elect to be saved and go to heaven. He,  by not choosing her to go to heaven, authomatically chose her to go to hell. 

Why did He chooe her for hell? The Calvinist would have to say, going by their system, that she is in hell to show the glory of God. Keep in mind, that by their system, some babies will wind up in Hell. All this somehow to show the glory of God.

Therefore, Sproul said that when some son ,in heaven, sees his mother or his child in everlasting torment, he will be overjoyed becausse by his mother's being in Hell,she is glorifyig God, He will prasie God thety are there.. 

We say to this, "Really? Is that your answer? Jesus, seeing the rejection of Israel, "burst into tears." (Literal translation.) He did not rejoice. 

THE SEASHELL SERMON

 One of the leading voices among Calvinists is John Piper who gave a sermon on May 20, 2000, at the Passion Conference in Memphis. An article described it as "a powerful message that emphasized the importance of living for Jesus rather than wasting one's life on material pursuits." 

Piper used the story of Bob and Penny who collected seashells to illustrate the hobby as a waste of their years, saying that serving others is a meaningful way to live. Piper talked about Bob's and Penny's retirement consisting of hours and hours of piling up an impressive array of seashells. His point was one of disdain for the couple and mockery.

The article went on to say, "The sermon has had a lasting impact, inspiring many to prioritize their spiritual lives and mission over materialism, and has become a significant part of Christian culture and education." 

But wait a minute before we mark the couple as losers because of their hobby. According to the philosohy that is Calvinism, in eternity past, God sovereinly decreed that Bob and Penny spend their last years wasting their lives on this material pursuit. Accoding to Piper's belief system, they had no choice in the matter, God decreed that they end their lives as failures; they could spend their time in no other way. 

This brings us to the Bema Seat of Christ, the review of each beliver's life for rewards or loss of rewards. At the Bema, some believers will have their works revealed as rewardable---gold, silver and precious stones, while other believers will be shown to have their works as wood, hay, and stubble for collecting seashells. Bob and Penny will be in this group.

But according to Calvinism, each one at the judgment will have been preprogramed to produce the results they did. No one had any choice in the matter as to how he would spend the years of this life. God preprogramed Bob and Penny to collect the shells and wind up as producing stubble. 

Therefore, the Bema Seat judgment, according to Calvism, is pre-rigged. God predetermined that some would fail while others would hear a "Well done thou good and faithful servant." But as Calvin said, neither group could have done otherwise than they did.

So, why did Piper chastize Bob and Penny? This makes no sense. And neither does Calvinism.

NIGHMARE ON CALVIN STREET

 I have a recurring nightmare from which I wake up in a cold sweat, screaming. In my dream, I'm in my senior year, spring semester, ready to graduate from Tx Tech University. But unknown to me, the always igilent administration has discovered that I lack one course in algebra and I will not be graduating. Not only that but they are now on the way from across campus to come and get me. At this point, I wake up. 

If the Calvinist has read Colossians 1: 13-20, it will be hard for him to sleep at night:  Notice the words in boldface type as you read:  "For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him. 17 He is before all things, and in Him all things [z]hold together. 18 He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything. 19 For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, 20 and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven."

OK, Did you catch it? The fodder for the Calvinist's nightmare is crystal clear. 

Do you agree that Jesus, the Second Person of the Trinity, created all things? Do you agree that all things include both in the heavens and on earth? Do you agree that all things include all human beings? Of course, we agree, that's as clear as crystal. 

Then, you must agree that Jesus  reconciled all things to Himself through His death on the Cross --a way of reconciliation was made available for any soul who would place their trust in Jesus' substitutionary, fully atoning death in their place. Jesus became the Reconciler flinging wide open the gates so that sinful men could be brought back into communion with their Creator, God the Father.

By this text, the philosopical system that is Calvinism has fallen. All things have been reeconciled to God. 

"All things "would include  all things on the earth.  The "L" (Limited Atonement) in Calvinism's "TULIP" has been plucked from the flower. If one letter gets plucked, all the other letters suffer the same fate. Christ died for all.

