Eyes to See

 

"But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness !"        --  Matthew 6:23

I guess I thought as soon the former evil president was off the scene, people who'd followed him would come to their senses.  I thought the sounds of head-smacking, and cries of "WHAT WAS I THINKING !?!?," would resound throughout the land.

 

I was particularly hopeful the many deceived Christians...who know what "repentance" is, and how it's done...would turn back from their politics of lies and hatred.

 

The "Christian conservative" movement has quoted God's command from II Chronicles 7:14 so often, for so many years...against all those ungodly "other people:" abortionists, gay-rights activists, and "liberals"...that I hoped it might have lodged in their hearts...

 

...that if they truly desire God to "heal [our] land," it might come into their thinking that He requires "the people called by My name" to repent of their sins.  And I hoped they would.

But if what I've heard and seen from "conservative Christians" the last few days, from Franklin Graham on down, is any indicator, "Evangelicals" are as deceived as ever: indeed, more willfully insistent on being deceived, now that their cherished Liar suffered political defeat.

 

(Hasn't it been clear from their start that "conservative Christians" are more about politics than godliness ?  The vast number of their votes elected the "conservative" presidential candidate in 1980, over his Christian opponent.)

God says He will send "strong delusions" on "...those who refuse to love the Truth,"...and will PERSONALLY ensure that they will believe the lies of "the man of lawlessness (II Thessalonians 2:8-12)...and follow him to destruction.

That could well be the spiritual dynamic operating when Evangelicals' greatest "Super-Star" leader compares his departed sleaze-president to Jesus, to bash the "Judases" who politically "betray" him.

How profound is the darkness today over, and within, "conservative Christian" Evangelicals !  And how eternally irremediable for all who who know Who Truth IS...and willfully choose lies.

God, keep the hearts of those who truly love You stayed always on TRUTH !!

In Jesus' name, Amen.

Franklin Graham: no comment necessary

"The Rev. Franklin Graham compared the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach President Trump to Judas, the disciple who betrayed Jesus to the Roman authorities.

In a Facebook post...in which Mr. Graham praised Mr. Trump at length...the minister declared 'shame, shame' on those GOP lawmakers who 'joined with Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats in impeaching President Trump yesterday.'

'The House Democrats impeached him because they hate him and want to do as much damage as they can,' said Mr. Graham, president of Samaritan’s Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association.

'And these ten, from his own party, joined in the feeding frenzy. It makes you wonder what the thirty pieces of silver were that Speaker Pelosi promised for this betrayal,' he said."

https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2021/jan/14/franklin-graham-compares-republicans-voting-trump-/

 

Why Do We Pray for Authorities ?

                                                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                                              


Russell Young is a Christian writer, and evidently a pastor and blogger.  I'm not familiar
with him except that his writing appears frequently on a Canadian blog I follow called
"Christianity 201."

He recently wrote a piece there about I Timothy 1:2-3's admonition that we pray for those
in authority.  His comment about God's intent in that prayer seems particularly relevant.

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I urge you, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving
be made for everyone—for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful
and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.

 "Our authorities are part of our national body and have been put in place by God for the
achievement of his agenda. Prayers and petitions for authorities need not be directed for
partisan political purposes but for enhancement of the Lord’s kingdom within our own nations.
Through the affirmation of his rule believers can enjoy peace and a godly state."



I find Young's comment spot-on: our prayers are in support of God's rule in our nation, not in
support of our nation's ruler.

I'd invite readers to consider if that scripture's use by Franklin Graham and other Christian
"leaders," urging us to pray that God will uphold the current president against his political
"enemies," is in line with God's intent.

                                                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                                              

False "Leaders," Falsified Scripture, False Prayer

                                                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                                              

Last week, Franklin Graham and 300 other “Christian leaders” declared
a national day of prayer for the current president.  They cited the scriptural
command in I Timothy 2:1-4:

“First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and
thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who
are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all
godliness and dignity. This is good and acceptable in the sight of
God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to
the knowledge of the truth.”

This command to pray is especially relevant regards the current president.
There’s never been a president that we more need to pray will use his God-
given authority to give us “…a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.”

And there’s never been a president that we more need to pray will “…come to
the knowledge of the truth.”

But Franklin Graham didn't urge his followers to pray those scriptural prayers.
His facebook page instead urged Christians to pray for the current president
because “[his] enemies continue to try everything to destroy him, his family,
and the presidency. In the history of our country, no president has been attacked
as he has.”

Undoubtedly the current president made thousands of “enemies” in his life-long
business career…bitter former business-partners, victims of his Trump University
scam, banks who lost billions of dollars on his defaulted loans, unpaid contractors
on his building projects.

But Franklin Graham and the other "Christian leaders" are obviously referencing
the current president’s political “enemies,” and urging Christians to pray God will
uphold the current president against them.

Everyone should read the scripture Franklin Graham cites, and see if it commands
Christians to pray what Graham says we should pray.  Everyone should read to the
end of that passage, where it says our prayers for our rulers should be "without wrath
and dissension” (v. 8)...and decide if praying against the current president's political
"enemies" is in line with scripture's command of prayer in which is no dissension . . . 
one of the "deeds of the flesh" listed in Galatians 5:20, right next to "factions."

In the meantime, all Christians who love God's word, and love the Body of Christ,
should pray fervently that Christians will not be deceived by “leaders” who falsify
scripture to mislead God’s people to destruction.

Amen.

                                                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                                              

Repentance and Franklin Graham

                                                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                                              

I don't know how many times a year Franklin Graham preaches: maybe 150-200 messages, all over the world ?

In his lifetime I have to imagine he's preached the gospel message of repentance to hundreds of millions of people, in person, on radio, on T.V., in all the inhabited parts of the earth.