HARVARD'S FINAL EXAM

 October 7 was the catalyist for an outpouring of Jew hatred at Harvard University et al. By some strange twist of demonic logic, faculty, students, and outsiders protested, camped out on the campus grounds and harrassed with chants, some vulgar, and general intimidatio. 

The twist of logic was that they they blamed Jews for their own savage massacre. The world has never seen such rage against the Jews in 90 years. The attackers on Oct 7th being the savages they were, killed men, women, children, and babies with methods that can only be described as barbaric--beheading and burning babies to death.

The conflict began after hundreds of Harvard students flooded the campus calling for genocide against the Jews. How in the world did this Jew hatred infect the campus? Revelation 12 says that its orign is satanic. This demonic rage was added by something else, something you would swear could never happen in America. 

Further investigation suggested the students may have picked up their antisemitic ideas from what they learned in such Harvard classes as "Studies in Antisemitism" in which the final exam required students to flood the campus and call for genocide against the Jews!

FOOLS WITH DARKENED HEARTS

 Romans 1:21:  "For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 22 Professing to be wise, they became fools, 

The ancient Roman family gathers for dinner, carefully prepared by the mother of the household. The father, the children, are in their usual places around the table. There are two other guests{ the household gods who were known as the Lares and the Penates. As the mother serves the food to her children and her husband, she has set a plate of dinner for the Lares and the Penates. Dinner is served and they enjoy a meal together.

Yet the food on the plates of the household gods remains. The gods at the table do not eat a bite; the food remains just as she arranged it on the plate. Yet, she dutifully goes through the same serving everyday. 

We would ask, "Can you not see that you have placed powerless statuettes at the table who cannot speak, lift a hand, open their mouths and eat? What's wrong with you? Why do you go through with this meaningless repetition day after day?" We know: because they have become fools with darkened hearts having rejected the truth of Ps. 19:1-2. 

A darkened heart can become serious, very serious. When we read of the record of the history of Israel, a nation who all too often absorbed the idolatry of the cultures around them and the moral diseases that came with it. God sent several prophets to the Israelites to excoriate one generation after another for pracitcing the killing of their own children as sacrifices! God calls this abomination "causing their children to pass through the fire." 

What in the world?! "They became fools." Here's the way the heathen and the Jews came to look at this practice as something good: "To show our live for our god, we offer to him the most precious thing in the world, our child." This is how darkened the human heart can be. This conclusion has to be of satanic origin. 

This abomination has been discovered in South America--altars built  by the native peoples with jars all around them containing the skeletons of babies and children. Say "good-bye to the noble savage theory which was the position of Reusseau: it's the idea that human beings in their natural state—before the development of society and civilization—were inherently good, peaceful, and virtuous. 

Rousseau believed that human beings were born free and equal, living a simple, uncomplicated life in harmony with nature. He contrasted this idealized state of humanity with the corrupting influences of society and civilization-- private property, which he saw as responsible for inequality, greed, and violence.

We live in a culture that has moved away from its biblical underpinnings so we should expect to Romans one's infiltration into our society in which people have become fools. Examples abound:

1. Defund the police

2. A person can change his or her gender

3. Males can and should be able to crush females in sports.

3. There are no such things a boundaries for countries.

4. Human nature is malleable.

5. Since truth is relative, what is true today is not true tomorrow.

A society filled with darkened hearts is a society in which people "pass through the fire."

THE SARTORIAL CHOICE

 There's a strange Scripture in Zephaniah that perplexes the Western mind but it shouldn't. Take a look at it: 

"Then it will come about on the day of the Lord’s sacrifice That I will punish the princes, the king’s sons And all who clothe themselves with foreign garments." There is, as always in the Bible, a biblical context and a cultural context to the verse. 

The biblicat context is that the Southern Kingdom of Israel has, by choice, allowed spiritual rot metastasize through every level of their society. The prophet is enumerating the corruption of the nation and he's come to the royal court charging them with practicing Baal rituals and worship, along with the infiltration of the idols of MolUck. These are foreign gods imported into Israel by Jezebel and her ilk. One of the acts of ritual and worship of this god was human sacrifice including children. 

In a word picture, the prophet displays the Southern Kingdom as a "sacrifice" prepared by God for the "guests" (the Babylonians) to eat. Then the prophet tells the princes that they will be punished for wearing "foreign garmets." That sounds odd; why punish them for their choice of robes? 

There is an excellent reason; their choice of wardrobe is making a statement of their values. Their robes were what the Babylonian or Egyptian royaly wore. By choosing that clothing, they were making a sartorial statement that they were adopting the values of the Babylonian or Egyptian culure. But is that so odd?

No, not really. Take a look at the recent mobs of Jew haters on university campuses and what do you see? The same thing as in the Southern Kingdom of Israel. The destructive and disruptive mobs  choose to wear the keffiyeh to show solidarity with the Oct. 7th terrotists. Their clothing is  a statement of rejecting America's founding upon Christian values and showing their loyalty to the values of viscious Jew hating terrorists.

These will be the bankers, lawyers, judges, senators, reprsentatives, teachers, professors, and college presidents for decades to come. As Lincoln said, "The philosophy of the school room in one generation will be the philosophy of government in the next."  Get ready, they're on the way!

TUCKER CARLSON ATTACKS!

Tucker Carlson is a popular star in the conservative heavens. He was a fixture on Fox News but is now an indepent host of his podcasts and widely sought speaker. He recently had a country-western singer named John Rich as his guest on a broadcast during both he and his guest, John Rich, went on the atack.  What or whom did they atack?

Following Rich's lead, Tucker Calson began attacking Scofield and the Scofield Reference Bible (SRB). Rich began by showing his ignorance of history when he said, "The SRB was the first Bible with footnotes." Not true. The first Bible with footnotes was the Bible carried on the Mayflower over 300 years before Oxford Press published the SRB in the early part of the 20th century.  That Bible the Pilgrims brought to our shores wasthe Geneva Bible which had printed notations by Calvin and John Knox in the margins. Carlson didn't correct Rich's statement. Even if the SRB was the first (which it wasn't) so what? 

Next, the country/western singer charged Scofield with being a student of John Darby who "invented the idea of a secret rapture." Not true. The doctrine of the rapture comes from I Thessalonias 4:13-18 and I Cor. 15:51-53. If one were to go back in church history, he would find that, in 1565, a man named Joseph Mede used the word "rapture" in connection with I Thessalonians 4 which shows that the rank and file folks were knowledgable of the doctrine and weretalking about it. 

But we can go farther back than that: Lee Brainard, a scholar who researched the church fathers (those who lived and wrote immediately after the Apostles) writes, "I found a Pre-Trib Rapture passage [in the church fathers]. Then I went on and investigated more than150 Greek works, and I found dozens more Rapture passages. Ten of them are crystal clear about the Rapture happening before the Tribulation. 

"I also found twenty-plus passages that are clear Rapture passages [in thewritings of the church fathers] though the context would not define if it was Pre-Trib or not."Carlson made no correction of that false statement either. (One might suspect that Rich's and Carlson's history teahers were the football coaches.)

Rich made the outlandish charge that the publication of the SRB was a Jewish conspiracy when he asked Carlson, "Do you know who financed the printing of the SRB?" Carlson admitted that he did not. 

Rich then said, "The Rothchilds." (The Rothchilds were a wealthy Jewish family originally from Germany.) Carlson accepted this as true, although Rich offered no proof of the statement. Those who heard and saw him make the statement have reseached it and found no connection whatsoever between Scofield, the Oxford Press, and the Rothchilds. Carlson didn't object to this statement which hinted at antisemitism. Arno C. Gabeline, a well known Christian speaker and author, wrote the preface to the SRB listed the four men who financed the publishing, none of them Jewish. 

Again, so what if Rich's statement is true? What difference does that make? It's a non issue, a tacit antisemetic statement that hints at something sinister.

During this broadcast, things degenerated into  name-calling as Rich said that C. I. Scofield was a "con man," and Carlson said his theology was "deceptive." They offered no instances of either and the discussion continued.  