For an evangelist, of course, repentance is exactly the right message.  Repentance is the first step toward following Jesus: without looking honestly at all your wrong deeds and wrong ways, and turning away from them, no one can truthfully follow Jesus.

I wonder then if Franklin Graham believes in repentance.  He certainly knows what it is.  And if anyone knows how central repentance is to living in Christ, we'd have to say he know that, in and out.

Does Franklin Graham believe repentance is something he needs to do ?  I doubt he'd say or believe (as some church-goers seem to) that he repented on some specific date...and that took care of it.  I'm sure Franklin Graham knows that living in Jesus is a continuing process: I'm sure he knows that human beings continue flawed, foolish, rebellious, conniving, hypocritical, and self-deluded, in greater or lesser degree, every day of their lives.

I'm fairly confident that Franklin Graham is enough of an expert on the Biblical teaching about repentance to know that repentance has to be a daily discipline, a lifestyle, in every Christian's life.  I'm sure he's honest enough to realize that includes himself; and I'm sure he probably practices daily repentance in his own life.

So I have to wonder why he's never repented his endorsement of this current destructive president during the last election: or of appearing at last year's inauguration to tell the world the current president is "God's man:" or of his continuing support for the current president's violent foolishness, such as his threat to incinerate every North Korean in a nuclear attack ?

I have to believe Franklin Graham, of all people, must know that no one whose heart is continually filled with lies and murder (which Jesus defines as hateful contempt for others, in Matthew 5:21-22) is "God's man."  I'm sure he knows the scripture where Jesus said such a person shows he is satan's child (John 8:44).

Has Franklin Graham, the world's foremost preacher of repentance, confronted our current president with his need to repent all that ?   I of course have no way of knowing the answer to that question, one way or the other, with any certainty.  It seems unlikely, however, that anyone who'd told a sinner he needed to repent would thereafter approve and encourage him in his evil deeds.

Has Franklin Graham, the world's foremost preacher of repentance, looked at his own actions honestly; questioned if his public endorsement of a liar and murderer as "God's man" might have been wrong...and might have led millions who trust his spiritual leadership to revere and follow a person of the enemy's spirit ?

It seems a question that any Christian of rigorous honesty should ask himself, in his self-examination.  It seems a very great sin that any Christian should whole-heartily repent of.

Franklin Graham, like everyone else, will have to examine his own need for repentance.  He's preached that message often enough we have to presume he knows it.  But so does every other Christian: knowing about and doing repentance is the only way anyone has ever become a follower of Jesus, so we all have the necessary experiential knowledge.

So we all have the same question to ask ourselves in self-examination: have we obeyed God, or disobeyed Him, in what He commands of us ?  If we've disobeyed (and anyone honest with himself will sometimes have to admit he's missed God's mark), we have to choose...again, continuingly...whether or not we will confess and heartily repent our failing.

In this day, the great questions thrust on American Christians are whether God wishes us to follow and revere men of satan's character...and does He want His people to join themselves to liars and murderers, encourage them in their ways, and approve and support their evil-doing ?

It seems beyond incredible to me that Christians should EVER have to examine themselves on those self-evident questions: but the accelerating corruption of the times and the world has made it so.  And the "witness" of so many American Christians is corruptly affirmative to those questions that it's become controversial to even raise them to Christians.

(Note: those questions have become politically controversial...never Biblically controversial.)

But I hope some in the American Church will...in their secret heart, if not in public...consider those questions.  Anyone honest enough to ask themselves those questions, probably has the integrity to answer them honestly: and the courage to repent, if need be.

Two scriptures come to mind, to encourage anyone who will honestly self-examine::

"Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is...to keep oneself unstained by the world."     --  James 1:27

"Happy is he who does not condemn himself in what he approves."     --  Romans 14:22


                                                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                                              

Calling Out Franklin Graham

                                                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                                              

Donald Trump gave a speech at the United Nations last month.  In part, he said,

"The United States has great strength and patience, but if it is forced to defend itself or its allies, we will have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea. Rocket Man is on a suicide mission for himself and for his regime.”

I'll admit, I've become so used to his appalling bombast that I don't even hear it anymore; or if I do, I just ignore it as meaningless, as Trump being Trump.

If I thought about his words at all, it was only about his attempted cleverness in denigrating Kim Jung Un as "Rocket Man."

Benjamin L. Corey's blog made me remember that words, even Trump's words, have real meaning.  Made me remember that Jesus said, "But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken" (Matthew 12:36, NIV).

Corey pointed out that Trump's speech (even if it was Jesus' definition of "empty words") was a threat to kill 25 million people.  That his words meant he would kill all the civilians in North Korea.  Kill all children and babies who happen to have been born in North Korea.  Incinerate all its citizens who hate the government of North Korea, as well as the brainwashed millions who love it.  Kill all North Korean truck-drivers, grandparents, Christians, housewives, foreign diplomats, nurses as well as soldiers, because of where they live.

Even for those who accept Augustine's "just war" theory, Corey pointed out, Trump's threats do violence to all Christian understanding of Jesus' teachings, and all that He calls Christians to be.

Franklin Graham evidently didn't get it, says Corey.  Graham seems to have missed what Trump's words mean, or what Jesus' words mean.  Graham's facebook comment on Trump's speech was

"Thank God we have a president who stands for truth and is not afraid to speak truth to the whole world. President Donald J. Trump's address today to the United Nations General Assembly may have been one of the best speeches ever given to that body. It made you proud to be an American. I hope you will join me in praying for this man, that God will guide and direct him. He reminded the world, 'If the righteous many do not confront the wicked few, then evil will triumph.' "

Corey's full blog-post is at http://www.patheos.com/blogs/formerlyfundie/franklin-graham-trumps-kill-speech-one-best-ever/.