During the program,the viewer heard the two briefly get into a one- sentence hermeneutical discussion when Rich said, "Genesis 12:3, has nothing to do with Israel." Again, no explanation as to why the verse has nothing to do with Israel. Carlson let that statement go. And to cap it all off, when Rich asked Carlson if he had ever heard of the SRB, Carlson answered, "I have, and my sense was it's probably a lie." There was no example given to show where the SRB contained even one lie. 

Let's ask the question, "What did Scofield do in his notes? What he did is what the Apostles did when they interpreted the Old Testaent; they took the Bible literally. In the Bible and in Scofield's notations, "Israel" means "Israel." "Church" is a reference to the "Church." And the church is not "the New Israel." In the SRB, the promises and covenants to Israel are taken literally as being to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The promises in the Old Testament of the coming Messiah were literally fulfilled, as will the predictions of His 2nd coming. Scofield's notes take both literally.

The Bible predicts that in the end times, there will be a worldwide burst of Jew-hatred. Neither the left nor the right will be an exception that prediction. 

THE LORDSHIP/CALVINIST PASTOR AND ISABELLA

 Isabella, a ten year-girl, is standing at a microphone during the Q/A period, waiting her turn to ask the famous pastor* a question that's been bothering her. She asks, "How can a kid know if he or she is a Christian?" The adults in the congregation smile at such a question, never realizing the the theologian will, from that day forward send the girl into a lifetime of confusion and a never-ending cycle of a lack of assurance. 

He begins his answer: "What's your name?" She replies, "Isabella."  

The pastor begins his answer with a series of questions, each requiring a "Yes" or "No" answer:

"Do you believer that Jesus is the Son of God?" She answers, "Yes." (Does she understand what "Son of God" means?)

"Do you believe that He came to the earth and lived a sinless life and died on the cross? She answers, "Yes"

"Do you believe that He died for your sins and mine?" She answers, "Yes."

"Is Jesus your Lord?" She answers, "Yes." (He doesn't define what he means by "Lord.)

"Do you love Jesus?" She answers, "Yes."

"Do you want to honor Him?" "Yes," again.

"How do you know you love Him?" She remains silent but then answers, "Because I know I'm going to heaven."

"You're thankful." She replies, "Yes."

"Do you like to sing songs about Jesus?" She says, "Yes."

"Do you like to read the Bible?" [Here, she pauses. The congregation laughs.] She says, "Yes."

The pastor regroups, and asks, "Do you to have other people read the Bible stories to you?" "Yes." (Here he has to make an exception.)

The pastor declares,  "You are a Christian!" The congregation applauds..

The pastor says, "Unbelievers don't have those desires. Those desires will grow stronger as you grow older." (What if they don't grow stronger?"

It was a touching scene but seriously, a sad one. Isabella is now set up for a lifetime of disturbing doubts, worry, and confusion because the pastor has put her on a boat, launches her into the Sea of Subjectivity. St times, for the rest of her life, what will she do when she doesn't "honor Jesus?" What will she think when she doesn't like reading Leviticus, Deuteronomy, or Obadiah?" 

What she, her parents, and the congregation don't know is that the pastor isn't telling the truth when he  declares, "You're a Christian!" According to his system of theology, there is no way he can know that she's a Christian. That's because one of the bedrock beliefs of Calvinism. 

The bedrock belief is: the believer is so secure in Christ, that he cannot fall away. Jesus will not lose any who had been given to Him by the Father; He gives eternal life to them so they will never perish, and those who leave the faith were never believers to begin with," 

When Isabella becomes old enough to think about it, what the pastor told her is that she cannot be sure she is going to heaven until the day she dies for it is impossible for any finite creature to know if he will be faithful until the end.

How can Isabella know that she, "a kid" can know she is saved and going to heaven: "For God so  loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life."

*The pastor: John MacArthur

 

 

 

 

THE DAY WILL COME

 

In the news: "The bodies of murdered young children, Kfir and Ariel Bibas, who were just 10-months-old and 4-years-old when they were murdered no later than November 2023, after being taken hostage on October 7 of that year, were returned to Israel. The body of their mother, Shiri Bibas, was however not returned, as Hamas paraded the coffins only to send the body of an unidentified woman, who was not even one of the 251 hostages. Israel, and the rest of the world has reacted in sorrow and horror, with plans to be figured out now that Hamas has broken the ceasefire. 

"Daniel Hagari, the Israel Defense Forces’ (IDF) spokesperson, announced that the dead children returned Thursday to Israel from Gaza were beaten to death by terrorists.

“We can confirm that baby Kfir Bibas, aged just 10 months old, and his older brother Ariel, aged four, were both brutally murdered by terrorists while being held hostage in Gaza no later than November 2023,” the spokesperson said. “Contrary to Hamas’ lies, Ariel and Kfir were not killed in an airstrike. Ariel and Kfir Bibas were murdered by terrorists in cold blood. The terrorists did not shoot the two young boys. They killed them with their bare hands.”

"Hamas displayed the caskets on a makeshift stage in front of an anti-Semitic sign depicting Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a bloodthirsty vampire snarling above a photo of the murdered captives. Hamas said it had placed inside the coffins Shiri Bibas, 32; her two children, 4-year-old Ariel and 9-month-old Kfir; and 83-year-old Oded Lifshitz. Hamas kidnapped them during the terror group's Oct. 7 terror rampage through Israel.

"Before being returned to Israel, the International Committee of the Red Cross dispatched one of its staffers to sit with a uniformed Hamas terrorist at a camouflage table and sign "paperwork." The coffins were then transported through Gaza as hordes of Palestinians cheered and chanted "victory" in Arabic."

Jew hatred runs dark and deep. The darkness and depth of the animosity toward Jews is of such a nature that we have to ask, "What kind of people strangle babies and children to death and what kind of people cheer and chant, celebrating the murders of a 10 month old and a 4 year old only because their victims are Jews?

Answer: The demon-possessed. Yet, according to The Times of Israel, "Since 1994, Washington has provided the Palestinians with more than $5.2 billion through USAID." 

There is a day coming. A word from God to such people: "Do not gloat over your brother’s [Israel's] day, The day of his misfortune. And do not rejoice over the sons of Judah In the day of their destruction; Yes, do not boast in the day of their distress. . . . I will bring you down declares the Lord!" (Obadiah 1:12; 1: 4)

 

A MESSAGE FROM OBADIAH TO USAID

 

"USAID (US AID)  humanitarian packages were found amidst a cache of weapons owned by terror group Hezbollah in Lebanon, an Israel Defense Forces soldier claimed to an American newspaper.

“From the American taxpayer to Hezbollah, with love,” said Asher Fredman,, a former IDF soldier and currently executive director of the Misgav Institute for National Security and Zionist Strategy, a think tank, in Jerusalem.

"Asher told The Post that he found sniper rifles, anti-tank missiles and explosives alongside the care packages marked “USAID” while on patrol in an undisclosed village in Lebanon where the Iran-backed Hezbollah had a stronghold."

There's a line from a TV series in which the antihero, who has been found out, says to the federal agent, "If you don't know who I am, your best course would be to treas lightly."

It is evident that USAID did not know who they were dealing with when they sent aid and comfort to the Jew-hating terrorist group, Hezbollah, an ally and supporter of Hamas. They did know what Hezbollah was, and they did know Hamas but USAID didn't know Someone else. Hamas (lit. "Violence") has stated its goal: 

"Hamas’ ideology is simple and it is this simplicity that makes it so powerful to the masses: 'Israel will exist and will continue to exist until Islam will obliterate it, just as it obliterated others before it'. This declared objective appears right at the beginning of Hamas’ Covenant, as translated and published by the Yale University School of Law.

"To dispel any doubts between being only “anti-Israel” or just plain “antisemitic”, Hamas’ Covenant spells this explicitly: “The Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him salvation, has said: ‘The Day of Judgement will not come about until Moslems fight the Jews (killing the Jews), when the Jew will hide behind stones and trees. The stones and trees will say O Moslems, O Abdulla, there is a Jew behind me, come and kill him.” (The Times of Israel," Oct. 13, 2023, emphasis theirs)

In the shortest book in the Old Testament and the least read one in the Bible, Obadiah identifies who USAID is dealing with when it engages in sending care packages to an organization of Jew haters:

Obadiah 1:11, in a list of Edom's crimes against Israel, there is the notation that one of those crimes was to become one with Babylon who had attacked Israel. Obadiah described what awaited Edom for its aiding Babylon: Obadiah 1:4--"I (God) will bring you down!" despite their boast as the nation bragged, "Who will bring me down?" (Obadiah 1:3)

By sending the care packages, USAID became as Hezbollah and Hamas (Obadiah 1:11). To oppose Israel is to poke the "pupil of God's eye" (Zechariah 2:8, literal translation)  

Recalling the words of verse 4, we have now seen this result: God has has taken down the USAID website, USAID has let go of hundreds of staff, and the USAID office building has been closed, preventing other staff from accessing it.

USAID did not "tread lightly" when it came to giving aid an comfort to the Jew-hating Hezbollah.

 

 

 

THE "RELIGION" YOU'RE ALLOWED TO CRITICISE

 Someone said, "You accept the society in which you were born." In other words, we fail to recognize our own cultural norms because they are so…normal even if they're wrong and we accept them without thought.  Does a fish realize that it's always been in water until it flops ashore?  

For example, decades ago, people used to smoke cigarettes everywhere, even lighting up in hospitals. You didn't think about it; it was normal. When you watched a game show on TV, the host would be smoking (if the sponsor of the program was Camels or Winston). A thank-you gift for being a contestant on a program like "I've Got A Secret" was a carton of the sponsor's cigarettes. 

In commercials on TV or ads on the back cover of a magazine, a man dressed in a white lab coat, a "doctor," would tell us that his favorite brand was Winston which he said,  "Winston astes good like a cigarette should." It was a catchy jingle, one not to be forgotten.

Athletes got into the trend; an ad picturing Mickey Mantle, cigarette in hand, with the words, "So many of the Yanks smoke Camels, I decided to try them. I smoked Camels a while and I knew--Camels are for me! They're mild and swell tasting." We gave it no thought.

Movies advertised in the newspaper didn't give the starting times for the feature; you might arrive in the middle or near the end. Nobody thought about; it just was.

Decades ago, parents gave us boys B-B guns and turned us loose with no supervision to go out and kill as many birds as we could for no other reason than the thrill of the kill. To kill a robin redbreast was a special achievement, one worthy of praise. Nobody thought anything about it. 

Fast forward to our day and the statement still holds, "You accept the society in which you were born." We watch a movie or TV drama in which a kidnappers take a child and hold him for ransom. The frantic parents call the police, the FBI gets involved, they set up a wire tap on the home phone. 

There's one thing the parents don't ever do in the movie: pray. It's the norm for a movie of that type. We think nothing about it. 

Here's another interesting one: there's only one "religion" our culture can criticize and mock it and its Book. Christianity and the Bible. Celebrities winning an Oscar include in their acceptance speech words that mock and blaspheme Christianity. In movies, a preacher is either a fanatical nut, a hypocrite or a devious villain. 

But does the public notice the celebrities don't mock Islam, an Imam, or the Koran. In fact, the celebrities, the academics, and the elites offer nary a jest nor a criticism of that religion. It's all so normal, no one notices the glaring omission. So, the younger generation born into such a society accept it. That's it, over and out.

Therefore, those recently born in our society accept all of this--no praying by frantic parents, no criticism of Islam because . . . there is no "because." Without thinking about it or wondering about it, or asking, "Why," to them, it just "is."  

We are in such a society. We have sown the wind. We are reaping the whirlwind.

PRESIDENT JAMES EARL CARTER JR., SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHER PART III

 I have saved the worse for the last. The bulk of this, our last look at the former Sunday school teacher at a church in Plains, GA, is taken from Jewish sources concerning the attitude and actions of the former president concerning Israel and the Jews. 

From "The Jerusalem Post"

"The self-proclaimed champion of human rights, Carter was comfortable with Middle Eastern dictators like Sadat, Hafez al-Assad, and the shah of Iran, but endlessly critical of Israel’s democratically elected leaders, beginning with Menachem Begin.

"No sooner were the Camp David Accords signed in 1979 than Carter embarked on a 40-year smear campaign against Israel. Carter insisted that Israel was violating UN Resolution 242 by not withdrawing to the pre-Six Day War boundaries and failing to create a Palestinian state.

"From a mere misreading of 242, Carter descended into a dark obsession with Israel, casting it as the source of all Middle Eastern instability and a world-leading violator of human rights. His 2004 book, Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid, though based on half-truths and outright lies, effectively legitimized Israel’s delegitimization."

FROM "THE JEWISH PRESS"

"The story of Carter’s attitude towards Israel goes deeper. He was not simply a modern-day anti-Zionist—an ignorant idealogue who wrongly believed that Israeli counter-terrorism policies harmed the “human rights” of the Palestinian people. Carter was, in fact, a traditional, old-fashioned Christian antisemite. 

"We know this because his many post-presidential activities included teaching Sunday school. In 2007, Simon & Schuster released a 13-disc CD boxed set of recorded sermons that Carter gave at Maranatha Baptist Church in his hometown of Plains, Ga., called “Sunday Mornings in Plains.”

"The sermons contain a slew of chillingly pre-modern antisemitic prejudices. For example, he claimed that Judaism teaches Jews to feel superior to non-Jews, that Jewish religious practices are a sleazy “trick” to enhance personal wealth, and that current Israeli policy towards Palestinians is based upon these “Jewish” values and practices.

"In the sermons recorded between 1998 and 2003, Carter attacked Israel by retreading antisemitic tropes dating back to the gospels and patristic writings of the early church. These anti-Judaic beliefs were formulated not in the 1960s or 1970s but between the first and fifth centuries C.E., ensuring well over a millennium of institutional, lethal Christian antisemitism."

AND THIS FROM "THE TIMES OF ISRAEL"

"Carter, who cancelled a planned visit to Gaza on this trip, said Saturday he “deplored” criminal acts by members of Hamas, but said he was looking to support moderate members of the group, which he said wasn’t a terrorist organization."

Enough said.

 

PRESIDENT JAMES EARL CARTER JR. SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHER PART II

 The saga of the Sunday School teacher in Plains, GA, doesn't end with his favorite song, "Imagine." No, the story sours as it goes along. Had James E. Carter not been the 39th president of the United States, one might wonder in what Bible-believing church would he have been allowed to get near a Sunday school lectern. His song preference was bad enough but he had such serious doctrinal issues that he would have been considered a heretic. Let's examine a few:

1. President Carter, the president from 1977-1981, gave his stamp of approval early on for same sex marriage  (which biblically is no marriage at all). He "justified" his belief, saying, "Jesus would approve if the love was honest and sincere." One might wonder if he ever heard or read Matthew 19:4-6? For the biblicist, God defines marriage, not James Earle Carter Jr. nor the Supreme Court.

2. When abortion became an issue, Carter was not silent about his belief: "I'm personally against it but I'm not in favor of overturning Roe v. Wade. What? That would be like saying, "I'm personally against slavery but if you want to own a slave, that's OK." Or, "I'm personally against murder but if you want to kill someone, I have no problem with that." 

3. Regarding Genesis 1-2, the Sunday school teacher believed it to be an allegorical account, not a literal, historical one. 

4. In a recorded interview, the former president said that it was not necessary to trust Christ to go to heaven because He was not the only way. (Jesus disagreed with that statement in John 14:6)

The saga of the Sunday teacher will continue next week with an examination of Carter's attitude toward Israel and the Jews.

PRESIDENT JAMES EARL CARTER JR. SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHER

 Former President Carter was famous, after his one term in office, for building homes and being a Baptist Sunday School teacher. But now, one wonders what he was teaching his class. 

It has now come to light that his favorite song was "Imagine" by John Lennon, a song described as the "atheists' anthem,” and a "humanistic Marxist Hymn." Its lines are antithetical to the most basic of biblical teachings:

"Imagine there’s no heaven

It’s easy if you try.

No hell below us

Above us, only sky."

Then there are these lines which would make Karl Marx smile:

“Imagine no possessions… no need for greed or hunger”, “no religion”, and “imagine there’s no countries."

Heaven, gone. Hell, gone. Private property, gone. Nations, gone. It is said that "Imagine" is sung as often as the National Anthem. One reporter described the song as "a radical challenge to militarism, nationalism, capitalism."

A duet sang "Imagine" at the former president's funeral service. Who chose that song? The former president did, specifying his desire in his instructions concerning the service. The performance was not a one and done; he chose it for his wife's service in 2023. One reporter wrote, "The rendition received a standing ovation, a powerful moment that underscored the emotional depth of the service and the enduring impact of Carter's vision for global harmony."

A standing ovation for the atheists' national anthem? A standing ovation for a Marxist melody? There were five U. S. former presidents and their wives in front and center seating among the assembled. Did all five stand and applaud? Then there were the assembled government leaders past and present, Democrat and Republican, all standing and applauding.

Carter was a globalist; no wonder he liked the song. He declared that world peace would only come about when the decisions of the U.N. Security Council were strictly enforced. We see his globalist dream in his description of himself as “a citizen of a troubled world” and he said his hope was for an “international community” that would “negotiate global standards” to achieve global peace. The global standards? I John 5:19 describes the origin of "global standards." 

As a secondary note, the National Cathedral is of the Episcopal persuasion, the song was prearranged and included in the program. The "church" leaders knew of its inclusion well in advance, yet they made no objections.

 President Carter didn't live long enough to see his dreams come true. Those perverted dreams will be fulfilled under the one world rule of the Man of Sin, the antichrist. So, in one sense, we could say that a Baptist Sunday school teacher spent his life and career longing for the coming of the antichrist. 

 

THIS IS INAPPROPRIATE!

 A police officer stands before the press and the people. The network television cameras from CBS, NBC, ABC are running; they are on the scene. There has been a school shooting leaving panic and grief in its wake. First responders are carrying out one body after another, They also carry wounded students and teachers from the building and put them into ambulances. Mothers are crying. Fathers stand stunned. We hear them say things like, "This wasn't supposed to happen here!" 

The school board will cancel all classes tomorrow. Grief counselors will attend next Monday when classes resume. The words, "Thoughts and prayers" flow freely. A church is spreading the news of a candlelight vigil tomorrow night at 7 PM in the church parking lot.

The police officer in a very authoritative voice begins to speak to the shocked and grieving mass of people and press huddled and hugging one another. 

His first words, after a brief update of the number of dead and injured, are those concerning the perpetrator who killed and wounded all those people. That would be a difficult task for anyone but he does it. It's his job to face parents and press. His feelings don't count.

Then he says, "This is unacceptable!" It's those word that strike a hollow cord. "This must stop?" Really? Does he himself believe, really believe, that what he just said is going to make anyone else gain the sense to know that it's wrong to go around school halls, libraries, and cafeterias shooting teachers and students?

The truth is that nobody thinks policeman's command will stop the next one or the one after that or the one after that from happening. The truth is: "The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it?" The truth continues from Jeremiah who wrote: "Can the Ethiopian change his skin Or the leopard his spots? Then you also can do good Who are accustomed to doing evil."

In Jeremiah's day, there came a point where Israel swam down the River of No Return. The society had passed the point where a change of mind was impossible because of their persistence in rebellion against God.

 The Israelites were so saturated in evil that it was impossible for them to change. They could no more change then than the dark Ethiopian could change the color of his skin or the leopard his spots. This a classic example of loss of freedom of the will through persistent sinning. Sin becomes so natural that Jeremiah is speaking of the force of habit, yet not denying freedom of choice they once had until they sinned it away.

The story is told of a Christian back in the days of the Roman gladiators fighting to the death in the Colosseum. He denounced it fully. But one day, he decided to go the arena only to get the experience of what it was like among the frenzied fans, getting on the inside.

He went but he kept his eyes closed and soaked in the emotional atmosphere. He left exhilarated and came back the next day. As he sat down, he kept one eye open. Returning the next day, he kept both eyes wide open and shouted with the thousands. 

Psalm 1:1: "How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the path of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of scoffers!